Chapter 5 - Breaking In or Breaking Out?

Chapter 5 - Breaking In or Breaking Out?

"So, Marcus? What do you think of it?"

"Hmm, can't lie to you Frank, it's growing on me."

I told the elderly man while walking around the spacious apartment. After counting the money I stole, which took a while, I sought out to find a place to live. I was contemplating whether or not to simply buy a house, but then I would actually have to integrate myself into the system, which I'm not in, and attract more eyes onto me with a photo of how I look like. Instead, I opted to go the easier route, get an apartment. Which was my preferred choice than a house right now.

I made sure I had a presentable look, some new clothes were in order as well. I wore black slim-fit jeans alongside a simple white t-shirt, I also brought along a black and white windbreaker. Even though August was ending soon, it was somewhat chilly today.

"It's got an impressive view, no argument there."

I commented while taking another look through the window, admiring the view of New York. Alongside a balcony, not a single building blocked the view from this location. At sunset, admiring the tall buildings of the Big Apple sounded delightful. The place itself was on the top floor of a ten-story building. In fact, the last floor only had one apartment, another feature I don't mind.

Aside from having two bedrooms, the living room was quite spacious, they even included a fifty-five inch TV, which seemed like it was bought not too long ago. The bathroom's design was outstanding, even though it seemed somewhat cramped. Last but certainly not least, my personal favorite and deal-breaker, the kitchen. It was all state of the art, the sheer detail and design put into it made my mouth water.

"I think my answer would be obvious by now, but yeah, I'll take it."

Frank and I continued to talk details, after a few minutes an elderly woman, Frank's wife came through the door.

"I'm sorry I took so long," Christine apologized with a sheepish smile as she approached us. "An old friend of mine wouldn't let me off the phone."

"Please, don't apologize. I didn't mind the wait."

Christine began digging through her pockets, taking out a key. "This is the spare key. I recommend hiding them in a secret place just in case you lose your main one. Also, I wrote down some things that may be useful in the future, so make sure you don't lose it."

"Seems like that's everything," Frank said, putting a hand on his wives' shoulder. "I already told him the conditions, along with all rest. Best we be going, now."

Christine nodded. "I hope you enjoy your stay here, Marcus. If you need anything, feel free to call us or knock on our door at any time."

"Will do," I promised while I escorted them to the door. "Oh, and Christine."

The old couple turned around. "Yes, dear?"

With a smile, I extended my hand. "My ID?"

"Oh, I completely forgot," Christine playfully slapped herself in the forehead, before searching through her other pockets. "Sorry about that, my boy. I'm getting too old for my own good."

"Don't worry about it, Christine," I reassured the woman as I took my ID back. "What kind of man would I be if I would hold something so insignificant against you?"

The elderly woman simply laughed it off, turning to her husband. "I like him, way more than our previous tenant…"

"Oh, please. Don't even remind me of that troublemaker…"

'Huh, guess that would explain why the TV appears new.'

With that said, the old couple and I exchanged our goodbyes as they began leaving, closing the door on their way out.

I held up my ID, fully rotating it. The letters, numbers, color, the small image started disappearing. Oh, magic, how I love you so. With a simple illusion spell, I created a fake ID card out of an old gym membership I found. Pretty convenient, right?

Well, now that this nineteen-year-old scored his own apartment, time for a quick makeover.

I opened several portals to get all my stuff into my new place. The books go on the bookshelf alongside a disguise spell to make them appear as regular books. Some materials I put away in my bag since they seem out of the ordinary, then placing things that appeared normal in where they would belong.

Then filling my drawer with tons of clothes. Yes, 'tons' of clothes. Not passing up a free chance to upgrade my appearance. Going into different stores and buying multiple clothes while making sure that appeared like I wasn't even there. Annoying, yes, but well worth the extra work.

As I was done, I filled the fridge up with tons of groceries I bought from various shops around Europe. Now that I have a kitchen and an amazing one at that, I can finally cook again. Hope I just haven't lost my touch.

Having completed all that, we move on to important business.

Placing the Codex on the counter, with two other books for further research. Another problem I had to realize first hand, was the way I fought yesterday. I won't lie, it was kind of sloppy. Fighting hand to hand wasn't the problem, I just got used to it over the last few months of just training. I started to like using projectiles and long-range spells, so I might want to use them more frequently. I'm still contemplating on whether or not to just use anything when confronted with a fight, as long as I'm not noticed by anyone important, I should be fine. That does still raise the problem of I do get seen, and use something that would appear absurd, so we'll need to work on quick decision making.

Better get to it then.

First things first, set up the alarms. Or in this case, wards.

For this one, it was simple to make, only quirk is to find what to make it with. I took a leaf of an ordinary house plant, which blends in perfectly with my environment. From one part alone, I created a fully grown plant with numerous leaves, the stem growing out of the singular leaf. Behind the leaves, however, hid a small yellow eye that was connected to it. The eye can stay well-hidden since the leaves make a good cover but will disappear if somebody steps too close to it. The plant was beaming with life, the golden aura surrounding it gave that one away.

The eye of the small plant turned towards me, blinking several times as its eye tilted to the side. Smiling down at the newborn plant, I trailed my finger on one of its leaves, earning a wiggle from my little ward. What a fascinating creature.

I grabbed an empty plant pot and opened a miniature portal somewhere in the forest outside of town and grabbed some soil for the pot. The ward itself didn't need soil or water to survive anymore, feeding it a very insignificant amount of energy can keep it alive for many years.

Over a few minutes, the plant gave birth to several seeds, their appearance being of one closed yellow eye. I took the seeds and placed them in my bag, then entering my Astral Form. I planted seeds all around the area, that being absurdly easy as it seems like an ordinary plant and could be practically anywhere. Around the corners should do it, some on the rooftops, on the ground, the entrance of the building, and of course, behind my front door and along the outer-area of my window.

They won't grow right away, might take an hour or two and they'll be active. Besides, nobody's going to notice them anyway.

How they work is that if they spot anything suspicious, they will alert me immediately thanks to a special rune on my arm that will feel its burning if I don't check the rune if I wanted it to stop.

Moving on, to get myself vision if such a scenario would happen, this where the second preparation begins.

One of the things I got from the London Sanctum was an animal contract. Some contracts are harder to get than others, but one raven would be more than enough. After a little while after setting that up, I summoned my bird. As per the contract, I had to give it a name and be careful if I were to enchant as such since different animals can handle so up to a certain degree.

Naming the bird Helix, not a very good choice for a name but moving on, I gave my new pet some useful enchantments to survive easier. Increased durability and speed should help the little guy greatly. I'll give it some time before making changes to him, just in case his body might not be used to so many changes at once.

Finally, I needed a way to keep track of what my bird finds. The Eye of Rodkil fits this bill perfectly. It will enable me to see what my bird sees, store it if I want to review it for a later date, and I could even connect it to my wards. So in addition to keeping myself safe, being alerted if something comes up, and have my very own spy, I'll know what's heading my way and have time to prepare.

Now that's a pretty good deal.

Aside from grasping numerous new spells, another small detail I should mention is I figured out how to increase my durability, just by a small amount. Like the way I could absorb the properties of metal, I can convert energy to flow all over my body to take a few extra hits. It's not much, until I can get an upgrade it will work just fine.

There are so many more things to prepare for. I refuse to die a second time. Taking into account all the possible threats, Thanos being one of them, death is all but certain. Not to mention other possible entities that can wreak havoc. I may be considered stupid for dipping my hand when given a second chance, only problem being that doing nothing is not an option for me. Even if I would travel to the edge of the galaxy, I'm not a hundred-percent guaranteed I'll survive. Before, I had no worries whatsoever, that's no longer the case sadly. I don't regret what I did, not for a second, I'll just try and keep my head up no matter what comes my way.

It's not all doom and gloom though, since I have some free time and a free ticket to any destination on the planet, how could I say no to a break?

---LineBreak---

'Hmm, now that's good coffee.'

I thought as I sipped my drink while admiring the scenery and busy traffic of Tokyo. I always wanted to take a trip to Japan, it's one of the destinations on my travel list. Sadly, affording such trips are expensive as is, so that dream had to be postponed for a while.

Until now, that is.

The ability to go anywhere, with the obvious inclusion of being extremely careful where you go and not attracting attention, being a Practitioner of the Mystic Arts does have its benefits. This particular café shop had a European aesthetic to it, and it even offered a reasonable food menu to choose from. My order was simple, a cappuccino and toasted sandwiches to get the day going.

"Oh yeah, I can get used to this." I thought while finishing up my second sandwich. It took another few minutes to finish my coffee, nonetheless I had time to spare. I wiped my mouth with one of the napkins as I stood up, taking one last look at this beautiful place. There's always next time.

Finding a safe location to teleport, I set foot back into New York, quite close to West forty-fourth St. to be exact. If that address rings any bells, it should since it belongs to the firm of Nelson and Murdock. It was behind the building in an alleyway, with no sight of life. Stepping out, I took a sharp left, approaching the barred door, swinging it open and heading upstairs. Going up to the second floor and going left, I moved toward the door with a cardboard sign taped to it.

Doing three knocks on the door, I waited for some sort of response.

Hearing a female voice giving the go-ahead, I opened the door and stepped in.

"Hello!" Karen Page said with a bright smile, standing up from her desk. "How can I help you?"

"Hi, this is the office of Nelson and Murdock, no?" I asked the blonde, then playfully slapping my forehead. "My bad, I shouldn't have just shown up out of the blue. Should have called beforehand and set up a meeting, huh?"

"No, no, it's alright," Karen said reassuringly while looking around the room before turning back at me. "And yeah, this is Nelson and Murdock. I take it this isn't what you were expecting?"

"In fact, quite the contrary," I looked around the office while making my point. "It's got character. So I think I'll be fine."

Karen chuckled at that. "It sure does."

After a few more seconds spent with random chatter, a man with long light brown hair in a suit entered from another room.

"Hey, Karen? Do you have that case file for the-" The man noticed me and stopped mid-sentence, forming a smile and extending his hand towards me. "Sorry, didn't see you there."

"Please, make nothing off it."

I said with my own smile, accepting his handshake. Then after he tidied his suit, he introduced himself.

"So, you're the Nelson in Nelson and Murdock. It's a pleasure to meet you, sir. Just like I said to your lovely assistant, didn't know if I should have called beforehand to see when you're available."

"No, it's no trouble at all," Foggy abruptly stated. "My partner and I are just in the middle of reviewing some files, but we are available at the moment."

"Is that so? Wonderful."

"Please, this way," Foggy motioned towards the other room. Before I walked past him, he called out to his assistant. "You can go on break early, Karen. I think we'll be good here."

"You sure?"

"Yeah. When we finish up here, we'll go somewhere for lunch." Foggy said, then calling out to me. "Would you like anything? Water, coffee?"

"Tea, please, if you have."

"What kind? We do have a few different ones to choose from." Karen asked.

"Surprise me."

Foggy proceeded to lead the way towards the other part of the office. We walked until we reached a closed door, opening it and revealing the blind lawyer walking back and forth while recording something, hitting the stop button when he heard us walk in. His face turned unreadable when he realized I entered with Foggy. Seems like he already figured it out.

"Matt, we got ourselves a client. Oh, and by the way, I never got your name."

"McField, Jack McField." I decided to swing with another fake name just in case. Going along with Foggy, I step closer to the blind lawyer. I didn't know how to introduce myself in this situation, turning to Foggy for some help. He told Matt I wanted a handshake, so the man complied.

"Matt Murdock. It's a pleasure to meet you." The man spoke, flashing a smile in the process as I accepted his handshake.

"Likewise."

Karen entered the room with, from the smell of it, it was cinnamon. I thanked her and before she left, asked again if the two lawyers needed anything, both declining and reassuring her she can go off to break.

When she left, Foggy gestured to one of the two seats, as two of them sat on the opposite side.

"So, Mr. McField, what can we do for you today?" Foggy started the ball rolling.

"Well, I was wondering if we can start with some legal advice first before we move on to my small dilemma. You know, to understand the lingo a little bit and such." I told the two while taking a sip of my tea.

"Sure, ask away. We aren't going anywhere, take your time."

"Let's see. First off, I was wondering if-"

I was interrupted when some music started playing, the sound muffled.

"Oh, excuse me for just a moment please." Foggy apologized as he took out his cell phone from his jacket. Looking at the number, by the look of his face, it was obvious that he didn't recognize it. Answering it, he rarely got a chance to speak, only muttering a few times to signal that he was following along. Then responding "okay" numerous times, the line hung up.

"It was... someone from City Hall. Saying I should come ASAP, something about there being some error with our files?" Foggy turned to his partner. "Didn't say any specifics, but it sounds hectic down there. Should head over there and see what's up. Will you be fine soloing this one?"

"Yeah. I think we'll be just fine." Matt said to his partner, then shifting his focus onto me.

"Thanks." Foggy thanked his friend, then turned to me with an apologetic look. "I'm so sorry for the inconvenience, Mr. McField."

"No worries," I reassured the man. "Some other time perhaps. Go do what you have to, sounds important though."

Foggy thanked and apologized once more, grabbing his suitcase and hurried out the door. I took another sip of my tea in the meantime, Matt and I staring down at one another.

"You seriously don't expect that I'll start us off, do you?"

I leaned in my chair and crossed my legs, placing my hands atop of one another. "I must apologize for lying to your partner just now. I'm sure you heard that gibberish over the phone, no?"

His face hardened. "I did."

"Good, just wanted to get out of the way," I said. "Can say, you're looking good for someone who danced with a dozen or so criminals the night before."

"How did you find me?

"You're a lawyer? You advertise your name, it isn't that hard to track down, you know."

"You know what I mean," Matt said harshly, and honestly I couldn't blame him.

"As for that, I have my methods, mind you. But don't threaten, just like our last encounter, I come in peace. Your assistant just went off to break, and since your partner has left the building, I thought it would be an opportunity to talk in a secluded environment and in a more civilized manner."

Matt remained still, but eased up ever so slightly, leaning back in his chair. "Even then, you just show up at my workplace?"

"I mean, yeah. You're a lawyer, which means I can only find you on working hours, and I won't even start on what we do in our free time, we both have something we want to stay secret. So I think we're fine on that front."

Matt just grumbled at that. "Everything is so easy with you, is it?"

"I wouldn't go that far. If it's any consultation, I did find out what you were searching for." I told him.

"Which is?"

"The boss of those knuckleheads with guns," I half answered. "Honestly, I can't say I was happy when I figured out who it was. Norman Osborn."

Matt's eyes widened as his head perked up. Leaning forward, he rested one arm on the table and the other on his chin. "Why would Osborn be behind the kidnappings?"

"Another detail I overheard while spying on those punks, they used specific terms for their hostages. From what I could gather, Osborn uses the people his underlings' capture as test subjects for his various experiments. I don't know yet where he keeps them, or where these experiments take place, but I should know soon enough."

"How so?" Matt asked. "In fact, how do you know all this?"

"I followed that car that got away and stormed their hideout."

Matt simply raised his eyebrow ever so slowly. "What are you looking at me like that? I found you going up against a swarm of them."

"You came in today, tricked my partner into leaving, just to tell me all this?"

"Given the fact that the address where we fought yesterday just about crossed the line with Hell's Kitchen, where I presume where you usually operate. Along with a crazy billionaire funding random criminals with high caliber weapons, ones that most likely had their serial numbers removed, I thought it might be a fine piece of information. Isn't it?"

"You said you visited them yesterday, correct?" Matt asked, responding with a nod. "This morning, there weren't any new files that said anything about criminals being apprehended, nor the possession of any weapons. I'm sure there was noise over there, I doubt the police weren't involved for a checkup. Hmm, strange."

This is… interesting. So there's a chance someone's keeping them from getting into the system, as of yet at least. Damn, this could complicate things.

Matt rubbed his chin, staying quiet for a few seconds while he processed everything. "So it was Osborn's doing. That still doesn't explain the motive. Why would a successful businessman put himself at such a high risk? Sure, even if the weapons are untraceable, that would seem irresponsible on his front if he were to get caught."

"Well, I'm sure some shady deals are in play here, and with a figure such as Osborn, I honestly doubt he didn't take the proper precautions to keep himself an enigma." I theorized. "For his motive. From what I know, Oscorp has multiple divisions under its belt, right? With human test subjects, it isn't hard to guess what he's up to."

"It's possible, however then comes the problem, a lack of evidence," Matt stated. "Hypothetically, if Osborn was behind it, getting proof can be impossible. The place and the people working in that field aren't that easy to dig up. Especially with Oscorp's resources."

"And if I were to provide evidence, hard evidence, then it would be possible to put an end to them?"

Matt raised an eyebrow. "Yes, "if" solid evidence is provided, things could get significantly easier. But that begs the question, how do you plan on getting it?"

"It's not a question of how, but when. It might take a while before I come close to something useful, I'll drop it off when I do."

"It would seem that's it," I stood up from my seat with a smile. "I thank you for your time, Mr. Murdock. I'll contact you if something comes up, so I'll leave you this," I reached into my pocket and placed a grey stone with a blue circle and dot in the middle. "In case you find yourself in a jam or want to talk without anyone eavesdropping, use this. Tap it three times in the center then hold for a few seconds until I respond."

Matt took the stone in his hand, trailing his thumb around it as he was inspecting it. I said my goodbyes and went towards the door. My hand went to turn the handle, but I was stopped by Matt. "Wait."

Turning around, I looked at the lawyer, waiting for him to continue.

"How?"

Matt asked, motioning the stone. I'm sure he already identified something strange about it. With a smile, I responded. "It would ruin the mystery if I simply gave the answer away, wouldn't it?"

With another goodbye, I closed the door, exiting the building to continue on with my day.

---LineBreak---

'Come on… show up already.'

I was sitting down on top of an old abandoned hospital, waiting for the clock to hit midnight. When I arrived here, I scouted the area to make sure I was the only person here. The place itself was deserted, and was near the outskirts of town, making it an ideal place for a sketchy meet like this.

I had wards all over the place and had small circles hovering beside me to keep an eye on the place. Deciding to show up earlier was a good idea, so I can't complain too much. I'm not even sure if Osborn's men will even show up, but if what Matt said was true, the meeting isn't called off just yet.

On the lower left window, a ward spotted a black van coming and going out of view. Taking a look at a different one, it displayed the van from another angle, then all of them showing the vehicle a few seconds later. It parked right next to the entrance.

About time.

Forming the necessary seal on the ground, I summoned Helix. The raven jumped to my arm and turned towards me.

"Hey there, little guy," I trailed my finger across the bird's head, then pointing at the van on one of the circles. "See this? You need to track and follow them. There are most likely two of them, don't lose either of them when they go their separate ways. Gather as much intel as you can, every single address is important if we're to find the people they captured. It's the reason we're even here."

Hearing an engine coming to life, it would seem that the time is up.

"It's up to you, Helix," I said to my bird as I peeked over the edge, catching the van driving off. "Don't let them get away!"

Right on cue, the bird flapped its wings and launched itself forward at immense speed. While ordinary ravens by themselves are considered fast, with all the enchantments I gave my pet it shouldn't have any problems following its target.

With the vehicle leaving the area completely, I stood up and stretched. Now that I have taken care of, all that's left for me to do is wait. They can't be that careless to show up at their hideout right away with no delivery, it would have suspicion written all over it if they did. But then again, they haven't been caught yet so there's that. At the very least, it might take a few days before the two even go there.

Just hope that the people they're experimenting on can hold on for just a while longer.

---LineBreak---

"The results are in, Mr. Killian! This is our best sample yet! Furthermore, all signs point to this being the perfect sample of the Extremis Project. In comparison, none of the fatal side-effects from our previous versions haven't come up, nor any indication of them appearing at all."

"Excellent news, Maya!" Aldrich Killian clapped loudly with a wide smile. "That's what I like to hear. Finally, after all these years, we have it!"

The businessman and scientist continued to discuss further their achievement, going along with the other numerous scientists that were accompanied by them.

The laboratory of the A.I.M. division was mind-boggling, to say the least. Everything was state of the art, which is to be expected considering how much Killian funded the project. This wasn't in their main headquarters, rather in one of the many testing facilities they had where ordinary folk wouldn't snoop around. Sitting on top of the roof of the lab in my Astral Form, I observed the demonstration first hand and paid attention to every single word they said. Anything that can come in useful for my plan later.

Looking back on Iron Man 3, I'll be honest, I really liked that movie. Sure, it had its flaws and problems, and the twist with the Mandarin, I can see why it didn't sit well with some fans. But considering that the "real" Mandarin is somewhere about, it would be wise to go after one at a time. My only concern would be the Vice President, but a solution for that won't be too difficult to find later on.

For the Extremis itself, I had no idea what to do with it, not yet at least. For all its worth, it's a powerful tool that can be useful in the future, and better for it to be in my hands than in anyone else's. I was honestly lucky that I stumbled on the completed version of Extremis. While waiting for Helix to find my two worms, I decided it might be best to do some tech shopping. While I may not be too well versed with technology that can allow me to make my own gear, having some equipment was more important.

As for the building itself, it was relatively easy to figure out the layout and its locations. I use the term "relatively easy" as when magic is added in the equation, any problem can become significantly simpler to figure out.

Oh yeah, way easier.

Back to the equipment I wanted to take, I think I've already completed my list. I'm not an egghead to know the full extent of the machines and how to properly utilize them, but with the help of the Astral Dimension and learning how they operate, in addition to getting more tools, later on, I'll have an easier time in that area.

Overhearing Killian and Maya with their discussion, the man spoke how eager he was to inject himself with the Extremis as soon as possible. The procedure for this sample took place a few days ago, or maybe even more, but given how the tests were all positive, it seemed like he couldn't contain his excitement any further. Scheduling for the procedure to take place later in the evening. The scientists took the Extremis sample in a special vault down in the lab. Oh boy, did they lock it up good. It was sent deep inside the wall, but it had nothing on the other end. Just enough space around the small container. So that's where it's hiding, smart.

Snatching it was no problem, but I decided to give them the old switcheroo. Since he plans to inject himself with the stuff, what a worse way to end yourself than by your own creation?

Was it cruel of me to do such a thing? I would say so, and I contemplated whether or not to do the deed. I wasn't comfortable doing it but would be the "easier" route per se.

This man is a menace. The sooner he's out of the picture, the more problems I can cross off the list as well. Nothing good will come out the longer this man is still breathing. Since something in my stomach is preventing from straight-up killing a man, this route would ease my head a bit at least.

Going through the different rooms of the building to find the other Extremis samples, I took one at random since I don't care, or bother checking. All of the Extremis models were stored into the same metal containers, stored into different sections of the safe, allowing me to make the switch with no problem. Another idea I should consider is wiping all of the data off their servers and save a copy for myself. My reason for this is that even if Killian is out of the picture, having that data lying around for anyone to access in the company can't just be ignored. As for Maya Hansen, she was a brilliant scientist and her talents were wasted with him. Preventing her death will allow me to recruit her, and with my calculations, I would have everything I need to persuade her, while also cleaning all the research here.

They also made an antidote for the subject that took in the Extremis. If you act quickly, you can prevent the Extremis from spreading, and if the person didn't lose any limbs during that period, they could be saved with minimal damage. It was in such small doses, the cure was inside the barrel of a needle. I took the two that were available at the time.

Now, of course, accessing a highly secured server containing important information and research of such a chemical isn't that easy. Hacking is a different plate I couldn't even eat from. But luckily, I found out what was needed to get in. A key card for a computer, an Identification Card from either Maya or Killian and the password. By paying attention when they went on the computer, I knew the password already. Maya had a secondary key for the computer, and Killian was trickier to get. It was on him most of the time, no clear window for me to take it. The computers they had here weren't anything special, but in their main headquarters held the master computer, that's where I'm going to grab anything important.

This is my only shot, it's now or never. Let the show begin I suppose.

Killian took off his suit jacket in the other room near the lab. Taking the key out, I took care of any cameras that were in my area, and the other places I plan to be at. I placed several wards around key parts of the building, I have to keep tabs on a certain target. That being the only other Extremis user. Need him to be separated, then take him by surprise with the antidote. Better to get that out of the way as easy as possible.

Going back to my body, I teleported inside the room of the main computer, which was also the server room. Before anything else, since the place was empty and no available surveillance, I needed to reinforce the door. Finding the appropriate spell, with a few hand gestures, I sent several blue chains towards the door, along with a white rectangle that fitted perfectly. I'd be a shame If anyone catches me copying the files, that is if they have luck getting through the door that is, heh.

A little fun fact, this computer won't be turned off by a regular power outage. Once I found where the power box was, all it took was a few seconds of amplified electricity added to the mix to send the place into darkness. I already set up a small explosive at the compound's box and backup generator as well, which should have went off by now.

Going towards the computer, I took out the two cards and placed them in their designated ports on the large keyboard. Upon doing so, the screen lit up, requesting a password to continue. Entering the necessary code, I was greeted with a massive folder containing all of A.I.M. and just as expected, there was a simple folder titled "Project Extremis" thereafter searching for a bit.

I took out the hard drive I'd bought, connecting it to the computer, then began copying the whole folder, along with other interesting stuff.

I looked through all the circles that my wards provided. Killian was already fuming, going into full panic mode when everything went dark. He demanded his workers to get the power back on, but it would take a couple of minutes before everything was back up. I was more focused on finding the only person who poses a threat currently.

'There you are.'

The bald Extremis user, wearing full black attire was on the move. He was moving along the East side of the building, appearing to be going towards Killian in quite a hurry. Hmm, let's see now, how do I do this? Since he was alone, it would be a one on one which works well in my favor. Wait... where did he take a turn? Oh! I know! That was the gym, it had two entrances and it is a short cut, along with only one camera in the corner.

Oh, well thank you for making it easier my friend.

I prepared my two spells I planned to use right away. Counting the seconds in my head how long it would take him to enter the gym, I opened a small portal in the other corner of the room so nothing was into view. First, I dropped in a cube of electricity that retained its form a few seconds until it was dropped in, exploding across the whole room. He should feel a slight tingle, but the camera will be out of commission for a little while. Secondly, I threw out a Lumen Sphere a little further away, it still managed to blind him.

Opening a portal behind him while he clutched his eyes, with my left hand I shot out three dark green energy tentacles and restrained him. I choose these ones because they work well against super-strength individuals.

As I ran towards him, the tentacles shortened their length to better accommodate me, with my other hand searching through my bag for the needle. The man's neck and face started burning up, his Extremis already activating.

The man grabbed the tentacles with some difficulty, swiftly turning to the side while trying to break the hold on him. As a result, I was lifted off my feet, flying over some of the gym equipment, landing across the other side of the room. Once my feet met the ground, I broke off the tentacles from the middle, the three retracing back to my arm as I backed off by a few steps, crouching with that same hand while my other one was behind my back, in it held the antidote inside my sleeve.

I wasn't even a few meters away from him when I teleported in, even then he was quick to react. I need just a second for him to be immobilized to get a proper injection without breaking the needle. Right now, I was thinking about what strategy to go about.

When his eyes finally landed on me, he stayed still, scanning me from head to toe. Not much time had passed before his neck and face started glowing, opening his mouth to let out a beam of fire from his mouth towards me.

So that's the way we're going to do it.

Throwing the needle back into the bag, I slammed both my hands together, two dark blue spell rings formed from behind me, shooting out two bright green beams to stop his blast, exploding as they met each other halfway. Another round was fired right after, knocking the Extremis user away.

The blast burned through his clothes, revealing his red glowing chest while regenerating some minor damages. The man checked his chest to see numerous holes regenerating back up. Setting his sights back on me, he went for another attack, while building up energy in his arms as well. When enough was built up, he fired three beams at his target.

Throwing in another set of hand gestures, three additional spell rings appeared one on each side and one above me. Their color changing to light blue. Shooting my hand out, each spell rings let out a blue stream along with a white outer shell surrounding it. This one is more effective against fire-based projectiles.

As the two attacks met, my projectiles easily cut through his, hitting him across the chest a few moments after, sending him flying backwards. He smashed through multiple gym equipment and didn't stop until he slammed into a wall, destroying the shelf and leaving a nice dent in the wall. His body fell down with his head lowered.

From this distance, I could see that whatever was left of his clothes on his upper area was completely gone. A good portion of his skin was blown off, the clothes burt while his exposed parts tried regenerating.

As I said, effective. I stood still, better to keep my distance after all. The man attempted to stand up, but wherever his hands touched only destroyed the remaining parts of the shelf, his body still taking some time to fully regenerate. I looked up in the upper corner, then to the two exits.

Might as well not be too cocky.

Turning one right towards the camera, I blew it to bits with a weak beam, but it was enough. Using two of the five rings, I sent them towards the two exits, expanding in size until it covered any possible entry. The man was now back on his feet with his head down, barely keeping his balance. Raising his head, I could see the left side of his face growing back. As it did, he charged towards me full speed, his hands burning as he charged up his attack.

Alright, let's get this over with.

---LineBreak---

"What... the fuck is going on?!"

Aldrich Killian roared across the room, hearing frightful responses from the scientists around him. One of the male scientists took in as much courage as he could muster, and began approaching his boss.

"It-It seems that all of our power generators are having trouble going back up!" His assistant spoke, voice trembling with fear.

"What about that sound? I could feel it from here. Where's Eric?"

"He was last spotted going towards the gym." A female scientist spoke up.

Killian walked towards the numerous screens, scanning through the camera feeds. Some of them being out of function completely. Finding the camera that would display the gym, only to show a static feed.

He slammed his hand on the desk, the hit knocking out some keys off of the numerous keyboards. "Goddammit, where is he...!?"

"We can connect back to camera B-17, give us moment sir!"

The male scientist began furiously typing away on his keyboard. At first, there was no change on the screen. After some time, small snippets flashed across the screen, but with a ray of red that quickly disappeared. Eventually, the view of the gym became more visible, Eric standing in the farther side of the room while using Extremis. Kilian's eyes hurriedly turned to the person that Eric was firing heat-beams at. The person wore a mask and some weird outfit, but what surprised him that this person fired its own beams to counter Eric's. Before he knew it, Eric was blown away across the room, destroying anything in his way. A flash of blue then appeared, turning the screen back to static.

"No, no, no, no, no!"

Killian muttered, his tone increasing each time he repeated the word, slamming his open hand on the table as well. Not now, not when everything was finally ready. Why? Why now?

This explains the power outage, the cameras not working, he was behind this. Did this person know about Extremis? If so, knowing its completion as well?

It has to be. This was no ordinary attack. Killian couldn't even think how this scum knows about Extremis, especially how tight under wraps it was. That wasn't the issue anymore, what's important now is to eliminate this intruder.

What a perfect time it was.

"Is our completed Extremis still in the safe?

"Y-Yes, sir. There was no indication that it was-"

"Get it ready," Killian cut off the scientist, not looking away from the static feed. "I'll deal with this rat, personally."

---LineBreak---

I dodged and blocked the attacks from the Extremis user, not letting a chance for a single projectile to strike me. Close range combat is not much of an option, so I had to keep my distance. The rings also helped to block pieces of metal that headed my way from the destroyed gym equipment, in fact, a few more of this and it won't resemble a gym at all.

The longer his Extremis is in use, the faster his body will regenerate. I'll have to prioritize stun spells before anything else. Another attempt of charging towards me all the while shooting heat projectiles at me, I had to be quick on my feet, moving back as my spell rings flew around me to block them, then flying at him when he got close, slicing his arms off piece by piece. His limbs quickly grew back, only to be chopped off again.

While going backwards, I prepared the spell that would slow him down. I had to be careful where I moved since only the area I marked will be of use. When the rings sliced through his arms, two of them hovered beside the sides of his head. When it was in place, it shot out thick blue beams, the temperature around us drastically decreasing. From his head down to his shoulders, his body began freezing. The Extremis tried removing all of the ice, but it took time and more heat to overpower the beams from freezing his body.

He began walking backwards while attempting to shield himself from the cold. I flipped through the Codex and tapped the premade spell I planned to use, tapping the text when I found it.

From the floor, dozens of green vines erupted from beneath him, piercing through his legs and went all the way to his arms, then swiftly moving up his neck to lock him in place. The vines that got cut off grew back, only becoming harder to move. Seizing the opportunity, I ran up to him while taking out the needle, finding a clear spot on the left side of his neck.

Quickly injecting the antidote, I left the needle in its place and moved back, the vines holding on till the last second. The rings stopped any incoming attacks, firing a few of its own at the man to push him back. The longer he tried fighting back, it became more difficult for him to keep up. Compared to before, the red glow around his body started dying down. He was still able to shoot out heat beams but were greatly weaker. While his wounds still healed, it was evident the effects were wearing off.

The man took a knee, breathing heavily, it seems the injection was doing quick work. I walked towards him, kicking him right in the head as a finisher. Now that the only Extremis soldier was taken care of, all that's left to do is to see if I can snag some equipment while I'm here.

This being their main location for testing, it had a lot of equipment lying around. I knew some of them and their purpose already, while I was far less familiar with the other machinery, I took it anyway. Trust me when I tell you, there were a lot of them.

While taking more and more machinery, a strange sound grew louder. On the wall to my right, a spot on the dark gray started turning red, the area growing exponentially. After a few seconds, the wall exploded, sending large pieces of rock in my direction. I had to jump back so I wouldn't get hit.

From the smoke, a shirtless man emerged. That man being Aldrich Killian himself.

.

.

.

With what fucking kind of Extremis did I switch the main one with?!

He was barely recognizable. His body was larger than his regular size, the arms appeared to be bulkier when in Extremis form, the same going for his upper body. It had a look similar to molten rock, his own form of armor, thick lines of red all across his arms and torso, only expectation of one line trailing up to his head, all of them connected to a glowing core in his chest. Couldn't believe the change was this drastic.

"You picked the wrong night to pay a visit." Killian taunted, a devilish smirk on his face as he took a few steps forward.

"I think I picked a good time." I tried showing no concern but was slightly nervous. If I make a move to teleport away, he can catch up or stop me mid-way. Not from this distance at least, but I doubt I'll get enough room to do so.

Looks like I'm stuck.

Killian decided to act first, clasping his hand together to combine the individual beams, forming a large one because of it. Throwing my left arm out and hitting the palm of it with my other hand to activate a see-through light blue shield to cover my body. When his beams met my shield, it still felt like a massive force hit me, it was even dragging me away slightly. My arm started to shake from holding it up against this, resorting to keeping it in place with my other hand for it not to break, fighting through the pain. When the heat died down, I had to act fast.

Already having my freeze spell active, I threw my arm out to shoot a pure white beam that acted similar to cold air at Killian, diverging into multiple beams to hit him all around the body.

The side beams did prove effective at catching him off guard, with the main beam connecting to all the spots where the other ones landed. Just as his body started freezing, the Extremis kicked into overdrive, forming enough heat around his body to easily remove the ice. Using his entire body to channel a powerful enough blast, my ice beams were repelling back.

Pulling my left hand behind my back, I dug through my bag to pull a pink crystal sphere the size of a baseball, throwing it in the middle of the two beams. When in range, the sphere absorbed mine and Killian's beams, resulting in an explosion, brown vapour beginning to spread. Turning on my heel, taking cover by a nearby desk while forming the same shield I used not a minute ago. This particular crystal, when absorbed enough force before exploding, will cause more damage to anything breathing in the area.

Looking back at Killian, I watched as his "armor" was slowly disintegrating, along with parts of his head. With a war cry, the lines around his body began glowing brighter, the Extremis undoing all of the damage it was dealt. Fully healed up, he charged in my direction, shooting out one heat beam after another.

Running along the field of desks, I formed a spell ring for additional protection. I had a brief window in-between attacks to properly duck and jump to not get hit. The amount of time needed to open a portal and get through the other side is too long, I don't see myself getting a clear shot. Against this Extremis variant, it's either strong or more difficult spells to even fight.

Screw it, I'll try anyway, he'll blow up either way. Hopefully.

In the direction of the exit, which was about fifteen meters away, I began forming a portal. Since I was running, I was very close to passing through, but with a wave of fire with Killian in the forefront heading my way that was slightly quicker, I had to abort. Jumping off to the side, I escaped the blast by just a hair. I made other attempts, even moving the portal closer, but Killian didn't stop firing. I couldn't afford to get hit. Having no room left to turn to, I used a quick spell allowing me to run up the wall.

Killian leaped into the air, fire forming around his body, now reminiscent of a meteor. Forming the green-jaded hook, I shot it upwards at the ceiling, pulling me Even though I managed to avoid him, the whole wall started collapsing. I was quick to react, jumping to larger pieces of rock, getting down on the ground safely. The whole area around us lit up in flames.

Seizing the moment, I flipped the pages till I found a certain enchantment. Tapping the text, my hand was covered in a white aura, bringing my hook closer. I trailed my hand over the blade, it began to take a more frozen appearance. Now mixed with white and light blue accents, along with an icy-trail how cold it got. With my weapon ready, I flung it towards Killian.

He dodged the first throw, then I pulled it back to strike him from behind. Seeing the change of course for the chain, Killian ducked at the last second. The hook was easily flung back towards him, changing its course was a nice trick I learned. Not expecting that quick of another assault, Killian didn't retract his left arm in time, losing half his arm because of it. The wound wasn't healing because the area was covered in growing ice, resisting the increasing heat.

Using his other arm to fire back at me, kicking the hook away. I pulled on the chain, the end of it coming into reach. Spinning the hook to create a shield with the icy-aurora on the chain itself, blocking the fire. Repositioning, I threw it again.

It took a few tries to get close moving around the fire, but with a pull of the chain, the blade cut off his other arm. The blade's sharpness accompanied with the frozen enchantment did wonders.

With that done, time to fight fire with fire. Actually, water with fire.

If I can't use a portal to make my escape at the moment, nothing stopped me from gaining a boost from it. Opening a new portal on the ceiling, water immediately came flooding in. Under these circumstances, I'll need to use some amped-up control. I'll be stuck using one hand, but that will only mean he'll have it easier. The water started calming down, sprouting numerous streams from the source.

Throwing my hand out, I sent the first stream his way. The smirk on his face vanished instantly as the stream pierced his torso and sent him across the room, leaving a dent in the wall. It wasn't hard to tell that he was caught off guard by the attack, but this is just the beginning. Another stream came beside him, not giving him a second of rest.

He was sent upwards, stopping when he hit the ceiling, another stream hitting him before he could fall down. The same water that was around him pushed him downward faster. As his body flopped to the ground, I didn't allow him to even stand up, another wave hitting him from above. My fingers danced up and down, with each movement commanded a new stream to pummel Killian further into the ground. With each blow, it creating a larger hole. I had to resort to using the energy I saved up, but I could feel it pulling a strain on my arm.

I was never good at psychics, so I can't properly calculate how much force was put into them. But if I were to make an assumption, I'd say each hit was like a vehicle going at full speed. As a final blow, I created two large claws that towered around ten or so meters. Controlling the claws with one hand was tricky since two individual fingers commanded only one of them. The claws slammed down at Killian, creating another explosion around him, sending the water everywhere.

It took a while before he would get up, the ice finally disappearing, allowing his arms to grow back. Killian shot out a wave of fire, the water easily putting a stop at his attempts. Seeing as nothing would work, Killian went for a different approach. He stood in place, fire surrounding his whole body. The marls on his body shined brighter as well.

Then, Killian charged at me, followed along with the fire that escaped his body. He was going headfirst with an all-out attack. Commanding the water, I had it circle around him until it built up, capable of holding him inside the newly formed sphere. Clasping my hands together to hold it in place, fully setting my concentration on keeping the sphere active. I could feel sweat started to form beneath my mask, the harder it becomes to hold it up the hotter he gets. At a certain point, I noticed a change in Killian's behavior. While at the start he was calm and concentrating to break free, now his body shifted all over the place, his head going back and forth while most likely screaming. The water of the sphere started boiling, steam and bubbles on the inside.

More fire started coming out of his mouth more than anywhere else. The beam went upwards, that area being the hardest to keep intact. It's then I realized what most likely happening.

For a split moment, I contemplated the situation I found myself in and what I was doing, but it was too late. This wasn't like before when I can quickly change my mind at the last minute, what's done is done, and I'll have to live with that decision.

The inside of the bubble became less visible as time went on. The last thing I could see is Killian throwing his head back, more bubbles clouding the view. Suddenly, the hear beam pierced through the sphere, followed by a powerful explosion, the water lowering the intensity but it could still be felt all around. Slowly, the sphere began falling apart, a limp body dropping onto the ground with a splash.

Approaching the burnt body of Aldrich Killian. Getting a closer inspection of the now-deceased man, I felt a bit… nauseous. There was no head attached to the body, and there was a part around the chest in the shape of a "V" no longer there, like it was cut off. The second layer of skin started falling off in chunks, but the skin was barely sticking together. It was like the last remains of a victim caught in a trap from the Saw movies.

I had to turn away before I threw up, it truly was a gruesome sight. I feel as like this image is never going to escape my brain. Taking in several deep breaths to regain my thoughts, I knew it was time to leave, but before I can go, however, I can't forget about this.

A quick portal to the computer, the files were copied. Taking back my hard drive, I started the process to delete everything. Looking to my side, I could hear banging on the door. No use guys, you won't get through.

That's it, after this, I need a slight break.

---LineBreak---

"Okay, a pinch of this should do the trick…"

Another benefit of teleportation, in my opinion, is to get any sort of ingredient for whatever meal. I got everything necessary to make chicken noodle soup and my favorite meal of all time, classic lasagna. Being out of the loop for three months made me a little rusty, so I didn't want to make anything too difficult.

Adding the final touches to my lasagna, I showed it into the oven, all that's left to do is wait. In an hour and twenty minutes, my first and proper meal will be ready. Three months. Three months of

Also, I can't begin to explain how easy and beneficial it was to mix up my cooking with magic. Not time-consuming like it was before, multiple steps being done at once, oh, and above all, it was fun. Aside from numerous things flying around and making sure everything was moving smoothly, it felt great to try a different and interesting method for cooking.

My train of thought was broken when I heard a noise coming from behind me.

Turning around, I saw Helix tapping the glass window with its claw. Rushing towards the window, I opened it to allow my bird to enter, jumping right onto my arm. "There you are, little guy, I was worried there for a second."

I got out a bowl and filled it with water. Enchantment or not, taking proper care of my pet comes first. I sat down on the bar table as I placed the bowl down, signaling Helix to drink as much as he wanted. He jumped at the edge of the bowl, and after about a minute, he was already finished.

"Now then…" I snapped my fingers, a yellow sparkling circle with no image appeared next to him. "What do we have?"

Helix got into a more comfortable position, then creating a thin line of green energy that connected to the yellow circle. It started right where I told it to follow the van a few nights ago. With a few finger twirls here and there, I increased the speed on which the footage played. At first, it showed the van dropping off the passenger before going off on its own.

The guy in the van hid the car in a garage far away in the city. Then it was a couple of days' speed up, neither of them did anything suspicious or even go far outside their homes. So far, everyday normal life. Then, when the sun started to set, one of them went off in the city. I paused it, then rewind a few minutes and start again at normal speed. The man used his car to get to the area where he stored the van, hiding his ride in a parking garage, then walking down a few blocks to the building with the van.

From there it was just driving around the city, but it did have a route. It reached its destination, that being... inside a fish market? Now that's a poor choice however you make it. That one stayed in there for a while, only leaving a few hours later. In the meantime, Helix went to observe the other one. He stayed in his flat but joined a few hours later by walking for a bit and going on the bus. The two men left the building at the same time but went their respective ways.

So this might be the place, eh? Again, not what I was expecting, but still, the whole point of it is not being suspicious. Must be somewhere underground. In that case, we have to make a detour before dinner.

After some preparations, I opened a portal to the highest building in that area. From this height, I should be in the clear and with some security stones around me. Going into my Astral Form, I floated down to the fish market that was a few blocks away. Once I got in, I searched for a way downstairs, coming across the elevator. But here's something that didn't add up, it went only one level underground and one level up into the building.

The room underground was nothing but storage. Okay, what's the game here? I went back into the elevator and dived down further. Lo and behold, the shaft went further down. I flew back up in the elevator, trying to find a secret button, it had to be somewhere. I found it a few seconds later. On the top left corner of the small place, there was a small compartment that popped out, revealing enough space to fit a finger inside, right there being a button on the side.

Now that I knew that, I went back down. It's significantly deep, I'll tell you that much. When I floated down to the elevator doors, I passed through them, entering a hallway. There were three paths, down in the middle, left and right. The room on the right consisted of several men sitting around, some resting while the other ate from the numerous food containers, while the one on the left was used for storage.

Only one room left.

Going into the last one, I phased through the two metal doors, seeing a high-end laboratory before my eyes. Compared to the other rooms, no inch of space was wasted, filled with various machines, beds with restraints, and different types of equipment. Looking around, I saw a cage that contained a couple of people. They appeared to be asleep, but I wasn't sure, but the needle marks on their arms were enough for me.

"Aaarghhhhhh!"

A loud and beastly cry echoed across the laboratory. I flew further down until I reached the corner, making a sharp left. The moment the other part of the lab came into view, I saw several scientists electrocuting the blue-furred member of the X-Men himself, Beast. He appeared to be restrained from every possible angle, with some protective glass separating them. I lunged forward, getting closer towards them. Reaching the glass cage, on my left, there was another area of the lab that was further down.

A girl, roughly about my age, with green eyes and long black hair held on the wall. She was restrained by a full-body straight jacket, along with numerous beams that unallowed her of any movement, topped off with her head strapped in place and a metal piece covering her mouth. Wait a minute… Now that I got a better look at her, she was a bit similar to how Wolverine's daughter looked like, Laura Kinney.

The eyes, it was the eyes. Jumping back and forth across the room, not staying in place for more than a second, with the occasional muffled screams and attempt to break free. Oh yeah, now I see the resemblance more clearly. The two scientists who observed Laura walked towards the others who were experimenting on Beast. They talked about it being time for the "subjects to be injected again", but now with a more extreme substance. They already injected Beast and Laura with something to weaken them, which was evident by their behavior.

They went to prepare the next round of experiments.

After seeing all this, my patience quickly evaporated.

I disposed of every single camera that was in the lab, and the ones in the hallway. I didn't care for the ones in the other rooms since I had no intention of going into them. Since I can't do much in this form, I'll have to teleport in the hallway and go from there. Going up to the elevator, I shot a beam with two fingers and cut a line leading towards the hidden button. With that done, I was sent back to my body, and upon waking up, I dug through my bag until I found a prepaid flip phone.

Since I plan to blow up everything when I jump inside, I need two things to happen simultaneously when I bust the mutants out, these guys getting arrested and the police to rescue them to get proper help. When I called 911, I simply told them I spotted several men entering with guns at the address I gave them. Due to my mask muffling my voice, I doubt that they believed me right then and there, so I gave them a final warning, telling them it's there's no time and that they should hurry.

I broke the phone in half and threw it off to the side, then opening a portal to the hallway. Once I was in, I conjured two sparkling vertical rectangles in each hand, pushing them out towards the doors. When they reached the end, they extended until they fit the doors perfectly. Deciding to go the stealthy approach, I created a portal to get me through to the other side. Just as I stepped through, I saw a scientist with his back turned tinkering on a machine near the cage. I created an Eldritch Whip and threw it towards him, latching on to his arm just as he turned around. I pulled him towards me, letting out a yelp as he flew closer, grabbing him by the hair when he got in range and slammed his head onto the cage. This startled the captives, covering in fear as they woke up.

Letting the scientist drop to the ground, I shushed them softly, pleading them to be silent while I take care of the others. Before leaving them, I made a see-through shield around the cage just in case, the moment I'm gone it will disappear. Flipping through my Codex, I found what I was looking for before I turned the corner. Channeling just enough electricity I needed, I shot out several bolts at the machinery, destroying it in an instant. From there, I made sure the bolts spread across the whole area, the bolts bouncing off to anything within its reach. The whole lab slowly became darker and darker as more lights were destroyed.

To finish the job, I created two red spell rings on each hand, nicely stacked up together. Turning the corner, I flung my arms out to shoot the first two, flicking my wrists to send the other two off to the side. The scientists that were in view got quickly wiped out, while the others that were taking cover had a few extra moments before the rings bounced off towards them.

As I said, no need to waste time with a bunch of nitwits.

Approaching the protective glass, the blue-furred mutant watched me as I made my way forward.

"You alright in there, big guy?"

I tapped onto the glass, hoping he could hear me.

"Y-Yeah, s-somewhat," Beast answered, his tone low and weak, barely audible. I examined his restraints, there was a little room behind the glass, but numerous metal cuffs and arms holding him in place. I don't want to harm him further, so a more delicate approach is required. Only small portals would do, but that would mean I'll have to go one at a time, make multiple portals to remove each individual restraint. That's considering if I don't break the glass at all. Going that route would take longer, removing a section of the glass it is then.

Hearing a war cry, I turned to my left to see one of the scientists running up to me with a knife. Taking two steps back just before he came into range, I grabbed the man by the wrist, squeezing hard. The knife fell moments later, a kick going to his leg to throw him on his knees, sidestepping to give him a clean punch to the face.

Looking over to the scientist grabbing the edge of the table, pressing a button on the control center. An Eldritch Whip to the ankle and yanking him back, his jaw hit the table in the process. He groaned as he fell back on to the floor, neither he nor his friend were able to get up.

Of course, they have to do it the hard way.

"You know what? Give me a minute or two and I'll have you out of there, no problem," I said to him while turning towards my book, one of my hands scrolling through the Codex with an orange aura forming in my other hand. "Where is it? I know I put it in somewhere around here…" With so many bits of information to memorize, I need a reminder every now and then in case I don't lose a finger trying something out.

Wait, found it! Let's see… oh, that's how.

Taking a moment to re-read the text, just in case, I mingled my hands together along with the orange aura. Once its color changed to a darker tone, it was ready. I drew lines across the glass, leaving a trail behind, stopping and going in a different direction once my finger met the edge of the metal beam. The long outlined square will do its work on its own, roughly, it should be done in less than a minute.

In the meantime, let's free the impatient killing machine that didn't stop squirming.

"Relax, I haven't forgotten about you," I said to Laura as I walked towards the wall, receiving a muffled reply that I couldn't properly understand. Just like with Beast, I inspected her binds to see what kind of route to take.

Firstly, I took out the few tubes that were attached to her arms, luckily there wasn't anything being injected in her body at the moment. The metal bars that held her were tight, more focus centered around her hands so her claws wouldn't be much of a use, and since the power was acting all wonky, no use in wasting time there. I took out one dagger, creating the familiar yellow energy blade. Gonna need to put more power into this one to cut it fast.

After a few seconds of channeling my power into the blade, it changed to a dark red color. In terms of sound, before it would make a low hum, now it was more of a sizzling sound.

The blade cut through the metal like butter. While it did effectively do the job, I had to go slowly and be precise. For my sake, and for hers, healing factor or not. I removed the ones that restrained her head, then easily removing the cloth around her head and mouth, her black hair falling out, and finally able to speak.

"Idiot!" Laura screamed right at my face. "There are more scumbags right around the corner!"

"Hi, it's nice to meet you too," I said cheerfully, ignoring her hostile-like tone while cutting through the other beams. "I wouldn't worry about them. They won't be a problem."

Laura raised an eyebrow at that. "Eh, how so?"

Just as I was about to reply, the whole lab shook. Numerous equipment falling off the tables, along with some dirt falling from the ceiling.

Oh, did I forgot to mention, in case those doors are broken by any chance, the only way being by brute force, they'll release a massive impact to anything that's around them. They'd be better off untouched until they naturally disappear. Ops, my bad!

"I'm guessing that answers your question?" I replied while taking care of the other beams, moving to the removing of the straightjacket, then destroying the bonds on her hands. When they were off, her claws came to life, joining in on removing the last few binds and the rest of the jacket. Once she was free, she stumbled onto the floor with a grunt, having some difficulty standing up.

I kneeled to help her, but she was quick to hold her hand up, claiming she was fine. Whatever these guys injected her with, it seemed they paid no expense to keep her hold her at bay. Laura stood up a couple of seconds later, wobbling her way towards Beast. Her head turned to the right just before she passed the corner, that's when the sound of an explosion went off, followed along with gunfire.

Jumping towards her, I threw us both to the ground to take cover. I knew they had a variety of weapons, so it wouldn't be too farfetched to presume they have tranquilizer guns as well. Depending on if this time around they were even willing to restrain the mutants. If it weren't for the fact that Laura was drugged, she would have escaped my grip and immediately jumped in headfirst. The shooting stopped, but I knew that would change momentarily.

"Stay still," I said demandingly, forcing her to stay low. To my surprise, and with a grunt, she actually agreed. I slid towards the table, leaning back on the machine while taking out a black cube with silver sides called the Gravity Cube and chucking it towards them. After hearing it pop, almost every single object inside the lab flew towards the guards. It must have been difficult to aim properly with all kinds of objects flying at you.

In the meantime, I began conjuring electricity in my hand, using my other one to tinker around with it, molding it to be more precise. This seemed to catch Laura's attention, leaning closer to watch me bend the electricity into different shapes. Now, they appeared to resemble two snakes rocking their heads back and forth.

Peaking over the side, I quickly backtracked that decision as another array of bullets came flying in our direction.

Waiting a bit for the firing to ease up, I sent the snakes at the closest machine that was still in function. From there, it bounced off to every other machine, draining its power, its appearance growing in size. After flying across the room, it reached the far end, all it took was a flick of the wrist to send the snakes all over the lab, numerous screams erupting at the same time.

Since the shield was still up for the hostages, this attack won't affect them in the slightest. Looking over the machine for a second time, I was glad to see all of them on the ground.

"Now, move!"

Right on my signal, Laura bolted towards her friend, I followed right behind her. Reaching the glass, the marked area was no longer see-through that much, it looked like a brown smudge was all over the glass. One tap was enough to do the trick, turning the glass into sand. We went inside, Laura using her claws and me using my blade to cut the restraints. Cutting the last one, both of us grabbed hold of Beast, carrying him out of his prison.

"How do we get out of here?" Laura asked.

"H-Hold on, there might be more guards around…" Beast uttered. "W-We need to t-take caution."

"I think I may have a solution for our escape."

Still holding onto Beast, I opened a portal right in front of us. Encouraging them that it was safe, we stepped through, just in time since our hold of Beast was gone, the blue-furred falling onto his side, Laura quickly going to his aid.

"Oh, holy Hell that took longer than it should have," I groaned while stretching my arms. "Still, at least it wasn't too messy, could have been worse."

Just I as I turned around, Laura was already on the defensive, standing above Beast with her claws out.

"Wait, wait, good guy here." I held my hands up, the last thing that I want is to duke it out or yell at my apartment of all places. Slowly, my hands went to my mask, carefully removing it. "See? A friendly face, totally non-threatening."

Laura's eyebrows furrowed at that, it took Beast pulling her arm to lower her guard. "It's alright, we should be safe now."

"Okay, good. Now that we're a little calm, I was about to-"

A knock could be heard. Lifting my sleeve and tapping the marked area, a circle with the image of the hallway of my floor appearing, showing Christine standing right at the other side of the door.

"Give me a break…"

I rushed to the couch to place my mask on there, asking Laura to sit down, and with Beast's help, she obliged. "Just a second!" I yelled back. Lucky for me, I learned the perfect trick to get myself out of this jam. In my right hand, a lime green aura appeared. Twisting it around, it turned into a long ribbon. Walking around the couch, I held the ribbon in the air, the aura falling down to the floor as I was making a full circle around the piece of furniture. The area around them becoming blurry for a brief moment, then it disappeared.

"Don't make a sound."

I warned the two, receiving a nod from Beast. Going towards in a bit of a hurry, I did a spin while walking, clapping my hands twice. Once the second clap went off, my attire morphed into a simpler pair of clothes consisting of gray track pants and a dark blue t-shirt with a palm tree on it. My hand found the handle, opening the door casually.

"Oh, good evening, Christine," I greeted the old lady with a smile. "It's awfully late, is something up?"

"Hello, Marcus," The old lady greeted me with a smile, but her face quickly turned more serious. "I'm terribly sorry to disturb you, dear, but… I heard a loud noise. It sounded like it came on the floor above me."

"Is that so?" I hummed, pausing for a second. "I did hear a loud thud as well. Sounded like a bookshelf came crashing down."

"Would you mind if I step in for a moment, just to be sure?"

I took a few steps back to fully open the door, allowing Christine to enter. "Please, by all means."

The elderly woman entered the apartment. Checking my main bedroom, then the spare, followed by everywhere else.

"Again, I'm sorry for just dropping in all of a sudden. You see, the last tenant… wasn't exactly the kindest of people I've met in my lifetime. I mean, how you can make a ruckus seven days a week, with the noise being so loud it reached all the way to the fourth floor, disturbing more than half of the people in the building is beyond me. As a matter of fact, what possesses you to throw out a perfectly good television through the bloody window?"

While I listened closely to the woman's words and paid attention to her movements, for the sake of being polite, my eyes couldn't stop jumping towards the couch, Christine completely oblivious of the two guests sitting on it. As long as the two don't make a sound, I knew I was golden. Laura and Beast watched as Christine walked around the place, every now and then their eyes switched to me, all the while a smile was plastered on my face.

I couldn't tell, was I nervous or was brilliant for thinking of this? I think it might be a little bit of both. Just keep breathing through the nose, keep the poker face up.

"Guess I was wrong," Christine said with a sorrow look. "Sorry that you have to deal with this old hag snooping around."

"Given how much trouble that fellow has done, I can't blame you for being suspicious of future tenants," I said as I walked closer towards. "Besides, I haven't lived here that long, and given the circumstances, I might have done the same thing if I were you. Can never be too careful these days."

"Thank you so much for understanding, dear," Christine spoke sincerely. "I'll think twice next time if I hear something."

I said goodbye to Christine and walked her out. Going back towards the two mutants, I snapped my fingers, the area that was invisible turned gray briefly before vanishing with a pop.

"Well, with that out of the way, allow me to introduce myself. My name is Ethan Chester, and welcome to my humble abode."

"She called you Marcus just now..." Laura's face hardened. "Makes me think you're lying."

"Yeah, well, that elderly woman lives down the floor beneath me with her husband, great man as well. I thought it would be fair to spare the old couple from my shenanigans and everything that follows. To her, I'm just your simple tenant."

"So? Just a fake name doesn't mean the bastards who have a grudge against won't find where you live." Laura argued back.

I simply chuckled at that. Not to be rude or brag, but in the security department, I think I'm more than covered. "I reassure you that will not happen. Wherever I go, wherever I move, I'm like a ghost. No evidence, no witnesses, no trace. I wouldn't worry all that much in that category."

Laura wanted to argue further, but Beast groaned in pain, our attention turning towards him. His hand clutched his chest, barely holding on from falling off the couch.

"Hold him, I think I got something that can help."

I looked straight into Laura's eyes as I sat down on the couch. She still wouldn't light up so easily, and to a certain degree, I couldn't blame her how everything unfolded so fast. But one look to her friend was enough to leave her without much of a choice.

"What are you going to do?"

I scrolled through the pages of the Book of Yatik, this one containing a variety of spells used for the body. I was looking for two particular spells that I would need to execute this.

Keep in mind, this isn't technically considered full healing. Repair some wounds, and minor accidents sure, but full-on restoring cells and body parts are still worlds beyond my expertise. I made it a habit of studying for ways to properly treat myself if the need ever arrives, and will take a long while before I get to that.

When I found the spells I was looking for, I was good to go. I made sure to precisely read the instructions for the second one.

Firstly, I took one of his oversized hands and turned it over. After doing the necessary gestures, in my hand, a small piece of a green energy cloth appeared, then wrapping it around his wrist. Once on, the cloth grew in size and covered more parts of his wrist.

"The first one, you see, will scan his body for anything that shouldn't belong there," I began explaining to her while we waited for it to finish. "It works in a way, when put on someone, will recognize any drugs, damages, anything that wouldn't be in somebody's system. It works on any living creature since it can adapt to pretty much anything, immediately finding anything that's harming the user. With you and your friend being mutants, it shouldn't work any differently than if I were to use it."

"So you know what we are, huh?"

"First time meeting some as well. But knowledge about your kind is few and far between. Thought it might be best if I keep it that way for the time being. Speaking of which, how did you two end up with those nut jobs anyway?"

"It's kind of... complicated." Laura said slowly.

"Another time I guess, right now, have to move onto the second part."

I went back to treating Beast. The cloth shrunk back to its original size, removing it and placing it on the open page of the book. The bottom left of the right page had a marked area on it, used for identifying whatever the cloth picked up. Beside it, letters began forming, stopping when two words fully formed, but were in a different language. In certain cases, some things associated with Magic will have to be translated or deciphered, but since I already studied this particular subject, there wouldn't be much of an issue. I could read and make out a general understanding, but fully forming a sentence and using them not so much. It appeared to be a type of sedative.

"You still with us?" I asked the blue-furred mutant, receiving a weak nod in the process. "What I'm about to do next might be a bit unpleasant, but nonetheless should make you feel better afterwards. Also, don't close your mouth once I begin."

"U-Understood…"

Beast gave the green light, meaning we can continue. Closing my left fist, I placed my other opened hand on top of it, squeezing it a bit. Opening my fist, a small light blue orb stood in the middle, using my index and middle finger to expand its size, now a little smaller than a soccer ball.

Asking for the mutant to lean back and to open his mouth, I placed the orb close to the entrance. Inside the orb, two strings appeared, slowly growing in size. The strings went out of the sphere, entering Beast's mouth. Beast clenched his fists, trying hard to ignore the uncomfortable sensation. Over time, drops of a purple liquid traveled along the string, being transferred into the blue orb. The longer the procedure took, the more of it was built up.

"By the way, I never caught your name."

"It's Laura, Laura Kinney."

"A pleasure to meet you then, Laura."

Within about twenty seconds, we will be finished. The last bits of the liquid was leaving his body and should repair whatever side effects he may have experienced. It doesn't fully clean you, but after some rest, you're good as new. When done, the strings retraced themselves back into the orb, vanishing when the full length was in. Beast coughed several times when he was finally able to move.

"T-That's an interesting way to remove a sedative from a patient," Beast said in-between coughs. When he composed himself a little bit, he was able to speak more clearly. "In all my years involved with medicine, I never have seen something quite like this."

"Bit of an unorthodox method, but it does get the job done," I said, holding the sphere in both hands, summoning a blaze of fire inside it, not a drop was left when the fire appeared a few moments ago. "Makes a good incinerator as well."

The mutant extended his large hand, "Hank McCoy, happy to meet your acquaintance," I accepted his handshake, trying to match his grip. "Thank you for rescuing us."

"Likewise, and please, don't mention it," I then turned to Laura. "Your turn. I'm guessing they must have used something stronger to keep you down."

"No need," Laura held up her hand. "My immune system is stronger than his. They had to use four times as much to even affect me, even then they had to regularly inject me every few hours before it wears off. Drugs such as these do very little to me."

"You sure? Never hurts to double-check, you kn-"

"I'm fine."

Not going to get anywhere with her on this one it seems. I stood up and made my way to the kitchen. "Anyone up for some dinner?"

Since I already prepared soup and lasagna for myself, might as well offer it to them. Who knows when they last ate a proper meal? When I went to the kitchen to heat up the soup, I checked up on my lasagna that was still in the oven. I couldn't hide the grin that began forming on my face, just a few minutes to spare. I consider that perfect timing.

"Just a little heads up, I haven't cooked in a while, so bear with me if the food is a little off."

While preparing the food, the atmosphere turned silent. Well, they were the ones being quiet, and I couldn't blame them. With everything that's happened, it's not easy to open a conversation with a person you just met, ignoring the fact that the same person also saved them from captivity.

Oh yeah, it's going to be an interesting dinner conversation for sure.

Once the food was done, a simple spell to levitate several plates, the pot, and the plate with the lasagna. Setting two plates on top of one another, the first being for the soup and the second for the main meal. For the soup, I tapped my wrist to freely manipulate the liquid from the pot to fill our plates equally. As for the utensils, a few quick one-hand gestures to open the drawer and deliver what was needed to the table. Before I sat down, I gestured to them to join me.

"It's chicken soup," I said while sitting down, taking the spoon and waited for them before I began eating. Luckily, the chair supported Beast's weight. "Pretty basic, I know. But it's a favorite of mine."

The soup was just the right temperature, no need to wait for it to cool down. Taking a spoon full, I leaned down for the taste test.

"Hmm, it's missing something, but what?"

I tried thinking of the answer, but my mind was blank. Staring down at the bowl, I pondered what was needed. But then it hit me.

"Pepper."

With a few gestures, the cabinet opened and the pepper flew towards me. I grabbed it

Then doing another taste test…

"Perfect..." I said lowly, beyond satisfied that I could taste that homemade food I loved so much after so long. God, I'd pay anything to let them know I was alright. To a certain degree, that is.

Beast and Laura sat down, took their respective spoons, and joined me. After taking just two spoonfuls, a growing sound of slurping, and the smashing of metal on the ceramic plate became louder. Opening my mouth to take another spoonful, I stopped the moment my eyes landed on the other side of the table.

Laura was eating insanely fast, which may even be considered an understatement. While we barely began eating our soup, she was almost fully done. Because of that, she was totally oblivious that Beast and I were watching her.

"Laura..."

Beast whispered, nudging her slightly. Looking at him with a confused expression, she turned to me. Then I realized my mouth was still open and with a look that might indicate disgust.

She turned her face away in embarrassment. I couldn't contain myself from chuckling a little. It was cute seeing her react this way, but as I said, they were starving. Can't blame the girl for wanting to satisfy that need. Not that I really minded, either way, it was nice to have some company rather than always being alone.

"Please, it's no trouble," I said while commanding the liquid from the pot to refill the plate. "I was in the same position as you two not that long ago, so I know what it's like. If you need anything else, feel free to ask me."

Laura looked down at her plate, staying still for a short while. She began eating, but this time, at a much slower pace to match with Beast and me. After we finished the soup, we moved on to the main dish.

Another useful trick is to enlarge the food, so a third of the lasagna became the same size as a regular portion.

"The meal was excellent, Mr. Chester," Hank praised as he whipped his mouth. "Thank you so much for your hospitality."

I simply raised my hand slightly with a smile. "Please, Ethan is just fine, doesn't make me sound too old. I'm surprised myself, really. After a three month hiatus from cooking, I was just hoping I don't poison myself. I'm just glad I'm back to cooking my own food, a really enjoyable hobby of mine to pass the time," I said before stopping to take a sip of my drink. "Now that we're more rested and fed, I was hoping if you would tell me how would mutants such as yourselves get caught by those guys?"

"If you wouldn't mind, we were hoping if you would tell us how you managed to find us."

"And how much do you know about mutants?" Laura added.

Mental note, mutants are still a big secret in this world. Regular people don't even know of their existence and kept in the dark, while the government we're most likely doing something about them, interesting. "Well, you see, my job description basically requires me to know about anything that's going on in the world, anything that might be considered out of the ordinary. That includes tracking down morons if they are up to no good. A... associate of mine gave me a few good tips on finding these guys, took care of them, and found the real culprits who bought you from them. I was shocked to find out how many people they captured, even more, that they had mutants as well. I actually found out about these scientists, not more than thirty minutes ago."

"But how did you even find out exactly where we were?" Hank asked. "Our friend also has the ability to teleport, but for that, you need to have an idea of the general location. We were most likely underground, judging by the layout and how the lab appeared overall. By the way, what you did just now, tell me, are you telekinetic?"

"I have a few tricks up my sleeve for that, it being magic," I said while waving my hand, a small gust of wind appearing on every single plate and the pot, fully cleaning within seconds. "This may come as a shock, or maybe not, but magic, real magic, exists. I'd go into more detail about it, but I can get rather confusing at times. I have a plethora of ways of using it to my advantage for any situation. It wasn't difficult getting into the lab, however, it did take a while to track them down without myself getting into trouble. Even with support, those guys weren't difficult to defeat them."

"What about those guys that captured us?" Laura asked.

"I beat about a dozen of them and got the answers from their boss."

"...by yourself?"

"In their defense, they were pretty stupid and didn't know what they were going up against," I merely shrugged. I wasn't entirely lying either. "As for mutants, I did hear a bit about them, but you two are the first I've actually met. I am aware that there are numerous groups of them, because of something called the X-Gene that triggers at some point in their lives. Since they are kept out of the public eye, getting you two out first was more preferable."

"It wasn't supposed to end up as it did..." Hank began. "A simple recon assignment, nothing more, wouldn't need more than Laura and myself. When we got there, everything appeared empty, that's then when they ambushed us. We managed to take out two of them before they switched their weapons, their intent to capture us. Escaping was far too difficult, and being outnumbered, they landed several good shots on us. Unfortunately, I fell first. Laura tried to fight them off, but was overwhelmed from every direction. The next thing I remember is waking up in the lab with a shock."

"Interesting, but I may have found out the person responsible for this," I stated. "That being Norman Osborn."

Out of the two, Hank was the only one surprised. "Osborn? The businessmen? He's the one behind this?"

"That's the name that came when doing some more digging. He does have the power to finance that, and it's obvious he's doing experiments on living subjects. Considering it's him, it's not far-fetched either. Was he the one to lure you there? Not sure, but there exists a possibility."

"True. Given his status, he does seem capable of doing it," Hank agreed. "Even so, there is little chance that he will likely ever be stopped. He is bound to have connections to get him out of anything surfaces."

"I put a pin on that, when I get more dirt on the man, and can make up a solid plan, I'll see to it these little operations of his are dead in the water, or anything else involving his shady work. But please, tell me something about yourselves. I summed up everything about me."

"Since you do seem to have knowledge about mutants, and you did save us from that prison, I feel it is alright to tell you," Hank said. "Laura and I are a part of a school, you see. A school dedicated to students who are... different. It isn't very public, only when a person's X-Gene is developed that changes start to happen. Some may see a physical appearance while others develop on the inside. Tell me, do you know who Charles Xavier is by any chance?"

"Ah, yes, Professor Charles Xavier. Yeah, I do know about him," I said trying to seem like "Brilliant, that man. I did read some of his other work, what was available that is."

I'm not going to lie, whether anyone agrees with me or not, but Charles Xavier was a brilliant man. He did have plenty of impressive feats, and his mind did get him out of some tricky situations. But as much as I admire the man, my caution of him was most likely double than that. I can't trust my mind on its own when around him since I couldn't even tell if those memories involving him were even real. I'm going to take some measures when meeting him for sure.

"He is the owner of the school I mentioned. He sees to it that every mutant has a home to turn to. It's his life's work. He tends to avoid the subject on public outings, more focused on other tasks, on the more political side of things. Besides, ordinary people aren't this, how should I put it, "accepting" of our kind, let alone to be invited into their own home."

"I can assure you, I'm anything but ordinary," I said with a slight grin. "Besides, I don't look at mutants in that way."

"And how do you look at them?" Laura spoke up after being quiet for a while.

"I can't judge people on something they didn't have a choice on," I told them. "From my understanding, the X-Gene can be triggered at any point, maybe it can happen tomorrow or maybe never. Before that, they would be like any other human, completely normal. It just isn't in me to judge someone on their appearance, I judge a person by their character. It's just in my nature. To me, it means very little as I see everyone as equals.

Laura and Hank stayed silent after my proclamation. After I finished, I realized how foreign it might have sounded to them. Considering mutants were inspired by real-life events, not to mention how they were treated, they most likely never heard of such a normal and natural response. It may be that simple to me, but it was sickening how different views were the solar opposite.

"We should rest now, I'm sure you two could use it about now," I rose from my seat. "Tomorrow we'll talk, how we're going to get back to your place."

Disposing of the dishes didn't take long, that's where we talked about sleeping arrangements. Since Hank was more than happy to take the couch, I offered Laura the guest room and the bathroom if she wanted to take a shower, which she accepted. I told them to just knock on my door if they need anything before wishing them goodnight.

Before I go to bed, I'm going to make something really quick, a tool that will come useful for tomorrow. So we're meeting the X-Men soon. I'm curious about what kind of group this will be since you can never know with comics. I may have spent very little time with Laura and Beast, but there appears nothing bad about them. I don't want to be quick to judge, but I'll hope that's the case either way.

A simple met for the first time, surely, nothing can go wrong. Can it?