Chapter Two

Quinton walked down the hallway of his secret home. He built this home shortly after becoming rich and famous. He wanted a place where he wasn't surrounded by reporters or fans.

He stopped in front of the door and opened. When he walked in, he saw Aaron sitting on the edge of the bed, his palm up and a small flame swirling above it. Barely bigger than a lighters flame. When he noticed Quinton enter, he closed his hand and the flame went out.

"Morning. How'd you sleep?" Quinton asked, hands in his pockets.

"Not well. Been a while sleeping on something comfortable." Aaron chuckled.

Quinton pulled up a chair and sat down.

"Given any thought on my offer?" Quinton asked.

"Yeah. Lots of thought."

"And?"

"I think I'm in."

"There's no think. It's either do, or do not. There is no think." Quinton said sternly.

"Did.... did you just quote Star Wars?"

"That's besides the point. I'm letting you in to the most dangerous and private part of my life. You may think you have nothing to lose, but I do. A lot to lose. So if you want in, you need to be all the way in. Committed." Quinton explained. Aaron nodded.

"You're right. Yes. I'm in. One hundred percent."

"Good. Then let's run some tests." Quinton said. Aaron gulped.

----

Quinton led Aaron to a large room that was split into smaller areas. One area had medical equipment and a woman was working there, one area looked to be a training area which had workout equipment and in the back was a large computer. Looked like top of line equipment. Aaron was in awe. He had never seen a superheroes lair before.

"Aaron, I'd like you to meet Dr. Gray. She's the smartest person I've ever met. Literally. She has an IQ of 240 and is able to talk like us. It's great. She's my medical specialist. Also my tech specialist." Quinton explained.

"I'm just an everything specialist." Dr.Gray commented with a warm smile. When Aaron saw her close up he got really shy. She was gorgeous. Long brown hair, bright blue eyes and built like a model. Quinton saw Aaron's expression and chuckled.

"So, Quinton if we could start I'm very excited about doing these tests." She said. Quinton nodded.

"Mr. Pierce-"

"You can call me Aaron."

"Then you can call me Taylor." She said with a big smile.

"I would like to start with the fire. Obviously. I want to gauge how hot it is. So if you could...idk... light it, I guess" She said with a laugh. Aaron nodded and stepped back a few steps and his arms burst into flame. Dr. Grey pulled out a scanner that looked like a radar gun and aimed it at him.

"Wow, normal fire burns at around 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit. Your fire burns at...almost 25,000 degrees. It doesn't hurt you or warm you up at all?" She asked. Aaron shook his head.

"Your blood platelets must be fire proof then. Interesting." She said as she jotted down notes.

"Can you go hotter?" Quinton asked.

"I don't know. I've never tried." Aaron replied.

"Quinton told me that your powers manifested out of anger. So, maybe try thinking of something to get angry." Dr. Grey suggested. Aaron nodded.

After a few seconds, Aaron roared and the flames roared higher, turning blue. Dr. Grey excitedly scanned again.

"Wow! 59,000 degrees!" She yelled, as the flame was very loud as well.

"Higher!" Quinton ordered.

Aaron started to struggle but he managed to make the flames bigger, and they engulfed his whole body.

"83,000!" Dr. Grey yelled, then her expression changed. The temperature was still climbing. At this point, Aaron was nonstop roaring just fighting to contain the power surging from him.

"Quinton! The fire is going to be too hot for this room!" Dr. Grey alarmed.

"Shut it down Aaron!" Quinton yelled, running to the doctor, activating his DeadEye suit and grabbing Dr. Grey to shield her.

"i can't...." Aaron whispered to himself.

"I CANT! RUN!" Aaron yelled. DeadEye didn't hesitate. He snatched the doctor up and fled the room. He wasn't sure how far he should go, so he completely exited the building.

He stood in the center of a massive front yard. They both stood there in silence. It was peaceful. Quiet. Extremely tense and suspenseful.

"Was I wrong?" Dr. Grey questioned. Not two seconds after she asked, there was the slight sound of an explosion and then shortly followed was a heat wave that flew through them. No flames, just heat. From this distance it felt like when you open up the oven and look in.

Quinton and Dr. Grey ran back into the house. There seemed to be no damage, which Quinton was relieved to see. However when they returned to the room, they found Aaron unconscious on the floor, naked and that room destroyed.

"Bring him to the table, now!" Dr. Grey yelled.

-----

Aaron opened his eyes and was immediately blinded. A bright light was hanging directly over top of him. He squinted and looked around and saw he was laying on a table in a different room. It looked like a living room or a study. The next thing he noticed was he was completely naked with just a small towel covering his groin, and Dr. Grey closely examining his body.

"Oh hey. You're awake." She said when she noticed him moving his head.

"What happened?" Aaron asked.

"Well, you...well...exploded. If you would've kept powering up, I can't say for sure because no one knows your limits, but you might be able to go nuclear." She said nonchalantly.

"Like...Hiroshima?"

"Yup."

"We really need to work on your control." Quinton said as he entered the room.

"You destroyed everything in my command center." He said.

"I'm so sorry...I-"

"Don't apologise. Just means I was right about you. You have tremendous potential. You're also very dangerous. You needed help." Quinton commented.

"I don't mean to interrupt, but did you do this to your body?" Dr. Grey asked as she traced one of the symbols carved into Aaron's arm with her fingertip.

"No. That was how it all started. They just appeared. Very painfully."

"Well, it looks like these symbols are from all the various religion's. All 4,000 some." She explained.

"Christianity, Pagan, Islamic-" She commented as she looked at various symbols.

"You're not going to list them all are you?" Quinton asked.

"No."

"Can I maybe put some clothes on?" Aaron asked.

"Yeah, I have some laid out right here. We're going to work on finding something for you to wear that won't leave you naked after a fight. Unless you're into that." Quinton joked.

"Definitely not into that." Aaron said as he prepared to get up, but hesitated as Dr. Grey was still looking at him.

"Taylor, could I-" Aaron trailed off.

"Oh! Yeah! Of course!" She said, blushing and leaving the room.

Aaron put the clothes on that Quinton gave him. A white beater, a black flannel, a pair of jeans and sneakers.

"How do they fit?" Quinton asked.

"Oddly perfect."

"Had AVA scan you for your size."

"Of course you did." Aaron chuckled

Dr. Grey walked back into the room after getting the all clear.

"So, what do we do next?" Aaron asked.

"You want to do more?" Dr. Grey asked, surprised.

"Sure. We're all learning about my powers. I'd like to know. I want to be like Quinton." Aaron admitted. Quinton gave a small smile.

"You know how to fight?" Quinton asked.

"I don't know, old man. You tell me. I whooped on DeadEye pretty good." Aaron said with a chuckle.

"I seem to remember that fight a little differently." Quinton said as he left the room. Aaron stood there confused.

"Was it something I said?" Aaron said to no one in particular.

"If Quinton took that fight to the limit. You would've lost. Badly." Dr. Grey commented without looking up from her notes. Aaron stood there stunned. Not believing her. Quinton eventually returned to the room holding a long metal case.

"You went easy on me?" Aaron asked. Quinton didn't reply.

"So I'm going to-" Quinton said finally after placing the metal case on the table.

"Did you go easy on me?" Aaron asked more sternly.

"Yes. I wasn't trying to hurt you. Just restrain you."

"Fuck that. I want a rematch." Aaron demanded.

Quinton just looked at him. They stared at each other for a minute.

"Alright. It'll be a good lesson then.

"Lesson in what?"

"Humility."

Quinton opened the case and pulled out some type of clothing and tossed it to him. Aaron caught it and held it up. It was a suit of some kind.

"Put it on."

Aaron left for a moment and put the outfit on. He looked at himself in the mirror.

"Hell no." He said.

When Aaron returned Quinton looked at him, slightly irritated.

"What? Why?" He asked.

"Wasn't my style. This is." Aaron replied. He was wearing the pants that Quinton gave him. Some kind of fire proof black cargo pants, but he was shirtless. Dr. Grey blushed for a second seeing Aaron's sculpted and toned body. Showing all of the runes and symbols.

"Well, you still need a mask." Quinton said before walking away.

Dr. Grey was still looking into her notes, but would glance at Aaron out of the corner of her eyes until Quinton walked back in.

He tossed Aaron a pair of what looked like basic tan work boots, but when Aaron caught them he noticed they were heavier and thicker.

"Hopefully those will be able to withstand the heat. Here's these too. We're heroes, not Calvin Klein models." He said before tossing him a different shirt. Aaron put it on, it was a compression muscle shirt with a hood.

"I like the hood. So, you said something about a mask?" Aaron asked.

"Yeah, here. Try these. New product my R&D team developed. Haven't been tested yet, but this will be a good chance to." Quinton said, handing him a mask. It looked like a classic superhero mask that only covered around his eyes, but had a black out lense where the eyes were.

"They were an idea for Special Ops teams. Not as restricting or bulky as helmets or face masks. For you though, they're made to be shock, heat and shatter proof. I guess we'll see if they work." Quinton explained.

"I feel stupid with the mask." He replied.

"Well, you have to keep your identity a secret."

"Why? No one knows or cares about Aaron Pierce. I have no family, my foster parents are dead. I don't have anyone that can be targeted. Except you, but you're DeadEye so.." Aaron said, taking off the mask and placing it on the table.

"So, you ready?" Aaron asked.

"Not here. We're going to go somewhere where you don't have to hold back, and I don't have to renovate." Quinton answered, gesturing for them to follow him.

Aaron and Dr. Grey followed Quinton through the house. Aaron hadnt seen much of the house during his stay, so he gawked at everything. Eventually he led them through a garage and after another door they walked into an elevator. Quinton pushed a button and they went down.

When the elevator doors opened, Aaron's jaw dropped. They were in some sort of underground hangar, and in front of them was a jet of some sort. Had multiple turbines and looked very expensive to Aaron, but then again, Aaron never had enough money to even buy a car.

As they got closer, the cargo ramp in the back lowered to allow them entry. They all boarded the jet and as they got deeper into it, they entered into a lounge, complete with kitchen and bar.

"Holy shit." Aaron muttered under his breath.

"AVA, take us somewhere isolated for a sparring session." Quinton said. Then, the plane started by itself and began to move.

Aaron looked out the nearest window and couldn't see any exit for this plane, but they kept rising straight upwards anyway. Then, Aaron saw the ceiling open up revealing the blue sky as they ascended higher. When they were clear, what used to be an open field, closed back up.

"Okay, it's official. You have TOO much money." Aaron commented, still looking out the window in awe.

-----

After about an hour, they touched down in a couple mile wide clearing in some forest. They departed the plane and Quinton led them to the middle of the clearing. When he stopped, his suit activated and covered him as he turned to face Aaron.

"Alright kid, you ready for your lesson?" Quinton asked.

"Now who needs to learn humility?" Aaron asked before his arms burst into flames. Quinton smirked.

"You want me to go first?" Quinton asked.

"I'm a gentleman. Ladies first." Aaron replied. There was a few seconds pause, then suddenly with tremendous speed, DeadEye charged. Aaron couldn't react fast enough and caught a forearm to the face. He shook off the pain, and caught himself on his back foot, then flanked around DeadEye, trying to get inside his reach, but DeadEye was too quick. He shifted and caught Aaron in the ribs with a side kick.

"Don't you hold back on me!" Quinton ordered as he attempted to clinch with Aaron.

Aaron parried the attempt, jumped back and whipped a few fireballs at him. DeadEye charged through them, batting them away with his hands, the suit easily withstanding the heat.

"Let's turn up the heat then!" Aaron yelled, charging up a fireball in his hand until it was so hot it was violet.

'Thats new.' Quinton thought. He sped forward, zig zagging quickly to make himself harder to hit. Aaron led DeadEye, and timed the fireball, then he chucked it like he was delivering a fastball in the MLB.

He timed it correctly. The violet burst hit DeadEye square in the chest. When it hit, it felt like he took a truck to the chest and it threw him to his back. His HUD was blinking red, letting him know something was wrong. He looked down to his chest, and saw that the fireball actually tore through the suit and burned through his shirt, burning off some of his chest hair. The suit began to repair itself when he saw Aaron completely engulfed himself in the violet flame.

"Let's go old man!" Aaron yelled, the fire amplifying his emotions. DeadEye realized Aaron may no longer realize this is just a sparring session.

DeadEye got back to his feet just as Aaron charged him.

'I hope this works' Quinton thought as he put his fingers together to a point and drove it into Aaron's throat as he charged.

It did something, because Aaron's fire went out completely and he went down to one knee. DeadEye took advantage and pulled a sawed off shotgun out of the back of his suit. Another perk to his suit. Concealed carry.

Aaron got back up to his feet, holding his throat. Went something smashed into his left shoulder, flinging him forward and down to his face with incredible force.

He looked at the ground next to him and saw a beanbag round lying on the ground.

"What the fuck?" Aaron said as he rolled over and sat up. DeadEye stood there, shotgun aimed at him.

"You yield?" He asked. Aaron answered by engulfing himself in regular orange flame. DeadEye shrugged and pulled the trigger again.

'I need to get behind him' Aaron thought to himself, and suddenly his vision went black for a second and when it returned he was standing behind DeadEye maybe five feet away.

Aaron was confused, but took advantage anyway. He lunged forward to grab him, but DeadEye ducked under it, sidestepped him and kick him in the back of the knee. Aaron fell down to his knees, and he felt DeadEyes boot collide with the back of his head.

"How did you do that?" Quinton asked.

"No clue" Aaron said while his face was in the grass.

"Well, we know you can do some interesting things with it."

"Time to experiment." Aaron said as he returned to his feet and they both stood facing each other.

Aaron engulfed himself in flame again and shot out a stream of fire. The fire circled around DeadEye and rose to form into a fire tornado around him.

He was confused at first, until the fire turned violet and the heat started tearing apart his suit. He tried to charge through it, but it was thick like a brick wall.

"Do you yield?" Aaron mocked from outside the tornado. DeadEye was hurting. His suit was beginning to deteriorate.

"Activate the pulse in the boots AVA." DeadEye said.

'The pulsers aren't calibrated properly yet, sir.' AVA replied.

"Now." DeadEye ordered. Suddenly a massive pulse shot out of the bottom of his boots, shooting him high into the air.

Aaron saw DeadEye shoot over above and out of his fire tornado. He landed, somewhat dramatically, clear of the tornado. His suit was badly damaged, and the half of his helmet that was gone showed Quintons rugged face. He didn't look happy.

DeadEye charged, Aaron hesitated out of fear, and he swept his leg and planted Aaron headfirst into the ground. Before Aaron could even think about retaliating, DeadEye grabbed him and put him in the tight chokehold, and rolled. Wrapping his legs around Aaron and arching his back, causing more force to be applied to the throat and leaving Aaron's movements restricted.

Once Aaron began to feel the lack of oxygen, he began to panic. He couldn't do anything but struggle in vain. Soon, Aaron lay unconscious in DeadEyes arms. So, DeadEye released him, and pushed aside Aaron's limp body.

"Nice try, kid. But you lost before we even started." Quinton said as his damaged suit retracted.

"AVA, have Dr. Grey bring the smelling salts." Quinton said.

-----

"Agent Blain. These are your targets."

Agent Blain looked up from his holotable. He was a gruff looking man. The suit looking odd on him. His stubble unkempt, and his shaggy blonde hair hanging in front of his face.

The man handed Agent Blaine two files with pictures paper clipped to them. The first showed a picture of a twenty three year old male. With messy styled blonde hair and a short red beard. The other picture was of someone in a highly advanced technological suit.

"Who are they?" Agent Blaine asked.

"Aaron Pierce. Twenty three years old. 6'1 and 215 pounds. Foster parents deceased, no known family on record. Pyrokinetic. This is DeadEye. Real identity is unknown. Nano suits capabilities unknown. He's a vigilante in New York and has, appeared, to have recruited Pierce. Your job is to bring him in. Both if you can. This came from the tip top. You have any resources you need." The man explained.

"I thought I was on investigative suspension." Agent Blaine replied.

"Not anymore." The man replied, handing him a badge. Agent Blaine took it. The badge portrayed a Texas Ranger star with a shield and two swords crossing in front of it and an infinity symbol in the middle. Below it said "S.W.O.R.D"