12 Unexpected Visit

"I'm sorry, who are you?" Asks Isaac with a straight face.

"I'm Ms Marvel." She says with an annoyed look, rolling her eyes.

"And I'm assuming you're the new criminal Jameson has been talking about. Making innocent civilians do your dirty work for you? That's horrible! You should be behind bars…" Before she could finish, Isaac cut her off.

"Uh-huh, never heard of you. But if you're looking for a fight, let's get it over with." Says Isaac with an unamused face. He just fought a prince of an underwater civilization. He was sure he could take on a teenage girl.

"You may want to rethink that, Isaac. With the way she's talking, I think she's a fellow superhero. A new one at that, none that I've ever seen before. Although she does share a similar name to that pesky one." Says Darwin, causing Isaac to raise an eyebrow.

"Wait a minute, you wouldn't happen to be a superhero, would you?" Isaac asks the female who was getting into a fighting position.

"Well, yeah. That's why I'm trying to stop you." She says, also flashing her shoulder, showing a golden Phoenix with its wings spread apart.

"The Rising Vanguard?" Isaac whispers, to which she nods.

'Aw man, I can't fight a superhero. Especially not one of the most influential. Then I really will become a bad guy.' He thinks, formulating a plan.

"Hey, what's that?!" Yells Isaac, pointing behind the female. As she instinctively goes to turn, she stops herself halfway, knowing this is a trick.

"Nice try…" Before she could finish, she saw that her enemy had already out quite the distance between them and was soaring through the air at tremendous speeds.

"That little…"

***

The window to Isaac's bedroom opens as he comes stumbling in, quickly taking off his clothes and throwing them on a pile of dirty laundry in the corner. He walked toward his mattress as he planned to sleep till next week, only to hear the door to his room open.

"Isaac?" Isaac looks toward his door, his heart skipping a beat as he knows who this voice belongs to.

"Dad?" He says, looking at Fury who wore a turtleneck, his usual eye patch and suit pants.

"Where have you been? We were supposed to have dinner. It's 2 AM…what's on your face? Who did this to you?!" He yells stomping toward Isaac, seeing his son's bruised and battered face, returning the same anger he felt the day Taskmaster was caught.

"Um…it's nothing, Dad…" Before he can say anything, his father's voice roars.

"Don't lie to me!" He yells, causing Isaac to swallow his words and flinch a little.

'Come on, get together Isaac. You can fight bad guys and you're scared of an old guy with a missing eye?' He thinks to himself. However, the reality of the fact is crystal clear to him. There's little chance he can save himself by lying, seeing as his father is a master interrogator. All he could do was tell the truth.

"Ever since the day I was attacked by Taskmaster, I've been feeling…weak. I didn't like the feeling of almost dying, hoping to be saved by someone else. So I decided I wanted to get stronger. Stronger so I won't be weak anymore." He says, prompting his father to stare at him and calm down a little, sitting the both of them down while trying not to acknowledge the mattress on the floor without a bed.

"Isaac, it's ok to be weak. Take it from a man who has been reminded countless times of his mortality, there are just some things we aren't meant to accomplish in life." He says. Isaac couldn't help but feel down hearing this. It wasn't what he wanted to hear.

"But who cares about that crap?" Isaac's head perks up as he stares at his father.

"We're Furys. If we hit a wall, we shoot it with a goddamn cannonball. If we fall into a pit, we dig the whole of the earth's surface so that the ground is naturally aligned with us. We level the playing field. Our strength is limited, Isaac. But we find other ways to be strong. That's what it means to be a Fury." He says as Isaac is lost for words, quiet as he stares.

"Thanks, Dad." He says, finally revealing a smile as Fury grabs his head.

"Now, what do you want for dinner?" Asks Fury as he stands up.

"Dinner? It's 2 AM." He says, pointing to the clock.

"I don't give a damn what time it is. You promised me dinner and I've been waiting here for hours." He says, walking toward the kitchen.

Isaac looks over to his hoodie as he runs over, making sure his father isn't looking. He slowly reaches his hand into the pocket of the hoodie and pulls out an object.

He stares at a sparkling blue gem in his hands he almost forgot he had. Without thinking, he runs over and stuffs it under his mattress, hiding it.

"Alright, let's have pizza." He yells, putting on a shirt and closing the door to his room.

"How many times have I told you pizza isn't an adequate dinner."

"We've been over this, dad. We agreed it depends on the toppings."

"No, you wouldn't shut up about it and I agreed so you would leave me the hell alone."

"Hey, that's a lie."

***

~The next morning~

An expansive hall pulses with a symphony of controlled chaos. Agents clad in sleek attire move with purpose, their steps echoing on the gleaming metal floor.

Holographic projections flicker and dance in the air, displaying intricate maps and data streams. Soft blue lighting bathes the room, casting an otherworldly glow on the sleek surfaces and futuristic consoles.

The hum of advanced technology fills the space, punctuated by the rapid tapping of keyboards and the occasional hushed conversations.

Above the transparent canopy offers a mesmerising view of the boundless sky, a constant reminder of their airborne operations. Not to mention the muffled propellers that they were always hearing.

Soon, a man entered through the automatic doors, walking to a podium of sorts and standing above everyone working down below.

"Director Fury, here's today's report." Says a female with brunette hair styled in a ponytail.

"Have you discovered the source of last night's explosion, Agent Hill?" Asks Fury, skimming over the file.

"Only theories, sir. The yacht passengers last night say the ship was hijacked by armed men. A little after that, two individuals crashed the party." She says, handing him another file.

"One of them was Felicia Hardy, aka Black Cat. A common thief who's been known to work with Spider-Man every now and then." She says, pausing as Fury stares at her.

"And the other?" He asks.

"The second individual was a male we know very little about. He's recently emerged, catching the attention of local news stations. His agenda and whether he is a friend or foe is still unknown, as well as his appearance. He's like a ghost. We were unable to find any CCTV images or videos of him, only this eyewitness sketch. I'd doubt the man even existed if there wasn't so much evidence suggesting he's real."

"Additionally, the civilians say they were paid a visit from Namor, the prince of Atlantis. We have reason to believe he was most likely involved in the explosion." She finishes as Fury stares at the sketch of a man wearing a phantom mask and hoodie.

"Try to contact Atlantis. I believe we're still on good terms with them. Ignore Ms Hardy, I doubt she is the cause of this." He says, pausing as Agent Hill stands stern.

"Keep an eye on the other one. I want to know who he is, what he wants and what he's capable of."

***

Isaac slowly opens his eyes as he is woken by the loud banging coming from his front door. Be perks his head up, making sure he's fully awake before letting out a heavy exasperated sigh.

"What kinda weirdo visits someone at 7 AM?" He whispers, rubbing his eye and scratching his stomach, putting on a shirt and walking toward his front door as the person keeps knocking loudly.

"Yeah, I'm coming!" He yells annoyed, lying as he makes a detour to the kitchen, picking up a slice of leftover pizza before finally walking toward the door.

The person had also stopped knocking after Isaac yelled as if they knew they were annoying him and chose to cut it out. However, Isaac was half asleep to notice this.

He finally opened the door and blinked a few times, trying to get a clearer view of the scene before him.

"Sorry for knocking loudly, we've just been here for a while." Says a man with slick black hair and thick sunglasses wearing a leather jacket.

With him was a dark-skinned female with white hair, and a flowing blouse paired with tailored jeans and boots.

Behind her was a large man wearing a basic black t-shirt. His scruffy hair, stubble and gruff exterior made him look as if he were a wild animal.

However, Isaac first noticed the bald man in the wheelchair who stood before them all with a warm smile, wearing a suit as he spoke.

"That's a lot of leather to be wearing in the summer. Who're you?" Asks Isaac as he takes another bite out of his pizza, staring at them blankly.

Before he could get an answer, the gruff man grunted as he stepped closer to Isaac, snatching half the pizza from his hand and stuffing it in his mouth. Isaac looked at the man blankly.

Perhaps it was the fact that he was still half asleep, or maybe it was the man who looked like a wild boar, travelling with strange guests and stealing his pizza, but for some reason, Isaac was having trouble believing what was going on right now.

"Apologies, Isaac. We didn't mean to wake you. May we please come in?" Says the man, noticing the boy's messy hair and puffy eyes, completely ignoring the antics of the boar.

Before Isaac can say anything, he hears Darwin speak.

"Isaac, be careful. Your cover might have just been blown." Says Darwin as Isaac pauses his chewing.

"You're standing before the X-Men."