Night has fallen on Bay City. The Police Station were cleared out as officers went out for the night, leaving Mike and Rebecca the only ones alone in their office, sitting in the dark by the window as they keep Isaac in their sights, using binoculars and a listening device set up by the window.

  Isaac waiting on the building across the street, sitting on some crates as he kept his eyes on the sky expecting Hero to swoop down and implode his skull. 'Just stay calm' he said to himself. There is no way this guy has the same powers as Superman, that would be so unfair. After all some guy gets all the powers while he is stuck with Heat. Not that he is complaining as his power did come in handy sometimes. For example boiling water for his noodles when he was hungry an hour ago.

  Now he wished he didn't eat anything as he felt like puking. He has improvised before, whenever he gets in trouble at school for starting a fight he makes up some believable story that the teacher has no choice but to buy. Even though he did get caught out the next day he still got away for that day. Convincing some demigod that he wants to switch sides is a bit of a stretch though considering that in a span of a day he turn his commander into a puddle and drove his spy into hiding. Maybe it's not too late to start making a run for it, skip town and changed his name to Senior Hotpants of the Mexican Estate of Japan. Yeah that will work.

  His Heat Sense went off, alerting him to look up to see Hero floating just above him. Time to get to work.

  'Nice to see you again Mr Clarke' said Hero landing on his feet. 'I have been told you were quite busy today'

  Isaac started crying, 'I am so sorry' he sobbed 'I didn't mean to act the way I did, those cops said if I don't follow their rules they would have sent me to the ACA lockup' he lowered his head, resting it on a hand. 'You are right, they don't care about me at all. How could I be so stupid' he lied through crocodile tears.

  Hero went up to him and place a gentle hand on his shoulder. 'You should not feel ashamed. It is understandable you wanted to give these mortals a chance' he said calmly. 'But I am afraid the truth is simple, we are monsters to them nothing more' Isaac look up at him, forcing more tears down his face. 'I am sorry you have to find out the hard way, but now you can take the first step into your rebirth'

  'I'm ready to join you' said Isaac wiping away a tear.

  'Then let us not waste another minute, this way' he gestured to follow into the shadow behind the part of the roof where the door leads to the staircase inside, right behind it and out of sight from Mike and Rebecca. Isaac forced a smile as he followed, once he was around he spots three more Aftershoks standing there. One wore a leather jacket, his hair sleek back. The other looks like he hasn't slept in days, he wore a long coat with a hood, shadows under his eyes. The final guy looks like a nerd with the huge glasses that reflect the moonlight, and a bow tie with matching shorts.

  'Allow me to introduce you' said Hero. 'Those two are my commanders' he pointed to the leather jacket guy and the hoodie guy, 'Jumper and Double, along with a fellow Aftershok, Poindexter who volunteered to use his power. Despite not wanting to be out in the field'

  'This is the guy Ghostgal told us about' said Jumper folding his arms. 'You sure we can trust him? For all we know he is wearing a wire' Isaac gulped, praying they don't notice his ankle bracelet.

  'The only thing he has is the ankle bracelet the police force him into' said Hero, Isaac started screaming inside his head. 'No doubt they know about this meeting from spying on Ghostgal and Solkivich earlier, so we must make arrangements. Right now we are on the edge of any listening devices they might be using, but we must make sure'

  'Can we get this over with?' said Double, 'I don't like being out in the open like this'

  'Of course' nodded Hero, then he turned to the nerd. 'Poindexter if you could'

  'Sure thing my Hero' said Poindexter adjusting his huge glasses. Then he held out his hands and clapped them together, sending out a wave that shot out around them through the city. All the lights went off, the cars stopped moving on the streets and his Ankle Bracelet stopped silently beeping.

  'What just happened?' he asked.

  'I have disabled all technology withing five yards of here' explained the Nerd. 'I can also determine the limit of how long, at this case two minutes, which should be enough right Hero?'

  'Of course, Double?'

  Before Isaac could come up with some excuse to move, Double grabbed his face and pulled. Isaac felt his entire skin being peeled off, along with his clothes as he was pushed back. He looked down to see he is still fully clothed as always, thank god, but when he look up Double has his hand on the face of another Isaac. The Second Isaac wore the same clothes, has the same hair, and has the same handsome face if he say so himself.

  'Leg up' said Jumper grabbing his leg and lifting it. Isaac wobble on one leg as he removed the ankle bracelet and attached it to the double. He dropped his leg afterwards.

  'Rude' mumble Isaac.

  Double gave the second Isaac his order, 'You are to run around the city until sunrise, keeping the detectives distracted so they don't ask any questions' Isaac Two nodded. Then the double turn and started running, jumping rooftop to rooftop.

  'We got less than a minute before the power comes back on' said Hero. 'Jumper if you would please teleport us right away'

  'Grab on' Jumper held out his arm, Poindexter and Double held onto his right arm, Hero putting his hand on his shoulder. Jumper looked to Isaac, 'Bet you negated to mention about that little bracelet, thinking of leading the cops back to us?' he said to him.

  'Of course not' said Isaac, 'I didn't know how you guys would react so I was scared'

  'Oh believe me, I know you're a coward' said Jumper. 'Someone who fight against their own kind always is'

  'Can we get going now!' said Double.

  'The EMP field will fade in thirty seconds' said Poindexter, 'We need the cops to see he is still in the city'

  'Now, now Jumper' said Hero. 'Isaac has regretted his actions and have seen the error of his ways. Let us accept him with open arms and forget his past deeds. Now if you please'

  Jumper grabbed Isaac's arm. There was a loud pop and Isaac fell face first into the soft grass, lifting himself up to see that they are not in the city anymore but in the middle of the bush, trees around them with the mountains towering above. They must be way out in the outback right now. 'Damn he can teleport' said Isaac. Mike's whole plan is going down in flames, what is he going to do now?

  'Sorry about the landing' said Jumper helping him up roughly. 'You must have slipped through my hand' he smirk.

  Isaac glared at him, already he doesn't like this guy. 'Where are we?' he asked.

  'Why do you wanna know?' asked Jumper.

  'Cause you teleport me without permission for one' said Isaac. 'And I do like to keep track of my whereabouts at all time, after all I did just woke up from a coma' he wanted to insult him with a curse but he still need to play the part of the scared newbie.

  'We are near the camp' said Double.

  'We call it Haven' explained Hero. 'A camp for all Aftershoks looking for a safe place where they can be themselves. It is here you will be safe' he turned to Isaac. 'By the way, have you picked out a new name for yourself yet?'

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  Isaac shook his head. 'You should. The name you have is long gone, the ACA made sure of that. You are now part of a species higher than the mortals and therefore must choose one that will tell them who you are and why they should be afraid of you'

  'Sounds ominous' said Isaac. 'I'll choose one soon, right now I am still processing all of this'

  'Understandable' said Hero, 'Come, let me show you around'

  They walked through the trees, stepping over rocks and dirt as they push through until they came to a clearing under the mountains, a spring running by the field as Isaac saw the tents and cabins around them. All of them decorated with fairy lights, the clear night sky right above them but that is not what caught his attention.

  It was the Aftershoks. They are all walking around like normal people. Children run past playing a new game they invented with their powers, with rules only children know as it looks like tag but you have to touch them with their harmless power. A child was throwing water balls at his friends who fought back with grass, air, vortex and even hail. In the centre of the camp is a huge dining area with lots of tables, a bench set up at the edge with plates of food, supervised by the chefs who used their powers to cook. Hero was explaining about all the benefits here but Isaac was only half paying attention. The plan far from his mind as this place is incredible, he felt like a normal guy among all these Aftershoks for the first time since he woke up in that hospital.

  'You will live here of course' said Hero, walking with him through the cabins until they came to the dining area under a huge shelter. 'Everyone will earn their place here so you will be given a job. Heat I admit is not a good power for a fighter so maybe in the kitchens with the chefs'

  'Sounds good' shrugged Isaac. He needs to find a way to contact Mike. He felt the phone in his pocket. Hero and his Commanders don't know he has one, probably think the mortals would never give him one. This will work in his favour; all he needs to do is to go off alone and call Mike to come get him. If of course this place is a dead zone for phone service then he could always run away. He got an idea. 'So can we leave?' he asked Hero.

  Something flashed in those red eyes, like a glimmer of impatience that he quickly brushed away and put on his smile, 'Of course but why would you want to? As you can see you are free here' Isaac put on a false face and nodded.

  'You're right, forgive me' he said. 'I was just curious about if I can go see my poor mother'

  'She does not love you anymore' said Hero curtly. 'The ACA has made us outcasts, therefore the person who we once was no longer exist in modern society'

  Someone is getting impatient, Isaac thought to himself. He might be in more danger then he thought. The window to run away with his tail between his legs is slowly closing.

  While they walked, different Aftershoks bid hello to Hero.

  'Welcome back Hero'

  'Beautiful night isn't it Hero?'

  The children all gather around, cheering his name. Hero beamed as he picked one up with one hand, showing his massive strength at they all cried in excitement. Isaac wants to mimic shooting himself with a gun, how can anyone be this stuck up? It's as if Hero is the second coming, and all the Aftershoks fawn over him like so.

  Of course, that adds up the fact that Hero is not at all what he seems. Isaac has watched too many television shows with guys like him. On the outside he puts on a charade to gain their trusts, make them want to follow him with just a few pretty words. But Isaac could tell that if given the chance he will show his true colours, someone who is at the top of the hill and never wants to go down. Isaac had already given him some tests to test his character. The questions before he showed that even though he said anyone can leave but no one ever does. If someone were to leave like say Ember, then he would want to make sure they don't talk. Now he knows why they are after this Ember person.

  But he can't just go up and ask. He needs time to gain their trusts then he could ask questions. But if they find out he is here as a spy then the imploding will happen. He has to act like he wants to join the ranks, take it easy for tonight then find a signal to call Mike and let him know. 'So sorry about that' Hero said to him, 'As you can see our brethren here are grateful for this chance at a new life'

  'So am I' lied Isaac. 'I appreciate everything you have done for me'

  'Of course, you are one of us and as such deserve to serve us'

  Serve you, you mean. Isaac nodded with a false grin.

  'Come now, let us eat' smiled Hero leading him to the benches where the plates of food await them. Isaac drooled at the sight of all the burgers, steaks and even pizza waiting for him to devour.

  Like before people gather around Hero, so Isaac ditched him and went to grab a plate. He did get a few dirty looks for being so rude that he would willingly ditch their precious "Hero" but who cares if there is the promise of free food. He took a couple of burgers, then felt a hand on his shoulder. 'Forgive me Brother, for something has come up' Hero said to him. 'Please enjoy your dinner until I return'

  'Sure thing mate' Isaac said with chips in mouth. He got a whack across the face by the angry female chef holding the spatula.

  'Show some respect to our Hero!' she yelled at him.

  Hero chuckle, 'Its ok, he is adjusting please give him time' he said to her.

  The female chef actually swoon, 'Of course my Hero!' she giggled.

  Isaac rolled his eyes, shallowing the chips in his mouth as Hero walked out from the dining area. The chef return to giving him dirty looks once he was gone, so he ignored her and picked up his plate of food, searching around for an empty table. He felt like back in high school at the canteen. He look around at everyone eating their dinner at the tables, some blokes showing off their powers for the women to impress them, one woman showed him up by demonstrating a powerful power then the poor guy hitting on her. Isaac laughed.

  He walked down between the tables until three guys stepped into his path. Isaac stood as the guy infront smirk at him, reminding Isaac of a snake he ran over that one time. 'Look who it is, I heard our Hero was bringing in a new guy to our army' he said. His hair was comb back, and he wore dark green clothes with a black coat. 'You're the Heat Guy right? I heard about you from Ghostgal during her debriefing from the city. The dog for the cops' the two goons standing beside him laughed along. Isaac wanted to ignore them and pick his table but they are blocking the path.

  'I'm Blade Runner' he introduce himself. 'I am one of the best Aftershoks for our Hero. You could say I have been in the inner circle a few times with the Commanders' he added smugly. 'Who knows if you play your cards right you could stack up to someone like me, then again with your power I won't be surprised if you become our new stove' he and the goons laughed again.

  'Are you done?' asked Isaac, feeling his anger boil. Not at the insults he is getting but the impatience at the delay to his dinner. 'Cause personally I don't have time to teach some rats how to dance'

  'Watch your mouth' he said coldly. 'I am an elite Aftershok here and you will show the proper respect'

  'Oh forgive me' grinned Isaac, 'I didn't realized who I was talking to'

  'Thought so' he smirked.

  Isaac picked up a cup of drink from a table with one hand. 'You should know something about me then. For instance, I do love the sound water makes when it is spilled on garbage' he poured it over Blade's boots.

  Blade fumed. 'You are going to regret that' he said.

  'I'm shaking' Isaac said sarcastically, even shaking his body to prove his point. Blade smack the plate of food out of his hand. Isaac watch as the burgers and chips he gotten was dropped to the ground, splitting apart on impact. The Heat flowed around him, surging faster from his anger. He dead stare the ground where his food is as Blade got down and picked up a clump of the burger patty.

  'Don't worry, this type of food is perfect for someone like you' he said, then he smudge it onto Isaac's cheek, dropping small pieces of meat onto his hoodie. The two goons laughed as Blade pulled his hand back, proud of himself.

  'Tell me something' Isaac said calmly. 'Why would you do a thing like that? I am really hungry here mate'

  'I don't need a reason' said Blade. 'I do it to show you the hierarchy of this place, so don't go thinking you can insult me with your pathetic powers when you are just a newbie…' he didn't get to finish that sentence since Isaac cracked his knuckles into his mouth.

  'Then why don't I give you a knuckle sandwich then!' said Isaac, fury burning in his eyes as he pulled his fist back.

  Blade screamed as his jaw was burning him. People look up from the tables at the fight happening in the centre. Blade stood back as the two goons stood infront of Isaac, cracking their huge knuckles. Isaac spat then look up at them, 'Go right ahead, the minute you take a step I would have already poke your eyes and make you see actual red' he held up two fingers on each hand. 'Try me, I double dog dare you'

  The goons growled. Blade yelled at them, 'What are you waiting for, get him!'

  The Goons took a step, Isaac step forward and poke both their eyes. They yelled out as their eyeballs started to burn, water leaking out like fountains from their tear ducts as they held onto their eyes, letting Isaac punch them both into the gut. Both Goons fell down like trees. Isaac grinned at Blade, 'Not so useless is it now?'

  'You're cocky, but now you will deal with me' Blade held out both of his arms. Two katana blades grew from the palms, making him look like a smug weird version of wolverine as he held both like swords.

  Isaac gave a fake yawn, pissing him off even more. Before they could start their little fight a huge burst of steam shot out between the both of them. 'Hold it there' came a voice Isaac recognised. 'You know the laws, no fighting among each other!'

  Isaac tried to look through the steam to see who it is, Blade was already yelling at the figure 'He hit me first!' he said like a child.

  'Doesn't matter, you are the senior member here' said the voice stepping through.

  Isaac couldn't believe his eyes. This bloke is defiantly someone he knows. His brown hair gelled up into spikes around his head, he wore his jacket with the huge dragon on the back like always and he kept his smug smile like he was on top of the world. Derek walked up to Isaac and got him into a hug. Isaac hugged back.

  He didn't expect to see his best friend here.