Ebon had always been the smartest of Dakota City's Bang Babies. Who did he have to compete with? Hotsteak? Please, that pyrokinetic is all flame and no brain. The Armadillo man? Come on, he is so scared of Ebon and his Metabreed he won't even come out after sunset anymore. No, Ebon was the undisputed master of the night. He finally had his dream of making it big in the crime world with his own minions to boot.
The shadow man looked on at his two sleeping cohorts; it had been a long night for all of them. Static and Gear had once again foiled Ebon's plans. Shiv and Talon slept on peacefully just counting themselves lucky to fight another day, but Ebon couldn't sleep.
His mind raced all through the night. He was getting more and more restless at night. It was as if he was becoming a shadow himself, set to dissipate into nothingness at any moment. Ebon growled and shook his head, mad at himself for thinking such self-pitying thoughts.
He stood wiped non-existent dust off his shadowy clothes and disappeared through a portal. A stray piece of paper blown through the Metabreed's latest hideout the only sign Ebon had ever been there.
Ebon appeared on the roof of an apartment building. The neighboring apartment building's windows facing him he searched for one particular window. The living shadow found it and his heart sunk a little bit at the realization that the room beyond was empty.
Ebon had long since stopped making excuses. In the early days of his spying he had rationalized his obsession with the blonde teen as nothing more than trying to get to Static. That excuse slowly became old as Ebon found himself coming to this rooftop even when the Metabreed had no plans in motion. Ebon came to this place to think and watch and, occasionally, dream.
He watched the teen in the window below as he played video games, talked with his friends, and occasionally tied a cape around his narrow shoulders and pretended to be Superman.
Ebon had tried to deny his feelings so many times, but they just kept bubbling to the surface, refusing to be drowned by Ebon's darkness. So he continued to watch Richie, who was unaware that he had captured a certain shadow's heart.