Chapter 1

Life returned to normal in the family. For once, things were going all right for just about everyone. The Heroes Association is no longer actively searching for Metal Knight at the request of Garou who insisted he would hunt him himself. But, he has yet to tell them the true fate of Bofoi, he won't say anything until absolutely necessary. Child Emperor and Alley have since taken over his lab. Alley reprogramed the robots and has been learning and reading up on every project Bofoi was a part of, and what he was working on.

She has taken a great interest in robotics and mechanics, yet there was a new interest brewing in her mind, genetics. She retrofitted one area of the lab and completely altered it for her new passion. Child Emperor was curious to her work, however, she didn't want to share anything just yet. Alley has been taking many monster cells the association has found and has been working with those in recent months.

Hunter has nearly caught up to Pac in skill and power. It helped that Silverfang assisted in the training when Garou was forced to go into hiding. He has worked twice as hard and Garou refuses to go easy on him. With the steady training and stronger work out, he has come quite far in recent days.

Pac continues to train alongside his father. His skills have gotten sharper and his power is growing steady. Yet Garou ensured he doesn't push his sons too hard to avoid another rapid growth spurt. He is taking interest though in their powers and what has developed. Pac has far more control over his third eye. He is a very capable esper when need be, but he is also starting to tap into his mother's power as well. He could move at a rapid speed like Flashy Flash. He has demonstrated that he not only has Gyoro Gyoro's power, but is starting to access Tatsumaki's as well. Hunter on the other hand has the strength and is developing his endurance. He can take a hit quite well, and is starting to outlast Pac when it comes to a fight. More than likely he is getting Darkshine's strength and Zombieman's endurance. Yet when push comes to shove, he has Metal Bat's fighting spirit. The more hits he takes the stronger he gets.

Garou made certain his children are aware of their power and use them accordingly.

Alley too has a little taste of each parent's strength. She can go for days without sleep, she has developed the esper power of Tatsumaki, but her new trick is her mother's gift. With a single touch she can absorb not just people's strength, but intelligence as well. She learned that by accident when she spoke with Genos's creator Dr. Kuseno. She was showing him her new lab and offered him any piece of equipment to use for Genos. He embraced her… when it happened.

The surge coursed through her body until the doctor nearly fell unconscious from the event. He was quick to recover, and yet when Alley looked to Genos, she knew every part of him, inside and out!

It was then; she began to formulate new ideas for his body. She was able to create her own metals to help Genos withstand difficult fights. Some of the materials happened to be shards of the meteor that fell on City Z a few years back. She was able to smelt a whole new metal, nearly unbreakable and lightweight.

The children were thriving much to the delight of Garou, he couldn't be prouder of his children. They enjoyed 3 months of peace and family bonding.

This day, Garou stood in the forest on the mountain, his eyes closed but he was waiting. Then, his eyes shot open. A devious grin came over him. "Ready or not… here I come!" he called.

At first, he merely walked into the thick of the woods, then, he started to run. Within the forest were his sons, who were told they have to avoid him at all costs. However, if they do encounter, they must fight him to escape! It didn't take him long to find Hunter, who tried to keep to the trees and out of sight. Garou was quick to leap up and force him down!

Hunter landed with a crash but quickly got to his feet. His father stood there before him, wide open and waiting for him to strike back. "Let's see what you can do!"

A look of determination came over Hunter, he stood at the ready and was prepared to fight back. He was about to do water stream rock smashing fist, when Garou struck first. His son flew and tore through three trees before coming to a stop. He slumped down and yet, got up again. "Too slow!" Garou called. "You need to get faster!"

Then he felt a strike on his back, a stiff one, just enough to make him feel it. Over his shoulder, Garou saw Pac standing and waiting for him. "Bold, you found me rather than me finding you."

"I rather face my fears than to run from them" he said.

Garou smirked. "Let's see if it was worth the risk!" The two went into an all out brawl. Pac could just keep up with his father, but his strength wasn't anywhere near his! Pac could strike, and hit various spots on his father, but not enough to push him away or even make him winded. Pac tired out long before Garou did, yet as Pac tired, Hunter came barreling in. He tried to go into an all out brawl with his father, yet he was easily and quickly defeated. One shot to the chest sent Hunter down. Same with Pac.

His sons were breathless, wheezing and sore. "Not bad, not bad at all!" Garou announced.

"Damn it." Muttered Hunter. "You think we would have an edge on you!"

"You boys need to remember, I've been doing this for years! It also doesn't help that every monster I have ever consumed, I absorb their strength as well."

Pac shook his head to it all. "I wouldn't go that far to get as strong as you dad, no offense."

"None take, trust me. I wouldn't want you kids having to eat monster like I do on a daily bases. There's no flavor to them!" He helped his sons to their feet, they were a little battered but no worst for wear. "How about you two go into town for a little while, get some air and treat yourselves."

"Yeah, a break does sound good. You ready Pac?"

Pac nodded. The brothers left shortly after and ventured into the city.

Alley was at the lab working, which left Garou alone with Melee and Rover. An evil grin came over him. "Time to conduct some evil."

He returned home, but didn't make it appear so obvious. Sneaking back into the house, Garou crept around and found Melee working on dinner. He caught her eating quite a bit of it too! Using his tail he would bring it up to her shoulder before using its tongue to tickle the ear. She would back up and cringe to it, yet then he would get the other side and do it again. "Quit it! Both of you!" she scolded.

Then he wrapped her up within the tail and pulls her away and into his arms. "What's with you!" she demanded but smiled at the same time. He has been doing this often for the past few months with her.

"Nothing… just happy is all. Never thought I would feel like this. I didn't think I deserve someone like you… or the kids!" He said and gave her a gentle kiss. "How about you? How are you feeling?"

She couldn't lie. She was content, yet still worried for the children. "I just keep feeling something else is going to come our way. What are we doing to do then? Will the kids be okay?"

"The kids are more than capable," he said without a doubt in his voice. "I have taught well. They have mastered each move without flaw. I would pity the poor bastard that tries and challenge them. Hunter has come a long way, Pac knows what power he has and that's half the battle there."

Melee nodded. "And Alley?" she asked.

"Alley can fight if she has to, but by the sounds of things, she is can outsmart her opponent before they can even figure out a strike! But, she too has learned quite a bit from not just me, but her brothers as well. She can handle herself too."

Melee was relieved with the news, she braced herself closer to Garou and gave him a firm hug. "I hope we have done everything we could for them."

Garou returned her embrace. "Hey, we're still learning too."

"I better get back to making dinner…"

"Do you have to?" he asked with an evil grin on his face. "We have the house to ourselves again… can't we take advantage of it?"

Melee giggle. "I thought you were acting frisky."

"Is it that obvious?" he said. "Either way, I won't give you much of a choice, you can cook dinner but I'm going to be like this the whole time." With her back to him, he wrapped his tail around the both of them. His arms coiled around her waist as his head rested on her left shoulder. He kept a firm brace on her, making movement difficult to do.

Melee rolled her eyes, despite how needy he was acting, time together for them was rare. Dinner could wait, but he couldn't… nor could she.