PROLOGUE

Andy Indigo is bitter. His father is a failed scientist and a drunk who comes home and beats his tired mother, who is a teacher. Andy is constantly picked on by Josh Reynolds, a jock at Campbell High, and protected by Jason West in exchange for answers on homework. His only friend is Alexia Harper, a smart and beautiful girl, who tells Andy that his life can get better. It's not until a field trip to VecLabs is when Andy's life changes forever. While in the genetics section, Josh tackled Andy as a prank, but he went right into emblodes, chemically altered kinetic energy, being engulfed in them, and was knocked out immediately. After Andy was rushed to the hospital, the doctors discovered that Andy wasn't dead, but that the emblodes had stabilized in his body. When he returned from the hospital, he went out one night and discovered that his body had changed, and that he gained the ability to turn kinetic energy into super-strength.

Using this newfound information, he managed to stop Josh the next day when he tried another tackle, and instantly gained popularity. At nights, he started participating in street fights, where he went in a mask and fought and defeated random people for money. Later on, he started going to parties, hung out with the popular girls, and became popular. He also lost connection with Alexis, who really cared for Andy. However, one night he was drunk driving with a random popular kid, and rammed Kyle Preston's car, killing him instantly. When the cops showed up, Andy was arrested for drunk driving. Unknown to Andy, Kyle was the son of wealthy criminal, Wesley Preston, a.k.a. the Crime King, and Preston hunted down and killed Andy's father, who was out drinking.

Shocked by the news that her husband was murdered and that her son was in jail, Andy's mother didn't know what to do. However, she received a call from a shadowy informant named Casino. Casino was witness to Ray Indigo's murder, and said that he could help her because of what Preston had done to his own family. He gave Alicia money for Andy's bailout, and told Andy what he could do. In response, Andy became the A-Man. Casino gave Andy tips on where Crime King's next heists would be, and A-Man would be there to stop them. This system worked until Preston discovered that there was a mole in his organization, and found out that it was Casino. He lured A-Man to his hideout, and held Casino hostage, where Crime King called it "eliminating his resource". Mercilessly, he shot Casino, and Crime King got away. Angered even more by the fact that his enemy got away with his friend's life, Andy vowed that he would get Preston for good.

Remembering his father's words, "Sometimes you have to face your problems head on", Andy confronted Preston without the mask. In a brutal battle, it seemed that Andy had the upper hand, until Preston told him that he already knew that Andy was A-Man, and that now that his identity was revealed, he would use it against him. As Andy was about to strike the final blow, he remembered all of the lives he had changed, the lives he'd caused pain to because of people he killed. He decides to let Crime King go, but not without giving evidence to the federal court that Casino left behind. Preston was forced out of the country, and Andy had won a little victory. Later on, he reconciled with Alex, and found common ground with Jason, accepting his destiny as the A-Man.

After his first adventure, Andy began to be A-Man full-time, working long hours in the night to catch criminals and bring them to justice. This is seen when he defends a young girl named Maria from gangsters, who try to kill her for money. Little did he know this girl would become Aroe, a partner of his. This, however, affects his studies, and he soon finds that he's failing several classes. Alexis volunteers to tutor him, but he declines stating that he's got too much stuff to worry about. He didn't know how right he was. A week later, he gets a call from a girl who he used to know long ago: Lily Chani. Lily tells Andy that she is pregnant, which they "made" at a party while Andy was drunk. She wants to get an abortion, but tells Andy that they can both move in together and raise the baby themselves or she'll go through with the abortion. In shock, he hangs up the phone, not knowing what to do. Meanwhile, the April Fool, a mass murderer who wants to make a name for himself, holds a meeting with all of the other crime bosses in Vector City, telling them that they can kill A-Man with his help. When the bosses disagree, he responds by burning them all alive, strategically placing them in a lighter factory.

The next day, Andy watches the show Primetime (a popular newshow), and finds out about the dead mobsters. Andy then becomes determined to find the killer. But life intercepts him when his mother gets a call from Lily's mother, and confronts Andy about his unplanned pregnancy. She almost kicks him out in a furry, but through forgiveness and love for her son, she doesn't. When Andy gets to school, he meets Lily, who is in tears. She confronts Andy for the first time in two months and blurts out to everyone about their pregnancy, calling him a mean jerk and saying that "she didn't even like it". Andy just stands in horror as he realizes that he truly hurt this girl. He runs into old friend, Peter Milligan, who revealed that he created "the Skin", a biogenetic suit that can heal any disease and any illness or injury. While joining Peter for lunch, he eventually finds out about the April Fool, and manages to track him down. But Andy, distracted by all that is going on in his personal life, is too weary and falls into a trap. And right when he falls out is the man who has done it all, the April Fool. A quick fight ensues, and A-Man is shot, stabbed, and burned by the Fool. Heading to the very lab that contains it, Andy finds the Skin, hoping that it can cure him on his pains. He tries it on only to become a new A-Man, equipped with throwing darts and kinetic knives.

Using the Skin, A-Man hunts down the April Fool and fightshim again, except this time he has an advantage. After a dangerous train fight where the Fool kidnapped millions of victims to distract him, A-Man stopped the April Fool and brought him to justice, claiming a victory over this battle. But while moving through the city, he notices the Skin is suddenly flaring up, and it begins to engulf his entire body. It turns him into a sinister creature, and he realizes that it's feeding off his own kinetic makeup. Heading to an electric field, he gets the Skin off only to be bruised and damaged again. The Skin dies, for without a host it couldn't live. Later on, Andy is at the lab and tries to clean up the evidence that the Skin is gone, but Peter shows up, only to find Andy in his torn up hobo clothes. Andy reveals that he is A-Man, and tells Peter that the Skin was too unstable and dangerous. Peter pulls out a second vial of the Skin, and decides to try it for himself, craving the power he needs to destroy A-Man. It turns him into the demonic Leper, and he goes on a rampage through the city until he comes to Andy's school to do battle.

Former friends and now enemies, Andy knows this wasn't supposed to be his war to fight. He knows this is his fault, like how Lily got pregnant, like how he let the Fool beat him, like he killed that man, and like how he let Peter fall to the dark side. A vicious fight ensues, and Andy and Peter head to a graveyard that's under renovation. Andy lures Leper into an electric wire, and Peter is apparently shocked to death. When the smoke clears, Peter's gone, and Andy is left alone with the cops to deal with. The police make quick work of Andy, and manage to subdue him. But he gets away, thanks to one sympathetic officer. That night, Andy doesn't go home, and instead sleeps in a dumpster near his school. Alexia and Jason find him there, and try to cheer him up, telling him it's going to be okay. They take him to Lily, who tells him that she she's moving away to deal with this. However, before she leaves, she gives Andy a kiss, saying she'll be back when he needs her. As Lily walks off, Andy tells Alex and Jason about Peter, and Jake is the first one to be shocked because he was friends with him too. Alex convinces them all that they need prayer, and as they pray, Andy bursts out in tears and cries out "why". Alex and Jake comfort him, and the full origin story for A-Man concludes.

Created by Aaron Cobbs