Hey look! I posted something new. Fun!

Imprtant Notice: You might want to read this first to understand where this takes place.

I decided to start this fanfic based on a game called Marvel: Avenger's Alliance on Facebook. You are a SHIELD Agent, newly promoted in the wake of a potential catastrophic crisis. Working under Nick Fury and SHIELD, your job is to rally the heroes of the Marvel Universe and keep the world safe from villains and crazies looking to exploit a new mineral called ISO, or you know, just want to take over the world in general. There are more than 100 heroes and reformed villains for you to recruit. The battles use a turn based system, allowing you to use up to three heroes per battle, including yourself. There are two seasons in the game, each containing many missions to play. The first season focuses on an original storyline, while the second season evolves into an alternate Fear Itself plot-line from the comics. There are many other mechanics in the game that make this enjoyable, and the game ties in the movies as well. They also introduced the concept of Spec Ops, short timed story-lines that introduce new characters and items for you to use.

I'll be altering the plot-line in some areas, mainly because Season 1 is going to take forever, and a fair majority of the heroes only arrive in Season 2.

I would recommend people to play the game...but by the time anyone reads this, the game would have shut down for good already. RIP Avenger's Alliance.

Disclaimer: I do not own anything but the OCs. Enjoy!

To Be A Hero

Prologue: The Result Of Curiosity

"Aw damn it!"

A voice cried out one windy afternoon in Boston. A black haired teen was staring at his computer, looking dismayed. He was tall, standing at a good 5'8, lanky. His hair was medium-length and straight, his bangs reaching eyebrow length, all in a fringed hairstyle. He didn't have any noticeable muscles on his body, but he wasn't very thin either. He was outfitted in a plain blue and white sweater, jeans, and black boots. His chocolate brown eyes were currently looking at a blue notice on his computer screen, reading the words over and over with sheer annoyance.

You may be wondering, what could be the cause of such a cry? Well readers, ever had that time in your life (most likely in your childhood or teenage years) where a very addicting/wonderful game you had suddenly breaks, or gets a virus, or shuts down forever, or is taken away from you? That's exactly what happened to Ebon, a fifteen year old teenager living by himself. Ebon is short for Ebony, and yes, it might seem girly to you readers. Actually, it is pretty girly. He didn't know what his parents were thinking, giving him such a feminine name. Don't try and mock him for it though; he'll probably kick you for your troubles.

Anyways, it just so happened that one of his favorite games on the internet got shut down recently; his and about four million others. He was given the warning message thirty days ago, so he knew what to expect. Still, it didn't stop him and all those other fans from vehemently disagreeing with the decision on Facebook. The game was actually pretty good; it got a loving fan base, it managed to last a very long time, the plotlines were in sync with the Marvel movies and comics, all the favorite heroes were there, the mechanics and details put into the gameplay were cool…..understandably, those who enjoyed it were very sad and pissed to see it go.

If you still don't know which game I'm talking about, then you clearly didn't read the author's note. You should, you know. They're going to contain important details. To those that did read it, good job! Have a cookie.

Oh wait. I can't really give you one personally, can I? This is just a fanfiction after all.

"Aw man, and it was such a good game too." Ebon whined to himself as he leaned back against his chair, kicking his boots up on the desk in front of him. This caused his chair to lean back a little too much, and it gives way, making the teen fall on his back with a shout. A gasp of pain later and Ebony was adjusting himself on the floor, rubbing his head.

"Oww…..I should really be more careful." He muttered to himself. He stood, dusting himself off. He sighed as he glanced at his computer screen once more.

'Welp, there go my plans for the next hour. Hmm, I did finish all my homework…..and my two friends are busy. Maybe I'll go take a walk.' He mused to himself.

'Yes, that sounds like a good plan.'

He exited his apartment, making sure to grab his black jacket on the way out. He closed the door behind him, locking it with a click, and tucking away the key into his pocket. He didn't want to lose his apartment keys again, not after what happened last time. Stepping out of the building, one would notice that nothing seemed really unique in his surroundings. There were ordinary birds, ordinary trees, ordinary apartment building, ordinary other buildings, yup. There really was nothing special about the place Ebon lived in. He started walking down the sidewalk, contemplating on life. To be honest with himself, he lived a somewhat ordinary life; which he found boring since he liked it when the unexpected happened near him. I mean, running away from home was kind of exciting while it lasted, but the novelty wore off once he settled in his apartment and realized he had to juggle both school and his income. He worked at the local Starbucks nowadays. The people there were pretty friendly, so it wasn't bad per say, but he was never really one for socializing. Or to be more specific, he was too shy to try and connect with people three years older than him.

Or complete strangers. Or his fellow peers at school. Or most people in general. No wonder he's only got two friends. That thought made his mood sour a little

It also made him a potential target for bullying. This was quickly proven otherwise when Ebon quickly sent the first few bullies to the infirmary, more often than not clutching their crotch areas and whimpering. Just because Ebon had a girly name, seemed shy, and was a little on the thin side, didn't mean that he would let people just walk over him. He taught himself self-defense, and attended a couple of martial arts classes just in case. Despite his appearance, Ebony could hold his own against those that would target him, kicking them where it hurts the most in the end. Most bullies tend to use street brawling when fighting anyway.

'No proper class at all.' as Ebon liked to remark.

Ebon was brought out of his musings when he noticed something rather unusual. He hadn't heard the sound of cars passing by for the last seven minutes. In fact, there were no moving cars at all. This was weird for his area, since it was a hotspot for bustling cars and trucks and traffic. He's lost count of the number of times he'd been woken up in the middle of the night at the sound of honking vehicles, and prevented from going back to sleep until he made the decision to wear headphones to bed.

Now that he noticed it, he hadn't heard any sort of sound at all! There were no whispers from the wind, no singing from the birds, no people chatting—heck, there weren't any people besides him on this block anyway.

"Okaaaayy. I know that God knows that I don't mind being alone, but this is seriously creepy right now." Ebon mutters to himself, looking around warily.

A flash of red caught his eye for a moment, and he turned, focusing on where the color had been moments before. Nothing seemed to appear before him. He frowned.

"Okay….nothing seems out of ordinary, unless you count the silence. I could have sworn…."

He cut himself off as his eyes suddenly focused on what happened in front of him. It was only for a second, but he saw it. A stream of red electricity had risen from the ground and dispersed just as quickly.

Most people would have quickly moved on and just forget the entire thing, but Ebony felt otherwise. He moved, reaching the center of the road, where the stream appeared. Further inspection showed nothing out of the ordinary.

"Strange….normal electricity should at leave a burn mark, or a faint hum in the air."

He stood, glancing up the street to see if anything else looked out of place.

Nothing, so he checked east. Still none, so he checked his west. Everything looked okay, despite the creepy silence.

"Oh well, looks like this turned out to be nothing after all." He sighed.

Satisfied that there wasn't anything else to investigate further, he turned around to continue his walk down the street…

…..and stared directly at the oncoming truck, sounding its horn noisily. It was large, it was fast, it was sudden and it was only five meters away from him.

Ebony never got the chance to dodge.

The first thing that he noticed when he woke up was the noise. Noise wasn't unusual if you lived in the city. In fact, noise is to be expected. Cars driving by, people on their phones or chatting with one another, dogs barking at squirrels, the usual. However, there were the two simple facts that one: the world had been unnaturally silent moments ago, and two: he had been run over by a truck.

'You know, I imagined Heaven to be less city noises and more angels singing.' Ebony thought to himself.

He thought about his life until moments ago. He couldn't really say he did anything noteworthy, except remove a burden from his mother and father's lives. He made some friends, kicked a few people in between the legs, got relatively good grades on his tests….it seemed like he didn't do anything that would guarantee him a seat in Hell. So why didn't it seem like he went to the right place?

As Ebony became more aware of his senses, he realized that the ground felt like gravel. Funny, he imagined either clouds or smoldering rock. He opened his eyes, and was greeted with the starry night sky. It seemed that the clouds and city smoke didn't fog up the starry view, for once.

…Wait a minute.

"Where the heck am I?" He asked himself as he picked himself off the ground. Assessing his situation, he realized a couple of things he didn't notice before. One, he was in some sort of alley, complete with the large trash bins. The smell of smoke ran heavily in the air. A stray dog that had been watching him bolted from its place behind a trash bin. His body ached a little, most likely from lying on the hard ground for a long time. Also, for some reason, he felt smaller than usual. His clothes felt heavier on his body as well, and more loose.

Case in point, his jeans fell down when he stood.

"…..aw crap." Ebon muttered, his face turning redder by the second.

He really hoped nobody saw him like this. At least his boxers still seemed to fit him. Which begged the question, and he was going to assume this for the rest of his apparel…why did his clothes seem bigger than usual?

As if to answer his question, he noticed a large puddle near him.

"Well, how convenient." Ebony remarked to himself.

He walked over, stepping out of the suddenly larger pants and boots, and peered into puddle. What he saw shocked him so much, he managed to trip on his large jacket as he took a step back.

"Woah!"

He winced as he lay sprawled out on the floor, his mind unable to focus on anything, save for what the clear truth shown before him.

He was now a five year-old. This was officially the weirdest day in his life.

'How….how did I become a five year old from fifteen?! Did I hit my head really hard and this is all a dream? Or did I actually die from getting run over and got reincarnated or something?'

Ebony was a Catholic, but he always entertained the idea of possibly being reincarnated into another world or time, preferably one that isn't full of angst and sparkling vampires. Of course, he also knew that the chance of that happening would be slim to none-existent.

It seemed that this wouldn't be the case for him.

Once he got over his shock of being de-aged, he quickly figured out his priorities. First, he needed to make sure he looked relatively dressed. The shirt and jacket should be enough to cover his body for now, but he'd have to get clothes and shoes that would fit him soon. The second order of business was to find out where he was, and what year it was. The third…well, that was still in its drafting stage.

He slowly walked to the entrance of the alley, holding the ends of the jacket close to him. He didn't like feeling this small, he realized. It made him feel vulnerable. He didn't have his teenage strength to help him fight off anyone who could hurt him.

"I hope the next surprise isn't going to be as bad as knowing I became a little kid." He muttered to himself as he turned to his left upon exiting the alley.

The next surprise made his jaw drop even farther than the first one.

In front of him was a tall building, the tallest building he's ever seen. It was probably more than ninety stories tall. It certainly looked more futuristic than any of the other buildings he'd seen so far. What truly capped it off though, were the big bright shining letters built on the building itself.

S.T.A.R.K. Tower

"Holy….crap."

It was September 25, 2006 in Manhattan, New York City. This was the day when Ebony's life would change forever.

10 YEARS LATER…..

A woman walked briskly towards the elevator, scowling at anyone who would look at her the wrong way. She had black hair, brown eyes, and wore a standard SHIELD uniform for females. Every agent looked at her with respect and/or awe as she walked passed them.

Her name was Maria Hill, and she was Fury's personal second-in-command. She was a woman not to be trifled with.

As she opened the elevator, a man stepped up next to her.

"Agent Hill"

"Coulson."

Phil Coulson gave a small smile and a nod. The two stepped into the elevator together, Coulson pressing the button for Level 3.

"So, what's the latest on the superhero watch?"

"We've been monitoring the movements of a new group of teenaged heroes called the Runaways. Also, thanks to the Avengers, we now have Grey Gargoyle, Whiplash, and the Wrecking Crew back in their cells at the Raft."

"That's good to hear. I thought the Avengers disbanded though."

"Well, that doesn't stop them from teaming up from time to time, Agent Hill."

"I suppose not. It'd be better if we didn't need the help of these 'superheroes' in catching villains. SHIELD is perfectly capable of keeping the world safe." Agent Hill muttered lowly.

Coulson just gave her a patented smile. "You've already heard it from the big man himself. This world needs superheroes to deal with the likes of Magneto, Loki, Doctor Doom, and other major super-powered crazies. Besides, SHIELD doesn't really have a counter for magic yet."

He chose not to mention that without superheroes, Captain America wouldn't exist.

"I know, I know…" Maria replied, keeping her face impassive (because Maria Hill does not pout).

The elevator dinged, signaling the arrival to Level 3. The two agents stepped out, making their way to the control room, the one in charge of the simulators.

"So, do you think Fury made the right decision? Letting him become the youngest, full-fledged agent of SHIELD in history?" Coulson asked, his tone becoming more serious.

"Perhaps so. I'm going to trust Fury on this one, even if I have my own doubts. Still, you can't deny the kid is dedicated. And there have been cases of far younger ages appearing on the battlefield. The Power Pack, for instance." Maria replied.

"True. He's performed exceptionally in all his tests and training, and he's also been a major help even before he joined SHIELD. He's ready to graduate by normal SHIELD standards. But will it be enough to keep him alive? He's only fifteen. Most people who join SHIELD academy are at least seventeen, sixteen if we choose to stretch it a little. And unlike the Power Pack or the Runaways, he doesn't have any powers that could help him."

Maria finally broke her neutral mask, giving Coulson a small smirk. "Stop being such a worrywart. The kid's good; he can take care of himself. You don't need to constantly watch over him all the time."

Phil sighed. "I know. I just can't help but feel protective…."

"Remember that time when he faced down Loki during the Chitauri Invasion?"

"Oh yeah, I remember. Stark's cameras got the entire conversation recorded. It was pretty amusing seeing the Norse God of Mischief rebuked by an eleven year old. I think the big boss even gave him a pat on the back."

"If he could do that, then he can handle his own in the field." Hill said, ending the discussion.

The two entered the control room, making their way towards the screen overviewing simulator number 3. The screen was showing a training simulator currently in progress, a final exam actually.

Hill and Coulson watched as a familiar face took on a salvaged Sentinel unit, all the while complaining on how Needle guns were totally useless.

Ebon threw a Frag Grenade at the unit, blowing its head clean off.

"Finally!" He whooped for joy. He had changed during his ten years in the Marvel universe. His body had grown out a little more than when he was in Boston, more noticeable muscles appearing. He still didn't look overly athletic, but at least he stopped looking thin. He also wore a standard Kevlar SHIELD jumpsuit, the normal generalist kind. On top of that, he wore a plain black trench coat.

Coulson smiled as he watched Ebon celebrate, and even Maria had a small smirk on her face.

"Oh yeah, he's definitely ready."

Phew! How was it? Like it? Dislike it? Its been a long time since I've last written anything.

Well, I'm not going to give up on this anytime soon. I've got big plans.

If you want to comment on my writing, or if I missed anything in the grammar and spelling areas, then leave a review. And please, actually tell me what I did wrong. Dont just say "Oh this fanfic is awful! You're the worst person on this earth" without some sort of explanation. Nobody got time for that.

You can also suggest which hero you want Ebony to recruit. Of course...I'm going to make things more complicated for recruiting heroes. Otherwise, Ebony would just induct every hero on the planet into his team, right off the bat.

I hope you enjoyed this starting chapter. Until next time!