Chapter 1

It's a dark, ghastly night, like every other night in this city. I'm standing outside the entrance to a back alley bar, one of the few that I haven't been to yet, but this one may have the answers I need to end this whole ordeal.

As I walk in I feel the eyes graze over me from all angles. Doesn't matter, my business isn't with these people; it's with one particular person. Unfortunately I don't know who this person is yet, so I must kill time. I park a spot at the counter and get a drink from the tender.

Looking around this disgusting, rundown piece of forgotten garbage brings back memories, memories that do not want to be remembered. I see groups of kin talking to one another. Makes me think of my friends, well the friends I use to have, I shuffle this thoughts away. My eyes still browsing they set upon a woman on the other side of the room. Her attractive appearance would grab the attention of any man. She flashes me a seductive smile and winks.

"Not tonight." I tell myself as I turn away.

I'm not in search of company tonight, in honesty I'm not in true search of company anytime. No matter how many I take to bed or who they are; they all remind me of her, make me think of what could have been.

The memories return, I wish I could crush them into dust.

"Looking for someone?" The tender asks me.

"Yeah, a messenger. Have you seen him?" I respond.

"Oh…" The tender sees where I'm coming from. "I think he's going to be in the back booth over there."

The tender points as he speaks, directing me to an isolated spot in the corner.

"Thanks." I say before finish off my beverage.

I stand up and approach the empty booth. Navigating through the crowded room is surprisingly complicated. Almost there I feel a sudden jerk at my feet that causes me to fall. This fall in turn makes me run into a group of unpleasant looking men.

"Hey! Watch it asshole!" The leader blurts as he shoves me back.

I dust myself off and turn to him accordingly.

"My apologizes." I say before turning to leave.

But my shoulder is grabbed and I'm forced to face the group again.

"That's not good enough. I think you owe us a couple of rounds."

My face goes stern as I knock his hand off my shoulder.

"Not going to happen, sunshine." I replied strongly.

Once again I go to leave but the vindictive dolt pulls me back a second time.

"You need to open those ears of yours dipshit! I say you're buying us a round." The man snaps holding me by the collar.

"And I'm saying you best step off before you do something you're going to regret." I finished and turned away from him like the worthless waste of space he is.

From behind I hear a roar of anger followed by the breaking of glass. Already sensing his actions I spin around grabbing his wrist that held the broken bottle. Instantly I twist it in half breaking it making it fall lifelessly. His scream of pain were short lived as I spin grab his torso, hoist it up above me and throw him across the room. He soars like a rag doll thirty so feet before slamming hard against the bar wall and crashing to the ground. To finishing him off I send the broken bottle he once held hurtling at him at the speed of a bullet. It landed and dug deeply into his chest.

I could tell his posse was overwhelmed by the unbelievable quickness that all this had transpired in but that didn't stop them from attacking me. Where these members? No, there attitude and attacks were too neanderthal to make them members. From all sides I received pathetic "tough guy" punches but I avoided them with no effort bringing down powerful martial art attacks to each of them in sequence.

As each fell one came at me with a pool stick swing it down on me with all his strength. I merely raised my arm to block and the stick broke as if it were a twig. The man looked at jagged stub in his hands wondering how I could have blocked his attack; break the stick without even flinching from pain. Instead of giving him the answer I kicked the stick up into the air, used his shoulder as a jump point and as the stick came down I grabbed it turn back to him and ran it through his upper back to his lower stomach. I landed my jump just as he collapsed in a gargle of pain.

The three remaining thugs obviously found no alternative as they each pulled out a hand gun. Unable to avoid in time I received multiple shots to the chest. Seven, eight, nine… I lost count as each bullet dug its way into my body. Falling to the ground the three laughed proudly to themselves watching the blood soak through my clothes. The harsh pain that surged in my body quickly subsided and I climbed back up like nothing had happened to me, the three men's jaws dropping open in disbelief.

Darting at them I open palm hit one in the chest sending his arms up, grabbing them I held on as I flipped over him bringing them with me. I landed on the other side, the sound of broken bones filled the room as squealed in pain. I back kicked him letting him fall to the ground with a shattered spine. The next goon received a fast neck breaker before I threw him behind the counter into the shelf, as he hit the floor several shattering glasses left him like a pin cushion. The last felt the cold steel of my knife as it slid threw his throat like butter sending blood spewing across the room. He gasped horrifically as he tried to cover his wound but I knocked him around and brought the knife down on his back and dragged it down as far as it would go. His gargling vanished as his corpse hit the floor.

I cleaned the knife on the one clean spot that remained on my clothes before sliding it back into its guard. Were these guys a challenge? No, they were nothing, I've faced preschoolers who were tougher… preschool. More bad memories.

I shake them away as I look around seeing several horrified faces. It was clear what ever opportunity to get information from here had long since passed. Letting out I sigh I approach the tender again who was covered in the blood that had been spilt, he quivering uncontrollably as he looked at me with fear struck eyes. I've seen this look on countless people before him; I had gotten use to it.

I pulled out my wallet and set a different bill on the counter as I spoke.

"This is for the drink… this is for the damage… this is for your dry cleaning… and this is for the trauma you've experienced."

I turned away and headed out the door the room was silent as every single set of eyes followed me. Once outside the eruption of screams was easily heard, even from behind the closed door.

I headed down the alley, my thoughts began to wander. What name would I develop from this experience? I had developed several names in the past while; I've been called a demon, a savior, a murderer and several curse ridden words. All the names I'm known from I prefer Namelus, don't ask me why. But of all the names I've been called you probably know me from my previous name, the name I use to go by, that name is Ron Stoppable.