Chapter Six: The Return
Los Angeles, California- June 14th, 1997
As the years went by, Mark's heart began to heal. His children were growing up faster than he would like them to, and the world was changing around them. People were more open about their craft and Mark could now freely wear the pentagram necklace he and Jodi had exchanged on their wedding day. Gunner, Anna and April, now in the thralls of puberty, were learning to live their lives without their mother, and Mark's job as a member of the WWF roster meant new babysitters every week as their father traveled the globe in search of inner peace.
On one of his off days, while Gunner and Anna were at school, Mark was outside repairing the tree-house. He'd gotten into an argument with Gunner about April running away which had caused a rage outburst. April had done a very silly thing and gotten herself pregnant, and so, a year ago, she had run away, moving to Chicago to raise her baby away from its father. Her family hadn't heard from her since she'd left. Mark sighed as he lifted a wooden plank from the ground and climbed the ladder to repair the hole he'd caused. After his children had left, he'd blown a hole into the side of the tree-house with a fireball, letting out a little bit of his bottled-up anger. Now he was fixing it, because if his kids found our he had mystical powers, they'd be terrified of him and that was the last thing he needed.
Just as he was hammering in the last nail, the phone started ringing off the hook. He back-flipped from the tree-house onto the decking and walked inside, wiping sweat from his brow. It was a hot day in LA and all he wanted to do was stay inside with a glass of whiskey and a good book, but he didn't have that option today. Instead he was spending the day in the sun, trying to fix his mistakes, which he'd done for most of his life.
Reaching for the phone, he looked away and coughed, clearing his throat so he could have a clearer conversation with whoever was calling him.
"Calaway Residence, Mark speaking," he said, pulling off his thick gloves and placing them on the table under the phone. The high-pitched voice of Paul Bearer was the sound to greet him.
"Mark! Mark, I'm so sorry! I didn't know this was going to happen! If I did, I would never have-"
"Whoa, Paul, slow down. What's going on?" Mark asked, concern filling his voice for his friend and mentor. He seemed more panicked than usual. Mark hadn't seen Paul in a few years, due to Mark not having the time to go to Austin and visit, but he always tried to call.
"You mean he's not there yet?"
Mark blinked. "Whose not here yet?"
Paul went silent for a moment. Mark blinked, looking out the window to see a few leaves rattled from the trees due to the wind. After a few minutes, Mark let out an exasperated sigh.
"Paul, who are you talking about?"
Paul let out a tiny squeak before he began speaking again.
"Mark... it's... it's Glenn. He's still alive and he's coming-"
It was at the 'still alive' part of that sentence that the phone slipped from Mark's hand and hit the floor with a clatter. His baby brother was still alive? After all this time, Glenn had survived the fire?
Mark grabbed for the phone. "Paul, what did he say?"
"He said he wants you to pay for what you did to him, starting with them. I don't know what he meant by that."
Mark's eyes bulged from his head as he realized exactly who Glenn was talking about.
Defying the logic meter going haywire in his head, he hung up the phone and flamed out, teleporting to the alley way just outside Venice Beach High School. He poked his head out from around the corner and tried to find the twins in the crowd. Gunner wasn't hard to find; he was standing on a table, being the show off that he was. His girlfriend, Cassie, was sitting on the seat, breast-feeding their one-month-old son, Carter. Gunner flipped onto one hand and waved at Anna and her boyfriend, Scott, as they walked past. They were heading for the library. It was lunch time, so the school was bustling with people. Mark flamed out again, this time teleporting behind the library building on the side with the car park. Just as Anna walked past, he grabbed her hand and pulled her to him.
"Dad!"
"Hi, honey, how would you like to come home early today?"
Anna bawked. "I'm sorry?"
"I'm taking you and Gun home now. Some things have come up and I need you there."
Before Anna could say anything in return, Mark grabbed her hand and dragged her over to Gun, pushing past Scott, who watched his girlfriend and her father leave with a very confused look on his face.
After rounding up both of his children and taking them home, Mark ushered them into the attic where they were told to stay until he came and got them. With some protest, he managed to convince them to stay put, promising to up both of their allowances if they did.
It was sunset before Mark actually heard anything. He was sitting in the kitchen starring out the window when he saw the shadow move between the tree-house and the back wall. Mark knew this pattern all too well; it was one he himself had used when it came to tracking demons through the city. Bob and weave.
Mark reached for the baseball bat he had stashed near the back door just as the sliding door slid open. He readied it and swung as a massive arm poked through the hole, plastering it against the wall.
Through a wail of expletives, Mark grabbed the guy who was attempting to break into his house. The figure was heavy, maybe a little over three hundred pounds, but with Mark's amplified strength, throwing the guy against a wall was no problem.
He looked at the figure before him. Long red hair, and dark circles around the eyes, like bruises. A black and red-striped mask covered most of the face, but Mark could see his eyes; ice blue and white. Heterochromia, but not natural by the look of the scars around the eyes. He was wearing a red t-shirt, dirty and torn, a pair of ripped jeans and combat boots. He was huge too, as Mark had predicted; broad shoulders, chiseled abs, clearly defined under his shirt, and thighs as thick as tree stumps.
"Hello, big brother," he grunted as Mark pressed his forearm up against his throat. Mark grinned.
"Hello, Glenn. Lookin' a bit ragged there, buddy. Been through the wars?"
"Of course you start this with useless banter," Glenn said, his voice sounding strained. It was rough, like someone had forced Glen to choke on gravel. From the fire, most likely.
"Why not? You are my brother, and I am happy to see you," Mark said, letting Glenn go, stepping back to keep the distance between them. Glenn scoffed.
"Likely story, no doubt Paul called you to tell you I was coming, and you did try to hit me with a bat."
"You tried to break into my house and murder my children."
Mark could tell his disfigured brother was smiling under the mask.
"Touche. You took everything from me, Mark. I lost it all while you gained it all; beautiful house, beautiful kids. I'm going to take them from you, as soon as I find them, as punishment for your crimes."
Mark growled, feeling his anger rage within him. He'd lost his parents and his wife, no way known to the Gods above was he going to lose his children, his very last shred of humanity. So, ignoring his normal instinct to hide his abilities, he let his rage consume him and felt a fire burn within him he hadn't felt before. It wasn't until he was mid-jump that he realized he was completely on fire and tackling his brother through the sliding glass door and into the back yard.
Before Glenn even had a chance to react, Mark brought his fist into his brother's face, throwing him all the way back against the tree, rustling its leaves to the ground. He got up and growled, spitting blood as he launched himself at Mark, rage in his eyes. Mark grinned and flamed out, reappearing behind Glenn, spinning-heel kicking him in the back and forcing him face-first into the back wall. Glenn reared, shaking off the shock before he turned back to face Mark. He bawked, stepping back as he saw his brother before him. He was shaking with rage, his eyes red like fire. He was surrounded by jet-black flames, screaming into the air like rabid banshees. He stepped back, obviously realizing he was in too deep.
"Leave."
Glenn stepped back again, feeling the brick against his back.
"I-"
"Leave and never come back. If I find you in my city again, I will gut you and paint the walls with your entrails, understand?"
Glenn blinked and saluted, realizing this battle wasn't worth fighting, not alone anyway.
"Understood, I have better people to find anyway."
And with that he bolted out the back gate and into the darkness.
Mark let out a sigh as the fire around him dimmed. As it went out, the sound of the world around him rushed in again, and he heard the faint sound of clapping. Looking around he saw nothing but darkness, dim and dank. Using his heightened senses, he followed the sound to the roof. He let out a frustrated sigh.
"What the fuck are you doing here?!"
On the roof, curled on a black cloud, was Lady Serenity, smirking and clapping. She looked the same as she had before except she was wearing a black halter dress and ballet flats.
"I came to see my handiwork in action," she said, curling a finger in her jet-black hair. Mark growled and readied a fireball, aiming it at the black Goddess' face. She smirked. "Oh please, as if that would hurt me. I gave your powers to you if you recall."
"You sent him here, didn't you?"
Serenity smirked again.
"I had to test you; your powers are at their peak now. I wanted to make sure you were ready."
"Ready for what?"
Serenity winked as she disappeared in a cloud of smoke, leaving Mark more than a little confused.
