"He still in here?" Power Man asked as he entered the observation deck which overlooked the training room.

"Indeed," his friend Iron Fist said as he too eyed Predator. "He just keeps on going, no matter how good his score," Iron Fist observed.

"He could be just determined," Power Man suggested.

"Perhaps," Iron Fist said as he hung his head in contemplation, "but I sense there is more to him than that." Below the observation deck, inside the training room, Predator worked through his feelings by destroying wave after wave of LMDs. Currently, he was using the leg of one poor machine to crush the heads of several of its fellows. "I sense pure rage in his fighting style." Iron Fist said as he continued to observe the rookie.

"I'm no expert in that category, so I'll leave the observations to you," Power Man said as he turned and walked out of the observation room. Iron Fist simply continued to observe the rookie.

"Come on!" Predator yelled as he impaled another LMD on his claws and used its corpse as a projectile, knocking yet another LMD to pieces.

"Round Complete," The computer informed him over the room's speakers.

"Run it again," Predator ordered as he quickly caught his breath, until an unexpected voice caught him off guard.

"Don't you think you've trained enough for one day?" The calm voice of Iron Fist asked Predator.

"Hardly," Predator snapped without turning to face Iron Fist.

"Predator, you have been training all day. I think you deserve a break," Iron Fist said as he gently placed a hand on Predators shoulders. He was met by Predator turning around and swatting his hand off Predator's shoulder.

"Watch yourself, Iron Fist," Predator began coldly as he eyed his colleague. "You should never let your guard down," Predator lectured, which earned a small laugh from Iron Fist, which caught Predator off guard.

"Why should I keep my guard up in the presence of my friends?" Iron Fist pondered.

"You never know who your enemy is," Predator began as he pressed a button on his collar, which retracted his helmet with a mechanical hiss, revealing his face that was dripping sweat. "It's best to always keep your guard up at all times." he finished, as he started to walk out of the training room.

"If you look for enemies among your friends, that is all you will find. I also noticed something in your fighting style that you should heed my advice on," Iron Fist called from behind Predator, which caused the armored hero to turn around.

"Do tell," Predator replied as he folded his arms.

"I don't see determination in the way you destroy your opponents. I see pure, unbridled rage. If you are to increase your proficiency, you must harness that rage." Iron Fist said, which earned a snarl from Predator.

"Sometimes you got to resort to pure rage, and if you are done lecturing me, I got important business to attend to," Predator snapped as he turned his back on Iron Fist and left the training room.

"Pure rage, like anything pure, can rot and corrupt you," Iron Fist said as Predator walked away. He didn't dare mention names, knowing that doing so would make Predator less receptive to his advice in the future.

Ignoring him, Predator walked to the medical bay to visit Ava. He asked the doctor how she was doing, and the answer was the same: She was steadily recovering from whatever Kraven had injected into her. It would still be a while before she could go back into the field, though.

"I had a feeling I'd find you here," Fury called from behind Predator.

"Gee. What gives you that idea?" Predator sarcastically replied.

"You have been checking on Ava almost every hour since you and Spider-Man brought her in," Fury answered, unfazed. Sarcasm was something he dealt with on a daily basis, especially sarcasm from Hawkeye and Iron Man.

"I just feel guilty, sir," Predator replied while he held his head low in shame.

"Care to elaborate son?" Fury asked as he took a seat on the bench next to Predator.

"If I had not taken that shot, Kraven would not have injected her with that serum," Predator said, but before he could finish, Fury held up a hand gesture so that he himself could talk.

"You rushed the situation, but you also corrected a mistake," Fury said, which caused Predator to jerk his head up in surprise.

"Sir, there is nothing positive to take from this." Predator replied, which caused Fury to snort.

"Is that Predator talking, or Andrew Steele talking?" Fury asked him, which earned a stunned silence from Predator. "Before you ask, I debriefed Squirrel Girl upon her return to the academy, and she told me your real name. I must say, I'm impressed with your background." Fury said as he held up a tablet and handed it to Andrew. Andrew took it into his hand and saw his old U.S.M.C. file. "United States Marine Core at only 19, and you served in operations 'Dawn Breaker, Allied Assault, and Overlord'. You're a tough kid, but at least you still care about your friends. You want my advice on something?" The Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. asked.

"Sure," Predator replied, really not in the mood for advice.

"Try to be less like the Hulk, okay?" Fury asked. "Life's about more than just rage, or hiding from it."

Predator was surprised, but he understood. It was like what Iron Fist had said to him earlier. Something about pure rage, or something like that. "I'll try," he said after a moment of contemplation.

"That's all I ask," Fury replied as he got up and walked away.

*Meanwhile*

Leo had returned to the club, trying to find a nice girl. The tangle he'd had with Andrew had caused his nose to heal strangely, but that was alright. He thought women found a guy with 'battle scars', as he called them, attractive. Unfortunately, there weren't any women there he fancied. He decided to try his luck at the bar. There would be pretty women there, and if there weren't, there was always some beer. That's when he saw her. She was tall and thin, she was he palest shade of white he'd ever seen, and for some reason, she was bald. (Maybe she lost it in an accident or something,) Leo thought, (or she's doing chemo.) Her clothing was pretty much nondescript: just a normal light blue sleeveless shirt and blue jeans. He walked over and sat next to her. "Hey. What's a pretty lady like you doing at a joint like this?" He asked. "You should come back to my place. It's a lot cleaner there, and I've got good beer there, too," he added.

"Maybe if you buy my drink, I'll consider it," the mystery woman said in a flat, deadpan voice, not bothering to look at him.

Without a second thought, Leo pulled out some money. "Next drink is on me," he said to the bartender, who shrugged and accepted the money, giving the woman some more beer. "So, how's about coming with me when you're done with that drink?" Leo asked.

"I think … no," the woman replied bluntly, drinking the beer.

"That's grea—Wait. What? Did you just say 'no'? To me?" Leo asked, shocked. Most girls weren't this hard to get.

"Do I need to spell it out for you?" The woman asked bluntly. "I can spell it out in English, Spanish, French, German, or Japanese. Take your pick."

Leo growled softly, his hands curling into fists. "You're really starting to annoy me," he said, trying to sound threatening.

"Ooh. I care so much, and I am so scared," the woman replied sarcastically. "No, wait. I do not care." Angry, Leo tried to swing at her, but she caught his fist midair. "Weak," she said, releasing Leo's fist. "Best not try that again. You don't want to make me angry."

"Well, you made ME angry!" Leo snapped. He tried to swing at her again, but she kicked him in the stomach, right in the spot that knocked the wind out of him.

"Well, excuse me for not caring about your hissy fit," the woman said. "No need to have a temper tantrum." Leo's friends quickly dragged him again. The woman continued sipping her beer. She wasn't the type to just drain the cup as quickly as she could. She preferred to savor and enjoy her drinks. Suddenly, her phone went off. She looked at the caller ID. "What is up, Tony?" She asked blandly.

"Guys giving you trouble?" Tony asked.

"I would not call it trouble. He could not even take a kick. Why are you calling me?" The woman asked.

"I need someone to keep an eye on our wayward Predator," Tony replied.

"I will not do," the woman replied warily. "I am … what is the English phrase? Too obvious, I believe. You will need someone who is less known. Besides, I have a feeling he may have spotted me a couple times."

"I have a couple other people in mind," Tony said, sounding a bit surprised. "If they don't accept the mission, you will have to do it. You're one of my best operatives."

"I understand," the woman said, hanging up. She hated anything to do with S.H.I.E.L.D., but the man was right. In all modesty, she was one of the best there was at what she did.

*Meanwhile*

Tony looked at the phone. He'd had a feeling that the woman would reject his job offer if given the chance. She was right, too. She was too obvious, and there wasn't anything she could do about that. 'Good thing I've got other operatives, ones who don't stick out so much,' he thought as he dialed another number. "Hello," he said simply.

"What's up, boss?" The man on the other end of the line asked.

"Chill, I need you to keep an eye on our wayward Predator," Tony replied.

There was a brief moment of silence. "What about the girl? Wouldn't she be a better choice?" Chill asked.

"Omeran would be too obvious, given her history with S.H.I.E.L.D. Plus, she believes her cover may have been … compromised," Tony said.

"I find that hard to believe," Chill replied, "but I'll take the job anyways. I'll keep an eye on our wayward Predator for you."

"Good," Tony replied. "You start tomorrow," he added, hanging up. 'You can't run forever, Predator'… he thought.

Edited by Darkest Nightmare's Dread