Chapter 9 - "Romero Fenwick"

The man in the gray suit stepped from an alley, stumbling about, clearly intoxicated. Clinging to his arm was a woman in a glittery party dress, made up completely. "Look, darling," she said with an aristocratic air, "why don't we just go home and relax? You're in no shape to be going to the party after all the beers you had."

"I'll be perfectly fine," the man said just before he tripped over a pile of garbage, almost face-planting into the cement before catching himself. "See? I couldn't have done that if I was drunk."

Before either the man or his wife could speak again, a shadow jumped from the darkness and silver glistened in the moonlight—a gun. The figure holding the gun stepped forward, revealing himself from the dark. He was donning a gray jacket, hood pulled up and his lower face covered by a red bandana. Peering from above the bandana's lip were two stark white eyes that looked like glowing snow globes.

The figure gestured with the pistol, and ordered in a rough yet youthful voice, "Keep those hands up. No sudden movements or else."

"All right, all right!" the woman shouted, raising her hands. She moved her purse towards the figure, adding, "Here, take it!" The holdup man reached for the purse and snatched it away. He turned to the man, leveling the handgun at the same time. "Your turn."

"You've gotta be crazy to think I'm gonna—" the man started before he was cut off by a sucker-punch that sent him careening into the brick wall, hand reaching for his sore cheek.

"Son of a—" he muttered before the cool barrel of the gun nestled under his nose.

"Your wallet," the robber demanded, gesturing with his open hand. "Now."

The man, the punch having gotten to him, nodded and wrenched a wallet from his pocket. He held it up, and the figure snatched it from his hand. "Thanks for following the rules." The figure gave a mocking salute before he holstered the pistol, turning and lunging at the wall. The man and woman watched in shock as the figure nimbly climbed up the brick siding, as if it were natural.

Romero Fenwick smiled with smug approval as he lowered the bandana from his mouth, doing the same with his hood. His spiked, dyed blond hair revealed itself in the night light as he held up his treasures of the night. "Look at this. Two bigwig's part with their riches."

The three figures before him all exchanged looks. The one in the center was the only one to smile, allowing a big, beaming grin to spread across her face.

"Why so glum, boys?" Catherine Parks, better known to her friends as Cathy, said, holding up her hands. "We're gonna be rich, don't you understand that?"

To her right, Jace Scather eyed her with an arched eyebrow. He flipped the black hair that had fallen over his eyes to the side, revealing crimson red eyes. "Oh, I don't know, maybe because those two might go and report that they were robbed by a wall-crawling thief."

Cathy snorted and playfully elbowed Jace in the arm. "Not likely. They'll probably just go back inside, cozy up, and canoodle." With a playful grin, she nudged his arm again. "Could be fun."

Jace's lip quivered and his pale face reddened. "W-what?"

Sensing the awkwardness approaching, Romero rolled his eyes and spoke up. "It doesn't matter. The cops would probably think they're just boozed up and won't follow up on the report anyways."

The man to Cathy's left, Vince Renard, smirked. "Hopefully."

Romero ignored his blunt remark and motioned to his companions. "Come on. We'd better head on back."

The four turned and moved along the rooftop, Romero in the lead. As he led the run, he thought about what he'd done. Robbery was a crime, yes, but he didn't quite look at it like robbery—more like Robin Hood, rob from the rich and give to the poor. Or yourself, however you look at it.

As he ran, Romero checked the gun at his hip to make sure it was secure. As he did so, he saw the part of his abdomen that was rotted away. It wasn't necessarily an injury; just an aspect of his genetic material. You see, Romero Fenwick and his gang of mercenaries weren't necessarily regular people.

They were all mutants, the freaks of society who were shunned and unwelcomed. The forgotten, who had only themselves and each other. Frankly, Romero wouldn't have it any other way.

When he was born, Romero had been birthed into an already frantic home. His father was an alcoholic and his mom was sickly, and the fact that he was mutated in appearance didn't help matters at all. His abdomen had appeared withered. Other areas on his body appeared the same way; his right arm was worn on the inside of the wrist, a bit on his back was as well. His leg also sported some damage, and his left cheek, while not worn to the bone, definitely looked as if it was marred with some disease.

As he grew older, Romero's damaged areas soon began to wear to the bone, primarily the area on his abdomen and his arm. He worked his way through school, and his malformed appearance began to appear in middle school. That's when the ribbing and name-calling started; other students referred to him as "Zombie Kid," and he tried to fight it at first. It didn't help much, and he eventually decided to give up talking and let his fists speak.

The fighting prodded him to be labeled a delinquent and a freak, a combination that didn't do much to help you in life. Without any true friends from his peers, Romero soon sought out others like him—with success.

Surprisingly, Romero had been able to find his best friend—Cathy—while in elementary school. The two had grown up as best buds, and it was a joyful friendship—Cathy was always a bubbly and friendly personality, not looking on the outside appearance. She always judged people by who they were, on the inside. When she and Romero met, she could see his good heart through his distorted appearance.

Cathy herself had some abnormalities. When she was young, there weren't any distinguishing features. But as she went into middle school, she revealed to Romero that she had sprouted small, sharp horns. She was able to hide them beneath her flowing blond hair, and all seemed good. Then, one day in high school, her hair fell out of place and the horns were visible. Such a fuss had been made by the other students that Cathy went into a sort-of self-exile. She didn't speak to anyone for a while, and gradually opened back up to Romero. Still, she didn't return to school.

Despite the horns, Cathy had a beautiful appearance that most humans would've fallen for, and her bubbly personality only added to it. Unfortunately, because she sported an abnormality, she was ignored and neglected by most of society. Romero felt the worst for her; while he had grown cold and emotionless to society, it was a big thing for Cathy to not be accepted, because she thrived among others.

Jace was another friend Romero had known for years. Romero was a year between Cathy and Jace; when he moved up to high school, Jace was already a sophomore and Cathy was in her final year in middle school. Without Cathy, he had to look for a friend in high school that he could hang out with, someone who didn't sneer at his disformed looks.

He found that friend in Jace. By high school, Jace had already distinguished himself as a loner, tending to stay away from others. He had approached Romero and offered his friendship. Romero was suspicious at first; Jace looked normal, aside from the red eyes. Still, he welcomed any friend he could get. The two became very good friends during their first year together, and whenever Cathy moved up, they all hung out together, as the Three Musketeers, as Jace liked to call them.

Cathy insisted on the Three Stooges. Typical Cathy.

Eventually, Jace and Romero had both graduated. Romero had a B-C average, but Jace had excelled at his schoolwork and was able to graduate and looked at going into a prominent college before he decided against it and wanted to be with his friends instead.

The three were able to fully embrace their abnormalities and unusual qualities once they were on their own. They pooled their funds and rented an apartment in Gotham's "dead town," as it was called. Not because it was empty, but because you might end up dead there if you weren't careful. Fortunately, Romero and his friends were careful.

Aside from their differentiations in appearance, the three possessed unique . . . abilities. Romero's zombie-like form allowed him to have the ability to regenerate injuries by absorbing organic matter. He could even regenerate limbs; he found that out when he lost a hand in a knife fight.

Cathy's horns were a hallmark of her special powers: she was able to transform into a dragon, a wyvern, really. Her forearms would double as wings, she had strong legs, and a small tail came from the rear. She could vary in size, depending on her choice. Sometimes she would retain a human size, but other times she might grow larger—if so desired. When she transformed, her scales were the color of her eyes, steel gray.

Jace's abilities matched his academic personality. He could conform his molecules to accomplish any manipulation he so desired, be it sprouting new arms, changing his skin's composition, or shapeshift. Doing so did make him delirious, exhausted, and pained, so he had to use it in reserved time spurts.

Concerning their families, each one varied. Romero himself has distanced himself not from them. Not because of a poor relationship; he and his mother never had any real beef, and his dad had cleaned up his alcoholism and was working to be a good father. He stayed away from them because he didn't want them to be in harm's way—at all. His mother was in a retirement home where she could be cared for, and his father was in rehab.

Cathy didn't see her family often but tried to stay in touch. They weren't on bad terms, but she felt like Romero had—she didn't want them to be in any danger. Jace, on the other hand, was jokingly dubbed a "family man," because he did try to see his family when he could. Primarily his younger sister, Felix, a shut-in and introvert. She possessed no special powers, but she did help out in ways that allowed her to stay away from others. She was a master at all things tech and computers, and Jace would bribe her to help supply them with intel whenever possible, often through pieces of tech, be it a new computer or gaming console.

The newest addition to the main crew was Vince. He was so much of a loner that he tended to stay in the shadows even when he was with the others; he rarely spoke, and when he did, it tended to be blunt and insulting. He often failed to heed directions given to him by Romero, who had been appointed as the leader of the crew. Vince's abilities allowed him to eject blades from his body and use them as weapons. He had ice-blue eyes and dark hair, and a pair of whisker-like markings adorned his face.

Vince's personality caused him to be at odds with the others on several occasions, and it was primarily with Romero. Secretly Romero felt that Vince wanted to take over the gang—he felt it was an unfounded fear, but he always felt it linger. Still, Vince could be a friend at times, just a difficult one.

The group had, by this time, reached the rooftop of their apartment building. They tended to travel by rooftop at night, as their apartment was near the top of the building. As they opened the rooftop door, Romero led the way inside. He worked off the gloves from his hands, which allowed him to climb walls. He failed to hear the door close behind him. He turned and saw Vince standing in the open doorway, holding it open.

"You coming in?" Romero asked, and Vince shook his head.

"Nah, night's my time to shine."

"We already got a haul!" Romero shot back, holding up the purse and the wallet.

Vince nodded. "Yeah, I know. But I just feel the need to prowl." He flashed a smile and added, "Maybe I'll find some other rich guy to rip off. Who knows, I might find your pal Wayne out there."

Romero frowned at the mention of the billionaire. He didn't actually know Wayne, he just knew of him. And what he did know he didn't like. Romero couldn't abide that someone that rich would keep his money to himself. Sure, he did spend it on charities on stuff, but what about people who had nowhere to go and couldn't get a real job, like Romero and his friends? Personally, he always disliked the guy.

"If you find him, but a blade in his gut for me," Romero said. He didn't really want him dead, but it fit his tough-guy persona.

"Sure thing, boss," Vince replied as he let the door slam. Romero rolled his eyes. He knew Vince called him "boss" just because he had told him not to. It got on his nerves to be called that. At least it wasn't as bad as . . .

"Chief!" Cathy called out. Now that was what really got on his nerves. He turned to her, and she flashed her own smile. "Come on, we need to get some sleep."

Romero nodded and moved along down the hallway. Jace was already in the apartment, and as Romero and Cathy moved along the corridor, he felt her arm clutch onto his jacket's sleeve. Romero paused and turned to her. She held onto his arm tightly and said, "So? Did you ask him?"

"Who?"

"Jace."

"About what?"

Cathy rolled her eyes and blew a gust of breath out, sending a fallen lock of blond hair over her forehead. "You know what I mean. What we talked about this morning."

"Oh." It was all Romero could say. He really didn't want to become the middleman in any romance, especially when it concerned his best friends. But Cathy had asked him that morning if he thought Jace liked her. He had tried his best to dissuade her, not that he didn't want them to get together. He just didn't want to be the one to get them together. He didn't trust himself to do it correctly. He had hoped that she'd forget she asked him, but he should've known better.

"Well?"

"Well what?"

Cathy groaned. "You're impossible, Romero. Fine: did you ask Jace if he liked me?"

"Look, Cathy, I told you this already. You just need to talk to him yourself. He'd open up to you. It'd be better than having me be the messenger."

She arched an eyebrow. "You really think so?"

"Sure. I mean, what could he dislike about you? You're beautiful, you've got a great personality. . . ."

"And horns." She said it with the sound of defeat, and she lowered his eyes to her black boots.

"Hey," Romero said, cocking his head to the side. He reached out and hooked a finger under her chin, lifting her head up. They looked into each other's eyes, and he continued, "He can sprout extra arms out, or turn his body into iron. I don't think he's gonna care about a girl having horns."

Cathy inhaled sharply. "I just . . . I just don't know how to ask him. I don't wanna mess anything up. We're so good of friends."

Romero stood in silence before an idea lit up in his head. "Why don't you just walk up to him and kiss him? You'd find out real quick how he feels about you." He added a smile to emphasize that he was joking; sometimes his sense of humor fell flat, so he had to make sure that he got the point across that it was a joke.

Cathy got it, and she lit up with a smile. "You're impossible," she said again. It was something she had said to him often.

"I know," Romero added with a smile.

Jace's head popped from the doorway. "You guys coming?"

"Yeah, we'll be right in," Romero called out. Jace disappeared, and Romero turned back to Cathy. "Look, I'll talk to him once you've gone to bed, okay? I'll let you know how it goes."

"Okay."

The two moved into the apartment, and as Romero locked the door, he said, "So, what do you guys wanna do?"

Cathy quickly said, "I think I'm just gonna shower and go to bed."

Romero rolled her eyes. That was quick. He looked at her, and she was smiling at him and she gave him a quick thumbs-up when Jace wasn't looking.

Jace turned back around and brushed the hair from his eyes again. "I'll probably be dozing off myself pretty soon. Goodnight, Cathy."

"Goodnight, Jace. Romero." Cathy turned and walked into her bedroom, shutting the door.

Romero huffed. How am I supposed to do this? He finally walked towards Jace, who was sitting on the couch, scrolling through his phone.

"Jace, I have something important to talk to you about." Better to be blunt, I guess.

Jace's eyes flicked up. "Um . . . okay. Shoot."

Romero opened his mouth to speak, but no words came. God, how am I supposed to do this? "Erm . . . Cathy." He slowly nodded, and Jace followed his action after a few nods.

"Yes . . . ?"

"Uh . . . you and her are friends, right?"

Jace chuckled. "Of course we're friends, Romero. We've been friends for years now." Romero cursed himself mentally; what a stupid question. Romero himself was twenty, making Jace twenty-one and Cathy nineteen. They'd known each other since school. What a stupid question.

"Well . . . what do you think about her?"

Jace eyed him suspiciously. "I . . . like her. What is this, a third-degree? You know that I'm her friend. Did I say something that made her think we aren't friends?" He paused, and his pale face turned full white as a ghost. "That's it, isn't it? Was that what she was talking about in the hall? Oh, my gosh! What'd I say?"

"You didn't say anything!" Romero said, much more forceful than he intended. "You know what, never mind. I'm glad you guys are friends."

He placed his forehead in his hands and groaned. Jace continued to eye him suspiciously. "Yeah . . . me too."

Romero was brought back by a buzz from his phone. He fished it from his pocket and read the text. It was from a number he didn't recognize. Unlocking the phone, he jumped to the text and read it over. "What . . .?"

Jace glanced up. "What is it?"

Romero held his phone out to Jace, who read it over. "Wow," was all he said. Romero saw his eyes read over his word, absorbing it all. "The GCPD?"

Romero nodded and pulled the phone back. "It says that it's some government-funded operation . . . and Wayne-funded."

"Hey, maybe he heard what you said about him and is trying to make up for it by paying to protect Gotham."

"How would he have heard what I said?" Romero retorted. "It says that they want our entire group to come and at listen partake in the meeting. Find out what it's about and decide whether or not we want to join." He looked to Jace. "Would you be up for this?"

"I mean, it sounds like it'd be fun and we'd be able to help protect Gotham. But aren't we criminals? How would we fit in? They must know us from our records."

Romero read the text. "It says that they know about our work, but they also know about our powers, and if we take this, they'll pay us enough so we won't have to go back to mercenary work and robbery."

"But who'd go?"

Romero paused. "Go?"

"Yeah. I mean, we all shouldn't go, should we? If this is some kinda trap, we'd fall right into their hands. I think only one of us should go."

"Okay," Romero said with a nod. "Vince?"

"Not Vince," Jace said, shaking his head. "He'd probably charge the first cop he saw."

"Cathy?"

"No. Not Cathy." Jace didn't elaborate, but from the tone of his voice, it sounded protective.

Romero thought about prodding further, but he didn't; this was business, not time to carry out his promise to Cathy. "You?"

"Uhm . . . no. I was thinking, since you're our leader, you'd be best."

"Me? You know me, Jace. I'm likely to mouth off to the cops or Wayne if I go there. It isn't my place to be with a lot of higher-ups."

"Nor is it mine, or Cathy's, or Vince's. They wanted the whole group, and you're our leader, so you can represent us."

"Now wait just a minute!" Romero started, nearly shouting. He pointed out at Jace, but he quickly jumped up and stifled a clearly fake yawn.

"Man, I just got tired all of a sudden." Another fake yawn. "I'll get back to you tomorrow, Romero."

"Hold up—wait! Jace, get back here!"

Before he could stop his friend, Jace had already ducked and gone into the bedroom he and Romero shared.

Romero shook his head. He finally succumbed and drew out the phone, typed a few keys, and sent the text. After he did, he read it over again:

We've talked and we accept. I'll be there to represent the whole group tomorrow night. – Zombie

Romero and the gang all had codenames they operated under when working on a mission; Romero was "Zombie," Jace was "Phantom," Cathy was "Blaze," Vince was "Blades," and Felix, when she worked with them, went by "GL1TCH."

Romero sighed and shut off his phone, stuffing it in his pocket as he strolled to his bedroom. When he entered, he heard Jace's fake snoring and laughed. "You can cut it out. I accepted."

He heard Jace laugh aloud and he rolled over. "You going to bed too?"

"Yeah. I'm kinda bushed. You think Cathy and Vince will be upset we took the job without asking them first?"

"Probably."

A few moments passed as Romero changed into his sleepwear and he got into his bed. "See ya tomorrow, Jace."

The only sound he heard was snoring. This time, it was real.

A/N: Hello everyone! Here's chapter 9, where we get introduced to Romero Fenwick and his gang. What'd you all think of the characters and the chapter? Leave your thoughts on the story as a whole and this chapter in the reviews! I hope you've all enjoyed the story thus far. There's only a few chapters left to introduce the characters and then we'll have their grand meeting. Also, a bit of a note on the timeframes of these chapters: I know they jump around from the meeting being the next night or the night of, and that's just to base the intro on a certain timeframe. It isn't an error, the intros are just out of chronological order, because I wanted to write them all in submission order. Hope this clears up any confusion. Until next time!