Omega Kid

Disclaimer: I own nothing, except my own characters.

Chapter 32: He's the Judge

Headaches I've dealt with before, heck they're an everyday thing for me now; but this was serious pain that made me feel like I was going to Hungary Cook vomit again. Hellrider continued to press his steel toed red boot down harder on my temple; I grabbed his leg and tried to shift his weight off me, but I was so weak at the moment that I couldn't get any strength into my arms to push him off. But I should be dead by now; unless Hellrider isn't putting all of his effort into this, he's just enjoying the pain I'm enduring at the moment, and the amount of pain I'm in at the moment he must be having a field day.

Omega Man kneeled down so I could just see his face, a confident smile on his face ''Well, I wonder what I should do after this. Tell the police you attacked me, and I had to kill in self-defence? How's that sound?''

''I don't kill!'' Was all I could think of screaming back, now's not really the time for comedic jokes.

''Try telling that to Jack the Ripper'' Hellrider mocked above.

''SHUT UP!'' I screamed and tried to push him off again, but he pressed his boot down again and my arms went all numb.

''He killed the Ripper?'' Omega Man asked in surprise ''Looks like I'll have to extend my interview tonight. Speaking of which I must be off, this will teach anyone not to fucking steal from me'' He finished before walking out of my view…WHAT? I STOLE FROM HIM? I don't know who I want to hurt more, him or Hellrider.

''He's a cocky son of a bitch ain't he, I reckon he'll only last three days before being gutted!'' Hellrider said to me, but his foot didn't seem to get any lighter.

''So how much is he paying…you…'' I couldn't even get my sentences out now, my mouth hurt every second that passed.

''He was quite generous, 10 grand! He must want you dead almost as much as I do''.

''And…after…all we've been through?''

''I thought we agreed that it wouldn't change anything. And I know you don't want our rematch!''

''What?''

''Don't play dumb, you'll just keep stalling or hide behind your friends every time I show up!''

''Whose been hiding?'' I reply sarcastically. I can actually use sarcasm now, he's shifting his weight, and maybe if I keep him talking I can get this elephant of a boot off me.

''Besides, I've got other cunts to fry besides you. So…might as well get rid of the pussy first!'' He grunted and then pressed his foot harder; I screamed my lungs out hoping anyone would hear me, but it doesn't look good now, how can it end like this.

SWOOSH! Something shoots across right above my head; just grazing Hellrider's leg, causing him to jump off me and clutch onto his wound. I roll away and my hands dart up to my temples, like I was trying to keep my head balanced, it really did feel like it was going to fall clean off my neck it hurt so much.

''So we even?'' Someone asked me, it wasn't the others, but I was pretty sure who it was even though my vision was slightly blurry…the green all over was a dead giveaway.

''You almost killed me, we're not even!'' I said back to him; I know he's saved my life, but right now my head was all over the place so I've got no time to think before I speak.

Robin Hood looked at me ''Well I almost shoot you in the head, and I've stopped the guy from crushing your head…so that's about as even as you can get'' Touché. He turned back to Hellrider, who picked himself up and readied his metal bow staff. But as he started spinning it, Hood fired another arrow and it got a direct hit at the bow while it was spinning, knocking it down the alleyway. This guy has got an amazing shot on him I'll admit that, and Hellrider's posture seemed to agree with me.

''How the fuck did you do that?'' He asked.

''Years of practice bitch'' He said in a Bruce Campbell sort of tone…well I guess Christian Bale Batman is getting a bit over used ''So care to explain how much Omega Man was offering?''

''None of your business'' Hellrider spat back.

''Ten grand'' I said.

Hood chuckled ''I'm sorry, but that money's fake''.

''WHAT!'' Hellrider yelled. And I just had to laugh, this guy has tried to kill me time and time again, and now it was about time I could rub something in his face and he couldn't do a thing about it…that actually sounds timid of me, but still I had to enjoy this moment.

Hood continued ''It's all fake; Omega Man was a printer for a small newspaper agency, took whatever money he could and printed copies, but he was smart, tried to change the cereal numbers, but he couldn't do all of them''.

''That son of a…wait, how do you know? You been tricked by him before?''

''No, I used to work with him'' Hood said to him before turning back to me ''Who do you think gave him the idea of being a superhero?''

And just when I was starting to like this guy ''You gave him the idea of being Omega Man?''

''We were young, and into comics. It was a little joke we had, but he became obsessed with it. So he came up with Omega Man, but he never did it, he thought that if we were to be true superheroes we needed money, so he printed fakes. And now, he pays whoever he can find and…

''What? You mean he pays the criminals?'' I asked and Hood nodded back to me. I don't believe this, not only does he go the completely horrid direction of how to be a superhero, tries to kill me, but all of that stuff he's done has all been as fake as his bankbook. No wonder he's always appeared cocky.

''What douche would be paid to take the fall'' Hellrider asked.

''Well he tells them it'll be enough for them to find a good lawyer to get them back on the streets again; and he makes sure that the people he hires have no criminal record prior''.

I've got to admit, this guy has thought this plan through quite well, except for one tiny detail ''What about the people who find out he's not really paying them?''

''He pays someone else to hunt them down'' Hood replied. From the sounds of it this guy is just digging a deeper grave, he's not going to be able to keep this up forever, he'll get found out eventually, and his employees won't be too happy…one of them is standing right in front of me.

Hellrider was pacing the ground, he got played like a chump and he knows it ''So, what about me? Now that I know he'll come after me?''

''Probably, when he finds out you haven't killed the real Omega Kid''.

''Good, don't want him making this too easy for me!'' He huffed before taking off into the shadows, and a few seconds later, Hood and I could hear the engine to his Hell-Cycle start up and soon he was driving out of the alley and into the streets looking for fresh blood.

''Well you know him, should we let him go?'' Hood asked me. I'll admit, a part of me wants to just let Hellrider do it and take this guy out for good for what he's done. But Hood's right, I know him, and he'll make the torture last before killing him, I've already got one dead body on my conscious I'm not…

''Hold on, why are you asking me?'' I questioned him ''First you try to kill me, then you give a brief warning, then you save me, then you say this was all your fault in the first place, then you want to follow my orders?''

''Yeah we haven't got off on the right footing, I always did have two left feet'' He joked, but stopped when he saw I wasn't kidding around ''Look, I want to do this. Be a superhero, help people, and actually show that this city is worth saving even with the increase in crime. And if I have to be your sidekick to do it then…''

''Huh? My sidekick? You want to be my sidekick?''

''If you want, or we could just keep it with the occasional team ups''.

''But…but…you're older than me''.

''I am, but in superhero terms your older, I've only been doing this for half a month. So what do you think?''

I'm stunned, a sidekick? This guy is kissing the ground I walk on, I feel like the prince or Johnny Depp. And from the shoot that this guy has, if he wanted me dead I would be already, and he could be a good addition to the team, and unlike all the other superheroes who have tried his brain as well as his heart seem to be in the right place ''I don't have sidekicks…I have partners!''

''You let him join!'' Alex whispered at me. Since I told Alex and Steph the story, they've spent all of lunch letting me know that it will be a mistake letting Hood join us, and that this was just going to lead to one of us getting shot or stabbed…or in this case and bow shoot right at our asses.

''Guys, I really think he'll be great for the team. I've said we needed a bit of help, and this is that help!''

''I can't believe he's sweet talked you into thinking he's a good guy!''

''What's that supposed to mean?''

''Remember No-One? Seemed like a cool guy, lets you join, everything seems fine until BOOM, bitch slap he's the bad guy!'' I don't need reminding about that; Douglas Carbone was the last person I suspected to be No-One, and it was because I was just so excited about meeting another superhero. But now I'm more mature about these things, I know that Robin Hood is a good guy and wants to help us.

''Look, Hood has giving us good info on this Omega Man, we'll need this to nail him!''

''But if Hood knows the guy already, can't we just use that and the fake money he's printing to arrest him? Common sense!'' Alex said bitterly, he's always jealous when he suspects I'm adding a new superhero to the team.

I knew they would bring that up ''Because to everyone else, the man behind the copied mask is dead!'' And I pulled out of my rucksack a newsletter Hood handed to me and showed the too; apparently, this guy faked his own suicide so he could continue his printing scam without always having someone looking over his shoulders ''It's up to us, the only way to catch this guy is in the act. And Hood knows the next time he'll save the day'' I told them, and Alex backed down knowing he had no real choice but to just go with it now.

''Ha, his real name's Walter Jones'' Steph chuckled reading the article, Alex looked so tempted to slap him, but he hasn't really done anything so he let him off. But still, although I'm letting Hood help us, I'm still weary of the guy. He was the one that got it into Omega Man's head that they could be superheroes, plus I don't know anything about him, and that's what led to the No-One almost killing us thing. But at least I can trust him a lot more than I can trust Hellrider, boy, you should have seen the look on Alex's face when I mentioned that Hellrider was 'paid' to take me out, it's no secret that he hates his guts; but I still think if Hellrider gets all that vengeance and brutality towards me out of his system, he could be another good addition to the team.

''Hey guys'' Rachael called out as she, Stella and Megan all walked over to us.

''Hello ladies'' Alex responded as they all sat down, and gave him a look that reminded him they are all taken ''What? I'm just being polite'' Alex defended.

''So any news on the Thomas alter-ego phony?'' Megan asked.

''Boy we've got a lot of…what's with the badge?'' I asked once I realised all three of them were wearing badges on their shirts, and not just any badges, but some sort of Omega Kid badges that criticised Omega Man.

''Kevin's putting up a new campaign to protest against Omega Man, and best news is it's all for free'' Rachael said. I'm surprised…but then again, maybe I shouldn't be. Kevin may not have me down accurately or anywhere close to accurate, but he's enthusiastic.

''Thomas?'' Stella said bringing me out of my thoughts ''From the look on your face, it seems like you are about to thank Kevin for what he's doing?''

I grinned and sighed; guess I might as well give him some congrats for what he's doing. I get up from our table and make my way over to the end of the room, where Kevin was sitting behind a large stand, with his henchmen Biff and Smith working to meet the demands of their customers. Are they costumers if it's for free?

''Well, well, look what the wind blew in'' Kevin shouted as he got up and walked over to me ''Finally come to actually support Omega Kid for once''.

It's always hard not to smile when he mocks my Omega Kid fandom like that ''So I see you're not too fond of Omega Ma…''

''AH!'' Kevin yelled stopping me mid-sentence ''We don't mention that thief's name around here…never!''

''Ever!'' Biff and Smith followed.

Kevin continued with his outburst while I just watched in amusement ''I mean, what gives him the right? He isn't even a hundredth of the hero Omega Kid is, and then he decides to steal his name and costume, like all that talk of him already having that idea is bullshit…''

''Actually it was just the name he had, he copied the costume'' I interrupted, but he just continued.

''And then, the guy shows no respect to Omega Kid, no respect to the people he saves, while…hey, all the times I've met Omega Kid, always a true gentlemen and warrior''.

''All the times you've met him? You've only met him once'' I blurted out before I could stop myself. He gave me a bewildered look, with a hint of shock. See, this is why lots of people know my identity; I can never keep my big mouth shut.

''That's…no…we're old buddies, he and I go way back to our fan club conventions. You're talking about the Hungary Cook incident aren't you? Well, me acting like the crazed fan boy I am on the inside makes him look better. That's my job and purpose, to make Omega Kid the God of Heroes he is…unlike some heroes who can't think up original names!''

A part of me wants to like this guy, really. But of course, where would the fun of that be? Jeez, I'm starting to act like Alex and Steph around this guy, no wonder they love it so much.

''I can't wait until that bastard's locked up; hey, maybe he'll be caught doing drugs or smashing up his car, you know like all the football players these days'' He said. He really wants this Omega Man out of the streets just as much as I…ding, ding, ding…idea!

''Hey Kevin, you want to hear something interesting?''

''Are you sure this is going to work?'' Ultra Kid asked me from the shadows.

''Yes, trust me. Hood said he'd be here looking for some sort of fame, all I have to do is wait and then show off my acting skills'' I told them. Although, I'm starting to seriously doubt this plan. But as long as Omega Man doesn't have a personal army, I should be fine. I've got the others hiding on the building above, while I stay on the streets without my costume, ready for him to show.

''You got the camera ready?'' I asked Viper and she replied with a nod and a quick show of Kevin's camera that I borrowed off him. See, how do sportsmen get caught with drugs or cheating, it's all down to an inside man playing along…and I'm the man. All I have to do is what for Omega Man, let him pay me to do some crime or something, and we'll have it all on film, what can go wrong?

Wish I hadn't said that.

It's almost been an hour, and no sign of Omega Man showing his copied mask yet. I was starting to worry whether Hood was just playing with us, I mean he said the guy would be here, but how come he hasn't shown up himself? I keep fearing that this is the No-One/Toxin thing all over again, and both are still at large, can't I ever just clear my problems instead of sweeping them under the carpet and then creeping back up while I'm dealing with new ones.

''Hey kid!'' A voice called out. From the corner of the alley was Omega Man himself approaching me cautiously. Time for me to give a performance that would make Pete Postlethwaite smile down on me from heaven ''Want to earn a little extra allowance?'' He asks me.

''Omega Man? Is that you?'' On second thought, give me the razzie any day.

''Yeah, and I got a job for you. How's two grand sound?''

''What do you want me to do?'' I ask him, and he signals me to follow him. Its working, he's buying it. While he's turned, I look up and see that Viper's getting this all on film.

Omega Man stops me at the corner and points to a car that was driving slowly along, and then from out of nowhere he hands me a brick ''Lob this at the car, and act all crazed and stuff. Then I'll come out, and scare you away. Easy money?''

''Speaking of which, where is it?'' I ask, I need him to show the money for the camera. And just like a sucker in a Chuck Jones cartoon, he pulls out a band of cash and hands it to me. Just to make sure, I take my time putting it in my pocket, hoping that it was caught by the camera. Just when I was congratulating, my team and I (and yes, even Kevin for giving me the idea); I heard what sounded like a motorcycle engine reeving down the road, as Omega Man and I look out we see the sound was coming from what looked like a Ghost Rider inspired cycle, and I've already got a name picked out for it…the Hell-Cycle.

''Oh crap, it's him!'' Omega Man shouts, knowing full well he was in trouble now, I know from first-hand experience that when Hellrider finds you, there's no escape. So what does the copycat do, well, he kicks me out into the middle of the road hoping Hellrider would hit me and probably crash. It's a miracle that Hellrider knows how to drive, despite being at close range; he drifts around and steps hard on the breaks. I look back at the alley I got pushed from, but the coward had already made a run for it, but now he was the least of my worries.

Hellrider jumped off his Hell-Cycle, took out his staff and approached me ''Hey, are you out of your freakin…oh no, it's you isn't it?'' He sighs, guess he still recognises my face, just when I thought I could get away from him ''What are you doing here?''

''I was about to nab Omega Man until you bad to the boned your way here!''

''Well unless you forgot, he and I still have some problems to take care of!''

''Oh yeah, how he played you like a chump'' I couldn't resist saying that to his face, well mask anyway. He swings his staff, and yes aimed for my legs again, I saw that coming a mile away; I reach down and grab his staff just before he hits ''I'm learning!'' I smirked.

He shifts his weight, and using the other end of the staff, smacks me across the face knocking me to the ground ''Not learned enough!'' He scoffs before dashing off to hunt down Omega Man. I rubbed my cheek and got back to my feet just as the others managed to reach me ''You okay?'' Viper asked me.

''Actually yeah, I'm getting use to him hitting me'' I half joked, but now was time to be serious ''We have to follow them!''

''There's no point, we got the video, we can catch without needing to really catch him'' Super Kid said as Ultra Kid help the camera.

''I know, but Hellrider won't leave much left for us to catch''.

''They're gone!''

''We know dumbass!'' Ultra Kid replied to his brother along with a slap to the head. It only took me a minute or even less to quickly change into my costume, and yet when the four of us checked all the escape routes, there was no sign of either runner.

''You think Hellrider caught up with him?'' Viper asked me and I don't know how to answer that, maybe Omega Man got away, but if Hellrider managed to get his hands on him there might not have been much of a body left to find.

After another few minutes of looking around, Ultra Kid broke the silence ''I think he got away. Look, we have the video, let's just hand it in and then let the police do the rest of our work. No need to worry Thomas, you're the only Omega around these parts once again…'' He then stopped in mid-sentence and just stared at a dumpster that was right next to him.

''What's up?'' I asked, but it was only when we walked closer to the dumpster when we realised there was blood trickling down the openings. I really didn't want to open it; I had a pretty good guess of who was inside, but we needed to be sure. This is the part were being the leader has its consequences, I stepped forward and opened the lid, and did my best not to vomit on the others from being greeted by the sight and foul odour of what was the body of Omega Man.

''My God!'' Viper whispered as she helped me stay on my feet; the body was broken apart, but not like Jack the Ripper were he tore his victims limb from limb, this body was literally crushed into nothing, like he was beaten to death with a sledgehammer that was being waved around by David Haye.

This was what I was afraid of, Hellrider's gone too far now, I don't know why I've stopped trying to find him even though I know he's killed before, but now this was the final straw. How could he do this over a fake pay check? This was an inhuman death.

''So are we going after Hellrider then?'' Super Kid asked, knowing this is what we all had on our minds. I looked at them all, and although I didn't say or do anything, they were sure of the answer I was giving them.

''It's about time!'' Ultra Kid said.

''This isn't going to be easy'' Viper told him.

''I know, I know. It'll be tough, he's not going to fall right in our laps!''

BAM! We all watched helplessly as Hellrider jumps out from behind some trash bins and lands right on top of Ultra Kid.

''Get off me!'' Hellrider yells as he rolls away from Ultra. His costume was almost torn apart and his staff was covered in what looked like black material of some kind. He didn't jump out at Ultra; it was like he was knocked aside. Then from the place where Hellrider was knocked aside, another figure jumped out. This guy looked like Pyramid-Head from Resident Evil; his was a huge prism with a single eye hole on the left side, he wore a long black trench coat, and in his hand was a prism shaped version of Thor's hammer.

''This is the guy that killed your copycat'' Hellrider said to us, leaving us all in a bit of shock. So guess I was wrong to accuse to Hellrider that quick, but that just leaves the question as to why this scary looking dude killed him. Well we might have to chase for that answer, cause once he saw the four of us with Hellrider, he turned and made a run for it.

Hellrider was the first to give chase; the rest of us were unsure of what to do really, but if this guy did kill Omega Man, then we need to bring him in. We ran after them and soon came across him and Hellrider in a scuffle; the giant hammer slammed into Hellrider's chest easily knocking him out of the way. I was the first to jump and attacked; but he swatted me away with his hammer, getting a direct hit to my thigh.

And I thought Hellrider's staff was painful, but this was an extreme level of hurt, and I don't even think that was the full force of it. Viper attacked with her staff, swinging at him left and right, but he blocks her attacks, however is defenceless as Ultra and Super Kid kick at both his legs causing him to crash and tumble.

While down, Super Kid charges and tries to land a hit; but the guy kicks at his legs and he goes sliding across the ground. Prism man jumps back on his feet, and blocks both Ultra Kid and Viper's assaults at the same time. Viper makes the mistake of aiming straight forward, and this gives the guy the chance to spin around closer to her and elbow her in the gut, leaving Ultra Kid standing alone…but not for long.

I grab a dustbin lid and throw it at the guy's back; hitting my mark, he goes down and Ultra kicks at his face. The guy rolls aside and comes at me now; well he would have if three quick fire arrows didn't fire into the ground between me and him. We both looked up and saw the familiar green hood, ready to fire another bow. The guy backs off, trying to make another run for it, but he's cut off by Hellrider, ready for round 2.

Hellrider swings his staff, but the guy blocks with his hammer again, but that just leaves him defenceless as Hellrider punches senselessly and frantically in his gut. The guy knees Hellrider in the face, and tries to punch at him, but his fist is intercepted by mine. And then Viper lands a hard kick to his cheek. The guys is trapped in a corner, he looks up to see Hood fire another arrow at him; he blocks with his hammer, with his back turned both Super and Ultra jump kick the guy right into the wall.

I'll admit this guy is good, he's no Jack the Ripper, but he can hold his own, however it looks as if his luck has run out as the five of us trap him with Hood jumping down and keeping another arrow waiting.

''At least I can now kill somebody'' Hellrider chuckled and stepped forward but I held out my arm.

''No one is killing''.

''You don't tell me what to…'' He was trying to protest, but stopped when Hood aimed the arrow right at his face.

''He does now'' Hood smiled back at him. I turn back to the others, told them Hood was alright. But right now, are attention is on this guy. Hood was the one to ask the first question ''You just killed an old friend of mine back there…why?''

''Just good business'' Was the guy's reply.

''What, he rip you off too?'' Hellrider asked, but we just ignored him.

''Who are you? And whose your employer?'' Hood asked.

''I am known as…The Judge. And if you're lucky, you'll find out about my employer soon, he has an interest in each of you, especially you'' Why does he have to point at me?

Ultra Kid stepped forward now ''Okay Judge, guess what, you'll be meeting another judge soon, and we won't be too happy when he sees what you've done…'' As he spoke, the Judge pulled out something from behind and threw it to the ground…it was some sort of smoke grenade. We can only wait as the smoke clears and grunt in frustration seeing that Judge is gone and no were to be found.

''Well this sucks'' Ultra Kid said, and I couldn't agree more.

''How come whenever villains use smoke to escape, they are never blinded like the heroes?'' Super Kid asked. I was more interested in what Hood was doing more than Super's question, he was looking around for something, I didn't know what, until he held up what was left of the smoke grenade. But this didn't look like your average smoke grenade.

''Is that a fortune cookie?'' Viper plucked that question right from my head, it was a fortune cookie!

And with every fortune cookie, there's always a message of some kind, Hood held it up and read it out ''Better luck next time'' He said.

''Oh, I will'' We heard Hellrider shout just as he started making his getaway. Well I guess since he didn't kill Omega Man after all, there's no reason to stop him, other than for me to tell him one thing ''Hey Hellrider…''

''I know, we'll settle this after the Judge is gone. I can't argue much with your Hawkeye buddy around. But that will be it, after this no more excuses!'' He finished before walking out of sight.

''That guy needs to get a life'' Viper said.

''He needs to get laid'' Ultra followed, causing us all to giggle; once again, our sense of humour spares us from harsh feeling of defeat. After all this, we come up with nothing; Omega Man is dead, there's a new villain in town that has a thing for Chinese takeaways, and Hellrider's still out to get me. But I guess there is still one thing that can shed some light.

''So…'' I turned to the group and Hood ''How about a proper introduction?'' It may take a while for the others to warm up to the new guy, hell; I'm still warming up to him. But just when we needed it most, it looks like we've got some help, and this time…I think it might be for the better.

To Be Continued…

And so a new member has joined the team, but of course, it will be a while before that gang fully trust this Robin Hood. And Thomas isn't on Hellrider's #1 most wanted again, will it stay like that? And what is with the Judge? And how are fortune cookies link? Those questions will be answered soon. Also I would like to say that the next chapter will be a very special chapter, as Omega Kid gets its second guest superhero star from another popular Kick-Ass fic. Who is it? You'll find out! Take care!