A/N: Just another friendly reminder that this is an "AU," which means the story may have some differences from the show.

Thanks once again for all the great reviews! I'm glad you enjoy it so far! :)

Chapter Six

Rick set his laptop on his desk, thinking more about the woman at the coffee shop and her suggestion for a novel. A writer following a homicide detective?

The idea was different - he wasn't quite sure if it had been done before, and it felt like a wide-open playing field. It was something he could breathe life into, and maybe it could do the same for him. He was sure Gina would be okay with the idea, but he had to really sell it. The first chapter was finished, so he gave it another read-through and made a few edits before he sent it to her.

All that was left was to get a good night's sleep. He felt good about this new novel and the stories that could come from this new female character. He stretched and got ready for bed. Tomorrow would be another day.

The sun was up, shining brightly through the windows, giving light throughout his home. Rick checked the time, and found it was half past eight. He sat at his desk and opened his laptop, eager to see what else this new story of his had to tell.

It wasn't long until he phone rang, and he saw it was Gina. No surprise there, he expected to hear something from her after sending in the chapter. He answered.

What came next was a long string of words he honestly didn't expect, and all he could do was listen as his world seemed to fall in on him once more.

Rick pressed the 'end call' button and let his hand drop to his side.

They didn't like the chapter. Something about it being too campy compared to Storm, that it wasn't up to his usual writing. Something about not being himself anymore.

He threw the phone down, surprised it didn't burst into pieces as it bounced and slid across his desk. When it started to ring again, Rick grabbed it and hit the 'reject' key.

He was tired of this, of everything. He opened his liquor cabinet and took out a bottle of scotch and poured a tumbler of the liquid, relishing the burn as it slid down his throat.

Admittedly, it was a last minute piece he had practically thrown together, but there was something about it that he thought popped, and could be something great. However, the ones in charge didn't think so, so here he was, now unemployed.

It was just the latest of the awful hand the universe had dealt to him over the past few years. He poured another tumbler and stared out the window, watching the people walking past.

Somewhere in the throng of people, he saw a flash of red hair. In that instant, he could almost hear her voice, calling from her room, asking him why he let her sleep in. It was a school day, after all.

Rick squeezed his eyes shut and bottled the anguish away. It was too much right now. - Everything was too much.

He threw the untouched drink across the room, shattering glass and sloshing the liquid everywhere. He had lived like his life was normal, like everything was 'okay' for too long. It hadn't been... for two years.

It just wasn't fair, how fleeting life was, especially her life. He refused to even think her name, because that would make it real, the fact that she was no longer here, in this universe, at least.

Here, his daughter was lost. Killed in a plane crash when his ex-wife decided to take her out of school for lunch. In Paris. There were no survivors, no one he could physically blame.

He could feel the rage building within him. It had been kept inside for so long and now all he wanted to do was to let it out.

Rick took a deep breath and tried to calm down as a blast of air coursed through the room, knocking pictures off-center and clearing several tables and bookshelves. When it didn't seem to work, he ran to the balcony and didn't stop.

He. Didn't. Stop.

He was flying.

The busy streets of New York lay below him. It took time, but he figured out how to maneuver through the air, letting the wind push him wherever he wished to go.

He turned as he passed a building, cutting the corner maybe a bit too close, and the walls closest to him shuddered and cracked. He flew by it again, even closer, causing bits of the walls to give way and fall.

Now that was an idea.

All his anger and grief made him strong, and with this kind of power, he could do anything.

Black Pawn had awakened the storm - and he knew exactly what his next move would be.

The sky was dark as the city's night life started to wake up. Rick looked down at the city from the top of his penthouse, sneering as he prepared his mind for what was to come. It was the perfect moment to take his revenge. He certainly had the power to do so, and it would be glorious, taking the building down, one brick at a time.

Dressed in a dark gray suit and with a final adjustment of the black mask over his head, he stepped off the edge and shot into the sky. He watched the lighted movement of the traffic as he glided deeper into the city.

He could already imagine the looks of terror on his victim's faces, their screams, and it spurred him on.

And soon, he saw the building, his target. With a smile, he burst forward with a surge of power he knew was hidden deep down, and focused all his energy on the forty-seventh floor.