Chapter Twenty-Eight:
Baron couldn't control his laughter. It rang loud and heavy, and Tyron was almost concerned that he'd wake up the entire Yard. Tyron stood, tense, until finally, Baron stopped.
"How the hell are you going to manage that?" He asked, chuckling still. He stood and walked across the room, grabbing a can of beer out of the fridge and opened it.
"I know a way," Tyron shrugged. "All I need you to do is make it work. On Friday, that's when the most people will be in the city. We to through Brooklyn and into the City. We use Stark as our... Leverage."
"How are you going to get Tony Stark?" Baron demanded and Tyron bristled. He could feel Baron's power working on him. He practically sucked memories out of someone's head, and replaced them with whatever he wanted them to be. It felt like hell if he did it to you, and Tyron hated it when he tried it on him.
Tyron grabbed the door handle, and turned his own hand to a sharp blade, eyes narrowed. "Don't fuckin' think about it," he growled. Baron lifted his head and backed off a little. Tyron inhaled slightly and regained his composure. "Friday, we'll do it. Get the word out."
"And if I don't want to start this riot for you?" Baron asked.
"I'll ask Zion to do it." Baron tensed. He hated it whenever Zion was mentioned. "He might not do it right, but at least it'll be done."
Baron glared at him for a few more minutes. "Friday."
Tyron smirked, "Good." Then, he left the building.
- 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -
Tyron as soon as Tyron was far enough away from Baron's Pit, he moved to a back alley and tried to breathe. His heart raced for every second he was in there with that man - it was still beating like a rabbit's now - but, he felt a little better. He... Had to sort a few things in his 'plan', which was haphazardly thought up and didn't really have an end result yet.
Tyron went through it in his head as he walked through the streets of Brooklyn and made his way back to Queens.
His plan, as silly as it sounded, was to get the Avengers more involved in mutant issues. If this new bill involving a Mutant curfew was passed, then chances are likely that mutants would need to be screened, which could be that anyone with a record, of even suspected of being a mutant would be taken in. And, if they did that, and decided that your mutation was dangerous, what were they going to do? Lock you up? Kill you?
The thought gave Tyron chills. Not for him, though, for people like him. Innocent mutants who are just thrusted into this new, strange life and don't know what to do. Tyron remembered his early days vividly, where starvation was around the corner because he kept denying who and what he was. Because he was scared and wantwd to go home, but knew if he did, his father would have him killed, or kill him himself.
Tyron stopped walking for a minute and breathed, suppressing the memory. He needed to get back on track. His plan!
"Okay..." Tyron breathed and resumed walking. He was going to solve all his issues by Friday. His main one being his promise to Baron about kidnapping Tony. This being a pretty big claim, especially since he hadn't even asked Tony if he could even kidnap him.
Tyron sighed and began to walk faster, following the bright lifhts in the distance where New York illuminated the sky. First of all, he needed a phone.
- 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -
Tyron waited until around six AM to call Tony. Knowing his insomniatic tendencies, he would probably be up and about this time. That, or just getting to sleep. Either way, Tony would need to listen. It was already technically Tuesday and he only did have five days to organize an illegal riot and consented kidnapping.
He turned into a fancy-looking restaurant and tried not to look suspicious as he approached the greeter. She was a tall blonde woman wearing a red velvet uniform and she tensed, probably intimidated. "Hi, uh." Tyron's eyes darted away. He never felt comfortable talking around people he didnt actually know. "This... May sound weird, but, could I borrow your phone? Or... A phone. I can't find mines and I really need to call my parents..."
The woman looked at him and sighed, "Follow me," she said, waving him over. She led him into the very fancy resturant, and brought him to a bartender, who wss preparing his station. "Wha's th' goin's, Madeline?" He asked, his accent thick and He almost sounded like a pirate, or something like that.
"He just needs the phone, Henry," The woman, Madeline, explained easily, then left the two alone.
Tyron shrugged helplessly and moved to sit down, but the man stopped him with a, "Oi! Oi!" Tyron stood, stopping in his tracks. "Payers git to sit down. Ya gonna stand, m'boy. 'Less you plannin' on buyin' a beer."
"Right, okay, can I talk on th' phone now." Tyron asked. Henry the Bartender made a face, but pulled up a small landline phone for him to use.
Tyron began to dial numbers slowly, before waiting as the line rang. Two rings later, it picked up. "Hello?"
"Tony?" Tyron said and he heard a sharp crash of something falling followed by a hiss.
"Ah! Damn it!" He muttered. "Tyron? Is that you?"
"Yeah. I... I need to talk to ya."
"Then, come to the Tower. Where are you?"
"Can ya meet m'at the fork in Center Drive at 9?" Tyron asked abprubtly.
"Why? Just come here and-" Tyron didn't have time for that. He hung up and pushed the phone away. The bartender was watching him as he dried the glass.
"Ar' ya in some kinda trouble, boy?" He asked, eyes narrowed.
"No, m'not," he said quickly and then turned to leave quickly.
- 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -
Tyron sat at the base of a tree at the fork in Center Drive quietly. He was looking out over the street. It was still early, and the morning joggers had come out and ran past him.
Tyron sat quietly his hands and knees to his chest. His stomach growled on occasion, but he ignored it. A finger fiddled with the string of his backpack, keeping his mind distracted as he ran his plan through his head.
Someone placed their hand on his shoulder and Tyron jumped, looking up. Tony was staring down at him, his brows furrowed and eyes hidded behind inconspicuously dark sunglasses.
"So, are you going to explain why you had to be met at Central Park this early, or...?" Tony asked, trailing off.
"Sit down," Tyron said and he did, watching Tyron closely. Tyron rubbed his temples, "I need to kidnap ya," he said immediately.
Tony stared at him, "What?"
"Listen. I..." He sighed. "Did Nat tell ya wha' was goin' on?"
"Yes, but it wasn't much and what she said had nothing to do with you kidnapping me!"
"I saw the news," Tyron explained. "About the Mutant bill."
"I did too. It's bullshit."
"'Xactly. I also heard what happened to Lars..." Tyron inhaled before he spoke again. "There's gonna be a riot."
"A what?!" Tony's eyes nearly bugged out of his head.
"A riot. We're gonna go through 80th Street-"
"'We're'!?" Tony exclaimed.
"Yeah. Now-"
"Wait, wait, wait," Tony was staring at him. "Tyron, you are actually talking about rioting over a silly bill-"
"'A silly bill'!?" Tyron stared in shock at him. "Tony, this bill is gonna change everythin' about mutants! They're tryin' to call us 'Sub-Humans'! Tony, we aren't even considered humans anymore! An' when they register us, if they decide our mutation is dangerous, they're just gonna lock us up!"
"Tyron calm down," Tony said, staring at him and holding his hands up.
Tyron was shaking in anger and stopped so he could breathe. "Right. Anyways, we... We're gonna go down 80th, right? We might not get news coverage, but if we have ya, we could be taken seriously."
"First of all, why do I have to be kidnapped?"
"Ya are the only one that'll understand," Tyron explained much more calmly this time. "Everyone else, not really. I mean, Steve isn't as 'up-to-date' on these kinds of topics as ya are. He'll understand, but not enough to do somethin'."
Tony shook his head, "I feel like there's a way better solution to go at this than storming down 80th."
"I thought 'bout gettin' a permit, but they won' let mutants in City Hall. An' the cops would be damned before they decide to protect us."
"We can get it under my name-"
"An' let everyone see ya openly support mutant rights? Ya company would be destroyed."
"Tyron, I don't care about my company right now if it means keeping you safe." Tyron was shocked at Tony's words.
Then, he rolled his eyes, "Ya don' mean tha'," he scoffed. "'Sides, Ms. Pepper would be under so much stress if ya do do tha'. It's not worth it. We can find another way."
"Then do. But don't riot. There's other ways than that."
"'Ere aren't, Tony," Tyron deadpanned. "Not for a mutant."
Tony sighed, looking away and running a hand through his hair. Tyron looked at the ground, picking at the grass. A car rolled down the street beside him and the smell of such pristine metals made his stomach growl loudly. Tony looked at him, a bit shocked.
"When was the last time you ate?" Tony asked.
"Doesn't matter," Tyron told him. "Look. I gotta go. I'll call ya later, a'ight." Tony grabbed his hand, keeping him where he was and Tyron flinched, but didn't move. He was still unnerved because of his conversation with Baron.
"Just come back to the Tower," Tony said with a short sigh.
"I can't," Tyron told him. "I told ya tha'."
"We can figure something out, Tyron." Tony told him, exasperatedly.
"Tony, I don' want y'all to get hurt," Tyron insisted. "If I come back now, then who knows what gonna happen."
"Tyron, you can't keep going on like that," Tony tried to help, but Tyron shook his head, not listening. He pulled his hand away and stick it in his hoodie pocket.
"I really gotta git goin'," he told him, and began to walk away briskly, making sure Tony didn't follow him.
- 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -
Tyron was missed to first period the that day, and didn't feel like coming in for Science, so he waited until lunch, and came through, knowing that Peter and Ned would be in their usual spot.
"'Ey," Tyron said, sitting down next to Peter on the edge of the bench making him move over a bit.
Peter blinked at him, shocked. "Wha-?! Where have you been? I woke up and you were gone! May was really upset too."
"S'a'ight. Don' worry," Tyron assured. "M'Dad called late last night, somethin' happened an' I had to leave fast. Everything sorted out now. M'sorry for scarin' ya, I left really early."
"It's all good. I'll explain it to May tonight. Did you sort everything out with your Dad?"
"... Yeah," Tyron said after a while. He wouldn't be with Peter anymore. Especially since Tony and the others knew he had stayed there. "Look, 'ere's a lot goin' on so I won't be in this week. Can ya tell the teachers tha'? Maybe they'll lighten the payload if they know that shit's goin' on."
"What kind of shit?" Michelle asked, barging in on their conversation. Tyron stiffened and Michelle smirked, pleased at his uneasiness. "You guys hear about the Mutie Bill?" Michelle was speaking to everyone, but she was looking directly at Tyron. He grinded his teeth and glared back at her.
He hated, hated being called a 'Mutie'. It was like a dog's name. Something Baron would refer to him by. He hated that term more than the 'N' word.
"I heard," Tyron growled as Michelle shoveled macaroni and cheese in her mouth and smiled.
"I don't even get it," Peter frowned. "I thought it was like a census, but for mutants?"
"Nah," Tyron tried to keep his voice even. "It's more of a tracking system. Anyone wit' wha' they consider 'friendly' mutations tha' can't or won't harm innocents will be allowed to live in society, but they'll be forced to wear something tha' marks 'em as a mutant - like a patch or something. Unfriendly mutants, wit' 'dangerous' abilities will be locked away for public safety or killed."
"Damn," Ned murmured and Peter nodded, just as surprised.
Tyron didn't meet his eyes, "Yeah... S'pretty fucked up."
"For monsters maybe," Michelle said with a careless shrug. "Anyone else who hasn't been doing shit is fine, right?" Tyron knew the comment was directed towards him, and he knew he shouldn't take the bait, so he didn't.
"Ain't this the same shit fuckin' Hitler did?" Tyron snarled, anger leaking in his voice and he noticed. Nobody said anything, just stared at him. Tyron sighed, cooling down. "Sorry. M'jus'... Real upset 'bout this. My... Cousin is a mutant..." He lied. Well, he didn't really know. It was likely one of his several cousins were mutants.
"I'm sorry, man," Peter said, tone dropping low.
"Me too," Ned said, but there was a hint if excitement in his tone. Tyron almost smiled. A guy like him lived off of comic books, fantasy, and Sci-Fi. Mutants, although claimed to be 'America's #1 Public Enemy' was also a strong connection of curiousity. If he knew Tyron was a mutant, the boy would have a playday.
"What's his mutation?" Ned asked.
"I dunno," Tyron lied. "Somethin' with metal, I think." Michelle's eyes narrowed and she glared at him.
"Well, I'm glad they're doing this. Think of the kids at risk that these Muties could hurt," Tyron turned on the girl, wanting to grab her nappy hair with one hand and the leg of the metal cafeteria take I stab her several times.
Tyron clenched his jaw and tried to relax. It would be unfit to strangle the girl in front of hundreds of witnesses. "But, there's still innocent mutants still discoverin' their mutations. Or, mutants forced to do something they didn't want to by other mutants. Sometimes, s'not their fault tha' shit happens."
"Yeah, well, maybe they shouldn't have put themselves there in the first place."
"Sometimes, they ain't go no choice. When someone 'olds a gun to ya head, ya would do whatever the person wants, 'ight?"
"Well, other people would just absorb the bullet, wouldn't they?" Tyron stiffened and glared at the girl. She smirked, knowing she had won this argument. "Well, I have to go. Other people to follow and shit. I'll see you later," she twirled her fingers and turned to leave.
"... What was that all about?" Ned asked, his thin eyebrows furrowed.
"Nothin'..." Tyron grumbled, lip curled in anger. "Don' worry. Anyways, I, uh, I can't stay long. I gotta head out. I probably won' be in the rest of th' week."
"Wait. You left your stuff at my house-"
"Right. I'll pick it up later," Tyron lied. He wasn't going to drag Peter's life into this.
Peter frowned, but nodded so Tyron got up to leave. "Where are you going to go?" Ned asked.
Tyron grinned, "Don' worry. I gotta few connections I can use. M'not entirely useless."