October 5, 2012
Today was the day. The day Shredder and the Foot Clan would arrive in New York City to establish their new headquarters. John was excited while Brock was nervous. Brock knew John had a LONG history with the Foot and he saw his Foot Elite members as his brothers. The last thing he wanted to do was mess up that dynamic and make things awkward. But it didn't change the fact that life in the Foot Clan was far more appealing than getting another office job.
The couple waited at the airport for the Clan's arrival and John could tell Brock was getting anxious.
"Babe, are you alright?" asked John.
"John, I…I don't know anymore. I don't know if this was such a good idea. What if they don't like me? What if they think I'm too soft? What if-" Brock said before John stopped him.
"Brock, relax. You're overthinking this. You're only thinking of the worst-case scenario. It's going to be fine. And trust me, they'll like you." said John.
After several more minutes of waiting, everyone in the airport suddenly started running the other way, screaming in terror. To John, this meant one of two things. Either a terrorist attack was happening, or the Foot Clan had arrived. He and Brock walked towards the screaming and lo and behold, the Foot Clan had arrived in New York City. Shredder, Karai, Bradford, Bebop, Rocksteady, Takeshi, Xever, and Stockman. The band was back together in the Big Apple.
"Guys! Welcome to New York!" John said before greeting his Foot Elite brothers with a group hug.
"How was your flight?" asked John.
"It was fine until Rocksteady got diarrhea and destroyed the toilet." said Bradford.
"It's not my fault I was given bad sushi." said Rocksteady.
John then went up to Karai and extended his hand before saying, "Hello Karai."
She shook his hand and said, "Hello John."
And then John went up to Shredder and said, "Master Shredder.", before giving him a bow.
Shredder gave John a nod and said, "From what I remember, there's someone you want me to meet."
"Ah yes. Everyone, I would like you to meet my husband, Brock." said John.
Brock, who kept his distance from the Foot, walked up to the group, hoping he didn't look too nervous. When he got up to them, they looked up at him with wide eyes.
"Hi." Brock said awkwardly.
"Wow. I know John told us you were big, but damn dude, you are a tank!" said Bradford.
"Yeah, I had a big growth spurt and I worked out a lot." said Brock.
"Are you on any juice?" asked Xever.
"Nope. This is all-natural." said Brock.
"Impressive." said Takeshi.
"Oh, Master Shredder! Sorry." Brock said before quickly bowing to Shredder.
"So, you're John's husband. He's told me quite a bit about you but I want to hear the information from you when we have our meeting later." said Shredder.
"Yes, sir. Absolutely." said Brock.
"Well, I guess it's time to go to our new headquarters. And because none of you have lived in New York, Brock and I will be your unofficial tour guides. So, let's go." John said before he, Brock, and the rest of the Foot Clan entered a limousine.
After roughly an hour of driving and John and Brock explaining New York culture to the Foot Clan, the group arrived at the new Foot HQ, which was at an old cathedral.
"So, this is the place, huh?" asked Bebop.
"It looks cool, at least. All dark and atmospheric." said Bradford.
"Not to mention, no one would know we're here. It's the ideal location." said Stockman.
Roughly the next two hours were spent entering the cathedral, setting up rooms, and making the whole thing feel Foot Clan-esque. It would take a few days to completely set everything up but everyone was satisfied with what was set up at the moment.
"Brock, I must speak with you at once. It is time for our meeting." said Shredder.
"Of course, Master Shredder." a nervous Brock said.
Brock looked at John with worry in his eyes and John told him, "You'll do fine. Just relax, close your eyes, and take a deep breath."
Brock did just that (several times) before he felt like he was ready. Now feeling slightly more confident in himself, he followed Shredder into a private room and sat down on his knees to talk to Shredder.
"Um, Master Shredder, I'm not too comfortable sitting like this. Would it be okay if I sat cross-legged instead?" asked Brock, hoping he didn't annoy Shredder.
"That would be fine." said Shredder.
"Thank you." said Brock before he changed his sitting position.
"Now, John has told me quite a few things about you. But I want to hear the information directly from you. Understand?" asked Shredder.
"Yes, Master Shredder." said Brock.
"Good. So, you were in the military, correct?" asked Shredder.
"Yes, I was in the military for 4 years. I was honorably discharged after I was shot in the hip during a battle." said Brock.
"Have you ever had to kill?" asked Shredder.
Brock sighed before saying, "Yes. Usually out of self-defense. And although I don't like killing, I will do it as a last resort."
"What are your academic credentials?" asked Shredder.
"I did really well in school. I got As and Bs, mostly As. I was valedictorian in my senior year of high school and I was on the Dean's List for all my semesters in college. I know I don't look smart and I look like a big dumb meathead but believe me, I'm pretty smart. " said Brock.
"Impressive. Now, if I were to recruit you as a member of the Foot Elite, is there anything I should know beforehand?" asked Shredder.
"Like habits and quirks and things like that?" asked Brock.
"Yes." said Shredder.
"Okay, uh, I don't like loud noises and I can't play first-person shooter video games because it'll trigger flashbacks. I like to read novels and I like to cook. And I tend to walk around in just my underwear. Will that bother you?" asked Brock.
"Bebop and Rocksteady walk around without pants all the time. So, no, it won't bother me." said Shredder.
"Good. Great." said Brock.
"How old are you?" asked Shredder.
"33." said Brock.
"Hmph. That officially makes you the youngest member of the Foot Elite." said Shredder.
"Wait. Am I-" asked Brock.
"Yes, you are now the 8th member of the Foot Elite. I believe you have what it takes to be a part of this group and I don't make decisions like these lightly. Don't make me regret bringing you into my world." said Shredder.
"I won't. I won't, Master Shredder." said Brock.
"Good. You may leave now." said Shredder.
Brock quickly got up and left the private room so he could go back to John and the rest of his new team members.
When he got back to John, John asked, "So, how did it go?"
"I'm in. I'm in the Elite." said Brock.
"Yes! Fuck yes! I knew it! I knew Shredder was going to pick you! Yes!" John said before he planted a kiss on Brock's lips.
Once the kiss stopped, John said, "Okay, so Brock, here are my Elite brethren. This is Chris Bradford. I'm pretty sure you know who he is."
"Yep. Mr. Bradford, it's an honor to meet you in the flesh. I'm a pretty big fan of your work." said Brock.
"Nice. It's always cool to meet a fan and it's even cooler to work with one." said Bradford.
"This is Bebop, and this is Rocksteady. They're mutants. Like me. And they're inseparable." said John.
"Cool. So, when John says you're inseparable, are you two together?" asked Brock.
"No, we're not together as in we're gay for each other. We don't like each other like that." said Bebop.
"We're together as in we're life-long best friends. I can't live without Bebop and Bebop can't live without me." said Rocksteady.
"So, you're BFFs?" asked Brock.
"Yeah, or 'platonic soulmates', one or the other." said Bebop.
"Alright, cool." said Brock.
"This is Takeshi, but on the street, he goes by Tiger Claw. He is also a mutant and the most feared assassin in all of Asia." said John.
"Okay. Um, I…I don't know if this is a sensitive question but what happened to your tail?" asked Brock.
"I got into a fight with my sister and she cut off my tail." said Takeshi.
"Cut off? Shit. Was your sister also a tiger?" asked Brock.
"No, she was a mutant fox." said Takeshi.
"Wow. I…I don't know what to say to that." said Brock.
"Next up is Xever. He's a thief so make sure to keep an eye on your stuff." said John.
"Don't worry, I won't steal from you. John's exaggerating." said Xever.
"No, I'm not because you've stolen my shit in the past." said John.
"And I gave it back, didn't I?" asked Xever.
"Not all of it! Ugh. Anyway, finally, we have Baxter Stockman, a brilliant mind, and my co-MVP." said John.
"MVP?" asked Brock.
"John and I are considered to be the most useful members of this team and as a result, we are the MVPs of the Foot Elite." said Stockman.
"Without them, we would be fucked." said Bebop.
"And you're a brilliant mind?" asked Brock.
"Yes, growing up I was a child prodigy and I graduated college when I was 13." said Stockman.
"13? Jesus Christ." said Brock.
"Since then, I've been studying robotics, genetics, and a substance known as mutagen, which made John, Bebop, Rocksteady, and Takeshi the way they are." said Stockman.
"So, you're the science guy of the group?" asked Brock.
"Yes. I am the brains of this team." said Stockman.
"Nice. I think you and I will get along really well." said Brock.
"Oh, one last thing. You need a codename because all of us have codenames." said John.
"Well, what are your codenames?" asked Brock.
"Mine is Psychopath." said John.
"Celebrity." said Bradford.
"BFF 1." said Bebop.
"BFF 2." said Rocksteady.
"Assassin." said Takeshi.
"Thief." said Xever.
"Genuis." said Stockman.
"You can pick whatever you want." said Bradford.
"Really? Well, I think I want…no. No, I don't think you guys will like it." said Brock.
"Come on, just say it. How bad could it be?" asked Rocksteady.
"It doesn't exactly sound cool, but I think it still describes me decently enough." said Brock.
"So, let's hear it." said Bebop.
"Okay, um, it's..uh…Moral Compass." said Brock.
"Moral Compass. I like it. It's different." said Bradford.
"Yeah. Babe, that actually describes you pretty well because you easily have the strongest sense of morals out of all of us." said John.
Brock received more compliments from his teammates which made him feel better and less anxious about making a good impression.
Everyone continued to talk until Brock had to go to the bathroom. While he was gone, John asked the others what they thought of Brock.
"He's a super nice guy. Legit too with that military experience." said Bradford.
"He seems cool to me." said Bebop.
"Yeah, he seems great. You should've introduced him to us a lot sooner." said Rocksteady.
"I need to see how he performs on a mission before I properly judge him." said Takeshi.
"Same here. I want to see how useful his skills are in a fight." said Xever.
"I'm just glad we have someone mature on the team besides myself and Takeshi." said Stockman.
The response was better than John expected. He knew Brock was going to connect well with everybody especially once they see him kick ass during missions.
Several hours went by until it was time for everyone to go to sleep. John and Brock had a room all to themselves and once they showered and brushed their teeth, they laid down in bed together.
"Brock, I can't tell you how glad I am you're here. All those nights I spent in bed alone during my missions sucked, so I'm happy I won't have to deal with that this time." said John.
"Yeah, sleeping alone at our apartment whenever you were gone didn't feel right. It was honestly depressing." said Brock.
"Well, babe, if I had known that sooner, then I would've taken off more days." said John.
"You could've but what's done is done and there's nothing we can do about it." said Brock.
"True. Hey, I see you're actually wearing something underneath these covers for once. Those tighty whities I like to look at so much." said John.
"John, we're not in our apartment. I'm basically a guest and it would kind of weird to sleep in the nude in anyone's bed but our own." said Brock.
"Makes sense. So, how are you feeling about everything?" asked John.
"I'm feeling better. Your guys seem to like me." said Brock.
"I knew they would. You're such an awesome guy, who wouldn't like you?" said John.
"A stupid homophobe." said Brock.
"Yeah, but they can go fuck themselves because they don't matter." said John.
"Right, they don't matter." said Brock.
"(Yawn) Tomorrow is probably going to be a busy day. You might have your first mission and hopefully, Shredder tells us why exactly he relocated the Foot Clan here." said John.
"It should be busy, but I can handle busy." said Brock.
"I know you can. Well, goodnight." said John.
"Goodnight." Brock said before he and John went to sleep.
Hope you enjoyed the chapter. I know, it's been 5 months since I last updated this story. I'm aware that I'm really bad at updating this story but I'm personally more invested in other stories (Total Drama All-Stars being the main one). Not to mention, I have less time to work on stories but I'm still going to try to continue/complete all the stories I have now and all the ones I'm working on in the future. Even if it takes a stupidly long time. Now, for the next chapter, Brock will have his first real day as a Foot Elite member and the reason for the Foot's relocation will be revealed. Other than that, I hope you all have a wonderful day. Bye for now and stay safe.