Chapter 7: The Fire Rises

Arc 1: Out of Shadows

*Disclaimer: I don't own any characters or anything Marvel-related, all I own are my OCs.

November 2009 - New York City

The beautiful Mikayla Beaumont lay in a hospital bed slowly waking from her previous unconscious state. She groaned as she sat up. Her body was slightly in pain possibly from the accident that happened last night from the fire. The last thing she remembered was getting ready, she had just put on her dress and she had smelt something burning. That was the last thing she remembered. Mikayla looked around the room seeing the machinery and hearing the beeping of the vital sign monitors. She continued to look around and saw the man that was supposed to be her date sleeping peacefully in a chair.

A small smile crept its way onto her face as she heard his light snoring. Although they weren't dating, knowing that he was there for her felt good. It was something that warmed her heart and made her like him even more. She felt a pain in her ribs making her groan in pain, waking Cedric from his slumber. He bolted up and walked towards her gently grabbing her hand.

"Hey," Cedric said as held on with a soft grip.

"Hey, you."

"You had me worried there." He said with a smile.

"I did." She said, offering a soft smile.

"Yeah, how are you feeling?" he asked as his smile turned into a concerned frown as he kneeled down next to her bedside.

"Besides the pain in my ribs. I'm fine. I just wanna know what happened."

"You remember anything about last night?"

"No, the only thing I remember was getting ready for our date and then I smelled something burning. Aside from that nothing."

"Okay," Cedric looked down at his watch, seeing the time making him sigh as he looked back up at her, "I'm sorry but I gotta go. I have a meeting with a potential client. Will you do me a favor and get some rest, please?" He smiled.

"I'll try."

"Good." He leaned down and gave her a tender kiss on the forehead. He stood upright and walked towards the door, grabbing a hold of the handle, and pulling the door open to walk through. His smile faded away as he started to walk toward the elevator. He lied. He didn't have a meeting with a client today, it was Saturday after all. But the one thing he did plan on doing today was investigating the fires. He was determined to find out who did it, and who hurt his friend.

He made his way to the elevator, pressing the down button and requesting an elevator. Cedric stood there waiting patiently for an elevator to come down. When the doors opened, he stepped foot inside the elevator and pressed the button for the bottom floor. He felt his phone ringing in his pocket, making him take it out with a frown as he looked at the screen. A smile snaked its way on his face as he swiped right, answering the phone.

"Hello, Ms. Rose," He said as he put the phone up to his ears making his best friend on the other side of the line giggle.

"Hello to you too, Mr. Harvey." Hearing her just say his last name put an even bigger smile on his face as he looked down at his feet.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm on my way to the office. I would've been off but I got a deadline to meet. I'm doing an article on the rise of heroes. Or as my boss would put it, the rise of menaces. We got that guy flying around in a metal suit out in the middle east and we got the Blur flying around in broad daylight saving the city in a cape."

"Well, we live in a time now where heroes are needed. I'm sure your boss would agree if he'd stop and recognize that."

"Yeah while the world and I see these heroes, The Blur, as a sign of hope." Hearing her say that brought a huge smile to his face. A lot of people believed that The Blur was a sign of hope but hearing her say that just made it mean more for him.

"You know a lot of people may or may not agree with you."

"Well, everyone is entitled to their own opinion. I have to respect that. Do you agree with me?"

"I do. But I fear that if these powerful heroes continue to rise, more powerful threats will rise to fight them. I fear that thousands of innocent people will die in the constant battle of good and evil." And that wasn't a lie. That was the honest truth. With Cedric being The Blur, it put a lot of attention on him, whether it be good attention or bad attention.

"That's a fair point. What are you doing tonight?" Cedric's brow furrowed as his mind started racing, questioning why she was asking him something like that.

"Don't know yet, why?"

"You remember how we said that we always wanted to go to a bar when we were younger?"

"Yeah?"

"I found a place that might be fun and I was wondering if you wanted to go tonight at 7."

The elevator doors opened, allowing Cedric to step out of the elevator and into the lobby of the hospital.

"Yeah, just text me the address and I'll be there tonight."

"Okay, see you later. Bye."

"Bye," Cedric said with a smile as he slid his phone into his pocket. He looked out seeing Paul leaning up against a black SUV outside of the hospital. Cedric's smile faded away as he walked through the doors, making a beeline to Paul.

"Paul, This isn't a place I expected to see you at."

"I know, I heard about your girlfriend. Is she alright?"

"She's not my girlfriend and yes, she's fine."

"Good, I was just on my way to the scene to try and wrap my head around what happened. I was wondering if you wanted to take a look with me."

"Last time, I checked I'm not an FBI agent or a detective. I just can't randomly walk into a crime scene and start looking around." Paul looked down at his feet with a light-hearted chuckle before he reached into his SUV and pulled out a badge, tossing it to Cedric. Cedric caught it and started to examine the silver emblem. It was a silver eagle. This wasn't the emblem of any government agency he recognized, but he remembered seeing that same logo once when he was 12 years old on an SUV stationed outside of his house one night when he was 13 years old.

"Just put that badge in your pocket."

"This isn't an FBI badge?"

"I never said I was FBI," Paul said with a smirk as he walked around to the driver's side, "get in". Cedric looked with a smirk on his face before he walked over to the passenger side and put his hand on the door handle pulling it open to enter the vehicle. Paul started the SUV up and drove off.

After a short 30-minute drive, the duo of Paul Hondo and Cedric Harvey pulled up in front of the crime scene. The street had been shut off so that the crime scene could be thoroughly investigated. For what was believed to be a regular arson case, they were taking it extremely seriously.

"If any of these guys try to talk to us, just let me do the talking," Paul said as Cedric reluctantly nodded. This was Paul's wheelhouse. This was his world and Cedric had to abide by his rules in his world.

Both men stepped out of the vehicle and started to make their way to the scene. Paul walked in front with Cedric following closely behind him. Paul flashed his silver SHIELD badge to a cop who just gave him a nod and lifted up the yellow tape for both men.

"What interest does SHIELD have in this?" Cedric asked as Paul took a deep breath and turned his head to look at Cedric as both men walked on into the scene.

"It's not really a SHIELD interest at the moment, it's mine. They're still wrapping their heads around the prospect of a black man flying around the world seemingly with the power of a god." Cedric didn't know too much about SHIELD but he knew that they were looked at as the be-all-end-all. In Chicago, he believed that they were on his tail. Primarily because of the presence of extra added military support that was in the city at the end of his run as The Phantom. They ruled that he was a vigilante taking the law into his own hands. In a city like Chicago, cops couldn't be everywhere they needed to be but he could and he was whenever he wasn't in school or wasn't with Kala, April, or Geoff.

"I believe there are others. More like him, I don't think he was the first to exist and he's definitely not the last. For years, they hid in the shadows but I think they're done hiding now. He started something. He started a wave and now they're gonna come into the light."

Cedric didn't think about that. He didn't think about the possible effects or possible influence he would have on others to stand up and possibly help make the world a safer place for future generations.

"So you think this fire was caused by someone like him?"

"Yes, SHIELD calls them Enhanced. There were reports of an Enhanced down in Mexico by the name of Sebastian Del Sol, Head of the Del Sol Cartel. They called him Inferno. It hasn't officially been confirmed that he is Enhanced but that's the urban myth."

"You're believing Urban Myths, now?" Paul ignored Cedric's statement and looked around with a flashlight in his hand examining the scene. Cedric waited till Paul had turned his back to him to look around using his x-ray vision to examine the sights that Paul may not be able to see.

"Cedric, get over here!" Paul shouted distracting Cedric from using his vision, making him curse under his breath before walking over to Paul. Paul kneeled down and looked at a set of footprints and the outline of a body on the wall and w a window that seemed to be forced open.

"We found our point of entry," Paul said as he pointed to the window, he turned his head and looked down at the set of footprints on the ground, "My guess is that this is where the fire started. The crazy thing about it is there's no sign of accelerants."

"If he's an enhanced with the ability to generate fire, he doesn't need an accelerant to suicause on. All he needs is oxygen in the air." Paul didn't respond but stood up looking out of the window with a confused frown.

"Hey Cedric," Paul said making Cedric walk over to the window, "Look," Paul said to Cedric who peeked out of the window seeing the same sight that Paul saw: a camera.

"If we can access those cameras, then we can see the face of the perp."

"Good thinking. I got a buddy who can hack into the camera feed and get a look."

"No need, one phone call and I can get it done in 2 minutes. Just keep looking around the scene," Paul said as he pulled out his phone, walking away as he began dialing a number into his phone. Cedric looked around with a frown before bolting around the building to see if he could find any more evidence that wasn't identified already but there wasn't any.

Cedric was determined to find out what caused the fire or who caused it. He needed to find out who did it and get justice for Mikayla. Someone tried to hurt someone he was close to and they had to pay for it.

"Any luck?" Cedric asked as he walked outside seeing Paul leaning up against the SUV with a picture on his phone.

"I got an ID. Sebastian Del Sol, Head of the Del Sol family. I was right," Paul said as he handed Cedric the phone letting him take a look. A frown found its way on Cedric's face as he looked at the picture seeing the face of a tanned Hispanic male with emerald green eyes and long flowing black hair with a black goatee and mustache combo.

Cedric didn't like the idea of the head of a crime family being in his city. And that mob boss had powers. He was already a very dangerous individual and then you add the fact that he had extraordinary abilities on top of that, he was a danger. A threat that needed to be dealt with.

Kala sat at her desk at the Daily Bugle with a pair of glasses on her face as she looked at her laptop screen. She was typing frantically finishing up on her article that she titled: The Blur: Hero or Menace? The article was meant to draw in readers who argued that he was a hero but also meant to draw in the attention of readers who thought he was a menace. She was arguing for both sides but in her personal opinion, he was as much the hero that the world needed.

She typed her last few statements and pressed on a few keys looking on with a smile. She took off her glasses and sat them aside on her desk before getting up to walk over to the printer. She reached for her document off the hot press and looked it over as she walked towards the officer of her editor, J. Jonah Jameson.

She didn't say anything but simply handed him the document and stood there as he put his reading glasses on to look over the document.

"The Blur: Hero or Menace? He's a menace. But the title does have a nice ring to it," J. Jonah commented as he looked it over.

"Frontpage worthy?" She asked with a smile.

"Don't push your luck," J said as the smile dissipated as she rolled her eyes, "but you're just in time to meet your new partner."

"A partner? I've never had a partner." She commented as she folded her arms.

"Well, now you do. And this girl is a lot like you. I figured you two would mesh well. And she's a very good investigative reporter maybe she can help you along the way."

Although, Kala didn't want a partner, the idea of another strong-minded female reporter in an office full of men or reporters who were too afraid to speak their minds. Kala turned her head to see a 5'4, Mexican-American woman with a petite build with tanned skin. She also had bright green eyes and long black hair that reached down to her shoulders. She wore a black pencil skirt with a white button-up with the sleeves rolled up and a pair of black heels.

"Ms. Rose, I would like for you to meet your partner, this is Natalia Rodriguez." J. Jonah introduced her as she rose up to her feet and walked toward Kala extending a hand as a sign of respect.

"Hi, I've heard so much about you and I've read a lot of your articles."

"Thanks. Something tells me that we're gonna get along just fine." Kala said as both women let out a chuckle.

"Now since today is Saturday, I'm gonna let you two get out of here. But remember-" J was about to say but Kala cut him off.

"News never sleeps. I know the saying." Kala said with an eye roll as Natalia chuckled while the two walked out of the office.

"Once again, it was nice meeting you. I guess I'll see you on Monday." Natalia said walking of the office, looking at Kala with a smile.

"Yeah, you have a good weekend and I looked forward to working with you," Kala said walking over to her desk to grab her belongings to leave for the day. She was excited to go hang out with her best friend and have a night like how they used to when they were younger.

Miles stood inside of his office in his luxurious manor with a frown on his face as he held a book in his hand and a glass of scotch in his other hand. Today he was taking a break from being the billionaire CEO and rather just wanted to be a normal man. He wanted to relax with a drink and a nice book to read.

Miles' focus was taken away when he heard a knock on his door making him frown as he closed the book and walked over to his desk to place the book down.

"Come in," he said looking towards the door. The door opened and in walked his sister in a blue dress.

"I was looking for my Animal Farm book in the attic and I found this, I just thought you should have it," She said as she handed her brother a picture. It was a picture of his mother when she was pregnant with him with a huge smile on her face.

"I didn't get to meet her but I know she loved you. We don't exactly get along the best but I do want you to know that I love you," She said with a smile as she turned around and started to walk out. He looked at the picture with a frown on his face.

Miles loved his mother. Although he never got to meet her, she was his world but her death was also the reason, he hated his life. Her death resulted in his father abusing him in ways that a father shouldn't.

"Maddie, thank you." He replied as she looked at him and gave him a nod before walking out of the room. Did he love his sister? The humane part of him did. Miles Maverick did but The Monarch didn't have any room in his heart to love anyone but himself. The day Micheal Maverick died was the day that The Monarch was born and the day that a part of Miles died.

Miles heard his phone ring in his pocket making him frown as he reached down into his pocket and pulled out the device, seeing the name on the screen. He answered the phone with a hint of anger in his voice.

"What?" Miles answered.

"Tonights, the night. Tonight we get back at the Hounds and exact our revenge."

"Good, I hear Sebastian Del Sol is in town. Let's send him a message, to stay out of my business if he knows what's good for him." Miles said as he hung up the phone. There was a war that was about to start and Miles was determined not to lose no matter what.

A/N: Well that's it for that one. I was gonna have this be a long chapter possibly 6000 or 7000 words but I decided not to go through with it in hopes that I could make the next chapter a bit more exciting. The next chapter will be a bit more action-packed and have a bit more meaning than this one which had a lot of plot advancement in it.