Chapter 1: Arrival

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

It was early in the morning in New York City around 7:23 in the morning. The sun had been up for about 1 and a half or so. But still, that didn't stop New York from being the busy bustling metropolis that it was. New York City was the most populous city in the country. New York had been described as the cultural, financial, and media capital of the world significantly influencing commerce, entertainment, research, technology, education, politics, tourism, art, fashion, and sports, and is widely known as one of the most photographed cities in the world. It's home to the headquarters of the United Nations. The city is an important center for international diplomacy and has sometimes been called the capital of the world. The city had several nicknames: "The Big Apple", "The City That Never Sleeps", "The City So Nice They Named It Twice" and "The Capital of the World". And it had earned all of those nicknames and had proven why they were true.

John F. Kennedy International Airport. One of the busiest airports in the entire world. Possibly the biggest airport in the state of New York, especially in New York City. Planes come and go, dropping off passengers from all over the world. Some even in the country. One of those planes had just come from Chicago. Landing in terminal 2. Several passengers came off the plane including a passenger who seemed to stand out amongst all the rest. Standing tall at 6'3 with clear caramel-brown-like skin with chocolate brown eyes. He was built as if he were chiseled out of stone and the burgundy cashmere henley sweater he wore did nothing to hide his build. He had on a pair of blue jeans and brown suede Chelsea boots. He had a gold watch on his wrist, a gift from his mother. He carried a brown leather backpack on his back. He didn't travel with much but what he needed was in his backpack. Everything else would slowly make its way from Chicago.

He looked around the airport smiling at the sight around him. It was his first time at the airport. First time in the city really and just seeing how busy its airport was, was just exciting to see. That euphoria of seeing JFK at its busiest however was ruined when someone bumped into making his head turn to look at him seeing a shorter balding caucasian man.

"Jesus, kid, what the hell are you doing standing there like a giant statue?! Get the hell out of the way!" He said before continuing on his way in the airport. He frowned as he watched the man who just bumped into him disappear into the crowd.

That was extremely rude but people in New York were known to be just that. He was walking through the airport with roaming eyes looking at the sights in the airport. He could see that he was getting glances from a few of the men and women walking throughout the airport. His sightseeing would come to an end as his phone rang, making him reach down into his pocket taking out his phone to answer.

"Hello?"

"Hey baby, did you make it to New York?" His mother called him. Of course, she did, even though he was a rather special individual she still felt the need to baby him and maybe that was her just being a mother. Just being the type of woman that she was. Just being protective of her baby.

"Yes ma'am, I did. I can already tell I'm gonna love it here. Well, the city, yeah, the people, not so much."

"Do I need to come over there and whoop somebody's ass?"

"No, mom. You don't. I'm an adult which means I should be able to take care of myself especially given my circumstances. Besides I'm a 6'3, 200-plus-pound black man, I don't think anybody will want to mess with me."

"Cedric Anthony Harvey, don't let your arrogance lead to your downfall."

"You know you've been telling me that since I was 3."

"Well, you'd think 22 years later, you'd understand."

"Mom, I'm gonna get ready to hang up now. I gotta find out which train will take me to Manhattan."

"Alright, baby. Love you. Let me know when you get to your aunt's and call me tonight, I'm getting a new case and I wanna tell you about it."

"Aren't you not supposed to do that?"

"I'm not but I do it anyway."

"You're something else, mom. Love you too." He said hanging up the phone and putting it in his pocket. Kimberly Harvey was something else. She always has been. Always will be. Her bubbly, loyal, generous, helpful, hopeful personality made her one of the most beautiful souls on the planet. She was the reason that he was the person that he was. It was rather odd that a woman with her personality became a detective for the Chicago P.D. At first, she started as an officer in the United States Army just like her father before her but ultimately got out so she could be a mother to her son and actually raise her child.

Cedric continued on his way through the airport. He felt a vibration in his pocket coming from his phone making him frown before he pulled out his phone to take a look at the screen that so many people's attention seemed to be engulfed in. He smiled seeing that it was nothing but a text message from his best friend. He placed the phone back in his pocket and looked up, seeing the signs leading the way to New York's famous yet unsanitary and cramped subway system.

Being cramped in a metal box moving at a top speed of 55 mph with rude New Yorkers just so he could get to Manhattan sounds like so much fun.

Cedric finally sat on the train he needed to be on. The train that would end up taking him into Midtown. He had to meet with his new bosses at the Architecture Firm that his best friend worked at and had managed to get him hired with: Legacy Foundations owned by renowned architects: Dave Russell and Xavier Cochran. Legacy Foundations had designed the Triskelion back in the early 80s, the S.H.I.E.L.D. Headquarters in New York and so many other buildings.

So Legacy Foundations was a pretty accomplished firm and the fact that they were willing to hire Cedric, an architect who really only had three building designs accredited to his name, 300 North Lasalle, Legacy at Millennium Park, and One Museum Park. All buildings in Chicago with construction for those buildings starting in 2006 and 2007. They finished up on those buildings this year. It was great designing buildings in his hometown and it made him happy to contribute to his city but it was time for greener pastures. And that would take place in New York, hopefully where he would get to leave a bigger impact than he did in Chicago.

Cedric had to take the AirTrain out of JFK International and had to connect at the Jamaica Station to hop onto the E-Train, getting off at 8th Avenue. Cedric looked around noticing his surroundings, seeing a mixture of men and women whether it be young or old. One woman however caught his attention and he just couldn't take his eyes off of her. Very few women had that effect on him. The last woman that did, things didn't exactly end well between the two.

The woman he couldn't take his eyes off of looked to be short. Possibly around 5'2, 5'3 with a warm beige skin tone with brown curly hair with dark brown eyes. She was wearing skinny jeans with a white sweater with a brown leather jacket over it with knee-high brown leather boots matching her jacket. Even in her given outfit, she still had curves that seemed to stick out. It was easy to garner the idea that her body gained a lot of attention from members of the opposite sex and maybe even the same sex.

Her dark brown eyes rolled over meeting his dark brown eyes, making him quickly look away. He turned his head seeing that she still had her eyes on him. She giggled at the reaction she got from him, turning her head away. He exhaled, shaking his head. That possibly might have been his only chance to impress the beautiful woman and he just cost himself that opportunity. He looked up seeing an older woman standing with her hand on the pole in the subway.

"Excuse me, ma'am?" Cedric said, getting her attention, making her turn her head to look at him.

"Would you like to have my seat?" He asked standing up motioning for her to take his seat. She nodded as he offered her his arm and helped her take the seat.

"Thank you." She said with a smile, looking up at him. He smiled and nodded, taking her place standing next to the pole on the subway train. There was a bit of silence on the train with most people in their own little worlds.

"That was a great thing you did." He heard a mellifluous voice say, making him turn his head to his side to see the woman that caught his attention.

"What?"

"Giving that woman your seat. Not many guys nowadays would do that. You have manners, it's cute."

"Just practicing what my mama taught me." He smiled. It was true. His mother would have his head if he didn't offer that lady her seat. She taught him to always be respectful, always be mannerful and always be obedient. It made him the man he was today.

"She must be a lovely lady."

"She is. She's the reason I'm the man I am today."

"Well, she did a good job from what I can see." She said looking him up and down making him smile as he nervously scratched his jaw.

"Mikayla Beaumont." She introduced extending a hand.

"Cedric Harvey." He replied, shaking her hand.

"Where you from?"

"You can tell I'm not from here?"

"Easily. Your shoes, your stance. The way you dress, the way you talk, you carry yourself differently. You have manners and that's something most people here don't have. A southern state maybe?"

"Kinda sorta. Born in Jackson, Mississippi. Lived till I was 6 and then I moved to Chicago, Illinois."

"They got more of you where you from?"

"No ma'am, I'm one of a kind."

"Okay, you're unique. I like that."

"What about you? Where are you from?"

"I was born on an army base in Germany but I've spent my entire life here in New York."

"What do you do?"

"I'm a full-time model. Sometimes I work as a bartender part-time at Club Zero."

"Club Zero? What's that?"

"A nightclub owned by Miles Maverick. We're opening in about two weeks. You should come."

"I might. If I can get in."

"Okay, well I'll give you my number. Call me a few days before and I can get you in." She said as she held her hand out waiting for his phone. He quickly reached into his pocket and placed the phone in her hands. She giggled at his actions, unlocking the phone, going into the contacts, and putting her phone number into the phone.

"I might just call you before that." He said as she handed him back the phone.

"I wouldn't mind if you did." She said with a smirk as he grinned.

"So what do you do?" She asked him.

"I'm an architect. I designed two or three buildings in Chicago."

"So handsome, smart, and a good personality. You seem like the total package. Are you gay?"

"No, ma'am. I like women."

"That's good to hear. Well, this is my stop, Eighth Avenue." She said as the train came to a stop before the doors slowly opened.

"Coincidentally it's mine too." He said following her to walk out of the train. The two walked forward making their way up the steps to the sidewalk. Cedric's eyes were going around looking at the surroundings taking note of the famous city. It wasn't the complete city but it was still a sight to behold as he looked at the famous Eighth Avenue.

"Well, you have my number. Don't ghost me, call me sometime." She said getting his attention, smiling at him before she turned around walking away from him. The grin on his face couldn't be wiped away as his eyes trailed up and down her body. He shook his head and turned right beginning to walk down the street but stopped momentarily to turn his head and get one more glance. His grin slowly faded away as he saw her walking but also a man stepping out of the shadows, walking close behind her.

His eyes locked onto the man's pocket seeing him pull a gun out of his pocket.

"Dammit." He cursed before changing his path, walking behind the man being careful not to alert him of his presence. It was a bit of a walk, maybe about a block or so. It seems he didn't want to get her immediately, he wanted to play the long game and wait it out to get here when she least expected it but Cedric had time today.

The robber grabbed Mikayla by the shoulder pushing her into an alleyway. He quickly pulled out his gun and held it in the middle of her back as he guided her further into the alley but little did he know he was gonna be met with some resistance.

He pushed her up against a wall and pointed the gun directly at her head as she put her arms up in surrender.

"Don't shoot! Please!" She squealed in fear.

"Shut up! Give me your purse." He commanded making her quickly give him the purse in compliance. He smirked as he grabbed the purse but kept his gun locked onto her, trying to slowly back up but bumped into something or someone for that matter. The smirk on the robber's face disappeared as he turned around with his gun looking to see Cedric standing there with a frown on his face.

"Give the woman back her purse now." He calmly said clenching his fist as his chocolate brown orbs locked on to the robber's eyes. His eyes left the robber's eyes once to look at Mikayla's brown eyes, seeing her look at him with a puzzled look full of shock and fear for her life.

"Who the hell are you?"

"The guy that's gonna lay your pathetic ass out if you don't give her back her purse."

"Are you freaking nuts? Who the hell you think you talking to?" The robber said as he placed the gun in his face but Cedric quickly grabbed his arm and hit him with a palm to the throat making him drop Mikayla's purse and the gun as he dropped down to his knees gasping for air. Cedric did accidentally hit him a bit harder than he normally would hit a human. Cedric hit him with a quick jab to the jaw knocking him out cold.

He looked up seeing Mikayla looking at him with a puzzled look. He bent down picking up her purse and handing it to her offering a friendly reassuring smile.

"How did you-" She was saying but he cut her off.

"I saw him following him out of the subway. I had an idea what he was gonna try and I decided to follow you. Hopefully that doesn't sound weird."

"You just saved my ass. Weird is exactly the last thing on my mind after that." She smiled as she looked at the ground.

"Thank you." She said in gratitude as he simply nodded. She stepped up onto her tip toes and gave him a kiss on the cheek making him smile.

"If I ever need saving, I know who to call." She said with a wink walking away leaving him there in the alleyway with a hand on his cheek where she kissed him making him smile. He pulled out his phone seeing that he had 2 missed calls from his aunt making him curse as he saw that. He quickly walked out of the alleyway and looked around for a taxi. Luckily for him, he watched as he saw a yellow cab was stopping to drop off a passenger.

"Taxi!" He shouted as he ran towards the cab, opening the door stepping in.

"Azure. East 91st street." He told the cab driver who started the meter and went on his way to get him to his destination.

The taxi arrived at his destination, stopping him in front of a condo complex. Cedric looked out of the window seeing the complex, making him smile. It was a rather nice place to live, based on the looks. Of course looks can be deceiving, Cedric knew that all too well.

"Alright, that's 15.40." The driver said, making Cedric reach into his pocket, grabbing a 20 from his wallet and handing it to the driver.

"Keep the change." He said, stepping out onto the sidewalk, grabbing his backpack holding it by one of it's straps. He walked towards the door seeing a doorman standing there. The doorman waved and opened the door for Cedric. He walked through the door into the lobby, eyes rolling around gazing at the sight of the room before him. His gaze however stopped as he saw an elevator making him quickly walk over to the elevator doors and press the button requesting a lift to the top.

Cedric stood there patiently placing his hand over each other as he looked uptop at the floor indicator waiting for the number 1 to appear. Once it did, the doors slowly divided, opening. He took a step forward, stepping into the elevator, placing a finger on the button of the top floor on the console, heading to the top floor. He took a deep breath waiting for the doors to slowly peel themselves and take him to the floor and take him one step closer to seeing his aunt for the first time in years.

The door opened with a ding making Cedric sigh, cloning his eyes before he stepped out of the elevator. He walked along the hallways looking for the 32C, which was the apartment number that his aunt owned. And judging by the separation between the doors of the apartments, they had to be huge. He finally found the apartment number after moments of searching, he placed his eyes on the door labeled 32C. There was a bit of nervousness as he stood there at the door mulling over what she might possibly say or what she might think seeing him now.

He knocked on the door, waiting patiently for his aunt to come to the door to let him in. With every moment he stood there waiting, the worse his nerves got. The more anxious he got.

The door opened and an older woman possibly in her 40s with a chestnut-like skin tone stood there with short black hair with brown highlights and chocolate brown eyes that seemed to gaze at Cedric.

"Hey, auntie."

"Don't Hey auntie me, get your big, tall ass over here and give me a hug." She said with a bit of sass making him chuckle as he walked through the doorway and wrapped his arms around his aunt giving her a tight hug.

"Oh, you've gotten so big since the last time I saw you. What has your mom been feeding you?" She said, taking a step back looking him up and down as he chuckled once more.

"Food." He answered, getting a playful smack on the chest. He placed a hand on his chest playing as if her playful strike actually had an effect on him as he walked past her, stepping into her apartment, looking around the apartment in amazement. To say it was an apartment was an understatement. A place like this might be considered a penthouse depending on who you ask. If you ask him, it was definitely a penthouse

"I know that smartass. So what've you been up to? You sure as hell are a lot bigger than you were the last time I saw you." She said as she walked to her kitchen going to her fridge grabbing two bottles of water. She handed one to Cedric and motioned for him to join her on her white leather sofa.

"Well, the last time you saw me, I was like 14. But I've been just doing my thing, putting my nose into the books as some would say." He said right before he took a seat next to her on the sofa.

"Oh, how's Kim?"

"She's good. She's still a detective in case you were wondering."

"That's good. When she told me you were coming here, I thought it was a joke. I thought why the hell would she trust me with what might possibly be the world's greatest gift to mankind." He sighed as he dropped his head looking down as he heard that. His aunt knew about his abilities. She was possibly one of the only ones besides his mother. She always claimed that he was a gift to mankind, a gift straight from God himself. She always said that he would be the one to guide mankind to the stars.

"You still believe that after all these years."

"Yes, I do sweetheart. One thing that keeps me going in this world is hope." His mother always said the same thing to him. Despite the two sisters claiming that they were completely different with no similarities whatsoever and with the only thing even uniting them, blood. Despite them both claiming all that, they were a lot alike in many ways. One thing they had in common was their belief in Cedric as a man who could use his abilities for good.

"You sound just like mom."

"Well, your mother is a smart lady."

"I know. Sometimes I like to think, she's the reason that I am the man today."

"She is. You like Italian?" Cedric frowned as the topic changed at the drop of a dime.

"I do. Why?"

"I'm making my famous Lasagna tonight and I wanted to make sure that you at least like it before I make it."

"I do. I don't drink much but if you were to open up a bottle of wine, I wouldn't mind." He said as he winked at her, making her laugh as she rolled her eyes.

"I'll keep that in mind. If you go straight through the kitchen, turn left, there's two bedrooms. Pick whichever one you want. I'm gonna run downtown and handle some business. Make yourself at home and if you go out, lock up before you leave. There's a key for you on the counter in the kitchen. Love you sweetheart." His aunt said walking towards him giving him a kiss on the cheek before walking away leaving Cedric standing there looking on.

Cedric watched his aunt walk out of the door, leaving him there. He sighed as he realized he was now alone. He did like she said walking through the kitchen with his eyes roaming, taking a look at the dark chestnut-like cabinets. The kitchen had a contemporary design which fit his aunt's personality. Out of the corner of his eyes, he saw a turned his head and walked towards the counter picking up the picture looking to see his aunt and her late son, Jason Cade.

Jason died when Cedric was only 8 years old. He died in action overseas. It was a painful time for his aunt at first but she managed to deal with the pain and the loss. It wasn't easy and it wasn't fast but eventually she healed. Every once and a while the feelings would resurface but that was normal for anyone that had lost a child.

Cedric sighed, placing the photo back in the place he found it and continued making his way through the kitchen. He turned his head seeing the hallway that his aunt was talking about. He walked down the hallway seeing a bedroom on his right. He peeked his head into the bedroom taking a look. The bedroom was well-furnitured with a queen size bed in the middle of the room. There were nightstands on both sides of the bed each with a lamp. There was a dresser along the wall with a TV hanging above it and a walk-in closet along with a personal bathroom. The window had black curtains covering it's windows. He walked to the curtains, pulling them back to see the view. It wasn't really a good view but still a view nonetheless.

"It's alright." Cedric said to himself walking out of the room and turning down the hallway making his way to the other bedroom to take a look inside. He walked into the bedroom looking inside. It had the same layout as the other one but this one looked bigger. The closet and bathroom were bigger as well. He walked towards the window seeing the curtains covering the view. He pulled the curtains back looking out seeing the buildings.

"Yeah, this is the one." He said taking off his backpack and throwing it on the bed.

"This is the one." He repeated, looking out at the view over the city.

Cedric at the address that his best friend had texted him. It was one of those tall buildings in Downtown Manhattan. From the looks of it, it probably housed several businesses and offices in it. Cedric exhaled before he walked through the revolving doors making his way inside. He walked to the receptionist desk holding a leather portfolio folder in his hand.

"Hi, I'm looking for the offices of Legacy Foundation." He politely said.

"Floor 10." She said not even looking up from her phone to give him an answer. He frowned at how blunt she was. It was odd that a million dollar business would have such a rude receptionist at the front desk. He turned around and made his way to the elevator pressing the button for an elevator to come down. Cedric stood there waiting for a few brief moments before the elevator doors opened allowing Cedric to walk into an empty elevator. He pressed the button to the tenth floor and stood along the walls waiting patiently as the elevators slowly made a move.

Cedric stood there tapping his foot nervously on the elevator floor. He had already gotten the job, so why was he nervous? He was meeting his bosses or at least one of them and the simple fact that he was doing that was enough to make him nervous. The doors opened with a ding making him exhale before he took a step out of the elevator onto his office floor. He looked down at the floors seeing their golden diamond parquet hardwood floors. He looked around, seeing there were several desks with chairs and desktop computers. Some of the desks seemed to be raised without chairs for those who would like to stand. Overall it looked like an office that wasn't so much focused on being professional but being a more comfortable workplace.

His eyes kept roaming until they sat on a reception desk directly in the center, just a few steps from the elevator. He walked towards the reception desk to get a bit of help.

"Hi, I'm Cedric Harvey, I'm here for a meeting." He said introducing himself to the reception at the front desk. It was a caucasian male with golden tanned skin with a blonde pompadour with a fade on the sides and back. He had green eyes with a pair of black glasses on his face.

"Alright, Mr. Wright is expecting you. I'll call him up." The receptionist said before he picked up a phone, dialing a number. Cedric took a few steps back and resumed his gaze looking around the office space. He stood just for a few moments before his best friend, Geoff Wright came walking towards him. Geoff was a 6'0 African American male with chocolate brown skin and dark brown eyes and a black shaped up afro.. He had a pair of gold Ray-Bans on his face and wore a black suit with a white button-up and blue and gold tie along with a gold watch on his wrist.

"Ced, man, what took you so long?" Geoff said flashing Cedric a smile as the two chuckled before giving each other a handshake and a hug.

"I had to stop by my aunt's and you know how that goes."

"Ah, I understand. How is she doing?"

"She's good."

"That's what I like to hear. Mama Kim, okay?"

"Yeah, she's good. Same old, same old. Always working the case."

"Well, tell her I said hi. You were supposed to meet with Mr. Cochran and Mr. Russell but they got stuck in Tokyo so I'll be relaying the message for you. Your first assignment is designing the Maverick tower. Miles specifically asked for you, he wanted a fresh new mind on his tower. So it looks like you're stuck with him. Try not to piss him off."

"Now, why would I piss him off?"

"Believe it or not, some people don't find that boy scout personality of yours to be appealing. I texted you the address. Don't be late." Geoff winked before walking away leaving Cedric standing there with a smirk shaking his head.

Cedric arrived in downtown Manhattan standing outside of the HQ of Maverick Industries. The building was already a large building but it probably wasn't big enough for Miles Maverick's ego. Miles Maverick was probably one of the richest men in the world having a networth of 90 billion dollars. The only man who had more money than Miles Maverick was billionaire CEO of Stark Industries, Tony Stark.

Maverick Industries was one of the largest tech conglomerates in the world known for its advancements in technology and medicine. Miles' father Michael founded the company and led it to become a million dollar success but under Miles' watch he made it a billion dollar success and the global super power that it was today. And his partner, his sister the beautiful Madison Maverick. Seemingly he was the genius leader of the company and she was the more sociable person who always seemed to make the company image likable at least.

Currently Cedric stood in the elevator. The elevator had an elegant design with the company emblem on the back wall of the elevator. The company emblem was a white background with a black M on it. The doors opened with a ding allowing Cedric to step out onto the top floor. The floor where Miles' office was located.

Elegant was one way to describe Miles' style. From the way he dressed to the way he talked to the way he had his headquarters designed. Designing this new tower was truly gonna be something wonderful. Cedric's eyes continued roaming around the office. Unfortunately he wasn't fortunate to see the woman in front of him, knocking her down as she bumped into his chiseled body. Cedric looked down seeing a woman in a black pantsuit with a purple blouse. She was a beautiful African-American woman with clear mocha skin with dark brown eyes. She had black wavy hair and a voluptuous build worthy of a model.

"Sorry, I wasn't looking." He said as he extended hand. A hand in which she took and allowed him to help lift her up to her feet. It was only right after he knocked her down.

"I noticed. We both weren't. I was obsessed with this phone. Call it a dangerous distraction in the world we live in. I've never seen you before. Are you new here?" Madison ripped her hands from his and began dusting herself off.

"Uh-No. I'm here to meet with Mr. Maverick. We're going over the designs of Maverick Tower."

"Harvey, right?"

"Yes."

"Chris?"

"No. Cedric" He chuckled, shaking his head.

"Cedric. I'll definitely remember you." She muttered that last part as her eyes trailed up and down taking a look at the tall tower of a man in front of her.

"Madison Mav-"

"Maverick. I know who you are. Anybody who has a brain knows who you are. You're the Heart and Soul behind Maverick Industries." Hearing that made her smile.

"Much to my brother's dismay. He wants to be known as the sole reason for Maverick Industries' success. Speaking of my brother, you shouldn't keep him waiting. Go down and take a right, when you see it, you can't miss it." She said before she walked away leaving Cedric standing there with a smile on his face. He turned and started to make his way towards Miles' office.

If this was the executive food, he had to wonder what all the other floors looked like. And what their offices were like. Just like Madison said, you couldn't miss it. It was a large office with a large window pane like wall in front. Cedric looked through the window of the office seeing Miles Maverick sitting at his black executive desk.

He let out a deep exhale before walking to the door and lightly knocking on it.

"Come in." He heard. The voice sounded like a voice that demanded respect and authority. Cedric walked into the office, feet stepping out onto the black velour carpet. Most of the interior was black. He looked around, seeing a small mini bar in the office, seeing a bookshelf behind his desk and seeing a few more pieces of furniture. The view from this office was amazing. Just being up here, you could see almost the entire city.

"Mr. Maverick, I'm Cedric Har-" Cedric introduced as he walked towards Miles desk with a hand out

"I know who you are. I asked for you." Miles said, looking up from laptop at Cedric. He stood up from his desk, standing almost as tall as Cedric just a few inches short of Cedric. He had a lean muscular build with flawless brown skin with black spiky hair and black eyebrows and brown eyes. He was sporting an expensive suit like always with expensive Italian leather dress shoes. He extended his hand, taking Cedric's hand shaking hands with him.

"Take a seat. What's your poison?" Miles asked, walking around his desk and making his way to his bar while Cedric sat down in front of the desk.

"A scotch would be fine sir."

"Very well." Miles picked up two glasses and a glass bottle of scotch and poured a bit into each of the glasses. "You know I saw your work on some of the buildings you did in Chicago and I gotta say, it's impressive." Miles complimented as he walked towards his desk, handing Cedric a glass and taking one for himself.

"Thank you Mr. Maverick, it's an honor to be here.

"Please, it's Miles. Mr. Maverick was my father." Miles spun around in his leather office chair turning to look at the large painting of his father who sat in a chair arms folded while he looked one with a smirk.

"It's crazy to think that he made all this possible. Crazy to think he made this new Maverick Tower possible. I'm gonna have my sister email you some of the ideas I have regarding the tower. I want it to be a symbol and a beacon for the city. I want it to stand out. I want when people see it they know who it belongs to. And based on your work, I know you can do it."

"I can. But I need you to know that is gonna be a process. For a building of the magnitude that you want, the design process could be lengthy and I need you to know that some of the ideas I have are just suggestions but at the end of the day, it's your tower."

"Noted. Are you by chance doing anything next Wednesday?"

"No sir, not that I know of."

"Well, I'll be hosting a charity banquet. I think you should come."

"Email me the details and I'll see what I can do."

"Well, here's to a long and successful partnership." Miles said, raising his glass in the air. Cedric followed suit, clinking their glasses together before they both quickly downed their drink. And with that it started the long journey that these two men would embark on.

The day had passed and nightfall was upon New York City. The city was so different in the night compared to day. Many people thought the city looked beautiful during the day but at night, it was an entirely different sight. One that was much more pleasing to the eyes.

Cedric stood at the window in his aunt's home looking out of the window with a glass of wine in hand. She was cooking her Lasagna or at least preparing it to go into the oven. He could tell she was excited for him to be there. She didn't want to admit it but she was pretty lonely sometimes. But luckily her nephew was here to keep her company.

"So how you liking the city?"

"It's bigger than Chicago and a bit more crowded. I shouldn't really have any problems."

"How was work?"

"It was alright. First project, right out of the gate, is a tower with Miles Maverick."

"Miles Maverick? As in THE Miles Maverick?"

"Yes ma'am." He chuckled.

"Well, that's good. It means they like you. Have you called your mom yet?"

"Yeah, I talked to her after my meeting with Miles. She's doing okay just working like always. She told me to tell you she said 'hey, she loves you and thank you for taking me in'." Cedric watched a grin snake it's way onto his aunt's face. The grin quickly left her face as she looked over at her seasonings and grabbed one of the bottles looking at it. Cedric frowned as he sat his glass down on the table and walked towards her.

"Everything okay?"

"Yeah, I just ran out of basil and oregano. You mind running down the street to the bodega on the corner and getting me some?" She asked as she looked up at him.

"Yeah, let me just grab a jacket." He said looking down at his clothes seeing he was dressed in a pair of black jeans with a blue v-neck shirt and a pair of black and white converse.

"Alright, hurry. I want to get this in the oven as soon as possible, it takes a while to cook." She said as he nodded his head before he walked to his bedroom to grab his jacket.

Cedric stood in the bodega looking on the shelves looking for the items his aunt needed. It was a rather small bodega owned by an older hispanic male with a head full of salt and pepper hair.

"Empty the register into a bag, old man!" Cedric heard making him frown as he turned his head seeing a man holding a Glock 19 aiming it at the store owner. He wore all black with a black mask over his face. Cedric sighed as he looked up seeing if there were any cameras. Luckily for him there weren't.

The store owner did as he was told, opening the register and grabbing a brown paper bag and began putting cash from the register into the brown paper bag.

While the owner had his head down, Cedric took this chance, using his abilities to bolt over and bump the gunmen with his shoulder. Unfortunately Cedric didn't know how much strength he was using and the shoulder bump sent him crashing through the window he stood next to and out onto the sidewalk.

The man who had just stopped the robbery moved back to the position he was in before he used his speed. The thing about using his speed, time around him slowed. Slowed down tremendously almost to the point where everything stopped. When he wasn't using his speed, everything was at its normal speed. So in this case, when he stopped using his speed the store owner had just looked up.

The store owner frowned as he looked at his window but more importantly wondered what happened to the man in front of him. He looked around possibly looking to see where the gunman was but could see no sign of him.

"What the hell just happened?" The store owner said.

"Man, I don't know. It was like a blur." Cedric said with a smirk as he put the seasoning bottles up onto the counter.

"Just take it. I'm done for the night." The store owner said as Cedric simply shrugged his shoulders and walked out of the store with the items his aunt sent him to get. He looked down at the gunman lying on the sidewalk as several people gathered around looking at the gunman on the sidewalk out of curiosity. Cedric chuckled and walked away with a smirk. And on this day, the world would change forever. Because on this day, a new guardian angel for the earth was born.

A/N: Alright so this took me a rather long time to write and probably because it's possibly the longest debut chapter I've written for any story. This is my first attempt at placing Charge into the MCU and I'm gonna be starting exactly at the beginning of it all so we'll see characters grow just like Cedric will grow through the course of the story. Remember it's Early November 2009 in this story so Iron Man hasn't shown up yet and doesn't show up until November 17th, 2009 for the Battle of Gulmira. So keep that in mind.

Castings (only for characters who appeared in this chapter):

Cedric Harvey/The Black and Blue Blur - Michael B. Jordan

Miles Maverick - Omari Hardwick

Mikayla Beaumont - Madison Pettis

Vanessa Harvey-Cade, Cedric's Aunt - Vivica A. Fox

Madison Maverick - Zoe Kravitz

Geoff Wright - Trevor Jackson

If you enjoyed the chapter let me know with a review and don't forget to favorite and follow for more action.

Later Guys and Gals!