Walking into the convenience store, Rock waved at the elderly woman working the counter.
"Hello, dear," the woman said.
"Hey grandma," Rock replied.
Rock looked through the store, gathering all the items that he came for.
"Forty ounce, jerky, gum, hey, where's the sour patch?" Rock shouted.
"Oh dear, i must have forgot to order some more," the old woman said.
Rock brought his items to the counter. "How much do I owe you?"
"No charge, son. you helped me out when I was robbed last week. consider this me returning the favor."
"No need to thank me for that, that's what you're paying for. If you want to thank anyone, thank my boss."
"I get the feeling you'd help me even if I didn't pay you. you're such a kind child."
"Is that right? I don't see it. well, see you around, grandma."
Rock took his items and left. he pulled a sheet of paper out of his pocket. "alright, next stop is..."
A few blocks from the store he found who he was looking for. It was a group of four men in an alleyway. they were smoking and drinking and laughing among themselves. two of them were wearing expensive looking chains. Rock wondered how they paid for ti.
"Wassup?" Rock said.
One of the men eyed the young boy . "The fuck you want?"
The atmosphere changed instantly. Hostility hung thick in the air. One of the men reached behind his back.
Rock pointed at the man in the back. "You pull that, there's no telling what'll happen. You guys were the ones who hit that liquor store on 18th street, right? Shot the clerk too from what I hear."
"So what if we did?" one of the men said.
Rock sighed. "Well, that store's protected. You know Junior, right? He owns that store, so it's like you were stealing from him. I happen to work for Junior. My job is finding people who steal from him and taking back his money. Which means, I need all you to empty your pockets for me."
The men broke out into laughter.
"Bitch, you best run along before something happens to you," one man threatened. The group of men got up close to Rock and surrounded him.
Rock's fist flashed out and collided with the nearest man's jaw. there was a sickening crunch, and the man's jaw was dangling out of its socket. the other three attacked at once. Rock pulled the liquor bottle out of his bag and smashed it over a man's head. The man screamed as glass shards pierced his eyes. Rock moved on to the next one, downing him with a kick to his knee. the man's leg popped out of the socket, and he fell to the ground screaming. the last man fell to the ground begging for mercy.
"Alright," rock said, " how do you want it?
"What?" the man said.
Rock shrugged. "I guess I choose for you."
He took hold of the man's right hand and bent back a finger until it broke. He did the same to every finger on the man's hand, the man screaming all the while.
Rock let the man go. "You run along now, and tell everyone that if they even think about hitting another store that Junior owns, they'll get it even worse."
The man ran off, clutching his destroyed hands.
After gathering the remaining men's' money and jewelry, Rock scratched another item off of his list. "Just a couple stops left."
XxX
Rock stood in the arena surrounded by cheering spectators. Well, it was kind of like an arena, it was an empty parking garage in Vale's business district. During the day it was filled with expensive cars owned by the city's richest citizens, but at night it was filled with lowlifes and scumbags looking for a cheap thrill. Rock of course was no exception. He was bouncing on his feet waiting for the fight to begin.
His opponent was a rugged looking man with a face covered in tattoos. He had a reputation on the streets for his strong strikes and skillful ground game. If he got his opponent into a tackle, then that was when the fight ended.
Another man wearing sunglasses and a striped shirt stood between the two fighters.
"I know you all wanna see some blood, so let's get it started. On the left we've got the master of the ground game, Nero. On the right, the young upstart who's left a trail of broken bodies all throughout Vale, Rock! Are you ready?"
Nero and Rock took their stances.
"Begin!"
Nero opened the fight with a flurry of punches. Rock weaved through the blows, avoiding them by a hair. His fist flew out and barely bruised the older man's nose. Rock grimaced and took a step back. He threw out another punch, but Nero ducked under it and landed a tackle. He took Rock to the ground and got him into a mount position. He pinned Rock's right arm and punched him hard in the face with his left.
Rock felt a burning pain in his face. He struck Nero in his ribs, but couldn't put enough power into his arm to do any real damage. He took a deep breath and bucked his hips as hard as he could. He shook the older man off of him and scrambled to his feet. His heavy breathing betrayed how exhausted he was.
Nero attacked again. Rock put his arms up to block, feeling a deep pain in his forearms.
"Attacking with the elbows? That's nasty, old man."
Nero peppered Rock with quick jabs. Rock fell back and rushed in when he thought it safe. He kept up this rhythm for as long as he could. Nero grew impatient and rushed in. He threw a haymaker punch that was easily countered. Rock delivered a heavy blow to the man's stomach. Nero held his stomach in pain. That was the opening Rock was looking for. Rock's fist glowed, and he swung it right into Nero's jaw. There was a crack, and Nero fell to the ground. His face was beginning to swell as blood poured out of his mouth.
Rock smirked. "Have fun in the hospital. You ever want a rematch, come and find me."
The audience erupted with applause. Rock went to collect his winnings from the referee. He stuffed the stack of money in his bag.
The ref clapped Rock on the back. "Nice job, son. You handled that fool like he was nothing."
"He wasn't," Rock replied.
"So how bout it? Wanna go for another round?"
Rock looked at his scroll. "Shit, I can't. Got somebody I need to see."
He ran out of the parking garage and made his way to his next destination.
XxX
A short train ride later and he was standing outside a night club. He could hear the pounding music from the street. He walked up to the door but was immediately stopped by a man wearing a suit and red sunglasses. The doorman looked Rock up and down.
"Buddy, I think you've got the wrong place."
Rock looked at his outfit of a hoodie and blue jeans. Obviously, he was under dressed for this establishment.
"Come on. I'm not here to party. I wanna talk to Junior."
"What do you want with the boss?"
"I have his money."
The man pulled out a scroll and began typing on it. After a minute he got a message and put his scroll away. He stepped aside and opened the door.
"He's at the bar."
Rock walked inside and was immediately assaulted by the music. It was loud and pulsed louder than his own heartbeat.
He saw Junior behind the bar. The absolute mountain of a man was happily serving customers drinks.
Rock took a seat at the bar and dumped a bloody sack of money on the counter. Junior took it and examined it. He let out a low whistle.
"Gotta admit, I didn't think you could pull it off."
Rock laughed. "How long have you known me? When I say I'll do something, I'll do it. You got what I asked for?"
Junior reached under the bar and pulled out a manila envelope.
"One set of Sanctum Academy transcripts. You were an average student. Not too bad, but not too good either. I doubt anyone would buy you as an honor student."
Rock took the envelope. "ha, ha. But seriously, thanks. I know you took a big risk taking me in, and I appreciate it."
"I'm gonna level with you; your mother is the only reason I even gave you a second look. But, you turned out to be a good worker."
Rock rolled his eyes. "What, you're gonna say I'm just like her?"
"No, kid, you're nothing like her and I hope it stays that way. Have a nice life."
Rock got up and slid the envelope under his shirt. He could barely contain his excitement. People like him rarely got a chance to start over. It was a once in a lifetime opportunity, and he had no intention of letting it go to waste.
He walked through the club door. As he left, someone else walked in. Their eyes met for a moment. He found himself captivated by her flowing blond hair and lilac eyes. But the moment was fleeting. She looked straight ahead and kept walking.
Rock began his long walk home. He wondered if he'd ever see that girl again.