Call Me… Doc Ock – Arc One: Origin

Epilogue

It had been a week since the mess at the abandoned hospital and cave. On a road headed north, a lone man in a hood carrying several bags walked with a tired but determined gate. Louis Grant had been given a mission of utmost import… and he would not fail.

Several minutes after the decimation of the Swords of the Lord, two figures could be seen hobbling about, doing their best to flee the scene lest they be caught the monster that had ripped through their ranks. Louis Grant fought through his fear and exhaustion as he helped Sir Curwen escape.

The older was in dire condition; the cuts and bruises he had received from the mutant had been extensive. There were almost certainly broken bones to consider, given the way the man kept flinching every few steps. And worst of all, was the bleeding stump where the monster taken his arm. Grant had only received the most basic training in medical treatment, but even he could tell that despite their best attempts to treat damage, Sir Curwen was losing too much blood too fast.

He had to- he had to get somewhere safe. Somewhere where they could hide and-

"GAH!" Grant stumbled as he tripped over an upturned root.

"ARRRRRGGGH!" Next to him, Isaiah Curwen, no longer being supported by the young knight, fell to the ground on his bloodied stump.

"SIR CURWEN!" Grant quickly scrambled over to the master of his order. He turned the older man's trembling form and was dismayed to see that in the fall, the bandages on the stump were torn up and the injury had been aggravated.

"Oh God!" Grant hastily sat Curwen against a tree. He then reached into his backpack and pulled out a medical kit. Opening it, he took out some disinfectants and bandages and went to work trying to wrap up the bleeding stump.

"S-sorry, Sir Curwen! I'll get that patched in a moment!" The young knight worked quickly to clean the stump as best he could but found it difficult to do so due to both the damage and foreign objects stuck in the flesh and bone and his own squeamish reaction to such injury. He never had been any good when faced with blood and gore. Honestly, the only use he had been to the Swords of the Lord had been as errand boy and clerk.

Lous had been fine with that. If he couldn't aid his fellows on the battlefield, then at the very least he could aid them when they were off the battlefield. He had never expected to find himself on the frontlines anyway, even with his surprising promotion to knight after the first encounter with Akkaba.

Now though… now he and Sir Curwen were likely the last two members of the Swords of the Lord after the massacre at the hands of that… that monster.

Even now, Louis couldn't help but shudder at the reminder of that… creature. The sheer malicein its eyes ensured that he would not be able to sleep well for a long time. It had only because he had been dry heaving in the distance after breathing in some concoction made by one the cultists that he had escaped the monster's wanton slaughter. His fellow knights had stood valiantly as the monster came upon them, but it had been to no avail.

Louis shook his head to get the sounds of their dying screams out of his head. He couldn't lose himself to fear and despair. Sir Curwen… he needed him.

"Don't worry Sir Curwen. We'll… we'll get through this somehow…" Despite his shaky voice, the fresh knight's hands were steady as he did what he could to stem the bleeding and seal the stump.

The older knight could only sit and watch quietly as the young man worked. The man's face was gaunt and pale from exhaustion and blood loss. It was a miracle that he was still conscious at this point. Curwen attempted to lift his hand but found that it barely responded beyond a twitch. His eye went down to the stump where Knight Grant worked tirelessly. It was becoming quite apparent to him that he was likely at the end…

"Over here! I hear someone shouting near here!"

Both knights snapped to the sound of the voice. It was all Louis could do not to curse as he spotted the glowing ball of light floating a little bit ahead of three mages.

"No… nononononononoo," Louis hissed. "Not now! We need to-"

A sudden strong grip on his hand cut him short. Louis whipped around back to Curwen. "S-sir Curwen?"

With growing labored breath, Isaiah Curwen looked Louis Grant in the eye. "K-knight Grant…-" Isaiah coughed lightly, even merely whispering upset his failing lungs. After regaining control of his lungs, he went on. "K-knight… Grant… our… our order… has been dealt… a critical blow… I am… not… long for this…" Curwen coughed again. "Not long… for this world."

"Sir Curwen! I-!" A tight squeeze interrupted Grant's protest.

"Knight… Grant," Isaiah whispered. "F-from here on, I dub thee… leader of the… the Swords of the Lord…"

Grant felt his breath hitch; he could hardly believe his ears. "Sir! I-!" Another squeeze from Isaiah silenced him.

"You… must continue… our work…" Isaiah reached into one of his pouches and pulled out a letter. "Seek… the man… known as… forger… at this address…" When Grant took the letter in hand, Curwen then reached into another pouch and pulled from it a container with a strange green liquid. After pressing it into one of Grant's hands, he pulled the cork on it and passed it the younger knight's other palm. "I… leave you with a tool to aid you on your mission."

Then, to Grant's horror, Isaiah reached for his eye and with a snarl, ripped it out. Too shocked to do other than stare at his master's form, Grant barely responded as Isaiah felt his way to the bottle and dropped the eye into it. He then took the cork and popped it back onto the container.

With that last act done, Isaiah slumped against the tree and went still forever more.

After that, Louis Grant had somehow managed to get away from the mages. How, he didn't know, it had been all a blur from that point. Now… now he had to get moving… He had a mission... He pulled out the container and stared at the eye floating within. Gathering what courage he had, he marched forward, his eyes ablaze with grief and determination.

"I will not fail you, Sir Curwen."

Roderick Slade flopped into his bed with a relieved sigh. The mutant stared at the ceiling for several minutes trying his best to forgot everything that had happened over the last week. With the loss of several of their heavy hitters, he had been sent around the world trying to recruit new members for Clan Akkaba and eliminating those who rejected the offer. He had just finished with the list of potential recruits and now wanted nothing more than to relax in his private room in the Sofitel Grand Sopot. It was his usual go to for when he wanted to have his 'me time.'

Reaching for the remote on the table next to his bed, Roderick took a moment to make himself comfortable. "Right, so let's see what's on now."

With a press of the button, Roderick turned on the 100-inch tv-

"-source of the radiation. People are still call-"

"Oh for, FUCK'S SAKE!" Roderick tossed his remote through the screen putting a hole through it and the wall behind it.

His mood ruined; Roderick returned to staring at the ceiling. And he had just managed to get his mind off of that disaster. Unbidden, Roderick's mind drifted back to the conversation that he had with the Fittest last week…

It was all that Roderick could do not to wilt under the cold glare of the Fittest as he finished his report. Right now, he was tired and sore and really needed a nice hot shower, but he didn't dare complain when he could feel the Fittest's displeasure.

After a long silence, Frederick Slade finally spoke. "…so, let me see if I have this right," he began. "I sent you and Brashir along with several of our best available clansmen to wipe out the rest of the rats of Logos, a task that by all accounts should have been simple due to their weakness. And rather than finally put them down once and for all, you instead find yourselves waylaid by the so-called Swords of the Lord and are dragged into a three-way conflict."

Roderick Slade said nothing.

"From there, you and Brashir are separated from the rest of the clan on site and engage Curwen and the boy, with the latter being joined by a mage from the Kamar-Taj and an automaton. You then personally engage the boy, and rather than putting him down quickly, you instead find yourself in a stalemate of sorts and cannot finish him off due to interference from the Logos rats."

Still, Roderick said nothing.

"Then, when Brashir admits to having killed off the boy's mother and father, the boy is possessed and turns into some type of demon and proceeds to slaughter all of your fellow clansmen on site. After that, you need to be saved," Frederick growls with an emphasis on "saved," "by the mage and automaton. Then you call for me after being useless against the creature attacking you… Is that it?"

Slowly, Roderick nodded. "Yes, Fittest. That is what happened."

Frederick Slade glared for a few seconds more at the younger mutant. He then closed his eyes and rubbed his nose. "…you know, under previous leadership, such failure would be met with a swift and bloody end for anyone who would come back after such failure." Frederick's eyes began to glow as he glared at Roderick again, causing the younger man to flinch.

"…right now, I am too tired to for any sort of violence after having to reach out to you through that miasma of hate and malice…"

Despite the relief he felt, Roderick remained perfectly still.

"That being said," Frederick continued, "we are now short on several mutants with significant potential." The armrest on Fredrick's chair cracked under his grip. "You are going to fix that. Our watchers have compiled a list of mutants with potential to join our ranks. Go find them and bring them in. If they refuse, kill them." Frederick relaxed his posture, the glow in his eyes disappearing. "Go now."

"Yes, Fittest!" Roderick immediately stood up and went to do as told.

Roderick rolled over onto his side, a scowl twisting his face. "Why do I have to go about hunting down a bunch of outsiders to bring him. You'd think the old bastard would get off his ass and do it himself, but nooooo. Send me while I'm barely able to function.

With a sigh Roderick rolled onto his back and closed his eyes. "Honestly, I'm too tired for this nonsense. I'll report back in later."

As Roderick began to doze off, he failed to notice once again the small device hidden on his cloak letting out a brief flash of light before going inert.

Within their secret cavern, the apes were utterly silent as they watched Dimitri sit in the center of the auditorium. Around him were the four apes that had been empowered by Cosmic Rays. Miklho and Peotor stood at the ready, their eyes glowing as the prepared to use their gifts in case of an accident. In front of Dimitri, Yaroslav pressed his hands, glowing with power, to Dimitri's chest. Next to Dimitri, Igor rubbed his fellow baboon's shoulder to calm his nerves.

There was a nervous energy circulating through the auditorium. Ever since Yaroslav's return and his discovery of the hidden aspects of Cosmic Rays, many had been both excited and worried about what this would mean for them. Some had immediately called for Yaroslav to empower them all, but a visit from the Ancient One and the super apes' own experiences with how dangerous this energy was had quickly cooled off any excitement.

Now though, after taking the time to make sure he could properly call upon the hidden aspect of Cosmic Rays, Yaroslav had decided to try and empower another ape.

Dimitri had been selected for the first attempt, much to the baboon's surprise.

After several more seconds, Yaroslav's hands stopped glowing, and his arms drooped. Oddly tired at the attempt he turned to Peotor. "That is as much as I can do for now on my own."

The orangutan nodded. "Very well." He turned to Dimitri. "Well, my friend, do you feel anything?"

The baboon looked to Peotor, nervous. He lifted his hands and examined them for a moment. Closing his eyes, he blocked out everything around him and looked for the 'warmth within,' as Yaroslav and the Sorcerer had put it.

"…I… do not… think so…"Dimitri said after a few seconds, to many grunts and groans of disappointment. He opened his eyes and looked at the four apes. "I am sorry, but I d-don't think that-!"Dimitri stopped mid-apology and stared at his hand. "…wait…"

"Yes?" Peotor leaned forward.

"Something… something is off." Dimitri stared at his hand. His eyes narrowed at a sudden tingling in his arm. The baboon brought his hand a bit closer before-

BZZZZZZZZT

"AGH!"

"GOOD HEAVENS!"

More shouting and screeching went on as shock and excitement surged through the apes at the sight of Dimitri's hand crackling with violet sparks of electricity.

"-and that concludes my report, so far," Fury finished. It had been a long couple of days since the light show and he was actually beginning to feel signs of fatigue set in. And wow did that say a lot about how little sleep he managed to get.

"Well, I guess that's about as much as we can get," Alexander Pierce muttered. "As always you do good work, Nick."

"Thank you, senator," Nick nodded. The man in question barely looked any better than Fury felt. From what he knew, he had been everywhere putting out fires ever since the burst of radiation. He did not pity having to deal with congress in the immediate aftermath of a potential nuclear attack on American soil.

"Well, if there's any more business to be done," Pierce put out. When none of the other council members spoke up, he nodded. "Alright, let's leave it at that for now." As the other members of the world security signed out of the video call, he stayed on.

When they were alone, he spoke up, visible concerned. "Hey Nick, how are you holding up?"

Nick could only offer a grunt in response.

Pierce nodded. "Yeah, I'd imagine things couldn't have been easy for this last week."

"Yeah, well you're not looking to hot yourself, sir," Fury retorted.

Pierce snorted. "Yeah, definitely not." He rubbed at his eyes a bit before his expression became more serious. "Seriously, though, Nick, do you have any idea what the hell happened last week?"

Fury considered how to answer that for a moment before letting out another grunt. "Nothing I could reasonably put to a report, sir. Nothing beyond a hunch anyways."

One of Pierce's eyebrows rose. "A hunch?"

"Just that," Fury nodded.

"Well," Pierce replied, "your hunches have always turned up gold so far, why not lay it on me."

Fury stared at Pierce for a few seconds, before he reclined back in his chair. "Well, this might seem like a stretch… but you remember that sudden stretch of shootings between rival gangs just a few hours before the light show?"

Pierce's brow furrowed as he tried to recall that. "…I… yeah, I think there had been a report about it on the news. Local law enforcement had to put in a curfew… heh, with that mess with the radiation burst, that got swallowed up in the news." Pierce's eyes narrowed as a thought occurred to him. "…you think the two incidents might be related?"

Fury nodded. "It's just a hunch so far, but just before things went to shit, one of the local punks had been seen talking to this man."

Fury pulled up a photo of two men on a projector. One of the men was dressed up in the most stereotypical pimp getup that Pierce had ever seen, with a purple suit and fedora and feather boa. The other had a much more sensible ensemble for cold weather in brown cargo pants and heavy coat.

"Alright so what's so special about these two," Pierce asked.

"Well, sir," Fury began, "the man in the ridiculous getup is Kenan Jason, a member of the Rivalz gang in Harlem, New York. The man in the heavy coat, was apparently a visiting Canadian named Victor Dubois."

Pierce leaned forward. Compared to the gangbanger, the Canadian didn't really stand out much. "…okay, so… what? A Canadian speaking with a gangster doesn't really say much now does it?"

Fury nodded. "Yeah, on its own not really, however what do you think about this?" Fury pulled out another photo and put in on a projector. This picture was clearly from an autopsy, except-

Pierce's eyes widened. "Wait!" He looked back and forth between the two photos. "That's Dubois!"

"Yeah," Fury said, "only now, he's a corpse. I'll give you three guesses where I found the body, the first two don't count."

"…what the hell was going on over there?" It had been a long time since Pierce had found himself this flabbergasted.

"That's what I'm trying to figure out sir," Fury sighed.

"…you know what, I'll try and call up one of my contacts in Canada, see if I can help you with figuring out who this guy is at the least."

Fury offered Pierce a rare smile. "I would very much appreciate that, sir."

Pierce returned the smile. "No problem, Nick, we'll talk later."

At Nick's nod, Pierce hung up.

Fury slumped back into his chair. When he couldn't think of anything else that needed his immediate attention, he closed his one eye and took a quick nap.

"It's too bad you didn't get first place for your project."

"Huh?" I had been thinking about several other things at the moment, so it took a few seconds before Aunt Janice's words to register. "Oh! That." I shrugged. "It's no big deal; I mean even second place isn't so bad." Admittedly, that had stung my pride a bit, but I did have to give it to Suzi Endo, the first-place winner. If I understood her work right, with a bit of time, she could actually make interstellar communication viable within the next few years.

'Which will be damn useful, given what may be coming soon.'

"But still," Janice said, "that nano-stuff could do a lot of good things."

I rolled my neck a bit. "Yeah, well, at the very least I won't have to worry about trying to make a good impression on potential employers."

"Oh! That's right! Good for you, landing some work at a big company so quickly," she congratulated.

"Yeah, good for me," I said, looking out the window. We were currently on our way back to my house from the science fair.

After a few more delays and several false alarms, the Science Center had managed to set up the final round for the Science Fair. I had been more focused on fixing and upgrading H2H. That and making a new batch on nanites for the fair since the ones I used had been 'upgraded.'

With everything that had happened, I had almost forgotten about that, and it was only because someone from the Science Center had called me two days before, that I even remembered. I'd like to that with my mind being focused my enhanced nanites and the spells in my mom's journal had affected my performance, but honestly, Endo's presentation was just plain better overall.

'Besides, I got what I wanted out of this whole thing anyways, getting first place would have been a minor bonus.

We had just received our awards for our placements and the three of us, that being me, Endo and a guy named Terry Vance. After that had been a flood of congratulations and well wishes from everyone there.

I was just about ready to leave when I spotted two familiar men off to the side. My hand reached for the pocket where I had kept the two cards

"-can assure you Stark, that my company is doing just fine! And I would really appreciate it if you stopped with the suggestions that I have ill intentions for these young minds!"

"Okay first off; you said it not me. I'm just saying that it's kind of weird how you keep going on about how we 'need to groom the minds of our youth.' You can't tell me that doesn't sound like the kind of thing said by the kind of guys that mom and dad tell you to stay away from. Second, I would like to point out that there are still those rumors that you're not doing so hot." Tony Stark smiled in a way that way, that I think was deliberately meant to irritate. From the way Jerod Whitehead had been going red in the face it was working.

As I watched the two men go on, I thought back to the offers both made back during the first round. After everything that had happened, I had only had a chance to think about them just after the announcement of the rescheduled second round.

That being said, with everything that had happened and what could happen in the future, I had come to a decision.

I walked forward and coughed loudly. The two men jumped at my interruption before the swung to me.

"Mr. Stark, Mr. Whitehead, sorry to interrupt but I wanted talk to you about your offers."

Whitehead offered a warm smile. "Oh! Isaac, good to see you! Congrats!" He held out a hand and I took a moment to shake it.

"Hey, Octavius." Stark's smile went from deliberately annoying, to brimming with confidence. "Too bad about your second place showing, I'll give you A for effort though."

"Yeah, thanks I guess." I shook my head. "Anyways, I've given both of your offers careful consideration and have made my choice.

Both men perked up at that and I could hear a sudden rush of whispering from the crowds.

"O-oh! Really?!" I glanced over at Jerod for a moment before stepping over to Stark.

"So, Mr. Stark, I would like to say that after speaking with your representative over the phone, I was… overwhelmed by the kind of benefits that would come with working for your company."

A smirk came over Stark's face. "Yeah, well 'overwhelming' is one way to describe Stark Industies. Personally, I would prefer 'outstanding,' 'extraordinary,' or 'a cut-above-the-rest.'"

I nodded. "Yeah, Stark Industries is definitely all that." I took a deep breath, as I steeled myself for what I was about to say. "Sadly, though, I must decline your offer."

"WHAT?!"

"WHAT?!"

As both men stared at me slack-jawed, I took a deep breath and powered on through my nerves. "Look, Mr. Stark, I am… truly flattered by your generous offer, really, I am. It's just… I… have personal reasons for turning down your offer. This isn't a knock against you, but… I've decided to go a different way."

Tony Stark… was brilliant. One would have to be blind, deaf and dumb not to realize that. And while that could be a major boon for anyone who was looking to make a big splash in the tech community… in my case that genius of his would actually be problematic for me at this point in time.

Simply put, there is no way in Hell that I would be able to keep my… genetic and mystical abilities secret from someone like him. At least not for long. And while I could possibly come clean about my situation and get him to believe me with proof; the problem is that Tony, in a bout of stubbornness, might do something ill-advised and bring all sorts of chaos down on our heads before we could be properly ready for it.

So, as it was, I needed a potential work environment that would allow me more room to act freely.

That in mind, I turned to Mr. Whitehead. "So, with that said; Mr. Whitehead, I was wondering if we could speak a bit more on what kind of position I would have in relation to your company."

"U-uh- I, uh." Jerod, still in shock, had to take a moment to get his wits back. After shaking his head, he managed to find his voice. "I-Isaac are you…"

"Are you sure about this, Octavius," Tony finished for him. I turned to him. He didn't seem too upset at my decision. Rather, instead he had probably the most serious expression pre-imprisonment anyone had ever seen.

I nodded. "Yes, Mr. Stark, I'm sure, thanks for your concern, though."

After a moment in which he seemed to be searching for something, Tony Stark sighed, before giving me a wry smile. "Alright, if you're sure. When the ship starts sinking, just remember, I was all ready to take you onboard."

I crossed my arms and stared him down. "I wouldn't be too sure about that. Things could turn out for the better at Nexus. Who knows, we might just overtake you guys at Stark Industries."

A smirk came across Stark's face. "Oh, really? Well, you gotta be confident to think you could pull that. I'll give you that much." He turned and walked away, waving at us both. "See ya around, Octavius."

When he was far enough, I let out a breath, now aware of how nervous I had felt.

"I-Isaac…" I turned to Mr. Whitehead staring at me in disbelief.

"So…," I ventured, "about that offer."

Whitehead slapped his face. "H-huh?! Oh! Yes!" He grabbed my hand and began to shake it, sporting a large grin. "Isaac, let me assure you: you will notregret this decision!"

"Isaac!" Aunt Janice shook me out of my thoughts.

"Huh!" When I looked towards her, she pointed out the window to her home. "We're back."

"Oh! Right! H2H, assist with the luggage.

"CONFIRMED."

As the android went on to do as ordered I stepped out of the car and stretched.

"Hey… Isaac…"

I looked over at Aunt Janice, she had her own bags in her hands but hadn't moved towards the house yet. There was an… odd look on her face, like there was something serious on her mind.

"Yeah?" 'What's with her?'

Aunt Janice stared at the ground for a bit, biting her lip. Growing curious and worried I called out to her. "Aunt Janice?"

She startled a bit at my voice and gave me that weird look again.

"What's wrong," I pressed.

Aunt Janice looked off to the side before she sighed. Then she seemed to gather her resolve before she focused on me again. "Those… nanites of yours…"

"Yes?" 'Okay, where is this going?'

"You said that they could be used for health issues, right," she asked.

I blinked at that. I… had said that, and had personal experience to back up that assertion, but I wasn't really sure if thatparticular instance was due to my own design or because of all the mystical energies that had been flung about. 'I definitely didn't design them to become self-aware.'I was going to have to figure out what to do about that particular batch in the near future. I really didn't want to be at fault for a grey goo/Ultron scenario.

Setting that aside, I focused on Aunt Janice's question. "Yeah, that's the general idea behind it. Why?"

Aunt Janice looked off to the side again and bit her lip. Before I could call out to her again, she nodded to herself and looked back at me again. "I… have… a patient that was in and out over the past few months. She… recently had a few… complications." She clasped her hands together and gave me a pleading look. "Could you… could you use your nanites to help her?"

'Huh, I was not expecting that…'Looks like I would have to put my nanites to work a bit sooner than I thought.

END

Next Story

Isaac gets to put his brain and nanites to the test.

Meanwhile, forces across the globe continue their investigation into the Radiation Disaster.

And unbeknownst to Isaac, someone from Otto's past has a grudge to settle.

All this and more in:

Call Me Doc Ock: The First Step