3rd Person's POV
"God dammit?" Jack rubbed his eyes in exhaustion as he drove through the night.
'Can't those idiots do anything?'
After a few minutes of driving, he eventually reached the junkyard where they kept the 'marchandise'.
The front gate was wide open. "God damn it! Who the hell left it open?" He drove inside, somehow even more annoyed than he already was.
As he pulled up beside the vans, he noticed something… off.
"What the?"
Not a single person in sight, which could only mean one of two things. Either everybody was slacking, or something happened to them.
"Fuck," he mumbled as he reached for his gun.
The first thing he noticed, the lab's been stripped. Everything hard to get, or worth anything, was gone. Though, he didn't have to look far to find it.
To his side was one of the vans, everything missing from the lab was stuffed inside
Either somebody forgot to tell him they were moving, or somebody was trying to rob the group. Either way, somebody's in trouble.
"I don't like the look of this." He narrowed his eyes.
"Too bad." A voice suddenly spoke from behind.
"Fuck!" He turned his head-
The last thing he saw was a fist.
He hit the ground in an instant, his nose bloody and broken, vision slowly going dark.
===
Ghost's POV
"Ugh," Jack let out a pained groan. "Where am I?"
Jack examined his situation, and it wasn't looking good. He was hanging upside down, his hands tied behind his back with zip ties.
"Finally, for a second I thought I hit you too hard." I spun him around.
"Goddammit," He cursed as he saw my mask. "How many of you masked freaks are out there?"
"Are there others?" I acted surprised, but I had a pretty good guess who he was talking about.
"Oh, don't act surprised. First it was that guy with the clubs, then the freak that shoots webs. Plus, that bulletproof nig—"
My fist slammed into his nose before he could finish.
"Fuck!" He cursed as the chain swung him back toward me. "My nose!"
"Sorry about that," I shrugged. "But I've always wanted to punch somebody before they could finish a slur."
I spun him around again, blood from his nose splattering the floor.
He spat out a glob of blood. "You have no idea who you're messing with. Once the boss finds-"
I pinched his broken nose, his threat was cut off instantly as he screamed.
"That's strange. According to my information, you're the boss." I pinched harder.
"Ow, ow, ow!" I loosened my grip. "Okay, while I may be in charge of the Crimson Blade," he groaned, "I still take orders from somebody else." He smirked through bloody teeth. "And the best part? He's an even bigger freak than you. Nobody says it out loud, but we all know he's a mutant freak."
'Fuck, so there's somebody above him.'
From the sound of it, he had abilities.
Jack continued to smile, probably assuming that I've realized my mistake.
"Well," I cracked my knuckles, "guess I have no choice… I'm going to have to beat the information out of you."
Jack's smile vanished.
"What?"
"Fair warning," I stretched my shoulder, "my punches move at subsonic speed. Around the same speed as a prime Mike Tyson. I'll try to hold back, but I'll probably shatter a couple of bones and puncture an organ in the process."
I reeled my fist back.
'Huh?'
But my punch never came.
Instead, I ducked.
Time slowed as a chunk of metal soared through the air.
A muffler whistled past my head, slamming into the wall behind me with a metallic clang.
'Did somebody just throw a muffler at me?'
I slowly turned my head, a chill ran down my spine.
Standing in the doorway was a man, a man I've seen a hundred times.
Black long-sleeve shirt, dark gloves, cargo pants, and a black bandana covering the upper half of his face.
Daredevil.
Or as I like to call him-
The Demon of Crashing Out.
No powers, no enhanced durability.
Yet every night he goes out, and beats the absolute shit out of criminals. Then afterward? He goes to church and prays for forgiveness.
'Fuck.'
===
3rd Person's POV
Ghost sighed, he raised his hands.
"Look, I don't want a fight."
He was telling the truth, he really didn't want to fight him. Mainly because he had no idea how strong this version was, and he really didn't want to get his ass whooped.
Unfortunately, Daredevil is a massive crash-out.
Not a single word was spoken, Daredevil let out a low, animalistic grunt, he then charged.
'Shit.'
Daredevil threw a right hook.
Then I left.
Then a straight.
Ghost leaned back, the hook grazing past his nose. He weaved left, slipped right, then ducked under the straight.
Ghost fired back with an uppercut, but Daredevil tilted his head just enough for the punch to whistle past his jaw.
Both men jumped back, boots scraping against the concrete as distance opened between them.
"Holy shit," Jack muttered from behind them. "For a second I thought you were working together. Guess I—"
Ghost turned and knocked him out with one punch.
This fight didn't need a live commentator.
Ghost cracked his neck, letting out a deep sigh in the process.
"I didn't want to fight you, but you left me no choice."
They charged at each other.
Daredevil leapt into the air, spinning into a flying kick, but Ghost caught his leg mid-attack.
With a violent swing, he launched Daredevil across the floor.
Daredevil skidded across the concrete before slamming into a wooden crate, the crate splintered.
As he stood, his shirt was torn and a long scrape ran across his shoulder.
Ghost didn't give him time to recover.
He stepped forward and unleashed a violent combo.
Right hook.
Left.
Straight.
Daredevil dodged the first two, but the straight landed.
The impact cracked through the warehouse like a gunshot.
Daredevil flew backward, smashing back into the crate.
Wood exploded outward from the force.
"What…" Daredevil muttered.
Two thin cuts formed on his cheeks.
Right where Ghost's punches had barely grazed him.
Despite Daredevil's heightened senses and training, the power gap was obvious.
Ghost's punches were so fast and sharp that even near-misses sliced skin.
"Are we done?" Ghost asked.
Daredevil slowly stood again.
He wiped blood from his mouth, and then he pulled out his club.
===
Ghost's POV
'I'm winning?'
I was expecting to get my ass whooped, but instead? I'm the one whooping his ass.
'It's subtle, but the difference is obvious. Daredevil has enhanced senses, but it doesn't matter if I'm simply faster and stronger.'
Daredevil swung his baton.
Time slowed as I leaned sideways, letting the weapon pass inches from my face.
'I guess it makes sense. Most of my physical stats come from Yu.'
Near the end of his series, Yu trained by dodging cannon fire and bending metal with a single punche.
I stepped forward and threw a body shot.
Daredevil twisted away at the last second, but my knuckles still grazed his ribs.
A fresh gash opened along his side.
'Not to mention… Yu's punches were so precise they could leave cuts like knife wounds.'
His baton suddenly cracked against the side of my head.
A sharp ringing filled my ears, I responded with a gut punch.
The impact lifted him off the ground.
'He's a good fighter, Unfortunately… it's a terrible matchup.'
If he ambushed me in darkness? I'd probably lose, but right now?
Judging by his gear and movements.
This was a new Daredevil.
An inexperienced one, someone who's never fought a near-superhuman before.
Daredevil gasped, trying to regain his breath.
I didn't let him, I stepped forward and slammed an overhand punch on top of his head.
He crashed into the ground, and he didn't get back up.
I exhaled slowly, Daredevil lay unconscious.
A part of me wanted to be cocky, but I knew the truth.
I got lucky, If it had been Luke Cage? My hand would've shattered. Spider-Man? He would've webbed me to a wall in five seconds.
I was lucky it was only Daredevil, and an inexperienced one at that.
Wee-woo.
Wee-woo.
Wee-woo.
Police sirens.
Apparently I'm not lucky enough, I looked down at the unconscious Daredevil.
"Shit." I slung him over my shoulder… tossed him carefully into the back of my stolen van.
He landed against a stack of beakers and vials. "The ride's going to be a little rough," I told his unconscious body. "Try to hold onto something." His head rolled to the side.
===
As it turns out, it was pretty easy to escape from the cops. All I had to do was drive into an alley and kill the engine. The cops drove right past us. It's a little trick I learned from Watch Dogs.
With the cops distracted, I drove back to where I left the minivan. I'm pretty sure nobody saw me, but I didn't want to risk it. So just to be safe, I decided to switch vehicles.
After unloading everything from the van into the minivan, all that was left was an unconscious Daredevil, and I had a pretty good idea where to leave him.
===
Matt Murdock's POV
"Son, are you okay?" Somebody shook me awake.
I shot up, pushing away whoever was next to me. "Where am I? Who are you?" The vibration of my voice bounced off the walls.
The area felt familiar, but I didn't recognize it.
"It's okay, son," The figure beside me spoke. "You're in St. Patrick's Cathedral. I found you on the front steps, beaten and unconscious, so I carried you inside. Do you need me to call somebody? The police?"
"No, I just need a moment. Uhm, Father?" I hesitated.
"James," he introduced himself.
"Thank you, Father James, but no." I stood up, a pain shooting through my body. "I just need a moment, May God be with you." I walked away.
"And with you, my son." He spoke as I left
I stepped outside, dried blood in my nose and a pain in my jaw.
'That man… I don't know who he is, but he's dangerous.'
His fighting style resembled a boxer, but the way he moved, the force behind his punches, the speed…
No normal boxer can move that fast or hit that hard.
'Maybe he was a mutant?'
Either way, I have to keep an eye out for him.
'If I'm going to fight people with enhanced abilities, I need to train more.'
I examined my damaged clothing, and I needed better protection.
===
Leo's POV
Om Nom sniffed the box of beakers, he slowly stuck his tongue out.
"No!" I commanded.
He scurried away as I glared at him.
It was a little mean, but I didn't want him licking anything with potential drug residue.
After 'abandoning' Daredevil at the church, I dropped off all my chemistry supplies at my house before ditching the minivan.
For the past hour or so, I've been setting up a chemistry station in the basement. While it didn't have the best ventilation, it was more hidden than the garage.
As I finished setting up the final beaker and burner, a faint ding filled my ears.
[Quest Completed: Investigate The Crimson Blade]
The system screen appeared in front of me. Finally, for a second I thought there was a hidden objective that I failed to complete.
Hopefully the reward pays out.
[Original Reward: 100 XP & 1 Ultra Card.]
[Bonus Reward: 1 XP per individual subdued/eliminated. 12 extra XP has been earned.]
"System, pull up status."
[Name: Leo Faith]
[LV 2 (120/500)]
[Quests: Game Company]
[Skills: Sword Technique, Parkour, Freerunning, etc.]
[Abilities: Voice Mimicry, BS Protection, Stable Mind, etc.]
[Templates Absorbed: Marcus Holloway, Lara Croft, Yu, etc.]
[Templates in Progress]
[___]
[___]
[___]
[Summons: Om Nom]
That reminds me, I should probably absorb the template and skill I got the other day when I have a moment.
For now, it's time to check out the Ultra Card.
"Gacha, DRAW the Ultra Card."
[Ultra Card: While normally limited to the user's level, the Ultra Card can bypass the limit and give the user an incredibly useful skill or ability.]
So it's basically a special draw.
[Ability: Biomass Shifting]
Biomass shifting… like from Prototype?
Wait, how does that work?
[Biomass Shifting: One of the main abilities of Alex Mercer from the Prototype series. Allows him to manipulate his own biomass, giving him the ability to shift and transform his genetic structure. Unfortunately, it does not include Biomass Absorption. You can alter your mass, but you cannot absorb others.]
Wait, then what's the point?
The main mechanic of the Prototype series was attacking and absorbing the enemy. Gaining their strength, skill, knowledge, and appearance in the process.
Apparently I can do the second half, but not the first.
What's the point of an ability like this? It's like having a gun but no bullet, or is like having bullets but no gun.
The point- wait a second.
"Gacha, absorb Biomass Shifting." I regretted my decision instantly.
I let out a pained scream as I hit the ground, Om Nom ran and hid behind a couch in fear, watching in horror as my body changed, shifting and evolving.
Every cell in my body was overtaken, replaced with something that seemed identical, but was… off.
After a minute of agonizing pain, the process was over.
As I stood up, something under my skin shifted. Part of my muscles expanded, but quickly shrank to their original shape.
It was an extraordinary feeling, like every aspect of my body was under my control.
Every cell in my body felt sentient, linked to each other.
Despite the pain, I needed to test my theory.
It's a long shot, but if it works, then the pain was more than worth it.
So I grabbed a knife from a kitchen drawer, and pressed my thumb against the blade. Blood dripped as the knife cut into my skin.
Om Nom stared at me, clearly worried for my mental health.
Ignoring him for now, I narrowed my eyes on my bleeding thumb.
A subconscious feeling ran through my body, It was like I knew what to do.
The blood began to shift, wrapping around my thumb. The small cut began to pull itself together, my injuries healing in moments.
"Finally," my mouth broke into a wide smile. "I have a healing factor!"
Well… sort of.
Technically speaking, I'm using excess biomass. Such as my fat cells, and shifting them into more useful cells.
I'm basically repairing my body by recycling my fat cells.
Which means I should be able to heal from anything… well, as long as I have excess biomass.
Which means I need a lot of stored fat cells.
Luckily, Biomass Shifting ignores the law of physics. More precisely, the law of mass and energy conservation.
Which means I can hold a lot of excess biomass without changing my physical form.
Unfortunately, I can't shift my hands into claws or a hammer like Alex Mercer could. In the game, he was only able to do that because he absorbed the DNA of people mutated by the Blacklight Virus.
So if I want a hammer fist or claws, I need to inject the DNA of something with claws, or a hammer for fists into my body.
Unfortunate, that's something that- Suddenly, I froze.
An odd thought popped into my head. "Wait a second…" I ran to the bathroom.
This time, I closed the door behind me. The odds were extremely low and unlikely, but if it worked.
Well… it's something Om Nom shouldn't see.
I locked eyes with my body in the mirror.
My body shifted slightly, like it was anticipating my thoughts. Considering what it was capable of in the game, it could be possible.
With a deep breath, I began the process.
It was slow, and extremely horrific.
My body began to break apart. Veins, blood, and organs pushed out of my body. My body shifted, resembling a mass of blood and flesh.
It was an odd feeling, but not a painful one.
It took a moment, longer than it needed to be, but eventually the blood and flesh began to slow down.
My body began to take shape. one that wasn't my own.
As I stood up, I stared at my reflection.
The face staring back at me… it wasn't mine.
My grin slowly stretched wider, almost manic, but it didn't look unnatural.
Actually it kind of looked like it belonged there, like it was natural.
Cause in the mirror, was the face of
Dexter Morgan