Dark Revenge

The old creepy factory was closed and abandoned when the Goth looking teenager materialized from the shadows. No, really he literally materialized from the shadows. His name was Matthew Johnson or Matt for short and he was very special. You might say he was a superhero but there was nothing super about him. It all started twelve years ago in his neighborhood.

When Matt was only four years old, he was in the park with his Mom when he saw a nice new toy next to a tree at the far side of the park. He really wanted it, so he looked for his Mom but she was talking on the phone. Since he could not get her attention, Matt decided to go and get the toy. It was not that far away so he did not think it would take that long to get it but he was wrong. He was about a whole year wrong.

Five seconds later the four year old Matt to reach the tree. He was so excited when he reached his destination. The toy ended up to be the one action figure he was missing from his collection of superhero action figures. He was about to pick it up when a man grabbed him from behind and pressed a piece of cloth to his mouth. Matt was startled and took in a quick short breath. Doing so he noticed the piece of cloth smelled sweat, so he inhaled again. In doing so he succumbed to the chloroform and blacked out.

It wasn't until about five minutes later when Matt regained consciousness. He cautiously sat up and looked around. He did not see the park, the action figure, and most importantly his Mommy. Not seeing her made Matt start to cry. While crying, he did not notice the door behind him silently open. It wasn't until he heard a female clear her throat that he quickly spun around.

The woman standing in the middle of the room caught the four year old Matt off guard.  She was about five and a half feet tall. She had long, blond hair and a smile that could charm even Ebenezer Scrooge to buy her a rose and a box of chocolate.

"Are you an angel?" asked a surprised Matt.

"Now aren't you a cutie! No sorry, I'm not an angel, but my name is Angelica," replied Angelica.

"That's a really long name! Is it okay if I call you Angel?" asked Matt

"Of course you can. I actually like that name more than Angelica," replied Angel

"Do you know where my mommy is? I can't find her."

"I don't know where she is, but if you come with me I bet we can find her together," suggested Angel.

"Okay, that sounds good. Do you have any fruit snacks or cookies? I'm hungry," asked Matt.

"I bet we can find something in the cafeteria." said Angel, and with that the two new friends were off. Little did Matt know that this little escapade would turn into a nightmare.

Matt left the room he woke up in with Angel and entered a long white corridor with many doors on along each wall. Starting down the corridor, Matt noticed that each door had the name of a boy or girl taped to it. Seeing this, he mentioned it to Angel.

"Oh that. Those are the 'test subjects' the Doctors experimented on."

"Are they kids like me?"

"No, they are 'animals' that were no longer wanted in the world."

"Can I see one of them?" asked Matt.

"I don't think so, but you will be one of them," said Angel mostly to herself. Walking further down the corridor Angel brought Matt to a door with his name on it. Angel opened the door before Matt could see his name on it. As Matt entered the room, someone grabbed him and injected something into his arm. The world spun around a while and then went black.

As Matt woke from the effects of the drug, he noticed he was lying on a bed in the room Angel brought him into. He tried to get up but he was strapped to the bed. Mat struggled against his bonds, but since he was only four years old he couldn't get lose. Finally giving up, he started calling for Angel. He called and called again but she was nowhere to be seen. Seeing he was alone, Matt started to cry. He was alone in the world.

An hour later Matt was still sitting alone in the room. He kept trying to get out of the bed and calling Angel but both were futile. He was just lying in bed crying when the door opened and a group of men entered the room. Matt looked up and actually smiled because he thought they were here to let him go and bring him to his mommy. It wasn't until he saw that one more man entered the room pulling a cart pilled full of needles that Matt knew he was going to in this room for a while.

Matt started to thrash as the men got closer to him. As the first man grabbed him Matt started to scream and thrash more. He quickly realized they had stuck a tube in his arm. He tried to get it out but the men had strapped his arms down. Suddenly Matt felt tired as the drug that was in the drip bag entered his body and a few seconds after the men stuck the first needle into his side, Matt passed out.

Five Hours Later:

"Did he survive the injections?"

"He's still breathing. Does that answer your question, intern?"

"Sorry. I'll go clean something of yours."

"Good answer."

"Uh, what happened? Who are you? Where am I?" asked a scared Matt.

"Hush now son. Here is some breakfast. I bet your hungry," said the Doctor. 

"Is it oatmeal? If it is I won't eat it. I hate oatmeal," said Matt defiantly.

"Are pancakes fine?''

"I love pancakes!" shouted Matt.

"Good. However, before you can eat any pancakes you have to do something for me."

"What do I have to do?" asked Matt.

"All you have to do is make a small ball for me. Can you handle that?"

"How do I do that?"

"Just hold out your hand and think about a small black ball in your hand," explained the Doctor as he undid the straps holding Matt in the bed. Matt got off the bed and stood up. He then thought about a small black ball in his hand. A weird sensation formed in his hand and a black substance started to form in Matt's hand. Suddenly scared, Matt quickly threw the black substance away and it flew through the air and landed on a computer monitor. As soon as it made contact, the computer monitor turned black and started to melt.

"Wonderful! The experiment is a success," exclaimed the Doctor.

"Did I just do that?" asked Matt.

"Yes you did my boy. Try again to make the ball and this time, don't be scared."

"Okay, I'll try again." replied Matt as he stuck out his hand and thought about the black ball. Just like the previous attempt, a weird sensation was felt in his hand and the black substance appeared in his hand. This time Matt put his other hand on top of his open palm and the black substance started to form a black ball.

"I'm doing it!" shouted Matt

"Now throw the ball at the wall," commanded the Doctor.

"Like this?" asked Matt as he took away his left hand and threw the ball at the wall with his right hand. It flew through the air and hit the wall. The wall turned black and dissolved.

"Can I have some pancakes now?" asked Matt.

"Of course. Please come with me to the kitchen so I can make some new ones," replied the Doctor as he opened the door and entered the hallway. Matt followed him down the hallway. They stopped in front of a door. Matt noticed that his name was on the door. Before he could ask the Doctor about what he saw, the Doctor opened the door and pushed Matt into the room. It was pitch black but strangely Matt could see everything down to the smallest detail. He turned to the door and started to bang it with his fists.

"Let me out! Let me out mister!" shouted Matt.

"I'm so sorry but you are going to have to stay in that room," said the Doctor sarcastically.

"What did I do?" cried Matt.

"You have become a handful and while my colleagues and I decide what to do with you, you will stay in your new room."

"LET ME OUT!" screamed Matt as his fist turned black. He trusted this man and he had betrayed him. He then punched the metal door with his fists and he left a dent. He punched again and again. He was about to punch a hole in the door when the lights suddenly turned on. Matt screamed and fell onto the floor. He tried to move but he couldn't. He started to cry because he thought he would never see his parents again.

"Shut up you brat. The effects are only temporary. When you get a sudden flash of light your body freezes. If you haven't noticed, you have power over dark matter and shadows. You can make whatever you want out of shadows and they will become real. If you try hard enough you can turn invisible in shadows travel through them," shouted the Doctor as he headed down the hallway. Matt kept crying and calling the Doctor but no one was there. Matt was all alone.

When he could move again Matt dragged himself under the bed that was in the room and fell asleep. He woke up some time later when a man entered and dropped some food on the table across from the bed. Matt ran to the door to get the man to let him out but he was already gone. Matt ate a little of the food and then went back under the bed. He liked there because it was darker than the rest of the room since the lights were on.

Suddenly Matt jumped up and hit his head. Rubbing his head, Matt remembered that the Doctor had told him he could travel through shadows. Matt thought about sitting in his closet back in his room. He closed his eyes and he fell through the floor. When he opened his eyes he was in his closet at his house. He ran down stairs into the kitchen and straight into his mom.

"Matt!" screamed his mom, "Where have you been? We haven't seen you in four days!" Not wanting to scare his mom Matt lied to his mom. He told his mom that his Grandparents had picked him up from the park and he had stayed at their house. Matt's mom was about to call her parents when Matt lied again and said they left on a cruise and wouldn't be back for a year. Matt's mom hugged him and called Matt's dad and told him the good news.

At dinner that night, Matt told the same story to his dad and to his twin sister, Mary. His dad seemed to believe him but his sister seemed skeptical. After dinner Matt told the truth to his sister. They promised to keep the truth from their parents. A week passed and Mary went back to her boarding school. Everything went back to normal for about three days and then disaster struck.

While having dinner with his parents Matt excused himself to use the bathroom. As he was washing his hands he heard the front door open. Matt thought nothing of it until he heard gun shots coming from the kitchen. He ran to the kitchen to see three men standing over the bodies of his parents. Matt started to cry then his sadness turned into rage. He threw shadow balls at the three men. They used their guns to protect themselves but they blew up in their hands. Two of them rushed Matt but suddenly Matt started to throw black fire balls. None of them hit the men but they hit the table and the counter. By the time the whole kitchen was in flames, the three men had run out of the house and into a black SUV. They drove off before Matt could stop it. Since he had nowhere to go, Matt swore he would kill the men who killed his parents.   

Sixteen years had passed since that life altering series of events. Since then, Matt had trained and mastered his powers. During that time he got word from his sister that she too was kidnapped and experimented on. She gained power over light instead of dark powers. Since they were captured by the same people, they gained a psychokinetic link between themselves so they could communicate psychically. During this time, Matt was also searching for his parents killers and that was why he was at the factory. His sources said that they were in the factory and for their sakes they had better be there. As he reached the front gate of the factor, his phone went off. Flipping it over, he noticed he had gotten a text from his boss at Celebration Cinema.

It went: 'If you are late one more time this week, your fired!' Turning off his phone, Matt decided this was more important than cleaning up popcorn. Put the phone in his pocket, Matt stepped into the shadow of the factory and vanished. He reappeared in the factory courtyard in the shadow of a billboard two seconds later. Looking around the courtyard Matt was about to head towards the front entrance when he saw something out of the corner of his eye. Turn his head he saw a man enter the factory by way of the garage. Matt turned completely around and fell through the ground. When he appeared at the garage door, he stuck his head through the door. Seeing that the room was empty he entered the room and headed deeper into the factory. Passing through several rooms he finally reached a room with a set of stairs and an old elevator.

Not wanting to set off any potential booby traps, Matt decided to materialize up one floor. However, as he landed on the floor, the room was suddenly flooded with light paralyzing Matt. He tried to move but was unable. He did notice that someone put hand cuffs on his wrists and a collar around his neck. A few seconds later Matt could move and he sat up and looked around the room. The first thing he noticed was the circle of twenty men holding Colt 9mm SMGs pointed at him. Matt thought no problem. Then he noticed three men standing in front of him. He remembered them as the three that killed his parents. They seemed to be arguing amongst themselves, so Matt just had to intervene.

"Hey pea brains! Can you at least focus on your captive? You and I both know I can take all of these goons here and more," proclaimed Matt.

"I told you two we should have gagged him," Said the man named Carl. He was tall with long black hair which was tied back in a ponytail.

"No, I said we should tape his mouth. You said we should chloroform him," said the man named Keith. He was medium built with brown hair in a mohawk.

"How about the two of you shut up and let me think for a change," shouted the man named Bryan. He was short, fat and bald. However don't think he is pathetic. He was the only mutant of the three. He could control metal and he was a shape shifter. It was also rumored that he had four clones and each one had a different ability.

"Well then, thank you for just--- Aaaaahhhhh!" started Matt but then the electric collar around his neck sent two hundred volts of electricity through his body for three seconds. When the current stopped, Matt fell over and almost passed out.

"At least we put the collar around his neck," said Carl.

"I still think we should have chloroformed him," argued Keith.

"I told you two to shut up!" shouted Bryan.

"Ugh, can you three stop bickering like teen aged girls and explain to me why I am hand cuffed and surrounded by armed soldiers?" asked Matt.

"So I'm guessing you don't want to know why we brought you here."

"Let me think, no! You didn't bring me here. I got word you three buffoons would be in this factory so I came here of my own free will. I simply fell into one of your stupid traps. By the way are they always the same trap?" yelled Matt.

"Yes they are," answered Carl.

"Can we please chloroform him!" begged Keith

"Shut up!" shouted Bryan. By this time the three of them had started to argue. The group of twenty soldiers had decided to stand around the three and listen to the heated discussion. During the argument, Carl broke off from the group and headed towards Matt. In his hand was a large role of duct tape. As he approached Matt he unrolled a long piece of tape. When he finally reached Matt he was about to tape his mouth when Matt's eye's turned black.

"What the..." started Carl but then his eyes all so turned black.

"You will take off my handcuffs and collar," commanded Matt.

"I will take off your handcuffs and collar," replied Carl lazily.

"Now go and turn off the lights in this room," said Matt as he rubbed his sore wrists.

"I will go turn off the lights," replied Carl as he clumsily walked towards the master control switch. When he reached it he pulled the switch and the room was plunged into darkness. Matt waved his hand at Carl and he slumped to the ground. By this time everyone had stopped arguing and had started searching for Matt. Matt formed two twin swords out of blackness and rushed the men. In ten seconds the twenty soldiers were unconscious. Matt looked around but he didn't see the two men. He swore under his breath but then remembered he had one of his parent's killers in his possession. Walking back to Carl, he waved his hand over Carl and he came to. Suddenly, one of the soldiers who Matt attacked jumped up and opened fire. Matt simple formed a black wall in front of him. While the man was shooting, Matt punched his wall and a pillar shot out from his wall and hit the man in the face. Turning around Matt saw that his captive was attempting to run.

"I don't think so buddy!" shouted Matt as he shot black ropes from his hands and wrapped up Carl. He then dragged him back.

"Please don't kill me!" begged Carl.

"I won't kill you unless you talk," ordered Mat "What do you remember about a Mr. and Mrs. Johnson?"

"Um, that was a long time ago kid," said Carl.

"Tell me everything," commanded Matt as his eyes turned black again and again Carl's turned black also.

"We, my colleges and I were hired by the Doctors to kill you and your family after you escaped," replied Carl.

"Who are the Doctors?" asked Matt.

"I don't know kid. I only saw them twice. The first time was when we were hired to kill your family. The second was when they told us you were after us,"

"Where did your two friends go?"

"They went back to the base in Death Valley,"

"Wow, how fitting. Now you are going to go and turn yourself into the authorities,"

"Yes sir,"          

"Well then, get going,"

"Yes sir." As Carl stood up and walked away, Mat stepped into the shadows and vanished.  2,147.5 miles away in Death Valley Matt appeared in the shadow of a cactus. Taking in the scenery, Matt's cell phone started ringing. Flipping it open, he realized it was his girlfriend Gabby. Matt thought about declining but decided to answer it anyway.

"Hey what's up? asked Matt.

"Where have you been!" blared Gabby's voice over the phone."

"I don't know what you are taking about," said Matt.

"Don't play stupid with me. We have a date in three minutes and if you are late again I'm going to drop you faster than you can say... just a sec, someone is at the door," Gabby spoke into the phone and then hit hold. Walking to the door she opened the door and to her surprise it was Matt.

"How did you get here so fast? I was just talking to you on the phone with you.

"I drove," lied Matt. However, you and I if both know how he got to her house so fast. Matt simply jumped into the nearest shadow and reappeared at her door step. He then materialized a black mustang and a sports jacket and knocked on her door in ten seconds.

"Can I come in?" asked Matt.

"Um, sure." Was all Gabby could muster as a reply.

"You ready to go?"          

"Of course!" said Gabby. She quickly recovered from shock. The two of them got into Matt's mustang and drove off towards the mall.

"Where do you want to eat?" asked Matt.

"How about sushi?" suggested Mary.

"Sounds good to me," said Matt. It took twenty minutes to get to the restaurant and another five to get seats at the sushi bar.

"So, how is your investigation about your parent's death going?" asked Gabby.

"I actually got a lead in California," replied Matt, "I also got one of the hit men but he doesn't know the identity of the Doctors."

"Oh, well at least you got one of your parent's killers."

"That's not the point! I still don't know who hired them to kill my parents!" yelled Matt as he pounded his fists on the counter. As Matt took his fists off the counter, Gabby noticed that Matt had left two dents in the metal counter.

"Come one, let's go outside. It's hot in here," suggested Gabby.

"Fine..." mumbled Matt as his eyes started turning black and black fire was starting to form in the palm of his hands. As the two of them were leaving the restaurant, Matt noticed that there was a second set of footsteps following them. Matt thought nothing of it until the person following them grabbed his shoulder and spun him around. Before Matt could react, he was punched in the face and pushed to the ground. But instead of hitting the ground Matt passed through the ground and reappeared behind the puncher.

The person who hit Matt was a tall, muscular man of about thirty. The man did not seem fazed by Matt reappearing behind him. The man simple spun around and aimed a round house kick to Matt's head. But instead of making contact with Matt's head, the man's foot simply passed straight through Matt's head.

The man finally was startled but he kept at the attack. Several attempted kicks and punches later the man was exhausted, so Matt made his move. As the attacker swung his foot around, Matt grabbed it and used it to flip the attacker onto the ground. Faster than lightning Matt was on top of the man pinning him to the ground.

"Who are you? Why were you following me and my girlfriend? Talk!" yelled Matt.

"I'm just a pawn being used by the Doctors. I was sent to get you and your girlfriend. Since I'm being pinned by you, I take it my men have your girlfriend,'' replied the man. Matt looked up and noticed that the man was right. Someone had kidnapped Gabby. Looking around the parking lot, Matt noticed a black van driving off in the distance. He to the goon and threw him into the wall, knocking him out.