Chapter 2

Flashback 

John is slowly opening his eyes to a young teen with brown curly hair and light brown skin

staring at him. The boy wore a dark green long sleeve shirt, gray pants and black boots. He

looked frightened as John struggled to remember what happened prior to him waking up.

“Dude…” The teenager started to say as John saw tears in his eyes.

Slowly, things were started to come back to John as a sickening feeling sat on his stomach. As

he tried to get up he saw a tall man in a suit approaching him. He had long brown hair that hung over his olive-colored skin. His eyes stared at John with tears in them as well.

“John… are you alright?” The man questioned as John sat motionless unsure of what to say.

He didn’t know how to answer the question as he continued to think about what happened before he passed out.

“This is your fault John!” The teenager yelled causing John to look up at him to see the rage

in his eyes. John could only sit motionless and stare unable to respond.

“Gizmo… We don’t accuse family.” The man said causing Gizmo to shake his head angrily as

he briefly turned away from the man.

“Dad… he’s not family.” Gizmo said as he turned to walk away causing his father to briefly

step away from John who still sat in the same spot unmoving.

“Mr. Valentine… if you don’t mind, I’d like to take John to get checked out. He might have a

severe concussion after falling from such a height.” A solider said as John glanced at the ground to notice glass surrounded him and his arms were badly cut. He started to feel a pain in his back causing him to wince. John was slowly starting to become numb. 

Present.

John sits up out of his sweating and breathing heavily.  He grabbed his necklace and held the

stone shard in his hand for a moment before getting up. He stumbled around as he walked toward a door. He glances to see his window was open to see a faint light. It was morning but in Darko city, there was no such thing as a bright and sunny morning.

This was a place that always had cloudy skies and remained mostly cold year-round. John

opened the door to reveal that it was a bathroom. He stepped inside and grabbed his toothbrush to brush his teeth. He hurried and showered before he got dressed. Once he was dressed, he sat down and put on pair of dark blue sneakers. He had on a black long sleeve shirt and charcoal-colored jeans. He tucked his necklace under his shirt before he grabbed money out of the chest. Once he had his wallet and room key he left the room. He walked aimlessly down the barren hall of the hotel as he descended down the steps. He made his way to the lobby and went to the clerk

at the desk.

“Good Morning Mr. Xile. I didn’t know you had come in.” The woman said with a smile as

she pushed her glasses up.

John nodded as he placed a few bills in her hand. He waved as he started walking away from

the counter. “Looks like I’ll be staying another night with you.”

Across the street was a building that constantly gave him unwanted memories. Giz-tech: A

business that is known throughout the world for building technology that enhances people's lives. The company funds other businesses like the S.T.A.R task force. Giz-tech creates its technology. The company has an institute for young scientists and inventors to further their studies. The place also founded the Valentine Expo, which was a place inventor, scientist, performances, roller coaster all take part in making it a historical event. John stared at the building for a moment before looking away in disgust. John walked down the street passing families and homeless people as he felt his stomach

growl.

He groaned as he realized he hadn’t eaten since the other morning. He looked around the area at the buildings: Stoker Enterprises, the Last Bite, the Art sanctuary, Comet Electronics,

Darko City High home of the dragons, and Chaotic Comics. None of them were places he was

interested in at the moment. The city was filled with so many places and so many people.

It was loud and always busy…. with a crime. He rubbed the back of his head as he started

walking down a vacant street. His shoes made crunching sounds over the soft sheet of snow on the ground. As he continued walking, he felt a hand on his shoulder causing him to turn around.

He turned to see Gizmo who now was a fully grown man. His brown curly hair had gotten longer, and he had a thin goatee. He was dressed in a dark gray cardigan on top of a dark green shirt. His jeans were black and he wore a pair of dark gray boots.

“John?” Gizmo questioned with a surprised look on his face. John pushed his hand off his

shoulder before turning to face him.

“Hands off me.” John said sternly causing Gizmo to grin slightly before shaking his head. He

shoved his hands in his pocket as he sighed and stared calmly at John.

“Look, dude…I want to…” Gizmo starts to say but struggles to get it out. John turns as he

throws his hand up to wave Gizmo away.

“I don’t really care Valentine.” John says casually as Gizmo runs beside him appearing

irritated. John continued to calmly stroll down the sidewalk.

“It’s been four and a half years. Don’t you think we should talk?” Gizmo questioned.

John pretended to consider the idea before shaking his head. John could tell Gizmo was

getting upset. The thing is John saw no point in discussing anything about the past.

“Listen, there’s nothing to talk about. Forget about it.” John said as he continued walking

before coming to his destination.

He looked up to see the sign that said Zestro’s pizzeria. He nodded his head approvingly as he stepped inside to see a small crowd of people scattered about enjoying food. The aroma of cheese and marinara sauce filled John’s nose. As he looked around, he heard a female voice.

“Been a long-time, stranger.” The woman said as John turned in her direction.

She was smiling warmly as she held a drink in her hand. She wore a red and black apron that

covered her clothes. She had brown skin and a large curly afro. Her eyes were light brown, and her lips were a brownish pink shade.    

“Briana…It’s good to see you.” He said as he shoulders loosened up. He hadn’t realized he’d

been so tense until now. She smiled as she led him to a table causing him to slide in the booth.

“I know you like root beer so I’ll be back.” She said walking off leaving John alone to think.

He looked out the window and took a deep breath as he tapped his finger on the table for a

while. He turned as he heard the sound of something being set on the table. Briana stood at the table with a notepad in her hand. 

“You didn’t go to college?” He asked as he placed his straw in the glass. She nodded

slowly as she took a deep breath appearing unhappy.

“I graduated last year. Zayna’s a sophomore in college now.” Briana said as she sat down

across from John. He began to nod his head approvingly.

“You’re brother?” John asked as Briana looked down at her hands. John bit his lip as he felt as if he said something wrong.

“He was messing with the wrong crowd and ended up getting killed.” She said as she bit her

lip. John lowered his head as he placed his hand on the table.

“I didn’t know… forgive me.” He said as she smiled but John felt as if he could see the pain

in her eyes.

“You didn’t know. Look I’ll go order your food.” She said as she got up and walked away.

John started to call after her but sighed. He figured she’d get him what he use to get when

they were younger. John started to look out the window watching people pass by.

“You can be so predictable.” A voice said causing John to turn quickly. Gizmo sat on the

other side of the table with a smile on his face. John grunted as he leaned back in his seat as he stared at Gizmo.

“What do you want Gizmo?” John questioned with an annoyed tone in his voice. He knew

Gizmo was only looking to gain something.

“My mom… wouldn’t want us to be like this.” Gizmo said as John shook his head as he

leaned forward placing his hands on the table. He had a serious look on his face once again.

“I… don’t…give a damn.” John said before leaning back again in his seat.

Gizmo shook his head appearing to be disappointed. John looked away as Briana appeared

and placed his food down. It was a personal sized pizza that made John’s stomach howl.

“Gizmo? I thought you forgot all about this place.” Briana said smiling causing Gizmo to

return a smile back at her. John took no time digging into his pizza as they talked.

“I could never forget this place Briana. I just been busy with the company since my father

died.” Gizmo confessed.

John stopped eating. He looked up at Gizmo who apparently noticed John’s reaction.

“Mr. Valentine’s dead?”

“They say Dante Lee may have had something to do with it.” Gizmo said as Briana placed her

hand on his shoulder.

John shook his head as he became slightly angry but then grew calm. He started to understand why Gizmo was harassing him about making amends. Briana gently pats Gizmo on his shoulder.

“You should come by more.” Briana said apologetically.

She then walked away from the table. John is left staring at Gizmo who is staring at him.

John slowly stands to his feet as while stretching out his chest causing it to crack.

“You’re paying by the way.” John blurted out as he turned to walk away. Briana is helping a

table as she looks up.

“Stay in the city for a while. My dad will want to see you.” She said as John waved as he

pushed the door open and stepped outside.

He turned to his right and started walking again. He felt refreshed from his meal and felt less

annoyed. John strolled down the street aimlessly until he turned down an alley. As he was

walking he saw a group of men stepping out of hidden places. He stopped moving as they

surrounded him.   

“Look like we got some fresh meat boys.” The thug said causing John to glare at him. The

thug licked his lips as he slapped his hand with his bat. John appeared disgusted and annoyed.

“I really didn’t want to bloody my clothes.” John said slowly as the thug laughed.

He continued slapping the bat in his hand as he got closer. John sighed as the thug swung the

bat. Effortlessly, John stopped it with his hand. He countered with a powerful blow into the

thug’s nose. John pushed forward barreling his fists into his ribs three times. A snap occurred on the third strike causing the thug to cry out in pain.

He collapsed to the ground as John looked over his shoulder. He saw a knife in the hands of a

furious man. He swung at John’s head but missed tragically. John thrust his elbow in the man’s stomach. The knife fell from his hands and John caught it. He grunted as he stabbed the thug in both legs. Another man came swinging wildly at John. John stepped forward jamming the knife into his fist.

The man cried out in pain as blood seeped out of his hand. John breathed in heavily as another thug came at him with a crowbar. He swung at John who managed to stop the swing. He held his wrist as he threw him over his shoulder. John slammed the thug to the ground using little effort. He stepped on the thug's head with his boots causing the others to run away. John glances back to see Gizmo standing at the end of the alley.        

“You like beating up people, don’t you?” Gizmo asked smiling as he stood before John.  John

stared at him annoyed by his presence. John's hands were now in his pockets.   

“Why’d you follow me?” John questioned slowly getting annoyed again. Gizmo walked over

to him as he took in a breath of air before speaking.                  

“Come to Valentine manor. I’m doing business with Michael Kang. Some old friends are

coming so maybe make an appearance tonight?” Gizmo questioned as he playfully jabbed John in the arm. John didn’t like Gizmo’s efforts of trying to fix a broken friendship. John turned away and started walking.

“Whatever.” John simply said as he stared up at the sky. He managed to hear Gizmo calling

after him.

“I guess I’ll be seeing you tonight then?” Gizmo questioned from behind John. John turned

right when he emerged from the alley. He groaned as he decided to make a brief appearance at Valentine manor. John hoped that nothing would get out of hand and for once.  All he wanted was a simple night out.