Shroud and other characters are marvel property. Do not sue me.
Marvel Genesis: Shroud chapter 3
Before, the story starts, I want to explain how Shroud “sees” the things around him. He’s blind, so he can’t see. He actually senses the things around him. Every object, every molecule emits a tiny amount of darkforce energy in this story. Shroud has the ability to sense this energy. Therefore, he can “see” in the dark and through objects. f something contains much darkforce energy (like a darkforce user), it is possible that some energy remains in the air even if the source is long gone. Shroud can’t see colors, just shapes of objects. In Shroud’s secret lair, he was able to see the computer screen because color on the screen emits a different strength of darkforce energy.
Shroud is flying through the air. It’s a dark and cold night. The full moon is shining in all its glory in the sky. Shroud lands on a roof and goes through a door. He enters the apartment. He slowly walks through the hall until he’s at a door with the number 15 on it.
Shroud tries to open the door but obviously it’s locked. He pushes his palm at the keyhole of the door and emits dark steam out of his hand at high pressure. The door makes a clicking sound and Shroud opens it. There is a police line: POLICE, DO NOT CROSS!
Shroud steps over it.
SHROUD INNER-MONOLOGUE: The room looks pretty much unharmed. Nothing special.
Shroud takes a little device in his hand. The device fits perfectly in one hand and has a screen (that uses the same technology as his computer screen). Shroud moves the device through the room.
On the screen appears: SEARCHING DNA…
The device makes a soft sound.
The screen: DNA FOUND
-SYLIVA: NIGEL ALTRAS
-HAIR: NIGEL ALTRAS
-FINGERNAIL: NIGEL ALTRAS
The device shows where the DNA lies. Shroud picks up one hair and puts it in a small plastic bag.
SHROUD INNER-MONOLOGUE: No DNA except from the victim. I better check the darkforce energy.
Shroud senses tiny bits of energy. He focuses and sees 3 people standing before the sofa and one person is sitting in it.
SHROUD INNER-MONOLOGUE: Four darkforce users in the same room, that’s uncommon and even stranger is that I can see a clear path of the darforce users. I see where they were standing, how they were moving but suddenly the three men grabbed Nigel and the trial disappeared, like they just vanished. What now?
Shroud walks back to the door and opens it. An old lady leaves room number 14 across of number 15.
OLD LADY: Oh my, You’re one of these costumed folks.
SHROUD: Yes, please remain calm.
OLD LADY: Oh dear, I know you’re good guys. My daughter was saved thanks to one of you.
SHROUD: Great, can you answer some questions, please?
OLD LADY: Yes dear, anything for you brave hearted heroes.
The Shroud fells a bit ashamed because the old lady doesn’t know what he does with criminals.
SHROUD: Okay, did you noticed something strange at the night of Nigel’s disappearance?
OLD LADY: No, not really. I saw nobody entering or leaving the room. Nigel didn’t had any visitors.
SHROUD: You didn’t hear anything?
OLD LADY: Well actually, I heard a scream but I don’t remember exactly what Nigel screamed.
SHROUD: How late was it when you heard the sound?
OLD LADY: I don’t know, around 10 P.M., I guess.
SHROUD: Thank you ma’am. You were of great help.
OLD LADY: Oh, no problem, sir.
Shroud is walking in the streets. He’s thinking.
SHROUD INNER-MONOLOGUE: So, Nigel who’s a darkforce user was visited by 3 darkforce users around 10 P.M. They’ve abducted him. How the 3 persons entered and left the room without anyone noticing is unclear. I’m thinking teleportation. That’s not much info. I better question the folks who you always question when you don’t have a lead. The underworld.
That night Shroud searched for answers in bars that were famous for criminal customers, sadly with no result. He was going to visit one more bar. It was famous because one the most violent gangs, the lonely warriors were hanging quite often in it.
The Shroud slowly walks in the bar. There are three customers and one bartender. The 3 men were obviously gang members. They were talking to each other. Two were at the bar and one was closer at the door with his back at the Shroud.
GANG MEMBER 1: Killer Bee, behind you, it’s a cape!
The member the closest at the door starts to turn around and pulls a gun at the same time. Shroud quickly punches the gun out of the criminal’s hand. The gun flies into a mirror and breaks it. The Shroud grabs the criminal and surrounds them with black smoke. The 2 other gang members start to shoot where the Shroud and their friend were standing.
They keep shooting until they’re all out of bullets.
The black smoke starts to disappear but the 2 men are surprised to see that there aren’t two corpses on the floor. Everything is broken due to the shooting but the Shroud and his victim disappeared.
On a roof not far from the bar, the Shroud is smacking the criminal around. The Shroud holds the criminal at a ledge, smirks and begins to talk.
SHROUD: Killer Bee, yes?
KILLER BEE: (bleeding) … That’s just a nickname.
SHROUD: You shouldn’t be proud of it.
KILLER BEE: What do you want?
SHROUD: I want some info. Is there a criminal organization that is very mysterious and has some members with powers, in this area?
KILLER BEE: Hm, not that I know of.
Shroud pushes the man closer and closer to the ledge.
SHROUD: Think!
KILLER BEE: Wait? Wait, I know something.
Shroud stops pushing.
KILLER BEE: Sometimes, there are some weird types swooping in these parts. Bob said that he once saw one disappear in thin air. I didn’t believe him.
SHROUD: Perfect, tell me what you know.
KILLER BEE: Almost nothing. They wear black clothes with a symbol on it, some kind of white D. That’s all I know.
SHROUD: Hm, yes did you ever kill a man, Mr. Bee?
KILLER BEE: Oh no, of course not.
Shroud “sees” inside the body of the criminal and notices that his heart is beating faster.
SHROUD: Please, don’t lie. I know when you lie.
KILLER BEE: Okay, I killed a man. I killed him because I needed to prove myself to the gang. It was just a homeless person.
SHROUD: Did you ever kill somebody again?
KILLER BEE: No.
SHROUD: You just lied again.
Shroud pushes the criminal from the roof. The criminal crashes into a car. He’s dead. A drop of blood is running past the criminal’s arm and falls on the ground.
15 min later
Shroud is back in his mansion. He’s sitting in his living room. He’s still in costume and he’s seriously bruised thanks to the rough night.
He looks at the clock. It’s 4 A.M. then he looks at a photo of him and his parents.
21 years ago
The old Coleridge family mansion.
A young Maximillian is sleeping in his bed (he can still see). It’s a calm and silent night. Suddenly Maximillian wakes up. He hears something, a scream then suddenly a gunshot.
Young Maximillian climbs out of his bed. He leaves his room and sees his parents lying on the floor. They are lying in a pool of blood. Maximillian runs down a big stair. Two masked men leave the mansion with some money. The boy falls at his knees close to his parents. His mom is already dead but his father is still alive.
EDWARD: Max, everything is going to be all right.
Maximillian cries.
MAXIMILLIAN: Dad, please…
EDWARD: Shh Max, everything is going to be all r…
Edward is dead.
MAXIMILLIAN: Dad, mom? Please.
Maximillian cries. He feels like every bit of hope disappeared.
Suddenly some black goo is dripping out of the roof and coming out of the floor.
The goo surrounds Maximillian completely. He can’t see a thing but he can hear a dark, gritty voice.
VOICE: So much emotion, so much hatred, so much potential.
Suddenly Maximillian is back at his house but there is something wrong, he’s blind and something else changed inside him. He could feel it but he didn’t know what it was. Two days Maximillian was sitting at the same spot. He didn’t see anything. He just felt his parents blood in which he was sitting. After 2 days somebody knocked on the door.
MAN AT DOOR: Police, open the door!
End of chapter 3
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