• “Hey, old man, give us all your money,” Three punks said, pushing a man into an alley.
    “No thanks,” said the old man as he pushed away an outstretched hand.
    “It wasn't a question. Now, hand it over!” One of the punks raised a fist and swung it at the man. BANG! A gun fired. The punk fell and the man pointed it at the other two.
    “s**t! He's got a gun!” The two started to run.
    “No escape.”
    BANG! BANG! The moving bodies fell onto a crowded sidewalk, blood rushing from their heads.
    “EEEEEEEKKK!” A woman screamed and ran.
    BANG! She also fell.
    “AAAAAAHHHHHHHH!” A group of men tried to flee.
    BANG! BANG! BANG! They collapsed into a pile on the ground.
    “Fools. They should all just die.” The old man sighed and looked around. He noticed a whimpering boy at the body of the woman. He walked over, picked him up by the collar, and examined the boy's face. He started crying. “Especially these weak ones.” He flung the boy to the ground. His cry became a wail. “SHUT UP!” BANG! The noise stopped. The street was deserted. “Finally, some peace.” Then the police sirens became clear, and five cruisers skidded around a corner and stopped. Two police men came out of each.
    “This is the police! Drop your weapon and put your hands behind your head!” A cop screamed. The old man shot the police man an annoyed look. Then he simply threw something at them and started walking away. “Get him!” The police opened fire. “What did he throw!?” A young cop ran to the object and picked it up.
    “s**t! He threw a...”
    BOOM!
    The man, still walking away, looked back and saw the explosion. The smirked and whispered, “Fools.” Then he disappeared into the darkness.

    “Crap! I'm gonna be late!” Niko quickly pulled on his shoes and walked to the front door. “Wait, almost forgot.” He ran back in and grabbed a stone attached to a necklace that was hanging from the banister. Things were normal when he got to school.
    “Hey, loser.”
    “Get away from me!”
    “Shut up. Nobody cares.” Niko was always bullied, ever since his parents died. But he held strong. I'm better than them, he told himself.
    Niko returned later that day after school and found a man sitting on an armchair in his living room. Niko examined him. Suit, combed-back grey hair, old glasses. He didn't know why he was there, but he must have a reason. No need to freak out about it. The man rose to his feet and walked to Niko. He was tall... a good 2 metres, compared to Niko's 1.85 metres. Suddenly, he threw a punch at Niko's face. “Woah!' Niko ducked to dodge it. The man brought his foot up to kick Niko. Niko deftly rolled to the side and stood up, rearing in a fighting stance. “What was that for?” Niko demanded.
    “Well... you have some training in combat. But it won't be enough to defeat him.”
    “Hold on old man, but if you have some business with me, start with a greeting!”
    “Ah yes. My mistake. Many apologies, master Valent. I am Edward.”
    “Figures an old butler-like man would be British. But how do you know the name on the stone?”
    “It is your real name. The people that raised you were just a cover. You are, after all, the son of the most prestigious family in the whole world, the Valents.”
    Niko processed this. He had received the stone on his twelfth birthday. His 'parents' died the next day. So, those 'parents' must have been disposed of by the Valent family after they served their purpose. But why did he have to be raised in secrecy? He asked Edward this question.
    “So that he wouldn't kill you.”
    “He?”
    “A very dangerous criminal. We don't know who he is. He appears throughout history, always disguised, leaving a trail of disaster in his wake. He is immortal, as far as we know. The Valent family's job throughout time has been keeping him in check. Our powers balance his out. Whenever a power holder, such as you, is born, he tries to kill them. So we sent you to a family that raised you until you were of age. Now that you are sixteen, we have come for you.”
    “Oh. I see.”
    “I know this all a bit much to handle, but please believe me.”
    “Sure, why not. I'll go with you.”
    “Really?”
    “Life is boring. This sounds like fun.”

    While at the Valent's manor, Niko trained. Everyday, in every way. He learned combat skills. Sciences. Languages. Etiquette. Sports. The arts. Until Edward told him he was ready.
    “No, I'm not. I'll decide when I'm ready,” Niko said.
    “I don't understand...” Edward was cut of when Niko ran at him. Niko flew into the air, aiming to kick Edward in the head. Edward brought his arm up and deflected it to the side. The momentum swung Niko around, connecting hard. Edward flew backwards and hit the ground.
    “Okay, I'm ready. Really, I expected better.”
    “Don't act cocky.”
    “Not cocky, confident. You're tough, old man, but I'm tougher. And I don't know about him, but I feel like I can beat him.”
    “Just don't underestimate him. He's more powerful than you expect. Now, for the last order of business. I will teach you 'knall'”
    “Knall?”
    “A technique that requires the stone. Energy will gather in it, to be released hundredfold in a blast.”
    “...Handy.”
    “Very. Now, you simply concentrate all of your power into the stone and punch. It's hard to explain. It would be best if you just tried yourself.”
    “Okay. Here goes.” Niko held the stone in his clench fist and closed his eyes. Suddenly, he opened them and punched. A large shockwave exploded from his fist and speeded towards the wall. The impact was enormous. A circular chunk of the wall crumbled to dust.
    “...Wow. Man, I'm good.”

    Niko had been travelling for days across the Siberian tundra. “Man. Did he have to choose this icy wasteland as our fighting grounds? I hate the cold.” Niko stumbled. “Dammit, what was that?” He looked at the ground. A small, shiny object was lying on the ground. “Huh?” He picked it up and examined it. It seemed to be a medallion of some sort. “What is this doing all the way out here?” Suddenly, Niko heard a growl behind him. He turned and saw a Siberian tiger circling him. “Aw, c'mon...” Niko sighed and stepped back into a fighting stance. The tiger leaped at him. Niko fell onto his back and kicked the tiger in the stomach as it was flying over him. The tiger flipped in the air and regained its composition, but Niko was already charging at it. Niko jumped in the air and came down on the tiger with a strong axe kick to the back. Niko landed and proceeded to kicking it repeatedly. The tiger had enough and ran away. “That's right. You run away.” Niko returned to examining the medallion. “Hm... It looks uninteresting.” And with that, he put it in his pocket and continued his journey. He checked his map and compass. “You think they could've given me a GPS or something. I'm still... about 50 kilometres away. Dammit, this'll take a long time.” And he walked. And walked. Until he noticed the wind stopped. “Am I there now?” He checked, and he was. “So... where is he?”
    “Right here.” Niko spun around. He saw Edward standing behind him.
    “Edward!” Niko ran towards Edward. “Why are you here? Where is he?”
    “Do you not understand?” Edward slapped Niko across the face. “I am him.”
    “But...”
    “Shut up!” Edward rammed a fist into Niko's stomach. Niko doubled over. “Stupid fool.” He brought his elbow down on Niko's back. Niko hit the ground in pain. “Did you not realize?” He kicked Niko in the face. “You have no power. The stone is fake.” Another kick. “I rigged it to make it seem like you could use the knall.” Another one. “You don't have the real stone. The real power comes form an heirloom that I safely disposed of. You have no power.” Another. Niko's face was covered in blood. “I killed your parents. They were your real ones. Don't you think it was strange that you never saw anyone else at the Valent manor? That was all set up. All so I could kill you.” He picked Niko up by the collar. “You are weak.” Edward rocketed his fist into Niko's face so hard he went flying back. Niko stood up, coughing blood.
    “Then why did you train me!?”
    “Ha ha! Why, to make this more interesting, of course. I haven't had a challenge in years... your parents put up a good fight, but everyone else was weak.”
    “No way... You'll pay!” Niko charged at Edward.
    “Worthless.” Edward sidestepped and tripped Niko. Niko quickly regained his footing and lunged at Edward again. He kicked and managed to plant his foot firmly in Edward's side. Edward staggered back and Niko nailed him in the face.
    “This is over!” Niko reached into his pocket and pulled out the medallion.
    “What! That's the real heirloom of the Valents!” Edward screamed. “How did you find that!?”
    “Oh, this? I found it on the ground. Lucky me, I guess.”
    “Damn... but you don't have enough time to use it! Victory is mine!” Edward pulled out a knife and ran towards Niko.
    “Weak.” Niko summoned all his energy into the medallion. His fist started glowing red. Edward stabbed at Niko, but was too slow. Niko had already connected his fist with Edward's face. Edward flew back and slammed into the ground. Niko picked up the dropped knife and walked over to the unconscious Edward. “Goodbye, Edward. It was fun. I'll see you again, probably.” He plunged the knife into Edward's heart.

    “s**t! I'm gonna be late again!” Niko bolted out of the door and ran to school. “Barely made it,” he said, panting, as the bell rang.
    “Damn. I was hoping you wouldn't show up,” said one of his classmates. Everyone laughed. It wouldn't hurt for them to show a little appreciation, Niko thought. After all, he practically did just save them from pure evil. But, as per usual, nobody knew anything. So he just walked up to the kid and smashed his fist into his face.
    “Thanks for your concern,” Niko said with a smile.