Black Hood:, Nick Venom [the little red hen read aloud .TXT] 📗

Spec watched, on top of a roof overlooking the bus depot, as Matt took Lin and Maddie and went on a bus heading to downtown Edurdale. Spec’s eyes brimmed with tears, wiping them away with his sleeve. “Goodbye,” He whispered. “One day… I’ll see you guys again.” He turned around and ran across the roofs, returning to his house. He knew that Wick would see him soon, so he prepared himself for the worst. He kept his scythe at hand at all times for insurance. 

As he waited for Wick’s first move, he laid down on his hardwood floor and looked up at the ceiling, with cracking and peeling white paint that was illuminated with the sunlight. “One day… “ He muttered. “Once I finished Wick here… I’ll return to protect you.”

 

 

***

 

 

X noticed Spec’s arrival without any of his companions. He smirked before looking over at the children, both of them dead with their eyes stabbed in and their guts eviscerated. “I hope that you’ll be able to match my skills.” He muttered, twirling a knife in his right hand. He then turned around and left the house. He returned to Wick’s office in Maximum Security. X entered the office and walked up to Wick’s table. Wick faced away from him and towards a large panel of bulletproof glass he used as a window to overlook the slums.

“Your report?” Wick asked.

“Spec’s family left the slums, heading downtown. Spec has returned and stationed himself in his home. It looks like he understands the consequences.” X reported.

Wick spun around to face X. “Perfect. Two days from now, I will be moving a large shipment of drugs to a safe house on the outskirts of the slums to perform some deals. Spread a rumor about the shipment to him. Spec won’t pass on this opportunity to deal me damage.” He revealed a knife from his left shoe and slammed it on the table. “That’s where he’ll fall!” He declared. X nodded and bowed his head, turning around and walking out of the room.

“I see that you’re still alive.” A familiar voice remarked. X looked to his right and noticed the second assassin that Wick hired.

“I can say the same to you… Z” X said. Z chuckled, twirling a dagger in between his fingers. He wore the same outfit as X; a solid black ninja outfit, holding his tools in a belt wrapped around his waist. His blond hair, gelled to stand up, stood as high as an iceberg.

“We’ll see who Wick picks as his right-hand man after the battle with Spec… sorry, the Black Hood.” Z mocked as he began walking past X. “Let’s see if you can beat me.” He whispered as he passed by him and toward the stairs leading down to the ground floor. He descended the stairs with a pissed-off X glaring at him.

“I’ll show him,” X muttered, gripping his knife tightly with a strong urge to kill.

 

 

***

 

 

Spec left his house a couple of hours later and headed to a nearby restaurant. He entered the restaurant, sitting down on a stool. He waved a waiter over and sent in his order, ordering two cheeseburgers, fries, and a drink. He got his food a couple of minutes later and started chomping on it when two street rats entered the restaurant. They headed to a small two-chair table and sat down. A waiter went up to them and asked them for their orders. The street rats had difficulty reading the menu, leading to the owner threatening to kick them out. “I have no use for people who will waste my staff’s time!” He exclaimed as he began to kick them out.

“We only want to eat some french toasts. We heard that this place was good for that.” One of the street rats---a male---said.

“I won’t serve illiterate people! Get out of my restaurant!” The owner shouted.

   Spec shook his head and got up from his stool. He walked over to the owner and rested his hand on his shoulder. “I’ll take care of it, so don’t kick them out.” The owner looked Spec up and down.

“I won’t throw them out because it’s you, Spec.” The owner said. Spec slightly nodded his head. The owner then looked over at the street rats. “You should thank Spec for this. If he wasn’t here then I would’ve thrown you two out.” He declared, turning around and walking back to his office within the restaurant. The street rats looked at their savior and their eyes twinkled.

“You’re the man from earlier.” The female street rat whispered.

“I’m the man from earlier?” Spec asked, clearly confused.

“You donated money to us, but the money was taken by Wick.” The male street rat said. Spec tilted his head and closed his eyes. He replayed his memories, remembering the street rats that allowed him to temporarily break away from the awkward conversation he was having with Matt and Maddie.

“Oh, I remember you two,” Spec said. “How have you been?”

“Hungry,” The female street rat whispered. The male street rat nodded in agreement.

“Let’s get you two some food,” Spec said, turning around and waving a waiter over. Spec turned to the street rats and asked for their orders, which they gave to him instantly. Spec relayed the orders to the waiter who rushed off to give the orders to the cooks. Spec then turned around to face the street rats and motioned for them to sit down at the stools. They nodded and sat on the stools next to Spec. “What are your guy’s names?”

“Xavier,” The male street rat said.

“Alicia,” The female street rat whispered.

Spec nodded. “How are you guys doing?” Xavier shrugged his shoulders while Alicia remained silent. Spec let out a sigh and looked around. He noticed two men sitting on three stools from him whispering about something. He leaned in close and heard small bits of their conversation.

“Drug shipment… two days from now… a large sum of money…port.” said the two men. Those words piqued Spec’s interest.

Two days from now I will stop a drug shipment and crash Wick’s money, Spec thought. He smiled, not noticing that the men that were whispering a minute ago, now focused their attention on Spec.

“Let’s go. We installed the rumor into Spec. Our mission is finished.” Z said, getting up from the stool. X nodded and followed after Z. They both left the restaurant without Spec noticing until later that they were gone.

 

TBC…

Chapter Eleven "Forsaken"

Spec gripped his double-ended black scythe and pulled the hood over his head as he sat down on the floor. His eyes closed themselves, but his ears shouted out to hear Lin’s voice. Spec then looked down at the ground, hiding his face under the hood. Small water droplets landed on the floor, pitter-pattering. Spec’s grip on his scythe loosened before un-fusing with it. His scythe landed on the floor next to him, landing with a large ‘thud’. The sun, overhead, then began its descent.

  

 

***

Xavier and Alicia departed two days later after encountering Spec for the second time. Alicia held the wad of cash in her pocket, running alongside Xavier towards the border between the Slums District and the other three districts---Nobles, Commonfolk, and Merchants. They stopped at the border’s gate to talk with the patrol officers. The officers took the cash---counting each bill---before allowing them to pass over to the Commonfolk District. Upon their entrance to the new district, they were showered with questions by the Commonfolk District guards. The guards then led the street rats to a nearby inn where the owners washed them up.

“Why are you doing this?” Xavier asked, once stripped naked and doused with soap and water.

“We don’t have much money!” Alicia declared. The inn owners, a pair of elderly women in blue aprons, shook their heads as they continued washing the two.

“You two arrived from the Slums! You’ve suffered enough.” One of the owners declared.

“We’ll take good care of you. Once we finish washing you, let’s take you to meet your new siblings.” The other owner told them. The kids nodded before looking at each other. Alicia and Xavier sat a couple of feet apart while being washed. Alicia extended her hand towards Xavier, slowly and carefully. Xavier reached out his hand to connect with Alicia, gripping her hand tightly. Alicia lowered her head, staring at the wooden floor, and watched as her tears masked themselves within the water that the owners used to wash them.

“I’ll protect you,” Xavier muttered as he overheard Alicia’s soft sobbing. “I’ll become strong enough to protect you!”

***

Liliana ventured down a stone brick street, passing drunk and unconscious people lying on the side of the street. Her security detail followed tightly behind her, at a car distance away. Liliana detected the presence of her security detail, but ignored them and continued through the streets of the slums. A blonde girl in sweats sat at an outside table of a restaurant, scarfing down a plate of tacos with a younger girl at her side. The younger girl slurped a bowl of soup into her stomach, dipping her red hair into the soup, slightly. The blonde girl lowered her plate onto the table before moving the young child’s hair out of her soup. The young child chuckled softly before slurping down a second bowl of soup into her stomach. The blonde girl then smiled at her, the light reflecting off her hair and giving it a bright glow. 

Liliana sat down on an empty chair, directly across from the blonde girl and red hair child. “I apologize, but is this seat taken?” She asked.

“It’s not.” The blonde girl blurted out.

“Oh, okay,” She said. She looked down at the child and tilted her head---slightly to the left---and smiled softly. “Do you mind answering a couple of questions of mine?” The blonde girl flinched and slowly raised herself. Liliana waved her hands in front of her, wildly, in an attempt to defuse the misunderstanding. “No, no, no, no, no! I’m not a bad guy or anything! I, simply, want to know about Black Hood.” The blonde girl sat down again. She intertwined her fingers on top of the table and looked Liliana in the eyes.

“How do you feel about Black Hood?” She asked in a slight whisper.

“He’s a good guy, of course,” Liliana answered. The blonde girl nodded her head before extending out her hand.

“Perfect, I’m Summer. You?”

“Liliana!”

“What do you want to know?” Summer asked before looking over at the child and wiping a piece of the soup’s noodle off her cheek.

“Anything that you know about Black Hood. Any facial features or clothes that he is said to have.”

Summer scanned the area around them before leaning in towards Liliana. “I was at the factories when he attacked. He wore a black cloak and hood and wielded a double-ended scythe. He moved through the darkness and appeared out of different corners of the room. He looked like an expert with a scythe. Oh, and he didn’t do it for the first factory, but he dropped large bags of money in the second factory.”

“Wow,” Liliana muttered.

“That’s the extent of my knowledge. I don’t know anything else about him.” Summer said.

“Thank you,