I was about twelve years when I first met this guy, the supposedly the 'strongest hero'. Omni-Man. The name itself screamed power. Like a symbol of strength.
But the first time I saw him, it wasn't just him that I saw, I saw his facade, this made-up mask that he seems to have created to appeal to us, the humans.
I couldn't really get my hand on what it was but today, I confirmed it. He is the killer.
The one who took out the Guardians Of The Globe.
I looked into the sky, a flock of birds flying beautifully along with their family, almost like they're mocking me. I sighed, slumping down. I'm the odd one out.
"Lawbreaker? Is that you?" I heard behind me. I looked at the source of the sound.
"Today's my sister's birthday and she's like your biggest fan." He began, "My name's Remy, can I please get your autograph on this shirt?" He asked me, showing a white t-shirt.
"Oh, this ain't the time but yeah, sure thing. What's your sister's name?" I asked.
"Vanessa." He told me as he handed me a marker.
"Vanessa, nice name, tell her I said hi." I finished it off as I handed it over to him.
"Thank you so much for this."
"Don't mention it," I said, giving him a tired smile. The kind you slap on when your insides are falling apart but hey—PR.
Remy looked at me like I just handed him a key to another dimension. Kid couldn't have been older than ten. Still had that blind belief in heroes. Poor guy.
He then took off running, waving like he just met a living comic book panel.
Once he was gone, I looked down at my hand. Still holding the marker. Guess I forgot to give it back. Oh well. Souvenir of humanity or whatever.
I stood up, brushing dirt off my coat. My brain was doing cartwheels.
Hey, I ain't much older than him, I'm barely eighteen. He'll learn when the time comes. People don't stay innocent forever.
I was twelve when I first saw him fly overhead. Red cape blazing against a blue sky like some divine paint stroke. I remember thinking: That's what a real hero looks like.
Now I know better.
Now I know he's the kind of monster that makes the boogeyman check under his bed.
I leaned onto my car for a moment before finally opening the door and getting in.
I sat up, started the engine. The radio kicked in halfway through some bubblegum pop song, the kind you'd find on a tween's playlist right between sad indie boy anthems and whatever Taylor Swift clone was trending this week.
I turned it off.
Cause' what the fuck, man?
For a car costing the GDP of a small country, it sure is a bad bitch at putting some nice music.
"Hey, you got a name?" I asked out loud.
"No, but you could name me." I heard the A.I speak.
"Oh, we're doing this now?" I muttered, tapping the dash like it owed me money. "Alright then, Miss Sassy Computer… how about Juno?"
There was a pause, then a soft chuckle through the speakers. "Juno. Roman goddess of war, marriage, and kicking ass. I approve."
"Glad you're cool with it, 'cause I wasn't asking."
"Of course you weren't," she replied, deadpan. "Sarcasm levels: consistent with your usual emotional repression."
"Cute. Now shut up and drive, I got you yesterday."
The car slipped into motion like it was gliding over glass. Juno dimmed the interior lights just a bit, mood-setting like we were headed for a romantic getaway and not, y'know, a potential homicide crime scene.
"Destination?" she asked. I sighed again, "Destination? Is that you signature line or something? Get me home in five." I told her as I leaned back.
"Copy that. ETA: Four minutes and thirty-two seconds. Buckle up, drama queen."
"You're a glorified toaster with a Wi-Fi signal. Don't push it."
"Noted. Though, statistically, most humans project their emotional damage onto machines. Want to unpack that while we cruise?"
"Man, who the fuck wrote your personality code? I'mma kill him when I see him, got it?"
"Noted. Logging death threat under 'emotional coping mechanisms'. Would you like to assign a priority level to that?"
"Yeah—put it right between 'not giving a shit' and 'go fuck yourself'."
"Priority set to 'classic Lawbreaker'. Got it."
I exhaled a laugh through my nose. Couldn't help it. She was annoying as hell, but at least she was my annoying as hell. Weird how fast a smart-ass AI can start feeling like the only person who gets you.
Outside, the city blurred by. Neon signs and broken dreams smeared across the windshield. The kind of night that smelled like asphalt and unresolved trauma.
"Incoming call," Juno chimed, then added, "It's Cecil."
I clenched my jaw. Of course it is.
"Decline it."
"You're aware he's got override access, right?"
"And I'm pretty sure he's aware that if he ever overrides, he's done."
"Confirmed. Preparing dramatic silence and internal combustion engine-based passive aggression."
"Cecil, fuck you, just in case you got some weird bug on this car."
Five minutes later...
ZZZ...ZZZ...ZZ-
"Destination reached!" I heard a loud sound booming in my ears.
"Hey! What the hell, Juno? You want me to destroy this car?" I asked.
"Relax, I just wanted to inform you that you reached home."
"Do it SILENTLY." I told her.
I opened the door, stepping out as I looked at the villa. It was actually built for me, ever since I got too popular and too recognizable.
I stared at the high-tech security system that blinked red at the gate. If only they knew how pointless all this was. They could put up a hundred more walls, but nothing would stop the shit that's been chasing me for years now.
"Open the goddamn gates!" I yelled before the automatic gates finally opened. No guards. No staff. Just me, like I asked.
I reached the front door and paused. I could've just kicked it open with the way I was feeling right now. Instead, I entered quietly, like I had too many times before.
I didn't even make it to the living room before the first glass shattered.
I punched the wall, as I banged my head to it. I should've killed him, and I didn't. I should've.
Omni-Man is now a case, officially my 'victim'. He's far too dangerous to be left alive for long. He's a monster, and looking at the brutality, I'm pretty sure he's my type of monster. He's an entity who's not supposed to be, not on my world.
I walked past the broken glass like it wasn't even there. Let it cut my feet if it wants—pain was just noise at this point.
I took out a cigarette, lighting it with a lighter. I took a slow drag, letting the smoke curl. All hands on deck. We kill this guy before the end of this month.
[G.D.A – Black Site HQ | Level Omega Clearance] (Yeah, I pulled it outta my ass.)
The room was cold, sterile, and too quiet—like a morgue that forgot it used to have people. Monitors lined the walls, most of them showing static bursts or encrypted feeds. In the center, Cecil Stedman stood with his arms crossed, jaw clenched like he was trying not to grind his molars into dust.
"He's unraveling," Donald said beside him, voice low, holding a file that might as well have been on fire.
"No," Cecil muttered. "He's focused."
Donald blinked. "You call that focused? He shattered a reinforced wall and threatened to nuke your override system."
Cecil turned slowly, eyes hollow. "You ever see a soldier after a war starts but before he's allowed to fight?"
Donald hesitated. "Yeah. Once."
"Exactly. That's where Lawbreaker is right now. And we don't have much time before he stops asking for permission and just does it."
He walked over to a monitor showing satellite footage—Omni-Man on a mountaintop, unmoving, like a statue carved by war gods. Too still to be human. Too present to be ignored.
"We're running two extinction-level threats and no one's at the wheel."
Donald looked like he wanted to ask something, but didn't. Smart.
Instead, Cecil lit a cigarette. Didn't smoke it. Just stared at the ember like it owed him answers.
"Set Condition Black. I want eyes on Nolan 24/7. No blind spots. Use cloaked drones, Vitrum-tech, I don't care. If Lawbreaker makes a move, I want to know before his heart rate spikes."
"And if Lawbreaker reaches him first?" Donald asked.
Cecil didn't answer at first. Just stared at Omni-Man on the screen, cape snapping in the wind like a flag on a battlefield.
"...Then God help us all."
[Back to Lawbreaker – Villa, Underground Armory]
The cigarette burned down to the filter. He let it fall onto the floor, stepped on it without looking. The armory lights kicked on. Guns. Blades. Tech that shouldn't even exist. All of it locked down, humming with quiet violence.
"Hey, Kaito." I heard. I looked around to see no one.
"You're in my house, when the fuck did that happen?" I asked.
"Long ago but that doesn't matter. We have more pressing issues at play. For example, Nolan Grayson a.k.a Omni-Man." She told me.
"I don't need your advice on when to be serious but anyway,"
"Juno," he said, cracking his knuckles. "Pull up everything we've got on Nolan Grayson."
"Okay, but why do you have this armory? Your powers don't require guns." She asked me.
I sighed, such stupid people. "Juno, you clearly don't grasp the concept of aesthetics. So don't be questioning me around anymore, would you?"
Juno paused like she was buffering the patience she didn't have installed.
"...Copy that. Engaging 'Shut The Hell Up' protocol. Pulling up Nolan Grayson's entire life story." she told me. Yeah, I had that. I was raised by the GDA, of course I had them.
I looked at the file, and damn, a picture perfect record, not a single mistake in sight.
I leaned in closer, scrolling through the records as Juno continued to feed me everything she could find.
"So far, everything normal." I muttered.
"Look at his son's, anything suspicious? Maybe he's takes after his father?" I asked.
"No, he's ordinary, well, until the day before yesterday. He just got his powers." She told me.
"Well, I know that." I sighed.
"Fuck, this is useless." I muttered.
"Okay, see you tomorrow." I told her as I climbed up to the house.
He was the biggest issue now but I guess even he can wait. I jumped onto the bed, letting sleep take over me. But I realized something here, I should stop acting like I'm not a killer too.