Warriors way...crapped out

So what will happen now, the story goes on!

New story in the growing Hekawi universe!

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Las Vegas June, 2016

The next morning Marcus was heading towards his first real class of the day. Math, one of his best subjects when he spotted 'them', the bullies of the school and his grade for the most part. Marcus tried as best he could to blend in at each new school he arrived at, some of his attempts were better than others and he tried desperately to make new friends all the time. But moving SO much and so often kept that from being an easy thing to do for the most part and like most schools the 'new' kids stood out from the crowd, then add that Marcus easily aced all his classes because he was smart, plus his mom tutored him on the side all the time and she had several doctorates to her name beside being a mutant exemplar.

But Mark's main problem with most of his schools over the years were bullies, they saw him as easy pray, all because of his tallish very thin, slender frame and that would be ripe for the pickings target for a pack of them. But his thin frame made him fast, easy to runaway or twist or doge his way out of most fights.

In most of his fights with a bully, Marcus could match one his size or bigger with his fighting skills that mom taught him over the years, then add his speed and sometimes he could fight off two if they did not fight very well. But in this case, there were five of them, the odds too great and then add to that Daren the pack leader or 'Mongo' as Marcus had nicknamed him after the movie 'Blazing Saddles' because the kid was big, really big (plus having been kept back a full grade!) and even dumber than the guy portrayed in the film!

Marcus found out quickly, that this situation was going to be messy and unavoidable as two of the leader's toadies filled in quickly behind Mark, thus cutting off his only avenue of quick escape. Daren strolled up to cornered Mark like the big man on campus he played into and stuck out an empty palm towards the boy while he growled, "Lunch money now!"

"But Mongo like candy?" Mark almost laughed back to the bigger kids face.

"What is this mongo crap and hand it over now!" the huge boy demanded not knowing the movie at all because of his age.

"I am sorry, but no lunch money today. My mom forgot to give me some!" Mark gave the kid his excuse, knowing that his mother can't really forget anything with her mutant enhanced mind and anyway, just because of this very bully his cash was stashed in relative safety inside his school books, hidden within the pages!

"Bullshit!" that is when the normally calm Cathy that was Daren's girl socked Mark right in the eye and leveled the poor kid. Most of the school thought that Cathy was a slow to mutate kid as she was just thirteen, but already nearly six foot tall or that she was a hidden Fae of some sort because of her height and higher than normal strength that she just showed!

Mark hit the ground a second after the savage blow hit his head, he pulled out his empty wallet and tossed it at the girl's face, "There ya go bitch...nothing in it like I said!" he barked.

Cathy snatched the flying wallet before it even came close to her face and flung it open with a quick flick of her wrist finding nothing inside the billfold area like Mark had insisted, "Well you owe us then and we will take this instead for now and you can buy it back later!" she said pulling Mark's game frame from his backpack ,then tossed the wallet back into Mark's face.

"Hey that's my frame and worth far more than five bucks!" he yelled as Cathy slipped the slim device into her back pocket.

"Mine now!" she purred evilly to him.

Mark nodded back to her, "Fine, take it you thief!" as he said covering himself for later when he'd call upon the schools dean to get the frame back for him. Because game frames like his were coded to the user/owner and could only be transferred via a very lengthy process that made buying a new one easier at times, so anyone having his...meant they stole it and he just reinforced that to a surly hidden somewhere school security camera!

After the group of bullies left Mark, he made his way into the school's main office.

An hour later after the event, Mark was noting his eye once again and how bruised it was in a mirrors reflection as the boy's dean spoke to him, "So she...Cathy Elwen took your game frame at what time?"

"Nine ten, just before second period just before my math class and inside the long outside passage to the quad." he described and the dean pulled up that footage from a nearby set of cameras.

Mark was not worried about the bully's retaliating, because by the time they got around to it, because of being suspended for a long time or maybe jailed for theft. He should be in yet another city and in another strange school fighting new assholes like he always did each time the family moved!

The dean found the time frame need and it was showing exactly what Mark had described to him at length. He nodded to his screen in agreement, "Yep you are indeed right Mr. Hapgood, this is not only bullying, plus assault on a school member. But in this case, outright theft and felony level theft because you have a very custom and expensive frame for a person your age?" the older man questioned as well stated the facts.

"My mom wanted a good one for me that could double for my main pad in a pinch and link with her personal frame from work, plus her work's mainframe too just in case I had to in a pinch or she had to borrow mine, because she keeps misplacing her's!" he smiled back knowing that Cathy was in very hot water now, because he had genuinely forgot how much his frame did cost!

Next stop an hour later was all parties involved seated in one of the many school meeting rooms, "Well Cathy what is you defense, the camera shows you punching Mark in the face, stealing his frame from his pack and the mikes picking up him calling you out as a thief!"

"I...he gave it to me...." she stuttered a lie or tried too badly.

"I don't believe you and the evidence shows us all a different story. We are going to wait for your parents to show up and with them we are going to decide if or if not to charge you with assault and theft of property over two thousand dollars.

"Two thousand dollars....no game frame costs that much, they are just toys!" she yelled out her reasoning and tried to stand up from her seat, but the school's resource officer kept her in the chair with a firm hand to her shoulder!

"The frame you stole from Mr. Hapgood is not your run of the mill normal game frame, but it's a high end one made for scientific work and links with other main frames. AKA a high end tool for genuine research work like his mother would use daily and the reason why he carries one. It's too bad that you did not know what you were stealing or holding hostage!" the dean smiled.

"And Daren, your place in this is as leader of this pack of bullies and your punishment is going to be light. Because I found no video of you doing anything more than being part of the crime so far...your punishment is...two weeks suspension or until I find farther video evidence of any of your crime in the past and have you expelled via that new evidence!" the dean barked as he worked on filling out paperwork for the now in trouble kid, whose parents were still on the way to pick him up.

A few hours later after Sophia had arrived to pick up her son and nod in agreement to what was being done to punish the assembled bullies and the girl that had stolen his game frame or her emergency replacement work frame. Sophia sighed out as her car finally drove out of Las Vegas's hot sun and down into a short ramp leading into the condo's underground garage, "I am sorry Mark I did not know it was going bad for you here, you should have told me baby?" she asked and apologized at the same time.

"Mom, each of our moves goes this bad for me...each and EVERY one MOM and if we are going to move once more. Please send me to boarding school, because I am done with this crap!" he warned her as she parked the car in their units spot and Mark hopped out instantly, then slammed to car door to emphasize his point.

Sophia sighed to the now empty seat, "I am so sorry, but this is my life too and I do try Mark." then she thought on, 'It's not easy to raise a son alone and I know if I told you who your father was," she sighed again, "You would hate him and me for even being with him for sure."

On her way up to the condo, Sophia stopped off on the building's main floor and waved over to the concierge Manny, "Did I get a package today Manny, one from overseas and that need a sig?" she asked the far older man who ran the desk.

"No packages today Doc, but I'll be on the lookout for one and call you if it comes in this afternoon" he smiled back to her.

"Funny it should have been here today?" Sophia said pulling a frame from her pack and started to check the shipping company webpage for updates. She sighed out "Well SHIT!" at what she found, "Package delayed for one day, US customs recheck on contents." was the notation on her tracking number.

"Ma'am?" the older man questioned as Sophia checked her phone.

"It's all good Manny, the package was delayed and will be here tomorrow." she smiled to him.

"Like I said, we will sign for it and keep it safe till you get home Ma'am...have a nice day!" he said just before Sophia slipped back into the waiting elevator and the door closed.

Finally in her condo, Sophia checked the mail that Marcus had grabbed on his way up and left on the entryway table for her to read. "Mark..." she called out and got an instant whine back from his room, "Whaaaaattt Mommm?"

"Mark can you please come here, we need to talk and make a few plans," Sophia shouted back to the boy.

Mark strolled into the kitchen from his room, then hopped onto one of the breakfast area barstools, "So what are we deciding?" he asked taking a pack of chips from the basket of them.

"Well Mark, I spent most of today on the phone and e-mailing this new job I was going to take." she started

"And?" Mark said nonchalantly.

"This job at a museum and teaching staff with a college up in northern California was okay with taking me only for one year. BUT after talking to them, they will extend the offer to a full three under contract and does that fit into you plans, a full three years in the same spot. We might even be able to fit a full size nice house into that plan, one with a real yard and not just a condo like we always had." she offered.

"I like this new plan mom, this is something I can get behind and thanks for listening to me." he said while jumping up to give her a hug. In his mind he did indeed have plans to leave if she kept at it, LA was only one short hypertrain ride way from here in Las Vegas and that city could hide an army!

Sophia broke the warm hug, then pulled a bag off the far counter and slid it over to the boy who was taking his seat once more, "Now this is for you, one game is a 'make-up gift' and the other is a straight bribe for your help or favor."

"Mom...favor...bribe?" Mark questioned in a low voice as he gave her the 'stink eye' and opened the bag, thus showing him that mom did indeed blow some cash on top end games as bribes!

"I want, well need you as a dummy for an hour or two?" she laughed.

"Dummy?" Mark said while tilting his head to the idea.

"Yep, Dummy as in a mannequin for one of my armor sets. I need to get some pic's of a person wearing the full set and you are just tall enough and besides I can't really take pictures and wear the armor at the same time...now can I?"

"Doesn't that old dress dummy fill that need and besides that armor of yours is made for a Gurrrrl!" he whined out.

"A woman, "his mom corrected, "and you can wear a sack over your head if you are embarrassed by the act of helping me out. But I need the full on a person armor set, photo-ed and Mark you are more than available!" Sophia giggled to him and his growing pain.

"Fine, I'll do it and only do it because you bought me Knights Fall. The only game out that lets you play as an evil knight and you even paid for the year on-line service too!" he easily gave in to the substantial bribe from his smiling mom.

Just after dinner, Sophia had Marcus dress in his thinnest summer pants and a thin long sleeve shirt to give the boy some cushioning to the armor's edges and temporary backing that barely held it all in-place now. In the far past she had noted that most armors used leather or some other kind of padding under the armor plates to prevent long term chaffing or some of the bruises caused by savage blows that came from battle.

With some of his mother's help, Mark spun around as he lowered the last part onto his head and that was a thin skull cap that had a long tail to cover the back of his neck.

The light helmet was not the best in armor of the time, but in this case it was more ceremonial wear with 'just' a bit of added protection and would have more if it had the padding most historians had shown. But Sophia did not have access to those parts, let alone they were very rare and fragile, plus making a replacement was expensive and she was not going to make up all of that for just a set of reference photos!

Mark searched over his body to make sure that everything was in place and ready for his mom's needs, "Well is this all and does it look okay mom...or what?" he asked turning around from looking at himself in a large mirror to see that his mother was busy getting a camera ready for use.

"Looks good to me honey, that lower arm guard might need to slide up a bit and the left shoulder part is a little low too." she offered and he was busy once again correcting the fit on parts of armor again.

"Well looks good now and woof mom this chick. the one that wore this was not even close to being flat chested, this girl was built like a brick shit house!" Mark's eye knowingly winked as he rubbed on the ample breast plate.

"Most of that I am sure was decorative and for padding blows to the chest." she pointed out to him.

"I don't know mom, this chick was a big girl. The gauntlets fingers barley fit me and the leg armor shows that she was really tall for the time. You told me that historically for hundreds of years, that anyone being taller than say five foot four was unusual and this girl...."

"Woman!" Mark's mom cut him off suddenly and corrected his term use.

"This WOman!" he sassed back, "she was big, very big for even now and certainly was a giant back then at what I think must be six foot or more?" he reasoned while mentally measuring the armor in comparison to his body size and even his five foot nine height did not even come close to filling it all out!

"Okay the camera is ready and the ambient light in here is good enough, plus add this camera has a good flash...we should be good! Mark did you want to cover your face or just have your face 'be' in each shot I take of this armor?" she asked the teen while making the last few adjustments to the camera's lens.

"It's fine mom, I have this Halloween face mask left over from last year." Mark said while pulling off the helmet to place the simple plastic half face mask on his head, then added the helmet back to its spot once again.

"Nice Mark, I like that one! It is the one you painted in superhero style for your wall and it will add to the armor's looks in a good way." Sophia smiled as her camera snapped its first shots and those would be the first of easily a hundred that she wanted or needed to fully document the armor all set up on a person.

"Is this the full set mom, the set you have been after long before I came along?" he asked as his mother slowly changed places to get a full set of pic's of the armor on this pass and would add even more with other lenses he was sure of!

"Well hon, this set is almost done or complete. I was going to get the last part this afternoon, but the shipment was delayed by customs for some silly reason. And so you know, I was chasing after several sets of armor. But this one only came into my sights after you came along, so I kind of tie it into you and that is why I might have chased after it more than the others I have in my notes?" she questioned herself and the idea that the armor did indeed seem to come into her purview soon after Marcus was born.

Mark flexed is arm in the armor as he posed and added with a short laugh, "Even as big as this woman is, I'd still like...no love to meet her!"

"I am sure you would!" she smiled evilly to the boy's embarrassment, "Now hold still!" she asked and took more photo's.

"What is that last missing piece mom?" Mark had to ask!

"OHH its a small 'buckler' style shield, one for blocking swords and close in fighting. Not one you would use in a full blown battle with arrow and spears flying around, but I might have a line on that bigger one too!" she said thinking of the several heavier armor parts she had leads on and that she wanted a sword to make a set that could be displayed...as everyone wanted the sword for show too for some reason?

Sophia grabbed a few more photos to be sure of covering every possible pose, then started to put her gear away, "All done Mark, you can get a can opener and get out of all that. BUT, I need a few more photos tomorrow when that last piece of this armor shows up and I verify that its real and made for this set!"

Mark only nodded in agreement as he quickly squirmed his way out of the armor!

But I have to thank, Both Branek and Nuuan for their vast input and the ability they both have to 'bounce' off ideas and improve them!

To all my readers who have e-mailed me and given support--THANKS!

Please feel free, to add a review to this story and others. As those kind words are 'cookies' that keeps that muse well fed on the 'sometimes' long breaks between stories!

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