by Riley Tune
Omega:
An Icon Story
Riley Tune
Omega: An Icon Story 1st Edition
Copyright ©2019 by Riley Tune
Cover Design by GoOnwrite.com
Edited by Carol Tietsworth
This novel is a work of fiction created by the author and is not intended to reflect any actual person, place, action, or event. Any resemblance to any of
the mentioned is entirely coincidental.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means without the written consent of the author, nor be otherwise circulated in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.
I can’t thank you enough for buying this book! If, after reading, you find that you enjoyed it, please leave a review on the site from which it was purchased or any other book review site. I’d love to hear what you think. Also, if you would like to keep in touch with me, just use the following info.
If you want to learn more about me, visit my personal website:
www.rileytune.weebly.com
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To the people that were embracing my
imagination before I found writing as an outlet.
To the people that were reading
my stories before they were even half good.
To the people that still continue
to believe even when I don’t.
Thank you.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
PROLOGUE
CHAPTER 1: TRAINING DAY
CHAPTER 2: NERF AND SPARKS
CHAPTER 3: LIES WITH GOOD INTENTIONS
CHAPTER 4: VINCULA
CHAPTER 5: ESCAPE
CHAPTER 6: ROYAL RUMBLE
CHAPTER 7: LONG DISTANCE MESSAGE
CHAPTER 8: THE CURSE OF VARO
CHAPTER 9: WARDEN’S CIRCLE
CHAPTER 10: HELLO ABEL
CHAPTER 11: THE ARENA
CHAPTER 12: CHAMPION OF THE CAGE
CHAPTER 13: THE GREAT BEAST
CHAPTER 14: BRAVADO
CHAPTER 15: CAYDEN’S GOODBYE
CHAPTER 16: FROSTY BITCH
CHAPTER 17: ENERGY VS ICE
CHAPTER 18: EARLY STAGES
CHAPTER 19: EMPRESS QUEEN OMEGA
CHAPTER 20: NEW RECRUITS
CHAPTER 21: DARKNESS BECOMES HER
CHAPTER 22: TEAM A AND TEAM B
CHAPTER 23: ROOFTOP RENDEZVOUS
CHAPTER 24: STEALTHY
CHAPTER 25: ALL SEARCH NO RESCUE
CHAPTER 26: FOREVER IN HER SHADOW
CHAPTER 27: CAYDEN’S PLAN
CHAPTER 28: HORN OF BOOMING
CHAPTER 29: OLD FRIENDS
CHAPTER 30: HER TRUE NAME
CHAPTER 31: LARGE GUNS INDEED
CHAPTER 32: THE GANG’S ALL HERE
CHAPTER 33: ASSAULT
CHAPTER 34: THE POWER OF PARAGON & FLEX
CHAPTER 35: REUNION
CHAPTER 36: FROM IDOLS TO RIVALS
CHAPTER 37: DUST AMONG THE SAND
CHAPTER 38: CONFESSIONS
CHAPTER 39: BEYOND SUPREME
EPILOGUE
PROLOGUE
I f only a year’s passing could make one forget about the serial killing maniac that targeted people with powers, that would certainly make things easier. Sadly, things like that you couldn’t forget. You lived with it forever and tried to make the best of it. And the friends that were lost, and the lives that were changed seem to haunt you every day.
Such was the case with Hunter Monroe. The memories were there and so was the pain, but he refused to let them control his life. Maybe he succumbed to them the first month or so, but not now. Now, he wore the mask of a young man with everything together.
Slowly, he walked down the quiet halls of the location that was once the Imperial Lords’ base, and couldn’t help but smile as he thought back to his days at Purgatory academy. This smile wasn’t out of love for the school that taught him how to use his powers and handle situations that a hero would face in the world. Far from it.
His time at Purgatory wasn’t exactly what one would consider good. Verbal clashes with teachers, legendary fights, and mediocre grades don’t really add to what one would call a good experience. No, the smile was because after all this time he currently found himself dressed in a uniform, heading to train with his fellow heroes. It was comforting to him that with everything that had changed, a small portion of his life had stayed the same.
This, along with a few other factors, had Hunter feeling pretty good inside. He was appreciated by the hero community, which for him was a first- time experience. He had a girlfriend that loved him, millions in the bank, and in a month his Paragon, his bad boy-themed toy line would be released nationwide. According to preorders, he was one of the most popular heroes in the world right now.
Yes, life was pretty good for him, and for some reason, he felt bad about it. He had wondered if he actually didn’t deserve this good fortune, or if karma would catch up to him, and balance things out with enough bad to compensate for all his wins. “What in Atlas’ name is wrong with you?” He asked himself under his breath. “That is a very good question, young lord,” a voice said as Prism, the base’s holographic assistant sprang into life.
Prism had a variety of preselected uniforms that made him look like a real-life butler. This current uniform even came with a bow tie and his ever- present white gloves.
“Don’t,” Hunter began, but then stopped. He was going to tell Prism not to call him that, but now it was acceptable. Once the Imperial Lords was disbanded, Prism still referred to the heroes in the base as young lords. Something that Hunter and the rest of the inhabitants reprimanded him about constantly. Now, the title was acceptable since the government ordered them to be rebranded, and established.
“Sorry,” Hunter said as he walked through the hologram and up the hall. “This New Lords title we have now is taking some getting used to.” “No doubt, I’m sure.” Prism responded. “It is my belief that you are smarter than you look, and will eventually get used to it.”
Hunter took in a deep breath and exhaled. While plenty had changed for him in the last year, Prism being a smartass wasn’t one of them. “Hey Paragon,” a voice called to him from down the hall. “After almost a year, you still can’t say my name without laughing some?” Hunter asked. “And you say you love me. You know, I expected more effort from you,” he said with a slight shake of the head.
“I do love you,” Danielle said as she walked up to him and kissed him gently on the cheek. “I’m a rebel, boo. I do what I want. Weren’t you the one that called me your little villain?” Hunter glanced at Prism, and saw the hologram flicker for a moment and then reappear with wide eyes. For a hologram, his shocked expression was very realistic.
“That was in private last night and my exact words were that you can be my villain in the sheets, hero in the streets. You know that’s my motto,” he replied, as he motioned to move by her. “Maybe you should work on a name for yourself. Then you’ll stop laughing at mine.”
Danielle shrugged in response.
“I’ll see you in training, young lords,” Prism said he flickered away one final time. Danielle laughed. “Leave it to you, to make a hologram feel uncomfortable.” She said as she removed the rubber band from her wrist and began to pull her long black hair back. “I do what I can,” he said as he paused at another door on
the hall and tapped his knuckles on the frame.
“Yeah yeah, I’m ready,” a voice came from inside the room. Perkins stepped out and looked at Hunter and Danielle. They were wearing the same training outfit as she was. Black shirt, gray shorts, black sneakers. All courtesy of one of the New Lords most recent sponsors.
Before she could say another word, a loud beeping sound came from inside her room.
Hunter leaned around her and tried to get a view inside. He wasn’t surprised to find that Perkins’ room was a mess. She had a love for not cleaning her personal space.
“What’s that?” he asked as he craned his neck. “Something that likely isn’t your business, Paragon.” As she said his name, Danielle tried to conceal the laughter in her voice. “It’s coming from her room, so it’s her business.”
“You’re going to respect my name, you hear me, woman?” Hunter replied back through a laugh of his own. “I have the highest toy preorders in the last five years, I’ll have you know. I’m even being courted by several cereal companies. So, suck it.”
Danielle smiled at him and raised an eyebrow. “Remember, a hero in the streets. A hero in the streets,” Hunter said as he turned back to look in Perkins’ room. She had walked back inside and was holding something in her hand.
Hunter really couldn’t see it from behind her. All he could see was her spiky blond- haired head moving around. “It’s my multibox from back home,” Perkins said. Her multibox was one of the two inventions she had on her when she arrived from Mo’eizus, the dimension of the Spellborn, a year ago.
This same box allowed her, for a brief time, to produce a pale green force field similar to the one Hunter could manifest. Before she told them it came from the box, many of the New Lords members thought it was her power.
“So, you fixed it?” Hunter asked. “Because I thought Danielle busted it during a training session.” “Sorry again about that,” Danielle said as she slapped Hunter in the back of the head while she walked by him to look over Perkins’ shoulder.
“It was busted,” she said as she reached for her goggles and looked through them at the multibox. Her goggles were the other invention that she brought with her. She twirled the multibox in her hand, looking at it from top to bottom. It was about the size as a deck of playing cards. Made out of shiny black metal, with a few buttons on top, and a dial on the side. “As far as I know, it should still be busted.”
She twirled the box in her hands once more. “I’ll look at it after training is over,” she said. “It’s not going to like, blow up the base or anything, is it?” A male voice came from behind them. As they turned, they saw the dark-haired Asian youth standing in the door.
Dressed like the rest of them, he sported a tight black shirt and gray workout shorts. “You’re such a hero, Kevin. The mighty Power Prince, worried about a little box going boom,” Hunter said in a mocking tone.
“Dude, I just don’t want the base looking like the White House from Independence Day after the aliens attacked,” he replied. Danielle exhaled. “Eventually, you’re going to run out of tv and movie references for life situations.”
He ignored her remarks. Danielle had only known Kevin a year, and she knew what she just said was far from true. The boy had a revolving knowledge on television and film that could be considered to be borderline scary to most people.
“Well, I am second in command around these halls. If anybody should know about a bomb it should be me, right?” Power Prince said as he placed a hand on Hunter’s shoulder and sent a small charge through it. Hunter grunted as he felt a slight shock. “You realize we train in about five minutes, right?” Power Prince said. “You may want to keep your smartassness down to a minimum.”
“That’s like asking a model to not look good in designer clothes,” Hunter replied as he moved in closer to whisper in the ear of Perkins. “It’s not going to explode though is it?” Perkins shook her head. “I mean it shouldn’t.” “That’s not comforting at all,” Danielle said as she swiftly left the room, and stood behind Power Prince who was now out in the hall. “It would be a fresh dose of excitement though. I’m all for a big explosion, as long as I’m not at the center of it,” she said, as Power Prince suddenly realized he had become her human shield.
“It looks like somebody is trying to reach me from back home, but until the box is repaired, I can’t know for sure.” As she spoke, she slipped off her shoes, and firmly placed her goggles around her eyes.
Then she placed the multibox on a desk in her room and pulled several long metal tools from the drawer. “Tell Flex I’m not coming to practice. It’s unlikely a serious issue, but I want to make sure, so I can’t put it off.”
Power Prince cleared his throat. “Last time I missed practice, he drilled me with the responsibility talk, and I’m a full member.” “Hey, screw you,” Hunter replied. “Interns matter.” Power Prince laughed. “Sure, buddy. Sure.”
“I’m guessing he will cut her some slack,” Danielle said. “Boyfriends are funny like that, aren’t they,” Perkins replied from a hunched over position at her desk. “Alright, now kick rocks guys. I can’t focus with you standing there talking and fricking around.”
“Dicking,” Hunter replied as he walked out of the room. “Dicking around. I’ll teach you the ways of a foul mouth if it’s the last thing I do.” Perkins didn’t reply. Hunter glanced at Power Prince, and Danielle shrugged her shoulders and headed down the hall. The boys both followed her and left Perkins alone in her room.
In moments, they found Flex standing in the center of the training room. He actually wore a white shirt so tight that his muscles could be seen, and some blue sweatpants. Hunter looked down at himself and pointed to his outfit. “Why aren’t you dressed like the rest of the team?” Flex shrugged. “Perks of being the leader I suppose,” Flex said as his eyes moved from one of them to the other. “Where’s Perkins?”
Danielle started jogging in place to warm up as Power Prince began to stretch. “She had some stuff to do, so she’s staying behind,” Flex frowned, and then looked at Power Prince. “You just let her skip? Come on Kevin, you’re my number two.” “Something he won’t shut up about,” Danielle chimed in. Kevin spread his feet and assumed a boxer potion as his fist began to glow with pink energy.
As he tossed practice punches, he glanced to Flex. “Dude, you know as well as I do, she isn’t going to just drop a project. Maybe lover boy can convince her, but I can’t.” Flex paused for a few moments as he considered his options.
Perkins was like a dog with a bone when a project came up. Despite her determination, she really wasn’t a tech whiz. She was just above average in that department. Flex knew he couldn’t tell her that, though. If she skipped training, it must have been important.
He sighed “Just start the warmup, and then drills.” Flex said as he walked, waited for the doors to open, and then proceeded to go speak one on one with his better half.
Flex cautiously made his way to Perkins’ room to sort everything out. He felt that for some reason he had misunderstood. Surely, she wasn’t going to miss practice. They had only been an item for a few months, but her dedication to things of importance was one of the reasons why he had fallen for and chosen her to be the one. This made him even more curious about what was keeping her away.
He was so determined to figure out what was going on that he didn’t even question why Hunter was following him at a distance. In the back of his head, Flex could only assume Hunter thought he was being stealthy. It wasn’t important now, but talking to Perkins was. Still, he made a mental note to add stealth training to his interns’ weekly requirements.
When Flex arrived in her room, Perkins was still hunched over her desk and entranced by her multibox. Several pieces were sprawled on the desk, along with some wire, extra tools, and oddly, a stick of gum. “Got a minute?” Flex asked as he entered to room. “What’s up?” Perkins asked without even looking up.
“Funny, that was going to be my next question for you.
The team says you’re skipping practice today.” Flex paused for a moment. It was hard being both leader and lover. He was trying to make sure he handled the situation correctly. “So, what’s up?” he asked.
Perkins shook her head and turned around at her desk. Flex looked into her vivid green eyes and almost ditched trying to be a leader all together for the more enjoyable role of lover. “I’m not sure, but I think somebody is trying to get a message to me.” As she spoke, she held up her multibox. “I just can’t figure out how to fix it.” Flex felt his heart skip a beat. “Are you leaving?”
As soon as the words left him, he felt like he didn’t conceal his fear well at all. He cursed at himself inside. Catching planes out the sky, saving kids, walking through a steady stream of bullets, that was easy for Flex. Being a boyfriend was still taking some getting used to. “Of course, I’m not leaving,” Perkins replied. “At least I don’t think so. I don’t know.” Then she looked up at Flex and twisted her lips.
“Aw, you’re worried.” Flex cleared his throat. “I, I.” Perkins stepped to him and wrapped her arms around him. “It’s something about having one of the strongest men on the planet stammering over the thought of you leaving him that makes a girl feel good inside.” Flex smiled, and in return wrapped his arms around her.
As he did so he could feel the soft curves that were hidden under her baggy clothes.
“It makes me wish we slept together sooner than we did,” Perkins said as she looked up at him. “But I’m glad we took our time. I wanted your first time to be special, and on your terms.” Flex stiffened.
Perkins grimaced as she looked into the bulging eyes of her boyfriend. “What’s wrong?” Flex began to breathe heavily as he turned to look at the open door to her room. He took in a deep breath. “Heard all that, huh?” Flex said as he looked at the door. Silence filled the air.
“What are you?” Perkins began, but Flex silenced her as he held up a finger. “I know you’re there, Hunter,” he said. On cue, Hunter stepped around the corner and was red in the face. “Wow. All this time I assumed Ken Doll over here was living it up.” Hunter said through laughter. “All that strength, and fame. Those envied good looks. I just knew you were knocking some top-shelf boots. Come to find out, you’re as innocent as a baby in a bank robbery.”
