Training

Standing in an old warehouse that SHIELD owns, I am currently attempting to learn how to fight.

THUD

"Damn it…"

I'm not having much luck.

Getting up from where the SHIELD Agent had thrown me, I get back into sparring position.

"You're too stiff. Try to loosen up some; it will help you respond to attacks better." She said. "Now let's try again."

Trying again, I end up with very similar results.

THUD

"Damn it."

Agent Melinda May was an agent of near unrivaled skill; She is one of the few agents with more black belts than even the Black Widow. Apparently I got her before she went on the mission that would make her turn to a desk job.

Oh yeah.

And she was kicking my ass.

"How the hell are you beating me?" I ask as I finally dodge an incoming punch aimed for my sternum.

"You're stiff, you rely on your armor and gadgets to get you out of sticky situations, and now that you are without… you can't cope." She replies as she once again judo flips me to the other side of the room.

"In my defense, I normally only fight random thugs you can barely throw a punch." I groan as I get up again.

I was wearing a simple outfit of black basketball shorts and a baggy grey T-Shirt and some sneakers, she on the other hand was wearing full on SHIELD Agent attire of a full body black Kevlar like material and a pair of combat boots.

I allowed her to know my Secret Identity simply because she was loyal to SHIELD and not Hydra. I really don't want them coming down on my back.

"Too bad, When you fought Stane you almost died, I'm here to make sure you can handle yourself in a fight, even without your precious toys."

Running at me, she jumped above me and wrapped her legs around my neck, If I didn't know she was married, I would be a lot happier at the sight of her form fitting suit. That said, she used her momentum and flipped me… Again.

"I think that's enough for the day, come back tomorrow, same time and we will see what else you can do."

"No, wait… One more time?" I plead, I think if I can time it right, I might be able to counter attack this time.

"Fine. One more time. But if you don't dodge or counter, I'm calling it quits for the day." She replies. We had been doing this for about three hours now, and I had only managed to dodge or counter three times.

She has easily beaten me at least twenty times that.

Standing in position, I watch her carefully as she charges me again.

Jumping into the air, she tries to deliver a round house kick to my head.

'Tries to' being the term.

Catching her foot, I toss it aside only to get knocked back by her other foot firmly connecting with my chest.

Landing in a crouch, she charges me again, punching me and kicking me in a flurry of attacks. I barely deflect most of them, but a few did slip few and strike me.

Catching one of her hits, I smirk.

"I'm getting better."

"You're also getting cocky." She says as she flips over my arm and somehow gets me in a choke hold.

"How the hell did you do that?!" I choke out.

"Training." Is her only reply as she lets me go. "You are getting better, but don't get cocky, it will be your downfall in a fight. There will always be someone bigger and better than you. So prepare while you can."

Thinking of people like Ultron or Thanos or even the Destroyer armor, I gulp.

"Yeah… I'll take that advice…"

"Good. I want you to follow the exercise regimens I set up for you. You may be enhanced Osborn, but you still need to train."

"Yes Ma'am." I salute.

She just walks off.

Collapsing into a spare chair, I rub my chest a bit. Damn she could hit.

Maybe I can take tonight off from being a superhero?

/

(That night)

Yeah right.

Wearing my armor, I fly through the night on my glider. Once I had gotten back to my hideout, I had gotten a ping on my police scanner telling me about some new information on the idiots I was hunting down a few months ago when I last met up with Punisher. Apparently one of the idiots that was arrested decided to take a deal. In exchange for a reduced sentence, he gave up some information, mostly hideouts and meetup locations. On the bright side it gave us info, on the downside, some of this stuff is probably out dated.

Hopping down off my glider onto the roof of one of the hideouts, I sigh as I see a group of thugs drag some girls into a big metal shipping container.

"Bingo…" I whisper.

Using the sound enhancers in my mask, I try to pick up what they are saying.

"Guys… I don't like this, What if that Goblin or the Punisher guy shows up like last time?" Said the first guy. He was a hefty, glasses wearing guy who looked to be around twenty five or so. Facial recognition in my mask told me he was Sylvester Drodd. Genius Mathematician turned petty thug when he couldn't make ends meet. Using his nearly superhuman calculating abilities he started gambling and quickly became a legend in the gambling industry. Unfortunately though, sometime last year he hit a bad luck streak and quickly tanked. Once a friend of his offered him a job in the criminal underground, he couldn't refuse the money.

On the down side he is terrified of his own shadow.

"They won't Sly. I made sure to cover our tracks. No one will know we're here till after we're gone." Said the second. He was an olive skinned black haired guy who looked to be in his mid-twenties. Walter O'Hare, an Irish immigrant who came to America when he was twelve and he hacked into NASA when he was seven. He is scarily smart with an IQ of 197. A few years ago though, he disappeared. No one knew where he went, not his family, not the cops, no one.

Apparently I found him.

"I don't know Walt… They already took Toby."

Toby? He must be talking about the guy who took a deal. Toby Connors, world class Psychologist and Doctor, He graduated Harvard at age sixteen. Unfortunately he developed a very bad gambling problem, with his ability to read people he became very good, but even he lost a few bets. Just like Sylvester, he ended up in deep debt and no way out but to help Walter with his plan.

"Hey, Don't worry big guy, He is probably working his way out of prison as we speak. Besides, sooner we finish, sooner we can get out of here." This one was a guy who looked to be in his mid-fifties, but he didn't seem to be the leader of this group… if anything, Walt seemed to be in charge.

Cabe Gallows ex Homeland security, apparently he was Walter's handler but was caught stealing money and abusing his position, sohe was fired and he moved in with Walt. He disappeared about the same time Walt did.

"Fine… Let's hurry up then…" Sly mumbles.

Not on my watch.

Bursting through the window, I land in a crouch in front of the three stooges and pull out a few Razorbats.

"Let them go." I growl at them.

"SEE I TOLD YOU!" Sly yelled as he pointed at me.

"Shut up Sylvester." Walt says as he and the Gallows pulls a couple of pistols and points them at me.

Standing up from my crouched position, I ask them again.

"Let them go. Now."

"Like hell we will. This will be the biggest payday of our careers." Said Cabe.

"Cabe, Shut up, I'll do the talking." Walt says as he glances at Cabe. "Obviously we can't hurt him. That armor of his is too durable. The only reason he hasn't attacked is because he doesn't want to hurt the girls."

"Not quite." I say as I throw my Razorbats, knocking the guns from their hands. Charging forward, I punch O'Hare in the stomach, knocking the wind out of him before turning back to Cabe.

Catching his punch, I twist his arm behind his back and toss him on top of Walter. As he tries to get up, I strike him on the head, not hard enough to give him a concussion, but hard enough to knock him out.

Handcuffing the two of them, I turn to Sylvester… Who was currently hiding behind an empty oil barrel?

"Do you really want to fight me?" I ask him.

"No… Not really…"

"Come on big guy…" I say as I handcuff him. "How about a deal. I'll keep you from getting arrested, you obviously don't want to do this, but you will need to tell me everything about this organization. Who's in charge, where are you supposed to take the girls, stuff like that. Think you can help me?"

He just nods his head really fast.

"Good. Now start talking."