BURN [Marvel Cinematic Universe]

P R O L O G U E

BURN-PROLOGUE; A Demon in the "City of Angels"

SAN GABRIEL, LOS ANGELES

In a crowded nightclub a silent man sits at the bar, nursing a scotch on the rocks. At least twenty— from first glance— empty glasses sit in a group next to him. The bartender is cleaning dishes with a rag while eying the customer warily with a stiff stance. Truth is, he knew the man— well, the man came in quite often— usually kept to himself. Sometimes participated in bar fights when drunk dumb asses pissed him off. Perhaps it was better to say he knew of the man, and that his mood would change like a flip of a switch.

"Ironic, right?" The man says suddenly, making the bartender jolt, but before he can ask who his patron's talking to, a slender African American male in a long black coat takes a seat next to the man, an eye patch covering his right eye.

"I don't see the humor." Eyepatch replies and the man's lips twitch.

"Well, of course you don't, you have a stick up your ass." The man replies.

"Cain," Eyepatch starts, gaining a sharp look from the regular. The bartender jumps again when some men in uniform flank him on both sides and usher him out.

"Huh, I thought you were an ordinary dumb human. Guess you're an above average dumb human." Cain mocks, finishing his drink with three large swallows. Eyepatch doesn't seem to take any offense as he slides four folders towards him over the surface of the bar. Cain takes them and flips through each nonchalantly.

"We're facing a possible global threat, so we decided to put together an... initiative." Eyepatch speaks up when Cain finishes going through the final folder.

"Okay." Cain says simply before turning to gaze at eyepatch with candy apple green eyes. "And where's mine?" Cain inquires, only gaining a furrow of brows as an answer. Cain rolls his eyes. "Where's my fancy folder?" Eyepatch retrieves the folders from Cain, placing them in a small briefcase he carried with him.

"Unfortunately, our research on you is incomplete so we've yet to finish it." Eyepatch explains and Cain smirks.

"Oh, too bad. I wanted to see what was written about me and how much was wrong." Cain sighs, shaking his head. "You humans, always the disappointment." Cain then looks up with a curious raise of his brow. "What's your name anyway? And why do you keep referring to a "we"?"

"I'm Nick Fury and I'm with a special agency known as S.H.I.E.L.D., we try and keep the peace." Nick explains and Cain scoffs.

"Yeah, clearly that's working out stupendously." Cain mocks with a roll of his eyes. "Stupid humans," Cain grumbles under his breath. "So," Cain adds, voice clearer, "where do I come in?"

"While the other recruits have great skills and special talents, our enemy has the ability to mind control. You're the back up if things should go south." Nick explains and Cain nods slowly, pursing his lips as his eyes glance up. He appears to be thinking the offer over.

"Right. So I'm basically a morning after pill should the condom fail, got it." Cain comments before glancing around the now empty nightclub, also noticing the bartender is also gone and all that's left is men and women in black suits with dark navy blue vests guarding all entrances. They're carrying some high tech weapon and some are even wearing helmet with the name of the agency printed across the front of their vests, a bird logo on their chests. "And if I refuse?" Cain asks, bringing his attention back.

"I have a feeling you won't." Nick answers, keeping his voice leveled and monotone. A large cat-caught-the-canary grin splits Cain's face as he smiles ear to ear.

"Liar~" Cain coos in a sing-song tone. He shakes his head with a low chuckle. "I love liars the best, because you never know what bullshit will spew from their idiotic mouths next." Cain adds with a dangerous edge to his voice. "You amuse me, so sure. Plus, I really wanna see the big guy." Cain finishes, conceding. He lets himself be lead away by Nick and onto a weird looking jet that seems like it came right out of those superhero movies.

~Cas😘✌️