One Month Later - New York City
Coulson had made a decision. He hated whoever the blindfolded teenager he had been tracking for the better part of a month was.
When he had struck on Coulson's first night on the case, he'd thought it was going to be a super quick assignment. Look at the video, be early next time the kid showed up, and speak with him.
'Haven't even seen him in person yet.'
Every time SHIELD heard an interaction happening involving him they rushed to the scene, but every single time they arrived to a defused situation and no vigilante. Sometimes the people brought into custody would give out information freely, but usually the perpetrators were unconscious when they got there and only helpful once in jail.
The descriptions didn't change throughout the whole month, well, recently he had been more sarcastic and witty than usual but that was hardly something of note.
Reading through the files again, Coulson couldn't help but think of what he knew so far.
'Wears a blindfold and hood. Hair looked silver or white under the hood, and he constantly comments on the situation or just talks to whoever is on site.'
Flipping the file closed, he rubbed his eyes, weary from recent late nights trying to devise a way to encounter the evasive vigilante. His confirmed encounters were rare. Media had caught on during his second week of being active, with a few pieces and interviews out there.
The people who he helped sang his praises, speaking about how he spoke to make them feel secure and made sure they were alright before leaving. Even the police didn't hate him, though that was privately, publicly they did the usual 'we don't need help' and asked him to turn himself in.
'About as likely as me finding him at this point. Fury is going to be pissed.' Coulson and Fury both had thought this would be a quick trip but now…
'I might need to call in some help,' he thought, glancing at two specific contacts in his phone that might be of some use.
Scene shift - Vance's Apartment - 3rd POV
Vance slowly exited meditation, breathing deeply as he spoke to the system, 'I hope we are looking good, system please show me my status.'
Certainly host
Name - Vance Gojo
Age - 16
Race - Cursed Human
Cursed Energy Usage - Grade 1 sorcerer
Cursed Techniques -
Adaptation and ??? - The ability to adapt to any and all phenomena and to ???? - Basic
Adaptations - Space, ???, Mental strain (3 turns),
Limitless - Bring the concept of infinity into reality and control space at will - Moderate
Other techniques/abilities - Rikugan
Infinity - Moderate
Cursed technique lapse, Blue - Moderate
Analysis. Progress occurring at fast paces. Confirmed large increase in strength and speed, both reaching superhuman levels. Usage of cursed energy has improved as well. Blue can be used rather normally, though not truly powerful as of yet. Infinity can be activated at will. No new adaptations, but this is within expectations.
He'd made a lot of progress in a month. Following his routine had helped tremendously, and the boxing had done wonders for his reactions and physique.
Cursed energy was a different animal. The system labeling him as using his cursed energy at a Grade 1 level felt like it was mocking him, but he knew it was true.
'I've gotta figure out how to get some adaptations. I'm not going to sit here and cut myself to get the slashing adaptation dice that feels psychotic, but at this point I might need to.'
Vance was starting to feel the pressure of being in the Marvel universe. Most of his month was fine, but then he'd seen an article about a 'Green Sasquatch' spotted in Canada and it was a stark reminder of the upcoming events and the powers at play.
'I'm way too weak right now. Sure I can't be hit easily, but if Gojo could get hit with something I certainly can. Teleportation has to be the next step. Need to get past five feet.'
Looking out the window, he saw the sun beginning to set which meant it was time to get ready for patrol. Things had been great so far, if a little boring.
'Seriously how many muggings could possibly be committed a night? Feels like 40. Plus that name…'
The media, not having much to go off of, decided on the thrilling and exciting name The Hooded Vigilante…
Anticlimactic, but it drove the point home. 'To be fair I do wear a blindfold and a hoodie. Not a whole lot to be seen by others.'
Despite the shitty name the people of New York City had taken a liking to him, his popularity evidenced by the interviews and articles in his favor. Stepping outside and quickly dashing to a nearby rooftop, Vance sat briefly reading another article on his acts that was released a few days ago.
THE HOODED VIGILANTE STRIKES AGAIN
New York City's newest vigilante made an appearance again last night, extending his nightly streak of helping citizens to 27! This time he stopped an assault and rounded up three bad actors while also defusing a tense police standoff. The police might be telling The Hooded Vigilante to turn himself in, but this writer says keep doing your work. A safer New York City is good for everyone.
Turning on his borrowed police radio, Vance stretched a bit while enjoying the evening air. 'It's getting warmer. Summer is on the way. Heat and more people outside which will lead to more crime and more opportunities for me to act.'
Dashing across a few roofs, he ignored calls for a while as they were simple and below his pay grade. Mostly just pull overs and arrests for simple crimes. The only time he had to act was to break up a fight before it turned into a group brawl, and him just showing up did that.
'Guess there's something to being a known name' he thought to himself while continuing his patrol. He was ready to turn in for the night when something interesting caught his eye.
'Well well well. What do we have here?' Shifting his blindfold with his thumb, the world snapped into focus as his brain greedily gathered information.
'Is that… Hawkeye? Wow he really does look like Jeremy Renner that's absolutely wild. Wait, that means…'
After a full scan Vance was practically vibrating with excitement. SHIELD had come to pay him a visit, and it appeared they were now scoping him out more seriously.
'I'd known they were on my trail, but bringing Hawkeye and Black Widow? Either they're worried I'm dangerous or they really want to talk. This could be really fun.'
Vance didn't mind talking with them, but he was going to do it on his own terms. No getting interrogated by Fury, no sir. Plus, it was still 2006. SHIELD was active, sure, but the Avengers initiative didn't start until 2008.
'Or was it a little later? Well either way, time to make a good first impression' he thought, raising his good and quietly making his way to their location.
Scene shift - SHIELD stakeout - 3rd POV
"Tell me again why you think he'll be here?"
The question came from the driver's seat. A man who appeared to be in his late twenties or early thirties, a serious expression on his face. His outfit could be called normal, apart from the quiver resting on his lap, jeans and a tight arthritic shirt.
The passenger stayed quiet, a woman in her early twenties with long red hair pulled back into a braid. Her outfit was more out of the norm, a tight fitting full body spandex suit that had easy access to batons and other hand held weapons.
The man in the back seat, Coulson, was the one who answered.
"Well he's been spotted around here in at least half of the nights he has been active. I thought it best to start in a hot spot before we started moving around."
The driver, Clint, nodded at that. 'A kid with a loud mouth that has powers. Just an average Saturday right Clint?'
Shaking his head from the negative self talk, he caught Natasha's eyes in the mirror as he spoke again.
"The blindfold is sticking out to me. He can clearly see, so why the blindfold?"
Natasha drummed her fingers on the dash, considering the question.
"Disfigurement?" Coulson threw out a guess, but Natasha shot that down quickly.
"No, at least I don't think so. Men that get disfigured usually are more stoic or ruthless. Our vigilante seems way too happy go lucky for that to be the case."
Clint nodded at that, shifting in his seat to try and get a little more comfortable. The spot they were in was actually where the so-called hooded vigilante had first appeared. The spot was such a hub for activity that he had been spotted there quite a bit but right now it was just full of the homeless and random strewn about trash.
"Maybe his eyes are unique and he needs to hide his identity? That or it's a diversion tactic to put an enemies guards down thinking he's weak."
Natasha's words made him think. "The first one sounds plausible. The second feels too complicated for a kid running around stopping muggings but it's an idea."
Sighing he shifted his attention to two men walking down the street slowly, but soon stopped looking closely as they were just walking by.
'Hopefully we can get an eye on him before the week is up and we have to check in with Fury.' If there was one thing no SHIELD member wanted to do, it was bring Fury an update that involved a whole bunch of nothing. A super quick and easy way to find yourself on a shitty assignment. Clint would know, he's been on a few such assignments.
Right when he was going to suggest moving to a new location, a flash of blue light from next to his window had him grabbing his bow from in front of the seat and nocking an arrow in under two seconds. He could hear Natasha cocking a pistol as he pulled back the string before aiming at the window.
Standing there giving a mock salute was a person in a blindfold, dark purple hoodie surrounding his head. A wide smile was on his face as he knocked on the window.
"Do you have a minute to talk about our lord and savior Jesus Christ?"
Natasha just scoffed before holstering her gun back. Clint kept his arrow on the string, but lowered his bow before sighing deeply,
"Well at least we'll be able to give Fury an update." Coulson just took a deep breath before exiting the car with the other two quickly following. Stepping forwards, Coulson extended a hand.
"Good evening Mr. Hooded Vigilante. I'm Special Agent Coulson with the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement, and Logistics Division. The two behind me are agents Barton and Romanoff. I was wondering if we could talk for a bit?"
Vance accepted the handshake, taking in the sight of the three before responding. 'They look really young. Figures since it's a while before the story truly begins.'
Tilting his head, he nodded before sitting cross legged on the ground.
"Ask away! You might not know this but I'm basically an open book. Oh! That name sucks by the way, think you could figure out a better one?"
Resting his chin on his hand he continued to smile, a snort leaving Clint's lips as he leaned back onto the black sedan they'd been inside. Natasha stayed at attention, one hand always inches from one of her weapons. That didn't mean the twitch of her lips missed his eyes though.
Coulson smiled back, if a little stiffly, before speaking,
"I will certainly look into it. Knowing how your abilities work a bit better would help with that. I'm not asking you to reveal your full hand, but is there anything you're willing to share?"
"Hmmmmmmm" Vance hummed out, intently staring at Coulson from behind his blindfold. 'I could probably share a bit. Not adaptation that's for sure, but maybe…'
Standing up, he dusted himself off before responding, "I can share a bit. I'll show you the neutral state of my ability." He raised a hand up before gesturing to it.
"Go ahead, try to touch it."
Clint stepped forwards, placing a hand on Coulson's shoulder before walking up. He shifted his bow to his left hand, right hand raising up slowly before coming to a stop inches from Vance's own.
A look of surprise crossed Clint's face, exerting more pressure he realized there was no getting through whatever was in front of him. Vance, meanwhile, chose to channel some more Gojo energy.
"You know, it hurts that you're keeping your distance, we could always hold hands if you want! Like this…" As Gojo pushed his hand forward, deactivating infinity while clasping Clint's hand. He quickly let go, not wanting to stress the three out more than they already were, before turning around and speaking fake shyly.
"So forward agent Barton, the age gap might be problematic, but I'm willing to give it a try."
He scowled in response to that, his grip on his bow tightening as Natasha coughed to cover a laugh. Coulson's smile grew strained, but before he could respond Vance straightened and spoke seriously.
"You know how infinity works right? Never ending numbers and such. This works similarly, as you get closer, the distance between us continues to divide meaning it won't actually touch me."
The switch of tone seemed to catch them by surprise, but Coulson quickly recovered. His eyes darted around Vance's body briefly before settling back on his blindfold.
"We appreciate the candidness. By the way, what's up with the blindfold? You can very obviously see, so why do you wear it?"
Vance's face lost its smile , speaking lowly at first with emotion clouding his words, "I- my eyes are…" before his smile returned and he finished with enthusiasm.
"Simply too beautiful for the public to see! Heads turn on the street, cars crash, and women start following me. It's an absolute curse I tell you."
Coulson's brow twitched at that, taking a deep breath before continuing.
"Would you be ok with coming with us to have an interview with our boss? He would love to meet you."
Vance let out a laugh at that, "now that sounds like a fancy way of asking me to turn myself in don't you think?" Crossing his arms, he continued, "I don't think that's a good idea for now. Maybe in the future, but right now I'm not really interested in meeting with the feds."
Glancing left, he could see 'agent Barton' switching his nocked arrow for one with a different tip. Meanwhile, Natasha leaned back slightly, putting her weight on the balls of her feet so she was ready to move at any time.
None of this escaped Vance's eyes as he focused on Coulson who had a wry smile, "I apologize then Mr. Vigilante, but we will be attempting to use force. Please don't take this the wrong way."
His words hadn't even finished before with the sound of cutting air two arrows fired at Vance's chest. One burst a foot away, a net extending that was stopped by infinity, while the other seemed to be a normal blunted arrow aimed at his stomach to knock him out.
A second later the net and arrows clattered to the ground, Clint with another nocked already as he and Natasha circled him. Cousin stepped back to the car and began recording from a device he had on his chest.
Natasha shot forward, reaching Vance's back quickly before feinting a blow with her baton before shooting a taser she had on her hip. The bolt paused inches from his skin, faint electrical sparks licking his back before the line went slack. Deactivating infinity, he kicked backwards but Natasha flipped away from the strike freeing him up for another quick two arrow shots.
'They already work so well as a team that's impressive.' A reactivation of infinity quickly made those useless as Vance advanced towards Clint, deciding to take out the ranged attacker first.
He was there in a burst of speed, but he chose not to teleport. 'I'm not going to use my adaptations, so might as well work on some hand to hand.'
A quick jab was parried, but the gut punch with his left connected. Clint was forced to step back, trying to find space to breathe. Vance didn't let it happen, stepping back into his guard and connecting with an elbow to the sternum. Eyes widening, he quickly shot out his left hand as he caught a baton that had been thrown by Natasha, giving Clint the time needed to recover briefly as Natasha pulled out her second baton, switching it to her right hand.
'I could've just backed off or used more cursed energy to move faster or be stronger, but it's nice to fight trained professionals. Kinda sad they still look pretty slow in my eyes. She's smart for throwing that baton though.'
Vance tossed the baton back at Natasha's feet, clapping his hands as he addressed the group.
"I think that was enough fun for one night. Any more and I might actually have to knock you unconscious."
Natasha smiled sweetly, which made him shudder, before replying while picking up the extra weapon.
"We were just starting to have some fun though. Surely you can go for longer than this right?"
Vance was glad for his getup as it hid the twitch or his eye when he heard that. Clint didn't react much better, head whipping in her direction and receiving a shrug in reply.
"No, I do apologize though. I'm sure we will see more of each other in the future. We can arrange for me to beat you up then!"
Smiling, Vance picked a rooftop a few houses down, 'Ah teleportation. The perfect getaway and a fun way to leave people frustrated.'
With another mock salute and a flickering blue late Vance was gone. The only proof he'd been there being a couple bruises on Clint's body and a video Coulson was now reluctantly ending.
"So he can teleport but just hit me twice? What a dick." Clint rubbed his chest with a grimace, already wishing he had ignored Coulson's call that morning. Natasha chuckled as Coulson walked over to join the group while pulling out a phone.
"At least he stuck around so we could observe a little of his fighting. Some kind of superhuman speed and strength, but he was doing it easily so he can probably go faster."
Natasha broke down the fight clinically, her eyes darting around as she recollected everything that had happened.
"His barrier is impressive, but the teleportation means it's probably not a mutant ability. The way he described it felt different too."
Both men nodded in agreement as Coulson put his phone on speaker while his call connected.
"Give me some good news Coulson."
Fury's deep voice came from the other end, sounding tired but still focused.
Clearing his throat, Coulson spoke, "I will be sending you the recording of our interaction soon, but we met the Hooded Vigilante tonight. I called agents Romanoff and Barton for assistance this morning hoping to use their expertise to catch him by surprise, but unfortunately he spotted us and caught us by surprise instead."
Nervously looking at his phone, a deep sigh followed by an inaudible mutter let him know how his boss thought of that reveal. Quickly moving on he continued,
"He declined my invitation to meet you, but indicated he is likely to either be in contact with us or you down the road. I believe he said something about not wanting to meet the feds yet."
That got a snort from the other end,
"So what abilities did he reveal?"
Coulson glanced at Clint who met his eyes before speaking, "I fought him the longest, but even then it probably wasn't even a full minute. He's quick and strong. Definitely past normal human levels. Natasha thought he was holding back and I got the sense of that too. His barrier ability is, according to him, the neutral state of his ability and based off the concept of infinity. I don't know if he was bullshitting us, but it certainly seemed to be true. Oh, and he got away by teleporting."
Those words were met with only silence for a minute before Fury spoke again, sounding much more tired than before.
"Anything to add, Natasha?"
Thinking briefly, she hesitated before speaking slowly,
"I don't know if this is fully true, we will need to look back on the recording and make further contact. His barrier seems to be like an off and on switch. If he's on offense he has to turn it off to hit someone. When he was fighting Clint I threw a baton at his back and he had to turn around and grab it."
That was something that had been bothering Natasha. The vigilante had clearly been able to get through untouched so why bother catching the baton? The only explanation she could come to was that he couldn't attack and keep his barrier up at the same time.
"Well that's good information to have. Coulson, get that video to me ASAP. Barton, I'll have an assignment sent over to you in the morning. Romanoff, stick around with Coulson for now. I'll send an update tomorrow after I've reviewed the footage. Anything else?"
Hearing silence as the three glanced at one another and shook their heads he closed the call without another word. Leaning back on the car, Coulson smiled at the two agents.
"Thanks for the help, good luck on your assignment Clint, looks like we will be vigilante watching for a while yet."
Walking around the car, Clint winced when opening the door but sat down heavily.
"Thanks. Can't say I'm jealous of the agents that are stuck staking out random streets every night."
Coulson just got in the car, chuckling to himself as the three got ready to leave.
"Well Clint," Natasha began, a smile creeping into her face, "it makes sense you're being sent off, you were the only one hurt after all."
He grumbled quietly as Coulson laughed, the car starting as they pulled off into the New York City night.