In a small alley around the corner of a commercial street in the Bronx, Nightingale and Speedball were hiding on one side of a wall. Suddenly, a shadow flashed past, and Pietro stopped behind them, saying, "They are coming soon. Let's go to the rooftop."
Without hesitation, the remaining two young heroes leaped onto the roof of a three-story building on the commercial street. They then laid on the edge of the roof and looked towards the protesting crowd approaching from the intersection.
Nightingale took out two mini binoculars and handed them to his teammates. He also picked up one and began observing the details within the group. After a few seconds, he put down his binoculars and said with certainty, "Jarvis was right, this crowd is problematic."
"I didn't expect that mechanical head to have such good judgment," said Speedball Robert, his tone still somewhat exaggerated, an aftershock of being on a TV show and using bizarre metaphors.
Upon seeing Nightingale's disapproving gaze, Robert regained his composure and said, "Alright, I shouldn't have talked about him like that. But he is very knowledgeable about computers, isn't he?"
"Jarvis is a formidable hacker. Our team needs someone like him. He has provided us with a lot of help, which is support that the guys in Hell's Kitchen don't have. Therefore, we can't afford to fall behind them."
Robert picked up his binoculars again and looked at the crowd. It was a very characteristic violent protest march. People at the front held various signs, while those in the back had their hands in their pockets with weapons concealed there or around their waist.
A few loud-mouths constantly shouted slogans over megaphones, something like "Ban the shuttle or we will bring it down," and "The sky train is flying too fast, they should wait for their people."
The police following them kept significant distance. In the crowd, a few heavily tattooed hip-hop youths were making various gestures insulting the police, but the police didn't draw their guns, which was very abnormal.
"What's the matter? Why are the police acting like cowards? Can't the Bronx police afford bullets?" Robert commented, "They should let these annoying guys experience Manhattan police. There, the situation would be drastically different!"
"The police are apprehensive; they don't have the confidence," Robert said from the edge of the rooftop, somewhat puzzled, "They have guns, they have bullets; I've seen it before. So what are they worried about?"
"Do you remember what Jarvis said?" Nightingale chimed in, "The recent protests and confrontations between the public and the police are odd. Some people are deliberately escalating the conflicts by provoking civilians when pushing and shoving, injuring the police, and then running away. It seems like they want to attract more police attention and escalate the violence."
"The question is, how do they manage to injure the police?"
"Superpowered individuals," Nightingale uttered a word, "Some superpower users who are different from normal people are hidden among the crowds. When things get physical, they instigate the civilians to go first, and take the opportunity to deliver a fatal blow to the police, then using their special abilities to escape."
"Civilians would get injured and bleed under police suppression, ordinary police officers wouldn't be able to handle superpowered individuals and would also get injured. The conflict escalates instantly."
"Look there." Robert suddenly spoke. He put down his binoculars and pointed at the crowd, "Look at that lad, yes, the white lad walking on the edge of the crowd, he's acting strange."
Pietro picked up his binoculars and looked at a suspicious man straggling in the back of the crowd.
It was a white youth, who looked older than Nightingale and Speedball, and more mature in appearance. He was wearing a deep red jacket and a baseball cap covering his eyes.
What was different about him from everyone else was that he walked at the very rear of the crowd, very close to the following police. Unlike the protesters who surrounded the crowd and kept their hands tightly grasping weapons in their pockets or bags, nervously anticipating potential violent confrontations with the police.
Both of his hands were exposed, empty, and smooth, without signs of boxing training. His body was thin and did not look like he could fight, but he walked calmly next to the police, not anxious at all.
This was a street in the Bronsk District of America. Even without the protestors and the many armed police, such a relaxed posture was not normal for the place had poor public security.
"He's very confident," commented Nightingale, "So where does his confidence come from? Stupidity, or superpowers?"
After saying that, Nightingale pressed a button on his earphone. Jarvis's voice came from the other end, "What is it?"
"We've found a suspicious person, just as you said. He might be a superpowered individual, can you help us scan his identity?"
"That would be a violation of a citizen's privacy," Jarvis mechanically responded, then added, "But superpowered individuals not in the registration list are obligated to register with S.H.I.E.L.D."
"Yes, yes, register, that's the word."
"Scanning... matching identity..."
"Oh, my God!"
Just as Nightingale was attentively listening for the result, Speedball suddenly screamed. A conflict had broken out in the protesting crowd.
The street wasn't wide. Many cars were parked disorderly, and some shops had cargo boxes placed outside their doors. The protesters passing through such a cramped space were shoulder to shoulder, pushing and shoving.
The front members of the crowd were all from their side, so a little push would do. But when the center and rear of the crowd, where police and protesters were cramped together, a tall black man was pushed to the ground. He quickly got up and punched back.
A police officer checking the situation was directly hit. His colleague charged up, pulling out his electric baton, but the tall man ducked a blow, and a punk woman with green hair that was pushed over got hit by the electric baton and fell.
The woman's scream was exceptionally piercing, hence the parade descended into chaos instantaneously. Robert saw the suspicious person charging directly into the epicenter of the conflict, and without a second thought, he yelled, "Stop him!"
Nightingale reacted promptly, jumping straight down from a three-story building, his grappling hook latched onto the opposite building. Swinging himself with force, he plummeted into the middle of the street. Pushing aside the obstructing crowd, he dashed forward and grabbed the young man's wrist.
However, much to Nightingale's surprise, an immense force exploded instantly, propelling him to the other side of the street. Robert yelled, "Superpower user! Cease!"
Regardless, the unusual youth showed no intention of escaping. He stood at the same spot and assumed a defensive pose, waiting for Speedball's assault.
Speedball hesitated briefly before a surge of anger washed over him. He grit his teeth and said, "You're definitely here to cause trouble!"
His judgement was based on the fact that all youth heroes in New York City were acquainted with Daredevil Matt. Matt had united them, providing essential aid and training.
Although not everyone was Matt's student, like Nightingale and Speedball who chose to operate on their own, nearly all young superheroes acknowledged Matt's influence and had received his help.
In this circle, Matt's words were considered the golden rule, "If you engage in battle amongst a dense crowd, you are no different from a terrorist. Consider who you are fighting for."
Nightingale and Speedball particularly grasped this concept. The death of the first-generation Spider-Man was still vivid in their memories. Had Nitro's explosion occurred on a deserted island instead of a residential district, thousands of residents would have been affected. Each midnight, they would wake up drenched in cold sweat, and are grateful for the fact.
Nightingale, Speedball, and the other members of the New Warriors Team who were witnesses to this incident, passionately spoke to everyone about their experience, hoping to spread the message against fighting in densely populated areas.
Once this ethos caught on, most young heroes became more cautious. Even if they did not consider casualties, their reputation within the circle was at stake.
Everyone acted like mature adults, assessing the situation judiciously. When a greenhorn charges up, intending to wage a long battle amidst the crowd, how can everyone play joyfully?
Thus, when the youth took a defensive stance amongst the crowd, Speedball knew immediately that he was not a young hero from New York. If he was not a hero, then what else could he be if not a troublemaker inflaming conflicts?
"Subdue him ASAP!" Rolling over to his feet, Nightingale yelled.
Speedball and Pietro shared a glance. Speedball wiped his nose; the force controlling the kinetic energy was immediately activated. He bounced off like a ball, charging at the unfamiliar youth.
Speedball was given his hero code name because he could charge at his enemy at high speed, like a soccer ball. Instinctively, any human would want to dodge a fast-approaching object. The unfamiliar youth was no exception.
He attempted a sidelong roll, but the next second, another fast-moving shadow took advantage of his lack of balance. Grabbing his shoulder, the shadow launched him away from the crowd with a "whoosh".
The stranger youth responded quickly. He shoved the person holding him, Pietro, giving him a kick, and fled towards the distance.
"Chase him!" Nightingale commanded.
Both Speedball and Pietro were speed-type heroes, yet, their target's speed was not any slower. More importantly, he could proceed by clinging directly onto a building's surface. The more Speedball watched him, the more familiar he seemed.
"What's with this guy?!!" Speedball yelled while in pursuit.
"I have no idea! Jarvis, have we got any results?"
"Found it." Jarvis's voice always sounded calm, but at that moment, he paused briefly, then said in a slightly perplexed tone, "...Peter?"
"What? Which Peter?"
"Turn on the speakerphone!" Jarvis shouted.
Nightingale, who was trailing behind, widened his eyes, but he showed no hesitation. While running, he pulled off his earphone, pressed a switch on it, and flung it forward.
Pietro caught the earphone. However, the voice coming through the speakerphone was not Jarvis's, but a recording of Director Nick Fury of S.H.I.E.L.D.
"Spiderman in the front, listen up! You have violated the Multiverse Spiderman New York Activity Act! Report to the designated laboratory for registration immediately! Otherwise, we hold the rights to withhold all your labor dispatch compensations and bonuses, and evict you from this universe!"
"Spiderman in the front, listen up!"
"Spiderman ahead..."
"Spiderman..."
"Enough! I'm not Spiderman!"