Huehuehueheu-

This is gonna be a pretty fun chapter to write-

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TK.O's POV.

She said his name. Again. But I finally knew why. He was... Her Child. Her missing child.

And she... She was our mom.

"NO! I refuse to fucking believe that!" I suddenly took control, shouting, already seeing something going wrong if K.O was still in control.

Carol and Gar both flinched at the rage and disbelief in my voice.

"She's been dead for as long as I've known! Dad's always told me that!" I snarled, tears starting to stream from my eyes. "And I'm never going to believe I'm the son of some Cob-damn hero!" I choked on my tears, sniffing, and trying to reel my emotions in. There was no way I was going to let myself believe this. Our mom was dead, wasn't she? She had to be. Carol was lying. But then I looked back at the two heroes who brought K.O into the store.

Carol was crying. She was looking away from me, and crying her eyes out. Like she didn't even want to see me. Gar, on the other hand, looked confused, and worried as ever. I wiped away my tears, gritting my teeth.

"W-why... Why...?" Carol suddenly looked back up at me, and I leered at her. "What happened to you, my little Kaio...?" More tears escaped my eyes, and I stepped back. Cob, this was not okay. I felt my turbonic energy starting to react, and I felt fear enter my body. I couldn't lose myself.

"He died." I lied. "He died, and I was his little replacement." I laughed, surprising the two heroes. "No villain wants a weak child."

Carol shook, and stared at me in fear. I smirked, going closer to her. "But guess what?"

"W-what...?"

"He's been trapped in my mind for as long as I've been around." I laughed once more, teleporting out of the storage room and back outside to escape them if they planned to run after me. I still had tears running down my face, but they were drying up fast. Who knew how bad K.O felt when he was in control to hear her say that he was her son... Terrible, most likely, but I'm not concerned about that. I'll leave him be in case he needs some time to digest the news. I took care of the problem anyway. Carol won't want me back after that.

I looked around after a moment, before deciding to take a break in the nearby forest. I've never noticed it at all, really. It was right in the view of my window, so I don't know why I haven't seen it. I shrugged, just wanting to be alone, and this would be the best place to do so. Nobody would be able to find me. Not Gar, Carol, my Dads... Nobody. I smirked, unaware I was already being watched, even with my careful advance into the forest.

I walked for a few minutes, glad nobody was around. It was only the birds, trees, and myself. Completely calming. I went on for a while longer, before I came to a clearing. It was a small spot, yet it would suffice for now. It had a small pond with a few Koi swimming in it, and a few other bits of wildlife. I grinned, sitting down next to the pond, and looking into the clear water. For a second, everything felt okay. I wasn't the son of a superhero, and my alter ego wasn't the one who deserved to be in control for as long as he wanted. I sighed, feeling a bit better now.

I should go check in on K.O right now. Maybe the calm area would help them unwind and deal with the problems at hand? As I got ready to head into my mindscape, the bushes behind me ruffled, and I stilled. Who the hell could it be? I scowled, my better mood ruined, as I turned back around to look at the passerby. Hopefully they'd leave me be.

"Ah..." The stranger said, a creepily calm tone In his voice. "What do we have here?" He chuckled, and came up beside me. I looked away, growling silently.

"Silent Treatment, T K.O? That's very unbecoming of you." I stopped, looking up at the guy in confusion. He was dressed up in a long black trench coat, and everything under the coat was similarly coloured, and maybe just a shade lighter or darker than it. He had a low voice with this weird distortion. I felt on edge, and I growled at him warningly.

"Stay back, idiot. How do you know my name?" I hissed. He only shook his head, chuckling. He sat down without warning in front of me, perfectly postured.

"Hm. So you really don't recognize me..." The shady guy mumbled, which made me even more cautious of him. "I'm Shadowy Figure. I work with your... fathers." He smirked, and offered a hand to shake.

I looked at his offered hand, and then back up at his shadowed face. I frowned, taking the hand and shaking it hesitantly. He pulled his hand away once the shake was done, and he sighed.

"Now... There's something I was meant to come to do, but I've forgotten." Shadowy let out a short laugh, and I rose an eyebrow. "So let's get something else out of the way instead. How are you feeling?" He asked me.

"I was doing just fine before-"

"Not you." Shadowy's mouth turned from a gentle smile to an unnerving frown, and I barely concealed a flinch. "I was asking... the person in your head." I flinched at this, and I hoped for certain, he didn't know about K.O.

"What the hell do you mean?! It's only me, myself, and I! Seriously, old man. You expect me to trust you the second I know your name? I'm done." I hissed, getting ready to leave. However, I couldn't yet again, since he grabbed a hold of my spiked wrist.

"You leave, and you'll regret having left your home." I looked back at Shadowy with a fearful look.

"Was your original plan to come bring me back home...?"

"Maybe." He smirked, and I looked away after a moment. I huffed and pulled my arm away, sitting back down.

"Now. I know you've got something.. Someone else in your head." Shadowy said to me, and I stiffly looked off to the side. I gripped the grass under my hands.

"...I do." I looked back at his satisfied smirk. "But if you tell either Boxman or my dad, you're dead meat."

"I understand." Shadowy chuckled. "I've come to you with this sort of information, because..." The air seemed to still with his next words.

"...I've found a way to get rid of him for you."

I stayed silent, my eyes widening. There was no way someone could get rid of their alter ego's. At least, not entirely. I could tell. Especially since Shadowy Figure sounded a bit too much like my dad. Like, scarily too much.

"...How do I know I can trust you...?" I asked after a moment, growling.

"Of course you can't. You said it yourself. I'm some stranger you've never seen before."

With this, I finally broke. I decided I'd... Let him know more. It was a risky descision, but I had no other choice unless I wanted to leave.

"Y'know what? Fine. I'll play your petty game. As long as I can leave after this, I don't care." I huffed, looking off to the side. "Why would you think I want to get rid of him? K.O, I mean." I frowned, hearing a slight hum come from him.

"Because. That's what happened to me."

"Why?"

"I'm here for a reason. I didn't want to share with someone I hated." That struck something in me, and I looked down at my hands. I don't know why, but... It made too much sense. But I didn't hate K.O. Sure he was annoying as hell, but I didn't feel the need to just get rid of him.

"Well, I don't exactly want to get rid of K.O. You know?" I frowned, pointing at him angrily. "I'm not gonna follow any of your stupid ideas." I got up, and before he could grab my arm again, if he even planned to do it, I quickly kicked him in the stomach, sending him a few feet away. "And I'm leaving. Whether you chose to fight back, or not, is your choice."

A chilling laugh came from Shadowy, and he slowly rose back onto his feet. I frowned and put up my fists, purple flames engulfing them.

"Oh, I'll fight." Shadowy smirked, an invisible breeze suddenly blowing through the trees. "That is... If you can keep up." He suddenly rushed at me, and I just barely dodged. If I hadn't moved, he would have grabbed my neck, and had a total advantage. With the split second I had on his side, I threw out a purple flaming power fist, hitting him right in the back.

He flew forward, but turned around and managed to keep himself upright. I couldn't react fast enough this time, his hand slamming into my chest. I flew back, hitting a tree with deadly force. I fell from the tree, struggling to get back up.

I looked up as he stepped towards me, my eyes wide.

"Hm. That's disappointing. You couldn't even defend yourself." He hummed to himself, and my anger flared up. With another burst of energy, I jumped up from my crouched position, and slammed into his chest, causing him to only stumble backwards. I briefly thought for a second, bringing K.O out would help me fight, but it would take too long. While Shadowy dusted off his chest from my petty attack, I shot several power fists at him, pushing him back, further and further.

But when it seemed like I'd pushed him far enough, he suddenly disappeared from my sight, and I heard something from behind me.

"Boo~" Shadowy whispered in my ear, and kicked me in the back, causing me to yelp in suprise. I rolled on the ground, growling when I scrambled back up to my feet.

"How the hell can I beat you?!" I snarled, watching his self satisfied smirk. It was as if he really wanted me to lose myself to my anger. But I couldn't let that happen, no matter what. I huffed, trying to calm down, even if it was ticking me off.

"You can't. Unless you get rid of K.O." He grinned wider, and I lowered my head in disgust.

"I'm not putting him away! I'll find some other way to beat you!" I hissed, purple lightening coursing down my arms. "Even without falling to your stupid tricks."

He 'tsk'ed, shaking his head.

"No, no..." He finally sounded angry, for once. "That won't do at all. Though, if you really think you can beat me..." He looked back up at me, and I could barely make out the eyes under the shade over them. "Then you're out of luck, boy."

As soon as he said that, he disappeared from my sight, teleporting once more. I growled, looking around me as fast as possible, wondering if he was going to attack suddenly. When nothing happened, I let my guard down, and sighed. Hopefully Shadowy wouldn't be back anytime soon. I looked around the small clearing, before planning to head into hiding around the Plaza.

I couldn't go back home, seeing as I wouldn't be able to leave my room. I couldn't be seen around the Plaza, even if it was where I was going, because Carol and Gar might keep me someplace to tell them more about me. But I knew I'd be... Somewhat okay. I'd be able to survive.

As long as I've got a place to hide, and can steal snacks, I'll be okay.

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YEET-

This I feel, wasn't the best chapter I could produce, but meh- people apparently like this book, so I'll keep going whenever I can.

Thank you all for reading this far!