Big Daddy OC X Tatsumaki (Old)

Chapter 3: Dawn Of A New Day

Holy shit, I was frozen for over a thousand years....

As I'm reeling from this discovery, the man looks down at my leg to see Ava, who had been clutching it, watching the man as he spoke to me. She hid behind my leg as the man kneeled down to be eye to eye with her, and smiled softly.

Man: Hello, there. What's your name?

Ava: A-Ava....

Man: Well hi there, Ava. It's nice to meet you.

Ava waved shyly to him as he stood back up to speak to me.

Man: Well, I'd like to offer something to you.

I eyed him curiously as he presented his offer.

Man: You see, this city, along with all the others, face monster attacks on a near daily basis, and we're always looking for more hero's to prevent them from wreaking havoc. Would you like to help us, and become a protector of this city?

Protector....

That word reminded me of what I had been called, a thousand years ago. I looked to Ava, who was still watching the man, then to Tatsumaki, who seemed to not care about this turn of events, though I could see her glance towards me occasionally.

After a moment of thought, I looked back towards the man and slowly nodded. The mans smile widened with joy.

Man: Excellent! Follow me then, I'll take you to the training area to determine your hero rank.

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After walking down countless stairs, we reached a massive room, built from dull, grey concrete and lit by bright lights on its ceiling. The man took me to a bag hanging from a small pole.

Man: Alright, I need you to punch this, as hard as you can.

I did as he said, reeling back my left hand and striking the bag, which broke from its chain and went flying a good ten feet. The man wolf whistles, watching it skid across the floor.

Man: Not bad, not bad at all. Tatsumaki, what do you think?

She looked at the broken bag, now spilling sand over the floor, and looks away with a "hmph."

Tatsumaki: I've seen harder hits from a toddler.

Something about the way she said that made me want to try even harder, as the man led me to the next test.

Man: Alright, here we're going to test your strength. Let's see how much you can hold. Lift that above your head, and whenever you can't lift anymore, just drop it.

He gestured to a flat board and I did as instructed. For ten minutes Tatsumaki floated weight after weight onto the board, until I finally felt my arms were going to give out, and I dropped it.

Man: Eight tons.....Damn.

Tatsumaki once again uttered a "hmph", as she turned towards the next test.

Man: This is a fifty yard dash. Run as fast as you can towards that line. Ready....Go!

I did as he said, and ran swiftly to the line. I looked to the man, who was staring at the timer, his eyes wide in suprise.

Man: 4.4 seconds....For a big metal dude, you're pretty damn fast.

I looked towards Tatsumaki, who had eyes almost as wide as the Man's, until she noticed me looking at her. She swiftly turned her head away and uttered another low "hmph" in my general direction.

Man: Well, it's safe to say you passed the physical portion of the test, but now we have a written exam for you to take.
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After nearly crushing the seat I was supposed to take the test in, and definitely crushing multiple pencils, I finished the test. It wasn't very difficult, basic math and easy moral questions. The man went into a small room adjacent to the testing room with my paper, saying he'd come out with the results in a moment, which left me, Ava, and Tatsumaki sitting in the classroom silently, until she decided to break the silence.

Tatsumaki: How do you think you did?

I shrugged, unsure. I had nothing to directly compare to, other than Tatsumaki, who was a fucking psychic, so I know she's stronger than me. This was not what Ava thought, however. She wrapped her arms around my helmet and looked at Tatsumaki.

Ava: I know he did great, cause' my daddy's the best there is!

I silently laughed at this and patted her head, and even Tatsumaki seemed to smile at it. Then the man walked back into the room with a small packet.

Man: Well, first off let me say congratulations. You did very well, and your hero rank is....

He pulled out a paper, marked with a "B" at the top of the page, directly below it was a smaller "32"

Man: Your new rank is B-32. And the council has even decided your hero name. Let's see, it's....

He scans the page for a moment, then looks back at me.

Man: Iron Man.

What?

Man: Wait, no...

The man looks back at the page once more.

Man: My bad, it's Tin Man.

That doesn't sound much better, but I guess it's something...

Man: Also, you've been given some special permissions. Due to the fact you've been out of society for a thousand years, you have been assigned a teacher, to show you the ropes. Due to the fact you've only interacted with one person other than me, that teacher will be Tatsumaki.

Tatsumaki's eyes bulged out of her head.

Tatsumaki: WHAT!? But I can't-I mean, look at- why would I-

Man: Sorry, Tornado. It's the councils decision, not mine. You don't have much of a choice.

Tatsumaki's face turned red with rage. She puffed up her cheeks, and looked as if she was about to explode. Using her powers, she picked up the desks in the room and threw them at the man, who ducked and dodged them.

Man: Tatsumaki, the damages to this room come out of your paycheck!

She stops suddenly, and her face returns to its normal shade. She crosses her arms on her chest.

Tatsumaki: Ugh...........FINE. Come on, weirdo. Let's go make sure you don't mess up your new job.

She leaves the room, and I follow closely behind. Ava turns toward the man and waves as we leave.

Ava: Bye mister.... Hey, I never learned your name!

The man looks at her with a soft smile.

Manager: Just call me...Manager.