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The warmth of the morning summer sun hit Scott Hunter's face as he stepped onto the roof of The Hub. Though the sun was shining and there was not a cloud in the sky, Scott was nevertheless restless. With each step he took, his legs felt as if they were weighted. He had things that he wanted, no, needed to do.  However, before he could get to tasks at hand, the growling in his stomach informed him that he needed to get breakfast. 

The only question was, where should he go? Bea's Diner over on 3rd Street? Maybe a quick trip down to the Cape? Or perhaps he was in the mood for something a little farther away. Red's Place in Chicago? Or maybe even Calypso's in Miami? The truth was, he didn't know what he wanted, but he figured that he'd decide once he was in the air. 

With the press of a button, the nanites which formed his suit deployed from the bracelet that Alexa had given him and began to cover his body. His skin tingled as the nanites moved first up his arm, then over his torso. In an instant, his easily recognizable costume had replaced his normal clothes and he had been transformed into his famous alter ego, Icon.

[i]I'm not sure that I'll ever get used to that.[/i] Icon thought to himself as he rose up into the Lost Haven sky. As he ascended upward, the city skyline dropped below him, and with a half turn, Icon accelerated away from the city that he called home, westward, toward Chicago.  The ground below him was a massive blur of greens and browns which would change to grays and blacks as he rocketed past cities. Though the trip from Lost Haven to Chicago would have taken hours, or even days if taken by traditional means, it only took him a matter of moments to reach his destination.

Once he arrived in Chicago, he touched down in an alley behind Red's Place, a local diner that was known throughout the city as one of the best places for breakfast in the entire Mid-West. With a single press of the button on his bracelet, the nanites which constituted his costume instantly retracted into the device, leaving him in his civilian clothes as he made his way to the front of the eatery. 

After eating breakfast, which consisted of a large meat lover's omelet, a stack of pancakes, and a generous side of Chicago's famous breakfast sausage, Scott was ready to hit the skies again. He had a lot to do today before the club opened, and one thing in particular stood out more than the rest. In fact, he hadn't been able to think of anything else for the last several days. So once he had paid for his breakfast, he went back into the alley behind Red's and with the press of a button, again changed into his uniform and took to the skies. 

As he flew home toward Lost Haven, his mind drifted to the task at hand, and what he had to do. Though the thought of what he needed to do terrified, he found within himself a steel resolve, and he knew that nothing was going to get in his way, not even the fear that he felt deep down inside. Nevertheless, he was going to take the first step, he just had one more stop before returning to Lost Haven.

It had been awhile since Scott had returned to his hometown, however, today was a special occasion. He landed on Gallows Hill, near the famous water tower the word “Salem” painted above the image of a witch on her broom. Once he had retracted his costume into the bracelet, he began the short hike down the hill and out of the woods, passing a small playground and basketball court on his way back into the downtown area. Although he had been back to Salem infrequently since his father passed away, something about the city just seemed to stay familiar, it was almost as if nothing ever changed. As he walked down Highland Avenue towards downtown, images from his past played in his mind. He could see himself walking this very street with his older brother Brandon, as well as Jenny when they were children. Jenny was always running ahead of them, anxious to get into town and get candy at the comic shop on Essex Street. 

Scott smiled at the memory, and kept walking. He walked passed the Ropes Mansion and the Witch House, and crossed the street. As he did so, he looked at the Army Barracks shop at the corner and chuckled to himself when he thought about how around Halloween they would always put a display outside of a man in a spooky mask sitting in a chair surrounded by hay, and sometimes they'd replace the mannequin with an actual person who would occasionally jump up and scare tourists and locals alike as they walked by.  

Though these were fond memories, today was not about the past. On the contrary, today was about the future. He made his way down the street, where he crossed at another intersection and found himself in a pedestrian mall. About a half of a block down, across from a new tattoo shop was his destination, Witch City Jewelers. Though there were other places that he could have gone, this was the same store that his father had bought his mother's engagement ring, and just about every other piece of jewelry for as long as Scott could remember. There was something fitting about coming here today. He stood in the doorway for a moment, and for a brief moment, he hesitated. A cold sensation of panic washed over him, and he considered turning around and going home, though, only for a split second. With a deep breath, he pushed open the door and went inside.