[Invincible Universe]
It has been two years since Omni-man betrayal. And a lot changed, no surprise there.
For a world full of superheroes, villains, monsters and aliens Mark can atleast say it was not thaaat bad until ofcourse it was.
Of course it was not that bad for Mark himself, as a Viltrumite even a half one he was still powerful compared to others.
Very few can contend against him when it came to strength, durability, speed and flight.
Like Immortal and War woman to name a few but it didn't mean Mark didn't have his shares of fights and injuries but somehow his life was turning into some drama sit-com show all of a sudden.
What with him being 'asked for help' by his own father who found a new partner on a new planet where he's maskerading as a savior after the shit he did on earth and now Mark has a purple fast growing half-brother.
Not even a day in this new revelation and they were attacked by more Viltrumites, beaten, his father got captured and suddenly the mission to conquer earth was now on his shoulders. Not that he will do it but still.
Oh and he has to take care of his new half-brother. Did he mention that his brother grows so fast?
Because yeah just couple of months was enough for him to grow from a baby to a 10-12 years old.
Atleast Debbie, Mark's mother, was open-minded about it and easily accepted Oliver.
Then Oliver got his powers early and things became even more complicated.
Another alien trip took him to Mars with the new Guardians of the globe and they had to deal with some alien mind controlling starfish.
More villains to fight, more monsters more drama.
His love life was also taking a nose-dive because of his busy and stressful life schedule but atleast he made up for it with a romantic date until of course another Viltrumite had to disturb him and well...
Things became way mooore bad after that after Amber broke up with him from the whole stressful event and Mark didn't know what to do beside throwing himself at training and trying to get stronger.
Mark didn't know it but his life could have been more messy if not for Zane's interference in his world.
For starters Zane appearance spared the life of War Woman and gave them one extra heavy-hitter in dealing with earth's mess.
Someone will ask what can just one more person do for changes? A lot actually.
You can make fun of War Woman all you want and even think low of her if you compared her to other amazonian warrior variants in the multiverse but Holly was not to be underestimated in the least.
Holly may not be as powerful as those variants in the big picture of things but as all warriors are she was stubborn and had pride, she was not some 'vase' and just 'Zane's woman'.
Zane also didn't cuddle her or do everything for her. Sure he helped some but he never expected to be always present to take care or protect the people close to him.
So he tried to do what he could so she doesn't need his help in the first place, so beside that invulnerability he gave her secretly at first he added some minor kinetic energy absorption and emotional response trigger power that will make her stronger the more intense her emotions were.
It was a nifty power that responded to emotions he made by taking, merging and separating couple pheromones and empathetic powers together and with enough tweaking he got something that empowers it's holder all around in stressful moments such as dying.
It didn't change much for War Woman so she never noticed those additions as beside a Viltrumite's threat of Nolan's level she didn't encounter anything she can call life threatening.
Holly also trained constantly with the equipments and technology Zane offered like gravity, pressure training and skillset simulations.
With her addition to the Guardians and the slight guilt and sadness she held for her old team she took their training and preparedness upon herself and nobody dared to stand against her overbearing self not even Immortal.
Not that he objected in the first place, infact he was glad he was not the only one left from his old team too and he was prepared to give her leadership of the team if she would just accept.
With the data Zane already had on them and more the team understood why Holly was called WAR woman and not something else. Safe to say they were all whipped to shape.
If they knew the tragedies that would have befall them without Zane and War woman existence they would have kneeled with tears and thanks but naturally only exhaustion and complaints remained.
Another thing that Zane presence changed is the publicity of Omni-man's betrayal to the world, only the GDA, GoG(Guardians of the Globe) and some minority with high clearance were privy to the informations.
It also spared thousands of lives and property damage, lessened the backlash on Mark and his mother's mind and stopped the emergence of haters and potential villain with the name Powerplex.
Infact he joined the good guys team after his potential was recognized along with more heroes since those were always needed.
Eve was also doing well on her own, she didn't go back to her parents and her relationship with them can be called strained at best. Eve had a lot to consider for herself and her past.
Her discussion with Zane and the support of Holly and Serly opened her mind and made her think more seriously about her future too.
She didn't visit Zane as often as Holly did but she kept in contact especially with the two women.
Mark came to her too and they talked about their life, about their difficulties and more but that was all.
And while Mark was attracted to Eve she only saw him as a friend at the moment and Mark was not so dense as to not notice, it was clear that things between them won't develop beyond that for the mean time.
That in itself also spared the two some drama in the shape of visitors from the future and many more headaches as much changed in this world thanks to Zane.
If Zane actually knew there was a time travel event related to Invincible he would have probably cursed himself because he values that knowledge very much but it didn't happen and Zane didn't know.
But what really changed? What really spared tens of thousands of lives and damages?
Was the disappearance of one Angstrom Levy .
With him out of the picture Mark was free to have more time to train and for family, less pressure on his mind and morale and the best of all no multiversal Invincible war.
Hell, the world didn't need to fear a future Flaxan invasion either since Zane subdued them completely. Honestly Zane did more to this world than they will ever know and half of it was just because he was there and the other half by coincidence.
But! This is a superhero comic world in the end and if there was no world(planet) ending event atleast once a year then it won't be complete right?
And today's world ending event came in the shape of an old high-ranking veteran warrior of the Viltrum empire, Conquest.
"Stand ready for my arrival, worm..."
And despite all the training, the time and preparedness it was still not enough and no one was truly ready. Very few could even participate in this battle, if it even can be called such.
And the few who could? It didn't work well for them.
Mark missed a lot of opportunities and experience to contend with the might of millennium of slaughter and 'conquest', he might be as strong as he should have been maybe even stronger in mind atleast but tragedies forge wills stronger than time.
And relationships and connections can make difference no matter how small, but without them it leave a gap in one conviction.
So despite everything, Mark was left broken and short of defeating even the not so serious Conquest. Oliver was not far from him in even a worst condition and soon to die.
Immortal was left as limbs scattered around who knows where, Eve did her best but she was left short of being dismembered.
A lot of people died, heroes too and the damage was astronomical and the worst ever seen till now in earth history.
The last one standing was War Woman and it's all thanks to the help Zane offered her on his planet and the little addition of powers he gave her. That was mostly the reason she didn't die yet really and the reason she even lasted so long.
But there she lay also broken, hard breathing and just a little bit distance away from the slow walking Conquest who is finally done playing and ready to destroy everyone and everything.
Conquest is a brutal and sadistic enjoyer of battle purely for the thrill of it and the suffering it brings, victory was irrelevant to him when he first came.
As while he treated every opponent so far as a toy to be broken, manipulated, and tormented. Enjoyed their resistance and struggle not just for the challenge, but because they amplify pain.
Used the most methodical, emotional, and physical cruelty he knows, and created untold chaos, by mocking, taunting, and exploiting these so called heroes and protectors, even civilians, to maximise fear and torment.
But at the end of it he was still a veteran Viltrumite and on a mission, he wouldn't allow his 'hobby' to take preference over his duty so he put a little bit more effort and didn't play much as he preferred.
He was impressed nonetheless as they managed to make him bleed, destroyed his gauntlet arm and harmed him. But it's time to end this.
"So fierce, a pity." Conquest remarked seeing the struggling and coughing War Woman.
Holly was at the end of her ropes and short of losing consciousness but her stubbornness refused to surrender in front of an enemy and show a pathetic side to her.
But again she was at her ropes end and the only reason she wasn't dead yet was the power Zane gave her especially the emotional trigger one. This one was working over it's limit just to heal her or atleast keeping her alive.
*beep*
"Stand proud, you're strong"
*beep, beep, beep*
Just before Conquest was an arm length above her ready to end it, both noticed the beeping device on her arm that despite everything was still intact and speaking for a while now.
Conquest only raised an eyebrow in amusement at the trinket and was about to say something sarcastic while Holly only smiled painfully at the reminder of Zane.
"I'm sorry my love..." as she whispered to herself and her eyes slowly shut close the last thing she saw was a familiar blue-green portal opening and the floating shape of someone.
"Oh a new toy came to join?" Conquest obviously noticed that too and as he turned to look the only thing he saw was red glowing eyes as he was hurled away fast and got buried under some debris and what's left of a building.
———
[Zane Pov]
I didn't waste anytime after that and directly opened a portal.
All matter of thoughts and calculations went to the front of my head as I tried to think of the kind of threat that Holly was facing and what I will have to deal with shortly.
And shortly came soon after and I admit my blood run cold at the sight that greeted me. Not out of fear or dread, but anger.
Cold and calm fury. I was always and still am even now a calm individual, I never liked troubles or started one and while violence is the answer to a lot of questions I always tried to leave it as the last option.
I saw gore and destruction before. There's a lot of it in [YJU] that they don't show you. I did some with my own hands in the [CSU] but it was not personal and never out of cruelty or desire.
But this! Why? I already knew what I needed of the Viltrumite empire from Nolan's head and I understood the 'logic' of their actions.
There's a lot of wrong in their ways of doing and seeing things but it didn't matter to me. I am not speaking out of apathy or lacking morale.
After this new life of mine my thoughts and mind expanded, I met a lot of different people and species. I dealt with aliens and understood that there always be a difference of perspective and way of doing things just because.
I don't think as a human anymore, I don't try to paint morals or laws on others actions and way of living.
I know I will meet a lot of beings and minds in the future with their own set of thoughts, morals and 'common sense'.
And honestly I am not angry at Conquest - as my the memories told me - for the destruction he caused or the people he killed. Cold I know but I can't have it in me to care about those I dont know.
But what made this fury that I never experienced before lit in me is seeing the people that I DO know in this condition.
"Oh a new toy came to join?" I didn't care to listen more nor was he important enough for me to give enough attention at the moment so I blasted him with my heat vision before he even finished turning around and approached Holly while my eyes took in everything and everyone.
*Bzzzt shriekkk*
"Zane"
"Cecil" I nodded without looking while portals started opening beside me and from it medical droids started to pour out two for every injured and more just looking for more.
"Thank you for your... support Zane" Cecil tried to act as diplomatically as his mood is allowing him at the moment after all everything he had and the strongest on this planet failed to stop just one enemy.
A strong Viltrumite but still one. And even if they did can they stop the next? And the one after that? What if they sent a team?
So Zane have no problem with Cecil and actually respect the effort and the will he's trying to hold on and not just... break.
Cecil looked around at the droid and understood that they belonged to me and what they were doing. I could see the gear behind his mind working on overdrive without trying to peer in his mind. Or even actually looking.
As some droids hefted some of the injured and started moving them inside the portal Cecil finally asked with as much seriousness and power he knows he doesn't have.
"Where are they taking them?"
I paid his seriousness no mind and just told him what he need to know. "Special medical facilities that will bring everyone back to pristine condition. As long as they are not dead, then they will live."
Cecil squinted at my side face as if trying to look for something but before he could go on with that " You and your team can go with them too if you want Cecil, the portal will stay open until I come back"
I stand up seeing Holly and Eve taken away inside just in time for a minor earthquake caused by Conquest reemergence to happen.
With a nod at Cecil I flew up to meet the old man.
———
An:
Didn't have time to write this week so it's a rushed chapter to be honest, sorry if you find any error or something.
I will try to finish the second part fast and make it atleast exiting.
Any thoughts?
Peace.