As I closed the distance, the midday sun caught the deep, shifting abyss of my new suit. The moment I entered their line of sight, the atmosphere around us physically changed. The microscopic nanites constantly adjusting across my frame created a heavy, suffocating pressure in the air.
When he saw me, Allen's massive eye widened, his posture instantly straightening. Nolan, however, looked completely taken aback. He stared at the starry, shifting void of my suit, his eyes tracing the glowing Smoke White 'I' on my chest.
"Whoa, cool," Oliver said, also seeing the suit for the first time.
I didn't say a word as I hovered right up to Nolan until we were face-to-face. My face was completely neutral, but hardened like I was ready to scrap, putting him on high alert.
Then, a relaxed, easygoing smile spread across my face, and I casually reached out and tapped him on the stomach.
"Hey, Pops," I said, my tone light. "How you been?"
Nolan blinked, completely thrown off balance by the sheer casualness of my greeting. "Mark... I... you look… different."
"Upgrades," I replied smoothly, glancing at Allen. "I assume you two aren't here for a family reunion. Your leader sent you to recruit me for the war against the Viltrumite Empire, right?"
"U-Uh, yeah, exactly," Allen stammered, still eyeing my suit. "The execution squads are ready to go. We just need you on the front lines."
"Works for me," I said. "It helps that they probably think I'm dead, which gives us the element of surprise."
Nolan frowned. "Why would they think you're dead?"
"A few months ago, Earth got attacked by some clones of me," I explained casually. "During the chaos, Conquest paid a visit."
Nolan's eyes widened in pure, unfiltered dread. "Conquest?! What happened?! And how did you survive?!"
"Please," I scoffed, amused. "He rudely interrupted a fight I was having, and when he joined in I was able to beat him down, and almost ended him."
Nolan's jaw actually dropped. "You... you beat Conquest?!" he uttered, his voice heavy with disbelief. "Mark, almost nobody beats Conquest. He's a force like no other."
He's not wrong, I thought. He is a force like no other, outside of Thragg of course. That Old Man is like a never-ending hurricane. Plus, given the fact that I wasn't near his level of strength at all the last time I saw him, it makes sense why he can't believe it.
"Was," I corrected him with a smirk. "He was a force like no other. Until he met me. However, he did manage to escape, barely, so I guess you're not exactly wrong."
I cleared my throat and continued. "Then later, when I was hunting down six of the clones that escaped into the atmosphere, I tracked one down and saw him get torn apart by two Viltrumites. So I was thinking, if those two reported my "death" to Kregg, then we could have the element of surprise on our side."
"Or," Nolan said, still in disbelief over the mere mention of Conquest, "if they get reports that there were multiple versions of you roaming around, then they might consider you still highly active and plan for it. Either way, we can still use it to our advantage."
"Right," I nodded.
"Is there anyone else on Earth we can enlist?" Allen asked, pulling out a datapad.
"Tech Jacket," Oliver chimed in immediately, floating down next to me. "They killed one of Mark's clones all by themselves. They'd be great."
"Agreed," I said. "They'd be good to have on our side."
"I'd be a good candidate too, you know," Oliver added, puffing his chest out.
Nolan frowned, shaking his head. "That might not be a good idea, Oliver. This is war. It shouldn't be taken lightly."
"He'll be fine as long as we partner off," I countered effortlessly. "Besides, do you really think I just had him sitting around? I've been getting him ready for a situation exactly like this."
Nolan still looked deeply skeptical.
"Tell you what," I said, gesturing to Allen. "Since you're the Coalition's Champion Evaluation Officer, test him out."
"That's not a bad idea," Allen grinned, cracking his knuckles. "Alright, kid. Let's see what you've got."
The two of them shot higher into the clouds, clashing in the sky above the coastline. I watched alongside Nolan as Oliver held his own, trading rapid-fire blows and utilizing the ruthless combat techniques I had drilled into him over the months. He had already passed canon Mark's season two strength levels, and was teetering on season three.
After a few minutes, they descended back to our altitude. Allen looked thoroughly impressed. "Not bad at all. He's definitely got the power for the front lines." Allen then turned to me, a competitive smirk crossing his face. "Alright, what about you? Care to show us what those 'upgrades' can actually do?"
"Me?!" I pointed at myself, feigning a look of complete surprise before bursting into a laugh. "Trust me, pal, you need to fight with my Old Man to even consider fighting against me on equal footing. But if you insist, give it your best shot."
Allen didn't hesitate. He launched himself forward through the air, throwing a massive, earth-shattering haymaker aimed dead center.
I didn't move, or even brace myself as his fist slammed into my chest.
There was no cataclysmic sound. No shockwave. And no sudden burst of wind. The golden 'I' on my chest simply flared blindingly white for a fraction of a second as the kinetic force he produced was absorbed instantly.
Allen's eye bulged in shock.
"Not bad. That had some juice to it," I said, then I pulled my right arm back. "Here, see for yourself."
I funneled that exact same absorbed force straight down my arm and sent it back at Allen, hitting him in the gut. The concussive blast sent the massive Unopan rocketing backward, skipping across the sky like a stone across water.
Then, I turned to Nolan. "You gonna help your friend or watch him lose?"
Nolan's jaw clenched. "Don't get arrogant," he said, surging forward and launching a blindingly fast punch right at my jaw.
I raised my open palm and caught his fist.
SMACK!
The impact stopped dead in my hand. I didn't budge a single millimeter. Nolan strained against my grip, his face twisting in shock and exertion, but it was like he was pushing against a mountain he couldn't crush.
I casually twisted his wrist, breaking his stance, and tossing him away.
Allen recovered and flew back in with another earth-shattering strike. For the next sixty seconds, I danced around them. They tried syncing their strikes, but I evaded, parried, and countered every single movement with terrifying ease.
The impromptu spar was abruptly interrupted by the deafening roar of jet thrusters and the crackle of displaced air.
I stopped, letting Nolan and Allen catch their breath, as Cecil teleported onto the concrete foundation of the unfinished warehouse below us, flanked by the entire roster of the Guardians of the Globe.
"Seems like we went a bit overboard," I noted casually, floating down toward them.
Cecil's satellites had obviously tracked Nolan and Allen entering the atmosphere. The Guardians were locked and loaded. The Immortal, who was supposed to be retired, was hovering at the front of the formation, his eyes burning with pure, unadulterated hatred the second he saw Nolan descend beside me.
"OMNI-MAN!" he roared, his muscles bulging as he prepared to launch himself forward to rip Nolan's head off.
"Aye, take it easy he's not here to take over the Earth," I said, stepping between the Guardians and Nolan with my hands raised in a placating gesture. "He's not like that anymore."
As I spoke, the 'I' on my chest glowed, and the shifting, starry void of my suit seemed to deepen, swallowing the ambient light around us. The sheer, oppressive weight of the nanites actively absorbing the excess radiation my Smart Atoms were continuously collecting, cast a suffocating pressure over the concrete pad.
The Immortal froze mid-lunge, his rage momentarily short-circuiting as he stared at my shifting suit. The rest of the Guardians instinctively took a half-step back, apprehensive at the sight of me. Even Cecil's eyes widened, taking in the abyssal fabric and the sheer cosmic presence radiating off me.
"Invincible," Cecil said, his voice cautious but steady. "Care to explain what he's doing here?"
"Oh, them?" I said casually, gesturing to Allen and Nolan. "They're here to tell us about the impending threat that's looming over us."
"From the Viltrumites," Cecil said, eying Nolan.
"That's right," I responded. "They're officially mobilizing for war."
"What?!" the Immortal blurted out, as his and several other Guardians' eyes widened at the news.
"Wait, let me get this straight," Rex spoke out from the group. "There's more megalomaniac super-aliens as strong as him and they're coming here to fuck our shit up?"
"Essentially," I replied casually. "You pretty much got the gist of it."
"As if three Viltrumites weren't already too much to handle," Cecil muttered.
"You might not have to worry too much about that," I said. "The only way they'll ever reach Earth is if they get past us and an entire coalition of planets, which will take place millions and millions of miles away from the Earth."
Cecil's posture relaxed some, but his eyes still stayed sharp. "Is this coalition strong enough?"
"Maybe," I shrugged.
"Maybe?!" Rex repeated, hands on his head. "Oh, we're fucked."
"Invincible, it might come as a great surprise, but Rex is right," Robot said, his helmet now opened to reveal his human face. "The probability of the Viltrumites subjugating Earth if they get past you guys is extremely high. And we would not have the capabilities to combat them."
"I understand that, but I say maybe because I don't know how strong the entire coalition is," I said. "I only know how strong I am in comparison to a large majority of them."
"And?" Cecil questioned.
"They wouldn't be a challenge to me," I responded.
Rex actually choked on his own spit, staring at me like I had just grown a second head. Bulletproof crossed his arms, raising an eyebrow at what he clearly thought was massive ego, while Monster Girl let out a loud, skeptical snort. Shapesmith just looked nervously between everyone.
Cecil's eyes narrowed into a tight slit, searching my face for any sign of arrogance or a bluff. But, he found absolutely none. He briefly glanced at Nolan and Allen to verify my claim, only to find both the veteran Viltrumite and the Unopan champion staring back with grim, silent agreement. It wasn't a boast; it was just a fact.
"However, that supreme leader of theirs is where things get tricky," I added. "But I think a combined effort from the coalition is enough to bring him down."
"Mark's right," Allen said, stepping up. "We've been gathering the right people and weapons to deal with these psychotic assholes."
Cecil and the Guardians listened silently, the tension slowly morphing into grim realization as Allen and Nolan laid out the situation. They explained the incoming war in depth and how, if the Coalition of Planets fell, it would inevitably mean the end of Earth and their livelihood as they knew it.
"We leave as soon as you're ready, Mark," Allen told me, finishing the debrief.
"I'll be ready to go tomorrow morning," I replied. "I just need to take care of some things around the office before leaving."
Allen nodded in understanding. He and Oliver immediately took off into the sky to go recruit Tech Jacket, leaving me, Nolan, Cecil, and the Guardians on the concrete pad.
Seeing that the immediate threat was paused, Cecil signaled his team. They teleported away, though The Immortal made sure to shoot Nolan one last, deeply uncertain and venomous glare before vanishing in a flash of blue light.
Once it was just the two of us, the atmosphere relaxed. Nolan turned to me, rubbing the back of his neck, his shoulders slumping slightly.
"Mark... how's your mother?" he asked, his voice filled with genuine hesitation.
"She's fine," I answered honestly. "She's actually got a new boyfriend. A guy named Paul. He's decent."
Nolan winced, the reality of his absence clearly stinging. "I should go see her. I need to apologize."
I held my hands up, shaking my head with a slight chuckle. "Whooooa, take it easy, big guy. Have you forgotten what you did? You did a lot, and I mean a lot she's never gonna forget."
"I know," he said, looking at the coastline. "But it's something I've got to do."
"See, that's the thing," I pointed out, my tone conversational but firm. "You don't have to do it. You want to do it."
"Mark, it's one of the things I deeply regret."
I shook my head and gave a relaxed shrug. "Ight. It's your life, do what you want. But a little word of advice? Say what you actually mean to her, and not just what you think she'll want to hear."
I gave him a two-finger salute and launched myself into the sky, heading straight for Invincible Inc.
When I landed at headquarters, I quickly gathered Titan, Isotope, and my logistics director into my private office. Eve was currently out on patrol, but I needed to get the ball rolling immediately.
"Alright guys, listen up," I started, leaning casually against my desk. "I'm going to be leaving Earth to go fight in a massive galactic war that will pretty much determine the fate of the universe."
They all blinked, processing the extremely casual delivery of such heavy news.
"What the fuck?!" Isotope let out.
"I could be gone for an unspecified amount of time—maybe several months," I continued, ticking things off on my fingers. "So, I need you all to hold things down while I'm gone."
"Yeah, like how?" Titan asked, checking some readings on a datapad.
"First, I want y'all to keep the info that I'm going off-world strictly under wraps. I don't think I need to tell y'all of how people might move against us if they find out I'm not here."
"Will do, sir," said the logistics director. "We'll have everything run through representatives."
I nodded. "Second, I want y'all to keep a close eye on the GDA and monitor their activities. They might try to make a move to either discreetly breach Invincible Inc. or poach tech."
"We'll create another division to keep a strict eye on their stations," Isotope replied.
"Third, keep a firm eye on Dinosaurus and make absolutely sure he doesn't escape, no matter what," I stressed, my posture straightening up for a moment. "That overgrown lizard can't under any circumstance be allowed to roam free!"
Titan nodded slowly. "Don't let him out, got it. Anything else?"
"Yea. Keep tabs on Robot and monitor his activities too, just in case he starts poking his head where it shouldn't be," I added. "And finally, start recruiting any heroes or ex-villains who want to reform, work, and develop under our banner. I think it's time to expand our roster; it would make work around the world flow easier. And Eve should be leading hero activity with Tether and Magma while I'm away."
"We'll keep the ship running smoothly," Isotope assured me, adjusting his necktie.
"Yeah, just focus up on saving the universe," Titan added. "I'd like to take my family on vacation sometime this spring."
"Yea, I got y'all, thanks," I smirked.
After they filed out of the room to start executing their new tasks, I turned around and looked out the massive floor-to-ceiling windows at the sprawling city below. I tapped the secure comm-link on my wrist, pinging Angstrom's frequency.
"Hey, Angstrom," I said, my voice relaxed but focused as the line connected. "The Viltrumite War is here. Open a door and take me to the lab. We need to get the Maulers cooking on some heavy weapons."
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