I stepped out of the green portal and into the sterile biomechanical lab on the Technician's home planet. The Mauler Twins looked up from their respective workstations, recognizing the immediate shift in my demeanor.
"The Viltrumite War is officially underway," I announced, walking over to a nearby fabrication table. "I leave tomorrow morning."
Both Maulers set their tools down. "That is a remarkably short timetable," one of them said, crossing his massive arms. "What do you require?"
"I need specific weapons made to fight Viltrumites," I explained. "They don't need to be mass-produced, just a few specialized tools that can heavily damage and stun them without necessarily dealing a killing blow."
"You are going to war against a galactic empire," the other Mauler pointed out, raising an eyebrow. "Why ask for non-lethal armaments?"
"Because I don't completely trust the Coalition of Planets," I said, leaning against the table. "If I go out there and casually slaughter every Viltrumite I see, Thaedus and the other planets associated with the Coalition might eventually turn their sight on me and my family as the next big threat to the universe once the dust settles. So, I need ways to make it seem like these weapons are lethal."
The Twins shared an impressed look. "What did you have in mind?"
"Two things," I said. "First, localized, high-frequency sonic disruptors. Something small that can be slapped onto Viltrumites that will cause severe vertigo, targeting their inner-ear equilibrium. Second, Solar-Flare Grenades. I want explosives that detonate with concentrated ultraviolet light. It'll temporarily blind and burn their retinas, while simultaneously feeding my suit with more solar energy."
"Easily done," a Mauler nodded, typing the schematics into his datapad.
"I also need you two to start researching the Scourge Virus," I added, my tone turning a fraction more serious. "It's a biological weapon capable of wiping out Viltrumites. I'm almost certain that it will be used against me, so I want to develop an immunity to it."
"We can sequence a resistance," the Mauler replied, "but we will need a base sample of the virus to reverse-engineer."
"I figured," I nodded. "I don't know if I'll be able to get samples in an active state, but I'll get blood samples from Viltrumites who once had it, so you can test that out. And, I'll try to get the virus itself if I can. But, make me something to hold the samples."
One of the twins walked over to a cabinet and returned with three small, heavily reinforced cylindrical capsules. "These are stasis extraction vials. Once you draw infected blood, seal it in here. It will preserve the biological sample perfectly."
I pocketed the vials. "Perfect. Oh, one last thing. Since you guys reverse-engineered the Gelderian tech for my old containment suit, I need a machine upgrade for Tech Jacket."
"We can synthesize a hyper-dense energy core," one Mauler confirmed. "It will grant the suit a substantially higher range of energy expenditure, drastically increase its firepower, and reinforce its physical durability against Viltrumite-level impacts."
"Nice, thanks," I said, before turning to Angstrom, who was leaning against a wall. "Could you drop it all off at Invincible Inc. before sunrise?"
He nodded, pushing off the wall. "Anything else before you depart?"
"Yes, while I'm gone, would you mind keeping an eye on Earth for any detrimental activity. I know you're busy building the utopia for the Technicians, but it'd benefit the Earth if the heroes continued to develop."
"Consider it done," he said, making another portal back to Earth.
With my arsenal secured, I stepped back through the portal. But I didn't go straight to Invincible Inc. I checked my communicator and saw that Eve was still out dealing with a widespread distress call across the country. Since I had a little time to kill before my departure, I decided to handle something deeply important.
BZZZZZZ
"So lemme get this straight," my barber, Big O, began, dusting off his clippers. "You've been in a coma for months, which is why you haven't been here for months."
"You're hearing it straight from the source as he speaks, my boi," I replied.
"Man, that muthafucka lyin'," another barber said, stopping his cut on another client to point in my direction.
"Yeah, he's seeing another shop for sure, a hundred percent in fact," said another.
"On Omni-Man soul I ain't lyin'," I responded.
"Aye, they gotta point," said O, adjusting the height of my seat. "You can't even commit to that fine-ass redhead of yours. What chance do I got?"
Oh, I'm getting attacked from all sides now, I thought, shaking my head.
"I know that's right," said the first barber. "She's fine as hell. He's tweaking for not locking that down."
"Aye, man, fuck y'all," I said, smirking. Then I turned to O. "Now put all this nonsensical rigmarole to the side and line my shit up."
"Oh, he throwing out the big words. Must have hit a sore spot," an old man sweeping hair off the floor said.
"Look my boi, whatever it is you're going through just remember one thing," O began, a serious expression on his face causing me to pay close attention. "Just because you're out here saving the world in spandex doesn't excuse you from having a receding hairline by twenty-five if you keep cheating on your barber."
The other occupants joined in a chorus of laughter.
"Ah, this fuckin' guy," I said, pointing a thumb at him as he laughed. "Man, just cut my hair."
"You got it, you got it," he replied, regaining his breathing.
An hour later, I was sitting at my desk in my private office at Invincible Inc., sipping a fruit smoothie. My fade was impossibly crisp, my lineup was sharp enough to cut glass, and I was feeling a bit more relaxed.
The doors to my office suddenly flew open. Eve marched in looking completely frantic: her face was flushed, and her uniform slightly singed from her patrol.
"Mark!" she exclaimed, her eyes wide. "I just ran into Rex and Kate! They said Nolan is back on Earth?! And that the Viltrumite Empire is mobilizing for a massive war and you're going into deep space to fight them?!"
"Hey, you're back," I greeted casually, taking a sip of my smoothie. "And yea, pretty much."
Eve stared at me, her brain clearly short-circuiting. She looked at my relaxed posture, the smoothie in my hand, and then her eyes zeroed in on my hairline.
"Did you... did you go get a haircut?!" she asked, in pure disbelief.
"Yea," I shrugged effortlessly. "You were busy so, I figured I'd kill time by getting a cut and tell you about the news in person when you got back."
"Mark, you're going to war against an entire planet of Omni-Men!" she stressed, walking over and placing her hands on my desk. "How are you this calm?!"
"Because I'm not worried," I said simply. I set the smoothie down and stood up, walking around the desk. "And because I need you focused here. While I'm gone, you're gonna be in charge of all the hero work for the company. Titan and Isotope will be here to help you handle the small stuff, but you're gonna be calling the shots."
Eve let out a shaky breath, the weight of the incoming war and her new responsibilities crashing down on her. "Mark... the scale of this. What if something happens to you out there? What if—"
I didn't let her finish. I stepped into her space and wrapped my arms around her waist, pulling her into me. She gasped softly, her hands resting against my chest. My heartbeat was slow, steady, and completely unbothered.
"There's a lot going on, but you ain't got nothing to worry about," I assured her.
She looked up, her anxious eyes meeting mine.
"I believe in my capabilities," I said, my tone laced with unshakeable certainty. "I am stronger than they are. I am faster than they are. And I'm coming back to you. That's not a promise. That's a spoiler."
The overwhelming weight of my confidence washed over her like a physical wave. The frantic panic in her eyes slowly melted away, replaced by a heavy, heated gaze. My lack of fear was intoxicating, and I could feel the tension in her body shift from anxiety to raw, unadulterated desire.
Tag me in, said a voice in the back of my head.
Huh?! I thought for a moment.
I SAID TAG ME IN BITCH! it exclaimed, making me remember what it was.
Oh, right. My bad, I responded internally as I switched with him.
LEWD SCENE START:
"You're so damn arrogant," she whispered, her breathing hitching as her hands slid up to grip my shoulders.
"Is it arrogance if I can back it up?" I smirked, leaning down to brush my lips against her neck.
Eve let out a soft moan, her fingers rubbing against my freshly cut hair. I kissed her deeply, my hands trailing down her back until they landed on her ass, sinking into them.
She kissed back with desperate, fiery passion. With a swift, effortless motion, I scooped her up into my arms. She wrapped her legs around my waist, pulling my face back to hers as I placed her on top of the desk.
"Let's get this out the way," I said, tearing off her suit.
Her breast came bustling out like two bean bags colliding together. I fondled the tip of the left tit between my index and middle finger, while swirling my tongue on the right, causing her to moan even more.
"Put it in already," she groaned.
Without missing a beat, I whipped out my dick and slid it in her.
She gasped as I began moving, each stroke making her tits bounced, and forcing out a small moan from her as my pace began to pick up.
Soldier! We're reaching capacity! It's gonna blow at any moment!
Hang in there, private! I'm just getting started! I responded.
With another effortless motion, I switched our position from missionary to doggy. "Oh God," she gasped as she felt the new change in position.
I grabbed her neck and began pounding away, falling into a lustful rhythm.
"Harder!" she screamed as my rhythm hit its peak, and I embraced her tightly.
My body shivered as common sense briefly escaped me, but I was able to pull my piece out of her at the last second, the residue falling between her legs and hitting the floor.
My face rested alongside her still standing frame as I also felt her body shivering in euphoria.
"You're not done are you?" she questioned, panting breathlessly. "Because you might be gone for a long period of time, so you have to make up for it now."
"You kidding?" I replied, chin resting on her shoulder. "That was just a warmup."
I fondled her breast again, preparing for another round.
LEWD SCENE END.
Some Time Later…
"Hey," she whispered softly, her fingers tracing the line of my jaw. "No matter what happens tomorrow, I want you to know... I care about you."
I reached out, gently brushing her cheek with my thumb. "I care about you too. More than I can say." My voice was steady, but there was a tenderness in it that matched the quiet intensity of the moment.
She leaned in slightly, resting her forehead against my chest. "Just promise me you'll be careful out there."
"I promise," I whispered, sealing the moment with a gentle, lingering kiss—one filled with unspoken promises and quiet hope for whatever the future held.
The next morning, the sun was just beginning to peek over the horizon.
Before sunrise, Angstrom had discreetly dropped off a sleek metal briefcase containing the sonic disruptors, the solar grenades, the virus vials, and the Gelderian core. I secured the gear, and Eve and I flew over to Debbie's house to pick up Oliver.
When we walked into the kitchen, Debbie was making coffee. Oliver was already packed, vibrating with excitement.
"Aye, Ma," I called out. "Is the boy ready?"
Debbie turned around to greet us. As she handed me a mug, my eyes casually drifted down to her right hand. Her knuckles were heavily wrapped in fresh medical bandages.
Ah, so she didn't automatically take him back like she did in the comic. How interesting, I thought, suppressing a smirk.
I didn't ask her about what happened. I just took a sip of the coffee and gave her a knowing look. "I'd put more ice on those if I were you."
Debbie paused, a faint, complicated smile touching her lips. "I will. Just... bring your brother back in one piece."
"I will," I promised.
Eve and Debbie stood on the back porch, watching as Oliver and I launched ourselves into the sky, breaking through the clouds and ascending straight into the upper atmosphere.
Hovering just outside of Earth's orbit was a massive, heavily armored Coalition of Planets transport ship. The airlock cycled open as we approached, letting us inside the sprawling hangar bay.
We were immediately greeted by the others. Allen stood alongside a young woman entirely encased in a sleek, silver armored suit—Tech Jacket.
I remembered running into her a couple weeks after the Invincible War. Her name was Zoe. She was only fifteen years old, but her combat instincts were sharp. She'd told me the wild origin story of how a dying Gelderian had literally fallen from the sky, detaching his suit and bonding it to her to save his species from annihilation during a war they were fighting against another alien race.
"Whoa... this is totally cool!" Zoe geeked out over the interior of the ship, her faceplate retracting to reveal her wide, excited eyes.
"Glad you could make it, Zoe," I smiled, tossing her a small, glowing metallic cylinder from my gear.
She caught it, blinking in confusion. "What's this?"
"An energy core," I explained casually. "I had my R&D team reverse-engineer Gelderian tech I got my hands on while I was traveling through deep space. Slot that into your suit. It'll drastically boost your energy reserves and give your armor enough durability to take a punch from a Viltrumite without shattering."
Zoe stared at the core like it was the Holy Grail. "Are you serious?! You just... had this made? Thank you!"
As she eagerly began integrating the core into her suit, I looked past Allen. Standing near the corridor entrance was Nolan.
He looked absolutely exhausted. But it wasn't physical; it was entirely emotional. He looked like he'd been through it mentally.
I walked towards him and gave him a nod.
Nolan met my eyes, letting out a quiet, heavy sigh. "You were right. She didn't want to hear it... but I needed to say it, regardless."
I didn't say a word. I just reached out and clapped him firmly on the shoulder.
"Alright, everyone, follow me," Allen announced, gesturing down the hall.
As we walked through the ship toward the main briefing room, I couldn't help but look around at the Coalition crew members. They were all marching around with datapads, wearing similar uniform sets.
It looks like a big-ass Star Trek convention in here, I mused internally.
We entered the massive briefing room. At the head of the sleek table stood General Talia, Allen's girlfriend. She looked stern, professional, and ready to outline the details of our jump to Talescria.
We all took seats, giving her our full, undivided attention.
"Alright everyone, we'll now begin the meeting to explain how we're gonna break the Viltrumite Empire."