---
Nolan slammed his fist into Mark's chest, launching him backward through the air.
Before Mark could recover, Nolan was already behind him. He struck again, this time landing a brutal punch to his face. Mark was hurled downwards, crashing into the ground with enough force to form a crater. Dust erupted from the impact.
Lying in the center of the crater, Mark groaned in pain.
Nolan landed beside him, calm and composed.
"You really think you can stand against me?" he asked coldly.
Mark twisted his body and tried to punch him in the face.
"Ugh—"
Nolan easily caught the blow mid-air. The sheer force of Mark's punch created a gust that made Nolan's cape flutter.
Still gripping his son's hand, Nolan squeezed hard. Mark cried out, falling to his knees in agony.
Then, without hesitation, Nolan grabbed him by the neck and hurled him skyward. In the next moment, he grabbed Mark by the ankle and slammed him into the ground like a ragdoll. With a final motion, he flung him across the landscape.
"Hmph," Nolan muttered.
---
A drone hovered at a distance, tracking their every move.
"Map their trajectory. I need to know where they're going before they get there," Cecil said as he monitored the feed.
He stood beside Debbie, who watched the scene unfold in horror. Her hand was covering her mouth, eyes wide in disbelief.
"Debbie... I'm sorry you had to hear all of that," Cecil said quietly.
"They're going to kill each other, Cecil. You have to stop this!"
One of the GDA agents looked up from her screen.
"We've got a lock on them, sir. They're headed toward Chicago."
"Chicago?" Cecil's tone sharpened. "They're within range of our jets. Send them in."
The agent hesitated.
"What can they even do?"
"Not much. But they might be a distraction…" Cecil muttered.
He paused, thinking.
"Maybe the kid can buy us enough time… until Henry and the Guardians get there."
"I've already contacted them, sir. They're on their way to Chicago," the agent confirmed.
"Good. We're going to need them," Cecil said grimly.
----
"Holy shit. Okay, no need to panic… What do we do? Invincible looks like he could really use some help," Rex said, standing in front of the Teen Team's base computer.
"Omni-Man's tearing him apart," he added, his voice tense.
"Are we actually going out there to help?" he asked, looking over his shoulder.
"To do what? I can't even fly…" Dupli-Kate replied, slouched in a chair nearby.
"I got a message from Cecil," Robot said. "He told us to stand by. Said there's not much we can do."
"Oh, that's great. So we're useless now," Rex snapped.
"Any sign of our heavy hitters at least? Look, I don't want to point fingers, but they just had to disappear right when the world needed them most. You better figure out a way to bring them back, you rust bucket," he said, jabbing a finger in Robot's face.
"Unfortunately, I haven't found a way to access their dimension yet."
"You mean that dimension?" Rex asked, pointing at a recording of a Flaxan on the screen.
"Exactly," Robot confirmed.
"We can't leave them there forever. So what's the plan?" Dupli-Kate asked.
"They'll have to make their way back on their own… or we wait for the Flaxans to open another portal. But based on my calculations, it won't be long before that happens." Robot typed rapidly on the keyboard as he spoke.
"In that dimension, time moves slower. That's why they couldn't stay here," he added, showing a video of a Flaxan rapidly aging in real time.
Robot continued analyzing footage from the Flaxan invasion, carefully studying their physiology and behavior.
"Well, looks like the lovebirds are finally coming back. I was starting to get worried…" Rex said with arms crossed, trying to act unfazed.
"Rex, who are you trying to fool? You were the one freaking out the most," Dupli-Kate teased.
"I don't know what you're talking about. I don't care about those two…"
"As for Mark..." he trailed off.
The footage switched to Nolan punching Mark across the sky.
"...I don't know if he's gonna make it," Rex said, his bravado fading.
-----
High above the clouds, Mark and Nolan clashed mid-air. Nolan drove his fist into Mark's face, sending him flying through the sky.
"Ahhh!" Mark screamed, spinning uncontrollably.
Nolan soared after him and caught him mid-fall. They started exchanging blows—well, Mark tried. Nolan easily overpowered him.
"Don't do this! We can still stop!" Mark shouted.
"No. We can't," Nolan growled, punching him again.
Down below, jets sent by Cecil began closing in fast.
Mark struggled to land a punch, but Nolan was relentless, pummeling him over and over. He paused for a second and glanced at the incoming aircraft.
"Cecil… always wasting my time," he muttered, grabbing Mark by the collar.
"Look at what they need… just to mimic a fraction of our power," Nolan scoffed.
"Target locked," said one of the pilots inside the approaching jets.
"It's fine to pity them, Mark. But don't ever put their lives above your own kind," Nolan said coldly—and punched him again, sending Mark crashing down toward the ground.
Nolan turned his gaze back toward the jets. One of them had a clear shot.
"Fire. Now," the pilot ordered.
Missiles flew through the air and hit Nolan directly.
A huge explosion lit up the sky. Smoke and flames surrounded him.
"We got him!" the pilot shouted. "Direct hit on Omni-Man!"
But as the smoke cleared, Nolan emerged, mostly unscathed. Parts of his suit were charred, but he looked far from defeated.
He flew straight at one of the jets and struck its rear. The aircraft exploded on impact. The pilot ejected just in time.
Now falling fast with his parachute tangled, the pilot screamed. Mark, battered and barely holding it together, flew down to catch him.
"Got you!" he said, grabbing the pilot's seat mid-fall.
"The chute's not opening!" the pilot panicked.
"You won't need it," Mark reassured him.
Just then, the parachute deployed suddenly and yanked Mark upward. The pilot kept falling.
Mark was tossed into the air, but he recovered quickly. He dove at full speed, catching the pilot just before he hit the ground.
The ejector seat crashed into the ground, raising a cloud of dust.
"Man… thanks. I thought I was dead," the pilot said, breathless with relief.
But then, Nolan landed right behind him.
"You nearly killed him!" Mark yelled, furious.
"And yet you saved him," Nolan replied calmly.
The pilot turned around and froze. Seeing Omni-Man up close, his face went pale with fear.
"All this effort… for what?"
Without warning, Nolan smashed the man's head with a single punch. It exploded like a balloon full of blood.
Mark caught the lifeless body mid-fall. His suit was instantly soaked in blood.
"Where's the other pilot?" Nolan asked, floating back up into the air.
"No…" Mark whispered in shock.
The second jet began firing missiles as Nolan closed in.
"He's on my tail!" the pilot yelled, desperate.
Nolan was almost on top of the jet when Mark tackled him, interrupting the attack.
"You killed him!" Mark shouted, blood still dripping down his face.
"He would've died of old age in fifty years. What difference does it make?"
Nolan shoved Mark hard in the chest.
"What difference?! He had a life!" Mark cried out.
Nolan slowly approached him.
"Seeing that man die... did that bother you? Did it hurt?" he asked coldly.
"Let's see how much more you can take."
He punched Mark hard in the face, sending him flying like a meteor.
---
The city was calm.
Cars moved along the streets. Pedestrians crossed intersections. Workers headed home as the sun began to dip behind the skyline.
Then came the sound—a deep, distant rumble.
People looked up just in time to see something—someone—tearing through buildings like a wrecking ball.
It was Mark.
He crashed through skyscrapers, glass and steel exploding around him, until he finally hit the street.
The impact was catastrophic.
He slammed into the asphalt and kept tumbling, breaking through cars, pavement, and unfortunately—people. Vehicles were thrown like toys. Civilians were crushed beneath the chaos.
Screams filled the air.
Mark's body skipped across the street like a stone on water, carving a bloody path through the city.
Eventually, he slowed down.
He got to his hands and knees, panting, shaking. His nose was broken, blood smeared across his face. His body trembled.
---
The Guardians had been tracking Nolan's path.
When they realized he was headed for the city, they moved fast.
War Woman, Martian Man, Red Rush, and the others arrived too late to stop the destruction—but just in time to see the aftermath.
They landed near where Mark had fallen.
Silence. Followed by horror.
They stood frozen, taking in the wreckage: cars overturned, buildings shredded, and far too many bodies lying still beneath rubble and twisted metal.
Blood painted the streets. Smoke curled into the sky. Cries of pain echoed from every direction.
Aquarus clenched his fists.
"Bastard… look what you've done," he said, voice low and trembling with rage.
One question echoed in every Guardian's mind.
Why?
Their grief quickly turned to fury.
There was no time for discussion. No time for hesitation.
They looked ahead, toward the epicenter of the chaos—toward Nolan and Mark—and prepared to end this.