Omni-Man sees his son pick up the Flaxxan with the mechanical body and smiles. He is proud of his son for pushing beyond his limits and for digging deep into his Viltrumite heritage to do the unthinkable. To think that he only got his powers for one month is absolutely unbelievable. After being hit by the initial shot, Mark went on to defeat the Flaxxan Commander. As he looks at his son from above, he can't help but think back to the years when he wasn't sure what to think about Mark. It seemed as though he couldn't be bothered about most things. This came across as if he was an unfeeling boy, and that unnerved many. He also had no gateways in his head that made him think about what he said. Without care for others' feelings, he said what he thought. It was a bit hard to get used to since Omni-Man had to get used to the opposite when he arrived on Earth.
Omni-Man is pulled from his thoughts as he sees his son disappear through the portal. He shoots forward, trying to follow him. He breaks through the sound barrier multiple times, crossing the distance in an instant. However, just as he reaches the portal, it closes.
"NO!"
Omni-Man punches the ground in frustration. He looks forward and grabs two Flaxxans by the throat.
"Open a portal."
His voice is deep and authoritative, threatening death should they not follow his command. But they don't understand him and just shake in fear. He clenches his jaw and crushes their skulls. He moves to the next few and repeats the question but doesn't kill them. There must be a way for him to reach their dimension, and Cecil might have an idea how.
The Teen Team look at this in shock.
"So... Omni-Man is Invincible's father?! Am I the only one who just got that?"
"Yeah... that's-"
"Surprising."
"Robot, can you find a way to get to their dimension? Invincible is alone there, and we don't know how long it might take or what they will do to him." Eve says.
"Do to him? Have you seen him? I doubt he would need anyone's help." Rex says and goes on to run his mouth while the others ignore him.
"There may be a chance if I get to interrogate the Flaxxans, but I can't promise anything."
*Zzzz*
Cecil appears and looks around. Seeing him here, Omni-Man looks at him and growls in anger.
"Find me a way to get to that dimension."
*Sigh*
"We're already trying to do that. I have my best people on the job to do it. We'll also take the few Flaxxans you or your son haven't killed yet and interrogate them. That will speed up the process."
"Do it fast. From what he told me, time runs faster there, so while we waste minutes here..."
"Days or weeks pass in there. I know. We're doing our best."
"You better. Inform me right away when you're done." Omni-Man says and flies into the sky.
"What a shitshow. Nevertheless, you guys did well. Robot, you can come with me. We'll need to see how much you could translate from their language."
"Of course, Cecil."
"What about us?"
"You can help the clean-up."
"That's it?"
"For now, yes."
.
"Up... there..."
The Flaxxan soldier in Mark's hand points at a large set of towers, creating a technologically advanced castle of some kind. Mark has spent a while in the Flaxxan dimension and has lost his sense of time. It is strange. He doesn't age differently than he would if he were on Earth, but time still passes by much quicker here. He has finally managed to learn the Flaxxan tongue and has discovered who was responsible for their repeated invasions. The Flaxxan commander, who was long dead by this point, was not the orchestrator of their invasions and was only quite low on the hierarchy. He might be personally invested in the conquest, but he is not the one who originally planned it. It turns out there is a Flaxxan Emperor, part of a royal caste that tells everyone what to do and when to do it. They wanted Earth to bow down and serve them but were angry when it didn't work twice.
Mark makes his way towards the tower. He has plowed through hundreds of Flaxxans at this point, and while that might appear to be hypocritical of him, he didn't care. Something had to be done, and making a statement was the only way to go about it.
"Halt, alien!"
*BOOM*
They shoot at Mark, but he doesn't care. He moves out of the way and kills those who attack him. Mark punches his way through all the guards, destroying their weapons and doors, and crashes through the floors until he reaches the highest level. The royal ruling class lives from the labour of the poor.
"How dare you enter here, alien?! Don't you know who I am? Do you realise what you have done? You pathetic race of worms deserve nothing less than to be conquered."
Mark stands in front of a pompous throne room of the highest order. Everything speaks of wealth and power: the women sitting beside the throne, the wine and food filling the long tables, and the ridiculous Flaxxan sitting on the throne. Mark observes all the people present here and sees the technology used to make their lives easier. That's what he could use and what made the trip worthwhile.
"Do you think you have achieved anything here? We will increase our efforts!"
Mark looks at the dead guard next to his feet and picks up the severed head.
"When we are through with your pathetic world, you will consume our excrements and labour until you die. We will suck all of your resources dry and-"
*SPLATTT*
The severed head of a Flaxxan guard shoots through the air and smashes through the head of the Emperor. Mark doesn't care about the loud screams of shock and outrage and slowly picks up the Flaxxan guard's weapon to check it. Then he looks up at the remaining people.
"I didn't know you, I didn't know you existed, and I couldn't have cared less about it. But you had to appear on Earth. You attacked us not once, not twice, but three times. Allow me to deliver to you Earth's response. I'm the response. This is the Murdergram... and I brought my murder game."
Mark shoots the power generator, causing everything to explode.
*BOOOOOM*
.
In the GDA, Cecil walks around, looking at the monitors and waiting for anything to happen. He was nervous, mostly because Omni-Man was making him nervous. Robot had been trying to get the Flaxxans to talk, but it was fruitless. All they told them was that the gates had to be opened from the other side, and for that to happen, they would want to either invade again, which judging from their past attacks, might take a week, or they would want to save these Flaxxans. But they have already admitted that that won't happen.
Cecil didn't want to lose another potential hero right after all the Guardians were killed. Now that the public was aware of it, he had to consider the next generation of Guardians, and that would be challenging. If he manages to get Invincible in there, that would be perfect, but it doesn't appear likely to happen. He's Nolan's kid, after all, but Cecil hasn't met a single teenager whom he couldn't convince yet, and even if he just helps out, he will surely join eventually. He'll just make it appeasing to him.
"Sir."
"What do you have, Donald?"
"Nothing new, I'm afraid. Robot hasn't learned anything new yet. And the other 'methods' we used sadly didn't reveal anything new either. I'm sorry."
"Hmm." Omni-Man growls as he looks at the screens in front of them.
He observes the fight over and over again, trying to figure out something. It has been hours since his son went inside, and he hasn't told Debbie about it. He dreads that talk. If she finds out, Mark will be forbidden from going out again for a while so she can keep an eye on him, and like the good son he is, he will listen to her. They always shared a special bond with one another, and despite him being present very much and having a very close bond with his son due to their similarity, it wasn't the same. As if there was something he had missed, an opportunity of some kind. He wasn't certain, but he had a good idea of what it was.
"Don't worry, Nolan. We'll get him back, and if we have to spend all our resources to do it, we will."
"That's not what I'm concerned about."
"Your son's a tough cookie. He'll make it."
"I know he is."
"Debbie?"
"..."
"You haven't told her yet?"
"No."
"Shit. I can't say that-"
"SIR! Something's happening. Spacial disturbance in the same area as the previous attack."
"Show me!"
And indeed, a red portal appears amidst the clean-up crews.
"Get everyone ready for a potential invasion. Nolan-"
*BOOOM*
Nolan shoots through the roof. They look at the screen again and hold their breaths.
...
*GASP*
"Oh my..."
"Goodness."
Mark walks out of the portal. He doesn't look good. His suit is long gone by this point, and his entire body is covered in blood and gore. The only thing visible are his eyes as he looks forward. He doesn't move as the portal closes behind him and simply stands there. Cecil narrows his eyes at this scene and observes Nolan arrive and gently touch his son. As soon as his hand touches his son, Mark falls forward. As if that gentle touch was the tipping point. Nolan catches his son and takes him into his arms. With a mighty push, he flies him to the Pentagon hospital.
"Tell the doctors he's on his way. And give me everything we have on this, Donald. I want to talk to him as soon as he wakes up."
"Yes, sir."
.
Nolan stands at his son's side with a stern expression. He could see that his son was hurt, but he guessed that most of the blood which covered him wasn't his. This could mean several things, but only one theory was worthy of his attention. It seemed as though Mark had released his inner Viltrumite and dealt with the problem more permanently. That was... good. He thought about his plans and what he might have to do still. If his son was willing to go to another dimension and kill aliens to protect his planet, then what would he be willing to do for... but he wasn't sure.
He knew his son. He was as American as they come. Freedom and whatnot. However, his experience in the Flaxxan dimension might have shaken his beliefs somewhat, and it would be beneficial for Nolan to introduce some of the truth about Viltrum, even if only a tiny part of it. Some hints here and there. And see what he says and how he responds. He didn't have to ease his son into things; that much was certain. Mark always liked the cold, hard facts compared to the sugar-coated ones. Mark hates lying, which might pose a problem.
"You're looking rather pensive there, Dad. Thinking about murdering someone?"
Nolan widens his eyes in surprise and sees Mark looking at him. He exhales and smiles lightly.
"You're awake far sooner than I expected. I'm glad to see you haven't lost your sharp tongue."
"What can I say? It's my best quality. Apart from my big junk."
"Yeah, you haven't changed."
"So, where's Mom?"
"She's..."
"You haven't told her? Why? Seems like she'll figure it out anyway, and if she does... we'll both be in trouble. Ah, shit."
"Haha, that's true."
The door opens, and Cecil walks in.
"I'm glad you're back, Mark. How are you feeling?"
"Like a piñata at a toddler's birthday party. They're too weak to truly break you, but they still cause all your innards to juggle and cause massive diarrhoea."
"Aha, well, thank you for that analogy. I'll take the day off to recover from that one. I wanted to ask you what happened in there."
"Cecil, I think we can discuss this later, don't you think?"
"I wanted to be ready, should another shitshow be on the horizon."
Mark gets up from the bed and starts to dress. He has no interest in staying here and being interrogated for any longer than necessary.
"It's alright. I didn't do much. I told them that I was there to deliver a message and asked them not to return to Earth... nicely. Turns out the Flaxxans were ruled by aristocratic cunts who pretty much enslaved their own people for their power and benefit."
"Were?"
"Aye, were. Now, if you'll excuse me, I haven't eaten anything in... oh, I don't know, months? Maybe longer? And I am famished."
"Sure. How about we get some bratwurst for your Mom? Might reduce the sentence we'll both be getting?" Nolan asks.
"Sounds like a good idea."
The two leave the Pentagon and fly east towards Germany. As they are flying, Nolan looks at his son.
"So, Mark. Why don't you tell me what happened?"
"Sure. So I passed through the portal..."
_______________________________________________
I know that some of you wanted him to stay there and grow old and powerful. But he will grow strong anyway. I won't say everything he did in there just yet. But remember that he has no meta-knowledge.