Invincible: Krypton's Legacy

A few days later, Mark flew over the city as Invincible, his mind preoccupied. With the patent for his fluid fabric finalized, he was strategizing ways to fund his business when something caught his attention—a message painted on a rooftop: "Invncble". Standing next to it was Titan.

Mark floated down to the rooftop where Titan waited, his incomplete name painted in large, bold letters across the surface. The sight stirred a faint memory from his past life—Titan's betrayal from the comics. As Mark landed, he took a moment to assess the situation. Titan stood with his arms crossed, looking determined.

"You went through a lot of trouble to get my attention," Mark said, his arms folded as he hovered a few inches off the ground. "Aren't you that criminal I took down a while ago? What do you want?"

Titan took a step forward, his voice firm but edged with frustration. "I need your help. Machine Head's ruining my neighborhood—our neighborhood. He's squeezing the life out of it, driving people into the ground just to line his pockets."

Mark questioned, keeping his tone neutral. "You need my help to take him down?"

Titan exhaled heavily. "Yeah, Machine Head's untouchable. He's got money, connections, and goons who'll do anything for him. People are suffering, and I can't do this alone."

"Alright," Mark said. "Let's take him down. Lead the way."

Titan looked surprised momentarily, expecting Mark to be one of those snobbish superheroes who focused on the big picture, before nodding. "Thanks, Invincible. You won't regret this."

"Oh, I know," Mark said, cryptically. Mark then grabbed Titan under his arms and had him lead him to Machine Head's building.

The pair arrived at Machine Head's opulent skyscraper, its reflective glass shimmering under the city's lights. Titan led Mark to the top floor, the elevator ride filled with a tense silence. Mark could feel the weight of Titan's gaze on him, but he kept his thoughts to himself.

When the elevator doors slid open, they were met with a room of sleek furniture, gold accents, and Machine Head's mechanical voice cutting through the air.

"Well, well, well. Look who's come to visit," Machine Head drawled, his voice dripping with smugness. He sat behind an extravagant desk, flanked by a lineup of his best enforcers: Tether Tyrant, Furnace, Magmaniac, and Kursk. 

"You must be Invincible," Machine Head said, his glowing eyes narrowing. "Big fan of your work. Too bad you won't be around long enough to enjoy the perks of hero life."

Mark rolled his eyes. "Let me guess—you're going to send these guys at me while you sit back and watch?"

Machine Head's grin widened. "You catch on quick."

Tether Tyrant's tentacle-like weapons shot out first, aiming to ensnare Mark. Mark caught them mid-air, his grip unyielding. With a flick of his wrist, he yanked Tether Tyrant forward, slamming him into Furnace, who was charging up a blast of molten energy.

Before Furnace could recover, Mark unleashed his freeze breath, a beam of searing cold that started freezing Furnace's suit and Furnace leaving a frozen block of rock.

Magmaniac and Kursk moved in next, attacking in tandem. Magmaniac hurled molten projectiles while Kursk fired bolts of electricity. Mark dodged effortlessly, his speed allowing him to weave through the attacks with minimal effort.

"You're going to have to try harder than that," Mark said, smirking.

He moved in a blur, appearing behind Kursk and knocking him unconscious with a single strike. Before Magmaniac could react, Mark's freeze breath blasted him with a freezing gust, encasing his molten form in solid rock just like Furnace.

Tether Tyrant tried to regroup, his tentacles flailing wildly, but Mark's tactile telekinesis took hold. The tentacles froze in mid-air and began wrapping around each other until they were in a jumbled knot.

"Done already?" Mark asked, tossing the crumpled tentacles aside and knocking Tyrant out with a flick to the forehead. "Pathetic."

Machine Head's smug demeanor faltered as Mark stepped forward. But a deep, guttural growl filled the room before Mark could reach him.

From the shadows emerged Battle Beast, his towering frame exuding menace and confidence. The warrior's golden eyes locked onto Mark, and a grin spread across his face.

"You," Battle Beast growled, pointing his massive clawed finger at Mark. "I can feel your strength. You might be the challenge I've been seeking."

Mark tilted his head, unimpressed. "You've got a funny way of asking for a fight."

Battle Beast didn't respond with words. Instead, he lunged forward, his mace swinging with the force of a wrecking ball. Mark sidestepped the attack with ease, the heavy weapon smashing into the ground and sending debris flying.

"That's some swing you've got there," Mark quipped, watching Battle Beast recover. "But you're going to have to do better than that."

Battle Beast roared, charging at Mark with a relentless series of attacks. His mace struck out in wide arcs, each blow powerful enough to obliterate walls, but Mark's speed allowed him to evade with almost casual ease. The room shook from the force of Battle Beast's strikes, cracks spreading across the walls and floor.

"Stop dodging!" Battle Beast bellowed, his frustration mounting. "Fight me seriously, or are you just a coward?"

Mark's smirk faded, his eyes narrowing. "You want me to take this seriously? Fine."

With a burst of speed, Mark closed the distance between them. Battle Beast's instincts kicked in, and he crossed his massive arms over his chest in an attempt to block Mark's incoming punch.

Mark's fist collided with Battle Beast's defense in a thunderous impact. The force of the blow shattered both of the warrior's forearms, the bones snapping audibly as he was sent hurtling across the room. He crashed into the far wall, leaving a crater in the metal surface before crumpling to the ground.

Battle Beast gritted his teeth, his breathing ragged from having his ribs piercing his lungs. His arms hung limply at his sides, mangled from the devastating strike. Despite his injuries, his eyes still burned with defiance as he pushed himself to his knees.

"Kill me," he rasped, blood dripping from his mouth. "Let me die in battle, as a warrior should."

Mark approached, his expression calm but resolute. "Why die now when there are bigger battles ahead? There are beings, maybe not in this universe—but others—that could provide you with a better, more enjoyable fight than even I could."

Battle Beast's ears twitched, his pain momentarily forgotten as curiosity replaced his battle lust. "Others? What do you mean?"

"I'm building something bigger than this world," Mark explained. "An empire that spans dimensions. You could be part of it. Fight the strongest warriors across the multiverse, push yourself to your limits, and achieve true glory."

Battle Beast studied Mark carefully, his breathing heavy but his spirit unbroken. "You're either a fool or a visionary, Invincible. Either way, I'm intrigued."

Mark crouched down, his hands glowing faintly with magic. "Good. But first, let me fix those injuries."

Battle Beast growled in protest as Mark used his magic to accelerate the warrior's healing. Within moments, his body was restored, the pain replaced by an unfamiliar warmth.

Battle Beast started flexing his newly-healed arms. "Perhaps following you will lead me to the challenges I crave."

He reached into a compartment on his belt and pulled out a small device. "This opens a portal to me. Call when you're ready."

Mark took the device, smirking. "You won't regret this."

Battle Beast chuckled darkly. "We'll see about that." With that, he activated the portal and stepped through, disappearing into the unknown.

Mark turned his attention to Machine Head and Isotope, who were frozen in shock. Before he could react, Mark moved with blinding speed, delivering a precise chop to the side of Isotope's neck. The teleporter collapsed to the ground, unconscious.

Machine Head's voice stuttered as he backed away. "W-Wait! We can talk about this, right? No need to get violent!"

Mark ignored him, stepping forward with purpose. Placing a firm hand on Machine Head's metallic skull.

In his past life, he had read on forums that Superboy could use his tactile telekinesis in a way that would grant him control of electrical signals, computers, and different forms of tech. He didn't think the codex would be able to grant him such power since it was just an application of his tactile telekinesis instead of an ability that Superboy naturally possessed.

With his hand on Machine Head's skull, Mark activated a combination of his tactile telekinesis, Kryptonian intellect, and lightning magic. Using this combination of abilities, Mark essentially gave himself a new ability, Tactile Technopathy. In moments, he hacked into Machine Head's systems connecting him to the internet, rerouting control of his entire criminal network to himself. His brain was capable of reading, memorizing, and sorting out all of the data he collected from Machine Head to his bank accounts, different passwords, etc.

Mark pulled his hand back and tapped the side of Machine Head's temple, ejecting a computer chip that had his programming. He still had use for Machine Head and even planned on studying how he was this sophisticated. 

Titan, standing off to the side, clenched his fists in anger. "What the hell are you doing? This wasn't the plan! You were just supposed to beat him and turn him in!"

Mark turned to him, his tone calm but firm. "You wanted Machine Head out of the picture. I'm taking care of it—personally."

Titan stepped forward, his frustration evident. "This isn't justice. You're just replacing him with yourself."

Mark's eyes glowed red faintly, his voice sharp. "And what was your plan, Titan? To take over yourself? Don't act like you're better than this. I could tell your true intentions and I don't agree with them. Go home to your family. Don't worry. I will make sure that things for the neighborhood will change—for the better."

Titan hesitated, his fists trembling before he finally turned and stormed out.