To Be Invincible (Invincible x DC Crossover)

Chapter 12: The Man of Steel

(Disclaimer: I own nothing from Image or DC Comics, nor do I own any of the artwork I have posted or will post.)

Third Person POV Titans Tower:

The entire room had quieted with the arrival of Robin and Nightwing. Even Beast Boy and Blue Beetle had stopped joking around, and Raven had put her book down and was focused on the room. They could all feel that something wasn't right about the situation they found themselves in. It was like the entire room was bathed in tension so thick you could cut it with a knife. No one spoke, but no one missed the way both Mark and Nightwing shifted into their respective battle stances, or how Blue Beetle's suit started to go active and covered Jaime's face out of instinct. Tim instinctively took a few steps towards Mark, who in turn took an angry step forward but was held back by Supergirl. Tim opened his mouth to speak, but didn't even get a word out before Mark snarled at him from next to Kara.

"Save it, Drake! I don't wanna hear anything from you. Zip, zero, nada. No trust. Liar!" Mark spat, seething as he gazed at both Tim and Dick. Donna stepped in between the group, as did Starfire. "Hey, go easy there. I'm sure whatever happened between you two is important, but it's in the past. Right now, you're here on your own, and these two are our teammates. We will defend their honor first and foremost," she said, as Starfire looked on concered from next to Dick. Mark looked at the four of them and suddenly understood.

'Ahh, they're both a couple. Interesting... but they couldn't stop me before, they won't do it again,' he thought. Aloud, he began to laugh cynically. "False smiles and threats already? Must be a record or something. The real League isn't even here, and yet you would attack me and hand me over to them without a second thought. Somehow I expected better of you," he said with a sneer. Tim and Dick looked hurt and downcast at that, and made no move to deny anything Mark said. Donna bristled, but both Jaime and Gar sudenly stood in between both groups waving their hands frantically.

"Hey, hey, easy guys, easyyy," Gar said. "The guy was chill coming in, and he's here by himself. We can't jump him in our own living room because you have beef!"

Jaime nodded in agreement, and then added, "We're a team because we all came together and got around our differences to stop bad guys. He doesn't look like a bad guy to me. Let's wait for Connor and big blue to explain, si?" The room seemed to collectively calm down as the tension slowly dissipated. Mark remained standing on the far side of the room and leaned up against the wall as most of the team went back to the couch and hung around the center of the room. Kara looked concerned and went to speak to Mark, but he scoffed and turned aside. "Your cousins are here," he said to her. His and Kara's advanced hearing picked up the arrival of two pairs of footsteps landing on the roof of the tower. The rest of the team was soon made aware when the elevator dinged, and out stepped Connor Kent who moved to greet his team. Standing behind him?

The Man of Tomorrow himself.

Mark had to admit that he had been looking forward to meeting Superman for a very long time. Growing up, his mom had always told him great stories about the Kryptonian, and Mark had idolized not just the hero but the values associated with him. It was why he refused to give up on his uncle Harvey, even though it seemed like the world only saw him as the brutal criminal and killer. As he saw him interact with the Titans, Mark suddenly became a little nervous. This was his hero, in all sense of the word, and here Mark stood as a wanted fugitive who had attacked another member of the League and also battled his alien cousin Kara. He felt anxious, and even a little inadequate too. His powers, as far as he could tell, weren't too far off from a Kryptonian's (just less powerful) and he knew he didn't stack up to Supergirl or Superboy, much less the Man of Steel himself. So, when Superman finally came over and went to speak, Mark suddenly couldn't help but smile.