12: The Truth of Viltrum

Mark looked at himself in the mirror, carefully adjusting his black tie and smoothing out his freshly bought suit. He combed his hair and nodded to himself once he was ready.

"Ready?" his mother asked, entering through the door, her clothing equally dark. Mark nodded back at her and then glanced out the window. It was cloudy; he wondered if it was just a coincidence or if somehow the universe and the world had conspired to influence the weather.

"Let's go, it will start soon," he began to walk. This was an important day; he wondered if it would be the only funeral he would have to attend this month, hoping it would be so.

The place was fuller than Mark had expected. Not only were there civilians, but dozens, maybe hundreds of heroes could be seen in the main available seats. It was a surprising number and variety of them that he hadn't anticipated.

He wondered how many of them would have the strength to fight by his side when the time came.

As they walked towards the seats where they had to sit, he watched as his mother approached a woman in her early thirties with light brown hair. She was attractive, but her face held obvious sadness. Mark let his mother go ahead to talk to the woman, not wanting to interrupt their conversation. He wasn't good at consoling sad women.

He stood there, scratching his head, not knowing what else to do besides giving them some space before going to sit down. He looked at the sky; it was even cloudier now. He wondered what Amber was doing right now. Maybe he should have brought her with him, but she could barely stand, let alone walk, so there was really no way he could have brought her.

"Hey, good to see you around" Eve's voice called his attention, making him turn towards her and give her a smile.

"So, you're here too, huh? Did the rest of the Teen Team also come?" Mark looked around but could only spot Robot in the distance.

Eve sighed and crossed her arms, clearly in a bad mood.

"It's just Robot and me here. Rex thinks funerals are too 'depressing' and doesn't like attending them"

Mark didn't inquire about Kate; she probably gave a similar excuse to Rex's.

"Well, if you want, you can sit with us" he offered, and she smiled. She didn't want to be alone at an event like this, and Robot wasn't exactly the warmest company.

Mark guided Eve to the seats where his mother was already sitting. She looked at him, raising an eyebrow, but didn't ask. It wasn't the time or the place.

Soon, everyone began to take their seats, and the atmosphere began to quiet down. The sound of fighter jets came from the sky. Mark raised his head to see two of them coming from the distance at high speed. In between them, he could see his father flying.

Their speed was swift, and in no time, they were above them and then beyond. Mark watched as his father descended from the sky, slowly arriving at the front where everyone could see him.

Nolan took a deep breath, looking at the familiar as well as unfamiliar faces, witnessing the grief, the tears. He had never expected such things to matter to him, they should never have mattered. But now, standing where he was, about to give a speech in memory of the very people he had killed.

for the first time in his life, Nolan began to feel genuine remorse.

What was he supposed to say? What kind of speech could justify what he had done? Did he even want to justify himself? He scanned the crowd, looking for his wife, his son. They deserved more than this. This world deserved more than this.

He had been thinking too much, about the possibilities, about what he could do, what he should do. After much consideration, he realized that the Empire would not take no for an answer. Trying to make them change their ways was not something that could be achieved overnight. He thought that with some time and persuasion, he and Mark could reach some kind of agreement, something that would avoid direct conflict.

But it was too late for that now, because the Empire had sent a message not long ago. They wanted Earth, and they wanted it soon. The reason for this was clear to Nolan. It was his fault. Before going to Flaxan, when Mark had just awakened his powers, he had sent a message. At that time, he believed he was still completely loyal to the Empire, so he had announced the news at the same time as he killed the guardians preventively, even before receiving a response. That was a huge mistake.

At this point, there were few options left, and Nolan didn't know which one was the best. But what he did know was that no matter what happened, it was still in his hands to prepare Earth for the worst.

There was no logic to it; his feelings were not something he had ever experienced in his thousands of years of life. But as his son had done in Flaxan, Nolan chose to fight, even if it meant dying.

He swallowed hard and began to speak.

"Twenty years ago, I arrived in this world without knowing its rules or customs. I struggled to integrate myself among you, to pretend to be one of you. But it wasn't until I met my wife, until I formed a family, that I began to understand what it means to be human. During that time, the Guardians reached out to me, offering their help and guidance. I came to know them, even to call some of them my friends..." Nolan sighed, looking towards his family.

"I became a hero, a father, and a husband, and for a long time, I assumed that role, forgetting who I am or who I was supposed to be"

Cecil, from the side, watched him. This wasn't the speech he had prepared for Nolan. Slowly, he reached for the communicator in his ear. Something was about to happen.

"Now I know that it was never just a role. My life on Earth changed me, changed who I was and who I want to be from now on. That's why I'm here, not to give a flowery speech or to justify myself, just to tell the truth" Nolan took a deep breath. It was time.

"And the truth is..."

Mark frowned, what was Nolan doing? His words were strange, and suddenly he felt that something was wrong with all of this. He glanced at his mother, who was looking at his father with equal or even more doubts than he had.

He clenched his fists, looking at his father, who was looking back at them. He could see the doubt in his eyes turning into resolution, a kind of determination he hadn't seen before in him, and Mark knew a massive headache was about to come.

"That it was me who killed the Guardians..."

Silence fell. Everyone turned to Omniman with wide eyes. The heroes began to stand up, people started to exclaim in shock, cameras pointing and broadcasting live to the whole world.

Cecil looked at Nolan with his pupils slowly shrinking.

"You!"

Nolan observed the reaction, watched as the heroes began to move towards him, surrounding him. He saw people looking at the situation with mouths agape, some with disbelief in their eyes, cameras focusing on him.

But above all, he observed how his wife and son looked at him. Mark stood up almost in a jump, his face serious, brows furrowed, eyes burning with bewilderment. Debbie covered her mouth with her hands, her eyes filled with disbelief.

Despite everything, Nolan didn't regret it. It was as if a heavy burden had been lifted from his shoulders. He breathed more lightly and looked at the cloudy sky; he hadn't finished yet, he still had more to say.

He saw Cecil out of the corner of his eye, barking orders. He didn't move away from him, despite being the closest. Soon, their gazes met, and Nolan could see the anger and doubts in Cecil's eyes.

In a matter of moments, Nolan found himself surrounded by all the heroes present, of all shapes, sizes, genders, and ages.

Almost none were worthwhile in terms of strength, not against him. Cecil knew this, so he didn't rush to order his arrest after his public confession.

"What does this mean?!" Cecil asked.

"Cecil, don't stop the transmission" Nolan said, already anticipating that Cecil would try to cut the signal.

Cecil frowned. "Why should I listen to you?"

"Because the world needs to know the truth, it deserves to know the truth and to be able to prepare for what's coming" Nolan had been debating with himself for a long time about this. What should be done? What is the right choice? But after much thought, he realized that at the end of the day, the choice shouldn't be his alone.

Whether Earth chose to face Viltrum or submit to it was something humanity should decide, and in order to do that, they needed to know what the Empire truly was.

After many years of deep and reflective thinking, Nolan came to accept a fact that he had previously denied himself: he loved Earth, he loved humanity, his family, his life as a human, and that's why he was doing this.

"The truth?" Cecil narrowed his eyes. What more was there to say? There was only one thing that Nolan could explain: the reason he killed the Guardians.

He debated whether he should let this continue. Perhaps it was better for Nolan to confess everything now than to try to force him to speak later.

With a click of his tongue, he gave the order to allow the transmission to continue. It was already too late to cut it off anyway; Nolan's confession had already been broadcasted to the entire world. Cutting it now wouldn't change that fact.

Nolan nodded towards Cecil and looked back at the crowd, at the cameras, at the world.

He saw Mark flying, now dressed in his hero suit, standing in front of the crowd of heroes with clenched fists. It seemed like his son had chosen a side a long time ago, and that was fine. Nolan had made the same choice.

Father and son looked at each other, and Nolan began to speak.

"When I became Omniman, I told the world a lie about where I really come from and why I came to Earth. I'll correct that now."

"I am from Viltrum, that's true. But the Viltrum you know is a lie. I didn't come to this world to protect it or to help its people. Viltrum is not the perfect society or the altruistic empire that I told you it was. Long ago, before I was born, the empire decided that in order to reach its full potential, the weak had to die"

"It was a long and difficult process, but when it was over, half of the population that resisted change died. Only the strongest, most determined, cruel, and fierce ones remained standing. Viltrum became unstoppable"

"Before I was born, Viltrum was already the largest empire in its galaxy, and it soon decided to become the only empire"

"Thus began a complete war against any other species that refused to submit. Many resisted, many fought, but no matter how great they were or how advanced they were, in the end, they all fell before the power of the empire"

"When I was old enough, I joined their ranks and actively participated in the war. I extinguished and killed entire civilizations, ravaged planets with my own hands. I became one of the strongest and most effective soldiers of the empire, honored and revered among them"

"Soon, the empire conquered thousands of planets and expanded beyond imagination. But as this happened, our forces began to dwindle, to fracture. The expansion stopped, and the empire realized that it needed better and more effective ways to conquer worlds"

"That's how I came to Earth. The most trusted officers were assigned specifically selected worlds to weaken them and facilitate their conquest. At first, there was no estimated time frame. For Viltrum, whether it was a hundred hours or a hundred years didn't matter. The passage of time wouldn't change anything because, as a species, a Viltrumite can live for thousands of years. That's why I wasn't in a hurry... I thought there was time, that I had time. That's why I let myself go, I joined society, I became part of you. I thought it didn't matter if I set aside my mission" He looked at Debbie

"But I was wrong. Viltrum has shifted its focus, and humanity has become its primary target"

The reason for this could only be understood if you knew the empire's greatest secret.

A few years ago, something incredible had happened on Viltrum. An unknown virus had infected the Viltrumite's home planet, rapidly subduing the population and sending alarms ringing throughout the Viltrumite society.

When the news reached him, he had wanted to return, but he was ordered not to do so. They had already lost too many of them; they didn't need to risk those who hadn't been infected yet.

Once the virus lost its effect and only the strongest and most resilient survived, they realized that they had lost 99% of their species.

Viltrum needed to replenish its numbers quickly. They were an empire spanning thousands of worlds. If their enemies found out, if those they had conquered found out, then there would be war, and Viltrum would see its empire crumble.

They couldn't allow that to happen, so they gave an order: to search for worlds and species genetically compatible with them. This was extremely difficult due to how the Viltrumites viewed alien species. Even in their dire situation, they wouldn't stoop to mating with any inferior species.

They were selective even when their species was so close to extinction. When Nolan learned of the new order, he quickly reported that he had successfully sired a hybrid child, which had been previously forbidden.

But due to the situation, that no longer mattered. Therefore, the empire ordered him to observe, to see how compatible the two species were.

At that time, Nolan was still loyal to them, so he shared everything he could. For the empire, Earth was one of the best options because humanity was aesthetically 100% compatible with them.

In the vast universe, there were many species, some more similar to others. But among them, only the Viltrumites and humans shared the same traits for the most part.

They were perfect, or nearly perfect. The reason the empire hadn't ordered the immediate conquest of Earth many years ago was because Mark didn't have powers.

When Nolan reported about Mark, he also had to inform them about his lack of abilities, which disappointed the empire. What good was the appearance without the power?

So they waited. Before acting, they needed to know if it was worth it or not. Mark was a test subject to determine if humanity was truly worthy or not.

When he awakened his powers, there was nothing more to consider.

Humanity had been chosen. As a trusted officer who had proven his worth numerous times in the past, Nolan had been left in charge. He had to prepare Earth for the arrival of the empire. After all, Viltrum still needed to maintain appearances; they needed to hide the fact of their weakness.

They couldn't send all their remaining forces without causing an uproar, so they trusted him.

That was the message Nolan had received just a day ago in response to the news of his son awakening his powers. The empire had found hope and had decided that he would be the one to bring that hope to them.

And now he was here, betraying them, and yet, despite it all, he didn't regret it.

"That's why I killed the Guardians. They were one of the many obstacles that Earth and humanity had to offer" Nolan sighed.

"But I was wrong to do it. I realized too late how important humanity is to me, how important is the life I formed and everything I built here. That's why I'm telling you all of this. The empire will come to conquer this world. Among their forces are those who are as strong as I am and those who are even stronger. Resisting may seem futile, it may be that fighting against them will only lead to death, but no matter what you choose to do, I'll be by your side"

"To make amends for my mistakes, to correct my actions, I will protect this world no matter what!"

It was absolute chaos, whether during Omniman's speech and revelation or afterwards, nobody was calm, the whole world seemed to be boiling at his confession.

Eve watched as GDA agents handcuffed Nolan, who had voluntarily surrendered. The heroes around were alert but at the same time confused, unsure of what they should do.

"Let me go, Mark!" Eve turned to see Mark restraining an Asian woman who seemed on the verge of tears at any moment. She didn't want to meddle, but she had heard how she called him her 'son' and knew she had to talk to his 'father'.

It wasn't hard to guess who he was referring to.

"Enough, Mom! Go home, okay? Let me handle this" Eve surveyed the situation. She wasn't the only one who noticed the commotion; many nearby heroes were also clearly beginning to suspect something.

Cecil approached and looked at Mark.

"Did you know about this?" At his question, Mark turned, taking off his glasses and revealing his bloodshot eyes.

"No, I... I didn't know this," he responded, his voice trembling.

Eve looked into Mark's eyes, seeing the bewilderment and panic in them, as well as the growing doubts within him. She instantly believed him.

Cecil studied Mark's expression for a brief moment, looking him directly in the eyes before nodding.

"Alright, then follow me. We need you in case he decides to change his mind" Cecil turned around, ready to leave.

Debbie quickly reached out her hand, calling out to him.

"Wait, Cecil, let me go with you" the woman was insistent.

Cecil stopped and turned around, looking at her for a moment before sighing.

"Fine" If what Nolan said was true, then he had decided to betray his kind because of the woman in front of him and the son he had with her. It was better to make sure to keep a close eye on her.

Eve watched them leave, but before they did, Mark looked at her.

She smiled at him to convey reassurance, and he nodded back at her before leaving with several heroes and GDA agents.

She considered following them, but she didn't work directly for the GDA or with Cecil. Robot was the intermediary between the team and the agency, and he was already following them. If he didn't call her, then maybe it was better for her to wait.

She sighed and began to rise into the sky. It was better for her to return to the base; Rex would surely be going crazy for not being present to see how everything unfolded.

Of course, she didn't imagine that Rex wouldn't even know what happened until later. He was too busy with other... activities.

Mark watched as his father was locked in a specially prepared cell hastily set up in the GDA's central facilities. There was no prison that could contain him if he wanted to escape, so it made no sense to take him elsewhere. Cecil seemed to want to keep him close, and Mark had become one of the main jailers.

Still, he saw that there were doubts about him among those who knew that Omniman was his father.

Not many knew that before, but the spectacle his mother had created earlier had unintentionally revealed some things. Fortunately, civilians had been evacuated from the area when that happened, leaving only heroes and their families. Still, it was annoying to have his identity exposed in that way.

But he couldn't be too angry with her; he hadn't expected his father to decide that revealing the truth to humanity was the best course of action. That ruined many of the plans Mark had been considering.

Once again, the universe seemed to conspire against him...

But what was done was done, so he could only go with the flow and work with it. He had used the speed force to control his micro-expressions as best as he could when speaking with Cecil earlier. He wasn't the best actor, but when you can adjust your expression at super speed, you don't need to be the best actor to create a convincing act.

For now, it seemed to have worked, but he couldn't say for sure since it was never easy to know what the leader of the GDA was thinking.

Cecil stood beside him, both of them looking at Omniman locked in the cell.

"This is a mess, kid. The whole world is boiling. Fixing this will be a pain in the ass"

People were in an uproar. While this world had constant threats and invasions, there had always been the security that heroes brought. But now, the greatest of them all had confessed to being a genocidal planet conqueror and had told them that a bunch more, just as strong or stronger than him, were coming to Earth to conquer it.

That didn't sit well with people.

"So bad, huh..." It seemed like Earth wouldn't have peaceful days anytime soon.

"How is she?" he asked about his mother, who had been taken to a private room to calm down.

"Still processing it like everyone else, although for her, it must have been an even bigger blow." Discovering that the man you had married and formed a family with was actually a "lie" couldn't have been easy.

Mark sighed.

"What happens now? What will they do with him?" he pointed to his father, who had remained silent until now.

"We're going to find out everything he didn't say, everything about this 'empire,' its forces, its intentions, everything. So get ready, you're going to have to talk to him" Cecil said.

"Wait, what?" Mark looked at him, blinking in disbelief.

"Besides your mother, you're the person who matters most to him. If it's you, he'll spill everything we need to know. I know asking this isn't easy, but it's necessary."

Mark furrowed his brows and looked at his father, who raised his head and met his gaze. Well, it seemed they would indeed have that conversation.

He sighed. Well, at least he had managed to have a good moment the day before all this happened.

"Alright" it was time to move forward.

Note:

Comments, suggestions, critiques, everything is welcome. I'll take everything into account for the future of the story, so don't be shy, guys! :D

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