109: Eidolon's New Films, The Big Six?, Pushing Limits and Nominations.

Disclaimer: The story takes place on an Alternate Earth with a slightly different timeline of events. Therefore, people may be born earlier, later, or not at all. This gives me more freedom to write about the characters as I want.

Additionally, the characters in my story are not accurate portrayals of their real-life counterparts. Please remember that this story is a wish fulfillment tale set in Urban Hollywood with some fantasy elements due to the system's shenanigans, so please don't take it too seriously.

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Opening Author's Note:

I am really happy to upload this chapter guys, as with this chapter we are officially 4 chapters ahead of the public release of this book.

If I keep up this pace then it won't be too long when I will be able to create the 2nd tier. But now with the new schedule I am certain I will complete the 4 chapters for the first tier soon.

Why am I saying this? It's because today is the day for me making a scheduled post on webnovel that is the public release.

So after that we will be back down to 3 advanced chapters but in a few more days I will have the fourth chapter out once again.

Anyways, thanks for being patient with me, I really appreciate it. Let's get on with the chapter.

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Recap of the Previous Chapter –

We get a nice recap and see mark narrating about the different branches of Eden from entertainment to pharmaceutical to food and beverages to to real estate and investments to technology. We also see him invest in Id software which is a newly established video game company.

The pov then changes to Rian who is arrives in a car with his friends to the MarvelCon. They eat some delicious Ramen and the discover that Mark has really retconned Marvel and established different universes one of which he is personally writing himself.

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~ Quote of the Chapter ~

"The mark of a warrior is not how he lives, but how he dies."

"I am not a hero because I want your approval. I do it because I want to. I am just a hero for fun."

"Failure is only the opportunity to begin again."

"Sharing tea with a fascinating stranger is one of life's true delights."

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~ Marc Spector's POV ~

..(The Protagonist)

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Date: 15th January, 1991.

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Time: 11:38 am.

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The Big Three. It's what the fans had been calling Naruto, MHA and Pokemon. He found it flattering to be honest, and it was also a reminder that no matter how much things change they also stay the same.

After all, "The Big Three," had been the title for the three most popular shonen manga from Japan that dominated the sales chart of the Japanese manga industry.

And after his latest chapter of Naruto where he had shown Naruto getting Taijutsu training from Guy sensei along with Lee. The fans went crazy over the "cool," martial arts fight scenes and the funny interactions between Naruto, Lee and Guy.

Making it one of his most sold chapter issues yet only behind the final issue of Marvel's Secret Wars and the Ninth chapter of Naruto - The Promise of a Lifetime. If he was anyone else he would be satisfied with this much already.

But his need to crush DC still remained, so he decided he would just bombard fans with quality content till they forget that DC even exists. He was already pushing DC to the brink of collapse, because of the incident in China and his unquestioned support.

David knew that the Watch owed him a huge favor, so Mark had this time sent them to investigate and disrupt the dealing between Time and Warner. Time wasn't actually into any evil shit except for some low level white collar shit.

But that was exactly the kind of dirt he needed to be sent over to the shareholders of Time, which he did anonymously through the Watch. And he just sat back and watched as the merger between Time and Warner collapsed.

Why? Well Warner wasn't really being honest with their dividends or their earnings for the last quarter. Their failing film studio that suffered a loss of hundreds of millions of dollars that they had tried to cover was the final nail in the coffin.

And now the Time had abandoned Warner Bros, it was standing on its last leg. He gave at most a year or two, if they didn't make any big successful movies/comic storylines to drive people to buy their merchandise they would definitely go bankrupt.

'Ah, I just love when a plan comes together.' He knew the CEO of Time was in the know of Warner's financial situation but because of the friendship between him and the head of Warner Bros.

The man was willing to look the other way as he knew Warner would turn things around with their help. And the capital investment into their paid TV business (HBO) was finally showing returns but it was too slow to keep Warner afloat.

It's why his friend needed him to bail him out with a merger and he would have gotten a larger chunk on the stake in Warner and be five times as rich as he was before the failed merger.

But now he was suspected of fraud and was being investigated by the board of directors. Mark didn't want to leave any way out for Warner to survive so the investigators would mistakenly come upon the documents that the Time's CEO hid from the board leading to a lot of troubles for him.

Whether the man avoided jail time or not though was none of his concern as he was going through the last of checks for the event. Last time he had introduced Naruto and DOOM at the comic-con and even though the latter was canceled.

It wasn't due to a lack of popularity among the readers a trial because he wanted to make the comic into a Halloween special. Currently he had only three comic series in serialization and he felt that it wasn't enough so he planned on introducing three more.

At first it was only 2 but then he saw a similarity between the two that he was about to introduce and then he thought about introducing another one that shared the similarity to capitalize on it for some comedy.

The three new comic series that he was going to introduce in this event were –

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"Good afternoon, my fellow nerds, I am your host for the night."

"Oh don't give me those disappointed looks, Mr. Spector is backstage and will be making an appearance on stage later."

"WOOOO!!!". "AAAAA!!!" The audience roared and shouted in excitement as they began chanting.

"EIDOLON! EIDOLON! EIDOLON! EIDOLON!"

The EMC couldn't get a word out, he was a little embarrassed, but incredibly impressed by seeing hundreds of people so excited to see Mark that they couldn't sit still for a moment.

A lady in the front row looked like she was gonna faint. He heard a crackle as his ear piece turned on, "It's fine Kev, I will take care of it from here. I should have expected this from the beginning to be honest."

He heard Mark's talk in a exasperated yet happy tone as he walked onto the stage, he was dressed in a hoodie and sweatpants. Looking just like one of normal people in the crowd in slouched posture.

As he walked to the center stage he gait changed, his posture straightened, he dropped the hood and took off his glasses. It was seeing Clark Kent drop the glasses and become Superman. The crowd went even more wild as they screamed and shouted in joy.

Some of them had tears in their eyes, but all of them were happy to see their idol again.

Mark nodded at Kevin as he left the stage and then turned to the crowd. He walked closer towards them and raised his hand and closed his fist, as if gesturing for them to quiet down.

And they actually listened.

"Thank you." Mark said, with a short bow of head, expressing his sincere gratitude.

"Thank you for all the love and support. I know my movie was good but even I know it fell short of the commercial success we actually got. It was all because of you guys re-watching the movie, like crazy."

"In a survey, Cinema score found out that over 65% of the Knives Out audiences had actually seen the movie more than two times. The highest was some kid named Ryan Reynolds who watched it 14 times with his sister or so he said."

"You guys have supported Eidolon. So, now it is time to show you what we have accomplished with your support. Last year was our first year of business, so we could only make 1 feature film as we had only 1 film crew."

"But currently, we are shooting 3 films, all at the same time." As he explained, the projector came online that showed the logo of the three studios.

"One of those is called The Killing Joke which I am personally in charge of, now you must be thinking why am I talking about a movie in a comic book convention."

"Well, even though I am a Marvel fanboy through and through. It's no secret that I really like the iteration of certain characters from DC as well. One such character is the Joker."

"Nothing about the past of the crazed clown was ever revealed or explored. So I thought about creating a similar character inspired by the Joker and making a movie on it."

"It's basically a character study. But even though it is based on a comic book character. This movie is grounded in reality, a cruel and dark one. It's gonna be R rated, there will be swears, pretty awesome looking graphic violence and a whole lot more."

"But I warn you it's not for the faint of heart or those suffering from a mentally, this film might just trigger that inside of you. So my request to you would be please stay away."

"Sorry, that part got a little heavy, moving on we will also be releasing a children's picture with our new Animated movie called the Beauty and the Beast."

"The script is co-authored by our talented writer - Mrs. Linda Woolverton and yours truly." He pointed towards himself.

"The last is a Christmas comedy movie called Home Alone. I am sure you'll see it at the end of the year."

"But let's move on from the movies towards games. We have invested heavily in acquiring many game development companies of different kinds, from board games and card games to even video games. You'll find 'em at the Eidolon store after this show."

"But most importantly is the announcement for the Rebirth of the Marvel Comics. With the end of the Secret Wars storyline the Marvel multiverse has gone through a retcon."

"A new Marvel Multiverse has started. Many of you must have bought the comic books available at our booth here and must have seen them being differentiated by Marvel Ultimates and Marvel 616."

"This was done to allow the readers to have an easier time following their favorite stories and have an easier time to start reading newer ones."

"After this reboot, we plan for Marvel Comics to be split into three different universes or continuities."

"The main Marvel continuity is called Marvel 616, it has all the old stories that are deemed good and usable, and will be adapted over."

"It will be worked on by the old Marvel staff; serving as editor in chief for them is Jim Shooter."

"As for why I hired him back on, well I could say it's because he was amongst the best of all the editors Marvel ever had in maintaining continuity and it would be true."

"But the real reason is that he gave the writer's better rights, better pay and treated them well."

"And that's exactly what I want from the new Marvel. As a writer myself, I know how much it hurts to not own the rights to one's own creation."

"The second universe is called Marvel Ultimates or the Ultimate Marvel Universe and I will personally be in-charge of it."

"Each and every single story set in that universe will either be written by me or will have to be vetted by me to be adapted in the ultimate comics."

Hearing that shocked the fans, to hear one man was going to write the stories of an entire universe was insane. They hoped Mark took help from the IWA and didn't push him too far and get burnt out due to exhaustion.

"For now it's just me, but soon the graduates of the workshop will also be joining me and helping me out in this endeavor." He said as the projector shifted from the images of the ultimate comics to photos of the artists from the workshop who created their own works

"Their works are also featured here and available to be read at the marvel booth at a discounted price. I personally recommend you guys to try out Powerhouse, Apotheosis and Ben: 10,000."

"The first two are set in the Marvel Ultimates and the last one as the name suggests is a Ben 10 spinoff."

"As for the last one, it's made of all the other Universes in the Marvel multiverse. There, the writers have complete freedom and can write whatever bizarre scenario they want.

"Marvel Zombies."

"Prehistoric Avengers."

"All the little what-if's that come to you when you read a comic book. What if Captain America was loyal to Hydra, what if Spider-Man killed his enemies, what if Hulk was smart and built his own kingdom, what if Thor lost all his godly powers and had to rely on technology."

"They are completely free to experiment around with the characters and the setting, as long as they do not promote degeneracy."

"And that's about it from marvel. Are there any questions for me about Marvel?" Mark asked towards the crowd as the QnA had finally begun.

"Me! Yes! Can I?!" The crowd shouted as they raised their hands.

"Mark, I have seen you in the writer's credit for each and every comic book from Marvel Ultimates. Have you really written all of them yourself? And how long have you been planning this Ultimate Marvels storyline?"

"Yes, I have really written them all. As for how long I've been planning the Ultimate Marvel? Hmm, a bit over 10 years."

"But that's when you started writing.." the questioner blurted out in shock.

"Yep, when I was 10, I started writing Ben 10. At that time I loved Marvel comics but the recent ones were bad. So, I thought how about I make my own? Of course I won't be able to sell it. But atleast I will have my own Marvel series that I will love."

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"It started small with Iron man, as for why did I pick such an obscure character?"

"It was because I wasn't confident in my writing skills and I knew I wouldn't be able to forgive myself, if I messed up a beloved character like Spider-Man or the Fantastic four."

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"From Ironman to Captain America, Black Panther, Thor, Ant-man and more. I wrote about them in a dairy. My intention with it was to create the best Marvel universe, the Ultimate Marvel Universe. And that's how I got the name."

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"Next."

"Mark, so you have over 10 years of story of the Marvel Ultimates already planned out?"

"Not exactly, I wrote them when I was a kid, so overall the story's plot line is okay but the dialogues are a bit dated and immature." He explained with a blush.

"These need to be rewritten and improved upon but to answer your question, yes I do."

"Next."

"Mark, how did you select these stories from the workshop, there must've been thousands?"

"Well, we were sent the shortlisted top 100 storylines from our workshop's writers. And I must say I am proud of each and every one of them."

"They did great work but unfortunately we didn't have enough slots. So we could only select 5 out of these 100. I was handed the shortlisted, top 20 list and told to select 5, they were all great."

"I selected the ones that I thought were unique or never been tried before but also executed well enough and would also attract more readers."

"Powerhouse. I really liked it because it explored human emotions, loss of childhood innocence, PTSD, survivors guilt and a boy's will to persevere and overcome all that just so he can protect his sister."

"Apotheosis explores Asian themes but in Marvel and it is an excellent story about how the environment a person lives in and grew up in, can turn even the most pacifistic and peace loving person into a greedy and cruel monster."

"We humans are after all shaped by and influenced by our surroundings. So remember my dear readers make friends who will lift you up in life rather than those that will drag you down."

"As for Ben: 10,000. It is basically a spin off set in the future with Ben Tennyson as a father, having mastered the Omnitrix and unlocked all its aliens."

"Okay, that's enough questions on Marvel for now."

"Let's move on to Eidolon Comics. Currently we have three comics that have received a lot of love from you guys, the fanmail you guys send just floods our offices and my artists just love reading them." He said as the projector showed three panels behind him, showing the latest volumes of Naruto, MHA and Pokemon.

"And to show our appreciation we have worked hard to push out these new series. The first [God of War], the story is written by yours truly and is based on Greek mythology. In this, we follow the story of Kratos, a Spartan warrior who follows a path of vengeance against the Olympian gods."

As his introduction finished a new panel appeared right alongside the Pokemon Adventures panel. It showed the broad back of a bald ashen colored man, with blood red tattoos and flaming swords in his hands.

There was a moment of silence before the crowd cheered in happiness over getting a new Marc Spector comic series.

"Calm down, there is still more to come." Mark said, calming the excited crowd.

"The second series we have for you is [Avatar: The Last Airbender]. This one is co-written by the immortal writers, it is work of much, much bigger scale and I wanted to do it justice."

"The series is centered around the journey of twelve-year-old Aang, who is the current Avatar and last survivor of his nation, the Air Nomads. Now the avatar is and what is his role in the world.. you'll have to read the comic books to find out.

As his explanation was going on a new panel appeared alongside the God of War as the previous Big Three went on the top, leaving behind an empty space at the bottom right corner. Filling them with anticipation for the last of the new Big Three or was it the Big Six now?

The third and last series that we have for you is [One Punch Man], it's written by you guessed me! It's a parody of the superhero genre and is my first attempt at writing something focused on the comedy genre. I hope you guys enjoy it."

And with that, the final empty slot was filled with the cover of the one punch man comic book.

As that happened a few astute observers in the crowd noticed an interesting similarity between the protagonists of the newly introduced comic series.

The moment Mark finished talking about the new series and opened the panel to discussion, one of them stood up and asked the question that had been on the minds of many in the crowd.

"Marc, I noticed that the main characters of all your new series are all bald. Is it intentional or just a coincidence that happened due to artistic choice?" the man asked, he had a cap on, that was hiding a bald spot on his head.

"You got an eye for details and yes, it is intentional. I had already selected God of War and Avatar from my list of stories, but I couldn't find another fantasy genre."

"And a friend of mine had pointed out that I had chosen stories with protagonists that were bald, so how about if I choose the final series that also had a bald character as the main protagonist."

"It may have started off as a joke but now it has become an opportunity for me to spread the message that even bald men can be the hero of their own story."

"If you are going through severe hair loss and losing hair then just shave it all off and go bald. Why? What are you afraid of?"

"What women find unattractive aren't bald men but rather men who are balding."

"A man with a full head of hair," he shrugged, "that's normal."

"A man who's completely bald, now that shows confidence, people like that, women like confident men."

"It's the awkward in-between stage that paints a person as insecure and indecisive."

"I know it seems hard to do, some of you must be even thinking what does he know he has such beautiful long hair. So in solidarity I have shaved off my hair and donated it to a good cause."

He said as he removed his wig, and showed his shaved off head by bowing towards the audience.

A few women in the crowd screamed and cried at the sight, while the men had huge respect in their hearts at Marc's courage and selfless service.

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"Next." Mark replied not nonchalantly like he hadn't just turned there world view upside, a multi millionaire maybe even a billionaire had just shaved off his head to spread awareness towards balding men and lack of confidence.

"Marc, it's not a question relating to Marvel or even comics actually.. I.. need some advice." A timid young man asked as he squirmed in nervousness.

"Go ahead, ask away." Mark replied in calm, soothing voice and put him at ease.

"How do I be successful? I can't find the motivation to push myself.. I am stuck" He asked with a strained voice, as if it physically hurt him to ask this.

"Hmm, what's your name?" Mark asked back, wanting to make it more personable, so he could connect with the man.

"Peter.." came the reply.

"Peter, what you're stuck in currently is your comfort zone. Have you ever seen a tortoise, Peter?" Mark asked making an analogy to get him to understand his predicament.

"Have you ever seen them laying around just curled up in their shells? Comfort zone is just that, it's like a shell of a tortoise, you feel safe inside it."

"But what happens to a tortoise that stays inside its shell all day?"

"It can't move forward. In the same way, Peter, if you never get out of your comfort zone and challenge yourself."

"You'll never know your potential and you'll never achieve true success in life."

"Remember, life is all about taking risks, yes, there is a chance that you will fail.. maybe even several times. But remember, even Edison didn't invent the light bulb on his first try."

"So, it's not the end of the world. It is alright to fail, failing is normal and it is a way to move forward and try new things; and learn new things."

"I have seen people put this false pressure on themselves, especially teenagers and young adults like yourself. The pressure to succeed on the first try and let me tell you that shit is not real."

"Do you know how many times my mom rejected my final draft for the first chapter of Ben 10?"

Peter shook his head, wanting to know the answer and so did everyone else in the crowd. After all this was the man considered by many as one of the best fictional writers in the world currently.

"42."

"I had reached a point, where I even felt resentful towards her, thinking that she was messing with me or even just trying to hold me back."

"It was just my child brain being foolish. My mum just had been strict with me because she knew that I hadn't reached my limits."

"It was her guidance and the silent encouragement from my father that has allowed me to stand before you all, with pride in my accomplishments. Okay maybe my obsession had a little bit to do with my success as well."

"I hope that answers your question, Peter."

"It does, thanks Marc. I appreciate all that you do."

"Remember, everyone. Be good, be kind, be the best version of yourself, be.. Eidolon."

"Let's keep the show going, I got a little something for you guys, this is the recording of a charity event I hosted last year."

"I wish I could show you short films like the ones I showed you in the San Diego comic last year. But unfortunately my animators had been a little tied up with creating Beauty and the Beast."

"So, instead here is a video of me, hosting a charity event and performing on stage. I hope that it is to your liking." He said as he bowed and left the stage as the video of him performing for the [White Lotus Foundation] started playing in the background.

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~ Two weeks later on the set of The Killing Joke ~

"Mark this is crazy, why are you doing this?" Eva asked exasperated from Mark's stubbornness.

"Because, I want to? And besides you've seen me drive, I am the best driver on the crew. I even successfully completed the shot in rehearsals, have some faith in me, babe." Mark replied in an easy-going manner.

"Please don't say that, I have absolute faith in you. But can't you find someone else to do the shot? Maybe a professional.." She tried to interject but didn't want to come off as if he doesn't have faith in him.

"Now, that's a low blow, Eva. I want to do it myself, because it's exciting and I want to be more than just a voice over for this movie." He said firmly but started off in a joking manner to show he didn't mind her questioning him.

"It's gonna be something special. I can feel it." He said as he imagined the stunt choreography he had designed while working with a team of Japanese and American stun directors.

"Fine, but please take care of yourself." She replied, with a tired sigh as she kissed him and went to open the door of his trailer.

"Is he ready ma'am?" asked a crew hand.

"He is.." She muttered with a sigh, but her eyes lit up as she saw Jon behind her.

"Can you walk me through the scene, please Jon." She asked approaching him.

"Ofcourse, Eva. Come let me show you the set." He was happy to show her the product of their hard work and creativity.

"So, first, the scene will start with Brad bolting out of the gym and heading towards his bike, here we'll do a switch. It will be Mark who'll be driving, the switch will be done after Brad puts on the helmet."

"All the vehicles out on the streets are actually trained extras who have been properly instructed and rehearsed. It will look like a high speed reckless race scene, with Mark racing against time."

"But, the streets have all been cleared, as we have cordoned off the streets for these certain blocks." He said pointing to a map in his hand.

"Only cars driven by our stunt drivers will be running here."

"The next scene will start off with Mark speeding out of the gym parking lot in the Kawasaki ZX-11. We need to make the bike look good, after all we're being paid millions for this product placement."

"He is going to weave between the oncoming traffic at seemingly blinding speeds, cut corners, even go in the wrong way because it's a short cut and somehow reach a building with a multi storey parking lot."

"He will race to the top and there the scene will end, before the next part starts he will be hooked up to a zip line, while the bike will be hooked up to a crane. As the second scene starts he will accelerate at full speeds and jump over the roof."

"After the jump comes the hard part."

"The jump wasn't the hardest part?!" She exclaimed exasperated.

"Nope, after the jump he will have to crouch on the bike seat and jump again, the zip line will take care of the rest. He just needs to point his arms forward for it to look like he is shooting hooks out his gauntlets."

"Then right before he hits the mirror, he will throw a device that will crack the "bulletproof" glass and allow him to break it with a single kick and enter the scene with a badass vibe of a superhero."

"Mark will then proceed to beat the ever loving shit out of our talented stuntmen who are all wearing protective clothing from UnderArmor. It will give the fight scene a more realistic feel."

"In the fight scene, Mark will constantly be changing places with Brad."

"Why?" She couldn't help but ask, confused.

"It's because, whenever, "we," the audience see them from Scarlett's perspective, we will see Brad because to her Brad is the vigilante so she won't demonize him."

"But to the Joker's henchmen he will be the Lucifer who came to life just to drag to the deepest, darkest place in hell and drown in their own blood."

"After all the henchmen in the room are done, Brad will come to Scarlett and gently lift her up. He will cry at being unable to get to her in time, for being unable to protect her, for being unable to keep his promise."

"As Brad had broken down in tears, even more henchmen will enter the room. They will surround him and then their leader and Joker's right hand man will come forward."

"He will tell him that it does not matter if he defeats the others, as they are just too many to fight and after they are done with him they will break the girl."

"The one who will turn back to face the goons will be Marc, with streaming down his cheeks, he will need to speak with the rage and wrath of hundred men."

"Till now Joker and his men have gone unimpeded but this man will put a stop to that and this scene is the start of that journey."

"Mark will turn around and say, "You're acting up because you want me to tear you apart, aren't you?" The look of murderous rage on his face will frighten them.

"This scene is gonna be even more brutal and bloody than the last but before it starts, Scarlett or rather Brooke Gordon will ask him to show mercy as he isn't a killer and that's not who he is." With a sad but proud look on his face Brad will turn towards her and pat her and get up.

As he turns around towards goons, it's back to Mark again, and he will methodically demolish them all. Focusing on taking them all down as fast as he can without killing them.

"Looks like Mark had really planned this out in detail," Eva said with a sigh, knowing she had to let him be free and do his own thing.

"I know you're worried about him. But don't worry we have triple checked the ziplines and taken all safety and security measures."

"He is doing dangerous stunts, yes, but he'll never really be in any danger."

"That puts my heart at ease. Thanks, Jon."

"Anytime, Eva."

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"Action." Jon called out, as Brad walked out with hurried steps as he broke out in a run. He opened up his duffle bag and took out his half mask and hoodie, starting up the bike he raced out of the parking lot.

Now it is Mark riding the bike going at top speeds as he has a girl to save a criminal hideout to find. We see a flashback as Mark connected the dots and understood where the hideout could be.

He raced across town, reaching a multi storey parking lot, that was enough to make a direct entrance as he didn't really have the time to do the whole raid redemption scene as Brooke's life was in danger.

Not wasting a single moment he raced to the top of the parking lot, after being hooked on by the cables. The scene started again as he jumped the bike off the roof and then jumped off of it again.

Imitating the movement of launching the grappling hooks, he rode the zipline and right before making contact with the window he threw a prop at it. It was just fake glass so he was worried about any accidents.

He broke the glass with a kick that launched the shards at the goons and rolled to break his fall. The scene ended there for now, as before they could get ready for the next scene.

Rose walked in, she approached Mark with measured steps as she was unsure whether the news she was about to give was a good or bad one.

"Sir."

Mark was just lounging on a chair as a woman gave him a shoulder massage.

"Hmm." He hummed, opening an eye to look at her.

"Sir, the Oscar Nominations are out."

"Well, go ahead read it to me." He said as he gestured for the lady to leave them alone. She nodded curtly and left.

Knives Out has been nominated for the following categories –

1. Best Adapted Screenplay – Jessica Lichtner.

2. Best Director – Marc Spector.

3. Best Actor – Johnny Depp.

4. Best Actress – Salma Hayek.

5. Best Supporting Actor – River Phoenix.

6. Best Original Score – Hans Zimmer.

7. Best Art Direction – Art Direction - Jeremy Woodward, Set Decoration - David Schlesinger.

8. Best Costume Design – Edna Mode.

9. Best Cinematography – Steve Yedlin.

10. Best Picture – Knives Out, Marc Spector.

"Looks like Universal really did go all out this time," Mark said with a chuckle, 'Ronald must really want the marketing cut for my movies as well.'

"There's more, sir." She said with a happy smile as the rest were just a pleasant surprise.

"Go on, I'm listening." He said, his interest piqued.

"Halo: MasterChief's Promise, the animated short film has been nominated for the best animated short film."

"You gotta be kidding, we didn't even officially release it in cinemas."

"We didn't, but we did give a public exhibition in a theatrical setting and one of your fans is actually a theater owner so he played the short film in between the other films."

"So it was able to pass Oscar Nominations requirements?" Mark asked in disbelief unable to believe his good luck maybe it was the luck of the harem king but he didn't know what to think of it, though it was undoubtedly a pleasant surprise all the same.

She just nodded to confirm his words.

"Mark." He heard River call out.

"Yeah?" He asked as the man walked in.

"You heard about the nominations?" He asked in an excited tone.

"Yep, just now." Mark replied nonchalantly.

"We got 10 nominations Mark! This is huge! Its your debut and you've already got an oscar nomination."

"It's not a big deal, River. It's probably just Ronald trying to get in my good books so I would give him the marketing cut of my movies in the renegotiations."

"Wake up to reality, River. We can make a great movie, earned hundreds of millions of dollars. But if you don't lobby for your movie then the chances of it winning at a award show like the oscars are really not that great."

"Especially for young people like us who are discriminated against. What do they say? Oh right.. just wait your turn it will come."

"So, what?! We can't win unless we bribe them?! I am done waiting, Mark." He exclaimed, feeling incensed.

"So am I, I didn't say that though, remember there are always exceptions to the rule."

"We just need to make a film that's really good and achieve the milestone in Hollywood and cinema."

"Then even, those half dead old zombies will have to bow that heads to us an accept defeat."

"And what about this Oscar where we were nominated for almost everything but will win nothing."

"They are just trying to humiliate us and make a joke out of it."

"Indeed, what a funny world we live in right?" Mark asked with a devilish grin on his face.

— To be continued…

In the next episode of X̶-̶M̶e̶n̶ '9̶7̶

*Cough* *Cough*

I meant in the next chapter of Hollywood: Head-Hunting System.

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Word Count: 5619 words (after excluding the disclaimer, opening Author's Note and the closing Author's Note.)

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{Closing Author's Note: Sorry for not uploading any new chapters for the last few days but as you must found out from reading my authors note I hadn't been at home and the environment that I was staying in wasn't really very suited to writing.

Anyways I happy to announce that 2 new patrons have joined us. I am so happy at the steady growth of this page. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

If you guys want to support me and my work or if you just like to read ahead then please come on over to my Pat . Reon page and there you will find the following —

4 Advanced chapters of Head-Hunting System.

5 chapters of Naruto: Road to Kage.

3 chapters of the Star Wars - Phantom Menace's revised script.

The link to it will be in the author's thoughts section at the bottom of the chapter. Or if you unable to copy the link then just send me a friend request on discord and I will send you the link in the direct message through it.

This is my discord username – theramenlord