Chapter 23: Pet Love Is Unrequited

The college students of Upstate University sprinted as fast as they could away from the campus. A food truck was tossed to the side effortlessly as the reaniman chased any form of life. The zombie-like figure leapt toward an escaping man. The civilian rolled to the side, avoiding the tackle. Looking for a new target, it locked onto Taz.

"Taz? Run. Taz?! Run!" Lexi screamed in his ear.

She was still perched on his back. The young viltrumite suppressed a smirk. His hands gripped her soft thighs for stability as he turned around and ran. It was more like a jog.

"Krrrrrrrrr!" It growled before sprinting after him.

Eve helped the injured students get to safety. As she looked around, she couldn't find Mark . The guy had disappeared. Will and Rick helped the redhead save more people.

The cybernetic zombie slowly caught up to Taz. Lexi watched with fear as it got closer. She couldn't help but squeeze his neck.

"It's gaining! Taz, move it!" She squealed.

The stoic man continued his jog. To normal people it would seem like a full on sprint. Once it was in range, the feral enemy leapt in an attempt to tackle them. Taz jumped to the side avoiding the attack. His feet kicked off the wall and sent him back to the drooling figure. He stepped onto its head and jumped off, the force pushing it into the ground.

As soon as he landed, the young viltrumite ran in the opposite direction. Lexi heaved a sigh of relief and rested her head in the crook of his neck.

"We'll be fine." Taz said.

"Mmmm." She hummed.

The reaniman slowly stood up from the ground. It was agitated. The skin on its body peeled off a bit as it sprinted after him once again. Once it caught up, a soda can struck its head. The cybernetic zombie stopped and locked onto Will.

"Uh oh." He muttered. The teen had just gained its ire.

"William!" Rick screamed.

"Krrr…kraahhhh!!!" The mechanical arm pierced toward Will's chest. If nothing was done, it would impale his chest. He closed his eyes in fear. Right before it connected, a hand caught the attack.

William opened his eyes to see the recently debuted hero Invincible. The amateur's body shook as he held the feral robozombie at bay. Their strength seemed to be almost even. Will couldn't help but stare at the hero's jawline for a second. His hair and frame looked familiar up close.

"Mark?" He realized. The man in question grit his teeth.

"Run!" He roared in frustration. Will was just sitting there like an idiot. Couldn't he see how much effort it was taking to hold the damn zombie? Hearing the tone of Mark's voice, his best friend jumped into motion.

Invincible's knee crashed into the reaniman's head. The impact forced it a couple steps away. He made sure to follow up the attack with a two piece combo. Both of his fists crashed onto the metal helmet. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough. The roboman grabbed the back of his suit and smashed him to the ground.

"Ughk!" Mark grunted in pain.

His hand grasped its leg in a vice grip. The hero then flew up with the zombie in tow, and slammed him back into the ground. The pavement cracked with the shape of a spiderweb. Invincible smacked him back and forth. He only let go when he thought it was down. That was the wrong decision.

"KeehhhKrrrrr!" It seethed.

The cybernetic zombie immediately got back up. It didn't tire at all. Once again, the feral enemy charged toward him. It leapt toward the amateur hero. This time it was successful in tackling him.

"Get…off!" He yelled. His feet pushed the villainous enemy into the sky. Mark wasted no time and launched after it. Taz watched from the side with a frown.

'This is sad.' He thought.

Even the children on Viltrum would've done a better job against this guy. They would've at least had technique to make up for strength. The elite soldier was beginning to think Mark should've waited to become a hero after training. It was truly embarrassing choosing a name like Invincible and being a pushover. He was literally getting his ass beat in front of all his friends and maybe lover.

Eve seemed to be debating if she should help. If that was the case, she'd have to disappear in order to don her suit. Fortunately, it didn't seem like she'd have to. The two fighters were locked in combat. As Mark eventually got pinned to the ground, he ripped off the roboman's helmet.

Taz raised an eyebrow. The revealed face was familiar. He wouldn't forget the missing poster so soon. His brain allowed him to remember things easily.

"Kreehhh? Rrrr…" The freak roboman stopped its movements upon seeing its reflection in the fountain. The mechanical hands rose to its face as it recoiled in horror. It then turned to Mark and leapt into the air.

"Shit." Invincible exclaimed. He assumed it was coming for him again. He clenched his fists in preparation.

A plethora of blood splattered everywhere. Mark turned to see the reaniman impaled on a pointy structure. The statue ran through its chest. It was an eerie situation.

Lexi felt the liquor in her system rush to her head. Her hand covered her mouth. Taz was prepared to throw her off if she vomited. Invincible frowned.

"Eww…What the hell?" He muttered.

Meanwhile, William was having the revelation of his life. He sat on the ground while staring at Mark.

"Holy shit! All this time…Holy shit! You're Invincible!" Will commented. The amateur hero flew over to his best friend and grabbed his shoulders.

"I swear to god, Will. Don't tell anyone. Don't say shit." He growled. Seeing Rick and Eve approaching with Taz and Lexi, he launched into the sky.

"Who was that?" Lexi asked from her piggyback position. Will pointed to the sky.

"That was Ma-uhhhhnnnvincible!" He stammered. The man had no idea that Taz and Eve already knew. It was almost comedic seeing him try so hard to be secretive.

As the situation started to calm down, a figure hiding behind the nearby building stomped his foot. An expression of annoyance was visible on his face.

"That's the last time I leave their frontal lobes intact." He muttered.

Taz raised an eyebrow as he heard the voice. He immediately turned his gaze toward the building and used his supervision. The structure gave way and revealed Sinclair fiddling with the reaniman's metal helmet.

The stoic viltrumite lightly slapped Lexi's perky bottom. This caused her to look at him with curiosity.

"You can get down now." The elite suggested. He wanted to mess with the genius before he left the scene.

"Mm-mm." She shook her head.

"Lexi." He spoke sternly.

"No." Lexi remained adamant. Taz rubbed his temples in annoyance.

"Then keep your mouth shut." He responded coldly. The blonde was used to his tone. Whenever he was fed up with her, he'd speak like this. She knew that she'd have to tone it down just a bit.

"I'll be right back." The young elite spoke to the group before turning away.

Eve could instantly tell that something was up. Her woman's intuition was ringing. As the two left the area, Mark appeared.

"Guys! The police are on their way…" He announced. Will & Rick gave him a weird look. Eve suppressed a giggle. They had totally 'forgotten' about him.

________

Taz strolled around the building with Lexi in tow. The blonde rested her chin on his shoulder. She wasn't as drunk as before, but she was still a bit tipsy.

"Where are we going?" She asked softly.

"I said be quiet." He responded.

Lexi shut her mouth and buried her face in the crook of his neck. A smile slowly rose on her lips. She enjoyed it when he ordered her around. It made her feel like their relationship was more than good friends. It was like she belonged to him. The blonde shamelessly inhaled his scent before nibbling on his skin.

Taz ignored her actions for the time being. This woman had always been perverted, but today she was going overboard. The powerful viltrumite couldn't understand what her problem was.

'She's lucky I like her.' He thought. If it was some other girl, he would've thrown her through a wall by now. Regardless, he had an arrogant genius to deal with.

Eventually, he turned the corner. Sinclair was fiddling with the metal helmet, his back turned in the opposite direction. The genius quickly noticed his surroundings getting dark. A shadow loomed over him.

"Hmmm?"

He turned around to see the powerful viltrumite glaring down at him with cold eyes. The blonde on his back didn't make it any less terrifying. His eyes dilated.

"It's you. What do you want?" He seethed. D.A. hid the helmet behind his back.

"What do I want? What do YOU want? It's a bit suspicious standing in a corner like this…don't you think?" Taz berated.

"You're too sure of yourself. Someone as great as me doesn't need to grovel in the dark. That's more YOUR style, peasant!" He retorted. The initial panic in the beginning was disappearing.

The young soldier frowned. His hand flashed toward the arrogant genius before gripping his throat. Sinclair's feet left the ground as Taz raised him in the air. The metal helmet fell to the ground with a clang. Lexi quickly realized that this guy was the mastermind.

"I'm not stupid, Sinclair. You want to advance humanity, correct? I honestly don't care what you do. Just stay away from my group. If I find a single hair missing from any one of them-"

"Unhand me…guhk…vermin!" He interrupted with what little air he had. His feet kicked at Taz's body. It was futile. The powerful viltrumite smashed him against the wall.

BAM

"Hfffff!" The last bit of air escaped Sinclair's lungs. The pain left him feeling weak. His face slowly changed color due to suffocation.

"Don't waste your life. If I notice something wrong, you'll see me again." The stoic hero finished. His hand released the weak human. D.A. fell to the ground and rubbed his throat. His chest rose and fell as he regained his breath.

"Hah…You think you're strong? I'll…I'll unleash the peak of humanity on you! Then I'm going to take that bitch off your back and-"

BAM

The back of Sinclair's head smacked against the wall. His vision instantly became white with stars. A strong hand covered his mouth. Lexi was in shock at how fast things had turned…evil. Taz's dangerous aura scared her, but she couldn't help but think that he was doing it for her. How wrong she was.

"I don't think you understand. Let me help you." The elite spoke calmly.

His hand straightened before slowly digging into the arrogant man's stomach. He moved his arm extremely slow, like a knife slowly piercing through butter.

"MMMMMMMMMMM!!" Sinclair screamed into the cold viltrumite's hand. His voice was muffled.

Both of his arms grabbed the powerful soldier's wrist in an attempt to stop him. Lexi was beginning to wish she had stayed behind. She knew Taz was like this, but actually seeing it in person was different. It was nauseating.

A nasty flesh-like sound reverberated as his hand dug ever deeper into D.A.'s stomach. The skin hadn't been pierced yet, instead folding around the hand. The stoic hero was about to reach the intestines.

Tears fell down the arrogant man's face. The pain was too much for the genius. He couldn't even breathe at the moment. Sinclair vowed mentally to never cross this man. He couldn't help but curse himself for even forcing Taz to go this far. This wasn't a good guy.

"Taz…you're scaring me…" The blonde finally exclaimed.

The young elite blinked a few times and paused his actions. He had forgotten she was there for a second. With a click of his tongue, he threw the genius to the ground. Sinclair curled into a ball while holding his stomach. He gulped continuously in order to hold back the rising bile. His clothes were drenched with sweat.

"Go clean yourself up. I can smell you from here." Taz mocked before turning away. As they made their way back to the group, Lexi nervously stared at the side of his face.

"Please don't ever do that again…Please." She whispered.

"....."