Clearing of the Mind

Atop a hill, a lone tree stood beneath the warm, shining, morning sun in Wakanda. Beneath that tree was a boy, Eren Parker, sitting with his legs crossed while wearing traditional Wakandan garbs. Below him was the beautiful Wakandan wilderness, filled with trees and flowing water with animals drinking from it. His hair, flowing in the wind, was white as Godspeed's blue aura surrounded him.

He was in his Ultimate Godspeed form, meditating as a way to extend how long he could hold the form and as a way to clear his mind. Meditation helped with training his body, but he still struggled to hold the form for more than thirty minutes. With breaks in between, the hero could extend it further, but his body would feel the effects if it was used too many times.

As he meditated in his form, the boy thought of nothing in an attempt to clear his head for a while. His mother, his family, and the impending doom that would attack in a few short weeks. The pit in his stomach that was there ever since hearing about Doom had finally faded away, he had finally achieved relaxation.

"Haaaah..." The boy exhaled, feeling the warm aura around his body as he completed his daily regimen. However, the boy's meditation would soon be interrupted by a presence, actually, two presences.

Without opening his eyes, the hero spoke.

"Franklin? Valeria? What's up?" The boy asked, causing both kids to look over at each other with their eyes wide and their mouths open in shock.

"How do you know it's us?" Franklin asked, looking up at the young hero's glowing body in admiration.

"I have this thing called Spider-Sense." Eren said, pointing to his own head with his eyes still closed. "It can usually only sense threats, but when I'm like this and my mind is clear, I can sense pretty much anything. I can't see you, but I can detect two little ones beside me. Who else would it be?" Eren told them while having a peaceful grin on his face.

"Woah..." Franklin said, looking at his sister before looking back up at Eren.

"By like this, do you mean with the silver hair?" Valeria asked, looking at his locs intensively. She was intrigued by how it was done. Learning about superpowers and supernatural ideologies had always interested her.

"Mhm." Eren nodded. "The power I have is called Godspeed, named it myself." Before Eren could continue, Valeria looked at him with an unimpressed face.

"Yeah, I could tell." She told him in a mocking tone, laughing slightly.

Eren opened a single, azure eye, using it to look directly at Valeria. He was unamused by her mockery. "Anyway, I'll skip over the details. This form that I'm in is called Ultimate Godspeed."

"Coooool." Franklin said breathlessly, bringing a smile to Eren's face.

"See, he gets it." Eren said proudly. "Anyway, it lets me run really fast basically, among other things."

"How fast?" Valeria asked him, once again looking at the hero's glowing form with intentive eyes.

"I don't know... I never measured it." Eren told her, dousing the girl's excitement. Sensing the excitement wane, Eren raised a question to the girl. "Want me to show you?"

Eren stood up, extending his hand to Valeria. She grabbed it, allowing the boy to bring her to her feet before lifting her up and putting her on his back. "Are you ready?" Eren asked her.

"Mhm." Valeria answered, though her voice was shakey. She was nervous about the uncertainty of it all.

Eren chuckled slightly, "Don't worry. You'll be okay. Just hold on tight." Valeria's grip around the young hero's shoulders grew tighter and in a flash, the hero dashed away, leaving nothing but a blue streak behind him.

Franklin's jaw dropped, as both Eren and Valeria had disappeared, soon there was nothing left behind. "Woah..." Franklin whispered, still looking forward as if he could see them.

About a minute passed before Franklin heard a sound behind him and a warm breeze that ruffled his clothing. He turned around to see Eren and his sister once again. Eren let go of Valeria, gently setting her down with a smile on his face.

Valeria looked as if she had just experienced the most exciting roller coaster of all time. Her hair was blown back, her breathing was sporadic, and her face had the biggest of grins across it. "That was amazing." She whispered, cueing Eren to chuckle once more.

"It amazes me every time." Eren looked over at Franklin, extending his hand to the boy. "Wanna try?"

Without any hesitation, Franklin ran over to Eren and jumped on the hero's back, hanging on tightly before the hero immediately blasted off, leaving Valeria behind. In just a minute, the hero returned with Franklin, surprising Valeria with how fast it seemed while only being the observer.

For the next few minutes, the kids took turns riding on Spider-Man's back as he bolted through the city, only being stopped when Ben Grimm arrived at the scene. Eren stopped in front of the Thing, placing Valeria on the ground before greeting him. "What's up, Ben?"

"Uncle Ben!" Both kids said simultaneously, excited to see him.

"Good Morning, everyone. You think I could get a turn?" Ben joked.

"Maybe next time." Spider-Man said with an unsure tone while rubbing the back of his head.

"I'll hold you to it, kid." Ben then looked down at the two kids. "Your parents want you back at the palace."

"Aw, man..." Franklin pouted, crossing his arms.

"Hey, not my rules. Keep it between us, but I gave you guys a few extra minutes. You gotta go now or your mother will be upset." Ben told them. "You can play later."

"Okaaaay." Both kids said before walking back toward the palace. Ben and Eren stayed behind, as the Thing patted the young hero on the back, walking past him and toward the cliff.

"The kids seem to be growing to like you, kid." The Thing said, looking over the hill that Eren was once sitting on. Eren approached Ben, standing next to him as the two looked forward at the beautiful Wakandan scenery beneath them.

"Yeah, they're good kids. They seem like a handful though." Eren admitted.

"You'd be right. I could never have kids." The Thing acknowledged, thinking it would be way too much for him to handle.

Eren looked over at the rocky man, looking down at his lower area before pointing below the belt. "Is it because the factory is no longer in service or..." Eren asked. It was a genuine question, he was curious if things still functioned down there.

Ben looked at Eren with a rocky scowl. "Yes, it works. It's a conscious decision, not because I'm incapable." Ben declared angrily, not finding the statement humorous in the slightest.

"I see... sorry." Eren apologized, causing a brief silence between the two. "Does it hurt? The girl I mean." Eren added. "Because it's made of rock, right? So, you know, I'd imagine it's not very pleasant. Maybe if you used like a... I don't know a silicone cover or something."

Ben clenched his fist and continued to look at the nature below them before speaking with the tone of a displeased mafia boss. "You know kid, you and Johnny have one thing in common..." The Thing stated, skipping over Eren's question.

"And what's that?" Eren asked.

Ben looked over at Eren, his expression, a furious one, telling Eren everything he need to know before screaming at him. "I wanna grab you both by the neck and snap you in half!" Ben yelled, startling the hero.

With his arms guarding his body, Eren apologized. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I was just curious."

"Here I was trying to come up here to give you some advice." Ben told him, going back to speaking in a calm matter.

"Advice? What do you mean?" Eren asked.

"I can tell you're bothered by what you learned yesterday. With Doom and your heritage and all that. You've had this look on your face ever since we left the Baxter building. Like you've got a pit in your stomach." Ben's words surprised Eren. He didn't realize it was that obvious.

"I see. I'm just afraid. I'm afraid of Doom and I'm afraid of not being accepted. I've been thinking about if I have family here and if they'd accept me. I know the Wakandan people don't take kindly to strangers, besides King T'Challa. Shuri told me he was the first king to even allow outsiders in, only people he considers friends." Eren confessed.

The Thing nodded his head. "Yeah, I get it. I know how it feels to wonder if you'll be accepted because of being different. I'm sure you already had to deal with that back home too."

Eren nodded. "Yeah. I have."

"You and me, we're similar in some ways. We both are afraid of being accepted, but do you know what helps me get through it? Knowing I have family and friends who do accept me. I don't let that fear hold me back because I know that despite having this body, I am able to be loved." Ben told the hero with a soft, yet gravely voice.

Eren said nothing, he just simply soaked in Ben's words.

"So your folks here in Wakanda, they may or may not accept you, but it won't hurt to try. There was a time in my life when I was afraid to meet new people after my wife left me when she saw... this. But if I stayed that way, I wouldn't have met the love of my life. She doesn't care that I'm different, for her, I'm as much of a man as anyone else. I'm actually thinking of proposing to her soon, I got the ring and everything." Ben spoke with a smile, showing his smile to Eren for the first time as he thought about his current lover.

"Point is, kid, don't be afraid to talk to your family if they're here. Whether they deny you or accept you, you've got family right here. There's no downside to trying."

"Yeah, you're right." Eren told him.

"And about Doom. We're all scared kid. But as I said, you've got a family right here. We all do. That's the difference between us and Victor. He has no one, he's weak because of it. That's why he and Reed could never get along, he'd always been looking to have what we have. We'll beat him, just like how we beat anyone else that crosses us." The Thing patted Eren on the back one last time before leaving the kid to think about what he said.

"I'll catch you later, kid." Ben said, walking away toward the palace.

"Hey, Ben." Spider-Man said, stopping the rocky hero in his tracks.

"What's up, kid?" Ben questioned, looking back over his shoulder.

"Thanks." Eren told him, now feeling as if he were ready for the road ahead of him.