A New And Unexpected Life

It'd been so long since I arrived in this world. So long I was now older now than I was in my previous life - I died at the age of 17 and now I was 21.

How did I die? Stabbed, trying to help someone. Looking back on it, I was extremely naive and stupid; unprepared for the reality of what I was about to try. So in the end it was a decided outcome that I'd get injured or killed - and yet I don't regret my actions. I saved someone's life. I know that. So in the end, I was okay with dying.

Well, no, I wasn't OKAY with dying but I accepted the fact that if I saved that person's life it would cost my own. I was instilled with good morals, morals given to me by my grandparents, and most of those morals were along the lines of 'If you can do something for someone else, try to do it'.

Idealistic morals aside, death wasn't the end for me. No, I woke up to a new family in an unfamiliar body and a head filled with unfamiliar memories.

My new body was called James Parker, son to Ben and May Parker, cousin to Peter Parker. Yeah, THAT Peter Parker aka Spider-Man. I was pretty taken aback by the cliche-ness of my transmigration into this new world but I was more worried with where I was: The MCU. I was a fan of the Marvel Universe in it's entirety - not a super fan who knew everything - but that only meant I knew how messed up this place was.

Nowhere as bad as the comics, sure, but it was still pretty bad. Especially for a normal person.

Thankfully, I wasn't what you'd call a normal person. I didn't just gain the memories of James Parker, the previous owner of my new body, but also the memories and Quirk of All Might, also known as Toshinori Yagi, which meant I had access to One For All.

It also meant I had access to All Might's many decades of experience when it came to fighting, training and even using OFA. Theoretical knowledge, sure, but it was a start.

Knowing where I was and the events that would occur in time, I began my mission of becoming a hero. Knowing I had the power and potential to save people...it'd feel like I was spitting on the morals my grandparents seemed to hold so dearly if I just went about my life without helping others. And seeing as my new family included Ben Parker, I knew that he'd agree with me.

After all, with great power comes great responsibility.

Anyway, I 'woke' up in this body a few days after the original James' 8th birthday which gave me plenty of time to prepare. The Peter of this universe hadn't been born yet but I knew it was only a matter of time, and whether you want to call it obligation as an older sibling/family member or just plain stupid altruism, I didn't want my younger cousin being born into a world, or at least a city, that was so rife with crime and danger.

Either way, All Might's memories came as a massive help. The utter knowledge the man held when it came to hand-to-hand combat and physical training was mind boggling at first but with time I quickly began sorting through it and picking up pieces that were applicable to me.

And thirteen years later, I was well on my way to being strong enough to protect my family and the city I now called home.

On the way to this point I'd had quite a few adventures. A few run-ins with the law because of my actions against certain gangsters like Kingpin and I'd had more than a few close-calls to being caught out by my new parents when I came back too late after a night of vigilantism.

Which is what I was doing. I had no illusion that I wasn't breaking the law, that I wasn't going out each and every night with a balaclava to hide my identity as I beat up thugs and saved people. I wasn't one of those people who thought myself above the law and I'd long come to terms with the fact that I was breaking it - but I found myself caring very little about it nowadays. I was saving people, that's what mattered to me.

All this brings me to now, as I stood in front of the mirror in my apartment holding up a fancy suit and seeing how it matched my burly frame behind it.

I mean, I was thankful for the fact I had One For All...but it also amped up my muscle mass to such a level that fitting into normal clothes was a hassle. I wasn't the same size as All Might or anything but I was 6'5" and built with enough muscle that it was obvious no matter what I wore, and with suits it just made wearing them pretty goddamn uncomfortable.

How did I have an apartment in New York at the age of twenty one? One word. Investing. You'd be surprised what foreknowledge can net you if you have enough patience. I mean, it was only about, what? Four months ago that Tony Stark said in that press release that he was stopping the production of weapons in Stark Industries? All it took was buying up all the stocks I could after their price dropped tremendously because of that line and I became one of the largest shareholders of the business. Not the majority one, mind you, but enough that I had dividends coming out my ears.

Where did I get the money? A lot of part-time jobs and a few patents for advanced materials I'd sourced from All Might's memories. You wouldn't think All Might would know how to make super suits but there were tonnes of conversations in All Might's memories with David Shield and that's all I needed, really.

That and I wasn't a slouch in the intelligence department either. I hadn't just spent thirteen years working out and fighting crime - I'd aced high school and got into Harvard where I majored in biochemistry and anatomy. Graduated top of my class too.

...You'd be surprised how clever you can make yourself when you study as a kid and have the right genetics for it. I hit the jackpot, I guess.

So, in the end, it wasn't hard to make sense of the mumbo-jumbo in the memories and make the things in my head into real items. I saved the best stuff for myself but it wasn't that hard to improve on what was already in the world for the good people living in it.

Anyway, after Stark confessed that he was Iron Man, stock prices shot right back up and even improved. Not to mention that Stark began inventing new technology right off the bat with the intention of improving the state of the world. Medical innovations, engineering masterpieces, new discoveries on quick-growing farm produce--all of it led to the stock price climbing and climbing.

Which also led to my dividends increasing and increasing as the company made more and more money.

With said money I made more investments and now I could be considered pretty wealthy.

All in all, it was a means to an end, however. Because right now, I was having to pay the price for my wealth - I had been invited to a dinner party of sorts by Stark Industries for their shareholders. A sort of celebration and thanks for those who showed trust in them when the going got rough. I'd also heard from my sources that they'd invited other business representatives to the party to foster better relations.

Why was I going if I didn't want to? Call me old fashioned but if I didn't have a good enough reason for not wanting to go somewhere or do something, I'd force myself to go. Honestly, having All Might's memories has influenced me to a certain degree. It's also showed me that whatever I have to deal with is nowhere near as bad as what he had to deal with when he was at the peak of his career.

...I shiver at the thought of having to deal with All Might's fans at one of his fan meetings. Actual animals, the lot of them.

Sighing, I knew I was gonna just have to put up with it for one night. At least I knew I'd be able to relax tomorrow - I was going to visit mom and dad. And Peter, my dear cousin. I'd grown exceptionally found of the kid because he reminded me so much of Izuku Midoriya and the All Might part of me had very fond memories of that kid.

The similarities between the two of them were quite uncanny, now that I think about it. Alas, I'd get to spend the day relaxing with my family.

One perk of OFA I hadn't been expecting, were the enhanced senses. Not just sight but also hearing and touch. Which meant despite the volume being very low and the TV being in another room, I could hear the urgent news report.

"...Urgent news as two green monsters have begun fighting in Harlem. The casualties of such a fight haven't been recorded yet but from our sources, it's quite sure to be high. Going to our nearest reporter, Rebecca Howe, for the latest on the situation..."

My jaw clenched and my brow scrunched up, "Is it that time already?" I wondered aloud as I flashed from my position and toward the living room of my penthouse apartment.

The TV showed who I presumed to be the Hulk fighting another creature of similar size and bulk but considerably more inhuman-looking. The Abomination, Emil Blonsky, if I remember correctly. Looking away from the scene of the two titans clashing, I looked to the corner of the screen and at the time.

[20:23]

"...I've got time," I nodded to myself, assuring myself that I could wrap this up and be on time for the dinner party hosted by Stark. With that, I burst into action and donned my suit. No, not the fancy tuxedo I'd been planning on wearing to the party - I put on my super suit. As odd as that feels to think, anyway.

Either way, time to be a hero.

. . .

POV Change - Rebecca Howe

I couldn't believe my eyes at the destruction I could see and the ones who caused it not one hundred meters from me - yet professionalism forced me to keep my composure as I held the microphone to my face as the go ahead was given to me through my ear piece.

"Rebecca Howe here, and as you can see from the scenes of destruction behind me, New York is the battleground between what can only be described as two titans," I started, stopping a flinch when I heard the shockwaves caused by fists being thrown by those two monsters before continuing, "At approximately quarter past eight, one of those creatures appeared on the streets of Harlem and began causing wanton destruction wherever it could. A few minutes later, the military and national guard began to combat it to very little effect. Then, just as things couldn't seem to get any worse, another creature appeared. The only saving grace of the situation seems to be that they began fighting as soon as the second one appeared."

A roar echoed out from behind me and this time I couldn't stop the flinching that came. It was like every cell in my body was screaming at me - screaming that I was right next to some sort of apex predator. Like I was turning my back on a tiger and it was ready to pounce.

Still, I pushed through, knowing this wasn't too close to where the creatures were and I focused on the questions coming in from the studio.

"Have there been any leads on what these creatures are, Rebecca?" Sarah, the news anchor chimed in, and I shook my head in reply before vocalising it.

"No, I'm afraid not," I said, "Though there have been reports that a military helicopter was seen flying over where the second creature appeared. Which brings into question the military's involvement in all this seeing as the second creature came from the air."

Before I could get a reply, I saw the cameraman's eyes begin to widen, the whites of his eyes showing more and more, portraying the utter dread in them. Looking over my shoulder, I realised that I'd have much rather stayed ignorant to what was approaching. One of the creatures was flying towards up, flung through the air by a punch or a throw--it really didn't matter how it happened. What mattered was a giant green creature was flying right at us.

It was going so fast it was a blur and I was sure the only reason I could see it was because of the adrenaline pumping through my system. Even then, I knew as soon as I saw it that I wouldn't be able to move in time.

I was frozen in fear. Fear for my life. Fear for what would happen to my children after I died.

I'd been a reporter in wars and for a brief time after that, I'd been a journalist writing up stories on prolific gangsters - not once had I ever been THIS scared. Not once had I ever been THIS sure I was going to die. Even as my perception of time slowed, the green creature was still a blur, streaking right toward me.

Terrified, I closed my eyes at my approaching death. I didn't want to see it. I'd rather be wilfully ignorant of it's approach than to watch it creep forward moment by moment.

Yet, as I kept my eyes closed, death never came. Even after so long I didn't feel any pain. Curiosity got the better of me, it would seem, as I cracked a single eye open ever so slightly. What I saw was both as shocking as it was relieving.

I collapsed to my knees, the adrenaline suddenly having left me, all as I looked up at what was happening in front of me.

A person had stopped and caught the green blur as if he were catching a ball. And yet from the cracks below the new arrival's feet, I knew the momentum that he'd just took on and stopped so casually would've turned me into a bloody mist. He, however, stood tall, his broad shoulders taut with muscle and his arms holding up the creature in his arms without a hassle despite the obvious size difference.

As soon as I saw the blond hair, I knew who this was. New York's very own vigilante, Sentinel. It was hard to mistake his tall and extremely well-muscled frame for anyone else, honestly. Not to mention that said from was wrapped in the iconic red, white and blue skin suit fitted with armor pads around every major muscle group*.

(*A/n - Just imagine All Might's suit from the original series but without the gold parts and gloves.)

"Are you okay, miss?" the deep, booming voice of Sentinel reached my ears and despite still being in a very dangerous situation...I felt at ease, oddly enough. I'd seen and read the reports on Sentinel from those he saved and it was hard not to be put at ease by his presence.

This is a man who had forcibly dropped New York's crime rate down by 15%, a man who's blown at a burning building with a single breath like it was a birthday candle*, a man who's held up a collapsing suspension bridge--at this point, calling him a man almost feels misleading. Either way, I pulled myself out of my thoughts and responded to him as I saw his bright electric blue eyes looking at me from beneath his face mask.

(*A/n - Yeah, All Might can do that. He is basically Anime Superman without the flying and laser eyes after all lol.)

"Y-yeah, thanks to you I am," I managed a wobbly and forced smile and Sentinel gave me a nod before turning his gaze back toward the green creature he was holding up.

Then he disappeared, no doubt back in the direction where the creature came flying from.

. . .

POV Change - James Parker

Phew, that was a close one. Had to actually try a little to get between Hulk and that reporter in time.

Either way, I continued toward where I knew Abomination was with Hulk in tow. The big guy had seemingly been hit pretty goddamn hard from what I could gather as even now he was still in a daze.

Had my appearance changed things? I don't remember this happening in the movie. Then again, my memory of the movie isn't the best. It's been over a decade since I last saw it, after all.

Nonetheless, I soon arrived where Abomination was still wrecking havoc and seeing him about to try and backhand an innocent. I put Hulk down and charged toward Abomination - it wasn't hard to outspeed the guy. He was all in on strength and had very little speed outside of explosive speed. In archetype terms, he's a Mighty Glacier - an archetype that includes people with incredible strength and durability but poor speed.

Sure, he's faster than the average human but compared to me? I'm a Lightning Bruiser. Something that has speed, strength, durability and stamina in spades. That's the benefit of having One For All, everything about me has been enhanced.

And even when I'm not using it, I'm still superhuman due to the lingering effects of the power. In that sense I'm like All Might - I'm constantly superhuman unlike Izuku who could only access it with Full Cowl.

Anyway, I got passed Abomination and grabbed the civilian he was about to kill before rushing off to the side where they'd be safer.

"Are you okay?" I asked with a smile, even when they couldn't see it. The civilian, an older man, looked up at me with his eyes wide and confusion filling them like he couldn't figure out why the green monster was gone and replaced by me. Still, he gave a shaky nod and I gave him a thumbs up, "If you're good, then you best get going. I need to deal with that Abomination and I can't do it with civilians around," I said in a matter-of-fact tone but I wasn't trying to insult the man.

He realised this and went on his way. I, on the other hand, turned to see Abomination snarling at me before he charged at me.

Even despite his overall speed being slower than mine, it didn't mean he couldn't cross short distances with lightning fast speed. He was like a sprinter, I guess is how I'd put it. Either way, I took a step forward and pulled back a fist.

I couldn't go all out with this many people nearby but I didn't need to, honestly.

Our fists collided and despite not putting my back into it, the shockwave still sent nearby people tumbling a few feet. Still, it wasn't enough to move me from my spot - in fact, Abomination soon wore a scared expression before he was flung away like a ragdoll from the force of my punch. Looking at the watch I had built into my suit, I nodded to myself, "I've still got time," and then I rushed after the flying Abomination.