บท 8: Unintentionally Heroic
Mark had followed Aresia and her companions outside of the city and into the forest, he was slightly pleased with himself when he saw they headed for the Atlas Mountains as that was where he theorised the garden to be the 'First smart thing I've done in a while' he thought to himself as he lagged behind them a little bit, he did walk in front of them for a while but he had caught them glaring at him a couple of times which made him more than a bit uncomfortable.
There was something off about these girls, he could guess they weren't entirely normal but he couldn't decipher what made them so strange 'Are they amazons?' He thought to himself but then he shook that thought off, Wonder Woman was the only person to ever leave her home, or that's what she'd said in an interview once. They were probably just people who wanted a shot at immortality, which Mark didn't care too much about, most immortals were probably dicks so if they wanted to live with them for company he wouldn't stop them.
"We are getting close," Aresia said to him in a curt voice not even turning around to look at him.
Mark raised his eyebrow "You know you girls look at me like I'm actual human waste, Now I know you're not from Gotham so what's your deal"
"How dare you speak to her like that you insolent-"
"Calm Myrina! He simply does not know his place yet" Aresia said as she cut her off.
Mark sighed 'Just get the apple and leave, don't make this into a bigger problem' he thought to himself.
"To answer your question male, it is an involuntary response, every time your gaze passes over us we struggle not to retch, so please try not to be offended" Aresia explained.
"I'll try..." Mark said with a stupefied look on his face, he supposed he was quite impressed how she could insult him while offering an apology. Though it was obvious why, she needed him to get the apples as she wasn't able to for whatever reason.
Mark decided to keep silent the rest of the trip, he doubted he could get much useful conversation out of them 'Maybe they are from Gotham' he thought to himself with a slight chuckle. However, he had to wipe the smile off his face when one of the women turned around and scowled.
They walked for another hour before they stopped "We are here" Aresia said as she pointed towards the bottom of the Atlas mountain which was just a flat rock wall.
Mark looked closer but he didn't see anything "I don't see anything but the mountain," he said to her.
Aresia just muttered something under her breath, it sounded a lot like 'stupid male' but Mark chose to ignore it "It will only show itself once the last light of the sun shines upon it" she explained.
Mark nodded his head in understanding before he went and leaned against a tree and waited for the sun to set. Though that was easier said than done he brought out his phone that he'd bought in Morocco and started to text someone, It would probably cost him a lot but when it was between that and making small talk with these women he'd rather go broke again.
Mark: Hey Kara it's Mark, how have you been? You've been away for a while, wanted to see how you were
Mark then put his arms down and waited for her to reply, he was kind of creeped out when he saw the two companions of Aresia staring intently at him, or perhaps at the phone he was using.
Kara: Hello Mark, I am well and it has indeed been a while since we've seen each other, perhaps you could tell me your location and we could engage in relations
Mark raised an eyebrow at the message, he'd spent quite a bit of time with Kara, this was someone else, or someone did a body snatch.
Mark: Who is this? You're really bad at impersonating Kara
Kara: Sorry Mark, one of my friends took my phone without me realising, I'm so glad to hear back from you, I'm sorry I couldn't come and see you but things have been complicated, we have a lot to talk about.
Mark: Sure, I'll let you know when I'm back home and you can come over
Kara: That may not be such a great idea 😅
Mark: Why not?
Kara: Like I said it's complicated but you should avoid Kansas for a while, Superman really wants to find you
Mark gulped, that definitely wasn't good, he couldn't even beat Kara so if Superman showed up he was definitely getting pummelled.
Mark: Shit... any advice on what to do
Kara: Yes, we need to engage in sexual relations
Mark: How would that help?
Kara: Help what?
On the other end of the line Kara and Kori were flying around the Batcave as Kori had once again managed to take Kara's phone from her "Kori give it back!" Kara whined as she grabbed onto her trying to reach for the phone.
Mark: Anyway I'm gonna go, have a job to do, cya later Kara
Mark then crushed the phone in his hand before tossing it away, even the women had to admit they were slightly impressed at how far he managed to throw it. The sun was finally beginning to set and Mark watched as the Rocky Mountain face started to shimmer and then turn into what looked like the entrance to a cave 'I know magic is real but... woah' he thought to himself as he followed the woman to the entrance.
"Halt Aresia!" He heard from above him as a woman who was flying landed in front of them. To say that Mark recognised the woman would be an understatement, he had no doubt any boy or man past puberty would recognise her.
"You have got to be fucking kidding me" Mark silently said to himself.
"Diana, it is good to see you sister," Aresia said with a smile though it was clearly forced.
Diana, also known as Wonder Woman frowned at the words of familiarity "I see through your lies Aresia, now tell me what you are doing here, Surely you aren't foolish enough to believe yourself capable of getting an apple" Wonder Woman stated
"I do not plan to obtain the apple myself" Aresia simply stated
Wonder Woman's frown intensified It was at this point that she noticed Mark behind them "I see, so you have gotten a poor unfortunate soul to grab the apple for you"
'Poor unfortunate soul?' Mark thought to himself, though now that she mentioned it he was pretty sure there was a danger associated with the tree but for the life of him he had no clue as to what it was.
"Diana stay out of our way, You have no business here" Aresia stated venomously
"I'm afraid I do, After what you've done the only place suitable for you is the cells beneath Themyscira" Wonder Woman replied with narrowed eyes.
"Male enter the cave and retrieve the apples," Aresia said as she looked back to Mark.
Mark sighed "Sure thing boss, don't wanna deal with this shit anyway" he replied to her though he whispered the last part to himself. He started walking towards the cave entrance, but Wonder Woman got in his way "Aresia is tricking you, whatever she promised you will never obtain" Wonder Woman said pleadingly
"Listen I'm just trying to get an apple for myself, What she does with her one I don't care," Mark said to her with a sigh
Before she can reply however Mark grabs her arm before swinging her over himself and towards Aresia 'That should give them an advantage' he thought to himself as he walked into the cave the sound of fighting dying out behind him.
———————————————————-
"Kori!!!" Kara shouted out with tears as her eyes blazed red, She had tried messaging Mark again but the message didn't send, so she'd lost her chance to speak to him some more.
"I do apologise, Friend Kara, I was unable to control myself when he was just on the other end of the phone," Kori said with a deep bow as they both sat on the ground in the Batcave, Kara had chased her around for a while wreaking havoc and causing Batman who remained at the Bat computer a large amount of annoyance. Though he couldn't exactly kick them out, if Starfire left then Supergirl would most likely follow her to find Mark. While this was initially his plan, he had thought about it a bit deeper and decided against it, he couldn't be sure Starfire and Supergirl wouldn't defend Mark. Superman and most of the league would be unwilling to fight Supergirl in normal circumstances but now that she was pregnant it wasn't even a question.
So no, the best place for these two girls was as far away from Mark as they could get, While they were separated Superman and the league could capture Mark and make sure he wasn't a danger to anyone else. While Batman did consider the ethical implications of what he was doing he had no choice, he'd seen what a fully grown Viltrumite with hundreds of years of battle experience could do, and he didn't want to see 20 more of them invading Earth.
Clark was on a warpath now, it wouldn't be long before he'd find Mark, he just hoped that the fight between them didn't cause too much collateral damage. He'd need to get a DNA sample from Mark, the fact he has a meta gene should be impossible, from what they learnt from Omni-Man. Viltrumite DNA overwrites foreign DNA making Hybrids an impossibility or so that's what he thought.
"Starfire!" Batman growled out not taking his eyes off the computer, he'd listened in on the conversation between Starfire and Deborah Grayson, so he hoped she'd have information on Viltrumite's offspring.
Kori turned as she heard Batman and flew towards him landing next to him "Greetings Mr Batman Is there anything I can help with" she said with a wide smile.
"What do you know about Viltrumites" Batman asked bluntly as he kept his eyes on the computer.
Kori couldn't help but frown cutely as she scrunched her eyebrows "You won't be mean to Mark will you" she asked as she narrowed her eyes at the Dark Knight.
"No..."
"Okay! What do you wish to know about them" Kori replied.
"Give me information about the offspring between Tamaraneans and Viltrumites," Batman asked
Kori tapped her chin for a moment "Any offspring between our races would only be Viltrumites if their DNA failed to be overwritten then the baby would die"
"So no true hybrids are possible," Batman asked
Kori shook her head, but then she stopped and focused for a moment before her eyes widened "Yes! I believe there was one such case of a true hybrid, he became a Viltrumite capable of absorbing the stellar radiation like Tamaraneans, though this was thousands of years ago so it is not clear whether the story of Thragg was true or not"
Batman grunted but was slightly concerned, he knew Viltrumite DNA was pure and aggressive but to kill its host if it failed to rewrite its code was concerning. Mostly because Kryptonian DNA was just as complex so when Supergirl gave birth the child would likely not survive.
Though it was probably best not to mention that to anyone at the moment.
———————————————————
Mark emerged from the darkness of the cave into a place that was entirely out of this world, it was as if the place was perpetually stuck in sunset and autumn. All the leaves were a soft orange that swayed gently in the wind, In the centre of the valley he seemed to have entered into was a huge tree, the tree was so large that its roots seemed to protrude out of the ground as they wrapped around the base of the tree.
Mark looked to the ground and saw a large marble road that seemed to lead to the tree. On the way towards the tree there was a beautiful marble mansion 'This place is beautiful' he thought to himself as he floated above the road and hovered along getting a better look at the place, There were many different trees that bloomed and many different plants, the whole thing looked ethereal. He saw a gold-glowing plant that seemed to radiate a soft light, he saw a tree with what looked like plums that grew upside down. One of the plants he recognised from Greek mythology was the lotus tree, he was tempted to try one of the flowers or fruits that bloomed on it.
However, he settled for doing the next best thing 'All of this will be great for my garden' he thought to himself with a smirk as he flew to each of the plants collecting samples and putting them in his backpack before continuing down the road. In the distance he could see the large golden apples that hung down from the tree, it made him gape, The fruit was beautiful and he immediately felt the urge to eat one but he managed to reign himself in.
As he passed the house he saw a note that was placed on the outside of the door.
*Gods are never happy or never grateful, so to Hades with them. We are going on holiday, a well-deserved holiday that is thousands of years in the making. Don't be stupid and do something like picking the fruit, we won't be there to help any cute boys*
The Hesperides
Mark raised an eyebrow at the note before shaking his head and floating back on the road and continuing towards the tree, he couldn't help but think that he was forgetting something. This whole place seemed too peaceful, it made Mark question why Aresia even needed him in the first place.
As he got closer to the tree he became more and more entranced by the beauty of it. The large roots that protruded from the ground were like a forest all of its own and were covered in autumn leaves that fell from the tree. Mark flew higher and approached a branch that bloomed golden apples, A warm heat came from the apples, one that was comforting and it completely enveloped him.
Mark reached out and grabbed the fruit, As his skin made contact with the apple he inhaled heavily. It was as if every bone in his body screaming at him to eat the apple, just from the smell alone he could tell it would be the most delicious thing he'd ever taste.
Mark took a deep breath before gritting his teeth and putting the apple in his satchel, he then reached out and grabbed a second one though as he did he heard and felt the tree start to rustle. He looked around in confusion as to what was causing it and saw nothing, but then he looked down and saw that the roots were starting to move.
It was at that moment he had a sudden epiphany that made everything he'd wondered about make sense 'I can't believe I forgot about that' he thought to himself as he chuckled humourlessly.
He was so focused on the Golden Apples and finding the Garden of Hesperides that he completely forgot about the hundred-headed dragon that guarded it.
*ROAAAAAR*
'Shit' was the only thing Mark could think of as he saw what he first thought of as a root but now looked much like a dragon's head launching itself at him.
Mark grunted as the dragon's head slammed into him before stopping its momentum and letting Mark fall to the ground 'Yeah Fuck this' he thought to himself as he turned and started to fly back to the cave entrance. But like a lightning strike one of the heads stretched around blocking it and encircling him, it made him wonder how big this creature was. Mark looked around in a panic trying to keep track of the heads that had started to awaken.
A head launches forward with its maw open intent on making Mark its breakfast, but he could also see another two launching from different sides. He shot up, flying higher into the air and watched as two of the heads collided together 'They must've been asleep a while, they aren't properly synchronised yet' he thought to himself with a grin as a plan started forming in his mind.
More heads started reaching up intent on devouring him, so Mark shot down and headed back towards the tree where its main body rested, he dived and spun doing everything he could to avoid the hundred heads that seemed intent on devouring him. Though he did start to worry a bit more when he saw fire leaking from one of their mouths, it seemed that it wasn't yet able to breathe fire.
Mark pushed his speed as far as it could go while still being able to fully manoeuvre, It was difficult, like trying to dodge leave from a shaken tree. Eventually though one of the creatures managed to hit him with a swing of its neck and he was launched away hitting another head hard enough to make it roar in pain.
Mark's eyes widened as he saw dozens of dragon heads all coming his way and he quickly made himself heavy while allowing himself to fall to the ground, though he quickly changed it and made himself as light as he could. He flew back towards the tree punching and dodging the heads as they approached him, he looked behind him and a couple of dozen heads were following after him, he smirked as his plan was working.
He flew around the tree spiralling upwards before dipping down underneath the heads that followed him, What it resulted in was a large majority of the heads being tangled up in themselves and only a dozen or so left free to stop him from escaping.
"Now this is a more fair fight," Mark said as he punched his fist into his other hand.
———————————————————
Diana breathed heavily as she was on one knee in front of her former sisters, She chastised herself for letting down her guard and letting Aresia hit her with whatever gas she released from the canister, though whatever it was slowly drained her and allowed her sisters to gain the upper hand for a while.
Though when she finally beat them back Aresia had managed to take her lasso and wrap it around her. So here she was at her former sister's mercy, she just wished she could've stopped the male from throwing his life away "Diana, please reconsider, think of the progress this world will make once man is out of the way"
Diana still breathing heavily looks up at Aresia "Man... can change... I've met men... who inspire hope and bring justice" she breathed out
Artesia just scowled "No matter how you feel about them now you will see that I am right, men can only offer disappointment"
"But have no fear as I will do what you refuse to, I shall shoulder the burden of making this world a paradise like Themyscira" she continued with a wide smile.
However, before Diana can reply they hear sounds coming from the entrance to the Garden of Hesperides. This eventually turns into Mark who stumbles out his clothing ripped and covered in bruises and cuts, To say the women were surprised would be an understatement all four of them expected Mark to die a horrible death.
"Thanks for the warning about the dragon..." Mark said drily as he walked over to them.
Aresia looked at Mark with greed and excitement in her eyes, a far cry from how she looked at him before "Do you have it!" She practically shouted.
Mark sighed 'Could've asked nicely but whatever' he thought to himself as he brought the radiant golden apple out of his bag, Diana couldn't believe her eyes, he had managed to do something that even the mighty Hercules struggled with "You can't give it to her! Gods know how she will use it!" Diana said to Mark desperately as she tried to escape from her lasso binding. But the poison that ran through her veins wasn't just of chemical nature but had magical origins as well and she was finding herself sweating more and more.
"Is she okay?" Mark asked as he looked towards Wonder Woman, she looked like shit and while he wasn't exactly buddy-buddy with the justice league it didn't mean he wanted to see them all die.
"She'll just be napping for a long time, now Give me the apple!" She commanded
"You can't... It's too powerful" Diana said before she fell from her knees to the ground.
"Come, hurry now! Give me the apple" Aresia said as she started to approach Mark.
"What are you planning to do with it?" Mark asked
"It is simply an ingredient for something I am creating, something that will change the world," She said with a wild smile that gave Mark chills throughout his body.
There was something off about this situation, while he wasn't a hero he didn't consider himself a villain either. This Apple if the legends are correct is a powerful object, and if Wonder Woman was here then Aresia was almost certainly a villain.
He'd lived in Gotham long enough to know that villains didn't care about who they hurt, it was mostly a game to them or the world was simply theirs to change "I think I'll hang onto this" Mark said with a smirk as he put it back in his bag.
"We had a deal!" Aresia growled out as she and the other amazons tended ready to fight.
"Yeah we did, but no offence you kind of freak me out," Mark said before he blitzed in front of her throwing a punch that she barely blocked, though the force of it still launched her back into the forest and through several trees.
Mark then targets the Amazon who held Diana in her lasso, he throws a lazy punch at her which she manages to block but strains under the strength, Mark then increases the weight of his fists before it breaks through her defence and smashes her in the face. He then grabs the Lasso before grabbing Diana and zooming off, he'd just fought a big ass dragon so he was in no mood to fight the Amazons, plus he wanted to be cautious as they had something capable of taking Wonder Woman down.
Mark hears the screaming of Aresia as he flies off putting a good amount of distance between them, he flies for about 20 minutes going at a moderate pace before he reaches the coast of Morocco. He then laid Wonder Woman down on the sand, she was still pretty unresponsive so he wasn't sure what to do.
Though one idea did come to his mind, as he took one of the apples out of his back, he'd hoped he could eat this one and save the other for his home but it looked like he won't be able to.
He held her head up and tried to get her to move her mouth and take a bite out of the apple but she was completely out of it 'Guess it's time to live my boyhood dream' he thought to himself sarcastically. He held the apple up to his mouth and bit into it, he almost passed out from the taste and sensations that met his tongue. The need and want to swallow the delicious apple was almost overwhelming, almost as bad as how he had felt with Kara.
He pushed through it and put his lips to Wonder Woman's feeding the apple to her. It seemed to do the trick as her eyes opened widely to Mark's lips on her own, She moaned at the taste of the apple and the lingering taste on Mark's tongue.
Though when she realised what was happening she struggled making Mark move back "How dare you!" Diana shouted at Mark who just rolled his eyes.
"You're welcome, I could've just left you passed out but I fed you the apple" Mark replied.
Diana felt her shock once again come to the forefront, the fact that this male was able to avoid the temptation of the Golden Apple and instead willingly gave it to her. She sat there not speaking while Mark untied her and returned her lasso.
Mark then turned around and started to float in the air "Where are you going?" Diana found herself asking suddenly.
"Home, it's been a long day" Mark breathed out as he stretched, he then shot off into the sky leaving a sonic boom in his wake and Diana just sitting on the beach left to her thoughts.
(AN: Doneeeeeee with the mini Arc, kinda long but ya know what can you do? Also I've made a few alterations to Viltrumite DNA as you can tell, it's not too important but it'll probably be mentioned more later.)
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