Original Mark's POV:
I sit on the lunar surface, staring down at Earth floating in the void.
From up here, it looks so peaceful, so perfect - you can't see the chaos, the suffering, the constant battles that we heroes fight day after day.
Two weeks.
That's all it's been since Thragg arrived in our world.
Two weeks that have completely upended everything I thought I knew about right and wrong, about power and responsibility.
I run my hand through my hair, a habit I've picked up when stressed.
The conversation with Thragg keeps playing in my mind, mixing with everything else I've observed about him in this short time.
The way he interacts with Oliver, showing genuine patience with my little brother's endless questions and enthusiasm.
Not just tolerating them, but actually engaging, explaining things in ways that make Oliver's eyes light up with understanding.
Then there's how he is with the Eves. With my Eve, he's respectful but distant, clearly recognizing her wariness.
With Royal Eve, there's this... warmth. Not obvious, but it's there in subtle ways - the slight softening of his voice, the way he listens when she speaks.
And War-torn Eve ( As my more Viltrumite variant has been calling her - calls himself also Viltrumite Mark, the guy clearly loves giving these nicknames)
... God, that hits different. Seeing him tend to her with such care, such genuine protectiveness.
It's so far from the cold conqueror I expected him to be.
Even with the other Marks - my variants - he shows this weird mix of authority and... is guidance the right word?
He doesn't coddle them, exactly, but offers them direction, purpose, a chance to be better under his leadership.
"The multiverse needs permanent leadership," he'd said. "A constant presence that ensures stability across all realities."
I'd challenged that, of course. It's what I do - fight against anyone trying to control others. But then I think about Crazy Levy, about crushing his skull in my hands.
About how good it felt to finally stop showing mercy to someone who only caused more death with every chance they got.
I remember what Good Levy showed us - all those worlds where things went wrong.
Where I became a monster, where Eve suffered, where everything fell apart because there wasn't enough power to maintain order.
"The same thing that gives a parent the right to stop their child from walking into traffic," Thragg had said when I asked what gave him the right to rule.
"The ability to see the danger, and the power to prevent it."
Looking down at Earth now, I can't help but see all the "traffic" we're walking into.
All the threats we barely survive, all the villains who keep coming back, all the innocent people caught in the crossfire.
We try so hard to be heroes, to save everyone we can. But maybe... maybe that's not enough. Maybe we need something more. Someone more.
A shooting star streaks across my field of vision, and I remember something else - how Thragg moved War-torn Eve to his universe for better treatment.
Just opened a portal between realities like it was nothing. The power to reshape worlds, to travel between dimensions, to enforce real change...
I clench my fist, feeling the phantom sensation of Mad Levy's skull crumbling in my grip. That choice - to finally end a threat permanently - it changed something in me.
Made me understand that sometimes the hardest choice is the right one.
Maybe that's what Thragg is. The hard choice. The necessary one.
I push off from the lunar surface, letting myself float higher above the moon's cratered landscape.
The Earth fills my vision - blue, green, and white swirling together in perfect harmony from this distance.
"Freedom within structure. Independence within order." Thragg's words echo in my mind as I spread my arms wide, feeling the vastness of space around me.
It's funny, in a way. All this time I've been fighting against the idea of someone ruling Earth, ruling all realities.
But what have I been doing as a hero? Enforcing rules. Protecting order. Just... on a much smaller scale.
And look how that's worked out. One city, and I can barely keep it safe. One world, and we're constantly on the brink of destruction.
How many times have we almost lost everything? How many times have we just barely scraped by?
I close my eyes, feeling the absolute silence of space around me. The memory of Mad Levy's death plays again - but this time, I don't flinch from it.
That moment wasn't just about vengeance or protection. It was about accepting a harder truth: Sometimes the only way to save lives is to take the difficult path.
"I could be more than just another hero," I whisper into the void. "More than just another fighter trying to hold back the tide."
The thought expands in my mind like a supernova.
Under Thragg's rule, I wouldn't just be defending one city, one world. I could be part of something greater. Something that actually fixes problems instead of just patching them up until the next crisis.
A memory flashes - Thragg standing over War-torn Eve's bed, adjusting her pillows with those massive hands that could shatter planets.
Power and gentleness, perfectly balanced. Strength used with purpose, with wisdom.
I open my eyes, looking down at my own hands. How many times have I pulled my punches? How many times have I shown mercy only to see more people die later? But under Thragg's guidance...
"His sword," I murmur, the phrase coming unbidden to my lips. Something about it feels right. Not a mindless weapon, but a blade with purpose. An instrument of justice wielded with precision.
I turn my gaze back to Earth, seeing it with new clarity. "His Knight," I continue, the title settling into place like it was always meant to be there. "The Emperor's Knight."
The role crystallizes in my mind - not a servant, not a slave, but a warrior dedicated to a greater purpose.
I remember reading about them, finding them cool, basically heroes before there were heroes.
They - Knights had autonomy, had honor, had their own code. But they served something bigger than themselves.
And isn't that what being a hero is supposed to be about anyway? Serving a greater good?
I flex my fingers, imagining the possibilities. With Thragg's guidance, his wisdom, his power backing me... I could be more effective than ever.
No more holding back. No more watching threats return again and again because we couldn't or wouldn't end them permanently.
"The Emperor's Knight," I say again, louder this time, letting the words fill the vacuum around me. Unheard by all, not even by my ears, only heard within my own mind.
"His sword of justice across the multiverse."
It doesn't feel like surrender. It feels like... becoming more. Like finally understanding my true purpose.
I spread my arms wider, feeling whatever is in space wash over me, imagining I can feel every dimension, every reality that needs this kind of guidance. This kind of protection.
A shooting star streaks past again, and this time I smile. The universe itself seems to be confirming my choice.
"I accept," I declare to the eveything, to myself, to whatever higher power that might be listening. "I choose to serve. Not out of fear or weakness, but because it's right. Because it's necessary."
The words still carry no sound in the vacuum of space, but they resonate through every fiber of my being.
This is what I was meant to be. Not just a hero, not just a defender, but a Knight of the new order. Thragg's sword of justice, helping to forge a better multiverse.
I turn my face toward Earth one last time, knowing that when I return, it will be with new purpose. New clarity.
The Emperor's Knight. Yeah, that really sounds right.
It sounds like destiny.
-----------------------------
The medical wing's afternoon light streamed through large windows, casting warm rays across the pristine floor.
In a corner of War-torn Eve's room, Thragg sat on a specially reinforced chair, his massive frame somehow managing to look elegant despite the size disparity.
Before him stood an easel, and his hands - those same hands that had crushed the Battle Beast - moved with surprising delicacy across the canvas.
The Battle Beast coat draped regally around his shoulders as he worked, its white fur catching the sunlight.
War-torn Eve sat in her wheelchair, positioned carefully by the window. Royal Eve stood beside her, one hand resting gently on her counterpart's shoulder.
The contrast between them was striking - Royal Eve's confident posture and bright smile against War-torn Eve's more hesitant, fragile demeanor.
Yet there was something beautiful in that contrast. War-torn Eve's smile, though smaller, carried a genuine warmth that hadn't been there weeks ago.
Royal Eve's presence seemed to both highlight and somehow soften her counterpart's vulnerability.
Thragg's brush moved with precision, capturing every detail.
The way the light played across their faces, the subtle differences in their expressions, the bond already forming between them despite their vastly different experiences.
"Remember," he said softly, his deep voice gentler than most would believe possible, "stillness enhances accuracy."
War-torn Eve's fingers fidgeted slightly with her blanket. "Sorry, dad," she whispered, trying to hold her position.
Royal Eve squeezed her shoulder reassuringly. "You're doing great," she encouraged.
Then, with a playful glance at Thragg, "Though I still can't believe the Emperor of the universe spends his time painting portraits."
"Art serves purpose," Thragg replied, his brush never pausing. "It preserves moments worth remembering. And this..." he studied their faces with careful attention, "this is such a moment."
The afternoon light caught the slight wetness in War-torn Eve's eyes, turning them to amber.
Royal Eve's smile softened as she noticed, her hand moving to gently wipe away the tear before it could fall.
"My daughters," Thragg stated simply, but those two words carried volumes of meaning. Protection. Pride. Purpose.
And something else - something that might have surprised those who knew him only as the Terror of the Universe.
Love.
Suddenly though the interface appeared before him - not of his own choice - hovering between him and the canvas.
The brush paused mid-stroke as he read the unexpected notification:
[STATUS] Name: Thragg (formerly Samael)
Race: Viltrumite Position: Emperor of Viltrum Empire
Strength: Supreme
Age: [Classified]
[ATTRIBUTES]
Physical Power: Beyond Planetary
Durability: Beyond Planetary
Flight Speed: Massively Faster Than Light
Combat Skill: Master of All Known Techniques
Intelligence: Strategic Genius
[FUNCTIONS] Universal Travel:
UNLOCKED Conditions Met:
Control of current world stabilized
Knight of Justice acquired
Path of elevation chosen by free will rather than necessitating death.
Would you like to travel now?
Thragg's brush lowered slightly as he looked at the interface with an expression that might have been confusion - an expression few had ever seen on the Emperor's face.
"Hmm?" he murmured softly, the sound barely audible even in the quiet room.
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(Author note: So! Finally, the partial unlock has been changed to completely unlocked. This doesn't mean he has access to all universes to travel to.
No, there are still conditions, missions he can do if he wants certain worlds
- though of course, none of these missions have penalities, or necessitate the doing of them, only the reward if he does them.
So, do tell me, what do you think the universal conditions are for conquering a world?
There are subtle hints given, I wonder if you guys can find out what it is.
Also, Canon Mark has been very philosophical and contemplative because of Good Levy's words, and has been researching, wanting answers in his free time, and even Canon Eve has been helping him. Just so you guys would know.
Well, I hope to see you all later,
Bye!)