I don't own anything.

One Wrong Choice Can Change the Whole World

Nolan fought against the urge to move, the wind was blowing past his body, his cape gently whipping back and forth. Around him, the clouds had gathered, and he had made sure to pull back as far as he dared. His body was motionless, as still as a statue, but his eyes were constantly in motion, tracking each blow, following each strike. He was hidden, he knew that he had not yet been seen, but the urge to move was almost overwhelming. He was a Viltrumite, a proud soldier of the empire, and there was nothing that could keep him from doing his duty.

Yet, even so, something inside of him was screaming at him to move. He ignored it, locked it away in the back of his mind, shackled it with iron chains of duty, and dragged it down, down into his subconscious. Nevertheless, he could still hear it.

Down there, his son was fighting. Mark, his powers only recently awakened, was battling for his life against the forces of Machine Head. Part of Nolan longed to be down there with him. Part of him refused. Mark had chosen this, made his choice to side with the villain who had contacted him. It was beneath him as a Viltrumite, and this was simply the punishment for that. It had been a trap, and now Mark was fighting for his life.

Nolan watched. He watched to be sure that his son would not actually die, but he did not intend to intervene until the lesson had been learned. Some would call it cruel… certainly, Debbie would have been screaming for him to move in by now. He felt a little guilty about that. Well, actually more than a little. But this was important for Mark. It was time that he learned his place in things, learned how a Viltrumite should behave. This was just a painful lesson, and he would thank his father for it some day.

Besides, he wasn't in actual danger. Nolan was ready to move in in an instant if things seriously escalated. Everything was fine.

Everything was under control.

"RRRAAAAARGGGH!" Mark Grayson screamed as he had never screamed before, the blood was pounding in his ears, his pulse beating in his veins. Pain crackled through his body like lightning, dancing from nerve to nerve, but he ignored it. Fury and rage lent him strength as he staggered forwards, forcing himself to move, one foot in front of the other, building speed and power as he went. The wind whipped past him, faster and faster he moved, the force of his passage tore through the ground.

"You're fucking dead!"

But his enemy was not impressed. Taller and broader than him, the thickly muscled man with the features of a great cat did not flinch away from him. Instead he laughed, and dropped into a charge himself, the two meeting at the centre of the room with enough force to crack the walls, and blow out the windows.

For a moment, they struggled against one another, Mark pushed with all of the strength that he could manage. Around him, the Guardians of the Globe were picking themselves up again. Those who could, at least. Mark felt a building rage, like a storm in his skull as he saw the blood, the bodies.

The creature laughed, a deep chuckle like it was mocking the fury he felt. Mark surged forwards, and hammered a blow into its gut, the creature dropped back, and he smashed a follow up into the side of its face, pistoned two more into its chest, and smashed an uppercut into its chin with all of the strength that his fury had lent him. The impact cracked the ground, the room buckled and screamed. It should have been enough.

But the enemy wasn't even staggered.

Mark snarled in pain as a single blow smashed into the side of his face. Blood and spit flew as he staggered back. A second caught him in the belly, and Mark felt clawed fingers rip through his skin, crimson blood splashed across the wall as he felt himself lifted bodily into the air. The creature looked at him for a moment, almost contemptuous.

"This is not what I was promised." said the lion-man. "I was told that there would be prizes worthy of my time on this world. I can see now that I was lied to. You are far too young, and far too weak to ever challenge me, boy."

Mark screamed as he felt a second hand close around his throat, the sound turned into a gagging gasp as the fist was clenched, cutting off his air. His arm snapped out, pummeling the attacker, but the creature didn't even seem to notice, instead, it looked into his eyes, and Mark felt the hand around his neck slowly starting to tighten. Pain erupted, followed by tightness as his skin was broken, blood washed along his throat as he gagged and gasped, kicking out against the creature. The world was spinning, he couldn't breath, he couldn't think, only reacting on instinct. Kicking out again and again as if against a rock.

"You have some spirit, though." The creature muttered. "It is a pity you will not live to reach your full potential. Then, perhaps, you might be a test."

Someone was shouting his name, was it Eve? He couldn't tell. The world was spinning. He couldn't breath, his mind was slowing down. His throat was bl;eeding, the tightness getting worse, it felt like his skull was about to erupt.

He was going to die. He was going to die here. The strength was leaving his body, his limbs felt weak and heavy. He could hold his breath for a long time, but he hadn't had the chance to try it before he was grabbed, he was running low on air, low on strength, low on blood.

Had he really thought that he was going to be a hero?

Suddenly, there was an explosion. Something hit the lion-man, hard and Mark felt himself spinning, gasping for air as he hit the ground. His throat felt terrible, but he choked down the air, and forced himself to breathe, blinking to clear his eyes, his heart hammered. People were speaking, someone was helping him to his feet. There was shouting. A word, a name.

Omniman.

"You've made a mistake." Growled the lion man, opening and closing his fist, the one that was stained red with Mark's blood.

"That's you." Nolan replied, his arms crossed, standing between the creature and the others. He felt his heart hammering. Panic tried to show through his neutral expression, but he beat it back. He realised he'd cut it close. He hadn't intended to, but he'd realised at the last second just how dangerous the situation was. Mark was young, and his powers not yet developed, but he hadn't expected him to be overpowered quite so completely.

"Angry are you?" Growled the creature, an alien of some sort, though Nolan had never met its species before. Didn't matter, it would be paste in a moment anyway. "Good! Show me what you have!"

The creature surged forwards with a roar, Nolan broke into a dash, using his flight to propel himself like a missile. The two clashed, and Nolan felt the force of his foe's impact pressing down upon him. For a moment, he strained, and then pushed and the two of them smashed through the wall of the building. Nolan's fist flashed out, and sent the creature tumbling through the air, twisting and turning, Omniman put on a burst of speed, catching him as he rose with a downward elbow that should have smashed his spine. The creature twisted, and then the impact tore it from the sky, cratering the ground below with an earth-shaking impact. Nolan knew better than to let up, and down, hard and fast, his fist extended. The wind whipped past him as he went. Distantly, he heard people screaming and running. Normal humans, caught in the middle of the fight. He didn't feel anything for them. They were like insects, their lives so short that they didn't matter at all.

It was just non-related that he angled his strike so the shockwave would be minimal. Simple practicality. He was focusing all of his power into a single strike, he didn't want any to leak out and be wasted.

Below him, for a split second, he saw the spreading cloud of debris and smoke rising from where the creature had smashed into the city below. Its form was obscured, but he had done this enough times that he knew where it was. As he darted for it, Nolan had a split second of warning, the smoke parted, and his foe did not lay confused and concussed in the centre of the crater.

No, the muscular lion-man was already rising into the air, having pushed off the ground with a snarl. One massive hand wrapped around the hilt of a gigantic mace. Nolan twisted, but too late. The mace caught him in the side, and he felt pain flash through his body, his whole form was hurled into the nearest building with an impact strong enough to bring the whole thing down. Stone and metal screamed as it collapsed on top of him, people died, he heard them doing so. Agony lanced through his side, and he could see that his costume was torn, and he was bleeding.

The monster was on him then, roaring as it held the mace in a two-handed grip. Nolan ducked out of the way, the impact cratered the ground. He lunged forwards, striking a dozen blows against the creature's body, his fists blurred with motion, and the monster snarled and retreated, but its bones didn't break, its body didn't burst.

This thing was strong . Viltrumite strong.

It dropped the mace and countered with an open-palmed strike of its own, taking him in the gut, the force of the impact doubled him over. Pain lanced through his body, and then he felt it smash him into the ground with a double-handed strike. Agony exploded through his body, and for a moment, it towered above him.

Nolan rolled, just as the mace smashed into the ground where his skull would have been. Working desperately, he kicked out with both of his feet, catching the creature and hurling it backwards, buying himself a few seconds as he rose to his feet.

His costume was in tatters. He was bleeding. Slowly, he rubbed his hand along the outside of his mouth, wiping the blood from his chin.

On the other side of the street, the creature had caught itself, twisting in mid-air and bounding off a building to land on its feet, mace in hand. Its eyes glittered with fury and excitement.

"You're the best this world has to offer?" It said, "Show me a challenge! Show me that I have not wasted my time here!"

It broke into a run, head down, legs pumping, the speed tore up the street behind it. Omniman had only a few seconds to brace himself, clenching his fists as he prepared to intercept.

"All right, then. Let's dance."

Mark coughed blood, his whole body was screaming in pain as he felt himself being helped to his feet. Rex was supporting him with one shoulder, Eve with the other. His legs wouldn't work, and his thought were slow. Robot was standing next to Monster Girl, who hadn't moved since the creature had put her down. Mark didn't want to think that she was dead, but she was terribly still.

"Holy shit." Rex said, looking out of the broken building and at the carnage that had consumed the street below. The lion and Omniman were slamming into one another like titanic gods of war. Each impact tearing at the city, cratering the ground. "Is...is Omniman actually losing?"

"Shut up, Rex…" Eve growled. "He's not losing…"

Mark didn't say anything. He didn't know if he could. All he could do was sit and watch as the fight played out below. Blows flowed together almost faster than the eye could follow. Strike, counter, feint, kick, the two fighters were pummeling one another with blows that would have shattered buildings, their force radiating outwards with each impact. Both were bloodied now, but neither seemed to be even close to being finished.

"Maybe he's not losing!" Rex growled, "But he's not winning either! When was the last time you saw him ever actually have to try?"

Mark said nothing. He watched helplessly, willing his broken body to move and join the fight, but knowing that he simply wasn't fast or strong enough. He was helpless, and it stung worse than all of the wounds he'd taken put together.

Nolan danced back, a rain of blows were deflected as his hands flashed, blocking and parrying. The side of his body where the mace had hit him was a bruised mass of pain, but he was a soldier of the empire, and well used to such things as pain. He was drawing on his training now, fighting an equal for the first time in a long time. His teeth were gritted and his eyes were focused, as the creature tore into him with mighty blows that shook the world.

There were helicopters surrounding the area now, cameras and media, and of course, Cecil's forces were in evidence too. That was an annoyance, and maybe a problem,but something that he would deal with another time. For now, all of his focus was going towards the fight.

The creature hammered into him with a left hook, but he ducked under it, his fist battered into the creature's skull, snapping its head back. As it staggered, Nolan went low, catching it with a shoulder tackle, and angling upwards to send it flying into the air. He took off after it, using his whole body as a missile, and catching it in-mid air. The impact jarred his bones, and caused the sky to ripple around them. The creature gasped, and was flung upwards even faster. Twisting and tumbling. Nolan followed again, but this time, as he approached, there was a flash of movement, and something heavy caught him in the shoulder. Pain exploded along his side, the mace! It had thrown the mace!

Before he could recover, the creature was on him, falling towards him now, one of its hands gripped him by the throat, as its other started to pummel his face. Blow after blow smashed into him, but Omniman returned them as well, striking its chest and gut. Pain exploded along his neck and skull, and Nolan twisted, bringing them both back towards the earth with a high speed. Winds whipped past them, the gentle touch growing more and more severe until it felt like a whip due to their speed. The two grappled, twisting and turning, striking blows, kicking and clawing. Nolan's body screamed as wounds were torn into it, he was bleeding, but so was it, and yet, at the same time, not enough to matter.

He was losing.

He was losing.

Using the last of his concentration, Nolan aimed them somewhere away from the city, smashing them down in a rural area, hopefully avoiding any major deaths. The impact of their landing was going to be big and he didn't want Mark caught in it while he was weakened.

The impact was indeed big. They landed hard in a field of corn, the fire of their descent burned brightly, spiking into the air for a moment as the very earth screamed and cratered. Nolan felt himself dashed hard against the ground, the earth cracking under him, the impact and kinetic energy flowing through every bone and every inch of his body.

The earth screamed, and so did he.

He blinked back into awareness only an instant after he had lost himself. The pain of his wounds ground under his skin, and Nolan forced himself to rise. His leg wasn't working properly, and he staggered, falling to one knee. Blood dripped from wounds ripped open in his face, pooling below him. The ground was just one massive crater, the air full of smoke and dust. Nolan's body was a mass of bruises and wounds. He almost couldn't believe could a creature like this have been on earth the whole time? How was it that he hadn't known?

He had to get upm he had to move. This was the time where he was supposed to draw strength from the Empire, from his duty as a soldier. It should have been that duty which compelled him to rise, but it was not. It was the face of his wife and his son which made him stagger to his feet. The pain was intense, but he had felt pain before. Guilty gnawed at him, and he felt like a traitor, but he realised there and then that he didn't care. Mark and Debbie kept flashing before his mind's eye, and as he heaved, and tried to breath, he swore that he wouldn't go down like this. Not after everything that he had been through. Not after the Guardians…

It was an insult, that was what it was. An insult to their memory. He'd killed them. He'd hated doing it, he'd despised himself for it, but he had done his duty. He'd killed them because he had to, to pave the way for the Viltrumite Empire. But if he died here and now, then that death was for nothing. He'd have killed them for nothing, his own friends!

"Never…" He growled, finding new strength as he rose into the air. His eyes turned, trying to peer through the shroud of smoke.

"Where are you?" He snarled, "I know you're not dead. You're too tough to die from a little fall from orbit."

That chuckling again. Rich and deep, he turned to see a figure standing near the edge of the crater. The great beast, its fur was coated and matted, and it was bleeding in places. But his heart plummeted as he saw that it had no broken bones, no deep wounds. The damage was only skin deep.

"What are you?"

"Hmm. You've proven yourself a worthy foe, so I will answer your question." The creature said. "Battle Beast is my name. I am a hunter, a seeker of worthy opponents. When I first came to this world, it seemed as though there was no one to make my blood boil. Perhaps I was wrong? I hope that this is not the best that you have. Show me that you're stronger than this!"

Nolan took a step back, his heart hammered painfully in his chest. At that moment, he knew that he was outpowered. Memories of Mark and Debbie rose up in his mind, a thousand and one regrets, combined and then warred with his past as a soldier of Viltrum. His knowledge that he was superior to everyone on this world but Mark. That no one else mattered, the pride of the empire flowed through his veins. Yet, he loved this world, and he loved his wife. The confusion of that contradiction filled his being now more than ever.

Maybe that was why he made the mistake. Maybe it was because he wasn't thinking, because he was facing his inner demons, because he was afraid, because he was confused, conflicted, distracted.

In the end, it didn't matter. Nolan made his choice.

He could have run. He could have escaped, and Battle Beast would have let him go.

But he didn't. In that moment, he reacted according to his training, according to his past as a soldier of Viltrum. He dug deep, and his indoctrination rose within him, fury and rage, pride and strength. That was what mattered.

So he took a deep breath, and then he charged.

It was the last mistake that he would ever make. Battle Beast roared his approval, and leapt forwards, using his legs to push him away from the ground. The mace swept out, but Nolan grabbed the hand that held it, his other smashed into Battle Beast's face with all the strength he could muster. The two fell, Battle Beast struck the ground, and Nolan thundered blow after blow down upon him. The ground cratered, screaming as it was torn asunder from the impacts. Nolan roared his confusion, his contradiction, everything he'd been feeling bubbling up inside of himself since Mark had gotten his powers came pouring out. His anger at the Guardians, his regrets that he had killed them, his fury agt himself, his pride as a Viltrumite, his love of earth, all of it came to this point, this single moment, channeled into his fists with everything that he had.

Battle Beast took it for a few minutes, but then, his free hand swept out, and Nolan felt his skull ring with an impact. The mace fell away, hitting the ground as Battle Beast rose with two fists. Nolan's head snapped to the side, his whole body rippled with the impact. Pain flowed a moment later, then a shot to the chest, followed up a clawed fist closing around his throat. He wasn't Mark, though, and both of his hands closed around the arm, twisting it with all of his strength. He felt the bone and muscle start to give, but before he could finish, something sharp took him in the chest. Five claws tore into his body, moving between his ribs and, before Nolan could even properly react, closed around his heart.

Battle Beast roared in victory as he ripped Omnman''s still beating heart from his chest, blood geysered and Nolan felt the strength leave his body. His limbs were cold, and he hit the ground, unable to rise again. As the darkness closed in, he had the strangest sensation. Almost a sense of relief, as though a great weight had been lifted from his shoulders.

And then he died.

Across the world, people looked on in horror and shock. The media helicopters, which had managed to arrive in time to see the final blow, transmitted the live feed to every city, every nation. Everywhere that Omniman was celebrated and known. The world shook, as people felt numb, horrified or cried in despair. It was so unfair. It was monstrous, it was so cruel and so cold. So soon after the Guardians…

Omniman was dead.

So yeah. Basic idea being ''What if Battle Beast hadn't retreated during the fight at Machine Head's place? What if Nolan had actually had to step in? Things could turn very differently if that had been the case, so I decided to write a bit on it and see how it might go. I'll probably do a second part at some point in the next week or so to cover the actual changes.