Disclaimer: I don't own Invincible

Title: Spill the tea boy

Summary: Mark is visited by friends on Thraxa

...

Mark remembers snatches. General Kregg getting on his fancy ship with his fancy soldiers and fancy restraints and fucking off into the sky. The feeling of skin slowly reattaching itself. Something cool being slathered across his stomach- a salve, probably. The rushing of water as his body is moved. His brain is basically mush at this point, but he thinks about Debbie and feels horribly, horribly afraid. She can't know about this. She's going to have to know about this.

He wakes to nothing but a hole in his suit and a baby on his chest. The purple boy blows a raspberry and pats him up and down with pudgy, sticky hands. Mark manages a weak laugh. "Yeah, I know, right? And you can probably do it too."

Andressa snorts awake. The woman had been snoozing in a chair next to him. Her antennae perk up. "Mark? Oh, thank stars." She cups his cheeks and studies him, and it feels so much like his actual mom despite the chitin on her fingers that it throws him off a little. "I know your father- I knew he would be okay. But you... I couldn't say."

Mark gives a wobbly thumbs up and shuffles the baby down into his lap so he can sit up. "I'm- I'm good. I'm Invincible. You should see the other guy."

(Dad did way worse to me, he thinks, but doesn't dare say.)

"Good," she says, warm and full of love, and Mark's kind of been avoiding those vibes lately. It's just easier to be around Cecil- orders to follow, people to save, rinse and repeat- than it is to be around Debbie. "Your friends are waiting for you."

"My- my friends?" he asks, and for an honest-to-god second he thinks she means William, Eve and Amber. Between Eve's powers and Amber's willingness to kick in ballsacks to get what she wanted, Mark wouldn't even be surprised if they figured out a way to get to Thraxa. William would follow along behind and make witty remarks.

"Yes. They said they came on word of a man named 'Cecil'."

Oh, he realizes, feeling a little dumb. The Guardians.

"Are they friends?" she pushes, probably a little paranoid after the last visitors to her planet killed thousands.

"Yeah. Yeah. I just... got a little confused." Mark handed off the infant and slowly slid out of the bed. He tried not to think about his mother crying alone in bed while Andressa had her husband's comfort as he stabilizes himself, touching the wall for support. "Been a few months since I got thrown around like that."

"Go slow."

"Yup. Yeah. Gonna be doing that."

Mark slowly got his feet back under him, pushing through the leftover tingly feeling of super-healing. Andressa had thrown a small tarp over the entrance to keep them somewhat hidden, something he lifted with a quick movement that rung in his ears. The sun was blinding.

The Guardians of the Globe, far from said globe, were as busy as ever. Mark watched with detached relief as Monster Girl carried away what looked to be the last of the bodies in the area, shoulders tinged red with blood. Shrinking Rae was checking for survivors, though surely they would've found a few by now, while Rex Splode hucked explosives into the bigger pieces of rubble to break them apart. Robot was studying a holographic page of information with Immortal hovering obnoxiously over his shoulder. Duplikate and Bulletproof were busy hefting debris. Someone new was zooming around in various forms, as if studying their jobs to do them himself.

Rex took one look at him and snorted. "Wow. Dude, you look like shit."

"Yeah," he said, working his jaw. "I feel like shit. What're you doing so far from Earth?"

"Playing babysitter," Immortal informed him with a glare that reeked of displeasure. "Someone left the planet without permission."

Normally this would be the time for Mark to be embarrassed Cecil brought people out here to bring him back but. He's tired. He just got stabbed. His dad is on his way to death. He swallows and nods. "Thank god. Wh- who's that?"

He pointed at the man currently half-shapeshifted to look like Monster Girl. He paused and gave him a dimpled smile. "Hi! I'm the Shapesmith. A totally normal, completely average human who has no stake in any of this! I certainly don't know what a Viltrumite is, or whatever you are."

"Uh-huh," he replied blandly. It'd been all over the news. "A totally normal, completely average human with superpowers."

"Yes!" Shapesmith smiled wider, missing his sarcasm entirely. "A totally normal, completely average human with superpowers. I'm so glad we're on the same page. It's cool beans."

"Invincible," Rudy says, clearly trying for a more diplomatic approach. "What happened here?"

"Viltrumites. Three of them."

"Honestly, I expected worse from three of your shitbag dad," Rex mentions as he throws another bomb. The casual way he says it is a relief. Everyone's been tiptoeing around it; and Mark gets it, he does, but this is what he needs right now.

"They were only here, like, an hour."

There's a pause as they digest that. The trio had only been on Thraxa for a short measure of time, yet thousands were dead. It's terrifying. It's engulfing in its enormity, and just how damage they could do to Earth with more time.

"We need to debrief," Immortal utters, and it feels like a threat. But it's fair. Mark doesn't blame him.

"Sure. On the way back?"

His mouth quirked as he nodded. Maybe he'd expected a fight. Andressa came out as they spoke, clenching a buggy hand around his elbow. The baby squealed in her arms as she studied the newcomers. It suddenly occurred to him that, without Nolan, she was the leader of this planet now. And she had her people to think about.

"Thank you for your help," she said formally. "I know this is not your planet to protect, and it means a lot to me-"

"What is that?" Immortal asks, pointing at the baby. His eyebrows drew together with suspicious intent.

"Do you not have babies on your planet?" Andressa replies, sensing something is wrong. "This is my son."

Immortal shook his head. "Why does he look like Invincible? Why is he humanoid?" His muscles rippled as he leaned in. "When you said Viltrumites were here-"

"My dad was here," he admits, hating how bittersweet that tastes. "But he didn't try to hurt this planet! He was helping, I swear. He-"

"He's a monster! A traitor!" Immortal bared his teeth. He looked furious. He looked scared stiff. "We can't just- that baby is a risk to our galaxy."

Mark took a step in front of Andressa and barred the way. Of the heroes he knew, Immortal was probably the only one who could beat him. But he'd try. He'd fucking try. "The baby's already here. There's nothing anyone can do about it."

There was a stiff silence from the older man. Kate gasped and swatted his shoulder. Rudy put down the hologram and Monster Girl stared at him. Shapesmith looked between them all like he'd missed something important. Even Rex looked a little green as he spluttered out a, "Dude!"

"I don't like it," he says quickly. "But we have to put the Earth first. That mistake can't exist."

A metallic hand settled on his arm. "Mistakes have a habit of existing anyway," Rudy says coolly. "Think about this logically, Immortal. That baby could be on our side, just like Invincible."

"Or a menace."

"You've mentioned before that you felt you could take down Invincible. Why would this child be any different?"

"And if I'm wrong?" Immortal asks tightly, hands clenched into fists.

"We can't be driven by what-ifs. We'll deal with things as they come."

Kate grabbed his other arm and squeezed. "Don't worry. We've got this."

Immortal slowly unwound, bit by bit. He sneered at the purple child one more time before turning away. "Fine. I'll leave it be. But I'll be keeping an even closer eye on you, Invincible."

"That's fair," said Mark, and he felt relieved. The Guardians and him might not be super close, but he knew they would always be his friends. "You won't regret it, man."

Author's Note: For a friend! I got asked to write the Guardians reacting to everything, and it felt so satisfying to bring them in and have them help out.

-Mandaree1