"I'm not sure what you did, but it's a job well done, kid." Sentry compliments the young man while patting him on the back. However, an approaching Carol is less than happy to see Sentry.
"What the hell was that?!" She shouts, flying towards them. Demanding an answer from Sentry.
"I…" Sentry is taken aback by her question, unsure of how to respond. After all, she's obviously pissed off about the Void's misdeeds.
"That monster of yours. Almost killed us all!" She says, pointing at the Void. Who now resembles his form from the therapy session. He smiles and innocently waves at Carol.
"We can't have you be screwing around! We just lost Bruce to whatever those things are!" She then sighs and shakes her head.
"Just don't get involved next time." She then moves onto addressing Righteous Lad.
"You follow me, now!" She orders him.
"We need to talk!"
The sudden congratulatory pat at his back wad something he didn't expect, but he did smile softly at the acknowledgement from Sentry himself.
"Thanks. I'm glad that actually worked."Even so, there's skepticism lingering at the back of his mind at his decision to make that mysterious promise. Hopefully, should it ever come into play, there won't be any repercussions because of it.
It's then the hostile tone of Captain Marvel's voice cutting into the dingy atmosphere of narrowly avoiding a world-ending catastrophe, and going on to chew Sentry out for the Voids appearance and altercation with the Hulk. Konnence cannot help but to listen and observe the interaction between the two blondes. The way Carol speaks to Sentry draws a subtle emotion of sad sympathy onto the young man's face. The Void and Sentry, light and dark... That was Robert's only one true weakness - a haunting opposite that threatens death and disaster to counter balance all the good Sentry does. An ongoing cycle of existence that widens the gap between Robert and the people who he can just barely call his friends anymore.
After the ever-imposing and short-tempered heroine finishes address the Golden Blonde, she then turns her glaring sights onto the newcomer nearby, the 20-something-year-old dressed in charcoal black and vibrant green, demanding he follows her for a private conversation.
"I... I can't. At least, not right now." Konnence responds softly while holding his hands up cautiously.
"If you think I'm just going to let you fly off to Who-Knows-Where after all of this--" She begins, nearly on the verge of jabbing at his chest with the accusing finger she's pointing at him with.
"No, no! I'm not... I'm not going anywhere, but there's people over there who're likely in need of help, Miss Captain Marvel." He informs, pointing a finger of his own over at the most distraught area of the city.
"After I help there, THEN you can ask me anything you want. And right now? Every second we're idling by is time someone there is running out of." He adds with conviction on his face. Without waiting, Righteous Lad turns and heads toward the area in question.
Meanwhile, Carol sighs in defeat and raises a hand to press a finger against the earpiece she's wearing to radio in a call for clean-up aid.
"Attention to all of those still available. We're heading downtown where the most damage has been done and engaging rescue efforts. If you're still in good shape, get our injured to the Avengers Tower for medical care and return when you can. Whoever else is left, head downtown as soon as you can." Carol concludes.
A little over 30 heroes lend a hand in moving rubble, rescuing trapped civilians, and getting survivors to safety. An endeavor that goes on for over an hour and with so much more to do. It's somewhere in the middle of helping search for survivors in the underground subway station that Konnence discovers a stomach churning sight. Aftermaths of gruesome fatalities. Dismembered limbs, pools of blood, crushed corpses, and lifeless bodies bearing cold expressions of shock. Cars, fractions of buildings, and even the pavement of the street litter the area.
"Is this REALLY what Marvel comics is like? I know people die and there's things like this always happening, but it's never marketed as Mature..." Konnence murmurs under his breath before grabbing the next piece of rubble and tossing it aside. It's then his 'answer' arrives and descend down through the same hole he used via flight.
"Jeeze, what happened here?" A voice asks, snagging Konnence's attention.
"Huh?" And there he turns to lay eyes on none other than Invincible. Someone he wasn't expecting to see at all. Then memories began flooding in. He WAS actually reading someImagecomics, with the title 'Invincible' being the one he most invested in. Then it dawns in him and his eyes widen slowly in a mixture of disbelief and horror.
"Duuuude..." Was all he could really say. Understandably, it draws a look of confusion onto what's visible of Mark's face.
"What...? Is there something on my face?" The hero in yellow, blue, and black asks. Upon doing so, it's then an engine can be heard and a flying motorcycle-like vehicle with a goldish bronze android riding it comes into view, carefully landing nearby.
"Oh, Robot. Everything okay?" Mark turns and questions his teammate.
"The procedures here are quite effecient, but I am at a lost. Cecil says he has no idea who these new heroes are, and they claim to know nothing of us. Not even the former Guardians of Globe team. Something isn't quite right here." The android explains.
Seeing Mark was one thing, but when Robot comes into view, a chill runs down his spine. Not only had his Marvel and DC comics have been forced to intergrate, but so did his far more gory INVINCIBLE series. There's no telling what else Malware unknowingly added to this bizaare amalgamation.
"Wow! You got abused!" Void says, appearing next to Sentry out of the blue.
"In the past, she'd never say anything like that to you. Danvers used to worship the ground that you floated over." He places his elbow on Sentry's shoulder.
The dark creature looks at the Lad. "Who are you?" Void asks before he notices the other heroes helping in the search and rescue operation.
"Hey!" He points at Invincible.
"Isn't he from another universe?" The Void shakes his head. Falling silent for a moment, the sinister man then glares at Righteous Lad.
"Who are you, and why are you here?"Given how Sentry doesn't see too many friendly faces, Konnence couldn't blame him for sticking close by while helping out. He also doesn't mind his company. However, the situation was beginning to turn a bit uncomfortable - especially with the sudden reappearance and inquiry of the Void. The crossover comic between Invincible and Marvel gives a believable reason on how Sentry and The Void are familiar with Mark Grayson's alter ego, but the question directed at him takes him by surprise. How did The Void possibly know he doesn't belong here?
"I…" Konnence begins, but doesn't truly know how to answer. Does he owe an evil entity such an answer? What was he supposed to say? Does he tell them all the truth, and if so, how much of the truth? Righteous Lad knows the three men minus Void perform heroic deeds, but there's dark and gruesome outcomes for all of them. Invincible dooms half of the planet's population by trying to 'save the world' with Dinosaurs help, Robot puts into play a cold and calculated scheme to take control of the world while killing anyone who could possibly stand in his way, and then there was possibility that Sentry and the Void will fuse and become someone entirely different. Were these three potential friends or inevitable enemies? It's incredibly hard to say. Hard to even imagine what telling them so much would even do.
"Wait, wait, wait… Are you implying we're in a different universe? I swear we flew here straight from the Guardians of the Globes HQ. We didn't go through any portals or secret doors." Mark speaks up this time.
"He speaks as if you two have met before. Have you traveled to other dimensions in the past?" Robot asks.
"Yeah, I have. Met some Spider-Guy with the powers of a spider and took me to meet some team. The… Vengeful? Avenged? Avenging…? Something like that." Invincible answers before something clicks while looking the blonde's way.
"You look familiar. Were you one of those people, too?"
"We're the Avengers." Sentry corrects Mark. "You met me. That was five years ago." Sentry looks around at the other heroes. "This isn't right.
Overhearing of their discussion, Carol flies her way down, as well. She's about to correct the "mad hero", but even she notices that something is wrong.
"The guardians are…not real." She says, turning to face the others.
"Void are you behind all this?" She makes an accusation towards the shadowy entity.
The dark creature laughs.
"Nope!" He replies.
"But the kid, "The Righteous Lad" may have some answers for us." He sells out the newcomer to Carol's wrath.
Thelonger the conversation goes on for, the more Konnence feels anxiety accumulating within the pit of his stomach. The thought of lying, even if he feels it's necessary to do so in a situation like this, is something that doesn't sit right him. Maybe doing his best to leave the scene, perhaps even the city, without detection would be the best plan for the time being.
[ The quicker I find someone capable of getting me out of here, the faster I can resolve this mess...]Konnence thinks to himself as he begins creeping a step or two away with the intent of abruptly flying off through the train tunnel and resurfacing somewhere else. However, the sudden arrival of Carol Danvers takes them all by surprise. There's a small exchange of dialogue before her attention is guided toward him yet again.
"...The guy from before?" Carol murmurs to herself before shifting her sights back onto The Void briefly, then back onto the newcomer.
"Do you know what he's talking about? Do you really have information about the sudden appearance of those guys in red? And now this Guardians of the Globe team that's supposedly famous worldwide, but not a single bit of info is available on them?" She asks calmly, skeptical of trusting the words of a reckless force of chaos.
"What? I... I..." Righteous Lad stammers while shrugging his shoulders and keeping them high as he holds his hands in a sense of ignorance. Yet, he couldn't bring himself to just outright lie.
"Maaaayb-- I mean, kind of? Like, enough... I guess?" He tries his best to answer ambiguously while wincing. However, that's all the admission she needs to press him further on the subject.
"So it IS true. What are you hiding? Are you responsible for all of this?" Carol questions.
"No, of course not. All of this is happening because of android who calls himself 'Malware'. A dangerous threat who's tried to take over the entire world time and time again." Konnence answers.
"Oh yeah? I saw you lend a hand against the Hulk, so I can only assumes your use of the word 'dangerous' isn't to be brushed off so easily. How come I've never heard of him and his scheme? Is he too from a different world?"
"...Yeah. " He answers reluctantly.
"And I bet even you are, too, right?" She adds.
"Yeah... He and I are from the same place. We shouldn't be here, nor should things be jumbled up like this. But that's a result of his power. He combined several universes into one and dragged me inside, hoping to find someway to kill me off for good." Konnence answers truthfully, even going so far as to give insightful details. Even so, Carol keeps applying pressure for more.
"Elaborate for me. What exactly is Malware's power and what do you mean by 'dragged inside'? Where did you two come from if you're not from here?"
"...I don't think this is anappropriate time to share that much." He tells her as he shuts his eyes and hangs his head. So swept up in the conversation Invincible and Robot listen intently without interrupting. Truth be told, they're just as curious as Captain Marvel.
"Would an audience within the custody of S.H.I.E.L.D. be more to your liking? I'm being awfully lenient with you as it is. One way or another, I can't let you walk away before I get answers." Carol warns.
"Yeah, I know. You're very headstrong... Sorry about this."
"You're sorr--" Before she can finish that thought, Righteous Lad snarls and opens his eyes to flash all of them a blinding shine of light that matches the sun's intensity. While they all instinctive recoil and shield their eyes, he takes off in the next second up and out of the hole in the ground. Once high enough, he accelerates fast enough to break the sound barrier and leave behind the City of New York within an instant, heading high up aimlessly.
Sentry and Void overheard Righteous Lad and Carol's conversation. Using their enhanced senses to hear what the kid was saying.
"Malware?" Sentry whispers to himself, trying to recollect if he ever fought against such a villain.
"No. You didn't, Bob." Void tells him, answering his other half's inquiry. "What type of name is "Malware"? That's so stupid."' Void scoffs, but secretly wants it to be his name.
Then comes the sudden shine of intense light. Sentry and Void are both unaffected by the distraction and the two fly up into orbit to follow.
"Everything all right?"
Bob gestured for the Lad to move toward him. He acts like a concerned parent who just found out that his child had done something wrong and now they needed to discuss it.
Void is there because he's simply bored. And still waiting on that compliment.
"Come on, kiddo." Bob calls out to Righteous Lad.
"Spill the beans." He insists.
"Yeah! Or we will gut you!" Void threatens. Bob turns to face his darker half and shakes his head. Disagreeing full heartedly with this idea. Void just shrugs.
"What--!?" Suddenly hearing a voice nearby startles him and results in the hero clad in green charcoal black to snap around and see none other than Sentry and the Void floating there like haunting ghosts. The two create a sense of conflict within him. He doesn't distrust Sentry exactly, but The Void is a whole different case entirely. In spite of the two asking, Righteous Lad remains stern in his decision.
"What more is there to know? There's an evil android behind all of this. We stop him and everything goes back to normal for all of us. That's the honest truth." He reaffirms. However, it's not all-too-convincing for the dark entity dwelling within Entry's company. The force of darkness rubs at his makeshift chin in a contemplative manner.
"No. No, there's definitely something more to this. You're being secretive about something... A more significant detail you don't want to give up. It must be something juicy. Something that you feel could tip the balance of the world, I bet. Usually when someone runs away the way you did, it's an unspoken admission of guilt." The Void theorizes.
"I have nothing to feel guilty of. I haven't done anything." Konnence retorts.
"Yet you ran away and refused to answer questions?"
"I'm protecting you all. I'm doing what I feel is right, even if that means leaving everyone in the dark." Righteous Lad asserts while clenching his hands into fists.
"...It's not my place to interfere, anyway. Sorry..." He adds softly.
The Void squints his eyes at the young man. Almost glaring at him. Then suddenly moves upon the misplaced hero. He places his hands upon his shoulders, hoping to make Righteous Lad feel uncomfortable. His fingers extend and multiply
A hundred fingers appear, engulfing both of the Lad's shoulders and arms. More fingers begin to sprout from nowhere. However, they're slowly infesting the Lad's person. Long, boney fingers appear everywhere as if a swarm of insects or ants are crawling over him.
"Tell us." The Void demands. His voice was off-putting to say the least. And his tone became deeper and deeper. Becoming almost demonic in nature. "Tell us." He repeats.
"Tell us."
"Tell us."
"Tell us."
He repeats relentlessly. Millions of voices. All of them demanding the same thing. The hero could hear it from both his ears and from his own mind.
The funny and horrible thing about all this was that Void could just read his mind. Getting the answers that he wants, but prefers getting his answers through this course. Loves seeing people squirm.
Bob was standing by. Arms are crossing. He didn't like what was happening, but as long as he didn't kill or maim the young man. He didn't care how Void got the answers as long as he got them.
Konnence instinctively leans his upper body and head away when The Void suddenly approaches and places its dark, shady hands upon his shoulders.
"I told you I can't." He responds to the shadowy figure. It's then a very uncomfortable feeling of countless fingers suddenly touching him surfaces as the Void expands himself like a malleable source of clay.
"I said No. Give me some room." He requests as politely as he could without allowing a tone of annoyance to slip out the best he could. He reaches to try and pry the entity off, but it's becoming difficult to get any sort of solid grip on the demanding creature.
"No, seriously, man... Get off." Konnence repeats as he struggles to pry himself away. Unfortunately, it was like being buried deep under a land mass of sand. Restricting and smothering. The many voices repeating that same demand of 'Tell us, tell us, TELL US!', certainly doesn't help with the feeling.
"There's nothing of importance to tell you, now let go." At this point, both of Konnence's patience and vision are fading thanks to the pushy dark entity. When he finally realizes no other answer or further physical struggle will help, he uses the one thing he has left. The power he he's not particularly confident in himself to use without awful results. His eye sockets begin to fill with scorching light that resembles the sun's ray o f radience. Unlike before where he was only using his eyes as a light source, he prepares to let loose his solar-vision. He's hesitant and prays he doesn't accidentally damage anything of value, but he knows he has no other option at the moment.
"I tried... I tried to warn YOOOOUUUU!!!" He exclaims and let's the energy erupt from his widening eyes, blasting into the Void with a ray of ultra bright light that mimics the sun's heat and brightness, illuminating the darkness of space as the beams travel hundreds of miles into the distance. Caught up in his line of sight, he also manages to give Sentry an embrace of the sun's wrath. Unlikely to do anywhere near life-threatening harm, but perhaps providing enough force to put distance between himself and the other two. Either way, as smokey steam flows from his glowing yellow hot eyes, he immediately turns to fly away at his top speed. Traveling faster than light itself back down to fly and circle the globe.