(Invincible) Invincible Bond: Chapter 9 - Otherworldly Adventure

Chapter 9 - Otherworldly Adventure

Summary: Eve and Mark take a trip to Mars.

Mark was still riding the high from the successful first date he and Eve had last night. There was a large smile on his face as he walked down the stairs toward the kitchen, Eve a few steps ahead of him, with a smirk.

Mark wasn't looking forward to the teasing his mom was going to unleash on them and his dad's smile as he supported her.

With little trepidation, Mark entered the kitchen ready for anything his parents were going to do to embarrass him. Instead, he froze in place with surprise and confusion as he saw Cecil standing in the kitchen and talking with his dad.

His dad looked annoyed and actually, so did Cecil. Debbie just stood beside the two, enjoying her coffee.

Mark couldn't help himself asking, "Umm, what's going on here?" His eyes kept wandering between the hero and the director.

Cecil turned to Mark with the same frown he wore since the moment Mark saw him in the kitchen and said, "I'm trying to convince your father here to go help with a mission on Mars."

His dad's lips pursed further and he retorted immediately, "And I already told you that my duties are here, on Earth, protecting these people."

Cecil turned to glare back at Nolan and shot back, "And this mission will be a breakthrough for these people you are trying to protect."

His dad didn't look moved in the slightest. "I said no, that's final."

Before Mark could stop himself, he raised his arm and said hesitantly, "I can go."

Mark could feel the stare Eve was giving him, and the back of his neck began to sweat a little. Was he supposed to ask her first? Was he supposed to invite her or something? Did she have other plans?

Mark shook himself mentally, focusing back on the matter at hand.

Cecil looked at him with a raised eyebrow and calculating look in his eyes, while his dad was frowning at him.

Mark was quick to add, "I mean, they need help and I can help, so I should..."

"No, Mark," was his dad's first reaction to the idea. "It's not our business to meddle with."

Cecil was fast on the follow-up, "Come on, Nolan, the kid will need to learn eventually."

His dad turned to Cecil again and said evenly, "Yes. Here."

Cecil opened his mouth to say something else, but before he could, his mom broke into the conversation. She looked directly at him and said firmly, "Mark, those are your powers. Don't let anyone else tell you what to do with them; only you get to choose how to use them."

His mother's words struck a deep chord inside of Mark, as if something that was hard to understand until now suddenly became so clear that the problem itself seemed easy now.

Mark nodded and said confidently, "I want to do it. I want to help the Mars mission." Then he remembered something and added, "I can handle a couple of days out of school."

He heard Eve giggle behind him and looked at her standing in the entrance of the kitchen with a hand covering her smile.

Mark was confused and asked, "What's so funny?"

His dad sighed heavily and said dryly, "The fact you don't even know where Mars is is exactly the reason you shouldn't go."

Mark frowned and looked at Cecil who said in a deadpan manner, "Umm, it's a two-week mission."

Oh. Both Mark's eyebrows shot up. Now that's an entirely different story. Raising his hand in a surrendering manner, he said, "Yeah, sorry, that will be harder, and things are going great with Eve. I don't want to just disappear for a couple of weeks."

Eve stepped next to Mark and said casually, "How about I go with Mark? I'm sure another set of eyes would be better."

Cecil looked between the two for a moment before a small smile twitched in the corner of his lips, and he responded calmly, "That can work."

Nolan frowned even deeper and tried to step forward saying, "Wait a mome..." He was stopped when Debbie caught his arm and shook her head. His dad seemed reluctant but stepped back.

Cecil ignored the entire exchange as his right hand reached toward the watch on his left wrist; a moment before he pressed the side button, he said, "See you tomorrow, kids, better pack a lunch."

And with that, he disappeared with a blue flash.

Mark looked toward Eve and said, "You don't have to do it, just because I volunteered first."

Eve smirked, "And who is going to make sure you are not going to get lost in space? With your navigational skills, you might end up in the sun instead of Mars."

Mark felt offended and tried to defend himself, "I'm not that bad!" Eve just raised an eyebrow at him, and Mark let out a deep sigh. "Fine, you've got a point."

Eve nodded in satisfaction and cheerfully said, "This could be an awesome couple vacation."

Mark was about to point out that they will have a job to do, but then he considered the fact that they won't have to be on guard the entire two weeks. He was sure they could find a few hours for themselves.

His smile grew wider, and he said, "That's a great idea." And with that, Mark was even more excited about the mission than before.

IB IB IB IB IB

Mark shifted a little more in his seat at the back of the ship, or more accurately on top of the back of the spaceship, as his and Eve's mission was supposed to be a secret. Not even the astronauts themselves knew about them tagging along.

With his Viltrumite powers, space travel was as easy to him as riding a speeding train; the problem was if he wanted to survive out in space without air, he wasn't allowed to breathe, and without breath, he couldn't speak, so instead, he wore a transparent helmet over his head.

Eve sat next to him, and she, on the other hand, used her powers to create a high-pressure resistant suit. The suit wasn't as bulky and hard to move in as the ones the astronauts wear; hers was much more slim and form-fitting, not to mention bright pink.

Mark looked at his girlfriend's face, and he could see she was nervous, and who could blame her? Without hesitation, Mark reached out for Eve's hand and squeezed hard enough that she could feel it with her suit on, but not enough to break it.

Eve turned to him with a smile on her face just in time for the launch to begin.

After they left the atmosphere and entered deeper space, Mark quickly took out his phone and took a picture of Earth from space, then another thought occurred to him, and he turned his phone at an angle that caught both Eve's face and Earth next to it in the distance.

Eve smiled amusedly but didn't comment any further.

After putting the phone away, Mark leaned forward and began reaching for his sandwich saying, "Time for lunch."

Mark lifted his helmet and opened the bag that his sandwich was in. He began taking a bite of the food he packed when Eve tried to say, "Mark, wait..."

But it was too late. His teeth sunk into the bread already, or they were supposed to if said bread didn't shatter like glass and its pieces began floating further from him into the void of space.

Mark could only blink at what remained of his food until he heard a laugh from next to him. He looked at Eve, and she said amusedly, "Did you forget about the temperature in space? You might stay warm, but your food is not alien."

Mark couldn't speak right now, so he threw her a look that screamed 'what am I supposed to do now?'

Eve rolled her eyes with a smile and raised her hand over both their heads. A moment later, a pink energy dome encased them, and Mark was surprised to see Eve opening her own helmet without a care in the world.

With a little trepidation, Mark took a deep breath himself, only to find oxygen actually entered his lungs.

Eve raised both her hands as if she was holding something, and with a flash of pink light later, there was a sandwich in her hands.

Mark looked wistfully at it, remembering his own lunch is gone now. Eve snorted at him and reached for his ruined food.

He watched in wonder as his sandwich was engulfed in pink light before he felt the hard texture his fingers rested on a moment before becoming soft again as his fingers sank into the, now again, fresh bread.

Mark looked at Eve in awe and said, "You are the best!"

As he took a bite from his sandwich, Eve rolled her eyes playfully and asked with mock exhaustion, "What would you do without me?"

Mark froze while taking his next bite and considered it; he swallowed the food in his mouth before saying lightly, "Probably still be looking for Mount Rushmore."

There was a pause before Eve burst into laughter, joined soon by Mark himself.

After they calmed down and finished eating, they stared into the endless space around them when Eve spoke again, "When we get there, we need to keep our eyes open for any Martian men."

Mark's head snapped toward Eve, and he asked a little too loudly, "Martian men are a thing?!"

Eve turned to look at him with a raised eyebrow, "Where did you think the one from the Guardians of the Globe came from?"

Mark opened and closed his mouth a few times before saying, "Huh. Good point, never thought about it."

Eve shook her head and looked at Mark with worry, "I know. you really should put more time into your studying, not just training. You won't be able to punch your way out of every situation."

Mark wished he could argue, but she was right; he couldn't punch his way out of everything, and he won't have Eve attached to him every moment. Something popped into his mind, and he frowned, asking, "But... didn't research say there is no life on Mars?"

Eve chuckled and responded, "That's because they live underground. And if you want to know this kind of stuff, you should speak with Cecil. I'm sure he would love to set you up with enough access."

Mark hummed and sank into his thoughts about things he needed to talk with Cecil about. He was brought back to reality when he felt a weight on his shoulder. Looking down, he was met with a curtain of red hair. Mark just leaned back and smiled, intending to just enjoy the rest of the ride with his girlfriend.

Once they landed, both of them were quick to fly off to hide behind the closest boulder. Both of them stiffened when they heard the astronauts debating about seeing something fly off, only relaxing when they dismissed it and went back to work.

Mark sighed and said glumly as he looked down at his superhero suit, "Might not be the best color scheme for this mission."

Eve turned to him with a deadpan look and said dryly, "Try neon pink." Mark could only chuckle at her, admitting that she had it worse than him.

Both of them watched the people work until Mark yawned all of a sudden. During the trip here, they couldn't exactly let their guard down in case someone would try to attack the spaceship, so Mark was pretty tired.

"You should get some rest," Eve said from next to him. Mark looked at her oddly, and Eve smiled at him, "Look, we're both tired, so we can do shifts to keep a lookout."

Mark smiled in appreciation before he leaned his back on the boulder and closed his eyes. Before he even knew it, he drifted off to the land of sleep.

It felt like only a moment passed before Eve's voice woke him up, calling out, "...cible. Mark!"

Mark used his powers to literally jump to his feet and looked around frantically, "What? What's going on?"

Eve's face was set in her hero persona as she said calmly, "The astronauts began to move; we need to follow them."

Mark nodded seriously, and both of them took to the sky. They were quick to notice the tracks and to follow them until the tracks stopped in the middle of nowhere.

They landed in the spot the footsteps disappeared and began looking around before a thought occurred to Mark, and he mumbled, "Living underground, right."

He lowered himself and began to feel the ground around him with his palms; a moment later, he found a metal surface hidden under the sand. He used his power to pry the door open.

He was about to fly in when he turned toward Eve and noticed she was surrounded by some creatures that looked like brains with tentacles. One of them leaped toward Eve, and Mark reacted instinctively.

With a shout of "Stay the hell away!" he flew in and punched the creature with full force, obliterating it and sending gooey liquid all over.

One of the others leaped on him and attached itself to his face. Mark wasn't sure what was supposed to happen and didn't wait to find out. He reached to his face and tore the creature away, throwing it to the ground and stepping on it.

Eve, in rage mode herself, sent a thick energy wave that completely destroyed the first line of creatures and sent the rest to a considerable distance.

Mark looked at Eve and asked, "Any idea what these things are?"

Eve shook her head with worry; she looked at the opening Mark created and said, "We should get going."