Massive blue portals just ripped open in the sky right over downtown Chicago.
Before anyone could even figure out what was happening, these green, humanoid soldiers started pouring out.
They were wearing heavy armor and carrying weapons that looked high-tech and dangerous.
They didn't hesitate, either.
The second they hit the pavement, they started shooting.
People were screaming and diving behind cars just to find some cover, but the soldiers were moving way too fast.
Those energy rifles turned the whole street into a war zone in a matter of seconds.
The Flaxans were ruthless.
Every time one of those energy blasts hit a person, they didn't just fall—they were blown into pieces.
Out of nowhere, Invincible dropped from the sky and landed right in front of the panicked crowd.
He tried to get people organized and move them to safety, but an energy blast slammed into him mid-sentence.
He hit the ground hard.
As he scrambled to get up, he saw two Flaxans aiming their weapons at an old lady who couldn't run fast enough.
Invincible braced himself to fly in and save her, but before he could even blink, a white flash streaked across the street.
The lady was gone, scooped up into someone's arms before vanishing.
Then, the street exploded into hundreds of white flashes.
Every single time a flash appeared, a person disappeared with it. In the blink of an eye, the crowd was gone.
The street was empty of civilians. Invincible and the Flaxans stood there in total shock, staring at the empty space where the humans had just been.
"Hey, uglies. Where are you looking?"
The voice came from above.
On top of a nearby building, a boy was looking down at them.
He had incredibly long, flowing white hair and a black cloth covering the lower half of his face, with a bandana wrapped around his forehead.
The Flaxans didn't wait for him to finish talking—they just aimed their guns and opened fire.
Just as the beams were about to hit him, the boy vanished into thin air.
The energy blasts slammed into the building behind him, blowing chunks out of the wall, but he was already gone.
He reappeared high in the sky, looking down at the invaders.
Then, in an instant, hundreds of copies of him popped into existence, filling the air above the street.
Each one held a swirling ball of blue energy in his hand.
Before the Flaxans could even look up, the army of clones dropped.
In the blink of an eye, they slammed the energy balls into the Flaxan ranks, tearing through their lines all at once.
In another blink, the Flaxan army was gone—wiped out entirely. The only one left was a commander in a tank, his face scarred and pale with terror.
He didn't think twice; he turned the vehicle around and retreated toward the portal, abandoning the remains of his army without looking back.
The white-haired boy watched him for a second.
"Oh no, you don't," he muttered.
He lunged toward the portal.
The force of his jump was so intense that the concrete road shattered under his feet.
He caught up to the tank in mid-air and slammed a blue sphere of energy into the hull.
The heavy armor cracked open like an eggshell, but the scarred Flaxan managed to scramble out, leaping through the portal just as it flickered and died.
The boy shook his head, looking a bit disappointed, and jumped back down to the street.
He landed near Invincible, who was still just sitting there on the ground, staring at the empty street in a complete trance.
The white-haired boy reached out, offering a hand to help Invincible up.
Mark took it, finally snapping out of his stupor as he was pulled to his feet.
He stood there for a second, brushing himself off, before introducing himself as "Invincible."
Then, he just kept staring at the boy's face, clearly waiting for a name in return.
"Don't look at me like that," the boy said, breaking the silence.
"I don't have a hero name to give you."
The comment worked; Invincible shook off his awkward stare and rubbed the back of his neck. "Oh, right.
Sorry," he said, still trying to process everything. "It's just... that was fast. Really fast."
The boy just gave a simple, "Hmm," in response.
While the two of them were talking, the rest of the backup finally arrived.
Atom Eve touched down nearby, followed quickly by Robot.
Rex Splode landed right next to them, practically skidding to a halt, while Dupli-Kate came running up a second later, stopping just behind the others.
They all gathered around, looking at the empty street where the army used to be.
Rex Splode was the first one to break the silence.
"Okay," he said slowly, glancing around at the empty street. "So... I guess we're late for the party?" He sounded as nonchalant as ever, though he was clearly confused.
Dupli-Kate blinked, looking around at the lack of bodies. "I thought we were on time," she muttered, her brow furrowed.
The robot's visor tilted toward the white-haired boy, scanning him.
"You neutralized the entire force in exactly twenty seconds," Robot noted.
My sensors show only five casualties. You saved everyone else.
Can you give me the coordinates of the civilians you moved?"
The boy gave a low hum. "I moved the injured to the area around Oak Park Hospital. The rest are at the city playgrounds."
Atom Eve floated a little closer, her eyes narrowed with genuine curiosity. "You saved every civilian and wiped out an army in twenty seconds? That's... actually incredible."
Rex crossed his arms, his voice dripping with jealousy as he saw Eve looking at the stranger with interest.
"So, what are we even doing here then? We're just standing around staring at this guy?"
The white-haired boy looked at the team, his job clearly finished.
"Work's done," he said. Before anyone could get another word in, he vanished in a blink.
"I was going to invite him to join the team," Robot said, his metallic voice sounding almost disappointed.
"Whatever," Rex snapped. "We don't need him."
The rest of the team just stared at him in dead silence.