Franklin POV
"So let me get this straight," I said, rubbing my face. "One of the symbiotes bonded to Flash, who is a known bully, and when you finally tracked it down, it attacked Peter. So your solution was to capture them and throw them in a prison cell."
"Yeah," Ned said. "That's pretty much it."
I exhaled. "Okay. I'm done. I'm exhausted. I just finished fighting a robot god. We can deal with this tomorrow after school."
"A robot, what now?" Peter asked.
"I'll explain later," I said flatly.
The second I got back to the base, I barely had time to breathe. They caught me up on everything that happened while I was gone, and I dumped the Ultron parts straight into my workshop. Now we were all standing in the Overwatch room, staring at the containment cell like it might suddenly start talking back.
"Yeah, you're probably right," Kamala said. "It is getting late. But… are you sure you're okay leaving Flash in there?"
"I built that prison to hold a Hulk," I said. "I seriously doubt Flash, or the symbiote, can escape."
"Good to hear," Betty said. "I guess."
Ned squinted at me. "Wait. Why did you build a prison to hold a Hulk?"
"…Just in case I ever need to hold a Hulk," I said simply.
Ned stared at me for a long second. "Okay. I'm going home."
Everyone said their goodbyes and started heading out. I was dropping Yolanda and Ava off at their place, while Beth caught a ride with Betty.
The reason she didn't ride with us? This was the perfect time for Ava and Yolanda to explain why Courtney and Cindy B were taking a break from the group.
At first, they didn't want to explain anything. They tried to brush it off, said it wasn't worth talking about, but I pushed. Hard. Eventually, they told me everything they'd learned.
I wasn't completely shocked. I'd had my suspicions about Cindy B during training. Courtney, though? That part caught me off guard.
"Man," I muttered, "I'm never beating those dense allegations."
"Franklin, this isn't a joke," Yolanda said, irritation sharp in her voice. "You get that Cindy tried to steal you from us, right?"
"Kind of funny that you two think I'd ever cheat on you," I said.
"We know you wouldn't," Ava said quickly. "But that doesn't mean she wasn't trying to catch you at your weakest. Like if you were drunk or something."
"First of all, I don't drink," I said. "Second, even if that somehow happened, it'd still have to be consensual. Do you really think Cindy's capable of crossing that line?"
"She was capable of planning to steal you from us," Yolanda shot back. "I'm not putting anything past her."
"Okay," I said. "I get why you're angry, completely justified, but let's not ignore that she stopped trying."
"Because of Courtney," Yolanda said. "Not because Cindy suddenly realized she was wrong and stopped."
"Maybe," I said, "but from what you told me, she sounded genuinely remorseful when you confronted her. And when she and Ava fought, it never escalated. She never even pulled out her Blaze. She's the one who took most of the hits."
Ava frowned. "So you're saying she was holding back?"
"Most likely," I said. "She was letting you get your frustration out."
They went quiet after that. It wasn't a perfect explanation, but it made some sense.
"I'm pretty sure there's nothing I can say that'll make you less angry at Cindy right now," I added. "But… hear me out."
They both looked at me, silent, focused, actually listening.
"I'm not saying Cindy was right," I said. "I'm never going to say that. What she tried to do wasn't okay. But… I can't fully blame her either."
They both tensed.
"You two are living proof of what love can do to a person."
"What?" Ava said.
"You both love me," I continued. "And fighting over me almost destroyed years of friendship. But you worked through it. You concluded that you could share me, and you were right."
I glanced between them.
"All three of us are in a healthy relationship because we care about each other that much. Now think about this, if I were any other guy… would either of you have ever accepted another girl being in a relationship with you too?"
They didn't answer.
They didn't need to.
The silence said enough.
"Love can make us do things we never thought we would," I said quietly. "We can't always help who we fall for."
"So you're saying she was ready to betray months of friendship because she was in love with you?" Ava asked.
"Maybe she was in love with me," I said. "Or maybe she loved Courtney enough to try and find a guy who would accept both of them. I don't know. But I don't think there was malice in what she did. It wasn't hate or jealousy driving her; it was love."
"Maybe," Yolanda said after a moment, "but I can't forgive her that easily."
"And I'm not asking you to," I replied. "I'm just asking you to imagine being in her shoes for a second. She fell in love with her friend's boyfriend. She was considering betraying both of you just to have a chance, and she hated herself for it."
I kept my eyes on the road.
"Courtney talked her out of it, but feelings like that don't disappear overnight. So she took time away. Even then, there was still tension. You noticed something was wrong, got angry, and I know she felt awful through all of it. She probably already punished herself more than anyone else ever could."
Neither of them said anything after that.
The rest of the drive passed in silence.
I dropped them off, went home… and went straight to sleep.
The next day
Today was… awkward.
All day at school, Courtney and Cindy avoided everyone in the friend group like the plague. They didn't try to stay near me in class, didn't sit at our lunch table, nothing. It was like they'd decided to disappear without actually skipping school.
I wanted to talk to them. More than once. But I didn't.
They clearly wanted space, and honestly, I wasn't eager to poke that hornet's nest. Yolanda and Ava were still furious, and if they caught me talking to either of them, it'd probably just make things worse, for them or for me.
As if that wasn't enough, MJ1 spent the entire day trying to talk to Peter.
Which was… strange.
The last time those two really talked, it ended badly, a long time ago. Back then, MJ1, MJ2, Peter, and I all got pulled into an argument. Mostly, it was MJ1 and MJ2 going at each other, with Peter trying desperately to keep things calm, and me standing there in case it got physical.
MJ2 accused MJ1 of abandoning Peter when they got to high school, and said what she did was messed up.
MJ1 didn't see it that way. She said she wasn't abandoning him, just hanging out with new people.
MJ2 didn't let that slide.
She listed everything. MJ1 stopped sitting with Peter at lunch. Stopped sitting next to him in class, barely talked to him anymore, and let her new friends bully him without stepping in. Even laughed along sometimes.
By the time MJ2 finished, MJ1 snapped, and the second the words left her mouth, I knew she regretted them.
"So what if I don't want to hang out with a fucking nerd all the time?" she said. "Maybe if he stopped being so weird, I could be his friend again."
Her eyes went wide immediately. Pure regret.
When she saw Peter's face, how it fell, how hurt he looked, guilt flooded in. MJ2 was ready to swing, but I grabbed her before she could throw the punch.
I could tell MJ1 wanted to apologize.
She didn't.
She just walked away.
And honestly? That hurt Peter more than anything she could've said.
After that, MJ1 never talked to Peter again. And Peter made sure of the same. So seeing her suddenly trying to reconnect now felt… off.
Suspicious.
It probably had something to do with the symbiote she'd bonded with.
Yeah. I knew about that now.
Thanks to Ned, who also filled me in on who else had picked up a symbiote while I was busy fighting a robot god.
Right now, all of us are back at the base. We were in Overwatch, and I was at the main computer, filling them in on what I'd fought and what I was planning to do next.
"So you're telling me you fought a literal robot god," Ned said, "and now you're planning on spreading cures for cancer?"
"Yes," I said, not looking up.
"And the Avengers now have kids from an alternate universe?" Peter asked.
"Yes."
"And in a couple of days, you're delivering the cures to Tony Stark so he can distribute them for free?" Betty added.
"Yes."
"Would he even do that for free?" MJ2 asked.
"I explain to Black Widow that part's non-negotiable," I said. "I'm sure he'll do it. He's got more than enough money already."
"Man," Ned muttered, "and I thought finding an alien was a big problem."
"What are you doing right now, Franklin?" Kamala asked.
"I'm monitoring Flash and checking his vitals," I said. "Making sure the symbiote isn't doing anything harmful."
"How are you checking his vitals if he's in a cell?" Ned asked.
"When I built the cell, I installed high-level sensors," I explained. "They map his entire body structure, muscles, nervous system, blood flow, and heart rate. Everything."
"…Cool," Ned said.
"So what's the plan with Flash?" Peter asked. "Is he okay?"
"I want to talk to him," I said. "But Venom's been in control this whole time. I'm honestly surprised Flash has been able to hold out this long. If he's in any real danger, I can trigger a high-frequency sound in the cell to force them apart."
"So for now," Peter said slowly, "you're letting Venom cool off so you can talk to Flash."
"Exactly."
"What about his parents?" MJ2 asked. "They're going to notice their son missing."
I tapped a few keys, and an image popped up on the main screen.
"I hacked into Flash's phone," I said. "I've been sending his parents texts, telling them he's staying with friends for a couple of nights."
MJ2 frowned. "Okay… that'll buy us some time."
"But not forever."
An alarm blared through the base.
"What's going on?" Kamala asked.
I was already typing, pulling data as fast as the system would give it to me.
"Something's hijacking every major network on Earth," I said. "Looks like a planet-wide broadcast. Hang on."
The main screen flickered.
Then stabilized.
A massive purple alien filled the display, tall, broad, built like a walking tank. Fins jutted from the back of his head, and light black armor clung to his frame. Standing beside him was a sleek golden robot, its eyes glowing softly.
They were in the middle of a city street.
"What the hell?" MJ2 muttered.
"Greetings, Earthlings," the golden robot said smoothly. "I am L-Ron, Major-Domo to the Great Master."
He gestured theatrically toward the alien.
"The Great Master has come to this dirt planet to issue a challenge. He seeks to prove himself among Earth's strongest and bravest warriors."
"Well, that won't last long," Ned said. "Superman'll wipe the floor with that guy."
"Normally, yeah," I said. "Problem is… Superman's out of commission. He's technically human right now."
"What?!" Everyone spoke at once.
"Allow me," L-Ron continued, "to formally introduce."
The camera zoomed in, centering entirely on the alien as the robot stepped out of frame.
"The Warlord Despero," L-Ron announced. "Gladiator. Champion of the Ninety-Second Star System, and working on Ninety-Third now."
The camera pulled back, showing both of them again.
"Send forth your strongest combatant," L-Ron said. "My master will face them in honorable single combat."
"When my master wins, he will take the challenger's head."
A pause.
"If, somehow, your champion wins, we will leave this planet peacefully."
The robot tilted his head.
"You may send as many challengers as you like. Please note: each warrior defeated will have their head taken as a trophy."
The screen cut out.
Then reappeared, this time showing only coordinates.
Center of Metropolis.
Dead center.
"They're really trying to bait Superman," I said quietly. "Too bad he can't answer."
I leaned back in my chair and exhaled.
"Well," I said, "I guess punching an alien warlord is as good a way as any to start a Monday."