Mark was back in the alleyway where no one could see him. He floated in the air, practicing how to fly and keep himself stable. He had a general idea of how it worked the moment he first tried, but he just couldn't seem to get it right.
"This is cool," Mark muttered as he began moving slowly while floating, almost like he was sliding through the air. "I need to master this first before I can put my plan into action."
He kept practicing until he noticed the sky darkening. He decided to stop because his parents would come looking for him, and he didn't want that to happen. He headed straight back home, and when he arrived, he knocked on the door.
"Mom, I'm back."
As soon as the door opened, his mother Debbie looked at Mark like he had done something wrong. She immediately questioned him about his whereabouts from a few hours ago.
"Where did you go?"
"Walking around."
Debbie was shocked that Mark didn't even try to lie. She let out a breath and began explaining what had made her act this way.
"Your boss just called me and said you weren't at the restaurant."
"Yeah, that's correct."
Debbie put her hands on her hips with an annoyed expression. "Why didn't you go to your job?"
"I quit." Mark answered honestly about what he had decided, though not the true reason why he didn't go. It was because he didn't know where the original Mark worked, and even if he did, he still wouldn't have gone.
Mark entered the house and changed from his outdoor shoes to indoor shoes. As he was on his way upstairs, his mother stopped him by raising her voice.
"Where are you going? I'm not finished yet."
"Mom, I'm sweaty and I smell bad from school. Can you at least let me wash up first?" Mark looked at her expression and decided to add another word, saying it softly. "Please?"
Debbie thought for a few seconds, then shooed him away with her hand. "Alright, go take a shower."
"Thanks. Love you, Mom." Mark said what felt suitable for the situation, and with that, he headed upstairs.
Debbie sighed as she watched Mark's back. She shook her head and muttered, "Did something happen at work for him to act like this?"
In his room, Mark removed his clothes and wrapped a towel around his lower body. At the same time, he noticed that his muscles were slightly more defined. He smirked, then grabbed his stinky clothes and shouted out loud as he left his room.
"Mom, where do I put my dirty clothes?!"
"Put them in the basket in the laundry room!" Debbie shouted back.
"Okay!" Mark went downstairs and headed to the laundry room. It took him a while to find it. Debbie caught sight of Mark casually walking around with only a towel on, and it surprised her a bit.
After putting his clothes in the basket, he went to the bathroom and finally enjoyed a shower. The cold water fell over his body. If he were still sore, this would have felt even more comfortable.
'What kind of training should I do first?'
His mind began thinking about the best kind of training that would help him grow. He especially needed a harsh environment and intense exercises.
'I don't think I have time to surpass my father Nolan, the Omni-Man. I should use every moment I have for intense training and only rest when I really need it.'
He knew the training would be harder than what he had done today, but he had to do it. This was his choice. Becoming Mark meant he had to do the insane thing.
Right after his shower, he dried off and put on fresh clothes before heading back to his room. Then he went to the dining table since it was already close to dinnertime. When he got there, the food was already prepared on the table. Mark took a seat, and Debbie immediately asked him about his well-being.
"What really happened with your boss?"
"Nothing. We just butted heads, and I didn't like it. That's all." Mark answered using his previous life's work experiences.
"If that's the case, alright." Debbie accepted the reasoning behind why Mark didn't go to work and had quit.
With that settled, they began eating what Debbie had cooked. Mark enjoyed every bite because it was delicious. In the back of his mind, he remembered his late mother. He smiled at the food because it felt very similar.
WOOOSH!
A middle-aged man with a muscular build and a trimmed mustache arrived at the dinner table. The man was Omni-Man, Mark's father, Nolan Grayson.
"Sorry I'm late. I was handling an enchanted flood in Egypt. I had to deal with it on the way here," Nolan explained to the two of them.
"Did you stop the dragon?" Debbie asked. She had seen her husband on the news today.
"Yeah. Once I found out who was controlling it, there wasn't much to it. The hard part was keeping the civilians safe the whole time," Nolan replied as he put a spoonful of food in his mouth.
Then Debbie remembered something and informed her husband. "Ah, your publisher called. He wanted to see the progress of your book."
"I guess I can take a day off this weekend so I can write for them. I'll have to pick up some more keyboards. I hope the Guardians of the Globe can cover for me," Nolan said as he wiped his mouth with a napkin.
'So this is how the Grayson family talks,' Mark thought to himself as he observed the two of them. But Debbie pulled him out of his thoughts.
She then added, "Another thing. Mark quit his part-time job."
"Why?" Nolan looked at Mark, wondering about the decision.
"The boss was acting like an asshole. I just couldn't handle it anymore." Mark outright lied about the supposed boss he had never even met.
"Oh." Nolan nodded in understanding.
Then Debbie asked, "Can you pass the potatoes?"
"Here, Mom." Mark handed them to his mother.
— X —
Author's Note
For those who are wondering, yes, this is a rewrite. After reading back my story and thinking about the plot, I felt like my MC didn't make use of his meta knowledge at all, he was only focusing on training. Because of this, I decided to change the story. I also chose not to go with the idea of Mark not telling Nolan that he has unlocked his power.
Another reason for the rewrite is that I've been reading Image Comics titles that are connected to the Invincible story through crossovers. I got a few more ideas and more characters that I want to implement into the story.
If you don't like that I keep rewriting, I'm sorry, but I can't keep it to myself and proceed with the story when there are opportunities to expand it even more. Feel free to leave my story for a while until there are more chapters.