Empire State University, Cafeteria, Lunch Break:
It was a pretty normal day. The students were busy, eating and talking among themselves. Nothing major happened.
Kevin and Marko sat at their table, deep in a debate about a new FPS game Marko had blown half his allowance on.
Felicia sat alone at her table, eating her food, phone in hand, pretending not to care. Her last attempt at getting Kevin's attention — cycling through four boyfriends in a week — had failed spectacularly. Now she was back to playing the aloof queen.
Felicia looked nonchalant with a cold look on her face, but her one eye was subtly permanently trained on Kevin, hoping to get one look from him. He, of course, ignored her like always.
Our friendly neighborhood nerd was, as always, surrounded by his girl friends; once again, the space between girl and friends was intentional.
Liz and MJ talked animatedly with Peter, who smiled shyly and awkwardly in response. Talking with two excited, extroverted girls was still too much for him without his mask.
Interestingly, Gwen, who sat with them, contributed little to the conversation. She only occasionally added a few words.
Instead, Gwen would subtly look at Kevin when he wasn't looking in her direction with her face in a light shade of pink. Of course, she used her spider sense to time it only when no one was looking so that no one would notice her looking at him.
Flash at the elite table still talked loudly. His fellow jocks followed the conversation with the same intensity, with the cheerleaders chiming in between. But he had long noticed that his fellow tablemates were losing respect for him with the latest events that had happened to him.
Flash subtly looked at Liz and Felicia when he thought no one was paying attention. His fists clenched in rage and humiliation, looking at the girls who were once his but were now so far.
Harry, who was sitting beside Flash, noticed him looking at the girls, and disdain filled his heart. Of course, he didn't have the guts to voice his disdain and only showed a pleasant smile as he agreed with Flash's demand to buy snacks for his "friends" at the table, just because Flash wanted to still feel in control.
Harry got up from his chair and went to buy the snacks with a smile while cursing Flash and the others at the table to die a horrible death.
All in all, it was a regular, peaceful day at ESU.
Unfortunately, that peace was short-lived as one student shouted loud enough for all the others in the cafeteria to hear.
"WHAT THE FUCK?!"
Everyone looked up from their seats at the guy. The guy was too shocked to be flustered by the sudden attention; instead, he said urgently, "Check the news! Seriously, check it right now!"
Everyone looked confused and skeptical when they heard that. A few complied, seeing the urgency on his face, and checked the news on their phone. Just as they saw the latest breaking news, collective gasps escaped their mouths.
"Holy shit—"
"No way…"
"Is that a whale?"
"What the hell is happening to this world?"
Seeing their reactions, the rest finally couldn't ignore it anymore and looked at the latest news.
Marko took out his phone, and Kevin, who was beside him, looked into it as well.
As Marko opened the news app, they saw a live broadcast. In the video, the scene was one of carnage.
A massive whale-like kaiju-sized beast was near the city coast and was fighting Human Torch, or more like Human Torch was keeping him from advancing any further on the ground, while making sure not to be slapped into a meat pancake from one of the monster's attacks.
In front of a more than a hundred meters high frame of the whale monster, the flying Human Torch looked like a buzzing fly in comparison. Each of its four limbs was the size of a bus, slamming into the ground with earth-shaking force.
The area around where they were fighting was filled with building rubble caused by the monster casually breaking buildings around it with a swipe of its hands.
The fight was recorded from a faraway helicopter. On the ground, the other three members of the Fantastic Four clashed with a muscular man dressed only in green trunks, holding a strange horn.
A few tanks had already arrived by now and were now firing shells at the massive creature. But the whale-like creature looked unbothered, even with the multiple shells and continuous heavy-calibre bullets firing on him.
Kevin looked solemn as he looked at the fight, if it could even be called that. He looked up from the phone and noticed Peter and Gwen had already slipped away. Most likely to help with the rescue operations, as even they were useless against the monster.
Kevin checked the status of each player fighting on the scene.
Name: Reed Richards
Codename: Mr. Fantastic
Rank: E3
Name: Susan Storm
Codename: Invisible Girl
Rank: E2
Name: Jonathan Storm
Codename: Human Torch
Rank: D1
Name: Benjamin Grimm
Codename: The Thing
Rank: D2
Name: Namor McKenzie
Codename: Sub-Mariner
Rank: D2 (D3 in water)
Kevin's face paled as he finally checked the monster's status.
Name: Giganto
Rank: C3 (B1 in water)
Kevin was so shaken that he clenched his fists hard as he looked at the whale monster.
'What was the use of practicing so hard, doing all this hard work, when a monster like that can swat me into a blood smear with a casual swipe?' Kevin thought bitterly. He suddenly had second thoughts, feeling a crisis of insignificance in the grand scheme of things.
All his training — the missions, the skills — suddenly felt microscopic in the shadow of Giganto's hundred-meter frame.
'Is it worth it? Pouring my blood, sweat, and tears into training myself?'
'Will I even reach a height to be able to fight such a monster on equal footing with mere training?'
'Even if I did, will I still be able to defeat? Or will I still die despite my hard work?'
'If I will die either way, whether I train or not, then what was the reason for training?'
'If I'm going to die regardless, why not just live quietly and hope one of these things doesn't flatten my house someday?'
But he soon managed to control himself from spiraling further, as the skill, Gamer's Mind, kicked in to pull him back before he sank too deep.
"Look—who is that?!"
The helicopter camera jerked upward.
A red-and-gold streak tore across the sky.
"Iron Man?!"
Tony blasted past the helicopter, firing repulsors into Giganto's face, buying Human Torch breathing room.
Kevin looked at Iron Man's status.
Name: Tony Stark
Codename: Iron Man
Rank: F2
Iron Man Armor: D1
Just an F2.
Far weaker than Thing or Namor.
Not even worthy to be mentioned in the same breath with Giganto.
But he still charged straight toward the kaiju like a man running into a burning building to save the unfortunate occupants.
And he didn't hesitate.
The man fearlessly fought Giganto together with Human Torch as they tried their best so that Giganto wouldn't move forward and cause any more damage.
The attacks, either from Iron Man's energy blasts or Human Torch's fire, failed to injure Giganto, but still were enough to harass it at least and not let it take another step forward.
Kevin's heartbeat slowed. His breathing leveled. And a sudden clarity appeared in his mind as if a dense fog had cleared.
'Why the hell am I acting hopeless?'
'Yes — I'm weak now. A squishy little human. But I'm growing.'
'Every day.'
'How can one overgrown whale shake me?'
'What about gods? Demons? Cosmic tyrants? Abstracts?'
'If a limbed fish makes me fold, I'll never stand against the things I actually want to rule above.'
His spine straightened. His eyes sharpened.
'No. I won't break here.'
'Not when I have the strongest power in the world.'
'My Gamer System.'
'As long as I keep grinding, I will surpass thugs, superhumans, kaijus… and everything above them.'
Kevin inhaled slowly.
'Believe the grind.'
He returned his attention to the broadcast, mind steady again — but a dangerous fire lit behind his eyes as his resolve strengthened again.
Baxter Building, A few hours before Namor's attack:
"Torch is out there somewhere," Reed said, pacing in front of the central console. His voice was calm, but his jaw was tight. "We need to find him before he does something reckless."
Susan stood by the window, arms wrapped around herself, scanning the skyline as if Johnny might suddenly appear in the clouds.
"Bah, for all I care, he can stay hidden," Ben Grimm snarled.
Susan immediately turned around and walked towards the orange, stone man.
"Thing, how can you talk about my brother like that?" Susan Storm's voice trembled with worry, but a faint hint of anger was there. "He may be hurt or in danger."
"He is nothing but a spoiled brat," Ben said dismissively, turning his back on Susan. "We don't need him."
"Don't worry about Torch, Sue, he is not a kid anymore," Reed reassured. "I'm sure he is alright."
Reed then turned to Ben and said, "As for you, Thing, you better not say such things after it, you that caused Torch to leave the group in anger."
"Yeah, sure," Ben said, rolling his eyes. "Everything wrong that happens around here is my fault."
Reed fixed Ben with a steely glare. "I am not going to listen to any excuses. We are going to look for Torch, and that means you, too."
Ben slammed his fist on the table, easily breaking it into multiple pieces. No matter what he said, he did feel guilty for what he said last time, but he didn't show it on his face. "I know, and when I do find him, I will clobber some sense into him, running away like that."
Susan flinched when Ben broke the table, but calmed down when Reed placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder.
The three went to their rooftop hangar and boarded their Fantasticar.
The flying car, shaped like a bathtub, was made of four modular sections that could be joined.
They sat on three of the four sections, and three joined into one, rising into the air, while the fourth remained on the rooftop.
Sue's voice hitched. "This is the first time that Torch's section was left behind."
"Let's split up," Reed said, releasing the sections, "and search the city individually. We will cover more ground that way."
The sections detached with a hiss, separating midair like petals pulling from a flower.
"The first one to find him will contact the others," Reed said and flew in the front.
Susan went eastward.
"C'mon, matchstick… don't make me hunt all day," Ben muttered and went in the west direction.
The Fantasticar sections streaked across the skyline, fully visible to all who would look up in the sky. Being America's first public superhero team came with perks. Airspace privileges were one of them.
While the rest of the Fantastic Four scoured the city for their missing teammate, Johnny Storm slipped into the kind of neighborhood people pretended didn't exist.
Illegal flophouses, busted motels, broken glass in gutters.
The smell of old beer and damp concrete.
It was the sort of place that swallowed the forgotten whole.
Johnny kept his head low.
Fake beard, cheap hat, tinted goggles.
A disguise barely worth the name, but enough for a crowd too tired to care.
He eventually found a homeless shelter with a "Beds Available" sign flickering above the door, where he hid for the day.
Inside, rows of metal bunks lined the room, blankets thin as paper.
He chose an empty bed and sat. Someone had left an old, battered comic book on the side table.
Namor, the Sub-Mariner. He flipped through it with a tired shrug.
'Isn't he the one from WW2, the one who could live underwater and was said to have the strength of ten grown men?' Johnny pondered as he read the comic to pass the time. 'I wonder what happened to him?'
"Reading about the fish-man, huh?"
Johnny turned. A scruffy man on the next cot grinned at him.
"Funny thing," the man went on, jerking a thumb at an old guy snoring under a blanket. "We got our own 'Sub-Mariner' right here. Strong as hell when he's awake."
The old man was a mess — long black hair tangled, beard covering half his face, posture slumped. Hard to tell what he looked like under all that.
"Wake up, old timer," the man said, kicking the side of his cot.
The old man who was sleeping soundly on his bed opened his eyes groggily, "Huh? What?"
"Come on, old man," the man grinned, "C'mon, show the kid some of your tricks."
"Go away!" The old man pulled the blanket over his head. "Let me sleep."
Johnny stood. "Hey, back off. He's tired. Leave him alone."
The man scoffed, "He isn't that tired that he can't show us a few tricks." He picked up an old phone directory and arrogantly walked towards the old man's bed. "Tear this book in half," he ordered.
"Go away, you puny ant," the old man growled and shoved the man, who cried in pain and fell a few meters away.
Seeing that, the man's buddies showed menacing expressions and decided to gang up on him.
"I said… go away."
He struck.
One blow per man.
Each thug crumpled to the floor, limbs twitching, unable to rise.
The old man sat up fully now, breathing hard. His hand clutched his forehead as if something inside was clawing to get out.
"…why can't I remember?" he whispered. "How long have I… forgotten?"
No one cared.
"Look, he is tired and in pain. Now is our chance, let's take him down," another man said as he picked up an iron rod.
A few others grabbed whatever they could find — pipes, broken chair legs, a rusted wrench.
"Hey, you!" Johnny stepped squarely between the violent men and the confused old man, his arms spread wide. "Can't you see he is in pain and doesn't even know who he is? Leave him alone."
"Relax, kid." A cruel smile spread across the leading man's face. "We're just helping him remember. Nothing jogs a memory like a good beating."
Johnny felt troubled. He didn't want to use his powers, as he didn't want to hurt them, but he wasn't skilled enough to deal with so many men with weapons without them. Hell, without flaming on, he couldn't defeat even one of them. He'd get stabbed before he threw a punch.
But at the same time, he also felt curious about the old man's identity.
"I have a better idea," Johnny said and moved beside the old man. "Let's give him a clean shave."
Johnny ignited his finger, and a small flame appeared on the fingertip.
"Hold still, old timer," Johnny murmured.
First, he burned away the long hair till it was up to the old man's neck. Then, with precision, he burned away the beard and the mustache.
As Johnny burned more and more of the beard, one of the men gasped, "Wait— wait, his face— no way—"
Johnny didn't bother with him, too concentrated on cleanly burning away the old man's facial hair. He couldn't afford a lapse in concentration, as that could injure the old man.
When Johnny was done, he looked at the old man's face. He thought he had seen this face before, then he remembered the face in the comic he had read just before.
The sharp cheekbones.
The arrogant brow.
Johnny's eyes widened as realization hit me. He took a step back. "He-he is the Sub-Mariner."
But the old man ignored Johnny's and the other's ramblings as he didn't remember being the so-called Sub-Mariner; instead, he just sat with his head in his hand.
Johnny held the old man by his arm as they reached the edge of the boardwalk.
"Trust me," Johnny said. "If you are who I think you are… this will help."
Johnny pulled the old man out of the bed, who followed him in confusion. The old man had a faint hope in his heart after seeing Johnny's powers and his confidence in returning his memories, so he followed him with little resistance.
"Flame on!"
Fire roared around him, and his body was covered with flames.
The people around were immediately stunned to see Human Torch among them, but before they could react, Johnny grabbed the old man and flew away with him.
Johnny flew towards the open ocean, and when he was far enough…
He let go.
'If he is the Sub-Mariner, the water will bring back his memories and his full powers. If not, then I will just dive in and save him.'
The change was immediate.
As soon as he drowned in the sea, the old derelict took off his outer garments. The signs of age caused by being out of the water for so long were reversed.
Wrinkles were erased from his skin in real-time. His strong body bulged as muscles filled with explosive strength. His skin glowed with vitality. The slightly greying hair was darkened to inky blackness. His eyes were sharpened like knives.
"…I remember," he whispered, voice growing stronger. "I am Namor. The Sub-Mariner."
Finally, the rejuvenated man, the prince of the sea, Namor, the Sub-Mariner, was back.
"My family, my friends, my kingdom. No, I must return," Namor said with urgency as he swam underwater and tore through the depths with the speed of a missile.
Namor travelled underwater and soon reached the location of his kingdom, but was shocked to find it in ruins.
The seabed was scorched.
Homes crushed. Temples shattered.
Coral palaces he once walked through with pride now lay in ruins.
"No…" Namor whispered, voice cracking. He swam frantically through what used to be streets, grabbing broken pillars, overturned statues, carved stones — anything left standing.
But everything he touched crumbled into dust.
His kingdom was gone.
He sank to one knee, trembling as the currents carried debris past him.
And then he sensed it — a faint, toxic sting in the water.
Radiation.
Namor's eyes widened, then narrowed into slits.
"Human weapons," he growled, fury vibrating through the ocean. "Human arrogance."
He rose slowly, expression darkening.
"My people would survive the radiation… they must have fled. They must be out there."
His fists clenched so tightly the water around them vibrated.
"I will find them."
His voice dropped to a deadly whisper, filled with the wrath of the sea.
"And those who destroyed my home…
will drown for it."
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[Author's Note]
For readers wondering why Johnny ran away from the Fantastic Four, this happened the same way as in the FF comics canon. Before the Giganto attack, the FF defeated Miracle Man, and Ben and Johnny's fight followed. This all happened off-screen.
The current event shows FF screen time because Giganto's attack has a significant impact on the world and Kevin's worldview.
Many events in the Marvel timeline (like Johnny running away after the Miracle Man incident) will happen off-screen as long as they do not directly affect Kevin, since it is practically impossible to show every single event in the fanfic.
However, during major events or world-shaking incidents, other characters and groups may receive screen time.
This is to show how the wider Marvel universe reacts to and evolves around Kevin, and how those events shape the world in which he's building his criminal empire.
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Finally, I created a Discord server.
https://discord.gg/g7Jf5qHW