"Superman..."
"He's Superman!"
"He saved us!"
A child's trembling shout ignited the entire crowd like a spark dropped into dry grass.
"Superman!"
"Superman!"
"Superman!"
The roar swelled like an avalanche colliding with a tidal wave.
And Marcus could almost feel his system panel drowning beneath a flood of numbers.
Global popularity skyrocketing
Ping! Popularity +2450
Ping! Popularity +3832
Ping! Popularity +1109
Current popularity: 2,215,232
Template upgrading... Enhanced: Iron Body
Template upgrading... Enhanced: Super Speed
Template upgrading... Enhanced: Thermal Vision
Mission complete. Reward obtained: Homeland Armor Set.
The Avengers descended around him.
Captain America stepped forward, expression complicated yet grateful. "Superman... sir?"
Marcus didn't answer.
Instead, he walked to the massive stasis pod. Under the eyes of the entire world, he placed his hands on the container and slowly tore it open.
Shhhhh.
Inside, more than a hundred dazed children around twelve or thirteen rubbed their eyes as they stepped out.
"Where's my mom...?" a little girl whispered.
All of New York fell silent.
Tony Stark's helmet snapped open with a sharp click. He stood frozen, unable to speak.
Steve Rogers's shield slipped from his hand and hit the concrete with a soft metallic thud.
Thor's eyes widened. "By Odin..."
The next second...
A thunderous roar erupted across the city.
Screaming. Crying. Shouting.
Ping! Popularity rising
Ping! Popularity +3011
Ping! Popularity +4840
Ping! Popularity +5526
New York popularity rating: Fanatical
United States popularity rating: Devoted
Global ranking: Rising Star
Marcus felt his strength, speed and toughness multiply again.
The plain blue fabric on his chest shimmered with golden light.
Moments later, a proud golden eagle emblem appeared, glowing on his shoulders where the new golden pauldrons had formed.
"Hero!"
"Superman!"
"Hero!"
"Superman! Hero!"
The crowd chanted without prompting, calling him a hero, calling him by that name from comic books that symbolized hope.
Marcus stood amidst the thunderous applause, arms wide open, basking in every second.
Then he lifted a hand for silence.
And unbelievably, New York began to quiet.
Every gaze rose to meet his.
He cleared his throat, turning toward the nearest news helicopter camera, and flashed a brilliant smile.
"Thank you, but..."
He wagged a finger gently. His golden hair didn't budge in the wind.
"I'm not Superman."
The crowd froze.
"I am..." He paused just long enough for tension to tighten across the square. "Homelander."
"And you..." His smile softened, warm and kind, as if the person who had annihilated aliens minutes earlier never existed. "You are the real heroes here."
Homelander.
Marcus's voice echoed across Grand Central Square, captured by countless microphones and cameras.
In 0.1 seconds, the name circled the entire planet.
The crowd went silent for a heartbeat.
Then the world exploded.
"Homelander!"
"Homelander!"
"HOMELANDER!"
The word carried its own magic.
After surviving the terror of an alien invasion, people needed a symbol.
And Marcus had given them one.
He spread his arms again, absorbing the cheers with a serene, humble smile that was flawless in every detail.
Behind him, Tony Stark muttered under his breath. "Unbelievable... the guy's a spotlight thief."
"Tony!" Steve Rogers frowned, though he couldn't deny he was thinking the same thing.
Marcus reminded him a little too much of his own World War II bond tour days.
"Since that's settled... has anyone else not eaten in twelve hours?" Tony finally asked as he awkwardly peeled the ruined armor from his body. "There's a shawarma place nearby. I'm starving. Hopefully it's still open."
Dr. Bruce Banner, back to his human form, sat weakly on the ground and chuckled tiredly.
It turned out that even the strongest heroes on Earth understood the power of a good meal.
Ten minutes later, they sat together in a circle, silently eating shawarma.
"So," Tony said, swallowing a mouthful, breaking the silence, "Homelander, huh? Did you pick that yourself, or was that a PR thing?"
Marcus smiled with perfect composure.
"Just a codename, Mr. Stark. Same as Iron Man. People need a symbol."
"Wow." Tony raised an eyebrow. "That sounded exactly like a press release. I respect it."
"Tony." Steve set down his food. "Not now."
He looked toward Thor.
"Thor," Steve said seriously. "The Tesseract."
Thor nodded solemnly. "Yes. The Tesseract. My father Odin left it on Earth centuries ago for safekeeping. It must return to Asgard."
"Hold on, Thunder Junior," Tony said. "That thing almost blew up my city. You can't just waltz off with it. No paperwork? No nothing?"
"It doesn't belong on Earth, Tony," Thor replied firmly.
"He's right," Steve added. "Better off in space than with S.H.I.E.L.D."
Natasha and Hawkeye ate quietly. Banner nodded in agreement.
"Fine, Popsicle, you decide," Tony sighed.
After the meal, their next task was dealing with Loki, god of mischief.
He currently enjoyed special treatment: an Asgardian muzzle that finally shut him up.
Pinned by Marcus earlier, then dragged out by Hulk, Loki now sat slumped on the ground, glaring venomously at every person in front of him.