The so-called "Black Superman" is none other than Hancock, a title that had earned him immense popularity among certain groups due to his distinctive skin color. Beyond appearances, Hancock's abilities were far from weak. While he lacked heat vision and freeze breath, his powers were otherwise comparable to Kryptonians like Superman.
Moreover, Hancock did not share the Kryptonite vulnerability that plagued Kryptonians. In fact, a significant portion of the Homelander's genetic makeup was derived from Hancock, with only a small fraction sourced from Kryptonian DNA. This was a deliberate choice by Vought International to avoid any potential weaknesses, such as Kryptonite, that could abruptly strip the Homelander of his powers and reduce him to an ordinary human.
Vought could tolerate slightly less power in exchange for ensuring the Homelander's reliability. Losing all power was simply not an acceptable risk.
Now, as Reynolds displayed his extraordinary strength, enough to rival Hancock, the Vought executives couldn't help but feel their ambitions stir once again. Just moments ago, Hancock had been dismissed as a liability, yet now they were already scheming about how to bring him back under their control.
"Hey, hey, hey! What are you planning?!" Reynolds' faction within Vought was visibly displeased by the excitement of the other executives. One of them slammed a hand on the table and growled in protest.
"You don't have to be so hostile toward us. You should know by now that hoarding resources for yourself never ends well. Someone like Reynolds—a test subject with top-tier combat capabilities—must be shared with everyone, just like the Homelander was," one of the opposing executives retorted with a cold smile. "You know as well as we do that if you oppose us, you'll be going up against all of Vought. You can't possibly take on everyone. Think carefully about what's more important."
The other executives nodded in agreement. Since Reynolds' loss of control, they had remained largely united in their stance. Their perspectives had shifted several times—from wanting Reynolds dead, to seeing him as a subject for research, to discarding him, and now to regaining control over him. Yet throughout these shifts, they shared a common goal: maximizing their collective benefits.
Their current demand was clear. Someone as powerful as Reynolds could not be monopolized by a single faction within Vought. If such control were allowed, it would upset the delicate balance of power within the company. Reynolds had to be an asset that everyone could use and control.
"Fine! You win!" The executive from Reynolds' faction was clearly frustrated but had no choice but to comply. Their faction lacked the strength to oppose the entire company. In truth, they were already a relatively weak faction within Vought. If that weren't the case, they wouldn't have chosen someone like Reynolds—a second-rate speedster—as their contender in the first place.
No, in fact, Reynolds hadn't even been a proper second-tier contender. Before this incident, the speedster who regularly squared off against A-Train was another individual named Shockwave, who was widely considered the second-best speedster. Reynolds' speed had never surpassed Shockwave's, and his reputation was virtually nonexistent.
Thus, no matter how dissatisfied Reynolds' faction might feel, they had no choice but to hand over control of Reynolds and share it with the others. This was undoubtedly a bitter pill to swallow for them.
What made matters worse was that test subjects like Reynolds or the Homelander bore no loyalty to the factions that had cultivated them. On the contrary, they harbored deep resentment toward those who had subjected them to inhumane experiments. This meant that once control over Reynolds was transferred, he would no longer belong exclusively to his original faction. Instead, they would have to share whatever benefits they could extract from him with the rest of the company.
"Deploy the mechanized forces. We can't let this destruction continue unchecked," one executive commanded after securing consensus among the factions. "As much as I'd like to see how far Reynolds can push his limits, we can't risk him breaking through the energy barrier and escaping. That would be far too troublesome."
The time to act was ideal. The Homelander and Reynolds had already moved out of the building into open space, where the environment was far less complex. The use of sound waves, chemical agents, and other technologies to subdue them would now be much easier.
Vought's response was swift. From the moment the Homelander and Reynolds had burst out of the building, only a few minutes had passed. Before Reynolds could launch a second attack on the energy barrier, an array of mechanized units had already arrived at their location.
Quickly, the air around the two combatants was filled with an odd, cloying scent—a mix of milk and something metallic—accompanied by an invisible gas that induced a dreamy, disoriented state.
The Homelander, who had been in a berserk rage, instantly calmed down. His ears picked up a series of soothing, hypnotic sounds designed to pacify him. Within seconds, the Homelander's rage evaporated. He curled up like an infant in a mother's embrace, slowly descending to the ground. To the astonishment of the onlookers, he even put his thumb in his mouth and began to suck on it gently.
Reynolds, standing nearby, felt a shiver run through his body. His mind grew hazy for a moment before he was overwhelmed by an intense sense of euphoria. The sensation was all too familiar—it was the very method Vought had used to control him in the past.
When Reynolds glanced over and saw the Homelander curled up on the ground, sucking his thumb, he immediately realized what was happening. Vought had decided to intervene. They wouldn't let the destruction go on any longer.
However, to Reynolds' surprise, while he was affected by the chemical agents, they did not cause him to lose control as they had before. It seemed that his enhanced physique and newfound strength had given him a significant resistance to these substances.
This realization brought a glimmer of hope to Reynolds. A new plan quickly formed in his mind. Attempting to escape now was clearly not an option. The energy barrier couldn't be broken in the short term, and revealing that he was immune to Vought's control would only jeopardize his future chances.
To buy time and gain an opportunity for freedom later, Reynolds decided to feign compliance. He would pretend to be subdued by Vought's methods, follow their orders, and wait for the right moment to escape. He knew that Vought would never destroy him outright—not after seeing the immense potential he had displayed. Reynolds was too valuable as a research subject and as a potential star asset.
In fact, Vought might even elevate him to a leadership role within The Seven, positioning him as their new flagship hero to rival the Homelander.
While Reynolds had no interest in becoming a puppet superhero, he knew that playing along was his best chance at eventual freedom. Besides, a part of him relished the thought of publicly exposing Vought's dark secrets after they had gone to great lengths to build him up as a household name. The look on the executives' faces when their empire crumbled—that would be a victory worth savoring.
Having resolved his internal conflict, Reynolds allowed himself to drift to the ground, mimicking the erratic behavior he had exhibited in the past under the influence of drugs. Though he felt a wave of shame at performing such a humiliating act, he reminded himself that the Homelander's current state—lying on the ground, sucking his thumb—was far more degrading. The key difference was that the Homelander was completely unaware of his own humiliation.
Soon, both Reynolds and the Homelander were escorted back into Vought's headquarters. Despite the extensive damage to the upper levels of the building, Vought's advanced technology ensured that reconstruction would be swift. With automated machinery working tirelessly, the facility would soon be restored to its original state.
Back in the lab, Reynolds and the Homelander were subjected to deep psychological evaluations and various experimental tests. The results were astonishing. Reynolds' speed was measured at four times that of the Homelander, and his strength was also four times greater. This revelation thrilled the Vought executives, especially since they found no significant weaknesses in Reynolds' physiology.
The only area where Reynolds fell short was his durability, which was only twice that of the Homelander. Compared to his speed and strength, this was a noticeable gap.
Still, this minor shortcoming did not diminish the excitement of the Vought executives. They marveled at Reynolds as the ideal prototype: a superhuman with unparalleled speed, strength, and flight capabilities, and no glaring weaknesses like the Homelander's psychological instability or Kryptonite vulnerability.
Reynolds was promptly given a new title: Sentinel.
Though the name wasn't particularly grandiose, it reflected the executives' collective aspirations. Just as the Super Soldier Serum had aimed to create an army of super soldiers, the Sentinel Project would seek to mass-produce superhumans based on Reynolds' template.
Reynolds was to be the foundation for Vought's dream: an army of sentinels to protect their empire, wage their wars, and ultimately help them ascend to godhood. The Sentinel Project embodied their vision of ultimate control—not just over Earth, but over the entire universe.
Of course, such lofty ambitions faced immediate hurdles. Despite their enthusiasm, the Vought scientists quickly realized they couldn't replicate Reynolds' powers. Try as they might, they failed to produce a second sentinel.
It seemed that, much like the original Super Soldier Serum, the Sentinel Project was plagued by setbacks. At least the Super Soldier Program had yielded more than one viable subject. By contrast, Vought couldn't even come close to replicating the miracle of Reynolds.
Meanwhile, the Avengers remained unaware of these developments within Vought
. Preoccupied with tracking Steppenwolf and Darkseid, as well as investigating the recent disturbances in Gotham caused by two Yellow Lantern rings, they had no time to monitor Vought's activities.
Even if they had wanted to, Vought's quick response to the chaos ensured that no information leaked to the outside world. The energy barrier had effectively blocked any external observation. All the public could see was that Vought had sealed off its headquarters—a curious but ultimately unexplained move.
On another front, in Asgard, the battle between Thor, Loki, and Hela was reaching its climax...
______
(≧◡≦) ♡ Support me and read 20 chapters ahead – patreon.com/INNIT
For every 50 Power Stones, one extra chapter will be released on Saturday.