"Fuck!" yelled Johnny as he jolted upright, the sudden motion nearly sending his blanket flying off the bed. His hair was a mess, and his shirt was half-twisted around him. He blinked several times, trying to make sense of where he was.
A second later, it clicked — he was home. On his bed, on his room, on Sunday.
He grabbed his phone from the nightstand, squinting at the brightness of the screen. 1:07 PM.
"Great…" he groaned, dragging a hand down his face. "I overslept again."
That's when he noticed the notification light blinking. He opened his messages and saw one from Cecil Stedman.
"You passed out during cooldown. Don't worry, I had you teleported back. Also, check your living room. You'll find something useful there. Try not to burn it."
Johnny raised an eyebrow, already suspicious. "Try not to burn it"?
What did he mean by that? Thought Johnny while raising an eyebrow.
Still groggy, he stumbled out of bed and made his way to the living room — and there it was, folded neatly on the table: a black and silver suit. The material looked sleek, almost liquid-like, catching the light in faint ripples.
Johnny approached it carefully, half expecting it to explode. "Okay… not suspicious at all." He picked it up and noticed a small note attached to it.
"Unstable particle suit. Same material used for high-energy containment gear. Should adapt to your power output and resist complete incineration. Try not to destroy this one — these things aren't cheap."
It was signed simply: –Cecil.
Johnny's eyes widened as he ran his fingers across the fabric. It felt impossibly light, but also sturdy. He grinned, unable to stop himself. "No way… this is awesome."
He rushed back to his room and changed into it immediately. It fit perfectly, as if it had been custom-tailored to his body — the black mesh pattern hugged his frame, with subtle grey lines tracing along his arms and chest. He looked at himself in the mirror, igniting a small flame in his palm just to test it.
The suit didn't even scorch. The fire reflected beautifully against the surface, dancing without leaving a mark.
"Finally," he said, grinning wider. "No more going home half-naked."
Without thinking twice, he pulled out his phone and sent a quick text back to Cecil:
"Suit's perfect. Thanks, man. You really outdid yourself."
He didn't expect a reply — Cecil wasn't exactly the chatty type — but it still felt right to send it.
Johnny stood there for a moment, admiring the new look. For the first time since gaining his powers, he felt like an actual superhero, not just some guy who was lucky enough to gain superpowers by accident.
The mirror across the room caught his attention again, and his gaze drifted over his reflection. He hesitated for a moment before walking closer, flames flickering faintly over his shoulders and fading out.
He wasn't used to liking what he saw. For most of his life, the mirror had been his worst enemy — the thing that reminded him he wasn't who he wanted to be. The guy who had to hide behind hoodies, who avoided pools, who'd laugh along with others' jokes just so they wouldn't turn on him.
But now?
Now he looked… different.
His jawline was sharper, his chest had definition, and his arms — his arms actually looked like he lifted weights. He ran a hand along his bicep, still half in disbelief. "What the hell…" he muttered. His stomach, which once had that stubborn layer of fat no amount of running could get rid of, now showed the clear outline of his abs. They were almost fully chiseled like a bodybuilder, which was enough to make him grin like an idiot.
"I mean… damn," he whispered to his reflection, turning a little to the side. "Who needs the gym when you're basically your own furnace?"
Then the thought hit him — that's what didn't make sense.
Losing weight? Sure. He burned hotter than a jet engine; fat didn't stand a chance. But gaining muscle? That was another story. Muscles didn't build themselves out of thin air — and he hadn't touched a dumbbell since he got his powers.
He frowned, tilting his head slightly as he examined his arm again. "Okay, this doesn't add up… I get the whole burning fat thing, but how do you even build muscle from flying and setting yourself on fire?"
Was it possible his powers didn't just generate heat, but also affected his body on a cellular level? Like… constant stress and regeneration? Or was his metabolism just permanently kicked into overdrive?
He shook his head, deciding that thinking about it was only giving him a headache. "Yeah, no way I'm figuring this out alone."
Then, he remembered someone who might be able to.
"Maybe Robot would know," he murmured, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "If I ever see him again, I'm totally asking."
Still, as much as it baffled him, the result wasn't exactly something to complain about. He turned his gaze back to the mirror, smirk tugging at his lips.
"I don't care how it works," he said, flexing a little and laughing under his breath. "It's working."
He struck a mock heroic pose, fire igniting around his body just enough to make the reflection glow. The unstable particle suit shimmered perfectly under the flames, hugging his form without burning or tearing it apart.
Then his stomach growled, snapping him out of the moment. And then he glanced at the clock again.
"Wait… 1 PM?!" he shouted. "Are you kidding me?! I slept half the damn day!"
He scrambled to the kitchen, grabbing a leftover slice of pizza and eating it cold while already half-planning his next move.
If there was one thing he had promised himself after joining Cecil's "unofficial" roster, it was that he'd take his patrolling seriously. He had new control, a new suit, and a whole lot to prove — especially after what happened to the Guardians.
He grabbed his phone, wallet, and headphones. "Alright, Johnny," he muttered to himself, stepping onto the balcony. "Let's go make Chicago a little safer today."
And with that, he flared up in a burst of bright orange light, his flames reflecting off the glass of nearby buildings as he shot into the sky.
(A minutes later…)
He flew fast through the air, leaving fiery trails that shimmered in the sunlight. The city looked peaceful from above — almost too peaceful. For a second, he thought maybe he'd just do a few laps and head home early. Then, a deep BOOM echoed from downtown. A massive plume of black smoke rose between the skyscrapers.
Johnny's flames flickered brighter. "Well, that's probably not fireworks."
Without hesitation, he turned toward the source and accelerated. As he got closer, his eyes widened — several glowing green portals had torn open in the middle of the avenue, floating just above the cracked asphalt. From them, dozens of green-skinned aliens poured out, armored and armed with energy rifles that fired searing red blasts into the streets. Civilians were screaming and running for cover. There were cars burned and glass rained down from the shattered Windows of the buildings.
Johnny clenched his fists. "Oh, hell no." His flames roared louder, the air around him distorting with heat. He dove straight into the chaos, streaking toward the nearest alien troop. "You picked the wrong planet!" he shouted, hurling a stream of fire that engulfed two soldiers. They dropped their weapons, screeching in pain as they fell to the ground.
He didn't have a plan — he just moved on instinct, flinging fireballs, dodging shots, melting guns in their holders' hands. It was messy, wild, and uncoordinated — but it worked. Until—
WHAM!
Johnny was suddenly sent spinning midair, his flames sputtering for a moment before he regained control. "What the—?" he coughed, shaking off the impact. When his vision cleared, he saw who he had collided with.
Hovering just a few meters away, holding an older woman in his arms, was a young man in a blue-and-yellow suit. The guy's expression was a mix of shock and panic — and even through the chaos, Johnny recognized him.
Invincible. The new golden boy everyone had been talking about.
For a second, they just stared at each other — Johnny, still burning and floating, and Invincible, wide-eyed and trying to comfort the injured woman he carried. The old lady's arm hung limply, clearly broken, and there was blood running down her sleeve.
"Shit," Johnny muttered, lowering his flame output so he wouldn't burn her by accident. "Is she okay?"
Invincible looked at him, still breathing hard. "I—I think so! But she's bleeding bad— I have to get her to a hospital!"
"Go!" Johnny barked, already turning toward the alien troops again. "I'll hold them off!"
Invincible hesitated for just a second, then nodded sharply. "Thanks!" he shouted before shooting off into the sky, leaving a sonic ripple behind him.
Johnny hovered there for a heartbeat, watching the kid disappear toward the west side. Then, he cracked his neck, with his heat radiating brighter around him. "Alright, freaks," he muttered under his breath, with a fierce grin curling across his face. "Let's turn up the heat."
Johnny streaked through the air, spinning and diving between laser blasts that scorched the sky. The aliens were everywhere now—green-skinned, bulky, their armor pulsing with strange orange lights. For every one he torched, two more poured out of the glowing portals.
"God, it's like playing whack-a-mole from hell!" Johnny growled, while he blasted another group before one of their energy rifles struck him square in the chest. The impact sent him tumbling backward, his flames flickering unstable for a moment as he crashed into a parked car, flipping it with the force.
He groaned, shaking his head. "Okay… that's new." He looked down—no wound, just a scorch mark across the suit. "Guess Cecil wasn't lying about this thing being flame-proof, however is also laser-resistant. Good to know."
Before he could take flight again, a squad of the aliens rounded the corner, aiming their glowing rifles. Johnny raised his hands, gathering heat into his palms—ready to blast them—
—but a pink blur slammed into the ground between them, cracking the pavement. The aliens went flying as a massive shockwave hit.
Johnny blinked. "What the hell—?"
Then he saw her.
"Get away from him!" Atom Eve shouted, throwing her hands forward. Pink energy erupted from her fingertips, shaping into a dome that deflected the next volley of alien fire. Behind her, Dupli-Kate split into four identical selves, each one charging a different group of enemies, while Rex Splode flung glowing disks that exploded on impact, sending bodies flying.
And hovering just above them, perfectly calm and focused, was Robot.
"About time you guys showed up!" Johnny called, taking to the air again and roasting a Flaxan that tried sneaking up behind Kate.
"We detected the dimensional anomalies three minutes ago," Robot's mechanical voice replied through the comms, even amid the chaos. "Our systems registered multiple high-energy fluctuations consistent with interdimensional breaches. These entities refer to themselves as the Flaxans."
"Flaxans?" Johnny asked, ducking under a laser beam. "Sounds like something you pour milk over."
Ignoring the comment, Robot continued, "They appear to originate from a separate dimension. Their weaponry uses advanced energy resonance beyond Earth's current capacity. Their physiology, however, suggests they're not adapted to our atmospheric density."
"Meaning what?" Rex shouted while hurling another explosive.
"Meaning they won't last long here," Robot said flatly. "But they're not aware of that yet. For now, eliminate as many as possible while minimizing civilian casualties."
Johnny smirked. "Finally, some good news."
He rocketed upward, then dove headfirst into a cluster of Flaxans, spinning like a fiery tornado. The ground beneath him melted as waves of heat rolled outward. Eve reinforced a crumbling building to prevent it from collapsing, while Kate's duplicates worked together to push civilians toward safety.
For a few seconds, the battlefield looked almost balanced—human heroes against alien invaders, fire and plasma lighting the streets. But there were just too many. The Flaxans were pouring out of their portals faster than the heroes could handle.
Johnny wiped sweat from his brow, as he panted, even though flames still surrounded him. "I'm starting to think this might've been a bad idea."
"Don't stop now!" Rex shouted, launching another blast next to him. "We've got this!"
Johnny glanced over at Robot, who floated above the chaos, with his eyes glowing faintly as he analyzed the portals. "Robot! You got a plan to close those things?"
"I'm working on it," Robot replied. "But I'll need time. Keep them busy."
Johnny exhaled sharply, flexing his fingers. "Alright, guess it's barbeque time."
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