[Third Person Pov]
Mark flew back toward the heart of the battle with his father without a moment’s hesitation. From the air, he witnessed the final moments of Robot’s heroic sacrifice. The android had stood defiantly against Omni-Man before detonating his own body in a massive, blinding fireball that lit up the snowy night sky.
“Fuck…” Mark muttered under his breath as he hovered above the chaos.
He wasn’t cursing just because of Robot’s apparent death. Deep down, he knew the sacrifice had been in vain. An explosion of that magnitude might level buildings and incinerate lesser beings, but it wouldn’t so much as scratch Omni-Man.
As the smoke and flames began to dissipate, a single, contemptuous motion from Omni-Man cleared the air. He swept his arm outward, unleashing a shockwave that scattered the lingering inferno like dust in the wind. Embers danced across his broad shoulders and clung stubbornly to the edges of his flowing cape. Soot streaked his cheeks and forehead, but his eyes—cold, calculating, and utterly remorseless—remained untouched. He looked more like a wrathful god emerging from the ashes than a man who had just survived a point-blank detonation.
“Shit!” Marie cried out, her voice sharp with panic. She lunged for Eve, wrapping her arms around her friend and twisting to shield her with her own body. Omni-Man’s fist, moving like a missile, shattered the barrage of energy constructs Eve had desperately summoned—a shimmering wall of hexagonal barriers that exploded into harmless sparks on impact.
Before that devastating punch could connect, Mark blurred into position. He appeared directly in front of his sister and Eve, arms crossed tightly over his chest in a rigid block. The collision was painful to say the least. A thunderous shockwave erupted outward, cracking the already ruined pavement beneath them. Mark’s forearms throbbed with purple bruising from the sheer force, the impact vibrating through his bones like a struck tuning fork.
“Enough!” Mark roared, his voice echoing with raw fury and a hint of desperation. Power surged through the glowing ring on his finger, magic intertwining with his Viltrumite strength. He retaliated with a perfectly timed uppercut to Omni-Man’s midsection. A blinding burst of emerald and violet energy exploded from the point of contact, hurling Omni-Man—Pride, as he now called himself in this twisted state—skidding backward along the shattered runway. The center of his iconic white-and-red suit tore open with a sickening rip, revealing a deep, mottled bruise blooming in shades of purple and sickly green across his torso.
A thin trail of blood trickled from the corners of Omni-Man’s mouth. He wiped it away with the back of his hand, staring at the crimson smear almost curiously before his lips curled into a savage grin.
Mark spun toward his twin sister, chest heaving, his eyes burned with determination. “Only you and I can stop him, Marie. You with me?”
Marie flashed to his side in an instant, dropping into a low combat stance. She cracked her knuckles loudly, a fierce grin splitting her face despite the fear flickering in her eyes. “Do you even have to ask? Let’s kick our old man’s butt and drag him back to his senses.”
“I’ll kill you two brats first!!” Pride snarled, his voice a guttural boom that shook the air. He wiped the remaining blood from his chin, muscles coiling like steel cables beneath his torn suit.
Mark and Marie exchanged a quick, wordless glance, before they charged forward in perfect sync. Omni-Man met them head-on, accelerating to superhuman speeds. The three collided in a whirlwind of violence. Grunts of pain and the sickening thud of superpowered fists meeting flesh reverberated across the battlefield. Blood—bright red and viscous—splattered across the broken concrete as both Mark and Marie were sent hurtling backward from a devastating double strike.
Marie recovered mid-air, grabbing Mark by the arm and slinging him like a living projectile straight into their father. At the same time, she lashed out with her golden lasso, the enchanted rope whipping around from behind to snare Omni-Man’s massive fist and halt its momentum. Mark poured every ounce of his strength and magic into a relentless assault, fists glowing with arcane power as he hammered at Omni-Man’s defenses, desperate to break through the impenetrable wall of Viltrumite superiority.
Their magical artifacts worked in beautiful, deadly tandem—the ring’s explosive bursts complementing the lasso’s binding force. But it wasn’t enough. With terrifying ease, Omni-Man seized both of their heads in his massive hands and slammed them together with bone-jarring force.
“Arghh!” they cried out in unison, clutching their throbbing temples as stars exploded behind their eyes.
“I know you’ve always had a big ass head, but damn!” Marie winced, tears of pain prickling at the corners of her eyes as she tried to shake off the disorientation.
“Says you,” Mark grumbled through gritted teeth, his voice thick with complaint even amid the battle. “You’re the one with the rock-hard noggin.”
Pride’s laughter was cruel and mocking. With a contemptuous roar, he sent them both flying across the battlefield. They crashed into a row of distant aircraft hangars with explosive force. The massive metal structures groaned, buckled, and collapsed in a deafening cascade of steel beams and debris, burying the twins beneath tons of twisted wreckage.
Meanwhile, Immortal and Eve rushed in to buy them time. Eve’s hands glowed with creative energy as she summoned an arsenal of ethereal constructs—spears, hammers, and razor-sharp blades—that streaked toward Omni-Man. Each one shattered harmlessly against his unbreakable skin. Suddenly, heavy chains materialized from thin air, wrapping around his limbs in an attempt to pin him down. He shattered them with a casual flex, then lunged at Eve with a spear-like hand aimed straight for her heart.
Eve squeezed her eyes shut, bracing for the end. She felt the hot spray of blood across her face—but it wasn’t hers. When her eyes snapped open, Immortal stood before her, his body shielding her completely. Omni-Man’s hand had punched straight through his abdomen, blood pouring freely from the gruesome wound.
Immortal’s cheeks puffed out before he vomited a thick mouthful of blood onto the ground. His legs trembled, but he remained standing through sheer willpower.
Omni-Man withdrew his arm slowly, the entire limb glistening crimson from fingertips to elbow. He regarded the dying hero with mild amusement.
Mark and Marie burst free from the rubble, shoving aside massive girders with grunts of effort. Coughing dust from their lungs, they rose unsteadily—only to freeze at the horrific sight before them. Their eyes widened in shared horror.
Omni-Man raised his hand high, preparing to decapitate the kneeling Immortal, who was desperately clutching the gaping hole in his stomach to keep his innards from spilling out.
A golden lasso whipped through the air, wrapping tightly around Omni-Man’s descending wrist and stopping the fatal strike inches from Immortal’s neck. Marie strained with every muscle, sweat pouring down her brow as she dug her heels into the fractured ground. “...Mark!” she groaned, voice tight with exertion.
“Annoying vermin,” Omni-Man sneered, his eyes narrowing with irritation. He turned his focus back to Immortal, intending to finish the job despite Marie’s desperate resistance.
Mark rocketed across the distance in a burst of speed, grabbing Omni-Man’s trapped hand with both of his arms and holding on for dear life. When Omni-Man began hammering brutal punches into Mark’s face with his free hand—each blow landing with the force of a freight train—Mark refused to release his grip, blood streaming from his split lip and broken nose.
Marie abandoned the lasso and flew in to seize Omni-Man’s other arm, pinning it back with all her strength. “Dad! Please, enough!!” she screamed, her voice cracking with raw emotion—love, betrayal, and heartbreak all tangled together.
Pride’s laughter boomed out, cold and devoid of any paternal warmth. “Your father can’t hear you!!” he shouted, reveling in their futile struggle. “He’s gone. And soon, so will you.”
Mark and Marie remained locked onto Omni-Man’s powerful arms, pushing him back step by step away from their injured friends. Their muscles burned, sweat mixing with blood and dust on their faces, but neither twin dared loosen their grip. The air crackled with tension and raw emotion.
“That’s not true!” Marie shouted, staring straight into her father’s eyes. Tears welled up, threatening to spill over as her voice cracked with desperate hope. “I know you can hear me, Dad! You can fight this! You’re stronger than her—stronger than anything in the world!”
“Dad, please!” Mark pleaded, his expression mirroring his sister’s—eyes wide with the same vulnerable hope. “You’re the only one who can end this! Don’t let her win against you!”
Nolan stared at his children for a long, agonizing moment. His brows furrowed deeply, and for the briefest instant, the cold fury in his gaze softened. Something almost paternal flickered across his hardened features.
In that fleeting heartbeat, both twins appeared younger in his mind’s eye: small children, no older than five or six, each clutching one of his massive hands. Their faces lit up with innocent, toothless grins as they tugged him along a sunlit field, laughing and giggling with pure, unfiltered joy. “Daddy, play with us!” their tiny voices echoed in his memory.
“Mark… Marie…” Nolan struggled to speak, his voice a hoarse whisper breaking through the darkness.
“Dad!!” the twins exclaimed in unison. Bright, elated smiles illuminated their faces, hope surging through them like a lifeline.
“Arghhh!! No!! Get away from me!!” Pride’s voice exploded from Nolan’s throat, a venomous shriek that shattered the tender moment. With a violent surge of power, she tossed both twins away like ragdolls. Mark and Marie tumbled across the ruined ground, landing hard with pained grunts. “This shouldn’t be possible!” Pride snarled.
The siblings pushed themselves up quickly, exchanging a determined nod. Without hesitation, they shot back to their feet and charged once more, feet pounding against the cracked concrete.
“Sorry, Dad—I love you, but you have to wake up!!” Marie yelled. She closed the distance and delivered a powerful right hook straight to his face, the impact echoing like a cannon shot.
Mark followed immediately with a soaring dropkick to the chest, his boots connecting with thunderous force. “You’re finally coming back to your senses! Don’t let her win! Fight her off!”
“I’ll kill you both!” Pride roared, her rage overpowering Nolan’s will for a moment. “I will skin you alive, strip the flesh and meat from your bones, and feed it to Gluttony!”
“No!!” Nolan growled through gritted teeth. His entire body tensed, muscles bulging and veins standing out as he waged war against the parasitic entity inside him. “I won’t let you…”
“You won’t let me?!” Pride bellowed. Half of her elegant, arrogant female visage began to overlay Nolan’s features—haughty eyes and sharp, cruel lines distorting his face. “Just who do you think you are?! No one commands or stops the Sin of Pride!”
“Get out!!” Nolan shouted, stumbling backward while clutching his head. He swayed unsteadily, like a drunk fighting for balance. “You have overstayed your welcome in my body!”
“You can’t make me! No one commands the Sin of Pride!” she shrieked, the internal struggle manifesting in violent tremors that shook his frame.
“Noblesse! Invincible!” two familiar voices called from above.
Mark and Marie looked up to see Rex and Katie streaking through the smoke-filled sky on a sleek hovercraft. Katie held the legendary Staff of Shazam aloft, its ancient power crackling with electricity. With a mighty throw, she hurled it downward.
Marie rose into the air, gracefully catching the staff mid-flight. She landed beside Mark with a solid thud, slamming the butt of the staff into the ground beside her. Golden energy rippled outward from the point of impact.
“That’s the thing,” Nolan said through clenched teeth, extending one trembling hand to the side as he wrestled for dominance. “I’m not commanding you. I’m telling you—get out. This body belongs to me… and to the Viltrum Empire!”
With a roar of defiance, Nolan drove his fist into his own gut with devastating force. A massive shockwave erupted outward, knocking everyone nearby off their feet and sending debris flying.
“Ahhhhhh!!” Pride screamed in agony. “Stop it!!”
Nolan ignored her pleas. He drew back again and punched himself square in the face. Blood gushed from his nostrils, painting his signature mustache a deep crimson. Pain etched every line of his face, but he didn’t falter.
He cocked his fist for a third strike. Pride’s voice rose to a panicked wail. “No more!! Enough!!”
Marie turned to her brother, a fierce smile breaking through the exhaustion on her face. “Let’s put an end to this together. It’s only right.”
Mark returned the smile and gripped the Staff of Shazam alongside her. “You always did have a thing for sentimental finishes.”
As the Sin of Pride was violently expelled from Nolan’s body in a swirling vortex of dark energy, the twins were already waiting. They raised the staff together, pointing its glowing head directly at the emerging entity.
“SUPERBIA!!” they shouted in perfect unison.
Dark clouds above rumbled ominously. A colossal bolt of lightning tore through the sky, crackling with divine power as it struck Pride head-on. The Sin of Pride let out a final, grief-stricken cry—“Noooo!!”—while striking an elegant, theatrical pose, one hand dramatically raised as if performing on a grand stage. Even in defeat, she refused to go without style.
Her form hardened rapidly, petrifying into unyielding stone. A brilliant shower of golden magic particles swirled around the statue before whisking it away into the ether.
“Skadoosh!” Marie declared proudly, grinning from ear to ear as she planted the staff triumphantly.
Mark stared at her, one eyebrow raised in disbelief. “Are you seriously referencing Kung Fu Panda right now?”
Marie shrugged, still beaming. “What can I say? I love pandas.”
…
Far away, within the timeless halls of the Rock of Eternity, seven grand pedestals stood in solemn formation. Each bore the engraved name of one of the Seven Deadly Sins. Six were already occupied by their respective cursed statues.
One pedestal remained empty, its surface waiting beneath the inscription “Pride.”
A gentle shower of golden magic rained down from the vaulted ceiling. The stone statue of Pride materialized with a soft, resonant thud, settling perfectly into place and completing the ancient set.
All Seven Deadly Sins had finally been sealed and locked away. The terror they had once inflicted upon humankind was over—for now.
A/N: I'm curious to know how do you guys feel about this current arc since its been going on for a minute, not to mention its been a while since we've seen Billy and what he's up to.
At this point it doesn't even feel like he's the main character but Marie is, which isn't a bad thing giving that she's technically the FML, but I still want to know what you guys think.