The sky above Arakko burned as Derrick tore through the Martian atmosphere like a living meteor.
The impact was catastrophic.
BOOM
The ground cratered outward for kilometers. Shockwaves ripped through the battlefield and sent dozens of warriors flying.
Dust rose into the sky.
And then the dust cleared.
Derrick stood in the center of the crater, black biomass slowly crawling across his body like living armor. His eyes glowed faintly.
All around him stood the strongest warriors of Arakko.
Among them were the Omega-level mutants who ruled this world.
Above them all, lightning thundered as Storm floated in the sky.
Her voice echoed like thunder.
"Derrick. Leave this world."
Derrick looked up calmly.
"No."
Lightning struck him instantly.
A planet-scale lightning bolt slammed into Derrick with enough energy to vaporize mountains.
The blast lit the entire horizon.
When the light faded…
Derrick was still standing.
His skin was smoking. Portions of biomass had been burned away.
But his regeneration was already repairing the damage.
He looked mildly impressed
"That one hurt, too bad it's not divine lightning, maybe then you'd have a better chance at defeating me."
Then he vanished.
Derrick appeared behind a warrior and drove a fist straight through their chest.
SPLASH
The mutant was consumed instantly.
Memories.
Power.
Combat knowledge.
All absorbed.
But Derrick didn't stop.
Because the real threats were approaching.
A spatial tear opened and Lactuca the Knower appeared across the battlefield.
Her eyes glowed white.
Space folded around Derrick.
Gravity inverted.
His body was suddenly twisted sideways as spatial vectors shifted violently.
Derrick's gravity field reacted instantly.
He corrected himself mid-air.
But that single moment gave another mutant time to attack.
From beneath the ground, an impossible ocean erupted.
It was summoned by Sobunar of the Depths.
His body contained oceans from alien dimensions.
Millions of tons of water slammed into Derrick like a tidal wave from another world.
For a moment he disappeared beneath the crushing pressure.
Then the water exploded outward.
Derrick burst free.
He was smiling now.
"Good, that actually packed a punch."
Derrick stopped holding back after that attack..
Gravity warped around him.
The ground beneath the battlefield began collapsing inward like a miniature singularity.
Mutants were pulled off their feet.
Storm immediately countered.
Hurricane-force winds ripped across the battlefield and pushed the gravity field away from the warriors.
Lightning struck Derrick again.
And again.
And again.
Each bolt carried the fury of an Omega-level storm controller.
Meanwhile Lactuca manipulated space itself, attempting to trap Derrick inside folding spatial loops.
Sobunar unleashed oceans that crushed mountains.
Derrick was fighting multiple Omega mutants simultaneously.
And adapting in real time to their abilities and strategies...
Storm watched him carefully.
Then her eyes widened.
Because Derrick was building momentum just like he did on earth when fought against Dr doom..
He flew upward at incredible speed.
Then curved around Mars' upper atmosphere.
Faster.
Faster.
Faster.
Then he returned.
The impact when he struck the ground again was apocalyptic.
BOOOOM
The Martian crust shattered for dozens of kilometers.
Mountains collapsed.
Entire continent sized sections of battlefield vaporized.
Even the Omega mutants were thrown back by the sheer kinetic force.
Storm gritted her teeth.
"He's using planetary level strength, he's not holding back anymore."
Derrick rose from the crater calmly.
"I'm not taking chances against dangerous abilities like yours."
Across the battlefield stood one figure who had not moved.
Isca the Unbeaten
Her golden eyes watched Derrick calmly.
Derrick had already attempted to infect her again.
The virus refused.
Reality itself rejected the attempt.
He analyzed her mutation again.
She cannot lose.
Which meant attacking her directly could cause reality to sabotage him.
Derrick frowned slightly.
Then he came to a logical conclusion.
"Fine then, I won't play fair."
He turned away from her.
Storm realized what he might be thinking instantly.
Her eyes widened.
"No...."
But Derrick had already moved.
Derrick's Strategy
He wasn't going to fight Isca.
He was going to consume everyone else.
Because if only one side could win…
Her mutation would force her to eventually join the winning side.
Even if she didn't want to.
Derrick vanished in a blur.
An Arakko warrior screamed as he was suddenly grabbed and absorbed.
Another was torn apart.
Another devoured.
Another infected.
Storm unleashed massive lightning strikes trying to stop him.
But Derrick was moving too fast now.
His Viltrumite combat instincts were fully integrated.
He used gravity bursts to redirect attacks.
Momentum strikes to increase impact force.
Teleportation to bypass defenses.
One by one Arakko warriors began disappearing.
The Omega Mutants Realize the Plan
Lactuca gasped softly.
"He's not trying to defeat us."
Storm understood immediately.
"He's trying to outlast us."
Sobunar roared as he unleashed an entire ocean dimension across the battlefield.
But Derrick simply flew straight through the crushing waters and punched Sobunar so hard the shockwave split the ocean apart.
Blood sprayed across the battlefield.
Storm's eyes burned with fury.
"You will not take this world."
She raised both arms.
Across the entire planet…
Storms began forming.
Lightning storms the size of continents formed above Mars.
Tornadoes ripped across the plains.
Atmospheric pressure spikes slammed into Derrick like invisible walls.
Storm was no longer holding back.
She was using planetary weather manipulation.
Derrick laughed slightly.
He flew straight upward again.
Building speed.
Building momentum.
Preparing another world-breaking dive.
And below him…
Isca watched silently.
Her mutation was already calculating the inevitable outcome.
Reality itself was beginning to shift.
Because if Derrick truly became the winning side…
Even Isca the Unbeaten would eventually be forced to stand with him.
And the war for Arakko had only just begun.