few weeks after the alien invasion on a dark, cloudy day, many people from various age group from child to adult gathered dressed in black suits clothing could been seen gather, their expressions heavy with sorrow and sadness for the people they had lost. Some would been seeing holding back tears, while others cried openly Infront of the coffins holding the bodies of the greatest heroes on Earth were lowered into the ground never to be seen again.
In a quite distance was there was not so many a single lone individual could be seen leading on the side of the tree mari, wearing a sharp black suit and formal pants, stood silently beneath the shade of a tree. Her eyes were hidden behind round red-tinted glasses as she observed the scene before her. To most, it looked like she was watching the grieving crowd with no emotional showing on her beautiful sharp looking face , but in truth, her attention was locked on one particular man the strongest superhero on Earth: Omni-Man.
He wore the expression of a mourning father, but Mari knew better. Behind his stoic face and solemn gaze, she could see it the guilt, the lies, the truth he was hiding Afterall he was the man that had kill them an was a part of a races of interglacial war Monagle. Her golden eyes, hidden behind her glasses, narrowed slightly as she continued to study him, the wind brushing against her long white hair as the cold of air hit here body.
As the last coffin was lowered into the ground, the sky began to drizzle. Small raindrops fell like the world itself was weeping. making the dreadful day even worse as now everyone was sad and wet.
"Grim, don't you have some kind of spell to keep the rain off me?" she asked into the air her voice calm and low .
No answer.
Mari frowned at the silence from her grimoire. The silence from her grimoire still lingered—ever since their petty dispute, it had refused to speak to her. With a sigh, she casually conjured a circular ice shard above her head, shielding herself from the rain with a magical umbrella of sorts.
"When will this funeral end?" she thought, growing increasingly bored. The speeches, the endless mourning, and now the rain—it was all becoming irritatingly dramatic. Still, outwardly, she maintained a stoic expression, pretending to grieve for the sake of her reputation. The last thing Mari needed was rumors spreading that she didn't care about the deaths of heroes. That kind of gossip could only cause problems.
So, she enforced a calm, sorrowful look on her face, perfectly practiced and controlled.
"You look like you could drop dead," a solid came voice came from her side. Without even turning her head, Revan immediately recognized it. How could she not? It belonged to none other than her current boss.
"Yeah, you could say that," she replied with a nonchalant shrug, crossing her arms with a laid-back attitude. as she smackers her lips together looking at the screen Infront of her .
"By the way, what are you doing over here with me? Shouldn't you be over there—with them?" she asked, motioning subtly toward the gathered heroes and mourners.
" and do what exactly?, I also think that they won't like seeing my face " he said as his gaze tunes towards the same direction as her .
Going over there and talking won't solve that problem," Cecil replied cryptically, not bothering to elaborate. Of course, Reaven, knew exactly what problem he was referring to Afterall he was he Infront of them so they had to play it safely for now. Cecil and she were well aware of the capabilities and secrets he held and that secrets that had to be handled with extreme caution so that they can handle him after everything was prepare
"Yeah, don't worry," she said smoothly, her voice laced with quiet confidence. "I'm working on that problem too. It'll be taken care of... in time. I only need time "
Hearing that, Cecil simply nodded before vanishing from the location in a flicker of teleportation.
And just like that, everything returned to normal… or at least, as normal as things could be for Mari.
She continued doing superhero things like beating up criminals, stopping wildfires with her ice magic, occasionally teaming up with other heroes. Despite everything, she still had to attend school.
- - -
At school, Mari could be seen at her locker, dressed in a blue blazer, white T-shirt, and black jeans. She was pulling out a few books and sliding them into her red bag. Her expression was relaxed, but there was a definite air of boredom in her face like someone just going through the motions.
School wasn't exactly important to her Afterall With her powers, she could memorize anything instantly and recall it whenever she wanted. after her assimilation of Alucard she had unique side effect that allowed her to get photographic memory. maybe it was due to vampire having a long life that they have photographic memory so they can recall various thing anyway it didn't matter as it was a good thing.
As she slid the final book into her bag and closed her locker, her brow twitched slightly she'd noticed Eve standing right next to her locker, arms crossed, leaning casually. Beside her stood Mark, looking somewhat awkward but trying to act chill.
Mari quickly shifted her expression into something friendlier, a pleasant smile forming on her lips—doing her best to appear like a cheerful, approachable person, not the secretly brooding person she actually she was .
"Hey guys! What brings you two here?" she asked, trying to sound bright and casual.
"Well, I'm fine," Eve said, leaning in a little closer toward Mari, "but I was wondering if you could come with us for a moment."
"And why would that be?" Mari replied casually, but internally, her senses were already giving her warning signals. telling her where this conversation was going for.
"Because," Eve said in a low voice, careful not to be overheard, "I know you're Raven. The superhero."
Mari gave an exaggerated huff and flipped her hair dramatically. "Wow, what a surprise. I mean, sure, I might look like her with that gorgeous, beautiful, face of her and with a aura of elegance—" she batted her eyes sarcastically, "—but Raven has red eyes. I have golden ones. Get it right. So in no way that I can be her"
Eve didn't back down. With a calm expression, she reached into the pocket on her chest and pulled out a folded photo, handing it to Mari.
Mari glanced at it, unimpressed—until her golden eyes focused. The image was clear: it showed a figure entering her house. That figure was unmistakably Raven.
"Well… you got me," Mari muttered in a faux-defeated tone, giving a sarcastic bow of surrender. Then, her lips curled into a sly smile as she looked up at them.
"So, Atom Eve and Invincible—what do you two want from little ol' me?" she asked, her voice low, making sure only they could hear. Both of them momentarily froze, hearing their hero names said so plainly. But they recovered quickly and gestured for her to walk with them so they could explain.
- - -
"Alright," Mari said with a small sigh once they reached a quiet empty roof. Her voice was laced with annoyance. "What do you two want, so we can end this drama quickly?"
"I told you I was right, didn't I, Mark?" Eve said, turning to Mark with a victorious grin.
Mark rubbed the back of his neck, chuckling awkwardly. "Well, yeah. I had my suspicions, but… damn. How did I not notice that two of my classmates were superheroes all this time?"
Mari rolled her eyes. "Because people don't pay attention anymore. Everyone's too caught up in their own heads to notice anything real."
"Well, that's true," Mark said, his tone shifting into something more serious with each word. "But the real reason we wanted to talk to you… is to ask you an important question."
Mari's playful expression faded. Her golden eyes narrowed, and a subtle frown formed on her otherwise beautiful face.
"Alright," she said flatly. "What's the question?"
Mark took a breath—steadying himself, preparing to ask something that clearly wasn't easy to bring up. Then, with a voice full of certainty and quiet strength, he said:
"Who killed the Guardians of the Globe?"
Mari blinked, her head tilting slightly to the side, almost in amusement.
Oh. So that's what they want to know, she thought, eyeing both of them carefully.
"Yeah… that's classified," she said coolly. "So I can't answer you."
"So you do know who killed them," Mark said, voice firm with certainty.
"Maybe," Mari replied, casually shrugging her shoulders.
"Can you not tell us anything?" Eve asked, crossing her arms, her tone bordering between pleading and frustrated.
"Nope." Mari popped the p at the end with a smug little smile. "We'll handle it. So there's nothing for you guys to be concerned about."
Mark's expression shifted, anger bubbling under the surface. "My dad was hurt by that attacker," he said sharply, his voice rising.
Mari didn't flinch. Her tone dropped several degrees colder. "So what? I'm still not telling you. So chill… just a little."
If only you knew, she thought to herself, pity flickering briefly in her eyes. If only you knew your father was the one who killed them.
"You're telling me to chill?" Mark said, stepping forward until he was eye-level with her. His fists clenched at his sides.
"Yeah. I am telling you that," Mari said, holding his gaze without an ounce of fear. Her golden eyes didn't waver. "You gonna swing at me, big guy? Huh " she added, a taunting smirk forming on her lips.
"Okay, okay, guys—don't start fighting right now," Eve said quickly, stepping between them and breaking up the rising tension.
Just then Her phone buzzed in her pocket. She glanced at the screen.
"You got saved," Mari said with a sly grin, brushing past Mark.
and casually picked it up.
"Yeah, yeah, okay, okay... I told you guys to buy and upgrade the security system. Ugh, fine—I'll tell them. "She ended the call and looked back at Mark and Eve, an amused glint in her eyes.
"The two blue-heads just escaped," Mari said, her voice laced with a mix of annoyance and anger.
"Who?" Eve asked, genuinely curious, unsure which villains Mari was referencing.
Mari shot her a flat look. "The Mauler Twins. How many supervillains out there have blue heads, for god's sake?"
Eve gave a small shrug, unbothered.
"Anyway," Mari continued, her tone shifting slightly, "there's some good news for you two. They're announcing the new Guardians of the Globe lineup tomorrow."
She paused and turned to Eve with a knowing smirk. "And Robot? He's going to be the leader."
"Really?" Eve said, surprised—but also clearly happy. There was a spark of pride in her eyes. "That's... actually amazing."
"Yeah, really," Mari replied, her tone casual but firm.
"So, we're done here, right?" Mari asked as she started to turn away, brushing invisible dust off her sleeves.
"What do you mean, done?" Mark said, stepping forward. "You still haven't told us anything about the person who hurt my dad."
Mari stopped, looked over her shoulder, and shrugged casually. Then, without missing a beat, she raised a middle finger at him.
"And I won't tell you anything, dickhead," she said flatly. "That information is classified. And this little confrontation? Stays between us."
Her voice was cool, but her eyes locked onto his with a warning edge.
"If you want more answers," she added with a smirk, "ask Cecil. He might feel generous to tell you."
Without another word, Mari turned on her heel and walked away, leaving a tense silence behind her.
- - -
[ The Next Day ]
Mari, fully dressed in her Raven outfit, stepped into the room with quiet dominance. Her black medieval-style armor shimmered faintly under the overhead lights, etched with intricate glowing runes in the light. It wasn't just armor it was her presence, one that demanded acknowledgment the moment she entered. With Omni-Man absent, everyone knew exactly who the strongest in the room was.
Her boots clicked softly against the polished floor as she scanned the room. Near the center, she spotted Robot and Cecil, deep in conversation. Their expressions were serious, brows furrowed, voices low. Something important was being discussed.
Of course, Mari couldn't resist.
A sly smirk tugged at her lips as she strolled toward them with casual elegance. Her voice cut through the tense air like a blade wrapped in silk.
"Hello, boys." She tilted her head, mischief gleaming in her eyes. "What are we whispering about? State secrets? Alien invasions? Secret crushes?"
Cecil glanced at her first, clearly unamused, though the corner of his mouth twitched slightly—whether in irritation or amusement, it was hard to tell. Robot turned his mechanical gaze toward her, pausing for a beat before speaking.
"Huff, you just arrived right on time," Cecil said, rubbing the back of his neck and jerking a thumb toward Robot. "As you might've guessed, we were in the middle of a very productive argument about who should go first in the selection trial for the new Guardians of the Globe—until you rudely interrupted."
Raven raised a brow, the mischievous smirk fading as her expression turned more serious. "Hmm, I see," she replied thoughtfully, arms folding across her armored chest. Her crimson eyes studied both of them, as if she was thinking something were deep about the situation but in true she was thinking how to mess with the new heroes gather here.
As Reave was about the situation she was interrupted by who's Robot's mechanical gaze focused on her. "From what I understand, Miss Raven, the Director informed us you are not joining the Guardians of the Globe. May I ask why?"
Mari let out a soft sigh before replying, her voice steady and cool. "Because I'm not interested in being part of a team. Too much baggage. Too many egos. And most of the problems I handle?" She gave a small shrug. "I'm more efficient alone."
And what about the situations you can't handle alone?" Robot asked, tilting his head slightly. His tone remained calm, but probing.
Raven's lips twitched into a half-smile, half-smirk. "Well… that's when you guys come in." She turned slightly, the black runes on her armor catching the light. "Think of me as the wildcard. I'll show up when it matters, but don't expect me to play house."
Cecil let out a sharp chuckle. "Figures. You're basically saying you're freelance with attitude."
"Exactly," she said with a wink. "The universe's most stylish emergency backup."
"Okay, anyway, if there's nothing else, when are we starting? I swear I'm going to die of boredom just standing here." Raven said, dramatically flopping her arms to her sides with an exaggerated sigh.
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sorry for delay chapter i was busy working on my original story