Boom boom boom.
Bang bang bang.
"Look at that—you're getting a lot better. I'm guessing you've started sensing my energy now?" Thaldris said, throwing another punch.
"Yeah," I grunted, blocking it with crossed arms. "Took me a while, but I finally figured out how to sense you—and the others too."
Fifty-six years.
That's how long I've been in here now, and honestly, if it weren't for Thaldris training me, I don't think I'd be anywhere near this strong. I can finally use my Armament Haki to deal internal damage now. That's how I've been racking up more points against her—but don't get it twisted, she's still handing me my ass on a daily basis.
Crystal and Zabrie are still here too. They've basically turned into my personal hype squad-slash-commentators. I've learned a lot about them in between all the bruises. Like, Crystal has three husbands and ten kids—three boys and seven girls.
Zabrie? That guy's got over a thousand children. Yeah. Thousand. I don't even know how he remembers their names at this point.
Thaldris? She's got two kids and a husband, who, fun fact, is Wonder Woman's brother in another universe.
If you're wondering how many points I've earned so far? Fifteen. Yeah, I know, not a lot for fifty-six years of training. But remember—I'm sparring with the Goddess of War. She's been fighting for thousands of years, and she's not even going all out. So cut me some slack, alright? I'm lucky I've gotten even this many points.
I made the mistake of zoning out for just a second—and that's all she needed.
Thaldris slammed a punch into my gut, knocking the wind out of me. Before I could recover, she uppercut me into the air like I was a ragdoll. Just when I thought I had a moment to breathe, she appeared above me and slammed both fists into my chest, sending me rocketing toward the ground like a meteor.
Boom!
Crater city.
"You let your guard down again. I told you to stop doing that," Thaldris said with a hint of irritation.
"Yeah, yeah, that one's on me," I admitted, brushing off some dust. Again.
"Come on, get up. It's time for your break. We've been training all day."
I stood up, groaning a bit, and we walked toward the living area. As we moved, my thoughts went back to the points I've been holding onto. Fifteen of them now. I'd been saving them for a reason—Thaldris told me I should fully master the powers I already have before stacking on new ones. And honestly? She was right. But part of me feels like I've plateaued. Maybe it's time to take the risk.
When we got to the living space, Crystal and Zabrie were already seated at the table. Crystal snapped her fingers, and just like that, all the grime, sweat, and smell vanished from my body.
"Man, you have to teach me that," I said, impressed.
"Maybe. I might give you my spellbook—if you've finally figured out how to use magic," Crystal smirked. "Now, bring out the food. I'm starving."
I headed into the kitchen area and started prepping the meal. Thanks to my food creation ability, I could whip up ingredients from scratch while cooking. Honestly? One of the most underrated powers I have.
And speaking of powers...
"System, use points," I said.
"Activating Gacha..." the system responded.
A new list flashed across my vision:
Concussionpower(Zoom: The Academy of Superheroes)
Stars and Stripes (My Hero Academia) [Summon]
Suna Suna no Mi (One Piece)
Sunshine (Seven Deadly Sins)
The Amulet of Avalor (Sofia the First)
Dawnbreaker (Skyrim)
Courage (Courage the Cowardly Dog) [Summon]
Aviva's Knowledge (Wild Kratts)
Second Star Dragon Ball (Dragon Ball)
The Map (Dora the Explorer)
The World (JoJo's Bizarre Adventure)
One For All (My Hero Academia)
Queen Maeve (The Boys) [Summon]
Matt Parkman's Telepathy (Heroes)
Mr. Justice's Power (Hero Inside)
Now that was a solid batch.
Some of them were confusing though. Mr. Justice? Never even heard of that guy. Gonna have to look into that later.
As for the Amulet of Avalor and the Map... yeah, not seeing much use for those unless I end up babysitting someone or hosting a magical girl spin-off.
Still, Sunshine, The World, One for All, and even Suna Suna no Mi? All serious upgrades. The real challenge now is figuring out how to mix them into my current arsenal without blowing up the island—or myself.
Third Person POV
In a dark alley in New York, a wheezing, groaning sound echoed off the brick walls as a blue police box materialized out of thin air. The iconic TARDIS had arrived—but the person inside wasn't who anyone would expect.
The door creaked open, and a young adult with red hair stepped out, wearing a heroic-looking outfit. His golden eyes scanned the city cautiously. A second figure followed—a younger boy with short white hair, the same glowing golden eyes, ebony skin, and a casual outfit that didn't match the gravity of their mission.
Two teenage girls followed behind him, one with long blonde hair, the other with black curls. They both looked like they couldn't be older than sixteen.
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"We told you two to wait in the TARDIS," the red-haired boy said, clearly annoyed.
"We know, but we couldn't help it," the blonde girl replied with a shrug. "We wanted to see New York before Dad fixes everything."
"And I kinda wanna see Uncle Peter swinging around in his youth," the black-haired girl added with a grin.
"Kyra, Eve—this isn't a game," the white-haired boy said, pinching the bridge of his nose. "We have to fix the timeline before anyone notices we messed it up—especially Moms."
"Oh, my bad. I forgot you speak fluent French," Eve said, rolling her eyes.
"What?" the white-haired boy blinked in confusion.
"You said we, it was you three who were playing with Dad and Mom's old time machine," Eve added. "I just walked in and decided to tag along. Thought it'd be fun."
"Well, too late now. You're involved whether you like it or not," he replied.
"Don't drag me into your time-travel crimes," Eve said casually. "If we get caught, I'm throwing all of you under the bus—just so we're clear."
"Can you both be quiet?" the red-haired boy cut in, fiddling with a device. "I'm trying to locate the artifact."
All four teens were from the future—each one a child of Ed, but with different mothers.
Stratos Ed Barrett, the redhead, was the oldest and the son of Ashley.
Cole "Cell" Valtheris, the white-haired one, was the second oldest. His biological mother was complicated, but he considered Lena, Kara, and Ashley his moms. He preferred to go by "Cell."
Then there, Eve Hope Valtheris Luthor and Kyra Alura Valtheris Zor-El. Though born in the same month and year, Eve was two weeks older. They were the middle children of the chaotic, powerful family—and from the looks of it, already up to their necks in temporal mischief.
The reason they were here was simple—Stratos, Cell, and Kyra had been messing around with one of Ed and Lena's old time machines. Just a bit of curiosity, nothing serious… until an accident happened.
A small time rift opened unexpectedly, and an artifact was sucked into the past.
Eve had walked into the room at the exact moment it happened. She hadn't caused the problem, but now she was part of it.
They all knew that if they left the artifact in the past, it could seriously mess up the timeline. So, rather than alert the adults, they decided to fix it themselves. Eve, intrigued by the chaos, decided to tag along—because why not?
"I've got a location on the artifact," Stratos said, checking the device in his hand. He looked at Eve. "Since you're here… mind helping us out?"
"Okay," Eve replied with a smirk. She snapped her fingers, and a shimmering magical shell formed around the group.
"Stay close to me so the cloaking spell works," she instructed.
They all fell in line behind her.
Stratos didn't say it out loud, but he was grateful she was with them. Eve was a witch, just like her mother. In her timeline, she was currently training under The Ancient One and was already highly skilled in magic. Thanks to her photographic memory, she'd memorized dozens of spells—and executed them effortlessly.
If anyone could make sure they got in and out of this mission without being noticed, it was Eve.
All of them were standing close to Eve, following behind Stratos as he focused on the device, tracking the location of the artifact. The rest of the group took the opportunity to look around at the city.
"So this is what New York looked like before Dad became mayor?" Kyra wrinkled her nose. "Ugh, the air smells horrible."
"Not just the air," Eve added, glancing around. "The streets look nasty too."
"This is pre-Mayor Dad New York," Cell said.
"But it does get better after he becomes mayor, right?" Kyra asked hopefully.
"Of course it does," Eve said with a small laugh. "Someone clearly never listened to Grandpa Steve's stories."
"I did listen! I just forgot some of the details," Kyra muttered.
"Sure you did." Eve smirked.
"Well, let me refresh your memory," Cell cut in. "At this point in time, Dad isn't Mayor yet, but in a few months, he'll run for mayor—and win. After that, he starts turning the city around fast. He designs advanced gear for firefighters and construction crews, tears down old buildings, and builds better ones."
"Don't forget the free healthcare," Eve added. "He opened a bunch of hospitals that didn't charge a dime. He even modified old historical buildings and gave them tech upgrades."
"Wow… busy guy, huh?" Kyra said, clearly impressed.
"Yeah, but being mayor's nothing compared to when he becomes king," Cell added.
They were all about to keep talking when Spider-Man and Silk swung across the skyline.
"Oh! Uncle Peter and Auntie Cindy!" Kyra beamed.
"Not yet," Cell said, casually correcting her. "They're not together at this point in time."
"They're not?" Eve and Kyra said in unison, surprised.
"What—you think Uncle Peter and all his wives were always together from the start? Nah. It took them a while to figure it all out," Cell explained.
"Wow… that's just weird to think about," Eve said. "Uncle Peter without any aunties."
Kyra glanced over at Cell as they walked. "Hey Cell… you think I could beat Dad from this time?"
Stratos answered before Cell could. "Not a chance in hell."
Kyra frowned. "Seriously? He can't be that strong yet."
"He's not as strong as he is in our time," Stratos admitted, "but he could still kick your ass without trying. Let's not forget—our version of Dad can one-shot a Celestial."
Kyra groaned. "Man, this sucks. I just wanna beat him in a spar one time. Just once."
"Even if you could beat him in a spar," Cell added, "you can't meet him—not here. None of us can. It could screw up the timeline big time."
"But Dad used to mess with time a lot," Eve chimed in.
"Yeah," Stratos said with a nod, "but he was changing other people's pasts—not his own. There's a big difference."
As the four time-traveling teens followed Stratos through the abandoned streets, they chatted casually about events from their future—things that hadn't happened yet in this timeline. Stuff like the Conquering of Genosha, the Loki Invasion, the Kryptonian Incursion, the War for Mars, the Nova Corps-Green Lantern Alliance, Ed's interstellar space force, the Multiverse Conflict… and a bunch of other wild events that hadn't even begun to unfold yet.
Eventually, they reached the location Stratos had locked onto. Luckily, the artifact had landed in a long-abandoned building—quiet, isolated, perfect for cleanup duty. They stepped inside, and there it was: not an Infinity Stone like you might expect, but something crazier. The artifact was a sword—crafted from Uru and Vibranium—with multiple Infinity Stones embedded into the blade. Yeah… not subtle.
"This is good," Cell said, eyeing the sword. "No one's noticed it yet, so all we gotta do is take it, return it to the vault, and never talk about it again."
He walked over and tried to lift it—nothing. The sword didn't budge.
"…The hell?" Cell muttered.
"You idiot," Eve said, folding her arms. "Dad put a spell on it. It works like Thor's hammer—you have to be worthy."
"Worthy?! I saved two planets!" Cell snapped.
"And Uncle Peter helped save the Multiverse, but he still couldn't lift the sword," Eve shot back.
"Guys, we don't have time for this," Kyra said, stepping up. "Let me try."
Being half-Kryptonian, she figured brute strength would do the trick. It didn't. The sword stayed right where it was.
"Alright, move aside," Stratos said calmly. He walked over, grabbed the hilt, and lifted it without any effort.
"You've got to be kidding me," Cell groaned.
"What'd you expect?" Stratos smirked. "Yeah, you saved some planets—but I'm an actual hero. You only did it 'cause Dad promised you a new power."
"Okay, fair," Cell admitted. "But I guess it makes sense you're worthy, you being the Future King and all."
"You know it's not too late for you to take the throne," Stratos offered.
"Haha, hell no."
"Come on, man."
"Nope."
"Please?"
"I don't wanna be a king—I'd rather be a hero," Stratos said with a shrug.
"And I'd rather be a scientist. I do not want to rule five planets."
"Six," Eve corrected, "if you count Earth."
Stratos turned to her. "What about you, Eve? You ever think about being Queen?"
"No thanks. I'm focusing on being the next Sorcerer Supreme, not some royal figurehead."
Stratos looked at Kyra with a mix of desperation and hope.
She just grinned. "You lost the game. You pulled the short straw. You're King."
"...Fuuuck," Stratos muttered.
"You know," came a voice from the doorway, "you could always be both. Pretty sure if you ask your dad, he'll hook you up with one of his cloning abilities."
All four kids froze and turned toward the door. Standing there was future Lena, arms crossed, looking very not amused. Beside her stood a young man with pale skin, white hair, and glowing red eyes.
"Oh crapbaskets," all four of them said at once.
"Crapbaskets indeed," Lena said. "You four are so grounded."
"Mom, just saying this now—I had nothing to do with this. I only tagged along," Eve said quickly.
"I know. Ultron told me everything," Lena replied, pointing a thumb at the pale young man. "But you're still in trouble."
That pale young man? Yeah, that's Ultron. In a synthetic human body. Welcome to the future.
"Wait—how did you even know we went back in time?" Kyra asked.
Ultron smirked. "I saw you all sneaking into the TARDIS through the base's security cameras. Reviewed the footage, matched it with the TARDIS logs, tracked the artifact's energy signature. Also, Stratos' hero suit still has a tracker built into it."
Instead of covering for us like a good brother, you snitched?" Cell asked.
"Oh, you mean like when someone—not naming names—told Master Tai Lung I was skipping training to go on a date with Kitty?" Ultron said, raising a brow. "He made me train twice as hard that day. And the reason that said person did it, and I quote—'Because I knew it would be funny.' And it was funny. Got a million views."
All eyes turned to Cell.
"In my defense," Cell shrugged, "it was funny. And the video did blow up."
Lena sighed. "Time to go home. All of you are getting punished. You messed with a time machine. Let one of your dad's most powerful weapons get sucked into this timeline. Do you even realize the damage this sword could've caused?"
"But the spell on it makes it useless in the wrong hands, right?" Kyra asked.
"Incorrect," Ultron cut in. "Even if it couldn't be used, its presence alone would've disrupted the timeline. Not to mention, this timeline already has its own Infinity Stones—adding more? That's catastrophic."
"Thank you, Ultron," Lena said, rubbing her temple. "Also—$50 in the swear jar, Stratos. Now let's go. Back to the TARDIS. We're going home."
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AN: The next chapter will be the last chapter of Ed training Arc. Also go to my Patreon if you're interested in seeing some interesting stuff and deciding some things. Right now, I have a vote on who will be Escanor's future wife.
patreon.com/wolf_king87