Off-world

'Present time'

"Jonn, what happened to you?" you asked, your voice cracking as you took in the sight of him.

But Jonn didn't respond. His eyes were vacant, his movements stiff and unnatural. This wasn't the same friend you knew. The Jonn standing before you now was different, changed, and dangerous.

"Jonn! It's me, Aiden! Please, wake up!" you shouted, desperation lacing your voice. But his body moved with that same mechanical stiffness, his face blank, like he wasn't even hearing you.

Without warning, Jonn lunged at you, faster than he ever could've before. You barely had time to react as his fist shot toward you. You sidestepped, but the force of his strike was like a shockwave, sending you sprawling backward. His strength... it had grown beyond anything you could have imagined.

You scrambled back to your feet as Jonn advanced, his expression still void of any recognition. Every punch, every movement was raw, brutal, and precise. You dodged, weaved, blocking a few strikes but taking more hits than you liked. The ground beneath you cracked with the impact of each missed blow, the air vibrating with the sheer force of his power.

*He's not in control anymore.*

The voice in your head was calm but insistent, its usual clarity cutting through your panic. You could feel it pushing you to act, to let it take over and guide your movements. But you weren't ready. Not yet.

"Jonn! You don't have to do this!" you yelled again, trying to reach him through the chaos. But there was no pause, no flicker of recognition in his eyes. He threw a vicious uppercut, catching your jaw, and you flew back, crashing into the side of a building. The pain shot through your body, but you forced yourself to stand, wiping the blood from your mouth.

His power—it was unstable, overwhelming. The energy was surging off him, growing by the second, and you could feel the danger rising with every heartbeat. His fists crackled with an intense heat as he charged toward you again, his power building to a dangerous crescendo.

"You need to fight back, sir," the voice urged, its tone more urgent now.

"No! I won't. He's my friend!" you shouted, even as your body screamed in protest from the damage.

But then you saw it—the energy around Jonn spiked, his body trembling as the power inside him reached a critical point. He was on the verge of unleashing it, and this time, it wasn't just a building at risk. This power could wipe out the entire city. No, the planet.

The voice's warning came fast, almost panicked. "You need to get him away! What you did at the hospital was for nothing if he unleashes that power here! He'll destroy the world! If he does, everyone on Earth is going to die! You need to fly him outside of the orbit, and fast!".

Your pulse quickened as the reality of the situation hit you. "How much time do we have?" you asked, panic creeping into your voice.

"Thirty seconds. You have to act now, sir," the voice replied, cold and efficient as ever.

"Can I even breathe in space?" you asked, fear taking hold as you realized what had to be done.

A transparent screen suddenly materialized before your eyes, only visible to you. On it, a list of your abilities appeared—some you had activated before, but many remained untapped. As your eyes scanned through, you saw one: *Enhanced Lung Capacity*. It was exactly what you needed.

You activated it, feeling a surge of energy course through you.

"You can't breathe in space, but you can now hold your breath for at least a month," the voice confirmed as you felt your lungs expand with a new strength.

There wasn't any time to hesitate. Jonn's energy reached its peak, and his body began to glow with a blinding light. The countdown was almost over. You had no choice.

You launched yourself forward with a burst of speed, faster than you'd ever moved before. Your body tore through the air, the force of your movement creating shockwaves that shook the ground beneath you. Jonn barely had time to react as you grabbed him, locking him in a bear hug, his body seething with energy.

The world around you blurred as you shot into the sky, pushing harder than you ever had. The air thinned as you broke through the atmosphere, and still, you accelerated. The stars became a blur, the blackness of space stretching before you. You didn't have time to think, only to act.

You pushed your speed further, your body burning with the strain. You could feel time itself bending as you moved, the edges of space and reality warping as if you were on the verge of breaking through to something beyond.

Almost... almost there...

You passed the moon in seconds, your body hurtling through space faster than light, faster than sound, faster than anything you'd ever felt. You could feel Jonn's energy boiling, ready to erupt at any moment.

And then, with one final push, you flung him into the endless void, letting him go just before the energy exploded outward. You shot backward, propelled by the force of the blast, but you held your ground, your body shaking from the impact.

The explosion rippled through space, a brilliant flash of light expanding outward, but the planet remained safe. You had done it.

But when the light faded, he stood there—different, controlled, efficient. His once chaotic power had become precise, calculated. He lunged at you with terrifying speed, fists sharp and deadly. You barely had time to react, dodging one blow, but the next hit you square in the chest. The impact sent you flying through space, stars blurring past you.

Every punch Jonn threw now was more precise than before, each one aimed to break you. But this wasn't the Jonn you knew. Something else had taken over.

"You can't hold back, sir. Not anymore,"the voice in your head echoed, urging you forward. You felt the shift in your body, the weight of the moment pressing down on you.

With a burst of power, you surged forward, meeting Jonn's punches with your own. The force from your blows sent shockwaves through space, distorting the stars and creating rips in the fabric of reality. Each punch from you collided with Jonn's, faster and harder than anything you'd ever experienced. Time itself seemed to warp around you both as you pushed beyond your limits.

But Jonn—he was growing stronger too. The more you fought, the more his power adapted. His strikes became faster, his movements more refined, and while you were holding back so that you wouldn't kill him, he wasn't. The energy around him surged with a terrifying force.

You moved faster than light, delivering a barrage of blows, each one shaking the very core of the universe. But Jonn absorbed the hits, barely flinching. His eyes locked onto you, cold and unfeeling. He had become a relentless force, and for the first time, you felt like you were fighting a losing battle.

Then, in an instant, Jonn countered, landing a blow so powerful that it sent you plummeting toward Earth like a meteor. You couldn't stop it. The force tore through your body as you broke through the atmosphere, fire blazing around you as you hurtled toward the ground.

You crashed into the Earth with unimaginable force, the impact creating a massive crater. The ground trembled beneath you, buildings shook, and dust filled the air. You could barely move, the pain radiating through every inch of your body.

But then, just as you managed to lift your head, a sonic boom erupted above you. Jonn was there, faster than you could even register, flying back toward you in an instant. He landed, the ground cracking beneath his feet, and before you could fully recover, he was on you again.

His fists rained down, each hit faster and harder than the last. You tried to block, to fight back, but Jonn's power had grown beyond anything you could handle. He was faster, stronger, more efficient—relentless. His blows drove you deeper into the crater, and the ground beneath you groaned under the weight of his strikes.

"Sir, you have to push beyond your limits. He's adapting faster than you,"the voice urged, its calm edge breaking for the first time. But no matter how hard you tried, Jonn was overpowering you.

You threw a punch, your strongest yet, and it connected with his chest, sending him flying back. For a moment, you thought you had a chance. But he recovered mid-air, stopping himself with a burst of energy, and within the blink of an eye, he was back, crashing into you with unimaginable force.

You were outmatched. Even as your power surged, Jonn's was growing faster, stronger. And now, as he stood over you, his hands crackling with energy, you realized that this wasn't a fight you could win by holding back. Not anymore.

And then, in a blur of movement, Jonn was gone again.

"Where is he...?" you muttered, trying to stand, but your body was too damaged from the fight.

Silence filled the air. The battlefield was empty.

As you lay in the crater, your body already beginning to heal, the pain started to fade. The bones that were broken began to reset, and the bruises and burns vanished as your super regeneration kicked in, mending you faster than any normal human could.

With your super regeneration kicking in, you forced yourself to stand, the pain from the battle fading as your body healed. But as you looked around the crater, a sense of confusion washed over you. Jonn had the power to finish you off, to ensure you wouldn't interfere again, yet he hadn't. Why?

Your heart raced, a mix of worry and uncertainty clouding your thoughts. Did he hold back? Was there still a part of him that recognized you, that remembered your friendship? Or was he simply too consumed by whatever force had taken control of him?

The distant sound of sirens began to reach your ears, a reminder that the media and authorities would soon swarm the scene, but you didn't have time to ponder this. You had to find Jonn before his powers spiraled completely out of control, and before he became a danger to everyone—including himself.

You leapt into the air, launching yourself into the sky with a force that cracked the ground beneath you. In an instant, you were a streak of color against the blue expanse, flying faster than any human could comprehend. The wind whipped against your face, but your mind was consumed with questions about Jonn. Where had he gone? Why hadn't he finished the fight?

With each passing second, cities blurred beneath you, continents rushed by, and oceans became mere blue streaks. You pushed yourself harder, your thoughts racing faster than your body as you scanned the planet below, desperate for any sign of him.

You soared through the atmosphere, your speed reaching unprecedented levels, but still, you found nothing. Panic set in. The world stretched endlessly beneath you, but despite the sheer power at your command, it felt like you were searching for a ghost.

"Why didn't he finish me?" you muttered, the confusion gnawing at your mind like a relentless predator. "He had the chance. Is there still hope for him? Or is this really it?"

"You know I can't let that happen, sir," the voice replied, its tone steady yet urgent. "My primary directive is to ensure your survival. If necessary, I will take control—even without your permission."

You paused, the weight of its words settling heavily on your chest. "Is that what happened when my father was about to kill me? You took over when I couldn't defend myself, when my powers hadn't activated yet?"

"Correct," the voice confirmed. "I sensed the imminent threat to your life, and I acted to protect you. But this time, you must confront Jonn yourself. I can guide you, but the choice remains yours.

As you scoured the planet for any sign of Jonn, the realization settled like a weight in your chest. You were searching the Earth, but what if he hadn't just vanished into thin air? What if he had gone beyond the planet altogether?

The thought sent a chill down your spine. If Jonn had fled to another world or into space, the stakes were higher than you had anticipated. The energy that had surged through him during your fight could cause catastrophic destruction anywhere he landed.

"He might have gone off-world," you whispered to yourself, the gravity of the situation hitting you hard.