Malrick reached out and grasped the skull, pulling it closer until its cold glow reflected in his eyes.
"That's right… this is the Life Codex."
His gaze was fixed, not because of the skull's eerie appearance, but because of what it contained. With just a glance, Malrick's enhanced mind began to process the billions of microscopic particles on its surface. Each particle unfolded before his vision like pages in a living archive—the genetic templates of an entire civilization. Engineers, soldiers, politicians, scientists… countless genetic blueprints.
For generations, Krypton had followed this strict genetic order. Every child born there already had their fate predetermined, their entire life bound to the function written into their DNA. A cruel design, perhaps. But right now, Malrick found himself thankful for that cruelty.
Within that skull rested an ocean of genetic potential—trillions of sequences. And with every passing second, his Super Brain began to analyze, compare, and adapt them, pushing the limits of his own biology.
Then came the experimentation. Countless strands of DNA flashed through his mind like lightning, twisting, breaking apart, and reassembling in an endless loop. Inside his body, the process mirrored his thoughts. His genetic code began to rewrite itself.
Under Tony and Kara's horrified eyes, Malrick's body began to convulse violently—flesh tearing, bones cracking, muscle dissolving and reforming again in grotesque waves.
"Jesus, Malrick! Stop! Stop right now!" Tony shouted, panic rising in his voice. "You're gonna kill yourself, man!"
Kara jumped down from the operating table, her eyes wide with alarm. Her own extraction had been painless—even strangely soothing, the gentle pulse of energy inside her body had felt like a thousand tiny hands easing the tension from her cells. But this… this was horrifying.
"Is the Codex malfunctioning?!" Kara's voice trembled. Her instincts screamed danger, and she turned to Tony for answers.
"Can you help him? His genes look like they're collapsing!"
Tony was drenched in sweat. "Thinking! Thinking—just give me a second! Damn it, this isn't supposed to happen!"
Then Kara froze, remembering what Malrick had told her—that he could regenerate. Even so, the agony he was enduring made her chest tighten painfully.
"How long will it last?" she whispered. "No one should have to go through something like this…"
Malrick's body continued to rupture and reform, over and over again. To Kara, who had spent over a decade imprisoned in isolation, this looked like something far worse than torture.
It took more than ten minutes before the violent transformation finally slowed. When it ended, Malrick stood trembling, blood dripping from his body, surrounded by shredded tissue that had already gone inert. His gene-locking ability, a safeguard from his time in the Resident Evil world, ensured that any stray cells were stripped of valuable genetic data the moment they left his body. He had nothing to fear from genetic theft.
While Kara and Tony were still pale from shock, Malrick was smiling—weakly, but unmistakably. His eyes burned with excitement.
"One thousand and one…" he whispered. He had improved. After trillions of calculations and hundreds of experimental mutations, he had successfully evolved his genetic structure—even if only by one level. At this rate, perfection no longer felt impossible.
"Tony, I did it!" Malrick laughed breathlessly, his voice full of exhilaration. "I actually did it!"
The journey to this universe had paid off—far beyond what he'd hoped. If not for the blood-soaked floor, he might have grabbed Kara's hand and twirled her in joy, like a soldier dancing with his love after victory.
But Tony wasn't celebrating.
"Did it? Did it!? You scared the hell out of me!" he shouted, his voice trembling. "For a second there, I thought you were about to flatline! What were you thinking!?"
Malrick turned toward Tony's furious face, then toward Kara's anxious one, realizing how reckless he'd been.
"I found a path to keep evolving," he said firmly. "The Codex is more valuable than I ever imagined."
He placed a hand on his chest. "You know I can regenerate, Tony. This wasn't fatal—just… unpleasant."
Tony glared, still breathing hard. "And I'll keep experimenting," Malrick continued. "Even if my body breaks a thousand times a day, I'll adapt. I'll get stronger."
Tony's shoulders slumped. "You're unbelievable." He rubbed his forehead. "Next time you decide to blow yourself up, give me a warning first. I almost died of a heart attack in the DC Universe—do you know how ironic that would've been?"
He sighed deeply. "You should rebrand yourself, man. Forget Superman. Call yourself Death-Seeking Boy. You literally die more than anyone I've ever met."
Throwing up his hands, Tony stormed toward the door. "I'm done for today. Don't call me unless the world's ending." The door slammed shut behind him.
Malrick looked at Kara with a faint grin. "He's been buried in research for days. He needs the break."
Kara stepped closer, studying him with concern. "What about you? You just… died a dozen times. Don't you need to rest too?"
Malrick lifted the skull, the golden reflection dancing across his face. "I'm fine. Really. But I'll need to keep the Codex a bit longer. The data it holds is… priceless."
Kara's eyes softened as she looked at the skull—a remnant of her lost home, of Krypton's tragedy. She nodded slowly. "Keep it. Just give it back when you're done."
Having watched Malrick harness the Codex to grow stronger, she no longer feared he would misuse it. Still, she couldn't bring herself to leave him. As Malrick had said before, she had no family left—and Earth had never felt like home. Everyone she met here seemed either alien or hostile. But Malrick wasn't. He was the one person who made her feel like she wasn't completely alone in this universe.
The world outside was bright and alive, but she often felt like she stood just beyond its borders—in the quiet shadows, watching from afar. Yet beside Malrick, that emptiness faded. For the first time in years, she felt seen.
Malrick smiled, resting the skull on his palm. "Don't worry, Kara. When the time comes, I'll help you rebuild Krypton. I promise."
Kara's eyes glimmered with quiet faith. "Then I'll wait for that day."
____
Advanced chapters are available on my patreon page
Read ahead of everyone 💙
Patreon.com/Zphyr