I fell in Marvel with Essence Gacha but I’ve never heard of Marvel

As the morning sun shone over New York, Donna and Lex got ready for their flight to Greece. A private jet had already been arranged, and upon arriving at the airport, they were led through a VIP corridor that bypassed the crowds and security lines before being escorted directly to the aircraft.

This was actually Lex's first time flying on a private jet, but after spending the last few months attending high-end events, negotiating company acquisitions, and mingling with people whose watches cost more than most cars, he already had a decent idea of what to expect. The cabin was luxurious, spacious enough to walk around comfortably, with reclining seats, a small dining area, and enough amenities to make the nine-hour flight feel less like a journey and more like a temporary apartment in the sky.

Unfortunately, none of that seemed to matter to Donna.

"Man, I hate long flights..." she groaned as the plane climbed into the air.

"Really? I think it's the universe's way of giving us bonding time," Lex said. "Come on, let's play a questions game or something."

"Boring... is what I'd say if I wasn't trapped in a metal tube for the next nine hours. Sure, why not."

"Alright, let's start easy. Why did you become a superhero?"

Donna immediately narrowed her eyes.

"That's your idea of easy?"

Lex shrugged.

"Compared to the existential stuff we'll get to later? Absolutely."

Donna sighed dramatically before leaning back into her seat.

"I don't really have a clear answer. I just followed my heart, I guess. It was never about becoming a superhero. I just wanted to help people... protect the people who couldn't protect themselves."

Lex nodded.

"Fair enough."

"Now my turn." Donna pointed at him. "What's your biggest regret in life?"

"Honestly? I don't have any anymore."

Donna stared.

"Not a single one?"

"Not really. I used to have plenty, but these days..." He gestured vaguely around himself. "I'm healthy, wealthy, can fly, have powers, and spend most of my time doing whatever I want. Life turned out pretty well."

Donna wanted to argue with that logic, but strangely enough she couldn't. Looking at him, she found herself smiling. His happiness didn't remind her of her own troubles. Instead, it reminded her that the world still had room for happiness. There was something refreshing about someone who wasn't carrying the weight of the world on their shoulders every second of the day.

"Must be nice."

"It really is."

From there the game continued for hours. Some questions led nowhere while others somehow evolved into discussions that lasted nearly an hour. Favorite movies became debates about storytelling. Favorite foods somehow became arguments about cultural identity. At one point they spent twenty minutes discussing whether time travel counted as cheating.

Somewhere over the Atlantic the questions game had long since fallen apart.

"No, no, no. Crows would make way better pets than owls."

"What?" Donna stared at him. "That's ridiculous."

"It's not."

"It absolutely is."

Donna folded her arms confidently.

"What if crows are smarter? It doesn't matter. It's not like they're going to do calculus for me."

Lex looked genuinely offended by the statement.

"That's not the point. Crows have incredible memories. They recognize faces. They'll remember you for years and even pass that information to their offspring."

Donna blinked.

"So your selling point is hereditary loyalty?"

"It's called intelligence."

"It's called generational servitude."

Lex nearly choked.

"That's not what I said."

"It's exactly what you said."

"No it isn't."

"Your entire argument is basically, 'Be nice to the crow dynasty and future generations shall serve you faithfully.'"

Lex pointed an accusing finger at her.

"First of all, that's a gross oversimplification."

"Is it?"

"Yes."

"Then explain how it isn't."

He opened his mouth.

Paused.

Then frowned.

"That's not the point."

Donna immediately grinned in victory.

"Translation: I win."

"You absolutely do not.”

The argument continued through lunch, through a movie neither of them paid much attention to, and even through the descent into Athens.

"Crows literally recognize individual humans."

"And owls look cooler."

"That's not an argument."

"It's the only argument I need."

Still bickering, they stepped off the plane and into the cool Greek night air. The flight that had seemed unbearable that morning had somehow disappeared beneath hours of conversation, arguments, jokes, and increasingly ridiculous debates. By the time they reached the terminal, it was already midnight in Athens.

They hadn't bought any luggage and were free to do whatever they wanted, so after leaving the airport they simply found a secluded spot away from prying eyes and took to the skies.

The cool Mediterranean air greeted them almost immediately.

Below them, Athens slowly shrank into the distance as white buildings, winding roads and ancient ruins blended together into a single landscape. Ahead stretched the deep blue waters of the Mediterranean, glittering beneath the afternoon sun. Fishing boats drifted lazily across the sea while the occasional island appeared on the horizon before disappearing behind them.

As they flew, Lex took out his trusty compass and glanced at it.

After Raphael's research, the colors had finally been deciphered.

Yellow represented mutants.

Red represented enhanced individuals.

Green represented experiments and artificial modifications.

Purple represented mystical phenomena.

Light blue represented aliens and extraterrestrial influences.

Dark blue represented technology.

The current Lex had both yellow and light blue blinking around his position. Apparently becoming Darth Vader had somehow qualified him for the extraterrestrial category.

Donna, on the other hand, was represented by a purple marker.

Interestingly enough, there were quite a few purple dots scattered throughout Greece.

Lex made a mental note to investigate those later.

For now, however, he followed Donna.

The farther they traveled, the quieter the world seemed to become. The sounds of cities vanished entirely, leaving behind nothing but the endless sea below and the occasional cry of distant seabirds circling overhead.

After what felt like hours of flying, Donna finally slowed.

Lex followed her.

They hovered above an empty stretch of ocean.

There was nothing here.

No island.

No hidden city.

No magical gateway.

Just the sea.

Gentle waves rolled beneath them, their surfaces reflecting the sunlight like countless shards of glass. The horizon stretched endlessly in every direction, blurring the line between sky and water.

Donna remained silent.

Lex watched her gaze sweep across the ocean.

Once.

Twice.

Three times.

As if she was still expecting something to appear.

“This is usually the point where it is in my world...” she finally said quietly. “But I guess there's nothing here.”

Her voice carried an uncertainty that hadn't been there before.

Not disappointment.

Not yet.

Hope trying its hardest not to die.

Lex looked around once more.

The ocean certainly looked ordinary.

“Didn't you say it's in a different dimension of sorts?” he asked. “What if it's hidden in this world too?”

Donna smiled weakly.

A part of her clearly wanted to believe that.

“No, Lex.”

The smile faded.

“No, it's just not here.”

The words came out softer this time.

Final.

The kind of finality that only came after somebody stopped lying to themselves.

“Why did I even come here?” she asked quietly. “Obviously I wasn't going to find anything.”

Her voice cracked slightly on the last word.

Not enough to cry.

Just enough to hurt.

For the past several days she had been imagining possibilities.

Maybe this world had its own Themyscira.

Maybe there would be Amazons.

Maybe there would be some connection to home.

Maybe there would be something.

Instead there was only an empty sea.

Lex didn't try to argue.

Didn't try to convince her she was wrong.

Didn't try to offer another theory.

Instead he simply moved closer and wrapped his arms around her.

The two of them hovered above the Mediterranean together.

The ocean stretched endlessly beneath them while the afternoon sun reflected off the waves.

For a few moments Donna simply rested her forehead against his shoulder.

Neither spoke.

There really wasn't anything to say.

Eventually they turned back toward Athens.

The return trip felt quieter than the journey there.

The excitement that had accompanied them earlier was gone, replaced by a comfortable silence as they flew beneath a sky slowly beginning to shift toward evening.

By the time they reached the city, the sun had already started its descent.

They booked a room overlooking the sea and decided to stay in Greece for a few days.

Neither of them mentioned leaving immediately.

Donna needed some time.

And Lex was perfectly willing to give it to her.

The next day, after a lot of pestering from Lex, Donna finally agreed to actually go see Greece instead of spending all day thinking about Themyscira. She did make sure to remind him that she had already visited Greece before, just not this version of it, so naturally Lex decided that made her the perfect tour guide.

The two spent most of the day wandering through the streets of Athens. The city was a strange blend of old and new, with ancient ruins sitting not too far from modern buildings and busy roads. Tourists crowded the more famous locations while locals seemed entirely unconcerned by the fact that some of the most famous landmarks in human history existed practically in their backyard.

Lex found himself enjoying the atmosphere far more than he had expected. More importantly, he enjoyed the food.

A lot.

What started as Donna showing him a few places quickly evolved into her introducing him to what felt like the entirety of Greek cuisine. Street vendors, bakeries, small family-owned restaurants, places hidden in narrow alleys that he never would have noticed on his own, Donna seemed to know them all.

Whether she was genuinely showing him around or simply using food to distract herself from yesterday's disappointment, Lex wasn't entirely sure. Regardless, it seemed to be working.

By the time they stepped out of yet another restaurant, Donna looked considerably better than she had the previous day.

Unfortunately, Athens had apparently decided they were having too peaceful of a day.

Both of them instinctively looked upward.

Something was falling from the sky.

At first Lex thought it was some kind of aircraft. Then he realized it was far too small for that. A few seconds later he realized it was actually a person.

A very large person.

The half-naked man crashed into the street several hundred meters away hard enough to crack the pavement. His landing sent dust and debris flying in every direction and immediately drew the attention of everyone nearby.

Lex's first thought was that the guy looked ridiculous.

His second thought was that the giant golden mace in his hand was probably dangerous.

The man's eyes glowed a deep blood-red as he slowly rose from the crater. He wore what appeared to be a lion skin around his waist and looked less like a modern human being and more like somebody who had walked out of an ancient myth.

Then he attacked the nearest thing he could see.

People screamed.

Cars overturned.

Storefront windows shattered.

Civilians were thrown through the air as the giant swung his mace with enough force to create visible shockwaves.

Lex reacted immediately.

The Force spread outward as he attempted to catch the civilians being thrown around by the attack. Unfortunately there were simply too many of them. The area was crowded, the attacks were chaotic and the giant seemed determined to destroy everything around him.

"Raphael, help with civilian rescue."

The moment he gave the command, Raphael took over that task entirely while Lex focused on stopping the source of the problem.

Power surged through him as Telekinesis wrapped around the giant from every direction.

The effect was immediate.

The man froze in place.

For a brief moment.

Then the surrounding pavement shattered.

The giant strained against the invisible restraints and Lex felt his telekinetic grip begin to bend.

<Based on physical appearance, weapon, attire and current location, probability of identity exceeds ninety-nine percent. Subject is likely Hercules. Presence of a mystical poison has also been detected.>

Raphael's analysis appeared almost instantly.

Lex didn't have time to think about why Hercules was apparently real.

The giant broke free.

Not slowly.

Not with effort.

One moment he was restrained and the next moment it felt as if Lex was trying to hold down a moving train with a few ropes.

The telekinetic bindings collapsed.

Hercules immediately turned toward him.

Whether he had sensed the source of the restraint or was simply attacking the strongest target nearby, Lex didn't know.

Nor did it matter.

The giant launched himself forward.

Lex responded with a barrage of telekinetic blasts. Invisible force slammed into Hercules from multiple directions, attacks powerful enough to send armored vehicles flying.

Hercules ignored them.

The blasts slowed him slightly but otherwise accomplished almost nothing.

"Oh come on."

A second later the golden mace was already descending toward his head.

Lex barely managed to dodge.

The mace grazed his face and several teeth shattered instantly. Lex registered the damage immediately. Under normal circumstances the hit would have been excruciating, enough to leave most people disoriented from pain alone, but all he felt was the strange absence where that suffering should have been.

Before he had even landed, two lightsabers appeared in his hands.

One blue.

One red.

Drawing upon the experience contained within the Vader template, Lex steadied himself and charged forward again.

This time he met the mace head-on.

The blue blade intercepted the golden weapon while the red blade thrust directly toward Hercules' chest.

The giant moved.

Not much.

Just enough.

The blade missed.

Hercules twisted sideways, stepped around the attack and delivered a kick that felt less like being struck by a person and more like being hit by a speeding truck.

Lex shot backwards across the street.

The moment he regained control of his flight, Hercules was already moving again.

The giant covered the distance between them with a single leap and launched another kick.

Telekinesis wrapped around the attack at the last moment, slowing it just enough that Lex wasn't sent through half the city.

Just enough.

The kick folded several ribs and launched him through a building. Lex knew it should hurt. He could almost intellectually understand the amount of pain a normal person would be feeling right now. Yet there was nothing there besides the awareness of damage.

As Lex recovered, one realization became painfully clear.

This was proving far more difficult than he had expected.

Up until now, most opponents could be dealt with through some combination of Telekinesis, The Force, Raphael's analysis and overwhelming versatility.

Hercules apparently hadn't received that memo.