Discount Invincible (Bulletproof SI/Invincible Comics)

"Hey, you're up!" Dr. Karen's voice pierced through my groggy haze like a blade, and I cursed as my gigantic new body—far larger than it had been following that last confrontation with Battle Beast—flailed around the bed. The sheets were about as thick as paper with all of this new muscle.

"Hey, Doc," I said, touching my eyes. My hand struck my cheek instead, and I knew I hadn't shaved for some time and had some stubble going on. My doc was cute with her great body and was looking at me seriously. She had to slightly tilt her head back because I'm now one foot taller.

"Zandale, you've completely changed!" she exclaimed with a smile, looking at my new appearance. "You're so different now but in the best of ways. You're like, as fit as a horse. Or perhaps I should say as fit as a superhorse!"

I couldn't help but laugh at her attempting to make light of the situation. "Oh, sure I've noticed," I told her, flexing my bicep. It was sticking out like a mountain beneath this hospital gown. My adaptability skills were seriously top notch. The doc simply nodded and threw me the mirror.

"Check it out for yourself," she added, stepping to one side.

I took the mirror and I held it against my face. The dude looking back was like a different guy altogether. Seriously, I had no idea I was capable of looking so gool. My eyes were this crazy bright orange instead of dull black, and my hair was this cool little mini afro with a pencil mustache going on. But oh man, my body completely freaked me out. My mirror image was like something out of one of those bodybuilder fantasies—huge pecs that would have torn my shirt wide apart, a stomach so flat it had to have been photoshopped, and biceps capable of lifting a car. And those eight-pack abs? They seemed to have been chiseled out of marble. Sorry, Thragg, but I have to say it: I think I'm way better looking than you now.

Cecil Stedman, the man who offered me this great opportunity to become the face of heroism, entered the room looking dashing as ever in his GDA uniform. "You ready to do this by yourself, Zandale?" he questioned, his voice sounding somewhat entertained.

I sat up with wrapped the gown around my new body. "You bet," I said with pride. "Bulletproof is ready to roll and rock."

Cecil grinned and nodded. "Okay, check this out," he told me, "we're gonna give you a completely new identity. Something that's gonna make your new abilities really stand out." He paused for dramatic effect, and I was electric with excitement. "You're not Bulletproof any longer," he continued. "Now you're gonna be called Bastion Prime."

That title kept running through my mind. Bastion Prime. It was so cool sounding, and it sent this great thrill of excitement through me. I have to say, the idea of starting anew was peak. It was like I was being given a second chance, like some sort of phoenix risen again from the ashes.

"Anything else." I asked, completely prepared to dive right into it.

"Here" Cecil said, handing me a tablet, "Look at your new suit. A suit that I think completely captures your new identity."

I cracked the tablet and I couldn't believe my eyes. "Whoa, this is awesome!" That orange and white jumpsuit was made for gods or something, not some ordinary dude like me. It had to have been bespoke, flaunting every inch of my new body. My chest was a masterpiece, with chiseled pecs and abs that would likely cut through glass. This orange top had some ill white patterns that made me think of comic book superheroes. And the belt! It was like some sort of fancy sash demarcating the orange from the white pants and hugging my new round bottom like it was built for it. My white boots reached up to my knees, and no gloves anywhere. It was like they were announcing to the world, "Hey, check out these hands. They're about to get things done."

"You like?" Cecil questioned, lifting an eyebrow.

"For sure!" I exclaimed as I leaped out of bed. My hospital gown was not doing anything to suppress my excitement—or my new equipment, for that matter. My huge dick was really pulling on the material of the gown, which I guess got some sort of superhero upgrade from my battle with Battle Beast. My body was on fire and my dick was like, "Let's get huge and be a beast," as if it weren't already.

"Awesome," Cecil exclaimed, rubbing his hands together. "The suit's all prepared for you. You're gonna be the new face of the GDA. We've already initiated the PR work. You're gonna blow up, Zandale."

I was experiencing this strange combination of excitement and nervousness. "Hold on a minute," I said, throwing up my hand. "I wanted to inform the Guardians of the Globe personally, you know? In person. It feels right this way."

Cecil continued to smile. "I appreciate that, Zandale, but we have already sent out the memo. Your mission as the new Bastion Prime begins now."

I was standing there staring at him, sort of narrowing my eyes. "But Boss, I really have to talk to them," I said, my excitement to try out my new power face-to-face was backstabbing my nervousness. "They're my team. They have to hear it from me personally."

Cecil sighed and simply gazed at me for a second. "Alright," he said at last. "You can talk to the Guardians personally. But not for long; something is happening in Europe that Bastion Prime needs to handle."

I didn't delay and simply smiled at him. "Thank you boss."

The moment he was out of the room, I looked at Dr. Karen, who was lingering by the bedside, secretly eyeing me. "Hey, Doc," I said in the coolest voice I could manage, "got a minute?"

She looked up from her clipboard and her bright blue eyes sparked with curiosity. "What's up?"

I sort of leaned in close to her, attempting to be suave and all that. "Well, Doc," I said smooth as can be, attempting to flirt with her, "Just wondering if you're doing anything this evening?"

She completely blushed and sort of struggled with her words for a moment. "Um, I, uh, I have some papers I have to finish up."

I winked at her, completely flexing my new attitude. "Come on, Doc," I told her with all smoothness and cool. "You've seen me at my worst so now you get to see me at my best. Let's have some fun!"

She stared into my eyes for a moment, and I could tell completely that she was considering something. "Alright," she said at last, writing something on her clipboard and handing it to me. "But it's only one drink, and you'd better not be late for your mission briefing tomorrow morning."

"Deal," I told her, flashing her a smile that could melt the panties off a nun.

I took one of the suits from the doc and made my way to the dressing room. It was insane—completely different from anything I'd ever seen, like it was made of Kevlar and some sort of crazy material that would withstand a nuke. I was encased in the orange and white suit like it was painted on, conforming to every muscle and curve. Fitted into that tight fabric, I had this strange combination of power and responsibility.

So I put on all of my new equipment and went to introduce myself to Dr. Karen all over again. She had her eyes wide when I came into the room again, and she exhaled with this deep whistle. "Damn Zandale," she exclaimed. "You're like one of the movie superheroes!"

I flashed her a grin. "Thanks, Doc. Just trying to please you."

I nodded again at Dr. Karen and bounced out of there, completely psyched to get into action. That suit was ridiculously comfortable, like it had been tailored especially for me and wrapped around my new body like it was made for it. I swear I felt like I could save the world for real in this outfit. I noticed the front guards sat up at attention. They double took hard when they saw me, and I couldn't help but feel like the biggest rock star ever.

"Chill out," I told them with a smile, throwing them a relaxed salute. They were staring at me like they had seen a specter, but what're ya gonna do, right? They hadn't seen me since I was half their size and twice as dead.

And that flight across Utah was completely insane. My hair was blowing around like crazy as I zoomed through the air faster than I ever have before. It really felt like my body was built for it. My suit had my back and I felt like I was just gliding through the air like I was using a hot knife through butter.

I was racing towards the secret base with my heart pounding. It had been ages since I saw the team last following that encounter with Battle Beast. I knew they would be amazed at my new appearance and I was so looking forward to them seeing what I was capable of in the future.

I landed softly in front of the base door and walked in, the boots making their usual clunking sound inside the hallway. The first one was Robot who noticed, his metal frame whirring as he too did a double-take. "Zandale, is that you?" he bantered, his LEDs flashing surprise.

"In the flesh, or wait, should I say, the metal?" I retorted with a silly grin. The Guardians each reacted in their own way and to be honest, they looked like they had seen a ghost. Black Samson, drenched with perspiration from exercising, noticed me and simply let go of the dumbbell he was lifting.

"Who in the world are you?" Rex Splode asked, completely looking lost as he assessed my new appearance. His typical smirk was nowhere to be found, and he instead looked completely bewildered.

"It's me, Zandale," I exclaimed with amusement and throwing my arms wide. "Now I'm known as Bastion Prime but I'm one and the same."

Dupli-Kate was the first one to pop up, and her clone duplicates reaching me, wobbly in those tight suits. "Oh my god," they chimed simultaneously, "You're.awesome!"

"Thanks," I replied with a flush on my cheeks. "All thanks to my healing factor." It was funny how I was still trying to maintain this lie.

Monster Girl, with her cute kid-like looks and tiny ponytail, leaned her head to the side and regarded me with this quizzical expression. "You're not leaving us for good, right, Bastion?" she said with her voice sounding even sweeter than usual.

"Seriously? no way," I said to her, crouched down so we were at eye level. "I just can't roll with you folks any longer. I'm too strong for the group now. I have to do my thang, especially for the world." And for real, it doesn't even have to be said, but I'm getting stronger this way and making more.

The room fell completely silent once what I had said sank in. Rae, adorable and fuckable, had this expression on her face that was sorta sad but also sorta amazed, her dick-sucking lips pursed up. "But Zandale," she said quietly, "what about us?" She was staring right through me with her eyes, and I completely knew she wasn't talking about the team. She was into me, and truthfully I hadn't ever really had any feelings for her other then her being my hoe. But now that I was being Bastion Prime, I sorta did. Possibly it was the power trip feeling, or perhaps she was simply growing on me like some pesky fungus.

I placed a firm but gentle hand on her shoulder, and her costume sort of shifted with it. "Rae, I've got your back no matter what," I said with as relaxed of a tone as I could manage. "But this is something I have to do."

She gazed into my eyes for a second and then smiled ever so slightly. "I understand," she said confidently now. "You're Bastion Prime now. You have a new world to protect."

The Guardians were staring at me in wonder and respect, and I couldn't help but feel sort of proud of myself. "But wait a second, before you go," said Black Samson with his arms crossed across his massive chest, "You have to give us a proper farewell."

"What are you thinking?" I asked with a raised eyebrow.

Samson's smile grew. "Let's have a friendly sparring session," he proposed with a flex of his biceps. "Let's test out what your new body can do."

From out of nowhere, I suddenly vaulted over to Samson and had my hand around his neck. "Tough luck, buddy," I said to him, squeezing hard enough for him to understand I wasn't fooling around. He looked completely astonished, and I could feel his neck muscles contracting against my grasp. The room was completely quiet except for our labored breathing.

"Alright, alright," Samson chuckled, raising his hands in defeat. "You win, Bastion."

The team completely lost their cool, and all of that serious atmosphere was gone like a fart in the wind. "But we're serious man, we're gonna miss you," Rex said with a firm thump on the back. It was like a mosquito hovering around watermelon, I couldn't feel it. "Just remember to pick up some souvenirs for us, okay?"

"No worries," I said with a smile. "I'll bring something nice from Paris for you all."

I nodded to my friends and made for the door, with their gazes upon me like a warm blanket. As soon as I was outside, it was as if the world shut the door behind me and not just literally, and I took deep breaths of that crisp Utah air. Yes, it was most assuredly time for me to be on my own.

I was flying through the air, feeling completely awesome about being so strong and fast, like I was a missile flying past. My face and my suit were just a whirlwind as I flew through the air, leaving behind this tremendous orange and white streak. I was totally feeling like I was some sort of god looking down on these tiny dots that were once buildings and people. It was all about that adrenaline feeling of being so strong and handsome in the end.

The more I approached the mayhem that was going on in Europe, the more pumped up I was. Everybody was talking about seeing a Kaiju and it was Bastion Prime's job to deal with it. I got my first glimpse of the monster way off in the distance looming over the city like one of them huge skyscrapers. It had this gnarly grayish texture with spikes jutting out like some punk's outrageous mohawk. I was hearing people running around and screaming down below and their tiny voices were really loud to my new supernatural ears.

"Bastion Prime, GDA Command Center," one of the junior operators reported. "Paris is complete chaos at the moment. A Kaiju is wreaking havoc left and right, and the local defenders are not gaining any ground."

"I've got it," I said with complete seriousness and resolve. "Bastion Prime is coming."

So I flew to this gigantic monster and I could really feel the ground shaking with each step it took. Paris was one of those toy cities up high, and the people down there were like ants running around trying to avoid all the destruction. But right as I was getting close enough, the shaking ceased. The Beast had seen me. Its small eyes that looked like dinner plates were fixed on me.

"You're going down, Beast," I shouted, and the wind swept my defiance away.

The Beast unleashed this wild roar that was like hitting me directly in the chest, like the thump of the bass at a concert. But I didn't even flinch. Nope not Bastion Prime. I was ready to demonstrate to this animal what power was all about.

I descended at the kaiju, fists clenched like I was going to throw down. The first punch hit right on the side of its head, and you could totally feel that rumble in the air. The beast stumbled some, but it didn't fall. It was like punching a brick wall, only this wall had teeth and was really angry.

"Is that all you've got?" I taunted, tensing my body as I prepared for the impending hit.

The Kaiju unleashed another deafening roar and its hot breath completely blew my hair off when it swiped at me with one of those monstrous claws—no lie, the creature was really large! I easily evaded it; with my new speed and agility, the Beast seemed to be in slow motion. My punches landed with these ugly crunches, and each time it took the creature one step back. The crowd of people below ceased panicking and instead began cheering as they saw their new hero in action.

But the kaiju was not going down without some resistance. It whipped around with the massive tail of it, and I had to dodge once more as the blow sent the replica of the Eiffel Tower crashing down right in front of it. It was insane fighting, like some insane destructive dance as we destroyed the city, my orange and white uniform really standing out against that gray monster.

I was totally feeling myself getting stronger with each of my punches and each hit I took. It was like my body was absorbing the attacks and channeling them into pure energy. My punches became significantly stronger, and each hit sent the Kaiju stumbling backward. Its thick, leathery hide had no way of withstanding my increased strength, and I was relishing each second I had to hit it.

By that point I was far too powerful for the Kaiju to manage. The monster's terrifying roar was reduced to these small little squeaks once it realized what was happening. I gave the monster one final enraged blow, seizing it by the horns and crushed it into the ground so hard it created a crater the size of a pool. It was such a huge blow that windows in the surrounding buildings shattered as well with shards of glass flying around like confetti. The monster's eyes rolled back, and it simply went completely limp.

The city was eerily quiet and the only sound I heard was my labored breath and distant sirens wailing. Everybody in the city below was simply standing stock-still and staring up in wonder at their new savior. I glared down at the defeated Kaiju with this strange combination of victory and sympathy for it. It was a formidable opponent but was only another monster caught in the GDA's never-ending struggle.

"Well done, Bastion," the operator told me with some degree of awe in her voice. "You have a knack for limelight."

I couldn't help but smile when I was watching all the mayhem going down below. "Thanks but I think we're just getting started," I told her with way more confidence than I had previously.

The Operator's voice crackled in my ear once more. "Is that so? You've got another thing to take care of. There's a rogue supervillain wreaking havoc in New York, and the police can't deal with it."

"Got it," I told them, completely psyched for the mission at hand. It's a bit of a trek to New York, but with my upgrade, it wasn't so bad this time.