First off, dying was scary. More so than I thought it would be. The sudden realization that all my hopes and dreams would never be fulfilled and everything I had wanted to do would never be done. That all the people I loved would be devastated and the things I wanted to tell them would forever remain unsaid.

However, as it turns out, I would have another chance.

I was reincarnated.

At first I thought that I was incredibly lucky. To die in one first world country and then reincarnate into another. Specifically Canada to the US. The culture was incredibly similar and English was a language I already knew. The dice seemed to be falling in my favour and I was able to be praised as a genius since I was young which was nice.

…that's when I started to notice that things were different to how I remembered them. I'd reincarnated further into the past than when I died and even so everything was just…different.

A president I didn't remember, celebrities I'd never heard of, giant companies that don't exist and new giant companies to fill their place…

Stark industries, Oscorp, the Future Foundation.

It was clear to me at that point that I was in the world of Marvel comics.

What really hit that home was when mutants decided to reveal themselves to the world a few months back. They'd apparently existed for at least decades already, hiding in plain sight and even helping people when they could. But now a select group of mutants under Professor Charles Xavier as the X-Men had declared themselves to the world as a friend of humanity and a safe haven for mutants the world over.

A lot of humanity took it rather…poorly. My father included.

"Freaks, the lot of them!" My Father shouts out at the breakfast table, the news playing on our small box like television a small way away.

"Now dear, they're not that bad are they? They're not hurting anyone" My Mother chimes in, ever the sweetheart. She'd made us toast…again. We're not a rich family by any means, in fact I'd say we were downright poor, but she always tries her best.

"That's just it Norma! You can't tell if someone is a monster or human anymore! It's disgusting! They were reporting earlier about mysterious tragedies that could be very easy explained by the presence of one of those…things. You don't know if the guy walking past you on the street might freak out and start spitting fire from his nostrils anymore! It's fucking horrific!"

"Arnold! No swearing at the breakfast table!"

"Ah, sorry dear. It's just really disturbing you know? To think that one of those things might be going to school with Vance or working alongside me. Makes my stomach curl"

Dad was an angry dude. Always yelling about this and that. Honestly it was sometimes pretty hilarious, especially when it was about something super weird. Like one time he got really mad when this nature documentary was reporting that penguins lived in Australia and South Africa.

'Bullshit!' He yelled at the TV. 'They'd shrivel up faster than my cock in the shower. They only live in Antarctica!'

He was wrong it turns out. Still hilarious. Because as angry as he gets, that's all he ever does, yell. My Grandfather was apparently an angry dude too, 1st generation eastern European guy. Not sure what part, the last name Astrovik doesn't seem to be very common. He was just as angry from what I've gleamed, except his anger would often turn into him beating the shit out of my Dad and my Grandmother. Despite how loud and upset my Dad gets, he never uses violence. And I respect that about him.

"What do you think Vance?" My mother asks me. She was really loving, caring and kind. I couldn't have asked for a better mother in my new life. She's pretty quiet a lot of the time though, probably has to be when my Dad is so loud.

"I don't know, aren't they just people who got special powers? It sounds like these X-Men guys want to help other people too"

"Bah! You shouldn't trust those freaks too fast Vance. What's to stop them from turning that power on us huh?"

"Well, I mean they haven't done that yet right?"

"Naive Vance! They will! Those things are freaks of nature! They need to be wiped out before they decide to wipe us out!"

"Alright, alright. You're going to be late dear. Vance get ready for school"

I take the out and run to my room to get my bag ready. Dad's rants can be hilarious sometimes, but he can really get going if you don't stop him. Plus…the rant about the genocide of mutants wasn't one of his hilarious all-time classics…

I grab my bag and I'm out the door.

"Don't wait up! I've got club after school!"

"Alright sweetie! See you later!"

I'd just turned 14 and I was going to midtown high school. Just a random school in Queens, New York.

As far as being in the marvel universe went, I didn't really have a whole lot of information. I'd watched the movies and I knew a bit about the comics, but honestly I was pretty lost. Tony Stark looked exactly like Robert Downey Jr, so there's a chance this is a similar world to the movies. He even did the whole 'I am Iron Man' thing a few years back, it was awesome.

But there were never any mutants in the marvel movies, at least not in the same universe as Iron Man.

There's also the Fantastic Four, who just got their powers a year ago. They're pretty much universally beloved here in New York.

So yea, I don't really have any clue what's going on. This world has lots of elements from lots of things, so I'm pretty sure I'm flying blind.

But honestly, that suits me just fine. If I had definitive knowledge about things that were going to happen, then I'd be compelled to try and do something about them. Which would be dangerous. Incredibly dangerous seeing as I'm literally just a normal 14 year old human.

I'm a little tall for my age at 170cm, but that's hardly going to mean anything if I need to fight an alien or a robot or something.

I'm also considered somewhat of a genius in this world and not for the reason you're thinking of either. Sure having an adult's education in the mind of a child impressed a lot of people. But it's super obvious to me that this mind works far better than my last one. It just…I don't even know how to explain it. Things just make more sense.

I'm not even trying to brag or anything either. I know that in the grand scheme of this world, I'm nothing. Ever had a chance to read Reed Richards papers? Tony Starks publically available designs? Otto Octavius's research?

It's so far beyond me, it's not even funny. Richards gets…abstract very quickly and I think you need multiple PHD's to even understand what he's talking about. Stark's stuff is simpler, give me a couple of years and I might even be able to replicate some of it…but that's just what's publically available. The simple shit. Basically, I won't be building an arc reactor anytime soon. Otto's research is at least understandable, but I have no idea how he makes some of the logical leaps he does. His mind clearly works differently to lesser beings like me.

But as far as school goes? I'm acing everything and I've even been scouted out by a few universities already. There's no way my parents could afford to send me, so I'm very much relying on a full ride scholarship.

But yea, even if I am in a world of super beings I should be alright. I've got a decent future ahead of me and I already know what I want to do.

"Vance! Hey! Over here!" I look over at the…rounded form of my friend Laurie. She was seriously smart and a sweet girl, always really nice to everyone.

"Hey Laurie!" I wave. "What's up?"

Her smile brightened as she ran…wobbled over towards me.

"We've got science first period! Want to walk there together?" She asked with a smile.

"Sure! Let's go" and we start to walk to science class while Laurie tells me about a new book she'd been reading. Something about steam power, it was kind of interesting as a concept.

"It's cool and all, but if you ever actually want to power anything, I don't see why anyone would choose steam" I say.

"It's not the most efficient right now! But the book said they'd been looking into a way to circulate the steam and use the byproduct to refuel the engine..."

She didn't get to finish as 'Flash' or Eugene as I sometimes call him, interrupts us.

"Well if it isn't Astrodick and his charity case. Why are you hanging around this loser Vance? Putting in some volunteer hours for the fat and ugly?" He laughs at his own joke.

And I see Laurie's whole person just…drop. She'd always had issues with bullies, it's hard for someone as smart as her to make friends as it is. But the way she looks just makes her a walking target for some of Midtown High's asshole community.

I've tried to help in that regard…but Flash never seems to get the memo.

"Personally, I hang out with people I actually like and enjoy talking to. Didn't realize you only hung out with people you had the hots for, Eugene. Better watch out Tiny" I grin and nudge the Asian guy nicknamed 'Tiny' near me because at this point we'd drawn a small crowd.

Spluttering, Flash couldn't come up with something clever quick enough. So he ended up going with: "Yea? Well…maybe you should just marry her then!"

And everyone was silent until I laughed in his face.

"HAHAHA, come on Eugene, it's like you're not even trying" I wipe the tear from my eye.

His face went red and just when it looked like some other students were ready to intervene, the bell rang.

Flash left with a frown. But he'd get over it and be back...he always was. He really wasn't so bad, a bit of a dick, but not evil or anything. We actually got on fairly okay.

…also yea, that's Eugene 'Flash' Thompson. Not the broader blonde one from comic books, but the smaller brown one from the Spiderman movie…

…speak of the devil…

"Did you see the look on his face?!" The large Asian guy, Ned came up and laughed.

"He makes it too easy" I smirked back.

"You going to club after school Vance?" The Tom Holland lookalike asks me.

"Wouldn't miss it Peter"

If it matters, I'm pretty sure he's not Spiderman yet. We're also not that close. We talk and I'd call him a friend, but not so close that he'd reveal any Spider secrets to me if he had any. Not on purpose either, because I really admire Spiderman. I played the PS4 Spiderman game right before I died and what struck me was how selfless he was. Everything he did, he just did because he thought it was the right thing to do. He never got anything in return…other than the death of his loved ones and being dirt poor and yet he just kept trying to do good. He was what I'd call a real hero.

If I was a super person in some way, I'd want to be like him. But since I'm not, I'm happy to follow my own dreams.

And just like that, school came and went and suddenly I was at my club, the Decathlon. Basically a quiz game, it was actually pretty fun. I tried to get Laurie to join too, but she seemed pretty hesitant…probably because Flash was in the club too.

"Yo Cap" I salute our decathlon captain Liz as I walk in.

She smirks in response.

"I'm not Captain America, Vance"

"Damn, that's an old reference. How about Captain Decathlon?" I try.

"That would be the lamest super hero" she laughs in response.

As far as anyone is aware, Captain America is dead. Must be frozen in ice somewhere. Or maybe he is dead, different universe and all.

We line up and get ready to practice in teams. Peter and I against Cindy and Michelle. We were our four strongest members, but Peter and I were undefeated and Liz was hoping we could get to Nationals.

"Dude" Peter whispers under his breath, as we take our places.

I look over at him with an eyebrow raised.

"How do you do that?!" He looked really confused and in awe.

I narrow my eyes.

"Do what?"

"You know…" he trails off trying to mime something with his hands.

"Talk to girls and stuff! You were just talking to Liz like…"

"Like a person?"

"Yea!" He goes and then realizes how stupid of a revelation that was.

I grin, get in close and whisper in his ear.

"Do you like Liz?"

The reaction was immediate. I swear he almost fell of his chair.

"What?!" He says, forgetting to control the volume of his voice.

"No, of course not! She definitely wasn't the reason I joined this club or anything…definitely not" his rambling was all the confirmation I needed…that and it was the same in the movie.

"Your secret's safe with me" I wink and almost send him into a panic attack.

"Alright! First question" and Liz starts the Decathlon.

The practice was soon over, and we were all preparing to go home.

"Hey Peter want to come to my place? I've got a new lego set we could do, Millennium Falcon, 3000 pieces!" Ned asks.

"Woh, sounds awesome man!" Peter responded.

"…but I can't, I already promised Harry I'd go to his place tonight for dinner" he continued.

"Harry Osborn?! Since when were you two friends?"

"Ah, he's not so bad! Really! He just gets a bad rep from his Dad. He's actually a good guy"

Ned looked at him skeptically.

Harry Osborn was one of the reasons I knew this school was not the same as the one in the movie. He was actually an alright guy, not an ounce of psychopath in him. He wants to take after his late mother and go into botany.

"Take it from me Ned, Osborn's alright" I jump into their conversation.

"If you say so Vance…"

"Hey, if you don't mind, could I come over in Peter's place and help you out with the Millennium Falcon?"

Peter and Ned look at me with mild surprise. Like I said, we were friends, we just didn't hang out much outside school and decathlon club.

"Oh this is rich, pancake tits and Astrodick building legos together, how romantic. Maybe you guys can makeout afterwards, I have it on good authority that Astrodick likes them fat" he laughs at his own joke again.

"Why do you seem so interested in my romantic life Eugene? If I didn't know better, I'd say you had a crush on me."

To his credit, he just rubbed that one off and snorted in response.

"Mind if I come too?" We all turn to see Michelle standing there with a nonchalant expression.

We must have looked confused because she continued.

"What? I like lego"

Not the kind of hobby I would have predicted for her, but…

"I like building things up, just to smash it at the end, reducing it to its base components as if nothing ever existed in the first place. It's very zen."

…that sounds more like Michelle.

"Hey! Don't smash my lego!" Ned gets defensive.

"Isn't that better anyway Ned? Then you can build it again later with Peter" I try to restore the peace.

Ned seems to consider it for a while and then nods.

"Yea, that would be cool actually!"

"Awesome! So we're in agreement! Let's go build that lego…" Michelle stared at me with her normal 'I'm looking right through you look'.

"…and then smash it" I finish and she grins. The three of us head to Ned's place.

"Have fun at Harry's, Peter!" I wave.

"I've been there a few times as well, don't freak out about his Dad too much, he's a bit intense but he'll like you if you can prove how smart you are" I give him a thumbs up and escape to catch up with Ned and Michelle. Catching a glimpse of his confused looking face as I go.

So we built the lego Millennium falcon…and then subsequently smashed it. I don't think I've ever seen Michelle look so happy. It was actually a lot of fun.

"Later losers" she said when she left.

"See you tomorrow, Ned" I say and begin to walk my own way.

"See you Vance! Thanks for coming over" I turn back and he's waving at me with a big grin on his face.

I smile and give him a thumb up.

As I'm walking home, I realize just how late it had gotten. The sky was black and I could see the twinkling of…zero stars. New York City isn't the best when it comes to star viewing.

That's part of the reason I want to get out there…well that and the tons of advanced alien races confirmed in the movies and comics. I want to be an astronaut. I'll join the air force first, become a pilot and then I'll apply to the space program. I want to be able to see it all, the wonders of this new universe I find myself in.

"Vance Astrovik" I suddenly hear from behind me.

I turn with a start to discover a giant, easily 6"4, maybe 250 pounds of pure muscle…which isn't hard to see as he's wearing a blue skinsuit covering his entire body and on his arm is…a shield, styled like Captain America's. I could almost feel the power emanating from him. Who the hell was this guy? And how does he know my name?

"Calm down. I'm not here to hurt you…I'm here to warn you"

"Warn me of what?" I ask.

"Not to become an astronaut. Never join the space program, maybe you shouldn't join the air force either, just to be safe"

My eyebrows were fully raised and my mouth hung open. Where does this guy get off telling me what to do?! …wait, how does he even know about that?!

"…how do you know so much about me?" I ask, pinning him with the best glare my fourteen year old self could muster.

He goes to respond, but his form almost…flickers for a second.

"Tch. I don't have much time. Listen closely and hold this for me" he hands me the shield and continues talking. I take it without thinking about it much… I later learned this is a psychological trick you can use. Talk to distract the mind, while the body subconsciously takes whatever is handed to it.

"First off, I'm you from the future"

I take a step back and examine him from head to toe once more. No way, he has the physique of a greek god. I look down at myself for comparison…no chance.

"Thomas, listen to me…"

My eyes widen and I take another step back to steady myself as I threaten to faint on the spot…that was my name from my old life. I haven't told that to anyone, nor would I ever. As far as I'm concerned, Thomas is dead and Vance is alive, the slate was wiped clean, no point dwelling on it.

…could he really be me?

"In the future, you join the air force, become a Major and then join the space program. Your mission was to be preserved in cryostasis and sent to a distant galaxy…except humanity beat me…you…us to it. They'd already colonized it. What's more, Earth had long since been destroyed and humanity was on the verge of being completely wiped out. This event awakened my mutant powers and I ended up joining and leading a newly formed Guardians of the Galaxy…"

"Woh, woh, woh hold up there…mutant powers?!" I cut him off at that key piece of info…there was a lot of key info in that spiel, but this part seemed particularly important.

"Yes, they were awakened when I was about to be killed by an invading alien force…I think I was around thirty when that happened. Though of course this was long in the future."

"Uh huh, so I'm a mutant?" My blood runs cold remembering the conversation my family had earlier that morning.

"Yes, though dormant, you have the mutant gene. Though my reason for being here, is partly to prevent its awakening. That and prevent you from becoming an astronaut…my life was completely ruined after my first and last mission and every event since has been…mired in despair" he looks down at the ground and I think he was frowning…it was hard to tell with the bodysuit.

"What about the Guardians?" I ask, trying to cheer up my future self… I'd accepted it at this point. His story was too specific and weird to be a lie and he knew my name in my past life.

"Fine friends and comrades…but many die all the time. The universe is both large and unstable in the future. Constant wars and dead friends has sent me here… to try and prevent myself from even being there in the first place" he looks me in the eye.

"Please…" he moves his hand towards me and I flinch and slap it away…except not with my hands…

My eyes widen as I stare at his hand. He stares at his own hand too and we just stand in silence for a couple of seconds.

"…what the hell was that?" I break the deadlock.

"…it's impossible…my mutant powers shouldn't awaken until the future…did I change it somehow? Or…"

"WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?" I yell, my hands shaking. I'd heard his mumblings, I just didn't want to admit it to myself.

His head jerks up to meet my eye line.

"Telekinesis…my mutant power is telekinesis. The power to move matter with your mind…I do apologize…I didn't think that just meeting my past self would have such dire consequences…"

I was breathing heavily and my eyes went back to my hands. That's when I noticed I wasn't holding the shield.

I quickly looked behind me to find a red, white and blue shield floating in midair.

I screamed in surprise and it flew right at my future self. Who simply held up his hand and caught it…before flickering again, this time dropping to one knee.

"I haven't got long left. Listen to me!" He yelled when I was unresponsive.

"I've always felt my powers lead to catastrophic events in my life because that was how the series of events started, with the awakening of my mutant gene. But! They've also helped me save countless friends and innocent lives the universe over. Train them well and use them how you see fit…personally I took inspiration from Captain America. Righteous and unfaltering Captain America, to do good because it's the right thing to do. Find your own way Vance, you'll be alright"

My panic attack slowed down as his words droned on. Mutant powers don't change who I am. I don't even have to use them if I don't want to. I'm going to be fine.

I take a deep breath and nod seriously at my future self.

I think he grins at me back…but again, hard to tell with the mask.

"And hold on to this…as an apology" he throws the shield at me and before I can think, a strange compulsion overtakes me and it stops a few inches from my face.

"Why would I want this?" I ask. What am I going to do with a knockoff shield?

"What, you don't want Captain America's actual shield?" He teased.

My eyes snap back to it as I look at it in a whole new light. This thing is way too much trouble…

"This is going to get me killed!" I yell.

"Or it could be a powerful tool to protect yourself…it is a shield…"

"How do you even have this?!"

"I searched for it on the old ruins of earth…took me months to find the thing..."

He flickers again and this time lets out a yell.

"Alright Vance, that's my time. Train well, and remember, don't become an astronaut!" He says and his form starts to fade.

"Wait! What do they call you?! In the future what do they call you?!"

"…Major Victory…" his voice fades out as does the rest of him.

…

"…Pfff, Major Victory?! Really?! Definitely never calling myself that" I laugh to myself, trying to somehow distract myself from the insanity of everything that just happened.