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Issue 35
In My Father's Image
Part Two
Written By Barry Reese
"Johnny? Hold on... it's going to be okay." Lyja flew over the streets of Manhattan, having used her Skrull shapeshifting abilities to take on the form of a huge green colored bird. Held tightly in her talons was the man she loved -- Johnny Storm, better known to the world at large as the Human Torch. Blood dripped from the numerous wounds he'd suffered at the hands of Mechanix, the son of old Fantastic Four foe Crucible.
"You should have... stayed... and fought him," Johnny hissed, trying to maintain consciousness. Dug deep into his flesh was the remnants of the power suit that Reed had devised for him, the one that allowed Johnny to mimic his old flame powers. Mechanix had taken control of the suit's circuitry and commanded it to crush Johnny.
"You're more important than any supervillain."
"He'd gonna hurt... more people."
Lyja
didn't answer, because she knew that Johnny was right. If their positions had
been reversed, he would have found some way to confront the villain while making
sure she got the help she needed. Lyja had never managed to be the hero that
Johnny was… but she wasn’t about to apologize for it. She and Johnny were
back together now and she’d do whatever it took to protect that.
Four
The
Human Torch groaned, wishing he’d acted sooner. If he had, he might have been
able to deal with Mechanix before he’d wounded the woman interviewing him and
fled on waves of cybernetic force.
As
Lyja neared the roof, she tapped her chest, activating a small transmitter that
Reed had implanted there. It sent a signal to the building’s defenses,
allowing a small hatch to open and allow her access to the interior. As she
landed with Johnny in her grip, she saw that the Thing and his fiancé, the
Vixen, were rushing towards them.
“What
happened to flame-brain?” Ben asked, picking up the team’s youngest member.
“Johnny
was right… Crucible’s son was up to no good.” Lyja shifted back into her
natural Skrull shape, following closely on Ben’s heels as they headed towards
the infirmary. “He’s calling himself Mechanix.”
“Kid
looks like he went through a meat grinder.”
Lyja
winced at Ben’s words, having tried to ignore the potential severity of
Johnny’s wounds. She felt Sharon Ventura touch her arm, holding her back.
“Why
don’t you let Ben take care of him?”
“He
might need me….”
“At
this point, you’re only going to get in the way. Ben will call Reed and
between the two of them, Johnny’s sure to get better. Okay?”
Lyja
hesitated, obviously wanting to remain at her man’s side. In the end, though,
she let her shoulders sag and allowed herself to be pulled away by
“I
understand. Believe me.”
“What
do you mean?”
“I
wouldn’t dream of asking Ben to leave the FF… not after the problems that
caused the last time… but I’m not sure I can be one of those wives who stays
at home and worries about her husband either.”
“There’s
not much room for compromise,” Lyja pointed out. “I was in the same boat,
remember? I used to tag along on FF missions sometimes but I always felt like an
outsider. Like I was checking up on him when he was out with his friends.”
“That’s
what I’ve been afraid of. But you know, I was an official member of the FF
back when Ben was the leader… and I was thinking about asking Reed if he’d
seriously consider making the group the Fantastic Five and including me. If you
want in, too, maybe we can sell him on the fact that no one’s using the
Fantastic Force name right now….”
“You’re
serious?” Lyja asked, excited by the thought but not holding out much hope for
it.
“As
I’ve ever been.”
Lyja
looked out the window, letting her thoughts settle before speaking. She knew
that
Wladyslav
Shinski was shackled with power-nullifying bonds, preventing him from accessing
any of his abilities. Coupled with the absence of his armor, this made Shinski
nothing more than a typical middle-aged man. A middle-aged man with a brilliant
mind and the capacity for ultimate evil, but still… he was much less of a
threat than normal.
Shinski
was led into the small briefing room by three armed guards, all of whom had
weapons in hand. It pleased him to see that he was so respected and feared. As
part of the Enclave, he had only been one amongst many. But as Crucible, he was
seen as a threat unto himself. It was evolution personified.
Inside
the briefing room was Reed Richards, leader of the same Fantastic Four that had
defeated Crucible again and again. Shinski couldn’t help but smile at seeing
the grim visage on the FF leader’s face. “Prof. Richards,” Shinski said.
“What an honor.”
Reed
didn’t bother returning the greeting. “I suppose you’ve been made aware
about what happened last evening?”
“That
my bastard son has declared himself a supervillain and run amok? Yes. I’ve
heard.” Shinski sat down across from Reed, enjoying the game that was now
underway. “If you’ve come to share your concern for my offspring, I can’t
help but be touched.”
“Johnny
Storm was brought to me last evening, a victim of your son’s new powers. The
boy’s in stable condition but he had internal bleeding that took hours to
stop. I have every reason to believe that Mechanix is planning some sort of
massive display of his abilities, in the hopes of somehow impressing you.”
“And?”
“I
want to know anything that might help us find him and stop him.”
Crucible’s
smile became a sneer. “And what would I gain from this? Also… I think this
is at least the second visit* you’ve made to
the Raft in recent months, both times seeking to deal with criminals. I hope
you’re not losing your moral compass.”
(*During
the Frightful Four storyline, the FF squeezed information about of one of
Shinski’s old cronies)
Reed
stood up, leaning over the table so that he towered over Shinski. “I won’t
go the same route we did last time. I’m not going to threaten you. Instead,
I’ll make a promise: I’ll see to it that your every scientific achievement
is cast into doubt by single-handedly finding holes in your research methods.
People won’t know whether you’re a genius or a quack.”
Shinski
looked horrified. “You wouldn’t dare….!”
“I’d
relish every minute of it.”
Crucible
stewed for a moment before finally nodding. “Fine, Richards. I’ll tell you
what you need to know… but be warned: it’s too late. My son has already put
his plans in motion!”
Gavin Delaney had to resist the urge to strut. As an academic, Gavin had rarely felt this kind of emotion, which he likened to that of a star quarterback basking in the afterglow of a triumphant victory. He'd announced his intentions to the world and had then bested one of the Fantastic Four. How could his father possibly ignore him now?
Mechanix stepped into the cockpit of the small aircraft, smiling to himself as the engine flared to life, answering his mental command. The plane was designed for crop-dusting, but its canisters held a very different kind of cargo today. Invisible nanobots were about to be dispersed into the air above Manhattan, altering anyone who breathed them in. It was going to be a very different kind of evolution than what his father had tried at Glastonbury, but it would have the same end result: mankind was going to get a kickstart on the evolutionary ladder.
Outside on the runway, men and women were shouting at him. Gavin had paid for the plane to be delivered to this private airfield weeks ago, but his actions on television had made him the target of fear when he'd arrived to take possession of the plane. He'd been forced to kill two guards and injure another. A waste of prime genetic material, but necessary, he supposed. When making an omelet, a few eggs had to be broken....
The plane began moving forward, gaining the speed that would be necessary to take to the air. While it did so, Gavin reached under the pilot's seat and retrieved a small duffel bag. Inside, packed as tightly as he could muster, was a metal face mask and a set of robes. They were patterned after his father's, whose own armor had been crafted by the same monks who had fashioned that of Doctor Doom. As such, there were similarities between all three, though Gavin hoped that it would be his own visage that would be recorded in the history books.
After donning the armor and robes, Mechanix turned back to the front window and thought of the things to come. There would be mass confusion at first, but eventually people would come to realize what he had given them. No longer would they be like ants, scuttling about underfoot while the Marvels played their games of death all around them.
A new era was upon the world and Manhattan would be the first to bask in it.
"He's going to be fine. I promise." Reed squeezed his wife's hand and was gratified to see a smile touch her lips. As she sat beside him in the open air Fantasticar, with her long blonde hair streaming behind her, Reed was reminded once more of how beautiful she was... and how incredibly lucky he was to have her in his life.
"I know. He just looked so miserable when you told him he couldn't come with us."
Reed glanced back at the Thing and Vixen, who were talking about their upcoming wedding. Sharon had volunteered to come along in Johnny's place, which was certainly welcome. "We never seem to have a lack of viable replacements though, do we? I'm pleased with the way we've grown recently... become more of an extended family."
"Extended is right," Sue agreed. "I still can't believe Valeria's with the Avengers now*. She's so young...."
(*Marvel Girl joined the West Coast branch in Avengers West Coast # 27)
"But very mature for her age. As you've pointed out to me on many occasions."
"Hey Stretcho!" Ben yelled from the back. "You think we can trust this info ol' Crucible gave us? Shary and me were talkin'... maybe it's a trap."
"A very real possibility, Ben." Reed directed the Fantasticar lower, letting the ship pass beside the famous Daily Bugle building. "But one that we'll have to take a chance on. According to Shinski, the last contact he had with his son was in the form of a letter that arrived two weeks ago. In the letter, Mechanix uses codewords to disguise his true message. Shinski is convinced that his son was trying to tell him that he was going to recreate his father's attack on Glastonbury, but this time in New York City and with his own version of the Evo Solution. One that's aimed at altering humanity to fit his own twisted version of cybernetic life."
"And are safe from his powers, Reed?" Vixen asked. "Aren't there tiny machines in each of our costumes?"
"Yes," Reed admitted, glancing over at his wife. "And Sue's got a control device she picked up from the Microverse* controlling her own abilities. But I've placed a small baffler on each of our costumes that should randomize the electronic signals given off by our equipment. This should negate his ability to control them. If I had more time, I could create something similar to trap Mechanix in, cutting him off from all equipment... but I felt haste was necessary."
(*Picked up in our first Annual.)
"So you're sure I'm not going to turn into a threat?" Sue asked, lowering her voice. Without the inhibitor in place, Sue had been mad with pain and had fallen prey to the lurking darkness that had been given a name: Malice.
"Have faith," Reed said, though there was a hesitation in his voice that Sue couldn't miss. He had been in a hurry, she realized, and wasn't 100% positive that his device would hold up. She wondered why he hadn't insisted she stay behind... but then she realized that even with the inhibitor, she was the most powerful member of the group and they might need her strength.
"And your doohickey there is tracing him?" Ben asked, leaning forward in his seat to peer at a small electronic device floating near Reed's ship controls. The device was shaped a bit like H.E.R.B.I.E., though Reed claimed it was actually the next stage in progression: smaller, faster, more intelligent: H.A.R.V.I.E.
H.A.R.V.I.E. beeped when it realized that a member of the FF was speaking about it. Its mechanized voice was far more realistic than Ben expected, sounding a bit like the kid from The Sixth Sense. "According to information given to us by Dr. Shinski, Mechanix has experimented upon himself using Mantegna Nanobots. This nanotechnology is traceable through means such--"
"Uh-huh," Ben answered, rolling his eyes and looking at Sharon. "It's not bad enough Big Brain has to talk like an encyclopedia, he creates robots to do it fer 'im!"
"Hush, Ben!" Sue exclaimed. H.A.R.V.I.E. had begun to beep excitedly, his torso plating sliding away to reveal a tiny GPS unit. "We've found him nearby!"
"Affirmative," H.A.R.V.I.E. said. "And massive amounts of nanotechnolgy is loose in the air!"
Franklin Richards sat in front of the computer monitor, his eyes growing ever more heavy. He was supposed to be doing his homework, as assigned by his and Valeria's tutor Peter Hunter, but he really wanted to go play his games or see a movie or just about anything that didn't involve math.
He rested his head on his hand, both drooping towards the desktop as minutes passed.
And then he heard her voice.
"Hellooooo? Anybody home?"
Franklin looked around, his hair sticking up wildly. "Who's there?"
A young girl -- about Valeria's age -- suddenly shimmered into view. She wore a red and blue uniform with goggles perched atop her head... and she was strangely familiar to Franklin. "Hey, kid! Are your parents around?"
"No... Are you from that other Earth?"
"Yep... the same one where you stuffed your parents and their friends after their fight with Onslaught. My name's Ricki... but nowadays people call me Bucky."
"What do you want?" Franklin asked, slipping from his chair and moving closer. Bucky's image flickered, like she was one of those... what did his dad call them?... hologrammys or something.
"When your folks get back, tell them we need help. He's back."
"Who's back?"
The single word she spoke before the image faded entirely was enough to send a shiver down Franklin's spine.
The Fantasticar found Mechanix floating in mid-air, his mentally controlled plane circling him, spewing forth an invisible cloud of nanites.
The Invisible Woman was the first to respond, jumping from the Fantasticar and catching herself on an invisible platform. Down below, men and women were writhing on the ground as nanites clustered in their bloodstream and began to wreak physical changes upon them. "Let's get you on the ground so everyone has a fair shot at you," she said, attracting the villain's attention.
"Susan Richards!" Mechanix answered. "How good of you to join me. Tell me... is your brother still living?"
Being reminded of her brother's injuries only made her put extra oomph behind the column of force she directed at Mechanix. It slammed into him so hard that he nearly blacked out and tumbled towards the ground.
Vixen and the Thing were waiting for him, having been deposited there by Mr. Fantastic. "I've got him, Ben!" Sharon shouted. She caught the madman out of the air but was surprised when he wrapped his arms around her.
"Die, you stupid cow!"
Vixen felt her super-tough skin begin to give as Mechanix altered the texture of his hands, making them sharp enough to dig into her flesh. Pain flared through her, for his agitated nanites burned at her veins and tissues. Screaming, she tossed him away -- right into the pounding right fist of the Thing.
"It's Clobberin' Time!" the hero yelled, pounding the villain with all his strength.
"Ben!" Reed shouted, elongated towards the scene where Mechanix had landed. "You could have killed him!"
"It woulda been too good fer him, if I had. But he can take it... it was like punchin' a brick wall."
Mechanix looked up, blood dripping from beneath his crumpled mask. "Cretin. You think your power makes you special... but the true nature of man comes from within. From the mind. And I'm going to share my true power -- that of my intellect -- with the world!"
"Kid... I'm sorry you got daddy issues, but so does everybody." The Thing plucked him up by the throat, letting the man's feet dangle in the air. "You see all these people rolling around? You're gonna use your powers to cure 'em... or Stretcho here ain't gonna be able to stop me from tossing you to the moon."
"I wouldn't mind being a martyr," Mechanix whispered.
"If you die, then you'll never know what daddy said about you when we visited him in jail."
Mechanix hesitated and Ben knew he's struck a nerve.
"He said," Ben whispered, leaning close. "That you were a mama's boy. Amongst other things."
"No! You're lying!"
Reed touched the man's arm. "Son, think about this for a moment. Your father, for all his genius, is in jail now. Scorned by all his peers. Don't let his madness lead you down the same frightful path. Show that you really are better than him by rising above all this!"
Mechanix struggled for a moment more, acting for all the world like a little boy throwing a tantrum. "I'm just as good as he is... just as good...."
"No," Reed corrected him. "You're better. Now prove it."
Less than hour later, the FF returned to Four Freedoms Plaza, weary but pleased.
"Poor guy," Vixen said. "He's really got some problems."
"Hopefully Doc Samson will be able to help him," Reed answered, his arm about his wife's waist. "There's no one better."
"I think my husband's pretty darn close," Sue said, kissing him on the cheek. "I'm glad we were able to stop him without too much violence. I wish more of our adventures ended that way."
"It just reminds me that I should spend more time with Franklin," Reed answered.
The foursome came to a stop as they stepped from the hangar into one of the main hallways. Johnny Storm was there, standing upright with some assistance from Lyja, a cocky grin on his face. "Hey, guys!" he chirped.
"I thought you were going to stay in bed," Sue teased.
"I did... but Lyja got a rise out of me."
Sue decided not to take the bait on that one. Instead, she merely laughed.
"Hey, rock face," Johnny said, looking at Ben. "Me and Lyja wanted to ask you something. Well, you and Sharon both."
"What is it?" Vixen asked.
"We were wondering... you guys interested in having a double ceremony? Lyja and I would like to get hitched again."
So soon after getting back together? Sue wondered. But she was caught up in the moment as the Thing swept both Johnny and Lyja up into the air. "Hah! 'Bout time you kids got your heads straightened out! The more the merrier!"
"Daddy?" Franklin asked, creeping up alongside his father.
Reed knelt down, smiling. "Yes, son?"
"Doom."
And all the joy departed the room immediately.
Next Issue: Before the coming of Doom, there shall be a wedding! Two weddings in fact! You're cordially invited to the nuptials of Ben Grimm & Sharon Ventura, as well as Johnny Storm & Lyja! Enjoy the good times... because the ultimate danger lies just around the corner... on Counter-Earth!
AUTHOR'S NOTES
Hope you guys liked the new villain introduced in this little two-parter. Next issue is a "catch your breath" issue as our various subplots take center stage. And then it's a trip to Counter-Earth, where the Young Allies, Dr. Doom, Lancer and more are waiting.
Keep in touch,
Barry