December Year 4

Children of the Atom: Mutants alone in a world with no mentors, no resources, and no barriers but prejudice.

Previously: Resting after a night of partying, the cast minus Purple Haze was approached by Cynic (with Purple Haze) with a proposition they couldn't refuse: either go find his niece, probably with a mutant cult, or he would reveal the world Burn and Seeker are gay. It was during his "offer" that most of the cast was exposed to this, only Noctivagant, Still and Format still being ignorant of it.

Inside car number 1...

"Mark, you wanna tell me anything?" Greta 'Still' Maugham asks Mark 'Burn' Hayes. "You three have been quiet for some time now. What did I do?"

"Nothing, Greta, nothing." Ted replies to her from the backseat.

"And you, Ted, what did I do to you?"

"Nuthin'. You did nothin', it ain't your fault. Forget it." The bothered Jimi Powell answers as fast he can. It's not her fault. For him, it is Mark's fault. How could Mark hide he is gay? 'I ain't no bigot. I just doesn't like fags lying to me, that's all.' is a repeating couple of sentences in Purple Haze's head.

"Are we there yet?"

"No, it's still gonna take a few minutes. I think. Ted, have you sensed anything?"

"I think... that way." He points to a road detour. "I think there's people like us that way."

Mark stops the car and the closely following car driven by Cynic stops, too. "Are you sure?"

"Positive." He says without being completely sure, feeling something. Mark tosses him the cell phone and Ted 'Seeker' Cleary dials Cynic's car phone number.

Inside car number 2...

*RING* *RING*

"Hello. J... Cynic here. Wait a sec. You kids back there, I'm on the phone. Now talk to me, Teddy... Ok. You sure?... No, I didn't tell... Believe me. Bye."

"So, are we there yet?" Bruno asks rearranging his messy hair.

Amanda discreetly straightens her bra. "I'm tired. Can't we, like, eat something? Shoot, I forgot my brush."

"Ok, ok." He picks up the phone again. "Mark... Jimi, give the phone to Mark... Mark, turn the car around. These kids are starved, and we should probably eat before getting to these guys.

On the other end of the line, Mark Hayes thanks the bright heavens above him that he will not have to be in the same car as Jimi Powell. He doesn't want to break a friendship with him, but the way he's been looking at him, as if he was a freak... that's just horrible.

"The Monkey Within" Bar & Grill...

Don't even try to guess the reason owner Ann Rebello chose this name for her restaurant. Just don't. She just did it. Now, the food isn't all that bad, and she does have the best coffee in a five mile radius. Her competition is, one would say, nigh non-existent.

Bruno Woolcot sips a coke while the others bite on pies, burgers or pretzels. Only him and the Cynic don't have a cup of java in front of them.

"Are we going to exchange passengers, Cynic?" Mark asks.

"Yes!" is his quick answer, a bit of apple pie flying from his mouth. Amanda is grossed by it, but she can understand. This man has been complaining all the way. "I want the boy in my car. You can take the love birds with you."

"Great." interrupts, Greta "So I'll go with Mark, Bruno and Amanda, you'll take Jimi and Ted. Can we go now?"

"What's the hurry? You like this spandex stuff that much?" Amanda asks. Her boyfriend bare-chested is a pleasant thought for her (but both Mark and Ted think he's a little fat), but Greta danced a little too close to Bruno last night.*

[* Children of the Atom #4 - Keep in mind only a day has passed since]

"C'mon, Amanda, there's kid in danger. How old did you say he is again?"

"Fifteen." Cynic replies. His nephew is fifteen. Old enough to shave, but not to drive.

"Well, not a kid, but a human being."

"We don't know fer sure he's in danger. All we know's what this bastard here been telling us." Jimi says, gritting his teeth a bit. He's still mad with the kidnapping, invasion of privacy and outright blackmailing. Plus, he can't believe he's been sleeping with a gay guy. Uh... that isn't sound right. He's been sharing an apartment with a gay man. Yes, that's it. But it still ticks him off.

Mark bites his burger. 'Did Bruno overhear I'm gay?' races through his mind. They were becoming pals at the club. He would probably move away from him because of this. It happened before, when not even Mark knew he was gay, because of mere suspicions from the others. It could happen again.

When they drive away, Mark isn't bothered by Amanda and Bruno's "hums" and "ahns" on the backseat, and Greta, as much as she tries to, can't start a conversation with Mark. On the other car, Jimi "Purple Haze" Powell is extremely jumpy in the backseat, besides a meditative Ted "Seeker" Cleary. Jimi would much rather be in the same car of the foxy lady that is Greta "Still" Maugham.

Meanwhile, South on the very road they just took a detour ...

"What's de name o' de next city?" asks the African-American who won the "Third Bob Marley Look-Alike Contest". The woman by his side checks her map... spins the map ninety degrees to the North is on the upside... fixates her glassy eyes on a spot and finally says:

"Clarksville. Anyone we know there?"

"Not really. We gonna be playin' dere?"

"Maybe. What the hell?"

In front of a complex...

Well, 'complex' doesn't describe this place well. It looks more like a monastery than the high-tech building the word 'complex' implies, but it does have its technological gizmos inside it. Regardless of the worn-out brick walls outside giving the impression of a lost-in-time medieval building, there is no such thing as a secret society living far away from civilization without microwave ovens and all the members connected to the World Wide Web.

"Is this the place, Ted?"

"Mark, man, I'm starting to get a headache. There has got to be a lot of mutants inside this place. Bruno, quit that!" Bruno is shaking and moving his neck a bit for tension relief. But he's metamorphic. It's sickening to watch the human body do that sort of thing. For Ted, anyway.

"So, what's the plan? We go in, make a big mess, get out with the girl?"

"Boy." Cynic corrects Format. "I have not figured it out yet..."

Mark hears the news unhappily. His life is probably on the line here. He was trusting this strange man for the worst possible reasons and now he just doesn't have a plan. What was he thinking. 'God! I'm dragging my friends into this mess' also occurs to him. He knows, consciously, that Bruno, Amanda and Greta only came because they wanted to support him - even though I think Bruno's reason was his hangover stopped any reasonable thinking he could try to have. But his subconscious kept hammering him with adrenaline and fear for their lives. They are all too young to die. He is revolted

"Great! Just great. You drag us from our houses --"

"My place." Greta reminds everyone.

"Shut up!, kid, just shut the f--k up! There is no plan because I didn't know the place. Remember that? I have to think how we're gonna get inside. Now just shut up and let me think a way to get inside this --"

"Maybe we can help?"

The seven turn around. Ted is actually open-jawed. In front of them, standing calmly under the doorway stood eleven men and women, and they all look green for him.

"Welcome to the Oasis!", said finally the one in front.

This would be a perfect closing for this chapter, except things kept happening. Ted whispered to Cynic "Are we in trouble?" and Cynic's answer was "Knee-deep."

"I assure you, my friends, you are among equals. You have no reason to fear anyone from this haven for peace. We are a true Oasis for mutants in this desert of hatred and fear." Man, this guy speaking must be their leader. He speaks smoothly, yet commandingly.

He is Brother Sun, and he can fly. He levitates one foot from the ground and all but Cynic - who's seen too many times to be impressed - are really thrilled. The man is flying. He hovers mid air, the sun behind him creating a nice, warm, angelic image. Brother Sun prepares himself to speak again, but what happens next impresses even the Cynic.

Suddenly and without warning, Sun plunges from the sky.

"What the --?"

Everybody is confused. The first to notice what is happening is Ted Cleary. Everybody around him has normal skin color. With his powers, this gathering of mutants normally looks like lawn in desperate need of mowing, but now everybody's hue is... well, normal. The car, parked behind them with its lights once on, just went dead. Inside the building, computers, TVs, ovens, stereo systems and everything technological goes dead.

A major Power Loss just took place.

"Houston, we have a problem..." is all Format can say.

Somewhere else...

A nobleman grins. He is responsible for this. He never even heard of this bunch of kids, or this 'cult' called Oasis, but he is responsible. The Avengers are his target -- but all mutants, magic-users and tech-whizzes will suffer.

Some other place...

A girl sighs. Her shackles work even without technology. Very hard plastic on the hands and rusty old metal on her legs bind her right now. They wouldn't do it if she hadn't been rebellious. Susannah sighs again. If she hadn't been such a free thinker...

Back in Clarksville...

"Honey! Honey! They're gone. My powers are gone!"

"Mah power's gone too, darlin'."

She hugs him strongly. He hugs her back with equal strength. They cry for a few minutes and finally decide to take shelter in this small city for some time.

Elsewhere in the planet we call Earth...

Every single super powered being has problems. Be it some are thanking whatever heavens they believe in for the release of a curse, be it the cursing of fate for no longer holding heavenly power.

The Walrus was walking down the street and decided to start some random destruction, but looked like a pathetic buffoon trying to remove a light post from the ground. Then again, the Walrus always does.

People in the business of selling super powers cannot do anything but think about their bankruptcy. Super villains everywhere don't know if they are happy for the lack of heroes to stop them, sad because they don't have powers or gizmos to use in taking advantage of the world, or terrified because no one can stop the Big Cosmic Guys that are probably unaffected by this.

Nobody knows if they will even see the sun tomorrow.

Finally back to the Oasis, on the Main Hall...

There's crying and gritting of teeth. People are confused, scared, jumpy, desperate, you name it. They are all mutants, and the main reason - no, the only reason - they are here is that they are all mutants. This difference is what makes them stick together, it's what define these people. And right now, all of them are pretty scared.

One of them, who calls himself Pattern, feels completely blind and illiterate. He is twenty-five years old, and he looks like a geek. Always did. But his mutant power always enabled him to see a pattern in what is happening, even make it easier to guess what is going to happen. He never won the Lotto, and lost some money on bets before he realized chance games were of chance, but he related far better with people, scoring far more than an average person of his appearance would. But now he doesn't have his powers. He doesn't know if they are coming back or not. All he knows is that someone is to blame.

Sitting on a large table upon a stage, their leaders are as concerned as they are. Sister Moon has vague contemplative look to her, while Brother Uranus can only barely hold his tears. Finally Brother Sun decides to speak.

"Brothers! Brothers!" He makes a great effort to be heard without a microphone. Nothing is working. Simply put, they have the same resources to use the cavemen had. The crowd finally calms down after some time and he starts to speak.

"We have all noticed something is not right. But I can assure you" he said this knowing it was a lie he could assure them of anything "everything is going to be fine. The world is not going to end. Our mutant powers will come back and everything will be normal again."

He continued this talking for some ten minutes, until the crowd was quiet. He had spoken of how the Avengers, the Fantastic Four and all the others would most certainly handle it. Finally everybody was peaceful, even if still a bit anxious. They all knew and trusted the man speaking to them, vouching for those he could only hope would be their saviors. The Oasis trusted Brother Sun.

But our cast, bear it in mind, dear reader, doesn't know and has been given plenty of reasons not to trust this man. For all they know, these people might be brainwashed, mind-controlled, or something like that. Their only defense is gone. However amusing it might have been contemplating the possibility of living without fear of being labeled a 'mutie', it was very short. Their powers are like air - they only miss it when they don't have it.

Nervous, Ted holds to Mark's arm like there was no tomorrow. Absolutely no tomorrow. Greta also holds Mark's arm. Ted is extremely jealous. Who does this girl think she is? Amanda and Bruno... entertain each other somewhere else. Others are doing the same. Understand it, it's Apocalypse right now. What would you be doing? This all leaves Jimi and the Cynic alone to each other.

"Ya're not even gonna tell me yer name, are ya?" Jimi asks him, twitching his lip in disgust a bit.

"John de Nicola."

"Uh?"

"My name is John, kid. My sister's son is Joseph. He's the closest thing I have to a son. I haven't seen him yet. Have you...?"

"I don't know how the kid's kisser is, man." Jimi answers, still a bit amused at the sudden honesty and affability with which he is being treated.

Cynic gets his wallet, opens it, takes a photo and hands it to Purple Haze, "Here, this is him three months ago, in his birthday party. Have you seen him?"

"Not yet. I'll keep looking." Jimi says and then looks at John de Nicola again. This man honestly wants to save his nephew. He might have unorthodox methods, but that's what he really wants. And he deserves some help to find him.

Later on, inside a luxurious chamber...

"Does it all proceed as planned? Did you do this?" A woman in a night gown asks.

"No, I didn't. But I'm not all that worried. It'll take no time for our powers to get back. It's been what? seven hours? We go to sleep tomorrow and it's all fine when we wake up the next day." He says with an even voice.

"The girl's powers... are they as you wish? My last check-in showed she still needed much training. And the boy.. waht's hiss name again? Joseph? He needed even more training than that girl."

"Yes, but these mutants that just arrived will be helpful. I had Sister Saturn talk to them--"

"You revealed our plans to that...?" She says revolted, sitting up in the bed.

"No, of curse not. I told her to just check on them. It appears that one of them is a mutant-tracker, an another a healer. They could very well be useful."

"True... And then, Brother Sun?"

"Then we rule what all we want for ourselves, Sister Moon."

Next issue: The conclusion to this little storyline and the definitive cast of the book being set at last! Miss it and... well, it's your loss then.

Author's Notes

The power loss comes from the Power Loss event in the Avengers title running from October to December of Year Four. Even if big events are not my thing, I didn't want to ignore something so big. So, this is the tie-in of Children of the Atom with it. To know more about it read the issues of Avengers of this time period.

The title for this issue is an Oasis song. Most appropriate, isn't it? Regarding the name of the Bar & Grill the kids go to, it came, if you must know, from me looking at two boxes: 'Curse of Monkey Island' and 'Gabriel Knight: The Beast within'. Mix them up and you have 'The Monkey Within'. And it was conceived before I heard of "JLApe", so don't say I swiped it. I inform from whom I swiped catch phrases. Credit where credit is due.

Oh man. Rob Liefield said this. I'm a bad person. A bad writer. I will destroy MV1. Ruin the great fanfic project that it is. Oh, man, this is it. I'm so down right now, I'm not sure there will be a next issue after I answer what little mail I received about last issue...

From Alvaro Ibáñez

Well, first of all, let me apologize for taking so long to respond, but as you know I have been quite busy lately. Now, on to the issue: Where should I start? Oh, I know, I will do a Good/Bad/Ugly thing here!

The Good:
-Characterization: The one thing never lacking in CotA is here again and getting better every issue. I loved the diary pages.
-Casual narrator: I also love the casual tone of the narrator. it's a very welcome break from all the other omnipresent narrators out there.
-The Big Cheese: Bwa-ha-ha. Enough said!

The Bad:
-Too short. What happened? I haven't compared this to other issues, but it really felt like it was a third of the normal length. I understand this was a build-up issue, but couldn't you have thrown some more in there?
-The missing letters. Why are there no letters in the lettercol? Don't tell me it's because of lack of fan-mail, because I know I sent you one for last issue. Hmm... maybe this is a problem experienced only by us subscribers?

The Ugly:
-Your final pun, but you said that yourelf, so...

Well, that about sums it up. Now get back on writting and have the next issue out soon! Heh...

First, let me explain why Alvaro has been so busy: Alvaro is not only a promising new writer here at MV1 -- if you haven't checked out, say, Marvel Triple Action 55, you shouldn't even be reading this so soon --, but he is also Editor-in-Chief of the Marvel Comics Twisted fanfiction group. Addressing a few of his points: the issue wasn't really shorter according to my word counter, but I am trying to make them longer. The lack of letters... well, I lost Alvaro's, but the rest is all your fault! ;-) The final pun from last issue was, indeed, grossly ugly and should be removed from the history of mankind. And "BigCheese" is Al's nickname -- but I wrote that line before I met him, and saying any more on this would be spoiling... Oh, and a final word for Alvaro: Thanks, buddy.

E-mail your comments, thoughts and constructive criticism to Francisco Araujo da Costa

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