FANTASTIC FOUR # 421
by Mark Bousquet
"Homeless"
SOMEWHERE IN SPACE
A rip opens in the Universe.
A tear in the fabric of this reality, opening a portal into this universe from another, newer place.
The object that exits from the whole attracts the attention of a passing Shi'ar cruiser.
"Admiral, picking up something on radar. Visual confirmation in 3 ... 2 ... 1, on screen."
"It's a body." The Admiral says, unimpressed.
"Yes, sir. Armored, no vital signs. Does nt match with specifications of any known cosmic entity. Advise."
"Ignore it, of course. The Shi'ar Empire does not have the time to deal with every floating object we come across. Especially dead bodies."
In time, Admiral Phyken will regret this decision more than any he's ever made.
EARTH
1 HOUR AGO
"Well, now where we gonna live?" Ben Grimm asks, finding an outlet for his misery.
"The Storm Foundation owns buildings throughout New York. Reed and I figured the Pier District would be a nice change of pace," Sue mentions as the Fantastic Four rest in a penthouse of one of New York's finer hotels.
"Well, hon, there was that other option," Reed offers.
"What option was that, Reed? That we go and take Four Freedoms back from the Flavor of the Month Squad?!?" Johnny storms. (Get it? Pun Filled Mark)
"Well, Johnny, we had thought it might be nice to move out of the city." Sue breeches the subject warily, expecting the exact reaction she gets.
"What?!?" Ben and Johnny shout together.
"We think it might be better-" Reed begins, but Johnny cuts him off.
"Forget it, Reed! No way. The city is where the action is. I don't want to move out to East Hickville. You leave the city, you leave the Human Torch behind!" And with that, Johnny ignites and exits the penthouse through the roof-top courtyard.
"Look, Reed, Suzie-Q, you want to move that's fine with me, but I don't see why we should. We've always been here and we haven't had too many problems with it, you know? It's not like our villains trash the city anywhere near as much as the Avengers' do." Ben puts on his coat and hat and heads for the door. "I kind of like the people here, if that means anything."
"Where are you going, Ben? You're not leaving mad, too, are you?" Sue asks in a voice that Reed finds to be one of a very tired woman.
"Naw, I'm just gonna going for a walk." With that, he exits the room.
Reed and Sue look to each other. "Pier District then?" Reed asks and Sue nods her approval. "We'll just have to wait until we retire to move to Nova Scotia."
PRESENT
Reed, Sue and Franklin sit in the Fantasti-Car, heading for the Massachusetts Academy. Reed and Sue want to thank Banshee and the rest of Generation X for watching Franklin while they were away and figure it'll be a nice way for them to spend a day with Franklin.
ëOf course,í Sue sighs, remembering what Reed had told her earlier, the fact that one of the heroes unaccounted for is She-Hulk and her bio-signature was tracked to western Massachusetts and that just happens to be on the way Ö
Sue fights with herself and then, again, decides not to mention to Reed that, like Ben, she wonders where Nathaniel* is and why he was so quick to pass Franklin off to someone else.
*(Nathaniel Richards - Reed's father, who dumped Franklin with the GenX kids as quick as he could.)
She looks at Franklin, so young and innocent and yet so powerful. She wonders if her and Reed can really teach him all he needs to know.
And, she wonders, if they can't, would she be able to let him leave her to go to someone who could?
PRESENT
Ben Grimm walks the streets of New York City, trying to be miserable. Itís not as easy as it should be, he tells himself. With whatever was going on between Alicia and the Surfer he should be downright despondent, but itís hard not to feel good on a warm, fall day as everyone he passes welcomes him home or smiles.
He sees people around him pointing to the sky, so he looks up, too, and sees the Human Torch flying by.
Johnny flies, not really knowing or caring where heís headed. He knows he probably shouldnít have snapped at Reed and Sue like he did, but he doesnít want to be dragged off to the country-side. He likes living in the city. He likes the action, the feeling of electricity the busiest city in the world churns out.
Coming out of his daydream, he spots Spider-Man to his left, engaged in a roof-top battle with the Shocker. Figuring picking on Spidey would cheer him up some, Johnny banks his flight and comes around to hover over the battle.
ìYour dead, Spider-Man! Dead!î The Shocker yells as he fires his shockwaves at a leaping Spidey.
ìHey, Shocker, if I had a dime for every time I heard that, Iíd have enough money to buy you a decent costume.î Spidey sends webs - *THWIP* - towards Shocker, whoís shockwaves dissolve the webs in mid-flight.
ìReal good, Spider-Jerk, letís see how funny you are when I- *ulp* -what are you doiní here?!?î The Shocker yells as he finally sees the Human Torch floating overhead.
ìHuh?î Spidey looks up, too, ìOh wonderful. The Human Torch. Joy. Well donít just float there, Matchstick, capture the Shocker, make me look bad.î
ìIf you insist.î The Torch sends flames towards the Shocker, igniting the Shockerís costume. This isn't fun, Johnny thinks to himself, this isn't fun at all. God, my life sucks.
ìHey! My costumes on fire you jerk!!!î
ìHey, Storm, capture him, donít kill him!î Spidey yells in disbelief.
Johnny floats impassively, waiting until the fire has shorted out the Shockerís system, then draws all the flames back to him, leaving a charred, broken costume on a suddenly ordinary criminal.
Spidey jumps to the Shocker to check to see if heís okay. He is. ìWhat the heck were you thinking? Were you thinking?î he asks Johnny, who still floats in the same spot.
ìPlease, Spider-Man, I can control my flame with ease, you know that. He was never in any danger at all.î And with that, the Human Torch flies off.
ìWhatís his problem?î The Shocker asks, stunned to be alive.
ìBeats me. Heís usually trying to steal all my press and tell funnier jokes than me.î
ìHe sounds kind depressed, if you ask me.î
Spidey tries to follow the Torchís flame in the distance, but the Torch has already lost himself in the maze of New York Cityís buildings, ìYeah, he does.î
ìMaybe you should go after him? Try to cheer him up.î Shocker suggests.
ìI will. Right after I take you into custody.î Spidey webs the Shocker up in a cocoon of web-fluid.
ìSee, here we are having a nice conversation and here you go ruining it.î
Spidey looks at the Shocker in mild surprise, ìOh, spare me.î
ìWhatís that, Daddy?î Franklin asks, his wide eyes trying to figure out what all the beeping coming from Reedís machine means.
ìItís nothing,î Reed hurriedly explains as he tries to put the hand held device out of sight. He looks at Franklinís wide eyed face and reconsiders, ìActually, Franklin, itís something unexpected on the Bio-Scan.î He takes out the device and shows it to Franklin. On itís screen is a map of western Massachusetts, with a red dot beeping to itself. To itís left is a smaller blue dot. ìSee this blue dot? Thatís us. The Bio-Scan is locked on our pattern and as we move, the dot moves.î
ìWhat if we split up?î Franklin asks, his hands dying to grab the Bio-Scan.
ìThen the dot would split up. Iíve programmed it to treat us as one entity when we are in close proximity to each other. The red dot, the one thatís beeping is Jen, the She-Hulk. We want to know why sheís out here. Sheíd been steadily heading back towards New York at a rather slow rate, which would indicate sheís on a bus or in a car.î
ìNot to mention that the dot was following a highway.î Sue adds under her breath.
ìThe bio-signature, err, the red dot, that is, stopped moving on a steady course a little while ago, and started to move around in circles, and then jump quickly from place to place. The beeping you heard happened because weíve come within a mile of Jenís location. The dotsí movements are difficult to understand, but we are close enough to have visual contact rather quickly.î
Sue gasps, ìUh, Reed, weíve got visual contact right now.î
ìThatís impossible, Sue, weíre too far away to see here through all this foliage that the map shows. Sheíd have to be above the tree-line and the She-Hulk Ö canít Ö fly Öî Reed looks up and sees the She-Hulk falling back to the Earth.
THE PLANET AK'YEN'JA
Elíkana walks into the Grand Circle, the area that makes up the village of the Untha People. The towering buildings stand in direct contrast to the Green Desert that she had just walked through. The Untha are a technological people, the finest on the planet. Even now, in the Era of Peace on Akíyeníja, the Untha are the most distrusted of the planetís six cultures, itís time as rulers of the planet still linger in the other cultures.
That is why Elíkana finds herself engaged to Prince Tytan. It is a sign by the Untha Tribal Lord that they no longer think of themselves above the five other cultures. And the fact that Elíkana is a growerís daughter, and not one of the ruling class of her people makes the act all the more significant.
Elíkana sighs, arranged marriages go against her every belief, but she will act for the greater good of her people, and the planet itself. She has only met Tytan a handful of times, and has come to think well of him, even if he does worry too much about what others think and less about his own feelings.
A member of the Royal Praetorian Guard approaches Elíkana somewhat warily. Though Akíyeníja has been a planet of peace for three generations now, it is rare for a visitor to come to the Grand Circle. Elíkana smiles to herself - the Unthans are so formal. She looks at the guard and his full regalia of armor and canít believe that on a day such as this, the man inside would be anything but uncomfortable.
ëTechnology,í she thinks to herself, ëbrings us buildings and armor and weapons of mass destruction and takes away Nature. I will go nuts if I have to live within these trees of steel.í
WESTERN MASSACHUSETTS
ìFranklin, stay in the Fantasti-Car!î Sue shouts as Reed lands in a clearing.
ìBut, mom, I want to-î
ìFranklin! Stay here!î Sue orders as she jumps out of the car and starts running towards the barely moving body of the She-Hulk.
Reed stretches his neck ahead, ìJen, are you okay?!î
ìUgh Ö no, Iím not,î Jen moans weakly as she tries to pry herself out of the indent she had caused in the ground.
ìWhat happened?î Sue asks as she catches up to Jen and lifts the She-Hulk out of the mini-crater with her powers. She then changes the shape of the invisible lift to leave Jen standing on her feet.
ìI happened ya bunch of freaks!î bellows a deep voice as trees are shoved aside.
ìJuggernaut!î Reed exclaimed.
ìGeez, Mr. Faantastic, you sure earned your reputation as being the smartest mind on the planet with that one,î laughs the Juggernaut as he continues his slow walk towards the heroes. ìHere I am, minding my own business, and the Jolly Green Giantís wet dream starts attacking me.î
ìIím sure you were doing nothing wrong, Juggernaut,î Sue adds coolly.
She-Hulk had regained most of her senses, ìHe Ö wasnít, actually. He was Ö just walking. I Ö saw him and Ö figured I should see what Ö he was doing. He Ö didnít like my Ö questions. Ugh, I think he broke one of my ribs.î
ìSee,î Juggernaut smiles as he closes within 10 feet, ìícourse, now that weíve started this, we might as well finish it. This broad puts up a heck of a fight. I actually broke a sweat for a second there.î
ìBe sensible, Juggernaut,î Reed cautions, ìThree of us, one of you Ö what do you say we just drop this?î
Juggernaut burst out laughing. ìHa! Thatís a good one.î Juggernaut comes to stand within two feet of the heroes and stops. ìHow do you want to do this? Should I just start tearing you apart, or should I fake like Iím going to hit you and pop She-Hulk again?î Cain Marko smiles, ìWait, is that little Franklin over there? Howz this grab ya, I charge at one of you, you dodge out of the way, and I end up standing next to your kid over there.î
The words hit Sue hard, as they always do when someone threatens her sonìHowís this grab you, Juggernaut? Youíve got five seconds to turn around and walk away or-î
ìOr what, sweets?î Juggernaut challenges.
ìFive,î Sue starts counting.
ìIím shaking.î Juggernaut folds his arms across his chest.
ìFour.î
ìReed Ö whatís she doing?î She-Hulk asks.
ìThree.î
ìSheís trying to intimidate me, Greenie,î Juggernaut offers. ìIt ainít working.î
ìTwo.î
ìUh, Sue, maybe we should-î
ìOne.î
ìNow, what, youíre gonna count to 100 and hope I get really bored and fall asleep? Iím the Juggernaut. Iím unstoppable.î Juggernaut smiles.
ìZero.î
ìNow what? Whoah!!!î Juggernaut is caught off balance as Sue lifts the ground beneath him off the ground, twenty feet into the air. ìYeah, so what, Iíll just walk to the edge and fall down. Not like itís going to hurt.î
ìSo find the edge.î Sue challenges. ìI can make that ledge youíre standing on as large as I want.î
Cain walked a few steps to his left, than ran to his right, but he canít find any ledge. ìAw, geez, you guys arenít any fun at all. Alright, I give up. Iíll go my own way. Just let me down.î
NIGHT - NEW YORK CITY
Peter Parker and his wife, Mary Jane Watson-Parker, stand in a room filled with some of New Yorkís wealthiest socialites. Daily Bugle publisher J. Jonah Jameson was throwing a charity ball to raise money for Ö something or other, Peter forgot. His mind was on the Human Torch. He hated to admit it, but he was concerned about Johnnyís state of mind.
ìPeter, please stop thinking about whatever it is youíre thinking about and focus some of that attention on me.î
ìSure, MJ, have I told you you look absolutely beautiful?î Peter offers, trying to smile.
ìNo, actually you havenít, but thatís a good start.î MJ smiles back.
ìSorry, I was hoping Reed Richards would be here, so I could talk to him about Johnny.î
ìAnd youíre going to just walk up to him and give him the super-hero handshake so he knows you know what youíre talking about? Maybe you should share that secret identity of yours with someone who doesn't want to kill us.î
Just then, outside the building, the Human Torch roars by, throwing even more light into the room with his flame.
ìHoney, I-î
ìJust go.î
Peter is already gone.
It wasnít hard to find the Human Torch. His flame stood out in the New York night, even amongst all the lights of the city that never sleeps.
Spidey catches up to him, to seeJohnny floating in the air, dead to the world.
ìWhatís shaking, Flame Boy?î Spidey shouts.
ìGo away, Spider-Man. Iíve no time for your jokes tonight.î Johnny answers without looking down.
ìSo letís talk. Iím a good listener.î
ìPlease, Spider-Man.î
ìCímon, weíre friends. We can be serious for once.î Spider-Man offers. ìItís not like anyone has to find out.î
ìFriends? I donít even know your name.î
ìWell, duh, itís Spider-Man,î Spidey joked.
Johnny turns, a small smile on his face.
"And that would make your first name ... Spider? And your last name, Man?" Johnny laughs, "So what's your middle name?"
"Hyphen."
And thatís when hell broke loose. A rip opened in the sky and out stepped three men.
ìWe have made it to New York! All we need now is to find the ancient text of NíKantu the Living Mummy and all the power we need will be ours. Beware world, get ready to shake in fear of Ö the Elementals!î
ìUh, who?î Human Torch asks.
ìBeats me, they ainít one of mine.î
ìI hate fighting people I donít know,î Johnny sighs.
SPACE - NEAR THE PLANET AK'YEN'JA
A body encased in armor floats in space, pulled towards Akíyeníja by the planetís gravity.
Slowly, at first, then faster, the body falls into the planetís atmosphere, towards the planetís surface.
Hurtling at great speed, the armor is stopped only by crashing into Akíyeníjaís surface.
If the figure inside the armor is aware of what has happened, it isnít apparent. As it was in space, the body lies motionless.
In the Grand Circle on Untha, scientists are already planning a party to recover the body. More than once, a scientist says to the other, ìI hope heís alive inside there.î
They shouldnít, but they are unaware of who has fallen into their midst.
By the time Victor Von Doom is done with the planet Akíyeníja, they will.
END FF 421
NEXT ISSUE:
FANTASTIC FOUR # 422: Who are the Elementals? No, Access hasnít started pulling in other companyís characters again, MAGNUM, HYDRON & HELLFIRE (theyíre not as lame as they sound ... well, maybe they are) are back from the dust bin of forgotten villains to seek to do what most villains try to do: RULE THE WORLD!!! And itís up to Spidey and Torch to stop them. And Dr. Doom wakes up, too! But will he remember who he is? Stay tuned, True Believer, one more issue to go before things start really rocking when Thanos declares FRANKLIN MUST DIE!!!
-mbQ 12.28.97