FANTASTIC FOUR # 423

by Mark Bousquet

FRANKLIN MUST DIE

BOOK 1: THE END

EPILOGUE

200 YEARS INTO THE FUTURE

"I have come."

The Planet Destroyer Galactus has come to the position in the Universe that once held the planet Earth. Now, save for Galactus and his ship, the Taa V, there is nothing but the cold emptiness of space.

He contemplates as he floats, though his decision is inevitable.

"Galactus, it can not continue."

Galactus does not turn. "Of that, we are in agreement. Thanos can not continue his path of destruction unabated."

"If this were a happier time, I might smile at the irony of those words coming from the one feared as the Planet Destroyer."

"Would you? I can not remember a time when you have smiled," Galactus muses.

A pause. "You know of his latest nullification, I take it."

"Yes, Captain, yes I do," Galactus looks to the distance, pondering, his face in the same grim visage it always rests in. "I find it to be a fact that I would have thought impossible. A fact that perfectly illustrates the danger the Everything is in. Thanos has given his mistress a gift even she could have never dreamed possilbe - he has blessed her with the death of the LIVING TRIBUNAL ITSELF!!!" Galactus pauses, letting his emotions cool. "If you had listened to me, the Living Tribunal would still be alive and we would still have a chance."

"We still have a chance. We will always have a chance."

Galactus smiles, "And you wondered why He came back to grant you Cosmic Awareness, Steve Rogers? Even in the face of the total collapse of the Everything, you still defy the inevitable."

"Spare me your smugness, Galactus. We are allies only long enough to defeat Thanos. What I do, I do for the greater good." Steve Rogers floats in space. His once familiar red, white and blue motif long vanished, replaced by a navy blue costume, it's monotony broken by white highlights. Red is absent from the costume. There is still a white star upon his chest and shield, but it is the Cosmic Star of Mar-Vell now. On his mask, the wings and "A" remain, because even though America no longer exits in reality, it still exists in his heart. At his side, as always, his shield. "Do not forget that it is you who I was chosen to defeat."

"I have not forgotten, Cosmic Protector." Galactus turns somber. "It is decided, then?"

"Yes. I will stop Thanos in the here and now and you will stop him in the past of my universe, Universe 616, before the Collapse, before Eternity started pulling the multiverses together into one whole to fill the voids left by Thanos." It is Steve Roger's turn to ponder. When he speaks again it is with grave solemnity, but no hint of defeat. "This time we live in is inevitable, Galactus. We can not prevent it from occurring."

"No, we strive only to keep the multiverses separate for a longer time. We can become one timeline and not the Everything. We can restore life to places it has ceased to be. In time you may discover that you are really not the Steve Rogers from Earth 616. Our - my - actions in this matter may retroactively change what you consider your life's continuity to be."

"Than it is decided. That is what we shall do."

They float in silence for a time, before Galactus fills the emptiness with his voice.

"We are a unique pairing, Captain. Are you aware of all the intracies of what we are about to do?"

"I am. You must seek to restore life to where there is no life because without it, you can not gain the energy you need to fulfill your damnable destiny. I must stop Thanos because he will destroy the Everything if I don't."

"And in doing so, you save me, whose purpose, as well, is to destory the Everything."

"But you will create the New Everything, Galactus. If you can gain the energies you need, even if you win and destroy what exists now, something new will take it's place. Thanos seeks only the cold emptiness of Nothingness."

"You seek to stop Thanos, to become my salvation. Yet if you can stop him and I can restore life to where there is no life, so that I may drain the energies of that life to create the New Everything, you will no doubt be there to stop me from draining that energy. How ... interesting."

"Your philosophical ramblings mean nothing to me, Galactus. Let's do this. Now. Lives need to be saved." The Everything's last hope pauses, then turns to stare the Planet Destroyer in the eye, "You can change the past to our favor?"

"I can not change the past, human, but I can influence it. I am everywhere at everytime. Any knowledge I gain now will influence the decisions of my past. I merely need to decide what I want to influence and that thought will filter back through my continual memory. My past self will not have any knowledge of the ramifications of it's actions. I will simply do what I always do, for reasons that make sense to me at the time."

"Fine. Good luck." Captain America starts to fly through space, gaining distance from Galactus, when he pauses and turns around. "Where will you start?"

"That I do not know. I only know that it will start ... and we both know that it involves keeping the Richards boy alive."

CHAPTER ONE - THINGS FALL APART

THE STORM MUSEUM - TWO DAYS AGO

Before every storm, there is a calm.

For Reed and Sue Richards of the Fantastic Four, the calm has been a day spent at the Storm Museum with their son, Franklin. It may be the last peaceful day of their lives.

Sue regrets they have taken so long to visit the Museum, but Reed assures her that they have plenty of time to return as much as they would want.

They sit in a theatre at the Cosmic Observatory, watching the Negative Zone.

"Do you think Franklin is safe with Nuklo, honey?" Sue asks as she rests her head on Reed's shoulder.

"I'm sure he is, Sue. He's a gentle person," Reed responds, kissing Sue on the forehead.

A young couple sitting a few rows in front them stands and leaves.

"Why, Mr. Richards, I do think we're all alone in a darkened theatre." Sue hints suggestively at her husband.

"It would appear so, whatever shall we do?"

"I'm sure we'll think of something." They hold each other close and kiss. When next they kiss, they will be facing the decision of where Franklin should spend the rest of his childhood.

PIER 4 - TWO DAYS AGO

"But doesn't that make us the Fantastic Five?" Johnny Storm asks in disbelief.

"If you're being literal it does, but why change the name of the group just because you've added another member?" She-Hulk reasons.

"Because we're the Fantastic Four?" Johnny replies. "Four? As in the number?"

"Don't argue with her, Johnny, you won't win," Ben Grimm grumbles.

"I am a lawyer, afterall," She-Hulk grins. "Besides, Johnny, I'm really not back on the team full-time, but Reed and Sue want me to look over some legal documents for them and they've invited me to stay here. I'm here to help only if you need me to."

Ben, Johnny and She-Hulk stand in Laboratory 5, a just completed section of Pier 4 - one of Reed's planned thirty-two separate laboratories. For them, the calm is spent in good spirits with good friends. When next they stand in Laboratory 5 together, one of them will be asked to leave the Fantastic Four.

"I'm outta here, chumps, I've got somewhere to be," Ben mumbles, half-hoping they wouldn't hear him.

"No, Benjamin, you have nowhere else to be."

The three heroes turn to face the unnoticed visitor. "Well," Ben says, "lookit who's back, Mr. Timestream himself. How ya doin' Nathan?"

"I have something for you." Nathaniel Richards ignores Ben's question and holds up a small red sphere, "Your missing equipment."

THE NEGATIVE ZONE - ONE DAY AGO

There once was a ruler of a section of a portion of the Negative Zone near the Distortion Area (a place between Here and There, between Earth and the Negative Zone) whose self-designated ruler thought himself the equal of Annihilus and Blastaar. With his power to alter his body from positive to negative matter, he may have been right.

He was certainly no less psychotic.

Like Annihilus and Blastaar, he has fought the Fantastic Four. Unlike them, he died. At the exact moment of his transmutation from positive to negative, he came into contact with a man named Lew Shiner and they were both destoyed in a massive release of energy.*

*(You've read Fantastic Four # 231, right? -- Bill Sienkiewicz Fan Mark)

Thanos stands in his ship and watches as energy draws itself back together. Left to chance it may never have happened, the disapated energy may have floated across the Distortion Area, combining itself with a Debris Belt of anti-matter particles, but Thanos leaves nothing to chance.

A containment tube that Thanos had procured from the Collector sits in space and draws the energy in. The process has been going for weeks, and it's completion is near.

"I do not like this Thanos! I do not like any of this!" Annihilus exclaims.

"What you like is of no concern, bug. I give you the opportunity to kill the Fantastic Four. You will take it or you will face me." Thanos doesn't even turn to gaze at Annihilus, his eyes staying glued to the containment tube.

"We do not need this ... lackey! I can destroy the Fantastic Four all by myself!" Annihilus vents.

This time, Thanos does turn. When he speaks, he speaks with the calm voice of one who knows he does need to resort to histrionics to have his orders followed. "You have faced the Fantastic Four and failed time and time again. I am giving you help. You fear all who you think are after your precious Cosmic Control Rod. I am giving you a chance to eliminate four people who would very much like to do just that. And finally, I am requesting your aid and Thanos is not one to be refused."

"And what if I did?!?" Annihilus screams, his voice masking his fear.

"Then you will have someone to fear, bug. When the Fantastic Four defeat you, they leave you alive to try again. If you force Thanos into confrontation, you will be defeated and you will most certainly not live to see the dawn of the next day. Now go, my patience wears thin and you have things to do."

Thanos turns and nods in acceptance as the re-focusing of the form nears completion. Behind him, Annihilus does as he is told.

PIER 4 - PRESENT

The Fantastic Four stand in one their many warehouses that will eventually be turned into their new, sprawling headquarters. The warehouse, which was almost bare two days ago is now filled to capacity with equipment - their former equipment from Four Freedoms which had been missing.

"Yer blasted father took it and hid it so the government couldn't take it," Ben grumbled.*

*(And you can read all about it in Tales of the Marvel Universe # 1 - on sale now in back issue bins across the land! -- Referencing Mark)

"Well, that was a wise move on his part, wouldn't you say old friend?" Reed asks, trying to ease the tense mood that has overcome the group during the previous twenty-four hours.

"I still can't believe he hasn't said anything about why he put Franklin into the care of Banshee and the White Queen. I mean, the White Queen, for gods sakes!" Sue ponders for a time too many to count.

"I liked living with them, Mommy," Franklin smiles.

"I'm sure you did, Franklin, but it doesn't change the question, does it, Reed?" Sue asks.

The room falls silent. Sue has avoided asking Reed outright about his father's possible motivations during the recent weeks since they've returned from the Franklinverse (oh how she hates that name), but now she can no longer phrase the question in open ended terms, hoping that Reed would pick up the cue and offer a working rationale.

Reed phrases his answer carefully, "Sue, darling, I have no idea why my father did that. And until we talk to him we can only take his word that he had Franklin's best interests at heart. For right now, though, we should be glad that we have our old equipment back and still in working condition."

Sue is about to say something she would most likely come to regret, when an alarm went off and the calm before the storm ended.

CHAPTER TWO: THINGS FALL APART

The alarm was caused by a distress signal coming from equipment that was formerly housed in the Space-Time Lab when it was in Four Freedoms.* Now, it sits on the floor of a warehouse, amidst a mass of other machinery and equipment.

*(We hear that it's the room where Baron Zemo now keeps his skin cleanser! -- Hygiene Deficient Lad)

"What is it, Reed, where's the alarm coming from?" Johnny asks as the Fantastic Four gather around the telescreen.

"Section 56-D of the Negative Zone," Reed mumbles, adjusting controls, trying to lock onto the signal.

"Who lives there that we know?" Ben asks.

"Blastaar!" She-Hulk exclaims.

"How'd you know that, Greenie?" Ben asks, turning around to face her.

"Look at the screen," Jen responds.

"That's not Blastaar, Jen," Reed explains, finally locking onto the incoming signal, "but it is a male Baluurian."

"<scrrrkkk> need your help! I repeat, I am Kajiir, a consort of the Ruling Family of Baluur! We are under attack and request aid!" the panic stricken young Baluurian screams.

"This is Reed Richards of the Fantastic Four. We are receiving your distress call. What is happening?"

"Mister Fantastic? Thank the gods! We could only hope that the Fantastic Four would hear our cry for help!" A noticeable look of relief came over Kajiir's face.

"Who is it, Kajiir?" Reed asks, making the safe gues that he knows exactly who it is that is behind the attack. "Who is attacking you?"

"Blastaar and Annihilus! They have come again to destroy us!"

"Again, no kidding," Ben grumbled. "Don't those two ever attack anything else?"

"Surely they can't be defeating an entire planet worth of Baluurian soldiers?" Sue asks, fearing a trap.

"Half of our soldiers are gone on a - um, uh - a fact finding mission to another planet," Kajiir lies. "And we're already depleted from our last overthrow of Blastaar as monarch. Not too mention the soldiers that stayed loyal to Blastaar and fight with him against their homeland! Please, Fantastic Four, we need help! We need your help as you've defeated Blastaar and Annihilus before and-"

"We'll help, Kajiir," Reed decides. "Hold one for one moment." Reed turns to the other members of the Fantastic Four as on the screen behind him, bits of the ceiling in Kajiir's room fall to the ground. The young Baluurian is clearly in a panicked state. "Sue, is this okay with you?" Sue nods. "Good, this is what we need. Find the field-effect harnesses. They should be near here. Johnny, find some large pieces of scrap metal and put them in Container NZRP - it should be with the experimental designs - I think they were over in the far left corner. We can use them against Annihilus if it comes to that. Ben, give a Fantasti-Car a shakedown. Jen, stay with Franklin. We're not taking him with us and you'll stay here and watch over him while we're gone."

"Hold on, Reed, I don't mind baby-sitting, but this attack on Baluur sounds important."

"Jen," Reed explains, "there is nothing more important than watching Franklin. Wait. You're right. You're coming with us. Johnny, you will stay here and watch Franklin."

"What?!? Why should-?" Johnny shouts.

"The Negative Zone is in space, Johnny. Your flame won't work there and we don't know how much fighting we'll be doing in closed environs."

"But I-"

"I will not have my orders questioned when it comes to the protection of my son!" Reed shouts, sending everyone into stunned silence. With that, the FF start following Reed's orders and he turns back to a paling Baluurian, "Kajiir, who holds the Cosmic Control Rod?"

PIER 4 - TWO HOURS LATER

The Fantastic Four are ready to go. Reed has opened the portal to the Negative Zone that leads into the Distortion Area that they will pass through before entering the Negative Zone itself.

They say their good-byes to Johnny (still visably angered) and Franklin. Reed leaves instructions for Johnny about the basic controlling mechanisms about operating the portal. They are ready.

They pile into the Fantasti-Car. "Jen where's the scrap metal in Container NZRP?"

"Right here, Reed." She-Hulk motions to the container, roughly the size of a small camping trunk, strapped down next to him.

"Great, Jen, thanks," Reed says as he stretches from his seat to push buttons on the Container's control pad. A small humming sound starts to emanate from it. "Excellent," Reed mentions.

"Bye, Mommy and Daddy!" Franklin shouts and he runs up to give his mother a hug. "Bye Unca Ben and She-Hulk!"

"Bye Franklin," Sue says warmly as she hold Franklin close. "Be a good boy. We'll see you soon."

The Fantasti-Car is started up and passes through the portal.

They pass through the Distortion Area - a crazy environ whose landscape looks like something Salvador Dali might create in a hallucenogenic trip from bad mushrooms.

They make the trip in silence, well aware of the grim task ahead of them. Blastaar and Annihilus are two of their most dangerous foes and because they have triumphed over them in the past does not make victory inevitable. Added to this is the fact that a full-scale invasion of Baluur is underway.

After a few minutes they pass out of the Distortion Area and into the Negative Zone itself.

"Just follow the directions on the map Ben and we should be in Baluur in 53 minutes - providing we don't run into any distractions."

They approach a large boulder ahead on their left. They are all clearly tense. "Think that's a trap, Reed?" Sue asks.

"The answer to your question, woman, is yes!" A tall, magenta-skinned figure comes out from behind the boulder, power rippling around his body. "You have entered my domain uninvited! Yes, Fantastic Four, my domain! I have returned from the death you sent me to and I will have my revenge. The Fantastic Four are destined to die at the hands of ... STYGORR THE NIGHTLORD!!!"

END FF 423

NEXT ISSUE:

FANTASTIC FOUR # 424: FRANKLIN MUST DIE, PART II!!! The Fantatic Four face a menace from the past in Stygorr the Nightlord. Can they overcome his power?!? Do they even want to?!? Huh? And if they get past him, what will they do to stop Blastaar and Annihilus? Or will the Negative Zone Odd Couple stop each other? All that and we take our stab at Marvel's Most Overused Plot ever!!! Nope, no "we hate mutants" talk, this ain't the X-Men! Franklin gets kidnapped! (Stop groaning, we can hear you, ya know! This one's different, we promise!) Thanos' plan takes shape as he arrives on Earth to take Franklin away so he can ... test his worthiness?!? That is, unless HERBIE can stop him. And that can't happen, can it?!?

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