Fantastic Four

441 - March, Year 3 - MV1

PRELUDE

WAKANDAN EMBASSY - NIGHT

"What kind of sick game is this, Grey Lion!?!" Johnny Storm raged with hatred and confusion at the tall Wakandan male. They stood, along with A'kimba, her father Lumumbo and Silver Sable inside a library in the Wakandan Embassy. Sable had been hired by the Grey Lion to find the Wakandan beauty and return her to him.

"Merely that I have come to collect what is mine by right," Grey Lion said, joy in his voice at seeing the Human Torch so confused, conflicted and hurt. He was pure confidence standing in the Embassy of his homeland, his sharp grey business suit the only indication of his Grey Lion moniker. "A'kimba was arranged to be my wife by her mother."

"Lies!" Johnny Storm spits in rage as flames start to ripple around his frame.

"Ask A'kimba or her father, then," Grey Lion stated flatly.

Johnny turned, his heart breaking into pieces by the second, to look toward A'kimba and her father, Moyo Lumumba, but neither of them can look him in the eye.

"Tell me it's a lie!" Johnny demanded of them, and it was only then that A'kimba raised up her proud head to look at the man she loved. Tears welled in the corners of her eyes, but she refused to let them fall down her face.

"It is true, my love," A'kimba said softly. "My mother … my mother was not a good woman and when I was a child she arranged for me to be married to Grey Lion, a youth who openly defied King T'Chaka. A boy whom the rebels called the bravest and wisest member of his tribe, a man fated, they said, to bring his people to power."

"But … why didn't you tell me?" Johnny, who fell so quickly in love with A'kimba that he couldn't believe how fast his heart went to her, now stood with his heart breaking just as fast.

"It was … a long time ago, and we thought … we thought …"

"We thought the Grey Lion had died," Lumumbo picked up for his daughter, placing a hand over hers for support. "A mining accident. We appealed to King T'Challa to come to the United States after Grey Lion's death and he agreed that it would be for the best, but now …"

"Now," the Grey Lion reentered the conversation, "I'm back, so boo-hoo for you old man, boo-hoo for your daughter and boo-hoo for the Human Torch."

Grey Lion walked regally across the room to stand behind A'kimba and placed a large hand on her shoulder, "A'kimba will be my wife, or she will be no man's wife. Such is the law of our people."

"You don't even love her!" Johnny cried.

"And you do, Johnny Storm?" Grey Lion asked gravely. "How long have you known A'kimba? I think she is nothing more to you than a harmless crush. One of thousands in your life. Yes, as I'm sure A'kimba has told you, the exploits of the Fantastic Four are well known inside Wakanda. Even to one who has wandered the plains for many years stories are heard. I say A'kimba is nothing to you but a new sports car that you will use until the shine has worn off."

"That's a lie!"

"Is it?"

Johnny had no comeback. He knew he loved A'kimba. He knew it deep down inside of him where the thoughts of few women ever reached. Yeah, he knew, it was sudden, but love needs no explanation, it has to follow no rule. "Why?" Johnny asked weakly, tears about to burst from his eyes.

Grey Lion smiled deeply, "You are an ally to T'Challa. An injury to you is the same as an injury to the Black Panther."

"You want to talk injuries?" Johnny shot back, anger rushing in to replace sorrow. His flames now poured full out from his body. Only his control over his fire kept the Wakandan Embassy from bursting into flames. "Meet me outside."

The Grey Lion's smile widened, "It would be a pleasure. But not here. And not now. We shall duel … in Wakanda!"

"Wherever, whenever, whatever," Johnny answered, his resolve unshakable.

OUTSIDE ATTILAN - DAWN

"Prepare my brothers, for the death of the Royal Family!"

The voice was harsh and deep and spoke from years of frustration. His name was Logos and up until a few days ago he was nothing more than an Alpha Primitive. But now, thanks to unknown artifacts hidden deep within the Wakandan jungles, he is more than he was ever created to be.

He wears a blue and white robe over his muscular frame and tattoos adorn his once plain skin. He is an Alpha Omega. Atop his head rests a yellow, ancient Roman helmet.

And he has come to the home of his creators to seek vengeance.

"Shall we outfit the Omegas with the artifacts we discovered in Wakanda, Logos?" a fellow Omegan named Garok asked.

"No," Logos replied, his eyes darting around, untrusting of all the world, "only I can be trusted with the power."

"But, my lord-"

"Silence!" Logos boomed. "I will lead us to victory!"

The thirty Omegas around him cheer wildly for him and they walk together as they always have. Only Garok, a case of magical artifacts upon his back, stayed silent. Today, they walk not as a work force to keep the great city of Attilan running smoothly, they walk as an army.

And come sunrise, Attilan will make amends.

PIER 4 HANGAR

"Are you up for a day of leisure, Jen?" Sue asked as they stood amidst all of the Fantastic Four's various vehicles. Ben was busy taking care of Alicia, Johnny still hadn't returned from his date with A'kimba and Reed was busy going over the simulations to find some way to help Alicia and Marcia to co-exist. Sue was bored, antsy, looking for something to do. With all that was happening around them prohibiting them from moving to Titan, Sue just wanted out of the Fantastic Four for an afternoon.

"Why do you ask, Sue?" Jen replied, wondering just how eventhey could pay for all of this equipment. 'Though, I guess,' she thought to herself, 'Reed could build it all out of cheap watches and calculators if he had to.' She added, aloud, "Spending the day shopping in Paris isn't enough of a day of leisure for you?"

"Well, if you wanted to relax, we can take the Fantasti-Car," Sue smiled, "but if you're in a hurry, we can take one of the Fantasti-Jets."

"Geez," the She-Hulk smiled, "whatever is a girl to do?"

Before Jen could answer, they were met with the sudden arrival of Lockjaw, the Inhuman dog.

"Or we could take Lockjaw, I guess," Sue said, surprised at the dog's entrance.

"You know," She-Hulk stated, looking at the large mutt, "that's a bit too weird for me."

"What?"

"That dog," She-Hulk shook her head. "How many unbelievable things have I seen and yet ol' Lockjaw here just freaks me out beyond belief. He must produce more drool in a day that the guys at the gym who watch me work out. Who'd ever put a dog in the Terrigen Mists?"

"Oh, come on, Jen," Sue smiled, patting Lockjaw on the head, "you know how these thin-"

The three vanished into thin air.

ATTILAN

And re-emerged on another part of the globe, deep in the city nation of Attilan, home to the Inhumans, long-time allies of the Fantastic Four.

"Okay, Lockjaw, what was with that?" Sue asked, hands on her hips as they stood in a run-down part of town. Lockjaw barked softly, ignoring Sue. "What do you make of this, Jen?" Sue asked, but She-Hulk was paying her even less attention.

"I didn’t think there were any slums in Attilan," Jen mused, looking around at the broken buildings. "Looks like we're in the middle of a war zone."

"That's because you are."

They turned to see Medusa and Karnak walking towards her. They were dirty, their clothes torn and ripped, their faces smeared with dirt, grease and blood.

"Medusa?" Sue asked. "What happened?"

"We were attacked," her voice was strong and proud, even now. "Attacked by Alpha Primitives who now possess power the likes we have never seen from them."

"They call themselves Alpha Omegas," Karnak said seriously, "and they gained their powers inside of Wakanda's borders through the excavation of artifacts."

"Where are they now?" She-Hulk asked.

"Is this all that was available, Lockjaw?" Medusa asked and the dog barked in response.

"Should we get the others?" Sue asked, wondering just how quickly the three male members of the Fantastic Four could get here.

"I'm afraid there isn’t time," Karnak said softly. "They're going to execute Black Bolt in one hour."

They moved quickly through the city, the Alpha Omegas attack centered on the industrial centers that they were the fuel for when they toiled as Alpha Primitives. Bodies were bloodied and they passed more than a few casualties. Medusa and Karnak offered nods and words of encouragement as they passed, but none of the Inhumans asked for help. They saw the look in the eyes of the two Royal Family members and knew they were out to make the day right again.

"Where are we going?" She-Hulk asked as they passed what was, until this morning, a school yard.

"Down below," Medusa answered, her hair weaving wildly, in tune with Medusa's mental commands. "They seek to slaughter us at what they are calling, 'the scene of the crime'."

"I don't get it, though," She-Hulk continued. "Not that the FF isn't capable of holding their own, but there's more power running through Inhuman bodies than the FF could ever come up with."

"You are correct, She-Hulk," Karnak admitted as they reached a giant man-hole cover. "Which should underscore the danger we are in."

Medusa stopped and looked around, taking one last look at their city which was still mostly untouched by the Alpha Omegas. Fire burned from pits in the ground, shafts that led down into the Down Below.

"This shaft will lead us into a back section of Down Below, behind the great engines."

Sue had been holding back comment, trying to piece everything together. "What kind of weaponry are we facing, Karnak? You said they had ancient artifacts from which they gained their power, but what powers do they have."

"Various powers it appears, Susan Richards," Karnak said slowly. "But their main power is to steal ours."

"That is the only reason they hold my husband," Medusa spoke sternly. "They have dampened his power."

"Wait a sec," She-Hulk shook her head. "You mean if we go down there we're going to lose our powers, too?"

"Yes," Karnak said, then turned back to the manhole cover and started turning the lock.

The shaft went down at a sharp angle, but Sue was able to use her powers to slow their descent. She supported them on a platform and took them several feet at a time, then stopped, not wanting them to gain any momentum for when her powers would cut out.

They didn't speak during the trip down the shaft. There was nothing to say. Medusa and Karnak wanted to save Black Bolt and the other captives and by extension, their city. Sue wanted to get out of here and back to Franklin. She wished the other members of the FF were here, but she knew they all had their own concerns. Was it really just minutes ago that she thought she'd be spending the day trying on the latest in Parisian fashion? Something about this scenario gnawed at the back of her mind, something familiar, but she couldn't place it. She-Hulk had concerns of her own, like what would happen to her when she entered the zone that dampened her powers? Would she resort to her human form? Would she be able to switch back?

They reached the ground without incident. The smell and heat were overwhelming on the ground floor and true to Karnak's words, they stood behind a series of giant engines. They could peer between them, but steam and fire blocked any view they may have had.

"What's the plan?" Sue asked, deferring to Medusa and Karnak.

"In the open center of the floor, they hold Black Bolt and the other members of the Royal Family," Medusa spoke loudly, not needing to whisper. With the sounds of the engines so close, they needed to speak up just to hear each other talk.

"Black Bolt stands in the center, tied to a wooden cross and our cousins are forced to kneel in a circle around him, their limbs bound together with thick rope," Karnak continued, his voice thick with rage.

"Behind him, sitting on a throne is Logos, the head of the Alpha Omega and, by far, their most powerful. It is he who has the power to dampen other's."

That gnawing sensation that she was walking into something familiar tugged at the back of Sue's mind yet again, but still she couldn't place the sensation.

"Are these engines laid out symmetrically?" Sue asked. "If there was no smoke or flame between these engines here, could we see all the way through to the center?"

"No," Karnak answered, "they're built disjointed, like a maze. You may be able to see past a couple of engines, but not all the way through."

"But can we move through here to get a good position?"

"Yes," Karnak nodded, "and it will provide us with some cover. We can use the engines during our escape."

"Let's move," Sue nodded at her three companions and they began to move into the engine field. Sue used her power to shield them from the flames and she could push a bubble ahead to clear out the steam and mist in front of them, giving them a better view at where they were going.

"We're halfway through the engines now!" Karnak yelled to Sue over the din, when she suddenly felt Medusa's hand on her shoulder and a wave of heat bear down on them.

"Our powers are gone," Medusa acknowledged, her long, lively hair now hanging limp and lifeless.

She-Hulk, who'd been taking the rear guard position, stopped in her tracks. "I don't want to go further, Sue," she admitted. "If I change to my human form and can't change back, I'll be a liability."

Sue nodded. "Stay here, but watch the ceiling. See those flames up there?" She pointed to a bank of torches to their far right. The ceiling in this part of Down Below wasn't much higher than the engine, but they could make the torches out. "Go back to the shaft entrance. You see those torches go out it's because I extinguished them, which means we've got our power back."

"And I'll come running," She-Hulk nodded. "Good luck."

Sue, Medusa and Karnak watched her disappear into a haze of steam and flame and set their sights ahead.

They moved together until they had reached a place inside the engines where they could see the center of the floor. It was as Karnak and Medusa had described it. Black Bolt was strapped to a wooden cross in the center of the room, surrounded by Gorgon, Triton and a handful of top advisors who were bound at the legs and wrists and forced to kneel painfully. Surrounding them, in a wider circle, was the Alpha Omegas.

They yelled wildly, savagely, dancing around the fallen Inhumans as they taunted and spit at them. And on the side of the floor opposite from them sat Logos, the unquestioned ruler of the Alpha Omegas.

He wore a blue and white robe over a heavily muscled body. Tattoo designs filled his arms, meeting on his forehead. Sue wondered just how they'd gotten such intricate tattoo designs done so quickly, but that was until she saw the shining yellow helmet with red plumage that was perched on Logos' head.

"My god, I thought it was destroyed," Sue let out, her memory flooding back to her.

"What is it, Susan?" Medusa asked, her hair falling into her eyes.

"That helmet that Logos wears," she answered, her eyes not leaving its shining splendor, "I've seen it before. I'll give it to you quick. A few years ago, the FF was in Wakanda when we came upon a Roman village. The man in charge was named Gaius Tiberus and he wore that helmet," Sue shivered at the memory.* "The helmet gave him power to shape reality around him, including the dampening of our powers and the reconstruction of a Roman village, complete with Roman soldiers. Who knows what else that helmet can do? We thought it destroyed."

* This happened back in Fantastic Four 241

"How did you defeat him, Susan?" Karnak asked.

"We knocked the helmet off his head and everyone and everything that had been shaped by him died or crumbled."

"So if we knock the helmet from his head, he will lose his powers, but the Alpha Omegas will die?" Medusa asked, thinking that this decision would be hers to make.

"There's that chance. Or they could revert back to their primitive forms," Sue answered, frowning.

"You must know, Susan," Medusa said evenly, "that if the choice becomes sacrificing my husband or sacrificing 30 Alpha Omegans, I will not watch my beloved die."

Sue nodded, "Understood. But we're going to do everything we can to get your friends out of here without killing anyone."

They waited, watching the Alpha Omegas ceremonies of death and rage, listening to the howls. Shadows danced on the walls as fires raged everywhere, sending smoke into the air where it danced it's own dance, uncaring for who's eyes it stung.

"It is time!" Logos boomed and the room was instantly silent. He rose from his throne, the Roman helmet seemingly attracting every scrap of light in Down Below. The Alpha Primitives, grouped together in a far corner, could not even stand to look at it. "Death to the King!"

"Death to the King!" the Omegas roared in delight, then spat at the form of Gorgon who was helpless to respond.

Sue could feel Karnak and Medusa flinch beside her and held out her hands to hold them back. "Wait," she mouthed and they nodded in response, their faces growing tighter.

Logos brought his large, muscular frame around to stand in front of Black Bolt, who was hanging limply in his bonds on the wooden X frame. "Are you ready to die, King of a slave nation?"

Sue could feel Medusa's blood boil beside her. Yes, in the past the Inhumans were guilty of mistreating the Alpha Primitives, but no more. They were free to go and come as they pleased. Sue had to admit that she thought they could do more, but this wasn’t the time for that.

Black Bolt said nothing, though with his power dampened, clearly he had a rare opportunity to speak his peace.

"Speak or do not speak, King," Logos threatened, "but you will die this day."

Medusa could take it no more and emerged from her hiding place beside the engines out into the clearing, "What is it you want, Logos?"

The entire clearing turned with hushed whispers at the emergence of the Queen.

Logos turned, his eyes aglow, his face breaking into a smile. "The Queen of slavery has arrived."

"I ask again, Logos," Medusa warned, as Sue motioned for Karnak to stay where he was, "what is it that you seek to gain by this?"

"Black Bolt's death!" Logos roared and the Omegas roared along with him.

"You lie," Medusa answered calmly. "If you wanted him dead, he'd be dead. There is something else you want and you aim to use the life of Black Bolt to accomplish this."

Logos laughed loudly, "Do you hear that, my Omegas? The Queen has figured out our little ruse! You bargain for your husband's life, woman? Truly you are weak. Take it from me in battle!"

Medusa didn't bite, "No. Tell me what it will take to free my husband, first, and then I shall see if the solution to this stalemate is to end your life."

Logos walked across the stone floor to stand in Medusa's face. He was not surprised when the Queen stood her ground. "I want reparations for the years of service and slavery you kept us here."

"Go on."

"We want all the technology you Inhumans have kept to yourself! We want gold and silver and the precious metals you keep in the Royal treasury! We want our own city to be raised to the heavens! We want- urk!"

Logos' body fell to the ground as his face, an expression of shock and surprise hung in mid-air, the Roman helmet still atop his head. As the hushed and disbelieving crowd watched on, the helmet's throat strap was unbuckled and the head fell to the ground with a sickening thump. All eyes were on the helmet as it moved quickly through the air to come to rest again.

Then, out of the air itself, a man, another Alpha Omegan pulled back a cloak of invisibility and stood before the assemblage. A bloodied sword clanged to the ground.

"My name is Garok," he announced, his body the same muscular build as Logos and the other Omegas. Tattoos adorned his arms and thighs in intricate, arcane patterns. Without explanation, he pointed his hand toward the separated body and head of Logos and brought them back together. The wound disappeared and Logos stood before them again, whole, angry and surprised.

"What deviltry is-"

"Silence!" Garok thundered, standing eye to eye with Logos. "You live because I allow it, Logos!"

"Such treachery!"

"I have learned well from you, but you seek to go to far! What does it say that in our first walking days as Alpha Omegans we destroy and pillage the land of our birth, kidnap the King and hold him for ransom!"

"I shall have-"

"You shall do nothing, Logos," Garok challenged. "Any harm that comes to me or this helmet will result in your death. The wound that I repaired can be undone with a simple break of contact between me and the helmet. Now, stand back amongst your brothers for it is they who shall decide your fate!"

Logos growled, but did as he was told, his eyes burning hatred at the back of Garok.

"My apologies, Queen Medusa," he bowed low as the bonds from the trapped Inhumans broke away. Black Bolt, Gorgon and the others slumped to the ground, their injuries severe. A snap of electricity cracked in the air as Medusa, Sue and Karnak felt their powers return to them. "I plead with you, my Queen, to let us leave in peace. We are only recently come to intellect and it will take us time to deal with these new, strange feelings and capabilities."

"It did not take Logos long," Medusa countered.

"Do not damn us all for his arrogance," Garok answered. "We have gone too long following orders to wonder how to question something we are told to do. But despite the pomposity of Logos, he asked well. We do not wish to stay here, but we can not go into the world without supplies. Give us what you can, so that we may build our own shining city and I promise you that the first building we shall erect shall be a cell in which to hold Logos."

Medusa pondered the words, her eyes moving to that of her husband, Black Bolt. A simple nod from the King was all it took.

"Very well, Garok," Medusa answered. "In the name of peace Black Bolt will grant the Alpha Omegas amnesty for their crimes committed here today, as well as supplies to aid you in the building of your new city. I salute you, in the name of peace!"

Garok smiled warmly, "For peace!"

The Alpha Omegas looked at each other a little uncertainly, but raised their fists in the air as well, "For peace!"

EPILOGUE

TWO WEEKS LATER - THE CONGO

"You will pay for this, Garok," Logos growled from inside his prison cell.

"Relax, Logos," Garok smiled, "you will be let free as soon as the Inhuman architects have left, and you shall have your war with the Inhumans another day."

"You're soft! Too soft to rule!"

"No, Logos," Garok shook his head. "I am smart. Smarter than you, just not as ferocious. My political way brought us everything you wanted, plus a stalemate of peace with the Inhumans. If you had run your gambit through to fruition, we either would have been defeated, or parted as enemies. We'd live with the threat of an Inhuman attack hanging over our heads."

"Better to die in battle than live hidden in a jungle," Logos spat.

"Do not be stupid, Logos," Garok sighed. "Have you not noticed that we grow smarter with every passing day? You did not even wish to use all of the magical items at our disposal, just this yellow helmet," Garok pointed to his head. "No, we shall bide our time here and then, when the time is right, when we have grown stronger and smarter and our abilities with our weapons are deadly, then the Inhumans shall pay with their lives. But only then."

END FF 441

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23.August.2000

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