Issue #2
"GATHERING OF SHADOWS"
Part II
by Will Short
Doctor Strange
Namor
Hulk
Silver Surfer
Beta Ray Bill
"Oh my.....!" She exclaims, and stops herself quickly so she can hear the story behind the disturbing scene on the television. She sees the images of Beta Ray Bill battling, and badly beating, the Silver Surfer all around New York. She has never seen the powerful rider of the space-ways so easily beaten into submission, and the fact that it is being so easily done by a former ally.....
Patsy's breathing becomes heavier, and she can feel the adrenaline rush through her. From worry for her friend and excitement for her chance.
This is her chance to bring the Hellcat back into the land of the living.
Patsy leaves the television on as she rushes to her closet and pulls out a large plastic container from the bottom, ripping off the top in a rush like a young child at Christmas. On her knees in the closet, she takes out and holds up her pride and joy -- her second identity ... maybe even her real identity ... the yellow and blue costume of Hellcat.
She strips herself of the comfortable robe and throws if on the ground, quickly holding out the bottom of her yellow body suit for her leg to step into. It has been a little while since she has put this on, and she is not as fast as she used to be ... but her sense of urgency and fulfillment renews and enhances her speed. Patsy puts on the yellow top, the blue boots and gloves, ties the blue sash, and for the final touch, pulls her cowl over her head, leaving her luscious flame red hair visible.
The transformation complete, Patsy hurriedly runs to lock her front door to ensure no unwanted visitors in her absence. As she heads for the window, the screen of the television once again catches her eye. She sees three figures, now, and new one added to the battle. At first, Patsy is not sure, but she soon recognizes the man.....
The Black Knight is very angry and very confused.
Moments ago, according to his biological clock, Dane Whitman was not Dane Whitman, nor was he the Black Knight ..... he was Daine of Whitemaine, a skillful squire in ancient England, under the rule of King Arthur. As he was training in swordplay with his master and distant relative Sir Percy of Scandia.
And all of a sudden, he had appeared in what he recognized as New York. He quickly saw a fellow hero, the Silver Surfer, being savagely attacked and bested by an inhuman looking creature wielding a hammer. A creature he soon recognized as the usually noble Beta Ray Bill. The Black Knight does not question the situation ... a friend is in trouble, and that is all that truly matters.
"Bill!" he exclaims, leaping mightily from his standing position and landing on the severely strong alien. Whitman quickly attempts to bring him down with blows forceful enough to injure a normal man ... but Beta Ray Bill is neither normal nor a man.
The light orange horse-faced warrior throws Dane off of his back with ease, grunting like a rabid animal while doing so. The Black Knight's body, out of control, lands on top of the Silver Surfer. "Surfer ... Surfer, art thou well?" He asks his friend, and the Surfer hardly has the strength to answer him.
"I ... I am not, Black Knight. Beta Ray ... Bill has never been this powerful ..... before."
Climbing off of the Silver Surfer and helping him up, the Black Knight inquires to the situation.
"Too powerful for even thou, Surfer?"
"Yes, ... somehow he even rivals the Power Cosmic." Shaking himself to full focus, the Surfer realizes the threat beside them, "Quickly, Black Knight ... we must regroup!" He says, picking up the Knight and flying up and away quickly.
"We flee, Surfer? I thought thou more noble," The Black Knight says disappointedly, and the Silver Surfer looks at Dane, noticing his changed dialect.
"Black Knight ... what has happened to you? You speak and keep yourself differently," the Surfer points out, referring to Dane's full beard.
"What dost thou, mean, Surfer?"
"...Nothing. How did you get here, by the way? You seemed to appear very suddenly."
"I know not, friend, but 'twas a lucky thing I did. It was not moments ago that I was in old England herself....."
"That is very strange, but I fear that must wait," The Surfer says, looking down with the Black Knight and seeing the otherworldly friend of Thor charging at them once again with a revived vigor.
Kinship.
It is said sometimes that twin siblings have been known to feel when the other is near, to know when the other is in trouble. Some have even gone so far to say that the two may know what the other is thinking, or what the other is doing, or even deeper.
Brunnhilde, the Valkyrie of Asgard, can feel the presence of another Asgardian native somewhere near. She knows not whether it is a being, an object, or something else ... but she does know that it is of Asgard, her beloved home.
She must find it. She has to ... for her own sake.
If you were part of one group, one ethnic division, one reputation, one company all your life, and one day you were suddenly not part of it anymore -- You weren't welcome at all -- If that was all you really knew well in your life, what would you do?
If you knew, you could possibly help Luke Cage.
The muscular black man walks down the street, his powerful hands shoved deep into his pockets. His thick neck angled his head down at the sidewalk. He looks like a shamed man ... and in truth, he is. To himself, at least.
The Avengers don't want him. The Fantastic Four is four again, and has been for a while. Even Heroes For Hire, his first home and his old fallback, is through with him. He hasn't been able to contact Iron Fist ... God only knows what he has been up to. Luke simply can't find a place for himself ... solo work has never been his forte. He works best with a group, a team ... some sort of organization.
But not that's all he is: a singular man blocked from all he used to know. Cage ... Power Man ... Luke Cage. Whatever you call him, he no longer has the self-confidence for solo work.
He finds it hopeless.
Nearby, Luke Cage hears screams, and instinctively he runs swiftly in the direction of the sound.
The crowd surrounding the momentous battle is itself continually getting larger with each passing moment. It is made up of various onlookers, pedestrians, authorities whose purpose is really more to protect the citizens, postponed motorists, and then there is Regina Garney.
Or rather, it is Regina McBride-Garney, or even Regina McBride. That is still debatable, and really depends on the situation. In this one, it is unimportant. Walking by with her young son Mark on the way back from the grocery store, the crowd has blocked her way for the past quarter of an hour. Frankly, she is not happy at all.
"Come on, people!" She says to them angrily as she attempts to make room for herself and her son.
A police officer nearby, with little else to do, reaches out and stops her, "C'mon, ma'am, please don't get rowdy. This is hard enough as it is."
"What is? What's this all about, anyway?" Regina asks, sounding annoyed and uncaring.
"What's it about? Just look up there, lady!" The officer says as he points to the sky.
Regina turns, still holding her son's hand, and sees the massive battle taking place at various sites on the street.
"Mommy?" Mark asks innocently, and then points at the fight. Even though he has been living in New York all seven years of his life, he is still not very familiar with the site of super-beings.
"Those are just ... people in tights, fighting a monster. Okay sweetie? Now come on, we need to get home."
She takes his hand and gives a little jerk, not at all angrily but just to tell the child that it is time to go. He obeys, but before she can reach her apartment complex, another officer stops her.
"Where do you think you're going, miss?" He says, sounding only slightly polite. And forcibly at that.
"I'm going home ... there's no 'think' about it," Regina says in a frustrated tone, and continues to try to return home.
"You live in these apartments, ma'am?" He asks, stopping her again.
"Yes, These apartments. Right here. Within ten seconds walking distance. Now, will you please let my son and I go home?"
"To there?" The officer asks loudly, and laughs. "Haha ... lady, that place isn't anywhere near safe until this battle's over!"
Regina shuffles the grocery bag in her arm and adjusts her grip on Mark's hand. This does not make her happy at all. "You're telling me that I have to wait for this large-scale bar fight to be over before I can even go home?"
The officer is not amused, but he isn't really paying attention that well, either,
"Basically, ma'am."
Frustrated, she sticks the police officer with the grocery bag, and kneels down for a second.
"Hey...!" He begins to complain, but she cuts him off, speaking to Mark.
"Mark, honey? Can you stay with this nice policeman for a minute? He's not a stranger ... he's your friend, and mommy's got some business she needs to take care of."
"Okay, Mommy," He agrees right away, and stands closely to the young officer, who watches as the mother walks off.
"Ma'am? Hey, lady! Where do you think you're going? You're gonna get yourself ki--"
He does not finish as Regina begins to grow in size gradually, until finally she is as tall as one of the small office buildings nearby. He watches still as she enters the battle.
"What in the Hell?" The officer wonders, and Mark just looks on like nothing is out of the ordinary.
The crimson Bands of Cytorrak wrapped around them as a protective force, Namor and the Hulk struggling to force their shield to move with them. It is no use. The magic is too strong, even for the both of them.
"Dammit!" The Hulk grunts, his raging emerald muscles testing their strength against that of Doctor Strange's skill in weaving mysticism. He finds it to no avail. Namor has stopped trying, and halts the Hulk as he watches their friend being attacked by the mysterious man.
"Hulk ... stop for a moment, and watch the stranger. He battles the Doctor with a mystic art paralleling Stephen's ... possibly even better!"
"Man ... we gotta help the Doc."
"Indeed, and quickly."
"But I can't do a damn thing with this shield around us!" The Hulk complains, and kicks at it with his huge booted foot. There is no response.
"I feel so helpless ... not as helpless as Stephen's looking out there, though," He continues, sounding more worried now as he watches Doctor Strange battle with much effort, but to little avail.
"Who are you?" The Doctor asks through gritted teeth as the mystery man creates a small but powerful dragon of pure energy and sends it against him.
The man only laughs, watching Stephen struggle to find an effective spell against the creation, and after a moment he creates a small vortex to suck up the monster.
"Haha! Stephen, were you not taught better than that? That is a basic spell! And you are the Sorcerer Supreme! You must do better than that ... else I should strip you of your title." The man taunts Stephen, and the Doctor becomes more angry and flies quickly towards the cruel man, mystical energy coming off of him like steam in the emptiness of space.
He stops suddenly, flying back as though reeling from hitting a wall. He then floats in space, looking limp and injured. The bands around Namor and the Hulk gradually begin to fade.
"Uh oh. Hey Subby, take a look!"
As Stephen Strange drifts nearer to being unconscious, the Hulk draws in a mighty breath. He fills his giant lungs to their fullest point before the shield around him and his fellow Defender finally breaks. Namor is not prepared, and as the Hulk leaps free from his former barrier, the Atlantan king is left without oxygen. He took a breath too late, and there was nothing to take in.
"All right, son, let's see how those tricks do against this old slugger!" the Hulk says, quickly thrusting his huge body towards the man. He laughs again.
"You consider yourself old? And I ... I am 'son'? Hahaha! You have no idea how backward you are, mortal ... but it is no matter. My business is with this so-called 'magician' ... you and the Atlantan may leave!"
With those words, the man holds out his hand, and a blinding light strikes across what seems like all of space. With that, Namor and the Hulk are sent back from their original place.
"Yes ... yes! Bring more!" Beta Ray Bill cries insanely as the heroes pile on him time and time again. Each time he bursts forth as if stronger than before, "You will all die, like the Surfer ... bring more to me!"
"This is most unlike your usually noble ways, Bill!" Valkyrie claims after retreating from a powerful but fruitless assault on the alien wielder of the Uru mallet --- A gift from Odin himself!
"Isn't it, though? I love battle, woman ... and this certainly is a battle!"
The Silver Surfer has suffered the most. He is nearly exhausted and sitting on the side of the battle, firing stray bolts of energy when possible. They do little to affect the alien.
"Can we not do more, friend Surfer?" The Black Knight asks, the efforts with his sword spirited but nearly useless against the powerful Beta Ray Bill.
"It would seem not, Knight."
"Damned to Hades...!"
"Come on, ya ugly sack'a crap ... give!" Luke Cage cries in battle. He attempts to wrestle with Bill, but his great strength is still no match for the Thor-level might of the alien. Luke is thrown to the side like a doll, but manages to knock some rubble onto his opponent, burying Bill and landing safely. Hellcat approaches him, worried for his safety.
"Oh my! Luke! Power Man, are you all right?" She asks sweetly, helping him up. He allows her to for a moment, but shakes her hand off almost angrily as he finally stands.
"I'm ... I'm fine. He just caught me off guard, that's all."
Hellcat can hear the embarrassment in his voice, "Don't worry, Luke ... none of us have been able to get anything on Bill yet. He seems like he's been powered up a few times over!"
"It can't be hopeless though," Luke adds in, "there has to be something we can do."
"Maybe I can be of some help," A large, loud voice says. Luke and Hellcat turn around to see a towering woman in normal street clothes loom over them.
"Who ... who are you?" Hellcat yells to the giantess.
"Listen, does it matter? Do you want my help or not?" She answers, rushing.
"Oh ... well yes, of course! I don't know what for though....."
The Black Knight manages to get the assembled heroes together, and he makes a suggestion.
"By Excalibur, I believe I have the answer, mine friends!" He says happily after some thinking.
"Well then, what is it?" Hellcat says.
"The mallet that yon creature carries ... 'tis like that of Thor, correct?"
Valkyrie handles that question quickly, "Yes. The hammer 'twas given to him by Odin himself."
"Then perhaps separating Beta Ray Bill from his hammer will diminish his power."
"Sounds good," Luke says, "but first we have to get someone to hold him while we take it from him."
"I will hold him, but I will need help," The Silver Surfer states.
"Norrin, will you be all right? Your strength, after all," Hellcat worries about her friend. Nothing uncommon.
"My strength is fine, Patsy. As I said, though, I will need help."
"I can help ya' out, if it will do any good," Power Man says. The Surfer simply nods.
"I can help hold the guy too," Regina adds.
"Who is this giantess...?" The Black Knight begins to ask.
"Just call me Gina."
"Is she just a spectator?" The Surfer asks skeptically, but the Valkyrie steps in.
"I know not who the sister is, but one of her size and strength will undoubtedly help our quest."
"Fair enough then, Gina. You will aid in holding Beta Ray Bill, while I take the mallet from..."
The Black Knight stops speaking suddenly, and the others still listen intently.
"Dane? What's the matter?" Hellcat asks, and before he can answer, he is gone. No flash. Nothing. He is just gone.
"What the Hell was that?" Power Man asks.
"The Knight said he came here from England's past randomly earlier, " the Surfer responds, "It is no matter for the moment, mine friends. The alien rises again, and we must act!"
As the raging Beta Ray Bill gets up, the Surfer along with Power Man and Regina all rush to the site. They quickly grab his powerful arms and hold them in place, barely able to contain his power and energy.
"Unhand me! You will all surely die for this! By my hammer Storm Breaker, I will kill you all!" He yells in a maniacal discharge of anger.
Brunnhilde approaches him from the front, before he can break free. She stands bravely with her hands on her skinny, feminine hips -- Sword at her side. "And I claim, by my sword Dragonfang, that you will do no more evil this day!"
And with that, she grabs the hammer from the alien's strong hand and forces it from him.
Beta Ray Bill stops struggling, and the others let him go. A strike of lightning can be seen in the clear sky, and before the others can speak to him ... Beta Ray Bill is transformed into his normal alien form.
"What ... what has happened? Is this ... Earth?" He asks, confused.
"Yes, Bill. You're with friends, but there's been some problems." Hellcat begins to explain, but she is interrupted by Valkyrie's voice.
"And indeed, friend, there will be more ... so states Brunnhilde, wielder of both Dragonfang and Storm Breaker ... and the harbinger of death for you all!"
Confusion runs rampant, and Beta Ray Bill just sits and stares. He does not understand ... but he soon will.
NEXT ISSUE: More about the mysterious man, the fate of Namor and the Hulk, and Valkyrie's new state of mind. Plus, what happened to the Black Knight? Come back in a month for Defenders #3.
