Issue #3
"New Blood"
Part III: Trial By Fire
by David Wheatley (plot) & Dino Pollard (script)
Based on ideas and concepts created by Dino Pollard and Paul A. Hahn
"This is the SHIELD Helicarrier," the humanoid machine stated. "Get used to it, it's your new home."
"Man, we just get all the luck, don't we?" the American commented.
"First off, let's get some things out in the open," the machine began. "I'm Commander GW Bridge, your field leader. What you're looking at is Armory - it's basically a walking battle tank. In accordance with the wishes of our... benefactors, I'll be piloting it from the Helicarrier. While in the field, I expect you to refer to me as Armory."
He looked at Colonel Nick Fury, the Director of SHIELD leaning against the wall with his arms folded and a cigar in his mouth. Fury gave a slight shake of his head. As far as he was concerned this was more or less Bridge's show, so he could play it how he wanted, whether or not Fury agreed with him or this whole project. Bridge forestalled a sigh then looked back to the team to get on with the briefing.
"As you've no doubt been told, you've all been selected to be a part of Excalibur - a team of heroes sanctioned by the United Nations and accommodated by SHIELD," Armory began. "Each and every one of you comes from a different country represented in the UN. That said, you can start off by putting personal politics aside. This isn't about patriotism - it's about doing a job. Keep in mind that you're not the only heroes these countries - or others - have. You can be replaced at any time. That said, let's begin with the introductions. I'm sure you already know Colonel Fury, who's been kind enough to accommodate us."
Fury scoffed at Bridge's comment, but allowed him to continue uninterrupted.
"Representing the United States is John Walker. You'll refer to him as the USAgent."
"Just stay outta my way and we'll get along fine," Walker interjected.
"The representative of Britain is Percival Rockford, or Union Jack."
"Charmed," Rockford stated, pleasurably.
"Israel's representative is Ruth Bat-Seraph, whom you know as Sabra."
"Let's get one thing straight - I'm here as a service to my country, nothing more," Sabra noted, with a quiet disdain.
"A member of the Winter Guard, Russia's own team of superheroes, is Laynia Petrova - Darkstar."
"Da." Darkstar's voice and posture gave nothing away of her feelings, unlike the others in the room.
"Neal Shaara, once called Thunderbird, is a former mutant terrorist who has joined to make amends for his past. He now goes by the name Savitar."
"Were those comments really necessary...?" Shaara was irritated at the revelation, which he would have preferred to make in his own time
"Japan's national hero, Sunfire, wasn't available for this mission," Armory explained. "Instead, his younger sister, Leyu Yoshida, has joined under the name of Tsunami."
"What a waste of time..." Leyu muttered, her arms folded as she slouched against the wall.
"A relative newcomer to the hero game is Niko Hrisalis - Greece's Hellios."
"It's pronounced HRHEsalis," Hellios noted, a tone of annoyance in his voice.
"And finally, we have our mystery man - Germany's Hauptmann."
The Hauptmann made no reply, simply nodded his head.
"I'll make this clear," Armory continued. "None of us want to be here. I know it. You know it. But, we're stuck together, so instead of bitching about it, we might as well get the job done. At the end of the day, we're professionals." He looked at Fury. "You're up." Fury sighed and gave a shake of his head,.
"A'right flunkies, here's the scoop," he began, holding his cigar between his fingers. "My bosses in the UN tell me that I gotta accommodate you. They're basically forcin' me t' go along with this. You don't like being here, but let me tell you somethin' - I like it even less. Aside from Bridge, I don't trust any o' you farther than I can throw ya." His eyes were fixed firmly on USAgent when he finished speaking.
"So here's how it's gonna work," he started again, walking to the front of them. "Th' Helicarrier is your new home, but that doesn't make you SHIELD agents. You've basically got permanent visitor status. Y'may hafta live here, but that doesn't mean yer bein' given free reign. Our relationship doesn't go beyond th' basics - I provide you with the missions. You carry them out. Bridge turns in a field report, you get a warm feelin' inside. At the end of th' day, we go our separate ways." He gave it a moment for it to sink in. "That understood?"
Solemn nods of agreement followed.
"Good," Fury stated, not exactly smiling but so far things were going without a hitch. Well at least none of the ones he'd foreseen happening, and that led him on his next point. "Seein' as you're all so agreeable, follow me. You've already got your first mission lined up."
"It's colder than a bitch in heat," Fury stated, looking over the team, who had been joined by Bridge for this, seeing as the armor was not really designed for sitting down in briefing rooms. The image that appeared before them all was a desolate white expanse. "Alaska."
"What's in Alaska?" Sabra asked, examining the scene before her.
"A United Nations research outpost," Fury replied and pressed another button, which caused the landscape before them to move over to show a three dimensional representation of the station, allowing them to see exactly where they would be going. "The problem is, it's been out of contact for a few weeks."
"I thought it was standard protocol to send in an investigation team first," Union Jack noted.
"Yer right, Rockford," Fury continued. "An' one was sent." The images changed on the screen to show the investigative team who were sent out there, with relevant dates of their mission, except there was a distinct gap to the current date from the last entry. "Which brings us to problem number 2. They never reported back." He looked at the images and bit back a sigh. He put the cigar in his mouth and pressed nother button making the image of the research station appear once more.
"There's suspect of metahuman menace at work. An' metahuman menaces is now yer area of expertise. Due to several restrictions, yer basically gonna be flyin' blind. Th' Helicarrier can't accompany you into Alaskan airspace. For that reason, on this mission, an' all others, yer bein' equipped with a special aircraft. On us, o' course..."
Bridge noted the dark cynicism in Fury's voice at that last comment. The UN was getting extremely close to overstepping their boundaries, and Bridge wondered how far they'd push before Fury pushed back.
Alaska
Snow as far as the eye can see. The snow-covered fields are endless and repetitive.
That is, until the landscape seemed to change as it went on further. The snow was replaced with something... different. Almost... ancient.
SHIELD Helicarrier - Hangar Bay
"What a piece of shit..." USAgent muttered. "Christ, Fury, where'd you pick this up? A military swap meet?"
"SHIELD has a budget, Walker," Fury growled back at him. "We got priorities that come before you, and it's had a refit. There's enough in there to keep you going. Unless yer goin' soft."
"It's a modified B-1B Lancer," Armory stated to the others who were not so sure what the argument was about. "Expanded from it's original passenger capacity of four to ten."
"It's also over fifteen years old!!" Walker explained. Fury shot him a dark look that Walker ignored. Fury had never liked this Captain America wannabe, because at the end of the day he just wasn't good enough to be Captain America and he'd washed out of everything he'd tried before - the Avengers, Force Works. Walker didn't know this, but it was his last chance at respectability. The same could be said of most of the people here. He was giving these people a chance... or enough rope to hang themselves.
"Fifteen?" Tsunami asked. "Did he say fifteen? I don't think the United Nations would apprecia--"
"Yer not paid t' think, Yoshida," Fury interrupted, finally fed up of this debate that seemed to have sprung up. "Yer paid t' do a job. I'm doin' the best I can with meetin' the UN's needs - an' this is the best I could come up with on such short notice." He shook his head. "SHIELD doesn't have high-tech military aircraft just laying around. Now, you've got one of two choices. You can take the Lancer up to Alaska an' complete yer mission..."
He reached into a pouch and pulled out a cell phone, which he tossed to Tsunami.
"Or you can call up th' UN an' tell him that our facilities don't meet yer standards. We've got reserve members on call if yer not up t' the challenge."
"Enough of this squabbling," Sabra stated, pushing past Fury and Tsunami. "On the jet - now. Let's get moving."
The remainder of the team watched Sabra - and then followed her example. Armory remained on the ground for a few moments and walked over to Fury. He looked at the Colonel with lifeless, robotic eyes.
"Good luck, Bridge," muttered Fury, and left the hangar bay for the observation lounge. In the control room, Bridge sighed and commanded the armor to board the Lancer.
After a few minutes, the ship's engines started up, and Fury watched as the Lancer was directed out the open bay door.
Armory sat at the controls of the Lancer, firing up the engines immediately.
"All systems go..." he muttered. The air-traffic controllers directed him to fly towards the open bay door. He hit the thrusters and the jet began to lurch forward, until it began to gain speed. He increased the thrusters as he moved forward.
As the Lancer approached the opening, he increased the speed even more. It shot out of the Helicarrier, and once he was sure that he was clear of the Helicarrier, he began to pull up on the stick.
"I could make this flight in half the time it'd take our plane to get there," Hellios muttered.
"You're certainly a dismal sod," Union Jack stated.
"What did you say?" Hellios asked.
"I said that you're certainly a dismal sod," Union Jack repeated, looking around at the assembled team. "All of you seem to be. Ever since we've gotten here, all you've done is complain."
"You think we want to be here?" Darkstar asked. "We were all forced into this - same as you."
"I volunteered," Union Jack replied, though there was no pride in his voice. His tone was even, diplomatic in a sound. "I have no qualms with serving my country."
"Neither do I, but I couldn't care less about a research outpost in Alaska," Darkstar stated. "I have my own responsibilities as a member of the Winter Guard."
"Not for the moment," said Union Jack. "And I would have thought that it would have been of interest to you. It's not that long since Russia sold Alaska to the United States. I'd have said there was a vested interest for your national intelligence."
"Huh," sneered Tsunami. "I was about to become a part of Big Hero 6 - until my country decided that I would be better off serving them in this team," she noted.
"So you would rather play on an national level, rather than an international one? Your brother's never been able to stand the heat of responsibility either," said USAgent.
Before Tsunami could give and indignant reply to the boorish American, the British agent interrupted, forestalling the argument.
"I don't hear these blokes complaining," Union Jack stated, motioning to the Hauptmann and Savitar.
"It was either this or prison," Savitar noted.
"Prison?"
"I was forced into allying myself with the Mutant Liberation Front," Savitar replied. "With the help of some fellow mutants, I was able to overthrow the man responsible for threatening my family. Still, I attacked a congressional assembly. I was offered an ultimatum - join Excalibur or face prison sentence. As a mutant, that would have been a death sentence."
"I'm sorry," said Union Jack. "What about you, mate?" he then asked, looking at the Hauptmann.
"I have misgivings about this, the same as others," Hauptmann replied. "I just choose to remain silent. No sense in complaining about it."
"Christ, you people give me a fucking headache..." the USAgent muttered, while twirling one of his guns. "Hey Bridge, how much longer we got?"
"The name's Armory," the drone replied. "And we're approaching the area now."
"There are some odd temperature readings..." Sabra noted.
"What?" Armory asked, a trace of concern in the metallic voice.
"I--wait..." Sabra replied. "They just shifted back to normal."
"Probably an equipment malfunction," USAgent stated. "With this piece of junk, it wouldn't surprise me. Best they have to offer, my ass"
"Still, I don't like leaving anything to chance," Armory said. "Hellios, of everyone on the team you're the most-resilient. I want you to scout ahead."
"Yes, the new guy is the most-expendable..." Hellios cursed.
"Did you hear what I just sa--"
"Just shut up and open the hatch," Hellios barked.
"You're going to start showing some respect, Hrisalis," Armory ordered. "Either that or you'll be off this team so fast you won't know what hit you."
"If I don't respect you, I get to go home?" Hellios asked, adjusting his ear-piece, which doubled as a comm-link. "Not very good with threats, I see." Back at the Helicarrier, Bridge's eyes lit with anger and embarrasment and he was thankful that the suit couldn't convey the look on his face. He flipped the switch and the hatch opened. Hellios gave a mock salute and took off in to the sky, his powers of flight carrying him through the air.
"Now what?" Union Jack asked standing behind the field commander.
"We circle for a few moments," Armory replied, trying to put the incident with Hellios behind him. "If he doesn't call in within fifteen minutes, we go in."
If temperature affected Niko Hrisalis, he'd be freezing his ass off right about now.
30,000 feet in the air, flying at breakneck speeds over the Alaskan tundra is not the place for any man - let alone one who grew up in the extremely hot climate of his native Greece. He pressed on, increasing his speed.
However as he flew across the frozen wastes, he began to see notice something strange. He could see the snow was slowly beginning to recede. It was as if it were getting warmer as he moved closer towards the research station. He flew closer to the ground for a closer look, amazed at the sudden change in the world.
He knew this was something that the others needed to do and his hand moved up to his comm-link.
{{ ~~~ELLIOS HERE~~~~ }}
"Hellios?" Armory asked and the others quieted down so that they could hear as well. "What've you found?"
{{ ~~~OT SURE~~~~EEMS A LITTLE~~~~RANGE~~~ }}
"Hellios, you're breaking up." Armory began to try and increase the gain on the bandwidth of the comm-link to see if they could get a better signal.
{{ ~~~~~~~~~~~ }}
"Hellios?" Armory asked, turning it back, knwoign that they shouldn't have lost the signal but it was better to check.
{{ ~~~~~~~~~~~ }}
"HELLIOS!!!" Armory shouted, getting increasingly concerned and the vacant airwaves.
{{ ~~~~~~~~~~~ }}
"Lost him..." Damn, cured Bridge inwardly. Hellios was an arrogant SOB, but that was because he knew he could handle himself. All of these people could and if they'd lost contact that meant he was in real trouble.
"Well...?" Tsunami asked, a ball of water hovering between her open palms.
"Get ready," Armory ordered. "We're going in."
The anti-gravity units used by Armory and Sabra carried them through the air after departing from the Lancer, with Darkstar, Tsunami, and Savitar utilizing their mutant abilities of flight. A platform made from Darkforce energy courtesy of Darkstar carried Union Jack, USAgent, and the Hauptmann.
"Sabra, I don't think those readings you found earlier were the result of an equipment malfunction..." Armory stated. "Temperature levels are constantly fluctuating. Towards the Lancer, they're low. But further north, they spike up. It doesn't make any sense..."
"Something seems... different about this terrain..." Union Jack noted, crouching down and examining the ground beneath them.
"Yeah, there's no snow on it," USAgent commented, the sarcasm dripping from his mouth..
"Aside from that," Union Jack continued, oblivious to the American's tone. "It seems... older."
"And that means?" asked Savitar, watching the man play detective. Union Jack looked back at him.
"I don't know," he said, with a determined contemplation in his tone.
"Where's this research outpost?" the Hauptmann asked.
"Should be further up ahead..." Armory replied, looking back towards the direction they came, trying to make sense of his readings. Back at the Helicarrier, Bridge was sending the information to the research labs, hoping they could find something that he was unable to comprehend. As the only member of the team who was a card carrying SHIELD agent, he was going to use all the resources available to him.
"Bozhe moi..." Darkstar muttered, her eyes growing wide. "Look."
"Mother of God," said Bridge, his words echoing through the voice of Armory. He could barely believe what he was getting through his scanners.
Almost before their eyes, the landscape began to alter. Where there was once arctic landscape there was now lush and scenic greenery.
NEXT ISSUE: WHAT THE @#$% IS GOING ON HERE?!?