"Good, looks like the gang's all here," commented Nick Fury. The helicarrier's engines hummed gently in the background as he scanned his single eye across the motley crew of heroes. The ones standing at the back wall stared in return with a modicum of interest, but the ones sitting in the front seats (or crates, in some cases) leaned forward almost on cue. Spider-Man lifted his hand like a schoolboy high above the crowd, almost quivering with excitement.

"Yes?" Nick raised an eyebrow.

"Couldn't you get ol' shellhead and his crew to help? This webhead sleeps in on Saturdays, bud."

It was almost guaranteed for guys like Spider-Man to start right off with smarmy comments, Nick knew. Of course, he had dealt with Tony Stark frequently, so he was used to such treatment. "Under normal circumstances, yes I would, but the Avengers are out on a mission. That's why I need you guys," said Fury, pacing back and forth in front of a large computer screen built into the wall.

"Wow," thought Spider-Man. "Finally, this is going to be our team's shot at the big leagues! Maybe they'll even make us part of the Avengers!"

White Tiger crossed her legs in her seat. "So what is this big mission you have for us, Fury?"

"I'm glad you asked. I'm sure the five of you know who Magento is."

"Magneto, master of magnetism? Only the most powerful mutant on the face of the Earth?" asked Nova, leaning in the rear. "You can't be serious."

"Good to see you kids do your homework, but that was rhetorical," said Fury, waving the comment aside. "Our agents reported in that Magneto launched a space station into orbit yesterday morning that he's calling Asteroid M." Nick pulled out a remote from his trenchcoat, pointed it at the screen, and tapped a button. A grainy image flickered into view of a long tube-like structure, floating above the planet with its solar panels reflecting the sunlight. "Now that it's in space, he plans on making this little addition." NIck Fury pushed the button again, revealing a schematic for a piece of complicated machinery next to the space station.

Iron Fist piped up from his seat on his crate. "What's that?"

Fury took a deep breath, as if preparing himself for the enormity of conveying the situation. "It's an electromagnetic ion cannon, capable of generating a blast of impact the size of a nuclear bomb."

"Sweet Christmas!" exclaimed Power Man.

Spider-Man sighed. "That was really lame, Luke."

"Pshhh, better than 'Friendly neighborhood Spider-Man!'"

"Hey, that line is a classic!"

"Knock it off you two, this is important," interjected the Tiger.

"Thank you, Ava," said Fury, glad that somebody was taking the news seriously. "There's more to the whole mission, but that's the long and short of what Magneto is up to. When our agents-"

"So what, you're sending us up against Magneto, just the five of us?" Power Man stood up, fists clenched in restrained anger.

Spider-Man jumped from his seat too. "Nick, thanks for inviting us over, and the coffee was fantastic, but me and my team have a pre-existing engagement, dig?" He looked back at the rest of the heroes, and nodded. Luke and Iron Fist turned around and headed for the door, but the White Tiger and Nova shifted uncomfortably.

"Never said I was sending just the five of you." said Fury. The doors of the room opened up revealing Wolverine, Cyclops, Jean Grey, Nightcrawler, Colossus, Storm, Gambit, and Psylocke... better known as the X-Men.