Chapter One
The Abduction
Bright.
So bright.
Surrounding him.
Choking him.
Killing him...
Reed Richards awoke with a gasp, struggling for breath. He could've sworn...No. It was a dream. Nothing more. His throat ached and he automatically started to reach towards his bedside table only to find his arms restricted. This was odd.
He stared into the darkness for a few minutes, waiting for his vision to adjust, blinking repeatedly when it didn't happen. Wait. Was that-? Was that cloth? His mind reeled. Pushing down panic, he managed to shake the cloth loose, letting out a pained gasp as light flooded his vision.
This wasn't home, that much was obvious. He was in a small room, no more than eight by ten feet, secured to a metal table situated directly in the center. There was a table beside him with multiple machines settled on top, an awry of wires stretching out. Wires, he soon realized, that were connected to him.
The rest of the room was bare, the white walls almost glowing with the intensity of the lights, and he grimaced. Talk about copying the movies. How much more unoriginal could you get? A door hidden in the wall to his left slid open and he watched as a woman came in, ignoring his presence as she wrote down the numbers the machine offered her.
Looking satisfied, she left the room, and he heard voices murmuring outside of the door. He heard footsteps fade, presumably the woman's, and a moment later a man entered. Despite the unknown situation, Reed bit back a laugh as he observed the man, who looked horribly cliché clad in a long white lab coat, the florescent lights less than kind when it came to the prominent bald spot in his graying hair. Making a few notes on his clipboard, he peered at Reed through a pair of wide rimmed spectacles, before making a few more quick jots on the clipboard.
"Ah. Dr. Richards. Finally awake, I see."
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The Richards household seemed normal enough to any person passing by, set upon an acre of neatly trimmed grass, that of which was home to multiple children's toys scattered across it, ranging from dump trucks near the sandbox to the tricycles by the driveway. There were two cars in the driveway, a bucket overturned nearby suggesting that they were recently washed. Normal, indeed.
Until you met the inhabitants, that is.
Reed and Susan Richards. Half of the cities newest superheroes. The Fantastic Four. No one knew for sure just how they acquired their powers, only that it happened on a space mission gone wrong. But even that information was based on a rumor. Nobody had the courage to actually ask them.
But despite the fear people sometimes felt when coming across one of them, they simply adored their children. Two boys and one girl. You could always find them playing outside together if weather permitted.
The oldest, Joshua, was five years old, with dark brown hair and brown eyes. Following close behind at almost four years of age was their second son, Damian, who, unlike either of his parents, had a mess of blonde hair and green eyes. Their youngest child, and only girl, Amelia, was two years old, with dark auburn hair and an unusual shade of grey eyes, which neither of her parents had come across before.
The children were not currently in the yard, but if one were to listen closely enough they would be able to hear the tell-tale laughter of delight from inside the house.
.
.
.
"Uncle John! You're here!"
Johnny Storm laughed and caught his oldest nephew, picking him up and spinning him in a fast circle. "What's up squirt?"
"Don't call me that!"
"Whatever you say, squirt."
"Uncle John!"
"Johnny Storm, will you quit torturing my child and come give me a hug hello?"
"Torture? You call that torture? Sister Sue, I am ashamed of you."
"Why do insist on these ridiculous names?"
"Ah, you know you love 'em." He set down the now squirming child and embraced his sister. "Good morning."
"Good to see you finally. Where's Ben?"
"He decided to ditch me this morning. He and Alicia should be here soon." No sooner had he finished his sentence when there was a knock on the door. "Speaking of Pebbles..."
Susan gave him a look and went to open the door, admitting two of her closest friends. "Ben, Alicia, good to see you guys."
"Morning Susan. Where'd you stash the kids?"
"Johnny just scared off Joshua, and Damian and Amelia are both still sleeping."
"What'd he do, show the kid his face? That'd scare anybody."
"Funny, Pebbles."
"Ah, there's the burnout now."
"Now, boys, play nice. I'm sure Sue has enough on her hands without you two bickering."
"Yes, dear."
Susan and Alica walked ahead while the guys followed, Johnny laughing quietly with making whipping motions with his hands. Ben smirked. "At least I got a woman."
Johnny sneered and stopped walking. "Hey, Josh buddy, would you come here for a minute?"
Ben gave him a questioning look as the kid ran past him. "Yeah?"
"Uncle Ben wants to see the present I got for ya."
"Ok." Joshua ran back out of the room and Ben glared at Johnny. "It better not be what I think it is."
A few seconds later the young boy ran back in. "It's you, Uncle Ben! It has your voice and all!"
Ben stared in horror at the toy as his voice rang out through the house. "It's clobberin' time!"
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Hello again, peoples. Just though I'd try my hand at F4. I needed a break from all my other works that seem to be going nowhere fast. Maybe this will work out, maybe it wont.
Anyway, If you guys see any mistakes or have any suggestions to fix it, don't be shy.
Until next time!