The Avengers
By Timerunner
Issue One - New Beginnings
Avengers Roll Call
The Beast - Henry McCoy
Iron Man - Tony Stark
Storm - Ororo Munroe
The Vision
The Wasp - Janet Van Dyne (Team Leader)
Wolfsbane - Rahne Sinclair
Yellowjacket - Doctor Henry Pym
Harry's Hideaway, Westchester County, Three Weeks Ago
As she entered the bar, Ororo Munroe scanned the bar for anyone familiar. When Henry had asked her to go to a meeting for him before she commenced her sabbatical from the X-Men she had hesitantly accepted. Now she was unsure if it was not some sort of joke. When someone called her name Ororo turned to the bar and smiled. Harry, the proprietor of the establishment called her over. "Ororo, they're in the back booth". Ororo nodded and walked to the booth.
She recognised one of the pair immediately as she had purchased some of the perfume which Janet Van Dyne's company manufactured on occasion. She had also worked with her on a few occasions with the X-Men. The gentleman sitting alongside her was vaguely familiar. Ororo sat down facing them and paused before asking "You wanted to meet with me?"
Janet smiled. "Yes. This is Henry. We have an offer for you. We have been informed by a mutual friend that you are considering leaving the X-Men. We would like you to consider joining the Avengers. You've got more experience than most heroes and we could use you. The Beast is already rejoining and he recommended you".
Ororo pondered the offer. She was starting to grow disenchanted with Xavier's way of dealing with mutant-human relations. Joining a high-profile team like the Avengers might be a good way of helping with that cause. Smiling, Ororo responded. "Count me in".
Avengers Mansion, New York, Three Days Ago
"So. Who do you think the government is going to force on us this time? If Gyrich has anything to do with it I'm guessing it will be US Agent". Henry McCoy, better known as the bouncing Beast, had been making his opinion of Henry Peter Gyrich blatantly obvious all morning.
Janet nodded. "I was told by the President that the CSA had decided to assign a new liaison to the team. I'm not sure who it's likely to be. I was hoping for Duane but I guess he's still assigned elsewhere".
As Janet looked around the table at the singular group of individuals assembled under the name of the Avengers she had a feeling that the team was going to work. She had worked with Henry, Hank (although his more leonine features were something new to her), Tony and the Vision before and knew their capabilities well. Ororo was something of an enigma, although Henry had provided enough proof of her capabilities for her to have earned her spot on the team. The fact that the US government was forcing a member onto the team could spoil the whole mix of the team.
The sound of the intercom roused Janet out of her thoughts. "Mistress Janet, our guests have arrived".
Janet almost smiled at the somewhat relieved note in Jarvis's voice. "Send them down". She looked at her team-mates. "How bad can it be?"
Her question was answered by the opening of the main door into the briefing room. Jarvis nodded to the assembled heroes as he escorted a blonde woman into the room. Janet smiled as she recognised the woman. "Doctor Cooper, this is a surprise".
Doctor Valerie Cooper smiled as she stepped over to the meeting table and placed a file on it. "When Agent Freeman left this assignment he suggested me for the job. I agreed when agent Gyrich suggested to secretary of defence Rusk that an agent with close links to the US government be assigned to the team. As it was, I was therefore allowed to select the agent". She turned to the still open door. "You can come in now".
As a young, redheaded woman walked into the room Hank and Ororo smiled, in contrast to the somewhat blank looks on the faces of the others. While Hank started to laugh, Ororo stood up and walked over to the newcomer. "Rahne?"
---
"When Agent Gyrich insisted that someone who works for the US government be assigned to the Avengers I remembered that Rahne was still on the books from her time in X-Factor. I've been in contact with her since her time with S.H.I.E.L.D and offered her the job". Val handed Jan the file. "These are our records on Rahne".
Janet nodded and shook Rahne's hand. "Welcome to the Avengers".
New Jersey, Now
As she looked out of the window of the Quinjet at Storm, flying alongside Iron Man with the Vision on the far side of the plane Jan smiled as she slipped into the co-pilot seat. She picked up the comms headset and put it on before speaking. "Okay, the report we received was that an unknown being had stepped out of a hole in the air and was now firing energy blasts at anything that moved. Vision, Iron Man, Storm, you're on aerial recon. We'll land the jet nearby and approach on foot. Beast, you're on point with Wolfsbane".
Jan looked down as she opened a comm link to Four Freedoms Plaza. "This is the Wasp. I need to speak to Reed Richards". She listened for a few seconds before turning to the others. "The Fantastic Four are investigating something which may be connected to this. They aren't going to be able to help directly".
"Jan, you better look at this". Jan's blood ran cold as she looked ahead. What had been a suburb now looked like a war zone. What looked like a square mile of suburbia appeared to have been levelled. Jan looked at Hank before speaking. "Land on the outskirts of the area and…"
Jan's orders were cut short as a beam of energy passed between Storm and the Quinjet before arcing back towards the jet. Jan was nearly knocked off her feet as two control panels exploded and the Quinjet went into a dive.
Above the jet Storm had flown lower as Iron Man and the Vision gained height. She glanced to her side as the Quinjet dropped past her, trailing fire from one side. "Storm?" The metallic voice of Iron Man was more than a little reassuring. "Help the others. I saw where that last blast came from. We are checking it out".
---
Inside the Quinjet, Yellowjacket was trying to gain some sort of attitude control from the apparently damaged, avionics systems. He glanced out of the corner of his eye at where Jan was putting out the fires then smiled as he felt the jets rapid descent start to slow. He immediately discounted the possibility of Iron Man catching the jet due to the gentle slowing then grinned as he turned his headset comms on. "Storm, thank you for your timely assistance".
Storm's reply was marred by interference. "I've slowed you down but the landing is going to be rough".
Yellowjacket looked at how close the ground was and lowered the landing gear. "Everyone, strap in. This is going to be rough".
---
As she controlled the updraft which was slowing the Quinjet's crash she looked for a safe spot to land the plane. The remains of what looked like the car park of a mini-mart were the best option available. She created a wind to adjust the jets trajectory as best as she could before it made a rough landing.
---
As she tried to work out what had just happened Wolfsbane opened her eyes. She looked around at the interior of the Quinjet and noted smiled as she noted that no-one seemed seriously hurt. As she unbuckled herself she walked to the side door of the craft and opened it.
"How are the others?" Storm landed on top of the jet and looked at the back of the jet. "I don't think this jet will fly again".
As they clambered out of the Quinjet, Yellowjacket and the Beast looked at the damage. The blue-furred mutant frowned before speaking. "This bird will sadly not fly again. It appears we shall have to proceed on foot from here on in".
---
As he watched the sensor readings on the Heads up Display of his Iron Man suit, Tony Stark noted that the energy signature of the beam which had crippled the Quinjet was in his suit's database. "Vision. I'm picking up energy readings matching those of Blastaar".
"If Blastaar is behind this I suggest we split up and approach him from both sides". Both Iron Man and the Vision's attention were drawn to an explosion ahead. They split and approached from two different angles.
---
As he clambered out of the Quinjet Yellowjacket looked around the crash site. He was only glad that his team-mates had made it through the landing intact.
The Wasp looked at her team as she established a plan. "We do this like we planned. Storm, take aerial recon. Beast, Wolfsbane take point on the ground. We head in the direction that the blast came from".
"That will not be necessary. I will kill you now". As the Avengers turned to face Annihilus, ruler of the Negative Zone, the Wasp realised that things had just got a lot worse. The Beast summed up the groups feelings perfectly. "Oh my stars and garters".
As she watched, Ororo concentrated. Annihilus was struck by a bolt of lightning from a rapidly darkening sky. At the same time the Wasp and Yellowjacket shrunk to insect size and Wolfsbane turned into her part-wolf form.
While the Wasp peppered Annihilus with stings, providing some cover for the Beast to leap at him. A thunderous punch from the blue-furred mutant knocked the insectoid alien off balance.
Wolfsbane followed up by pouncing onto Annihilus's chest, grabbing for the Cosmic Control Rod. As she clamped her teeth around the rod, she backed off shifting into her wolf form and running for cover.
Glad of the long hours Jan had spent working the team together in the Combat Training Room making a group of individuals into a fighting unit, Yellowjacket fired an energy blast that barely missed Annihilus. At least, with Annihilus's main power source separate from him, beating him into submission probably wouldn't be too difficult.
---
As he flew over terrain that looked more like a war zone than suburbia Iron Man smiled as he picked up Blastaar on his sensors with the Vision approaching from the other side. He smiled as Blastaar fire a stream of energy which passed through the Visions incorporeal form. As he brought his hands forward he watched the targeting icons line up on Blastaar's back.
With a thought, repulsor blasts exploded across the back of the alien warrior, matched by a heat beam from the Vision's forehead. Knocked off balance by the combination of attacks Blastaar turned and shouted a guttural yell before preparing to fire upon him. A smile crossed the armoured Avenger's face as he realised that things were going as planned.
---
"Give me that back, you alien sow. I will skin you for this insult". Annihilus was, to say the least, a little displeased. He could feel himself starting to age now that he was separated from his Cosmic Control Rod and now some sort of freakish creature was running from him.
Wolfsbane was dodging as her opponent fire a energy blast which missed her, blowing a car into oblivion but missing her by a wide margin.
Storm watched as the Scots werewolf then turned to Annihilus. She watched as the rest of the team backed off before calling another lightning bolt down on the alien. The Wasp watched as Annihilus somehow remained on his feet after Storm's elemental assault on him then attacked with another burst of stings at him, the energy blasts causing him obvious pain. "Everyone, take him down".
The Beast leapt at Annihilus, rolling like a cannonball and slamming into the armoured alien with enough force that he was sent flying into the side of a ruined building where he slumped to the ground.
---
As the Vision swooped over Blastaar he ran possible scenarios through his core processor. As predicted Blastaar fired a neutron blast at Iron Man, inflicting small amounts of damage on the armoured Avenger. As anticipated, Iron Man retaliated with a volley of plasma blasts giving the Vision the opportunity he needed.
He had kept his bodies density at near zero in order to fly. While Blastaar's attention was focussed on Iron Man, the Vision landed and placed his incorporeal hand inside his opponents chest then increased his density to what was (for himself as well as Blastaar), dangerous levels.
Blastaar's cry of pain was matched by the Vision's as certain of the Synthezoid's systems crashed while Blastaar slumped to the ground unconscious.
As the Vision ran a diagnostic of which systems were still functioning within parameters he saw Iron Man kneeling over him. "Are you okay?".
"I am mostly operating within parameters. I will need some repair work when I return to Avengers Mansion but otherwise, I am well"
Tony nodded as he looked at the devastation around him. "I'm getting a signal from the others. Believe it or not but I think we won".
---
By the time a squad of Guardsmen had arrived to carry the two villains to the Vault the press had arrived. Jan looked at her team-mates as she walked over to the assembled reporters. She smiled as she glanced back to see her team-mates flanking her. "I will answer any question in a moment. I would like to introduce the newest line-up of the Avengers. The Beast, Iron Man, Storm, Wolfsbane, Yellowjacket and the Vision. I will take questions now".
Jan looked around as she felt someone tap her on the shoulder. The Beast had a amused look on his face. "Haven't you forgotten something Madame Chairperson".
Jan grinned before turning back to the reporters. "Avengers Assemble!".
This was originally written for a Marvel fan fic group that died before it got off the ground. This is only the second piece of completed fan fiction I've done so it's probably more than a bit rough around the edges. I'll be posting more stories (Fantastic Four & X-Men as well as Avengers) in time. Any comments are welcome.