Chapter 10
Somewhere with the chaos of Namor city, Sin was watching all the chaos brought down on them by Hydra. Sitting down on a comfy chair, having rid of it's former owner through other means. Sitting on a set-up monitor room recording and showing the scenes unfolding throughout the city.
"Ahhh, such a good day to cause hysteria and fear. Wonder how many Grimm are on the way here?" Those beasts were supposedly drawn to negative feelings, so they should be stomping their way to Namor eventually. But it would take time, time Sin spent relaxing.
"I see your enjoying yourself." Looking behind her seat, Sin noticed Crossbones readying himself to venture into the city. His job being to look for any dimensional interlopers that arrived alongside them. Teaching them a lesson or two should he find them.
"Yep. Doing the job like daddy wants me to." Pushing a button, the monitor changed screens showing both Mysterio and Whitley. "And with these pawns on our side, we'll get all the dust, Iso-8, and have it ready for use."
Sin held the amulet around her neck with wonder. Can't wait to use this supposed powerful item. She would have used it already, but Mysterio said it needed a lot of energy, and only certain components could work on it.
"Sure, sure. But I am curious, while all that dust is nice, isn't it useless anywhere besides here?" Studies showed this planet and dust had a sort of symbiotic relationship. The planet 'powering' the dust up, allowing it all forms of usage. Anywhere else though, it became inert and useless. Being no different from regular dust.
"Oh that, that's fine actually." Sin explained to her partner. "See, daddy actually wants to set up a base here in Remnant. Already starting it in fact. All that dust and Iso-8 is just to speed things along." If she recalled correctly, a base was being built on some continent in the shape of a dragon. Having a bit of territory here would be useful for Hydra.
"I see." Crossbones said understanding. "Whatever the case, I'll be going now. Got a tip some furry animals are here. Heading to one the facility we sent our errands boy to. Thought I'd say hello." Before he could go however, Sin stopped him.
"Hold it." She then swerved her chair back facing Crossbones. A mischievous look in her eyes. "I actually want you to leave those freaks alone, and do something more productive. Like dealing with those meddlesome heroes who just arrived here.'
Clicking another button, the keyboard showed two young girls that Crossbones recognized. If he recalled, they were those brats near Spider-Man a lot.
"Leave the Brotherhood and Fang to little Misty and Shitley." Musing, Crossbones crossed his arms and thought about this. Personally, he didn't really care what happened to those dogs they were using. If Mysterio and Whitley failed, that was it. Plus, he kinda wanted a crack at those girls as well, checking out their skill.
"Still, what if we lose all the dust to them. Won't that be bad for business." Sin swerved back to the monitors, and clicked a few buttons, showing this time, the two collar bombs on their beloved 'allies'.
"True, true. Which is why if those duds fail, then we may as well make it so that nobody gets that dust." She motioned the detonator switch. All she had to do was press it, and the corpses of those duds will blow up alongside the entire factory. "In fact, I'm kinda hoping they fail. Gives me an excuse to light up some fireworks."
Chuckling darkly, Crossbones just left after that. That suggestion did sound like fun. With so much dust and even a few Iso-8. There was a good chance the entire city would blow up. Oh, such a sight to imagine. As such, Crossbones should do his job quick. If those bombs were going to go boom, he would be out of here alongside Sin before then. Until then, time to play with some girls.
Mysterio was completely calling bullshit. So far, nothing has been really going right for him since he began his quest on saving his daughter. I mean, come on! He always thought those doing good would have a bit of an easy time when going on adventures. Spider-Man seems to always have a good time when he saves the day. How come Mysterio can't have something like that? Instead, he's been facing obstacles that shouldn't be here.
Fighting meddlesome brats and a crazed symbiote. Almost dying from a floating colosseum. Chased by multiple villains from his own world. Forced to work for Hydra, and pinned for crimes he actually didn't do. Now confronting the Brotherhood and the White Fang. Life really is unfair.
"Ha! Looks like we have you humans right where we want you!" Snickering was the mutant human known as Toad, who to his gleeful pleasure, was in charge of this mission. Having the support of another mutant newbie called Francis Klum, and many members of the White Fang.
Ah, and to think that his job was so simple. Actually, what was it again? Oh, right. Magneto told Toad that he was to check on the villain known as Mysterio, and see what mutants he had used. The spies stating the crook used strange small creatures that gave him strange abilities.
Magneto wanted them. Believing such beings should work with the Brotherhood to better their cause in their battles against the humans, and other possible threats. As for why the White Fang was here with him, they were a joint work force aiding the Brotherhood and vice-versa. Both Adam Taurus and Magneto actually getting quite along. Toad once noticing the two speaking on friendly terms.
Whatever the case, Toad had a mission, capture Mysterio and strike a blow to anybody in their way. However, the plan might have to change just a bit.
"Look! A Schnee!" One of the faunus members growled at. Saying the name with animosity. All the other members also noticing the young boy, who was looking quite frightened.
"A Schnee huh." Toad spoke, scratching his head. "Well, guess Adam will be happy to know one of his enemies will be brought down."
Another thing the Brotherhood did with the Fang was aiding the group with oppressors in Remnant. Destroying slave mines, freeing faunus. And, if the opportunity presented itself, killing a Schnee.
"Woah there." Mysterio said anxiously, waving his hands at the front. "Hold on there buddies. We're not your enemies….I hope."
"Enemies, please!" Toad said licking his lips. "While I don't care much about either of you posers, I have a job. The first is capturing you Mysterio."
"Me! What for?!" Mysterio was pretty sure he's never tangled with the Brotherhood or X-Men before. I mean, it wasn't as if he tricked one of them into killing other mutants. A plan he actually thought of before, but never did.
"Let's just say the boss wants to see what those….mutant things you have on you." The wisps. He wasn't sure how, but it appears the Brotherhood somehow knew about them. Toad then looked at Whitley with a savage grin.
"As for snowflake here, while it's not personal, the Fang wants you dead. So you'll be dead soon." Whitley gulped, completely on edge. The White Fang always did hate the Schnee's Raiding their mines, attacking the family. Unlike Winter and Weiss,who could protect themselves though, Whitley could not.
"Anyway, Francis, a few of you guys, handle Tweedledee dum and dummer. The rest of us, let's go get us some fine fine dust." Giving his orders, they all did as told. A few members of the Fang upset they couldn't kill a Schnee, but satisfied at the least knowing he'll be killed by their brothers.
While Toad gave his command though, Mysterio was uncertain what to do. Those collars must have cameras. No way Sin didn't notice these clowns confronting them. Considering the lack of reinforcement though, Mysterio made the assumption help wasn't coming. Typical.
'This is bad. I don't have any wisps or gas spheres. Not to mention that bitch took some of the chemicals off my suit.' Currently, all Mysterio could do was summon some mist and illusions. He did have aura, but that would do nothing but act as a shield and physical amplifier. Nothing more.
"Hey, kid." Mysterio whispered to Whitley. "Can you use your semblance to….I don't know, do something."
"Semblance…" Judging from the kids look, Mysterio wasn't going to like the next part. "I don't actually….have a semblance."
"What!" Mysterio whispered yelled. "How come? Your sisters have one."
"Well, not everybody can get their aura unlocked. Only those who are actually going onto the field, unlock in naturally, or illegally." As the Schnee said, there were rules on Remnant regarding auras. One of them being as he told Mysterio, only those who intend to fight the Grimm or similar forces are allowed usage. Considering how Whitley didn't apply to a huntsman school or anything of the sorts, by law he wasn't allowed the gift of aura.
"Well damn." It appears Mysterio would have no assistance at all. This fight against all these crazed weirdos was on him. In which case, he may as well throw the first punch.
"Take this. Avengers asse-Guahh!" Suddenly, before Mysterio could create an illusionary group of the Avengers, a fist slammed into his gut, stopping him. Then another fist punched him onto the ground.
"Nu-uh. I'm not letting you use those tricks." The one speaking was that teen from earlier. He somehow came in front of Mysterio without anyone noticing. The guy then looking at Whitley, then back at the Fang.
"Well, you gonna shoot him or not." That was all the words needed. With war cries, the White Fang raised their guns and aimed right at the Schnee. Whitley himself screaming in fear as he ran away once the triggers were pulled.
"Get back here Schnee."
"It's time for you to pay for your crimes."
"There's nowhere for you to run."
As the White Fang chases the boy, the mutant named Francis just looked at the downed Mysterio, smirking. "Heh, while those guys chase the brat, I'll handle you. Though," Francis vanished once more, then appeared near Mysterio. "It shouldn't take much."
While the battle between Mysterio and Francis started, Whitley himself was hiding as best he could. One good thing about this facility, it had lots of hiding spots.
"There he is!' He just wasn't good at hiding. Ducking, Whitley felt the beams pass over his head. Once the shots passed, he ran into another direction. The Fang trying to shoot him down, but much of the building's structure usually stopping the attack. Still, at this rate, Whitley will die.
'Come on Whitley, your a Schnee. You can't be killed like this. Not by a bunch of crazy fanatics.' Of course, it was easier said than done. No matter where he ran, the faunus would always find him. Their ability to track him useful.
Dodging another blast, Whitley leapt over a few boxes and soon looked around where he was. Noticing he was nearby a few weapons that utilized experimental dust. 'Ugh! I don't really know how to use these, but desperate times call for desperate measures.'
With no other choice, the Schnee grabbed one of the blasters, one filled with ice dust. The contraption being more than a little heavy, Whitley barely being able to stand. 'Note to self, work out more next time.'
"Hey there he-oh shit!" One of the members found him, but also seeing the blaster in his hands. One with a prominent cylindrical barrel that glowed.
"You want me, then come and get me." Whitley proceed with pushing the trigger. A blue blast came out, the recoil pushing Whitley onto his butt. On the bright side, his aim was good and true.
"Frank!" Unluckily for one faunus, his pal had been blasted and was now in a block of ice. Fortunately, it would appear the faunus was still alive somehow. Though once he thawed out, he'd most likely need a long warm shower.
"Damn you Schnee. I'm gonna-" Before the faunus could finish his threat, Whitley got back up, and shot the blaster again. Freezing another faunus like the first. A small smile appearing on his face.
"Huh, this is more fun than I thought." Recharging the ice blaster, Whitley heaved the weapon up and properly adjusted his stance. More White Fang came, though they would find their target more difficult to capture than expected. As for Mysterio himself, he was having a more difficult time than expected.
"Ow! Ughh!" The mutant Francis was proving far more effective in battle than Mysterio though. Every illusion he made was utterly ignored. If he conjured some monsters up, the mutant would just ignore and punch him. Trying to hide himself in his mist, temporary fix. In the end, Mysterio was no match for Francis.
Further proven when the young mutant simply just found him no matter where he went. 'This is crazy! How is he finding me, and he's so fast!'
So far, Mysterio wasn't sure what he could do against this teen. Whoever he was, he already knew all of Mysterio's moves. His own aura chipping away with every punch. If Mysterio tried a counter punch, Francis would simply vanish and punch him again. Wasn't long before he fell onto the ground on his back in pain.
Francis on the other hand, looked down with delight. Glad his research on his enemy was doing well.
"Uhhh, why….why are you doing this?" Mysterio groaned in pain. His question actually stopping the assault, as Francis just contemplated if he should answer. Shrugging, he decided why not.
"Sure, why not." He said while kicking the crooks chest. "Now, this technically is just a job, but believe it or not, I have a personal grudge against you."
"...Grudge..?" Strange, while Mysterio tormented many people, he's never seen this boy before. He may not recall the crowd's faces, but Mysterio made certain he knew 'personal stars' that he wrote for his scenes. This mutant wasn't one of them. "..I don't…..recall ever meeting you…"
The young mutant just slammed his foot on Mysterio's head, resting it there. "Of course you don't. You never recognized me. I was just in your way."
"In your...way?"
"That's right, I still remember that day. When I was about to attack the spider." Many months ago, Francis had a little run in with a certain web-crawler. He had been simply a small-time thug back then. Not even part of the Brotherhood. He would earn his place though by doing one thing though. "In order for me to join the Brotherhood, all I had to do was beat down a hero. Pretty easy."
That's right, it was easy. With his ability, it could be done just like that. Francis had his plan all laid out. He would attack the spider, and the representative of the Brotherhood watching would evaluate him. If he did good, then he was in. Bad…..it wouldn't be pretty.
"But then," Anger showed in his voice. A snarl now on his face as he pressed his foot further down Mysterios helmet. "You got in the way. Ruining it all."
On the day his plan was ready, Mysterio came in. Attacking the bug just before he could do illusionist releasing his mist, obscuring his vision and making him unsure what to do. A few seconds later, his entire body stiffened and he couldn't move. Francis didn't realize it then, but Mysterio had inserted a special paralysis chemical that made anybody in the vicinity to be paralyzed for around thirty minutes.
That wasn't the worst part though. Far from it. What happened next made Francis look like a chump.
Once the paralysis wore off, the mutant saw the fight was still ongoing. He made the risk of ready to fight when Mysterio suddenly used a miniature shock ball, throwing it at Spider-Man. The bug dodged, but Francis took his place instead.
Then, mysterio tried punching Spider-Man, missing him completely. Unfortunately for Francis, that punch still hit a target. Him. The reinforced suit that gave Mysterio extra strength shattered the mutant's jaw, and launched him into a freaking dumpster. Where he would stay there until the dumpster truck would pick it up, and take it to the dump with Francis on board.
Long story short, his initiation for the Brotherhood entry was a complete failure and humiliation. All because of Mysterio.
"Oooooohhhhhh!...I ruined you?" The illusionist of course, still had the slightest hint of what he actually did. He didn't see Francis, nor understand how he ruined things. Which made sense since his involvement was an accident. Wasn't as if he knew what Francis knew. To bad the mutant wouldn't let it go.
"Why you-! That's it!" Upset by his foe's answer, Francis vanished once more. Then he 'popped' into the air above, his foot slamming into Mysterio's gut. Mysterios breath vanishing as all the air in him left.
What came next was the wrath of multiple unrestrained kicks and punches. Being a mutant, Francis's attacks were much stronger than the average person. Soon destroying Mysterio's aura. With it gone, the pain came in full blast with no protection or healing.
Mysterio now feeling the bruises forming. The illusionist desperately trying to stop the assault, failing. The mutant was much stronger than he thought. Francis not giving Mysterio even a second to think.
"That's right you damn loser. Just stay like that till you get knocked out." Francis said with a rough tone. Feeling great pleasure in seeing Mysterio's pain.
"Hehehehe! Now get ready for another dose of pain you son of a-" Another voice interrupted Francis. One that was refined and orderly.
"My, my, such vulgar language." Francis quickly turned around, and briefly saw a flash of blue. Then, like the other faunus, he to was frozen. Though unlike the ones in blocks, his was just ice covering his form. Showing a clear, icy statue with a angry face. Alongside a surprised face beneath the new statue.
"...Whitley!" This was quite a development. Slowly getting up, Mysterio saw the small Schnee actually looking quite bad ass holding an interesting blaster of sorts. Some kind of freeze ray he guessed.
"That's right. I hope you are okay." The young boy said. Actually confusing the crook, but not in a bad way.
"...Ugh, yeah. A bit bruised and all. But otherwise, totally okay." Mysterio had to admit, that mutant put up a good fight. He couldn't even do anything. In a way, he was grateful for the kid's timing show. Since without him, the mutant dude would have beaten him into a pulp.
"Anyway, we should probably leave before those clowns find us good and freed." The other faunus and that Toad dude were still around. Best to just leave before their found out.
"Wait!" Whitley said, pointing at his collar. "What about these. We can't exactly abandon the mission. Or it's like you said, we'll die."
"Damn. Totally forgot about that." How troublesome. Still, a quick look showed the others weren't around. I mean, they probably heard the fighting, but considering how no back-up came, they most likely assumed their men would win.
They most likely didn't factor Whitley using a freeze gun. Then again, neither did Mysterio.
"Okay then, let's just get the crap over with. You know where the good dust is?" He asked.
"Of course. Granted, all the dust here is 'good', but I know of a better area where the more fascinating supplies are." Deciding to get the job done as soon as possible, the duo quietly left the area. Not wanting to grab the rest of the Fang and Brotherhood's attention anytime soon.
The two wandering the facility with Whitley leading. Who still kept the freeze blaster ready, just in case. Taking Mysterio and him towards a locked mechanical door. Entering the code, the door gave an electronic beep and opened.
"Now," Whitley said, entering alongside Mysterio. "Be amazed by what's inside."
As Whitley said, Mysterio was amazed. "Incredible."
It wasn't a large room in particular, but the contents made up for it. The entire room filled with all sorts of dust crystals. Ranging from every color, and Iso-8 crystals Mysterio's never seen. The topping on the cake though, was the arc reactor seen.
"Is that…..." Whitley only nodded.
"Correct. Mr. Stark loaned us a single arc reactor. Wishing to see how it's abilities react with dust." Now this must be heaven. To see all of this glorious trove of treasure before his eyes. Beautiful.
Looking at Whitley's collar though ruined his mood. Remembering that this wasn't for them, but for those cocky jerks Hydra. Muttering curses, Mysterio was about to just grab what he could when an idea came to mind. A look at the arc reactor told him the action he was about to take would either be a good idea, or plain suicide.
Hopefully it would be considered a good idea.
"Hey Whitley, come over here." Grabbing the Schnee's hand, Mysterio dragged the boy to where the arc reactor was. Hoping this would work. After all, if Spider-Man could do it, why not him?
"H-hey, what are you doing." He wasn't sure why, but Mysterio seemed a little to closer to the arc reactor for comfort.
"Oh….something stupid." Before Whitley could even retort, Mysterio grabbed the arc reactor with no form of protection. It was quite clear what would happen next.
"Ahhhhh!"
"Ahhhhh!"
The two were quickly exposed to the reactor's energy. The power shocking the duo into a bit of a crisp. Whitley especially since he's never felt pain as often before. Fainting on the spot while Mysterio endured it.
Still, it got the job done. As the very collars the two wore fell of, fried to the circuit. It was painful, but at least it got the job done. "Plus…..I get a reward."
Reeling back a little, Mysterio ignored his small spasms and grabbed the arc reactor. Placing it inside the bag he brought with Whitley. Just in case, he checked Whitley's pulse and confirmed he was alive.
With that done, he propped the boy onto a nearby wall, and started grabbing whatever he could. The arc reactor was the best, these Iso-8 crystals and dust shards were still good though. Touching those Iso-8 crystals made him feel the power he felt months ago.
"Ahhhhh. Such a invigorating feeling." While he put the majority of the dust and Iso-8 away, Mysterio decided to install the basic dust-powder form-into his suit. Placing small tubes of normal wind and fire dust into the gauntlet where the nozzles were located.
"With all this done, I may as well go." Accomplishing his goal, Mysterio stood up ready to leave. Looking at Whitley though, Mysterio felt a twinge of sympathy. While he normally didn't do such things, the kid did help him. He may have been a villain, but even he had some honor. So without further ado, Mysterio lifted the kid up, and placed him over his shoulder. Exiting the room.
'Nice. Those freaks aren't even nearby. Score.' Not seeing anybody nearby, Mysterio concluded they still didn't realize he and Whitley were home-free. Might as well continue the task.
Whistling in tune, Mysterio was walking with a small spring in his step. Soon exiting the facility glad that everything was okay.
"Unhand my brother fiend. Or face the consequences." Stopping, Mysterio felt a cold chill down his spine. Why wouldn't he, considering the people he saw in front of him. Qrow, Winter, and the infamous Wolverine, all together. Behind them was a bunch of bodies with the most prominent being a moaning Toad.
No wonder the place was so quiet. Now, Mysterio only had one thing to say.
"Shit!"
Looks like Mysterio made enemies with some mutant who has a grudge. Luckily, he and a surprising violent Whitley were able to stop the Fang and Brotherhood, with Mysterio earning some nice rewards for his efforts. Though now it looks like he'll have to face some of the Secret Avengers, and hopefully come out unscathed.
Next Chapter: February 16th.
