Hiding in Horizons
On-board the Tri-Carrier…
The news reports burst through the media surrounding what happened in Los Angeles with several on-scene videos filming what appeared to be mysterious creatures attacking S.H.I.E.L.D. agents and even going after some of the civilians in the area. There were several agents confirmed killed by these creatures, but only a few civilians were injured. Since S.H.I.E.L.D. was the agency on site for what happened, the government placed full responsibility on them for allowing this to happen and for allowing the Phantom to escape yet again. They now called what happened there the "Los Angeles Incident", already in the chain of events following the "Manhattan Incident".
S.H.I.E.L.D. took the bodies of the creatures in for examination to see what they could find out about it but there were already talks between the leadership to find out exactly why Spider-Man and White Tiger were spotted in the city.
Coulson sat at his desk, impatiently waiting for the impending call from S.H.I.E.L.D. HQ concerning the whereabouts of Spider-Man and White Tiger. Although they didn't directly fall under S.H.I.E.L.D., they had kept a close eye on Spidey's team for helping Phantom out during the Manhattan Incident, so now that they were spotted in the same area as him outside of Manhattan, the heat was building up.
The call finally came in, and Coulson pulled up the transmission on holographic display. The angered expression of Special Agent Sitwell was the first thing he saw.
"Ah, Agent Sitwell, what a surprise." Coulson politely greeted the agent as he took a sip of his coffee.
"Can it, Coulson." Sitwell angrily replied. "I want to know where the exact whereabouts of Spider-Man and White Tiger are, this is a direct order from S.H.I.E.L.D. HQ."
"They're on assignment from Director Hill; I can't disclose that to you."
Sitwell sarcastically smiled. "Let me repeat myself, S.H.I.E.L.D. HQ wants to know the whereabouts of their two superheroes."
"Why?" Coulson crossed his arms. "They don't even work for S.H.I.E.L.D., they just operate under our jurisdiction, just like the Avengers."
"Look, Coulson." Sitwell took off his eyeglasses to clean them. "I know you know where Alejandro Cruz is, I know you and Hill have been keeping him safe ever since what happened in Manhattan. Now frankly, I don't care if you've been helping him, S.H.I.E.L.D. will deal with traitors like you two in the way we always have… but I want the locations of those two as well as the other three."
"They're just teenagers, Sitwell, they're not going to tell anything to people like you."
Sitwell chuckled as he placed his eyeglasses on. "Once we find and capture Phantom, we'll direct our efforts to finding Taskmaster, and after that, we'll locate the thousands of citizens taken from us in Manhattan… and once we facilitate our new helicarrier fleet and give them authorization to roam the horizons… we're going to hunt down these… these mutants… and grant them the justice they deserve."
Coulson's heart dropped at hearing this. "You don't have the right…"
"We have the jurisdiction and the mandate as humans to do what is necessary." Sitwell snapped back. "The Vitruvian Project was our chance to make humanity better, and instead we created a monster."
"Don't you realize that Taskmaster and Phantom aren't the real threat? It's Magneto we need to be worried about, he's the one behind all of this!" Coulson tried to reason with Sitwell.
"Another mutant, and we'll eliminate him as well, along with the rest of them."
"You're talking about genocide, Sitwell. S.H.I.E.L.D. doesn't stand for that." Coulson calmly argued. "You're going down a road that will divide this organization right down the middle!"
Sitwell sighed. "You're either with us or against us, Coulson. But fine, don't tell me where they are, but if I'd tell Phantom to stay out of the skies, because we're out here hunting for him. I recognized the craft you gave him too, don't think I can't recognize S.H.I.E.L.D. tech."
"Is there anything else?" Coulson sighed and shook his head. "You want me to prepare a throne for you too when you take over as dictator?"
"We'll talk soon." Sitwell quickly ended the transmission, leaving Coulson pondering what he had said.
His office door opened and Director Hill slowly walked in with her arms crossed, it was obvious she had heard the whole conversation from outside.
"You heard that?" Coulson walked around his desk to sit back down.
"Yeah…" Hill shook her head. "I can't believe that asshole is thinking about leading a march to destroy mutants."
"You think it's personal?"
"Well, he was in charge of the S.H.I.E.L.D. force that was in Manhattan when they took it back, and they hammered him pretty hard for letting both Taskmaster and Phantom escape." Hill tried figuring it out. "I'm surprised he was put in charge of the manhunt for Phantom."
Coulson stared down at his coffee with a blank stare. "It just doesn't add up."
Hill shook her head. "We have… some other news as well."
"What?"
"Selena Escobar, Cruz's daughter, never returned to her house last night."
Coulson's eyes widened after hearing this, he swiftly got up from his chair. "Do we have any leads?"
"Powerman and Iron Fist were on the scene as far as I can tell." Hill stood up with him, watching him pace around. "They said Nova took her."
"Nova?" Coulson was confused. "What the hell did he kidnap her for?"
"I don't know what to tell Maria Escobar and her husband, they already filed a missing person case with the police… and I have no clue what we're going to tell Phantom."
"We can't keep it a secret from him." Coulson drew up the holographic map of the world. "I have a plan."
"What? We can't ask the Avengers, we can't ask our own organization for help…"
"We got all the help we have." Coulson popped up the superhero profiles of Powerman and Iron Fist on the map. "We'll send in the rest of the team to find Nova."
Hill stared at the map, seeing the red blips leaving the California border being Spider-Man, White Tiger, and Phantom, and the red blips for Powerman and Iron Fist in New York. "How are they going to find Nova?"
"I have faith in them." Coulson simply answered.
At the Avengers Facility…
War Machine flew in from California at first light of the next morning. At the facility, Iron Man, Captain America, and Thor were already waiting for his debrief. S.H.I.E.L.D. was already trying to bark orders at the Avengers to question War Machine about his involvement in Los Angeles, but Stark made sure to shut them out until the political red tape broke through, but for the time being, he was safe.
The superheroes paced around the landing bay where their transports were held, War Machine explaining to Stark what happened and the hooded mutant named Reaper they ended up encountering. Thor and Cap were mostly confused, but Stark tried making sense of it.
"Now, you sure that little prick, Sitwell, didn't recognize the difference between Phantom and… Reaper, was it?" Stark curiously asked Rhodes.
"Positive, the dumbass couldn't tell between Reaper's red electricity and Phantom's blue electricity, I mean, come on, it wasn't hard to spot that out."
"Any idea where Reaper's gone?" Cap curiously asked.
"If I were to guess, he's probably gone crawling back to Magneto." Stark answered.
"Probably." Rhodes agreed.
"You have any input on this?" Stark looked at Thor.
"I am primarily concerned with this red electricity." Thor crossed his arms. "If you say this 'Reaper' identified closely with Phantom, then why have we not considered that Reaper could be Phantom?"
"What are you talking about?" Cap asked.
"I mean, think about it." Thor explained. "The Phantom is a sole entity who is unique in his own way; he was created a specific way. If there is another entity that directly mimics him, then the possibility is that Reaper could be Phantom from another dimension, and quite possibly another time-period."
"You're suggesting that Reaper is a time-traveler." Stark asked as though it was the most far-fetched idea ever. "I guess I'm secretly Queen Elizabeth too, right Thor?"
"You are not thinking about this rationally, Stark." Thor politely argued. "We have spoken about time-travelers throughout legends of Asgard, and one of the Infinity Gems even has the power to bend time. All I am saying is that this may be an enemy we are not ready to comprehend."
"I don't care what he is, he's a bad guy." Cap commented. "He's working with Magneto, and that's just one more obstacle we need to overcome."
"So they're in-route to Chicago now, right?" Stark looked back at Rhodes. "They have two of the three recruited, all there is left is one more."
"I think they're going to lay low for the time being." Rhodes quickly answered. "S.H.I.E.L.D. is out hunting for them in the skies, they know what kind of craft he's flying."
"Jesus, S.H.I.E.L.D. needs to get their act together." Cap shook his head.
"Agreed." Thor nodded. "By the way… where is Black Widow and Hawkeye?"
"Somewhere in Africa last I checked." Stark quickly answered. "I think they're close on finding out Deadpool's hideout and finding Fury."
"You really think him coming back is going to make a difference with everything that's going on with S.H.I.E.L.D.?" Cap curiously asked.
"Hell no, but it'll make Coulson and Hill feel better, and plus… I don't think he deserves to be tortured by that maniac any longer." Stark honestly answered.
"Well, that's good." Rhodes looked around the transport bay. "Can I go take a hot shower and eat something, now? I'm pretty sure S.H.I.E.L.D. wants my head right now, so I think I need a rest."
"Go for it, buddy." Stark patted Rhodes on the back of his armor as he walked away.
That just left Cap and Thor left in their circle of conversation.
"This situation may need our intervention sooner than I'd thought." Cap stated with a slight tinge of worry in his tone. "S.H.I.E.L.D. is on the brink of being dissolved and they're trying to stop Phantom…"
"I do not think they need us to intervene just yet, it is far too risky." Thor commented. "We do not know what we are dealing with, either."
"Well…" Stark looked outside the transport bay as it began to rain. "Xavier contacted me a few hours ago... they located Magneto."
"You're joking." Cap looked at Stark with much surprise. "How come you wait until now to tell us?"
Stark gave him a bewildered look. "Because we're not ready yet? I don't want us to start knocking down doors until Specter Haven is ready and until the X-Men are ready."
"I say we take them down now." Thor crossed his arms. "They will not see us coming."
"Yeah they will." Stark obnoxiously answered as he started walking away. "We'll wait for Phantom, and then we'll move out."
Thor glanced at Cap. "I think I shall return to Asgard and ask a trusted friend of mine if he might know more about this 'Reaper' character."
Somewhere in the western United States… (Spidey's POV)…
After several hours in the air, Phantom opted to lay low for the following night after they left Los Angeles, landing somewhere in a fairly wooded area where they set up camp around The Eidolon to stay hidden from the S.H.I.E.L.D. drones flying overhead with the ability to detect stealth S.H.I.E.L.D.-tech.
Phantom remained mostly quiet throughout the camp-out, as well as Firewalker. Wolfe had gone out hunting in the woods and returned with some fresh deer to cook over the fire they had made.
Peter sat back on the ramp of The Eidolon which served as somewhat of a sitting area around the campfire. Phantom and Firewalker sat on some of the cots they removed from the craft and Wolfe was busy doing some sort of cooking-technique to slow roast the venison over the fire that Firewalker made.
"Ah, don't worry, whelps, I got something special cooking." Wolfe grinned ear to ear glancing back at the team then back to the fire, humming an unfamiliar tune to himself.
"Does he always call us by 'whelp'?" Firewalker whispered the question to Peter.
He mostly does it to me, but he has another young guy to pick on, so yeah, get used to it.
"If you're younger than him, yeah."
"It's annoying." Firewalker shook his head.
You're telling me, pal!
"It grows on you." Peter assured him.
"I hope so." Firewalker smugly responded as he removed his hood as he stared back at the fire.
Peter then saw a better look at him. Firewalker had a goatee going on and his dark brown hair was slicked back. He wore a black bandana over his forehead with a red-colored design.
I don't know what to make of it. Firewalker's obviously a street-kid, but he acts so modest. It's almost like he grew up with morals, I'm pretty sure he has a strong sense of moral, anyway.
"I couldn't reach the team." Ava walked down the ramp in her regular green dress casual wear. "I tried the encrypted channels but their communicators are off."
"It must mean Coulson has them on assignment." Phantom calmly answered, his arms crossed. "It'll be best if we don't communicate with them for now; it's why I haven't talked to Coulson yet."
I'd like to avoid running into S.H.I.E.L.D. for the time being, so that's probably a good idea.
Ava sat down next to Peter on the ramp, watching into the fire as Wolfe continued slow-cooking the venison.
"It's almost done." Wolfe glanced back at the team.
Phantom suddenly stood up and looked at everyone then at Wolfe. "I'm not hungry… I… I need to go meditate for a while."
With that, he walked away into the woods, disappearing into thin air.
He's probably worried about Selena… Gosh, I hope she's okay too. Whoever Reaper is, he's a real prick for going after Phantom's daughter… You just don't do that… but what I'm trying to figure out is how in the world did he know that Phantom had a daughter?
"Damn…" Firewalker watched him walk away. "I bet there's a lot on that dude's mind after that fight with that other guy, Reaper."
"Leave the man's business alone, runt." Wolfe commented.
"He's been through a lot." Ava told Firewalker, trying to explain Phantom's behavior. "His daughter means a lot to him, so he's probably really worried as to where she is right now."
Including what's going on with Nova… I mean, Nova's in a coma now? I hope he's all right… I feel terrible… like I failed them as a leader…
"You're telling me…" Peter sighed. "I'd hoped that Luke or Danny would've at least picked up the call, I'm worried about Sam."
"I know… me too." Ava looked at him.
"Who are they?" Firewalker curiously asked.
"They're our teammates, Powerman, Iron Fist, and Nova. We've always fought together as a team, and this is our first mission separated like this." Peter explained.
"Sounds like y'all had a great crew going on, fighting crime huh?"
You already know, fighting crime, beating down the bad guys and occasionally saving the world. The usual thing, but leave the web-slinging and wall-crawling up to me!
"It got weird sometimes, especially after Phantom showed up." Ava nodded.
Pretty freaking weird, sometimes I wonder what would've happened if we never went to investigate S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Archive in the Amazon.
"Damn… We always tried to stop robbers from stealing from the local stores whenever we saw that shit happening." Firewalker told them. "I don't like crime, you know? It's one thing to be desperate, but it's another thing to do it for fun. Some of those folks, they do it for fun."
"How exactly did you get a 'crew' together after the experiment?" Peter curiously asked. Wolfe glanced over, intently listening on the conversation as well as he continued cooking.
"Man, don't even remind me about Vulcan, I can barely remember that time. I told Phantom-dude about it. After what happened, I came back to L.A., and since my ma was dead and all I had was the streets, I chilled out in a cardboard box next to garbage cans at the local burger joint. I saw a bunch of dancers start dancing one day after a few nights on my own, and I joined in on them. They liked my fiery moves, and started saying I had a gift or something. I didn't think so, but I ended up joining them, leading them, and having to leave them now."
I'm willing to bet he's had some pretty crazy experiences being a street performer. I've got to ask him about it sometime!
"I was going to ask why you left, you really had no reason to other than to join us on chance." Ava politely wondered.
"Because Vulcan changed my life, forever, and sometimes I hate what I had become." Firewalker softly sighed. "People judge freaks like me… It just got to the point I stopped caring."
"We're all different." Peter shrugged. "You can't be weirded out by that."
Tiger's got nails longer than most chicks and acts like a real cat sometimes, Powerman looks like he's on steroids, Iron Fist looks and sounds like he's high on something, and Nova… well… Nova's just weird.
"It's whatever." Firewalker shook his head.
"Food's ready." Wolfe grunted as he carved out slices from the venison.
"I'll grab some plates." Ava got up and walked back into The Eidolon.
"I'll help." Peter got up and followed after her.
Wolfe glared at Firewalker. "You like deer, runt?"
"Stop calling me runt, old man."
Wolfe growled. "I'm not an old man."
"You realize how rude it is to talk to people like that, man?" Firewalker shook his head. "Yes, I like deer… Pfft…"
"Good." Wolfe let out a wolfish grin.
Jeez, I can tell those two are going to have some pretty crazy fights once they fight a little while longer alongside each other in Specter Haven.
"Where are the plates?" Peter asked Ava as they walked in. Ava ignored the question as she walked into the cockpit, Peter following in after her.
She stopped to stare at him, giving him a glare.
What the hell?
"What?" Peter asked with confusion. "Why are you staring at me? Where are the plates?"
"We haven't talked about what happened back in L.A."
Ugh… I was worried this would come back up…
Peter sighed and turned to look outside the doorway to the fireplace outside The Eidolon. "Ava… this isn't the time."
"When will it be the time, then?!" Ava crossed her arms. "I get it, I really do, we're superheroes, and we have to take risks, but Peter, after what happened in Manhattan, do you really want to take more risks like that?!"
Who is she to tell me what I can and can't do?! I'm Spider-Man, not someone's plaything! I have to be willing to take risks!
"It was either me or all of you guys would've been crushed, I didn't want that! And I knew that I could handle it!" Peter looked back at her with a glare. "Gosh, Ava, you worry too much!"
"Me?!" Ava angrily asked. "At least I act like I care, Parker, more than you do most days!"
What?! Seriously?!
"You think I don't care?!"
"You think it's easy for me to see you have to almost die every time?!" Ava's eyes were slowly tearing up.
"It's been only twice, Ava, it's not like I try killing myself on a regular basis!"
"Did you forget we're in this together?! Huh, web-head?!" Ava yelled at him. "Did you forget that you actually mean something to me now, more than ever before?!"
"If you're so worried, Ava, I should have never brought you along." Peter finally told her, crossing his arms and staring out of the doorway, not even looking at her.
This seemed to shatter Ava's defenses emotionally, not believing what she had just heard. A few tears slid down her face as she looked around the cockpit, using her long sleeves to dry up her tears.
Ah, crap… I probably shouldn't have said that… I really shouldn't have said that.
Peter realized what he had said and turned to look at her. "Listen… Ava…"
"No, I get it, Parker." Ava covered her face with her hands. "I get it. Look… it's probably better if we just… took a break."
A b-break? No… She can't be serious…
"Ava…"
"No, I'm serious." Ava removed her hands and looked at him with such an angered face, her eyes slightly red. "If you really believe that, then you should've brought Nova or any of the other guys along… instead you brought me."
Because I wanted to, because I need you!...
Peter tried to softly reach for her hands but she pulled them away. "We'll finish the rest of this mission with Phantom… but… I think we need a break, Pete…"
Ava… No, I don't want you to do this…
"Listen, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to…"
"No, Pete…" Ava tried hard to not to cry anymore. "I thought we could do it but… I don't know anymore."
Ava…
With that, she reached into a small locker in the cockpit and pulled out a few paper plates and utensils. She walked past Peter and out of The Eidolon to hand them out so they could eat, leaving Peter all alone in the cockpit.
Damn it, Parker, you screwed up big time this time… and with the only freaking girl that's ever cared about you enough to tell you she loves you! Damn it, damn it…
At Magneto's Fortress…
Reaper swiftly arrived back at Magneto's Fortress, closely followed by his possessed Nova. He walked down the jet's ramp, with his hand on Selena's shoulder. He had tied her wrists together with chains and calmly escorted her from the landing area into the mysterious castle.
She was scared, her heart pounding ever since Nova had kidnapped her, and she wasn't sure of who this hooded character was, but she was almost sure it was her father, but at the same time… she couldn't believe he would attempt doing something like this.
As Reaper opened the doors into Magneto's command room, he shoved Selena forward so that she walked before them.
Magneto was sitting on his high chair with Mystique standing nearby, watching his hooded ally return with developments.
"Finally had enough traveling?" Magneto sternly asked. "I had thought you were turning your back on me."
"I was taking care of…business." Reaper calmly answered as he held up two vials in his hands, they were filled with the blood of the two subjects. "Orion and Vulcan's blood, collected and ready to be added to the Wraith serum."
"Good." Magneto placed his hands together, his eyes shifting from Reaper to Selena beneath his helmet. "…and who do we have here?"
"Ah, where are my manners?" Reaper let out a small chuckle. "Magneto, this is Selena Cruz, the daughter to Alejandro Cruz… the Phantom's daughter."
Magneto stood up from his chair and walked over to Selena, towering over her and staring into her soul with his blue piercing eyes underneath his shadowed helmet. "You have no idea how special this meeting is to me, my dear."
"What do you want from m-me?" Selena worriedly asked, trying to budge her wrists out of the chains, but it was no use.
Magneto placed his hands on her shoulders. "You are my collateral against your father now, and you being here has placed me in a very powerful advantage over him."
"Please… don't kill me…" Selena had tears slide down her face. "Please…"
"Don't cry, my dear." Magneto softly caressed her face, removing the tears from her cheeks and letting go of her shoulders. "I'm not going to kill you… but I will do everything in my power… to uplift you to something greater… perhaps… greater than your father?"
"I don't want to be greater…" Selena struggled to say. "I just… I want to be back home with my family!"
"I'm not giving you a choice." Magneto's tone turned to something more hostile. "Reaper, make sure you contact Phantom through whatever means you have… and make sure he knows who's in charge now."
Reaper seemed disgusted with the small grunt he made underneath his breath. "What do you want me to say to him?"
"Chronos' blood is the most important sample next to the Phantom's… I need that subject's blood… and he's going to deliver it to us… personally." Magneto let out an evil grin underneath his helmet. "I think it's time he meets the man responsible for his creation… and after then… I'll make sure to eliminate him… whatever team he's gotten cooked up… and Spider-Man and his precious White Tiger… they'll all die at my hands."
"Who's the kid?" Mystique suddenly asked, glancing at Nova.
"Oh, don't worry about him." Reaper chuckled. "He was one of Spider-Man's teammates… but after our scuffle on-board Taskmaster's ship… I was able to… influence him to our side."
Nova's red-eyed glowed proved what Reaper was saying.
"You can't do this…" Selena tried to back away from Magneto. "Just please, return me to New York…"
"Send her to the dungeons for now." Magneto ordered some of the other mutants in the command room. "Put her next to Taskmaster… I'm sure those two have some catching up to do…"
"Is that wise?" Reaper crossed his arms.
"Don't question me…" Magneto glared at him as the mutants dragged Selena out of the room.
"Run that by me again?" Reaper stepped up towards Magneto, who's eyes slowly glowed red, but he looked away from Reaper's gaze.
"Wait…" Mystique looked around. "Where's Toad and Avalanche?"
"The Wraiths got out of control… I couldn't stop them from killing them both." Reaper explained.
"They're…dead?" Magneto was shocked at hearing this. "First Sabretooth, and now both Avalanche and Toad?"
"That's an easy excuse." Mystique stepped forward. "Why do I keep thinking you killed them?"
"Now why would I kill them, Mystique?" Reaper angrily asked. "I've no reason to."
"He's up to something." Mystique looked at Magneto. "You can't be that blind to see it, Erik."
Magneto's eyes swiftly went from a glowing red back to his normal state. "Like he said, Mystique…the Wraiths got out of control… we just got to make sure it doesn't happen again."
Mystique looked at Reaper, who grinned behind his mask. "See?"
"Mystique, I'm sending you to trail after Phantom." Magneto finally spoke, although almost like he was reading something verbatim in a robotic voice. "After Reaper makes his deal, make sure Phantom follows through with his end of the bargain, and report back if he decides to go against it."
"Are you sure about this?" Mystique looked at Magneto. "F-fine…just so long as he stays here."
"Don't worry, sweetheart, I'm not going anywhere now that Phantom's little girl is here." Reaper crossed his arms coolly. "I've got bigger fish to fry."
Somewhere in the western United States… (Phantom's POV)…
After leaving the campsite, Phantom settled in a small opening in the middle of the woods and sat down to meditate on his thoughts. His heart was heavy with worry from the whereabouts of his daughter and Reaper's threat about her.
He slowly drifted away into his dreamscape… but little did he know, he was pulled back into Reaper's…
He woke up on the side of the beach, but quickly realizing it wasn't his own… it was the dreamscape Reaper had brought him into back in Los Angeles. The same one that the sky was tinted red and there was an ensuing storm overhead.
Perfect, back into this mess… Good, if I can kill this maniac anywhere, it'll be a place where I know I can force him down in… a dreamscape.
Phantom marched up the hill and towards the ruined pillar. "Where are you, Reaper?! I know this is your dreamscape!"
Reaper's familiar chuckle echoed throughout the entire dream.
"So good you joined me, Phantom." Reaper appeared out of thin air in front of the shattered pillar. "It seems you didn't say goodbye after our rendezvous in the city of angels."
I'm not one for goodbyes, I knew I'd be seeing you again after that fiasco.
"Tell me where my daughter is, Reaper." Phantom demanded.
"Oh, Selena? She's right here…" Reaper snapped his fingers and Selena's apparition appeared floating next to him, chained up by her wrists and ankles. Her expression was crying but it was as if she didn't know she was in the dreamscape.
No… Selena! She can't be… h-how?!
"Selena!? No!" Phantom ran after her but Reaper's dreamscape suddenly kept him away, like an invisible force field was between him and Reaper. "Let her go!"
"I wonder what Maria would be saying now…" Reaper paced around the floating Selena. "'Oh, Alejandro, you should've protected her, you're her father!' What a pity that you couldn't."
I can't… I can't let him take her! Damn it! Selena… my daughter!... She's my only hope… for a better life! Why…Why wasn't I there to protect her?!
"Why?!" Phantom asked in desperation. "Why are you doing this to me?!"
Reaper crossed his arms. "Because you've lost sight of what was important to me, Phantom. You think I spared Manhattan? No, I made sure it was crushed to the ground as it should have…"
What the hell…? What does he mean by that?
"What are you talking about?" Phantom asked in a confused tone, having been forced to his knees by the overbearing force field pushing down on him.
"You'll see." Reaper walked over to the hill's edge as he stared to the ravaging sea beyond the island. "S.H.I.E.L.D. went after all of us, Phantom, they hunted us… Why do you think I returned?"
From…where?
Phantom shook his head. "I've no idea… of what you're talking about."
"I returned to make sure it didn't happen again…" Reaper angrily told him. "But to my surprise, you did everything different! You went against everything I stood for! But it doesn't matter… I'll make sure you see it my way."
"What…do you want from me?" Phantom felt the overbearing pain on his mental body from the invisible force over him.
"Simple…" Reaper walked back over to him. "You bring me the blood of Project Chronos and I'll make sure Selena is returned to you safely."
Carmen Salvador…? The last mutant left…
"I can't trust you."
"Oh, but you have my word, Phantom." Reaper grinned underneath his mask. "You bring the blood, or I'll make sure Selena undergoes the full experimentation that you had to undergo to become Phantom."
No…No! She can't! I can't bear to watch my daughter go through what I did! No… God no… please! I'll tear him apart limb-from-limb if he dares to do that!
"No… No!" Phantom tried fighting back against the force field. "Don't hurt my daughter! Don't! I'll… I'll kill you with my bare hands, Reaper! I'll kill you if you dare force her through that! She doesn't deserve this! Leave her out of this and fight me like a man!"
Reaper chuckled seeing Phantom struggle. "Don't try appealing to my emotions, Phantom… You're talking to a man who killed his family because he was treated differently by them."
Reaper's dreamscape suddenly produced two visions, a woman and a young teenage daughter standing behind Reaper… They looked… familiar.
Wait a minute… I recognize them…
"Maria… Selena…?" Phantom recognized the two visions, but they quickly disappeared.
How in the hell…?
Reaper's force field dissipated, having sensed that Phantom weakened his strength through the barrier. Selena's floating body also disappeared into nothing. Reaper grabbed Phantom by the collar and stared deep into his eyes with his menacing red glare.
"You'll bring me Chronos' blood… and I'll let you and Selena live. But Chronos will stay with me…" Reaper threateningly told him.
"Why… is she so important?" Phantom struggled to ask.
"You'll see." Reaper suddenly threw Phantom's subconscious back into reality, causing Phantom to black out as he did.
Phantom awoke back up on the grass in the middle of the woods, sweating profusely and his heart racing.
I… Damn it! I can't believe Selena was taken! I… I got to contact Coulson… and find out what the hell happened… They were supposed to be safe! But she was taken!... Why…?
Chronos… Carmen Salvador… her blood is vital to Reaper and Magneto it seems… but by taking her to Reaper would undermine everything I've tried to accomplish with Specter Haven… I can't betray her by doing that… even if I haven't met her yet…
We need to head out to Chicago now… and find Carmen Salvador.
Author's Note: So I added in a whole load of clues for Reaper as far as his real identity goes. I'm sure some of you have drawn up great suggestions as to who he is by now, I'm not going to confirm or deny until I truly reveal him as time goes on for the story.
It's becoming a bit more dynamic and I know I didn't add in Powerman or Iron Fist into the chapter like I said I would after the last one but I promise to catch you up to speed on their situation in the next chapter. I just really wanted to touch base with what was going on with Coulson and Hill, the Avengers, and the team after what happened in Los Angeles.
So the next story arc with Carmen Salvador will be The Phantom Oracle chapters, and it'll be the last one before they make the final fight against Magneto's Wraith forces, so I'm pretty excited where to turn this story to. And again, I'd like to thank all the readers out there who are keeping up with it. I know this isn't as original or as dynamic as The Phantom was, I really had hoped this story would've been a bit better as far as updating and creating it was… the focus really shifted from Peter to Phantom to Peter and back to Phantom throughout it all, so balancing it out is all part of the writing process for me, but thanks to those who are still enjoying it :)
As always, feedback is appreciated, thank you!
Now to the reviews:
Maelstrom J: Again, thank you for keeping so up to date with the story and paying close attention! I love throwing in a bunch of hints and even some easter egg references to other things around the universe or in real-life! :) I was actually thinking on doing that, I think it'd be a good reference to use the material on Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., so I'll keep that in mind when I'm drawing up stuff for this huge division of S.H.I.E.L.D. in the coming chapters, since that's what I'm clueing at happening. Thanks for the suggestion and the review! I hope you enjoy! :D
Burke23: Ah, I see, lol, I forgot I added that in. Thanks for the review and I hope you've been staying away from those evil sweet potatoes, otherwise you'll keep mistaking me for other authors, no?
TheOnyxDragon12: I appreciate the multiple reviews you left so I'll answer them in order!
Yeah, Reaper struck to me as a perfected hunter, so having him have an extra sense in telepathy and hearing seemed better suited for his evil character.
For the Deadpool Chapter, I only placed in the one that sounded like Cable since I thought it was more suited for the chapter, although next time I'm planning to add in the one that sounded a lot happier.
I really appreciate that, my friend. I don't really think the story all that great sometimes, and I've had people tell me before it's sometimes hard to comprehend, but I'm glad you understand it and consider it even great still. And I wish I could but I think I'll take one after I complete Specter Haven, then I'll wait before publishing the next installation of the story.
I see what you mean with Phantom, he's a character people need to understand better in order to see what he struggles with and why he does some of the things he does. I'm glad he's as interesting of a character as you say he is, and thank you!
I actually imagined Firewalker in a Nolan North kind of street voice but I can see how Scout can sound like him too, you might've picked a better voice for him!
As far as Reaper goes, he'll definitely reveal his motives as the chapters go on, he's ultimately what the purpose of the Phantom Trilogy is to me, he's Phantom's evil twin, his ultimate match for a mutant who can't die. So it'll be interesting to see how he dynamically plays out as a villain in this series.
Thanks for the reviews! :)