More Interesting Developments

"I don't believe this!" Hawk pounded his fist on the desk. "I can't believe that not only has Mystique escaped, she's running Cobra!" He turned to the Misfits and the returning Joes.

"Maybe not for long," Pietro said. "I saw the Baroness and a few other people running into the Dreadnoks' lair when Althea and I were getting out."

"But we don't know for sure if they succeeded in rescuing Cobra Commander," Hawk grumbled. "If they want to rescue him. With those snakes you can never tell what's going on!"

"What really gets me is that Bragg has been working with Cobra!" Roadblock snapped.

"Yeah and Trask wasn't too happy about that," Flint told him.

"Okay let me get this straight," Fred scratched his head. "Trask was working with Bragg who probably helped him out of jail. But Bragg is working with Cobra who is really run by Mystique? Mystique has taken over Cobra trying to raise an army of mutants to take over the world but is working with two guys who hate mutants and want to destroy them. Is this really confusing or is it just me?"

"No it isn't," Low Light said. "Do you think Bragg knows who he's dealing with?"

"Probably not," Hawk shook his head. "This could be the break we're waiting for!"

"Yeah but unless we have concrete evidence it's not gonna work!" Low Light slammed his fist into the wall. He shook violently. "I really want a piece of that guy!"

"We all do!" Hawk told him.

"So what do we do now?" Althea asked.

"We don't do anything," Hawk told her. "You and the other Misfits are to stay on base. You leave the planning to us for now. And you kids are not going anywhere until we get all this sorted out! Get it?"

"Yeah we got it," Lance sighed. "It stinks but we got it."

"Don't worry," Althea told him. "Something tells me we're gonna find some action soon enough. Just wait. They're gonna slip up sooner or later."

"And when they do," Hawk growled. "We'll be ready."

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Bragg was not a happy man. Especially now.

"What do you mean you can't find Trask?" Cobra Commander hissed.

"I don't know where he is!" Bragg snapped. "He had a hissy fit when he found out about you! The man is too narrow minded to see the big picture."

"Find him," Cobra Commander snapped.

"I've already got people on it," Bragg said. "Don't worry. Bragg out."

He shut off the communicator. He sat there for a second. Then he screamed and threw his stapler at the wall. "GOD DAMN IT TO HELL!"

"Problem sir?" Eddington walked in.

"That Colonel is the understatement of the year," Bragg snapped. "That stupid, narrow minded moron!"

"Which one sir?" Eddington asked. "Trask or Cobra Commander?"

"You have a point!" Bragg snapped. "Why the hell did Cobra Commander send those rejects from Hell's Angels out there! There was no need to tell Trask exactly who our backers were! Okay maybe Cobra's not exactly the Boy Scouts but for crying out loud sometimes you have to work with people you don't like in order to get the job done! Roosevelt wasn't exactly crazy about Stalin but he needed his help to get rid of Hitler and all his buddies! The problem is that Trask sees things in black and white! There's a larger picture going on! And thanks to the two of them this could all blow up in my face!"

"Sir," Eddington said. "If he's captured again he could tell someone about what he knows."

"This is not good," Bragg grumbled. "Eddington. We're gonna have to remove Trask from the picture. Permanently."

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Somewhere in Antarctica several mutants stood on the frozen ground. "Are you sure this is the place?" A tall red haired teen snapped. "There's nothing but white here as far as the eye can see!"

"Shut your yap Cortez," Sabertooth snapped at him. "He's here. Somewhere…"

"Where?" Cortez snarled. "He could be anywhere in this area!"

"Then we'll just have to melt everything until we find him," Pyro said.

"Are you mad?" Mastermind growled.

"That's a relative question," Sabertooth snickered. "But he's got a point. Most of this area is nothing but ice! You wanna end up in the ocean stupid?"

"Well he's not doing any good!" Cortez snapped pointing at Mastermind.

"I told you," Mastermind snapped. "His mind is too advanced for me to track."

"Then what good are you?" Cortez snapped as he grabbed him by the collar.

"Shut up!" Sabertooth yanked him away. "We needed him to get this from that research station." He took out a small electronic device. "If you weren't babysitting the jet you'd have seen how he snuck it out right under their noses! Unlike you, he's actually useful!"

"So what does it do?" Pyro asked.

"It detects density of the ice," Mastermind told him. "As well as analyzing substances within the ice including different kinds of elements."

"Come again?" Pyro asked.

"It finds stuff under the ice," Sabertooth snapped. "Now shut up and let me work this thing!" He turned it on.

"Is it working?" Cortez asked.

"How the hell should I know?" Sabertooth grumbled. "I don't know how these things work!"

"Oh this is just great!" Cortez snapped throwing up his hands. "We're never gonna find him!"

"Well if all else fails you can always just grab a shovel and dig!" Sabertooth snapped. He walked a few feet and the device started to beep. "Wait a minute, I think I've got something! A hundred feet, that way!"

They walked for a brief while. "Right here!" Sabertooth said. "We're right on top of him!"

"My turn!" Pyro cackled as he lit the flame-throwers. He started to melt the snow.

"Careful you fool!" Mastermind snapped. "I see something! It is Magneto!"

"Man did they do a job on hiding him!" Pyro said as he finished clearing away the snow.

"Come on!" Sabertooth snapped. They climbed down the small pit.

"So how do we get him out of there?" Pyro asked.

"We gotta chip away at the outside!" Sabertooth used his claws. "Get those tools out."

"I've always wanted to be a sculptor," Mastermind took out a small hammer and chisel and started chipping away.

"Well what are you waiting for? An engraved invitation?" Pyro asked Cortez.

"My talents do not include acting like a stonecutter lackey," Cortez sniffed. "I have my own special gifts to help our Lord Magneto."

"Just help us you sycophantic psycho!" Sabertooth snapped. "Or I'll carve you up like a Thanksgiving turkey!"

"Well when you put it like that," Cortez grumbled and started chipping away.

About an hour later they finally broke through. Magneto fell to his knees, gasping. "Are you okay boss?" Pyro asked.

Magneto glared. "Is…he…kidding?"

"Allow me my lord," Cortez placed his hands on Magneto and sent out healing energy towards him. "Is that better, sir?"

"Much. Excuse me but I really need to use a snowbank," Magneto stumbled towards one. "NOW!"

"Oh yeah," Sabertooth and the others looked away. "We got ya."

"What happened?" Magneto asked as he finished his business. "How long was I in there?"

"Several months," Cortez told him. "Too long have we been without your leadership! Too long have we floundered in the sea of…"

"Oh will you please put a sock in it?" Pyro snapped.

"Well I didn't see you do anything when he was captured!" Cortez snarled.

"What did take you so long to find me?" Magneto asked.

"Blame Mystique," Sabertooth snapped. "She knew where you were but wouldn't tell us. She was too busy running Cobra and fooling around with Zartan!"

"What?" Magneto gasped.

"Oh that's right you wouldn't know," Pyro shrugged. "Boy did you miss a lot! Including your kids running off and joining the Joes!"

"Tell me everything," Magneto's eyes narrowed.