BLACK WINGS Chapter 16- New York State of Chaos by Justin Anderson November 1st, 2002. 9:56 AM, Manhattan Toad checked the wires, making sure everything was in place. He turned the device on. They now had a tap on Osborn's security system. "Good. Looks like the military gave us enough time," Toad commented. Jake adjusted the picture on the small monitor, cycling through the building's cameras. "And they didn't even know they were helping us. All right, let's see what we can see." The two waited outside the building, keeping out of sight. Jake continued to cycle through the security cameras until he found what he was looking for. "There. Jonathan Screl. He's with the Octopus right now." "What about Carnage?" "No... can't find the Goblin either. Probably not home right now. Be nice if we knew where, I know the Green Goblin was flying off with hostages. I doubt he brought them here. We could go in, take out what's left, but we can't kill Screl anyway, and I don't think Carnage will care if we kill those four. Besides, I'd rather let Ock turn on Carnage, might save us some work. Let's go." They left just seconds before a large glider landed on the roof. The occupants entered the building, heading for Norman Osborn's office. "The city is still crawling with millions of people, Carnage. What do you think we should do with them?" Osborn asked. "Wipe them out. F'course, we could save them for the symbiotes, but we don't even know if that'll work," Carnage said. The door burst open, Octavius entering the room. "Symbiotes? What symbiotes?" he asked. Jonathan Screl walked in behind Octavius. The other three members of the Sinister Six followed. "Yer dead, Screl," Carnage said. "Yes, for over nine hundred years. You still owe me, Carnage. And I plan on collecting!" Carnage eyed the short man carefully. He could see the gun in his belt. The Green Goblin showed no concern, only irritation. "So, you're Jonathan Screl. I've heard of you. I was the fly on the wall during a nice conversation Magneto had with one of your former employees! Carnage, this man plans on letting you take over the world! And when you do, he'll simply kill you and take over himself," Osborn explained. Screl paced, trying to hide his nervousness. "Really, you honestly believe that? Coming from a mindless drone with a few wires crossed! And Magneto, who coddles to freaks because he believes that mutants are superior!" "And what, exactly, are you?" Octavius asked. "As I recall, you teleported right into this building in the center of a cloud of green flame!" Octavius questioned his deal with Screl. It seemed as if it had been a mistake. "Of course I knew Carnage would kill me if I became useless, as I might do to him. Perhaps it is true, you will kill all of us when you can take what you wish! I'd prefer to take my chances with a possibility, than an eventuality," Octavius shouted. Carnage agreed. He dug a blade into Screl's chest. He bled massively, clutching the wound. "This is NOT over..." Green flames rose from his feet. Screl vanished, the flames dissipating. On the roof, Toad finished attaching a small tracking device to the glider. 10:47 AM The helicopter landed on the small island, the Green Goblin and Hobgoblin setting down nearby. The six entered the facility. "This was used by the vampires once, it had certain equipment which we were able to use in an experiment," Osborn explained. Octavius asked, "And that would be what, Osborn?" He led Octavius into the large underground chamber. A tank filled with human blood greeted him. "So... this is what you meant by symbiotes," Scorpion said. "Can I have one?" "NO!" Carnage shouted. The two stared each other down, but were broken apart quickly. "Cut it out. I found a small tracking device on my glider on our way here. I threw it away, but whoever was watching probably guessed our direction, or will. Scorpion, you and Electro watch outside, in case we have visitors." 10:51 AM Tobias made his way towards the small meeting room. He met Artemis in the hall. "Hey, man, I thought you had to go to work today?" "Oh, that. Fuck it, let 'em fire me," Artemis replied. They entered the meeting room. The others were already present. Jake pointed to a map of the city. "All right, good. Here's what we have. Toad planted a tracking device on the Green Goblin's glider about an hour ago. About ten minutes ago, it moved. We lost the signal over water, but we think we know which way he was going. He was headed south, and if we keep on a straight line..." He marked a small island on the map. "... Magneto can explain this better than I could," Jake finished. "It is a heavily fortified science facility built onto a small island. It was once used by the vampires, but is now abandoned," Magneto said. Jake drew a line onward from the island. "Now, we don't know if it's where they went or not, but we believe it was," Jake said. "The facility had many torture rooms and machines designed to hold massive quantities of human blood. A perfect place for someone like Carnage. And with Osborn heading that way, it's a good place to start." "All right, so let's go in and tear them all apart!" Sabretooth growled. "Not that easy, Sabretooth," Jake replied. "The island's remote, the only one of us that could get in there quickly is Magneto. The rest of us can't fly. And I'd assume they'll post sentries. They could hold off an army in that place. We'll need some sort of plan before we go rushing in." 1:12 PM, Washington, D.C." "We'll need some sort of plan before we go rushing in. Anyone have any suggestions?" General Peterson asked. Military surveillance spotted the helicopter and gliders flying to the island. General Peterson knew where Carnage was. It was not a matter of hitting him while he was trapped. It was a matter of taking him down. And if the six had been taking hostages with them, then they would need more than a plan. They would need a miracle. 9:11 PM, Westchester County Magneto knew it may be the only way. His old friend, his old enemy, Charles Xavier may be their only chance to put an end to Carnage. "Charles, I need your help. We need to stop Carnage before his war breaks out." "I've been following the news," Xavier said. "Carnage had been a threat before, but never on this scale." "I know where he is, but an assault will not be easy. He has allies, and he's taken refuge. It's not a matter of whether I can reach him, it's a matter of making sure he can be effectively stopped," Magneto explained. Xavier mulled over the request. He knew that, given time, Carnage would only become more dangerous. And while the two differed greatly in the mutant cause, if Carnage carried out his plans, there would be no humans or mutants left to worry about. "Where has he located himself?" Xavier asked. "A small island facility once used by the vampires. He's working with the Green Goblin and Doctor Octopus. We believe they have hostages." 9:21 PM The meeting had been called. Magneto waited outside, along with Jake. The X-Men would have to decide whether or not to lend their help to one of their greatest enemies. "Magneto is asking for usage of the Blackbird, nothing more. He wants to be taken in under cloak so he and his team can infiltrate the island undetected," Xavier explained. "So? Let him float over there himself!" Wolverine commented. "It is not that simple, Logan. Carnage has the Green Goblin and Doctor Octavius on his side, as well as Electro, the Hobgoblin, and the Scorpion. Carnage has the entrance guarded. Being on an island, they could easily detect any approach. Electro and Scorpion, by themselves, could easily fend off any attack." Cyclops did not like the idea. "Why don't we do this ourselves, professor?" he asked. "I've thought of that. But Magneto has already fought Carnage, and one of his newest members knows more about this than we do." As if called, Jake opened the door. "Sorry to bother you, but I just had a rather disturbing thought... Doctor McCoy, how much do you know about the symbiote breed Venom and Carnage are bonded with?" "A little, but not much, I'm afraid," Beast replied. Magneto entered the room, keeping his distance from the X-Men. "Okay, let me run this by you. Symbiotes generally reproduce by spawning some sort of egg from their bodies. But the symbiotes are organic blobs, each cell the same. And Carnage has been taking hostages lately. You can't usually just rip a piece of a symbiote off and sprout a new one, but..." "I think I know what you mean," Beast said. "Given the appropriate breeding ground, and an ample sized symbiotic fragment..." Wolverine was growing impatient. "So? What's your point?" "They're in a facility once used by the vampire nation. I've heard the rumors- torture chambers and massive pools used to store raw human blood. Put enough blood into one of those, keep it supplied with oxygen and nutrients, add a large symbiotic fragment, the ingredients for a new symbiote," Beast explained. Logan groaned. The day was getting worse. Beast remembered the texts he had read on the creatures. "Yes, and they also consume a specific brain chemical. Extract enough, and you have a food supply." "It gets worse," Jake said. "These symbiotes have a high rate of cellular division. If this works, the first could easily grow within hours. Given enough of a food supply and enough raw materials, the rate cuts down to minutes. We just figured out how Carnage plans on fighting this war. Well, if you're letting us use your jet, better do it now. We can't trust the military on this. Too much time to warn them, and they'd be wiped out. The Black Wings may be too unreliable at this point." 9:48 PM The Blackbird prepared for takeoff. The plan was simple- cloak the Blackbird, take it in as close to the island as possible, and leave a small strike team to go in. "I still believe it would be a good idea if the X-Men handled this, Magneto," Xavier said. "No, Charles. This is my fight. I have chosen a side, and I intend to see this through. If we do not make it, and Carnage is breeding symbiotes, you would be better equipped to fight them." Magneto walked away. No amount of reason could change his mind now. Tobias and Artemis watched the jet move onto the takeoff pad. Jake tried not to think about their chances, only how they would pull this off. Sabretooth resisted the urge to tear Logan to pieces, and Logan resisted the urge to do the same to Sabretooth. The mood was definitely grim. Magneto approached the members of the Brotherhood. "Remember, we may not return. Consider this a suicide mission. If you wish to back out, I will not hold it against you."The six mutants remained, none saying a word. They had decided. "Very well. Mystique, Toad, Artemis, I want you to stay here. If we fail, you would be useful to the X-Men. Mystique, you have abilities which could benefit the mutant cause. Toad, you have knowledge which could do the same. Artemis, you have a potential to be a great ally and equal to Xavier. I will not throw that away tonight." Magneto boarded the jet. Tobias followed, Sabretooth and Jake in tow. 9:53 PM Venom joined the Black Wings on the rooftops. "I know where he is, Venom. I think he's trying to breed symbiotes. It's why he took those people, why he set up in that lab. I can't trust the military. I've seen those soldiers. They actually arm those idiots! I won't have them wiped out," he said. "We shall go with you," Venom offered. "NO!" He stepped onto the ledge. "I have to go." 10:15 PM Cletus kept his eyes above the water, floating slowly to the island. Reaching the wall, he pulled himself on to what little mound of dirt served as the shoreline. He could hear something on the other side of the island. A low sound, almost nonexistent. Ignoring it, he scaled the wall. Jumping down to the exit, he immediately entered. He hurried through the halls. No noises. But he knew Carnage was here. Continuing through the halls, he spotted his target. Carnage stood above a blood tank. He ran towards the killer. Carnage turned to face him as he entered the room. "Hello..." The rest of the Sinister Six surrounded him on the upper balcony. He was immediately picked up by a pair of steel tentacles. "... I'm gonna enjoy this!" Notes: Set within the Marvel universe, I will be using my own continuity, mixed with new characterizations for some established characters from Marvel's story universe. These stories are a sequel to my fiction series Maximum Carnage. Cletus Kasady, Carnage, and others are copyright Marvel Comics. Jack Arden, Raicaak, and others are copyright myself. Other characters appearing may be owned by separate parties. I make no claim of copyright on any character I do not own, only on these stories and those I do own. Characters used without permission/not for profit. These are strictly fan stories. Permission to reprint extends to placing this text, unaltered, elsewhere online. It may not be altered, and especially NOT TO BE SOLD, unless Marvel wishes to license this series from me. Black Wings song and lyrics copyright Tom Waits.
