Chapter 8: Kidnappings
A squirrel watched as the Mystery Machine left the Xavier Institute. It followed close behind.
As the Mystery Machine headed for the city, Velma, Scooby, and Shaggy could tell that Fred had a lot on his mind. Most of it was trying to comprehend the fact that Daphne was a mutant. Shaggy looked like he wanted to say something, but Velma shook her head. Shaggy took the hint.
A little more than a mile from the Institute, the Mystery Machine stopped as the three teens and dog saw a man dressed in red and yellow. Freddy asked, "What the heck?"
The man said, "Hello, mates! How about a visit from some old friends?" He laughed insanely as he ignited the flamethrowers built into his outfit. Flaming constructs of many of the villains that the Mystery, Inc. gang had foiled were surrounding them from all over the place. Scooby and Shaggy held onto each other in fear, while Fred and Velma watched the whole ordeal, fearful themselves.
"Jinkies!" exclaimed Velma. "It's like every villain we've ever faced is here!"
"Yeah," agreed Fred. "There's the Creeper!"
"The Roller Ghoaster!" pointed out Shaggy.
"Rhe Row Rhost!" yelled Scooby.
"Old Ironface!" added Velma. And there were several more. "Floor it, Freddy!"
Freddy hit the accelerator, but nothing happened. "Huh?" he asked in confusion. He hit it again and again with the same results. "It's like we're frozen!"
Velma tried to open the passenger door, but to no avail. "We're locked in! And the doors aren't even locked!"
"But it doesn't make any sense!" said Fred.
Velma looked out the windshield and pointed as she said, "I think it does now."
All four of them looked up into the sky to see a man in a red and purple suit and helmet with a purple cape descending in front of them surrounded by a magnetic force field. Upon landed, the force field deactivated, so to speak. The flaming constructs dissipated upon his landing. The man stared at Daphne's four friends for several moments. He then held his arms in front of him and pulled them apart, causing the roof of the Mystery Machine to tear in half and bend outward. Normally, they would run, but in this situation, they were too scared to.
After witnessing what he could do, Velma instantly knew who he was. "You . . . you're Magneto!"
Magneto smiled and said, "Smart girl." He then caused electricity to flow from the radio, zapping all four of them. It wasn't enough to kill them, just knock them unconscious.
The same squirrel that had watched the gang leave the Institute ran to Magneto's feet. It then changed shape, revealing itself to be Mystique. Magneto, Mystique, and Pyro then gathered up Daphne's four friends and placed them into two of Magneto's transportation orbs. As the two orbs, piloted by Pyro and Mystique (each of whom were barely able to fit inside with the "passengers"), were carried away via Magneto's power, he was also able to take the Mystery Machine with them. He obviously didn't want to leave any evidence behind.
Magneto and his goons were already well on their way back to their hideout when Logan, Peter, and Kitty were ready to go. They headed for Coolsville in the small (at least small compared to the Blackbird) helicopter called the XM Velocity. They didn't realize they were being followed as their pursuers were out of radar reach. As they neared Coolsville, Kitty looked out on the city and said, "Wow. That sure is a small town."
"I'm gonna have to land somewhere outside the city," said Logan. "We don't want people gettin' too cooked up."
Peter looked out and said, "I see a clearing in that forest. And there doesn't appear to be anybody around."
Sure enough, there was a clearing about a mile outside the city. "Alright," said Logan, "I'm taking her down."
As Logan began his ascent, Peter unbuckled and said, "I'll get the bikes ready."
When they touched ground, Kitty put her cellular phone back into her pocket. She said, "I tried to call Daphne's parents like the professor asked. They're either not home or they're just not answering."
When they landed, the three X-Men slipped on some helmets and got on motorcycles. Logan rode his solo while Peter and Kitty took another. Peter rode it with Kitty sitting behind him, arms tightly around her brother's waist. They stopped to check for traffic when they reached the main road. Logan said, "Why don't you and the half-pint go to Lil Red's house and see if they're home, Petey? I'm gonna see if I can find them in town."
Peter nodded and they headed for town. When they got their, they went separate ways. Peter knew where the Blake household was and Logan had a picture of John and Cindy Blake, so he would know who he was looking for.
John and Cindy arrived home after being away all day. Once they walked in, they were unaware of the metal orbs that landed in their front yard. John said, "I hope Daphne's friends know what they're doing, going to New York."
Cindy hadn't been paying attention. She was turned away from her husband crying. John heard her sniffle and immediately knew something was wrong. He approached her and asked, "Honey, are you okay?"
Cindy suddenly buried her face into her husband's chest. John was surprised by this. But not really knowing what else to do, he just held her tightly. Cindy said, "I should have never let Daphne arrange that trip to New York. I should have never let her go to that institute."
John asked, "Why not?"
Cindy looked up at her husband and wiped some of her tears. She said, "John, I never told you this, but I have a sister who lives at Xavier's institute. Her name is Jean Grey. She's a mutant."
"What?" asked John in shock. "Why didn't you tell me this before?"
"Because I was afraid that if you knew I had a mutant relative, you would hate me. I hated her so much for being a mutant. I didn't want anything to do with her."
To say that John was surprised by this revelation would be an understatement. He was disappointed that his wife kept a secret like this from him, but there was still the matter of their missing daughter. Plus, Cindy was still upset over everything that had happened. So John just held her and let her take her grief out.
All of a sudden, a huge man in brown followed by another man in silver burst through the front door of the house. Cindy gasped and John held her tightly. John asked, "Who are you?"
The man in brown said, "The name's Juggernaut. And this is Avalanche."
Avalanche said, "And this is your house!" He then made an earthquake that caused one of the walls to begin falling.
Cindy yelled, "John!" and pushed him out of the wall's path. Unfortunately, Cindy was caught in the debris, only her upper body visible.
"Cindy!" cried John as he ran to his unconscious wife. He checked for a pulse and sighed in relief when he found one. He then looked up as the two mutant invaders began laughing. He ran to his nearby gun rack and took a rifle. He pointed it as Juggernaut started stalking towards him. He said, "Stop! Or I'll shoot!"
The Juggernaut laughed and said, "You think you can kill me? You're welcome to try."
John fired his gun at the unstoppable force of nature and looked on in horror as the shots bounced off of him harmlessly. Juggernaut laughed and said, "I guess you haven't heard about me. Nothing can stop the Juggernaut!" Juggernaut then grabbed the rifle and broke it with his bare hands. He then picked John up by the shirt and slammed him back-first into the wall, knocking him out. He slung him over his back and walked towards Cindy's fallen form. He effortlessly picked up the fallen wall with one hand and Avalanche picked her up.
Peter and Kitty approached the house and were surprised to see the wall busted in. Seeing the two metal orbs in the front yard, Kitty said, "Look! Magneto's orbs!"
As brother and sister stepped off the Harley and hurriedly pulled off their helmets, Peter said, "We'd better get to the house!" They then ran towards the Blake residence.
Juggernaut and Avalanche were about to walk out the way they came in when they saw Kitty and Peter reach the front porch. The two X-Men stopped when they saw their two foes carrying Daphne's parents. Avalanche said, "Colossus, Shadowcat. Glad to see you could make it. Too bad you're too late for the party!" He then placed his hand to the right of the paneling around the front door. The patio that hung over the front porch then collapsed, burying Kitty and Peter.
Juggernaut said, "We'd better leave before they come to."
Avalanche nodded and said, "Agreed. We don't want Jean to miss her reunion with her sister!" They laughed and ran to the nearby orbs. As they got in, they didn't notice the hand coming up out of the debris, holding a gun- like device. Their backs were turned. Just as the orbs closed, the two villains didn't hear the sound of metal on metal. A small black, circular device with an "X" was attached to it. The center of the "X" had a blinking red light. The orbs then ascended into the air and out of sight.
Once they were gone, Kitty phased out from under the debris. Peter then burst out in armored form before transforming back to human form. He asked, "Kitty, are you alright?"
Kitty nodded and said, "Yeah, I'm fine. Did you hear what Avalanche said?"
"Da," said Peter with a nod. "Unless this was a big joke, it would appear that Jean is Daphne's aunt."
Kitty then tapped her com link and said, "Logan, are you there?"
Logan walked out of a building in the city. He had walked out after unsuccessfully trying to find Daphne's parents. When he heard Kitty's voice, he stepped into a nearby alleyway and hid behind a dumpster so no one would see him. "What is it, Kitty?"
"Magneto's goons just took Daphne's parents!" came Kitty's frantic voice. "We were too late to stop them!"
"What?" asked Logan. "Who?"
"Juggernaut and Avalanche," answered Peter. "They are . . . gone."
"Not only that, it appears that Daphne is Jean's niece!" added Kitty.
"What?" asked Logan with more surprise than before. Slightly calming down, Logan asked, "Are ya sure?"
"That's what Avalanche said," Kitty answered matter-of-factly. "But I did manage to plant a tracer on one of the orbs."
"Kitty, get the prof and fill him in. Then join me back on the Velocity."
Looking at her destroyed cell phone, Kitty said, "No can do. My cell's smashed."
"Great," mumbled Logan. He then said, "Get back to the Velocity. I'll join you ASAP." He then broke contact and went to the first pay phone he could find. Xavier didn't have a com link on him and he was out of psychic reach. He quickly dialed the Institute's number. As it rang, Logan mumbled, "C'mon, pick up."
Xavier picked up the phone in the living room. "Hello?"
"Hey, Chuck, it's Logan."
"Yes, Logan, what is it?"
"Ya want the bad news or the really bad news?"
Xavier went white with this question. Finally, he asked, "What's the bad news?"
Logan answered, "The bad news is, Juggernaut and Avalanche have Daph's parents. The really bad news is, we have a pretty good idea why. Accordin' to Petey and the half-pint, Jeannie is apparently Daphne's aunt."
"What?" asked the professor in shock.
"That's what the rock-tumbler said," answered Wolverine. "But Kitty did manage to get a tracer on one of ol' Buckethead's orbs."
Xavier nodded and said, "Return to the Institute. I'll have Hank begin tracking them. Then, I'm going to talk with Jean and Daphne." He then hung up the phone and started wheeling out of the room.
To Be Continued
A squirrel watched as the Mystery Machine left the Xavier Institute. It followed close behind.
As the Mystery Machine headed for the city, Velma, Scooby, and Shaggy could tell that Fred had a lot on his mind. Most of it was trying to comprehend the fact that Daphne was a mutant. Shaggy looked like he wanted to say something, but Velma shook her head. Shaggy took the hint.
A little more than a mile from the Institute, the Mystery Machine stopped as the three teens and dog saw a man dressed in red and yellow. Freddy asked, "What the heck?"
The man said, "Hello, mates! How about a visit from some old friends?" He laughed insanely as he ignited the flamethrowers built into his outfit. Flaming constructs of many of the villains that the Mystery, Inc. gang had foiled were surrounding them from all over the place. Scooby and Shaggy held onto each other in fear, while Fred and Velma watched the whole ordeal, fearful themselves.
"Jinkies!" exclaimed Velma. "It's like every villain we've ever faced is here!"
"Yeah," agreed Fred. "There's the Creeper!"
"The Roller Ghoaster!" pointed out Shaggy.
"Rhe Row Rhost!" yelled Scooby.
"Old Ironface!" added Velma. And there were several more. "Floor it, Freddy!"
Freddy hit the accelerator, but nothing happened. "Huh?" he asked in confusion. He hit it again and again with the same results. "It's like we're frozen!"
Velma tried to open the passenger door, but to no avail. "We're locked in! And the doors aren't even locked!"
"But it doesn't make any sense!" said Fred.
Velma looked out the windshield and pointed as she said, "I think it does now."
All four of them looked up into the sky to see a man in a red and purple suit and helmet with a purple cape descending in front of them surrounded by a magnetic force field. Upon landed, the force field deactivated, so to speak. The flaming constructs dissipated upon his landing. The man stared at Daphne's four friends for several moments. He then held his arms in front of him and pulled them apart, causing the roof of the Mystery Machine to tear in half and bend outward. Normally, they would run, but in this situation, they were too scared to.
After witnessing what he could do, Velma instantly knew who he was. "You . . . you're Magneto!"
Magneto smiled and said, "Smart girl." He then caused electricity to flow from the radio, zapping all four of them. It wasn't enough to kill them, just knock them unconscious.
The same squirrel that had watched the gang leave the Institute ran to Magneto's feet. It then changed shape, revealing itself to be Mystique. Magneto, Mystique, and Pyro then gathered up Daphne's four friends and placed them into two of Magneto's transportation orbs. As the two orbs, piloted by Pyro and Mystique (each of whom were barely able to fit inside with the "passengers"), were carried away via Magneto's power, he was also able to take the Mystery Machine with them. He obviously didn't want to leave any evidence behind.
Magneto and his goons were already well on their way back to their hideout when Logan, Peter, and Kitty were ready to go. They headed for Coolsville in the small (at least small compared to the Blackbird) helicopter called the XM Velocity. They didn't realize they were being followed as their pursuers were out of radar reach. As they neared Coolsville, Kitty looked out on the city and said, "Wow. That sure is a small town."
"I'm gonna have to land somewhere outside the city," said Logan. "We don't want people gettin' too cooked up."
Peter looked out and said, "I see a clearing in that forest. And there doesn't appear to be anybody around."
Sure enough, there was a clearing about a mile outside the city. "Alright," said Logan, "I'm taking her down."
As Logan began his ascent, Peter unbuckled and said, "I'll get the bikes ready."
When they touched ground, Kitty put her cellular phone back into her pocket. She said, "I tried to call Daphne's parents like the professor asked. They're either not home or they're just not answering."
When they landed, the three X-Men slipped on some helmets and got on motorcycles. Logan rode his solo while Peter and Kitty took another. Peter rode it with Kitty sitting behind him, arms tightly around her brother's waist. They stopped to check for traffic when they reached the main road. Logan said, "Why don't you and the half-pint go to Lil Red's house and see if they're home, Petey? I'm gonna see if I can find them in town."
Peter nodded and they headed for town. When they got their, they went separate ways. Peter knew where the Blake household was and Logan had a picture of John and Cindy Blake, so he would know who he was looking for.
John and Cindy arrived home after being away all day. Once they walked in, they were unaware of the metal orbs that landed in their front yard. John said, "I hope Daphne's friends know what they're doing, going to New York."
Cindy hadn't been paying attention. She was turned away from her husband crying. John heard her sniffle and immediately knew something was wrong. He approached her and asked, "Honey, are you okay?"
Cindy suddenly buried her face into her husband's chest. John was surprised by this. But not really knowing what else to do, he just held her tightly. Cindy said, "I should have never let Daphne arrange that trip to New York. I should have never let her go to that institute."
John asked, "Why not?"
Cindy looked up at her husband and wiped some of her tears. She said, "John, I never told you this, but I have a sister who lives at Xavier's institute. Her name is Jean Grey. She's a mutant."
"What?" asked John in shock. "Why didn't you tell me this before?"
"Because I was afraid that if you knew I had a mutant relative, you would hate me. I hated her so much for being a mutant. I didn't want anything to do with her."
To say that John was surprised by this revelation would be an understatement. He was disappointed that his wife kept a secret like this from him, but there was still the matter of their missing daughter. Plus, Cindy was still upset over everything that had happened. So John just held her and let her take her grief out.
All of a sudden, a huge man in brown followed by another man in silver burst through the front door of the house. Cindy gasped and John held her tightly. John asked, "Who are you?"
The man in brown said, "The name's Juggernaut. And this is Avalanche."
Avalanche said, "And this is your house!" He then made an earthquake that caused one of the walls to begin falling.
Cindy yelled, "John!" and pushed him out of the wall's path. Unfortunately, Cindy was caught in the debris, only her upper body visible.
"Cindy!" cried John as he ran to his unconscious wife. He checked for a pulse and sighed in relief when he found one. He then looked up as the two mutant invaders began laughing. He ran to his nearby gun rack and took a rifle. He pointed it as Juggernaut started stalking towards him. He said, "Stop! Or I'll shoot!"
The Juggernaut laughed and said, "You think you can kill me? You're welcome to try."
John fired his gun at the unstoppable force of nature and looked on in horror as the shots bounced off of him harmlessly. Juggernaut laughed and said, "I guess you haven't heard about me. Nothing can stop the Juggernaut!" Juggernaut then grabbed the rifle and broke it with his bare hands. He then picked John up by the shirt and slammed him back-first into the wall, knocking him out. He slung him over his back and walked towards Cindy's fallen form. He effortlessly picked up the fallen wall with one hand and Avalanche picked her up.
Peter and Kitty approached the house and were surprised to see the wall busted in. Seeing the two metal orbs in the front yard, Kitty said, "Look! Magneto's orbs!"
As brother and sister stepped off the Harley and hurriedly pulled off their helmets, Peter said, "We'd better get to the house!" They then ran towards the Blake residence.
Juggernaut and Avalanche were about to walk out the way they came in when they saw Kitty and Peter reach the front porch. The two X-Men stopped when they saw their two foes carrying Daphne's parents. Avalanche said, "Colossus, Shadowcat. Glad to see you could make it. Too bad you're too late for the party!" He then placed his hand to the right of the paneling around the front door. The patio that hung over the front porch then collapsed, burying Kitty and Peter.
Juggernaut said, "We'd better leave before they come to."
Avalanche nodded and said, "Agreed. We don't want Jean to miss her reunion with her sister!" They laughed and ran to the nearby orbs. As they got in, they didn't notice the hand coming up out of the debris, holding a gun- like device. Their backs were turned. Just as the orbs closed, the two villains didn't hear the sound of metal on metal. A small black, circular device with an "X" was attached to it. The center of the "X" had a blinking red light. The orbs then ascended into the air and out of sight.
Once they were gone, Kitty phased out from under the debris. Peter then burst out in armored form before transforming back to human form. He asked, "Kitty, are you alright?"
Kitty nodded and said, "Yeah, I'm fine. Did you hear what Avalanche said?"
"Da," said Peter with a nod. "Unless this was a big joke, it would appear that Jean is Daphne's aunt."
Kitty then tapped her com link and said, "Logan, are you there?"
Logan walked out of a building in the city. He had walked out after unsuccessfully trying to find Daphne's parents. When he heard Kitty's voice, he stepped into a nearby alleyway and hid behind a dumpster so no one would see him. "What is it, Kitty?"
"Magneto's goons just took Daphne's parents!" came Kitty's frantic voice. "We were too late to stop them!"
"What?" asked Logan. "Who?"
"Juggernaut and Avalanche," answered Peter. "They are . . . gone."
"Not only that, it appears that Daphne is Jean's niece!" added Kitty.
"What?" asked Logan with more surprise than before. Slightly calming down, Logan asked, "Are ya sure?"
"That's what Avalanche said," Kitty answered matter-of-factly. "But I did manage to plant a tracer on one of the orbs."
"Kitty, get the prof and fill him in. Then join me back on the Velocity."
Looking at her destroyed cell phone, Kitty said, "No can do. My cell's smashed."
"Great," mumbled Logan. He then said, "Get back to the Velocity. I'll join you ASAP." He then broke contact and went to the first pay phone he could find. Xavier didn't have a com link on him and he was out of psychic reach. He quickly dialed the Institute's number. As it rang, Logan mumbled, "C'mon, pick up."
Xavier picked up the phone in the living room. "Hello?"
"Hey, Chuck, it's Logan."
"Yes, Logan, what is it?"
"Ya want the bad news or the really bad news?"
Xavier went white with this question. Finally, he asked, "What's the bad news?"
Logan answered, "The bad news is, Juggernaut and Avalanche have Daph's parents. The really bad news is, we have a pretty good idea why. Accordin' to Petey and the half-pint, Jeannie is apparently Daphne's aunt."
"What?" asked the professor in shock.
"That's what the rock-tumbler said," answered Wolverine. "But Kitty did manage to get a tracer on one of ol' Buckethead's orbs."
Xavier nodded and said, "Return to the Institute. I'll have Hank begin tracking them. Then, I'm going to talk with Jean and Daphne." He then hung up the phone and started wheeling out of the room.
To Be Continued