CHAPTER 7: Difference Of Opinions
Meanwhile, back at the X-Mansion, things were getting a little tense…
"I certainly hope you're happy!" snapped Professor Xavier at General Hawk in the living room, or at least what remained of it after the Furies had attacked. All the Joes and the wounded mutants had been healed thankfully by Justin, but the emotional loss and worry and tragedy of seeing their loved ones taken away by the Apokoliptic warmongers couldn't be healed in any manner…except by lashing out in contested blame and anger.
General Hawk said in a very hard voice, laced with brimming disbelief, "Excuse me? You're actually blaming me for this?"
"Well it certainly isn't by any fault of ours!" Charles Xavier said concretely in a hoarse voice, letting one of the few times he actually lost his temper fully spring up, "Even despite your briefings and generous offer of trying to protect us, you let Darkseid and his minions capture two of my X-Men! This is exactly why I didn't want you or Maggie Sawyer or Commissioner Gordon to be involved in the affairs and safety of my staff and students! This was exactly what happened when I tried trusting you and G.I. Joe to pose as substitutes at Bayville High along with training the X-Men back at the Pit before Cobra and Magneto kidnapped several of my students! Every time the X-Men try turning to G.I. Joe, you and your soldiers end up falling short and the X-Men get the short end of the stick!"
"If memory serves me, you weren't that against the idea of both of our teams trying to help each other out during this crisis! And we have as much right to be worried about the abduction as you, Xavier! Wavedancer, Avalanche, and Scarlet Witch are missing as well, so don't think for a damn minute on your high horse that you're the sole victim in this entire debacle!" Hawk growled.
"If you spent more time trying to get someone competent like the Justice League instead of trying to handle the situation with your so-called trusted friends, this debacle wouldn't even have happened in the first place!" snapped Xavier.
"And maybe if you were more concerned about trying to cooperate with us instead of leaving all the matters of dealing with the outside threats like H.A.T.E. and just lollygagging with plans on trying to coerce our new recruits to turn against us, you would have been better prepared!"
"That is absolute rubbish, General!" snapped Hank.
"Oh, as if, Beast!" Cover Girl snapped, "We're not exactly stupid, you know, and Shipwreck and Blind Master managed to use Polly to eavesdrop on the Professor's commentary to Lina and Justin during dinner! You remember, don't you, Professor? Especially the offer you made to Justin to help him with his powers since it would be more than the Joes could ever do for him!"
"That was a private matter!" Scott snapped, "But gee, no surprise that you didn't exactly trust us like we did with Jake when he went to go visit you Misfits at the Pit!"
"Um…is it always like this between both of your groups?" Batgirl asked as she eyed the quarreling row uneasily, "The files I've read about the both of you did note some rough edges, but this is just rough, period."
"Actually, you should try coming over here when we actually fight, yo," replied Toad, though a bit downhearted and secretly flustered at the thought of Althea being held captive.
While the majority of the adults and some of the X-Men continued bickering alongside General Hawk and Charles Xavier, the remaining X-Men and Misfits were trying to make some sense of the whole battle with the Female Furies along with Batgirl and Supergirl, although not without some nervousness and misgivings.
Piotr then turned to Batgirl, hoping she could provide some answers, as he asked, "Batgirl, is there any way we can follow the Female Furies? Somehow track them down and go to Apokolips directly from here?"
Batgirl shook her head as she explained, "No, not even the Justice League have access to the boom-tube technology that can create paths directly into Apokolips and the Fourth Dimension itself. And without those remotes that the Furies and soldiers of Darkseid carry on their persons, it'll be impossible to find another way to their planet. The Fourth Dimension is supposed to be a vast field of space and time, different from our Third Dimension, and with such a big area, it'll take us eons to even have an idea of where to look and not to mention light years to even travel there by other means. And even if there was a way to get to Apokolips from Earth, neither Supergirl nor I have any idea where it could be."
At the same time, most of the Misfits and X-Men were taking the abduction hard. Unlike the times when Magneto and Cobra had kidnapped their teammates, during those situations, they at least had an idea or some sort of lead to guide them to their targeted destinations. Yet not even Supergirl and Batgirl knew where Apokolips resided, and without a boom-tube, their search would be fruitless. Todd and Xi were flustered. Jake was nervously rubbing his glovatrix with one paw, looking glum; he grew to care a lot about Jean ever since she got through to him despite his grief when he nearly got killed by Dark Kat back at Megakat City. Pietro was sitting in a frozen position, his hands clenched into fists, not even speaking as he gazed into space with a glazed look in his eyes; he was taking Wanda's abduction the hardest of all. He was going to personally make sure the Furies would regret the day they took his sister. Now, it was personal. Kitty was crying softly, and though Piotr was massaging her shoulders as a claming gesture, there was a resentful look in his eye that said somewhere along the lines of being jealous for Kitty's open concern and worry for Lance even though she was supposedly "over him". That feeling of hopelessness and despair was starting to affect everyone in the room, so it was natural that things would be a bit strained.
Alas, Supergirl was oblivious to this as she then tried to comfort a distraught Sam, who was standing next to her, by placing a gloved hand on his shoulder saying, "We understand that you guys are upset and we know what you're going through - "
Sam then whirled on Supergirl, angry tears running down his flushed cheeks, snapping and not letting the female hero finish her sentence, "Don't touch me, greenhorn! You don't know anything about how we feel! We nearly lost our lives trying to fight those Furies, and you don't know how much it's eating us up! We might never see them again, never see Jean or Mr. Logan again when they endure God knows what by whatever that jerk Darkseid's planning! They're gonna die up there! No need to sugarcoat it for us! We're not stupid! And this all happened because your stupid Justice League couldn't take a damn minute of their so-called important schedules to help us! God, even Sawyer and Commissioner Gordon knew of this, and it's been a week, and yet your so-called noble cousin, Superman, couldn't even bother to show his face around here and help us even though he was given enough notice for the cows to come home several goddamn times!"
Tabitha started weeping in the background while she was hearing this, Amara hugged Roberto, at a loss, and Ray just stared down at his feet on the ground, making his hand into a fist while resting on the wall.
Supergirl was a bit flummoxed; put it that simply, it was a bit explicable, and she shouldn't have said that she knew what the X-Men were going through. The blond alien then tried again to calm down the seething teenagers.
"Even still, we'll find a way and the Justice League will help you out when they get back…I know it."
Scott then lost it fully, distraught at Jean missing, as he then accused maliciously, "Yeah right, it's probably better if they didn't show up, Supergirl! After all, Superman will probably gift-wrap Storm up himself and offer her as a present to Darkseid himself! If anything, having Superman here would make things worse for us, especially since he's probably trying to take over this planet with the other deranged residents of the Fourth World!"
Supergirl's eyes went wide and crinkled with shock and disbelief, taken aback.
"What? No! Superman's not like that! How could you say such a thing!"
"Oh really?" snorted Scott, his teeth grit, "I'm aware of the little incident when Superman joined up with Apokolips several years ago and led the siege against Metropolis as Darkseid's main commander! Yeah, I'm sure you remember that Supergirl. After all, from what Forge and Kitty were able to find from their information gathering and web-surfing, that was the battle where you nearly lost your own life when Superman tried to kill you for getting in his path!"
"That was not his fault!" Supergirl yelled hotly, "He was brainwashed and couldn't help himself when he joined with Apokolips! Superman wasn't himself when he defected! And that was in the past! He's still a good guy, a hero like he always was! One past mistake doesn't change that!"
"So you claim," Scott said coldly as he returned the glare of accusation.
It took all of Kara's willpower to not punch the mutant directly in the face and break that smart-assed tone of voice and ruby shades of his.
Rogue then spat, her voice teary and strangled, "Scott's got a point, Supergirl! And to tell you the truth, maybe H.A.T.E. doesn't exactly have the wrong idea either if they say that you really can't depend on the Justice League or any alien! If anything, you extraterrestrials just add on to our problems!"
"Hey, back off, Rogue!" Blob yelled.
"You back off, homme!" snarled Remy in return, "If anything, this planet would be better off without these aliens since they're not even welcome here anyway!"
"You lame-brain hypocrite! How dare you say that! You outta' all people should be the last one to say that considering you're mutants! Like Granny always said, 'don't go complaining about weasels in your neighbors' basement when you've got coons in your attic'!" (See Author's notes)
"Remy don't give a flying pig's rear about what your dumb grandmere says, Blob!" the Cajun X-Man shot back, a bit aloof.
"Why you little, smart-mouthed, rat-skinned - !" snarled Blob as he was about to reach over and strangle Remy, and Lina had to stop and calm the large Texan by getting in his path before he could charge.
Spirit then spoke to the elders during a pause in the heated debate, giving a meaningful glance to Ororo, "It may not be as hopeless as we think. Keep in mind, the Female Furies were sent here by Darkseid to capture six mutants, remember? Granny Goodness herself said that they would be back and that they already had five of the six."
"Oh yeah, he's right, Ms. Monroe!" Roberto gasped as it dawned on him, "I remember that big chick with the glowing rod said that you were coming with them, and if Sam didn't stop her by ramming the Fury against the wall, then they would have taken you along with Jean and Logan!"
"Wait, how can you even be sure it is me to begin with? How can you even be certain that I'm one of the targets for Darkseid as well?" Ororo asked in a clipped, angry tone, outraged that the G.I. Joe soldiers were being so calm and collected about this.
General Hawk then stated, "It makes sense, it fits the pattern. Jean Grey, Lance, Wanda, Logan, and Althea. All of them are mutants with abilities of incredible potential, capable of doing massive damage and almost in terms of god-like proportions, and you are also one of the mutants that fits this profile. Whatever Darkseid wants for Phase Recruit, he seems to only want powerful mutants from both of our groups. You fit the bill exactly, Storm. After all, with your weather manipulation, you could literally bring forth a Second Ice Age if you truly put your mind to it."
"Forgive us if we don't exactly have a lot of faith in your guesswork, Hawk," drawled Forge in a bitter tone.
"Maybe we can use Storm as bait then, yo," Toad said without thought.
Xi admitted then, "I agree. If Storm is one of the six mutants they wanted, then the Furies will obviously be back for her and take her away to where Althea and the others are being kept. And if they come here, we can use whatever technology they have to follow the paths of those boom-tubes, and it shall most likely lead us to our friends."
Most, if not all the X-Men, were angered at the insincerity and nonchalance of gambling with Ororo's safety and life like some casual bargaining chip, but before any of them could retort, Shipwreck's voice cut through the two Misfits first, his voice unbelievably strong, vehement, and hard.
"No way in hell, you two," Shipwreck said in a simmering and serious voice, "Not a damn chance in hell. If we do this and get back Althea, Jean, and the rest, we're not gonna risk Stormy's life or anyone else's life for that matter. We're not going to sacrifice a person just on the slim chance that we can save everybody else. Either we all get out of this or we die trying. If anything, this just means we watch out for her even more."
Despite witnessing this outburst, the Professor and the adults (both the X-Men and the Joes) were beside themselves with disbelief, and Ororo didn't know what to think. Shipwreck was rarely so severe and stern…especially when it came to his puppy-dog lust for the weather-witch.
"So now what do we do? We don't even know where to start looking!" Cover Girl asked apprehensively, restless.
"Actually, we do, Courtney," General Hawk said surprisingly, "Ever since H.A.T.E. attacked you back at Bayville Commons, I had Montoya, Gordon, and Sawyer do a little research on Tonka along with analyzing their finances and their contacts over at their organization. Even despite the fact that they have several generous financial partners, it wouldn't have accounted for the research and technology that produced weapons and arms that not even S.T.A.R.R. labs, Lex-Corp and the American government could have created! And there has been no record of a Leonard Tonka anywhere in the National Registry until recently! My guess is that the battle you had with H.A.T.E. was a ruse, a sort of testing experiment, if you will, to see which mutants were the most profitable for the goals. It was no accident that the Furies knew exactly which mutants to kidnap, and my guess is, they were able to do so by spying and observing on that battle you had at the carnival."
"Wait a minute! You're saying H.A.T.E. is involved with Darkseid and the Apokolips?" exclaimed Forge in disbelief.
"Keep in mind, Forge, it's a hypothesis, but it makes sense to me and Sawyer and Gordon. It also explains why Trinity was unable to hack into H.A.T.E.'s computer mainframes and why Sawyer felt she had seen this kind of artillery before. It's because H.A.T.E. is using actual alien technology supplied from Apokolips, technology and armaments far advanced from any Earthling expertise. Sawyer said the designs of the energy scimitars and the plasma machete Spirit, Cover Girl, and the Blind Master stole from the splinter groups were similar in design to the weapons Darkseid's minions used to attack Metropolis years ago. This means that H.A.T.E. is using weapons from an alien world. So there is some sort of link, and from what Maggie and Commissioner Gordon had told me, this isn't the first time Darkseid has tried this. He had several of his servants back up Intergang in Metropolis in an attempt to destroy Earth and Superman from within."
"But…but it doesn't make sense, General Hawk!" protested Lina, frowning thoughtfully, "Why would an organization that is against aliens and extraterrestrials be using technology from other planets and galaxies?"
Blob then realized why as he said in a rush, "Actually, it does make sense Lina! It's the perfect cover! After all, what's the best way you can hide something? The last place anyone would ever look if they were searching for something? Besides a place you've already looked before?"
Jamie then guessed it. He blurted out, "The best way…is to put it in plain view, to make it look like you have nothing to hide in the first place! It's a way to throw off people! No one would ever suspect an anti-alien organization having ties to an alien world!"
"So if H.A.T.E. is using technology and weapons and guns from Apokolips…" Roberto said in dawning comprehension.
"…then we can use H.A.T.E. as a link to trace back to those Furies and find Jean, Wolverine and the other Misfits again!" Ray finished triumphantly.
"Then we'll let Commissioner Gordon and Maggie use their forces to search for anything helpful in Gotham City while we go to Metropolis. You X-Men stay here and just concentrate on keeping Storm and yourselves safe," Blind Master said.
"No, that isn't even an option, Blind Master!" snapped Batgirl, "The X-Men will be sitting ducks if they just stand here and make themselves targets again! The last place they should be is here where the Furies will obviously try to return! They should be out with us trying to do anything they can to get their friends back!"
"I agree with Batgirl!" growled Hank McCoy as he stood up to his full height, his fur bristling, "We already tried trusting the safety of the staff and students in your hands, and it has not gotten us anywhere! In fact, I daresay it has made things worse! Jean and Logan are being held hostage, we are no closer to ensuring that H.A.T.E. is going to let us be, and our only help that we have are members of the police departments from both Gotham City and Metropolis who have quite done nothing useful, quite frankly, along with two inexperienced female heroes who are hardly a match for eight Female Furies!"
"Hey, we're on your side! You should be grateful! We're not exactly obligated to help, but we came anyway because we wanted to! And just because the League isn't available doesn't mean that they wouldn't help you if they could! To tell you the truth, the Justice League doesn't even know me and Batgirl are even in Bayville! We're handling this because this is a crisis where we could do some good, and we're the best available candidates to handle the situation with you!" Supergirl snapped, overhearing this.
"Oh so instead of getting actual help, we have to settle for the consolation, second-hand help? I feel so much better now, Supergirl!" snapped Piotr. Supergirl was about ready to slap the raven-haired, muscular Russian for that condescending, sarcastic remark.
"Then it's settled," Scott said steely, "We'll go to the headquarters of H.A.T.E. in Gotham City."
General Hawk then crossed his arms over his chest as he declared just as unyielding, "No, we're going to the H.A.T.E. headquarters in Metropolis."
"You do what you want, but we shall go our own way, General," the Professor said in a mild tone, but it had red-hot steel honed inside, and on cue, most of the X-Men started to move towards Charles Xavier in full support. Most of the Misfits just glared back as they edged towards the group of Joes along with General Hawk. Some, astonishingly, were hesitant to choose a coalition.
"You guys. Don't do this. Please," Justin coaxed gently from the middle.
Yet Hank was starting to be a bit annoyed with the Misfit's naiveté as he said severely to the Blind Master, "Mr. Moore, I would highly suggest you tell Justin to be quiet and stop interrupting us in matters that he has no comprehension of understanding."
"Hank!" protested Jake from the background, but the Joe ninja master immediately became angered at the condescending tone Beast was using.
"I would highly advise you watch that tone of voice, Mr. McCoy," Blind Master muttered darkly, "I don't need you to tell me how to raise Justin or discipline him, and frankly, I support him being free to speak his mind since by all rights, we allow you to shoot off that big mouth of yours."
"If I recall correctly, Gabriel, you're not Justin's father and on that note, I'm surprised his family would even allow a man like you to be near him or a woman like Cover Girl around Lina as role models," Ororo said coldly. Pietro, Todd, and Xi immediately looked angry enough to start another screaming match (and Toad, despite knowing he'd get KP duty, wanted to slime her directly in the face).
"Hey, yo! That ain't cool!" Toad snapped.
"That was a low blow, Ororo!" Low Light growled, "And from the way we see it, your X-Men aren't exactly model perfect students yourselves!"
"At least the kids here aren't raised by a bunch of lunatics and drunks," Forge muttered, and Roadblock's eyes widened in insult before he grabbed Forge by the collar of his shirt and jerked the Native American adult towards his eyes until their faces were mere inches apart.
"Care to say that a little louder, Forge?" Roadblock growled, incensed and livid, "I don't think I heard you clearly enough, and I just wanna make sure what is it exactly you said before I pound you for that little quip." Toad and Blob could see that Roadblock was exceptionally angry; he wasn't even speaking in verse anymore.
Low Light then added, almost ganging up on the X-Man instructor, "And if memory serves me correctly, you weren't exactly a good authority figure when Drake and the other New Mutants decided to have a drinking party which led to Jamie getting alcohol poisoning! You wanna look down on us for being drunks? Well, go look in a mirror, Mr. Kettle, and until then, keep your goddamn mouth shut, Forge!"
"Hey, put him down, you jerks! At least Forge doesn't make mistakes as often as you Joe soldiers!" Roberto snapped.
It was then clear that the divide between the two groups was slowly yet surely growing, both physically and relationship-wise. The only ones who didn't choose a side yet and were standing symbolically in the neutral middle were Batgirl, Supergirl, Shipwreck, Jake, Kitty, Lina, Justin, Kurt, Jamie, and Tabitha. Bobby, upon seeing that Lina was still undecided, then reached over and took the insect-girl's hand with some rising hope.
"C'mon, Lina! Come with us!" Bobby cajoled lightly. Fred immediately grit his teeth as his back went up straight like a steel rod, his hands now clenched into fists. For all the candy in the world, he wanted to grab Lina's other hand and plead her to come with them, her own team (and not to mention punch Bobby Drake's light's out for being so impudent). Yet he didn't have to worry much…
"Excuse me?" Lina exclaimed angrily as she jerked her hand out of Bobby's grip, "Bobby, I can't believe you! You're asking me to choose my team over yours, and to tell you the truth, we should even be dividing into coalitions in the first place!"
"But we can help you, we can protect you and are a lot more reliable than Fat-Boy over there!" Bobby said stoutly, pointing at Fred, and now livid at the insult to Fred, Lina drew back her hand and slapped Bobby hard across the face. Bobby was shocked as he held his reddening cheek gingerly.
"How dare you? I would never have insulted any of your fellow X-Men if the tables were turned! How could you be so inconsiderate to my friends?" Lina spat before she stomped off to join the coterie of the Misfits and Joes. Bobby looked slightly crushed, mentally kicking himself for opening his big mouth. Amara then glanced at Tabitha and Jamie.
Amara said, "Tabby, Jamie, please don't leave us. Don't do this to us. Not now, when Jean and Mr. Logan need our help. X-Men need to stay together."
With a heavy sigh and with respect for her close, sisterly friendship with Magma, Tabitha silently walked over with the other X-Men, her face slightly clouded. Shipwreck was actually yelling at General Hawk, "Hawk, you can't be serious! We can't let the X-Men go off like this, especially since we need to watch out for them and Storm from the Furies!"
"Well I don't need your protection, Shipwreck!" snapped Ororo as she turned her back to the sailor and his Misfits.
Shipwreck wasn't giving up as he tried persuading, "We can still help out each other, Ororo."
Hank then growled, feral, "Leave her alone, Shipwreck."
Shipwreck snapped at Hank, "Hey, butt out, Beast! You're not included in this conversation, so keep yer trap shut before I make ya'! And Storm, you know better than to mistrust me! I saved your life back there when the Furies attacked! Doesn't that count for anything? You honestly believe I'd give you up without a fight!"
Ororo didn't even bother turning around at face Shipwreck, which might have been as well considering she didn't want Shipwreck to see the pain in her blue eyes and how she was agitatedly biting her lower lip, her white hair limp on her slender shoulders. She just said hoarsely, barely over a whisper, "Regardless of what you think, saving my life for one instance doesn't mean I owe you anything, Shipwreck. And I do trust you to fight on our side, but that's completely different from entrusting my life and safety in the hands of you and G.I. Joe. That applies as well for the students. And one man's faithful word doesn't do much good against the might of eight assassins, especially if he's dead."
"I'm not going to die, Stormy. You don't have to worry about that."
"I'm not." Shipwreck inwardly flinched a bit, wasn't sure if he was hurt by the answer or by the curtness of it. After a few seconds of silence, with a sour and resigned face, Shipwreck carefully and slowly joined the other Joes. Now the only undecided ones were Supergirl, Batgirl, Kurt, Kitty, Jake, Jamie, and Justin. Justin, bothered at the enmity, tried to act as a peacemaker again.
"Please, you guys, don't fight. Please," Justin wheedled, "It isn't going to help anyone if we try to split up and argue amongst ourselves like this. We shouldn't really be fighting -"
"Justin, shut up and back off! Merde, can't you just stop whining and being such an enfant?" snapped Remy, his red eyes searing into the teenager. Shocked and hurt, Justin just numbly took a step back…towards the Misfits. Jake Clawson immediately narrowed his eyes and growled, showing his fangs, at Remy.
"Stop picking on him," he retorted.
"Hey, chubby-cheeks doesn't need an X-Geek to defend him, so why not try taking the Cajun's advice and keep your fat nose out of it, hairball!" Pietro snapped at Razor. Razor glared at Pietro wordlessly for several seconds before he smoothly walked from the neutral ground over to the side of the X-Men. Jamie, upon seeing his mentor and friend choose a path, bowed his head a bit before he followed Jake to the X-Men's side. There was a collective gasp from Daria, Quinn, and Brittany as they glared at Jamie.
"You traitor! Our sister's in danger here!" they all protested hotly. Jamie, wincing and knowing this was going to cost him big time much later, just looked at them blankly and mouthed, I'm sorry. Toad then gave Nightcrawler a disgusted look.
"Well, what are you waiting for, Fuzzy? You know as well as we do that you want to be with your X-Geeks, so go with them, yo! No need to make such a big show of it!" Kurt actually gave Todd a sad look of pity before he mournfully teleported over to the X-Men in a cloud of brimstone. Kitty then shouted at her teammates, outraged and affronted.
"I like can't believe this!" she yelled, "You guys are like being so immature about this! You willing to risk Mr. Logan, Jean, and Lance's life over some stupid rivalry? Professor, this isn't right! Lance could get hurt, and if the Joes know what they're dealing with, then we should like totally go with them!"
"Oh, so now you suddenly care about Lance? Funny, you didn't seem so shaken up about dumping him!" Xi drawled sarcastically, his voice acidic as he narrowed his yellow eyes at the valley girl.
"And like what's that supposed to mean, Xi?" growled Kitty, whirling around.
"Lance was doing just fine until you came into his life and wrecked it! Trust me, the last thing he needs is you getting his hopes up before you hurt him again!" Xi snarled.
"That is one thing I can agree on," Spirit said lowly, his arms still crossed over his chest.
"Fine!" Kitty screamed as she stomped over to the X-Men and stood next to Piotr, raging all the meanwhile, "To tell you the truth, I don't even know why I bother!"
"We'll come with you guys," Batgirl said as she slowly walked to the X-Men, "I know you are averse to accepting outside help from strangers, but Roberto and Jamie can tell you that I can be trusted, and since I work in Gotham City, I know the area as well as the Batman. I can help you locate H.A.T.E. and navigate you to their headquarters safely if you wish."
Though a little reluctant, the Professor, Ororo, and Hank all nodded.
"You can go because I won't," Supergirl said coldly from behind. Batgirl turned to her friend in surprised astonishment.
"Kara?" Batgirl asked, her voice slightly hoarse from being stunned. Supergirl threw Scott Summers a glare of loathing before she boldly stomped over and planted herself next to General Hawk and Shipwreck, siding with the Misfits. Barbara's mouth dropped open in shock.
"I can't believe you! You're going with them?" Batgirl gasped, "Kara!"
"Don't 'Kara' me, Batgirl!" Supergirl said in a hard voice, "I can't believe you're siding with the X-Men! After what Cyclops and some of them said and how they supported H.A.T.E.'s vendettas against all aliens, a group who's against the Justice League, especially after we'd helped them!"
"Well, you can't blame us for not being really fond of aliens, especially since it was people of your kind who came here and wrecked our home and kidnapped our friends!" snapped Amara. Kara was now itching to resolve this with her fists.
"Excuse me?" Supergirl blurted out in shocked anger, "'Your kind'? You've got some nerve, Aquilla! You're mutants, people who've been fighting for peace between mutants and humans and are under attack both politically and socially by anti-mutant bigots! Who the flying moon do you think you are to look down on aliens and beings from other planets and galaxies, you stuck-up snob! No, I take that back! You're even worse than snobs! You X-Men are such arrogant hypocrites! If it wasn't for my kind, you wouldn't even have a planet to call home to! If it wasn't for Superman and Martian Manhunter and others like them, this Earth would have been conquered by hostile invaders and the like! So who the hell do you think you are to say that prejudice against mutants is wrong while having absolutely no qualms about it being against aliens and extraterrestrials!"
"Hey, it's different, Supergirl!" snapped Ray, "We may be mutants, but at least we're Earthlings which is definitely more than I can say about you! We have a right to live on this planet and we certainly say that we're not exactly pleased with people from Apokolips showing up! Instead of sticking your nose in our lives and screwing up matters that you have no business being in the first place, why don't you just go back to your home planets and help over there where you're wanted? After all, you weren't exactly a great help in stopping the Furies from taking Jean and Wolverine!"
"Ray, stop it! It's not her fault she and Batgirl couldn't warn us sooner and help us out! The Furies took all of us by surprise!" Jamie tried pointing out, but Roberto shushed him a bit by elbowing him forcefully, causing to turn into several clones.
Meanwhile, Batgirl and Supergirl were arguing heatedly, both girl still adamant that their decision was the right and better choice.
"Would you quit being so stubborn?"
"I'm being stubborn? You're not exactly out of the running for the title of Ms. Pighead here, Batgirl!"
"Femmes, femmes…" Remy started, trying to turn on the charm to get the both of them to stop before it would lead to a full-edged catfight, but both of the young females whipped their heads around and glared daggers at Gambit.
"Butt out, LeBeau," Batgirl said in a low voice, and it didn't take long for Remy to detect the caged, steely anger in the voice, a tone that said to not piss them off in this private affair. Deciding it was better to keep his skin intact and left whole on his face, the Cajun raised his hands in a gesture of submission as he nervously backed away.
"Butting out…Remy is butting way out…" Remy said sheepishly and in a meek tone.
"I can't believe you'd go with the X-Men, after what they said about me and Superman! Some friend you are!" Supergirl said bitterly.
"Maybe if you weren't so immature and took things so personally, then Superman and the Justice League wouldn't even have such a bad reputation if you just grew up and focused on what was important as opposed to nursing your hurt pride! You know, with your overreacting over such little insults, it's no wonder Superman and Batman thought you weren't ready yet to join the Justice League!" Batgirl snapped impatiently, her hands on her hips.
"Figures you'd support them! After all, you're a vigilante and a law-breaker just like they are!" The instant those words left out of Kara's mouth, she gasped, wanting to take them back, but it was too late.
Barbara's blue eyes went artic as she then said coldly, "Better to be a law-breaker than an immature Misfit."
It could have easily been averted. Kara or Barbara could have backed down, could have apologized, could have humbled themselves and chosen to not dig their proverbial holes any deeper, but Supergirl, unfortunately, was not as self-controlled and cool over her temper as Barbara Gordon was. Her impatient quickness to anger and recklessness was one of the reasons why Superman would not allow her to join until she fully settled, and this was unfortunately was no exception.
"Fine! Be that way!" Supergirl screamed as she stomped her foot, and in her anger, she used her super-strength which actually caused the entire foundation of the Mansion to slightly quiver. The Professor was surprised that the blond-haired alien didn't punch her foot through the floor. Batgirl just calmly crossed her arms over her chest as she intoned in a know-it-all, detached voice.
"I'll expect an apology when this is all over." This set Supergirl's outrage to new heights…and their cracking friendship to new continents, being oceans apart.
"As if! If anything, I can't wait to tell you 'I told you so' when you come crawling back to me and the Misfits!" Supergirl shrieked as she stomped off with the Misfits and Joes following her. The X-Men and Batgirl just glared at their retreating forms before planning their next move. Though both girls tried to convince that the other was wrong, both Batgirl and Supergirl felt like crying.
000-
"Well, here we are, the city of Metropolis," Low Light announced as he, General Hawk, the Misfits, Supergirl, and the Misfit-handler Joes all teleported to the grand city of Superman via the Mass Device, right in an abandoned alley next to the infamous headquarters of H.A.T.E. itself. Dragonfly and Whitelighter were suited up in their battle uniforms along with Trinity in their new and rarely used pink and purple regalia. At first, Shipwreck wanted to leave the Delgado triplets back at home, but furious, the black-haired sisters argued that they have a stake in this more than a lot of people, and as such, they refused to stand by quietly and not pitch in to get Althea back. And if they would be left behind, Trinity would follow and tailgate them, regardless of the consequences of KP duty. Supergirl pointed out that the eleven-year olds handled themselves quite well against Stompa, and Daria, Quinn, and Brittany then pointed out that what was the point of Blind Master and Stormshadow training them if they weren't going to go on missions and fight. Not eager to gain a headache from the debating, General Hawk agreed just to keep them quiet.
As they materialized out of thin air, Supergirl couldn't help but marvel at the technology the Joes had, giving a soft whistle.
"By Krypton, and I thought the Justice League's arsenal of alien technology and junk was impressive!" the blond-haired superhero said, awed, before turning to Trinity and complimenting, "You three would definitely welcome to the Watchtower should Superman and the others allow permission for you guys to pay a visit."
"I'll remind you of that statement when you regret saying it later in the future," Lina said wearily as the Delgado triplets all had demonic, little smiles on their faces in wicked glee.
Spirit then turned to the leader of G.I. Joe.
"General Hawk, what about the X-Men?" Spirit asked, a bit worried, "You were able to get a military search warrant, so we have the law and the governmental authority to search H.A.T.E.'s headquarters in Metropolis, but the X-Men won't have any jurisdiction to do their investigation when they go to Gotham City. I'd doubt Batgirl can be legally seen as an extension of the Gotham Police Force, so if the X-Men arrive at H.A.T.E, it might turn into a blood-bath and we the last thing the X-Men need is a perfect excuse to declare them hostile terrorists and threats to national security."
"Not to worry, Spirit," General Hawk said shortly, "Maggie and Commissioner Gordon are going to help out with that one, along with several of the Joes I sent to keep an eye on them."
"You make it sound like the X-Men are going to cause trouble, yo," Toad remarked, "not that I wouldn't mind seeing the X-Geeks spending a night or two in jail."
"Actually, it's nothing like that, Toad. I'm more worried about trouble finding the X-Men, especially since H.A.T.E. isn't going to have any second thoughts about shooting to kill, and if my hunch is right about H.A.T.E., then the Joes will help the X-Men find what they need to get back Wolverine and Jean."
"A hunch? What sort of hunch?" Spirit asked. General Hawk's eyes grew solemn.
"One that I'm hoping that for once my gut feeling is telling me I'm wrong about."
"Well, you should have listened to your gut feeling about yourself and your own troop of soldiers instead, my dear General," Leonard Tonka drawled in a cool, silky and refined voice as he stepped out of the shadows, carrying a strangely carved wooden cane with a shining ruby on top, dressed impeccably in a dark suit, a white dress-shirt, and a silk, black tie complete with a golden tie-clip. General Hawk was not the least bit intimidated as he held up the warrant.
"By authority of the American government, Tonka, we have a warrant to search the premises. Now that the formality is over with, get out of our way so that we can do our job."
"Actually, you will not be going anywhere, my dear Hawk," Tonka smiled as he idly stood by. Shipwreck and Low Light then advanced towards the distinguished snot, ready to resort to physical violence.
"We'll see about – ow!" yelled Shipwreck as he collided with an invisible wall in front of him, stopping him inches short from throttling Mr. Tonka.
"What the hell?" remarked Low Light as he took out his sniper rifle in alarm, but Quinn then gasped as she got an electronic reading on the area surrounding them with her handheld scanner.
Quinn cried out, "Oh no! We're trapped! We're inside a force-field! Tonka just trapped us inside a force-field! And I can't find a way out with my scanner!"
"And it's too strong! I can't punch my way out!" cried Supergirl as she tried to smash the walls with her fist, only to find that not even her superhuman strength could shatter the invisible prison.
"Whitelighter, orb us out! Quickly!" commanded Blind Master, but to their horror, Whitelighter disappeared in a plethora of lights before reappearing exactly where he and the rest of the Misfits were standing.
"I…I can't! It's not letting me out!" Justin wailed, realizing that his power was useless in this case.
"What the hell is the meaning of this, Tonka?" Cover Girl snarled, but Tonka then took out a metal remote-control from the inside pocket of his blazer, smirking in satisfaction.
"Quite simple, really, G.I. Joe," he said simply as he pressed the button, "My master is quite eager to see all of you, so I am simply following his orders to give him what he so desires."
"Oh no…" Roadblock and Dragonfly murmured as a portal emerged directly inside the force-field, enveloping all who were inside it.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" yelled Supergirl, the Misfits, and the Joes as they all hurtled into the boom-tube portal before it sealed itself. Tonka smiled as he activated the hidden remote in his hand and opened another white rift in space and time before jumping into it. Now that half of the task was done, the other half would be no more difficult.
000-
"Finally, we're here!" Forge exclaimed with a mixture of joy and relief as the Blackbird landed directly in Gotham City Central Park. All the X-Men were fully suited up, and Forge had a deer-skin knapsack slung over his back, containing inside a few handy inventions and gadgets that would no doubt provide advantageous help in their fight and search for their missing teammates. Batgirl was sullenly silent as she trudged alongside the X-Men as Cyclops then gave the orders.
"Remember, X-Men…we have to be discreet and stay together, especially around Storm. Anything you see out of place, do anything you can to make sure it does not draw attention to ourselves! And this especially means you, New Mutants, so for God's sake, stop fighting and making a scene and Boom-Boom, do NOT blow up any vending machines or trash cans this time!"
"Hmph," muttered Boom-Boom crossly as she sulked. Sunspot then tried to cheer up the Bat-vigilante next to him.
"I just hope Dragonfly is OK," Iceman said worriedly, his thoughts on the insect-Misfit.
"She made her choice, Iceman, so get over it," Colossus said simply. Bobby still seemed a bit troubled.
"Don't worry, Batgirl," Sunspot tried to encourage soothingly, placing a hand on her shoulder, "Once we find Jean and the others, you'll be able to show how stupid Supergirl is by following the Misfits when we save the day."
Batgirl glared at Roberto before she did the first thing that came to her mind. She punched the Brazilian teenager hard into the stomach, and winded, Sunspot bowled over, hugging his abdomen and wheezing, his voice strangled and raspy. The Professor, Storm, and Beast looked at her in a scolding manner, but Batgirl just glared back before walking off in a huff.
Magma rolled her eyes as she said, "Roberto, you shouldn't have done that. Even though Batgirl and Supergirl had a huge fight, they still obviously care for each other, and considering you were insulting her best friend like that, I'm surprised she only punched you."
"Now…you tell…me…ow…" Roberto moaned, trying to hug away the pain. Bezerker was actually chuckling as he couldn't help but rib Sunspot as his voice came out gleefully sarcastic.
"Real smooth, Sunspot. She's really going to like you as a Batman-supporter from now on."
"Ray, come…closer. I can't hear you," growled Sunspot with gritted teeth as he made a fist, ready to sock Ray directly into the jaw.
Soon the X-Men managed to make their way safely towards H.A.T.E. headquarters, all of them secretly hiding amongst a darkened alley nearby.
"Shadowcat, go phase in and see if you can find the main computer center that contains all the information servers for the headquarters. If H.A.T.E. does have any leads to Apokolips, the computer servers will be the best place to start. Take Razor and Nightcrawler with you; Razor can aid you in your mission to hack into the computer and Nightcrawler can teleport all three of you out should it be necessary for an immediate escape. The Professor will use his telepathy to send mind-instructions and guide the three of you to your destination as well as keeping a lookout for any soldier of H.A.T.E. who might catch on to our mission. And Iceman is already using his powers to lower the temperatures around the building so that the heat-sensors do not pick up on your signatures. With it being a cold night, Tonka and H.A.T.E. will not suspect anything."
"And the rest of us will stay outside in case there will be a massive firefight with the soldiers around the perimeter," Cyclops added.
"We're ready, Beast," nodded Nightcrawler, but as they made their way towards the front gates, they all crashed into an invisible wall.
"What on Earth?" gasped Nightcrawler.
"Hey, we're trapped inside some kind of bubble!" Magma gasped as she, Sunspot, and Bezerker tried to feel for some sort of opening with their hands as they pressed against the force-field. And on cue, Professor Xavier and the X-Men suddenly found themselves surrounded by a multitude of armed soldiers from H.A.T.E. and alongside them was Mr. Leonard Tonka.
"Hah! Looks like we've caught ourselves some mutie rats!" sneered one male soldier.
"Hey, let us out, you creep! Why don't you stop acting like a coward a fight us!" snapped Boom-Boom, but Tonka then took out the hidden remote control from his pocket.
"Oh, I wouldn't worry, my dear," he said in a mocking, patronizing, and pompous tone, "You and your friends shall be doing plenty of fighting soon enough -"
Bang! To Tonka's astonishment, a passing bullet out of his hands struck the remote control and shattered it into a pile of exposed, sparking junk. Both the members of H.A.T.E. and the X-Men turned to see a squad of police officers from both Gotham City and Metropolis, with their guns drawn and aimed at the congregation of bigots. And in the very front of the posse were none other than Commissioner Gordon, Maggie Sawyer, and Detectives Montoya and Harvey Bullock. Batgirl felt a bit uncomfortable being in sight of her father and hoping to God that he wouldn't recognize her.
"Leonard Tonka, by authority of the Gotham Police Division and the Metropolis Special Crimes Unit and G.I. Joe, you are under arrest!" declared Montoya, keeping her gun fully trained on the slick man in the business suit. The X-Men were stunned to see them, and none more so than Mr. Tonka, yet gracefully, he managed to compose himself as the esteemed leader of H.A.T.E. explained regally to the officers.
"This is a grave misunderstanding, my dear detectives. We have simply caught the X-Men in the act, the vigilantes along with Batgirl were planning to commit terrorist acts of a grand nature against my organization and -"
"Drop the act and back away slowly from the X-Men, Tonka!" growled Sawyer, "Or should we call you by your real name…Kanto?"
Mr. Tonka's eyes went hard as he glared at the police officers.
Bullock then smugly grinned, "Hard to believe that a simple anagram of your name kept us fooled for so long, you Apokolips freak, but luckily enough, General Hawk was able to figure it out and give us a heads up before it was too late."
"It is too late, you fools!" snarled Kanto, now transforming into his full regalia of a blue and yellow Renaissance uniform, complete with a cape and boots, before touching the ruby stone on top of his cane and summoning another portal to engulf the X-Men. All of the X-Men, the members of H.A.T.E. and the teams of officers were taken aback, surprised.
"What the hell is that?" yelled one H.A.T.E. female warrior.
"It's a boom-tube!" Razor yelled in warning, "It's exactly like the same one the Furies used when they attacked the X-Mansion!"
"But…if Tonka has the ability to summon portals to Apokolips…" Colossus murmured, guessing the truth.
"Oh holy shit, the mutie-lovers weren't lying!" cried out another H.A.T.E. soldier accusingly as he pointed at Tonka, "You really are from that freak planet, Apokolips!"
"Mein Gott, that that must mean you've been working for Darkseid all along!" Nightcrawler gasped.
"How unfortunate that you were unable to realize it until now, my poor boy! And at least my master shall be pleased that I was able to deliver the sixth and final mutant he needs to acquire for his plans to control all of life!" Kanto declared, magnanimous, as the boom portal engulfed all of the imprisoned X-Men. Commissioner Gordon and Sawyer were stunned.
"Where did you send them?" shouted Maggie, aghast.
Kanto then smiled gruesomely and viciously as he said, "I would be more worried about you, my dear Maggie Sawyer, for now that you have revealed my identity, none of you shall leave with that knowledge alive…"
000-
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" yelled the Misfits, the Joes and General Hawk as they all plummeted through the winding, convoluted tunnel, seeing flashes of light of various multitudes of stars and planets and the darkness of the space-time continuum dash by in milliseconds while the various forces of inertia and gravity pressed against their bodies painfully from all sides and from every direction. It was like being in the most twisted form of a roller-coaster except without the comforting feeling of seatbelts and seats. Supergirl then managed to get a brilliant idea.
"Everyone, form a chain and join hands!" she yelled as loudly as she could, her alien physiology allowing her to magnify her voice to the equivalent of a ship's horn in the decibel proportions, "When we land, it's not going to be pretty! Everyone, form a chain! Blob, I need you to be at the end!"
"Huh?" Blob asked, but General Hawk then guessed what Supergirl was trying to do.
"No questions, Blob! Just trust Supergirl! Everyone, form the chain with Fred acting as the starting point! NOW!"
Immediately, the Joes and General Hawk grabbed on to Freddy before the Misfits grabbed on to the Joes, in a single file line, grasping each others' arms and legs in a secure fashion as they were trained on occasion during their exercises back at the Pit. Supergirl then grabbed at the bewildered Fred's hands with hers, clutching each other tightly in a superhuman grip as they all flew out of the portal into the unknown lands. There was a sudden, brutal pull as Supergirl invoked all of her strength to maintain her hold on Blob and the other Misfits as they all held on as a lifeline.
"Whoa!" Supergirl managed to gasp, her face slowly beginning to flush as she managed to hover in the air and descended down to a large patch of barren ground slowly, "Geez, and I thought that handling meteor showers and fellow inhabitants from the Fourth Dimension were heavy-weights! You guys weigh enough for one planet!"
"Gee, I wonder why?" drawled Pietro sardonically as he gave Fred a long glance.
"Pietro, shut up!" Fred barked back. Then Pietro's eyes lit up like a Christmas tree on the holidays when his wandering eyes happened to get a good look up Kara's skirt.
"Hell-llloooooooo, I love the view! And nice 'Strawberry Shortcake' underwear, Supergirl!" Pietro laughed as he gave a low wolf-whistle.
"Ooh! Ooh! Ooh! Where? Where? I wanna see! I wanna see! I wanna see!" Shipwreck said excitedly while still maintaining a grip to Low Light's hands. Cover Girl and Lina rolled their eyes at Shipwreck while Supergirl was not the slightest amused as she freaked out, humiliated.
"You sicko!" she screamed and unfortunately, in her shock, she let go of Blob, which sent the rest of the Misfits and Joes to hurtle down to the ground before Supergirl could let them off safely. Luckily, they were only ten feet from the surface terrain, which enabled most of them to jump down on their feet in an expert, balanced, and graceful manner. Lina and Trinity, all four of whom could fly, managed to stop their plummet and touch base softly while the Blob, though falling heavily, managed to do so while remaining upright, yet he made a noticeable crater in the ground. Pietro, unsurprisingly, didn't have as easy of a landing when Supergirl tackled him…
"Ah! Yeow! Ah! Ah! Ow! Argh! Get – yeow! Her – ouch! Off – ow! Me - ack! Augh! AUUUGGHH! Not the hair! Don't touch the hair! Yeeeeeooooowww! Owie, owie, owie!" Pietro hollered while being pinned to the ground with the alien blonde on top of him, giving him a good beating with her fists (luckily, she wasn't using her superhuman strength) and pounding him flat. To say she was overreacting a bit was an understatement.
"Die! Die, you pervert! Die, die, die, die, die!" Kara screamed as she began to strangle Quicksilver while Low Light and Spirit were doing their best to stop her and release her hold around the Misfit's neck. Toad and Xi then took charge of the situation along with the Triplets as everyone else was regaining their bearings.
"Whoa, freaky stuff, yo!" Toad gulped uneasily as everyone then noticed their surroundings. It wouldn't have been far off the mark if anyone guessed that they were in Hell. The ground they were standing on was a sick, diseased and lifeless mixture of useless metal, hard, caked dirt, and material solidified by the intense heat of the floor. In fact, it was almost as if the very ground was baking red-hot endlessly, and Xi was starting to find it a bit painful in standing on this surface in his bare feet. Throughout the land, as far as the eye could see, were pits of fire and lava, spewing out flames that were well above temperatures in the thousands, Fahrenheit, and the columns of fire rose from these pits to the heavens above, the skies tarnished black with ash, smoke, and as red as blood, giving it a very dreary, sinister, and evi1 atmosphere. The air was thick with rancid smells and odor of decay and foul matter being incinerated, making it difficult to breathe without the desire for some sort of oxygen tank or filtered mask. Heck, being in a room full of smokers would have been a heck of a lot easier to breathe in. Yet, the Misfits and Joes could still function at least. And there was no trace of anything green, no flora or fauna anywhere, and instead, what stood were tall pillars of metal and stone, black, unmoving, cold, and full of menacing malevolence, built on the sweat and blood of all the poor, malnourished, agonized slaves that were groaning and lamenting their death cries while being chained and whipped into working hard labor tirelessly.
"This is not good," moaned Brittany, her face white and blanched.
"This is so not good," moaned Quinn.
"I think this goes beyond that, girls. This is what happens when good was mugged in the streets at midnight before being stabbed in the back multiple times, run over by a car repeatedly, and then tossed into the river with a new pair of cement-shoes to boot!" grimaced Daria, "In other words, we're are so screwed!"
"Where…where are we?" Blob asked as he helped Cover Girl and Roadblock rise up from their sprawled positions.
"I don't think we're in Metropolis anymore…" Xi gulped worriedly as he looked around. Supergirl then gasped as she took in the landscape and suddenly remembered that she and Superman have arrived in this foreign place in the past battles.
"Oh by the mother planet, we're not even on Earth anymore! I remember this place when Superman and I went to go fight the Furies! We're on Apokolips!"
At this mention, all the Misfits and the Joes stopped and gaped at her, twitching slightly. Low Light said slowly and methodically, hoping that his brain wouldn't snap from the fact that they were on another planet, "Let me get this straight…we're on Apokolips…the planet where Darkseid rules with an iron fist…and now that we're on his turf, we're going to be subjected to his armies and minions…with no way of getting back home!"
"Basically, that's the gist of it," Supergirl winced.
Roadblock then frowned as he asked no one in particular, "Wait a minute, this can't be true! How could Tonka have the ability to summon a boom-tube? He's a part of H.A.T.E. and that group may be hard to take its licks, but there's no way in hell they'd be working for Apokolips!"
General Hawk then said in a grave tone, "It's not H.A.T.E. who's behind this, necessarily, then Roadblock. Thank God I sent backup to help Gordon and Sawyer, but if Tonka is who I think he is, then he needs to be stopped and fast before he causes any more damage on Earth. I just hope Gordon and Maggie can stop him in time."
Spirit, however, was not really listening as he then realized, exclaiming with some hope, "Wait, then by the Great Spirit, it may not be such a problem then! This might be a good thing! If we're on Apokolips, then we can find and rescue Lance and the others who were taken! We can now find them and stop Darkseid and his Female Furies for good!"
"But there's a big problem, Spirit," protested Low Light, "There's only a few of us, and even with Supergirl, we're not much of an army against the Furies, so any possibility of us being able to take out and stop Darkseid from doing whatever depraved and sick things he planned with Althea and the rest isn't going to be very high. If we had more people or were better prepared for Apokolips' armies, we might stand a chance, but things are pretty bleak in my opinion."
Shipwreck just glared at the G.I. Joe sniper before saying adamantly, "I don't care. I don't give a damn care about the odds, Low Light. Althea's out there, and she needs help. That's all I need to know before I go out there and get her out myself or die trying."
"And I, as well," declared Spirit in a low, intense voice, his dark eyes flashing under the glow of the red sky, "My son is out there, and I shall not leave this planet without him."
"And that goes double for me! Those Furies are gonna get some payback for taking Wanda, Althea, and Lance!" Toad shouted, puffing his chest out while taking his bo staff from his back in a symbolic, threatening manner.
"And us! If Shipwreck goes, we're going too!" yelled Quicksilver, Xi, and Trinity in unison.
Blind Master held up a hand, waning the Misfits to listen as he said, "Hold it, children…yes, you too, Shipwreck. Keep in mind, we're on a planet, and we have no idea where Althea and the others are even being held. Even with Quicksilver's speed and Supergirl's limited knowledge of what she can recall, it will take weeks if not months to track down and investigate every corner of this rock until we can discover where the captured X-Men and Misfits are being held. And by then, it will be too late. Either Darkseid gets wise to our current status and sends his soldiers to kill us or Althea, Lance, and the others will die from being kept prisoner that long."
"Things are looking pretty grim, and being on Apokolips makes our survival thin," muttered Roadblock.
"Don't even say it, Quickie!" Toad snapped as he saw Pietro was about to open his mouth.
Quicksilver, still oblivious and wanting to tempt fate, just shrugged off the warning as he asked, "What? Say what exactly? Say 'things can't possibly get any worse'?"
And as if on cue, the Misfits heard general screaming as another boom-tube opened up directly above them…
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" yelled Batgirl and the X-Men as they flew out of the boom-tube and came crashing down…on top of Supergirl, General Hawk, the Joes, and the Misfits.
CRASH! For a few moments, it was just a tangled pile of bodies, one on top of the other, with the X-Men pressing down on the Misfits and Joes down on the ground. Rogue, thankfully, fell into a section that was devoid of anyone, so she didn't unluckily absorb any life force and memories upon contact, but there was a slight impression of her body made deep into the earth where she landed face-first. Thank God for her invulnerability…
Rogue managed to extract her visage out of the ground, bits of dirt and grime sticking to her face as she hissed in pain, "I'm gonna kill Tonka the minute we get back home!"
"You are going to have to take a number first, Rogue," Batgirl groaned as she was lying on top of an insensible Blind Master.
"Wow, talk about a soft landing," Boom-Boom marveled as she sat up, "And that was such a fun ride! Let's do it again!"
"Can I kill her? Please, somebody, tell me I can kill her…" Bezerker whined in the background upon hearing Tabby's request.
"Quickie…when I get…some feeling in my legs, yo…I…am going…to hurt you so badly," moaned Toad.
"Too late, I think whoever's sitting on me already finished the job! Owwwwwwiieee, my back," moaned Quicksilver.
"Can someone please get off of us? You're crushing me…" groaned Xi's muffled voice as he, Whitelighter, and Low Light were being flattened to the hard, barren ground with Magma, Lockheed, Cannonball and Roberto lying sprawled out on top of them.
"Oops, sorry partner" blushed Sam, "but on the upside, you broke our falls so in the long run, it's all for the better." Xi's head perked up at the voice as he looked at the heavy body pressing him against the ground.
"Huh? Cannonball?"
"Huh? XI?" Sam exclaimed immediately afterwards.
"Ow…" moaned Low Light, swearing his spine just collapsed where Roberto landed knee-first.
"Whoever is sitting on my stomach, can you please go on a diet?" Whitelighter whined.
"Hey!" snarled Magma as she glared at Justin, and the Misfit then realized it was her who was sitting on his chest, and the Roma Novan princess was not all too pleased with the remark about her weight. It was then that the Misfits, the X-Men, the Joes and General Hawk along with Batgirl and Supergirl recognized who they just ran into, despite being on an entirely foreign new planet due to sheer bad luck, and as one, everyone in the groups groaned miserably.
"YOU? What are you doing here!"
Author's notes: I got that quote from Red Witch's Misfit-fanfic, "Another Week of Random Madness" so give it a read! It is actually quite excellent! Now, next Friday, we will find out the details of Darkseid's plans with the chosen six mutants as the Joes, Misfits, and X-Men along with Batgirl and Supergirl are forced to put aside their differences and team up to stop the alien leader once and for all while Sawyer and Gordon fight against Kanto thanks to the assistance of a few ninjas sent by Hawk! We will discover the identity of the mysterious eighth and final Female Fury, but can the good guys rescue their friends while being trapped on Apokolips with no way back? Find out next Friday in "Gauntlet" but until then, read, review, and constructive criticism welcome!