Black Ice
To Seth Child Star: Hey there, Seth Child Star! Nice to hear from you! I'm glad you like this story so far! I've looked in your profile, and I see you've written some fics starring Bobby yourself. I'm glad that you like my work so far! Anyway, enjoy the new chapter!
To Klinoa: Hey there Klinoa! Nice to hear from you again! You can still review those chapters if you wish! Yeah, so far, things are going rather good with Bobby and the rest of Freedom Force, but that may change. Yeah, I've kind of grown to like Bobby showing his darker side more. Gives him depth and shows that Bobby does have his own problems and issues to deal with, and he's not just some goofball practical joker. What does "jabroni" mean? It's an insult term the Rock uses a lot. That's basically what it means. Enjoy the new chapter!
To Raliena: Hey there, Rae! Nice to hear from you again! Okay, good luck with that! I'm very glad you liked the last chapter! Enjoy this new one!
To todd fan: Hey there todd fan! Nice to hear from you again! Yeah, poor Bobby's wallowing in darkness right now. And as I am sure you know, Bobby's descent into darkness has just begun. And it's no surprise that he only thinks negatively about the X-Men. As far as he's concerned, they have never done him any good before. They've made fun of him a lot, and he has a broken heart thanks to the sister of an X-Man (Unintentionally and unknowingly). Anyway, enjoy the new chapter, and I can hardly wait to read new chapters of "Slugs and Snails", "Little Shop of Mutants", and "X-Men: Evolution, the Musical"!
To Aaron: Hey there, Aaron! Nice to hear from you again! Yeah, Bobby does have some major issues. As he said in the first chapter, Bobby wants to earn his codename of Iceman. He wants to be like the element that he can control: Cold and hard. As far as he's concerned, his powers are all he's got now. I can imagine Rictor and Thunderbolt being none too happy with being allowed to go clubbing. They're the youngest of the team, and it can be annoying for them sometimes. Yep, Virus, the big bad villain of this story, has arrived, and he definitely is mad. As for Bobby's first mission with Freedom Force, let's just say it's going to be a big reminder for the Iceman. Enjoy the new chapter!
To Red Witch: Hey there, Red Witch! Nice to hear from you again! You bet that it's going to be wild! As for Bobby's attitude problem, well…Let's just say I haven't begun to show just how bad Bobby's attitude has gotten. Enjoy the new chapter, and I can hardly wait for new chapters of "Valor, Venom, and Other Stuff" and "Memories Are Made of This"!
Disclaimer: "Your girlfriend lives in the corner penthouse of Spook Central." - Dan Ackroyd as Dr. Ray Stantz, Ghostbusters
Chapter 9: First Mission!
Freedom Force HQ
The members of Freedom Force were all gathered around in costume. Karma was in her standard black-and-yellow uniform.
"What's this all about, Karma?" Lila asked. Her costume was black with gold on the chest, shoulders, and around the waist, gold boots, black gloves, gold studded forearm bands, and a white 5-pointed star on the chest.
"Another mission, another dollar." Kyle quipped. Kyle's costume was a blue with yellow boots, yellow lightning bolts on the chest and legs and around his waist. He also had on blue shades and a black leather jacket that had blue sleeves with a yellow lightning zigzag racing stripe going down each arm.
"This had better be a good one. I've been itching for a fight." John grumbled. John's costume was blue and sleeveless with red fringe at the shoulders. The costume had a red bird-like design on the chest that also went down the legs, red boots with red fringe, a gold belt with a bird-shaped buckle, a red eyemask, and a red headband with a pair of big white feathers on the back.
"Must you rate the success of a mission by how violent it gets?" Shiro narrowed his eyes at the Apache mutant. Shiro's costume was mainly inspired by the national flag of his home country: A red costume with white lines on the chest that seemed to emanate from the red circular buckle of his white-and-red belt. The red boots and gloves of his costume were decorated by yellow flames. Shiro's head was covered by a red helmet. The front of the helmet looked a little cat-like, with the bottom of Shiro's nose and mouth exposed, mirrored lenses, and yellow flames painted on the top of the helmet.
"It's Apache's thing, man!" Terrell laughed. His costume was a black high-collared bodysuit with a silver lightning bolt on the chest that also went around Terrell's neck, silver forearm bands, and silver boots. He also had on a backwards black baseball cap.
"I look ridiculous!" Bobby's roar could be heard as Ace walked out in his uniform. Ace's costume was just as flashy as Ace himself: bright blue with white fur around the neck. His blue costume had black studded forearm bands and blue fingerless biker gloves. A pair of silver chains crossed his chest, which were attached to a white studded belt and a pair of white shoulder pads with spikes on them, and a blue cape. The boots of Ace's costume were white with fur on top. Ace laughed.
"Oh relax, it's not that bad!" Ace snickered. "I think Roxy did a great job."
"Your friend Roxy is going to get frozen from the inside out for this!" Bobby snarled as he walked out in his new costume: A light blue bodysuit with a silver-and-white icicle pattern around the chest and shoulders. The costume had white boots, and a light blue trenchcoat with an icicle pattern like the bodysuit. The coat had fur around the neck, and a parka-like hood. The costume was completed by a pair of sunglasses that Bobby was wearing. The sunglasses were light blue with light blue-tinted lenses, and his brown hair was in a ponytail. "I look like something from a comic book!"
"Yeah, you look like Commander Cold." Kyle chuckled. "He's a character in the Thunderbolt's Galactic Justice Force comics."
"Yeah!" Rictor agreed with a chuckle. His costume wasn't really a costume. He just basically wore a sleeveless white shirt and black jacket with studs on the shoulders, blue jeans, and brown work boots. He had on biker gloves and studded wristbands. Rictor wasn't much of a costume guy. "It makes you look like a human popsicle." Bobby stiffened at the word 'Popsicle'. It was Logan's old nickname for him.
"At least I have a costume." Bobby grumbled. "And don't call me 'popsicle'." The former X-Man got into the young Mexican's face and bared his teeth. "I hate being called that!" Bobby snarled through gritted teeth. Rictor blinked.
"Okay, okay! Calm down! Calm down!" Rictor said.
"Easy, Bobby." Ace took Bobby's shoulder. "Let's just calm down, huh?"
"Yeah." Karma blinked. She motioned to a woman clad in a black SHIELD uniform. Her black hair had a white streak in it. It kind of reminded Bobby of Rogue a little bit. The woman also bore a slight resemblance to actress Lisa Rinna.
Oh look, Rogue's mother. Bobby mentally grumbled.
"Dang, she fine!" Terrell grinned. John whistled appreciatively. Shiro's face remained a mask of stone.
"She's Italian." Ace nodded approvingly. "Italian women have this aura about them. I can tell."
"This is Contessa…uh…Valentine Fountain?" Karma blinked up at the woman in a confused manner.
"Contessa Valentina Allegra de la Fontaine." The woman introduced herself, her voice containing an Italian lit.
"I knew it!" Ace grinned.
"You got enough names, jabroni?" Kyle smirked at the woman. "And why the heck would anybody have one of those names be shared with a cold pill?"
"She's our new adult chaperone." Karma said.
"You mean, you guys have been living here by yourselves?" Bobby blinked.
"No, our last chaperone had to go to the hospital." Kyle snickered.
"That was your fault, Thunderbolt." Shiro grumbled.
"Hey, I was having a power surge, okay! It wasn't my fault! I had a bad week!" Kyle snapped.
"Bad week!" Shiro shot Kyle an unbelieving look. "You just decided to show him your talent for constructs!"
"You distracted me!" Kyle snapped. The two mutants were about to throw punches.
"Hey, cool out!" Ace said. He and Terrell kept them separate.
"How long have you guys been together again?" Bobby wondered.
"Around a month, six weeks, tops." Lila shrugged. Bobby groaned.
"We're snowed." Bobby groaned. Valentina cleared her throat.
"If you children are quite finished: I'd like to tell you about your assignment." Valentina pulled out the file folder from under her arm. "She opened it and pulled out a picture of a teenage girl who looked like a cross between cat and human, with whiskers, wild black hair with a white streak, rounded green cat-like eyes, and tabby-colored fur. Bobby's eyes widened under his sunglasses.
"Sidney Cagney. Never thought I'd hear that name ever again." Bobby grumbled.
"You know her?" Valentina asked.
"From when I lived in Bayville." Iceman smirked. "Girl would jump on top of every guy she ever saw. She was a real alley cat." Bobby didn't mind making up such horrendous things about people he once considered friends. As far as he was concerned, they could all rot. X-Men, Brotherhood, Sidney, it didn't matter to Robert Drake. They were all dead to him. Besides, they never liked his jokes anyway.
"Sounds like your kind of woman, Terrell." Kyle teased.
"Shut up, Kyle." Terrell grumbled. "Since she's such an alley cat, according to Iceman over there, she'd be more like Ace's type, considering he's an alley cat himself."
"My mutation comes from the great King of Beasts." Ace exclaimed with mock offense.
"…Bobby Drake?" Valentina placed his name. "Karma told me about you. Former X-Man, Freedom Force found you in Canada."
"I quit the X-Men." Bobby said simply. He glared at Shan. "And if the Wendigo didn't use that tree, I would've killed that thing!" Bobby's glasses went down his nose slightly, indicating that his brown eyes were glowing light blue.
"Anyway…" Valentina continued. "Miss Cagney and the artist known as the Dazzler are currently on tour."
"I heard of Dazzler." Ace added. "She's all about that pop music stuff. Yech. I'm all rock 'n' roll, baby!"
"We believe that they are being stalked by a dangerous mutant. Not much is known about this mutant." Valentina said. "We have been asked to provide security for Dazzler and Cagney until this mutant can be brought under control."
"Let me guess, we have to do it, huh?" Bobby sighed. "Figures." Typical! Just typical! Just when I think I can get away from those X-Jerks, something comes up that reminds me of them all over again!
Next: An old foe returns!