Vespertilio
Author: Sakura123
Rating: T (For brief nudity, violence, mild character death, and partial language)
Genre: Science Fiction/Action Adventure
Summary: In an attempt to repair a childhood project, Reed Richards accidentally opens a window to another dimension (the N-Zone) with major repercussions and consequences on his world. An idea I got from reading the first several pages of UltimateFF4 vol.1 TPB, and Fantastic Four, vol.3, #24 (December 1999). Takes place after the battle with Dr. Doom and before Reed proposes to Sue.
Disclaimer: Fantastic Four and all its characters (ultimate or normal Marvel alike), places are property of Stan Lee and the late Jack Kirby; 2005 Fantastic Four Film is copyrighted to 20th Century Fox and Marvel Enterprises. I own nothing but original characters and the storyline, all rights reserved.
Authors note: Constructive Criticism please. 'II' denotes a character of the same name & 'Negative' denotes a evil double of the same name. The description of Reed's apartment might be a bit off too.
Edited: 12/28/2012
Within the crowded downtown district of New York, surrounded by the busy traffic of the early morning hour resided the Baxter Building. Though many of its many occupants were sleep in their respective rooms, Reed Richards wasn't among them. Sitting at his desk, his pencil slid across the rough sketch paper with ease. The image unfolding from his mind onto the paper. It been two weeks since he had been put into an almost frozen state of body by Victor Doom. Reed had blessed a similar treatment to Doom himself, ironically. Johnny, Ben, and Sue had made it out all right through the battle since they did do most of the work. Aside from the period of lack of power with Johnny and Sue, they were physically fine, they just wouldn't be using their powers again until they returned to their peek.
Reed's body had been off balance since he used the machine on himself and truly taxed himself out, trying to keep Victor at bay for the others with little time to recover. His malleability had been on and off in other words. Sometimes his body would stretch as far as he wanted to it to go. Other times his body wouldn't budge an inch despite his mental command. Sue suggested that his body was recharging, thus retreating into a state that mimicked its normal state before the cosmic rays altered him. Reed agreed for the most part but was afraid that the physical abuse his body endured had reversed his abnormality. The fear of not being able to help the others, whenever, was almost unbearable. "That would be impossible Reed," Sue said. "It would take a cosmic ray to change you back, not physical strain." Reed once again agreed, but the fear remained for some time until he was able to stretch again.
He and Ben were on speaking terms once again. Their disagreement had been all but forgotten, though neither of them spoke of it since Victor had been picked up by his assistant and carried away to God knows where. Ah yes, life was to a point back to normal, aside from the constant presence news reporters hanging around the Baxter Building wanting to get their, quote "thoughts on fighting a former MIT student, colleague, and friend." The four would take shifts going out of the building when the buzzards weren't around (Sue first - Johnny second - Reed third - and Ben last) to get important provisions needed to go on with daily life. Reed continued to strain away at finding a stronger power source for the machine to change Ben back to his former human guise. Other times he found himself pondering on the fact aside from wanting to help them, why Ben had willingly changed back to into the orange Golem he had strived to distance himself from. Guilt or responsibility? He wanted to know but was too afraid to ask his long-time-friend in fear that he would offend him.
Stretching his aching limbs, Reed stared down at the sketch book with a proud look upon his face. After two hours of no sleep, he had finally finished his drawing of Baxter Building structure. It wasn't bad for a rough draft if he didn't say of himself. Scratching the back of his neck, Reed got up from his desk and turned the light off. He moved silently through the empty living room, the sun would be up any time now and like the sun itself everyone else would be up moving about. Reed had never minded the empty feeling of his home, though lately he didn't mind the company he had now in the building either.
Even it was for a short period of time. Ben had told him he was defiantly staying here since he wasn't welcomed at Debbie's any longer, Johnny and Susan were considering moving back to the Storm household seeing that they finally had a hold on their powers now. Richards was, naturally, against Sue leaving so soon after they patched things up between each other, but wasn't entitled to tell her where to live.
Stepping into the kitchen Reed pulled out the pitcher of lukewarm coffee had put on (half an hour ago) off the coffee maker. Pouring himself some of the brown liquid into a mug, he was then off again wandering about the house. There was still plenty of time to himself, only six -thirty-one. Swallowing a large portion of the luke warm liquid, Reed headed into his bedroom at the end of the hall. He was careful not to wake the others who resided on the left and right sides of the hall. On his bed resided the Stephen King novel Dream catcher, walking past he headed out onto the balcony. The cool morning breeze nipped at his unprotected skin, pulling his robe closer to his body Reed peered over the edge.
The cars had yet to pick up their normal speed, Reed rubbed the sleep out of his eyes when he propped his chin on the palm of his hand. He was feeling unnaturally down this morning, though he suspected it was the cold coffee. Reed thought of a way to cheer himself up. After all - he had nothing to be unhappy about, aside from the unnatural occurrence of the white hair that formed round the sides of his head which had grown whiter over the last two weeks. Reed's mouth pouted slightly at the memory of Johnny's comment on his hair. Downing the last of the cold coffee, Reed reentered the house for something to eat. His feet were protesting against the cold hardwood floors, groaning he went back into his bedroom to dress.
Once he put on a T-shirt, a pair worn out jeans and SOCKS, Reed made his way back through the halls, the living room and into the kitchen. "Hey Reed, been up long?" Ben Grimm's gruff voice startled the scientist, a loud crash below followed. Ben's blue eyes followed Reed's elongated arm down to the broken part on the floor with an almost humored look on his face (assuming you could catch it). Ben glanced up at his struggling friend. It was extremely rare that his body would stretch according to his emotions. "And I thought I had problems," He sighed jokingly. Reed rolled his eyes lowering himself to the ground, he had made a considerable hole in the ground, about the size of his fist. If gone unnoticed someone would defiantly get hurt.
Exhaling slowly, Reed's arm transfigured into that of a thin, almost paper-like, form. He retracted his arm with ease, it soon returned to its normal state. One of the many perks of a malleable body. Standing up right Reed headed over to the corner of the fridge, remembering he had left a small rectangle piece of wood around that area. "Uh, I've only been up for two hours at most. How'd you sleep?" Reed asked reaching behind the fridge. "Like a rock," Ben answered dryly. Reed laughed inventively at the remark his friend made, retracting his arm from behind the fridge. He grinned triumphantly at the sight of the piece of wood in his hand. "Are you hungry? I can make waffles or . . . ," Reed paused at the sight of Ben waving his hand in a dismissive way.
"No thanks egghead. I'm not hungry," Grimm said quickly. Reed fell quiet afterward, he headed out the kitchen (dodging the hold he had made) into his lab for the hammer and some nails. When he returned, Ben had donned his hat and new trench coat, Reed felt a pang of disappointment in the pit of his stomach. "Ben, where are you going?" He asked entering the kitchen. Ben seemed to be oblivious to Reed's question as he slipped into his custom-made sneakers. Reed went on to patch up the hole in the kitchen floor, he hammered the nails into through the wood until they were securely fit in their place.
Reed stood up to admire his work, the wood was a bit crooked but it shouldn't obstruct anyone's walking pattern too much. "Hey, egghead, I'm gonna go out for a while," Ben finally announced. Reed turned in response with a nod. "I'll see you later then," Reed sighed distractedly, waving. Ben grumbled something incoherent as he left the apartment. Reed hoped there were no reporters out this time of morning (7:00am), otherwise they'd be in a real surprise; Ben was no early morning person, especially nowadays. He put the hammer on the table, eager to find himself something to eat since he wouldn't be making waffles.
Johnny had recently bought a box of Honneynut Cheerios, maybe he would eat those over a highly nutritious meal as scrambled eggs with ketchup. Extending his arm, he Reached into the cabinets, grabbing a bowl and a spoon from the silverware drawer. Putting the two items on the table, Reed stared at the fridge with a mischievous gleam in his eyes. Stepping back a few paces, Reed placed himself against the counter and raised his arm.
His arm extended easily toward the fridge, his knuckles brushed against the handle; Grinning Reed grasped the handle of the door and opened it. Within a second he grabbed the milk carton out of the fridge and closed the door with his other hand. His arms returned to their normal state once he sat at the table, he poured the milk into his bowl and his cereal last, Reed put away the Cheerios and milk before proceeding to eat.
Sue Storm aroused slightly to a soft prickle that danced across her cheek, she swatted it away the first time she felt it. It continued on throughout her slumber, though her mind was barely aware of it. Sue was more or less in too sweet of a dream to tell the difference between a feather duster running across her face and Reed Richard's lips touching her invisible nose at the planetarium. Her shoulders hunched as she burrowed deeper into her covers rasing her arms over head (which was currently invisible). Hovering over her was her brother, Johnny Storm.
He had tried this trick on Ben and it worked once, the second time the feather duster was snatched out of his hand by the former man and he was almost knocked onto the floor by the ogre's large fist if Sue hadn't been there to block it. Susan's lips smacked in anticipation, puckering slightly. The moment was almost there, Reed moved in closer to her face. Johnny chuckled silently as he dragged the feather duster across her sister's unseen face, the covers shifted every time he did and every once and a while Susan's solid form would appear for a brief second before vanishing again. In her hand resided the cool whip with chocolate sauce added for good measure, Johnny slid the feathers across her face once again. Sue's hand moved a little closer to her face.
. . . . One more push outta do it, The young man though with a grin then stopped. The wheels were turning in his head, he had an even better idea to wake his sister up! Tucking the duster under his arm Johnny raised his hands to mouth creating his own sort of loud speaker. If this didn't wake her up, nothing would. Inhaling deeply Johnny leaned over his sister and prepared for the final moment. . . . .
". . . .SUE! WAKE UP!"
Wack! The hand came down on the invisible Woman's face quicker than Johnny could jump over her bed and run out of the room. Sue's heart skipped several beats at the realization that she had whipped cream covered in chocolate on her face, in her hair and running down her neck onto the pillow. "Johnny Storm!" Whipping the cream from her eyes, she flew out of the bed like a bat out of hell and charged out of the room after her brother.
Reed was swallowing his cereal when Johnny came dashing into the living room, with one arm in his leather jacket and timberland boots. Reed stepped out of the kitchen to greet the youngest of their group. "Johnny, where are you going?" He asked, puzzled. Johnny just pointed to the hallway. Reed followed in the direction, his eyebrow raised in question. The last thing Johnny wanted happening to him was being blasted by one his sister's offensive force fields. "Can't talk now Reed, I'll see you later," He said hastily before flying out of the apartment. Reed sighed dejectedly as Sue came stumbling out of the hall into the living room invisible. Reed blinked a few times before actually realizing that Susan's body was not actually visible.
But he did notice the large amount of whipped cream on her face. "Where is he!" She bellowed angrily. Reed figured she was referring to Johnny who had just left the apartment, the bodyless pajamas turned to the scientist. The cuff of the pants bounced indicating that she was tapping foot. Reed's arm raised from his side gesturing to the hall that lead to the front door. "He went out," He said. The pajamas marched out of the living room grumbling idle threats. Running his tongue across his teeth Reed reentered the kitchen to finish breakfast, his ears picked up the sound of the showering running.
Sue wiped her unseen face with her wash cloth angrily. That slime of a brother would pay dearly for ruining her slumber. Now her body clock was all off, which mean she was going to be dosing off in the afternoon. "Stupid Johnny," Sue growled rinsing the wash cloth off. The whipped cream and chocolate rushed down the drain along with the water, fading. Placing the cloth on the side of the sink Sue proceeded to undress herself, her pajama pants and underwear fell to the floor in a heap, her spaghetti top shirt was next to follow. "Oh!" Sue rushed over to the door and closed it. The bolt of the lock slid into place. Sue thought back to the last time she left the door unlocked.
She had done it on purpose just to show off in front of Reed, to show him she had perfect control of her powers. It had worked but not in the way she had intended. Sue thought she had gone invisible beforehand and got caught with her pants down when Reed opened the door to find her naked in the shower, quite visible. Sue's face burned momentarily before she stepped under the warm flow of the shower, the water cooled her right off. Grasping her soap hanging off a rope on the showerhead, Sue began to rub her body down in the cleansing suds. Her bad mood lessened from the soothing touch of the water running down her body. Her blonde hair stuck to her back like seaweed.
Reed made his way into his bedroom, his eyes still weary from the sleepless night he endured. His neck ached from being hunched over his desk sitting on the chair's edge, squinting through the sleep that invaded his eyes. Rubbing his right eye Reed fell onto his bed, tucking his arms in he rested his chin upon his forearm and stared out at the large balcony, wishing there was a nice scenery to look at instead of the large looming buildings across from the Baxter Building. The wind blew lightly into the room bringing with it the faint sour smell of city pollution. A direct product from the very buildings and other things that drew people to the vast city of New York. Closing his eyes, Reed thought of his little sister Enid. The last time he had contacted her was before he headed to the Doom space station.
She had become a successful writer and part-time co-manger of a publishing company in Vancouver. The only answer he got was her answering machine saying she was out of town for the weekend. Someplace where televisions and telephones weren't needed. Enid had been a very annoying sister to have for a sibling. Reed managed to tolerate her spoiled-brattiness, constant nagging, unless she was tampering with one of his many unfinished science projects. His parents, Nathaniel (the man whom he acquired his brilliant mind) and Evelyn Richards coddled her due to her acute ability to bring out the worst in him, thus causing him be directly responsible for anything that happened to her. Reed hated it but kept his objections to himself (usually at the advice of Ben). He hadn't seen her so long, he probably wouldn't recognize her if she slapped him.
Rolling over on his back Reed stared up at the ceiling once again, his brown eyes closed gradually the longer he stared into space. He grunted at the sensation of his weight shifting to the right. He opened his eyes turning his head, the sheets on his bed had hand impressions on them. A grin spread across his face as he reached out to touch the poltergeist's hand. The impression remained but not as strong as it was before, she had moved. Reed sat up on his bed his head shifted from side to side puzzled by how fast Sue had moved.
Climbing off the bed he got on his knees, he peered under the bed to see if she had hidden herself there. There was no sign of her. Rising up from the floor Reed brushed his hands against his shirt, completely on alert - "Ouch, Jeez . . . !" Reed jumped forward grabbing his backside. Sue's laughter echoed from the spot he once was standing, the scientist glowered at the invisible woman. "That's not funny Susan," Reed said, using her full name. Sue materialized from her invisible state, her cheeks red from laughing. She wiggled her fingers at him.
"Good morning to you too, Reed," Susan chuckled, closing the space between him. Reed exhaled heavily when Sue wrapped her arms around his neck, stepping on her tip-toes she planted a kiss on his lips. "Johnny still playing pranks?" He asked hugging her. Susan huffed angrily resting her forehead on his chest. "Yes, and quite frankly, I'm tired of them," She grumbled. Reed nodded understandingly, remembering the time his hand had been super glued to his desk by Johnny. He was literally taken by surprise when he tired to get from his chair, awakening from a nap. His hand was sore for weeks.
Their moment was interrupted by an abrupt knock on the door. Sue whined in objection as Reed pulled away from her and headed toward the door, she followed after him. Reed unconsciously checked his hair before answering the door. "Hel . . .," Reed was bombarded a head of golden blonde hair before he could finish his sentence. ". . .lo?" He uttered bewildered. The blonde looked up at him with her large sparklingblue eyes as she released him from her embrace. "Reed, I got your message, how you've been?" She asked. Reed blinked in confusion, his message? Sue came around the corner like a bolt of lightening. Her glasses fell down her nose at the sight of a blonde significantly shorter than Reed and herself (maybe a head shorter than herself) hugging him. "Reed, who is this?" She questioned coming up beside him.
"I-I, don't know," He stammered. The golden blonde stepped back, herblue eyes stared up at him wide with disbelief. Reaching into her shopping bag the woman pulled out a jump rope and twirled it in circle motion, Reed's face paled considerably. "Enid?" He said. Enid hit her brother with the pink jump rope, putting Sue on the defensive. Reed rubbed his arm, his nerves remembered Enid's hit quite well. "Reed, who is she!" Susan asked again stepping in front of him. Reed snapped himself back to his senses. "Oh, um, this is my little sister, Enid Richards," He announced nervously. "Enid, this is Susan Storm. She used to be a study buddy of mine back at MIT."
Enid's blue eyes narrowed at Sue then glanced upward at her big brother. "This is that Susan woman you told me about?" Enid inquired. Reed placed his hands on Sue's arms who in turned smiled before returning to her frown. "Yes, it is Enid. Be nice," Reed said glaring. "Come in." Sue jaw shifted uncertainly while she let herself be lead away from the door by Reed, she got a bad vibe off Enid. The golden blonde 24-year-old entered the apartment, she tried not to look too amazed by the vastness of the room down the hall. Reed had been keeping himself busy during his absence, wait until she told the folks. Following the couple into the large room, Enid examined large room she stepped into. It was absolutely like something out of a science fiction novel, where did Reed get the money to keep all of this running? "Enid!" The young woman turned to spot her brother on the other side of the room motioning to follow him. Enid followed anxiously after her brother into the living room, which looked normal enough to her relief.
She eyed her brother suspiciously. "Where'd you get the funding for all of this?" Enid asked sitting down on the couch. Reed stuck his hands into his pockets, something he only did when he was nervous. "I was funded by NASA, but they cut the funding as soon as they found out I wanted to go into space during a cosmic storm. The stuff out there is charged to the electric bill," Reed said. Sue gave him a weird look, remembering the unusually large payment on the electric bill last week. Enid nodded slowly, her hand cupped chin as though she were analyzing something. "Uh, huh. Reed what's with the gray hair?" Enid said, her finger twirled around the side of her head.
Reed swallowed, whatever he had to say to his sister was gone from his mind. His eyes wandered the living room nervously looking for an excuse. "Bad nerves," Reed answered weakly. Sue's mouth dropped a bit but she remained silent. Enid was quiet for the longest time before she got up from the couch heading into the kitchen. Sue shot Reed a look, the scientist shifted his gaze to the couch. Enid was relieved that the kitchen was normal, she let out a sigh. Her brother hadn't gone completely bonkers. "I've been so out of touch with the real world. How are things in life Reed?" Enid stepped out the kitchen to find her brother and Susan had vanished. "Reed?" Her eyebrow raised in question, where'd they go?
Susan lead Reed out of the living room and towards the bathroom, Reed wanted to curl up in a ball and die. Sue gave him a look that would usually be directed at Johnny when he said something wrong. "What as that about?" She exclaimed. "Bad nerves?" Reed lowered his head his lips parted hesitantly, how was he gonna tell her about Enid's Anti-Mutant stance? Sue folded her arms in expectance, she meant to keep Reed where he was until he spoke. "Enid does not like . . . . Mutants," He said quietly. Sue's eyes seemed larger under the magnification of her glasses. Sue had a million things running through her mind at that moment, she hated people like that; They despised mutants out of fear or hatred because they were different. Ever since she had left MIT she had gradually began to hear more about Mutants and what was being done with them.
The Mutant Registration Act was still being mused over and Sue hoped that they reconsidered Jean Gray's plead to reconsider their brash actions. "Reed, you are not a mutant, you are a normal human being with a gift!" Sue hissed. A very usual gift but a gift nevertheless, Sue thought to herself. "I know that, but Enid doesn't see it that way," Reed interjected. "If Enid doesn't see it that way, then she's just a narrow minded as the Senate in Washington!" Reed opened his mouth to object when his eyes looked beyond Sue's angry face spotting Enid just down the hall. "What about Washington and the Senate?" She asked. Enid's bag hung in her hand at her side, swinging slowly to the beat of her arm. Sue followed his line of sight immediately spotting Enid as well. The young woman did not seem to have heard anything the two were discussing. Reed nor Sue wasn't so sure about this though. "Uh, Enid, I've gotta tell you something," Reed stammered.
Enid rocked back on her heels expectantly, Reed looked to Sue who shoved him forward trying not to draw attention to herself. Enid's eyebrow twitched in annoyance, what did that bubble headed blonde think she was doing ordering her brother around in such a manner? Reed ventured down the hall towards his sister, Enid stepped out of the way letting him into the living room. She followed after her brother hastily, her socked feet thumped against the hardwood floor. Reed was briefly reminded of her small feet running out of his bedroom when she wasn't supposed to be inside it.
"I thought that chick dumped you?" Enid whispered harshly, jabbing her thumb towards her brother. She went on recalling his miserable condition after the break-up as though on automatic, did everyone have to remind him of their break-up? Reed scratched the back of his neck irritably. "Enid will you be quiet for one second please? This is important," He said sternly. Enid's mouth clamped shut realizing she had been rambling, her hands intertwined with each other behind her. Reed sighed taking a moment to gather his rattled nerves, Enid's mouth began to twitch, very eager to speak again. Bitting the inside of his mouth Reed spoke. "First off, you have to promise not freak out," He began.
Enid groaned in exasperation, what was he getting at with all this? "Reed will you get to the point-," Enid was cut short by her brother. "Enid you have to promise!" Reed proclaimed angrily, sounding much like a 13-year-old again. Sue peered past the wall of the hall way at the two siblings worriedly, did she hate . . . different people that much? Enid pouted slightly her lip slightly sticking out. ". . . I promise Reed," She said hesitantly, folding her arms across her chest. It was a false sense of security that promise Enid provided him, but Reed had something to hold against her if she ever went back on it (like he knew she would). "Reed!" The scientist's head jerked upward, his brown eyes gazed at his sister who was quickly losing her patience. "Oh, um, right!" He said a bit shakily. It was now or never he told himself, just tell her. "Enid, you remember the message you got from me, right? About going to the Von Doom space station?" Enid nodded briefly, she had only listened to half it before he announced his name on the message.
Enid had left the Richards household to see him shortly thereafter. "Well, I went up there on the agreement of Victor Von Doom to test my theory on cosmic storms on my plants. But there was an accident and we were caught in the storm due to a miscalculation on my part . . . .," Reed fell silent. Enid's mouth fell open; Reed had been telling her all about cosmic storms ever since he was old enough to understand them. He told her all about what they were capable of. Sue wondered when he was going to get to the point of this story. Enid rushed toward her brother, Reed went rigid as Enid examined his body stop to bottom until Reed pushed her away. "You should be dead! How'd you survive?" Enid cried blinking at her brother. "I'm not sure myself, Sue believes that it has fundamentally altered our DNA. It has," He answered.
"Hmm, that's interesting," The sister uttered blankly. Enid seemed to have missed the last part of his sentence as she poked at him with her index finger, Reed's brow creased irritably at this. While he appreciated her concern over his physical health, it was important that she listened to him otherwise she'd react in way he didn't want her to. He turned to Sue for some support, Sue herself looked clueless in way to help him. He stepped back, Reed prayed that Enid would understand. "Enid, throw your bag up," The 24-year-old stared quizzically at her brother. Why would he want her to throw his gifts into the air? Reed nodded his head reassuringly. Sighing, Enid threw the bag up into in a manner that would ensure that the package would stay inside the shopping bag, Reed swallowed back the fear that threatened to overwhelm him and extended his arm upward.
Enid let out a scream when her brother's arm went flying past her face, the color drained from her face when she saw that his hand grabbed the handle of the bag. Reed's arm returned to its normal state falling back to his side, his brown eyes stared expectantly at his sister who was ready to bolt for the door. Sue came out from hiding, Enid stepped back in fear. Fundamentally altered our DNA. My brother's a freak! Silence enveloped the room for the longest time, Reed stared back at his sister, Enid stared blankly back at him as though she were dreaming.
Sue could feel the tension growing between the two, she was almost appreciative that her brother shared her same fate, otherwise she feared he would react the same way Enid was. Enid clasped her hands together nervously. "I'm just, gonna leave now. The folks are probably wondering where I went," She said, her voice wavering. Reed felt eyes stinging at the way his sister looked right through him. She stared at him like a stranger, a freak. "Enid . . . ," Reed's voice was pleading.
Enid turned and dashed out the living room. Reed rushed after her, he caught her just as she was putting on her shoes on. "Enid, wait, please," He said. Enid shook her head quickly, he grabbed her arm to prevent her from leaving. "Let go of me, please!" Enid cried out, near tears. Reed felt his arm extending as she tried leave the apartment. "Enid, you promised not to freak out on me!" He said. "I know I did, but that's before I knew you were a freak!" The 24-year-old cried. She began to smack at his at his hand in an attempt to free herself, Reed's wouldn't budge in spite of the stinging that increased with every slap. "I didn't know this was going to happen, please hear me out," Reed tried again. Enid turned to meet her brother's glistening eyes. "No, no! I don't want to hear anymore. Your not my brother Reed, I don't know you!" She shouted frantically.
Her hand collided harshly with his face. Enid gasped slightly at the impression of her hand on his face. Reed released his sister out of shock, the young woman dashed out of the apartment in fear of her life. Ben was exiting the stair way when Enid came running past him, he recognized the young woman immediately. "Hey, Enid, that you?" He called out. Against her better judgement Enid turned in response to the vaguely familiar voice. She almost swallowed her tongue when her gaze fell on the trench coated golem standing a good two feet from her. "It's me, Ben! Ben Grimm, Reed's friend!" The Thing tapped his chest in recognition. Enid's mouth hung open aghast as she stumbled away from the approaching creature.
She took flight once more, vanishing around the corner. Ben scratched his chin in confusion, thinking Enid wouldn't react like Debbie had, especially with the media hounding them. Shrugging, the large man headed down the hall towards their apartment. When Ben entered the apartment, he was greeted by the sound Sue's distressed voice. Growing concerned the man made his way through the living room and down the hall where their bedrooms resided. "Suzie, what's the matter?" Ben inquired. Sue lowered her hand from the door, she had the most distressed expression on her face which only meant something was horribly wrong. "Reed locked himself in his room. His sister came for a visit and got freaked out when she found out about Reed's powers. She sort-of disowned him," Sue explained. Ben's jaw shifted disappointingly, now having answers to his question.
His large fist rapped on the door lightly. "Hey egghead, come outta there. Sue wants to talk ya," Ben said. There was movement inside the bedroom, the pair could hear Reed's feet on the floor moving from place to place. Sue pressed her ear against the door, the only thing that could be heard was the rustling of paper and frequent sighs from the occupant. Ben was quickly losing his patience with his friend. "Egghead if you don't open this door, I'm gonna tear the door off its hinges!" Ben threatened. Sue whacked the man on the arm, trying to intimidate Reed to come out was not the way to go about this situation. Ben raised his fist to the door ready to knock a hole in it, Sue stepped back the moment the door swung open revealing a pacified Reed Richards. Ben lowered his fist in alarm. "Ben, you've got to see this," Reed said, grabbing his friend by the hand. Ben reluctantly followed the scientist into the room with Sue trailing behind him. "Reed are you all right?" She asked tentatively.
Reed only glanced briefly at Sue before nodding his head, he sat on the edge of his bed and opened the shopping bag. Ben and Sue hovered other their comrade puzzled by his behavior, Reed opened the package and struggled to pick up whatever was inside. When he finally got the desired item out of the bag, he hustled past Ben and Sue. With one last push of his strength he placed the machine on his desk. Sue and Ben rushed to his side, they stared at the box shaped object in utter disbelief. Ben vaguely remembered seeing something like this before. "I found this under my bed," Reed declared a bit too proudly.
"What is it?" Sue said dumbly. "It's a project I was working on when I was kid, I thought I had lost it when I moved into the Baxter Building. I'm surprised to find it in this heap of a bedroom," Reed explained. "It was supposed to a machine that would allow me to look into another dimension." Sue shot a glance at Ben who simply shrugged in response, both of them were really wondering if Reed was actually all right. Especially after being disowned by one of your relatives. "I sorta of blew up the first one, and made this one. Never finished it though," Reed said flipping the switch on the right. The trio stepped back when the machine illuminated to life, the antenna made of wire coat hangers (held together by duck tape) on the back crackled with electricity. Reed's eyes became wide with anticipation the stronger the light became. Sue covered her eyes when the light became too blinding to stare at anymore, Ben pulled Reed away from the machine.
The machine rattled, the pressure within it rising. It's gonna work this time! Thought the elated scientist. Reed could practically taste triumph on the tip of his tongue. The machine coughed and sputtered, in a moment of flickering light it then proceeded to expire. "Damn," He whispered reaching over to turn it off. Sue was a bit disappointed herself having forgotten briefly why she was in Reed's bedroom to begin with. Ben shrugged not all intrigued by the machine, he was here only for the well being of his pal. Reed picked the machine up, he moved quickly past his two friends. His destination was the laboratory. "Reed, are you sure your all right?" Susan asked running after him. "Positive, Sue," He lied smoothly. "You better not be lying egghead, it ain't good for your health," Ben insisted. Reed nodded his head absentmindedly placing the machine on the table, he got to work quickly, removing the hanger antenna.
Sue was at his side watching with worried eyes. She looked to Ben who nodded his head, swallowing she readied herself. "Reed," Sue began. She grasped his hand in hers causing him to stop. "I don't want you to work too long. Take a break before lunchtime, huh? Talk to me." Sue squeezed his hand comfortingly, Reed seemed to contemplate on this offer. His eyes met Sue's. "All right," Reed answered quietly. He took his hand from hers resuming his work. Sue was simply glad she got a response from at all, running her hand over his shoulder the blonde headed out of the lab.
"You better keep your word Reed," Ben warned. Reed nodded his head without ever looking up at his friend, Ben lingered on for a while longer then left the lab. When Reed was alone, he let out a shuttering sigh, his eyes clamped shut releasing the tears he had skillfully held back. What were his folks gonna think if they already didn't know? Enid reacted like he thought she would, he was a stranger to her now. What was stopping his parents from acting the same way? Wiping his eyes with the back of his hand Reed busied himself with trying to fix his machine.
(Westchester, New York):
Johnny Storm loved to be free, with the wind in his hair. In these kinds of times nothing could bother him, nothing could touch or hold him down if he wanted to fly away from reality. This was one of these times. Johnny grinned like a schoolboy at sensation of two thin toned arms snaked around his not particularly ab-tastic but fit waist. He had let her hair grow back a bit, the dirty blonde spikes of hair flirted with the wind that rushed against his face and glasses. The brunette haired girl behind him squeezed him a bit tighter when he picked up speed on the open road.
His cycle flew past the cars like they were standing still, he made a tight squeeze between two cars which had Pryde hugging him even tighter. He grew hot in the face, though he kept his powers in check. The last thing he wanted to do was set his potential girlfriend on fire because he got too excited! He made a tight turn, and got a squeal of excitement out of Pryde who was tearing up from the mix of fear and joy she got out riding on his motorcycle. They rode for another couple of hours before reaching their desired destination. When he finally stopped, Johnny stared up at the large mansion gates in astonishment. Pryde hopped off the back of the bike, she headed over to the intercom.
Her red nail-polished finger pressed the purple button, the large Victorian ivy designed gate opened slowly. Johnny and Pryde's eyes met, he wondered what kind of family Pryde had to live in such a lavish place like this. "Well, thanks for the ride home Human Torch," She said offhandedly. Johnny shrugged like a deputy. "All in day's work ma'am. Please, call me Johnny, all the ladies do," Johnny answered smoothly. Pryde giggled like a school-girl before planted a kiss on the Human's Torch's face, Johnny went red in the face, his eyes began to burn bright orange. "So, when I see you again?" He asked nervously. Kitty Pryde shrugged simply. "When I give you a call, you'll know.
My schedule might be a bit busy for while," Kitty said slyly. Johnny's spirits dropped a bit this response but nodded all the same, Kitty waved good-bye to him as she entered through the gates. Regaining his composure Johnny started up his motorcycle once again and took off down the dirt road, never once noticing the sign under the ivy plants, Xavier's Home for Gifted Youngsters. Johnny forced himself to keep his body temperature down as he sped down the road. Oh yeah, he was king.
Reed had done what Sue had asked him, he took a break from repairing the Interplanetary Dimension Machine as he dubbed it to have lunch with her. He didn't talk much about Enid at all, just other things that were in the back of his mind he had forgotten about until now. Sue didn't mind this at all, Reed talking about anything was enough for her, she didn't want him to regress to a point where he no longer spoke about his feelings to those closest to him. Ben sat around the living room pretending to watch Murray as he listened in on Sue and Reed's conversations.
Not once did Sue bring up Reed's sister during their time together. This slightly annoyed the man but he kept up his act and listened on. When the couple were done with lunch, Reed returned to the lab to continue his work on the machine. Sue wondered what to do with her free time and suggested a game of Life for time to Ben, the Golem respectfully declined since he couldn't grip the small pieces. "How about a game of Jumbo cards? Go-fish? Old maid?" Sue insisted. Ben hesitantly agreed to her idea. Reed was thankful they found something to do while he was busy with the I.D.M.
Scratching the back of his neck he fixed put his goggles back onto his nose and focused on the problem at hand. He had isolated the problem with his machine, all of it was internal. There were several wires in the wrong place, other wires were worn from time and other things that were sure to give him a headache later on. Reed slowly began to wonder how long he had stayed up when he was making this thing. Setting on the table across from him was the bag Enid had been carrying around, he hadn't looked inside yet to find out what it was. Probably something left over from her 'secret Santa parties when she was a teenager of 14 and he was almost an full-grown adult. Occasionally his tired eyes would find themselves wandering to the green shopping bag. Ugh, he needed to be working not wondering what was in the bag!
After another half hour of being distracted, Reed finally got up to inspect what was inside the bag. Surprisingly it wasn't a 'secret santa' gift, yet several crudely drawn pictures from Enid herself from childhood, a worn baseball from his father, and a mini-pie from his mother. The last thing he found was a picture frame containing his entire family that lived at their home in California. His brow creased considerably at the memory no having the strength to call it fond. Exhaling heavily he shoved everything back into the bag and resumed his work.
Johnny had returned to the Baxter Building in a reasonably good mood much to Sue's dismay, the wheels in her head began to turn wildly. He waved to his sister briefly, having obviously forgotten about his little trick from this morning. Johnny was much to occupied to be bothered about his sister at the moment, his mind was still scatterbrained from his entire morning with Kitty Pryde. Grabbing the remote off the table Sue and Ben was situated at, Johnny hopped onto the couch and turned the television on. The young man grunted in disgust at the sight of Access Hollywood, he was quick to change the channel.
His destination was ultimately the Direct TV Pay Per View channels. Sue watched him over her cards, her mind was simply conjuring up ways of making him pay. "Hey, Sue, it's your move," Ben snapped the woman back to reality. "Sorry," She said distractedly pulling a card from the pile on the table. Ben watched her with weary eyes, they had been playing Go-fish for God knows how long and Ben won every time. Sue refused to give up, thus resulting in the game being played over ten times. Sue still lost, Ben was beginning to get the feeling it was on purpose.
"All right Suzie, I'm foldin'. You win by default," He said tiredly. Susan looked genuinely disappointed, though in truth she couldn't blame the man for wanting to quit. Nodding her head she collected the cards from off the table then proceeded to place them back into the large brown chest located near the kitchen door frame. Ben shifted his rocky joints to relieve the pain he felt from sitting in one place for far too long, his mind began to wander to Alicia Masters. He had been meaning to give her a call all day, his eyes shifted left to right. With a mighty leap from his custom-made chair, Ben headed to his bedroom to use his 'custom made phone.'
When Sue returned she was greeted by no one save Johnny who wasn't really looking at her, but the television. Rubbing the back of her neck, she looked towards the lab with sorrowful eyes. Reed had been cooped up inside that room for hours since they had lunch, at this rate he would fall asleep on his machine. Why did Enid have to respond in such a way, it was her brother for cripes sake, not some freak with ill intentions toward her! The changes to their bodies weren't even their fault, but Enid didn't seem to care about this large detail at all. Sue was almost wishing Reed, the others along with herself hadn't gone into space. Maybe then Enid would still be in this apartment, laughing with her brother and burning holes into her with her glares. Sue shook her head at the thought. Maybe she was just tired from all the worrying over -
There was a dull, though considerably loud screech over the speakers of the television. Johnny erupted in a burst of flames and fired in the direction of the noise. The television was obliterated in an instant, the explosion contained by Sue's shield. "Johnny, you idiot!" She cried angrily. Johnny powered down, wisps of smoke rising from his charred clothing, parts of his leather jacket stuck to his bare arms like duct tape. "It was reflex, I didn't mean to do it!" Johnny blurted. Sue prepared to counter her brother's excuse when the lights dimmed considerably to the condition of a rotting jail cell, Johnny and Susan shot each other looks of disdain. Ben came thundering out the room at top speed causing many picture frames to fall to from the mantle place onto the ground, shattering on impact. "Could you be any louder?" Johnny retorted looking down on the fallen pictures. Ben ignored the younger man's comment and went straight to why he left Alicia on hold.
"What's goin' on?" He shouted. "I have no idea," Susan said. "I bet its Reed," Johnny said casually, in an almost childish way. Sue and Ben shot each other concerned glances. Johnny opened his mouth to say something else, then paused in that instant. "Where is the egghead anyway? He didn't even come to greet me!" Before either comrade could answer the light bulbs burst releasing a surge of sparks and unnatural electricity overhead, all three of the Fantastic Four ducked on instinct. What in the name of all that was good on this earth was going on?
"Whoa, tilt!" Johnny cried, the moment the floor seemed to give way underneath him. Susan grabbed hold of the arm of the couch for security, the floor was caving in! Ben fell flat on his back when he tried to grab the side of the wall, this was not a natural occurrence. The hardwood twisted in a lolly pop design, the electricity quickly traveled down the wall into the pug sockets. They shorted out causing more electricity to arise, Susan impulsively placed shields around herself, her brother and Ben.
Finally, after hours of eye strain and hunching forward in his chair, Reed was finished with the I.D.M.! Allowing himself to stretch his limbs, Reed's half-closed eyes stared upon his childhood invention with parent like pride. That would show his family that he could finish something if he put his mind to it, Reed swallowed a momentary spike of pain. There was no point in thinking about a family that disowned you if you were . . . mutant. Running his hands through his hair Reed checked over everything he had recently repaired, it all seemed to be in correct order. Reed pushed his goggles over his head taking a moment to adjust to the bright light of his table lamp since the natural sunlight was no longer there to balance out the harsh light of the lamp.
On the table resided a gray stone which had been inside the I.D.M., he replaced with a new prism he had bought recently. He pushed the lamp up a bit, peering through the table magnifying glass Reed noticed a problem with one the wires closest to the switch. Without question he reached in to place it back in the socket it had fallen out, his back was aching like there were knives stuck in it. His hands shook with the fear of mistake, Reed swallowed roughly as his fingers gripped the yellow wire: One mistake and he could end up frying the switch mechanism to nothing.
The yellow wire slipped easily back into its place, Reed gave it a slight tug and it did not move again, the man smiled. Reed's hands moved out the small compartment, he closed the slide back door on the right side with a heavy sigh. He looked toward the dingy window, the night was quickly overtaking what little daylight remained. It was time to leave the lab, though first he had to test the I.D.M. out. Reed reached over and flipped the switch; The machine hummed to life, interior lights and all. Reed could feel a catch in his breath as he waited for the end result of his labor.
Outside the lab Reed could hear the faint voices of Sue, and the television playing still. He grinned in amusement wondering how long it had been since Ben finally gave up against Sue's persistence to continue playing Go-Fish. A spark shot out from the new antenna causing Reed to jump from his stool. A high-pitched sound emitted from the machine, electricity was crackling over the entire I.D.M., Reed's hands were quick to clamp over his ears. Okay, so it wasn't working the way he wanted it to, that was a bummer. Reed removed one hand from his ear and reached out the switch, the electricity seemed to navigate to his fingers.
Reed pressed his fingers against the switch and got a prompt shock up the arm, a cry of pain escaped his lips. It was over powered by another high-pitched frequency. Reed managed to get the switch half way to the off position before the electrical current though it fit to shock his entire body. Though he knew it was impossible, unless it was from the very finger tips of Victor Van Doom himself, for electricity to act as though it had a mind of its own. Maybe. Reed's body grew rigid as the current of electricity charged through his body as though it were a battery, meant store its energy, he felt his eyes open to their limit. One of last burst of energy the machine let out an electrical charge throughout the room releasing Reed from its grasp.
The scientist fell to his knees trembling, his mind was in a state of shock as he fell forward against the wall of the lab desk. None of his motor skills were in working order, he felt the floor was crumbling under him. Sounds of his machine destroying itself drifted in and out along with his hearing, Reed fell on his side, his body burned from the inside and out. A spectacle of colored lights enveloped the entire room as he drifted into unconsciousness. A moment later the light vanished, taking Reed with it.
Johnny opened his eyes with a whimper, what had just happened? Susan lowered her shields from her brother and Ben when she assumed the danger was now over, where had all that come form? She wondered. The living room appliances were in a great shambles: Light fixtures, to the kitchen hardware was destroyed, still crackling with electricity. There were, surprisingly not burns marks anywhere on the hardwood floors or walls nor ceilings, it was just the hardware that was affected by the strange phenomena. Sue's heart throbbed wildly in her chest as she looked toward the path that lead to the laboratory. Reed! She had totally forgotten about Reed!
Everyone seemed to be thinking the same thing, though only Johnny rose from the floor and headed out the living room towards the lab. Sue and Ben followed after the young man, hot on his trail. "Does anyone know where that came from?" Johnny shouted over his shoulder. "I might have an idea," Ben grumbled in dismay. The egghead had probably caused a major blow in his machine that somehow or another caused everything electrical to react in the same exact way, in theory. When the trio entered the laboratory nothing besides the lab counter was destroyed or burned, Sue frantically made her way through the lab in search of Reed and his machine. "Uh, I'm confused," Johnny said breaking the silence. "Why isn't anything in here messed up like it is out there?" His thumb bumped Ben's shoulder causing him to cry out in momentary pain.
Ben shot him a pity glare. "Where's Reed?" Susan cried out, unable to hide her worry any longer. "Huh, you mean he's not here?" Johnny inquired walking toward her. "If he was, I wouldn't be asking that question!" Sue shouted at her brother. Ben's face contorted slightly in alarm when Sue vanished from her clothing. Johnny tried not to think about the bridge incident.
(TBC)
Author's note: Let me know how you like it. I'm pretty much done with the story already, I just need to do some finishing touches. - Sakura123