BLUE VALLEY, 2021
Riri was taking readings off of Cho in his hulking form in the garage. They were all waiting to hear back from the others, unsure as to what happened to the Clint Rescue team, or the mystical members (who go by Midnight Suns apparently) and their mission with the other Forces.
Just as if by sheer coincidence, a portal opened, and Joey came through with the other members of the Midnight Suns. They were followed by Dazzler coming in and looking at S.T.R.I.P.E., followed by noticing all of the other team members hanging around.
"Wow. You guys have like a cult situation going on here." Alison commented as she looked around. "How many do you have here?"
"We've been losing members recently," Joey admitted.
"Did you do some magic tricks to them?" Alison mocked Joey.
"Is that how you treat the guy who just saved your backside?" Joey replied.
"I'm sorry, who saved who?" Alison repelled. "Last I checked, it was my powers that ended up saving you and your friends."
"She's got you there." Robbie had to admit. "Her Light Force is what saved us."
"Wait, you found another Force?" Riri asked in shock as she immediately abandoned Cho and ran down to meet her. "What's the force of?"
"Light." Joey scoffed. "Honestly, it feels like a dud."
"Hi, Alison Blaire." Alison greeted her.
"Riri Williams." Riri greeted and shook her hand. "Now...how do you feel about being poked?"
"Define poked?" Alison asked of her.
But then there was a slam as the doorway opened, causing everyone to jump and turn to see Pat returning with the Clint Rescue team.
"You guys are back!" Beth was happy to say as she ran and noticed Clint was missing. "Where's Clint?"
"He's still in the future," Peter explains. "He was captured by some freak with a glowing cube."
"Cube?" Cindy M. asks.
"It was like...he created everything out of sheer will." Courtney did her best to explain,
"What?" Hank Pym asked as he came over. "You say a cube?"
"Yeah," Peter confirmed. "It was a blue, see-through cube."
Hank groaned as he rubbed his head, pacing back and forth. "No, no, no."
"What?" Hope asks. "Dad, what's wrong?"
"The Cosmic Cube." Hank sighed in anger.
"The what?" Bobbie asks.
"It's basically a cosmic device that could have the power to rewrite reality," Hank explains. "As of now, they have the power to travel through time, but none of them are stupid to straight up change the past."
"Yet." Yolanda scoffed.
"But the Cosmic Cube, it was only an idea when I was in AIM," Hank informed them. "But if they gain the power to rewrite reality, and someone gets ahold of it, they could do whatever they want just by thinking it."
"Like create an apocalyptic wasteland in seconds," Cassandra commented on the few seconds of the future they saw.
"Yes, the implications of the Cube are basically limitless. It could solve world hunger. It could erase moments from history without even changing history." Hank listed the many things the Cube can do. "It could kill people around the world, without even leaving a trace. It could cure all known deceases and save countless lives."
"I think we get the idea." Chavez stopped him from going on.
"Clint said to protect the Forces." Courtney reminded them and looked to the Forces currently in the room.
"So, what do we do?" Rick asks.
"We need to keep the Forces safe from AIM. If they already created the Cosmic Cube, then it means they already got ahold of them." Hank was sorry to say. "One way or another."
"Well, we still need to save Clint." Kate reminded them. "We need more information."
"And how do you suppose we do that?" Nadai asks the Hawkeye.
"We go to the future, get him out of that timeline, AIM doesn't have a Time Bridge, so they can't mess with reality anymore, and we come back here, and stop that future from happening." Kate recapped her plan/idea to save Clint.
"That's messing with time," Hank informed her. "That's too risky. That...that could work."
"Wait, really?" Pat asks.
"With the equipment here..." Hank gestured to Pat's spare S.T.R.I.P.E. parts. "And her." He pointed to Avery. "And you." He finally pointed to America Chavez. "And I'll need you guys to get me a few things."
Back in the basement of the Injustice Society of America's headquarters, Cindy Burman was contemplating everything that happened. Her actions caused the death of at least a dozen different people. Her actions caused them to lose their lives in a petty rivalry against the heroes.
"Right where you said you would be." Someone said, causing Cindy to jump and spin around to see Mayday Parker was carrying the unconscious form of Singularity. "Nice to see you again, Aunty Cindy."
"Who the hell are you?" Cindy B. asks her, ready to attack her.
"I was sent here by you, so I wouldn't stain your own sacrifice by killing me," Mayday warned her.
"My sacrifice?" Cindy B started to become curious about this visitor. "By sacrifice..."
"You died so that I could get here," Mayday confirmed and looked down at the Singularity. "So, we could both survive."
"And you knew where I would be?" Cindy B was surprised to notice.
"I knew when you would be here. Took you a while." Mayday said and looked above. "You said you could get me to the Avengers."
"Why would I want to do that?" Cindy asks.
"So, we can prevent the end of the world," Mayday answered.
THE FUTURE:
Clint groaned as he started to finally wake up after being hit in the head. He started to look around and noticed that he was in some giant empty room with only one light. The chair seemed to be the only thing that was around.
Clint started to look at his bonds, trying to find a way to break out of them. But as he started to try and escape, a door opened to unveil Kang.
"He lives," Kang commented as he kept the Cosmic Cube floating in his hands as he floated toward Clint. "It's incredible at how the less powerful are the ones that survive the longest."
"Maybe I'm not as fragile as you thought." Clint scoffed, spitting some blood he had built up.
"If only you knew everything that I do," Kang says as he floated the Cosmic Cube in front of him. "All I have done is keep the timeline intact."
"What are you talking about?" Clint wonders, not understanding what he's being told.
"I was there," Kang informed Clint, turning away from him to think of the past. "I have already lived through all of this. I believe this would be attempt 21,342,341."
"You've already lived through this?" Clint asks.
"In the next few hours, your heroes will create a portal to bring them to your signature." Kang recapped what the heroes are doing. "They will succeed and will come here. This is when I am born."
PRESENT DAY:
It didn't take Hank long to scrounge together a device that would work as a minimal Time Bridge to go through space and time. It wasn't big to bring a tank or anything through, but it was possible to bring a team through.
"You sure this is good enough?" Bobbie asks.
"Let's hope," Peter said, needing to save Clint.
"So, who's coming?" Courtney asks her friends.
"I'll go." Hope Abbot says as she walked forward. "I can get into places others can't. I can sneak through walls, barely anyone can see me."
"I can also help with that," Yolanda says, holding her claws out. "Getting us into places."
"Okay, anyone else?" Peter asks them.
Riri, Yolanda, Courtney, Abbot, and Peter are all ready to get to the future and save Clint. Hank activated the portal and the whirring of the portal activated with the help of Chavez who ran up and punched in the center of the device.
Her punch opened the cracks in reality required for the portal to bring up the apocalyptic world. Hank then typed in some coordinates and the portal zoomed over the landscape. They then made it to what they thought was once Wakanda, only to see that the entire place was altered.
"Oh, god." Courtney didn't know what to say.
"You guys sure about this?" Pat asks, knowing that the S.T.R.I.P.E. won't fit through the portal.
"I can't leave Clint." Peter declared as he was determined to save his father figure. "I won't leave him."
"Then we'll get him back," Abbot promised as she strolled up. "You've got us."
Yolanda, Courtney, Riri, Abbot, and Peter were ready to head in and raced through the portal.
When they made it into the portal, they all felt the heat immediately hit when they reached the other end of the portal. The wind was also picking up, causing a bit of a sandstorm that was blocking their line of sight.
"Whoo!" Abbot commented on it. "That's a heatwave if I ever felt one."
"We need to head inside," Riri said as she did a scan on the forcefield over Wakanda. "I can find a structural weak spot for us to get in through."
"You better hurry," Hank warns them from the other side of the time portal. "We don't know how long we can keep it open. And remember, with this bridge open, as much time as you spend there is as much time that passes on our end."
"So, a day here means a day there." Riri recapped what he was saying.
"We'll be back," Peter promised as he placed the mask on. "Riri, lead the way."
Riri then walked ahead of them as the leader with Tony leading them through the storm. "Whoa, I am surprised to see all of this."
"See what?" Riri wonders.
"The Wakandan structure was built and redesigned to be a replication of old Egyptian structures," Tony explained and even showed some examples of his statement.
"So, the big bad who captured Clint is a fan of Egyptian architects?" Yolanda questions. "That...feels really random?"
"Well, their architects are the best." Peter chimed in. "Their structures lasted the test of time all these years."
Riri then walked forward and ended up smacking against the forcefield. "Ow."
"Sorry. Figured you would have noticed that." Tony tells her.
"How would I have noticed that?!" Riri asked him.
"Well, you wanted an entry point. One EMP blast here will give you access for a few seconds." Tony explained to her.
"Just warn me next time." Riri sighed as she reached a palm out to the forcefield.
Once she places a hand on the shield, the suit charged up an EMP and fried the forcefield.
"Run!" Riri said, not needing anyone wasting any time.
The small group made their way through the forcefield as it started to reform. Luckily it reformed just when the last of them managed to get inside.
"Okay, now what?" Courtney wonders.
"Whoa," Tony said in shock. "I am getting a lot off of their systems."
"Tony has access to the systems. Or at least can give us a general idea of the area." Riri tells them.
"Seems that this place is not even known as Wakanda anymore." Tony was sorry to tell her. "They call it the Kang Dynasty."
"Kang?" Riri clarified.
"As in Kang the Conqueror?" Courtney was shocked to hear. "He's the one responsible for all of this?"
"Great. We're dealing with the master of time." Peter sighed.
"We just need to know where they're keeping Clint," Riri tells the Artificial Intelligence.
Tony did a scan of the tallest structure (feeling that would be the headquarters of Kang) and managed to get a 3D structure of the building.
"How did you do that?" Riri wonders surprised to get a structure coming out as a hologram.
"I wasn't even trying that," Tony admitted. "Someone gave me access to the structure."
"That's odd," Riri commented. "It's like they're inviting us in."
"Yeah, something feels off," Peter said as he removed his mask. "My senses...they sense something wrong."
"Well, it looks like Clint is in the detention center," Riri tells them and highlighted the area. "If I can get close to the control center..." The top of the tower was highlighted. "I can lead you from there."
"I'll give you a hand getting into their systems." Abbot offered to her.
"Okay, let's get going," Yolanda said as the two split into teams.
Hope and Riri go to the top of the tower whilst Yolanda, Courtney, and Peter go in another way to get inside.
PRESENT DAY:
Meena groaned as she was still healing from the attack she received from Allison Blaire. Looking in her room, she watched as AIM Agents came in, followed by Monica Rappaccini.
"Seems we should have taken in this Avery Ho when we had the chance," Monica tells her. "Now, she and the rest of the Forces of the Universe are together."
"Think that's a downside?" Meena asks her. "No, that's an upside. I know where they brought the Black Diamond."
"How do you know?" Monica asks, curious about how she discovered that.
"It's good to have friends in high places before they discover your true intentions," Meena explains how she figured it out. "And I can get to New York faster than you. All you need to do...is collect the remaining Forces from some rundown garage."
Monica gestured for her men to follow her, seeing as they could use the weapons that they created with help of the Still Force to collect the other Forces.
FUTURE:
Riri and Abbott made it to the top of the Kang tower where they found an unreachable point where nobody would find them. Riri set up and started to lead Yolanda, Courtney, and Peter through the fortress towards an entry point they couldn't be spotted.
As she was setting up, Abbott started to meditate aside from Riri. After a few seconds of deep breaths and calming thoughts, Abbott managed to eject herself from her body. Looking at her hands and how they were now see-through, always amazed by how she managed to do it.
"Can anyone see you?" Riri wonders.
"I can change my density so they can't see me," Abbott promises as she started to turn invisible before floating inside the main room of the building.
Riri then looked over to her unconscious body, feeling off at the fact Abbot was practically dead and her ghost is floating around. "Yeah, this is weird."
"Riri, we're here," Peter called in.
Riri then turned her attention to her wrist and pushed a few buttons and was able to sneak them inside.
Once she opened the door, the three of them started to sneak through the sewers of the tower. There were a few gags from the smell, but they quickly got used to it as they kept moving.
"Kang has his own private sewer system." Yolanda scoffed. "Talk about paranoid."
"I can't believe that this is the future," Courtney commented as she looked around. "How far along do you think it is?"
"It could really be any point." Peter was sorry to say. "If that Cosmic Cube is as powerful as they said, then it would have to be when it was created. It would have to be during some point in our time."
"And when M.O.D.O.K. creates the Cosmic Cube, Kang could just wish this world into existence." Yolanda finished his thought. "Right?"
"He could create a wasteland where only the strongest survive in an hour. Where all of our friends are dead." Peter confirmed in sorrow.
PRESENT DAY:
"So, how long do we wait here?" Rick wonders.
"If time passes like this, then I say we give them at least two hours." Hank answers.
As they were talking, Cindy M. sensed something coming and looked towards the door. "Guys?"
But before she had time to talk, a device rolled in just as an explosion went off, sending everyone flying. AIM agents came storming in, tossing some canisters to start knocking out members.
Working fast, they attached collars onto the Forces so they wouldn't be able to use their powers to escape. Quickly making their way out before anyone could even question what happened, they tossed a hand grenade that froze everything in time.
Meena sped her way through the city of New York before she arrived at the Sanctum Sanctorum. Phasing her way through the building to not set off any alerts.
Once inside, she sped around until she found the Black Diamond. "There you are."
"Don't you dare," Clea warned as she floated over towards her. "You don't know the force you will unleash with that thing."
"Oh, actually, I do," Meena said as she shattered the case, grabbing the Diamond. "Bye."
Before she had the chance to run off, Clea shattered reality and had Meena run into the Mirror Dimension. Meena tried to run away, but as she did, she watched as the world cracked around her.
Clea then teleported, summoning flames in her hands towards Meena. "Hand over the Diamond."
"Come get it." Meena declared as she sped off, trying to get away.
Clea sent the flames off her hands flying, seeking out the woman. Meena however managed to dodge the flames by either phasing or shielding herself with objects of the city.
Clea then appeared behind Meena as she was shielding herself, using a weapon that turned into a blade, going for the kill. But Meena moved at super speed, punching Clea in the face and sending her flying against the wall.
With Clea knocked out for a second, Meena had a moment and didn't waste it as she ran so fast that she could open a portal to the Speedforce. Using that as a means to escape, she managed to leave Clea in the Mirror Dimension and managed to get out with the Diamond.
FUTURE:
Peter shot up a web and was able to carry the three of them out of the sewers and Courtney used the Cosmic Staff to torch open the compartment.
"After you reach the top, you will need to find a computer," Riri informs them.
Once the three of them made it out of the sewers, they were shocked to see they were near a computer.
"That's a convenience," Courtney commented.
"Not really, I led you guys there for that reason," Riri admitted.
They walked over to the computer and hit a button, causing it to activate and asking for a password.
"Got any idea what the password is?" Peter asked his friends.
"What would a psychopath who rules the world use for a password?" Courtney wonders.
"Nice job narrowing that down." Yolanda scoffed.
"Ugh, why can't we just say open sesame, grant me access, or something simple?" Peter sighed as he placed his hands against the panel.
"Request acknowledged. Access granted." The computer said, allowing them access to everything.
"That was...weird, right?" Peter asked his friends.
"Very." Courtney agreed.
"We'll...ask about the detention center?" Yolanda asked of him.
"Detention center path acknowledged." The computer said, quickly confusing them even more as a path to the center is shown.
"Okay, I guess that sorted that out." Courtney was happy to see. "What's the plan?"
"Well, if I can find where the power to this place is, that'll cause a small disturbance, which will give you guys time to sneak in and save him." Peter offered as a plan, just as the computer showed where the power controls are kept. "Okay, this feels too easy."
"Let's just hurry up before our luck changes," Yolanda said as they both ran in separate directions.
PRESENT DAY:
When Mayday and Cindy B. arrived at the garage, they were shocked when they saw the heroes were knocked out. Placing Singularity down on the couch, she ran over and checked for a pulse on Rick, happy to see he was alive.
"What happened here?" Cindy B. wondered.
"AIM." Mayday immediately knew who was responsible. "Come on, wake up. Uncle Rick!"
"What?" Rick groaned as the effects of the weapons wore off. "Who are you?"
"My name is Mayday. I'm...it's a bit difficult to explain." Mayday admitted. "I just need you to know you can trust me."
"And what is...she doing here?" Rick asked as he got up, looking towards Cindy B.
"I'm wondering the same thing." Cindy B. admitted as she looked towards Mayday. "But the new-new girl says that I'm important."
"She sent me back here. She sacrificed her life so I could help." Mayday defended her reasons. "The Cindy from my time told me that she just needed to hear the truth."
"Time?" Rick asks, looking to the portal. "Did you...?"
"I'm from the future," Mayday confirmed. "I've come back in time to help you guys save the world. And stop Kang the Conqueror."
"Kang?" Rick questions.
"I'll explain everything else, but after everyone is awake," Mayday asked of them before starting to wake everyone else.
FUTURE:
Peter swung through the facility until he came across the hallway leading to the power. Quickly walking up to the door, he tapped it, allowing it to scan, and he was allowed to enter.
"Still feels off," Peter commented as he made his way inside. "Court, Yolanda, I'm almost at the system. Where are you?"
Courtney and Yolanda sneaked past a few Ultron sentries and came across the detention center. What they saw through the one-way window was Clint tied to a chair.
But they were also met with a robot of sorts torturing Clint, sending cries of terror through the room.
"We're here. You better hurry." Yolanda tells her.
Abbott was looking into everything that she could see through the control center of Kang's empire when she saw something.
"Oh, god, Peter...that's not an electrical room. It's a trophy room." Abbott tells him.
"A trophy room?" Courtney asks, not following.
"What kind of trophy room?" Yolanda wonders.
Peter stood in the middle of the room, shocked at what he was seeing. His face was filled with fear and shock as he removed his mask, looking around at the surroundings.
He was surrounded by everyone.
Literally, everyone.
There was the helmet of Magneto.
The Eye of Agamotto from Joey.
Thor's helmet.
Ironheart's mask.
Ant-Man's helmet.
The mask and upper suit of Spider-Man.
Green Lantern's Rings
The hood of the costume from Hourman.
The severed and stuffed head of Rahne in her wolf form.
The jacket and chain of Ghost Rider.
A Wakandan spear.
The mask of the Flash.
The headpiece of Scarlet Witch.
The wing pack from Teresa.
The severed frozen head of Iceman.
The jacket and gloves of America Chavez.
The suits of Black Bolt/Medusa/Crystal.
The Cosmic Staff.
"I think I have an idea." Peter shuttered in shock and fear. "He killed us all."
Peter kept walking around the room, looking for the systems and stuck walking across the dead bodies and souvenirs of his friends.
This man has made Peter feel sick to his stomach with how he used these as trophies or spoils of war. But when he heard the cries of pain from his uncle, he quickly refocused on the mission.
Finding what he had to guess where the power coils for this place were, he removed one and the entire building went dark.
When the building went dark, Kang didn't panic much as his wife did. She was startled by the dark and held onto her husband for comfort.
Kang just smiled and knew where he needed to be. "Finally."
"What is it, my Kang?" Ravonna asks.
"It's time for me to unveil my identity to these heroes." Kang was finally happy to see.
"Thank god." Riri sighed.
She then quickly used Abbott to get into the systems, followed by her removing emergency generators' power.
"Yolanda, Courtney, you two get Clint and Peter you get the heck out of there," Riri demanded them. "Abbott, you come to get your body and we get out of here. Peter, meet us at the same location that we entered the forcefield through."
"Alright, got it, Riri," Peter said as he was swinging down the halls. "The security should be easier to get past now."
Back with Clint, he was taking a breather after the torture that the robot was giving him. Since the power went down, he was trying to find a way to escape. But as he was trying to dislodge his restraints, a light emitted from the corner.
One of the Ultron sentries watching Clint noticed it, which was a little late when a laser came out of the light and immediately destroyed him. The second then went in for an attack when Yolanda leaped off the walls and tackled it, slicing its head off with her claws.
"Courtney...Yolanda..." Clint sighed in relief.
"Hey, Clint." Courtney greeted as she walked over and used the staff to scorch the restraints. "Let's get back to our timeline."
Yolanda grabbed Clint from his left shoulder and dragged him as Courtney grabbed his right shoulder and helped him stand.
"Peter, we've got Clint," Yolanda tells him.
"Thanks for saving him, girls," Peter tells the girls as he was making his way out of the halls. "I'll meet you at the forcefield."
"Oh, how nice." A voice called, causing Peter to stop and land on the ceiling. Seeing the figure standing in the shadows, carrying something under his shoulders, red lights started to emit from the halls. "You and the girls have made up. It's so weird that it's the nerds who have to choose between the smart girl and the athletic girl."
"Who the hell are you?" Peter wonders as he descended from his web and became eye level with the mysterious figure.
"I'm the figure who controls the last of the resources of the world." The figure stated.
"Oh, you're Kang the Conqueror." Peter put it together. "The tyrant who has conquered earth."
"Tyrant is a bit of a strong word for the man who saved all of humanity," Kang commented with a shrug. "But here's my question...who are you, old friend?"
"Old friend?" Peter asked as he dropped off his web.
Kang was one of his friends?
Is this some kind of trick to make him doubt his relationships and wonder who he is.
"So, is this when you finally make the big reveal?" Peter questions. "Because I've been wondering this for a while, and I know a few other dozen people who wanna know who you are. So, come on out of the shadows so I can finally shout, 'oh my god, it's Dr. Doom! Bobbie! Scott!'" Then he got into a pleading gesture and prayed. "Come on, please be Scott."
"All long dead, I'm afraid." Kang was sorry to inform Peter with a sigh. "The only one truly left is Yolanda. And that's because she stayed by my side. Having friends in high places do wonders for you. Oh...and I do mean..." then the tyrant walked out of the shadows to reveal who he is. "You!"
Kang walked out of the shadows, unveiled without a mask on his face to show a much older version of Peter. Completely awestruck, Peter removed his mask to get a look as if his mask was playing tricks on him.
But it wasn't.
Kang the Conqueror. The Master of Time, Ruler of Earth. The man who murdered his friends and family.
Was Peter Richards.
That explains why the computers worked for him. That's why the DNA signature allowed him to pass.
"No..." Peter whispered as he dropped his mask. "It-"
"Can't be, god, we always say that." Kang sighed in annoyance.
"I...I become the evil mastermind?" Peter wanted clarification.
"Oh, don't be overdramatic, Peter." Kang scoffed as he reached down and picked up the mask. "With great power, comes great responsibility. The phrase that our doppelgängers keep stating over and over. But with great power comes great opportunity." He then shoved the mask into Peter's hands. "And the only way to live up to all that responsibility is to use every opportunity to get all the power. I learned that the day I lost everyone I know. And didn't have the power to stop it."
"What do you mean...lost everyone?" Peter asks as Kang started to circle him.
"You'll find out," Kang promises as he placed a hand on his shoulder. "And when that day comes, you know that you live long enough to become humanity's last hope."
"Peter, we're at the forcefield. Where are you?" Riri asks as Courtney and Yolanda approached the two of them.
"I think...I think I'm in hell." Peter confessed his feelings. "Kang the Conqueror...he's me."
That caused the five of the to freeze in shock. Peter, their best friend, their partner, was the man who was supposed to destroy the world.
"What?" Courtney asked in shock. "That's impossible."
"Peter, we gotta go. We'll figure this out when we get back to our time!" Riri promises.
"Allow me to explain it all to you." Kang offered to Peter.
"Explain it to my rapidly retreating backside!" Peter proclaimed as he placed his mask back on and swung off.
Kang sighed and knew that this would happen. "I was just as reluctant to hear me out when I was in your shoes."
PRESENT DAY:
Despite what occurred, they managed to keep the portal open long enough for the group to jump back into the past and escaped the dystopian future.
When they made it back, the portal shattered and exploded, sending the fragments flying everywhere. When they looked around, they noticed that the most important people were missing.
"Where are the Forces?" Peter asks.
"Who's she?" Courtney asked as she looked at Mayday.
"What is she doing here?" Yolanda asked, pointing to Cindy B.
"Long story..." Scott was sorry to say.
