Misfitverse: The Korvac Saga
Disclaimer: "Where does she go on her own to look at stuff?" - Kevin Whately as Inspector Lewis, Lewis
Chapter 31: A Force to Reckon With, Part 8!
The planet Klattu
FWASH!
Randall Pierce, the futuristic Iron Man, appeared in a flash of light in the room where the body of Mainframe's former identity, the Vision, once resided. He raced towards the downed Jetstream, carrying a red box. He noticed the Lost Mutants and the Avengers (Hercules had stayed out of sight because he had learned that one of the Lost Mutants was from Nova Roma, and he didn't want to tell of her of his failure to save the kingdom) had surrounded the scene.
"Excuse me! Excuse me!" The 31st Century Iron Man called out as he rushed in, carrying a medi-kit. "Get out of the way! Hot soup, coming through!" He managed to get through the throng of heroes and work on Jetstream. "Jocasta, help me!"
"You got it, Iron Man!" Jocasta nodded, rushing towards the injured young mutant, examining his wound. The two Avengers immediately raced to work, seeing what they could do to save the young mutant cyborg.
"Will...will he be alright...?" Jennifer mumbled to herself, looking nervously at Commander America. The 31st Century super-soldier tried to shoot the blonde a reassuring smile.
"Have some faith, Miss Stavros." Commander America attempted to reassure her. "Iron Man and Jocasta know their way around anything organic and mechanical. I'm sure they can help your friend." Meanwhile, Sam was rubbing his temples in frustration and panic.
No no no no no no... Sam groaned. This wasn't supposed to happen. This was not supposed to happen! If Jetstream checks out again, things'll get royally screwed up! He's part of the prophecy! He can't die here! He looked at Iron Man and Jocasta, who were working. Come on, you two. Fix him up. Please fix him up. All of reality is counting you. Jhen noticed Sam's state.
"Are you alright?" The green-skinned clone whispered to Sam in concern. The former New Mutant sighed.
"I can't believe this happened again." Sam sighed. "I couldn't stop Fitzroy from absorbing his life force first time around, and now this." He shook his head. "I can't believe I failed him again." Jhen put her hand on his shoulder in a gesture of comfort.
"It wasn't your fault, Sam." Jhen tried to reassure. "There was so much chaos going on. It was hard to keep track of everything." The blond immortal sighed.
"I thought I'd be used to this, Jhen." Sam admitted. "I have outlived and seen so many people die so many times that..." He shook his head. "I can't believe I'm watching him go through this again." Jhen sighed.
"Sam, you have to have a little faith." The green powerhouse tried to perk Sam up with a smile. Instead, the immortal mutant rubbed his temples.
"It's the Xavier Massacre all over again." The former Cannonball groaned. Jhen frowned at the legendary hero.
"Sam, it's not so bad. Randy and Jo will save him." The She-Hulk clone countered. "They're great at what they do. And it's not like the Massacre. The other kids are just fine, and they'll save Haroun." Sam was about to counter again, when the Armored Avenger looked up.
"We got him stabilized, but we're going to need some help to get him fixed up." He announced.
Then allow me to aid you all. Mainframe insisted. Think of it as my way of thanking him for aiding me.
"Come on, kids." Chameleon Girl ushered the Lost Mutants outside. "Let's let them work."
"Geez, the poor bastard." Ray muttered to himself, shooting a quick glance at the downed cyborg, as Iron Man and Jocasta worked to save him. He noticed Mainframe's drones also swarming the two heroes, obviously sent by Mainframe to aid in saving the young cyborg mutant. "First, becoming a robot man. Second, getting your brain screwed with. Third, getting killed and ressurected in the future, and now this. God, it's like he's a magnet for really bad stuff."
"You forgot discovering the Hellfire Club brainwashed him and most of us." Marie added, trying not to shed tears.
"Right, yeah." Ray nodded quietly.
"Times like this, I wish I could grab me a drink." Jennifer sighed to herself, putting an arm over Marie in a comforting gesture. Amara stayed silent. The princess just did not know what to think. All her memories of the Hellions showed them as being loyal soldiers of the Hellfire Club, and all the bad things they had done in the past. She just could not quite completely understand how these people she had met: Haroun, Marie, and Jennifer, could be those same people. Danielle looked numb. Her face was paled, and she just couldn't bring herself to glance at the fallen cyborg.
"What have I done?"
Klattu, some time later
"Oh, Goddess...Oh, Goddess..." An almost in tears Marie-Ange Colbert mumbled to herself repeatedly. She was leaning against Jennifer Stavros, her fellow ex-Hellion. The Lost Mutants and the Avengers were sitting and standing around in a waiting room. They were awaiting news regarding the condition of one of the Lost Mutants: Haroun ibn Sallah al-Rashid, once known as the Hellion Jetstream. During the battle to save Mainframe, the master computer controlling the planet Klattu, Haroun suffered some serious damage. His arms were turned to gold by the substance changing mercenary known as Interface, and then he took a hit in the side with a disintegrator beam, nearly causing mortal injuries. In the next room, Jocasta, Iron Man, and Mainframe were doing what they could to save the Lost Mutant.
"Hey, don'tcha worry, Red." Jennifer tried to reassure her teammate. "This is the future. They got all kinds of future stuff. I'm sure they can fix him up real good." Amara opened her mouth, but found herself being glared at by Ray and Doug.
"Don't, Amara. Just don't." Doug whispered harshly.
"Yeah, 'Mara. Just let it go." Ray sighed. Amara briefly scowled at her two teammates, but decided to agree with them and keep quiet.
"What the hell is taking them so long?" Harry complained.
"Dude, seriously. Bring a game or something with you." Kid Razor sighed, holding up a iPhone-esque device, the screen revealing she was playing a game. "The Kid of Rock thinks you really need to take the stick out of yer butt, Burn Boy."
"They're working on saving a man's life, Torch." Commander America explained sternly. "I suggest you just be patient."
"What do you care, anyway?" Sonic Blue frowned at the fire-powered hero. "You hate the Lost Mutants."
"Yeah, pal." Ray added with a snort. "I thought you'd be happy to see one of us get trashed and possibly killed again. Teach us 21st Century fear-filled cavemen a lesson."
"I don't owe you anything, punk." Harry scowled. Meanwhile, Danielle Moonstar had stood just outside the room by herself. Her head was down, and she rubbed her temples. The young Cheyenne sighed.
"Spirits, I really had screwed up." She sighed to herself. "This was my fault. Haroun is in that state because of me."
"It wasn't your fault." Danielle looked up and saw Commander America walking up to her. Dani sighed at the futuristic legacy of Captain America.
"I should've been more careful." Danielle sighed. "I should've watched my back better. If I had, then this wouldn't have happened to Haroun."
"Miss Moonstar, I understand where you are coming from." The super-soldier reassured, sitting down next to her. "I've been in some tough fights in my time, and in the costume business, things can get chaotic. It can be difficult keeping track of everything that goes on in a fight."
"I ended up becoming leader of this bunch." Danielle countered. "It became my responsibility to keep the others safe. And I failed miserably."
"I can understand that." Commander America nodded. "I'm a leader myself. So is Sam. We can both understand the burdens of leadership."
"I should've watched my back better." Dani groaned. "I can't stop thinking about Haroun, what he is suffering through because of my own stupidity."
"I know where you're coming from." The Commander nodded in understanding. "I've been in some nasty battles myself. They can get very chaotic. It can be hard to keep track of everything that is going on. Trust me, it can be quite difficult."
"I'm the one who ended up being the leader of the Lost Mutants, Commander." Dani sighed, placing her face in her hands. "Obviously, I wasn't the one for the job."
"Let me tell you a little story." Commander America looked at the young Cheyenne. "One time, the Avengers had to take down a cell of the Dark Circle."
"The Dark Circle?" Danielle blinked.
"A terrorist organization." The Commander explained. "Anyway, me and the rest of the team were after them because they were after an experimental device. I admit, I don't quite exactly remember what it was, but it was an important device. Anyway, I was in the same situation you were in. During the mission, the Tachyon Torch got badly injured."
"What'd you do?" Danielle blinked. The Commander smiled.
"I had faith." He explained. "I knew the Torch was too ornery to die on us. I also had faith in Iron Man and Jocasta's abilities to fix him up."
"So, you're saying..."
"Have a little faith, Danielle." The future Cap smiled. "We all make mistakes. Haroun did what he did because he didn't want to see you hurt. His actions showed he was willing to give his life to save yours. You have to be quite a leader to inspire such faith. He had faith in you." Danielle frowned slightly.
"...you're not very good at pep talks, are you?"
"Not the best, I'm afraid." The Commander admitted with a chuckle. "The original Captain America could inspire with his words, though." Danielle smiled a little.
"Thanks, anyway."
"No problem." Commander America smiled. A door hissed open and Jocasta walked in. The Lost Mutants raced up.
"Is he alright?" Marie wondered. Jocasta nodded.
"We managed to get him into a regenerative tank, so he'll live. But there is a problem."
"What kind of problem?" Dani wondered.
"His cybernetics. What's left of them. They're ancient. We can't do anything with them."
"Ancient?" Jennifer blinked in disbelief. "Those cybernetics of his were top of the line."
"Emphasis on were." Doug reminded. "We're in the far future now. Which means..."
"Jetstream's robot parts are now just shiny junk." Ray realized with a frown.
"Only thing we can do is replace them." Jocasta explained. Sam frowned deeply.
Great, just great. If we do that, then Haroun can't go back to the 21st Century. The immortal mutant mentally sighed. But there's no other option, is there? He can't get replacements for his regular cybernetics here, and 31st Century cybernetics will make him much more powerful. And he'll need that power to face that great evil he and the others are prophesized to face. He let out a breath.
"Oh, God..." Ray winced. "I've seen this Treehouse of Horror episode."
"Treehouse of Horror?" Harry blinked. "Is that some ancient movie?"
"The Simpsons, flamebrain..." Roberto groaned. "It was the name for their Halloween-themed episodes."
"I saw the one with Homer traveling through time with a toaster." Ray explained. "He flew into a rage while in the prehistoric era and killed a bunch of dinosaurs. He ended up altering the future."
"Kinda like when Marty McFly saved his dad from being hit by a car in Back to the Future." Roberto added, getting what the young electrokinetic was saying. "He also ended up altering the future. He had to find a different way to get his parents together, which restored things, but still caused changes."
"That's..." Doug winced at the examples of altering the timestream. "...are not really good examples."
"What the hell are you two ranting about?" Jennifer blinked.
"What those two are trying to say, albeit using completely wrong examples is..." Doug looked at the blonde bombshell Hellion. "If he gets the cybernetic upgrades...he can't go back to the 21st Century with the rest of us."
"I can't, either." Ray reminded, tapping his temple. "I got a new power, remember?" Sam glanced sadly at the former Morlock briefly.
"Doesn't that bother you?" Amara frowned. "You can't come back home with us."
"Yeah, a little bit, to be honest." Ray admitted. "I mean, yeah, I won't be able to see the rest of the X-Men again...but it's not so bad." He smiled slightly. "At least we know all the fighting we did wasn't all for nothing. And the world in this century seems really cool. I'd love to explore it."
"There is some really cool stuff here." Jhen smiled.
"I envy you, monsieur Crisp." Marie looked at the electrokinetic. "At least you will be missed. We won't." Sam's frown deepened.
"Uhm..." Jocasta piped up. "Forgive me for interrupting, but...what would you like us to do to aid Haroun?"
"I say we don't do anything." Amara scowled. "We can't trust him." The other Lost Mutants groaned.
"For God's sake, Amara..." Ray groaned. "Don't you remember what Dead Girl said? The Hellions aren't the real bad guys. They never were."
"They were victims of the Hellfire Club, too." Roberto added with a nod.
"She said her name was Ember McLain." Amara reminded. "And you know what she tried to do to us at that concert a thousand years ago?"
"Concert?" Chameleon Girl mouthed to Jocasta. The nanotech woman only shrugged.
"I'm still wrapping my head around the fact that Ember McLain, the ghost rocker, and Dead Girl, the X-Men's first zombie member, were one and the same person."
"It makes sense." Doug admitted. "Ember's the soul, Dead Girl's the body."
"They're two halves of the same whole." Sam summed it up.
"You trust her?" Amara asked.
"Do you trust me?" Sam countered. Amara nodded. "Then trust me when I tell you this: Ember is one of the good guys. Been that way since her body and soul re-merged. If she says the Hellions had their heads screwed with by the Hellfire Club, then it happened."
"Let it go, Amara." Doug sighed.
"How do you think we're feeling, Princess?" Jennifer scowled. "And getting back to subject, what should we do about Haroun?"
"I think it really should be his decision." Sam suggested sagely. "What does Haroun want?" Iron Man appeared behind Jocasta.
"He wants to be upgraded." The Armored Avenger announced. "He had a talk with Mainframe...and he decided he wants to make the upgrade. He also asked for some new tricks."
"He does realize if he does this, he's stuck here." Sam frowned. Iron Man nodded.
"He does. But he's willing to make the sacrifice. Besides, it's really a no-brainer for him. He's stuck in that tank otherwise. And his mutation was imperfect, so if we heal his organics, this'll just happen again."
"Yeah, the cybernetics were to allow Haroun to handle his mutation." Jennifer remembered. "He nearly killed himself when he flew."
Some time later
The rest of the Lost Mutants were on pins-and-needles. Soon enough, Jocasta and Iron Man emerged into the room, a smile on the nanobot hive woman's face, and Iron Man's posture indicating success.
"Everyone, I'd like to introduce you to Haroun ibn Sallah al-Rashid 2.0!" Jocasta grinned, making a 'ta-da!' pose. The other Lost Mutants got up, a mixture of worry and excitement on their faces. Haroun slowly walked towards them, clad in a new costume: A green bodysuit with an emblem of a red diamond on the chest, and yellow on the chest and shoulders. He also had on yellow boots. His green cowl revealed his short curly hair. The eyepieces of the cowl were red.
"Lookin' good, man!" Jennifer grinned, giving the thumbs up.
"Wow..." Danielle mumbled in amazement.
"Incredible..." Marie gasped.
"Nice to see you up and about, man." Ray smiled.
"It is good to be out of that tank." Haroun nodded. "I feel like a new man." Danielle walked up to Haroun.
"Haroun, I'm so sorry that this happened." She apologized sincerely. "I feel terrible."
"I've been through this once before, Danielle. It was nothing new to me." Haroun reassured. "There is nothing to apologize for." He smiled warmly and hugged Danielle. "I would do the same thing for any of my teammates. And we must learn to work together if we are to stand a chance against this enemy we are prophecized to face."
"He does have a point, 'Mara." Doug remarked to Amara.
"What's with the new threads?" Roberto asked.
"Haroun and Mainframe requested them." Jocasta smiled proudly.
"Yes." A smiling Haroun nodded. "Jetsream is dead. From now on, men shall know me as...the Vision!" His eyes started to glow a bright red.
Well, well, well! Looks like Jetstream has been truly reborn! What insanity will happen next? Can our heroes beat the enemy? What new tricks does Haroun have? Find out in the next chapter! Suggestions needed badly!