Royal Pain
Disclaimer: All familiar characters belong to Marvel or Sunbow Entertainment. I own Farrah/Persiana and Leon/Crisis.
Chapter 8: A Bell Rung
The basement of the West Coast Avengers compound was converted into a wedding chapel, complete with aisles and flowers and various decorations. Falcon was setting up the video camera as he looked at his teammate Crisis,
"Tell me again why this is such a good idea?"
Leon explained,
"It's simple. Hercules and Carol will get married, forcing Namor to come after them."
The prince of Wakanda asked,
"And what is to stop Namor from tearing them apart?"
The red-eyed teen explained,
"Easy. He probably figures on watching this broadcast, so, while he's off trying to stop this wedding, Wonder Man and Vision will go down to the depths and find Quicksilver and Beachhead."
Crystal asked,
"Would it not be easier if we called G.I. Joe and let them handle this?"
Leon said,
"It involves us, or, more specifically, Miss Marvel. Besides…"
He had a grin on his face,
"I've always wanted to tape a wedding."
Farrah walked in with a clipboard,
"Let's see; the color of those drapes has to go, and the benches…"
She reared her claws and scratched one right through, collapsing in a heap of splinters. The white-haired acrobat shook her head,
"They are not scratch resistant."
Persiana looked up,
"Did we use particle board for this crap? I want nothing less than solid oak for my wedding."
Carol walked in, grumbling,
"I don't want to do this! It's not right! I should be marrying you, Leon!"
Farrah snarled,
"Not going to happen, since he's marrying ME!"
Leon got in-between them,
"Girls, that's enough!"
He calmly explained,
"Carol, it has to be with Hercules. Imagine the jealous rage that'll happen if Namor realizes he got dumped so you could be with a god."
Hercules waltzed in, wearing a sleeveless tuxedo and carrying his mace,
"Hah! Never fret, fair Carol! The Lion of Olympus shall protect you!"
Carol then looked at the long-haired Olympian god of Strength and groaned,
"This is going to be the worse day of my life."
Farrah held up a camera,
"And I'll be here to record every second of it. Just think of the hits I'll get when this tape goes viral."
Carol clenched her fists,
"I'll show you a hit, you walking flea circus!"
Leon restrained his blonde teammate and said,
"Carol, no. We can't risk you getting a black-eye right now."
Carol knew Leon was right, but glared at her rival,
"When this is over, hairball, I'm going to wear you like a fur coat."
Farrah glared back,
"Try it, Barbie."
T'challa shook his head,
"Why do I have the feeling that this will end in anything but a good way?"
Meanwhile…
Namor was sitting on his throne, contemplating. Quicksilver and Beachhead were tied up and at the mercy of the ruler of Atlantis. The Sub-mariner checked the time,
"Ten more minutes, and then, after that, I kill those two."
Quicksilver had a panicked look in his eyes as he struggled to get out of the ropes. Namor looked down at the reflecting pool his advisor set up and was stunned at what he saw.
His beloved Carol, marrying someone else.
An intense jealousy formed inside the prince's mind and he shot out of the palace, through the ceiling, flooding the inner chamber. He roared with such intensity in the water that, when he surfaced, his roar echoed for miles around. Without thinking, the maddened and jealous prince tore through the skies to the compound.
Under the water, Wonder Man and Vision were swimming as fast as they could. The communications devices both Quicksilver and Beachhead had made them easy to pick up the signal.
Back to the West Coast Avengers…
A hologram of a preacher began reading,
"And, for any one that has an objection as to why these two should not be married, let them speak now, or forever hold their peace."
A noticeable rumble was heard and Namor roared,
"WHERE IS HE? WHERE IS THE SURFACE DWELLER THAT DARES TO TAKE WHAT IS MINE?!"
Farrah called out,
"Right there, Subby!"
Namor heard that and through the floor into the Playroom. His eyes were brimming with rage as he saw the wedding in progress. Namor snarled,
"How dare you? What gives you the right to do this to the prince of Atlantis?"
Farrah grinned,
"Easy. You'll never be half the man Herc is. Why should Barbie have you when her kids with Herc over there can be gods?"
Leon rubbed the bridge of his nose,
"I think this plan is working better than I thought."
Hercules grinned,
"Stupid mortal. I am the great Hercules, the-!"
Namor did not want to hear any more and, flying in the air, landed a powerful blow against the son of Zeus. It was at that moment the other West Coast Avengers jumped Namor and tried to hold him off long enough to ensure Quicksilver's and Beachhead's safety.
Back on Atlantis…
The water trail was still fresh as both the ionic Avenger and the android Avenger found the palace. People were running around, trying to plug up the hole that was made during Namor's untimely exit. Wonder Man said,
"Vision, have you found them?"
Vision answered,
"Atlantian readings are similar to human readings, but there are stark differences. I am detecting a human signature and mutant signature near the palace throne room."
The two of them made their way to the throne room, knocking out several of the guards that attempted to stop them. Vision phased through the walls as Wonder Man did his best to restrain the guards.
Once they got to the throne room, Beachhead shouted,
"It's about time someone helped us! Let us out!"
Simon shook his head,
"You don't seem very grateful."
Quicksilver pleaded,
"We are! We are! Just get us out of here! This salt water is ruining my hair!"
As they became freed, a mist enveloped the room and soon, a sinister voice cackled maniacally,
"You mortals have ruined everything I had planned!"
Simon shook his head,
"I know that voice."
The mist cleared and there stood Loki, the god of Trickery. And, he had a magical blast ready to go…
Next Chapter:
Two great battles: The West Coast Avengers vs. Namor and Loki! Stay tuned, fellow readers!