Author's note: while I was hoping to save this twist for later, in order for some things to make sense in future, I need to give up the ghost now. This story takes place on Counter-Earth. For those who don't know, Counter-Earth is a second planet Earth in the Marvel universe created by the High Evolutionary to be a purer version of the original Earth. But, as in so many creation myths, an evil force (in the form of Man-Beast) steps in and corrupts it. Counter-Earth turns out to be a lot like the original, except that there are no superheroes. Dismayed, the High Evolutionary sends down Adam Warlock to straighten it out. There are however two major differences between our Earth and Counter-Earth; New-Men (sentient humanoid animals, also created by the High Evolutionary) coexist with humans. Of course my own personal touch is that Counter-Earth also has more advanced technology then our Earth.
Chapter 2
It took Rocky and Roll at least a night and a day to find their first ruin. Needless to say, Rocky was both excited and nervous; sure, he read all of Professor Caskett's books about spelunking and reaverbots, but none of them can prepare one for actually going out into the field. He also didn't get any time to test out his new digger suit beforehand. All he had to go on was some blueprints drawn up by his father, which Roll tried her best to interpret for him. Rocky prayed to Adam that this ruin would have little to no reaverbots in it, but enough Quantum Refractors to sustain him and his mother for at least a year, so he could come back home and properly learn how to use the suit.
"Don't worry Rocky, with this suit's helmet, I'll be in your ear the whole time. You'll be in and out in one piece or my name isn't Roll Caskett" she said trying to reassure her best friend. As they approached the ruin entrance, Rocky decided to ease himself into the situation by putting on his digger suit for the first time. Being made of adamantium and nanofiber, it was surprisingly light and comfortable. But he was still a little nervous as he entered the ruin, despite knowing that adamantium is one of the strongest metals known in existence. He grew up being taught that the reaverbots were created by Man Beast himself in an effort to destroy his nemesis Adam Warlock 200 years ago; thus, making them one of the few things Rocky was afraid of. Never-the-less, he pressed on through the long corridors, using the core reactor in his chest plate as a flashlight. Suddenly, he heard a noise coming from behind him. He knew immediately that it was a reaverbot, and spun around quickly to face his attacker.
"Don't panic Rocky" said Roll, sensing his fear. "Remember, you have photon repulsors in your palms. Just raise your open palm to the reaverbot when it comes at you and lightly press your hand against the trigger to fire." "Seems simple enough" thought Rocky, but he was still afraid of meeting his first reaverbot. Luckily it was just a Horokko, the most common and least intimidating kind of reaverbot. So Rocky gave a confident smile and blew the murderous machine away with a single blast. After that, Rocky proceeded much more boldly through the ruin until he came to an ancient door that Roll was certain contained a refractor crystal behind it. However, what caught Rocky's attention first was a small twinkling object at the base of the door. When he picked it up to get a better look at it, he discovered that it was a golden ring with a red gem in its center. While very beautiful, something about it gave off a don't put it on vibe. "I'm sure it belongs to someone who was here before me" he thought. "Well, bring it back to the flutter so Grandpa can look at it. It could be an ancient artifact worth a lot of money" said Roll excitedly. Rocky then tucked it away in a storage compartment in his suit, then proceeded to open the door in front of him. He was greatly pleased at how easy it was to lift the door up over his head; by far, the feature he was most excited to test out was the suit's enhanced physical strength. "So what's the verdict Rocky? Are you as strong as you hoped you would be?" asked Roll. "Oh yeah!" Said Rocky. "Now if this suit is able to fly too, then I'll be set," he added enthusiastically. "Now let's not get ahead of ourselves," said Roll. "Let's just grab the refractor crystal and get you out of there." Rocky agreed, and quickly made his way to the large crystal at the other end of the room. While not as big as Rocky would've liked, he knew it would still fetch a hefty price, and insure his mother wouldn't have to worry about bills for quite awhile. There were more horokkos on his way out, but Rocky easily dispatched them with his repulsors. He breathed a sigh of relief when he was back on the Flutter; little did he suspect that someone other than Roll was watching him.
Hawkeye and Black Widow were closing in on the ruin entrance at that very moment. They instantly detected that Rocky had found one of the Mandarin's rings. "No problem," said Black Widow, "we can easily overtake their ship and take the ring by force." "I don't know Natasha" said Hawkeye, "the master said he doesn't want us making too much noise until his grand reveal later. That's what the Bonne family is for. Let's just follow the boy, and then report back to the master so he can send in Bonne's to retrieve the ring." Black Widow would've much preferred the direct approach of attacking the Flutter, but she knew that Hawkeye was right. So she activated their ship's invisibility cloak, and the two agents stealthily pursued our hero.
Meanwhile, aboard the flutter. Professor Caskett was closely examining the ring Rocky had found. "It looks like you've found one of the ten Makluan rings from Ming dynasty China" said the professor, handing the ring to Roll for her to look at it. She tried it on, but the ring was too big for any of her fingers. "However, I can't be certain; ancient Chinese artifacts aren't my field of study. I did have one student who was better versed on the subject, but I haven't heard from him in over a decade." said Professor Caskett. "Who was he?" asked Rocky. The professor then proceeded to pull out an old photo featuring himself shaking hands with a young Asian man. "His name is Gene Wenwu; he was one of my brightest pupils, up there with the likes of Reed Richards, Adam Brashear, Bruce Banner, and Hank Pym. and he was especially interested in studying and eventually finding the Makluan rings. Went on to become a renowned archeologist. But like I said, he disappeared shortly after your father died. Nobody knows where he is, or if he's still alive." Roll could sense Rocky's disappointment, when suddenly an idea came into her head. "I know someone who might know more about that ring," she said. "Dr. McCoy who runs the local museum of art & science. We can go and see him after we cash in the refractor you found." Rocky smiled; he was much more interested in seeing Dr. McCoy than he was about the Makluan ring, so he eagerly awaited their arrival back home.
When they landed back on Kattelox island, their first stop was the mechanics shop originally opened by Rocky's parents. It was now run by Happy Hogan, a longtime friend of the Stark family, while Pepper worked as an aide to the mayor. He merrily greeted Rocky and Roll; genuinely surprised that they returned home so soon. "I thought you'd be out there exploring for weeks," he said. Rocky then explained to him how he found a Makluan ring, and they were going downtown to visit Dr. McCoy and his wife at the museum. "Well as long as you're heading that way, why don't you pay your mom a visit too," said Happy. "I'm sure she'll be delighted to see you back home already." Rocky agreed, and after saying "see you later," he and Roll made their way to city hall downtown.
Pepper had been working for Obadiah Stane since before he became mayor. She helped manage his campaign not only to support her family, but because she genuinely believed he was the best candidate for the job. As he and Roll approached city hall, Rocky noticed a brunette girl dressed in pink and black talking to three little robots. She was speaking loud enough for Rocky to overhear her, but he didn't like prying into other people's business, so he walked by without giving her a second thought. Since the refractor exchange building and the museum were in opposite directions, Roll suggested that after seeing his mother, she'd go to cash in the refractor crystal while Rocky would go the other way to see Dr. McCoy. Unaware of the imminent danger, Rocky agreed. "We can meet back up with Happy at my mom's shop," he added. Both knew city hall well enough to find the mayor's office. Pepper was indeed surprised and delighted to see her son home safe and sound. "You'll have to tell me all about your adventure when I get home from work, honey" she said. "And as always you're welcome to join us for dinner, Roll." "It's a date," Roll responded, and she quickly took off for the refractor exchange. Pepper wasn't offended by Roll's abrupt exit; she knew she was just eager to collect her first big payday. Rocky on the other hand was in no rush, he hugged his mother goodbye and casually strolled towards the main entrance.
No sooner had he left the building, Rocky saw the same girl from earlier being chased by a dog. He immediately recognized the dog; it was Paprika, the seeing eye-dog of Kattelox's district attorney Matt Murdock. He quickly ran after them, knowing Matt was no doubt looking for her. When he caught up with Paprika, she had chased the poor girl up a streetlight. "Hey Paprika!" said Rocky, getting her attention. "You know better than to treat girls that way. And why did you run away from your master Mr. Murdock? He's probably worried sick." Paprika sat down sheepishly, but Rocky knelt down and patted her to show he wasn't angry with her. Now that the situation was under his control, Rocky asked the girl if she was okay. Tron gently slid back down the streetlight; overcome with a strange new feeling. Perhaps because she hadn't known many boys her own age, or maybe because this particular boy had just saved her; thus proving he was brave yet kind. Whatever it was, she stared at him for a solid minute. Then suddenly, as if regaining her senses, went from puppy eyes to stern in a second. "Just mind your own business!" she said defensively, and sprinted away before Rocky could say another word. "That was weird" he thought to himself. But once again he shrugged it off and returned Paprika to her blind master.
Once that matter was resolved, he could finally go to the museum of art and science like he wanted. He loved going there ever since he was little, so he would take any reason to go even if it was a serious one like today. He was greeted not by Dr. McCoy himself, but by his wife Carly. She was wearing her usual purple beret and matching purple crop top, along with blue jeans and open-toed sandals. "Well hello Rocky, what brings you here today?" she said cheerfully. "I'm here to see your husband," he answered, "I have something to show him." Before she could say "he's currently guiding a field trip," Dr. Henry McCoy appeared around the corner leading several little children and adults.
He was by far one of the most unique residents of Kattelox island; largely due to being a newman married to a human woman. But even among newmans he was distinct. He didn't resemble one specific animal like newmans normally do; instead, he was sort of a fusion between a gorilla and a bear. When Rocky first met him at age five on a school field trip, he was frightened by his beastly appearance, but by the end of that day, he saw the doctor for who he really was; a kind, sophisticated, and knowledgeable man with a genuine passion for art, science, and history. He confirmed that Rocky had indeed found one of the ten Makluan rings. "More specifically, you've found the Flame blast ring" said the doctor, looking through one of his many reference books. "According to ancient chineses lore, it allowed the wearer to emit streams of liquid fire." This information made Rocky grateful that he didn't try it on himself, he couldn't bear the thought of accidentally hurting anyone especially Roll. "So does each ring possess its own unique power?" He asked. "Supposedly" said Dr. McCoy. "And what happens if someone wears all ten rings at once?" Rocky asked suddenly. Dr. McCoy turned a few pages until he found one with an illustration of a tall green man. "Then they transform into the Mandarin," said Dr. McCoy pointing at the picture. "A ruthless and powerful wizard who ruled over China with an iron fist." Now Rocky dreaded the thought of all ten rings falling into the wrong hands. But Dr. McCoy reassured him that the rings were most likely a status symbol worn by an emperor and didn't possess any real power. Rocky wasn't so sure, especially remembering the creepy vibe he got when he first found it.
Suddenly there came a great rumbling noise from outside. Both Rocky and Dr. McCoy ran to the front door to investigate. Three Blumebear tanks were standing outside the museum; one blue, one yellow, and one magenta. "This is the Bonne pirates" said the child-like voice coming from the yellow one. "Surrender the Makluan ring or we'll destroy this building." "I thought the Bonnes had been put away for good," said Carly, hiding behind her husband. "What I wonder is why, after escaping, would they reveal themselves so soon? Usually, escapees lay low for a while before returning to crime," said Dr. McCoy. Rocky quickly theorized that someone else had helped the Bonne pirates escape for the sole purpose of stealing these rings. Which meant whoever wanted them was up to no good, regardless of whether or not the rings had power. "I can't let the pirates get this ring no matter what!" Rocky said to himself. "Take everyone out the back exit Dr. McCoy and go to the police, I'll hold off the pirates until they arrive." Carly didn't want to leave Rocky to deal with the pirates alone, but Dr. McCoy knew him well enough to know he already had a battle strategy. So he took his wife and guided the museum patrons to the emergency exit.
Rocky did indeed have a plan to defeat the Blumebear tanks and keep property damage to a minimum. So he put on his helmet and stepped outside to face pirates.
Author's note: In case it wasn't clear, I gave the museum curator from the first game a name, and made her the wife of Dr. Henry McCoy (a.k.a. the Beast from X-men). Stay tuned for more name drops of mine and hopefully your favorite Marvel characters.