“When is he gonna be done?” asked Rocket. “Indeed,” said Emma. “Tony Stark only takes a few seconds to put his armor on, you know.” “Brilliance cannot be rushed,” said Doom, emerging from his bedroom in his backup suit of armor. “I believe you’ve used that line yourself, Ms. Frost.” Emma grumbled under her breath. “What’s the plan?” asked Longshot. “We should really call the Avengers,” said Jen. “That would be unwise,” said Doom. “Introducing the Avengers would escalate the conflict, increasing the risk of collateral damage. If they choose to introduce themselves, that is beyond our control, but we … Continue reading FANTASTIC FORCE #10

Sue’s cell phone rang. It was an unknown number. “Hello?” she said. “Hi. Sue?” said the breathless voice on the other end. “It’s Longshot.” “How did you get my number?” said Sue. “Lucky guess,” said Longshot. “I think the others are in trouble.” “The others?” said Sue. “Doom, Rocket, Jen, Jim, and Emma,” said Longshot. “I saw through Doom’s eyes again and they were all chained up, including Doom.” “Why did you call me?” said Sue. “Aren’t you pals with the X-Men?” “They… kinda stopped returning my calls,” said Longshot. “Asked them to help me get cats out of trees … Continue reading Fantastic Force #9

Castle Doom “So,” said Doom to the four superheroes facing him, “you journeyed to Latvia to tell me that someone impersonating me appeared, seemingly from nowhere, and took over the minds of an entire base of SHIELD agents?” “You sayin’ you don’t believe us?!” said Rocket. “Because I was there, and—“ “Calm yourself, Rocket,” said Doom. “I merely meant to express incredulity that you thought I was unaware of the situation. Such an event would never go beneath my notice.” “Do you have a plan to deal with this person?” said Jim. “I am formulating one,” said Doom. “I know … Continue reading Fantastic Force #8

Latveria, circa 2099 “Something is terribly wrong,” said Victor Von Doom to his minion Wire. “The timeline is disintegrating.” “What the hell does that mean?” said Wire. “It means, fool,” said Doom, “that the past has altered, and the present in which we live may not come to pass unless the past is corrected.” “Well…” said Wire, “…is that really so bad? 2099 is kinda rotten.” “And it could become worse if this flaw in the time stream is not corrected,” said Doom. “There are obstacles in this present, but the changing timestream is entirely unpredictable. There could be no … Continue reading FANTASTIC FORCE #7

Doom and Emma crept up Mount Wundagore. “Why do you carry that spear?” asked Doom. “It’s from a guard in Limbo, so presumably it’s good at hurting demons,” said Emma. “Which serves us both as an aid in getting up to the peak, and as a backup plan in case Chthon does rear his ugly head today.” “That circumstance will not arise,” said Doom, as Emma turned away some Darkholder guards with telepathy. “We have time enough to prevent that from occurring.” “Where’s Rocket, anyhow?” said Emma. Suddenly, a massive thud shook the mountain. Doom and Emma turned their heads … Continue reading FANTASTIC FORCE #6

FANTASTIC FORCE #5 Castle Doom, banquet hall “We’re not going to let you kill Longshot,” said Sue to Doom. “He’s an innocent, and there are other ways to prevent the sacrifice.” “You purport to stand in my way?” said Doom. “You have no replacement plan, and you lack the resources to prevent me from going through with mine. Forgive me if I fail to be intimidated.” “We’ll find a way,” said Jen. “We always do.” “Hear, hear,” said Jim. “Let’s get out of here, everyone,” said Sue, looking at Rocket and Emma. “It’s nice that you care about Blondie,” said … Continue reading Fantastic Force #5

“You said ‘we,’” said Sue. “Does that mean you’re coming with us this time?” “Given that the five of you completely failed to retrieve the dagger and allowed it to fall into the hands of an enemy,” said Doom, “it seems incumbent upon me to take matters into my own hands. I will bring the rest of you with me for tactical purposes, but every single move you make shall be according to my instructions. Have I been clear?” Ignoring the question, Jim asked “What about Longshot? We need all the luck we can get for this.” “He is a … Continue reading Fantastic Force #4

“Don’t panic, everyone,” said Sue, looking around at the strange and frightening surroundings. “Let’s just stop and take stock of the situation.” “Well, let’s see,” said Rocket. “We have an unconscious dying She-Hulk, a field technician in a dimension with no technology, a guy who shoots fire in a dimension full of fire, a lady who’s good at hiding, and a telepathic lady who gets overwhelmed talking to demons, who are probably the only things here! Note that none of these people have the power to travel across dimensions.” “Not what I was hoping for, Rocket,” said Sue. “Emma, doesn’t … Continue reading FANTASTIC FORCE #3

Jennifer Walters, Susan Storm-Richards, Jim Hammond, Emma Frost, Longshot, and Rocket Raccoon appeared in Castle Doom once again. Rather than a grim cell, this time they were seated in a grand dining room, with Doom himself at the head of the table. “I have decoded and analyzed the information regarding the lost Darkhold pages,” said Doom. “You’re welcome, by the way,” said Emma. Ignoring her, Doom continued. “I have tracked a component crucial to this prophecy’s fulfillment to a set of catacombs in Sokovia. You will be deployed immediately. Time is of the essence, as the Darkholders will no doubt … Continue reading FANTASTIC FORCE #2

Transia, 565 A.D. Tierney ran. It was dark out, and the demons could be lurking in any shadow. She held six pages in her hand, and she knew they had to burn. She came to a campsite with a fire, and, shoving aside two men warming their hands, threw the pages in. The demons fell upon the fire, and tore to shreds Tierney and the two campers. The pages turned to ash. Latveria, present day The room was dimly lit, with walls of stone. There was an orange button in the middle of the floor. Susan Storm-Richards looked around and … Continue reading FANTASTIC FORCE #1