SIBLING RIVALRY

By Steve Crosby

The calm blue water of the Pacific flashed peacefully below the Avengers Quinjet. It flew towards a man-made island on the horizon, the team of Avengers assembled inside. Youngest member Silverclaw was at the controls, under the instruction of Wonder Man. Deeper inside the cabin, Chairperson Quicksilver was in a heated debate with teammates She-Hulk, Darkstar, Scarlet Witch and Hank Pym.

“We should have returned to Demonicus’ island immediately!”

She-Hulk, currently in her non-powered identity of Jennifer Walters, cleared her throat. “Ideally, yes. But at the time, we had all agreed that restoring the Avengers’ United Nations status had priority. And once we’d done that, we were bound from acting until the U.N. had decided as to the island’s status.”

“Which still hasn’t been determined,” Scarlet Witch said.

“At least we’ve been granted permission to investigate the island and confiscate any and all dangerous technology,” said Hank. “Being part of authority means we have to abide by it, Quicksilver.”

“There’s no telling what’s been lost,” Quicksilver said. “Or taken,” he added, with eyes on Darkstar.

“You refer to the claims other Pacific nations have made to the island. Including Russia.”

“They don’t even trust us to go there alone. As if I cared about American interests!”

Darkstar met Quicksilver’s gaze. “This is as much an insult to me. I should be adequate as Russia’s representative.”

“Umm.” Silverclaw was trying to run her eyes over the control console while also keeping them on the windshield. “We’re supposed to be making contact with them before arrival. We’re almost there. I’m scanning the frequencies, but I don’t…”

“It’s all right. I’ll check.” Wonder Man put on the headset and turned his hand over the dial. “Hello? Anybody? This is the Avengers, please respond.” He frowned and finally shook his head. “Nobody is responding on any channels.”

“Fly in low,” Hank suggested to Silverclaw. “More than likely, this is international non-cooperation. Or it could be something worth being careful over.”

“Or the reports that Demonicus fled were mistaken and we’ll have to deal with him over again,” said Quicksilver.

She-Hulk couldn’t suppress a laugh. “Demonicus left weeks ago when all his lackeys jumped ship. He was last noticed in Australia failing to get a job with AIM.”

“We still need to be cautious,” Scarlet Witch said. “A rapid scout of the island once we’ve landed would avoid any surprises.”

“I’m best suited for that,” said Quicksilver. Then to Silverclaw said, “Take us down near the water, I’ll run a spiral. With any luck there will be nothing and we can leave.”

As the Quinjet began to land, Hank Pym tried to say, “Well, we have to make sure nobody-” The second the Quinjet was on solid ground and the door opened, Quicksilver was out and away. “-pillaged the island before we arrived. I hate when he does that.”

Scarlet Witch spoke in her brother’s defense. “And he hates waiting around while people talk in slow-motion. Spend a day in line at Starbuck’s and you’ll begin to understand.” She exited the Quinjet at the head of the five remaining Avengers. “When he reports back we’ll run a more thorough search. Aerial sweep by Wonder Man and Darkstar, Silverclaw tracking scents, and Hank’s equipment to track enemies.”

“All pending Quicksilver’s approval when he returns,” said Wonder Man. “Wanda, we all know you should-”

“These are just suggestions. I shouldn’t be in charge of anything.”

“This isn’t the place to discuss a coup,” said Darkstar. She turned on Hank. “Nor to accuse fellow heroes – including my countrymen – of theft!”

She-Hulk was quick to speak. “We aren’t making any judgments. They may be delayed, or arrived into an ambush.”

“Speaking of delay…” Silverclaw had shifted into a large snake-like form with her belly pressed against the ground. “Quicksilver should have returned by now. I can’t hear his movements across the island.”

The eyes of Scarlet Witch went dark. “Then let’s find him.”

Quicksilver had run straight for the island’s center, catching the attention of one who quickly reported his presence. By this time Quicksilver had turned on his heel and rapidly ran in ever-expanding circles. He used the few buildings as boundaries, giving a cursory search to buildings in one circle before moving on to the next. This too was noticed, and the plan was made.

It was a small building when Quicksilver entered it, a shack meant to store fuel and other supplies. Once inside, Quicksilver discovered a massive open field that spread as far as the eye could see. Trying to turn around, Quicksilver’s vision blurred with a mild vertigo, and found himself completely surrounded by an empty field.

No door. No sense of where a door could have been.

Outside, two individuals approached the small shack. A man and woman, they both had blond hair but there the similarities ended. The man was large, his hair close cropped except for the back which was tied in a ponytail, with the Soviet symbol of a crossed hammer and sickle on his blue uniform’s chest. The woman was petite, her platinum blonde hair almost as large as she is, clad in a tight purple bodysuit with a V neckline down to her navel. Both spoke in their native Russian as they observed Quicksilver trying to feel around the inside of the shack.

“What a shame he can’t feel anything,” Fantasma said. Sparkling lights were popping from her fingers like bubbles. “I honestly wish I could take all the credit.”

“Remember Fantasma that all tasks are equally important.” Vanguard’s hammer and sickle were crossed in front of him, both glowing faintly. “If not for you illusion he would quickly realize what I was doing.”

Going by what he could see and feel, Quicksilver decided that he’d somehow been teleported off Demonica. Immediately he began to run.

Vanguard smiled. “And you were worried he would try to radio his teammates. I know this man’s impatience.”

In seconds Quicksilver had bounced from wall-to-wall in the shack dozens of times at incredible speed. He felt nothing. The fragile structure did not react once to the force of multiple impacts. All due to Vanguard.

“That’s enough. We aren’t out to kill.”

Vanguard uncrossed his weapons. All the kinetic force he’d negated shot through Quicksilver in his instant. Bones broke. His brain bounced around in his skull. Wood fragments became imbedded in his skin as the shed collapsed on top of the Avengers chairperson.

Delicately, Fantasma approached the fallen structure and knelt beside a bloody arm that was sticking out. Her fingers pressed against the wrist.

“Still some life. I’m impressed at his resilience.”

Vanguard turned as he said, “We mutants are quite hard to kill.”

A great portion of the Demonica island was bare rock and man-made structures, but some animal and plant life existed. Hank Pym was weaving between blades of tall grass, astride a large yellowjacket. He was wearing the Ant-Man helmet and using it to communicate with his fellow Avengers.

“Okay, what do we know about these As-” Hank Pym stopped himself. “This collection of heroes. Starting with what they call themselves.”

“They don’t call themselves anything,” Darkstar said, using her Avengers membership card as a two-way radio. She was flying low over the island, sheathed in an aura of Darkforce that made her stand out in the bright sunlight. “The Chinese, Japanese and Russian governments each maintain their own official super-teams. Occasionally they’ll join forces, but the members all hold their own nation’s interests first.”

“So there could be three other teams on this island?” asked Wonder Man. He was higher up than Darkstar, flying in an erratic manner.

“I doubt each nation would commit their full resources.” She-Hulk was approaching a collection of large stone buildings, formerly barracks for Doctor Demonicus’ human workforce. “But none would send fewer than the others. Two or three from each?”

“I suspect two, so they can play the weaker party against us.” Darkstar was zooming towards the large citadel on the island’s center. She passed over a destroyed shed, as unseen as Fantasma directly beneath her. “The individuals I can only guess at, though a man-child from Japan can make the earth shake.”

“Destroying this island has some appeal,” said Scarlet Witch. She was closely following Silverclaw, who was flying low to the ground on moth wings. The two were skirting the island’s edge, moving towards a massive cliff’s edge with a series of caves. “Before any decisions though we need to find Quicksilver. What’s the word on his card Hank?”

Pym’s own membership card was beeping so rapidly it was almost one continuous sound. He landed the yellowjacket on a flower petal and hopped off. From there to the ground was the equivalent of a two-story jump, but Pym landed softly next to a massive slab that was Quicksilver’s membership card. It was cracked and chipped at the edges, spotted with large dark puddles.

“I found it.” He noted the tall, unbroken blades of grass all around him. “Quicksilver’s not here and there’s no sign of a struggle. No sign, besides the card, that anyone’s even been here. But judging by the card…Quicksilver went down hard.”

Scarlet Witch closed her eyes and sighed. A short distance ahead, Silverclaw was carefully approaching a jagged outcropping. Suddenly she whipped her head around and hissed.

“High on the left!”

As quick as a flash, Scarlet Witch threw a hex bolt directly at the cliff face. It struck and probability shifted. The million-to-one chance of a sudden rockslide happened, collapsing several caves and kicking up a wall of dust.

“Silverclaw, if I just killed somebody…”

“If I recalled the right file he’s fine. But we may have to run.”

There was an explosion of rock, this time by unnatural means. A tall, powerfully built Chinaman strode out of the dust. His uniform was black and red, with gold stars on his chest in the pattern of the Chinese flag. Like the uniform, his skin was unmarred.

His eyes seemed to pierce Silverclaw’s soul. “Your senses are impressive.”

“Where’s my brother, Collective Man?” Scarlet Witch stood her ground, her hands raised toward the man with the collective strength of all China’s people.

“You’ll join him soon.” With a powerful push of his legs, Collective Man leapt at the two women. “There is nowhere you can run from us!”

“I’m on my way Wanda!” said Wonder Man. He streaked through the air as quickly as he could, flying toward the high cliff in the distance. Unfortunately, what he saw and what was real were very different. Unbeknownst to Wonder Man, the ground was rushing up to meet him, and in the way was She-Hulk.

“Wonder Man, what are you-aagh!”

He smashed into She-Hulk at high speed, driving them both deep into the ground. Unprepared for the impact, Wonder Man took as much of the brunt as his teammate. He then took more, for on reflex She-Hulk slammed her fist against his face.

The impact shattered his red sunglasses, but that had nothing to do with Wonder Man’s sudden blindness. He knew only that his sight had left him, and that somebody had just punched him in the face. So Wonder Man did what any man would do, and smashed his fist against the side of She-Hulk’s head.

As she watched the two Avengers pummel each other from a distance, Fantasma laughed. She failed to notice the scurrying ants until they were on her skin. Then her laughter became screaming.

Miles away, Hank Pym was back on his yellowjacket and looking through its eyes as well as a thousand ants’ eyes. “I’ve read about you Fantasma. Your powers affect the senses, but you have to target your victims specifically. That isn’t much good when somebody can access the senses of a hive!”

Distracted by the ants, Fantasma’s concentration wavered and she was in full view of Darkstar. The blonde Avenger struck her fellow Russian with a blast of Darkforce and said, “Not only that Hank, you have demonstrated to her the disadvantage of a plunging neckline.”

Pym had no chance to give a response. A shadow passed over him, and everything went dark when his equipment sparked. “Aahh!” he cried, ripping the useless helmet from his head, and felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end. No longer under his control, the yellowjacket was flying erratically, and Pym had no choice but to jump clear.

“You will not escape me that easily!” A black gloved hand closed over the diminutive Pym. Through the fingers, he saw that his attacker was a Japanese man in a black and gold bodysuit. “I am Otomo, and without your machines you are only a little man!”

Collective Man’s wild swing found only empty air. In form reminiscent of a monkey, Silverclaw was hopping around him in a virtual blur. The Chinese hero may have been able to call on the strength of a billion men, but not their speed. But he did have that strength, and all Silverclaw’s numerous blows were ineffective.

Poised on a jutting rock that overlooked the scene, Scarlet Witch threw hex after hex with intense concentration. Collective Man’s power wasn’t his own. He had a connection with the people of China, but it was ill-defined and something she couldn’t understand. Breaking a connection you couldn’t see was next to impossible, even with a power that dealt in the impossible.

“Surrender and leave here now!” Collective Man said. He dealt Silverclaw a glancing blow that made her hiss in pain. “I would rather see this island and all on it destroyed than in the hands of Americans!”

“Neither of us is American!” Silverclaw’s hiss was actually a sharp intake of fluid, and she spat green fluid from her mouth. It struck Collective Man in the eyes and he screamed as they began to burn.

Pain was filling Collective Man’s head, and he could no longer see the little annoying thing that swatted at him. But he felt something else in his head that wasn’t pain, something scratching away. It was a danger, Collective Man knew. He roared a charged at the source; Scarlet Witch perched atop her rock.

This danger quickly became evident to Scarlet Witch, as well as Silverclaw’s inability to stop it. In desperation Scarlet Witch threw a final hex, aimed at a tiny little connection she felt inside Collective Man’s mind. It struck, and inside the skin on the back of Collective Man’s neck a circuit fried.

“Aaarrgh!” Collective Man screamed the scream of a man wakening from a deep nightmare. Sweat popped out of every pore of his body and he sank to his knees in utter exhaustion. Silverclaw, who had practically been on his back, tried to stop but crashed against Collective Man. He fell face-first, groaning in a semi-conscious daze.

Standing over the man, Silverclaw knew that he was vulnerable, that her claws could tear him apart. She fought the animal urge however, and her features softened. “Wow. You took him down.”

There was surprise in the words, but Scarlet Witch felt the same way. Then she smirked as she said, “A last minute save seems to be how my power works best. Right when it needs to, Collective Man’s power shuts down, with feedback it looks like.”

“No, I don’t think it was that.” Silverclaw was bending over Collective Man, reaching a hand at the back of his neck. “There’s something here, in his neck. It’s so small…there!” Silverclaw held it up, a tiny device smaller than the two fingertips it was held between.

“Fellow, you obviously don’t know anything about me!”

Growing rapidly, Hank Pym was too large for Otomo’s hand and jumped toward the man’s head. It wasn’t so much that Pym’s fist was being thrown forward, it was growing forward. Otomo had no chance to respond before half his face was smashed by a giant fist. Standing over the Japanese hero at a height of over twelve feet, Pym gave his own response.

“Or you would have known that I don’t need machines to change my size.”

In response to a beeping, Pym reached into his belt of now-broken tools to find his Avengers card. “Hello? Yes, Scarlet Witch, I just dealt with one myself. Okay, I’ll find it and let you know what I think.”

Shrinking down to his small size, it didn’t take long for Pym for uncover the faint impression of circuitry under Otomo’s skin on the back of his neck. The one tool in his belt still intact was a pen-knife, and soon Pym was holding a bloody disc in his tiny hand.

“Remarkable,” he mused to the unconscious foe. “So small to do a job, yet still room for shielding against your power. Maybe the same as our membership cards? I suspect your powers are electro-magnetic, which would explain how you can also fly. Hmmm, speculation is hard without my instruments.”

Aside from a few blows driven by emotion, She-Hulk and Wonder Man stopped punching each other upon regaining their senses. Darkstar landed nearby, Fantasma carried behind on a Darkforce gurney.

“Scarlet Witch made contact. Our foes may be mind-controlled.”

“We’ll have to check Quicksilver when we find him,” said Wonder Man. He hated not being able to trust his teammates. “Who else are we dealing with?”

“Collective Man and Otomo were dealt with. One from each nation.” Darkstar considered what she knew and said, “We should be airborne. Hop on.”

She-Hulk stepped onto a platform for Darkforce, and Darkstar lifted her up along with Fantasma. They moved in the direction of the Quinjet, Wonder Man following under his own power. Soon the vehicle was in view, or rather what was left on it. Pieces were scattered across the beach.

“Otomo must have done this as soon as we left.” Seeing that She-Hulk was about to jump, Darkstar said, “Don’t. We should all meet in the island’s center. It would be the best place for him to work from.”

“Who?” asked Wonder Man. “Tell us what you’re thinking.”

“What do you think SC?” She-Hulk asked into her communicard. Without waiting for an answer, she was confident about getting around on her own. She-Hulk jumped from the platform and onto the ground.

“Otomo destroys technology, an ideal skill for this mission,” Darkstar said. “Stealth is preferable, which Fantasma excels at providing. I suspect Collective Man was insisted on by his government, but Japan has another hero ideal for destroying evidence on an island.”

She-Hulk had barely run a few steps in preparation for her jump when she noticed something wrong. “This island’s starting to shake!”

“That would be Big One,” said Darkstar. “In Japan he is beloved for reducing the effects of earthquakes, but should you want an island to disappear he can do that as well!”

Scarlet Witch tucked her Avengers card away as she ran toward the looming citadel. Behind her, Silverclaw was keeping pace in the form of a tapir, the unconscious Collective Man tied to her back. High above, the giant Hank Pym stepped over their running forms, easily outpacing them with a leisurely walk. All felt the tremors, and thanks to Darkstar knew what they meant.

“Leave them,” Scarlet Witch said when they stood just outside the citadel. It was shaking as much as the island, pieces breaking off. Silverclaw and Pym were setting down their respective passengers. “We destroyed those chips, so there isn’t much danger if they wake up.”

“We could probably use the help,” Pym said. He was rapidly shrinking down to normal size and smaller. “Silverclaw?”

“I have you.” Transformed into a little bat, she swooped down and snatched up the diminutive Pym. Together they flew into the citadel, dodging debris as it fell.

There was a small boom near Scarlet Witch that told her She-Hulk had arrived. Second later Wonder Man and Darkstar landed, and Fantasma was laid beside her teammates. Scarlet Witch gave them each a nod, and together they entered the citadel. Without needing direction, Darkstar threw up a ceiling of darkforce to shield them and created supports along their path.

Just in sight ahead was Silverclaw, and Pym’s voice carried through the Avengers’ cards. “She’s tracked the center of the vibrations. Follow us!”

“I could just smash through these walls,” Wonder Man said. They had taken turn after turn toward the citadel’s center.

“This place is already unstable,” She-Hulk told him. “One wall down and we’ll all get buried.”

“It’s moot anyway!” Scarlet Witch pointed at the door ahead, with light shining through. “We’re here. Talking won’t work.”

“On it!” Silverclaw had swooped into the room. In the center was Big One, whose massive form lived up to his name. The small bat flew near, and Pym was ready to jump. But emanating from the Japanese hero were powerful vibrations, and Silverclaw had to strain her wings just to stay aloft from a distance. “No good. We can’t get close!”

“I’ll get him!” Wonder Man flew forward. His power was more than a match for Big One’s vibrations, and he smashed into the large man. But strangely, Big One didn’t even appear to feel the blow.

“Ughn!” She-Hulk found herself thrown back by an invisible force.

Darkstar whipped her head around, then back again so fast her blond hair stung against her face. “There’s one more here! Nicolai!”

“Yes, sister.” From out of the corner of the room Vanguard stepped forward. He smiled at Wonder Man and wagged a finger. “Try that again, it won’t be She-Hulk who feels the blow. Perhaps the tiny Ant-Man, or the delicate Scarlet Witch?” He shifted his cape, revealing the bloody body at his feet. “Or maybe finish off Quicksilver here.”

“You bastard.” Wonder Man started to step forward.

“You cannot strike him!” Darkstar shouted. She knew her brothers powers better than anyone. Once, he could only redirect force made against him, but with training and great concentration, Vanguard could redirect any force in his vicinity. “Vanguard, we know you are being controlled. Fight it!”

Vanguard laughed. “More than control, actually. You aren’t talking to your brother at all, lady.”

“And you aren’t dealing with amateurs,” Scarlet Witch said. She made sure to keep her eyes on Vanguard and not the growing portal of blackness behind him.

Unseen by Vanguard, a dagger of light flew from the blackness. Into his back and out his chest, Vanguard felt the sliver of light in his soul and screamed. Next out of the blackness were Cloak and Dagger, and a chop to the neck from Dagger brought Vanguard down.

“Now him.” Scarlet Witch pointed at Big One.

Dagger threw a sliver of light, and it struck the man in the center of his large body. Big One grunted, and immediately the vibrations slowed. Darkstar threw out a soft platform to catch the man’s considerable bulk as it fell.

“Last minute save and a ride home too,” Wonder Man said.

Scarlet Witch smiled and flashed her Avengers card. “What’s the point of having reservists if you don’t call them once in a while?”

The first thing Vanguard saw when he opened his eyes was his sister Darkstar. “Laynia?”

“Hello, Nicolai. It’s good to see you alive.”

Vanguard sat up in his bed, rubbing at a pain in the back of his neck. He was in a medical recovery room, and his bed was not the only one occupied. Also present were Big One, Otomo, Fantasma, and the man he recognized as Quicksilver.

“What has happened? Where are we?”

“We are at the Avengers Compound in Los Angeles. You and your teammates in what the West call the Circle of Fire were on Demonica Island under another’s control. You were defeated and the Avengers have brought you here for treatment.”

That explained what Vanguard felt on the back of his neck. “I have no recollection. How this happened, the last thing I can remember…” But Vanguard was drawing a blank.

“Collective Man is debriefing the others now,” Darkstar said. “Once recovered you will all be returned to your countries. I am sure there will be many investigations as to who is responsible for this.”

“Yes.” Vanguard’s eyes fell on Quicksilver. “Which of us did that to him?”

Darkstar put a hand on her brother’s shoulder. “None. It was whoever controlled you and his own arrogance. There is something else I feel I should discuss with you Nicolai. While removing the chip, tests were run. No traces of energy matching father’s signature were found.”

“And you wonder how that could be, given his claim about returning me to life.” Just talking about their father, the villainous Presence, brought a shadow of anger over Vanguard’s face. “Obviously, sister, it is because he lied.”

“But then how…?”

“I have dreams sometimes of a place, I don’t think it was heaven or hell. Perhaps whoever was in charge there brought me back as a pawn in some larger scheme, something that may have since been rendered moot. At any rate, I would rather not dwell on my death and instead focus on my second life.”

“Agreed, my brother,” Darkstar said. “Moving on is always best.”

NEXT ISSUE: She-Hulk gets between Titania and Absorbing Man in the worst way possible!