The Return

 

Chapter 1

 

By

Brian

 

 

 

A fierce summer storm had begun to blow over the spires of Castle Doom. Standing alone on one of the highest balconies, the Lord of Latveria looked out over his nation, contemplating his actions. A brilliant flash of lightning streaked across the summer sky as if to light up the dark man’s intentions, both of them powerful and frightening; rolling thunder followed soon after, beginning loudly before fading to nothingness.

 

 “Like my intentions for this land,” he mused.

 

As the rain began to fall upon the armored form, he did nothing but welcome the droplets.

 

 “Sire, should I turn down your bed?” A voice erupted from within the master’s chamber.

 

The armored figure half-turned and glanced into his bedroom. “No. Have the commanders meet me in the war room in one hour.”

 

 “Right away Master.”

 

The armored figure stepped to the edge of the balcony, placing his gauntleted hands upon the rails. “The time has come,” the dark man mused. “The time has come indeed.”

 

 

In the war room, the various commanders of the Latverian military sat at their respective places. Some sat silently, simply drinking their coffee, while others engaged in a heated argument. In the corner of this long and extravagant room stood a colorful figure dressed in red, green, and yellow, silently observing this illogical commotion, his deep-socketed eyes belying his interest. His gaze shifted to observe the silent figure standing behind the throne. He was draped in black, his face obscured by a hooded cloak. The colorful man knew the creature would protect his master with no regard for his own safety.

 

The arguments began to get louder and more intense with eventually the master’s fine china being broken. As is on cue, the large teakwood doors swung inward with a loud thud against the wall. A large man walked in, standing a half-foot taller than the colorfully garbed man. He was dressed in a royal military uniform, seemingly prepared for a formal function. One hand was heavily gloved, while one eye glowed with an eerie red light. With the man’s stern gaze, the room instantly fell silent.

 

“It is not your lot to question orders. You will all do as you are told and like it! Do you people understand me?” His voice, echoing like thunder in the room, put everyone in their place.

 

The commanders sat up promptly and yelled in unison. “Sir, Yes Sir!”

 

His cold eyes swept over the silent room before, with a nod of approval, the large man walked to his seat opposite the throne of Latveria. With an unusual grace, he removed his green embroidered cloak, emblazoned with the royal symbol of Latveria on its back. When he turned back around, the insignia of his rank was quite clear. Many of the people present had a healthy respect for the Supreme Commander, and those that didn’t still showed him his due. It was not often the Lord of Latveria chose an outsider for such a prestigious position.

 

A surprisingly good-looking woman came to the commanders left and whispered. “General Castle, can I get you any refreshments?”

 

“No, thank you, Captain.”

 

Nodding her head in compliance, she hesitated just long enough for the General to turn to her. “What is it Tara?”

 

“Sir, do you know what this meeting is all about? I thought all of the plans were set?” she questioned.

 

“In my experience, the only thing that is set is what has already happened. As for the details of this meeting, we shall soon find out.”

 

Suddenly, to everyone’s surprise, a response came from the doorway. “And that time is now, General.”

 

Swiftly the room stood and came to attention in the presence of the armored figure. He strode inside and glanced at the black-garbed man, who bowed slightly. The Lord of Latveria sat upon the throne and all relaxed and reseated save the colorfully garbed and the black-garbed men.

 

“Before I get started, I will be informed of the progress of the upgrades I ordered to my Doombots.”

 

 “My Lord, the production of your Doombots has increased by 167.33 percent.” It was the brightly colored man, also known as the Vision, that answered; his voice cold and mechanical. “Each Doombot’s defensive capabilities have been increased to 4.06 mega joules while the energy output now has the capability of exceeding your defined parameters. The new combat and tactics programming written by yourself and General Castle has been implemented ahead of schedule. The Doombots responses have also increased by 1.83 percent.”

 

“Excellent. Then all goes according to plan. Now we can proceed with the purpose of this meeting. I am ordering Operation: Doomblitz to begin at first light. Five minutes prior to your strikes, Doctors Pym and McCoy will have the satellites launched from the captured spaceports in the old Soviet Republic. Those are your orders. Any details can be discussed with General Castle.” And as quickly as he came, he left, followed this time by the man in black.

 

Once the Lord had left the room, Frank Castle stifled the mumbling and complaints beginning to arise among the commanders. “The operation proceeds as planned. Commander Joshua will take the 3rd Marine group along with the 4th squad of Doombots and will pacify the city of Istanbul and remember to secure the waterway. Commander Herninski will take the 5th group and the 5th Doombots and assault Odessa. Commander April will take the 4th Marines and the 3rd Doombots and hit the city of Athens. And lastly, Commander Gaden, I want you to attack the city of Warsaw with the 2nd Marines and the 2nd Doombot squad.  I will leads the 1st Marines and Doombots and overtake Berlin. Other than that, there are no other changes. And remember the good doctors will have the power restored by 0900, so be prepared for any occurrences that may arise. You have all been trained very well, so do not let me down.”

 

“Sir, if we let you down, that means we are dead.”

 

 “Then we are at a complete understanding. Now get the hell out of here and get to your units”  Castle continued, smiling,.. “Dismissed.” The commanders were silent as they exited the room. When only General Castle and the Vision remained, they turned, their gazes falling upon each other. “Where were you this afternoon?”

 

“I had pressing matters of state that I had to attend to, General. For my absence, I apologize.”

 

“Nevertheless you should have made arrangements to attend her funeral.”

 

“All I know are my duties. I have yet to comprehend that what you humans consider ‘necessary’.

 

With that, Frank Castle turned and strode out the teakwood doors muttering under his breath. “Damned machines, no sense of decency.”

 

The Vision stood for a long moment of silence, thinking about the definitions of mourning and grief. And with those thoughts, he picked up the documents still scattered about the table and passed through the far wall.

 

 

Lying alone in the dark was nothing new for the widow Wanda Williams. However tonight her sleep was interrupted by screams from the past. Bolting up from her sweat covered satin sheets, she heaved a sigh of relief but the old pain still remained. She had grown accustomed to loss, however, and she had always stayed the course. But the past three days had been torturous as she weighed heavily the cost of facing evil and tyranny.

 

Ever since Sable’s death the thought of those who have paid for life by giving their own has caused this woman to consider her actions more cautiously than ever before. Sable was the last of those that she could feel that she could relate to. Their friendship had grown increasingly stronger over the past couple of years. At times they would joke that the other held their sanity, but that was now over.

 

A sudden flash of lightning and the following crack of thunder awakened her from these deep thoughts. She rose and moved to a window.

 

“The storm has gotten stronger,” she mused. She looked past the window through the rain and even through the surging storm. She looked through time itself to a night long ago, still fresh in her mind…

 

“Simon, do you think this storm will put a damper on the barbeque tomorrow?” she asked.

 

 “Hey Babe, you know me. If I have to, I’ll build a pavilion in the morning.” And with a boyish grin, he joined his wife in bed.

 

The next morning there were no remnants of the storm the night before. It was a day different from most others, for Wanda was in the kitchen, preparing deviled eggs, baked beans, and her famous potato salad while Simon was on the phone jealously guarding the recipe for his special sauce. Not long after the first of the guests arrived, and as always, Steve was first, toting flowers and a nice bottle of wine.

 

“Happy 4th of July!” he said as he held out the flowers, presenting them to Wanda, a beautiful mixture of red, white and blue roses. “For the lovely lady, of whose beauty is equal to Lady Liberty herself.”

 

Holding up the bottle of wine to Simon, he continued. “Not for you, but your guests. Perhaps after drinking it, they will be able to tolerate your scruffy looks.”

 

With a smile on his face, Simon accepted the bottle. “Who’s scruffy looking?” Laughing, he gestured inside. “Come on in Steve.”

 

As they were shutting the door, a female voice rang out. “Hey, Steve isn’t the only one with a dramatic entrance.” Steve pulled the door open once again.  There stood the beautiful and striking Clara Barton with the weeks catch. “By the way, I brought a date. This is Hal everyone.”

 

The young man’s expression turned very bleak. “My name is Cal, Clara,” and extended his hand towards Simon and offers a true introduction. “My name is Calvin Stiles, but my friends call me Cal.” He glanced sharply towards Clara, “but some others call me Hal.”

 

With the introduction over, Clara blushes slightly but pulls her beau closer. “I’ll make it up to you later, dear.”

 

“Welcome, make yourself at home.” With a keen vision that came from being Wonderman, Simon spotted the limousine driving up the street. “Dear, Dane and Karly are here.” And surely enough, a few moments later, Dane Whitman, owner of Whitman Industries, along with his alluring, world-renowned, model fiancée, Karly Rivers stepped up to the door. The look of excitement evident on the young woman’s face. She threw her arms around Simon’s neck.

 

“Thank you so much Simon. Your word goes a long way in Hollywood. I start production on ‘The Sisters of Battle’ next week, and I got the leading role.”

 

Simon looked down and spoke gently: “Hon, you did it all yourself. I never said a word.”

 

As Karly’s eyes fill with joyful tears, Simon gave a playful wink to his friend Dane. “But enough of shop talk. Come on in. Wanda made potato salad.”

 

With a voice that could be heard out of state the next visitor’s words rang true. “She had better have made 10 gallons, cause I art hungry!” 

 

With a long expression Simon calls out: “Come on in you smelly Olympian!” Giving a slap to Simon’s back that would have sent a normal man through the wall, Hercules walked through the door. “Everyone relax, I am here now!”

 

The barbeque was a success except for a minor argument over the origin of Simon’s secret steak sauce, whether being from Beverly Hills or Mt. Olympus. After what seemed hours of general conversation between good friends, the business of separation was now on the table. Steve, being the most vocal about the split simply stated that America needed its own private team. He had spoken to James and Heather about putting a team of Alpha Flight inside the U.S.A. but with no success.

 

The vote was quick and unanimous. Team 1 was going to lose its 5 most senior, if not powerful members. Then, in Wanda’s mind, a day of happiness and beloved friends also became the worst day of her life. The phone rang. She casually walked to the kitchen and answered it. From the time the phone was lifted until it hit the floor was nothing short of eternity.

 

She turned to face the awaiting friends gathered at her table, and taking what strength left in her body to speak those most horrible of words. “That was Heather. America is under attack…by Superman.”

 

She shook off the memories, returning to the summer storm, which still raged outside of her bedroom at Castle Doom. “Goodnight Simon.” She whispered in a low, emotion filled voice as she crawled back into her tear-soaked bed. “I will always love you.”

 

 

The next morning, Hank McCoy and Henry Pym were working as fast as they could. Several Doombots surrounded them as they finished the final checks on the pre-launch diagnostics. Beside one of them a radio hums to life.

 

“The word is go. Launch the rockets.”

 

Without even a word exchanged, the countdown began. Within minutes, the four converted missiles were screaming through the atmosphere. As soon as all of the gauges were out of redline, Hank McCoy rushed over to one Doombot. He turned to watch Henry still at the console.

 

“Come on, Pym. We have got to get to the reactor right away. The Lord wants power restored within two hours. That doesn’t leave us much time.”

 

With a final course adjustment, Henry raced to a separate Doombot and allowed it to close its arms around him. He activated the teleportation sequence and closed his eyes. In moments, he found himself opening his eyes, now transported outside of the main doors to the oversized nuclear power station just completed weeks earlier. For years, Latveria had been building this thing, along with connecting it to every major and minor power sub-station in Europe. Without another thought, he rushed inside and began to help his partner bring the station online.

 

In Istanbul, the battle was going quite well. There, so far at least, had been only two casualties among the marines and the weapons the local warlords were using simply were not powerful enough to punch through the Doombots force field. The majority of the resistance was now behind them, captured or dead. The marines had a foothold on the harbor and were now assaulting some of the final pockets of resistance. Commander Joshua was in constant contact with the War Room back in Latveria, and had just ended his last communiqué when a young lieutenant rushed up to him.

 

“Sir!” the young man said as he came to attention in front of the Commander asking permission to speak in a typical military manner.

 

“What is it Lieutenant Sloan?” Joshua said as he motioned for the young man to stand at ease.

 

“Sir, the sniper team is in position and have identified the squatters headquarters and their command structure.”

 

Now his attention fully with his communications officer, Commander Joshua turned in his seat to face the young man. “Have they established a pattern yet?”

 

Putting a hand to his ear and depressing the remote switch, the lieutenant spoke quietly into his microphone. “Sergeant McLeod, do you have acquisition of target?” A long moment of silence stood in the room as the Commander waited for his answer. Finally the young man turned back to his superior officer.

 

“That’s affirmative sir. They are prepared to exterminate the leadership with rifle fire, then level the structure with pre-placed cratering charges.”

 

“Excellent.” Joshua turned his back on the lieutenant leaving him confused. He was awaiting a strike order but none came. He watched as the Commander switched to a different frequency on his transceiver. “This is Commander Joshua with the New European Federation. I am attempting to contact the leader of the forces in Istanbul. I offer one last chance to surrender yourself and your forces before we crush this insurrection.”

 

He did not have to wait long for an answer. The voice that came back was electronic, having to use the translators built into the radio. “Listen here you pompous jackass. We will never surrender. This is my town and you will never have it.”

 

“I am sorry you feel that way.” The Commander turned back to the lieutenant what had finally understood what was happening, having the intelligence to keep his mouth shut and listen. When he was addressed again, he instinctually went to a ‘parade-rest’ stance. “Order the strike, Captain. Then get teams onboard the cruisers and get them operational. I want these waters secure in case any ‘pirates’ happen to come along.”

 

“Aye, aye, sir!” The lieutenant came to attention and rushed to the communications console. He was about to start giving commands to the field operatives when he realized just what had been said.

 

“Captain?” he whispered to himself. He grinned and tore into his duties, knowing not questioning his superior had just landed him a promotion.

 

Not overly far away, Commander Herninski had an extremely easy time with the warlord that was in Odessa. She had begun her sneak attacks right on time and had begun sweeping the city with little or no resistance. Within the hour, the leader of the locals had requested an audience with her.

 

After what seemed to be just minutes, their leader had decided to side with the Latverian forces and ordered his people to cease-fire and surrender to them so to prove their intentions. Then it was simply to clear out the rape gangs and the other undesirables. Instead of risking her marines in such a manner, Commander Herninski had the Doombots crash their lairs and annihilate them. So far she had not had a single casualty and was mere hours away from total victory on this front.

 

It was only then that particular thought was shattered. She heard the rocking explosions and the sudden reports coming in over the radio from the marines. They were under heavy fire from mortars and rockets, pinning them with but minor injuries.

 

“Damn. I figured this would be a cakewalk. That’s what I get for being complacent,” she whispered to herself. In a moment she was on the satellite-linked radio back to her air support.

 

“Captain Murphy, get your people airborne now. I need you in sector 7 to pacify a nest.”

 

The radio was silent for but a moment, then it hummed in response. “Commander we are on our way.”

 

She waited for a few minutes, listening to the sound of her lascannons and miniguns spouting death back at their fortified attackers. In a few moments the radio hummed back to life.

 

“Commander, you have a scum problem that needed to be taken care of?”

 

Herninski grabbed the headset and brought it to her ear. “Murphy cut out the smart ass remarks and hit the dammed nest.”

 

“Yes Ma’am. I was just having fun.” There was a brief pause. “Is the target painted?”

 

“Yeah it’s painted. Send the damned barrage!”

 

Without a response, the pilots armed and released a series of plasma and phosphorus missiles into the enemy stronghold. There was a bright flash of light and heat before the building was disintegrated.

 

“Good job Murphy. Find a place to set down and reload just in case. Then I want three of your squadron to start patrols. See if we can start getting more locals to join us.”

 

“Right away Commander.”

 

Elsewhere, Commander Gaden stood in the ruins of Warsaw. They had apparently had come a bit too late to save some of the population. They had found them impaled on steel spikes like trophies, perhaps as a warning to another warlord or such.

 

“Bastards.” He said aloud. He turned to his assistant. “Hey Richard, get on the horn with Bravo and Echo companies and tell them not to allow either of them to survive.” As his aide began to relay his orders, Gaden reminisced on the morning’s events so far.

 

It was a relatively simple operation in his mind. He was to wait for confirmation of the satellites launch and then attack. Except before he received confirmation, two local militias began to attack each other throughout the city. He was partially stunned as they advanced and fell back with machine gun fire and grenade support. One side a pair of metas that were sent into the fray. Gaden watched as the two tore into the opposing side with ease, but did not even stop when they began to kill surrounding civilians. It was that point that he did recover and launched his attack on both sides, hitting the metas with nullifiers then superheated plasma rifles killing them both.

 

The battle still raged around Gaden as he stood amongst the impaled bodies. It was one thing to witness the atrocities of war, but a whole other thing to persecute civilians just trying to survive. It angered him badly, but it was an anger shared by his marines and officers. A soldier put himself out in front of the enemy, and if he was killed, so be it. But civilians had no place in war.

 

“Richard?”

 

“Yes sir?”

 

“What are the casualty reports saying?”

 

Picking up a clipboard on the dashboard of the command vehicle, the Major calmly added up the numbers. “Seventeen wounded, four confirmed dead, two missing.” He looked up and caught the Commanders gaze. “Sir, it appears we were understaffed for this area. Even the Doombots cannot cover this much area.”

 

“Agreed, but we have prevailed. They are on the run and beaten and we shall soon have this city secured. How about the others?”

 

“We seem to have it the worst so far, sir. April has Athens firmly under control; Castle has problems in Berlin, but is searching the city house by house to flush them out. Joshua and Herninski are pretty much in complete control of their areas but with pockets of resistance.”

 

“Good. Lets power up the transceiver. We need to call Castle and give our reports to Latveria.”

 

“Yes sir.”

 

 

The Lord of Latveria sat in his War Room listening to the reports of his commanders’ come in by the minute. The operation had been a success. But that was not his primary concern right now. There had been some problems at the power plant and Henry and Hank were not able to get the power turned on. He trusted the two scientists to get it done, but it should have been done on time. He placed that concern in the back of his mind.

 

“Wanda. Please bring me the children. I have much to discuss with them.”

 

The Scarlet Witch turned and bowed to the Lord. “Right away.” She opened the teakwood doors in silence and exited the room. The Lord turned to his personal bodyguard, the dark-cloaked figure always at his side.

 

“Samaritan, I want you to take a hoverbike and take this message to Washington D.C. Gain entrance however possible, but do not kill unless absolutely necessary. Deliver the scroll and leave, answer no questions nor allow yourself to be captured then get back here as soon as possible.”

 

“Yes, my Master. It will be done.”

 

 

At the same time as the ground war in Europe was taking place, a man nobody knew existed had been hard at work converting the wreckage of Kal-El’s fortress into something more usable. The task had not been easy. He knew that Luthor kept an eye on the place, so his first goal was to knock out any satellites that could peer down on this location.

 

The relative newcomers known as Superwoman and this new Superman had both done their damage here. It was Superwoman who destroyed it in the first place, while the man who claimed to be Superman had stripped the computer system among other things.

 

“Hey Aaron, how goes the restoration?”

 

What was left of Aaron Stacks’ body was now resting on top of the main console of the fortress computer. He had been severely damaged during one of the battles he had been involved in. There was not much left other than his head, torso, and an arm. But for the android known as Machine Man, that was a temporary setback.

 

“To tell you the truth, I have all but the most encrypted files broken, to include the communications system. It appears Kal-El could see almost the entire planet at once.”

 

“Good. Try to get the nanites to start reconstruction…both on the building and yourself. But keep the structure below the rubble on the surface; we don’t want any visitors. I gotta go find Walter, so I’ll be back soon.”

 

 

It was not the way Lex Luthor wanted to be woken. He was hurriedly dressed and brought to the Oval Office by Mercy, where several of his generals, aides and tech personnel were standing by. As soon as he entered, he was assaulted by questions and explanations of some event that was happening.

 

“All of you shut up.” The room instantly fell silent. “Now then, will one person please explain to me why in hell I was woke up?”

 

A particularly bold General rose and motioned for the screens to be turned on. “Mr. President, it seems that Latveria has launched four missiles in conjunction with staging massive invasions of strategic locations throughout Europe.”

 

“And what is your point? As it stands we are allied with Dr. Doom. If he really wants to do our job for us then we let him. As for the missiles, what do they seem to be doing?”

 

 “At first we thought it to be a nuclear strike, but they deployed satellites just a few minutes ago.”

 

Luthor sat back and contemplated the situation. He turned and addressed one of the scientists present. “They are replacing lost satellites. It seems that we have not been the only ones to suffer losses such as these in space. But I still want to know the cause of our satellites being destroyed.”

 

“Yes, Mr. President.”

 

“Secondly, keep a watch out over the forces that Doom deploys. If it seems that he will invade anything outside of Europe, then call me again. And for the time being, put the security forces into Threat Level 3.”

 

“Right away, Mr. President,” came the reply from the General.

 

Luthor rose to leave but stopped himself as he opened the door. “What is Parker or Superman doing?”

 

“They are monitoring the situation as we are sir. According to Intel, they have not made any troop movements and satellite pics confirm that Alpha Flight is still on premises.” 

 

“Good. Then you are all dismissed for the night. I will expect an update in the morning.”

 

“Yes, Mr. President.”

 

The following morning, Samaritan landed his hoverbike outside of the security area of the White House and began to methodically walk to the front gates. Many members of the perimeter guards of course met him.

 

“State your name and business with the President.”

 

Not uttering a word he continued on, coming up to the gates themselves.

 

“I said state your name and business! If you attempt to enter, we will cut you down!”

 

Samaritan stopped and glanced around. There was an extraordinary amount of firepower pointed in his direction. He identified the obvious leader and began to calm himself readying one of his unique abilities.

 

“I will have an audience with your President.” He spoke aloud and mentally at the same time.

 

The sergeant’s mind was simply overwhelmed. “You will have an audience with the President.”

 

“You will escort me to him now.”

 

Again, the sergeant could do nothing but what the black cloaked man said. “I will escort you to him now.” He opened the gate and allowed him entrance. Under the confused gaze of his own men, the sergeant escorted this strange man into the White House. With fewer people watching them than before, the sergeant walked up to the doors of the Oval Office, swiftly met by Mercy.

 

“Who in hell is this?”

 

Again, trying to exert his mental control over this woman, Samaritan spoke calmly and assuredly. “You will take me to the President.”

 

“The hell I will. You could very well be an assassin out for his head. You will leave the premises NOW!” Mercy said as she interposed herself between him and the door.

 

With but another thought, Samaritan reached out with his mind and grabbed the fit and mentally strong Mercy and threw her into the door. It caved under the force of her weight and the power of his telekinesis and knocked her unconscious in the middle of the Oval Office. Luthor turned in his chair with a drawn pistol to confront the dark man.

 

“What in hell do you want?”

 

Without a word, Samaritan placed the sealed envelope upon Luthors desk, turned and began to exit.

 

“Wait just a minute…!”

 

Turning his head as he exited the room, he paused and gave explanation. “This is from the Lord of Latveria.” And was gone.

 

Luthor slowly lowered his pistol and placed it upon his lap as he reached for the letter. It was indeed authentic with the royal Latverian seal emblazoned upon its exterior. He broke the seal and removed the letter.

 

“To the President of the United States, you must now consider any treaty or agreement you have had with Latveria now null and void. We will continue to consider you a neutral party until at such time you prove otherwise. There will soon be a council of this world’s leaders to be held in my Castle, a meeting to which you are not invited. I do not consider you a valid leader of anything and will retaliate with whatever means necessary if you attempt to attack me. Signed:  The Lord of Latveria.“

 

Luthor allowed the paper to slip from his hand. “What in hell is Doom doing? Severing all ties to existence? Does he really want me to crush him and his puny country?” He brought up a hand to his temple as if he had a headache. He saw Mercy rise, shaking off the effects of the blow.

 

“Mercy, get me Nar-Ur. I have a mission for him.”

 

 

In New Independence, the government of the S.U.S.A was going wild. They had also tracked the missile launches and were now receiving up to the minute updates to the troop movements in Europe from the Kandorians.

 

The King of the S.U.S.A. sat in his communications room with Zal, Kitty, General Raynor, and his wife. The news did not look comforting.

 

“Zal, what do you think? This isn’t like what we know of Doom of any of his minions. What in hell is going on over there?”

 

“Peter, I wish I could really tell you. My only suggestion is that I go over and ask.” Kitty came closer to her fiancée’s side, catching Peter’s gaze.

 

“Actually we will go and find out. Zal tends to forget about us.” Quickly gaining a half-scared/ half-amused look, Zal just shrugged and nodded.

 

“Well, its still dangerous. You guys just got back on your feet a couple of days ago and you are already wanting back in the thick of things?”

 

Kitty sighed and felt her heart go into her throat. “Pete, we have all seen death and destruction. We all knew that when we started this that there was a possibility that one or more of us to be killed.” She instinctually grabbed onto Zal’s arm and waist to assure herself that her recently ‘resurrected’ fiancée was indeed there. “We have all mourned, and we have all cried. But we cannot lax in our duties.”

 

Peter smiled and shook his head. “Sometimes girl, it seems like we are back in Toronto in one of James’ speeches.”

 

“Don’t you even go there Pete. You know I hated those classes.”

 

A gentle chuckle came from the General of the Military as he overheard the conversation between the former members of the original Alpha Flight.

 

“And don’t you start on me either Jim.” Kitty spat in playful fashion.

 

“My Lady, I would never dream of pissing you off. You are too valuable to our efforts.”

 

“Why thank you Jim. At least someone appreciates the work we do.” She paused in her comments before turning back to Peter. “We can go take a look later on when it gets dark over there. Its still 11am in that time zone.”

 

“Then get some rest. I would really like to know if we have another enemy on our hands here.”

 

The next morning, Zal, Kitty, Sherri and the rest of Alpha Flight were making their final preparations to make a scouting mission to Latveria. It would be dark there in a matter of hours and they wished to use that to hide themselves. They had all assembled in City Hall, the unofficial capital while another, more appropriate building was being constructed.

 

They had refitted Legions armor to act as a communications platform using Ian’s alternate frequencies for wide range thermal cameras and radiation detectors, along side a microwave transmitter to relay the info back to the Kandorians. The orbiting satellites they had captured and refitted were limited to the original designs but were still useful.

 

“Well, that just about does it.” Sara said as she finished donning her new suit. “Here I have been a lover of silk for years and you go and give us something that is not only softer, but indestructible as well.”

 

“It is the least I can do.” Superman said as he looked over the costumes he had assembled out of the first batch of Kryptonian linen he was able to harvest. “And they are not indestructible. Just mostly. It will protect you from the damage, but not the force of the blow.”

 

“Why wont it?” asked Artemis, admiring her new look in a mirror. She had gone with a simple bodysuit, boots, gloves and a leather jacket. “Aren’t all Kryptonian materials just as resilient as you?”

 

“Not really.” answered Kitty. “If they were as indestructible as Zal then the cloth would be harder than steel and it would take someone close to his strength to even bend it.”

 

“Good point Katherine.” Zal said as he helped Sara put on her cape. Everyone glanced at each other and then turned to see Peter watching them.

 

“You ready to go?”

 

Sherri, who opted not to have a permanent suit and relied upon her magic to transform her clothes when appropriate, rose to her feet. “Yeah, that will do it. Lets go.” The team walked outside and almost as quickly stopped.

 

Before their eyes, a young woman coalesced from thin air while another seemed to form herself out of the very ground. A burst of flame came from a nearby streetlight and grew, also forming into a teenager. And lastly, from a barrel of water being used to collect rain from the buildings gutters animated into a lifelike state, soon forming a fourth teenager. Together they stood before the King and Alpha Flight.

 

“We’re under attack!” yelled out Exodus as he rushed to attack. He was closely followed by Solitare, Legion, and Frostfire. Sherri was about to jump when she noticed that they made no moves to defend themselves or dodge the charge Brian was now performing. Ariel also held back, but in the same confusion as her husband, who stood at the King’s side, protecting him just in case.

 

Exodus charged the closest one to him, which happened to be the girl that formed from the ground. His punch, which would have decimated any lesser person, impacted on the young girl. Brian instantly yelped out in pain and clutched his wrist as everyone heard a loud thunk. The young girl never moved or flinched, obviously confident of herself. The rest of Alpha Flight paused and glanced back at Sherri who shook her head slightly and held up a gloved hand.

 

“Brian, back off for a minute. I don’t think they are here to fight.”

 

The girl who had appeared out of air stepped forward. “That is correct. I have a message for the King of the S.U.S.A. Is he present?”

 

Zal turned and glanced at Peter, who seemed to be intrigued by the four teenagers. “I am here,” he said as Alpha Flight parted, allowing him to pass unhindered. “Who is it that sends me a message?”

 

Without a word, the girl handed Peter a leather scroll case and stepped back. And as quickly as each appeared, they melded back into their respective elements, leaving the heroes alone once again.

 

“That was interesting,” Peter said as he looked at the case. It was emblazoned with the royal seal of Latveria. He showed it to Zal who instantly scanned the case with his x-ray vision. Finding nothing more than paper inside, he held up his hand in a manner to suggest opening it.

 

Without delay, the King opened the case and took out the paper inside. After glancing over the document, he began to read aloud.”

 

“To the King of the Southern United States, I, the Lord of Latveria, hereby invite you and any of your council to join me for dinner tonight. There are many things that we must discuss and questions that I believe you would like answered. If you wish to come, be assured that you will be perfectly safe and may leave at any time that you wish. Arrive at the Rieveckman house just north of Doomstad by 6pm, Doomstad time. Sincerely, The Lord of Latveria.”

 

Kitty crinkled her nose. “Why does that NOT sound like Victor Von Doom or anyone associated with him?”

 

“I have no clue,” Peter answered. “But like it or not we are going.”

 

“What?! You’ve got to be kidding!” Sherri exclaimed. “This is the classic example of a trap.”

 

 “Hmmm. How about this then Colonel. You, Kitty, Zal, and Rachel come with me. The rest of your team should stay here and watch the home front.”

 

“Done.” Sherri turned and garnered the attention of the co-leader of Alpha Flight. “I don’t know what James and Heather taught him, but does he always ‘Go where angels fear to tread’?”

 

Kitty giggled. “Of course, Sherri. How else could we have been so effective?” Regaining her composure, she glanced at her watch and did the calculations. We have four hours to get ready, so those of you going, might want to get a dress or suit made…quickly.”

 

Hours later, Superman landed outside of the predetermined place, assumedly to meet an envoy to enter the city itself. Latveria had their shields on at full power, and even Zal could not have breached them unnoticed. Behind him landed a ball of fire that rapidly dissipated revealing the King and three of the women of Alpha Flight, all dressed in their finest clothes.

 

“That was an experience. Who came up with the idea for traveling like that?” Peter asked as he regained his sense of direction.

 

Sherri removed her helmet and allowed it to transform itself into a ring, which she donned. “It was easier for me to create a protective bubble that Superman could drag out of the atmosphere and reenter where we needed to go, rather than take the long way around through the atmosphere. Saved us a couple of hours, I think.”

 

Zal took his tuxedo from his wife and put it on over his suit. Just as he finished, a colorfully garbed man walked outside from the house. It was a man that Zal recognized from his time in another universe.

 

“Vision…” he whispered.

 

The android nodded in compliance. “The Lord told us that your knowledge would be widespread. I am impressed. But the Lord of Latveria waits. A car is waiting to take us to the city.”

 

 

At Castle Doom, it was not surprising for Zal not to be able to peer in large areas inside the castle. Kira Zorel, or Valeria von Doom as she was known here, had spent years living within its walls and he could only assume that Doom did not want her peering in on everything that was going on. Either that or it was for her protection as it was rumored that several versions of Dooms personal armor used Kryptonite as a power source.

 

They had been quickly escorted into the city and up to the gates of the castle, where an aged, English butler opened the door for them. Something seemed very familiar about the man, but Zal was unable to recall where he had seen this man before.

 

“The Lord welcomes you, Lord Parker. Please come inside so to escape the chill of the night.”

 

Still cautious but carrying an aura of confidence he led the way into the great hall of Doom and was brought into a grand dining hall, one that happened to be empty.

 

“My Lord will be with you momentarily. There are still military operations that demanded his attention.” The butler exited the room, closing the doors behind him.

 

“Something just doesn’t feel right.” Sherri said to her companions. “Its like we are being set up.”

 

Kitty adjusted her hair slightly and straightened her dress. “Sherri, you are just being paranoid.” She glanced at Rachel who was trying to settle herself in the stockings that she now wore. “Have you sensed any ulterior motives of danger?”

 

 “Not a thing. Its like they truly admire us and welcome us with open arms.” Solitare turned away for a moment. “Except one. She holds a bit of bitterness towards…. you Katherine.”

 

 “Me? What ever did I do?”

 

 “I don’t think it matters right now.” Zal said as he straightened himself. “Our benefactor comes to greet us.”

 

At that very moment the doors swung inward, and an armored figure gracefully strolls in, closing the oaken doors behind him. Everybody in the room simply stood in awe as he spoke.

 

 

“Greetings, Lord Parker, Superman, members of Alpha Flight. I bid you welcome to my country, and my home.”

 

Peter could not form the breath to respond, while Kitty, Sherri and Rachel all stood dumbfounded, as if they had seen a ghost. Zal took a tentative step forward unsure if this man was who he appeared to be.

 

 “You…” he said finally. “How in Rao’s name could you be here?”

 

 

Continued in Chapter 2 of The Return

 

 

-- Story written and copyrighted (C) 2002 by Brian

-- and may not be reprinted without permission.

-- The Continuum Worlds Concept is a joint creation of

-- Dylan Clearbrook and Eldric.  Otherverse, Dark Earth,

-- and Supergirl and the Legion of Super-Heroes, as depicted in the

-- Continuum Worlds, are original creations of Dylan Clearbrook.

-- Alterverse and The Inheritors, as depicted in the Continuum Worlds,

-- are original creations of Eldric.

-- The Realm and Shadowverse, as depicted in the Continuum Worlds,

-- are original creations of John P. and Jason G respectively.

-- Some characters in Continuum Worlds stories are original creations

-- of Dylan Clearbrook, Eldric, Michael Liebhart, Jake H., Jason G.,

-- Andrew Shields, Kyle M., Brian, or Jason Froikin and may not

-- be used without express permission of the respective author.

-- All DC characters are property of D.C. Comics.

-- All Marvel characters are property of Marvel Comics.