"Time and time again Matthew Ellis has let us down! Has let YOU down!" Graydon Creed gripped the podium as he spoke to the willing audience. "He has failed in his policies! He has failed to live up to his promises! Which is why I, Graydon Creed, do formally signal my intentions to become the next President of THESE United States!"
The crowd roared, cheered and whistled like a rock concert as confetti covered them. Graydon waved and smiled slowly walking off stage.
"You do know Ellis has at least two more years in office?" Eli Garibaldi said as his employer joined him in the wings. The media manager handed Graydon his phone back.
"Gives you two years to make the country love me," Creed smiled "The people of New Jersey love me which is why I'm a senator. You now have seven hundred and thirty days to the other forty nine states to think like New Jersey."
"Utah and California won't swing your way," Eli said tapping away like made in his blackberry. "President Creed, has a nice ring to it."
"Doesn't it" Graydon smiled.
"You might get some questions about where you were born."
Graydon adjusted his tie. "An American airforce base in West Germany. American! We dealt with that when I ran for the Senate."
"President is a whole new level," Eli said. "Look at what they did during Obama's tenure. It's not a problem if we stay on top of it."
"That's why I hired you Eli," Graydon said as he walked back out onto he stage for an encore.
--
"What??" Norman Osborn smashed his hand his stone desktop making his son Harry look up from his cellphone.
"Dad? You okay?"
"Graydon Creed, Senator for New Jersey, has announced his intentions to run for the highest office in the land; President of the United States!" Norman read. "The likeable young man has stunned both the Republicans and his fellow Democrats with the long range announcement."
"So? It's not like you were..." Harry looked at his father. "Oh he stole your thunder, didn't he. I thought you were up to something when your secretary told me you had a meeting with General Ross. I honestly thought you might be engineering a coup."
"Thank you for your expert opinion Harry," Norman scowled as he slumped into his chair.
"You're seriously going to run for President?" Harry asked. "That's..."
"Ludicrous and grandiose and psychotic and..."
"Kinda cool." Harry Osborn interrupted with a smile. "You won't win because you're a giant jerk but still."
"Seems I won't be naming you as VP then," Norman replied.
"Too young dad. Gotta be over thirty five, which by the way, arnt you too OLD. You make Reagan look like a boy."
Norman playfully threw his empty coffee cup at his son. "Go. I got some work to do."
"Yes sir, Commander In Chief, sir" Harry saluted comically and marched out singing Hail to the Chief.
--
"I saw what you six did with Spider-Man, and honestly, you're lucky he didn't kill you!" The man in the white hood with the sword by his side walked up and down the Spectacular Six. "Which is why Mr Osborn has paid me, The Taskmaster, a large chunk of change to help you. Honestly looking at you I should've stayed in Miami but money is money."
Doctor Otto Octavius raised his hand. "I have several experiments I need to get back to."
"Oh okay," Taskmaster said pointing to the door. "Off you go."
Octavius shrugged and began to leave when Taskmaster grabbed him by the scruff of the neck, flipped him onto his front with a judo flip and drew his sword.
"You're dead!" Taskmaster said into his ear as he pressed a knee into his neck.
"Hey! Get off him!" Shocker yelled only to get a sword hilt to the throat.
"You're dead too." Taskmaster kipped up. "Next!"
--
"You want to terraform Mars?" Obadiah Stane said looking at schematics Victor Von Doom had projected in 3D in the centre of the room.
"It does raise some ethical and interesting questions," Thinker added.
"Humans will be Martians," laughed Bentley Wittman. "I'm in!"
"It is a bold ambitious plan Victor," Baron Mordo said "But as Sorcerer Supreme I feel it may break my oaths I have taken."
"Then step down." Doom said bluntly.
"What?"
All eyes turned to the Latverian monarch. "If your oaths prevent you from helping then step down. Let another become Sorcerer Supreme and help taken humanity into and beyond the 21st Century."
"I admire your plan Victor, but I cannot use my magic to help. My role is protector of this dimension not usher in the next step of human exploration and discovery. That is for you to do."
"Yet once it is built it will fall under your protection, yes?" Doom asked.
Mordo looked at Doom intently, neither blinking, flinching or giving much away. Then suddenly, like he was possessed Mordo began to tremble.
"Are you alright Baron?" Ivan Kragoff took the magician by the arm as he seemed on the verge of collapse.
"Mystical forces...London...N'Kantu..." Mordo muttered as he swayed. "You must excuse..." And in a cloud of blue-purple smoke vanished into thin air.
--
Emilio Layton looked at the prisoner manifest, it was worrying. Reed Richards was in custody and safely tucked away in his ball which was reassuring but still, normally the man who called himself Mr Fantastic was a constant flight risk. For the last few weeks he'd been quiet, which was as worrying as the manifest.
Benjamin Jacob Grimm was inside the facility. Known as The Thing, he'd gotten his powers when he, Reed, Johnny Storm and his sister Susan flew an experimental rocket into space to be bombarded with cosmic rays. Reed got elasticity, Johnny became a human torch, Susan the power of invisibility and Ben became a rock monster. They used their new found powers to cause havoc as The Frightful Four.
They had half of the FF onsite and word had come in that the Human Torch had been captured in Washington by Titania, who had also captured The Thing.
"I need a meeting with Commander Strucker and possibly Mr T as soon as possible," Emilio spoke into his intercom only to realise that his P.A Kelsey Grunewald, had been patiently standing beside his desk. "Sorry I completely forgot you were there."
"It's fine. I just need you to sign off on the shift changes and overtime budget. Also Doc Samson is demanding you see him to discuss..."
"What is it this time?"
"Uniforms."
"Tell him prison unif..."
"No, OUR uniforms." She smiled. "Geneva convention breach or something something."
Emilio groaned.
--
Agent Jemma Simmons stood next to Ralph Sanzetti. "You may have a problem in your team."
Sanzetti turned to her. "Really?"
"We're following up some info on that mess down in Miami and we found some spikes," she said. "Now I'm not about to start pointing fingers without proof but I thought you'd like a heads up."
"Does the Commander know?"
"On my way there. You want to get a drink later to discuss?"
"Sure."
Jemma clocked Anton Trojak as he entered the room and kissed Sanzetti on the cheek. "See you tonight."
Jemma left the room, brushing Anton like an annoying curtain as he approached her. She watched in her peripheral as Trojak ran through a gamut of emotions on par to a slightly loved struck teenager.
"Trojak!" Sanzetti snapped. "I need...where are you going Anton? ANTON!?"
--
Billy Russo woke with a start at the sharp pain to his big toe. He scrambled for the light to see a brown squirrel sitting at the end of his bed; its tiny teeth dripping crimson.
"Mother f;/$;&!" He threw his copy of Children Of The Voyager by Samuel Wantling at the rodent which scurried off the bed. "Gonna need a rabies shot!"
Russo then spotted two more squirrels on his window sill. And another three on the curtain rod. He hopped out of bed to see seven more on the floor. "What the...?"
"You have nothing really worth stealing," announced Squirrel Girl as she walked into Billy's bedroom. "No art, no jewels, not even a decent DVD collection."
"Lady, you're in so much trouble right now," Billy warned "Break and entry, attempted robbery..."
"Blah blah blah!" Squirrel Girl mocked "You cost me some swag you scarred freak!"
"So you break into my apartment," Billy opened up his bedside table to retrieve his gun only to be confronted by a nasty hissing squirrel. "Jesus!!"
"Yeah. So you best be finding me something valuable or your body is gonna match your patchwork face!" She snapped her fingers and the furry army began advancing on Billy Russo.
--
Commander Kraken watched as the Cuban vessel powered towards them. He was justifiably nervous even though the USA and Cuba were now friends. The patrol boat stopped a few hundred metres away.
"Hablas Espanol?" Came an amplified voice.
Kraken muttered to himself. "English is a perfectly good language, maybe you should learn it!" He raised his megaphone, cleared his throat and spoke "Sí, hablamos español, pero es mejor Inglés!"
"We have your package señor!"
"Okay," Kraken lowered his megaphone as he watched three Cuban soldiers bring up a man from below deck; hooded and heavy cuffed.
--
"Icheckedtheareaand..." Quicksilver stopped as he realised he was going too fast again. "The. Area. Is. Clear."
"Thank you Pietro," Magneto patted his son on the shoulder. He looked at the members of his newly formed Brotherhood; Toad, Omega Red, Scarlet Witch and newest recruit Jason Wyngarde. "We face a threat to our planet, a threat that could turn humanity against mutants. His name is Charles Xavier. I have asked you all to stand with me to face this madman. It will not be easy nor very glamorous but it will benefit everyone, human and mutant alike."
"I have responsibilities in my own country," Omega Red said "But I will be honoured to stand with you when I am able. I am potentially on a task force to go to Wakanda."
"Africa, the dark continent!" Toad hissed as he tried to lighten the mood. "Full of lions and tigers and bears oh my!"
"You are an idiot Mortimer," The Scarlet Witch said turning her nose up.
"But oh so versatile, my dearest Wanda!" His prehensile tongue shot out provocatively. Suddenly there was a flash of green and white and Toad's head slammed into the table. The amphibian hero looked around to see Quicksilver scowling at him.
"Charles and his X-Men are heading to Europe, more than likely the UK, to get more mutant growth hormone," Jason told the group. "I know this because I've been inside MI6 and the KGB checking the Intel I got from HYDRA."
"You have not been inside KGB!" Omega Red scoffed so hard you could almost see the disbelief.
Jason smiled and activated his power and leant in towards the Russian superhero and whispered "When I look like the President, Arkady Rossovich, I can find out anything."
Omega Red's white face went paler as he looked deeply at Vladimir Putin sitting next to him. Jason slowly turned back into himself. "It wasn't easy by any means but I can get in most anywhere. HYDRA is almost like walking through the park."
--
"Okay big man," Taskmaster said as he circled Rhino. "From what I can work out is that you're invulnerable, seriously strong judging by the holes in the floor and wall but you have all the finesse of a loose firehose."
Rhino slammed his fists down but Taskmaster easily backflipped out of the way.
"See!" Taskmaster pointed to the hole in the floor. "Look at the mess you're making. I'd tell you to fight smarter but..."
"SHUT UP!" Rhino roared as he lashed out again as Taskmaster ducked under the massive arm and right under him.
"You have amazing stamina," Taskmaster complimented as he curled his legs up and pushed Rhino's lower back causing him to follow the momentum of his fist and fall over with an almighty whump. "But that's about it."
He looked at the beaten members of the Spectacular Six lying panting and bruised on the floor. "Get up and let's go again!"
To be continued...
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