MV1 July Year Four
Timelost, Part One
Written by Barry Reese
Champions Lineup : Black Widow, Ant-Man, Flash, Firebird, Diamondback, Hercules, Batroc and Cerberus
Note : This issue is written in honor of the tremendous work done by Mark Beaulieu, who made the Champions into something more than just another supehero team.
PROLOGUE
He first strode the Earth in the days of Pharaoh Rama-Tut and En Saba Nur, when the world was a smaller place. Now, as the 21st Century beckons, he rises from his tomb, walking unsteadily on limbs unused to movement. His eyes are sunken and hollow, but they burn with a fiery spirit that will never be extinguished. As he stumbles towards the stone doorway which has held him prisoner during these long years, his mind races over the last days of his previous life -- the betrayals and the punishments that followed. He'd been mummified alive, kept in constant awareness of his situation through black magicks so vile that he shuddered to think of them.
A long, rattling moan escaped his lips as he pressed against the stone slab. He could hear digging and scraping on the other side, as well as muffled voices speaking in an unfamiliar tongue. With a start, he stumbled back as a pick-axe poked through the wall, sending a small stream of sunlight into the tomb. He reached out a hand to feel the sun's golden rays and he drew back his thin lips in a smile.
<Soon I will be free...and my work can continue as it should. The world will know the glory and the wisdom of the Sisters of Synchronicity... and all the unbelievers will burn in judgment!*>
(*Translated from the ancient Egyptian tongue.)
On the other side of the slab, a small group of men worked feverishly. They wore dark robes, emblazoned with blood-red sigils. Their faces were hidden beneath their hoods, but a slow chant spread among them. The words were ancient and unclear, but their meaning was clear enough from the droning insistence of their voices -- it was a prayer. A prayer of awakening and revitalization. It was a prayer of summoning.
And, all too soon for an unsuspecting world, their God would be answering.
Outside Space and Time
"Where in zee heck are we?!" Batroc the Leaper stared, with his fellow Champions, into a shifting kaleidoscope of images and sounds. Some of the shapes which floated out the void of Limbo were recognizable, but others seemed taken from a slew of bad Grade-B films.
The Champions -- Batroc, Ant-Man, Diamondback, Firebird, Flash, Hercules, Black Widow, and their constant companion, the three-headed dog Cerberus -- were standing in a transparent sphere, being buffeted about by the turmoil of the timestream. Eidolon of the Masters of Evil had sent them spiraling towards the Negative Zone*, but when the Flash disrupted the complex machine's operation, they had ended up here instead. Wherever "here" was...
(*Last issue.)
"I think we're in-between realities. I've had a bit of experience with this sort of thing." Barry Allen, known as the Flash on numerous worlds in the multiverse, reached out a hand to slowly map out the size and shape of their sphere. The scientist in him was very curious about all of this. "The bigger question is how and why we're protected like this. I doubt that Eidolon's group wanted to help us in anyway -- so why aren't we spiraling out in the void, unprotected?"
"Perhaps it was divine intervention," Bonita murmured, stroking behind the ears on one of Cerberus's heads.
"I doubt zat. Zis is probably zee work of some earthly being, but whom?" Batroc stroked his moustache and arched his eyebrow dramatically.
Hercules smashed a fist into his palm. "I know not, but truly -- he who is behind this most nefarious plot shall feel my Princely gift!"
The Black Widow pointed. "I think we're about to find out who's behind all this. Look!"
Floating in the midst of the madness was a figure cloaked in red. His face was hidden but his hands and feet could be seen. They were bare and definitely human. The figure raised a hand, as if in greeting, before speaking. His voice echoed through the small sphere. "My friends... It's good to see you again. I only wish we had longer to talk."
Tasha blinked. "Friends? I don't think I recognize you, stranger -- Who are you?"
"Once you knew me by another name, Widow... but now and forever more I am only Aeon."
Ant-Man squinted. Something about this Aeon seemed terribly familiar, yet he couldn't quite place him. He turned and saw that each of his teammates was experiencing the same sense of deja vu. He whispered to Diamondback, "I think he's telling the truth -- I do know him!"
Rachel Leighton nodded, swallowing hard. She'd seen some strange things over the years, both at Captain America's side and with the Champions, but this was one of the strangest. There were times she definitely felt out of place amongst demi-gods and Avengers. "Me too, Scott. But I'll be darned if I can figure out from where."
"I wish we had longer to talk, Champions, but we don't. Everything that's happening now is in my past and it's my solemn duty to make sure that it plays out like it should. You won't be going home just yet, I'm afraid."
"Where are we going, then?" Tasha clenched her fists together in silent fury, waiting for the answer. Somehow, she knew beyond a doubt that she wouldn't like it.
"Your first destination is far in your past. From there, you shall have a trip to the future -- and then, if you are successful, you shall return home and my reality will be saved. Fail, and a world will die with you."
"Zis fellow -- he is very cheerful, no?" Batroc rolled his eyes.
The Widow pressed her hands against the sphere. "But surely you can give us more to go on than that! What are we trying to accomplish?"
"I'm sorry, Natasha, that I can't give you more to go on. I really am."
A wave of Aeon's hand silenced further debate. The Champions shimmered out of view, leaving only Aeon in the void. A single sigh escaped his lips. "That was harder than I expected... seeing them so alive again. I wish I could undo all this, guys, I do. But I can't... and I only hope you'll forgive me!"
Back on Earth, Modern Day
Machete and Zaran stared at the newspaper headline in disbelief. CHAMPIONS FEARED LOST AFTER BATTLE WITH MASTERS OF EVIL, the article blared. "That iz eet? They are dead?!"
Zaran shook his head. "I don't think so. Batroc has survived worse."
Machete banged his head on the table. "But... eet says here that zee the Mastairs of Evil think zay are dead! What if they are right?"
Zaran placed a hand on Machete's shoulder. "Look, kid, trust me. Nobody stays dead in the superhero business. Nobody."
Machete glanced up, a smile starting to spread on his face. "Zounds! I have seen zee light! We do not need to reform Batroc's Brigade* at all! In zee Champions' absence, there iz only one thing to do!"
(*As they tried to do last issue.)
Zaran looked worried. "Oh, no..."
"Oh, yes! We shall form our own all-new, all-different Champions in the interim! And zen, when zay return, we shall join their ranks!"
Zaran's mouth gaped open. "It is worse than I thought...."
Still on Earth, but in the Past
The Champions recognized their surroundings immediately. "The Washington Monument? Aeon sent us to Washington, DC?"
Tasha nodded. "Looks like that way, Flash."
Firebird frowned, her delicate features showing her concern. "Why is everyone looking at us that way?"
The group glanced over at a group of tourists, all of whom were pointing and staring at the assembled heroes. Someone pulled out an old camera and took their picture.
The men and women in the tourism group were dressed in rather old-fashioned attire, with most of the men in suits and all of the women in dresses or skirts. Most of the young men had extremely short hair cuts and one of the boys in the crowd murmured, "Gosh! Look at what those ladies are wearin'!"
Diamondback placed a hand on the diamonds she wore at her waist. "Um, guys, does anyone else think we might have stumbled into an episode of Leave it to Beaver?"
Batroc looked alarmed. "Zee Beaver Grendel*?!"
(*See Champions # 35.)
Flash shook his head. "No! She means like the old television show! I think you might have a point, Diamondback -- Aeon said we were going to the past. We must be in the 1950s."
The Black Widow looked thoughtful. "This could be difficult. There was a real lull in superhero activity after the war -- I'm not sure if there's anyone here who can help us. If we were here later, we could contact the Avengers but --"
A familiar-looking shield suddenly slammed into Ant-Man, knocking him to the ground. The shield ricocheted back into the hands of a man all knew as the Sentinel of Liberty -- Captain America! "If it's Avengers you want, Russkie, it's Avengers you'll get!"
Beside him, a younger man dressed in the equally familiar costume of Bucky looked on with glee. "You tell her, Cap! Can you believe it -- Russians right here next to the Monument!"
Diamondback took a step back in shock. "Steve....?" she murmured under her breath, unsure for a moment if the man before her was really Steve Rogers, her former lover.
Firebird knelt to examine the groaning Ant-Man, flames beginning to spread from her body. "Scott is badly hurt! Why did Captain America do that?"
The Black Widow gritted her teeth. "Because, if I remember the stories Cap's told me before, that isn't the Captain America we know!"
The Flash rocketed forward, "Well, whoever he is, he's not going to hurt anyone else!" The Scarlet Speedster delivered a series of powerful blows to Captain America's midsection, sending the star-spangled Avenger to his knees.
Bucky screamed, "Cap! What's going on?!" The young man could only watch in mute horror as a scarlet blur circled his mentor. He crouched down, preparing him for a leap. As soon as the Flash slowed down enough to make himself visible, Bucky jumped. He grabbed hold of the Flash throat and began to pummel him. "You lousy Red! Did the Kremlin send you here to kill Cap?! Or the President?!"
Captain America steeled himself as he stood. "The Commies will have to do better than that, son. Because Captain America and Bucky never lose!" The mighty shield flew once more towards the Champions, only to be plucked out of the air by Hercules.
The demi-god held the Shield for a long moment, glaring at the faux-Captain America with a cold fury in his eyes. "Thine actions are an offense to the man whose garb you wear!"
The Flash, meanwhile, had vibrated out of Bucky's grip and quickly trussed him up with rope from a nearby construction yard. "You tell him, Herc!"
Captain America clenched his fists together. "You might have my shield, but you won't stop me from pounding you and your Russian girlfriend all the way back to Russia! What kind of group are you, anyway? You sound Greek, the Redhead's a Russian, the speedster wears red, and the fire-girl is some sort of Mexican!"
The Black Widow used her widow's bite to zap Captain America. "You're vile and disgusting! I can see now why Cap spoke of you the way he did!"
Batroc leaped into the fray, delivering a sound kick to Captain America's head. The two men staggered away from one another, preparing for another punch.
A blinding flash of light suddenly brought a halt to the raging combat. When the heroes' vision began to clear, they saw that Captain America was no longer alone. Bucky grinned from his position on the ground. "All right! Now you Commies are gonna get it -- the rest of the Avengers are here!"
Standing before the Champions were the greatest heroes of their day -- Marvel Boy, the Human Robot, Venus and 3-D Man. Marvel Boy spoke first. "I don't know who you folks are, but I'm afraid you're going to have to answer a few questions before you can leave."
Captain America growled. "No questions! I think it's pretty obvious what they want -- they attacked Bucky and I!"
The Black Widow stepped forward. "Actually, Captain, you attacked us! As for who we are, we're the Champions! The more important question is -- who do you think you are, calling yourselves Avengers?!"
"And why is a Goddess like Venus amongst you?!" Hercules pondered.
NEXT ISSUE : The 1958 Avengers and the Champions try to uncover exactly why our intrepid band of heroes is in this particular era! Plus : Machete and Zaran begin recruiting the new Champions! It's gonna be fun, fun, fun!
Author's Notes
Hi there. Some of you oldtimers are probably surprised to find me here. When I left MV1 (almost a year ago), I swore never to return and I meant it. But both MV1 and myself have changed a lot since then. MV1 is currently undergoing a tremendous renaissance and I'm proud to do my small part in helping that process.
It's recently become a trend at MV1 to brush away a good bit of your predecessor's work on a series, in order to make it more "your own." There's nothing wrong with that, but it's not the way I'm going to handle things here. I'm going to keep the lineup that Baloo left us with, at least for awhile, and I'm going to pick up on some semi-dangling plot threads, as well. I hope to make the transition from Baloo to Barry as painless as possible.
This is Baloo's book. It always will be. He defined it and he made it special. If he wants to take it back, I'll give it to him in a heartbeat - but until that day comes, I'll keep the seat warm. I can't promise the same kind of yucks that Baloo excelled at -- I'm not that kind of writer and I won't pretend to be. What I will promise you, though, are a lot of high-adventure stories with an emphasis on characterization. In that way, I hope, I'll follow Baloo's example. Longtime readers of mine know that I love subplots and you saw one or two start off in this very issue. The Aeon mystery will weave through the book right up through issue # 50, when it come to a climax. The "new" Champions should be around for a few issues, as well. And that mysterious guy in the prologue will be giving the Champs a few nightmares in future issues.
Starting my tenure off with the team bouncing through time helps me get my feet wet with both the characters and MV1 continuity before I bring them back to the modern day (and to the sometimes complex MV1 continuity). I think you'll be pleasantly surprised where the team goes after their stint in 1958 (special thanks, by the way, to Bob Gansler for the loan of his wonderful characters. Be sure to check out his own series for more!).
I hope you'll let me know how I'm doing. It's good to be back.
Thanks,
Barry Reese
You can reach me at aric_dacia@yahoo.com