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MS. MARVEL #39 |
| THE
APOTHEOSIS
CHAPTER
ONE: WAKE-UP CALL
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| CAST:
MS. MARVEL (Carol
Danvers):
IRON MAN (Tony
Stark):
VELVET:
PARAMOUR:
THE SCARLET WITCH
(Wanda Maximoff):
DR. JANE FOSTER:
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MS. MARVEL #39 |
| THE
APOTHEOSIS
CHAPTER
ONE: WAKE-UP CALL
|
||
| CAST:
MS. MARVEL (Carol
Danvers):
IRON MAN (Tony
Stark):
VELVET:
PARAMOUR:
THE SCARLET WITCH
(Wanda Maximoff):
DR. JANE FOSTER:
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1. Breakfast Disaster
Carol Danvers was very happy to be typing away at her laptop computer, a normal activity that helped distance her from things that had been occurring in her life recently. A number of events and disappointments had been going sour; the new job offer from Seattle had proven to be her saving grace. Upon accepting the job, her problems began disappearing, starting with the man in her life. She had written a "dear John" note to her ex-lover, a man of legendary stature who turned out to be just that, a normal insecure man. Then she gladly tendered her resignation at an unsatisfying job with New York City's Daily Bugle, subsequently giving her least favorite publisher, J. Jonah Jameson, "a piece of her mind". Now, two weeks later, she was in her new, easily obtained apartment in Seattle, typing out an editorial for The Seattle Post-Intelligencer, delighted to find herself immersed in a completely new environment away from the disappointments she had found in The Big Apple.
The words she typed came forth with unnatural rapidity onto the paper, punctuated by the hyper-fast cascading of the the keys- the sound was like that of a small drill. This was because Carol possessed extra-terrestrial superhuman speed and reflexes gained through a fantastic accident so many years before. Carol had always thought these strange superhuman abilities could be used for things other than vigilantism, and she was proving that now by typing, she thought to herself with mirth.
A few events marred her new-found contentment though. One was the recent disappearance of a friend, Jeanne-Marie Beaubier alias the superhumanly fast Aurora. Carol had made forays across the country to New York and contacted these organizations concerning the matter: her former team-mates in the U.S. government sanctioned metahuman team the Avengers, Beaubier's team-mates the Canadian superhuman peace-keeping force Alpha Flight, the multi-national security agency SHEILD, the RCMP, the FBI, Interpol, even the NSA. Not one clue had come-up. Even their mutual friend Tigra, a bizarre superhuman woman possessing animal senses who had been in the company of Carol and Jeanne-Marie just before the disappearance, didn't have a lead on where Jeanne-Marie might be. This disturbed Carol so greatly that she had nearly exhausted herself in flight a few days ago (Carol could fly under her own power... unaided!). Still she found nothing; there was no telling what might have happened to her friend at that point. Her and Jeanne-Marie's calling was a particularly dangerous one and murderous enemies of equal or greater power were everywhere.
Another incidence disturbed her at the moment. A fortnight ago she had received a strange anonymous package in the mail containing a small, plain black box made out of some sort of obsidian mineral. What truly bothered her was that she could not focus on the contents of the package at all. What was within could not be discerned, nor could she bring herself to place her hands within box, harm the box and it's contents, or even tell anybody else about it! Carol was sure that mind-control of some sort was involved, possibly a post-hypnotic suggestion placed on her by one of her various enemies. Danvers would investigate this additional problem further when the freelance writing job, that she happened to place great value on, was finished. Carol had put the small box in a personal safe she had recently purchased, awaiting her future attempt at conquering the bizarre phenomenon.
On top of everything else, a former "boyfriend", reporter Frank Gianelli, had turned out to be dead plus a strange duo of assassins named "Paramour" and "Velvet" sought to kill her for no apparent reason other than her status as a superhumanly powered vigilante. This all culminated with Carol, in her alternate identity, Ms. Marvel, flying to Texas where Gianelli was reported last seen only to come-up clueless; witness to the goings-on at a hitherto unknown military experiment station . The base where the undisclosed scientific studies took place was placed off limits to all by the commanding officer General Kint. She did wish to find out why a- what could only be described as- monster had attacked her and an associate, the Native American adventurer Red Wolf, during that time. As military personnel took away the mutated creature she and Red Wolf had defeated, Red Wolf was told to keep quiet by the general, as Carol quietly backed away from the scene. She was an expert at military protocol being a retired Air Force Colonel herself and she knew how impossible it would be to breach military procedure, this would have to be investigated "black ops". Subsequent self-powered flights over the area proved to unearth nothing but a steady stream of military transports and one warning round fired her way when she got too close to radar detection. She would be back, something was going on there and Ms. Marvel felt it was her duty to get to the bottom of it.
As anyone could see, Carol Danvers was a busy woman; kept active by a life fraught with bizarre occurrences and perils. Her "hobby", one that she shared with a very small, select segment of Earth's population was a unique one indeed: she was a "superhero".
Yet, the past two weeks made her feel increasingly useless as a superhero (also known as "metahuman"). Having kept her superheroine uniform off for several days made Carol also wonder at the nature and self-indulgence of the whole thing, thoughts which had occurred to her many times before. Ever since the early ninteen-forties a small percentage of human beings had discovered that under certain conditions they mutated and gained strange abilities far and above those of their fellow humans. Some people, it turned out were also being born with metahuman traits and these folks were termed "mutants", or "homo superior" because they constituted the next evolutionary step from humanity, homo sapiens. Why all this was occurring had been the life study of a number of scientists since then, but what Carol did know was that most people who gained metahuman abilities usually fell into two fairly nebulous categories, those who used their powers for personal gain and even more sinister objectives- the "supervillians" of the world, and those who chose to help others, whether altruistically or otherwise- the superheroes. There was, of course, a "gray area" because not too many people were either truly good or absolutely evil, and thank goodness for that, she thought, because the mayhem in the world would be intolerable to the vast majority of normal human beings otherwise. Many metahumans possessed devastatingly destructive and murderous paranormal powers, some possessed abilities to level whole cities single-handedly! Add to this the reality that aliens, demons, gods, other dimensions, sorcerers, androids, monsters, ultra-scientific wonders and super-powered plumbers really did exist and you had a seemingly normal Planet Earth possessing a very strange and dangerous undercurrent. In fact a reporter had termed the times "The Age of Marvels", although Ms. "Marvel" didn't feel quite so marvelous at this time with the unsolved mystery in Texas and Jeanne-Marie Beaubier's disappearance looming over her.
Never the less, she was content to wait for any news of Jeanne-Marie and finish writing her article- ironically about women's personal security issues- due two days from then, leaving the problems with Texas, her missing friend and the enigma of the package in her apartment on the "back-burner". Sometime around midnight, after the rough draft was finished and drowsiness began overcoming her senses, she retired for the evening with a few more drinks. Carol had taken up the pleasant pursuit of drinking fine whiskeys and bourbons recently and found that accelerating their use stimulated her desire to write the "edgy" editorials she was famous for. The alcohol relaxed her and gave a barrier between her and the world: a world- a life- that had put her through the kinds of changes that could have crushed anybody's spirits... but not Carol Danver's! She had the power to hurl Mac trucks through the air, fly at super-sonic speeds, have bullets shatter on her very skin and could shoot bolts of pure destructive force from her hands. Why couldn't she handle anything that came her way, as she'd done so many times before? The alcohol was just a diversion, after all she had earned her pleasures hadn't she?
Curiously though the next morning, the effects of an excellent single-barreled bourbon still cascading through her body, Carol did wake-up feeling quite different from her usual self. She felt undue weakness.
Getting out of bed made her limbs heavy as she rose stiff and groggy, going to the chest of drawers where she kept a bottle of Johnny Walker Black. She poured herself a mid-morning scotch, "Today's a day for that special breakfast," she thought with grim humor. Downing the first she had another, almost immediately feeling the numbing effects. This feeling of weakness bothered Carol so greatly that she slammed her fists into the wall in a fit of rage... and felt great pain. She tried again and there was no effect but a horrible ache on her knuckles. Solid plaster wall stood where she should have punched a hole clear through it.
"What's wrong with me?", she thought wheeling about and walking out onto her balcony the tiles scraping her bare feet. The cold November wind stung her flesh and the whole world seemed a Universe of sensation and pain; the morning sun almost blinded her. Confusion ruled her mind as she felt what seemed like a thousand different emotions flooded it. A cacophony of noise screaming in her ears and brain, she began to move about in a dazed, her actions like those of an automaton.
Grasping the railing of the balcony that overlooked downtown Seattle, she painfully swung her body onto the foot-wide railing and launched her self into the air, arms pointed forward, body taut as if she were attempting to fly. Which she was attempting, because she had been doing the impossible, flying for what seemed like half her life. That condition was apparently over, though.
She began dropping like a stone to the pavement, 41 stories down!
She thought through her tears, "No powers!" then a terrible coldness and, "Maybe it's better this way..."
Before her life could pass before her eyes though, yellow iron-clad arms and a rushing wind caught her sideways and she found herself back on her patio facing the shining gold and red clad figure of the hero Iron Man, who in "civilian" identity was Tony Stark, multimillionaire technologist and a close personal friend.
Knowing that the patio was enclosed and private, Tony released the face-plate that served as his mask, "Carol! What are you doing there, trying to see how the other half lives?", he said with a wry smile on his mustachioed face, "Not that the fall would have hurt Ms. Marvel that bad. Luckily, I was coming to our breakfast date in my armor, because I heard..."
Hysterically Carol interrupted, "That fall would have killed me! You don't understand! I have no super powers anymore, they're completely gone!", with this she raked at the flesh on her bare left arm, drawing blood where the day before her skin wouldn't have been scratched, "You see? What... I... I..."
Tony Stark could only stare at her, heartbroken; he had few words. Recently he'd been concerned about what he could detect as alcoholism in her- a condition that he himself was afflicted with. Maybe he could have helped her to come to grips with that disease, as well as the many startling and bizarre turns in her life, but now this? "Carol, I'm sorry, you..."
"No Tony don't be sorry, please", she regained some of her composure, "Thank you for saving me like that. I... I...", with this she broke-down in tears again and collapsed in his arms.
Tony held her there, comforting his tragedy bestricken friend for a long time, wondering when Carol would finally find some peace and contentment: he really worried about her. The fact that she stank of scotch made him only feel worse.
2. Greasy Spoon Milestone
Later that morning, Carol Danvers and Tony Stark had breakfast at a small nearby diner; it was as Carol put it a "greasy spoon, but a great greasy spoon!" Stark found the atmosphere of the place oddly charming and the meal wholesome and fulfilling on this chilly bleak November day. They were chatting over coffee, when Carol suddenly revealed that she had come to grips with her complete loss of super powers. It seemed to represent a "milestone" of sorts, a distancing from her, at times, disastrous career as a superhero- one of those metahumanly powered or athletically gifted individuals who found a calling in protecting life, limb and the planet, whether as agents of some government, or as, for want of a better word, vigilantes, who operated outside the legal system. In fact, she said with a broad and very genuine grin, she reveled in it because something had occurred within her mind from this condition: a feeling of attachment! For quite a while Carol had found a hollowness within herself, stemming from the psychic effects of the superhuman energy drain from the mutant, Rogue which had occurred a few years back. This had begun an alarming series of "ups and downs" in her life, from an extra-dimensional rape (for want of a better term) to gaining god-like power to traveling the universe and seeing unimaginable sights to today's apparent complete loss of power- all had occurred to Carol within the span of a few years. With her lost superpowers she had regained her humanity; felt life course through her, rather than life being a course of events. Tony was very glad for her in this respect.
He had only one concern at this point, and that was her earlier desire to have a mid-morning drink, which she had exhibited at her apartment. Somehow, he convinced her to postpone that drink, and in fact, as they conversed, Tony was formulating an entire day of activity for them that would steer her away from the bottle. He would have to cancel all of his business that day, but anything for a friend was one of his creeds and Tony Stark was, above all, a man of integrity, and concern. Great concern for his good friend who was going through a painful "disease", an addiction to a substance readily available and terribly destructive to mind, body and spirit. Tony thought about how the effects of alcohol would be on her now completely human physiology. After all, he couldn't be around her all the time and she would have another drink at some point in the future. Maybe Henry Pym or Dr. Jane Foster could run some tests at the Avenger's Mansion...
"Tony! Tony! Earth to Tony!", Carol's voice brought Tony out of reverie, "Have you even heard a word of what I've said?"
"Yeah, yeah," to which he corrected himself, "No Carol, I haven't. Got a lot on my mind." Before she could vocally express the frown that was crossing her face he brought in, "Look, you're new here to Seattle, so I want to give an East Coast girl Tony's personal tour of the wonders of the Pacific Northwest, starting right now! What do you say?"
A flood of emotion filled Carol's body as she heard this, she got up and embraced Tony as he sat there. "That would be so great," she said, sitting back down.
"I have one thing to ask of you though," Tony said.
"Yes," a glint in her eyes to match his.
"That we see a Dr. Jane Foster concerning your new status as a human being."
"And why may I ask?"
"Because there's no reason to take risks with your health. Also, it wouldn't hurt to find out exactly why your powers disappeared so suddenly."
"OK. then, but here's my condition mister," she said with a mixture of stern and playfulness, "That we begin this tour of the Pacific Northwest immediately after my trip to the doctors!"
"It's a deal... soldier!" he returned with mirth.
Carol Danvers thought that something wonderful and new was beginning, and with the flood of emotions, felt like she was waking-up from a long slumber. Tears of joy welled in her eyes as she clasped Tony Stark's hands.
3. 'Cosmic' Mistake
Carol and Tony had taken the long way to Stark's branch office in Seattle, enjoying his Fiat and a drive through Discovery Park, followed by a stop at Shilshole Marina to enjoy the sights. Tony was very glad that Carol hadn't requested to stop for a drink, although he could tell by her increasingly moody behavior that she was "hungry" for alcohol. As they made way towards the airport, Stark phoned for any possible flights to New York City. There was one leaving very soon, so they both boarded that one post-haste, obtaining a first-class seating.
On the flight, Tony had to remind her that she was about to undergo a physical examination, so it wasn't a good idea to drink alcohol. This angered her and she raised her voice, starting a small argument, Finally she conceded to the logic of the situation though and didn't order a drink. She sat the rest of the flight out either in brooding silence or fitful slumber. For a few seconds, Tony gazed over at her form- supple, strong curvaceous body and lovely expressive face topped by voluminous straight golden hair- concern, and yes, desire burning within his mind. Then he unfolded his laptop computer and set to completing some programming notes for the new software package that he was working on.
Not one medical concern, of the tests that were conclusive before lab-work, was to be found from the physical examination Dr. Foster took of Carol. The diagnosis: Carol was an extremely fit woman in her early thirties with hardly any medical problems at all. Even her alcohol problem hadn't taken any sort of toll on her body. Still Dr. Foster cautioned Carol and recommended professional help or Alcoholics Anonymous for the problem, but as Carol feistily began protesting against the intervention, Dr. Foster interrupted deftly changing the subject.
"What's strange Carol..." said Foster, "What should be ascertained from the preliminary tests is the presence of a radically different genetic make-up that occurred from the accident that originally made you Ms. Marvel. It was a very traumatic event, as well you know, it fused Kree and Human genetic material within the entire of your cellular make-up, something which I would think impossible had it not actually happened. Essentially you became a new lifeform, a Kree/Human hybrid with the additional mutative phenome that made your cellular mitochondria able to store vast amounts of energy giving you those powers similar to the original Captain Marvel, but you already know that. You see, there should be the presence of something, trace altered DNA, additional cellular material... anything. But that's not the case: there's none of Ms. Marvel in you, Carol, at least from what I can tell now. The deeper results won't be back for another week and they may give us further insight into what's happened, like why this has happened to you, for one thing."
Carol immediately responded, "Jane if there's not a single trait of Ms. Marvel or Binary in me anymore, that's just fine! All of what happened between me, Captain Mar-Vell, those aliens the Kree and that machine the Psyche-Magnitron was a vast, if you will, 'cosmic' mistake and I'm so glad to be a full-fledged human being again... I..."
As Carol choked on her emotions, Dr. Foster clasped hands with her smiling, "Then I'm glad I could bring you the news Carol. Welcome back to the human race."
4. Reflections and Conversation
Carol Danvers once again found her life turned around. Years earlier, the superhuman mutant Rogue had used her power of energy-absorption to temporarily drain Carol of her Ms. Marvel powers during a fight. This had backfired though, and Carol had been drained of all of her abilities, even her very memories! Why this had happened was never explained for Rogue had never done this to anybody else, in fact it was thought she was incapable of permanently draining a person's energy. Carol had become human again, with no metahuman powers for a while only to find them slowly returning. What made the attack so damaging though was the near total loss of all of Carol's memories. Rehabilitation brought some of the memories back but the ordeal had left Carol with an ongoing sense of emptiness that haunted her throughout the years, not to mention the feelings of anger and vicimization. Much had happened since then though: she became pregnant with the implant of the formerly human Keeper of Time Immortus, she had acquired god-like powers herself and become the being known as Binary who lived in outer space for a time, a reckoning with Rogue including a shaky forgiveness had taken place, she had given up those Binary powers when she realized they were consuming the life-force of an alternate reality dooming her and millions of lives in the process, and now she was back to being a normal unpowered human with no explainable reason why. She truly wanted to forget it all and put her past far behind her; at this point she hoped to never see another "superhero suit" in her life!
Carol lost herself within the job as a freelance magazine writer over the next few weeks in the effort to distance herself. Danvers had contacted various authorities about Jeanne-Marie's disappearance, including the Avengers and possibly her best friend in the world Logan, the man known as the Wolverine, a member of the "outlaw" team of mutants known as the X-Men. Carol also let her associates know about the installation in Texas as well as the strange assassin duo who were after her life. Talking to another friend, Wanda Maximoff, code-named the Scarlet Witch the current Avengers chairperson about these matters, Wanda suggested that Carol try to return to Avenger's active duty. After all, despite having no metahuman abilities, Carol still possessed military and espionage training; she still had the physique and conditioning of an Olympic athlete. In fact, Carol's ex-lover the man known as Captain America, also a member of the Avengers, possessed no extraordinary powers other than superb skill and conditioning. Yet, because of Carol's desire to distance herself from a calling that she felt she had failed at, and the unspoken desire to be as far away from Captain America- whose real name was Steve Rogers- as possible. She turned down Wanda's offer.
"I'm logging these reports you're giving me onto our computer files Carol," her lilting Slavic-accented voice paused, then, "I wish you'd reconsider my offer Carol, but it sounds like you'd be happier otherwise."
"That's right, I would be happier otherwise", snapped Carol, quickly correcting herself, "I'm sorry Wanda, I don't mean to be so snippy. It's just... well... I feel that all the disappointments are behind me; I'm glad to be living a life of relative normalcy again. It's really better this way, I'm honored that you'd ask me back though Wanda."
"It's Steve isn't it?"
"Yeah, that's the real problem!", with this both women laughed. Steve had phoned her two times yet Carol had not been home for either call. She hadn't bothered calling him back.
The two chatted for a while over lighter matters after which Carol assured Wanda that she was secure against whatever enemies, especially the hitherto unidentified female assassins, who could find opportunity to attack her. Carol told her everything was taken care of, Tony Stark was not on Avenger's active duty at that time, so he was present at his home in Seattle, meaning that Iron Man watched over the city. Besides, Carol was still a formidable opponent herself and the assassins didn't seem to be superhuman. An hour later, the two exchanged good-byes, with Carol promising to visit before breaking the connection.
That night, Tony came to visit socially, for the two were becoming fairly close friends. Soon after he had shown up though, a distraught Carol had acted in a manner that may have put a strain on their bond. Tony had addressed the issue of her drinking, suggesting that she join Alcoholics Anonymous. Carol, already a bit drunk, violently disagreed and demanded that Tony immediately leave throwing an empty wine bottle at him but missing. Tony stormed out of the apartment, angry at her irrationality, leaving Carol feeling empty and spent collapsing upon her sofa to sleep it off.
5. Evil in Norway
In Trondheim, Norway, the air of winter hangs heavy and cold throughout autumn, the twilight assuming a strange, ruddy unearthly pallor, like a barely tangible mist of pure cold settling under the cyclopean walls of mountains that seem to surround all of eternity. Within the central chamber of a ramshackle stone building on the edge of the small logging village, a gigantic dark man gazed into the scrying pool that had been built into the dusty floor.
"Come my dear assassins, I seem to have located your sweet Ms. Marvel," with sinister mirth, in an unearthly language, rumbled the basso voice of the sprawling powerful figure, as he grasped a goblet of blood-red wine resting at the edge of his makeshift throne.
From a chamber elsewhere in the building, two women came forth, both tread the ground without a sound and both were wearing brief skin-tight garments in defiance of the bitter cold that the small fire at the chamber's far end did little to stave-off. The two women moved with the ease and deadly assurance of panthers.
"There she is little Velvet," said the slightly larger woman in a voice like that of a serpent as she stared into the pool, "Do we have your permission master," she said to the gigantic man.
"Yes, there will be no need for Velvet's services for a while," he said gesturing towards the slighter woman. Velvet's hair was cropped short in contrast to the long tresses of her apparent mistress. "You though, Paramour, must stay for I have need of your services."
As Paramour turned to protest, the dark man rose to towering height. "I read your thoughts before they flowed from your lips woman! You would do well to curb any such arrogance at this time. I have spoken!" Slamming his goblet down, the man strode from the chamber leaving the two women to their dark thoughts and intrigues.
6. The Balcony View
A few days later, Carol came home to find a message on her answering machine, "Carol, this is Jane Foster. Your tests came in and I'm going to need you to come back in for more testing. Nothing alarming but, well... you may not yet be as fully human as we thought. In fact call my secretary in the morning and schedule an appointment again at you leisure. Ask for me afterwards, I'd like to talk."
"Figures," thought Carol, "That damned exploding machine's going to haunt me for he rest of my life."
In the back of her mind though, it wasn't the Psyche-Magnitron that haunted her but the man whose cellular imprint had originally changed her permanently: the alien Mar-Vell, otherwise known as Captain Marvel, a warrior of the Kree, a humanoid race from a distant galaxy. Gaining her superhuman powers from him had not been the only intimate encounter with Mar-Vell though. At the time she was the security director for NASA, but from the first day she had discovered the strange man's secret she had began falling in love with him. She rejected this at first, of course, Carol was too hard-headed and dedicated to her duties; it was ridiculous to think she could have feelings for an alien albeit a very human-looking alien. She had spent too much time with him though, went through too many bizarre adventures, and had seen too far into the nature of his spirit. Eventually they had consummated, for he felt the same for her. This she had never told anybody. Then he was gone, off on another round of his strange duties as "Protector of the Universe" and she went back to her own lonely martial tasks. After a few years, Mar-Vell returned only to have him and her to both be caught in the waves of the exploding Psyche-Magnitron during an encounter with a deadly enemy.
"Some last date," thought Carol, through a few tears.
The footnote to Mar-Vell's life now occured to her. The indomitable alien warrior who had been celebrated by all the sentient beings he defended, Mar-Vell of the Kree, had succumbed to the one enemy that he couldn't defeat: cancer.
She spent the rest of the night savoring the contents of a bottle of 10-year old brandy, reading and musing on the now visible contents of her box. About a week ago, Carol had opened the strange box again only to that she could now see what was in it: a beautiful, pale glowing crystal. Every night since, then she had taken the 6 inch long, slightly glowing jewel out of it's box and studied it while having her evening cocktails. It fascinated her for some reason; she had yet to tell anybody about it. The crystal seemed to give her great comfort and she could find no reason for that, other than it's beauty and apparent worth.
"Man, I hope I'm not turning into some New-Age flake," she thought with amusement.
Casually putting the crystal back in the box and onto the top of her dresser, Carol strode out onto her balcony into the cold night air, cradling the snifter of brandy.
"All those lights in the city and so many people," she thought looking out at the Seattle skyline, "I wonder if half of them know how often the dangers present on this planet create imminent disaster. Those terrible menaces that lurk directly under their noses. There really was need for me in the past... But no more! Other folks out there can be Earth's Black Watch."
She closed the balcony door behind her and went to bed.
7. The Looking Glass
Carol awoke with a start, and stared into her bedroom. All was apparently normal, except for... that old feeling, or lack of it. The sense of detachment was back and it horrified her! She wanted to cry but no tears formed in her eyes; the room felt like she had entered some Stygian netherworld, a familiar feeling from her adventuring days. Though everything appeared normal, something was very different; she pinched herself to see if she was still asleep. Painfully finding out that she was, Carol made her way to the dresser where a bottle of Johnny Walker Black Label awaited to ease her mind.
After a quick toss-back of the liquor, Carol poured herself a sipping shot and nursed it while staring out the window at the night-time Seattle skyline. The liquor did something to ease her tension, but not enough. How she wished she could jump out the window and fly away over Puget Sound on her own power! Still maybe fresh air would help, she thought, but as she turned the door-handle something caught her eye in the window's reflection. That crystal she had put on the table at the far end of her bedroom had started glowing an eerie bluish-white!
"This is not good," muttered Carol, as she went over to the table.
Five feet away from it, a beam of light broke forth from the crystal. Dropping her drink, Carol jerked back and raised her arms in reflex. The ray of light wasn't coming towards her though but was "aimed" at the mirror on the far-side of her bedroom. It hit the mirror, distorting the reflection of the room and Carol's beautiful visage, creating a formless chaos of dancing waves. Carol couldn't help but stare at the phenomenon, transfixed as the colors coalesced into an image: that of the view from her patio panning downwards along the outside of the building where a female figure, enshrouded in darkness was climbing upwards.
"What are you trying to tell me crystal? Is that someone coming to kill me? Well I could take care of myself before I had powers so I can..." but before she could reach for the revolver she had purchased recently, a figure swiftly took place of the image in the mirror and stepped forth out of that very mirror!
It was that of a man, tall and powerful but hidden in a mist that seemed like that of a field of stars; the figure brought back dim memories for Carol.
The "man" extended one hand towards the mirror and another towards the crystal picking it up in his clasp, then "his" nebulous form seemed to collapse in on itself as a rush of wind ensued back into the mirror! Staring in disbelief Carol saw the abstract image vanish into the mirror and with this a thought came to Carol.
"Through The Looking Glass!" she thought, "The follow-up to Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, where a mirror can act as a portal to another world. It seems creepy, but I've seen parallel dimensions before. Alice was a strong girl and so am I, plus I want that glowing jerk to give me my crystal back! So..."
Without hesitation, Carol grabbed her revolver from the nightstand and dove headlong into the swirling mirror, half-expecting to come blasting through the other side in a rain of shattered glass. She didn't: Carol Jane Danvers, formerly known as Ms. Marvel felt a tremendous ozone-scented downdraft and went "into" the mirror to find herself plummeting "down" a tunnel of sorts into a formless abyss below!
"Here we go again", she thought.
Ten seconds later, the Grellian assassin,
Velvet began cursing, as she stared into the empty apartment with it's
broken "rocks" glass on the floor and it's strangely scorched mirror. Ms.
Marvel, Carol Danvers had eluded her again, but how?
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