Marvel Triple Action #58

By Jimmy O’Brian

MV1 Fanfiction Presents:

"Three’s Company…

Six, A Crowd!"

Featuring:

The Mighty Thor! The Amazing Spider-Man! The Uncanny Beast!

Hours later, Peter wakes up in a pile of rubble, his head aching and knowing that something is horribly wrong…..

"Mary Jane!" he yells as he jumps up, but he realizes that it is too late. Quickly he dons his Spider-Man costume, and as he does so he sees a note on the floor. Picking it up, he reads:

"Dammit….." Peter says, and puts on his mask. Looking once again at the ground, Peter spots the piece of metal that came off of the mind-control device on Namor’s head. Picking it up, he stores it for later use. He knows where he must go, and he must do it quickly. It is still dark outside, luckily, as Spider-Man leaves his apartment and swings as quickly as he can to Avengers Mansion. He is there within three minutes.

"Thor!" Spider-Man yells, as he gets to the mansion and spots Thor outside, working on the repairs needed for the mansion.

"Spider-Man!" Thor replies while turning around and seeing his friend. "I remember thou claiming to be tired, friend. What brings thou here at this hour?"

"Thor…..Namor and the Mad Thinker’s Android somehow found my home…they must’ve followed me there. Namor knocked me out and they took my wife, and left this*!" Spider-Man says as he hands Thor the note. Thor reads it, and grows red with anger and excitement.

"Ah, a challenge! Let us not back down, Spider-Man!" he declares.

(Last issue- Part 2 of! –Jimmy-)

"Sounds good to me Thor, but we need to get Hank first. I managed to get this off of Namor’s headband, too." Spider-Man holds up the piece of metal, apparently a chip of some type, and shows it to Thor.

"Ah, good thinking. We will leave, then."

The two arrive at the X-Mansion in under five minutes, both rushing at their peak. Knowing the way, they avoid the alarms this time and approach the front door.

"I guess we just ring the doorbell…" Spidey says, and does so. No answer. After three more rings and some loud knocking, the door swings open violently and the robed, stocky body of Wolverine is revealed.

"What in th’…..Spidey? Whatcha’ doin’ here, webhead? And this early in th’ mornin’…" he says groggily.

"Sorry, Logan, but we urgently need to see the Beast.

"Well…allright. But I’ll need to have a talk with you and…who else is that with ya, webs? Thor?"

"Yes, Logan. We have not spoken it a while, fellow warrior."

"Yeah…whatever. Come inside, Hank’s room is on the second floor…third door on the left. Don’t wake anyone else up, or you’ll have more’n me to worry about…" Logan says, still mumbling as Thor and Spider-Man swiftly go upstairs to the Beast’s room.

They open the door without knocking and flick on the light. The blue Beast sits up in bed quickly and opens his tired eyes as wide as possible. "My stars and garters!" he exclaims.

"Oh…Spider-Man? Thor? For God’s sake, what are you doing here this early? It’s not even light outside yet."

"I’m sorry, buddy, but there’s a big problem…" Spider-Man says, and tells the Beast about his fight, showing him the note and the microchip from Namor’s headband.

"Oh dear…..oh dear, this will not do. I must study that chip, Spider-Man, if I’m to get this done at all quickly." The Beast says, getting out of bed and walking over to the next room, standing over the lab table.

"Alright, Beast, but how quick can you turn out something that will definitely work?" Spider-Man asks, he and Thor following the Beast into his lab area and giving Beast the chip.

"Well, I’ve already begun working on a device that overrides machinery specifically set to alter bioelectric energy found in the human brain. All I need to know is the set up of the machinery…and now with this chip…" Hank says, and begins to study and work at the same time.

"I do not know what thou dost speak of, Beast, but if the contraption works then all will be well." Thor says.

"Ah, and that’s the trick, isn’t it, my Asgardian friend?" Beast says, still hard at work on his table.

"Basically, Thor, Hank’s making something that over powers machines that change people’s minds." Spidey says, who easily understands the workings of the inventions.

"Enough, webbed one. I still do not grasp the workings of these scientific magicks." Thor states.

"Fine. I’ll just say that whatever Hank comes up with will stop whatever’s making Namor act crazy." Spidey finally simplifies.

"Very good…very good."

After some saudering and more work, the Beast holds up his creationg, and exlaims, "Eureka!"

"Is it done, Hank?" Spider-Man asks.

"It is, my friend."

"And in a fair amount of time, too! You truly are amazing, good friend Beast." Thor says.

"Haha, save the accolades for later, Thor. We still have to see if it works…and it we can beat the…..Terrible Three." Beast says in a disgusted tone.

"That really is a simply horrible name, I must say. I mean, ‘Terrible Trio’ would be…" the Beast begins.

"Save your energy, buddy. We need to get going!" Spider-Man says, and they all agree.

Dusk is approaching slowly but surely as the three heroes reach the Empire State Building, the zenith of New York City. Spider-Man jumps and swings powerfully to reach the top, while Thor flies with the Beast holding tightly onto his muscular leg.

"Here we are!" the Beast says as they approach the building.

"And there are our foes!" Thor adds, as they both see the four figures atop the building, gathered around a fifth in the middle…a female figure…

"Mary Jane!" Spider-Man yells as he reaches the top, and runs towards his captured wife right away. The Trapster steps forward and fires some of his glue at the hero, but Spider-Man easily launches himself over the criminal’s head.

"Ow! Ya damn wallcrawler…you don’t have us beat, not by a longshot!"

"Just keep your mouth shut, triple-P! I’m here for the woman I love, and then to put things right!" Spider-Man replies. Still in the air, he doesn’t see as Namor knocks him down and onto the top of the building roughly.

"Spidey!" the Beast yells, and swings off of Thor and into Namor’s back. The kick is enough to knock over the Atlantean, but he recovers quickly and easily pushes the Beast back over the edge of the building. Thor flies by and catches his friend, and drops him back on the top of the building.

"Thanks for the save, goldilocks!" he says, and tackles the Trapster, taking the gun from his hand and throwing it as far away as possible.

"You’re not so tough without your little guns, are you, friend?" Beast says as he throws a punch with his large fist, hitting the Trapster square in the nose and nearly breaking it.

"Ahhh! By dose…" the Trapster says, his words muffled.

The Android grabs the Beast from the back and begins grappling with him, but Thor quickly picks up the robot and slams him into the ground. Despite the severity of the attack, the Android gets up again and joins in the battle again.

"You won’t be defeated, my creation! Fight! FIGHT!" the Mad Thinker yells, expecting nothing but the best from his invention.

"Uh…guys…..Thor! I kinda really need your help over here!" Spider-Man yells to his partner as he avoids Namor’s countless punches and charges, knowing that he cannot dodge them all.

"I am coming, my friend!" Thor says, and punches the Android very powerfully in its misshapen face, sending it flying back into the Mad Thinker,

"Ahhh! Get off of me, and fight, you malfunctioning pile of bolts!" the Thinker complains.

"Trapster! Stop them!" he yells to his comrade.

"Whattaya want me to do, Thinker? All I’ve got is freakin’ glue…and even that’s not doing much!" the Trapster replies.

Thor strikes Namor’s chest with Mjolnir, but the loud contact hardly fazes the king…his rage is supplying enough adrenaline to completely enhance even a normal man.

"Od’s eye!" Thor exclaims, and proceeds to be struck in the face by Namor. With Thor out of the way, Namor looks around for Spider-Man, only to find him freeing his wife from her bonds.

"Oh, Peter…I’m so sorry…they know your identity now!" she tries to apologize.

"Don’t worry, honey…it’s nowhere near as important as y…"

Namor hits Spider-Man in the back with both fists, knocking him right to the ground.

"Peter, no!" Mary Jane screams, and tries to aid him.

"Stand back, woman, or else you too will die with your husband!" Namor yells.

The Android has returned to its feet and is battling with both the Beast and Thor, who are having some trouble with it. The Mad Thinker is arguing with the Trapster, who is very angry.

"Did you just call me a second-rate criminal? That’s all you ever were, ya moron!" the Trapster yells at his former partner.

"Moron?? I…I’ll destroy you!" the Mad Thinker declares.

"Haha! With what, buddy? All you can do is order your Android around, and he’s busy at the moment!"

Namor picks up Spider-Man over his head, holding him sprawled out with both arms as he walks to the edge.

"This is the first of many deaths to avenge my beloved Atlantis!" he says, and throws Spider-Man down.

"Peter! Dear God, no!!!" Mary Jane pleads, screaming.

As he is going down, Spider-Man wriggles around and manages to throw off Namor’s weight, bringing him down with him. In a move of great strength and agility, Spider-Man switches places with the Atlantean king, holding Namor’s body over the edge of the building underneath the webslinger’s body, his hand around his throat.

"Namor! Namor, you’re in there, and I know it! You have to listen to me!" Spider-Man yells, trying to rip off the headband on Namor’s brow. The band doesn’t budge….it is embedded in his skin deeply.

"I will never listen to you! All you have told me are lies…you helped destroy my home and my people…I must destroy you, and all the other surface dwellers!"

"That’s not the real Namor talking, though! That’s the old, villain Submariner, not the hero Namor, that I’ve known and fought beside."

"I won’t listen to you pick apart my words, Spider-Man!"

"You will! You have to…for God’s sake Namor, just think. The real you wouldn’t fight his friends…"

"You and those others are not my friends! The Thinker and the Trapster are my friends."

"That’s not true and even someone under the same influence you are could figure that out. Me and the others…..we can see where you’re coming from! We know what you mean….but that proves even more that we couldn’t have done it. We’re on your side forever, Namor!"

Namor struggles more, but Spider-Man’s own rage proves even more influencing.

"I…can’t…" Namor tries to say.

"Just listen to me, dammit! Look at Thor…..he knows exactly what it’s like to be divided between two places. He has to deal with things in Asgard and on Earth constantly. Not only that, but he’s a king in waiting, no less. He’s dealt with being royalty all his life, and he knows what it’s like to have that responsibility…"

"Imperious Rex! Silence yourse…"

"And the Beast! He’s a mutant, just like you! The world shuns and fears mutants, and sometimes they lash out back at the world that hates them. But there are those like him that fight for the humans, without regard to the way that they are treated or looked at, just like you keep on fighting for the ‘surface dwellers’ you claim to hate so much! No matter how much they fear you and see you as different, you don’t put yourself on a pedestal and you keep fighting the good fight…..that’s what you do. You and him know that responsibility…"

"….." Namor has nothing to say.

"And me? Namor, you’ve seen tonight what we’ve got in common. I love my wife more than anyone or anything else in my life. I’d do anything for her, even die. I have that responsibility…..and I have the responsibility to revenge…..well, someone I’ve already lost. ButI do it the right way…..I don’t kill, and I let the law take care of everything else! I have power, and responsibility comes with that. I am a husband, and responsibility comes with that. You have both of these, and know them."

Namor still doesn’t speak, and still looks Spider-Man in the eye.

"That’s all I have, Subby. Please…..don’t make me do something crazy….." Spider-Man says.

The fight leaves Namor’s eyes, and his face relaxes. His body in no longer tense, and he stops struggling.

"Spider-Man…..please, let me up." He says peacefully.

"Namor? Are you in there?"

"Yes. Please…..let me get up. I have to make things right."

Spider-Man gets off of Namor and he stands, tearing the headband from his head. It tears some skin, and his brow bleeds and sweats, but he does not show any sign of pain. He flies over to the Android, still battling Thor and the Beast, and with three blows, knocks it down.

The Trapster and the Mad Thinker step back in astonishment and fear, waiting for their punishment.

"You two…you will pay for this." He says coldly.

They tremble in fear.

"But you will pay in the way that has been deemed legal by your government."

The two criminals feel a little relieved.

"Namor! You’re back…and we didn’t even get to use my invention!" the Beast says.

"I know that your invention would have worked, good Beast." Thor assures his friend, placing his hand on the Beast’s shoulder.

Spider-Man webs the two criminals together, and pulls his wife close, hugging her tightly.

"Oh Peter…..Peter, I’m so glad you’re okay. But there’s still your identity….." Mary Jane says.

"Actually, kiddos, I think "I can still help with that, and make use of my invention in the process."

The Beast takes out his machine and places it on the head of the Trapster, who struggles very little. Hank turns it on, and the Trapter’s head cocks up to attention.

"Trapster…..you don’t remember the identity of Spider-Man. You don’t remember that you teamed up with the Mad Thinker. You just know that you need to go to jail." The Beast says. He takes off the headband of his own creation, and the Trapster snaps out of it.

"What…where am I? I feel…..weird…" he says.

"Looks like it worked, Hank." Spider-Man says as the Beast puts the headband on the Mad Thinker’s large cranium also. With similar words, the Beast erases the Thinker’s memory of Spider-Man’s secret identity and the actions that took place that day and night.

"Looks like everything’s wrapped up from here." The Beast says.

"Yes. But…..I must apologize, my friends." Namor says sadly.

"No need, King Namor! It was not under your own power that thou committed such deeds." Thor assures him.

Namor looks down at his feet, ashamed.

"Thank you. Still…I feel very badly for what has happened."

"Well, don’t worry." Says Spider-Man, "I’m sure that Thor here can give a good, believable explanation to the public, with him being an Avenger and all!"

"I…I thank you, Thor…Spider-Man…Beast."

"No problem." The Beast says.

"And to you, Misses Parker, I owe another apology. I invaded your home and interrupted your private life. I know this is unforgivable…" Namor starts to apologize.

"Oh, don’t worry about it. I’m just glad that this is all over. Besides, it’s not everyday that a king walks in on me and my husband…" Mary Jane says, teasing Peter.

"Thank you, Misses Parker. Thank you all. Now I must go, and revisit Atlantis…I’m afraid I miss it horribly, only after a day."

"That is quite understandable, King Namor. Godspeed!" Thor says, as Namor flies off.

Thor turns around to his partners and begins to speak.

"Spider-Man…Beast. I must admit that I am highly impressed with the bravery and wit that you both have displayed in the past day. I must admit that the Avengers are low in numbers recently, and I am sure that you both would make noble members of the team."

"Thanks for the offer, Thor, but I’ve already got my hands full with the X-Men…..I’ll come visit plenty, though, and you can always call on me for help." The Beast replies.

"And what you, Spider-Man?"

"Well…..I’ve gotten a pretty good taste of team work today. As much as I liked it…..I don’t think I really have time right not to divide myself three ways. No matter what, I have to have time alone as Spider-Man…..and forever, I have to have time with my wife." Spidey says, looking into his wife’s eyes.

"This is understandable, webbed one. Always know, though, that you both are always welcome in Avengers Mansion."

"I may have to take you up on that someday, Thor." Spider-Man says.

"Very good. In fact, to Avengers Mansion is where I must return swiftly…I have already left the area for far longer than I should have, and fair Jarvis can only hold his own for so long."

"Alright, Thor. We’ll get together again…soon." Spidey says, and the Beast agrees.

"Farewell!" the Norse god yells, and flies off into the horizon towards his second home.

"Peter, I’m so proud of you today, honey."

"It’s just part of my responsibility, MJ."

"I know…but it’s a good trait for a husband…and a father…"

"Thanks…"

"You don’t sound too happy."

"I am…I’m just…confused. Not really confused, but cluttered, and busy. I mean…if I hardly even have enough time to make a child right now…how would I have time for one once it’s born?"

"Peter…"

"I want a family with you, Mary Jane. I just want to be able to spend time with you and our children. I wouldn’t be a good father or a good person to bring a child into this world with only a working mother and a father spread so thin that he can hardly have time to bring home a paycheck."

"…..Petey, you’re so smart. All that responsibility…..how can you fathom it, let alone take it?"

"It’s what I have to do. It’s what everyone should do…"

I’m sitting on my throne. Atlantis is fine. All is well. The damage will be undone, and my name will be cleared.

But do I deserve it?

The device was designed to control my mind. Did it completely alter my thoughts?

Or did it just boost a hidden hatred that I’m too ashamed and afraid to admit to?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

That's all folks! Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed. That fulfills my anthology requirement for MV1…next, expect either a mini-series, or a trial run on an ongoing title. Thanks to Bob Gansler, Steve Crosby, Sam Everett, Will Short, and Lonni Holland for help and support. See ya in the funny papers!