The Sixth Tale Fragmented Balance, Part One
Prologue
Earth Standard Year 2200 Someplace Dark"You bastard!" a voice yells into darkness. Cords grip her arms and pull them tightly behind her. "I hate you! Do you hear me, I hate you!"
"Is this not to be expected?" a deep voice asks calmly. "Is it not a certainty that you would hate someone who has kept you prisoner for 178 Standard Years? That you would hate one who has made you watch hundreds of deaths, including friends and loved ones? One that has brought before you a descendant that you did not even know you had?"
"You bastard!" Canticle screamed, her voice raspy and dry from the hours of verbal assaults she has hurled at the Machine.
"Or should you be grateful to me for keeping you alive for all this time? Certainly, without me, you would have perished over 100 years ago. You owe me, Designate-Canticle."
"I owe you nothing but your own death!" Canticle rasped.
"I could tell you the story of those who call you family," the Machine droned on. "I could replay for you the grandiose struggles your friends have endured to try to find you. They still try, Canticle. Even after all these years, your legend sustains you in the memories of people you have never met. I can tell you these tales, if you’d like."
Had Canticle’s mind not been ripped and shredded one too many times, she may have noticed just a hint of expectation in the Machine’s deep voice.
"Tell them to your other prisoners," she spoke, her voice reduced to the scratchiest of whispers. The Machine did not answer her for a moment, instead stimulating the saliva glands inside her mouth and soothing Canticle’s throat. ‘God, what *has* he done to me?’ her mind reeled.
The lights faded up a bit, the Machine opening his heart to it’s prisoner.
"There are no other prisoners, Designate-Canticle," the Machine’s voice lowered in apparent sadness. "When I took the last man into me - the one whom it was revealed was your 6th great grandson - that exhausted my prisoner supply. Thanos, my master, has not seen fit to grant me anymore prisoners."
"Maybe … maybe the bastard has finally been defeated," Canticle allowed herself a smile.
The Machine began to rumble deep below in it’s engine core. It was laughing. "Not so, Designate-Canticle. Not so. The Master thrives on in his Crusade to destroy the Everything."
"He’ll be stopped," Canticle argued. "What little I know about the outside world from the other prisoners of war you’ve kept here is that there is a resistance movement going on. Certain races of the Everything - Asgardians, humans, Skrulls, Shi’ar, Kree-"
The rumbling grew louder. "The Kree?" The Machine taunted. "The Kree? The Kree will do nothing but what I tell them!"
Canticle’s eye’s opened a bit wider. "And why would they do that?"
RUUUUUMBBLE!!! RUUUUUMBBLE!!! Wires and cables shifted on the wall opposite Canticle, revealing a large viewing screen.
"You don’t even know who I am or where you are, do you, Canticle?" The Machine flaunted it’s knowledge.
"That’s not true!" Canticle spat, trying to regain her footing. "I know this is Titan 3! The other prisoners have told me that Thanos uses this place to hold POWs! So that must make you an updated version of ISAAC, the Titan supercomputer."
RUUUUUMBBLE!!! RUUUUUMBBLE!!! RUUUMBBLE!!!! "You do amuse me, Designate-Canticle! You do not know who I am, do you? For 178 years I have kept you here without revealing my true identity. Think, Earther! Who could control the massive functions of a man-made planet? Who controls the Kree with the whims of the changing Everything? Who could hide from you that an assault by the Valkyries took place above you not more than a month ago? Who could hide you from the likes of Moonstar and Captain America?"1 The large screen flickered to life and a large blue head with green, mechanical-looking tentacles emanating around it’s massive, bloated form came into view.
"I am ISAAC, the Supreme Intelligence!"
1 - ALL GOD’S CHILDREN # 1 & Fantastic Four # 434
Chapter One - Ponderings
Asgard - Thor Odinson Hall of Peace
"Well … that was dramatic," Ash’lin mused as Thanos’ boots could be heard growing softer as the Titan made his way out of the Council Room and towards an exit. She sat in a Council meeting with King Balder the Brave, Beta Ray Bill, Ben-Vell Parker, Kovar the Accuser, Skrull 4, Dani Moonstar and Captain America, the Cosmic Protector. "I didn’t know if I should stand and applaud his arrogance or be frightened by the fact that he’s serious."
"Silence, woman!" Kovar the Accuser shouted, rising from the table as he slammed his fist down. "If it wasn’t for the Shi’ar-!"
"You’d be mining the Phalanx colonies, begging your precious Supreme Intelligence to make his once-a-decade appearance," Ash’lin jabbed.
"Bah!" Kovar snorted. "The Supremor lives and all loyal Kree …" he paused to look towards Ben-Vell for a half-second, " … eagerly await his return!"
"Yawn," Ash’lin continued, faking tiredness, "you Kree do bore me so."
"That’s enough," King Balder the Brave commanded quietly. The Kree and the Shi’ar simply stared at each other, hate burning in their eyes. "We have much to discuss. This Eternal War has raged long and hard throughout the ages and has seen many peaks and valleys. It appears, as we rise from the valley of True Ragnarok, that another surprise has befallen our struggle." Balder rose from the table and went to the windows to look out upon his realm. "Franklin Richards has returned. He has yet to side with either Thanos or with us." Pause. Contemplate. "What do we do? Moonstar of the Valkyrior?" Balder wouldn’t ask Captain America until the end, because he knew that others would often simply follow Steve Rogers’ lead without thinking for themselves.
"We consider him an enemy, but make no move against him."
"Ash’lin of the Shi’ar?"
"We discover his location and surround him, slowly, choking off all supplies. Make a circle and tighten it until he is perished."
"Kovar of the Kree?"
"Find him. Kill him. He is an enemy of the Kr-"
"Bill?"
"Seek him out and simply ask him."
"Skrull 4 of the Skrulls?"
Skrull 4 sat with his hands folded in front of him, resting on the tabletop. His withered frame looked even smaller, lost inside his flowing brown robes. He was a descendant of the original Skrull pacifist monk colony that had separated from the empire and made it’s way on their own, trying to connect more with the Cotati - the ancient people who were forever linked with that of the Skrulls and Kree.
He wore the robes because they had worn the robes, and he was well aware that the image of a monk was one that people did not take seriously in this age of the Eternal War.
4 had no problem with that.
Despite his respect for his own heritage, he wasn’t a pacifist, and he would take any advantage over an opponent he could take. Including playing a coward, like he had with Thanos. 2
2- All God’s Children # 5
"I agree with Moonstar, somewhat," he spoke with the calm confidence of one who knows he controls his own destiny. "We do not move against him, but we do not let him wander through the Everything unaware from our eyes. There is every possibility … that he is an Unspeakable."
Silence befell the table. All eyes turned inward towards 4. No one dared comment, waiting for King Balder. Kovar and Ash’lin shifted uncomfortably in their seats, and Ben-Vell couldn’t remember to take a breath. Bill and Cap exchanged somber glances. Finally, Balder spoke.
"I think we must take that into account, 4," he said softly, never needing to yell to command attention. "It is certainly a possibility that I had taken into account." Balder looked around the room. Captain America didn’t look like he had anything to say, which Balder knew was a sign that he agreed with what 4 had just said. "Please leave me, I have much to ponder. Is it possible, my friends, that after all this time … an Unspeakable has entered our midst?"
The Council left the room, leaving King Balder to his thoughts.
Outside the Thor Hall of Peace
The Council broke off into separate groups as the Council members left the Hall of Peace. They walked outside into the cool, night air, each weighing the words of Thanos in their own way.
"Ignorant Kree! Your whole damnable race-!"
"Bah, Ash’lin! The Shi’ar-!"
Ash’lin and Kovar stormed off together across the courtyard. Dani turned to Ben-Vell as they both hung back to let Captain America and Beta Ray Bill talk, "What do you make of all that, Ben-Vell?"
"I … I don’t know," Ben responded, his head swimming. "Thanos. Wow. The whole time I kept waiting for us to leap up and take him down. I mean, between Cap and Balder and you and Bill, we could’ve taken him. I think." They walked in silence for a few steps, Dani studying Ben carefully. "He’s our enemy and we just let him stroll into the heart of Asgard, make his proclamations and leave. How could we let him do that?"
"We’re honorable. It’s a damnable trait at times." She watched the way Ben’s eyes studied the ground, trying to think everything through. She knew the weight that Ben held on his shoulders. There were many walking around that held the blood of the First Age of Marvels in them, but there was no one else that was a descendant from both the House of Mar-Vell and the House of Spider-Man, two of the most revered Houses there were.
‘Is that what it will be like if Steve and I ever have a child?’ Dani asked herself, staring across the courtyard at her love, Steve Rogers, the man the Everything knew as Captain America, the Cosmic Protector. ‘Who’m I kidding?’ she smiled to herself. ‘I can’t see either Steve or I ever having kids with anyone, let alone the two of us together. It kills me, too, because I know how much he’d want to do just that. Settle down somewhere and … Nah it’ll never happen.’
Captain America and Beta Ray Bill spoke in somber tones, away from the others.
"Is he one of the Unspeakables, Steve?"
"I … I do not know, Bill. There’s so little known about his return that it’s impossible to guess."
"What has Galactus said?" Bill asked, looking upward toward the night sky.
Steve shrugged, "He said that Franklin came hurtling at him from the beyond and toyed with him as if he were a dog."
"Then he didn’t intend to kill him? Just to send us a message?"
"I don’t know. Galactus said that Franklin told him it was for what he did to the Human Torch, all those years ago. And after he said that, his powers started going haywire and he started arguing with himself. Then he left."
Bill sighed to the night. "Will this Eternal War ever end? What Galactus did to the Human Torch he did in 1999 - over 200 years ago. How can such hatred last so long? How has Thanos been able to keep us at bay for all these years. When I think of everyone we lost …"
Off by himself, Skrull 4 stood with his eyes closed and listened to every word that was being said. No one wanted to say it, but he thought they all knew deep inside that Franklin Richards might very well be one of the Unspeakables.
And that could very well mean the end of the Eternal War.
Necropolis
Thanos of Titan sat in his large throne and pondered the return of Franklin Richards. Could he be, he wondered solemnly, one of the Unspeakables?
He had come directly home and directly to his throne, ignoring the sites that usually made his heart swell with pride: the rivers of blood, the sky choked with tears, his castle made of the bones of those who fell before him …
None of it was noticed by him this day.
What if Franklin was the Ancient Good come back to right the wrongs of the cosmos? It was written in the Prophecies of Grey that one day an Ancient Good would return to help aid the Everything. But the damnable fractured mind that gave birth to the prophecies never made it clear as to what would happen.
So really, it mattered not. The only thing that mattered to Thanos was that Franklin Richards had returned.
Celestials help the denizens of the Everything.
Odin Hall
King Balder the Brave sat on his large throne and pondered the return of Franklin Richards. Could he be, he wondered solemnly, one of the Unspeakables?
He had come directly home and directly to his throne, ignoring the sites that usually made his heart swell with pride: the large statue to Thor, the citizens of Asgard working on their homes or playing with their kids, Mjolnir resting proudly, guarded by Toothgnasher and Toothgrinder, waiting for it’s next wielder …
None of it was noticed by him this day.
What if Franklin was the Ancient Evil come back to wrong the rights of the cosmos? It was written in the Prophecies of Grey that one day an Ancient Evil would return to help destroy the Everything. But the poor, fractured mind that gave birth to the prophecies never made it clear as to what would happen.
So really, it mattered not. The only thing that mattered to Balder was that Franklin Richards had returned.
Celestials help the denizens of the Everything.
The Clubhouse - Asgard
Angelica sat uneasily in a chair inside a house that the Orphans of War had long ago adopted to use a place of sanity in the insane life of growing up during a cosmic war. That was the only life the Orphans had ever known and it was that tragedy of war that bound them together.
Attumidunn, a product of an Atlantean and Inhuman … coupling, sat across from Angelica. She was just an uneasy as Angelica was, despite the fact that she was a Valkyrie and Angelica was just a lowly commoner.
They sat and thought about what they were going to suggest they do. Toomi had been skeptical when Angel had told her the plan, but she ached for action and she’d be damned before she let Angel lead the Orphans off on a wild goose chase without her. Angel had snuck into the Council meeting with Thanos, hiding in the rafters above, while she was forced to do guard duty with the other Valkyries.
"I wish Ben, er, Ben-Vell would hurry up and get here," Angelica said, kicking her chair with her heels.
Attumidunn eyed her angrily, "I bet you do, Angelica."
"What’s that supposed to mean, Toomi?" Angelica retorted, trying her best to look indignant.
"Oh, stop," Toomi sighed. "It’s obvious - to me, anyways - that you want him. But he’s mine - and you know it."
"You’re so full of yourself."
"I suppose I am, Angel," Toomi spoke the nickname with derision. "But sometimes I’m full of something else," she leaned her head towards Angelica. "Sometimes I’m full of Be-"
"Hey."
Angelica and Toomi turned, startled, to look at Ben as he walked through the door. He looked awful, his chin on his chest. Both rose immediately to comfort him, but Angel scolded herself and let Toomi be the one to run to him. She hated the way Toomi draped her arms around Ben in such a relaxed, casual manner. She hated the way Toomi made her act - like they were still two little girls fighting over who got to have the bigger cone of ice cream.
"So, what’s wrong?" she asked, aching inside the whole time.
"You saw what happened," Ben scolded. "I saw you up in the rafters." 3
3 - ALL GOD’S CHILDREN # 5
"Yeah, Thanos came and acted all tough," Angel responded, hurt. "But you weren’t this depressed while we were there. We left right after Thanos. What happened after that?"
Ben kicked the ground. "They think he may be one of the Unspeakables."
Silence was his only response, so he continued. "I just wish there was something I could do … I feel so helpless sometimes!"
Angel coughed and stole a glance at Toomi. She nodded and mouthed, "Do it." to Angel.
"B-Ben," Angelica started. "I know your confused about Thanos and Franklin Richards. I know that it eats at you because of all you’ve been through with Thanos - the Annihilation of Atlantis and the taunts he’s hurled at you because he doesn’t consider you worthy of your two Houses. I know that you want to do more in this war." Ben grimaced and Angel quickly hurried onwards. "I think there’s something we can do."
"We?"
"The Orphans."
"What?" Ben’s interest was piqued.
"Well, when I was up in the rafters with Eshir and K’zan, I got to thinking … why don’t we go find Franklin Richards?"
Ben’s eyes opened wide and a smile crept across his face. "Whoa, heavy, Angel. That’s major league level right there. But … do you think we can do it? I doubt Bill will let us go, but we can probably-"
"No, Ben," Toomi interjected. "No one’s gonna know because they won’t let us go. They still think of us as kids, Ben. They still baby us. We’ve grown, all of the Orphans, into young adults. It’s time we did something for ourselves. I don’t tell Dani, you don’t tell Bill, Angel doesn’t tell Volstagg. No one knows but us and the other Orphans."
"Besides," Angel reminded, "Franklin is an Orphan of War, too. We can maybe reach him better than the others."
"The three of us, then?" Ben asked, warming strongly to the idea.
"Us and Eshir, I figure," Angel reasoned. "I know you and Esh don’t get along the best, Ben … "
"That’s an understatement," Ben said, storm clouds brewing under his blue skin.
"But his power is very conducive to our trip."
Ben thought for a moment, then looked to Toomi, who nodded in agreement with Angel’s decision. "Yeah, okay. You, me, Toomi and Eshir will go find Franklin Richards and see what his tale is. It’s time for the Orphans to contribute to the Eternal War in a major way."
Angelica, Attumidunn and Ben-Vell Parker smiled, ready for their future to finally arrive.
Cloaked in invisibility and hidden inside the room, Skrull 4 watched and listened to everything.
Chapter Two - Mutterings
Mount Olympus
Santa Claus sat in the Garden of Athena, deep inside the ruins of Olympus, without sadness in his heart, though once upon a time there would have been. His scraggly white beard, red outfit and black boots were straight out of the myths of Earth, but his stomach was not round.
Delivering presents was hard work.
"And it’s not like those little bastards even appreciate it," he snorted out loud. "Fucking kids. I hate ‘em! You hear that, Pa, this boy ain’t having no kids!"
Santa chugged on a pint of Kree mead and looked disgustedly up at the sky. "Bout time I got sent another omen. Anytime." He was about to take another sip when, hurtling out of the cosmic sky, came a fireball headed for the once proud Hall of Apollo and finally smashed into it.
Santa, not having anything better to do, headed over to the smoking ruins and found, to his surprise, a man on fire.
"Who the Hades you s’posed to be?"
The man looked up at Santa Claus with wild, confused eyes, "I’m the Cosmic Flame!!! Herald of Galactus!!!"
"That a fact?" Santa spat on the ground. "You look like an idiot."
"You’re the only idiot here, Claus! And I’m going to take you out!!!"
Santa turned around just in time to get a big, pink foot in the face. The blow knocked him back a good twenty feet into a pile of rubble. "Bah!" he shouted, picking himself up and dusting off the large rubble that fell on top of him. "Who would dare attack Sant- you!!!"
"Yes, me!" shouted the hopping form as it bounded towards Santa.
"Easter Bunny, I’ve been waiting a long time to kick your fluffy, pink cottontail! Let’s go!"
And the Cosmic Flame, disoriented and crazed a moment before, came to the realization that he was, in fact, going completely, utterly mad.
FRAGMENTED BALANCE TO BE CONTINUED …
Celestials help the denizens of the Everything.
-- MBQ 28.December.1998
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