Chapter Fourteen: Unnatural Arrivals
It was difficult for anyone’s ears not to have popped
every second they traveled down the longest elevator shaft in history. They
were several miles beneath Liberty Island – well out of range for any Wi-Fi
service. Liberty Base was undoubtedly the ideal place to keep hidden from any
Hydra or Skrull agents. In her earlier years as an agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.,
Ciciley spent some years stationed at the base. She was not alone in those
years, having been partnered with a fellow agent to keep surveillance in all
corners of the world.
(Narrative Note: In Chapter Eleven, Ciciley mentioned how she and Nick Fury "used to hang out" in Liberty Base "for personal reasons." It can be deduced from this and the bit of information we're given in this introduction that Fury was the "fellow agent" stationed with her.)
“It’s been thirty whole years since I last stepped foot
in this place,” she reminisced as she exited the elevator with everyone else.
Sean frowned with recognition. “Wait. Thirty years?
That’s as long as I’ve been alive!”
Ciciley blushed. “Well, uh…”
(Authorial Note: This is another big clue I left for readers to determine how deep the relationship with Ciciley and Fury went, alluding to the possibility of the S.H.I.E.L.D. director being Sean Livingston's father.)
Thankfully, she was spared of any explanation she could
pull out of her behind with the loud cooing of Karter. He became fidgety in the
arms of Chrissy. Once being a mother herself, Chrissy knew what that was a sign
of.
“I think this lil’ fella’s getting hungry. Anyone got any
formula?”
“Here.” Mindy stepped in just in time, gently waving her
left hand in the air and conjuring a baby bottle.
Chrissy smiled as she took it from her, going right to
feeding Karter. “You are truly a living miracle, dear.”
Mindy was humbled by her remark. It was not often she
received such praise or was described in such a touching way. “Thank you,” she
whispered to Chrissy.
(Narrative Note: Mindy's conjuring of the baby bottle is a magic trick repeated in World of Disney 3 by Joanie, who needed one to feed the newborn daughter of Sean and Christina Thomas, Brandy.)
The group consisting of the Livingstons, Mindy, and
Karter entered the decades-old, hidden S.H.I.E.L.D. base almost cautiously. It was a base S.H.I.E.L.D. owned, of
course, which gave way for the possible chance that Hydra could have found out
about it, despite Ciciley’s assurance that they could not. Liberty Base was
literally under everyone’s radar and kept secret from the rest of the
organization. And, according to Ciciley, it was just one of a few top-secret
facilities authorized by Nick Fury, but it was the oldest one established.
As soon as they arrived upon an intersecting lobby, they
stopped over the large, old-school S.H.I.E.L.D. insignia decorated on the floor. A
dark-haired figure stepped out from an area Ciciley recognized as the
surveillance room. And the figure herself was recognized by everyone, her
presence coming as a shock.
“Genevieve?” They all exclaimed.
“You’ve survived!” Mindy noted.
“And…you got your hair done?” Sean observed with a
questionably raised eyebrow. “What’s up with that?”
Genevieve ran her fingers through her blackened hair in
frustration. “I don’t remember a thing after Blake and Sitwell attacked us back
in Elendriel’s apartment. They must’ve used some kind of mind-altering drug to
wipe away whatever memories I had in the moments between the attack and my arrival
on Liberty Island. Gotta give it to Hydra on making good use in S.H.I.E.L.D.
resources.”
There were looks of concern exchanged briefly among Mindy
and the Livingstons.
“Um, there’s something you should know, Genevieve.”
Ciciley apprehensively addressed. “That wasn’t
Blake or Sitwell that attacked. They’re alien shape-shifters that call
themselves ‘Skrulls.’ They made themselves up to look like them.”
Distress and uncertainty registered on Genevieve’s young
face. “Skrulls?” The identity of the alien race should have been familiar to
her. But why should it have?
Suddenly, the truth of the matter dawned on her: “They probed my mind. That’s
the only explanation for my memory loss.
They could be the ones that stripped
me of my Guardian abilities!”
Mindy blinked rapidly at that last exclamation. “Say what
now?”
“They made me human – completely
human!” Genevieve remarked. “The new hair color? My new eye color? I’m nearly half
of who I used to be before I became Guardian!”
“Oh, man.” Mindy whispered in agitation. “I dread to
think what the Skrulls might do with that kind of power.”
(Narrative Note: Most of the Skrulls' technology Yve Ette integrated to the specialized lightsaber that will be seen near the end of this chapter. This saber is capable of exterminating Guardians/reincarnations in whatever way the blade comes in contact with their bodies. It plays a vital role in the deaths of many reincarnation characters featured in World of Disney 3.)
For a short moment, anxiety took over the atmosphere from
the scenario Mindy posed. Shortly thereafter, the tension was broken by the
emergence of Stan, who exclaimed in seeing Ciciley, “Well, if it isn’t the
queen herself!”
The second she saw the elderly S.H.I.E.L.D. agent appear,
a feeling of warmth swept over her. “Stan the Man!” She rushed right up to
the silver-haired, sunglasses-wearing gentleman and embraced him. “Hadn’t been since
’88 since I saw ya! So damn good to see ya again!”
“Feelin’s mutual.” Stan remarked at the same time as he
looked down at her backside, noting the perfectly-structured butt
cheeks shown through her black leggings. “For a woman who’s supposed to be
sixty, your butt’s looking remarkable, kid!”
Ciciley let out a hearty laugh, flattered by her old
friend’s observation. However, his unnecessary compliment drew unpleasant
surprise from Chrissy, who could be heard gasping nearby.
Hearing her mother’s reaction, Ciciley let Stan go and
playfully slapped him on the chest. “Oh, he’s only teasin’, Mama. He was always
such a dirty ol’ man.”
Stan chuckled. “I may be old, but I’m still sane enough
to realize the fact that you should look a lot differently than when we last
met. I mean, what the hell happened to you? It’s like a day hasn’t gone by for
you.”
“You heard about the ‘Project Geo’ incident that happened
back in 2012, right?”
Stan nodded. “Who hasn’t?”
“Well, there was this sorceress they kept there with
blood that was accidentally transferred over to me when I beat the living shit
out of her. This blood got into my system and rejuvenated me back into the hot
tamale standing in front of you now.”
The old agent nodded with fascination. “Well, that story
sounds better than the nonsense this
one was spoutin’ earlier.”
Genevieve noticed right away how Stan gestured to
her, immediately taking offense. “What? Everything I told you was just as much
the truth!”
“Suuuuuuuure.” Stan replied.
-------------------
Most of everyone was gathered in the lobby, engaged in
various conversations. Only one remained out of the fray: Yamila. From the
corner of the surveillance room entrance, she peeked towards the crowd. No one
had taken notice of her presence there, as she was shadowed by the dim
interior. Ciciley was her main focus; she recognized her as the mother that visited her at the base as often as possible. Her dark brown eyes
then shifted to Sean, the big brother she just recently discovered to have. He
was undoubtedly handsome, sharing in similar cosmetic features to Yamila; there
was no denying they were biologically related.
There was, unfortunately, confusion over which of the
three other women that accompanied them to be Yamila’s sister. All
three were definite candidates to be the daughter Ciciley had before her,
judging from how much older they looked compared to Sean. The busty redhead
carrying the baby appeared to be the oldest, yet not old enough to be counted
out as Yamila’s presumable sister. And out of the two brunettes, the younger
one with the fairer skin and bright blue eyes that seemed closer to Sean’s age might as well have been a giveaway.
(Authorial Note: Sometimes there's difficulty in writing from the perspective of a new character who has never before met the principal ones. You have to assume that this character has never seen these others their whole life, so you can only identify them through physical description that should have been previously established through proper introductions much earlier in the story. This way, readers will know who it is the new character is seeing from their perspective.)
Yamila knew there to be one way to find out, and that was
by stepping out from the shadows and revealing her presence to the group.
It was the plan she intended on initiating, until she
was restrained by a flash of light that temporarily filled the area. Before she
knew it, two new women suddenly appeared in the room – another young brunette
and a blonde that had taken the busty redhead’s place as the oldest woman in
the base, looking to be in her early forties (maybe older). They were
both donned in bizarre clothes – the brunette wore a black robe while the
blonde wore a red overcoat – that included matching pointy blue hats with a
glittering stars and crescent moon design.
“Holy Mary and Joseph!” Stan shouted on witnessing the
unnatural arrival.
As staggering as it was for everyone to see the brunette,
it seemed to Yamila that it was even more so for Ciciley, Sean, and the younger
brunette she assumed to be her big sister to have seen the blonde.
“Sheryl?” Ciciley nearly screamed with joy in her address
to the blonde. “Oh, shit! You’re back!”
The blonde known as “Sheryl” giggled like a little girl
as she and Ciciley shared a warm embrace. The height difference between them was
notable as the towering Sheryl almost had to bend over to hug, while Ciciley
almost had to stand on her tiptoes.
“I’m so sorry it’s been so long.” Sheryl said. “I’ve had
so much going on in the Disneyverse. Time moves much differently between the
two worlds.”
(Narrative Note: This has been a noted fact in the main stories of the World of Disney series, most often demonstrated between the narrative of the visited "Disney World" and "reality.")
“No worries.” The younger brunette told her. “It’s just
great seeing you again, especially with all that we’re going through.”
Sheryl gave her a smile. “Thank you, Elendriel.”
Elendriel…so that’s
her name, Yamila thought with excitement, finally able to place an identity
with the face.
Meanwhile, the brunette that accompanied Sheryl stared
at Genevieve with immense astonishment.
“Genevieve? Is that you?”
Sheryl’s attention moved away from Ciciley and to
Genevieve, whose appearance just as much alarmed her. A hand went to her mouth,
and she muffled beneath it, “Oh, my goodness.”
Genevieve sighed in aggravation. “I can explain later.
Just…what are you two doing here in this realm?”
Realm? What sort of
people are these women?
-------------------
“Yve Ette’s here.” Jacqueline was quick to get right down
to business. “She’s in this world,
too, and teaming herself with an alien race that call themselves…”
“The Skrulls.” Mindy uttered in wide-eyed disbelief. It
wasn’t just the fact that she, Sheryl, Jacqueline, and Genevieve all shared the
same brain that helped her to realize what Jacqueline was going to say before
she said it; it was the fact that she just mentioned the name “Yve Ette,” which
she managed to connect to the Skrulls’ kidnapping of Genevieve and stripping
her of her power. “Oh, god.”
Ciciley frowned. “Who’s Yve Ette?”
“A very
dangerous woman – ‘nuff said.” Sean answered. “But my question is why is she working with the Skrulls?”
(Marvel Note: Agent Sean utters the famous catchphrase of Stan Lee, "'nuff said," in this scene. It also was the title for a comic book event in which the writers and artists of Marvel took the challenge to tell a story without using any words, only art. Each issue included a partial script at the end to better inform the reader of what happened. Comics that were featured in this event included: Amazing Spider-Man Vol. 2 #39, Avengers Vol. 3 #49, Black Panther Vol. 3 #39, Cable #100, Captain America Vol. 3 #50, Captain Marvel Vol. 4 #26, Daredevil Vol. 2 #28, Deadpool #61, Elektra Vol. 2 #6, Exiles #7, Fantastic Four Vol. 3 #50, Incredible Hulk Vol. 2 #35, Iron Man Vol. 3 #49, New X-Men #121, Peter Parker: Spider-Man Vol. 2 #38, Punisher Vol. 5 #7, Spider-Girl #41, Thor Vol. 2 #44, Thunderbolts #59, Uncanny X-Men #401, Wolverine Vol. 2 #171, X-Force #123, and X-Treme X-Men #8.)
“Remember what we said about the very threat of the universe Yve Ette intends to create havoc with?” Mindy reminded him. “Well, who else
better to stir up a hornet’s nest with than the Skrulls.”
Sean let out a heavy, overwhelmed sigh. “Good grief.”
“Yve Ette.” Genevieve muttered with much anger in her
voice, having realized the connection between the corrupted reincarnation’s
presence and her abduction at the hands of the Skrulls. “She’s the one behind
all of this. She was the one who had
them make me vulnerable.”
Hearing this, Sheryl had a realization of her own as she
eyed Genevieve. “That’s why we weren’t able to trace you from Tony Stark’s
tower. Detecting Mindy here in this base is how we got here. But you…I don’t
sense any connection between you and us anymore.”
Genevieve felt so much more like an outcast in human form
than she did in Guardian form. As much as she always wanted to return to her
original life as Sean Thomas, she did not imagine being regressed to a mortal
state whilst in her final reincarnated form. It was an inconvenient predicament
that she hoped to see her way out of sooner than later.
“Why does Yve Ette need Genevieve’s power?” Jacqueline
questioned.
“It wouldn’t be the first time she’s targeted me for it.”
Genevieve noted. “She’s going for the same play as the one back during that
rift across the Disneyverse. She’s stealing my power to use it for herself.”
(Narrative Note: Stealing the powers and life energies of the reincarnations of Sean Thomas was the grand scheme of Dawn, the evil living persona of Joanie Navarro-Thomas, in Tales of the Disneyverse.)
Jacqueline shook her head negatively. “Nuh-uh. I think
there’s a bigger play here. If Yve
Ette wanted to, she could purge your power herself at any time – no need for
any specialized alien tech, just good ol’ fashioned Guardian skill.”
“We need Natalie.” Sheryl suggested. “She seems to have
more knowledge on Yve Ette’s plans with the Skrulls than any of us do.”
Now it was Genevieve’s turn to frown and ask, “Who’s
Natalie?”
Jacqueline smirked. “Long story.”
-------------------
Natalie had not once left Walter’s side as he remained
lying unconscious on the examination table that doubled as a vital signs
monitor, with the readouts displayed nearby on a flat-screen connected to the
table. She sat by him on an aluminum stool chair in Bruce Banner’s lab. Banner
and Stark were further upstairs, leaving her alone in the room with Walter.
Of course, she knew that she was never really alone – not with her other half
present as a manifestation of his consciousness.
“Your butt’s getting numb sitting on that stool for so
long.” He alerted her in his infuriation, pacing back and forth behind her.
“I know because I can feel it.”
“I can take it as long as you can.” She jested.
“That’s not
funny!” He stopped pacing and glared at her. “Why are we still here? Let’s just
leave this place and go back home with Walter where we belong.”
“I promise we’ll do just that, once we’ve taken care of
Yve Ette and the Skrulls.”
“None of that is any business of ours! This world already
has superheroes to protect it – they don’t need our help!”
“It’s more than just this
world, Sean. There are countless others, including ours. Yve Ette is a
powerful threat to all of them. She won’t just stop here. She’ll continue her
chaos to those others, until she has exactly what she wants.”
“And just what is it that she wants?”
Natalie was right on the verge of giving him a direct
answer before the sound of the television switching on in the downstairs suite
directed her attention away from him temporarily. Looking back his way, she
realized that his manifested form vanished, much to her displeasure. Guess I know how that feels now.
Her curiosity got the best of her when she realized that
there were only two other living beings in the tower, and they were
upstairs. She headed downstairs to investigate, showing up in the entertainment
section of the suite to curiously find no one there.
It was then she realized that she ousted one other
possible suspect, who did not have a physical
presence in the complex but a presence nonetheless.
“J.A.R.V.I.S.?” She addressed the unseen artificial
intelligence, her bright green eyes looking toward the ceiling. “Did
you turn on the TV?”
(Marvel Note: The initials in J.A.R.V.I.S. stand for "Just A Rather Very Intelligent System," as noted in 2008's Iron Man by Pepper Potts. As Tony Stark's artificially intelligent computer system, J.A.R.V.I.S. ran Stark's Malibu mansion and Stark Tower, as well as serving as the user interface in all the Iron Man armors, giving him valuable information during combat. In the comics, Iron Man has a butler named "Edwin Jarvis." This was changed for Marvel's cinematic universe as Jon Favreau did not want any confusion between Jarvis and Batman's butler, Alfred Pennyworth. It was later revealed in continuity that Tony did in fact know of a man named Jarvis who was the butler to his father and named the sentient computer in his memory.)
“What purpose would I have to turn on the television?”
The sarcasm that Tony Stark programmed into his
artificial personality quickly annoyed Natalie. Damn you, Stark – you created a monster. “Well, did you see anyone in the room turn it on?”
(Marvel Note: Stark literally does create a monster through artificial intelligence in Avengers: Age of Ultron.)
“I have not seen anyone present in the room.”
It wasn’t the answer Natalie hoped the A.I. system
would give her. She chalked the mystery as being just an electrical glitch
brought on from the continuing renovations made to the tower. She picked
up the remote and shut off the set.
“Case closed.” She whispered in satisfaction.
Just as she turned to leave the area, she felt an
invisible force push against her body, hurling her across the room and slamming
her against the wall, nearly embedding into it. Severe pain should have
shot through her body afterward, yet she did not feel a thing. She had been
stricken by paralysis while pinned.
All of the sudden, a leather-clad, dark-haired woman
manifested right before her, brandishing a lightsaber – the very weapon of Star Wars lore. Natalie recognized the
woman as Yve Ette but was unable to verbally establish her credence of knowing
through her paralyzed state.
Yve Ette activated the blade of her lightsaber,
jabbing it right in between Natalie’s legs, just a few inches below her crotch.
A hint of flinching came across Natalie’s eyes in reaction.
“I know your secret: you’re a freak of nature…an abomination
to the Guardian bloodline.” Yve Ette maliciously whispered, her face within an
inch from Natalie’s, her flaming hot breath practically searing her nostrils. “But
I don’t care about any of that. All that matters to me is showing off my little project to all my friends.”
She inched the blade closer to Natalie’s crotch. She
could see the beads of sweat forming on the caramel skin of her forehead.
“Terrified, are you? I know for certain this thing
connecting with your lady parts would be quite
painful. I can only imagine how excruciating it’d be while as your other half – if he were to show up right about now.”
The fabric of Natalie’s red plaid shirt began to singe
away – the saber blade reaching in dangerous proximity to her crotch. A faint
whimper escaped through her partially closed lips, actually feeling the heat of
the blade reaching her nether regions. She could almost hear Sean’s voice
echoing through her mind: “Don’t you dare
lose focus right now!” She knew that if she had, then she would ensure his immediate castration.
“You go and find the real
reincarnations.” Yve Ette instructed. “Tell them that they’ll meet me and my
special new friend at the right place and the right time. They’ll know where to
find us.”
And with this instituted warning, both Yve Ette and her
lightsaber vanished.
Natalie’s body had been released from the paralyzing hold, slumping down to the floor. While it did, Sean manifested, crouching
beside her. There was nothing he could physically have done to help. And he
knew asking if she was alright was pointless, since he felt how shaken the
encounter left her.
(UP NEXT: Yet Another Family Secret Exposed!)
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