Chapter Forty-Four: Sowing the Seeds of Doom

No Powers Boy
and
Elyk/Agent Ryker
The End of the World As We Know It: Part II-4

When Kyle awoke, he was staring at the four stone walls of Dr. Doom’s dungeon. After a moment’s reflection, he decided he liked being there now even less than he had the first time he was locked in Doom’s dungeon. Back and forth, Kyle paced. He tried to trace back the last thing he remembered. He, Joe, and Charles had been in battle with Graviton. Then something else happened. And something else, but he wasn’t sure what. That had been, what- yesterday? The day before? And then Doombots came, to catch him. And that girl had been there. CJ. When had she entered the picture? How could he know her name? Kyle clutched the sides of his head. It hurt to think. It hurt so much! But he had to think, or he would never make it out of Doom’s dungeon. Who knows what sort of terrible fate awaited he and the other Supercools? Rina must be somewhere here, too. For her sake, he would try. He sat down in a corner of his cell to try to reason a way out.
And then, he heard the large metal door at the end of the hallway creak open. He ran to the small window set in his iron door, and peered down the corridor. The man Kyle didn’t recognize in the black-and-orange costume was carrying another prisoner into the cell opposite his. As the man in black passed by, Kyle got a good look at his fellow prisoner. It was Kyle Reeser.
“There can not be two of me,” Kyle said aloud to himself as soon as the man in the costume had left. His alternate-reality evil-duplicate’s clone’s twin or whoever was still passed out. “That is clearly a fake me. Maybe a Captain Universe or Phoenix Force clone of me? Yes! That must be it! So if I can wake that other me up, we’ll both be able to escape using its incredible powers!” Kyle began rattling the bars of his cage. “Other Kyle! Other Kyle, wake up! Other Kyle!” Eventually, Other Kyle began to stir. Finally, he sat up. And then, he made his way to the window of his cell. The two young men stared at one another from opposite ends of Doom’s dungeon.
“You’re me!” Other Kyle said.
“No, you’re me,” Kyle said. “That’s why I’ve been calling you ‘Other Kyle.’ Because you’re my evil clone from an alternate dimension.”
“Impossible!” Other Kyle said. “If you were really me, you’d have my powers, and since I can see your powers with my powers and see that you don’t have my powers, you obviously can’t be me.”
“A-ha!” Kyle said. “I don’t have any powers!”
“Exactly!” Other Kyle said.
“Exactly!” said Kyle. “So you can’t see my powers with your powers, because if you have powers, you’re clearly NOT ME!”
“But that’s because you’re NOT KYLE,” Other Kyle said.
“If I’m not Kyle,” said Kyle. “Then just who exactly am I?”
“Well, you’re clearly a shapeshifter. Skrull?” Other Kyle asked. And suddenly, it was all very clear.
Memories came flooding back into Kyle’s head. He wasn’t Kyle at all, was he? He remembered it all so clearly now- his name was Leslie Eric Ryker, and he was born in the mountains of West Virginia. When he was eight years old, Les’ mutant power had surfaced after a schoolyard fight with a nasty bully. After a particularly well-placed punch knocked his nose out of alignment, Les slid it right back into place, already expressing his someday very advanced shapeshifting powers. At ten years old, Les was pulled away from his somewhat relieved hillbilly parents, and sent to be raised as an agent-in-training for the federal government’s S.H.I.E.L.D. program. He was deep cover all the way, taking on undercover assignments no costume-detection methods could crack. He was foolproof. Then, Skrull agents managed to shape-shift their way into America’s government, and S.H.I.E.L.D. decided it was time to fight back. Les was brainwashed to believe that he was a genuine Skrull, captured by the American government and stripped of his memories. After a convenient “escape,” “Elyk” was welcomed back to Skrullworld with open arms. His superiors decided to give him another chance, and brainwashed Elyk into believing he was an Earthman named Kyle. Two sets of implanted memories later, Les joined the Supercools, reverted to Elyk, reverted to Les, reverted to Kyle, and was finally, in Dr. Doom’s dank dungeon, putting the pieces back together again in his brain. To Kyle- the real Kyle- it just looked like he was flipping out.
“Hey, Other Kyle!” Kyle called. “Are you going to be alright?”
“Fine,” the former Kyle said. He closed his eyes, remembered what he was supposed to look like, and morphed back into Agent Ryker’s body.
“Ryker!” Kyle shouted.
“Yes, it’s me,” Ryker said. “No need to shout.”
“Sorry,” Kyle said. “But how did you get here? Why did you look like me? And what’s going on?”
“And why, if they never close, are there locks on the doors at Denny’s?” Ryker asked.
“Ooh, that’s another good one,” Kyle admitted.
“Sorry,” Ryker said. “That’s all very complicated. And right now, we really just need to focus on getting out of here.” He paused once more as the door at the end of the hall opened again. The man in the black-and-orange was back again, this time hauling a scrawny, unassuming blond kid with him. Ryker jammed his finger into the keyhole of his cell, and manually pushed each of the tumblers back into place. The door swung open, catching the villain in the side of the head. Kyle, from in his cell, contributed his own power, blocking whatever counterattack their captor might have planned. Ryker morphed his arms into thicker, stronger limbs, and beat the villain to the ground with them. Meanwhile, the other young man had pulled himself and an iron key ring free from the villain, and was in the process of letting Kyle go. Each young man finished his appointed task at the same time, and the three of them ran together for the heavy door at the end of the corridor. Just as they neared it, two more figures appeared in from the hallway beyond. Speed Demon’s whole body vibrated as he laughed. Captain America’s shield, clutched firmly in the villain’s hands, was a nearly unrecognizable blur of movement.
“Just where the hell do you think you’re going?” Titania asked.
“Oh damn,” the three men chorused.

“There are still far too many anomalies unaccounted for,” Doom said. “Release the Doomsquad.” One of the mad dictator’s faithful lackies scurried to unleash a fleet of armored thugs on the unsuspecting world. ”And while you’re at it, send a unit of Doombots to my assigned hot zones.”
“But boss!” Oddball exclaimed. “Won’t the armors and robots just stop working like everything else?”
“No, fool. They originated here, within my safety zone. You, they, and all other things which were present in my Embassy at the moment I activated the Doom Machine were spared its effects.” Doom pulled a satin cord, and the draperies comprising one wall fell away. Behind it, a twenty-foot spire reached toward the sky, crackling with energy. Any attempt to touch the device at work would doubtless be blocked by the column of translucent white energy surrounding it on all sides. “In all other ways, this world should be completely reset- except the puzzling little anomaly I just sent downstairs with Arsenal.”
“Perhaps his proximity to the safety zone at the time you activated-“ Thunderball began. Doom’s synthesized voice cut him off quickly.
“Of course I’ve already surmised that, dolt! I merely want to run a few tests to check that logical hypothesis. Then he, and both Kyle Reesers can be destroyed.”
“Lord Doom,” Thunderball said with a bow.

“Do you honestly think the three of you can escape this embassy alone?” Titania said with a laugh. “You’ve got no clue how many villains there are wandering these halls, do you? Trust me, you’ll never get out of here.” Her massive fist shot out, catching Speed Demon in the chin and knocking him against the far wall of one of the open cells. “At least, not without me you won’t.” Before anyone could ask, Titania explained, “Somehow you guys are important to Doom’s big plan. But if I’ve got to choose between Doom’s big plan and my husband, you guys are just going to have to help me put a stop to it.” She paused for a second.
“My name’s Titania, by the way. And I figure there’s no one here I can’t beat, so long as they don’t get to gang up on me.”
“I can help with that,” Kyle said. “I’m No Powers Boy.”
“And you can call me Doppleganger,” said Ryker. “That was my S.H.I.E.L.D. codename. We can use it until I think of something cool.”
“I don’t really have a fancy name like that,” the young man said. “The only name I’ve got is Steve. Steve Rogers.”
“You’re-“ Kyle began. He caught himself. “No, no you’re not. Something else to work on later.” He picked the shield up from the floor where Speed Demon dropped it, and handed it to Steve. “Use this to defend yourself,” he said. “You’ll catch on before too long.” At the same time, Ryker was closing the cell that now contained the Speed Demon. He looked once at Kyle, once each at their new allies, and the foursome made their way up the stone stairs to the rest of the Embassy, and the exit beyond.

For a minute, it almost seemed they’d make it all the way out without resistance. Of course, that wasn’t going to happen. Titania had only been in the Latverian Embassy for a matter of hours, and her sense of direction wasn’t infallible. At the top of the stairs headed up from the second subbasement, she turned by mistake into one of the Embassy’s kitchens. There, helping themselves to a quick bite to eat, was the Red Ghost and his Super-Apes.
Both parties stopped in mid-step or mid-bite and stared at their opponents. Then, the baboon munching on a sandwich from the countertop acted. He leapt from his perch, shifting in mid-air to become a thick burlap sack, which tangled itself around Kyle’s head, and began constricting. The seal from the monkey’s skin was so thick, no light could penetrate, effectively blinding Kyle. He knew his attacker was right ahead of him, but without visual contact, he could do nothing to break the animal free. At the same time, the attack was tight enough to cut off most of his windpipe. Kyle was being choked to death by a burlap monkey.
Seconds after the baboon’s attack, the other attackers launched at one another, too. Titania’s powerful legs lifted her off the ground and toward the man at the kitchen table. Moments before she connected, the man dropped out of phase, and Titania crashed into the tile floor. Ryker’s fists doubled in size and swung toward the nearest opponent- an orangutan- but a seemingly knowing blink from the monkey sent the agent flying back against the wall. Left with only a single opponent, the gorilla in the corner went screaming at young Stevie Rogers. The youth pulled the big red shield up to block the oncoming attack, and the gorilla’s fist pounded against it instead of Steve’s chest. Most of the impact was absorbed by the Vibranium, but without Captain America’s muscles to back it up, Steve was knocked back out of the kitchen by the force of the blow.
Titania picked herself off the floor and swung again at the Red Ghost. Her attack was no more effective this time than it had been the last. Kragoff laughed as the musclewoman’s punches slipped right through his body.
“We owe Doom our lives for correcting the genetic degeneration we’d undergone. Crushing you for him will be our pleasure.”
Meanwhile, Titania’s comrades were faring no better. Kyle had dropped to his knees now, and was still struggling to take in air. Agent Ryker, pinned against the wall, could do nothing but watch as a massive, super-strong gorilla chased young Steve Rogers around the kitchen, gaining more ground with every second.
“Swush Pah-Nahs!” Kyle screamed from beneath burlap monkey. Even as he did so, the strategy was coming into play. Steve, more concerned with watching his opponent than watching where he was going, ran smack into Titania. The giant gorilla pressed its attack, but the amazonian villainess wouldn’t have it. With a backhanded THWACK!, she sent the gorilla flying through a wall into the sitting room beyond. The Red Ghost could only gasp in anger as Steve scrambled to pull the baboon off of Kyle. He only succeeded a little bit, but that little bit was enough to let in the air and light No Powers Boy needed to transform the baboon back into a harmless pet. Then, since relatively human thought patterns were part of the monkey’s superpowers, the little monster screeched, and ran terrified from the room. A well-placed blast from No Powers Boy’s pistol dropped Piotr, the orangutan. The little baboon, wounded and scared, ran to its masters arms. The Red Ghost phased into solidity just long enough to scoop up his pet, who suddenly became a boa constrictor, and crushed the breath out of the crotchety old villain. Agent Ryker took back his human shape again as Titania remarked:
“This teamwork stuff isn’t so bad. I’ll have to remember that ‘switch partners’ thing.”
“Uh... yeah,” said No Powers Boy. “Let’s move.”
They moved. They got as far as the front foyer. Kyle reached for the door’s handle, when suddenly a strong gust of wind knocked his hand away. The gust slowed down, and was finally recognizable as the lightning-fast Speed Demon.
“Doom’s onto you, Titania,” a voice said from behind. The party turned to see Arsenal, the orange-and-black-clad villain, entering the room. “The rest of us will be here any second, and then you’ll never stand a chance.” Arsenal lifted an umbrella from the nearby stand, and pointed it at the heroes. The umbrella glowed orange, then twisted itself into a submachine gun. He pulled the trigger, spraying bullets at the party. Steve cowered under his shield, Kyle drew his thick cape around his body, and Elyk shifted himself into a more thick-skinned creature he must’ve seen while on the Skrull homeworld. Titania, unfazed by a few bullets, marched straight at Arsenal. The villain dropped his gun, which turned back into an umbrella, as Titania approached. Meanwhile, No Powers Boy’s powers flared as Speed Demon ran, leaving the villain jogging at a normal human pace. Ryker’s arm stretched into the villain’s chin.
Arsenal knocked the potted plant from its pedestal nearby, picked the pedestal up, and pointed his bazooka at the incoming attacker. Titania knocked the bazooka aside as Arsenal pulled the trigger, and the blast knocked open a massive hole in the wall instead. The Gray Gargoyle appeared in the doorway from the embassy, transforming the jamb into stone with his touch. Behind him, Klaw’s sound and Electro’s electricity buzzed and hummed. Kyle put his hands on Steve’s shoulders, and pushed the young man toward the hole. Steve ran, followed by Ryker, then Kyle, and Titania brought up the rear as the four would-be heroes bolted out onto the street.
A crowd was already gathering out in the street. People were pointing and gasping, trying amongst themselves to identify the strange new building. When the wall of the embassy was blown out, and four strangely-dressed people came running from the hole, the crowds surged to get a closer look at these odd figures. Titania grabbed Steve by the collar, and leapt into the air. The crowds gasped. Then Ryker grabbed hold of Kyle’s waist, sprouted wings, and flew after Titania. The crowds gasped even louder, and many of the braver members of the crowd pushed their way into the embassy to see what was going on. The villains blasted away at the crowd, but by the time they made their way outside, the four escapees were gone.

“I don’t understand all of it,” Titania said. “But I’ll give you the basics. See, Doom contacted Crusher an’ me and told us that he was going to get rid of all the superheroes in the world, and that he wanted us to be his personal army, and that we were going to take over the world. Crush an’ I went on our honeymoon to Niagara Falls, so Doom was going to give us Canada. We’d sort of run it, and he’d be the King or the emperor or whatever.”
“Get rid of all the heroes?” Ryker asked. “How was he going to manage that?”
“With his time machine,” Titania replied. “He said he was going back as far as it possibly could- back to the beginning of time. He said something about the Celestial seed? The thing that makes our superpowers possible. He sent this machine back in time to stop the Celestials from planting this seed, so this whole world has developed without any sort of superhuman people. The only people who were spared were those of us who were inside the Embassy. You he kept-“
“-because of my powers,” Kyle answered. “I can block access to that Celestial seed. He must have known, somehow, that I have this... bond to the Celestials. And you, uh... Steve. You must’ve been spared, somewhat, by being... I don’t know what I’m trying to say.”
“Wait a minute,” Titania said. “This little runt is a superhero, isn’t he? Like one of the Avengers?”
“Um... no?” said Kyle.
“Yes, yes he is!” Titania exclaimed. “He’s a superhero! Who is he? Iron Man? He could be Iron Man, in that suit- who knows?”
“He’s not Iron Man,” said Kyle.
“Well he’s sure not Thor,” Ryker said. Kyle glared at him. “What? Is he the Hulk?”
“I’m Batman, aren’t I?” Steve asked. “Can I be Batman?”
“Who’s Batman?” Titania and Ryker asked.
“It’s not Batman!” said Kyle.
“Spider-Man,” said Titania. “That scrawny little twerp. I can’t believe I’m hanging out with Spider-Man.”
“So what are we going to do now,” Ryker said, changing the subject.
“I don’t know,” Kyle confessed. “But we’ve got to consider that we’re the last four- or three- or whatever people with any kind of powers left in the world who aren’t on Doom’s side. There’s nowhere we can go for help, so if we’re going to stop Doom, we’re on our own. And he’s sure to come after us...”
“There’s no ‘if!’” Titania insisted. “Crusher’s been written out of this reality, and we’re going back to put everything right. I wouldn’a freed you guys if I you weren’t going to help me.”
“There’s no question,” No Powers Boy said. “We’re going back to stop Doom. We’re our world’s only hope.”
“We’re them, aren’t we?” Steve asked. “Just like in the comic books and on the movies. We’re real heroes!”
“Like the Avengers,” Titania confirmed.
“No,” Kyle said. “No, there’s only one group that could ever hope to stop Doom.” He put his hand out toward the other four. Titania added her hand to the stack. Steve followed suit. Then, Ryker put his hands on top of everyone else’s.
“Right,” Ryker said.
“Now,” said No Powers Boy. “We’re the Fantastic Four!”