2014-07-04 - Path of the Conqueror Part 1

Dr. Richards is a very busy known. More publicly known as Mr. Fantastic, he is more than just a hero, he is a scientist. He works hard at discoveries and answers the big questions of the universe, and many times he never shares the answers to keep society stable. He is often a quiet man, enjoying the lab more than the limelight, but a gentle man when he can be.

When it is announced that one of the young men from the Avengers Academy is here to see him from the gynoid receptionist Roberta, Dr. Richards pauses in his experiment, "Really?" He actually sounds vaguely curious. "Which one is it? Oh, I...suppose send them on up. I'll...clean up here." It is a true chaotic mess as he tries to get things somewhat organized so an explosion is not waiting to be seen!

Nathaniel has pondered long and hard how to do this. His first idea was to come without the armor, in the case Kang can monitor what he is doing. But doing that means also Kang would know Nate is suspicious and therefore avoiding any possible monitoring, which would mean Nate is not doing what Kang told him to do. A nice Catch 22 situation! But there might be some ways around it. And in the worst case scenario, he can go ahead with the hacking.

But maybe it won't be necessary. It is Reed Richards here, after all. Nathaniel might get what he needs just by asking him nicely. When the security system lets him through, he removes the helmet of the armor to meet his distant ancestor face to face.

There is a bit of grey at Dr. Richards' temples, and he has a distracted expression on his face. But his smile is warm and friendly as he walks to greet you, trying to remember not to reach his hands out elastically to shake before his body reaches Nathaniel! Alright, so he mostly succeeds. "Hello, I'm Dr. Reed Richards. And you are?" Simple acceptance merely because the young man said he was from the Avengers Academy. This is something Kang the Conqueror could not have so easily done. "Ah wait...I think I heard about you....," and there is Reed, distracting himself again while still shaking Nathaniel's hand.

Nathaniel shakes Reeds hand, "Nathaniel Richards, Iron Lad. It is an honor to finally meet you, Doctor Richards," he states. There is a genuine tone of admiration in his voice. "Thank you for receiving me with so little warning. I am in a something of a conundrum, and I need your assistance. As a scientist and a hero."

"That's right, Iron Lad!" Reed then nods, "And we share the same surname, fascinating. Please, come in and have a seat. What can I do for you?" After the shake, some arms stretch out and grab some chairs, dragging them over here and setting them down for him and Nathaniel as the two take a seat in Reed's massive lab. There are metal portals in the back that when charged up, could travel to other dimensions and potentially more.

"Yes, same surname," confirms Nathaniel, taking the offered seat. "And it is not a coincidence. I am not sure how much access do you have to the Avengers databanks... hmm, no matter. If you had read my file you would not forgotten. We have met before in your past, which might be my future. I am a time traveler."

A blink from Dr. Richards. "Oh my. Well, this should complicated things. Though to be honest, I'm sure I would remember if we met," and there is a slight pause. "Are you my son?!" Reed seems to find this thought terrifying and exciting at the same time. "Wait, wait right there," and he's up and stretching out for some things and doing some energy scans on poor Nathaniel. Yep, science is a win.

"What? No!" Nathaniel almost chuckles. "A genetic scan won't be very interesting either; there are too many generations among us." It would reveal some minor genetic differences with a normal human, but they involve genetic engineering performed in Nathaniel's ancestors as part of eugenics programs to eradicate diseases and increase lifespan. Rather subtle differences with 21st Century humans.

"It is not important now, Doctor. What brings me here is an issue concerning two Avengers. Iron Man and Black Widow. I know you were involved in that business and I need to know the details."

Energy scans reveal numerous micro portals to hyperspace in his outfit, from which the armor draws power. It is an incredibly advanced piece of hardware that makes even mainstream galactic technology to look like caveman tools.

The scans are coming back on the genetics, the hyperspace micro-portals, and Dr. Richards hrms, "Too far in the future, highly advanced geneti...," but he doesn't finish because the question registers. "I...don't know what you mean." Because there was a promise with Black Widow, that no matter how ill it sets with him, a promise is a promise.

Nathaniel hmms. "You do not know? Well, that certainly throws a wrench into the whole plan. There was some... evidence. Well, reports. But my sources are not fully reliable. But... is there any possibility you could imagine why the Black Widow could an impostor?"

A wrinkle of Reed's brow happens as he fidgets with his scientific equipment. "Ah, well...I don't believe she is," sounding a little confused by it all as if mentally double checking himself. "Where did you hear this?"

"Another time traveler," admits Nathaniel, hesitating for a few instants, "one that could be lying, although I am not sure what would be gained by lying. It was... Kang the Conqueror, doctor. He mentioned a plan by an organization called the Agenda."

Reed has to catch one piece of very expensive equipment that gets knocked over at the mention of Kang the Conqueror. "Great Scott!" He carefully sets the equipment back upright. "I have not met Kang the Conqueror myself, but I have also not heard a single nice thing about him from the Avengers. I simply would just not trust that information myself," the Quantum Physics Doctor advises.

"You have met him," mentions Nathaniel, "he was calling himself Pharaoh Rama Tut when you did. He took the name of Kang later in his life." He sighs, "and he is interested in the private affairs of Tony Stark and the Black Widow now. I... we need to figure out why. He said it was for altruistic reasons, but I certainly do not trust him."

Dr. Richards gasps, "I'd say assuredly not! He's a...a...jerk!" Well, he wasn't about to say anything worse in front of Nathaniel! "I don't want to think about the number of people that died under his rule, and rebellion was completely unacceptable. I'm not saying that in his own very special head he isn't thinking he's doing things for the greater good, but I've seen the results of his actions first time when I traveled back through time. It is not as he says," and the older heroes' expression hardens.

"This is not good news at all. The amount of chaos that this could all cause...," and Reed sighs. "What exactly did he tell you Mr. Richards?" The man has no idea that Nathaniel equals Kang.

"He told me the children of Tony Stark would have an important role in the future," explains Nathaniel. He is a bit relieved Richards has not figured it out, as 'Rama Tut' couldn't be too different physically to himself. "And that the real Black Widow was being restrained by mistake while a clone created by the 'Agenda' is impersonation her. Are you sure you know nothing of this matter?"

"I...," and Reed sighs at this. "I know about it," he finally confesses. "The real Black Widow is certainly out and about however, I made sure of that without even her knowledge. After all, there were complications, first they shared the same memories, and second the clone was infected with speed particles which were causing accelerated aging. However, a side-effect of the accelerated aging was cellular deterioration. The problem is, were she to live to give birth, she would instantly die as there isn't a way to stabilize her genetic structure for her to survive through it. The children would however," and his expression looks guilt at that.

Reed sighs, "I've been trying to find a way to tell Stark, except, well, it's a difficult thing to talk about. I know he was looking forward to being a father. He was upgrading JARVIS to be a sort of nanny and unique security system for the children, and he must be feeling very angry and upset right now," and there are stress lines on Reed's face.

"We cannot let Kang get to them however, that would be horrible. I can only imagine what he would have in mind, and none of it would be pleasant. He is not a kind or nice man," Reed advises. "He can actually be quite cruel."

Nathaniel frowns. That seems... almost make sense. "So the Speed Force was used to age the clone, that is such a... clumsy thing. And yet ingenious. 21st Century mad science at its best. But you have to tell Mr. Stark immediately. And Kang... yes, he should not be allowed to get close to the children. If he has his best intentions in mind, like he claims, it is not necessary for him to get further involved. Otherwise, you better prepare for a kidnapping attempt."

"It was an accident, Dr. Pym was doing an experiment at the Avengers Mansion, and the clone got caught up into it. If it wasn't for that, she likely could have lasted for years before her genetic break-down, plenty of time for The Agenda to achieve their goals," Dr. Richards advises. "The Agenda actually did a decent job, and their memory transference is seemingly flawless. They are mad geniuses, and highly dangerous. I understand they have Kryptonian clones, their specialty being alien cloning."

"This is, definitely not good in either case. But at least they are safely hidden away in statis, until a decision can be arrived at." Reed sighs deeply at that. "But how to break the news to Stark? He is a friend of mine, but I made a promise...this is just not right though," as the scientist frets over the moral responsibilities of this.

"I will tell him," states Nathaniel, standing up. "He knows me pretty well, and he knows I have a... link to Kang. Then we can see if there is anything that can be done to save the clone. Once we deal with Kang. I doubt he will be happy with how events are developing." Although maybe he can lure him into the open with the information Reed provided him. But no, he really has no way to prevent the older time traveler from just teleporting away. Nathaniel's own future doesn't look good.

"You are young Mr. Richards, you cannot expect to deal with Kang by yourself," Reed states. "Let me help," he offers. "Let me just gather a few things about the lab....," and he starts to wander about the lab to get some things.

That is when Nathaniel should start getting a sensation that things are not right. His armor is accessing the computer database near him without being told to and is downloading information. It is performing a hack job faster than Nathaniel realized the armor could! Did he subconsciously think about hacking the information for where the clone is located, or is there something more to this?

Nathaniel commands the armor to stop. But he had the armor for almost two years, it has been a while since he had lost control of one of the automatic functions, much less something as complex as a hacking process. He is aware, however, that is programmed to respond to his psychic signature, which are also Kang's. "Doctor, send an alarm beacon, I believe my armor has been compromised and it is accessing the Fantastic Four databanks."

Dr. Richards drops what he is doing, "No...," and he moves to hit an alarm. The armor isn't stopping the hacking process and comes back with a 'hit' even as the system starts to shut down. Suddenly, one side of the room is bowing inward as something powerful hits it. To dent and make the Baxter Building shudder in response it must be powerful, though toward the back of the room, Kang materializes inside toward the portals. "Nathaniel, Mr. Fantastic," he greets, purple mask down and covering his face. "I am afraid I must interfere with your plans in disposing of me and my goals."

Spheres of metal are dropped from his hand and roll outwards toward Mr. Fantastic. Rather than becoming robots as one would expect, explosions rock from within the lab instead...The place has locked down security wise, trapping those within....inside thanks to Mr. Fantastic's alarm and the attack to the outside of the Baxter Building.

Nathaniel is not prone to cursing; he is too civilized for it. Maybe he should find out what 'Great Scott' means. It can't be too bad if Reed Richards says it. He feels like cursing some, no doubt it is Hope Summers being a bad influence.

The armor is obviously compromised, but he is not sure how much. Simple test: he fires a mid-power repulsor blast to Kang. "You lied to me, you had it coming," he comments, the helmet growing over his head. "And targeting children must be a historical low point in the conqueror career."

The blast is knocked aside by Kang's forcefield, which is currently amped up. In the meantime the blast that rocks the lab sends Mr. Fantastic flying backwards and he hits the wall hard, grunting as he does so and sliding down. He tires to shake his head, to get his wits back to him. He hit hard.

Suddenly, the portal near Kang is powering up remotely. "Children? Really Nathaniel, they aren't even born yet, they have no sentient ability to them at this point. Furthermore, they help bring about the Dark Age when they get free. Coming for them, it is for the best. Just step aside Nathaniel. It is for the best."

Nathaniel fires a few more shots from his right hand, slowly increasing the power, and tries to place himself between Kang and Mr. Fantastic. "I am quite sure you are lying. But even if it is true, there is no credible reason for you to oppose the coming of the Dark Age. It is our past, and it is the end of the Heroic Age and most of your greatest enemies." Meanwhile his left gauntlet is re-configuring into a deadlier weapon than a repulsor blaster.

"Ah, but there are multiple timelines, some free standing, and some crumbling into non-existence." The blasts as they get stronger are blowing up more things, though Kang shifts to protect the portal and its equipment he is activating. It starts to whirl and swirl, soon opening a portal up. "Their actions bring the Dark Age, but there are other ways to bring about the Dark Age with less risk. These could bring about our own death, and the death of Earth as a whole."

What appears to look like a lab opens up behind him within the portal.

Mr. Fantastic struggles to stand up, "The Avengers, they will be coming. They will stop you."

"Me? Or us?" And that is when Nathaniel will feel his repuslor blaster freeze up and his armor become frozen. When it starts to move it aims a weapon at Mr. Fantastic itself. "I doubt they will be having a pleasant welcoming surprise," Kang states warningly.

Nathaniel scans for the portal opening while firing, up to the point the armor freezes. "My armor! Doctor Richards, leave now! He is controlling my armor!" Hopefully Mr. Fantastic has inventions in the building that can defeat Kang, or something! Where is the Thing when you need him?