Somewhere in the 31st Century A.D.: Neoyork, American States of Earth—
The air, so clean and clear! The atmosphere charged with life itself, almost like a sea in which float wondrous vehicles of rounded shapes and colors! The buildings themselves appear nearly organic, an ever-changing reef of life. Truly fantastic! And yet, atop one of the roofs, a blue-faced man in green and purple regards the scene below with a feeling akin to . . . boredom?
“Kang!” comes the voice from behind. It is an identical twin! “Are you ready for your briefing?”
“So the adventure is successful, is it not?”
“It is what it must be, for in any event it has brought us here. There will be time enough to consider . . . the future!”
“Of course,” Kang nods. “Very well. I have just purged all memory and information regarding the Avengers’ mightiest battle. I am now prepared to fight alongside them. The only forewarned knowledge I will possess is that which you deem necessary. Are you sure you remember what you need to do?”
Kang’s Twin reaches out, “I should. I watched you do it.” Suddenly, with a bright flash of light, the two time-travelers disappear!
Somewhere in the First Century A.D., Ancient Scandinavia—
The wooded lands are crisp and clear in the morning sunshine, and yet, they are also tinged with hope and promise that it is all a fragile reality. That somewhere, if you could just peel back the curtain, you could find … magic! Kang senses it immediately, announcing to his Twin that he can tell this is truly an age of warriors!
Kang’s Twin nods, but cautions that being a warrior here means more than simply winning tests of might. He takes Kang to an opening to see the simple village that lies just beyond the ridge. It is a bustling area of activity, as villagers gather to trade the plundered spoils of the returning warriors. Among the villagers and warriors, however, are two easily-recognizable figures. Although they may easily blend in to the crowd around them, the Kangs recognize them as different!
“The Trickster and the Enchantress!” Kang's Twin explains, mentioning that these are names they choose when among the superheroes of the 21st Century. Here, they are simply Loki and Amora.
Loki excitedly tries to enamor Amora to the simple lives of the humans—more wonders of the uncomplicated life of Midgard. Amora can’t get as excited. It’s all too . . . mundane. Ah, but that’s the charm of it all! Loki sidles up to a man trading for some furs from a somewhat larger, burlier trader. He asks the man about the furs, and the man waxes poetic about the upcoming winter and how the furs can make a simple fire a wonderful evening. The trader agrees, saying that surely this is worth the expense. The man reluctantly agrees, and leaves.
Amora can’t believe how treacherous humans can be. Loki fails to understand, so Amora blows a kiss at the burly trader and asks him again about his wares. The burly trader bursts out laughing at his own treachery—inflating prices for inferior furs hardly worthy to clothe a rat!
Loki sighs (But at Amora for being proved right? At himself because he knows he can’t let this wrong be unavenged? Both?) He glances at the piles of furs, regretfully wishing the trader hadn’t said that. Why not? Loki’s eyes flash. “Because I think the rats heard you!” Suddenly, from beneath the piles of furs burst dozens and dozens of rats! They swarm up and over onto the trader!
Kang muses upon the scene. “So. You’ve taken me here to witness the display of power from these two?”
Kang’s Twin shakes his head. “You would think that twenty centuries may serve to temper the motivations and interplay between these heroes. Such is not the case.”
Somewhere in the 12th Century, Europe—
The fields of battle run thick with masses of knights throwing themselves at each other in reckless frenzy. “Aha! Here I shall surely meet Earth’s Mightiest Heroes!”
Kang’s Twin instead points out that he has 800 years for that. But one of their number, the Black Knight, wears an enchanted suit of armor, a legacy from this time. He points to the distance.
“To me, my brethren!” calls out the Black Knight. He rides atop a jet-black steed and wields a sword of even deeper ebony. The Knight’s forces face near-impossible odds—superior numbers, fresh-faced troops, and mightly elephants. The Knight was almost immediately stopped in his advance as his opponents parted and revealed a giant, 15-foot trollish monster! The Knight’s flank recoiled at its roar, but the Black Knight stood firm. In fact, he returned with a roar of his own, riding straight for the monster! What followed was a series of feints and parries, as the Knight seemed to be merely playing with the beast. Finally, the Knight targeted the chains that kept the monster on a tether. In its fury, the troll lashed out at anything in reach while trying to get to the Knight. Cleverly, the Black Knight turned to ride into the very heart of the enemy’s forces. With the troll on his heels, knocking aside anything that got into his way, the Knight managed to acquire a inadvertent ally!
Kang’s Twin smiles. “The Knight’s legacy is, in fact, only available to one who is deemed worthy. As such, in order to understand what how this ‘worthiness’ is defined, it is perhaps necessary to witness how it began.” Kang nods, smiling as well, and the two disappear again.
Somewhere in the Nevada desert, several months ago—
“Ah! The gladiatorial planet of Sakaar! A fine place to hone the battle skills of the heroes of Earth!”
No, Kang’s Twin points out they are still on Earth. But in many ways, the Avengers begin with this singular event. The humans are trying to tap into the might power of electromagnetic particles. In particular, the gamma ray! Noble, perhaps, if this power was going to be explored for any purpose other than creating a weapon of mass destruction!
Kang and his Twin are now in the observation booth deep underground. The scientists are scurrying around as the maiden test for the Gamma Bomb is about to countdown! Amazing, Kang notes, that these men all kowtow to the most spindly of them all-- a skinny bespeckled Dr. Banner.
During the procedure, Banner notices something’s wrong. A young man has driven his vehicle into the test site and is just sitting there! No! This cannot be! You can see the conflict in Banner’s face—should he say something and stop months of planning and preparation? The dismissive frown that ultimately emerges gives the answer. He hastily switches the viewer when a scientist comes up to ask a question. “Ready to begin the countdown?”
“Yes!” is the answer. Let the youth fend for himself. Should the test be successful, there won't be any evidence of him anyway, right?
The Twin Kangs teleport over to observe the young man in the jalopy convertible. He stands up on the seat, announcing to an unseen audience, “Well, Billy Bishop? Who says you can’t get into Area 616!? You just gotta ignore a few trespassing signs!”
The youth produces a guitar and starts strumming a grungy song of his own creation. He raises his guitar pick to the imagined cheers of his audience. “Adored by young ladies everywhere, feared by parents the world over! Ladies and gentlemen? I give you—Ricky Jones!”
Kang’s Twin notes that Kang may not recognize the kid when he sees him next. The gamma radiation from the bomb transformed him into the superhuman powerhouse of the Hulk. Kang asks if the radiation wouldn’t make him a monster, but Kang’s Twin corrects him. Instead of being feared as a public menace, the Hulk becomes embraced as a public celebrity. The ego on display, however, is the key to recognizing the Hulk when Kang next sees him.
Somewhere in New York, a couple of days ago—
“Top!” the Beetle cries out, “This is no time for showing off!” The Beetle is flying low through the expansive business lobby, open for several floors as the building branches out around them.
“Can I help it if showing off is going to save our butts?” the Human Top is spinning at speeds that blur his form to the eye, running along the glass walls that serve as barriers for the floors open to the lobby below.
“Am I to help them in this battle?” Kang asks incredulously. Kang’s Twin says no. Instead, he is meant to observe the dedication of the two heroes. One is dedicated out of an outrageous sense of moral duty, the other out of a freewheeling drive to throw his personal best at any challenge. But don’t mistake one as inherently better than the other.
The Human Top’s movement slowly changes the air currents of the building. Small bits of debris and paper begin wafting to the center. Most notably among the chaff are two small beings—Yellowjacket and the Wasp! “Look out! It’s a WHIRLWIND!” the Wasp cries out.
“Whirlwind? I like the sound of that.” Then, the Top shouts out at the Beetle, “Beety, we’ll need some ventilation shortly!”
The Beetle flies up to the top of the building, baring her suction-tip fingers as one would his claws. With the power of her battlesuit, she rips a giant opening in the ceiling. And none too soon. The gas canisters planted by the Yellowjacket as sabotage to the government building go off! Instead of filling the lobby with deadly chemicals, however, the Top’s whirlwind wafts it harmless out of the Beetle’s newly-fashioned skylight.
That’s enough for now, Kang’s Twin remarks, leaving the two to finish off the confrontation with Yellowjacket and the Wasp-- “You have a sense of the primitive technology that these heroes are using, plus a sense of the natural talents the mutants are developing. We only need to jump a few days ahead from this point, but first, there is one final observation to make.”
Somewhere in 1940, behind the German front—
“Have we backtracked?” Kang asks. Somewhat, according to Kang’s Twin. They are witnessing first-hand one of the mighty battles of World War II, when Captain America fought his last battle in the Red Skull’s hidden bunker.
“You’ve stolen my triumph from me! But your victory will be a HOLLOW one!” shouts the Red Skull as he attempts to flee the scene with a strongbox. “You cannot destroy my PLAN!"
Captain America follows rapidly, throwing his shield as the Red Skull is about to cover his escape with a grenade. The shield deflects the grenade, and it explodes around him! Even though his foe lies prone and dying, Captain America tries to help him, sacrificing his safety in an attempt to reach out to his foe. Nevertheless, the Red Skull scoffs. “I’m... not... beaten... yet! My invincible SLEEPERS will carry on for me! Even now they lie hidden... deep within Germany... where you can never find them... wainting for DER TAG!”
Captain America ponders “der Tag.. The Day! The secret Nazi master plan I was sent to uncover and smash!” But the mission remains unfinished, as about this time hundreds of Allied bombers, high overhead, write a thunderous FINIS to the Nazi dream of world conquest! Captain America is forced to leave the Skull behind as the tunnels begin to collapse around him. But not before he snatches a certain strongbox as he flees...
Kang’s Twin admits that the information on the future’s Captain America is sketchy, at best, even for the historical record available for a time-traveler. But the scene Kang has witnessed will prove invaluable, in many ways. But now, in the next time period they visit, Kang will join the Avengers!
Somewhere in Central Park, New York City, present day---
The Avengers have assembled! Keep that crowd back! Some strange visitor has appeared form thin air, in something that looks like it came from a 1960’s science fiction movie!
The Hulk approaches with confidence, reminding everyone that he since he once took down an entire armada of Toad Men spaceships single-handedly, one goofy-looking ship shouldn’t be a problem. The Beetle warns him to stop, however. They should do this by the book. They could be here in peace. The Black Knight agrees. Many a war could have been adverted with a simply friendly handshake.
The door opens, and a rush of excitement fills the bystanders. Who should step forth? Kang! In fact, TWO Kangs!
“Now, my self,” Kang’s Twin motions for Kang to descend. “Now it is time for you to face... the AVENGERS!”
“You have us at a disadvantage,” Captain America stands in front of the team. “You know us, but we don’t know you. Who are you, and what are your intentions!”
“I am KANG,” Kang strikes an impressive figure, “Ruler of the 31st Century. Champion of a thousand worlds. Warrior across a thousand eras. And my intentions should be clear. I’ve come to fight alongside the Avengers. I am here ... to JOIN you!”
“Hold on,” the Trickster folds his arms. “What makes you think you are going to join the Avengers?”
“Because he IS,” Kang’s Twin announced, “because he WILL, because he always DOES. Such is the nature of time. But you didn’t believe my words the first time you heard them, and you don’t believe them now. Instead, believe the news of your own media. Kang will join you, because today, the SLEEPERS have awakened!”
Kang’s Twin continues, this time to his counterpart. “I must go know. There is one more thing that must be put into play in order for this turn of events to occur. When you know what that is, you may take leave of the Avengers and become me to yourself. Farewell, Avengers.”
The Hulk looked at his teammates as Kang’s Twin faded away into the future. “Uh, did anyone understand any of that?”
“Shh!” the Black Knight shushed. There’s something coming over the radio built into his helmet. Kang answered for him, using just a bit of the forewarned knowledge that his Twin gave him. “It is the tale of a giant robot rising from the Earth in Germany. It is headed north, destroying everything in its path. It is the Sleeper, and it must be stopped!”
The Avengers are understandably skeptical, of course, but you, oh reader, need not be. For we must end this tale hanging off a cliff. For your final image, picture an impossibly huge humanoid robot, devoid of head and possessing twin electrodes in place of hands. It begins its march with thunderous, crushing steps and a barrage of lightning upon anything that happens to be in its way! The time? It must be Der Tag-- The Day-- because the time has come-- the Sleepers awake!
Cover and text by Danny Wall
From the "Credit Is Where Credit's Due" Deptartment:
The flashback to the German front/ World War II is lifted very directly from the text found in Tales of Suspence #72 (which will, incidentally, be the basis for Flipside's Avengers #7 cover!) You see, for guest scripters, we get none other than Stan Lee himself! Pretty swank, huh? So go out and get your Essential Captain America #1 while you wait for the second installment!
Posted by: Danny Wall | February 19, 2007 at 04:54 PM