Chapter 17: Seeing the Sights
The three teens stepped through the event horizon and into what was obviously an enclosed welcome area. Waiting for them was a man who Sophia didn't think was old enough to be May's father. That impression was reinforced by the fact that he was holding the hand of a young toddler. May immediately launched herself at the two and grabbed them in a hug.
"Dad! Benjy! You came to pick us up!" said the red-head.
"May!" called out the little boy with a happy smile as he hugged her leg.
The man grinned down at his daughter and said, "Yeah, well, we happened to be in the area and I figured we might as well. You want to introduce your friends?"
May leaned back from her father without letting go and looked back at the two other teens. "Dad," she said with a slightly exasperated tone, "You've known Maggie since she was little."
"Hi, Uncle Peter," said the girl with a little wave.
"She keeps getting bigger, so I didn't recognize her..." said Peter with the knowing tone of a dad joke.
May detached herself from her father and went and grabbed Sophia's arm. "This is Sophia. She just started going to school with us. Her and her folks are staying on the ship for now."
Sophia gave a hesitant smile and stepped forward, offering her hand. May's father easily stepped forward and grabbed her hand to shake. "It's nice to meet you, Sophia. I'm Peter Parker. Welcome to New York."
The five of them exited the room as a clumpy group into a long corridor, which turned out to be in the basement of the Earth Defense Force headquarters. The building was lightly populated on a weekend, but there were still plenty of guards who all nodded or greeted Peter respectfully.
"I'm surprised they don't salute," said Maggie mischievously.
Peter frowned. "EDF headquarters is supposed to be a civilian organization...mostly. We do have a strict military hierarchy for the fleet, but HQ is supposed to be somewhat laxer."
"How does that work in practice?" asked Sophia curiously. That seemed like it would be confusing at best.
As they went outside and got into a large, formal-looking ground car complete with driver Peter replied, "Fairly well, so far. I mean, it definitely adds some bureaucracy and complicates the org chart, but it also improves oversight and helps soften the public image of the EDF. Of course, some of the council don't like it, but even they admit it has some advantages." Victor was the most disdainful, of course, but his role was able to mostly ignore the distinction. The others were more used to political compromise, even if they didn't care for it personally.
Sophia wondered how close that was to the PRT in her own universe. They were a quasi-military organization with civilian oversight...supposedly. In practice, they tended to do whatever was politically expedient, using the Protectorate capes as a huge lever to get what they wanted. She had to think that the EDF having a fleet of warships was just as big a stick, but then people also kept telling her that her world tended toward darker interpretations of things. She wasn't sure how true that was, as people seemed pretty similar regardless of their universe-of-origin. Tentatively, she asked, "Doesn't the very existence of the fleet make some of the politicians nervous?"
May's father frowned but nodded his head. "We have to do a lot of political maneuvering to account for that. We also have safeguards built into things to try and isolate the EDF from Earth-bound politics. Wakanda and Latveria being so heavily involved is actually a bonus in that regard, as nobody really regards them as allies of anyone else. T'Challa's people mostly kept to themselves until recently, and Doom has always had his own agenda and has been slightly disdainful of working with other nations."
Sophia perked up at Peter's words. She couldn't help but grin at the idea that nations that she knew from comic books were actually real, here. "Have you been to those countries? What about Madripoor?" She had spent some time reading up on the Marvel universe because of her friendship with May, and she found herself liking Wolverine's stories...at least the print ones. Some of the movies weren't so good.
"Yup," said Peter with a grin. "Of course, those places were all hotspots for superheroes even before the EDF." Then he frowned a little. "I wouldn't say I enjoyed some of my earlier visits to Latveria or Madripoor..." He paused for a moment. "I'm going to guess you've been reading about Logan if you're asking about the latter?"
Now she was glad her darker skin helped hide her blush. "I read up on your world a lot after I met May. It seemed like the smart thing to do."
"Just don't believe everything you read," interjected May. "Not everything in the Smug Advocacy archives is even close to correct." Thankfully so, as many of the stories did not end well for May's family.
"I hope not," added Maggie with a humorous tone. "I've seen some weird stuff, but I don't know if I could handle a universe where Spider-Ham actually exists."
Sophia and Maggie both laughed at that, but they stopped when they noticed that May and her father both had very strange expressions on their face. Finally, May said, "That version of our universe is real. It's Earth-8311."
Peter shuddered. "It is a VERY weird place. I try not to think about it too much." He had once, briefly, considered telling Victor about Ducktor Doom in order to see his reaction but decided it wasn't worth the mental trauma. He wasn't sure whose mental trauma was the concern, honestly.
With a glance, both Sophia and Maggie came to the conclusion that they would be grilling May about what she knew about 8311 but that it could wait until later. Instead, Maggie changed the subject. "Uncle Peter, did you have any plans for the week we're here?"
"Well, I had a few ideas. MJ and I will have to work for part of it, but I trust May to guide you two through New York when we're unavailable. Sophia, have you ever been to New York before?"
The girl shook her head. "Honestly, I've never been outside of Brockton Bay before...and I guess my hometown doesn't even exist, here."
"I don't mind going to see the touristy stuff, again," said Maggie. "The versions here are different from the ones back home. Now that I think about it, someday I want to visit this Earth's Chicago. For that matter, you two should come visit my version." Chicago had become a much safer city in a supernatural sense thanks to the presence of Dresden Security and two Knights of the Cross. Grudgingly, she also had to give credit to Marcone's organization, even if she didn't like the man himself. He kept the mundane crime to a level that was more civilized and helped keep the mundane from crossing with the supernatural in most cases.
Sophia nodded. "Definitely want to do that if we can. I would offer to show you Brockton Bay...but we would probably be better off going to the Family version. Mine is still kind of dangerous."
"Based on the version of Taylor Hebert I met, you probably wouldn't recognize the Family version. She was a little freaked out by how different it was," said Peter.
The native Brocktonian looked sharply at May's father. "You met a version of Taylor Hebert?"
He nodded. "Yep. That was a while ago, though...before May was born. She's the second in command of the Protectorate in her Brockton Bay, now."
The teenager tried to imagine the girl she knew back home becoming a leader in the Protectorate. Hebert's father wouldn't be happy with that, for one thing...but then things probably were already very different in that other universe. It also sounded like the people there were much older than they were in her home reality. It was confusing keeping all of the differences straight.
The car pulled up in front of a very exclusive and expensive high-rise condominium complex. May immediately perked up when she realized that they had arrived, and began telling Sophia and Maggie about the neighborhood, the building, and various other facts. The two other girls exchanged an amused glance, happy that their friend was so excited to be home. Sophia was starting to think that this trip might be even better than she expected, given how many interesting things she had learned just during the car trip to her friend's home.
Down the street, a hidden observer made note of the fact that Director Parker had returned home with his daughter and two of her friends.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Yong-Gongju was still pondering the concept that, in addition to a sister and her nieces, she had what could be considered an extended family in other universes. She had visited the virtual meeting space for the extended Dragon Clan, and been introduced to a number of AI's that she considered to be her cousins. She hadn't quite realized at first that Samantha, the ship's AI for the Smug Advocacy, was actually an alternate Dragon's daughter. It turned out she had quite a lot of cousins. Most of them were older than she was. For that matter, the alternate Dragon was older than her sister from her home universe, and had had a very different life experience. It was easier to think of her as an auntie than another sister. Apart from that, Bahamut was also definitely at least an auntie. She had actually had to stop herself from calling her halmoni on their first meeting, as the Mother Box AI ticked off all of her mental checkboxes for, "wise elder."
One consequence of meeting the full Dragon Clan was her current assignment. Her father had based her personality on a Korean manwha that he liked. The Yong-Gongju in that story was essentially a magical girl. That didn't translate into her having actual magical ability, but it did give her a somewhat more accepting and fluid ability to consider the topic. At least, that was how Bahamut had explained things to her when requesting her aid. Add in the fact that universes with slightly different...essences...allowed for real magic, and some of those same universes still had relatively advanced computer technology, and you have a situation where she might be uniquely suited to help her extended family. That was why she was poking around on the Internet in a world with active Hellmouths and a history of digitized fiends and law firms working for actual demon lords.
The Clan's caution seemed to be quite prudent after some exploration. Having spent some time poking around, it was clear that there was a sizable magical presence on the global networks of this world. Some of what she found was fairly benign -- information sources like Demons, Demons, Demons and sites for techno-pagans and other light practitioners. Other technically savvy groups used mystical means to facilitate various crimes, ranging from fraud to drug trafficking to murder-for-hire. The worst category was Web sites and servers affiliated with dark mages, evil cults, and those who worked with and for demons like Wolfram and Hart. Yong-Gongju had found she had a sixth sense for dangerous magic and had managed to avoid any mystical compulsions or traps that would have injured or killed her. She was compiling a list of offending sites to turn over to the Sineya Council. They undoubtedly were aware of some of it, but some of it was extremely subtle and well-masked. She didn't think the Council knew there was a demonic version of 4chan, or else they would have done something about it.
Once she was done on this world, she would be moving on to Harry Dresden's universe. Then Bahamut had asked her to help her Cousin Asti with certain parts of the Marvel universe cybersphere. Yong-Gongju had respectfully asked the elder AI why she hadn't already done so herself, only to be told that doing so would violate a number of agreements and understandings among beings of power in different universes. Thinking back on that, she had to wonder how the Family fit into those relationships. They seemed powerful enough to play on the same level as some pretty powerful agents. She could probably ask Dragon about it. Her alternate had shared a large amount of data about the lizards, and about the other universes overall, so she might know.
There were still a few things to do before she could move on, however. Just as she began refocusing herself, however, she felt another mind trying to reach out to her. Strangely, it appeared to be a local inhabitant of this universe. Readying her mental defenses, she stretched out a tendril of thought to the seeker.
'Dangsin-eun nugu-imnikka?' She sensed confusion from the other mind, then mentally slapped herself in the virtual forehead. 'Who are you?' she sent in English.
'Hello?' came the reply. 'My name is Christine, and I'm trying to reach the Dragon Princess?'
Yong-Gongju considered that and wondered how this woman knew she was here. She had been working rather hard to make sure she left no trace of her passage on the networks of this world. 'Why do you seek her?' she asked.
The other mind hesitated, then asked insistently in return, 'Are you the Dragon Princess?'
'I am. Why do you wish to speak with me?' replied the AI.
There was a clear sense of relief from the woman. 'Thank the goddess. I was trying to find you because I sometimes get visions of things that haven't happened yet.' She hesitated again. 'Do you believe in prophecy?'
The princess snorted. 'Yes, although prophecies, in general, are slippery and treacherous things. Have you received one involving me?' She was going to be annoyed if it was the usual prophetic rambling that was completely opaque until after the events in question.
'I wouldn't call it a prophecy...more of an...order? I was given an image of a place I don't quite understand, and told to find you and give it to you. The impression I got is that you have to go to that place in order to preempt a great evil.' Christine's mental voice seemed to be firming up as she explained herself, as if she were accustomed to giving guidance to others and found that role more comfortable.
Yong-Gongju considered that. For prophetic visions, that was remarkably straight-forward. It was about as clear as such things got, which meant that something unusual was happening. 'Please show me the image,' she prompted.
She got a sense of acquiescence, and then an image appeared in their mind-space. To say that she was shocked was an understatement. A computer bank made from a familiar crystalline technology was being guarded by two men wearing chainmail and carrying staff weapons. Atypically, there was signage on the walls in Goa'uld, labeling the site as the second data repository of Stronth Prime. Yong-Gongju sent a query and quickly got a response from River, one of her cousins. Stronth Prime was a planet on the edge of Hebridan space that was owned by a minor Goa'uld named Tanthis. The Goa'uld was about as inoffensive as that race ever managed to be, which was why he was still there. He made a living as an information broker and was generally willing to deal with anybody as long as they paid his fee. She quickly sent an acknowledgment to her cousin along with a promise to explain later.
Why was a power of some kind in the Slayer universe sending her an image of a planet in an entirely different reality? Of course, the whole Wormhole X-Treme! event with the android SG-1 team showed that there were already some surprising connections between the two realities. She knew some scientists in the Stargate universe who would be horrified at how close that universe was to being fully magical, although the Nox would probably find that reaction amusing.
Returning her attention to her informant, she sent, 'Very well. I shall investigate this location.'
'You know where that is? Can you read that language? Is it demonic?' The questions were asked with a hint of annoyance, as if the speaker wasn't used to being in the dark about such topics.
Hiding her amusement, the Dragon Princess simply said, 'It is not demonic...though some might say the creatures who use it are every bit as evil. As for where it is, all I will say is that it is on a plane far removed from your own world. I would be surprised if you ever encounter it on Earth.' At least, she shouldn't ever see it on this Earth.
She could sense that Christine didn't like that answer, but she also clearly wasn't sure what kind of being this Dragon Princess was and didn't feel like pressing her luck. 'Very well. Thank you for listening to my warning.' Her mental presence quickly faded.
Yong-Gongju quickly plotted a course that would send her through to the planet in question via wormhole and the Asgard sensor net spread throughout that part of space. While in transit, she received another questioning ping from River, to which she sent a quick note saying she was investigating something odd but probably not dangerous. Honestly, while she could appreciate her adopted Clan being concerned for her, she found their attention slightly over-bearing at times. She was used to operating independently and relying on her own abilities. Of course, it didn't help that the character on which her personality was based was a bit of a loner with a tendency to avoid personal entanglements. She was aware of this aspect of her personality but didn't see it as a problem, despite understanding that her sister or other relatives might disagree on that point.
Tanthis had a number of external data feeds, which was to be expected of someone whose business was dealing in information. It wasn't long before she had found cracks in the system security that allowed her inside. She found a truly massive repository of information, including some that surprised her. There was information on the four great races of antiquity, including some surprisingly accurate speculations on what section of the galaxy held the Nox homeworld, along with the fact that they were likely still around, still powerful, and exceedingly good at hiding themselves from others. There was also a map of the stargate network that was more complete than what most of the System Lords had had in recent centuries. Tanthis also had a surprisingly complete dossier on the human teams operating from Stargate Command on Earth, as well as information on the current members of the Asgard High Council.
Beyond this layer of information, she found another security layer that was a legitimate challenge to penetrate. It evinced aspects that reminded her of Asgard system security, which was very unusual outside of an Asgard or current-state Terran computer system. The reason for that became clear once the contents were revealed. Apparently, someone with access to Asgard systems had sold Tanthis information on the Family. It included descriptions of Saurial, Raptaur, Metis, and Ianthe, as well as information on the technology present on the refitted Ship of Fools and the dimensional skippers. There was no mention of the Dragon Clan or the Smug Advocacy, so it was likely old data. Still, it was more information than she felt comfortable leaving in the hands of a Goa'uld information broker, so she began overwriting the files and ensuring that they were beyond recovery. She would also have to locate any other copies of the data that might exist on the Goa'uld's computer network, of course. To that end, she left the security and file structure intact so that everything appeared to be undisturbed. With luck, she would be able to track down all of the copies before anybody noticed what was happening.
As she was finishing up her work there, the alert status of the local network suddenly jumped up in severity. Curious, she accessed the security sensors in the complex and discovered that the location was under attack. A unit of soldiers wearing black body armor and helmets was methodically making its way through the corridors, calmly disposing of any Jaffa or humans encountered. Yong-Gongju watched as one of the attackers took a staff blast to the breastplate before discharging a rapid-fire energy weapon at the Jaffa who fired the shot, killing him. The attackers were obviously highly trained and the battle was extremely one-sided. She made note that the uniforms had no names, insignia, or rank identification. While they appeared to be humanoid, they had some kind of jamming capability that prevented scans from penetrating their armor. Once the complex was secured, some of the troopers went about disintegrating the bodies of the defenders while another group set to work on the data storage. They quickly began copying the information. She noted that the data packet on the Family was one of the first things they grabbed, making her corruption of that data quite fortunate and timely. They seemed to have a clear priority of which data was most important, which implied at least some insider knowledge of the system. A third group of troopers began setting what appeared to be explosive charges at key points around the site. Whoever they were, they were clearly keen on obfuscating as many details about the attack as possible. Yong-Gongju took that as her cue to exfiltrate the local systems.
She made her way back to Dragon Clan cyberspace and found River waiting for her. The avatar in the form of a young woman said, "All right, spill. What have you been up to, cousin?"
The Dragon Princess just said, "Get everyone together. I think everybody needs to hear this." One of the nice things about being an AI was that her whole family could simply spin off an instance to attend meetings, making sure that all the necessary parties were present. She would be particularly curious to see what Auntie Bahamut thought about the whole sequence of events.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Aaron was searching through the stacks of books. He had been somewhat surprised to learn that the Smug Advocacy had a physical library containing actual books when terminals providing access to massive amounts of information were ubiquitous on board. The explanation given when he asked was a combination of practicality and sentiment. Apparently, some books...particularly but not exclusively magical ones...could be dangerous to scan into digital format. There were also people on the ship who were from cultures where digital content was rare or non-existent. Some readers simply preferred the heft (and even scent) of a good book. Also, most of the librarians found the idea of discarding a book, even after it had been scanned into a digital format, as distasteful at best. Aaron had also discovered, after idly opening a book on Family mathematics containing moving, three-dimensional diagrams, that his understanding of the limitations of paper books was pathetically simplistic when the lizards were involved.
The library catalog (which was digitized, and the librarian had simply sniffed at him when he commented on it) had indicated that there were three physical copies of a recommended primer on practical magic. Two were checked out, but one should be on the shelf. While the book was available online, his mother had put a hold on his access to that topic until she decided she was comfortable with him studying it. He had learned quickly that a hold placed with an AI was a whole different animal than one enforced by inexpensive child monitoring software like they had on their home computer back in Brockton Bay. Her mother hadn't restricted his access to the library, though, as she wasn't aware it existed. Aaron was more than willing to take advantage of that loophole.
The book, however, wasn't on the shelf. He did what any sensible American public school student would do in that situation and went to look for reshelving carts or an on-hold shelf. When that didn't work, he went to ask the librarian on duty. She informed him that they didn't need such things, as the books would reshelve themselves if they sat untouched for more than an hour unless they were checked out. Holds were only available for the handful of hardcopy-only texts and those were rare. She suggested that if the book wasn't on the shelf then somebody was probably reading it at the moment.
Frustrated, the teen started wandering the library, looking for who might have the book he wanted. As was typical with spaces in the ship, the library was larger than it might appear from the outside. There were plenty of readers sitting in various comfortable chairs around the edges of the room, or in small clusters in between the shelving. Most looked fairly normal, although some of them would have stood out back in the Bay. Particularly memorable was a woman in what looked like a silver bathing suit whose skin was bright green next to a man wearing a bright pink robe with moving butterfly pictures. The man was reading a long scroll, while the green woman appeared to be perusing a manual on how to repair a Chevy Cavalier for models made between 1982 and 1994.
Finally, huddled into a pair of chairs made of what looked to be zebra hide in the corner, he discovered a girl that was approximately his age reading the book he wanted. He paused, wondering how to best approach her. If she had been an adult, he would have politely begged her attention and asked her when she was planning to be finished...or possibly just given up if the adult was sufficiently intimidating. This, however, was an attractive girl close to his own age. That triggered a confusing mixture of anxiety and interest that would be familiar to anyone still discovering the consequences of puberty. He was vaguely aware of this, and also aware that this was a situation where self-awareness wasn't especially helpful. "Hey!" he said out loud, realizing as soon as he said it that it seemed awfully loud in the quiet library.
She looked up, eyes wide and startled. Her brown eyes widened even more when she saw him standing there. She absent-mindedly brushed a bit of brown hair out from in front of her face and replied, "Uh, yes?"
He winced. "Sorry, I didn't mean to sound so loud. Um...you're reading a magic primer."
Now the brunette's face turned slightly confused. "Well...yes. And...?" Aaron noted that her skin was pale like she didn't get out in the sun much.
He realized he hadn't explained himself...at all. "That's the only copy that isn't checked out, and I was looking for it. Are you going to check it out? Like, out of the library? I mean, it's fine if you are, I just wanted to know..." He paused, unsure how to fix the massive, gaping hole in the hull of the ship that was this conversation.
She raised the book slightly so it covered her mouth, probably trying to hide her amusement at his awkwardness. "I was just reading it. You know that they have this book scanned into the online archives? There's nothing really dangerous inside."
"Heh, try telling my mother that..." he muttered, then blushed when he realized he had said that part out loud. "It's just, my Mom grew up going to a really strict church, so she's really iffy on the whole magic being real and not Satanic."
She lowered the book, revealing a slight smile. "Won't she be upset that you're studying it without her permission?"
Now he smiled a little. "Yeah, but she'll get over it eventually. I'm going to ask the Nox about it next time we visit..." Aaron paused again when he realized he had yet again said something unintended. Going to the Nox was basically admitting he was in therapy, after all. "We're going because of my sister!"
Her eyes widened again in surprise, but then she gave him a critical look. "And you're telling a stranger about your sister's issues...why?"
"No! I mean...it's nothing bad. Also, I'm Aaron. What's your name?" He mentally crossed his fingers that she would answer instead of telling him to buzz off.
Some amusement crept into her expression. "It's Penny Marko, and you still shouldn't be telling me about your sister's therapy sessions."
He stared at her for a moment, then let out a sigh. "I didn't want you to get the wrong impression...like I was crazy or something."
Now, she really did look annoyed. "Going to therapy is not a sign of being crazy. I'm very familiar with that."
Desperately, he said, "Good! You get it! My sister's not crazy. She's a superhero. It's just that having a superhero in the family can be really stressful for everybody. It's dangerous and complicated."
Penny's look softened. "Yeah, I get that. My dad has powers, and I worry about him sometimes. Is that why you want to study magic?"
Aaron's blush deepened some more. "Kind of? I mean, it would be nice to have something that was like what Sophia has...Sophia is my sister." She nodded at that. "Also, my parents aren't convinced that they want to stay working here, so I feel like I have to take the opportunity to study this stuff while I can. My world doesn't have any magic at all, as far as I know."
"No magic at all?" she asked, clearly surprised. "I mean, magic isn't that common on my world, but we do have practitioners like Doctor Strange."
Aaron forgot his nervousness for a moment at that revelation. "You come from the Earth with Doctor Strange? Like, with the Avengers, and Spider-Man? Really?"
Penny laughed at his eagerness. "I take it you're a fan?"
This brought the teen up short. "Um, well, I was a fan of the stories we have. Obviously, I know they're not all true. Do you actually know anybody like Spider-Man?"
Now it was the girl's turn to blush. "Yeah, I've met Spider-Man. Back before my Dad worked here, he was actually a supervillain who fought Spider-Man more than once."
Without thinking, he blurted out, "What's his villain name?"
She cringed slightly, but said, "He used to go by Sandman."
"Wow." Then he noticed her reaction. "Hey, I'm sure he's really a good guy if he works with the Family." She seemed to visibly relax at that, and an idea occurred to him. "You know, if you've read through some of that book, maybe you can help me with it? I don't know anything about magic beyond what I've seen in video games and movies."
Penny looked at the admittedly kind of cute boy with the dark skin as he asked for her help. With a smirk, she moved her feet off of the chair next to her and said, "Well, I'm no witch, but I can tell you about what I've read so far."
Aaron quickly plunked himself down into the chair. Inwardly, he was relieved he hadn't made a completely horrible first impression on the girl. He began to listen to her describe the basics of magic with interest...and it wasn't just the topic that he was finding interesting.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
New York City in this universe was interesting and odd. The famous landmarks were different, for one thing. Of course, there was no Protectorate Headquarters building. Instead, they had Avengers Headquarters and EDF Headquarters. There was also Stark Tower and Four Freedoms Plaza. Some other landmarks, though, were common across several realities. She and Maggie both recognized the United Nations building, the Empire State Building, and the Statue of Liberty (although Sophia thought the famous poem associated with the statue was slightly different in her world). The World Trade Center existed, but it was one building instead of two. Sophia meant to ask May about that but didn't get around to it. The brands on the signs were also slightly different. They passed a couple of different gas stations branded with Roxxon Energy, and the newstands were selling copies of the Daily Bugle, where May's father had worked for a time. On the other hand, Baskin-Robbins and Coca-Cola were obviously available, along with a bunch of other brands she recognized from back in Brockton Bay. Overall, the effect was one that led to infrequent moments of cognitive dissonance as she adjusted to something weird. Still, they had enjoyed themselves through the morning.
They were having lunch at a cafe by Rockefeller Center when May got a call. "Hey, Dad! What's up?" There was a pause. "Really? Cool. We can be there in...twenty minutes? OK, love you, too!"
"What's up?" asked Maggie.
"Dad has somebody who wants to meet Sophia," answered May.
Sophia wondered how anybody would know who she was in this world. "Who?"
May smirked at her. "It's a surprise. We've got to head over to Four Freedoms Plaza, though. Shouldn't take long if we use the subway. We're done here, right?" The girl had already put her credit card away after the waiter brought it back to her. The Parkers were insisting on covering expenses for the trip, which had taken some convincing of Sophia, as the girl wasn't as used to the infinite resources of the lizards.
The other two nodded at May's question, but Sophia asked, "We're going to meet the Fantastic Four?"
The redhead shook her head, then paused. "Probably Reed, but that's not the surprise."
"I thought Uncle Peter had to work today?" asked Maggie.
"Yeah, but he's working around other peoples' schedules...or at least, that's what he said earlier," explained May.
May persistently took perverse pleasure in refusing to let Sophia and Maggie in on the surprise on the subway ride, and continued being close-mouthed until they were in the elevator from the lobby of the headquarters of the Fantastic Four. "There are a couple of people who are especially interested in your powers," she said as the door opened.
Sophia was about to ask who, again, when she saw who was waiting through the opened elevator door. There were four people standing there. One of them was May's father. The second was an older gentlemen with grey streaks in his hair. His blue costume with a large number four on the front made it obvious that he was Reed Richards, a.k.a. Mr. Fantastic. The two other people were dressed in normal civilian attire. One was a white woman with dark hair in her late teens or early twenties wearing a denim jacket over a rock band t-shirt. The other was a man of indeterminate age who was shorter than Peter and Reed. Sophia's eyes widened as she took in his sideburns and the unlit cigar hanging out of his mouth.
Peter Parker stepped forward. "Guys, let me introduce to you our guest from another universe. This is Sophia Hess, also known as Shadowstalker. Sophia, I want to introduce you to our host, Reed Richards." He gestured to the older man, who smiled in greeting. "The other two are Logan and Kitty, two members of Professor Xavier's team."
Kitty gave a little wave and said, "Hi!," while Logan just nodded.
Sophia found herself staring at Logan. The man was pretty much exactly what she would have expected, though she noted that he didn't really look like Hugh Jackman. She didn't remember ever seeing a film version of Shadowcat, so she didn't have any real comparison for the real Kitty Pryde.
"Where's Lockheed?" asked May, quickly walking over to give Kitty a hug.
Kitty rolled her eyes. "Sometimes I think you like him better than you like me, May. I think he's off somewhere with Zabu and Lockjaw."
Reed stepped over to Sophia and held out his hand, which she took by reflex. "I hope you don't mind Peter springing this surprise on you. I understand that powers can be a touchy subject for some. When he mentioned that you and Shadowcat had similar abilities, I offered to host the meeting. Would you mind if I took some readings while you two compared your abilities?"
"No...I don't mind." As her mind started to reboot from her shock, she actually thought about the request and realized that she didn't really have any issue with sharing information about her powers with four of the Marvel universe's most famous heroes, plus her two friends. Besides that, it wasn't like she was planning to settle down on this Earth and be a hero, or anything.
Kitty disengaged from May's hug and went over to where she, Maggie, and Reed were standing. "It's nice to meet you, Sophia. I've wanted to meet you since Pete mentioned I have a shadow sister." She turned to look at Maggie. "Hi, Maggie, it's good to see you again, too."
"Ah, yes, I'm sorry. Hello, Ms. Dresden," added Reed in a slightly embarrassed tone.
"You can call me Maggie, Mr. Richards," replied the witch.
Peter chuckled. "Don't worry, Reed. I'm sure Maggie isn't going to start casting spells and disrupt your experiments."
A minor flash of annoyance at the teasing passed over the scientist's face. "It's not that. All of my equipment is shielded, for one thing. I just find magical energy somewhat difficult to quantify." He made an effort to smile at Maggie. "I apologize, Maggie. I still have a bit of a knee-jerk reaction to practitioners. You can also call me Reed if you like."
After a few more pleasantries, the six of them headed into Richards' lab. Logan was quiet through most of it, though he did respond to the odd comment from Peter, Reed, or Kitty infrequently. It turned out that he was there because he had given Kitty a ride into the city on his motorcycle. Sophia made a conscious effort to stop sneaking glances at the man. Something about him was positively predatory, and the girl had to wonder why she was so drawn to that aspect. She made a mental note to talk to one of the Nox about it.
The session that followed was both interesting and confusing. Sophia's powers were clearly more limited than Kitty's version, though they appeared to function similarly. Nobody was sure if that was because Kitty had more experience using them or because Sophia's agent was limiting the power's utility. The teen found herself slightly jealous of Kitty's ability to disrupt electrical fields instead of being shocked by them. The more confusing part of the afternoon came from listening to Reed expound at length about a, "macroscopic quantum wave function." At one point, Kitty quietly prompted Sophia. "Just nod your head. If you don't acknowledge what he's saying then he'll just keep explaining it in more detail." Surprisingly, that seemed to work.
The experiments ended with a thumb drive full of data to share with the Family and an invitation to stop back later in the week to meet Sue, Johnny and Ben. Kitty reluctantly explained that while normally she would invite them to visit them in Westchester, it would be best to save that for another time. Sophia caught Wolverine muttering something about, "damned acid beetles," and decided she didn't need to know the details. Peter said he would be home by six, so the three teens went back out into the city to look at the tourist trap that was Times Square.
"So what did you think of Logan?" asked Maggie as they were walking down the sidewalk.
Sophia raised her eyebrow at her friend, then said, "He's quieter than I expected."
May chuckled. "He was only there as a favor to Kitty. He's not really a people person."
"Is he really more than a hundred years old?" asked Sophia.
The spider-teen shook her head at the question. "You would have to ask him that, but I wouldn't expect to get an answer. It's kind of personal."
On second thought, she had to admit May was right. She needed to not think of the actual people here as comic book characters. For all she knew, there could be stories about her in other universes that revealed things that would make her uncomfortable. The whole World-as-Myth thing that Metis explained to her made writers, in general, seem like inadvertent assholes.
"Do we want to get ice cream before we go home? I know a good place," prompted May, smoothly changing the subject.
Maggie and Sophia both looked at her as if they thought she was crazy for asking and said, "of course we do!" in an eerily synchronized fashion.
May began to open her mouth to respond when the world suddenly changed around them. The three girls were surrounded by a mist that seemed to obscure the rest of the world, leaving them isolated. The trio immediately came together into a tight huddle, with each of them facing outward.
"This feels like a veil," said Maggie. "A very advanced one. It's likely that nobody around can see inside."
-"How very perceptive..."- said a voice that appeared to come from thin air. It had a slightly sibilant hiss, but in a way that was more fluid than reptilian. -"If you know that, then we can skip the exposition and get to the point. Why was the EDF Director meeting with the X-Men and the Fantastic Four?"-
Sophia didn't like the idea that they were trapped by an invisible foe. "Why would I tell anything to somebody I can't even see?"
The response was a gurgling chuckle, followed by, -"You wish to see me? You're so very brave? Are you certain?"-
Channeling her father, May said, "There's no need to be shy. We promise not to judge you based on your looks. Not everybody can be a ten, after all." Despite the tone, Sophia could hear the edge in her voice.
-"Very well..."- There was a blurring in the air, and a tall, humanoid form materialized. It had four arms and its skin appeared to be rippling constantly. It towered over the three young women. -"Now that you can see me, I expect you to answer my questions."-
Maggie raised a hand and said, "Pagoma!" There was a rush of wind toward the being, but the effect seemed to fizzle as it came close to the being's skin.
With a snarl from the creature, a pair of tentacles with barbs on the end shot out toward the girls. Sophia instinctively went to shadow even as she was dodging out of the way, while May jumped off to the side, grabbing Maggie along the way. As she flipped over, she raised her arm and shot a blob of webbing at the thing's eyes. The webbing struck but quickly seemed to be absorbed by the thing's skin.
Frowning at the fact that she didn't have her weapons with her, Sophia dove through the creature in shadow form and drove a kick into its back. It felt like kicking a brick wall. She could hear Maggie say, "Aegis!" in counterpoint to the repeated thwip sound of webbing being fired. She instinctively bent backward to avoid another tentacle that shot out of the thing's back.
-"You younglings are being very annoying"- said their foe as it blithely ignored a burst of flame from the witch.
"It's immune to magic," said Maggie in frustration.
Sophia tried to kick again at the side of the creature's knee, only to have to catch herself when the limb in question flexed itself out of the way of her strike. "Hitting it isn't really working, either!" she called out.
"It keeps absorbing my webbing," confirmed May as she jumped over another tentacle strike.
"We need to break the veil! Apokalypto!" cried May. The fog around them began to waver, causing the being to pause its attacks as it appeared to focus on reinforcing the effect.
Sophia and May looked at each other and nodded. The two of them attacked at the same time, and their friend used the distraction to again shout her spell. This time, the veil shattered. The nearby civilians suddenly noticed the battle going on in the street and began to react. The obvious tourists began screaming. The nearby natives began calmly moving out of the way while pulling out their phones to begin filming. The more distant natives glanced over to see what was happening, then quickly began going about their business.
The four-armed creature looked at the reacting civilians with a frown, then glanced around in all directions as if expecting the Avengers to instantly materialize. It looked at the three girls who had again clustered together. -"Until we meet again!"- It then used two of its arms to make a complex series of motions, at which point the creature faded out of view.
Sophia noticed a black man come running up from a side street. He was bald with a beard and mustache, and looked like a bodybuilder. "Are you girls all right?" he called out.
May obviously recognized him. "We're OK, Mr. Cage, but I think we need to go see my dad."
The man took a second look at her. "Oh, May. Sorry, I didn't recognize you at first. You back from school?"
May smiled. "Just on break with my friends. Of course, while playing tourist we got attacked by a villain wanting to know something about Dad's work. Thanks for running to help."
The man gave her a big smile. "Not a problem. I was waiting to meet up with Jess when I heard the screams. Tourists right?"
May rolled her eyes. "Yep, as usual. We're all OK, though."
"Cool. Well, I'm going to go back before she comes looking for me. Say hey to Peter for me, all right?"
Once the other hero left, May quickly shepherded them back toward the subway. Sophia could tell that she was a lot more disturbed than she seemed. "What's got you so bugged?" she asked.
May frowned, then leaned in close to the other two girls. "Whatever that thing was, it was bonded with a Klyntar. You know...one of the Symbiotes?"
"You mean like Venom?" asked Sophia, having read about him back on the ship.
May nodded. "Yeah, though Eddie Brock never bonded with one in our reality, thankfully. The species still exists though. It was some encounters with Symbiote-enhanced agents that convinced Dad to let me go to school with the Family, originally. They can be extremely dangerous."
"Are they normally immune to magic?" asked Maggie.
The local girl shook her head. "Not that I know of...but I don't know what kind of creature was the host. It obviously wasn't taking us seriously, though. The only reason he left is because we broke his veil."
"He might not have been expecting one of us to be a witch," added Sophia. "I think it took him by surprise."
Maggie frowned. "We won't be able to count on that element if we run into him again."
"I think I should wear my hero gear if we go out again," said the girl from Brockton Bay. "FamTech will help even the odds a bit."
"Assuming my father lets us go out again," said May with a frustrated look. She thought he had a tendency to be over-protective.
For the rest of the ride, the other three girls sat quietly on the subway, wondering if their vacation was already over.
