“TROUBLE IN TRIPLICATE!”
Part III: Old Acquaintances and New Foes!
WHAT HAS COME BEFORE: The Champions threw a party after the recent return of Bucky Barnes. Whiplash and Rampage destroy an armored car, and meet Cobalt Man! Hephaestus stops by for a visit, and gives Angel a new mace! And the Mimic makes a dramatic return, only to be captured by the villainous Mentor! Caught up? Good, because there”‘s much more to come”¦
♪ Theme Music: “Werewolves of London” By Warren Zevon ♪
The Beast walks into Champions headquarters, followed closely by his best friend, Wonder Man, who is looking around with interest at the trappings of the state-of-the-art facility where California”‘s finest heroes make their home. As he exits off the elevator, he is immediately greeted by the sight of a grinning Angel, who reaches out and shakes his hand. Beside the Angel is the stunning Dazzler, who is in her costume (sans shoes).
“Hank!” Angel says, shaking the Beast”‘s hand, then Wonder Man”‘s. “Good to see you again. I guess you”‘re having second thoughts about coming to California.”
“Nah,” the Beast returns, his fangs showing as a grins widely, “I couldn”‘t leave my buddy here. Besides, you”‘ve got a fine scientist now anyway. Bill”‘s a good man, trained by Hank Pym. Can”‘t get much better than that.”
“Bill is a good man,” the Angel agrees, “and we”‘re glad to have him. He”‘s a hard worker, too. Right now, he”‘s down in the lab, working on a project. I think he likes the lab I put together for him. That has nothing to do with you joining, though. Simon, too, for that matter.”
“This is a nice facility,” Simon responds, looking around.
“Aw,” the Beast responds, shaking his head. “You”‘re just saying that because our mansion was trashed by that crazy Count Nefaria, and they”‘re still working on repairing it.”
“Our Count Nefaria?” the Angel asks, intrigued.
“The one and only,” the Beast replies. “He got together three of his super-cronies, and wound up betraying them to get some serious super-powers. He put a hurtin”‘ on most of us, and it took Thor and Wondy here to really take him down.”*
[*Recent to the Beast, but for us, it all happened in Avengers #164-166.]
“Hmm,” the Angel comments, as he ushers the others into their main meeting room, and motions for them to sit on one of the plush sofas in the large room. As the Angel sits in a love seat opposite the sofa where the Beast and Wonder Man sit, Dazzler walks into the bar area. “A pretty scary thought””Count Nefaria with super powers. He was deadly enough without the powers. I hated what happened to Thunderbird.”**
[**Thunderbird, of course, perished when the plane he and Nefaria were in exploded in X-Men #95.]
“Yeah, me too,” the Beast responds solemnly. “I would”‘ve loved to have caved Nefaria”‘s head in for that, but you just wouldn”‘t believe how strong he was.”
“I can vouch for that!” Simon comments, nodding as he remembers the blows he received from Nefaria during their very recent battle.
“It”‘s ironic, too,” the Beast remarks. “What really beat him as much as anything was a crazy notion that Whizzer put in his head that he was getting older. Then, Professor Sturdy lied to him about the process that gave him his powers accelerating his aging. He flipped out, and tried to get Thor”‘s hammer, thinking it would keep him young. The truth is that the transformation process actually pretty much made him immortal.”
“I”‘d like to think that Thor and I had something to do with his defeat,” Simon points out sarcastically, joking with his friend.
“Yeah, yeah,” the Beast responds in the same tone. “Pat yourself on the back.” He then looks over at the Angel. “Where”‘s Bobby anyway? Why is it he”‘s never here when I decide to pop in for a visit?”
“Oh, he and Laynia went to see a movie,” the Angel replies, even as Dazzler returns with a tray of drinks for all of them. She leans over, giving Simon and Warren glasses of ice tea, and the Beast and herself a glass of red wine. “The Buddy Holly Story I think.”
“A good choice,” the Beast returns, as his eyes seem glued on the contour of Dazzler”‘s zipper, which presses up against the flesh between her two breasts. “By the way,” he adds, his eyes still on Dazzler, who is taking a seat beside Angel, and moving his arm so that it is around the back of her neck, “who is this vision of loveliness and why haven”‘t I been introduced?” Simon shakes his head, smiling at the Beast”‘s obvious intention.
“My name”‘s Allison,” the Dazzler replies, making herself comfortable on the love seat, snuggling closer to Warren, “but I go by Dazzler in these circles.”
“By the way,” Warren comments. “You won”‘t believe who I ran into the other day, Hank.”
“Who”‘s that?” the Beast asks, turning his attention back to Warren.
“Ralph Roberts!” the Angel explains.
“Really?” Hank asks, surprised. “What”‘s he doing out here?”
“He”‘s looking to start up a business out here, actually,” the Angel relates. He then looks over at Simon, as if a light went off in his head. “Hey, you really need to meet Ralph, Simon. You two have quite a bit in common. If you”‘d like to get your business up and running again, I”‘d really suggest you consider Ralph as a partner.”
“As much as I”‘d hate to admit it,” the Beast concedes, “that is a good idea.”
“I”‘ve actually been thinking about it,” Simon responds. “I really miss that company, and felt pretty bad when it went under. Dad built that company in the 20”‘s, and kept it going through the depression. It would”‘ve killed him to see us shutting the doors on it. I”‘ve kind of felt lost not having something constructive to do since Williams Industries shut down.”***
[***The fate of Simon Williams”‘ company was revealed in Avengers #9, shortly before he gained his powers and worked with Baron Heinrich Zemo.]
“If you need any start-up capital,” the Angel comments, “keep me in mind. I”‘d like to diversify my investments, and would love to at least offer you a start-up loan.”
“I”‘ll have to really think about that, Warren,” Simon says sincerely. “I appreciate the offer.”
“Hey, I”‘d love to help,” Angel replies. “Anyway, if I run into Ralph, I”‘ll see if I can get y”‘all in touch with one another. He”‘s a good fella, and it seems like a natural thing””both of you opening up shop together.”
“How do you know Ralph Roberts?” Simon asks. “I”‘ve never met him, but I remember hearing about his company just starting up about the time mine was going under.”
“Well, a few years ago,” the Beast explains, “we were on opposite sides. He fought the X-Men as Cobalt Man.**** Then, Tyrannus used him to create some crazy giant cobalt robot.”*****
[****In X-Men #31]
[*****As told in X-Men #34.]
“I wonder why he decided to come out west, instead of staying in New York,” the Beast muses.
“It”‘s probably because his brother Ted plays for the Rams,” Angel responds. “He”‘s pretty good, too. I think the Rams might make it to the Super Bowl next year.”
“Hmmph!” the Beast jokes. “I”‘m surprised you haven”‘t tried to recruit Cobalt Man into the Champions!”
“Don”‘t give him any ideas!” Dazzler says jokingly. “We”‘ll need to put a new wing on this place!”
“Too late, Allison,” Warren responds, smiling. “I”‘m already working up the plans now to expand this location.”
# # # # # # # # # #
INTERLUDE
♪ Theme Music: “Barracuda” By Heart ♪
Not far away, in downtown Los Angeles, the very subject of their discussion””Cobalt Man””is battling the villainous Whiplash and Rampage, who have already demolished an armored car, seriously injuring (or worse) the guards who were in the armored car. He managed to come onto the scene, even as they were preparing to make off with their loot.
“I don”‘t think this is Iron Man,” Whiplash comments, moving his whip in his right hand. It moves with a life of its own, energy encompassing it, “but he is in our way”¦and he”‘ll pay for that!”
Whiplash”‘s electric whip flicks out, crackling with energy, as it strikes Cobalt Man along the right leg. Before he can maneuver to try to get away from the whip, the expert Whiplash uses the whip to encircle his leg, trapping him in place. A moment later, a surge of energy is sent through Cobalt Man”‘s armor. He throws his head back, getting a massive headache from the sudden surge of energy shooting through his armor. He manages to stay on his feet, but is clearly stunned by the attack.
“Nice!” Rampage remarks, his face twisting into a cruel smile, as he quickly closes the distance between himself and Cobalt Man, delivering a powerful punch to Cobalt Man”‘s jaw before he can fully recover from the energy charge. “Now it”‘s my turn!” The punch manages to separate him from the whip, but sends him flying across the air, smashing into a nearby building from the impact of the blow.
As Rampage rushes over to Cobalt Man, the hero is pushing himself up to his knees amid the small pile of rubble from the shattered mortar on the building. “This guy can hit!” Cobalt Man thinks to himself. “I”‘ll have to make sure that”‘s the only shot he gets at me!”
“Get the loot ready, Whiplash,” Cobalt Man says with confidence, as he runs towards Cobalt Man, who is working to get to his feet. “This won”‘t take long.”
Cobalt Man smiles under his mask, as Rampage approaches. He is on one knee when Rampage is upon him. He sends out an energy blast, striking Rampage full-force in the face, and sending him flying down the road towards a bar where two familiar patrons””Hercules and Johnny Blaze””are exiting, each with a girl on their arms (and Hercules with one for each arm).
Catching the sight of Rampage out of the corner of his eye, Hercules side-steps, pushing the girls back, as he turns around so that he is the one to catch the flying Rampage! He reaches out his arms, his hands grabbing a leg and an arm, even as Rampage”‘s head slams into Hercules”‘ unmoving chest.
“What is this?” Hercules asks, dropping Rampage to the ground, where he connects with the concrete, before he starts getting to his feet.
“Hey, I didn”‘t even know he got out of the hospital!”****** Johnny remarks, even as his head bursts into flames, quickly replaced by a flaming skull.
[******After he was betrayed following his last battle against the Champions inChampions #7-8.]
“Oh great,” Rampage remarks, shaking his head. “The Champions. The boss won”‘t like this.”
“What boss?” Ghost Rider asks, grabbing Rampage off the ground and holding him in the air, as he glares over at him. “Don”‘t tell me you”‘re working with Griffin again?”
“Not hardly!” Rampage responds, kicking Ghost Rider in the stomach, doubling him over and forcing him to drop the villain onto the street. “When I get a chance, I”‘ve got something for Griffin and his buddies! And it ain”‘t going to be pretty!”
As Rampage turns to run towards Whiplash, he is suddenly stopped in his tracks, even as he feels a giant hand on his shoulder, literally stopping his feet from moving. “Nay, Rampage!” Hercules calls out authoritatively. “Thou wilt go no further.” Hercules smiles, as he slams his fist into Rampage”‘s jaw, sending him flying, smashing through the windshields and roofs of several parked cars lining the street outside of the bar. ““‘Least not under thine own power!”
Whiplash rushes over to the stunned Rampage, helping him into a sitting position atop the last of the ruined cars that he smashed into. “Are you okay, Stuart?” Whiplash asks. Whiplash holds three large bags of money in his right hand, as his whip is tucked in to his belt temporarily.
“Yeah, thanks, Marc,” Rampage returns. “I”‘ll be okay, but we gotta get out of”¦”
Even as Hercules and Ghost Rider rush towards them from one side and Cobalt Man rushes towards them from the other, the two look up and around, as if surprised. They are, indeed, surprised by the feeling that surrounds their very molecules, as they are locked into a transporter beam, and slowly start to fade from view.
“Oh, great,” Rampage remarks. “He already knows.”
“Zounds!” Hercules exclaims in frustration. “They did depart “˜ere we could have sport with them.”
“Yeah, who would”‘ve thought they”‘d run at the sight of you, Hercules?” Ghost Rider replies, surprising even Hercules with his sarcasm.
Ghost Rider looks over at Cobalt Man, who is likewise frustrated by his inability to stop the two villains before they departed. “I don”‘t like it either, but they”‘ll be back!”
Ghost Rider then looks over at Cobalt Man, as he returns to his Johnny Blaze persona. “Hey, aren”‘t you Cobalt Man?”
“That”‘s right,” Cobalt Man nods in agreement.
“Well, I think we might want to get out of here before things get messy,” Ghost Rider says, walking over to his motorcycle, as Hercules looks around for their women, who are by now long gone.
“Aye,” Hercules agrees. “The damsels did leave. There is nothing keeping us here.”
“You coming, Cobalt Man?” Ghost Rider asks.
“I”‘d like to,” Cobalt Man responds. “But under my own power.”
“Love to have you,” Ghost Rider says. “I”‘m sure Angel would like to see you again.”
# # # # # # # # # #
♪ Theme Music: “Three Times a Lady” By The Commodores ♪
Musso and Frank”‘s, which opened in 1919, boasts to being the oldest restaurant in Hollywood. Since its opening nearly sixty years earlier, it has had some of the biggest names in Hollywood dine there, as well as various celebrities. Today, however, seated in a relatively secluded corner of the eating hall, are James Buchanan Barnes and Natasha Romanova””Bucky and the Black Widow.
Bucky Barnes leans back in his wooden chair, looking over at Natasha. She is wearing a form-fitting white blouse and a black skirt. He sips on his wine, looking down at the bread laid out before him, and pulling off a slice, applying butter.
“Interesting choice of restaurants,” Bucky muses.
“I did give it some thought, James,” Natasha returns, looking over at him, her eyes peering across the top of her wine glass. “I thought about taking you to a place with a great view of the city, but that”‘s 50/50 with the smog. And I settled on this place. I thought it was probably about the only place you might remember from the days before you disappeared.”
“You mean the only place that”‘s been around as long as I have?” Bucky returns with a smile, as he takes a bite of his bread.
“I suppose you could put it that way,” she replies, sipping on her wine again. “It”‘s good to have you back, James.”
“Oh yeah,” Bucky says, reaching over to hold her hand. “I appreciate the choice, by the way. I remember coming here once with Cap. We were hunting down a fifth columnist who was trying to shut down Hollywood of all things. Those Nazis had a sense of humor, mainly when they weren”‘t trying!”
A waiter walks up to their table, wearing a red vest. He places their plates on the table before them, as Bucky looks up, annoyed by the interruption. “Can I get you anything else?” the waiter asks, looking alternatively at Bucky and Natasha.
“Privacy,” Bucky responds simply, returning his attention to his lovely companion. The waiter, for his part, merely shakes his head and walks away in a huff.
“Most of my time in Russia was a nightmare””what I remember,” Bucky comments, grasping Natasha”‘s hand once again. “Except for my time with you.”
# # # # # # # # # #
♪ Theme Music: “Smoke From a Distant Fire” By Sanford Townsend Band ♪
The Beast leans forward, looking over at the Angel, who is sitting comfortably with the lovely Dazzler, whose leg is suggestively interlocked with his, as she leans back against the plush loveseat, snuggling close to Warren. Simon takes a drink of his cold tea, nodding in approval.
“You got me all distracted when we started talking,” the Beast admits, “but there was a reason I came over here.”
“Really?” Angel asks. “I thought you just wanted to let me know you reconsidered my offer to join the Champions.” He looks over at Wonder Man, nodding, as he looks back over at the Beast.
“Yeah, yeah,” the Beast responds, rolling his eyes. “I think we”‘ve been over that.”
“He can be persistent,” Dazzler comments, “not that I”‘m complaining,” she adds, looking up at Angel.
“There was a weird report from Canada that came over the wire a short time ago,” the Beast explains.
“Coming from Canada, that shouldn”‘t surprise anyone,” the Angel jokes.
“Yeah, well, the location caught my attention,” the Beast responds.
“Location?” Angel asks, leadingly.
“Yeah,” Beast replies, “a certain little cabin in the middle of the woods.”
“Wouldn”‘t that cover 99% of Canada?” Wonder Man adds. He looks over at Beast and shrugs, as if to say I couldn”‘t resist.
“You”‘re as melodramatic and hammy as Warry told me you were,” Dazzler remarks, smiling broadly.
“A couple of years ago,” the Beast explains, “I went to help out the Mimic, who had lost control over his powers. He wound up fighting the Hulk, and dying. Or, at least Ithought he had died from the radiation exposure.”*******
[*******As detailed in Incredible Hulk #161.]
“What are you saying?” the Angel asks, sitting up straight on the sofa, his eyes fixed on his friend.
“I can”‘t say for sure,” the Beast explains. “All I know is that I buried him in a grave by that cabin, and me and Vera left him there. Yesterday, someone was at that very cabin”¦someone pretty powerful.”
“How do you know that?” Angel asks.
“Well, call me a sentimentalist, but I left a tracking device near the cabin,” the Beast recounts. “We”‘ve seen a lot of weird things in our days with the X-Men, including Professor Xavier coming back from the dead. I don”‘t know if I had that in the back of my mind. I basically told Vera I was putting it there to protect his body.”
“Are you trying to say that somebody snatched his body?!” Angel asks.
“Gross!” Dazzler comments, revulsion written across her face.
“˜Hey, in this business, that kind of thing happens!” Wonder Man says. “Speaking from personal experience here.”********
[********Wonder Man was revived by the Black Talon in Avengers #152.]
“I think so,” the Beast replies. “But I haven”‘t been to Canada to check”¦yet.”
Angel quickly gets to his feet, a look of determination etched on his face. “Well, we”‘ll be leaving for Canada right away to check into it!”
TO BE CONTINUED...
CABLES OF CHAMPIONS
Okay, this issue, we have a couple of surprise guest-stars. I”‘d like to hear your comments on that. Beast and Simon had a pretty cool friendship during the 70”‘s, and I could see them both getting into a lot of trouble on a visit to California.
Also, this issue put some things out there for consideration. I think there are a lot of missed opportunities for potential stories and interactions during the 70”‘s, and I”‘m going to play around with that a bit. I like using more obscure characters, and will have some more of them pop up in upcoming issues. There are plenty of characters who have gotten little to no exposure, or struck a chord with me in an appearance or two. Hopefully, others reading these stories might have thought the same thing””or maybe it”‘ll get you motivated to read a story or two with some of these characters.
Cobalt Man is one of those characters. Ralph Roberts actually has a lot in common with Simon Williams. They both were competitors of Tony Stark”‘s. Ralph, though, had a hatred for Tony Stark in his first appearance in X-Men #31, whereas Simon seldom displayed that, although in Simon”‘s first appearance, he was said to be a competitor of Stark”‘s, who was in bankruptcy. Cobalt Man later returned, in the page of the Hulk. He wasn”‘t recognizable, though, having a clumbsy-looking costume that looked like something a robot might wear on a football field. That story is better off forgotten, as is the latter armor. He”‘s wearing his original armor here. He apparently died in the story, but was brought back later in the pages of Defenders. At any rate, he”‘s alive and well here, and has moved his business to the west coast.
At the time of this issue, Alpha Flight has not yet appeared in the X-Men (which wouldn”‘t occur for about another year. However, Vindicator has recently fought the X-Men, seeking the return of Wolverine. And, he made mention of Alpha Flight during the story, vowing to bring them with him next time he met the X-Men. Canada had their own heroes, and Canada certainly had some scattered villains, including Wendigo, who had already fought the Hulk earlier.
As always, I hope you enjoy the story, and look forward to your comments, which can be addressed to me at [email protected], or put on the M2K message board.
-Jeff Melton
Part III: Old Acquaintances and New Foes!
WHAT HAS COME BEFORE: The Champions threw a party after the recent return of Bucky Barnes. Whiplash and Rampage destroy an armored car, and meet Cobalt Man! Hephaestus stops by for a visit, and gives Angel a new mace! And the Mimic makes a dramatic return, only to be captured by the villainous Mentor! Caught up? Good, because there”‘s much more to come”¦
♪ Theme Music: “Werewolves of London” By Warren Zevon ♪
The Beast walks into Champions headquarters, followed closely by his best friend, Wonder Man, who is looking around with interest at the trappings of the state-of-the-art facility where California”‘s finest heroes make their home. As he exits off the elevator, he is immediately greeted by the sight of a grinning Angel, who reaches out and shakes his hand. Beside the Angel is the stunning Dazzler, who is in her costume (sans shoes).
“Hank!” Angel says, shaking the Beast”‘s hand, then Wonder Man”‘s. “Good to see you again. I guess you”‘re having second thoughts about coming to California.”
“Nah,” the Beast returns, his fangs showing as a grins widely, “I couldn”‘t leave my buddy here. Besides, you”‘ve got a fine scientist now anyway. Bill”‘s a good man, trained by Hank Pym. Can”‘t get much better than that.”
“Bill is a good man,” the Angel agrees, “and we”‘re glad to have him. He”‘s a hard worker, too. Right now, he”‘s down in the lab, working on a project. I think he likes the lab I put together for him. That has nothing to do with you joining, though. Simon, too, for that matter.”
“This is a nice facility,” Simon responds, looking around.
“Aw,” the Beast responds, shaking his head. “You”‘re just saying that because our mansion was trashed by that crazy Count Nefaria, and they”‘re still working on repairing it.”
“Our Count Nefaria?” the Angel asks, intrigued.
“The one and only,” the Beast replies. “He got together three of his super-cronies, and wound up betraying them to get some serious super-powers. He put a hurtin”‘ on most of us, and it took Thor and Wondy here to really take him down.”*
[*Recent to the Beast, but for us, it all happened in Avengers #164-166.]
“Hmm,” the Angel comments, as he ushers the others into their main meeting room, and motions for them to sit on one of the plush sofas in the large room. As the Angel sits in a love seat opposite the sofa where the Beast and Wonder Man sit, Dazzler walks into the bar area. “A pretty scary thought””Count Nefaria with super powers. He was deadly enough without the powers. I hated what happened to Thunderbird.”**
[**Thunderbird, of course, perished when the plane he and Nefaria were in exploded in X-Men #95.]
“Yeah, me too,” the Beast responds solemnly. “I would”‘ve loved to have caved Nefaria”‘s head in for that, but you just wouldn”‘t believe how strong he was.”
“I can vouch for that!” Simon comments, nodding as he remembers the blows he received from Nefaria during their very recent battle.
“It”‘s ironic, too,” the Beast remarks. “What really beat him as much as anything was a crazy notion that Whizzer put in his head that he was getting older. Then, Professor Sturdy lied to him about the process that gave him his powers accelerating his aging. He flipped out, and tried to get Thor”‘s hammer, thinking it would keep him young. The truth is that the transformation process actually pretty much made him immortal.”
“I”‘d like to think that Thor and I had something to do with his defeat,” Simon points out sarcastically, joking with his friend.
“Yeah, yeah,” the Beast responds in the same tone. “Pat yourself on the back.” He then looks over at the Angel. “Where”‘s Bobby anyway? Why is it he”‘s never here when I decide to pop in for a visit?”
“Oh, he and Laynia went to see a movie,” the Angel replies, even as Dazzler returns with a tray of drinks for all of them. She leans over, giving Simon and Warren glasses of ice tea, and the Beast and herself a glass of red wine. “The Buddy Holly Story I think.”
“A good choice,” the Beast returns, as his eyes seem glued on the contour of Dazzler”‘s zipper, which presses up against the flesh between her two breasts. “By the way,” he adds, his eyes still on Dazzler, who is taking a seat beside Angel, and moving his arm so that it is around the back of her neck, “who is this vision of loveliness and why haven”‘t I been introduced?” Simon shakes his head, smiling at the Beast”‘s obvious intention.
“My name”‘s Allison,” the Dazzler replies, making herself comfortable on the love seat, snuggling closer to Warren, “but I go by Dazzler in these circles.”
“By the way,” Warren comments. “You won”‘t believe who I ran into the other day, Hank.”
“Who”‘s that?” the Beast asks, turning his attention back to Warren.
“Ralph Roberts!” the Angel explains.
“Really?” Hank asks, surprised. “What”‘s he doing out here?”
“He”‘s looking to start up a business out here, actually,” the Angel relates. He then looks over at Simon, as if a light went off in his head. “Hey, you really need to meet Ralph, Simon. You two have quite a bit in common. If you”‘d like to get your business up and running again, I”‘d really suggest you consider Ralph as a partner.”
“As much as I”‘d hate to admit it,” the Beast concedes, “that is a good idea.”
“I”‘ve actually been thinking about it,” Simon responds. “I really miss that company, and felt pretty bad when it went under. Dad built that company in the 20”‘s, and kept it going through the depression. It would”‘ve killed him to see us shutting the doors on it. I”‘ve kind of felt lost not having something constructive to do since Williams Industries shut down.”***
[***The fate of Simon Williams”‘ company was revealed in Avengers #9, shortly before he gained his powers and worked with Baron Heinrich Zemo.]
“If you need any start-up capital,” the Angel comments, “keep me in mind. I”‘d like to diversify my investments, and would love to at least offer you a start-up loan.”
“I”‘ll have to really think about that, Warren,” Simon says sincerely. “I appreciate the offer.”
“Hey, I”‘d love to help,” Angel replies. “Anyway, if I run into Ralph, I”‘ll see if I can get y”‘all in touch with one another. He”‘s a good fella, and it seems like a natural thing””both of you opening up shop together.”
“How do you know Ralph Roberts?” Simon asks. “I”‘ve never met him, but I remember hearing about his company just starting up about the time mine was going under.”
“Well, a few years ago,” the Beast explains, “we were on opposite sides. He fought the X-Men as Cobalt Man.**** Then, Tyrannus used him to create some crazy giant cobalt robot.”*****
[****In X-Men #31]
[*****As told in X-Men #34.]
“I wonder why he decided to come out west, instead of staying in New York,” the Beast muses.
“It”‘s probably because his brother Ted plays for the Rams,” Angel responds. “He”‘s pretty good, too. I think the Rams might make it to the Super Bowl next year.”
“Hmmph!” the Beast jokes. “I”‘m surprised you haven”‘t tried to recruit Cobalt Man into the Champions!”
“Don”‘t give him any ideas!” Dazzler says jokingly. “We”‘ll need to put a new wing on this place!”
“Too late, Allison,” Warren responds, smiling. “I”‘m already working up the plans now to expand this location.”
# # # # # # # # # #
INTERLUDE
♪ Theme Music: “Barracuda” By Heart ♪
Not far away, in downtown Los Angeles, the very subject of their discussion””Cobalt Man””is battling the villainous Whiplash and Rampage, who have already demolished an armored car, seriously injuring (or worse) the guards who were in the armored car. He managed to come onto the scene, even as they were preparing to make off with their loot.
“I don”‘t think this is Iron Man,” Whiplash comments, moving his whip in his right hand. It moves with a life of its own, energy encompassing it, “but he is in our way”¦and he”‘ll pay for that!”
Whiplash”‘s electric whip flicks out, crackling with energy, as it strikes Cobalt Man along the right leg. Before he can maneuver to try to get away from the whip, the expert Whiplash uses the whip to encircle his leg, trapping him in place. A moment later, a surge of energy is sent through Cobalt Man”‘s armor. He throws his head back, getting a massive headache from the sudden surge of energy shooting through his armor. He manages to stay on his feet, but is clearly stunned by the attack.
“Nice!” Rampage remarks, his face twisting into a cruel smile, as he quickly closes the distance between himself and Cobalt Man, delivering a powerful punch to Cobalt Man”‘s jaw before he can fully recover from the energy charge. “Now it”‘s my turn!” The punch manages to separate him from the whip, but sends him flying across the air, smashing into a nearby building from the impact of the blow.
As Rampage rushes over to Cobalt Man, the hero is pushing himself up to his knees amid the small pile of rubble from the shattered mortar on the building. “This guy can hit!” Cobalt Man thinks to himself. “I”‘ll have to make sure that”‘s the only shot he gets at me!”
“Get the loot ready, Whiplash,” Cobalt Man says with confidence, as he runs towards Cobalt Man, who is working to get to his feet. “This won”‘t take long.”
Cobalt Man smiles under his mask, as Rampage approaches. He is on one knee when Rampage is upon him. He sends out an energy blast, striking Rampage full-force in the face, and sending him flying down the road towards a bar where two familiar patrons””Hercules and Johnny Blaze””are exiting, each with a girl on their arms (and Hercules with one for each arm).
Catching the sight of Rampage out of the corner of his eye, Hercules side-steps, pushing the girls back, as he turns around so that he is the one to catch the flying Rampage! He reaches out his arms, his hands grabbing a leg and an arm, even as Rampage”‘s head slams into Hercules”‘ unmoving chest.
“What is this?” Hercules asks, dropping Rampage to the ground, where he connects with the concrete, before he starts getting to his feet.
“Hey, I didn”‘t even know he got out of the hospital!”****** Johnny remarks, even as his head bursts into flames, quickly replaced by a flaming skull.
[******After he was betrayed following his last battle against the Champions inChampions #7-8.]
“Oh great,” Rampage remarks, shaking his head. “The Champions. The boss won”‘t like this.”
“What boss?” Ghost Rider asks, grabbing Rampage off the ground and holding him in the air, as he glares over at him. “Don”‘t tell me you”‘re working with Griffin again?”
“Not hardly!” Rampage responds, kicking Ghost Rider in the stomach, doubling him over and forcing him to drop the villain onto the street. “When I get a chance, I”‘ve got something for Griffin and his buddies! And it ain”‘t going to be pretty!”
As Rampage turns to run towards Whiplash, he is suddenly stopped in his tracks, even as he feels a giant hand on his shoulder, literally stopping his feet from moving. “Nay, Rampage!” Hercules calls out authoritatively. “Thou wilt go no further.” Hercules smiles, as he slams his fist into Rampage”‘s jaw, sending him flying, smashing through the windshields and roofs of several parked cars lining the street outside of the bar. ““‘Least not under thine own power!”
Whiplash rushes over to the stunned Rampage, helping him into a sitting position atop the last of the ruined cars that he smashed into. “Are you okay, Stuart?” Whiplash asks. Whiplash holds three large bags of money in his right hand, as his whip is tucked in to his belt temporarily.
“Yeah, thanks, Marc,” Rampage returns. “I”‘ll be okay, but we gotta get out of”¦”
Even as Hercules and Ghost Rider rush towards them from one side and Cobalt Man rushes towards them from the other, the two look up and around, as if surprised. They are, indeed, surprised by the feeling that surrounds their very molecules, as they are locked into a transporter beam, and slowly start to fade from view.
“Oh, great,” Rampage remarks. “He already knows.”
“Zounds!” Hercules exclaims in frustration. “They did depart “˜ere we could have sport with them.”
“Yeah, who would”‘ve thought they”‘d run at the sight of you, Hercules?” Ghost Rider replies, surprising even Hercules with his sarcasm.
Ghost Rider looks over at Cobalt Man, who is likewise frustrated by his inability to stop the two villains before they departed. “I don”‘t like it either, but they”‘ll be back!”
Ghost Rider then looks over at Cobalt Man, as he returns to his Johnny Blaze persona. “Hey, aren”‘t you Cobalt Man?”
“That”‘s right,” Cobalt Man nods in agreement.
“Well, I think we might want to get out of here before things get messy,” Ghost Rider says, walking over to his motorcycle, as Hercules looks around for their women, who are by now long gone.
“Aye,” Hercules agrees. “The damsels did leave. There is nothing keeping us here.”
“You coming, Cobalt Man?” Ghost Rider asks.
“I”‘d like to,” Cobalt Man responds. “But under my own power.”
“Love to have you,” Ghost Rider says. “I”‘m sure Angel would like to see you again.”
# # # # # # # # # #
♪ Theme Music: “Three Times a Lady” By The Commodores ♪
Musso and Frank”‘s, which opened in 1919, boasts to being the oldest restaurant in Hollywood. Since its opening nearly sixty years earlier, it has had some of the biggest names in Hollywood dine there, as well as various celebrities. Today, however, seated in a relatively secluded corner of the eating hall, are James Buchanan Barnes and Natasha Romanova””Bucky and the Black Widow.
Bucky Barnes leans back in his wooden chair, looking over at Natasha. She is wearing a form-fitting white blouse and a black skirt. He sips on his wine, looking down at the bread laid out before him, and pulling off a slice, applying butter.
“Interesting choice of restaurants,” Bucky muses.
“I did give it some thought, James,” Natasha returns, looking over at him, her eyes peering across the top of her wine glass. “I thought about taking you to a place with a great view of the city, but that”‘s 50/50 with the smog. And I settled on this place. I thought it was probably about the only place you might remember from the days before you disappeared.”
“You mean the only place that”‘s been around as long as I have?” Bucky returns with a smile, as he takes a bite of his bread.
“I suppose you could put it that way,” she replies, sipping on her wine again. “It”‘s good to have you back, James.”
“Oh yeah,” Bucky says, reaching over to hold her hand. “I appreciate the choice, by the way. I remember coming here once with Cap. We were hunting down a fifth columnist who was trying to shut down Hollywood of all things. Those Nazis had a sense of humor, mainly when they weren”‘t trying!”
A waiter walks up to their table, wearing a red vest. He places their plates on the table before them, as Bucky looks up, annoyed by the interruption. “Can I get you anything else?” the waiter asks, looking alternatively at Bucky and Natasha.
“Privacy,” Bucky responds simply, returning his attention to his lovely companion. The waiter, for his part, merely shakes his head and walks away in a huff.
“Most of my time in Russia was a nightmare””what I remember,” Bucky comments, grasping Natasha”‘s hand once again. “Except for my time with you.”
# # # # # # # # # #
♪ Theme Music: “Smoke From a Distant Fire” By Sanford Townsend Band ♪
The Beast leans forward, looking over at the Angel, who is sitting comfortably with the lovely Dazzler, whose leg is suggestively interlocked with his, as she leans back against the plush loveseat, snuggling close to Warren. Simon takes a drink of his cold tea, nodding in approval.
“You got me all distracted when we started talking,” the Beast admits, “but there was a reason I came over here.”
“Really?” Angel asks. “I thought you just wanted to let me know you reconsidered my offer to join the Champions.” He looks over at Wonder Man, nodding, as he looks back over at the Beast.
“Yeah, yeah,” the Beast responds, rolling his eyes. “I think we”‘ve been over that.”
“He can be persistent,” Dazzler comments, “not that I”‘m complaining,” she adds, looking up at Angel.
“There was a weird report from Canada that came over the wire a short time ago,” the Beast explains.
“Coming from Canada, that shouldn”‘t surprise anyone,” the Angel jokes.
“Yeah, well, the location caught my attention,” the Beast responds.
“Location?” Angel asks, leadingly.
“Yeah,” Beast replies, “a certain little cabin in the middle of the woods.”
“Wouldn”‘t that cover 99% of Canada?” Wonder Man adds. He looks over at Beast and shrugs, as if to say I couldn”‘t resist.
“You”‘re as melodramatic and hammy as Warry told me you were,” Dazzler remarks, smiling broadly.
“A couple of years ago,” the Beast explains, “I went to help out the Mimic, who had lost control over his powers. He wound up fighting the Hulk, and dying. Or, at least Ithought he had died from the radiation exposure.”*******
[*******As detailed in Incredible Hulk #161.]
“What are you saying?” the Angel asks, sitting up straight on the sofa, his eyes fixed on his friend.
“I can”‘t say for sure,” the Beast explains. “All I know is that I buried him in a grave by that cabin, and me and Vera left him there. Yesterday, someone was at that very cabin”¦someone pretty powerful.”
“How do you know that?” Angel asks.
“Well, call me a sentimentalist, but I left a tracking device near the cabin,” the Beast recounts. “We”‘ve seen a lot of weird things in our days with the X-Men, including Professor Xavier coming back from the dead. I don”‘t know if I had that in the back of my mind. I basically told Vera I was putting it there to protect his body.”
“Are you trying to say that somebody snatched his body?!” Angel asks.
“Gross!” Dazzler comments, revulsion written across her face.
“˜Hey, in this business, that kind of thing happens!” Wonder Man says. “Speaking from personal experience here.”********
[********Wonder Man was revived by the Black Talon in Avengers #152.]
“I think so,” the Beast replies. “But I haven”‘t been to Canada to check”¦yet.”
Angel quickly gets to his feet, a look of determination etched on his face. “Well, we”‘ll be leaving for Canada right away to check into it!”
TO BE CONTINUED...
CABLES OF CHAMPIONS
Okay, this issue, we have a couple of surprise guest-stars. I”‘d like to hear your comments on that. Beast and Simon had a pretty cool friendship during the 70”‘s, and I could see them both getting into a lot of trouble on a visit to California.
Also, this issue put some things out there for consideration. I think there are a lot of missed opportunities for potential stories and interactions during the 70”‘s, and I”‘m going to play around with that a bit. I like using more obscure characters, and will have some more of them pop up in upcoming issues. There are plenty of characters who have gotten little to no exposure, or struck a chord with me in an appearance or two. Hopefully, others reading these stories might have thought the same thing””or maybe it”‘ll get you motivated to read a story or two with some of these characters.
Cobalt Man is one of those characters. Ralph Roberts actually has a lot in common with Simon Williams. They both were competitors of Tony Stark”‘s. Ralph, though, had a hatred for Tony Stark in his first appearance in X-Men #31, whereas Simon seldom displayed that, although in Simon”‘s first appearance, he was said to be a competitor of Stark”‘s, who was in bankruptcy. Cobalt Man later returned, in the page of the Hulk. He wasn”‘t recognizable, though, having a clumbsy-looking costume that looked like something a robot might wear on a football field. That story is better off forgotten, as is the latter armor. He”‘s wearing his original armor here. He apparently died in the story, but was brought back later in the pages of Defenders. At any rate, he”‘s alive and well here, and has moved his business to the west coast.
At the time of this issue, Alpha Flight has not yet appeared in the X-Men (which wouldn”‘t occur for about another year. However, Vindicator has recently fought the X-Men, seeking the return of Wolverine. And, he made mention of Alpha Flight during the story, vowing to bring them with him next time he met the X-Men. Canada had their own heroes, and Canada certainly had some scattered villains, including Wendigo, who had already fought the Hulk earlier.
As always, I hope you enjoy the story, and look forward to your comments, which can be addressed to me at [email protected], or put on the M2K message board.
-Jeff Melton