2nd Story:
'Okay. This is bad' one of the five young heroes aboad an old World War Two battleship flying over Honolulu declares as the old ship opens fire at the beach below. Civilians run for their lives, while Anya Corazon a.k.a. Spider-Girl tells the others that this thing is on a collision course with Waikiki Beach, and they have to stop it. 'No kidding, Spider-Girl! We're gonna be reduced to a pasty mist when it hits!' Kevin Masterson a.k.a. Thunderstrike adds, while Spider-Girl tells him that she was thinking about all of those innocent people down below. 'What helps us helps them!' Thunderstrike declares, before spider-Girl turns to Amadeus Cho and reminds him that he has been planning one step ahead the whole time. 'You want to be in charge so badly, tell us how to proceed!' she exclaims. Amadeus announces that he has done his best to study every ancient text, every crackpot theory web site he could find on the legendary “Hell-Carrier”, and they claim that it is powered by “Vril” energy, a kind of anti-life force that dates back millennia.
Touching the ship with his hand, Victor Alvarez a.k.a. Power Man announces that he can feel it with his chi-absorbing power, and informs the others that it is directly beneath their feet. He points out that none of them can fly, and asks how they are supposed to get down there. Laura Kinney a.k.a. X-23 pops her claws and tells him to stand aside. 'I will get there' X-23 announces as she starts to slice away at the ship. Amadeus tells the others that X-23 has the right idea, but that they need to speed her up if this is going to work. He points out that Power Man can cause his chi to explode out, through his punches, and asks him if he has ever used it to power someone else up. 'First time for everything...' Power Man replies as his chi energy radiates around him, he declares that the Vril stuff is pure evil, the essence of this “Dark King” dude. He adds that he isn't sure what it will do to him, or X-23. 'True, but we're running out of options!' Amadeus replies. 'Okay, girl...' Power Man calls out as he moves towards X-23. 'Laura' she corrects him. 'Huh?' Power Man asks. 'The name they give me. It is Laura' X-23 tells him. 'Nice to meet you, Laura. I'm Victor' Power Man replies.
Power Man puts a hand on Laura's shoulder, green chi energies flow about, and he tells her that he isn't going to lie – he has no idea what this is going to do. They both scream, but the power surge enables X-23 to slice away quicker through the ship, and Power Man is pulled downwards with her. 'That... didn't sound to good' Spider-Girl points out as she and the others watch from the hole in the deck. 'Who cares? It got the job done! Look at her go!' Amadeus declares, while Thunderstrike asks what they are supposed to do up here – just sweat it out? 'Nah, we'll need to defend them from the Shark Men who are about to come around the bend in three, two, one...' Amadeus replies, as some growing Shark Men move towards them. 'How do you do that?' Thunderstrike asks as he, Amadeus and Spider-Girl turn to the Shark Men. 'I keep telling you. I'm the smart kid' Amadeus replies. 'Bet your report cards were pretty stellar. Mine usually said...lacks umpulse control' Thunderstrike replies as he hurls his hammer at the Shark Men, knocking several of them over.
'Then you're with the right bunch! Let's take these guys!' Spider-Girl calls out as she engages the Shark Men in combat. 'That's the spirit, Spider-Chica!' Amadeus agrees as he comes between two Shark Men, forcing one of them to stab the other with a large sword. Amadeus reveals that he picked this team of major hero archetypes because he calculated all their skill sets and backgrounds would mesh perfectly together. 'That why when you discovered shark-week-in-the-sky was gonna rise, you decided to keep this info to yourself?' Spider-Girl asks him. 'So you could teleport us all into the middle of their “first adventure”?' 'Sort of' Amadeus replies, claiming that there is a much better reason.
'How you holding up there, Laura?' Power Man asks X-23 as they come to the chamber where the Shark Men are being powered by the Vril energy. 'I do not know, Victor. I can feel presences all around me' Laura replies. Power Man tells her that he can, too, almost as if the anti-life force all around them was powered by actual lives. He suggests she just stay focussed, and assures her that he won't let anything happen to her. 'HERE!' Victor declares as he slams his fist into part of the Vril energy. It explodes outwards, and a hole in the hull is formed. 'Victor! Look!' Laura calls out as they both hang on for dear life. 'I see it!' Victor calls back.
Back on the deck:
'Too many! I can't -' Spider-Girl calls out as she, Thunderstrike and Amadeus are surrounded by Shark Men, while, on the beach below, a young couple hold onto each other as the shadow of the old ship looms over them. 'Help us! This is it! This is the end!' voices calls out. 'Tell me – before we go – I know why you chose us – but why did you choose here?' Spider-Girl asks Amadeus. 'It was – it was because -' Amadeus begins, while below them, Power Man wonders if he can unload all his remaining chi into the Vril energy. The young couple on the beach look up, as the green energy darts about the war vessel, and an instant later, it explodes, its remains dropping into the water around the beach. 'WAAAAHOOOOO!' Thunderstrike shouts as he, Spider-Girl and Amadeus are safe in an energy field created by Amadeus's mace. 'Gotcha!' Amadeus calls out to Power Man and X-23, catching them in another energy field before they hit the water.
Shortly, reporters and camera crews gather around Amadeus on the beach. 'That was amazing! What's your team name?' one of them calls out. 'Why, look at this, guys – we just happened to land in the middle of a media scrum. We wouldn't want any other super-types hogging all our glory!' Amadeus remarks to the others. He tells his companions that they scored a major PR victory here, as the people want them to stay together. 'Will you autograph my Hooters shirt?' someone asks. 'So what do you say, guys?' Amadeus asks. Power Man, Spider-Girl and Thunderstrike all look at each other, rather unimpressed, while X-23 marches over to Amadeus and kicks him in a rather delicate area. 'NNNGGG!' the wide-eyed Amadeus utters, dropping to his knees while the others walk away, he decides to take that as a strong “maybe”, while thanking X-23 for not using her claws.
