New Warriors (2nd series) #5

High above Manhattan, in the New Warriors’ hover pod, three members of the team of young super heroes are inside the sleek craft, piloted by Mickey Musashi a.k.a. Turbo, who exclaims ‘A firehouse, can you believe it? Dalton just gave us a firehouse. Chris, is that great, or what?’ she asks, while looking at Chris “Bolt” Bradley, who points out that, actually, Dalton arranged for them to rent a firehouse, before telling his teammate that Dalton seems like a great catch. ‘Um…Mickey…’ begins Rich Rider a.k.a. Nova, sitting behind his teammates. ‘Yeah, Rich?’ Mickey asks. ‘Watch where you’re going!’ Nova exclaims. ‘We’re gonna hit the flippin’ Chrysler building!’ he shouts. Bolt cries out in shock, while Turbo tells the guys to relax, and pulls the hover pod upwards, ‘See? I’ve got everything under control!’ she exclaims, but Nova just tells her to land this thing. ‘But -’ Mickey begins to protest. ‘NOW’ Nova orders, so she brings the vessel down towards the Firehouse. ‘Hwy - there’s someone at the Firehouse, but I can’t tell who it is’ one of the young heroes tells the others, as indeed someone is waiting down below.

Meanwhile, at the New York state penitentiary, Ossining, Harley Traynor sits in his barren cell, writing a letter to his son:

Dear Fletcher.

I had some supporters, but ultimately they were ineffective. I’d made my bed. Now I had to lie in it. .

‘TRAYNOR!’ a voice booms, and Harley looks up to see a guard entering his cell. The guard announces that he has a message from a friend of his, and he thinks Traynor knows him, too - Joe Silvermane. Traynor looks worried - ‘No…no. Oh God, no’ he mutters. The officer smirks at Traynor, who screams ‘NOOOO!’, and the blood begins to flow, while the letter to Fletcher Traynor, care of the Massachusetts Academy, falls to the floor.

Back at the Warriors’ Firehouse HQ,‘TREY!’ one of the New Warriors exclaims as they see Trey Rollins a.k.a. Aegis waiting for them. ‘Hi, guys. Got yourselves a new to, eh?’ Trey asks, looking at the hover pod. ‘It’s one of the detachable hover pods from the spaceship I’ve got in orbit, Aegis. Not that it’s any of your business, since this is a Warriors matter’ Nova declares sternly. Trey frowns and replies that the last he heard, he was a Warrior. ‘Of course, it’s been an entire week since I heard from you guys’ he adds. ‘Can you blame us? Let’s se, we found our you were buddies with one of the gang-bangers who almost killed Bolt and blew up our Crashpad. Heck we oughta elect you leader’ Nova suggests sarcastically.

‘That’s enough!’ Bolt exclaims as he rushes over to his teammates, reminding Nova that they decided to let Aegis remain on the team. ‘Obviously, I was outvoted on the subject’ Nova declares as he purposely bumps Aegis as he walks past him.

One week later, at the Massachusetts Academy. To most of the student body, the Academy is a normal - however expensive - boarding school. But, to a select few mutant students, it is a place where they can secretly learn who to use their natural born superhuman abilities for the betterment of mankind, as the super hero team known as Generation X. ‘Take that, Jubilee!’ Everett Thomas a.k.a. Synch exclaims as he throws a snowball at Jubilee, and it splats against her face. ‘OW!’ Jubilee complains, as she wipes the snow from her face, and warns Everett that he is going to pay for that, as her mutant “fireworks” suddenly spark up.

Motioning to some regular kids across the field, Synch tells Jubilee to ‘Watch the fireworks’, as this is a snowball fight, not a Generation X mission. ‘We can’t let anyone see us using our powers’ he points out. Jubilee shushes Synch and tells him to listen to the kids over there. Three kids are standing together, and one of them declares that a guy he knew got a look at Traynor’s journal, and that it said something about Traynor’s dad being killed while in jail. He adds that Traynor blames the New Warrior kids, as they are the ones who got his dad locked up. ‘He had a kinds of crazy notes about killing the Warriors’ the boy adds. Synch and Jubilee look concerned, and Synch suggests they tell Banshee and the White Queen about this. ‘You go get them. I’ll go get the rest of Generation X!’ Jubilee orders.

Later that night, at a self-storage facility in the Red Hook section of Brooklyn, Fletcher Traynor I searching through some crates and boxes. He recalls how his dad never let him come with him to this place, as he said he stored “dangerous stuff” here. ‘Let’s just see how dangerous’ Fletcher decides, before pulling a weapon from a crate. ‘Oh, yeah. This will work’ Fletcher exclaims as he looks at the gun, which has vials of a green fluid attached to it, and a bio-hazard stamp on the weapon itself. He tries to adjust the weapon, ‘Now if I can just…come on! Stupid thing!’ he exclaims, when suddenly, a piece of the weapon falls apart. ‘Oh…oh, no!’ Fletcher gasps as the vials shatter, and he screams as the green liquid touches him.

Somewhere else, a man wearing a green mask covering his eyes is chained to a table. A young man and an elderly man stand over him. ‘Who are you? You cannot do this! I am the Steel Serpent! The Steel Serpent, do you hear me?’ the Steel Serpent exclaims. The younger man replies that he is standing right here, so there is no need to shout. ‘My name is Junzo Muto, and I most certainly can “do this”!’ Muto declares, while the elderly man holds up a bowl, red steam rising from it. ‘It is time, Master Muto, Your destiny starts now. This is the moment you’ve trained your whole life for’ the old man declares. ‘No, Hiromitsu! The moment I’ve trained my whole life for comes when we find Danny Rand. This is but a practice run’ Muto vows.

‘What are you going to do?’ the Steel Serpent calls out. ‘Hold still’ Muto tells him, and places his hand over his chest, causing the Steel Serpent to cry out in agony. The red mist touches them, and he screams. Muto raises his hand and states that it is done, that he has extracted Davos’s chi, which has given him the power of the Iron Fist. ‘And soon…I will have all of it!’ he boasts.

Back at the Massachusetts Academy, in the secret complex beneath the main school buildings, Generation X have gathered with their mentors, Sean “Banshee” Cassidy and Emma Frost the White Queen. ‘And they say Fletcher was gonna kill the Warriors!’ Jubilee declares. Emma announces that she has telepathically located Fletcher, and he is already in New York. ‘Then what’re we waiting for, Emma? We’re at this school so you and Sean can teach us about using our mutant powers - and I’d like to think part of that training would involve using them responsibly, and for the good of, y’know, mankind, and all that!’ Jubilee states.

Banshee remarks that Jubilee has a point, but that he thinks barreling in there in costume might be a bit much. Husk a.k.a. Paige Guthrie asks what if the Warriors need their help. ‘Ha! That’s a good one, Paige. Help with what?’ Angelo Espinosa a.k.a. Skin laughs, before asking Jonathan Starmsore a.k.a. Chamber what his take on all this is. ‘Just wondering - how dangerous could one little kid possibly be?’ Chamber replies.

Brooklyn, where reporter is being filmed at Kin’s Plaza Mall, where last minute Christmas shoppers are going about their shopping - the reporter doesn’t get to say much, before he screams, and is engulfed by a green mass of muck. ‘Hi, folks, I’m Biohazard, and all I want for Christmas is…the NEW WARRIORS!’ exclaims the transformed Fletcher Traynor as he moves about. When suddenly, ‘Yo, Mush-Mouth - what? You think we don’t get Cable?’ Nova exclaims as he flies towards Biohazard, followed by Bolt, Turbo, Aegis, Namorita and Robbie “Speedball” Baldwin, all who drop out of the hover pod. ‘I got this chump, you guys’ Nova shouts, but Turbo tells him to wait, pointing out that they don’t know what his powers are yet. Nova replies that it doesn’t matter, for he doubts Biohazard is Human Rocket-proof.

‘No matter how often I see it, Nova’s careful analysis of a given situation never ceases to amaze me. I think we oughtta elect him team leader, eh, Nita?’ Speedball suggests. ‘Don’t even joke about that, Speedball’ Namorita replies. ‘OOOOFF!’ Nova utters as he flies straight into Biohazard. ‘You think that hurt? I don’t even feel pain!’ Biohazard boasts as he slams Nova to the ground. ‘Do you?’ Biohazard asks as he then tosses Nova into the air. ‘Hang on, buddy, I gotcha!’ Speedball calls out as he bounds up towards Nova, catching him with some kinetic bubbles. ‘Thanks for the bubble cushion, Toothpick’ Nova tells his friend. Speedball asks Nova if he is okay, and rubbing his head, Nova replies that he thinks so.

Back on the ground, Turbo fires a wind turbine at Biohazard, but it is no good, as the wind just splatters his acid into a nearby car. Bolt tells Turbo to pull back so he can get a clear shot, and the young mutant releases a burst of electrical energy at Biohazard, but it just makes him angrier. ‘Shouldn’t you be wearing long sleeves? It’s December!’ Biohazard shouts as Bolt as he fires a burst of acid at him, causing Bolt to scream. Namorita picks up a nearby car, while shoppers watch in fright. ‘I can -’ Aegis calls out to Namorita as he runs after her. ‘Don’t worry, I’ve got him!’ Namorita declares as she flies towards Biohazard. ‘Namorita, wait!’ Aegis exclaims, but too late, as she slams the car into his body, she then flies down towards Biohazard, warning him that she has an acid touch of her own.

Biohazard growls as Namorita touches him. ‘I won’t let you win! You’ve already taken too much from me!’ he exclaims. Namorita looks confused, and asks Biohazard what he means by “taken too much”. ‘You killed me father - Harley Traynor!’ Biohazard reveals. Wide-eyed, Namorita replies ‘Traynor’s your father? But…we didn’t kill him’, before telling her teammates to stay back, as she has this under control. ‘No! You sent him to prison - where he was murdered!’ biohazard seethes as he punches Namorita, knocking her backwards. Namorita looks up from the ground, and Biohazard frowns as he stands over her: ‘You…you didn’t know?’ he asks.

Suddenly, ‘Don’t take another step!’ a voice calls out. It’s Banshee, who, along with the White Queen, are with Generation X. ‘Back away from the girl, lad’ Banshee tells Biohazard. ‘Or don’t. See what happens’ Chamber suggests. ‘Speedy - you see that? It’s Emma Frost!’ Nova exclaims. ‘Yeah! She’s that witch who tried to turn Firestar into some sorta mutant assassin!’ Speedball remarks, while Turbo tells Generation X that they don’t understand - the New Warriors can handle this. Banshee tells Turbo that it doesn’t look like they are doing a very good job of it, and tells the Generation X kids to help the New Warriors take that creature down.

But, as Generation X try to enter the fray, they are all knocked back by a powerful turbine. ‘Hey! What gives?’ Jubilee exclaims. Turbo is responsible for the turbine, of course, and she tells Generation X that the Warriors appreciate the thought, but that they cannot allow Generation X to attack Biohazard. ‘Please fall back’ Turbo asks, telling them that they are only making a volatile situation worse. ‘WHAT? Talk about looking a gift horse in the mouth!’ Jubilee mutters, while Skin suggests they show Turbo what happens when someone messes with Generation X. Banshee suggests to Jubilee and Skin that they wait and hear the New Warriors out, but Jubilee declares ‘Talk is cheap!’ and she fires some plasma bursts towards Aegis, who deflects them with a force field and tells Jubilee to back off, as the New Warriors don’t want to fight.

‘Speak for yourself, Aegis. That goon’s still bearing down on Nita. The faster we wrap this up, the faster we can get to her!’ Nova declares as he flies towards Generation X, only for Chamber to attack him with an energy blast, ‘Come on down, mate’ Chamber remarks. Skin grins and tells Chamber that he gave Nova a crash course in bio-blasts. ‘Now watch how I handle “Bubbles” here’ Skin exclaims as he extends his fingers, wrapping them around Speedball who is bounding over him. Eeew…keep your hands to yourself, dude!’ Speedball exclaims.

Bolt attacks Jubilee with a blast of energy and asks ‘Are you guys with the X-Men? I know the X-Men, and they wouldn’t act like this!’, to which Jubilee replies ‘I know more about the X-Men than you ever could’, before asking Synch if he has got him. ‘Got ‘em!’ Synch replies. ‘What? What do you mean?’ Bolt asks, turning to Synch, who is now surrounded by electrical energy. ‘Hey - you…you’ve got electrical powers, too?’ Bolt asks. Synch explains that he is jut using his synchronistic aura to use Bolt’s, as the energies begin to clash. At the same time, Husk has shifted to a stone form, and is punching Aegis’s force field, but she finds that she can’t break it. ‘I can keep this up for hours. Can you?’ Aegis smiles.

Suddenly, ‘AAAGGGHHH! Make it STOP!’ Biohazard screams, as Namorita, Turbo, Banshee and the White Queen suddenly find acid oozing towards them as it starts pouring from Biohazard’s body. ‘His powers are out of control!’ Turbo warns. ‘Kids, get -’ Banshee begins, before he is struck by the acid. Namorita manages to protect herself with the door of a car, using it as a shield. The White Queen rushes over to Banshee, while telling the young heroes that they must contain Biohazard before his powers injure any civilians. Nova uses a car as shield and replies ‘“We” don’t have to do anything, Frosty. The Warriors can handle it from here’. Namorita brings another car down towards the one Nova has ready and announces that they will use them as a barricade so they can plan their next move.

Bolt suggests that Aegis can contain Biohazard in a force field, but Aegis replies that it won’t work, explaining that his force fields are airtight, so the kid might suffocate before they can get his powers under control. ‘Then I guess it’s team-up time’ Jubilee declares, explaining that Husk’s body can within stand Biohazard’s geysers of acid. Husk shifts into another form, and declares that all she needs is a distraction. ‘Just keep Biohazard from noticing me, and I’ll take him out!’ she tells everyone, while Aegis looks concerned and asks Husk if she is sure that she is immune to his powers. ‘We’re about to find out, aren’t we?’ Husk replies.

Aegis suddenly leaps from behind the car towards Biohazard, force field ready, he tells himself that he didn’t want to seem like a coward back there, since the Warriors already doubt him, but he’s worried if indeed he is not immune to Biohazard’s powers. Aegis raises his shield to block a geyser of acid that Biohazard fire at him, while the frightened kid declares that he doesn’t understand and asks why it hurts so much. ‘I don’t know, man, I don’t know! But we’re gonna help you - just hang on!’ Aegis calls out. ‘Help me? You’re not gonna put me in jail?’ Biohazard asks, confused. ‘I…’ Aegis begins, before wondering what they can do with him. Suddenly, Husk reaches up in front of Biohazard and punches him hard in the face. ‘Sorry it had to end this way, kid’ she tells him as Biohazard falls backwards.

Aegis stands over Biohazard and remarks ‘Well, that took care of party of the problem. But what are we gonna do with him?’ Aegis points out that Biohazard went on a rampage because his old man was murdered after the New Warriors put him in jail. ‘What if the people who killed Traynor think the kid knows something? Can we really trust the authorities to keep him safe?’ Aegis asks. The White Queen points out that she and Banshee have had experience in dealing with children troubled by their superhuman abilities, and states that Biohazard needs to be turned over to the proper authorities so he can get the help he needs.

‘You mean turn him over to you, right? Sorry, sister - not gonna happen. We won’t let you mess with his head the way you messed with Firestar’s’ Nova tells the White Queen, while Namorita decides that Aegis is right - the kid is not safe if they turn him over to the authorities. Namorita announces that she knows some people at Project Pegasus, and suggests they could take care of Biohazard. ‘We could send him there under an assumed name’ she adds. Nova tells the White Queen that the New Warriors can take it from here. ‘Good luck finding another misguided kid you can corrupt’ he adds. The White Queen frowns and suggests to the New Warriors that they give their friend Firestar a call, so she can update on who they should - and should not - be holding grudges against.

Emma continues, stating that her first class of students was murdered, so she knows a little something about guilt and responsibility. ‘There’s a very fine line between the two, and you should take care not to shoulder too much responsibility’. Emma tells the New Warriors that they are not responsible for Biohazard’s father, that he was a criminal and only has himself to blame for what happened. ‘Think about it’ she declares, before she, Banshee and the Generation X kids turn and walk away. ‘You…you think she’s right?’ Speedball asks. Nova doesn’t respond.

Christmas Night at the Firehouse, Namorita enters the living area, to find Chris lying on the floor, a blanket over him. ‘What the -? Chris? What’re you doing here?’ Namorita asks him. Chris rubs his head and explains that he fell off the couch, before asking her why she is all dressed up, and remarking that she looks great. Namorita reveals that she spent the evening with Johnny Storm and the rest of the Fantastic Four. ‘It is Christmas, after all’ she points out, before telling Chris that he is dodging the question, and asks him once again what he is doing here.

Chris hangs his head and reveals that he hasn’t had a place to live since he arrived in Manhattan a few months ago. ‘I guess I was too embarrassed to tell you guys’ he adds, explaining that he was staying with his girlfriend, Donna, but her parents caught him and threw him out. ‘I didn’t think anyone would mind if I crashed here for a while’ Chris tells Namorita, who replies that she minds. ‘You…you do?’ Chris replies, surprised. Namorita smiles and exclaims ‘Sure I do! I mind that you’re sleeping in a firehouse when I’ve got a perfectly good spare bedroom at my place’. Namorita tells Chris to think of it this way, that it is a Warriors tradition, as Justice used to live with her, until he moved into Avengers Mansion. Chris gets to his feet, ‘Nita, I don’t know what to say!’ he smiles. Namorita puts her arms around him, ‘Merry Christmas, kiddo’ she smiles.