If he was able to speak, the man called Nova would apologize. Not to Iron Man, whose metal hand is slowly choking the life out of him, but to his friends, the New Warriors, who lie scattered about the makeshift battlefield. He would apologize, because this is all his fault.
Tony “Iron Man” Stark’s powerful hand continues to squeeze at Rich Rider’s throat. Mickey “Turbo” Musashi and Robbie “Speedball” Baldwin lie motionless nearby. Ice covers cars and the fronts of buildings. Namorita is also motionless on the ground. Nova would apologize to her for turning his back on her when she needed him the most. He would apologize to Speedball for dragging him into yet another harebrained scheme. Then he would apologize to Turbo for feelings things that he should be feeling. And to Chris Bradley a.k.a. Bolt, for never telling him that being a super hero isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. And of course, to Trey Rollins a.k.a. Aegis, for never giving him a fair shake. Nova would apologize to all of them if he could speak. But since he can’t, his mind drifts back to the events that led him here:
Two hours ago, on the New Jersey side of the Hudson River, the Warriors’ hover pod sets down at the Abbey, the personal retreat of Danny Rand a.k.a. Iron Fist. The Warriors met Danny when they travelled to Seattle, where they helped their former leader, Dwayne Taylor a.k.a. Night Thrasher rescue Danny from a group of the deadliest assassins in the world, the Hand. It has been a long night. ‘See that? Right to your front door, Mr Rand’ Nova exclaims as he flies down onto the balcony of the Abbey, carrying Danny, who tells Nova to call him “Danny”. ‘I’m not that much older than you’ Danny points out. Everyone else descends from the hover pod, with Turbo helping the injured Bolt down, while Namorita sets Night Thrasher down. Thrash tells Nita that he is fine and points out that Bolt and Aegis were the most severely injured, and that they both have wounds on their backs that need to be looked at.
Namorita reminds Night Thrasher that he didn’t exactly walk out of that fight without a scratch, either, as the new Iron Fist tagged him pretty good, and more than a few times. Danny tells the New Warriors that he can’t thank them enough for their help. ‘I don’t want to think about what would’ve happened to me if you hadn’t shown up’ he remarks, adding that if they ever need anything, not to hesitate in calling. Danny turns to Night Thrasher and they shake hands, Danny tells him that he will be in touch, as soon as he gets his hands on the creep whole stole the power of the Iron Fist from him. Thrash assures Danny that he will be keeping his eye out for Junzo. ‘And if I find him first, I’ll be sure to let you know’ he adds.
Danny enters his home, and Turbo remarks that Danny talks good game, but wonders if he is really going to be all right. Namorita explains that she has known Danny for a while now, so everyone should trust her when she says that although he may have lost the power of the Iron Fist, he is still a hero at heart and he will pull through just fine.
Nova turns to Night Thrasher and asks him if he is going to stick around or if he us used to flying solo. ‘Sticking…around?’ Night Thrasher replies, before busting into a fit of uncontrollable laughter. When he calms down, Thrash tells Nova that he has to be joking. ‘There’s no way I’d even consider rejoining this “team”. And I use the world “team” lightly…because that’s the last thing you people are. You may pride yourselves on not having a leader, but until you get one - you’re going to keep getting your butts kicked by every two-bit villain you come across!’ Night Thrasher exclaims harshly.
‘Don’t call me, I’ll call you’ Night Thrasher tells the New Warriors as he flips backwards, leaping right off the balcony. ‘Wah -? But -’ Bolt calls out as he rushes over to Night Thrasher, but as he reaches the edge of the Balcony, he finds Night Thrasher has vanished. Nova tells Bolt not to let Thrash get to him. ‘He’s just ticked because we’re getting along just fine without him’ Nova explains, before announcing that he has to get to work. He picks up Speedball and tells him that he will drop him off on his way to work. As they leave, Speedball explains that Night Thrasher comes from the “tough love” school of super heroing. ‘Couldn’t you tell?’ Speedball asks, however Bolt wonders whether Thrash is right.
Clinging to Nova as he flies through the air, Speedball tells his friend that his mother knows an agent, who kept hitting on her right after she and his dad got divorced, and the agent said he would read their screenplay. ‘Guess that means we gotta finish it, huh?’ Nova replies, but Speedball exclaims that they are just about there. ‘A little polish and “New Warriors: The Movie” will be ready for the lensing’ he exclaims. Nova asks what “lensing” means, to which Speedball explains that it is Hollywood talk for “filming”. Nova asks him why not just say “filming”, which causes Speedball to pause, then tell his friend not to ask so many questions. Speedball drops down onto a rooftop, ]Here’s where you get off’ he tells Nova, before informing him that he will call him if anything happens with the “agent dude”. ‘Cool, catch you later’ Nova calls out as he continues on to the Marvel Burger where he works.
Dropping down into the alleyway, Rich decides that if they sell the screenplay, then he can probably quit his stupid job. ‘Flipping burgers isn’t exactly my idea of a dream career’ Rich tells himself, and as he enters the rear entrance, he is greeted by a co-worker, Bernie, who exclaims ‘Well, well! Right on time like always, it’;s everyone’s favorite Human Rocket!’, to which Rich tells Bernie to shush, as he has a secret identity to protect. ‘And speaking of secret identities, what are you wearing?’ he asks Bernie, who explains that it is their new uniform, and calls Rich “boychick”, adding that the manager says they all have to wear them. ‘Look on the bright side: it’s still better than your last Nova costume’ Bernie exclaims as he hands Nova his uniform.
And, shortly, wearing the new orange and white uniform, which consists of a bobble-burger on top of his cap, Rich stands at the counter and frowns. ‘Hello. Welcome to Marvel Burger. May I take your order?’ he asks his customer. ‘Yes, I’d like two Captain Marvel Jrs, a Quicksilver Shake a -’ the customer begins, before Rich spins around to a window as a police car speeds past the building and he notices snow and ice outside. ‘A blizzard? At this time of year? Something tell me I’d better look into this’ Rich decides, as he tells his colleagues to cover for him. Bernie asks him if he is going to signal the Warriors for back-up, to which Rich, putting his Nova costume on over his Marvel Burger uniform, replies that he was a solo act long before the Warriors came along, so he can handle whatever is going on out there. Suddenly, a woman appears at the counter and calls out to Bernie and Roger, informing them that she needs to speak to Rich. ‘Ginger! Wow, sorry, but you just missed your ex’ Bernie informs her.
While, outside, Nova flies over some police officers who have taken cover behind their frozen car, and he sees the criminal Blizzard up ahead. ‘He used to tangle with Iron Man’ Nova thinks to himself, hoping that camera crews are on their way, as this fight will look great on the six o’clock news. ‘Now this is more like it! Back in my old duds and working for myself!’ Blizzard exclaims as he fires more ice at another police car. ‘Okay, Snow Cone, why on Earth did you pick New York to make your comeback? Don’t you know we’ve got more super heroes per capita than Hollywood does actors?’ Nova asks as he flies straight towards Blizzard, who replies ‘And it’s just my luck I get the one who thinks he’s Spider-Man’, and tells Nova that if he is going to fight, just quit talking to him, and he encases Nova’s head in ice, causing the young hero to drop to the ground and fall backwards into a pile of snow.
‘Oh, man…this is gonna hurt’ Rich tells himself, but knows it is the only way to get free, and he forces himself to fall to the ground, shattering the ice around his face and upper body. ‘Okay, okay, lucky shot’ Nova calls out as he flies back towards Blizzard, who boasts ‘I’ve gone toe-to-toe with Iron Man! You’re a little outta your league’. Nova tells Blizzard to keep talking, for when he is done with him, he will be lucky if he can make enough ice to put on the bruises on his face. Nova turns and flies upwards as Blizzard encases himself in ice to stop Nova from flying into him.
Inside Marvel Burger, Bernie, Roger and Ginger are pressed up against a window, watching the battle. Bernie decides that this is not going well, and Ginger exclaims that Rich will get himself killed. ‘Not if he get some help!’ Roger points out, before going over to Rich’s jacket. Bernie tells him not to, as Rich will kill him. ‘He won’t have a chance to kill me if Blizzard kills him first’ Roger replies, and holding up Nova’s communi-pin, he remarks that he hopes the Warriors have their ears on.
Fifteen minutes later, Nova is still engaged in battle with Blizzard, ‘Ready to surrender yet?’ he asks. ‘Surrender? I’m winning!’ Blizzard replies as he fires more ice at Nova, who asks ‘By whose count’, to which Blizzard points out that Nova hasn’t caught him yet. ‘That’s where we come in!’ a voice exclaims, and Nova looks up to see his teammates arrive on the scene. ‘Aw, no’ he mutters to himself, while Blizzard calls out ‘And you are…’, ‘The Warriors or, if you prefer, “that group that kicked me tail”!’ Turbo announces. Blizzard fires some ice towards them, but it lands against Aegis’s force field. ‘Speedball, he’s yours!’ Aegis calls out, but Nova calls his friends idiots and assures him that he has got this. ‘Ease up, Richie. We’ll have this doofus all wrapped up in no time’ Namorita assures him. ‘Ba da bing!’ Speedball exclaims as he bounds towards Blizzard, and knocks him backwards.
‘Ugh’ Blizzard mutters as he lands against some trash cans. Nova tells Namorita that he doesn’t need their help, and exclaims that this is the first solo gig he has had in months, that he can handle it. ‘Well, it sure didn’t look that way when we arrived!’ Namorita points out. ‘Gee. Thanks’ Nova mutters. While Turbo deflects Blizzard’s ice attack with a wind turbine, Namorita tells Rich that she is sorry if she bruised his ego, but that it is the truth. ‘You needed help. There’s no shame in that’ she assures him. ‘Oh, no? What about all the people who are standing around watching this fight? How do you think it looks to them?’ Nova asks, annoyed. ‘How do I…? I don’t care how it looks to them! We’re crime-fighters, not entertainers!’ Namorita snaps back, asking Nova if he has forgotten about that, with all this talk about his little screenplay. ‘Hey, that screenplay is gonna being the Warriors a lot of good exposure!’ Nova replies, while Bolt attacks Blizzard with an electrical blast.
Suddenly, ‘New Warriors…stand down…I have received an Avengers distress call…which brought me here. Blizzard is my foe…and I shall deal with him’ Iron Man booms as he descends from above. ‘Wha? Iron Man?’ Blizzard exclaims as he is suddenly punched in the face. ‘Hootchie mama!’ Speedball gasps. ‘Well. Iron Man sure didn’t have any problems taking this guy down’ Namorita points out. ‘Sure. But only because I wore him down’ Nova mutters. ‘Nice right cross, Shellhead. Nice to see you haven’t gotten rusty since we last me. ‘Ha! “rusty”, get it?’ Blizzard exclaims, before Iron Man replies ‘No’ and conks Blizzard on the head, punches him in the stomach, and kicks him to the ground. The New Warriors look concerned, and Nova exclaims ‘Iron Man’s going postal’, while Namorita decides that this isn’t right.
Nova goes over to Iron Nan ‘hey, Shellhead…I think you got him, y’know’ he tells the armored Avenger, when suddenly, Iron Man spins around, ‘Get out of my way!’ he shouts, knocking Nova up into the air, slamming him into the side of a building. Annoyed, Turbo flies towards Iron Man, ‘Hey! What’s the matter with you? You can’t just hit him like that! He’s like you! He’s one of the good guys!’ Turbo exclaims, before realizing that her wind-blasts are not moving Iron Man. Inside the armor, Iron Man’s database brings up Turbo’s profile, and after reading her abilities, Iron Man fires a repulser ray at a nearby fire hydrant, which blows its top, and water gushes from it, striking Turbo and knocking her out. Namorita tells Bolt that he is up, and the young mutant takes action, telling Namorita that a quick zap of his bio-electricity should short-circuit Iron Man.
‘Metal…conducts…electricity’ Iron Man replies, before turning around and grabbing Namorita by her face, and throwing her to the ground as he forces the electrical surge into her. Iron Man decides that Bolt should be restrained and picks up a lamp-post from where it is rooted into the ground, and wraps it around Bolt, ‘Hey, come on - why are you doing this?’ Bolt calls out, but gets no response. Speedball bounces into action, while Aegis reminds him of what Night Thrasher said about them not acting like a team. ‘We can debate the wisdom of Thrash some other time’ Speedball replies, pointing out that right now, their team is getting cut down. ‘So I suggest you get in the game’ Speedball declares, before suddenly, losing his bounce, and falling flat on his face, thanks to an inertial dampening field that Iron Man deployed.
Aegis looks on, concerned, he knows that Iron Man is wasting the New Warriors, and sees him attack Speedball further with some kind of gas. Speedball clutches at his throat and begins to choke. Aegis gets Iron Man’s attention, and tells him that they have never met. He introduces himself, and explains that he is trying to understand why he is doing this. ‘I don’t know the super hero protocol in these situations, but if we were out of line in taking on Blizzard, we’re sorry’ Aegis states. ‘Your interference…will not be…tolerated’ Iron Man replies as he fires some energy at Aegis, who raises his force field just in time. However, Iron Man fires a repulser ray at the ground, knocking Aegis off his feet, and into a crater that forms. ‘You must be…retrained’ Iron Man states. Aegis decides that there is something seriously wrong with Iron Man, and wonders if the Avengers know about it.
Iron Man turns his attention back to Blizzard, who cowers back and tells him to stay cool. ‘I surrender, see? I’m not resisting!’ Blizzard exclaims. ‘Yo, Rust-Bucket!’ a voice from above. ‘Never thought I’d be glad to see him!’ Blizzard mutters, while Iron Man turns around, just in time to see Nova flying towards him. ‘Remember me!’ Nova calls out, as he begins to punch Iron Man, ‘I don’t know what your problem is - but if you think you can whale on us just because you’re an Avenger - think again!’ Nova exclaims as he punches Iron Man in the face again and again. Suddenly, ‘That…is enough!’ Iron Man booms as he retaliates, punching Nova, and then grabbing him by his neck, choking him. Iron Man’s sensors indicate that Nova’s vital signs are weak.
Suddenly, ‘What am I…doing? Tony is wrong’ Iron Man declares, before dropping Nova to the ground. ‘I am an Avenger’ Iron Man announces, before taking flight, without so much as an apology. ‘Well…I guess I showed him’ Nova mutters.
Approximately twenty minutes later, ‘I wonder if Justin Hammer will take me back…’ Blizzard mutters to himself as police officers take him into custody. Reporters and camera crew gather around the New Warriors, and one reporter calls out: ‘Superball, can you tell us why the Warriors picked a fight wit Iron Man?’, to which Speedball corrects her, ‘First of all, it’s Speedball. And second of all, Iron Man picked a fight with us. We were trying to apprehend Blizzard when he showed up and threw down with us’ Speedball explains. The doubtful reporter asks ‘Do you really expect the public to buy that? Iron Man’s an Avenger. You kids are just New Warriors - with a history of questionable actions’ she points out.
‘Hey!’ Namorita exclaims, while Bolt declares that Speedball is telling the truth. ‘Welcome to the Warriors, Bolt. Better get used to this’ Turbo mutters, while Speedball asks the reporter what she means by “A history of questionable actions”, and states that they are trying to clean up this world and leave it better off than they found it. ‘What’s your contribution?’ he asks her. ‘I hardly -’ the reporter begins, when suddenly, a woman rushes over to the reporter and announces that she can attest to the fact that the Warriors are a menace. Nova realizes that it is Ginger, and with tears in her eyes, Ginger points a finger accusingly at Nova, exclaiming that he killed her husband.
Later, at her penthouse apartment, Namorita and Chris are sitting on the sofa watching a news announcer report that Ginger Jaye-Firestone claimed to be an ex-girlfriend of the Warrior known as Nova, however the Warriors fled the scene before that could be confirmed. The announcer states in that some unsettling developments surrounding the Fantastic Four, which finds the super-family seemingly allied with Latverian ruler Doctor Doom, are having a ripple effect on the Warriors, as Namorita has been romantically attached to the Human Torch. Footage of Namorita and the Human Torch together is shown on screen, to which Namorita throws a pillow at the television. ‘This stinks. Do the Warriors chicks have the worst taste in me, or what?’ Namorita mutters. ‘I mean, first Mickey falls for that miserable Dalton, and now Johnny starts hanging out with Doctor Doom’.
Chris tells Namorita that he wished he knew what to say. ‘You must feel terrible’ he adds. Namorita tells Chris that it helps having him here, and that she is glad he moved in, as he is a good listener. ‘Well…it’s funny you should mention that. Because I’ve got something to tell you. But you have to promise to keep it between us. Deal?’ Chris asks Namorita, who replies ‘Yeah, sure - deal’. Glancing away so he doesn’t make eye contact, Chris informs Namorita that he is sick, that he has something called the Legacy Virus, a degenerative disease that affects mutants. ‘No one knows how you contract it. No one knows how to cure it. And it’s fatal. I’m going to die, Nita’ Chris announces. Namorita looks shocked, and tells Chris that she is so sorry, before asking if that is what the rash on his arms is. ‘And all the sudden power flare-ups. Yep. As the disease progresses, it takes away control of my powers’ he explains.
Namorita tells Chris that this is heavy stuff and asks him what the others said. ‘There are no others. Donna’s the only one who knows. And remember, you promised not to tell the Warriors’ Chris replies, glancing back at Namorita, who stands up and puts a hand on Chris’s shoulder, asking him why not, as the Warriors are his friends and deserve to know. ‘They can help find a cure’ she suggests. Bolt reminds Namorita that there is no cure, and tells her that his pal, the Beast, has been working on a cure for years, but is no closer now than when he started. ‘I know I don’t have a whole lot of time left, and I want to use my powers to help people, while I still can’ Chris explains, pointing out that he can’t do that if the Warriors are constantly worrying about him. He reminds Namorita that they had a deal, that she said she wouldn’t tell anyone. Namorita frowns, and sighs, before assuring Chris that she will keep his secret - for now. ‘Thanks, Nita. You’re the best’ Chris smiles.
Later that evening, at the Warriors’ Firehouse HQ in Brooklyn, Rich and Mickey are in the kitchen. A whiteboard can be seen behind them, with the note “Nita, call your cousin” scrawled on it. ‘What am I going to do, Mickey? Ginger’s husband was coming at her with an ax when I showed up’ Nova explains. ‘I just meant to push him aside, but my powers were acting crazy back then. He went sailing out a wall from the second floor, and wound up in a coma. But it was an accident’ Rich tells Mickey, who puts a hand on his and tells him to relax, pointing out that if he was really in trouble, he would have heard from the police by now. Rich runs a hand through his hair and tells Mickey that she is right. ‘God, what as loser I am, whining like this, eh?’ he mutters.
Mickey smiles and replies ‘Hardly! Remember how many late nights you and I shared while I was still torn up about Dalton? Who was the whiner then?’ Mickey asks. ‘Um, that would be you’ Rich grins. Mickey taps her hand against his chest, and tells him that they are a pair of whiners, that they were made for each other. Rich’s eyes go wide, and Mickey realizes what she just said. ‘Um…I mean…’ her voice trails off, as they move closer to each other, their lips almost touching - when, suddenly, - ‘Hidy-ho! I’ve got some news that’s sure to put a smile yon your bucket-headed friend’s face’ Speedball exclaims as he rushes into the kitchen. Rich turns to Robbie, while Mickey keeps watching Rich. Robbie throws his arms into the air and reveals that the agent his mom knows called is was able to set up a meeting with a production company. Robbie grins and shouts ‘We’re going to Hollywood!’
