The Pendragons Issue #97	Brought together in defense of Avalon and the British Isles, the Pendragons are the officially-sanctioned heroes of Great Britain. Originally led by the Black Knight, the group is composed of the remnants of the old Knights of Pendragon group, as well as several other heroes. Willing to die for their beliefs, the Pendragons stand united as England's best defense against threats of a superhuman nature. Pendragons logo created by David Wheatley based on designs by Des Davies and Kell Carpenter!
Written by David Wheatley

What's Been Happening: The mysterious Druids have attacked various Pendragons, and have only been able to been driven off by those who have the energies of Otherworld within them, and their next targets are Union Jack and Spitfire..

Elisabeth Braddock watched the scene unfold with a smile, knowing that the choice had been made, as it had always meant to be made. She did not like behaving like this, but she had found herself being put in a position where she needed to manipulate events more and more. The sword and the amulet had been left where they were for just this reason, so that the Chapman family would claim them when the time was right and the moment had arrived. These druids were powerful, masters of old magic, allowed to rise thanks to the withdrawal of the Green, and they were beyond the heroes of Britain, most of the former defenders of the Green. They were only vulnerable to the mystical energies of Otherworld. That was power that precious few possessed these days, which was why she knew she needed a new Captain Britain. Gaining two was a bonus she had not anticipated, however sometimes things worked out better than planned.

In the private rooms of the great house on the Falsworth Estate, the three druids sent to take Joey and Jackie, stood before them, aware that their attempt at capturing the Pendragons had gone horribly wrong. They had not predicted that the enemy would become a greater foe than they had anticipated. Joey was now Captain Britain and as Elisabeth looked at him, she could see her brother in his place. Take away the mask it would be clear they were different people, but right now... Joey was Captain Britain, a mirror of Brian in his prime, the Union Jack crest over the mask, the red stripe across the white body, with black diamonds over the shoulders and the blue boots    . The classic look, she thought, but Jackie was another matter entirely. Her face mask reminded Betsy of Linda, but the rest was dark blue, with the stripes of the Union Jack about her body, Brian's uniform as it had been just prior to taking on the mantle of King Britain, except the stripes were thinner than Brian's had been. It was a striking combination.

"Two Captains," Joey said, his voice filled with a new confidence as he spoke, and it sent a slight shiver down the Queen of Otherworld as she watched the ensuing scene.

"No waiting," Jackie added and the shiver Betsy had experienced second ago intensified, and she knew she had chosen well. The druids looked at each other and prepared. They had not anticipated Captain Britain but they had a slim hope that the two newly born Captain's would not be experienced enough to defeat them, and if not they would be able to retreat, but it would be a good test to see how they would do.

In the background, unseen by her Gray Poldark, her love and Lord Protector of Otherworld, watched her and shook his head, thinking he had to put a stop to this, before it got out of hand.

Joey shot across the room, not running but flying and he gave a low chuckle as he realised what he was doing, and he brought his fists together and ploughed in to the first druid, slamming in to him and hard. The druid caved under the attack with a great deal more ease than Joey's earlier punch, but even though it was a moment ago, it seemed a lifetime ago to him, and he kept up with the fight, slamming his fists in to the druid repeatedly. There was more power flowing through him than he had ever had before; even the Green had never quite made him feel like this. He knew what Jackie meant by the mantle of Captain Britain was as much a curse as a blessing but he could feel the energy and he knew it was worth it, and since she had the amulet then she too would know the truth as well. He allowed himself a glance at his wife and he stopped in amazement.

Jackie was inherently fast and agile, but he knew very well that she'd never moved with such grace. She was so fast, so powerful and he knew that she was not even trying, using her superior speed to take on the other two druids at once, swapping opponents in the blink of an eye, keeping them off guard and no matter how fast they were, she was faster. They had obviously been prepared for her attacks before, but this was beyond anything they had anticipated. She was amazing. The powers she'd gained from the blood transfusions from Baron Blood and the original Human Torch had given her super-human speed and agility, but this gave her raw power and he hoped she could tell what this meant to him and then he realised there was someone behind him and he turned. As he did so, he instinctively rolled as the druid he had been fighting smashed a staff in to him. Even through the force field of the suit he wore, he felt it strike and he knew that if he hadn't been aware of it he'd have been hurt a fair bit more. In an instant the sword was in his hand and the druid's staff was magically transformed to a sword and the two of them clashed with each other, the power of the druid against the power of Otherworld and then the druids were gone, leaving the Chapman family just standing around as baby Joey laughed in delight, clapping his hands at the entertainment.

"Now that was fun," Joey said as he hugged his wife. "Nice threads."

"You look pretty good too," she replied. "Even bulked up a bit as well." Joey looked at himself and realised he had a bit more muscle now than he had, and he'd not been without before.

"Wow," he said. He removed his helmet and placed in on the table and he looked at Jackie. "SO what do we do now?" he said. "We didn't want this."

"I guess we're stuck," she said, her eyes closing behind the mask she wore. "I knew what we were doing when we picked up the items. There's no going back from this."

"You don't have to keep the power," he said and she looked at him. "I'm Captain Britain. You don't have to do this."

"Joey, you're sweet, but I don't break a deal. But you're right on one thing."

"What?"

"You're Captain Britain. I need a new name."

A twinkle came to his eye. "What about... Captain Jack?" She shook her head, and then she smiled.

"What about Union Jaq? With a Q, not a CK. It sounds the same though." She gestured at her suit. "I mean, if the suit fits..."

"I think you're more entitled to the name than anyone," he said, in approval. "We're going to need a babysitter though."

"I know," Jackie answered. "Looks like it's hunting season on Pendragons again..."

Adam Crown stood outside the infirmary, waiting for the doctors to give him news of Molly. She had only just woken up, and they were checking her over. There were still tubes attached to her that had fed her and removed her bodily bio-wastes and they would not be something they removed until they were convinced that she no longer required them. It was fortunate that they had decided she was not in need of a tracheotomy; otherwise she wouldn't have been able to talk when she'd awoken.

"Excuse me, King Adam, may I speak with you?" said a voice and Adam turned to see a tall young man, with pale skin and long dark hair. He remembered him from the battle with the Red Lord

"It's Feron, isn't it?" he said and Feron nodded. "How can I help?"

"I don't know how much you know of me," he said, "but I am the descendant of the original Feron, who travelled here with Merlyn and Necrom to master the energy matrix."

"I remember some of that," Adam said, searching his memory.

"Feron had a bond with the force of life known as the Phoenix Force, he communed with it and they were... friends. If he had not been killed by Necrom, my ancestor would have become the host of the Phoenix Force, instead it was injured and retreated to a place of safety, later becoming the Phoenix that we are familiar with." They looked through the window, at Molly Fitzgerald who had been host to the Phoenix Force before her accident. "Etorian Kaine brought me here to try and help her, but there is something we discovered."

"Go on."

"The Phoenix Force fled this timeline because of what happened, and it took part of Molly's consciousness with her, which is why she was in a coma. Now she is awake, and that can only mean the Phoenix is trying to return."

Adam was puzzled. "This is a problem?"

"I gathered some information in finding this out. In Molly's mind, there were words. "Dream. No, dream, don't dream, not this way. I felt dreams dying, a bleak future without hope and an unfathomable rage and anger. In the anti-Phoenix, I felt a cold malevolence. This is different to that. It is just... dark." Feron looked at Adam as the king closed his eyes. He knew the stories, had heard the legends and a cold dread filled him.

"The Dark Phoenix is coming," he stated, reading from the same page as Feron. "Molly's awakening was the first sign it was real." Feron nodded. "Can we stop it?"

"Not to my knowledge," the mage said, "but we have to try."  However, before Adam could reply to that, two figures appeared from out of the room where Molly was and grabbed him. Adam wrestled, trying to break free but their grip was like a iron vice and he could not break loose.

"Do you know who I am?" he demanded.

"You are Pendragon," said one of them and Feron weaved a spell, trying to separate them from the King but the druid turned and blocked it with a spell of his own, turning it back on the mage, which resulted in slamming the young sorcerer in to the wall. "You are no Pendragon."

"Yeah, he is," said Pete Wisdom, appearing around the corner, skidding to a halt as he stopped running. "And so am I!" He threw a hot knife at him but the druid raised his hand and absorbed it.

"Gather them both," the other druid said, and the first one advanced.

Wisdom wasn't having that. "How about you gather this instead?" He cast several mystic blades instead of his usual hot knifes and the druid staggered at the attack as it disrupted his magic, and forced him back. Wisdom smiled at the success of it, because he hadn't been sure that it would work. The druid had also been surprised, as the mystic blades had traces of Otherworldly power about them and the druid knew it would do more damage than good to stay and he nodded to the other who backed away with a still struggling Adam.

"How did you know we were in trouble?" said Feron as he shakily got to his feet.

"Jessica sent word through Shevaun, warning us to expect trouble," he said, throwing more mystic blades, but the druids were gone before they could strike and Feron cried out. "What?" Wisdom asked and then he saw it as well as the mage and he closed his eyes in defeat. The warning had come too late and he punched the wall in frustration.

"They got Molly as well."

Betsy watched from her home on Otherworld, sad she could not do more but the Pendragons had to be master of their own fates. She could guide, but not control. The druids had been active and they had gathered as many Pendragons as they could find. So far, they had Adam Crown, Molly Fitzgerald, Android Andy, Cybermancer, Ghost Rider, Iron Man, Peregrine, Sibilla, Mary-Jane Watson-Parker, and Thunderfist. They had been unable to get to Miracleman, Miraclewoman and Big Ben, or Black Knight and Sersi, thanks to the intervention of the other Pendragons, who had managed to arrive in time and defend their former colleagues from the druid's abduction attempts.

Of the remaining Pendragons, those left after the fall of the Barrier anyway, Betsy and Gray were beyond their reach as was Linda McQuillan. Brian, Breeze, Rathoon and Tangerine were all dead and gone and of the others who bore the Pendragon name the Young Pendragons were yet to be found, as was the Hulk and Polaris was out in the Omniverse trying to find Kelsey Leigh.

The druid strategy had changed, for as before they had only been going for the Pendragons who had been touched by the Green, after thy had taken Adam and Molly, their tactics had changed. There was obviously not enough residual energy of the Green to be harvested, and they had resorted to taking other known Pendragons. Betsy took a moment in respect of those who were gone, then focused on the task at hand. She wasn't sure what Necromon was up to, however she suspected that it might be enough. It would take dark magic to gather what he needed but it was possible, by adding the very essences of those who were Pendragons in name only, to those who had been touched. Betsy wanted so much to help her friends, her team, but she needed to balance her desires with the responsibilities of her role as Queen of Otherworld, but she knew her friends needed her. She wouldn't be too missed here if she went back to Earth...

"Elisabeth," said a voice and she smiled, realising who it was. "I know what you're thinking," said Gray as he put his hand on her shoulder and she relaxed back in to him. "I know you want to be down there, fighting the good fight."

"It's not that, it's just I'm not sure Jessica can handle this," she said, trying to justify it. "Jackie and Joey are adapting to their new powers, and the team is so raw. Apart from Shevaun and Wynter, they've no real experience. If I go down there and lead the fight..."

Gray pulled her round so he could look her in the eye and she tried to move away but couldn't. He said nothing, but she could see his thoughts, and he knew she could tell what he was thinking and a memory came to the fore, a memory of Brian and her sparring with each other as they discussed how the warrior was in their blood, that it was who they were, but they knew they needed to control themselves. It echoed what she saw in Gray's mind and she closed her eyes.

"But I can't though, can I?" she said and Gray shook his head.

"Sorry, love, there are bigger things. You know the Time War has started, and that we have much to do. We knew it was coming but they're still ahead of us and maybe it's because you're finding it too hard to let go." She looked at him. "You can't keep watch over them, forever. They're not children and you're not the errant parent. The Pendragons will go on without you. You have to focus on the Otherworld and the House of Braddock now, not the House of Pendragon. You've a duty, a destiny."

"I've lost so much though," she said. "Brian, Jamie, a nephew or niece I'll never know, and it hurts knowing I can't change things. I became an X-Man, a Pendragon, to serve the greater good through action. I didn't ask for it to be like this." Gray kissed her.

"You've still got me, and what kind of Lord Protector would I be if I didn't do what I had to do to ensure you stay focused. How many realities are out there in the Omniverse?"

"More than can be counted," Betsy admitted. "So why focus on just one?"

"Exactly. Consider this as well, you gave them back Captain Britain and got two for the price of one. You've done all you could, and remember that Herne is watching them also. As is Cole Rawlins, and he was a Pendragon long before of us were dreamt of."

She nodded, and while there was still a part of her that wanted to end it, she waved and the vision of her former home was gone.

"Bring me Kate Pryde-Rasputin," she said. "If I'm to prepare to fight across many realities, and many times, I'll need someone with experience." She wanted to turn back and see what would happen back home, but she took a deep breath and finally and determinedly, Elisabeth Braddock left her old life behind.

The remaining Pendragons gathered at Darkmoor, with Herne the Hunter and Cole Rawlins, all of them knowing they had to get the other Pendragons back from the druids and Necromon. There had been hearty congratulations given to Joey on his new role and Jackie's transformation had also been met with surprised esteem from her friends.

Jessica looked at her team. Joey, Jackie, Eto Kaine, Kate McLellan, Pete Wisdom and Feron, with Wynter and Dark Angel as back up for the oncoming fight. It was the team of Pendragons she had wanted, the team she had gotten and she felt a surge of confidence. She was an heir of Pendragon and her people were with her. They weren't quite the Pendragons that people had known, but they were her Pendragons and that was enough.

"Herne, we're going to need your help on this." He nodded and closed his eyes, reaching out to the British Isles and commanding their aid. He was a Walker, and his magic went back a long way. He and his ilk walked the paths between this world and Otherworld and he knew the paths to the Netherworld as well.

"I have them," he said after a moment. "However I cannot go with you. My presence is needed elsewhere. Something is wrong in New Camelot and Vortigen is calling to me."

"I understand," Jessica replied. "Ok, we know that Joey, Jackie, Wynter and Eto can hurt them and we know that Pete can disrupt their magic, so that leaves it up to Kate, Feron and myself to free the others. Shevaun, can you get us to them?"

"I can try," Dark Angel replied.

"I shall guide you," Herne said, looking at her and he placed his hands on her shoulders, creating a mental link between them.

"Before you go," Cole said, addressing Kate, "I believe that you may have need of this." He held out his little box. "It's magic is simple, but effective. Turn the button left to go swift, turn it right to go small. Turning it back will restore you."

Kate looked at the box in surprise. She hadn't expected this. "Why me?"

"You have greater need of it than I, at least for the moment," he answered. "However, when you were blessed by the Green, there was the spirit of Guinevere about you, and that spirit has an... affinity with the Box. I was a Pendragon as well. Added to my elixir of life and the Box... It was a different time, and this is different magic."

"The Box will also enable you to return from the Netherworld," Herne added, "for once you are there, returning also requires specialist knowledge."

"Thank you," said Kate, taking the box. "I will look after it." Cole nodded and clasped his hand around hers, pressing the box in to her hands.

"Godspeed, Pendragons, but be wary. The Netherworld is not what it appears to be."

Jessica steeled herself for what would be her first true test as the leader of the Pendragons. "Let's do this then." Shevaun focused and then the team were gone, teleported to the Netherworld.

Next Issue: The Pendragons enter the Netherworld, where the Druids lie...

AUTHOR'S NOTES

Got some nice feedback on the last issue. First up is Harry M VanHoudnos III, a gentleman who has written before and who I'm sure will write again. Take it away, Harry

I have to admit -- I feel jealous.

That's cool. Wait, you don't want the title back?

David is rocking with this title. I especially liked when Jackie told Joey that being Captain Britain wasn't an honor but a curse. Good stuff.

Well, it is in a way. Anyone who has worn the suit has come in for some of the worst punishments that we as writers can dish up. Being Cap doesn't come without a price.

And the ending...! Wow.

I knew half of the ending when I started. The other half just kind of happened.

It's funny to be reading Pendragons as a fan after all the years I wrote the series -- there are passages where David does things that I would never do, but that's cool. But then there are times when he nails the characters so perfectly that it's like... did I write that??? lol.

I have to admit I do approach each issue and the plots thinking 'what would Barry do' because I want to give his run the utmost respect. Then when I think I know what he might do, I write and let my style come through and try make it as if it were what Barry might do if Barry were me, if that makes sense. I want it to be my series, but at the same time I want it to be the kind of series that people came to expect.

Great!

Thanks, Barry. Always good to know what the Master is thinking.

As always, if you have any comments, criticisms, anything, you can reach me at dewheatley@yahoo.com and I'll get back to you, and I will take your thoughts on board as well. While it is my story, I want it to be as enjoyable for you as a reader as it is for me as a writer.

- David
05/20/06