ALL-WINNERS SQUAD ISSUE 5
By Barry Reese
Stan Lee Presents : The greatest heroes of the post World War II era...
Captain America, Sentinel of Liberty...The Whizzer, Fastest Man Alive
...Miss America, Strong and Beautiful Heroine...Sub-Mariner, Prince of
Atlantis...and the Human Torch, the fiery android...they are
The All-Winners Squad!
"Cracks in the Foundation Part Two"
The Human Torch entered the Manhatten headquarters of
the All-Winners Squad. His android mind was torn between
his growing concern for Prince Namor and his increasing
loneliness. Toro, his young partner, was getting older
by the day. Soon, the Torch knew, he would find a girl...
and then the android named Jim Hammond would be spending
a lot of evenings alone.
He walked into the main meeting hall and was relieved to
see that he wasn't the first to arrive. The Whizzer and
Miss America were already present, smiling wistfully
at one another. Standing at the top of the table was
the replacement Captain America -- a man whom the Torch
respected greatly, both for his own heroism and for
his dedication to upholding the tradition that Steve
Rogers began.
"Hi, guys. What's the big emergency, Cap?"
Captain America smiled slightly. "I was hoping for
Namor to arrive before I spilled the beans. I'm
glad all of you could come so quickly."
The Whizzer laughed. "It's not like you can say
'no thanks' to a summons from Captain America
himself..."
Sub-Mariner entered the room, his imperious
presence bringing the laughter to a halt. His
moods had been growing increasingly hostile as
of late and none of the All-Winners had any idea
why.
Namor crossed the room sullenly, sitting in his
chair and brooding quietly. The Torch glanced
in his direction before looking back at Cap. "Looks
like the gang's all here. Bucky and Toro are still
on leave, working at a charity benefit."
Captain America smiled. "Well, we'll deal with them
later."
Namor raised an arched eyebrow. "Your tone is strange,
Nausland. What do you mean?"
A sudden gust of wind stole the words from his mouth,
as a black and yellow blur entered the room. Only
the Whizzer could make him out clearly...he wore a
skewed version of the Whizzer's own costume but his
face was that of a madman's.
The villain grabbed the Whizzer's skull cap and pulled
it back hard, then began hammering his face with rapid-fire
blows. The Whizzer threw up a hand and forced his attacker
to back away.
The madman stood panting, starting wide-eyed at the
shocked All-Winners Squad. "He means, fish-man, that
the All-Villains Squad will deal with your little
kiddie friends once we're done icing you!"
The doors to the exits flew open and in strode an
assemblage of evil...the Asbestos Lady, archfoe of
the Human Torch,...U-Man, the Nazi Atlantean,...and
Warrior Warrior, product of Aryan science.
Madeline placed an arm around the Whizzer's bloodied face.
"Are you alright?"
"I'm fine, Maddie. But that ersatz Whizzer better hope
his insurance is paid up!"
The Dark Whizzer laughed. "Oh, please. I have planned for
this moment -- you and your friends are doomed."
The Torch ignited, whispering 'flame on.' "And just who are you,
anyway?"
"You can call me the Dark Whizzer..." He glanced at his
counterpart. "Let's race, shall we?"
And the battle was joined.
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Meanwhile, the extradimensional hero known as the Vision
floated in a state of semi-consciousness. His mind dwelled
in the ninth sphere of reality and he saw whispers of the
future. He saw the mysterious walker of the timelines, but
he was farther away now...not moving forward as quickly
as before. Perhaps, he hoped, he still had time to formulate
a defense...
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"Ah, Namor, it's good to face you again. I've waited long
months to test your mettle again..."
Namor and U-Man stood toe-to-toe, each flexing their seaborn
muscles, their hands locked. Namor slowly drove U-Man back.
"You are strong, but you are not....Imperius Rex!"
The Torch dodged asbestos blasts and looked to see Captain
America crossing over to stand behind Miss America, who
was trading blows with Warrior Woman. His eyes opened wide
as he saw Cap raise his shield to strike the defenseless
heroine. "Maddie -- look out!"
Miss America turned and caught the shield, pulling it free
from Cap's grasp. "Cap...what's with you?!" Warrior Woman
struck her from behind, sending her to her knees. Captain
America reached up and pulled his mask away, revealing
features very different from those of William Nausland.
"I am NOT Captain America, fraulein. I am Agent Axis, pride
of the Third Reich!"
The Torch hurled several fireballs at Axis. "Haven't you
heard, buster -- the war's over and your side lost!"
All around the room, the villains and the heroes battled. Neither
side gained much of an edge, as the Torch dueled both Asbestos
Lady and the fake Captain America. Namor battered U-Man back
farther and farther, while the Whizzers found themselves
evenly matched in speed.
Eventually, the Dark Whizzer spat at his counterpart. "You
are weak...I am the product of futuristic science!"
"Good for you. I'm the product of a mongoose injection...
impressed? Well, I'm not impressed with you either..." The
Whizzer feinted to the left and then connected with a solid
roundhouse to the right. The Dark Whizzer grunted and he
thudded against the wall. He slid slowly down to the floor.
"Hmm. Figures -- a glass jaw."
The Torch circled both Agent Axis and the Asbestos Lady
in a ring of fire. He smiled. "Let's see if you two
can dance!" He began pelting their feet with fireballs,
making both dance comically.
Namor grimaced and backhanded U-Man, finally sending the
villain into darkness. While this occurred, Miss America
dispatched Warrior Woman.
In the aftermath, the heroes regrouped, rounding up
the villains. The Whizzer zoomed away with Namor, freeing
Nausland from the villain's undersea base -- acting on
information given by the Asbestos Lady under duress.
The battle, brief though it was, had been won.
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On the moon, a silent figure watched. "I am Uatu, the
Watcher. It is my duty to observe, but not interfere.
The mighty heroes of the All-Winners Squad operated
in a strange time -- between the two great ages of heroism.
But their adventures, though many are lost to the mists
of time, are epic in nature. The All-Villains Squad would
return to plague the All-Winners several more times, and
the team would still be tested by the villain whom the
Vision has foreseen. But those are tales for other times.
For now let it be said that the All-Winners Squad has won
and has earned their peace, for however long it may last...
ALL-WINNING NOTES
Well, it's finished. Many of you have wondered why it's taken
so long for me to write issue five. The truth? I've gotten
involved in other projects (most notably Force Works). All-
Winners was my first attempt at fanfic and, to be honest, I
never developed a strong feel for it. I tried to wrap
up as many threads as I could for the next writer, who, I
hope, will be able to do the concept justice in a way that
I never could. I do ask all of you to try my other fanfic if
you at all enjoyed this run of All-Winners. I think Force
Works in particular is an exciting title. I wish the All-
Winners all the luck in the world with their new writer.
Cheers,
Barry
(
geocities.com/tapestrybranch)