Post by fan4 on Apr 11, 2007 8:44:23 GMT -5
Namor: The Sub-Mariner #6
World Tour, Part 3
World Tour, Part 3
Written by mallet
Edited by Aaron Martel
The flight across Eurasia was a quiet one as Namor drifted through his thoughts. The journey to China had been simple but the battle there was not, a local gang lord had used its power to foretell Namors arrival long before he would come. So a trap had been set and Namor walked right into it, becoming captured in the process. If it had not been for the timely arrival of one Shang Chi, Namor would be dead and his body still hanging in his holding cell. Indeed, the fact that he was freed was in no part his doing, and for a being of such pride, Namor would not let that stand, though it was not all due to overconfidence on his part, since the map pieces themselves had unpredictable magical properties. Aside from divining the future for the gang lord, a New Orleans businessman used his map piece and other items to create a zombie enforcer. The zombie, however, was free now and the map piece was reclaimed. With such as his previous encounters, the Prince of Atlantis was now wary of what the next piece held in store for him when suddenly-
>>Namor!<<
The shout came from no real direction but instead the very recesses of Namor's mind. While it's source was not visible, Namor had a strong inkling of who it was.
"Strange?"
>>The one and only.<<
"Can you please not direct your voice into my mind? It is... unsettling."
With that Namor looked on as the very clouds he flew through swirled about him, bringing him to a halt. They wove into each other forming, like individual threads in a piece of cloth, something much larger. Slowly a massive face emerged, that of Dr. Stephen Strange, the self-proclaimed Sorcerer Supreme.
"Is this better?" bellowed the massive cloud face towards Namor.
Namor sighed; Strange's antics tested even his royal patience. "This is not amusing Strange, but at least I am no longer speaking to a disembodied voice in my head."
"Actually, you are. Everything you're seeing and hearing is an illusion I've cast from some distance away. The bellowing voice you're hearing now is still the simple one you heard from inside your mind prior."
"My dislike of you grows every moment, spell caster! What is it that you need tell me?"
"I have tracked down the exact spot of the last piece." The lower section of the cloud face transformed into a map of England. There near the center lay an X, presumably the spot Namor needed to head to. "It is a museum, formerly a castle, that has stood for more generations then it should have. Be wary here Namor, there is a dark magic that surrounds this place that existed far before the map entered its halls. This is the home of a family whose lineage goes back to Arthurian times; they are the descendants of the Black Knight. He was a legendary warrior though he was entirely evil, so much so that his enchanted Ebony Blade, which can cut through any item but the sword Excalibur, became cursed. It has been blood tied to his family ever since, giving each male descendant who wielded it an affinity for magic and a small degree of natural armor, as well as a constant blood thirst."
Namor hovered there for a moment blankly.
"Don't worry. Dane, the current wielder and owner of the castle, and I are old friends. I contacted him an hour ago, and he went to get the piece ready for transport."
"Strange, why must this map be so damn hard to piece together?"
"It's naturally drawn to places of evil. It did not used to be but since it was acquired by Destim that has changed. It seems to alter reality to suit its own ends and those ends involve it being used."
“That is unfortunate…”
“Very, but we must move past that. You’ll reach Whitman Castle soon enough.”
With that, the clouds dissipated and Namor was left drifting forward again over the English Channel. He remembered this strip very well; he had fought many battles here with his fellow Invaders. It seemed like just yesterday he fought beside Captain America, on the beaches and in the cities, against a tyrant whose evil was unimaginable. That was gone now though, the world had moved on, and so should he.
He approached Whitman Castle and descended to the front door, then rapped loudly on the front doors. He waited patiently for a few moments and struck the door once more, but again there was no answer. Namor brought his fist up to give the persons inside another chance to let him in, but suddenly an explosion of splinters came from the door. A shinning black blade had been shoved through the door, mere inches from the side of Namor's head. The blade moved swiftly, being brought down diagonally leaving an open gash across the entirety of Namor’s chest. The Sub-Mariner stumbled backwards as the sword slashed through the rest of the door, leaving naught but an open passage into the halls, and a man. He was clad in armor as black as his blade, which was held in one hand, and in the other, a crumpled piece of paper. The final piece of the map.
Namor regained his footing and, upon seeing what the man carried, became enraged. He had had more then enough of this struggle in his attempts to reclaim his people by finding Destim! No simple man in armor, nor enchanted blade, however sharp, would stop him now!
The armored man spoke, “You would dare steal from the Black Kni--”
Before the sentenced was finished though, Namor had shot towards the man, tackling him into the halls of the building. The Black Knight wasn’t completely taken aback and a long slash showed in Namor’s back for all his efforts. Despite that though, the Black Knight had to struggle to his feet. Both his magical and physical armor protected him, but the Sub-Mariner's strength was great. Before he could raise his sword again, a crashing blow came against the side of his head, send him careening to the ground once more. The will of the Ebony Blade would not be denied though, and the Black Knight rose from his belly to all fours, attempting to stand once more. It was not to be though, as the Sub-Mariner's mighty foot traveled swiftly into the warrior's side, the resulting wave of pain finally sending the knight to sleep.