And lo, there came a day unlike any other, when the mightiest of the Avengers were laid low, and the days of teaming for humanities greatest champions were no more! Yet those days were short, for soon the call went out once more, and the best, the brightest, the most powerful were brought together once again, gathering ‘round the rallying cry of

Avengers Assemble!

"My friends enemy is my what?"

Avengers Assemble #6

What has gone before dept.: The Might Avengers, theorized that their friend and teammate Ant-Man might indeed not be dead, had themselves shrunken down to a sub-atomic level, hoping to find their friend on one of the many worlds that exist there. What they found they had not bargain on!

"Kill them! Kill them all!" The bearded man shouts from the crudely built throne. He stands there pointing at the men and women around him, who are surrounded by purple skinned, bare chested warriors carrying crude spears.

The Avengers tense, preparing for battle. But this is not some battle against a world conquering super villain. No, this is a war against one of their own. This is against Scott Lang, otherwise known as the Astonishing Ant-Man!

"We hear you and obey, o King." Speaks the man who led the Avengers to this crude hut that serves as a thatch roofed castle or sorts.

As one the warriors surge forward, ready to impale the Avengers on their spears.

But... "Nay, Scott Lang, perhaps thou art not in thy right mind, but no warrior, no matter how crude or futuristic their weapons may be, will e’er pose a threat to the Mighty Avengers! Not so long as the God of Thunder is amongst their ranks!"

As he speaks Thor slams his foot to the ground, creating a MASSIVE Shock wave that scatters both savage warrior and Avenger alike.

But this is wherein the difference lies. The Avengers immediately right themselves, Iron Man, never even stumbles or moves, surviving Thor’s mighty foot stomp easily, while Captain America flips through the air to land cat like on his feet, shield in hand ready to do battle. The Wasp and Yellowjacket both instantly shrink to an inch in height and take to the air. The Vision merely becomes intangible and grasps his wife the Scarlet Witch tightly as he does so similarly affecting her as well. The Beast uses his incredible speed and agility to flip into the air and then land amid the warriors in a crouch, a dull growl on his lips as the suddenly frightened warriors take a stumbling step backward. Ms. Marvel and Wonder Man both hover in the air above the melee.

That leaves Hawkeye, who mere instants ago was knocked to the ground by a sucker punch from his erstwhile friend Scott Lang. Both men quickly get to their feet, Hawkeye all but forgotten by the amnesiac Ant-Man.

But Hawkeye has not forgotten him...

"I’m gettin’ kinda tired of you shrinky dink guys blind sidin’ me. My turn Lang, an’ hey, sorry if this hurts." *

*See last issue and issue four.

Hawkeye rises from the ground cocking his right fist back as he does and then it explodes powerfully upwards, connecting like lightning to Ant-Mans jaw!

KA-RACK!

Ant-Man tumbles over backward, dropping like a sack of potatoes, his head hitting the dirt floor with a pronounced ‘Thump’.

"All of you stand down now!" Captain America commands, brandishing his shield in an arc before him at the stunned warriors.

"This was the slightest display of our powers. You have NO IDEA what we are capable of." Iron Man exclaims, allowing his repulsor vents in the palm of each hand to glow slightly with power as he speaks.

"We came here as friends looking for one of our own, and we have now found him." Cap continues, as he points at the stunned Ant-Man with his shield’s edge. "He may be amnesic, but he’s our friend and comrade."

"Aye, now stand thee back doughty warriors, we mean thee no harm, but the Avengers will not suffer any more foolishness." Thor exclaims powerfully.

"Owww, my head." Ant-Man groans as he makes his way to his feet haltingly. Yellowjacket and The Wasp suddenly grow to full size on either side of him, to see if he’s all right, but to also prepare to take him down again if he isn’t.

"H-hey what are you guys doing here? W-where am I anyway?" Lang stutters while rubbing his head.

"King?" The lead warrior walks quickly forward to his leader, helping him to sit in the tumbled over throne. All around the Avengers the throne room is in shambles from Thor’s stomp. Much of the thatch roof is gone and all the inside paraphernalia are strewn about on the dirt floor.

"It’s okay my friend." Ant-Man replies as he shoos his sub ordinate away. "These are indeed my friends. These are the Avengers."

"Scott, what happened here?" Hawkeye asks.

"I don’t remember, Hawkeye. Last thing I DO remember is releasing all of my shrinking gas in one fell swoop, as I knew Jack of Hearts was about to explode. I remembered a story Yellowjacket told me about how he had survived a direct explosion by shrinking down quickly. I guess I over did it. Huh? How long have I been here?"

"Over a month Scott. We thought you were gone. I’m glad to see we were wrong." Cap answers.

"You’re not the only one, Cap." Ant-Man replies. Then after a moment, "Oh my God, Cassie! She thinks I’m dead!"

"Don’t worry Scott, we’ll contact your daughter as soon as we grow to full size." YJ reassures him.

The people of the village now stand in what’s left of the hut that was their kings’ castle. One man, older then most and walking with a crudely made cane comes forward first.

"King, you cannot leave us now. The bad man will be returning soon, with more of his metal men, like this one." He points to Iron Man as he speaks.

"What ‘bad man’?" Iron Man asks.

"The one who wears the steel skin, like you do. Only his is ebon in color, like his soul. He is e-vil. Very e-vil." The old man finishes.

"Scott, what’s he going on about?" Wonder Man asks.

"I vaguely remember, but I think this village has been plundered repeatedly."

"And now they’re not? How? They’re savages with sticks." Ms Marvel states simply. "How could they turn away anyone with ANY Technology at all?"

"Because I gave them technology." Lang turns towards her and replies as he grasps a spear from one of the warriors and hands it to her. On the hilt of the spear is a small metal button.

"What is this?" She asks, holding the spear.

"I know what it is." YJ replies taking the spear from her. "It’s a disrupter, like Ant-Man has in his helmet, that fires through his antenna. Similar in design to the ones in my gauntlets."

"Yes, it is. I remember now I downed a few of the enemy as Ant-Man, using my powers, and the local insects, and then I duplicated my Pym particles as well as the disrupter blasts using their tech, and we’ve been holding them off ever since."

"Ingenious Scott." The Vision commends.

"It is ingenious, but I don’t think I like the idea of handing the equivalent of a nuclear bomb to a nest of people who are the technological level of chimpanzee’s." Iron Man responds

"I had no choice. They were being slaughtered."

"What are you talking about?" Cap inquires, his face set like stone.

"They take us, and we never return." The older man speaks his purple skinned brow furrowed in fear.

"I don’t like the sound of that." The Beast interjects.

"Nor do I Hank." Cap replies

"Where do they take your people? Do you know?" Ms. Marvel asks.

"To the mountain, far away." The old man replies, his voice cracking as he points in the distance. They all follow the direction his hand points in. Then the Avengers see it: A black mountain with smoke pouring out of one side of it, as if a massive engine were running there.

"Why do I feel like I suddenly dropped into the next ‘Lord of the Rings’ Sequel?" The Beast quips

"We have to check that out." Hawkeye states simply.

"Indeed we do, Hawkeye. I need a recon team for this one. Just reconnaissance, nothing more." Cap replies.

"Iron Man, Beast, Ms Marvel, Yellowjacket, Wasp, Vision. You’re with me."

"What about me?" Ant-Man asks, surprised he wasn’t included.

"What about you? You took a nasty blow to the head just now and have been amnesic for the past month. I have to make sure you’re not going to pass out on us ten minutes after we leave here, Scott."

"I’m fine, Cap."

"You can barely keep your footing, Lang. Stand down for now. You’ll be included in this when you are well enough. You’ve done plenty for these people already. Let your teammates go from here, for now. If we need you, you’ll be the first to know. But I want to make sure you’re all right first."

"I’m fine, Cap. Trust me. I’m a big boy."

"You’re also one that everyone thought was dead. I don’t want that to come to pass. Sit this one mission out. I’m not excluding you for anything but your own safety. Trust me Ant-Man." He lays his hand on Lang’s shoulder firmly, "Let the Avengers who are fresh take care of this, Scott. You’ll be called upon, I promise."

Ant-Man stares at Cap then relaxes nodding his head in silent agreement.

"What’s the plan?" Ms Marvel asks.

"You and Iron Man fly around that mountain, reconnoitering. Iron Man will do sensor sweeps and relay any information he has back here to Wonder Man. He and Ant-Man will use their technical know how to try to piece together whatever that place is from afar, even if Shell head has it figured on his fly through, a second set of minds looking over the same info won’t hurt. Vision, YJ and Wasp will infiltrate. Stay sharp you three. Don’t be seen. If you are, get out of their ASAP. Beast and I will get the layout of the grounds surrounding the mountain."

He pauses a moment and looks at those surrounding him, then continues.

"Thor, you’re in charge here. If something happens to us, and we either lose contact or don’t return, well do what you must to secure these peoples safety."

Thor says nothing, only narrowing his eyes and turning his head slightly to one side.

"Lets get a move on people. There’s a mountain out there that’s decidedly not friendly and we need to find out what goes on inside of it." Cap finishes as the team splits into two groups and begins to head out of the remains of the ramshackle hut.

The Vision begins to leave when his erstwhile wife touches his arm. "A moment please Vision."

"Yes Wanda?"

"Please my love. Be careful. We have only just found one another again. I do not want to lose you once more."

The Vision stares at her face in his usual emotionless manner, then his face softens and he touches her cheek gently. A hand that could crush stone caresses her skin, and she leans into it, lovingly.

"I will return to you Wanda Maximoff, of that you should have no doubt. We are both whole once more. Nothing will tear us apart."

He leans over to her and kisses her gently then departs.

Moments later...

Boot jets roar through the countryside as Iron Man heads to the east side of the mountain, Ms Marvel flies silently, heading to the west.

"Okay Avengers," Iron Man begins, "Entering stealth mode now."

Instantly Iron Man disappears from sight and his boot jets go silent as the secondary anti gravity propulsion system kicks in.

"I’m much slower this way, but I’m also totally masked from detection." The armored Avenger thinks as he approaches his quadrant of air space, and begins scanning surreptitiously.

Nearby, Ms Marvel looks over the mountain from her point of view just above the treetops.

Below, Captain America and the Beast run and leap through the densely packed forest at an incredible pace!

"Cap-o I never knew you could run so fast! We must be moving at almost sixty miles per hour!"

"I can maintain this pace for a short while, Beast. Then I need a rest. But for now I’m fine."

"Wow! You really are superhuman!"

"The super soldier serum in my veins makes me more then just the pinnacle of human development, Beast. People underestimate me, just like they do our great nation at times. And that’s fine with me. I’d rather surprise those people when they least expect it."

"Well we can slow down now Cap, we’re here!" The Beast exclaims as they pause.

Cap nods and slows to a stop, not even breathing hard.

The two men stand at the base of the mountain looking up. But it’s more then just a mountain. Lights play about its surface, looking like electronic veins, running up and down its face. Flashing brightly one instant then going dark the next.

"What is this thing?" Cap asks quietly, a feeling of foreboding creeping over his body.

"Whatever it is I don’t like it, Cap." The Beast whispers. "Look over there." He continues.

Cap follows the Beasts pointing finger as a huge panel slides down the face of the mountain and a squadron of men in jet-black armor wearing winged flight packs soar into the sky. "Uh oh." Cap mutters, a sense of dread pouring over him.

"What now, Cap?"

"We make our way to that access panel."

"I was afraid you were gonna say that." The Beast laments as the two men begin to ascend the face of the mountain.

Inside the mountain, the ghostly image of the Vision rises up through the floor in a section of the sprawling compound. He had traversed many miles through solid ground before finally arriving here.

"I do not like this." The android Avenger thinks to himself. "This facility hums with vast power being generated and used." The Vision then turns insubstantial yet again and walks through a wall, towards a portion of the facility his internal sensors tell him a huge amount of energy is being spent. As he phases through the wall he is shocked by what he sees! "Human beings! Being disassembled! Their bodies are being broken down into separate parts!"

The Visions stunned realization is overheard by technicians overseeing the process nearby who immediately call for aid.

Outside the mountain, Iron Man watches as a squadron of men with mechanical wings fly past him, his stealth field hiding him from detection.

"They’re heading in the general direction of the village. I have to risk being discovered and contact Thor and the others."

"Thor, we have trouble there’s a squadron of flyers headed your way, they’re men armed to the teeth. Get the team ready, you’ve got trouble coming."

Instantly Thor replies on the Avengers frequency. "Aye friend Iron Man, Have no fear fellow Warrior. The Mighty Avengers present will deal with yon distraction."

"I think it’s more then a distraction Thunder God. I’m reading more of them exiting the facility now, and headed my way. I think it’s time to leave stealth mode, they must have heard my communication with you."

"Dost thou require aid?"

"No protect the villagers, I have this."

Suddenly, fifty black armor garbed, mechanically winged warriors appear out of the mountain, their flight packs screaming through the air as they fly directly towards the golden Avenger. Goggles cover their eyes as each wears a steel helmet and brandishes a glowing energy staff. Instantly Iron Man shuts down his stealth mode and reappears in mid air before the enemy flyers.

"Time for the main event, gentlemen. My name is Iron Man. Surrender now and I won’t hurt you."

Shell heads only answer is a screaming energy blast that rattles his teeth as all fifty men attack him as one, their staffs spitting coruscating energy over the dark forest, all of it aimed at the golden Avenger!

Inside the compound, The Vision hurls a massively powerful right fist into an ebony armored gargantuan’s chest, knocking the behemoth backwards. But almost without pause, the man is back on his feet and attacking the Vision yet again.

"Incredible! This being is seemingly in Thor’s strength class. I’ll not win this day trading blows with him!"

The being lunges at The Vision who suddenly turns intangible and the brute hurtles through him and into- then through a wall, only to return an instant later, its dark armor barely showing a mark as it lunges maniacally at the Vision once more! Only now the Vision holds his ground, instantly solidifying to his full density, the creature slams into the Vision with the force of a runway freight train!

Ba-KOOOM!

But the Vision is unmoved! The monstrous creature stumbles backwards a moment, surprised by the impact as the Vision makes his hand intangible once more and phases it into the creature’s body. The monster groans painfully and drops to the ground, unconscious.

"That was interesting." A voice comments. "I see you have some rather surprising abilities. When I disassemble you I will incorporate them into my own armor." The Vision turns towards the sound of the voice. The being he sees immediately reinforces his already pervasive sense of dread.

Back at the village, Thor and the rest of the Avengers stand their ground as many specks fill the sky, and as the specks grow larger they form into the distinctive image of the flight pack winged fliers. All brandishing sparking energy staffs, and bearing down on the Avengers, who all stand before the town and its frightened citizens.

"Prepare thyselves, my companions, for this day we do battle as only Avengers can!" Thor speaks as he begins to spin mighty Mjolnir above his head in preparation for battle! The Scarlet Witch stands behind him, her hands begin to glow, as Hawkeye nocks an Arrow and aims it at the lead flier, his jaw set firmly. Ant-Man stands near Hawkeye, his familiar helmet now atop his head, and his rags replaced by his costume. Wonder Man takes to the sky, flying directly toward the group ahead of him at startling speed!

Back on the west side of the mountain Ms Marvel is surrounded by dozens of fliers, each firing a blast at her from a different angle, catching her in a deadly crossfire, covering her with energy painfully!

Inside the facility, a black armored fist slams into the Visions jaw, knocking him stumbling backwards. Then the fist is followed by an energy blast that the Vision avoids by becoming intangible. He answers the blast with ones from his eyes, searing solar heat beams that dance across the black armor powerfully!

"You are powerful indeed, dark one. But you face the Mighty Avengers today. Surrender, or face the consequences of your actions!"

"You overate yourself, mechanical man." As he speaks the armored, deep voiced beings hands suddenly leap from his wrists, each to fly through the air of their own volition and grasp the Vision by the throat, even while intangible! The Vision grabs at the hands, but they are as insubstantial as he is! An instant later he is unconscious and being held by the front of his costume by a black armored monster!

"You are powerful, android. Your dissection will be most intriguing. But you are nothing before my might, the might that shook a universe and will again! The might of Baron Karza!

Do I HAVE to say TO BE CONTINUED???