Fantastic Four (Vol. 4) #1

Unstable

One Year From Now

The Fantastic Four and their children Franklin and Valeria are being bombarded by cosmic rays.

Now

Franklin wakes up from a nightmare and calls for his mother, however, she is not in the Baxter Building and his cries only summon the "Mombots". However, these would-be caretakers are insufficient as the boy wants his mother.

2.6 Billion Years Before Now

The Fantastic Four are in the jaws of a massive dinosaur. When it bites down on Reed's arm, Sue is shocked to see it causes damage to his arm -- something that should be impossible thanks to his powers. When about to become a meal to this Dinosaur's next meal, Mister Fantastic activates a device that will send them back to the present.

The Present

The Fantastic Four appear in the kitchen while the children of the Future Foundation are in the middle of breakfast. They are greeted by Franklin who is still upset over his dream. After they all sit down to breakfast, Franklin refuses to eat and tells his parents that he doesn't want to go into space. This causes Reed to think of something and he rushes to his lab. There, within his Think Tank, Mister Fantastic examines his damaged arm. The readings show that there is something terribly wrong with him.

Later, Johnny Storm takes out pop-singing sensation Darla Deering out for dinner. Since going out into public will attract unwanted attention, the pair have supper in the Negative Zone instead. There he tells her that he has really started to like her and gives her his real phone number. Back on Earth, the Thing interrupts a fight club hosted by the Yancy Street Gang in the youth center that is named after his brother. They quickly rush the Thing and flee the scene. Ben realizes that this was all a setup, and the Yancy Street Gang has set up a camera to film Ben's humiliation and put it online. Back in Reed's lab, Mister Fantastic completes his tests and has discovered that the unstable molecules in his body are starting to decay. Seeking a cure, he determines that there is nothing in the known universes that can cure his condition. However, this doesn't mean there isn't anything in unknown universes that can help him.

That evening, Sue sees all the Future Foundation children to bed. When she goes into Franklin's room she finds him missing. Going into her room she finds Franklin there and he asks if he can stay the night with her. She allows it, and the boy falls asleep almost instantly. Reed comes into the room and tells her that he has an amazing idea. The following day, Reed has converted the Pestilence -- the ship Johnny brought from the Negative Zone -- and converted it into a space-time machine. He tells the rest of the Fantastic Four that they are going to go on a trip through time and space with the children as part of their further education. Because they plan on being gone for a year in real-time, but only gone for about four minutes from their own time. However, just in case something goes wrong, they begin to look for candidates to look after the children. With the plan underway, Sue asks her husband if this sudden trip has anything to do with his injury the day before. Reed assures her that he is fine, keeping his grim discovery a secret.

Recurring Characters

Fantastic Four (Mister Fantastic, Invisible Woman, Human Torch, Thing), Future Foundation (Franklin Richards, Valeria Richards, Alex Power, Dragon Man, Bentley-23, Onome, Wu, Vil, Mik, Korr, Tong, Turg, Leech, Artie Maddicks), Darla Deering, HERBIE, Yancy Street Gang