FF #4

The Beating of Drums...

While the meeting between Mister Fantastic and some of the Fantastic Four's most deadly foes continues, Spider-Man and the Invisible Woman are preparing lunch for the other children of the Future Foundation. Spider-Man asks Sue if she's worried about their enemies being in their home, but Sue points out that her family has defeated them every time and isn't the least bit concerned. Suddenly an alarm begins to sound.

Meanwhile, in the so-called "Council of Doom", the gathered geniuses have just finished hearing what Valeria has been keeping a secret about the Interdimensional Council of Reeds. Mister Fantastic finds these developments to be disastrous. When he scolds his daughter, she explains that instead of doing the obvious -- going to her father -- she went to Doctor Doom for help instead. When they begin discussing how to defeat these other Reeds, each villain suggests getting to them through their family and children. Reed dashes this idea when he informs them that these Reeds have given up their families entirely in order to carry out their plans. He explains that these are a menace they have never faced before.

Outside of the meeting room, the Thing is standing guard when he is interrupted by Bentley Thirty-Two. He explains that he is standing at the door waiting for the inevitable fight. When Bentley suggests that something bad has already happened and they should break in, Ben figures there is something wrong with the boy. Having had enough, Ben decides that he is going to take off for a few days. Bentley is soon joined by Franklin, Artie, and Leech who ambush him with their toy guns. As Bentley fills them in on what's happening, suddenly they hear the alarm as well. In another part of the Baxter Building, Dragon Man and Alex are preparing a fish tank for the Uhari children Vii and Wu when they also hear the alarm. The alarm takes them all to Reed and Sue's room where they discover it is coming from the special conch that was given to her by the Uhari. Sue activates the device and learns about the Mala and Chordai uprising. With this impending crisis, Sue gathers Spider-Man and Alex Power to help them deal with the situation.

Back in the council meeting, the assembled geniuses try to figure out how to deal with the "perfect" Reeds. Nathaniel points out what the conclusion they're all missing: Whenever Reed is unable to answer a question he builds a machine. This prompts Valeria to tell them about Sol's Anvil and how they will need to utilize a thermal vent and have targeted the one under Old Atlantis. At that very moment, Sue, Spider-Man and Alex have arrived at Old Atlantis. They learn that while the Uhari has sealed off the city, the Mala and Chordai will exploit the fact that the Uhari are not amphibious. Soon the two armies attack the city, sending the Invisible Woman, and her allies out to defend the city. However, things get worse when the forces of the Mole Man rip through the ice and join the attackers. Sue is shocked when she sees that the man who is accompanying the Mole Man is apparently her husband.

Recurring Characters

Future Foundation (Mister Fantastic, Invisible Woman, Thing, Spider-Man, Nathaniel Richards, Doctor Doom, Franklin Richards, Valeria Richards, Dragon Man, Wu, Vil, Korr, Mik, Turg, Tong, Leech, Bently-23, Alex Power), Watcher, High Evolutionary, Diablo, Mad Thinker, Doctor Forson, Robert Jema, Wizard, Mole Man, Giganto, Reed Richards-4280