[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/ZfvPPwT.png[/img][/center]
[b]Baxter Building, New York[/b]

[color=#ffffff]Under the cover of darkness, Reed, Sue, Johnny and Ben were whisked across the country to their new place of residence. Maria Hill had proven true to her word and provided them with accommodation that was more familiar to them. They just hadn’t been expecting it to be this familiar. The Baxter Building they entered through the back entrance was similar enough to their own that it brought memories flooding back, but different enough to make the experience unsettling.[/color]

[color=#ffffff]Johnny Storm looked around the spacious living room wistfully. [/color][color=#ea9999]“Home sweet home.”[/color]

[color=#ffffff]Ben Grimm eyed a large brown leather couch at the centre of the room. He flung himself down onto it. As he landed there was a worrying crunch and dust scattered around the room. Grimm glanced around at the TV against the wall, the cabinets, and the tables. All of them were covered in thick dust.[/color]

[color=#f6b26b]“You’d have thought SHIELD coulda paid someone to run a feather duster through the place before we arrived,”[/color][color=#ffffff] Grimm said through his fist as he coughed noisily. [/color][color=#f6b26b]“I can barely breathe in here.”[/color]

[color=#ffffff]Sue on the arm of the chair and patted Ben on the back to soothe his coughing.[/color]

[color=#9fc5e8]“Let’s not complain too much, Ben. After all, we could still be cooped up in the Triskelion with SHIELD agents following us around twenty-four seven. At least here we have some privacy.”[/color]

[color=#ffffff]The tranquility of the Fantastic Four’s return to the Baxter Building was broken by the sound of someone clearing their throat.[/color]

[color=#b6d7a8]“About that.”[/color]

[color=#ffffff]Lent in the doorway to the Baxter Building’s living room was none other than Guy Gardner. His face was significantly less red than when they had last crossed his path. He’d changed out of his SHIELD uniform and into a pair of denim jeans a tight-fitting black t-shirt. There was a red “W” emblazoned on his chest.[/color]

[color=#ffffff]Ben lent towards Sue and rolled his eyes. [/color][color=#f6b26b]“Looks like you spoke too soon, Suzie.”[/color]

[color=#ffffff]Johnny’s eyes narrowed. He strode towards him and shoved an accusatory finger in the SHIELD agent’s chest.[/color]

[color=#ea9999]“What are you doing here, Gardner?”[/color]

[color=#b6d7a8]“What?” [/color][color=#ffffff]Guy said with a coy smile. [/color][color=#b6d7a8]“You’re trying to tell me you’re not happy to see your Uncle Guy again?”[/color]

[color=#ffffff]It might not have been their Baxter Building but Gardner’s presence their felt like an intrusion. It was traumatic enough for Johnny to be surrounded by reminders of their past – the world they had left behind – but Guy’s sudden appearance had only shaken him up even more. Ever the empath, Sue stood up from her seat and placed a reassuring hand on her brother’s back.[/color]

[color=#ffffff]She offered Guy a polite smile. [/color][color=#9fc5e8]“I don’t know if ‘happy’ is the word I’d use.”[/color]

[color=#ffffff]Johnny nodded in agreement.[/color]

[color=#ea9999]“The last time we saw you, you were storming out of Hill’s office with your panties in a bunch. It seemed pretty final to me. What’s changed?”[/color]

[color=#ffffff]Guy let out a derisory laugh at the question.[/color]

[color=#b6d7a8]“You’re kidding, right? That was nothing. A lover’s tiff between two old friends. You should see Maria and I when we get going after a couple of drinks. They're [i]really[/i] something to behold.”[/color]

[color=#ffffff]From the couch Ben studied Gardner’s body language. There was a tension in the SHIELD agent’s movements. He’d seen a confident Guy before – one so confident that he was willing to stand toe-to-toe with him. This wasn’t that. There was more going on here than Gardner was willing to let on and Grimm was tired of all the smoke and mirrors this world seemed entangled in.[/color]

[color=#f6b26b]“Lying ain’t your strong suit, Carrot Top.”[/color]

[color=#b6d7a8]“Alright,”[/color][color=#ffffff] Gardner said with a knowing smile. [/color][color=#b6d7a8]“Let’s just say that the Fürher needed someone she could trust to make sure the four of you don’t land yourself in any trouble.”[/color]

[color=#ffffff]A hearty laugh burst its way through Johnny’s lips.[/color][color=#ea9999] “And she chose [i]you[/i] for that?”[/color]

[color=#ffffff]Gardner’s joviality slipped and the big vein on his forehead bulged with outrage.[/color]

[color=#b6d7a8]“What the hell is that supposed to mean?”[/color]

[color=#ffffff]Reed, who had diligently been unpacking the few things the four of them had amassed since arriving in this world, looked over his shoulder towards the SHIELD agent. He had barely been listening to the conversation but the dribs and drabs that had filtered through to him made it simple enough to deduce how Gardner had ended up there. Reed set down a bottle of Latverian on a nearby table and concluded the inquisition in one mouthful.[/color]

[color=#3d85c6]“She didn’t have a choice. Maria wanted to remove the Pegasus from under your command and you threatened to kick up a stink about it. She also had a Fantastic Four problem on her hands and didn’t want to risk bringing anyone else in on it. So she killed two birds with one stone.”[/color]

[color=#b6d7a8]“Ding-ding-ding-ding-ding,”[/color][color=#ffffff] Guy said as he mimed The Price Is Right claxon. [/color][color=#b6d7a8]“We have a winner.”[/color]

[color=#ffffff]Ben let out an unimpressed grunt. He climbed out of the leather couch, picked up one of the boxes filled with research equipment, and pushed it into Gardner’s hands.[/color]

[color=#f6b26b]“Alright, enough flirting. I can’t say I’m exactly thrilled by the thought of having you around, but I guess it can’t hurt to have another pair of hands around.”[/color]

[color=#ffffff]The pair of them wandered off down one of the Baxter Building’s corridors, leaving Reed, Sue and Johnny stood in silence. Reed and Sue’s eyes met and they looked at one another awkwardly until the super scientist returned to unpacking their things. Johnny let out a silent groan, grabbed his sister by the arm, and took her through a doorway into an adjoining room.[/color]

[color=#ea9999]“Are we going to talk about what happened back there with Namor?” [/color][color=#ffffff]Johnny whispered. [/color][color=#ea9999]“Because this is getting ridiculo-”[/color]

[color=#ffffff]Storm stopped dead in his tracks as he noticed the name engraved into the nameplate on the desk at the centre of the room. He walked over to it and lifted it up from the desk in complete disbelief as to what he was reading.[/color]

[color=#ffffff]The office they were stood in belonged to one Dr. Franklin Storm.[/color]

[color=#ea9999]“Whoa,” [/color][color=#ffffff]Johnny muttered.[/color]

[color=#ffffff]He ran his fingers over the name almost as if it might wipe clean. It was every bit as much there as it had been before Johnny had touched it. He let out a little laugh and handed it over to his older sister to inspect.[/color]

[color=#ffffff]Sue couldn’t quite bring herself to say anything. Her hands shook as the nameplate rested in her now clammy hands. She squeezed the nameplate to steady her hands while her brother reached for a picture on Franklin Storm’s desk. He muttered a silent “wow” as he recognised four people in the picture. From left to right stood Johnny, Sue, Reed and Ben. For the most part they looked the same outside of this Reed looked skinnier than his Reed and Ben looked slightly better looking than Johnny remembered him ever being.[/color]

[color=#ffffff]It was the man stood behind Sue and Reed that Johnny didn’t quite recognise. There was something familiar about the round, affable face buried beneath the well-groomed strawberry blonde beard. It was Franklin.[/color]

[color=#ffffff]As Johnny looked up from the picture he noticed his sister was on the brink of tears. He set the picture down on the table and wrapped his arms around her without saying a word.[/color]

[color=#ffffff]Franklin was a ghost to him. The car crash that had robbed Johnny and Sue of their parents had taken place when he was barely old enough to walk. Sue was old enough to remember him – and remember having him taken from them. He should have remembered that. His thoughts had been so scattered by Darkseid – by what he’d suffered at the Marquis’ hands – he’d almost forgotten about everything they’d lost before Darkseid arrived.[/color]

[color=#ffffff]Sue regained her composure after a minute or two and insisted on studying the picture of their father with the four of them.[/color]

[color=#ffffff]The sound of Guy Gardner’s voice in the living room broke Sue’s focus. She thought about setting the picture down for a moment before realising that their in-house SHIELD agent could help shed some light on this world’s Franklin.[/color]

[color=#ffffff]Sue had thrust the picture into his hands before she opened her mouth. [/color][color=#9fc5e8]“Gardner, tell me everything you know about Franklin Storm.”[/color]

[color=#ffffff]The SHIELD agent winced at the mention of the name. For a second he considered avoiding the request altogether but the redness to Sue’s eyes elicited some sense of sympathy in him. He nodded begrudgingly as his thoughts turned to Franklin Richards.[/color]

[color=#b6d7a8]“Your pops was … [i]well[/i], he was the biggest brain the world had ever seen until Richards came along. Doctor Storm set the Baxter Building up as a school for super smart kids. He was going to solve all the world’s problems – and your boyfriend was going to help him do it until the accident put an end to all of that.”[/color]

[color=#ffffff]There was a finality to Gardner’s voice that made Johnny suspicious.[/color]

[color=#ea9999]“What happened to him?”[/color]

[color=#b6d7a8]“He committed suicide after the accident,”[/color][color=#ffffff] Gardner said solemnly. [/color][color=#b6d7a8]“Poor bastard couldn’t accept that the four of you were gone. He was convinced the whole thing was a put-up job by SHIELD or something.”[/color]

[color=#ffffff]Johnny’s heart sank in his chest. Sue’s head dropped despondently and he tried to reach his hand out to comfort her but she pulled her hand away at the last moment. Without saying a word Sue disappeared down one of the Baxter Building’s many corridors. Johnny turned to follow after her but he a hand holding him back.[/color]

[color=#ffffff]Reed gave his forearm a supportive squeeze and then followed after Sue. Whatever problems they might have been having, Reed Richards wasn’t about to stand by and watch while the woman he loved grieved alone.[/color]