The MARVELOUS Muppets: Four Plus Two Over Five

[The Count]

That was sure a fun chapter... Good to get some exposition in at the Silver Dragon. And Rizzo practically takes up the role of Blunc, so maybe it's a good thing that little passling isn't anywhere in sight for the moment.
Heh... Cornelia thought Von Doom was cute before.
And I like how you're weaving in the stuff from Season 2 into the storyline, even a nod to last week's episode where they went to the Boardwalk.

Notes of concern over Gonzo no longer being a reporter...
Rizzo eating the restaurant's entire food supply...
The girls going off to help Gonzo get in to see Bunsen and Beaker...

A fun chapter indeed, post more when you have it ready.

 

[muppetwriter]

You can never have enough thank you's, Count. So, again, thanks for the good review for chapter two.

It's funny that you should mention Rizzo playing the role of Blunk in the story (I never anticipated on giving him that type of appearance; but now that I think about it, it's pretty cool), because neither Blunk nor Caleb will appear in this story (they're on Meridian handling...uh...stuff). Though I do have spots reserved for them in the second F4/Muppets tale, since Meridian and Thra (the alien world introduced in The Dark Crystal) are practically just alike.

Speaking of sequels, I hear that the sequel to F4 (which is being titled "The Fantastic Four and the Silver Surfer") will start filming on August 28th, two weeks from tomorrow. Seriously, if this deal with the Silver Surfer and Galactus plays through alright, then expect one marvelous crossover tale to match up with it, because I've already got a lot of ideas going through my head (some of which could be revealed within a few of the upcoming chapters in this story).

I will say this much, these additional characters will definitely be appearing in my sequel: Caleb, Blunk, Jen, Kira, Fizzgig (Kira can't be anywhere without Fizzgig), SkekSil (we know him as "The Chamberlain" in the movie), and other Skeksis and Mystics characters, as well as characters from Meridian (like Elyon, Nerissa and the rest of the Knights of Vengence, the Oracle, and others). Then again, this could change, depending on how the second movie will play out.

But, in the meantime, there's more of the first story to come.

 

[muppetwriter]

Chapter Three​

“No…Reed…Susan…Jonathan…Benjamin…BEAKER!!!!” Bunsen cried, as he slept in his hospital bedroom, dreaming about his last conscious moments during Von Doom’s failed space experiment. He had been in a coma for four days straight, and he was now beginning to come out of it. “We have to abort! WE MUST ABORT NOW!!!!!!!” Outside Bunsen’s room, Johnny had passed by his door, wearing a ski outfit and carrying a long snowboard, and he heard Bunsen’s screaming from inside. Knowing that it was huge breakthrough, considering the condition that Bunsen had been in, Johnny immediately halted his plans and went into Bunsen’s room to check up on him.

“Yo, Bunsen!” Johnny exclaimed, as he sat next to the barely conscious Bunsen on his bed and shook him a little. “Yo, dude! Wake up!” If Bunsen had eyes on his head, they would be opening that moment, as he shot up and sat upright, facing Johnny. “Hey, Dr. H, are you feelin’ okay?” Bunsen wasn’t so sure if he was; he was panting heavily and looking around the room with confusion.

“Where are we?!” He asked. “W-Where is everyone?! A-A-Are we still alive?!”

“Well, I don’t see any hot chicks with sexy wings or harps,” Johnny joked, “So I guess we’re still alive. Though I know Victor wishes he wasn’t, considering how much heat he’s getting from the press and the rest of the world.”

“I take it that the experiment wasn’t a success.” Bunsen said. “The cloud was accelerating. None of us could’ve seen that coming.”

“Tell that to Victor.” Johnny said, with a chuckle. “If there’s anyone he’s going to be blaming the failure on, it’s definitely not going to be himself. And speaking of Mr. Doom, have you seen…Oh, duh! Of course you haven’t; you’ve been asleep.”

“What?” Bunsen asked, curiously. “What is it?”

“Dude has got this really nasty scar on the right side of his face, and he’s been trying to cover it with a bandage, though it’s not really helping him out in the looks department.” Johnny said. “Seriously, the guy wasn’t exactly Fabio before the experiment.”

“He should be thankful that he wasn’t killed.” Bunsen said, just as he noticed a second bed that was sitting to his right; it was a little messed up and had laboratory clothes similar to Beaker’s sitting on it, giving him the idea that Beaker might’ve been sharing the room with him. “Where’s Beaker?”

“Beak-Man?” Johnny said, who loved referring to Beaker by that nickname. “He went out for a jog an hour ago. He should be back any minute.” Johnny smiled, thankful that Bunsen was now back to normal, as he got up from his bed and headed for the door.

“Where are you off to?” Bunsen asked.

“I’m off to join that good-lookin’ nurse who’s been checking up on us for some pleasant snowboarding out on the mountains.” Johnny replied. “You’re welcome to join us…that is, if you don’t mind breaking any bones.”

“No, thank you.” Bunsen said. “I usually depend on Beakie to handle that type of activity.” Johnny shook his head and chuckled, as the nurse that he was talking about stepped into the room, wearing a hot pink cat-suit.

“How’s our patient doing today?” She asked, and Johnny grinned.

“I’m feeling the same way you look in that outfit…fine.” He said, and the nurse giggled over Johnny’s flirting ways.

“I was talking about Dr. Honeydew.” The nurse said.

“Oh, don’t worry about him. He’s regained consciousness now, see?” Johnny indicated, and the nurse looked over at Bunsen and realized that Johnny was right, feeling relieved. “So, shall we get to those mountains?”

“I suppose so.” The nurse said, focusing on Bunsen. “But I’m going to get someone to give you a proper checkup, Dr. Honeydew. So don’t do any labor-sensitive activities until he or she gets here, okay?”

“Yes, nurse.” Bunsen acknowledged. “You two have a pleasant time and hang-ten for me.” As they left the room, Johnny and the nurse looked at Bunsen oddly, wondering if he was joking from that last comment he made. Alone in his room again, Bunsen dropped his head back on his pillow; however, he was taken by surprise when he felt as if he had just slammed his head against a rock. “What on earth?!?!” Bunsen looked down at his pillow, and it shocked him to discover how a crystal replica of his pillow had replaced the real one. “How did…?” He was confused at first, but once he figured that it might’ve been the slick Johnny Storm pulling a prank on him, he moved the crystal pillow off his bed and rested his head on the soft mattress instead.

------------------

All Beaker could do was “meep” the tune of “Feelings,” which was one of his all-time favorite songs in the world, as he jogged down a beautiful mountain trail that was not that far from the hospital. He was jogging back to the facility, hoping that Bunsen would be awake by the time he arrived. The only reason he ever jogged on that trail during the four days that he and the others had been quarantined was to give him the hope that he felt like he needed to help bring Bunsen out of his coma. Even though Bunsen put him through so much suffering with his inventions and experiments, he was still a good friend of his, and it truly broke his spirit to (for once) see Bunsen suffer through an experiment himself. Beaker never really cared about what ever happened to him, because he knew that he would always come out alive; but Bunsen was a different case, and that’s why it bugged him so much.

Beaker was a little impressed over how great of shape he was in, not stopping once for a quick breather. Though the doctors found nothing wrong with him, the exposure to the cosmic storm had done something marvelous to him. For the first time in his accident-prone life, he felt really good…too good. His pace on the trail was increasing drastically; he was moving so fast that he could barely stop himself. At the rate he was going, his feet and body were becoming extraordinarily hot, singeing his clothes right off his body. Between the dirt that he was kicking up and the smoke that his sizzling body was excreting, Beaker was lost in a huge cloud of smoke that obscured the view of his path, leaving him running blindly at a remarkable speed.

“MEEEEEEEEEEEEPPPPPPPPPPPP!!!!!!!!!!!” Beaker screamed, just as his warm body suddenly transformed into a bolt of lighting, shooting across the air towards the hospital and crashing through the facility itself. Several of the people inside jumped in surprise, as the impact of the lightning bolt that was Beaker crashed through several floors, before exiting out through the rooftop and soaring high across the sky.

Somewhere in the mountainous regions, Johnny and the attractive nurse from the facility were both skiing and snowboarding down the mountain range. Neither of them noticed how Johnny was literally smoldering or how the snow bank behind him was sizzling and starting to melt. As they had gone down the mountain, ghostly flames shot off his hair, causing his ski cap to catch on fire as it flew off. It wasn’t long before jets of fire knifed through the back of his jacket. The nurse, who was going at an even pace with Johnny, immediately took notice of the flames shooting out behind him.

“You’re on fire!!!” The nurse screamed, and Johnny signaled her a thumb up, not seeming to notice that the possible danger he was in.

“Thanks!” He remarked. “So are you!”

“No…you’re on fire!!!” The nurse screamed again, and Johnny saw how his gloves were burning; alarmed, he flicked them off. He was shuddering, as the back of his ski suit had caught on fire. Worrying so much about Johnny caused the nurse to loose her concentration and fall, while Johnny himself was trying to put out his flaming clothes. He veered to the left, failing to notice the giant chasm in front of him. Before he could’ve had the chance to stop himself, he launched off the cliff, with flames trailing his body as he fell towards the rocks below.

Suddenly, Johnny’s body was engulfed in flame; he became a human torch. For a moment, it seemed as if he was flying across the sky, maneuvering just over the rocks, almost making a ninety degree turn. Of course, his flight didn’t last very long; he landed hard in a snow bank, which shortly melted and left Johnny sitting in a small pond, with steam rising from the water. The scared and panicked nurse raced toward the steam, finding the smiling Johnny sitting naked in a “hot tub” and staring at his hands.

“Care to join me, beautiful?” Johnny asked, and just after he asked that, something (or someone) splashed into the water next to Johnny. Both him and the nurse looked at the water in bewilderment, as a cold, wet, frightened, and naked Beaker bobbled out of the water, seemingly unharmed (considering that he was nearly set on fire himself, before turning into a lightning bolt), giving Johnny and the nurse a stunned look.

-------------------------

Later in the evening, after he was given a proper checkup with positive results, Bunsen stood by his neatly made bed (that was missing a real pillow at the moment) and dressed himself up in his suit and lab coat. The last thing that he put on was his red necktie, and soon after he put it on, he heard a great deal of commotion that was coming from outside his room. He curiously headed out and met with Reed, Sue, Johnny (who had the nurse’s pink parka wrapped around his midsection), and Beaker (whose body was slightly trembling—not from the cold air outside—in a hospital bathrobe).

“Is everything alright?” Bunsen asked.

“No, Bunsen.” Sue said, with a somewhat furious tone in her voice. “Everything’s not alright. Something is happening to us, and neither of us can explain it!” Sue’s anger was increasing, and as it did, she slowly began to disappear, leaving her watch and medical wristband floating, and her clothes suspending in midair. Bunsen’s eyes widened in surprise, and Reed, Johnny, and Beaker were just as stunned as he was.

“Uh, S-Sue?” Reed stammered. “Y-You’re doing it again.” Sue looked at her invisible hands, and as she began to calm down, she reappeared again, revealing the worried expression on her face.

“What’s happening?!” She exclaimed, just as Bunsen turned to Beaker and noticed how he was trembling.

“Beaker, are you freezing?” He asked.

“Mee meep mee meep moo mee me!” Beaker responded, telling Bunsen about his incident on the mountain trail. “Mee meep meep mee moo meep mee!”

“You ran so fast that your clothes singed off of your body, and you turned completely into a bolt of lightning?!” Bunsen said, translating Beaker’s word into English. “And you’re shaking not because you’re cold, but it’s some kind of affect from the unbelievable speed?”

“Mee meep mee!” Beaker said, nodding, while Johnny looked closely at Bunsen’s clothing and spotted some parts of it that looked rather odd.

“Yo, Dr. H!” He said. “Where did ya get all of the bling?” Bunsen had no idea what Johnny was referring to, until he noticed how he was pointing towards his necktie. Looking down at it, Bunsen was surprised to have seen how his ordinary necktie had been replaced with a crystal one. Believing that it was another prank of Johnny’s, Bunsen just gave him a furious look, which Johnny wasn’t able to notice right away, considering that Bunsen didn’t have any eyes to express his emotions with. “I didn’t think scientists could pimp themselves out so well.”

“I didn’t ‘pimp’ myself out, Mr. Storm!” Bunsen said. “You’re just pulling another one of your pranks on me!”

“Say what?!?!” Johnny exclaimed.

“Bunsen, none of this is a prank.” Reed assured. “It has to be the cloud that we were all exposed to. It’s fundamentally altered our DNA.” Reed then indicated Bunsen’s crystallized necktie. “In Bunsen’s case, he must’ve been around the crystal cylinders at that time he was exposed.”

“And Beakie must’ve been near the electrical equipment at the time of his exposure, thus giving him such an electrifying ability.” Bunsen assumed, and Beaker acknowledged his assumption with a simple “meep.”

“I was hit by some sparks of flame at the time of my exposure.” Johnny added. “I guess that’s why I can do this now.” Johnny snapped his fingers, causing his fingertips to catch on fire; he didn’t seem to feel any pain whatsoever, indicating how much of a bond he had with the flame. With another snap, the fire on his fingertips went out, leaving him totally unharmed. “Now…picture that…but everywhere!” Sue just shook her head, as she revealed the cause of her own ability.

“I was near a blown gasket at the time, so I guess between the vapor stream and the cloud, I have the ability to disappear.” Sue said.

“And Ben…” Reed said, and his eyes widened, just as he and the others remembered Ben. They all ran down the hallway and headed to Ben’s room. Upon arriving at the door to his room, Reed was about to knock on it, until he heard the banging, moaning, and pleading inside. “Ben, are you there?” Inside Ben Grimm’s room, a creepy rippling movement began beneath his bed sheet, and it gradually intensified, reflecting in the fabric’s surface. The contours of Ben’s body were changing, inflating, and growing rough and craggy.

“Mr. Grimm,” Bunsen said, “Could you please open up? We must talk.” At that moment, all four legs of Ben’s bed gave way and crashed to the floor. Under the covers, he groaned in pain.

“LEAVE ME ALONE!!!!” He yelled; his voice was gravely deeper, but definitely clear to understand. Outside the room, the others were shocked over the change in Ben’s voice. Reed decided that it was useless to wait any longer, so he knelt to the floor and concentrated. Suddenly, his arm stretched; it was thin enough to creep under the doorjamb. Reed’s arm wriggled under the door, bending upward and swiping clumsily, until it finally grabbed the doorknob. His rubbery fingers found the latch and unlocked the door.

“Marvelous!!” Bunsen exclaimed, as Reed focused and pulled his arm from under the door, snapping it back into place. His flesh band bones were reformed before everyone’s very eyes.

“That’s just gross.” Johnny uttered, just as they heard a tremendous smash from inside the room.

“Good heavens!” Bunsen shouted.

“Meep!” Beaker exclaimed, just before they opened the door and entered a thrashed room, with every stick of furniture smashed to pieces.

“Don’t tell me Ben did all of this.” Johnny said, as Beaker gently rushed to a huge hole where the window used to be, looking out to see something large in the distance, running away.

“Moo meep mee meep!” Beaker said, and the others joined him as they all watched that large something escaping into the woods.

“What is that thing?” Johnny asked.

------------------------

“Thanks for driving us to the hospital, Fozzie.” Gonzo said, as he sat between Rizzo and Will near the front of the Electric Mayhem bus, with Cornelia and Irma sitting in the seat across from them, and Hay Lin and Taranee sitting in the one behind.

“Hey, it’s no problem, Gonzo.” Fozzie said, while driving the bus down the dark road that led straight to the facility; lots of tall trees were nestled to the left and right of it, giving each of the passengers the impression that a deer or some other type of wilderness creature could pop out at any moment. “I’m actually happy to have the chance to drive the E.M. bus again, before the band takes it for their tour in the darkest part of Manhattan.”

“You mean ‘The Kitchen’?” Will said. “Isn’t that where some of the worst crimes in the city happen?”

“Not only that, but I hear that’s where that Daredevil dude lives.” Irma said.

“Kermit really has to talk da band outta goin’ dere.” Rizzo uttered. “Who knows what kinda mess dey’ll get themselves into.”

“Wow, Rizzo,” said an impressed Gonzo, “I had no idea you cared so much.”

“Are ya kiddin’?” Rizzo said. “I’m just glad I’m not goin’ dere.”

“I’m with ya there, Rizzo.” Fozzie said. “I…”

“FOZZIE! LOOK OUT!!!!” Gonzo screamed, just as he noticed something large, orange, and rocky quickly popped out of the trees and dashed across the road. The group screamed, as Fozzie swerved the bus to the right, nicking the left front side of the bus against the orange moving object and putting a huge dent in that area. The object didn’t seem to affected by the impact, as it kept on moving straight into the woods. Fozzie brought the bus to an abrupt halt on the side of the road, allowing himself and the others to step out and look for what the vanished object.

“WHAT DA HECK WAS THAT?!?!” Rizzo shouted, as tears began to stream down Hay Lin’s eyes.

“Oh, I hope it wasn’t a deer.” She said, while Will, Fozzie, and Gonzo were examining the huge dent near the bus’s grill.

“I don’t think we hit a deer, guys.” Will said.

“And you can tell that by looking at a dent?” asked a sarcastic Irma.

“I can tell by looking at how deep it is.” Will replied, and she pointed directly to the dent. “See? How many forest critters could make a dent that heavy?” Taranee looked closely at the dent and saw Will’s point.

“She’s right.” Taranee said. “Whatever we hit, it was hard as a rock.”

“This is definitely one strange wilderness, if they have rocks that move by themselves.” Cornelia uttered, just as Reed, Sue, Johnny, Beaker, and Bunsen appeared and quickly took notice of their dilemma.

“Man! You guys better make sure Triple A gets a look at that.” Johnny said, eyeing the huge dent on the bus, while Gonzo was pleased to see that Beaker and Bunsen were seemingly alright.

“Wow! You guys look good for people that were exposed to dangerous cosmic rays!” Gonzo exclaimed, and he was about to hug them, until the both of them backed away cautiously, baffling Gonzo a little. “Okay…perhaps it could change you emotionally.”

“Nothing personal, Gonzo.” Bunsen remarked. “We…We haven’t exactly been examined yet, so we cannot touch you quite yet.” Reed, Sue, and Johnny were confused by what Bunsen meant by what he was telling his friends; but they soon were able to catch on that Bunsen and Beaker wanted to keep their genetic alterations a secret, until they were actually able to do more tests on themselves.

“Yes, we’re not certain what we have is contagious just yet.” Reed added. “So, until then, let’s all just be very careful.”

“Uh…okay.” Gonzo said.

“Well, now that we know they’re already, can we go back home now?” Cornelia asked, just before Reed, Sue, Johnny, Bunsen, and Beaker lifted their hands in protest.

“NO!!!” They shouted, making the others jump in surprise.

“You must take us with you.” Bunsen said.

“Hey, ya just said dat ya haven’t been tested for any cooties yet.” Rizzo said. “What makes ya t’ink we’re gonna let ya into dat bus?”

“Because we’ll give you what we’ve got if you don’t.” Johnny threatened, and Rizzo backed away, as Johnny got near him.

“Just please take us to Brooklyn.” Reed begged. “It’s important that we get there as soon as possible.”

“What’s in Brooklyn that so important?” Gonzo asked, and Reed, Sue, Johnny, Bunsen, and Beaker all looked to each other, seeming to be very worried over the condition of their missing comrade.

END OF CHAPTER THREE​

 

[ReneeLouvier]

AWESOME!! Johnny's the human torch, Bunsen has the ability for crystalization, and Beaker is a lighting bolt! THAT'S SO TOTALLY AWESOME, MW!

I love it! More please!

Edit'd: Wait, Johnny's always been the human torch...I mistook Johnny Storm for Johnny Fiama. XD Sounded so much like him too. Either way the story rocks!

 

[The Count]

Agree with Sara. This was a great explanation chapter... Stating how each member of the team got their powers because of where they were standing inside the rocketship.
And of course, it was fun and funny at the same time to see how Beaker and Johnny discovered about their individual powers.

Loved how you even had Fozzie driving the EM bus, and a reference to one of your upcoming projects with the band itself...
Just hope they're able to get back to Brooklyn in time to catch up with Ben Grimm. And of course, I'm especially interested to see/read how you bring in Alicia Masters.

Like my fellow fanfic reader/author said... More please!

 

[muppetwriter]

Thanks. There's more story to come soon.

Meanwhile, on a recent news update, regarding the F4 sequel, it's been announced that the new title for it will be "The Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer". What's SS rising from? I have no idea. I do know that the new subtitle sounds a lot like the one for that third Terminator movie, "Rise of the Machines."

I'm half and half on that new title, feeling glad and disappointed at the same time. Hopefully it's not official (though they're saying it is), and Tim Story (the director) and the 20th Century Fox Film Corp. can come up with a better title for the next movie. Personally, I don't see anything wrong with "The Fantastic Four versus The Silver Surfer," since SS is going to be the "villain."

 

[The Count]

Wha? Silver Surfer the villain? Um, bit confused.
Thought the master villain they were hyping for FF2 was going to be Annihilus.
Plus, if the Silver Surfer were to be "rising" from/against anything as the new subtitle suggests, it'd be the yoke of servitude he has to endure as the herald of Galactos, Devourer of Planets.

Hope this helps.

 

[muppetwriter]

I'm just as puzzled as you are, Count.

Seriously, I loved the first movie; but the more I read about this next one, the more I just doubt Mr. Story and the film's screenwriters. I mean, I realize that SS could be considered a villain, since he's working for a guy that devours planets; but shouldn't he be just a misguided soul and let Galactus take on the title of villain?

Whatever they've got planned, good or bad, I'll still be writing a great crossover between The Dark Crystal, W.I.T.C.H., The Muppets, and this sequel.

 

[The Count]

Yeah... My thoughts exactly. Though Silver Surfer could be seen as a villain, though only for the shortest of moments.

Why?
1 He's working for an even bigger bad bad guy, making him connected via the "henchman/flunky" role. So he could be seen/thought of as a villain.
2 He's going to go tell his big boss about Earth, how it's a veritable buffet. The FF can't let that happen so they attack him.
That makes him a "villain" only in the sense that his objective conflicts directly and puts the heroes, not to mention the world they protect, in immediate mortal peril.
However... The Silver Surfer is indeed a wandering soul, forced into servitude because of a pact he made to spare his own home world.
It'll be interesting to see what happens... There in the real movie and here in your crossover fanfic.

 

[muppetwriter]

If you ask me, the Silver Surfer reminds me so much of Ghost Rider (another Marvel character that will be seeing in theaters next year), in the sense that he's made some sort of a life-changing deal with the devil and forced to do his dirty work.

Most people, at a first glance, would say that the Ghost Rider is a villain (Why? I dunno. Maybe it's because of the flaming skull.) Though he fights evil like any regular superhero would. I just thank God that they're going in the direction to show GR off as some sort of an "anti-hero" instead of a villain, because people new to his origins will really get confused, just like they will be upon seeing SS in the F4 sequel. But I may be wrong about SS; I'm not completely sure if people will be puzzled or not, because I haven't seen what they'll do with character in the sequel yet.

Let's just pray that it all turns out okay and not a complete disaster.