Empress Hydra

Far down the multiversal corridors did Doctor Doom's call go—and clustered among the villains of his own universe, the Latverian dictator noted those of alternate timelines that had splintered from the main branch. Variants of familiar faces, whose different histories had wrought strange and vast changes in their personalities and abilities. One such familiar face stepped forward to answer his challenge.

Very familiar.

She was draped in a green dress that shimmered like the scales of some venomous serpent. None touched her as she stepped forward; it was as though an invisible aura engulfed her, and all moved aside or were moved. Doom recognized her immediately. The features were identical to those of his target.

This was an alternate Susan Storm.

"And who might you be?" Doom said, as she broke from the press to stand in front of him. The pose revealed a long expanse of leg from the slit in the dress, and the long blonde hair fell straight down her back.

Her shoulders were thrown back with an arrogance and confidence that he found strangely enthralling. Her lips curled into a curious smile, as if she knew exactly what effect she had on him.

"On my Earth," she said. "I am Empress Hydra."

She gestured at the holograms.

"You are correct that my—counterpart—is the weak link of the Fantastic Four. On my Earth, I played them against each other and defeated them from within. It was my first step on the road to conquest."

Her hand lowered, to gesture at the children, Franklin and Valeria. "Before, alas, I could secure proper heirs to my empire. I plan to use that."

Doom stared at her levelly. She was dangerous. More dangerous, perhaps, than the Susan Storm of his own world. Nor did he care for the implications of why she wished to assist him.

"What do you propose?" he said, after a long moment.

"A cosmic accident. I will appear in the Baxter Building, an outcast from a dead universe. They will not turn me away. I will soon be accepted as part of the family. And then I will drive a wedge between husband and wife, brother and sister, mother and child. By the time I am done, I will have all I wish from Reed Richards—and your enemy will be riven as only I can!"

The Latverian monarch sought flaws in the plan.

"Richards will suspect you. Your dimensional signature—he will try to trace it back," Doom said.

"Something I'm sure someone of your genius can rectify," Empress Hydra said, as she crossed her bare arms beneath her breasts.

"They will be suspicious—you will need a cover story. They may bring in telepaths. We will need to bury your true self deep."

"I am prepared to achieve my goals at any cost," the alternate Sue Storm said, with a conviction that reminded Doom of the Invisible Woman of his own Earth. "Do not underestimate me, Doom."

"Nor you, I," Doom said levelly. "But for the moment—your plan has promise. An alliance, then."

"An alliance," Susan Storm said, and thought back to what it had cost her to deal with the Doom of her own Earth.

A lazy afternoon at the Baxter Building. Sue Storm was on the roof, sunbathing in a light blue bikini, a white 4 across her left breast, sunglasses over her eyes. Down below, Reed was playing with the children. Johnny and Ben were out and about. It was the rare moment of peace, and Sue enjoyed the chance to just relax—

The **** ping of the interdimensional incursion alarm caught her attention, a moment before space seemed to fold in on itself. A dark hole was torn in the air not a dozen feet away, and Sue felt the exhale of stale, hot air from the ragged, unstable portal. A figure jumped—or fell—or was pushed—through that hole in space, to land heavily on the rooftop.

Then the rip in space closed. Collapsed in on itself. The sun shone on a roof with two figures now.

The Invisible Woman stared down at the limp figure that seemed to barely breathe. She was dressed in a dirty, stained, torn and ragged costume that had once been blue, but was now largely faded to grey and dirty black, scorched here and there. The blonde hair was longer, the face thinner...yet Sue Storm recognized the **** woman that lay before her.

It was the same face that she saw in the mirror every morning.

A moment later, Reed Richard stretched his torso out, as his legs struggled to catch up with the rest of him.

"Sue! I heard the alarm, what—"

He stopped as he saw the figure that lay helpless before her.

"I—I think it's me," Sue Storm said, as she stared from her husband down to her doppelganger.