Sue Storm Tracks Down Porkum

Wounded, with an unknown biological substance digesting in her stomach, Sue Storm could be forgiven if she went on the defensive. Locked the Baxter Building down, called for help. That would have been the rational course of action. Yet the Invisible Woman was not feeling very rational.

"H.E.R.B.I.E., was there a return address on those packages and letters from Porkum?" She asked.

"Affirmative, Mrs. Richards," the robot intoned.

"Good," she said. Her mouth was a grim line. Emotions bubbled beneath the blonde's calm facade. "Access the databases. S.H.I.E.L.D., the Avengers, whatever we have. I want to know everything there is about Porkum, and about that location."

"Searching," H.E.R.B.I.E. said.

Sue Storm's stomach roiled as she limped toward her closet to get into her uniform. She would have to miss her appointment with the nurse today, but this indignity could not stand. Whoever or whatever this Porkum was, she was going to confront him and put an end to this plot. H.E.R.B.I.E. floated serenely in her wake.

The Invisible Woman grunted as she slipped an elastic bandage around her wounded thigh. Beneath her full-body Fantastic Four uniform, the bulge of it was barely visible. With an invisible forcefield, she could move almost as well as normal, at least for a while—although the pain of the unhealed wound would continue to madden her until she had Porkum in custody.

"Search complete," H.E.R.B.I.E. said.

"Patch it through to the terminal in the Fantasticar," the Invisible Woman said, as she walked toward the vehicle.

There wasn't much. No one had anything on Porkum; it was as though the mutant pig-man had appeared out of thin air. No civilian I.D., no S.H.I.E.L.D. file, no criminal record or social security number. Yet the location the packages had been mailed from was clear: a former pork-processing warehouse out in Brooklyn. It had been bought up years ago by Ironclad Investments, Inc., a shell company of... Sue's eyes glazed over as she saw the financial paper trail was long and complicated, and ended with an address in Bermuda. Someone had gone to a lot of trouble to buy that place and not be identified.

As the Fantasticar exited the hangar, it faded from view. Invisible, Sue Storm and the vehicle swung over the roofs of New York City. Locked on target.

It occurred to her that Porkum might have set a trap. Briefly, Sue thought about calling in help. Yet the Avengers were busy—none of the heroes who were supposed to check in on her and keep her company had been available for days. Reed and the others were stuck traipsing through dimensions. Who was left to ask for help? Moon Knight? The Great Lakes Avengers?

No, Sue decided she'd have to tackle this on her own.

Yet she was cautious. She circled the building first. There were no signs of life, except for a stack of trash near the rear loading docks. Sue caught sight of a familiar pink wrapping paper, and frowned. Setting the vehicle to hover, Sue created an invisible firepole and slid down it, onto the roof.

She looked down...and turned a portion of the roof transparent, to stare down into the room below. Then the room below that. It was a good trick, although it depended on available light—Sue Storm couldn't see in the dark—and the Invisible Woman used it sparingly, since it left her ****. Someone with a laser pointer could seriously damage her vision.

Then she froze as she caught sight of a pink bulk below. The back of a pink head, Porkum's attention apparently fixed on a magazine in his hand, while his other played with some kind of pink rope. The invisible tunnel was too small to give details. Quickly, she ended the invisible tunnel vision, so as not to alert him. Her hands balled into fists. He was preoccupied, not expecting her. Perfect. There was an odd taste in her mouth, and a dizzy excitement that made her heart pound fiercely. Sue's palms were sweaty and she felt a kind of nervousness she hadn't felt since her wedding night. It was time to confront Porkum.