Beast took a deep breath and made his decision. He'd been using Pym particles for some time now, and he thought he knew the ins and outs of them. But if they're interacting with him to cause a third mutation -- that's a little beyond him. It would be best to bring in the world's expert on how they worked now. With Pym's experience on dimensional mass-shifting and his expertise on mutant genetics, they should have this figured out in no time.
"Betsy," he rumbled, "please call Dr. Henry Pym for me."
"Yes sir," the computer acknowledged. Hank looked down at himself, and was once again shocked by the size of his own body. He smoothed his fur a bit to make himself look more presentable, but it insisted on fluffing up. Either its consistency had changed or his own bulk was forcing it to look thicker than he wanted. He sighed.
"Betsy, see what you can do about fetching me some clothes while you're at it."
"Taking your measurements and checking the school's wardrobe. Please keep still."
Beast rolled his shoulders and stood up straight, staring at the monitor that had been lowered from the ceiling. The system was still trying to connect him to Dr. Pym. He tried to breathe deeply and relax, but every time he inhaled his chest surged alarmingly, then seemed to stick out just a little more when he exhaled. He could almost feel his arms and legs growing thicker, his back broadening, his height increasing. Or was that his imagination? The fur on the back of his neck stood up. Keep it together Hank, he told himself.
At last, Henry Pym's face appeared on the screen. His blond hair was ruffled and he was rubbing his eyes. His voice was thick when he spoke. "Mmm. Hello?"
"Good morning, Dr. Pym!" Hank boomed, a bit too loudly. Was it morning? When was the last time he had slept? "Did I catch you at a bad time?"
Pym waved a hand. "No, no, course not. You're going to pay for the next coffee shipment out here, though. What's up? Does Cap have something for us to do?"
"No, I'm afraid this is a personal call. I could use your help with something."
"Sure, what's--" Pym finally looked at his screen and his eyes widened instantly. "Jesus, Hank. What happened to you? You look like a tank!"
Beast sighed. He was fairly sure he had broken the one-ton barrier by now. "I know. And getting bigger all the time. In fact, that's what I wanted to talk to you about."
He told Dr. Pym about his experiment and what had happened so far. Pym, despite his sleep deprivation, asked him a number of questions he hadn't even considered. He had to admit, he was impressed. His mood lightened considerably. It was always good to be in the company of like minds.
"That's incredible, Hank. I've never heard anything like this before." Dr. Pym was holding a mug of coffee now, and he was considerably more alert. The bags underneath his eyes had almost disappeared. "We've been using Pym particles with mutants for quite some time, and we've never had these results."
"Ah, but we had never bonded the Particles to the X-Gene itself." Beast couldn't help keeping a note of pride out of his voice. "Frankly, I'm surprised that neither of us had thought of it before."
Dr. Pym chuckled. "Probably because we knew that something like this would happen."
"A runaway mutation? Just a hazard of the business, I suppose." Beast chuckled and rolled his shoulders. His neck was so thick and his shoulders so broad his head basically sat on top of them. He was getting better at knowing what was happening to him now. He had bulked himself to limited mobility with his musculature, so now the growth was focused on enlarging his frame so more could be packed on. He'd be gaining height over the next several hours, and then the process would repeat itself.
"The business of mad science? That's full of unintended consequences, Hank. I know that better than anyone."
"I know, my friend. Which is why I came to you with this first. You alone would appreciate why I'm so keen to get this under control as soon as possible."
Dr. Pym nodded and looked at another screen. He tapped a few commands on a side terminal before continuing. "I understand, Hank." He looked back at the screen, his expression serious. "Listen, I feel like I'd be able to help you better if you could come up to the Satellite so we could meet in person."
Beast shook his head. "Are you sure that's a good idea? Exposure to more particles might speed the rate of the mutation."
Pym winced. "You're right, that's not a good idea. Unless you want to outgrow the only thing keeping you from the vacuum of space?"
Dr. McCoy chuckled. "There are many things on my bucket list, Henry, but that's not one of them."
"Right, it looks like I'm coming to the school. It'll take me under an hour to get there, Henry, but in the meantime I think I might have a way to stabilize your mutation. Let me send the schematics to you and see what you think of them. If you like the way they look, I can help you develop the serum when I arrive."
Beast smiled. His fangs felt a lot bigger inside his mouth, which itself felt like it had changed shape. "Sounds like a plan to me. I haven't had many visitors since coming back to Westchester, it'll be great to have you. I'll put the kettle on."
Pym grinned wide. "Now you're talking. I'm on my way."
"Hank?" Beast stopped Dr. Pym from ending the call by putting up one enormous paw.
Pym blinked. "Yes?"
"I can't tell you how much I appreciate your help. It's a singular pleasure working with you."
Dr. Pym smiled. Henry knew how much he appreciated the sentiment. Giant-Man had so much to atone for, and it was the force driving him to do such great things these days. He opened Avengers Academy out west, helped Beast devise and maintain the base of the Secret Avengers, and helped any superhero at their hour of need, no questions asked. He wasn't recognized for it nearly often enough.
"Thanks, Hank." There was a silent moment of gratitude shared between them, and then Pym nodded. "I'm on my way. Don't build anything crazy without me."
The screen went blank, and Hank turned to Pym's schematics. He had hoped it would work -- chances are there would need to be a few modifications, of course, but Pym's science should be sound. If it did, he would probably be able to at least stop his growth before it got any more out of hand. Best case scenario? He could control it easily, allowing himself to outmuscle anyone on Earth -- possibly the Universe -- while remaining one of it's foremost scientific minds.
He had to admit, the thought appealed to him. But first things first. Would it work? He pored over Pym's schematics and discovered...
View Portfolio
Visit Notebook
Send Gift Points
Awards
Badges
Send Email
Community Newsfeed
General Discussion
Sponsored Items
Book of Trinkets
Static Items
Books
Groups
Interactive Stories
Audio
Campfire Creatives
Community Notes
Crossword Puzzles
Documents
Folders
Images
In & Outs
Madlibs
Photo Albums
Polls
Product Reviews
Quizzes
Survey Forms
Web Pages
Word Searches
