Crisis on Infinite Marvel Earths

Crisis on Infinite Marvel Earths Is a 24-issue American comic book limited series (identified as a "24-part maxi-series") and crossover event.

Plot
The Watchers stop watching and get involved, warning most of the Marvel multiverse of what is going on. To give them an example of hust how bad things are they show the Secret Wars Beyonder going toe-to-toe with the Anti-Monitor and loosing. As the Anti-Monitors forces begin consuming other universes, the Captain Britain Corps and the allegiance of Kang's prepare to hold down the frontline, and are decimated. The Guardians of the Galaxy, the Squadron Supreme and the Invaders, gather at the Fantastic Four headquarters as the heroes try to piece what is going on, as history changes both in the past and in the future. Visions of the Kang's transmission across time and space pleading for help are seen to the most powerful heroes and villains, and they plan to meet. The Inhumans, Mantis, Adam Warlock and the heralds of Galactus are send on a recon mission through the Negative Zone, gaining allies with Blastarr and Annihilus against the AntiMonitor. Annihilus betrays them and sides with the Anti-Monitor as the loss of most of the Inhumans, the Heralds and Blastarr, but it is a feint as Annihilus conveys the Anti-Monitor's true plans to the injured Mantis, and through her to Adam Warlock. The X-men are kidnapped with Xavier and Jean Grey as the Shi'ar assert themselves in this role of universal level conflict, claiming Earth as their own and throwing the plans of the assembled defenders to hell. Earth's defender fall into further disarray as the demi gods and gods are pulled away from Earth's defenders during their conflict with the Shi'ar. The human population is stunned until the Shi'ar surrender to Namor, lord of the oceans in a secret treaty to protect their greatest secret. Meanwhile, the Kree, Skrulls and most space races die defending Shi'ar space as the Anti-Monitor, aided by the Annihilation wave and the techo-infected Magus tear through deep space. The Shi'ar ploy works, moving the M'Kkraan crystal and the heart of the multiverse to the swamps of Florida and that Nexus of realities with the X-men as it's guardians. The ploy cost the original X-men their lives fighting the Wave and the Phalanx. Adam Warlock begins suffering from his link to Mantis and hers to Annihulus, as much as Annihilus hates serving the Anti-Monitor, the AM is granting his deepest desires. Annihilus communicates that the Anti-Monitor plans to turn the negative zone "inside out", folding it onto known space but lacks the crystal to do so. But he has found an alternative: The In-Betweener. With a series of black holes the AntiMonitor is force feeding everything there is in the Negative Zone into the In-Between via a device similar to Galactus' feeding machine. Everyone notices that they have no more reflections in the mirror, but too late. The Anti-Monitor is aware of the link between Annihilus/Mantis/Adam Warlock and sends out energy blast killing Annihlus and Mantis, and triggering the change from Warlock to the Magus, and the Magus let loose among the assembled heroes and villiains. She-Hulk, War Machine, Alpha Flight and various Avengers and a host of villains are killed in the fight, with Doom finally killing Warlock/Magus. The stolen gods of earth find themselves at a gathering at the foot of Yggdrasil, organized by Gaea of Earth, with all the mystic gods and lords assembled with their people. She feels that earth's children will not hold, but knows that her survival is critical now that the M'Kraan is residing on Earth. As a united force of Skyfather's and armada they stand a better chance as Gaea commands Odin to show them what is happening with Dorammu, using the eye of Vishanti for his missing eye. The gods realize just how bad things are as the Vishanti are shown (in the sap of Yggradsil) to be dead at the feet of the Anti-Monitor and Dorammu left alone, wounded and yet defiant. The In-Betweener is about to burst as they fight in the white of nothing. About to die, Dorammu produces a flaming sword and plunges into himself, much to the amused shock of the Anti-Monitor. But it is no ordinary sword, it is Surtur's Twilight sword. The Sword glows bright and the halls of Olympus, Asgard, the realm of Osiris and other home of the pantheon's are engulfed instantly in flame. The branches on Yggdrasil burn and fall, but the tree lives and as the eye of Odin/Vishanti projects, from the body of Dorammu bursts forth World Serpent, aflame, shooting through the Anti-Monitor and straight into the In-Betweener, killing him but bringing enough mass/positive matter to counter the Negative Zone. Odin is blinded and deafened by these events and Heimdall volunteers to become his eyes and ears. The assembled gods are enraged that their realms are gone, but that was what Gaea offered as a deal with Dorammu to slow down the Anti-Monitor: Rule all of the mystic realms, even for once second, in order to channel them as weapons against the Anti-Monitor. Olympus, Asgard and the other realms are no more. But the threat is not over, as the starfilled sky over Yggrasil turns red and the Skyfather's sense the Anti-Monitor reassembling himself. The Skyfather's confer and agree to marshal their forces, and leave for Earth and their followers to make plans for a final defense. As the gods leave, Gaea confers with Thor and Loki. To Thor her son she sends to Earth to summon Atum and to bring news of the passing to the remaining Earth's defenders, and to Loki she gives a cosmic cube, much to his shock. With foreboding words she says, "you know what to do" and they are off. Gaea is left alone with Yggdrasil, and wonders if they will survive. It looks like she was talking to the tree, but from the shadows steps out Set and the gods of death: Hela, Pluto, Anubis and Death herself leading them. Silently they stand on the dead leaves of Yggdrasil and Thanos steps out from their shadows, stating that when the gods fail they will be ready.Back at the Fantastic Four building, Reed, T'Challa, Doom and the surviving braintrust begin planning the defenses of Earth with the surviving Shi'ar forces. Thor is teleported in and reports the turn of events with the gods, and Doom and Strange confer with Juggernaut and Morgan le Fey, as magic has become unpredictable and the rules have changed, and they dare note summon mystic shields for loss of control or management over them. Mephisto springs up amongst them, saying that some magic and their rules still do hold as he offers the usual deal. Sell your soul for the power to overcome their enemy. Many of the assembled villains argue for while the heroes argue against and a near fight breaks out until Doom mentions that if Mephisto had the power to overcome the Anti-Monitor, he would have done so already. Mephisto defers and knows that Doom's soul will be a prize worth having once he dies, "if there is a hell left." Mephisto activates on of the deep space probes just as the alliance of the Eternals of Earth and Titan send a report: The Shi'ar Imperial Guard and Nova corps defenses have broken around Pluto and the Wave is sure to overtake them. The Eternals will make the final stand at Jupiter, but they won't hold against their former allies, now Phalanx fodder. With that bad news comes worse, as Victor and the other mystics sense it. Reed zooms in on the surface of the moon as it looks like it is swirling. The mass of the moon begins to rise, as the surface of the moon begins to smoothen out with the untold millions of leaderless Mindless Ones teleporting in, now under the control of the Anti-Monitor. Spiderman's spidey sense double's him over with pain. All of them looking up as one towards the Earth. Mephisto smiles and says "times up" as thousands of beams race towards the Earth. "Sold!" is a scream from within the heroes ranks and a hand grasps Mephisto's. "Done." says Mephisto without looking, and before the beams hit the Earth they are blocked at the edge of Earth space by an invisible barrier, as the Invisible Woman sells her soul. Her shields extend far and beyond, covering the planet and protecting it. The impact of all that force is too much, and she is knocked backwards. Johnny Storm catches his sister in midfall, but they hold someone that they cannot see. No one can, except the mystics. As they mystics move as one to summon shield spells, their magicks intermix and go awry becoming chaotic as it expand over the earth and absorbs the second blast, turning the sky red. But the mystic barrier keeps growing and growing and thins out into nothing, allowing some beams to get through and devastating the South American continent and Australia. Some heroes make for Quinjets as Sentinels fly over disaster areas and offer aid. "Won't work a second time" says Mephisto, and it is true. The Magicians cannot even say the magic words, let alone use the symbols. "What do you want?" Speak up a commanding voice from within their ranks, and Magneto and the Brotherhood stand as one, along with other mutants. A new Watcher, not Uatu, steps in and ads his own updates. There is a wave of fear raging through the cities of the world, from small town homes to the great capitals. The Mole Man has slaughtered all of his beasts; factions or various national armies and militias are turning their weapons on themselves; and neighbor turns on neighbor as their comrades as fear of futility and utter oblivion begin to consume them all. The assembled heroes can barely cope and people are loosing faith. This is the work of D'spayre, feeding on the Fear energy projected the Anti-Monitor. Reed is startled by the news and contacts Johnny to pull Quasar from the shielding duties and to run some tests. The telepath's of the world reach out and try to calm people down. From within Mount Wundergore the howls can be heard of the Evolutionary's ani-men. Even now he can feel the fear upon him, almost overwhelm him and Franklin cries on his father's shoulder. "It's too late." "No, it's not too late. Not if you can summon the courage." Shaking, but rising to his feet turns to the new Watcher. "Do it." The High Evolutionary crackles with energy, but it hides the Watcher flashes his eyes and a wave generates from him. On the World Ship Mojo screams as the computer screen showing the Anti-Monitor this scene goes blank. The Anti-Monitor contemplates this. Reed turns to the High Evoutionary. "Set it up... for two." Father looks at his son: "I am going to ask you to be strong and to grow up in ways I've never known you could. What ever happens, we will stand and protect the people we love as father and son." One final hug and Reed leaves Franklin in the e-Isotope chamber. As the chamber fills up with terrigen mists and begins being radiated with the e-isotope beams, Reed extends his thoughts to his son. Visions of the family good times and celebrations fill his head, and in the shield in the skies above, the light bends to reveal the face of Susan Richards looking down on her son. "Mommy!" as Franklin, as we knew him, ceases to be. Reed Richards then steps into the other chamber.The High Evolutionary explains that there is not enough of the mist that the Inhumans provided. Reed knows and from within the Fantasti-car he lowers comes from the cargo hold onto the table. Reed strips and lays inside the coffin like object. A places a comunicator to his forehead and nods to the Watcher. The new Watcher begins to seal it up as Reed lays within Adam Warlock's birthing cocoon. "Reed, I have never seen this done on a living organism. We know what Franklin may be, but what will YOU become." The new Watcher steps back and begins to bathe him in energy. "Something Fantastic." Past the Mars orbit at the asteroid belt, the Phalanx Wave pauses.There are many many more asteroids than before and they suspect a trap. The begin blasting their way through and work their way through. With a clearing made, the begin to power up to full speed. They move through the debris and a few ships get through. They pick up a small subspace signal but it is too late. From one of the small rock steps out Ant-Man and clicks a signal. On Mars, the massive Master Mold's eyes glow as he continues to churn out Sentinel after Sentinel made out of Martian materials, not Earth, covered in red soil. "By your command." The robots blast from the Martian surface and charge into space to engage the Phalanx Wave, led by the Crimson Dynamo. As the wave passes through and begins cutting into the Sentinels, Ant-Man sounds out a second signal and from within the remaining asteroid debris, the Earth Sentinels spring to life and are lead in two waves by Ultron and the sentinel of the future Nimrod. On earth more and more watchers gather at various sites. At San Francisco Goliath and the other size changers begin to raise the Dreaming Celestial up from the ground while Iron Man confers with T'challa how to get it into the battle. In China another Watcher observes the Mandarin gives a rousing speech about his past as a villain and tyrant, but in his heart he felt he could do more for his people than anyone else could o would. He admits his cruelty and his needs, but goes further than that and speaks of his will to live, to succeed and to triumph when all the heroes and powers of the world opposed him all came from his people, a quality he shares with the assembled masses today. He is FROM these people, and they have managed to survive him. Now he stands before them not as their conqueror but as their champion, of his people, united as they were by their first emperor against a common enemy. It is said that the Great Wall can be seen from space. The unified cheers of action by the assembled masses could also be heard that day. The Mandarin turns from the crowd turns to his attention to the warriors he has gathered to follow him. "Prepare to hunt down and dispose of D'spayre."The Hand bows, squads dressed in battle colors following the banners of Psylocke (Purple), Elektra (Scarlet), Wolverine (Black) and Daredevil (bright red). As one they say "Show no fear." bowing and disappearing into the shadows At the beaches of French Normandy yet another Watcher observes the scene before him. It is hard and raining and there is a massive army gathered before it. They are assembled through time and space, the various armies from the timelines where Germany won World War II. Kaptain Blitzkreig and other leaders of their various time displaced soldiers stand at the top of the ridge at the beach looking down at their assembled forces. Behind them Daimon Hellstorm and Johnny Blaze walk amongst the assembled weapons of various times light them on fire. Among the beach the Red Skull commands and speaks of Reichs come and gone and of the crisis before them. Then he speaks of their assmebled might and out of all the armies they have not shown any of the fear that has claimed the others throughout the world. Of the courage and willingness to do what they have done to rise to power. The demon lords of hells have been beaten and defeated or claimed by the enemy, so they hold no fear for them in the afterlife. They cannot be defeated by any force on Earth, but now Earth asks for something more. Something only they can provide. Only now they are called to defend their Reich, and their right to live and to have been. From the waves walks up the Elder of the Universe the Gardner, with a bowl of green clippings. The Red Skull commands them to all take a knee, and they kneel as one. He kneels before the Gardner and looks up at him. The hate burns behind his eyes, and the Gardner acknowledges him. The Red Skull lowers his head and removes the mask. The Garderner feeds him a piece of the green leaf, as sacraments of old, and the human eyes of the skull burn with fire. The face begins to melt and peel and the TRUE Red Skull light up, now engulfed in bright red flame. The agony is overwhemling and the silent scream is more terrible than any heard before. The Gardner passes along the soldiers and they also light up and burn. But they do not flinch, they do not move - they remain kneeling as Blaze and Hellstorm look on. Finally they overhear the brief prayer the Gardner speaks to the last of the burning soldiers. "Those that know fear BURN at the Man-thing's touch. Those that spread fear and hate the Man-thing shall consume them, but when hate and fear are burned out, what is left behind shall rise like the phoenix and ideals you have always wanted to be." It is done says, the Garnder. Johnny now kneels on the sand and Daimon with his pitchfork ablaze stands before behind him. Johnny erupts in flame as the Ghost Rider comes out and with his eyes the Penance Stare reaches out like lightning into the burning skulls of those assembled before him. Damon plunges his trident into the skull of his friend, his heart breaking inside. "One for the many."As the Ghost Rider falls, from burnt and purged ashes of the soldiers rise the Skull Squadron, led by the flaming Red Skull, their uniforms changed to reflect the one who gave his existence to redeem theirs. They walk silently by their fallen benefactor and Daimon who cradles him in his arms. The Skull Squadron walk to their weapons and vehicles and from their remains reassemble terrifying weapons of war, with the Red Skull atop Ghost Rider's bike. "As Roger's defended his people, so must we defend ours! RIDE!"And the gigantic Skull Squadron lifts up into the sky and tearing red flame into the skies above.At Castle von Doom several Watchers gather, as Doom and and his time platform reemerge with allies, one last time. "He almost had us, the wretch!" Screams Doom from his broken armor. Spiderman in tatters and a his arm in a sling is so shocked he can't think of anything funny to say, to relieve his terror. Nightcrawler kneels and offers a silent prayer.The last trip proved to be unfruitful, as the timelines of the alternate futures and past have been destroyed. Spiderman's spidey-sense and Nightcrawler's teleportation got them most of the way back, but only through Kronos' sacrifice did they manage to escape. Doom turns and blasts his time platform. "So he cannot follow us." Nightcrawler leads Peter from the lab and through the gathered scientifics gathered among them, among them Spiderman 2099 and Nathaniel Richards, Reed's father. Out into the halls Doom strides before he arrives to the assembled hall of Castle Doom. Awaiting him are the heroes gathered from various timelines (minus the Nazi victors) and villains, as well as Apocalypse from the his Age with his four Horsemen. But to none of these powers does Doom speak to, but to the other Dr. Doom's has gathered before him. As Victor approaches, the other Dooms begin to repair his armor and tend to his wounds. The time for pride hand hubris has come to an end. "What news?" "The timelines to and from this point have been rendered null. There is no one else to gather. We had found a timeline where Franklin Richards and Rachel Grey had a son, a power we could use against the Anti-Monitor. As he agreed, convinced by this timeline's Spiderman, his timeline became to unravel. He fought the Anti-Monitor's minions from his timeline, and died. He bought us time to escape. The cascade throughout the timelines was devastating beyond comprehension, and only through the Kronos' sacrifice were we able to seal our own timeline from the cascade. We are truly alone now.  "But we are Doom." The Doom's nod. The Doom with the brighter armor gives him a startling updates of his own. "The good: - The Red Skull and his like have left to make peace and ascends, whatever that may portend. Less filthy rabble, but their might will be missed. - Word comes from America that the Sentinels won't hold the 2nd line of defense, and that scout ships have already tried to penetrate the Captain's Shield." The Doom with the hybrid Iron Man/Doom armor follows: "The bad. The mutant Kitty Pride complains of having to focus her strength to "stay with us", and through the willing experiment with the Vision we have found something... disturbing. The walls between worlds is thinning, per the sorcerers, and the tests your Reed has asked for from Quasar reveal the truth of it."The Doom with the medieval armor finishes for him. "This universe is breaking down on the Quantum level. The cost of the knowledge cost the Vision his life, and Quasar's benefactor Eon has perished examining it."The 616 figures it out "The Anti-Monitor may or may not have the Ultimate Nullifier, but he is destroying the Microverse, and verses in between theirs and ours, all material with it. The building blocks of our reality. An excellent strategem with only one recourse. He is forcing us from our walls and drawing us to his realm to confront him on his terms." The Doom's turn as one to the assembled masses. They look at the power and might gathered before them from various timelines and realities, good and bad. It is enough to make the heavens tremble. It may not be enough. Doom 626 summons Spiderman, passing a disk with their plans to Lilandra and Roma of Doom's plan to send this massive force against the Anti-Monitor in the Microverse.  "And Richards?""What of Richards, Parker?""Any messages for him?"Iron Doom steps in: "He will get it, but he won't be able to respond. He has begun the Ascencion stage for his son and taken the step himself in Warlock's coccoon.""Such courage - he decides to wrap himself up and suck on his thumb back in the womb."The Doom's stand pause, shocked. "What? I've been in his presence during battle." Points to Spidey. "Some of his charms rub off.""We are Doom.""Yes, we are Doom." Spidey is about to leave as Doom steps forth and brings everyone up to speed. In space the returning Ant Man piggy backs home undetected on the battle damaged hull of a scout ship, the sentinels finally fallen. From Europe red burning stripes come to greet the Phalanx Scout ships. - In South East Asia, Starfox's eyes glow, as do the eyes of Ikaris, Sersi and Makkari as they power the shields in the Savage Land, and the also on the severed head of Zuras now in the hands of the Anti-Monitor. Mojo has been blasted to shreds as his screens have all gone blank, and the Anti-Monitor looks for new means of information. - In California the Dreaming Celestial stands ready, great powers attempting to life him up and onto the SHIELD helicarrier for transport.- At Mount Wundergore, the e-Isotope beams have stopped and gestation begins.- in deep space the Phalanx parts ways of their still gigantic army as the Technarch Magus plunges in to lead them.- Before the Living Tribunal, Uatu the Watcher has plead his case, and it is now Mephisto's turn.- in Florida, Loki sneaks by the Shi'ar guards as in disguise and enters the chamber of the M'Kraan crystal, it's many facted forms now gone as it stands as one giant scarlet pilar. And as Peter boards the Shi'ar piloted ship back to the America's he catches the last part as Victor von Doom (plural), in all his pride and surving incarnations, gives Doom's war speech... "... for we are the powers of other realms gathered to defend the one last bastion of hope for our existence. We shall be saviours of our existence! (The roars grow louder). The enemy will fall before this assembled might! For we are Legion, we are Power, we are  ...THE LEGION OF DOOM.An 8th Watcher stands over the skies Siberia as a SHIELD platform keeps afloat at it's highest level, the Winter Guard (Darkstar, Ursa Major, Vanguard, Red Star) and leads the host of the Russian air and space defenses to await the piercing of the Roger's Shield. as they observe the attempts of the Phalanx Wave scouts trying to pierce the various shields. The siblings would rather be at the Savage Land, lending their power to reinforce the shield. They look to the Watcher among them for guidance, and his inexperience with offering advice out does not help. He is not Uatu. Their decision will be a costly one. In the presence of the Living Tribunal, Uatu the Watcher steps back and Mephisto, still on laying on the floor, attempts to rise. The mark of the Anti-Monitor's hand glows on his face, and a pained Mephisto cannot move. He stays put and begins his testimony. The defense calls to witness the Celestial Host. With a wave of his hand, the Living Tribunal summons before his presence the entirety of the Celestials. The Celestials, when summoned, appear to be in combat with one another, and fall back to opposing factions, arms and weapons trained on each other. "Order." speaks the Tribunal and the Host stands down. Barely. "Our story begins at the end. The end of Time, the end of All Things. The passing of this world and this very existence. The dying breathes of Eternity, as he prepares to pass. The Celestials of the future, having gathered as much knowledge about this existence and the previous one of Galactus, have survived their own designated destruction, are curious about the existence to come. The Phoenix Force and Galactus come together at the end, at the Big Crunch as the universe collapses into their fiery union. In the void of nothingness left behind the Celestials from the past have gathered, (outside your judgement, Tribunal) and decided to see what laid beyond.  None of their probes or subservient minions were able to pierce the Crunch, but as the Galactus finally died, they remembered the one ship who's design did survive to pass onto another existence. The ship of Galen, he who would be Galactus. As the existence collapsed to mere star system size, the Celestials yanked Galactus's Worldship from existence and found the original designs still within it's records. It seemed the part of Galen that was still within Galactus retained some a touch of nostalgia. The great ship was moved and redesigned to it's original specifications, and powered with half of the might of every Celestial present so that it may survive it's journey. And into the Crunch it went. Through their connection with their essence to the ship, the found an existence much like ours, with rules and physics akin, but not identical. A universe in constant flux, unstable, recreated, splintered and made whole and unified, only to be destroyed and recreated again. And a lone figure, suffering figure caught in between the existence, an entity the Celestials thought as a kindred, one of their own. And they made an effort to pull him back through Galen's ship, through their time and space. So much of their energy was invested in this endeavor, that they were hooked. They would either pull the the probe back or risk being lost with their discovery. It was until Arishem himself reached into the Crunch and closed his hand upon the probe and pulled back did Galen's ship and it's contents did this event conclude, at the cost of Arishem's mighty hand. Depleted, the Celestials rested and examined one who would appear to be their peer. Dead but not dead, the Celestials examined what they had pulled back from the next existence, and from it's recent memories they found visions of imprisonment, torment and being leeched of essence and energy to fuel other's needs. Sympathy for it's plight they sent it back in time when life and energy were most abundant. In a reverse of Galactus' rebirth, the Anti-Monitor cascaded back through the variety of the multiverse backwards until it arrived to the main timeline under the care of the Stranger, where it began to regenerate. Awakened, the Anti-Monitor killed the Stranger, then challenged other powers of our cosmos, reestablishing it's primary function for being: Destruction of all positive matter life, antethema to it's existence. With it's first assault it slew Order and Chaos and usurped their power, keeping him from out of your view until things escalated to where they are now. It sought out familiar surroundings, and with the presence of the Word Ship of Galactus, he found the very vessel that brought him here. When Galactus came "home", he found a squatter who had settled in, and had violently "evicted" Galactus, and in a show of power he turned Galactus' own servants on him, changing them so that Galactus could not fight back. The Celestials of the present, aware of what their future selves had sent back, are at war with what to do over. The Anti-Monitor has not harmed them, for his own reasons, yet they struggle against one another. Do they let this being, who they thought of as another Celestial, complete it's function and create a destroy this existence so that they may escape with the Anti-Monitor back to it's own existence and learn and grow beyond the limits of THIS existence, or do they accept the inevitable and let all that they have learned and become cease to be. The existence of Galactus has always been a thorn to their understanding of how the cycle of existence, how there came to be 'one survivor'."  The Celestials nod. No words said of their culpability in this crisis. "And speaking of the Big G, witness #2 should be arrive... just about.... now." A broken and shattered Galactus pops in, falls to his knees before the sitting Living Tribunal and reaches out with one hand. "Sanctuary!"As Uatu watches in horror, the mighty and proud Galactus, lone survivor of the existence before this, the Devourer of Worlds, he who is beyond good and evil, is barely able to stay on his feet, as his form would be interpreted of being. By sheer will alone the cracked face behind the ruptured helmet retains it's shape, and Galactus has cracks on his form, his body erupting bleeding energy.  Mephisto gloats as he leans back and takes a casual lying position. Uatu moves to help before Galactus falls, but Galactus waves him away. He manages to straighten up and redefine his form, but his armor pulsates with dark splotches as if alive on it's own. Galactus asks for the meaning of the assault upon his being, the usurption of his role in the universe and the allowance of the corruption of those who serve his purpose, as he tosses the slagged body of the Silver Surfer to the Tribunal from his fist. The Living Tribunal swats the Surfer away as Mephisto cackles at the fate of his former enemy. The Surfer disappears from their presence, willled away from these proceedings. Galactus, still barely able to stand, demands to know why all of this was allowed. The Living Tribunal stands and walks to him. He places a hand on Galactus and "walks" around him, restoring the Devourer of Worlds to from his damaged form to the Galactus we know. "Up until this time in all of creation was there anything like you, mighty and proud Galactus. There were beings born at the beginning of existence, and beings born from the fabric of it's edges and from it's end. But until now Galactus was unique, the lone survivor of the previous universe. Then, as the Tribunal stands again facing Galactus, and then steps back towards his chair, behind him stands the Anti-Monitor, in full armor, stands facing Galactus, breathing menace and woe upon the Devourer.  As Mephisto cringes back, the Tribunal takes to his chair.  "Now there are two. And he does the job much better than you, Devourer."Hovering over the Hudson, a Watcher observered another front on the defense of Earth take shape. Aboard the Shield Helicarrier, now codenamed the Chariot of the Gods, Tony Stark and the members of Avengers, X-men, New Mutants and Power Pack take their places near the left hand of the Dreaming Celestial. The X-man Havok, the Chinese Radioactive Man, Avengers Jack of Spades and Photon and Energizer of the Power Pack assembled themselves near the tips of the Dreaming Celestial it's fingers.  Iceman kept cooling down the equipment, Polaris maintained the magnetic stasis fields as the Power Pack kids kept their little sister ready. Without making physical contact with the actual Celestial, they would channel it's power into them and out into the oncoming Wave. They were the purest, the most powerful. Other energy channelers were standing by at within the hanger to replace any of them, should they burn out or fall. The Radioactive Man was leading them through Tai Chi, so that they would breathe and fight as one. Back at the Baxter Building, someone else was thinking of shootig off into space. Ben pulled it out of the garage, a last minute rescue mission. From deep n the garage the might Thing pulls out the original ship of the Fantastic Four, with Johnny Storm inside, checking it's preflight. "We're doing what again, Ben?" "When the Celestial's 'Hand of Glory' would clear a path, and some buddies back in the Army have pulled the munitions we can't use (lest we poison the earth) so that we have little something special to so that you and I can pull our allies butts out of the fryer." "And why?" "They're immortals who put it all on the line for us, kid. We can do no less. For them. Besides, how am I going to get my rematch?" As Ben suits up and climbs aboard, Johnny fires up the countdown as the ceiling above the opens up to blue sky. "Sue is going know?" "We go when the shield compressed and we have to be on top of Roger's own shield before they close it up." The rocket throttles up. "Uh huh..... Ben, you know the seat belts haven't been tightened since we first used this?" "Uh huh." "And bathroom in the back wasn't fixed in time." "Uh huh." "And we need four people to pilot it back?" "And the shields may not hold." "Didn't stop us the first time, and this can't make me any prettier." The friends look at one another and Johnny places his hand over over Ben's as Grimm fires up the boosters. "For the world.""For the worlds.""For Franklin.""For Alicia.""For Sue.""For Reed. .....Four.... two....ONE!!" In the Amazon, in hidden labs, Mr. Sinister and the Jackal check the fresh supplies brought in from Atlantis and Oscorp. They tirelessly work away, nowing that the clock is against them. It will not be enough. Alicia Masters is also working away her hands moving as fast as they can with technology she never knew could help her. Still blind, she looks up and pauses for a second, feeling that pull on her heart towards the heavens. And in the Florida everglades, the Gardner passes on his staff to his new apprentice. Too soon, he thinks, to change caretakers for the wonderous ManThing, but he has learned trust that humanity will find a way. "Where do you go, Master?""I leave you in charge now, Black Tom. Take care of our Guardian, as he will be needed in the climax to come. I have to see to my brothers, tend to their needs"...he looks up with his galactic vision at the arcing rocket."..and I have a pane to catch." And in the distance, beyond the rocket and shield, through the oncoming Wave, the planet Mars is no moreAs the numbers of Watchers continue to gather around Earth and observe mere mortals perform the feats of gods in preparation of the arrival of the Phalanx Wave and it's master, in deep space the richness of the universe ends. Huge nebulae and galaxy clusters have gone silent and dark, their hum of star song and brightness of fiery life ends. In it's place as the last universe grows smaller and smaller at it's edges the only sound in the void is the mechanical screetching and grind of metal upon metal, and horrendous swirling black and red clouds of Phallanx and insect wave hybrids chirp their newborns heirs. The few hidden or scattered survivors do not last long. The powerful, the fast, the few who stayed to Watch, all get consumed. From the microscopic to the forms the size of continents they whir and burr into each other in these clouds, turning all that is into their army. Like locus of pan-galactis scale they swarm and close in on their prize, the will of their master their only programming: "Feed." On Earth political leaders and dignitaries gather round the city once known as Miami, now the Gateway, as proud Lemuria and their people, along with the Deviants, offer tributes to the wedding ceremony of the world leaders. Namor, King of Atlantis and the Oceans of the World, takes as his bride Lilandra of the Shi'ar. Deathbird is her matron and maid of honor, and as wedding gifts the Lemurians offer the Vial of the Dreaming Celestial that houses it's spirit, and the Deviants offer the prayers of Awakening. Despite the blessings of the goddess Gaea herself at the ceremony, there is a empty feeling in this ceremony, as the gods of Earth do not attend. Charles Xavier fights back the heartbreak consuming his heart as his mind is torn between what he is here to witness, and the search for D'spayre. Prayer and unity throughout the Earth have weakened D'spayre's hold, but more troubling was the numbers who have passed beyond desperation and acceptance of the End. D'spayre needed to stopped and soon. Psylocke and her band of the Hand have already fallen in the last clash with D'spayre in Genosha as that populace had turned on itself through the corruption of Viper and the Shroud, only with a last minute save by Daredevil with his mixed band of Hand and the Chaste. Fleeing east across the Indian ocean, D'spayre could do great damage to their cause amongst the great populations of India and the Asian continents. At Madripoor the Mandarin and Elektra's faction of the hand watched the wedding ceremony. The Watcher at their location filled them in on all that was not visible to on the camera's, the guests in attendance, the unification of generals under the Earth, Sea and Sky treaty (cleaning up the planet and preparing it, should there be any survivors), and of Xavier's discussion telepathic discussion with Logan about heart break, as Logan and his faction of the hand stood at the X-men's Australian camp at pre-dawn, with the mutant Gateway opening up a portal into the 'dreamtime' and Nightmare standing on the other end. Logan and his ninja's would go through and meet D'spayre in the astral plane, while Nightmare would take the exchange and step through to our world, "to guide the child." At Stonehenge, M13 and the members of Excalibur rebuilt the ceremonial structures, reinforcing the stones of eldritch power with virbanium. All over the world, along the ley lines, vibranium tuning forks were set up, similar to the design in Stonehenge. Banshee and Siryn, along with Klaw, coordinate the tuning and position of the vibranium tuning forks, with Rictor synchronizing them to the planet and showing where they must be placed. In New York, the humming of the world underneath the Shield of Roger's began and through the humming there formed a barely visible figure, like Atlas holding the world. The standing figure of the statuesque Captain America coallesced, his form connected to the Shield of Rogers as his physical body and shield disappeared before the assembled magicks keeping the Shield in place. The ethereal image of Captain America could be seen along most of the eartern seaboard, from Massachsetts on down to Virginia. Ben Grimm and Johhny Storm, now barely above the image of their friend holding up the heavens, looked down from their climbing arc as the friendly face they have fought along side turned to them and silently nodded: Mission go. And burning above them, the Skull Squadron circled the red rings of the Shield of Rogers, adding their own red blaze to it's rings. Beyond them, the stars kept fading out, one by oneIn the presence of the Tribunal, Uatu covered his face and being as best as he could, but could not turn away his eyes from the engagement before him. The whole of Galactus, the true power hidden beyond the mere humanoid avatar known to mortals, finally came out, his full power unleashed upon the Anti-Monitor. The Anti-Monitor made no move to defend himself, and even it's mighty form could not stand up the the incomprehensible power of Galactus. Shattered, broken and nearly disinegrated, the massive opponent finally fell before the feet of Galactus and Galactus finished him off with his own hands until his wrath was spent.As the Celestials stood.As the Watcher watched.And the Living Tribunal weighed in. "Compose yourself, proud Galactus. You have demonstrated again why this wretched being before you should take your place."Galactus's eyes glowed from the rebuke, but feeling the depleted anger rise once more. The Tribunal rose once more and the Celestials closed in on Galactus in an arc behind him, the body of the Anti-Monitor still at his feet. And Mephisto, lay, too. Mephisto, who should be free of his bonds but unable to rise. And from the shards of the Anti-Monitor, life sprang and he began to reassemble himself. "Did you notice, mighty Devourer, that Mistress Death is not in attendance? Nor has she been? Why is that? Because this one possess part of Death's 'charms' and has brought them from his universe to ours, much like you brought life from your universe. No need for two when only one will do.No, mighty one, you acted upon your own, let loose your protest upon a witness to these proceedings and gave way to emotion. To your ... humanity. The part of you that is still Galen. You have given in to your wrath, that I have seen and understood, to other's who dared challenge your place in the universe. But your compassion has made you weak, and distorted your purpose." "Is this your Judgement, Tribunal?" "This is our proclamation. He who once was Galen of Ta'a, your compassion has disrupted the function of this universe and corrupted your purpose. Though you union to the power that once was, and your caretaking of what it to come, you have of recent been negligent and unfit for your role. Unable to come with an alternative, we have let you carry on, until now." The Anti-Monitor was almost fully regenerated, and took menacing steps towards Galactus. It walked beyond him and picked up Mephisto, now transformed to his decadent demon-lord form and tried to scamper away like a lizard on it's belly. Grabbing Mephisto with both hands it raised him up high above him.... ... and bit off Mephisto head. His hands glowed and the wildly wriggling form of the demon lord charred black and were inhaled as smoke as the Anti-Monitor was finally complete and whole. Even Uatu is taken back by this horror as the Anti-Monitor turns to Galactus and the Tribunal. "The Anti-Monitor is a being pure of purpose, with no ties too mortality and it's failings. No emotion, no compassion, unable to be stopped, not even through utter destruction. Even then, from utter oblivion it came back and attempted to fulfill it's purpose: to cleanse the prime universe of all tangents and return the weaving of what is back to harmonic form. Only with the being lost in the warped chaotic transitions of it's universe were they, the Celestials, able to find it. And now it is here, able to fulfill the purpose you cannot." "And what does Eternity say in this, great Tribunal?" "I speak for Eternity, Galactus, as he is unable to speak for himself. In the past, Eternity has been injured by those who take Eternity's place in the scheme of things. He has been healed, but never made whole. Now, the damage done by those you have deemed fit to live have left him damaged beyond control, the fabric of his being diseased and torn asunder. The pocket universes in him a cancer as more and more are created and grow. The existence of timelines that exist and are cease to be leave gaps of the tapestry of his being. And worst of, the cross-contamination of the alternate universes within him leave Eternity in a state that can only be called schizophrenic. A state mutliverses that questions what it is and what it isn't. " And the Tribunal waves a hand and an avatar of Eternity floats before them, silent and still but with a tortured look on it's face and emptiness inside. Part of his body are gone or disfigured horribly, or with gaps of nothing inside the blackness of space. "I have allowed the Anti-Monitor to have his way, cutting away the cancer and silencing the voices tormenting my peer Eternity. The Monitor's harsh measures bringing back this still peace to him rather than the madness of before. Before, I allowed you some compassion, as you selected a Herald for companionship and efficiency to your duties." "Why have you given him such power? Such tasks are mine." said angrily. "When you took my role, mighty Galactus. When you decided for Sol's humans to live despite your various visits, when such decisions of the grand scheme are my jurisdiction. The Anti-Monitor will not have compassion. Already his servants close in on the speck where all this cancer started from, finally able to cleanse it way, likemaggots over diseased tissue. I have given him your role, Galactus, and your Heralds. Did you not question how they were able to be remade in his image, for his purpose?" "I knew it was you when I destroyed my own creations and they came back to haunt me with his marks and corruption." "They will not haunt him." "I will not take this lightly, Tribunal!" as Galactus powers up. "I will not back down!!!" "You backed down before the Nullifier. And before your own death you asked for aide from the mortals. He has been utterly destroyed several time and keeps coming back and keeps to his purpose. You are not fit for duty, Galactus." The Anti-Monitor finally speaks. "Before I finish you as you finished me, where is the nullifier, 'mighty one'?" "Beyond your corruption, you abomination." "Tell me, how does it feel to be on the part of the food chain?"I have died before, at the end of my universe, Monitor. I do not cower as I meet my end again." The Anti-Monitor nods.  "As a courtesy to my predecessor, I give you a final respite. You will not meet oblivion alone. See, I have gathered your children to watch you go, Galactus." With a wave of his hand, before each of the assembled 12 Celestials, the nine surviving Heralds appear, still twisted and corrupted in the Anti-Monitor's image. Before the Anti-Monitor can turn back to him, Galactus strikes for the last time. Already depleted when he cut down the Anti-Monitor moments ago, all that is left in Galactus is channeled into one blow to the Anti-Monitor's head. 'Eat this and remember GALACTUS!" As the blasts decapites the Anti-Monitor, the monster's hands reach out and take Galactus by the wrists and the Monitor begins to drain the Devourer, his anti-matter and anti-life energies charring the contact points with Galactus. Through the agony, Galactus speaks. "You are not the only one that feeds." is hands now on the Anti-Monitor's chest plate, they glow white and the torso of the Anti-Monitor turns to burning white slag. The two continue to drain the other, Galactus now cinder black and crackling, the Anti-Monitor fading in white hot heat into the whiteness of the nothing around them, the feedback of energy between them disrupting the very nothingness around them. Then a blast from behind cuts the battle and fates are decided. The crumbling form of Galactus falls, rising to look at the Tribunal, expecting the blast from him, but it is Uatu's own hand that dealt the blow. Uatu speaks one word. "Mercy." and blasts him one more time. As the last energies of Galactus leave him, he turns back towards the Living Tribunal and speaks his last "...til the end of time." The Celestials and Heralds power up and turn their arms towards the Watcher as he moves to the broken form. As the Anti-Monitor reassembled himself, incorporating parts of Galactus into his design, the Watcher lifts the helmet and energizes it back to it's prestine but empty state. The Celestials continue to train their weapons on him as the Watcher steps back. "Why?" Asks the Monitor, as the Tribunal already knows. "It was my fault that the humans gained the Nullifier, my judgement that made the mighty Galactus spare them, and my counsel that saved them from his hunger. I am as responsible for Galactus' judgement as Galactus himself. I will take his helm and his memories and honor him." "I have not given permission to leave this hearing, Watcher." "I am not asking, Tribunal." "Judgement had been made and found long before I showed up for these proceedings. All you needed was defendant, your witnesses and his executioner to justify it to yourself. I go to await finality with my brothers and the people I have sacrificed the mighty one for. " The Celestials begin a discharge of energy, but new Anti-Monitor stops them. As Uatu fades, he gives one last shot. "In the end, Tribunal, how will YOU be judged?" The Tribunal looks toward the Celestials, who have not lowered their weapons and to the Anti-Monitor, who collects something small from Terrax. "You will not go after him, Devourer?" "In a moment." From within the blackness of the Anti-Monitor's eyes comes a white glow and in his hands the eyes of the beheaded Zuras glow too. "When Galactus spoke his last, he wasn't questioning the change of his fate." "No, Tribunal he was not." "The fight between the Celestials is a sham, to get them before me to judge on the matter." "Yes. Although this proved to be more expedient. I will have to thank Mephisto and his scheming for that." He burps. "You mean to challenge me now, now that I have elevated and secured your place in the cosmos." "Your cosmos, not mine, and yes, it is my nature." "I will DESTROY you for your impudence." As the Heralds and Celestials move against Tribunal, the Anti-Monitor gloats. "You may destroy me, but as you have said, I come back. I am from beyond your realm and do not answer to it's rules. And as for what Galactus meant, I was there at the end of time. So where the Celestials behind me. So was Galactus (who I beleive was me) and the final heir to the Phoenix force of your universe. But you weren't, Tribunal. I wonder why?" And the Anti-Monitor smiles. On Earth, the protective shield of Earths defenders is compressed as the Fantastic Four ship begins it's run into the stars. At the Savage Land, as Darkstar and Vanguard are being added to the might of the powes generating the shield, the surviving members of the race of the Eternals scream as their eyes glow white. So sudden is their self-detonation that not one of the psychic's on Earth caught on until it was too late. Where once lay the wonder of the Savage Land, now sits a smoking ruin crackling with energy out of control.The goddess Gaea screams and falls before the royal wedding court, and the planet Earth is suddenly without its southern magnetic compass point. And in the void of shadows, Thanos of Titan, last Eternal, smilesAt the throne command deep within Castle Doom, warning lights ring off throughout the Castle. On the computer screens, the South Pole ceases to be. But Doom's planetary sensors indicate the seismic shock being felt over the edges of Australia, Peru, New Zealand and southern Africa. Not that it mattered, as the castle walls shook from tremors of it's own. Outside, in the castle courtyard, stable, hanger and turrets, Watchers had gathered and were bringing everyone up to speed, speaking with one voice. Not that they were paying attention. In the cloudy grey mountains above their Egyptian allies have had a falling out. The Sphinx of Egypt fought the Age of Apocalypse's En Sabah Nur, with Hyperion and to everyone's surprise, the Maestro attempting to hold them back and provide the voice of reason. Only The Legion of Doom did not attend the proceedings, as they knelt in silent prayer to the portrait of their mother, Cynthia. Only Medieval Doom was absent, praying at the small grave of Werner von Doom. Silently did a Watcher await for their solemn ceremony to finish, then did he begin to update them. They rose as one and turned towards the landing bay, awaiting their emissary from Muir Island. Above, the sky cracked with energy and thunder, neither powerhouse backing down. The Avenger Quinjet touched down and it's passengers disembarked. PIlot Pietro Maximoff, his twin sister Wanda and the apprentice of the Gardner Black Tom Cassidy. Bows were exchanged and then Pietro excused himself to set up the equipment that was needed, while the lords of Castle Doom led their guests to the courtyard. Medieval Doom walked from opposite side of the fountain, the towering Living Monolith of another era walking behind him, with Apocalypse's Horsemen in tow. The formerly still and blue pool boiled and foamed over and lights waved from within the pool. Quicksilver was seen as a blur assembling devices and unpacking boxes from the Quinjet around the edges of the pool. Meanwhile, a long line of hundreds of Doombots marched towards the pool and jumped in. The scientists at the edge of the pool updated Doom as to the progress through the Quantum foam of our scale and that access to the Microverse had been reached. The Doom's had modified the time platform to pierce the layers between worlds to the Microverse, and that the bubbling liquid was concentrated Pym particles. The Doombot expedition had been completely destroyed, but the fifth and sixth wave had managed to make a beachhead within the Microverse. The telemetry being brought back indicates that the Microverse is on the verge of collapse, and that the conditions of that realm would drive sentients mad. Wanda speaks, her purpose to help fix that. She nods to Black Tom Cassidy, and wooden torches are carefully brought out by cassidy from the crates and handed sparingly to the Doombots. She then gingerly lights them from the flames of a containment orb, their light and fire reasserting the area around them. The pool within the cast off of light from the now lit torch begins to calm and clear and the dark madness that is now the Microverse could be seen. As she works her hex magic as the first Doombots with the torch make their way in. Once on the other side, they land and the light brings back order and shape to the chaos of the Microverse, the previous Doombots a hill to climb down. Black Tom explains the nature of the torches to the Legion of Doom, but they have already surmissed. The wood torch are splinters taken from Yggdrasil, the World Tree. Cassidy confirms, and explains that Moira MacTaggert gathered the expended energy of her only son, the mutant Proteus and harnessed his remains and powers to reset reality and order, where her living child would only bend it to his will. The mission was clear. Find the source of the disruption and stop it while the Vibranium tuning forks still held. But no only a fraction of their force could go, since the assembled might would be needed to repel the Wave, now that the world shield had fallen. The Doom's thought for a moment, traded knowing looks, and Victor 616 gave the signal to the Monolith. "Gather them." The Monolith raised his hands and sent out energy towards the battling combatants overhead. Caught unawares, they were quickly drawn towards the Monolith as he began channeling their energies into himself. Once within arms reach, the Monolith tucks the two powerhouses and plunges into the veil between this world and the Microverse. "Alrighty lads, everyone into the pool." In New York, already things were not going well. A single scout had managed to survive landfall and began corrupting the area it landed in, the Bronx. Local authorities were doing their best to handle it along with the local street levelers, but it was a heartwrenching battle, as those who fell in combat rose against them now, infected. Overhead at the edge of space, the Human Torch and Ben Grimm wildly swung around the old shuttle, trying to stay away from the swarming scouts while the Skull Squadron trying to clear them a path. In Chicago, Colossus held his beloved Katya Pryde one last time as they were married quickly under the quick traditions, as she was fading from our reality as the Microverse fell. The ceremony completed, he grabbed at air and heartbreak as he could no longer touch his new bride, her wedding dress form now fading like a dream from our realm. In Sri Lanka, panicked beggars in the street ran from the shadows that moved in their own, as through the midday a figure of shadow with a skull for a face ran from shade to shadow on the run of l other living shadows with long blades made their pursuit, their leader a shadow that looked feral and wild and a gleam of metal that could be seen within its shadow and a SNIKT here and there. At the Martian front, the dying Ego the Living Planet looked over the remains of what was Mars and it's heart broke. All hope was lost, and the Elders still fighting or held on his surface could not save him. At his best speed he lumbered toward Earth, with the mass of the old Wave in tow. At Jupiter's edge, the technarch Magus beaconed to his new children at the edge of space. The known universe now no larger than the Milky Way Galaxy. To make matters worse, in Conneticut, Dr. James Power, father of the Power Pack, shut down his own work with anti-matter before it could full power up as his colleagues looked on and the particles of white standing still in the air in the lab. Alternative means to attack the Anti-Monitor were being made, but now as the universe collapsed and he had run through his numbers, he realized too late what was happening. He turned to the Watcher at the window and passed along his dire warning. "Tell THEM! Tell them all!! No more teleporting! No more jumps, no more folding! Holes made in space aren't CLOSING!Throughout the network of Watchers the words was spread to the defenders of Earth. Warps, jumps, space folds, all were now destroying the last vestige of reality still remaining intact.  "Great", thinks Iron Man, "add something else to the list." as he leads a squadron of his Iron Man suits on "cleaning duty" around the Chariot of the Gods helicarrier. The Phalanx Wave had at first began to swarm in on them, but upon proximity to the Celestial they fell back, unsure of what to do. The helicarrier itself, however, held no such fears. Their hope to channel the energy of the Celestial to defend themselves was not working, for the 5 people tasked to channel it could never find the right "harmonics", one or two of them shorting out the others as at most they could produce a mere light show. That's how Forge was explaining it to him. And the Wave was adapting to their attacks. In Miami / Gateway City, Gaea called a modified pool of healing, Shi'ar and Atlantean priests and physicians caring her for. The newlyweds watched over their matron and while they heard also took in the updates. Namor's forces were holding in the Carribean, as were the Shi'ar forces in the Himalayas. The surviving alien refugees were not faring as well over Mexico City, as the Wave had established a beach head there and were quickly converting the masses to a capable strike force. In her tortured breathes, Gaea called forth to have Ororo Munroe, the depowered mutant Storm, to be brought to her. In the Amazon, this world's Apocalypse watched as his Celestial ship, the one that had given him such powers, was being finally loaded. In a way, he was being given what he had always wanted, but not under the circumstances he could control. His ship was made now transformed into an ark, the last refuge of life should Earth fall. And he was it's caretaker. Such hollowness and utter sense of helplessness sickened him, when he would rather be fighting for life. He was chosen because of his millenia long struggle o fight and survive. He would be strong, he would persevere, and En Sabah Nur, 'he of the first light', would finally be worthy of his name. In the Microverse, the Legion of Doom have arrived and began to spread out. One precious square mile had been stabilized, and it was a start. But the utter dark madness of raving, distorted space beyond was growing worse, the cacophany of chaos a tornado made of madness fractured by blinding nothingness. Through acts of will on the torch wielders, the light scattered out further and further beyond, reclaiming this lost wrecked world. But as the challengers test with the broken Doombot fragments, to step beyond the light means disintegration. Doombots aligned like street lights, forcing a path towards the center of the destruction. Other doombots acted like prisms, magnifying the light out beyond their range, slowly settling reality back together. But one dark corner did not bend to the light, one corner continued to roll and dance as the assembled might, as it was the source of this chaos. Blinding flashes continued to slash at the healing reality around them. Black Tom Cassidy channels his powers through his Torch of Proteus and bathes the figure in light, and the creature reels back. It's attention is now focused on the trespassers. The armored Doom's carrying torches in one hand, step as one and draw a line, the legion behind them. One one voice, they speak, their echo carrying on with more force and resonance the screaming chaos around them. "Minion of chaos, hear the words of Doom." "Know that you threaten that which is Doom's.""Know that none may defile that which is Doom's.""Know that the word of Doom is law, and Order shall be that of Doom.""Doom has come, Doom will claim what is Doom's." As one..."Doom has come upon you." The figure of chaos solidifies and takes it's twisted dark form, a fiery sword in it's hand pointed at them. "Know then Doom, that you have come upon my triumph, my masterpiece of being, and with this sword passed on to me by my Master you and yours shall no more. This is the Twilight Sword of Surtur, the blade that brings about the end of all things, and know that your allies face the one true enemy. Here in chaos unfettered or unrestrained, you face the Adversary!" "Let there be light."Within the presence of the Living Tribunal, an angered Tribunal cast his hand out in judgement, but was overturned again. The Anti-Monitor samed to fade from existence, but kept popping back, first in his old form, then solidifying into his hyrbid form of after his succession of Galactus, and each time he came back faster and stronger. And it kept stalking the Tribunal as for the first time in existence, the Tribunal took a step back. "You cannot 'dismiss' me, Tribunal. Although I have come to this plane of existence at your summons, I came because I chose to. I am[b] not [/u]from your universe and am not bound it's "laws". Destroy me now as many times as you can, it doesn't matter. I was there at the final moment of your universe and have come back across how you define the properties of "time".  At last the Celestials strike, not letting up in their onslaught for one moment. For the first time in it's creation, the Living Tribunal is hurt. Not accustomed to experience suffering upon it's being, the Tribunal reacts more than strikes back at the silent Celestials that mean to be it's terminator. The Tribunal gather's its strength and bursts forth a shockwave that flings the Celestials in different directions to the for corners of creation. But it the Tribunal has left itself open, it's covered face bearing the impact as the Anti-Monitor has smashed the High Chair of Judgement upside it's head. The supreme symbol of laws in the universe reduced to the most primitive means of determining an argument: blunt force tool. The destruction wrought blinds all sense of awareness, save for the cold voice of the Anti Monitor. "From my ruined husk my essence cascaded from me as I flowed backwards in time. From the moment your Celestials reached and pulled me here, to the moment the Stranger plucked me from timestream, I have existed in the future of all timelines and your alternative universes, the billions of years that will all lead to the end. I have been and will be.  Each of my death transfers my energies to my future self, and I take more and more of your existence with me. As more time passes, I grow stronger, collecting more of my essence that was expelled when I arrived. At the end of time I will be at whole and omnipotent, able to traverse through your Crunch to MY existence, and rule once more. Powering me beyond even your measure. And you are not at full strength, Tribunal. Within one of your 'perspectives' you know I am right, you have erred and that punishment is that you will not BE at the end of time. You battle us as you battle yourself. Self-doubt deserves no place when we play for the highests of stakes." With a final blow of the fragments of the high chair, the Tribunal is wrecked beyond comprehension. The head removed from the dissipating carcass; the cosmic carnage no different from the most disturbed of serial killer. From the flattened and hooded face the Tribunal speaks it's last. "Who will judge when I am gone?" "Those who were your peers. Where there was one voice of judgement, now a Jury of Twelve will decide." as the Anti-Monitor sweeps it's arms at the reassembled Celestial Host. He steps back and lets the Celestials finish it.  Exitar the Exterminator speaks. "Living Tribunal, you have been found guilty of corrupting the universe to your vision and abuse of the powers created in you. You have terminated Galactus from the great scheme of things and handed power to his usurper. We the Twelve find you.... wanting." As one, their arms are raised and the thumbs go down. Exitar delivers the final blow. They turn back to the Anti-Monitor. "You twelve who have/will have plucked me from the edge, the might of the Dead Tribunal has been passed to you, so that now you may judge. You who have called me "brother" when you knew me not and plucked me from oblivion. Your purpose and mine are aligned. We will bring the disharmony of your universe together and be surpreme til it's end. And that end, we shall escape the destruction of this mutliverse and bring harmony to my dominion, righting wrongs and setting things in the beyond of mine, passing on from that multiverse to those beyond. We are beings of infinity, and we will survive lies beyond, passing beyond the rituals of creation, destruction and recreation until the cycles are ours to command. The true infinity of the omniverse. What say you?"

The Celestials pump their fists in frightening agreement. "What SAY you?" "So say we all." "So say we all."Above Colorado, a dozen of the surviving Watchers observe a genuine wonder and marveled at it's meaning. Aboard the Chariot of the Gods helicarrier, something amazing happened. The silent and dark Dreaming Celestial raised it's right hand, palm out, the universal symbol to stop, and in a voice heard all over the world it said one word. "No." Even the swarm of the Phalanx Wave paused to register the event, and the Earth defenders took advantage of moment and rallied. At last the energy channelers on the Celestial's left hand felt the harmonics in their power in a surge and they cut loose. The energy they were channeling was like nothing they could percieve of ever coping to live through, but live through it they did as the skies of the North American continent were purged of the scout force of the Wave. They had always been able to blast out and release the energy, but once escaped Havok and the other could not control where it went. The streams of energy they were expending however, did, as if was tied to their life force once it escaped them. They could feel along the beams of their own radiated energy, sparing ally from enemy with bought a thought. With the skies clear, they turned their energies to the planet below, destroying hive colonies set up Phalanx Wave that had gotten through across the globe. And in their awareness they could feel the Dreaming Celestial flow through them. At the New Mexico underground Hulkbuster bunker, the hero Rick Jones felt first what the Earth telepaths were barely aware of. "The Dreaming Celestial is awakening." Behind him, Thunderbolt Ross, chomped through his cigar. "Good, let's give him his wake up call. Sterns, fire when ready." The Leader reached out with his mind towards space the Fantastic Four shuttle, now in position over the Colorado/New Mexico border."Ready when you are, Thing." While the shuttle began to deploy a makeshift parachute behind it, the hinged turned to face earth on autopilot, Ben and Johnny looked back at their stowaway, deciding what to do or say. The Elder of the Universe, the Gardner, smiled and nodded, and sent the telepathic signal back to the Leader. "Carpathia One is go." The Leader was stunned by the response and telepathically informed Ross, then he informed Lilandra, Namor, Stark and the other world leaders of the roster addition. "Good", thought Lilandra "one who can balance the scales". "Go", spoke the Leader, passing the message to Iron Man at the Chariot and to it's living weapons. As one, the channelers reached deep within the awesome might of the Celestial and fired up and beyond, tears of rapture pouring from their faces. "There's the shooting gun, Johnny. Fire up this hot-rod." "Gamma base, GO!" From within the protection of the gamma base, particle weapons that were meant to stop the Hulk were enhanced and charged. The total of Earth's gamma powered arsenal meant to stop the Hulk was tapped and poured into charge. "Fire!" thundered General Thaddeus Ross. A green beam of gamma energy erupted from the cannons, aimed at the shuttle. The Thing and Johnny Storm saw the blast from at them face first as the shielding lowered. "The shields will hold, Ben?" "They will with me on board, mortal" assured the Gardner. In a split second the blast was upon them. The force of gamma energy battered and shook the Fantastic Four shuttle and passed behind them, catching the makeshift parachute and blowing it wide open. The parachute stretched to its limits in space, but held, the blue green symbol of the Fantastic Four glowed green as a solar sail was cast and the shuttle hurtled into space. The Gardner spoke over the turbulence inside to the Thing. "You used Richard's pajamas?" "You ....try ......finding a ...an unstable molecule solar sail for a last minute rescue." "Spidey's.... never... going to let... hear the end... of this.....Above Colorado, a dozen of the surviving Watchers observe a genuine wonder and marveled at it's meaning. Aboard the Chariot of the Gods helicarrier, something amazing happened. The silent and dark Dreaming Celestial raised it's right hand, palm out, the universal symbol to stop, and in a voice heard all over the world it said one word. "No." Even the swarm of the Phalanx Wave paused to register the event, and the Earth defenders took advantage of moment and rallied. At last the energy channelers on the Celestial's left hand felt the harmonics in their power in a surge and they cut loose. The energy they were channeling was like nothing they could percieve of ever coping to live through, but live through it they did as the skies of the North American continent were purged of the scout force of the Wave. They had always been able to blast out and release the energy, but once escaped Havok and the other could not control where it went. The streams of energy they were expending however, did, as if was tied to their life force once it escaped them. They could feel along the beams of their own radiated energy, sparing ally from enemy with bought a thought. With the skies clear, they turned their energies to the planet below, destroying hive colonies set up Phalanx Wave that had gotten through across the globe. And in their awareness they could feel the Dreaming Celestial flow through them. At the New Mexico underground Hulkbuster bunker, the hero Rick Jones felt first what the Earth telepaths were barely aware of. "The Dreaming Celestial is awakening." Behind him, Thunderbolt Ross, chomped through his cigar. "Good, let's give him his wake up call. Sterns, fire when ready." The Leader reached out with his mind towards space the Fantastic Four shuttle, now in position over the Colorado/New Mexico border."Ready when you are, Thing." While the shuttle began to deploy a makeshift parachute behind it, the hinged turned to face earth on autopilot, Ben and Johnny looked back at their stowaway, deciding what to do or say. The Elder of the Universe, the Gardner, smiled and nodded, and sent the telepathic signal back to the Leader. "Carpathia One is go." The Leader was stunned by the response and telepathically informed Ross, then he informed Lilandra, Namor, Stark and the other world leaders of the roster addition. "Good", thought Lilandra "one who can balance the scales". "Go", spoke the Leader, passing the message to Iron Man at the Chariot and to it's living weapons. As one, the channelers reached deep within the awesome might of the Celestial and fired up and beyond, tears of rapture pouring from their faces. "There's the shooting gun, Johnny. Fire up this hot-rod." "Gamma base, GO!" From within the protection of the gamma base, particle weapons that were meant to stop the Hulk were enhanced and charged. The total of Earth's gamma powered arsenal meant to stop the Hulk was tapped and poured into charge. "Fire!" thundered General Thaddeus Ross. A green beam of gamma energy erupted from the cannons, aimed at the shuttle. The Thing and Johnny Storm saw the blast from at them face first as the shielding lowered. "The shields will hold, Ben?" "They will with me on board, mortal" assured the Gardner. In a split second the blast was upon them. The force of gamma energy battered and shook the Fantastic Four shuttle and passed behind them, catching the makeshift parachute and blowing it wide open. The parachute stretched to its limits in space, but held, the blue green symbol of the Fantastic Four glowed green as a solar sail was cast and the shuttle hurtled into space. The Gardner spoke over the turbulence inside to the Thing. "You used Richard's pajamas?" "You ....try ......finding a ...an unstable molecule solar sail for a last minute rescue." "Spidey's.... never... going to let... hear the end... of this.....go the Living Planet was running deaf, dumb, near blind and dying, the Elder's unable to fulfill their oaths to protect him during the battle. They were now trapped or dead within his very surface, their failure would madden him if it could think beyond the agony of the feeding of the Phalanx Wave upon his body. The only thing it could remember as to Earth position was how close its warm sun was to the meek blue sapphire of world, and maybe in some bit of mercy the defenders would remove the parasites on him.  On his surface, the Elders experienced worse suffering, as the Collector had been torn to pieces, his energy feeding the Phalanx; the GrandMaster almost giving up as the Deviant Maelstorm strong armed him to the ground and Death Urge's impalement began to consume his mind; and within the new and vast ocean of green on Ego, the Elders Champion an Runner flowed in and out of the system, ripping apart their inside molecule by molecule, their respective powers unable to clear the imp's abilities to grab on a molecular level as they writhed deep within the ocean of the Impossible Man's body. All of this was explained to the Thing and the Human Torch by the Gardner, overheard by the pair of Watchers trailing them and passed onto through the Watchers on Earth. The Celestial fire would scour as many of the Wave off Ego as it could, but would only send them to space, not destroy them. The Gamma charge would take them as close to the continent where the Elder's were bound suffering. So long as Ego would not stray of course. And Ego was now writhing chaoticly. With all of his telepathic might, the Gardner reached out to Ego and tried to break through the great pain, as he realized the Phalanx infection had almost reached the planet's core. "Keep him steady!" From Ego's point of view there came a second point of view there was a second sun being born, with an emerald corona. Then suddenly Ego was bathed in white light, the blast scouring most of his surface, but bring relief some. He didn't feel the green gamma burst that fatally cleaned his inner core. All Ego knew was that peace was almost his at last. The white Celestial blast had cleaned much of the millions of Phalanx Wave drones, but a few hundred still lingered on it's surface. As the skies above the impact point upon settled from white to nighttime, the sky turned emerald green as the gamma burst barrage roared through the skies and struck the planet. The shuttle lurched and was turbulent with in, with Johnny trying to get the control to pull up and the Garnder added his telekinetic might to the ships attempts NOT to crash. "What, you kids never went sailing before?" The Thing rose from his chair, fell back into the cargo hold and punched a hole overhead, fumbling around until he finally caught what he was looking for and pulled HARD. The solar sail began to pull as Ben yelled "HARD TO STARBOARD!" The craft turned finally out of the gamma particles stream and out of direct impact from the planet, but wobbled hard and out of control, finally careening around the planets surface. For the most part, it was for the best, because it shed most of it's outer exterior as it skipped, contaminated to death with gamma radiation levels far beyond lethal and instantly poisoning the straggling Phalanx Wave hordes that had pursued it. Still, they were miles off course, but close enough to their targets. The fragments of their shuttle finally stopped, they were protected by telekinetic shield of Gardner. They finally landed and the Gardner let them down roughly as he fell, exhausted. The surface of Ego looked chaotic, reflecting the agonies the planet had suffered earlier. Within eyesight though, lay the ocean that was the Impossible Man's prison. "Couldn't you have done a better job parking, Ben?" said Johnny as he removed his suit. "Always a back seat driver, matchead?" said a he got up. "With your big cabooze you lug... Ben, you hand?!!!" The Gardner rose finally as Jonathan Storm approached his long-time friend. When Ben had reached out, the suit had protected him..for a while. The force of reentry had burned away the protection, exposing the Thing. Now the right hand still contained it's rocky exterior, but was blackened, it's cracks glowing gamma green. "Huh... green's not my color." Ben had never let go of the solar sail, and it had shrunk back as best it could to it's original form. He wrapped it around his hand and proceeded to move on, waiving back Johnny not to come much closer. Even the bandage had turned color, from Fantastic Four blue mixing with the gamma green to form a glowing turquiose. The Gardner spoke what they knew. "Gamma poisoning. Your previous exposure has dampened it's fatal effects, but it will spread. We do not have much time." The Gardner led and they followed, Johnny at the edge of tears unable to help his friend. But he knew Ben would not ask for help. The needs of many more outweighed his needs, and Ben would be up to the task. At the top of cliff overlooking the solid flat ocean they stopped. The Gardner pointed in one direction deep into the ocean. "Torch, the Runner lies one mile out, two miles down. The Impossible Man is trying to move him further away but the Runner knows we are here and he is fighting back. Hurry, before he gets beyond your ability to reach." As the Torch fires up he turns to Ben one more time. "Stay alive big fella. Reed will find a way." "See ya soon, Johnny." The Gardner created a sphere of concentrated air with his telekinetics and shot it out as a cannon ball into the Impossible Ocean. Johnny plunged in after it. The sick odor of charred impossible man rising behind him. "Turn and BURN!!!" Now the two were alone. In the distance, the metallic chirping of the Phalanx Wave could be heard, the were on their way and quickly. "Champion is 3 miles in the direction, and half a mile down. He is doing a better job of swimming to through the Impossible Man than the Runner, though he is paying for it as the Impossible Man is tearing him apart in the inside." "Like burning out the lungs when swimming, huh? Well, he is a champion. He never backs down." The Gardner reaches out towards the wreck of the ship and pulls back and brings forth the item in the cargo hold that they had brought with them from the Baxter building. Lodged onto the gleaming silver case was part of the wreckage, glowing green with gamma radiation. Ben takes the handle with his wrapped hand as the Phalanx Wave are now within eye sight, swarming in from all directions. "No time to clean up this hunk of junk. How do I get to Champion, fighting through that?" "I'm sorry my friend, but you get there the hard way." To Ben's shock the Elder of the Universe boots him between his cojones and Ben rises up and over the incoming swarm and beyond eyesight. Part of the swarm rises and attempts to follow him, the other closes in on him. "We are coming, my brothers. Hold on." And in the fraction of the second where Gardner once stood now lies a hole in reality, a hole which the assaulting horde of Phalanx Wave drones cannot stop falling intoIn the dark chaos below, the battle was not going as expected. In the first broadstroke the Advesary had brought down some of the fastest and mightiest, most of the Squadron Supreme fell in one swoop, as well as Magneto from the House of M, Holocaust and X-man from the Age of Apocalypse. Void of the same Age of Apocalypse had managed to slow down the Adversary's strikes as he entangled him, but he was lost when the Adversary stepped fell out of reach of the light, back into the utter madness and chaos from which it came. The Advesary was trying a new and better tactic, flowing through the mad chaos and popping up when least expected near one of the Torch bearers and cutting them down, then stepping back into the darkness. As the torch bearer fell the light went dark with him or her passing, and those around that were not able to reach the light of other torches were lost to the chaos. And the Adversary striked, mowing down back the path from which they came, the fragile reality they were striving to reinforce began to break down as the floor underneath them trembled. From all around the Adversary's maniacal laughter permeated into what little ground was left. Wanda, keeping the doorway back the the normal universe, becomes aware of the plight as some of expeditionary force run back. Pietro Maximoff takes the Torches from those who flee and plunges in. Most of those who have come have pulled back or fallen. The only ones still standing are the Maestro,the Sphinx and several Doombots and the Legion of Dooms. The Sphinx, through it's own willpower begins to channel his might into the ground below and the ground solidifies and holds its place. The Doombot lighting up the area near the Sphinx is brought down and as the Sphinx is about to be taken into the darkness, Pietro throws one of the Torches at him in rapid speed. The Torch goes beyond the Sphinx and with it's speed makes contact with the Adversary, burning him with agony. The Adversary plunges back into the darkness, but the maddening chaos has begun to call down to mere swirling chaos, silent now. Pietro runs back and forth between the hill of fallen Doombots and takes their hands, recreating the path of of light. As the Adversary attempts to come in and cut down the hands holding the torches, Quicksilver rushes in and jabs the flames of Proteus into the Adversary's face. Again the foe falls back, burning and screaming longer this time, swinging the sword of Surtur wildlly but missing him. To everyone surprise, the splinters of Yggdrasil still remain on the floor where they are dropped and Pietro relights these too in quick succession. Now the swirling madness is still and an actual sense of perspective and distance takes hold. Within the dark madness the sound of the Adversary can be heard. Here, there... everywhere. Pietro, for all his speed, cannot track him. Nor can the Sphinx with it's mystic might, as he retakes a torch. Nor can the Doombots with their technology. The Doom's do not give an indication of such failure, but they encircle themselves, one hand carrying the Torch of Proteus, the others a blast or spell ready to release upon the the first sign of attack. Only one person stood still, not having acted yet, but within his eyes and awareness of things, the Maestro...he who was once the Hulk, tracks the Adversary's movements. And he is tired of this. With a mighty roar he manhandles two Doombots and roars! The Doombots fail and the Maestro spins his mighty frame madly, savagely yelling his challenge out into the darkness as the light around him fades. The Doombots finally stop working and before the torches his the floor, the Adversary strikes. A miraculous thing happens. Where a moment earlier the titanic Maestro was about to plunge into darkness, and the Twilight Sword would plunge into him, then there was a sound of thunder and now stood the Maestro, with the flatness of the Twilight Sword caught in between his palms and held by the metal of the Doombots he had crushed. Above him, lighty singed and with shrapnel embedded painfully in it's skin was the Adversary, bent over the sword that was still trembling from the shock. Lighting this sudden turn of events as Pietro, diving at top speed to catch the Torches the Doombots had dropped and lighting them in the same instance. "What, did you think I was stupid?" smiled the Maestro. He forces himself up from his prone position on the floor and stabbed into the Adversary with the Torches. The Adversary finally relents and lets go of the sword. It runs towards the receding darkness with madenning speed, but is stopped by a burst of blue / white energy. The Sphinx has channeled his own energy into the torch and shot out a flame of Proteus and found it's mark on the Adversary. Still, the Advesary rises, part of it's eye and face and belly consumed in blue white fire. The chaos fades and now smoking ruins can be seen in every direction. The Adversary, aware of it's certain failure, changes shape and screams wildly! "DIE!!!" It begins to spin and whirl madly, like the Tazmanian devil of cartoon fame, and pounces on the mighty sphinx, despite taking another shot over energy from Sphinx. It is upon him and shreds and cuts and cleaves away, and Pietro with his speed rushes in and batters the Adversary with the pair of lit Torches, but it will not release it's prey. Finally when the Sphinx is mere pink mist and bone does it rise and set it's eyes on Quicksilver, until it shot by FIVE bursts of flame. "Step away, Peitro. Leave here for us to do what we must." speaks Doom. Pietro acknowedges and runs back towards the entrance to the Microverse, with the whirling Adversary in hot pursuit. Some shots miss or fail to hit the Adversary and it is almost upon him until a gigantic armor hand rises from the ground and blocks him. It almost closes on him and the Adversary turns and slams into a force field. Hurling itself into the air to fly and escape the Adversary sees to it's horror the glowing face of Doom filling the sky above. "Foul filth, AWAY with you!" booms the voice and the Adversary falls back to Earth, only to be hit with more blasts. The Maestro wipes his blood from the shrapnel on his hands off the sword and walks up to Medieval Doom. "The Sphinx had the right idea, but no follow through. It's Magic Wand 101. Will it, and it shall be done." Medieval Doom speaks "Do you know WHY you die, demon? Take this to your master as your last thoughts. Today you did not face mere mortals or heroes, you faced TYRANTS, people who have taken and commanded the world. We who have risen above the common and deified the powers that be to rule. We who by sheer will alone can hold back the strength of chaotic multitudes, who have conquered all that they survey and rise to more. What are you compared to the will power of billions of individual chaotic souls and their mighty champions who challenge you. Less than Nothing! For when facing the will of DOOM, there is no equal." "Good speech, Victor. I am moved." as the Maestro comes to end it. The Adversary is small, shriveled and burnt, but still within it's mad eye there is still burning defiance. "I find it ironic, thing, that you were allowed to wield this sword. Did you know where the word "sword" comes from? The meaning behind it? It means to cut, to separate what is known from what is unknown. To establish order. Now, pitiful adversary, I give you order." With a mighty slash the Twilight Sword burns bright in the Maestro's hands and cleaves the Adversary, the shriveling until it was no moreBen Grimm has never found himself to be thankful for the changes in the anatomy of his structure when he became the Thing. Sure, the super strength and endurance helped, but he's always had more heart to than actual raw power. The hands, the toes, the readjustment of his body to this state ,those were difficult to adjust to, but he's Ma Grimm's boy. Life changes, you adapt and move on. Now, though, he is grateful for the rocks he carries,because he barely felt anything as he was kicked upward beyond the reach and speed Phalanx swarm. As he reached the apex and lost acceleration, he finally stabilized himself enough to look down. Part of the swarm had come chasing up and after him, while the other larger swarm, crazy as it may sound, began to disappear into nothing at the point where the Gardner had stood a split second earlier. Then the Wave changed directions and began to focus on him. Instead of coming up to meet him they stretched and flowed over the surface of the green lake of the Impossible Man's body to intercept him. Ben stopped flailing around remembered his airforce training, the jumps. He stabilized his spin as he began to descend and held on to the case embedded in the piece of wreckage that had been flung with him. He would use it as a shield as he hit the Wave, and then hopefully punch through the Impossible Man's body towards Champion. He just wondered if the solid green would be liquid, mushy or hard metallic,the Impossible Man could change his density. The only thing Ben was sure about was that he hated the color green. Johnny was having his own problems. There is only so far down a concentrated ball of air would go before before the density would stop it all together. It broke apart over 5 seconds ago and he took one long deep breathe and continued to dive. Johnny wasn't a genius like Reed, but he wasn't stupid either. All the times he's gone after Namor for chasing after his sister have taught him a lot about diving, and the pressure was already getting to him. And what he kept burning through was turning into ash behind him, cutting off already valuable air and space. 10 more seconds in his ears popped and the pounding in his head and heart were real. Another 10 seconds in and he knew his nose and ears were bleeding. 5 more and the he could feel the green ocean nip and pull on his feet. He would not last for much longer. Already his head was dizzy and only the Fantastic Four training kept him sure of direction. And the Impossible Man was making it impossible to get through this, as eyes, ears, fanged mouths took shapes from the dark green depths before him. Johnny knew he would never sleep right again, and now before him, as his conciousness began to slip away and his fire fade, the Impossible Man swirled like a whirlpool to take his momentum and redirect him another way. The Garnder teleported onto a distant point on the opposite side of Ego, a side on the night side. He quickly stepped forward and made a hard effort to push himself away from the small hole in reality he had just made. The few phalanx wave bugs that had managed to make contact as he jumped appeared with him, and dug deep into his flesh to latch on. His robes were torn from him and the bugs flew back into the void of nothingness behind him. He pushed through, his primordial strength barely enough to keep him from being sucked into its event horizon. Finally a decent distance away, the escape became easier, but the sight before him troubled him so. In screams of agony that could be heard from miles around, above the whir and digital chirping of the phalanx wave,the Grandmaster lay on his knees, the Deviant Maelstorm standing over him with his hands glowing from his absorbption of the Elder's might. The Deviant held on to the outstretched elbows of the humanoid Elder, for the hands and wrists are gone. Behind him, Deathurge continued to spin and turn the self-generated axe into the skull of the Grandmaster, the hair of the blue head already falling off and his skin shriveling. The strain was almost too much for the Grandmaster, for he was beginning to show signs of splitting apart. Beyond this gruesome into the night sky a Watcher stood by, observing as they do, and beyond it more stars kept fading from the night sky. With a blast from his staff the Gardner knocked back Death Urge. But like an undying terminator the black spectre rose back up and pulled a fresh axe from his body, unfazed by the assault. An entity that nurtured life faced off against an entity that nurtured death. Without sound or quarter they charged one another. On Apocalypse's 616 Celestial arc the ship moved beyond Earth orbit. The cloaking technology from various worlds incorporated or stolen had been incorporated into it's systems, and it was set on silent running. Various powers had strained to contain it without destroying it's precious cargo. His first mate Deathbird had provided the diplomatic means to launch the vessel, and their argument had won over against the protests of the world, for the Shi'ar had initially sponsored the concept of the Ark. Should Earth fall, life must prevail, and a Celestial ship may survive whatever the Anti-Monitor had planned for the universe if it was hidden enough. So even the Watcher's, the only beings who could see the Ark, chose to ignore it rather than give away it's position as it moved away from Earth's orbit. As Apocalypse turned back on his homeworld, he knew his decision was sound. The planet had paid dearly for it's defense, loosing it's southern magnetic point and now slowly but surely the planet would tilting. Soon it would fall out of orbit, headed into deep space or into the sun. Suddenly, there was this feeling of sweeping cold throughout the ship. The Celestial systems did not indicate a change in the environment, but he felt it deep in his being. Deathbird, familiar with this sensation, hailed him. Deep unease filled him as he and Deathbird rushed back towards the modified cargo hold. Upon entering the vast chamber, everything looked fine. But something was amiss, he felt that down deep inside him, on the edge of awareness of his psionic powers. Something was within the chamber cold vast sterile chamber. It was upon close examination of the nearest collection of specimens that he realized what was amiss and made for a communication console. He set off the alarms within the ship. Ignoring the Ark's commands, he commanded all hands that they were under attack. He broke radio silence, the one rule all had agreed upon when this pilgrimage had begun. "Earth, come in. The is the Ark. Come in, dammit. If you can hear this, respond!!!" Then all power things went silent on this ship, except the movement of the volunteer crew. Then those went silent. In the huge chamber, a figure began to coalesce from the distortions in the lights. A titanic figure took form, bending down in the corridors, too immense even for this vast chamber. Deathbird and Apocalypse stepped slowly back out of the cargo hold as the figure of the Elder God Set continued to make his examinations, uninterrupted nor uninterested in the pair. Back at the bridge, the found the bodies of several crew and the mutant Genesis along with the Atlantean Krang, chief security officer. As Apocalypse psionically scanned the bodies, the result was shocking. They had died from fear. Deathbird tapped his arm. "We're being hailed." En Sabah Nur turned to the monitors and saw nothing. But he heard tapping... no.... felt it, echo across the ship. He lowered the bridge's cloak screens to get a clear view of the outside and there, tapping on the force fields, floating causally in space was the norse death goddess Hela herself. Behind her, like an mirage, coalesced a titanic vessel, so massive it dwarfed Celestial Ark. White as clean bone and with a fearsome head on it's mast, it looked of norse sailing design, modified with armaments and features of vessels that came after it. It was Nafalgar, the ship of the dead. A hailing signal was received on console as the ship's energies were restored to full, and Deathbird hit the receive. On the screen a sight chilled them more than anything in their experience. The lady Death was sitting silently upon a throne at what looked like the captain's chair, the greek Charon at the wheel and Thanos of Titan approached the monitor, eyes flashing that dark twinkle and a smile on his face. The sight of it terrifying Apocalypse more than anything else in his own horrific life. "Greetings Apocalypse. We come in peace." "What is the meaning of this? Why have you stopped us? Why are Sinister's horrors aboard my ship? Where is the precious cargo of this Ark?" Death raised her hand to silence him and instantly he shut up. "We shall skip the parlay for now since time is off the essence, Egyptian. Let's just say were taking your shipAt mount Wundagore, under the care of dozens of Watchers, the High Evolutionary silently watched over dials and monitors in his laboratory, and scanning the two metamorphasis occuring with his own unique abilities. At the Terrigen chamber, a single lone figure sat at the door of the chamber in which Franklin Richards resided. The chair was simple and from a time when the Evolutionary was a mere mortal man, and the person sitting in this chair also took one of the older and darker suits of he was used to be Herbert Edgar Wyndham as his own. Stacked around him, in piles high that obscured wre children's books of simple stories and tales. The entity nightmare had never known exhaustion, but when he traded part of his existence for Wolverine and his faction of the Hand, he gained mortal failing as part of the package. This was the only way he would be able to approach the child, Franklin, and guide him through what must be done. Vulnerable and with compassion. Nightmare put down the last book he had read to the boy through the door and in an earnest and heartfelt voice, he picked up another, one of his own selection. Herbert Wyndham, looked over the man who lay on the table before him, with respect and admiration. In his time, Herbert was the equivalent of Reed Richards, so far thinking and advanced beyond his years and ken. He had taken the great steps to further the cause of man's evolution, through great sacrifice, and became the being he is today. Now, the man who's intellect was the greatest for his generation lay at his table, taking the same step to ascend the plane of existence. Not out of scientific curiosity, but for love of a family and of his people. A love that even now he could feel emanate from the cocoon and into the chamber, where equally powerful forces were reforming Franklin Richards and calming the boy through his change. Where the Evolutionary had failed and had lost his core humanity, Reed Richards would succeed. Nightmare grabbed a book of poetry, and from the first words, Wyndham knew the poem well. It was famous when he mortal, and held it close to his heart. With a voice smooth and tranquil to tame raging dragons, Nightmare spoke." "Child, I have read to you these tales of children, let me read you one of my favorites, something appropriate. It was from your American William Blake.'Tyger! Tyger! burning bright, In the forests of the night, What immortal hand or eye Could frame thy fearful symmetry? ...