FAN FICTION: GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY #79 – The End…? BY ADRIAN J WATTS
What has come before…
LAST ISSUE: Vance Astro chose to stay in the 20th century to lead Britain’s band of mercenary heroes, the Super Soldiers, while Kristoff Vernard revealed that he still had allegiances to the original Doctor Doom! Meanwhile, Anthos is attacking the planets over which he rules, searching for two of the Infinity Gems – Soul and Power!
Y4 ANNUAL: Yellowjacket recovered from her injuries at the hands of Kristoff Vernard, and decided to join the Guardians completely, with brand spanking new armour to boot (same armour, but red).
BEYOND THE BEYONDER #1: Adam Warlock and the Infinity Watch were seemingly destroyed by Era on the planet Safielt.
Vance Astro (Earth, twentieth century, Y4)
As the Icarus departed from the Super Soldiers’ space station, Vance Astro let out an audible sigh. He hated remaining in the twentieth century. But he had little choice. The Venom symbiote had shown him this, during his battle with Kristoff Vernard in Latveria. If he went with the Guardians of the Galaxy, he might destroy them. And he never, ever wanted that to happen.
But he did kind of like being the leader of the Super Soldiers. So he stood there, shield of Captain America in hand, watching as the shuttle departed, and lit up in a blue streak that indicated it’s departure to another time. His face sank as he realised what it meant. He’d been with the Guardians of the Galaxy for what… ten, maybe fifteen years now? He had perfect faith that they would succeed in their future missions – he just wished he was surviving alongside them.
Surviving. The word concerned him somewhat. These past few days, he’d felt rather odd. He couldn’t quite put his finger on it. But still….
Adam Warlock (Centauri IV, 31st Century)
Gendu Merrik looked at where the silhouette of Adam Warlock had been mere moments before, and was shocked. A man, a mere man, hoped to thwart the power of the omnipotent god Anthos? Anthos had the might of a thousand thousand worlds backing him up. He even had followers on Earth, the forbidden planet, in the form of the ‘Clan Cyorse’. How could a mere man hope to thwart his god’s attempts?
Simple. Adam Warlock was no mere man. He was Him. Artificially spawned by humans in a lab on Earth, on the now destroyed Shard Island. He was the perfect human, superior even to Captain America. It was his duty, and that of Her, who would come later, to procreate, to make the entire population of Earth… perfect. But he rebelled against his masters and took to the stars. Forming the Infinity Watch, who served as guardians on a cosmic scale.
And then the Martians came. The Infinity Watch attempted to intervene, but lost half their number to the invaders and their horrible tripods. Adam Warlock had no choice but to flee. If the Martians got ahold of him, they could genetically engineer their race to be perfect. So he and all the remaining members of the Watch fled into space.
Until the Badoon attacked. Warlock learned at this point that they had been sent on their attack on Earth by Immortus, master of seventy centuries of time. The Badoon escaped the clutches of the Infinity Watch, slaying all but Him. And Adam Warlock did not care for this at all. He deemed his only recourse was to slay Immortus himself. And he did, leaving him a fleshless corpse adrift in the myriad of timelines he once watched over. It was then that Adam Warlock learned that Immortus had instigated the Martian invasion, as well. But for what? It did not matter. It had already happened. What mattered now was that Adam Warlock was gifted with the added ability of time travel.
He travelled to the future and learned of the very battle he was about to take part in. Anthos, the god to many civilisations across the cosmos, was none other than THANOS, THE MAD TITAN himself! Warlock knew he could not defeat this fearsome beast on his own, so he travelled through time to form a new Infinity Watch. The new team consisted of Him, the 20th-century bounty hunter White Raven, and the still living Drax the Destroyer. They might have the power to defeat Thanos. And soon they would know for sure.
He entered the small building the Infinity Watch had taken as a base. It had partially collapsed under Anthos’ recent onslaught, but Adam Warlock knew that Drax alone would have been able to deflect enough debris to save both he and White Raven, if the need had arisen. Which wasn’t to say that White Raven was defenseless. She could put up a fight for Drax, certainly.
He was right. He entered the building, and there they were, knocking around a couple of Centaurians who had stumbled too close.
“There you are, Warlock!” White Raven said. “I was getting impatient. My contract was merely to come and aid you in destroying Thanos. We never discussed -” she kicked away a young Centaurian “- we never discussed swatting away these vile creatures.”
“Don’t worry, Raven,” Warlock said. “I have the feeling that we’ll be fighting Thanos sooner than you – ugh!” Adam Warlock stumbled but was caught by Drax. “Quickly, to Safielt! We don’t have much time! Something – or someone – is destroying the planet! Their pain is unbearable!”
“Drax, take him to my ship. We will save this planet of Safielt, but he must know he’ll be paying me extra.” White Raven smiled.
Ultron (The moon Ba Banii Bas, 31st Century)
“This is the moon you wish me to devour?” Galactus looked incredulous. “But it is so… small.”
“Small to you, devourer. But it means worlds to Primus and me.” Ultron looked at Galactus’ new herald, Primus. She had once been the android Alkhema, his wife, her brain patterns based on that of Barbara Morse, the human called Mockingbird. Now, imbued with a fragment of the power cosmic, she was far mightier than she had ever been–an adamantium figure, with the ability to manipulate energy lattices to her desire. She could even destroy Ultron, no doubt.
“Very well. This moon shall be destroyed. But what of the people of Ba Banis? The followers of Moondragon, daughter of the Eternal Mentor?” Galactus asked.
“You of all people should know that she is long gone. But she did cause the creation of this moon, as a testament to her power. Little did she know that I, one who could have thwarted her had she remained an Avenger for any length of time, will be using it for my ends now.” Ultron nearly chuckled.
Galactus looked at the android but said nothing. Instead, he sent a command to his ship, ordering it to extend tendrils from its belly to devour the moon’s energies. This would leave it as a lifeless, manipulatable husk, free for anyone capable of manipulating adamantium to do with as they pleased.
Within mere moments, the moon was sucked bare.
“Thank you, fleshling, for preparing this moon for me,” Ultron said.
“For you? I think not.” Galactus issued another command to his ship, and another claw stretched out, devouring the adamantium itself! Galactus laughed a maniacal laughed, and Ultron watched in horror as an adamantium suit of armour began to form around Galactus’ body. “Now no-one can stop me in my efforts to survive. Not even my ex-herald, Norrin Radd, the Keeper! Mwahahaha! Run, little robot! For soon, I shall crush you as well!”
Ultron ran. As much as he hated to admit it, he needed help. And the only people he knew that could give him this help were the Avengers.
Mainframe (Castle Doom, Earth, 31st Century)
Mainframe sat watching the castle’s surveillance monitors. Outside, Guardian Force and the Galactic Guardians were repairing the damage recently done by the Beyonder and the Punishers. But Firelord and Phoenix IX had just returned to let them know that it seemed Ultron was approaching. Not even Mainframe – once the synthezoid Avenger called the Vision – possessed the might to defeat Ultron, the robot who had created him.
“Damn you, Ultron! Why could you not have been destroyed by the Martians or the Badoon?!?” Mainframe said to no-one in particular.
“Because he is mightier than even Pym suspected,” replied a voice that Mainframe had heard before. “And it seems that none but her children can stop him.”
“Who -?” Mainframe began and spun to face the source of the voice. Before him stood a man covered in grey armour, a green hood and cape surrounding him. “Doom!”
“Yes, Avenger. It is I, Victor von Doom. The true Doctor Doom, not Kristoff Vernard.” Doom removed his mask to prove his point. It showed a hideous, malformed face.
“But how can you live?” Mainframe asked. “One thousand years ago, you should have died.”
“I have died, Avenger. Many times. But thanks to Kang the Conqueror, it was not a hindrance.” Doom said. “Long ago, I discovered a secret he had long been using. One that allowed him to transfer his mind into a new body at the moment of death. But I improved upon it. I remained in this body the whole time, telepathically controlling my other selves while this body lay physically dormant in stasis. But that is beside the point. I am back, now. It seems Kristoff has proven unable to maintain things here. I shall help you defend this planet. For, is it not rightfully mine?”
Mainframe stepped aside. Victor von Doom may be a maniacal villain, but he did have Earth’s best interests at heart. “First, we need an army. And that can be produced thanks to – the Badoon Realitee-Vee! Perhaps, with the right numbers, we could send him off, without destroying him.” Doom said. “But first…” he pressed a button near where Mainframe had been standing… “Doomstadt shall rise again.”
The feet beneath the Guardians rumbled, and all the buildings in the city of Doomstadt crumbled, leaving the town a pile of rocks. But almost instantly, huge metal pylons shot from the ground, and metal sheets covered them. The buildings had been replaced by metal constructs of the same size.
“Doom! That is amazing!” Mainframe said.
“It is, robot,” Doom said. “But thus is my power. Doom is always prepared.” Doom’s fingers danced along keyboards, bringing up images of the Realitee-Vee.
“Doom, you mentioned “her” children. Were you referring to Kismet?” Mainframe asked.
“No, you hideous, maligned fool. I was referring to your bride. The Scarlet Witch. Wanda Maximoff.” Doom explained.
“My former wife? What does she have to do with this?” Mainframe asked.
“You truly do not know? Then you are a greater fool than I expected.” Doom pressed more buttons, and suddenly, every TV in the world was showing his image. He spoke to the people. “I am your greatest monarch, Emperor Victor von Doom, master of all I survey. You will fight for me. Die if need be. But you will destroy Ultron. Do you understand?”
Every single person watching TV on the whole planet said, in unison “We understand, and we obey.”
Nikki (A place between times)
To Nicholette, the last survivor of the human colony on Mercury, the Icarus was a ship of dreams. It passed through time as though it was a thin veil. And the sheer beauty of its interior made her forget her hatred towards the one who designed it – Kristoff Vernard,
She sat in the co-pilot’s seat, helping Charlie-27 – “Chunks”, she called him – to guide the ship back toward their destination in the thirty-first century. With a loud POP! The ship appeared in the thirty-first century although it was nowhere near their destination.
“This planet we’re orbiting… do you know what it is, Martinex?” Charlie asked the team’s resident scientist.
“No,” Martinex replied. “Familiar, but I’m still disoriented from the time jump.”
Yondu moved toward a viewport, where his eyes opened wide in shock. “This planet! It is my home! Centauri IV!” he shouted. “Please, let’s visit my people before we return to Earth.” Charlie complied, setting the ship down in a field, where hundreds of Centaurians milled around. The Guardians of the Galaxy disembarked, but as their blue-skinned friend took a step away from the ship, a rock bashed him in the side of the head.
“Hey!” Martinex said, hurling an ice blast at the attacker. “That’s my friend you’re hurting!”
“Yondu the disgraced is your friend, Pluvian?” a Centaurian asked. “Then you shall perish with him!”
The Centaurians charged at Martinex, who made a few useless attempts to defend himself. The attack was only stopped when Charlie blocked the Centaurians passage, and Yellojacket hovered around, bioelectric stings frying anyone who got too close.
“Explain yourselves, now!” Charlie ordered, and Nikki finally noticed a sadness in his eyes. Ever since Vance had announced he was staying in the twentieth century, Charlie had been a little edgy and upset. Charlie and Vance had never been friends, but still…
“Yondu the disgraced has incurred the wrath of our mighty god, Anthos!” a Centaurian explained. “Only he would have the gall to steal one of the master’s mighty gems!”
“What?” Yondu asked. “I have been in another time, with the Guardians, for several weeks now. How could I -?”
“We care not how you did it,” a Centaurian interrupted. “we just want Anthos’ gems back!”
“Anthos?” Kristoff asked aloud. “Anthos? That name… it’s…. Thanos! That’s it! Hey, everyone! The gems! I’ve got them!”
“Glad to hear, live one,” came a voice from above the group. “I, Death, am here to reclaim my master’s possessions. Hand it to me now.”
“No!” Kristoff said. “I stole them for a reason. I didn’t want Thanos to maintain his power. It was necessary to protect my people.”
“My master cares little for the people of Earth. Return now the gems of soul and power.”
“Never!” Kristoff defied Death.
“Then die, human!” came another voice from behind. It was Terrax, using his one free arm to sweep his scythe around to attack Kristoff.
“Guardians!” Charlie said. “Quickly! Defend yourselves!” The Guardians fanned out. Charlie, Yellowjacket, and Nikki took on Terrax while Martinex and Kristoff fended off Death. With the help of the gems of Soul and Power, he wasn’t having too much trouble. But he could have used some help.
“Yondu! Get over here!” Martinex yelled.
But Yondu stood, frozen in place by shock. His god… was Thanos, the madman from Titan? This could not be true! Yondu was a priest. His life had been guided by the power of Anthos. But if Anthos was truly Thanos… then it was all for naught.
“NO!” Yondu yelled. “We will NEVER surrender the gems, Death!” He withdrew his bow and several Yaka arrows. He fired them all, simultaneously, at Terrax, who slumped to the ground when they penetrated his flesh. He was ready to fire again when he heard to pairs of hands clapping in the skies above.
“Really, Guardians of the Galaxy, the effort you show is always astounding. But the time has come for me to take what’s mine.” Thanos/Anthos said from above.
Thanos continued to descend toward the ground, with his other ally, Walker, standing at his side.
“Vernard, give me the gems of Soul and Power.” Thanos ordered.
“No,” Kristoff said, and the Guardians of the Galaxy began to mill around him. Most of them hated him, but they all knew they could not allow Thanos to get the last two Infinity Gems. He needed to complete the ‘Fist of Anthos’.
“Guardians!” Charlie-27 shouted. “Atta -!” He was cut off when he and the other Guardians of the Galaxy (with the exception of Yellowjacket and Kristoff), disappeared.
“That was unexpected.” Thanos said. “But not unwanted.” He shoved out his hand, palm up, waiting to get his gems back.
Vance Astro (Earth, 20th Century, near Avengers Mansion New York)
Vance looked bewildered as he appeared near Avengers Mansion, back in his black and white costume. He looked even more bewildered when the other Guardians of the Galaxy appeared. They all looked equally bewildered, however, so he wasn’t too concerned. He looked up to see the man called Century standing in front of them.
“Guardians of the Galaxy, it’s time for the wedding.” Century said.
“Wedding?” Vance asked. “And what am I doing in this costume?”
“The wedding of Vance Astrovik and Angelica Jones, aka Justice and Firestar of the New Warriors. And the costume would be the fault of the man who helped me bring you here.” Century said. In a flash of light, Starhawk, Aleta, and Replica popped in. Century looked at Nikki and Charlie. “And you shall meet that man soon enough. Now, follow me.”
The Guardians followed and learnt as they walked, that most of them were from the same timeline – all of them except for Starhawk and Aleta. Those two were from another timeline, one where they remained lovers. As they walked, though, Vance began to stumble, and sweat poured off him in buckets.
“I… I… can’t,” he stammered out and fainted.
White Raven (Safielt, 31st Century)
White Raven’s ship hovered in orbit around the planet Safielt while Drax tried everything he could to awaken an unconscious Adam Warlock. The human did finally awaken, and they were ready to go.
“Be wary, my allies,” Warlock said. “We know not what is going on down there. We must be careful.” White Raven picked up a rather large gun.
“We’ll be careful, alright,” she smirked. They left the ship, descending towards the planet’s surface. There they saw tanks, spacecraft, and armoured men fighting amongst themselves while the great Galactus and the evil Era fought over the planet.
“White Raven! You take out the spacecraft!” Warlock yelled. “Drax! You take the tanks! I’m going to get Era!”
The battle raged around them as they each went toward their separate tasks. For some reason, though, Warlock felt inclined to look up as he reached Era. Something was pulling at his senses. He didn’t know what. But it was something important.
Suddenly, a blue flare illuminated the skyline. And as Warlock watched, several figures appeared from the light, arcing towards Safielt. He smiled broadly as he realised he would soon get help. But then, suddenly, the ground beneath his feet began to feel red hot. As he got closer and closer to Era, it began to swell. Soon, it became too bad to bear. Warlock extended a sphere around himself that collected up his allies, and it was just in time, too, for the planet exploded just as he made it back to White Raven’s ship*.
[ * - Told from another point of view in GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY: BEYOND THE BEYONDER #1 - Adrian ]
“White Raven! Quickly! Get to Earth! I heard Galactus say something to Era while we were down there, and if I heard correctly, Earth will most certainly need our help!” Warlock cried.
Firelord (Earth, 31st Century)
Firelord jumped back in shock as Replica disappeared from before his very eyes. “Galactic Guardians! Come quickly! Replica has vanished!” The Galactic Guardians rushed to Firelord’s side. Doom, mad at the fact that his super powered servants were elsewhere, followed them out to where the Protector of the Universe stood.
“What is wrong?” he asked.
“Our ally Replica has just disappeared, Doom,” Mainframe answered. Doom looked around and spotted something in the air. A blue spark, drifting harmlessly away.
“She has gone back in time, Galactic Guardians. Don’t worry. Firelord, get Talon and Rancor.” Doom said.
“No!” replied Firelord. “I am not your servant.” Doom shook his head. He straightened up and looked deep into Firelord’s eyes. “Get them. Now.”
Firelord flew toward the hut that Talon and Rancor had made their home of late.
Yellowjacket II (Centauri IV, 31st Century)
She watched as Kristoff Vernard handed the two Infinity Gems over to Thanos. Thanos accepted them and slid them easily onto his gauntlet, in specially placed grooves.
“You’re pathetic, Vernard,” she said. “I can’t believe you ever thought you’d be a Guardian of the Galaxy.”
“Why not? They let you join, didn’t they? Didn’t they find you attacking Avengers Mansion in some backwater reality?” Kristoff retorted.
“Enough!” Thanos boomed. “For your insolence, I have chosen a target. I shall spare the people of Centauri, and indeed those of the planet Haven as well. For they did not steal my gems as I once thought. It was you, man of Earth. And so it is that Earth will be the one to pay the price for your insolence!”
Thanos turned and nodded to his allies. A moment later, a specially constructed space vehicle arrived, and they boarded it. Yellowjacket and Vernard watched as it headed in the direction of Earth.
“Now what do we do?” Kristoff asked.
Charlie-27 (Earth, Avengers Mansion New York, 20th Century)
Inside Avengers Mansion, the Guardians of the Galaxy have assembled around a bed where Vance Astro lay, pale, sweat creeping across his forehead. Martinex paced about, while Starhawk sat at the foot of the bed, his arms crossed, staring straight at Vance. He was trying with all his might to help the Guardian, but it seemed he was succeeding very little.
“It grows worse,” Starhawk said. “I can only hold it so long.”
“Dammit!” Charlie said. “We should go down to the New Warriors and let ‘em know what’s goin’ on!”
“No! The moment they find out, all our fates are sealed. Accept the word of one-who-knows. It is far better to act in secrecy. There is still a chance that Vance can be saved.” Starhawk said.
“Is there truly a chance, Starhawk?” Charlie asked. Starhawk did not answer.
Crowded around Avengers Mansion was a veritable army of heroes and friends. The New Warriors: Speedball, Hindsight Lad, Turbo, Nova, Namorita, Silhouette, Rage, Darkhawk, Night Thrasher, and Powerhouse. The Guardians of the Galaxy, looking none too enthusiastic: Vance Astro, his containment suit now covering his entire body, both to cover signs of his sickness and to keep him alive, as it seems fate has once again plagued him with ageing, Charlie-27, Martinex, and Starhawk. Yondu, Nikki, Aleta, and Replica had gone earlier, not feeling to welcome among the assemblage. Three of the four females had met most of these heroes before, but Replica felt too left out, so the others, who had never really met Justice and Firestar, agreed to show her the sights of the 20th century.
The Avengers, too, were present: Captain America, Namor, Ms. Marvel, the original Yellowjacket, the Vision, Beast, and Doctor Amazing. Other heroes were present, if only to prove to themselves that superhero relationships can work out: Spider-Man, Wonder Man, Warpath, Century, and others.
The band played it’s festive tunes, making Vance Astro feel more and more ill. He waited impatiently while Justice and Firestar got ready, fidgeting in the ill-fitting containment suit that he was once again forced to wear. Why? he thought. I was fine on the space station. A few dizzy spells, but not much else.
Finally, Justice and the Thing arrived to take their places by the altar. Hurry! Vance thinks. I can’t take this anymore! Suddenly, everything went quiet, all conversation stopped, all heads turned to face towards the doors of the mansion, where Firestar, in her amazingly beautiful wedding dress, has begun to come outside. She holds her head high, looking at the grinning face of her fiance. She does not smile, though, for she is concentrating far too much. She finally makes her way to Justice, where they turn to face the podium and the priest behind it.
“My honoured guests…” the priest begins, all present focusing intently on his words. He continued to speak for several minutes, every paying him close attention. Suddenly, though, Vance gasped softly, and Charlie reached out a hand to steady his friend.
“Where are they, blast it!” Charlie whispers to Martinex. “We managed to send them a signal, so we know they’re looking for him. But they should have gotten back long ago!”
“He is not an easy person to find or command, Charlie,” Martinex said. “Be patient.”
How can I be patient, Charlie thought, when my…. best friend … is dying?
“We don’t have time,” Charlie said, looking pointedly at Starhawk, one of the most powerful beings in the universe, now clenching his fists in some private battle.
“And now we come to the part of the ceremony where, before God, these two young people pledge themselves to one another. Vance?” the priest prompted. Justice looks toward his older self, Vance Astro, indicating that he should bring the rings to him. Astro began to walk toward the podium; ring outstretched…
… and he stumbles, reaching out blindly for a comforting hand…
… and Justice stumbles, reaching out blindly for Firestar…
… and Vance sags, ring falling from his outstretched hand…
… and Justice sags, eyes rolling back into his head with a moan…
… and they both scream.
“VANCE!” Firestar yelled, reaching out to catch Justice, who has begun to fall, and trickle of blood coming from his right ear. The yell is echoed by an AAAH! from Starhawk, who fell to one knee. There was a moment of shocked silence, and then all of the heroes surged forward, tuxedoes and dresses torn in the rush as everyone got into battle mode.
The two Vances, laying in identical poses of pain on the ground, are seemingly unable to be helped, until the form of a man none but Starhawk recognises comes from the back of the room, explaining that if Vance Astro dies, his, and Starhawk’s, universe is doomed. He gives Starhawk twenty-four hours to correct what’s wrong and leaves.
Later on, both Vances have been moved into the Avengers Medical Centers. Starhawk and Charlie feel compelled to talk to one another privately*, but suddenly, in another blue flash, they have all returned to Centauri IV.
[ * - Everything up to this point was detailed in NEW WARRIORS ANNUAL #5, over at the Adventure branch - Adrian ]
“What the -?” Charlie says. “But we were just… and Vance… and but… Starhawk…”
“I know!” Nikki said. “We had just arrived at Doctor Strange’s house when we popped out, too. This is weird beyond words.”
“Guys, I’m sure you all had fun wherever you went, but it will need to wait for another time. Thanos is heading towards Earth, and we need to get there first!” Yellowjacket said. Everyone present climbed aboard the Icarus, and they headed toward Earth.
Nikki (Aboard the Icarus, 31st century)
Nikki made her way to the back of the ship where Charlie sat in the corner. The ship was in the hands of its designer, Kristoff Vernard, and he know doubt knew how to fly it better than Charlie did anyway. She sat down next to Charlie and placed one of his hands in hers.
“You okay, Chunks?” she asked.
“Well, yeah, and, well, um, no,” Charlie said. “No. Definitely not.”
“What’s wrong?” Nikki asked.
“That whole ‘trip’ was just weird. Vance’s wedding? Vance dying? He’s… he’s my best friend, Nikki.” Charlie said. “And then, when we all popped out…”
“It was weird, huh?” Nikki said. “Well, don’t worry…” With her free hand, she reached up and unbuttoned his shirt, pressing her hand lightly upon his chest. She leaned forward and kissed his chest, and looked up at him.
“You mean…?” Charlie began to ask.
“Yes, Chunkie.” Nikki looked up and kissed him right on the cheek.
Rancor (Earth, 31st century)
Rancor kissed Talon hard on the face, before grabbing his fur.
“So you mean I’m the mother of your son in an alternate reality?” she said. “Good. I always thought you were kinda cute, for a big cat.” She kissed him again, and he pulled back, looking up at the door.
“Rancor, honey, we have a visitor,” he said. They both sat up, Rancor pulling the bedsheets over herself to conceal her nakedness, Talon sliding back into the shorts and vest that made up his Guardians uniform.
“I’m not interrupting anything, am I?” the figure at the door said.
“Well, no, not exactly.” Rancor said.
“Good. Because I was told that you wanted to see me. Name’s Logan, but you might know me better as Wolverine.” the figure, Wolverine, said.
“Wolverine!” Rancor gasped. “Finally! I have so many questions to ask you!”
“They’ll have to wait, Rancor,” someone else said. “Doom wants you. Now. Seems we have some problems.”
“Okay, Firelord.” Rancor said. She ushered the three males out of the room so she could get dressed.
Inside Castle Doom, however, things were not quite so… relaxed.
“Doom, we have five entities approaching. Identified as Ultron, Alkhema, Galactus, Thanos, and Adam Warlock. Negative, make that six. The Guardians are approaching as well.” Blitz, a member of Guardian Force, said. “The first, Ultron, will be here… now.”
A large crash outside proved the truth of Blitz’s words, and Doom rushed out to investigate.
“Human!” Ultron said. “You had best hide your people. Galactus is approaching.” Doom sighed. Too many things to deal with now. He motioned for one small section of his enslaved army to capture Ultron, and they did, containing him in a specially produced adamantium cage from which he had no hope of escaping.
“One down…” he began to say, before being blasted back into the castle by a blast of power cosmic. He looked up, to see the forms of Alkhema and Galactus entering Earth’s orbit. “Two to go…”
Alkhema streaked toward Earth while Galactus began to prepare to feed from the planet. He expected more resistance than this, however. No-one had come to stop him yet. It was ridiculous.
“Halt, devourer!” Thanos bellowed. “Earth is mine to conquer!”
“No,” Galactus said. “Earth is mine to feed from.” He leaned toward the sun to show off his adamantium armour.
Thanos chuckled, pressing a button on his ship’s control unit, which began to power up several laser batteries. But…
“Thanos, my lord, wait!” Terrax yelled. “Two ships have just left hyperspace and will intercept the blasts.”
“That is of little consequence,” Thanos said, pressing the button that would fire the lasers. They arced toward Galactus, but just before they would hit, two ships – one identified as the Icarus and the other an unknown vehicle – left hyperspace, heading toward Earth. The lasers lanced through the Icarus as though it was so much aluminium, and sliced off the rear portion of the other craft before hitting Galactus.
Galactus laughed. “That almost tickled, Thanos.”
“AND THIS WILL HURT LIKE HELL!” everyone heard. “GALACTUS, THANOS, WHOEVER THE REST OF YOU ARE! I HAVE SPENT OVER ONE THOUSAND YEARS PREPARING FOR AN ATTACK LIKE THIS, AND YOU WILL DIE.” The sound trailed off into space, and both behemoths chuckled loudly at the sound. Until, moments later, the entire steel nation of Latveria rocketed up from Earth and clutched them both, dragging them beyond even Pluto, and atop the highest point of the nation, Doctor Doom laughed maniacally at his victory, before popping out of existence in a blue pop.
And all anyone could do was stare blankly at the sheer weirdness of it all.
NEXT ISSUE: Is this the end of the Guardians of the Galaxy? Has an entire mechanical nation spelled the end of two of the universe’s most powerful combatants? Is Doctor Doom crazy? What happened with the Guardians going to Justice and Firestar’s wedding? What the HELL is going on in general? Find out next issue, when everything is explained!
Written by Adrian J. Watts of SoftPixels.net
