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Secret Wars (formerly Avengers - the Multiverse Saga)
Golden Yak
Burnished BovineThe sunny beaches of CanadaRegistered User regular
Burnished BovineThe sunny beaches of CanadaRegistered User regular
EDIT - The first couple of posts in this thread deal with the events leading up to Secret Wars shown in Avengers vol.5 and New Avengers vol.3. Discussion of Secret Wars proper starts here.
Everything dies. You. Me. Everyone on this planet. Our sun. Our galaxy. And, eventually, the universe itself. This is simply how things are. It's inevitable... and I accept it.
The Multiverse Saga is a major over-arching storyline that's been running through Avengers and New Avengers for the past couple of years, and events are starting to come to a head. There's no official name for the whole storyline yet, but thus far there have been several major acts.
This thread gives an overview of the events of the Multiverse Saga thus far, the significant factions involved, and can serve as discussion specifically for the events and elements of the story, from Avengers and New Avengers as well as any other books that are affected (there's been some minor spill-over into Spider-Man's Spiderverse storyline, for example).
**Be warned that this thread contains major spoilers for the saga, up to and including current issues of Avengers and New Avengers as of this thread being posted.**
-Summary - What the Multiverse Saga is all about
-Prelude - Avengers Vol. 4 #007-012
-Act I - The Avengers World - Avengers Vol. 5 #001-013 / New Avengers Vol. 3 #001-007
-Act II - Infinity - Infinity #001-006 / Avengers Vol. 5 #014-023 / New Avengers Vol. 3 #008-012
-Interlude - Avengers Vol.5 #024-034 / New Avengers Vol. 3 #013-024
-Act III - Time Runs Out - Avengers Vol. 5 #035-044 / New Avengers Vol. 3 #024-033
-Act IV - Secret Wars - Secret Wars #001-008 and many others...
Ancillary Works - other major comic events that are/may be relevant to the Multiverse saga
Major Players - An overview of the factions involved in the saga, both extant and fallen
Discussion - Go here to bypass the above contents and begin discussion.
Summary
The Multiverse is dying. And it's exactly as bad as it sounds.
On an alternate Earth, an entity was born - Rabum Alal, the Great Destroyer. This led to the destruction of that Earth and its universe. As a result of this, the entire Multiverse has begun to collapse, with alternate universes colliding with one-another centered on their respective Earths. These collisions are known as Incursions.
When an Incursion happens, both Earths become visible to one-another. After eight hours, the Earths collide, destroying each other - this is followed by the collision and collapse of their respective universes. The only way to preserve the two universes is for one of the Earths to be destroyed, halting the Incursion. Even if an Earth is spared, however, it will still be affected by more Incursions in the future.
Earth-616 has weathered multiple Incursions, and is surviving so far thanks to its greatest heroes... and greatest villains. But the Incursions are coming faster and faster, and the enemies from alternate universes are growing more dangerous. Earth is a target for factions that seek to destroy it to save everything. And somewhere at the source of it all, Rabum Alal is waiting.
The Final Incursion approaches...
((Extreme wordiness to follow - the Contents links will help you skip past it. I'll be zazzing it up with better links, prettier images, and edits as needed.))
Everything dies. You. Me. Everyone on this planet. Our sun. Our galaxy. And, eventually, the universe itself. This is simply how things are. It's inevitable... and I accept it.
-Reed Richards, Mister Fantastic
The Multiverse Saga is a major over-arching storyline that's been running through Avengers and New Avengers for the past couple of years, and events are starting to come to a head. There's no official name for the whole storyline yet, but thus far there have been several major acts.
This thread gives an overview of the events of the Multiverse Saga thus far, the significant factions involved, and can serve as discussion specifically for the events and elements of the story, from Avengers and New Avengers as well as any other books that are affected (there's been some minor spill-over into Spider-Man's Spiderverse storyline, for example).
**Be warned that this thread contains major spoilers for the saga, up to and including current issues of Avengers and New Avengers as of this thread being posted.**
**Contents**
-Summary - What the Multiverse Saga is all about
-Prelude - Avengers Vol. 4 #007-012
-Act I - The Avengers World - Avengers Vol. 5 #001-013 / New Avengers Vol. 3 #001-007
-Act II - Infinity - Infinity #001-006 / Avengers Vol. 5 #014-023 / New Avengers Vol. 3 #008-012
-Interlude - Avengers Vol.5 #024-034 / New Avengers Vol. 3 #013-024
-Act III - Time Runs Out - Avengers Vol. 5 #035-044 / New Avengers Vol. 3 #024-033
-Act IV - Secret Wars - Secret Wars #001-008 and many others...
Ancillary Works - other major comic events that are/may be relevant to the Multiverse saga
Major Players - An overview of the factions involved in the saga, both extant and fallen
Discussion - Go here to bypass the above contents and begin discussion.
Summary
The Multiverse is dying. And it's exactly as bad as it sounds.
On an alternate Earth, an entity was born - Rabum Alal, the Great Destroyer. This led to the destruction of that Earth and its universe. As a result of this, the entire Multiverse has begun to collapse, with alternate universes colliding with one-another centered on their respective Earths. These collisions are known as Incursions.
When an Incursion happens, both Earths become visible to one-another. After eight hours, the Earths collide, destroying each other - this is followed by the collision and collapse of their respective universes. The only way to preserve the two universes is for one of the Earths to be destroyed, halting the Incursion. Even if an Earth is spared, however, it will still be affected by more Incursions in the future.
Earth-616 has weathered multiple Incursions, and is surviving so far thanks to its greatest heroes... and greatest villains. But the Incursions are coming faster and faster, and the enemies from alternate universes are growing more dangerous. Earth is a target for factions that seek to destroy it to save everything. And somewhere at the source of it all, Rabum Alal is waiting.
The Final Incursion approaches...
((Extreme wordiness to follow - the Contents links will help you skip past it. I'll be zazzing it up with better links, prettier images, and edits as needed.))
Golden Yak on
+12
Posts
-Avengers Vol.4 #007-012
-Other (World War Hulk, Illuminati Vol.1, Avengers vs. X-Men)
---Illuminati - the Formation---
The Illuminati are a secret group of superheroes each representing significant elements of the world superhuman community.
Iron Man, representing the Avengers
Mister Fantastic, representing the Future Foundation and the super-science community
Professor Xavier, representing the mutant community
Doctor Strange, representing the world's mystical elements
Black Panther, representing the African nation of Wakanda
Namor the Sub-Mariner, representing the kingdom of Atlantis
Blackbolt, representing the Inhumans of Attilan
The Illuminati formed to secretly deal with major threats deemed too dire for even their respective teammates to know of. One such action involved gathering the all-powerful Infinity Gems, which granted the wielders power over an aspect of the universe, and hiding them away.
Another was an effort to banish the Hulk from Earth, which eventually led to the exposure and dissolution of the Illuminati.
When several of the Infinity Gems were stolen by the Red Hood, the Illuminati were forced to gather once again and unite with the Avengers to defeat the criminal. Captain America, who had previously expressed absolute opposition to the very concept of the Illuminati, was forced to concede their necessity, and later secretly joined their ranks.
With the death of Professor Xavier during the Pheonix incident, his post was filled by the Beast.
Also during the Pheonix incident, a Pheonix empowered and irrational Namor led the armies of Atlantis to attack Wakanda, killing thousands. Hostilities between Wakanda and Atlantis have continued, with Namor's efforts at peace rebuffed by Wakanda's queen.
Events of
-Avengers Vol. 5 #001-013
-New Avengers Vol. 3 #001-007
---Avengers - The Great Machine---
Iron Man and Captain America begin a plan for a great undertaking - a new Avengers paradigm, involving a larger force than ever before to match any potential threat to the world.
Their first mission occurs when Earth is bombarded by mutagenic bombs that transform the environment around them, affecting multiple locations around the world and mutating any lifeforms into spectacular new and varied shapes. The source of the bombs is found to be Mars.
On Mars, two alien beings, the Gardeners Ex Nihilo and Abyss, are responsible for the transformative bombardment of Earth. Joined by their robotic attendant Aleph, the Gardeners have been tasked to annihilate the Earth, but Ex Nihilo wishes to transform the world into one worthy of survival.
The Gardeners reveal that they were created by an ancient race known as the Builders, the first race ever to evolve. Over billions of years, the Builders colonized multiple universes and created advanced Systems to shape time, space, and worlds. The Gardeners and the Alephs robots were the first System - the Aleph robots purged worlds of life deemed unworthy, and the Gardeners would alter the evolution of worthy species to improve them. Earth has been deemed unworthy by the Aleph, but Ex Nihilo wishes to transform the entire biosphere in an effort to save it, even at the cost of ending humanity's way of life.
The Gardeners efforts are halted by the Avenger Captain Universe, whom the Gardeners worship as an embodiment of the universe itself. Captain Universe destroys Aleph and confines the Gardeners to Mars. A genetically perfected human created by Ex Nihilo named Adam awakens and acquires superhuman powers in the process, and is subsequently taken to Earth by the Avengers to be studied. When Ex Nihilo questions why Earth is so special, Captain America declares Earth to be an Avengers' World.
---The Gathering Storm---
The Avengers come into conflict with AIM, whose agents are investigating the regions of the world transformed by Ex Nihilo's mutagenic bombs. One such region is the Savage Land, and the bomb site there gives rise to a race of humanoids, newborn children who are adopted by Avenger Hyperion, becoming the Children of the Sun. Nick-named the Zebras for their black and white coloration, the children come under the protection of the Avengers. Growing and learning at an astonishing rate, the Zebras may have a significant role to play in the near future.
AIM continues to be a major threat to the Avengers, developing powerful new weapons and exploiting the results of Ex Nihilo's mutagen bombs.
Captain Universe's mental state begins to deteriorate - she warns the Avengers that 'everything is broken.'
Somewhere in deepspace, the Shi'ar Imperium repels an assault upon their worlds. They learn that the invaders were fleeing from a much larger and more powerful threat that is on the move in the universe.
---The White Event - The Systems of the Builders---
Outside the universe of Earth-616, servants of the Builders are monitoring the collapse of the Superflow - the space that exists between all alternate universes. As the Superflow disintegrates around them, the Builder servants active the Systems, great machines created by their masters, before they are consumed.
As the Superlow collapses, Earth is engulfed in a blinding white light - the 'White Event'. Adam, the genetically perfect human created by Ex Nihilo, is granted superhuman abilities by the White Event and takes the name Nightmask. Nightmask explains that the White Event is a Builder System, whose purpose is to empower individuals to protect their native world. However, Nightmask also warns that 'the System is broken,' and that something is drastically wrong with the universe.
The White Event empowers a college student, transforming him into Starbrand. Starbrand cannot control his powers and destroys everything around him until Nightmask and the Avengers can subdue him. Nightmask reveals that the collapse of the Superflow has destroyed the Builder Systems, preventing the creation of other protectors.
Nightmask seeks answers from his father Ex Nihilo, who reveals that his mutagenic bombs were designed to make Earth's biosphere itself sentient. When Nightmask and Starbrand travel to a bomb site where a colossal brain has formed, Starbrand loses control and destroys it, ruining Ex Nihilo's plan. The Avengers confine Nightmask and Starbrand until their powers can be better understood.
As Ex Nihilo's bomb sites continue to develop, the Earth itself is threatened by the transformed beings they unleash. The Avengers are warned 'The System is now online' at one site, while at another a vast organic communication tower is formed, broadcasting a signal that is received in deep space by an Aleph, a robotic servant of the Builders.
---Illuminati - The Incursions Begin---
Black Panther witnesses an alternate Earth appearing in the skies above Wakanda. The alternate world is destroyed by a woman called the Black Swan, whom Black Panther subdues. The Illuminati are summoned, who question Black Swan and learn that the Multiverse itself is dying, and as it dies the many alternate universes are beginning to collide with one-another, centering on the planet Earth.
These Incursions can only result in one of two outcomes - either both universes are entirely destroyed, or one planet Earth is, resulting in the survival of both universes. However, the Incursions will not stop as long as any Earth exists - the Illuminati are faced with the prospect of destroying countless alternate Earths in order to spare their own.
The Illuminati assembles the Infinity Gauntlet in order to halt the Incursions. Captain America wields the gauntlet to protect the Earth from another Incursion, but the effort of separating two universes shatters the Infinity Gems. The Illuminati now seem to have no choice but to use apocalyptic means to prevent further Incursions. When Captain America refuses to entertain such possibilities, he is expelled from the Illuminati and his memory wiped by Doctor Strange.
---The Great Game of Worlds---
The Illuminati learn from the Black Swan that there are multiple factions involved in the Incursions. Her own faction, consisting of many other Black Swans, were defeated by the Black Priests, spell-casters whose dark magic empire spans many universes. When an Incursion takes place in Latveria, the Illuminati witness another faction - the Map Makers and their robotic servants the Bridge Builders, who use the Incursions to travel the Multiverse, stripping alternate Earths clean of resources before destroying them. Doom repels the Bridge Builder assault on Latveria while the Illuminati destroy the barren alternate Earth. Doom begins to study the Incursions.
The Illuminati witness another alternate Earth being consumed by that universe's Galactus, and capture his herald Terrax, imprisoning him alongside the Black Swan. The Illuminati begin to fray under the pressure of battling the Incursions, with Namor pushing them more and more to employ lethal means rather than cling to the hope that they will win without destroying any living worlds.
-Infinity #001-006
-Avengers Vol. 5 #014-023
-New Avengers Vol. 3 #008-012
---Avengers - The Builders War---
The Avengers are warned by Captain Universe of the impending arrival of the Builders, the ancient race responsible for the creation of the Gardeners and the Systems. They are on their way to Earth and cutting a swath through the universe - the Spaceknights of Galador have already fallen, and the Skrull Empire is withering before their advance. The Avengers recruit Ex Nihilo, Abyss, Nightmask, and Starbrand into their ranks to prepare.
The Avengers strike-force represents Earth in a galaxy-spanning alliance, which includes the Kree, the Shi'ar, the Skrulls, the Spartax, the Brood, and even Annihlus and his Negative Zone hordes. Their combined might meets the Builders in space, but is grossly outmached by the ancient race. World after world falls to the Builders as they make their way towards Earth with the intention to destroy it.
Ex Nihilo and Abyss make contact with the rest of the Gardeners, who were made into bodyguards and servants of their Builder makers. Countless Ex Nihili serve the Builders, but there are no others like Abyss, and the Ex Nihili are joyous at discovering her. Ex Nihilo and Abyss convince the Gardeners to abandon the Builders and strike out on their own.
The Avengers rally the worlds conquered by the Builders, freeing them one by one. The Builders are revealed to be few in number and highly limited now that the Superflow between universes has collapsed. Ultimately defeated, the last of the Builders attempt to flee to a nearby universe, leaving behind their Aleph robots to take revenge. Nightmask and Starbrand take up the task of neutralizing the Alephs while the Gardeners work to repair the damage done by the Builders and create new worlds to replace those destroyed.
---Thanos---
With the Avengers off-world confronting the Builders, the mad titan Thanos seizes the opportunity to attack a now lightly defended Earth. Having gathered a vast army of space pirates and fanatical death worshippers, Thanos launches an all-out invasion of Earth, sending his lieutenants to search the globe for the Infinity Gems.
Thanos himself attacks Attilan and engages Blackbolt in single combat. Thanos seeks his son, fathered with an Inhuman woman long ago, so that Thanos can finally kill his last living offspring. Blackbolt is unable to defeat Thanos and instead sacrifices Attilan, releasing the terrigen mists within the city out into the world. The terrigen mists transform thousands of unsuspected humans into Inhumans.
Thanos' son, Thane, is granted terrible new powers by the mists. Ultimately, Thane uses them to defeat Thanos, imprisoning him and his strongest lieutenants in a cube of matter that forces them into stasis - a 'living death'. Thane departs the Earth to learn to better understand his new status. The entombed Thanos and his lieutenants are taken by the Illuminati.
---Illuminati - The Invasion of Earth---
Iron Man travels to the moon and, along with the Watcher, discovers what appears to be the body of the Living Tribunal, the most powerful known being in all existence. Elsewhere, Black Panther informs Namor that his efforts to bring about peace between Wakanda and Atlantis have failed, and the queen of Wakanda has declared all-out war, sending her soldiers to slaughter Namor's people.
As the Illuminati fragments, the mad titan Thanos invades the Earth with his army of death-worshipping fanatics. Thanos sends his strongest servants to attack the homelands of the Illuminati, seeking the Infinity Gems. When Thanos' forces find Atlantis in ruins from Wakanda's attack, Namor tells them that the gems are in Wakanda, causing the bulk of Thanos' army to fall upon the city.
Thanos also has an ulterior motive - some time ago he fathered a son with one of the Inhumans, and Thanos desires to kill this offspring. Attacking the Inhuman city of Attilan, Thanos engages Blackbolt in single combat. Blackbolt is unable to defeat Thanos, but conspires with his brother Maximus to sacrifice the city of Attilan, spreading the terrigen mists the city contains over the Earth. All humans who share an ancestry with Inhumans are affected by the mists, giving rise to thousands of new Inhumans, including Thanos' son Thane.
Thane ultimately defeats Thanos and his strongest servants, imprisoning them in a cube of matter that traps them in stasis - a 'living death'. Thane departs the Earth to learn to better understand his new status. The entombed Thanos and his lieutenants are taken by the Illuminati and imprisoned alongside Black Swan and Terrax.
-Avengers Vol.5 #024-034
-New Avengers Vol. 3 #013-024
---Avengers - Into the Future---
Captain America suddenly recalls his memory being wiped by the Illuminati when he was expelled from their ranks. Gathering an Avengers team, he confronts Iron Man, only for the Infinity Gem of Time to suddenly re-appear. Whisking the gathered heroes into the future, they are forced to confront more and more baffling visions of what is to come.
In the near future, they meet a new team of Avengers, young and old. An elderly Hawkeye assaults Iron Man, calling him a monster. Further in the future, Ultron has conquered the world, with humanity on the brink of extinction. Thousands of years in the future, an adult Franklin Richards shows them a solar system colonized by a reborn humanity, and an Avengers organization that spans the galaxy. However, Franklin warns them that in spite of these futures, the Incursions still threaten the Earth and the Multiverse is still dying. In the far future, the Earth is empty of humanity, ruled over by living computer programs - the last remnants of Ultron.
Captain America finally finds himself at the 'End of the Line', a dimension beyond the end of time. There, Kang the Conqueror and his temporal counterparts, Iron Lad and Immortus, demand that Captain America remain with them and allow the Illuminati to face the Incursions unimpeded, warning him that any other path leads to the destruction of Earth. Unwilling to accept, Captain America defeats the time-travelers and uses the Time Gem to return to the present era, destroying it in the process. Finding that Iron Man has fled, Captain America rallies the Avengers and vows to hunt down every member of the Illuminati.
---Illuminati - Rise, the Cabal---
Using a Multiverse portal, the Illuminati observe other alternate Earths dealing with Incursions. Most fall to the Black Priests or the Map Makers, while others are destroyed. One world, Earth-4290001, is home to a team of superhumans known as the Great Society, who have successfully defended their world multiple times, always finding a way to win without destroying worlds full of innocent lives, although the Incursion rate on their world is increasing and the Great Society fears an inevitable loss to attrition.
The next Incursion joins the world of the Great Society with Earth-616, and the Great Society confronts the Illuminati, who are armed with world-destroying weapons. Tensions escalate until Namor, unable to endure the strain of hoping for a solution without bloodshed, attacks the Great Society, sparking all-out conflict. Doctor Strange, using forbidden magicks unlocked for the purpose of destroying worlds, unleashes hell upon the Great Society, destroying them utterly.
The Illuminati plant a world bomb on Earth-4290001, but ultimately find themselves unable to trigger it. However, Namor detonates the bomb, destroying the alternate Earth and its innocent population. He then reveals to Black Panther that he set the forces of Thanos upon Wakanda. The Illuminati expel Namor from their ranks and Black Panther vows to kill him.
The Illuminati decide that they cannot countenance destroying other worlds to preserve their own, and allow the next Incursion to occur unopposed. However, the alternate Earth is instead destroyed by a new Cabal formed by Namor, consisting of all the greatest enemies the Illuminati had encountered until now.
Events of
-Avengers Vol. 5 #035-044
New Avengers Vol. 3 #024-033
---Avengers V Illuminati - Eight Months Later---
The Avengers and SHIELD continue to hunt down the Illuminati, who have all gone into hiding. Their efforts are impeded by the world's lack of trust in them - Namor and his Cabal have informed Earth of the Incursions, and the world's governments have lent the Cabal their support. The Cabal have seized a devastated Wakanda as their base of operations. Steve Rogers has passed the mantle of Captain America on to the Falcon and accepted the post of Director of SHIELD following a loss of the Super-Soldier Serum's effects, leaving him a man of over 90.
The Illuminati have added Yellowjacket, Captain Britain and Amadeus Cho to their ranks. Yellowjacket, Doctor Strange, and Iron Man are currently missing. SHIELD recruits Susan Richards, the Invisible Woman, to capture Cho. However, the Invisible Woman is later revealed to be working with her husband and the Illuminati, feeding them SHIELD intel that keeps them one step ahead of the Avengers.
Elsewhere in the universe, the Gardeners attempt to forge new stars and new worlds, but their efforts are thwarted by the will of the universe itself. Sensing that all things are yearning to die, the Gardeners depart for Earth.
Meanwhile back on Earth, Doctor Doom meets with Namor, who asks Doom for aid in curbing the sadistic excesses of the Cabal in destroying the alternate Earths. Doom rejects Namor, having his own designs. Doom has hacked the Multiverse-spanning network of the Map Makers, and prepares to unleash the Molecule Man on them.
The multi-millionaire superhero and former Avenger Sunspot conducts a hostile takeover of AIM, seizing control and directing its efforts to finding the cause of the Multiverse collapse. AIM allies with Thor, Hyperion, and the Zebras. They are joined by Nightmask, Starbrand, and the Gardeners. Thor, armed with the Celestial-killing axe Jarnbjorn, leads the AIM strikeforce alongside Hyperion into the heart of the Multiverse to face the source of its collapse.
None of them expect to return alive.
---Avengers + Illuminati - The Fall of the Cabal---
SHIELD continues to persue the Illuminati, while the Cabal scheme to bring more worlds to ruin. The Multiverse Avengers find the stronghold of the Black Priests, and discover that Doctor Strange has risen to command them. Strange reveals that the source of the Multiverse collapse is a conflict between two mysterious forces - the Ivory Kings and Rabum Alal. Strange also reveals that the efforts of the Black Priests are 'triage' - destroy enough Earths, and the collapse of the Multiverse may be halted. The Multiverse Avengers and the Black Priests join forces - the Avengers will strike at the Ivory Kings, and the Black Priests will destroy Rabum Alal.
Back on Earth, the Avengers and SHIELD corners the Illuminati, only to be confronted by Sunspot and his AIM-empowered New Avengers. SHIELD is ultimately stale-mated when Invisible Woman reveals her true loyalties to the Illuminati, and reveals that Namor has rejoined their ranks. SHIELD agrees to ally with the Illuminati when Namor offers to strand the Cabal on a doomed Earth and then surrender himself to justice for his actions. The Avengers, SHIELD, the Illuminati, and the New Avengers join forces to eliminate the Cabal, but Black Panther and Black Bolt betray Namor, and abandon him with the Cabal on the doomed world moments before its destruction.
Reed Richards reveals that the total number of universes comprising the Multiverse has fallen to less than two dozen. Reed also reveals that every effort the Illuminati made the halt the collapse has failed, including their appeal to cosmic-level entities like Galactus and the Celestials, all of whom have mysteriously vanished. Somewhere in the Multiverse, Doctor Doom and the Molecule Man journey to discover the true source of the Multiverse Collapse.
---Avengers - The Great Machine Fails---
On Earth-1610, the Ultimate Universe, Reed Richards aka the Maker protects his worlds from Incursion events. The latest Incursion links Earth-1610 with the doomed Earth where the Cabal was abandoned - a never-before-seen three-way Incrusion. The Cabal, blocked from Earth-616, takes refuge on Earth-1610 and joins forces with the Maker and Ultimate SHIELD. Namor vows that going forwards he will be unrelenting.
In outer space, the galactic empires of the 616 universe have discovered the Multiverse collapse, and have determined that destroying Earth will spare the universe. The Shi'ar, Kree, Skrulls, and all other races that so recently joined forces with the Avengers to fight the Builders now head for Earth, planning to annihilate it for the sake of the universe.
On Earth-616, the Avengers and the Illuminati struggle to find solutions to the fate of their world, and prepare for the human race to survive off-world in the event that the Earth cannot be saved. The Guardians of the Galaxy stand with their allies on Earth - they, the Avengers, SHIELD, the Inhumans, and the New Avengers employ every tactic and weapon at their disposal to defend the world. Iron Man uses his last trump card to destroy the enemy fleet, but afterwards is confronted by an outraged Steve Rogers, who is determined to bring Tony Stark to justice for all the wrongs he has commited as a member of the Illuminati, even if it is his final act before the end of all things.
Rogers and Stark, two men driven over the edge by desperation and disappointment in one another, clash futilely in the streets of New York as the Final Incursion occurs, joining Earth-616 and Earth-1610.
Time has run out...
---New Avengers - The Ivory Kings and Rabum Alal---
As the heroes face the end of everything, Hank Pym re-appears, having ventured into the furthest reaches of the Multiverse in search of Rabum Alal. Instead, Pym found the Ivory Kings, and reveals their true nature - they are the Beyonders, a race from a realm beyond the Multiverse.
Pym recounts his Multiversal voyage - how the Mapmakers, tools of the Beyonders, destroyed the Captain Britian Corps. How the last of the Builders and their Gardener servants destroyed the Mapmakers in turn, only to be lured to destruction by the Beyonders themselves. How the Beyonders struck down the Living Tribunal and all other cosmic entities across all universes. With the living incarnations of the Multiverse destroyed, there exists no power that could possibly oppose the Beyonders.
Doctor Strange and the Black Priests invade the domain of Rabum Alal, which is in reality the Library of the Black Swans, who were not all eliminated as the original Black Swan claimed. The Black Swans annihilate the Black Priests and bring Strange before Rabum Alal - who is revealed to be no less than Doctor Doom.
At the edge of the Multiverse, the Multiverse Avengers find a rift leading to the realm of the Beyonders. A pair of Beyonders emerges, and one by one the Avengers sacrifice themselves in the battle to defeat the two, until only Thor Odinson and Hyperion remain. Then hundreds of Beyonders emerge from the rift, and Thor and Hyperion charge into a battle they cannot hope to win.
Doom reveals to Strange that the Beyonders seeded the Multiverse with a mechanism to destroy it as an experiment. This mechanism is the Molecule Man, and his innumerable selves that exist in every universe - when they die at an appointed time, their respective universes perish with them. This is explained to Doom by the Molecule Man himself, who urges Doom to stop the death of the Multiverse by killing Molecule Men prematurely. Doom travels through time and carries out his campaign of Multiversal mass-murder for years, ultimately creating the Order of the Black Swans to aid his efforts and using the identity of Rabum Alal to conceal his true nature from outside observers. Doom explains to Strange that a handful of Black Swans have discovered his secrets over the years and formed a breakaway sect, including the Black Swan that first encountered the Illuminati.
Doom reveals that the Beyonders have one weakness - they experience time in a lineral fashion and cannot travel through it, leaving them vulnerable to Doom's time travel. Doom reveals the construction of a mysterious weapon and travels with it to the rift to the Beyonders realm, sometime after the defeat of the Multiversal Avengers. Doom employs his weapon against the Beyonders, but is agast at the result as all present are engulfed in light. It is revealed that this is the event that caused the number of universes in the Multiverse to drop to less than two dozen. Doom's efforts appear to have been for nought - now nothing stands in the way of the Beyonders and their plan to destroy the Multiverse. The Final Incursion is at hand.
Time has run out...
And so came the 'Day of Convergence' - the day of the Final Incursion. Earth-616, the Marvel Universe, converged with Earth-1610, the Ultimate Universe. The Ultimates and Ultimate SHIELD struck against the Avengers, the Inhumans, and the Guardians of the Galaxy, while the Illuminati struggled to save a portion of their Earth's population, and the X-Men prepared a miracle.
It seemed as if Earth-616's Mightiest Heroes might carry the day. Then the Maker unleashed his Children, an army grown outside of time, beyond defeat, shattering all hope.
Heroes fell. Earth's collided. Universes collapsed. And in the end, as was foretold...
The Marvel Universe
1961-2015
The Ultimate Universe
2000-2015
So begin, the Secret Wars...
-Illuminati vol.1 - the formation of the Illuminati and their earliest adventures.
-World War Hulk - the Hulk reveals the existence of the Illuminati to the world at large.
-Avengers vol.4 - the Illuminati reform and ally with the Avengers to protect the Infinity Gems from the Red Hood
-Avengers vs. X-Men - the Avengers and the X-Men clash over the threat of the Pheonix, eventually resulting in the death of Professor Xavier, Illuminati member
-Age of Ultron - Ultron attacks the present era from an alternate future, devastating the world and killing many of the heroes. Wolverine and the Invisible Woman time travel and alter history to prevent Ultron's invasion, causing a widespread disruption of the time/space continuum - referred to later as 'Time is broken.' This attracts the attention of cosmic players, including Thanos, who later uses it as a rationale to attack Earth during Infinity. It may also have further unforseen side-effects.
-All New X-Men - the Beast uses a time-machine to bring the original 5 teen X-Men out of their home time-line and into the present era. The original X-Men might have a significant role to play alongside the Ultimate universe characters.
-Spider-Verse - Spider-Man and his many selves on alternate Earths are being attacked by multiverse-traveling enemies called the Inheritors. A Spider-Man from the Captain Britain Corps tries to enlist the Corps aid, but they are more concerned with the threat of the Multiverse collapse. The Multiverse collapse may be of future relevance in this story later on.
-Ultimates - Incursions have been hinted at on Earth-1610, the world of the Ultimate characters. There have been cross-overs with Spider-Verse as well.
-Avengers vs. X-men - AXIS - Using stolen mutant psionic abilities, the Red Skull brings about a 'Moral Inversion' of numerous superhumans, reversing their moral compasses and turning heroes into villains (and vice versa). While the inversion was later reversed, three people were unaffected and retained their new moral alignment, including Tony Stark of the Illuminati.
As the Incursions sweep the Multiverse, many factions have arisen to combat them, both on Earth-616 and beyond. Each of these groups possesses the potential to destroy entire planets, and thus the ability to compete in what the Black Swan calls 'the Great Game of Worlds' - the struggle to survive Incursions and endure the collapse of the Multiverse. As the light of the Final Incursion swallows all, the game appears over with no winners... or has one man alone won it all...?
The Illuminati first discovered the Incursions and sought to safeguard the world, even at the cost of other alternate Earths. Ultimately, they could not bring themselves to destroy an innocent world, and instead switch their efforts to halting the collapse of the Multiverse. This too failed - their final act was an attempt to create a 'life raft' to save a portion of the Earth's population. Consumed in the light of the Final Incursion, the failure of the Illuminati appears to be complete.
-Upon learning of the Incursions, the Avengers spent much of their time hunting down the Illuminati alongside SHIELD. Their efforts hwere hamstrung by the world governments, who embraced the Cabal as a method for stopping the Incursions and preserving the world. Ultimately, the Avengers joined forces with the Illuminati and the New Avengers against the forces of Earth-1610 in a last stand.
-Originally adversaries of the Avengers, AIM was taken over by Sunspot, who has redirected their efforts to determining how to halt the Multiverse collapse. Sunspot joins forces with Hyperion and his adopted children, the Zebras, founding a team of New Avengers. The New Avengers located the origin point of the Multiverse collapse and the Incursions, and deployed a strike-team to determine the cause and put a halt to it.
The team is composed of Thor, Hyperion, Starbrand, Nightmask, Abyss, Ex Nihilo, and the rest of the Gardeners. They did not survive. The New Avengers then fought against the forces of Earth-1610 in a last stand.
-Doctor Doom learned of the Incursions when one involving the Map Makers occured in Latveria. The alternate Earth was destroyed, but Doom retained fragments of it and the remnants of the Map Makers' drones sent to attack Latveria. In short order Doom had determined the nature of the Incursions, hacked the Map Makers network, and mapped the local Multiverse. Doom intends to use the Molecule Man as part of his plans.
-After leaving the Illuminati, Namor assembled a team of the most ruthless beings in existence to destroy alternate Earths when the Illuminati refused to do so. Namor has begun to regret his decision, as the other members of the Cabal delight in tormenting the alternate Earths' populations and heroes, sadistically torturing them to death rather than mercifully destroying them outright. Trapped, Namor's nerve is beginning to crack, and the other members of the Cabal are beginning to sense his hesitation.
The Cabal learned all that Namor and Black Swan had to tell them of the Multiverse collapse, but seemed content to exterminate alternate Earths at their leisure rather than seek to stop the collapse. The Cabal was nearly destroyed by the machinations of the Illuminati, but managed to escape destruction by fleeing to Earth-1610, where they joined forces with that world's Reed Richards. Aside from Richards, they took no direct action against Earth-616 during the Final Incursion.
-Robotic lifeforms similar to the Super-Adaptoid, capable of adapting and reconfiguring themselves to match any enemy or situation. The origins of the Map Makers are not known, but they may in fact be Adaptoids from another universe - when a group of Adaptoids from Earth-616 built by AIM came into contact with the Map Makers, the 616 Adaptoids immediately transformed into new Map Makers.
Map Makers strip an Earth of all resources, resulting in the death of all life. They then seed the barren Earth with exotic radiation and their drone servants, known as Bridge Builders. When a 'mapped' Earth is involved in an Incursion, the Bridge Builders destroy it to end the Incursion, while moving to the new unmapped Earth. There, the Bridge Builders summon the Map Makers, and the cycle begins again.
The Black Swan considers the Map Makers an 'infection' of the Incursion cycle that should not have occurred. The Map Makers are revealed to be tools created by the Ivory Kings, and were exterminated by the remnants of the Builders prior to the Final Incursion.
-Sorcerors from an empire spanning many worlds. They exist as multiple beings that operate with their minds linked together. They find disciplines such as 'science' and 'magic' to be amusing but limited, and instead use 'the Words', the fundamental underpining of both concepts to shape reality.
The Black Priests use devices called 'Mirrors' to observe the Multiverse, and are aware of most of the ongoing events involving the Incursions and the other factions. They are preparing for the Day of Convergence, the final Incursion where the fate of the Multiverse will be decided.
The Black Priests attacked the library of the Black Swans in an attempt to discern the true identity of Rabum Alal, the mysterious being causing the collapse of the Multiverse. The Black Priests were tricked into confronting the strongest of the Black Swans in their Chamber of Silence, where none of the priests could use their 'Words'. They were subsequently annihilated.
-Engimatic beings of seemingly considerable power. Spoken of with reverence by the Black Swan. They control dimensions beyond the Multiverse known as 'Libraries' - one was given to the Black Swans as a gift. The Black Swans used the Library to observe the Multiverse before it was destroyed by the Black Priests.
The Great Society refused to discuss a previous encounter with an Ivory King and were terrified of the prospect of facing another.
The Ivory Kings are ultimately revealed to be the Beyonders, entities from outside the Multiverse and thus with greater power than any cosmic being within it. While not individually invulnerable, their numbers are vast and they have slain countless cosmic gods with seemingly little effort. The Beyonders decided to destroy the Multiverse purely out of curiosity, seeding the Molecule Man throughout all universes as living time bombs. Doctor Doom discovered their plot, and gathered together many Molecule Men from alternate universes to use as weapons against the Beyonders. Though the Beyonders were seemingly destroyed by their own living weapons, the collapse of the Multiverse they had begun was not stopped - ultimately, their effort to bring about the extinction of the Multiverse succeeded.
-An ancient race, the first lifeforms to evolve in all existence. They once worshipped the universe itself as a female deity, and revered any who took the mantle of Captain Universe as an avatar of their goddess. They founded a Multiverse-spanning empire that occupied nearly 5000 universes, and were responsible for shaping the early development of most living worlds in them, including the universe of Earth-616.
The Builders developed the Gardeners, superbeings designed to shape life, and the Systems, great machines that could empower a world's natives, turning them into superhero champions. The Builders traveled the Multiverse in great fleets using the Superflow, the space between universes.
With the impending collapse of the Multiverse, the Superflow began to collapse as well, leading in turn to the collapse of the Builder empire. Builder fleets stranded in various universes made their ways to Earth to destroy them - in the case of Earth-616, they were defeated by an alliance of races.
Though neutralized in the universe of Earth-616, Builders remain active in other universes and seek to destroy the Earths there to prevent Incursions. One fleet of these alternate Builders theorized that the Multiverse collapse could be halted if every Earth were destroyed, and urged the Illuminati of Earth-616 to sacrifice their own world.
-A cult-like society of females from alternate Earths, the Black Swans worship the cause of the Multiverse's collapse - what they call Rabum Alal, the Great Destroyer. The Black Swans travel to Earths afflicted with Incursions and encourage the local populations to save themselves by destroying alternate Earths. The Black Swans refer to the collapse as the Great Wheel, and regard it as a holy thing which grinds men down or changes them into enlightened destroyers. The destruction of universes feeds the hunger of Rabum Alal, who will eventually consume all things.
The Black Swans were located in a dimensional library that existed outside of time and space, but were eventually found and defeated by the Black Priests. The sole known survivor was Yabbat Ummon Turru - the Black Swan first encountered by the Illuminati. This Black Swan attempted to teach the Illuminati her ruthless ways, but was ultimately imprisoned by them and later joined Namor's Cabal. Yabbat was eventually proved to be a deceiver and a renegade from the Black Swans, who in fact survived their attempted purge and continue to serve the will of Rabum Alal directly. Yabbat learned the truth of Rabum Alal's identity and rejected him, fleeing the Order.
-A team of superheroes who had successfully protected their Earth from Incursions multiple times, in some cases finding ways to spare alternate Earths filled with innocents from destruction. Brave, resourceful, and principled, the Great Society were true heroes in every sense. However, they ultimately met their match in the Illuminati of Earth-616, and were destroyed along with their world.
-A Multiverse-spanning league of superheroes consisting largely of alternate versions of Captain Britain. Their duty is to police and protect the Multiverse. They mobilized to confront the source of the impending Multiverse collapse. The events of the confrontation are not known. However, Captain Britain of Earth-616 claims to be the last Captain Britain in existence, hinting at the annihilation of the corps.
-Also known as the Great Destroyer, he is a being born on an alternate Earth and is responsible for the collapse of the Multiverse and the Incursions. He is worshipped by the Black Swans, who exalt him as righteous and fear his wrath and hunger. The Black Swans believe that the Incursions are a test to those in the Multiverse who have the courage to destroy worlds in order to survive. However, they also believe that ultimately Rabum Alal will destroy everything - the Great Game of Worlds is merely a way to delay this inevitable outcome.
The true identity of Rabum Alal was revealed to be none other than Doctor Victor von Doom of Earth-616. Doom discovered the plot of the Beyonders to destroy the Multiverse using the Molecule Man, and masterminded a scheme to stop them. Using time travel and crossing alternate universes, Doom destroyed many of the Molecule Men before their purpose was fulfilled, eventually founding the Order of the Black Swans to assist him and cloaking his true nature in religious myth to hide his actions from those who would act against him. Eventually, Doom gathered together numerous Molecule Men and turned them into a weapon to strike back at the Beyonders, slaying them all. Doom was not able to halt the collapse of the Multiverse, and instead somehow took the power of the Beyonders for himself.
With the godlike power of the Beyonders at his command, Doom has become a god. The Multiverse has died. All that remains is a single world. The World of Doom.
Battleworld.
The thread covers the story up to around this time. From here on out, we should probably spoiler discussion - that means anything from Avengers #38 and New Avengers #26 onwards.
And you may want to combine the two Infinity sections into one, since they repeat some info anyway.
Other than that, wow, that's a pretty cool summary!
// Switch: SW-5306-0651-6424 //
Also the time stuff from ANXM and age of Ultron. As it is supposed to be relevant to what's happening as well.
Couldn't hurt to reference Axis in the 8 month gap too as an ongoing thing.
I'm also interested to see how AXIS shakes out and if it has any direct impact on the Multiverse stuff - so far there doesn't seem like much. Hence my 'Red Onslaught irrelevant?' remark in the OP.
Sex & the Cthulhu Mythos
The Illuminati (Reed Richards)
Everything dies. You. Me. Everyone on this planet. Our sun. Our galaxy. And, eventually, the universe itself. This is simply how things are. It's inevitable... and I accept it.
What I will not tolerate--what I find unacceptable--is the unnatural acceleration of that end. Which is why T'Challa summoned us here...as the untimely end of everything is what we now face.
The Great Society (Sun God)
Everything lives. It lives before it dies, and we are judged by what we do during that time. Like a brilliant, life-giving star, we illuminate the universe, chasing away the shadows. We create life and then we celebrate that creation. This is simply how things are. It cannot be contained. It never will.
So we will not tolerate-will will not accept--the natural occurrence of an early end. Which is why I have summoned you here... to beat back the night... and to conquer death.
The Cabal (Namor)
Everything dies. You. Me. Everyone on this planet. Our sun. Our galaxy. And, eventually, the universe itself. This is simply how things are. It's inevitable... and I accept it.
What I will not tolerate--what I find unacceptable--is going quietly, like some mewling child, before my time. There is something out there, coming for us, trying to kill us all--and I would do to it what it would do to us. Brothers. Sisters. All the angels have fallen, and we devils are all that remain... so I ask you...will you help me kill worlds?
// Switch: SW-5306-0651-6424 //
Part of it the nature of comic books. Characters are creatures of myth, the same stories get told anew over and over again, characters eventually snap back to forms we recognize from twenty or thirty years ago as new generations of creators take over and move them back to the form they're familiar with. But Hickman is really speeding up that cycle and...well, I still doubt there's going to be any payoff.
I hope to be proven wrong. There are always some fun moments in Hickman's plotting - the Great Society, for example, everybody loves as an Alan Moore-style deconstruction "Look how far we've come from what we should be." - but Alan Moore would have done more with it. Maybe not an object lesson or a turning-back point, but he would have had a better purpose for it all then "Yes, Justice League expies, lol Superman boyscout." I actually often really like what Hickman does playing around in the mythos of a specific character, like T'Challa powering up with the Black Panthers of the past or any time he deals with Stephen Strange and magic, I just hate how far he twists the characters for no reason except to serve the needs of a convoluted plot. I'm not as well sold on Hickman's more original creations; the whole thing with the Builders and the Black Swans and all that happy horsecrap leaves me fairly cold - I mean, let's be honest: if you dig around in the back reaches of Marvel's continuity, you probably could have already unearthed characters that fulfilled the same function and were at least as interesting.
Again, this is just personal kvetching, but whenever I ask somebody to explain why they like the whole multiversal-collapse thing, I get about the same level of detail as why people like the Christopher Nolan Batman movies: it looks cool, the stakes are higher, and it carries the semblance of thought and emotions in the characters. Which is fine if you like it, but it still leaves me a bit empty.
Okay, if that's all tl;dr, let me throw this up here to counterbalance Hickman's "Everything dies." speeches:
Sex & the Cthulhu Mythos
i'm loving it but the reboot hints are worrying me.
they are not rebooting, there is nothing to worry about.
"Ride or Die" confirmed Dominic Toretto, as they took off to find the Dragon Balls in hopes of reviving their friend Sonic
He won't, and if he were you would take a large chunk of what makes the character great (his supporting cast /universe)
"Ride or Die" confirmed Dominic Toretto, as they took off to find the Dragon Balls in hopes of reviving their friend Sonic
I mean, I don't believe its happening. But it would be a genuine surprise.
His supporting cast can come with him.
They are at least referencing each other in their Multiverse sagas. Just like the Illumaniti faced a not-Justice League, Multiversity has featured Not-Marvel worlds and characters (as well as Not-Image worlds and characters) from the DC side.
// Switch: SW-5306-0651-6424 //
Lots of great stuff got addressed, including some cool threads from the first Act that fell by the wayside when Infinity hit - I was happy to see those:
Croatia was Self-Awareness - the human population were mutated into giant worms that acted as huge brain cells, forming together into a 'Worldmind' organism that was accidentally destroyed by Starbrand.
The Savage Land was Self-Sustenance - this site gave rise to the Children of the Sun/the Zebras - perfectly energy-efficient humanoids who require no sustenance and create no waste, and who later help the Avengers-led AIM create better sources of non-hazardous energy.
Japan was Reproduction - the site addressed in Avengers #38.
Australia was Communication - the site produced roach-like creatures that formed a huge organic comm tower. The signal it generated disrupted human technology world-wide and ultimately summoned the Builders to attack Earth, and it had to be destroyed.
India was Self-Repair - huge multi-faced giants were generated from this site, who constructed a giant glyph-shaped stone structure that seemed like it was some kind of anti-Incursion device, which failed. They then attempted to defend the Australia site and had to be destroyed.
Canada was Evolution - this was a weird one visited in Avengers #10 - it absorbed the Alpha Flight member Validator, and used her to protect the site itself. Might be of major importance later on.
Norway was Self-Defense - which generated Pod, a symbiotic seemingly mechanical suit that bonded with a human and kicked the crap out of a dozen Avengers, including Thor and Hyperion, while acting like it was playing. Also addressed in #38.
All very neat concepts producing some interesting characters and creatures.
Sex & the Cthulhu Mythos
Wouldn't be the first time a concept has been re-visited because a writer wanted to put their own spin on it.
Sex & the Cthulhu Mythos
I'd recommend the giant Infinity collection even with the two missing Avengers issues. Right now the trade is 35 bucks on Amazon which gives you free shipping. It retails for 50.
Obviously he shows up in AXIS, but what happened to him after the inversion, and does anyone know what's up with him in New Avengers, since that currently takes place eight months in the future?
Re. Strange
During NA, he again teleports away before the end of the Incursion that hits after Namor leaves the Illuminati - the Incursion that all the Illuminati members believe is going to destroy the Earth since they've chosen not to stop it. He doesn't show up when the Illuminati reconvene to figure out what happens.
Currently MIA. The Illuminati make a point of mentioning that some of their number are still missing. NA Annual 01 features him in a solo story, not sure when it's set - could give a hint at what he's up to (i.e. mystical shadiness).
Let's Play Final Fantasy 'II' (Ch10 - 5/17/10)
Looking like Secret Wars definitely spins out of the Multiverse collapse stuff - I wonder if any of the Multiverse factions like the Mapmakers and the Black Priests get their own little moment in SW, or if we'll hear the last of them by the time it launches.
Diablo 3 - ArtfulDodger#1572
Minecraft - ArtfulDodger42
Miles could die during Secret Wars for all we know.