To Save the Eternals!

Maelstrom has captured the Wasp and Captain Marvel in the Eternal city of Olympia and intends to steal the power of the Uni-Mind. Learning of this scheme, the Vision and the Scarlet Witch come to their rescue. As the Vision goes ahead to scout the area, the Scarlet Witch uses the Quinjet’s computer to pull up their files on Maelstrom. It is a report made by the Thing detailing his encounter with the Deviant/Inhuman hybrid, a conflict that ended with Maelstrom’s seeming demise.[1] When the Vision returns he startles Wanda and she expresses her unhappiness with the way he has been acting, particularly with the secrets he had been keeping such as trying to establish the Avengers chairmanship as a cabinet post within the government. However she forgives him when he gives a heartfelt apology and she hugs him. With a sinister looking grin, the Vision promises her that he’ll do better in the future, saying that she is very important to him.[2]

They then return their attention to Maelstrom who is in the center of the Eternal city Olympia. By this time the mad geneticist has put on an energy harness that will allow him to siphon the power of the Eternal’s Uni-Mind. He gloats to the Wasp about how easy it was him to just walk into the Eternals city without a second glance. The Wasp doesn’t understand how Maelstrom can do this to his own people and he corrects her by saying he is actually a Deviant/Inhuman hybrid.[3] As Maelstrom prepares to siphon the Uni-Mind’s energies his actions are observed from a nearby watchtower by his minion, the mysterious Deathurge. That’s when the Vision arrives and disrupts Maelstrom’s machine with his phasing power. The madman is furious that the Deathurge didn’t warn him or attack the newcomer, little knowing that the ebon warrior is following his own agenda.

With the Uni-Mind free from Maelstrom’s siphon, the Scarlet Witch uses a hex bolt to force the Eternals to separate in order to prevent the villain from continuing his grab for power.[4] By this time, Captain Marvel manages to use her powers to shatter the Leech Manacles that have been restraining her and the Wasp. Maelstrom tries to fight back with the energies he has already stolen but the Vision shatter his power harness. Among the Eternals, Starfox is the first to recover and joins his fellow Avengers in battle. Unfortuantely the Eternal from Titan uses physical force which works against him since Maelstrom has the innate ability to absorb kinetic energy to make himself stronger. The other Eternals join the fight but Maelstrom fights them all off.

Recovering from the attack, the Vision coordinates Captain Marvel to attack him with microwaves while the Wasp unleashes a barrage of bio-stings, With his powers dwindling and defeat immanent, Maelstrom orders Deathurge to attend to him. The mysterious figure then throws his ebon axe which passes through Maelstrom, killing him instantly. When the Avengers try to stop Deathurge he simply phases through the ground. Captain Marvel tries to follow in her energy form but quickly loses track of the killer.

With the battle over, the Eternals have finally made a decision on their next course of action thanks to bonding together as the Uni-Mind. It has been decided that in order to maintain peace among them they must split off into two factions again.[5] A team of Eternals led by Valkin then reform the Uni-Mind and leave the Earth, taking the inert block that was once the Deviants along with them for a new home among the stars. While the other Avengers are in awe, the Vision wonders if he can count the remaining Eternals as allies in his ever expanding plans. Unaware of their leaders scheming, the Avengers are invited back to Sersi’s apartment in New York to resume the party they had left earlier and hopes that there are still people left over after all the excitement.

Elsewhere, Deathurge arrives at one of Maelstrom’s hideouts where a new clone body is almost ready for his master’s mind to be transferred into so he can continue his mad schemes anew. However, Deathurge only intends to remain loyal to his master until it is finally time for him to die for good.

Recurring Characters

Avengers (Wasp, Scarlet Witch, Vision, Starfox, Captain Marvel), Maelstrom, Deathurge, Eternals (Uni-Mind, Thena, Ikaris, Makkari, Sersi, Valkin, Ajak, Zarin, Aginar)

Continuity Notes

1. The Thing battled Maelstrom in Marvel Two-In-One #72.

2. The Vision talked with the President about this cabinet post in Avengers #246. Little does anyone know is that the Vision has been formulating a scheme to take over Earth’s computer in order to create a utopia that has been in motion since issue #238. His plans will come to fruition in Avengers #252-254.

3. Mention is made to how most of the Deviants have been transformed into a block of matter that they are standing on. This happened in Iron Man Annual #8.

4. Here, Wanda’s hex powers are referred to as a mutant ability. However, she is not actually a mutant. It’s later revealed in Uncanny Avengers (vol. 2) #4 that she was experimented upon as an infant by the High Evolutionary. In order to cover up his work he made it so future genetic tests would have her register as a mutant.

5. This move is inspired by two past such instances where the Eternals divided camp centuries earlier. The first was the exile of Uranos following an Eternal civil war against his brother Chronos. After Chronos gave the Eternals immortality at the expense of his physical form his sons Zuras and Alars found themselves at odds over who would lead, ultimately Alars left to find Uranos’ Eternals and founded the Eternal colony on Titan. This was retold last issue but the original tale was depicted in What If? #24-28.