Avengers (vol. 3) #45
Life During Wartime
The 40th Century
Kang the Conqueror makes an appearance before his army to pump them up for the upcoming invasion of the present day. Turning to his son Marcus, aka the Scarlet Centurion, Kang revels in this moment. Too long had he been wasting his time in an endless war with his future self, Immortus.[1] Now free of this destiny, he can now focus on finally conquering the 21st century like has always wanted. Kang tells his son that it is good for the troops to have a sense of family and view him as the crown prince of the empire.
When Marcus asks about his mother, Kang scoffs at the role a woman played in his son’s life. He explains that Marcus’ mother was one of many women that were collected as breeding stock. Once Marcus was born, she was sent to a secluded planet 25 years in the past. Kang would then visit the boy every fortnight as he grew older and underwent training from the best warriors in the universe. He tells Marcus that his mother is his past and that he needs to look forward to the glorious future he will rule over by his father’s side. They then go over the planned invasion of 21st century Earth, starting with the European continent. Kang then sends Marcus off to prepare the invasion force.
The Present
Captain America and the Avengers have arrived at the Pentagon to meet with military brass to discuss the defensive being set up against Kang’s invasion. Cap has come out even though he is still recovering from injuries sustained fighting the Presence.[2] Right now, the United Nations have troops working around the clock to build fortifications all over Europe to repell Kang’s invading army when they arrive. When they begin calculating the number of losses they are expecting, Thor abruptly excuses himself and leaves the room. When the Wasp wonders what is going on, Firebird believes she knows what’s the matter and goes after the thunder god.
At Avengers Mansion, the Scarlet Witch receives a status up date from Tony Stark. Stark wishes he could be doing more as Iron Man, but Wanda points out that they need Tony Stark the inventor right now than they need Iron Man. She then gets a call from Kro, leader of the Deviants. He thanks the Avengers for stopping a rebellious faction of his people trying to attack the surface world and is in their debt.[3] He concludes the call by saying that if the Avengers ever need a favor they need only ask. That’s when Hank Pym comes to check in and see how Wanda is doing. She is surprised to see that he’s settled on his Yellowjacket persona once more. He explains that it was this identity where he suffered his worse problems and the one he wants to face future ones to make sure he’s cured.[4]
Upstairs, Jack of Hearts emerges from his Zero Chamber, which gives him 4.2 hours as a normal human.[5] He decides to spend this time having a night out on the town with his fellow Avenger, Triathlon. However, on their way out, they are stopped by Warbird and the Vision who want to ask Delroy a few questions. They have just gone over a report from Photon about the Triune Understanding and have learned that they are constructing a star ship to confront a threat from space called the Triple Evil. This ship is supposed to be powered by the belief of the Triune Understanding’s followers, but there is concern that this will cause harm to innocent people and they want to find out the truth. Delroy doesn’t like the idea of spying on his church, but Warbird explains that they are simply looking to get information. She also points out how Delroy still hasn’t learn what connection he has to the long lost 3-D Man.[6]
Back in Washington, Firebird finds Thor standing atop the Jefferson Memorial. With some coaxing she gets Thor to talk about what is bothering him. Once again he explains how, as an immortal, he usually kept his relationships with mortals at arm’s length. However, during his time with the Avengers he has let his guard down. This was something he realized when they had thought they lost Captain America and the others during their battle with the Presence. Thor now wishes to re-establish that distance and is debating stepping away from the team after the conflict with Kang is resolved. Firebird thinks Thor’s way of thinking is wrong and asks him to allow her a chance to convince him otherwise.
At the mansion, Delroy is finally convinced to go along with Warbird’s intelligence mission. When he asks how they plan on gathering this information, the Vision suggests that Triathlon return with the Triunes with an Avenger seeking spiritual guidance.[7] The Vision volunteers himself as he will be able to observe more. He also admits that he finds the idea of learning about the Triune faith since he finds it fascinating. When Delroy and Jack’s taxi finally arrives, the pair convince Carol and the Vision to tag along on their night on the town. While on the roof, Quicksilver broods as he waits for the call to battle. His thoughts are interrupted by Jarvis, the Avengers butler, who has come up to bring him a snack. He admits to Jarvis that there is not a lot that he’s good at except for running into battle and admits that he often waits with anticipation for the alarms to ring.[8]
Meanwhile, the Pentagon brass reveals to the Avengers their back-up plan against Kang: An army of Sentinels that have been rushed into production. Captain America and the Wasp think this is a horrible idea, pointing out the many times that the Sentinels turned against their creators, not to mention how their last use was to decimate New York City.[9] The general in charge says that his hands are tied but he will give the Avengers 96 hours to deal with Kang before the Sentinels are deployed.
That’s when the building is suddenly struck by an earthquake. This is caused by massive metallic walls rise from underground and surround Washington, DC. They are massive spires that reach high into the night sky and are armed with many exotic weapons. Reports come in telling them that similar structures have appeared around every major city in North America. That’s when all transmissions are interrupted by the so-called Master of the World. He tells them that he is seizing control of things and is the only person capable of standing up against Kang.
Recurring Characters
Avengers (Captain America, Firebird, Jack of Hearts, Quicksilver, Scarlet Witch, Thor, Triathlon, Vision, Wasp, Yellowjacket), Kang, Scarlet Centurion, Master of the World, Tony Stark, Kro, Sentinels, Edwin Jarvis
Continuity Notes
Kang the Conqueror warred Immortus for years, starting in the Celestial Madonna affair that took place in Avengers #129-135 and Giant-Size Avengers #2-4. During this time, Kang learned that Immortus was his future self and grew to despise the fact that he went from conqueror to shepherd of 6 centuries of time. More recently, the destinies of Kang and Immortus were separated a temporal divergence, giving Kang an unwritten destiny. See Avengers Forever #1-12.
One would think that Captain America’s injuries here are from when he was transformed into a radioactive zombie by the Presence in Avengers (vol. 3) #41-45. However, they are actually from surviving a bomb explosion in Captain America (vol. 3) #50 that happened between that story and this one.
The Deviant rebellion was led by Dulpus in Avengers (vol. 3) #42-44. They were repelled by the Avengers when they attempted to invade China.
The discussion about Hank Pym’s choice of being Yellowjacket is referring to Hank Pym’s history of mental break downs over the years and his most recent identity crisis. The details:
Hank’s first mental breakdown occurred in Avengers #59-60. Convinced he was someone else, he created the Yellowjacket persona and tried to convince the Avengers that Hank Pym was dead until they managed to snap him out of it.
Hank’s second breakdown happened in Avengers #213, when he couldn’t handle the pressure of being on the Avengers anymore. He took this out on his wife, the Wasp, by striking her in the face. This led to a downward spiral that included getting framed for a crime (Avengers #217), being imprisoned (#224), and eventually clearing his name (Avengers #228-230). He abandoned the Yellowjacket persona and quit costumed heroics all together after that.
His third mental break came when he was dumped by Tigra in West Coast Avengers (vol. 2) #16. This led him to contemplate suicide. Luckily he was stopped by Firebird who convinced Hank to reinvent himself as a science adventurer as seen in West Coast Avengers (vol. 2) #17-21.
Hank returned to costumed heroics in Avengers #366. More recently, he was split into two separate entities by a magic spell in Avengers (vol. 3) #28. This eventually led to the two at risk of fading away until they were reunited in Avengers Annual 2001.
When Jack first got his powers in Deadly Hands of Kung Fu #22, he was required to wear a specially suit of armor to contain his powers at all time or risk a build up of zero energy and explode. The chamber seen here negates these powers for a few hours and makes him appear human when usually half of his body is black skinned due to his mixed Contraxian heritage. That all said, Jack’s ability to use this machine to suppress his powers will stop working by Avengers (vol. 3) #61. From then on he will have to spend his time in a sealed chamber until his body lets loose a powerful discharge.
The Triune’s space ship and the threat of the Triple Evil was relayed to Photon by Firestar and Justice in Avengers Annual 2001. The couple have been posing as Triune followers since they left the team in Avengers (vol. 3) #27. Peggy Chandler, wife of 3-D Man, came to Avengers Mansion to see if there was a connection between her husband and Triathlon in Avengers (vol. 3) #36. At the time of this story, Delroy was led to believe that the Triunes merely unlocked his full potential, as explained in issue #8. In Avengers (vol. 3) #50 we’ll learn that Triathlon was actually got his powers by being merged with 3-D Man. Mention is made that Triathlon had access to Avengers priority com channels, he had them as early as Avengers (vol. 3) #13. Although no concrete proof was found, issue #55 it is suggested that Tremont likely stole them from Duane Freeman’s mind during a mental cleansing ritual.
The Vision points out that he and Warbird would be ideal candidates to be Triune converts:
He mentions how Carol is a recovering alcoholic. Danvers started drinking in Avengers (vol. 3) #4 to cope with the loss of her Binary powers. Her poor judgement led to her getting kicked off the Avengers in issue #7. She continued drinking and fucking up until she almost crashed an commercial airliner full of passengers in Iron Man (vol. 3) #23. Carol has been attending Alcoholics Anonymous since Avengers (vol. 3) #26.
The Vision states that he has lost his wife. He is referring to the Scarlet Witch. The two had been married for years starting in Giant-Size Avengers #4. The two had been estranged since Avengers #312 and the Vision eventually ended things in Avengers (vol. 3) #4.
Here, Quicksilver refers to himself as a failed husband and father:
Pietro has been married to Crystal of the Inhumans since Fantastic Four #150. The two have been in and on-again-off-again relationship since Crystal was caught cheating on him in Vision and the Scarlet Witch (vol. 2) #12. Presently, Crystal decided to spend more time apart in Quicksilver #7.
In happier times, Quicksilver and Crystal had a child together named Luna in Fantastic Four #240. Whenever Pietro and his wife were on the outs, Luna stayed with her mother. When Crystal was believed to have died in Onslaught: Marvel Universe #1, Pietro tried to raise Luna but was frequently called away on adventures as seen in Quicksilver #1-7.
The Sentinels have a long history of turning on their masters or against humanity in general. The times that Cap references are:
The original Sentinels, created by Bolivar Trask, turned against their master when they concluded that in order to protect humanity from mutants it would have to first conquer humanity. See X-Men #14-16.
The second model of Sentinels were created by Larry Trask, Bolivar’s son. They also turned against him in X-Men #57-59. Cyclops convinced these robots that the sun was the source of mutation on Earth, prompting the robots to foolishly try and extinguish the star. They returned again in Avengers #102-104 only to be trashed by the Avengers. Remnants of the Mark 2 Sentinels were also destroy in Marvel Super-Heroes (vol. 2) #6-8 and Wolverine (vol. 2) #73-74.
Cap also mentions the time that the Sentinels decimated New York City. This happened after they were reprogrammed by Onslaught in X-Men (vol. 2) #46. See Onslaught: X-Men #1, Amazing Spider-Man #415, Green Goblin #12, Spider-Man #72, Punisher (vol. 3) #11, X-Men (vol. 2) #55-56, and Iron Man #332.
