Omega! The Ultimate Enemy!

Crystal is the prisoner of Omega, a massive Android responsible for the Alpha Primitive uprising. Her two suitors, the Human Torch and Quicksilver, have come to her rescue. Omega threatens to kill the girl if the two heroes refuse to join him in his coming revolt against the Inhumans. The two refuse to fight while Crystal is their prisoner. While Johnny distracts Omega with his flame powers, Pietro frees Crystal from his grips. Reviving from her capture, Crystal tries to use her elemental powers against Omega but finds that they only serve to make him grow in size and become more powerful. Omega then orders the Alpha Primitives to attack.

Meanwhile, just on the surface, a ship carrying Reed, Johnny, and Medusa approaches the Hidden Land of the Inhumans. They quickly notice that the protective dome is still surrounding the city. The dome drops, but Reed loses control of the ship, forcing Ben to smash through the floor and try to brace their impact. Landing safely, they are joined by the rest of the Inhuman royal family, who apologize for not lowering the dome sooner and explain their current crisis: How the Inhumans have risen up against their masters and captured Crystal, how Johnny and Pietro went after her in the sealed tunnels, and how a perpetual motion machine created by Maximus might be the key to the current crisis.

When the Thing goes to clear the blocked tunnel, he is battered aside when Omega and his army of loyal Alpha Primitives smash through from the other side. The two members of the Fantastic Four and the royal family begin fighting Omega and his army, but all their attacks serve to do is only make Omega larger and stronger. To make matters worse, the rest of the Inhumans have decided to take up arms, regardless of Black Bolt's decree to not engage and storm into battle.

Reed rushes to the chamber where Maximus' perpetual motion machine is, and although it seems like an innocuous and useless device, Reed believes that it is more to it than meets the eye. Listening in on Maximus from outside his cell, Mister Fantastic hears Maximus gloat about how his machine is the key to everything, confirming his suspicions. He returns to the others and tells them that they have to destroy the machine, but when they head back to the palace they are suddenly stopped by Johnny, Quicksilver, and Crystal. Instead of listening to their warnings, Reed, Ben, and Medusa fight back. Eventually, they get Reed and the others to listen and Richards realizes that the fight has to stop before there is anymore bloodshed.

Using his body as a shield to stop more fighting, Reed orders them all to stop, his command mirrored by Black Bolt. When both sides of the conflict cease-fire to listen, Reed tells them that Crystal can explain the situation. Crystal explains that the device built by Maximus uses the mental waves from the collective guilt the Inhumans feel for enslaving the Alpha Primitives, and it is that guilt that causes Omega to grow in size and power. She explains that once the Alpha Primitives are truly set free all hostilities will end. As it turns out when the Inhumans all turn away and return to their homes, Omega suddenly becomes inert and the now emancipated Alpha Primitives return to their home below Attilan.

The next day the three remaining members of the Fantastic Four are called to an honored gathering in their tattered uniforms. When Reed asks why Medusa shows them a device that will repair them. Subjecting herself it first, it transforms her outfit into her own stylized Fantastic Four costume. She tells the group that she wants to join them on a goodwill mission on behalf of the Inhumans as she is apparently immune to the pollution in the outside world. Her request to join the FF is greeted positively. When Johnny is exposed to the device, it not only repairs his costume but changes the colors to red and yellow, patterned after his namesake the original Human Torch from World War II. When Johnny questions if his love of the comic books published about the wartime hero caused him to get the powers he did when exposed to cosmic rays, Reed says he hopes not because he considers his choice of reading the material at the time somewhat embarrassing. When Reed is exposed to the device, it only repairs his costume, leaving its pattern virtually the same. Regardless, Reed welcomes Medusa into their ranks as the new Fantastic Four. As they celebrate, Pietro watches from afar, brooding over what will happen next.

Later, Crystal calls Johnny aside to talk to him and she tells him that she has decided that they have been apart for too long and that she truly loves for Pietro. Johnny mans up and tells her that after calming down and thinking about it some, he has come to the same conclusion and looks forward to being single again and intends to look up his old girlfriend Doris Evans when he gets home. The two agree to be friends and Crystal goes to be with Quicksilver. When Ben asks Johnny what he is up to that evening, Johnny tells Ben that he has nothing planned, as he chokes back tears over losing Crystal.

Recurring Characters

Fantastic Four (Mister Fantastic, Medusa, Thing, Human Torch), Quicksilver, Inhumans (Black Bolt, Crystal, Gorgon, Karnak, Triton), Maximus, Omega the Ultimate Alpha

Continuity Notes

• This story states that Pietro is a mutant and at the time of this publication this is what everyone, Pietro included, was led to believe. However, it was revealed many years later that Pietro was experimented on by the High Evolutionary. In order to cover up his experiments, he made it so anyone who investigated Pietro's abilities he would register as a mutant. This fact was revealed in Uncanny Avengers (vol. 2) #4-5.

• Johnny once again references his appreciation for the original Human Torch of World War II. Johnny first referenced him as an inspiration in Fantastic Four #126. Johnny's costume is patterned after the red and yellow costume commonly worn by the original Torch. The original Torch first began wearing this iconic costume in Marvel Mystery Comics #5.

• Medusa joins the ranks of the Fantastic Four starting this issue. She remains a part of the team until Fantastic Four #159 when the Invisible Girl rejoins the group full time.

• Johnny makes reference to his previous girlfriend Doris Evans. Johnny dated Doris from Strange Tales #113-133. The pair stopped dating in Fantastic Four #45 when Doris grew sick of Johnny's absences and began dating other men. Incidentally enough that was the first story in which Johnny met Crystal.