Mating Dance

Quasar, aka Wendell Vaughn, and Makkari are finally moving into the apartment that the pair have rented out together.[1] As they make renovations, the make small talk. Wendell talks about his new responsibilities to protect Eon’s daughter Epoch, while Makkari talks about his life, which has spanned multiple millennia. That’s when Wendell’s Quantum Bands alert him of an alien presence near by. He uses his bands to transform into his Quasar costume, however Makkari points out that Wendell is wearing his older costume. Vaughn quickly corrects this before going outside to see what’s causing the disturbance.[2]

The strange energy source turns out to be Jack of Hearts. Quasar is glad to see him alive and well,[3] but Jack cuts the chatter and demands to talk somewhere safely away from others to discuss Quasar’s romance with Moondragon.[4] Quasar, seeing that Jack has feelings for Moondragon, tells her he has nothing to worry about because he has no interest in her whatsoever. This is enough to appease Jack who then takes off. On his way back to Moondragon’s ship, Jack of Hearts encounters the artificial being known as Her. She is seeking an ideal mate to procreate with by finding the most powerful human on Earth.[5] Sensing Jack’s alien nature she decides to turn him down and keep looking. When Jack returns to Moondragon’s ship and reports his encounter with Her, Moondragon hopes that she won’t be competition in her efforts to win over Quasar.

By the time Quasar returns to his apartment, he discovers that Makkari has finished all of the work and unpacking at super-speed. That’s when he gets a call from Hercules at Avengers Mansion, who asks Quasar to come down and do him a favor.[6]

While Quasar is away, Her continues her search for an ideal mate by following the energy signatures of powerful beings in the area. Her first stop is Charles Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters. There she is greeted by Wolverine, Cyclops, and Colossus. However, she soon determines that they are all mutants and not worthy of being the father of her children and takes off. As she heads to her next destination, her course is tracked by Moondragon telepathically. Growing increasingly concerned that Her might choose Quasar, the telepath decides to take an active role in dealing with Her.

Meanwhile, Her arrives in Hollywood, California, where she finds Wonder Man in a meeting with his agent. She is pleased by how strong he is and tells her his intentions. Not opposed to the idea, Wonder Man allows Her to kiss him on the lips, little knowing she is also implanting a small cocoon on his back that is drawing energy from his body. She tells him that she must go and test other super humans and that if she finds him worthy she will be back. Her search takes her all over the world where she interacts with Captain Britain, Doctor Druid, and Doctor Strange, the Hulk, the Thing, Nova, Doctor Specturm, Aquarian, the Sub-Mariner, Vanguard, Cable, Battlestar, Rage, Makkari, the Whizzer, and US Agent. However, none of them turn out to be suitable to her standards for varying reasons.

By this time, Hercules, Thor, and Quasar have all been hauled into Avengers Headquarters to answer to Captain America for the brawl they just recently had. However, the disciplinary hearing is interrupted when the alarms in the mansion go off, warning them of an intruder. They find Her in the training room.[7] She explains that she has come to find the ideal mate and decides that Hercules matches her criteria. Like with Wonder Man before him, she kisses the demigod and leaves a cocoon on his back before leaving to test others. After she leaves, both Quasar and Captain America notice Her’s parting gift. However they are reluctant to remove it in case it is alive. Instead, Quasar decides to go after Her and find out what she is doing.

As he follows Her’s trail, Quasar runs into Hyperion who just encountered Her. After telling his friend to go to Avengers Headquarters, he continues on the trail. Catching up with her, Wendell uses his Quantum Bands to slow her down so they can talk. Her explains that her chosen mates have been fit with cocoons that will draw energy from the host into her offspring. Quasar tries to explain that she can’t just “impregnate” men without telling them or getting their consent is wrong. She doesn’t take kindly to this and begins attacking him, but Quasar is able to fend off her attacks and ultimately subdues her. He learns that there have been others and Quasar tries to haul Her back to Avengers Mansion to undo what she has done.

Along the way, Hyperion arrives again to tell Quasar what he already knows about the cocoons. That’s when Her begins breaking free from her quantum energy prison, deciding that Quasar will make the ideal mate after all after dismissing him earlier. However, before she can force a cocoon on him, Moondragon’s ship appears before them and Jack of Heart emerges looking to make Her pay for crossing his mistress.

Recurring Characters

Quasar, Her, Makkari, Jack of Hearts, Avengers (Captain America, Thor, Hercules), Hyperion, Moondragon, X-Men (Cyclops, Wolverine, Colossus), Wonder Man, Neal Saroyan, Captain Britain, Doctor Strange, Doctor Druid, Aquarian, Nova, Doctor Spectrum, Sub-Mariner, Thing, Hulk, Cable, Vanguard, Whizzer, Rage, US Agent, Battlestar

Continuity Notes

1. A footnote here tells readers that this story takes place after the events of Infinity Gauntlet #1-6.

2. The costume Quasar wills from his Quantum Bands is the one given to him by Origin in Quasar #18. Wendell had since changed to a new costume that was an amalgamation of all his previous outfits in Quasar #25.

3. Quasar last saw Jack of Hearts in Quasar #19-20, an encounter that ended when the Presence ruptured Jack’s containment suit causing the zero energy in his body to overload and explode. Jack was revived by Moondragon last issue.

4. Moondragon had been trying to get close to Quasar and get him to fall in love with her since Quasar #11. He later rejected her advances in Quasar #26.

5. There is a log going on with Her in this story. Allow me to explain:

   • Adam Warlock, originally named Him, was created by the rogue scientists known as the Enclave as the perfect artificial man, as seen in Fantastic Four #66-67.

   • Years later, the Enclave tried to recreate this experiment in Incredible Hulk Annual #6, creating a male entity called Paragon. Paragon eventually transformed into a female form and sought out Adam Warlock to be her mate in Marvel Two-In-One #61-63.

   • This quest reached a dead end due to the fact that, at the time, Warlock was dead after sacrificing his life to stop Thanos in Marvel Two-In-One Annual #2. More recently, Warlock eventually resurrected himself in Silver Surfer (vol. 3) #46.

   • Her finally tracked down Warlock last issue, but he was not DTF and turned her away.

6. Hercules asks Quasar to help him free Thor from the mental control of the Enchantress. See Thor #437 for all the details.

7. Quasar recounts his recent encounter with Her in Toronto. That happened in Alpha Flight #99-101.

Topical References

• In this story, Makkari states that he is 4500 years old. Due to the Sliding Timescale, this age should be considered an estimate rather than a hard date as the Modern Age is pushed forward in time, the number of years he has been alive will continue to grow. It’s not going to make a huge difference given mow many thousands of years he has been alive it’s going to only be a relative discrepancy.