She lands in the ruins of
Castle Doom. Inside she finds what she thinks is an empty armour with a cloak ... until it speaks to her - but very civilly. Emboldened she asks the armour to take off its mask, and is taken aback when it turns out to really *be* Dr Doom. Riri hadn't actually been expecting Doom to be home. She was just hoping to find clues as to his current whereabouts.
So she now says what she came to say to Doom - he must stop being Iron Man.
Meanwhile also last issue
Thing returned to his Manhattan apartment to find
Reed Richards waiting for him. (But we know it's really the evil
Maker from the (former)
Ultimate Universe.) Now Maker is trying to persuade
Ben Grimm that he's the real deal by recounting shared memories.
Thing still doesn't believe him and attacks. But when Maker responds by elastically stretching Grimm has to pause to consider the possibility he's telling the truth.
Back in Latveria Ironheart is ready to fight but Iron Doom continues to just talk. Riri tells Victor Von Doom he's disgracing Tony Stark's legacy. People are blaming Iron Man for the things he does. But Victor counters that he *is* now Iron Man, and he questions her sole right to the brand. Riri is reluctant to tell him about the AI based on Tony Stark that advises her.
But the AI and Victor both advise her that Doom would win in any fight. Doom suggests that he might go easy on her and teleport her back home. AI Tony threatens to take control of the armour and retreat, but Riri insists on staying.
Victor asks her why she left MIT. Riri says she was bored (but neglects to mention that the authorities didn't look kindly on her 'borrowing' material and equipment to build her 1st armour). Victor sympathises (but doesn't say that it was his arrogance that made him impatient in his own college days). However he recommends she go back to school because on reflection he now realises college had a lot to teach him.
Von Doom now explains why he's here in his old home. He tells Riri about Lucullus Virgil McWhorter who documented Native American culture. In particular about the vision quest where a young person would seek their weyekin or spirit guide, through fasting and cold and closeness to nature. Victor says *he* had a vision during a fight (
#6). He thinks he was contacted by the superior technology of *a* future. Now here he's been meditating to try to see it again.
Back in Manhattan, Ben hasn't seen Reed since
Secret Wars III, or whatever the current world thinks happened then. Human Torch suggested Reed was dead in
Uncanny Avengers v3 #2. So Thing is understandably upset that his friend has been alive all this time and not contacted him. He asks about Reed's wife
Sue. Reed says she's OK but she doesn't know he's come here. He avoids the next question about where they've been hiding by saying that he has to ask Ben to do something, and to trust him that it is necessary. He wants Thing to kill Dr Doom.
Our last scene change takes us back to Latveria where Ironheart points out that according to him Victor was under stress when he had his vision, so meditation is a bad move. Doom says he'd come to that conclusion too. He asks Riri to attack him, but now she can't bring herself to do it. Even when Victor points out that if it doesn't work he'll just get knocked out, and she can get the kudos for capturing him. But now AI Tony switches to recommending an attack.
Ironheart fires repeated repulsor blasts at Dr Doom until he stops telling her to continue. That's because he is now in vision mode again. He sees the large circular structure as before. But this time he sees a figure approach and talk to him. The figure says it's been very difficult getting through. And then we and Doom see
Tony Stark floating in a robe with the
Cloak of Levitation and
Amulet of Agamotto belonging to
Dr Strange.
For the special marvelite in you