Several
Avengers—
Hercules,
Captain Marvel,
Black Knight, and
Sub-Mariner—are trapped in a tornado created by the
Beyonder, now speeding through the American Midwest.
CM tries using electrical currents to stop the twister,
Namor tries running the opposite direction, Black Knight swings his
Ebony Blade but all these fail. It’s Hercules who claps his hands and disperses the vortex, creating a second problem: they are plummeting from one thousand feet in the air. Flying Namor catches Black Knight and holds him up, CM takes control of the
Quinjet, but poor
Herc falls all the way down and into a farmer’s barn. Herc is annoyed that Namor didn’t catch him but
BK defends
Subby who had his hands full of the Knight and, besides, Herc was the most likely Avenger to come out of that fall unscathed. Which he did. Herc and Subby end up quarrelling anyway so CM has to discourage them with lightning. The two big guys work together to pull the Quinjet out of the lake where she brought it down. The dumbfounded farmer is given a number to call for reimbursement for his demolished barn and BK admires CM’s leadership qualities….
Captain America awakens in a hollow inside a Colorado mountain, manacled to a wall. The Beyonder reveals his plan to end the universe because it disturbs him and he wants his feeling of contentment back….
The Avengers discover Beyonder’s location through a device in the Quinjet, but then they are at a loss. They have sent a call out to any other available heroes but can’t wait for help to arrive. Hercules suggests killing the Beyonder as he once killed the giant
Antaeus by exploiting his weakness (the giant was invulnerable drawing strength from the ground; Herc held him in the air while he killed him) but the Beyonder has no known weaknesses. Namor realizes the only option with such a being is to surrender…and then he has an idea….
Back in the cavern, the Beyonder sleeps so
Cap manages to loosen his hands within his gauntlets and slip out of the manacles. Realizing the Beyonder may dream and accidentally wipe out the universe in his sleep, Cap decides to knock him unconscious and leaps—only to be frozen in midair; Beyonder wanted to see what Cap would do and he is disappointed that Cap, his model for humanity, chose violence. He ponders leaving Cap in the suspension field for eternity but he hears Namor outside, asking to enter. Beyonder phases Namor through the wall and the former King of
Atlantis begs his new master’s forgiveness on his knees. They go off and Hercules, Captain Marvel, and Black Knight crash in and try to free Cap from the force field. But the Beyonder already knows everything and has trapped Namor in a similar field; he hurls Namor at Cap, cancelling both stasis fields. Herc tries to rebuke him but Beyonder grows into a giant being, repelling all of their attacks while wallowing in his despair. He absorbs CM in lightning form and hurls her back at the others. The Avengers are overwhelmed and Beyonder almost has admiration for their heroism but no, he can’t leave anyone alive….
Story continued in
SECRET WARS II #9.
For the special marvelite in you