Synopsis / Summary / Plot
Last issue, while Alpha Flight are away in the Infinity War event with the other big heroes in New York and in a distant dimension, their old foe the self-styled Master Of The World decided to throw a wrench into Magus' plans to take over the world he thought of as *his*. He sent his new Omega Flight to invade the mind of Talisman and open the door to a banished branch of mankind known as the Ska'r. The rookie team Beta Flight, recently demoted to Gamma Flight, sneaked out for a night on the town in Toronto but ran into some signs of the Ska'r including a man they nicknamed Firebug.
The Ska'r are driving humans to unleash their dark side. Windshear, who's supposed to be looking after Gamma Flight, has just come from seeing Talisman taken to hospital and now stops a man from deliberately running down a female pedestrian. But she now seems more interested in exploring some other base instincts with the hero.
Instead he flies over to the fire where Witchfire is trying to keep Firebug contained within a magic shield. But he keeps blowing himself up, straining her mental control. On his latest attempt she switches to surrounding the various parts of the foe with force bubbles, keeping him from reforming. As usual Windshear blames the young team for being here at all, ignoring any good they're doing. While Highbrow, 1 of Manikin's avatars, tries to warn his Prime Unit of the approach of villain Mad-Dog.
In the distant dimension an expeditionary force of heroes have caught up with Thanos and Adam Warlock's Infinity Watch who they think are behind the Infinity War. The 2 sides are battling while AF leader Guardian (Heather Hudson) thinks she's out of her depth. She sees Sasquatch taken down and former member Shaman ignoring her. Wolverine advises her to drown her doubts in action, which leads to some fighting mirrored in IW#4 where Gamora kicks She-Hulk in the stomach and Guardian and Logan tackle her.
Meanwhile the apparently stand-offish Shaman has actually been mentally contacting his daughter Talisman in her hospital bed on Earth. He makes her delve into her own mind to find the door that Omega Flight made her open so she can understand what she set free. We see some of the Ska'r on Earth having consumed some corrupted humans.
Back with Gamma Flight another Manikin avatar Apeman has tackled Mad-Dog as he leaps at Witchfire. Windshear grabs her to drag her out of the way but this makes her lose control of Firebug who immediately regenerates. Windshear blasts the bad guy with solid air as he explodes but that just widely scatters him. Armoured Windshear survives the explosion but Persuasion fears for Witchfire, Manikin and his avatars. However Highbrow has teleported them to safety. The Apeman and Proto avatars keep beating on Mad-Dog while Witchfire lambasts Windshear. Colin Hume just blames *them* again until Persuasion possesses him to shut him up.
The Master Of The World and Omega Flight are watching the carnage in Toronto from on high. Eshu stops his minions from squabbling and promises them the Earth (literally) when they are done. Canada will be lost to the Ska'r but that will be a small price to pay for thwarting Magus. Somehow his alien-enhanced mind is able to detect the villain in his fortress many dimensions away (not the same 1 where the heroes and the Watch are fighting), and knows of his plan to duplicate the Earth and take over the minds of its populace.
Next we look in on other Alpha Flight'ers in the Fantastic Four HQ where other heroes are fighting their evil Doppelgangers. We see Northstar and Puck in the melee but we concentrate on Weapon Omega giving Aurora and Box (off-panel) tactical advice when he himself is attacked a Daredevil-Dop. He accidentally 'kills' the Dop, and his own Dop unmasks as an evil version of Wild Child to accuse him of still being his savage self. Kyle Gibney seems to prove him right with a vicious attack. Meanwhile Aurora is failing against the Aurora-Dop who is about to absorb her. But then she switches to her Jeanne-Marie personality who's light of peace dispels the evil Dop.
Back in Toronto Witchfire suggests they stop fighting the symptoms and look for the cause. She reminds them that (last issue) Laura Dean said her sister Goblyn sensed an evil presence, and she sensed something similar mystically. Now she concentrates and sense foul beings. But MOTW has sent Omega Flight to stop them investigating.
And Talisman finds herself in a pile of bones. And the Ska'r sense her and Gamma Flight.