Avengers

by James A. Moore

  The Widow took out the Gardener with a flurry of blows, and Hawkeye did the same for the Engineer. The remaining Avengers moved to the containment tubes, taking a moment to decipher the controls before they released Abyss, Nightmask, and Starbrand.

  That left only one more.

  * * *

  BY THE time the Builders understood the scope of the attack against them, it was simply too late.

  Kl’rt was a champion among his people, one of the most brutal and effective fighters they had ever bred. Had any of his people forgotten that fact—and many had—they were reminded that day. His strikes were as precise as a surgeon cutting away a malignant tumor. He crippled five ships before their defensive systems could be brought online.

  It wasn’t long before the Builders called for a retreat. The majority of the fleet jumped to distant points. A smaller faction—still large enough to cause mayhem—remained behind to grant them cover.

  * * *

  “EDEN, GIVE me some good news.” Captain America’s voice came through loud and clear.

  “We’ve liberated them, sir,” Manifold replied.

  “Acknowledged. That’s good news. Is everyone okay?”

  “Everyone is conscious now except for Captain Universe. She’s still in a coma, near as we can tell.”

  “Understood. I want you to jump everyone out of there, okay? There’s still a battle going on out there. We’ve done a lot of damage, but there’s still a lot to accomplish.”

  “Yes, sir.” Manifold gestured to get the attention of the heroes clustered around him. “Okay, Captain America says we need to evacuate, so everyone get—”

  “Not yet,” Black Widow said.

  “But Cap said—”

  “I know, but we still have friends and allies dying.” She focused her full attention on the thin figure of the man called Starbrand. “It’s time, Kevin.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  Eden suspected Kevin knew. Not that long ago, he’d been a college student. Since then he’d been recruited by the Avengers, who were working to help him both control and better understand his powers.

  They do that a lot, he mused.

  The Star Brand was an organic planetary defense system. In addition to granting him extraordinary strength and endurability, it enabled him to manipulate energy. He could generate destructive blasts and impenetrable force shields. On one of his first excursions, he’d knocked the Hulk into orbit. Literally.

  “That thing on your hand,” Natasha said. “What you are. You have the power to end this.” When he didn’t answer, she continued. “Ever since you got the brand, you’ve been asking yourself, ‘Why me?’ Well, why don’t you show us?”

  Manifold admired her calm in the face of a terrifying force. She was asking this skinny kid to unleash an unbelievable degree of power, yet she spoke as if she might be asking him to pick up some groceries.

  “I can try.”

  “I think you can do a hell of a lot more than that.”

  Looking down at his hands, Kevin Connor steeled himself. His hands glowed. The radiance spread to the symbol on his chest, then danced around him. His eyes took on the brilliance of twin suns, and then he held up his right hand. The mark of a star that always showed there grew even brighter than his eyes.

  “Get us out of here, Eden,” Natasha said. “Now.”

  Manifold looked away from that glow and generated his own, quickly sweeping up his teammates and allies. They reappeared on the deck of the Lilandra and immediately clustered at the viewport— just in time to see the Builder flagship disintegrate in a flash of energy. All of the remaining Builder ships followed it into oblivion.

  As the glow faded, they saw a single figure standing on a piece of the rubble, his hand still held high.

  Then the cheering began.

  Captain America and Gladiator stood toward the back of the deck. They remained silent. Their expressions were unreadable.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

  ABYSSI

  THEY MOVED like streaks across the cosmos, leaving trails as surely as a comet does. Ex Nihilo and Abyss had the ability to fly through the void. They could generate their own atmosphere if needed. They could also move at speeds few living things could manage.

  Ex Nihilo considered the way in which the universe itself could change when no one was looking. As the Avengers liberated his sister and then prepared to annihilate a portion of the Builder’s fleet, they encountered another of his kind, an antlered female. He was stunned by the knowledge. He knew, intellectually, that they must exist, yet he had never expected to encounter another Ex Nihili.

  He still had not. He had not been there when the Black Widow and her associates came aboard the Builders’ ship to liberate everyone they had captured. However, his sister Abyss had been there, and with a thought she showed him what had taken place.

  * * *

  HAVING DEFEATED the ship’s crew, Captain Marvel and the rest of the Avengers took the bridge to free the final prisoners, including Abyss.

  “Wake up, Abyss,” Captain Marvel had said, helping her step out of the confinement tube. “Nightmare’s over. It’s only us Avengers here.”

  No, Abyss thought.

  “No,” she said. “It’s not.” She gestured. “Look.”

  There stood the Gardener, resplendent with a full display of antlers, her head cocked in curiosity.

  * * *

  “AND THEN what happened, Abyss?” Ex Nihilo said. “What did she do?”

  “The others saw her turn and leave,” she replied. “She rose into space and departed by her own power. But there was more. She spoke to me… in my mind. She said, ‘Come find us.’”

  Brother and sister continued their trek, past planets and moons and clouds of debris so dense they blocked out the stars. Finally they landed on a planet where there was nothing to see but ice, more ice, and the occasional rock.

  Ex Nihilo looked around and frowned. “Are you sure this is the right place, sister?”

  “Yes.” Abyss smiled indulgently, careful to make certain he was tolerated. He was aware of that fact. He was aware that his… optimism often confused her. It was the way he was created, really. She was meant to be his polar opposite, in many ways.

  “Once I touched her mind, I knew I could follow her to the edge of the universe.” Abyss stopped, and her eyes went wide. “She’s here.”

  Ex Nihilo followed her gaze and saw the Ex Nihili. She was like him. The golden-skinned, antlered Gardener looked at them and then spoke, carefully, as if afraid they might run off.

  “Hello,” she said. “Thank you for coming. I am… grateful.”

  “Did you come here alone?” Ex Nihilo asked.

  She shook her head.

  “No. We are all here.”

  They came from all directions—over the ice, dropping from the skies above. Golden shapes, each one unique and yet sharing many of the same qualities. They had antlers or horns, they all bore the same mark upon their torsos, and every one of them had three eyes, glowing green. Some were humanoid, others resembled insects. Some had four legs, or six, or eight, or more than he could easily count. Some had soft skin; others had shells or exoskeletons.

  He stared at his brethren in absolute awe and felt a surge of joy move through him. Here was life. Here was the affirmation of all he believed.

  The Ex Nihili looked at him for only a moment, and then they surged forward. Quickly, almost urgently, they surrounded Abyss. Reached out to touch her, but gently, as if to confirm she was real.

  “Hoortii,” one said. “It’s true!”

  “How is this possible?” another asked.

  “How can this be?”

  The one he and Abyss had followed moved closer to him and spoke softly.

  “They are as surprised as I am,” she said. “How is this possible, Ex Nihilo? How does your Abyss yet live?”

  “I don’t understand what you mean.” He was confused. “An Aleph contains two eggs, one light and one dark. On
e day. One night. I am Ex Nihilo, and she is Abyss. We are as we always have been: two, not one.”

  The other Gardeners moved closer to Abyss, pressing their bodies against hers. Whenever she touched one, she seemed to inspire a sort of rapture.

  “We have not been that way for a very long time,” the Gardener replied. “All of our Abyssi died thousands and thousands of years ago. Your Abyssil is alive. How can that be? I have to know, what makes the two of you so special?”

  He didn’t know what to say. “I create life,” he said. “She judges the work. This has always been.” Then he asked, “How did your Abyssi die?”

  There was a pain in his chest, a storm in his stomach.

  He felt as if he were falling.

  Abyss looked his way, her face calm. “Don’t you see, Ex? The Builders made them stop seeding worlds. Who am I without you? What are you, if not live-giving?” She caressed another Gardener as he gripped her wrist. Then her expression changed, turning to anger.

  “This is wrong!” she said.

  “Is this true?” He turned his head and stared at the female with the antlers. Rage grew within him, as well, to mirror his sister’s. His skin began to turn dark…

  “Yes,” she said. “When the new universal superstructure was created, we were all recalled and forbidden from seeding worlds.” She looked forlorn. “No more gardens.”

  Impossible!

  Blackness covered more of his body.

  Universal superstructure?

  His Aleph had never made mention of any such thing. Yet his Aleph had always been stubborn. Would it have mentioned something that so completely twisted their perceptions? Their reality? Would it have willingly called for the death of Abyss? No, Ex Nihilo decided. His father-Aleph had been set in its ways and did not consider the very concept of change. He might well have defied such an order if he thought it contrary to their roles in the universe.

  His body was black. The symbol on his chest glowed gold.

  “And so instead of creating life,” Ex Nihilo said, raising his fists, “you—all of you—have been relegated to what? To being, at best, body servants for those that made us?”

  All the other Ex Nihili looked away.

  They said nothing.

  “No more!” he said. “Do you hear me? No more.” The anger swelled within him. Abyss moved to his side, and still the others reached out to touch her, as if seeking the remnants of a dream.

  * * *

  ON THE surface of Hala, the will of the Builders continued to be enforced.

  The Supreme Intelligence listened and obeyed the Builders. Ronan listened and obeyed the will of the Supremor, as was his place in the universe.

  But the feast of orders did not sit well with him.

  * * *

  THE LILANDRA sped toward Hala.

  “When the Builders fled, I sent a task force to track them,” Gladiator said to the assembled council. He gestured toward a star chart floating above the table where they were seated. “We know they reassembled near here, a few light years from Hala, and then continued on their previous course.” He smiled grimly.

  “One of my guardians, Manta, has reported that their single remaining World Killer-class battleship went critical from damage sustained in our assault.” The smile disappeared. “Though they have lost the power to destroy a world, they still have the ability to create plagues on a global scale. As yet, our best scientists have not been able to formulate a defense.”

  He studied the group carefully, making certain to acknowledge each of the commanders. They needed to know he respected their opinions, so they would continue to follow his lead.

  “So the question is,” he continued, “what do we do next?”

  “What do you mean?” Kl’rt spoke. “We’ve cut them, and they bled. Now we follow that trail and finish them off.”

  Captain Marvel shook her head. “Hundreds of worlds lost, more than half the combined fleet destroyed, and you want to try hunting them down?” She locked eyes with the Skrull. “Have you thought this through?”

  Kl’rt stared back without blinking. His expression was not kind. She was human and Kree alike, and under normal circumstances both were sworn enemies of his people.

  “Death is its own reward—and one worth seeking.” A holographic image coalesced above the table. Annihilus had returned to the Negative Zone, yet he remained an active part of the council. “I have assembled my Annihilation Wave.”

  “Mentor, if it comes to that, is there a good access point?” Gladiator asked. Mentor nodded and moved his hand across the projection. It obligingly became a star map.

  “With minimal effort, we can use this corridor along the way.” He pointed. “There are three stargates—here, here, and here—that can easily be converted to allow access to the Negative Zone.” The appropriate spots grew brighter on the map. “That is assuming you wish it, Majestor.”

  “When the first Annihilation Wave was released into this universe, it was nearly the end of us all,” Gladiator said. “Can you control the wave, Annihilus?”

  “No.”

  “There you have it,” the Shi’ar ruler said. “We all know the risk. If the wave is successful, it will become a threat in and of itself.”

  “We risk all to save one world?” The Brood queen appeared, also as a hologram.

  “No, not one world.” Captain America shook his head. “All worlds. It’s true the ultimate target may be the Earth, for reasons we don’t understand, but the Builders have deliberately set a course across all of your territories. Look at what they’ve done; look at what they’ve taken as they moved through this universe. We’ve been forced into this. Our choices are limited.”

  “Choices.” Gladiator pounced on that comment. “You think we still have more than one choice?”

  Cap nodded. “Yes. I do.” He gestured at the strategic markings on the star chart. “It’s true we could do what you’re planning—we can always fight. I daresay we’re all very good at it. No one here can dispute that. But we’ve gained the appearance of an upper hand. Perhaps we can use that to our advantage.” They looked at him, but didn’t respond.

  “Maybe we talk to them,” he said.

  “No!” Kl’rt shook his head and nearly spat his retort. “This has gone too far for it to end without them bleeding out at the end of my—” He was unable to finish. His face twisted into an expression of fury.

  “Hold, Warlord Kl’rt,” Gladiator said. “The Captain has won the day once already. I would hear what he suggests.”

  Captain America nodded his thanks, and then looked directly at Kl’rt.

  “They haven’t yet been able to gather any ships above Hala,” he said. “We’re going to get there first. Up until now, they’ve refused to communicate—but up to now, we haven’t held the sky above a world the Builders control. That puts us in a place where they’ll be forced to talk.”

  “What do you have in mind, Steve?” Captain Marvel said.

  “It’s time we had a little chat with the evil empire.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

  THANOS

  THE FORCES of Thanos had compelled several countries to surrender. It wasn’t a choice any of them made lightly. The best and most powerful weapons on Earth had failed.

  None of the missiles had managed to launch. A couple of the nuclear powers had tried to exercise a nuclear defense, but their weapons remained in their silos and aboard their ships. As a result, those nations still survived.

  The retaliation against those countries, however, had been far more personal—and far bloodier. Thanos could have used his own energy weapons, or turned the humans’ nuclear arsenals against them, but that wasn’t his way. He preferred a more visceral demonstration.

  Fire was not as satisfactory as bloodshed.

  Led by his three remaining generals, his forces swept across the countryside, decimating each nation’s defenses. Easily shrugging off the primitive weapons wielded by the defenders, they attacked with bloodthirsty relish, l
eaving hundreds of corpses in their wake. Streets and countryside ran red with blood.

  Yet to his annoyance, this planet didn’t possess a single governing body he could force to surrender. It was an inconvenience, but nothing that couldn’t be overcome, given time.

  * * *

  WHILE NATIONS fought or fell, Thanos of Titan made himself known on Attilan. Whereas before he had sent emissaries, this time it was Thanos himself who arrived in the small vessel.

  This time the citizenry cowered behind closed doors. When the shuttle landed, Thanos and his entourage stepped out onto an empty landing pad. They moved ahead, soldiers scouting the area, wary of the possibility of an ambush. None materialized, and they proceeded down corridors that were just as empty.

  Finally the gathered forces of Thanos reached the throne room. As he approached, the huge double doors swung open. A scout came close and spoke.

  “There is no one there, Master,” he said, “except the Inhuman king.”

  Thanos offered no reply and stepped through the doors.

  “What game is this?” he demanded.

  Black Bolt did not reply. He simply stared, the contempt clear on his face. Another of the scouts entered the chamber behind them and walked over to Thanos.

  “We have searched everywhere,” he said. “The city of Attilan is empty. There are signs everywhere proving that people have been here recently, but there is no one else to be found.”

  “Hmm.” Thanos scanned the chamber, then stared with glowing eyes at its sole occupant. “Where is your kingdom, little king? What do you try to hide? Is this an attempt to test me?” He walked closer to the throne. It was a simple affair, with sharp angles and no ornamentation. Two flights of stairs led to the dais, and he could hear his footsteps echo through the empty room with each step he took.

  * * *

  “IT’S THE fall of empires,” Maximus said, his voice exhibiting unusual urgency. “Hurry… not long before it all tumbles down.”