In an endless, mysterious void, three enormous golden heads appeared. These were the three faces of the Living Tribunal, representing justice, necessity, and vengeance.
Below the heads, a gigantic golden body formed the floor of the courtroom. The true forms of the five great abstract entities stood upon it: Galactus and Annihilation on the left, Death and Infinity on the right, and Eternity directly Facing Forward toward the three enormous heads.
At the lower left corner of the golden body—the northeast of the courtroom—sat the jury. Most were powerful beings who controlled portions of cosmic laws across various Multiverses, though there were also some beings at the level of the Omniverse. At the lower right was the witness stand awaiting summons. The people seated there varied greatly in power, but most were connected to this incident.
In the past thousand years, the Living Tribunal had never convened court with such grand ceremony. The Living Tribunal possessed absolute authority to rule over the Omniverse; he was both presiding judge and prosecutor, capable of completing every legal procedure alone, with no need for hearings or trials.
But this case was clearly unusual. The disaster of the bad-movie nightmare had swept across the entire Omniverse, yet the source of that disaster was not so easily judged. The Living Tribunal had even consulted his own big boss before establishing the tone of the trial.
Overall, it was fair, just, and open. The plaintiffs were the Cosmic Administrators represented by the five great abstract entities. Their accusation was that Schiller had endangered the stability of the Omniverse by spreading the bad-movie nightmare. Schiller, having answered the summons and appeared in court, could also present evidence proving his innocence. The Living Tribunal would act as arbiter, hear both sides, render a fair judgment, and publicly announce