Chapter Summaries

Ancient One and Bruce traced the murder of Bruce’s parents to the Court of Owls, and Bruce left to hunt them down. Jude offered Ancient One one of his forged Infinity Stones, and she accepted the Mind Stone after realizing they came from another world.

• Ancient One used the Time Stone to uncover that a hired assassin had been ordered to kill Bruce’s parents.
• Ancient One traced the order to old Lombardon, confirming that the Court of Owls had arranged the murder.
• Bruce vowed to root out the Court of Owls and left the Sanctum Sanctorum alone.
• Ancient One told Jude that Hell was quiet, and Jude revealed that Mephisto was dealing with a rebellion.
• Jude showed Ancient One six Infinity Stones he had forged in another world and offered her one.
• Ancient One accepted the Mind Stone, and she and Jude exchanged knowing smiles about Thanos.

After Gotham’s corruption scandal erupted, Bruce worked to expose the Court of Owls while Jude helped Peter develop armor and created a genetic weapon against Annihilus’s invading insect army. The chapter ended with Jude finishing a reagent designed to make the insects’ genetic chains collapse.

• Gotham’s corrupt officials and businessmen were exposed, and Bruce appeared as Batman to urge the furious public to trust the law and the United Government.
• The United Government task force uncovered further scandals tied to past Gotham administrations and officials and businessmen in other cities.
• Jude guided Peter through developing his first Spider Armor, which he named Black Widow 1.
• Jude studied a frozen insect from Annihilus’s invasion and analyzed its genes as the Annihilation Wave continued conquering star systems.
• Jude completed a dark red-and-black reagent that could make the insects’ genetic chains collapse instantly.

Jude returned to Star One, ordered Veronica to mass-produce a reagent against the insect race, and learned that Groot and Rocket Raccoon had left to find Groot’s homeworld. Back on Earth, Jude challenged Little Spider to devise a way to defeat the Insect King, and Little Spider proposed destroying its molecular foundation.

• Jude told Veronica to produce large quantities of the reagent designed to fight the insect race.
• Veronica told Jude that Groot and Rocket Raccoon had left to find Groot’s homeland, Planet X.
• Star-Lord asked Jude to take him to Earth, and Jude refused to let Gamora follow them.
• Jude explained the Insect King’s molecular and atomic restructuring abilities and asked Little Spider how he would defeat it.
• After eleven minutes of thought, Little Spider proposed destroying the molecules directly to defeat the Insect King.

Jude explained to Peter how to defeat the Insect King by building a device that transfers its particles elsewhere, then reassured Peter about his identity after he had encountered and killed another version of himself. The chapter ended with Jude insisting that the mind mattered more than the body.

• Jude told Peter to build a Molecular Erasure Machine that would transfer the Insect King's particles away rather than merely pulverize them.
• Peter realized the device would combine black-hole and teleportation functions, and Jude said he would join the war to make up for his past regret.
• Peter worried that he might be a clone and asked whether the original Peter had died.
• Peter told Jude that he had killed and buried another version of himself after returning to Earth, and that the experience had tormented him.
• Jude told Peter that the mind mattered more than the body and declared, "The body is void!"

Star-Lord secretly built a transmitter and sent a signal to Thanos, exposing Jude’s location to help Gamora escape. Meanwhile, Jude and Little Spider tested a device that transferred asteroids and unexpectedly blasted the Little Blue Men during their meeting on Oa, leaving Tynapu demanding punishment.

• Star-Lord broke into stores and gathered materials to build a signal transmitter, then used it to contact Thanos and reveal Jude’s location.
• Jude and Little Spider took the Black Hole Transfer Device into an asteroid belt and tested it by absorbing a mass of asteroids.
• On Oa, the Little Blue Men discussed their war against Mongul while a vortex opened among them and unleashed a powerful energy shockwave.
• Ganthet stopped the shockwave from spreading, and Tynapu climbed up and demanded that the culprit be punished.

Jude, Little Spider, and Ivy prepared to use Star One to intervene as the insectoids fought the Shi'ar, Kree, and Skrull Empires. The empires' commanders argued over their devastating losses and dwindling chances of survival until Hyperion rushed into the command center with a warning.

• Veronica told Jude that serum production was nearly sufficient, and Star One was almost full of it.
• Jude said he had discovered the insectoids were fighting a joint fleet from the Shi'ar, Kree, and Skrull Empires, and Star One departed through a portal.
• The insectoids counterattacked the empires' ambush, and more than ten days of fighting left the empires suffering severe losses.
• Raul demanded that the Skrull Empire withdraw, while Fales argued that the three nations had to keep fighting together.
• Gladiator said the empires had to hold out a week for reinforcements from Xandar and Tamaran, but Raul called that impossible.
• Hyperion, bloodied from the front lines, burst into the command center and urged everyone to come out because something terrible had happened.

Jude Herbert arrived with Star One to reinforce the three empires against the insect race. After asking Ronan the Accuser whether he could dance, Jude left the gathered leaders with an unsettling question.

• Hyperion announced that Jude Herbert had arrived with a planetary warship, and Gladiator said Jude had once defeated Mongul.
• Ronan, Veranke, and the others watched Star One emerge through a portal and questioned how someone from the Milky Way Galaxy could command such power.
• Gladiator urged the leaders to welcome Jude and seek his help, warning them that he was difficult to deal with.
• Jude appeared behind Gladiator, greeted him, and asked about the missing Insect King.
• Jude told Gladiator he would help defeat the insect race, then stared at Ronan and asked whether he could dance.

Jude persuaded the Shi'ar, Kree, and Skrull leaders to use his genetic agent against the insectoid invasion, turning the tide of the war. After the victory, all three empires pledged friendship and support to him.

• Jude told Ronan and Velank that his genetic agent could defeat the insectoids, and rebuked Velank when she questioned whether it would work.
• Gladiator persuaded Velank and Ronan to cooperate, and their forces replaced their ammunition with rounds carrying the agent.
• The counterattack began, and the agent killed insectoids in large numbers as the Star One supported the assault with its outer artillery.
• The rulers learned that their forces had won and thanked Jude for saving their empires.
• Gladiator named Jude a friend of the Shi'ar Empire, Ronan made him the Kree Empire's most honored guest, and Velank declared him the Skrull Empire's closest comrade.

Kaven Fisher ordered the Annihilation Wave to press its attack after General Lanfin convinced him the allied forces were near defeat. Gladiator, Ronan, and Veranke confronted the Leviathan and destroyed it, while the battle continued.

• General Lanfin persuaded Kaven Fisher that the enemy's secret weapon meant the allied forces were desperate, and Fisher ordered every unit, including logistics troops, to attack.
• The Leviathan appeared and devastated the allied fleet with a powerful energy beam, killing soldiers from both sides.
• Jude explained the Leviathan's range and power, but Gladiator refused his offer to intervene and went to fight it himself.
• Gladiator struck the Leviathan, and Ronan deflected its energy beam back at it with his hammer.
• Kaven Fisher sent insectoid soldiers to surround Gladiator and Ronan, while Veranke used psychic waves to make the soldiers attack one another.
• Gladiator and Ronan struck the Leviathan's head together and left its headless corpse behind.

After the insect race’s defeat, Jude questioned captured commander Kaven Fisher and learned that Annihilus had led an elite force to hunt the Planet Devourer. Kaven revealed that Annihilus wanted the Planet Devourer’s Cosmic Energy to strengthen the Cosmic Control Rod.

• Kaven Fisher ignored General Lanfin’s warnings and ordered the insect race army to keep attacking, leading to its defeat.
• Gladiator, Ronan, and Velank captured Kaven Fisher aboard the insect race mothership as the war ended.
• Jude reunited with the returning forces and questioned Kaven, while Peter attacked him for insulting Jude.
• Jude ordered the soldiers to execute Kaven, but Kaven offered information and was allowed to speak.
• Kaven revealed that Annihilus had taken an elite force to hunt the Planet Devourer to obtain Cosmic Energy for the Cosmic Control Rod.

Jude and the three great empires destroyed the insect race’s final brood nest, ending its ability to replenish its forces, then set out to confront Annihilus. Meanwhile, Annihilus drove Devourer Star into a desperate flight, and the chapter ended as he caught up with him among barren worlds.

• Kaven Fisher warned Jude and the others that Annihilus was hunting Planet Devourer, but Jude killed him and asked the leaders to choose their next move.
• Gladiator, Ronan, and Velank chose to press the offensive, and the genetic agent helped their forces retake the occupied systems and defeat the insect race within a week.
• Jude and the others destroyed the final brood nest on Qatar Star, cutting off the insect race’s supply of new soldiers.
• Jude warned the celebrating leaders about Annihilus, and Gladiator and Hyperion agreed to accompany him while the three empires left ordinary soldiers behind.
• Annihilus pursued Devourer Star after killing Tyrant, defeating him and driving Stardust, Firelord, and Silver Surfer out of the fight.
• Devourer Star, exhausted and nearly out of energy on barren worlds, sensed Annihilus arriving and feared he would die at the insect king’s hands.

Annihilus nearly drained Devourer Star in the Dead Silence starfield, but Jude arrived in Star One and rescued him before the Insect King could finish. Devourer Star escaped through a portal to Qatar Star, while Jude, Little Spider, Gladiator, Ronan, and the others prepared to fight Annihilus and his remaining warriors.

• Annihilus trapped Devourer Star with the Cosmic Control Rod and began siphoning his Cosmic Energy.
• Jude entered the Dead Silence starfield aboard Star One and struck Annihilus with a metal fist, interrupting the attack.
• Jude ordered Devourer Star to flee, and Devourer Star escaped through a portal to Qatar Star.
• Annihilus recognized Jude and, confident in the power he had already gained, threatened to kill him.
• Little Spider arrived beside Jude in Black Widow 1 as Gladiator, Ronan, and the others charged Ravenous and the remaining insect warriors.

Jude and Little Spider used the black hole transfer device to counter Annihilus’s Cosmic Control Rod, allowing Jude to defeat the Insect King. The rod then exploded, and the energy it released was transferred to Oa, destroying the planet and damaging the Green Lantern Energy Battery as a trace of black energy escaped.

• Annihilus used the Cosmic Control Rod to trap Jude and Little Spider, believing its molecular control had made him too powerful to stop.
• Little Spider activated the black hole transfer device, which broke down and transported away the molecules controlled by the rod.
• Jude seized Annihilus and defeated him with a single punch after the rod’s power proved ineffective.
• The Cosmic Control Rod broke free from Little Spider and exploded, blasting Jude and the others far into space.
• The transferred energy struck Oa, destroying the planet and killing many Green Lanterns and Little Blue Men.
• The Green Lantern Energy Battery shattered, releasing green energy and a trace of black energy.

Jude spoke with the weakened Planet Devourer after the Insect King’s defeat and learned that his name was Galan, a survivor of the Age of the Old Gods. Galan described the destruction of his universe and how an experimental device transformed him into a powerful giant who needed constant energy to survive.

• After returning to Qatar Star, Gladiator and Velank suggested killing the Planet Devourer, while Ronan deferred to Jude.
• Jude went to speak with the Planet Devourer and brought Little Spider, while Ivy chose to stay behind.
• Jude told the Planet Devourer that the Insect King was dead, then asked him to answer questions truthfully.
• The Planet Devourer said the legend that he was one of the five great gods was false, though he had encountered Death, who appeared to him as a woman.
• The Planet Devourer revealed that his name was Galan and that he had survived the Age of the Old Gods after an experimental device fused with him, granting him immense power and an endless need for energy.

Jude replenished Devourer Star with a Micro-Universe Battery and questioned him about The Overseer and the Source Wall. Devourer Star knew of the Source Wall but said it had vanished when he searched for it in the Prometheus Galaxy.

• Jude shut down Little Spider’s Black Widow 1 armor and used him as a backup power source while giving Devourer Star a Micro-Universe Battery.
• Devourer Star absorbed the battery’s energy and promised to answer Jude’s questions.
• Devourer Star said he had never heard of The Overseer but had encountered Anti-Monitor, whom he believed might be a similar kind of being.
• Jude asked Devourer Star about the Source Wall, and Devourer Star recalled searching for it in the Prometheus Galaxy during the Age of the New Gods.
• Devourer Star told Jude that the Source Wall had vanished.

Jude realized the Source Wall had disappeared and theorized that its absence caused different worlds to fuse into one, jeopardizing his plan to escape. After returning to Star One, he learned that Earth had been kidnapped by a giant named Thanos.

• Jude concluded that the vanished Source Wall had allowed other worlds to invade and merge into the Fusion World.
• Little Spider suggested that Jude seek a Source Wall in another world, and Jude resolved to keep searching for a way forward.
• Jude let Planet Devourer leave after their conversation, and Planet Devourer promised to help him if needed.
• Jude returned to Star One with Little Spider, where Ivy told him that Earth had been kidnapped.
• Ivy identified the kidnapper as the giant Thanos.

After learning that Jude Herbert had outmaneuvered him and returned to Earth, Thanos assembled the Black Order and traveled there to seize the planet and use its people as leverage. As his spacecraft entered the Solar System, General Zod and Fiora spotted it heading toward Earth.

• Thanos suspected Gamora had betrayed him, but Ebony Maw reported that Jude Herbert controlled her and had lured Thanos into the insectoids' trap.
• Thanos ordered a fleet to Earth, then accepted Ebony Maw's plan to travel with the Black Order in a small spacecraft and seize Earth while Jude was away fighting the insectoids.
• Thanos and the Black Order made repeated spatial jumps and reached the edge of the Milky Way in less than an hour.
• The spacecraft crossed the Solar System and passed Titan, where General Zod and Fiora noticed it heading toward Earth.

Star-Lord regretted summoning Thanos to Earth, but Thanos arrived before he could warn Jude. Thanos spared Star-Lord and faced a growing group of Earth’s heroes as a battle loomed.

• Star-Lord decided to confess to Jude, but Thanos’s arrival message startled him into dropping his communicator into the Hudson River.
• Thanos’s spacecraft appeared above the Hudson River, and his forces recovered the communicator and identified Star-Lord as the one who sent the signal.
• Thanos confronted Star-Lord, who explained his connection to Gamora and blamed Jude Herbert for capturing her.
• Thanos spared Star-Lord but dismissed his plea to leave Earth alone and sensed that the planet had powerful defenders.
• Iron Man, Flash, Ghost Rider, Aunt May, and powerful Mutants arrived, assembling for the coming battle.

Thanos and the Black Order faced Earth's superheroes, who split up to draw them away from the city. On the eastern battlefield, Wolverine, Deadpool, Cyclops, and Hulk struggled against Cull Obsidian as their fight continued.

• Thanos dismissed Earth's assembled heroes, and Barry explained that Superman, Wonder Woman, and Jude were unavailable.
• Ghost Rider attacked Thanos with Hellfire, but he shrugged it off and declared that he would defeat Earth's resistance.
• Professor X urged the heroes to fight away from the city, and they divided to engage Thanos and the Black Order.
• Cull Obsidian overpowered Wolverine, Deadpool, and Cyclops, while the three heroes regenerated or dodged his attacks.
• Hulk struck Cull Obsidian into a crater, but Cull Obsidian recovered, hurled Hulk away, and attacked Cyclops.
• Hulk rescued Cyclops from Cull Obsidian's grasp and resumed their fierce fight.

Barry Allen transported Thanos and the other heroes to the ruins of London, where the group fought him. Thanos overcame their attacks and ended the chapter by hurling a stone pillar toward Jean Grey.

• Barry Allen used his speed to drag Thanos from New York to the ruins of London and brought Phoenix Jean Grey, Graviton Hall, Professor X Charles, and Magneto Eric after him.
• Magneto Eric and Graviton Hall attacked Thanos with steel and a massive stone pillar, while Phoenix Jean Grey and Professor X Charles launched a psychic assault.
• Thanos resisted the psychic attack and forced Professor X Charles to collapse, but Graviton Hall increased the stone pillar’s weight and pinned him down.
• Thanos seized control of the stone pillar, used it to smash aside the falling steel, and struck Magneto Eric and Graviton Hall into the air.
• Thanos hurled the stone pillar toward Phoenix Jean Grey and vowed to destroy Earth’s resistance.