Chapter Summaries

Blake Thorne discovered that Gilad Orphanage was a criminal operation and slaughtered the gang members running it. After confronting its administrator, Joyce, Blake learned that Joyce had invoked Kingpin’s name and announced he would visit Kingpin that night.

• Three young men lured Blake to Gilad Orphanage, where he used his Infinity Perception System to uncover its human-organ trafficking and drug-processing operations.
• Blake killed the three men, breached the orphanage’s gate, and stopped a Desert Eagle bullet between his fingers before firing it back through three gang members and into the building.
• Blake killed the gang members who fled, fought, or begged, then entered the orphanage and confronted its administrator, Joyce.
• Joyce offered Blake money and warned him against making an enemy of Kingpin, but Blake pointed out the hidden safe and told Joyce to call Kingpin because he planned to visit him that night.
• Joyce froze because he had used Kingpin’s name to intimidate Blake but did not have Kingpin’s private number.

Blake Thorne escaped Gilad with a stolen safe, then bought a home in Queens and met the Parker family. After befriending Ben, May, and Peter Parker, he asked Ben to help him transfer to Peter’s school.

• Blake killed the white man at Gilad, took the safe, called 911, and fled in a cargo truck.
• Commissioner George Stacy discovered the organ-trafficking victims and flour-processing operation at Gilad and decided to replace Queens police commissioner Paul.
• Blake bought a house at Number 21 Ingram Street and welcomed Ben Parker, May, and Peter Parker with tea and apple pie.
• Blake claimed his parents’ tradition required him to live independently, and Peter privately decided to become his friend.
• Blake asked Ben to help transfer him to Peter’s school, and Ben agreed.

Four years later, Black and Peter began attending Midtown School of Science and Technology, where Peter became smitten with Mary Jane and Black encountered both her and Gwen Stacy. The chapter left Black stopped in his tracks after Gwen made a disparaging remark about people from Hua Country.

• Black and Peter rode their skateboards to school while Peter talked about Oscorp, genetics, and Black's wealth and investments.
• At a freshman club fair, Mary Jane invited them to join the photography club, and Black introduced Peter as a photography enthusiast before leaving them together.
• Peter stood speechless, staring at Mary Jane, while she watched Black depart with disappointment.
• Gwen Stacy approached Black to recruit him for the debate team, but he declined and continued toward the school building.
• Gwen made a harsh comment about Hua Country men lacking confidence and avoiding competition, and Black stopped when he heard her.

Blake exploited Tony Stark’s impending capture to profit from Stark Industries’ falling stock, then traveled to Afghanistan to find him. He located Tony at a Ten Rings base but chose to wait until Tony had built his first suit before rescuing him.

• Blake intimidated Gwen Stacy by stamping a deep shoeprint into the school plaza, then considered helping Tony Stark in Afghanistan while profiting from Stark Industries stock.
• Blake liquidated his holdings, borrowed JPMorgan Chase’s interest-free funds, and put the money into stock accounts; Mera Rothschild unsuccessfully tried to recruit him as a client.
• Blake shorted Stark Industries stock and flew to Iran, then crossed into Afghanistan alone to search for Tony.
• Blake found Tony at a Ten Rings base in a valley and decided to wait several days so Tony could build his Iron Man suit and undergo his transformation.

Black entered Tony Stark and Dr. Yinsen’s cave to prevent Yinsen’s sacrifice, but Tony mistook him for a terrorist when his Iron Man suit activated. Black stopped Tony’s punch by striking the suit, leaving Tony unharmed but the first Iron Man armor wrecked in the cave wall.

• Tony Stark and Dr. Yinsen built a crude Iron Man suit while terrorists rushed toward their cave.
• Black killed the armed terrorists guarding the cave and walked inside.
• Dr. Yinsen prepared to sacrifice himself to give Tony time, but Black brought him back before he could leave.
• Tony activated the suit and swung at Black, mistakenly treating him as a terrorist, while Dr. Yinsen stood in the way.
• Black’s punch sent Tony and the suit flying into the cave wall, destroying the armor; Black then dug Tony out and assured Yinsen he was unharmed.

Black rescued Tony and Dr. Yinsen from Afghanistan, then returned to New York after ensuring they were safe. Tony kept Black’s existence secret and announced that Stark Industries would indefinitely shut down its weapons development projects, sending its stock price crashing.

• Black led Tony and Dr. Yinsen out of the cave and drove them away from the valley in a Jeep.
• Black asked Tony and Dr. Yinsen to keep his powers and identity secret, and they agreed to be his friends.
• When their Jeep ran low on fuel, Black spotted a Black Hawk helicopter, vanished, and left Tony and Dr. Yinsen to signal for rescue.
• After the Black Hawk picked up Tony and Dr. Yinsen, Black flew to Iran and took a civilian flight back to New York the following afternoon.
• Tony and Dr. Yinsen concealed Black’s involvement in their escape, and Tony held a press conference announcing an indefinite halt to Stark Industries’ weapons development.
• Black arrived at New York Airport and noticed the news that Stark Industries’ stock price had crashed.

Black watched Stark Industries’ share price fall and considered it a good time to buy, while Tony returned to New York unaware that four investment companies had quietly acquired a major stake in the company. Pepper warned Tony that the companies might be acting together, and the chapter ended as an unfamiliar New York number called him.

• Black decided Stark Industries’ declining stock price was a buying opportunity because the company’s Arc Reactor technology promised great value.
• Three days after Tony returned to New York, Pepper woke him and reported that Evergreen Securities had acquired five percent of Stark Industries.
• Pepper told Tony that Chang'an, Changping, and Changsong had each acquired another five percent, giving the four companies control of twenty percent of the company’s tradable shares.
• Tony ordered Pepper to arrange a board meeting and investigate the investment companies, while refusing her suggestion to involve Washington.
• Tony and Pepper left the villa, and an unfamiliar New York number called Tony.

Black told Tony Stark that Obadiah and Stark Industries shareholders had arranged the Afghanistan attack and gave him evidence, then transferred the voting rights attached to Black’s shares to Tony. Tony signed the contract and announced Blake Thorne as one of Stark Industries’ three executive directors.

• Black called Tony and revealed that Obadiah had conspired with the terrorists who kidnapped him, sending Tony audio and video evidence.
• Black offered Tony control of the voting rights for his 23.7 percent stake in Stark Industries, and Tony accepted the contract.
• Pepper comforted Tony as he struggled to believe that Obadiah had tried to kill him.
• Tony and Black ate burgers outside Stark Tower while onlookers gathered, then Tony signed the contract as Obadiah and other shareholders arrived.
• At the board meeting, Tony introduced Blake Thorne and announced that he would become one of Stark Industries’ three executive directors.

Tony Stark announced Black's appointment as an executive director, but Obadiah Stane and the board tried to remove Tony as chairman. Tony revealed his controlling stake and had Obadiah and others arrested for selling weapons to hostile forces.

• Tony announced Black's appointment as Stark Industries' third executive director, and Obadiah objected and ordered Pepper to take Tony home.
• Obadiah accused Tony of damaging the company and proposed removing him as chairman, prompting the board to vote in favor.
• Obadiah took the chairman's seat, while Black urged Tony to finish the matter so he could get to class.
• Tony pressed Obadiah back into the chair and called for Pepper to bring in the others.
• Colonel Rhodes and armed soldiers arrived with a special arrest warrant for Obadiah and suspected accomplices.
• Tony revealed that he controlled fifty-nine percent of Stark Industries through an authorized management contract, and Rhodes began arresting those on Tony's list.

After helping Tony, Black refused more Stark Industries shares and asked him to build a villa beside his, then returned to Midtown School and threw Flash Thompson out a second-floor window after Flash insulted him. Black defended his actions to the principal by saying he would become the school bully to stop Flash from bullying others.

• Black refused Tony's offer of another ten percent of Stark Industries and asked him to build a villa next door instead.
• Tony escorted Black downstairs and asked whether Black's teacher Vanessa was attractive, and Black promised to arrange a candlelit dinner for them.
• Black returned to class at Midtown School and chose a seat in the back row rather than sit beside Peter Parker.
• Flash Thompson and the other boys blocked the back-row seats, and Flash insulted Black with a racial slur.
• Peter Parker stood up for Black, but Black lifted Flash out the window and warned the class not to put their feet on chairs.
• Black told the principal he would become the school bully to stop Flash from bullying other students.

After Blake used Saul Goodman and seven other lawyers to end Flash Eugene’s parents’ demands, his reputation protected Peter from bullying at school. Two years later, as Blake prepared to move into a house Tony Stark designed, he invited his classmates and biology teacher Natasha Romanoff to the housewarming party, unaware why S.H.I.E.L.D. had sent her to watch him.

• Blake summoned eight lawyers, and Saul Goodman warned Flash Eugene’s parents that pursuing their demands could expose the family to criminal charges.
• Flash Eugene’s parents backed down, and Blake’s reputation as the “Tyrant of Midtown” spread while Peter avoided further bullying.
• Two years later, Tony called Blake to arrange a driver to take him to his new home and proposed a housewarming party.
• Blake recognized that his biology teacher was Natasha Romanoff and sent Tony a photo of her, prompting Tony to insist she be invited.
• Blake invited his classmates to the party and agreed to have another bus sent, while Natasha continued to watch him without revealing why S.H.I.E.L.D. was interested.

Black welcomed his classmates to his new seaside villa and hosted a lavish party with Tony. After everyone else left, a drunken Tony slept while Black and Black Widow were left alone, and she questioned what he really was.

• Black drove Peter toward his new seaside villa while reflecting on Black Widow's presence at their school and S.H.I.E.L.D.'s possible interest in him.
• Black's classmates arrived and marveled at his villa and Tony's neighboring estate.
• Tony opened the party with a feast and live band, and Black celebrated with his classmates late into the night.
• Happy arranged rides home for Black's classmates, while Tony passed out after trying to drink Black Widow under the table.
• Black called Pepper and stayed with Black Widow, who told him his eyes made her feel as if he could see through every secret and asked what he was.

Blake interrupted Hulk and Abomination’s fight in Upper Manhattan, knocking Hulk unconscious and killing Abomination with two punches. Natasha ended S.H.I.E.L.D.’s intelligence assignment and left Blake her number, while Nick Fury’s investigation confirmed Blake’s power and drew Hydra agent Alexander Pierce’s attention to him.

• Blake sensed Hulk and Abomination fighting in Upper Manhattan, where Gwen was trapped in a Rolls-Royce near the battle.
• Blake used Instant Transmission to punch Hulk into the atmosphere and knock him unconscious, then punched Abomination’s head apart before returning to his mansion.
• Natasha left Blake her number and ended her assignment, warning that S.H.I.E.L.D. might send someone else but did not intend to make him an enemy.
• Nick Fury reviewed the incident and Natasha’s report, identified Blake as the one who defeated the monsters, and classified his intelligence at the highest level.
• Alexander Pierce noticed Blake after Nick Fury restricted access to information about him.

Black trained in extreme gravity, warned Tony that Hulk could overwhelm even him, and helped Tony resolve his palladium poisoning. After sparring with Tony and discovering he could not survive in space, Black had Tony build him a compact space-capable armor; the next day, an unexpected man arrived at Black’s home.

• Tony saw that Black had trained at one hundred times Earth's gravity and asked him to upgrade the gravity room further.
• Black told Tony that Hulk’s hidden power was uncertain even to him, then identified Tony’s palladium poisoning as coming from the reactor in his chest.
• A week later, Tony upgraded his chest reactor, cured the poisoning, and challenged Black to a sparring match in the Sahara Desert.
• Black defeated Tony, discovered his body could not endure outer space, and asked Tony to make him sturdy, portable armor that would let him survive there.
• Tony built Black a black belt-folding suit with about an hour of stored oxygen, and an unexpected man appeared at Black’s doorstep the following day.

Black met Odin, exchanged cultivation methods with him, then decided to seek out the Ancient One to learn space-time magic. After waiting a month at the foot of the Himalayas, Black was brought into Kamar-Taj, where the Ancient One agreed to teach him but refused to take him as a disciple.

• Odin visited Black to meet the powerful Earthling and ask him to be patient with Thor, and Black agreed that peaceful Asgardians could be his friends.
• Black and Odin exchanged cultivation methods, but Black found the Asgardian method of little use and decided to seek the Ancient One's space-time magic.
• Black secured a year-long leave from school and traveled to the foot of the Himalayas, where he waited for the Ancient One to find him.
• After a month, Black returned to New York for more supplies, then came back to the Himalayas and was brought into Kamar-Taj.
• The Ancient One told Black that she would teach him space-time magic but would not accept him as her disciple.

Ancient One explained why she would teach Blake Thorne magic despite refusing to make him her disciple, then guided him into the multiverse to seek its energy. Blake began his first lesson as Ancient One watched, hoping his unusually powerful soul would attract a dimension's energy.

• Ancient One told Blake she had known of his arrival for seventeen years and would teach him because of his powerful, pure soul, but she would not make him her disciple.
• Ancient One assured Blake that Steve would inherit the Time Stone and become Sorcerer Supreme, and said Blake could travel the multiverse after mastering time and space.
• Ancient One taught Blake the principles of magic and guided his spirit through the multiverse, showing him the dimensions and their worlds.
• Ancient One told Blake to focus his will and find the energy that belonged to him, then returned to her body as Blake remained entranced.
• Ancient One watched Blake, hoping his pristine, powerful spirit would absorb a great amount of energy or earn recognition from a dimension.

Black absorbed multiversal energies and awakened with powers embodying destruction and order, making him nearly unrivaled in the Marvel Universe. Ancient One began formally teaching him magic, starting with the Portal spell.

• Black's spirit body resisted the multiverse's energies until purple and golden lightning entered his brow and awakened him.
• Black declared himself destruction and order, and phantom lightning projected from two unknown dimensions across the Marvel Universe before vanishing.
• Black realized his new power surpassed the combined rules of Ultra Ego and Ultra Instinct and believed he was invincible in the Marvel Universe, though uncertain about certain rule powers.
• Black bowed to Ancient One, who warned that his journey through the multiverse remained long and began teaching him magic.
• Black started learning the Portal spell and considered how its spatial cutting power could be used against enemies.

Blake mastered Kamar-Taj’s spells, received the Eye of Agamotto to study time magic, and returned to New York determined to protect Ben Parker. Soon after Blake resumed school, Hydra operatives within S.H.I.E.L.D. began targeting him, mistaking him for a powerful mutant.

• Blake copied Ancient One’s portal spell after seeing her cast it and mastered hundreds of Kamar-Taj spells in a year.
• Ancient One lent Blake the Eye of Agamotto and ancient notes on time magic for one year, then left to guard the London Sanctum.
• Blake returned to Midtown School of Science and Technology and resolved to save Ben Parker and give him extraordinary abilities.
• Hydra members inside S.H.I.E.L.D. targeted Blake after Alexander Pierce found Nick Fury’s files and concluded Blake was likely a Gamma-level mutant.

Black seized control of Hydra’s New York branch and ordered it to search for information about the Infinity Stones. Three days later, Nick Fury brought the newly formed Avengers to Tony Stark’s home, where Black had upgraded Tony’s armor with magic and energy-based defenses.

• Bucky Barnes and Hydra soldiers tried to capture Black, but Black entered their van, knocked out the soldiers, and used a spell to control Bucky and the driver.
• Black had Bucky bring him to Hydra’s New York base, where he controlled Alexander Pierce and hundreds of Hydra soldiers.
• Black ordered Hydra’s New York branch to search for information about the Infinity Stones, then left the remaining Hydra remnants alone.
• Nick Fury arrived at Tony Stark’s mansion with Black Widow, Mihawk, Phil Coulson, Bruce Banner, Captain America, and the other Avengers.
• Black enchanted Tony’s armor with levitation, defensive spells, an emergency portal, and an energy-storing war blade.

Black declined Nick Fury’s offer to join the Avengers but asked him for the Tesseract, alarming Fury and making him suspect a S.H.I.E.L.D. mole. Black planned to deal with Loki and obtain the Infinity Stones when the coming invasion brought Loki and the Chitauri to Earth.

• Tony showed off his new armor while Nick Fury introduced the gathered heroes and spoke about founding the Avengers.
• Nick Fury asked Black to join the Avengers, but Black refused because he disliked taking orders and drawing attention.
• Black asked Nick Fury for the Tesseract, prompting Fury to suspect that someone inside S.H.I.E.L.D. had leaked its existence.
• Nick Fury denied knowing about the Tesseract, and Black let the matter drop, intending to take it from Loki if necessary.
• Black recalled that Loki would soon bring the Chitauri to Earth and planned to beat Loki, hand him over to Thor, and claim the Tesseract and Mind Scepter.