Chapter Summaries

Donnie offered Old Shazam a place in the New Gods pantheon, and Old Shazam accepted in exchange for the freedom to choose an Earthling heir. Donnie transformed him into a subordinate god and left, reflecting on Shazam Power’s extraordinary potential.

• Donnie offered Old Shazam the Unique God's divine power and promised that joining his pantheon would give him a chance to grow stronger.
• Old Shazam agreed to become Donnie's subordinate god, provided Donnie kept his word and let him continue searching for an Earthling heir.
• Donnie replaced the old gods' power within Old Shazam with Unique God power, making Shazam part of his pantheon.
• Old Shazam insisted that his heir must be an Earthling, and Donnie opened a portal and left him to continue his search.
• Donnie reflected on Shazam Power's versatility and its importance to his plans, recognizing Shazam as the pantheon's subordinate god second only to himself.

Grail waited on Warworld for a chance to meet Cybertron’s New God, hoping to recruit someone powerful enough to help her kill Darkseid, but her efforts drew no attention. Sayan cautiously suggested that her approach was wrong, and Grail’s intimidating manner left him too afraid to explain further.

• Grail recalled that the New God’s rise on Cybertron had given her hope of killing Darkseid, and she regretted not meeting him earlier.
• Grail waited on Warworld and tried to use her identity as Darkseid’s daughter to attract Cybertron’s leaders, but mercenaries fled when she said she wanted to kill her father.
• Cybertron’s upper ranks ignored Grail’s attempts to get their attention.
• Sayan timidly told Grail that he thought their approach was wrong.
• Grail glared at Sayan and mocked him for being unable to speak, leaving him silent and afraid.

Grail learned that the New God had defeated the Spectre and felt increasingly desperate to gain power. Sayan revealed that Ebony Maw had left clues to a Phoenix Shard, while Donnie suppressed the Black Phoenix inside Jean and Professor X and Magneto faced a choice about how to save her.

• Sayan told Grail they should seek power rather than wait for an opportunity, and Grail lamented that no one in the New God's domain cared about her identity as Darkseid's daughter.
• A Kree war correspondent announced that the New God had defeated the Spectre, and Grail recognized the news as a serious threat to her hopes of revenge.
• Grail questioned the Kree and learned that many civilizations had sensed the battle; she admitted to Sayan that the Spectre might be stronger than her father.
• Sayan revealed that Ebony Maw had told him about clues to a Phoenix Shard, and Grail demanded to know where it was.
• Donnie suppressed the Black Phoenix inside Jean, while Professor X warned that he could no longer contain the Phoenix Force and Magneto called for a decision.

Donnie reassured Professor X and Magneto that he could help Jean master another Phoenix shard, then discussed Franklin, a future Super Omega-level Mutant, with Wanda. He set out with Wanda to search for the Phoenix Egg and resolve Jean’s problem.

• Donnie proposed finding another Phoenix shard so Jean could destroy the Black Phoenix, while Magneto blamed Professor X’s methods for Jean’s condition.
• Donnie assured Professor X and Magneto that he could prevent the Black Phoenix from taking control of a new shard.
• Donnie told Wanda that Franklin, Mister Fantastic Richard’s unborn son, was a Super Omega-level Mutant whose birth Gene Serum and Donnie’s control of the timeline could not prevent.
• Donnie decided to search for clues to the Phoenix Egg, and Wanda insisted on accompanying him.
• Donnie carried Wanda through a portal to God's Quarry.

Donnie and Wanda entered God's Quarry seeking clues to the Phoenix Egg and confronted the Eternal Sisters, who had secretly killed gods for their power. The witches revealed that a tyrant held the egg, but Donnie rejected their answer and decided to seal and destroy God's Quarry.

• Donnie and Wanda forced their way into God's Quarry, where Donnie cleared the violent energy fields and revealed the hiding Eternal Sisters.
• The Eternal Sisters tried to flatter Donnie, but he said he disliked them and asked about the Phoenix Egg.
• The witches prophesied that the Phoenix Egg was in the tyrant's hands and said they could not locate him because he was a Level Seven powerhouse.
• Donnie recognized that the witches were concealing what they knew and announced that he would seal God's Quarry, destroy it, and return the statues to their proper places.

Donnie destroyed God's Quarry and took its statues to Cybertron, fearing they would become part of the Black Lantern army during the coming Blackest Night. The three witches endured the loss and left to hunt for new sources of divine power, while ruling out revenge against Donnie for now.

• Donnie explained that the quarry's hundreds of demigod statues could become a dangerous undead army during Blackest Night, and insisted on taking them.
• Donnie shattered God's Quarry and teleported its statues to Cybertron for the Academy of Sciences to handle.
• Donnie warned the witches that he had saved them, then left through a portal with Wanda.
• The three witches agreed not to attack Donnie or his people and set out to find new targets to hunt.
• The witches considered attacking the Tyrant and devouring the Phoenix Egg, but rejected the plan and began discussing another risky target.

Grail and Sayan broke into the Tyrant’s ship to take the Phoenix Egg, fighting the enraged Tyrant as they reached it. Sayan hesitated when faced with the Phoenix Force, but just as he reached for the egg, someone seized his wrist.

• Grail punched the Tyrant aside and forced her way into his ship, with Sayan following as the Tyrant pursued them.
• Grail tore through the ship’s defenses and found the Phoenix Egg while Sayan struggled to hold the Tyrant back.
• The Tyrant attacked Grail, and they battled amid the destruction of the ship while Sayan approached the egg.
• Sayan hesitated over whether to take the Phoenix Egg or leave it for Grail, until Grail urged him to claim its power and help her.
• As Sayan reached for the Phoenix Egg, an unknown person grabbed his wrist and offered to take it instead.

Donnie seized the Phoenix Egg from Sayan and refused to help Grail directly oppose Darkseid, but agreed to grant her power in exchange for her future service. He sent Grail to the antimatter universe to seek a powerful artifact, leaving her and Sayan to pursue their next step.

• Donnie appeared, overpowered Sayan, and took the Phoenix Egg, which he recognized as an ownerless Phoenix Shard.
• Grail evaded the Tyrant and approached Donnie, while Sayan watched in shock as she showed him respect.
• Grail asked Donnie for help taking revenge on Darkseid, but he judged her value insufficient and said Sayan was too weak to serve as her weapon.
• Donnie agreed to help Grail in exchange for her future service and directed her to an artifact in the antimatter universe.
• Grail accepted the bargain and left with Sayan, while Donnie watched them depart.

Donnie returned to Cybertron with the Phoenix Egg, triggering Jean’s alternate personality, the Black Phoenix, to seize control and attack those around her. He confronted her and began suppressing her power, leaving the Phoenix Egg in his grasp as he prepared to settle accounts with her.

• The Tyrant refused Donnie’s offer to follow him and left to pursue freedom, while Donnie took the Phoenix Egg and returned to Cybertron.
• The Phoenix Egg stirred upon Donnie’s arrival, awakening the Black Phoenix within Jean, who demanded the fragment and injured Professor X with her psychic power.
• The Black Phoenix tore a building apart and blasted Wolverine away as Magneto and the gathered warriors tried to contain the destruction.
• Donnie told the Black Phoenix that she was not the Phoenix Force, then punched and seized her while holding onto the Phoenix Egg.
• The Black Phoenix summoned a golden phoenix, but Donnie shattered its image and declared that it was time to settle accounts with her.

Donnie fought the Black Phoenix and tore her consciousness from Jean, using the AllSpark to destroy her spirit and study the Phoenix Force. The Black Phoenix vanished, leaving Donnie determined to help Jean control her power.

• Donnie rejected the idea of reconciling Jean and the Black Phoenix and vowed to destroy the Black Phoenix so her energy could nourish Jean.
• The Black Phoenix attacked Donnie, while Wanda struggled against the violent impulses stirred by Jean's Phoenix Force until Magneto helped her regain control.
• Donnie overpowered the Black Phoenix and reached into Jean's mental world to tear the Phoenix Shard from her.
• The AllSpark began destroying the Black Phoenix's spiritual body and analyzing the Phoenix Force as she pleaded to be spared.
• Donnie refused to let the Black Phoenix go, annihilated her final trace, and continued gathering information about the Phoenix Force.

Donnie freed Jean from Black Phoenix and gave her the Phoenix Egg, allowing her to become the White Phoenix. Afterward, Wanda worried that Chaos Magic would change her, and Donnie vowed to protect her, even from the Chaos Ancient God Chthon.

• Donnie destroyed Black Phoenix, returned the Phoenix Shard to Jean, and assured her she was free.
• Donnie brought Jean to Cybertron, where Cyclops, Wolverine, and Professor X welcomed her back and learned Black Phoenix was dead.
• After Jean adapted to controlling the Phoenix Force, Donnie gave her the Phoenix Egg, and she fused it with her existing shard to become the White Phoenix.
• Donnie comforted Wanda about her unstable Chaos Magic and promised to deal with any threat, including Chthon.

Bruce Wayne investigated a yellow ring used by Scarecrow Klein and worried that the Sky Eye Society might control a Yellow Lantern army. Meanwhile, Talia gave birth to a son and named him Damian Wayne, intending to raise him as an assassin rather than bring him to his father.

• Bruce told Alfred that Joker had escaped prison with Harley Quinn and that he sensed new trouble was coming.
• Bruce showed Alfred footage of Klein using a yellow ring to create a giant fist and strike Joker.
• Bruce worried that the Sky Eye Society might have a Yellow Lantern army, while Alfred questioned whether he needed to prepare against it.
• Talia gave birth to a son in the desert, and Lady Shiva brought the infant to her.
• Talia refused to take the child to his biological father and said she would train him as an assassin.
• Talia named her son Damian Wayne.

Donnie reflected on Damian's future significance and Batman's potential rampage after his son's death, while Parallax demanded to meet Donnie. The chapter ended with Donnie announcing that Sinestro had returned with a Corps.

• Donnie considered how Damian's death would drive Batman to don the Hellbat Armor and attack Apocalypse.
• On Cybertron, Skyfire scolded the imprisoned Parallax, while Clamp proposed sending it to Karon Arena.
• Parallax used its fear energy to blast Clamp away and asked Skyfire to arrange a meeting with Donnie.
• Donnie arrived and told Skyfire that Sinestro had returned with a Corps.

Donnie discussed Sinestro’s return and the coming conflict with Parallax, then sent Hal Jordan to Earth to visit Seaside City. The chapter ended with Donnie wondering whether Sinestro’s army included the Anti-Monitor.

• Parallax told Donnie that Sinestro had returned with a Yellow Lantern Corps and offered to help in exchange for freedom.
• Donnie explained that the coming conflict could spark the Spectrum War, while the main universe was especially vulnerable to dangers involving the Emotional Spectrum.
• Donnie teleported Hal Jordan to Parallax, which tried to recruit him, but Hal rejected its offer.
• Hal asked to visit Seaside City, and Donnie sent him to Earth with permission to travel there.
• Parallax warned that Hal might be troubled by something he could not let go, while Donnie focused on whether Sinestro had brought the Anti-Monitor.

Sinestro led the Yellow Lantern army into the main universe, where they waited for allies before attacking Oa. Supreme Superman arrived and brutally overpowered his Anti-Matter Universe counterpart, Ultraman.

• Sinestro brought a massive Yellow Lantern army through the cosmic barrier and ordered them to wait for their allies before attacking Oa.
• Sinestro whipped a Yellow Lantern who urged an immediate assault and asserted his authority over the Corps.
• Ultraman emerged from the tunnel, mocked the main universe, and demanded that Sinestro begin the attack on Oa.
• Supreme Superman broke through the cosmic barrier and confronted Sinestro and the Yellow Lanterns.
• Ultraman challenged Supreme Superman, who seized him by the head, endured his Heat Vision, and identified himself as Supreme Superman.

Supreme Little Superman joined Sinestro’s Corps after brutally torturing Ultraman, who was then recruited as well. As the Corps headed for Oa without Mobius, Mobius sensed an Apokolips-linked presence approaching Kowad Star and wondered how his plans had been exposed.

• Sinestro offered Supreme Little Superman a Yellow Lantern Ring, and Supreme Little Superman accepted it after abandoning Ultraman.
• Ultraman recovered under the sun, but his use of the name Supreme Little Superman enraged Supreme Little Superman, who tortured him until Sinestro called them to leave.
• Sinestro gave Ultraman a Yellow Lantern Ring, and Ultraman joined the Corps while following him with resentment.
• Sinestro told the Corps that Mobius would not join their attack on Oa, and several thousand Yellow Lanterns set out for the main universe.
• Mobius sensed Darkseid’s aura moving toward Kowad Star and cursed over how information about his plans had leaked.

Mobius left Kowad Star to avoid provoking Apocalypse while Grail and Sayan searched the antimatter universe. In the main universe, Sinestro’s attack devastated the Green Lantern Corps and forced the Guardians to debate the restrictions that had left them vulnerable.

• Mobius, frustrated that Apocalypse had discovered him before he could use the Anti-Life Equation, left Kowad Star rather than risk a confrontation over Grail.
• Grail and Sayan cautiously traveled through the antimatter universe, discussing whether Donnie had deceived them and searching for clues.
• Mobius chose not to kill Grail, fearing that her death would draw Darkseid’s attention, and headed for the main universe.
• Sinestro led the Yellow Lantern Corps in an assault on Oa, killing many Green Lanterns and exploiting their inability to use lethal force and their vulnerability to the Yellow Impurity.
• The Guardians argued over whether to remove the Green Lanterns’ restrictions, fearing both Sinestro’s attack and the possibility of losing control of their Corps.

The Guardians debated how to stop Sinestro’s Yellow Lantern Corps, refused Ganthet’s proposal to bring Optimus Prime back to Oa, and lifted the Green Lanterns’ ban on lethal force. The war spread across the universe, where Sinestro and Supreme Little Superman cut through Green Lanterns while Sinestro warned Ultraman to stay out of Supreme Little Superman’s way.

• Ganthet urged the Guardians to remove restrictions and call Optimus Prime back to Oa, but the other Guardians rejected both proposals and chose to deploy the Ultimate Green Lanterns.
• The Guardians lifted the ban on lethal force and authorized Green Lanterns to use deadly attacks against the Sinestro Corps.
• The Green and Yellow Lantern Corps fought across the universe as rings repeatedly found new hosts after their bearers died.
• Sinestro killed Green Lanterns while Supreme Little Superman rampaged through the battlefield, striking both Green and Yellow Lanterns.
• Sinestro told Ultraman he was not yet a match for Supreme Little Superman and warned that he might not keep his promise to Mobius if Ultraman acted recklessly.

Sinestro led the Yellow Lanterns in a brutal war against the Green Lantern Corps, using his knowledge of the Guardians to gain the upper hand. As the Guardians watched their Lanterns die, they feared the Emotional Spectrum was spreading beyond their control and that more Corps were emerging.

• Sinestro killed a Green Lantern, seized his ring, and crushed it, declaring that green was behind him.
• Yellow and Green Lanterns fought across space as rings recruited new hosts to replace those killed in battle.
• The Guardians discussed Sinestro’s knowledge of their secrets and worried that Donnie and the Controllers might create more Lantern Corps.
• Ganthet and Sayd silently acknowledged that the Controllers likely knew more about the Emotional Spectrum than the Guardians admitted.
• The Guardians watched Sinestro’s forces gain the advantage and recognized that the balance of power was changing rapidly.

The Guardians deployed their Ultimate Green Lanterns to reverse the Green Lantern Corps’ losses against Sinestro’s forces. As the living weapons devastated the Yellow Lanterns, Sinestro condemned the Guardians, and Supreme Superman entered the fight to claim their rings.

• The Guardians opened a sealed door and deployed more than a dozen Ultimate Green Lanterns, ordering Worrix to kill Yellow Lanterns and preserve one ring for study.
• Worrix led the Ultimate Green Lanterns into the battlefield, where they killed dozens of Yellow Lanterns and destroyed many of their rings.
• Sinestro recognized the Ultimate Green Lanterns and condemned the Guardians, recalling that Abin Sur had warned him they could not be trusted.
• Sinestro ordered Ultraman and Kal-El to attack the Ultimate Green Lanterns.
• Supreme Little Superman refused to follow Sinestro’s order, tore apart a Green Lantern, and declared that Supreme Superman wanted the Ultimate Green Lanterns’ rings.