Chapter Summaries

Thor tried to bring Loki back to Asgard, while Loki accused him of taking everything and said he wanted to prove he deserved the throne. After Alvin learned that demons were appearing across Earth, he brutally interrogated Loki about the Tesseract and his plans, leaving Loki with five minutes to explain himself.

• Thor confronted Loki about his betrayal and begged him to return to Asgard, while Loki accused Thor of overshadowing him and said he wanted to be king.
• Hela told Alvin that Thor was the heir approved by the Nine Realms, and Alvin mocked Thor and Loki as fools.
• Thor angrily defended Asgard against Hela, then Alvin re-injured Loki and asked whether he had caused the worldwide demon attacks.
• Alvin told Thor that the Tesseract had disturbed Earth's Dimensional Membrane, and Loki denied working with demons but admitted he planned to bring a Chitauri army to Earth.
• Thor pleaded for Alvin to spare Loki, but Alvin struck Loki while pretending to be blind until Loki agreed to tell them everything.
• Alvin stopped and gave Loki five minutes to convince him not to kill him.

Alvin interrogated Loki about the Tesseract and the Chitauri, while Thor took Loki back to Asgard and Nick Fury asked Alvin and Stark for help. In New York, Sesk escaped Norman Osborn, and Lang stole the Tesseract from Agent Hill, planning to use its energy to summon his spaceship.

• Loki revealed that he had traded the Tesseract to Thanos for the Chitauri army, but claimed he did not know where the Tesseract was.
• Alvin, Stark, and Thor agreed that Loki should be beaten further, and Thor took him away to Asgard after Loki threatened Earth.
• Thor warned Alvin that Demons were appearing in unusual numbers and that someone in Hell might be behind it.
• Nick Fury arrived with Dr. Banner and asked for help locating the Tesseract, and Alvin headbutted Fury for disrupting Kamar-Taj's efforts.
• Agent Hill and Dr. Selvig reached a Brooklyn safe house with the Tesseract, but Norman Osborn's fight with Sesk knocked them unconscious.
• Lang emerged from Sesk's backpack, took the Tesseract and a cylinder-shaped piece of metal, and asked Sesk to find a source of energy so he could summon his spaceship.

Old Parker brought Kenny and the others toward Community School as Hell’s Kitchen residents defended the neighborhood during the Demon attack. At the school, JJ coordinated the arrival of the children while William Rush treated an injured guard, and the chapter ended with the buses and wounded being brought to safety.

• Kenny, John, and the supermarket employees refused Old Parker’s offer of shelter, insisting they would protect Robert’s business while Peter, Shang-Chi, Harry, and Wesley fought nearby.
• Old Parker saw Peter and the others fighting, then took Zack, William, and the rest toward Community School so William could see a doctor.
• JJ told Frank that the children had arrived safely but Temple refused to leave the crowded hospital, where Matt and Danny were guarding her.
• Domingo brought in the final busload of children with the injured guard Boz Hale, and a little girl comforted Boz by giving him a toy.
• William Rush stitched Boz’s stomach wound at the school, while Boz worried about the treatment and asked for Dr. Yinsen to examine him later.

Alvin returned to New York with a group of children and began heading to Hell’s Kitchen while Demons rampaged across the city. His arrival lifted the police’s spirits, and he promised to help as the city’s officers struggled to defend people.

• Alvin and Fox drove their groups from Stark’s villa toward Hell’s Kitchen, rescuing people from Demons along the way.
• Chief George learned that Hell’s Kitchen’s gangs were fighting the Demons effectively, while police forces elsewhere were overwhelmed and short of officers.
• Chief George ordered Beckett to send her Hell’s Kitchen officers to assist other areas, despite fearing that the police would lose the community’s trust again.
• Alvin contacted Chief George over the radio, confirmed that he had returned through a Portal, and arranged to help equip Beckett’s officers with weapons.
• Alvin said he was already moving to rescue his students and told police across New York to report where they needed help.
• The police command center cheered Alvin’s return and sent word to officers in the field that the Manhattan Axe was ready to help.

After the battle in Hell’s Kitchen, Alvin praised the gang members who defended the neighborhood and promised to help them buy public housing apartments. He left Frank in charge of the school and set out to check other areas with Shirley, Fox, Brian, and Dominic Toretto.

• Beckett bought a Kord Heavy Machine Gun from Alexei for the police, while Alvin teased them about their legal fees.
• Alvin learned that a dozen gang members had died and told Alexei to list them so their families could receive compensation.
• Alvin praised the gang members for protecting Hell’s Kitchen and promised to ask the City Government to sell them public housing apartments, with their Bosses offering interest-free loans.
• Alvin left Frank to oversee the school, but Shirley and Fox joined him as he prepared to check the other areas.
• Brian and Dominic Toretto offered to drive Alvin, and Alvin teased Fox by promising to persuade her to forgive Dominic.

Steve Rogers rescued a police squad and civilians from Demons in Brooklyn, while Peter got Gwen and her mother to safety in Greenwich Village. Alvin and Dominic Toretto raced toward another battle, with Alvin preparing to charge in.

• Steve Rogers stopped a Ram-Headed Demon’s sledgehammer from hitting a young officer, then ordered the police to move civilians into the subway and hold the entrance.
• Steve fought off Demons and told the white officer that the red-skinned monsters in the subway tunnels were gone.
• Peter rescued Gwen and her mother, Mrs. Stacy, from a restaurant and prepared to take them by air to safety.
• Shang-Chi refused a suited man’s request to evacuate him first and told him to call the president about the missing troops.
• Alvin rode in Dominic Toretto’s speeding armored pickup toward a battle and told JJ to get ready to charge in.

Duke and the Emergency Squad made a desperate last stand against the Gluttony Demons until Alvin and his allies rescued them. After Duke's men received fresh weapons, Alvin coordinated teams across New York and set off with Dominic to help elsewhere.

• Duke refused to retreat because civilians were sheltering in nearby restaurants, and his squad kept fighting as their ammunition dwindled and the Humvee's machine-gun barrel broke.
• Alvin, Warrior Three, and JJ arrived in a pickup truck, smashed through the Demons, and rescued Duke's men.
• Alvin told Duke that Roman would bring weapons and ammunition, including Russian Grenades, and Duke prepared his men to rearm.
• Alvin checked in with Steve, who reported that the Little Turtles were helping clear the Manhattan Subway with Subway drivers.
• Alvin organized response teams over the police channel, including a team led by Norman Osborn, then left with Dominic to assist other locations.

Chief George watched as Alvin and the arriving military forces helped turn the battle in New York, while a Navy SEAL team became trapped by demons along the Hudson River. Shirley, Letty, and Hela rescued the soldiers, and Shirley introduced their group as ordinary citizens before they continued the fight.

• Chief George saw William Lennox's Special Forces team surrounded by Gluttony Demons, Cat-Faced Demons, and Ram-Headed Demons near the Hudson River.
• Lennox and Mike used high-explosive Rockets to collapse part of the highway and crush dozens of Gluttony Demons, but Cat-Faced Demons then attacked the team with psychic force.
• A bullet struck one Cat-Faced Demon, and Shirley arrived to kill the remaining Cat-Faced Demons while Letty used a truck-mounted machine gun to help destroy the Ram-Headed Demons.
• Hela used white light swords to kill the Gluttony Demons on the highway and target a hidden high-ranking Demon as Brian watched.
• Shirley thanked Letty for her driving, then told Lennox that she ran a clothing store and Fox owned a flower shop.

Alvin rescued survivors from a theater where men had fed others to Gluttony Demons, then urged the survivors to remember the victims as brave people. As the Demon-clearing campaign wound down, Norman Osborn gained recognition for hunting Demons, while Stark confronted Nick Fury over S.H.I.E.L.D.'s use of Stark Industries technology and rejected their ties.

• Alvin entered the theater, killed two Gluttony Demons, and left the remaining one to fight the men who had sacrificed others to survive.
• Alvin told the survivors they could blame him for what happened, then asked the little girl to remember the victims as brave people who had sacrificed themselves to save her.
• Alvin and Dominic set off with JJ to keep fighting Demons as New York gradually quieted and the National Guard joined the campaign.
• Norman Osborn and his son gained recognition by hunting Demons around New York and helping the military in New Jersey.
• Stark confronted Nick Fury about S.H.I.E.L.D. taking Stark Industries technology, and Fury explained the companies' historical ties through Howard Stark.
• Stark rejected Fury's claim that the companies were effectively one and told him he would not be bound to S.H.I.E.L.D.

Alvin and Dominic helped save New Yorkers from Boundary-Crossing Demons, and Alvin met Beckford, a baker whose son Jordan had been inspired by Alvin after leaving prison. Alvin signed a photograph for Jordan and left with Battleaxe Bread, while Beckford planned to give his son the encouraging message.

• Dominic drove Alvin and Warrior Three through Manhattan as they responded to demons and rescued civilians.
• Alvin hurled himself into a group of demons near Central Park and defeated them inside Beckford's bakery.
• Beckford asked Alvin for an autograph and explained that Alvin had saved him and his son during the Battle of Manhattan.
• Beckford told Alvin that his son Jordan Beckford had served three years in prison for illegal trading and money laundering and was now trying to start over.
• Alvin signed a photograph for Jordan with an encouraging message, took two bags of Battleaxe Bread, and left as soldiers arrived to buy some.

Alvin joked with Lennox and his Navy SEALs, easing tensions and learning that Lennox had been trained by Frank. After Stark reported that he and Dr. Banner were narrowing down the Tesseract’s location, Alvin decided to head to them once he checked on New York.

• Alvin made Lennox carry Battleaxe Bread to the Raptor, and Lennox’s men relaxed and rushed into the bakery for food.
• Lennox introduced himself as Major William Lennox, and Alvin learned that his instructor had been Frank, the only former SEAL colonel commanding officer.
• Alvin asked Lennox to help expose a supposed SEAL colonel who had cheated him out of wages, while Lennox agreed to look into the braggart.
• Stark contacted Alvin and said he and Dr. Banner were narrowing down the Tesseract’s location as Demon activity worldwide declined.
• Alvin decided to check with Chief George before heading to Stark, and Stark invited Lennox’s soldiers to join his Avengers team with promises of great training, equipment, enemies, and pay.

Alvin helped Lennox’s elite soldiers join the New York police network, then continued assisting the city as Steve Rogers, the Little Turtles, and local crews protected neighborhoods. He reached Wall Street during a booming arms trade, where Agent Norman Coward arrived and asked Alexei what it would take for his gang to make something of themselves.

• Alvin connected Lennox and his men to Chief George’s police communications network and left them to assist with the fighting.
• Alvin responded to police calls while Peter, Shang-Chi, and Wesley helped rescue people, and Steve Rogers and the Little Turtles organized subway shelters and defensive lines.
• Alvin met Roadblock, who had rescued an injured female gorilla from the Central Park Zoo, and escorted his exhausted team to the arms truck.
• Roman and Gisele watched Alexei’s gang sell machine guns to police on Wall Street while Bruto’s men hawked marijuana.
• Alvin arrived at Wall Street and warned Alexei and Bruto not to provoke the wealthy locals.
• Agent Norman Coward landed a S.H.I.E.L.D. Quinjet and asked Alexei what it would take for his gang to make something of themselves.

Alvin agreed to go to S.H.I.E.L.D.'s command center after Natasha explained the threat of another Tesseract incident. Steve confronted Natasha over S.H.I.E.L.D.'s recklessness but joined Alvin in preparing to help.

• Alvin offered Roman and Gisele money, but Gisele asked him to secure them tickets to the Death Race finals instead.
• Fox joined Alvin and Gisele's teasing exchange, while Natasha told Alvin that S.H.I.E.L.D. needed his help at its temporary command center.
• Alvin agreed to go after saying he would say goodbye to Fox and handle a few things, then spotted Steve arriving on a motorcycle.
• Steve criticized S.H.I.E.L.D. for using the Tesseract and argued that the resulting danger had made his earlier sacrifices feel pointless.
• Natasha told Steve the world needed him, and Alvin encouraged Steve to help while joking that they could start by confronting Nick Fury.

Alvin, Steve, and Natasha arrived aboard S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Helicarrier to confront the crisis involving the stolen Tesseract. Nick Fury defended S.H.I.E.L.D.'s risky research, but Steve argued that the Tesseract should have been left in the ocean.

• Alvin said goodbye to Fox and left with Natasha to retrieve the Tesseract, while Fox agreed to look after the children and Gisele.
• Alvin and Steve arrived aboard the Helicarrier and questioned its usefulness and vulnerability as a weapon.
• Nick Fury welcomed Steve, and Alvin joked about breaking Fury's nose.
• Stark teased Fury and offered Natasha a job as part of the Avengers, while Natasha urged everyone to focus on solving the crisis.
• Nick Fury explained that S.H.I.E.L.D. had studied the Tesseract as a possible source of Eternal Energy and defended taking risks with science.
• Steve told Fury that he should have left the Tesseract in the ocean.

Alvin and Steve confronted Nick Fury over S.H.I.E.L.D.’s secret Tesseract weapons research and the civilian deaths caused by its methods. Alvin joined Dr. Banner to search for the Tesseract, while Fury defended his choices and revealed he had once wanted to be a firefighter.

• Alvin stopped Stark from mocking Nick Fury, then accused Fury of excusing civilian deaths and pursuing Tesseract power without accountability.
• Nick Fury explained that he had brought the Tesseract out of hiding after Thor’s arrival and said Earth needed its power to defend itself from alien civilizations.
• Alvin argued that Asgard and Earth’s Mages had protected humanity for millennia, challenged Fury’s distrust, and warned him not to involve Alvin in future trouble.
• Alvin met Dr. Banner and learned that Banner had designed an algorithm to locate the Tesseract, while Stark described Banner’s scientific expertise and transformation into a monster.
• Steve accused S.H.I.E.L.D. of developing weapons under the pretense of protection and warned Fury that its methods resembled Hydra’s.
• Steve urged Fury to protect people like a firefighter, and Fury replied that he had once wanted to be one but had lost an eye.

Alvin explained that Loki’s failed plan had still exposed Earth to the Chitauri, forcing S.H.I.E.L.D. and the others to consider how to face the coming invasion. Stark proposed inviting the aliens to a battlefield of their choosing, and Alvin called for Thor and Heimdall to provide information before anyone risked Earth.

• Natasha brought coffee to Alvin and Steve while Coulson approached Steve with his shield and asked for an autograph.
• Steve refused to take back the shield and told Coulson it represented protection, urging him to find a more suitable owner.
• Alvin explained that S.H.I.E.L.D.’s Tesseract experiments had drawn Loki and the Chitauri to Earth, and warned that the army would still come for the Tesseract.
• Alvin told Nick Fury that Earth would need to find the Chitauri in space or rely on Asgardians to keep them away.
• Stark proposed learning how the Chitauri fought and inviting them to a battlefield chosen by Earth.
• Alvin said they needed reliable information before taking that risk, then called out to Thor and Heimdall.

Stark argued that Earth should prepare to defend itself from the Chitauri, while Alvin rejected a risky plan and criticized S.H.I.E.L.D.'s technology. Stark traced Loki's preparations to the Tesseract and Destroyer metal, then renewed his push to form the Avengers.

• Alvin refused to support Stark's plan to prepare for the aliens without reliable information and said he would rather fight alongside Thor in space than risk making Earth the battlefield.
• Stark said S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Tesseract experiment had opened the Space Gate that brought Loki to Earth, then ridiculed the Strategic Science Department's equipment and research.
• Alvin backed Stark's criticism by comparing S.H.I.E.L.D.'s vehicles and aircraft unfavorably to Cobra's technology and warning Coulson about the Helicarrier's alleged use of Stark Industries technology.
• Stark and Steve reasoned that Loki had needed preparations to create a stable Space Gate, and Stark guessed Loki had sought Destroyer-metal technology from his home and Dr. Selvig's laboratory.
• Nick Fury challenged Stark's claims, but Stark said he had analyzed Selvig's records and declared that he wanted to form the Avengers rather than leave Earth's safety to S.H.I.E.L.D.

Alvin, Stark, Steve, and Banner argued with Nick Fury about the Tesseract search and S.H.I.E.L.D.'s distrust of its potential allies. Coulson then reported that Hill and Selvig had awakened, but the Tesseract had been taken by people who were not from Earth.

• Stark explained that a stabilizer could make the Tesseract's portal possible, and Banner agreed that suitable material might control the unstable energy.
• Banner's tracking algorithm searched laboratories around the world, while Alvin pointed out that Selvig and the Tesseract could not have left the United States.
• Stark revealed S.H.I.E.L.D.'s cage for Banner, prompting Steve and Banner to challenge Fury's distrust and S.H.I.E.L.D.'s claim to police threats.
• Alvin demanded to know what Fury was hiding, and Coulson reported that Hill and Selvig were conscious but the Tesseract had been taken by people from elsewhere.

Alvin confronted Nick Fury over S.H.I.E.L.D.’s secrecy and its handling of the Tesseract, then agreed to keep working with the agents until they found it while insisting he would keep it. Steve warned Coulson that Alvin’s kindness did not make him harmless.

• Alvin exposed Nick Fury’s fake nose injury and punched him repeatedly after Fury admitted he had brought Alvin there to keep him away from the Tesseract.
• Coulson and Natasha aimed their guns at Alvin, but Steve stopped Coulson from firing and Stark urged Natasha to stand down.
• Nick Fury argued that Alvin’s power threatened the world and that politicians and ordinary people could turn against him and his friends.
• Alvin said he would keep the Tesseract and gave S.H.I.E.L.D. time to prepare a cover story, while asking Natasha to bring over the recovered agent and Dr. Selvig.
• Steve told Coulson that Alvin’s rule over Hell’s Kitchen showed he was not merely the harmless good person Coulson assumed.

Aboard the Quinjet, Agent Hill and Dr. Selvig grappled with the deaths caused by the demons as they learned Alvin was aboard the Helicarrier. Alvin confronted Nick Fury over his ruthless plans, while Stark and Banner realized the Tesseract might be drawing power from Stark facilities and moved to secure them.

• Dr. Selvig blamed himself for the deaths in New York, while Agent Hill urged him to focus on finding the alien and Natasha warned that his research had killed at least five thousand people.
• Hawkeye told Agent Hill that Fury had watched her Safe Houses, that Alvin was aboard the Helicarrier, and that the Tesseract had been stolen by an alien.
• Natasha told Hill that S.H.I.E.L.D. might be Alvin’s target and that she kept money beyond the agency’s reach.
• Alvin challenged Nick Fury over his willingness to make agents disappear, then asked Stark to help track the missing Tesseract.
• Banner suspected the Tesseract required a major power source, prompting Stark to shut down the New Energy systems at Stark Tower and the Stark Convention Center.
• Stark asked Alvin to protect the convention center, and Alvin told JJ to take people and the Beast there.