Chapter Summaries

Tony confronted Nick and S.H.I.E.L.D. after surviving their attack, while Doctor Doom offered to study Tony’s power in exchange for leaving him alone. Tony rejected the proposal, leaving the confrontation poised to turn into a fight.

• Tony appeared before Nick and the others, revealed that he had anticipated their plan, and said he had gone after the vibranium they left behind.
• Doctor Doom introduced himself as Victor’s true body and proposed studying Tony’s power instead of targeting him.
• S.H.I.E.L.D. members protested Doctor Doom’s offer, but Nick silenced them and defended Doctor Doom’s freedom to choose.
• Nick asked Doctor Doom to stay out of the fight if he made a deal with Tony, and Doctor Doom agreed.
• Tony refused to become Doctor Doom’s guinea pig, stunning him.

Tony rejected Doctor Doom’s offer, and the two fought in a clash that devastated the cliff. Tony countered Doom’s magic and trapped him with gravity, leaving Doom to call on Nick and the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents for help.

• Tony refused Doctor Doom’s offer, enraging Doom and prompting him to attack.
• Tony met Doom’s magical blast with flames, and their collision flattened the obstacles on the cliff.
• Tony and Doctor Doom exchanged powerful attacks, with Tony keeping Doom on the defensive.
• Doctor Doom unleashed a vast blizzard and a force field, but Tony dispelled the cold with flames and broke the field with gravity.
• Tony increased the gravity pressing down on Doctor Doom, who failed to escape and demanded that Nick and the others help.
• Nick ordered everyone to attack.

Tony unleashed the seven legions of the Shadow Army against his enemies while fighting Doctor Doom and Hela. The battle ended with Susan, Johnny, and Ben—the research trio—dead.

• Hela and Thor attacked Tony, prompting the others to join the assault and draw his fire.
• Tony summoned seven Shadowkhan legions, which overwhelmed the battlefield and attacked his opponents.
• Tony offered Hela and Doctor Doom a chance to submit, but both refused, so he resumed attacking them.
• The Shadow Blades killed Susan, and Johnny died after charging into their ranks in rage.
• Ben was killed when the Lava Trolls fighting him self-destructed, completing the research trio's deaths.

With the battlefield collapsing, Nick summoned a Flerken and ordered it to take out Tony. Tony escaped its attack, but it swallowed Hela and Doctor Doom instead, leaving Nick to order the cat to release them.

• As the Shadowkhan overwhelmed the heroes, Nick decided to use his risky fallback plan and rang a bell to summon a cat.
• The Flerken appeared, climbed onto Nick’s shoulder, and agreed to attack Tony.
• Tony, Hela, and Doctor Doom sensed danger and broke off their fight; Tony recognized the Flerken and fled as it attacked.
• The Flerken swallowed Hela and Doctor Doom along with the space around them, while Tony escaped by a narrow margin.
• Nick realized the Flerken had caught the wrong people and ordered it to release them, and Hela and Doctor Doom emerged from its mouth.

Nick used the Flerken to help Hela and Doctor Doom try to banish Tony, but Tony anticipated their plan and used their attacks to reach Nick. Tony killed Nick, leaving Hela and Doctor Doom enraged at having been manipulated.

• Hela and Doctor Doom identified Nick’s Flerken and explained that its surprise attack could have banished Tony, but Tony was now on guard.
• Doctor Doom told Nick to watch the battle and unleash the Flerken when Hela and he created an opening.
• Tony avoided their attempts to trap him, while Hela and Doctor Doom patiently changed tactics and eventually struck him with killing blows.
• Tony flew toward Nick, then appeared behind him and drove a hand through his chest after throwing the Flerken into the Shadow Kingdom.
• Nick realized Tony had used the fight to get close to him, and Tony tore Nick apart as Hela and Doctor Doom roared in anger.

Tony let Hela, Doctor Doom, and the surviving S.H.I.E.L.D. forces retreat after deciding he could not stop them without restarting the fight, then returned to Natasha. In Wakanda, T'Challa reported that the operation had failed and warned the king that Tony remained in the country and might retaliate.

• Hela ordered Captain and the surviving S.H.I.E.L.D. personnel to retreat, and Doctor Doom followed her after warning Tony they would meet again.
• Tony sent the Shadowkhan back to the Shadow Kingdom, reflected that he was not strong enough to keep everyone on the battlefield, and flew to the Wakandan Capital.
• Natasha greeted Tony anxiously at the hotel, and Tony reassured her before carrying her into the bedroom.
• T'Challa told the old king that the operation had failed and that Tony was a monster who had killed the American contact.
• Telas told the old king that Tony had torn the American contact apart, and T'Challa warned that Tony was still in Wakanda after they had plotted to capture him.

After S.H.I.E.L.D.’s Americans left, T'Challa and the Old King accepted they could not challenge Tony by force. When Tesla learned that more than ten thousand people had become brain-dead because of him, he went to Tony’s hotel to try talking instead.

• A Foreign Affairs official reported that the Americans had left, and T'Challa stopped the Old King from ordering their plane shot down.
• The Old King and T'Challa acknowledged that they lacked the strength to confront Tony, Hela, or Doctor Doom.
• The Police Chief reported that over ten thousand people across the country had become brain-dead overnight, and Tesla reacted with guilt before ordering the Chief to keep the news secret.
• Tesla left the palace to speak with Tony, entered his hotel room, and was greeted by Tony.

Tony nearly killed Tesla to expose his fear of death, then forced him to choose how Wakanda would pay for its attack. Tesla chose to personally break the arms and legs of one hundred thousand Wakandans, and Tony warned him to begin soon or face a doubled punishment.

• Tony used an invisible force to choke Tesla until he was near death, then released him.
• Tesla asked whether joining Tony could end the conflict with Wakanda, but Tony said the two matters were separate.
• Tony offered Tesla a choice between another ten thousand Wakandan deaths and personally breaking the limbs of one hundred thousand Wakandans, threatening to do both if Tesla refused to choose.
• Under Tony's countdown, Tesla chose to break the arms and legs of one hundred thousand Wakandans himself.
• Tony told Tesla to start soon or he would send someone to help and double the number.

After recruiting Black Panther, Tony gained Dai Gui's demon chi and summoned the powerful Shadow Scorpion Clan. T'Challa returned to the Royal Palace conflicted over Tony's ultimatum, and his father urged him to choose survival, even at the cost of Wakandan lives.

• Tony chose the Demon Chi Wheel and gained Dai Gui's demon chi, which gave him command over the earth.
• Tony summoned Scorpion Shadow and tested its strength, finding it powerful enough to rival Spider-Man.
• T'Challa returned to the Royal Palace and told the old king about the choice Tony had given him.
• T'Challa lamented that protecting Wakanda now meant making his people bear the consequences.
• The old king comforted T'Challa and told him that survival could require sacrificing Wakandans.

Tesla accepted that Wakanda had to sacrifice a hundred thousand people to meet Tony’s demand, choosing criminals and people with criminal records. After Tony gave him Eternal Holy Water and ordered him to leave for the United States, Tesla’s father drank it and happily sent his son on his way.

• Tesla agreed with the old king that someone had to be sacrificed and selected a hundred thousand criminals or people with criminal records.
• Tesla told Tony he had fulfilled the demand, and Tony said he would leave for the United States the next day and take Tesla with him.
• Tony gave Tesla Eternal Holy Water as a reward, explaining that it granted immortality but had to be taken regularly to avoid turning to dust.
• Tesla accepted the water and returned to the Royal Palace, where he told the old king he would leave with Tony and gave him the holy water.
• The old king drank the entire bottle, grew visibly younger, and dismissed Tesla after telling him to send more water on schedule.

After Congress rejected Steve Rogers’s request to sanction Tony and Stark Industries, the new S.H.I.E.L.D. Director met with the team to discuss how to defeat Tony. Doctor Doom suggested recruiting powerful figures from Hell, leaving Steve to weigh the dangerous prospect.

• Steve Rogers became S.H.I.E.L.D.'s new Director after Nick died and the Wakanda mission failed.
• Steve asked the United States leadership to sanction Tony and Stark Industries, but Congress rejected the request.
• Steve convened S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Superhumans, including Hela, Doctor Doom, Banner, Thor, Quicksilver, and Wanda, to discuss how to strengthen the organization against Tony.
• Doctor Doom proposed making breakthroughs or recruiting powerful allies, and Steve reminded him that S.H.I.E.L.D. also needed ordinary Superhumans to counter Tony's followers.
• Doctor Doom suggested recruiting powerful people he knew from Hell, while Hela warned Steve that they could be dangerous.

Captain agreed to Doctor Doom’s demand for several sets of human sacrifices so he could recruit helpers against Tony, while Hela privately questioned whether Doom would become a new threat. Back at the Seaside Villa, Tony gave JARVIS vibranium, assigned Loki to train Tesla, and then prepared dinner for Potts.

• Captain agreed to gather several sets of sacrifices so Doctor Doom could summon helpers, despite objecting to the bloodshed.
• Hela suspected S.H.I.E.L.D. might face Doctor Doom after dealing with Tony and chose not to warn anyone.
• Captain ordered the group to recruit law-abiding superhumans and avoid people connected to Tony.
• Tony gave JARVIS three hundred kilograms of vibranium and asked Loki to train Tesla.
• Tony went to Potts's apartment, cooked a Chinese meal, and comforted her when she returned home.

Tony received a system assessment mission requiring the Dark Alliance to select nine generals by having candidates seize territories and turn them into Shadow Kingdoms. He summoned the alliance to the Seaside Villa, where its members gathered and met Loki and Tesla.

• Tony received the system's assessment mission to select nine generals for the Shadow Army by establishing Shadow Kingdoms.
• Tony decided the assessment had to succeed, then summoned the Dark Alliance to the Seaside Villa.
• Norman left the Osborn Group after receiving Tony's message, and Peter walked out of class to answer the summons.
• Reed and Doctor Octopus abandoned their research, while Bucky left a training session with Harry to go to the villa.
• Norman, Peter, Reed, Doctor Octopus, and Bucky assembled at the Seaside Villa, where Loki and Tesla emerged from the underground laboratory and were unknown to the others.

Tony ordered the Dark Alliance to take control of territories and guide their inhabitants toward darkness, while insisting the mission did not require violence. As the group began establishing territories, Loki and Norman found contrasting ways to spread darkness, and the Captain prepared serious offenders for a summoning.

• Tony told the Dark Alliance members they had to claim territories and lead their inhabitants toward darkness, and he rejected Peter's request to opt out.
• Tony refused Loki's request to skip the mission for his research, promising success would greatly increase Loki's strength.
• Loki persuaded JARVIS to accompany him into the world and help administer his territory.
• The Captain inspected the first batch of serious offenders that S.H.I.E.L.D. had detained as sacrifices to summon reinforcements.
• Loki and Norman quickly established territories, with Norman paying people to embrace darkness and Loki posing as its God to gather faith.

Doctor Doom summoned Mephisto, Dormammu, and Zarathos to help fight Tony, unsettling the Captain and the S.H.I.E.L.D. team. The demons arrived through three Gates of Hell, and Mephisto threatened to feast on the humans before Doctor Doom ordered him to behave.

• The Captain asked Doctor Doom who he planned to summon, and Doctor Doom named Mephisto, Dormammu, and Zarathos.
• The Captain worried that summoning dangerous beings from Hell was a mistake but let Doctor Doom continue the ritual.
• Doctor Doom activated the Magic Circle, and the blindfolded prisoners inside it burst apart as three Gates of Hell opened.
• Dormammu and Zarathos emerged from two gates, and their presence withered the surrounding landscape.
• Mephisto stepped through the third gate and threatened to eat the humans, but Doctor Doom warned him to behave.

Steve and Doctor Doom’s plan to summon allies from Hell went awry when Mephisto brought Dormammu and Zarathos, who treated Blue Planet as their own. Doctor Doom saved Steve from Dormammu’s attack and Mephisto prevented the two from fighting, but Zarathos and Dormammu soon left, leaving Steve doubtful about the plan.

• Steve welcomed Mephisto, Dormammu, and Zarathos to Blue Planet, but Dormammu declared that he intended to claim the planet and make them his subordinates.
• Doctor Doom explained that he had contacted only Mephisto, who had brought the other two without Doom’s knowledge.
• Zarathos flew away to explore, and Dormammu attacked Steve with dark flames when Steve tried to address him.
• Doctor Doom froze the flames and saved Steve, then explained that Mephisto had been the intended strongest ally.
• Dormammu confronted Doctor Doom, but Mephisto stepped between them and persuaded them not to fight.
• Dormammu departed, and Steve regretted agreeing to Doctor Doom’s plan.

After Dormammu and Zarathos left, Steve secured Mephisto’s help against Tony by signing a soul contract, then revealed how powerful Tony was. Mephisto realized he had trapped himself in a binding deal and returned to the city with S.H.I.E.L.D. to learn more about his target.

• After Dormammu and Zarathos departed, Mephisto offered to help Steve defeat Tony in exchange for Steve’s soul.
• Steve signed Mephisto’s contract, which required either party’s soul to be annihilated if they failed to fulfill their obligations.
• Doctor Doom revealed that Tony was the opponent they had gathered to face, and Mephisto realized he had agreed to fight him.
• Mephisto demanded that Steve cancel the contract, but Steve refused and reminded him that breaking it would destroy his soul.
• Mephisto returned to the city with S.H.I.E.L.D. and questioned Steve about Tony, learning that Tony had defeated Odin, destroyed Asgard, and fought Hela and Doctor Doom without being outmatched.

Steve brought Mephisto back to S.H.I.E.L.D. under the terms of their contract, while Doctor Doom advised waiting for Dormammu and Zarathos to seek cooperation. In Queens, Zarathos discovered that Loki’s territory was filled with people whose instinctive violence produced unusually potent sinful souls.

• Hela and Thor arrived at S.H.I.E.L.D. and reacted with surprise when Steve explained how he had outmaneuvered Mephisto with a contract.
• Mephisto left to find lodging, and Doctor Doom told Steve to wait for Dormammu and Zarathos to return after clashing with Tony.
• Steve agreed to keep S.H.I.E.L.D. out of sight for a while and returned to his duties as Director.
• Zarathos roamed Queens, burning and devouring the souls of criminals drawn by the area’s sinful aura.
• Zarathos entered Loki’s territory and found that its inhabitants committed violence as naturally as satisfying their basic needs.
• Zarathos watched a robbery, a killing, and an organ sale that ended with the organ seller himself being turned into merchandise.

Zarathos secretly devoured the souls of three young men in Loki’s territory, drawing Loki’s attention. When Loki confronted him and demanded he leave, Zarathos attacked with a soul-piercing hellfire whip, and Loki set out to retaliate.

• Zarathos lured three young men into an alley and devoured their souls, believing no one had noticed.
• Loki sensed the souls vanish, used the Dark Temple’s clay statue to survey his territory, and found Zarathos.
• Loki confronted Zarathos, who demanded that Loki kneel and submit to him.
• Loki ordered Zarathos to leave, but Zarathos attacked him with a hellfire whip that struck his soul and shattered his phantom.
• Loki screamed in pain, then left the temple to find Zarathos and avenge the attack.

Zarathos confronted Loki, dismissed his first lightning attack as an illusion, and was caught off guard when Loki’s psychic assault proved real. After Zarathos struck back with Flame Whip, Loki shifted into another layer of space and revealed two stones, leaving Zarathos startled.

• Zarathos tracked Loki and watched him return, whereupon Loki summoned lightning serpents with the Mind Stone.
• Zarathos let the lightning strike, believing Loki had made it real through an illusion, and mocked him for the apparent failure.
• Loki unleashed a Psychic Storm, and Zarathos realized too late that the psychic attack was real and had struck his mind.
• Zarathos attacked Loki with Flame Whip, but Loki turned insubstantial and let the strike pass through him.
• Zarathos noticed two stones appear before Loki and sharpened his gaze.