Chapter Summaries

Steve learned how deeply Hydra had infiltrated S.H.I.E.L.D. and went to investigate a new sighting of the Winter Soldier. Tony defeated the Winter Soldier, and Krillin warned him that Steve was approaching.

• Steve asked Coulson for help finding the man who had attacked him, and Coulson explained that Hydra controlled much of S.H.I.E.L.D. and that restoring its operations was nearly impossible.
• Natasha linked Hydra’s return within the government to Project Paperclip, which had recruited enemy scientists after World War II.
• Steve spotted surveillance footage of the Winter Soldier fleeing and hurried to the location on Midtown Street.
• Tony bombarded the Winter Soldier until he collapsed, then recognized him as the killer of his parents.
• Krillin saw Steve approaching and warned Tony over his Communicator.

Tony Stark took the wounded Winter Soldier into custody after using his influence to secure authorization, angering Steve. Steve left the Avengers Squad, threatening the plan to unite his team with the Foundation and Hydra to form the Avengers.

• Tony Stark used JARVIS and his connections to get permission to take the Winter Soldier, then had automated machines carry him away.
• Steve received orders confirming the Winter Soldier had been handed over to Tony and became furious at the authorities’ decision.
• Steve visited the Superhuman Strategy Office and announced that he and the remaining members of the Avengers Squad were leaving.
• Smith learned Steve had quit and worried that the move had undermined the plan to combine Steve’s team with the Foundation and Hydra to form the Avengers.

Tony visited the injured Rhodey, whose concerns about the Superhuman Registration Act led Steve to urge Tony to bridge the divide between Superhumans and ordinary people. The chapter ended with Tony revealing that Bucky could be sent to a place where he would face the death penalty, shocking Steve.

• Tony visited Rhodey in the hospital, and Rhodey reassured him that his injuries were not Tony's fault.
• Rhodey questioned the Superhuman Registration Act, saying few Superhumans had come to help during the fight and suggesting that Tony should lead.
• Steve visited Rhodey, apologized, and then left the room with Tony, who noticed Steve had left the Avengers Squad.
• Steve told Tony that the Act treated Superhumans unfairly and asked him to serve as a bridge between Superhumans and ordinary people.
• Steve asked what Tony had done with the captured Supercriminal, and Tony said Bucky could be sent somewhere that still imposed the death penalty if his crimes warranted it.

Tony delayed deciding the Winter Soldier’s fate until he had questioned him, while the Foundation and Hydra pressured Smith for positions in the Registration Act Office. Elsewhere, Rayquaza watched Kyogre and Groudon continue their destructive battle, which awakened powers in some people and killed others.

• Tony told Steve that the Winter Soldier would stand trial after revealing everything, then left Steve behind.
• At the Avengers’ first formal meeting, Ah Xing demanded that the Foundation receive thirty percent of the Registration Act Office’s positions, and Zola supported Hydra receiving a share as well.
• Smith resisted their demands until Ah Xing showed him evidence of his dealings with the Military Wetland Research Institute, after which Smith left with a smile.
• Zola reflected that Hydra and the Foundation had different goals and that Smith had underestimated both organizations.
• Rayquaza watched Kyogre and Groudon’s ongoing battle reshape the land, as some nearby people awakened superpowers and others died.
• A white man observing the battle with his team asked when it would end, and his captain said the higher-ups expected the three gods to disperse after meeting.

Arthur killed Bast while the Three Gods War ended with Kyogre, Groudon, and Rayquaza returning to their domains. In the United States, officials confronted Smith over the Superhuman Registration Act office, but an urgent call interrupted them.

• Arthur sensed Bast near the battlefield and attacked the Panther God, who fought back but was subdued by Arthur’s viral domain.
• Bast tried to strike Arthur, but Rayquaza’s Delta Stream swept him away, giving Arthur the chance to drain him dry.
• Kyogre returned to slumber on the ocean floor, Groudon settled beneath Yellowstone Volcano, and Rayquaza vanished into the sky.
• Five powerful American officials questioned Smith about his family’s role in the disorder at the Superhuman Registration Act office.
• A phone began beeping before Smith could explain himself.

Jiang Xiang visited Asgard after Odin invited him and learned that the Dark Elves were about to awaken and attack despite lacking the strength to seize the Reality Stone. Odin suggested fate would drive the invasion forward, leaving Jiang Xiang considering whether lending the Dark Elves power from dimensions he controlled could serve his interests.

• Five officials discussed the newly awakened Superhumans and ordered Smith to recruit them and build squads to counter the Foundation and Hydra.
• Jiang Xiang traveled to Asgard aboard a Dark Shadow Beast and followed Heimdall through the palace with thoughts of what treasures he might obtain from Odin.
• Sylvie welcomed Jiang Xiang, then led him past the ruined palace to a spring beneath a root of the World Tree.
• Odin explained that his father had discovered the spring and that Asgardians gained their strength by drinking its waters, though not everyone survived the process.
• Odin told Jiang Xiang that the Dark Elves were about to awaken and would attack Asgard, and Jiang Xiang considered lending them power from dimensions under his control.

Jiang Xiang entered the World Tree to investigate its roots and discovered that its apparent link to the Nine Realms was negligible. After using the Six Infinity Stones to summon three hidden figures, he accused them of secretly harvesting energy and taking unequal shares.

• Jiang Xiang extended his dimensional power toward the slumbering Dark Elves, then focused on the World Tree.
• Odin offered Jiang Xiang guardianship of the World Tree, but Jiang Xiang asked to examine its roots instead.
• Jiang Xiang entered the World Tree’s domain, found that the Nine Realms had almost no significant connection to it, and sensed its immense power.
• When the World Tree’s voices demanded a sacrifice, Jiang Xiang used the Six Infinity Stones to bring their speakers before him.
• Three indistinct figures appeared, and Jiang Xiang accused them of acting as middlemen to harvest the World Tree’s energy while secretly keeping unequal shares.

Jiang Xiang defeated the Three Sisters of Fate, learned how the World Tree’s authority had been siphoned by Odin, and received a mysterious prophecy from the World Tree. Odin recognized it as Prophecy Paper, and Jiang Xiang began to question what it foretold.

• Jiang Xiang trapped the Three Sisters of Fate in the Shadow Dimension, rewound time when they resisted, and killed them to claim their godheads and divine weapons.
• Jiang Xiang wondered whether fate came from the World Tree and decided not to trust the goddesses enough to leave one alive.
• The World Tree explained how Odin had gathered its power at several moments when the throne of god-king changed hands.
• The World Tree sent Jiang Xiang a cryptic message about a future tunnel and parasites devouring the world, then gave him a golden sheet of paper.
• Jiang Xiang showed the paper to Odin, who identified it as Prophecy Paper and recalled the prophecy of Ragnarok; Jiang Xiang began to rethink his dismissal of it.

Jiang Xiang learned that Ragnarok was inevitable for most pantheons and settled beneath the World Tree to cultivate, while Tony prepared to have the Winter Soldier executed. Steve then learned that Oak City had declared independence, with Freddy’s letters apparently persuading officials not to intervene.

• Odin told Jiang Xiang that Ragnarok’s final outcome could not be changed, only delayed or influenced, and that Asgard would be destroyed until it transcended fate.
• Jiang Xiang studied the prophecy sheet, asked Odin to let him cultivate beneath the World Tree, and remained in Asgard.
• Tony finished investigating the Winter Soldier’s crimes and planned to send him to a jurisdiction where he could be sentenced to death.
• Natasha told Steve that Tony had secured over thirty percent of the Superhuman Registration Act administration’s seats, while Steve hid his distress over Bucky’s impending execution.
• Natasha showed Steve a report that Oak City had declared independence, and explained that Freddy’s letters had caused several senators and generals to abandon the matter.

Tony Stark learned that the military planned to threaten Freddy’s Freak Alliance with missiles, while Luke Cage attended a freedom-faction gathering opposing the Superhuman Registration Act. The alliance’s challenge to government authority and the growing divisions among superhumans left the situation on the brink of escalation.

• Smith asked Tony Stark when he would deal with Freddy and the Freak Alliance, but Tony declined to intervene.
• Tony worried that Freddy’s alliance offered superhumans a way to break away from government control.
• Rhodey told Tony that the military planned to aim missiles at the Freak Alliance and force it into negotiations.
• Rhodey explained that the military believed force was necessary because the alliance’s members did not depend on ordinary supplies.
• Luke Cage, who had retired from superhero work, followed his girlfriend to a gathering of the freedom faction, where members condemned registration and called for resistance.

Luke Cage tried to stop a gathering of Superhumans from being manipulated into rescuing the Winter Soldier, while Tony Stark learned of the unrest and tightened security around the prisoner. The chapter ended with Tony wondering which faction was behind the rescue effort.

• Luke Cage and Anna noticed people at the gathering were steering the crowd toward rescuing the Winter Soldier.
• Luke confronted the masked speaker, who attacked him with a knife and revealed that he knew Luke had served on the Police's Supernatural Response Team.
• Luke threw the speaker out of the gathering, then Anna hurried him away as the crowd began looking at him differently.
• News of the gathering reached Tony, who ordered JARVIS to reinforce security against anyone trying to rescue the Winter Soldier.
• Tony considered whether Hydra, the Freak Alliance, or an ambitious Superhuman was behind the unrest, while the Authorities remained focused on Oak City.

Tony’s decoy transport thwarted a staged attempt to rescue the Winter Soldier, while Dr. Zola used the resulting footage to stir opposition to the Superhuman Registration Act. Nick Fury brought Steve up to date on the failed rescue, leaving Steve alarmed that Bucky had been its target.

• A would-be rescuer attacked the vehicle carrying the Winter Soldier, but Tony’s trap exposed him as a suicide operative, and his accomplices uploaded footage of his death.
• Dr. Zola manipulated online reaction against the Superhuman Registration Act, while Tony developed specialized armor to counter Superhumans and Soul Reapers.
• Steve woke in S.H.I.E.L.D. custody and learned from Nick Fury that the Winter Soldier situation involved Bucky.
• Steve saw news of the failed rescue attempt and realized the conspirators had tried to save Bucky.

Steve learned that Hydra had taken control of more than ten Superhuman strongholds and was planning to use civilians as hostages. Meanwhile, Hydra recruited Kingpin to protect civilians as part of its scheme, and Steve confronted Doctor Zola, who explained his plans for humanity’s evolution through mechanical ascension.

• Nick Fury gave Steve a report showing that Hydra had taken control of more than ten Superhuman strongholds and might trigger riots in multiple cities.
• Steve recognized that Hydra planned to exploit heroes’ concern for civilians by using hostages, and Nick Fury approved the plan after reviewing it.
• A masked Hydra robot recruited Kingpin to look after civilians, and Kingpin admired the scheme before checking the progress of his Collider.
• Steve broke into a high-tech base and confronted Doctor Zola about his aims.
• Doctor Zola described mechanical ascension as a possible path for humanity’s continued evolution while Steve struggled to follow his explanation.

Doctor Zola outlined his plan for humanity’s mechanical evolution and challenged Steve Rogers over Hydra’s history and ideals. Elsewhere, Natasha infiltrated Kingpin’s hidden chamber, where Kingpin confronted her.

• Doctor Zola told Steve Rogers he intended to use the United States as a testing ground for humanity’s evolution through mechanical ascension.
• Steve called Zola insane, but Zola argued that Hydra’s rebellion against entrenched inequality resembled Steve’s own resistance to the powerful.
• Natasha infiltrated Kingpin’s lair in the Wilson Building and avoided the psychic Haunter while searching for a secret chamber.
• Natasha found a concealed room and searched its shelves after questioning the intelligence Nick Fury had provided.
• Kingpin emerged from the shadows and confronted Natasha as she drew her gun.

Natasha and Nick Fury confronted Kingpin over his secret collider research, but Kingpin revealed that he and his men had transformed into werewolf-like creatures and gained the upper hand. A mysterious red light appeared near a computer, and an unseen observer commented on Kingpin's project.

• Nick Fury surrounded the Wilson Building and entered its secret chamber, where Kingpin had exposed Natasha as a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent.
• Nick Fury tried to question Kingpin about his ambitious project, but Kingpin challenged him for having no credible evidence.
• Kingpin transformed into a werewolf-like creature, and his subordinates transformed alongside him.
• Natasha moved beside Nick Fury as the transformed men raised the pressure and left S.H.I.E.L.D.'s team at a disadvantage.
• A red light appeared near a computer, and an unseen observer remarked that Kingpin's project had drawn Nick Fury there.

Natasha died after Kingpin’s forces defeated Nick Fury’s soldiers, then encountered a Soul Reaper who offered her a place in the Soul Society. She learned that refusing the offer would lead to reincarnation, though ordinary souls could return in incomplete or nonhuman forms.

• Natasha reflected on her life as she lay dying, then died from her wounds.
• Kingpin ordered his men to dispose of the bodies, examined Nick Fury’s green corpse, and joined Doctor Octopus to watch the Collider experiment.
• A green-haired Soul Reaper named Green Mood bound Natasha’s soul and told her she was dead but could choose a different kind of life.
• Green Mood offered Natasha an application to join the Soul Society and explained that reincarnation could strip away a soul’s memories and even result in an animal life.

Barton struggled to accept Natasha’s death and sought to uncover the truth, but Freddy offered him power through a bottle of Ultra Divine Water. During its painful transformation, Barton encountered Natasha, who told him Kingpin had killed her and warned him not to confront Kingpin.

• Barton demanded access to the circumstances of Natasha’s death, but Coulson warned him that the investigation was complicated.
• Barton walked through the city grieving Natasha when a strange voice offered him power and knowledge of the truth.
• Freddy appeared and offered Barton a choice of water, blood, or scripture, and Barton drank the Ultra Divine Water.
• As the water transformed Barton, he saw Natasha during her assessment assignment and learned that Kingpin had killed her.
• Barton endured the transformation through sheer will after hearing Natasha name Kingpin as her killer.

Barton learned that succeeding with the Ultra Divine Water had cost him much of his lifespan and resolved to look for a chance to challenge Kingpin. Meanwhile, Jane Foster was taken to Asgard after the modified Aether made her disappear, where Loki warned her that her relationship with Thor was unlikely to overcome the gulf between their lifespans.

• Barton learned that he had roughly ten years left after becoming the first ordinary person to survive the Ultra Divine Water, and he accepted the cost.
• Barton considered using the Uncanny to extend his life and decided to wait for an opportunity to confront Kingpin.
• Jane disappeared after encountering the Aether that Jiang Xiang had modified, and Heimdall sent Thor to retrieve her.
• Thor brought Jane to Asgard for treatment, then left Loki to watch over her while he went to find the Queen Mother.
• Loki told Jane that humans and Asgardians experienced time differently and suggested that Thor's long life made a lasting relationship between them unlikely.

Thor brought Jane Foster to Asgard, where the God of Medicine discovered that the Aether was sustaining her even as it drained her life. Frigga identified the substance and explained its history, leaving Thor and Loki facing the threat of the Dark Elves and the Aether’s mysterious return to Asgard.

• Thor returned with Frigga, who met Jane Foster and praised her character before the God of Medicine examined her.
• The God of Medicine found that Jane’s cells were dying while an unknown power kept her alive and gathered inside her body.
• Frigga recognized the substance in Jane as the Aether, despite believing it had been given to Blue Star’s Sorcerer Supreme.
• Frigga explained that the Aether was a powerful weapon that drained its host and that the Dark Elves had once sought to use it to plunge the world into darkness.
• Frigga told Thor and Loki that the Dark Elves might want the Aether to restore their race, while privately wondering how it had returned to Asgard.

Frigga explained Asgard’s history with the Aether and learned that it had appeared inside Jane after she entered a strange red world. When Tyr, the God of War, died, Asgard’s sky darkened, while the last Dark Elves awaited their missing leader aboard their hidden mothership.

• Frigga told Jane, Thor, and Loki that Asgard had hidden the indestructible Aether and made a deal with the Sorcerer Supreme, Jiang Xiang.
• Jane described how an astronomical investigation led her into a red, empty world, where she encountered the Aether before meeting Thor.
• Thunder and a dark red sky signaled that a deity with a godhead had died, and Frigga sent maids to learn who had fallen.
• Frigga learned that Tyr, the God of War, had died and worried that Ragnarok might be approaching.
• Almus reassured Fisherman that the Dark Elves’ leader was still alive as their surviving administrators remained aboard their last mothership.