Chapter Summaries

Su Ming returned to Kamar-Taj with Efferal and discussed her new life while Ciri took Wade to Raccoon City in search of a lively night. The chapter ended with Su Ming agreeing to help Efferal settle in an ordinary human city.

• Su Ming arrived at Kamar-Taj with Efferal, ordered dinner, and learned he had been gone about a month.
• Su Ming paid Wade and arranged for Ciri to take him to a world full of beautiful, thirsty women.
• Ciri transported Wade to Raccoon City, where he accepted a ride from newly graduated police officer Leon S. Kennedy.
• Su Ming offered to take Efferal to New York, buy her a home, and install the Relay Station Tower inside it.

Deathstroke discussed the Phalanx Fortress and Hermione’s studies before returning home to spend the evening with Gin. Natasha arrived with urgent news that S.H.I.E.L.D. had intercepted an alien announcement, but she kept its contents secret.

• Deathstroke told Hermione that they would reverse-engineer the Phalanx Fortress templates, though building it in Earth orbit would attract attention.
• Hermione said her parents were traveling after receiving Leech Serum, and Deathstroke warned her to protect Sepulk while the liches researched giving AI emotions.
• Deathstroke returned home and relaxed with Gin after sharing a barbecue meal.
• Natasha sneaked into Deathstroke’s house, but Strangle detected her hiding in a flowerpot.
• Natasha told Deathstroke that S.H.I.E.L.D. had intercepted an alien announcement and that Fury was organizing a response, then challenged him to guess what it said.

Su Ming, Gin, and Natasha discussed a strange invitation from the Shi'ar Empire offering humans a free interstellar cruise, but could not determine its purpose. A sudden crimson blaze and bird cry interrupted them, leaving Su Ming to rush out and investigate.

• Natasha showed Su Ming and Gin a Shi'ar invitation for humans to travel aboard the Space Princess on a free interstellar cruise.
• Su Ming, Natasha, and Gin considered whether the invitation was a trap or a diplomatic gesture, and Gin suggested contacting the All-Father through Asgard.
• A brilliant red blaze shot into the sky, followed by a shrill bird cry.
• Su Ming put on his armor, told Gin to alert Kamar-Taj and prepare Plan 31, and left to handle the emergency.

Su Ming flew to Xavier's School after seeing a red beam linked to the Phoenix Force and found Jean Grey gone and the school in chaos. He watched the X-Men deal with Cyclops's breakdown before meeting Thor Daisy, who joined him to investigate.

• Su Ming recognized the red beam as a sign of the Phoenix Force and flew toward Xavier's School with Strangle.
• Su Ming found the school burning around a giant fire pit and inferred that Jean Grey had lost control and become the Dark Phoenix.
• Cyclops broke down over Jean's disappearance, attacked Wolverine, and was knocked unconscious when Rogue touched him after Blink opened a spatial passage.
• Charles began bleeding from the nose while trying to calm Cyclops, and the X-Men dealt with the aftermath as Su Ming watched from above.
• Thor Daisy offered Su Ming a cupcake, revealed that she admired Deathstroke, and asked who the X-Men were.
• Su Ming told Daisy that the X-Men were his friends, and she clung to his arm as he invited her to investigate the commotion with him.

Su Ming brought Daisy to Xavier Mansion after the Phoenix Force devastated the grounds, where the X-Men's infighting unsettled her. They found Charles being treated for mental trauma, and Storm looked after him while Su Ming joked about the medical equipment.

• Daisy asked Su Ming what had caused the destruction, then worried about approaching the Mutants because of the media's hostility toward them.
• Su Ming reassured Daisy about the X-Men and led her toward the crowd, where Fire Man, Wolverine, Iceman, and Rogue fought and tried to intervene in one another's disputes.
• Daisy questioned Su Ming's claim that the X-Men were moderate, then realized he knew about her powers and praised her Mjolnir.
• Su Ming led Daisy through Xavier Mansion to Charles's office, where Storm treated the injured professor with medical equipment.
• Su Ming joked about Charles's treatment, and Storm reproached him for making jokes while Charles was injured.

After the Phoenix escaped with Jean Grey, Su Ming questioned Professor X through Storm's body about what had happened and where the Phoenix might have gone. The conversation ended in confusion when Professor X's recollection of Jean's words sounded like a moan, and Wolverine walked in.

• Su Ming confronted Professor X for trying to reinforce Jean Grey's personality seal and risking the students' lives when the Phoenix broke free.
• Professor X, controlling Storm's body, explained that he had tried to contact the Phoenix through Jean and that it had escaped with her.
• Su Ming and Professor X discussed how Scott's misunderstanding might have upset Jean, while Professor X insisted they had to bring her back.
• Professor X repeated Jean's words from the moment the Phoenix emerged, and Su Ming mistook them for an account of the Phoenix enjoying itself.
• Su Ming furiously slapped Professor X's bald head, and Wolverine entered the office asking whether he had arrived at a bad time.

Logan, Su Ming, and Storm investigated Jean’s Phoenix outburst and discovered that Scott had been abducted, while Charles sought Emma Frost’s help to use the Brainwave Amplifier. The chapter ended with Beast revealing that Jean’s attack had destroyed a Shi’ar colony and killed sixty billion people, prompting an ultimatum from the Shi’ar Empire.

• Logan recognized Natasha’s scent on Su Ming, then asked Storm what had happened to Jean and the terrifying force inside her.
• Su Ming urged Charles to read Scott’s mind, but Logan and the others found Scott missing from the infirmary and detected an unfamiliar scent.
• Su Ming suggested using the Brainwave Amplifier to search for Scott, and Charles sent Logan with Blink to find Emma Frost at Massachusetts Academy.
• Beast reported that the Shi’ar Empire had demanded Jean’s surrender within one Earth rotation cycle or it would declare war on the X-Men.
• Beast revealed that Jean’s beam had destroyed a Shi’ar vessel and vaporized a colonial planet, killing sixty billion people.

After Phoenix destroyed the Shi'ar planet, Deathstroke helped the X-Men consider how to avoid a war while investigating who had revealed Jean Grey's secret. The X-Men agreed to break up and take the students to That Village, while Deathstroke left with Daisy and Thor to head into space.

• Charles pleaded with Deathstroke to help the X-Men, but Deathstroke initially tried to leave with Daisy and Thor.
• Beast said a future S.H.I.E.L.D. agent named Fitz had discussed Quinjet time jumps with him, and Deathstroke realized Fitz had hinted at the coming crisis.
• Deathstroke reasoned that the Shi'ar could trace Phoenix's energy to the X-Men's base but could not have identified Jean Grey without inside information, and he suspected Phoenix might have leaked the secret.
• Deathstroke advised the X-Men to disband temporarily so the Shi'ar would have no group to hold responsible and would have to pursue Phoenix themselves.
• Charles agreed to take the students to That Village beneath Kamar-Taj, and Deathstroke left with Daisy and Thor to go into space.

Su Ming suspected the Shi'ar were trying to draw him away from Earth so they could seize the Savage Land, and he planned to counter their scheme while accompanying Daisy to investigate Phoenix. He left the chapter flying with Daisy toward a late-night meal, having begun to entice her with the promise of preserving her youth.

• Su Ming reasoned that the Shi'ar had pushed the X-Men to confront Phoenix so he would leave Earth and expose the Savage Land to their plans.
• Su Ming decided to play along and planned to have Little Ka and Merlin switch places in the Savage Land, where Mary Earl could also help defend it.
• Su Ming wondered whether Odin had sent Daisy as part of a scheme to demonstrate Asgard's strength, and he considered using Hela to keep Odin occupied.
• Su Ming invited Daisy to supper, but she suspected he was proposing a casting couch and pulled away.
• Su Ming explained his relationship with Charles and claimed a bearded immortal's age as a lesson about superhero longevity.
• Su Ming offered to help Daisy keep her youthful appearance, and Daisy agreed to eat with him while repeating that she would not accept a casting couch.

Su Ming took Daisy to a Mutant-run roast duck restaurant in the Imperial Capital, then launched into a long account of superhero history while promising to teach her about eternal youth. He brought her into space and revealed a city on the Moon, leaving her about to visit Attilan and begin her first lesson in superhero planning.

• Su Ming flew Daisy to the Imperial Capital and explained how Mutants were treated in China as they ate roast duck.
• Daisy asked Su Ming about preserving her looks, but he distracted her with a detailed lecture about tea.
• After dinner, Su Ming began telling Daisy his altered history of the superhero era.
• Daisy realized Su Ming had led her into space and saw a city on the Moon's far side.
• Su Ming said he would take Daisy to Attilan to borrow a spaceship and arrange contingencies.

Su Ming told Black Bolt about Phoenix and borrowed an Attilan spacecraft so he could travel through space with Daisy, the new God of Thunder, and gather intelligence. After leaving Attilan, Su Ming reflected on the Inhumans’ lack of entertainment as Daisy excitedly watched the stars.

• Su Ming advised Black Bolt about training on the Moon, then explained his plans concerning Phoenix and asked to borrow a spacecraft.
• Black Bolt agreed to help defend Earth and lend a ship, while Su Ming gave him a Blackstone slab as a wedding gift.
• Black Bolt questioned how Su Ming had made the God of Thunder a woman, and Su Ming explained that Odin had chosen Daisy as the new God of Thunder.
• Su Ming toured Attilan with Daisy and decided the Inhumans needed televisions and game consoles to give them more entertainment.
• Su Ming piloted the borrowed spacecraft away from Attilan as Daisy eagerly watched the stars and talked about astronomy.

Su Ming brought Daisy to Contraxia, the entertainment planet he controlled, and showed her how its city and economy worked. As they entered New London, he hinted that the planet’s famous specialty had been made by Howard Stark.

• Su Ming explained how he had turned Contraxia into a thriving entertainment destination and used loopholes to keep its Marauders loyal.
• Daisy recognized Su Ming as Deathstroke and recalled his role in raising Captain America and Bucky, while Su Ming confirmed his identity and ownership of Wilson Enterprises.
• Su Ming and Daisy discussed how Daisy could earn money by charging batteries with her hammer as a huge battleship passed their ship.
• Su Ming landed at New London and explained that Contraxia’s wealthy alien employees were among its earliest residents.
• Daisy asked to see Contraxia’s famous specialty after Su Ming said Howard Stark had made it.

Yondu and his Marauders returned to Contraxia after raiding a Skrull cargo ship, where Peter Quill handled the crew’s payout while trading insults with Yondu. The chapter left Peter dreaming of building his own fleet before Yondu started beating him again.

• A blue-skinned Captain returned to Contraxia with his crew and announced they would split their earnings from the Skrull raid.
• The crew gathered to receive Joy Tokens, and Yondu ordered Peter Quill to calculate everyone’s share.
• Peter and Yondu argued about how Yondu had taken Peter in after he crashed a stolen fighter into his ship.
• Peter imagined becoming a wealthy fleet owner and claiming New London’s pleasures for himself.
• Yondu smacked Peter and threatened to kill him while a crewman tried to protect his new clothes.

Su Ming showed Daisy how New London's Synthezoid prostitutes doubled as connected databases, easing her worries about her astronomy knowledge and offering to teach her superhero skills. He took her to the governor's office to check on Lorraine's preparations and seek news of Phoenix.

• Daisy tested a Synthezoid prostitute's knowledge of astronomy, and it answered her questions while running seductive protocols.
• Daisy felt useless because her astronomy knowledge seemed inferior to the Synthezoid's and her cake shop was losing money.
• Su Ming explained that the Synthezoid was a humanoid computer terminal and reassured Daisy that she could learn to be a superhero.
• Daisy asked Su Ming to teach her, and he offered to start by showing her how to beat up aliens.
• Su Ming took Daisy to the governor's office to check Lorraine's preparations and look for news of Phoenix.

Su Ming reviewed Contraxia’s surveillance footage while explaining to Daisy that he distinguished good aliens by whether they obeyed him. The footage revealed Yondu drinking with a young Peter, but Su Ming chose to contact Spartacus and discuss a new condition with Jason instead of meeting them.

• Daisy questioned Su Ming’s plans to deal with aliens, and he said obedient aliens were good while disobedient ones were bad.
• Lorraine identified Yondu on surveillance footage at Docking Zone 36 and confirmed he had arrived shortly after Su Ming.
• Su Ming recognized Yondu as a Centaurian survivor and discussed the Badoon’s destruction of Beta Centauri.
• Lorraine showed Su Ming Yondu drinking with a young Peter, and Su Ming recorded Peter’s embarrassing behavior.
• Su Ming told Lorraine to activate the interstellar communications Matrix so he could discuss a new condition with Jason.

Su Ming persuaded Jason to let Peter travel with him in exchange for stationing a thousand troops on Sparta Star. He planned to search for the Phoenix Force and left his team to gather information before secretly bringing Peter aboard his ship.

• Su Ming watched Jason and Meredith on the beach and offered to take Peter on a trip through the universe in exchange for tuition.
• Jason agreed to let Su Ming station a thousand-man security force on Sparta Star, and Su Ming said he planned to find the Phoenix Force.
• Jason mentioned that Gorr had settled into society and was coaching a sports team.
• After ending the call, Su Ming ordered Lorraine to get Peter drunk and secretly bring him onto the ship.
• Su Ming sent people to ask about a firebird seen near the port while he reviewed recordings for clues.
• Daisy questioned why they were taking Peter, and Su Ming said Peter's luck and talents would make him useful.

Peter Quill woke aboard a spaceship, escaped his locked room, and discovered that Deathstroke and Thor had taken him captive. Deathstroke told Peter he would be running with them until he allowed him to return to Yondu’s crew.

• Peter woke hungover in a cramped cabin and panicked when he discovered his Walkman was missing.
• Peter built tools from the cabin’s fixtures and cracked the door lock, then answered a bizarre security question to open the hatch.
• Peter assumed his parents had captured him and headed for the cockpit, where he found Deathstroke and Thor instead.
• Deathstroke said Peter was his captive and would run with him until he permitted Peter to return to Yondu’s crew.
• Thor grabbed Peter and twisted his cheeks after he claimed Yondu was his father.

Su Ming questioned Peter about Yondu’s ship and persuaded him to join his own crew. Peter accepted his new place as third-in-command, though he was horrified when Su Ming named his position “Dancer.”

• Thor twisted Peter’s ears after Deathstroke accused him of taking advantage of Daisy.
• Su Ming questioned Peter, who admitted that Yondu’s ship had 333 people and that he ranked second from the bottom.
• Su Ming offered Peter a soda and argued that joining his small crew would give him a better chance to advance.
• Peter mistook Su Ming’s hints and hoped to become captain, but Thor punished him when he tried to take the pilot’s seat.
• Su Ming named himself Captain Deathstroke, Thor First Mate Daisy, and Peter third-in-command, Peter Dancer.

Deathstroke took Peter to Sakaar to teach him the practical work of a Marauder, beginning with gathering intelligence. As the ship approached the gladiator planet, he warned Peter not to wander because Grandmaster enjoyed tormenting disobedient children.

• Deathstroke explained that he would teach Peter how Marauders found targets and made money, and Peter eagerly agreed to learn firsthand.
• Deathstroke identified Sakaar as their first stop for gathering intelligence and described its slave traders, gladiatorial arenas, and scrapyards.
• Peter disparaged the slave trade, then asked Deathstroke about Sakaar's powerful owner, whom Yondu had described as an Elder of the Universe.
• Deathstroke told Peter to use the ship's terminal to research Sakaar and taught him that mercenaries should think resourcefully.
• Deathstroke piloted the ship toward Sakaar and warned Peter not to wander after they landed because Grandmaster tormented disobedient children.

Su Ming and his companions arrived on Sakaar, where the Grandmaster ruled a gladiatorial arena, while Su Ming reflected on the Elders Of The Universe and their ancient origins. The chapter ended with Peter rushing out of their spacecraft and immediately getting caught in an electric net.

• Su Ming recounted how the Elders Of The Universe formed from the lone survivors of ancient civilizations devastated by the Creator War.
• Su Ming described how the Elders pursued hobbies to endure their immortal lives and noted the Grandmaster's love of games and troublemaking.
• Su Ming, Daisy, and Peter landed their spacecraft amid Sakaar's mountains of discarded machinery.
• Peter charged outside, shouted that he was free, and was struck by an electric net that left him foaming at the mouth.