Recaps

After a night with Marlena, Luke set out to visit Howard before his White House medal ceremony and S.H.I.E.L.D. meeting. He found Howard at his Long Island estate, where Howard claimed he had designed a new energy system but then showed Luke his latest research.

• Luke woke beside Marlena, reviewed his packed schedule, and flew to Howard's Long Island estate.
• Howard complained that Luke had landed noisily and explained that he had been absent from S.H.I.E.L.D. while designing a more powerful energy system.
• Luke learned Howard had produced an initial design after returning from the Atlantic, though Howard admitted he had also neglected Stark Industries.
• A young woman appeared beside Howard, and Luke realized Howard's exhaustion was not solely from scientific research.
• Howard brushed off Luke's skepticism and led him downstairs to show his latest research results.

Howard showed Luke his concept for a palladium-powered nuclear fusion reactor and discussed the work needed to make it stable and practical. Luke agreed to seek out the Soviet defector Anton Vanko and suggested Howard might eventually miniaturize the reactor for Powered Armor.

• Luke followed Howard into the underground laboratory, where Howard revealed his rough design for a nuclear fusion reactor.
• Howard explained how palladium could help produce fusion energy and described his idea for containing and heating plasma with a magnetic field.
• Luke pointed out that reactor stability, energy loss, and practical applications still needed to be addressed, and Howard agreed that the design was only a framework.
• Luke suggested recruiting nuclear physicists through S.H.I.E.L.D., and Howard proposed Anton Vanko as a possible collaborator.
• Luke agreed to ask the Atomic Energy Commission about Vanko and asked Howard whether he had considered miniaturizing the reactor for Powered Armor.

Luke proposed that Howard develop powered armor, and Howard considered the design while Luke promised Atlantis’s help and better materials. At Luke’s medal ceremony, the President pushed him to marry his daughter Mary, so Luke decided to put Howard’s playboy reputation to use.

• Luke explained powered armor to Howard, who outlined possible Superman Suit-inspired features and the technical challenges of building a practical suit.
• Luke promised Atlantis could solve technical problems and that he would send Howard a surprise package of materials, then ordered him to get ready for the medal ceremony.
• The President congratulated Luke on becoming a Lieutenant General and urged him to settle down and marry Mary.
• The President invited Luke to a family dinner and said Mary admired him, prompting Luke to look toward Howard and devise a plan.

After receiving his promotion to lieutenant general at a White House ceremony, Luke met with the White Queen to discuss the Hellfire Club’s future and her responsibilities as its leader. Their conversation turned flirtatious, and Emma proposed an intimate encounter in the White House reception room.

• The President presented Luke with his medal and the ceremony marked his promotion to lieutenant general.
• Luke told the President he would attend the family dinner after meeting the Hellfire Club’s Mutants, then encouraged Howard to accept an arrangement.
• Luke met the White Queen in the Red Room while the other Mutants underwent The Pentagon’s inspection.
• Emma told Luke about her troubled family, her telepathy, and her struggle to trust others, and Luke advised her to stop listening to everyone’s thoughts.
• Emma framed her flirtation with Luke as a way to deepen their cooperation, then reclined on the desk and asked whether the White House was an acceptable place.

Nova Drake provoked Iceman Regan with claims that the White Queen had betrayed the Hellfire Club and become involved with Luke, leading the two Mutants to fight. The White Queen arrived, told the group that Luke had been promoted to Lieutenant General, and led them to meet him in the Red Room.

• Nova Drake accused the White Queen of betraying Mutants and suggested she had a relationship with Major General Superman, angering Iceman Regan.
• Iceman Regan and Nova Drake fought while the Hellfire Club members watched.
• The White Queen entered and scolded them for fighting at the White House.
• The White Queen said Luke had been promoted to Lieutenant General and instructed the group to follow her to the Red Room.
• Iceman Regan noticed that the White Queen's clothes looked slightly wrinkled.

Luke met with the Hellfire Club’s younger Mutants and reassured them that S.H.I.E.L.D. would not prosecute their past crimes. He urged them to improve their public image and fight for Mutant rights, then used his Bio-Force Field to silence Nova Drake and challenge his ideas about freedom and democracy.

• Iceman Regan entered the Red Room and felt intimidated by Luke’s imposing presence.
• The White Queen introduced the younger Hellfire Club members, and Luke told them S.H.I.E.L.D. would waive prosecution for their past offenses.
• Luke urged the Mutants to build trust and actively seek equal rights rather than rely on human charity.
• Nova Drake asked how Mutants should fight for their rights, and Luke said they should first improve their public image.
• Drake defended his rebellious style in the name of freedom and democracy, so Luke used his Bio-Force Field to choke him and challenged him to reconsider those ideals.

Luke proposed using the Hellfire Club to build a positive public image for Mutants by turning selected members into celebrity superheroes. Emma accepted his plan, which would begin with preparing the club for the Paris Peace Summit and later arranging publicized rescue work.

• Luke pressured Nova Drake until he fell to his knees, then told the Hellfire Club members to prepare their appearances for the Peace Summit in Paris.
• After the others left, Emma questioned Luke's plan to make her appear approachable, and he explained that his hard-line image would draw the club members closer to her.
• Luke proposed forming a team of attractive Mutants, including Iceman Regan and Nova Drake, and presenting them as superheroes and idols.
• Luke suggested that Regan work with the New York Fire Department to rescue people while newspapers publicized the deeds and improved public opinion of Mutants.
• Emma agreed to follow Luke's plan to lower Mutants' perceived threat and encourage their acceptance into society.

Luke brought Howard to The President’s family dinner after inventing a story about his ancestor Geralt and promising Howard an encounter with sorceresses. The President invited Luke into his study to hear urgent S.H.I.E.L.D. intelligence related to the Soviet Union, leaving Howard to pursue Mary.

• Howard asked Luke about their promised visit, and Luke claimed his ancestor Geralt had relationships with sorceresses to reassure him.
• Luke and Howard arrived at Blair House with wine, and The President and the First Lady were displeased that Howard had joined the family dinner.
• The First Lady introduced her daughter Mary, and Luke encouraged Howard to make his move.
• Luke told The President he had important S.H.I.E.L.D. information related to the Soviet Union, and The President took him to the study.

Luke and Howard thwarted the President’s attempt to arrange a match with his daughter, then left Blair House after entertaining the First Lady and her family. Back in the study, a mysterious intruder restrained the President and used nanites to transform himself into the President’s exact likeness.

• Luke declined the President’s cigar and discussed Soviet ambitions and Atlantis’s interests at the coming Peace Summit.
• Howard entertained the First Lady and the President’s daughter with bawdy stories and won their favor over dinner.
• The President tried to discuss marriage with Luke, but Luke redirected him toward Howard, and the two men praised each other until the President gave up on matching his daughter with Luke.
• Luke and Howard left Blair House, and Howard reminded Luke of his promise to take him to Kamar-Taj.
• A stranger appeared in the President’s study, restrained him, spoke of the unusual timeline and its heroes, then injected nanites that reshaped him into the President.

Luke arrived in Paris for the Peace Summit, where his fame and exaggerated wartime legends drew attention. He met Zheng Xian, who revealed that Agent Yan had left on another mission, leaving Luke wondering what major threat required the God Spear Bureau’s ace.

• Luke arrived at the Royal Hotel in Paris and faced cheering crowds and reporters eager to photograph the war hero.
• Luke and Howard joked about his popularity, his publicity campaign, and the outlandish stories told about his wartime exploits.
• Luke explained that the Peace Summit would begin the next day at Versailles Palace and last three days.
• Zheng Xian joined Luke and Howard in the elevator, and Luke recognized him as the leader of the God Spear Bureau.
• Zheng Xian said Agent Yan had been accompanying him but had left to handle another mission, prompting Luke to suspect something serious had happened.

Luke met Zheng Xian, Director of the God Spear Bureau, and wondered why he had come to Paris beyond attending the Peace Summit. At the banquet, Zheng Xian revealed that five traitors had emerged within the God Spear Bureau.

• Luke warned Howard to be polite to Zheng Xian and discouraged him from visiting Paris’s red-light district by telling him about the risk of disease.
• At the Royal Palace Hotel banquet, Howard became captivated by the dancers while Luke went to speak with Zheng Xian.
• Luke and Zheng Xian discussed food and the God Spear Bureau’s reasons for attending the Peace Summit.
• Zheng Xian told Luke that five traitors had emerged within the God Spear Bureau.

Luke learned that five former God Spear Bureau associates had stolen a treasure and resurfaced after worshipping an evil god, and Zheng Xian enlisted S.H.I.E.L.D. to find them. The two drank through the night, and Zheng Xian woke with a hangover and regrets about his Parisian encounter.

• Luke was surprised to hear Zheng Xian explain that five former associates had stolen a precious treasure, fled, and later caused trouble in Southeast Asia by worshipping an evil god.
• Luke inferred that the five were the founders of The Hand, who had stolen the Dragon Bone and sought vessels for the dimensional beast known as the Black Sky.
• Zheng Xian asked S.H.I.E.L.D. to help find the five, and Luke agreed after insisting they drink together first.
• Luke, Zheng Xian, and the Soviet delegation turned the banquet into a vodka-drinking contest, and everyone except Luke eventually collapsed or became drunk.
• The next morning, Howard described spending the night with twin dancers, while Zheng Xian arrived hungover and regretted waking beside a foreign woman.
• Luke teased Zheng Xian about his Parisian encounter, and Zheng Xian declined Howard's invitation to visit the Moulin Rouge.

At the Versailles Peace Summit, Luke delivered an opening speech as humanity and Atlantis prepared to formalize relations. In London, Mister Sinister and Selene watched Superman on television and weighed the danger he posed to their plans, while Selene admitted her desire for him.

• Luke and Howard discussed the summit, Howard’s exhaustion, and his wish to improve his vitality through fitness or pharmaceuticals.
• Atlantean Legion Commanders from the Hammerhead Shark, Orca Tribe, and Seahorse Tribe arrived to negotiate peace and propose stripping Namor of his kingship.
• Human and Atlantean representatives reviewed their previously negotiated agreement, and Luke gave a speech calling for dialogue and reconciliation.
• Mister Sinister and Selene watched Luke’s televised speech and discussed his strength, his interest in Mutants, and whether he might disrupt their plans.
• Mister Sinister said he preferred peaceful noninterference with Superman, while Selene confessed she wanted to swallow him whole.

The Black Queen planned to seduce Superman and absorb his soul to advance her ambition of becoming a Dimensional Demon God, while Mister Sinister pursued his own scheme to steal Apocalypse’s power through genetic research. At the Versailles Peace Summit, Luke prepared Howard to negotiate for Atlantis’s technology, leaving Howard ready to press the defeated Atlanteans for valuable concessions.

• The Black Queen dismissed Mister Sinister’s warning and decided Superman’s soul could help her become a Dimensional Demon God.
• Mister Sinister revealed his plan to decipher Mutant genes and become a Mutant God, while Selene pointed out that S.H.I.E.L.D. was already building a Mutant gene bank.
• Mister Sinister encouraged Selene to approach Luke in Paris after the Peace Summit, and she agreed the visit was worthwhile.
• Luke returned to his seat at Versailles, felt a chill without knowing Selene was thinking about him, and traded barbs with Howard about war and pacifism.
• Luke asked Howard to prepare for Atlantis’s technology-sharing segment, and Howard listed three technologies relevant to developing Powered Armor.
• Howard took his seat, ready to use his negotiating skills to secure Atlantis’s technology for the Land World.

After securing technology from Atlantis, Howard left the negotiations early and went out to explore Paris nightlife. At the Moulin Rouge, he spotted a mysterious woman in black and abandoned his would-be guide to approach her.

• Howard told Luke that he had obtained the technology he wanted from Atlantis and asked to leave the remaining proceedings.
• Luke reminded Howard that he needed to chair the Mutants meeting and warned him not to catch anything while out having fun.
• Howard returned to the Royal Palace Hotel, rested, and later headed for the Moulin Rouge to experience Paris nightlife.
• A man in a flat cap offered Howard illicit films and a guide, and Howard paid him to deliver a copy to Room No. 1024.
• Howard noticed a tall, alluring woman dressed in black, called her a dire omen, and set off on his own to pursue her.

Howard met a woman calling herself Lania at the Moulin Rouge and went with her to a hotel, unaware that she might be a Vampire. Luke tracked him down, noticed Lania’s abnormal heartbeat, and returned with fruit to watch rather than intervene.

• Howard approached Lania at the Moulin Rouge, charmed her with talk of interesting souls, and introduced himself as a tobacco merchant.
• Lania suggested they go to a nearby hotel, and Howard accepted her invitation.
• Luke returned to his hotel, collected pornographic film reels from a dealer, and learned that Howard had left the Moulin Rouge with a woman.
• Luke worried that Paris’s Vampires might endanger Howard and flew to the Moulin Rouge to search for him.
• Luke found Howard lying in a hotel bed while Lania showered, noticed her unusually slow heartbeat, and flew back to fetch fruit before settling in to watch.

Howard’s hotel-room tryst with Lania turned into a deadly encounter when she revealed herself as a flesh-eating Vampire. Luke rescued Howard by killing her, leaving Howard traumatized by the sight.

• Howard entered the bathroom expecting to join Lania and found her eating a human arm.
• Lania grabbed Howard as he tried to escape, and he called for Luke to save him.
• Luke crashed through the ceiling and questioned Lania about her Vampire family and unauthorized hunting.
• When Lania attacked, Luke crushed her with a powerful blow while Howard closed his eyes.
• Howard looked at the remains despite Luke’s warning and vomited, then swore never to go out at night again.

Luke explained the hidden supernatural world and the history of Vampires to Howard after rescuing him from Lania. He revealed that the Vampires created the Death Walkers, then addressed a woman who had been hiding outside.

• Howard returned to his hotel room shaken by his encounter with Lania, while Luke ate dinner and teased him about the experience.
• Luke told Howard that Lania was a Vampire and explained that the Three Sanctuaries and sorcerers kept Vampires, Werewolves, and other supernatural beings from disturbing the mortal world.
• After Howard recovered from the revelations, Luke described Dracula as the first Vampire and explained how his descendants became weaker and divided into different factions.
• Luke recounted how Hydra experimented on Alexander Corvinus, whose sons William and Marcus became the ancestors of the Werewolves and Vampires.
• Luke said the Vampires allied with human aristocrats and formed the Death Walkers, then called out to the woman hiding outside.

Luke confronted Serena, a Vampire Death Walker, over Howard's attack by Lania and demanded her family account for the incident. He invoked his connection to their ancestor, Lieutenant General Corvinus, leaving Serena stunned.

• Luke detected Serena clinging to the outside of the twenty-second-floor window and cut an opening in the glass with Heat Vision.
• Serena entered the hotel room and explained that she had tracked the scent of Luke's friend while investigating an explosion near the Moulin Rouge.
• Luke told Serena that Howard had been attacked by Lania and demanded an explanation from her Vampire family.
• Serena said Lania did not belong to her family, but Luke insisted that the family was responsible because the attack happened in its territory.
• Serena reached under her coat as the argument grew tense, and Luke warned her against escalating the confrontation.
• Luke said he had spared the family because he had a colleague's relationship with their ancestor, Lieutenant General Corvinus, leaving Serena stunned.

Luke told Serena and Howard that Alexander Corvinus was the immortal ancestor of both Vampires and Werewolves, and that he had secretly kept evidence of their existence from the human world. He revealed that the Werewolves were cooperating with humans and sent Serena to question her elders, leaving her suspicious that her family had concealed the truth.

• Serena asked who Alexander Corvinus was, and Luke explained that he was the first immortal and the father of Marcus and William.
• Luke described how Hydra experimented on Alexander after he survived the Black Death, creating a being with Vampire and Werewolf abilities.
• Luke said Alexander had secretly erased evidence of Vampires and Werewolves and covered up scandals caused by Vampires such as Kraven.
• Serena realized her family had benefited from Alexander's protection and wondered whether her elders knew about him.
• Luke explained that Lucian had led the Werewolves to cooperate with humans and infiltrate their institutions.
• Luke told Serena to ask her elders about Alexander Corvinus and demand an explanation before dismissing her.

After hearing Luke’s account of Vampire and Werewolf history, Serena searched the underground library for evidence about Alexander Corvinus and demanded to speak with Elder Amelia. She left Kraven’s study determined to uncover whether the shared ancestry could end the war.

• Serena left the Superman Lieutenant General and hurried through the rain to Kraven’s estate, intending to check the historical records.
• Serena ignored the revelers, found Kraven in his study, and took the key to the underground library.
• Kraven learned Serena had visited the Royal Palace Hotel and grew jealous, but Serena returned with an old book about Marcus and William.
• Serena told Kraven that Alexander Corvinus’s history might end the war between Vampires and Werewolves, but Kraven dismissed the claim as a lie.
• After learning Elder Amelia had arrived, Serena left Kraven and went to find her or Victor.

Serena questioned Elder Amelia about Alexander Corvinus and the Vampires’ origins, but Amelia denied the family history and promised Victor would answer her after he awakened. Meanwhile, Luke began his day in Paris as Howard asked to join the Vampire investigation, and Howard suspected Luke had another reason for helping Serena.

• Amelia told Serena that Marcus was the family’s first member, dismissed Tallis’s account of Alexander Corvinus, and said Victor would answer Serena’s questions after he awakened.
• Kraven mocked Serena’s belief in Victor and privately recalled that Victor had killed Serena’s family, sparing her because she resembled his dead daughter.
• Luke woke in Paris after rescuing Howard from the Moulin Rouge and reflected on the previous night’s events.
• Howard reminded Luke of their noon Peace Summit meeting and asked to join the Vampire follow-up afterward.
• Luke warned Howard about Vampire bloodlust and denied having improper relationships with Vampires.
• Howard argued that Luke’s history lesson to Serena suggested he either fancied her or had another plan.

Luke explained that Alexander Corvinus’s blood might enable genetic compatibility and planned to investigate the Corvinus family’s descendants with Howard. After Howard agreed to enter the supernatural world, the two traveled through Paris’s sewers to meet the Werewolves.

• Luke told Howard that Alexander Corvinus’s blood might explain how his sons became the progenitors of Vampires and Werewolves.
• Howard realized Corvinus blood might allow Mutant genes or useful animal traits to be transferred to ordinary people.
• Luke proposed speaking with Lieutenant General Corvinus and finding descendants of his uncontaminated third son as a source for compatible blood.
• Luke asked whether Howard was willing to enter the dark world and meet the Werewolves, and Howard agreed.
• Luke and Howard crawled through the Paris sewers, where Howard eagerly anticipated encountering Werewolves.

Luke and Howard found a Werewolf den in the Paris sewers, where Luke sought to make a deal with Lucian. After a Werewolf attacked him, Luke tore the creature apart in front of the pack.

• Luke explained to Howard why the Werewolves hid in the sewers and said he wanted to meet Lucian before Alexander Corvinus arrived.
• Luke used his senses to locate a Werewolf gathering near the Champs-Élysées, where the pack watched Taylor and Pierce fight for sport.
• Luke asked the Werewolves to lead him to Lucian, but Taylor charged at him and Pierce tried to stop him.
• Luke's aura made Taylor recoil, then Luke used his Bio-Force Field and strength to tear the Werewolf apart.

Luke forced the Werewolves to reveal Lucian, then offered the Wolf King a chance to take revenge on Victor in exchange for cooperation. Lucian, shaken by Luke’s knowledge of his secrets, asked what he would need to do.

• Luke tore Taylor apart, frightening the other Werewolves into backing away without attacking him.
• Luke asked the Werewolves where Lucian was, and Lucian emerged from the darkness.
• Luke told Lucian he wanted to discuss Alexander Corvinus and the hybrids, and revealed the truth about Lucian’s dead lover Sonia and their unborn child.
• Luke exposed Lucian’s secret dealings with Kraven and his search for Alexander Corvinus’s third bloodline, then offered to help him get revenge on Victor.
• Lucian questioned whether he could trust a human, then asked Luke what he wanted him to do.
• Luke said Lucian would reveal a truth and witness a revenge.