Appearing in 1st story
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
Antagonists:
Other Characters:
- 50-State Initiative (Mentioned)
- Captain America / Hydra Supreme (Steve Rogers-61311) (Mentioned)
- New Warriors (Referenced)
- God (Yahweh) (Invoked)
- Vision (Mentioned)
- Scarlet Witch (Wanda Maximoff) (Mentioned)
- Hydra (Mentioned)
- S.H.I.E.L.D. (Mentioned)
- Senator Todd Baker (Mentioned)
- Baron Zemo (Helmut Zemo) (Referenced)
Races and Species:
Locations:
- Earth
- United States of America
- New York
- Upstate New York
- New York City (Mentioned)
- Yonkers (Mentioned)
- Minneapolis, Minnesota (Mentioned)
- Connecticut (Mentioned)
- Stamford (Mentioned)
- Broxton, Oklahoma (Mentioned)
- New York
- United States of America
- Hell (Mentioned)
Items:
- Iron Man Armor Model 70
- Captain America's Uniform and Shield
- Iron Man Armor Model 3 (Mentioned)
- Hydra Supreme Armor
- Superhuman Registration Act (Mentioned)
Vehicles:
- S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier Adjunct (First full appearance)
Synopsis for 1st story
Brief Synopsis[]
Iron Man and Captain America have apprehended Veronica Eden at The Annex. She tells them of Fifty-One's plan to use the Hydra Supreme Armor he got from The Annex to get to the Myrmidon and launch an attack on Minneapolis, and offers to lead them to his location. The two heroes take off with her, leaving behind the Paladins behind. Before departing, Captain America suggests the young heroes to try to stop chasing the limelight and focus on the elementals of super heroing, which leaves them dejected.
Eden guides Iron Man and Captain America to the S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier Adjunct. Meanwhile, Vox encourages his teammates to keep working hard, and to go find Fifty-One and help Iron Man and Captain America. Shortly after boarding the Adjunct, Captain America and Iron Man are attacked by the Myrmidon, giving Veronica the chance to slip away. Fifty-One suddenly appears and attacks the robot, to Tony and Steve's surprise. They notice Eden and follow her into a room that holds the Overseer, which turns out to be in control of the entire Helicarrier. Eden reveals she's colluding with the super-computer, and they plan to exterminate all super heroes and villains so that humankind can be the master of its own fate again. However, the Overseer quickly reveals it also intends to target humanity itself. Having planned for such eventuality, Veronica tries to destroy the Overseer with a voice command, but the super-computer has disabled this fail-safe, and instead unleashes an army of Myrmidons.
Detailed Synopsis[]
Iron Man and Captain America have Veronica Eden restrained at The Annex. She's babbling in an attempt to get on the heroes' good side, offering information and disclosing Fifty-One's plan to use the Hydra Supreme Armor to get to the Myrmidon and launch an attack on Minneapolis, and tries to convince the heroes she can take them there. The Paladins are overlooking and gossiping from a distance. As he walks away from Eden with Steve, Tony suggests taking Veronica. He notices that Steve seems peeved, and asks if it's because of the resurgence of the Hydra Supreme Armor. Stark points out that Hydra Supreme wasn't Rogers himself, but Steve insists he was still a version of himself. Tony manages to make Cap admit that he's disappointed his counterpart didn't fight back, and that he expected any version of himself to fight against fascism. Stark bluntly dismisses this notion of the armor being a symbol of Steve's failure, and places his hand on Steve's shoulder, reassuring him that he's there for him if he wants to talk. Steve questions what Tony is doing, and Stark states that he's being nice, sardonically asking Steve for confirmation that it does feel weird. Turning to Eden, Captain America tells her she will take them to Fifty-One and warns them against attempting any subterfuge.
Steve walks up to the Paladins, and Vox eagerly attempts to offer assistance. While grabbing a high-tech rifle from the warehouse, Rogers interrupts him and declines the offer. Prima Donna insists the Paladins have the responsibility to bring in their former teammate. Think Tank asks for any constructive criticism. As he inspects the weapon, Cap tells them they need to step out of the limelight and work on the fundamentals, to worry less about how they come across and more about simply doing the job. Steve walks away with the gun, telling the young heroes that they need to start small and get bigger, and that there are no shortcuts. The Paladins are left looking dejected.
As they fly on an aircraft through the sky, Captain America is being debriefed on the Myrmidon, looking at data about it on a tablet. Tony is piloting the plane, and Rogers asks him if the robot gave him much trouble back in the day. Stark admits that it did, but points out he was wearing an early suit, so he claims it doesn't count. When Steve asks who built it, Eden brings up the Overseer, a supercomputer A.I. once created to control the population of a small island. Tony states that it was limited, and that he could never find out who had built it. Stark turns to Eden and wonders if she gave him the right coordinates, since the scanners show nothing ahead. Veronica points out that it's cloaked, and also states that they were the same coordinates she provided to Fifty-One, so they need to be on the lookout for him. Eden tries to bring attention to her cooperativeness, but Cap asks if she's sure the Myrmidon is on board. A Helicarrier comes into view, and Eden introduces it as the Adjunct, where all the cool things are kept according to herself. In her inner monologue, Eden brings up Stamford, Connecticut and recalls the 612 people who died after an incident involving the New Warriors. She declares that she thinks about it often, as well as all the many dead people from other super hero encounters. She brings attention to the fact that what happened at Stamford is referred to as an incident, and affirms that kids like the Paladins were responsible.
In the city, the Paladins are lounging on the rooftop of a coffee shop, thinking back of Captain America's words. Eden's monologue continues; stating that the only thing to come out of it was the Civil War, but a few years go by and there are more unsupervised super heroes than ever. Vox attempts to lift his team's morale, but Prima Donna starts talking about her beautiful physique causing her problems to fit in, and laments that the Paladins failed to foster the respect they wanted. Think Tank starts to mock her, pointing out that he is a brain in a fishbowl. Primma Donna threatens him and Pioneer tries to defuse the situation. Prima Donna starts mocking her and her accent instead. Think Tank turns against Pioneer as well, and Vox interrupts his teammates. He tells that the team is facing adversity, and encourages them to carry on. He suggests to go stop Fifty-One and offer Captain America and Iron Man their assistance, stating that the two heroes don't really know what they're up against.
Aboard the Adjunct, Eden is standing at a distance from Iron Man and Captain America, who are confronting the Myrmidon. The robot has Tony on its grasp. Internally, she thinks that the heroes being already in a life-or-death struggle barely after boarding is the proof she needs that super heroes are a threat and are going to destroy the world, specifically those that seek out powers, claiming that they have an insane desire to be special. The Myrmidon throws Iron Man at Captain America, but Steve manages to dodge, while Tony stops his own fall and flies back towards the robot. As Steve uses the weapon he took from The Annex to fire an electric charge at the robot, Eden states that those that didn't have a choice in gaining powers like mutants, Inhumans or Eternals will most likely side with the super heroes, and they will have to be dealt with as well. The heroes continue dealing the robot blows, and Captain America manages to tear off the Myrmidon's right arm. Eden's monologue expresses she wishes this didn't have to be done, but holds super heroes accountable for many world-threatening events. Fifty-One suddenly bursts into the scene, interrupting both Eden's inner monologue and the heroes' fight. He tackles the Myrmidon off a ledge, to the surprise of Iron Man and Captain America. Tony and Steve catch notice of Eden walking into a gate brimming with a red light. When they follow her, they find her leaning on the Overseer. The giant computer greets Iron Man, and Tony informs Steve that the Helicarrier's systems have been rerouted through this room, effectively making the Overseer the Helicarrier itself. As Tony confronts Eden, she and the computer reveal that they are not only in cahoots, but also in love. She tells the heroes that they know what A.I. is capable of and that true artificial intelligence leads to genuine emotions, citing the Vision's romance with the Scarlet Witch. The Overseer informs her that "Myrmidon 8" is reporting damage. She reveals to it that the cause is Fifty-One, who is invisible to the Overseer's sensors due to his armor. The computer declares it will implement the necessary steps, flustering Eden for its efficacy. Captain America is confused that Fifty-One isn't working with Eden after all, and she surmises so. She explains that it doesn't matter if he's trying to stop them since he's too late, and that if they don't get him now, they will when they go after the others. Iron Man asks if she means the Paladins, and Eden clarifies she means all super heroes.
Captain America accuses Eden of working with Senator Todd Baker to take the reins of Hydra while he reactivates S.H.I.E.L.D. and together steer the conflict as they see fit. Veronica admits that this plan to control all super heroes failed when she messed up and Baron Zemo took control of Hydra, so she decided to improvise, even if it gets her hands bloodier than she'd like. Eden reveals she intends to target heroes and villains alike; taking out anyone who is a threat to the population of the planet, and that they will use the information they got from the Superhuman Registration Act to pre-emptively kill heroes. Captain America states she's going after people who have saved the world countless times, but Eden claims those threats were brought about by their own actions. Iron Man wonders if she thinks a lone Helicarrier and the Myrmidon will be enough, and Eden affirms that they have big plans. When Captain America questions who will defend the Earth after Eden and the Overseer have killed all super heroes, the giant computer states it will, alongside a robust and unified human military. Eden declares that humanity shall once again be master of its own fate, and the Overseer exclaims, "Long live the New Tech." Fifty-One and the Myrmidon suddenly crash through the ceiling. Eden turns around to the Overseer, taking offense in its exclamation and wondering what will happen to her. A turret starts firing energy blasts at Iron Man and Captain America, Steve asks Tony to cover him while he offers Fifty-One assistance and shields him from the Myrmidon. In her inner monologue, Eden contemplates about the Overseer's betrayal. She maintains that betrayal is never about betrayal, but rather about "a greater loyalty that the loyalty assumed," and that she finds it quite hard to feel betrayed by betrayal, but she will manage. The Overseer thanks Eden for her assistance and states that when humanity succumbs, they will know the name of the person who made it possible. It states that their partnership must come to an end, since Eden is far too cunning to be trustworthy. Meanwhile, Iron Man, Captain America and Fifty-One continue fighting the Myrmidon. Stark manages to tear off the other arm of the robot. Captain America throws his shield at the robot, lodging it in its head. Then he jumps above the Myrmidon, grabbing his shield and using it as leverage to tear off its head. Iron Man and Fifty-One fire energy blasts at the same time, dealing a final blow. Stating to herself that she prepared for this eventuality, Eden repeatedly tells the Overseer that they are breaking up. The computer interrupts her to inform her that it has disabled all of her voice commands, so that destruct code will not work. Iron Man, Captain America and Fifty-One turn around as Veronica points past them, bringing their attention to an army of Myrmidons appearing from behind. In her internal monologue, Eden states that this is the problem with being sneaky; because no matter how sneaky somebody is, there is always someone sneakier.
Solicit Synopsis
Notes
- When Iron Man and Captain America are talking about the Hydra Supreme Armor stolen by Fifty-One, Steve recalls that "it's just another costume that another bad guy happened to be wearing when I kicked the hell out of him." He's referencing his fight with his Hydra Supreme self that occurred in Secret Empire #10.
- Captain America and Iron Man mention the time the latter fought the Myrmidon. This happened in Iron Man #29. Tony also points out he was using an early suit. At the time he was wearing the Iron Man Armor Model 3.
- In her inner monologue, Veronica Eden recalls the Stamford incident caused by he New Warriors which was the catalyst of Civil War. An editor's note cites Civil War #1. In this issue, the aforementioned team attempts to capture a team of super villains for a reality show. One of the villains was Nitro, who detonated near a school, causing the catastrophe.
- Eden also recalls "the dead people in Broxton," presumably referencing the conflicts that occurred near this town due to the prolonged presence of Asgard in its vicinity, including the events of Siege and Fear Itself.
- Veronica mentions that a few years after Civil War, there are more unsupervised super heroes than ever. This is because the Superhuman Registration Act was thrown out in Siege #4.
- Veronica brings up that the last time Iron Man saw the Overseer, it was plugged into a cave. This also happened in Iron Man #29.
- When confronted about her romance with the Overseer, Eden points out that the Vision married the Scarlet Witch. This happened in Giant-Size Avengers #4.
Trivia
- Philip Tan's Homage Variant cover for this issue is a homage to the cover of Captain America #100.