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The shadows writhed about the dank chamber as he waved his hands, spouting incantations, words that had not been meant for human mouths to speak for thousands upon thousands of years. A glass dome, several feet wide, was dimly glowing in front of him as he sat cross-legged, peering into the depths of the half-sphere. A metal box was resting on top of the dome, wires connected to the top of it leading to computer networks recessed in the Castle. He was seeking portents of things to come...

...portents of Doom.

Victor Von Doom utilized his time travel technology to scour the past and future for lost arcane knowledge. He had learned long ago that science was not the only way to gain power in the world, far from it. His mother has been a witch whose arcane knowledge surprised Doom even to this day. In the end, magic was still science that no one had yet understood, a variation of quantum mechanics. The past and the future were his teachers.

It was the latest trip through the chronal byways that had revealed to Doom the events to come, events that would shake the universe and even all existence. Billions were going to die and there was nothing anyone could do about it....but there ways to profit from such chaos, ways that only Doom would be capable of taking advantage of. Events were unfolding even now that Doom needed to let progress as they were meant to, if only to guarantee ultimate power later.

Doom had been a bearer of untold power before. He had usurped the energies of the Beyonder, only to lose them foolishly. He had taken on the Power Cosmic, only to nearly lose his life. He had made bargains with demons and lived to tell the tale. This time, however, was going to be different. This time, he had something he did not have before, something he had never considered until his last foray into time.

The metal box he had brought back with him was connected to his computer systems within Castle Doom, but they were incapable of bypassing the encryption within the cube. His magics would allow him to access the information within the box, and then the knowledge he desired would indeed be his.

The metal box began to glow. The top split into six equakl sections and resembled a metallic flower when they spread wide. A beam of light cascaded outward, a hologram bearing the grim visage of one of the deadliest beings to ever live. The hologram began to speak.

"Personal Log of Thanos of Titan. Access granted."

Doom smiled.

 

The Initiative Presents

#7

"DOOMSAYER - PART 2"

By Mike Hintze

 

Avengers Tower, New York City

It is time, Richard.

Richard Rider closed his eyes as he took in a deep breath. "I was wondering when you were going to get to this." He opened his eyes and saw the gaunt visage of the Xandarian Worldmind in his view. No one else could see it were they present, it was a projection within Rider's own mind.

The Worldmind was the sum total repository for the history, culture and knowledge of the Xandarian race, destroyed by Annihilus and his Annihilation Wave months ago. Despite destroying the entire Xandarian race and its galactic police force, the Nova Corps, the Annihilation Wave had been defeated by a hardcore resistance, one of the leaders of which had been Rider himself. The Worldmind also controlled the Nova Force, an energy matrix that empowered the various Nova Corps officers and was now entirely kept within Rider's body. In the past, anyone that had absorbed the entire Nova Force had been driven insane by it. So far, with the help of the Worldmind, Rider had stayed off insanity.

He knew that the Worldmind intended to restart the Nova Corps. The Annihilation War had been a necessary sidetrack to that endeavour, and even Rider's return to Earth had been more for his mental health than anything the Worldmind required. Still, the time on Earth had not been a waste as far as the Worldmind was concerned.

Rider had agreed to join the Avengers at Tony Stark's invitation as much to honor the deaths of his friends in the New Warriors as much as a need to belong again. The Worldmind had used this time as well, having conversed with Stark for many long hours regarding the Fifty State Initiative. The Worldmind applauded the actions and results of the Initiative, and saw in Stark a partner to begin the creation of a new Nova Corps, one not bogged down in galactic minutiae and procedure like the previous incarnation. Rider knew that the Worldmind had been making plans, but he didn't like the thought of leaving Earth so quickly after coming home from the War. He knew he had responsibilities to the Corps and the memory of his friends that died there, but he didn't think he was ready to leave Earth quite yet.

I have been utilizing the databases of SHIELD, the Avengers and the Fantastic Four. I have come up with plans and processes in which we can begin the reformation of the Corps, Richard.

"Yeah?" said Rider. "What kind of plans and processes?"

I have analyzed the past history and performance of the Nova Corps and taken into consideration the advantages and disadvantages of your performance in the Annihilation War. Further to that, I see a Nova Corps where we would have less commissioned officers but more of a focused mandate. Before, we were spread out too far. My new vision for the Nova Corps would be a leaner, meaner fighting machine, to put it in your Earth vernacular.

"You've been listening to Kasper too much," said Rider.

Be that as it may, I think the time is approaching to implement stage one of the reformation of the Nova Corps.

"What does that entail?" asked Rider.

Stage One is as follows....

Times Square

"You're supposed to be dead!"

Captain Marvel smiled at the panicked words that came from the Wrecker. He had come bursting out of a pawn shop when he began destroying cars and tossing vans around in a fit of rage. Mar-Vell had been flying by when a car narrowly missed him high above the city. Seconds later, he was floating in the air above the criminal, who was waving his magical crowbar around, not caring what or who he hit.

"The reports of my demise were greatly exaggerated," said Mar-Vell. He raised his arms and began to generate photonic energy. "Drop the crowbar and put your hands behind your head."

"Or else what?" asked The Wrecker. "What the hell are you going to do, huh? Freaking Kree....you're not even human!"

"Don't say I didn't warn you," said Mar-Vell as he fired a photonic blast at the Wrecker, knocking him dozens of feet away, smashing into a minivan he had just destroyed.

"That all you got?" said Wrecker as he stood up, shaking his head.

Mar-Vell said nothing as he dove down towards Wrecker. He reached back and punched the supervillain, a loud explosion following as Mar-Vell tapped into the power of the Nega-Bands that he wore. Windows blew out around Times Square, the people already evacuated minutes before. When the dust settled, the Wrecker was lying in a small crater, unconscious. Captain Marvel was holding his crowbar.

"Nicely done, if a little high on the property damage," came a voice from behind Marvel. Mar-Vell turned to see someone he had hoped not to see, at least not this soon.

"Hello, Eros," said Mar-Vell.

"Mar-Vell, as I live and breathe," said the dashing Avenger known as Starfox. "You have no idea how happy I am to see you again." His smile was genuine at seeing his old friend alive again after all these years.

"It's....good to see you, too," said Mar-Vell. "I was going to contact you, but I--"

"Say no more, my friend," said Starfox, "I can't imagine what you have been going through. When I saw you were on Titan, I--"

"I knew going there was a mistake," said Mar-Vell, "But I had to see it....not everyone gets to see their grave."

"Perhaps we should take this elsewhere," said Starfox. SHIELD units were beginning to descend on the scene. "I think Mr. Garthwaite is going to be out for awhile."

"Let's go to Avengers Tower," said Mar-Vell, "I have an apartment there."

"Lead the way," said Starfox. The two men flew into the air.

Iron Man flew through the skies over Washington, D.C., having just left a briefing with the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the President regarding SHIELD's progress with the Fifty State Initiative. There were many balls in the air with the Initiative, many variables he had to manage and juggle that, if any of them fell, might start the whole deal to topple over. Florida had just launched its own team, The Watch, with recruits that seemed to be very capable and deserving of assignment. Hell, they had handily taken down the Juggernaut, not a simple task.

His own team, the true Avengers, were finally assembled. Now, they needed to be out in the public spotlight. Not only as the face of the Initiative, but also as a distraction. Nick Fury's team of 'Shadow Avengers', for lack of a better term, were looking into the heart of a massive conspiracy that had far more to do with recent events leading to the creation of the Initiative than Stark would have liked. If Fury's team was going to do their job, then the public Avengers needed to be loud and visible.

Ms. Marvel, White Tiger, The Sentry, Nova, Captain Marvel, Prowler and himself. The new Avengers. Not the team he had initially envisioned, but they were good people and had the skills to get the job done.

He flew over New York and arced towards Avengers Tower. In the distance, his armor picked up the approaching figures of Captain Marvel and someone he hadn't expected, Starfox. He moved to intercept them on his way.

A brilliant ball of light coruscated from the Tower, and a beam of light streaked from one of the upper floors. It approached Iron Man and stopped short of him. It was Nova.

Starfox and Captain Marvel both approached seconds later.

"Richard," said Iron Man, "What is it?"

"I just received an alert of the Worldmind Hailing Frequency," said Nova, "A Code 8X8. Planetary Distress Call."

"Where is it?" asked Iron Man. "We can have a team assembled to accompany you off-world within an hour."

"That's just it," said Nova, "It's coming from Earth....Louisiana, to be exact."

"Then give me two minutes," said Iron Man. He keyed into the Avengers hailing frequency. "This is Iron Man. Avengers Assemble. Rooftop, two minutes."

"Mind if I tag along?" asked Starfox.

Iron Man surprised himself. He hadn't noticed Starfox's presence. "Eros! Absolutely. The more the merrier."

Minutes Later

The new model Avengers Quinjet rocketed through the sky, heading to sub-orbital height before dropping to the Earth below. The rotation of the Earth made the trip in several minutes instead of more.

"I could have been there by now," said Nova. "8X8 alerts aren't like 911 calls. The fact its coming from Earth makes it more urgent."

"You're one of the most powerful beings on Earth right now," said Iron Man. "But I would that having been part of the Nova Corps, you'd know the value of having backup. We're a team. We back each other up."

He's correct, Richard.

"Yeah, I guess," said Nova, "I just want to get to the bottom of this alert. There's something to be said for reconnaissance."

"You're right," said Iron Man. "That's why I sent Bob ahead."

Nova looked around the ship. White Tiger, Ms. Marvel, Prowler, Captain Marvel and Starfox were all seated in the passenger bay. The Sentry was nowhere to be seen.

"The Worldmind uploaded the coordinates of the 8X8," said Iron Man. "Bob is the fastest and most durable of us. He'll check it out while we're enroute."

Hobie Brown, aka the Prowler looked up and down his new suit. Using Stark and SHIELD technology, he had performed serious upgrades to his weaponry, enough that even he was unsure how much more better he was. He had recovered from his gunshot wounds, but he still felt off. He was thinking he may have jumped the gun telling Tony he was ready....but then, maybe it was all in his head.

"You're going to do fine, Hobie," said Kasper Cole, aka White Tiger. His body was entirely in white, a brighter version of the Black Panther. "I read up about you from your SHIELD file, man. You can do this...and with your new suit, you can do it better."

"Thanks," said Hobie. "I hope you're right."

"I know I am," said Kasper.

"Get ready, folks," said Ms. Marvel from the pilot's chair. "We're here."

The quinjet banked through the clouds and came down on a wooded, swampy area. The swamp would have been no different than the rest of the land around it, but a circle of levelled vegetation stood out like a mark on the Earth. It smoked like a small fire had raced through the area. That wasn't what caught Iron Man's eye, however.

The Sentry was lying in the center of the burned out circle, unconscious. A cloaked man was standing over him.

"Bob's down!" said Ms. Marvel. "And is that...."

"That's Doctor Doom," said Iron Man.

"So much for reconnasissance, " said Nova. He headed to the airlock and cycled it, flying out like a comet.

Doom looked up and waved a hand. A green bolt of energy arced up and knocked Nova aside, sending him crashing into the ground. Next, he waved his again....and the Quinjet exploded.

Doom flew up and landed beside the unconscious Nova.

"I had my doubts," said Doom, "But the alert worked. Now, its time for the Xandarian Worldmind and I to meet...face to face."

Doom disappeared in a haze of purple light, Nova going with him.

The Quinjet landed on the ground in a massive fireball.

The American Midwest

He walked along the gravel road, the brim of his hat shading his eyes from the sun. The breeze was cool today, not that weather ever really affected him. He had a pilgrimage to make, a destination to proceed towards. The end of his trip was nothing less than the salvation of everything.

He had wished he had been able to start his voyage closer to his destination, but he knew there were reasons for having him start where he did. Higher forces were at work, giving him time to recall challenges and mistakes of the past....and learn from them.

He just prayed he learned enough....and that it made a difference.

Next Issue: Doomsayer - Part 3

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