For the fourth part of the PAX DOOM story-arc, read FANTASTIC FOUR #15

Castle Doom
Latveria

And so at last it was over.

But he had never had any doubts that it would have ended any other way. Not through all the years of fighting, of plots and plans, of major battles and wars. There had been setbacks, yes. But those setbacks had been part of a greater purpose and he understood that. The setbacks were nothing more than tests of his character. A way for Destiny itself to insure that he was worthy for the mantle of ultimate greatness that was his birthright. He had been patient and not allowed the minor inconveniences to deter him from the prize.

A lesser mortal would have given up his dream. Or abandoned his path altogether. Forsaken the glory and majesty forever. But not him. His will was such that it could melt cold adamantium with its fire. He was destined to rule this planet and all who inhabited it. It was a belief that had guided his every footstep. And the truth of his perseverance was here before him. At his feet. Where they truly deserved to be.

The brightly colored forms of The Avengers and Fantastic Four, their powers, their energies drained. Sucked from them as one would suck the juice from a succulent fruit. Unconscious, they were sprawled at his feet. Like offerings. Or sacrifices.

He let his gaze slowly drift over their unmoving forms. Yes, yes, slowly. This was a moment that had to be savored and stored up most carefully so that the memories could properly be relished in years to come. Besides, there was no need to hurry. Now that he possessed the reality warping powers of Franklin Richards combined with the Cosmic Awareness of Captain Marvel time itself was subject to his will.

Iron Man was sprawled on his back, fat yellow sparks erupting from the seams of his armor. In many ways Anthony Stark was the most dangerous man he knew. Mainly because he and Stark were alike in so many ways. And not just because they both wore suits of ultra-sophisticated armor. No, their similarities were in the way the saw the world and their respective places in it. How they gained power and how they chose to use it. Both he and Anthony Stark had about as much in common with ordinary humans as ordinary humans had with chimpanzees. It had always baffled him that Anthony Stark and he had always ended up on opposing sides when their methods of operating were so similar.

Captain America lay on his stomach, his eyes half open, and one red gauntleted hand still reaching out for his shield. He laughed, the sound echoing in his metal mask. Steve Rogers was a worthy leader and a man of matchless courage. But it was not nearly enough. Not now. His futile stratagems had been checked at every critical juncture. Sadly pathetic, really.

And now his eyes fell on the body of the man he hated most in all The Universe: Mr. Fantastic. It would be so easy to snap his metal fingers and simply make it so that Reed Richard would not only cease to exist but he would never have been. All memory, all history, all knowledge of Reed Richards would be erased from The Universe, consigning him to the oblivion, the nothingness that he deserved. Richards had been nothing more than a nuisance ever since their college days. He lifted his metal shod fingers and studied them intently, the inhuman rage swelling inside of him, filling him with such volcanic fury that his head was throbbing.

Just one snap of his fingers and Reed Richards would NEVER have existed…

But no…not just yet…there was one more foe to be defeated and one more act of this mad play to be performed. The most crucial act of all. And then he could go on to reshape and remake this world the way it should be. And Richards had to be there to see it.

He barely gave The Human Torch the courtesy of a dismissive grunt. Johnny Storm was worse than an infant in his eyes. He was little more than a walking hormone. Such awesome power placed in the hands of a buffoon with brainpower barely strong enough to put one foot in front of the other. Was it any wonder that this world needed reshaping? The capricious and fickle universe that would give such amazing abilities to one such as this surely had something fundamentally wrong with it.

He looked down at the forms of Rage and Cannonball who were lying side by side. And his rage subsided. He did not make war on children and that is exactly what Elvin Haliday and Sam Guthrie were to him. He did not blame them for fighting with The Avengers and Fantastic Four. Doubtless they had been fed years of lies about him and his motivations.

He stepped over Warbird and did not even look down at Carol Danvers. He never noticed ignorant wenches who did not know their place.

The Sub-Mariner stirred weakly. It was not surprising. Namor had an indomitable will that was almost a match for his own. Almost. A pity that as a hybrid mutant mongrel he would have no place in the new world that would be created from the wreck of the old. But perhaps he would make a suitable bodyguard once he was…disciplined properly.

He stopped and bent on one knee down next to The Invisible Woman. Here was the only one who had the heart and the will to be a match for him. If left to her own devices, Susan Storm Richards would have found a way to defeat him. He was sure of it because every time he looked into Susan’s eyes he seemed to see something very familiar looking back at him. A gleaming metal finger brushed a lock of golden hair from her cheek.

Doctor Victor Von Doom stood up. Enough introspection. He had allowed himself more than enough time to savor his final victory over his most hated and persistent of foes. But such dalliance could not be indulged in for long. Not if he was to confront the real enemy behind the recent events. Things had not been right since Kang and Loki had tampered with the time stream. But when Kang reset the time steam on it’s proper course there had still been something not right. Fortunately, his mystic senses were working smoothly in harmony with his newly acquired Cosmic Awareness and now Doom could see clearly who was behind this and where he was.

And he had more than enough power to deal with him. Doctor Doom’s baleful, burning gaze swept over The Avengers and The Fantastic Four one more time with disgust. So much power and so little intelligence. The courage of angels and the minds of baboons.

But soon it would not be so.

Doctor Victor Von Doom vanished in a burst of silver-white light. His destination:

WASHINGTON, D.C.

PAX DOOM

Part V: This is the One Where the True Bad Guy is Unmasked, His World-Conquering Plans Revealed, and We End on a Breathtaking Cliffhanger

By Dino Pollard and Derrick Ferguson

The Damocles Chamber
The Pentagon
Washington, D.C.

The President of The United States looked up at the tall S.H.I.E.L.D. agent standing before him with an expression of disbelief.
“What exactly do you mean when you say that you’ve lost contact with Colonel Fury and The Fantastic Four?”

“Exactly that, Mr. President. S.H.I.E.L.D. lost contact with the Colonel exactly forty-one minutes ago. Since then, our orbital satellites have been picking up massive energy discharges that go off the scale.”

“Your analysis?”

“The Avengers, Fantastic Four and Doom are having one helluva fight. Sir.”

Clay Quartermain was a little grayer, a bit heavier, a little less toothy with his amiable, friendly grin but he still looked amazingly similar to the late great Burt Lancaster. He had been pressed into service as Direct Liaison between S.H.I.E.L.D. and The President. Clay would have much rather been out in the field where the action was. But his years of working with Nick Fury had taught him many things. Number One being this: a good soldier followed orders and went where he was needed. Clay continued with his report. “In addition there have been reports of power blackouts along the bordering countries of Symkaria, Croatia and Hungary. Naturally those countries have closed their borders and put their defensive forces on high alert.”

The Chief of Staff took off his Doran Karan eyeglasses and held up an electronic notebook. “Those blackouts are running wild in those countries. God only knows how they’re going to stop them.”

“They’re spreading, then?” The President asked.

The Chief of Staff nodded. “They’re slowing down, yes, but not stopping.”

The President sighed. “We’ve run out of options, gentlemen. I’m afraid I have no choice but to activate HERCULES.”

The room fell dead silent for perhaps ten seconds. The Chairman of The Joint Chiefs of Staff was the first to speak. “Sir, HERCULES isn’t even supposed to exist. We-”

“Oh, come off it, Fitz!” The President snapped. “Let’s stop fooling ourselves! Everybody that’s capable of putting an orbital weapons platform in space has done so. We’ve got HERCULES, the Russians have PETER THE GREAT, Wakanda has BASHENGA-”

Clay Quartermain spoke up, “Sir, you’ve still got other options at your disposal. We can’t just assume that Colonel Fury and The Fantastic Four have failed. There have been many times in the past when it’s looked hopeless and they’ve succeeded. And as for Colonel Fury…well, he’s a proven master in the art of last minute world saving rescues. I’d advise that we give them more time.”

“Time is a luxury that we’ve run out, Agent Quartermain. How do we know that The Avengers and Doctor Doom haven’t killed Fury and The Fantastic Four and are even now planning an attack against us? No, I’m afraid that I can no longer afford not to act decisively.”

“Mr. President, you want to think about this very careful. The Avengers are still looked upon as heroes here at home, despite their defection to Latveria. There are no greater patriots living today than Steve Rogers and Nick Fury. The Fantastic Four are national heroes who have saved the entire planet more times than I’ve had hot dinners. Reed Richards is practically a national resource.” Clay Quartermain’s voice was cold and hard. “Do you really want to go down in history as the man who murdered a dozen of our greatest heroes?”

“Agent Quartermain,” The Secretary of Defense said in a clear voice full of command. “You need to leave The Damocles Chamber. Right now.”

Dum Dum Dugan or G.W. Bridge could have gotten away with bucking a direct order from The Defense Secretary but not Clay Quartermain. True, he was a member of Fury’s trusted inner circle of agents but he simply just didn’t have the clout. And so he merely saluted and left the chamber. The circular blast door hissed shut behind him.

“Mr. President-” The Secretary of Defense started to say something but The President waved it away.

“No need to apologize for Agent Quartermain. He said what had to be said. And he’s got a right. But that doesn’t change the fact that Doctor Doom has killed The Fantastic Four and Nick Fury. Not to mention that now that he’s got The Avengers on his side…I can’t delay this any longer.” The President of The United States took a deep breath and said; “On my authority as President, I invoke The Damocles Protocol.”

Castle Doom
Latveria

“Somebody want to tell me what hit us?”

Cannonball slowly and painfully climbed to his feet, wincing at the grinding pain in his broken arm. It had been set as best as it could be and was tied firmly across his chest so that it would move and grind the broken ends of the bone together but it still hurt like hell. He reached down with his good arm to help Rage get up.

“That oughta be obvious, boy,” Nick Fury growled, massaging the back of his neck. “It wuz Doom. Or ain’t you been payin’ attention?”

“I think that what Sam means is what did Doom hit us with?” Captain America adjusted the straps on his shield and slung it on his back. He moved among this friends and allies, helping them up. “Doom’s armor is powerful, as we all know. But whatever he hit us with was off the scale.”

“Steve’s right.” Iron Man was back on his feet as well and checking his armor’s self-repairing systems. He was 36% functional and it would take at least another 20 minutes before he was back to 100%. “Doom hit us with an energy cascade that literally sucked the energy out of all of us, organic and technological. Doom’s armor is as sophisticated as mine but there’s no way his armor could have generated that much power on it’s own.”

“I concur, Tony.” Mr. Fantastic was examining the data pad readouts on his right glove. The uniforms that The Fantastic Four wore were literally wearable computers with complete data processing capabilities. The intricate sensor systems woven into Reed’s costume had a record of the energy cascade Doom had hit them with and he was analyzing the data. “In fact, I recognize the unique signature of this particular form of energy. It’s one I’m very familiar with.”

“It’s Franklin.” Sue Richards was standing behind her husband, her face dark with murderous rage. “Doom’s stolen Franklin’s power.”

“C’mon,” Rage said. “I know Doom’s smart an’ all-”

“In the past Doom has successfully stolen the powers of The Silver Surfer, Galactus, a Watcher and even The Beyonder, Elvin,” Mr. Fantastic replied grimly. “Never make the mistake of underestimating Doom or his abilities. That’s why we’re in the position we are now.” He turned his head to look directly at Captain America while he spoke and The Star Spangled Avenger could only look back and say nothing.

Rage nodded. “So what exactly does this mean? How deep are we in?”

“Considering that Franklin is capable of reshaping reality itself I would have to say that we are up to our necks, my young friend.”

“I want my baby.” Sue said simply and thrust out a hand at the nearest wall. It was as if the foot of a giant kicked stone that had been set in place hundreds of years ago. The wall collapsed like styrofoam and Sue walked on, the next wall similarly bursting into fist-sized chunks. She continued walking and a third wall crumbled in a storm of shattered masonry.

Warbird walked up next to Reed and placed a hand on his shoulder, grinning widely. “Bet when she says she’s not cooking dinner she doesn’t get much of an argument from you, does she?”

“Indeed.”

“Never fails to amaze me how you guys c’n make a joke outta ev’rything,” Cannonball muttered. “Doom’s kicked our asses all up and down this castle an’ he’s took off God knows where with the power to do anythin’ he wants and you stand there workin’ on your stand-up routines!”

“For once the boy and I are in total agreement,” The Sub-Mariner growled. “Jokes will not stop Doom. I would think that you, Richards, would know that better than any of us!”

“As I learned many years ago from a dear friend, humor in situations such as this one can relive tension that otherwise clouds the mind and prohibits clear thought,” Reed replied. “And I do believe that if he were here he would say ‘Lighten up, fishstick’.”

Namor’s blue eyes actually blinked rapidly in surprise and despite himself even Cannonball had to chuckle at the flip expression coming from the serious lips of Mr. Fantastic.

“In any case, the world can keep. We’re not going anywhere without Franklin. Right, Reed?” Johnny Storm stepped to the side of his brother-in-law and glared at The Sub-Mariner and Cannonball.

“Correct. And in any case the sensors in my costume are beaming the energy signature to our satellites. They’ll scan the Earth and lock onto Doom, wherever he is.”

“I got me a good idea of where that son of a bitch is headed,” Fury growled. From somewhere he had found the stub of a cigar and it was stuck firmly in the right side of his mouth as he talked around it. “Washington.”

“You really think that’s where he’s gone, Nick?” Captain America asked.

“Bet my last box of bullets on it, Cap. If you were Doom where would you go to make a statement that would have the whole world too scared ta shit?”

Captain America nodded in agreement. He pointed at the path of destruction left behind by The Invisible Woman. “Okay, then. Let’s saddle up, people. We find Franklin and Jarvis; recover The Vision, then make our way to The Quinjet. Once we have a confirmed location for Doom we’ll figure out a plan of attack.” Captain America led the way, with Mr. Fantastic and Nick Fury flanking him and the others following.

Rage placed a hand on Cannonball’s good shoulder. “Hey, man…look, I think you an’ me need to talk, okay?”

“Yeah. I think we do. But after this is over, okay?” Cannonball stuck out his good hand. “For now, let’s forget what happened and deal with what’s goin’ on right now.”

Rage took the offered hand and shook it gratefully. “That’s a deal, son.” They fell into step, side by side, following their older colleagues. “You think we got a chance of survivin’ this thing?”

Cannonball’s voice was full of troubled thoughts as he answered slowly; “I really don’t know, Elvin…I really don’t know…”

The President Of The United States was standing in front of a slim cylindrical pedestal that had smoothly risen from the floor. Once he placed his hand on top of the pedestal it would activate the particle beam weapon on the orbital weapons platform called HERCULES. The particle beam would obliterate Castle Doom and everything around it in a five-mile radius. And with that act there was an excellent chance that by this time tomorrow, The United States would be at war with the rest of the world. The rest of the room was silent. The President looked up at the Situation Board that showed holographic maps of the world, troop movements, energy disruptions taking place across Europe.

The Chief of Staff was speaking quietly; “Mr. President, it’s The Prime Minister. He begs to speak with you.”

“I don’t have the time, John. You placate him. I’ve got a country to safeguard.”

“Mr. President…maybe…maybe you should take a minute and talk with him.”

The Press Secretary’s voice was full of the emotion she was trying to fight back down as she quickly added; “Mr. President, there’s no going back once you activate HERCULES. Every country in the world will denounce the United States. We’ll have no allies on our side.”

The President whispered; “We never did.” And placed his hand on the pedestal.

Now what was supposed to happen was that the silver pedestal should have turned blood red, indicating that HERCULES had indeed fired. Then the Situation Board should have provided a real time display of the beam slashing through Earth’s atmosphere and destroying Castle Doom. However, none of that did. The President took his hand off the pedestal and brought it down again. And yet again. Still nothing.

He whirled on the table where his advisors and staff looked on in bafflement. “Which one of you deactivated the protocols?”

“Mr. President-”

“Don’t LIE to me! The only way that HERCULES would not have fired is if one of you traitorous dogs deactivated The Damocles Protocol! I’ll have you all stood up against the nearest wall and shot for this!”

“Reverting to familiar ways of dealing with a problem, eh?” The sardonically metallic voice of Doom filled The Damocles Chamber. He had simply appeared out of thin air, standing on top of the round table, arms folded across his chest. His voice was full of the satisfaction his metal masked face could not express. Doom floated from the table to the floor as The President’s staff scrambled out of their chairs, ran to the circular blast door which did not open automatically as they approached as it should have.

“It will not open until Doom wills it so.” The armored monarch said, his voice ringing out and echoing from the walls. “It pleases me that you remain as witnesses to what transpires next. You shall not be harmed. You have the word of Doom on it.”

Incredibly, The President seemed relaxed now. A minute ago he had been angry enough to order the executions of his staff but now, he jammed his hands in his pockets and a good-ol’-boy-aw-shucks grin spread across his wide, tanned face. “I’m actually glad to see you, Doom. I was afraid I had a traitor in my camp sabotaging me behind my back. I’ve had to curtail much of my power so that I wouldn’t set off the thousands of sensors in The White House set to detect superhuman abilities. So I wasn’t able to read minds or influence them as much as I would have liked. Yes, I’m glad to see that it is you that has stymied my efforts to destroy Castle Doom. It was you, of course?”

“But of course. HERCULES has been deactivated and is now in Latveria, resting on a flat plain some four miles north of my castle. Naturally I have known of the existence of HERCULES for years. It was not difficult to deduce that you would employ it against me.”

“And where are The Avengers, might I ask?”

“Lying where I left them. Defeated and humbled. Along with The Fantastic Four and Colonel Fury.”

“But of course.” The President’s grin widened. “So where do we go from here, my friend?”

“You go nowhere but to the hell you so richly deserve.”

“Is that anyway for you to address an old friend?”

“We are anything but friends. Especially now that you threaten the world that is mine to rule.”

The President threw back his head and guffawed. “The colossal size of your ego has never failed to both astound and amuse me, Doom! I think that I shall let you live after all. Provided you continue to make me laugh.”

Doom was outlined in an aura of crackling energy. “You do not have much longer to laugh, Schmidt, I assure you of that.”

The President’s face was beginning to melt, the flesh dripping like hot wax, splattering to the metal floor. His voice deepened, became harsher as he said quietly; “Then I think the time has come for us to ‘put our cards on the table’ as the Americans say, Herr Doktor…” He brought his hands up to his head and gripped the dripping flesh and ripped it free.

“And Johann Schmidt is a name that died years before you were born. I am THE RED SKULL!”

The Avengers and The Fantastic Four came to the end of the path of destruction left in the wake of The Invisible Woman to find a welcome sight that lifted their spirits. Sue was on her knees, hugging Franklin Richards who was hugging her just as tightly back. The ever-faithful Jarvis was standing nearby and at the approach of the heroes he gratefully came forward, his face plainly showing his relief. “Thank God you are all safe and sound.”

“How did you get here, Jarvis?” Iron Man asked.

“I heard the sounds of battle. While Doom’s staff are obviously used to such a row and removed themselves to safety, I descended into the lower levels of the castle until I found this chamber and Young Master Franklin. He was encased in one of those infernal machines and I freed him from it.”

Reed Richards warmly squeezed Jarvis’ shoulder and smiled his thanks before joining his wife and son, wrapping his elongated arms around the both of them and murmuring in their ears. The others gave them their privacy and walked over to the two bell shaped machines. One of them was open and obviously was the one Franklin had been in. But the other was still closed. And it was occupied.

“Well, damn,” Rage gulped. Everybody else was plainly at a loss for words. “Isn’t that Captain Marvel?”

It was in fact the red and blue clad form of Genis-Vell, slumped inside the machine. He somehow seemed frail and helpless. Even his Nega Bands, which usually pulsed from within with the colossal power they contained were now dull and seemed to be no more than two bands of inert metal around his wrists.

“I was just about to attempt to release him from the machine when Mrs. Richards arrived. I thought it more prudent to assure her of the safety of her son before returning to my rescue attempt.”

“Ya done good, Jarv,” Nick Fury slapped the faithful butler on the back and turned his one good eye on the machine holding Captain Marvel. “Puts a whole new spin on things, don’t it, Cap?”

Captain America said nothing. With one whiplash move he removed his shield from his back and transferred it to his hand. It twirled for a brief second like a multicolored Frisbee on his palm and then he gripped it by the edge and brought it down on the latch holding it shut, slicing it clean off.

The plexiglass door opened. Iron Man and Warbird reached in and delicately withdrew their unconscious teammate from the machine. “I hate like hell to think what this thing has done to him,” Iron Man said as he and Warbird gently lowered Genis-Vell to the ground.

“I can make an excellent guess.” The Sub-Mariner was looking from Franklin to Genis-Vell and back. “Doom has stolen the reality warping abilities of the child, has he not? An ambition such as Doom’s knows no limits. Would he have not taken the opportunity to steal Marvel’s Cosmic Awareness as well?”

“D’you know what you’re sayin’?” Cannonball demanded. “I’ll be the first to admit I don’t know jack all about how Marv’s Cosmic Awareness works but I know enough to know that if Doom has got it then we’re even more screwed than we thought we were ten minutes ago.”

“That’s all well and good,” Johnny Storm said. He was hovering protectively near Reed, Sue and Franklin who were still locked in a family embrace. Plainly he wanted to join them but was also unwilling to intrude, even though he was family as well. He settled for turning his attention to the problem at hand. “But can somebody tell me once and for all exactly WHAT Cosmic Awareness IS?”

“It’s the living universe that fills the space between the gulfs between galaxies and the space between the molecules of our bodies.” The weakly thin voice was Captain Marvel’s. His head rested in Warbird’s lap. She gently stroked his forehead and his eyes were open wide, staring into the infinite nothingness as he continued speaking. “Cosmic Awareness is pure… EVERYTHING. The Universal Consciousness that permeates all living things. It’s the very River of Life. But I have been separated from it. The Stream of Universal Consciousness that flows between the galaxies of the universe and the molecules of the Microverse has been separated from me…” Captain Marvel’s voice trailed off. “Now if you don’t mind, I’d very much like to pass out…”

“Ooooookay. That’s it. I’m out, yo.” Rage threw up his hands. “I may not be a genius but I think even I can see when we’re licked. We couldn’t take down Doom when he was just a guy in a suit of armor. You think we’re gonna have any better luck now that he got the power of a god?”

“Steady there, son.” Captain America said. “Whatever Doom is now, he’s most certainly not a god.”

“No, he’s not,” Captain Marvel said weakly. He was struggling to sit up with Warbird’s help. “And yes, he has the power of Franklin and my Cosmic Awareness which makes him powerful beyond imagining. But Doom is most certainly not a god. But his motives are most certainly godlike.”

Iron Man leaned forward, offering Captain Marvel a nutrient bar he had taken from a compartment within his armor. “What do you mean, Genis? We’re with you but you’ve got to lay it out for us so we know what we’re up against.”

“Doom and I spoke and he hinted that there was some threat to the entire world that only he could deal with. Believe it or not, he wants to be the savior of The Earth and everything on it.”

“That’s the same bullshit Doom tried feeding us!” Warbird snapped. “Good thing to know that at least the snake is consistent with his lies.”

“I don’t think he was lying, Carol.” Reed and Sue were on their feet, Franklin being carried by his mother, his face buried in her neck, legs and arms wrapped securely around her waist and neck. Johnny was stroking Franklin’s head and whispering something in his ear too low for the others to hear. “We all know Doom and we know he doesn’t lie. If he said that there’s a threat coming, I believe him. Captain, what else did he say? It’s very important you remember everything you can.”

“Doom said that Franklin was a child who did not know the extent of his power and I was simply too stupid to know how to use mine. He maintained that he was the only one capable enough to know how to use our powers together to stop the threat.”

“This talking solves nothing! We should track down Doom and beat our answers out of him!” Namor insisted. “He will not take us by surprise a second time!”

“For once I agree with Namor,” Captain America said. “Reed, have you got a firm lock on Doom’s position yet?”

“Just a moment more, Captain. Johnny, where are you going?”

Johnny was hunting through the rubble of the sub-basement. He said over his shoulder; “Franklin keeps asking me if the doggy is okay.”

“The doggy?”

“Yep. And here he is.” The others came over to see that Johnny was stroking the massive head of the Inhuman dog Lockjaw. He was making a sound that Johnny had heard few times before: Lockjaw was whimpering.

“Is the doggy okay, Unca Johnny?” Franklin asked weakly, his face red and puffy from crying.

“I dunno, big guy. But I know one thing, the last person in the world I would want to be is Doom when Black Bolt hears he’s whomped on his dog, godlike powers or not.”

“Captain America, I have that location lock of Doom,” Mr. Fantastic was looking at the readout with the expression of a man who’s just found out the mailman has been having afternoon sex with his wife and selling tickets. “As Nick correctly surmised, he’s in Washington, D.C.”

“Namor, pick up Lockjaw. We’re not leaving him here. Warbird, get Jarvis to the Quinjet and the both of you prep it for immediate takeoff. Iron Man, go back and pick us The Vision then meet us at the Quinjet. We’re going to Washington, people. Pray that we’re not too late to put a stop to Doom’s madness once and for all.”

“Auf wiedersehen, Herr Schmidt” Doctor Doom said lightly and thrust one hand forward. A globe of cosmic energy burst from his palm and engulfed The Red Skull, sizzling and hissing as the energy appeared to consume him in a hellish inferno.

And then, as if the cosmic energy was no more than morning mist, The Red Skull emerged from it. The flesh was completely gone and his blood-red skull turned to balefully glare at Doctor Doom with menacing crimson eyes. He carelessly brushed flecks of residual energy from the gleaming midnight black Armani suit he now wore.

“Impossible!” Doctor Doom exclaimed. “What trickery be this, Schmidt?”

“I told you, Herr Doktor, that you will call me The Red Skull. But then again, gutter gypsy trash such as yourself was always difficult to train properly.”

Doctor Doom wasted no further words but unleashed a bolt of pure energy, one that would have obliterated an aircraft carrier. And indeed, so powerful was the residual backlash that the other humans in the room vanished in a blizzard of ash. Doom did not notice them. He was intent on pounding energy at the figure that strode toward him so confidently.

“Damn you, Skull! What sorcery protects you?”

The Red Skull stopped about a foot from Doom. Somehow, even with no lips, the blood-red skull seemed to be grinning. The Red Skull opened his mouth and reached in a black-gloved hand and pulled an object out. An object that lay in The Red Skull’s palm, glowing a bright, warm gold.

Doctor Doom took a step back, surprised for one of the few times in his life.

“I see you recognize The Cosmic Cube, Doom! Very good. Perhaps you can be taught respect for your betters after all!”

“How could I have been so blind?” Doom raged.

“You and the world entire, Doom! I obliterated The President some time ago…after transferring all his memories to my mind first, of course! And ever since then I have been carefully planning all of this out, moving The Avengers, S.H.I.E.L.D. The United States government and yes, even you! Like living pieces on a global chessboard you played your roles, never dreaming that The Red Skull was the master planner behind all!”

“Swine! I will see you destroyed!”

“Bah! Your empty words mean nothing now, Doom! You have played your part like a good pawn…but now…now I am afraid that you must be removed from the board…” The Red Skull lifted The Cosmic Cube and a thin lance of power burst from The Cube and struck Doom right between the eyes. And then there was a sound that had never been heard by mortal man before.

Doom screamed.

Captain Marvel convulsed and thrashed about. He was being carried by Rage who could barely hold onto him. Suddenly Captain Marvel’s body exploded in a burst of photonic energy. Rage cursed and dropped him, stepping back, his arms smoking.

“My God!” Sue stepped back from the wildly thrashing Captain Marvel. “Reed, what’s wrong with him?”

Captain Marvel’s eyes were open wide as he said in a voice that was ragged with horrified desperation: “We were wrong…so very, very wrong! Doom’s not the threat!”

And then the world that they knew was… GONE.

NEXT: Fourth Reich