ANNIHILATION

Part I: Swarm

By Mitch Crane

The Kyln Prison and Power Station
Crunch Energy Cascade
Annihilation Day

The common folk called it the Crunch, a dazzling lightshow of intense power, resting at the heart of the universe. To the inmates of the Kyln, they simply knew it as Hell. To spend day after day looking up at the burning fury that was the Crunch could drive a man to madness.

It was ironic then that something which caused so much anguish to so many prisoners also served as a vital source of energy to a significant part of the universe. The seemingly never ending cascade of collisions between matter and anti-mater provided a powerful energy source. Not that the inhabitants of the Kyln cared.

“Can’t they dim those damn lights? The thing gives me migraines,” grumbled the human guard Cole, as he patrolled the halls with his comrade Kika.

“You know they can’t dim the Crunch, Cole,” laughed Kika, her pink skin glittering in the light of the Crunch.

“Well the universe is crapping on my chances of romance.”

Kika stopped, “what do you mean?”

Cole rolled his eyes and slapped his head in exasperation, “Do you think I switched rounds with Swad to do a double shift for nothing?” he moved in so close he could smell the intoxicating scent of her hair. She backed away, but hesitantly, it was clear she wanted the same thing but her nerves got the better of her.

“C…Cole, we’re on shift,” her back pressed against a large reinforced door, labelled Tyrant. Did she want this? Yes, but she’d been burned by interspecies relationships before.

Cole didn’t reply, instead leaning in to plant a kiss on the gorgeous alien, just as he expected it was wonderful. After a crappy life—being abducted by aliens, dumped in intergalactic foster care and ending in up a dead end job, he was finally getting his due.

When he broke the kiss with Kika she didn’t have the expression of joy he was expecting. Instead there was a look of abject horror on her face. But she wasn’t looking at him, no, she was looking beyond him, out the viewing glass. He followed her gaze and saw an armada of ships spewing forth from the Crunch.

To make matters worse the ships were like nothing he had ever seen; they looked to be alive! Massive chitinous behemoths, with gaping maws attacked the Kyln spheres, whilst smaller, hornet like ships slitted about, blasting any defence to pieces.

He could feel Kika’s hand in his tighten, but no word came to either’s lips. Soon, one of the massive dread ships turned towards their sphere. The cold dead eyes of that ship would be the last thing either of them would ever see, as the beast fired a volley of energy blasts their way.

All they could do was hold each other.

Bridge of the Annihilation Wave Flagship

Lording over the massive force of living ships, revelling in the death and destruction of the disgusting positive matter creatures stood Annihilus; Lord and Master of the Negative Zone. Long had he lived for this day, to dominate the positive matter universe and destroy its unworthy inhabitants.

The contemptible universe was ever expanding, encroaching on the Negative Zone with unrelenting audacity. When a mysterious being of great power had come before the Living Death That Walks, and informed him that the Rapture had come and the positive universe would be wiped clean, he realized the time had come to make his move. With the greatest fleet his empire had ever assembled, an entire universe worth of ships, the tyrant declared war on all positive matter.

He felt great felt pleasure as the Kyln burned beneath his wrath, killing thousands. This was only the beginning.

“The Kyln has been destroyed my Lord,” stated his second in command, Ravenous, grinning sadistically. “What are your orders?”

“Take your Seekers forth, find this Power Cosmic described to me, and bring it before mighty Annihilus!”

“As you command,” with an energy seeking Curr attached to his right arm by an umbilical leash, the Hunter and his Seekers departed the bridge.

Though his humanoid form disgusted him, Ravenous served his master loyally and without question. Their powerful benefactor had blessed the Seekers with the secrets behind tapping the underlying Essence of the Negative Zone, an energy source comparable to the Power Cosmic. This made them the Wave’s ultimate warriors. He too now wielded such power which, when combined with his cosmic rod, made him the most powerful creature in the Negative Zone.

The corpse of a blonde haired humanoid in a guard’s uniform floated close by the bridge. The vague resemblance to the Fantastic Four’s Human Torch would have bought a smile to his face, if he could actually smile.

“Soon there will be only Annihilus.”

Drexis Three
Four Systems From the Kyln
One Day Post-Annihilation

A piercing siren rang through the air, sounding the alarm. All around, vagrants and destitutes ran for whatever shelter they could find, whether it be crumbling homes, broken down vehicles or less protective structures. From the sky came a massive energy blast, landing a mile away and sending up a cloud of smoke and debris. More quickly followed, raining down from the heavens for as far as the eye could see. From the murky cloud cover descended hundreds of bizarre ships; each one looked to be a giant insect. Energy blasts decreased as many of the ships landed, spewing forth an army of invertebrate warriors.

All around, people were dying horribly. The hopeless and destitute came to Drexis Three because they had nowhere else to go; now they would never leave.

Galador, the Golden Galaxy
Five Days Post-Annihilation

Life was good. That was the thought the Galadorian man named Rom couldn’t help but keep from his mind. He felt guilty for thinking it, considering how his race had suffered, but he couldn’t help it. Sitting on the deck next to his beautiful human bride Brandy and watching their two year old child Balin play in the garden filled him with the most wonderful feeling.

“Oh, he just kicked again,” Brandy clutched her pregnant belly.

Rom couldn’t smile any wider if he tried; Balin, and the soon-to-be born Tristan were, were the latest continuation of the Galadorian race. They were also likely to be the last additions to the race, as every other Galadorian, save Rom, had either been slain or were trapped in cybernetic forms. This wiped the smile from his face, but the happiness still remained.

At least the legacy of Galador, the Spaceknights, still remained. Originally, the Spaceknights sacrificed their humanity to become bringers of peace to the galaxies, knowing full well they could return to their normal form if they chose. But that choice was taken from them by another, corrupt generation of Spaceknights who destroyed their bodies and killed every other Galadorian. Rom was lucky; his original body was the only one to survive the purge allowing him to return to mortal form.

They could have surrendered to despair, but instead the original Spaceknights choose to rebuild Galador and continue their mission of ridding the universe of evil. Many were inspired by their mission of goodwill, and over the years the Spaceknight ranks have swelled with new members from every race imaginable. Soon they would even rival the Nova Corps in peacekeeping power.

Brandy looked just as happy as her husband; five years ago she never would have suspected she would be blissfully happy married to an alien and living on his home planet. Life takes an interesting path. She smiled widely as the baby kicked again.

“He’s going to grow up big and strong, just like his dad,” she looked at Rom lovingly.

“And hopefully as pretty as him mother.”

The couple’s com device rang, interrupting their moment. A holographic image of the Spaceknight Daystar sprang to life.

“This is a planet wide communication to all Spaceknights,” he said urgently. “An armada of unidentified ships has entered Galadorian space. The fleet is hostile; communications indicate they have destroyed al our outlying bases. Prepare for immediate attack. Convene at—”

But the transmission was cut short. Immediately after, the sky began to rain fire.

Galador, the Golden Galaxy
Eight Days Post-Annihilation

The Galadorian known as Rom was a shell of a man; in a matter of minutes his entire world was taken from him. He and his family had run for the nearest bunker when the enemies attacked but they were too slow. A stray energy blast incinerated his wife and child right before his eyes.

A part of his soul died along with his wife, son and unborn child as they burned before him. He spent the next half an hour standing in a near catatonic state as his planet was reduced to ashes. The Spaceknights were outnumbered five to one and the invading forces weapons were unlike anything they had encountered before.

He survived by sheer luck; his home collapsed upon him but he survived with naught but a broken arm and some internal injuries. A pity then that he had prayed for death. Why live when there was nothing to live for? Gradually, as he lay there beneath the rubble he realised there was only one thing to live for now—vengeance.

It had taken nearly a day to dig his way out of the rubble, his broke arm causing him to faint in agony more than once, but he eventually freed himself. What he found on the outside was horrifying; every building for as far as the eye could see was destroyed and the sky was black with smoke. To say the Spaceknights lost would be an understatement—they were annihilated.

He spent the next two days wandering across the countryside, searching for a very specific location. His single-minded determination drove the pain of his injuries away, despite the fact it was getting worse by the hour. Soon he wouldn’t have to worry about pain ever again.

Eventually he found what he was searching for; a nondescript building, demolished like all the others. Unlike the others though, this building had a titanium reinforced sub-basement, protected from everything short of a quantum energy strike. After a half an hour of agonisingly searching through the rubble for the entrance, which left him feeling light-headed, he managed to find the entrance without a scratch on it. Even after all these years the computer system still worked perfectly, scanning his DNA and allowing access to the turbo lift.

“Greeting: Welcome, Spaceknight designate Rom,” said the computer flatly.

Far below the surface of Galador he found a long disused laboratory. Everything was covered in a thick layer of dust. In the centre of the room, illuminated on a pedestal like some sort of trophy, was what he had so desperately searched for; his original Spaceknight armour.

A conflicting mixture of emotions flooded through him as he gazed upon the armour, still gleaming beneath the layer of dust; pride, nostalgia, revulsion. He questioned himself, did he really want this?

As is in answer to his silent questions, a robotic eyeball the size of a melon descended from the ceiling, attached to a long metal tendril.

“Query: How may this system be of service to Spaceknight designate Rom?” asked the computer.

“I want you to make me a Spaceknight again. Put me back in the armour,” he demanded, as tears ran freely down his cheeks.

“Query: Is the subject certain of their wishes?”

“Yes! I don’t want to feel anymore, take my humanity away!” No matter how hard he tried he could not purge his mind of the memory of his wife and child burning. Perhaps if he took it all away, his humanity, his soul, things would be better.

“Statement: Subject does not appear to be in the correct state of mind to under go the cybernesis process.”

“As a Spaceknight of Galador, I order you to do it!”

There was a long agonising pause, as the computer processed its orders. Rom was close to collapsing from his injuries when the machine finally replied.

“Compliance: Very well, this system shall begin cybernesis.”

The Ruins of the Kyln
Crunch Energy Cascade

The Kyln had become a place of death and ruin. Thousand of corpses floated in the void, perfectly preserved in the vacuum of space. Only one being survived the destruction; he drifted in the void of space for eight solar days, powerless to even move, until his path carried him close enough to the Crunch to absorb some of the energy bleed.

He inhaled the power like oxygen; it permeated his very being, bringing new life to what was once catatonic. Powerful arms, once shackled, moved of their own free will whilst intelligent eyes, once bound, scanned the destruction. Any who would have looked upon him would surely quake in fear; he was a veritable bio-mechanical powerhouse, drinking the energy of the Crunch like it was wine.

He was Tyrant, the “son” of Galactus, created in his image and then stripped of his immense cosmic powers for being too power hungry. The universe thought him dead, erased from existence by the Ultimate Nullifier, but his so called father conceded him one last mercy. Reduced to little more than a lifeless vegetable, he was locked away in the Kyln for the rest of his natural life, which was to be all eternity.

But now, by chance, he was free. Free to do what though? Gain revenge on his hypocritical father or resume his mission of conquest? He shrugged; perhaps he would do both, but first he needed to gain the lay of the land and assess the status situation he now found himself in.

The corpse of a humanoid floated nearby, close to being incinerated by the energies of the Crunch. He propelled himself over to the body; it was a pink skinned male with blond hair, dressed in the guardsman uniform of the Kyln. He resisted the urge to reduce this one to a cinder, instead transferring some of the cascade energy he had absorbed into the corpse. The guardsman’s eyes opened wide and he gasped silently for air.

“I suppose you require atmosphere,” said Tyrant disdainfully. With that he psionically gathered as much of the atmosphere released from the Kyln as he could.

“There, now talk to me worm, how long was I imprisoned,” he demanded.

“K…Kika…” gasped the guardsman as he shivered, “W…where’s Kika?”

“Your Kika is dead now maggot, along with everything else you knew and loved,” he turned the guard’s body around to show him the devastation of the Kyln.

“N..n..no!” he gasped.

He pulled the guard in close, so that his little pink nose was only inches away from his own metallic visage. “Now you belong to me. If you don’t tell me everything I’ll return you to your woman’s cold embrace.”

The Vi-Va System
Greater Magellanic Cloud
Ten Days Post-Annihilation

In ten days, the Annihilation Wave had cut a swathe through the outer systems and reached the edge of the Kree and Skrull Galaxies. The destruction had generated thousands of refuges, the majority of which were taking the main trade route direct to the relative safety of the Kree capital Kree-Lar in the Turunal system.

Watching over these refugees was the man known to his friends as Wendell Vaughn, a.k.a. Quasar. As protector of the universe he felt it his responsibility to make sure these people get to safety. At the same time though, he felt the strong compulsion to find the source of all this turmoil, the Annihilation Wave, and put a stop to it.

That was foolhardy thinking though, even with the power of the Quantum bands at his disposal, he couldn’t handle an entire invading army. Especially not one that had laid waste to countless systems with minimal effort. Besides, if he left these refugees they were easy prey for other predators. The Annihilation Wave wasn’t the only terrible thing in the universe.

He drifted unaided through the cold void of space, watching over the hundred of refuge ships as they slowly made their way through the system. The ships were of every size and shape imaginable, carrying dozens of different species. Wendell smiled grimly to himself that it always took a crisis to bring people together.

“Hello friend,” said a familiar voice. He spun around to find his old companion Adam Warlock floating behind him.

“Adam!” he exclaimed, surprised to find the man here of all places, “what are you doing here?”

“Same as you I would say, Quasar. I cannot stand by while the death of so many innocents goes by unchecked. The Annihilation Wave must be stopped,” he said solemnly.

Warlock was always an enigma to Quasar; he surged with power to rival his own, but he always seemed aloof; he was created artificially, belonging to no race but his own, and yet he always wished to help others. Wendell’s admiration for him knew no bounds.

Wendell agreed with his friend’s sentiments but knew it was not so cut and dry. “Powerful as we may be Adam, we can’t take on the entire armada on our own.”

“I brought friends,” smiled Adam, as the starlight shined off the Soul Gem on his forehead.

Two Nova Centurions floated nearby. One was a male Shi’ar and the other a blue-skinned, female Kree. He couldn’t help but feel disappointed this was all the Nova Corps had been able to send. He had heard stories the Nova Corps had been devastated by a pair of beings as powerful as Galactus.

He shrugged, it was better than the force he had ten minutes ago.

Several Hours Later

The quartet discussed the prospect of taking on the Annihilation Wave for some time. Adam was certain their best and only approach would be to take out the mastermind behind the Wave; cut of the beast’s head and the body will die. Quasar and the Shi’ar agreed, while the Kree Nova was against it.

“No-one will ask you to risk your life my love,” said Forzel, the Shi’ar Nova Centurion. I truth he was relieved his less Kree lover, Pa-Lann, would be staying behind.

“Don’t be stupid, of course I’m coming with you! I just want to be on record saying I think the idea’s ridiculous,” replied Pa-Lann

“Oh, I see,” everyone could read Forzel’s reactions plain as day.

“I can take care of myself my love,” she said soothingly, gently placing a hand on her lover’s cheek. “I’m just as powerful as you remember?”

“I know, I’m sorry my love.” The pair hugged.

Wendell couldn’t help but feel slightly awkward, though he had grown quite fond of the couple very quickly. He wasn’t surprised to see two Nova Centurions together, but a Shi’ar/Kree union was an uncommon one. Technically, the Shi’ar currently ruled the Kree, after they won the devastating of the Kree/Shi’ar war. When Deathbird, sister to Empress Lilandra and Chancellor of Kree space, had abandoned her post the Shi’ar forces in Kree space were left leaderless. When the Annihilation Wave had come tearing through the Kree worlds, those same Shi’ar forces had fled, leaving the Kree to face the Wave alone.

He turned his thought to his other companion. “Where’s Gamora these days Adam?

For the briefest moment a look of pure dejection crept across his features, before his usual passive expression returned. “I do not know friend, we parted ways many months ago.”

“Oh…umm, I’m sorry,” he felt awkward once again.

“It was probably meant to be,” he sighed. “Last I saw her she was forming a mercenary group on Plaxis with Pip. If we’re destined to be together I’m sure we will be.” He rubbed the Soul Gem on his forehead, as if it pained him.

Looking to change the subject, Quasar said, “in one solar day the refugees will reach the nearest gate to Kree-Lar. Once they’re safe, we’ll make our move against the Wave.”

The Han-Sol System
Greater Magellanic Cloud
Eleven Days Post-Annihilation

The rest of the journey passed without drama, and the refugees reached the warp gate to Kree-Lar. As warp gates went, this one was of moderate size and would take roughly an hour for the full contingent of expatriates to pass through.

Quasar did not waste any time in getting the ships moving; for some unknown reason he was feeling fairly nervous. His gut was telling him something was wrong, but he wasn’t sure what.

Half an hour passed and still nothing bad had happened, but he wouldn’t count his chickens until they hatched. Thankfully though, the refugees were making good time, another ten minutes and they would all be through to safety.

“Enemies!” cried Adam, rushing to his side, “A full armada of ships have just entered the system!”

He knew this was coming; things were never easy. “Can you tell what make they are? Baddoon? Brood?”

“They are like none I’ve ever seen before Quasar, I would dare even say their ships alive.” He looked grim. “Ee have only a few moments to prepare. How much longer until the refugees are safe?”

“About seven minutes, five if they’re quick.”

“Then we’ll have to hold the Wave off long enough for them to escape,”

“Two against an army? I’ve seen better odds but I guess we don’t have much of a choice.”

“Four,” replied Forzel as he flew in to join them. Pa-Lann was close behind, accompanied but a dozen small, armed ships.

Wendell had to choke down the urge to send them all away as this was surely suicide. Sadly he knew they had no choice; if they didn’t hold the fleet back they would surely chase the refugees through the gate and slaughter them all. Such was the life of a hero, especially the Protector of the Universe.

By now the enemy ships were clearly visible in the distance, and were rapidly drawing closer by the second.

“It’s a…swarm,” gasped a shocked Quasar. The Annihilation Wave was a gigantic swarm of insect-like creatures. Various organic ships made a beeline for the refugees, a lust for blood evident in their compound eyes.

Not waiting for the attack, Quasar launched an offensive; rushing into battle and firing multiple energy blasts from his hands. Two large ships exploded into pieces while a third listed uncontrollably to port, taking out a small contingent of wasp like creatures. The Wave retaliated by focusing their fire on the solitary figure, just as he hoped. With the power of the quantum bands he formed a massive shield, scattering the fire and reflecting much of it back on his assailants.

At this stage the other’s joined the fight; Forzel and Pa-Lann flew in unison, taking out multiple wasp-ships while dodging the return fire. Adam was close behind, leading the contingent of mismatched fighter pilots. As powerful as there were though, they had barely even scratched the surface of the enemy’s forces. If they wanted to distract them long enough for the refugees to escape the need to do something that would really get their attention.

He quickly scanned the battlefield and almost immediately found what he wanted; the command ship. It was a chitinous fish like monstrosity, bigger than any other ship in the fleet which formed a defensive perimeter around it. Bingo. Attacking that would certainly draw the Wave’s attention, but he would need the others.

“I need assistance!” cried Pa-Lann, his Quantum Bands picking up on her communicator. She was being tailed by multiple wasp-like bogeys and was barely keeping herself in one piece. He rushed to her aid but it was too late, a large missile exploded in a fiery ball of shrapnel next to her.

“Pa-Lann!” screamed Forzel from nearby.

As the dust cleared though, a glowing yellow orb was revealed, with Pa-Lann safely housed inside. Wendell had acted just fast enough to save her life, a second later and she would have been dead. Forzel rushed the orb and placed his hands on its impenetrable surface, “I thought I lost you,” the tears froze on his cheeks in the iciness of space.

“There’s time for that later, we need to move!” yelled a frantic Quasar, as the enemy regrouped to attack them again.

He released Pa-Lann from the energy sphere and she complained about the indignity, which brought a grin to his face. Adam soon joined them and Wendell explained his dangerous plan to attack the command ship.

“It poses much risk, but we have little choice. Let us attack,” he said.

One of the benefits of being able to fly in the vacuum of space was that it was extremely difficult to be targeted by ships. They were simply too small and too agile to be locked on to. With this on their side the quartet managed to duck and weave themselves amongst the various ships, or in some cases blasted straight through them, to reach the massive command vessel.

“Where would their bridge be?” wondered Quasar.

Adam briefly stroked his Soul Gem whilst Pa-Lann and Forzel scanned the ship and the trio simultaneously called out “there!” pointing to a windowed section below a large dorsal fin half way along the ship.

“Let’s go!”

The four blasted off at full power. Together, the group formed a formidable force and Wendell was confident they could handle whatever enemy the Wave threw at them. Within seconds they struck the outer hull of the command deck and blasted straight through; the explosive decompression sucked dozens of screaming bugs out into space.

Sitting atop a massive throne, unfazed by the decompression, sat Annihilus, ruler of the Negative Zone. Forzel and Pa-Lann did not know the creature, but Adam and Quasar were shocked. Annihilus was mad, and wielded much power, but he had never been capable of such destruction before. What had changed?

“Annihilus, call off your armies and we’ll let you live!” yelled Quasar.

“How dare you lay your unworthy eyes upon me, let alone speak to me filth?” seethed the insect-like beast as he rose from his throne.

“There is such darkness with you,” said Adam calmly, as he reached out mentally with his Soul Gem, attempting to sooth the creature’s tortured spirit.

“Die!” Annihilus extended a wave of force from his hand, hurling Adam backwards through a nearby wall.

Quasar leaped to the offensive, blasting the beast in the chest before landing a powerful blow to his hideous face. Neither seemed to bother him in the slightest and he retaliated by punching him so hard in the stomach he coughed up blood. Before he could do more damage though he was hurled backwards by Pa-Lann’s gravimetric attack and blasted by Forzel for good measure.

Adam rushed back onto the scene at that point, seemingly unharmed by his earlier assault. In unison, he Quasar and Pa-Lann rushed the beast, while Forzel tried to hold him in place with a remotely placed gravity pulse. The trio bombarded Annihilus with punches, actually bringing him to his knees. The fight actually seemed to be turning their way when the monster unleashed a wave of force the blasted them all backwards. A pins and needles sensation filled his entire body as he hit the ground; the energy was like nothing he had ever felt before.

Pa-Lann nursed the wounded Forzel, while Adam lay on the ground on the opposite side. The perfect human was the first to his feet again and fired a massive blast of energy upon Annihilus. The Lord of the Negative Zone merely shrugged off the assault and the grabbed his foe by the throat. Adam struggled by he was too weak and Annihilus was so unnaturally powerful.

“You are a worm,” spat Annihilus. “And soon you will be dust beneath my feet.”

He inhaled, and life energy seemed to flow from Adam into the beast’s horrid mouth. A terrifying scream of pain escaped the man’s lips as his life force was drained by the monster. Quasar forced himself to his feet but it was too late; Adam fell to the floor a withered husk and crumpled into dust. The Living Death That Walks reached down into the ashes and extracted a small pink stone; Adam’s Soul Gem.

“Get away from that!” raged Quasar, as he tried to pull the stone from Annihilus’ grip with an energy tendril.

The beast kept a firm grip on the gem, examining it with keen interest. Quasar, fuelled with rage and despair for failing to save his friend, charged the monster but Annihilus knocked him away with a savage backhand before pointing the Soul Gem at Forzel and Pa-Lann.

“No!” cried Wendell in horror as the gem sucked both Centurions’ souls inside. Both their bodies fell to the floor limply, still alive but catatonic.

Quasar despaired; this was all his fault. His plan had cost Adam Warlock his life and trapped two good Nova’s within the Soul Gem. And now Annihilus was in possession of a powerful new weapon. He had to get it back at all costs.

Annihilus was once again examining the gem and actually reached up to attach it to his forehead like Adam had, but Wendell quickly ensnared the beast with powerful bands of quantum energy. Two large quantum fists pummelled him in quick succession causing the monster to cry out in frustration.

His quarry strained against the bonds until they shattered; a feat impossible to the Annihilus of old. How had he become so powerful? There was no time to think about this now though as his foe extended the Soul Gem, trying to eliminate him the same way he had Pa-Lann and Forzel. He dove aside just in time, landing next to the catatonic women.

Realisation hit him; he wouldn’t win this fight and his death would be in vain. The refugees must be to safety by now; he had to flee and live to fight another day.

“All positive matter will be purged, worm,” sneered Annihilus, aiming he Soul Gem at Quasar once again.

“I will stop you,” he stated, his voice filled with determination.

Before the Negative Zone ruler could react, he grabbed both Forzel and Pa-Lann and created a Quantum Jump, teleporting the trio far away to safety.

Kree-Lar
Greater Magellanic Cloud

Wendell materialised in the first place he thought of; Kree-Lar, capital of the Kree empire. People had to be warned, and he thought it best if he took the information about Annihilus straight to the Supreme Intelligence.

Forzel and Pa-Lann lay at his feet, comatose but very much alive. He swore he would do everything in his power to free their souls from Annihilus’ grasp and avenge Adam Warlock’s murder.

He could not believe how powerful Annihilus had become. The insect-like overlord had gone from a foe the Fantastic Four could defeat in battle to an enemy on the level of a Herald of Galactus. But what could have given him such a boost in power, and why?

Solar System Designate JMK1984
Andromeda Galaxy

Some the oldest eyes in existence stared out upon the vastness of space, seeing things mere mortals could not even imagine. She was Epoch, patron of Quasar and protector of time and life, and she watched on as hundreds of worlds were extinguished. The universe was beyond comprehension in size; but the destruction caused by the Annihilation Wave still pained her.

The granddaughter of Eternity and Infinity had left her realm, the Mists of Time, as she had been unable to contact chosen Protector of the Universe. Somehow her massive form had wound up in orbit above an uninhabited world in the heart of an electromagnetic storm. Lightning powerful enough to destroy a Shi’ar Cruiser assaulted her, but simply converted the power into more energy to sustain herself. What was she doing here?

She reached out with her cosmic awareness, attempting to assess what power had brought her to this inhospitable place. Inextricably, her power was blocked.

A sudden movement in the corner of her gigantic eye had her moon sized form spinning around. Two gigantic humanoid beings, each as big as Galactus himself, appeared beside her in a flash of light. Each was encased in a suit of strange armour, one red, and the other blue.

“Celestials!” cried Epoch in surprise, but before she could react any further, the two invaders grabbed ahold of her tentacles and hurled her through the violent electromagnetic storm.

A half a dozen other Celestials appeared beside their comrades and quickly assaulted the powerful being, punching and blasting her with energy relentlessly. She fought back desperately and blasted the Celestials with the power cosmic from her two smaller eyes, but the blue and red Celestials returned fire with their own powerful blasts. No Celestial possessed strength on the level of Galactus, but against Epoch they were worthy foes.

The red Celestial looked to the blue. “Quickly Nezarr, use the device before the she gains the upper hand.”

“Yes Arishem,” replied the blue, before joining the fight.

Epoch was indeed gaining the upper hand. Two Celestials already drifted lifelessly through the electromagnetic storm, glowing energy running from their cracked armour like blood. But she was distracted and thus was unable to prevent Nezarr from placing a large round disk on her back.

“No!” she cried.

She reached around with her tentacles just in time for the device to activate. With intense flash of light and powerful surge of energy, the device created a rip in the very fabric of space, the giant personification of time inside.

As quickly as it had begun it was over, Epoch was gone, along with the other galactic beings they had attacked before her, and power was now in the hands of the Celestials.

“We have done well Arishem,” said Nezarr the Calculator

“Indeed, Epoch was the last quarry to be trapped in the Negative Zone. With Galactus missing and Annihilus distracting the other major powers of the universe, we can restart the Great Experiment unimpeded.”