However it's not
Dr Strange who uttered the spell but
Iron Man (
Victor von Doom). He explains that the creature was a
Chronosite that feeds on things displaced in time. And he wants the team to do a job for him.
The immediate reaction of most of the team is to attack
Dr Doom. Except
Wasp (
Nadia Pym) who's in awe of his scientific genius, and of his combining it with magic. She invites him in for tea.
Victor von Doom accepts and tells them the tale of what he's been doing recently. How he's now turned good and taken up the vacant role of Iron Man (in the pages of
Infamous Iron Man).
Spider-Man (
Peter Parker) voices the common belief that he's trying to trick them - but he has no answer as to why his
Spider-Sense isn't warning him.
Victor apologises for all the wrongs he's done them in the past. He reiterates that there is a problem that he needs the Avengers to solve. He especially needs Nadia, which sends her into another fangirl frenzy. There have been recent magical disturbances in New York State (which
Vision confirms). Doom has tracked the source but he can't go there for fear of endangering innocents. The Avengers are still suspicious but are willing to go along for the moment.
Doom magically transports them to the site (except Vision who he deems would be out of place). Cap protests that he should have consulted the team before doing that. Thor takes it as a personal insult.
Their target is the
Susan Storm Camp for Girls' Leadership. Cap wonders why Victor is afraid of teenage girls. Wasp interjects that she knows some very dangerous teen girls (members of her
GIRL squad in
Unstoppable Wasp). Doom replies that he doesn't want to endanger the legacy of
Invisible Woman, who since he saw the light is now someone dear to him. If he went in as himself he'd cause panic.
This is why he needs Wasp to scout out the land. Nadia overrides Sam's objection because she was capable enough to escape from the Russian
Red Room. Victor invokes the
Images of Ikonn to disguise her in the right uniform, and casts a communication spell so they can stay in touch.
Nadia joins various groups of girls in their activities looking for clues, and eventually lights on a cabin where 5 girls are sitting around some candles. They each have very specific ideas of powerful futures, including 1 becoming President. Nadia agrees to help them, which turns out to mean becoming a sacrificial victim to complete the ritual that will ensure their fates.
Wasp finds she can't use her shrinking power. The girls tell her that a spell stops the victim from escaping. But Nadia shouts "Avengers Assemble" and her teammates smash through the cabin wall. Doom accompanies them as the girls gain magical armour and weapons. They reveal that they are Champions of
Anamelech, a Moon Demon who Dr Doom has angered in the past.
Victor takes Wasp outside while the other 4 try to hold off the girl warriors without hurting them. 1 of them calls on a Chronosite. Doom can't use the Flames of the Faltine in the small cabin space without endangering the girls as well. But Wasp persuades him to channel the spell through the shrinking ray projectors in her gloves. This gives him the accuracy needed to only hit the Chronosite.
Then another spell banishes Anamelech's influence, including the magic armour and weapons. But the girls' leader is being dragged away by the spell too. Victor thinks that is justice, but Nadia rescues her.
We learn from Doom's thoughts that he had an ulterior motive here to study Nadia Pym. He had learned that the evil agency
WHISPER (see lots of issues of
New Avengers (2015)) believed that she would become an evil genius (which explains why they were after her in
All-New All-Different Av #14). Victor's vendetta against 'mad scientists' (see
Infamous IM) made her a target. But he is now convinced WHISPER was wrong.
Next day Nadia and Sam are looking at stuff in the Avengers' basement archives when they spot the gravestone of
Avenger X (that we saw materialise here last issue). Cap doesn't recognise it. And suddenly it cracks open as glowing arms emerge.
Give that special marvelite a timely gift