Synopsis
Thanos has killed the Eternals' ruler Zuras, and disabled the Resurrection Machine so he can't be brought back to life. He must have had Eternal help to get access to the Eternals' teleportation system and so Sersi leads a conspiracy of Kingo Sunen, Phastos and Sprite to uncover the traitor. But these things are part of a general problem with the world-spanning AI Great Machine that serves the Eternals, which will have dire consequences for the Earth itself. Meanwhile Ikaris has gone to protect the boy Toby Robson because of a vision/prediction.
But now we turn to another Eternal, Thena, asleep in Lemuria with her latest Deviant lover. Lemuria, the Deviant capital, isn't exactly under the Pacific but in a reality pocket connected to it. And the (mostly) short-lived Deviants don't limit their population like the Eternals so there are many thousands of them. Awakening Thena sends a dagger into the shoulder of a sneaking figure, knowing full well that it is Kingo Sunen. She calls Sersi and Sprite out of hiding too, and sends her lover Tolau to safety. She demands to know the reason for the invasion, and does she need to get her sword to defend herself.
Sersi asks Sprite to generate illusions to show Thena the problem. According to the Machine Thena came to see Zuras yesterday and they had an argument. Thena readily explains that since they no longer had to follow the plan they believed the Celestials created them for, she had her own ideas. She was going to help their traditional enemies the Deviants rather than fight them. Her father Zuras just assumed she had another Deviant lover (which happens to be true). They parted with Thena threatening to kill him. Sersi explains that Zuras *is* dead (which at least *seems* to be a surprise to Thena) and so she's an obvious suspect.
Meanwhile Ikaris is hovering over the Robsons' front garden when Toby's father Alex Robson leaves for work. That changes his plans for the day, and soon the whole neighbourhood is out taking photos. Toby explains that Ikaris appeared to him last night in what he thought was a dream to say he's here to protect him. Mother Sophia Robson asks what the danger is but Ikaris just responds that they should shelter from the hail. Which starts arriving in large car-wrecking chunks. The hero starts blasting ice out of the sky (while the rest of New York remains unprotected). The Machine comments to us that this is a sign of the climate catastrophe to come.
The hail stops and Sophia invites their protector in for coffee. Ikaris explains that he doesn't think the weather has anything to do with Toby, who seems unremarkable. He just knows that there is an unknown threat he must protect him from. Sophia objects that Ikaris might himself be the problem when some other super-guy like Silver Surfer turns up to fight him. Alex asks if Ikaris can put Toby in a safe place until the danger is over, but Sophia doesn't want him missing school. When Toby asks Ikaris if he's his guardian angel, he gets the reply that the Eternals are guardian angels of the Earth.
Back in Lemuria Thena accesses the Machine and confirms that it is broken and Zuras won't be returning, but more worrying to her is the danger to the planet. She and Sersi then continue an age-old animosity, and each suggest that the other could be the culprit.
The Machine remembers a similar confrontation 100,000 years ago. Sersi invites Thena to 'lunch' among her entourage of animals. She comments that Thena has taken another Deviant lover Tzaigo. Thena replies that he's an intelligent peace-loving scientist, unlike Warlord Kro (a very-long-lived Deviant lover of Thena's who's still around now). She also points out that Sersi takes human lovers, but Sersi says she doesn't make the mistake of actually loving the fleeting beings as Thena does. She leads Thena to a hidden chamber where Tzaigo has been harvesting organs from humans and Neanderthals and using a machine to try to extend his life. And the Deviant shows up to confirm that Thena was just a specimen he was studying. Then a flick of a switch animates the corpses and Thena has to kill them all again, including her lover.
Now Sersi still suspects Thena may be involved in Zuras' death. Kingo suggests they add Thena to their conspiracy to keep an eye on her, as they are doing with Sprite. Thena asks what if she refuses. But they don't have to answer because the Machine announces a message from Druig for Sersi. She takes the mental link but asks the Machine to broadcast it to the others. Druig informs her that he returned to his Eternal home Polaria to find that city's leader Valkin dead along with many others. He is now the ruler of Polaria, which he supposes makes *him* a suspect now.