Fantastic Four (1998 series) #570

A young Reed Richards stares into the stars, haunted by questions he cannot answer. In the present, The Fantastic Four battle a swarm of precision-engineered robots designed to exploit their weaknesses. Reed traces them to The Wizard, who offers a twisted partnership to reshape the future.

Rejecting the offer, Reed disables the lair and returns home. That night, he shares quiet moments with Franklin and Valeria, their innocent questions cutting deeper than any villain’s threat. Reed’s mind races—not with equations, but with guilt.

Driven by obsession, he activates a device that connects him to the Council of Reeds—alternate versions of himself from across the multiverse. Each Reed has abandoned family for intellect, solving problems but losing their humanity.

As Reed steps into their world, he’s confronted by the cost of his ambition. The issue ends with a chilling image: Reed surrounded by infinite reflections of himself, each brilliant, each broken.

The question lingers: can Reed solve everything without losing what matters most?