Synopsis
We pick up where we left off at the end of last issue with Flowa watching Gamora trying to use her Infinity Blade (powered by the Power Stone, and which she used to kill Thanos in Infinity Wars Prime) to break through the bottom of the God Quarry to reach the Quarry Of Creation. Some Watchers are still here watching too. And she's still failing abjectly.
Meanwhile in Warpworld within the Soul Gem many merged heroes are fighting the beast Devondra to stop her devouring the souls of all the inhabitants. We see Arachknight (Moon Knight/Spider-Man), Ghost Panther (Black Panther/Ghost Rider), Hot Rocks (Human Torch/Thing), Iron Hammer (Iron Man/Thor), Soldier Supreme (Captain America/Dr Strange) and Weapon Hex (Scarlet Witch/X-23). (We also see the separated Ant-Man & Hulk and Kang & Ms. Marvel, but this is shurely shome mishtake as they already left last issue for the next scene elsewhere.) The never-merged Adam Warlock is also helping them and he has a chat with Soldier Supreme who discovered that he was a combination of Cap and DrS at the end of his 2-issue tie-in series. Warlock says if they defeat Devondra and Gamora they should be able to de-merge everybody. But SS says he's lived all his life in this state and doesn't want to give it up. (Ie Warpworld was created with a complete past which is real to the inhabitants.)
Meanwhile again Ant-Man, Hulk, Kang and Ms. Marvel are with Emma Frost and Loki elsewhere in Soul World, in a desert with skeletons of Devondra's victims. Emma takes Kamala Khan with her as the only other female on the team, leaving Loki to explain to the men that when Gamora folded the universe, creating Warpworld with its inhabitants merged in pairs, and then copied it into Soul World (inside the Soul Gem) she copied herself and the Infinity Stones here as well. (If she copied herself and the Stones here but she and they are also outside in the God Quarry then shouldn't that mean the whole of this Warpworld is a copy and the original is still outside? I don't think that's what Gerry Duggan intends.)
Whatever, the women find a pre-teen Gamora in a tree-house with the Stones. She claims to have been here since her parents died. But confusingly also claims to have been with *him* after that (ie Thanos as she was in the real world) and *he*'s not allowed here. But she agrees to let our team borrow the Stones.
Loki examines them and declares that the Stones have changed in this world (as they did between the previous universe and the post- Secret Wars III version). He declares that the wielders' abilities should be linked to the next Stone round the infinity loop. Mentally powerful Emma Frost must have the Power Stone. The physically powerful Hulk should get the Space Stone. Space-(or at least size-)manipulator Ant-Man needs the Time Stone, and Master Of Time Kang will get the Reality Stone. Loki will take the Soul Stone for himself because he has lived, died and thrived in many realities. And incorruptible young Ms Marvel will wield the Mind Stone.
His logic seemed to taper off towards the end there and Kamala Khan isn't sure *any* of it made sense. Loki shrugs and says if he's wrong then they'll all die and take 2 universes or more down with them. He opens a portal and says he has a plan. But of course we don't get to hear what it is.
In the God Quarry (where the Watchers seem to have gone off to watch something else) a portal opens in the air but it isn't Loki and pals who drop in. Last issue we saw Captain Marvel (Phyla-Vell), Moondragon and the Dragon Of The Moon from another timeline escape from their version of Gamora by falling though realities. And now they fall through this hole in the air and land with a "Boom". Spotting another Gamora they immediately attack the person who destroyed their universe. Blue-skinned Phyla's energy sword goes right through her, but green-skinned Gamora just pulls it out again.
And *that*'s when Loki and Co turn up. Emma Frost steps forward and shifts to her diamond form, probably enhanced by her Power Stone. Gamora strikes with the Infinity Sword ... which shatters on Emma's body. And Ms Marvel sneaks in elastically and grabs the other Power Stone from the sword's hilt.
Then Hulk uses the Space Stone to disconnect himself and Gamora from the effects of gravity. This allows him to grab her and fly up and down with her pummelling her into the ground. And then into the sides of the Quarry. But she takes it all and is still standing. She's still determined to remake the universe.
But now it's Kang's turn. He says with his Reality Stone *he* can remake the universe so they don't need her. Then multiple Kang's from different time-frames gang up on her. But she fights back saying in *her* universe no-one will need to suffer and *she* won't have had the life she did (ie her people murdered and being brought up by Thanos).
She suddenly realises all this is a distraction - she doesn't know where Ant-Man has gone. Miniature him has managed to steal her Reality and Space Stones. Now he quits while he's ahead and takes them into the Microverse(?).
Loki sees his plan working and starts picking up ordinary little rocks.
The little Dragon Of The Moon launches itself at Gamora's neck and accuses her of being bad. As she struggles to get it off she thinks it's all falling apart. Thanos in her head agrees and is disappointed in her. And diamond Emma Frost uses the Power Stone to batter her. But I think maybe all of that was Ms Marvel messing with her head. And now Kamala has added the 3 remaining Stones to Gamora's Power Stone she nicked earlier.
Loki congratulates MsM and the returned Scott Lang personally. But beaten Gamora sees the Trickster God using sleight-of-hand to swap his rocks for their Infinity Stones. Captain Marvel and Moondragon attack her, and Loki opens a portal and sends the 3 through. He displays the Stones in his hands and uses them break through the floor of the God Quarry to the Quarry Of Creation below.
Hulk whacks Ant-Man for being stupid, and finds that the indestructible floor has sealed up again. Flowa's been recording all this and realises Loki has achieved what he set out to do (in IW Prime).
When Loki gets where he's going the Infinity Stones lose their power because they're no longer in their own universe. But he pockets them because they might come in useful some other time. But then he walks to a place littered with hundreds of Infinity Stones. And a bunch of giants floating in the air rather like the Celestials (who he's just escaped from in Avengers #10).
Back in Soul/Warp World the heroes are beginning to despair of killing Devondra because she recovers from all the assaults. Then a portal opens and 3 battling females pop through. Warlock and Soldier Supreme immediately join in the attack on Gamora. Moondragon (Heather Douglas) seems to have not noticed that their enemy no longer has the Stones.
Lastly we pick up on Drax who (contrary to what I *thought* happened last issue) is still in his original human form of Arthur Douglas (ie Moondragon's father). He's driving a car with his wife Yvette in a situation that's giving him deja vu. (but unlike the origin tale of Drax and Moondragon there's no young daughter in the back seat). He's hurrying to subconsciously answer the call for heroes to fight Devondra. But they crash the car (as in the origin story). But they survive the crash (unlike the origin story).
Then the tree they ran into speaks to them "We are Peet". It transforms into a wooden humanoid with Groot's head and Star-Lord's uniform. Art says he thinks he knows this tree. He promises Yvette he'll be back and allows Peet to fly off with him using boot jets.