Queen in Black (2026 series) #1

Having lost his original role as King In Black to Hela (the Asgardian Queen of Hel) as Queen In Black (in the recent Knull mini-series) Knull has now become a god of light instead. But he still wants to destroy everything.

His 1st act is to create a new batch of symbiotes he calls his Seraphim, this time of hard light without the need to merge with a host but instead just dominate them, and without the annoying tendency to rebel.

Tyr, the Asgardian God of War, and Hela are watching this through her scrying globe. He suggests that Knull is dangerous and they might need more than her personal Helguard, the black symbiotes she's inherited from Knull and her own magic to deal with him. She replies that she has another weapon in mind and that is *Earth* which they will immediately set out to take.

Iron Man (Tony Stark) has called a meeting at Avengers Mansion. 1 of the attendees is Venom who reveals their current identity to be Mary Jane Watson, and that their situation is unlike previous pairings in that if they part then they would both die. Other attendees are Spider-Man (the Peter Parker version), Agent Anti-Venom (Flash Thompson) and Captain Spider (Toxin). Tony and Peter aren't too happy about Venom bonding with their friend. MJ and Flash both want Tony to see that Dylan Brock, young son of the Eddie Brock (the 1st Venom host) is protected, because Eddie isn't available. And then they reveal that Dylan is currently inside the Captain Spider symbiote. Tony delegates Peter to to take responsibility for the 2 symbiotes and any others that might be around. Spidey complains that's actually Flash's government job but Iron Man says he's got something else in mind for *him* as an ex-Avenger ...

... speaking of which a bunch of them now show up, as well as the Fantastic Four by Radical Cube Transmission from their Baxter Building HQ. Technically the team are meeting here only by permission of the Mansion's owner Johnny Storm (Human Torch). IM tells the assembly that another galactic crisis has arisen while as usual Earth's heroes have been busy with their own problems (like One World Under Doom and Avengers Armageddon). He calls on Captain Alliance to explain. CA is a Skrull Super-Soldier from a previous era wearing a symbol that represents the Kree/Skrull Alliance that he remains loyal to even after things changed. But he doesn't understand when Spidey calls him a Skrull copy of Captain America. Whatever, he reports that Knull is back but he seems to be behind a nihilistic cult of symbiote-wearers. Our own Cap (the Steve Rogers version) reminds everyone of the last time Knull attacked Earth (the King In Black event) with a physical army, and hopes they could find out where he is. Scarlet Witch (Wanda Maximoff), the current Sorcerer Supreme, says that she can locate his Onyx Throne using MJ's Venom as a link via their shared past. She expects that indirect approach to avoid alerting its occupant. But the current occupant detects her and severs the link with a magic blast that staggers the assembly. However Beta Ray Bill recognises Hela, but Wanda doesn't recognise her magic at all and no-one's ever heard of the name. Bill is weary of having to explain that the Norse Gods *do* exist, even to Hercules who points out that his Greek pantheon would know if they did, but he insists that Hela is powerful and gives the cry "Avengers Assemble" to stir the crowd. Stark offers support, and the Skrull Cap A suggest to the Earth Cap A that they may face *2* opponents.

Meanwhile Knull has been practising light-sculpture and created himself a palace and a waist-high dragon pet. However as a god of destruction rather than creation he feels he should really dispense with such fripperies ... but maybe he'll hang on to them for a while. But just then Nova (Richard Rider with the Xandarian Worldmind AI included) turns up to arrest him for galactic war crimes. His recent exploits as an outer-space hero for hire (in the recent Nova: Centurion mini-series) have earned him enough money to create more storage for Nova Force energy which Worldmind rates at 300%, but reminds him that if they use it all then the WM will die taking with it the last memories of the Xandarian civilisation. (Knull remembers Nova from Guardians Of The Galaxy (2020) #10 where he tried to destroy Spartax during the King In Black event.) Nova suggests creating a black hole in Knull's heart but the WM says they're too close to Earth's solar system so he uses 250% of his normal Nova Force. But the villain survives noting that even the Nova Force is part of the electromagnetic spectrum, ie light. He blasts back thinking he destroys his foe.

Meanotherwhile Hela and Tyr's Symbiote Alliance armada nears Earth and begins their invasion. Rigellian symbiotes attack Gaza in Egypt. Skrull versions attack Pisa in Italy. It's Mentelleronites in Tokyo, Japan, Chitauri in London, UK and Kree in New York, USA. (It seems that it's Hela whose been recruiting into a cult.) The Kree order all humans to immediately evacuate their landing site while they activate the All-Purpose Power Tool, but 1 frail old lady (not Peter Parker's Aunt May) falls and is about to be executed when a spider-web blocks the gun barrel causing it to explode and kill the soldier. It's Spidey's own symbiote alliance/Spider-Friends (Anti-Venom, Black Cat, Captain Alliance, Captain Spider and Venom) to the rescue. CA explains that the APPT is a portable self-constructing weapons system. Venom has chosen to bulk-up for the fight, including a dummy head for unwitting enemies to aim at.

Meanthirdwhile the supersmart Rigellians have encased the Great Pyramid of Giza in a forcefield that successfully repels tank fire. They intend to convert it and the surrounding area into a symbiote farm and are wondering why the stupid humans are bothering to resist. Then Scarlet Witch uses probability control (her original power) to cause the shield generator to malfunction. The Symbiotes gloat that the tanks still can't harm their terraformer. But she informs them (and us) that the Vision is at this moment plummeting down from space. He's increased his density to several times harder than tungsten and he's using boot jets to propel him way beyond terminal velocity. He hits the pyramid destroying the terraformer. Wanda assures Tony that she can magically restore it later.

Stark worries that even with the FF and X-Men helping they're not enough. Then he gets a message from Reed Richards that Nova has just joined them (after he managed to wormhole away before Knull blasted him) with the news that *he*s back in the game too as some sort of King Of Light but he still wants to destroy the universe and he's not far from Earth. In return Rider learns about the Queen In Black.

More alien troops are landing, which in NY probably includes more All-Purpose Power Tools. Spidey's not sure his squad can handle it but then Cable teleports in with 1 of his ginormous guns. However he's not here to help but to take Agent Anti-Venom into space for the job that was mentioned earlier. Stark's created 2 teams of Defenders (whose exploits can be followed in the QIB: Defenders Of Light And Dark mini-series). And Cable teleports the duo away.

3 pods land in front of the Spider-gang. Spidey senses something wrong and realises that these pods have opened underneath and the aliens are beneath their feet. On cue 1 giant Venom erupts from the ground and the Skrull CapA realises that this time the foe are Skrull symbiotes, and he grows big to match the enemy. Meanwhile 2 fly-sized Skrulls buzz Spider-Man. He webs them up but they grow out of it and 1 of them activates the APPT. The device uses the Skrull symbiotes as raw material to create the ultimate Kree symbiote, a version of the Supreme Intelligence.