Synopsis / Summary / Plot
Secret Invasion: Runaways/Young Avengers #2 Synopsis by
Rob Johnson
The Runaways and Young Avengers have gotten caught up in the Skrull Secret Invasion event. The Runaway Xavin is a Super-Skrull and told Nico Minoru and Victor Mancha to escape with the unconscious other Runaways in the Leapfrog. But the last we saw of them was the craft menaced by 2 other enhanced Skrulls. Meanwhile Skrull Commander Chrell is under orders from Queen Veranke to find and kill the half-Skrull YAer Hulkling who is the son of Skrull royalty and is prophesied to lead them. His appearance could weaken the resolve of the fanatical Skrull army who are operating under a different prophecy that the Earth is destined to be theirs. Xavin saw Chrell capture Hulkling but rescued him, but now 3 Skrulls have tracked them down to a sewer.
But we start as last issue with a flashback to the Tarnax VII military training camp. The Skrull homeworld is long-gone (eaten by Galactus in Fantastic Four #257) and the Skrull Empire shattered into factions. A Skrull priest is telling some young trainees of a prophesied half-breed saviour who will unite them all in peace. Xavin is 1 of the audience until he is drawn away by Commander Chrell to continue training to use his Super-Skrull powers. (Xavin is 1 who has been given the original Super-Skrull powers which duplicate those of all the FF. But later enhanced Skrulls will have a variety of powers.) Chrell scoffs at such prophecies but says that Xavin's training will be what will keep him alive to see it if it comes true.
Now the young Super-Skrull is standing up to the 3 'super' Skrulls, taking a beating to protect unconscious Hulkling. Luckily YAers Wiccan (Hulkling's boyfriend) and Speed (Wiccan's sort-of brother - it's complicated) drop in (probably via Wiccan's magic). Tommy Shepherd rushes around landing blows while Billy Kaplan does more magic stuff, but a flaming-armed Skrull survives to pin them against a wall until a Thing-fist slams his head into that wall.
Wiccan recognises Xavin and then sees Teddy Altman lying in the water. Xavin tells them they have to get Dorrek (as the Skrulls call Hulkling) to safety before 'he' sends more warriors after them. Speed asks where the other Runaways are ...
... and we cut an enhanced Skrull breaking in through the windshield of the Leapfrog to attack Nico. Robot Victor zaps him with electricity and calls for Chase Stein or Karolina Dean to wake up. But it is their pet dinosaur Old Lace who responds and takes the Skrull out into the sky. Their flying vehicle crashes to the ground and the 2nd 'super' Skrull menaces them. He grabs Victor and stamps on Nico's arm making her let go of her magic Staff Of One. But he's staggered by a blast from Chase's Fistigon gauntlets. And then the youngest Runaway Molly Hayes (who likes to be called Princess Powerful) punches him into the sky and through a skyscraper.
Chase helps Victor up and Molly examines Nico's damaged wrist. Old Lace returns with her mouth dripping Skrull blood. Molly wants them all to go fight the aliens but Nico says they'll get the Leapfrog working and leave. Then Karolina wakes up (with their young guest from the past Klara Prast) and demands to know where her girl/boyfriend Xavin (he's a shapeshifting Skrull) is. We don't stick around for the awkward answer ...
... but go to Commander Chrell's ship hovering over Times Square. He's lost contact with the loyal Skrulls he sent after Hulkling and now sends a female Skrull operative with orders to kill Dorrek and whoever's protecting him, and any other Skrull witness. She teleports away (magic I think).
Billy is helping Teddy along a subway tunnel as Hulkling comes to his senses and asks what's happening. Xavin catches up with them and explains that Skrull extremists have invaded Earth because they believe their God has promised it to them. And he blames Dorrek for not preventing it, because he didn't accept his responsibilities (YA#12) as the prophesied saviour of the Empire. He could still stop the invasion by revealing his identity, but now the deadliest Skrull of all (I think he means Chrell) is here to kill him. Teddy protests that he *tried* to tell the Skrulls who he is (last issue) but they attacked him. Xavin tells him to try harder. Earth is Teddy's home and it is also the home of Xavin's beloved Karolina, so they should be willing to die to save it.
Then superfast Tommy catches up with them as well. And then they all go invisible as Xavin tries to hide them from the teleporting arrival of the female assassin. But she can detect their heartbeats, and maybe see them via infra-red or X-rays or something. She throws a sai (or Skrull equivalent) which Speed stops from piercing Teddy's chest. Xavin tells Speed and Wiccan to attack her but she evades their blows and blasts and gets her own licks in. Xavin stops Dorrek from joining the fight and tries to get him to run away. Then he knocks the Skrulless over with a chunk of forcefield and uses force discs to carry himself and his friends away.
The woman named X'iv reports back to Chrell that 1 of Dorrek's protectors is a Skrull and she recognises him by his heartbeat as Prince Xavin. Chrell orders a scan for a particular alien bioenergy signature.
Karolina is blazingly angry that Nico left Xavin behind, even though Nico says it was what he wanted. (Noticeably Karolina refers here to Xavin as 'he', even though he takes human form as a female to be Kar's girlfriend.) Chase and Molly support K about returning to the fight/finding X, but Victor says they didn't see how bad it all was and Nico says Xavin's a trained soldier which they aren't.
Klara draws their attention to some TV screens in a shop window showing the battle in Times Square. They see a Skrull electrocuting Young Avengers Hawkeye, Patriot and Vision and another Skrull firing a blast through Vision's skull.
Then Chrell and X'iv arrive with 4 more 'super' Skrulls. (Presumably he's traced the bioenergy signature of Karolina because she's an alien Majasdanian.)