At the Raft, Fixer reports to
Warden John Walker that they have lost contact with the Thunderbolts Alpha Team
which was facing Juggernaut, possessed by Kuurth, Breaker of Stone. Fixer
suggests tapping into a military satellite which may give them the vantage
point they need. Walker as first refuses then Fixer persuades him of the
necessity, which he still doesn’t like. And the Satellite shows Juggernaut
flying off to the West. Satana reappears to tell them how the ‘Bolts failed to
stop Juggy. There is a conflict with the prisoners and Walker must rush off to
deal with that. Satana prepares to draw on the evolved Man-Thing to allow the
Beta Team to teleport to Chicago….
Meanwhile, Moonstone, tossed
several miles away into Lake Michigan by Juggy, returns to the site of the
confrontation to see a massive crater. She hears Songbird’s cry and finds her
protecting the unarmored Mach-V. They then discover that Juggernaut has not
attacked Chicago. Ghost reappears to report that Juggy flew west. They hear
from Fixer via a chunk of Abe’s armor that still works; he reveals that an ICBM
with a nuclear warhead is heading for Chicago….
The B-Team (Boomerang, Shocker,
Centurius, Calvin Zabo) is watching from the Raft, hoping that they would be
sent into action where they could escape from but that seems unlikely now….
Moonstone pursues the rocket,
managing to divert it away from the Earth…but the warhead detaches and falls
into Lake Michigan without detonating. Fixer suspects he knows what is going on
and contacts Baron Zemo in Europe. Zemo recognized the warhead as based on
plans stolen from him: it contains a miniaturized army designed to grow to full
size when exposed to fresh water. Fixer warns Songbird what is going to happen
while omitting an explanation and Man-Thing, powered up by Satana, is
dispatched to take the ‘Bolts in Illinois out to the Lake from which emerges a
mass of slimy black little monsters with huge jaws. The creatures swarm onto
the beach, growing to about seven feet tall each, and attacking humans on the
beach….
At the Raft, John Walker is told to
look at Thunderbolts Tower. He looks and it vanishes before his eyes….