Synopsis / Summary / Plot
The War Of The Realms is over and Thor and Tony Stark are relaxing in the Avengers Mountain hot tub. Thor lost 1 eye in WOTR but regained Mjolnir from the Sun. He keeps checking he's still worthy enough to pick it up (after the long period after Original Sin when he wasn't). Stark says Thor is the only god he'd follow to Hell and back. Thor responds that Iron Man is the 1st mortal he'd choose to stand at his side. But Tony calls him on that, saying Steve Rogers is the 1st man *either* of them would pick in a fight.
As if on cue Captain America shows up and asks who they're fighting. When he learns that there's no current enemy he admonishes them for abandoning all the post-War world-wide cleaning up that needs doing. Tony has kept his Iron Man helmet on in the pool and says he's remote-piloting a dozen armours on the job. Thor advises Cap to take some down-time, but Steve says he hasn't got his swimsuit. The other 2 says they don't either, so naked Rogers joins them for 5 minutes.
Meanwhile in the Pentagon Phil Coulson surveys an array of LMDs of Nick Fury (the old white 1 who is now the Unseen) who act as his security team. They have reported an intruder. And then Black Panther drops in via a ventilation shaft. Coulson orders the Fury's to arrest him but T'Challa knocks them down with a force blast.
Panther says he's here to prevent conflict between the Avengers and the Squadron Supreme Of America. Coulson claims that the Squadron successfully defended Washington DC while the Avengers were losing New York. BP counters that all they did was send the Frost Giants to Canada, which Coulson says is not *his* problem.
T'Challa accuses Coulson of being a murderer. (He's presumably referring to the unidentified Agent Of Wakanda that Coulson killed at the end of #11. Or maybe he suspects Phil of having something to do with the murder of Gen'l Ross over in Cap's series?) He asks Coulson if the Squadron know *what* Phil is. (Referring to Coulson's mysterious return from death, which we know has something to do with Mephisto. But BP should really be asking if the Squadron know what *they* are, because we know they are creatures under Coulson's control with false memories.) Cue Doctor Spectrum using his Power Prism to melt a hole in the wall.
On Avengers Mountain She-Hulk is taking a brief rest after disposing of Frost Giant bodies. She's covered in their blood, which excites Blade. SHulk tries unsuccessfully to flirt back at him, as he heads off to hunt vampires with the baby Boy-Thing on his shoulder. SHulk heads inside to look for alcohol.
Captain Marvel and Robbie Reyes have 'borrowed' Tony Stark's speedboat to go fishing for Muspelheim Firesharks which Carol Danvers figures Sub-Mariner collected and dumped in the waters around their HQ. She also figures this will be R&R, but RR blurts out that being Ghost Rider and an Avenger is continually terrifying. Carol tells him that being an Avenger *is* terrifying. And her mother recently (Life Of Captain Marvel mini-series) confessed to being a Kree, the aliens who conquered their way to a galactic empire. But on the other hand she can *fly*, so perks does being Ghost Rider give Robbie? In answer Robbie goes GR and turns the boat into a hellboat going many times faster than TS's speedboat could do.
Back in Phil Coulson's office the Squadron Supreme step in. Nighthawk and Hyperion try to arrest Black Panther. T'Challa tells them he know that they aren't the real Squadron Supreme, and he knows that Coulson is working for someone other than the US Government. He asks them how they know they can trust him. Then he contacts Broo, the mutant Broodling, to teleport him back to Avengers HQ.
Back in the pool Cap tells the other 2 that Daredevil with Heimdall's omniscience warned him about a new dangerous version of Starbrand. But the others tell him to stop talking shop, including Carol and Robbie who've joined them, not naked. And then She-Hulk arrives and she *is* naked.
Thor checks his hammer again in case impure thoughts about SHulk have made him unworthy. Tony is worrying about only being a backup copy of the real person (see almost every issue of his current series). Steve is worrying about all the menaces on their current list. Carol is worrying about what happens when they have to fight the Kree. SHulk says the tub's not hot enough so Robbie becomes GR again to heat it. He's still afraid but at least now he's with 'family'.
And in the penthouse T'Challa uploads scans he made of the Squadron and asks the computer to compare them with other versions. And cross-reference files on the Squadron, Coulson and the other menaces to find any connection.
And in Las Vegas Mephisto contemplates chess pieces representing the Avengers and some of the menaces, plus some related to things Daredevil mentioned to She-Hulk last issue.