At the damaged Defenders Mansion, Moondragon challengers her former friends and teammates, vowing to kill them all. Gargoyle asks why and she responds by rehearsing the grudge she has against each of them, giving Andromeda, whom she does not know, the option of escape. Andromeda decides to stand by her comrades. And then Interloper steps out of the shadows to confront his ancient enemy, the Dragon of the Moon; Interloper fires bolts out of this eyes to stun his opponent and he calls the Defenders to attack. Moondragon holds them back by the power of the shadow and she uses her mental powers to reduce Beast to childhood (which wears off almost immediately). Interloper has Isaac fire bio-mystical blasts into her while Manslaughter, who has a bio link to her, unleashes all of his madness, resulting in Moondragon going insane. They seize her but she transforms into flame then a green plant-like creature. Then Manslaughter, his mind still spinning, kisses her on the lips. She screams, a whirlwind flashes through the building and she and the Dragon are gone. Valkyrie demands to know what made Manslaughter risk his life to stop Moondragon when there is little of the hero in him. Interloper explains that Manslaughter was the only person to have found him in his wilderness, tracking him with his latent mental powers. So the mystic taught him a few tricks then sent him away, soon regretting it but he found it useful since it was Manslaughter who found the Dragon of the Moon and drew it out. Asked who he is, Interloper implies he’s connected to the Eternals and is the natural enemy of the Dragon, last fighting him in the days of King Arthur….
Moondragon is hiding in a cave, fighting off Manslaughter’s insanity threatening to consume her. The shrunken Dragon begs her to let him inside to take over again but she’s too scared to do it. She wants the power to ensure she won’t go mad and the Dragon suggests an alternate source, so he has her call on the Beyonder. The Beyonder arrives and she desires to become his disciple so he makes her bright and shining, the evil removed and, as a token of her allegiance, he crafts the now tiny Dragon of the Moon into a ring for her finger and departs. She then realizes she has the power to do good in the world and her first act will be to kill the Defenders!
The Fantastic Four tries to contact the Defenders but there is no answer….
Interloper explains that the Defenders must track down the Dragon and eliminate it forever but Beast balks at “destroying” anything. Then a gravely injured Moondragon walks in, begging for help. The heroes are undecided whether to trust her but Gargoyle helps her to a chair—and she rips his soul out and throws it away, transforming him into a huge hulking monster of a gargoyle, threatening them. Interloper throws his Cloak of Fear over the two villains and Valkyrie and Andromeda attack them with their weapons. When they lift the cloak, a bright light pulls Candy in and Angel charges in to rescue her—and then the entire mansion collapses.
Angel’s sight is restored and Moondragon shows him Candy, hung upside-down with a magic knife at her throat, slowly cutting deeper unless he surrenders….
Beast comes upon Chris Larmouth in suspended animation, Moondragon having shut it off so the spores infecting him can regrow, unless Beast surrenders….
Iceman comes upon Carol Faber and Danny Milligan in their ruined oxygen tents, Moondragon gives him the choice of letting them die or the Defenders….
And the three former X-Men step through separate gateways to the battleground where they find their teammates facing a giant Dragon of the Moon. The Defenders battle the Dragon, Manslaughter wrestles with Moondragon, Andromeda fights the monster Gargoyle, but it’s not enough. Interloper reveals it requires an eternal sacrifice so Interloper, Valkyrie, Manslaughter, and Andromeda join hands and blast energy at the Dragon, while Hank, Bobby, and Warren are kept at bay. The three X-Men are then freed to rescue Candy, Chris, Carol, and Danny and they return to find their teammates have turned to ash, having sacrificed their lives. And it was Heather Douglas, no longer Moondragon, speaking in their minds, giving them the gift of life….
Beast returns home to cuddle Sassafras….
Give that special marvelite a timely gift