Thor
and Phastos are on their way to the Savage Land to locate a sample of Antarctic
Vibranium (also known as Anti-Metal). But first they made a detour to retrieve
Phastos’ battle hammer and another so he could stop off to look in on the wife
he had when he was turned into a human construct by Sprite. Sadly, his wife
senses him there and when she doesn’t find him, she breaks down in tears.
Phastos explains that of all the Eternals so transformed, he is the only one
who can recall his human life. But Thor is growing impatient, eager to be off
on their quest while their companions Ransak and Karkas are fighting while
prisoners of the Deviants. Phastos has a lot to say about the paradoxes of time
but it fills another page or two before they arrive at the destination…
…the
Savage Land. Phastos locates the hidden underground vault existing in a quantum
nexus where the Vibranium is stored but when they enter they discover a bad guy
already there. The villain is General Maurice Poitain who has appropriated alien
Nuwali technology to travel the quantum nexus so he could steal the Vibranium
to finance world conquest with his mercenary army. Poitain summons a
Tyrannosaurus Rex to fight the heroes. While they battle the beast, the
Vibranium, as the Antarctic variety does, dissolves the metal in Phastos’
hammer. They defeat the T. Rex and Phastos uses his power of matter
transmutation to restore the hammer. Poitain escapes…
…only
to run into his dreaded foe Ka-Zar, who punches out his lights….
Back
in Lemuria, Ereshkigal puzzles over how to access the power of the Unbinding Stone of Oshemar. Kro appears and asks to see the
stone. After pondering it for over an hour, Ereshkigal grows impatient
with him but finally Kro deduces how to activate the stone: not by reciting the
inscription but by tracing it with a finger….
Thor
and Phastos meet with Ka-Zar and he grants permission for them to take some of
the Vibranium and they head back to Lemuria. Thor wonders if Ghaur will keep
his word and release their friends; Phastos says no and reveals that he has
lied to Ghaur: the resurrection chamber cannot be repaired and Anti-Metal would
only have turned it into slag. And so, Phastos, most truthful of the Eternals,
has deliberately lied….