Episode 4: Watchers and Heralds

Pietro Lensherr could not certainly identify the smell of the Mystic Sanctum. It was a mixture of sandalwood, incense and something else. It was a beautiful smell, which induced to drowsiness. As the incantations of the witches echoed through the vast chamber, Pietro Lensherr's mind wandered once more to his sister. The talk he had with the High Evolutionary had lifted his hopes briefly, only to see them crushed again. Wanda's chaos energy had to be the reason why her death had not been felt by Whyndham. The memories of Wanda arose as he saw the witches before him, performing the strange ritual. Wanda Lensherr had always wanted to be a witch. Her codename partly reflected it. The Scarlet Witch did not know magick, but she certainly wished it so while she was alive. Pietro did his best to stop such thoughts. Wanda was long dead and it served nothing for his mind to dwell on it. He watched intently, trying to understand what the three witches were doing, although he knew that was going to be impossible. Agatha Harkness had lit five candles, each carefully placed above each tip of the five-pointed star drawn in the floor. The star had been drawn with some sort of powder of unknown origin. In the centre of the star, Illyana Rasputin stood, her eyes looking straight at Ms Harkness', who was in deep concentration right in front of her. Deployed behind Illyana were Margali Szardos and her daughter, Jimaine. A small thread of greenish light connected the hands of the sorceresses. Agatha's voice was deep and ominous, sounding far more alive than her usual withered whisper. Her incantation was followed by Margali and Jimaine, whose voices spoke in unison, accompanying Agatha's. "Boe diron adarad, boe diron adarad, boe diron adarad..." they spoke in this long forgotten language. The rough translation of such words was "I must see tomorrow." Pietro watched in silence, his wheelchair flanked by the High Evolutionary and Lila Cheney. It amazed Pietro how easily The High Evolutionary depended on magic. He had always believed men of deep scientific knowledge rejected things like magic. Magic had always seemed to be so... unscientific. Pietro's mind focused once more as the incantation suddenly stopped. For a second the witches held their hands high, the bead of light forming a triangle above Illyana, and then, the light changed its colour, from green to red and then to pure white.
"Now child... free your mind... leave your body... allow your astral self to manifest... use your power... use your magik..." said Agatha in a singsong voice.
Illyana tried her best to concentrate. It wasn't easy to imagine her mind leaving her body. She tried hard, remembering Destiny. In fact, doing this was pretty much like when she and the woman led Bishop through the M'Kraan crystal. It felt exactly the same. And Illyana continued, her eyes closed, her mind ready, and she felt lighter than a feather, freer than a bird. And she could feel herself flying through a white disc. Slowly she opened her eyes. She was not in the safety of the sanctum anymore. The smell of sandalwood and incense had dissapeared. She saw a desolate terrain, red skies, and a vast nothingness. She looked at her hands, she had a ghostly appearance. She had seen Dr Strange's astral form, and now she saw herself in the same way. She began to walk through the desolate land. Was this Terra? Was she seeing the future? She did not know what to do, and there was no sign of Agatha.
"Where am I?" she wondered out loud.
"Limbo my dear... you are now on Limbo." said a guttural voice behind her.
Slowly she turned around. She had to stop herself from screaming at the sight before her. A tall one- armed man who looked more like a demon than a man. He had horns, red skin and a long forked tail.
"The... devil..." she whispered, she could feel pure evil emanating from him.
"Flatterer..." said the demon/man, he lifted his one hand, moving towards her, clearly trying to grab her.
"NO!" she screamed at the top of her lungs, and suddenly she was bathed by the white light again. She heard his guttural voice in her head as she left "Soon..." he said, and her heart filled with fear. As the light faded she looked around. She recognized the mountains and the twin moons. She was at last on Terra, on its surface. She watched her hands once more, she was still a ghost, still merely her Astral self. However there was no sign of any problems. If this was the future then it was quite calm. And then she heard it. A powerful noise, something heavy landing closely. And Illyana saw it. A gigantic man-like being, standing proudly near the Kree city.
And the man spoke, his voice sounding more thunderous than thunder itself. "Good job my herald. This planet will sustain my hunger."
"I live to serve you my lord." said a small figure, it was a man of silver, or at least, fully garbed in silver. The silver being was aboard a surfing board and hovered near the giant's head.
"Now Galactus will feed" said the giant, lifting his hands. At his command, a machine whose size defied description began to assemble by itself.
Illyana felt an ancient terror filing her astral self. Somehow the giant named Galactus was more scary than the demon-man she had met on her way here. However, in spite of her fear, in spite of her young age, Illyana knew she had to stop him. Her astral form began to fly, straight towards Galactus, and she could feel the pull, she could feel her body calling out to her, the spell which matured her powers coming to an end. "No...no... just a bit further.. . I have to... stop... him..." she said, closing her eyes.
And then she felt it, the smell of sandalwood and incense and burnt candles. She had returned to the Sanctum. She laid on the middle of the star, her eyes half-closed.
Agatha Harkness hurried next to her and lifted the child in her arms. "Tell me child... what did you see?"
"Ga... Galactus... Galactus is coming..." she said weakly, her eyes closing, her mind exhausted, and she fell asleep.
After a few seconds of silence, Pietro exclaimed "What the hell is a Galactus?" with a clear confused look.

"So Doc... what do we do?" asked Hellcat, crouching behind the hydrangea bush in the city's Central Park.
Doctor Strange paced a few feet away from his team, pondering the best course of action. The Kree captains were still deliberating inside the tent, while the soldiers were resting in their places, which meant they were expecting orders from the captains.
"Why don't you use that fancy Eye of Aggi- Agaa- Agum- well whatever the name of that bloody thing is..." said Taskmaster.
A cold look from Strange was his sole answer.
"Perhaps Stephen, a direct attack is in order. Cripple the captains while we have this unique chance." advised Storm.
Sunfire remained silent, separated from the others by a slight distance. His flames weren't burning, though his deep hatred for the Kree was erupting inside of him. Unbeknownst to his teammates, he was not Shiro Yoshida. He was, in truth, a Skrull, posing as Sunfire. His original goal was to spy on the humans, find out who they were and what powers they possessed. However, the mere sight of Ronan had inflamed his senses, his rage. This was a golden opportunity to strike at the Public Accuser of the Kree, perhaps he could even defeat their greatest hero, Captain Marvel. "Your spell of invisibility is still active, isn't it?" he spoke while he carefully flicked a switch hidden in his belt.
"Yes it is, why do you ask?" inquired Dr Strange.
"No reason." He grinned. From the costume-machine, fire erupted all around him, yet it did no harm to him. Another great work of the Skrull Technology Tetrad, he would have to commend their scientists upon his arrival. In an instant he began to rise, flying towards the tent across the park.
"Shiro don't!" screamed Storm behind, but her pleads fell on deft ears as Sunfire kept flying forward.

Galactus' image faded from the sky as Dazzler lowered her hands. She felt a small migraine, and almost fainted, but Nighthawk quickly grabbed her, preventing her fall.
She had timed it just right. As the real Sunfire's blast hit the holograph, she made it disappear. The result was obvious. The Skrulls cheered loudly, proclaiming Sunfire his saviour and hero. Sunfire, however was confused. He remained hovering, looking at the mountain. A bolt of webbing erupted from it, hitting his chest like a rock. "Ouch..." he exclaimed, though it didn't hurt much he felt it sting. As he grabbed the web he looked down, identifying Spider-Woman. He flew in their direction at once. "Greetings... I must assume the fake Galactus was your doing?" said Sunfire, landing, his eyes fixed on Dazzler, who stood by her own means now, though she still rubbed her head.
"Yes... wait a sec, how do you know its name?" asked Dazzler
"Skrull told me. You know, at the first sight of the planet- eater, the High Command Skrulls left the planet in a hurry? The scum abandoned their people to save their worthless behinds." He said outraged.
"Wait a sec dude... what were you doing down there?" asked Nighthawk.
"They kidnapped me yesterday... what, you didn't notice I was missing?" His flames stopped burning, but his rage was slowly rising.
"It's... complicated..." said Tigra.
"Where's Ororo?" asked Sunfire.
"At the Kree site... with you..." said Exodus standing up, sweating profusely.

The first blast set the tent on fire, making it collapse. Nonetheless, the Skrull Sunfire kept firing at it. The tent exploded from the inside, and the Skrull smiled.
But his smile soon faded as he saw Captain Marvel, his hands lifted, creating a shield of photonic energy, the cause of the explosion. Behind Marvel's shield, Ronan was unhurt, though the Kree captains were all dead. Mar-vell flew watching around. There was nothing before him. "What madness is this? What dares attack the Kree?" he asked.
A blast of pure fire was his response. Mar-vell was able to deflect it in the last second, but when he retaliated his blasts met no target. Laughter filled the sky.
"Die Kree die!" said an awful voice. And the Skrull Sunfire released his blasts once more against the Kree hero.
Ronan the Accuser watched the fight in silence. Mar-vell was fighting against an unseen enemy, cloaked perhaps by technology. A skrull without a doubt. He restrained himself from fighting, waiting to see how the 'hero' fared. There was no lost love between the two. Ronan had always despised Mar- vell.
At last, Captain Marvel was able to deflect the attacks no longer, and he fell. Ronan grinned, and he clutched his universal weapon. The hammer-like device in his right hand hummed with energy. He lifted it, his eyes scanning the sky. He could somehow sense the creature, even though he could not see it. Without warning, Ronan released a massive blast from his weapon.
The Skrull Sunfire shrieked as the harness that simulated Sunfire's powers short-circuited and he fell, unable to remain in the air.
"Shiro's down!" Ororo exclaimed surprised.
"No choice now Doc... we gotta go fight them..." said Taskmaster grasping his shield and drawing his sword.
Doctor Strange sighed and lifted the invisibility spell. "Forward my friends, defend our ally." As he finished his words, the group leapt from behind the hydrangea bush and hurled themselves towards the battle ground.
Hundreds of Kree soldiers stood in their way, however, the possibility of backing down never rose in their minds. One of their own needed them. Taskmaster and Hellcat quickly hurled themselves to battle the soldiers, using their physical attributes with ease.
However, Storm had another idea. "Follow me!" she shrieked. As she flew forward she extended her hands, creating a powerful gust of wind, that parted the Kree soldiers, creating a wide path for them to run through.
"Moises eat your heart out!" cried Hellcat smiling as the four heroes crossed through the path at their topmost speed.
Ronan the Accuser grinned as he saw the humans racing towards him. His universal weapon hummed, small beads of energy coalescing through its surface, as he prepared himself for battle.
"Faltinian Flames should prevent the army from interfering!" said Dr Strange, waving his hands. Twin colossal walls of fire erupted, separating them from the army.
As they arrived before the Kree, they saw both Captain Marvel and Sunfire on the ground, with Ronan standing in the middle, looking at them. "Try your best" said the Accuser with a defiant look.
"Surrender now Kree and leave this planet!" cried the Taskmaster as he jumped towards Ronan, his sword ready to strike.
Ronan smiled as a response, releasing a bolt of pure plasma, hitting Taskmaster on his chest, hurling him to the ground.
"Tom?" asked Hellcat as she saw her friend so easily defeated. Her claws extended and she jumped at Ronan too. A simple swipe of his hand was all he needed to remove her from him. She fell unconscious on the ground due to the strength of Ronan's blow.
"I wonder what the Supreme Intelligence sees in these humans... they're pathetic beings..." he mused out loud.
Thunder roared as Storm's eyes turned white. Ronan aimed at ther with his universal weapon, and released a blast.
Ororo easliy avoided it as she flew, conjuring lightning as she did. Several bolts fell from the sky, striking at Ronan and the ground around him, however, his universal weapon somehow attracted the lightning, absorbing their power, preventing Ronan from coming to harm.
"Perhaps the Crimson Bands of Cyttorakk will bring us victory!" exclaimed Strange, as he moved his hands again, trapping Ronan within a gigantic red ball, composed of the same mystic bands he once used against the X-Men. "Why have the Kree come to this planet? What do you seek?" asked Strange moving forward.
"I have no need to explain myself to lesser beings. You will be imprisoned and sent to Hala as per my Emperor's instructions." replied Ronan, unmoving within the Crimson Bands.
He stirred slowly at first, and then he opened his eyes. Captain Marvel rubbed the back of his head as he sat on the ground. He looked around. Ronan was unmoving, red energy around him, talking with two strangely dressed beings, certainly not Skrulls. However his attention was quickly grabbed by the gigantic wall of fire before him. Behind it he could see the kree soldiers tying to pass through it. "How long was I out?" he asked himself, expecting no reply. He stood up slowly, moving to aid Ronan when he heard it. The Kree soldiers began screaming, terrified. He began to levitate, trying to see better through the flames. He could see them running scared, in all directions, panicked. "What in the name of the Supreme Intelligence is going on?" he asked, and his question was answered when he lifted his eyes. Bigger than life itself, a being was floating, silently observing the park. He, like the soldiers, recognized him at once. A Watcher. A member of an elder race of aliens devoted to watch any and all major cosmic events, yet to never interfere. The coming of a Watcher always meant disaster. Mar-vell clearly remembers the last time he saw one. It was on the planet Ha'lkn near the Sirimian border. He had been helping the Ha'lkn rebuild after a Skrull attack when the Watcher had appeared. Seconds later all of the planet's volcanos erupted at once, a bomb had been planted by the Skrulls, though he didn't know it at the time. As the lava engulfed the planet, and the locals died in agony, the Watcher did nothing. He had rarely worked harder to save people, all under the watch of the silent being. Once the lava stopped and over 90 of the people were dead did the Watcher speak. His words were simple and when he heard them a chill ran down his spine. "My job is done." It was the creepiest phrase he had ever heard. The memory quickly faded as the Kree soldiers kept trying to hide. There was no doubt, Watchers meant disaster and the soldiers were right to panic. And then their panic increased even more. Across the park, right in front of the Watcher, Galactus, the planet devourer had appeared out of nowhere. Mar-Vell could not believe his eyes. He had never met Galactus, but heard of him. If the Watcher was enough to make his people panic, Galactus would be enough to make them soil themselves. However they rose to the occasion, perhaps because Galactus was a threat far more easy to comprhend than the Watcher, or perhaps because there was no place to hide from him, the Soldiers raised their guns at him and fired at once.
"I'm getting good at this..." said Dazzler, her hands extended towards the light-constructed Galactus.
"Focus. Don't get cocky." said Sunfire next to her.
The second team of heroes had arrived, thanks to Exodus' teleportation, and stood on a high roof, watching the scene below, directing the fake Galactus' movements.
"Who's that other dude?" asked Nighthawk staring at the Watcher.
"Who knows... perhaps another Kree?" replied Tigra not really caring.
Exodus sat on the floor. He was on the brink of exhaustation. Teleporting them was easy, yet he could feel his energies all but depleted.
"It'll be over soon. Don't worry." smiled Spider-Woman reasurringly next to him.
"Hope so... I feel so... tired..." he tried to smile, but he couldn't.
"No..." said Ronan, his gaze pasing through his two captors, looking straight at Galactus. "No. I will not let this planet die!" he flexed his muscles, knowing his weapon had absorbed much of the bands' energy and were weaker. "It belongs to the Kree!" he added, tearing the bands apart with sheer strenght and freeing himself. Before Strange could react, Ronan lifted his weapon, aiming at Galactus and fired. The energy it had absorbed, both from Storm's attack and from the crimson bands themselves, was astounding and it hit Galactus fully. Dazzler held her head, as she let out a shriek of pain. SHe could feel the damage done to her light-construct. The effect was clear and immediate. The fake Galactus dissipated into nothingness. Nighthawk once again prevented her from falling.
"Paris, you're not ok. Stay with Alison. The rest of you... follow me..." said Sunfire commandingly. Hesitating at first, the Defenders followed, as Nighthawk mumbled he was supposed to be leading the squad.
"You'll be ok?" asked Spider-Woman, lifting her hand to the nearest building.
"Go already. I'll be fine..." he replied, gently caressing Alison's hair as she laid unconscious next to him. Spider-Woman did not wait and web flew from her wrist to the nearest building, and she swang away.
Ronan was surprised. He knew his blast was mighty, but he did not expect a being such as Galactus to even feel it, much less dissapear. It took him a few seconds to put two and two together and he shouted "Humans! This is your doing! You think you can deceive the Kree? Deceive me? I am the Public Accuser!" he said, aiming at Storm and Strange "and I deem you a menace! The sentence, execution!" he fired his weapon, causing Storm and Strange to disband to avoid the impact.
"No! Ronan stop!" Storm was surprised to see the kree hero, Captain Mar-vell flying in front of Ronan, stopping his attack. "The Supremor wants this humans alive. He wants to confer with them. We are not meant to fight them."
"You forget your place Mar-Vell. I am Public Accuser. My word is law. These humans are too dangerous to be taken to Hala." said Ronan stubbornly "Now move or share their fate." he grinned, clearly hoping he would not move.
As Mar-Vell and Ronan argued, Storm moved closer to Dr Strange, who waved his hands, creating a recovery spell for his downed allies. Mar-Vell did not move. Instead he pressed a button in his glove. A holographic image rose from it. It was the most repulsing thing the humans had seen. A billion minds amalgamated into a single being. The expresionless face of the Kree Supreme Intelligence looked at Ronan. "You almost fail me again Ronan." said the Intelligence.
"Supremor these humans are too dangerous and treacherous. They cannot be allowed before your higness." He replied bowing.
"Silence." the Supreme Intelligence's orders were not questioned. "They made a fool of you, nothing more nor new there. I will assess their behaviour myself." The massive holographic head turned around and clearly addressed "Dr Strange I believe. You lead the local faction of heroes, is that right?"
"Yes it is." said Strange defiantly, as the Sunfire-led team arrived behind him. Storm looked at Shiro confused, looking at the downed Sunfire, who was still unconscious. Shiro muttered "Skrull" and Ororo nodded. "What is it you seek from us?" asked Strange, not reacting to the arrival of his teammates and the recovery of Hellcat and Taskmaster.
"I seek to make a bargain with you, a deal as you humans call it. A deal that will prove beneficial to both our races." Said the Intelligence.
"A deal? With these swine?" asked Ronan disgusted, but a single look from his leader silenced him.
"Yes... I believe we--" but suddenly the Supreme Intelligence stopped talking. Bubbles rose in its tank. Everyone looked in silence, except for Hellcat who clearly whispered to Nighthawk "Is that the grossest thing you've ever seen or what?", but she stopped after a cold look from Strange.
"Supremor?" asked Captain Marvel to the holographic image emanating from his wrist. His response didn't come swiftly.
"I believe our talk will have to wait. You have more pressing matters to attend to. Farewell. I do hope you survive. If so, we will confer again." and then the image faded.
Ronan looked to the skies as Mar-Vell checked his glove, hitting the switch, though nothing happened.
"Why did it stop talking?" asked Spider-Woman.
"What was all that 'hope you survive' crap?" added Hellcat.
"This planet is doomed." said Ronan, staring still to the skies. "You tried to fool me into believing Galactus was here... but I can sense it. He's truly coming. Galactus heads here. I feel his herald's gaze upon us. Make peace with your gods humans. Death is coming." And he pointed at a small light.
They all watched in silence as the light grew bigger, and they knew it was not a light, but a being. And soon the being entered the planet's atmosphere and shone brigthly before the assembled. And they could hear an ominous voice in the skies, a voice that defied all description. "Hurry my herald. I HUNGER!"

Episode 5: The End of All Things