One week after the last issue, Reed meets Tony in Avengers Tower. He asks him how space was, and Tony remembers being showed the fallen body of the Living Tribunal, and answers that he'll tell him later. He tells Reed that the Avengers have left the Earth to face a pan-galactic threat and he has stayed to marshal Earth should they fail and to be able to better deal with any potential incursions. Tony wants to be more proactive, and to eliminate some variables. Reed agrees.
In Attilan, Maximus and Black Bolt have finished their machine, and Maximus has also made a gateway to a dimension where Black Bolt can speak without his deadly powers activating. Their meeting is interrupted by the arrival of Black Bolt's wife Medusa, who takes him into a place in their minds to talk. She accuses him of hiding his thoughts from her. Black Bolt confesses that he has secrets that he must keep, and he will do so even if it means that this place in their minds is destroyed. He breaks the trance, and Medusa realises that he has destroyed it, and departs angrily after slapping him.
In the Necropolis, Namor approaches Black Swan for a partnership. She expresses interest, but before Namor can pursue this further, he is interrupted by the Black Panther, who wants to talk to him. T'Challa explains what happened at the council meeting, and that while he fought for peace, he was ignored, and Namor has been lied to. Shuri feigned acceptance of the peace, and has already sent her navy to destroy Atlantis. Black Panther tells Namor that he should return to his home and help his people, and before he leaves, Namor tells him that it isn't over.
Upon returning from an unknown mission in which they contract someone to deal with the incursions, they find that Earth is being invaded by Thanos' forces. His Black Order is divided and each general is sent to the location of a member of the Illuminati.
