We start with 2 flashbacks. First, to a skewed version of Iron Man's origin story, where Tony Stark puts Ho Yinsen in the armour, feeling that his past work as a weapons designer makes him unworthy of a longer life. Stark dies in the cave but buys Yinsen time to escape. The second scene is years later, as an older, armoured Yinsen - using the 'Rescue' codename - addresses a crowd in a city bearing his name, one that's built to be self-sustaining and eco-friendly, just as an incursion occurs and swallows up his world.
We then leap forward to the present, where now-Baron Yinsen was daydreaming the above during a meeting with She-Hulk, the local Thor. He brings up how his dreams have left him with nagging questions, but she shuts him down with the usual-by-now 'heresy' talk. Outside, She-Hulk meets with Hobie Brown, 'Spider Hero', who mentions strange sounds from beyond the western wall, where lies Mondo City. Use of the term 'spider-sense' sends Hobie on a dream of his own, showing Spider-Man dying before him and his taking the familiar mask as a way to honour him.
The two are then side-tracked by Kid Rescue - Yinsen's daughter Antonia - who brings their attention to a different border, the one facing the Warzone. White Tiger sees someone moving through the wastes on the other side - it's Faiza Hussain, a.k.a Excalibur, a.k.a Captain Britain. She-Hulk points out that the laws of Doom prevent them from opening the wall to her without lengthy authorization, to which White Tiger objects. Captain Britain renders the discussion moot by smashing her way through the wall with her sword, then apologizing.
Faiza explains herself over a cup of tea - she's also had her past memories reduced to dreams, but she's more confident that they're genuine, and remembers being given the Captain Britain title from Brian Braddock, even if she can't recall what 'Britain' is exactly. Yinsen also joins in the chat as Faiza insists that Doom is no god, merely a man of power, and between them the group manage to bring She-Hulk around to their line of thinking. Then Doom himself skypes in via Yinsen's armour, strips She-Hulk of her hammer/gavel, then declares his laws no longer matter to Yinsen City OR Mondo City. Within seconds, the western wall is broken down, and a massive War Machine tank comes trundling in, accompanied by 2 armoured 'Bosses' - cops, basically. Yinsen uses a forcefield to protect some citizens from gunfire, but one of the bosses uses a phaser bullet to kill him. Captain Britain attempts to take down the bosses, but the second one is Emma Frost, who psi-spanks her unconscious.
When Faiza wakes up, she's in a Mondo City interrogation cell, under the watch of Boss Cage. |