Thunderbolts #72

Title: "Becoming Villains 4: Malignant Tumors”

Writer: Fabian Nicieza

Penciller: Chris Batista

Inker: Rich Perrotta

Colors: Hi-Fi Design

Editor: Andrew Lis

Anomaly blasts the Thunderbolts- Jolt, MACH-3, Atlas, Fixer, and Zemo. He says that they have come to save a world that does not deserve to live. He says that all it has done is bring pain and loss, and that it will end as it began with fire and storm. He says that they scurry about clinging to the tenets of family and faith only to see them crushed time and again by those that view their lives with amusement. Anomaly agrees with his “father” that it is a world not worthy of continued existence. He tells his “mother” that he knows that it is wrong to kill, but tells her that he is busy right now. She apparently asks what he is busy with. Anomaly looks down on the fallen Thunderbolts and says that he is just busy. Anomaly picks up Zemo and says that the Thunderbolts came in with flash and promise. He says that they brought food, medicine, hope, and opportunity, but that they do nothing about a world intent on eating itself whole. He says, “You desired to save this world solely as an excuse to rule it, didn’t you? Not entirely black of heart, I could tell, but enough to doubt your intentions. Anomaly says that he is going to end this quickly. Suddenly Anomaly is blasted into pieces. Moonstone emerges and says, “Pompous windbag”. Zemo says that perhaps having two moonstones is a good thing. Moonstone says, “perhaps”. MACH-3 asks what happened and Fixer says that it was Moonstone. He says that it looked like she teleported, but she solidified her phased body inside this guy’s carapace. MACH-3 asks if it caused him to burst. Zemo says that Moonstone is wonderful, but now on to the matter at hand. Fixer says that sensors are saying that guy was made of pure energy the same as the entropic field that was eating away at Tokyo. MACH-3 says that he was talking to his mother and father. He asks if Fixer thinks that it was the same guy who refused to leave his dead parents when they were evacuating the city. Fixer says that he does. Zemo asks if it matters who he is. He asks “why” he is. Fixer says that the null field has been spreading like a cancer inside the planet, and that this guy was like a walking tumor. Fixer wonders why he would want to see this world destroyed. Dallas asks why any cancer eats away at a living organism. She says that it has to. Jolt says that this is ridiculous. She says that they have been saving this planet from one terminal disease while another was standing in line. MACH-3 says that the armor components stand out like a sore thumb on his scanners and that they are saturated with the null field energy. Zemo asks if he can track it. Fixer says that he can and that he is locked on it.

The team stands in Siberia at the Mir diamond mine. Fixer says that it goes down two thousand feet. He says that it takes a truck ninety minutes to drive to the bottom, and says that it is a good thing that they aren’t driving. MACH-3 wonders if they tapped into some primal energy at the planet’s core. Zemo says that he doubts it, but that they can’t discount it. Soldiers come up and asks who they are, but then they recognize “Earth’s Mightiest Heroes”. They thank them for coming and start telling them all their problems. Fixer says that a radiation bleed is contaminating everything. Moonstone asks for how long. Fixer says that it could have been decades. The team goes into the pit to investigate. Fixer says that telemetry comes through in sharp bursts. MACH-3 says that it is almost like someone playing with an on/off switch. Atlas says that whatever it is that it is giving him a nasty case of reflux. Jolt asks if ionic energy can barf. Atlas says that they are about to find out and barfs. Jolt says that she is sorry and that she was only kidding. Fixer says that the null field cuts through the ionic energy spectrum, and that the two are like opposite forces. Atlas reverts to Dallas’ form. Jolt says that she is in pain, and that they have to take her back up. Dallas says that she is fine in human form. MACH-3 tells her to hold tight then, and that they will continue. He asks Moonstone if she is phased or if the radiation is affecting her. Moonstone says that she isn’t phased, and that nothing bothers her anymore. Fixer asks how far down “before I light ‘em up?” MACH-3 says that he is getting solid mass two hundred meters down. Fixer creates some light and the team sees a large space ship. Jolt says that thing is bigger than Rhode Island. Fixer says, “So’s my Johnson.” Moonstone asks what you can even say to him. Zemo says to just ignore Fixer and to look at the ship. He says that it is partially phased into the Earth’s crust. MACH-3 says that his sensors confirm that the null field radiation is seeping from the ship’s ruptured engines. Dallas says that Counter-Earth is a duplicate of the real world created by a little boy’s mind. Zemo says that he combined what he knew, what he wanted, and mixed it together with the subconscious knowledge of everyone on the real Earth. Dallas says that explains why things don’t really match the same and how the past isn’t the same, but that it does raise the question whether there is a version of this ship on the real world. Fixer says that the “eruptions” are coming from the engines, but that it seems to be feeding from an energy source. Fixer warns Dallas of another spike coming. Dallas screams in pain as Atlas writhes inside her. MACH-3 dodges a fired missile. Zemo says that they are targeting the alien ship, but asks why they would do that. The Young Allies appear and say that if the ship stays that it will destroy this planet. Zemo turns to Fixer and asks if this is one of his jokes. Fixer says that he met with Bucky and Toro once before. He says that they just met the Rip, and that the other one is Kid Colt. He says that they are a joke, but not one of his. Jolt says that she is pretty sure that they are cool. Bucky says that she wishes she could say the same of her group. Bucky and Zemo regard one another and Zemo tells the Bolts to kill them all. Jolt says to stop this. He says that the Young Allies have been fighting to help the world, and that they aren’t here to hurt anyone. Bucky says, “Uhm… actually… you’re not going to like it…” Rip says that this world is doomed, and that it is poisoned from the alien craft and because it is linked to its sister template, the real Earth. Rip says that it represents the higher beings of Order and Chaos, and that it was sent to judge if this Earth has the right to exist. It says that it does, but that for it to do so that the Bolts world has to die. Fixer says that the boss just gave them a perfectly good order. He fires, but Bucky blocks with a shield. Colt says that he thought they were the good guys. Jolt says that they have to talk this out. Moonstone says that it could be hard for them to talk with broken jaws. She hits Toro. Jolt tells Bucky that they can‘t afford to waste time like this. Bucky says that her boss is the one that said to kill all of them. Jolt says that he gets enthusiastic sometimes. Bucky says that they didn’t get to finish what they were saying. Jolt asks what it was. Bucky says that they know that sacrificing one world for the other isn’t the right answer so they came to find an answer so that neither world would be harmed. Jolt asks how they tell them that. Bucky says that she has a telepath on her side. She asks I.Q. to smack em enough to be quiet. I.Q. says that someone else is going to beat him to it. Anomaly says, “Enough!” and blasts everyone fighting. Anomaly tells his father that it has gotten more complicated and that one world feeds off the other. He says that this world can live as it always deserved to if the other world dies, but that if the other world lives that this one must die. He says that he doesn’t know what to do. Suddenly, Anomaly pauses. He says, “Show yourself” and blasts a hole in the wall. Zemo says, “I can solve your dilemma. I understand why the weak have to be culled so that the strong may survive. I can help you save this planet.” Anomaly asks even if it means the sacrifice of his planet. Zemo says, “No… especially because it means the real world will die!”

Traitor’s rating: 6 out of 10

Review and picture by the Leader

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