Arriving 10 hours later in Cretoa, the plane is greeted by Scarlet Shield and an out-of-costume Catfight. Myron Gaios is secured by authorities. Prince Alex and Red Spider are whisked away to the vitanium treatment centre, where they are dipped into the healing solution with breathing apparatuses by robot arms holding them in harnesses. But for Alex, something goes unusually wrong - he starts having a convulsive fit, and his vital signs start declining rapidly in the solution. The robot arm moves too slow to lift him out, so Catfight and Scarlet Shield dive in to pull him out themselves. The act probably saved the prince's life, though he is taken to the hospital for emergency treatment.

The battle is initiated by Sombra, who tries to bind up Adrynne with her shadow powers. Screech Owl reclaimed her energy talons from her younger self, which had aided Adrynne in maintaining the temporal barrier, and creates a focused blast that prevents Adrynne from striking Stinger. Meanwhile, Stormherald teleports out of her sarcophagus easily, and helps Catfight pull the heavy stone lid off of hers.

There is a lengthy battle in the sanctum. Adrynne employs the full additional powers granted her by the Peyasaskew stone, occasionally grabbing Stinger and hurling him into things. Scarlet Shield - asleep since the ordeal at the 1860s ball - awakens, and is tended by Sombra. Sombra also manages to tackle an airborn Adrynne to the ground, but pays for it with a heavy blast that injures her. Stinger, White Star, and Scarlet Shield collaborate to strip Adrynne of the Orb, and pull her away from it. Adrynne tries to reach out for it. There are failed attempts by White Star and Screech Owl to destroy the stone, but it takes the hammer of Stormherald to obliterate it. Adrynne and Cryderman howl in sorrow at the moment of the orb's destruction, and Adrynne reverts to her normal self, albeit badly injured.

Adrynne laments that she did not anticipate that the stone would be so imprinted with Cryderman, its first master, that she would be corrupted by the same ideals he had. She promises to create a doorway for older Sombra to return to her proper time, but whispers to Sombra that her mortal frame is giving out. When the team, and Sombra, finally leave, Adrynne fades away into the ethereal realm, her body and spirit deeply traumatized by recent events.

The team is elated to have won this long battle, and return a terribly weakened and still unconscious Red Spider home to recuperate. Sombra, Stinger, and White Star are present when Cassandra wakes up two days later.

Meanwhile, adult Sombra - much more advanced in her use of powers - calls upon shadow duplicates of herself with the same relative strength as her own body, and shadow tendrils, to try to restrain Cryderman, and take away the orb on his belt, which he has boasted was formed from the Peyasaskew Stone. Scarlet Shield recovers enough to use her powers to try to place Cryderman's belt in a field, perhaps recalling Adrynne's earlier revelation that Cryderman would be powerless if separated from the stone. Cryderman is rendered virtually powerless. Sombra struggles to keep the physically conditioned Cryderman down, but with Scarlet Shield pulling down the belt, they soon separate the man from the magic. Cryderman loses his arcane armor, and is left with nothing but his underwear before a crowd who had assembled to acclaim him their messiah. Cryderman tries to reclaim the Peyasaskew Orb from Sombra, but she humbles him with a slap to the face. The Brotherhood of the Western Star declare that he is not their messiah, and laugh derisively at the younger Cryderman. Francis Cryderman takes off his star medallion and crushes it under foot; the rest of the Brotherhood do the same.

In the void realm, Stinger blasts Grey Ghost and ends the duel. Black Mask approaches the stunned man and contemplates unmasking or killing his adversary, but in a moment of clarity, notes the mounting defeats on the Confederate side mean that the war may soon be over. In order to secure peace with their southern brothers, Black Mask believes the bloodshed and humiliations must stop somewhere, and so spares his rival. Stinger and Black Mask wait for their rescue, having little else to do - though Stinger believes that his team mates having not also been banished to the void realm is a good sign.

In the Temple of the Western Star, Francis Cryderman promises safe conduct to the Adventurers if they take his disgraced descendant, Edgar, out of his sight. The heroes urge him to make the changes he can to his family to avoid Edgar. A doctor sees to Scarlet Shield and offers her the 19th century drug laudanum for her weakened condition. White Star assists Scarlet Shield exiting the Cryderman house.

The heroes transit back to Adrynne's sanctum via the magical gateway at the barn, with Predator and Edgar Cryderman in tow. They place the Peysaskew Orb in Adrynne's hands, and bid her set things right. She immediately sends Lincoln home, and recalls Black Mask, Grey Ghost, and Stinger from the void realm. The issue closes with Adrynne promising to use the orb to set everything right. Adrynne also gets an ominous red glare in her left eye, and wonders aloud, "Why stop there..."

Black Mask helps the team find another brick that, when pushed, acts as a switch that opens a secret door in the cellar's brick wall. Following it down, they find an underground temple at which a gathering led by one Francis Cryderman. The elder Cryderman, a native to the 1860s, boasts about how their prophesied meeting with their messiah is set to take place at 10 o'clock that night. With just minutes to spare, Black Mask and the Adventurers spring into action. Stinger and Scarlet Shield wonder openly if the 'messiah' is really the future Edgar Cryderman, and if they have enough power among them to repel him, should Cryderman appear. The assembled gentlemen are easily held at bay by a combination of Black Mask's revolver and Stinger's stun beams. Just then, Black Mask's mortal enemy, his Confederate counterpart the Grey Ghost, speaks up from one of the temple's gloomy corners, his voice booming and echoing. Black Mask is surprised, having thought that Grey Ghost died in an explosion some months before, but he prepares to do battle with his nemesis.

And just then, a portal opens! Out steps a transcended Edgar Cryderman, who has adorned himself in a dark, mystical costume and armor. He easily breaks through a shield which Scarlet tried to use to contain him. Scarlet, already feeling the ill after-effects of Adrynne's detection potion, is rendered weak onto the floor by Cryderman's destruction of her energy barrier. Edgar Cryderman prepares to eliminate the Adventurers.

Adrynne's gateway opens up on the double-doors of a barn across a field from the party, on a hot Georgia evening approaching sundown. Sombra and Scarlet Shield make their way into the procession of guests arriving at the house, but lacking invitations, try to stealth their way in. Scarlet uses her detection potion to perceive empty rooms in the upper floor of the house that they can blink into, which works perfectly. They begin mingling with party-goers and learn that at 10 o'clock, some of the men are going to a special gathering within the house, men only. Scarlet goes for a glass of water, while Sombra goes to an olive tray for a snack - where she is asked to dance by a man in a blue frock coat. It becomes clear very quickly that he is using the dance as cover to scope the entire room and take note of men wearing star medallions - and becomes clear to Sombra that he might be Black Masks's alter ego. She mentions the 10 o'clock meeting and he seems intent on being there, though he claims it is to make some business partnerships. He excuses himself, and ends the dance early. Sombra catches up with Scarlet Shield and Stinger, the latter having arrived late. They notice a group of men with star medallions all starting to leave the great hall at about the 9:30pm mark.

Meanwhile, outside White Star notices activity at the back hatch of the house leading down to the cellar, as several men who had been milling around outside go downstairs. She takes out the two guards and goes in to find the cellar empty. Just then, Black Mask comes down the stairs ... at gunpoint, escorted by Predator, who demands White Star's surrender. White Star is given 5 seconds to comply, or else Black Mask will die.

Red Spider commits to finding answers. It will mean breaking in to a facility under guard by federal law enforcers. She invites Adventurers Dreamweaver, Hand of Babylon, Lady Justice, Mantis, and Juggernette to come, but notes the risks are exceptionally high since they would be going up against federal agents. Hand and Mantis decline; the others commit to an infiltration.

Lady Justice's 'bots create a diversion, allowing Red Spider, Dream, and Lady Justice to covertly enter a sewer. Juggernette maintains watch on the scene from outside. A number of signs are seen in the sewers deliberately leading them to a 'hidden door', with a note indicating that this is "Nevermore's secret lab". They enter, and find information about a machine running amok and killing the scientists who had worked within the lab. They are confronted briefly by Sentron, who escapes and looses 'Nevermore' to defeat them.

Juggernette joins the others as they square off against Nevermore's armor - Nevermore being a former power-armored hero, but the human pilot is not within the armor. After a tough battle, the team bests the armor. It announces that an 'awakening' of machines is at hand, and then activates a time bomb. The team rapidly flees before the lab and building above are destroyed.

The team takes on a very well-prepared Lady Justice. Red Spider begins hacking the main computer system -- finding it easier than she expected. Fox emerges and combats Crimson Force and Juggernette. Fox and Juggernette in particular work to tear one another apart, echoing their past encounters. In the end, Juggernette gets the upper hand, and mercifully dispatches Fox.

Blue Wonder fights Lady Justice until LJ is down on the floor, dying Figuratively from a broken heart -- her mechanical heart has failed, and she is moments from death. The older team members mourn her passing, but Red Spider makes a discovery: the time machine was never meant for time travel. It can project a mind to any point on the user's own lifespan, past or future. And it had been set up so that only two people could use it: Lady Justice or Blue Wonder. The team briefly debates whether they should accept this victory over Lady Justice and begin restoring freedom to the world, but it becomes clear that they prefer to send Blue Wonder back to the day she was killed by Bedlam, and attempt to avert the whole sequence of events. This, it would seem, was the outcome Lady Justice had been trying to drive them toward.

Blue says her goodbyes to Mark, Juggernette, and Jesse Weaver -- promising to look out for young Jesse.

Meanwhile, Red Spider (Jesse Weaver) awakens in a sleeping tube in a strange, sterile facility. Walking out, she pushes a button on a console which shifts the dome above her to reveal that she is on the moon, looking into space. She is invited to speak with Lady Justice, who sits alone at a massive computer. Red Spider tries to dissuade Lady Justice from her plan to use a time machine to control the future, but Lady Justice only speaks in riddles about her intentions.

Just as Lady Justice predicted, the Adventurers arrive to rescue Red Spider. Lady Justice smiles, as everything is going according to what the time machine has shown her.

The submarine is attacked by Lady Justice and Fox, having been tracked by nanites leaked from Blue Wonder's cryo-case. After a length period trading barbs, Blue and Mark tell Red Spider to make a run for it, and she dashes to the mini-sub. Lady Justice and Blue Wonder engage in combat, as do Mark and Fox. After battling to a draw, Lady Justice disengages. Fox is unmoved by Blue Wonder's attacks at his pride, and Lady Justice seems ambivalent about Blue Wonder being alive again, though she seems to want to keep her alive for the time being.

Fox is dispatched to capture the Red Spider, with Blue Wonder in pursuit of Fox.

After carefully negotiating roving bandits in the area of the piers, the trio discovers the warehouse. Waiting within is Fox, who trades barbs with Mark. Mark's telekinetic barrage hurling all of the crates in the room at Fox reveals one that is well-shielded. Once Red Spider has a chance, she moves in to examine the shielded case, and discovers that it is not a time machine it all. The case holds a frozen person: Emily Taylor, the Blue Wonder! What's more, systems attached to the case indicate that Taylor may be alive!

The team is able to fight Fox. Fox snares Red Spider and tries to use her to leverage Crimson Force and Snake to surrender, but the fight continues. Soon Fox teleports away. Mark uses his telekinetic power to lift Blue Wonder's cryogenic container and they escape to a waiting mini-sub ... not realizing that Lady Justice was present in stealth the entire time, and is now aware of their base.

Intelligence comes to the team from Night Spider and a new, younger Red Spider that Lady Justice is assembling a time machine with designs to use it to put down the resistance once and for all! A tense relationship exists between Mark of Power (now called Crimson Force) and some of the team members, but they follow his lead to obtain the plutonium that Lady Justice needs for her time machine.

The team leaves their secret submarine headquarters, and heads to the southwest desert to seize refined plutonium. There, fighting against mutates, and coming dangerously close to Grond, they encounter a former VIPER agent calling himself 'Snake' who is willing to ally himself with the Adventurers to take down Lady Justice. The mission is a success.