In the Collector’s vivarium, Beast, Black Panther and Quasar bury Nakka and discover Olar, an elderly Brethren whom his race left behind. Restored to full size, the Collector, Olar and the Avengers’ lunar contingent return to Avengers HQ, where they inform their teammates that the Brethren’s genetic makeup is that of a germ. One of Fool’s recording surveillance cameras spies the Collector in the Avengers’ company and Fool shows the footage to his fellow Brethren, enraging Thane Ector and halting Sybyl Dorn’s charges of treason against Ector. The Brethren charge Avengers HQ and Ector grabs and beats his former captor, but the Collector strikes back with a blast that sends everyone reeling. The Watcher arrives in time to witness the Elder morph into a more powerful form and proclaim that he intentionally freed the Brethren from his vivarium as part of a plot to slay the human race.