#299 – R.I.P. King Brainwave – Brainwave dies of cancer. Kubera receives a transmission from Robot 62417 showing gang members taking over a bank in Salem, Oregon. C.H.E.S.S. forces intervene, but are ambushed by Pirate (disguised as one of their Knights); he disappears before he can be apprehended. Disruptor, an amnesiac paranormal with a forged Guardians ID, asks questions at Foundation Headquarters; local accommodations are provided for the con man, Iron Horse, and Dr. Reality. After multiple suicides in Salem, Blackstone rescues a young man before he is able to harm himself. He is questioned, and the group learns the cause may be a mystical artifact Pirate is trying to get rid of. After flying to Salem in the Guardian Angel, a base of operations is set up. As Iron Horse, Blackstone, and Compass respond to an incident at the zoo, Kubera and Dr. Reality are called off to deal with Disruptor, who has arrived separately and stolen a police car. At the zoo, C.H.E.S.S. forces strangely fight each other amongst demonic grizzly bears. Hidden in a cave at the exhibit, medieval magician Remnil and guard Sir Gathius are taken out, ending the bear threat. The police turn Disruptor over to Kubera, and they rush to the scene as Sir Gathius escapes and the brainwashed agents are subdued. One mauled Valkyrie dies, and another Knight is barely saved after removal of a Pirate-inserted device. A last Knight is followed to a nearby restaurant, where Jim Henderson kills Pirate. Before Henderson can don Pirate's armor, Blackstone snatches them and teleports back to the zoo. Robot 62417 arrives and a standoff ensues. The heroes agree to turn over the new Pirate (Henderson) in exchange for the location of the artifact. They're shown a hologram of a coin at a gravesite, but determine it is likely Brainwave's funeral in a few days. Later, they resolve a situation with a suicidal Knight at a theater and remove another kill device. They make a deal with Remnil, the persecuted wizard who created the artifact, agreeing to help him and his three knight brothers return to their own time. The team sets up an elaborate ruse with a duplicate coin, but the plans dissolve when multiple forces converge on the funeral. Many Future cultists attempt a bloody ritual to bring back Brainwave, but are foiled when Blackstone teleports the villain's corpse to the Moon. Robot 62417 observes for a time but disappears. With everyone after the relic, knights Sir Gathius, Sir Vayas, and Sir Lathar turn on Pirate and force him to flee. When held, the object transports the bearer through time: Compass is briefly forced to battle Peregrine in a cage match in the future; later Blackstone watches as long ago a king signs a decree and Remnil gives him the artifact. After the battle, the cultists are arrested and the coin is given to the brothers, who use it to return to the past.
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