Writer: Fabian Nicieza
1971, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, John Watkins obtains information from Farouk about the name Everlasting. All Watkins finds out from a telepathic search by Farouk is the name Marduk. Roger Aubrey is dismayed at the lack of information, and disturbed by the concept of the Everlasting.
Present day in Beijing, China, Citizen V finds out that the people in China are actually sleeping and not dead. The V-battalion find out that something is making the people in China go to sleep. Citizen V follows the tracer that is on Aquat, which is also where the energy flow from the people stops.
Citizen V discovers an altered Collective man who is now much bigger and is using the combined traits of Chinese people. The V-battalion sends in aircrafts as well as Goldfire, Topspin, and Nuklo to deal with the situation. In the resulting battle Goldfire is liquefied. The V-battalion pulls back from the fight not being able to deal with the Collective man's power as Citizen V continues to track down Aquat.
The V-battalion's steam team recovers the equipment used to alter the Collective man's powers but the equipment is too damaged to use again. The Collective man keeps draining the power of the Chinese people and eventually they will all be dead. Aubrey's willing to let billions in China die and Citizen V doesn't like the idea.
Citizen V having tracked down Aquat and defeated him has a sword to his throat. He asks Aquat what this was all about. Aquat mentions something about death and the Genesis. The Collective man has to be stopped before he can do damage outside of China so Aubrey is going to kill his fuel source, the Chinese people. Which will also fuel the Genesis, Aquat was talking about.
Citizen V gets Topspin to bring him in close to the Collective man just as Aubrey plans for the V-battalion to fire on thousands of people. Citizen V tells them to override that command as he uses an Adamantium cover and slashes a hole in the Collective man so that he blows up.
Aquat now in the custody of the V-battalion says the Genesis well is sated. The V-battalion later finds Citizen V alive in the aftermath of the battle. Citizen questions Aubrey about when he started going against everything he's fought for. Aubrey doesn't have a response for Citizen V.
Elsewhere, out of all of Ultimatum's actions they are close to success in Rumekistan. Meanwhile at Oracle Inc. someone is glad that Flag Smasher has done what he said he would do, they have fed him well, and the person says they are clearing another shipment of arms.
Thunderbolts and all associated characters are the property of MARVEL COMICS TM&©2003.