WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Heroes Reborn #2 by Jason Aaron, Dale Keown, Scott Hanna & Edgar Delgado and Hyperion & The Imperial Guard #1 by Ryan Cady, Michele Bandini, Elisabetta D'Amico, Michele Bandini, Erick Arciniega & VC's Cory Petit, on sale now.
When Heroes Reborn started, it revealed the Squadron Supreme of America was now Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. Because of the Squadron Supreme, the Avengers never formed and many of Marvel’s greatest superheroes were never created.
A violent and deadly version of Hyperion lived in this world, someone with no problem killing villains as the nation’s appointed judge, jury and executioner. However, at one time, Hyperion was a hopeful, bright-eyed hero sent to train with the Imperial Guard. Unfortunately, his time with them soured his worldview.
Hyperion wasn’t always a man who would fly directly through the face of Galactus. He wasn’t always the person who would keep blasting Hulk until the Green Goliath stayed dead. Hyperion was a man who trained to become a genuine hero with his friends in The Imperial Guard. He trained under The Imperial Guard’s praetor Gladiator and fell in love with a fellow student in Oracle. The story started after Gladiator, alongside the young Imperial Guard, defeated Deathbird and saved the Shi’ar Empire.
Before Hyperion returned home to embrace his role as Earth’s mightiest protector, there was one last mission with The Imperial Guard that went wrong. They traveled into the Negative Zone where Deathbird once ruled and Hyperion’s world fell apart. Flashfire was the first to fall, a bite from the Brood infesting him with their spawn and turning him into a mindless killing machine. Flashfire then infected Neutron. Oracle explained these aliens were the “greatest threat to sentient life in the entire galaxy.” Oracle had already professed her love for Hyperion and agreed to return to Earth with him. This attack ended that dream.
Starbolt, Titan and Thrasher all became possessed by The Brood. Hyperion asked Gladiator if they should go unlethal, but Gladiator said they can’t hesitate in these situations. Looking at his actions in the main Heroes Reborn title, that is a lesson Hyperion learned well. Manta sacrificed herself for one last move by Gladiator. The praetor of the Imperial Guard told Hyperion they needed to leave the Negative Zone, closing the gate behind him. However, Oracle ended up infected, and as she changed, Gladiator ordered Hyperion to seal the entrance. Thus, the Imperial Guard fell.
The Brood were X-Men enemies from their days traveling with The Imperial Guard and Starjammers. The alien race initially appeared in Uncanny X-Men #155 by Chris Claremont and Dave Cockrum and remained some of the deadliest villains the mutants ever faced. While The Brood infected many heroes, they always overcame it. Heroes Reborn revealed The Imperial Guard had no chance. These warriors ended up as the first prisoners Hyperion banished into the Negative Zone.
This destroyed Hyperion. In Heroes Reborn #2, he had to relive this failure. When Reed Richards and Hyperion locked away Doctor Doom in the Negative Zone, everyone else escaped including the Imperial Guard. According to Hyperion, the team was at Cape Canaveral, trying to commandeer a space flight home to the Brood Imperium. While he remembered their friendship, he couldn’t go gentle on them. This was a lesson he learned from Gladiator, and one he relied on continuously in the years since he lost his companions to The Brood.
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