WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for Annihilation - Scourge: Fantastic Four #1, by Christos Gage, Diego Olortegui, Juan Vlasco, Cam Smith, Scott Hanna, Erick Arciniega, and VC's Travis Lanham, on sale now.

Annihilation - Scourge, the latest in Marvel's series of cosmic Annihilation crossover events, combines galactic wonder with the horror of a zombie apocalypse. This titular Scourge stems from the undead Cancerverse, which has recently invaded the Negative Zone.

In Annihilation - Scourge: Fantastic Four #1, the First Family answers a distress call from the Negative Zone, learning of its fate in the process. When they go to investigate the situation, however, they encounter a corrupted old ally that they are truly unable to face.

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A CANCEROUS SCOURGE

The distress beacon from the Negative Zone reveals a horde of refugees, who plead with the Fantastic Four to grant them sanctuary. The refugees inform the F4 of all that has transpired recently -- namely the growing threat of the invading Cancerverse. The threat has become so great that even villains, Blastaar and Annihilus, have teamed up in a desperate attempt to defend their domain.

Feeling responsible for the people of the Negative Zone -- having ruled there before Annihilus' current regime -- Johnny elects to go and find the source of the people's terror. Visualized memories from the refugees reveal the presence of the Revengers: Cancerverse equivalents of the Earth's Mightiest Heroes. When they arrive, however, the Fantastic Four find a foe that is much worse -- and personal -- than they could have imagined.

CRYSTAL... IS THAT YOU?

The Scourge that the denizens of the Negative Zone have come to fear is none other than Crystal of the Inhuman Royal Family. Crystal obviously isn't in her right state of mind, which means that she still feels a lot better than she looks. Her appearance is mostly the same as normal... with the unmissable exception being that her face is now almost entirely composed of a gigantic, gaping mouth.

Not only are her eyes apparently gone, with her upper head now replaced with lips/mouth flaps, but her elongated tongue wafts with a prehensile mind of its own. In fact, her head itself seems to be made up of lip skin instead of regular tissue. This "Crystal" is intent on raining death and destruction toward all who stand in her way. Even worse, her powers are greater than ever, suggesting that this new form has either amplified her abilities or simply unleashed them to their fullest by removing her inhibitions.

This dangerous new form is the result of Crystal being corrupted by the Cancerverse. She now serves the will of the interdimensional daemons, the Many-Angled Ones/Old Ones. This means that her mission is to consume, consume, consume... until all that lives is taken over, like a ravenous plague. She even invites her old flame Johnny Storm in for a kiss, though her intent to devour him -- along with a Venom-like long tongue is much less of a turn on for him. His flammable reaction to her advances should have been lethal, but even after being burned up close, the new cancerous Crystal still lives, unable to do otherwise.

The rest of the Fantastic Four enclose her in one of Sue's force fields and, for lack of any other permanent solution, have The Thing kick her into the far reaches of space within the Negative Zone.

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