WARNING: The following contains spoilers from Empyre #3, by Al Ewing, Dan Slott, Valerio Schitti, Marte Gracia and VC's Joe Caramagna, on sale now.
The Marvel Universe has no shortage of powerful items and weapons wielded by its stable of superheroes. It should come as no surprise that many of these items are used by members of the Avengers. Earth's Mightiest Heroes are in possession of items such as Thor's hammer, Captain America's shield and Iron Man's armor.
The Empyre event has now placed yet another weapon of great power and cosmic importance into the hands of yet another Avenger: Black Panther.
Excelsior, aka the Star Sword, was fintroduced in Al Ewing and Gerardo Sandoval's New Avengers #3 as a magical sword that was created by combining the ancestral swords of the Kree and Skrull into one. Although the full limits of the Star Sword have not been tested, the sword was powerful enough to stop Thor's hammer in Empyre #1 and in the following issue, was able to dispel the power of the Cotati when they attacked the Kree/Skrull armada. It has also been established that both the Kree and Skrull acknowledge the bearer of the sword as the ruler of not only both their races, but also of the entirety of space.
Once the Cotati reveal their ultimate plan of universal domination and the extermination of all non-plant life, the plant aliens set their sights on Earth. Although the aliens attack several different locations, the bulk of their forces converge on Wakanda. In Empyre #3, the Black Panther is able to figure out why.
The King of Wakanda surmises that the Cotati are after the vibranium-rich soil that can be found in the African nation and reaches the conclusion that they want to grow a weapon of mass destruction out of the soil, similar to what they did on the moon in the first issue.
Meanwhile, Hulkling -- who now possesses the Star Sword as the ruler of both the Kree and Skrull -- contemplates how best to quell the Cotati threat. His advisors come up with a plan to bolster the power of the sword and transfer it to Captain Marvel, who would then fly to the Cotati's main source of power on the moon and release the energy, sacrificing herself but severely crippling the enemy in the process.
As a former member of the Young Avengers, Hulking doesn't seem particularly pleased with the plan. As all eyes look to him for an answer, he receives a call from Black Panther, who tells the young Emperor he has a plan that he believes will stop the Cotati, but it will require the use of the Star Sword. Hulkling asks Black Panther if his plan will cost the life of an Avenger and when Black Panther assures him that it will not, the emperor teleports his sword to Black Panther's side.
Neither the Kree nor Skrull are pleased with the young emperor's decision and waste no time expressing their displeasure. In their eyes, Hulkling's actions are a sign of weakness, especially considering the fact that his possession of the sword is one of the primary factors keeping the Kree and Skrull aligned with one another.
In their eyes, Hulkling has relinquished his power as ruler. They proceed to explain to him that if they fail to quickly end the Cotati threat, they will need to defer to the Pyre, a devastating attack that will destroy the threat by way of obliterating the entire planet.
Nevertheless, the young emperor stands by his decision and in so doing, places the awesome power of the Star Sword in the hands of the King of Wakanda. He plainly states that he believes the Black Panther could wield the power better than he can -- and the fate of the entire world rests on the truth of his statement.