WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for Guardians of the Galaxy #7 by Donny Cates, Cory Smith, David Curiel and Cory Petit, in stores now.

In Guardians of the Galaxy Annual #1, we learned the Universal Church of Truth is a growing threat growing in the cosmic corners of the Marvel Universe. The malevolence of the mysterious group was teased, as was its power and reach. While we didn't know then when the Church might make its move, it's much sooner than anticipated.

In Guardians of the Galaxy #7, the villainous order arrives from the future to attack, with intentions of dominating the universe. In the process, the Universal Church of Truth wipes out the entire Nova Corps.

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As the first line of defense throughout the cosmos, the Nova Corps is naturally the first to respond when the Universal Church of Truth's massive ship, the Cathedral, manifests in the dead of space.

The Corps surrounds the ship with nearly all of its members, and orders the Church forces to stand down. However, it isn't long before the scene turns into a complete massacre. The Church's incredible weaponry is able to subdue the entire Corps, and in a brutal display of power, leaves none alive.

Of course, this is hardly the first time the Nova Corps has been wiped out: The powerful Corps has been destroyed on multiple occasions, by an alien named Zorr, then later by Nebula and, finally, by the Annihilation wave, leaving the Human Rocket Richard Rider as the only Nova alive. The Nova Corps eventually rebuilt, again, as seen in Marvel Legacy's Guardians of the Galaxy. Alas, that didn't last long.

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Thankfully, there are still a few Novas out there. Before the Corps is wiped out by the Church, we are informed that Richard Rider, along with a few other Novas, were unavailable to provide backup. Therefore, after the massacre, a handful of Novas remain alive. Unfortunately for them, they won't nearly be enough to stop the Church.

We have yet to find out where those Novas are, or how they'll react when they find out that their fellow Corps members have been killed. It's a safe bet that Richard Rider, who has lost his fair share of Novas, will have a sharp, cosmic ax to grind with the Universal Church of Truth.