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In 2015, Marvel’s Black Vortex crossover took several members of the Guardians of the Galaxy and the X-Men to cosmic new heights
As if the events of the Hellfire Gala aren’t enough for the mutants of the Marvel Universe to grapple with, the upcoming Last Annihilation crossover is about to bring the mutants of S.W.O.R.D. and the Guardians of the Galaxy face to face with a mystical villain in a battle of epic proportions. While it may be the first time S.W.O.R.D. has worked on a cosmic scale, it isn’t the first time that Marvel’s mutants have teamed up with the Guardians of the Galaxy. The last time the Guardians and the X-Men worked together, both teams went through some extreme changes.
The 2015 Black Vortex crossover centers around an ancient cosmic artifact called the Black Vortex, a 12-billion-year-old mirror with the power to imbue people with the near-unlimited power of the cosmos. In Sam Humphries, Paco Medina and Juan Vlasco’s 2014 Legendary Star-Lord #5, a villain named Mister Knife discovers its whereabouts on the planet Kymellia 3, and sends his henchmen, the Slaughter Squad, to retrieve it. Knife’s plan is to use the mirror to make his soldiers stronger and to build an alliance with Thane, the son of Thanos. When Star-Lord and his girlfriend Kitty Pryde go to steal the magic mirror, they see Mister Knife use it to transform one of the Blood Brothers into a gigantic, powerful monster and realize that they’ll need help dealing with such a powerful item.
Kitty and Peter successfully steal the Black Vortex and take it to the planet Spartax, where they call the X-Men and the Guardians of the Galaxy for assistance. In Guardians of the Galaxy & X-Men: Black Vortex Alpha by Sam Humphries, Ed McGuinness, Kris Anka, Mark Farmer, Jay Leisten and Mark Morales, the two teams of heroes convene on the planet and do their best to protect the ancient mirror from Mister Knife’s Slaughter Squad, all of whom have been transformed into more powerful versions of themselves by the Black Vortex. Despite having powerful warriors like Drax, Captain Marvel and Storm on their side, the heroes are no match for their cosmically enhanced foes. So in an act of desperation, Gamora looks into the vortex and submits to it. It grants enough power to ward off the Slaughter Squad long enough for the heroes to take the mirror to Spartax’s moon.
While hiding from Mister Knife’s goons the heroes argue amongst themselves about what to do with the Black Vortex. Drax, Storm and Kitty think that they should destroy it, to prevent its great power from falling into the wrong hands, but Gamora is thrilled with the strength she received from the mirror. She suggests that they all submit to its power. Beast and Angel both side with Gamora and step into the mirror.
Heroes and villains alike chase the mirror across the galaxy as it changes hands and grants powers. Thane eventually takes control of the mirror and uses it to take Spartax hostage. He makes a deal with the Brood, who prepare to lay eggs in the brains of the people of Spartax. In Sam Humphries, Ed McGuinness, Javier Garrón, Mark Farmer and Marte Garcia’s Guardians of the Galaxy & X-Men: Black Vortex Omega, Kitty Pryde realizes that the only way to defeat them is to submit to the Black Vortex. She’s the only hero who can resist its corrupting qualities while utilizing its power. She becomes one with the cosmos and uses an enhanced version of her phasing power to literally pull the Brood world off of Spartax.
All of the heroes, with the exception of Gamora, renounce their powers back into the Vortex. But they are left forever altered. Angel has new wings; whereas Beast’s changes are internal. Star-Lord takes the opportunity to propose to Kitty, who is delighted to say yes. The crossover ends as the X-Men and the Guardians of the Galaxy celebrate the saving of the cosmos and their friends’ ultimately doomed love. The Black Vortex crossover almost divided both teams, but they weathered the storm together in spite of the changes they went through.
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