| Synopsis
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Following his initial interaction with humanity in LA and taking on the physical form of Captain America, the Beyonder materializes atop the World Trade Center in New York City. He has decided to experience humanity through personal experience and decides to remain in human form as much as possible. However when he tries to fall down to the crowd below he briefly changes his mind after realizing he may have a nasty fall ahead of him. Walking around New York he would find it, and its people strange. Feeling hungry, he remembers what Rachel Summers told him about eating and goes to a hot dog vendor and orders a hot dog and a beverage. He scares away the vendor when he literally eats the bottle, and finds the experience rather painful. As he continues along on his tour of New York, he finds everyone's attire fascinating.
As the Beyonder continues to try to make sense of New York, the city itself is in the grip of angry riots that are mostly focused on mutants and the super-human community. The largest congregation around Avengers Mansion, the temporary home of the Fantastic Four. The crowd is disbursed to allow a paddy wagon carrying an indignant She-Hulk and Wyatt Wingfoot back to the mansion. While this is happening, the Invisible Girl is using her powers sneak Alicia Masters out of the mansion as well. They are unknowingly monitored by the Psycho man who sends his minion the Hate-Monger after her. Disguising himself as Reed Richards, the Hate Monger gets close enough to Sue to touch her transforming her into the absolute incarnation of her dark-side. In a bondage-inspired costume she calls herself Malice and vows to destroy her husband and the Fantastic Four.
While this is happening, the Beyonder is still wandering the streets of New York. When someone throws a brick through a store window, he decides to go inside. When asked by one of the store clerks why he crawled in, the Beyonder tells him it was because it was open. When he begins asking the clerk why people have to wear clothing, he asks the Beyonder to find a friend who can help. Satisfied with this, the Beyonder leaves the store and begins scanning the city for someone he knows. Recognizing Peter Parker from Battleworld he teleports to the offices of the Daily Bugle and begins asking Peter about clothing. Peter, thinking the Beyonder is some loony, tires to escape him, but the Beyonder manages to follow him throughout the building. Deciding to ditch this strange man, Peter slips away and changes into Spider-Man and web-slings back to his Soho apartment, unaware that the Beyonder is invisibly following him.
Thinking he is safe at home, Peter unmasks and begins drinking milk when the Beyonder startles him by appearing right before his eyes. Giving the Beyonder a punch a cross the face, he realizes who the Beyonder is and that he has come seeking information. When Peter suggests that the Beyonder seek out Reed Richards, the Beyonder alerts Spider-Man to the fact that he needs to go to the bathroom. Peter has the awkward position of trying to explain to the Beyonder what going to the bathroom is. When the Beyonder is done, he tells Peter that he is going to seek out Reed Richards and teleports away. Realizing what he's done, Peter puts his mask back on and swings off to try and find Richards to warn him.
The Fantastic Four meanwhile, are in a pitched battle against the Hate-Monger unaware that they are being secretly observed by the Psycho-Man. In the middle of the battle, the Beyonder appears right next to Mr. Fantastic and begins answering questions, distracting Reed enough to require Sue to save him with an invisible force field. While Reed is distracted learning who the Beyonder is, Sue grabs the Hate-Monger and before She-Hulk can nab the Psycho-Man he teleports away. Sue demands answers from the Hate-Monger, but before they can get any answers the Scourge of the Underworld blasts him and he disintegrates into a puddle of ooze. Reed has a theory of who was responsible for creating the Hate-Monger but he ignores Sue for a moment to preoccupy himself with the Beyonder. However, when Reed admits that it would be difficult to explain the intricacies of existence, the Beyonder then teleports away to find someone else who can help him. This upsets Reed, however when he realizes that he's been neglecting Sue's desire to find out who has been manipulating her he redoubles his attention to her.
As Spider-Man continues to seek out the Beyonder, the one from Beyonder appears in front of another store front. Seeing a suit that strikes his fancy, he uses his powers to make it appear on himself. The suit is ill fitting and he is scolded by homeless woman Elsie Gertz. She explains to him that you need money to pay for things and then points out that the suit barely fits. As she points out it's flaws the Beyonder corrects them and decides to follow her to listen to her advice, finding what she says about the need of money to purchase things one wants interesting. Taking him back to the cardboard box she calls home the two are attacked by a gang led by Charlie Carcrash. Thinking the Beyonder has money on him they attempt to mug him, but when they find him as broke as the old bag lady they beat him bloody.
When they run off, Elsie hands the Beyonder a business card for Heroes for Hire, telling him if he had money he could hire them to deal with those crooks. Using his powers to heal himself, the Beyonder decides to do just that and teleports away. He appears at the offices of Heroes For Hire after working hours, however after scanning the timeline he finds that its owners Power Man and Iron Fist were there earlier that day. He brings them forward in time and when Luke believes they are being attacked he grapples with the Beyonder and tells him to take it outside. The Beyonder makes him let go and jumps out the office window and falls to the ground. Luke jumps out after him, but is stopped from fighting further by Iron Fist. When they realize that the Beyonder only sought them out to learn more about the want of money, Luke pipes in with his street smart opinion of money.
The Beyonder thanks them, and as Spider-Man arrives on the scene, the one from Beyond decides to pay Luke and Fist for their aid. To do so, the Beyonder uses his powers to turn the entire office building into solid gold before the three shocked heroes. With "payment" tendered, the Beyonder teleports away, and Power Man and Iron Fist are returned to the past leaving Spider-Man to wonder what to do about the giant gold building that is now collapsing under its own weight.
Secret Wars II continues in ...
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