Serpent Crown
Encyclopedia
The Serpent Crown is a fiction
Fiction
Fiction is the form of any narrative or informative work that deals, in part or in whole, with information or events that are not factual, but rather, imaginary—that is, invented by the author. Although fiction describes a major branch of literary work, it may also refer to theatrical,...

al mystical power object which has appeared in various comic book
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...

 series published by Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics
Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...

. It exists within Marvel's main shared
Shared universe
A shared universe is a fictional universe to which more than one writer contributes. Work set in a shared universe share characters and other elements with varying degrees of consistency. Shared universes are contrasted with collaborative writing, in which multiple authors work on a single story....

 universe
Marvel Universe
The Marvel Universe is the shared fictional universe where most comic book titles and other media published by Marvel Entertainment take place, including those featuring Marvel's most familiar characters, such as Spider-Man, the Hulk, the X-Men, and the Avengers.The Marvel Universe is further...

. It was created by writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....

 Roy Thomas
Roy Thomas
Roy William Thomas, Jr. is an American comic book writer and editor, and Stan Lee's first successor as editor-in-chief of Marvel Comics. He is possibly best known for introducing the pulp magazine hero Conan the Barbarian to American comics, with a series that added to the storyline of Robert E...

 and artist
Artist
An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...

 Marie Severin
Marie Severin
Marie Severin is an American comic book artist and colorist best known for her work for Marvel Comics and the 1950s' EC Comics....

 in Sub-Mariner
Namor the Sub-Mariner
Namor the Sub-Mariner is a fictional comic book character in the Marvel Comics universe, and one of the first superheroes, debuting in Spring 1939. The character was created by writer-artist Bill Everett for Funnies Inc., one of the first "packagers" in the early days of comic books that supplied...

#9 (January, 1969).

The Serpent Crown is, as its name implies, a crown
Crown (headgear)
A crown is the traditional symbolic form of headgear worn by a monarch or by a deity, for whom the crown traditionally represents power, legitimacy, immortality, righteousness, victory, triumph, resurrection, honour and glory of life after death. In art, the crown may be shown being offered to...

, which resembles a coiled, seven-headed serpent
Serpent (symbolism)
Serpent in Latin means: Rory Collins :&, in turn, from the Biblical Hebrew word of: "saraf" with root letters of: which refers to something burning-as, the pain of poisonous snake's bite was likened to internal burning.This word is commonly used in a specifically mythic or religious context,...

 and is made of an unknown material. The resemblance is a reference to the malevolent seven headed exiled serpent demon
Demons (Marvel Comics)
The Marvel Comics universe hosts a number of demons, many of whom are at times at conflict with gods and angels. All possess varying degrees of mystical power, feed upon souls for self-sustenance, and are inclined towards dark or “black” magic - evil....

/god
Deity
A deity is a recognized preternatural or supernatural immortal being, who may be thought of as holy, divine, or sacred, held in high regard, and respected by believers....

 "Set
Set (Serpent God)
Set is the name of a fictional demon-god within the continuities of Conan the Barbarian and Marvel Universe.He is apparently an amalgam of the name of the Egyptian god Set and the appearance and characteristics of the Egyptian monster Apep and the Greek mythological figure the Lernaean Hydra. This...

" to whom the crown holds a mystical link from which it draws its powers.

Those powers confer on the helmet's wearer various abilities. These abilities can include superhuman strength, the power to read and control the minds
Mind control
Mind control refers to a process in which a group or individual "systematically uses unethically manipulative methods to persuade others to conform to the wishes of the manipulator, often to the detriment of the person being manipulated"...

 of others, the power to levitate oneself and other persons or objects
Levitation
Levitation is the process by which an object is suspended by a physical force against gravity, in a stable position without solid physical contact...

, the ability to cast illusions, the power to project destructive bolts of mystical energy and even the mental ability to manipulate matter and energy.

However use of the crown usually leads the wearer to fall under the mental domination of Set, who then has the wearer perform various tasks which would help facilitate its physical return to the Earth
Earth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun, and the densest and fifth-largest of the eight planets in the Solar System. It is also the largest of the Solar System's four terrestrial planets...

 dimension
Dimension
In physics and mathematics, the dimension of a space or object is informally defined as the minimum number of coordinates needed to specify any point within it. Thus a line has a dimension of one because only one coordinate is needed to specify a point on it...

.

Early history of the crown

Although the crown first appeared in 1969 in Sub-Mariner #9 (which is set in contemporary times) various subsequent stories expanded and developed its earlier history in the Marvel Universe.

Savage Sword of Conan #192 (December, 1991) reveals some of the early history of the crown, showing how, in the prehistory
Prehistory
Prehistory is the span of time before recorded history. Prehistory can refer to the period of human existence before the availability of those written records with which recorded history begins. More broadly, it refers to all the time preceding human existence and the invention of writing...

 of the Marvel Universe Earth, Set exiled himself from Earth's dimension and used his influence to spawn a race of humanoid
Humanoid
A humanoid is something that has an appearance resembling a human being. The term first appeared in 1912 to refer to fossils which were morphologically similar to, but not identical with, those of the human skeleton. Although this usage was common in the sciences for much of the 20th century, it...

, sentient
Sentience
Sentience is the ability to feel, perceive or be conscious, or to have subjective experiences. Eighteenth century philosophers used the concept to distinguish the ability to think from the ability to feel . In modern western philosophy, sentience is the ability to have sensations or experiences...

 reptilian
Reptile
Reptiles are members of a class of air-breathing, ectothermic vertebrates which are characterized by laying shelled eggs , and having skin covered in scales and/or scutes. They are tetrapods, either having four limbs or being descended from four-limbed ancestors...

 beings that became known as the Serpent Men.

In such stories the Serpent Men are depicted as a race which devoutly worships Set and are in constant conflict with the human race
Human Race
Human Race refers to the Human species.Human race may also refer to:*The Human Race, 79th episode of YuYu Hakusho* Human Race Theatre Company of Dayton Ohio* Human Race Machine, a computer graphics device...

. Kull the Conqueror Vol.1 #2 (August, 1971) shows how, as human societies developed, the Serpent Men began to falter and eventually their race dwindled when King Kull became ruler of Valusia and launched a campaign against them.

Marvel Team-Up
Marvel Team-Up
Marvel Team-Up is the name of several American comic book series published by Marvel Comics. The series featured two or more Marvel characters in one story...

 Annual
#5 (1982) showed the origin of the crown for the first time. Five centuries after the time of Kull, their numbers dwindling even further, a group of Serpent Men ally themselves with some human alchemists
Alchemy
Alchemy is an influential philosophical tradition whose early practitioners’ claims to profound powers were known from antiquity. The defining objectives of alchemy are varied; these include the creation of the fabled philosopher's stone possessing powers including the capability of turning base...

 from Deviant
Deviant (comics)
The Deviants are a fictional race of superhumans in the Marvel Comics' universe. They are an offshoot of the evolutionary process that created sentient life on Earth instigated by the alien Celestials, and wage war against their counterparts, the Eternals...

-dominated pre-cataclysmic Lemuria
Lemuria (comics)
Lemuria is the name of two fictional locations in the Marvel Universe.Lemuria had been a small continent and group of islands in the Pacific Ocean 21,000 years ago, which was ruled by the Deviants. Lemuria became the center of the Deviant empire, and the only remaining free land was Atlantis, the...

 to create the Serpent Crown, a device which gives them access to some of the enormous mystical power of their "god" Set. However, just as the alchemists and Serpent Men were about to exploit the power of the Crown, the Great Cataclysm occurred. This event was a worldwide natural disaster which brought about the sinking of both Atlantis
Atlantis (Marvel Comics)
Atlantis is a fictional location in the Marvel Universe. It is based on the mythical island of Atlantis first mentioned in Plato's initial dialogue the Timaeus, written circa 360 BC. In the Marvel Universe, Atlantis was a small continent with many human settlements...

 and Lemuria and leads to the deaths of most of the surviving Serpent Men and the loss of the Serpent Crown for centuries.

In Savage Sword of Conan
Conan the Barbarian
Conan the Barbarian is a fictional sword and sorcery hero that originated in pulp fiction magazines and has since been adapted to books, comics, several films , television programs, video games, roleplaying games and other media...

#41-43 (June - August, 1979) a mystical object with many similarities to the Serpent Crown - the "Cobra Crown" - is shown to have existed during the Hyborian Age
Hyborian Age
The Hyborian Age is a fictional period within the artificial mythology created by Robert E. Howard, in which the sword and sorcery tales of Conan the Barbarian are set....

 that followed the Great Cataclysm. In that story a follower of Set called Thoth-Amon
Thoth-Amon
Thoth-Amon is a fictional character created by Robert E. Howard. He is an evil wizard in The Phoenix on the Sword, the first of the Conan the Cimmerian stories...

 allies himself with some surviving Serpent Men and briefly wields this second Crown. Another receptacle of Set's vast power, the Cobra Crown also enables its wearer to control the minds of others. However, it appears that it was much inferior to the Serpent Crown as its abilities eventually burn out and it is apparently destroyed during the course of a conflict between Thoth-Amon and Conan the Barbarian. (The Cobra Crown was originally invented by Lin Carter
Lin Carter
Linwood Vrooman Carter was an American author of science fiction and fantasy, as well as an editor and critic. He usually wrote as Lin Carter; known pseudonyms include H. P. Lowcraft and Grail Undwin.-Life:Carter was born in St. Petersburg, Florida...

 and L. Sprague de Camp
L. Sprague de Camp
Lyon Sprague de Camp was an American author of science fiction and fantasy books, non-fiction and biography. In a writing career spanning 60 years, he wrote over 100 books, including novels and notable works of non-fiction, including biographies of other important fantasy authors...

 in the novel Conan the Bucaneer (1971).)

The Crown in sunken Lemuria

The Spectacular Spider-Man
The Spectacular Spider-Man
The Spectacular Spider-Man is the name of several comic books and one magazine series starring Marvel Comics' Spider-Man.The character's main series, The Amazing Spider-Man, was extremely successful, and Marvel felt the character could support more than one title. This led the company in 1968 to...

 Annual
#9 and Daredevil
Daredevil (Marvel Comics)
Daredevil is a fictional character, a superhero in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Bill Everett, with an unspecified amount of input from Jack Kirby, and first appeared in Daredevil #1 .Living in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood...

 Annual
#4B (both 1989) show how, many centuries later, the sunken city of Lemuria becomes home to a race of water-breathing humanoids called Homo mermanus
Homo mermanus
Homo mermanus is a fictional race of gilled aquatic humanoids that has appeared in numerous comic book series published by Marvel Comics. This race is best known as the people who live in the Atlantis of Marvel's shared universe, known as the Marvel Universe...

. These new "Lemurians" (as distinct from the "Atlantean" Homo mermanus who settled in the sunken Atlantis) eventually uncover the Serpent Crown in the ruins of the city. The emperor of the Lemurians, Naga
Naga (comics)
Naga is a fictional character and Marvel Comics supervillain. Created by writer Roy Thomas and artist Marie Severin, he first appeared in Sub-Mariner #9 .-Fictional character biography:...

, dons the crown and quickly came under the influence of Set.

Naga's physical appearance is changed from exposure to the crown, his facial features coming to resemble those of a snake
Snake
Snakes are elongate, legless, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes that can be distinguished from legless lizards by their lack of eyelids and external ears. Like all squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales...

 and his skin becoming scale-like and green (from the common blue of other Homo mermanus). He converts the Lemurian people to the worship of Set and uses its power to gain immortality
Immortality
Immortality is the ability to live forever. It is unknown whether human physical immortality is an achievable condition. Biological forms have inherent limitations which may or may not be able to be overcome through medical interventions or engineering...

, ruling over his people for centuries. Through his prolonged use of the crown the skin color and complexion of Lemuria's population also becomes green and scale-like over time.

Sub-Mariner #10 (February, 1969) reveals in flashback
Flashback (narrative)
Flashback is an interjected scene that takes the narrative back in time from the current point the story has reached. Flashbacks are often used to recount events that happened before the story’s primary sequence of events or to fill in crucial backstory...

 how Naga's use of the crown came to an end when a rebel named Piscatos stole it from him as he slept. Piscatos and his allies then fled with it to Antarctica, where they develop their own civilization, now known as the "Ancients". This civilization goes on to develop telepathic powers and though they use the Crown for various purposes, they manage to largely escape Set's dominance by encasing the helmet in an unknown substance which for a time prevents Set from controlling those around it.

However, the malign influence of Set eventually manifested itself, with Piscatos finally becoming a follower of the serpent god, which lead him to (unwittingly) cause a landslide
Landslide
A landslide or landslip is a geological phenomenon which includes a wide range of ground movement, such as rockfalls, deep failure of slopes and shallow debris flows, which can occur in offshore, coastal and onshore environments...

 which ended the Ancient's civilization. The Serpent Crown apparently remained buried underneath the Antarctic ice until the twentieth century.

"The Helmet of Power"

Avengers
Avengers (comics)
The Avengers is a fictional team of superheroes, appearing in magazines published by Marvel Comics. The team made its debut in The Avengers #1 The Avengers is a fictional team of superheroes, appearing in magazines published by Marvel Comics. The team made its debut in The Avengers #1 The Avengers...

 Annual
#18 (1989) shows that in 1920 an Antarctic expedition, led by Captain Leonard McKenzie of the icebreaker
Icebreaker
An icebreaker is a special-purpose ship or boat designed to move and navigate through ice-covered waters. Although the term usually refers to ice-breaking ships, it may also refer to smaller vessels .For a ship to be considered an icebreaker, it requires three traits most...

 ship "the Oracle" discovers some remnants of the Ancients' civilization. One of the expedition party, Paul Destine
Destiny (Paul Destine)
Destiny is a fictional character, in the Marvel Comics Universe whose first appearance was in Tales to Astonish #101.-Publication history:Destiny's existence was foreshadowed in Tales to Astonish Vol...

, uncovers the Serpent Crown (which is still disguised by its encasement in a protective substance). Calling it the "Helmet of Power" Destine puts the crown on his head and immediately received a vast increase of his latent psionic powers and was changed physically into a stronger and larger man then he had previously been. Destine, who is thought lost by the expedition which left without him, then uses some of the Ancient's equipment to place himself in suspended animation
Suspended animation
Suspended animation is the slowing of life processes by external means without termination. Breathing, heartbeat, and other involuntary functions may still occur, but they can only be detected by artificial means. Extreme cold can be used to precipitate the slowing of an individual's functions; use...

. Destine emerged from this state decades later, his powers further increased during his period in stasis.

In Mystic Arcana
Mystic Arcana
Mystic Arcana is a 2007 Marvel Comics storyline published as a series of four one-shot titles. Each book in the series contains an individual main story followed by a back-up story whose plot continues through all four books. The main story in each book focuses upon a different fictional character,...

#3, the crown appears in its original form, worn by Lilia Calderu, queen of the Gypsies, during the time period when Destine is in suspended animation.

The Destine character makes his first real appearance in Sub-Mariner #6-8 (October - December, 1968), as does the Crown, though in disguised form as the "Helmet of Power". Calling himself "Destiny" he seeks to take over the world and comes into conflict with the son of Captain Mackenzie, Namor the Sub-Mariner. Destine continues to draw on the power of the Crown throughout the story though he is never shown to fall under the overt influence of Set, perhaps due to the protective encasement under which the Ancients had placed the Crown centuries before and (more probably) the fact that the concept of the Crown had not been fully developed by the creators yet.

First real appearance: The "re-emergence" of the Serpent Crown

After Destine is defeated Namor takes the "Helmet of Power" to Atlantis in Sub-Mariner #9 (January, 1969). In that story the power of the Crown manages to overcome the Ancient's protective casing, revealing its true form and allowing Set to once again convey its influence through it. This story is the first true, revealed appearance of the Crown, though it had appeared in disguised form previously and some later appearances are set chronologically before this one.

The Crown initially takes over the mind of Namor's consort, Lady Dorma
Lady Dorma
Lady Dorma is a fictional character that appeared in comic books by Timely Comics .A native of the undersea kingdom of Atlantis, the character was Namor the Sub-Mariner's cousin and his close confidant in many of his original appearances in the 1940s, and was reintroduced in the late 1960s and...

, and through her the entire population of Atlantis fell under its control. Namor then dons the helmet himself and through the strength of his will subverts the influence of Set, thus freeing his people.

In Sub-Mariner #10 (February, 1969) the Crown is stolen and returned by Lemurian agents to the possession of Naga, who it is revealed has remained immortal despite his loss of the Crown centuries earlier. During the next three issues Namor attempts to reclaim the Crown and in Sub-Mariner #13 (May, 1969) both Naga and the crown are cast into an undersea chasm and thought dead and destroyed.

The super-hero Serpent Crown sagas

In Captain America (vol. 2) #180-182 (April - June, 1975) the Crown returns, having been recovered by the rebel Atlantean Warlord Krang, who delivered it to the superhuman criminal Viper
Viper (comics)
Viper is the name of three fictional characters in the Marvel Comics universe. All three are villains.-Viper :The first known Viper was created by Steve Englehart, Steve Gerber, Sal Buscema and John Verpoorten and first appeared in Captain America #157 .-Fictional character biography:Jordan...

. Viper, at this point leader of the original Serpent Squad
Serpent Squad
The Serpent Squad is a fictional mercenary group composed of snake-themed criminals in Marvel Comics. Most often antagonists of Captain America, the roster has changed through various incarnations...

, then kidnaps the president of Roxxon Oil, Hugh Jones
Hugh Jones (comics)
Hugh Jones is a fictional character in the Marvel Universe who first appeared in Captain America #180 and was created by Steve Englehart and Sal Buscema.-Fictional character biography:...

, and places the Crown on his head. Jones immediately falls under the mental control of Set. At the conclusion of the storyline the police and Captain America
Captain America
Captain America is a fictional character, a superhero that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in Captain America Comics #1 , from Marvel Comics' 1940s predecessor, Timely Comics, and was created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby...

 interrupt the Squad's plan and the Crown is temporarily lost to an underground sewer .

However, in Avengers #141-144, it is shown that in the alternate universe
Parallel universe (fiction)
A parallel universe or alternative reality is a hypothetical self-contained separate reality coexisting with one's own. A specific group of parallel universes is called a "multiverse", although this term can also be used to describe the possible parallel universes that constitute reality...

 where the superhero
Superhero
A superhero is a type of stock character, possessing "extraordinary or superhuman powers", dedicated to protecting the public. Since the debut of the prototypical superhero Superman in 1938, stories of superheroes — ranging from brief episodic adventures to continuing years-long sagas —...

 group the Squadron Supreme
Squadron Supreme
The Squadron Supreme is a fictional superhero team that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The Squadron Supreme first appeared in Avengers #85 - 86 The Squadron Supreme is a fictional superhero team that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The Squadron Supreme first...

 resides, that universe's version of the Serpent Crown has managed to gain control of the minds of many of the leaders of America's largest corporations and even that alternate America
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

's President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....

, Nelson Rockefeller
Nelson Rockefeller
Nelson Aldrich Rockefeller was the 41st Vice President of the United States , serving under President Gerald Ford, and the 49th Governor of New York , as well as serving the Roosevelt, Truman and Eisenhower administrations in a variety of positions...

.

The Avengers from the mainstream Marvel Universe Earth travel to the Squadron Supreme’s Earth and free many of that planet’s people from the dominance of the Crown, during the course of which they briefly fell under its influence themselves. The Avengers then brought the Serpent Crown from that alternate world back with them to their own Earth, eventually losing it when it was dropped into the Pacific Ocean
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...

 after a battle with the Living Laser
Living Laser
The Living Laser is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in Avengers #34 and was created by Stan Lee, Artie Simek and Don Heck.-Publication history:...

 ((Avengers #147-149, 153, 154 & Annual #6; November, 1975 - December, 1976).

Marvel Two-in-One
Marvel Two-in-One
Marvel Two-In-One was an American comic book series published by Marvel Comics that featured the Fantastic Four member, the Thing, in a different team-up each issue with a different character. The series continued from the team-up stories starring the Thing in the final two issues of Marvel...

#66 (August, 1980) shows how, the original Crown native to that Earth is then found by Hugh Jones, who is still under Set’s control. Jones also manages to locate and retrieve the second, alternate universe Serpent Crown, which he mystically merges with the original Crown to create a new Serpent Crown, identical in appearance to the others, though now possessing the combined power of the original two Crowns.

Using this power, Jones then takes control of the minds of the entire population of Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....

, including most of the federal government of the United States. Jones then comes into conflict with a group of super-heroes including the Thing
Thing (comics)
The Thing is a fictional character, a founding member of the superhero team known as the Fantastic Four in the Marvel Comics universe. He was created by Jack Kirby and Stan Lee in The Fantastic Four #1...

 and the Scarlet Witch
Scarlet Witch
The Scarlet Witch is a fictional comic book character that appears in books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appears in X-Men #4 and was created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby...

. At the close of the story the Scarlet Witch engages Set in a battle on the Astral Plane
Astral plane
The astral plane, also called the astral world, is a plane of existence postulated by classical , medieval, oriental and esoteric philosophies and mystery religions...

, which allows the Thing to snatch the Crown from Jones’ head, severing his link with Set. In the following issue (67), the Crown is brought to the US government energy-research facility Project: PEGASUS for safe-keeping.

Marvel Team-Up Annual #5 (1982) shows how the Crown began to exert Set's influence again at Project: PEGASUS, mind controlling the staff at the complex and eventually overpowering the wills of everyone who works there. These workers then set about transporting other Serpent Crowns from alternate dimensions to the Project, finally amassing 777 such crowns which are then merged to create one giant Crown which is to be used to facilitate Set’s return to Earth.

Before this happens however several superheroes, including Doctor Strange
Doctor Strange
Doctor Stephen Strange is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was co-created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko, and first appeared in Strange Tales #110 ....

, Spider-Man
Spider-Man
Spider-Man is a fictional Marvel Comics superhero. The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee and writer-artist Steve Ditko. He first appeared in Amazing Fantasy #15...

, the Thing and the Scarlet Witch intervene to once again disrupt Set's plans. In the annual's conclusion the superheroes use the Cosmic Cube
Cosmic Cube
The Cosmic Cube, called the Tesseract in the film Captain America: The First Avenger, is the name of a fictional object that appears in the Marvel Universe. The concept was created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby and first appeared in Tales of Suspense #79 .-Publication history:The first Cosmic Cube...

 to destroy the massive Crown and reduce it to metallic dust, and Strange casts a spell exorcising
Exorcism
Exorcism is the religious practice of evicting demons or other spiritual entities from a person or place which they are believed to have possessed...

 Set from the Earth dimension forever. However with the temporary loss of many of Strange's magical talismans, the spell keeping Set's influence from Earth was greatly weakened.

This became the precursor to the Atlantis Attacks
Atlantis Attacks
Atlantis Attacks was a comic book super-hero crossover storyline which ran through most of the summer annuals published by Marvel Comics in 1989....

crossover, which ran through all of Marvel's 1989 annuals. The Deviant
Deviant (comics)
The Deviants are a fictional race of superhumans in the Marvel Comics' universe. They are an offshoot of the evolutionary process that created sentient life on Earth instigated by the alien Celestials, and wage war against their counterparts, the Eternals...

 priest Ghaur
Ghaur
Ghaur is a Marvel Comics supervillain. Created by Peter B. Gillis and Sal Buscema, he first appeared in Eternals vol. 2, #2 .In the Marvel Universe, he is the head of the Deviant race's priesthood.-Fictional character biography:...

, a disciple of Set, and his ally, the Lemurian Llyra
Llyra
Llyra is a fictional character, a Marvel Comics super-villainess. She was created by Roy Thomas and Sal Buscema and first appeared in Sub-Mariner #32 .-Fictional character biography:...

 attempt to engineer his return once again through the use of another giant Serpent Crown. This one, however was composed of elements that rendered it indestructible. He is briefly successful in bringing Set back to the Earth dimension, as the spirit of the exiled god animates the Crown for a short while, before he was defeated by Thor
Thor (Marvel Comics)
Thor is a fictional superhero who appears in publications published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in Journey into Mystery #83 and was created by editor-plotter Stan Lee, scripter Larry Lieber, and penciller Jack Kirby....

, Quasar, Thing and Doctor Strange in Thor Annual #14. The Crown itself was pushed into an underground crevice in Fantastic Four Annual #22, where it remains to this day.

In Mystic Arcana #3, Ian McNee recovers the crown from Nagala.

In Secret Avengers
Secret Avengers
Secret Avengers is an American comic book series published by Marvel Comics featuring a fictional black ops superhero team of the same name. Written by Ed Brubaker, the series depicts a new version of Marvel's premiere super hero team, the Avengers, which operates under the guidance and leadership...

#1-6, Nova
Nova (comics)
Nova is a fictional character, a comic book superhero in the Marvel Comics universe. Upon becoming a member of the galaxy's Nova Corps , the youth gained enhanced strength, flight, injury resistance, and a specialized uniform with life support.In May 2011, Nova placed 98th on IGN's Top 100 Comic...

 is sent to Mars by Steve Rogers
Captain America
Captain America is a fictional character, a superhero that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in Captain America Comics #1 , from Marvel Comics' 1940s predecessor, Timely Comics, and was created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby...

 to investigate the halting of Roxxon Energy Corporation's mining operations. While fleeing from currently unknown assailants, he flies into an artificial mountainside, where he discovers, at the top of an ancient staircase, an artifact similar to the Serpent Crown, referred to as the "Thorn Crown". Despite warnings by Worldmind, Nova puts on the crown. It is later removed by Steve Rogers and taken away by its guardian, the Archon.
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