Sequoia (Marvel)

Sequoia is a male extraterrestrial comic character who features in Marvel Comics.

Biography

Origin

Sequoia

A prophecy read that one day the perfect human female, who would be the Celestial Madonna, would have a union with the perfect male plant of the Cotati race, and from their union would spring the perfect child, who would be the Celestial Messiah; a being that destined to change the universe. A newborn star appeared in the sky above Avengers' Headquarters during the period when Mantis was an active member of the group, proclaimed that the Celestial Madonna's time was at hand. Kang the Conqueror had set up an automatic monitoring device to alert him to this appearance, in hopes of capturing the Madonna and using the child to advance his quest for power, but did not know which of three human females was The Madonna: Mantis, the Scarlet Witch, or Agatha Harkness. Once it was revealed that it was Mantis, she mated with the elder member of the Cotati contingent that had been left on Earth along with a group of the Kree-born Priests of Pama (to protect it from the Star Stalker). Though this Cotati was a tree, this mating was made possible because he took the form of the Avenger known as the Swordsman, who had recently been killed saving her life in battle with Kang. Their baby was named Sequoia, after the noblest of Earth trees.

Mantis raised Sequoia in hiding in Willimantic, Connecticut for a time, then asked Sequoia's father to take him to the Cotati homeworld of Tamal. At the time of Sequoia's puberty, a newborn star once again appeared, signaling the Celestial Messiah. This caught the attention of Thanos, who tried to kill him. Mantis and the Avengers traveled to Tamal to save him. At this time in his life, Sequoia was going through a period of adolescent rebellion. Usually referred to as Quoi for short, he had taken the name "Q". He was captured by the pirate Raptra, but she decided not to deliver him to Thanos. They escaped to a region of space called "the Rot", in which space itself was being consumed by beings created by Death and Thanos. After a great battle involving the Avengers and Mantis, the Rot was defeated, then Quoi and Raptra remain in that sector of space to help its recovery.

Empyre

Under his fathers care, Quoi came to learnt the history of his people and the injustice that had been done to them. By this point, the Cotati had transformed their society from a peaceful one to one that sought vengeance against all animal races. They intended to launch a war against the universe to purge it of animals with them rallying under the Celestial Messiah. (Empyre v1 #2)

On the Moon, his father wanted Quoi to purge any emotions he might have towards the animal race and urged him to take part in the purifying Rootquest. Whilst meditating, he encountered a construct created by his mother Mantis who wanted to urge him away from the path he was following but he refused. Ultimately, he destroyed the construct as he was resolved to killing all the animal races for their crimes to the Cotati. (Lords of Empyre: Celestial Messiah v1 #1)

Using his amplified powers, Sequoia he kept the Avengers hostage where he offered them an ultimatum to either join the Cotati's cause or die. Thor managed to summon his hammer and called on thunder to free himself along with his compatriots. This led to Quoi fleeing the scene but he warned the Avengers not to interfere in his people's war against the Alliance. (Empyre v1 #2)

The Invisible Woman, the Thing, She-Hulk and Mantis managed to sneak their way behind enemy lines in order to meet Quoi himself. This was so that Mantis could make another appeal to her son to turn away from the path he had chosen. However, he was once again committed to his role in killing the animal races. It was then that a Cotati within She-Hulk sprouted and killed her where her husk was used against her former comrades. (Empyre v1 #4)

Overview

Personality and attributes

In time, he came to develop an absolute hatred of animal life for the near extermination of his people. (Empyre v1 #2)

Powers and abilities

Quoi can control life forces, absorbing energy from many sources ranging from individual life forms to the universe itself, and channel it at will to heal or for other purposes, including offensive energy blasts. His psionic powers are quite formidable, on the level of Thanos. He can breathe both carbon dioxide and/or oxygen due to his human–plant metabolism; he can also survive without either and without food for extended periods of time.

The power of the Death Blossom could greatly increase Sequoia's ability to control all plant-life across a world and beyond. (Empyre v1 #1)

Notes

• Sequoia was created by Steve Englehart and Rich Buckler where he made his first appearance in Fantastic Four v1 #325 (April, 1989).
• In an interview on Newsarama, writer Alex Paknadel said, "Quoi's a zealot, and like all zealots he truly thinks he's doing the right thing. Furthermore – and I think this is key - because he's only physically an adult due to the accelerated Cotati growth cycle, he's really a kid in king's ermine. I see him as almost a child soldier, with all the tragedy and misplaced trust that implies. There's no mustache-twirling dastardliness here, and I think that extends to how Quoi treats his former allies. In Empyre #1 his respect for some of the Avengers he's encountered before – particularly Thor, whom he bonded with demigod-to-demigod way back in Celestial Quest – is quite sincere. He sees himself as a righter of terrible wrongs – an Avenger if you will. Only trouble is, the perpetrator of those wrongs just happens to be animal life as a whole. That's bad news for us meat bags."

Appearances

• Fantastic Four v1: (1989)
• Empyre v1: (2020)
• Lords of Empyre: Celestial Messiah v1: (2020)

External Links

• Marvel Database Entry

This article is a stub. You can help Multiversal Omnipedia by expanding it.