Ambushed in the Mountain of the Universe: Chapter 3: Mind Over Matter Introduction

Greetings True Believers!

Once again, welcome back!
Holy mysterious mental gymnastics! Our heroes squeaked by that encounter by the skin of their gray matter!
Having survived the onslaught of what may have been an alternate Earth, not to mention older, version of the mentalist Scivias, our heroes now have to face the harder question ...
Just what is real? And what is mentalist illusions?
And to what end? The alternate Earth version of their Don Blake has yet to actually appear as expected. Their own Don Blake lies unconscious in the medical bay, where only Thunderstrike is able to lift him off the bed. Anyone else? Don feels as heavy as a mountain.
And then there is what seems to be the first alternate Earth version of any of Thunderstrike's family. Perhaps even Thunderstrike himself. Just who is this Brodir? What really is his stake in all this? He claims that evil Don Blake is after something that only Earth-Prime's Thunderstrike has. Perhaps Thunderstrike's hammer?
Fortunately, the hammer is in Atlantea being repaired.
And what of the mountain itself? Natural stargates materializing then vanishing into the glowing blue mineral veins? How does that tie in? Will our heroes figure out what in the name of Einstein-Rosen is going on?
I suppose they'll cross the bridge when they come to it!
But wait, True Believers! It looks like at least one or two of the monks from Kesang Jinpa are free of their crystal cages. Let's check-in and see if our heroes have learned anything new!
This is Not Stan Lee saying ...

EXCELSIOR!