The story opens with an exasperated
Jarvis slaving over Hawkeye's wardrobe and equipment; he takes his
revenge by pouring itching powder in the hero's costume. A sudden
scream attracts everyone's attention. Quicksilver, legs broken by Ox
of the Enforcers (last issue), has been brought to Avengers Mansion
by paramedics. New Avenger Cressida is able to amplify Pietro's
metabolism and accelerate his healing but he is depressed and wants
to give up running. A smart-mouthed comment by Hawkeye causes Pietro
to hurl a lamp at him so everybody leaves him alone with his sister
Wanda. Pietro accuses Wanda of faking her emotions for fame, and she
accuses him of wanting to keep her dependent—both ideas put into
their heads by Cressida....
Interlude: A masked figure hires the
Acrobat to impersonate Hawkeye, endowing him with the power to
recreate the archer's fabled deeds. And the transfer of power drains
the life from a nearby homeless man....
Reports that “Hawkeye” has robbed a
jewelry store sets Captain America and Hawkeye against each other and
the archer starts to walk out but Cap stops him. Cap asks the
Avengers plus Jarvis to gather in the meeting room. Cap announces
that the Avengers are in trouble. That they need to win back one
another's trust as well as the public's. He challenges the Frightful
Four, who had easily defeated the new Avengers team earlier (issue
1.1), to a rematch in public. With Cressida's support, the Avengers
(minus Quicksilver) are able to easily defeat their foes—until
Cressida secretly empowers Sandman who overcomes the heroes as only
Quicksilver could beat Sandman. Hawkeye fires an arrow at Wanda and
Pietro arrives immediately to deflect it—which was Hawkeye's intention. Quicksilver runs around the villain at such a speed as to
turn his sand into glass. Cap and the team then confront Cressida
about her betrayal. She tells them enigmatically about her grudge
against the Avengers, then she blasts them, draining them of their
life energies, leaving them aged husks....