A
band of new Defenders led by Hercules (Hellcat, Black Goliath, Iron Fist,
Torpedo, White Tiger, Captain Ultra) and a gang of crooks claiming to be the
Defenders led by Sagittarius (Porcupine, Blob, Beetle, Whirlwind, Batroc,
Electro, Looter, Plantman) are each claiming to be the good guys and accusing
the others of robbing the Diamond District. The police decide to arrest
everyone and sort it out at the station. When Herc produces his Avengers ID,
the bad guys take off so the good guys pursue, leaving the cops yelling. The
Defenders catch up to the crooks in Grand Central Station, battling them on the
subway platform. The bad guys board a train, using Electro’s power to double
the train’s speed. Black Goliath tries to halt the train manually but only
succeeds in separating the last car from the rest. They run back to the surface
where Captain Ultra can follow the train’s progress with his scanner vision….
At
Empire State University, Dollar Bill greets Horace Ledge, just released from
the hospital, and Professor Turk who has an idea that may intrigue Bill….
In
the Wall Street area, Nighthawk’s team (Nova, Marvel Man, Tagak, Polaris, Son
of Satan) comes upon a crook stealing a woman’s purse—and it’s the kid they
caught stealing his father’s car last time, only now he’s pranking his mother.
Fed up with Nighthawk’s leadership, the other heroes quit the team and take
off. Then he learns the Stock Exchange is being destroyed by another band of
evil Defenders, this time led by Libra of Zodiac (Toad, Shocker, Boomerang,
Leap-Frog, Melter, Joe the Gorilla, Pecos, Cap’n Skragg). Shocker bullies a
broker into investing in Kyle Richmond’s company, putting a million dollars
into a brand-new Swiss bank account for him, just as Nighthawk crashes through
the window. The hero is so outnumbered and outmatched that Melter takes him
down in seconds and the crooks depart. A groggy Nighthawk goes out in search of
allies….
In
the subway, Hercules stands in front of the train bearing the bad guys and it
crashes into him. There is a fight in the tunnel and Blob gets Hellcat in a
chokehold; on the verge of death by strangulation, she unleashes her latent
psychic powers, knocking everyone unconscious, hero and villain alike….
Nighthawk
locates Valkyrie’s team of Defenders (Falcon, Torpedo, Stingray, Prowler, Jack
of Hearts) and they hunt down Libra’s gang at the docks where they are
hijacking the Staten Island Ferry. Having achieved equilibrium, Libra departs,
joined by his toady, Toad, leaving the others to fight. Joe the Gorilla puts
Val in a chokehold and she unleashes a sudden power: she hallucinates, believing
she is back in Viking times, battling trolls. Val goes berserk and clobbers
everyone with Dragonfang, friend and foe alike. Many of the baddies flee and
new Defenders resign because of her fury. Nighthawk tries to calm her down and
she nearly kills him before coming to her senses. She collapses and Kyle promises
to get her the best health care money can buy but she despairs, knowing no one
can understand her inner turmoil, setting an Asgardian persona in a mortal
body….
In
Russia, scientists at the Soviet Research Institute decide that nothing can be
done for Red Guardian after her exposure to radiation but containment. Then
word comes that Codename: Sergei (now the Presence) has entered the Forbidden
Zone and reawakened the giant Amoeba….