Tigra
the Were-Woman is on the trail of Joshua Plague and the Rat Pack in the
Southern California desert when she is spotted by the Rat Pack’s Numbers 1 and
2 from their hovercraft. 1 tries to ram her with the craft and 2 (the female
Rat) jumps out to challenge Tigra to unarmed combat. 2 kicks Tigra in the head
and she flies into a rage, barely restraining herself to tear 2’s mask off
instead of her face. 2 introduces herself as Marie DuChailu, Madame Menace. As
they square off, Number 1 shoots Tigra with a gas gun. While he gloats, Tigra
recovers and fights both Rats and she is thumped on the head with a crowbar by
the previously unseen Number 5. As 1 and 5 bicker, the former demanding more
respect as second-in-command of the group, as they carry Tigra back to their HQ
in a hidden mountain stronghold….
Back
at the murder scene at the Indian Reservation (issue #3), the police have
checked out Red Wolf with the Avengers back in New York and they vouched for
him. So the Native American superhero and his pet wolf Lobo head off. He stops
to talk to Dr. Joanne Tumolo, who is with Professor Leon and Jules Bannion. He
thanks them for their concern and reveals that the thieves took the
Soul-Catcher, which is said to have fallen from the heavens and passed down
from chief to chief. He vows revenge for the murders and takes off on
horseback, following the trail of the animal woman he saw earlier. Dr. Tumolo
realizes he is after Tigra….
Back
at the bad guys’ HQ, Number 1 is complaining to Joshua Plague about Number 5’s
lack of respect for him. He reminds Plague that he was the one who formed the
Rat Pack, prompting Plague to remind him that the Rat Pack were a bunch of
scavengers defeated by Captain Marvel and to stop annoying him. Plague informs
them that they are abandoning the base and will be blowing the place up; he
orders them to chain Tigra to the control bank to die in the explosion. But
Tigra has awakened and starts fighting the group, taking advantage of the
surprise. Joshua Plague wields the Soul-Catcher and blasts her with it. The Rat
Pack members start wondering about the mysterious aims of their leader, the
thefts of experimental serums and his sudden display of superpowers. They chain
Tigra in place, see Red Wolf approaching on their screens, and set the timers
for twenty minutes, pack up all their stuff and depart on their underground
sled….
Tigra
awakens and tears out one of the chains holding her…then she turns to see Red
Wolf hurling his tomahawk at her….