West Coast Avengers Annual #1

Continued from AVENGERS ANNUAL #15.

In that issue the Avengers and West Coast Avengers were arrested by Freedom Force for treason and imprisoned in the Vault under the Colorado Rockies. Some unknown Avenger has brought evidence against them. But the new Spider-Woman left the other (ex-villain) members of FF and helped the Avengers escape (although they don't know it). Now we see them enter the cave that we actually left them in at the end of that issue.

The 2 teams are:- Avengers - Black Knight, Captain America, Captain Marvel, Hercules and Wasp. WCA - Hawkeye, Iron Man, Mockingbird, Tigra and Wonder Man. Plus Henry Pym.

Now they try to work out who the traitor might be. Hawkeye immediately discounts the current Avengers here, including ex-Avenger Hank Pym who's working with the WCA. Everybody agrees, and he starts working through a list of other candidates.

They were told the traitor is/was an Avenger, so Clint Barton rules out Thing and Firebird because they never actually joined the WCA (#4-10). Similarly Moondragon and Hellcat never became full members of the Avengers. And MD Marvel-died in Defenders #152, and Patsy Walker retired and married Daimon Hellstrom (Def#125). Ms Marvel became new heroine Binary in Uncanny X-Men #164 and is off in space.

Wasp takes up the list and says Starfox is in space too since Av#261, and Mantis since way back in Giant-Size Av #4. Swordsman died in GSAv#3, as did Jocasta in Marvel Two-In-One #93. Sub-Mariner has just left the ranks in Av#272 (for personal reasons). And Hulk is currently in SHIELD captivity split between Hulk and Bruce Banner (Hu#324).

Hawkeye takes the reigns back. The remaining possibilities are Thor, Vision, Scarlet Witch, Quicksilver, She-Hulk. Tigra adds in Black Panther. Mockingbird suggests Black Widow and the James Rhodes Iron Man. Clint finishes off with Beast and Falcon.

Nobody notices a blurry figure amongst them. And then there's a draught as they decide to contact the shortlist.

Captain Marvel heads to the Moon to contact Quicksilver (in Attilan with his wife Crystal and the other Inhumans).

Iron Man (Tony Stark) also heads high up to contact Rhodey in Los Angeles by line-of-sight without using any hackable satellite. He trusts his friend completely and invites him to join the hunt.

Tigra visits She-Hulk in the Fantastic Four's under-construction new HQ. She accepts Jennifer Walters' assurances that she isn't the traitor, but reminds herself that her own cat-side isn't so trustworthy lately. Mr Fantastic offers the Fantastic Four's help, but Tigra declines it.

Hawkeye rings up Black Panther in Wakanda, and T'Challa sets off to join his friends.

Thor is angry with Hercules. It's not because Herc has jeopardised his secret identity Sigurd Jarlson. And Herc doesn't seem to have suggested he might be the traitor. But Herc is wasting time eating Kentucky Fried Chicken when they should be flying to their friends' aid.

Captain America recruits Falcon at his social worker office.

Wasp rings Beast who's now back to looking human and with the original X-Men as X-Factor. Henry McCoy says the team are trying to stay under the government's radar currently, but offers his help if they really need him. Wasp says it's cool.

Mockingbird looks up Black Widow. They both think about the fact that they've both been Hawkeye's lover. Ex-spy Natasha Romanov guesses that Henry Peter Gyrich may not have told the truth (in the WCA Annual) about what treasonable information he has nor what his source is. But she's going to lend her expertise.

Wonder Man visits Scarlet Witch and Vision at home with their new babies. He accepts that they aren't traitors and can't leave their children to help. But when he's gone they exchange worried comments about who they think the traitor might be ...

... because there's only 1 person not accounted for yet. Black Panther, Black Widow, Falcon, Iron Man (James Rhodes) and Thor have joined the 2 current teams in a cabin in the woods. And Captain Marvel arrives to say that Wanda's brother Quicksilver is no longer with the Inhumans on the Moon.

Iron Man (Tony Stark) definitely thinks he's a possibility for the traitor. Hawkeye leaps to the defence of a fellow member of Cap's Kooky Quartet from Av#16 onwards. Thor too thinks Pietro earned their trust then, and prefers to accuse Henry Pym who shamed the team in #212-217. Now it's Hank's ex-wife Wasp to do the defending. Since he was cleared of some of the events then and accepted responsibility for the others he has found a new equilibrium in his new non-superhero scientific support role.

Quicksilver ends the arguments by showing himself and brazenly admitting his 'guilt' of taking vengeance on them. He claims to have always been an outsider, and continually betrayed. He launches into his history in support of these claims.

Their father Magneto 'enslaved' Pietro and Wanda in the original Brotherhood Of Evil Mutants (from X-Men #4 on). They escaped and joined the Avengers (with Hawkeye from Av#16), but the synthetic Vision 'seduced' his sister - supported by the Avengers. In #104 he was seriously injured by Sentinels and the team didn't try to find him.

Instead he was rescued by Crystal of the Inhumans. He loved her and married her and went to the Moon with the rest of her race - but again an outsider. But then in Vision & Scarlet Witch #10 Crystal had an affair with a human, and Wanda tried to get him to forgive her - more betrayals.

The bitter mutant gave information against the team to Gyrich. But if the government can't punish them then he will do it himself - the only person he can actually trust. (Except for the small 'army' he's assembled to work for him.)

Pietro tells them he has set up battles in 3 places:- The circus where the original team 1st came together to fight Hulk. Avengers Mansion. And the Australian site where they left him to die. Then he zooms off. CM gives chase in light-form, but Quickie's speed makes him invisible.

The group splits up. The current Avengers take the Mansion. The WCA go to the circus. And the extras head for Australia. Henry Pym is left behind, but he has his own plan.

In New York's Central Park we discover who QS's army is - the LMD version of the Zodiac gang created by Scorpio in Def#50. 4 of them are here:- Aries, Cancer, Gemini and Taurus. Pietro arrives and leads them into Avengers Mansion where they are greeted by Henry Peter Gyrich and Freedom Force. HPG admits to losing the Avengers, but Quicksilver informs them that he has lured some of the heroes here.

However he doesn't want FF involved, only his Zodiac. Mystique objects to the use of the criminal LMD's, but Pietro counters that FF themselves used to be the criminal Brotherhood Of Evil Mutants. (In his mixed-up way he calls them an inferior version to the original group, who he had just slagged off to the Avengers.) HPG gives in diplomatically and the FF exit. Gyrich still has guards everywhere, but Quicksilver is confidant the Avengers will get past them.

Black Knight, Captain America, Captain Marvel, Hercules and Wasp are sneaking in through a submarine tunnel they 'forgot' to tell the government about. But Pietro knew, and he's sent Aries and Taurus to guard it. They rip the access ladder from the wall bringing BK and Herc down with it. The other 3 follow to help. Once they're all in the water QS throws a purge switch and they are all ejected back down the tunnel. CM blasts a hole to the surface in the Park and the others are sucked(?) out behind her.

Quicksilver is waiting for them with Cancer and Gemini. Wasp has worked out that these aren't the (human) Zodiac the Avengers fought in #120-122 (and earlier). CM remembers hearing about the LMD team.

BK and Herc are recovering from nearly drowning. CM chases QS while Wasp fights Cancer who shoots jets of water. CA takes on Gemini who can double his size. But that's not enough against Cap. Also the LMD suddenly switches allegiance, as he has been known to do. Wasp electrocutes Cancer via his water with her sting. CM follows QS inside a building and loses him.

Meanwhile BK and Herc have recovered. But they are all attacked by HPG's agents. CM digs another tunnel and the Avengers escape.

Hank Pym has gone to see Vision.

Quicksilver runs to Monument Valley Arizona to meet Libra, Leo, Scorpio and Virgo. He leads them to the Keibler Circus where they cause havoc that the WCA have to deal with. For some reason the circus' Human Cannonball is eager for Scorpio to fire him at Hawkeye and Mockingbird, knocking them off a trapeze artist's platform and knocking Bobbi Barton out. While Iron Man and Wonder Man put some animals back in their cages, and Tigra attacks Leo.

A Hawkeye trick shot takes down Libra while Pietro runs away. Virgo surrenders to the archer but Scorpio burrows underground and pops up to hit him with a neurotoxin gas. But the same gas also effects WM but not before he tags Scorpio. IM KO's Leo but Virgo freezes his armour with an energy siphon. But Tigra then deals with her.

Wanda is ready to go reason with her brother, but Vizh won't let her.

The 3rd scenario takes place in the deserted 'anthill' HQ of the Sentinels from Av#104. Aquarius, Capricorn, Pisces and Sagittarius are the Zodiac members waiting here. QS arrives and leads them inside. But the place is only deserted because the Avengers have got here 1st and evacuated the government workers who have taken over this base. Zodiac face Black Panther, Black Widow, Falcon, Iron Man (James Rhodes) and Thor.

IM chases after QS. Thor hurls Mjolnir at Pisces. BP tackles Aquarius, and BW goes after Capricorn. Falcon faces the energy arrows of Sagittarius. Natasha is worried about another ex-lover Matt Murdock and is tagged by an electro-blitz from Aquarius, but BP lays him low. Thor's mind too is on other things - Balder having to replace Odin on the throne of Asgard, and the facial scars he himself hides with a beard. But then he pulls himself together and despatches Pisces with ease.

Thor and Rhodey chase Quicksilver but get in each other's way. Panther and Widow combine forces to bring down the acrobatic Capricorn. Sagitttarius' arrows set Falcon's wings alight, but this doesn't stop him from diving onto his foe and knocking him out.

Everyone follows QS outside where they find all the other Avengers have arrived. But Pietro has an experimental particle beam weapon from the Australian site's store, and he's not afraid to use it.

But then the ghostly Vision appears with a gift from the speedster's sister Wanda. It is a ruby, and when Vizh's solar ray and Captain Marvel's laser beam shine through it the gem projects a hologram of Pietro's new nephews Tommy and Billy. If QS is determined to kill all Avengers then that includes the boys' parents. Pietro relents and runs off.

Hawkeye thinks it's time to return to the baseball game they were having in the WCA Annual, only this time with even more Avengers. And he chooses Thor to add to his team.