The mind of a broken soul is simplistic at best. They rarely display emotion of any kind unless it is related to pain. It was pain the sorcerer Casavan used to control them.

During his relentless search for a specific talisman to separate a demon from its host, Casavan had found need of lackeys. He needed an army which he would one day use in full force. The people making up this personal assemblage had been stripped of their motivations, emotions, and desires. They now only served.

He had created his undead servants using a dark spell that had long since been forgotten by most practitioners, except for those familiar with the craft of necromancy. A once normal human was now trapped in a body of decaying flesh. Every last shred of humanity was completely abolished from his slaves. It was his “teacher” that had showed him how to twist the human soul into what he desired. While he was grateful, he held no love for his former master. He suspected the greatest secrets had been withheld from him on purpose.

Why spend lots of money or make hollow promises in return for loyalty when it was far simpler to just take what he wanted? The dark sorcerer gathered groups of people no one would miss (such as the homeless), broke their wills, and rotted their flesh. They served as his own personal bodyguards and servants. Other people may refer to them as “zombies.”

The near mindless humans did what they were commanded to do. Right now, their master had ordered them to guard his fortress. There was only one entrance: the front gate on the north side of the complex. Casavan’s base was a single structure imbedded in the heart of Texas. Several levels deep, it rested inside the Earth.

His army was spread out among the levels, while a cluster of them remained outside the gate. They were hidden by foliage and shadows cast by the towering obelisks Casavan had placed to help channel the dormant magic of the land. The perverse ritual he was orchestrating within the stronghold required the power to fuel his spell.

The creatures, while powerful in their own right (increased strength and stamina), weren’t very perceptive. They were beings of base functions, which is why Casavan liked them. They were easy to manipulate. They saw the approaching aircraft from several miles away, but they didn’t give it a second thought. It wasn’t until it landed fifty yards from the entrance that they considered it might be a threat.

The boarding ramp extended from the back of the ship as the rear doors opened. From within the large craft exited the Heroes For Hire: Iron Fist, Cage, Photon, Deathlok and their guest, the mysterious woman known as Diamond Dust.

“Sensors indicate no activity in the area. No alarms, no traps,” said the cyborg Deathlok, “Nothing.”

Iron Fist moved to the front of the group to survey the entrance their guest had led them to. “Stay alert, team. We were set up before and there’s a chance we’re being set up again.”

“I don’t care if you help me or not,” chimed in Diamond Dust, “but I’m going in. David will die if I don’t do something.” She was already in her solidified phase, now covered from head to toe in what looked like a hard, white substance. Her fingers had lengthened slightly to form sharp talons, ready to tear into an enemy.

“Sweetheart, you aren’t going anywhere without us watching your every move,” said the street hero Luke Cage. “I trust you about as far as I can throw you…although since I guess I could throw you pretty far, that was a bad example.”

“Whatever.” She pushed passed Iron Fist and Deathlok and broke into a steady jog toward the entrance. She barely ran twenty feet before three of Casavan’s soldiers jumped her from out of nowhere.

“Figures…” muttered Photon as she converted herself into a being of pure energy and took to the air.

Several more of the creatures appeared from behind their hiding places, all of them belching animalistic sounds. Zombies, Photon thought as she unleashed a volley of plasma bursts, mindless creatures that can’t even speak anymore. No reasoning with this things.

“Cage; Deathlok; Photon! Get inside! There aren’t many out here, we’ll handle them!”

Iron Fist wasted no time shouting commands to his teammates. He was the field leader of the new H4H, but he found himself hoping that the team’s relative inexperience working together wouldn’t be their downfall. He and Luke had a long history together, but he had only operated with Monica on a handful of occasions and with Deathlok even less.

Once we get this over with, we’re logging some hours in the training room, thought Iron Fist.

“Keep on eye on our girl, Fist!” Cage yelled over his shoulder. He didn’t even slow down as he ran up to the entrance, crashing into the three feet thick stone door. After the resonating noise and dust dissipated, Deathlok and Photon poured into the opening and into the depths of Casavan’s hideaway.

“Arrggh!” screamed Diamond Dust. Five of the zombie-like people had piled on top of her. Her solidified form kept them from really causing her any harm, but she was immobile and couldn’t get any leverage. She wanted to change the density of her body and phase free, but she couldn’t…not when she felt boxed in like this…there was no room, no light…she felt confined and trapped. “Get off of me! Oh, God, get away!”

“Don’t panic, I’m here!” said Iron Fist. He pulled the first mindless creature off the pile, but was caught off guard by something striking the back of his skull. He let out a small yelp and quickly went into a crouch before springing to his left. Two other zombies left to guard the entrance were behind him, one with a tree branch in his hand.

Fast little buggers, thought Iron Fist, not like in the movies. These guys look rapid!

Iron Fist rubbed the back of his head and stood up. He took a split second to focus before dashing toward the two creatures. The one with the tree branch swung at the martial artist once again, but Iron Fist stepped to the side and unleashed a kick to the creature’s abdomen that could crush several cinder blocks. In one fluid motion, he followed it up with a spin kick to the head. The once homeless man turned undead creature was sent flying back several feet, bits of his rotting flesh flaking off.

The other opponent lunged, but was caught in the act by the back of the hero’s fist. In a blur of motion, Iron Fist sent two snap kicks with his right leg to the zombie’s face and then extended his left leg straight up in the air. He forcefully brought his heel down onto the top of the zombie’s skull, knocking him to the ground.

The whole exchange had taken less than twenty seconds to transpire. Both of the former humans would not be getting up.

Diamond Dust had managed to claw at one of the zombies piled on top of her enough that it backed away, seething with undirected rage. As Iron Fist approached once again, another zombie jumped back and slumped over, his head missing a large chunk on the left side.

“Back off!” he could hear her yell. Iron Fist pulled two more of the creatures off, one in each hand. Now that light and fresh air was reaching her face, she felt the anxiety from before start to slip away. She grasped the last zombie’s head with both of her hands, and slammed her diamond hard forehead into his chin, resulting in a loud crack. Her assailant slumped to the ground beside her.

By the time she stood up, Iron Fist had already dispatched the other two zombies. “You okay?” he asked.

“Yeah…fine,” she said between breaths. “I’ve fought Casavan’s slaves before. Nothing I can’t handle. Just watch out for the teeth. We need to get inside with your friends and find David.”

She had barely finished the sentence and turned to face the entrance before two dozen more zombies appeared, blocking their path.

“K’un Lun save us…” muttered Iron Fist. 

“Sweet Christmas…” muttered Cage. “I hate zombies.”

Cage, Deathlok, and Photon had all rushed into Casavan’s fortress, not knowing what to expect. Just passed the front entrance was a room full of stone tables with many ancient looking things strewn about them. After pausing to take in their surroundings, the small team had been attacked by a horde of Casavan’s captives.

“You and me both,” said Photon while bombarding a cluster of zombies with a tightly focused beam of electrons, “We can’t waste time here. If what Lynn said was true, we need to get to Casavan as fast as possible.”

“Cage, get to the stairs on the other side of the room! Start heading down!” yelled Deathlok. He held twin blasters in his hands and was showing no mercy to the now undead creatures. There seemed to be no end to them. They were crawling out from behind everything with fists and teeth flying. No sooner had he shot a hole through one decaying head before two more took its place.

Cage pulled his right fist back, ready to send it flying into the face of another zombie. “On the way!” he yelled back, as he was about to knock the ever-living daylights out of the zombie. Just before he threw the punch though, he felt something press into his arm. He turned his head to see another creature trying to chew through his diamond hard skin.

“Oh, for crying out…” Cage reached over with his other arm and palmed the zombie’s head. “That’s just disgustin’. And that’s coming from a guy who’s cleaned up after one of Hercules’ binges.”

With his enormous strength, Cage had no trouble lifting the snarling once-man by his head and using him like a club to wallop his first target in front of him. The two members of the undead were sent flying to the wall.

Cage charged the next group in front of him, ready to pummel as many as he had to. He still didn’t trust this “Diamond Dust,” but what choice did he have? He had been set up, and that was one of the things he had hated most in life. Being framed before his career even started, Cage remembered how helpless he had felt. Death would have to claim him before he let this Casavan guy pull one over.

Suddenly, the entire group of zombies he was charging at exploded in a burst of energy and was scattered about the room. He followed the trail of ionized air back to its source to see Photon smiling down at him. “Thanks, Mon. Give ‘em hell, will ya?”

“We’ll back you up in a minute. Get going, Buns of Steel,” she said as she winked at him.

Cage shot passed the disoriented zombies and made his way down the stairs, preparing himself for whatever lay in wait on the lower levels. 

“I swear…grrrr…if I ev…GRRRRAAHHH!”

The man the H4H was searching for, a speedster that had somehow been bonded with a demon, screamed in pure agony. It felt as if a piece of his very soul was being ripped away. In theory, however, that’s exactly what was happening.

“Shut up, you fool.” Casavan, still dressed like the U.S. diplomat he was pretending to be, slapped David across the face. “I can feel the power seeping out of you,” he said as he closed his eyes and took in a deep breath, “I can feel it pulsating within the talisman. Once the summoning is complete, I’ll have what is rightfully mine, and you shall die like the little whelp that you are.”

“Farrggghhck you!” gasped David. Casavan had plunged a silver cylinder into his chest, but instead of blood pouring out of the wound, blue energy fell forth and rippled across the smooth surface of the talisman. It hurt worse than anything he had ever experienced before.

“Fuck me? Fuck you!” said Casavan, slapping David across the face once again. “You are nothing compared to me. The demon is mine! It always was! I don’t know how you and your little bitch did it, but I want back what you stole from me. You don’t even comprehend what you have, you ignorant little pissant!”

Between breaths, David tried to respond. “…didn’t steal…moron. Don’t know…how it happened. Just ‘cause…you’re magically impotent…”

David expected to be slapped again, but instead Casavan just laughed. “Impotent, eh? Once you’re dead, I’ll prove just how ‘impotent’ I am. Maybe with your little harlot. Lynn, was her name?”

David struggled against his chains, but to no avail. He was helpless and dying, and the evil sorcerer’s laughter only became louder. 

Seriously, thought Cage, how many decayed heads do I have to bash in here?

Several chambers later, Luke Cage had found himself in another dark room, similar to the first one he had entered. There was only one large difference. At the center of the room was a large hole going so far down into the planet that he couldn’t make out the bottom. To make matters worse, there were no other doorways or stairs in the room.

“Oh, hell no! You’ve got to be kidding me. I don’t even know this guy, and now I have to dive bomb into the great beyond? I must have missed a staircase somewhere back there.”

A loud, snarling growl echoed from behind Cage. The sounds were deeper, more inhuman than what he had heard coming from the mouths of those zombies. He turned to see two large dogs blocking the way he had come in. Something was wrong with them; something wasn’t quite right. He squinted to try and make out the animals better in the dark light.

Are they bleeding? What the hell is on their… Cage’s eyes shot open as wide as they could. It wasn’t blood on the dogs’ fur, but it did look wet. A black liquid was oozing out of their bodies as chunks of rotted flesh hung all over, partially attached. “CHRISTMAS! Zombie pit bulls??”

The twin dogs lunged at the hero, their teeth sharp and their mouths foaming. Cage instinctively raised his arms in defense as the animals tried to tear into his skin. The momentum of the dogs’ attack forced Cage to take several steps backward. A swift kick sent one away, but the second got close enough to his head to latch onto his neck.

The dog had closed its strong jaw as hard as it could around Cage’s windpipe. While his skin was dense enough to keep the undead animal’s teeth from penetrating, he was still having trouble breathing.

Struggling to rip the mutt away before he blacked out, Cage took several more steps back, teetering on the edge of the large hole. Finally, after a tug strong enough to snap industrial cable, Cage freed himself from the dog’s vice grip. He tossed the animal against the wall, hearing several bones shatter and a yelp from the dog upon impact.

“God…this is the worst day everrraaaAAAAAH!”

The remaining animal had recovered faster from Cage’s kick than he had anticipated and had charged the urban hero, slamming into him and sending them both over the edge. The dark void swallowed up both of their forms, along with Luke Cage’s screams.

The smell of death lingered on the decaying swarms crowding around Deathlok and Photon. Their backs were to the wall, metaphorically. Never before had either hero witnessed such anger without any direction. Whatever creatures couldn’t make it to the heroes turned on each other. It was a total frenzy.

Deathlok’s own preserved flesh looked remarkably similar to that of the zombies’. So similar, in fact, that it gave him an idea.

“Photon! Can you bathe the room in gamma radiation?” They were holding their own, but there seemed to be no end to the creatures. Casavan’s structure was like a giant labyrinth, and he wasn’t quite sure which way Cage had gone. They were running out of time.

Photon blasted another group of the undead as she swung low to the ground near her teammate. “Yeah, no problem. But why? Every George Romero movie I’ve ever seen says that radiation is what makes these cannibals.”

“Just cover me for a second and then light this place up when I say,” said Deathlok. He holstered his blasters and slid back a compartment on his high-tech backpack. He pulled out a small metal tube and tossed it in the middle of the closest pack of zombies. “This is going to hurt me, too, but don’t worry. I’ll be okay.”

“What is going to hurt you, too?”

“Just do it! Flood this place!”

Monica Rambeau, utilizing her ability to convert her body into anything falling within the electromagnetic spectrum, did as she was ordered. Her body shimmered green as she raised her hands and unleashed a concentrated wave of gamma radiation.

The zombies weren’t even phased. They kept coming toward the pair, ready to try and digest the heroes. It wasn’t until the metal tube Deathlok had thrown out burst from the gamma exposure that the zombies halted. What could only be interpreted as confusion spread over their faces, but was soon replaced with agonizing screams of pure pain.

Photon could see the decaying flesh of the zombies start to peel away as smoke began to arise from the gaping holes left behind. After barely thirty seconds, all of the undead vermin lay motionless on the floor.

“What did I just do exactly?” she asked, but Deathlok didn’t respond. She looked down at her teammate who was balled up on the floor, covering his face with his metallic hands. He was twitching slightly and there seemed to be a slight amount of smoke making its way through his fingers.

She rushed to his side, proclaiming, “Deathlok! Are you okay?”

After he stopped twitching, he released his face and sat up. “Yes. At least, I will be.” The preserved part of his face, one of the few things that marked him as human, looked like it had been held up against a furnace. “Life support systems are working hard, but I’ll be fine in a few hours.”

“What was in that vial?”

Deathlok grabbed Photon’s arm and hauled himself up off the ground. “A dose of the serum I use to help keep my muscle tissue animated. Gamma radiation has an adverse effect on it. Accelerates the deterioration instead of stopping it. I wasn’t entirely sure it would work, but apparently it did.”

“You sure you’ll be okay?”

“Yes. I just don’t look like it,” he said, “We need to split if we’re going to back up Cage. He’s not answering his comlink. Take that corridor over there. Head down. Be careful.”

She nodded and took off into the air, hoping she hadn’t lost a teammate before their first mission was over. 

Casavan had ceased slapping David across the face so he could prepare for the completion of his goal. He had removed his suit jacket and tie so that when he achieved ultimate power, he would feel a little more comfortable.

“You know, they say pink is a power color,” he said, smiling. “Trump is an imbecile. I’ll show them the color of true pow…”

BOOM!

Casavan whipped his body around to see what had caused the massive eruption of sound. A thick layer of dust swept across the basement, hindering his vision. He flapped his arms wildly, trying to clear the air. “What, sincerely, the fuck is going on?!?”

Several seconds passed before the air had cleared enough for the sorcerer to see what had kicked up the dust. From the back corner of the room, a tall black man limped out from the shadows, dragging a motionless undead animal.

“Why the hell do you have a giant well in your place?” Luke Cage asked meekly. Blood was dripping from his mouth and nose, and his voice was barely audible. He stopped his approach and let the zombie pit bull fall to the ground. Even a blind man could see how wrecked Cage was. The hero was obviously in no condition to put up much of a struggle.

Casavan began chuckling while responding to Cage’s question. “You really think I would walk down all those stairs every time I needed to come down here? Our school systems must really be failing."

“Little man, you’re about to get yours.”

“Is this where I insult your stereotype?”

The evil magic user leapt straight up into the air and floated closer to Cage’s weary body. “In a few moments, none of you will be able to stop me. To pass the time, how about you and I have a little chat?”

Dark energy arced across the empty space between the two, and Luke Cage’s impressive muscles tensed under Casavan’s onslaught. 

Outside of the stronghold, Iron Fist and Diamond Dust stood back to back. Their bodies were badly bruised and they were breathing deeply. Only three zombies remained to oppose them.

Diamond Dust lunged with her claws first, sweeping the legs out from under two of the creatures, taking chunks of skin with them. She was on top of them before they hit the ground.

“It’s not often I can use deadly force with a clear conscious,” Iron Fist said as he swiftly snapped the neck of the last remaining threat. He regained his composure, steadying himself.

Iron Fist filled his lungs with fresh air. Perspiration ran down his face. I’m totally worn out, he thought, this had better be the last of them. I need a bath and one of Misty’s back rubs something fierce. Even a few of the trials I underwent at K’um Lun were less intense.

Diamond Dust, while just as exhausted as Iron Fist, had no intentions of slowing down. The man she loved most in the world was still in great danger. She had to hurry. “Come on! Let’s go!” yelled Lynn. “He’s killing David! We need to get to him, NOW!”

“Hold on,” Iron Fist shouted back, “We don’t even know how much longer it will take Casavan to complete his spell. We may not have time to find him. The others are in there somewhere. We need a better plan than to just run around blindly.”

“Why are we even talking about it? I don’t have time for this!”

Iron Fist began to chase after her, but stopped himself when he came near one of the towering obelisks, which were now glowing. “Hey…HEY! DD! What did you say about Casavan needing to drain the dormant magic around here?”

“He needs it to fuel the separation spell,” she said. When she noticed that Iron Fist was craning his head back to get a better look at one of the towers, it finally dawned on her. “These things are siphoning the power out of the ground! If we take these out, maybe we can save David!”

For the first time since they left Peru, Lynn finally felt like she would actively be able to do something to save her husband. She backtracked to where Iron Fist was standing, craning her neck like his to try and find a way to somehow shut the obelisk down.

“Any ideas?” she asked.

“Yep, five of them. Stand back.” Iron Fist fell into a stance he had posed in many times before. He brought his right hand up and concentrated. Quicker than one might think, Daniel Rand summoned forth his chi, his life force, and condensed it into his fist. Energy spilled out between his fingers, evaporating into the air.

Expelling the breath from his lungs to verbalize his inner strength, Iron Fist shook the very foundation of the tall obelisk with just one blow from his powered up hand.

Bits of stone broke off the tower and a crack appeared where his fist had landed. The crack spread up the height of the obelisk, and within seconds began to crumble. The eerie glow subsided as Casavan’s parasitic structure fell to the ground.

“Wow,” was all Diamond Dust could think to say. Once the tower had fallen completely apart and the echoing rumble faded away, she said, “Now what?”

“Now we knock down the rest of them.”

“I have no idea why my old teacher wanted me to take you along for the ride so bad, but I have to say I’m not impressed. What kind of escort were you?”

Luke Cage was now hovering in the air, eye level to Casavan, held up by the dark magic. The sorcerer’s power was coursing through him in such a painful amount, that Cage was ready to pass out. The only other person in the room was in no way able to assist him.

David, still chained to the wall, was forced to witness Casavan try to murder the Hero For Hire. His own pain was too great for him to even pull together coherent thoughts. For all the power he had within himself, he was helpless.

“I mean seriously, Luke. May I call you Luke? What good have you even been? From what I saw in Peru, all you did was get your ass whooped. Then you come here and fall down a hole. I can’t believe I was talked into hiring you.”

David tried to concentrate. It wasn’t easy because of the enormous pressure the separation spell was putting on his soul. The pressure had gotten steadily worse over the last few hours, like a migraine forming behind his eyes. But as he thought this, he realized something else. He could move his hands. He hadn’t been able to do that for an hour.

It still hurts…but…it’s not getting any worse. In fact, it feels like I…can…almost…

The prisoner bent his body forward as much as the chains would allow. He cleared his mind and delved to the beastly soul within. With a final heave, he puffed out his chest, while trying to mentally ‘push’ the cylinder out of his body. With a crackle of blue energy, the talisman burst from his chest.

Casavan turned away from Cage and back to his captive. “WHAT?!? What have you done?” Cutting off the stream of dark power pouring into Cage, Casavan dropped to the ground and ran to pick up the cylinder. “But..how?”

He closed his eyes, pushing out his magical senses. With a quick jerk, he gazed straight up into the stone ceiling. “My Funneling Towers! What did those bastards do?!?”

Casavan felt a slight tap on his shoulder and felt like his world had ended when he heard Cage say, “If you have your receipt, I would be more than happy to give you a refund.”

Cage threw a right cross into Casavan’s face that sent him spiraling through the air and into the wall. Blood and teeth fell from his mouth as he tried to stand up. In his weakened state, Cage wouldn’t be able to put up much more of a fight than that.

“Damn you! I can still kill all of you, with or without my demon!”

“Go ahead and try,” Cage challenged, stumbling to where David was chained. Trying harder than he normally would have, the chains shattered in Cage’s grip, dropping David to the floor.

The rage behind David’s eyes added power to the stare he gave his captor. “I don’t think I can even begin to describe the torment you’ve given me. You don’t deserve to live, you worthless, inhuman, maggot!”

“You brought it on yourself, fool! You took what was mine!”

“Only a self-righteous buffoon like you would see it that way. Enough of this.”

Cage’s eyes were barely able to follow the lightning fast motions of the man he had freed. Air swirled around the room as David sprinted for Casavan. He slammed into the sorcerer, lifting him up off the stone floor. The force at which David had hit his target was so great that Cage was almost knocked off his feet. Casavan’s screams echoed up through the well Cage had fallen through.

The sound of the sorcerer’s collarbone snapping was like music to the speedster’s ears. The pain of nearly having his soul ripped out was fading fast and he felt a second wind coming on, but it still hurt to concentrate. David stopped his run, letting go of Casavan at the same time. His enemy flew through the air, unable to slow his voyage through the open space. With another loud crack, Casavan sailed through a row of wooden tables that had ancient texts scattered across them. Pages and wood chips exploded around Casavan as he skidded to a stop on the cold floor.

David zoomed up to stand over his foe. Gathering his strength, he began to vibrate his body, feeling the demon inside begging to be released. Blue energy rippled across his face, almost contorting it. “You want the demon? You want to see what kind of animal you want to control? Fine. It will peel the skin off your scrawny hide.”

The energy spread to cover David’s entire body. His image darkened, and his teeth started to sharpen into fine points. He was going to let out his other half, and he no longer cared what the consequences were. The way Casavan had invaded his soul, David imagined it felt similar to what a rape victim must feel.

Casavan reached up from where he lay on the floor in his own blood, and grabbed David’s leg, sending a searing amount of energy through the appendage. David let out a wild, beastly roar before going limp.

Casavan spat a mouthful of blood on the floor. “I’ll roast each and every last one of you!” He pointed his hands at Cage, a ball of fire forming in them. “Even if I have to use up the last of my power to kill you, I’ll savor it into the dep…”

BLAM!

The shot rang out into the now quiet room. Cage, who had been shielding his eyes from the growing inferno Casavan was palming, lowered his arms. There was a little drop of blood from a cut in his forehead he had to wipe away before he could make out the image of Deathlok, still holding his blaster in his outstretched hand.

“Savor that,” the cyborg said.

Deathlok, still keeping his sights on Casavan, ran into the room to help Cage remain steady on his feet. “Can you walk out of here?” he asked.

“Yeah…I’ll be okay. Nothing I can’t handle,” Luke Cage replied wearily. “Help the kid over there. He got zapped pretty good before you came in.”

Wisps of smoke rose from David’s now unconscious form. Burn marks scorched his leg, but Deathlok could see he was breathing regularly. He would live, unlike his tormentor.

Two days later, the Heroes For Hire sat on a raised platform in front of their Chicago headquarters. Iron Fist, Cage, Photon, and Deathlok, along with Lynn (who had broken her arm while toppling one of Casavan’s towers, and now wore a sling) and David, all stood behind an array of microphones while cameras flashed in front of them. Behind the team, surprising many members of the press, stood Iron Man. The gathered press showed no remorse in the amount of questions they threw at the heroes.

“Are U.S. relations with Peru severed?”

“What do you think of the mutant problem?”

“Are you a subsidiary of the Avengers?”

“Does your costume ever ride up in the back?”

“Can I get your opinion on Force Works’ current situation?”

Iron Fist rolled his eyes. This wasn’t something he particularly liked. He felt like a piece of meat hanging in the butcher’s window. “Ladies and gentlemen, please bear with us for just a moment. We’ll be free to answer your questions after our initial announcement.

“Two days ago, the newly reformed Heroes For Hire completed its first mission. After consulting with the United States government, and certain U.N. officials, we’ve determined that the real U.S. diplomat we had thought we were assigned to protect was murdered at his estate here in Chicago.”

Iron Fist sensed more questions waiting to be tossed out, so he quickly raised his hand to try and silence the crowd. “More than just us were fooled by the impostor. Heroes For Hire has closed the case, and does not harbor any ill will toward the U.S., Peru, or any other parties. We all got taken for a ride on this one.

“During the operation in Texas, one of our members was forced into a position that heroes hate. Deathlok, seeing no other option, was forced to shoot the impostor, killing him. This series of events is most unfortunate. Life is precious to all of us, and we try hard to prevent needless deaths from ever happening.

“Although the success of this mission cannot necessarily be thought of as normal, we would like to announce that some good that has come from it. Without the help of these two people to my left,” Iron Fist said as he gestured to Lynn and David, “the H4H would not have been able to stop the imposter. They are two brave individuals that deserve recognition for their efforts.

“Luckily, they’ve allowed us to talk them into joining us here at H4H. The public should take pride in the fact that these two new heroes will be on hand to assist in thwarting those who would jeopardize the safety of others.”

As a round of applause slowly gained momentum in the crowd, Luke Cage bent down to whisper to Photon. “Thwarting those who would jeopardize? Where the hell did he get a line like that?”

“He was nervous, so I told him to say something Captain America-ish,” she replied.

Once the clapping died down, a short man Iron Fist recognized as a member of the Chicago Globe yelled out, “Kyle Allen; Globe. This is directed to Iron Man. Is your presence here to announce financial backing to the Heroes For Hire? Has Stark taken an interest in expanding his personal protection beyond just you?”

The man known as Iron Man stepped forward to one of the many microphones and cleared his throat before speaking. “I’m here on behalf of the Avengers to show support to the Heroes For Hire. We’ve known many of these individuals for a long time. We’ve fought beside them, and we trust them.

“Working as a hired bodyguard myself, I understand how the public can come to view people in our profession. Being for hire does not mean we turn away if enough money isn’t thrown at us. We help those who need it. Period.”

“Our offices are open to anyone, and we have a twenty-four hour hotline people can contact us at,” said Iron Fist, “We’re heroes first, and for hire second.” He had barely finished the last sentence before more questions swarmed from the audience.

“Mr. Deathlok, have you killed before?”

“What is the team’s official stance on U.N. policy?”

“Will you be recruiting even more members?”

“Luke Cage, what about allegations to who your father really is?”

“What do customs officials have to say about how easily you can cross borders?”

Danny Rand, the Iron Fist, expected it to be like this. He knew how outrageous press conferences could become, and he was glad that their next several missions were lined up. He was going to have some stress that needed to be let out. He decided against slipping away to do battle with the Deviants or somebody else, and instead sighed, deciding which esteemed member of the press to address first.

Author’s Notes 

Well, that rounds out the first H4H arc! Thanks to everyone for reading and providing very helpful feedback. I’ll be posting some letters and comments in the next issue. As for what else is in store for the team? The new members settle in and Deathlok’s investigation into the Protoclan leads the team on their next mission. Plus, is Misty okay? 

Maybe I should use this space to count how many times Luke says his famous catchphrase…

- D. Golightly