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Provide a full summary of the comic book.

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... And One Shall Surely Die
In a very modern office-residence suite near the World Trade Center, New York, Heather Hudson has become a very impatient woman. The mysterious woman with her, the woman who picked her up from the airport asks if everything is to her satisfaction. Heather tells the other woman that it is not, and that she has been waiting two hours now for her husband, whom she was told, would join her here, but still is not here. Heather asks where he is. Delphine Courtney comes over to Heather, and tells her that she too was assured Dr. Hudson would be with them soon after. Delphine tells Heather that he had a very important meeting to attend, which is why he could not meet her at the airport himself. Abruptly, Heather tells Courtney that she knows the story, and so she was to meet her at the airport, and bring her here – which just raises more questions.
Heather continues one of the questions being exactly who she, Delphine, is, as Heather tells her Mac didn’t mention her at all. Delphine walks over to the television, and tells Heather that, like she told her at the airport, she is a business associate of Macs. Delphine suggests Heather watch some television to pass the time. Heather begins to get very cross, and tells Delphine that as there hasn’t been anything interesting on the television since 1966 she is not interested in watching it – but she wants answers. In a patronizing tone of voice Delphine tells Heather that she shall get her answers, but first she should watch this television program, as Delphine assures Heather shall find this particular program very interesting….
Heather tells Delphine not to use that condescending tone with her. Heather tells Delphine that she is beginning to smell a very large rat here, and wants to see Mac now. ‘Hello Heather. It’s been a long time’ is suddenly heard from the television. Heather’s face shows an expression of pure shock, and even fear as she turns to the television and sees Jerry Jaxon…after all these years! Jaxon’s voice cracks from the television and informs Heather that it is a prerecorded tape, so he is not sure if she actually recognizes him, especially as, no doubt, the years would have been much kinder to her than they were to him. Though considering the amount of time they spent together, Jaxon suspects she remembers – after all, how could she forget the man she betrayed?
(partially flashback,  ca 10 years ago, continued from flashback sequences of Alpha Flight #3)
Jaxon, obviously still very bitter after the ten years that passed since he saw Mac and Heather last, reminds Heather of how at the time they both worked for him at Am-Cam Petro-Chemical in Canada. And that Mac was just a bleeding-heart boy genius who got uppity when he found out that the American military had been sponsoring them, and that they had come to claim the exploration suit that he had designed and built.
Sarcastically, Jaxon reminds Heather of the extraordinary coincidence it was that the suit was stolen that same night, by someone who knew how to operate it, and left it on a hillside overlooking Am-Cam – without the cybernetic helmet that operates it. But of course Heather knows all of this…Jaxon continues, and gets on to what Heather does not know – what she and her husband never bothered to find out…is that two days later Jaxon was summoned to the head office in Houston – and fired!
Jaxon had given eighteen years of his life to Am-Cam, yet in seventy-two hours he had become a corporate non-entity. At the airport in Houston, Jaxon discovered that his ticket back to Canada had been canceled. Jaxon used his own money to get back to Canada, and arrived back at his house just in time to see his wife leaving with the children. Jaxon did marry the boss’s daughter after all. Suddenly, Jaxon discovered what a fragile house of cards the life he built for himself had become. In the space of eight months, he went from the golden-boy, the head-hunters dream, to an unemployed unemployable. Am-Cam’s reach was long, their vengeance was inescapable, as he had broken the number one rule in business – he had failed. By the end of the year, Jaxon had no money, no prospects, and decided to kill himself. He would have succeeded too, had not the landlady decided to evict him at that moment. She called the police, who in turn called the hospital.
Three weeks later in the charity ward of the hospital, Jaxon was dealt the final ironic hand – his unsuccessful suicide attempt…the noose had however cut off oxygen long enough to cause brain damage, and Jaxon would never walk again.
(present)
Heather is somewhat taken aback when the television suddenly reveals Jaxon in his wheelchair. Jaxon probably knew how his former secretary would react and speaks to her appropriately. While Jaxon admits to being a cripple, he tells Heather that it is only in body, as his spirit, while crushed, would soon take a new lease of life – revenge.
(flashback)
Jaxon’s turn to vengeance began with the first public of the man called Guardian, the first super-hero Canada had known since the Second World War. The country was overcome with patriotic pride, here was its own Captain America! A hero that was for their times, in a Country torn by internal bickering. This super-hero was to Jerry Jaxon something much more – after all, how could he fail to notice that Guardian’s battle suit clearly operated on the same principles as James MacDonald Hudson’s inventions. For the next several months, a very unkempt Jaxon practically lived in the public libraries, as he poured over every reference to Guardian in the news paper files. Jaxon found, buried inconspicuously in a tiny article, Guardian’s connection to the government. It appeared that Guardian was quite fully authorized by the Ministry of Defense.
Jaxon tells Heather that he was light-headed and almost nauseous with anticipation, and using the last of his change he called the Ministry of Defense. Jaxon asked to speak to James Hudson, thinking that it was an impossible long shot, twenty seconds later however, it paid off – as Hudson answered the call….
Suddenly, Jaxon’s shattered life was put back together, as he found a purpose again. But Jaxon knew he needed special help, and he knew where to get it from too. For the first time in ten years, a wheelchair bound Jerry Jaxon returned to New York. Jaxon knew from his past dealings that Roxxon Oil was interested in obtaining and controlling unique energy sources. He told their chairman what he deducted about Guardian. Thankfully for Jaxon, not so for Mac, the chairman was intrigued. Jaxon outlined his plan to D’Angelo, the chairman, and he took Jaxon to the Special Developments Department, where he was introduced to a very special woman  - Delphine Courtney. Delphine became Jaxon’s intermediary, his legs, as she traveled all across Canada, contacting certain special people, inviting them to join a very special project, not to mention that she has rather tremendous influence….
(present)
Jaxon’s appearance leeks from the television and tells Heather Hudson that just as her husband recruited super powered individuals for Alpha Flight, he followed in his footsteps, creating Omega Flight- but they have one purpose only – the death of James MacDonald Hudson, and the destruction of Alpha Flight…. The television screen flickers to black, and fists clenched, Heather stares at it still. She realizes that the job offer for Mac, and the move to New York was all just a set up.
Heather begins to rush out of the room, saying that she is not going to be part of it, that even though other wives and girlfriends may be content to play bait, she is not going to stand around waiting for anyone to use her to lure Mac into trouble. Delphine begins to follow Heather, and tells her that she misses the point, and as she grabs Heather and throws her back across the room, she tells her that her husband has already been taken – but that she must remain with them anyway. Heather lands across the room, and Delphine tells her that her subjugation and destruction is important to Jaxon  - especially as their research led them to the conclusion that the betrayal was in fact Heather’s idea. As Heather is picked up off the floor by the surprisingly strong Delphine, she tells her that she uses the term “betrayal” rather loosely, especially as Jaxon could learn a few lessons himself on that one.
Heather tells Delphine that Mac built the exploratory suit based on designs he made while he was still in college, and that Mac trusted Jaxon because he told him the decisions governing the use of the suit would be Mac’s – but Jaxon betrayed him! Heather is about to swear when Delphine cuts her off by slapping her, knocking off her glasses. Delphine tells Heather that she shouldn’t speak that way about Jaxon, as he is a fine and decent man who has had a very hard life. Heather scrambles up, and Delphine tells her that if she does not wish for her to chastise her any further – ‘Chastise?’ Heather cries, and calling Delphine a “blue-haired harpy” claws at her face – which when Heather pulls away her fingers, she is revealed a nasty surprise as Delphine’s skin pulls away easily…
Meanwhile, as Heather makes a very startling discovery, two of her closest friends are preparing for the events yet to come. Atop a hillside, Ontario Canada. Shaman tells Snowbird that the others come. Shaman senses the flow of ancient energies as the rest of Alpha Flight has heard Guardian’s call. He tells Narya that they will be here soon. Snowbird tells Shaman that she feels it too, but she also feels that he is greatly troubled. Twoyoungmen tells Snowbird that she is correct as he feels a terrible and great evil, and that the stench of Death hangs heavily on the winds. Narya asks whom Death waits for, and Michael tells her that all he knows that it is a friend of long-standing. Snowbird suggests to her friend that he reads the signs incorrectly, especially as the fates struggle to keep their secrets, even from adepts such as themselves. The innocent Snowbird hesitates before asking Michael if it is also the anniversary of his wife’s death. Twoyoungmen turns away from the goddess and tells her that it is, and that is probably the Ghost of Ancient Pain that colors his thoughts today. He prays that is the case. Snowbird tells him to save his prayers as he may have greater need of them before they day is out. In an attempt to change the subject, Narya tells Michael that she wonders which one of their teammates will join them first.
Vancouver, British Columbia…in an apartment near False Creak. Walter Langkowski is changing into travel clothing which allows Aurora to carry him, and protects him against the friction of her speed – but she hasn’t returned to his apartment, and the outfit is very hot, so Walt is getting rather annoyed at Aurora’s lateness, especially as he expected her back more than forty minutes ago. He wonders where on Earth – and in knowing Aurora, he means literally – she can be.
As if on cue, Aurora suddenly appears clad in only a swimsuit at Walter’s window. Aurora tells her lover that he should of come with her, as the ocean at St. Tropez was magnificent. Walt tells her that he is sure it was, but he thinks his neighbors probably aren’t quite prepared for flying ladies.
Aurora enters the apartment, and tells her lover not to scold her as she was simply returning the way she knew quickest, by flying back. Walter asks her how quick it was, as they received Guardian’s signal an hour ago. Aurora agrees with Walt, but asks him if they have to answer the signal straight away, as there is something else they should do first… the two kiss, but Walt resists. He tells Aurora that she knows he has zero resistance to her charms, and that this is not the time to start something they will not be able to finish. Being held up in mid air by Walter, Aurora asks him why he is in such a rush. Walt tells Aurora that it is because this is the first time since the battle with the Ravager that they have received the Alpha Signal, which means it, is important. Walt asks Aurora to get her costume on – which she does in the blink of an eye. He thinks to himself that he will never get used to her speed. Rather moody, Aurora says ‘D’accord Walter. Let us be on our way’.
Minutes later, a slightly less than aerodynamic form streaks east across the Canadian Rockies. Clinging onto Aurora’s shoulder’s Walt tells her to be alert, as they should be picking up Shaman’s homing vibes any second. Aurora tells her lover she senses Twoyoungmen’s direction. She tells Walt to hold on to her tightly as she is about to ‘as they say…”pour it on”’. And the sonic boom of Aurora increasing in speed breaks the tranquillity of the mountains.
(nearly one hour ago)
In a less fashionable part to Toronto, Eugene Milton Judd, a.k.a. one of the newest Alpha Flight members, Puck, sits in a small room and meditates, turning mind and spirit inwards, seeking and isolating centers of pain. It is an old and familiar process for the man known Puck, as his body is distorted by dwarfism, he is not stranger to the pain. But his ritual will today be interrupted… Eugene stirs as the Alpha signal, implanted in his ear, sounds. Judd quickly dresses in his costume, and races from his from his room thinking he had not had much action since the Brass Bishop affair. On the roof of the apartment block, Puck thinks that someone should be along to pick him up soon, and is excited about what is to come, especially after Hudson promised he wouldn’t be left out like last time.
Suddenly, Puck sees someone flying over towards him, though he is very surprised to see that the figure is Northstar. As Northstar lands on Puck’s roof, Puck welcomes him, and tells him he was more expecting to see Snowbird or Aurora, and asks why Aurora is not with him. Angrily, Northstar tells Puck that it is none of his concern, and asks him if he has felt Shaman’s signal. Puck tells Jean-Paul that he received it a few minutes ago, and that they are being summoned north. To himself, Puck thinks that something is very wrong between the twins, and is mad at Jean-Paul for biting his head off like that. As Puck holds onto Northstar’s shoulders, the two fly away, and Judd thinks that from the first time he met the twins he thought something odd about them - as if they were hiding something. Judd says nothing however, keeping his thoughts to himself, while Northstar wonders what will happen if his sister has answered the call as well.
Meanwhile, at that time also, only beneath the ocean in the fabled city of Atlantis. Alpha Flight’s other new member, Marrina plays in the crushing depths, with the Prince of Atlantis, Namor the Sub-Mariner. Marrina is unlike any woman the Prince has ever met, and she accepted his offer to come to Atlantis to unlock the mysteries of her past. The two are now lovers, and she has found much, much more. The Alpha Signal, located in her amulet, goes unheard and unanswered as it hangs in her quarters, some miles away.
(present)
Back in Ontario, Snowbird’s question as to which of her teammates will join her and Shaman first is answered, as Sasquatch, Northstar, Aurora and Puck all arrive at the same time. Shaman welcomes them all and thanks them for answering Guardian’s signal. Walter tells Shaman that it is good to see him again, and asks if he has any ideas as to what is going on. Before Shaman can answer, Northstar asks Aurora if they can talk. Jeanne-Marie tells him that she has said all she needed to say to him, and that there is nothing further to discuss. Northstar grabs his sister by the shoulder, and tells her there is more to discuss, and that while he said some foolish things, it was never his intention to hurt her. He tells Jeanne-Marie that there must be another way to resolve their problems other than terminating their partnership.
Aurora calls for Walter, and her boyfriend pulls Jean-Paul off of her. Northstar pleads with his sister some more, and Walt tells him that he has said his piece, and Jeanne-Marie obviously is not interested. Northstar says he should have known his sister would end up back with Walt again, and says to him ‘Keep your stupid paws to yourself. I am not in the habit of being manhandled’. Pushing Walt back, he trips on a root and falls over. On the ground Walt sarcastically remarks at how careless Northstar is today. Telling everyone it has been a while since they all got together, Walt begins to shapeshift into Sasquatch. He guesses Jean-Paul must have forgot whom he was shoving…and as his clothes rip off his body, Walt tells Northstar he has been in need of being taken down a peg or two for years…and that today it is going to happen!
Fully transformed, Sasquatch picks Jean-Paul up before he can even think about flying away. Before Sasquatch’s fist meets Northstar’s face however, Puck intervenes and somersaults against Sasquatch’s face, knocking Jean-Paul out of his grasp. Puck dodges away from Sasquatch while he rubs his eyes, and realizes that he didn’t even hurt him, but hopefully shook him back to his senses. However…as Sasquatch uproots a tree, it obviously didn’t work. Sasquatch tells Puck that he has stuck his nose into a private argument, and so he uses the tree as a makeshift hockey stick…and says he will see how many goals he can score with Puck.
Puck is narrowly missed as the tree slams into the ground.
Shaman was afraid something like this would happen, as he has noticed subtle changes in Sasquatch, and that his physiognomy has altered since he was first able to transform himself, and now the bestial nature is coming into force. From his medicine pouch, Shaman pulls a stick, and decides that Walt’s mental stability is for a later debate and for now he must be stopped! Shaman plunges the stick deep into the ground, and though at first nothing seems to happen… until, like a time-lapsed photograph, roots sprout from the ground and begin to climb Sasquatch. Sasquatch drops the tree and within seconds he is utterly immobile. However, a certain someone views the event in a different light – the wrong light, and Northstar begins to punch the restrained Sasquatch. Northstar congratulates Shaman for capturing Walt, and sets about showing him his way of “correcting” him. To some, they may just see Northstar lay a single blow on Sasquatch, but in reality, Jean-Paul has punched Sasquatch over a hundred times in less than a second.
Meanwhile, watching with growing concern, the teams’ resident goddess now acts. Snowbird orders Northstar to stop his beating of Sasquatch, as he is only making him angrier. Her command goes unheeded however…until she changes into the form of an Ookpik, and as a great owl, she flies at Northstar. Jean-Paul tells her to keep out of it. Shaman wonders if Snowbird would be so quick to protect Sasquatch if his suspicions about Sasquatch’s true nature prove correct, but again decides it is something for later though, especially as they are wasting pointless time bickering. From his pouch, the medicine man pulls mystical powders, and cries ‘Enough’! The powders barely touch the air, though there is suddenly a dramatic change – as for nearly a mile around all flying things find themselves suddenly immobilized, unharmed, but unable to move.
Shaman now turns to Aurora, and reminding her that her presence has calmed Sasquatch in the past, requests that she tries to do the same again. Somewhat uncertain, Jeanne-Marie tells Twoyoungmen that she will try. As Jeanne-Marie slowly approaches the trapped Sasquatch she remembers him of the many intimate moments they have shared together, and while their relationship has not been perhaps love, it has been something close to it. Now though as she looks into the twisted features, the rippling muscles, she is afraid of him. Jeanne-Marie gathers her courage and speaks to Walt in a soft and soothing voice, and slowly, Sasquatch ceases his struggles, and his rage subsides. Until, he seems to not know what just happened to him. Shaman releases him from the roots that held him in place, and tells him that he will explain later. He tells Walt that now he is back in control, they must be on their way, as Guardian has need of them.
Suddenly, the air around the six Alphans seems to crackle, like the distant sound of ice breaking in the far north, as Shaman reveals the teams method of transportation – a teleportation spell. A ring of powder stirs around the group, yet it is not disturbed by the wind, and almost like a solid thing it settles, and it is Canada’s premiere super heroes who fade from view…
… and reappear suddenly in Roxxon Oil HQ, New York, right in the midst of a battle between Guardian and Omega Flight! Alpha Flight is stunned at the scene before them, and Mac tells them to ‘Pick a “partner” and finish the fight’. A electromagnetic blast fired by Guardian, bounces right off Diamond Lil, who tells him that while it is powerful, he should know it cannot hurt her. At her side, Wildchild tells Lillian Crawley not to get too cocky, as Guardian knows their powers just as well as they do. Being sarcastic, Flashback tells Wildchild that he knew he was the smart one in the group, to which Smart Alec tells Gardner Munroe to save his sarcasm, and reminds him that no one in Omega Flight can fly, and that only his dopplegangers can reach Mac while he is in the air.
Flashback obliges, and, using practically no will at all, Flashback summons one if his future men, who, with a comical popping sound, lands on Guardian. Guardian comments that he Department H must have trained him well, but not well enough, as Mac throws the doppleganger against a wall. The negative costumed future Flashback is silent as he is hurled across the room, but Flashback has no interest in his fallen other-self, and the air around Guardian explodes with more popping, and the red and white hero suddenly vanishes beneath the growing pile of Flashbacks.
The rest of Alpha Flight have not been standing by idle as this all occurs, and Aurora flies into the action, telling her brother not to stand there like a “lump”, and reminds him that Guardian said these others are their enemies, so they must stop them, and quickly. Aurora lands by Wildchild, and tells her “ugly friend” that he looks about the right size for her. Wildchild turns around, and tells Aurora that while his face may not be as pretty as hers, it is shame on her for one freak to call another names. Kyle Gibney lunges at Aurora, and tells her that such a lapse in manners should be dealt with severely! Wildchild rakes his claws across Aurora’s shoulder, and as she screams, he tells her that while his talons are not as impressive as Wolverine’s, they are similarly effective.
Before Wildchild can progress any further, Alpha Flight’s resident goddess, Snowbird tells him to ‘Hold’ and says to him that he is ‘not the only one with claws…or the urges to use them!’ Snowbird moves like a hawk ready to swoop, calling upon the power of the land to nourish her and give her strength. For just a moment a portal seems to open to another realm, and in that brief moment, the woman called Narya seems no longer human. But tragedy strikes, and before Snowbird has gone three paces, the world turns askew, and Snowbird stumbles. Crouching on the ground, Snowbird is shocked and scared by the sudden disappearance of her powers.
Diamond Lil seizes the opportunity, and plucks a strand of hair from her own head. Lillian Crawley tells Snowbird that if she falls down on the job, she just may not get back up again. Diamond Lil pulls the single strand of hair around Snowbird’s neck, the powerless goddess tells Diamond Lil that she must not bleed. Diamond Lil says to Snowbird ‘Where’s it say that honey? In yer super hero rule book?’ Shaman approaches the two woman and tells Diamond Lil that Snowbird speak the truth, and the words are written in a place older than she can even imagine... Reaching into his medicine pouch, Twoyoungmen tells Lil that while his magicks cannot harm her indestructible body, there are other things he may do against the likes of her – more subtle things…and an odd mist floats in the air, it twirls and changes and Diamond Lil tries to brush the powers away, as they enter her only vulnerable spot – her mind.
With Lillian now distracted, Shaman aides Narya. He asks her what is wrong, as he lifts her from the ground she tells him that she does not know, only that she has never felt this way before, and it is if her very life is being drained away. Twoyoungmen is shocked when he looks at Narya. Where once there was a healthy young woman, now lies a withered old woman, who withers away before his eyes. Michael wonders if it was a mystical weapon that their enemies had prepared for her arrival – but suddenly remembers that it is his entire fault! He remembers back to when he delivered Narya, and had to bind her to the land and to humanity. Shaman regrets that he must have been to specific in his spell, and bound her life-force to Canada, whereas if she steps out of Canada…she can die.
Just behind Shaman, another mind has reached the same conclusion. Smart Alec had deduced that Snowbird might succumb if she were removed from Canada, and takes the opportunity to act further, with Shaman occupied with Narya’s safety, Alec Thorne grabs from Shaman his medicine pouch. Thorne tells Shaman he intends to find out just what it is that he keeps inside. Shaman tells Smart Alec that the medicine bag is more than even he could comprehend, and warns him against looking into it. Thorne tells Shaman to spare him the warning, as during their Gamma Flight training sessions he has seen him pull almost anything out of it. Thorne tells Shaman that with the new ecephalo-helmet he wears, it augments his IQ. The audio-visual scanners let him hear on every frequency, and see on every radio wave length. Alec grins as he tells Shaman the secrets of the pouch will now belong to Omega Flight.
Smart Alec looks, and like he said, he looks on all wavelengths of light, far beyond those of human capabilities of perception. Simultaneously, he probes high into the ultra-violet and deep into the infrared. With radiation not normally considered part of sight, he sees. And of what he learns, if anything at all, he will never be able to tell anyone. For when Michael Twoyoungmen’s grandfather taught him the ways of the medicine bag, he warned him against ever looking into. As the last dwindling spark of sanity flickers out, of him, for an instant, Smart Alec knows why.
As Shaman recovers his bag from Omega Flight’s first causality, Box, who is spinning Sasquatch around way above his head, tells the Alphan that he is disappointed, as from his reputation, he was expecting a real fight out of him. He asks the silent Sasquatch if this is the best he can hope from someone who went one-on-one with the Hulk? As Sasquatch is thrown across the room, he thinks to himself that he should be able to take Box apart easily, but regrets that he is afraid to use his strength, and afraid to loose control again. As Sasquatch lands against a wall, he wonders what if he doesn’t fight back, doesn’t do everything he can, then what good is he to Alpha Flight?
Not quite meanwhile, Wildchild lifts Aurora off the ground, and asks her if she would like to continue from where they started? Frightened, Aurora pleads with Gibney, and tells him that she is sorry. Meanwhile, Northstar is aware of his sister’s plight, and realizes that she is not resisting Wildchild, as she is too badly shaken, and hurt seriously for the first time in a battle. Jean-Paul decides that if he doesn’t act quickly, she may revert to her Jeanne-Marie persona. And then there will be no hope for her at all. At close to his top speed, Northstar flashes across the chamber, a silver and ebony streak, almost invisible to mortal eyes, he picks Wildchild up, telling him they will vary his little game. Wildchild is taken aback by Northstar, and Jean-Paul tells him that he is not so eloquent when taken by surprise. But Northstar assures him not to worry, as his decomposure will be short lived – and as Wildchild slams into the wall, as Northstar let go of him before turning direction at the last moment – Jean-Paul tells Kyle that his will be also.
Elsewhere, as Heather McNeil Hudson lay injured on the floor, the woman known as Delphine Courtney has suddenly revealed her true nature after Heather ripped her face. Delphine says that it is a shame her secret is discovered, as even Jaxon does not know her true nature. Heather is shocked to see that Delphine is some kind of android. Delphine corrects Heather, telling her that she is actually a robot, a very special kind of robot built with the highest degree of artificial intelligence, which some people have likened to intuition. Delphine tells Heather that that is why she was given the form and voice of a human female, especially as her creators were rather chauvinistic in that respect. Heather asks Delphine how she can be helping Jaxon in his scheme to kill Mac, as all robots were programmed never to harm a human being.
Delphine tells Heather her idea is very quaint, but that she has not been programmed with any such notions, and that she has only been programmed to help Jaxon in achieving his goals – whatever they may be. With that Delphine leaves the room, and Heather rises from the floor. Heather sees that the door is left open, and after remembering that Delphine said that she was to be used and abused like her husband…that the invitation of an open door obviously means trap. As Heather limps out of the room, she gets the feeling that she will not get any closer to Mac unless she plays the “good little moussie” and walk into it.
Back in the chamber where the battle between Alpha and Omega occurs, Flashback grumbles that his future men are not bringing Guardian out of the air like they are supposed to, and regrets that he has to keep summoning more and more future selves. Puck taps him on the shoulder, telling him otherwise. As Judd twists the former Beta Flight member down, he tells his former teammate that he was always too cocky for his own good, as even in Beta Flight, he was always forgetting he had nothing else going for him other than his temporal displacement. With that, Judd knocks his former teammate out, and as he lapses into unconsciousness, his future men suddenly disappear from Guardian. Now free to help his teammates, Mac tells those that are available that they are hardly up against the X-Men! He tells them to put ‘Omega to Omega Flight’.
However, in the fraction of a second that James Hudson dropped his guard to speak, Box jumps up from behind him, telling him that he will not find it that easy. Mac is surprised to see Box lunging for him, and as a panel in the wall opens up revealing a ductway, he pushes himself and Guardian through. Instantly the armored panel shuts again, thus stopping Northstar or Aurora to get through, and the two combatants plunge down the duct. Plummeting to the ground, Box tells Guardian that he cannot win, and Mac lands first, shattering the ground beneath him. Box reminds Mac that he helped in the development of the Box robot, and made him powerful enough to shut down his own suit’s forcefield, and powerful enough to take away the cybernetic helmet. Mac pleads with Roger Bochs, telling him he understands how the other four turned against him, but is puzzled as to why he would. Mac reminds the armored man that he recruited him into Department H himself, as his psych profile was perfect; intelligent; patriotic; loyal…
Box tells Mac that he is a fool! As he uses his armored strength to punch the defenseless Mac, he asks him why he hasn’t worked out who it is really that is killing him, and tells him that Roger Bochs would never turn on he or Alpha Flight! The voice crackles from behind the robot, telling Mac that he is not Roger Bochs…but Jaxon! Jaxon whacks Mac again, and tells him that even he should have realized that he would allow anyone else the pleasure of killing him. Jaxon tells Mac that his life belongs to him, and he is going to grind it out of him. He tells injured Mac that when he is dead, it will be his pleasure to do the same to his witch of a wife! Mac thinks only of Heather, and Jaxon interrupts those thoughts by asking him if he ever wondered if he would find a way, over all the long years, to punish him and his wife for what they did to him.
Mac thinks that he only has one chance, even with the suit shorted, the power pack is still alive. Mac tears some circuits out of his cybernetic suit, and pushes them into the Box robot’s helmet, which all of a sudden charges, and with a flash of light separating the archenemies. Not far away, in his wheelchair, Jaxon receives some nasty feedback from the blast, which in effect destroys his brain. After letting out a cry, Delphine Courtney asks him what is wrong. Of course he cannot answer, and hidden in the shadows, tied up on the floor, the quadriplegic Roger Bochs tells Courtney that he warned Jaxon, that Mac knew everything about the Box robot, and that if he anyone on Earth could beat him, it would have been Guardian.
At that same time, a battered Mac, in a broken cybernetic suit thinks that he knew it would work, even though it was huge risk, as he may have been killed by the blast. But Mac probably would have been killed otherwise. He walks over to the Box robot, and thinks he will have to help Roger build a new one. He hopes roger is still alive, and glad that he didn’t betray Alpha Flight after all. James thinks that he probably even would have been ready to be moved up to Alpha Flight if the government had not cut Alpha loose. Right now though, Mac decides he better disconnect his power pack, as the suit has taken such a beating, it will blow any second if he doesn’t cut it loose…Mac thinks he has got about ten seconds.
9… Mac tells himself not to feel too pressured… 8… After all, it is only the basic life or death situation… 7… And of course he designed the suit with easy access to all parts… 6… Though, that was before it took such a beating… 5… Trying to remain calm, Mac tells himself to take it easy… 4… He detaches all primary leads to the power pack… 3… But the pack doesn’t want to slide all that well… 2… Mac gets it, and pulls the secondary leads out as well… 1… Unfortunately, the suit is still overheating…
Wondering what is behind a door, wounded, Heather opens the door – and is shocked to see Mac. Distracted, Mac turns to the door, equally shocked to see her, he quickly tells her not to come in – when suddenly, Mac’s suit explodes, and enflamed, he falls to the ground, calling Heather’s name. Heather stumbles over to his burning body calling his…but only sees the ashes of James “Mac” MacDonald Hudson a.k.a. Guardian, Canada’s premiere super-hero. And her nightmare is about to begin.


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Provide a full summary of the comic book.

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Nightmare!
(nightmare)
On a blustery and cold day, Heather Hudson, widow of Alpha Flight’s now deceased creator and leader, James MacDonald Hudson a.k.a. Guardian, is surrounded by her husbands teammates, her friends. All dressed in black, they stand by Heather in her time of need. Shaman puts his comforting arms on her shoulders, while Snowbird stands to his right, slightly distanced from the group. Puck stands in front of Heather, while Sasquatch, in his human form of Walter Langkowski stands to Heather’s left, comforting his girlfriend Aurora, who presses her body into his. Aurora’s brother, like Snowbird, stands distanced from the group, this time on the left, while a priest stands at the end of Mac’s grave. Alpha Flight are assembled…for Mac’s funeral.
After saying his words, the priest walks up to Heather, no one speaks and he takes her hand before descending down the graveyard slope. Heather turns to her oldest friend, Michael Twoyoungmen and he embraces her, before she turns to Narya, who brushes some of Heather’s hair off her face, before the goddess transforms into an owl and flies away. Michael holds Heather’s hand before leaving also.
With her two oldest and closest friends gone, Heather turns to the others. Walt and Jeanne-Marie walk up to her, and she hesitates at first, remembering the crush Jeanne-Marie once had on Mac. But seeing Aurora’s tears too, the two women embrace. Walt’s eyes remain downcast, and walks Jeanne-Marie away after she starts crying more. Heather now turns to Northstar, and starts to walk towards him, but when she reaches out to touch him he turns away and flies off. The diminutive Puck walks up behind grief-stricken Heather and she kneels down to his height. She rests her head on his shoulder before he walks away, leaving her alone.
Standing beneath a tree off to the side of the graveyard, a man lights up a cigarette. He is a man who knows Heather Hudson very, very well…Wolverine! As he turns towards her, he sees Heather kneel at Mac’s grave and she lies down on part of it, and closes her eyes. Without warning, the grave begins to crack, Heather leaps up confused, and scared when a fiery form resembling Mac reaches out and breaks through, jumping up in front of her. Heather begins to run away, and this all does not go unnoticed by Wolverine. Logan unsheathes his claws and leaps towards the fiery form, but his claws do nothing against it. Wolverine doesn’t give up, and returns for another attack, this time Mac gets the upper hand and grabs Logan’s by the wrists, pushing him back, before he puts a hand over Logan’s face, and the person he may have considered a brother drops dead before him.
Heather turns back just in time to see, and the fear mounts in her eyes. She continues running through the empty graveyard, but trips on a set of rocks. Her glasses fall from her head and smash. Heather gets up, shaky, and stumbles towards a metal fence. She starts to climb the fence, but Mac has caught up with her, and pulls her down before she can climb over. He pulls her face right up close to his, and pulls her mouth towards his…
(present)
‘NNOOOO!’ Heather McNeil Hudson wakes up from her nightmare, sticky and sweaty, and stricken with fear. She is inside a motor lodge, not far away from Parliament Hill, Ottawa. Michael Twoyoungmen heard her screams and rushes into her room. It is the same scream she has cried for the past month now, and it comes at the same time, in the early hours of the morning. He kneels at her side and tells her she is all right, that she is not alone. Heather is confused and quite delirious, asks where Mac is, and says that she has to find him. The man called Shaman chooses his words carefully, and tells her that Mac is dead, and that she must accept that so his spirit can rest in peace. Heather lays back down in her bed, and repeats ‘Mac is gone’ as she falls to sleep.
Twoyoungmen enters another room, and Eugene Milton Judd, a.k.a. Puck, asks him how Heather is. Michael tells Judd that she is asleep, but that he is troubled at the fact that Heather has now had the same dream for a month now. Sitting on a bed, Judd tells Shaman that it is not surprising, especially as the elements of the dream, as he described them, are so disturbing. Judd thinks that Heather must be carrying a lot of guilt and blaming herself for Mac’s death. With his arms crossed, Shaman tells Judd it is a lot more than that, after all, James Hudson was blasted to ashes right in front of his wife, and because of that, there was literally nothing left to bury. Michael adds that it is not without reason that so many people place so much emphasis on the ritual of funeral, as it is a vital part of the mourning process and a clear and definite symbol of an ending, and a beginning and continuing of life.
Judd tells Michael that he may be right, and comments on how the Jatravi people of the Serengetti don’t believe a warrior is truly dead until his funeral is done. Judd tells Michael that he has often though there was more to that than just superstition and starts to suggest Shaman’s magicks for Heather. Shaman tells Puck that he knows what he is about to suggests, and wishes he could do it, but it is forbidden, as the mind is too delicate a fabric for even his expert weaving. He tells Judd that if Heather is to come through this dark time, she must do it herself, and they may only offer support. Judd tells Michael he is right, and tells him that it upsets him to see Heather torn like this, as she is such a beautiful person, in every sense of the word. Michael tells Judd that he has great empathy, and confesses his surprise at this level to him that no one would have guessed. As he pours a glass of water, Judd jokes that he has depth he has not even used yet.
Puck starts to change the subject, wanting to talk to Shaman about what he did to Smart Alec, and tells him that he doesn’t agree with what he did. Michael reaches into his pouch, and tells his friend that there was little else he could do, as when Thorne looked into the medicine bag, it took his mind. Shaman holds up the figurine-sized form of the former Gamma Flight turned Omega Flight member. He tells Puck that the least he could do was look after his body until he finds a way to restore his mind, and reducing the size of Alec’s body was the easiest method. Judd tells Shaman that he misses his point – that Smart Alec was more-or-less the leader of Omega Flight, and they were directly responsible for Mac’s death. Judd says that carrying him around in a bag while searching for a way to restore his mind is too good for him.
Shaman reminds Judd that he is a Sarcee medicine chief, and has been long before he joined Alpha Flight. He tells Puck that such as his title, he has been sworn to protect and preserve life, even such as Thorne’s. Judd tells Michael that he is a better man than he, as he would rather see Alec sharing some of the anguish of Heather. Michael tells Judd that he might be, after all, there is a whole universe beyond the mouth of the medicine pouch, a universe which Alec’s mind wanders alone and unprotected. Shaman adds that if the Great Spirit hears his prayers, Smart Alec will not go unpunished. He suggests to Judd that they get some rest, as tomorrow they have an appointment at Parliament Hill….
(the next day)
In the office of the Prime Minister…Heather, Michael and Judd sit before Gary Cody, their unofficial team liaison to the government, who tells them that his position has been rather nebulous since Department H was closed down, and finding an office had been hard, but after Prime Minister Trudeau resigned, yesterday, he got this office. Gary smiles and tells the trio that he is curious as to why they are meeting, and as to what was so important they could not say over the phone. He tells them that he is also unsure as to why they, particularly Heather, are present as it is an unofficial meeting. He asks where Guardian is.
Very bluntly, Heather says ‘My husband is dead Gary’. Michael tells Heather it may be better if he tells Cody what is going on. Heather tells Michael she appreciates his concern, but that she must do this herself. Gary Cody’s expression reveals his disbelief, and asks how and when. He asks Heather why she let him rattle on about his office when she had something much more important to say. Heather tells him that he had his piece to say, and now she has hers. She tells him it began with a letter…
(several flashbacks to the events of the past months)
Slowly at first, but with great determination, Heather begins to tick off the events leading to her husband’s death. She tells of the letter from Roxxon Oil arriving at their home, and it led to many hours discussion, as it offered Mac a very lucrative position, with a corporate giant, though a position that would involve moving to New York City. Finally, the adventure of the offer won Mac and Heather over, after all…it was New York they would be living in! Mac left Heather to settle everything in Ottawa, while he went to New York to meet his new employers, and while Heather took care of the old apartment, Mac signed a lease for another, in Brooklyn Heights.
Everything was going perfectly, but then came the first hint that something was going wrong – when Heather arrived in New York. Heather was not met by James, like expected, but by a woman called Delphine Courtney. Delphine escorted Heather to a place where Mac was supposed to meet them later, but as hours went by with no sign of Mac, Heather grew impatient and demanded answers. Delphine gave none, only let Heather watch a “very special” television show…a prerecorded tape that introduced Heather to the motive force behind what was looking more and more like a calculated trap. Mac’s former friend, and Heather’s former boss…Jerry Jaxon!
As revealed by Jaxon in the video, he had fallen on hard time when he failed to take possession of Hudson’s cybernetic helmet for Am-Cam Petrol. Ten years later, after he crippled himself and was dirt-poor, he had recruited disgruntled former members of Beta and Gamma Flights including Diamond Lil and Smart Alec. Jaxon used the influencing powers of Delphine Courtney to aggravate the mutants and superhumans in their annoyance at being disbanded by the government. Together they were united as Omega Flight, and fought Guardian.
Jaxon did not know of Mac’s ability to send the “Alpha Signal” back to Canada, and soon, teleported to New York by Shaman’s magicks, the rest of Alpha Flight, minus Marrina, had arrived to even out the sides. Even before Omega Flight was defeated by the superior Alpha, Mac was separated from the group by Box. Mac discovered that it was not the faithful Roger Bochs who was inside his Box armor, but Jaxon was cybernetically controlling it. Mac was battered almost to unconsciousness, and in desperation tore from his super-suits circuitry, and plunged the wires into Box’s only vulnerable point. Box was defeated, and Jaxon rendered brain-dead. As Mac tried to disconnect his overloading power pack, he was distracted for one fatal moment when Heather walked into the room, and he died.
(present)
For a long while there is silence in the office, when Gary Cody finally breaks it by asking Heather if she actually saw Mac die. Heather tells him that she saw him blown apart and consumed into less than ashes. Michael tells Heather, as her friend and doctor, that she should get some rest. Heather reminds Michael that she had been resting for a month, and tells Gary that her husband died in the service of his country, and very sternly tells him she wants to know what is going to be done about it. Gary was afraid Heather was going to say something like that, and tells her he wishes that there was something he could do about it, but there isn’t.
He tells Heather that while she may not believe him, as far as the Canadian government was concerned, James Hudson was even less than another taxpayer to the government for the past ten years. Heather frowns and looks very cross at that remark. Gary asks her to let him explain before she jumps down his throat. He reminds her that Mac created Alpha Flight as part of Department H, which was a top-secret extension of the ministry of defense. Very top-secret. He tells Heather that he used to be a very high official within Department H, and now he cannot even get a real office. Gary says that is because when Department H was officially closed down, and Alpha Flight disbanded, it ceased to exist retroactively, as if it never was.
Heather is shocked at this, and asks Gary if what he is telling her is that her husband devoted ten years of his life to Department H, worked, fought and died for them…and now the whole thing is going to be swept under the rug, and Mac’s life tossed away as if it were nothing more than old paper for the shredder. Gary stands up and tells her that it is not like that, as Mac did not die for Department H, because Department H did not exist anymore, and he continued Alpha Flight on his own initiative. Gary admits that the government supported him, unofficially, but officially there is nothing that he can do.
Puck jumps up from his chair and tells Gary that there is something he can do, like taking a pound of flesh from his body to compensate. Heather tells Judd to stop, and standing up she goes over to Gary. She puts a hand on his shoulder and understands it is not his fault. She says she is not going to fall into the trap of blaming the messenger for the bad news. Heather thanks Gary for being honest with her and not giving her the typical run-around. Gary tells Heather she is too kind, especially as whatever way she wants to look at it, he has simply ‘pushed you overboard and refused to toss you a life jacket’.
Heather says ‘maybe’, but tells him that she prefers to look at as if he has been their friend for over five years, and will still continue to be, even if it means being completely honest, something she knows his job goes against. Gary thanks Heather, and tells her that he will try to something about it, even with the election coming up, which will probably result in a change in government, but he will still try. Puck thinks that he would still like to ‘pop ‘im one’.
Wit weary feat, and dampened spirits, the three friends leave Parliament Hill for what may be the last time in their lives. Twenty minutes later, they are at a diner. Heather tells her friends that even despite what Gary said it is probably the end of things, with Mac dead, and nothing anyone can do about it. Shaman tells her that there are still many things to do, and without trying to sound mercenary, reminds her of the issue of insurance. Heather tells Michael that there isn’t any. Mac did have life insurance, but for her to claim it, she has to prove he is dead, and without a body, there isn’t anything they can do, so Mac will not be legally dead for seven years.
Heather sums it all up for her friends: Omega Flight is captured, and handed over to the New York authorities, while Jaxon and Delphine seemed to have disappeared; she has no job, as she cannot reclaim her old one, it has been filled; she has no apartment, though she paid her landlord a four month hold fee in cash, she neglected to get a receipt and he has rented the house out again, and she cannot afford the one in Brooklyn. Heather tells them she is a widow at the ripe old age of twenty-nine, and without much hope for the future.
Judd tells Heather she is not alone, she still has Alpha Flight and her parents. Heather frowns and tells them that she hasn’t spoken to her parents since she eloped with Mac, as they never approved of the marriage. She tells them her mother is the type who would rub her nose in it a time like this. She adds that without Mac, Alpha Flight is no good, as his dream died with him. She tells her friends not to worry, as she is from “old pioneer stock”. She adds that her people worked their way across the country, and if necessary, she can do the same, because she knows what Mac would want, and she tells them she is never going to let him down, whatever else happens…Heather McNeil Hudson is not beaten yet.
(fourteen hours later)
Elsewhere, in Toronto, Canada’s largest city, the lonely stretch of dock is destined to become even darker…as the thud of running feet sound loud through the narrow back alleys. Jacob Vandernet is running for his life. Through the blinding blood red veil of panic, a tiny voice of reason tells him he will be safe if he can make it back to his ship. But Jacob won’t make it, as something snatches him off the dock, and into the lake. His terrible and final scream becomes nothing more than silvery bubbles bursting in the moonlight.


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[Assistant]
Biology Class
“…there’s the land, have you seen it? It’s the cussedest land that I know. From the big, dizzy mountains to the deathlike valley’s below. Some say God was tired when he made, some say it’s a fine land to shun. Maybe. But there’s some as would trade it for no land on earth, and I’m one” – Robert Service, The Spell of the Yukon.
Snowbird is returning home. The beautiful goddess lands, and she feels the radiant power of the North flow up to her, reach her like warm enfolding arms, and protect her. Not long ago, it seemed like she may never again tread the rolling tundra of her homeland. The goddess rests against a large rock and lets the life force of the land flow into her pure soul. Snowbird believed herself to be immortal, though six weeks ago she felt the touch of death upon her and saw her true mortality. And it frightened her.
Narya turns around when she hears her name called, it is Michael Twoyoungmen, Shaman. The medicine man walks over to her and tells her that she should not tax herself yet, as she has not fully recovered from the events in New York. He warns Narya that she may never fully recover. Narya looks innocently at Shaman and tells him that she is a creature of the clouds, and asks him if he would deny her flight, or the otter the ability to swim, the caribou the ability to run. Shaman tells Narya that he would if their doing so presented a threat to their well being. He reminds Snowbird that she is human too, and she has frailties that she must consider.
Snowbird turns away from him and looking out at the beautiful, sprawling land before her she tells Twoyoungmen that he is a hard master, but she also senses the value in his words. She tells him she will obey. Michael tells Narya that it is not a question of obedience to him, or anyone else, but a question of common sense. He reminds her that he is the medicine chief of the Sarcee tribe, and he knows the old ways better than she. He adds that while Snowbird may have the wisdom of the gods, she lacks the life experience to make that wisdom serve her. Snowbird remains with her back to Shaman and he sits down. He tells Narya that her form is of a woman, but it has been less than six years since he plucked her from the nether-world, a mere babe. He tells her that there is a richness to life that she has not even begun to suspect. He tells her not to deny herself of this fullness. Narya says nothing, until she simply says ‘Perhaps’, and taking flight to the pink sky, says ‘I shall consider your words, Shaman’. Twoyoungmen fares her well, and adds that the time has come for he to return to his people.
Twoyoungmen reaches into his pouch, and draws out a handful of colored powders. He flings them into the air, and as they fall upon him, he is gone, whisked away across many, many miles. It is because of that, that Shaman does not notice the small stain that appears and marks the stone where Snowbird leaned upon to gather herself. The stain spreads, darkening against the rocks, until it splits like a wound, festered, rotting flesh and drips black bile. From beyond this realm of mortals, a cry is heard, faint and far away…the Ancient Gods are not pleased with their daughter…
Thousands of miles away, where three man-made islands jut into the Great Lakes, Toronto, Ontario Place to be exact, the home of the worlds largest curved cinema screen, and it is a fast growing entertainment center for Canada’s largest city. Heather McNeil Hudson and Eugene Milton Judd are just two of the many patrons at Ontario Place today, but unlike the many other patrons, Heather and Judd are no just “any old” people, but the wife of the late Guardian, Canada’s premiere super hero, and Puck, of Guardian’s team of heroes, Alpha Flight. Heather tells Judd she is glad he persuaded her into joining him her, even though this place isn’t a cure, at least it is a tonic. Judd tells Heather he is glad to hear she is enjoying herself and pointing, tells her the restaurant he mentioned is over there. Heather is at loose ends, and despite doing the best she can to pull together the shattered pieces of her life, the going has not been easy.
Already deep in conversation, Heather mentions that she has a few thousand in savings, but it wouldn’t be enough to last out the year. She thinks that it has been ten years since she went job hunting last. Puck tries to comfort her, telling her not to worry about it, and tells her life is a lot easier if you take it one day at a time. Heather picks up her cup of tea and tells her friend that unfortunately, it doesn’t work that way for everyone. She tells him that she was raised to always plan ahead, to always have everything accounted for, and that it is not easy to become a free spirit after all these years, especially under these circumstances she adds. Judd asks Heather how old she is and tells her she is talking as if she is locked into patterns that would take a lifetime to build, a much longer lifetime than you have had time to build he adds.
Puck tells Heather he understands what she is going through, perhaps better than she would think, and he adds that she will never hear a truer word from him than when he tells her that her options are endless. Heather seems to perk up a little bit, and smiles, telling Judd that hearing him say that reminds her of something she said to Mac not long after they first met. Heather recalls that Mac was moping around ready to “fall on his sword” over the mess he had got himself into, but she pulled him out of it, and when he got his life together, he went on to become Guardian, leader of Alpha Flight! Heather folds her arms on the restaurant table and looks down, saying that if he never did that, he would still be alive….
Judd tells her not to think that way, and reminds her he has been all over the world, seen things others have never dreamed of, and learned that everyone has a time, which in all their years, can not do a thing to change. Judd starts to comment on Heather saying that Mac was leader, while Judd seemed to think otherwise, when suddenly, a loud scream is heard from nearby the restaurant. Heather leaps up from her chair and wonders what is going on, and Judd thinks that it is a woman screaming, and not a “good time” scream either. Judd announces that someone is in trouble and tells Heather to stay where she is. Following Judd out of the restaurant, Heather says ‘Not likely’ and adds that she wants to know what is going on, Judd agrees, but tells Heather to stay out of harms way.
Near the lake, strangers who were only out for a good time all become a crowd of people gathering for a look at what is going on, the sudden scream bonded them. Judd pushes through the crowd, and someone gets mad at him asking who he is shoving. While the crowd formed a half circle around the edge of the lake, Judd stands separate from them, and approaches the woman trembling beside the water.
Judd carefully asks her what is wrong, and if she is all right, but the woman just shakes, stares at the water and repeats ‘No No No No No’ over and over again. Judd grabs her by the shoulders and snaps her out of it, trying to calm her down, he asks her again what happened. The woman cries for her baby, and proclaims that something in the water took her baby. She says that she was just walking by with her baby, Timmy, in his stroller…the woman kneels to the ground and puts her hands over her head, repeating ‘No’ over and over again.
Puck looks into the deep and dark waters of Lake Ontario, but he sees nothing, and thinks that it is impossible to tell if there is anything down there, but realizes he must do something. Heather has managed to push her way through the crowd of on-lookers, and realizes what Judd has planned. She runs towards her diminutive friend and pulls of her glasses, shoes and sweater, and tells Judd to stop, as he knows he cannot swim. She tells Judd to look after the girl and dives headfirst into the icy waters of Lake Ontario. Judd has no time to react, as Heather is a sudden blur across his vision. He looks helplessly at the water, thinking how afraid he is that Heather holds herself responsible for Mac’s death, and her guilt is unfounded, but she is likely to do something reckless to atone for it.
Two dozen feet below in the water, guilt is the last thing on Heather McNeil Hudson’s mind as she swims deeper and deeper in the dark water. She tells herself to put those lessons she had all those years ago at the “Y” to good use, or else there could be a double drowning. There is more than a simple chill around Heather now, and she thinks how odd it feels down in the water. Suddenly, Heather sees the stroller, and swims over to where it is tangled in some weeds. Heather tugs at the pushchair and cannot see the baby, but deduces that by the look of the seat-belts, the plastic seems to have been ripped right through, as if something just yanked the baby out of the seat, without undoing the belt. Heather thinks that whoever – or whatever – it was must have been very strong and in a hurry. She continues pulling at the stroller, and realizes that she needs some fresh air. She thinks that she should really bring the stroller up with her, but it is too much stuck in the weeds and mud.
Heather decides to give the pram one last tug before she goes back up for air, but while doing so, something resembling a tentacle creeps from behind, and brushes across Heather’s foot. She turns around and her eyes open wide, and bubbles poor from her mouth before she pushes herself up in the water, the tentacles flailing behind her…and she appears above the water, gasping for air, and terribly afraid. Judd rushes over to her and reaches his arm out to hers, asking her what was down there. Heather pleads to Judd not to ask, just to get her out of the water, but while doing so, the tentacles wind themselves around Heather Hudson’s right leg, and her face shows an even greater fear as she is pulled back under the water. Judd grabs hold of her when she comes back up, and pulls her out of the lake, Heather screaming as she leaves the foaming mass of bubbles on the dark water.
Exhausted and wounded, Heather lays on the concrete, water drips from her body and Judd tends to her. He sees that her legs have been ripped to shreds, as if somebody attacked her with one hundred razor blades. Judd calls to Heather, asking her if she can hear him, but her only response is ‘Mac…? Is that you…?’
Soon, a police officer breaks through the crowd, and asks Judd what is going on. Judd tells the officer to calm down, and introduces himself as Puck of Alpha Flight, adding that he has a ‘G-Niner’ clearance with all national forces. Motioning to the woman behind him and Heather, he says that Heather needs immediate hospitalization, and the other is in trauma. He adds that it is a code-red, that they need an ambulance and additional men here, and that they need to close the dock off. Dramatically, Judd announces that there is something nasty in the lake, and no one is going to be safe until something is done about it! The bubbles on the water have gone, and the ripples subside, but the sound above the water means nothing to the creature below. It returns to the deeps, to consider; to study and to grow.
Meanwhile, across the nation it is still early morning in British Columbia, and as the great city of Vancouver prepares itself for another beautiful day, in one of the luxury apartments near False Creek, a day that will prove most atypical for one woman in particular. Steam billows from the bathroom of Walter Langkowski, sometimes known as the great Sasquatch of Alpha Flight, though it is not he in the shower, but his lover, Aurora…. The young mutant grabs her towel and thinks that it is a pity Walter had to leave so early today. Aurora dries herself and wishes that Walter were here to play hooky with her and show her some more of his beautiful city. In her usual forward tone of voice she thinks that it is not Montreal, but it has its charms. Aurora blow-dries her hair and thinks that Walter hasn’t adjusted to her staying with him, however, Aurora has no idea how un-adjusted things are truly going to get, nor that today she stands at the edge of an abyss.
The carefree young woman smiles as she wipes the mirror, though staring back at her, is a reflection of herself, but not quite…and Aurora becomes frightened as a less flattering version of herself, dowdy and meek, smashes against the glass, crying to be let out. But it is not really happening, nor is the hands of Jeanne-Marie reach out to attack Aurora through the mirror, and the harsh cries of Aurora’s other self do not really fill the suddenly chill air. But Aurora does not know that, for her, this is all very real, horribly real, and she falls to the bathroom floor, only her towel to cover her as she shakes from the fear. She can feel her tenuous grip on sanity weaken, and beneath Aurora, the abyss yawns wide.
Back in Toronto, at the gleaming tower that is the Bethume Memorial Hospital in the heart of city, Judd puts down a copy of Time magazine and asks the doctor how Heather is. The doctor walks out of Heather’s room and tells Eugene Judd that she is very lucky, as there was a lot of damage, but their doesn’t appear to be any tissue loss. She adds that Heather will not be posing for any L’Eggs commercials for a while, but she will be able to walk again, with minimal scarring. Judd does not hide his relief and asks when he can see her. The doctor tells him that he can go in now, but not to stay too long as she needs her sleep.
Judd opens the door to Heather’s ward and holds her hand when he reaches her bed. Heather greets him and tells him she thinks she made a mess of herself. She says that the “hero business” is a lot tougher than she thought. Judd comforts her, telling her that she did well, considering the circumstances, he adds that he doubts anyone else from Alpha Flight could have done better. Judd fixes his eyes at Heather, not looking away she is so drawn and pale without make-up, and the tunnel that holds the blanket off her legs is like a bloated worm on the edge of his vision. Heather tells Judd that he is a sweetheart for saying so, but she disagrees. She mentions the “thing” in the lake, and asks him what it is, and whether anything is being done. Judd tells Heather that the police wanted to debrief him on it, but he wanted to see her first. He tells Heather that he has an appointment with Inspector MacMurray soon, and asks Heather to tell him all she can. And Heather does, slowly, halting sometimes even stumbling, searching for words to describe the indescribable, but she tells it all.
(two and a half-hours later)
Judd is in Inspector MacMurray’s office, and has just finished telling the Inspector his story, and Heathers’ account of what happened beneath the water, before he asks the Inspector what he thinks of the situation. The Inspector tells Judd that he is packing a lot of questions, and asks him how a string of killings that make Jack the Ripper look like Strawberry Shortcake sounds. Being serious, the Inspector tells Judd that there have been sixteen murders in ten months, and they are only the ones that are accounted for, as no one knows how many else have gone missing. ‘Sixteen’? Judd asks, before asking how they have kept it out of the papers. The Inspector pulls down a wall chart of the sixteen missing persons and in answer to Judd’s question, says that he uses prayer and favors he wishes he still had afterwards to keep it out of the papers. He motions Judd to the chart and tells him that there are sixteen people, all with nothing in common. ‘Except that they are all dead…and they all died on or near open water eh?’ says Puck, before adding that just like Timmy Rodgers and almost Heather Hudson.
He asks the Inspector what the condition of the bodies was. The Inspector tells Judd not to ask and asks him if he remembers the scene from Jaws where Richard Dreyfus goes to examine the first shark attack victim and the doctor pulls out a tub the size of a pizza box. He says that their medical examiner had even less to show him than that, but he had something to say though, and told him what he was looking at. That the victim had been radically dissected with no major organs left intact, bone fragments scrapped clean of marrow, damage even down to a cellular level. The Medical Examiner added that the presence of white blood corpuscles at certain incisions indicated the victim was still alive when the process took place. The inspector tells Judd that while the Examiner have a professional reading, he could tell he was on the verge of losing his lunch.
He proclaims to Puck that he has been on the force for eighteen years and he as never seen anything like it, though he adds that if he believed in such things, he would say it was the work of a vampire! Matter-of-factly, Judd tells the Inspector that such things exist, or they did until recently, and he says that he heard along the grapevine that something big and of permanent nature happened to them all. Judd tells the Inspector that it is not a vampire they are after, and from Heather’s description, he says that it doesn’t seem like any supernatural thing either. Judd says he is more inclined to think it is “not of this Earth”. The Inspector asks Judd if he is talking about an alien invasion, and tells him that this is Canada, that they don’t get much traffic in the way of flying saucers. But Judd isn’t talking about UFO’s, but something real, and he tells Inspector MacMurray that it happened some time ago, and has a direct link to Alpha Flight! The Inspector tells Judd he is being very cryptic and asks if he would like to elaborate. Judd tells the Inspector that he doesn’t know if he can, but that he knows what must be done.
The official motto of Canada is Ad Mari Usque Ad Mare, which was adopted when British Columbia joined Confederation in 1871, creating a nation, which stretched from “Sea to Sea”. One of those “seas” is the sprawling Atlantic Ocean. Far beneath those ever-rolling waves lives another nation  - the fabled land of Atlantis! In technology and culture, this race of Homo Mermanus equals, and sometimes surpasses its surface dwelling cousins, their race a proud and ancient one, ruled by one man…Prince Namor, the Sub-Mariner.
With a touch of excitement in his voice, Namor asks how much longer he has to wait. Not keeping him waiting much longer, the mysterious woman known as Marrina walks from her dressing room into his sight, and he tells her it was worth the wait. Marrina tells Namor that his royal tailors did a beautiful job of re-working her costume, though she tells him she is not sure why the modification was so insisted upon. Namor pulls Marrina over to himself and tells her that her old garments suited her role as a member of Alpha Flight, but lacked the elegance to a consort of the realm. Marrina looks stunned and stutters as she asks him if he is saying he wants her to be his consort. Namor tells her that he is king of Atlantis, but a king without a queen is a lonely man. He proclaims to Marrina that he has chosen her as his queen.
Before Marrina gets a true grasp on what has just been proposed to her, her Alpha Flight signal goes off. She tells Namor that she is needed and as she starts to leave the room, tells him to forgive her but it has been months since she was needed. She tells him that she must go to Alpha Flight. Namor tells Marrina to wait, that he will go with her, as the matter is too urgent to leave unresolved. However, just as Namor is leaving the room too, an assistant of his called Ramin comes in and tells Namor that Lord Dara is returning from the surface world. Namor tells Ramin not to bother him with bureaucratic details as he has more important matters to deal with. Ramin gives Namor one thousand pardons, and tells him that he thought the negotiations concerning the entry of Atlantis into the United Nations was of most importance. Namor fists his hands and thinks that Ramin is right, but that the business of peacetime government bores him. Namor asks Ramin to tell Lord Dara his will confer with him when he returns, but matter of the state do not concern him now, only matters of the heart, and he begins to track Marrina’s course over the miles.
(a few hours later)
Puck is sitting on a dock and tells himself that if Marrina responded immediately to the signal she should arrive right about now, and as if on-cue, Marrina emerges from the water. Judd welcomes Marrina and the surprised young woman tells him she did not expect to see him after what happened last time they met. Judd tells Marrina that he does not carry grudges, and tells her that he has a case that needs her special powers. Marrina tells Judd he is a good friend and asks him what is happening.
Quickly and concisely, Judd tells the aquatic girl what has transpired, adding that things such as cars and trucks, a well as birds, cats and dogs have also been linked to the mysterious disappearances. He tells Marrina that he was beginning to see a pattern forming, and it made him think of her and what they know of her origins. Hugging herself Marrina tells Puck that she thinks she understands – that she wears the form and functions of a human female because her cellular structure matrix first came in contact with Gladys Smallwood, that if she had not received that “programming” she may have taken on the form of something different. But the compulsions of Marrina’s genetic memory was for her to seek out and imitate the dominant life form of this world. Marrina says that the in-born compulsion was destroyed when her mother, Gladys Smallwood, forced open her egg prematurely.
Marrina starts to drift off, wondering what happened if another of her race survived somewhere out in the waters. Marrina sits down on the dock, and Judd tells her she has grasped his theory, and reminds Marrina that forty thousand years ago, she was only one of millions on the ship that crashed landed waiting to be programmed with the genetic code of Earth’s dominant life form. He reminds her that something went wrong, that the pods were launched prematurely, and that they had thought most of the eggs destroyed over the centuries, but maybe not. Marrina agrees with Judd, after all, if she survived, why not another? Judd tells Marrina that they are lucky with her, because of the damage to her genetic memory, she grew up almost human, full of compassion and love. Marrina’s eyes widen and her mouth gapes open, telling Puck that they know her race is a savage one, only intent on seizing worlds and destroying life which is not their own.
Judd tells Marrina that if they are guessing correctly, one of her people is out in the water somewhere now. But, he adds, it is beneath the waters and doesn’t know what it is supposed to be, as the ship that housed the programming was destroyed. Marrina thinks that it has been conducting its own “biology class” to figure out what it is supposed to be. She puts her hands over her face and sobs. Judd tells her to hang on, as Alpha Flight needs her now more than ever, as she is the only one who can help deal with that thing – the only one who can help destroy it!
Meanwhile, in Calgary, Alberta, near the Canadian Rockies, a city torn between its rural backgrounds and its struggles in the harsh realities of the twentieth century. It is also a city of reason, and this year marks the anniversary of its founding. On the banks of the Bow River, delicate work continues in the slow unearthing of the remains of Fort Calgary. Students, Amateurs and professionals band together in this project, drawing from the earth the pieces that form the jigsaw puzzle of history. Just beyond where the Eastern wall of the fort once was, working apart from the others on a small patch of land she has staked for herself, is a student named Elizabeth Twoyoungmen. The pretty girl smiles as she finds something strange in the dirt and carefully tries to unearth it. As the dirt is brushed away, Elizabeth thinks to herself that it doesn’t look like an artifact, and she is shocked when the dirt reveals a skull, even more so that it is a white man‘s skull.
Suddenly, the skull appears to jump out at her, shrieking “Revenge” before it disappears. Elizabeth is stunned, even a little scared and doesn’t think anybody else saw it. She knows it was real though, and fears that she has let loose a vengeful ghost. She knows it has to be laid to rest again, but there is only one man who could do such a thing, and he is a man she hasn’t seen in fifteen years... Michael Twoyoungmen, her father!


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Provide a full summary of the comic book.

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Blind Date
The Northwest Territories, where Sergeant Doug Thompson of the Royal Canadian Mountain Police is currently posted. He is a man of simple taste, and unaccustomed to the questions which have been bothering him as of late, questions to which he may just get an answer to. The doorbell rings, startling Doug as he washes some dishes. As he walks to the front door he wonders who the visitor could be, before worrying it could be his superior, Inspector Hamilton who will have no-doubt come to ruin Doug’s afternoon. Doug recalls how that since his personal interest in Anne McKenzie has been more than professional; Hamilton has been trying to pin Doug down for Anne’s "jail break."
Opening the door, Doug is shocked to see the woman he was just thinking of standing on the doorstep. Anne apologizes to Doug for disturbing him and asks if she can come inside. Doug tells her to get inside quickly before the neighbors see her as half of them also work for the RCMP. An unhappy Anne holds herself closely as Doug asks her where she has been for the past weeks, after breaking out of jail and not even telling him. Anne tells Doug she knows she owes him a thousand answers to a thousand questions – which is the only reason she came back, adding that Doug was her only friend within the post, and she thought he deserved an explanation.
Anne turns away from Doug and tells him that it is impossible to put into simple words for him, and the best way she can explain is to show. As her lithe body starts to change, melting almost, Douglas Thompson is almost in disbelief, as Anne’s features blur like snow, and where once standing before him was Anne McKenzie, now stands before him, Snowbird, Goddess of the North and one of Alpha Flight’s most powerful members. As Doug calls out to Anne, the beautiful Snowbird tells him she is no longer Anne McKenzie, and in truth she never was, as Anne was merely a figment of one man’s imagination.
Confused and somewhat frightened, Doug sits down to collect himself, staring up at the woman he once believed to be Anne McKenzie, he now sees Snowbird of Alpha Flight, a super heroine! Snowbird tells Doug that is the term they use to describe her and her teammates, but in truth she is much more. Narya gives Doug a brief account of her origin, telling him she is the daughter of a mortal man and the goddess Nelvanna of the Northern Lights. She adds that when she joined Alpha Flight, Guardian and their former superior, Inspector Cranmer created the guise of Anne McKenzie as a "secret identity" for her, however Cranmer died and Hamilton could not be made aware of her situation.
Doug understands now that that is why Hamilton locked "Anne" up, because she could not account for being AWOL so many times. He asks Narya why she didn’t wait for the rest of Alpha Flight to just bail her out. Clasping Doug’s hand, Narya explains that she was put upon the Earth for a specific purpose, one which she cannot reveal to him, adding that she was called upon to that purpose while imprisoned. Narya gets up to leave asking Doug to forgive her, as she has already said more than she ought to, but because of his kindness towards her, felt that he deserved no less.
As Snowbird walks away, Doug calls to her, telling her that she cannot walk out of his life just now, and that he didn’t try to help her because he is just a "sweet guy". He helped her because he is in love with her! And for Snowbird, who thought coming to Doug would relieve her of a loose end, she only finds herself more caught up in the thralls of humanity.
Meanwhile, thousands of miles away, in Toronto, Canada’s largest city, the Alpha Flight members Eugene "Puck" Judd and the amphibious Marrina Smallwood stand on the edge of Lake Ontario. Dressed in a new garment, given to her by her lover, Namor MacKenzie, also known as the Sub-Mariner, Prince of Atlantis, Marrina laments of how beautiful the lake looks and how she almost forgot how beautiful the surface world can be. The usually cynical Judd tells his close friend not to become to enthralled by it, as it could just as easily be blood turning the water red, not the sunset, what with all the killings recently.
She who is the consort of Atlantis’ ruler kneels down so she is at the same height as her dwarven teammate as he informs her that seventeen people have been murdered by something in the water, reminding Marrina that she is the only member of Alpha Flight equipped to investigate, adding that he doesn’t want her to get careless. Marrina tries to reassure her friend and tells him she will be on her guard at all times. As Marrina wades into the lake, Judd tells her that the beast beneath the water does not seem to give much warning. Marrina reminds Judd that she has more in common with the water than those who have so far been taken by the beast within it and like a shark or dolphin, can sense other movements in the water. Marrina proclaims that she doubts anything could sneak up on her once she is submerged.
What Judd does not know however, is that Marrina’s heart does not reflect her light and confident words, for the soul of Marrina is deeply troubled. As she swims further out into the lake, Marrina ponders another of Judds comments mentioned earlier – that the killer beneath the lake is from her race. She dives beneath the lake now and reminds herself that she was raised to think and behave as a human being, even though she is not truly one of them. For in truth, her ancestors are an alien race whose origins lie countless light years out into space, perhaps even beyond this galaxy. Marrina still has much to learn of her origin, but what she does know, is that thousands of her race were sent to conquer Earth, though only Marrina survived, and because she was premature in hatching, she survived and took on human characteristics. However from the evidence Judd has seen of the killings, it has made him believe that perhaps it was not just Marrina that survived.
Marrina swims deeper into the blackened water and she begins to get some small sense of the gigantic task this search would be for surface dwellers. Lake Ontario covers almost forty thousand square miles and contains nearly four hundred cubic miles of water. Within minutes of being in the water, Marrina’s eyes become almost useless in the aquatic night, and her other senses take over. She can now feel "messages" carried through the water as if they were printed on a newspaper. Marrina’s senses probe out further and further, and in a series of spirals the young Alphan swims, feeling the textures of the water, detecting the most precise nuances in the water which are normally undetectable by surface instruments.
Marrina swims onwards and onwards until, coming to a large rock, Marrina discovers a scent trail, and cautiously she draws closer, and immediately feels a strange tingle ripple through her body. She becomes suddenly dizzy, and she senses a great loneliness, one that cries out, craving the company of its own kind. Marrina realizes that she too understands the feeling, for it too is her own. Marrina hesitates for some long and agonizing moments and she floats beyond the jutting rock, until she finally knowing what it all means.
Marrina dives into the narrow gap of the large rock, she swims through the narrow passage, which is an absolute blackness, even Marrina’s constantly scanning senses, despite their power, can tell her very little in the constricting fissure, except that the tunnel goes down deeper and deeper. Marrina squeezes her lithe body through a narrower part of the fissure as if a movement within the rock caused the channel to narrow. Suddenly though, Marrina becomes stuck and for one terrible instant blind terror takes over within her body, no diver could come down this far into the channel and find her, if indeed she could ever be found at all.
If this truly is the path used by the monster, then Marrina can pose no threat to the monster, for she is truly vulnerable herself. Using ever last ounce of her ailing strength, Marrina strains against her captivity, and finally, the Alphan is free! Beyond the bottleneck of the tunnel, the channel opens much wider, the rock walls fall now outside the tips of Marrina’s questioning fingertips. Marrina realizes that if the monster does in deed use this passage, then its bones must be arranged much different to the way hers are.
Finally, ahead of Marrina, the darkness begins to shimmer, flickering with a pale light that perhaps no other eyes but those of Marrina could see. To Marrina it is not a light, but a beacon, a torch suddenly burst into flame inside of a hidden antechamber. In truth however, it is nothing more than the bioluminescence of algae coating the walls of this hollow within the rock. Marrina sees this when her head rises up above the water, inside what appears to be almost a cave. There is no sound, but the distant dripping of water and the strange scent she has followed here hangs heavily like a shroud in the air.
Marrina walks up the bank and out of the water, feeling heavily overpowered Marrina feels the scent almost reach into her mind as if it were created specifically for her! She figures it would support Pucks theory that this creature is one of her race, now calling to her with a strange chemical signal that only Marrina can sense. Marrina’s promise to Puck is forgotten as she rises from the water and her senses drop to human levels, which will cost her dearly, as the frightened young woman discovers seeing what is within the cave.
Not quite meanwhile, the Alpha Flight member Aurora huddles in the British Columbia apartment of her teammate and lover Dr. Walter "Sasquatch" Langkowski. It was on this fateful morning that Aurora’s "other self", the prudish Jeanne-Marie persona, decided to make an appearance, making this perhaps the greatest battle Aurora has ever faced, outweighing every other battle and adventure she has taken part in. Wrapped only in a towel, Aurora walks from the bed fearing for what she may see if she looks in the mirror. For Aurora is what some may call a schizophrenic. Others will call her a classic paranoid. But it is not her fault, for the harsh childhood she lived split her into two distinct personalities, it was Aurora’s other self who has been dominant for most of these years, and it was this other self, that looked at Aurora from out the mirror earlier this morning.
In the bath room, Aurora cautiously looks into the mirror, and she can hear Jeanne-Marie calling out to her. Aurora picks up some scissors, and she tells herself that she needs to do something that will reaffirm her, from the timid, shy and boring Jeanne-Marie. Raising the scissors to her beautiful hair, Aurora tells herself that she knows exactly what to do.
Back in Toronto, Judd stands on the shore of Lake Ontario, wondering where Marrina could be after two hours since he last saw her. He wonders if perhaps he should not have let Marrina go, and that he could have found a way to bring in their other teammates, he thinks about Snowbird, deciding she is more powerful than Marrina, and she can change into animals, though Puck digresses that he has not seen her change into a fish…suddenly, he sees Marrina bob up from the lake. He calls over to his friend, and Marrina moves quickly towards the shore.
However upon seeing Marrina rise out of the water, Judd instantly wishes he had not called out to her, for she looks changed, less human than she normally does, and Judd remembers what happened to himself last time she was like this. He can hear Marrina’s breath in rasping gasps, and beneath her skin, her muscles twitch and jerk as if they are trying to figure out what they are. In her eyes however, burns a cold and terrible fire, a fire of hatred and death.
With a sudden animal snarl, Marrina’s teeth glint in the dying light and she strikes, lunging out of the lake towards Judd. Fast as Marrina is however, Judd is slightly faster, and cart-wheeling out of the way, he wonders why this keeps happening to her, especially as Marrina is the sweetest being he has ever met, and the murderous rages do not fit with her. He wonders what it is that sets her off before getting back to the battle at hand, realizing he is at a serious disadvantage, for his training instincts are to the offensive, and trying to knock Marrina out may cause more damage to her than he intends, because if he slips, then she will be dead.
Judd recalls how he promised Guardian that his days of killing were over when he was paroled into Beta Flight and Judd intends to keep that promise if he can help it, especially if it means not killing his dear friend Marrina. The two friends have known each other for two years since they served together in the now disbanded Beta Flight, adn in those years, Judd had seen no indication or clue to this side of Marrina.
Puck dives out of the way just in time as Marrina hurls a large rock at him, wondering what it could be that comes over Marrina and unleashes the killer instinct of her race. He thinks that because it has happened just now, proves it has something to do with the creature in the lake. Judd takes off his jacket and remembers that last time she did this she drew most of Alpha Flight North to the would-be world conqueror known as the Master. Judd knows he is supposed to be dead, but figures that this could just be a part of his long-term plan.
Judd uses his jacket to try and catch Marrina in as she uncontrollably lunges for Judd, and he hopes he can take her out without killing her. Judd remembers a long time ago in Spain where "Papa Hemingway" taught him a thing or two about bullfighting. He played a similar „game" with a bull and was laughed at by others around him, the bull was not the first, nor would it be the last of all terrors Judd faces from all across the world, faced them and vanquished them.
Far out beyond the shore of the lake, the waters stir, until suddenly, the powerful Sub-Mariner, Namor, Prince of Atlantis flies from the water to the sky, calling out the name of his beloved Marrina. The handsome Atlantean sees Marrina on the beach with Judd, though he sees the scene somewhat differently than it is. Fearing for his beloved’s life, Namor dives towards Judd, warning him of what will come if he has harmed the chosen one of Namor the First.
Namor takes a swipe at Judd, not knowing what power the diminutive man possesses, he knocks Judd back, before the Alphan can explain what is transpiring. As Marrina gathers herself, Namor holds Judd in his hands, starting to ask Marrina why Judd was fighting her – but his only response is a distorted snarl, which nails of ice down his spine.
In Calgary, Alberta however, the Alpha Flight member known as Shaman is going to receive a very different kind of chill. A sports car pulls up outside the Sarcee Reservation medical center where Dr. Michael Twoyoungmen spends much of his time. An attractive young woman steps out of the car and thanks her friend, Paul, for the ride before telling him she will see him back at the student residence. Paul asks Elizabeth if she would like him to wait for her as he has nothing better to do, but she declines the offer, especially as she doesn’t know how long, or painful, this reunion is going to be.
Elizabeth swings the door open forcefully, remembering that she was only four years old when she saw her father last, and that their parting was not particularly pleasant. The woman at the desk greets Elizabeth and informing her that Dr. Twoyoungmen is busy, she asks Elizabeth to be seated. Elizabeth ignores the woman, who tries to get her attention when she walks straight for Shaman’s office. With an attitude that Elizabeth will later become infamous for, Elizabeth tells the assistant not to ‘get your feathers ruffled’ and that he will see her, patient or not.
Elizabeth slams open the door to Michael’s office as he tends to an elderly lady, and with a sense of drama that she will also become known for, Elizabeth says ‘Hello…father. It’s been a long time’. The voice seems to be suspended in the air as Michael Twoyoungmen processes it, sensing a familiarity in it, and a sense of sadness. Turning around, Michael is shocked and almost afraid at seeing his daughter before him. Smiling, he grabs Elizabeth’s arms and tells her that it is so wonderful to see her after such a very long time.
In her usual defensive style, Elizabeth retreats, holding her hands up and telling her father not to hug or touch her, as this is not a cheerful reunion, strictly business. Shaman’s happiness subsides suddenly and asks her if she is sick. Elizabeth informs her father that she is not sick, and even if she were would not come to see him for medical attention. She reveals that she wants to talk to him as Shaman, and the middle-aged Alphan is very surprised.
Back in Toronto, a man wearing a hat and suit with long coat climbs some rocks near the edge of the lake where Namor is fighting his beloved. He decides his patience has been rewarded, and while the weeks have been very long, they were worth the wait, for after forty thousand years, what do a few weeks matter compared to this prize? The man tells him self that he knew the natural instincts of his "pet" would create a situation that would lead to the involvement of Alpha Flight, specifically Marrina.
The mysterious man decides that the arrival of the Sub-Mariner is an added bonus and that since his long-term plans mean the destruction of Namor’s race, the chance to study him up-close is very fortunate. The man narrows his cold eyes beneath his hat and thinks that if Marrina destroys her beloved now then it would reveal much of the weaknesses of the Homo Mermanus, though if she fails in destroying him, it would but just as advantageous for he would learn of Namor’s strengths. In either case, victory will be his, for Homo Mermanus is due for extinction.
In the shallows of the lake, Namor and Marrina struggle valiantly, as the prince of Atlantis asks his lover what has come over her. Namor realizes that Marrina is completely incoherent and totally under another spell. On the rocks, Judd regains consciousness and can not believe Marrina is holding her own against the Sub-Mariner, even though she is no where near as strong as he is. Puck thinks something must be holding Namor back and suddenly remembers that before Namor attacked him, he called Marrina his "chosen one".
Suddenly, the mysterious man knocks Judd out by tapping the back of his neck. Picking the diminutive Alphan up, the man realizes he has not met him before, but from his stature would assume him to be Puck. The man reveals that Puck intrigues him because of his remarkable ability to overcome all his physical shortcomings, which would suggest an incredible strength of will.
Namor holds Marrina up above his body, deciding that she fights like one hundred tigers, and is almost immune to anything less than his full strength, but he wonders how he can use that without killing her. Namor doesn’t have long to ponder as Marrina uses her webbed hands to swipe at Namor’s eyes. Momentarily blinding him. Marrina leaps from Namor’s grasp as the mysterious man approaches him. The mysterious man informs Namor that his blindness will only be a temporary effect as the skin of Marrina’s people secretes and oil which causes extreme constriction of the pupils, he adds haughtily that it is one more thing Marrina’s fellow Alphans have to learn about her.
As the blinded Namor asks the man who he is, he is struck and knocked unconscious, the man telling Namor that answers will come later. Namor falls to the rocks and the man begins to strip off his own business style suit, proclaiming that as the Sub-Mariner has fallen, so shall the rest of his race, for the time of his supremacy is fast approaching, and all sentient life shall bow down to him…the Master of the World! The ancient and powerful enemy of Alpha Flight laughs as lightening begins to flicker behind him, displaying the Master in all his awesome glory, but the unconscious Namor can do nothing.