Lucifer be Thy Name

Captain America and the Falcon are fighting an armed militia outside of the castle. Fighting through the army, they get into the castle where they try to stop the launch of a brain-buster missile. However, while trying to disarm the weapon it explodes, killing them both. That’s when Sam Wilson wakes up and realizes that it was all a vivid nightmare. He figures the dream is coming from his disbelief over Steve Rogers has deciding to quit as Captain America.[1]

Sam gets dressed and heads to the office where he works as a social worker. This is also where Steve has been living.[2] Waking Steve up, Sam suggests that they both go and visit Professor X of the X-Men to learn his Sam’s affinity with his hawk, Redwing, is a mutant power.[3] Steve gets upset and reminds Sam that he’s finished as Captain America and that he can go find out alone. Sam also loses his temper and as he changes into Falcon, he sarcastically wishes Steve luck on his new life. As Falcon takes to the air, Steve wonders if he’ll end up pushing his former partner out of his life. Falcon’s bad mood, however, quickly melts away when he is reunited with Redwing and the pair go on patrol together.

Meanwhile, in another dimension, the alien being known as Lucifer plots his escape following his most recent defeat on Earth.[4] To this end he has gotten local beast called a Salirann to retrieve a sample of the rare Casadrax mineral he needs to power his machine and return to his native dimension. He hopes that this device will allow him to return to Earth permanently and at first, it appears to be a success. After Lucifer gets some food at a local deli, he runs into Rafe Michel and his gang who are on the run from the law. Seeing the gang as potential allies, Lucifer lends his ionic power to aid them in fighting the police. That’s when Falcon arrives on the scene and in the ensuing battle, Lucifer suddenly feels himself being pulled back to the dimension he came from. Needing a new human host, Lucifer merges with Rafe and flees the scene of battle.

Elsewhere, Steve Rogers is on a walk and overhears people reacting to the announcement that Captain America is retiring. It makes him feel like Tom Sawyer when he attended his own funeral. However, he doesn’t find it as funny as Mark Twain’s iconic character did and goes to visit Sharon Carter. Sharon is happy to see Steve and sees his retirement as an opportunity for them to focus on their relationship.

Meanwhile, Lucifer begins feeling sick and realizes that a single host is not enough to sustain his existence on Earth. Sensing a suitable secondary host, Lucifer breaks into a New York City detention center where Ares of the Zodiac cartel is being held prisoner.[5] Ares agrees to merge with Lucifer if it means getting free from captivity and when the transfer is complete there are now two Lucifers. They are found by the Falcon and in the ensuing battle, the lone hero is no match for the two Lucifers. As the police reinforcements arrive on the scene, a limo pulls up to get the two Lucifers away from the scene. As they escape, Steve Rogers happens by and checks to see if Falcon is okay, however seeing his partner defeated in battle isn’t enough to convince him to return to being Captain America. Meanwhile, the two Lucifers are brought to Morgan, Harlem’s crime boss who wants to hire them to eliminate the Falcon.

Recurring Characters

Captain America, Falcon, Lucifer, Rafe Michel, Ares, Sharon Carter, Boss Morgan, Redwing

Continuity Notes

1. Steve Rogers entire identity was shaken to its core when he uncovered that a former President of the United States was actually the leader of the Secret Empire, see Captain America #169-175. Cap decided to retire last issue, but he will be forced to take on the mantle again in issue #183.

2. Steve has been living out of Sam’s office since he was evicted in Captain America #166.

3. Professor X suggests that Falcon’s link to Redwing might be a mutant power in Captain America #174. This proves to be incorrect, as it is later revealed that Falcon was given these powers by the Red Skull via the Cosmic Cube. See Captain America #186 and All-New Captain America #3.

4. Lucifer notes his previous battles against the X-Men in X-Men #9, 20-21 and Iron Man in Iron Man #20.

5. Ares has been incarcerated since the Zodiac was taken down by the Avengers in Avengers #120-122. His real name is note revealed here. The Zodiac profile in Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe #12 identifies him as Grover Raymond.

Topical References

• This story depicts a child selling newspapers on the street. This should be considered a topical reference as this is a dated practice.