The Incredible Hulk

A storm is raging over the town of Arbory, cutting the power to the whole town. Wandering nearby is the Hulk who happens to get struck by lightning. Instead of merely being struck, the electricity continues to surge in the man-monsters gamma irradiated body causing him a great deal of pain. He ends up running into town, smashing through the fence owned by Ed Edkins. Seeing the Hulk pass by, Edkins decides to go to the police and heads out to the local station house.

Elsewhere, a crook named Tommy visits his pal Leroy and convinces him to take advantage of the blackout to commit some muggings. They try to mug a man in the streets, but not far away, the Hulk grabs onto a lamp post. The surging electricity in his body causes the lights in the immediate area to turn back on. Panicked that the element of darkness has left them, Tommy shoots the man they are trying to mug so he can't identify them later.

The shots attack the police and the pair shoot at the cops as they make their escape. trying to speed out of the area in their car, the two crooks drive right into the path of the Hulk. Still wracked with pain, the gamma-spawned monster slams his fists into the hood of the car, stopping it dead. This impact also unleashes the electricity surging through the Hulk's body. With the pain gone, the Hulk wanders away unseen. When the police catch up with the wreck they find the two cooks dead inside. However, puzzling to the officers is the fact that the crash didn't kill them, it's that they appeared to have been electrocuted.

Recurring Characters

Hulk

The Black Knight

On a mission for Merlyn, the Black Knight has a near collision with a helicopter. When the chopper swerves to avoid a collision it ends up crashing. The Black Knight lands and finds that the pilot is okay, but discovers that he was on an important mission to get a supply of blood to the remote village of Trewelyn. The Black Knight agrees to help and flies off on his horse Valinor.

Elsewhere in the town of Cornwall an elderly woman named Old Sarah Mumford senses a bad omen that will bring about the so-called "Dark Rider" to her village, she notes that it is now snowing in June. As she walks back to her cottage she spots a strange man known only as the Stranger standing out by the ocean. She also walks past the downed chopper. The pilot then reports in his encounter with the Black Knight. This transmission is intercepted by a man who reports the situation to his master the evil Mordred. He then unleashes two Blood Ravens to intercept their foe.

The Black Knight is then attacked by an R.A.F. fighter that shoots Valinor out of the sky. Grounded, the Black Knight recovers just in time for the Blood Ravens to encroach upon him.

Recurring Characters

Black Knight, Brian Braddock, Old Sara, Mordred, Greymalkin, Valinor

Continuity Notes

• The Stranger is revealed to be Brian Braddock as revealed in Hulk Comic #3. This was during a period in which Captain Britain abandoned his identity in Hulk Comic #42-43.

Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.

Aboard the S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier, Nick Fury is testing out a new training room which is armed that uses stun beams. In the middle of the session, Fury is distracted by the sudden image of seven stars that materialize in front of him. He is then struck by a stun beam, making him realize that the training device has been sabotaged in order to kill him. Before Dum Dum Dugan can shut the machine down, Fury disarms it. Seeking answers, Fury has Gaffer and Internal Security officer Carlyle Pallis investigate to find out who is responsible.

Fury then decides to start an investigation of his own, Fury and Dum Dum go down into the computer records room. As they go through the records, Fury recalls how Tony Stark originally tapped him to head S.H.I.E.L.D. to stop the terrorist organization known as Hydra.

When their records turn up nothing, Fury and Dum Dum are contacted by Gaffer and Pallis who have some answers at least. He discovers that someone replaced some of the equipment in the training room to be deadly and a hologram projector was responsible for the appearance of the seven stars. Suddenly, there is a red alert prompting Fury to go to the control room of the Helicarrier. There he learns that seven missiles have been launched at them. With radar jammers at work, Fury pushes one of his men away from the console and shoots the missiles out of the sky, narrowly avoiding their destruction.

When going over the records of the attack they noted that the seven missiles were fired in the same pattern as the hologram in the training session. Fury is sure that there is some kind of connection but doesn't know what.

Recurring Characters

SHIELD (Nick Fury, Gaffer) Sept (Carlyle Pallis)

Continuity Notes

• Dum Dum Dugan's appearance here is complicated as he's not in the flesh. He was mortally wounded decades ago as revealed in Original Sins #5. He has since been operating in sophisticated LMD bodies as revealed in New Avengers (vol 4) #17.

• The flashback in this story is a retelling of Nick Fury being inducted in SHIELD in Strange Tales #135. This story suggests that SHIELD was created in the Modern Age. However, as revealed in Winter Soldier: The Bitter March #1.NOW reveals, SHIELD has been operating as early as the 1960s. History of the Marvel Universe #2 states that the the version of the agency that first appeared in Strange Tales was a public incarnation.

Night Raven

At a downtown hotel, Granacci and meets with some other mobsters to discuss a possibility of working with Don Castillio. When they ask Castillio about amalgamating, they notice that the mobster is not there, instead, it is the masked vigilante known as the Night Raven.

The hero kicks over their gambling table and manages to slip out of a window before they are shot. When Garancci looks out of the window, he is ropped up and pulled to the roof. When the other mobsters follow Garancci to the roof they shoot who they think is the Night Raven. However, it turns out that the hero dressed Garancci in his overcoat and mask.

Downstairs, the boss tries to get away with his paperwork when he is ambushed by the Night Raven. Taking off one of his gloves, the masked vigilante reveals his emblem on his palm and uses it to brand it on the mobsters forehead, killing him. When the rest of the mobsters return downstairs they find their dead boss with a note pinned to his jacket. The note reads "When Brooding Darkness Spreads its Evil Wings the Night Raven Stings!"

Recurring Characters

Night Raven