Brute Force

During his battle with the Blood Brothers, Iron Man’s armor is damaged as he is plunged into the waters of the Westside Pier. Pinned under concrete, Tony Stark realizes his life support systems are busted and that he’ll drown if he doesn’t find a way to save himself. Luckily, Iron Man’s jet boots still work and he is able to blast himself to freedom. However, before he can continue his hunt for the alien duo, his jets cut out causing him to crash to the water again and into another fight to prevent himself from drowning.[1]

Meanwhile, Daredevil has arrived outside the Lincoln Tunnel en route to Newark airport. The damage caused by the Blood Brother’s rampage have made it impossible to travel that way. Needing to get to California as quickly as possible, Daredevil heads to the pier to see if he can hitch a ride on a boat instead.[2] Twenty blocks away, the entity commanding the Blood Brothers grows impatient for their arrival. This entity is being fed by a homeless man named Scrounger, who has come to devote this being as his master. The Blood Brothers, on the other hand, are making progress at their own pace. However, they believe they will reach the one summoning them faster now that Iron Man is no longer trying to stop him.

Back at the pier, Iron Man’s plight is spotted by Daredevil who uses his billy-club to pull his fellow hero to safety. Explaining the danger posed by the Blood Brothers, Iron Man convinces Daredevil to postpone his trip to help search, using his connections as Tony Stark to delay the flight to California that the Man Without Fear is trying to make. After helping Iron Man recharge his armor, Daredevil begins searching while Iron Man begins making repairs to his damaged armor.

Meanwhile, Roxanne Gilbert — fed up with waiting on Tony Stark to pay attention to her — packs her things and leaves the guest apartment he loaned to her. The guard at the front desk tries to stop her and tell her that Tony had just came by to see her, but gives up since she hasn’t been a good tipper. While at Stark International, Detective Michael O’Brien catches Harry Key — a crooked private-eye — trying to sneak onto the property disguised as a guard. Seeing this as the perfect opportunity to prove that Tony Stark murdered his brother, O’Brien blackmails Harry into stealing some things for him.[3] Convinced this will finally expose the truth, Michael waits for Harry to do as he is told.

Later, Daredevil finally finds the Blood Brothers, who have arrived at the location of the mastermind that has been summoning them. The Man Without Fear attacks the alien creatures as they try to smash their way through the rubble of a collapsed building. By this time, Iron Man has finished repairing his armor and joins the battle. Noticing how the two aliens seem to get stronger as they are close together, Iron Man and Daredevil work together to split up the Blood Brothers. Sure enough, when they are far enough away, the Blood Brothers begin rapidly losing their strength leading to a quick defeat. With the battle over, Daredevil leaves Iron Man to mop up so he can catch his flight.

As Iron Man tries to understand the Blood Brothers’ bizarre actions, he doesn’t know that they were drawn here by the Controller, who has been trapped under the rubble of the collapsed building for some time. Although the Blood Brothers have failed to free him, they have widened the opening enough so Scrounger — the Collector’s loyal assistant — can lure people down into the pit so the Controller can finally free himself.

Recurring Characters

Iron Man, Daredevil, Blood Brothers, Controller, Michael O’Brien, Roxanne Gilbert, Scrounger, Harry Key

Continuity Notes

1. Here Tony complains about how vulnerable his thinner armor is. Tony had recently upgraded his armor in Iron Man #85 to be more compact for faster changing. This came at the expense of the armored protection of previous models.

2. Daredevil needs to get to California to rescue Karen Page from kidnappers. That story is chronicled in Ghost Rider (vol. 2) #19 and Daredevil #137.

3. In reality, Kevin O’Brien was driven mad by his Guardsman armor and died in battle with Iron Man in issue #46. Michael has been trying to prove Tony murdered his brother since issue #82.