Sensational She-Hulk #19
Year Zero
Twenty-One Years Ago
Dr. Timothy Hayes is heading home with his wife Blair and their daughter Purple after seeing a screening of "Easy Rider" in the city of Visigoth, Massachusets. As they walk home they go down a dark alley where a man attempts to mug them. When the Hayes resist, the robber shoots Timothy and Blair to death. Turning to Purple he asks, "Does Satan dance the funky chicken 'neath the Harvest Moon?" before fleeing under the sound of police sirens. Some time later, the hippie child Purple visits her parents grave and vows to bring "non-radicalized outlaws" to justice. Later that night, Purple's caretaker Freda bars some of her father's old friends from crashing in their massive mansion. She tells them that Purple has discontinued the open invitation. She spends the convening years studying the law so that she can avenge the murder of her parents, and kill them.
The Present
In New York City, the She-Hulk and Louise Mason are checking out prospective office space for Jennifer's new law office. Thanks to Louise's shrewd negotiations, they manage to get the price down to a reasonable price. They then decide to go for lunch to celebrate. However, when they enter a restaurant they find all the clientele dead with frowns on their faces. On the wall a slogan reading "Life is a vat.. Then you die..!" painted on the wall. When they call the police, they learn of three other similar incidents that have happened elsewhere in the city. When they are interviewed by the police, one of the officers states that this might have been a trial run for something bigger. She-Hulk offers her assistance and soon she and Weezie are on their way. As they walk away, someone reports the results of the test to a man in a secret facility in Visigoth.
Later that night, Purple Hayes has disguised herself as a man in order to walk through a dangerous part of the city. When Purple sees a bunch of men harassing an elderly woman, she tries to step in and gets beaten up for her trouble and has to be saved by the old woman she was trying to protect. Hayes returns home where her father's old friends are still protesting to be let in. Inside, she tells her caretaker that she learned an important lesson that day. She needs to get the element of surprise against criminals. When she is trying to figure out some kind of image to adopt, one of the protesters throws a Darth Vadar mask through the window. She is then inspired to take on an image to strike fear into the hearts of her foes. still undecided, she gets some inspiration when she's hit in the face with a rubber bat. She then tells Gerta to brew a coffee and write a large check.
New York, one month later, She-Hulk has finally set up her new law office. No sooner are they open for business does Lexington Loopner come in with a bottle of champaign to celebrate. Loopner has come to hire She-Hulk to collect payment from a client of his and is willing to pay her a substantial sum of money to do it. When Weezie hears the price, she agrees to the job on Jennifer's behalf. When She-Hulk arrives in Visigoth, she is surprised by the sight of a massive bat-themed advertising campaign advertising that something will be happening the following day. She-Hulk finds no escape from this bombardment of advertising, not even the hotel she is staying in, as it is part of an advertising cross-promotion. The following morning, She-Hulk pays a visit to the law offices of Dewey, Cheatham & Howe who are the representatives for Bloodsucker Entertainment. When She-Hulk asks what this advertising is for, but they are just as clueless as her as their client has been communicating with them anonymously. She collects Loopner's payments and goes back to her hotel room.
That evening, a group of crooks is suddenly attacked by a woman dressed as a bat. She roughs them up and then threatens one of the crooks. When he asks who she is, she tells him that her name is Nosfaratah, the She-Bat of Darkness and that he should tell his criminal friends about her. However, when the man cannot pronounce her name, she drops him off the roof anyway, resigning to deal with her own publicity. Nosfaratah next tries to stop the theft of a truckload of deadly chemicals. This all happens outside of the She-Hulk's hotel room and awoken by the noise. She sees the truck screeching to a halt and decides to leap out and investigate. Jennifer prevents the truck from crashing. Nosfaratah then tosses the crooks at her and tells them that they are stealing chemicals. The she-bat than flies off, with She-Hulk trying to leap after her and learn more about her, but the female bat-woman manages to fly off. This leaves She-Hulk to wonder who Nosfaratah is, and what she will do next. The entire ordeal is being watched by the man responsible for the deaths in New York and seeing the situation unfold makes him feel very, very sad.
Recurring Characters
She-Hulk, Louise Mason, Nosfarata, Lexington Loopner, Jack Serious
Continuity Notes
The narrative of this story states that the flashback that details the origins of Nosfaratah's death occurred in the year 1969. However, as she is a character rooted in the Modern Age, this should be considered a topical reference per the Sliding Timescale of Earth-616 relative to the date of publication. The past lives of Modern Age characters also slide forward. Modern readers should interpret this flashback as happening 21 years prior to the story in question.
