Pendragon Comics - The Pendragons

The Pendragons

Issue # 61

Brought together in defense of Avalon and the British Isles, the Pendragons are the officially-sanctioned heroes of Great Britain. Originally led by the Black Knight, the group is composed of surviving members of the old Knights of Pendragon group, as well as several other heroes. Willing to die for their beliefs, the Pendragons stand united as Britain's best defense against threats of a superhuman nature.

Special "Silver Anniversary" Pendragons logo created by Kell Carpenter, inspired by the logo created by Des Davies!

Pendragons Roll-Call: Captain Britain (leader), Nocturne, Union Jack, Spitfire and Micromax.

Artwork by David Evans

Written by Barry Reese

What Has Come Before: Micromax has discovered that the Weird Happenings Organization is about to unleash their own in-house group of heroes: the New Crusaders, based upon the little-known WW II-era group. Elsewhere, the surviving forces of Fenris have set their sights on a former Pendragon -- the Celtic Phoenix, who they blame for the death of Andrea Strucker. And unbeknownst to the Pendragons, their old foes, the Emissaries of the Dark, have regrouped once more and are plotting the downfall of Britain's greatest champions....

Betsy Braddock sipped her tea, enjoying the feel of her plush robe against her skin. It was early in the morning and the sunlight was just beginning to stream in through the castle's windows, warming the air. She stepped into the team's meeting room, feeling relaxed and comfortable. It was a Saturday and all felt good in her life, despite the fact that her home had suffered another bout of damage* and a group of pixies high on fairy dust had run amok in London last evening. There was also the strange future version of Shevaun Haldane -- Dark Angel -- who'd appeared to her and Gray in the ruins of Castle Haldane. That odd version had disappeared almost immediately, leaving Gray feeling confused and scared -- and strangely distant. He'd refused to discuss the alternate Haldane's words and she'd been too kind to pry.

"Good morning, Betsy." Suzi Endo looked up from the large table in the center of the room. The visor to her Cybermancer armor lay before her, partially disassembled. "Come to help Gully and I?"

Betsy smiled wanly, casting a glance over at the holographic form of Gulliver Jones, lurking nearby. In life, he'd been known as Captain Kerosene -- a hero dating back to the second World War and a stalwart Pendragon. When death had threatened to his existence, he'd worked with a teammate to find a new way of 'living.' Now, as a holographic life form, he served as the team's butler and dispatcher. "I wanted to catch up on the news, actually. What are you two working on today?"

"Trying to smooth out the neural interface. It's still causing headaches after long-term use."

"Maybe if you get this resolved, you'll change your mind about joining the team?" Betsy asked, trying to inject a teasing quality into her words. She'd been desperate to get Suzi to increase her involvement with the group, seeing her as a natural replacement for Shevaun's scientific know-how.

The vehemence in Suzi's words took a good bit of wind out of Betsy's sails, however. "First of all, I've told you repeatedly -- I'm not a superhero. I'm a scientist, seeking a way to create the next generation of battlesuit. Period. Second, I would never join a team who supports principles that I find abhorrent."

"This whole business with Adam Crown," Suzi answered, setting down her tools. "You're actually throwing your support behind someone who's seeking to undermine a hard-earned democracy and return to a dictatorial form of government? It's absurd."

"He's not King Arthur! He's Adam bleeding Crown! The same one who used to spar with you over team leadership, acting like a spoiled little brat. And he's the same one who betrayed us to Jim Jaspers."

"The hell I can't. All of you are so blinded by this religious nonsense that you're willing to forgive anyone with the Green Knight Stamp of Approval."

Betsy felt the heat rise to her cheeks, but she valiantly held her composure. "Nonsense... Suzi, I've never heard you speak like this."

"It shouldn't come as a surprise. I didn't come to Lyonesse because I was seeking enlightenment. I came for a paycheck. And since I've been here I've seen good people have their lives ruined again and again, all in the name of Avalon. Cam -- a child! -- is now psychologically scarred. Kelsey had to face her inner demons. It just goes on and on, not to mention all the people you lot have buried!"

"We're losing the plot here, Betsy. I shouldn't make this into more than it is -- I think the Pendragons are morally bankrupt when it comes to supporting the demolishment of a democratic society."

"We're not advocating that... We stand behind Adam's mission and support those who want to break away from the modern world and join him. That's it. We'll fight to our dying breaths to protect the British government, for as long as it stands."

"So you say." Suzi looked back down at her visor, subtly dismissing the team's leader. "But I'm not the only one who feels this way -- or haven't you paid attention to the papers?"

Betsy saw Gully pass over a newspaper, one with a colorful photo on the front page. The headline said it all, and it hit her like a shot to the gut: PM UNVEILS NEW BRIT HEROES: THE NEW CRUSADERS!. "How could Harrison do this?" she asked. "He's been so stalwart lately."

"Since Adam did the old Jedi Mind Trick on him?" Suzi prodded. "Looks to me like the PM's just following the lead of his party. They want their own tin soldiers to order around -- and the Pendragons can't be trusted with that duty anymore. You should have thought about this before you declared your support for a man who's seeking to destroy the British government, whether it takes one year or twenty."

Mary Jane Watson-Parker swatted away several pixies that had decided to follow her through the park. They were worse than the flies back home, by far -- the pixies were smart enough to distract you in hopes of making off with something sweet or shiny. "Shoo," she said, finding a bench that appealed to her.

She sat there, finishing off her buttered scone, and thought of her husband. It had been so very long since she'd seen him and the stories of what lay outside the Barrier kept her awake at night. Peter would be right in the thick of the Martian war, she knew -- and she hoped he'd be alive to greet her when this nightmare finally ended.

The voice, spoken from just over her left shoulder, spurred an instant reaction. Mary Jane had heard it over and over in her nightmares, always accompanying painful visions of a moment she'd always want to forget. She whirled quickly, throwing her scone straight into the leering face of Venom.

Mary Jane bolted, running hard and fast. She kept herself in excellent shape and she'd always privately known this moment would come -- she'd seen Venom on the news, after all, and knew that even Great Britain wouldn't be so large as to prevent a meeting between them.

Mary Jane skidded to a stop as Captain Englander moved into her path, descending from above. "Leave me alone," she whispered.

"Can't do that. You've got a part to play in the coming drama -- and I know you've done your fair share of soap opera acting, haven't you? So you'll do well, I'm sure."

He reached for her, clutching her tightly around the throat. He lifted her off the ground, holding her there as her eyes began to bulge.

Englander smiled coldly. "Quite a beauty, isn't she? I can see why your foe cherishes her so."

Englander dropped her at his feet. "You suffered greatly at his hands, didn't you?"

Venom nodded slowly, knowing exactly what his ally meant. Both of them were reluctant members of the Emissaries of the Dark -- and both of them knew that the time would come when the Lady Mandarin would have to be dealt with. "You have my word," Eddie Brock said.

Rathoon watched his partner splash in the water, capering about like a newborn hatchling. Fin Fang Foom wasn't an earth-born dragon at all, but he was the closest thing that Rathoon had found to a kindred spirit -- and their mutual friendship had deepened into much more as of late. "You're going to tire yourself out," the dragon warned. "And then what good will you be to me later on?"

Fin Fang Foom bared his teeth and laughed, tossing a small wave of water up onto the sand. "I have more stamina than you any day of the weak."

Fin moved closer, folding his wings against his body. The two dragons nuzzled each other, intertwining their necks.

Rathoon felt his friend stiffen in his embrace, something warm and wet suddenly spilling down the dragon's back. "Fin?" he asked, loosening his grip for the moment. Fin Fang Foom slid back into the water, a large wound clearly defined on his back.

"Press the attack! The dragon is a powerful foe!" someone yelled. Rathoon barely had time to look around before a net was dropped over him by Jack O'Lantern, soaring overhead. Lady Mandarin, borne aloft on her own flying platform, leaped free and activated her psi-blade. The mental construction plunged deep into Rathoon's brain, frying his synapses.

As the dragon howled, the final two villains made their move. Hell's Angel cast a spell binding the net tighter to the dragon, inhibiting his ability to cast his own ancient magic... and the one known as Dragonslayer walked up to the fallen Pendragon, a smile dancing upon his lips.

"Rathoon," the evil knight began. "Last of the elder dragons. An affront to the Bane... demons of air and light, I reject you."

"You're making a mistake, boy... I'm gonna kick your skinny ass all over Britain!"

"Bold words from someone in your position." Dragonslayer knelt beside the elder beast, drawing his sword as he did so. "I'd love to gut you here and now... but you'll have a part to play later on, so I have to make do with a bit of rough. You don't mind, do you?"

Adam Crown paused before answering, staring out over the Kingdom of Darkmoor. The people had done an amazing amount of work, creating a vibrant home out of the remains that the Red Lord had left behind. It was a testament to their unyielding spirit... "Just wondering -- again -- if I'm worthy of all this." He reached up and scratched the beard he'd grown recently.

Mordred fought to keep a sneer off his face. Crown had spared him after the Red Lord's fall, granting him mercy in exchange for Mordred's services as court magician. The arrangement was an odd one, but Mordred had no desire to betray his master... not yet, at least. "These doubts of yours do you credit, actually. Only a fool would not question the wisdom of his own actions."

Crown turned to face his advisor, smiling softly. They were alone here, on the balcony outside Crown's throne room, and he felt that he could speak freely. "Is that true of you, Mordred? Do you have such doubts?"

"My mother taught me to be self-assured... but yes, I am plagued by insecurities."

"Something else we have in common, then." Crown patted Mordred's shoulder, drawing a half-lidded glance from the other man. "You're certain that something foul is coming?"

"Wonderful," Crown whispered. "Are we never to know peace? Is strife to be as common for us as the air we breathe?"

Mordred nodded at that, though he disagreed vehemently. He had been truthful in warning Adam about the coming threat, but he'd kept one detail to himself, though the prophetic words that had come to him had been clear enough.

When the ancient one clashes with the flame-haired warrior, the new king in old raiment shall fall.....

The Emissaries were gathered in one of Baron Strucker's old Hydra cells, nestled deep in the Bavarian mountains. Why Lady Mandarin had led them all here was not clear at first, though when she'd revealed the private storehouse of Hydra weaponry they all ceased their complaints.

"Forget the guns, Englander," Mandarin hissed. "We come for a greater prize than that."

Hell's Angel, standing near Dragonslayer, couldn't help but smile. "Do you really think she's gone off-kilter? I'm beginning to wonder," she whispered.

"Zhang is a clever woman," he answered, aware of her ever-present sexuality. Hell's Angel was the daughter of Blackheart and the very embodiment of lust. "She's promised me whatever I want, so I'm giving her the benefit of the doubt."

"What is that thing?" Jack O'Lantern asked, drawing Angel's attention away from the dashing young knight. She turned to see Lady Mandarin lifting up an ancient necklace made of battered gold.

Venom moved forward, shoving Mary Jane before him. She was bruised and held tight by some of the villain's self-produced webbing. "What will happen to her?" he asked.

"The being we're about to resurrect was once defeated by her... He will crave vengeance. He will want her blood, fresh and hot. This will help him return."

"She is more than she appears!" Zhang hissed. "An ancient spirit has used her as host before and may return again -- but even if it does not, he will want his revenge." She took a vial of dragon blood from Englander and poured it atop the necklace, which sizzled and hissed like it was on fire. She held it for a moment before letting the jewelry fall to the floor. "Come! Come! Return to the world of man, so that you may shape it in the glory of the Bane! Come! Come! Claim your vengeance on this foul woman!"

Mary Jane twisted in Venom's grip but couldn't escape. Her eyes were focused on the shape beginning to emerge above the necklace, a familiar visage of pure evil.

When he had returned in full, Kulan Gath gazed about him in thinly veiled disgust. "Who seeks to learn from me?" he inquired.

"We do," Lady Mandarin whispered. "We will serve at your side as you lay waste to the world -- and all we ask in return is that you help us destroy our enemies."

Gath, his eyes peering out from beneath leathery folds of flesh, gazed upon Mary Jane with interest. "It is her... the mortal woman who once channeled the spirit of an old foe. You have brought her to me as a gift?"

Gath smiled coldly. "Yes... It is a fitting gift. Our partnership should prove fruitful, indeed....."

Scott Wright walked alongside his teammate, Gray Poldark, as the two strolled towards Gray's London flat. Scott had his hands pushed deep into his jacket, nodding as his friend talked. Their relationship was an old one, as Scott's DJ connections had led him to interview Gray about several of his documentaries in the past. They got along, enjoying the occasional pint, even before the Pendragons gig came about. "So did she tell Suzi to kiss off?"

"No. She was too flabbergasted to even respond." Gray stopped outside the entrance and searched through his keys. "Truth is, I see where Suzi is coming from. I'm not a fan of true monarchies either... but damn it, I felt it when Adam announced his intentions. It felt right."

"Before the Barrier, I would have agreed with her, too," Scott admitted. "But it's a new world now." He gestured towards a goblin skateboarding nearby. "The old rules don't apply anymore."

The two men stepped inside the flat, meaning to grab a few things to take back to Lyonesse... but neither of them could remember any of that when they saw what lay inside.

Rathoon was crucified before them, spread out along one large wall. He'd been magically shrunken so that he'd fit into the flat, but he was still mammoth in size.

A flaming pentagram sprang to life in the center of the room, along with a stench that Gray found familiar. "Angel," he said, his eyes traveling along the length of his fallen comrade. "How could you...?"

Scott ran forward, using his powers to shift into Micromax mode. "He's still alive, but he's hurt bad. We need to get him to Lyonesse!"

Gray nodded, his head beginning to pound. He felt an urge that was too powerful to resist and he ran to his hidden closet, opening it to reveal his Nocturne costume. Over Scott's protests, he pulled the Looking Glass helmet into place -- as usual, there was a vision waiting for him. A glimpse into the future....

Once again, he saw the future version of Shevaun. Once again he heard her pronouncement... "Betsy Braddock must die."

And he saw himself run her through, blade in hand, as the Kingdom of Darkmoor crumbled all around.