A great number of things had changed since the last time Helena put in a full day at the office. Now she was leading a double life as the Huntress and it made her day job seem completely boring and tedious. She loved the feeling she got out of fighting crime: the thrill, the rush. Researching legal precedents and developing courtroom strategies no longer had much appeal.
The door opened and Helena's secretary, Mary Carole, entered.
"Child, you look terrible!" The short African-American woman approached the desk and set several folders upon it.
"Thanks a lot, MC." Helena grabbed the top folder and flipped through it feigning interest. "I've been keeping odd hours as of late."
"Uh-huh. You've got a visitor waiting outside."
As if on cue, a man stuck his head into the room. "Helena! I finally was able to catch you!"
Helena groaned silently while MC gave a wide, knowing smile. The secretary exited the room, closing the door behind her.
"What can I do for the Assistant District Attorney today?" Helena leaned back in her chair, already having guessed at the intentions of her visitor. Assistant DA Gary Simmons had an on-again, off-again relationship with Helena for the last year or so. Simmons wasn't a bad looking guy, about six feet tall with short brown hair and brown eyes.
"It's been a long time, Helena." Gary eyed Helena with a longing gaze. They made the perfect couple he thought. Why couldn't she see that? "Trying to get a hold of you has been a nightmare. You're never at home or at the office."
"Sorry," Helena said with a shrug. Leading a double life did take away from her free time. Most nights were spent operating as the Huntress. "I've just been very busy... Overseeing the estate." Helena knew that Gary was attracted to her-- he wasn't very subtle about it. As a child, her father made observation training into a game. Look at people and see what you could deduce about them. Helena became fairly good at it; Gary was very easy to read. He was a good man, kind to a fault. But he was on the dull side. Sort of like a overly-eager to please puppy dog.
"The death of your father must have been a horrible ordeal. I sympathize with your pain. But you can't let it rule your life. You need to pull yourself away and live again. Let's go out tonight. Dinner. A movie. My treat."
"Afraid I'll have to take a rain check, Gary. Already have plans for the evening." Seeing Gary's visible disappointment, Helena shifted forward and rested her arms on the desk. "Tell you what: I'll give you a call and we can set something up. Deal?"
"Deal," Simmons said with a nod. "What do you have going on tonight?"
"Oh, let's just say that I'm meeting up with some friends..."
Later the evening, the Huntress moved like a shadow across the rooftops of the Chinatown district. She had driven directly from work to the estate, pausing only long enough for a take out dinner. Once there, Helena changed into the Huntress and returned to the city. After the encounter with the Dragon Lords a few nights back, the Huntress swore to bring this gang of thugs to justice. Her first move was to consult what information her father had gathered on the group.
The Golden Dragon Tong was the local Chinese organized crime group. The Tong operated world wide, mainly dealing with the making and distributing of heroin. Locally, they dabbled in many things. Gambling, extortion, protection, and other criminal endeavors.
The Dragon Lords was the enforcement gang for the Tong. They were primarily street thugs led by an enigmatic man known as the White Dragon. It was this group that attempted to burn down a tenement last week that put the Huntress on their trail.
The Huntress' tactics were simple enough. She'd observe the gang in action for a few nights, learn their habits, then whittle down their ranks at a time and place of her choosing.
Down on the street, the Dragon Lords were departing on their nightly runs. The collectors would do their business in broad daylight. Those who didn't pay were visited by night, often finding their business going up in flames. The gang would typically gather at bar called the 'Golden Lotus Club' before performing their night's work.
The Huntress observed the club from the roof across the street. She mainly used her spyglass and discretely took photos of suspected gang members. Unexpectedly, the subjects of her surveillance began to scatter! Laser fire dogged the gang members and they all scrambled for cover.
In the sky over the street flew a man in copper colored armor, complete with scales. "Copperhead!?" The Huntress was shocked by this unexpected event. "What in the world is he doing here?"
Copperhead was well known as a true vigilante. He fought organized crime and the occasional super villain, but wasn't afraid to use lethal force. That made Copperhead a dangerous commodity. No one minded just who he went after, but his methods were not popular. His actions had been at the root of what caused the Crusaders to break up a few years back.
"You punks can't hide from me!" Copperhead completed his strafing run and soared up into the sky once more. The tenement fire had sent Copperhead after the Dragon Lords as well. However, he wasn't interested in bringing the thugs to justice. Three of the gang had already fallen.
Some of the Dragon Lords pulled automatic weapons and vainly fired at their airborne attacker, all the while shouting in Chinese. They scattered once more as Copperhead made a second pass. All the Huntress could do was watch the carnage.
Realizing that they were overmatched, the Dragon Lords took cover wherever they could. Most ran into buildings, others merging with the people in the street. From what the Huntress could see, five gang members had been killed.
Copperhead hung in the sky, supported by his jetpack, seemingly pleased at the fruits of his labor. After a moment, he spotted the Huntress and slowly flew closer. She drew her crossbow just in case.
"Well, what do we have here?", Copperhead asked, his wrist mounted laser at the ready. The serpentine vigilante eyed Helena warily.
"What the hell did you think you were doing?" Not being able to see Copperhead's face severely limited what she could deduce about the vigilante.
"Doing?? Taking out the trash, my dear--? I didn't catch the name."
"Huntress," Helena replied. She wasn't sure just what Copperhead's intentions were. His body language didn't offer any clues to his motives either.
"The Huntress?" The armored man appeared to relax at that. "Hunter's kid. I've heard some talk about you. Had a hand in stopping the flow of Retaliators and rescued people from the building these scum set on fire. A kindred spirit."
Helena continued to keep her weapon ready, in spite of Copperhead lowering his. "That's why I was here. To capture the Dragon Lords and bring them to justice."
"No need for that," Copperhead said with a laugh. "Half-a-dozen of them have been judged and found guilty. Don't tell me that you're naive enough to think that the criminal justice system actually works?"
"That's not for me or you to decide. They would have been tried and imprisoned if found guilty. That's the way things work."
"That's a bunch of crap! Some slick lawyer would have them back on the street before long. Justice in this country is a joke. The system is corrupt, that's why I deal out my own personal justice. No trial, no appeals, no pardons, and no corruption."
"You're no better than they are. You're just a cold-blooded killer."
Copperhead actually seemed offended by the Huntress' remark. "I thought we were alike, you and I. But I can see that I was wrong. Wake up and smell the coffee, little girl. The world is not a nice place. You may not like my methods, but I get permanent results."
With that, Copperhead rose higher in the sky and flew off. Slowly the Huntress lowered and stored her crossbow. The confrontation with Copperhead had shaken her a bit. Being a lawyer, she was all too familiar with the justice system and its faults. "It's not my job to try and judge criminals," the Huntress said out loud. "Everyone deserves a fair trial by a jury of his peers."
However, she didn't seem all that convinced at the moment. Helena had no problem in bending the law in the apprehension of criminals. But to break it as badly and as casually as Copperhead? She had to wonder-- just how far would the Huntress go to accomplish her goals? Would someday she be just as disillusioned as Copperhead?
Helena woke late the next day. She had trouble sleeping and decided to catch up on her office work until the wee hours of the morning. Burying herself in work, she was able to put her meeting with Copperhead out of her mind.
It was noon by the time she had completed her morning regimen. Settling down for a light lunch, Helena opened the morning paper and was shocked by the front page. The headline was 'Avenger Robs Bank!!!' with the tag of 'Two Killed in Brazen Robbery'.
"What in the world!!", Helena shouted as she dropped her glass of orange juice to the floor. The glass shattered and juice went every which way. She paid it no attention as she quickly read the article. "I expected something about Copperhead's attack, but never in my wildest dreams..."
The story recapped the events of the previous day. (Editor's Note: See Avengers #7-8) Lightburst and Crusader had entered and robbed the Manhattan National Bank, killing two guards in the process.
Other front page stories held more discouraging news. A force of PRIMUS agents battled several of the Avengers before the team's Mansion. Lightburst appeared again and initiated the conflict.
A far more ominous story concerned a battle between Black Diamond and an unknown woman in armor. Property damage was tremendous, one building was even condemned. There were numerous injuries and at least four confirmed deaths. Eyewitness accounts reported that Black Diamond had been seriously injured and last seen disappearing with another Avenger, the Enchantress.
Helena sat down, dumbfounded from everything that she read. She read the stories two more times just to make sure she absorbed all the information.
"Did the world go mad yesterday?? None of this makes sense... Why would Lightburst do something like that?" Helena never had much contact with Lightburst, as Hunter didn't include him in his social life. Given the rumors she had heard about 'Burst, she wasn't all that surprised. "This'll teach me to not pay attention to the news!"
Helena wolfed down her food, cleaned up her mess, and was out the door. She dropped off her papers at the office and then raced out to the estate. The Avengers was her father's dream given form. Black Diamond was her friend. Helena couldn't just sit by and not try to help out. She wouldn't.
"This racing back and forth is starting to become ridiculous!", Helena thought to herself as she passed yet another car on the parkway. "I'm going to have to come up with a much better option than this. New York City is far too large to travel on foot or even to try swinging from building to building."
The visit at the estate lasted only long enough for Helena to change into costume and change vehicles. As she drove back to New York City, the Huntress considered her options.
"The first thing is to find out the Avengers side of the story and find out how Linda is doing." Since there was no further mention of Black Diamond's condition, the Huntress surmised that she was either still at the Mansion or had been teleported to Sanctuary Island. The medical facilities on the tropical resort were perhaps the finest in the world when it came to the care of paranormals. "That makes my destination the Mansion."
The Huntress' progress slowed as she reached the Big Apple and crawled as she neared the Avenger's Mansion. She pulled her father's car to the rear of the Mansion, where the carport was located. Fortunately, the remote in the car still worked the rear gate. Helena drove in as fast as the sliding gate would allow her and guided the car into an open spot. Pausing only to trigger the signal to shut the gate, the Huntress was out of the car in a flash.
As she approached the Avengers Mansion, the Huntress paused. It had been a long time since she had been here last. Many months before it had exploded on that tragic night. All in all, it resembled the old Mansion. Finding her way about shouldn't be much of a problem.
Helena reached for the handle of the rear entrance, but the door suddenly opened on its own. Standing in the doorway was a startled, but properly attired butler.
"My word!", the gentlemen's gentlemen let out. "How did you get in here? What business do you have with the Avengers?"
Before the Huntress could even try to explain, a gruff voice called out from behind the butler. "I'll take care o' this, Jeeves." Helena recognized the voice and smiled.
Jeeves backed off and replied, "As you wish, sir", and then moved out of sight.
A large, orange figure filled the doorway. "Who th' heck are you?! Don't make me muss ya up!" The rocky hero clenched his fist in a menacing fashion.
"Why, Uncle Ben, is that any way to greet a guest?"
"Uncle--? Whatdaya mean, Uncle?" The Thing was dumbfounded for a moment, until a look of realization came over his face. "Sprout?! Izzat you?"
"Good to see you again, Uncle Ben." Helena stepped forward and gave Ben Grimm a large hug.
The Thing was momentarily surprised. Finally, reluctantly, he embraced Helena gently. "Helena? I can't believe how you've grown..." The blue-eyed idol of millions struggled to find the words to express how he felt. For a long time after his transformation, Ben Grimm considered himself an inhuman monster. He used his rocky exterior as a shield between himself and the rest of the world. But as a child, Helena adored the Thing, for she saw him for what he was, not for what he appeared to be. They became friends and their friendship brought the man out of the monster. After all, if a little girl liked him, then he must not be the freak he made himself out to be.
"Just look at you," the Thing finally said as the two let go. "All grown up, just like a weed." It was a period of rapid growth that had led Ben to give Helena the nickname of Sprout-- she was growing up right before his eyes. That and she really, really hated to be called 'weed'.
"You know how I hate to be called a weed. I go by the name of the Huntress, now."
"Linda tol' me." Recovering his manners, the Thing invited the Huntress inside the kitchen and shut the door. Introductions with Jeeves were exchanged as well, as the pair took a seat at the kitchen table.
"How is Linda doing? What happened to her? The news reports were frustratingly vague."
"She'll be okay," the Thing said as he lit up a cigar. "They got 'er down at Sanctuary. Musky and 'Star jus' got back from visiting her 'bout twenty minutes ago. They found out some woman in armor callin' herself Artemis pegged Di with a poisoned javelin."
"Artemis," the Huntress said out loud. "I don't recall anyone who goes by that name. Who's in charge now that Linda is laid up?"
"Muskateer is the CO, now."
"Great." The Huntress' first meeting with the swashbuckling Avenger hadn't been on the most friendly of terms. She found him hard to read. He didn't reveal much about himself during their first encounter. The possibility of having to work with Muskateer during this crisis had crossed her mind. In spite of any potential difficulties, Helena was determined to make herself useful.
"He's pro'ly be up in the Office", the Thing replied. "I could give'm a buzz."
"No, that's okay, Uncle Ben. I'll just pop up there and see if he's in."
With a wave, Helena departed the kitchen and headed upstairs. She found the office easy enough, but Muskateer wasn't present. The Huntress silently entered the office, closing the door behind her. "I could just help myself," Helena thought to herself. She considered for a moment and decided against it. "No need to aggravate the situation."
Taking a seat on the side of the desk, Helena waited. Her wait lasted only a couple of minutes as the door finally opened and Muskateer entered. He flicked on the lights and was very surprised to see the Huntress waiting for him!
"What the hell are you doing in here?"
"I get the distinct feeling that you don't like me," the Huntress responded, standing up. "Or are you just rude to all your guests?"
In spite of the way it started, the conversation with Muskateer had gone better than she had hoped. It was annoying that she couldn't read him like she could with most others. At least that made encounters with him interesting. (Editor's Note: See Muskateer #9 for the full details.)
"Di must have had a hand in all of this," the Huntress mentally concluded. "Muskateer played hard to get, but seemed to give in too easily."
After the talk, Muskateer handled the introductions with the remaining Avengers on base: the Enchantress and Firestar.
"'Star, 'Tress, this is the Huntress," Muskateer said. "I've asked her to help out in this investigation. She'll be mostly doin' computer work, but may have some questions for each of you guys."
"Pleased to meet you." The Huntress shook hands with the heroines in turn. She eyed each over as she did.
"Wealthy, upper class," Helena concluded as she inspected the Enchantress. Her mannerisms suggested this fact. Having grown up under similar circumstances, Helena easily recognized the trait. "Trace of a New England accent, so she's not a native New Yorker, but has been here several years. I might have actually met her before in her private identity."
Muskateer was especially attentive when the Huntress met Firestar. However, the Huntress just exchanged pleasantries.
"I heard that you wanted to meet me," the young flame-wielder said as they shook hands. The comment caught the Huntress off guard. Surely she hadn't been told what was going on? She gave a quick glance in Muskateer's direction.
"Uhm, yes. We rookie heroines need to stick together after all. It's quite impressive that you made the Avengers at such a young age." In her mind, the Huntress assembled a profile of Firestar. "Young, but mature. Mid-western accent."
"Thanks," Firestar beamed. "All I know is that Black Diamond offered me a spot. How could I refuse?" After a pause, she hesitantly added, "So, Hunter was your father?"
"That's right. I grew up around the Avengers. I've known Linda and Ben for a long time."
"That's cool."
"Well, I've got errands and social calls to make," Muskateer said speaking up. "Hold down the fort." The situation here seemed to be under control. The Enchantress and Ben were here as well. He couldn't imagine the Huntress trying anything, but he couldn't be sure.
"Understood, Muskateer," the Enchantress said. The silver-haired sorceress watched as the sword-swinging Avenger departed.
"Interesting...," the Huntress thought to herself. "Unless I'm a very poor judge of people, I'd say that she has a thing for him..."
"Anyway," the Huntress said out loud to the two shorter heroines, "I've got some things to ask each of you."
"Shall we retire to the library?", the Enchantress suggested, gesturing in that direction.
"Works for me," the Huntress responded.
A short time later, the trio were seated around a table in the library. Jeeves had arrived with refreshments and sandwiches. The Huntress questioned Firestar first, as she had only a few questions for her.
"Let's go through it one more time," the Huntress said to Firestar.
"What? Why? I've told you everything I know!" Firestar was beginning to feel that she was being accused of something from the Huntress' demanding tone.
"I understand," the Huntress responded. "But you were under a great deal of emotional stress. I'm not saying that you are purposely omitting anything, but rather you might have simply overlooked something. Something that may not seem important to you, then or now, but could be a vital clue."
That seemed to calm Firestar down. Between the attack on Black Diamond and the battle with the PRIMUS agents, the young heroine had been on edge.
"I flew in and found this woman, who we now know as Artemis, fighting Di. I hit her with a fireball. She fired a volley of arrows back at me. I vaguely remember falling. I was furious that someone had done this to Di.... And I was afraid too." Firestar hung her head in shame. "I was scared. I mean, if she could do this to Di, what chance did I have?"
"Its okay," the Enchantress said as she put her hand around the teenager's arm. "We all get scared sometimes. It's only natural."
"A little fear is a healthy thing," the Huntress added.
Firestar cheered up a little bit. "The next thing I remember was seeing Linda half-buried in the rubble. I tried to do what I could for her, but I didn't know what to do." The heroine buried her head in her hands and sobbed. "I wanted to help her... I really did! I just didn't know how..."
The Enchantress gave the Huntress a disapproving look. "Do you have any other questions for her?"
"No, not at all. I'm sorry to have gotten you so upset."
"Come on, Firestar," the Enchantress said. "Let me help you to your quarters." The sorceress helped the young mutant to her feet and they departed the library leaving the Huntress alone with her thoughts.
"Way to go, Helena, making the kid break down like that. Of course I wanted to strangle her just a week ago. She's certainly not a cold-blooded killer. But there is a hole in her story..."
The Huntress reviewed her notes while waiting for the Enchantress to return. Earlier in the day, Muskateer had related his conversation with Black Diamond about the attack. Helena would have preferred to question her personally, but Linda did need her rest. Instead, she would concentrate on finding out things on this end. She'd have a great deal of questions for the Avengers' mage.
The Enchantress returned a few minutes later and didn't appear happy. "Was that really necessary?"
"I said I was sorry. Look, I didn't know she wore her heart out on her sleeve like that. In spite of what you may think, my goal is the same as the rest of you. Find out just who Artemis is and why she attacked Di. Is there anything you care to add to Firestar's statement?"
The Enchantress took a sip of her tea and considered. "When I arrived, Firestar had just hit Artemis with a impressive blast of fire. Artemis was sent flying down the street. Firestar called it a blast of 'starfire', for what that's worth. I sent a mystic bolt at Artemis. That seemed to drive the villainess off. I could have pursued her, but Black Diamond appeared to be in extremely poor shape. Firestar was by her side, begging me to help her. I can do many impressive things with my magic, but I cannot heal or mend wounds. I contacted the Mansion, then teleported all three of us directly to the Med-Lab."
"Was Firestar in the air or on the ground when she let loose with this 'starfire' attack of hers?"
"I don't see what--- Hold a moment-- she was on the ground."
"Interesting," the Huntress said. "That fills in the detail I was looking for-- what Firestar did between the fall and examining Black Diamond."
"Are you suggesting that Firestar omitted that part on purpose?"
"I don't see any reason for her to do so."
"Given her state of mind, it's not all that unreasonable that she didn't recall every detail," the Enchantress stated.
"No it isn't. What she didn't mention is certainly not a revelation."
The Enchantress wasn't sure just what to make of this Huntress. She was obviously very intelligent, but didn't seem all that compassionate. That certainly wasn't the way she would have handled the situation herself. Firestar was just a kid who had seen something that scared her. Blocking it out of her mind was not surprising.
"That pretty much takes care of my questions as far as Artemis go," the Huntress concluded as she made more notes. "Muskateer asked me to investigate the mystical nature of what has been going on lately. The strange crystal, the Stone Crown that VIPER stole, and some other things that relate to magic. My guess is that you can provide me with much of what I'm looking for."
"That is a distinct possibility. What do you wish to know first?"
The Huntress spent the rest of the afternoon speaking with the Enchantress, making copious notes from their conversation. Helena wasn't exactly sure just what to make of the things the Enchantress had told her. As the Huntress, she put her faith in her powers of deduction, investigation, and observation. Magic was beyond the norm. An unexplained, but tangible force. The Hunter's files contained very little in the way of information on things magical. Not surprising as it was not something that he encountered often.
Helena was on her way out of the Mansion, when she was stopped by the Thing. "Hey, Sprout! Where ya' goin'?"
"Lots of research to do, Uncle Ben. I'll get more done at the estate than I will here."
"It can wait a while, kiddo. Jeeves just sat dinner on the table... Come on in, there's plenty."
"Well--- alright."
In spite of her initial misgivings, Helena greatly enjoyed the meal the Avengers' gentleman's gentlemen had prepared. Her eating habits had been very poor the last several weeks and the meal was delicious. The conversation was light, considering the recent events. The Huntress enjoyed the evening, knowing that she'd spend most of the night doing the research that Muskateer had requested.
Besides, the Dragon Lords could take a back seat for a few days. No doubt they'll be overly cautious for a time since the attack by Copperhead. His attack had certainly thrown a monkey wrench into her plans for dealing with the thugs. But they were a worry for another day...
Epilogue:
Elsewhere in the city, there are others who are very interested in the Dragon Lords this evening. With the previous night's attack, New York's finest were out in force.
"This stinks!" Officer Will Henderson was not pleased with this assignment. He and his partner, Officer Derek Carson, were pounding a beat in Chinatown. "A vigilante off's some street punks and we're sent in to keep the peace."
"Copperhead is a murderer. You know that, Will."
"Yeah, well you won't see me losing sleep over the loss of a few thugs."
"Nice attitude you have there--- Hey, I thought I saw something back there."
Drawing their weapons, the two officers cautiously proceed down a dark alley. A strange fog hung overhead.
"This better be something good, Carson. I hate rousing alley cats!"
"I can assure you, this will be entertaining!" The officers spun at the strange voice. A man dressed in black stood before them. His hair and full beard were ghostly white. The man's eyes were red and those eyes bored into the very soul of the officers.
"Very good," the Stranger said as he approached. Both policemen stood with their guns pointed at the newcomer. "You may lower your weapons."
Reluctantly, slowly the officers lowered their weapons. They appeared to be in a trance.
"You'll be the first of my elite force," the stranger continued. He approached Officer Carson and tilted his head off to one side. The stranger opened his mouth wide to reveal large fangs! With a hiss, the fangs were plunged into Officer Carson's neck...
The Huntress appears next in Avengers #9
