Item Biography
"Silent But Deadly"
Wordless story. 'Nuff said.
"Fooling with Mother Nature"
Simmering frustration over Yandroth's mystic curse which binds the original four Defenders' destinies together whenever forces threaten Earth's safety finally explode. Penny-ante villain, Chronarch is dealt with contemptuously. The heavy-hitters retreat to a summit at Stephen Strange's Greenwich Village Sanctum Sanctorum.
Hellcat coaxes Valkyrie into undertaking a grand shopping spree, on the precept of having the perfect outfit to wear when Val is reunited with her newly-remembered parents.
A throwaway mention from Nighthawk prompts a visit to Gaea's dimension. There she sits, a beautiful, giant, female elemental spirit, looking resplendent in green robe and headwrap ensemble. The four plead with the Earth Mother to relieve them of the curse at first, but explode with rage when she casually dismisses them. Words rapidly escalate into violence.
She's Thor's mother, for Goddess's sake! Just don't Mess. Ever. A lesson swiftly delivered unto the Defenders. Being brushed aside like insignificant gnats by Gaea does not sit well with the four super-egos. The gloves are off, and a new regime takes over.
Continues in the Order (2002) #1.