Strange Tales #15 (V2)

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The issue begins with Tandy (Dagger) and her stepfather, Phillip walking through New York City. He rattles on about how the entire city seems like a death trap for young people, and he has no idea how she even managed to survive as long as she did. Just then a thief runs by and grabs her purse and bolts. Her stepfather gives chase, and Tandy curses the fact that her stepfather does not know she’s Dagger – and thus gives chase too. The thief outpaces her stepfather easily, but Tandy’s endurance as a dancer allows her to keep giving chase. The thief runs into a dead end and tells Tandy she’s crazy for chasing him. Just then an out of breath stepfather rounds the corner and attempts to fight the thief, but misses and gets knocked out. Tandy then shoves the thief, at the same time filling him with light with her touch. Her stepfather regains consciousness and asks what happened, and Tandy says it was his first punch that he landed that dazed him; and he explains that he doesn’t even remember hitting the thief before he got knocked out.

Scene shift to Rebecca “Rusty” Nales who is still investigating the supposed death of Brigit O’Reilly, her former partner. She’s reading a police report at the hospital that talks about Falcone dying in his car when it went off the pier; former officer Brady is still at large (having escaped after his car crashed), and that former officer Eddie Sawchuck was in the hospital, permanently paralyzed. She visits with Eddie hoping he will talk about the night Brigit supposedly died; but he only says that Falcone was the brains behind it all, and all he did was tag along. Eddie’s wife and son arrive, so Rebecca leaves.

Another scene shift, where Father Mike (Tandy’s Uncle) is visiting the former Father Francis Delgado in the insane asylum. Father Mike explains that he’s happy to hear that Francis Delgado is doing better and may be released soon. They kneel to pray together; but the prayer of Francis Delgado in his mind is twisted and dark, as he thanks his savior, Mr. Jip, and that when he is released he will kill the temptress of light, Tandy Bowen.

Another scene shift to a similarly dark scene where Mayhem visits Cloak. She confesses that she can’t bare to let her former partner see what she’s become; and now that Mayhem has extracted her revenge on the ones that did this to her, she is hollow inside, going on without purpose or reason. She asks Cloak to take her inside of the shadows of his shroud and kill her. Cloak refuses to allow her to die; and when she threatens to do harm, he tells her that he doesn’t believe she would harm anyone who didn’t deserve it. With that, she kisses him and asks what he felt. He explains while her lips are cold, the warmth in her beating heart was still there. He tells her to seek out a cure for her condition, because the loss of her life would sadden him. She leaves and thanks him for his words. Just then, Yipyap, Mr. Jip’s flying eyes deliver a note that speaks of finishing their original bargain.