New Defenders, The (1983 series) #139

From Asgard, Odin observes the trial Moondragon is going through, placed on Earth with limited powers to teach her humility. Mantis has knocked her through a door and into the midst of the other Defenders, most of whom are coming to her defense. But Mantis claims to be proving Moondragon’s inferiority which she denies. But no one else can touch Mantis so Beast slaps Moondragon to wake her up and Mantis, an illusion, vanishes. Moondragon refuses all aid, angry that she was above evil, mastering it, but no one ever believed her. She breaks down in tears and Dolly Donahue takes care of her, aided by Cloud and Candy Southern….

The next morning, Angel goes out for a flight around the mountains and encounters an eagle who warns him there is a ringing of iron in the Earth, threatening the brotherhood. He returns to the Aerie and tells Candy who reminds him he can’t talk to animals. But Warren calls the Sheriff, anyway, asking about the Native Reservation and he is told there has been a series of murders connected to the silver mine. He assembles the Defenders and they fly out to the reservation….

On the way, Gargoyle shows Valkyrie how his missing hand is regenerating. Moondragon confesses to Beast that her attempts to remove her headband likely attracted low level baddies like Blowtorch Brand and “the monster” (unspecified); Beast accuses her of confessing just to make herself look good. This drives her off in frustration….

The Defenders reach the town outside the reservation where the sheriff tells them that humans and animals have been turning up drained of blood. There are no longer any vampires so the cause is still a mystery. Then William Talltrees enters and informs them that their help is not needed as this is not their land and the matter is best handled by the natives. Angel mentions the message he received from the eagle and Talltrees changes his mind and leads them to the newly opened silver mine. The mine was open only for a week when people started dying, drained of blood like it was squeezed out of them. Shamans put a protection spell on the place and after that it was only animals being gruesomely killed. So he was called in, William Talltrees a/k/a Red Wolf, living spirit of the Owayodata (a Native American god)….

In the hills, a hunter named William Mac Allistaire comes upon the mutated bodies of three wolves fused together and the sight causes him to run for his life….

Red Wolf leads the Defenders into the mine and slowly they become aware that they are now in a cave and Valkyrie senses where they really are. She draws Dragonfang and it glows, lighting up a band of trolls. There is a brief battle, ending when the heroes are captured by the brutish giants. They are carried deeper into the caves and reach a blacksmith forging weapons for the troll king and tempering them in vats of human blood, gathered from the Indians. The heroes are held fast by a magic spell while Val is chained to the wall. The troll smith recognizes Moondragon’s headband as Odin’s handiwork and tries to remove it with tongs. Within Moondragon’s mind are conflicting thoughts, the desire to be free again but also the doubts and fears that have been plaguing her and the knowledge that the Dragon of the Moon will also be free. She jerks away from the smith and falls into the trough of blood which splatters Red Wolf, freeing him from the paralysis spell. The Indian hero sprays the Defenders with the blood, freeing them also. Valkyrie orders the others to flee as she pulls on the chains and causes the entire cave to collapse….

Outside, the others are amazed that Moondragon chose to resist having her headband removed so she could save the rest of the team. Val, unharmed, catches up with them and they see that the headband has fallen to the ground. Val proclaims that Moondragon has learned the lesson of humility Odin desired and now she is free….