Clint
Barton arrives at Orly Airport in Paris on his way back to the USA; Silver Sable
and Sandman are there to see him off. Suddenly, terrorists from the
Bartovian Liberation Front make themselves known, seize a young woman hostage
and, forcing the security guards to drop their weapons, demand the release of
their comrades in prison or they will start killing hostages. As an Avenger,
Hawkeye is compelled to get involved; as a mercenary, Sable only gets involved
when she is paid. Clint offers Sable a dollar to take action. She accepts and,
when the terrorist leader Eric and some men leave to make sure the whole
terminal is secure, Clint, Sable, and Sandman clobber the bad guys left to
guard them. Clint slides down the baggage chute and locates his luggage,
retrieving his mask and bow and arrows. The three heroes move through the
terminal, taking down all the bad guys and reach Eric, with the hostage still
in his grasp; she kicks him in the leg and the heroes blast him from three
directions. The police arrive and Sable promises to send Hawkeye a bill for
services rendered….
When
the bill comes, it’s for one dollar, the amount agreed upon, and Clint laughs….
Story #2The Token
Writer/Inker:
Bob Layton. Penciler:
Jackson Guice. Colorist:
Paul Becton. Letterer:
Jack Morelli.
Synopsis
At home in New York, Natasha Romanoff learns from the news that her former ballet teacher, Oksana Bolishinko, is in the city for eye surgery and will be held in protective custody at the Russian Embassy to prevent her defecting. Natasha recalls how Oksana trained her for the Bolshoi Ballet, giving her a medallion as a token of her accomplishments. But Nat gave up ballet to become the KGB’s Black Widow and she feels she must make amends for having betrayed her old teacher….
She dons her Black Widow costume and, against the advice of Ivan Petrovich Bezukhov, who warns that if she is caught she will be killed as a traitor, she heads to the Embassy. She breaks into the Embassy, destroys a spy camera, fights every guard she meets, beats up a janitor, and reaches Oksana, who is blind. Her teacher warns her against getting caught but Nat wants to return the medallion; Oksana explains that she knew the KGB would take her away and is proud that her old student found her true calling as the Black Widow and the token was given out of love. They are caught by an agent named Sasha, who allows Nat to leave, understanding how she feels—and we see he has a medallion from Oksana too….