Editor's Note: This story takes place during events in Wolverine #2.
Cain couldn't believe this was happening!
He had tracked his best friend and former partner, Black Tom Cassidy, from Canada to the tiny island nation of Madripoor. Moments ago, he had just stepped out of a bar to resume his search when Tom had attacked him, revealing that he was now working for the ninja organisation known as the Hand!
(see last issue - Eric)
Cain knew it had to be some sort of brainwashing, because the duo had been friends and allies for many years now - Tom was like the brother Cain never had!
He ducked as Tom's right arm, which had formed into a wicked looking wooden stake, shot directly at Cain's face. Tom had already somehow wounded him in the left shoulder, and Cain was still puzzled as to how Tom had gotten through his mystic forcefield.
(also in last issue - Eric)
The Juggernaut lashed out and connected with Tom's midriff, sending him crashing through the doorway of the bar that Cain had just recently vacated. He was still pulling his punches, otherwise he may have punched Tom clear off the island, angry and confused as he was right now.
"Tom!" cried out Cain, still concerned for his friends' well-being.
As he approached the bar, Tom's arms, which he had flexed into sharp wooden stakes, smashed through the window and sliced at the Juggernaut. One gouged into Cain's helmet - if he hadn't ducked when he did, he would have been decapitated!
"Geez, Tom," gasped Cain, "yer really trying to kill me here!"
Black Tom came crashing through the remains of the bar window. "That's the plan, boyo," he replied, "the Hand have ordered me to kill ye, and I must obey!"
Tom let out a growl as he leapt once more at his former partner, but Cain easily swatted him aside this time and Tom crashed into the wall of the building opposite the bar.
"Tom, will ya cut it out!" exhaspirated Cain, "Yer only gonna get yerself hurt!"
"Looks t'me like ye're the only one hurt here," grinned Tom, pointing a spiked wooden finger at Cain, "want me to show ye again how I can get through ye mystic shield, laddie?"
The finger Tom was pointing suddenly extended quickly towards Cain, who didn't have time to move out of the way as it skewered the left side of his torso. The Juggernaut gasped in shock, and quickly snapped off the finger, the remains of which shrank back towards Tom. Cain looked down and saw the end of Tom's wooden finger that protruded from his side disintegrate into dust.
"Wanna tell me how yer managing to poke me fulla holes, Tom?" he grunted.
"That's an easy one t'answer," Tom grinned as he picked himself up and began circling around Cain, "Hand magic, boyo! Seems t'me its' more powerful than yer wee gem magic!"
(Tom's referring to the Ruby of Cyttorak which gave Cain his powers - Eric)
Once again, Tom turned his arm into a pointed weapon and speared it towards Cain, but this time the Juggernaut was ready for him. With a speed that belied his massive frame, Cain dodged to one side and grabbed Tom's extended arm, swung him around in an arc, and threw him through the air at least a block away, where he heard Tom land with a resounding *CRASH*!
"I hope that hurt..." muttered Cain, as he checked his wounded shoulder and side. The bleeding had stopped, but the wounds still needed tending to.
"No time for that now," Cain thought to himself, "I've gotta try and find some way of snapping Tom out of this!"
Pushing aside the pain, the Juggernaut lumbered off in the general direction of where he threw Tom.
Beneath the streets of Madripoor, in a secret high-tech laboratory, a tall, well-dressed man sat and listened as a red-garbed ninja finished making a report.
"So master," continued the Ninja, "it seems as though the weapon is a success!"
Matsu'o Tsurayaba, leader of the Hand, was very pleased with this news. Even though it had cost the Hand the lives of a dozen of their magicians, the technological and magical enhancement of the mutant called Black Tom appeared to be worthwhile.
"It had better be..." thought Matsu'o to himself, "Hand magicians are scarce enough, they cannot afford to be wasted!"
He remembered back to the time when many Hand magicians' lives were lost during the resurrection of the ninja, Elektra. He could not afford such a waste again...
(Daredevil (1st series) #324 - Eric)
"Yes, so it seems," replied Matsu'o, "but I have learned through personal experience not to underestimate these costumed fools." Matsu'o flexed the prosthetic hand he was forced to wield after losing the original to his most hated enemy, the X-Man called Wolverine.
(X-Men #7 - Eric)
He turned back to the ninja, "Send a cadre to intercept the Juggernaut - it matters not whether they survive, we shall harass this fool to keep him off guard..."
Before Matsu'o had even finished his sentence, the ninja had already left to carry out his wishes. A smile crossed his face, for the leader of the Hand's orders were always carried out. The ninjas knew the price of failure...
Cain had found where Tom had landed - he knew it had to be here because of the Tom-sized hole he could see in the roof of the building in front of him.
"Tom?" he called out, tensed and ready just in case Tom was still conscious and poised to attack.
The only answer he received was a hail of shurikens from the cadre of Hand ninjas that had appeared from out of nowhere.
"How many of you losers are there?" grumbled Cain, as he charged on the nearest group of ninjas and slammed into them, sending broken bodies sprawling across the street.
People ran screaming from nearby buildings as more ninjas appeared and attacked the Juggernaut with everything they had, but to no avail. Cain took everything they threw at him - swords, daggers, shuriken, arrows, grenades, even some with semi-automatic weapons - but nothing the Hand ninjas did even slowed him down.
Cain backhanded one ninja, sending him ploughing straight through the side of a nearby truck. Another slashed at Cain with his sword, but soon found himself hurtling through the wall of a building, the force of the Juggernaut's punch sending the ninja spearing straight through a supporting beam, causing the entire building to collapse on top of the already dead ninja.
Before long, the street resembled something akin to a warzone. As Cain ploughed into them, the ninjas melted away into smoke as they died, littering the street with empty ninja garb.
"I told you boys before, nothing can stop the Juggernaut!"
"Nothing except me that is, laddie..." came Tom's voice from behind Cain.
Whirling around, Cain realised too late that the ninjas had been nothing more than a distraction, as Black Tom leapt at him once more, cutting deep into the flesh of the arm Cain had instinctively raised to protect himself.
Cain lashed out in anger but instead of hitting his intended target Tom, who had nimbly back-flipped out of the way, Cain connected with a power pole and sheared it clean in half. The pole crashed through a nearby roof, the broken electrical cables writhed around and hissed like angry snakes.
"No need to lose y'temper Cain," said Tom mockingly, "it's nothing personal y'know!"
"Nothing personal?! Yer my best friend and yer trying to kill me!" exclaimed Cain, as he picked up a nearby motorbike and hurled it at Tom.
Black Tom leapt to one side as the bike smashed through the wall of another nearby bar and exploded, engulfing the building in flames. Tom stood in front of the burning building, and slowly extended all of his fingers into wicked-looking wooden stakes.
"Well it's been fun boyo," he grinned evilly, "but it's time t'finish this wee dance..."
"You got that right, bub..." came a voice from close by. Both Tom and Cain turned and saw a familiar yellow-and-black clad figure emerge from the smoke.
Wolverine leaned up against a light pole, put the trademark cigar he was carrying in his mouth, and took a long puff on it - adding to the smoke that was billowing from the burning bar. He looked over at the flaming ruin and shook his head.
"That was one o' the best bars in downtown Madripoor," he grumbled. Pointing his cigar at the Juggernaut, he continued, "and that bike ya threw in there just happened ta belong ta me..."
Turning his attention back to the both combatants, Wolverine fixed them a stern look.
"Now is someone gonna tell me just what this is all about, or do I have ta throw down on ya's both first?"
In Juggernaut #3: It's the Juggernaut vs Black Tom vs Wolverine vs the Hand! And then it all hits the fan as the hordes of Hydra show up as well!
