—Black Widow (Natasha Romanoff)I--I don't have it. Sometimes you can feel it. And then you lose
Appearing in "Die By the Blade - Part 3 of 4"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
- White Widow (Yelena Belova)
- Spider-Girl (Anya Corazón)
- Marigold (Lucy Nguyen)
- The Twins
- Liv
- Lars
- Winter Soldier (James Barnes)
- Craig
Antagonists:
- Living Blade
- The Host
Other Characters:
- Hawkeye (Clint Barton)
- God (Yahweh) (Referenced)
- Apogee (Referenced)
Races and Species:
Realities:
Locations:
Items:
Synopsis for "Die By the Blade - Part 3 of 4"
Seeing the Living Blade again, Black Widow knows she cannot win and orders Yelena to run, fighting to distract before escaping into an air vent. Elsewhere in the building, Spider-Girl is confused how inhibitor collars deactivate both her and Lucy's powers despite different origins. As Lucy tries to pick the lock, the caged Liv and Lars mock her before some of The Host traffickers under carry in a downed Hawkeye (Clint Barton). Needing to escape, Lucy conceives to have one of The Twins take all of their shared strength to escape the bindings. Outside, Yelena finds Bucky to relay that they're in "Plan F" now and that everyone but Natasha was captured, as she is fighting the Living Blade at the moment. While Bucky wants to race back for her, Yelena convinces him not to rush back and continue the mission by saving their teammates immediately, trusting Natasha knows what to do.
As Natasha cannot reach her team as she traverses the air duct system, and thinking how Yelena knows what to do, Natasha is confounded as to why the Living Blade is even serving the Host. It was surreptitiously fortunate that she came upon Living Blade arguing with The Host about his agreement as she readies a to-go kit. Taking his warnings as a threat, she relents and just throws him a bag of money and opens her private vault to a room of caged super humans. As he wanted "the starfish," she lets him take it and orders he buy time for her escape, agreeing to such as it wasn't a revision to their terms, as Natasha is shocked by the revelation and sees Craig among the caged. As she leaves, The Host forewarns Living Blade that she'll activate the self-destruct when she's at a safe distance, as Natasha realizes the magnitude of the operation. Natasha gets a faint signal and gives a full report hoping some pieces can get thru to her friends.
Above, Yelena sends Bucky after The Host as she deals with the party-goers by shooting into the air to force an evacuation. Below, Liv demands assurances that Lucy can revive Lars, before the Twins resolve to transfer their full strength into Liv. Seeing Lars dead, Lucy urges she hurry to help and the breaks their cages and collars, before Liv tearfully directs Lucy to help the emaciated Lars. Meanwhile, Natasha finds The Host's keys and frees Craig before giving him the keys to continue freeing more people, as the fire alarm goes off signaling her team's efforts are ongoing. Leaving to find the Living Blade, she blindsides him in order to entrap him in an empty cell, but he easily cuts his way out immediately. Fighting him with one of The Host's sabers, Natasha chooses not to run and fights him to a losing stance. Knowing she cannot win, she tries to escape again but is found and her right arm is severed by a clean downward cut.
Solicit Synopsis
The Eisner-winning series brings you a villain worth dying for!
Natasha Romanoff is known for having skeletons in her closet, but THE LIVING BLADE is the one skeleton she hoped she'd never encounter again. He nearly killed her the first time they tangled, years ago in Madripoor — will he finish the job this time at the bidding of THE HOST? Thompson and Casagrande reunite for Natasha's fight to save the people of San Francisco from a ruthless predator in their midst.
