L1T3RAT1

.The theft of an obscure and ancient diary from the Metropolitan museum of art. A series of unsolved disappearances in Chinatown. A ghostly apparition. are these isolated incidents, or are they segments of a greater whole?
Attacks by the Silver Samurai and Si Fan assassins provide some clues for the Heroes For Hire, who are drawn into a maelstrom of gang activity spreading throughout New York City.
The stage is set for a whirlwind introduction to the underworld of tongs and ganglords. A search for The "Celestial One" becomes a matter of life and death for the Heroes For Hire, who may not live to see the Imperial Dawn...

I do not own Heroes For Hire, or any associated Marvel Comics characters, or the cover art for this work of fiction.
This work is intended to be the middle segment of a trilogy following the exploits of various Heroes For Hire characters, the trilogy is titled: The Gang Wars. this book was preceded by After Midnight, and will be concluded by the third installment: Night Life.

Heroes For Hire: Night Moves

"One of the walkie-talkies Wu Fong had given the Heroes For Hire came to life, "come in, Iron Fist, do you read me?"


When Danny answered, the familiar voice continued, "This is Wu Fong. There is a disturbance at the Misha restaurant on Canal Street. The owner reports that street punks are using his pay phone to set up drug deals. They are threatening customers. Please report immediately!"


When Iron Fist arrived on the scene a small crowd had gathered outside the restaurant. They were watching an elderly man who angrily waved a broom at 2 rough-looking youths. From the S-shaped serpents on their leather jackets, Danny recognized them as Dragonlords.


The old man said, "get out!! I have had enough of your kind!" Danny then heard a loud crack as the old man swatted one of the Dragonlords across the knees with the broom handle.


Someone in the crowd screamed, while others moved quickly away. Iron Fist saw the glint of reflected neon off metal -- one of the thugs had drawn a knife! The crowd began to disperse in fear, as the restaurant owner prepared to defend himself with his broom against the knife-wielding Dragonlords.


The Dragonlords had been using the pay phone to establish scheduled fake drug deals with members of The Faces of Fear, when they were interrupted by the restaurant owner. The Dragonlords had intended to lure The Faces Of Fear into a trap. 5 more Dragonlords were waiting in a convertible black sedan parked in a nearby alley. Masked super villain the Beetle was also lurking on the rooftop across the street in wait.


When Iron Fist moved to help the elderly man, the Dragonlords in the sedan moved to aid their comrades, while the Beetle waited to blindside Iron Fist with a brutal body tackle. But, when things begin to turn for the villains, the Dragonlords attempt to flee on foot and in their car, leaving the Beetle to finish the fight with Iron Fist. When the Beetle is defeated he is willing to confess to an employment agreement to aid the Dragonlords in wiping out the Faces of Fear, but will not divulge the name of his employer.


Bite of the Beetle