Biography - page 2
Before Swordsman could follow through on his threat, Captain America threw himself off the building, trusting in his team to save him rather than be used for blackmail. The Avengers rallied together as a team but, before they could capture Swordsman, he suddenly vanished. The Swordsman was teleported into the presence of the Mandarin, Chinese warlord and arch-foe to the Avengers' founder, Iron Man. Hoping to strike at the Armored Avenger from within his own group, Mandarin recruited the Swordsman to serve as his agent. He augmented the mercenary's blade with energy blasters and other ranged attacks to better serve him. The Mandarin then projected a holographic copy of Iron Man into Avengers Mansion. This "Iron Man" told Captain America and the Avengers that Swordsman had been personally sponsored by him to join the team, seeking redemption for his life of crime like several of their current members.
At Mandarin's command, Swordsman returned to Avengers Mansion under these false pretenses. Seeing little room to argue with their founding member's request, the Avengers agreed to accept Swordsman as a member of their ranks. The archer Hawkeye was least thrilled of all the Avengers with this decision. Hawkeye, Captain America and the others watched the Swordsman for days as he passed their training and security protocols, becoming an active member of the team. In secret, however, the Swordsman fulfilled Mandarin's request and attached a micro-bomb to their central computer, disguised as merely another dial. The Mandarin intended to detonate the bomb the next time Iron Man visited the team as a senior member.
Eventually, the Mandarin grew tired of waiting for Iron Man to visit Avengers Mansion and spring his trap. Instead, he would set off the bomb and kill the Avengers present, then attack Iron Man after he came to investigate. Mandarin ordered Swordsman to flee the mansion that night before the explosion went off. Despite their plans, Swordsman found he could not go through with it. He had come to respect the Avengers, and their valor touched the long-forgotten idealism of his youth. The Swordsman would kill a man on the field of combat, but covert assassination was a step too far. Tragically, though, he was spotted by the Avengers while trying to remove the bomb from the control panel. Thinking they had caught him planting a bomb, Swordsman realized he could never convince his teammates he was UN-planting it. In a brief skirmish, Swordsman escaped from Avengers Mansion and disposed of the bomb before Mandarin detonated it, but he realized he could never again return to the ranks of the Avengers. [Avengers (1st series) #20]
Swordsman went into hiding for a time to avoid the Avengers and the authorities, working an act in a new traveling circus. He was discovered by the Black Widow, a brainwashed communist agent who had been programmed to strike against the Avengers. The Widow recruited the Swordsman and the ionic-powered strongman called Power Man to be her allies. She tried to recruit her old lover Hawkeye as well, but he refused to betray the Avengers and was detained. Swordsman and Power Man managed to isolate and capture most of the Avengers one at a time, but they were undone by the return of Goliath and the Wasp. The villainous trio lost the advantage and escaped through a secret corridor in Black Widow's base. [Avengers (1st series) #29]
Their alliance started to fray, held together only by the Black Widow's promises of revenge against the Avengers, as well as Swordsman and Power Man's growing affections for the beautiful spy. Before they could plan a new attack, however, Hawkeye located their hideout. Power Man was trapped by a collapsing floor, leading to a one-on-one duel between Swordsman and Hawkeye. The master of blades taunted his former pupil, trying to maintain a psychological advantage over 
him. Hawkeye kept his cool, though, and relieved the Swordsman of his blade. It came down to hand-to-hand sparring and Hawkeye's time training with Captain America and the Avengers gave him the edge to defeat his former teacher and score a decisive victory over the Swordsman. [Avengers (1st series) #30]
[Note: Although it was mentioned several times in the above two issues, Swordsman technically never learned on-panel Hawkeye and Clint Barton were the same man. This would be revisited in #65, where Egghead re-confirmed that fact for him, and Swordsman claiming he had merely long suspected the truth.]
The Swordsman's dreams of notoriety and respect faded further from the light as he found himself cast in the role of a lackey time and time again. He continued to work with Power Man as the two of them were recruited by the Red Skull in a trap to capture Captain America by pretending his partner Bucky was still alive. [Tales of Suspense (1st series) #88] The duo were also added to Egghead's Emissaries of Evil when the criminal mastermind planned to blackmail the United States with a nuclear missile strike from Canada. Swordsman internally balked when he learned Egghead wasn't bluffing and fully intended to destroy New York to prove he was serious before threatening other cities. However, the Emissaries were defeated by Weapon X and the Flight before Swordsman's conscience was truly tested. [Alpha Flight Special #1] Swordsman and Power Man served as minions to the Mandarin when they attempted to blackmail a South American country into surrendering under threat of Mandarin's unrelenting force, but were defeated again by the Avengers. [Avengers (1st series) Annual #1] Finally, Swordsman and Living Laser joined Batroc's Brigade to steal a "seismo-bomb," only to be defeated one-by-one thanks to Captain America. [Captain America (1st series) #105]
Sometime later, Swordsman was hired by Egghead to kidnap his old nemesis, Giant-Man, with both men unaware that Hawkeye had recently taken the Pym Particle growth serum to become Goliath. Using a security device from his days with the Avengers, Swordsman infiltrated Avengers Mansion looking for his target. Swordsman recognized Barton as Goliath when they fought and decided to kidnap him, as he was unaware which version of Goliath that Egghead had a vendetta against. As Swordsman and Egghead quibbled over the details of his contract, Goliath awakened to attack his foes. He even saved Swordsman from certain death when Egghead tried to dispose of his unruly henchman using a stun blaster, once again proving himself the better man than his former mentor. [Avengers (1st series) #65]
Swordsman's next attempt at revenge on the Avengers came among a fraternity of villains known as the Lethal Legion. Along with Power Man, Living Laser and Man-Ape, he was assembled by the Grim Reaper to hunt Avengers for sport and profit. Teamed together again, Swordsman and Power Man fought Goliath and the Scarlet Witch and managed to capture the Avengers. However, the Vision infiltrated their base and he and Black Panther undermined the Legion's plans. Swordsman and the entire Lethal Legion were soon captured by the heroes. [Avengers (1st series) #78-79]
Even with all their hostilities in the past, the Swordsman still remembered the feeling of being an Avenger, the call of a higher purpose. When he intercepted a radio-message for all Avengers past and present to meet in England, Swordsman decided to attend. He hid at first, listening as the Black Knight detailed the threat to Earth posed by Ares, God of War. Once he revealed himself, many including Captain America were reluctant to accept any help from a wanted criminal. It was Thor who stepped forward and accepted Swordsman's aid, for it was his world in peril as much as anyone's. [Avengers (1st series) #100]
Despite his efforts, Swordsman still felt shunned by the Avengers in the aftermath of their conflict with Olympus. Falling lower in the world, Swordsman found himself working as a hired thug for the crimelord Monsieur Khruul in Saigon, Vietnam. Drinking away his regrets, Swordsman sought company in a local barmaid named Mantis. She saw the potential for greatness within him, and 
tried to encourage Swordsman towards reforming. When he was left for dead after an encounter with Khruul's enemies, Swordsman was found by Mantis and nursed back to health. Taking this as a sign, Swordsman agreed to turn his life around and fight to justify Mantis' love for him. [Avengers (1st series) #114,121]
After hearing that Hawkeye had left the Avengers, Swordsman dreamed of proving himself worthy of claiming legitimate membership among Earth's Mightiest Heroes. Mantis convinced him to pursue the idea, and together they traveled to America. Swordsman presented himself to a doubting and untrusting Avengers, with Captain America in particular objecting to the idea of a treacherous former foe like Swordsman being allowed in their midst. Still, Thor again saw the 
sincerity in Swordsman's desire to reform and so the God of Thunder sponsored Swordsman for probationary membership on the team. In time, Thor came to respect the Swordsman's bravery and earnest attitude, and put forth a motion to make him a full member of the team. After helping defeat the Lion God, Swordsman was granted official status with the group. While she possessed great martial arts prowess and psychic intuition of her own, Mantis choose to only live in Avengers Mansion as his guest instead of accepting membership herself. [Avengers (1st series) #112-114]
Swordsman's past was not so easily dismissed, however. Cap still held reservations, and many world authorities agreed. On a visit to the Black Knight's castle in England, the Avengers were informed Swordsman's deportation for past crimes still stood, and he wasn't welcome in the United Kingdom. The bargaining required to even allow him off the Quinjet to check on the missing Black Knight stung Swordsman, reminding him that all was not forgotten, nor forgiven. [Avengers (1st series) #115]
The case of the Black Knight's disappearance was manipulated by Dormammu and Loki to create suspicion between the Avengers and the newly-formed Defenders. Each side was guided into believing they needed to assemble a mystical artifact known as the Evil Eye to rescue the lost Knight, and prevent the other side from using the Eye for ill gains. When the team split up to find the pieces of the Eye, Swordsman accepted a solo mission to Bolivia, believing he owed South America a debt after his previous seditious actions under the Mandarin's command.
Deep inside a Nazi castle hidden in the jungle, Swordsman faced off against the Asgardian Valkyrie for the Evil Eye. He did quite well against the spear-maiden of Valhalla, but ultimately fell after being shot in the back by the castle's greedy occupant guarding his treasures. Swordsman 
clung to the Evil Eye, refusing to relinquish it to Valkyrie and therefore fail his mission until he passed out completely. Valkyrie saluted him as a worthy foe before departing and, soon after, the Avengers and Defenders finally began to talk and learned they had been misled. Swordsman still remained at odds with Hawkeye, now of the Defenders, in part because he feared he was only accepted to the Avengers because of Hawkeye's absence. [Avengers / Defenders War crossover]
Swordsman seemed to recover after that adventure. He and Mantis helped save the founding Avengers when they were trapped by the Collector in Rutland, Vermont. [Avengers (1st series) #119] However, Swordsman was more injured than he seemed after Bolivia. The authorities who found him in the castle recognized him as a criminal, not an Avenger, and so he was taken to 
prison instead of a hospital. He had only received token care for his wounds when the Avengers and Defenders summoned him, and Swordsman hid the extent of his injuries to avoid looking weak. When Mantis realized a policeman visiting Avengers Mansion was actually Gemini of the Zodiac Cartel in disguise, Swordsman leapt into action to nab the criminal. His untreated wounds, now infected, caused him to pass out as the extent of his injuries was discovered by the other Avengers. [Avengers (1st series) #120]
As Swordsman lay in his sick bed to convalesce, Mantis worked directly with his Avengers teammates against Zodiac, proving her worth as an ally to the team. Mantis was injured in the fighting as well, although not as severely as Swordsman. As the Avengers left the couple to recover together, the normally stoic Vision remarked to Swordsman how impressive Mantis was. This passing comment planted a seed of jealousy in Swordsman's mind, fearing he might lose Mantis to another man in his weakened condition. His paranoia was only encouraged when Mantis emerged from her healing trance with an empathic flash that the Vision was in trouble and rushed from the mansion without giving Swordsman a thought. Swordsman even tried to follow, only to collapse again because of his festering wounds. [Avengers (1st series) #121-122]
The encounter with Zodiac proved disturbing for Mantis. Libra of the cartel helped the Avengers escape a death trap set by Taurus because he claimed to be Mantis' father. According to Libra, his wife Lua was killed by her brother, Monsieur Khruul, for daring to marry an outsider. He fled into the jungle with their infant girl and was taken in by the secluded Priests of Pama, where Mantis was trained in the martial arts. This tale dramatically contradicted Mantis' own memories growing 
up on the streets of Saigon. Before Mantis could decide how she felt about these revelations, the impulsive Swordsman made off with a Quinjet to fly to Vietnam. Despite his still-prevalent injuries, he wanted to make a show of avenging his lady and bringing down his former employer, Khruul, for murdering her mother.
At Khruul's villa, Swordsman attacked the crime boss and fought with his minions. Although he defeated two men twice his size, the wounded Swordsman eventually fell before the next wave of henchmen. Tortured by Khruul and his men, Swordsman broke and revealed the history of Lua and Mantis to Khruul, as well as the rough location of the Temple of Pama before the 
Avengers caught up with him. Mantis raced off to the temple to learn more about her conflicting origins, leaving Swordsman behind once again to tend to his growing list of wounds and failures. Despondent over his series of setbacks since joining the Avengers, the Swordsman grew increasingly fearful that he would lose Mantis by not being the hero she supported up until now. [Avengers (1st series) #123-124]
The Swordsman's insecurities exploded in the middle of a mission against Thanos' space fleet. He lashed out at Vision and accused the synthezoid of trying to steal his woman from him, an idea which had only existing in his mind up until then, but now intrigued Mantis and hurt the Scarlet Witch who overheard. In the days that followed, tensions grew between the four of them. Vision was still unfamiliar with human emotions or the idea of jealousy, but also couldn't express his emotions effectively enough to convince Wanda or Mantis of his intentions. Swordsman kept trying to talk to Mantis about their relationship, but her own questions about her identity left her 
with little sympathy for his vulnerable ego and continuing needs for assurance. Mantis ended things with Swordsman, presenting a cold indifference that nearly caused him to have a psychotic break. Having failed as an Avenger (in his mind) and now having failed to keep the love of his life, Swordsman barely saw any reason to go on living. [Avengers (1st series) #125-128]
Swordsman's crisis of faith had no time to linger as Kang the Conqueror arrived at Avengers Mansion, searching for the Celestial Madonna destined to birth a messiah of unspeakable power. Hedging his bets, Kang kidnapped the three women present (Mantis, Scarlet Witch and Agatha 
Harkness) until he could determine who was the Madonna. He also captured the other Avengers Iron Man, Thor and Vision to serve as living power sources for his Macrobots. The Swordsman, however, he dismissed with a backwards wave, declaring the poor Avenger not even worthy of capture or killing.
Desperate to prove himself, Swordsman received the chance when Mrs. Harkness reached out to him with her astral form. Agatha was able to guide Swordsman to Kang's hidden lair in Egypt, nestled inside the pyramids he once oversaw the construction of back when he was the Pharaoh Rama-Tut. Swordsman's checkered past included some knowledge of tomb robbery, and he was able to force entrance into the pyramid. However, he then had to contend with not only the Egyptian authorities who misunderstood his intentions, but also the ancient vampire Amenhotep, released from his shrine as a guardian of Rama-Tut's tomb. The vampire ended up killing the soldiers before stumbling out into the sunlight, eradicating all of Swordsman's obstacles. As he prepared to strike at Kang from a hidden juncture, though, Swordsman was inexplicably approached by the Pharaoh Rama-Tut himself. [Avengers (1st series) #129]
In a complicated time travel scenario, this Rama-Tut was actually a future version of Kang instead of a past version. Although he would not let his past self be killed, he intended to work with the Swordsman to stop Kang from completing his mad quest for the Madonna. Swordsman and Rama-Tut returned to Avengers Mansion where they found Hawkeye ready to serve as reinforcements. One-by-one, this unlikely trio confronted Kang's Macrobots as he deployed them, rescuing Vision, Iron Man and Thor before moving on to free the women as well.
Kang was stunned at first when Rama-Tut revealed himself, unaccustomed to temporal shenanigans that he hadn't initiated himself. Still, the petulant conqueror announced that, if he couldn't have the Celestial Madonna, then nobody could. Swordsman and Rama-Tut acted as one, with Swordsman shoving the woman he loved out of the way while Rama tackled his past 
self. Rama-Tut only succeeded in diverting Kang's aim, though, sending a deadly bolt of energy into Swordsman's blade, leaving him mortally wounded.
In his final moments, the shocked Mantis realized she had been foolish to throw Swordsman's love away, and tried to make amends with him. Still, the Swordsman died thinking himself a failure, a man who believed being an Avenger was beyond his meager abilities and he had been doomed from the start. [Giant-Size Avengers #2]