Journey into Mystery 24
When the Grey Gargoyle Strikes!
JFK Airport had the usual amount of traffic for a weekday. So, when a Boeing 727 came in from the east there wasn't much notice on the ground. Contact was made with the pilots, but as the plane started its descent all contact was lost.
The plane rolled to a halt, suddenly cutting across several landing zones. The air controllers yelled into their radios but the plane was silent. When the jet finally came a stop; crashing through a fence in the process, rescue crews and police were rushing towards the idling plane.
Hearing nothing, a ladder was brought and the outer door forced open. "Hey Steve, what was this bird carrying?"
"Manifest says passengers and standard cargo. Why?" Steve's question was answered as he stepped into the flight. "Statues?"
In every seat was a statue. The ones in the back looked exactly like people. Some reading, some sleeping but as they moved closer to the front on the plane the work took on a sinister tone. Twisted figures; some looking like they were trying to escape, others lay scattered across the aisles.
Silently the men moved forward towards the cockpit. The door was ajar. Slowly opening it, both men gasped in horror as the full truth hit them. The pilots were statues, their faces frozen in looks of pure terror.
"What happened?"
Unseen by the emergency workers, a darkly garbed figure slipped out from the wheel house and snuck off through the tall weeds.
The figure, had anyone stopped to talk, made his way to the city. Under the slouch hat and heavy scarf, the man glared at the city. His skin was a smooth gray as the statues on the plane but unlike them he clearly had no trouble moving. The man, Paul Duval as it read on his passport, used to be a chemist. Slaving away in obscurity in a small Parisian lab, Paul seemed destined for nothing more than a cheap watch and a hearty thanks.
That is until the day he spilled a chemical mixture on his hand. In agony he rushed to the sink to wash the chemicals off but once the burning stopped his noticed his hand was stone. Not simply hard, it was solid gray and had all the consistency of concrete. That was when he made another discovery. Reaching for the tap with his changed hand, Paul gasped as the metal faucet turned to solid stone.
Soon Paul touched everything in the lab. He noticed that after roughly sixty minutes the objects turned back to normal. His hand was the exception but he didn't seem to mind. "Paul, for once things are going to go your way!"
Leaving his work, he hurried back to his small apartment. Fashioning himself a costume ("Basic but fancy enough for my purposes!" he looked at the simply trunks and cape ensemble) and slapping every inch of himself, the now stone man marveled at his reflection. "Stone, living stone! Impossible but here I am. No, I am not Paul Duval anymore. I'm not some simpering fool who begs for favors! No, I am the Gray Gargoyle! I'll take what I want!"
From there he slipped away to England on a ship and bought a phony passport. Finding the nearest flight to America, the Gray Gargoyle donned a disguise and boarded the flight.
At Dr. Donald Blake's office, things continued as normal for the patients. For the staff, there had been some changes. Donald Blake had shed his mortal persona and regained his past as Thor, God of Thunder. Jane Foster, formerly known as Lady Thor, had married him in Asgard, earned her own power and hammer.
Since Don had become Thor, they simply explained his new physical appearance on a new work out regime and diet. Most people bought that without too many questions. Jane had earned the moniker of goddess of the wind, but she was still coming to terms with that.
"Say, did you hear about the statues on the plane?" Jane slumped down on the office's couch during a lull in the patients.
"Aye, the whole of them turned to stone, not unlike the Avengers some time ago."
"That does seem pretty similar, but the news said the passengers turned back to normal after a few hours. You think it's some kind of virus?"
"Perhaps, but maybe another mortal criminal?"
"That thought crossed my mind. I don't know anyone who can turn people to stone, but maybe the other Avengers do. Think I'll swing by the mansion, see if anyone's heard anything."
"A fine idea! Should I accompany thou?"
"Why not?" Jane smiled.
They closed the clinic for the rest of the day. Heading to the roof, Jane felt a nervous tingle down her spine. They looked in each other's eyes as they brought their walking sticks down against the roof. Lighting flashed.
Thor's simple suit burned away and his body was now clad in the same uniform that Jane had worn as Lady Thor. His walking stick was now the hammer Mjolnir.
Jane's transformation was a bit more dramatic. Her frame swelled with newly developing muscle, turning her dress into tatters as her brown hair lengthened down her back and turned to a golden hue. Around her body a new uniform formed and clad her. The tunic was leather with a layer of mail over it. Her arms were bare save for a pair of bracers. Her legs were clad in trousers with mail in front and high boots. A helmet adorned her head with a visor across her eyes. A short cape topped off the ensemble. Her hammer Storm Bringer was in her hand. "Shall we fly beloved?"
Thor smiled. "Aye."
As the gods flew across the city, Jane looked down and noticed a taxi driving wildly through Central Park. "Hold, there seems to be trouble!" They dropped down as the cab crashed into a tree. Thor rushed to the driver's side and shouted.
"Yon driver, he's been enchanted!" Thor tore the driver side door off as the petrified form of the driver fell out. He caught the driver before he smashed to the ground.
They flew the cab driver to the hospital. By the time they arrived, the crew and passengers of the airplane woke up, their condition reversed. "So, the spell is not permanent." Jane wondered. "The question then, who is behind it? Loki? The Enchantress? Some other magic user?"
If either thunder or wind god had stayed in the park, they would have been answered. The Gray Gargoyle had flagged down a cab and ordered the driver to take him to the Avenger's mansion. When he spotted Thor flying, he placed his hand on the driver and as the poor fellow was turning to stone he jumped out of the back. He watched the two heroes take his victim away and marveled at the scene.
"Such power! If I could but take one of those hammers, I would be truly invincible! At the very least I can turn one to stone if nothing else."
That night, a different visitor stalked the wooded areas of the park. Jane, with her costume removed, walked the covered pathways and quiet areas of the park. "Some witnesses saw a man fall out of the back of the cab. That could be our culprit." She gripped her hammer under her overcoat.
Ahead near the clearing she spotted a figure standing behind a tree. "Odd and worthy of investigating."
She was silent as the figure stepped into the moonlight. She didn't recognize him, but his blue cape and gray stony skin didn't suggest a nature enthusiast. He spotted her. "Ah" his French accent was unmistakable, "I see I have company. Tell me, do you know where I can find the American heroes called the Avengers? I am most anxious to meet them."
"What business have you with them? Were you the one responsible for these human statues?"
The man laughed. "I see my reputation is preceding me already. Very good, but you must know the name of the man you address. People shall know me as the Gray Gargoyle!" He struck a pose in the moonlight.
Jane doffed her coat and slipped her helmet on. "And you shall call me Thunderstrike!"
The Gray Gargoyle blinked under his mask. "Pardon? I was under the impression that you were called the Lady Thor?"
"I changed my name." She lifted Storm Breaker over her head. The wind picked up, bending the trees back.
"Then we shall battle!" the Gray Gargoyle rushed forward. A lighting bolt struck the ground in front of him, driving him to the dirt. He came up with a fist full of sod and pelted her across the helm. Blinded, Thunderstrike swung wildly.
"Ah ha! Victory shall be mine!" He gripped her arm. She punched him full in the chest as she pulled back. Whatever he said next was lost as he sailed through the treetops.
Jane stared in horror as a gray spot started to spread across her arm. Spinning her hammer, she took to the sky. Her arm grew numb as more flesh changed into stone. When it was up to her elbow she suddenly landed in the closest alley. "No time!" She was starting to panic as she slammed Strom Bringer against the pavement.
In a flash of light, Jane Foster was left standing in the alley both arms perfectly normal. "The stone didn't spread, but can I change back to Thunderstrike?"
The next day
The Gray Gargoyle's crimes continued. People were being found turned to stone in their own homes and their valuables missing. The entire city was in a panic. Jane stayed in her mortal form the whole time. Thor finally confronted her. "Verily, the evil of this man must cease."
"But if I change back, will the curse spread?"
"I knowest not, but people are suffering. If thy arm be as stone, I shall fly thee to Asgard at once."
Jane nodded and picked up her cane. One strike and the room was filled with light. When Thor opened his eyes, there stood Thunderstrike. "Ha! Thou members be as sound as ever!" He slapped her on the back. "Now, shall we do battle?"
"Not quite, but I do have an idea."
A few hours later
Thor flew around the city. Despite his speed it still took some time. He stopped several crimes, but no one had seen the Gray Gargoyle. He was about to give up hope when he landed at a wharf side bar. "Times and men change, but knowledge can always be found where men's tongues are loosened." He walked to the bar and ordered.
The bartender, absently polishing a mug, didn't seem to surprised at the sight of a Nordic thunder god walking up to his bar.
After downing several mugs worth of beer, Thor leaned forward. "Tell me barkeep, per chance have you any information?"
The older man sighed and put his dishrag down. "Look, despite what the movies say, not all us bartenders know everything. I don't listen in, I don't follow any words on any street, and I ain't got any tips. You want more hooch I'll gab about that. Aside from that just pay your tab and split."
Thor sat in silence before a wiry fellow at the end of the bar approached him. He was short, his clothes reeked of sweat and grime, and his face was largely covered with a greasy mop of hair. A large eye patch covered a good quarter of his face. "You looking for info?"
Thor raised an eyebrow. "Aye" there was something about the man's patch that reminded him of his father.
"Follow me." The man slipped off towards the back. Thor followed. He was somewhat disappointed when there was only the man glancing around the alley. "Twenty bucks, up front."
Thor flipped him a gold coin. The man's sole eye widened. "What do you want to know?"
"There be a mortal calling himself the Gray Gargoyle, capable of turning people to stone. Have thou seen him?"
"Gray skinned weirdo? Some of the winos were talking about a weird guy setting up shop near the older warehouses. If you're looking for trouble, you might want to start there."
"Many thanks mortal." Thor took to the sky, leaving the informant speechless.
-A few minutes later
After a brief conference back at the clinic, Thor and Thunderstrike streaked across the sky. They landed near the piers the informant mentioned. Thunderstrike peered into the nearest building. "Could be something here, I see a cot and some paintings."
"Then let us hasten!" Thor kicked the door apart. The Gray Gargoyle stepped out of the shadows.
"Are all Americans as rude?" The man sounded more annoyed than anything. "I vanquished your partner with ease. Do you honestly think two will be enough to handle the power of the Gray Gargoyle?"
Thor and Thunderstrike looked first at him then shared a glance. As one they twirled their hammers and let them fly. The Gray Gargoyle was puzzled as Mjolnir stopped short of him and hovered in midair. Storm Bringer flew past but stopped directly behind him.
Before the Frenchman could question why, he got the answer as Strom Bringer flew into his back. The two hammers were yanked back, drawing the man screaming towards the heroes. Both of them stepped aside and let his journey continue unabated. He soared out over the water, screaming in French the whole time. With a mere gesture, both hammers suddenly broke off and returned to their masters, leaving the Gray Gargoyle to continue his journey for a few seconds in the air before skipping across the ocean's surface.
He sank at once. Thor scratched his head. "Mayhap we should send some aid after the mortal. I didn't assume his whole body was stone."
Thudnerstrike nodded. "I believe the police can handle it from here."
The end
Based on "When the Grey Gargoyle Strikes!" which was first published in Journey into Mystery I#107 (August 1964) with credits to Stan Lee (script), Jack Kirby (pencils), Chic Stone (inks), Art Simek (letters)
Next time, "At the Mercy of Loki!"
Journey into a Mailbox!
From Darci
Odin's quandary of what to do about Thor comes to a head in this tale. What will he do, transform Jane into a goddess (as he did in Thor#136 (Jan. 1967)? Let Jane continue as Thor? Force her to forget about Thor and give the powers to Don Blake? What will Don say if Odin makes him aware of what's happening? What does Freya have to say about it? How will Loki and Amora try to influence what happens? This is going to be epic! Thanks!
And many thanks to you for all the assistance. I hope the preceding issue met with your expectations.
And from rmarcano, Merry Christmas to you too.
Be on the lookout for the next tales:
The Avengers#10-Introducing Wonder Man!
Amazing Fantasy#15-Reader's Choice
Sensational Comics#24-A Titan Rides the Train!
Tales to Astonish#23-The Coming of the Magician!