The Lizard King has hit Vanity, looking to exert his domination through a combination of science and magic...arts that come to him through his ties to Aztek's past!
When the issue opens, we find an older man hooked up to some machines, locked down on a gurney. A costumed person oversees the captured man. He explains that he needs the man’s help in replacing someone’s job in Vanity City. The costumed villain has kidnapped both the man and his daughter, and when the process is complete, she will be his “co-pilot.”
Meanwhile, Aztek is out finding a missing pet lizard. He finds the lizard, and returns it to its owner. However, its owner Mrs. Reichle has slit her wrists in the bathtub. Aztek brings her to St. Bartholomew’s Hospital, where he works under the alias Dr. Curt Falconer. Curt is approached by his supervisor, Julia Frostick, who has discovered he is not actually Curt Falconer. Julia gives him an ultimatum: he needs to supply either a full explanation or his resignation by the next morning.
While discussing his predicament with his friend Dr. Moseley, Curt is attacked by a hobbled-together robot, saying that the “ Lizard King” wants him dead. The Lizard King, the kidnapper from earlier in the issue, is using two eyes on a metal frame to guide the robot. Curt bashes through one of the hospital’s skyrise windows, and transforms to Aztek as she falls. Julia Frostick catches a glimpse of the transformation as he falls.
The Lizard King uses two sets of eyes to control two robots: a larger robot and a smaller one. The robots hover above the streets, fighting Aztek. The robots seem to know all about him: his secret identity, his powers, and his tactics. Aztek wins, though, and finds that the robots have pilots inside; pilots without eyes.
Aztek reports back to his mysterious bosses, reporting that this Lizard King used techniques only he and his teachers were familiar with. He believes that this Lizard King serves the shadow god, and that this was just a test. His bosses recognize the Lizard King as one of their best students. After talking with his bosses, Aztek gets a call from the Lizard King: he has taken Aztek’s “girlfriend” Joy Page captive and will torture her if they do not meet in one hour.
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