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Quote1 An' ol' Mariah -- she gonna bring you down! Quote2
Black Mariah[src]

History

Black Mariah[]

Power Man and Iron Fist Vol 3 12 Textless

The Fang Gang

Mariah Dillard[1] was a low-level criminal who started to operate in New York City, especially Harlem. She embarked on a relationship with Cockroach Hamilton, a fellow outlaw with the ambition to elevate his influence as a crime-lord. Inspired by the emergence of super-villain gangs such as the Sinister Six, Hamilton gathered other young criminals to form a street gang to establish their power against influential elements such as the Kingpin of Crime. Alongside Lonnie Lincoln, Mortimer Norris, Piranha Jones, and Cornell Cottonmouth, Hamilton and Mariah proposed the formation of the Fang Gang. However, before their debut, their alliance fell apart to infighting. Norris made advances towards Mariah, causing Hamilton and him to come to blows. Lincoln went on to insult Mariah’s weight during the fight, causing both of her and Hamilton to abandon the gang. The six criminals broke their partnership and went their separate ways.[2]

At some point in her life, she established a reputation as Black Mariah and became the leader of the Rat Pack, a discreet gang whose primary source of income involved using a stolen ambulance to pick up the bodies of the recently deceased and then stealing whatever valuables they had on their person. When a man named Frank Jenks was murdered in the Gem Theater, Black Mariah's scavenging gang picked up his body to collect profit. The hero for hire Luke Cage, who had an appointment with Jenks, witnessed the scene of the murder. When Jenks' widow learned about his body going missing, she hired Cage to investigate; the sympathetic Cage took the job free of charge. In spite of the bad information given to him by his informant, Flea, Cage managed to find the hideout of Black Mariah. This led to a clash between Mariah and her men against Cage. Although she was able to put up a fair fight, Cage ultimately defeated Mariah as she attempted to escape and turned her over to the police.[3] After some time in prison, Black Mariah teamed up with X the Marvel and other villains to kill Luke Cage when the heroes of New York City vanished. A short battle broke out until Cage managed to escape on the back of a moving truck.[4]

The free Mariah started a new enterprise: drug dealing. She became the primary distributor of a drug called Acid Z, a potent drug that could eventually drive its users insane and often times suicidal. When some of the drug got into the hands of Luke Cage's friend D. W. Griffith, Cage went looking for his old friend while his partner Iron Fist tracked down the primary distributor to shut them down. Iron Fist found Black Mariah's hideout. However, he also found that she had hired a special enforcer as protection, Iron Fist's old foe Scimitar. Iron Fist defeated Scimitar, but underestimate Mariah's might and was knocked out. Iron Fist was soon joined in battle by his partner Cage after he learned of his old foes' involvement in the drug distribution. The Heroes for Hire made short work of Black Mariah and Scimitar, crushing their drug operation and turning both over to the authorities.[5]

White Jennie[]

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Black Mariah and White Jenny against Cage and Iron Fist

While serving time in the prison in Ryker's Island, Mariah struggled to get her general education diploma. She met assistance in the form of Jennie Royce, another convict who worked at the prison's library. Royce used to work as a secretary for Cage and Iron Fist and gradually grew bitter over her relationship with them. Meanwhile, an unlikely friendship blossomed between Dillard and Royce, as in gratitude for the assistance the former helped the latter survive in prison. They became best friends and shared their dreams with each other.[6] At some point, Royce was told by her cellmate Nekra about the Supersoul Stone, a mystic empowering artifact.[7] Eventually, Black Mariah was released and returned to the streets, temporarily staying at the Sisters of Mercy House, a home for female parolees.[1]

One year later, Royce made her way out of prison. She was met by Cage and Iron Fist and immediately tricked them into retrieving the Supersoul Stone, telling them it was necklace which belonged to her grandmother and had been taken. The owner of the artifact was Lonnie Lincoln, now the dangerous mobster known as Tombstone. The two happily returned her necklace. Staying at the Sisters of Mercy House, Royce met Black Mariah. As partners White Jennie and Black Mariah, they gleefully saw in the artifact the first step towards their takeover of Tombstone's soon-to-be-crumbling criminal empire.[1] Arthur Nagan informed Black Mariah that Tombstone offered a reward to recollect the Supersoul Stone. This led her and Jennie to leave their location since Cage and Iron Fist could look for the item. White Jennie then activated the power in the jewel to gain super powers.[7] Together, the criminal duo knocked some of Tombstone's operations to collect money. Eventually, Jennie was utterly corrupted by the Supersoul Stone and unreasonably decided to confront Tombstone directly, coming into contact with Cage and Iron Fist.[8] In desperation, Black Mariah joined Cage and Iron Fist to save her friend's soul. She was able to convince Jennie to release the power to get free. In the aftermath, the gem was rendered inert and Black Mariah and White Jennie returned to Ryker's.[6]

During a prison break at Ryker's, Black Mariah and White Jennie were able to escape.[9] Black Mariah laid low for some time until being contacted by Alex Wilder. Inspired by the potential of the Fang Gang that had never been explored, Wilder wished to form a new organization, the New Pride. Hamilton put Black Mariah and White Jennie in contact with Wilder. They would assist Wilder in his mission in exchange for him erasing their criminal record.[2] Wilder's main enemy was Tombstone, who had great influence in Harlem. Wilder soon put his forces to fight Tombstone's in a gang war.[10] Their war was costly, with Wilder losing many of his operatives. The bloody fight caught the attention of Cage and Iron Fist as well.[11] In desperation for power, Wilder was tricked by Black Mariah into seizing more power from the Supersoul Stone. Around this period, Hamilton chose to abandon New Pride, which granted him Mariah's disdain.[12] Jennie expressed discomfort with the degradation of Mariah's affairs, which involved dealing mystic substances as drugs. Jennie betrayed them and took the demonic source of their drugs to Cage and Iron Fist.[13] Wilder and Mariah went after Jennie for revenge. The ensuing confrontation escalated with the intervention of Tombstone, who worked with Mortimer Norris, now the creature known as Mr. Fish. Mr. Fish attempted to execute Black Mariah, but she was saved by White Jennie. In the end, Wilder succumbed to the foul powers he had tampered with. Exposed, Black Mariah and White Jennie returned to prison, but their friendship thrived.[14] At some point, Black Mariah left prison and resumed her criminal activities as a crime-lord in New York City.[15]

Attributes

Abilities

Her extreme weight allows Black Mariah to hit with respectable force.[3]

Paraphernalia

Weapons

Black Mariah makes use of firearms against her opponents.[3] She also used a pair of poisoned sewing needles to drug her opponents.[5]

Transportation

Formerly an ambulance.

See Also

Links and References

References

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