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Appearing in "1602 Part One; In Which We are Introduced to Some of Our Featured Players"

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  • The Virginia Maid (First appearance)

Synopsis for "1602 Part One; In Which We are Introduced to Some of Our Featured Players"

On a visit to Queen Elizabeth, Sir Nicholas gives a report of increasingly worsening weather conditions across Europe. The Queen asks Sir Nicholas if this could be a sign of Armageddon, but he replies that that information is outside his department. The Queen asks the arriving Doctor Stephen Strange if the world is truly ending, but the doctor replies that he is uncertain whether or not these ominous signs point to Judgement Day. Strange tells Sir Nicholas that there is something powerful and dangerous in Jerusalem which he has offered to protect. Strange asks Sir Nicholas if he could keep the object safe while it is traveling to England, and Sir Nicholas accepts.

Werner the Angel is chained in a high tower in the Palace of the Inquisition waiting for his execution for being a witchbreed.

At the Moor's Head Tavern in Westminster, the blind Matthew Murdoch entertains the patrons with a verse from the Ballad of the Fantastick. The young page Peter Parquagh admires a spider on the table until a patron smashes it with his mug. Peter is soon joined by his master, Sir Nicholas. They leave the main inn and speak with the balladeer Matthew in a dark room. Sir Nicholas pays Matthew to rendezvous with the Old Man, who is carrying the weapon, in Trieste.

At his house in Greenwich with his wife Mistress Clea, Stephen Strange uses his magical crafts to try to find the source of the strange weather. First, Stephen sees the ship The Virginia Maid carrying Virginia Dare and her bodyguard Rojhaz west. Next Stephen's ghostly form travels to the heart of a mountain meant to hold earth, air, water, and fire. Next, Stephen sees Werner the Angel waiting to be burned at the stake. Stephen transports to see a priest talking to a nun. The nun notices Stephen and banishes him with a gesture.

The priest Enrique asks Sister Wanda about the strange presence she felt and mistakenly concludes that it must have been Carlos Javier. Petros tells Enrique that James of Scotland wants to get rid of the witchbreed plaguing England, but that he would need public approval. Enrique tells Petros to inform James of Scotland that once he becomes king, they will provide "evidence" that the witchbreed are planning to blow up the House of Parliament.

Traveling across the Atlantic Ocean with her bodyguard Rojhaz, Virginia Dare wonders why they are sailing without her father, but soon realizes that she and her Indian bodyguard will raise more publicity for the Roanoke colonies.

Walking through the streets of England by the Temple, Sir Nicholas explains to Peter that the great treasure they have been assigned to protect was guarded by the Templars over four hundred years ago. An assassin suddenly attacks Sir Nicholas, but his leather chain-mail costume stops the knife and Sir Nicholas takes down the assassin.

At dawn, Enrique's men prepare to burn the "Angel" at the stake. However, the executioner's torch suddenly burns out. Roberto freezes the guards while Scotius uses his laser eyes to free Werner and then to create a hole in the wall for them to escape.

Meanwhile, Queen Elizabeth dreams that two years ago, the Templars used two decoys to let the Old Man leave Jerusalem unharmed. The Queen wakes up and her dream vanishes just as she becomes inexplicably afraid. Off the coast of Spain, Werner and the Witchbreed travel on a ship propelled by Apprentice John Grey. Scotius tells Werner that they are going to a sanctuary for his fellow Witchbreed.

Notes

  • Matthew sings a verse from the "Ballad of the Fantastick" in each of the issues of Marvel 1602. The ballad refers to Sir Reed and his crew, who are known to be dead. This issue's verse:
    "There were four brave souls, rode the oceans abroad,
    T'was on the Fantastick they sailed,
    And one was a Captain, and one was a Lord,
    And one a young hothead who carried a sword,
    And the last was a maiden so pale, so pale,
    The last was a maiden so pale."

Trivia

  • "Oriana" was the name bestowed upon Elizabeth I by historians – it is short for "Gloriana." Neil Gaiman actually calls her "Gloriana" in the issue.

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