Marvel Comics #1000 Addendum

Author's Note: I recently reread my copy of Marvel Comics #1000 and it gave me an idea. Why not do some one-shot tales in homage to it. That's where this came from. So enjoy some additional tales from throughout the history of the Marvel Universe in this little addendum!

Disclaimer: All characters belong to Marvel Comics and Disney. This is just for fun.

Chapter 1: Ambition

San Diego, California

Night came over the metropolis that was was known as American's Finest City. Despite the late hour, the city was still bustling with activity, shown by the lights on various buildings. A young woman stood on one of the buildings. She walked over to the edge and crouched down, her brown eyes scanning the city for signs of danger.

The slight wind whipped her black hair around her head, kept out of her face by a headband and black domino mask with a small emblem of a stylized cat's head. In her black-gloved hand was a metal staff, and she wore a black bodysuit with the cat's head emblem over her right breast. The neck was decorated with fur and the shoulders with fringe.

Jacqueline Tavarez, aka Nightcat, had called San Diego home over the last couple of years. An aspiring singer, she originally created the Nightcat persona so she could sing professionally without her disapproving police officer father knowing about it. One day, she ended up a test subject for a drug lord who was testing a new designer drug. The batch she was given was mixed with cat blood, and it gave her superhuman senses, agility, leaping ability, and extendable claws.

She would become a crimefighter with her new powers, while also maintaining a singing career. In the years since, she would continue her dual careers. She did have some minor success as a singer, but she was never really "huge". She had also acted in the soap opera Secret Hospital, and she was able to get a recurring role.

Despite this, she never really was able to "take off" as a superhero. She did do some adventuring in New York after gaining her powers at first, but the city already had a glut of superhero protectors. When she got to sing in San Diego, she moved there as she had fallen in love with the city. And she did manage to have some success as a hero there.

"Nothing much going on here..." The feline-themed heroine muttered to herself. Things seemed rather slow in the city today...at least I wasn't mistaken for Black Cat...again... She rolled her eyes and continued her patrol. She then put her hand to her ear. Her earpiece had picked up a signal.

"All units, we have a robbery in progress..."

"Time to head to action." The vigilante said. She leaped down to the ground, and got in a sleek black car with feline-themed decorations. The Cat-illac raced into the streets of San Diego.

Elsewhere in San Diego

A group of bank robbers were filling their bags with their ill-gotten gains. They were clad in black, and had on masks of the Avengers.

"Good night tonight, boys!" The man in the Captain America mask whooped.

"Yeah!" A man in a Thor mask laughed. He was joined by two other men, one in a Hulk mask and one in an Iron Man mask.

"I dunno about you, but I'm going to get that sweet muscle-car I've been eyeing." Hulk Mask grinned underneath his false green plastic visage.

"Dude, gotta be careful." Thor Mask warned. "We start living large suddenly, people will get suspicious."

"He's right." Cap Mask nodded. "Let's just get out of here and stash this cold hard sweet cash."

"Well, this is amusing." Jacqueline noted in amusement. The quartet of thieves turned around and saw a smirking Nightcat leaning casually at the bank's door, her arms crossed. "I had no idea the Avengers fell on hard times."

"Aw, it's that Black Cat chick!" Iron Man Mask groaned.

Jacqueline frowned. "It's Nightcat, boys." She pulled out a small thin metal cylinder from a pouch at her hip. She flicked her wrist, and the ends of a staff extended from the cylinder. "And it's after business hours."

"...shoot her." Cap Mask ordered. The thieves whipped out their guns and started firing on the superheroine. Nightcat started twirling her staff as she dodged the bullets with her super agility. She lashed out with it, knocking the guns out of the men's hands. She unsheathed her claws on one of her hands and slashed Thor Mask's chest. With her staff, claws, and fighting skills, the enhanced human was able to make short work of the thieves. She picked up one of the men's masks. A sigh escaped her lips as she looked at the Captain America mask. She tossed it to the ground, and left to her car. A call to the cops from it, and they got it handled.

Her Cat-illac raced down the night streets. The vigilante found herself occupied by thought.

I did well tonight. She complimented herself. When I first became a superhero, I hoped that maybe one day, I'd join the Avengers. Imagine that, little ol' Jacqueline Tavarez becoming a star singer and heroine... She shook her head. No. Those kind of thoughts...ambition...she saw what it did to her mother. No...I can't go too crazy with this...My mother hungered for fame, and it drove her to the bottle...and then the grave. She continued on her ride.

The heroine drove out to a small home on the suburbs. The Cat-illac drove into a hidden garage under the house. Boy, did she have fun explaining this to the contractor. How did that guy in Gotham do it? Oh yeah, he was frickin' rich.

It's no Batcave, but it'll do. Jacqueline smiled as she drove into her little headquarters underneath her home. It wasn't much, but it had everything she needed: A supercomputer, a small lab, and a training area to keep herself sharp. She got out and took a seat in front of the computer.

"Hello, Jacqueline." The computer's AI greeted.

"Hey, Al. Anything interesting going down lately?"

"Negative, Jacqueline." Al the AI answered. "Nothing in San Diego, anyway..."

Nightcat steepled her fingers. "Oh, something interesting going down elsewhere?"

"The Avengers recently took care of a new version of the Elements of Doom." The computer announced, showing footage of Earth's Mightiest Heroes battling large humanoid monsters made of various elements. The dark-haired Dominican-American woman watched the footage intently.

I'd love to be an Avenger... Nightcat mentally sighed. I know I'm being overly ambitious...must get it from my mom. But I know I could succeed at this. I wish the Avengers would give me just one shot. Just one shot. I know I could do it...Hell, they took in Tigra back in the day...

"Something troubles you, Jacqueline?" Al inquired.

"...a little." She sighed. "I haven't done too badly for myself, have I?"

"I would say you have done well." Al answered honestly. "You have made a positive impact on the morale of this city both with your superhero and civilian work. And you have helped make a dent in the crime rate."

"...you ever wonder if there's more out there in life than just...this?"

"You're thinking about the whole Avengers thing again."

"Well, yeah."

"Not being in the Avengers is not a bad thing." Al counceled. "We all matter in our own way."

"Still, it wouldn't hurt to be remembered. Even if it's just by one person."

"Fame is fleeting and fickle, Nightcat. It may not seem that way, but you do matter. You don't need to be famous to be important. You have done well, Jacqueline."

"Yeah, I suppose. It just...it wouldn't hurt if the Avengers gave me a shot." She yawned and stretched. "I'm going to take a bath and go to bed. 'Night, Al!"

"Goodnight, Jacqueline."

1991 – Jacqueline "Nightcat" Tavarez makes her only Marvel Comics appearance in Nightcat #1