You'll destroy us all! It will be Gamorra all over again! 
- — Regulus
Birds of Prey (Volume 3) #26 is an issue of the series Birds of Prey (Volume 3) with a cover date of February, 2014. It was published on December 18, 2013.
Synopsis for "Torn Apart"
Black Canary woke up to find that her enemy Regulus has been keeping her husband Kurt - whom she thought dead - alive, if comatose. She has also learned that Regulus himself is the result of a psychic merger between the insane despot Kaizen Gamorra and her old Team 7 compatriot Dean Higgins. Unfortunately, she cannot use her Canary Cry to fight Regulus, as he is using Kurt's power to amplify or dampen the powers of others against her. Grinning, Regulus explains that it was not he who kept Kurt alive all this time. He merely stole the body for his own purposes. The real culprit, who hid Kurt's survival from Dinah for years, was Amanda Waller. She had let Dinah believe that she was responsible for Kurt's death, and allowed her friend to be hunted for the murder. Angrily, Dinah pins Regulus to the floor with his own staff, opening the glass lid on Kurt's compartment. Regulus warns, though, that if she removes him from the bed, Kurt will die.
Meanwhile, Batgirl and Strix are cornered in the complex by Regulus' agents, along with Condor, whose loyalties are suspect. Before the attack, Condor proves himself by explaining that nobody's powers will work while on the compound, and as such, they should work to take down Regulus' people while they can. While Batgirl and Strix handle the others, Condor runs after Tsiklon and demands to know where Regulus is keeping Black Canary. She responds that she neither knows nor cares. Nor does she fear that he will try to hurt her. Coldly, he responds that, for her, he will make an exception, slamming his fist her into her face.
Regulus warns that if Dinah tampers with any of the tubes or wires that are maintaining Kurt's brain functions, he will die. However, she has faced Regulus before, and she doesn't trust him. He could be speaking lies. Taking a gamble, she kisses Kurt's lips and begs forgiveness in advance as she yanks the wires and tubes from his body. Kurt grabs her hand, and in that moment, she feels a sudden surge of power entering her body. Horrified, Regulus exclaims that she has unleashed Kurt's power to amplify, and it will over-load every metahuman in the compound. It will be just like the destruction of Gamorra Island all over again. Dinah can sense that he is right, feeling her body fill with energy.
Elsewhere, Condor suddenly feels as though his head is going to explode, and leaves the fight screaming. Likewise, Hammerdown is so overpowered that his muscular body becomes too cumbersome to move. Tsiklon, still sore from Condor's attack, begins to lose control of her powers as well, spinning violently in a whirlwind. Using his telekinesis, Condor pushes her away from anyone in danger of being caught in her path. Whipcrack, too, loses control, and sends an electrical jolt through a horde of gunmen he hoped to use to stop Batgirl and Strix, saving them the trouble.
Regulus struggles to his feet, intent on preventing Dinah from using her powers to level the mountain on which he compound was built. Though she is terrified of what her power can do - especially when amplified - Dinah knows that this is her chance to expel some of the energy flowing through her. She emits a scream that sends Regulus careening through the roof.
Regulus' flight is spotted by Condor, who orders Batgirl and Strix to get to Dinah before s he does some real damage. In the mean time, he chases after Regulus. Unfortunately, he is unprepared for the fact that Regulus' own powers have also been amplified.
Batgirl catches up to Dinah, having already learned from her of what happened at Gamorra Island, and the effect Kurt has on her power. It could only be him causing that same thing now. Grabbing Dinah from behind in a choke-hold, she urges Dinah not to resist; to let herself fall unconscious so that the power cannot be released in a devastating cry. Looking to Kurt, Barbara recognizes the telltale sign of massive stroke on his EEG, and makes the difficult decision to re-attach the suppressors to his body, placing him in a coma.
As Regulus prepares to make a final blow against Condor, Strix comes to his rescue. Regulus tries to break her spirit with psychological manipulation, but she leaps on him, knocking the pair of them from the roof of the compound toward the sea. Sure that they will both die, he shouts that she must be insane, but Condor plucks her out of the air, allowing Regulus to fall alone.
As Condor returns to reunite with Dinah - for whom he has romantic feelings - Batgirl holds him back, warning that Canary needs to be left alone for now. The man whom Dinah is crying over right now is her husband, Kurt.
Appearing in "Torn Apart"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
Antagonists:
Other Characters:
- Kurt Lance
- Amanda Waller (Mentioned only)
- Kaizen Gamorra (Mentioned only)
- Team 7 (Mentioned only)
Locations:
Items:
Vehicles:
See Also
Recommended Reading