Nightwing is in a rough spot. Titans Tower has been taken over by an out of control Nite-Mite, and Oracle is trapped at the top. The fifth dimensional fanboy has altered time and space within the tower, making all kinds of horrible monsters that the first Boy Wonder has to fight his way through, all thanks to the machinations of the mysterious Zanni. Unfortunately for the hero of Bludhaven, Nite-Mite has lost control of his reality-warping powers, and either on purpose or not, has reconstructed everything inside the transformed tower into some kind of nightmare version of things from Nightwing’s mythos. In his quest to save the woman he loves, Nightwing is going to have to get past a monster that’s the last thing Nightwing would ever want to fight; an evil, hulked-out version of his own dog. Move over Krypto, because DC’s most powerful dog might just be Haley, aka Bitewing.
Titans Tower Under Siege
Armed with a new suit and weapons running on Kappa energy, an energy that can hurt fifth dimensional creatures that the villainous Spheric Solutions just happened to have on hand, Nightwing made his way into Titans Tower. The superhero team’s abandoned homebase had been transformed into an infinitely expansive realm, with sections and entire worlds seemingly built out from what was there before. Nightwing attempted to talk to Nite-Mite, but received no answer, and was instead attacked by a small army of Deathwings, a villain from the future who was convinced he was Dick Grayson. As more and more of them poured out of the woodwork, suddenly they were all burned away as another man descended from the sky with his jetpack. It was Nightwing-Prime, Van-Zee of the Bottle City of Kandor.
The two Nightwings teamed up, with Van-Zee saying that if Dick hopes to reach the top floor of the world known as Titanis, he must pass through the dreaded Elevator Zone, which only one creature has been known to survive, and it came from the other side. The Beast of Titanis. They made their way to where the creature was locked away, and as they traveled, Dick realized that this entire realm was built on his memories and lore, the pieces of history that made him Nightwing. Van-Zee realised this meant he wasn’t real, but was dedicated to his mission of keeping the peace regardless. They made their way to the hold cells area, but then Van-Zee betrayed his friend. Deeming Nightwing a threat to the tentative peace among Titanis’s people, he locked him away with the Beast, hoping it would destroy him. As Dick prepared to fight, he saw a horrible creature emerge, at least fifteen feet tall with glowing red eyes and six massive arms. Dick could only wonder one thing: what did Nite-Mite do to his dog?
Bitewing, Beast of Titanis?
For those unaware, Haley the dog is a three-legged pitbull that Nightwing adopted after he rescued her from some teenagers that were abusing her. She debuted in Nightwing (2016) #78, at the very start of Tom Taylor and Bruno Redondo’s landmark run on the title. She’s been an adorable part of his mythos ever since, being granted the name Bitewing when Nite-Mite first appeared and gave her a special costume. Of course, beyond the short period of time when she could speak thanks to Nite-Mite, Haley is a completely normal dog. She doesn’t have any special abilities or intelligence, or at least she didn’t until Nite-Mite went and accidentally transformed Titans Tower. Now, whether this is the real Haley or a copy of her, Nightwing is going to have to deal with a monstrous version of his furry best friend.
The Beast of Titanis is everything that Haley isn’t. Instead of being a small, cuddly buddy, she’s a gargantuan monster that looks like she could treat Krypto the Superdog like a chew toy. She’s a new number one for animals in DC that I would not want to be on the bad side of, but that doesn’t mean she’s all bad. Considering that she’s definitely being affected by Nite-Mite’s sheer love of all things Nightwing, the hero might just be able to reason with her. Maybe Nite-Mite has a secret fear of dogs, but he knows for a fact that Haley loves Nightwing, so he has a chance to calm her down and save Oracle. If not, well, he better hope she likes to play fetch and not go for the kill.
Nightwing #128 is on sale now!
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