abstract
| - With Amadeus Arkham at gunpoint, Jonah Hex appears to be at a standstill with the head of the group of criminals who have been kidnapping and enslaving children in a mine under Gotham City. However, Hex's allegiances to Arkham are few, and he dares the thug to pull the trigger. Instead, they tear down the platform on which Hex is hiding, and he finds himself surrounded by gunmen amid the debris. The leader pilfers Hex's hat before throwing both men into a subterranean river with the expectation that they will not survive. As they sink into the cold water, Arkham regrets never having learned to swim, and struggles to hang on to Hex's arm. Eventually, the sensation of drowning is replaced with that of falling, and they realize that they've gone over a waterfall. Jonah Hex manages to use his hatchet to grasp onto an outcropping, and after some encouragement, he convinces the doctor to climb up his body and onto the flat rock. The darkness is all consuming, and Arkham begins to panic when Hex realizes that there is little chance for them to get out of this place. Suddenly, the sound of strange tribal screams comes from overhead, and they are startled by the presence of what appears to be a primitive tribe of subterranean natives. Arkham surmises that they are the lost tribe of the Miagani. The tribe proves to be hostile, and Jonah Hex is forced into violence once more, grumpily complaining of the doctor's uselessness in a fight. Fortunately, the two manage to overcome their attackers, and acquire some torches. Following a nearby staircase, hewn into the rock, the pair find themselves before a forbidding sheer rock face with holes carved into it. Arkham follows Hex's lead, using the holes as hand and footholds until they reach the top. There, they hear a frightening screech, and they brace themselves for another attack by the Miagani. Instead, they are horrified by the sight of a giant bat. Seeing this, Hex exclaims that he hates Gotham.
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