The Brave and the Bold #2 is an issue of the series The Brave and the Bold (Volume 1) with a cover date of November, 1955.
Synopsis for Golden Gladiator: "The Sword of Attila!"
Marcus, the Golden Gladiator wins his freedom in the arena after defeating Cinna's hired warrior, Gorgo. Meanwhile, Attila the Hun and his army are advancing uncomfortably close to Rome. Cinna, always secretly plotting the Gladiator's demise, suggests the Emperor send out his best warrior, known to be Marcus, off to intercept the Huns and engage Attila in single combat. If Marcus could destroy the Attila's sword, which the Hun believed was magic and the key to his victories, it may lead to a sudden loss of morale.
Lucia, Cinna's niece, sneaks away to accompany her beloved Marcus, suited in her own armor to help him on his quest. Marcus is worried for her safety, naturally, but it is too late to turn back now, so together they travel onward. They are quickly made targets of the Hun's catapult weapons, and Marcus barely moves Lucia aside in time for a great fireball to land where they stood! Marcus charges the two Hun warriors, but is ambushed by the rest of Attila's army. A trap! He is taken back to the Hun camp, where he suddenly pulls loose from the soldiers grip and goads Attila into attacking him. Using the Hun leader's anger against him, Marcus manages to dodge Attila's swing and uses his arm bracelet to shatter the sword. The army is shocked at the scene, and soon after, they break into a riot. Lucia appears with horses, and Marcus leaps over the heads of the confused warriors and into the saddle. He and Lucia make their getaway back to Rome, with Attila's broken sword now in Marcus' possession.
The Emperor praises Marcus victory, while Cinna scowls in the background as Lucia and Marcus kiss.
Appearing in Golden Gladiator: "The Sword of Attila!"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
- Lucia
Antagonists:
- Attila the Hun
- Cinna
- Gorgo (a gladiator) (Single appearance)
Other Characters:
- Unnamed Roman Emperor
Locations:
Items:
- Attila's Sword
Synopsis for Viking Prince: "The Threat of the Phantom Vikings!"
Jon, the young man with no memory of his past, and who was given the name Viking Prince by his adopted fishing village home, leads the villagers in a session of swordplay. Chief Olaf compliments him on his skill, but Jon only wishes he could remember where he learned it from. Olaf's lovely daughter, Gunnda, asks him to teach her as well. She soon proves to be a fast learner, as Gunnda disarms Jon after only a few training lessons.
Meanwhile, away in his castle, the Earl Thorvald plans an attack on the village and the Viking Prince, whom Thorvald secretly knows to be the true heir to the throne. A ship is launched out towards the village. Dawn strikes by the time it is noticed by the villagers out on the sea horizon. Jon takes some men out in a small fishing boat out to investigate, and finds the ship to be completely abandoned. Thinking the ship to be cursed, he dives over the side and cuts the anchor, allowing the vessel to float back out to the sea. While underwater he notices round, open portholes lining the bottom of the ship. But a shark attacks before he can investigate further, so Jon must fight it off with his sword. Later that night, back on the mainland, the village is struck by burning arrows, setting many homes aflame! While the villagers quell the fires, Gunnda notices the ship has returned on the horizon. Jon once again takes a small boat of men out to investigate and, just as before, finds the ship's deck is abandoned. But this time during his search, he notices his footsteps on the wooden planks of the deck have an echo, as if it were hollow underneath. He finds a trapdoor and opens it, to see a hidden compartment that has been flooded with water, and filled with sharks like the one that attacked him. The men then report to him that the village is under attack! Jon figures out yhe attackers used the ship to sneak up on the village, and then they would open the underwater portholes and exit towards the beach unseen beneath the waves. Jon steers the ship towards the beach, though he knows not how the sailing skill came to him.
Jon and the others join in the defense of their homes, with Thorvald's men falling to the skills Jon has taught them. Soon, Jon spots the Earl himself and charges through to get to him. When he finally reaches Thorvald, they begin dueling with swords, though the mighty Earl seems flustered and untrained. Suddenly, the mask falls off and "Thorvald" turns out to be a mere stranger whom the Earl has paid to dress like him. The battle is won, but Jon is forlorn. He confides in Gunnda that he wishes he knew why Thorvald sought his destruction, and she replies that they will find out, someday.
Appearing in Viking Prince: "The Threat of the Phantom Vikings!"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
- Gunnda
Antagonists:
- Thorvald
Other Characters:
- Captain Olaf
Locations:
Vehicles:
- Viking Ship
Synopsis for Silent Knight: "Knight for a Day!"
While returning to the castle with a steed that had run off, Brian Kent sights Lady Celia, the young woman he had rescued from the forest, being thrown off her horse into the moat that was filled with savage fish. He wastes no time in rescuing her, riding the steed into the moat and using his training blade to keep the fish away. Despite having previously saved her as the Silent Knight, to protect his identity Brian acts as though this was their first meeting. Celia is charmed by the knight apprentice and, in a sign of admiration, asks him to wear her scarf for his first jousting tournament. As the lady Celia returns to her chambers, Brian notices Sir Oswald Bane watching him with interest. Bane informs him that he saw his daring rescue of the damsel, and invites him to a joust out in the field. Before Brian can reply, however, his trainer Sir Grot interjects, telling Bane that Brian's clumsiness likely caused him to fall into the lake by accident, calling the rescue a lucky fluke. Grot and Bane share a laugh at Brian's expense. In the hawk stables, Brian talks to his silent hawk friend, Slasher, about his troubles with Sir Grot. He doesn't understand why his late father's best friend would continuously insult his talent in front of Sir Bane.
Later that day, Brian watches from the ramparts the departing figures of Sir Bane and Lady Celia with some guards. His heart aches with Celia's departure. Sir Grot comes to him bearing a message from Bane, to deliver the Sun Ruby to Duncan's castle, which lies beyond the Forest Perilous. Grot worries for his apprentice's safety, but Brian brushes him off coldly, not believing his sudden act of concern after he had put him down earlier. Grot replies that someday Brian will understand why he must act that way in front of Sir Oswald Bane.
As Brian travels through the forest, the ruby tucked away in his pouch, he is ambushed by a pack of bandits that demand he hand over the gem! One bandit prepares to fire an arrow at Brian, but then Slasher, Brian's noble hawk friend, claws the bandit's bow away. Brian takes cover in the treetops, the leaf branches protecting him from the bandits arrows. Slasher finds him leads away from the bandits below, Brian follows his friend to a spot in the tree branches where the Silent Knights armor hung, placed there by an unknown hand. Donning the armor and equipping himself with the sword and shield, Brian continued through the forest until he reached a bridge guarded by soldiers. They challenge him immediately, in his silence, Brian fights back, his superior sword skills dispatching one man, and then ramming into another. The third grips him from behind, so Brian throws himself and the man over the bridge into the murky river depths. He swings with his sword until he can no longer feel the blade connecting, and then pulls himself to the surface where Slasher was waiting. Brian thanks his friend and removes his Silent Knight guise to return to his regular apprentice clothing.
At Sir Duncan's castle later, during a feast, Sir Oswal Bane is amazed that Brian made it through the forest with only a few nicks and scratches. Not wishing to reveal himself, less Bane guess his other identity, Brian replies that he simply got lost after falling off his horse, and somehow stumbled his way out by accident.
Appearing in Silent Knight: "Knight for a Day!"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
- Slasher the Falcon
- Lady Celia
- Sir Grot
Antagonists:
Other Characters:
- Sir Duncan (First appearance)
Locations:
- England (6th Century)
- Greystone Castle
- Forest Perilous
Items:
- Silent Knight's Sword and Armor
Notes
- "The Sword of Attila!" and "The Threat of the Phantom Vikings!" were reprinted in Best of the Brave and the Bold #3.
- "Knight for a Day!" was reprinted in The Brave and the Bold #116.
- "The Sword of Attila" story is chronologically inaccurate from a Post-Crisis point of view. Attila the Hun reigned between 434 and 453, while Golden Gladiator died in 73 AD [1].
See Also