The latest issue of Truth and Justice revealed that the legendary Mothman creature that Batwoman has been pursuing is actually a vampire.
WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for Truth & Justice #15 by Grace Ellis, Maria Laura Sanapo, Wendy Broome, Becca Carey, on sale now.
A getaway from the city turned into a new mystery for Batwoman to investigate. Kate Kane’s efforts to find a small town’s Mothman ended up putting her in the crosshairs of the very villain who had her frustrated enough to leave Gotham City in the first place. As it turned out, the town’s local legend was Nocturna, who took advantage of Batwoman’s arrival to have some fun with her favorite nemesis. And yet despite the Mothman not being real, the town essentially upgraded from the threat of a cryptid to that of a vampire.
Kate had been traveling to a cabin owned by Maggie Sawyer, but a stop in the town of Shale’s Pass to grab a drink led to her learning about the local legend, the Mothman. Having had some experience with things that go bump in the night, Kate wasn’t ready to dismiss the legend entirely, knowing that there is some truth to legends. However, she became invested in the mystery when the “Mothman” totaled her car.
Realizing that whatever could do that was dangerous, Kate suited up and began investigating. Her hunt took her into the woods surrounding Shale’s Pass where she was accosted by Nocturna, the very villain who riled Kate up enough to leave town for a few days. Nocturna doesn’t just view Batwoman as a nemesis, the two were in a relationship in the not-so-distant past. At the time, Kate had no idea that the woman she was dating was actually a vampire.
She manipulated Kate into believing that she had become a vampire and was attacking people. In the process, Nocturna discovered that Kate Kane was Batwoman and the two have been linked together ever since. So Nocturna is a personal enemy for Kate, someone who violated her trust and tried to make her think she was a monster. And now the two have stumbled into each other’s lives once again.
Batwoman was obviously confused about Nocturna’s presence, not owing it to mere chance that they would both be in the same small town at the same time. Nocturna believed it was fate linking them together, but she also admitted that she came to Shale’s Pass pretending to be the Mothman. In her twisted mind it was a quid pro quo arrangement. Nocturna got fresh and easy prey and the town got a local legend to draw in tourists and make some revenue. But Nocturna admitted that easy prey was boring, so when she saw Kate in town she knew she could have some real fun.
Fortunately, the unexpected arrival of Maggie Sawyer gave Batwoman the opening she needed to knock Nocturna out. The two then placed Nocturna into custody, with Maggie agreeing to take the vampire back to the city while Kate finally got to enjoy the peace and quiet she so desperately craved.
As for the town, it is a surprising revelation about the DCU. In a universe where aliens, magic, and gods are a regular occurrence it seems almost impossible for anyone to be concerned with local legends or cryptids. And yet this place was, showing that even something slightly extraordinary is still captivating to ordinary people.
Nocturna was able to use the people’s superstition against them, but the town probably would have benefited just as much if they believed there was a vampire in their midst.
About The Author
