NIGHTHAWK

[Susan Hillwig]

Art by Don Walsh

Name: Nighthawk
Secret Identity: Hannibal Hawkes
Aliases: Hank Hawkes
Known Former Lives: Khufu Ma-at Ka-Taar, Strong Bow, Thomas “Tomahawk” Hawkins
First DC2 Appearance: THE IMMORTAL LEGEND OF HAWKMAN # 0 (as Prince Khufu), WEIRD WESTERN QUARTERLY #5 (as Nighthawk)
Status: Former Outlaw, now Hero
Base of Operations: The American West, late 1800s
Occupation: Traveling Fix-It Man
Known Relatives: Franklin Hawkes (father, deceased), Delia Hawkes (mother, deceased)
Height: 5’11” Weight: 185 lbs.
Eyes: Blue Hair: Black

Powers and Abilities: Though already a fine marksman and hand-to-hand fighter in his current life, Nighthawk also has the advantage of centuries of skills to call upon, in both combat and general knowledge. The disadvantage is that he is not consciously aware of any of them, and therefore whenever any of these past-life skills manifest, he merely thinks himself a quick study of the situation. He has also been able on some occasions to understand foreign languages (or at least foreign to Hannibal Hawkes’ rural background) though he lacks the ability to speak them.

History: In 1848, the soul of the ancient Egyptian pharaoh Khufu was reincarnated once more, this time as Hannibal Hawkes, the son of a dry-goods merchant in rural Missouri. Outwardly, Hannibal was no different than any other child growing up, aside from appearing to be just a little bit smarter than his peers -- the word “clever” was used often to describe the Hawkes boy -- and an air of restlessness that seemed to hang about him, as if he was waiting for something to happen. By 1862, he seemed to have found that something: the Civil War had been raging for almost a year, and Hannibal ran away from home to enlist in the Union Army. Unfortunately, being only fourteen, he was turned down by recruiters, but that did nothing quash his desire to join the fight. He hooked up with a gang of civilian “volunteers”, who in reality were just outlaws looking to use the chaos of war to hide their activities -- even after Hannibal realized the truth, however, he couldn’t shake the lure of excitement enough to quit the gang.

His given name shortened to “Hank” by the gang’s leader, Hannibal quickly sunk deep into their murderous lifestyle, his cleverness coming in handy many times over the years. After the War ended, the gang moved back into their old avenues of crime, dragging the young man along with them. It wasn’t until 1868, when they stole $20,000 off a train bound for Louisville, that Hannibal decided he’d had enough. Running off with the money, he headed back to his hometown of Fox Grove -- Hannibal’s father, thinking his son dead all these years, welcomed him back with open arms, and Hannibal foolishly tried to resume his old life. It wasn’t long before the gang caught up with him, threatening to kill the elder Hawkes unless Hannibal returned the money. The young man complied, only to have the gang beat him senseless, then shoot both him and his father, burying them in a shallow grave.

Luckily for Hannibal, the gunshot wound was not fatal, but the trauma was enough to partially awaken his first incarnation, Pharaoh Khufu, who lent Hannibal the strength to survive the ordeal. Unaware on any conscious level that another force was influencing his actions, the young man stitched a representation of Khufu’s hawk-symbol onto his shirt, hid his face behind a mask, then set out on the trail of his former partners. Though he was forced to kill the gang’s leader, Hannibal did capture the others and bring them to justice. After doing so, he decided to continue living the life of a masked man, taking the name Nighthawk -- in his new identity, he strove to take down those who preyed upon the weak and innocent, hoping that it would somehow help him atone for his own mistakes. As a cover, he traveled the West under the guise of a simple fix-it man, putting his clever mind to work by helping folks in plain sight, while keeping his eyes and ears open for any sign of trouble in whatever towns he visited.

Though most records of Nighthawk’s exploits have not survived to present day, it is known that he eventually crossed paths with his ancient love, Chay-Ara, reincarnated in the form of Kate Manser (see Cinnamon), and that he died during an unexplained conflict in 1885. In modern times, Khufu’s soul resides within Carter Hall (see Hawkman), who has access to memories from all his incarnations, including Hannibal Hawkes.