Challengers of the Unknown #31

In "The Man Who Saved the Challenger's Lives, Chapter 1," Wilfred Clayton claims he’s the reason the Challengers survived their plane crash—prompting each to recall their pasts. Rocky remembers overcoming a drugged-out rival in the ring, while the Prof reflects on a reckless collision that forced him to confront his privilege after helping a man salvaging a statue for fishermen.

In "Chapter 2: The Secret from the Challengers' Past," the origins of Red, Ace, and Clayton unfold in a South American nation where a young boy’s plea to stop a dictator sparks Red’s first true act of heroism. Ace recalls his days flying dangerous cargo runs, risking everything when a crate of nitro breaks loose—his moment of courage that would later define him. Now, as they prepare for a TV appearance, a crash leaves them clinging to life, and Clayton quietly reveals he’s the one who saved them—now asking them to journey to South America to build something far greater than any of them could have imagined.

In the jungles of South America, the Challengers of the Unknown face a deadly mystery when an ancient statue begins to move—its flying arm and sword attacking them as they try to assemble it. Realizing too late that the statue is a robot, Prof and Red are captured by its inventor, Clayton, along with Dr. Steuben, while Ace and Rocky race to reattach the final arm, unaware that Ace has secretly reprogrammed it to destroy the machine.