A man, Falco, watches the funeral of Tressa's mother from the brush. He aims a rifle at Arcane, and Jim spots him and yells a warning. Everyone takes cover as the shot misses, and Sheriff Andres goes after Falco and fires several shots. Swamp Thing hears the shots and goes to investigate, and soon spots Falco. Falco hides the rifle in a stump and then walks away, his right arm in a sling. Swamp Thing causes plants to overgrow the rifle.
At Savanna's house, everyone gathers at the wake and Andrews figures that Falco shot at him. Tressa goes up to Jim's room where the boy is staring out the window. He asks why Tressa didn't cry, and she says that she cried when she heard. Tressa suggests that they stay in the house. Jim describes a song that Savanna tried to teach him, even though she said that he had a tin ear. Arcane comes in to speak to Jim about the shooting. Once Tressa leaves, Arcane asks what Falco looked like. Jim says that Falco had his right arm in a sling, and Arcane isn't surprised by the information.
Swamp Thing watches the house and sees Arcane ask Tressa if he should come back later for tea. She turns him down.
Later, Falco walks down the street and stops at a bird cage with a dove inside. He sees Arcane park across the street and ducks out of sight. Arcane goes into a loan office and emerges with a package, and walks into a nearby alley. Falco opens the bird cage door and goes after Arcane, but Arcane has disappeared. In a nearby abandoned building, Arcane goes through slides of his mutant creations.
Outside, the freed dove flies to a window. Falco sees it and goes up the fire escape to the window. He looks in through the window and sees Arcane looking at a slide of a mutant with a wing for a right arm and smiling in satisfaction at finding what he was looking for.
Falco goes back to the swamp to get his rifle and Swamp Thing confronts him. The man assumes that Swamp Thing is another of Arcane's mutants, and Swamp Thing asks why he needs a rifle. The creature says that the rifle is right where Falco left it, and Falco can't get to it through the overgrowth. Falco admits that he shot at Arcane and missed him, and Swamp Thing says that he understands his anguish. Falco isn't impressed and Swamp Thing asks him why he should become a murderer. The man reveals his feathered arm, and explains that he was a peregrine falcon and Arcane turned him into a man. Falco hates being part of the human race and what they do to the earth and sky. He says that he wants to fly again, and Swamp Thing tells him that a man can fly in spirit if the spirit isn't weighted down with hate and bitterness... or stained with blood. Swamp Thing wants Falco to live, and tells him that he'll fly again. Falco doesn't believe him and runs off.
As Falco runs through the swamp, a mutant attacks him. Falco easily subdues him and prepares to break his neck, and Swamp Thing tells him to stop. The mutant grabs a rock, knocks Falco unconscious, and runs off. Swamp Thing sets Falco out of sight, picks a flower, and walks off.
Jim is at his grandmother's grave when Swamp Thing visits his own gravestone. He tells Jim that it's okay to mourn for his grandmother, but she'd want him to go on. When Jim goes back to Savanna's house, he sees Arcane's car parked outside and peers in the window. Arcane and Tressa are having tea, and Arcane says that he hopes they can be better acquainted now that Tressa is moving back to be with Jim. Jim goes to the dock, gets in a rowboat, and takes off.
As a storm comes up, Falco wakes up and goes to the house. He sees Arcane's car and realizes that he's inside. Jim falls out of the boat and Falco hears his cries. Rather than go after Arcane, Falco swims out and rescues Jim. Swamp Thing watches from the shore as Falco brings Jim to safety. As Falco administers CPR, Swamp Thing arrives and says that he'll take care of Jim. Falco insists on handling it, and Jim wakes up. Swamp Thing tells him to go home and get some rest, and Falco admits that when Jim started to breath, he realized that he made him live again and it was like he was flying.
Somewhere far away, a falcon flies through the sky.
Written by Gadfly on Jun 28, 2017