ORDAINED #1 (OF 3) CVR E INC 1:50 BEN TEMPLESMITH VAR

New York Times best-selling author Robert Venditti (SUPERMAN ‘78, PLANET DEATH) joins forces with powerhouse artist Trevor Hairsine (DCEASED, X-MEN) and ten-time Eisner Award-winning colorist Dave Stewart (HELLBOY, STAR WARS) to deliver a brutal, no-holds-barred action crime comic that will leave you breathless. Father Royston Craig became a priest late in life but he's determined to make up for lost time. Along with his regular duties at his St. Louis church, he also performs the prayers of the last rites to patients on their deathbeds at the nearby hospital.One day, he's called to give these sacraments to Cormac Byrne, who doctors say won't last the night. Byrne, like many others, has turned to God only at the end; he hasn’t been to church in decades. Father Roy is eager to hear his confession, but what starts as petty crime from a lifetime ago quickly becomes a horrifying litany of gangland violence and killings. Cormac Byrne is no ordinary man. He is, in fact, the head of the Irish mafia. God offers forgiveness to all who truly repent, and Father Roy completes his task by absolving Byrne of his mortal sins, leaving the man to die at peace…...until the next morning. When Byrne makes a miraculous medical recovery. No longer at death’s door, Byrne is quick to return to his old ways. It’s business as usual and he’s got loose ends to tie up. First things first: KILL THE PRIEST who now knows where all the bodies are buried.But Father Roy’s collar wasn’t always white, and Byrne is going to learn the hard way that Father Royston Craig was once Chief Petty Officer Royston Craig, a former Navy SEAL who found his faith in the midst of battle. Now Father Roy must face vicious gangsters, corrupt cops, and his own inner demons if he is to survive. And while he will be forced to tap into a violent skill set he thought never to again entertain, the one thing Father Roy will not do… is kill.