Tiana Mathews, aka Black Diamond, is an agent with IC3.
That acronym stands for Info Com Three, an international intelligence organization with its headquarters in New York City. It seems to function largely as a foil to a powerful and ultra-deadly Quansa. "Like a giant octopus, Quansa, the international crime cartel, spreads its evil tentacles around the world." Tiana Matthews, in her guise as Black Diamond, is the agent out to stop them", we are told. Her handler at IC3 and assignment coordinator at that agency, is a man named General Leon Van Pelt and while it is likely IC3 personnel frequently go up against other opponents, there is no doubt that Quansa is a very large and worthy nemesis.
We are told in the introduction to the first recorded adventure the following: "To the world at large, Tiana Mathews is involved with Multmonde in the glamourous world of international high fashion modeling. Beneath the glitter she is in reality an agent for Info Con Three. Her jet-set travels provide the perfect cover for the beautiful but dangerous lady spy!" This extremely fit and gorgeous blonde-haired woman seems always ready for action, especially if it means going up against the various forces that Quansa is able to muster. And being extremely popular with the various fashion houses around the globe, there seems to something going on somewhere that she can use as a reason for heading to a city where Quansa is being particularly troublesome.
We learn through a dream sequence right after we meet her that she had had a lover named Jack Burton, an fellow operative and someone she seriously considered spending the rest of her life with. To her dismay, she learned through a captured dossier that he was in fact a double agent and as such, needed termination. "Jack got what he deserved. It's a dirty game", she tells herself. The fact that apparently it was she that did the deed still haunts her but shows how committed she is to her oath of service.
As all good secret agents out in the field, she has her share of nifty gadgets, starting with a dart gun she is able to pull from her bag and shoot instant sleep inducing projectiles and moving up to a plastic gun (remember, this is the mid 60s) which fires bullets with compressed air, not to forget her wrist watch which not only tells "precise time and performs bio-rhythms", it also "fires miniature shurikens". She is also extremely good at hand-to-hand combat which is good because just about everywhere she goes, there is someone (or more) wanting to knock her very beautiful head off.
Good Lines:
- After saving a man's life by taking out two armed secret police officers and being given the backhanded compliment of being "quite resourceful, for a woman", she snarkily adds, "And I can cook, too!"