War Shaman was set several years after Tim Truman's original Scout series. At this point, Emanuel Santana and his two sons Tahzey and Victorio have taken refuge in a community in some caves. Unfortunately, the Army has set up shop in a town nearby. Santana and one of the cave-dwellers, a Jackson Walker observe them from a bluff nearby. Walker says he can "read" the soldiers, that they're tired and plan to set up shop here. He explains most people have such abilities, but misplace them, and his are strongest among the folks in the cave. He tells Santana he's got it, too, but calls it something else. Santana replies he doesn't need a sixth sense to know to get out of the heat, and they return to the caves.
Back in the caves, Tahzey and Victorio find some of the local kids messing with a rabbit. The leader, named Kidd, "mind-kills" the rabbit, which makes Victorio rush out to object. Apparently the cave folks haven't taught their kids about tolerance, because they call the boys "scummies" and mock their dark skin, calling them dirty. Kidd warns he could mind-kill them too, and Tahzey counters that he's no rabbit. As they leave, Victorio holds the rabbit close and viola! It's alive again.
Kidd and his lackeys are stunned, but a pair of religious nuts called The Dead Men saw it and are sure Victorio is the prophesied one to save them from "The Beast." They plan to abduct him, to protect him from his own father. Seems like a good way to get shot, but Santana had history with the man who founded their cult, so they're kind of a sore spot for him.
Back in town, one man beats the hell out of another. The one getting beat up abandoned his post for a midnight rendezvous with their Commander's daughter. Who is actually the President's daughter, but Rosa Winter's adopted her some time after Santana killed the President. Rosa tries to present this as a lesson, but Laura's not too impressed.
Back in the caves, Walker's explaining how the entire cave system relates to a Hopi story about the creation and destruction of the world. That the creator grew displeased with how humans were fucking up the world, and those with the proper senses were able to find the caves and ride it out until the creator was willing to try again. He says they're currently on the fourth try, and they've taken to these caves to wait for the fifth.
When Santana points out one world was enough for his people, Walker counters that the Hopi were always more creative than the Apache. Maybe, but their creator kind of sounds like a schmuck, to keep trying again even though humans fuck up the same way every time. Santana decides to snoop around town and after killing one guard with a stupid mark over his eye (between this and GrimJack, Truman was really fond of giving people those sorts of tattoos over one eye), confronts Rosa. The two of them have history going back to boot camp, and it's been a complicated thing.
He finds out Rosa's been through some changes, namely, she might be more machine than human after the injuries she sustained cleaning up the messes Santana created. For her part, Rosa's decided all her problems stem from not killing him the night he went AWOL, and she's going to rectify it. I've heard closure is an important part of the healing process. So is not picking at scabs. Santana's boxed in, but Laura comes to check on her mom and he's got a hostage. He talks about how Rosa's called the Beast and the Butcher, and kills anyone who doesn't fit her vision of what America should be. I'm not sure Santana's hands are clean enough to be throwing stones at anyone. He tells Rosa to take care of Laura, because she's the only human part she has left. Notable that he and Laura are both crying by then, but Rosa's not. Of course, one of her eyes is mechanical, so maybe she has no more tear ducts.
He's out the window and away on Rosa's motorcycle, but before she can hunt him down, a guy named Redwire shows up. Tells her she has her job leading the Army and rebuilding America. Leave chasing 'a rabbit' to a hunter like him. I know Redwire is someone Santana encountered and tried to kill during Scout, but I can't remember exactly who.
[9th longbox, 64th comic. Scout: War Shaman #6, by Timothy Truman (writer/artist), Sam Parsons (painter), Tim Harkins (letterer)]
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