Scout, aka Emilio Santana, has killed the 4 spirits he was tasked to kill. Unfortunately, the last one was President of what passes for the United States. So he's spent the last six months laying low in the desert Southwest, accompanied by a gahn (a guiding spirit) in the form of a chipmunk. But Scout's tired of living on roots, sorrel and seeds, and healed up enough to hunt.
Gahn guarantees they'll find something today, though Scout's dubious they're going to locate any food scaling a mesa. Well, he finds two figures waiting for him, but I'm not sure you'd want to eat either of 'em. One he calls "The Clown," the other "The Godeh." The Godeh reminds Santana when he stoned the kitten of a little girl as a child. The girl's mother promised they'd get him some day. Certainly took their asses long enough.
But Scout's got guns, and that seems to be enough, although Gahn remarks they're only dead, 'if you want them to be, Santana.' Out of bullets, or at least needing time to reload, Scout's attacked by a sort of wolf creature that flings him around while speaking in riddles. It hates him, it loves him. It wouldn't be there if he didn't know what it was. It hurt him most when he couldn't see it, but when he can't see it, it won't be a danger to him any longer.
They seem to merge, it takes Santana's form, then vanishes. Gahn explains Scout needed to see the next monster he'll have to kill: the one inside himself. I don't think Scout has much luck with that, but maybe I'm remembering the plot wrong. Either, he'll have to handle it alone, as Gahn's job is now done. It departs, telling Santana he's a lousy cook but that there's a jackrabbit in the rocks below that'll make a good dinner. Also, he'll have company in the morning.
The company is Doody, a blind young man Santana met earlier in his quest. Doody has, in the span of 4 months, become a prophet, traveling and speaking the word of the good books. By which I mean the Lord of the Rings. Thanking Santana for sharing his breakfast and the location of a water source, Doody and his large horde of followers continue on their way.
There's also a couple of pages of a subplot where an Israeli special ambassador briefly meets with the newly-elected President Carver about Israel offering aid to the U.S. Carver's intrigued, but her vice-president (and religious wackjob who worked for the previous president, who Santana killed) Bill Loper is against it. The U.S. doesn't need any help! Certainly not in digging its own grave. Either way, Ambassador Glanzman isn't bothered by the tirade and says the offer still stands. He'll pop up a lot in later issues.
{9th longbox, 54th comic. Scout #8, by Tim Truman (writer/artist), Sam Parsons (painter), Tim Harkins (letterer)}
No comments:
Post a Comment