From the journal of Dusk.
Dated Mars time Oan 38th, 1999th cycle.
The Ravage situation did not go as planned.
What took weeks to decipher from his memories and the countless hours and operations to bring his body up to survival standards, fizzled out in moments. We didn’t take into consideration his testosterone levels, or his degree of hatred for the being known to us only as Doom.
Personally I put the blame for this solely on the shoulders of Dr. Tewantin. Since the retrieval of Ravage’s body in the heap of adamantium rock, all Dr. Tewantin has seemed to be able to talk about is his desire to experiment on Ravage’s body.
I supposed I should be to blame for this, as I was the one who signed off on Ravage’s augmentation. My reasoning for this, however, was purely from a survival point of view.
Once we discovered Ravage’s years in Earth’s army, and subsequent time known as the beast-man Ravage we, I’ll admit, had a mutual belief that Ravage could assist us in our war against Hath-Seth.
For years Hath-Seth has been after our power supply.
For years we have lived in peace alongside the Dwellers. They had their place way down below the surface and we have ours, just kilometers below the surface of Mars. That’s forever been changed now since Hath-Seth reared his ugly snake-head into our camp.
We have moved, and moved again. Decommissioning our power supply, and having to reassemble it when we settled in at a new locale. Again and again. We thought we could stop this war, with Ravage’s help.
But it seems Dr. Tewantin had other plans for Ravage. Again, I authorised the alterations to Ravage’s body, but now I feel we have gone too far.
I wouldn’t say this is the end, but if Ravage were to side with the enemy, we may have just dug our own graves.
End journal
***
This is all Dusk’s fault.
Waking up on a strange world, in a strange body, I have no idea what is going on here, and before I know it I’m being carried further underground by a bunch of cave-dwellers.
I stopped fighting them what feels like hours ago and for the most part they have been pretty good to me. I hear grumbling from one or two of them, and then a rotation begin between them. They carry me in shifts, due to my weight. I take this to mean these cave-dwellers aren’t too strong.
In fact I think I could take them all on by myself and win, but then I’d be more lost than I am right now. The smart thing to do is to wait it out and see just who this Hath-Seth character is that they keep talking about.
I think about Dusk, and just what place she holds in all of this. She seems to have good intentions for me, even to the point of altering my body like she has. I should really think about this, and give her another chance to explain things.
“Hey, big man.” I hear below me in a muted tone.
“Huh?” I respond. It’s been a while since I’ve spoken and my throat’s a little dry. In fact, this whole area is very devoid of moisture.
“Hath-Seth will see you now,” the creature responds, pointing towards a rocky door no more than a few feet in front of me.
“Well then put me down,” I order. Surprisingly, they do so, but soon enough I’m surrounded by a score of the dwellers. They’re all around me.
“We’re going with you, big man. And no funny business.” Their tone makes me think they mean it.
The rocky door is pushed open by a few dwellers, and they’re hardly in any shape to do the job. They seem to struggle to get it moved away, but eventually there’s enough room for me to get through.
As we all move forward I slowly begin to realise the size of the area we’re entering. Coming from tunnels and caverns, this area seems mammoth in comparison. As I look around I begin to work out something; this area is like a giant bee’s-nest, with thousands of entry and exit points for the dwellers to come and go, and do what they need.
In the centre of the room is a large hole, surrounded by a smooth circular, rocky surface. Without warning comes an enormous snake. This thing is huge and I quickly notice the dwellers’ reaction. They’re scared of this thing.
“What the shock is going on?”
“Hello,” I hear the snake respond. Its sound is evil in its tone, and I’m trying not to be intimidated by its size. “I am Hath-Seth, and this is my home.”
“I’m Paul-Phillip Ravage.” No point in not being civil about all this. Sure, I might be on another planet, in another body, and in a situation I neither know nor understand anything about. But it should be a lot worse; this Hath-Seth character could swallow me whole.
Then the shock would really hit the fan.
I smile.
“Hello Paul-Phillip. My dwellers here have informed me that you are with the enemy. Is this right?”
Straight-forward fella, I see. “I’ve just come from there… I think.” I’m a little confused, but I go along with things. “I wouldn’t say I’m ‘with’ them, but they did bring me back to life, and give me this new body. Let’s just see what happens, shall we?”
Hath-Seth doesn’t look happy with that response, and I don’t think I should really provoke the situation any more than I already have.
“Hmmmmm yes, we shall.” Hath-Seth replies as he begins to move around the room, closer towards me. The dwellers back away, I don’t. “Tell me Paul-Phillip, what exactly are you?”
I think about this for a while, and straighten up with my chest out, “I’m a man.”
“Yes, I can see that.” This Hath-Seth, although being the largest snake I’ve ever seen, sure does have a class and debonair to his voice. “What I mean is where are you from? How did you get here exactly?”
I could give the smart-alec response, but I hold my tongue, “I’m from Earth. Now, Hath-Seth, I think it’s time that I…”
“From Earth!?” Hath-Seth shouts, cutting me off. “My word. I’ve had a long and interesting history with that planet, wouldn’t you know.”
“Hmmmm,” I utter in a guttural tone.
“There’s been many a tale written and told about my exploits on that particular planet. Oh yes, many.”
“You don’t say?”
“Oh, but I do. I do, Paul-Phillip.” I watch Hath-Seth sliver across the room, behind me, and then back in front of me. “And what I wouldn’t give to get myself back there…”
“You and me both, fella.”
“Well then, Paul-Phillip Ravage. It seems we have a common interest. The both of us wanting to get back to Earth, to our birth-home, and we’re both strangers on a strange world.”
An image flickers in my mind about Hath-Seth, like an intrusion. My mind is foggy, but I get the feeling like Hath-Seth has been here for untold millennia.
Where did that memory come from? I take a step-back and use my tail to right myself rather than topple over.
Did Dusk and that doctor do something to my brain? Good God, I think to myself as I ponder this. My mind is no less cloudy, but this memory of Hath-Seth is wrong. It’s been put there somehow. I didn’t experience it, no matter now much it feels like I have.
Damn that doctor.
“Just what do you have in mind?” I calmly question Hath-Seth.
“The rebels have a power source in their possession. It’s long been my desire to take use of it to get back to Earth.”
“You know, a calm friendly chat could get you what you want.”
“The rebels do not believe in that. They want to keep the power source all to themselves.” Hath-Seth picks up speed as he circles the area, developing a nasty tone in his voice. “No, if I want to get what I need, to get back to Earth, I have to take it! I have waged war on the rebels, and in particular on that woman, Dusk!”
“She’s not too high up on my list of friends at the moment, either,” I offer to him as a means of calming him down, “and neither is that doctor she works with. I mean, just look at what they’ve done to me!”
Hath-Seth lets out a tremendous laugh. I don’t know whether to laugh with him or not.
I don’t.
“But I’m not about to join you in some war over some stupid power source!”
SLAM!
I’m half-way across the room before I register what’s happened. I look over and see Hath-Seth making another move towards me.
I lash out with my tail, distracting him momentarily, yet he continues to move.
He makes another move towards me and I pounce on him. My claws dig into his scaly flesh and I gnaw away at the area which would be his neck.
He lets out an almighty roar, moving around the room like crazy. He rolls himself on top of me and suddenly I’m on my back, my teeth still embedded in him.
I push my legs upwards and give the kick for all I’m worth. Then another, and another.
I bruise something within him, and he rolls off of me.
I get back up onto my feet as I stare at him. He may have had class when I spoke to him, but looking into his eyes I see something I haven’t seen since Deathstryk.
Hath-Seth is pure evil.
Within seconds I’m rolled up into a ball and I feel myself bounce off the cavern wall and into Hath-Seth’s body.
I uncoil slightly after reaching another wall. I can see Hath-Seth is hurt. “Unless you want more of the same, you won’t follow me.”
Hath-Seth glances in my direction and I see right into the soul of the beast. There is nothing good there, just a huge well of self preservation, and the desire to survive at all costs.
“HISSSSSSSSSS,” Hath-Seth threatens. I respond with a guttural wail of my own.
I ricochet against another wall, heading off back towards Dusk and the rebels.
***
END OF BOOK TWO
Dated Mars time Oan 38th, 1999th cycle.
The Ravage situation did not go as planned.
What took weeks to decipher from his memories and the countless hours and operations to bring his body up to survival standards, fizzled out in moments. We didn’t take into consideration his testosterone levels, or his degree of hatred for the being known to us only as Doom.
Personally I put the blame for this solely on the shoulders of Dr. Tewantin. Since the retrieval of Ravage’s body in the heap of adamantium rock, all Dr. Tewantin has seemed to be able to talk about is his desire to experiment on Ravage’s body.
I supposed I should be to blame for this, as I was the one who signed off on Ravage’s augmentation. My reasoning for this, however, was purely from a survival point of view.
Once we discovered Ravage’s years in Earth’s army, and subsequent time known as the beast-man Ravage we, I’ll admit, had a mutual belief that Ravage could assist us in our war against Hath-Seth.
For years Hath-Seth has been after our power supply.
For years we have lived in peace alongside the Dwellers. They had their place way down below the surface and we have ours, just kilometers below the surface of Mars. That’s forever been changed now since Hath-Seth reared his ugly snake-head into our camp.
We have moved, and moved again. Decommissioning our power supply, and having to reassemble it when we settled in at a new locale. Again and again. We thought we could stop this war, with Ravage’s help.
But it seems Dr. Tewantin had other plans for Ravage. Again, I authorised the alterations to Ravage’s body, but now I feel we have gone too far.
I wouldn’t say this is the end, but if Ravage were to side with the enemy, we may have just dug our own graves.
End journal
***
This is all Dusk’s fault.
Waking up on a strange world, in a strange body, I have no idea what is going on here, and before I know it I’m being carried further underground by a bunch of cave-dwellers.
I stopped fighting them what feels like hours ago and for the most part they have been pretty good to me. I hear grumbling from one or two of them, and then a rotation begin between them. They carry me in shifts, due to my weight. I take this to mean these cave-dwellers aren’t too strong.
In fact I think I could take them all on by myself and win, but then I’d be more lost than I am right now. The smart thing to do is to wait it out and see just who this Hath-Seth character is that they keep talking about.
I think about Dusk, and just what place she holds in all of this. She seems to have good intentions for me, even to the point of altering my body like she has. I should really think about this, and give her another chance to explain things.
“Hey, big man.” I hear below me in a muted tone.
“Huh?” I respond. It’s been a while since I’ve spoken and my throat’s a little dry. In fact, this whole area is very devoid of moisture.
“Hath-Seth will see you now,” the creature responds, pointing towards a rocky door no more than a few feet in front of me.
“Well then put me down,” I order. Surprisingly, they do so, but soon enough I’m surrounded by a score of the dwellers. They’re all around me.
“We’re going with you, big man. And no funny business.” Their tone makes me think they mean it.
The rocky door is pushed open by a few dwellers, and they’re hardly in any shape to do the job. They seem to struggle to get it moved away, but eventually there’s enough room for me to get through.
As we all move forward I slowly begin to realise the size of the area we’re entering. Coming from tunnels and caverns, this area seems mammoth in comparison. As I look around I begin to work out something; this area is like a giant bee’s-nest, with thousands of entry and exit points for the dwellers to come and go, and do what they need.
In the centre of the room is a large hole, surrounded by a smooth circular, rocky surface. Without warning comes an enormous snake. This thing is huge and I quickly notice the dwellers’ reaction. They’re scared of this thing.
“What the shock is going on?”
“Hello,” I hear the snake respond. Its sound is evil in its tone, and I’m trying not to be intimidated by its size. “I am Hath-Seth, and this is my home.”
“I’m Paul-Phillip Ravage.” No point in not being civil about all this. Sure, I might be on another planet, in another body, and in a situation I neither know nor understand anything about. But it should be a lot worse; this Hath-Seth character could swallow me whole.
Then the shock would really hit the fan.
I smile.
“Hello Paul-Phillip. My dwellers here have informed me that you are with the enemy. Is this right?”
Straight-forward fella, I see. “I’ve just come from there… I think.” I’m a little confused, but I go along with things. “I wouldn’t say I’m ‘with’ them, but they did bring me back to life, and give me this new body. Let’s just see what happens, shall we?”
Hath-Seth doesn’t look happy with that response, and I don’t think I should really provoke the situation any more than I already have.
“Hmmmmm yes, we shall.” Hath-Seth replies as he begins to move around the room, closer towards me. The dwellers back away, I don’t. “Tell me Paul-Phillip, what exactly are you?”
I think about this for a while, and straighten up with my chest out, “I’m a man.”
“Yes, I can see that.” This Hath-Seth, although being the largest snake I’ve ever seen, sure does have a class and debonair to his voice. “What I mean is where are you from? How did you get here exactly?”
I could give the smart-alec response, but I hold my tongue, “I’m from Earth. Now, Hath-Seth, I think it’s time that I…”
“From Earth!?” Hath-Seth shouts, cutting me off. “My word. I’ve had a long and interesting history with that planet, wouldn’t you know.”
“Hmmmm,” I utter in a guttural tone.
“There’s been many a tale written and told about my exploits on that particular planet. Oh yes, many.”
“You don’t say?”
“Oh, but I do. I do, Paul-Phillip.” I watch Hath-Seth sliver across the room, behind me, and then back in front of me. “And what I wouldn’t give to get myself back there…”
“You and me both, fella.”
“Well then, Paul-Phillip Ravage. It seems we have a common interest. The both of us wanting to get back to Earth, to our birth-home, and we’re both strangers on a strange world.”
An image flickers in my mind about Hath-Seth, like an intrusion. My mind is foggy, but I get the feeling like Hath-Seth has been here for untold millennia.
Where did that memory come from? I take a step-back and use my tail to right myself rather than topple over.
Did Dusk and that doctor do something to my brain? Good God, I think to myself as I ponder this. My mind is no less cloudy, but this memory of Hath-Seth is wrong. It’s been put there somehow. I didn’t experience it, no matter now much it feels like I have.
Damn that doctor.
“Just what do you have in mind?” I calmly question Hath-Seth.
“The rebels have a power source in their possession. It’s long been my desire to take use of it to get back to Earth.”
“You know, a calm friendly chat could get you what you want.”
“The rebels do not believe in that. They want to keep the power source all to themselves.” Hath-Seth picks up speed as he circles the area, developing a nasty tone in his voice. “No, if I want to get what I need, to get back to Earth, I have to take it! I have waged war on the rebels, and in particular on that woman, Dusk!”
“She’s not too high up on my list of friends at the moment, either,” I offer to him as a means of calming him down, “and neither is that doctor she works with. I mean, just look at what they’ve done to me!”
Hath-Seth lets out a tremendous laugh. I don’t know whether to laugh with him or not.
I don’t.
“But I’m not about to join you in some war over some stupid power source!”
SLAM!
I’m half-way across the room before I register what’s happened. I look over and see Hath-Seth making another move towards me.
I lash out with my tail, distracting him momentarily, yet he continues to move.
He makes another move towards me and I pounce on him. My claws dig into his scaly flesh and I gnaw away at the area which would be his neck.
He lets out an almighty roar, moving around the room like crazy. He rolls himself on top of me and suddenly I’m on my back, my teeth still embedded in him.
I push my legs upwards and give the kick for all I’m worth. Then another, and another.
I bruise something within him, and he rolls off of me.
I get back up onto my feet as I stare at him. He may have had class when I spoke to him, but looking into his eyes I see something I haven’t seen since Deathstryk.
Hath-Seth is pure evil.
Within seconds I’m rolled up into a ball and I feel myself bounce off the cavern wall and into Hath-Seth’s body.
I uncoil slightly after reaching another wall. I can see Hath-Seth is hurt. “Unless you want more of the same, you won’t follow me.”
Hath-Seth glances in my direction and I see right into the soul of the beast. There is nothing good there, just a huge well of self preservation, and the desire to survive at all costs.
“HISSSSSSSSSS,” Hath-Seth threatens. I respond with a guttural wail of my own.
I ricochet against another wall, heading off back towards Dusk and the rebels.
***
END OF BOOK TWO