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Steve Gerber's summary of VOID INDIGO #'s 3- 6
****** NOTICE ******
The following material is Copyright 1985 by Steve Gerber and Val
Mayerik. All rights reserved.
I am providing the material to all interested members of this
forum for educational and historical purposes only. You may
download the material and print as many copies as you wish for
your own use, so long as each copy contains this notice.
Under no circumstances may reproductions of the material, in
whole or in part, in any medium, in any form, be offered for sale
by any party.
If I discover that any party has located the three or four extant
VOID INDIGO fans on the planet and is attempting to sell them
this material, that party will be hearing from Destroyer Lawyer.
******************
VOID INDIGO
Storyline Synopsis - Issues 3-6
November 8, 1984
Written by Steve Gerber
ISSUE #3: "SISTERS & ASSASSINS"
Jhagur and Amanda Tower consummate their physical relationship,
and achieve a bizarre psychic meld. From her mind, he draws
certain information about Taro's cult, the imminent reawakening
of the Dark Lords, etc. She gains information about the Void
itself and the past of her own soul.
Linette is inadvertently drawn into their lovemaking: she becomes
alarmed at the indigo energy emanating from their eyes and
sheathing their entire bodies during the experience and tries to
pull them apart. Trapped in the energy field herself, she also
"sees" some of what they see. She may be bound to both of them
psychically as a result.
When it's over, and Linette is released from the energy field,
she collapses in a faint. Jhagur places her on the sofa to let
her sleep and recover. He's been changed by this experience
himself. Something he's seen has profoundly disturbed him. He
tells Amanda to stay and look after Linette. He may be gone for
... some time. She agrees. After he departs, however, she
leaves with a snicker. Let the "insect" take care of herself.
During all this, several other things have been happening that
bear on the story:
Downstairs in her own apartment, Delfine has been unable to
sleep. Something keeps drawing her gaze to the ceiling.
Across town, Wallerstein is just arriving home from the hospital.
He picks up a newspaper and sees that the coroner has released
information he wanted to keep from the press: the business about
the "void indigo" note being nailed to Brita's forehead.
In another part of town, Debbie Tokugawa, the TV reporter, is
awakened by a call from Sarah Trepper -- the mother of the
athlete Jhagur killed in the graphic novel. Mrs. Trepper agrees
to see her.
From Mrs. Trepper we learn that David had been a member of Taro's
cult, but that he split from the group just before his illness
entered the terminal phase. Mrs. Trepper gives Debbie a
handwritten journal David had kept in his last year.
As Debbie leaves the house, we see she's being watched -- by
Tong. When Debbie has driven away, Tong enters the house and
(off-panel) murders Mrs. Trepper.
Back in North Hollywood, Linette awakens in the empty apartment.
She's feeling weak, and there's nothing in the refrigerator, so
she decides to go to a nearby coffee shop for a bite. She runs
into Delfine at the mailboxes. Delfine invites herself along.
At the coffee shop: the hostess leads them to a booth with a
morning newspaper left on one of the seats. Linette offers it to
Delfine, then grabs it back when she sees the words "void indigo"
in the headline. She starts to read it, but she's interrupted
when Delfine -- who also saw the headline -- suddenly goes into a
convulsion.
That night: in the Hollywood Hills, Cosima -- Amanda's daughter,
the part-time feral child -- gets a visit from her Aunt Rachel,
whom we know as the dream priestess Raka. Cosima "becomes a
dream," also (the meaning of this will also be spelled out in the
story), and the two undertake a journey into the Beyond-World to
find and rescue Colleen Mulgrew.
Jhagur has undertaken a journey of another kind. We find him on
a bus, in his human guise, headed back to the New Mexico desert.
Later, at Taro's home, the cult members undergo the ritual that
officially initiates them as disciples of Kaok. At the
culmination of the ritual, the giant "eye-in-the-sky" appears and
envelops them. Inside the eye, they find the transformed Colleen
seated on a throne of fire. She gives them Kaok's instructions:
certain persons must die in order to awaken the souls of the Dark
Lords. Most of the victims are people we've never heard of.
The others, however, are Amanda Tower and Linette.
ISSUE #4: "JOININGS AND AWAKENINGS"
The cultists embark on the program of assassinations that is
supposed to reawaken the souls of the Dark Lords. Each death
sets into motion a chain of events that leads to one of the three
remaining Dark Lords -- minus Koth, who had been reincarnated as
David Trepper -- regaining knowledge of his former existence.
(None of these awakenings happens directly. For example, the
slaying of a drunk results in the killing of a cockroach which
harbours the soul of ZEPHARR. The soul is released from the
insect to be reborn, moments later, into the body of a
grotesquely deformed infant on the other side of the world. But
the infant, doomed to a very brief life, is born with Zepharr's
fully-matured consciousness.)
While this is going on, Jhagur is off on the desert, preparing
for a ritual of his own, a purification rite -- based on a custom
of Ath'Agaar's tribe, perhaps -- of solitude and fasting.
Back in North Hollywood, Linette is still nursing a very sick
Delfine. The doctor they've called is unable to find anything
physically wrong with Delfine (aside from the obvious, that is).
He suggests that the problem could be a form of epilepsy, that
Delfine should be hospitalized. Delfine adamantly refuses. She
hates hospitals. They're depressing, and she hates anything
depressing. The doctor says there's nothing he can do, then; he
urges Linette to do her utmost to change Delfine's mind.
No sooner has the doctor left than Delfine goes into another
convulsion. Almost simultaneously, the appointed assassin comes
bursting into the apartment. Linette is badly, perhaps mortally,
wounded. She collapses over Delfine, and some of her blood
spills into the fat woman's mouth. Delfine's convulsion suddenly
ceases. She knows who she is now, and why the newspaper headline
affected her so profoundly: she's the current reincarnation of
the glutton Dark Lord HEMUTH. She leaves Linette to die.
But some of Amanda Tower's psychic power and knowledge of bodily
control has been transferred to Linette as a result of the
accidental "menage-a-trois" in VI #3. She manages to hang on to
consciousness even as her life is ebbing away.
On the other side of the Hollywood Hills, Amanda, who has formed
an unwanted psychic link with Linette, feels the drain on her own
body. If Linette dies, she might very well die also.
The same is true of Jhagur, who is at a crucial point in his
ritual when this occurs.
At first, he's utterly baffled as to the source of the agony
wracking him. As he probes inward for a cause, he finds himself
looking outward simultaneously -- and somehow seeing Linette.
As a result, he becomes aware that the indigo energy from his
eyes, while a trait of his alien species, has a greater meaning
for him. It's something called "Ninth Sight," a mystic power
that allows him to look beyond his immediate environment -- even
beyond this world into other realms -- and then to follow his
vision to what he sees. (The information he obtained from Amanda
was crucial to his understanding of this revelation.) Mastery of
this power will be the first step toward the transformation of
his own soul, from vengeful warrior to seer.
He has yet to gain that mastery, however. And before he does,
Linette's pain could kill him.
Amanda astral-projects to Linette. As in the earlier instance
with Tong (VI #2), Amanda's psychic energies are so powerful that
her astral form is able to be seen and to act upon the material
world. Amanda picks up a telephone and calls an ambulance for
Linette.
Amanda then tries to return to her own body ... and can't! She
can't even project out of the room! Back in Beverly Hills,
another of Taro's assassin squad has delivered a mortal wound to
Amanda's physical body! It's dead! And her astral form is
starting to lose its solidity!
(Out in New Mexico, of course, Jhagur is also feeling this. He's
linked to both Amanda and to Linette.)
In desperation, trying to preserve herself as a conscious entity,
Amanda psychically forces her way into Linette's body! Now that
physical form will contain both their souls!
With Amanda in control, suppressing the pain of Linette's wounds,
Linette's body staggers out of Delfine's apartment and back to
her own.
While all this is happening, several other important events have
taken place as well:
Raka and Cosima, travelling in the Beyond-World, have found
Colleen Mulgrew, who doesn't want to be saved. She turns them
over to Kaok's minions as captives ...
Debbie Tokugawa has read David Trepper's account of his
involvement with Taro's cult ...
The police have discovered Sarah Trepper's body ...
And the Eye of Kaok is rising again in the sky over Los Angeles
...
ISSUES #5 AND #6: "DOMINION AND REBELLION"
In broad strokes, here are the major events of these two issues:
Over the next several days, as the Eye floats ominously over the
city, the cultists arrange the reunion of the Dark Lords.
Kaok demands, through Colleen, that a fourth be chosen now that
Koth (David Trepper) has departed. The other three choose Tong
-- passing over Taro for someone less ambitious. Taro is not
happy about this reversal of the servant-master relationship.
The Dark Lords and their acolytes depart (in cars, trucks, and
vans) on a pilgrimage to the New Mexico desert, the site of their
ancient fortress, to perform the ritual that will trigger Kaok's
ascendance to earth -- and to annihilate the soul of Ath'Agaar.
Tong and Delfine order Taro to stay behind.
From the North Hollywood apartment, Linette/Amanda watches the
moving eye in the sky. Their personae are at war for possession
of the body, but their consciousness is also shared in this weird
symbiosis. Amanda knows what this event means, and so Linette
knows, too. Jhagur is about to face the Dark Lords in final
battle.
Linette wants to go to him.
Amanda wants no part of it.
Amanda assumes domination of the shared body and forces Linette
to fall asleep. With her eyes open: the Amanda persona is still
awake.
This turns out not to be such a wise stratagem.
Linette is wracked by nightmares, and in those nightmares Raka
and Cosima come to call. They are imprisoned in the
Beyond-World. Raka asks for Linette's help.
Linette doesn't know what she could possibly do. She can't even
control her own body anymore.
She could, Raka tells her, if she, too, became a dream.
Back in the "real world," Linette/Amanda's body shudders and
convulses in bed. She begins screeching -- punching and
scratching herself wildly, as if lashing out at someone else
entirely. She flings herself from the bed, hurls herself
against the walls, literally fighting herself. Even Amanda can't
cope with both the wounds and this rebellion from within.
Finally, Linette's body collapses.
Another, identical body rises out of it and floats toward the
ceiling. It passes through the ceiling and disappears. Linette
has escaped -- sort of.
Meanwhile, in the desert, Jhagur's own ritual is reaching its
culmination. Ath'Agaar and Ren appear to him in a vision. His
ancient self cautions him against merely seeking empty vengeance.
There are better reasons than that for destroying this evil. In
the last moments of his life, Ath'Agaar says, he learned the
limitations of rage.
Jhagur reaches out for Ren. She takes his hand, but when they
touch, wounds open on her body ... blood spurts from them ... the
flesh of her face melts, sealing her lips ... replicating the
wounds inflicted upon her by the Dark Lords. She crumbles to
dust.
Ath'Agaar has also begun to deteriorate in the same manner. As
he crumbles into dust, he says that, on the other hand, Jhagur
ought not forget vengeance entirely.
How all the strings come together:
Back in L.A., Debbie has finished reading David Trepper's journal
and doesn't know what to make of it. She's heard about Sarah
Trepper's death, as well, and it's occurring to her that someone
might actually want her out of the way if they knew she'd read
this journal. Then again, the whole world may soon be "out of
the way." She has to find out if this is for real. Screwing up
all her courage, she calls the Maison Japon restaurant (mentioned
in Trepper's journal) and tries to make a reservation for lunch.
Taro says they're closed today. Debbie then asks if she could
come down and just talk to Taro. About the impact of nouvelle
cuisine on today's lifestyles. No. Can they talk about Kaok,
then? Taro senses a chance to redeem himself with the demigod.
He consents.
Wallerstein, meanwhile, has been called in on the murders of
Sarah Trepper and Amanda Tower. At the Trepper home, Wallerstein
notices a phone number on a memo pad. The initials DT are
written above it.
The phone number leads Wallerstein directly to Debbie, of course.
She refuses to answer his questions, and hops in her car to go
meet Taro. Wallerstein follows at a discreet distance.
At the restaurant, Taro promptly takes Debbie captive. Now, the
demigod will see that he and not Tong should have been made the
fourth Dark Lord.
Wallerstein, waiting in his car outside, makes the entirely
logical assumption that she's eating lunch. He decides to go in
and have a bite, too, even though he prefers corned beef to
nouvelle cuisine.
He finds Debbie splayed on a table with Taro standing over her
holding a Ginsu knife that he's about to plunge into her heart.
Wallerstein and Taro brawl, virtually destroying the restaurant.
Taro gets a bullet through the brain when Wallerstein's gun
accidentally discharges during the fight.
Wallerstein unties Debbie -- and promptly slaps a pair of cuffs
on her. He wants a lot of answers. He holds up Trepper's
journal and says she can start with this. He thumbs through it,
expecting to find loan shark records or somesuch ... and stops
cold when he sees the words "void indigo" written in Trepper's
hand.
In the Beyond World, Linette's presence has a profoundly
disturbing effect on Colleen. Colleen had met her when Mick
(Jhagur) and Colleen's father had worked the same construction
site a while back. This is what Raka wanted and hoped for: the
seeds are planted for another rebellion, this one "inside" the
very Eye of Kaok.
The final clash takes place on the desert, naturally, with Jhagur
first doing a one-man "road warrior" routine against the cultists
and their vehicles, then finally coming face to face, after
11,000 years, with the Dark Lords. His sword and his eye-blasts
are pitted against their magic, while the Eye of Kaok looms
overhead.
There seems to be very little chance that Jhagur can win this
battle. And when the Dark Lords carry him up into the Eye, into
the Beyond-World, all seems lost.
But they've reckoned without Linette's effect on Colleen, without
Raka's powers, without little Cosima's ferocity, and without
Jhagur's knowledge -- however incomplete -- of the power of his
"Ninth Sight." Peering past the horizon of the mortal world,
Jhagur sees and calls upon all the past incarnations of his soul
to aid him in his battle. Ath'Agaar returns, of course, but
there's also an Amerindian warrior and a Samurai and a Hun and a
Visigoth and a whole host of other warrior-types, earthly and
otherwise, whose lives he's lived. Jhagur is now living -- or
reliving -- all these lives at once. Together they battle their
way past the Dark Lords and down into the den of the demigod
himself.
Here, at last, we see Kaok in all his monstrous glory. (I intend
to describe him in such a way as to make him the most repulsive
creature ever to appear on the page of a comic book. It'll be up
to you, Val, to carry off the visual.) Kaok, of course, can't be
defeated with a sword. Or a thousand swords. Jhagur tackles him
bodily, directing his eye-blasts at the creature. And they
tumble out of the creature's den, through several dimensional
planes, to the Void Indigo itself.
Here Kaok is very vulnerable, not only to Jhagur's attacks but
also to the psychic assault of all the hundreds of thousands of
souls whose lives he cut short those 11,000 years ago.
That is how Kaok meets his end: torn limb from ectoplasmic limb
by a million psychic fingers from beyond, delivered to those
fingers by Jhagur.
Upon Kaok's death, the Eye explodes again, spewing its substance
over the desert, depositing Raka, Cosima, the surviving cult
members, etc., on the sand. Jhagur's other incarnations have
vanished.
So has Linette.
Jhagur is in a fury. There was no reason for her to die. She
was an innocent pawn in this battle. Jhagur has achieved his
revenge but lost his only friend -- and there is still no sign of
Ren. He wanders off into the desert alone.
In a brief epilogue, we cut back to North Hollywood. Linette's
physical body, sprawled on the floor of the apartment, starts to
stir. Is it Amanda or Linette inside? Or both?
She staggers to the telephone, calls the Appaloosa bar, and tells
the owner she won't be reporting for work tonight. Then, an
indigo blast from her eyes shatters the receiver and her skin
turns carnelian red.
"God almighty dog," she says.
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