EMBERS OF HALA
Part Six
the fortieth tale
written by Mark Bousquet
2201 / January
ASGARD / THOR ODINSON HALL OF PEACE / OFFICE OF THE KREE AMBASSADOR
Kovar the Accuser stood alone with his thoughts. The time was at hand to answer the question that he had received days earlier, before the communication blackout, before the return of the Supreme Intelligence, before the latest Kree Civil War …
Who’s Side You On?
He’d gone over this for days in his mind. Van’Rogg and Ochken were the men who’d made him what he was, the men who’d stood behind him, elevated him to the position of Ambassador. He had no loyalty to either the Empire or Republic more than the other. While he believed himself to be a soldier-born, and believed the Kree to be the greatest empire in all the Everything, his years on the Council had shown him, even if he was loathe to admit it, of the greatness of other races. There was a greatness in standing shoulder-to-shoulder with men who shared ideals with you.
But there was no denying that he was disheartened with the weakening of the empire under Ochken’s rule. Ochken was a good man, but too much the pacifist.
The opposite was just as bad. The Supreme Intelligence would wage war on anyone and everyone, all in his quest to place the Kree at the top of some great game for which only he knew the score.
After everything they’d gone through, after all the years of the Eternal War, generations who knew nothing but war from birth-to-death, Kovar thought that when all this-
"Kovar!" The Accuser turned to the door to see Ash’lin, the Shi’ar Ambassador enter.
"What is it?"
Ash’lin’s face was somber. She took no joy in the news she was delivering. "Thanos is attacking Hala."
Kovar’s fists clenched, "That damn Supreme Intelligence!"
Ash’lin shook her head, "It wasn’t the Intelligence, Kovar." Pause. "It was Ochken. When he realized Asgard wouldn’t violate the Alliance Treaty and would send no troops to fight for the Republic, he signed an accord with Thanos." She looked the Accuser hard in the eyes, "Now full-scale war has broken out."
And as Kovar followed Ash’lin out of the room, he thanked his makers that he hadn’t committed publicly to the Republic. What the hell was Ochken thinking?
SPACE – OUTSIDE HALA’S ORBIT
Admiral Nemeno was the commander of the Shi’ar fleet for the battle at Hala, and as he stood on his bridge, watching the conflict rage outside, he didn’t care for the politics that had caused this battle to take place. Thanos, Ochken, the Supreme Intelligence, Balder, Asgard …
It meant nothing to him.
Thanos had sent seven warships to Hala; Balder had the Majestrix send ten. Hala and the ring of Shipyards stood between them, with nine of the Shipyards standing alongside the Shi’ar. Nemeno kept his craft at the furthest point, and sent five ships around the left, where the one enemy Shipyard stood, and four around the right.
Numbers said they would win. Ten ships to seven, and Balder had made certain the Shi’ar sent comparable machinery.
Thanos’ ships had moved first, but the Shi’ar were well trained, and Nemeno – top in his class at the Academy back on Chandilar – used a classic counter-measure, quickly repositioning his fleet for the highest level of damage. "We want a quick, effective victory," Nemeno had told his troops. "Hit hard, hit fast, be precise."
"Admiral Nemeno, sir, our first ship has reached the apex of its arc. It will reach midpoint, near Shipyard 9, in … mark, 5 seconds."
"Very good," Nemeno answered. "Lieutenant, status report on the one remaining Republic-controlled Shipyard."
"Shipyards 4, 5 and 7 have yet to take control of Shipyard 6, sir."
"Inform the commanders of those Shipyards that it would be nice if the Kree could capture something for themselves," Nemeno ordered coolly.
A searing flash of light from the overhead holographic imaging system drew Nemeno’s eyes to the ceiling. His face curled into a frown as he saw his first destroyer rocking from a massive explosion in its side. "Report!"
"Side Monitor Tau," an officer called out. "Rerouting replay from external camera mount!"
Nemeno watched as the Shi’ar craft reached its apex and slowed to turn at a tight angle. As the maneuver was underway, Shipyard 9 opened fire, sending a storm of concentrated ionic fire into the side of the destroyer. The Admiral turned on another officer, "I thought Shipyard 9 was fighting under the banner of the Supreme Intelligence? Can't the damn Kree keep their alliances straight for the duration of one battle?"
"It … it was," the officer stammered. "Our data is coming from directly from the databanks aboard the Retribution, itself. Whatever the Supreme Intelligence knows, we know."
"I wonder," Nemeno mused, then put the thought aside. If the Supreme Intelligence wanted to play games, Nemeno would indulge him. The Admiral hit the master com switch, giving him access to the bridge of his entire fleet, "All vessels, security of Shipyards is compromised! Shipyard 9 has gone rogue! Repeat, Shipyard 9 has gone rogue. Assume all Shipyards as potential rogues! If there is any question of Kree loyalty … take them out."
KE-RETRIBUTION / WAR ROOM
Tension filled the air. In the middle of the room, the Supreme Intelligence floated, his face devoid of emotion. To his left, Bruunhilde, Elektra and General Ochken stood. To his right, the diplomatic envoy of the Council: Empire, John Francis Saint, Glimmer Girl, Grennan and Skrull 4. Before the Supreme Intelligence, standing directly in front of the large screen that displayed the overview of the Civil War, General Van’Rogg watched the blue dots of the loyalist troops change back to the red, Republican troops of Ochken.
"Do you see, Supremor?" Ochken asked, pointing to the screen. "The Kree do not respect you; they respect power, and that is what I have given them. Power."
"You have condemned us to be slaves of Thanos!" Van’Rogg shouted, turning to his former friend. "Are you completely mad, Ochken? Is your hatred for the Intelligence so great that you would side with Thanos, the being who seeks the end of all life?"
Bruunhilde smiled, "Think on that, General. Look upon my form and see the body of a dead Valkyrie. Look upon the form of Elektra, and see a human assassin, killed and rebirthed hundreds of times. Can you really claim that death is the end of everything?"
"You mock life!" Van’Rogg exclaimed, slamming his fist onto the control board in front of him.
"I have saved us all," Ochken asserted. "The Supreme Intelligence would lead us down a path to ruin, Van’Rogg, you must know this! Whoever our ally, it is surely better than he." Ochken turned to glare at the diplomatic envoy, "If you fools had only been drawn into the conflict, Thanos would be the ally of the Supremor, and the Kree would be saved!"
"I don’t know how you figure that, pal," Saint groused.
"I would rather have died with Asgard and against the Supreme Intelligence than side with Thanos, but I had no choice!"
"There’s always a choice!" Saint roared. "And looking at you, and talking with your troops down on the surface, I’m starting to think that maybe Van’Rogg is right. Maybe you have grown so soft that you no longer have the ability to fight for anything greater than yourselves!"
The Supreme Intelligence’s voice rumbled down to them, "I suggest that our ship tightens its defenses, Van’Rogg."
"Sir?"
"Show us an exterior view, pointing skyward."
Van’Rogg pushed several buttons, switching to an image from a camera mounted atop the Retribution. The General’s voice was awed, "By the makers … I did not know they really existed."
Falling from the sky in herds, hundreds of women warriors rode winged steeds to the surface.
The Angelux rode on Hala.
TITAN WAR CRUISER / LAUNCHING DOCK
"Ride, Angelux, ride!" Ikaris' booming voice commanded as the winged steeds dropped from the launching dock, their riders urging them onward. The Eternal General watched them soar through the atmosphere, descending from space, through the atmosphere, and towards the surface of Hala to engage in hand-to-hand combat.
Ikaris stood on a platform, an army of Eternal warriors before him in tight rows, awaiting his command. "Today, we fight!" he roared to his troops as the last of the Angelux departed. "Our mission is to destroy everything in our path, and rescue the Republic troops and sympathizers that have seen the light and joined with us! Company Sigma," he ordered, turning to a row of troops to his left. "It is your mission to retrieve the Kree that now fight on our side and remove them to a safe location, where they will wait for our transport pods to bring them here. Bruunhilde will see to the evacuation of General Ochken." Ikaris dropped his voice to a low rumble, "While I know it is the wish of every warrior before me to fight until all of Asgard's forces are dead, our primary mission is the evacuation of as many Kree as possible. Our Lord Thanos does not wish to make Hala the final battlefield, for there is much he has learned about the Kree, much that their genetic material can bring us before the end of the Everything. We will receive no extra forces from Necropolis."
He smiled, raising his voice, "But we shall not need support! We shall enact as much damage as possible! We shall fight like the howling dogs of war we are! We shall defeat all that stand before us this day! And when we are finished, Hala and the Kree who are left will be crushed beneath our heels!"
The Eternal army roared in approval, shouting praises to Thanos and damnations to Asgard.
"Now, descend Eternals! Descend and destroy!"
"Hoo-rah!" the cry went up and the Eternals moved to the edge of the landing dock and jumped.
Ikaris watched them go, a proud look upon his face. These were his troops, men that he had trained to fight and today would be a glorious day for the cause. He turned to a monitor at the back of the platform, connecting to the bridge, "I trust you can handle a mere ten Shi'ar destroyers, Baroness Von Strucker?"
A raven-haired woman smiled back at him, "Thanos has not allowed the Von Strucker's to survive and prosper for two centuries to fail, General."
Ikaris smiled, his ionic eyes blazing, "Then I shall see you upon my return. All glory to Thanos!"
KE-RETRIBUTION / WAR ROOM
Shrieks of terror filled the air over the capital city of Kree-Lar, as haunted steeds descended, killing all in its path.
Looking out from the War Room inside the Retribution, Empire shook his head, "Amazing. I had no idea …"
"What are these beings?" Saint turned on Bruunhilde. "They're like Valkyries, only …"
Bruunhilde stood proud, "They are Valkyries, human, only instead of bringing the dead to Valhalla, they send them to whatever Hell their kind believes in."
"Big words," Grennan challenged.
Bruunhilde laughed, "Foolish mercenary!"
Grennan's red face darkened, "Um, I'm a banker."
The Angelux General grinned wickedly, "Do not lie to me, Grennan. You and I have traveled in similar circles, have we not?" Grennan coughed nervously, but Bruunhilde was not yet finished with him. "They are not just words I speak, about my Angelux," she waved her hand to the screen. "Death at their hands send the victims to Hell. Literally. Where their souls will suffer for all eternity!"
The light of recognition came into Glimmer Girl's eyes, "Unless they serve Thanos, correct?"
Bruunhilde's smile widened.
"That's it!" Glimmer yelled. "That's how Thanos has been filling the ranks of his armies, isn't it?" All eyes went to the Imperial Guardsmen, "Yeah, sure, mostly he uses Dire Wraiths and Deviants, but there've been reports of dark armies on the isolated worlds, where the eyes of Asgard and the Council barely ever fall. By the gods …"
The robed Elektra reached into hidden pockets, drawing her kitana blades and yanking them outward, shredding her robes in the process. She stood beside Ochken, her black, form-fitting costume barely containing the from beneath. "Shall I end their lives now?" her voice hissed. "My blades have only taken the lives of six Kree since Ochken's removal from the cells."
"Not yet," Bruunhilde ordered, turning to the screen. "It seems our rescue has arrived."
KE-RETRIBUTION / OUTER HULL
It was raining Angelux. Looking out from the bridge, all that could be seen were the women warriors falling to the surface atop their winged steeds. Hundreds of Angelux, shrieking wildly, some with swords drawn, others with plasma rifles blasting, descending like banshees.
The top of the Retribution was flat, filled with gun turrets and cannons. Three-quarters from the front, a tower arose from the deck. Near the top of the structure, looking out from behind a large clear window, resided the bridge. From the bridge, they could see a group of five … ten … twenty Angelux bring their horses near the hull of the Retribution, smashing exterior gun turrets as they swept past. The shrieking of their lungs became lost in the shrieking of the metal hull being torn apart under the assault of the mystical hooves.
The Kree had been taken by surprise at the speed of the assault, but they were trained soldiers, quick to recover. A hatch opened and a small regiment of Kree troops piled onto the hull, but they lasted barely longer than the stationary turrets. "Flood the deck! Fire all weapons at will!" Turrets began firing wildly; the movements of the steeds too fast for precise aiming.
"Hit them hard!" General Van’Rogg ordered from the bridge.
"They’re too fast!" an officer shouted back.
"Then shoot quicker, wider!" Van’Rogg encouraged. "Fill the air with plasma bursts! Give me an electromagnetic build-up in section 10! Let’s knock them out of the sky! Let the damned fall to their deaths!"
Behind him, the rest of the diplomatic envoys – minus Skrull 4 - piled into the bridge, the controlled chaos of the Kree space navy affording none the job of baby-sitting.
"See how they ride!" Bruunhilde called out, unsheathing her sword. "Glorious creatures!" She turned to Ochken, "stay close, General. Soon, the second wave of the attack will begin and the remainder of free sky will be filled with thousands of Eternals. Our escape is almost upon us!"
"Close the blast shield!" Van’Rogg ordered, his eyes on Bruunhilde. "You shall not escape from my ship, Angelux."
Bruunhilde smiled, "We shall see."
KE-RETRIBUTION / WAR ROOM
"You are smarter than the rest," the Supreme Intelligence remarked from on high.
Skrull 4 pulled back his hood and raised his head, "Smarter than the envoy? Or than the 100,000 Skrulls you have locked away in the Refugee Camp?"
The Intelligence chuckled lightly, his tentacles waving lightly, "The enjoy, the refugees, everyone. You see the big picture, do you not, Super Skrull?"
Skrull 4 frowned, "I see that your treatment of the refugee Skrulls is done not out of charity, but to ensure their loyalty, if that’s what you’re talking about. How long until you put them to use as ground troops against the descending Angelux and Eternals?"
Smile. "They have been fighting for us for the past hour."
"What?"
The Supreme Intelligence looked down, "We are allies now, are we not? Why shouldn’t they fight for the freedom of a planet on which they reside?"
Skrull 4’s eyes dropped, "And for every Skrull that dies …"
"One less Kree has to die," the Supreme Intelligence completed. "I said that you were intelligent. Just like I know now that you will go to the surface and fight alongside them, thus adding the power of the Super Skrull to my forces." A smile broke out across the bulbous face, "And how many Kree lives will that save, I wonder?"
KE-RETRIBUTION / BRIDGE
The blast doors were not going to last. Van’Rogg didn’t know if he ever thought they would last, but when the first sword sliced deep, screaming as the metal was shredded, he knew he’d hear that shrieking in his dreams for the rest of his life.
If he survived the day.
BOOM! The blast doors were blown inward, careening into three members of the crew, Grennan, and Glimmer Girl. "Bruunhilde!"
"Oh, shit," Saint swore. Ikaris.
The Eternal General floated in silhouette in the now open space. Smoke rushed past him, his red eyes gleaming through the smog. "I have arrived."
"Aw, shut the fuck up," Saint replied, drawing his blaster and squeezing off three rounds. All three bursts slammed into Ikaris’ body to no effect.
"Smart move," Glimmer Girl remarked, picking herself up off the floor, easily tossing aside the large metal slab that had knocked her over.
"Yeah, wasn’t it?" Saint deadpanned. "He’s probably going to want to hit me rather hard in the next several seconds."
Glimmer Girl nodded, coming to stand next to him. "Guess I’ll have to get in the way. You don’t mind a woman saving your butt?"
"Hell, no," Saint smiled. "I'm an equal opportunity ass-saver." He set his feet, "Here he comes."
Glimmer said nothing in response, diving ahead to meet Ikaris head-on. Their bodies collided, Ikaris greater force knocking Glimmer backwards. "Insolent wench!" he roared, slamming her into the wall.
Glimmer’s body gasped as she felt the back wall give under Ikaris’ assault. Bolts and weldings came apart as Ikaris slammed her with his fists, each punch knocking her and the wall another inch back. The enraged General barely registered the pulse blasts from Saint’s gun in his back. "Whore of Asgard!" Ikaris shouted, his fists alternating between Glimmer Girl’s face and stomach. Saint kept firing, not knowing what else to do. Ikaris was killing her, would kill her if-
"Aaaaaargh! Fuck fuck fuck!" Pain shot up his firing arm, blinding his eyes in the white light of agony. When his vision returned, he looked down his shaking right arm and saw one of Elektra’s kitana blades sticking through his forearm. "Motherfu-"
A kick to the jaw from the undead assassin silenced Saint, knocking him to the ground, unconscious.
From across the bridge, Empire launched himself towards Ikaris. Glimmer Girl’s body had been so embedded into the back wall that only Ikaris’ back was still visible from the outside.
"Thou art mine!" Searing pain shot through Empire’s right side as Bruunhilde’s sword sliced deep, knocking him to the ground, skidding across the metallic bridge.
"Watch yourself!" General Van’Rogg shouted as Empire’s body went tumbling past. "Pull back from the Genis Gardens!" Van’Rogg shouted orders to the troops on the ground. "Watch the overpasses to the Mountains! Republic traitors are being herded there by a battalion of Etern-hhuurgckk!"
The General blinked, a kitana blade sticking through his back and out his stomach. Behind him, Elektra stood silent and emotion-free, her right hand holding the blade tight, her left reaching up to squeeze the back of her neck. Her intent was to break his neck, but a sharp kick to the back of her kneecap knocked her to one knee.
She turned to see Grennan standing behind her, motioning for her to get up. Elektra’s black, lifeless eyes betrayed no emotion as she rose to her feet. She reached behind her to grab the kitana from Van’Rogg back, but her hand grasped nothing but air. Half-turning to find the blade, Elektra found it in Van’Rogg’s hand, a split second before he embedded it deep into her throat. "Lifeless bitch," he growled, pulling out a blaster rifle and ending her non-life. "Problem?" he asked, looking to Grennan.
"Not at all," the merc answered.
Nodding, Van’Rogg turned back to command his forces.
In the back corner of the room, Empire rolled to his feet just as Bruunhilde reached his position. She slashed across his waist with her blade, drawing only a thin line of blood. The Earth Ambassador lunged forward, slamming his fist into the Angelux’s jaw, knocking her back. "Grennan!" he called, and the merc spun around in time to plant a foot in Bruunhilde’s lower back.
The Earth hero turned his attention to Ikaris, who’s fists still slammed into Glimmer Girl, the metal fall nearly completely ripped from its weldings. "You will die!" Ikaris roared, his blood-lust completely out of control. He reared back and punched hard, finally breaking the wall free, knocking the wall and Glimmer Girl into the opposing room. Roaring loudly, Ikaris stalked the skidding metallic husk.
"Enough!" Empire called out, drawing the Eternals’ attention.
"Go away," Ikaris sneered, turning to face him. "Go back to Earth and stick your head in the sand, like the soulless beast you are."
"Make me," Empire challenged, his eyes looking vainly for any sign of life from Glimmer Girl.
"Make you?" Ikaris laughed. "Such a silly challenge from a silly man. Earth shall never change. Still a planet full of men in tights playing as children. This is war, human. Cold, butal, heartless. What gives you the right to fight in this war, human? While my people take the blame for these past two centuries worth of destruction, it is your people who are the real cause. The humans who hated and feared anyone not of their own kind, be they black, white, mutant, Inhuman … Eternal! Tell me, Empire, have the Inhumans shown their face, yet, after they hid themselves away?"
"No," Empire answered honestly, thinking the best chance Glimmer Girl had at life was to keep Ikaris away from her. "And none have pierced the dome that holds Attilan locked away."
"Of course not," Ikaris sneered. "Blackagar would not be so stupid as to make it easy for you. Even if you did get inside, it is doubtful anything is even there."
"That why you haven’t tried to break in? Or are you too stupid, too?"
Ikaris sneered, "I am saving the rape of Attilan for my victory celebration. After we win this War, the Eternals shall claim Earth as their home, and enslave the planet to do our bidding, for a change."
"Ikaris!" Bruunhilde yelled. "We ride now! The Republic troops are being airlifted away!" She laughed, "We have won the day!"
The Eternal General waved her off, "Go! I will join you shortly! I have unfin-"
Empire silenced him with his fists, slamming hard into Ikaris. The Eternal stood his ground, answering back with shots of his own. The Earth Ambassador could feel a rib snap with every punch he took, while his own seemed only to enrage the Eternal further. They stood toe-to-toe, Empire drawing on every reserve ounce of strength and skill he possessed. He knew he hadn’t the strength to match Ikaris, and when Ikaris shattered the fifth rib on his fifth punch, Empire began to realize he didn’t have the skill, either. His eye caught sight of Glimmer’s left hand, slowly rising out of the metallic coffin Ikaris had made for her and he knew, right then, that Ikaris would be stopped right here, right now.
He concentrated his blows at Ikaris’ face, attempting to cause enough swelling to blind him. Thoughts flooded his mind, as they sometimes did in the heat of battle. Thoughts of his home in Montana … his childhood on the farm … his father laughing as he slipped and fell in the mud … crying at the funeral of Empire’s mom … the back-seat fumblings with Bella Kona …the abandoned gamma base … the explosion … the glory of flight … the government who wanted to make him a star, just sign on the dotted line … his career as Eagle One … the empty feeling every time he was forbidden from helping someone because it didn’t meet the government’s interests … the women, God, the women they had brought to him, the women that came on to him and the tapes … the tapes the government, his government made to use against him when he’d had enough and wanted out … he was so young, so stupid and the women were … the woman who changed everything, the woman who never knew his heroic half … the fights with Chemicon, Rattler, Hydra, Manticore, Apocalypse, the Serpent Seventeen … the formation of the Saviors … Asgard … the Council … the Orphans … the punches Ikaris landed every other second … the steps backward … the failing … No!
No. Not today. Let Ikaris’ life flash before his eyes. Today, Empire would not fall.
His fists flew harder, faster, knocking Ikaris back just one step became his goal. Bam! Bam! Bam! He looked Ikaris in the eye and he caught the flash of acknowledgment behind the Eternals’ ionic eyes. He knew he would lose. Empire could see it. Bam! Bam! He started to call his shots … he could see Ikaris’ face starting to puff up, covering his eyes. Another minute and he could start using his speed to confuse a blinded Ikaris. Bam! Bam! Bam!
First night out as Eagle One … couple of cyberjocks hacking into sealed off Power Pack files … they fought back, but their punches had no effect and his own punches … never again would he be Empire … never again … Eagle One … the nickname he gave himself as a child … the nickname he made the government let him use … the name they all laughed at behind his back … Bam! Bam! Bam! … his punches felt like Thor’s hammer raining down …
Just like they did now. Bam! Bam! Bam! He was winning … he was actually winning! Like when he was a kid, fighting imagined alien invaders on his daddy’s farm ... he never lost then, and he wasn't losing now …
A smile crept onto his face. Bam! Ikaris was backing up … backing up and … and … floating away?
Floating away … why would he float-------------------
Empire’s life faded to black as his convulsing body dropped to the floor of the bridge, never to rise again.
EMBERS OF HALA concluded.
Godspeed, Eagle One.
YGGDRASIL
Comments c/o northern022@hotmail.com
Thanks for reading, everyone. Not much to say after the ending, so I'll get right into the letters. First off, a letter from a new reader, who raises a lot of interesting questions … let's see how vague I can be in response …
Hi just thought I'd let you know
how much I am enjoying "All God's Children". I am new
to Mv1 and fan fiction in general having only discovered it about
3 weeks ago in which time I have read all the issues to date in
your title. Your title is by far and away my favourite and I
can't wait to see what happens next. What follows is a list of
questions I have about your little universe( feel free to ignore
them but you never know they may just spark an idea or two).
1 who is the sorceror supreme?
2 Will Galactus take another herald?
3 Will we see any more generational hereoes? ( a pym , a power ,
a williams, a doom!)
4 Will we see any more of Earth's current protectors?
6 Whats all this about Earth disappearing and reappearing?
7 Who rules the Shi'ar?
8 Is there any chance of seeing the following;- ghost rider, the
inhumans, the start of the eternal war, thor's death, terrax,
sersi , warlock,the negative zone?
9 What exactly did the Olympians do?
10 What are the other races up to (badoon, kymellians, etc...)?
11 How did cap become cosmic protector and what happened to
quasar and the quantume bands?
and finally
12 Who are Thanos' forces exactly?
Heres hoping you keep writing "All God's Children" for
a long time to come. I hope you don't think I'm kissing ass too
much I just thought you would like to know that your work is
appreciated.
cheers
P.S. what would you reccommend in the Fanfiction universes - who
knows I may even try it myself one day.
-- David Evans.
First, thanks for writing David. Always good to have a new reader on board and I'm thrilled that you're enjoying what you've read. I'm going to try and answer your questions the best I can, but, believe it or not, a lot of the questions you ask are either due to be answered in the next 10 issues or so, or involve surprises that are coming later on. In other words, if the answer is vague, it was probably meant to be. I could answer all the questions outright, but what would be the fun in that?
I plan on writing AGC for a while, I can tell you that, but I won't put myself down for any set number of issues. Life's too crazy to make promises I don't know if I can keep. I can say that I'm nowhere near done the stories I want to tell, and even after AGC is done, there will still be stories to tell. I appreciate very much hearing from readers, David, whatever they have to say. So, thanks.
As for other fanfic series … I'm really only familiar with MV1, to be honest. At MV1, I would recommend Randy Lander's VAULT, Will Short's DR. STRANGE, Jess Nevins' LIBERATORS, all of CHAMPIONS, Lonni Holland's HAWKEYE … that's a good place to start.
Next letter:
Great installments… looking forward to the next chapters…
Is the sacrifice quote from 37 an original? If not, who said it?
Direwraithe
The quote talked about is Kovar's line: "Death should come from the blood of the soldier and not the bread of the people," and it is, in fact, an original.
Thanks for reading everyone. Next month is an Aftermath for EMBERS OF HALA. Hope to see you here.
-- Mark Bousquet …
12 January 2002
Northern Bear Productions