Rahan. Episode Eighty-Three. By Roger Lecureux. The Fish Women. A Puke (TM) Comic.

Intermission page one.

Ra-ha-ha!
Rahan knew that the eyes were the monster's only vulnerable orifices.
So he clung to the big horn.
But he did not have time to strike.
A low set branch mowed him down in the middle of the fight.

Argh!

Half stunned, he glimpsed as in a fog the rhinoceros’ fluttering face, as it returned to the attack.
Rahan is no longer capable.
Of facing you!

If he no longer felt the strength to fight, he found the strength to dodge.

There will be neither winner nor loser today "Two-nose."
And maybe that is the way it is!
The pachyderm came and went stupidly, looking for him with its nearsighted eyes.

Intermission page two.

The man's disappearance was not apparent until he was already far away!
To which territory will you send Rahan?

The knife turned and turned.
And the ivory blade, like a finger of destiny, remained pointed towards the "Endless River"!
Hum. Fortunately Rahan sees another land over there!

Building a raft was easy for him and the current was favorable.
That was why, shortly after.

It is not the tip of a "Great Land" as Rahan thought! It is an island! Oh!

What is this!? This.
This does not seem dangerous.
Not fish, not sharks, and not dolphins, strange animals had just appeared!

Rahan.

Episode Eighty-Three.

By Roger Lecureux, drawn by Andre Cheret.

The Fish Women.

The son of Crao had never seen a manatee.
While the current pushed him towards the island, he observed these peaceful and curious beasts.

Some, under the clear waters, were greedily grazing on aquatic herbs.
Others circled around the raft.

One of them suddenly surfaced, lifting the skiff!
Oh!
If it is a game, Rahan would like to know the rules!

Page Two.

It was a game, and the manatees did not worry him when he reached the nearby shore.
Where are the fishermen? Why did they abandon their boats?

Hmm. Rahan understands why they fled this beach!
Argh! Ouch!
A cloud of mosquitoes had descended on him.
Harassed on all sides by the “biting beasts.”

He only had the resource to take refuge in the waves.
The herd of manatees, no doubt playing, dragged the raft out to sea.

It is impossible to gain a foothold on this shore!
The “Beasts that sting” are too dangerous!

Circumventing this unknown island where the currents of the “Grnad-river” had led him.

He soon found himself under a steep cliff, but whose numerous projections and crevices made it possible to climb.

Page Three.

He had undertaken to climb it with his customary agility when screams reached him.

Stones ricocheted around him.

There is no place in our territory for unknown fishermen!
Go back to the “Great River!”
The rain of stones redoubled.

The son of Crao had to huddle in a crack.
The men “from above” are hardly welcoming!
Rahan will have to wait until night!

Why do they live on this barren cliff?
To escape the “biting beasts”?
The sun sank into the ocean and the sky darkened.

But Rahan waited for darkness to resume climbing.
Slowly, silently, he reached the edge of the cliff.

Page Four.

And.
Powang suspected you would not give up!
But you will not steal our water or our food!
A whole clan was there, waiting for his appearance!

I am Rana, the son of Crao.
Rahan never steals the food from “Those-Who-Walk-Upright!”
At the very edge of the cliff, there was a brief melee.

And Rahan emerged victorious.
It is the endless river that pushed Rahan towards your land.
Why do you treat him like an enemy!?

For what? Look at it!
Here is what the clan has left to last until the cold season!
Powang bitterly pointed to a few dozen dried fish.

The cliff is the only place where the “Stinging Beasts” spare us!
Throughout the hot season, they infest the rest of the island!

Page Five.

In the heart of the island which spread out under the moon, a large lake shimmered.
This lake is the cause of our misfortunes!

In the hot season, it becomes covered in red algae!
These algae are so numerous, so thick, that they rot.
And the swarms of “biting beasts” made the forest and the shore unlivable!

Those who risk it as a hunter always come back with “Fire in their body”!
They die sometimes!

This is why food is sacred to the clan!
The son of Crao looked at these children and women weakened by hunger.
Don't worry about your food! Brothers! Rahan will go get his food Himself!

Page Six.

At daybreak, in fact, Rahan went down towards the forest.
It was already very hot, and as it approached there, the mosquitoes became more numerous.

Their attacks quickly became unbearable.
But Rahan had seen a snake.
He dived.

When he climbed the cliff again, the cloud dissipated.
But already, through a hundred bites, the "Fire fever” was seeping into his body.

The son of Crao collapsed as he offered up the reptile.
Powang was right.
The island is unlivable.
Take, take Rahan does not.

Overwhelmed by fever, he was delirious all day long.
Red algae. Destroy the red seaweed! Clean up the cursed lake. Kill the seaweed!

Page Seven.

He finally recovered his spirits. Powang the chief and Erak the sorcerer were near him.
Rahan knows!
To annihilate the “biting beasts” You have to destroy the red algae!

It is impossible Rahan! Our clan has tried everything!
Even fire can do nothing against them!
We even tried, in the cold season.

To tear them off!
But, the following season, they grew back even more abundantly!
What can we do?

The fish might be able to feed on it, but there are no fish in the lake!
Well done Powang!
That is an idea!

The son of Crao thought of the manatees gluttonously devouring aquatic weeds.
Rahan saw strange beasts near the shore.
The clan could introduce them into the lake, and.

Page Eight.

Erak the sorcerer was indignant.
You behaved bravely, but your words are sacrilegious, “Fire hair”!
Our fishermen worship these “fish-women”!

These beasts are an example of gentleness and kindness.
So much so that, when one of them is in difficulty, the whole herd comes to its rescue!

Ours do not attack “Fish-Women”!
But it is not about making them suffer, Erak!
And the fate of the clan depends on it!

Part of the clan listened with interest.
Another part grumbled.
It is not up to you to decide our fate!
We should have killed you sooner!

But it is not too late!
Powang tried to intervene but Erak and a few others were already brandishing their javelins.

Page Nine.

They whistled around the son of Crao, who was backed to the edge of the cliff.
Ra-ha-ha!
There was no other way out than the void!
It was a fantastic dive.

He sank so deep that it disturbed an octopus in its lair.

Returning to the surface he did not even realize that he had narrowly escaped the "Eight-armed Beast."

The manatees, intrigued, flocked from all sides.
If Erak told the truth, Rahan has a chance to convince the clan!

Seizing a young manatee under its fins, the son of fierce ages dragged it towards the shore!
Ra-ha-ha!

Page Ten.

The beast was scrambling to free itself but Rahan held on.
And the herd followed him!

The “beasts that bite” were waiting for Rahan.
The buzzing cloud of mosquitoes stretched dangerously above the beach.

The manatee was almost as heavy as a man, but Rahan only cared about the insects.
Argh! Argh!

And of the herd which, dragging itself on the beach, followed him heavily.
What Erak said was True. “Fish-women” do not abandon their little ones!

In the forest, the unbearable attacks of mosquitoes increased.
The fire was devouring his entire body when Rahan caught a glimpse of the great lake below.

Page Eleven.

A moment later, he threw himself into it with his "hostage".
Other clouds rose from the red algae.

The manatees, one after the other, dropped into the lake!
They would not come out again!

Ra-ha-ha!
Go little one, go!
The loyalty of yours deserves this reward!

The son of Crao returned to the bank.
He collapsed there exhausted, abandoning his burning body to the buzzing myriads.

Rahan succeeded, Erak!
And without making the “Fish Women” suffer!
To abandon him would be very cowardly!
Prepare your potions, Erak!

Page Twelve.

Rahan, this time, remained several days between life and death.
Then the swelling in his face and limbs deflated.
The fire of fever went out.

Erak admitted his wrongs Rahan!
The "fish-women" have never been so happy as in the lake! See!

These beasts will breed in the lake!
They feed on algae and the “biting beasts” will never come back!

The clan will no longer have to fear the hot season! But what are you doing?
All the members of the clan approached, offering the son of Cao' a fish taken from their meager shares. And Erak-the-sorcerer was among them.

In the distance, the manatees played and grazed on the red algae.
The mosquitoes were already fewer in number.
Perhaps because of the tenderness they show to their young, manatees are still, today and in certain regions, nicknamed "fish-women."

Page thirteen.

The day flew by.
Rahan taught the clan everything he had learned in other lands.
And you dream of discovering new secrets, don't you?

Powang and Erak sometimes disappeared and only returned at night.
But where have you been, brothers? What have you done?
Patience, Rahan! It is our little secret!

But one morning.
We will not regret it, Rahan!
But we know the desire that lives in your heart!
Follow us!

This canoe is yours! Take it and go brother!
Go.
The secrecy of Powang and Erak was now explained!
This canoe was the most beautiful offering!

And the son of Crao, once again went towards his destiny.
It was with emotion that he saw the island of “Fish Women” disappear.

Page Fourteen.

The ocean was peaceful and the light skiff cut through the water like a knife.
Rahan will not have to eat the "Bird fish."
He has brought enough food!

It was at dawn on the second day that a shore finally appeared on the horizon of the Great River.

Birds of prey circled over a hill.
They always circle like this when they have spotted injured prey!

The cloud of birds dispersed when he rushed towards the ridge.
Oh!
Less than an arrow's distance away, a hunter was moaning.
Rahan will not allow you to be torn apart by the Hooked beaks!

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