Rahan. Episode One Hundred and Five. By Roger Lecureux. The Haunted Cave. A Puke (TM) Comic.

Index:
https://rumble.com/v3486cm-rahan-index-of-episodes-by-roger-lecureux..html

Source of Rahan Comics:
Philippe Ropers.
https://vk.com/topic-203785966_47424128

Rahan.

Episode One Hundred and Five.

By Roger Lecureux, drawn by Andre Cheret.

The Haunted Cave.

The son of Crao amused himself by observing the child who was playing with a hedgehog.
He suddenly screamed when he saw the large boa gliding through the tall grass.
Look out for the “Boak”, little man!

The child, disturbed, saw the snake and ran away at full speed.
Leaving the reptile facing the hedgehog.

Ha-ha-ha! The “Stinging Beast” has nothing to fear from you, “Boak”!
The boa attacked, retreated, attacked, and retreated again.
Rahan knew he would tire quickly.

Page Two.

Indeed, it moved away and quickly disappeared under the thickets.
You are very lucky to have your body covered in spears, "Stinging Beast"!

The hedgehog remained in a ball.
Rahan was approaching this beast which had always intrigued him, when a cry of fear resounded.

He rushed into the thickets, and.
You did not run away fast enough, little man!

The ivory knife flew away.
But the fear of hitting the child made Rahan miss his target.
His weapon was lost in the bushes.

You will not kill the little man, "Boak"!

Page Three.

The coils released from the inanimate child immediately formed around the legs and torso of the son of Crao.
Argh!

Rahan knew that the "Boak" never bit. He killed by suffocation. For the pleasure of killing!
Rahan's knife. Look little one. Quickly! Quickly!

The child had regained consciousness and was stepping back in terror.
In the bushes. Look for the knife. Ah!

Rahan did not see the little man run away screaming.
His vision was blurring.
The grip of the terrible rings tightened still further. The sky and the trees turned red.
Everything swirled around him and he sank into nothingness.

Page Four.

The son of Crao was not dead.
But this adversary who no longer offered resistance, no longer interested the reptile.

Rahan had not recovered his senses when hunters, guided by the child, appeared in the clearing.

We never sacrificed one of our own to the “Genie of the Cave”!
We will offer him this stranger with fiery hair!

When Rahan came to, he was tied to a frame.
Rahan saved one of your children! Why did you tie him up like an enemy?
The clan blesses the spirits who led him to its territory!

Because the “Genie of the cave” is tired of the game we offer him.
Hear him roar!
From a cave rose strange roars interspersed with wailing.

Page Five.

This night, for the first time, we will offer human flesh to the genie.
Yours!

However.
I found the fire-haired hunter's knife, father!
He saved Hakki!
Why does the clan want to sacrifice him?

The clan hopes that this offering will please the "Genie."
Arka would like to help Fire hair, but can he?

When night came, hunters carried the captive towards the cave.
Looking at one of them, Rahan regained his confidence.
Does Rahan have an ally?

This man suddenly exclaimed.
Hair of Fire should not escape the “Genie”.
Arka will check his vines.

Page Six.

The son of Crao almost betrayed himself when he caught a glimpse of his knife.
Surreptitiously, unbeknownst to his family, Arka was cutting into the bonds!

A moment later, the hunters abandoned Rahan and fled towards the village.

The long moans still rose from the mysterious cavern, punctuated by muffled rumbles like those of thunder.
By what horrible monster was this cave haunted?
The vines had finally given way.
Without Arka, Rahan would never have been able to break these ties.
Oh!

Very familiar roars rang out. Three great lions emerged from the darkness.
Without a knife, Rahan cannot face the "Long Manes"!

Page Seven.

With a jump, the son of Crao dodged the attack of the first beast.
Ra-ha-ha!

And the dismayed clan saw him jump on a rock, and disappear into the night.
How was “Fire hair” able to free himself? How?
The clan will have to find him!
Listen!
The Genie commands us!

The lions were peacefully stretched out in front of the cave in the depths of which the "Genie" bellowed.

If Rahan wants his knife back, he must find Arka!

From daybreak, in small groups, the hunters set out in search of the fugitive.
The son of Crao had avoided several, when.
Arka! Rahan recognizes him!

Page Eight.

The three men believed that a large "Four-Hands" had let himself fall on them.

The two who brandished their spears did not have time to throw them.
Argh!

Fear not, Arka! Rahan only wants his knife.
And to know why you helped him to save himself!

You saved my son's life.
It is only natural that I help you!

Even by preventing the sacrifice which was supposed to calm the “Genie of the cave”!
What is this “Genie” that is terrorizing the clan?

Is it a man? A beast?
Nobody knows! Even the bravest hunters have never dared to enter its lair!

Page Nine.

These hunters could have killed the “Long-manes”!
The “Long-manes” belong to the “Genie”!
If we strike them, the curse will fall on the clan!

Every night, we leave part of our hunt at the entrance to the cave.
This offering must satisfy the "Genie" since it has never been released!

It is the “Long-manes” who carry the meat.
And no one has ever seen the “Genie”!
A strange creature who spends his life in darkness growling and moaning!

But since the clan lives in fear, why does it not leave this territory?
Abandon the “Genie”?
He would find us very quickly and his revenge would be terrible!

But do not ask any more questions, "Fire hair."
Since we are even, take back your weapon!

Page Ten.

The son of Crao did not have time to grab the ivory knife.
Hunters suddenly appeared.
We have heard it all, Arka!

So it was you who helped “Fire hair” to run away!
And you were preparing to renew this betrayal!
You deserve to die, Arka!

A little later.
Tahoan has just consulted the elders. They believe that Rahan, as a captive, was right to want to escape.
It was his duty as a hunter!

But the ancients' judgment, is that Arka's betrayal is unforgivable!
Rahan will therefore be released and Arka will be delivered as an offering to the genie!

A moment later, Rahan was free.
His knife was returned to him.

You have a choice.
Either you leave immediately or you attend the sacrifice!
Rahan stays!

Page Eleven.

Rahan will not abandon you! Before nightfall, he will have changed the minds of the elders!
What is the point? Every hunter must reach the "Territory of Shadows" one day or another.

Arka will be the first man to see the "Genie," if the "Long Manes" do not cut his throat first!
No! No!
I love you, father! Stay with Hakki!

The child's pain upset Rahan.
Do not cry anymore, Hakki!
If the elders respect bravery, they will pardon your father.
Rahan will propose an exchange to them.

Tahoan the chief and the elders listened to him willingly.
None of yours has ever dared to confront the "Genie."
Pardon Arka and it will be Rahan who goes into the cave.
If Rahan survives, you will know what flesh the "Genie" who frightens you is made of!

An admiring murmur arose, but.
"Fire-Hair" is crazy! The long-manes will not let him enter the cave!
Rahan will kill them!

Page Twelve.

No! His "Long-Manes" are sacred!
If you strike them, it would be the end of the clan!
So you refuse Rahan's bargain?

We accept it!
But on one condition. No Long-Mane must be killed!
The elder pointed to the three lions dozing at the entrance to the cave.

How to enter it without confronting these wild beasts?
If Rahan is not allowed to fight them, he will not make it to the cave!
He will be slaughtered, torn to pieces. Unless, Unless.

An idea suddenly took hold of the son of Crao.
He saw again the hedgehog, which, without a fight, pushed back the boa.

Rahan knows how to carry himself, like the "Beast-that-stings"!
Attentive and intrigued, the hunters saw him cutting long bamboos and sharpening them.

Page thirteen.

Soon after, he had them assembled and was strengthening the strange cage.
Rahan finds the will of the elders stupid, but he will respect it.
He will not fight the "Long-Manes"!

A murmur arose as he slipped into the "bamboo hedgehog"
Rahan hopes to see the monster that haunts the cave!

For the son of Crao, these growls that sometimes ceased, could only come from the chest of a giant animal.

The lions charged.
The attack was neatly broken by the sharp bamboos!
Go ahead, "Long-Manes"! Rahan fears neither your claws nor your teeth!
The sight of this prey which they could not approach made the lions furious.

Page Fourteen.

But their furious paws were in vain.
They could only circle around the "Hedgehog" without reaching Rahan!

"Fire-Hair" kept his word!
He did not fight the "Long-Manes"!

Tired of attacking an inaccessible prey, the lions left the cage.
And the clan, torn between admiration and anxiety, saw him disappear into the cave!
The "Genie" has fallen silent!

The silence was brief.
A long moan rose, followed by a strange purring.

The monster is lurking somewhere.
He is probably watching Rahan.

The cavern was immense. The carcasses of animals given as an offering to the "Genie" littered the ground.

Page Fifteen.

As the walls closed in to form a tunnel, the son of Crao had to abandon his cage.
The rumbling, that had grown louder.

Soon became terrifying.
Knife in hand, and heart pounding, Rahan crawled toward a glimpse of light.

He had barely entered a second cavern when a blast of unheard-of violence pinned him to the wall.
Was it the monster's breath?
Argh!

Deafening roars and rumblings rose up from all sides.
Oh!

Rahan has discovered the secret of the haunted cave!

Page Sixteen.

There is no "Genie"! No monster!
It is the wind that moans! The wind that roars! The wind that howls!

Returning to the first cavern, the son of Crao blocked the passage with rocks.
And silence returned.

Look, brothers, look! "Fire-Hair" has challenged the "Genie"! He is back!
Remembering their failure, the lions did not even flinch!

But the "Bamboo Hedgehog" was soon assailed by the enthusiastic hunters.
Did you see the "Genie"?
Is he a man a beast?
What shape is it?

The "Genie" has no form!
If the clan had been bolder, it would have known long ago that its fears were stupid!
What it feared so much is only the song of the wind in the bowels of the mountain!

Page Seventeen.

Rahan shared his discovery.
And in the second cavern a gap opens on the other side.
The noises of the wind rushing through it arrive muffled in the first cavern.

If you do not hear them anymore it's because Rahan blocked the passage!
Ha-ha-ha! You were afraid of the wind!
You carried your offerings to the wind!

But. But the long manes?
These wild beasts feed on the meat that you intended for the "Genie" fed every night without even having to hunt!

These "Long-Manes" are not sacred, Tahoan!
But they never attacked ours! They always stayed near the cave!

Ha-ha-ha! Why would these wild beasts abandon such a wonderful den?
One in front of which they found such copious food!?

Page Eighteen.

And tonight, you would have committed the crime of delivering one of your own to these beasts!
No one murmured when Rahan went to free Arka.

Thank you, fire-hair! Thanks to you, we will no longer live in terror!
Who knows? Has Rahan convinced you that you were victims of a foolish belief?

Yes! Look at me! Fear has left them!
They are going to kill the long-manes!
They are going to explore the cave!

Armed with spears, Tahoan and his hunters rushed towards this cavern which had always inspired so much fear in them!

And the elders surrounded Rahan.
We appreciate your bravery, fire-hair!
But we do not understand how you came up with a cage like this!

Uh. Rahan only imitated the "Beast-that-stings" but not as well!
The son of Crao modestly pointed to a hedgehog that was trotting a stone's throw away.
The animal suddenly curled up into a ball, unaware that the young Hakki, who was running happily towards him, only wanted to play.