Rahan. Episode One Hundred and Fifty-Four. By Roger Lecureux. The Mole Men. A Puke(TM) Comic.

Translated by the Son of the Puke Ages.
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 Fifty-Four.

By Roger Lecureux, drawn by Romero.

The Mole Men.

Death to the mole man!
Kill the mole man! Kill!

The son of Crao had not had time to speak to these warlike hunters.
Hunted ever since, without understanding their cries of death.

Oh!
The big stump had hidden from him the gaping trap that opened before him!

Rahan is going to break his bones at the bottom of this trap!

His fall seemed endless to him!
The light of day had given way to half-light, then to darkness.

Page Two.

The shock was so violent that he thought his limbs were dislocated.
In fact, the icy water of this underground lake had just saved his life!

When he returned to the surface the darkness was total, or almost.
Rahan has been cast into the realm of night!

Or maybe it is the shadow realm?!
Strange fluorescences highlighted the shore of the lake.
The stalactites of the underground cavern.

And suddenly.
No! This.
It is not possible that the hunters have pursued Rahan all the way here!
The son of Crao came to feel a human presence

He did not see the beings emerging from an underground corridor, but he heard them.
This "Man-from-above" is ours! We saw him before the others!

Rahan heard the projectiles whistle and he let himself sink.
How can hunters be alive underground?!
Rahan understands why "Those-above" called him "The Mole Man"!

Page Three.

He swam until the lack of air forced him to return to the surface.
He found himself in another cave, larger than the previous one.

His eyes, very slowly, were getting used to the darkness.
He was beginning to discern shapes.
Which were highlighted by the fluorescences.
The "Mole Men" are coming back!
No, they are moving away.

Grunts and murmurs that he could not place reached him.
Rahan would be stupid to take the chance.
He is scared! He has never been so scared!

This underworld, this world of darkness, was indeed distressing.
Oh! "Stones-that-throw-stars"! If luck is with Rahan.

He will find something that will catch fire! Oh!
Luck, if Rahan could speak of luck, was with him.

He discovered the remains of an old fire, a half-burnt branch.
This time, Rahan is sure something is coming!
Page Four.

His torch had just lit when the "Thing" appeared.
The son of Crao recoiled, terrified by this monster that had sprung from the darkness.

Cornered against the rock, Rahan had to stand firm!
The ivory blade searched the air, seeking the throat of the giant iguana.
Ra-ha-ha!
Attack! Attack!

Thrown to the ground, Rahan struck again.
The monster, struck to death, threw itself backwards before collapsing.
But Rahan did not see it.

For the torch had just gone out! It was again total darkness and the.
Silence that a clamor suddenly tore apart.

"The man-from-above" is ours! Thanks to the gods of the night who send us this good meat!

The son of Crao suddenly felt himself assailed, gripped from all sides. He guessed the hands of children.
Back, little men! Rahan is not game!
Argh!
Rahan could not hold back a cry of pain. Sharp teeth bit into his limbs, as if to tear off pieces of flesh.
Page Five.

Rahan never strikes the little ones of men. But he will not let himself be devoured alive!

With a few reluctant cuts, Rahan freed himself, pushing back the young pack of children.
Then a voice thundered.
Leave "The Man-from-above" alive, My Children!
Agrahg, Whom He Killed, Will Give Us Meat for a Long Time!

For Rahan, the shapes were gradually becoming clearer.
I am Rahan, the son of Crao! And Rahan wishes no harm to those who live in the bowels of the earth!

You are the first "Man-from-above" who comes alive to us!
Usually, they are killed and eaten by the "Others."

A hundred questions came to Rahan's mind.
Why do you live in the belly of the earth? What do you hunt? Who is your leader?
You will know everything!

The Legend, transmitted from father to son, is that our tribe once lived "Up there."
But one day the ground opened up and they were swallowed up.
Argumb!

Page Six.

This happened a long time ago, in the time of the fathers of the fathers of our fathers! Many perished. Those who survived in this kingdom of eternal night, became worse than wild beasts.

The laws and customs of the tribe were forgotten.
Everyone now lived for himself, for his woman, for his children. All others became enemies.

Killing each other for the smallest game!
From generation to generation, our sight has changed in such a way that none of us can bear the light "From above"!

It is horrible! But what game do the men of the night live on?
Some raise "Wampas," bats.

Others have domesticated iguanas, like the one you killed. They eat the young ones.
But the game that everyone prefers.
It is the men "From above"!

Woe to him who falls into our underground maze! He is quickly spotted. Hunted.
And devoured!
As the rumors rose in the darkness of the labyrinth, Rahan felt his blood run cold.

Page Seven.

But why are you telling Rahan these horrible secrets!?
I do not know. Maybe I am a little less cruel.
A little less barbaric than the others!?

Oh!
Run away! Run away “Man from up there”! I hope you escape them!
An old man emerged from an underground passage and raised a horn to his lips.
Meu! Meu!

It is the call to the kill! In a moment, it will be too late for you.
All the echoes of the underground picked up the long Mooing.
No! Rahan will not let himself be devoured!
Rahan will escape from this terrible territory!

The son of Crao fled straight ahead of him.
Rahan will not fall into the hands of the man-eaters! Rahan wants to be alive! Alive!

Feeling the oozing walls, sometimes sliding on the slimy ground.
Clamors reached him.

Rahan had perhaps never known such anguish. But his desire to live was such that it dominated his fear.
Alive! Alive! Alive!

Page Eight.

Sometimes he blindly and violently collided with sharp rocks.
Harg!

Or else he slipped and fell into nauseatingly crowded mud puddles.
Multiplied by the echoes, the wild clamors were getting closer.

The man-eaters will come to Rahan! Rahan divines them. There. In these undergrounds, from all sides!

Oh! The vampire bats!
A swarm of vampire bats had just chased him!
He did not see the "rat-birds", but he heard the disturbing rustling of their wings.

Back, "Bloodsuckers"! Back! No! No!
The vampire bats surrounded him, scratched him, bit him.

In his frantic flight, Rahan had just felt the water under his feet, then around his ankles.
He guessed the lake in front of him.
Oh! Rahan knows how to get rid of you, wampas!

Page Nine.

The screaming swarm of vampires quickly abandoned this prey which was sinking into the water.
Maybe this is the lake where Rahan fell? Rahan does not dare hope so!

Rahan swam for a long time in the darkness, diving when he sensed danger.
The "Mole Men" have given up the hunt!

Silence had indeed returned to the kingdom of night.
Sometimes beasts brushed by Rahan, which he did not see.

The son of Crao had to grope his way back through a forest of stalactites.
But it was the last test he would overcome in this nightmare world.

He was coming up to the surface to breathe, when.
The day! This. This is the day!

Overwhelmed by happiness, he slowly let himself rise towards this marvelous shimmer.
Towards the light.
Towards the day.

Page Ten.

Splashes of sunlight and colors suddenly burst before Rahan's dazzled eyes.
Ra-ha-ha!

Ra-ha-ha!
The cry of Rahan did not emphasize a fight or a victory.
It expressed his joy at having torn himself away from the nightmare.

He returned for a moment to that horrifying kingdom of the night where men who had returned to the most savage barbarity were killing each other.
Men? Were they still men?

And Rahan cannot do anything for them.
Nothing.
Nothing!
For once, the son of Crao could not come to the aid of these beings.

He forced himself to chase away from his mind the terrible visions that assailed him.
Then he rushed toward the horizon, happy to find the sky and its clouds again, happy to find the sun and its burning rays again.
Happy to be alive!