Starbolts #690: Fighting Fear

 Hail! 

    Well, it turns out Zarantha's plan all along was to take Crystal's soul and our heroine has every reason to be afraid considering what happened to her sister. Carter's soul was cut using a "soul cleaver" and clones were created using pieces of her soul. Eventually, they were all reintegrated while she was in the pools in Elisua as seen in Starbolts #609. Well, not every clone was reintegrated. One clone, Nikki, is still out there. She was last seen many comics ago and may soon make a return. You never know.

    As far as Crystal goes, this week I wanted to show her as being strong and vulnerable at the same time. On the outside she was of course very mad about the situation. she was placed in. Who could blame her? A woman with her history shouldn't have been plucked from her bed like that. So, she reacted the only way she could. She acts tough on the outside and yet on the inside she's scared.

  She handled Tom fine without her powers. Even without magic she's still a dangerous woman. She focused on her fighting skills more than magic and it shows here. That doesn't mean she isn't magically inclined. She was still able to make the mystical connection with Marcus and communicate with him over vast distances.  Their connection is hard to explain. I'd like to think that they saw into their hearts and connected beyond spiritually.

    Marcus and Crystal had been practicing the bonding ritual since they first heard about it back when he had Demonstorm in his head. They went to the Arlandero ranch in El Paso to sort out their feelings and connections. They tried to connect once in between Starbolts #598 and #599. It started to fade and so they decided to try and make it stick. I'd say it finally succeeded. Crystal may not be as strong as Carter in the magic department. But, you can't argue with the results when she puts her mind to it.

    Zarantha wants Crystal's soul because hers was likely lost and since Crystal isn't as strong as Carter, it makes her an easy target. The witch always knew she had magical potential because of who her father is. She's gonna need some more mystical protection and training to keep the target off her back. It remains to be seen if she'll be able to get out of this situation. Contact has been made and our heroes are poised to take the action to Zarantha and save their friend.

   See ya next time!