My friends, my family, my clan! I bring news of our quest for autonomy! The All-Maudra has perished. Again. When we stood up for ourselves, the All-Maudra resisted us! When she passed on, we were gifted an opportunity to rally our cause. But the New All-Maudra stymied our efforts - what she views as a compromise is really a loss for our clan. Bah! Bah to it all! The way forward is now clear to me: the Vaprans must stop resisting our quest for autonomy - and give is what we want! I will go and fetch a new representative from Ha'rar! Our meeting will proceed as planned, but it will no longer be a negotiation. The righteous, crashing waves of the Silver Sea demand our clan's autonomy...and let the tides take those who wish to bind us to their traditions!
The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance #10 is the tenth issue of the comic book prequel to The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance. It is included in The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance: The Journey into the Mondo Leviadin.
Summary
All-Maudra Mayrin, newly crowned leader of the Gelfling people, must travel overseas to prevent a civil war that could tear the Gelfling nation apart. But when her ship is attacked by a legendary sea monster, and the crew itself swallowed alive, Mayrin must decide how far she is willing to go for her people.
Plot
Kam'lu awakes as he and Mayrin are stranded on a raft among the wreckage of the Scalene Anchor. She informs him of what happened and he is horrified by the destruction that surrounds them. Mayrin insists that they get moving and attempt to save the crew, but Kam'lu tells her that it is unlikely that the crew have survived and that they must focus on saving themselves. Mayrin states that she must prevent further division among the Gelfling and that the ship and crew were her only chance to do so. Kam'lu insists that they must first ensure her survival, as if the other clans believe that the Sifa Clan murdered the All-Maudra, neither the Sifan or Vapra Clan will ever be trusted again. Kam'lu instructs Mayrin that their best hope for survival is to find dry land, after which they will honor the crew. He then tells her that Fenth had known that her intervention would cause some kind of disaster and that things would have been better if she had just given them what they wanted.
SkekSa's ship has docked and a Sifan sailor informs her and Fenth of the destruction of the Scalene Anchor, but falsely claims that Mayrin and Kam'lu are dead. Fenth realises that there is nobody in line for the All-Maudra's throne and SkekSa laughs, concluding that since she is the only one sympathetic to his cause and he has honored her with a grand tithing, she can help him claim the throne for himself. He asks her what the catch is and she replies that she only wants his help in return. He agrees and she begins to give him instructions.
On the Silver Sea, Mayrin and Kam'lu look for somewhere to dock and she chastises him for his inability to find land. He bitterly points out that he has survived the Crystal Desert and made it through the Arathim Wars with only a Sifan canoe and is quite capable of finding land. Mayrin spots an island, leaps into the water and begins to swim towards it. He shouts after her that the tide is too strong and she will never make it by herself, but she does not listen. He swims after he and soon overtakes her. However, it turns out to not be an island, but the creature that destroyed their ship. The creature dives beneath the water and they attempt to swim away, but it pulls them into its gaping maw and swallows them.
Mayrin and Kam'lu fall down the creature's gullet, with Mayrin unable to fly due to her wings being wet. They eventually reach its stomach, where they are caught in a net. They are found by a creature who is similar to a Podling but has crustacean features including six legs, a tail, feelers and a jangler that hangs from his forehead. Kam'lu attempts to speak to the creture, but due to his poor grasp of the Podling language he is struck in the foot with a bone spear. Mayrin, who is much better at speaking Podling, asks the creature who he is and he introduces himself as Sulub. He tells them that he has been angling there all his life and and was drafted in the Intestinal Wars five unum beforehand to help bandy the tribes together. He offers to lead them to his home and lights up his jangler to guide them through the darkness.
Fenth rallies the Sifa Clan and informs them of Mayrin's supposed death. He tells them that since their previous attempts to negotiate with the Vaprans have not been fruitful, they will now follow a different plan and take the autonomy that they desire, which receives great applause. On her ship, SkekSa counts out the Vaprans, the Dousan Clan and the Drenchen Clan, looking to rule the Gelfling race by default should the plan succeed and the Sifans hold the power. She conclues that to be powerful is to be like water; unflinching, unstoppable, uncaring and crushing everything.
Inside the beast, Sulub continues to lead Mayrin and Kam'lu. He mistakes them for newlyweds and asks them what they are doing there. Mayrin informs him that she is the All-Maudra and states that Kam'lu is her servant. Upon hearing her title, Sulub bows to Mayrin and informs her that the gifts intended for her are still in pristine condition despite how long they have been there. Mayrin is surprised by this news as Sulub tells her that he was only a small child when the gifts first materialized. They reach his village of Bajula where the Gelfling are shocked to find a statue of Mayrin's mother. Sulub gives them a tour of the village, introducing them to Ruppa and Golung, who farm flora in Bajula's Famous Goo Farms. He then shows them the visitor's centre (which has had no visitors prior to them) and a tavern which produces naturally fermanted sebrie milk wine.
Mayrin and Kam'lu are greeted by the King of Bajula, who speaks the Modern Gelfling language and is honored to meet Mayrin. Kam'lu demands to know where the creatures came from, how long they have been there and how they can escape. The king is shocked that they want to leave so soon after arriving. He leads them into his throne room, which is filled with carved stone slabs. The king explains that thousands of trine ago, his Podling ancestors set out to explore the Silver Sea, but their ships were devoured by the Mondo Leviadin. They made a home for themselves within the creature and over the generations they evolved into the Boblings.
The king insists that they stay, as the Boblings never get to hear of the outside world of Thra. Kam'lu loses his temper and demands that they be allowed to leave. Mayrin takes a softer approach and explains to the king that her people are on the brink of war, assuring him that while she does not want to leave his beautiful home, it is what she must do. She states that as a leader he must understand, being willing to do anything and evrything for the good of his people. He agrees and promises to help them escape. He explains that time is short, for the Leviadin only surfaces once per trine to feed and that they must reach its porticol (blowhole) before it finishes feeding or they will be stuck there for the next trine.
The king calls on his daughter, Gunda, the most skilled of their hunters, to lead the Gelfling to the porticol exit before it closes. She warns him that the journey has never been done by a single Bobling and that he is sending her into certain danger. He insists that she is the only one brave and capable enough for the task and she agrees, but warns the Gelfling that many creatures call the place home and that the path is dangerous and uncharted. Kam'lu expresses skepticism, which causes Gunda to stroke his foot with her bone sword. She tells the Gelfling that if the journey turns grim, she will do anything to accomplish the mission. She then begins to lead them down the path.
Gallery
Panels
Artwork
