Juba Apfvarzian was a good magician. He woke up in an asylum ship, after performing a particularly skilful illusion. Magic can apparently get you into a lot of trouble, in an increasingly intolerant world. Alexand Merek has survived for three years inside the asylum, outliving everyone. She doesn’t know how she has survived, she just wants to be somewhere far away. (This asylum is responsible for the events leading up to issue # 1 of this series.) You can also read The Floating Asylum Parts Two, Three and Four. CLICK HERE for next chronological story.
The Floating Asylum, somewhere in The Pacific Ocean. Alexand Merek and Juba Apfvarzian (3995)
Giselle Balsara has a secret. She hides banned books and keeps paintings in her cellar. In a world where books that don’t pop up, will get you put inside The Bad Thing Box, Giselle is taking an incredible risk, sharing her knowledge with her eleven year old daughter, Eldenath. CLICK HERE for next chronological story.
Farokh is thirteen and has just lost his father, Eric, to a heart attack. He is angry with his father for dying and longs for a different life, somewhere better than his homeland. He wants to be like his older sister, Alexand. Nothing will convince him that life in the army isn’t the great adventure he dreams about. The mandarin in the second drawing reads, “Beloved Father.” It was placed there by Heyem in his honour. This story is set a few weeks after issue # 9: The Guild Master’s General. CLICK HERE for next chronological story.
Rachel is no damsel, but sometimes people need help. She has survived an abusive marriage, divorced her husband, and is trying to rebuild her life and her sense of self worth. However, Donald isn’t the most reasonable of wife beaters. He didn’t bargain on meeting The Guild Master’s General, the night he tried to claim back his wife. A dubious Knight in dark sunglasses and a balaclava, intercepted Donald’s plans. CLICK HERE for next chronological story.
In the years before the arts were put inside “The Bad Thing Box,” there were artists and dreamers, musicians and opera singers. Edith MehXian was one of those artists. From the age of seventeen she sang amongst the finest opera singers in The Chinese Hall of Excellence. She came from a poor family, but her skill was so great that she won a scholarship and became one of the most loved singers in the whole of China. This is the story of her final performance. The day her dream ended. Edith was a perfectionist. She wanted people to remember her, flawlessly. (This story is dedicated to one of my childhood heroes, Elizabeth Sladen, who will be missed by many people, some of whom didn’t even know her, but grew up loving Sarah Jane Smith.) Edith MehXian is Alexand and Heyem’s paternal grandmother. CLICK HERE for next chronological story.
Anastasia was stolen from her family when she was five, and forced to live as a concubine. From the age of fourteen she has produced children for the Amanojuko Lord, Ichitumbu. The Amanojuko are a race of immortals who have the ability to regenerate. They are no longer human, but Anastasia’s mother, Alexand Merek’s blood, is poison to them and can turn them into ‘What isn’t’. Amanojuko scientists are using Anastasia to attempt to find a cure for the poison in Alexand Merek’s bloodline. Anastasia has no concept of death and therefore no concept of murder. “What wasn’t” is an Amanojuko term for human and “What could be” refers to the potential for Anastasia producing an Amanojuko child. So far she has failed and her husband isn’t pleased. This story also mentions Anastasia’s mirror twin, Ancille Merevija. CLICK HERE for next chronological story.
Abouna Panak’s life is going to change more than he can imagine. He has been left an orphan at the age of ten, but has no time to grieve for his mother’s loss. After he discovered his mother laying in the kitchen, with a suicide note, he was greeted by a very dubious man. Abouna has no other living family. His mother never told him why. The man in the balaclava isn’t responsible for his mother’s death, in fact his mother seemed to trust him. Who is this Guild Master’s General, and why would Abouna’s mother wish for him to travel with him after her death? CLICK HERE for next chronological story.
After the murder of her father, and the disappearance of her brother and sister, Ancille Merevija must rebuild her life, with her mother, Alexand. Alexand was on a military mission and returned to find two of her children stolen, her husband murdered and Ancille left for dead. Ancille was badly injured and lost her hearing. When Ancille was strong enough, Alexand took her daughter to her sister, Heyem’s house, to hide from whoever destroyed their family. CLICK HERE for next chronological story.