The Realm #5: I somehow missed this issue when it was released in January, and it didn't help matters that issue #6 wasn't released until May. I followed the story fine, but I'll admit the time lag meant I forgot some of the characters. For example, I couldn't remember if Laszlo was part of Will's team, Molly's team, or Everett's team. But, it doesn't hinder the story; in fact, it added to the sense of chaos and confusion that permeates this issue.
Will's team and the city's defenders are forced to try to hold the wall from the attacking orcs while also figuring out a way to take out the monster that appeared at the end of last issue. Will sends David and Dr. Burke to safety, though David eventually defies his orders to go help. Burke bristles at David's decision, but David reminds him the orcs are there because of the canister they're carrying (something I'm pretty sure the rest of the team doesn't know). Will sends Molly and Laszlo to try to stop the orcs from using mammoths equipped with battering rams to get through the gates. Eli reports for duty at the gate after getting Zach to safety. After the orcs break down the gates, Will sends Eli with some Molotov cocktails to take out the creature, and Molly sends Laszlo with him. The thing manages to rip off Laszlo's arm before Eli can get off a shot, so he engages all his grenades and leaps at it. Meanwhile, the bearded guy hunting the orcs emerges and joins Rook attacking them on their side of the gate, eventually confronting the leader, Redjaw. Burke follows David, saying that good research assistants are hard to find and that he doesn't want him thinking he's a coward. However, he takes an arrow to the chest and hands David the canister before he dies.
At the gates, Molly keeps the area around Bearded Guy clear with some pretty impressive arrow shots. Just as the battle starts to come to a fevered pitch, David is overcome by grief, blaming Dr. Burke's death on his decision to fight. He then emits massive amounts of electricity, destroying the creature and several nearby tanks. Will awakens a while later with Bearded Guy standing over him, and Zach reveals his name is Ben and (he thinks) he's a friend. Zach brings Will to date, saying the explosion sent the remaining orcs running and informing him Laszlo is dead. Everett confirms the damage is bad and that a "very weak" David is sleeping. Molly confirms Burke is dead, but also stresses the team wants to continue the mission, since they knew the risks. As Molly says, the death of two of their friends makes the mission all the more important. Will asks Rook to try to talk him out of deciding to do so, but she declines, and Will says they'll regroup when David awakens. Elsewhere, a creepy woman emerges from a pool of blood.
Even after three months or so, this series is still crackling with energy. Onto the next issue!
The Realm #6: This issue is ostensibly about Ben, Rook, and Everett's best scout, Ray, as they track down Redjaw (the orc leader) and the other surviving members of his band. Through their tracks, Rook is able to conclude Redjaw and his "woman" are ahead of a second group of five orcs carrying a pack horse. Ray is impressed, as he feels like a "greenhorn" compared to Rook, even though he was raised in the area.
They set up camp for the night, and Haun uses their campfire discussion to provide us with background on Earth's status quo. We learn the invasion began when the spires appeared throughout the world "thirteen years, two hundred and thirty-six days" ago, according to Rook. Whereas Ben was with the Army in Africa when the first spire appeared off the Gulf Coast, Ray talks about being glued to the television watching the spires appear. He remembers he wished they had been alien spaceships, because something about the spires defying the laws of physics was worse. (This comment emotionally resonated with me.) Ben comments how he and his battalion were recalled Stateside, but they eventually disbanded after a year as the communication black-out and non-functional equipment meant cohesion dissolved quickly. He also wonders if the spires are the key or if they just seem to be because they were the first things to appear. (Obviously, they're the key.) We learn electricity didn't disappear everywhere at once and, in fact, some places are rumored to have it still. Haun makes the trauma implicit in these discussions obvious. You have to wonder if the troops in Ben's battalion all just went their own way simultaneously or if Ben joined a smaller group whose members he lost over a period of time. The straight-forward nature of their discussion probably hides some pretty terrible realities.
The next morning, they encounter some hillbillies controlling a bridge they need to cross, and Ben tricks them into thinking they've gotten a drop on them. In so doing, he also tricks them into drinking a neurotoxin he's disguised as whiskey. The group continues on their way where they discover a seemingly dead owlbear surrounded by dead orcs. The owlbear is revealed to be alive (barely) and manages to swipe Ray's leg before Ben kills it in front of it cub. Ray looses consciousness, so Rook commits to returning him to town in time to save the leg as she figures Ben is able to handle Redjaw and his woman (the only two members of the band not dead in the ring) on his own. Ben says the orcs did them a favor killing the creature, but Rook disagrees, saying she was just defending her young and her home. Ben disagrees in turn, saying they don't belong here. As Rook leaves, Ben commits to killing the cub, though he tells it not to look at him "like that." I think we just got a new pet, people!
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