Prepare to Die! (44 page)

Octagon, rising into the air, beginning to speed off into the skies, let out a scream that stunned the gathered citizens of Greenway, Oregon. The scream was anguish. It was horror. It was despair. It was defeat. It was damn good acting.

As she vanished, Octagon screamed, “Damn you, Reaver!
Damn you
! This round goes to you! But I’ll be back! You’ll never beat me! You’ll never stop me! You will
never
stop me!”

I screamed something heroic in return.

Something impressive.

I did that for the crowd, of course.

Because in my mind I was thinking, “No, Octagon. I won’t stop you.”

I never will.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Thanks are first due to Jack Kirby, who was instrumental in creating the world of comics and superheroes, carrying mythic traditions into a new and vibrantly illustrated age. And of course to all the other comic book creators who toil at their tables… the writers, pencillers, inkers, colorists, letterers, editors and everyone else who brings nobility to life.

And I’m very thankful to my first readers: Colleen Coover, Jeremy Barlow, Graeme McMillan, Josh Williamson, and especially Chris Roberson. You all helped keep my nose to the grindstone. Consider this an IOU certificate for a free drink.

Thanks to Allison Baker, who helped shepherd this project to Night Shade, and thanks to Jeremy and Ross and the rest of the Night Shade crew for giving me a home.

I’d also like to extend my thanks to the staff at Three Friends Coffee House, and the girls and staff at Sassy’s. Thanks for letting me sit quietly in the corners, crafting another world.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Paul Tobin lives in Portland, Oregon, despite not having a single tattoo. He has written the adventures of Spider-Man, Batman, the Hulk, Superman and hundreds of other comic book characters, bringing a sense of realism and character to a genre filled with over-the-top action. He and his wife, artist Colleen Coover, are the creators of two graphic novels, the acclaimed Banana Sunday as well as the recently released and oddly wonderful Gingerbread Girl.

Paul enjoys studying history, burlesque theater, thunderstorms, pretty girls on bicycles, good bagels, evil muffins, and occasionally claims that he would like to punch-fight a mastodon, though those claims have significantly tapered off after he stood next to a life size model at the Natural History Museum in Paris.