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Some TMNT stuff really isn't for little kids. |
Solicit[]
Casey and April struggle to keep their relationship afloat as they look for answers in the desert. Someone is striving to cut their journey short—the Rat King!
Appearing in Casey & April issue 2[]
Main characters[]
- Aka (debut)
- April O'Neil
- Casey Jones
- Rat King
Minor characters[]
- Marcus (debut)
- Sam (debut)
- Ted (debut)
Locations[]
Synopsis[]
In the van, April listens to ironic music as she heads to Red’s place to tell the old lady her brother will be late. Along the way, she tries to take her mind off of Casey.
As for Casey, he continues toward “the armory” on the old man’s motorcycle, but when he gets there he finds the place overrun with thorn bushes. After kicking himself for letting his anger get the best of him and upsetting April, Casey hears a scream and rushes into the thorns to help.
Meanwhile, April stops to help a stranded mother change a flat while her two daughters argue over cactus types. April unloads all her problems onto the mother’s ear, mostly about how she doesn’t know where she’s going with her life.
Casey makes it through the thorns and finds that “the armory” has long been taken over by a men’s peace group: “The Broken Sword Spiritual Healing Center for Men”. Casey loses his temper and lashes out at Sam, the leader of the group trying to offer him guidance. As Casey storms off, Sam tells him that at some point he’ll have to face his fears.
April bids the mother farewell and continues on her way. She gets a call from Casey, but the connection is bad and their talk is a jumbled mess of misunderstandings. Casey tries to tell her that the armory was a bust while April tries to tell him that she’s coming up on Red’s camper. Somehow, from that discussion, April zeroes in on the phrase “breaking up” while Casey recognizes April’s dissatisfaction with him.
Their call disconnects. Casey tries to call back, but can’t get a connection, so he hops on the old man’s bike and heads back to the gas station. When he gets there, he finds that the station has been abandoned for years and is infested with rats. He turns to the bike he borrowed and sees that it’s nothing but a rusted heap of junk. Sensing something wrong, Casey races down the road to try and reach April. He attempts to call her and tell her it's a trap, but his call won't go through.
April pulls up to the camper and knocks on the door, but no one answers. The door creaks open by itself and April cautiously steps in. She discovers that the inside of the camper looks like a sprawling Japanese-style home. A clawed hand reaches out and slams the front door behind her, sealing her inside.
Outside, the Rat King ponders that it might be time to get some barbecue. He asks an unseen individual if they want anything, but they decline.