Featured here is a chronological (by publication) list of story arcs in the epic space opera/fantasy comic book series Saga, which is created by writer Brian K. Vaughan and artist Fiona Staples. Saga premiered in March 2012, and is published monthly by Image Comics.[1]
Each issue of Saga is titled with a numerical Chapter, such as "Chapter 1" for the debut issue. Every six chapters comprise a story arc designated as a "Volume" and are reprinted as trade paperbacks. Every three Volumes comprise a "Book" and are collected as hardcover editions.[2]
The first trade paperback collection, Saga, Vol. 1, which collects the first six issues, was published October 10, 2012, and appeared at Number 6 on the New York Times Graphic Books Best Seller list the week of October 29.[3]
Title
Issue #
Release date
"Chapter One"
1
March 14, 2012
On a planet called Cleave, Alana gives birth to their daughter, Hazel, while she and Marko flee soldiers from her people and his. Prince Robot IV and The Will are assigned to go after them.[4]
"Chapter Two"
2
April 11, 2012
Alana, Marko and Hazel make their way through the Endless Woods. The Will learns the identity of another freelancer on the hunt. Prince Robot IV arrives on Cleave to investigate.[5]
"Chapter Three"
3
May 16, 2012
After The Stalk's attack, Alana meets the feared "Horrors" of Cleave and is forced to consider a deal with one of them, Izabel, to save Marko. Prince Robot IV interrogates a prisoner.[6]
"Chapter Four"
4
June 20, 2012
Izabel uses magic to heal Marko while Alana doubts her marriage and relationship. Seeking a respite, The Will investigates the pleasures of Sextillion.[7]
"Chapter Five"
5
July 18, 2012
Alana and Marko are confronted by a group of Landfallian soldiers. Meanwhile, The Will deals with the consequences of rescuing a six-year-old sex slave from Sextillion named Slave Girl.[8]
"Chapter Six"
6
August 15, 2012
Prince Robot IV and The Will's paths intersect. Meanwhile, Alana and Marko make it to the Rocketship Forest, where they use an organic, tree-like rocket to leave Cleave, before being confronted by Marko's parents.[9]
Volume Two[]
The second trade paperback collection, Saga, Vol. 2, which collects issues #7-12, was released June 19, 2013.[10]
Title
Issue #
Release date
"Chapter Seven"
7
November 14, 2012
A flashback depicts how Marko was taught the history of his people's conflict with Landfall. In the present, Marko and his mother, Klara, go searching for Izabel, while Alana gets to know Barr, Marko's father, who reveals he has one month left to live.[11]
"Chapter Eight"
8
December 19, 2012
Alana and Marko's first meeting is shown in flashback. In the present, Barr asks Alana to conceal his illness from Klara and Marko. Meanwhile, while searching for Izabel in the Shadow City, Marko and Klara confront the giant, Fard, who tells them the planetoid they are on is a soon-to-hatch egg. Marko's ex-fiancée, Gwendolyn, makes an appearance at the Brio Talent Agency.[12]
"Chapter Nine"
9
January 16, 2013
Gwendolyn confronts The Will over his incomplete mission. To spur him to expedite it, she helps him rescue Slave Girl from Sextillion, after which Slave Girl reveals the psychometric ability to track Marko and Alana through their wedding rings, which were part of the same set as Gwendolyn's translation pendant.[13]
"Chapter Ten"
10
February 20, 2013
Alana's release of Marko from prison and their initial romance is depicted in flashback. In the present, Marko, Klara and Izabel return to the ship, after which the family is confronted by both The Will and the hatching of the giant egg.[14]
"Chapter Eleven"
11
March 20, 2013
Both Alana and Marko's ship and The Will are caught in the pull of the newly hatched giant space fetus known as a Timesuck. Marko's father, Barr, casts a spell to aid in the rocketship's escape, the strain of which kills him.[15]
"Chapter Twelve"
12
April 10, 2013
Prince Robot IV's pursuit of Alana and Marko leads him to the home of D. Oswald Heist, author of Alana's favorite novel. A discussion of the war gets heated and leads to hostilities, with Prince Robot unaware that his targets are hiding in Heist's home.[16]
Volume Three[]
The third trade paperback collection, Saga, Vol. 3, which collects issues #13–18, was released March 19, 2014.[17]
Title
Issue #
Release date
"Chapter Thirteen"
13
August 14, 2013
In flashback, the family, weeks after Barr's death, arrive on Quietus and meet Heist, whom Alana hopes can advise them on their future. Upsher and Doff, a tabloid journalist and photographer, interview one of the Landfallian soldiers injured by Marko during the unsuccessful attempt to capture the family in Chapter Five. Meanwhile, The Will, Gwendolyn and Slave Girl are stranded on a planet awaiting repairs to their ship. The Will must deal with the sexual tension between himself and Gwendolyn, and decides to name Slave Girl Sophie.[18]
"Chapter Fourteen"
14
September 25, 2013
Upsher and Doff interview Alana's stepmother, Even. On Quietus, the family and Heist get to know one another. The Will decides to quit his pursuit of the family, but tells Gwendolyn that he will pass along any leads that his informants give to him to her. When he tries to kiss Gwendolyn, she rebuffs him, but the image of the Stalk tells him that she is not entirely uninterested in him. The Will is contacted by an informant at a refueling station who informs him that Prince Robot IV is refueling his ship there and asked for directions to Quietus.[19]
"Chapter Fifteen"
15
October 30, 2013
Continuing their investigation on the planet Mota, Upsher and Doff are targeted by a sniper. On Quietus, Marko and Alana clash over plans for their future. Meanwhile, the Will's spaceship is repaired, but he is seriously wounded by a hallucinating Sophie.[20]
"Chapter Sixteen"
16
November 27, 2013
Upsher and Doff question Special Agent Gale about Alana and Marko, but Gale attempts to dissuade them from continuing their investigation by telling them that Alana is a deep cover agent, and later contacts the Brio Talent Agency to have them assassinated. Gwendolyn discovers the hallucinogenic nature of the flora and fauna of the planet on which The Will set down his ship, and manages to prevent Sophie from killing him, but to save him, she takes him to Quietus, arriving at the same time that Prince Robot IV does.[21]
"Chapter Seventeen"
17
December 18, 2013
Upsher and Doff are poisoned by a Freelancer named The Brand, with a substance that will kill them if they report their findings about Alana and her family to anyone else. On Quietus, The Will's vital signs fade as Prince Robot IV threatens to kill Heist, and their talk of the Prince's near-death experiences provides insight into Heist's next novel and his views on war. Klara and Gwendolyn then intervene, and as a result, the Prince is rendered unconscious and Heist is killed.[22]
"Chapter Eighteen"
18
January 29, 2014
As Izabel uses her illusions and a malfunctioning Prince Robot IV to save Klara, Gwendolyn confronts Alana and Marko, who escape her, in part with help from Alana's newly discovered power of flight. Upsher and Doff find a way to continue their investigation without triggering the poison in their system. After Gwendolyn takes The Will (about whom she reveals her feelings) to a hospital mentioned by Alana, he is visited by The Brand, who is revealed to be his sister, Sophie. The story jumps ahead to Hazel taking her first steps as the rocketship touches down on the family's newest refuge.[23]
Book Two[]
Volume Four[]
The fourth trade paperback collection, Saga, Vol. 4, which collects issues #19-24, was released on December 17, 2014,[24] the same day as Saga Deluxe Edition volume 1, a hardcover that reprints the first 18 issues, or Book One of the series, comprising its first three-story arcs.[25][26]
Title
Issue #
Release date
"Chapter Nineteen"
19
May 21, 2014
The family has been living on the planet Gardenia for several months. Alana is struggling as an actor on the Open Circuit, an underground acting troupe in which all the players wear masks. While caring for Hazel, who is now saying simple phrases, Marko meets a children's dance studio owner named Ginny. Prince Robot IV's son is born, although he himself is still missing in action. Alana and Marko disagree over balancing keeping a low profile with giving Hazel a happy childhood.[27]
"Chapter Twenty"
20
June 25, 2014
Prince Robot IV recuperates on Sextillion. Alana tries a drug called Fadeaway after learning that half her colleagues are high on it. Marko becomes closer to Ginny, the children's dance studio owner he met in the park. Robot IV's wife and her staff are assassinated by her custodian, Dengo, whose son died at age four due to lack of medical insurance available to commoners.[28]
"Chapter Twenty-One"
21
July 23, 2014
Alana continues to experiment with Fadeway, while Marko and Ginny are brought closer by the time they spend away from their spouses. Dengo, with the infant Robot as his hostage, invades a Landfallian starship and kills its crew. Robot IV comes out of his stupor and after learning what has happened to his wife and son during his three-week convalescence, resolves to ask his father, King Robot, for assistance.[29]
"Chapter Twenty-Two"
22
August 27, 2014
Yuma cautions Alana to maintain her cover, but Alana's actions may have alerted Upsher to her whereabouts. When Marko discovers her drug use, and Alana confronts him over Ginny, the ensuing argument becomes physical, and leads to Marko's estrangement from their home. Prince Robot IV's father, King Robot, declines his request to take the lead in pursuing Dengo, but Special Agent Gale gives the Prince a lead that may prove useful. Dengo arrives at The Open Circuit Productions facility and demands airtime on which to broadcast a speech to the masses, and after he kills two of Alana's colleagues, Yuma says she can give him something better than airtime.[30]
"Chapter Twenty-Three"
23
September 24, 2014
Marko heads to Ginny's house, but abruptly has a change of heart and leaves to return home. Prince Robot IV pursues Dengo, and finds the wreckage of the ship Dengo hijacked, and its occupants dead, along with a clue to his son's survival. Yuma tells Dengo about the family and where to find them, after which Dengo shoots her. Izabel counsels Alana on the need for forgiveness. Dengo invades the treehouse/rocketship with the infant in tow, and although Alana launches the rocketship, he takes Klara hostage and demands Alana take the ship to coordinates of his choice. Marko arrives home just after the launch of the ship, at which point he is met by both the wounded Yuma and Prince Robot IV.[31]
"Chapter Twenty-Four"
24
October 29, 2014
Gwendolyn and Sophie, who is now Gwendolyn's duly sanctioned Page, meet The Will's sister, The Brand, who offers to aid them in their endeavor to acquire an elixir to heal The Will. Marko, Prince Robot IV and Yuma team up to seek the aid of Heist's neighbor, Ghüs, to use his link to Friendo to track their families.[32]
Volume Five[]
Title
Issue #
Release date
"Chapter Twenty-Five"
25
February 4, 2015
Three months after leaving Gardenia, Dengo and the captive family have set down on an unnamed planet of ice in the Solar Graveyard,[a] where Dengo meets with revolutionaries in the hope of punishing the Robots for their participation in the war. Meanwhile, as they are led through space in The Stalk's dragon skull ship by Ghüs, Marko and Prince Robot IV struggle to maintain their alliance amid personal conflicts. Gwendolyn, Sophie and The Brand must contend with a family of giant dragons in their search for ingredients for the elixir. In narration, the adult Hazel reveals that it will be years before she and her father see each other again.[33]
"Chapter Twenty-Six"
26
March 4, 2015
Dengo and his captives meet a group of rebels called The Last Revolution, but Alana and Klara warn Dengo that they are terrorists. Gwen, Sophie and The Brand contend with a herd of female dragons, and learn they need a rare male dragon to complete their quest. After foiling an armed robbery by a fellow veteran in possession of the drug Fadeaway, Marko learns more about what lured Alana to the drug, and decides to try it himself.[34]
"Chapter Twenty-Seven"
27
April 8, 2015
As Prince Robot IV and Ghüs deal with Marko and Yuma's overdose on a batch of bad Fadeway, Marko experiences a childhood flashback that clarifies his sense of himself and strengthens his resolve to find his family and kill Dengo.[35]
"Chapter Twenty-Eight"
28
May 13, 2015
On Demimonde, The Stalk's older brother, Halvor, confronts Gwendolyn, Sophie and The Brand. Alana pleads with an ambivalent Dengo to confront Quain, the leader of the Fourth Cell of the Last Revolution, who plans to trade Hazel in exchange for the release of one thousand of his comrades from prison. Marko, the Prince and their allies find themselves in battle against an immense Royal Guard starship sent by IV's father to capture them. During the battle, their dragon skull ship's engine room springs a fuel leak, and Yuma sacrifices her life to seal it.[36]
"Chapter Twenty-Nine"
29
June 10, 2015
Quain arranges to trade Hazel in exchange for a prisoner release from Wreath, but Vez's reaction to the presence of Dengo leads to a shift in loyalties for the Robot, who kills Quain. Prince Robot IV and Marko narrowly escape the Royal Guard ship, but teleport into an ice storm, which results in an explosion that seriously injuries IV, and hurtles the dragon skull into an uncontrolled fall toward a planet. On Demimonde, Gwendolyn, Sophie and The Brand find a male dragon, but their attempt to procure its seed results in The Brand's death and a serious injury to Gwendolyn.[37]
"Chapter Thirty"
30
July 8, 2015
After Dengo and Alana kill Sirge, Lexis and Zizz leave the planet with Klara and Hazel. Marko and Prince Robot IV encounter Alana and Dengo, upon which IV kills Dengo, and is reunited with his infant son. Gwendolyn and Sophie manage to revive The Will with the elixir, but when he finds out that his sister, The Brand was killed in their quest, the grief-stricken mercenary is so outraged that he excoriates his two benefactors and banishes them from his bedside. Hazel is revealed to have been placed in a Landfallian detention center with Wreather children.[38]
Volume Six[]
Title
Issue #
Release date
"Chapter Thirty-One"
31
November 25, 2015
Continuing from the previous issue, the Last Revolution's ship is captured by the Robot Kingdom's Royal Guard. Zizz is killed by Klara, and she, Hazel and Lexis are captured. After claiming to be civilians previously forced into slave labor, they are relegated to a Coalition detention center for enemy non-combatants. Izabel also reappears, now that Hazel is on a planet that experiences nightfall. Years later, Hazel is one of the pupils of a sympathetic teacher named Noreen. She also befriends a transgender Wreather prisoner named Petrichor who is treated as an outcast by the other female prisoners. On her fourth birthday, Hazel confides in Noreen that she is half Landfallian by showing Noreen her wings, but this causes Noreen to faint, and seriously injure her head.[39]
"Chapter Thirty-Two"
32
December 23, 2015
Alana and Marko manage to retrieve valuable information on the planet Variegate which reveals that Hazel and Klara were taken to a detention center on Landfall. On a "pocket world",[b] Ghüs crosses paths with Robot IV, who, after falling out of favor with his father, has lost his status as a prince, and now answers to Sir Robot. Ghüs informs IV of the arrival of Marko and Alana, but IV refuses to meet with them, preferring to focus on the care of his son, Squire, who is now a young boy.[40]
"Chapter Thirty-Three"
33
January 27, 2016
When Upsher and Doff learn of The Brand's death, they decide to resume their investigation of Alana and Marko. The pair track down Ginny on Gardenia, who tells them of her brief friendship with Marko. Their continuing search leads them to the ice planet in the Solar Graveyard where Marko and the former Prince Robot IV crash landed in the previous story arc. Upon their arrival, they are confronted by a now-obese The Will, who with the aid of Sweet Boy incapacitates the couple and informs them that they are now working for him in his quest for revenge against Sir Robot.[41]
"Chapter Thirty-Four"
34
February 24, 2016
Petrichor happens upon Hazel and the unconscious Noreen, learning Hazel's secret. Sympathizing with Hazel as a fellow outcast, she helps Hazel cover up the incident. Marko and Alana blackmail Sir Robot into helping them find Hazel. Doff agrees to give The Will the coordinates of the planet where he believes Sir Robot is hiding, on condition that he release them if the information is true. Noreen survives her injury, and after Hazel confides in her further, she offers to help Hazel escape.[42]
"Chapter Thirty-Five"
35
March 30, 2016
Klara protests when she learns of Noreen's plan to smuggle Hazel out of the prison, prompting Noreen to plead with her to ensure a better future for her granddaughter. Alana, Marko, and Sir Robot's plan to infiltrate the prison by having IV pose as a visiting royal is complicated when the rocketship finds itself in a minefield. After being tipped off by an informant, Upsher and Doff lead The Will to Robot IV's secret hideout planet, where he threatens Squire, leading to a standoff with Ghüs.[43]
"Chapter Thirty-Six"
36
April 27, 2016
On the pocket world, Ghüs and The Will have a brief altercation, in which The Will's right fingers are severed. As Upsher and Doff escape his ship, The Will is dissuaded from killing Squire and Ghüs by a hallucination of The Brand, who tells him that The Stalk was merely an obsession of his, not his true love, and that he should seek direction from "the one chick who calls [him] on [his] bullshit." Marko rescues Hazel from the detention center, but Klara, having developed a place among the prisoners' community, and refusing to be a burden to the couple, declines to leave, telling Marko how proud she is of him. Petrichor, however, escapes with Marko, and reveals to the couple that Alana is pregnant.[44]
Book Three[]
Volume Seven: "The War for Phang"[]
Title
Issue #
Release date
"Chapter Thirty-Seven"
37
August 31, 2016
As the family readjusts to life following their reunion, Alana and Marko discuss when to tell Hazel about Alana's pregnancy. Sir Robot IV is dismayed to realize that he is having sexual dreams about Alana. Petrichor and Izabel find a common interest. On Wreath, Sophie implores Gwendolyn to allow her to train as a Freelancer so she can finish what The Will started, but Gwendolyn has moved on from that matter, and warns Sophie, who is from the war-torn comet Phang, that any relatives of hers still there need to be evacuated immediately. Meanwhile, dwindling fuel forces the family to land on Phang themselves, where they encounter a family of starving meerkat-like people.[45]
"Chapter Thirty-Eight"
38
September 28, 2016
The family has been staying on Phang for six months alongside the tribe of meerkat-like locals they encountered upon landing, with Alana acting as a den mother. Marko and Petrichor observe the ongoing war on the comet from a safe distance. Hazel rebels against Izabel, prompting her to offer Sir Robot IV help in leaving Phang to reunite with Squire. On Wreath, The Will seeks Gwendolyn but instead meets her wife, Velour. Izabel heads to an abandoned Robot embassy where she comes across a two-headed Freelancer known as The March whose weapons can affect her. When she refuses to reveal the whereabouts of the family, The March stabs her, causing Izabel to disappear, resulting in Hazel experiencing a deep pain.[46]
"Chapter Thirty-Nine"
39
October 26, 2016
Hazel expresses her distress to the family when she insists that she can no longer feel Izabel's presence. After a brief argument between Marko and Sir Robot IV, Petrichor volunteers to track down Izabel. On Wreath, The Will receives news from his handler that the Freelancer agency is closing down and that his license to kill as an assassin has been revoked. A conversation with Kurti leads Hazel to experience her first kiss. The March encounters the dying corpse of a Robot ambassador while exploring the embassy and discovers cryptic information regarding the fates of all the inhabitants on Phang.[47]
"Chapter Forty"
40
November 30, 2016
Hazel and Kurti share a conversation while viewing the dreams of Sir Robot IV. Marko questions the sudden retreat of Wreath military forces and briefly lashes out at Jabarah over her insistence to use weapons during an eventual conflict. The March gets visual confirmation of Marko's whereabouts. Gwendolyn has a clandestine meeting with Special Agent Gale from Landfall and presents him with a mysterious gold box. The two engage in a heated discussion over the fate of Phang as Sophie eavesdrops on them. Petrichor encounters a bluecap in the form of a giant mushroom, who tells her that Phang is deserted because it is heading toward a Timesuck. After having his sleep disturbed earlier by Kurti and Hazel, IV samples some Fadeaway and confronts Alana, where in his drugged state, he admits the reason for his attraction to Alana before transforming his arm into a cannon and pointing it at his head.[48]
"Chapter Forty-One"
41
January 4, 2017
Petrichor warns Jabarah of Phang's imminent collision with the Timesuck. During the standoff with the drugged Robot IV, Marko and Robot IV are knocked unconscious. The March arrives outside the family's treehouse and holds Kurti hostage. On Wreath, Gwendolyn, Sophie, and Lying Cat reunite with The Will and Sweet Boy, where The Will offers Sophie the chance to become a Freelancer. Sophie and Lying Cat decide to remain with Gwendolyn, after which The Will and Sweet Boy depart. On Phang, Hazel uses magic to create a distraction that allows Kurti to escape before Marko kills The March.[49]
"Chapter Forty-Two"
42
January 25, 2017
On Wreath, Gwendolyn instructs Sophie to keep the information she knows about Landfall and Wreath secret from Velour. On Phang, Sir Robot IV is kept bound by Marko while Petrichor manages to procure enough fuel to launch the rocketship treehouse off the comet. Jabarah refuses to leave with the family, believing the creator will protect her and her tribe. Elsewhere, The Will is confronted by a masked female named Ianthe,[c] who kills Sweet Boy and shoots The Will in the stomach, telling him that he murdered someone Ianthe loved. A rogue spaceship piloted by the Landfallian henchmen of Special Agent Gale shoots down a nearby Robot-controlled vessel and activates the gold box Gwendolyn gave to them. The device releases an energy force that causes the Timesuck to expel a torrent of black liquid that begins to engulf Phang. In the ensuing chaos, Petrichor launches the treehouse out of danger but causes Alana to experience a fall that results in a miscarriage. Kurti and the other citizens of Phang are consumed in the Timesuck's deluge.[50]
Volume Eight: "The Coffin"[]
Title
Issue #
Release date
"Chapter Forty-Three"
43
May 31, 2017
Following the destruction of Phang and prompted by Alana's miscarriage, the family heads to an outpost planet at the westernmost edge of the universe called Pervious, which is controlled by Landfall. Posing as a couple, Alana and Sir Robot IV encounter the Doctor Sherriff of the planet's Abortion Town, who informs them that she cannot perform an abortion on Alana due to Landfallian laws, but directs them to an illegal part of Pervious called the Badlands where they would be able to remove Alana's fetus. Afterwards, Alana banishes Sir Robot IV and forbids him from returning to the treehouse. Hazel and Petrichor have an awkward conversation about body issues. Alana returns to inform Marko of her plans to journey to the Badlands alone, but Marko insists on joining her. Animated creatures made out of excrement suddenly appear nearby and attack the family. To her surprise, Alana manages to defeat the dung people by shooting flames from her hand.[51]
"Chapter Forty-Four"
44
June 28, 2017
A local family of Pervious bandits ambush and kill a Landfallian soldier and his pregnant lover on their way to an abortion. The bandits find footprints leading deeper into Pervious territory and decide to follow the tracks. In the rocketship treehouse, the family is coming to terms with Alana's newfound magical abilities while realizing the need to have the fetus removed as soon as possible before it threatens her life. Hazel insists on coming with her parents to the Badlands, while Petrichor is entrusted with Marko's translation ring and tasked to defend the treehouse in their absence. Alana, Marko, and Hazel stow away on a Landfallian cargo train en route to their destination. The family of bandits manage to trace the footprints, which lead to Petrichor standing guard outside the treehouse. After waking from a nightmare, Alana is shocked to discover a young boy with hybrid features from Wreath and Landfall is claiming to be her son.[52]
"Chapter Forty-Five"
45
July 26, 2017
Petrichor confronts the family of Pervious bandits outside of the rocketship treehouse and ends up outnumbered and incapacitated. Aboard the cargo train, Marko explains that the hybrid boy they are seeing is a product of Alana unconsciously casting a powerful projection spell used by the High Clerics of Wreath to determine future outcomes of certain events. The boy introduces himself as Kurti, and Hazel awakens in time to see and interact with the projection of her would-be younger brother. Marko warns that the longer Alana sustains the projection of Kurti, the higher the risk of her getting cardiac arrest. Petrichor manages to injure the matriarch of the bandit family and is subsequently saved from death by the arrival of Sir Robot IV. Alana suffers a heart attack just outside of their intended destination and the projection of Kurti fades away. Marko urges Hazel to perform a spell that mimics the effect of defibrillation, and Hazel successfully revives her mother back to life. The family is then greeted by the presence of a wolf-like creature with bloodied paws, who informs them that they are "in such very good hands".[53]
"Chapter Forty-Six"
46
August 30, 2017
The family of Pervious bandits depart after Sir Robot IV orders them to leave the premises under the threat of death, though Petrichor lashes out at Robot IV for his act of heroism in rescuing her from harm. During their tense exchange, Robot IV informs Petrichor that he is aware of her transgender identity and also discloses his sexual fluidity. In the Badlands, the wolf-like creature introduces herself as Endwife to Marko and Hazel and invites them into her home, where it is revealed that she is a mother to a litter of pups. Endwife and Marko engage in a difficult conversation about their individual views on abortion before she begins to remove the fetus from Alana's unconscious form. The projection of Kurti reappears to Hazel briefly, and she sings to him a lullaby that Izabel once sang to her until he fades away. Back at the treehouse hideout, cultural and political tensions between Robot IV and Petrichor come to a head when the pair unexpectedly ends up kissing passionately as dawn begins to break on the horizon.[54]
"Chapter Forty-Seven"
47
September 27, 2017
Ianthe reveals to her prisoner, The Will, that she is a diplomat, and the former fiancée of Hektor, the Sextillion Loss Prevention agent he killed while rescuing Sophie on Indica in Chapter 9. Desiring revenge, she uses a mind-scanning device on The Will to find loved ones of his that she can hurt with impunity, as her diplomatic immunity will protect her from legal prosecution. Learning about Marko and Alana, however, Ianthe decides to hunt them down for monetary gain, and forces The Will to cooperate.[55]
"Chapter Forty-Eight"
48
October 25, 2017
On the unnamed pocket world, Ghüs continues to look after Squire and has provided sanctuary for Upsher and Doff. Faced with a severe food shortage for several months and Doff delirious with starvation, Ghüs is forced to hunt down a wild creature known as a Dread Naught, which is invisible to others but can be seen by Robots. Due to the nature of the creature they are going to capture, Ghüs reluctantly allows Squire to join him on the hunt, and the pair bond through a deeply personal conversation as they journey deeper into the woods. They eventually encounter the Dread Naught, but Squire cannot bring himself to kill the creature and it escapes. The pair make their way back to the homestead where they are greeted by the welcome arrival of Sir Robot IV, Marko, Alana, and Petrichor bearing food. IV apologizes to his son for the delay in his return and introduces him to the runaway family, with Hazel now displaying her capability for flight, narrating that Squire would become her brother.[56]
Volume Nine[]
Title
Issue #
Release date
"Chapter Forty-Nine"
49
February 28, 2018
Ianthe arrives on the unnamed pocket world with The Will, now wearing restraints with which Ianthe can cause him pain, in order to keep him prisoner. They find the family gone, but Ianthe finds evidence of their passage. As the rocketship treehouse travels through space, Petrichor and Sir Robot IV's relationship becomes sexual, though she rebuffs his romantic feelings towards her. Upsher and Doff reveal that under the Source Protection Program of the tabloid they report for on Jetsam, The Hebdomadal, Marko and Alana could publicize their story in exchange for being granted new identities, including magically-altered Jetsamian bodies. Sir Robot, desiring for himself, Petrichor and Squire the same bargain Upsher and Doff presented to Alana and Marko, offers the journalists a bombshell story of his own regarding the true cause of the destruction of Phang.[57]
"Chapter Fifty"
50
March 28, 2018
As the family hides in an abandoned amusement park while refueling on Jetsam, Marko and Alana discuss the offer given to them by Upsher and Doff. Sir Robot IV discloses his knowledge about the collusion between Landfall and Wreath to the journalists, who then forward it to their publisher. Petrichor teaches Hazel defensive martial arts and spellcasting, and reveals that she will join Sir Robot and Squire in the Source Protection Program. Squire, however, schemes to run away, taking with him Hazel's coveted doll, Ponk Konk, as a memento. Elsewhere on Jetsam, Zlote, a former colleague of Doff's, is confronted by Ianthe who—with The Will in tow—demands the whereabouts of the journalists.[58]
"Chapter Fifty-One"
51
April 25, 2018
Squire confronts Sir Robot over the latter's murder of The Stalk, prompting Robot to become momentarily violent. However, he rethinks his reaction, and attempts to be more reassuring. Alana becomes enthralled by Marko's foray into writing fiction. After Petrichor expresses skepticism that The Hebdomadal will be impartial in its documenting of the family's story, Upsher learns that the paper will print it on the front page the following week, and that delivery of the ingredients for the family's transformation is imminent. Ianthe arrives on Jetsam with The Will and confronts Doff. During an ensuing struggle, Ianthe kills Doff, but The Will escapes his bonds, complicating Ianthe's hunt.[59]
"Chapter Fifty-Two"
52
May 30, 2018
As Squire sets off on his own, the family discover his good-bye note. Following Alana's momentary anger at Sir Robot's revelation about his violent act toward Squire earlier, the family sets off to find him. Meanwhile, Ianthe finds a note from The Will, telling her that in light of his prior killing of her fiancé, and her killing of Sweet Boy, they are even, and urges her to abandon her pursuit of him. She subsequently rescues Squire from a vicious animal. As Sir Robot discovers Ianthe's craft, he is confronted by The Will, who impales Robot's arm with his lance. He intends to exact revenge on Robot's murder of The Stalk, before resuming his own pursuit of the family, but Robot offers to help him capture Hazel in exchange for sparing his life.[60]
"Chapter Fifty-Three"
53
June 27, 2018
On Jetsam, Special Agent Gale confronts the editor of The Hebdomadal and blackmails him by threatening to expose Upsher and Doff's homosexual relationship, which is illegal on Jetsam, as well as smear one of their sources, who has recently committed suicide. At the beach, Ghüs and Petrichor discover Doff's corpse and attempt to warn the others. Ianthe confronts Hazel and Upsher with her hostage, Squire, and informs them of Doff's death. When Alana appears mid-air, Ianthe destroys one of her wings, but this gives Upsher gains the upper hand from Ianthe, freeing Squire. Marko tries to persuade The Will to free Prince Robot IV, despite overhearing the latter's attempts to buy his survival with Hazel, but The Will decapitates Robot with his bare hands.[61]
"Chapter Fifty-Four"
54
July 25, 2018
The Will attempts to use his lance to kill Marko, but it malfunctions and explodes, leaving his gauntlet-covered right hand a mass of twisted metal. Marko attacks The Will, and they fall off a cliff into Ianthe's spacecraft. The Will activates the craft's propulsion, sending it into the atmosphere, but Marko gains the upper hand, further mutilating the remnants of The Will's gauntlet-covered right hand, though he ultimately decides to spare The Will's life. In response, The Will kills Marko by impaling his damaged cybernetic hand through Marko's chest. The chapter closes with a flashback revealing Marko's final conversation with Hazel on the beach.[62]
References[]
Notes[]
^a: The region of space is first named in Chapter 33. ^b: The planet is first referred to as such in Chapter 35. ^c: Her name and gender are later established in Chapter 47.
