Towers Analogous

It's obvious that not all is well in Iest.

As the Bug continues his upward assent, carrying Elrod, and with Cerebus desperately trying to stop him, others in the city have begun to notice that the big tower like mountain that hangs over the city is starting to lean.

The Roaches ascent is drawn very cinematically. I don't know if Dave ever wanted Cerebus to be made into a film or if he studied movie making, but he drew a lot of the novel as if it were a very elaborate storyboard. As Artemis climbs he incurs a number of serious injuries, and catalogues them as he goes ever upwards to his goal. It's rather like a parody of James Bond or John McClaine, it doesn't matter how badly these celluloid heroes get hurt they just keep on going. From the Cockroaches frenzied muttering it appears he believes he has a score to settle with Thrunk (or as Artemis refers to him Epop). As always Astoria is at the heart of it. The insane 'superhero' thinks Thrunk has taken his beloved hostage.

Around the city the fall of the tower is being noticed. It crashes through the window of Powers cathedral. It is not known if the Bishop survives the impact. Thrunk appears not to notice it, but as he's a mountain himself it may not appear to be unusual to him. Astoria sees it happening and runs to the edge.

She sees the Roach and joyously welcomes him. It's highly likely she arranged this, telling Artemis that she was being held hostage, knowing that he'd move heaven and earth to rescue her. Imagine her surprise when he pushes past her with a growled 'Out of the way, bitch. I have a score to settle.'

Causality Casualty

The final chapter of Church & State. This was going to be good.

Lord Storm'send keeps talking and as he's stuck in the crack there's not a lot Cerebus can do about it. Storm'send is going on about false Popes and Cerebus can't work out why, although the farmer insists that it has to do with the end of the world.

Cerebus is rescued by the reappearance of Sophia. She proceeds to give him a good telling off (hooray!) and then says that her major problem with their relationship was that once he became Pope she felt that the nature of their relationship became perverse as she was making love to a God on earth.

She leaves as Cerebus is dragged by Lord Julius back into the wall. Julius tells him that Tarim is outside and he wants to talk. When Cerebus asks why they're going upstairs Julius says that's so he can look Tarim in the eye.

Outside the hotel is a giant stone golem clad in papal robes. Thrunk has returned, and he says he's Most Holy. Everyone believes him. I know I would.

Because Cerebus has gold that Thrunk believes belongs to him he has to get Cerebus out of the way. What follows is a great sequence of Thrunk's enormous stone fist trying to squash Cerebus and the aardvark using every evasive trick he knows to avoid the rock giant. Cerebus finds Bran. The former leader of the Pigts tells Cerebus he's made a mistake and then drives the point of a knife into his chest. The ritual suicide stuns even Cerebus and he can't get away when Thrunk's fist crashes through the wall and grabs him.

In something reminiscent of Cerebus' actions as Pope, Thrunk flings Cerebus away. The aardvark grabs a tree and manages to land on the head of one of the gargoyles carved into the mountain above the city. He can't maintain his grip and falls to bounce twice and end up on somewhere in the lower city.

It's going to be a long climb back to the top for everyone's favourite earth pig.