Writer – Bill Mantlo
Artist – Steve Geiger
Inker – Keith Williams
Colours – Janet Jackson
Letters – Rick Parker

Prince Dargon and his friends are taking a beat after saving the Fairy kingdom and as such, are inspecting their gifts. Those belonging to Zak and Stellara respond to wishes and thus join together at some unspoken command to form a vehicle for the two to ride as they are the only Sectaurs without a mount. While they have a bit of fun trying to master their new craft, they are being spied upon by Scorpia from afar and who in turn is being spide upon by Skulk and who then, is caught by General Spidrax. Bill Mantlo continues to show readers just how different the those of the Shining Realm are compared to those of the Dark Domain, those who follow Devora continually trying to one-up each other and all of them plotting to gain the throne for themselves with Devora completely aware of it. As all of this is going on, trouble is brewing at home for Mantor, Zak, Pinsor and the rest of the crew as those under Galkin believe the man to be mad and Dargon and his friends possibly innocent and should those feelings be acted upon, it might alert the Dark Domain to the coverup currently going on. Mantlo soon gets back on track and sends the heroes further along on their quest to a realm that is covered in Meander and they know by its presence that a Hyve must be nearby. Also close is General Spidrax who is determined to make that ancient magic and technology his own while burying Dargon and those who stand with him. All of this leads to the capture of a tribe who make their home within the Meander, a clash between Spidrax and Dargon once more and the freeing of the aforementioned tribe, after which as a thank-you of sorts, the Hyve is revealed to the heroes. Mantlo continues to write a great tale with these characters and with each passing issue, he continues to explore their personalities whether good or evil. It is fascinating to see them go from one-dimensional beings to fully-formed people within the space of a handful of books and it proves just how good a storyteller Mantlo is. On the book with him again is Steve Geiger who has provides some truly exceptional artwork with this issue, the man outdoing himself with each outing making this title a real must-read. Ending things on a cliff-hanger once more, Mantlo and Geiger want readers to come back for more and who would argue with doing so.

4 out of 5