Nameless, the Last of the Metabarons

Nameless, the Last of the Metabarons is the eigth issue of The Saga of the Metabarons (the main series of The Metabarons franchise). It was written by Alejandro Jodorowsky, illustrated by Juan Giménez and released by Les Humanoïdes Associés in 2003.

In this issue the truth about Lothar's identity is revealed, the supra-lice threaten the universe and Steelhead and the Metabaron face each other in a space battle.

Plot
Lothar is angry at Tonto for humilliating him. Tonto explains his taunting by telling him how the Metabaron got the scar. First, Tonto reminds Lothar that Aghora actually broke the Bushitaka law, because he didn’t really kill Steelhead, he simply launched him into space.

The story continues in a flashback: After Aghora birthed Nameless, he developed advanced psionic powers, was taught how to endure physical and psychological pain, and served as executioner in a prison planet. At 13 his ear was mutilated, and at 14 weapons were implanted in his body, and spend the next 5 years as a mercenary. On the eve of his 17th birthday he faced the metabaron tradition, according to which he had to kill his father to acquire the title of metabaron. Nameless manages to pierces his father-mother’s chest, killing him-her. After the experience Nameless swears to never have children.

Meanwhile, in the ensuing years, Steelhead traveled, balled up like a fetus in his invulnerable sphere, when one day he was gobble up by a Trans-ludens, which took him to Ulkmar-eight-moon, the most sacred planet of the galaxy. Unable to digest Steelhead, the Trans-ludens defecated him on the slopes of the volcano Hungar. Convinced that Steelhead was Ounser, the divine fetus, the local Proto-anthropoids honored him by drinking the blood from their own bosoms. The blood was absorbed by the dry porous rock which caused the volcano to awaken, and the burning acid lava ate through Steelhead’s omni-cryo-refrigerated sphere.

Once Steelhead was freed he eliminated all the tribes of the planet, and then waited for several years for the Trans-ludens to come back, allowing himself to be swallowed again, and forcing the animal to take him back to his own galaxy. Finally, he arrives at Terra 2014 when Nameless was 30 years old, and Steelhead challenges him to a mortal combat for the title of metabaron. Nameless provokes Steelhead into attacking him, but he has measured the space between them with such precision that only his right eyebrow is split into two. The Metabaron takes advantage of Steelhead’s surprise and eye-blasts him with a powerful paralyzing ray.

Nameless takes advantage of his ancestor’s catatonia to open his pectorial brain: He removes parts of the lobular circuits, erases his memory and makes him believe he’s a robot, fitting the indestructible body inside a heavy metallic armor that Lothar has believed all this years to be his own body. Thus, the truth is out: Steelhead is Lothar, and that’s why the Metabaron truly wanted to destroy his robots.

Now that the truth has been revealed, and Steelhead is the true metabaron, Tonto is obligated to follow his orders. Steelhead decides he wants to capture Nameless, so he sends an omni-global signal to attract possible enemies of the Metabaron. They eventually get picked up by the supra-lice, the descendants of the prehistoric lice, who have sucked the blood, the sap and the energy of the universe. Steelhead meets the Soul-queen of the supra-lice, Diophante, who tells him that Nameless has led the humans to Ghartabis (an alternative universe), occupying planets in the Zimoun galaxy. They decide to perform a hyper-spatial jump and come out at the frontier of the exofringe, to cross the communication gate with the parallel universe.

After going through the exofringe, they arrive at Lucioh, the communication gate to Ghartabis, which they enter after correctly singing the tune to Ophidat, guardian of the gate. The supra-lices start causing troubles by devouring a planet, and the Metabaron appears to stop the invasion. Steelhead and the Metabaron face against each other in space, using their mental powers and swords in the fight. Steelhead overpowers Nameless, who flees. Tonto follows the Metabaron, who brings him to Obecity the capital city of Terra-bis, and shows him how a galaxy near the Lucioh gate explodes. Tonto is confused about what just happened. The Metabaron explains: Even though Steelhead had lost his memory, the Metabaron preserved the link that united their caste, by exchanging cerebral waves they didn’t seek to destroy each other, they actually united to save humanity. In reality Steelhead had misled the supra-lice and he knew they were planning to lay billions of eggs that he couldn’t possibly eliminate them all in time. The combat in space between them was actually to buy time for Diophante to give birth to countless supra-lice, which created a supra-louse the size of an entire galaxy, while the Diophante-mother metamorphosed into a galactic supra-louse stood ready to attack. Steelhead had been absorbed by the insectoid galaxy and had auto-destructed himself, using his mini-atomic bomb to kill the supra-louse.

After saving the universe, the Metabaron falls into a depression. Since his cyborg body forbides him to self-destruct before he’s reached 30.000 years, he feels unbearably boredom, occasionally destroying an asteroid or a deserted plane to keep in shape. Tonto builds himself a female human body to seduce him but the Metabaron laugh at the idea.

One night the Metabaron lights up all the Holo-biograms of his departed family and reflects on his ancestors lives, considering his clan vain and useless. At this moment a bee lands on his left hand, but the Metabaron stops himself from squashing it at the last second, promising to never destroy another life. Suddenly Gangez spirit bursts out of Nameless chest, and explains that he had been waiting for the time a metabaron would know pity, and encourages him to restore justice in the universe. Gangez regenerates the Metabaron’s taste and invites him to try tasting honey from a bee-hive in the concealed underbelly of the metabunker. Thanks to this experience the Metabaron understands the meaning of love and how it feels to be human.

The Metabaron decides to go back to Galaxia Prima, and start cleansing evil from the universe. He destroys the government headquarters of the Golden Planet, and plans to restore freedom throughout the galaxy by facing the imperial powers, the techno-techno cult, the magnate, the ekonomats, and the colonial forces.

Other Issues

 * 1) Othon the Great-Great-Grandfather (1992)
 * 2) Honorata the Great-Great-Grandmother (1993)
 * 3) Aghnar the Great-Grandfather (1995)
 * 4) Oda the Great-Grandmother (1997)
 * 5) Steelhead the Grandfather (1998)
 * 6) Doña Vicenta Gabriela de Rokha the Grandmother (1999)
 * 7) Aghora the Father-Mother (2002)
 * 8) Nameless, the Last of the Metabarons (2003)