“Demands From The Deep” is the title of this story, from writer/artist Jim Balent. This story begins at Nantucket Island, where an army of vicious warrior mermaids and giant crab-men have risen from the ocean and started brutally slaughtering every human being they come across.

Tarot senses the disturbance from her home, puts her armor on, and travels to the area. She confronts the leader of the mermaids who tells her that there was an ancient back her kind made with the humans of the area 3000 years ago, which gives them a claim to the land, and now they’ve come to collect. Tarot tries to reason with her, but they won’t listen, and thus begins a fight.

That’s one thing about this series, the stories are rather straightforward. Tarot vs. mermaids armed with tridents, one of whom can breathe fire, and giant crab-men and other seas monsters. So this is pretty much an all-out action issue, with the type of brutal violence that Jim Balent draws so well.

Raven doesn’t appear in this issue. Jon is only briefly in the beginning when Tarot gets out of bed with him (fully nude, of course), he’s still suffering from the ailment that left his body aged and frail, I’m surprised Balent is drawing out that plot this long. The ending is a bit of a twist, but it works. This is a decent issue. Chacebook rating: FOUR STARS

Available on AMAZON and via JIMBALENTSTUDIOS.COM