The Devil Slayer Sequel That Never Happened

Last week, a major comic book company asked me to pitch some things to them. While I was typing up the pitches, I came across this rejected pitch for a sequel to my Dead of Night: Devil Slayer mini-series from Marvel. It was never picked up because shortly after issue #5 of the original series, my editor left Marvel and I found myself orphaned (as did several other creators). Anyway, I thought you guys might get a kick out of seeing this.

In this sequel to Dead of Night: Devil Slayer, we find Danny Sylva on the coast of Somalia, tracking a group of ruthless modern-day pirates who are worshipping the demon known as Chthon.

The Somali coast is a lawless, apocalyptic region, shattered by years of rebellions, coups, genocide and warring factions. It is rife with thugs, criminals, rebels, terrorists, and mercenaries out to make a quick buck. It is also undergoing an economic boom thanks to the efforts of the pirates, who sail out to international waters where the maritime laws don't apply, capture ships and abduct their crews, and then hold both for ransom. Or so our leaders and the media tells us.

In reality, the Chthon-worshipers are indeed capturing ships and their crews. But they are selling the ships to the highest bidder and using the crewmembers as sacrifices to Chthon. Their most recent capture is a steamer called the U.S.S. Cerberus (in mythology, Cerberus guards the gates to Hell). The ship is owned by the Trident Corporation, of which Damion Hellstrom, the Son of Satan, is the main shareholder. Indeed, Trident is one of Hellstrom's many corporate assets.

Unbeknownst to Devil Slayer, Hellstrom has also traveled to Somalia to free his property and his employees in his own fashion. The two confront each other and do battle, but soon they must join forces to defeat Chthon.

The instability of the region allows us a broad spectrum for warfare and battle scenes. It is a festering sewer of violence and horror—the perfect setting for a Devil Slayer tale.