SAMSON: MUTANT MENACE

The filthy water closed over her face. Several strong tentacles wrapped around her legs and yanked her down to an opening maw of a mutant monster that was anxious to swallow her whole. As she flailed her arms in a futile attempt to swim up against the pull of the monster, her head jerked back and her eyes opened wide with the knowledge that she was going to die.

A large hand broke through the water and seized her head. Fingers tangled in her hair and wrapped under her chin. Whatever had grabbed her pulled up powerfully against the strength of the Quicksand Octopus. Sharmaine thought her head would separate from her body. She opened her mouth to scream and swallowed the mire that was drowning her. As if realizing that she couldn't be pulled up by her head, the hand worked its way lower and grabbed one of her arms. Then it tugged on her seriously, and she erupted out of the quicksand like a rocket.

The Quicksand Octopus came with her, flipping wetly in the morning sunlight, still holding on to her legs. A ironshod staff struck it in the air like a bat hitting a ball. Stunned, nearly killed, the monster released Sharmaine and dropped back into its murky home.

A dazed, half drowned Sharmaine was laid on her belly on a mat of grass. She heaved up water, coughing, and retched until her passages were clear. Rubbing her eyes, she managed to clear her vision enough to look at her rescuer. She had to cram her head backward because the person who had saved her was very tall, at least seven feet; Sharmaine slipped on the grass and rolled onto her back. From her supine position the woman looked like a behemoth.

She was more than just tall. Her bones were large and her body was well formed with solid thick muscles. In no way were these muscles masculine or ugly. She was a big powerful woman; very definitely all woman. Her hips flared seductively below a small waist. Her breasts were large and well formed under her fur shirt, and the face that smiled down at Sharmaine was pleasantly pretty. Her eyes were blue and her hair light brown. When she moved there was nothing of the oaf in her. Rather she flowed from one position to another with liquid, catlike grace. It this person were not a woman, Sharmaine might have thought that it was the Mighty Samson who stood above her.

"Are you all right?" asked the tall woman. Her voice was deep and melodious. And comforting.

Sharmaine wiped more of the muck from her face as she sat up. "Yes, I think so. You pulled me out just in time. Thank you."

"It was pure luck that I saw you before the monster pulled you under. It was your red hair that caught my eye. You can credit your life to that," said the woman. She squatted down next to Sharmaine as if she wanted to close the gap between them. "There's some fresh water nearby if you want to wash the muck off."

Sharmaine was grateful for that. She was sure that she looked a mess. And she smelled worse. As she got to her feet she shoveled off globs of muck from her body. Her outfit was ruined. She would have to go 'shopping' in one of the old department stores. Of course she wouldn't really be shopping, since the store had been closed for many years and its owners had been dead for a long time.

Soaking wet after washing off most of the filth, Sharmaine stepped gingerly over the rubble that splayed out from the entrance to the ancient department store. The large woman remained with her. Sharmaine had noted that her clothing was all hand sewn as if she was too big to find anything to fit her.

"What's your name?" asked Sharmaine. The inside of the building was dark. Footing was treacherous because of the broken floor and the litter covering it. The red headed girl was disappointed because there was nothing her size still available in the rooms toward the front of the building. If Samson were with her she might risk going deeper into the building where the dark might be hiding dangerous creatures. But the Mighty Samson wasn't here.

"Jan," replied the giant. "Most folks call me the Amazon, though."

Sharmaine mused over the word: Amazon. She was a well read girl. For a person living in the Second Stone Age of Mankind, that was an unusual quality.

"Amazon? That's some sort of ancient woman warrior, isn't it?" she asked.

"Yes, it is. I was stuck with it because I'm big and strong. People remember the amazons as tough women. I certainly fall into that category." She said this without pride or vanity.

"Well, you handled that Quicksand Octopus like a woman warrior, that's for sure," remembered Sharmaine. "I'm glad to have met you. My name is Sharmaine."

Jan smiled warmly. She looked up at the ruined room before them. "If you're looking for clothing, I'm afraid there is nothing here. Perhaps if we went further into the building. We might find some rooms that the locals haven't gotten to."

"Its getting harder to find any good old stuff. Most of it has been picked clean by the tribes. Unless you go to the really dangerous spots. Who knows what monster lurks in this building?"

"I can take care of myself, Sharmaine. I think we can go a little further into the shadows," said Jan. "I don't see anything dangerous right now."

Jan stepped forward boldly and walked across the room. Sharmaine lingered behind, wondering why she trusted this stranger even though Jan had saved her life. Something about the big woman radiated confidence much in the same way as the Mighty Samson inspired trust in the people around him.

There was a large piece of debris blocking a double doorway. Jan picked it up and gently tossed it aside. Sharmaine noted that it must have weighed at least two hundred pounds. With a flick of her wrist, the Amazon pushed open the twin doors. Sharmaine's flashlight revealed an untouched room. All the merchandise was still there.

The two women found the ladies section, and Sharmaine helped herself to a new outfit. Something in white to offset her red hair. Nothing was large enough for Jan so the big woman had to satisfy herself with a beautiful blue scarf. With their 'shopping' done, they left the chamber. Jan put the piece of debris back against the door so it would not be easily opened.

Back outside in the sunlight, Sharmaine turned and smiled at Jan. "Come on, I'll introduce you to my father. Mindor will be very interested in meeting you."

Mindor and Sharmaine lived in the region called N'Yark. Once this region had been a great city, but now, many years after a nuclear war, it was only an urban wasteland inhabited by tribes of Stone Age men and a plethora of mutant monsters. Deep in the distant past, Mankind had committed the unforgivable sin of Nuclear War. As a result nearly every species on Earth had been mutated to some degree. Life was radically different from what it was before the War. Of all the animals on Earth, only Mankind retained a high degree of normalcy. Mindor, a man of prewar knowledge, believed this partial immunity to mutation was due to genetic treatments administered to some segments of mankind before and during the nuclear holocaust.

But not all humans were in the normal homo sapien gene pool. Some had mutated. Most mutations had resulted in deviates that couldn't survive, or monsters of an exclusive existence without the ability to breed. Occasionally there was a beneficent mutation, as was the case of Mighty Samson.

Samson lived in a tree house high above the wilderness of N'Yark. The tree that supported his house was of the Skyscraper variety. This was a tree that was so tall it reached up to skyscraper height. It was of ordinary trunk size, not a giant tree like a Californian Redwood, but its iron consistency was so great that it soared straight up without bending or breaking. Samson had built his home up on the top of this tree so he could see out over his territory. Another reason for living so high was the security it provided against monsters that were limited to the ground.

Stretching himself awake, Samson rolled off his bed and walked over to the ancient bath tub he used as a water container. He cupped a drink and splashed some water on his face to help wake himself up. He stretched again, lifting his mighty arms high above his head and pushed up on his tiptoes. His mutant muscles cracked as he flexed them and forced blood into their enlarged reservoir. Finished stretching, he shook his arms loose and stepped out on the observation platform he had built onto his house. From here he had a panoramic view of N'Yark.

One of Samson's eyes had been clawed out in a epic battle with a Liobear when he had been a very young man. The other eye still possessed eagle sight. Samson scanned the landscape of broken buildings, overgrown jungle, and patches of charred ground that had never recovered from its nuclear scarring. Samson could see minute details miles away. Today there was nothing out of the ordinary. Nothing to alarm the mighty champion of N'Yark. Samson smiled and set about making breakfast.

Mindor squirmed underneath the car frame and tried to reach the oil plug. The car wouldn't hold oil so he thought it might be leaking from the plug. Several weeks ago Samson had lifted the car onto four big rocks so Mindor could work on it underneath. A recent rain had drenched the ground and two of the rocks had sunk about a foot. With less than a foot to work with, Mindor squirmed on the muddy ground until he reached the plug with his fingers.

A drop of loose oil fell on his glasses. Grimly, Mindor steeled himself against this new aggravation, and stuck his finger up the hole that was only partially blocked by a broken plug. Shaking his shaggy head, Mindor slid out from under the car and cleaned off his glasses. He would have to visit the old junk yard again and get a new plug for this model. He would probably need Samson's help. That meant he would have to wait for Samson to come along. In the meantime he went over to his workbench and began to study the old book he had found that described all the workings about the model of car he was working on.

Mindor smiled when he remembered Samson carrying the car from where they had found it several miles away to Mindor's home. Unfortunately Mindor had found the book first, then he and Samson had gone in search for the particular car the book detailed. Too often the road to knowledge was backwards in the Second Stone Age of Mankind.

Mindor looked up suddenly and scanned his surroundings for signs of danger. It was something he did naturally and periodically. In the land he lived in there was no place of safety. Creatures of mutation and hostile tribesmen were a constant threat that required continual vigilance if one was to survive.

Although a middle-aged man, Mindor's long hair was still brown. Perched on his nose was his pair of reading glasses he habitually wore since he had discovered this cure for his natural far-sightedness. He had a plain, pleasant face with an easy smile that softened his normally scholarly appearance. Mindor never had a stern appearance, except on those rare occasions when he was actually angry; he did possess an ability to concentrate wholly on matters that were concerning him, and this made him appear distant to most of the primitive humans he interacted with. He had developed his friendly, lopsided smile as a way of appeasing the suspicions of others. Often the people of the Second Stone age were suspicions of everything, especially a man who thinks too much.

"Mindor, are you busy?"

He turned from his bench at his daughter's voice. She had long since stopped calling him father. He was not sure why, since she remained as loving and loyal as she had been as a child. After deliberating on it for some time, a little disturbed at the distance it presumed between them, Mindor had concluded that Sharmaine was a woman who enjoyed a little distance between herself and others. He felt that this was his fault. He had raised her in isolation from others. His gift to her had been a modern education. Unfortunately she had missed the socialization that other girls her age had acquired naturally within their tribe. While she was polite to everyone, as he had taught her to be, she was rarely friendly. If anything she was more suspicious of everyone and everything than most people he had met in savage N'Yark.

"No, not at all, Sharmaine. Come on in," he replied. He shut the ragged book, a little relieved that he could pause in his labors. Sometimes the ancient machines defied even his considerable mechanical talent. Usually though, with time, they yielded their secrets to his relentless drive for knowledge. In time he would get the car working.

When Sharmaine entered his working room, at first he thought that the giant figure behind her was the Mighty Samson. When she stepped into the light, Mindor was shocked to see that it was a very large woman, not Samson, though this woman was very much like his giant friend. Indeed, at first glance, the similarities were astounding.

"You have brought a guest," said Mindor. Unconsciously he smoothed his long white frock. Sharmaine snickered when she saw that. Very little ruffled her father's composure, and it amused her to see him grooming a bit for her visitor.

"Yes, Mindor. This is Jan. She has only recently come to N'Yark. I'm glad she did because she just saved my life from a Quicksand Octopus," explained Sharmaine.

Mindor had noticed that his daughter was wearing a different outfit from the one she had on when she had left that morning. It was a lovely outfit, one that appeared to be as new as when it had hung from the racks in the ancient times, and Mindor wondered where she had wandered to find it.

"I'm surprised you were caught by a Quicksand Octopus, Sharmaine," said Mindor. "That is unlike you."

"I think some of these mutants are becoming more intelligent. The Octopus camouflaged his sandpit with grass turf. I walked right over it, and into it, before I realized it was a trap," explained the red headed woman.

Mindor mused over her comment. He rubbed his lower lip with his thumb and stared at the floor. Then he looked up and said, "Yes, that is disturbing. Mankind still holds the ultimate advantage: intelligence. If the mutant animals were to evolve anything close to our mental capacity it could mean the end of mankind. Nearly all the mutations caused by the ancient war have been physical. Extremely radical, to be sure, but physical. We must be vigilant for any cropping up of mental mutations that resemble intelligence."

"Many animals are clever. That can be instinct. There may be no reason for alarm," said the giant woman. Her voice was soothing and deeply melodious. Mindor turned his critical eye her way.

"Perhaps no reason for alarm, but in our savage times, there is always reason for vigilance. May I ask where you are from, Jan?"

"From the north. The land of Canda. A journey of many walking days," replied the giantess. "My tribe is called the Antarions."

"And you are the Amazon of Antario?" broke in Sharmaine. She had heard legends of a powerful human mutant in the north. Once the tribesmen of N'Yark had been forced to journey to the North Pole at the mental command of a radioactive boulder Mindor had called the Mental North Pole. On the journey north they had heard of the Amazon from other tribes of humans who had joined their mandatory journey. It was odd that Jan's people had not been compelled to journey to the rock as had most other humans. Perhaps they had been located in a geographical position that provided some protection from the telepathic radiation emitted by the Mental North Pole. He had heard that other human communities had been excluded from the enforced migration for similar reasons.

"Yes, I am," admitted Jan proudly.

"Well, Jan, we have heard only a few stories about you. They were all good. What brings you down to N'Yark?" asked Mindor with a pleasant smile. From the scanty information he had on her, the Amazon was something similar to N'Yark's Mighty Samson. Looking at the physical similarities between Jan and Samson, Mindor wondered if she were capable of doing all the wonderful things that Samson could do.

A frown furrowed Jan's sunbrowned brow. "I am on the trail of two fugitives from my country. Killers responsible for the destruction of whole villages. They have committed insane, murderous rampages throughout the settlements running down from Antario to N'Yark. I have to find them and stop them."

"We haven't heard of any massacres," said Mindor. "Although our people are still in the Stone Age, there is a rapid jungle telegraph linking the tribes. And most of the time I have my ear to the ground, so to speak. I haven't heard anything."

"That's good, Mindor. And I hope you don't hear anything. But I still have to find these human beasts.

"Who are they?" asked Sharmaine.

"Mutants. Their names are Jakel and Hide."

Heida walked along the jungle path that stretched from the water hole to the group of ruined buildings her tribe had made their home. The weather was nearly always temperate in N'Yark, and this close to summer it was rather hot so Heida was nearly naked. A small thong of leather was tucked between her tanned cheeks and flared up to hide her groin from prying eyes. She wore no other clothing, and tossing her thick brown hair, she lifted her breasts in the prideful knowledge that they had nearly bloomed into the fullness of ripe womanhood.

She was unclaimed by any male of her tribe. It was a rather large gathering with nearly 50 adults and over 30 children. Several of the young men had advanced toward her in the hope that she would smile at them. As yet Heida was uncertain which of her suitors she sould favor. It was an important thing to chose the right mate. Strength and steadiness were the foundation of a good man; the ability to provide for the family Heida hoped to have some day. And in her still girlish mind, Heida hoped for a handsome man. And when she dreamed of such handsomeness her thoughts turned to Truc, the son of Chan, who was promising to be as good a hunter as any young woman would want.

Of course the best prospective mate of all was the Mighty Samson. No better provider in all the jungles of N'Yark was known. Heida played for a moment with the thought of Samson as her mate before she remembered that the beautiful Sharmaine had already claimed possession of the big man. Yet it was said that no true words of love or mating has passed between Sharmaine and Samson, and a girl could still dream.

For no apparent reason the briskness of her step began to dull. Heida paused and leaned against a tree. Suddenly tired, her eyes began to droop. She was falling asleep standing up. Romantic thoughts of Mighty Samson or Turc faded into the blackness of slumber though Heida did not fall down. She remained standing in a fastness of sleep that was hypnotic.

"Juicy pretty one," cackled an obscene voice from the jungle brush. A dirty pale hand broke out of the bushes. A face followed. It was a wide triangular face with a huge mouth filled with broken yellow teeth. Two slanted eyes of some dank yellowish color sparkled with delight and a long red tongue licked his lips as he anticipated touching the beautiful girl. His nose was thin and pointed and rather unkempt as a ball of green snot rolled down from one hairy nostril. A body that was undeniably male and disgustingly nude, crept out into the open and stalked over to Heida. He was a scrawny man. His arms and legs were rawhide thin, yet despite this there was no evidence of weakness in him. He must have never washed because of the filth that caked on his skin and in his hair. Had Heida been fully awake she would have screamed at the sight of this horrible man, too ugly and unkempt for even a Second Stone Age woman. In her somnolent state she offered no resistance to him when he pulled on her arm and led her away into the brush he had emerged from. The jungle foliage closed on his excited giggles as they both disappeared from the path.

"Are you sure she went this way?"

Scrin turned his head slowly and looked up at the younger man. It was an odd question to ask the tribe's best tracker, and if not odd then certainly it was rude and presumptuous of the youth. The boy should have known that if Scrin had said that this was the way the girl had gone then it was so.

"I just said that, didn't I," growled Scrin. He pointed to the faint indentation of her heel in the hard crusty earth. "This is Heida's print. She was walking normally. No indication of trouble."

"Then where is she?" asked the youth. "Why didn't she come home yesterday?"

"That's the question, Turc. We all know the question. Let's get the answer," said another man. He was Mag, chief of the tribe of Mag. He was a big man, very strong, with a deep commanding voice.

There were five men in the search party. Three were older, experienced hunters and the other two were youths. They were armed with spear and knife. Mag had a spear with an ancient knife tied to its end. Most of their weapons were makeshift, constructed of broken odds and ends found in the ruins of N'Yark.

Scrin straightened up and led the others along the trail. Heida had kept to the path, that much was clear, and the path was not ordinarily dangerous. It was used frequently by the tribe of Mag as an avenue between their habitat and a pure stream a mile away. Already they were close to the stream. It was unlikely that Heida would have gone beyond the stream.

Several minutes later, Scrin grunted and pointed to some clearer signs. "Here! Look, she went into the bush."

Mag squatted down beside his best tracker. "She was not alone. A man's print, I'd say," speculated the chief.

"A light man with long feet. Hard, long nails. His prints are almost bestial," mused Scrin.

A third man pushed into the bush. He was Chrili, the father of Heida. Anger darkened his face as he thought of his young daughter taken captive.

"Raiders! Must be those Carlt men from across the stream," he snapped.

"We don't know that, Chrili. Let's find out," cautioned Mag. Although raiders were a bad thing, the chief was relieved that it appeared that some mutant monster wasn't involved. Many of the monsters that roamed the jungles of N'Yark were beyond the ability of his people to fight. Instead, they lurked in the shadows of broken buildings that the ancients had built, like mice hiding from a cat. Mag felt sure he and his men could take care of simple human raiders.

The five men melted into the bush. Scrin led, followed by Mag, Chrili, Turc and the other youth, Uy. They were silent. With great care they let the trail lead them to their quarry, which they hoped to surprise. Instead, they were surprised when the spoor led them to a hole in the ground.

Mag turned a puzzled face to Scrin. This close to the enemy, they resorted to sign language. The tracker shrugged and indicated he still thought their quarry was a man. And it was definite that Heida had walked into the hole.

There was nothing else to do. Chrili pushed aside his chief and the tracker and stooped over to enter the hole. The hole led to a tunnel which was large enough to permit a man to walk if he nearly dropped his hands to the ground. Chrili held his spear tightly, with the point ahead of him, and made his way slowly down the tunnel. His tribesmen followed behind him.

There was less and less light. Fortunately the tunnel did not slant down much more than twenty feet. At the end of its declining slope was a recently excavated room. In the room they found Heida. Her body lay loosely on the dirt. Spittle dribbled from her open mouth, and her eyes stared vacantly at nothing. Her body was covered with filth and blood, probably her own because she had been bitten and scratched repeatedly. She was naked and had been abused. Lying next to her was a manlike creature. When the search party entered the room, he woke up and rolled to his feet.

"Filthy bug," roared Chrili. He leaped forward and tried to push his spear into the man's body. In the darkness, he missed. The man laughed and called out one word. "Hide."

"Hiding won't help you," said Mag, as he and the others came into the chamber.

Chrili continued to stab at the manlike creature. Even in the near darkness, they could see that this man was probably mutated. Something to be killed. Heida's abductor avoided her father's spear with unusual agility. All the time he kept yelling, "Hide, Hide!"

Turc scrambled over to the girl and picked her up. As the other men tried to pin-cushion her abductor, Turc's concern was to get her to safety. He was helped by Scrin, and the two of them carried her up the short tunnel.

Earth burst into the room. Clawing his way through the wall, came a second manlike creature. Mag turned to face this new menace, and was horrified to discover another human mutant. This one was much larger and thick with muscle. Its skin was hard and wrinkled like an old tree trunk. From its bestial face shined two green eyes. One huge dark hand seized Uy by the back of his head. The youth screamed until the mutant smashed his other fist into his face and crushed his skull.

"Hide, Hide," laughed the first mutant. "Kill, Kill."

The burly mutant brushed Mag aside as he rushed Chrili and hit him in a concessive rush that sent them both rolling against an earthen wall. Chrili had turned and tried to stab the mutant in its rush, but the spear had only broken against the mutant's tree trunk skin. As they rolled, the enraged Chrili pulled a sliver of steel he was using as a knife and shoved it into the mutant's belly. The sharpened blade sliced into the outer layer's of the mutant's skin and stopped. The mutant grabbed Chrili's knife arm with both hands and broke it like a piece of straw. Grunting with pain, Chrili tried to poke the mutant in his eyes. The mutant kept them rolling until he was on top of Chrili. Then he struck the man's head until he was dead.

Mag stared at the human monster with horrified eyes. He was torn between attacking the mutant from behind and covering the escape of his two men. Mag was no coward, nor was he a fool. He backed up the tunnel, slowly, holding his spear in front of him in an effort to keep the mutant from attacking Turc and Shrin.

"Hide," laughed the scrawny mutant. He slapped the strong one on his back. "Hide good friend."

In his fury, Hide had pounded Chrili's head to pulp. When he bloodlust was sated he smiled at his friend. Gore and brains coated his hands. The powerful mutant was untroubled about the men who had escaped their den, but his friend was not so unconcerned.

"What about those other men? Kill 'em too before the bring back more bodies," he cackled.

Hide shrugged. "If more come, Hide will crush them. Spears and knifes can't hurt old Hide. Don't worry, Jakel, you won't get harmed."

Jakel leaped up, hitting his head on the sod roof, and screamed at Hide, "A job undone is bad, bad, bad. Go after em and pulp em, Hide."

A grin split Hide's nut brown face. Healthy, white teeth gleamed in the dim light. "Okay, Jakel, don't bust a gut."

With a burst of unnatural speed, the mutant scurried up the tunnel in pursuit of the tribesmen. Jakel did not follow; physical combat was not to his taste.

The three tribesmen ran away quickly from the den. Mag and Turc carried Heida's limp body between them. After they had gotten several hundred yards away, Mag stopped and spoke to Scrin.

"This mutant is too strong. You must get Mighty Samson to help us. Only he can match this monster's strength."

"What about you two? And the girl?"

"We must lead the monster away from our home. We will go south toward the mighty river. If he is following us he will be led away from the tribe. You must go get Samson to protect our people," said Mag.

The tracker nodded. Mag had made a good plan. The tribe must be protected. Without a further word, Scrin turned away from them and ran into the jungle toward where he knew Samson lived.

"We have to hurry, Mag," said Truc. The youth held Heida's upper body. As he looked at her vacant, bruised face he almost wept.

"Right," agreed the chief. They hurried along, taking the a game trail that they knew led to the river, and as they went, Mag kept looking over his shoulder. Human mutants or such power were rare in N'Yark. His tribe lived in fear of the mutated beasts who preyed on each other and human tribesmen. If human mutants like Hide were cropping up it could spell disaster for ordinary men.

Something whistled over their head and struck a tree before them. Its trunk splintering, the tree fell into their path. Truc fell into a shower of wooden barbs that had exploded toward him when the tree trunk shattered. He dropped Heida as he reflexively covered his eyes. Shards of wood stuck out of his arms, chest and legs like branches on a tree. Sobbing with shock and pain he sunk to his knees.

Mag was protected from the splinter shower by the bodies of Turc and Heida. At the sound of foliage being broken, the chief turned to face his enemy. Hide charged the tribesman with obscene speed. Mag's metal spear tip brushed along the mutant's chest, chipping a few drops of blood before Hide seized and broke the shaft with one hand. A whirlwind of power lifted the chief and cast him a hundred feet in the air. Laughing, Hide turned to the two young people.

"You bad boy," he chided Turc. "Look like porcupine squirrel now. Don't worry, Hide fix." The mutant took Turc by the hair and swiped one arm down the front of his body. This broke the splinters or embedded them deeper in the youth's flesh. After Hide was satisfied that he had smoothed Turc's splinter riddled body, he grinned more deeply.

"Now that you look better, Hide will send you to good earth." One punch broke Turc's skull and killed him instantly. Hide tossed the body away and began to dig into the ground at enormous speed. In a matter of seconds he had produced a six foot hole. Then he hurled the youth's body into the pit and covered it up.

"Lover boy gone now, girlie. You come back to Jakel and Hide," he said to Heida. He picked out the wooden shards that had pierced her body and tossed her over his shoulder. He forgot Mag, who he had tossed out of sight. He walked back to the original den he had dug out for Jakel and himself.

Fifty feet away and thirty feet up, Mag lay in the branches at the top of a tree. He had been badly shaken when Hide had thrown him into the air, but fortunately the tree had saved his bones from being broken when it had broken his fall. When he tried to move he fell victim to a wave of dizziness and unconsciousness.

"It is always safest for men to live in the ruins of the old cities. Originally there were few animals living in the cities, so fewer mutants were created from the War. But these are current times, and the mutated animals are moving into the ruins. They know nothing of the ancient technology. It is just a place of ready made dens and a new source of food: people," said Mindor as the three people stood outside Mindor's laboratory and looked at the jungle creeping up on the cracked pavements of what was once a main street.

"That is true," agreed Jan, "men were safer in the cities. I have noticed another thing that living in the cities might have done for men. Of all the animals in the world, only Mankind has remained relatively unchanged by the ancient war. The vast majority of men that I have met are not mutants."

"I agree," said Mindor. "It is a mystery I intend to solve. Once a shipload of non-mutated animals from the past were let loose in N'Yark. In time they were mutated. There may be something in the air that still mutates all the beasts and plants of N'Yark. Except for people. Very few people are mutated. I'm not sure why."

Sharmaine frowned up at Jan. "Some mutants in Mankind are good. Take Samson for instance. His strength greatly helps the tribesmen of N'Yark survive this mad jungle."

"Yes, as I came closer to N'Yark I heard many good things about Samson. I am looking forward to meeting him. We may have a lot in common," said Jan with a smile.

Sharmaine's frown deepened. Jan's similarities to Samson were too striking to be coincidental. Yet they had been born hundreds of miles apart. Sharmaine's intuition began to warn her that something was odd about that situation. If not odd, then certainly negative for Sharmaine. In a moment the intuited feeling crystallized into a thought: would Mighty Samson be romantically interested in this woman who was so much like himself.

"Samson will be around sooner or later. He usually shows up at our home, even when there is no trouble in the world. If not we can go see him at his tree house," said Mindor cheerfully.

Suddenly, Sharmaine was not so eager that Samson and this young giantess meet. She wished her father would not be so cheerfully helpful.

Standing well over seven feet tall, Samson was built to proportion. His shoulders were wide, and his limbs heavy with muscle. His hair was yellow blond, and his one eye was sparkling blue. He was a handsome man, even with the patch over his right eye. He wore a blue vest and a short breechcloth. Clothes were hard to find for a man so large. His only weapon was a short sword that Sharmaine had found for him. He rarely used the sword; his mighty strength was weapon enough.

Scrin broke out of the brush and trotted to where Samson was standing. The futuristic cave man could smell the fear and blood on the man. Samson was very familiar with the men of the tribe of Mag. They lived very close to his tree house. He knew Scrin personally and had long admired his ability to track.

"What's wrong, Scrin?" asked Samson.

"Big trouble, Samson. Mag sent me to fetch you. Monster man-mutant killing our men. You have to come quick. It is very strong. We can't handle it." Without hesitation, Samson laid his large hand on Scrin's shoulder. "Let's get going. We'll see if something can be done about this new killer."

Scrin led the giant back the way he had come. This time there was no need for stealth. Mighty Samson was with him.

Mindor, Sharmaine and Jan took the most direct path to the tribe of Ian. There were several tribes around Mindor's home and with each of them he had good relations. Often Mindor would help them solve problems using his knowledge of ancient technology, or he would sometimes administer first aid to those tribesmen who were sick or injured. Mindor and Sharmaine were highly regarded by the local tribesmen. They were happy to help. In the dangerous world of mutants and monsters, they needed all the allies they could get. It was always good to be surrounded by friends, not enemies.

It was not long before Jan paused and gazed upon the colorful pedals of the Rainbow tree with wide eyes. These trees were treasured by the local tribesmen. The Rainbow Tree was a benevolent mutation. Its only power was the ability to project a startling beauty that even the savages of the Second Stone Age could appreciate despite their constant struggle to survive. It was for this reason that the tribesmen tried to protect the Rainbow Tree from its natural predators. It had become almost a subject of worship for nowhere else in nature could its beauty be rivaled.

"Lovely, isn't it," commented Sharmaine. She stood next to the giantess and enjoyed the beautiful plant herself. It was not just the colors; it was the way they swirled together in patterns that drew a person's attentions along ideas and emotions that were not often stirred. It possessed an ability to inspire a person visually just as exceptional music does so through audible means.

"Yes, Sharmaine, very much so," whispered the Amazon. "The elders of my people say that Mankind has forgotten God. Among the savages this may be true, but this plant has been shaped directly from the soul of something that is greater than us. I don't know what that something is. Just that this beautiful tree is a testimony to it."

"If not God, then it is a testimony to man's ability to perceive beauty, Jan." Mindor had moved behind the two women and shared their appreciation of the tree. "If we are to warn the tribes about your human mutants we must be off."

Jan smiled down at him. There was a little sadness in her eyes. "Yes, you are right, Mindor. We must hurry. These lands are ripe for Jakel and Hide. We must warn your tribesmen."

"Oh no, Piranna Flies," shouted Mindor. He raised his hands to his face instinctively in an effort to protect himself from their attack. The black swarm was soaring directly for him and the women. Its buzzing indicated hunger, and when the Piranha Flies were hungry, no one was save from their attack. Though small, they could eat through a man in seconds. A swarm could devour a man in a few minutes.

Mindor know how fast the Piranha Flies were. It was certain they couldn't outrun them. If only Samson was here.

Two might arms picked up Mindor and Sharmaine and tucked them to her sides. Suddenly they were moving so fast they could barely breath until they left the air with one tremendous leap. Jan didn't pause after she landed on the old garage roof of some ruined suburban house. She took a few running steps and soared into the air, clearing the roof of the broken house, and landed on the other side which put the house between them and the Flies.

She didn't stop there. With the speed of a greyhound she darted down the jungle path away from the confused swarm. Several minutes later they were safe.

"Are you two all right?" she asked. She wasn't even breathing hard. That could not be said of Mindor and Sharmaine, however. The closeness of their deaths was enough to whisk their breath away. And she had startled them with a physical prowess they had only seen in Mighty Samson before that day.

When Mindor had recovered enough to speak, he said, "You more than look like Samson. You are fast and strong like he is. I had thought there could only be one Samson. It appears he is not unique."

Sharmaine winced at her father's words. Jan was so like Samson. Her mind seized this thought quickly, and it troubled her to think of Samson standing beside Jan.

"I don't know. I've never met your Samson. I can tell you that I have never met anyone like myself in my travels. It will be interesting to meet Samson," said Jan with a smile. "But now we must warn your tribesmen."

"Yes," agreed Mindor. "And we'll have to do something about that swarm, too. I have a special insecticide that can kill them in their nest. When I see Samson we'll set about that task."

They resumed their journey to the tribe of Ian with one major difference. This time Jan took the lead as she put her large powerful body in front of them as a shield should the swarm return. It was something Samson would do. Instead of comforting Sharmaine, it added to uneasiness of her mood.

Scrin led Samson directly to the den of Jakel and Hide. Standing at the entrance to the tunnel, Scrin pointed inside. "That's where we found 'em."

Samson squatted at the entrance. He peered inside. There was blood on the ground and marks in the dirt that must have been made by human hands. Several odors were lingering about the tunnel. Human blood, feces, sweat, rotten meat were among them. And deep inside the cave he heard the sound of several people breathing. There was no doubt that someone was in the den.

"Want me to go and get the rest of the boys?" asked Scrin. He could see that Samson was undecided as to what he wanted to do. After he had seen what the mutant did to his fellow tribesmen, Scrin didn't blame Samson for hesitating. Any sane hunter would hesitate before crawling into a predator's den.

"No. I want you to tell Mindor what I am doing. It may be that I will not succeed. I'd try to smoke them out but I don't know if they have any other tribesmen in there. I'll just have to go in and see. And I might not come out," said Samson.

Scrin looked down at his feet. He kicked a rock over and watched it roll down the tunnel. "Are your sure you won't need my help?"

"I don't know, Scrin. I thank you for asking. Perhaps I should wait for Mindor; we have always tackled problems like this together. But I feel an urgency about the moment. I have to act now. I'm not sure why.

"Go and tell Mindor. That's the best way you can help me," said Mighty Samson.

Samson waited until the tracker disappeared down the trail before he entered the tunnel. His great size caused him to bend over; his fingers touched the packed dirt lightly. As he went along he nearly fell. A great desire to sleep had come over him. He fought it by shaking his head and rubbing his eye, though these tricks did no good, and resorted to slapping his face with his open palm.

When this didn't work he glanced about the tunnel desperately. Samson had felt the pressure of mental domination several times in his life. He knew what was happening to his mind, and he fought it with all his will power. Had he not been experienced in mental attacks, he would have simply fallen asleep, without ever recognizing what had happened to him. With his experience guiding him, he found substance in the attack and applied his great strength against it. Samson's strength was more than physical. Soon he snapped the control that was trying to dominate him. With a snort, he shook his head clear and pushed on.

Something was coming at him through the earth. He could hear it digging. Samson burst into motion, running down the tunnel until he came to the den itself. Whatever had been digging was behind him, running down the tunnel after him. In the den, Samson saw Jakel and the girl. When he saw her, Samson's curled his lip in uncustomary anger. He closed his powerful hand on Jakel's arm and applied bone breaking pressure as he hurled the mutant away from the girl. Just as he bent over her to examine her pitiful situation he was hit by a ball of brute force. Hide slammed him against the wall. As he followed Samson to the wall he stepped on Heida's stomach with such force that he broke her spine. Rebounding off the earthen wall, Samson heard the snapping of her bones, and he turned to meet the low charge of the mutant.

Although smaller than he, the ugly tree bark skinned mutant was superhumanly strong. Samson clamped one huge hand on his brown head and pulled it back. For an instant their eyes met. The futuristic cave man's mind was washed along the savage torrents of the white water rapids of Hide's madness. He barely sensed Hide's hands groping for his genitals, in spite of his superhuman senses, until it was nearly too late. Rough, hard fingers brushed away his breech-cloth and stabbed at Samson's genitals. With lightning speed, Samson countered by catching Hide's wrist in a rough grip and shoving the bestial mutant away from him with desperate fury.

Hide twisted and kicked Samson in his face. Never before had the mighty hero felt such a blow from another human. Hide kept kicking Samson frantically as he tugged his hand free of Samson's grip. The beast man's close quarter speed was incredible. He rained blows on Samson, bit him and pushed him in to a corner of the den. Rolling on the hard packed dirt, straining against each other with superhuman strength, the two mutant combatants froze in virtual deadlock. Hide was above Samson; his saliva dripped from his slightly parted lips. He inched his perfectly white teeth ever closer to Samson's face. Pure savagery peeled any aspect of humanity from the mutant's horrid face. His entire being was sworn to tearing out Samson's throat. Tendon's cracked as muscles screamed from the terrible strain. Samson twisted violently, shifting the balance between them and sent both careening against the far wall. Great was the strength between them; a strength so great that the slightest flip of a wrist could hurl their insignificant body weight into the air, and the sheer violence of their efforts bounced them around the small den like a huge rubber ball.

Nor could those walls made of mere dirt withstand the impact of those two dense, massive bodies. Huge clumps of earth were torn from the walls, roof and floor of the den. The exterior was showered with a spray of fine dust and dirt. Jakel whimpered and crawled down a special escape tunnel, one of many that Hide had built in his new home. He had tried to affect Samson's mind several times, but the combination of the pain from his crushed arm, and Samson's contemptuous fury toward Jakel and Hide prevented his power of domination from taking affect. Wounded and useless in a fight of such great magnitude as the duel between these two titans, Jakel's only recourse was to flee.

Slowly, Samson's slightly greater strength began to tell. His powerful fingers bruised and tore pieces of the mutant's tree bark skin. It was a rare occasion for Hide to smell and see his own blood flowing. Although he wanted to kill the blond giant because of the harm he had done to Jakel, Hide was becoming concerned that he might not be able to do so. Another problem was dawning on the monstrous mutant. He was possessed of a strange perception of the earth. He was a natural tunneller with more than the ability to tunnel. He could sense stress points and strengths in the tunnels and dens he dug. And now that sense was telling him that the earth was about to collapse upon them.

Samson was unaware of this pending doom. His goal was to defeat his opponent with little more strategy than to break his bones. So it was, that when Hide suddenly put all his strength into breaking away from him that Samson was surprised. They paused in their fight, amid the dust and dirt, staring at each other across a span of six feet. Both were on their hands and feet, shaken from the exertions of their combat, and uncertain what to do next. The answer came to Hide more quickly than Samson as the earth trembled and revealed to him its secrets. With both hands he scooped up loose dirt and hurled it at Samson's eye. When the mighty man blocked the dirt with his own hands, Hide backed into one of his escape tunnels and streaked away from the den at full speed.

The earth caved in on Samson. It drove down on him like an army of sledgehammers. He resisted, staying on his hands and knees, and tucked his head between his hunched shoulders. Samson heard Hide's shrill laughter as the world crashed down on him.

Scrin hid outside the village of Ian. While the local tribes located in the area around Mindor's bank vault were in a truce, it was not always wise to depend on that veracity of that truce. It was true that Mindor was present in the village, and the old man was generally acknowledged as the grandfather of the tribes because of his many good works. Still, Scrin was a suspicious man, like the small creatures of the jungle he loved. It would be better to wait until the wise old man left Ian's village.

As the best hunter in his tribe, perhaps one of the best in N'Yark, Scrin had developed a grim patience that was being tested at that moment. Every nerve in his body was ordering him to get Mindor's attention immediately. There was no telling what danger Samson was in back at the mutant den. If his instinct to act was impulsive and urgent, his hunter's training was rigid. He remained in a squatting position under the broad leaves of an elephant-ear plant and waited for Mindor to leave Ian's village.

Mindor said farewell to Ian and his warriors after warning them that there might be a new mutant menace in the area. The men had swarmed around Jan, impressed by her great size and pretty face, until she warned them away with an irritated voice. One of them had laughed as she walked away with the coarse comment, "Samson with tits." If Jan heard the comment she didn't acknowledge it.

A few hundred yards away from the village Scrin stepped out of the foliage and greeted them. He filled them in on what had happened quickly. Mindor bade him to lead them to the den.

"This is not good. If your Samson faced both of them together, he may well be dead," said Jan.

"You don't know Samson," retorted Sharmaine. Her faith in the giant was solid. She couldn't imagine anything that could defeat him.

Mindor saved his breath for running. He was a much older man and needed every advantage he could get to keep up with Scrin and the girls.

Tons of dirt pushed down on him. He crouched in darkness. His only air was the small open space between his torso and the den's floor. Everywhere else was the ground, pressing in on him, for it seemed as if a whole mountain had fallen on his back. Only his superhuman strength had kept him from being squashed flat against the floor when the den had caved in.

The small pocket of space underneath him would soon run out of air. Samson could hold his breath for over 30 minutes, but once that was done he would die in this deep grave. And this greatly troubled the giant. His own death was not as important as the fact that he had not stopped those inhuman monsters. He was certain they had survived. And because they had survived they would prey on the tribesmen he had chosen to protect. Perhaps, Sharmaine or Mindor would be their next victim.

His friends were in danger. He bowed under the weight of tons of earth and shuddered at that intolerable reality. He was alone; no one or nothing could help him. His mother's beautiful face swam before his blurring eyes: her laughing eyes and gentle smile. And with her presence he remembered his oath to her as she lay dying.

"Whatever I can do, I will, to protect the weak from the powerful, the good from the evil! I promise."

Power trembled down his mighty arms. Samson had lifted tons before, though never under such cramped circumstances. Reaching into the depths of his soul and his commitment to the oath he had given his mother, the mighty man began to straighten up. Fortunately for Samson, the earth pinning him was still loose. As he began to rise, the dirt fell down in front of him and filled the gap that had once held his air supply. It was all or nothing. A terrible brightness burst along his nerves and muscles contracted with the unstoppable natural force of a hurricane. The earth moved as Samson stood up. It broke before his power with a eruption that rivaled any natural earthquake. Sunlight reached him in a weak shaft. Samson half leaped up, half scrambled with flailing arms as the earth began to settle back upon him. He was losing. Dirt clogged his mouth as the blackness of the grave swallowed him up again. His right hand jutted out of the ground like a tombstone, marking the place where the earth had reclaimed him.

Jan was a blur as she left the others behind. She had felt the rumble of the earth beneath her feet, and it could only be trouble since she knew that Hide was a tunneller. Exerting her full ground speed, the Amazon arrived at the scene just as the ground had stopped trembling and was silent again. There in the middle of a clearing was a single huge hand. It sprout out of the earth in mockery of the man it was joined to. Jan covered twenty feet in a hop and grabbed the hand with both of hers.

There was no time for gentleness. Trusting that Samson was as tough as she was, she uprooted him from his grave with one mighty pull. Samson's body came loose of the ground, swung high in an arc, and landed flat on his back with an impact that would have crushed the bones of a normal man.

She knelt by the mighty man and pressed her ear to his chest. A strong beat brought a smile to her face. Samson was alive!

Brushing the dirt from his unconscious body, Jan marveled at how alike he was in comparison to herself. She examined him with quick hands and learned that he was every bit the masculine counterpart to herself. As much more than normal human as she was. Bigger in every way. Curiously, she lamented that some cruel beast had robbed him of his eye. It had not robbed him of his handsomeness.

Standing over him like a lioness she scanned the jungle and determined that neither Jakel or Hide were nearby. She was still standing there when Mindor, Sharmaine and Scrin arrived.

"Is he all right?" asked Sharmaine. She had rushed to Samson's body and knelt there. Jan stepped away from Samson and realized that this red headed girl loved the mighty man.

"Yes, just exhausted. I pulled him from the ground just in time. He should recover soon," said Jan with a small, lost smile.

"Oh, thank goodness," whispered Sharmaine. Samson was so big and strong; it was hard to see him unconscious and helpless.

"Are the inhumans nearby?" asked Scrin. He was nervously looking about as if expecting an attack at any time. His memory advised him that his spear would not keep him safe.

"No, they are not. They must have fled," reported Jan.

"We have to get Samson to safety. Can you carry him, Jan?" asked Mindor.

"Of course," said the giantess, "no problem at all."

"Get somebody to fix my arm," rasped Jakel, "it hurts like hell."

In a dark, shallow tunnel they had used as an emergency exit, Hide squatted and listened to Jakel's voice. Without light, he could only see a outline of his friend, and he was sure that Jakel could see nothing. At least not with his own eyes. It was possible that Jakel was looking through Hide's eyes instead of his own.

"Where in hell am I gonna find an armfixer?" retorted Hide. They had just moved into this new N'Yark territory. Hide knew nothing of the tribes who inhabited the area.

Jakel squeezed his eyes together to fight the pain. The blond giant had literally crushed his arm. Without proper medical attention he might as well have Hide tear it off.

"Listen, you ugly badger, I need to have this arm afixed. You gotta go and get me a healer. I don't care where or how you do it. Just do it! Understand!" screamed Jakel.

Hide cringed before his ally's outburst. For all his superhuman strength, the tree bark skin mutant knew that Jakel was his superior. With just a thought Jakel could turn off Hide's mind and make him a slave.

"Okay, Jakel, okay. I'll go up to the surface now. It must be dark. The locals won't see me coming. I'll find you a healer," promised Hide. Within moments he was gone.

Samson towered above all the men in the group. These were the men of the tribe of Mag, and they were gathered around Samson and Mindor to discuss the problem of the new menace in N'Yark. Since it was man-talk, Jan and Sharmaine were left standing alone several yards away. This had not set well with Sharmaine, who stared at the men with glaring eyes. Jan remained remote and silent as if to say that this had happened to her too often in the savage world of the Second Stone Age.

"I am sorry to say that Heida was killed. Now we have to find those two new mutants. No one is safe with them still alive," said Samson. The men agreed with this statement and were willing to hunt the mutant menaces down. Most of them were doubtful that they could succeed in killing the tree-bark skin mutant however, at least without the help of Mighty Samson. For this reason they waited for his suggestions and not those of their chief.

"Scrin and a few others will come with me back to their den. We will try to pick up a trail by scouting around the area. The digger mutant must have had escape tunnels built. If we can find those tunnels we can begin the hunt from there," Samson said.

"What about the one Jan calls Jakel? He is some kind of mind controller. He might be more dangerous than Hide," mentioned Mindor.

"Do you have any suggestions, Mindor?" asked Mag.

"Just one. Perhaps we can persuade one of mental mutants from the Metro area to help us. They are experts in mental command and psychokinesis. If not we can learn from their weaknesses. If I recall their mental abilities were disrupted by sound waves. Each man should carry something that makes a loud noise, such as a rattle or small dong, as a protection against Jakel," suggested Mindor. Mindor was referring to the Metro Mind Masters who once tried to subject a neighboring tribe of farmers into slave labor. Samson, Mindor and Sharmaine became had involved and eventually stopped the Mind Masters from enslaving other tribes. Mindor was responsible for forming a peace treaty between the Mind Masters and the farmers that worked out to the mutual benefit of both tribes.

The Metro Mind Masters were small people with large heads. With their natural gifts of telepathy and psychokinesis it seemed perfectly appropriate to call on their expertise in these matters when dealing with a mental mutant like Jakel.

"I'm not sure that Jakel will be a big problem, Mindor. Not unless he's a fast healer. In my anger I squeezed his arm pretty hard. It was probably crushed. Pain, not sound might cut off his mental powers," said Samson.

"Well," mused Mindor, "the Mind Masters could be helpful in finding Jakel. I'm going over to the Metro and see if they'll help."

This sounded like a good idea to Samson and the men of Mag's tribe. The mighty man suggested that Sharmaine and her new friend go with Mindor.

"I want to go on the hunt for Jakel and Hide," declared Jan. She had walked over when her name was mentioned. She was so tall she could nearly look Samson in the eye.

Samson took a long moment to consider her. Not just her comment but everything about her. Like Mindor he had been startled by her similarities to himself. There was an unnatural strength in her that reflected his own. She was calm, like he usually was, as if unaffected by the normal irritations in life, and this was because she, like he, was so much larger than life.

And most startling of all, Samson accepted her. Without fanfare or proof, he had accepted her as a friend and ally. From the moment he has first seen her he knew that she was a person from the same "tribe" as he. That knowledge had risen from a depth below his normal consciousness. A place where intuition operated.

"The jungle between here and the Metro is dangerous. It would be best if Mindor had your protection," said Samson.

"Then why don't you protect him? As you always have done, and let me pursue these monsters," said Jan.

"These men will not follow a woman. To you that might be a silly thing, but to them it isn't. Its best if I lead them today," explained Samson.

Jan dropped her voice to the merest whisper, confident that Samson could hear it with his unusually good hearing. She didn't want the others to listen in on their conversation.

"When you find Jakel and Hide, these men will be of little help. It will be between you and them. Mutant against mutant. The truth is you want to deal with them yourself. You are angry and want vengeance," she whispered.

Narrowing his eyes, Samson took a deep breath before replying. When he did he did so in a whisper.

"Yes, I want to deal with them. This is my territory. I protect these people from harm. Sometimes in their ignorance or weakness they do not deserve protection. Nor are they always grateful. These things do not matter. It has become the purpose in my life that I must protect them from menaces like this Jakel and Hide. These creatures have invaded my home, and it is I who will stop them."

"If we go together there will be no doubt that we will succeed. Splitting us up serves no purpose but to weaken your attack," pointed out Jan.

Samson shrugged. "Mindor's plan is a good one. The Metro Mind Masters might be of great help to us if this Jakel is as powerful as you have claimed. Go with my friend and protect him from harm."

Reluctantly, Jan nodded. She accepted his direction with a dubious frown.

Both of them were aware that the others were staring at them. Mindor had a slight smile on his face. The tribesmen were in awe of Samson, as they usually were. Sharmaine was not smiling. Seeing Samson and Jan standing so close together unnerved her. There was a powerful naturalness to their being together. Sharmaine was beginning to measure herself against the Amazon and wondered if she was losing Samson.

She and Samson had been very good friends for many years. She had found him when he was little more than a youth, torn and mutilated from his battle with a Liobear, the most feared of all mutant beasts. His right eye had been torn out; even his superhuman vitality had been ruptured by the mutant's claws. She had nursed him back to health. From the day he fully recovered Samson, Mindor and Sharmaine had become a team and a force for good in N'Yark.

She knew Samson cared for her. He often displayed jealousy when other men became friendly with her. The trouble was that Samson was a shy man. Mindor had once told her that it may be that Samson feared his own strength. He was too large to fit with most people. Too strong to hold a woman in an embrace of passion. Sharmaine curled her lip sardonically. Here was a woman Samson was not too strong to embrace.

With everything settled the meeting broke up quickly. There was a lot of work to be done.

Mindor, Sharmaine and Jan departed for the Metro before the tribesmen and Samson went on their hunt for Jakel and Hide. Their trip was uneventful with the exception of a few minor incidences which were handled easily by the Amazon. Mindor was gracefully received by the Mind Mutants, and to honor their respect for him they allowed one of their kind to travel back to the territory of Mag where this single unit would represent the unity of their mental community. Mindor was aware that the Mind Masters had a telepathy that bonded them in a way that was unknown to men who did not have that power. Descriptions of the experience led Mindor to believe that it was a return to a hive type mental community that collected every mind in a pattern connected by lines of telepathic communication. Whatever the truth of their experience was, the Mind Masters assured Mindor that only one individual would be needed to represent the rest of their community.

The individual's name was Eo. Like the others of his pink-skinned race, he was short, skinny and shuffled his underdeveloped body beneath his large overdeveloped head. He didn't speak much during their journey. He preferred mental communication, and since his traveling companions were not telepaths, he respected their privacy and did not indulge in what was for him a normal method of communication. Or it might have been a matter of apprehension rather than respect. Like all of the Metro Mental Masters, he remembered the power of Mighty Samson, and the giant woman in the company of Mindor and Sharmaine appeared to be a feminine replica of the futuristic caveman. Caution around someone so strong was a course of action that appealed to the diminutive Eo.

It was not long before the village of Mag came into sight.

Hide sat in the darkness of a temporary den and brooded. Knowing nothing about the people who lived in the area, the mutant was bewildered as to how he could find a healer among them. He beat his head with his open hand until a solution came to him. Slowly a plan formed, and Hide's scowl turned into a grin. Using his unique ability to dig, Hide made his way to the village of Mag: underground and undetected.

The monster man came from the ground. Smashed bones, torn muscles, ripped tendons were left in the wake of his attack. Surprisingly no one was killed. At least five people were maimed and left broken. Then the monster man was gone.

When Sharmaine, Jan and Eo reached the village of Mag they found a chaos of broken shacks, broken weapons and broken bones. Women and children flooded to Sharmaine and begged her to help. As her father was renowned for his technological wizardry, Sharmaine was valued for her knowledge of first aid. She had spent long hours studying the medical text books in her fathers immense library. Self taught, her expertise was equal to that of a pre Holocaust registered nurse. She was intelligent enough to realize that she had done this as much to equal her father's worth among the tribes as her innate need to help others in need. So it was only natural that the injured came to Sharmaine when she was available.

Jan watched the beautiful, red headed girl tend to the terrible wounds that Hide had given these innocents. There was no doubt in her mind that it had been Hide who had attacked the tribe. She wondered why he had done so.

Mindor helped his daughter. When the crisis was over and their patients were sedated and resting, he walked over to Jan.

"We have to return to our mission. Samson is expecting us to bring Eo to him," he said.

"Your daughter does good work here. I am pleased that I saved her from the quicksand monster," said Jan as she continued to watch Sharmaine.

"Yes, she wants to make her own contribution. It is our dream to return the tribes of N'Yark to some semblance of civilization. And we hope a civilization improved upon the last," replied Mindor.

Jan peered down at Mindor. "People are the same. They make the same mistakes their parents do. Or their ancestors. Your task will be a difficult one."

"But not hopeless. At least we don't think so. That's why we spend so much time with the children. As history teaches us, they are the hope of the future."

The giantess smiled benignly. That was a thought she had been entertaining of late. In her life she had known several men whom she had been in love with. None of them were capable of impregnating her. None of them were up to her standards. It had been her conclusion that her mutant background had made her sterile. There would be no more people like her after she died. These had been her beliefs before she had met Samson. When she had first seen Samson, an old hope was reborn, and once again she began to think of her own possible children. He was a man similar to herself in every way. A man who might be genetically compatible with her

"In some cases it is a very slim hope," Jan said softly. And there was Sharmaine. The affection between her and Samson was obvious. Had she found a man for herself too late? Was she wrong to begin hoping again?

"Come on, Jan. We have to get Eo to Samson. Look what that mutant menace has done to this village. The sooner we find him, the sooner we end the trouble," said Mindor. He touched her arm and nodded toward the Metro Mental Master.

"Of course, Mindor. You are right," she said as she followed him.

At that moment Samson was a little angry. Neither his super senses or Scrin's hunting expertise had unearthed any clues as to where the evil mutants had disappeared to. Returning to the place where Samson had fought Hide, the futuristic Caveman had dropped to all fours and pressed his ear to the ground. Samson was blessed with unusually sharp hearing and could sometimes detect things underground in the same manner as a robin can hear the passage of a worm through the earth. Today he heard nothing. Jakel and Hide were gone.

"The ugly strong one is a burrower. He must have taken his companion and journeyed far underground. Perhaps he had many tunnels dug for that purpose already. We cannot track him unless he or the other travels on the top of the ground, not below it," said Samson.

Scrin squatted next to Samson. "The best we can do is circle the area and try to find other tunnel openings. They would have to be large enough to let a man crawl through."

"That is where many men can help. I have to find the monster if I am going to deal with him. I don't think the weak one could go far. I hurt him badly. Let's fan out and try to find more tunnels," directed Samson.

This was begun swiftly. The tribesmen formed a large circle that turned in ever widening rings as they worked away from the original den site. Samson warned them not to try to fight Hide if he should appear. Most of the tribesmen realized that the mutant was too powerful for ordinary men to fight. All of them were fearful of meeting Hide. Even searching for Hide was a testament to their courage and their commitment to the safety of their people. For this Samson admired them.

They searched for many hours and found nothing. Hide's tunnels were deep in the earth and there were no tunnel entrances in the near vicinity.

About a half hour after Mindor and Jan left, Hide struck the Tribe of Mag again. After observing the injured people and the woman who cared for them, the tree bark skin mutant decided he had found a healer. Brushing aside the spears and blows of the few men left in the village, Hide seized Sharmaine and took her underground. She was gone as if the earth had swallowed her up.

Mindor found Samson leaning against a tree trunk, his mighty arms folded over his chest and a sour look on his face. It was growing late in the day and would soon be dark. With a flourish of his hand, Mindor presented Eo to the futuristic caveman.

"Maybe he can help?" Mindor added with a smile.

"I hope so. We've been unable to come up with anything," retorted Samson. "Eo, can you detect the evil mutants?"

The Metro Mental Mutant closed his eyes and pressed his fingers to his temples. Within seconds veins bulged in his enormously bald head. The Eo opened his eyes.

"There was someone here. Someone with telepathic talent. Someone with monstrous thoughts," said Eo.

"He's not there now?" asked Samson.

"No. I have found a faint psychic trail. It has taken the full power of my people to find it. Fortunately this mutant is strong telepathically, or we would not have been able to detect it so far underground. Often the earth acts as a buffer against our probes," explained Eo.

"You have found a trail, though," exclaimed Samson. He leaned over the diminutive humanoid from his more than seven foot height. "Something we can follow until we find them."

Eo looked up at the giant calmly. "A whisper, no more."

Samson's blue eye blazed. "Then listen carefully and show me the way."

Eo nodded and began to walk in the direction indicated by the psychic trail. His ancestors had been people gifted with all sorts of psychic gifts. These gifts had bred true. And now, through the agency of some sort of mass mental communication that connected each one to the other, they all bent to the task of finding the mutant menaces.

Mindor tugged at Samson's arm and led him away from the others. "You seem very determined to catch these mutants, Samson. Is there something special about them?"

"Something dirty. Evil. That girl was treated like a piece of trash. Hide stepped on her and killed her in a final act of inhumanity. Broke her like she was a twig beneath his heel. I have never felt so repulsed by any living creature as I was by those two.

"Mindor, I am dedicated to protect the weak from the strong. Help the good against evil. This was the promise I made to my mother while she lay dying. Killed by marauders like these two mutants. It is one thing to kill and another to abuse like these two did that girl. I only saw her alive for a moment, but you know the clarity of my senses. In that moment I smelled, heard, saw and nearly tasted her. And then she was dead." Samson looked away from Mindor. The elder man was surprised at the emotion the giant was showing.

"We have fought many threats to N'Yark. We will prevail against this one as well," said Mindor. He slapped the futuristic caveman on his back lightly.

Then they followed the mental mutant as he followed his psychic trail with slow, tiny steps.

The creature shoved her down a dark passageway that cut into the earth at a 45 degree angle. Already Sharmaine was bruised and battered by his superhuman fingers, the same iron fingers that had dug this tunnel through hard packed earth and rock. She was less than a helpless baby in those iron hands, and for a moment she wondered at the gentleness Samson must have always used with her. What a terrible strength he had always leashed in her presence or the presence of other ordinary men.

The monster who had taken her was leashing his strength too. He wanted her alive so she could care for his friend. Otherwise she would probably already be broken by his most casual of motions. Deeper and deeper into the earth he pushed her until they came to a small chamber. Here there was a single candle burning. Evidently the small man curled up in a corner of the room did not have the benefit of the digger's dark vision.

The mutant with skin like tree bark pointed to the injured man. He used a finger to prod her towards him. "You healer. You fix Jakel."

The injured man was feverish. Sharmaine quickly found the crushed arm. She turned and looked at Hide.

"I need my medicines to help him," she said.

"Ha, Hide has brought them. Here is the bag you were carryin'."

The digger pushed her medicine bag across the dirt floor. Then he pushed his ugly face into hers. "You fix Jakel or Hide kill you."

Repelled by his fetid breath, Sharmaine fought down a tidal wave of panic with all her courage. Her fingers stumbled over the latch of the bag.

"I'll do my best," she promised weakly, though what she could do for such a badly injured arm was minimal. At least she could ease the man's pain.

Hide grunted and settled back on his naked haunches. He watched the red haired girl work with glowing eyes.

A runner brought them the heartbreaking news that Sharmaine had been abducted. Samson clenched and unclenched his powerful hands as he stared at the ground. Suddenly his world had been darkened to the point where the only light he could see was Sharmaine. With great difficulty he controlled himself and turned to Mindor.

"Now they have a valuable hostage. We must hurry," he said in a soft voice that trembled.

Mindor stood there with his lower lip pushed out and his eyes filled with fear. He could barely contemplate the brutal fate that might be in store for his daughter.

"Let's continue on. We have to find them to help Sharmaine," came Jan's calm voice. She took Samson's place beside Eo and walked him along the trail. Presently, Samson and Mindor rejoined the slowly moving group.

Eventually Eo stopped and pointed to the ground. "They are down there. I can feel the mind of the telepathic one."

"Quickly, we have to find the tunnel. The entrance has to be around here somewhere. Fan out until we find it," ordered the mighty man. It was not long before the tunnel was found.

Samson tore away the branches that Hide had placed on the entrance to conceal it. He dropped to his hands and knees and stuck his head into the tunnel. It was cut in a circle with a diameter of about 3 feet. Hide was a large man; Samson was much larger, but he felt he could squeeze himself down the tunnel.

"It wouldn't be a good idea for you to go down there, Samson," said Mag. "They'll tear your head off when you come out the other end."

"And I know Hide will sense you long before you get to the end. If he hasn't detected our presence already. He is very sensitive to things that move through the earth," added Jan.

"Every moment wasted could mean Sharmaine's death," growled Samson. "I have no choice."

Mindor walked around the area and examined some ancient landmarks that were nearly overgrown with jungle vegetation. One was a street sign. He had spent many hours studying maps of old New York until his knowledge of the great city was complete. Another plan came to his mind.

"Samson, there is a sewer nearby that will take us all down below the ground. It maybe that we can attack the mutants from below instead of above. In fact, we may surprise them that way," said Mindor.

"Yes, Mindor, that is a good idea. Let us search for an entrance to the sewer," agreed Jan.

"Do that! I have another plan. I want to get down there now," said Samson. He began to force his huge body down the tunnel. Jan reached out and caught his arm. Her strength held him back.

"Use your head, Samson. This is a foolish risk you are taking," she said.

The muscles in Samson's arm grew as hard as stone. He pulled free of her grip. "I said I have a plan. Risk means nothing compared to Sharmaine's safety."

Without further words he pushed himself down the tunnel.

"Mag, spread your men out and find an opening to the sewer," ordered Mindor. The tribesmen complied, and Jan helped them in their search.

Samson crept down the tunnel. The light from the surface quickly faded, though there was no need for light since he had only one way to go. In any case, Samson did not fear the dark, since he had taught himself to use his other super sensitive senses to compensate for any loss of vision a long time ago. As he progressed down he stopped every five foot and pressed his ear to the tunnel wall. If Hide could sense Samson coming, Samson's senses were equally sharp and would detect when he was near the end of the tunnel.

After about ten minutes of inching down the passage like a worm, Samson sensed the end about fifteen feet away. He heard people breathing and an occasional word. It was at this time he dug his fingers into the walls and uncoiled the full power of his super muscles. With just the power of his hands alone, he shot himself down the remaining fifteen feet like a rocket until he burst out of the tunnel into the adjoining room. Though Hide had been waiting for him, Samson's iron body bowled the tree bark skinned mutant over and they both crashed into a corner of the den. Samson grabbed Hide and held him close. It was important that he prevent the evil mutant from escaping or harming Sharmaine. They grappled for several seconds. Each tried to secure a deadly grip on the other. And through this grappling, Samson used part of his strength to prevent them from moving toward the other side of the den where Sharmaine and Jakel were watching.

Sharmaine had given Jakel a mild pain killer. He gazed at the combatants through dim eyes. Realizing that Hide was in combat with a serious enemy, the mental mutant struggled to bring forth his own abilities. He tried to put Samson asleep.

"Sharmaine, try to crawl up the tunnel," gasped Samson as he wrestled with Hide. She scrambled across the den floor and poised at the mouth of the escape tunnel.

"I'll be all right. Go! So I can fight," Samson gasped.

Sharmaine paused. Despite the terror she was experiencing she didn't want to abandon Samson. In his eye she saw something that struck her like a hammer. Samson was getting drowsy. His fighting was becoming half hearted. Across the room Jakel twisted his lips into a sneering grin.

Hide smashed his head into Samson's jaw. He reared up on the mighty man and began to club him in the face with repeated blows. He noticed Samson's remaining eye and a vicious plan came to his animalistic mind.

Suddenly Samson's mind cleared. Across the room Sharmaine struck Jakel with a karate blow she had learned in her travels. Samson caught Hide's hand as the evil mutant's fingers were about to dig out his one good eye. Super charged muscles in both mutants rippled and squirmed in iron flesh as Hide pressed his advantage over Samson. One of his hardened finger nails, which were capable of rending concrete and stone, brushed the mighty man's eyelid. In a moment the mutant with tree bark skin would plunge that mighty digit into Samson's eye.

The earth roared. The floor beneath them opened up, and they fell through into the ancient sewer below. Jan leaped out of the way, after she had torn an opening in the roof of the sewer. Ignoring Samson and Hide, she leaped upon Jakel and pulped his head with one quick blow.

Hide rolled away from Samson. In the sewer he saw many enemies. Most important, he saw Samson and the Amazon together. Racing up the sewer, he attempted to escape. He had not thought of the speed of Mighty Samson. Almost a blur, the futuristic cave man caught up to Hide and brought him to the ground. This time Samson was on top. He wrapped one brawny forearm under Hide's chin and the other around the back of his neck. Then, with one insane surge, the Mighty Samson broke Hide's neck.

"You will hurt no one else," rasped Samson. It was difficult for the mighty man to kill a human being. Killing mutant monsters was an everyday occurrence for Samson, but killing people was something he avoided stringently. He rose from Hide's broken body and pushed his yellow hair from his eye. He was surprised that he felt so little remorse. Now that it was over, it felt as if just another mutant monster had been slain.

Sharmaine was in Mindor's arms. Samson longed to hold her, but stood off as she sobbed in her father's embrace. It was one of the few times he had ever seen her cry. Her experience in the mutant den must have been horrifying.

Jan walked over to Samson. "Well, that puts an end to their evil. Don't feel sorry for the beast you killed. He had killed hundreds of innocent people."

He frowned as he met a pair of blue eyes that were nearly at his level. There was understanding in her eyes. She knew that killing human beings disturbed him. And she was attempting to comfort him.

"Thanks, Jan," he said. Things had gone swiftly in the hours since Samson had been alerted to the menace of Jakel and Hide. Now that the job was over he realized how much she was like him. In that moment, with the two of them staring at each other, he concentrated his super senses on her and felt a sameness that was startling. A type of communication that linked them without words. It was not telepathy for Samson had felt telepathy through the agency of other mutants who had been true telepaths. It was something else. Samson's senses were so sharp, so perceptive that he 'saw' things in more dimensions than a normal person. And so did Jan. He could smell her hormones racing through her body, hear her heartbeat, and could almost feel the warmth of her skin, even though she was standing three feet away. Normally, Samson didn't allow himself to tune into another person so intimately. In the case of the Amazon, the 'tuning in' was natural and automatic. And fulfilling.

"I would like to speak with you later, Samson. Privately," Jan said in a low tone. Again, only he could hear her.

The giant knew that she spoke in a whisper to exclude others from their conversation. He glanced over at Sharmaine nervously.

"Okay, Jan. Perhaps tomorrow when everything has calmed down," Samson agreed. She smiled and nodded.

Someone was climbing up the rope ladder. Samson opened his eye and rolled off his bed. He waited for his visitor to arrive, though he knew who it was before he saw her.

"Hello," said Jan cheerfully as she jumped lightly onto Samson's tree house. She regarded his makeshift home furnishing with a twisted smile. "You could use a housekeeper."

"Sharmaine said that once," replied Samson.

"Oh, has she been up here?"

"A couple of times," said Samson shyly. "I just got up. Can you wait a few minutes?"

She nodded and turned away. Samson took care of his morning business and returned to her.

"Do you have a serious relationship with Sharmaine?" she asked immediately.

"Pretty serious. Why do you ask?"

"Don't you know, Samson?"

"I'm not sure," admitted Samson.

Jan walked over to the railing that rimmed Samson's tree house. She looked out over the jungles of N'Yark.

"You know that you are different from most human beings. Better, stronger, and more suited to survive in our mutant wasteland. You are a 'good' mutation. Just as I am. I think you know that we are the same.

"I have know several men in my life. Known and loved them. None of them could make me pregnant. None of them could satisfy me on every level. Satisfaction like that may be a dream. I don't know. It may be that the mutations that made me what I am have also made me sterile. I thought that was true. Until I met you," explained Jan. She turned to face him. She was beautiful, big and strong. This was a woman he could hold without breaking. A woman he could kiss fiercely without injuring her. This was a woman of whom he need not worry about her safety.

"I think you and I are similar enough to make a baby. Perhaps breed a new kind of Man. This is something I've dreamt about for a long time," Jan said. Like the rest of her, her breasts were large. They rose and fell with uninhibited excitement.

But Samson shook his head. "I'm sorry. My heart belongs to Sharmaine."

"I know. At least for now. Things change with time. I am over forty years old and still look 24. I believe you will be the same. Yet, I don't want to wait. You say your heart belongs to Sharmaine. Its not your heart I need, Samson."

"I don't know. It doesn't seem right."

"You are not committed to Sharmaine. She isn't your mate. Not yet. I am not trying to destroy your relationship with her. In fact, I even saved her from death. I just want you to help me try to start something wonderful. Please, give me this little part of you," Jan pleaded.

She turned and bent over the railing. One of her hands lifted her skirt and presented her smooth beautiful buttocks to Samson. The mighty man swallowed hard and made a decision.

Neither wind nor storm had ever moved the iron hard tree that housed Samson's home. That morning his house swayed.

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