Hellboy: Seed of Destruction 2

"Seed of Destruction" is the title to the second issue of the Hellboy: Seed of Destruction comic book limited series published by Dark Horse Comics. The story was plotted by Mike Mignola with dialogue by John Byrne. Mignola also did the artwork, inks and lettering, and both Byrne and he did the lettering. It was colored by Mark Chiarello and edited by Barbara Kesel. This issue shipped with an April, 1994 cover date and carries a cover price of $2.50 per copy (US).

"Seed of Destruction"
Having discovered some clues pertaining to the death of the Professor, Hellboy journeys to an old house named Cavendish Hall, along with his colleagues Liz Sherman and Abe Sapien. Lady Emma Cavendish, the woman who owns the house, is recognizable as the woman from the end of the previous chapter. She explains that she is the final heir of Cavendish Hall, her sons having apparently died on their expedition with Bruttenholm. She also notes that her sons had not been the first males of the Cavendish line to try and find the cave as every male for generations has died trying to find it. The practice began with a sailor named Elihu Cavendish, a gentleman and whaler who had traveled the world and heard exotic stories in numerous ports. He had made it his life's goal to find the temple at the north pole; and with his failure, every male of the following generations tried to accomplish his feat. Lady Cavendish confides in the trio her sadness at being the last living member of her family, and her hope that when she dies Cavendish Hall will sink into the lake below.

The butler then escorts the trio to their separate rooms. With Lady Cavendish alone, the shadowy figure returns and informs her he will reunite her with her sons, telling them to emerge with the line "Children, come and kiss your mother goodnight..."

Deciding to begin their investigation, Abe removes his costume and dives out of the window, hoping to find something in the watery depths below the house. Hellboy then calls Liz on an internal line, and they discuss how the butler looked exactly like Sven Olafssen; the Arctic explorer who had supposedly died during the expedition with Bruttenholm and the Cavendish brothers. A group of frogs suddenly appear in Liz's room, and when she mentions this to Hellboy, he yells at her to get out of the room immediately, running towards her room himself.

Hellboy arrives at the room to find Liz gone; however, Olafssen is in the hall, feigning ignorance as to where she has vanished. When Hellboy threatens the explorer into talking, he transforms into a frog-monster, and the two fight through the house. After apparently killing the second monster, Hellboy returns to the sitting room and finds Lady Cavendish dead, covered in markings similar to those which adorned Bruttenholm's dead body. He regrets not having done something to protect her, but the dark individual seen earlier emerges and reveals himself to be Rasputin. Rasputin states that he had summoned Hellboy from the void, and also that it is Hellboy's destiny to help him destroy the world. Before Hellboy can retreat, a set of large tentacles smash through the floorboards and drag Hellboy to the cavernous depths below the house.























"Who Are... Monkeyman and O'Brien?"

 * Writer - Art Adams
 * Penciler - Art Adams
 * Inker - Art Adams
 * Colorist - Matt Hollingsworth
 * Letterer - L. Lois Buhalis























Notes & Trivia

 * This issue is reprinted in the Hellboy: Seed of Destruction trade paperback collection, which was released in October, 1994, and in deluxe hardcover format, released in March, 1995.


 * "Who Are... Monkeyman and O'Brien?" is reprinted in the Monkeyman and O'Brien: The Stories trade paperback collection, published in 1997.