The Far Reaches Webcomic

Introduction

In the far reaches of space the galaxy is on the brink of a war so devastating that only the nigh-psychotic cyber-sheep may survive…again.

Join Gilrec Dauntless, an angsty young gentleman with all the backbone of the soggier variety of limp paper bag, and his indomitable gentleman’s personal gentle-bot, Bentley, as they are hurdled into a vile plot deeper than a really deep thing. The Far Reaches is a wacky adventure filled with space pirates, cheese-loving bounty hunters, gorgeous fiancées from the nether realms of the vile pink bunnies of greedy vengeance, and nigh-psychotic cyber sheep terrorizing the star lanes. Listen, I write it and I don’t understand it. Add in an unhealthy dose of manically psycho bug-eyed alien gun-mongers shooting everything in sight, and a high-speed starship chase through the crowded sky-lanes of the futuristic city of Langevia. A bizarre and loopy sci-fi comedy in the spirit of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.

What’s this Comic About Anyway?

The Far Reaches is about, well, it’s about many things. It’s about Freedom from the oppressor! It’s about mom’s homemade turkey and coleslaw pudding. It’s about 4:30am while I write this. Sorry, what was the question? I’ll start again. By the way, there are some spoilers ahead, but you’ll get up to speed if you’re trying to figure out what’s going on.

	Gilrec Dauntless A wealthy young socialite with all the courage of the limper variety of soggy paper bag, Gilrec is trying to find his spine because for some strange reason the universe seems to want him to be a hero. Or maybe it’s just his imagination. After his idea saved the crew of a cargo ship from space pirates, he was given an ancient Boranese artifact (because there has to be at least one), and now everyone’s after it. Gilrec’s got some serious angst and ever feels under the iron cyber-heel of his evil uncle Kilgore. He is engaged (by force and freaky huge robots with big guns) to the beautiful and rich Vellara Chylsteal, and his uncle and her father are determined to put this merger, eh, marriage through at all costs. Unfortunately, she is a fiend from the nether realms of the vile pink bunnies of greedy vengeance.
	Bentley M-7 The indomitable Bentley is Gilrec’s gentleman’s personal gentle-bot, and is always there to get Gilrec out of a jam and make sure his socks match. He has a mysterious past and secretive ties to the Terran Imperial Secret Service. He’s also armed to the teeth and can kick some serious tail feathers.
	Brin Thade A former Terran Imperial Special Forces agent, Brin helped rescue Gilrec from the clutches of the vile yet astonishingly loony pirates. Brin is a skilled fighter and cunning detective. She’s on a secret mission from a covert employer to uncover the mysteriously insidious plot behind the pirate’s clandestine activities. Quietly.
	Pix The ultra-skilled hacker hired to aid Brin in her covert mission. Pix is a super-fan-girl of all the latest animated “toons,” especially the incredibly popular Go Moonchi (thus the hat). Her collection of rare action figures and toys were all destroyed by the insane hit-men from Gruesain Corporation. She’s says she was framed for hacking into their corporate system and stealing five million. The idea is ridiculous. She wouldn’t have been caught!
	Binder Bliten The dangerously stupid hero wanna-be, Binder is the one who got Gilrec into this whole mess in the first place. It was Binder’s crazy plan to impress his one-time girl friend, Vellara, to save a cargo ship from space pirates. He is now “helping” Brin and Pix in their mission. After Vellara threw him over, he immediately found a new love…the beautiful Brin, who walks like a tender goddess of the…whatsit. She, of course, would just assume throw him out an airlock, but he did lead them to a get-away ship as they were being pursued by the psychotic Gruesain hit-men.
	Riffy Greefstone Riffy is Binder and Gilrec’s old university chum, and is always bailing Binder out of trouble. Riffy is as rich as he is brilliant, just don’t expect him to remember little things like wearing matching socks. His purple hot-rod space cruiser, the Calantha, is one of the fastest ships around and sports a 300,000 credit paint-job (and now a few blast marks.) His amazing flying saved Brin, Pix, and Binder from the Gruesain hit-men.
	Mad Mallidon Another school chum of Gilrec’s, Mad lives up to his nick-name as no sport is too extreme. But there’s more to this thrill-seeking socialite. He is currently trying to help Gilrec confront his angst and gain some courage through the Mad Mallidon super-school of self-confidence and personal AWESOMENESS! Mad loves cruising around in his sporty red air speeder.
	Tilton Tilton is Riffy’s valet or gentleman’s personal gentle-bot. He’s the one who makes sure Riffy’s dressed to kill (metaphorically) and always has the cappuccino ready. Tilton is also a topping mechanic.
	Uncle Kilgore Dauntless Head of the mega-corporation, Dauntless Industries, Kilgore is Gilrec’s maniacal uncle. He’s more machine now than man, twisted and…you know, evil and stuff. Kilgore surrounds himself with an army of freaky robotic simuloid minions and always knows what’s going on before anyone else. Even the criminal underworld are terrified of him. It’s no wonder Gilrec can’t stand up to his uncle.
	Wellington Kilgore’s freaky little pet that can somehow swallow a Danibian Wolfhound whole. He can swallow…other things too.
	Nigh-Psychotic Cyber-Sheep (AKA The Dark Lords of the Sheep) The legendary terrors of the star-lanes, the pirates used holographic cyber-sheep to inspire fear in their enemies. They are more than just a legend, however. Born of a scientific experiment to make hyper-intelligent sheep to keep the shepherds company on long winter evenings, scientists pushed their abilities way beyond that of mortal sheep. Inevitably the sheep escaped. Over the eons they have grown in their powers and are now the unstoppable Dark Lords of the Sheep.
	Koda The cunning bounty hunter hired by the pirate leader, Lord Nefarious, to obtain the ancient artifact that Gilrec has in his possession. He believes in stealth and lives for the hunt (and carries at least one vicious blast-sword.)
	Frak Koda’s vertically-challenged partner, who hates everything but cheese. He has an apparently endless supply of absurdly huge weapons that seem to spring out of nowhere. He can take on an entire orchestra of seven-foot-tall gorilla musicians and not even break out in a sweat. He usually starts fights because (a) they’re looking at me in a funny way, (b) they called me shrimp, shorty, small-fry, etc., (c) they made some disparaging remark about cheese, (d) they’re simply standing there minding there business, but I saw their ear twitch at me.
	Lord Nefarious The grim leader of the so-called pirates, he is actually the commander of the remnants of the Grynn Imperial Fleet. The Grynn suffered a humiliating and devastating defeat by the Terran Empire in the Grynn war twenty years past. They have now seemingly turned to piracy and are seeking the mysterious artifact that Gilrec has in his possession. Nefarious (named in the great Lucas naming tradition, i.e. let your kids come up with it) is bent on revenge against the Terrans at all costs.
	Vellara Chylsteal The rich and beautiful heiress to the Chylsteal fortune, she is engaged to Gilrec and is as determined as her father to put the merger, eh, marriage through at all costs. She has big plans for Gilrec to go into the Imperial High Council. She likes her men with strings attached, and then she makes them dance.
	Gruesain Corporate Hit-men The manically psychotic hit-men of the Empire’s biggest weapons manufacturing mega-corporation. They deal out mayhem and destruction with a laugh and a smile. It’s the kind of service you only get from a classy corp like Gruesain. They are some how associated with the Grynn Pirates. They’re after Pix and her friends because they think she hacked their system and stole five million.
	The Ancient Artifact This ancient Boranese artifact, dating back from the time of Lord Gord-Likek, was given to Gilrec by the captain of the besieged cargo ship. The Grynn leader, Lord Nefarious, sent out Koda and Frak to retrieve it secretly and at all costs. Five hundred years ago, Gord-Likek built a great fortress protected by insidious traps where he horded the treasures of a thousand worlds. Couldn’t guess why a lot of very powerful people want to get their hands on this artifact.