Swamp Thing looked at the horde of cavemen who had come out of hiding to see him.  He was surprised to see that they had already discovered fire, as a few of them held torches.  Others in the mob held spears and crude hatchets.  There were also women, many of them holding crying babies.

He watched as the crowd gathered around him.  He could sense no fear from them.  He held out his hand to what he believed was their elder: a wizened old man with shoulder-length gray hair.

The man shook Swamp Thing 's hand and uttered something that he did not understand.  But the throng of people understood it, and they burst into a chorus of cheers.

Swamp Thing smiled.

He was now glad that he had left the brown planet behind.  After his encounter with Xandor, and the loss of his dear friend, Swamp Thing had decided it was time to move on.  He allowed his sentient being to survive.  Somewhere deep in his heart, Swamp Thing knew that he would also become a member of The Green.

The gray haired man did not let go of Swamp Thing 's hand.  Instead, he prodded him on to the caves littered behind him.  Smiling, the Swamp Thing permitted himself to be led on.

Children surrounded him.  They were full of smiles and giggles.  Swamp Thing bent down and entertained a little boy to climb onto his back.  He carried him as the gray haired man pulled them on.

They were near one of the caves when the cheering stopped.  A dead silence enveloped them.  And then Swamp Thing felt the ground beneath his feet begin to tremble.  Overhead, pterodactyls took flight.  He could hear their screams of terror as they diminished into the sunny sky.

Without warning, the Tyrannosaurs Rex came creeping over the hillside.  Its jaws and opened and closed as it let loose with a mighty roar.

The cavemen scattered.  The little boy that was hanging onto Swamp Thing 's back began to kick and scream.  He let him down so that he could go and join the throngs of shrieking women and children who were running to take refuge in the caves.

KILL said the voice inside Swamp Thing 's head.  It was the only mistake he had made when leaving the brown planet.  The voices had returned.

Still, he ran out to fight the Tyrannosaurs Rex.

The dinosaur bent down as it saw him.  Its mouth opened wide, revealing rows of jagged fangs.  Spittle dripped down off them, leaving large puddles on the arid ground.

Swamp Thing allowed himself to be swallowed into the beast 's great mouth.

As he was inside, he smelled the stink of the monster 's breath.  Riding on it were the deaths of many animals and men. 

Reaching up, he put his hands on top of the dinosaur 's mouth.  Then, with great strength in both his arms and legs, he pushed the mouth open.

"I 'm not going to let you terrorize my friends, " he said.

And then the Swamp Thing started to grow.

As he pushed himself higher, growing to a state of 18 ', the Tyrannosaurs Rex 's mouth split open.  Large chunks of destroyed meat and bone rained down on the cavemen below.

Swamp Thing rode the monster as it smashed, dead, onto the earth.

He reshaped himself to normal size as he watched the cavemen attack the dinosaur 's corpse.  They chopped at it with their makeshift weapons, enjoying the victory.

Swamp Thing ventured into the caves where, again, the children crowded around him.  One of the women came up and put a string of jagged dinosaur teeth around his neck.

The hours slowly passed into nighttime.  Swamp Thing did not partake in the joyous banquet of Tyrannosaurus Rex meat, but instead watched the old man as he carved at the cave wall.

On it, he drew a rudimentary sketch of Swamp Thing battling the dinosaur.

"That 's very nice, " he said, smiling.

Swamp Thing found himself no longer thinking about the brown planet.  Instead, he was enjoying his feast of new friends. 

He knew it wouldn 't last forever, as he had other historical stops on his journey that he wanted to partake.  But those could wait for another day.

Time was on his side...

Tefe was swimming naked in the lake.  The cool water felt good as it soothed her tired and dirty body.  Overhead, the sky was a vast blue dotted white with puffy clouds.  The sun made her feel warm and alive.

"Oh miss, " said a man 's voice from the bank.  "Are these yours? "

Tefe stopped and began to float.  She wiped strands of her hair from her eyes and stared back at shore.  There she could see a wiry man holding up her shoes, shirt and shorts.

"They 're mine, " said Tefe.  "Get away from them. "

The man laughed and darted back into the woods.

Slapping at the water, Tefe swam to shore.  She covered her body the best she could with her hands and followed after the man who 'd stole her clothes.

She found her shoes first, and then her top and jeans messily slung across a flowering shrub.  As she was putting them on, she heard a laugh from behind her.

"Welcome to God 's country, " said the man.

"You jerk. " 

"I 'm sorry, " the man said.  "I was just joking around.  But it should teach a beautiful girl like yourself not to go skinny dipping alone. "

"Pervert, " said Tefe.

"How strange you should call me that, " said the man.  "That 's what the folks in town call me, too. "

"Gee, " replied Tefe, "I wonder why. "

"You 'd never guess by looking at me. "

Tefe turned around and studied the man.  She saw that he sported shoulder-length fire-engine red hair.  And aside from his tall and skinny frame, there wasn 't much else that stood out about him.  Well, except for the serious burn wounds that masked the left side of his face.

"What happened to you? " she blurted out.

"I poured gasoline on a hot mower when I was younger, " he said.  "The whole thing went up in my face. "

"I 'm sorry to hear that. "

Tefe leaned over and put her hand on a tree as she slipped on her shoes.  When she stood back up, she saw Perv staring at her.

"What now? " she asked.

"You 're a plant elemental, " he said.

Tefe was taken aback.  Then she turned and looked at the tree.  She 'd left a mossy handprint on its bark.

"Oops, " she said.  Then she straightened up.  "Hey, how do you know about elementals? "

"Because I 've been searching after the fire one for years, " said Perv.  "It 's nothing big.  Don 't get alarmed. "

Even though he 'd stolen her clothes and given her a fright, Tefe was relieved to hear that her being didn 't scare him away.  In fact, she was interested to hear about a fire elemental.  She 'd never heard of one before. 

"Are you sure a fire elemental even exists? " she asked.

Perv shrugged.  "I don 't know, " he said.  "But it 's kept me busy looking for years. "

For some reason, Tefe felt herself giggle.

"Come on, " said Perv.  "Come back to my cabin with me.  I 'll rustle us up some lunch. "

Tefe thought about it for a quick second before agreeing to come along.  Besides, she was hungry.  And if Perv did try something, she 'd just turn into a mighty oak and beat him with her branches.

As she walked behind him, she thought about how she 'd come to be following a man called Perv to his isolated cabin in the lonely woods.

The barge she had been sailing on with Nicko McBrain had come to its final stop on the river.  The Skipper had announced that all those going ashore needed to do so now, or take the ride back up the watercourse.

Tefe had gathered her things to leave.

"Aren 't you coming? " she 'd asked Nicko.

"No, " he said, with a sadness in his voice.  "I guess this is where we depart. "  He stuck out his arm and waved it about him.  "Just look at those woods, Tefe.  There 's no telling what 's out there. "

Tefe had to agree.  There definitely was no telling what awaited her in the woods.  The only thing that she could be sure of was The Green.

"So you 're afraid of the big dark woods? " she had chided him.

"I guess so, " replied Nicko.  "But I also need time to finish my book.  Riding back up the river, alone, will give me just that. "

"Oh, " said Tefe, smiling, "you 'll be glad to get rid of me, will you? "

Nicko had only smiled.

"Goodbye Tefe, " he said, and then disappeared back into the barge.

For a fleeting moment, Tefe felt herself missing Nicko.  During the short time they 'd come to know one another on the barge, they had built a good friendship.  But, sometimes, she felt that she was destined to be alone in the world. 

"What are you thinking about? " asked Perv.

"Oh nothing, " said Tefe.  She giggled like a nervous schoolgirl.  "Why do they call you perv '? "

"Because I like to steal pretty girl 's clothes when they 're skinny dipping! "

"No, " said Tefe, "I 'm serious. "

"Well, " he said, thinking, "it 's hard not to be called something when you look like me.  I try to be nice to everyone, but whenever my eye wanders over to the pretty girl or I smile at children outside playing, they call me a pervert.  And I guess the name has just stuck over the years. "

Tefe nodded her head.

"I know what it feels like to be different, " she said.

"I can understand that, " said Perv.

Suddenly, she reached across the picnic table Perv had set up in his kitchen and touched the burned side of his face.  Her fingers coursed down over the hideous scars.  Then she planted her palm to his cheek.

"Don 't, " said Perv.

"What? "

"I know what you 're trying to do, " he said.  "But I don 't want my wounds healed. "

Tefe plopped back down onto the bench.  "Why? "

"Because it 's who I am, " he said.  "It 's WHAT I am. "

She watched him gather their dirty dishes and take them to the sink.  She could hear him scraping them clean.

Again, she could understand where Perv was coming from.  She could relate to his feelings of not wanting to be healed.  Sometimes, one just had to accept the cards fate dealt them and play the game.

"I 'm sorry, " Tefe told him.

"The only thing you should be sorry about, " said Perv, "is for not trying my cherry pie.  Want a piece? "

Jimmy Coffey felt the full blast of Goregog 's assault. 

The demon spat a fireball at him.  It exploded against his shoulder, consuming his tailored shirt.  Quickly, Jimmy stripped it off.  He stamped on the blouse as it burned at his feet.

"You 're going to have to do better than that, " said Jimmy. 

"You 're as worthless as your whore I 've murdered, " replied Goregog.  "Bow before me, Jimmy Coffey. "

But Jimmy stood his ground.  His hands balled into fists, and his temper raging from Mary 's demise, he waited for the demon to make its next move.

Goregog licked at his fangs.  And then he sent another fireball flying. 

This time the fire hit Jimmy in the crotch, igniting his genitals.  He fell down to his knees, slapping at the flames.  His hands burned from the heat, and the blisters on his hands erupted into a gooey mess of pus and blood.  His fingers blackened as he beat at the blaze,  doing his best to put it out.

"Ha! " said Goregog.  "I 've neutered the great Jimmy Coffey! "

Jimmy looked at the demon.  Then he raised out both his arms. 

"Robbie, " he called.  "Do it now! "

Suddenly, from behind Jimmy, the matrix slowly began to change.  It took on a dreamy quality, with pink fog emanating from a temple atop a rise.  From behind the builiding, a glowing yellow light, like a search beam, lit up the room.

"You 're trying to trick me, " said Goregog.   "There 's no way that 's real. "

"Oh, " replied Jimmy, "but it is. "  He smiled.  "Go ahead and do your thing. "

Goregog raised a fist.  He attempted to discharge another fireball, but only smoke drifted away from him.

"No! " screamed Goregog.  "This isn 't fair.  It can 't be happening. "

"But it is, " said Jimmy.  "It is. "

Robbie had brought forth the temple of light, that which sat at the lowest part of Heaven.  Trapped in its confines, Goregog 's power, and his entire existence, was useless.

"You know what happens now, " said Jimmy, smiling.  "It 's been nice knowing you. "

Goregog 's body began to burn.  Smoke filtered from his flesh and whirled away in  dark oily clouds.  He fell down on his knees, and dropped to the floor of the matrix.  In seconds, his entire body had been consumed.  Slowly, he burned to death at the foot of the temple.

Jimmy raised himself to his feet.  He was breathless.  He walked over to where Mary laid dead, her body charred and crisp.  Gently, he picked her up into his arms.

"This wasn 't our deal, Jimmy, " said Robbie.  "You said I could have Goregog 's body. "

"You wouldn 't want that piece of shit, " said Jimmy.  "You 're better than that. "

"I 'll remember it the next time you need me, " Robbie told him.  "This isn 't the first time you 've betrayed me, Jimmy. "

Jimmy laughed.  "And it probably won 't be the last time, pal, " he said.  He glanced at Mary 's body and fought back the tears.  "It probably won 't be the last. "