Fantomet #199126

frew 1005

A Man Called Nobody

A drought in Bengali brought about by lack of rainfall, has forced thousands of peasants to converge upon the capital in search of jobs, food, money and shelter.

As the Phantom walks through the streets, he perceives the bad condition of the refugees, the slogans and rallies. He is pick-pocketed by two children, and tracks them to their makeshift shelter in the underground sewers. There he learns about how many of them had to migrate to the city, from the villages after crops failed. He leaves a postal address with them, telling them that they can address their needs to the address, and a certain Mr. Walker will make sure that the letter reaches him. Then he leaves a bundle of cash with them and goes outside.

Outside, the peasants pool around the Government office when they see that President Luaga is going to address them. After Luaga promises them jobs and relief, the Phantom notices that a minority of the crowd is still sceptical about Luaga’s promises. He informs Luaga of what he has seen since his arrival and Luaga is stunned at the conditions the peasants are dwelling in.

However, other politicians try to take the opportunity to overthrow Luaga. Minister Gaman Suku plots with Colonel Jon Pradesh to interrupt supplies into Bengali. The next morning, as arranged, Pradesh’s forces hijack the supply trucks and prevent them from reaching Morristown. Word about this reaches Luaga, who suspects sabotage and asks the Phantom to investigate. However, in the meantime, Gaman Suku contacts a mercenary about a job, and receives confirmation that the merc will be in Morristown inside 2 days.

The next day, the Phantom comes across dead Red Cross personnel, and after giving them proper burial, proceeds along the supply trucks’ tyre tracks to where Pradesh’s men have hidden them. Soon enough, he finds the whole battalion preparing to move out. He overpowers the men in the last Jeep and finds a tattoo on their hand, which convinces him that the hijackers are not just a band of thugs. He goes to meet Luaga. Meanwhile, the merc arrives in Morristown and sets the day of the job to 2 days after the current day.

That night, the Phantom meets Luaga with the information, and Luaga tells him that the soldiers belong to the Bengali army. Luaga infers that Jon Pradesh and Gaman Suku are trying to overthrow him. Phantom advises constant vigilance on those two men.

The Phantom enters the sewers and is told that a stranger has entered the sewers and shot a man dead. Devil tracks down the man at one end of the sewers. A poor boy tells him that the place is just under the Presidential Palace. Phantom jumps to a correct conclusion that the killer attempts to assassinate Luaga. He drags the merc down into the sewers, and the shot barely misses the President’s car. A scuttle follows and the merc tries to flee inside the sewers. The Phantom attempts to follow, but is stopped by the boy. The boy tells him that the man will fall into an underground sewage lake, and so it happens. The merc drowns.

Gaman Suku and Jon Pradesh are arrested while trying to flee the country, and the supply trucks are recovered from the jungle. The peasants rejoice, and Luaga and Phantom hope that the peasants have a good future to look forward to.