"Forewarned Is Four-Armed!"
December, 1969
Stan Lee: Editor
Neal Adams & Roy Thomas: Script
Marie Severin: Art
Trimpe & Sutton: Inks
Carl Brock heard the metal door slowly opening... He shook as the air of
his dimly lit cell reacted to the draft. He shook not by the sudden
chill, but by his own terror. The ever-watchful guard tells the visiting
doctor that the prisoner has not spoken since his arrival at the prison.
The doctor is confident that he will be able to speak with Brock.
The prisoner squirms in the grip of two guards, as the psychiatrist leads
them to the warden's office. Once inside, Carl Brock settles down, and
does not mind being handcuffed to a chair... Dr. Caruthers turns on the
tape recorder, while the warden eyes the hardened criminal in their
midst. Brock is ready to tell his story, and is confident that he'll be
receiving a pardon from the governor. The prisoner is glad to see that
there are three of them in the room with him, and motions for the doctor
to hold the microphone closer to him. With no family, no education, Carl
Brock was an invisible man. He soon gained recognition when he struck
down a road-gang guard, taking his gun, and running for it.
Since he was familiar with the area, Brock was able to head for High Hill
Country by nighttime. He stopped in his escape when he saw a flash of
light in the sky, and an object which moved as fast as lightning was
falling towards him. As Brock dove for cover, the object continued its
descent, then hovered past, with the escapee hanging onto the ground for
dear life. Having seen many planes in his day, Carl Brock could only
describe the object in front of him as looking like a flat football. Its
sounds were a whisper to his ears, and his organs were causing him such
discomfort, that he couldn't move a muscle. He saw a thing emerging from
the craft, floating on the air itself. It resembled a man, but a man
doesn't have four arms. The strange boots were what caught Brock's eyes,
as the silent visitor came ever closer.
Even if he had fought back, Carl Brock would have lost his own life. Two
of the four arms reached out with a helmet in its hands, and placed it on
the escapee's head. Brock found that he now possessed the visitor's
memories, and saw sights which were definitely not of this world. The
sky was red where the alien had come from, and that race could change
their appearance to blend in wherever they traveled. After leaving the
planet of their birth, they made their way through space, and their scout
ships have found a new place... Earth.
Carl Brock could feel his mind being drained, and he knew that he only
had one chance left. Pulling the helmet off, the escapee threw it at the
floating figure, and drew his gun. BLAM! BLAM! BLAM! BLAM! The
bullets had slowed in the air, and fell to the ground. The thought of
having that creature probing his mind like an animal was too much for
him. Brock ran down the slope for the highway. As he tumbled down the
hill, he knew that the visitor could kill him at any moment. At the
bottom of the hill, a familiar four-armed figure was waiting for him.
Just as the alien being reached for him, an automobile came around the
bend, and caused the visitor to disappear. Carl Brock ran towards the
oncoming car, and was never more thankful to be taken into custody. The
prisoner has finished his story and the doctor has stopped the tape. The
warden sighs, then orders Brock returned to his cell. Carl Brock hopes
that they believe him, that they realize how he's told them the truth.
The warden asks the doctor to contact him once he's done with the tape.
Now in his cell, the prisoner knows there is only an hour left before he
is to be taken away.
Now in his room, the doctor has completed his work with the tape, and
calls the warden. The psychiatrist tells him that the recording has
revealed nothing unusual. The warden's theory that Carl Brock's voice
has been sped up has been disapproved. As he continues with the
conversation, the doctor holds the phone to the receiver with one hand,
holds his pipe with another hand, turns off the tape recorder with
another hand, and disposed of the evidence with the other hand. It is
now time for the prisoner to be taken care of... As Brock pleads with the
guard one last time, the attendants make note of his squeaky-springed
voice. By the time the prisoner can communicate with anyone else, the
psychiatrist's race will have taken over.
Unfortunately for Carl Brock, he had one chance to warn the authorities
against the menace of the four-armed alien from space.
The psychiatrist resembles Commissioner Gordon and is wearing a purple
pinstriped suit.
The alien is pale-skinned, wears a red tunic with a golden belt, and blue
pants. A pair of hover-boots completes the ensemble.
The fishbowl-shaped mind leeching machine has visible circuitry and comes
complete with two stands to keep it steady on its selected subject.
If we're lucky, the alien doctor's fascination with tobacco will prove to
be his undoing, and they will suffer the effects of cigarette smoke ever
faster than Earthlings do.
Steve Chung
"Forewarned Is Four-Reviewed!"
