MIDDLE PASSAGE: Legacy of Chains

An early sketch of the Middle Passage cover. The story follows Jovan immediately after issue 3. On their way to the Gulf Coast the boat capsizes and Jovan finds himself in the deep dark depths of the ocean. WitchDoctor confronts the Rada spirits - enraged souls left in the wake of the slave trade - on their resting grounds.

Jovan faces a variety of trials that outline his abilities as WitchDoctor - each of which are based on the horrors of the middle passage.

• trial of water - first Jovan must cope with the idea that every drowned or lynched slave breathes through him - so he won't drown or be choked by smoke or gas
• the trial of language - after the souls scream at him (for breaking one of the skulls that tile the ocean floor) he must learn to understand their woes and a variety of languages, cultures, and traditions
• the trial of the whip - as Jovan bears the lashing of his ancestors he recieves supernatural endurance - his body will scar but it will not break
• the trial of chains - Jovan must wear the chains of enslavement and drag all the souls locked within them throughout his mission (the ultimate mission is to save Black people - but that's being esoteric - it will take this story quite some time to get there and remember the LOA aren't always to be trusted).
• the trial of sight - Jovan actually fails this as it is an opportunity to see through the eyes of his ancestors. Unfortunately this ability of vision comes with the burden of experience. You can't have the eye without the mind or soul behind it - where there is traumatic pain (in this case slavery and slaughter) Jovan has to feel that, remember that, and visually face that to see.