Summary
It is in suffering that chains break, and Skar aka “Scarlet Rage” knows something about it, but be careful that his Anger does not also be released!
Some characters in Cross the Ages lore are born in unclear, even complex circumstances. Some of them are the result of forbidden experiments or even forced transformations. Each story is different and deserves attention. The lesson we should learn from Skar's is that appearances are often deceptive...
The beast is not always the one who has the appearance or the bodily envelope.
Skar, nicknamed "Scarlet Rage," bears the scars of the trials he has endured. Skar is actually the victim of a beast even more frightening and dangerous than the one he looks like, except this one doesn't.
Knowing that his body and mind were being tested in a secret laboratory,
that transformed him into a real monster. We can understand a little better how he could become the embodiment of all this anger and uncontrollable pain that he is today.
Skar seems to want others to endure and feel what he went through.
In the two illustrations on these cards, we can see the evolution and the ugliness of this terrible suffering. From the moment he breaks his chains and frees himself, to the moment when the rage that drives him takes over his identity to give life to a destructive and uncontrollable monster.
These two Special Rare cards tell a story of unparalleled tragedy and brutality, in which the greed of some men enslaves others, ultimately turning them into ferocious beasts, haunted by infinite anger. This creature perfectly embodies the affliction that "Scarlet Rage" lives and inflicts on all those who cross its path.
Whether we experience this situation or decide to make others experience it, the symbolism is basically the same. The line between humanity and bestiality is thin.
Skar's chains and the Reflection of his Suffering determine his Rage.
There standard version of this card, reveals a dark and tragic moment in Skar's history. What immediately strikes the viewer is this damaged reflection in an unidentified liquid on the ground, of a man. He is chained, broken, exhausted. His exhausted silhouette is barely perceptible in the reflection and reveals that a transformation, almost a disappearance, is underway.
So here is the symbol of what he was before he became “Scarlet Rage”.
This physical, but also, and above all, psychological, prison has had dramatic consequences for his identity. Skar is at the mercy of those who manipulate him. Here we feel the full tragedy of his transformation. The man he was is no more. He has now given way to a creature made of pain and rage, who knows only destruction.
Skar has become a massive beast, his muscles are distorted by anger and implants. Crouching, ready to pounce, his posture and gaze suggest that he is facing an obstacle, or an enemy, perhaps his jailer... Despite the broken chains he drags behind him, or the severed cables that hinder his passage, nothing seems to stop him.
His skin has already lost its human appearance, and seems to have disappeared in favor of a hard and resistant material, a sort ofornate armor of thick leather and metal. His once human hands have also changed; they are larger, more massive, with dark, sharp claws, ready to tear apart anything within their reach.
Skar's body still bears the stigmata and scars tortures and experiments carried out on him. They are probably etched in him forever, both physically and psychologically. The implants visible on his shoulders and back still seem to inject him with a red liquid which fuels its transformation.
Is this what gives him this increased strength and energy?
This intense red, imitating the color of blood, spreads along his body, from his hair to the smallest patch of skin, rekindling his legitimate anger, as if every fiber of his being was inflamed by this rage that consumes him.
This incandescent depth is not natural, it results from the experiments that Skar has undergone, a direct consequence of the scientific manipulation of which he has been the victim.
But what is this liquid that reflects back to him what he has lost? And most certainly forever!!! Enough to amplify this rage in him, nothing holds him back anymore, nothing can calm him down, nothing matters anymore...
Is Skar really free? What if only his anger is free?
In the alternative version From this card, Skar has finally freed himself from his chains, and everything about his appearance screams his fury. If you're going to be the beast, you might as well deliver it with all the bells and whistles.
He intends to unleash his "Scarlet Rage" on the world. The scene depicted in this SR card takes place outdoors. Skar has escaped from his captivity!
Skar appears to be in a trance, unleashed. He slides along what appears to be a glass wall.
Skar is being hunted, followed, and attacked by Mantri utility drones. They aim their lasers at him and fire projectiles in an attempt to incapacitate him, but to no avail.
Protected by his lethal armor, only the sparks that fly from the impacts of shots on his back testify to the will of these drones and those who mandated them to harm Skar. Yet, it is too late, this does not seem to affect him in any way, but on the contrary, only excites him more...
"Nothing can stop rage when it breaks its chains."
He is no longer a human being, he is a beast forged by science, in suffering.
His bulging muscles are crisscrossed with red cables that pulse with energy, like veins outside his body, fueling his rage again and again. His face is ugly, contorted into a grimace of pure anger, of extreme glee. His glowing red eyes and sharp teeth are revealed in a frightening rictus… He is completely out of control!
Every part of his body, of what remains of his soul, is focused on a single goal: to destroy everything that stands in his way. In any case, he has nothing left to lose!
Skar is no longer who he once was, and now he's fighting for his survival. Skar knows this is all he has left, and he doesn't want to give his life up to anyone, even if it means destroying everything.
Once, looking into his eyes, one could glimpse humanity. Today, there is none of that. Everything is blind rage, a devouring fire that consumes everything, starting with his own person.
Skar unleashes his Scarlet Rage, Strength or Condemnation?
Both versions of the "Skar" card tell the story of a tragic transformation, a shattered destiny, a stolen identity, a man chained and subjected to inhumane experiments. This furious creature defies all that attempts to contain it. The contrast is incredible!
In the standard version, Skar barely realizes he's broken free, but he's already monstrous. In the alternate version, Skar, or rather "Scarlet Rage," is a furious force driven by pure destruction, an unstoppable beast.
Is it still possible to find the man behind Skar, the creature consumed by rage? Or has this man disappeared forever under the weight of suffering and anger?
If this anger is his strength, it is also his prison, a condemnation to being nothing more than a monster, incapable of feeling anything other than destruction.
Is this really liberation?
