"HOWLING VESSEL"

Classification: Extraterrestrial mecha-organic technology

Creator: Unknown

User/Possessors: Unnamed aliens

First Appearance: Marvel Comics Presents#69/4 (1991)

Powers/Abilities/Functions: Created by unknown beings the vessel was partly mechanic and partly organic. It was sentient with the computer being connected to all parts of the ship. It could survive severe injuries and was kept alive by its own life-support systems as long as its main circuitry was online. It couldn't heal itself and movement was also not under the vessel's control (movement probably was under the vessel's control before it got damaged). The vessel also possessed telepathic powers it used to contact other beings and low telekinetic powers it seemingly could only use to move things around on board.

(Marvel Comics Presents#69/4 (fb) - Many years ago the vessel's crew flew with it into space. There hostile aliens attacked them and the whole crew died while the spaceship survived with severe injuries. After that the spaceship floated aimlessly through space with mortal injuries, but it was kept alive by its life-support systems and experienced unspeakable torments.

(Marvel Comics Presents#69/4) - The vessel screamed in agony and after a long time somebody heard it. It was the Silver Surfer who could hear the scream through his Power Cosmic and he followed the noise in his head to the vessel. He entered the damaged ship which was abandoned for many years and was fascinated by it. He found only dead bodies in the ship and wanted to leave because he thought that the noise was caused by a mistake in the damaged circuitry. The ship didn't want him to leave and used the dead aliens like puppets against the Silver Surfer. The Surfer fought back, but the aliens rose again after he had beaten them down. They drove him to the vessel's bridge where they finally succumbed to his attacks. Finally the Surfer realized that the ship was the one moaning. The Surfer touched the ship and it told him telepathically its story. After everything was told the Surfer told the ship that he couldn't heal the ship. The ship decided to die and asked the Surfer to kill it, but the Surfer didn't want to kill the ship because he was sworn to preserve all life, so the ship took enough of the Surfer's Power Cosmic to commit suicide. After it was done the Surfer left the ship and used an energy burst to send it into the nearby sun.

Comments: Created by Len Wein, Hugh Hayes & Chris Ivy.

The vessel reminded me of Ootah and if Ootah wasn't from the Negative Zone I would even say that there was a connection between the vessel and Ootah.

Profile by Markus Raymond

CLARIFICATIONS:
"Howling Vessel" has no known connection to:

• Howling Commandos, special squad led by Nick Fury @ Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos#1
• Howling Commandos, of Earth-Amalgam @ Super Soldier: Man o War#1
• Howling Wolf, Starfox ally @ Marvel Comics Presents#65/4
• or to anyone else with a similar name

unnamed aliens

They were the possessors of the spaceship. They all died during a conflict with another alien race. Many years after their death their vessel used their dead bodies to attack the Silver Surfer and drive him to the bridge.

--Marvel Comics Presents#69/4

images:
Marvel Comics Presents#69, p26, pan5 (main image)