Dino Riders (1989 series) #1

On the planet Valoria in the Delos Quadrant, the forces of the Rulon Empire under Lord Krulos have nearly completed their conquest after three months of heavy fighting. Inside the last Valorian stronghold, Questar — leader of a small band of survivors — prepares a desperate escape aboard a D-class ship with almost two hundred people aboard. A tense confrontation erupts between Questar and Tark, his older brother, who accuses him of wasting time and of abandoning their world. Tark also confronts Serena, Questar's closest ally and Tark's former betrothed, over her rejection of him and of the Path — the Valorian psionic discipline. With Rulon forces minutes away, Questar orders everyone aboard and initiates countdown.

Outside the palace, Rulon Commander Slither reports to the flagship that the stronghold appears deserted. The Valorian ship blasts off through the death throes of the dying planet. Aboard the Rulon siege fleet, Krulos is briefed: a D-class Valorian ship has broken the blockade. He orders it pursued and disabled — he wants prisoners. As the chase begins, Rulon officers Rasp and Hammerhead bicker over tactics while Krulos watches coldly.

Aboard the fleeing ship, Yungstar reports the Rulons are closing in. Questar orders the S.T.E.P. — the Space-Time Energy Projector — activated: a device that can open a dimensional hole and serve as a doorway out of reach of the Rulons for good. The device fails to fire; there is not enough power. But the Rulon tractor beam locks onto the ship, and the energy drain paradoxically begins charging the S.T.E.P. Questar re-fires it. Krulos, realizing the Valorians are attempting self-destruction to take the fleet with them, orders the tractor beam cut — too late. The dimensional rift opens and both ships are pulled through.

Both vessels emerge over Primeval Earth. The Valorian ship is critically damaged — sensors down, warp drive down, shields at 22%, helm loss. With no landing repulsors, Questar orders a controlled crash. The ship comes down hard in a lush prehistoric landscape teeming with dinosaurs. Questar steps out and uses his A.M.P. — an Amplified Mental Projector worn around the neck to assist telepathy — to calm a curious dinosaur, communicating that the Valorians mean no harm. Serena relays the scene to blind elder Mind-Zei, describing a beautiful, primitive world untouched by Krulos's destruction.

Nearby, the Rulon craft also survived. Krulos is briefed by Rasp: they passed through a dimensional warp created by the Valorian ship, sending them to the past. The ship can be repaired — but without the Valorians' S.T.E.P., they cannot return to the empire. Krulos declares the dinosaurs will serve as battle-wagons, and orders his troops to begin brain-boxing them — fitting the creatures with devices that override their will.

Days later, internal tensions fracture the Valorian camp. A faction led by Aries challenges Questar's leadership, blaming him for the loss of Valoria. Tark openly sides with the dissidents and invokes the ancient law of challenge — combat by psionically-charged Psyre Blades, one to lead, one to fall. Questar has no choice but to accept. Before the duel can conclude, the Rulon brain-boxed dinosaurs attack the camp. Questar leads a mounted counterattack on the Valorian dinosaurs — friendly creatures who have bonded with the group — ordering his fighters to target only the Rulons' weapons, not the animals. Tark, riding alongside, shoots at the animals themselves, drawing Questar's rebuke.

Questar breaks away to lure Krulos personally into the jungle, buying time for a Valorian counter-ambush from a hidden position. The ruse works — the Rulons are driven off. But in the aftermath, the camp learns that Tark, pursuing Questar to the cliffs during the fight, aimed his weapon at his brother's back. Questar sensed the threat and fired first. Tark falls from the cliff. The survivors accuse Questar of murdering his own brother. Questar insists Tark was about to shoot him in the back — but he is placed under arrest for the cold-blooded murder of his own brother, setting up the next issue's trial.