When I met September Mourning this past July at San Diego Comic-Con, I instantly felt as though I had met an IRL comic book hero. She was not walking this mortal realm as Emily Lazar, her earthly disguise; rather, she was briefly visiting Earth before returning to the underworld, where she had grave business to conduct with Fate. I felt my life flash before my eyes as she shook my hand. I was not aware at the time that September Mourning is actually a half-reaper, and that shaking her hand was a life-force-draining mistake.

I found myself wondering where September came from, what business did she have on earth? Finally, we have an answer. After teaming up with comic luminary Marc Silvestri of Top Cow Productions, Sumeyye Kesgin, and Mariah McCourt, September Mourning has an origin story worthy of her mythological presence. Take a peek at the cover below, and then head to the gallery to peep the first 10 pages of September Mourning: A Murder of Reapers #1.

Discussing her alter ego and dynamic multimedia concept, Emily Lazar summarized the dark origins of September Mourning.

“I have always been obsessed with death… But I have never thought of it as most people generally do. To me, Death is the final curtain call of one’s life. A must-have that gives deeper appreciation to the fact that we exist. To me, death is neither a negative nor positive thing… It is part of the cycle of life. September Mourning is the embodiment of this part of the cycle, but with a twist. Marc and I changed the rules of death in our universe. She became a doorway to another chance at life. A soul swapping half-human, half-reaper creature whose humanity leads her to take destiny back from Fate and into the hands of the humans she helps. Clad not in black, but all in white, she is a Valkyrie of the human spirit. A weapon of choice for humanity.”

During the Nerdist Music Comic-Con panel, September elaborated on the lengths to which an artist should go to eat, sleep, and breathe their art. Check out that discussion below.

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Images: Top Cow Productions