Tustra is an evolutionist alien beneath the purple-glass city of Zaira, the other half of “Zara-tustra” (with Queen Sara), who wields the scalpel of Devolution; his doctrine inspires Auro’s “superman” project.
| Type | Character (alien) |
| Place | Beneath Zaira |
| Counterpart | Sara, queen of Zaira |
| Spanish entry | Tustra |
Description
He embodies the doctrine of the superman taken to the scalpel. His electric scalpel of “Devolution” pushes victims back down the ladder of life, reducing mind and soul to a beast’s: “you’re a monkey, or even a worm.” He tried it on the Son of the Wind, who was left a primitive fleeing toward the lake.
Role
He links Zaira, Zarathustra and Auro, threading Nietzsche into the plot. His seed spread like a parasite: it was sown in the counselor Caxatros (“the triple K”) as early as Milan, so devolution traveled from body to body before manifesting in Zaira. Where Sara offers destinies (“your destiny could be the prophet of Zarathustra”), Tustra offers the reverse: regression to animal nothingness.