Chew creator John Layman has teamed up with The Maxx creator Sam Kieth on a new series for AfterShock Comics.

Eleanor & the Egret is a surrealist mystery tale about an art thief and her talking pet egret that is written by Layman and illustrated by Kieth. The first issue of this cat-and-mouse adventure is set for April 5. Elizabeth Torque will provide an incentive cover.

“I would describe Eleanor & the Egret as a fable, and a surrealist romance,” said Layman, “but it’s probably more easily described as something NOT easily describable. It’s a melding of two unique voices to comics. It’s also just an excuse for me to give Sam cool stuff to draw, and, in that, he’s exceeding all expectations—some of the pages he’s turning in are absolutely breathtaking."

The series is the first work that Layman and Kieth have done for AfterShock, which announced that the two popular creators would be working on projects in September 2015 (see “Aftershock Announces Initial Slate”). Former Marvel Executive Editor Mike Marts and indy editor Joe Pruett founded the company in 2015 (see “New Publisher Formed with Marts, Pruett”).