Shadowmancer Issue #4 In Bloom

BACKSTORY PAGE

Previously On. Runs along the left side of the page interspersed with downsized panels from the previous issue where/if space permits.

            Dimitri Sokolov makes bad decisions. Fleeing from a failed drug deal he encountered the Shadowmancer, a sorcerer capable of manipulating the essence of shadows and drawing knowledge from the darkness. In a fit of desperation, Dimitri grabbed a mysterious ritual knife and buried it into the old warlock’s heart. The blow let off an explosion of magical energy and left Dimitri baring the mantle of the Shadowmancer.

Still reeling from the implications, Dimitri was taken by his neighbor to Dr. Jean-Paul, a voodoo expert, who explained that his powers came from a Dark Place and that he must rid himself of them as soon as possible.

Unfortunately, the gangsters on the other side of his failed drug deal do not seem willing to let the matter stand, and a hit was put out on Dimitri. He was barely able to escape from his attackers then with his neighbor and girlfriend, and together they return to Dr. Jean-Paul in search of sanctuary….

Character Bios. Runs along the right side of the page and each section is matched with a close up of the character’s face. An image of Dimitri in his shadow armor is used for anonymous and posed so that it appears as a mirrored figure compared to the normal image of Dimitri.

1. DIMITRI SOKOLOV:       Dimitri is a graduate student of English literature at Portland State University. He’s the child of a family of Russian immigrants and gangsters originally from the east coast. After his mother died in childbirth, his father let Dimitri be raised by his Uncle Vlad, who installed the boy with a strong Mafiosi sense of honor.

2. ANONYMOUS:                Since becoming the next Shadowmancer, Dimitri has been haunted by a mysterious voice which taunts him and offers him cryptic advice. What this creature is and what it truly wants are currently unknown.

3. NIKKI BARNES:              Nikki is an undergraduate at PSU. Originally from Seattle, she came to Oregon to attend college. Soon after arriving she met Dimitri and the two have had a close relationship ever since. The pair have recently moved in together.

4. JAMES STALLWORTH:  James is a detective in the Portland Police Bureau. A lifelong resident of the city, he joined the force out of a genuine (some might say naive) desire to protect his community. He frequently has hunches which help him close cases, the result of latent psychic abilities.

5. DAVID HUGHES:            David is a graphic artist who lives next door to Dimitri and Nikki. They were only generally acquainted until recently, when Dimitri confided in him that he had begun to hear voices. He has a soft-heart for charity cases.

6. PIERRE JEAN-PAUL:      Pierre holds a Doctorate of Pharmacy from Xavier University of Louisiana, and is an expert practitioner traditional African mysticism as well as New Orleans Voodoo. He takes his responsibility for the physical and spiritual wellbeing of his patients very seriously.

7. JEFF KLINE:                     Jeff is a disgraced soldier with a dishonorable discharge. After leaving the military, he became an enforcer for a drug dealing business run by his childhood friend. His previous battles with Dimitri have left him crippled, but still alive.

8. THE BOSS:                        The Boss was the black sheep of a family with strong white nationalist paramilitary roots. He never fit into the militia lifestyle, but he used his family’s contacts with the skinhead gangs of Portland to build a powerful drug empire.

PAGE ONE (five panels)

Panel 1. An entirely black panel.

1. NARRATION:                   Hello?

Panel 2. The same as the first panel.

2. NARRATION:                   And I thought this weekend couldn’t get any worse.

Panel 3. A close up of a flame.

3. NARRATION:                   What the hell?

Panel 4. DIMITRI is sitting on a sofa which is directly before a candle hanging from a wall sconce. He’s positioned as though he was just lying down; his legs are up on the sofa in front of him and he is supporting himself with one arm while using the other to block the candle light from his face. He is wearing his shadow armor and it melts away in a few patches from his hand. The background is dark and indistinct but an open doorway can be seen with a large multi-paned window showing moonlight beyond. The title and credits are worked into the panel.

4. NARRATION:                   Where am I?

Panel 5. DIMITRI has moved his feet to the floor and is holding his head in his hands.

5. NARRATION:                   And how did I get here?

PAGE TWO (four panels)

Panel 1. DIMITRI stands up from his couch; he is before an unlit fireplace. A mounted lion’s head roars at him from its place hanging on the wall over the mantle. Moonlight can be seen coming in from the open window. There are a small number of furnishings up against the walls of the room but they are covered with white sheets. There is another white sheet on the floor near where DIMITRI was laying.

1. NARRATION:                   This place is strange.

Panel 2. A closer shot of DIMITRI as he stands in front of the fireplace and is running his finger along the mantle place checking for dust.

2. NARRATION:                   I did a history minor in undergrad but I’m not an expert in furnishings or decorative eras on account of me being heterosexual.

Panel 3. A shot from below as DIMITRI emerges from the doorway into the hall and is silhouetted in front of a tall window. Outside the full moon can be seen which lights up the night.

3. NARRATION:                   My nearest guess would be that this is a pre-revolutionary French Chateau.

Panel 4.  A shot from just inside the window, DIMITRI can be seen just off to the side looking out. The window is on the second floor. Below a courtyard and a garden walk can be seen enclosed on the other side by the walls of the house. The grass is green and there are a series of hedges which are rose bushes bunched so thick they can’t be seen through.

4. NARRATION:                   The worst part is that it feels familiar.

PAGE THREE (six panels)

Panel 1.A wide shot from above of a massive dining room with a great table that looks long enough for a royal banquet. DIMITRI stands at the far end of his rooms, both of his arms raised as he opens the French doors which lead inside.

1. ANONYMOUS:                Your fear is unbecoming.

2. ANONYMOUS:                You are weak.

3. DIMITRI:                           I knew it was only a matter of time before you showed up again. Why don’t you ever have anything useful to say?

Panel 2. A closer shot of DIMITRI beside the table. He takes the cover off a food platter but as he checks under it he finds it empty. Behind him rather than a wall there are a series of windows and a pair of glass doors leading into the garden.

4. ANONYMOUS:                This is a place of night and shadows; it is a slave to your will.

5. DIMITRI:                           Well I suppose that’s a bit more helpful.

Panel 3. A shot from outside in the garden. DIMITRI is standing before the doors and is trying the knobs unsuccessfully.

6. ANONYMOUS:                If your will falters it will consume you.

7. DIMITRI:                           How cheerful.

8. FX:                                      Click click.

Panel 4. A shot from just above the doorknob looking up at DIMITRI’s face. He looks frustrated.

9. ANONYMOUS:                You already hold the key.                                                       

Panel 5. DIMITRI kneels in front of the door and places his hand over the lock.

10. DIMITRI:                         That voodoo doctor said I could give shadows physical dimension and weight.

Panel 6. A close up of DIMITRI’s hand as he opens the door. A shadowy tendril of a key is in the lock.

11. DIMITRI:                         Well, I’ll be.

PAGE FOUR (seven panels)

Panel 1. Establishing shot. A view from above as DIMITRI walks out into the courtyard.

Panel 2. A shot from around the hedge, as though the viewer were spying. DIMITRI approaches the hedges.

1. DIMITRI:                           Spooky place.

Panel 3. A long establishing shot of the entire huge multi-storied chateau which stands surrounded by a forest which stretches off into the distance.

2. NARRATION:                   This place is the setting that I could never find a story for. I used it as a memory palace, a mnemonic device to remember things for tests all through high school and undergrad.

3. NARRATION:                   How did I get pulled into a location from my imagination?

Panel 4. A close up of DIMITRI, he is examining his hands, still in the gloves of the shadow armor.

4. NARRATION:                   When I relax after I’m out of danger my armor normally recedes but here it remains in place.

Panel 5. A close up of DIMITRI’s feet. A tendril that looks like a rose vine slinks along behind him.

5. NARRATION:                   If this palace is the chateau from my mind then I need to find the passage from the garden into the wine cellar.

Panel 6. The same view as before but now the vine has grabbed DIMITRI’s foot.

6. DIMITRI (OFF):                What the-

Panel 7. DIMITRI is suspended upside down in the air but the vine which is attached to a monstrous creature that appears like an octopus but with vine tentacles and a rose bud head.

7. DIMITRI:                           This thing isn’t supposed to be here.

PAGE FIVE (six panels)

Panel 1. The vine that has a hold of DIMITRI smashes him into the ground.

1. DIMITRI:                           Oomph.

Panel 2. A far shot from above. The monster which is almost the size of the house has whipped him up in the air to smash him into the ground again.

2.  DIMITRI:                          I’m glad I always pictured this garden with soft grass and not gravel.

Panel 3. DIMITRI is about to be thrown down again but he has created a hook out of shadow and attached it to a brick chimney on the roof.

Panel 4. A close up of DIMITRI’s leg. The vine has slipped off from the force of the bungled throw but the thorns tear DIMITRI’s foot and lower leg as they lose their grip.

3. DIMITRI:                           Augh!

Panel 5. A view of DIMITRI as he hangs limply from the hook in the chimney. His shoe and lower pant leg on his right side is gone and he is bleeding from the wound.

Panel 6. A shot from behind DIMITRI, he has dropped down onto the roof. The monster has begun crawling up the side of the building and can just be seen poking up over the ledge.

4. DIMITRI:                           I don’t suppose you have a convenient glowing weak spot you’d like to expose.

PAGE SIX (seven panels)

Panel 1. The monster smashes down the chimney as DIMITRI dives out of the way to avoid the rubble.

1. DIMITRI:                           I guess not.

Panel 2.  DIMITRI runs along the tiled roof as behind him the monster hauls the majority of its bulk up on top of the house.

Panel 3. A close up as DIMITRI grabs a hold of a drainage pipe and starts using it to slide down the house.

Panel 4. A shot from just inside the house looking out through an open window. DIMITRI has stopped and begun to clamber into the room.

2. DIMITRI:                           West side, third floor.

Panel 5. The same shot as before but now DIMITRI is gone and the monster has covered the window.

Panel 6. A wide shot of the entire house. The monster had crawled up on the side of the house but has just gotten knocked off by an object that blasted its way out of a window.

3. FX:                                      BOOM!

Panel 7. A shot from the perspective of the window showing the contents of the room. There are various pieces of renaissance to revolutionary era weaponry, including a smoking cannon which DIMITRI stands beside.

4. DIMITRI:                           The armory.

PAGE SEVEN (five panels)

Panel 1. DIMITRI slides down the drainage pipe again and reaches the ground.

1. DIMITRI:                           Well I certainly didn’t imagine whatever that was.

2. ANONYMOUS:                Your drive fails you and in your frailty this place twists to hunt you.

Panel 2. DIMITRI stands beside the unmoving form of the monster that lies where it was knocked down.

3. DIMITRI:                           Is that thing dead?

4. ANONYMOUS:                It was never alive, it’s not real.

Panel 3. A close up of a vine twitching.

5. DIMITRI (OFF):                That’s not what I wanted to hear.

Panel 4. DIMITRI sprints away from the monster which is rising back up behind him.

6. DIMITRI:                           What I’m looking for should be-

Panel 5. DIMITRI stops in front of a hatch in the ground near the wall of the house.

7. DIMITRI:                           Here.

PAGE EIGHT (eight panels)

Panel 1. DIMITRI rushes down a staircase leading underground a few vines are following behind him.

Panel 2. A shot from DIMITRI’s point of view. Ahead of him is a sturdy looking wooden door held open by a man who beckons him over. The man is ALEXIUS; he’s around 40 years old and is wearing a dark tunic and cloak. He’s tall but very graceful looking with dark hair and a gloomy expression.

1. ALEXIUS:                         This way friend.

Panel 3. A view of a huge wine cellar with bottles lining the walls stretching off into the darkness. DIMITRI leaps into the room through the door and ALEXIUS slams the door shut behind him.

2. ALEXIUS:                         We will be safe inside.

Panel 4. DIMITRI stands catching his breath with his hands on his knees. ALEXIUS is casually bolting the door closed.

3. DIMITRI:                           Thanks, mister…?

4. ALEXIUS:                         My name is Alexius Komnenos.

5. ANONYMOUS:                Do not trust him.

Panel 5. DIMITRI looks around at the vast wine cellar around him with his hands on his hips; ALEXIUS directs his attention at him.

6. ALEXIUS:                         Tell me what language are we conversing in? It has a certain familiarity but I cannot place it.

7. ANONYMOUS:                He is a thing of lies.

8. DIMITRI:                           You don’t know what language you’re talking in?   

Panel 6. A close up of ALEXIUS’s face.

9. ALEXIUS:                         This is a place from your mind, your thoughts come in your native language and so that is what is spoken here.

Panel 7. A close up of DIMITRI’s face

10. DIMITRI:                         You’re speaking English.

11. DIMTRI:                           Wait… Komnenos. I knew that sounded familiar. They were dynasty of emperors in Constantinople.

Panel 8. DIMITRI has started walking away, exploring the wine cellar. ALEXIUS remains by the door.

12. ALEXIUS:                       Ah English, I heard it spoken as men passed through my city to join King Richard on crusade in the holy land, though this speech seems different.

13. ALEXIUS:                       I myself never sat the throne but I belonged to the Imperial family. My own line however was cast aside when I was still a child, the work of my father’s enemies.

14. DIMITRI:                         Yeah I heard the politics in the New Rome could be downright byzantine.

PAGE NINE (seven panels)

Panel 1. DIMITRI has begun tapping on the walls and barrels listening as though searching for a stud or hollow spot. ALEXIUS is following behind him.

1. DIMITRI:                           So you live here?

2. ALEXIUS:                         In a manner of speaking. I was a shadowmancer in life just as you are and now what remains of me is here in the Dark Place.

Panel 2. A close up of DIMITRI’s face, he looks unimpressed.

3. DIMITRI:                           This is the Dark Place? I didn’t expect it to look like a French wine cellar.

4. ALEXIUS (OFF):              It does not.

5. ALEXIUS (OFF):              You still live and wield power over the darkness. When you come to this place in your dreams you shape what is shapeless and form it to your whim.

6. ALEXIUS (OFF):              Tell me what year is it?

Panel 3. A close up of ALEXIUS’ face, he looks shocked and taken aback.

7. DIMITRI (OFF):                It’s the twenty-first century after Christ. If you’re really a contemporary of the third crusade; that was nearly a thousand years ago.

8. ALEXIUS:                         A… thousand…

Panel 4. A panel of darkness.

9. ALEXIUS (CAPTION):    I never thought it could have been so long. I have spent centuries trapped in formlessness, an endless blackness. Eternal, unsleeping consciousness without existence. I have experienced a hell unlike any other until you called me here.

Panel 5. A shot from behind ALEXIUS. DIMITRI is still tapping on the walls but is looking back at ALEXIUS with mild surprise.

8. DIMITRI:                           And how did I do that exactly?

9. ALEXIUS:                         You are the blood of my blood. Your vitae has pulled me here.

Panel 6. A shot of just DIMITRI, he is still tapping on the walls, he now looks bemused.

10. DIMITRI:                         Sorry to break it to you but I’m the descendant of Russian gangsters not Greek emperors.

11. ALEXIUS (OFF):            A Varangian? I do not know how it could be so. In truth, although I’ve had carnal knowledge of a number of serving girls and prostitutes, I never married and was aware of siring no children. Yet the blood does not lie.

Panel 7. A wide view of the massive wine cellar. ALEXIUS and DIMITRI appear small in the distance. The shadows on the edge of the panel have begun to form claw like shapes.

1. DIMITRI:                           I have no idea how I even got these powers. How did you become a shadowmancer?

PAGE TEN (five panels)

Panel 1. An establishing shot of pre-fourth crusade Constantinople at sundown. The Hagia Sofia is the most prominent feature of the panel.

1. ALEXIUS (CAPTION):    As I said my branch of the Komenos family was cast aside and removed from history. The throne instead passed to those who would eventually choose to open their gates to the western crusaders.

Panel 2. A shot of a large group of merchants and tradesmen at the market closing down their stalls for the day.

2. ALEXIUS (CAPTION):    My parents were long since dead and I was alone and penniless in a city which refused to recognize my heritage.

Panel 3. A darkened alley a handful of merchants in silhouette can be seen still leaving.

3. ALEXIUS (CAPTION):    I was allowed to survive only because the emperor didn’t know I still lived.

Panel 4. The same alley, ALEXIUS steps forward out of the shadows dressed in a dark cloak and leather armor and fondling a shortsword which is strapped to his belt. His hood is pulled over his face leaving it in darkness.

4. ALEXIUS (CAPTION):    I had to maintain myself.

Panel 5. A shot from behind ALEXIUS. He is looking at a large palace appropriate to the period with a wall around it.

5. ALEXIUS (CAPTION):    I was a thief.

6. DIMITRI (CAPTION):      Not so different after all I suppose.

PAGE ELEVEN (five panels)

Panel 1. A shot from below as ALEXIUS vaults over the wall into the estate.

Panel 2. ALEXIUS stands in the shadow of the mansion and watches as a group of men leave through the front door. At least one wears the crusader’s cross and another appears to be a Saracen.

Panel 3. A close up of a man who appears almost exactly the same as the SHADOWMANCER from issue one is standing before a pool of a viscous black liquid that looks like oil. He is dressed in the finery of the Byzantine noble and smiling faintly.

1. ALEXIUS (CAPTION):    I had been told of a wealthy and eccentric recluse who hoarded treasures some of which were said to be older than Cesare, Alexander, perhaps even Solon of Athens.

2. DIMITRI (CAPTION):      Hundreds of years before Jesus got it.

Panel 4. A shot from beside ALEXIUS as he picks the lock on an entrance into the mansion.

3. ALEXIUS (CAPTION):    My fence had offered me a map of the interior of his palace drawn by a disgruntled servant and a large sum of money for anything I found within. I agreed to the plan.

Panel 5. A shot from in front of ALEXIUS inside the entryway as he stands silhouetted against the night sky behind him.

4. ALEXIUS (CAPTION):    As it turned out it wasn’t that easy.

PAGE TWELVE (five panels)

Panel 1. ALEXIUS moves through a luxurious but empty Byzantine palace.

1. ALEXIUS (CAPTION):    Summer on the Bosporus was almost unbearably hot but that palace was cold.

Panel 2. A shot from behind ALEXIUS as he looks through an open door way into a large solar which contains some furniture, but no art or ornament.

2. ALEXIUS (CAPTION):    As I searched that place I found neither jewels nor art.

Panel 3. A view from above as ALEXIUS walks down a long hallway with pillars to either side.

3. ALEXIUS (CAPTION):    I had been told my map was provided by a disgruntled servant but I saw no sign of any living thing as I wandered those halls.

Panel 4. A shot of a wall filled with shadows of men with no visible source.

4. ALEXIUS (CAPTION):    Yet I found myself drawn forwards, towards the center of that accursed place.

Panel 5. A shot from behind as ALEXIUS stands before a very imposing set of double doors which dwarf him.

5. ALEXIUS (CAPTION):    Though he never admitted it to me, I believe everything that led me to that place was part of the same elaborate plan to draw me in.

6. DIMITRI (CAPTION):      Whose plan?

PAGE THIRTEEN (five panels)

Panel 1. A shot from just over the shoulder of ALEXIUS as he stands before the SHADOWMANCER who is now dressed in Byzantine finery but still appears otherwise as he did when he appeared in issue one. The SHADOWMANCER grins as he looks down on ALEXIUS from a seat that looks almost like a throne. ALEXIUS is starting to draw his blade.

1. ALEXIUS (CAPTION):    The Shadowmancer.

Panel 2. A close up of ALEXIUS’ hand holding his blade. A tendril of shadow has wrapped itself around his wrist.

2. ALEXIUS (CAPTION):    I was helpless. As a thief I was accustomed to working in the shadows but he wielded a power over darkness unlike any I had ever seen.

Panel 3. A view of ALEXIUS’ front from a space between the two. ALEXIUS has tendrils wrapped around each of his arms and legs that have him held in place, the SHADOWMANCER’s shadow looms over him.

3. ALEXIUS (CAPTION):    At first I feared I had encountered Satan intent on dragging me to hell.

Panel 4. A close up of ALEXIUS’ face where he looks terrified.

4. ALEXIUS (CAPTION):    Yet instead of taking my life-

Panel 5. A close up of the SHADOWMANCER’s face as he laughs uproariously.

5. ALEXIUS (CAPTION):    He laughed.

PAGE FOURTEEN (six panels)

Panel 1. A shot from behind ALEXIUS, the tentacles have forced him into a kneeling position before the SHADOWMANCER who continues to laugh.

1. ALEXIUS (CAPTION):    I was his.

Panel 2. ALEXIUS stands on a rooftop looking and the sprawling city of Constantinople.

2. ALEXIUS (CAPTION):    For two years I was forced to serve him.

Panel 3. ALEXIUS stands on the edge of a high window of a palace; he is gaining entrance into the building.

3. ALEXIUS (CAPTION):    He had me infiltrate for him, steal for him, spy for him…

Panel 4. ALEXIUS stands over the sleeping form of a beautiful woman with a dagger poised at her throat.

4. ALEXIUS (CAPTION):    Kill for him.

Panel 5. ALEXIUS and the SHADOWMANCER walk together through the SHADOWMANCER’s mansion. The SHADOWMANCER has a hand on ALEXIUS’ shoulder and they are talking amiably with one another.

5. ALEXIUS (CAPTION):    He said that he had been watching me and was impressed by my skills as a thief. He began to teach me the rudiments of his art and told me that he believed that I worthy to succeed him.

Panel 6. The SHADOWMANCER has moved forward further into the mansion but ALEXIUS has stopped and watches him walk away.

6. ALEXIUS (CAPTION):    He lied.

PAGE FIFTEEN (six panels)

Panel 1. ALEXIUS creeps forward through the shadows towards a door, slightly ajar, from which light emerges.

1. ALEXIUS (CAPTION):    The old man knew the secret of immortality. A ritual that could extend life indefinitely.

Panel 2. The SHADOWMANCER stands in his laboratory working ritualistic hand motions before a large cauldron filled with a very dark pool of blood

2. ALEXIUS (CAPTION):    Given the fate I faced after death I can hardly begrudge him his intention to remain in the mortal coil.

Panel 3.  A close up of the SHADOWMANCER’s face as he looks up smiling, he seems to be aware that ALEXIUS is present behind him and ALEXIUS himself can be seen distantly listening at the slightly opened door.

3. ALEXIUS (CAPTION):    It’s fortunate I never trusted him, for I learned that the ritual carried a price.

Panel 4. ALEXIUS flees from the open door. The light can still be seen emerging behind him. Around the edges of the panel the shadows begin to gather.

4. ALEXIUS (CAPTION):    I used those abilities he prized so highly to learn more. Only blood can pay for blood and only a life can exchange for a life.

Panel 5. ALEXIUS sprints through the pillared hall of the mansion as tendrils of shadow follow him and try to grab at him and trip him. He leaps through their midst in his bid to escape.

5. ALEXIUS (CAPTION):    For a ritual like the kind he intended to cast he needed the finest possible vintage of vitae.

Panel 6. ALEXIUS stands with his back against a set of large double doors dozens of shadowy images menace and surround him.

6. ALEXIUS (CAPTION):    The blood of an imperial family.

PAGE SIXTEEN (six panels)

Panel 1. ALEXIUS has ripped open the door exposing the room to the sunlight outside. The shadow figures either melt to nothing or flee from the light.

1. ALEXIUS (CAPTION):    I know that creature was ancient though how old I am unsure. How many civilizations has he infiltrated?

2. ALEXIUS (CAPTION):    The homicidal tendencies towards inconvenient relatives of the Julio-Claudians and their successors take on a new and more horrible significance in my mind.

Panel 2. ALEXIUS stands before an image of the Virgin Mary in a Greek orthodox church. He prays clutching a bundle close to his chest.

3. DIMITRI (CAPTION):      It was customary for the Ottoman emperors who conquered Constantinople who kill off every brother on their ascension to power. You don’t think-

Panel 3. ALEXIUS watches from a nearby rooftop still holding a bundle. Before him is the SHADOWMANCER’s mansion. The SHADOWMANCER himself can be seen leaving out of the front gate.

4. ALEXIUS (CAPTION):    That creature was evil and powerful beyond measure. Your own abilities are nothing in comparison.

Panel 4. ALEXIUS reenters the SHADOWMANCER’s laboratory but now it is empty. He still holds the bundle in his hands.

5. ALEXIUS (CAPTION):    It was only a matter of time. I knew I had to return. I was helpless before him unless I had access to his magic.

Panel 5. ALEXIUS stands over an altar with his blade drawn inside the SHADOWMANCER’s laboratory. On the altar in front of him are a number of open books and a small baby in swaddling clothes laid out to be sacrificed, the child was what he was carrying in the bundle.

6. ALEXIUS (CAPTION):    I set his laboratory aflame, and fled. But not before I used his stolen knowledge to place my soul into the Dark Place.

Panel 6. ALEXIUS walks away from the SHADOWMANCER’s mansion which is engulfed in flames behind him. ALEXIUS now wears a suit of shadow armor.

7. ALEXIUS (CAPTION):    I make bad decisions I suppose.

PAGE SEVENTEEN (eight panels)

Panel 1. DIMITRI sits with his back against the wall of the cellar. ALEXIUS stands in front of him have just ended his expositing.

1. DIMITRI:                           That’s fucked up.

2. ALEXIUS:                         I offer no excuse, there is none to give.

Panel 2. DIMITRI stands and wipes the dust and dirt off his pants. ALEXIUS has turned his back on DIMITRI and looks up contemplating.

3. DIMITRI:                           Except I never did any ritual. I killed my shadowmancer and just ended up like this.

4. ALEXIUS:                         How did you slay this sorcerer?

Panel 3. A close up of ALEXIUS’ face as he thinks.

5. DIMITRI (OFF):                A strange blade, it seemed to be made of obsidian.

6. ALEXIUS:                         A darkblade? It must be…

Panel 4. A view of ALEXIUS as he begins expositing, he looks like a very stuck up college lecturer.

7. ALEXIUS:                         A darkblade is the weapon of a shadowmancer. It is a weapon of cruelty beyond measure as it devours the soul of the victim and drags it to the Dark Place.

Panel 5. DIMITRI continues tapping on the large oak barrels as ALEXIUS walks along behind watching him work. The sound effect emerges from the barrel DIMITRI is tapping.

8. ALEXIUS:                         By wielding it you must have formed a connection between yourself and the Dark Place. It recognized your blood through my pact.

9. DIMITRI:                           Then how do I undo that?

10. ALEXIUS:                       I’m sorry, I have no idea.

11. FX:                                    Thunk thunk.

Panel 6. DIMITRI starts opening the front of the barrel which is actually a hidden door. ALEXIUS has moved to take a look inside.

12. ALEXIUS:                       Have you found what you were searching for?

13. DIMITRI:                         I need to get back to the real world. I have no idea how to wake up but this secret passage leads out of the chateau. I could never decide where it should lead, but this is the only plan I have.

Panel 7. A shot from behind. DIMITRI and ALEXIUS stand in front of the hidden door which opens into an inky black passage.

14. ALEXIUS:                       Your enemies conspire against you while you rest, I understand. If you believe that this will lead you out, then it will. But you will return here eventually, no man can stay awake forever.

Panel 8. A view from inside the passage, there are stairs leading down. DIMITRI has begun to descend the stairs which ALEXIUS remains behind in the chateau watching him leave.

15. DIMITRI:                         Well, I guess I’ll see you later then.

PAGE EIGHTEEN (seven panels)

Panel 1. A view of the sitting room in PIERRE JEAN-PAUL’s house. DIMITRI is lying on the couch with a pillow under a blanket. DAVID has just walked in from the door into the kitchen.

1. DIMITRI:                           Hmph.

2. DAVID:                              Sorry did I wake you up?

Panel 2. DIMITRI sits up on the couch rubs his forehead with his hand.

3. DIMITRI:                           No, I was already up.

Panel 3. A shot from behind DAVID as he takes a seat holding a mug, his arm where he was shot is in a makeshift cast.

4. DAVID:                              Coco?

Panel 4. A close up of DIMITRI’s face, he seems lost in thought.

5. DIMITRI:                           No thanks.

Panel 5. A close up of DAVID as he takes a sip of his coco.

6. DAVID:                              You know you’re going to have to talk to Nikki about everything.

Panel 6. DIMITRI stands in front of the window and looks out at the city.

7. DIMITRI:                           And how the fuck am I supposed to start that conversation?

Panel 7. DAVID sits back in his chair smirking while holding his coco gingerly in front of himself.

8. DAVID:                              Well you probably won’t have any trouble getting her to believe you about your super powers after last night.

PAGE NINETEEN (seven panels)

Panel 1. A shot from the window DIMITRI is looking out back into the room.

1. DIMITRI:                           Thanks God for small miracles I guess. I’m surprised you don’t have more questions about this.

2. DAVID:                              What’s there to ask? You have super powers. From what I’ve heard no one knows much more than that. I’m not sure why these gangsters and the cops were after you though.

Panel 2. DIMITRI stands smirking and shrugging his shoulders.

3. DIMITRI:                           Would you believe it was all a horrible misunderstanding?

4. DAVID (OFF):                   It stretches credulity.

Panel 3. DIMITRI has turned around to face DAVID as they speak.

5. DIMITRI:                           I wanted to buy some drugs so Nikki wouldn’t have to go through everything she has. Things got out of control. The fucked up thing was I was trying to help.

6. DAVID:                              Well I’m not the one you have to explain yourself to, that’s her.

Panel 4. DAVID has put his mug onto the coffee table and is in the process of rising to his feet.

7. DIMITRI:                           I suppose you’re right. You know what room she’s in?

8. DAVID:                              I talked to her a couple hours ago; Pierre put her in the guest room. She says she’s feeling better.

9. DIMITRI:                           May as well get this over with.

Panel 5. DAVID and DIMITRI stand in front of a wooden door. DAVID is in front and indicating it with his thumb.

10. DAVID:                            This is the guest room.

Panel 6. A shot from behind DIMITRI and DAVID looking into the guest room. The door is now open, but the room is empty, the window is open.

11. DIMITRI:                         Where is she?

Panel 7. A shot from outside the window looking at the house. DAVID and DIMITRI are standing at the window looking out.

12. DAVID:                            The car is gone.

13. DIMITRI:                         Goddamnit! We have to get her back here; those gangsters are still out there looking for us!

PAGE TWENTY (eight panels)

Panel 1. The hallway of a hospital. The halls are darks and most of the lights are off. Strange shadows are visible on the walls and the image is shown at a Dutch angle.

1. NARRATOR:                     Elsewhere.

Panel 2. In front of one of the doors stands a police officer who is leafing through a large wad of cash. He is smirking as he counts his bribe. Nearby is the CHAUFFER.

2. BOSS (OFF):                      I must say, I’m very disappointed.

Panel 3. A hospital room. In the bed JEFF is handcuffed down, his leg is in a cast and he is also otherwise bandaged. The BOSS stands off to one side with JESSICA hanging off his arm.

3. BOSS:                                 I told you I didn’t want any fuck ups.

4. JEFF:                                   I know. I underestimated him.

Panel 4. A close up of the cast on JEFF’s leg where DIMITRI blew off his kneecap. The BOSS can be seen out of focus in the background.

5. BOSS:                                 I can see that.

Panel 5. The BOSS is taking a seat in a chair next to JEFF’s bed. JESSICA remains standing nearby.

6. BOSS:                                 What happened?

Panel 6. A close up of the BOSS as he lights a cigar.

7. JEFF:                                   You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.

8. BOSS:                                 You let me decide what I will or won’t believe.

Panel 7. A shot of the entire hospital room.

9. JEFF:                                   You’re not supposed to smoke in a hospital.

10. BOSS:                               I know.

Panel 8. A close up of JEFF as he reaches over and takes the cigar from the BOSS who is mostly off-screen.

11. JEFF:                                 Alright, here I go.

PAGE TWENTY ONE (nine panels)

Panel 1. A shot of DIMITRI in his shadow armor. Sepia filter to indicate the past.

1. JEFF (CAPTION):             It was hard to look at him.

2. BOSS (CAPTION):            Really? Jessica found him quite attractive.

3. JEFF (CAPTION):             I mean you’re eyes just slipped off him. It was like trying to grip and a bar of soap in the shower. Once you lost track of him you couldn’t find him even if he was right in front of you.

Panel 2. A view of DIMITRI as he stood under the street light during his fight with JEFF. Same image filter to indicate the past.

4. JEFF (CAPTION):             He had this body armor but when he went into the light it just melted away like shadow. When he hit me it felt like he was wearing sap gloves.

Panel 3. A view of DIMITRI as he blocked the bullet with the darkness during his fight with JEFF. Sepia.

5. JEFF (CAPTION):             He could take the dark and make it physical. I can’t explain it but whatever it was it was strong enough to block a bullet.

6. BOSS (CAPTION):            I see.

Panel 4. A close up of JEFF as he sits in bed smoking the cigar.

7. JEFF:                                   So there it is.

Panel 5. Shot from below of the BOSS as he looks upwards at JESSICA who stands next to him.

8. BOSS:                                 What do you think?

9. JESSICA:                           Shadow magic. I know of it, but the only thing I’ve ever heard about it was that the secrets had been lost for hundreds of years.  

Panel 6. A shot from the side and slightly behind the BOSS’ back of JEFF who looks shocked and is gesturing violently with the lit cigar in his hand.

10. JEFF:                                 You’ve heard about this before? I don’t know what you’ve heard but this kid from Brighton Beach just used this shadow magic to kill three of my men and fucking cripple me!

11. JESSICA (OFF):              Calm down Jeffery.

Panel 7. A shot of the entire hospital room. JEFF is smoking is cigar again, looking moody and put out.

12. BOSS:                               Will your friend be up to the task?

13. JESSICA:                         Oh yes, his skills should be quite sufficient.

Panel 8. A far shot of the entire hospital, its night and most of the lights are out.

14. BOSS (OFF):                    I’m sorry our partnership ended this way, but you’ll have the satisfaction of knowing that we’ll be eliminating Dimitri Sokolov.

15. JEFF (OFF):                      I don’t know how many hitters you’ve called in on this guy but take some advice, it’s not enough.

Panel 9. A shot of the hospital room from the point of view of the doorway. The door can be seen open on one side. All three of the characters in the room look at the viewer. The BOSS is smug, JESSICA is stoic and JEFF is surprised.

16. PYROMANCER (OFF):  Au contraire my friend.

PAGE TWENTY TWO (one panels)

Panel 1. A full page spread of the PYROMANCER. The PYROMANCER is a tall olive skinned man with a very lean but almost freakishly muscular figure. He is shirtless beneath a red robe like that a boxer wears before a fight. There are scars and burn marks all up his chest leading to his face where one side is horribly burned and shriveled. The PYROMANCER grins although his lips are gone on half his face. In one hand he holds a lighter which he’s flicked on. The fire shoots up into an arc into a small ball of fire levitating just above the PYROMANCER’s left hand.

1. PYROMANCER:               One man is more than enough.

2. PYROMANCER:               So long as he’s the right man for the job.