Old Armor
46 & 2 Issue 7:
By
Zachary Smith
PAGE 1. PANEL 1.
The burning man is hitting someone, repeatedly. We cannot see who it is yet, merely shadows
struggling. They are in an alley way at
night. Light barely creeps in from
around the buildings.
PAGE 1. PANEL 2.
We see a fist arched in the air, ready to come down again.
PAGE 1. PANEL 3.
He continues to hit this person, and blood is starting to
collect on his gloves.
PAGE 1. PANEL 4.
A blood spurt splashes across the alleyway wall.
PAGE 1. PANEL 5.
The burning Man looks up, as if he sees us.
PAGE 2. SPLASH PAGE.
An open wound bleeds, a cut on Chino’s arm.
The wound is not huge, but it is enough to have some blood pour
out. I want one single drop descending
from the bottom of his forearm. Blood is
coalescing in the sink, making the water look murky, and dark. On both hands his knuckles are severely
bruised and have caked blood on them.
Chino
(caption): “Thinking about all the
pain…I just wish that it would wash away.”
PAGE 3. PANEL 1.
Chino
is putting a bandage over the cut in the bathroom.
PAGE 3. PANEL 2.
Chino
looks in the mirror.
Chino
(caption): “Do you remember the last
time you did this? Pain and blood. Trying to make yourself…”
PAGE 3. PANEL 3.
Chino
looks in the mirror, but now he’s younger.
This is 15 year-old Chino
who just broke up with Breanna and had a Fight Club fight with Chi. He has bruises on his face, and some
cigarette burns on his arm.
Chino
(caption): “…numb.”
PAGE 3. PANEL 4.
Chino
opens up the cabinet of the bathroom mirror.
Chino
caption: “Block out the world. Ruiner playing over and over in your head:”
PAGE 3. PANEL 5.
Chino
has a pair of scissors in his right hand pointed in a stabbing motion over his
left arm. His left arm is waiting.
Chino
caption: “You didn’t hurt me, nothing
can hurt me.”
PAGE 3. PANEL 6.
Chino
is moving in a stabbing motion towards his arm.
Chino
caption: “You didn’t hurt me, nothing
can stop me now.”
PAGE 4. PANEL 1.
Chino
sits alone under the bleachers, this goes back to the scene when Breanna left
him after she was disgusted with his actions.
Chino
caption: “You didn’t hurt me…”
PAGE 4. PANEL 2.
Chino
is burning his arm with a cigarette like at the beginning of issue 4.
Chino
caption: “…nothing can hurt me.”
PAGE 4. PANEL 3.
Breanna is yelling at Chino,
he looks away.
Breanna: “FUCKING
ASSHOLE!”
Chino
caption: “You didn’t hurt me…”
PAGE 4. PANEL 4.
Chino
is looking at the wound the scissors made, blood pours out again. His house phone is ringing.
Chino
caption: “nothing can stop me now.”
PAGE 4. PANEL 5.
Chino
is wrapping up his arm with some gauze and medical tape. Answering machine gets the message.
Message Caption:
“…after the tone…BEEP”
Joshua (on the phone):
“Hey boyo, It’s the Rev., just seeing what you’re doing. Chi told me to give you a call. Everything okay? I’m going to pick you up tomorrow at 8, be
ready, and have something to eat before I get there. BEEEP.”
PAGE 5. PANEL 1.
Young Chino is waiting outside of his house in the morning,
he has a long sleeve shirt on that is covering his cut on his left arm. A car is pulling up.
PAGE 5. PANEL 2.
Chino
is in the car with Joshua, putting his seatbelt on. Chi and Frankie are in the backseat of the car. Chi is a little bruised.
Joshua: “Mornin’.”
Chino: “Morning.”
Joshua: “Frankie, as
you were saying.”
Frankie: “I was just
reading this magazine article in TRYSTERO about a black hole at the beginning
of time that’s pulling us all backwards.
It’s weighing us down, and may eventually pull us all in.”
Chi: “That’s crazy.”
PAGE 5. PANEL 3.
Joshua pats Chino
on the arm to get his attention. Chino is wincing in pain
as he does so.
Joshua: “That is some
crazy stuff Frankie. Did ye hear that Chino?”
Joshua: “Ye alright?”
PAGE 5. PANEL 4.
Chino
looks away from Joshua.
Chino: “Yeah.
Just fine. Nothing’s wrong.”
Chino:
“Where are we going?”
Joshua: “I thought it
might be good idea to take you boys out to do something productive. These summer days get ye to be just
useless. Pretty soon you’re staying out
all hours and getting…
PAGE 5. PANEL 5.
Joshua is looking into his rearview mirror at Chi, who has
bruising from the night before.
Chino
and Frankie laugh at Chi’s joke.
Joshua: “…inta
trouble. That right Chi?”
Chi: “Yeah, we don’t
want no troubre.”
Chino
and Frankie: laughter.
PAGE 6. PANEL 1.
Joshua pulls into a school’s parking lot. There is a sign that says: ASBP Blood Drive.
Chino: “It’s not time for school yet.”
Joshua: “Good, ‘cause
we’re going to be doing something different.”
PAGE 6. PANEL 2.
The boys are lined up at a desk, a middle aged woman is
talking to them.
Volunteer: “Thank you
Reverend for bringing these boys in.”
Joshua: “It was their
idea, I just brought ‘em over.”
PAGE 6. PANEL 3.
Chino
is being poked with the needle, he has his right arm rolled up, and is looking
at the nurse.
Nurse: “Did that
hurt.”
Chino: “No.”
Nurse: “Tough, I like
it.”
PAGE 6. PANEL 4.
Joshua is outside of the school, smoking. Chino
is just coming out of the door.
Joshua: “You done
already?”
Chino: “Yeah.”
Joshua: “Chi and
Frankie?”
Chino: “Still waiting.”
PAGE 6. PANEL 5.
Chino
is just staring off into the distance.
Joshua: “So, do you
wanna tell me what happened last night?”
Chino: “Not really.”
Joshua: “Come
on. You know I won’t tell anybody.”
PAGE 6. PANEL 6.
Chino
keeps staring into the distance, saying nothing.
PAGE 7. PANEL 1.
Older Chino
is laying in his bed, a bandage around his arm.
His cellphone is ringing. He
ignores it.
Chino
caption: “Funny thing about the pain is
that you can’t ignore it. You begin to
like it, and eventually a little bit is not enough.”
Chino
caption: “You want it so much to
overload you so that there’s nothing left.”
Music caption: “In
these demon days it’s so cold inside, so hard for a good soul to survive, you
can’t even trust the air you breathe, ‘cause mother earth wants us all to
leave.
PAGE 7. PANEL 2.
Chino
looks at the missed call, it is a missed call from Myung.
Music caption: “When
lies become reality you numb yourself on drugs and TV.”
Chino
caption: “Take it all away. Nothing can get through.”
PAGE 7. PANEL 3.
Chino
is watching Abe eat.
Caption: Earlier that
day.
Abe: “I feel
great. What happened again?”
Chino: “You were stabbed multiple times. There was blood poisoning due to the fact
that he pierced you intestinal track, and your shit started to damage your
blood.”
Abe: “The fuck?”
PAGE 7. PANEL 4.
Chino
looks at his right wrist, without a bandage, which still has a burn on it. Abe has put his food down.
Abe: “So how did I
get better?”
Chino: “I…”
PAGE 7. PANEL 5.
A panel showing a burned out carcass in a car that has also
been ravaged by the same fire. This is
the security guard and his car after they put the fire out.
Chino: “…need to go home. I’m going to leave a message for the Rev.”
Abe: “Chino? Wait…”
PAGE 8. PANEL 1.
Chino
is riding on a bus after leaving the hospital, late at night.
PAGE 8. PANEL 2.
Chino
is walking past a stone wall.
PAGE 8. PANEL 3-4-5
Chino
starts hitting the wall, over and over, again and again.
CHINO: “FUCK!”
CHINO: “FUCK!”
CHINO: “FUCK!”
CHINO: “FUCK!”
PAGE 9. PANEL 1.
Chino
looks at his knuckles.
PAGE 9. PANEL 2.
He picks at a scab.
PAGE 9. PANEL 3.
It begins to bleed.
Chino
(caption): “Where does it all go?”
Joshua (caption):
“What?”
PAGE 9. PANEL 4.
Back to young Chino
and Joshua standing outside the school.
Chino: “The blood?
Where does it go?”
Joshua: “To someone
who needs it.”
PAGE 9. PANEL 5.
A black panel with only a caption in it.
Caption: “INCOMING!”
PAGE 10. PANEL 1.
Black caption. Just
dialogue bubbles. The burning man is
just barely waking up
Soldier 1: “MEDIC!
MEDIC!”
Soldier 2: “Fuck, oh
fuck. There’s no skin left. Is he dead?”
Soldier 3: “Medic
coming.”
PAGE 10. PANEL 2.
Blurry images of the three soldiers and a medic attending to
the burning man. These next few panels
will be from his perspective. It’s a cityscape,
Bagdad most likely.
Medic: “Hey man,
you’re going to be okay. I swear
it. I need a stretcher. We need evac now. Get me something to wrap him in, we’ve got
to limit infection.”
PAGE 10. PANEL 3.
The burning man is being hoisted, the medic is over his head
and one of the other soldiers is lifting him by his boots.
Soldier 1: “This is
some fucked up shit. He went up like the
human torch. Clothes and skin wiped
away.”
Medic: “Thank god you
put him out. Let’s get to some cover and
wait for that evac they called in.”
Soldier 3: “I think I’m going to…”
Soldier off panel:
“No skin. No skin.”
PAGE 10. PANEL 4.
He is now propped up against a building, and he is looking
at the medic. Some vomit comes in from
the side of the panel.
Soldier 1 (barely in panel):
“Damn it Johnson.”
Medic: “You’re okay
man. This will help you not feel
anything for a while.”
Soldier 2 (off panel):
“No skin. Nothing there.”
Soldier 3: “eeeeeehhhhhhhh.”
PAGE 10. PANEL 5.
The burning man is looking down as the doctor is injecting
him with a sedative/barbiturate.
Medic: “You’ll be
numb in no time.”
Soldier 2(off panel):
“No skin. Nothing…”
Medic: “Shut the fuck
up.”
PAGE 10. PANEL 6.
The burning man is looking up at the soldiers and the medic,
the medic is shaking one of the soldiers.
The vision is blurry again because he is passing out.
Medic: “SHUT UP! HE’S THE ONE HURTING, JUST SHUT UP.”
Soldier 2: “Nothing
there, nothing there, nothing there.”
PAGE 11. PANEL 1.
The burning man is being willed in on a gurney. An I.V. is sticking out of him. A nurse and two doctors follow as he enters
the medical area on the base. Some wear
scrubs, some weir camo. The place is
almost like a tent. Now that we can see
him there are burns and bleeding everywhere.
His clothes are almost completely gone.
Nurse: “BLOOD! WE NEED BLOOD!”
Doctor 1: “HURRY!”
PAGE 11. PANEL 2.
One doctor is putting the blood bag onto the same I.V.
stand, while the other injects him with a needle.
Doctor 1: “We’ll need
more. Bring in all of it.”
Doctor 2: “As much as
we can.”
PAGE 11. PANEL 3.
The burns begin to scar, and the doctors are shocked.
Doctor 1: “The hell
is…”
Doctor 2: “Miracle,
it’s a miracle.”
PAGE 11. PANEL 4.
Though the burns are scarring, he is not restored to what he
was before. He looks like Freddy
Krueger, minus the costume.
Doctor 1: “What was
that?”
Doctor 2: “I don’t
know, but it healed him. He’s still ugly
as fuck, but it healed him. I think he’s
going to make it.”
PAGE 11. PANEL 5.
Doctor 1 pick up the dog tags next to him on the gurney.
Doctor 1: “You’re
going home to Baltimore, kid.”
PAGE 11. PANEL 6.
In the background there is someone taking the blood
transfusion bag.
PAGE 12. PANEL 1.
A black female and male detectives stand over a body on a
city corner in Baltimore. There are some crime scene investigators
standing around them taking pictures/gathering evidence. The
female detective is squatting. She is
wearing a pant suit, and has pulled back hair.
She’s mixed, skin is a little lighter (Kima from The Wire). The male detective is also black, he smokes a
cigar, is kind of fat, a flat top, mustache/goatee facial hair (Bunk from The
Wire). We won’t name them for
copyright purposes.
This is the same kid that was shot way back in issue 1.
Caption: Baltimore. 3 years later.
Kima: “I know, I
know, me giving a fuck when it’s not my turn.”
Bunk: “Wasn’t going
to say anything.”
Kima: “Bullshit.”
Bunk: “What do we
got?”
PAGE 12. PANEL 2.
Kima is pointing with her pen at a hole in the boys head.
Kima: “Dead corner
boy. No one saw anything.”
Bunk: “You don’t
say.”
Kima: “First time for
everything. A lot of his boys have been
past looking, like they didn’t know it happened. Whoever got the kid, got him when no one else
was around.”
Bunk: “Been hearing
about some new kid brandishing a shotgun, thought it’d be a good idea to take
over for Mr. Little.”
PAGE 12. PANEL 3.
Kima is now standing next to bunk. He holds his cigar in his hand.
Kima: “Not a shotgun
wound though.”
Bunk: “Works with a
kid who uses a pistol. You never know.”
Kima: “No cartridges
on the ground, so no make or model on the weapon until we find the bullet.”
Kima: “Look at that.”
PAGE 12. PANEL 4.
Kima is pulling money out his back pocket. It is a big wad of money.
Kima: “Not the bank
roll for the stack, but a big wad. Why
kill him and not take anything?”
Bunk: “Got another
name to go in the red.”
Kim: “Shit.”
PAGE 12. PANEL 5.
Bunk is putting out his cigar.
Bunk: “Hell of a case
so far. No motive, no weapon, no
witness.”
Kima: “Fuck you very
much.”
Bunk: “Drinks are on
Lester after work.”
Kima: “Damn
straight.”
PAGE 13. PANEL 1.
Blicero sits at a desk, there is a glowing floor beneath him
with the Tree of Life emitting light from the floor. Think Gendo’s office in Evangelion. I even want the same effect of only the
glasses emitting light, the rest of Blicero is in shadow. A man is walking towards the desk with a
briefcase.
Operative 1: “We have
another incident. This blood suddenly
healed an almost dead soldier. The man
was burned beyond recognition, but this transfusion gave him back some
semblance of life.”
Blicero: “Was he
completely healed?”
PAGE 13. PANEL 2.
The briefcase with the blood packet is opened upon Blicero’s
desk.
Operative 1: “Not
enough of it. If there had been two
bags, its possible that he could have been completely restored.”
Blicero: “We can
classify this with the rest of the group.
This project is going to need more funding. Contact Minderbender right away.”
PAGE 13. PANEL 3.
The operative is leaving.
Blicero calls out.
Blicero: “Bring the
girl in, I’m in need of some entertainment.”
PAGE 13. PANEL 4.
Scarlettt is wheeled in, in a wheelchair. She is bound and gagged, doped up, and
groggy. She is clothed, barely.
Blicero: “Finally.”
PAGE 13. PANEL 5.
Blicero holds a riding crop in one hand, ready to strike.
Blicero: “Let’s see
how much we can make you bleed today.”
PAGE 14. PANEL 1, 2,
3.
Blicero unleashes a flurry of whips upon Scarlettt’s body,
and face.
PAGE 14. PANEL 4.
We see the aftermath of the strikes, blood streaming down
from the cuts. Wide open wounds from how
hard Blicero struck.
PAGE 14. PANEL 5.
The wounds are smaller, the blood is less.
Blicero: “It
disappears as quickly as it came.”
PAGE 14. PANEL 6.
Scarlettt looks at Blicero, whose back is turned, intense
hate burning in her eyes, her wounds are almost completely gone, as if they
were never there.
PAGE 14. PANEL 7.
Blicero has tunred around, he holds a barbed wire modified
whip.
Blicero: “The fun,
Gretal, is only beginning.”
Scarlettt (caption) :
“Not Gretal.”
PAGE 15. PANEL 1.
Chino
is walking on sidewalk, smoking. He has
a bottle of liquor with him. His left
arm has started to bleed some more, soaking the bandage a little. Let the focus be on this blood seeping
through.
Scarlettt (caption):
“Scarlettt.”
PAGE 15. PANEL 2.
There is a group of three white men, early twenties, dude
bros., that are hanging outside of a bar, Chino
is about to walk upon them. The three
men are smoking, that’s why they are outside of the bar.
Guy 1: “Did you see
the way that bitch was looking at me.
Totally wanted to fuck me.”
Guy 2: “Sluts man,
they’re all sluts.”
Guy 3: “If there is
one thing I’ve learned in my twenty some-odd years is that all women are
whores.”
PAGE 15. PANEL 3.
The guys continue to talk, as Chino walks closer.
Guy 1: “Totally down
to fuck, if her fucking cunt friend will get out of the way then I’ll get my
dick in.”
Guy 2: “Remember when
that nigger was cock blocking me. “FUCK
YOUR COUCH NIGGER, FUCK YOUR COUCH.”
Guy 3: “Haha,
yeah. It’s cause you pussies can’t close
the deal, faggots. I’ll show you how to
use a cock.”
Guy 1: “Fuck you, you
pass out tonight I’m going to shove mine down your throat.”
PAGE 15. PANEL 4.
Chino
is now in front of them. He is looking
at them. Bottle in one hand, cigarette
in the other.
Guy 2: “The fuck you
looking at?”
Chino: “Cowards.
A bunch of cowards.”
Guy 3: “Hahaha, fuck
off.”
Chino: “Or what?
Gonna shove your cock down my mouth?
I think you’re boyfriends might get jealous.”
PAGE 15. PANEL 5.
The three men are now walking towards Chino.
Guy 1: “What’s you
say?”
Chino: “Jealous.
He doesn’t want to share your tiny cock, ‘cuz there’s not enough of
it. It’s tiny, remember?
”
Guy 2: “Gonna fuck
you up little kid.”
Chino: “You can try.
I’ve been trying to get fucked up all night, nothing seems to be
working”
PAGE 16. PANEL 1.
Guy 3 has hit Chino
across the face, and he is falling backwards, at a 45 degree angle. His arms kind of go up, and straight, but he
holds onto the liquor bottle, so he can hit them later.
Guy 3: “Eat this,
faggot.”
Guy 1: “Yeah.”
PAGE 16. PANEL 2.
Chino
has not fallen over, but rather been rocked backwards, and he has caught his
feet. Think when an Evangelion gets
knocked backwards, but doesn’t fall. His
liquor bottle is still in hand. His head
is down, arms hanging, body hunched over. When Chino
gets hit he won’t bleed, he’s already begun morphing into the Shadow, which
feels no pain.
Chino: “Try again, try harder.”
PAGE 16. PANEL 3.
Guy 1 steps up and hits him with an uppercut, causing Chino to look up.
Guy 2: “Fuck yeah,
mess him up.”
PAGE 16. PANEL 4.
Chino
has swung the bottle of liquor and hit Guy 1 across the face.
Chino: “Not hard enough.”
PAGE 16. PANEL 5.
Guy 1 is on the ground, bleeding, Guy 2 and 3 are stepping
over him to get Chino.
Guy 3: “You’re dead.”
Chino: “Not yet, but lets see if you can help me get
there.”
PAGE 16. PANEL 6.
They both have swung, one is hitting Chino in the face, the other in the stomach.
PAGE 17. PANEL 1.
Chino
is getting stomped on the ground, his face is blank.
Guy 2: “Yeah.”
Caption: “You didn’t
hurt me…
PAGE 17. PANEL 2.
They have dragged Chino
up, and he is getting hit in the stomach by Guy 3, while Guy 2 holds him.
Guy 3: “You like
this? Shouldn’t have fucked with us.”
Caption: “…nothing
can hurt me.”
PAGE 17. PANEL 3.
Chino
is getting hit hard in the face, but still no blood or cuts.
Caption: “You didn’t
hurt me…”
PAGE 17. PANEL 4.
Guy 3 holds his hand in pain. Guy 2 has thrown Chino aside to check on his friend.
Guy 3: “FUCK! AHHHHH!”
Guy 2: “What
happened?”
PAGE 17. PANEL 5.
Focus in on Guy 3’s hand.
It has bones shattered, and busted in it. I’ll give you an example from a Preacher
book.
Guy 3: “The hell?”
PAGE 18. PANEL 1.
The two guys are looking at Chino, completely in silhouette, no color
emitting, just a black outline.
Chino: “You failed me.”
PAGE 18. PANEL 2.
The two guys are looking at each other, Guy 3’s bloody hand
in the middle of them.
PAGE 18. PANEL 3.
Outline of Chino’s
face, still all in shadow.
Chino: “Run.”
PAGE 18. PANEL 4.
The two Guy’s are carrying Guy 1 away.
PAGE 18. PANEL 5.
Chino
is smoking, the only light emitting from his face is his cigarette cherry, but
it only illuminates his mouth.
PAGE 19. PANEL 1.
Chino
walks by a convenience store window, he looks into the window.
PAGE 19. PANEL 2.
Chino
has gotten close enough that we can see his reflection and there are no signs
of a fight at all, he’s perfectly fine, except for some blood on his cheek,
from when Guy 3 hit him and broke his hand.
He is bringing his hand to his face.
Chino: “Not mine.”
PAGE 19. PANEL 3.
Chino
wipes his hand on a piece of newspaper trash in a public trash can. The headline reads: UNKNOWN CAUSES FOR GANG MEMBER DEATHS.
PAGE 19. PANEL 4.
Chino
walks away into the night.
PAGE 20. PANEL 1.
Back to the alley from the beginning of the issue. The burning man is looking directly at us,
and is smiling. Blood covers his face.
PAGE 20. PANEL 2.
He is now wiping the blood from his face.
Burning man: “Blood
is such a marvelous thing.”
PAGE 20. PANEL 3.
He walks out of the alley, back to us. A dead gang member with a missing eye and
bludgeoned face lies in the middle of the alley.
THE END
