46 & 2 Issue Seven

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!”

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