46 & 2 Issue Sixteen

War is declared

46 & 2 Issue 16:

By

Zachary Smith

PAGE 1.  PANEL 1.

Scorpio has a tape recorder out on a table.  Scorpio only has a pair of boxers and a tank top on.  He has a bandage over his leg, where he was shot in the last issue.  He is smoking.

The room is dark, very sparse, nothing in it aside from the table, chair, and a bed.

Scorpio:  “You can begin any time you want.”

The burning man (off panel):  “I really admire you.  You seek the truth.  I read that piece about me in the dealer’s apartment.”

PAGE 1.  PANEL 2.

The burning man is taking off his over coat, he is near the bed. 

Scorpio:  “His name was Ramone.  He has a sister who makes the best salsa I’ve ever had, and a dad who’d kill you if he weren’t in the hospital.”

The burning man:  “I’m sure.  Maybe I’ll pay him a visit.”

Scorpio:  “You piece of shit!”

PAGE 1.  PANEL 3.

The burning man has removed his holsters, with the guns in them, and has put them on the bed. 

The burning man:  “No worries for the old man if he hasn’t done anything wrong.”

The burning man:  “I can’t believe you have such sympathy for this peddler.  A man who destroys lives on a regular basis.”

Scorpio:  “What a hypocrite.  All you do is destroy lives.”

PAGE 1. PANEL 4.

The burning man has removed one of the guns from the holster.  He is dropping the clip out of the gun.

The burning man:  “Hmm.  I would say I remove problems.  I help life run more smoothly.”

Scorpio:  “I’m sure that’s what many psychos think.”

The burning man:  “Isn’t that a little judgmental?  You haven’t even heard why.”

PAGE 1.  PANEL 5.

Scorpio presses record on the tape player.

Scorpio:  “Then tell me.  I’ll make sure the world knows.”

PAGE 2.  PANEL 1.

The burning man, pre-burn, is in a patrol march, there are three other soldiers with him.  We still can’t see his face, or have much clue to any ethnicity.  They are walking down the street.

Kids run in and out of the way.  Some playing soccer, some just avoiding them.  Other’s come begging.

The burning man:  “Wasn’t able to get married last time I was home.  We were just so happy to see each other we didn’t get out of bed.”

The burning man (caption):  “Routine patrol, nothing out of the ordinary.”

Soldier 1:  “I know that feeling man.”

Soldier 2 (talking to a beggar):  “Fuckers are like leaches.”

PAGE 2.  PANEL 2.

Soldier 2 gives the kid his canteen to drink from.

Soldier 3:  “I heard they might be doing an airstrike today, out in the hills to flush some them these fuckers out.”

Soldier 1:  “Word is they’re testing out some new planes too.”

The burning man:  “Look!  The fuck?”

PAGE 2.  PANEL 3.

There is plane flying over head, something exiting from it’s undercarriage. 

Soldier 1:  “INCOMING!”

PAGE 2.  PANEL 4.

All four soldiers dodge out of the way.

The rocket lands, but there is no explosion.

PAGE 2.  PANEL 5.

The rocket is closest to the burning man, he looks at it for moment, he sees written on it.  The other soldiers are still retreating.

“M&M Enterprises.”

Underneath this writing he sees written:

The burning man (caption): “I thought I read something written on the rocket, but now I don’t know if I dreamed it or not.”

“Imoplex G rocket

  10984”

PAGE 2.  PANEL 6.

Explosion.

PAGE 3.  PANEL 1.

The burning man sits in he corner of an office.  Waiting.

The burning man (caption): “I left the medical unit, and was almost ready to go home.”

PAGE 3.  PANEL 2.

A doctor comes in.

Doctor:  “Okay soldier.  It looks like you’ve been cleared.  We just need one little thing cleared up.”

PAGE 3.  PANEL 3.

The doctor hands the burning man a clipboard, a piece of paper to be signed on it.

The burning man:  “So what if I had to be their occasional lab rat.  It’s not like I could end up any worse.”

The doctor:  “There were some complications as to origins of your condition.  This clears us to further test some of you skin samples and blood work.  If we are able to identify how this happened, we can avoid it befalling someone else.”

The burning man: “So, I just sign?”

PAGE 3.  PANEL 4.

The doctor hands him a pen.

The doctor:  “Yep, sign your life away, hahaha, just kidding.  I guess you did that once already though, huh?”

The burning man:  “I guess so.”

PAGE 3.  PANEL 5.

The doctor takes the signed paper back.

The doctor:  “We’ll be sending you back home.”

PAGE 4.  PANEL 1.

The burning man is flying on a plane, with his military escort.  He has on a hat, sunglasses, and a scarf around his face.

A child is turned around in his seat, staring at the burning man.  The child’s mother is sitting next to him, oblivious.  Reading a magazine.

The burning man:  “I dreaded dealing with civvies.  Soldiers had seen fucked up shit like me on a regular basis.  They had the stomach for it, but Gen Pop didn’t.”

Kid:  “What’s up with your face?”

Escort:  “Ma’am!”

The burning man:  “What’s up with yours?”

PAGE 4.  PANEL 2.

The woman has turned the child around.

Woman:  “I’m sorry.”

Escort:  “Thank you ma’am.”

PAGE 4.  PANEL 3. 

The kid is using a mirror to look back at the burning man.  The burning man notices.

PAGE 4.  PANEL 4.

The burning man begins to take off his scarf and sunglasses.  The kid stares intently at his mirror.

PAGE 4.  PANEL 5.

The burning man’s face is completely revealed.  The kids has dropped the mirror.  He has begun to cry.

Woman:   “What’s wrong honey?”

Kid:  “His face!”

PAGE 4.  PANEL 6.

The woman turns around to apologize, not looking directly at him.

Woman:  “I’m so sorry.  He’s just a kid, he doesn’t understand…”

The burning man:  “The price of war.  No child ever does.”

PAGE 5.  SPLASH PAGE.

A cityscape shot of lower end Baltimore.  Look at The Wire if you need reference.  Cars driving, run down buildings, corner shops.  Corner boys selling on the corner.  Some cars are driving by to buy the product.  A man in a hat, jacket, and duffle bag walks down the street ignoring everything that is going on.

Caption:  “Baltimore.  2005”

The burning man (caption):  “You never realize how much you miss everything until it’s ripped away from you.”

The burning man (caption):  “I hadn’t been home in over a year.”

PAGE 6.  PANEL 1.

He is knocking on a door. 

Kristen (off panel):  “Hold on.”

PAGE 6.  PANEL 2.

A woman opens the door.  She is holding a cigarette as she opens the door. 

Kristen is a white woman, wearing a sweat suit.  Hair pulled back, tennis shoes. 

Kristen:  “What do you—“

B.M.:  “Kristen.”

PAGE 6.  PANEL 3.

The cigarette has dropped to the ground.

PAGE 6.  PANEL 4.

Kristen has placed her hand on his face.  It’s her left hand, with an engagement ring on it.  A horrid, sad look is on her face.

PAGE 6.  PANEL 5.

A different time period.  It’s a cold night in Baltimore.  Kristen is in a nice parka jacket, hair looks nicer, a broad smile is on her face.  She is pulling a hand.  This is the arm of the burning man, before his accident.  There is a light further in the background.  It’s winter, snowing.

The burning man (caption):  “She didn’t always look at me that way.”

Kristen:  “Come on, let’s go look.”

PAGE 6.  PANEL 6.

Kristen and the burning man are running towards a bonfire.  There are some kids running around it.  Keep the burning man’s face obscured.  I still don’t want him to identifiable as a certain race.  He has a beanie on, covering the back of his head.

PAGE 7.  PANEL 1.

Kristen and the burning man are standing next to the fire, side by side.

PAGE 7.  PANEL 2.

Her head is leaning against his shoulder.  Their hands are entwined.

Kristen:  “Don’t leave.”

The burning man:  “I have to.  I signed a contract, and we need the money.”

Kristen:  “I know.”

Kristen:  “Let’s get closer to the fire. 

PAGE 7.  PANEL 3.

Kristen is holding her hand over the fire.

The burning man:  “Don’t get too close, I don’t want you to burn your fingers.  I’ve got something planned for them.”

PAGE 7.  PANEL 4.

He has gotten down on one knee and is proposing to her.

The burning man:  “Will you—“

Kristen:  “YES!”

PAGE 7.  PANEL 5.

They hug.

The burning man:  “We’ll go to the courthouse, so we’ll be officially married.  You can be covered under my insurance.  Our parents are gone, we’re the only ones we have.  When I get back, we’ll have a real wedding.”

PAGE 8.  SPLASH PAGE.

A wedding picture, based on the Ty Ziegel and Renee Kline wedding photo.

The burning man:  “The happiest day of my life.”

PAGE 9.  PANEL 1.

Kristen walks into the house, lights are off, except for a small light being emitted from a laptop screen. 

PAGE 9.  PANEL 2.

Kristen has turned on the lights.  She is startled to find The burning man sitting there, in the dark alone this whole time. 

Kristen:  “AHHH!  You scared me!  Why were the lights off?”

The burning man:  “I don’t need them.  I can see the computer just fine.”

PAGE 9.  PANEL 3.

Kristen walks over to him, placing her hands on his shoulders.

Kristen:  “What are you watching?” 

B.M:  “Combat videos.”

Kristen:  “Oh.”

Kristen:  “Say, do you want to go out tonight?  Call Terry and Alyssa and see if they want to grab a drink?”

PAGE 9.  PANEL 4.

The burning man closes the laptop.

B.M:  “Hmmm.”

Kristen:  “I know you’re worried, but it’ll be just fine.  You’ll see.”

PAGE 9.  PANEL 5.

They sit in a restaurant, four of them at a table.  Terry is Black, in his mid-twenties, Alyssa, Hispanic same age.  They’re all laughing. 

The burning man (caption):  “Momentarily, it was as if nothing changed.”

Terry:  “…then he takes the silly string and sprays it all over the car.”

PAGE 10.  PANEL 1.

Dishes are falling on the floor. 

PAGE 10.  PANEL 2.

Everyone turns to looks at the person who dropped the dishes.

It’s a young waitress, she’s looking over in the direction of B.M.

PAGE 10.  PANEL 3.

Everyone has now followed her gaze and is looking at B.M.

B.M.:  “Moments.”

PAGE 10.  PANEL 4.

Burning man is walking out of the restaurant.

Everyone else is still seated at the table.

PAGE 11.  PANEL 1.

Kristen is kissing on B.M.  He’s just staring at the T.V.  Eyes vacant.

Kristen:  “Baby, don’t you want to?”

B.M.:  “Hmmm.”

PAGE 11.  PANEL 2.

B.M. Is on top of her, moving back and forth.

PAGE 11.  PANEL 3.

B.M is getting out of bed, walking towards a bathroom.

Kristen:  “What is it?”

B.M.:  “I…can’t.  I don’t feel…anything.”

PAGE 11.  PANEL 4.

B.M. looks in the mirror.

B.M:  “Do…you want to get out of here?”

Kristen:  “And go where?”

B.M:  “Somewhere, maybe out west.  California?”

Kristen:  “Why there?”

PAGE 11.  PANEL 5.

B.M. full profile of B.M., showing off his body, and how scared and mutilated it is.  Kristen is not looking at him.

B.M.:  “I just feel…drawn there.  I don’t know why.  Some thing is pulling me there.”

Kristen: “I don’t want to leave. We have a life here.  A life I’m trying to work on: going to work six days a week to pay for school, so we can move out of this neighborhood.  It seems like you’ve forgotten about that life.”

PAGE 11.  PANEL 6.

B.M. is in bed again.  Kristen has turned away from him.

B.M.:  “I just feel like there’s something missing.  Some hole that I need to fill.”

Kristen:  “That should be me.”

PAGE 12.  PANEL 1.

B.M. is in a medical office, reading a newspaper.  The headline reads “Five Year Old Killed In His Sleep During a Drive By.”  A picture of the mother crying.

Newspaper Article:  “A stray bullet pierced through the walls of an apartment last night.  It killed a five year boy who was sleeping next to his mother.  The death is a result of a drive by shooting.  Manuel Gomez, the young boy, was the neighbor of the target of the intended shooting.”

B.M:  “Horrible.”

PAGE 12.  PANEL 2.

A nurse walks over to him.

Nurse:  “The doctor will see you now.”

PAGE 12.  PANEL 3.

B.M. sits in a doctors office.

The doctor is going over some notes.

Doctor:  “Still looks like some inconclusive results.  Whatever covered you is still not showing up as an absolute.  It looks like its some modified polymer.  Almost like its modified plastic.  And how you were able to heal is still a mystery.  A record of the donor can’t be found.”

PAGE 12.   PANEL 4.

The doctor is now sitting at the end of the desk.

Doctor:  “Do you feel different?”

B.M:  “Of course.  It’s like everything is behind a screen.  Nothing is solid, or what it was.  I can’t even…with my wife.”

Doctor:  “I could prescribe you something.”

PAGE 12.  PANEL 5.

B.M. Stands to walk out of the office.

BM:  “I don’t know if that would make a difference.”

Doctor:  “Where are you going?”

BM:  “Try to find someone to help me.”

PAGE 13.  PANEL 1.

The burning man is alone in the dark again.  He is watching Taxi Driver on the T.V.  T.V. reads 11:30.

Travis Bickle (On T.V.) “I got some bad ideas in my head.”

PAGE 13.  PANEL 2.

The looks at the cable box to read the time: 11:30.

PAGE 13.  PANEL 3.

Cable box clock now reads: 12:08.  The door begins to open.

Travis Bickle (On T.V.):  “You're a young girl, you should be at home. You should be dressed up, going out with boys, going to school, you know, that kind of stuff. “

PAGE 13.  PANEL 4.

The door opens, Kristen comes stumbling in.  Not because she’s in a rush, but because she’s high, and she’s a little uncoordinated. 

Kristen:  “So fucking dark in here.”

PAGE 13.  PANEL 5.

B.M has gotten up to go to her.  He is lifting her.  She still doesn’t have all of her faculties.

Kristen:  “Big strong man.”

B.M.:  “What’s wrong with you?”

PAGE 13.  PANEL 6.

She pushes him away.

Kristen:  “NOTHING! 

PAGE 14.  PANEL 1.

Kristen is yelling at him, in the dark.  B.M. stands there and takes the shouting.

Kristen:  “Nothings the fucking matter!  Everything’s perfect, isn’t it?  Perfect life, perfect marriage, perfect wedding, perfect sex life.  Aren’t our lives so fucking perfect?”

PAGE 14.  PANEL 2.

B.M. Goes to leave.  She grabs his sleeve.

Kristen:  “WHAT?  Can’t take it?  Fucking truth.  Thought this shit was supposed to make me feel better.”

PAGE 14.  PANEL 3.

She begins to cry.

Kristen:  “I thought everything would be better when you got back.  You were the Sun and stars to me, and I was everything to you.  Nothing is how it should be.”

B.M.:  “No.  The world’s not perfect.  All sorts of inconsistencies, malfunctions, mistakes.  Things that don’t serve a purpose preventing it from working right.”

PAGE 14.  PANEL 4.

He is facing her.

Kristen:  “Don’t tell me how the world really works.  I see it everyday.”

B.M.:  “What did you do?”

Kristen:  “This cook, at work.  Said I would feel better.  It seems like I haven’t felt anything good in a long time.”

PAGE 14.  PANEL 5.

He grabs her arm.

B.M.:  “DRUGS!”

Kristen:  “What of it?  You don’t care.  You don’t care about anything.  Not even me.”

PAGE 14.  PANEL 6.

B.M. raises his hand to slap her, she looks away.

PAGE 15.  PANEL 1.

B.M. has let her go.  His hand is lowered.

B.M.:  “I do care about you.”

Kristen:  “You don’t show it.  This is the most I’ve got from you since you’ve been back.  It’s like you’re numb all the time.”

B.M.:  “I don’t mean to be, it’s just…”

PAGE 15.  PANEL 2.

Kristen is storming off into the bedroom.

Kristen:  “Something missing.  Whatever you need, it’s not me.”

PAGE 15.  PANEL 3.

The door slams.

B.M. is left standing alone in the living room. 

Travis:  “He’s also a dope shooter.”

Iris:  “What makes you so high and mighty.  Will you tell me that?”

OR

Travis:  “He is the lowest kind of person in the world.  Someone has got to do something to him.  He is the scum of the earth.  He’s the worst ssss—ssuuucking scum I have ever fu— ever seen.”

PAGE 16.  PANEL 1.

The B.M. talking to a hospital attendant. 

Attendant:  “We don’t have anyone under that name.  Maybe she is under her maiden name?”

B.M.:  “Kristen Martin.”

PAGE 16.  PANEL 2.

The attendant is typing on her computer, he is exiting as she is talking.

Attendant:  “She is stabilized right now.  She’s in room 528.  Wait—“

PAGE 16.  PANEL 3.

B.M.  is running down the hall.

PAGE 16.  PANEL 4.

He is running into her room. 

A nurse is checking her vitals.

B.M.:  “WHAT HAPPENED?”

Nurse:  “I’ll get the doctor.”

PAGE 16.  PANEL 5.

The doctor has come in.

B.M is close to Kristen. 

Doctor:  “It was an overdose.  Usually you don’t see them unless they’re long time users, which her health and lack of track marks indicates that she isn’t.  They try to get higher with a bigger dose because the old amount just doesn’t produce the same--”

B.M:  “--feeling.”

PAGE 17.  PANEL 1.

B.M.  sits by her,  while she sleeps on the hospital bed.

B.M.:  “I know what to do.”

PAGE 17.  PANEL 2.

Restaurant, at night.  The back door of the place.  It opens into an alley, with a dumpster.  Two young men, early twenties, are outside.  There are two trash cans next to them.

Young man 1: White, wearing a baseball cap, scruffy hair.  An apron on.

Young man 2:  Black, wearing a beanie, and an apron.

Young man 1:  “Bitch took a heavy dose.  I was worried that the cops would start sniffin around, but they thought she was just some junkie bitch.”

Young man 2: “The bit you bought off me would be enough to kill ya.”

Young man 1:  “Don’t know if it killed her.”

PAGE 17.  PANEL 3.

Young man 1 is dumping the can into the trash.

Young man 2:  “Better hope it didn’t.  Might start askin’ where she got it.”

Young man 1:  “Hope it doesn’t either, I wanted to fuck her so bad.  I swear, with her freak of a husband I’m surprised she ain’t out fucking all of us.  I bet his cock got burnt off.”

PAGE 17.  PANEL 4.

Young man 2 is putting out a cigarette.  Young Man 1 is dumping the other trash can, but loses his grip.

Young man 2:  “Yeah, that’d be some nice pussy for sho.”

Young man 1:  “Oh shit.”

PAGE 17.  PANEL 5.

Young man 1 is halfway into the dumpster, trying to fish out the trash can, while he is doing this, Young man 2 is hit from behind with a bat.

Young man 1:  “Fucking stupid piece of shit.”

PAGE 17.  PANEL 6. 

Young man 1 has got out of the trash can, is cleaning himself off.  In the foreground we see the bloody bat.

Young man 1:  “What’s with the bat, man?”

Young man 1:  “Oh shit.  It wasn’t me, I didn’t give it to her.  It was him.  I swear it.”

PAGE 17.  PANEL 7.

Young man 1’s face explodes from the bat hitting it.

PAGE 18.  PANEL 1.

B.M. is walking Kristen through the front door of their apartment.  She looks sad.  He is rather energetic.

B.M.:  “I don’t care what the therapy costs are.  We’ll get you the help.  And since I’m not working, I can go to the meetings with you, make sure this never happens again.”

PAGE 18.  PANEL 2.

She walks into the bedroom as he is talking. 

B.M.:  “I’m sorry about the way things have been.  It’s going to get better I swear.”

PAGE 18.  PANEL 3.

She starts to put some of her clothes away, and she sees a trash bag.

B.M.:  “God, I feel so energetic.  I haven’t felt this way since I came back, not since that first trip home, when we were in bed the whole time.  Speaking of which do you want—“

Kristen:  “What’s this?”

PAGE 18.  PANEL 4.

She pulls out clothes that are matted with blood.  B.M. looks surprised, but not worried.

B.M.:  “…while you were still recovering I paid your work friends a visit.  You should have heard the things they—“

Kristen:  “What did you do?”

PAGE 18.  PANEL 5.

B.M., a serious look on his face. 

B.M.:  “I killed them.  I beat them to death with a baseball bat.  I didn’t want them to ever hurt you again.  I did this for you.”

PAGE 18.  PANEL 6.

Kristen looks at the clothes intensely.

Kristen:  “For me?”

PAGE 19.  PANEL 1.

Kristen throws the clothes down, she is angry.

Kristen:  “FOR ME!  DID YOU ASK ME IF I WANTED THEM DEAD, HUH?  DID I SAY “GO MURDER MY COWORKERS HONEY.  WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU?”

PAGE 19.  PANEL 2.

B.M. is getting angry.

B.M.:  “THEY WERE POISONING YOU.  YOU ALMOST DIED.”

KRISTEN:  “AND SO WHAT IF I DID?  THEY DIDN’T SHOVE THE NEEDLE INTO MY ARM.  I DID.  MY CHOICE.  TO MAKE ME FEEL BETTER, ‘CAUSE NOTHING ELSE WOULD.  NOT YOU, NOT ANYTHING.”

PAGE 19.  PANEL 3.

B.M. is really angry now, he is grabbing her.

B.M.:  “THAT’S IT?  YOU’D RATHER HAVE THEM THAN ME?  YOU’D RATHER BE SOME JUNKIE BITCH THAN MY WIFE.”

KRISTEN:  “I NEVER FELT LIKE YOUR WIFE.  ALL THIS WAS JUST A SHAM.  I DIDN’T WANT TO BE SEEN AS A COWARD FOR RUNNING AWAY FROM YOU.  BUT IT’S WHAT I SHOULD HAVE DONE FROM THE BEGINNING.  THERE’S NOTHING LEFT IN YOU.”

PAGE 19.  PANEL 4.

Kristen shoves him away.

Kristen:  “If you’re going to kill me to, just do it.  There’s nothing holding you back, and nothing keeping me here.”

B.M.:  “I’d never—how could you think I’d want to hurt you?  You’re my everything.”

Kristen:  “Not anymore.  Get out.”

PAGE 19.  PANEL 5.

B.M. looks at Kristen, she looks away.  There is nothing more to be said.

PAGE 19.  PANEL 6.

B.M. walks out of the room.

PAGE 20.  PANEL 1.

B.M. sits in a chair across from Scorpio, he has started smoking a cigarette. 

B.M.:  “She died of an overdose not too long ago.  She never told on me though.  I guess whatever we said to each other wasn’t enough to make her want to see me rot in jail for the rest of my life.”

PAGE 20.  PANEL 2.

B.M. has gotten up.  He is stretching.

Scorpio:  “I never heard about those murders.”

B.M.:  “Nothing to exceptional about them.  Yes they were brutal, but I didn’t get precise until recently.”

Scorpio:   “Does it make you feel better?”

PAGE 20.  PANEL 3.

B.M. looks out the window.  He is holding his gun.

B.M.:  “It makes me feel in general.  Punishing those people, for peddling their poison.  Her death just released me from whatever tether I had to a normal life.  I waited and waited to see if I was going to jail, and I never did.  Then I realized the truth:  It’s all a jail.  We’re all locked up with thugs, murderers, drug dealers, rapists, child molesters.  They walk around us everyday, and then we lock ourselves in our house, lights out, and hope we don’t get murdered or fucked in our sleep.”

PAGE 20.  PANEL 4.

Burning man looks directly at the audience.

B.M.:  “But now there’s me.  I’ll make everything better.  As long as you don’t do anything wrong.”

Scorpio (off panel):  “Who decides what’s wrong?”

B.M.:  “Who else?  Me.”

THE END