Symka Issue Two
SYMKA ISSUE 2
By Sean
McGinity©2003
Edited by
Suzanne Campbell for The Guild Companion
PAGE ONE
Panel 1.
Splash Panel. There should be a dreamy quality, remembering
the past here. This panel is a recap of
last issue. Upper left side of the panel has
a close-up picture of Gideon and Joaquin’s faces staring at the Symka
tablet. Joaquin has a look of wonder,
Joaquin of surprise. To the right shows
Stick and Silver (in dog form). Bottom
left of the panel has Dale Turcott with a camera on his shoulder, ¼ shot. Bottom right of the panel has the shadowed
character.
Caption 1(near the picture of Joaquin and Gideon): Joaquin and Gideon
find themselves in possession of one of the ancient Tibetan tablets known as
the Symka. Quickly enough they learn
that powerful parties seek the tablets.
Caption 2(near the picture of Silver and Stick): They form an uneasy
alliance with Stick, a martial artist, and Silver, a shapechanger.
Caption 3(near the Dale Turcott picture): Dale Turcott of Independent News is on the story, trying
to find out what the Symka tablets are, and who are the parties interested in
it.
Caption 4(near the shadowed figure): A sinister man overlooks
everything.
PAGE TWO
Panel 1.
Stick sits at a rickety computer table.
He has one hand on the keyboard, and is half-turned towards the others
in the room. Joaquin stands in the center of the room, clutching his knapsack
tightly over his shoulder. Gideon sits
on the beat-up recliner to Joaquin’s right.
He is semi-alert (touching the tablet last issue has tired him out),
leaning back in the chair. He has an
elbow on the arm of the chair, his hand supporting his head. His other hand holds a coffee cup on the
other arm of the chair. Silver sits on
the couch opposite Gideon. She sits on
the edge, holding a steaming cup of coffee in both her hands. Her elbows rest on her knees.
Caption: In a non-descript apartment…
Joaquin: We trust you for now.
You did help us out when the Armani-wearing goon came after us*. We’ll work with you for now. We’ll tell you what happened.
Caption (on the bottom of
the panel): *See last issue.
Panel 2.
Close-up of Joaquin’s face, the edge of his head fading into a
dream-like remembrance sequence.
Joaquin: Gideon and I were in the park, hanging out, not doing much of
anything…
Panel 3.
The edge of the panel should
have a dream edge to it. Gideon is
playing a guitar strapped over his shoulder.
Joaquin stands next to him. A
couple of people are watching him play.
Gideon wears particularly ratty clothes.
It is obvious he is busking.
Gideon and Joaquin are distracted by something. They both are looking over their shoulders,
towards a man and a woman leaping over a chain-link fence.
Joaquin(as a caption): …when we caught sight of a man and woman leaping
over a fence next to the Guthrie mansion.
The woman had a knapsack on her back.
I thought maybe they had robbed the mansion. We decided to stop them.
PAGE THREE
Panel 1.
Dream edge to the panel
still. Full shot of Joaquin doing a
standing kick on the woman. Gideon is in
the forefront of the panel, emerald energy crackling around one hand, the other
blasting that same emerald energy at the man.
The panel is showing more about what happened than what Joaquin is
actually telling them. He is leaving
things out so Stick and Silver don’t realize that they are super-human.
Joaquin (as a caption): Whoever they were, or what they were running
from, we didn’t care. We took them both
out.
Panel 2.
Dream edge. Full shot.
Two uniformed men walk through the chain-link fence, which now has a
hole in it. The fence smokes a
little. Obviously the fence was blasted
through. The men are Hi Tech Henchmen,
so they should have a standard issue uniform for the lower level muscle. They both have blasters in their hands;
exactly the same as the one Joaquin used last issue.
Joaquin (as a caption): We soon learned who they were running
from. Two guys in rent-a-cop uniforms
with some funky hardware. They told us
to leave and forget what we saw. It was
obvious they were going to kill the couple.
Panel 3.
Back to a normal panel. We are back in the apartment. Stick is at the computer, leaning back
towards the others in the room. Everyone
is looking at him.
Stick: The rent-a-cops work for Hi Tech Henchmen. Hi Tech Henchmen rent out their people as
bodyguards for top dollar. I just
checked them out on the Web. They were
hired to watch the exhibit at the museum.
Panel 4.
¼ shot of Silver.
Silver: I was there after the two of you left the scene, in my canine
form. Stick [m1]and I heard blasts from outside his apartment and
decided to check it out. I saw the two
Hi Tech Henchmen laid out as well as the two thieves you took out. Everyone was unconscious when I got there,
and the police were already cordoning off the area. Your scents were on everything. But they did not lead back to the museum
where the tablets were stolen.
Panel 5.
Full shot of Stick, still at the computer but half-turned around
now. Joaquin is still standing looking
down at Stick from the center of the room.
Stick: So I take it you fought these Hi Tech Henchmen?
Joaquin: Yes. We somehow managed
to defeat them. We took their hardware
and…
Panel 6.
¾ shot of Joaquin. He is pulling
the backpack towards the front of his body, but still keeping the straps over
his shoulder. He is showcasing it.
Joaquin: …and this. The
tablet. If these rent-a-cops were
willing to kill the thieves over this, we couldn’t let them have it
either. There was something more going
on here than just a simple robbery.
PAGE FOUR
Panel 1.
¼ shot of Dale Turcott sitting at a desk. A laptop is on one side of the desk. A pile of papers is on the other side. Stacks of small camera tapes are on the end
of the desk closest to the forefront of the panel.
Caption: Meanwhile, in an office at the Independent News studios.
Dale (thinking): Two Tibetan tablets were stolen from the
Panel 2.
¼ shot of Dale. This time he is
leaning back in his chair, hands behind his head.
Dale (thinking): A third party apparently intervened when the Henchmen
got the drop on the thieves. When I
showed up at the scene, the Henchmen and the thieves were both laid out. Really laid out. They weren’t even semi-conscious when I got
there. I think this third party had some
serious power, because the skirmish was over quickly, and there hadn’t been
much of scuffle. But enough to lay
everyone out hard. What really happened?
Panel 3.
The edges of the panel
should waver like the outer edges of a television set. At the center of the panel, a newscaster
reads from a set of papers.
Newscaster: In the news today, the civic
Panel 4.
TV panel again. An older graying man with a microphone pointed
at his face is speaking.
Hi Tech Henchmen rep: Two individuals strolled into the
Panel 5.
Close-up of a computer screen.
On the screen is a chat room with the following:
Scanner: These tablets apparently contain energy that can be released
when brought together, allowing the person using it to channel that
energy.
Decker: I think them Hi Tech goons have a stake in it.
Brad638: For sure they do, man!
2 months ago they were protecting some other Tibetan exhibit and stuff
went missing there too. This third party
baloney is a set-up to make them look innocent.
Stik: What
Brad638: In NYC. I’ll send you
the link to the story…
Panel 6.
Same panel as last.
Scanner: I scoped that they screwed up a job in
Decker: But how do they keep getting these jobs? People must be stupid or something.
Stik: Scanner --- do you know where that link is for
Panel 7.
Same panel as last.
Brad638: What do you care Stik?
Scanner: Olso Times probably.
Try out a search on Yahoo?
Decker: took 4 scrolls in Olso, I think.
Stik: A buddy of mine may have seen something, Brad638.
Scanner: A friend of yours, Stik?
Some dude is asking me the same questions. Hey Decker, you got the hack skill. Can you find out some more about
HiTechHenchmen?
Panel 8.
Same as last panel.
Stik: I’m interested too. I got
stonewalled so far.
Decker: Let me see what I come up with.
I like a challenge. Look, I got
to go. My sex slave just got home.
Brad638: You wish, dude!
Decker: Meet you tomorrow, same time, same room. Loggin’ out!
Panel 9.
We have panned out from the last panel to see Stick tapping away on the
computer. The shot is from the back of
his head.
Stick: This is interesting. I
have some news for you.
PAGE FIVE
Panel 1.
Stick is sitting on the chair, hanging over the back of the chair. Gideon is in the same chair eating a candy
bar. Joaquin is sitting down on the sofa
next to Silver. They each have a plate
of food.
Stick: Hi Tech Henchmen are definitely not clean. Either that or they have a terrible track
record. They botched two other jobs that
had Tibetan artifacts in the last four months.
Joaquin: So what do you know about them?
Panel 2.
¾ shot of Gideon eating his candy bar.
He is savoring it and concentrating on it.
Stick(off-panel): Nothing yet.
My online guys are looking for anything they can find on them. I came up against a brick wall during my
search. But my online buddy, Decker, can
find anything. He’s broken into the
Canadian government computers a few times without getting caught.
Panel 3.
Same shot as the last, this time with Gideon looking towards Stick (who
is off-panel).
Gideon: For being such patriotic “super-heroes”, you two sure don’t
hang around with the “good” people.
Panel 4.
Full shot of everyone in the room.
Stick and Silver are staring at Gideon in surprise.
Panel 5.
Same shot as the last, except Joaquin is leaning back slightly, belly
laughing.
Joaquin: Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha!
Panel 6.
¾ shot of Gideon. He is looking
at them, slyly.
Gideon: It’s a joke. First us,
then that Decker guy. You’re building
quite a reputation.
Gideon: So, do you think Decker can find out what we need to know?
PAGE SIXage Six
Panel 1.
¼ shot of Stick, less stuffy than before, the joke having loosened him
up a bit.
Stick: Oh yes. He will. No matter what. What do you
know about them? You must have had some kind of idea.
Panel 2.
In this panel, Gideon is the most in the foreground, a ¼ shot of him.
Stick, a little further out, is in full view.
Gideon looks straight ahead, not at Stick. Stick rests his arms on the back of the
chair, with his chin on his arms.
Gideon: I touched the tablet and this strange thing came over me. I saw things, but they weren’t normal, not
things you see with your eyes, but through all your senses. It was surreal. There are four tablets. Between the four of them, they contain the
power of Manapatapoo, a fallen god who was killed by his brother.
Stick: Is that why they were stolen?
For the power?
Panel 3.
Same panel as last, but Gideon is looking at Stick this time.
Gideon: That is probably why the museum had it in the first place. Some power hungry archeologist… Over the last few centuries, people have
killed for its power. This wasn’t the
first time. It won’t be the last.
Stick: This one tablet? It has power?
Gideon: No, not on its own. Only
when the four are joined. But there is
one unaccounted for that the museum had.
Joaquin and I don’t have it, and the thieves apparently didn’t have
it.
Panel 4.
¼ shot of Silver.
Silver: You’re right. We need to talk to Edith Harker, the museum
curator.
Panel 5.
Panels 5, 6 and 7 should all
be in a row at the bottom of the page. Full shot of Dale
Turcott. He is standing at a hot dog
cart buying a hot dog. The scenery
should be in the shot. The vendor is a
very young kid. There are trees in the
background. It’s a pretty nice day,
early evening but still sunny. Dale has
a hot dog in hand, the other holding a canned drink.
Caption: Later that day…
Phone (hidden) (fx): Beeloop!
Beloop!
Dale: Aaah! Hey can you hold my
dog? I have a call.
Panel 6.
¾ shot. Dale has one arm
extended at the vendor who is holding the hot dog and taking the drink from
Dale’s extended hand. He doesn’t seem
impressed with him. Dale’s head is
tilted, holding the phone between his shoulder and his head.
Dale: Yeah, hello, Dale Turcott Independent
News. How can I help you…
Dale: Hey Willis,…I mean Scanner.
How are you? Find what I’m
looking for?
Panel 7.
Willis “Scanner” is at the same laptop at work as before. He is tapping away at the keyboard, looking
slightly disinterested. He holds the
receiver of the phone with his shoulder.
Willis: No. Hi Tech Henchmen is
tied up tighter than
PAGE SEVEN
Panel 1.
¼ shot of Dale, very much in the forefront of the panel. Same
tight panel as the last three. The
vendor in the background is holding Dale’s hot dog and drink. He holds them higher in the air. He seems upset.
Dale: There’s a but there,
right? You found something. What’s the “but”?
Phone (Willis in “phone” text): Yeah, yeah… news reports I found stated
that triple H has failed at least twice in the last four months protecting
particular types of exhibits.
Panel 2.
Same panel as last. Dale now has
his back to the vendor, completely ignoring him.
Dale: What kind of exhibits?
Ones of a Tibetan flavor, I bet.
Phone (Willis phone text): You got it.
Dale: How convenient. I have to
find out more. What else have you got
for me?
Panel 3.
Willis at the laptop. He seems
to be a little more interested than his last shot, but just a little.
Willis: I told you, I couldn’t really find anything.
Phone (Dale): But….
Willis: Man, you’re a pain! A
buddy of mine is looking for more info.
I can’t tell you anything until he gets back to me. Did you know some other dude is looking for
the same info?
Panel 4.
Dale again. He holds his hand
out to the vendor, with one finger up to tell him he’ll only be a minute.
Dale: Really? Maybe I should
talk to him. Look, I want you to call me
as soon as you get something. You got
it?
Phone (Willis): Yeah, yeah. I
got to go.
Panel 5.
Dale is closing the cell phone and looking back at the vendor. The vendor looks angry but holds the food out
to Dale.
Dale: Thanks.
Vendor: Yeah, whatever.
Panel 6.
Full shot through a window. The
window is open, with the angle looking out onto the street. Two very large men stand outside the museum
doors, dwarfing the doors. They must be
seven feet tall. They are overly
muscular, bald heads, tight black t-shirts, with combat boots and black
stretchy slacks. It is dusk.
Caption: Meanwhile, at Stick’s apartment…
Stick(off-panel): Now isn’t that just a little suspicious?
PAGE EIGHT
Panel 1.
Panned out from last panel.
Stick is sitting by the window.
He is pointing out the window with his thumb. We can still see the two large men standing
by the doors of the museum.
Stick: These two steroid junkies have been standing outside the doors
of the museum for some time now. They
seem to be there to scare the riff-raff away.
Panel 2.
Full shot of Silver, Stick, Gideon and Joaquin. Silver is looking at Stick. Joaquin is standing with his arms
crossed. Stick is still seated by the
window.
Gideon: We can’t go talk to the Harker woman if Hi Tech Henchmen have
left their goons there.
Joaquin: What do they expect? Do
they think someone’s going to steal the something else now?
Silver: We might as well call it off for tonight. We’re not seeing Edith Harker tonight.
Stick: Wait!
Panel 3.
Dale in his vehicle. Inside shot
of the vehicle, ¾ shot of Dale.
Caption: Dale Turcott unwinds,
deciding to take a spin around the neighborhood…
Dale(thinking): I might as well take a spin and check with Edith
Harker. Maybe she’s at the museum.
Panel 4.
Full shot of a man running frantically through the museum. One foot on the ground, one back and in the
air. He’s really moving, in pure
panic. He’s wearing a night watchman’s
uniform.
Caption: Jeff Anderson just started work at the museum. He thought it would be a cushy job. He might even get some good reading in. How hard could a night watchman’s job be?
Panel 5.
Aerial shot of the museum doors.
The two men stand on either side of the door. Jeff Anderson is bursting through the front
doors. Both men have their head’s turned
towards the man. Also, Dale’s Range
Rover driving by at that exact time.
Stick’s apartment building is also in the panel.
PAGE NINE
Panel 1.
Jeff Anderson has run by one of the large men, who has caught the back
of his jacket collar. He is elevated off
the ground by the man’s powerful arm.
His legs are further ahead of his body than his torso, fluttering away.
Caption: Jeff Anderson only wanted a good paying job.
Panel 2.
Panel split into to equal
triangles. Dale Turcott looking out the
passenger side window in one triangle in horror. Joaquin looking horrified in the other.
Dale/Joaquin: No!!!
Panel 3.
The big man smashes Jeff Anderson into the sidewalk with one hand. Chips of the sidewalk break off. Jeff Anderson’s head is surrounded by a big
impact effect.
Caption: What danger could there be?
Sidewalk (fx): Smash!
Panel 4.
Full shot. Joaquin pushes Stick
away from the window and leaps past him through the window to the street. He is crouched to fit through.
Caption: Without conscious thought, Joaquin leaps into action, angry at
himself for being too slow.
Panel 5.
Tall and wide vertical
panel. There are three blur images of
Joaquin, left to right. One is about to
land, another is springing off the ground, the last is flipping through the
air. The real image of Joaquin is fully
twisted in the air, giving one of the big man a downward chop with one of his
legs. The big man is slightly crouched
from the impact, still holding Jeff Anderson’s collar in one hand. There should be an impact effect on Joaquin’s
contact.
PAGE TEN
Panel 1.
Full shot of Dale’s Range Rover squealing past the scene, around the
corner.
Dale(thinking): Oh my God! I
can’t believe I just saw that! I have to
get there right away!
Panel 2.
Full shot of Stick’s window, from the outside. Stick is flying through the window, holding
his staff at full extension in both hands.
Gideon is hanging on to it, recklessly.
Silver, in a bird-form, flits out next to them. Her clothes are still standing in the window
from having flown out of them.
Caption: The hastily assembled team jumps into action following
Joaquin's lead. Silver changes her form
into that of a sparrow, and flies out the window. Gideon doesn’t question this. He knows Joaquin cannot take both these big
bruisers on his own. His friend needs
his help. He will take whatever allies
he can get right now.
Stick: Hang on, Gideon! I can
fly us there. Trust me!
Panel 3.
Dale is getting out of his car (3/4 shot). He has his camera with him.
Dale(thinking): Hurry! Hurry!
Panel 4.
Stick deposits Gideon to the ground.
Gideon has some eldritch green energy building around his hands. Silver shapechanges into a bear from the bird
form.
Caption: Silver again changes shape, this time into a powerful Kodiak
bear.
Gideon(thinking): The man flies and the woman can take any animal
form? Let’s show them what real power
is!
PAGE ELEVEN
Panel 1.
Joaquin is landing softly to the ground in front of “his” thug. The thug is slightly dazed. Gideon is blasting eldritch energy from both
his hands at the second big thug. The
thug is bathed in the green energy.
Eldritch Energy(fx): ZZZZOT!
Panel 2.
Blurred image of Stick, flying with his staff held out with both hands
in front of him, flying upward. The
non-blurred Stick should be visible in the upper part of the panel, leaving the
panel. Silver in bear form, raises
herself on her hind legs, arms outstretched, claws extended.
Silver: Rooaar!
Panel 3.
Another large horizontal
panel. Silver slashes at the big thug
Joaquin had taken on. Joaquin is at her
side, crouched on the ground.
Claws(fx): SLASH!
PAGE TWELVE
Panel 1.
Stick flying upwards slowly, reducing his initial speed to let gravity
start pulling him.
Panel 2.
Stick is falling down straight towards thug number two, staff held
under his feet, body crouched. He’s
fallen a dozen feet from an initial 100 feet in the air. The thug hit by the eldritch blast, is
steamed. Gideon has energy building
around his hands. Silver is going
toe-to-toe with the other thug.
Panel 3.
Stick making a hard impact on thug number two, with the staff under his
feet. The impact blast is quite large.
PAGE THIRTEEN
Panel 1.
Joaquin is still crouched. He’s
reaching into his left side inner pocket with his right hand. He has a look of pure confidence on his face.
Panel 2.
Joaquin slashes out with the weapon he pulled, a kukri knife, in a large
outward slash against thug #1. The thug
has a gash across his body, from right abdominal to left shoulder. This should only be a line, as he hasn’t
started bleeding yet. The thug’s head is
tilted towards the stroke of the blade, reeling.
Blade(fx): SLASH!
Panel 3.
Silver rushes thug two (she’s switched partners) in a four-legged
charge. The thug is on the ground, on
one knee, shaking his head. Stick is
crouched facing the thug, watching Silver.
Panel 4.
Silver rams the thug from the side, whose body curves around Silver
with the impact. He has a very pained
look on his face.
Impact(fx): WHAM!
Panel 5.
Joaquin jumps straight up from the ground, rolled like a ball, arms out
to his sides. The thug reels in front of
him from the last hit he took. Blood
starts to form in his cut.
Panel 6.
Joaquin, in full extension, kicks the thug in mid-air. His position is almost like he is lying flat
on his back in the air, his arms extended out at the sides for balance.
PAGE FOURTEEN
Panel 1.
Long shot of the four heroes
standing over two defeated foes. The
thugs are barely conscious.
Panel 2.
Longer shot of last panel. Back shot of Dale Turcott. He has his video camera on his shoulder,
video-taping the fight. He is across the
street behind a mailbox.
Dale(thinking): Looks like I wasn’t
needed. But is that night watchman
okay? And who are these people? This was a well-coordinated attack on the two
big thugs. These guys are a team of some
kind, that’s for sure. Are they the
infamous third party involved in the theft of the tablets?
Panel 3.
Stick kneels down over the body of
the night watchman, Jeff Anderson. He is
checking for a pulse on the man’s jugular.
Joaquin stands over him. He is
combat ready, knees slightly bent, blade in hand.
Stick: He… didn’t make it.
Joaquin: That’s no surprise. The impact he took…
Joaquin: We need to go inside, and
find those responsible for loosing these goons on this poor guy.
Panel 4.
Gideon is holding the front doors open.
Silver is already walking inside on all fours, still in bear form.
Gideon: Someone must have heard the fight. We have no time to lose! Inside!
Panel 5.
Dale is running towards the museum from across the street. He still has his camera over his shoulder.
Dale(thinking): Who are these people?
And what are they playing at?
They checked the body. The poor
guy must already be dead. I don’t think
they are here to hurt anybody. But what
do they want in the museum?
Panel 6.
Long shot of Dale running along the street, towards the back of the
museum, just by the two thugs. One thug
is flat on his front, head tilted towards Dale.
You can almost see his eyes open.
Panel 7.
Close-up shot of the barely conscious thug. His eyes are semi-open, fighting to stay
awake. He has seen Dale running along
with the camera.
Thug (very weak sounding words): Who… who… are… you, cameraman?
Panel 8.
Close-up shot of thug, same as last panel. His eyes are closed, and his mouth slightly
open.
Thug(very weak sounding words): Must…reporttttt…
PAGE FIFTEEN
Panel 1.
The four stand in the museum, very dark, but not pitch black. There is a weak light off panel.
Caption: Inside the museum…
Panel 2.
Gideon looks down a hallway, to his right. His eyes are slightly glazed. He senses something. The hallway is quite long. A door at the end is slightly ajar. Light escapes from the crack in the opening.
Gideon(whisper text): Down that hall.
I… I sense someone of great power, someone who’s touched one of the
tablets before.
Panel 3.
Joaquin, Stick, and Gideon are looking towards the right of the
panel. They all have a look of surprise.
Voice(off panel): Nooooooo!
Panel 4.
Inside the room behind the door.
It’s an office, rather untidy with papers strewn all over. Obviously there’s been some scuffle in
here. A man wearing robes has Edith
Harker by the lapels, forced down on a desk.
Her hair is messed up. What’s
left of a ponytail hangs of the desk. One of her eyes is blackened. Four Hi Tech Henchmen stand around them, in
standard uniform. The robed man has
longer black hair, and a beard.
Robed man: You will not say anything to the press! Do you understand!?! Hi Tech Henchmen did a remarkable job of
guarding the place. The thieves were
very good, and we will catch them. Do
not worry. All you need do is keep the
story straight.
Panel 5.
Close-up the robed man. He is
looking back.
Robed man: Eh?
Panel 6.
Full shot of the door bursting open.
Joaquin has his blaster held out firing a shot into the room. Silver is ready in bear form, on all
fours. Gideon and Stick flank each side
of Joaquin.
Blaster(fx): ZZOT!
PAGE SIXTEENPanel 1.
¾ shot of the four henchmen. One
is pushed back by the blast from Joaquin’s shot. The other three are reaching for their guns.
Panel 2.
¼ shot of Joaquin from behind his head.
His arm is extended high, and the reader should be able to trace a
direct line from the end of the blaster right to the robed man. The robed man is far off in the panel, just
turning away from Edith Harker. Red
energy flares from the nozzle of Joaquin’s pistol.
Blaster(fx small letters): Bzzz!
Panel 3.
The robed man is half turned towards the blast that strikes him, which
propels him over the desk and into the wall.
Blast(fx): ZZOT!
Panel 4.
Silver charges on all fours into one of the henchmen (the farthest
right one). Stick backward swings his
staff in his left hand across the top of the head of the leftmost one. Both were still pulling their weapons out of
their holsters. The middle henchman holds his blaster in both hands firing a
shot past Stick at Gideon who is away from the rest. Gideon holds both his forearms in front of
him, wielding a green shield of eldritch energy, which absorbs the henchman’s
blast.
Staff(fx): Crack!
Silver(fx): BOOM!
Panel 5.
The henchmen that Stick and Silver hit both crumple to the ground. Silver faces the front of the panel. Stick pokes out his staff at the previously
unmolested henchman, striking him on the chin.
The henchman falls backwards over Silver’s body. His body is curved backwards, his arms are
feebly at his sides, his gun-hand starting to drop the blaster. His head is fully tilted back.
PAGE SEVENTEEN
Panel 1.
Gideon tries to help Edith Harker off the table. She is not taking kindly to his help. She doesn’t trust anyone right now. She is pushing him back.
Gideon: Edith Harker? I need to
ask you some questions.
Edith Harker: Off of me, you heathen!
Panel 2.
Joaquin is kneeling down at the downed henchmen, gathering up their
blasters.
Joaquin: Is Harker okay, Gideon?
Panel 3.
Stick and Silver (in bear form) approach Harker. Gideon is backing off, looking back in the
direction of the robed man (who is out of panel).
Stick: Miz Harker. We mean you
no harm. Please! It’s not safe here. They may make another try for you.
Panel 4.
Harker is sitting on the desk still, leaning back on one hand, her
other hand is held up towards Stick and Silver (who are off-panel). She looks very angry, not afraid.
Harker: Get back from me! And
tell your pet to keep its distance! I
don’t want your help. I’m calling the
police and you all are going to jail! Do
you hear me?
Panel 5.
Harker this time is leaning forward, over the edge of the desk. She has one hand on the phone (an old-style
telephone, with rotary dial). Stick is
holding one hand up pleadingly, the other holds his staff.
Stick: Please, listen to me!
Harker: I don’t know who you think you are or what you want from me
---but you can forget it! Drop the
stick! Or I’ll brain you with this
phone. Now get back!
Panel 6.
Gideon is walking away during the distraction.
Stick(off-panel): See, I’m putting it down. Now, calm down. We have everything in control.
Harker(off-panel): You have nothing!
Panel 7.
Gideon is crouching down beside the robed man. The man’s eyes are slightly open and rolled
back. Gideon holds up one of the man’s
hands by the wrist.
Joaquin(off-panel): Let me try talking to her.
Harker(off-panel): I won’t talk to you either[RJC2]!
Robed man(in weak text): Oooooh…
Panel 8.
Gideon has the man’s hand in both his hands. Gideon is looking back, secretively, to make
sure no one is watching.
Joaquin(off-panel): Listen, Miss.
If you don’t calm down, I will be forced to calm you down.
Stick(off-panel): No you won’t!
Panel 9.
Gideon’s looks down at the man as he breaks the man’s fingers. The robed man’s face is pained and his eyes
open.
Stick(off-panel): We are not vigilantes…
Fingers(fx): Crack!
Robed man: AAAH!
PAGE EIGHTEEN
Panel 1.
Gideon is half-standing up, holding one of the robed man’s wrists in
his left hand. His right hand glows with
green energy. He is looking back at the
group. Everyone is looking at Gideon,
including Edith Harker who is now standing, holding the phone over her
head. Joaquin is standing next to
Stick. Stick’s staff is leaning against
a desk. On this same desk are five
blasters.
Stick: What are you doing?
Gideon: This wizard is regaining consciousness. He possesses great power. Far more than me. Joaquin was very lucky with his shot. He caught him unprepared.
Robed man(in weak text): My hand…?
Panel 2.
Same shot as the last one, except Gideon smashes downward with a fist
irradiated with eldritch energy against the robed man.
Gideon: We’re lucky I caught him regaining consciousness, or he could
have cast a spell against us.
Panel 3.
Stick looks a little worried.
Stick: I think we’re going to need to have a talk. I don’t like magic.
Joaquin(this text almost cutting off Stick’s text): We need to get out
of here. The police will likely be here
soon. We’ve already lingered too
long. I think we’ve answered our
questions about Hi Tech Henchmen’s allegiances tonight.
Panel 4.
Joaquin is talking to Harker.
Joaquin is intense, unperturbed by Gideon’s actions. Gideon stands back. She looks at Gideon, and looks very
uncertain, almost afraid of him. The
phone is back on the desk, with her hand leaning on it.
Joaquin: Miz Harker? We need
access to your car. Now, are you with
us?
Harker: Yes… yes. In the back
parking lot. I’ll show you.
Panel 5.
Joaquin holds an arm around Harker to steady her as they walk towards
the door. Gideon is slinging the robed
man over his shoulder.
Joaquin: Keep a lid on it, Gideon.
They don’t trust us.
Panel 6.
Stick and Silver are looking back at Gideon and Joaquin
(off-panel). They look suspiciously at
them.
Stick: Keep an eye on them.
PAGE NINETEEN
Panel 1.
Dale is crouched down next to a car, camera ready on his shoulder. He doesn’t have his eye on the eyecap.
Dale(thinking): Where are they?
Maybe I should have gone inside.
Have they threatened Edith? Maybe
she doesn’t know anything and they have hurt her! I have to go inside!
Panel 2.
There is wild excitement in Dale’s eyes.
Dale(thinking): Wait! Here they
come!
Panel 3.
Silver, Stick, Gideon, Joaquin, and Harker are walking across the
parking lot from the exit door. The
robed figure is slung over Gideon’s shoulder.
Joaquin still has an arm around Harker protectively.
Joaquin: Everything’s okay, Miz Harker.
The police will be here soon. Do
you have anything in your car that we can tie this guy up with?
Harker: Yes, I do. Are you going
to hurt me?
Panel 4.
Joaquin is talking to Harker.
She is looking up at him.
Joaquin: Miz Harker… We did not come here to hurt you. We came because of Hi Tech Henchmen. They… attacked the night watchman. We knew you had to be in danger. We couldn’t sit idly by. Do you understand? We don’t want to hurt you.
Panel 5.
Gideon is next to Harker and Joaquin.
Gideon looks at her. He looks
very non-malicious.
Gideon: Hi Tech Henchmen hurt you.
And they tried to kill the thieves that stole the tablets from the
museum. They have to be stopped. They want the tablets for themselves! This must be obvious to you.
Harker: Yes. They planned on
taking the tablets all along. I
know. That’s why they wanted to keep me
quiet. I knew too much. I think they were going to kill me.
Panel 6.
Gideon is looking protectively at Harker.
Gideon: They were going to
kill you. We stopped them. We’ve
probably attracted their attention away from you to us. But you still have to be safe. I suggest you speak to the police and get
protection.
Panel 7.
Harker is opening the trunk of her car.
Dale is behind a car in the distance.
His camera is getting everything.
Dale(thinking): It’s good thing I bought that new microphone. I got everything on tape. And I can pick up the audio from this
distance. This group obviously have no
malicious intent against Harker. It
seems they helped her even. Who is that
guy slumped over one of their shoulders?
Panel 8.
The trunk of the car is open.
The robed figure is on the ground being tied up with bungee cord.
Dale(thinking): They’re tying him up with the bungee cord from the
trunk of that car. Who is that robed
man? Did he try to hurt Edith?
Panel 9.
Stick is standing guard over Silver’s transformation. His head is tilted back towards her, while
keeping his eyes forward. Silver is
changing from bear to sparrow.
Stick(in whisper text): I don’t know what to think, Silver. One minute, Gideon maliciously takes out that
robed figure, and the next, he’s concerned for Edith Harker’s safety. Did you see that wizard’s hands? I think he broke his fingers.
PAGE TWENTY
Panel 1.
Silver, as sparrow, is landing on
Stick shoulder. He has an uncertain look
on his face.
Silver(in whisper text): Maybe he
did. But he seemed very concerned about
the wizard. I think our Gideon is a
wizard, too. He probably understands the
extent of the wizard’s magic. He seemed
concerned with keeping him unconscious.
Stick: I don’t trust them,
Silver! Joaquin has manner of ahero to
him… But, I don’t know…
Panel 2.
Gideon is looking up at Stick and
Silver, while shoving the wizard/robed man in the trunk. Stick looks surprised.
Gideon: As a “wizard”, I spent a
lot of time in solitude, in pure silence.
My hearing is more acute than the average person. You should learn to talk about me behind my
back --- far behind. Or you should learn
to trust me. I’ve been dealing with
their kind for far too long. Magic users
use hand gestures and the like. He needs
his fingers to cast spells. I’ve
deprived him of the use. You should be
thanking me.
Panel 3.
Joaquin is slamming shut the trunk
of the car. Next to him is Harker, a
little calmer.
Joaquin: Whatever you report to the
police, remember what really happened here.
And seek some protection for yourself.
Joaquin: Now… can you tell us anything about the
tablets? Anything that might keep us a
step ahead of Hi Tech Henchmen’s next potential victim? Anything that might help us save the next
victim’s life?
Panel 4.
Joaquin faces Harker. He hands her the car keys.
Harker: I… was after all the
tablets myself, as a collector. I
understood that many had tried to steal the tablets for the past hundreds of
years, willing to kill for them. But we
are in the new millennium. I thought
hiring Hi Tech Henchmen would have been enough.
Early on I started to question their exuberance for the job.
Panel 5.
Harker’seyes are downcast.
Harker: The leader of their group
gave me the chills. Just a gut feeling,
you know, like the one a good archeologist would have. The henchmen were too
busy plotting against the museum to notice the theft right away. They cursed themselves for letting their
guard down. I think they really cursed
themselves for letting another group beat them to the punch.
Panel 6.
Gideon, Harker, and Joaquin.
Harker is in the middle of the two.
Gideon: Did the henchmen take one of the tablets?
Harker: No. The thieves took both tablets. Why?
Joaquin: How many thieves were there?
Harker: Five of them.
Panel 7.
Gideon and Joaquin both look at one another in realization.
Joaquin: Five. Five?
Gideon: I think someone is one step ahead of us and Hi Tech Henchmen.
Panel 8.
Close-up of Dale, camera still filming, one eye on the lens.
Dale(thinking): Five? But only
two thieves were found. What happened to
the other three?
Panel 9.
Stick is pointing. Silver flits
away from his shoulder
Siren(fx): Weee-oooo!
Stick: We have company, people.
We may be in the right, but as it stands, the police don’t know
that. We have to leave. It’s good to see you’re okay, Miss
Harker. Take care of yourself.
PAGE TWENTY-ONE
Panel 1.
Stick stands in front of Joaquin and
Gideon. Silver is hovering. Stick holds the staff in his right hand.
Stick: Gentlemen? Shall we go?
Joaquin? Are you able to use that
incredible jumping of yours to get out of here quickly?
Joaquin: You know it.
Panel 2.
Stick faces Gideon. They are eyeing each other, looking for trust
in one another’s eyes. Stick holds his
left hand out to him.
Stick: Want a lift, wizard?
Gideon: Gideon. My name is
Gideon. Yes, I want a lift.
Panel 3.
Both men shake hands.
Gideon: Then let’s get out of here.
Panel 4.
Stick launches off, his right hand
with the staff pointing straight up, his left hand back, clasping hold of
Gideon’s right hand. They are just
getting off the ground, some twelve feet in the air. Silver, in sparrow form, flies away. Joaquin is in full extension leaping off at
an angle. They leave behind Harker
standing in the parking lot looking at them leave, a little more stable than
she had been earlier.
Panel 5.
The shadowed man, sitting behind his desk. A speaker phone is on the front of the desk.
Caption: Some time later in a secret office…
Shadowed man(thinking): He hides from me, trying to guard his thoughts,
his feelings, in an act of
bravado. I know him too well. When he has to make the choice between his
safety and the safety of those around him, he will run again.
Panel 6.
Shadowed man(thinking): He is afraid to touch the tablet again, afraid
I will find him. Afraid that one more
touch will bring me that much closer to wresting it from him. Afraid to face me. I shall take the tablet from his dead hands if
I must.
PAGE TWENTY-TWO
Panel 1.
The shadowed man at his desk. A
light on the speaker phone glows red.
Shadowed man: Fuel up the plane.
I want to head the search for the man that took my tablets --- personally. I’m moving in on him. I want a cadre of my top minions with
me.
Speaker phone: Yes, sir.
Immediately. I’ll have your plane
ready to go in the hour.
Panel 2.
The man moves into the light.
This man should have very similar features to Gideon and the blonde
hair. His hair is tied in a
ponytail. He should look ancient, but
not in a wrinkled way, but more of an immortal way. His eyes should contain a century of
knowledge in them.
Shadowed man: The time has come to realize your destiny, to fulfill the
chain of being, to empower me with your own magic and essence…
Shadowed man (in large letters like an fx): …MY SON.
Panel 3.
Two men are seated at a table.
They are very expensively dressed.
One is far more flamboyantly dressed than the other.
Caption: In an expensive restaurant only minutes away from the museum…
Flamboyant man(FM from here on in): The police and the museum security
are after some little group of parahumans.
They have taken one of the tablets, one only, while the press has told
the public that they have two of them.
No one even suspects us!
Well Dressed Man(WDM from here on in): I still don’t think we should be
displaying this. At least not in the
open.
FM: I’ll keep it safe, trust me.
Panel 4.
The roof of a building. Stick, Silver (as sparrow), Joaquin and
Gideon all present. Joaquin is leaning
over the edge of the building looking down on the street. Silver is on a ventilation duct.
Caption: On a rooftop near the
museum…
Gideon: Joaquin and I discovered something. We want to share this with you, in exchange
for whatever information you get from your hacker buddies. Do we have a deal?
Silver: I think we are all in this
together now. If only by
circumstance. We have to watch each
other’s back. Of course we will both
trade information.
Panel 5.
Joaquin: Okay… We took out two thieves who had one tablet. Hi Tech Henchmen came after them. They don’t realize that five people took the tablets.
Edith Harker never told them that.
So they suspect we have both
tablets. But the thieves, at least three
of the five, have one tablet.
Gideon: That puts us one step ahead
of Hi Tech Henchmen.
Stick: But we still don’t have a
line on who these thieves are. Are we collecting tablets now?
Panel 6.
Gideon looks very serious, almost
possessed.
Gideon: We have to keep the tablets
away from people who would use its power.
Too much evil can be wrought from this.
Panel 7.
Stick has an accusing look on his
face towards Gideon, who has a defensive look.
Stick: And what exactly do you hope
to gain from these tablets, my friend?
Gideon: Haven’t you been listening
to me? Nothing good will come from these
tablets if they fall in the wrong hands!
I plan on keeping them away from everyone. Until I can find away to dispose of
them! Or at least until we learn the
true nature of them!
Panel 8.
Joaquin and Silver watch. She is perched on the ventilation duct.
Joaquin: We never asked for your
help, but you gave it --- freely. Even
if you don’t trust us, at least trust us enough to learn the true nature of
these tablets!
Silver: And we shall.
Panel 9.
Close-up shot of the four, looking
tired.
Silver: We all need some sleep. I have a couple of fold-up beds you can use
if you need it.
Gideon: Our place isn’t… clean. I touched the tablet there. It isn’t safe. We will accept your offer.
PAGE
TWENTY-THREE
Panel 1.
Computer
style panel as earlier. All
lettering should be in computer text.
This is an e-mail to all the other members (Scanner, Stick, Brad638).
To: Scanner, Stick, Brad638
Subject: HHH
From: Decker
Whatever Hi Tech Henchmen are
hiding must be important! I tried
hacking for hours and got nowhere. Their
security is too tight. It was easier to
break into government files! I could do
it but the risk is too great to get caught, the method of doing it too
traceable. My family is too important to
me. Sorry guys.
Panel 2.
Willis in front of the computer,
his hands behind his head, supporting himself.
Panel 3.
An office. Dale sits on one side of a table. An older man, in his forties sits across from
him. He wears a white shirt, and a
paisley tie. He has a little bit of a
stomach to him. He is leaning back in
his chair, looking at Dale, who seems a little nervous/excited. The man is Bill Bannerman, station manager.
Caption: At Independent News Studios, Dale speaks to station manager Bill
Bannerman.
Dale: I need you to keep this
secret, Bill. I can’t tell the story
until I have all the information. I need
to blow these Hi Tech Henchmen out of the water.
Bill: This is a news station, Dale,
and it’s nothing without proof. I mean,
I won’t tell you there’s no potential in this story. But what if you’re wrong, and you’re being
led by these… these parahumans. You know
their kind. Leeching off society like
we’re to blame for them all. The days of
Genetica fooling the simple of
society into…
Panel 4.
Dale: Hi Tech Henchmen threatened
Edith Harker! I can’t stand back on a
story like this!
Bill: The footage you have of the
fight in front of the museum, the parahumans against Hi Tech Henchmen… That’s
news to me, Dale. That we have to report. A
man lost his life tonight right in front of that museum! We have to report that. I won’t play the other footage of those
parahumans patting each other on the back.
Panel 5.
Dale is sitting forward in his
chair.
Dale: I saw those goons pound that
helpless watchman into the cement, Bill!
Bill(off-panel): But you don’t have
that on film, Dale. I will show the
fight. Let the public perceive this how
they want to. We are not here to tell
people how to think. I won’t show what
they were talking about in the parking lot.
Dale: We are here to report the
news, Bill. If we leave this as an
altercation at the front of the museum, we are not reporting the whole story.
Panel 6.
Both men are leaning forward.
Dale: Give me a week, Bill. I will prove Hi Tech Henchmen murdered that
night watchman. Then let me run the real
story. Please. You owe me.
Bill: Dale, I… Okay. You win.
I will air this footage at the end of the week, as part of your own
story, with the proof you’re going to bring me, or I’ll run the fight. Nothing more, nothing less. You have one week. One
week, Dale.
Panel 7.
Full shot of Dale walking out of
the office, holding his forehead in his left hand. He seems exhausted.
Dale(thinking): Bill knows I’m
right and that why he’s giving me a chance.
He knows my reputation, but he is a journalist. He doesn’t want to lead the public either
way, and what they said in the parking lot didn’t prove their innocence. They do look guilty as it is.
Willis(off-panel): Dale!
Panel 8.
Dale and Willis. Willis looks all business.
Dale: What do you have for me,
Willis? It better be good.
Willis: I can’t get anything on
them, man. But I could. I just need some hardware. How bad do you want the information, Dale?
Panel 9.
Close-up of Dale’s face.
Dale(thinking): I have no choice,
Willis. I need this story.
Dale: I’ll buy you whatever you
need to report the truth, Willis. Let’s
go shopping.
Caption: Will Dale Turcott prove Hi
Tech Henchmen’s guilt, or will the wrong party get the blame? And who is Gideon’s father?
Editor's Note:
SYMKA
and the World of Genetics are the intellectual property of Sean McGinity - all
rights reserved.
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