Panel 1
Chris’s eyes are fluttering open. He appears to be lying on the floor.
Chris: Wha….
Off Panel Voice: Wake up sunshine!
Panel 2
There is a boot kicking him in the face.
Chris:uop!
Panel 3
Chris is now bleeding. His eye is swollen and he is looking up, eyes wide.
Chris:Wh-where am I?
Page 2-3
Splash Page
Chris is in the foreground looking upward. Standing above him are Fruit Fly, Nancy Boy, The Fecal Master, a man dressed in a long black trench coat, another man whose face is covered in scales. Psy-Anyde, and Gavin(Jeffery’s brother). Psy-Anyde is crotched down talking to Chris. The room is darkly lit. There are pictures littered all over the background of the Ax members including Regal, Motor man and Mindscape. There are markings all over the pictures and a blueprint of the Ax building. There is a large board which states: The Cabal: part 1 Comfort and Joy by J.Robles Last Issue; the team had a large heart to heart and swapped origin stories, Jeffery confided in Michael, Michael held Jeffery, which caused him to ponder his feelings for Jeffery and Chris. Gavin was approached by a woman about locating his brother, Jeffery. Chris witnessed the murderer leaving a body in an alley, however, he was taking by Nancy Boy and Fecal Master, leaving his car and belongings in the street.
Psy-Anyde: Isn’t it obvious? You’re in Hell.
Page 4
Jeffery is waking up. His eyes are sleepy and he has a smile on his face.
Panel 2
He is looking up with eyes wide.
Panel 3
The full scene is shown, Jeffery had fallen asleep on top of Michael, who is holding Jeffery close. They are clothed in what they wore the night before, although there is a blanket partially covering them. They had fallen asleep on a reclining lawn chair on the patio area. Jeffery smiles and snuggles closer to Michael.
Jeffery: Mike? Michael…
Michael: hmmmm
Panel 4
Jeffery is smiling up at Michael who is looking down at him with a sleepy grin.
Jeffery: We should probably get up now, don’t want anyone to see us like this and get the wrong idea.
Michael: Well, I think someone already did, the blanket wasn’t here.
Panel 5
Jeffery is smiling at him, touching Michael’s face.
Jeffery: Thank you for talking to me, Mike, I appreciate it. I just…well…
Michael: Don’t say it. We’re friends; I comforted you as your friend. No worries.
Panel 6
Jeffery is kissing his cheek and running off. Michael is holding the spot.
Jeffery: ThanksMichaelyourthebest!
Michael:…yeah anytime….
Panel 7
Michael is still in the same position.
Michael: We are just friends….
Panel 8
Michael looks surprised.
There is a word balloon coming from no where.
Voice: Keep telling yourself that…
Page 5
Aurora is appearing from nowhere, removing her cloak. Michael is turning looking at her. Under her cloak, she is wearing her pjs from the night before. She has a small smirk on her face.
Michael: Do you always snoop like that?Aurora: No, but I am the one who magicked that blanket on you last night. I thought I would come and check on you. When Jeffery woke up, I went under the cloak. You and he bonded last night, I saw the way you were looking at him….
Panel 2
Michael is looking a little annoyed.
Michael: I wasn’t looking at him any particular way, he needed to be comforted. I don’t like him any other way than as a friend. Why do you care anyway?Panel 3
Aurora is giving a small smile.
Aurora: I care because we are teammates, friends. And…because, I don’t know what you talked about out here, but I came out to commune with the moon, and you were asleep in each other’s arms. Just be careful, he seems to be hung up on that cop, and you just broke up with Chris. It just seems like if you were thinking about dating him…
Michael: Look, ‘rora, I know your trying to be a good friend. But, really, it’s Ok. I was just there for Jeffery.
Panel 4
Aurora is walking back into the penthouse.
Aurora: Michael, just be patient, in time, you’ll get what you want.
Panel 5
Aurora is paused, looking at him, she has a puzzled look on her face.
Aurora: I…I don’t know why I said that, just be careful is all I am saying.
Panel 6
Michael is holding the blanket, and looking annoyed on the deck.
Michael: Yeah….be careful…..
Page 6
Aiden is on his cell phone in bed. Rachel is on her cell phone in on a kitchen table, it should appear she is eating although we never see the table. This page will be divided into eight panels, The left panels will be Aiden and the right panels are Rachel.
Panel 1
Aiden is yawning.
Aiden: Look, all I’m saying is I think you took what I said the wrong way. I didn’t say I didn’t want to marry you, I proposed didn’t I? Wait…. I didn’t mean that…
Panel 2
Rachel looks focused at what she is doing. She has the phone in one ear.
Rachel: Relax, look, Aiden, I know what you mean to say, and I know what’s going through your mind. It’s just that I don’t want this team to overtake our lives, plus seeing Chris react the way he did…..I don’t want that to be us.
Panel 3
Aiden is laying on his back. He has one hand behind his head and the other on the phone.
Aiden: Rache, I love you more than life itself. And the baby coming…it just makes me worried about the kind of life that is going to be ours. I want you to think, really think and tell me if this is what you want.
Panel 4
The panel is pulled out a little, Rachel has what looks like a metal instrument in her hand.
Rachel: Yes, it is. Remember, this is all you talked about since we started dating. I know this is eventually what was going to happen. Aiden, I came home because the pregnancy and the whole thing with the team at the restaurant was just like a living metaphor for our lives. I just needed a breather. O, and call your mother, it was like I was Evelyn Abbot for a second, you should have heard the questions….
Panel 5
Aiden is laughing.
Aiden: Funny you should mention it, I’m actually at her penthouse. Michael is staying here in the meantime, and I came over to make sure he was OK. Yeah…..yeah…..very nice. Yeah I asked her last night, she said you could come and hang.
Panel 6
Rachel is laughing. The panel has “panned” out, Rachel has mechanical pieces all over a kitchen table.
Rachel: That is crazy! We now know Evelyn Abbot. ….OK, babe, go shower, I’ll be here. I love you.
Panel 7
Aiden is smiling.
Aiden: OK, baby, I love you too.
Panel 8
Rachel has hung up the phone. She is yelling over her shoulder.
Rachel: Dad! I need the sautering gun! O and by the way, I made the radio into a new garage door opener, and remote for the refrigerator, I should have the watch finished by this afternoon!
Page 7
Aiden is yawning and putting his cell phone on the charger.
Panel 2
A fist comes through the wall. Aiden looks at the hole in the wall.
Panel 3
Annie, Aurora, Jeffery, Michael and Aiden come into the living area of the room. Tiff is standing by Evelyn.
Tiff: Jocelyn! Calm down, I will get to the bottom of this.
Annie: What’s wrong, ugh why is the room spinning?
Panel 4
Jocelyn is looking very angry. Tiff is looking calm.
Jocelyn: I just a registered letter, stating that because of legal litigations, my accounts have been frozen! That is sixty eight point seven million dollars. Then, as I was reading this atroicous news, I got a letter from the City of Salvation stating that they are suing me for property damage and backing out of a modeling contract 4 years ago.
Tiff: I am going into the office to research these charges, don’t worry, I’ll get to the bottom of this.
Panel 5
Annie is looking at Evelyn. Michael is in the background .
Annie: City of Salvation…..something here doesn’t make sense.
Michael: It’s no secret that the Mayor Ryan doesn’t like parahumans.
Panel 6
Michael is the focus of the panel.
Michael: When I lived at the Ax tower, he was one the city council and tried to get the zoning changed so we would be kicked out of the Mo Phlee. He succeeded in getting X-Generation kicked out of the old X-building. Although, when we got the zoning changed back, the team was dead. I have the deed to the building, and I still get challenges to the buildings right to be there.
Panel 7
Evelyn is ripping the paper in half.
Evelyn: I am going to……wait, showing anger wouldn’t be ladylike. Let’s just say that I hoped he isn’t too attached to his testicles, it will make me ripping them off so much easier. Tiff, prepare the red file.
Panel 8
Jeffery is giving her a strange look. Aiden is also looking puzzled.
Jeffery: The red file?
Evelyn: Never you mind, dear. I’ve put it out of my mind. Shall we start our day?
Page 8
Chris is sitting in a chair. His face is bloodied and bruised. The Fecal Master and Psy-Anyde are standing behind him.
Psy-Anyde: Wake up, Chrissy. You fell asleep as my good friend, Crappy the Pooh, was working on you, we weren’t just quite finished.
Chris: Wha…..lemme go.
The Fecal Master: HAHA, do you hear that, let you go that’s priceless. You’re going to help us, Chris. You’re going to help us get revenge on those pieces of trash that roam our streets. Maybe we will help you get revenge too.
Panel 2
Chris’s face is focused.
Chris: n-no……
Psy-Anyde: Yes, yes you will. And just think, you can get revenge on Michael. Yes, I know all about what he did, lying to you the way he did. You said you would kill him, we can help you.
Chris: Noooo….
Panel 3
Psy-Anyde is holding his head lovingly. Chris is wincing.
Psy-Anyde: It’s Ok, Chris. I know all about it. He lied about being a parahuman, about being a member of Ax, and he didn’t even remember that your anniversary was 3 days ago. You were burning with anger, but you didn’t say anything. You were trying to be the supporting boyfriend. How long as it been since you had sex? I think you’re right, I think he was cheating on you…
Chris:F-f-f-fu….
Panel 4
Psy-Anyde is putting one fingernail into a cut on his cheek, and her other hand is pulling on an ear.
Psy-Anyde: Now, now, that’s no way to talk to your new best friend. Now, we want you to think of all the things that we told you….Remember, that, if you had power of the mind, you could know these things too. Imagine, if you were a dirty little parahuman, you could have known Michael didn’t love you.
Chris: ARGH!!!!!
Panel 5
Gavin is approaching The Fecal Master.
Gavin: Are you ready for the next round?The Fecal Master: Yes, I think hes ready, now don’t worry, Chris. This won’t hurt…us.
Panel 6
It is a panel of Chris screaming in pain.
Page 9
Jeffery is at the police station. Janet is one side of the desk and James is on the other end. Jeffery is walking up, behind them, both are busy going through a stack of papers.
Jeffery: Hello, guys.
James: Jeffery! Been waiting for you to show, we got some questions and documents to go over.
Janet: Actually, if you don’t mind reading through this stack….
Panel 2
The stack of papers are on the other end of the desk.
Jeffery: Done. That creamy compound that was found….it matches with that compound that Ax Corporations has developed as an industrial sunscreen. According to the….o where is it….
Panel 3
Jeffery is scanning through the stack again.
Panel 4
James and Janet are staring at him.
James: Here it is, the pathology reports for the last 3 victims, it doesn’t show all the time, but according the developmental reports from Ax, its showing that the sunscreen was still going through trial reports and it was being tested often, the traces and chemical compounds correspond to the changes that were made in the compound. But what I’m more concerned about is the blood traces. Has pathology looked at this?
Panel 5
Janet is squinting at him. Jeffery is holding a file at her.
Janet : What are you looking at? James and I have been going through these over and over….
Jeffery: It’s this…..The victims blood are injected with an anticoagulant, but this is what I’m referring to…Victim 14 and Victim 18 both had Type O negative blood, but once the anticoagulant is isolated, there is this…..its a DNA strand that is unaccounted for.
Panel 6
James is smiling at him. Jeffery is looking away.
James: Ok, I’ll order another round of testing on the bodies and see if we can get a beat on that DNA strand you’ve located. Where did you learn all this stuff?Jeffery: Well, I can read things and while I am reading it makes perfect sense, but, ok like now? It’s all gone. I have no idea what I just said.
Panel 7
Janet is taking the file from his hand and walking away. James and Jeffery are looking at her.
Janet: I’m taking this to pathology. James, we have an hour of downtime, amuse yourself.
Panel 8
James is looking at Jeffery.
James: So……you never called….
Page 10
Panel 1
Jeffery is looking down at him.
Jeffery: Yeah, look, I’m sorry, I….
James: No need to explain, really. Look I haven’t been entirely honest with you, but I have a question to ask you.
Panel 2
Jeffery is looking at him. James has his hand behind his head. He has a sheepish grin.
James: Well, look, it’s no secret that I like you, and you like me, I think. But there are a couple of things I need to tell you before we go any further…but not here…dinner say eight o’clock?
Jeffery: S-sure, yeah, I’d love that.
Panel 3
James is laughing.
James: Good, I was hoping that 3rd grade question asking didn’t turn you off, I’m kinda new to this so….
Jeffery: It’s Ok, really and yeah, I’d love that.
Panel 4
James and Jeffery are looking up as Janet runs up, still holding the file in her hand.
Janet: Get ready to go boys, we have another body and we might have some more evidence. This one is on the edge of Moe Phlee Boulevard, alley behind Varner Apartments.
Panel 5
Jeffery is grabbing James.
Jeffery: That’s where Michael and Aiden live! C’mon!
Page 11
Chris is being hung upside down. He is now stripped naked. Fruit Fly and Nancy Boy are standing next to a person in silhouette. The only disguishing figure is a star pattern cape.
Fruit Fly: I believe he is waking up.
Nancy Boy: Stating the obvious…..
Silhouette: People! If you don’t want to go back to that dank hell hole, you will do exactly what I ask!
Chris: Heh…can’t…keep it together….can you…
Panel 2
Fruit Fly is punching him in the thighs.
Fruit Fly: Now, Now ….That’s no way to talk to the person who helped make you what you are.
Nancy Boy: Yes, I must agree with the golden girl, here. You’re one of us now, dear boy.
Chris: No…..not one of you.
Panel 3
The silhouette is speaking, the eyes are now revealing the star shape pattern.
Silouette:HAHA, yes, dear Chris Brady, you are! Actually, most of the credit goes to Ax, after all, if there was no team, there would be no us. When you are ready to accept what you are then we will release you, in the meantime, let the blood flow into your head, and relax.
Panel 5
Fruit Fly is stabbing at Chris’s thigh with a large metal pole.
Fruit Fly: Why don’t we leave this here for good measure?Nancy Boy: O Dear…..
Page 11
It is an alley, there are police photographers and CSI everywhere. Janet and James are inspecting a compact car. There are still clothes strewn about. In the background is a white sheet.
Panel 2
There is a light pattern appearing. It has nine shapes coming in.
Panel 3
Same as two only the shapes are Harold Keller, Jeffery, Michael, Aiden, Annie, Evelyn, Aurora, Orchid and Lasombra. All are in costume, except for Harold Keller who is wearing a double breasted suit.
Harold: Who is in charge here?Michael: That’s Chris’s car!
Panel 4
Michael is running forward, Jeffery grabbing his arm.
Michael: Let me go! That’s Chris’s car! Who is under the sheet? Is that Chris? Not again, it’s NOT Chris!
Harold: Jeffery, please try and keep him calm. Detective Ling, may I have a word with you?
Panel 5
Harold and Janet are speaking in the background. Lasombra is retreating into the alley, the rest are crowded around Michael.
Michael: N-No….what….I don’t understand this…I..I didn’t want this to happen…
Evelyn: Shhhhh, it will be alright, Michael.
Orchid: Here, some of my pheromones will help calm him.
Panel 6
Michael has a slight smile on his face.
Michael:ooooooooooo
Orchid: I’ve calmed him, it won’t last for long, but should last Lasombra gets back.
Panel 7
Annie is looking at Orchid.
Annie: Get’s back?
Orchid: I sent him to examine the body and report back.
Panel 8
Annie and Jeffery are looking at Orchid, both angry.
Annie: That’s contaminating the crime scene! Orchid, you can’t do that!
Jeffery: You could ruin the entire investigation! I am going to tell James….
Page 12
Lasombra is back among the group.
Lasombra: Don’t get your undies in a wad. It’s a woman, naked, dried blood. Pupils dialated….
Jeffery: Pupils….No, that can’t be right. That’s a sign of asphyxiation, the other victims of the killer were killed by blood lost and aortic rupture. This is isn’t the killer’s work, unless he changed his M.O.
Panel 2
Michael still has a half smile on his face.
Michael: That’s Chris’s car…..where is Chris? I hope he’s OK.
Annie: Jeffery….
Panel 3
Jeffery is shrugging.
Jeffery: I can’t go up to the apartment. If it’s related to the crime scene…
Panel 4
Janet and Harold are coming back.
Janet: Team, I’m keeping this out of the papers for now as this involves one of you, but everything that you learned here, needs to be gone from your minds. I mean it. I appreciate you coming down and all, but this is a police investigation. I don’t want anyone attempting to play detective, including you, Jeff.
Panel 5
Aurora is whispering to Annie.
Aurora: What do we do now, Annie? They obviously don’t want our help, and our hands are tied at the moment, we can’t do anything.
Annie: I have an idea, ‘Rora. But we need to keep this on the hush. I don’t want anyone else on the team knowing. If not for anything else, but for Mike’s sake.
Panel 6
James is talking to Jeffery. Aiden is supporting Michael. Orchid and Lasombra are talking. Harold is kneeling looking at the alley. Evelyn is beside Michael. Annie is gesturing at him.
Annie: We are going to get to the bottom of this. If not, they are going to look at him, as a suspect.
Page 13
It is a page with three long panels
Panel 1
Chris has his eyes closed. One is swollen and puffy, his nose is broken and he is covered in sweat and blood. He is tied to a chair, in darkness.
Off panel voice: Pssssst…wake up.
Panel 2
Chris has his eyes open.
Chris:Wha-what do you want?
Off Panel: Look, they are coming back to torture you more…look, all the damage I did was cosmetic and I have been trying to have the others do the same, but you have to hang in there, I’m trying to get a message to Ax…You have to hang in there, they are trying to drive you insane….
Panel 3
Chris is eying the speaker suspiciously.
Chris: Wha…why are you helping me…..you’re the….
Off Panel: Because, I need to be redeemed. Look, they’re coming….remember what I said….
Page 14
Michael is at the police station in an interrogation room, there is a man talking to him. Jeffery and James are outside looking behind glass with Janet and two detectives.
Jeffery: Is this really necessary? He has an alibi; he was at Evelyn’s apartment all night.
James: Yes, but Aiden did verify that there was about an hour that he was alone. According the evidence we found at the car and the cellphone records we were able to obtain, he was downstairs at the car around the time that Rachel, Aiden, and Michael were there.
Janet: That makes sense, but there is no conclusive proof of him doing anything wrong. Plus, the Varner has one parking area, and according to Aiden, Rachel and Chris used to park their cars next to one another, she would have seen it.
Panel 2
Detective one: Yeah, well where is this Rachel? I mean, that young guy, Christoph, your friend Aiden, kept referencing her over and over.
James: He said she was in the ‘burbs, visiting her parents. He called her to come down to answer some questions, I trust him.
Detective one: Yeah, YOU would, hell your dating one of “them”.
Janet:Them?
Panel 3
Janet is in the face of the Detective One.
Janet: Do you know who I am?Detective one: Yes, ma’am.
Janet: Good. Do you know what I am in charge of?Detective one: Yes, ma’am.
Janet: Good. Do you know what I am going to do to you?Detective one: N-no, ma’am.
Janet: Per the recently passed civil rights law in this state talk like that referring to any one person or group that is singled out as “they”, ”them”, or any other derogatory term is grounds for immediate termination. Right now, you, off the case. You will collect your things off of your desk, and report first thing in the morning for traffic patrol.
Detective one: B-Bu
Janet: One More word and I’ll have you working janitorial. Now, you, out of my sight, go.
Panel 4
Detective One is leaving. Detective Two has one hand loosing his collar. Janet is looking at him.
Janet: Do you have anything to say?
Detective Two: No, ma’am.
Janet: Good. Look, Jeffery, it looks bad, but I don’t think Michael did anything to Chris, this is just a formality to eliminate him as a suspect.
James: Just relax….
Panel 5
Mayor Ryan and a large looking man are walking in to the observation room. Mayor Ryan is smirking and the man are holding a package.
The Man: Sgt. Ling? I am Max Hightower, lead detective of this case. I believe that Mayor Ryan has some evidence that may shed some light into this case. He had a tape that shows……
Panel 6
Mayor Ryan is still smirking.
Mayor Ryan: I received an anonymous package this morning that showed this man, Floyd, assaulting a man in an alley dragging him out of this car and beating him.
Jeffery: WHAT!??? That can’t be right!? Michael wouldn’t…
Mayor Ryan: I have the evidence, son. I’ve seen it, watched it and was horrified. Detective Sargent Hightower has viewed it.
James: I want to see this tape….
Hightower: You do not have permission to view the tape.
Panel 7
Janet has a blank cold stare
Janet: Excuse me? I’ve never heard of you, Hightower, I’m a department head, who the f?!k are you?
Mayor Ryan: Is that profanity in a government building?Janet: I think it f!?king was, what can you not hear me? No one tells me no as long as it involves parahumans.
Mayor Ryan: Detective Sgt. Ling, I am your superior as ……
Janet: No, you’re not. I voted for the other guy, before anything happens to Floyd, I want to see that tape.
Panel 8
Max is smirking at her, in one hand, he has a large piece of paper.
Max: Do you know what this is? After Mayor Ryan showed the tape to myself and Judge Yards, we obtained an order to hold one Michael Floyd under watchful custody for the duration of the investigation. He is suspect number one.
Page 15
Panel 1
Janet, James, and Jeffery are looking at the order.
Panel 2
Janet is crumpling it up.
Janet: Fine, but I’m going to fight this. You haven’t heard the last of the parahuman division. O and Hightower, I’m gunning for you.
Panel 3
Max is still smirking at her.
Max: Is that a threat?
Panel 4
Janet is backing out of the room backwards. James and Jeffery are waiting for her in the background.
Janet: No, it’s a promise. If I threatened you, you’d be dead.
Page 16
Panel 1
Aurora, Annie, Aiden, and Evelyn are waiting outside by a limousine. James and Jeffery are walking out hand in hand.
Aurora: Where is Michael?Annie: They took him, didn’t they?Jeffery: Yeah, Mayor Ryan and some guy Max Hightower took him….
Panel 2
Annie is looking shocked.
Annie: Wait a second….Max Hightower? Sandy brown hair, green eyes, scar under his left eye?James: …yeah…
Panel 3
Jeffery is grabbing Annie and Aiden and running.
Annie: Jefffery, get me in there now!
Panel 4
The roof of the precinct is being blown away. There is a blue light shooting from the top.
Panel 5
Annie, Jeffery, and Aiden now in costume, are going through the hallway at superspeed.
Panel 6
They are in the remains of the interrogation room. Mayor Ryan is laying on his back, he has blood pouring from his head, his clothes are shredded. Janet is attending to him.
Janet: As soon as you left, I realized I had seen his face somewhere, I walked into the room and he smirked at me, he threw some kind of explosive at the wall by the Mayor and laughed. Mahoney is dead, the Mayor has a concussion, I sifted through the wreckage and there is no sign of Hightower or Michael. Guys, I’m sorry…..
Annie: Save it.
Page 17
Annie is blasting a wall with her arm. Nancy Boy is appearing as if from nowhere.
Annie: Electricity can’t hide from me, nice try though.
Panel 2
Jeffery is beside him, one fist over Nancy Boy’s face.
Jeffery: I just hit you over one hundred times in less than a second. You wanna another second? What the hell are you doing here and what happened to Michael?Panel 3
Sound Effect: RUMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMBLEEEEEEEEE………….
Annie, Janet, Jeffery and Aiden are looking up in shock.
Panel 3
Evelyn’s body is being thrown through the wall.
Janet: Duck!
Panel 4
Coming through the hole in the wall is Fruit Fly and a naked man whose body is scaled and twisted.
Fruit Fly: Good Punch, Slither, let’s get Nancy Boy and get out of here. We got whom we came for.
Panel 5
Aurora and James are teleporting in the room. There are also armed parahuman police squad members.
Aurora: Sucker punching Evelyn and running away? What, you didn’t think we would follow you?
James: You’re all under arrest.
Panel 6
A man in a black trenchcoat is coming into the room, shooting with one arm and throwing metal discs in the other. The others are ducking.
Gunsmyth: Time to go gang!
Page 18
Gunsmyth is grabbing Aurora. He has one hand over her mouth.
Gunsmyth: Look, an added bonus!
Panel 2
Nancy Boy, Gunsmyth, Fruit Fly, and Slither are holding on to the discs. All including Aurora are fading out.
Annie: NO ! NO!!!!! SOMEONE STOP THEM!!!! NO!
Panel 3
They are gone. Annie is standing in the room with everyone else. Everyone looks shocked and dazed. Annie, however, has a look of anger and rage on her face.
Annie: NO! DAMN IT! DAMN IT! F?!K IT! NO! NO! NO!
Page 19
Caption: One Hour later.
Annie, Evelyn, Aiden, Rachel, James, Jeffery, and Janet are in the Ax building with all three Kellers, Orchid, and Lasombra.
Annie is standing, armscrossed, she is smoking. Evelyn is holding an icepack to her head. Aiden is holding Rachel. James has one hand on Jeffery’s shoulder. Janet is sitting, she is tapping a dossier in one hand. Harold is sitting with Deborah and Richard on either side. Orchid is sitting looking concerned, and Lasombra is against the wall.
Janet: Annie called us all here to brief everyone on what happened. I pulled some of the information I have on the assailants and this is what I have:
Panel 2
Janet is holding a file with a picture of Slither.
Janet: Slither-Raymond Scrale , a career criminal, we were looking for him for the last two months. He is a power chameleon. He “copies” other people’s powers if he is in the vicinity. He murdered a man 4 years ago, the man had snake characteristics. The “copying was permanent.
Panel 3
Janet is holding a file with a picture of Gunsmyth.
Janet: Gunsmyth- Name unknown, he is a hired assassin. Normally tangles with Motor Man and Mindscape all three are wanted, although Gunsmyth is wanted on multiple counts of murder.
Panel 4
Janet is holding up a file with a picture of Hightower.
Janet: Max Hightower-had been a while since he was seen, he is an ex-member of X-Generation who went rouge. He was thrown out of the team by Michael and deceased member, Quiver, after they discovered him using excessive force on a member of…
Panel 5
Annie is putting out her cigarette on an ashtray on the table.
Annie:….the Crazy Gang. He is wanted on eleven counts of assault and battery, including…
Panel 6
Annie is lifting up part of her leg to reveal a scar on her thigh.
Annie: this, assault with a deadly weapon. X-Generation tangled with us in Metro Township, we barely got away, but Hightower cornered Trish and I. Her powers weren’t as developed as they are now. He slammed her head repeatedly against a brick wall. I tried to stop him, he cut me. Deep, he was trying to get me to beg. Michael and Quiver found us in an alley. Michael screamed to distract him, Hightower kicked him at a big height. Quiver gave him that scar, I shocked his system to shrink him. Afterwards, Quiver let us go.
Page 20
Rachel is looking at Annie.
Rachel: Why didn’t you or Michael ever mention that?Annie: I don’t know why he didn’t, but after my past, didn’t think it was…wait, Michael always had Motor Man and Mindscape around when he was younger, and especially when the previous Ax team was murdered…
Harold: He lived with them for a time after he moved out of the tower.
Panel 2
Orchid is looking at Jeffery and James.
Orchid: Wait a second, Gunsmyth for Motor Man and Mindscape, Hightower for Michael…and those elderly people…you and James tangled with them, didn’t you, Jeffery?
Jeffery: Yeah, they ambushed us at that writer’s house…are you thinking that someone is matching us? You know for a fight or for some other reason.
Panel 3
Aiden is scratching his chin.
Aiden: They snatched Aurora and Michael….wait, Chris. Do you think they took Chris?
Rachel: But why take Chris and go through all that trouble if they were just going to snatch Michael the way they did?Panel 4
Annie is lighting another cigarette.
Annie: So they would know where they were, but how were they able to know about Chris? There are no files on any of us, no one really knows about our personal lives outside of this group.
Deborah: Mindreader?
Panel 5
Harold, Deborah, Annie, Janet, and Evelyn are all looking at one another.
All: Psy-Anyde!
Panel 6
James is pulling a cellphone out. He is walking out of the room. Janet is standing up.
James: I’m calling the prison….
Janet: That’s it. If they have her, then she can find out everyone that’s important to you guys. I am calling the department to get some protection….
Annie: What?
Page 21
Janet has her arms crossed, she is facing Annie and Harold.
Janet: I’m calling for body guards, look you guys have parahuman powers, and they still snatched two of you. You better call anyone that is important to you too. I am making this a priority…
Annie: No, Look I appreciate it and all, but we need to get going. We need to find Michael and Aurora, if we find them, we will find Chris. I don’t think….
Panel 2
Harold is standing up looking at Janet.
Harold: Annie, please. Look, we can compromise. The tower is secure. We can round up our loved ones and have them locked down in the guest apartments here. No member of the group will be alone. But you must allow us to work this as we would any other case.
Panel 3
Rachel is standing up in protest.
Rachel: Move in..here? No, I’m not doing it.
Aiden: Babe….
Rachel: No, Aiden, this is why I went to my mother’s. We can’t let the team dominate our lives! Aiden, no, I don’t want this.
Panel 4
Evelyn is standing up.
Evelyn: Noone wants to move in, dear, but think about it, you have a child on the way, they grabbed Chris at your apartment, we can protect you. At least this way we can make sure that your safe.
Panel 5
James is re-entering the room.
James: She’s gone. They were trying to keep it hush after the riot. We need to talk to warden about this, he didn’t report it, she has been gone about fourty-eight hours by their estimate.
Panel 6
Janet is standing.
Janet: Everyone, you have one hour to pack and return to tower. James, you too, grab Laura and meet us back here, because of your relationship with Jeffery, you might be on the list, too. If anyone has someone close to them, here in the city, you may want to alert them.
Jeffery: Laura?
Page 22
Michael is lying on a floor, he has dampener collar on his neck. Aurora is chained down in a circle with candles lit. She is sitting Indian Style.
Michael: uhhhh my head…’rora? Is that you.
Panel 2
Aurora is attempting to nod her head.
Michael: Why…why can’t you talk? That circle……
Panel 3
Psy-Anyde is walking into the panel.
Psy-Anyde: Rukus and Aurora…...so nice of you to join us.
Panel 4
Michael is trying to get up.
Michael: Psy-Anyde! How the hell did you get out of prison? Why are we here, what the….
Panel 5
Psy-Anyde is smiling looking in the direction of the reader, Aurora and Michael both have shocked looks on their faces.
Off Panel Voice: Because I asked that you be brought to me….
Michael: No…….what did they…….
Page 23
Chris is standing in the middle of the panel. Beside him are Gunsmyth, Gavin, Fruit Fly, Nancy Boy, Slither, Hightower, and the Fecal Master. Michael is still attempting to get up, he is in the foreground. Psy-Anyde is still next to him.
Chris: I said I would kill you, Michael. I am going to enjoy this…….
Chris’s eyes are fluttering open. He appears to be lying on the floor.
Chris: Wha….
Off Panel Voice: Wake up sunshine!
Panel 2
There is a boot kicking him in the face.
Chris:uop!
Panel 3
Chris is now bleeding. His eye is swollen and he is looking up, eyes wide.
Chris:Wh-where am I?
Page 2-3
Splash Page
Chris is in the foreground looking upward. Standing above him are Fruit Fly, Nancy Boy, The Fecal Master, a man dressed in a long black trench coat, another man whose face is covered in scales. Psy-Anyde, and Gavin(Jeffery’s brother). Psy-Anyde is crotched down talking to Chris. The room is darkly lit. There are pictures littered all over the background of the Ax members including Regal, Motor man and Mindscape. There are markings all over the pictures and a blueprint of the Ax building. There is a large board which states: The Cabal: part 1 Comfort and Joy by J.Robles Last Issue; the team had a large heart to heart and swapped origin stories, Jeffery confided in Michael, Michael held Jeffery, which caused him to ponder his feelings for Jeffery and Chris. Gavin was approached by a woman about locating his brother, Jeffery. Chris witnessed the murderer leaving a body in an alley, however, he was taking by Nancy Boy and Fecal Master, leaving his car and belongings in the street.
Psy-Anyde: Isn’t it obvious? You’re in Hell.
Page 4
Jeffery is waking up. His eyes are sleepy and he has a smile on his face.
Panel 2
He is looking up with eyes wide.
Panel 3
The full scene is shown, Jeffery had fallen asleep on top of Michael, who is holding Jeffery close. They are clothed in what they wore the night before, although there is a blanket partially covering them. They had fallen asleep on a reclining lawn chair on the patio area. Jeffery smiles and snuggles closer to Michael.
Jeffery: Mike? Michael…
Michael: hmmmm
Panel 4
Jeffery is smiling up at Michael who is looking down at him with a sleepy grin.
Jeffery: We should probably get up now, don’t want anyone to see us like this and get the wrong idea.
Michael: Well, I think someone already did, the blanket wasn’t here.
Panel 5
Jeffery is smiling at him, touching Michael’s face.
Jeffery: Thank you for talking to me, Mike, I appreciate it. I just…well…
Michael: Don’t say it. We’re friends; I comforted you as your friend. No worries.
Panel 6
Jeffery is kissing his cheek and running off. Michael is holding the spot.
Jeffery: ThanksMichaelyourthebest!
Michael:…yeah anytime….
Panel 7
Michael is still in the same position.
Michael: We are just friends….
Panel 8
Michael looks surprised.
There is a word balloon coming from no where.
Voice: Keep telling yourself that…
Page 5
Aurora is appearing from nowhere, removing her cloak. Michael is turning looking at her. Under her cloak, she is wearing her pjs from the night before. She has a small smirk on her face.
Michael: Do you always snoop like that?Aurora: No, but I am the one who magicked that blanket on you last night. I thought I would come and check on you. When Jeffery woke up, I went under the cloak. You and he bonded last night, I saw the way you were looking at him….
Panel 2
Michael is looking a little annoyed.
Michael: I wasn’t looking at him any particular way, he needed to be comforted. I don’t like him any other way than as a friend. Why do you care anyway?Panel 3
Aurora is giving a small smile.
Aurora: I care because we are teammates, friends. And…because, I don’t know what you talked about out here, but I came out to commune with the moon, and you were asleep in each other’s arms. Just be careful, he seems to be hung up on that cop, and you just broke up with Chris. It just seems like if you were thinking about dating him…
Michael: Look, ‘rora, I know your trying to be a good friend. But, really, it’s Ok. I was just there for Jeffery.
Panel 4
Aurora is walking back into the penthouse.
Aurora: Michael, just be patient, in time, you’ll get what you want.
Panel 5
Aurora is paused, looking at him, she has a puzzled look on her face.
Aurora: I…I don’t know why I said that, just be careful is all I am saying.
Panel 6
Michael is holding the blanket, and looking annoyed on the deck.
Michael: Yeah….be careful…..
Page 6
Aiden is on his cell phone in bed. Rachel is on her cell phone in on a kitchen table, it should appear she is eating although we never see the table. This page will be divided into eight panels, The left panels will be Aiden and the right panels are Rachel.
Panel 1
Aiden is yawning.
Aiden: Look, all I’m saying is I think you took what I said the wrong way. I didn’t say I didn’t want to marry you, I proposed didn’t I? Wait…. I didn’t mean that…
Panel 2
Rachel looks focused at what she is doing. She has the phone in one ear.
Rachel: Relax, look, Aiden, I know what you mean to say, and I know what’s going through your mind. It’s just that I don’t want this team to overtake our lives, plus seeing Chris react the way he did…..I don’t want that to be us.
Panel 3
Aiden is laying on his back. He has one hand behind his head and the other on the phone.
Aiden: Rache, I love you more than life itself. And the baby coming…it just makes me worried about the kind of life that is going to be ours. I want you to think, really think and tell me if this is what you want.
Panel 4
The panel is pulled out a little, Rachel has what looks like a metal instrument in her hand.
Rachel: Yes, it is. Remember, this is all you talked about since we started dating. I know this is eventually what was going to happen. Aiden, I came home because the pregnancy and the whole thing with the team at the restaurant was just like a living metaphor for our lives. I just needed a breather. O, and call your mother, it was like I was Evelyn Abbot for a second, you should have heard the questions….
Panel 5
Aiden is laughing.
Aiden: Funny you should mention it, I’m actually at her penthouse. Michael is staying here in the meantime, and I came over to make sure he was OK. Yeah…..yeah…..very nice. Yeah I asked her last night, she said you could come and hang.
Panel 6
Rachel is laughing. The panel has “panned” out, Rachel has mechanical pieces all over a kitchen table.
Rachel: That is crazy! We now know Evelyn Abbot. ….OK, babe, go shower, I’ll be here. I love you.
Panel 7
Aiden is smiling.
Aiden: OK, baby, I love you too.
Panel 8
Rachel has hung up the phone. She is yelling over her shoulder.
Rachel: Dad! I need the sautering gun! O and by the way, I made the radio into a new garage door opener, and remote for the refrigerator, I should have the watch finished by this afternoon!
Page 7
Aiden is yawning and putting his cell phone on the charger.
Panel 2
A fist comes through the wall. Aiden looks at the hole in the wall.
Panel 3
Annie, Aurora, Jeffery, Michael and Aiden come into the living area of the room. Tiff is standing by Evelyn.
Tiff: Jocelyn! Calm down, I will get to the bottom of this.
Annie: What’s wrong, ugh why is the room spinning?
Panel 4
Jocelyn is looking very angry. Tiff is looking calm.
Jocelyn: I just a registered letter, stating that because of legal litigations, my accounts have been frozen! That is sixty eight point seven million dollars. Then, as I was reading this atroicous news, I got a letter from the City of Salvation stating that they are suing me for property damage and backing out of a modeling contract 4 years ago.
Tiff: I am going into the office to research these charges, don’t worry, I’ll get to the bottom of this.
Panel 5
Annie is looking at Evelyn. Michael is in the background .
Annie: City of Salvation…..something here doesn’t make sense.
Michael: It’s no secret that the Mayor Ryan doesn’t like parahumans.
Panel 6
Michael is the focus of the panel.
Michael: When I lived at the Ax tower, he was one the city council and tried to get the zoning changed so we would be kicked out of the Mo Phlee. He succeeded in getting X-Generation kicked out of the old X-building. Although, when we got the zoning changed back, the team was dead. I have the deed to the building, and I still get challenges to the buildings right to be there.
Panel 7
Evelyn is ripping the paper in half.
Evelyn: I am going to……wait, showing anger wouldn’t be ladylike. Let’s just say that I hoped he isn’t too attached to his testicles, it will make me ripping them off so much easier. Tiff, prepare the red file.
Panel 8
Jeffery is giving her a strange look. Aiden is also looking puzzled.
Jeffery: The red file?
Evelyn: Never you mind, dear. I’ve put it out of my mind. Shall we start our day?
Page 8
Chris is sitting in a chair. His face is bloodied and bruised. The Fecal Master and Psy-Anyde are standing behind him.
Psy-Anyde: Wake up, Chrissy. You fell asleep as my good friend, Crappy the Pooh, was working on you, we weren’t just quite finished.
Chris: Wha…..lemme go.
The Fecal Master: HAHA, do you hear that, let you go that’s priceless. You’re going to help us, Chris. You’re going to help us get revenge on those pieces of trash that roam our streets. Maybe we will help you get revenge too.
Panel 2
Chris’s face is focused.
Chris: n-no……
Psy-Anyde: Yes, yes you will. And just think, you can get revenge on Michael. Yes, I know all about what he did, lying to you the way he did. You said you would kill him, we can help you.
Chris: Noooo….
Panel 3
Psy-Anyde is holding his head lovingly. Chris is wincing.
Psy-Anyde: It’s Ok, Chris. I know all about it. He lied about being a parahuman, about being a member of Ax, and he didn’t even remember that your anniversary was 3 days ago. You were burning with anger, but you didn’t say anything. You were trying to be the supporting boyfriend. How long as it been since you had sex? I think you’re right, I think he was cheating on you…
Chris:F-f-f-fu….
Panel 4
Psy-Anyde is putting one fingernail into a cut on his cheek, and her other hand is pulling on an ear.
Psy-Anyde: Now, now, that’s no way to talk to your new best friend. Now, we want you to think of all the things that we told you….Remember, that, if you had power of the mind, you could know these things too. Imagine, if you were a dirty little parahuman, you could have known Michael didn’t love you.
Chris: ARGH!!!!!
Panel 5
Gavin is approaching The Fecal Master.
Gavin: Are you ready for the next round?The Fecal Master: Yes, I think hes ready, now don’t worry, Chris. This won’t hurt…us.
Panel 6
It is a panel of Chris screaming in pain.
Page 9
Jeffery is at the police station. Janet is one side of the desk and James is on the other end. Jeffery is walking up, behind them, both are busy going through a stack of papers.
Jeffery: Hello, guys.
James: Jeffery! Been waiting for you to show, we got some questions and documents to go over.
Janet: Actually, if you don’t mind reading through this stack….
Panel 2
The stack of papers are on the other end of the desk.
Jeffery: Done. That creamy compound that was found….it matches with that compound that Ax Corporations has developed as an industrial sunscreen. According to the….o where is it….
Panel 3
Jeffery is scanning through the stack again.
Panel 4
James and Janet are staring at him.
James: Here it is, the pathology reports for the last 3 victims, it doesn’t show all the time, but according the developmental reports from Ax, its showing that the sunscreen was still going through trial reports and it was being tested often, the traces and chemical compounds correspond to the changes that were made in the compound. But what I’m more concerned about is the blood traces. Has pathology looked at this?
Panel 5
Janet is squinting at him. Jeffery is holding a file at her.
Janet : What are you looking at? James and I have been going through these over and over….
Jeffery: It’s this…..The victims blood are injected with an anticoagulant, but this is what I’m referring to…Victim 14 and Victim 18 both had Type O negative blood, but once the anticoagulant is isolated, there is this…..its a DNA strand that is unaccounted for.
Panel 6
James is smiling at him. Jeffery is looking away.
James: Ok, I’ll order another round of testing on the bodies and see if we can get a beat on that DNA strand you’ve located. Where did you learn all this stuff?Jeffery: Well, I can read things and while I am reading it makes perfect sense, but, ok like now? It’s all gone. I have no idea what I just said.
Panel 7
Janet is taking the file from his hand and walking away. James and Jeffery are looking at her.
Janet: I’m taking this to pathology. James, we have an hour of downtime, amuse yourself.
Panel 8
James is looking at Jeffery.
James: So……you never called….
Page 10
Panel 1
Jeffery is looking down at him.
Jeffery: Yeah, look, I’m sorry, I….
James: No need to explain, really. Look I haven’t been entirely honest with you, but I have a question to ask you.
Panel 2
Jeffery is looking at him. James has his hand behind his head. He has a sheepish grin.
James: Well, look, it’s no secret that I like you, and you like me, I think. But there are a couple of things I need to tell you before we go any further…but not here…dinner say eight o’clock?
Jeffery: S-sure, yeah, I’d love that.
Panel 3
James is laughing.
James: Good, I was hoping that 3rd grade question asking didn’t turn you off, I’m kinda new to this so….
Jeffery: It’s Ok, really and yeah, I’d love that.
Panel 4
James and Jeffery are looking up as Janet runs up, still holding the file in her hand.
Janet: Get ready to go boys, we have another body and we might have some more evidence. This one is on the edge of Moe Phlee Boulevard, alley behind Varner Apartments.
Panel 5
Jeffery is grabbing James.
Jeffery: That’s where Michael and Aiden live! C’mon!
Page 11
Chris is being hung upside down. He is now stripped naked. Fruit Fly and Nancy Boy are standing next to a person in silhouette. The only disguishing figure is a star pattern cape.
Fruit Fly: I believe he is waking up.
Nancy Boy: Stating the obvious…..
Silhouette: People! If you don’t want to go back to that dank hell hole, you will do exactly what I ask!
Chris: Heh…can’t…keep it together….can you…
Panel 2
Fruit Fly is punching him in the thighs.
Fruit Fly: Now, Now ….That’s no way to talk to the person who helped make you what you are.
Nancy Boy: Yes, I must agree with the golden girl, here. You’re one of us now, dear boy.
Chris: No…..not one of you.
Panel 3
The silhouette is speaking, the eyes are now revealing the star shape pattern.
Silouette:HAHA, yes, dear Chris Brady, you are! Actually, most of the credit goes to Ax, after all, if there was no team, there would be no us. When you are ready to accept what you are then we will release you, in the meantime, let the blood flow into your head, and relax.
Panel 5
Fruit Fly is stabbing at Chris’s thigh with a large metal pole.
Fruit Fly: Why don’t we leave this here for good measure?Nancy Boy: O Dear…..
Page 11
It is an alley, there are police photographers and CSI everywhere. Janet and James are inspecting a compact car. There are still clothes strewn about. In the background is a white sheet.
Panel 2
There is a light pattern appearing. It has nine shapes coming in.
Panel 3
Same as two only the shapes are Harold Keller, Jeffery, Michael, Aiden, Annie, Evelyn, Aurora, Orchid and Lasombra. All are in costume, except for Harold Keller who is wearing a double breasted suit.
Harold: Who is in charge here?Michael: That’s Chris’s car!
Panel 4
Michael is running forward, Jeffery grabbing his arm.
Michael: Let me go! That’s Chris’s car! Who is under the sheet? Is that Chris? Not again, it’s NOT Chris!
Harold: Jeffery, please try and keep him calm. Detective Ling, may I have a word with you?
Panel 5
Harold and Janet are speaking in the background. Lasombra is retreating into the alley, the rest are crowded around Michael.
Michael: N-No….what….I don’t understand this…I..I didn’t want this to happen…
Evelyn: Shhhhh, it will be alright, Michael.
Orchid: Here, some of my pheromones will help calm him.
Panel 6
Michael has a slight smile on his face.
Michael:ooooooooooo
Orchid: I’ve calmed him, it won’t last for long, but should last Lasombra gets back.
Panel 7
Annie is looking at Orchid.
Annie: Get’s back?
Orchid: I sent him to examine the body and report back.
Panel 8
Annie and Jeffery are looking at Orchid, both angry.
Annie: That’s contaminating the crime scene! Orchid, you can’t do that!
Jeffery: You could ruin the entire investigation! I am going to tell James….
Page 12
Lasombra is back among the group.
Lasombra: Don’t get your undies in a wad. It’s a woman, naked, dried blood. Pupils dialated….
Jeffery: Pupils….No, that can’t be right. That’s a sign of asphyxiation, the other victims of the killer were killed by blood lost and aortic rupture. This is isn’t the killer’s work, unless he changed his M.O.
Panel 2
Michael still has a half smile on his face.
Michael: That’s Chris’s car…..where is Chris? I hope he’s OK.
Annie: Jeffery….
Panel 3
Jeffery is shrugging.
Jeffery: I can’t go up to the apartment. If it’s related to the crime scene…
Panel 4
Janet and Harold are coming back.
Janet: Team, I’m keeping this out of the papers for now as this involves one of you, but everything that you learned here, needs to be gone from your minds. I mean it. I appreciate you coming down and all, but this is a police investigation. I don’t want anyone attempting to play detective, including you, Jeff.
Panel 5
Aurora is whispering to Annie.
Aurora: What do we do now, Annie? They obviously don’t want our help, and our hands are tied at the moment, we can’t do anything.
Annie: I have an idea, ‘Rora. But we need to keep this on the hush. I don’t want anyone else on the team knowing. If not for anything else, but for Mike’s sake.
Panel 6
James is talking to Jeffery. Aiden is supporting Michael. Orchid and Lasombra are talking. Harold is kneeling looking at the alley. Evelyn is beside Michael. Annie is gesturing at him.
Annie: We are going to get to the bottom of this. If not, they are going to look at him, as a suspect.
Page 13
It is a page with three long panels
Panel 1
Chris has his eyes closed. One is swollen and puffy, his nose is broken and he is covered in sweat and blood. He is tied to a chair, in darkness.
Off panel voice: Pssssst…wake up.
Panel 2
Chris has his eyes open.
Chris:Wha-what do you want?
Off Panel: Look, they are coming back to torture you more…look, all the damage I did was cosmetic and I have been trying to have the others do the same, but you have to hang in there, I’m trying to get a message to Ax…You have to hang in there, they are trying to drive you insane….
Panel 3
Chris is eying the speaker suspiciously.
Chris: Wha…why are you helping me…..you’re the….
Off Panel: Because, I need to be redeemed. Look, they’re coming….remember what I said….
Page 14
Michael is at the police station in an interrogation room, there is a man talking to him. Jeffery and James are outside looking behind glass with Janet and two detectives.
Jeffery: Is this really necessary? He has an alibi; he was at Evelyn’s apartment all night.
James: Yes, but Aiden did verify that there was about an hour that he was alone. According the evidence we found at the car and the cellphone records we were able to obtain, he was downstairs at the car around the time that Rachel, Aiden, and Michael were there.
Janet: That makes sense, but there is no conclusive proof of him doing anything wrong. Plus, the Varner has one parking area, and according to Aiden, Rachel and Chris used to park their cars next to one another, she would have seen it.
Panel 2
Detective one: Yeah, well where is this Rachel? I mean, that young guy, Christoph, your friend Aiden, kept referencing her over and over.
James: He said she was in the ‘burbs, visiting her parents. He called her to come down to answer some questions, I trust him.
Detective one: Yeah, YOU would, hell your dating one of “them”.
Janet:Them?
Panel 3
Janet is in the face of the Detective One.
Janet: Do you know who I am?Detective one: Yes, ma’am.
Janet: Good. Do you know what I am in charge of?Detective one: Yes, ma’am.
Janet: Good. Do you know what I am going to do to you?Detective one: N-no, ma’am.
Janet: Per the recently passed civil rights law in this state talk like that referring to any one person or group that is singled out as “they”, ”them”, or any other derogatory term is grounds for immediate termination. Right now, you, off the case. You will collect your things off of your desk, and report first thing in the morning for traffic patrol.
Detective one: B-Bu
Janet: One More word and I’ll have you working janitorial. Now, you, out of my sight, go.
Panel 4
Detective One is leaving. Detective Two has one hand loosing his collar. Janet is looking at him.
Janet: Do you have anything to say?
Detective Two: No, ma’am.
Janet: Good. Look, Jeffery, it looks bad, but I don’t think Michael did anything to Chris, this is just a formality to eliminate him as a suspect.
James: Just relax….
Panel 5
Mayor Ryan and a large looking man are walking in to the observation room. Mayor Ryan is smirking and the man are holding a package.
The Man: Sgt. Ling? I am Max Hightower, lead detective of this case. I believe that Mayor Ryan has some evidence that may shed some light into this case. He had a tape that shows……
Panel 6
Mayor Ryan is still smirking.
Mayor Ryan: I received an anonymous package this morning that showed this man, Floyd, assaulting a man in an alley dragging him out of this car and beating him.
Jeffery: WHAT!??? That can’t be right!? Michael wouldn’t…
Mayor Ryan: I have the evidence, son. I’ve seen it, watched it and was horrified. Detective Sargent Hightower has viewed it.
James: I want to see this tape….
Hightower: You do not have permission to view the tape.
Panel 7
Janet has a blank cold stare
Janet: Excuse me? I’ve never heard of you, Hightower, I’m a department head, who the f?!k are you?
Mayor Ryan: Is that profanity in a government building?Janet: I think it f!?king was, what can you not hear me? No one tells me no as long as it involves parahumans.
Mayor Ryan: Detective Sgt. Ling, I am your superior as ……
Janet: No, you’re not. I voted for the other guy, before anything happens to Floyd, I want to see that tape.
Panel 8
Max is smirking at her, in one hand, he has a large piece of paper.
Max: Do you know what this is? After Mayor Ryan showed the tape to myself and Judge Yards, we obtained an order to hold one Michael Floyd under watchful custody for the duration of the investigation. He is suspect number one.
Page 15
Panel 1
Janet, James, and Jeffery are looking at the order.
Panel 2
Janet is crumpling it up.
Janet: Fine, but I’m going to fight this. You haven’t heard the last of the parahuman division. O and Hightower, I’m gunning for you.
Panel 3
Max is still smirking at her.
Max: Is that a threat?
Panel 4
Janet is backing out of the room backwards. James and Jeffery are waiting for her in the background.
Janet: No, it’s a promise. If I threatened you, you’d be dead.
Page 16
Panel 1
Aurora, Annie, Aiden, and Evelyn are waiting outside by a limousine. James and Jeffery are walking out hand in hand.
Aurora: Where is Michael?Annie: They took him, didn’t they?Jeffery: Yeah, Mayor Ryan and some guy Max Hightower took him….
Panel 2
Annie is looking shocked.
Annie: Wait a second….Max Hightower? Sandy brown hair, green eyes, scar under his left eye?James: …yeah…
Panel 3
Jeffery is grabbing Annie and Aiden and running.
Annie: Jefffery, get me in there now!
Panel 4
The roof of the precinct is being blown away. There is a blue light shooting from the top.
Panel 5
Annie, Jeffery, and Aiden now in costume, are going through the hallway at superspeed.
Panel 6
They are in the remains of the interrogation room. Mayor Ryan is laying on his back, he has blood pouring from his head, his clothes are shredded. Janet is attending to him.
Janet: As soon as you left, I realized I had seen his face somewhere, I walked into the room and he smirked at me, he threw some kind of explosive at the wall by the Mayor and laughed. Mahoney is dead, the Mayor has a concussion, I sifted through the wreckage and there is no sign of Hightower or Michael. Guys, I’m sorry…..
Annie: Save it.
Page 17
Annie is blasting a wall with her arm. Nancy Boy is appearing as if from nowhere.
Annie: Electricity can’t hide from me, nice try though.
Panel 2
Jeffery is beside him, one fist over Nancy Boy’s face.
Jeffery: I just hit you over one hundred times in less than a second. You wanna another second? What the hell are you doing here and what happened to Michael?Panel 3
Sound Effect: RUMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMBLEEEEEEEEE………….
Annie, Janet, Jeffery and Aiden are looking up in shock.
Panel 3
Evelyn’s body is being thrown through the wall.
Janet: Duck!
Panel 4
Coming through the hole in the wall is Fruit Fly and a naked man whose body is scaled and twisted.
Fruit Fly: Good Punch, Slither, let’s get Nancy Boy and get out of here. We got whom we came for.
Panel 5
Aurora and James are teleporting in the room. There are also armed parahuman police squad members.
Aurora: Sucker punching Evelyn and running away? What, you didn’t think we would follow you?
James: You’re all under arrest.
Panel 6
A man in a black trenchcoat is coming into the room, shooting with one arm and throwing metal discs in the other. The others are ducking.
Gunsmyth: Time to go gang!
Page 18
Gunsmyth is grabbing Aurora. He has one hand over her mouth.
Gunsmyth: Look, an added bonus!
Panel 2
Nancy Boy, Gunsmyth, Fruit Fly, and Slither are holding on to the discs. All including Aurora are fading out.
Annie: NO ! NO!!!!! SOMEONE STOP THEM!!!! NO!
Panel 3
They are gone. Annie is standing in the room with everyone else. Everyone looks shocked and dazed. Annie, however, has a look of anger and rage on her face.
Annie: NO! DAMN IT! DAMN IT! F?!K IT! NO! NO! NO!
Page 19
Caption: One Hour later.
Annie, Evelyn, Aiden, Rachel, James, Jeffery, and Janet are in the Ax building with all three Kellers, Orchid, and Lasombra.
Annie is standing, armscrossed, she is smoking. Evelyn is holding an icepack to her head. Aiden is holding Rachel. James has one hand on Jeffery’s shoulder. Janet is sitting, she is tapping a dossier in one hand. Harold is sitting with Deborah and Richard on either side. Orchid is sitting looking concerned, and Lasombra is against the wall.
Janet: Annie called us all here to brief everyone on what happened. I pulled some of the information I have on the assailants and this is what I have:
Panel 2
Janet is holding a file with a picture of Slither.
Janet: Slither-Raymond Scrale , a career criminal, we were looking for him for the last two months. He is a power chameleon. He “copies” other people’s powers if he is in the vicinity. He murdered a man 4 years ago, the man had snake characteristics. The “copying was permanent.
Panel 3
Janet is holding a file with a picture of Gunsmyth.
Janet: Gunsmyth- Name unknown, he is a hired assassin. Normally tangles with Motor Man and Mindscape all three are wanted, although Gunsmyth is wanted on multiple counts of murder.
Panel 4
Janet is holding up a file with a picture of Hightower.
Janet: Max Hightower-had been a while since he was seen, he is an ex-member of X-Generation who went rouge. He was thrown out of the team by Michael and deceased member, Quiver, after they discovered him using excessive force on a member of…
Panel 5
Annie is putting out her cigarette on an ashtray on the table.
Annie:….the Crazy Gang. He is wanted on eleven counts of assault and battery, including…
Panel 6
Annie is lifting up part of her leg to reveal a scar on her thigh.
Annie: this, assault with a deadly weapon. X-Generation tangled with us in Metro Township, we barely got away, but Hightower cornered Trish and I. Her powers weren’t as developed as they are now. He slammed her head repeatedly against a brick wall. I tried to stop him, he cut me. Deep, he was trying to get me to beg. Michael and Quiver found us in an alley. Michael screamed to distract him, Hightower kicked him at a big height. Quiver gave him that scar, I shocked his system to shrink him. Afterwards, Quiver let us go.
Page 20
Rachel is looking at Annie.
Rachel: Why didn’t you or Michael ever mention that?Annie: I don’t know why he didn’t, but after my past, didn’t think it was…wait, Michael always had Motor Man and Mindscape around when he was younger, and especially when the previous Ax team was murdered…
Harold: He lived with them for a time after he moved out of the tower.
Panel 2
Orchid is looking at Jeffery and James.
Orchid: Wait a second, Gunsmyth for Motor Man and Mindscape, Hightower for Michael…and those elderly people…you and James tangled with them, didn’t you, Jeffery?
Jeffery: Yeah, they ambushed us at that writer’s house…are you thinking that someone is matching us? You know for a fight or for some other reason.
Panel 3
Aiden is scratching his chin.
Aiden: They snatched Aurora and Michael….wait, Chris. Do you think they took Chris?
Rachel: But why take Chris and go through all that trouble if they were just going to snatch Michael the way they did?Panel 4
Annie is lighting another cigarette.
Annie: So they would know where they were, but how were they able to know about Chris? There are no files on any of us, no one really knows about our personal lives outside of this group.
Deborah: Mindreader?
Panel 5
Harold, Deborah, Annie, Janet, and Evelyn are all looking at one another.
All: Psy-Anyde!
Panel 6
James is pulling a cellphone out. He is walking out of the room. Janet is standing up.
James: I’m calling the prison….
Janet: That’s it. If they have her, then she can find out everyone that’s important to you guys. I am calling the department to get some protection….
Annie: What?
Page 21
Janet has her arms crossed, she is facing Annie and Harold.
Janet: I’m calling for body guards, look you guys have parahuman powers, and they still snatched two of you. You better call anyone that is important to you too. I am making this a priority…
Annie: No, Look I appreciate it and all, but we need to get going. We need to find Michael and Aurora, if we find them, we will find Chris. I don’t think….
Panel 2
Harold is standing up looking at Janet.
Harold: Annie, please. Look, we can compromise. The tower is secure. We can round up our loved ones and have them locked down in the guest apartments here. No member of the group will be alone. But you must allow us to work this as we would any other case.
Panel 3
Rachel is standing up in protest.
Rachel: Move in..here? No, I’m not doing it.
Aiden: Babe….
Rachel: No, Aiden, this is why I went to my mother’s. We can’t let the team dominate our lives! Aiden, no, I don’t want this.
Panel 4
Evelyn is standing up.
Evelyn: Noone wants to move in, dear, but think about it, you have a child on the way, they grabbed Chris at your apartment, we can protect you. At least this way we can make sure that your safe.
Panel 5
James is re-entering the room.
James: She’s gone. They were trying to keep it hush after the riot. We need to talk to warden about this, he didn’t report it, she has been gone about fourty-eight hours by their estimate.
Panel 6
Janet is standing.
Janet: Everyone, you have one hour to pack and return to tower. James, you too, grab Laura and meet us back here, because of your relationship with Jeffery, you might be on the list, too. If anyone has someone close to them, here in the city, you may want to alert them.
Jeffery: Laura?
Page 22
Michael is lying on a floor, he has dampener collar on his neck. Aurora is chained down in a circle with candles lit. She is sitting Indian Style.
Michael: uhhhh my head…’rora? Is that you.
Panel 2
Aurora is attempting to nod her head.
Michael: Why…why can’t you talk? That circle……
Panel 3
Psy-Anyde is walking into the panel.
Psy-Anyde: Rukus and Aurora…...so nice of you to join us.
Panel 4
Michael is trying to get up.
Michael: Psy-Anyde! How the hell did you get out of prison? Why are we here, what the….
Panel 5
Psy-Anyde is smiling looking in the direction of the reader, Aurora and Michael both have shocked looks on their faces.
Off Panel Voice: Because I asked that you be brought to me….
Michael: No…….what did they…….
Page 23
Chris is standing in the middle of the panel. Beside him are Gunsmyth, Gavin, Fruit Fly, Nancy Boy, Slither, Hightower, and the Fecal Master. Michael is still attempting to get up, he is in the foreground. Psy-Anyde is still next to him.
Chris: I said I would kill you, Michael. I am going to enjoy this…….
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