Ferallon took a completely different tack with this month’s challenge, and produced an entire 10-page comic script! Anybody want to draw it? ZPG by ferallon is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States License. See CC license at the end of the story.
This is going to be based on a standard four quarter panel layout, though if something else seems more appropriate have at it.
CHARACTER DESCRIPTIONS
Our protagonist, THOMAS, is a football player/gladiator, and his design should reflect his dual identity. He wears a helm, one that protects the sides of his face, as well as his nose. He wears hardened leather armor on his upper body, with his number 13 emblazoned on the back. He wears a kirtle, and lace up sandals. He bears a trident, and has a long knife in a holster on his left leg. His arms are bare, save for a tattoo, the number 13 in binary on his left forearm which we can see through the laces of his computer vambrace interface (CVI). All of the gladiators have one of these on their left arm, they’re made of brass or copper or hardened leather, to match the rest of their getup. They have a screen, and two buttons one black and one red.
SETTING
The world we inhabit here is a far distant dystopian society, much like the one depicted in Transmet, riotous, colorful, with the crowd panels filled with as much detail as we can manage to cram into them.
Our story takes place during Super Bowl CCXXVI, the teams competing are The Trojans and The Mujahideen. Thomas’s team are the Trojans, their colors are Maroon and Gold, the opposing side, The Mujahideen wear black and red.
The action takes place entirely in a stadium, it should resemble the Roman Coliseum more than a modern stadium, but built to look ancient. The stadium is in the center of a far future megalopolis, though we won’t see much, if any of the surrounding city, our action takes place entirely within the limits of the stadium, and within the last five minutes of the big game.
PAGE 1 (1 PANEL)
PANEL 1
Full page, single panel, THOMAS stands gazing up into the sky, he shields his eyes from the sun, tilting his helmet back ever so slightly with the back edge of his hand. He squints his eyes, despite the cover provided by his hand and the dark grease smeared below his eyes. In his other hand he loosely grips his trident which he holds pointed downward, but not resting on the ground; he holds the haft low near the point, and it twines behind his arm, and up through his armpit, which he uses to hold it tight into his body.
The field he stands on is tightly manicured, gently rolling grass. It should resemble nothing so much as a golf course. At the very top of the panel we should be able to just make out the wall of the stadium behind him; we can just see the bottom row of spikes which cover the the stadium walls.
As yet we shouldn’t be able to see anything that would allow us to know we’re anywhere other than an ancient Roman amphitheater, aside from the wonderfully manicured lawn.
(no dialogue)
PAGE 2 (3 PANELS)
PANEL 1
Top left quarter panel. A view from Thomas’s POV. We can see the underside of his hand and the dingy hazy sky. We can see the shadowy form of a BABY swaddled in a roughly hewn hemp blanket, which bears stitching along the front just like an American football. We can’t really tell that it’s a baby, it’s too dark, the shape mostly blocks out the sun, but hazy light shines from behind it.
CAPTION IT WAS SEVERAL SECONDS BEFORE THOMAS REALIZED THAT THE BABY IN THE SKY WAS HEADED STRAIGHT FOR HIM.
PANEL 2
Top right quarter panel. A close up view of the baby falling the last few inches into Thomas’s waiting arms. We can just make out the haft of the trident being entirely supported in his armpit. He has his chest hunched forward protectively, in anticipation of tucking the baby in, just like a footballer.
CAPTION THIS WAS IT…
THOMAS’S LAST CHANCE AT FAME, FORTUNE…
PANEL 3
The final panel takes up the bottom half of the page, double width. The view is of Thomas’s upper body, the baby tucked under his right armpit, and the staff held point up and out, in his left hand. His face is screwed up in a grimace of determination. The baby is crying wildly.
Behind him we can see the spike encrusted wall of the stadium, and we’re just able to make out some of the bottom row of spectators. We can see a man dressed in full roman garb, toga, golden goblet, the whole get up, but sitting next to him should be a very butch man, with a big black beard, balding, wearing a wedding dress, chest hair emerging from the low-cut décolletage. Standing next to the wedding dress man is a camera man, who we can mostly not see from behind his recording equipment, which has many lenses, and a slew of cables, all of which jack directly into the back of his skull.
CAPTION …AND THE FREEDOM HE’D FOUGHT FOR ALL HIS LIFE.
PAGE 3 (2 PANELS)
PANEL 1
This first panel takes up all of the page, except for a small panel inset at the bottom right corner. The rest of the panel is taken up with a scene of the carnage on Thomas’s team’s side of the stadium. Thomas stands on the far left side of the panel, in the same position we last saw him, but in the middle of turning to his right, to begin his run down the field. On the far right side of the panel we can just see the barbed-wire fence that marks the edge of the end-zone, and slammed into the spikes, at ground level, just by the fence is JÉSUS, who resembles Inigo Montoya from ‘The Princess Bride’. He looks quite dead. In a pile to the right of Thomas are a trio of dead gladiators, two from his team, and one from the opposing side. All their outfits and weapons are different. The dead opponent had a poleax which lays in the grass beside him; one of Thomas’s team has been decapitated by it. The head lays some ways away. The man who held the poleax is lying atop the man who killed him, with the back of his skull caved in; his murderer is a club-wielding brute dressed mostly in fur. In the foreground of the panel we have a final pair of dead players, one from each side, one dressed like a ninja, and armed accordingly, and the other heavily armored, bleeding from all the chinks in his plate mail, his hands still wrapped around the neck of the ninja. Blood soaks the field all over. The term bloodbath is an understatement.
PANEL 2
The small panel at the bottom right corner of the page should be half as tall as a normal quarter panel. It shows us our first glimpse of the announcer’s booth which is located high in the air above the stadium. It is a free floating structure held up by some complicated looking anti-gravity machinery. It is little more than a table and a chair on a platform barely large enough to hold them. Seated behind the table with an ancient-looking microphone in front of him is ANNOYING ANNOUNCER, who looks like Bob Costas, or Paul Simon, but with brightly lit LED hair replacements, and a fluffy pink squirrel tail. Next to him, on top of the table, is ANNOUNCER-BOT, which looks like an Apple IIe, with green type on black screen spelling out his lines. Their chatter should appear at the top of the panel, and should bleed into the main panel.
ANNOYING ANNOUNCER THOMAS TRAINER HAS THE BABY! ONLY A MINUTE LEFT ON THE CLOCK.
ANNOUNCER-BOT IF HE CAN SCORE NOW, HIS TEAM WILL BE THE WINNERS OF SUPERBOWL CCXXVI, BUT HE’S THE LAST MAN LEFT STANDING…
PAGE 4 (3 PANELS)
PANEL 1
The top left quarter panel. SMITTY charges over the sandy middle of the field towards our intrepid hero; chainsaw held high, his feet kicking up dust as he charges. He wears a painted up hockey mask on his face, and his only armor is a loosely flapping flannel shirt, worn with a pair of tattered blue jeans.
SFX GRUHN-RUHN-RUNH-RUHN-RUHN
PANEL 2
Top right quarter panel. Smitty swings his chainsaw down from its position over his head. Thomas leans back, swinging his trident, and slicing a gash open in Smitty’s lower abdomen. The wound has clearly penetrated his body cavity, and it’s only a matter of time till his viscera begin to spill out. They are both standing on the grass now.
THOMAS(MUTTERS) SORRY SMITTY.
SMITTY RARGH!
SFX RUNH-RUHN-RU
PANEL 3
This panel covers the whole bottom half of the page. It’s a view of Thomas leaping over the fallen corpse of Smitty, who clutches at his stomach, entrails spilled on the ground, chainsaw lying next to him slicing into the sod. The view should be from slightly behind Thomas, looking in the direction of the end zone, we can just make out the end of the grass and beginning of the sandy area in front of him. The baby tucked into his armpit begins to scream again.
THOMAS(MUTTERS) NOTHING PERSONAL
BABY WAAAAAAAAA!
PAGE 5 (3 PANELS)
PANEL 1
This first panel takes up the top half of the page. It’s a view from high above the amphitheater, showing the whole of the field, and the packed crowd, as well as the anti-gravity booth where the announcers are located. We can just make out the bits of the city that surrounds the stadium. As I said in the basic description of what we’re going for, aesthetically speaking, the whole thing should look like something out of Blade Runner, but not noir, not dark; more lightly colored, and brightly lit, very much like Transmet, or Tekkonkinkreet.
The field is as previously described, much like an American football field. At either end are a pair of goalposts, they shouldn’t necessarily look like those on a football or soccer field, and nothing with nets. The end zones should be paneled metal flooring, black and yellow hazard striped, and separated from the field proper by a barbed wire/razor wire electrified fence, man high. At the very end of the field, just before the spiked wall that surrounds the playing area should be a trio of pits, which we can’t yet see inside.
In the middle of the field is a flat, sandy area, and from its edges until the end zones, the rolling green hills of a well-maintained golf course. Down on Thomas’s teams end of the field, we can barely see the carnage from the earlier part of the game, and at the opposing end we can make out the remaining pair of players still standing waiting for Thomas’s assault. In the sandy area we can see the rough form of THE LION.
In a prominent, or in some way highlighted area of the audience, we can make out the trio of spectators who are the subject of the next panel. They should be either at the top of the auditorium, or in the front row. They are DILBERT, THE GREY MONK, and THE BRAIN IN A FUCKING JAR.
(no dialogue)
PANEL 2
Bottom left quarter panel. A close up on the trio of spectators we just introduced. On the left is The Brain in a Fucking Jar. Go to town on this one; just make sure there is a speaker of some sort. If I were designing this character I’d go with something minimalist, Japanese inspired. Next to him is the Grey. This is an overt homage to Love Swami Warren’s Transmet world. The Grey is half alien, of the stereotypical Hollywood flavor, and half man. He wears his hair, on the human half of his head, in a monk’s tonsure, and wears a long black robe, which has a pointed black hood, like a member of Sunn O))). The Grey Monk is on his feet cheering. The third of our commentators is a man who looks like Dilbert right down to the erect penis tie, with curly hair, glasses we can’t see through, and a pocket protector.
THE BRAIN IN A FUCKING JAR HE DOESN’T STAND A CHANCE…
GREY MONK WHOOOO-HOOOOO! YEAH!
DILBERT IT SEEMS SMITTY WON’T BE MVP AFTER ALL.
PANEL 3
The bottom right quarter panel. A close up shot of THE LION; it stands, rampant, by the wall in the center of the arena. Sad though it may be, it should probably be a female lion, but if the lack of mane makes it look too uncool, I suppose we can go the other route. Its left eye has been replaced by a mechanical version of some sort. It can either just be the eye, or there can be more to the augmentation, it doesn’t matter to me, but the eye should have cross hairs on it, because I’m a nerd that way. The lion wears a bulky collar that’s meant to influence its actions, and keep it from venturing out of the sandy area of the field, so it should bear some resemblance to one of those shock collars one can use to train a dog. The only other thing about the lion that’s not natural is the augmented claws on its front paws, which should be reminiscent of Vega from Street Fighter, or Wolverine, from, well, everything else.
LION GRRRRRRRR…
PAGE 6 (4 PANELS)
PANEL 1
Top left quarter panel. Thomas, running through the Sandy center portion of the field, looks down at the baby in his arms, which has, at this point, ceased crying, and merely goggles around confusedly. We are looking at our protagonist head on, or from just slightly off to one side. He kicks up clouds of dust as he runs, which partially obscure our view of the lion which chases after him.
THOMAS HOLY SHIT, KID, I THINK WE MIGHT JUST MAKE IT.
LION …RRRRR-AOWRRR!
PANEL 2
Top right quarter panel. THE VAMP stands just on the grassy side of the sandy area, wielding a pair of short swords, one an ancient roman looking number, no hilt, crude blade, and in the other hand a ‘laser sword’ that looks like it’s been taken from the cover of a forties pulp magazine. The Gladiator wears no armor on his upper body, but his right arm, the one holding the ancient sword has been replaced by a mechanical arm all the way up to, and including the pectoral muscle. The cyborg replacement strongly resembles the sort of armor that a gladiator would stereotypically wear covering that same portion of his body. The Vamp’s mouth is wide open in a threatening snarl, revealing teeth filed down to points. Instead of armor, on his lower body he wears a red mini skirt, black fishnets, and high heels. Very impractical. We can’t necessarily tell from this picture, but The Vamp should be a head and a half shorter than Thomas.
(no dialogue)
PANEL 3
Bottom left quarter panel. Thomas slips past The Vamp, spinning around behind him; they are practically back to back. He smacks his foe on the back with the flat of his trident, knocking him forward, toward the sandy pit. The Vamp jabs across his body, over his shoulder with the laser sword, just missing the baby, which Thomas has regripped higher up, resting it on his shoulder, just out of the reach of the Vamp’s sword.
(no dialogue)
PANEL 4
Bottom right quarter panel. The Lion, roaring, leaps onto The Vamp, knocking him to the ground. His upper body sprawling toward the safety of the grassy area where the lion cannot go, but still mostly in the lion’s territory, where he’ll die. The curved metal claws of its front paws dig into his chest and shoulder, dragging him toward the ground. His face twists into a grimace of pleasure, that’s right, hurts so good.
LION RAOWRR-RRRRR…
THE VAMP UNH…UUUNNNHHH…
PAGE 7 (3 PANELS)
PANEL 1
This panel is the top half of the page. A view of Thomas from behind, looking over the lion eating the vamp in the foreground, they should be out of focus to keep the carnage from distracting us from the set up of our final confrontation. Thomas stands in front of THE BRUTE; he crouches low, protecting the baby, which he has tucked under his armpit again. His trident is held out in front of him, almost sideways, but with the tip angled ever so slightly towards his opponent.
The Brute is a massive wall of a human being. His accoutrements look much like Thomas’s, but in the opposite team’s colors. He holds a weighted net in his right hand; it hangs loosely at his side. In his left hand he wields a huge flail, he is raising it up above his head, and just starting to set it spinning.
LION …RRRRRR.
THE VAMP …UUNNHH.
PANEL 2
The bottom left corner panel. The brute has gotten the flail to spinning wildly above his head, and wears a big happy smile. He is clearly in his element. This is what he was born to do, and he’s good at it, and he enjoys it. He strikes out, lightening quick, with the net, entangling the tines of Thomas’s trident inexorably within its mesh.
(no dialogue)
PANEL 3
The bottom right quarter panel. The brute yanks the trident from Thomas’s grasp with ease, but judging by the fact that our main character is already reaching for the dagger in the holster on his leg, it should be obvious that he didn’t fight too hard to hold onto it, accepting the inevitability of losing that battle. Thomas looks worried, as well he should. He breathes heavily, he’s tired, and his remaining opponent is not only well rested, but a monster of a competitor to begin with.
ANNOYING ANNOUNCER(OFF) THIS DOESN’T LOOK GOOD FOR TRAINER.
ANNOUNCER-BOT(OFF) YOU HAVE A KNACK FOR STATING THE OBVIOUS.
PAGE 8 (4 PANELS)
PANEL 1
The top left quarter panel. Down at the other end of the field we can see Jésus crammed up against the spikes of the wall, covered in blood and gore. He has cracked one eye, and looks down at the VCI on his wrist. He presses the red button, and smiles a small smile, blood leaking from his mouth, just as it leaks from everywhere else.
JÉSUS(MUTTERS) GOOD LUCK, THOM…
PANEL 2
Top right quarter panel. A view encompassing the announcer’s booth, looking down at Thomas’s teams end of the field. We can see Jésus, but the main focus of the panel should be a pair of small missiles emerging from a panel, which has opened in the wall of the stadium on one side of Jésus’s body, which is bursting into flame, starting from his VCI.
ANNOYING ANNOUNCER HERE’S SOMETHING WE DON’T SEE EVERYDAY.
ANNOUNCER-BOT IT’S THE OFT OVERLOOKED SACRIFICE DEFENSE. I GUESS JÉSUS THOUGHT IT WOULD BE WORTH HIS LIFE TO EARN FREEDOM FOR HIS SONS.
JÉSUS YEARGGGH! AUGGGHHH! FUUUU….
PANEL 3
The bottom left quarter panel. Thomas takes a slash at The Brutes neck narrowly missing, but we can see a cut dripping blood down from his opponent’s forehead, so Thomas has obviously scored at least one hit while we were watching his teammate immolate himself. The brute looks unconcerned by this development, indeed he really seems to be in his element, enjoying another day’s work.
(no dialogue)
PANEL 4
The bottom right quarter panel. The Brute smashes his flail into Thomas’s wrist, knocking the blade out of his grasp, and breaking most of the bones in his hand. Our hero grimaces in pain, and his opponent smiles at him beatifically. Thomas hunches over a little, and tightens his grip on the baby in his arms, angling that side of his body away from The Brute.
SFX WHUMP! CRNCH-SNAP!
THOMAS ARGH! FUCK!
PAGE 9 (3 PANELS)
PANEL 1
This panel takes up the top half of the page. A view of Thomas’s face, from behind The Brute, over his shoulder. He raises his eyebrows; his eyes widen, his jaw drops, as though he’s just seen a ghost. The brute’s head is just beginning to spin around to look and see what’s coming up from behind him. In the very bottom of the panel, in the foreground we’re looking over, the out-of-focus form, of the pair of small guided missiles that are headed straight for The Brute.
THOMAS WHAT THE…
THE BRUTE HUH?
PANEL 2
The bottom left quarter panel. The missiles slam into The Brute, blowing him apart, spraying blood and squishy detritus all over the place, including over Thomas and the baby. Thomas is in shock, he can’t believe this is happening, and judging by the look on what’s left of The Brute’s face, neither can he.
THOMAS(MUTTERS) HOLY FUCKING SHIT!
PANEL 3
The bottom right quarter panel. Thomas leaps over the barbed wire fence that separates him from his goal. He is doing a sort of diving roll maneuver so that he is going over head first, and rolling over to look at the ‘camera’. He looks more weary than anything else, covered in blood, sweat, and dust. He’s obviously glad to have made it to his goal, but he is exhausted. The baby is looking around, smiling.
THOMAS THANKS JÉSUS.
PAGE 10 (3 PANELS)
PANEL 1
This panel takes up the upper half of the page. Thomas stands in the end zone, exhausted, but ecstatic. He stands next to the goal post his arms outstretched, holding the baby aloft. It has screwed up its face, and begun to cry again. Behind Thomas we can make out the three pits, and the spike encrusted wall of the stadium, and the screaming crowd of spectators, on their feet and cheering. Stamping their feet, and chanting. The three pits are shallow enough that we can see into them, or our view is from high enough that their contents are within our view. The one on the far left is filled with spinning buzz saws, the one in the center is filled with snakes, real and mechanical, and the one on the right is filled with acid or molten metal.
ANNOYING ANNOUNCER HE’S DONE IT!
ANNOUNCER-BOT THE TROJANS WIN THE SUPERBOWL! THE TROJANS WIN THE SUPERBOWL!
CROWD BUZZ SAWS! ZPG! SNAKE-PIT! MELT THE LITTLE BASTARD! ZPG! BUZZ SAW! CHOP HIM UP! KILL THAT FUCKER! ZPG!
BABY WAAAAAAAAA…
PANEL 2
The bottom left quarter panel. A close up of Thomas’s face. He holds up the baby, and looks at him, a wan smile on his face. The baby is still crying, and Thomas is ready for this all to be over.
THOMAS SORRY, KID, BUT ZERO POPOULATION GROWTH MEANS ZERO POPULATION GROWTH.
BABY …AAAAAA…
PANEL 3
The bottom right quarter panel. Thomas, still standing next to the goal post, tosses the baby, casually over his shoulder, and towards the pit filled with rapidly spinning buzz saws. He smiles, and the baby cries, and our story comes to its end.
BABY …AAAAAAA!
THE END
# # #
Submitted for the February writing challenge, “Baby.” This was written in response to the prompt, “It was several seconds before Thomas realized that the baby in the sky was headed straight for him.”
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