Mike Collins read an early version of this, when it was set in a generic US city. He encouraged me to write it somewhere I knew. He was absolutely bang on, of course. Much more alive once it was set in my home city.
Incidentally, I'll post this bit by bit. I have the first four parts done. That'll learn you.
20/06/16: Part Two is now on the end of this post.
03/07/16: Part Three is now added.
09/07/16: Part Four is now added.
01/08/16: Reference photos added.
03/08/16: Added story summary.
------------------------------------------------------------
THIS KILLER – Issue One
Script by Iain (Embra) Lowson
PAGE ONE
PANEL ONE
EXT: EDINBURGH SKYLINE FROM THE MEADOWS, EDINBURGH, WINTER, NIGHT
The view of the
darkened skyline takes in the Castle and
Arthur’s Seat. Iconic, it is
familiar to anyone who knows the city. The undulating
grassy mounds of the Meadows run down to meet the darkness. The streetlights struggle in the gloom of a
sleet-filled night, serving only to
accentuate the looming trees that flank
the paths. It’s a miserable, wet and
cold night.
DETECTIVE
(Caption) “Fuck’s
sake…”
PANEL TWO
EXT: BRUNTSFIELD
ROAD , EDINBURGH
The famous Georgian
architecture of Edinburgh
DETECTIVE
(Caption) “Embra*
in the winter, so what’d I expect? At least it’s no’ the Festival…”
NOTE (*Local
pronunciation of Edinburgh
PANEL THREE
EXT: MORNINGSIDE ROAD , EDINBURGH
The steep run of Morningside
Road
DETECTIVE
(Caption) “I
don’t usually do serial killers. No’ my kinda thing. But this one comes wi’ a
big tag on him, so I get to buy a whole
new thing.”
PANEL FOUR
EXT: SPRINGVALLEY
TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH
This is an odd little
place – part street, part alleyway. On
one side, a high wall, on the other a looming tenement. The street is cobbled, the front gardens meter wide fenced patches of weeds and roses. Trees fight their way over the high wall,
gazing down into the narrow street. Morningside Road is right beside it, but
the Terrace seems in a world of its own.
Someone is standing outside the building
looking up at it. They are hunched into their long coat, as though trying to duck the sleet.
DETECTIVE
(Caption) “Ah’ve
always wanted a new thing, so it made sense to make an exception. Just this once.”
PAGE TWO
PANEL ONE
EXT: TENEMENT FRONT, SPRINGVALLEY
TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH
Looking down from the
above her, the reader can see the DETECTIVE looking up, squinting into the sleet. She has a determined glint in her eye. Though
sans-fedora, the DETECTIVE does have the trench coat, buttoned up. Under it is a plain, black suit. If you could see it properly, you’d know she’s
wearing a white, wide collar shirt
with the top two buttons undone – no
cleavage. She has short, straight
dark hair cut into a bob that is longer at the front, curving up at the
back enough to reveal an inch or so of shaven hair at the back of her neck (not
that you can see that right now).
The DETECTIVE’s
shoes are black, sensible shoes – no
high heels for this dame. She’s leaning back slightly. The DETECTIVE has
a lean figure – strong but not
bulky, very Ziyi Zhang. Her face is
oval, with high cheekbones, a pointed chin and a delicate nose. Her mouth is
small but her lips are full. The DETECTIVE has thin, arching eyebrows. She’s
mostly Chinese, part Scottish, born in Edinburgh.
DETECTIVE
(Caption) “Just
for THIS KILLER.”
CAPTION Part
One
Script: Embra
Art:
Penan Dink
(Note: The words ‘THIS KILLER’ in the first caption
of this panel makes the title of the piece.)
PANEL TWO
EXT: TENEMENT
FRONT/SIDE, SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH
Hunched again against
the weather, the DETECTIVE is
looking at the side of the tenement building. Running along the side of the four storey building is a scaffolding – the roof is being
repaired and there’s some pointing being done to the old stonework. The side of the building just has small bathroom windows in it, but the
scaffolding goes around the back of the building too (though that can’t be seen
at the moment).
DETECTIVE
(Caption) “With
a wee bit of luck, that’ll go right around the back.”
PANEL THREE
EXT: TENEMENT
SIDE/BACK, SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH
The DETECTIVE is climbing the scaffolding
(three plank wide, cuplock scaff with the usual tape and old concrete decorating
it). At the back of the building, there are only two houses showing light – one
on the ground floor and one, quite dim, on the third floor up. The gardens at
the back are too dark to make out any detail, and there are no street lights. Artistic
license means the DETECTIVE can just
be seen as she makes her climb.
DETECTIVE
(Caption) “Only,
I don’t fancy goin’ in the front this time. This basturt
chops folk up!”
PAGE THREE
PANEL ONE
EXT: SCAFFOLDING,
TENEMENT BACK, SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH
The DETECTIVE is squatting just beyond the
dim glow coming through a window. The window is just a little open – enough to
get a hand in, but that’s it. The DETECTIVE
has brought a collapsed police-issue baton out of her coat. It’s now open, so
you can see what she’s wearing underneath (see description Page Two, Panel
One). She’s looking wary and determined as well as wet. She’s eying the window,
getting ready.
Water is dripping and
running through the slats of the scaffolding. The window is dirty, and there
are torn and grubby net curtains inside. It’s a sash window, wooden and maybe
even a little crumbly in the corners where glass meets wood. The paint is old
and peeling.
DETECTIVE
(Caption) “The
information I got better be right, or Ah’m goin’ to look a right numpty.”
PANEL TWO
EXT: SCAFFOLDING,
TENEMENT BACK, SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH
Small panel. The baton
clicks out, ready for use.
DETECTIVE
(Caption) “An’
some bugger’s goin’ to get a shock.”
SFX (baton) >SHEKK!<
PANEL THREE
EXT: SCAFFOLDING,
TENEMENT BACK, SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH
Small panel. The DETECTIVE’s hands find purchase under
the window frame, ready to lift it as quickly as possible.
DETECTIVE
(Caption) “Just
hope this thing shifts, and that Ah’m not…”
PANEL FOUR
INT: WINDOW, BACK
BEDROOM, TENEMENT FLAT, SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH
(Note: The next three panels could be three entirely separate
images, or one panel divided into three, or one panel.)
The DETECTIVE is framed by the window, still half in, half out. She’s looking
horrified.
DETECTIVE
(Caption) “…too
late!”
PANEL FIVE
INT: BACK BEDROOM,
TENEMENT FLAT, SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH
The KILLER, a tall, thin man in his
forties, dressed in a conservative suit and tie (Norman Bates, Accountant), is
about to bring a hatchet down on the head of his VICTIM. He is smiling warmly, much as a priest might do as he
delivers a benediction.
The room is pretty
sparse. The only furniture is the wooden kitchen chair the VICTIM is tied to. The floor is carpeted, but that’s over-egging
the threadbare thing on the floor. The walls are plain, wood-chip papered and
patchy where pictures and furniture have been removed – this was a smokers
house. A single, bare bulb illuminates the room, hanging down from the middle
of the ceiling. One door leads out, and there’s an old fireplace (closed off)
with some gas pipes sticking out where a fire might have been. An eight-inch
wide mantle tops the fireplace.
PANEL SIX
INT: BACK BEDROOM,
TENEMENT FLAT, SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH
The VICTIM is a statuesque (if currently slightly
dishevelled) blond woman in her mid to late twenties. A bit of a B-movie vamp,
but in a modern and expensive dress. What is out of whack with her is the look
on her face. There’s no fear there, only utter hate. The look is enough to
freeze the blood.
PANEL SEVEN
INT: BACK BEDROOM,
TENEMENT FLAT, SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH
Small panel. Blood
splatters up the wall.
SFX >CHOK!<
PAGE FOUR
PANEL ONE
INT: BACK BEDROOM,
TENEMENT FLAT, SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH
Seen from behind the
body of the dead VICTIM
(silhouetted). The DETECTIVE has
climbed fully into the room. She’s looking furious. The KILLER is frowning, but not in a nasty way, as he hears her for the
first time. The hatchet is still buried in the ruined head, the KILLER’s hand still holding it.
DETECTIVE NO!
Ya basturt!
PANEL TWO
INT: BACK BEDROOM,
TENEMENT FLAT, SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH
The KILLER has turned, hatchet in hand,
beatific and welcoming smile on his face, empty hand outstretched, palm up.
DETECTIVE (off) Put
that fuckin’ down! Now!
PANEL THREE
INT: BACK BEDROOM,
TENEMENT FLAT, SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH
The DETECTIVE has the baton in her right
hand. It’s held across her body at just below shoulder height, ready to strike.
She’s really angry.
DETECTIVE I’m
warnin’ you. I’ll drop you if you come any closer!
PANEL FOUR
INT: BACK BEDROOM,
TENEMENT FLAT, SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH
The KILLER lurches toward the DETECTIVE, arm outstretched. She looks
a little alarmed.
PANEL FIVE
INT: BACK BEDROOM,
TENEMENT FLAT, SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH
The DETECTIVE lets fly, battering the KILLER across the side of his head –
hard enough to knock him off to the side. His eyes close with the pain.
SFX >KRAK!<
PANEL SIX
INT: BACK BEDROOM,
TENEMENT FLAT, SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH
The KILLER strikes his head on the
fireplace mantle. It’s a mortal blow. His eyes are open in shock.
SFX >KRUNCH!<
PAGE FIVE
PANEL ONE
INT: BACK BEDROOM,
TENEMENT FLAT, SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH
The DETECTIVE stands in the middle of the
room with the two bodies. She is totally dejected, head hanging.
DETECTIVE …oh
pish…
DETECTIVE I
am so not getting paid…
PANEL TWO
INT: BACK BEDROOM,
TENEMENT FLAT, SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH
The VICTIM’s
body, still tied to the chair, twitches
very slightly. Her head is a bloody
ruin, shattered and broken. The VICTIM has slumped into her bonds, head
tipped forward to ooze and drip gore onto the floor from the exposed insides.
There can be no doubt that she is dead – no miracle survival here. Also,
is that an odd, sick light faintly
visible in the corpse?
SFX (body) …scetshhh…
PANEL THREE
INT: BACK BEDROOM,
TENEMENT FLAT, SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH
The DETECTIVE
is turning, her baton beginning to
come back up. She is looking a little shocked
and puzzled, wondering where the new light is coming from. It’s coming from
the body, and there is already a faint shadow of the DETECTIVE on the
back wall.
DETECTIVE Huh…?
PANEL FOUR
INT: BACK BEDROOM,
TENEMENT FLAT, SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH
In a similar view to
Page Four Panel One, we see the view of the DETECTIVE from behind the VICTIM.
Having been slumped, the body is now sitting bolt upright. In silhouette (with
maybe a little detail) we see something is beginning to part crawl, part ooze,
part claw its way out through the wound in the VICTIM’s head.
Still in the middle of
the room, looking disgusted, confused and scared all at once, the DETECTIVE is drawing back.
DETECTIVE …fucks
sake…?!
DAEMON SPIRIT hhhssssshhkkaaaaahh…!
CAPTION Next
Issue: Payment In Kind
-----------------------------------------------
THIS KILLER - Issue Two
Script by Iain (Embra) Lowson
PAGE ONE
PANEL ONE
EXT: SCAFFOLDING, TENEMENT BACK,
SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH, WINTER, NIGHT
A clump of pigeons is roosting on the scaffolding outside the apartment from the last issue. One of them stirs, looking up. This
links with Issue One, Page Three, Panel One. The pigeon is watching The Detective getting ready to enter the flat
through the window.
PANEL TWO
EXT: SCAFFOLDING, TENEMENT BACK,
SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH, WINTER, NIGHT
A couple of the other pigeons are stirring now, as The Detective's voice comes through the
window.
DETECTIVE (off) Ya basturt!
DETECTIVE (off) Put that fuckin' down! Now!
PANEL THREE
EXT: SCAFFOLDING, TENEMENT BACK,
SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH, WINTER, NIGHT
All
of the pigeons are awake now, and one has hopped down to the wooden planks.
SFX (off) >chok<
SFX (off) >krunch<
DETECTIVE (off) …pish… I am so not getting paid.
PANEL FOUR
EXT: SCAFFOLDING, TENEMENT BACK,
SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH, WINTER, NIGHT
The
pigeon on its own on the planking is illuminated by a sickly light. It looks a little panicked, wings flaring.
DETECTIVE (off) Huh?...
DETECTIVE (off) …ohferfuckssake…
PAGE TWO
PAGE TWO
PANEL ONE
INT: BACK BEDROOM, TENEMENT
FLAT, SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH, WINTER, NIGHT
Largest panel on page.
Writhing from the splitting corpse of the WOMAN, a DAEMON SPIRIT is emerging, lighting up the room. It is opaque but full of malevolence - the look on
its face is the same one the WOMAN
had before she was dispatched. This is not
a ghost, but the living essence of an
evil entity. Imagine a combination
of nervous system and blood vessels writhing together, barely contained in
gooey something.
The DETECTIVE is falling back,
looking away, shielding her eyes from the glare. Her baton
falls from her hand.
DAEMON SPIRIT HSSSKHHAAAAASSSSHHHH!
PANEL TWO
INT: BACK BEDROOM, TENEMENT
FLAT, SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH, WINTER, NIGHT
Long panel at bottom of
page.
The DAEMON SPIRIT flies through
the window of the apartment and away, shattering
the window as it passes. The pigeons
scatter. One, the one that had gone out on its own, is touched and destroyed by the daemon as
it passes.
SFX (window) >skesshhh!<
PAGE THREE
PAGE THREE
PANEL ONE
INT: BACK BEDROOM, TENEMENT
FLAT, SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH, WINTER, NIGHT
The DETECTIVE is sitting
awkwardly on the floor, looking a
little stupid with her mouth hanging open. Her baton is on the floor just in front of her.
DETECTIVE …what the hell was…?
KILLER (off) It was a… >cof<… a daemon spirit.
PANEL TWO
INT: BACK BEDROOM, TENEMENT
FLAT, SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH, WINTER, NIGHT
Seen from behind and
slightly above the DETECTIVE. She is
reaching for her baton. The KILLER is smiling with bloodied lips.
He's slumped awkwardly against the
fireplace. Blood trickles from his nose, and the side of his head where he took the blow when he hit the
fireplace mantle is matted with blood.
The viewer should immediately wonder why this person is still alive.
DETECTIVE A what?!
KILLER You stopped me
before I… >cof<
PANEL THREE
INT: BACK BEDROOM, TENEMENT
FLAT, SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH, WINTER, NIGHT
The DETECTIVE has come over to the KILLER
and is hunkered down, sitting on her
heels with her knees splayed out. Her baton
is resting nonchalantly on one knee.
DETECTIVE A daemon?! ou think Ah'm a blue nose or…
KILLER >cof!cof!<…you stopped me. I was…
PANEL FOUR
INT: BACK BEDROOM, TENEMENT
FLAT, SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH, WINTER, NIGHT
The DETECTIVE has leaned right
in while pointing in the direction of the corpse of the WOMAN.
She's angry and scared. The KILLER
is smiling sadly.
DETECTIVE What?! You were goin' to kill that… thing like you did her?
KILLER …no…
PANEL FIVE
INT: BACK BEDROOM, TENEMENT
FLAT, SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH, WINTER, NIGHT
The KILLER is looking over at the WOMAN.
The chair has fallen over, body and
all. It's a pathetic sight. The head wound on the KILLER can be seen better in this view - again, why is he still
alive?!
KILLER …she was
never… alive…
PAGE FOUR
PANEL ONE
INT: BACK BEDROOM, TENEMENT
FLAT, SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH, WINTER, NIGHT
Grabbing the KILLER's shirt with her free hand, the DETECTIVE pulls him closer, her baton raised threateningly. The KILLER is smiling still, his hand
raised as though to stroke the DETECTIVE's
face.
DETECTIVE That's a load a' pish! Start making sense, pal! Who are you?!
KILLER …I… I am what
you will be…
PANEL TWO
INT: BACK BEDROOM, TENEMENT
FLAT, SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH, WINTER, NIGHT
Similar panel to last. The
sadly smiling KILLER's raised hand
is glowing. The DETECTIVE is looking at it
in shock, but can't move quickly enough to do anything.
KILLER …a killer!
PANEL THREE
INT: BACK BEDROOM, TENEMENT
FLAT, SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH, WINTER, NIGHT
Similar panel to last two. The
KILLER now has the DETECTIVE's head between his two
glowing hands. His eyes are tightly
closed, his face pained. The DETECTIVE
is screaming energy, the same living light that is flooding from her eyes. The SFX here links this panel to the next.
SFX (energy) ZZZZZSSSSRRRRAAAAAAKKKKKKK!
PANEL FOUR
INT: BACK BEDROOM, TENEMENT
FLAT, SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH, WINTER, NIGHT
Largest panel on page.
The DETECTIVE is thrown back,
away from the now dead KILLER. Energy still surrounds her.
She is limp, out cold. Her hand reflexively
clutches the baton. The light bulb
in the room blows out.
SFX (bulb) >sksssh<
PAGE FIVE
PANEL ONE
EXT: SCAFFOLDING, TENEMENT BACK,
SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH, WINTER, NIGHT
The pigeon that had ventured down to the scaffolding planks is dead, its body twisted, broken and already decaying. Window glass is scattered
about it.
PANEL TWO
INT: BACK BEDROOM, TENEMENT
FLAT, SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH, WINTER, NIGHT
In the darkened room, the body of the WOMAN
can be barely seen in the shadows. Probably just as well - it's a mess. Fluids pool on the floor around it.
PANEL THREE
INT: BACK BEDROOM, TENEMENT
FLAT, SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH, WINTER, NIGHT
The KILLER has fallen onto
one side, still basically against the fireplace. A dark stain is spreading from his head. He is better lit, but only just.
PANEL FOUR
INT: BACK BEDROOM, TENEMENT
FLAT, SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH, WINTER, NIGHT
The DETECTIVE is sprawled on the
floor, her baton a little bit
away from her hand, close to a bit of window
glass. The energy has gone now. Dim light from the window falls across her.
PANEL FIVE
INT: BACK BEDROOM, TENEMENT
FLAT, SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH, WINTER, NIGHT
The DETECTIVE's baton is
lying on the floor, a piece of broken
window glass near it. The faint light from the window illuminates the glass but not the
weapon.
PANEL SIX
INT: BACK BEDROOM, TENEMENT
FLAT, SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH, WINTER, NIGHT
Same
basic view as last panel.
The light has grown a little brighter
now, and is illuminating half of the baton.
PANEL SEVEN
INT: BACK BEDROOM, TENEMENT
FLAT, SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNINGSIDE, EDINBURGH, WINTER, NIGHT
Same
basic view as last panel.
The light is even brighter,
and even further across the floor. The baton
is gone, the glass still there. The edge of a wet footprint has taken the place of the weapon.
CAPTION Next Issue: The Client
-------------------------------------------------
THIS KILLER - Issue Three
Script by Iain (Embra) Lowson
PAGE ONE
PANEL ONE
INT: SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE,
TENEMENT BLOCK STAIRWELL, MORNING, WINTER
A slightly tilted, fuzzy view
from a wheelchair of a PARAMEDIC walking backwards down a
stairwell. A POLICEMAN is standing back out of the way. He's carrying 'POLICE line - do not cross'
tape and a pocketknife. Blanketed knees can be seen - the DETECTIVE's
PARAMEDIC (off) …tch yourself
in there. It's fuckin' sli…
CAPTION THIS
KILLER
CAPTION Part Three
Script: Embra
Art: Penan
Dink
PANEL TWO
INT: SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE,
TENEMENT BLOCK STAIRWELL, MORNING, WINTER
A slightly less fuzzy, but
still tilted view of the basically clean
entry hallway of the apartment block. There are two doors bar the closed
main door. There's a letterbox in each door. A bored POLICEMAN
is posting something through
one, but is looking at the DETECTIVE
being wheeled past without any real interest. Beside him is a LITTLE OLD LADY
still in her dressing gown and 'baffies'
(slippers) who is berating the officer.
OLD LADY …ever here. Always said you can't trust th…
PANEL THREE
EXT: SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE,
STREET OUTSIDE TENEMENT BLOCK, MORNING, WINTER
The view is no longer fuzzy or
tilted.
General details - In the street,
the night of rain has severely depleted the piles of snow, carving them into
strange, sharp sculptures. The rain has
gone for now, but the dampness is all-pervasive. Cold air is punctuated with puffs of breath
from the police, the few on-lookers and a couple of press. A cordon has been thrown up, but no-one seems
particularly keen to threaten it.
Everyone has hands in pockets, or under arms, or whatever. The cold and damp has robbed everyone of
their enthusiasm for their usual murder scene roles.
An ARMED RESPONSE TEAM is packing up, their presence redundant. An STV
NEWS TEAM is filming their SMART-SUITED
FEMALE REPORTER, whose warm and non-photogenic coat is being held ready out
of shot for when she finishes. POLICE are standing around chatting,
while SOC guys in their white body
suits and masks are ferrying equipment into the apartment block. There are a couple of ambulances, one of
which has its back doors open. The
figure of LANCING is visible
standing there, waiting (description in next panel). The PARAMEDICs
from the closed up ambulance are chatting to some POLICE. An estate car,
unmarked save for the blacked-out windows, speaks of the presence of the
coroner's office. There are three or
four police cars present, their lights still flashing in the pale morning sun.
No one is looking in the direction of the DETECTIVE as she is wheeled out, unseen to the reader as this is
her POV. The PARAMEDIC from Panel One is back, walking backwards down the
path. The blanketed knees are also back.
REPORTER …re as yet unconfirmed. Back to y…
PANEL FOUR
EXT: SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE,
STREET OUTSIDE TENEMENT BLOCK, MORNING, WINTER
The DETECTIVE is being
pushed through the tangle of people and
cars and towards the open ambulance. LANCING can now be seen
clearly. He's pouring black coffee from a steaming flask, studying the task at
hand. LANCING is a short man in
his mid fifties. Not too fat, not too thin, the
experienced detective is dressed smartly,
wrapped in a black woollen coat. He has fingerless gloves, but no hat. He wears
a tie, but a warm, plain woollen Hibs
football scarf that is neatly tucked into his coat hides it. LANCING's
distinguishing feature is his very Roman
nose. It makes him look like a bird
of prey. Currently, LANCING is smiling at the coffee.
LANCING Just leave her wi' me, lads.
PAGE TWO
PANEL ONE
EXT: EXT: SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, STREET OUTSIDE TENEMENT
BLOCK, MORNING, WINTER
The DETECTIVE, still in the
wheelchair and wrapped in the blanket, is accepting the coffee LANCING is offering. Her expression is neutral,
her hair dishevelled. Two PARAMEDICs are looking a little sheepish, unsure what to do next. LANCING
is watching the DETECTIVE with a
look of paternal care.
PARAMEDIC We need to look
her over…
LANCING In a wee minute. Go an' get yourselves… somethin'.
PANEL TWO
EXT: EXT: SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, STREET OUTSIDE TENEMENT
BLOCK, MORNING, WINTER
The two PARAMEDICs are
walking towards their colleagues. The DETECTIVE is huddled down in her
blanket, sipping her coffee and staring into space. LANCING
is screwing the lid of his flask back on, but is watching the DETECTIVE.
LANCING You want tae tell me whit happened in
there?
DETECTIVE I was too late. Just.
PANEL THREE
EXT: SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, STREET
OUTSIDE TENEMENT BLOCK, MORNING, WINTER
LANCING is smiling and
shaking his head ruefully.
LANCING Nae points for second place, eh no?
PANEL FOUR
EXT: SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE,
STREET OUTSIDE TENEMENT BLOCK, MORNING, WINTER
The DETECTIVE is scowling at
her coffee.
DETECTIVE No cheque, that's for sure.
PANEL FIVE
EXT: SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE,
STREET OUTSIDE TENEMENT BLOCK, MORNING, WINTER
LANCING and the DETECTIVE are watching the same
something off by the POLICE lines.
LANCING So, what? He get the drop on you after he done the
dirty?
DETECTIVE Aye. Somethin' like that. Hey, is
that…?
PAGE THREE
PANEL ONE
EXT: SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE,
STREET OUTSIDE TENEMENT BLOCK, MORNING, WINTER
A big, black BMW has bullied
it's way through to the limit of the police line. The ONLOOKERS
who were barged out of the way are scowling
at it. The POLICE manning the line are looking
curious. One is speaking into the bulky radio mounted on his body arnour. A suited, huge BODYGUARD is already climbing out of the car.
LANCING (off) Aye, 'fraid
so. Your client.
DETECTIVE (off) …aw shite…
PANEL TWO
EXT: SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE,
STREET OUTSIDE TENEMENT BLOCK, MORNING, WINTER
The DETECTIVE is looking up
at LANCING with big eyes. LANCING is unimpressed.
DETECTIVE Could you run interference for me? Please?
LANCING No. That'll teach you tae call it in the next
time, eh no?
PANEL THREE
EXT: SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE,
STREET OUTSIDE TENEMENT BLOCK, MORNING, WINTER
The DETECTIVE is
sulking. LANCING is beckoning over the PARAMEDICS.
DETECTIVE …what a load
o'…
LANCING Ah will, however, dae ma job and talk tae the old basturt first…
PANEL FOUR
EXT: SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE,
STREET OUTSIDE TENEMENT BLOCK, MORNING, WINTER
Two BODYGUARDS are flanking
the CLIENT as he walks from the
car. A third BODYGUARD (the one who got out of the car first), is lifting the police barrier out of the
way. POLICEMEN are scowling, but not
moving to stop them.
The CLIENT is a man in his early sixties, tall and gaunt with short, dark grey hair. He is dressed in dark trousers and a shirt,
but no tie. On first impressions, his obvious but controlled grief is giving him immunity from the
cold through the numbness of having lost his daughter.
LANCING (off) …if Ah can.
PAGE FOUR
PANEL ONE
EXT: SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE,
STREET OUTSIDE TENEMENT BLOCK, MORNING, WINTER
From over his shoulder as he
moves through the melee outside the apartment block, we see LANCING has spotted the soberly dressed
CORONER'S PEOPLE bringing out the body
of the WOMAN in a white body bag on a trolley. The PRESS
have spotted it also - they're always more interested in the dead than the
living. Finally, the BODYGUARDS are leading the CLIENT towards the body.
LANCING Aw aerse! Great
timing lads…
PANEL TWO
EXT: SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE,
STREET OUTSIDE TENEMENT BLOCK, MORNING, WINTER
BODYGUARDS are facing down
the CORONER'S PEOPLE while the CLIENT stands before the white plastic
shrouded body.
CORONER GUY Wait a minute! You cannae just…!
PANEL THREE
EXT: SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE,
STREET OUTSIDE TENEMENT BLOCK, MORNING, WINTER
LANCING has
arrived. The CORONER'S PEOPLE are mollified, and the BODYGUARDS have relented. However, LANCING and the CLIENT have locked eyes. There's no aggression or resentment, just a
sizing-up.
LANCING 'S alright, lads. Ah've got it.
PANEL FOUR
EXT: SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE,
STREET OUTSIDE TENEMENT BLOCK, MORNING, WINTER
In the background, the POLICE
and the BODYGUARDS are dealing with
the press. LANCING
has his hands on the zipper of the body bag. His look is gentle. The CLIENT
looks determined.
LANCING Are you sure you want t' dae this here?
CLIENT I need
to be sure.
LANCING Fair enough.
PAGE FIVE
PANEL ONE
EXT: SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE,
STREET OUTSIDE TENEMENT BLOCK, MORNING, WINTER
Head and shoulders view of the CLIENT. He's still looking determined. He is looking
down slightly.
SFX (bag, off) zzzssshhippp
PANEL TWO
EXT: SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE,
STREET OUTSIDE TENEMENT BLOCK, MORNING, WINTER
Same view as Panel One.
The CLIENT reacts to the
sight of his daughter's body. His eyes
close, screwed up in pain. His mouth is a thin line. Suddenly he is vulnerable and old. We should feel for him.
PANEL THREE
EXT: SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE,
STREET OUTSIDE TENEMENT BLOCK, MORNING, WINTER
Same basic view as Panels One and Two.
The CLIENT has instantly regained his composure. He is
looking straight out of the panel (at LANCING
in fact).
CLIENT It is my daughter.
PANEL FOUR
EXT: SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, STREET
OUTSIDE TENEMENT BLOCK, MORNING, WINTER
LANCING is zipping up
the bag again. His condolences are
real. The CLIENT is looking away, more haughty and grim than before.
LANCING Ah'm sorry. We…
CLIENT What of her killer?
SFX (bag) zzzssshhippp
PANEL FIVE
EXT: SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE,
STREET OUTSIDE TENEMENT BLOCK, MORNING, WINTER
LANCING is pointing off toward the ambulance where
the DETECTIVE is being fussed over.
LANCING Your hired help took care o' him.
PANEL SIX
EXT: SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE,
STREET OUTSIDE TENEMENT BLOCK, MORNING, WINTER
The CLIENT is motioning for
his BODYGUARDS. A thin,
cruel smile tugs at his lips, but his eyes are watery.
CLIENT Well, that is something at least. Take me
to her.
CAPTION Next Issue: Eye Of The Beholder
---------------------
THIS KILLER - Issue Four
Script by Iain (Embra) Lowson
PAGE ONE
PANEL ONE
EXT: SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE,
STREET OUTSIDE TENEMENT BLOCK, MORNING, WINTER
The DETECTIVE is starting to
get her strength and composure back
after the eventful night. The PARAMEDICS are smiling as they fuss about her. One of them is taking a blood pressure
armband off her. From her seat in the wheelchair and with the PARAMEDICS around her, the DETECTIVE did not have a clear view of LANCING
and the CLIENT as they looked at
the body, nor of their approach.
DETECTIVE No, leave it! It's just my colour.
PARAMEDIC Never heard that one before… not!
CAPTION THIS
KILLER
CAPTION Part Three
Script: Embra
Art: Penan
Dink
PANEL TWO
EXT: SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE,
STREET OUTSIDE TENEMENT BLOCK, MORNING, WINTER
The DETECTIVE is looking down as she rubs the back of
her neck, tired but happy. The viewpoint
is looking down on her.
DETECTIVE Aye, whatever. Everyone's a critic…
LANCING (off) Hey, lass…
PANEL THREE
EXT: SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE,
STREET OUTSIDE TENEMENT BLOCK, MORNING, WINTER
LANCING is jerking his thumb over his shoulder. His body is blocking the DETECTIVE's view of the CLIENT and his BODYGUARDS.
LANCING Your client would like a wee word.
PANEL FOUR
EXT: SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE,
STREET OUTSIDE TENEMENT BLOCK, MORNING, WINTER
One of the PARAMEDICS moves
to help the DETECTIVE stand up from
her wheelchair. The DETECTIVE is looking off to
one side as she stands, as though thinking of how to phrase what she's
going to say next.
PARAMEDIC Take it easy there…
DETECTIVE I'm sorry about your daughter,
sir. I was just…
PANEL FIVE
EXT: SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE,
STREET OUTSIDE TENEMENT BLOCK, MORNING, WINTER
Small panel.
Close up on the DETECTIVE's
panicked eyes.
DETECTIVE …too late…
PAGE TWO
PANEL ONE
EXT: SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE,
STREET OUTSIDE TENEMENT BLOCK, MORNING, WINTER
SPLASH PAGE.
LANCING has stepped back
to let the CLIENT move forward. The PARAMEDIC
has the DETECTIVE by her elbow, ready to help if she loses it. It's just as well he is there. The DETECTIVE
is frozen in her shocked reaction to
what she is seeing.
Surrounding and emanating from the CLIENT is a daemonic aura. He is at the centre of a web of evil energy. Around him, the BODYGUARDS have their own daemon
presences, twisting reality around
them.
The daemonic auras from the BODYGUARDS are reaching out to others around them, touching them, penetrating them. The faces
of those so touched seem less animated,
less alive. In fact, they are being
pacified, made more compliant to the will of the greater daemon that is the CLIENT.
The CLIENT is reaching forward with one hand towards
the DETECTIVE. A tendril of his aura is reaching beyond his hand, about to touch the DETECTIVE.
CLIENT I'd like to thank you, personally,...
PAGE THREE
PANEL ONE
EXT: SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE,
STREET OUTSIDE TENEMENT BLOCK, MORNING, WINTER
Small panel to the left.
The DETECTIVE looking
shocked and disgusted.
PANEL TWO
EXT: SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE,
STREET OUTSIDE TENEMENT BLOCK, MORNING, WINTER
Panel linking Panels One and Three.
The tendrils of the CLIENT's daemon aura touch the hand
of the DETECTIVE. The tendrils begin to decay.
CLIENT (off) ...for your…
PANEL THREE
EXT: SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE,
STREET OUTSIDE TENEMENT BLOCK, MORNING, WINTER
Small panel to the right.
The CLIENT looks surprised.
CLIENT …efforts…?
PANEL FOUR
EXT: SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE,
STREET OUTSIDE TENEMENT BLOCK, MORNING, WINTER
The DETECTIVE is fainting, falling back as the PARAMEDIC tries to catch her. The daemon
aura tendrils are recoiling,
though some are still crumbling to dust. The CLIENT
is looking coldly furious. LANCING
is looking shocked as the DETECTIVE falls.
DETECTIVE …uhhn…
PARAMEDIC Watch out! She's going.
PAGE FOUR
PANEL ONE
EXT: SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE,
STREET OUTSIDE TENEMENT BLOCK, MORNING, WINTER
The PARAMEDICS are lifting the unconscious form of the
DETECTIVE into the ambulance. LANCING
is watching them, obviously concerned. The CLIENT
is there also, his face impassive. The daemon
aura is gone.
PARAMEDIC I telt you her blood pressure was low…
LANCING Poor lass. She said he'd got the drop on her.
CLIENT Who
had?
PANEL TWO
EXT: SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE,
STREET OUTSIDE TENEMENT BLOCK, MORNING, WINTER
Seen from in front, LANCING
is still watching the ambulance. The CLIENT,
meanwhile, is watching him. However, one of the BODYGUARDS has come forward to just behind the CLIENT, and is reaching
into his jacket.
LANCING She said the killer got tae her. Must've been afore she got him.
CLIENT I see.
PANEL THREE
EXT: WINTER, ANYCITY USA 2004,
STREET IN FRONT OF APARTMENT BLOCK, MORNING
The CLIENT is reaching over his shoulder to receive a bulky
envelope from the BODYGUARD. The CLIENT
is looking, cold and deadly, in the direction of the ambulance.
CLIENT Poor thing.
PANEL FOUR
EXT: WINTER, ANYCITY USA 2004,
STREET IN FRONT OF APARTMENT BLOCK, MORNING
The CLIENT is offering the envelope to LANCING.
CLIENT Give her this when you see her, please. It is what I owe her for her services, as
well as a little bonus.
LANCING Uh…
Aye. Sure.
PANEL FIVE
EXT: WINTER, ANYCITY USA 2004,
STREET IN FRONT OF APARTMENT BLOCK, MORNING
The CLIENT is walking away,
flanked by his BODYGUARDS. He is full
of malicious intent.
CLIENT And tell her I'll see her again. When she's better.
PAGE FIVE
PANEL ONE
EXT: OUTPATIENTS ENTRANCE,
WESTERN GENERAL HOSPITAL, OUTSKIRTS OF EDINBURGH, WINTER, NIGHT
A taxi is pulling away
from the front of the hospital, a featureless
building that screams corporate nightmare more than it calls out care and
concern.
CAPTION "I didn't wait around."
PANEL TWO
INT: CITY BYPASS, NEAR LIBERTON,
INSIDE TAXI, WINTER, NIGHT
Seen from just in front of the TAXI
DRIVER, the DETECTIVE is huddled
in the shadows of the back of the cab.
CAPTION "Lancing came round with my
money. He couldn't see what it was, what
it really was, so I had him take it
to my bank. Told him some rubbish about
my rent being due."
PANEL THREE
INT: NEAR HERMITAGE, EDINBURGH,
WINTER, NIGHT
Closer in on the DETECTIVE,
illuminated by streetlights, looking haunted.
CAPTION "I don't know what the fuck they are, but Lancing isnae one of
them. Mind you, I'm no sure what I am anymore. I'm no sure of anything."
PANEL FOUR
INT: MORNINGSIDE ROAD, WINTER,
NIGHT
Close in on the DETECTIVE's
face. She's looking more determined now.
CAPTION "Well, that's not entirely
true."
PANEL FIVE
EXT: SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE,
STREET OUTSIDE TENEMENT BLOCK, NIGHT, WINTER
The taxi has pulled up in
a familiar street, right beside the DETECTIVE's car. The DETECTIVE
is standing, passing cash in to the TAXI DRIVER. All the time, though, she's looking over at the building.
CAPTION "I'm sure I need answers."
CAPTION "And I know where to start looking."
PAGE SIX
PANEL ONE
EXT: CUDDY LANE, OFF
SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNING, WINTER
The DETECTIVE can be seen walking into the tenement block. The view
is from the end of Cuddy Lane, and a little way off.
Two of the CLIENT's BODYGUARDS are watching, their daemon auras
flickering and oozing around them. They
are minor daemons.
BODYGUARD #1 Do we go in?
BODYGUARD #2 Fuck no! This isn't our score to settle.
PANEL TWO
EXT: CUDDY LANE, OFF
SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNING, WINTER
The BODYGUARDS have turned
to look at something behind them.
BODYGUARD #2 Are you ready?
DAEMON SPIRIT (off) Yesssssss…
BODYGUARD #1 No mistakes this
time.
PANEL THREE
EXT: CUDDY LANE, OFF
SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNING, WINTER
The DAEMON SPIRIT released
from the WOMAN is filling the
darkness of the alley. It is full of
hate and violence.
DAEMON SPIRIT There will be no mistakessss!
DAEMON SPIRIT There will be no essscape!
PANEL FOUR
EXT: CUDDY LANE, OFF
SPRINGVALLEY TERRACE, MORNING, WINTER
Small panel.
Focusing on the DAEMON SPIRIT's
face.
DAEMON SPIRIT I will live again!
CAPTION Next Issue: Initiation
------------------------------------------
Reference Photos
While I figure out a decent summary of the rest of the story, I thought I'd post a few reference shots of the principle location used for the majority of the first four parts.
Cuddy Lane is just off Morningside Road in Edinburgh, one of the major arteries of the City of Edinburgh. It's typical of much of the city - four story tenements, small garden out front for the ground floor flats, communal drying green out back. Also typical of Edinburgh, it's all very leafy and green, cobbled and tangled, and old and a bit weird.
I love it!
I used to live just down the road from here, very literally. Down the lane, turn left, down the short street, turn right on to Springvalley Gardens, last ground floor corner flat on the right. It was a great house. Probably too small for us really. I loved all the gardens, with their walls and trees to climb. Neighbourhood privacy wasn't a thing. We kids just explored everywhere. What a pain we must've been.
Anyway, the place stuck with me. The weird organic nature of everything. Stone and root, brick and leaf, rusted metal and slightly rotting wood. It felt like a good place to set a story where old and new smoosh together.
There's a bunch more photos like this if anyone fancies giving the strip a go. Drop me a note in the comments and we can chat.
 |
The building where the killer and his hostage are at the start. In the story this is surrounded by scaffolding, allowing the Detective to work her way up and around and surprise the killer, albeit a little too late.
Turning on the spot and looking left, back down Cuddy Lane. At the end of the alley is Morningside Road. The little cottages here are very old indeed, pre-dating the tenements.
Turning right this time, looking along to the top end of Springvalley Terrace. At the end of the road...
... scaffolding! How about that for a helpful reference event.
 
A couple of shots looking back along Cuddy Lane towards where the Detective meets her destiny. This road would be very crowded when the ambulance and police cars arrived.
  
From about the middle of the Lane, looking left and right.
 
These two show the backs of the buildings nearby - not the one the Detective visited, but likely identical. Not so posh, and not finished in glowing sandstone.
Back gate needs some attention too.
--------------------------------------------------------
This
Killer - Plot Summary
From Issue 5 onwards:
As the Detective searches the dead Killer's flat for
something to help her understand what has happened to her, she is ambushed by
the Daemon spirit whose destruction she interrupted. Unable to use her abilities,
the Detective is beaten easily. The gloating spirit prepares to destroy the
Detective, and to absorb her essence.
The Daemon is interrupted and driven off by the
arrival of a second Killer, who rescues the Detective and hustles her away. The
Killer, a man called Thomas, promises to answer all of the Detective's
questions once they are safe.
Thomas takes the Detective to his home - a flat in
Abbeyhill, near the railway line and Arthur's Seat. There, he answers some of
her questions, hinting at the world the Detective is now part of. He also tries
to drug the Detective, intending to kill her and absorb her powers.
As the Detective reels from the effects of the drugs,
Thomas tells her that Daemons and Killers hunt each other as well as their opposites.
The Detective has been gifted with the powers of one of the oldest, strongest
of the Killers, and Thomas wants that power.
The Detective sees Thomas extrude glowing tendrils of
scintillating energy. She shrinks back, throwing out one hand. To her surprise, the tendrils are driven
back. Thomas snarls, the tendrils are replaced with talons. He attacks the
Detective.
Suddenly, the assault is over. Thomas is twisting and
sobbing and shrivelling, impaled on a spike of energy that has thrust out from
the Detective.
Thomas' energies begin to leach into the Detective. She
is revolted, but cannot stop the process. Thomas is left a shrunken shadow of
his former self - not dead, but of no use when it comes to answering questions.
The Detective is stunned. She flees in panic, shocked
at what she just did. Out in the street, she wanders, lost and scared. She
wanders into the park.
That late, there's hardly anyone there. The Detective
wanders to the old, ruined chapel on the crag overlooking Hollyrood Palace. She
sits, gazing out at the city, shivering in the cold.
The Detective takes a moment to just feel what has
happened, trying to find the power she manifested so physically. Slowly, she
experiments. She lets the energies inside her flicker and glow across her
hands. She forges the light into a
glove, into long and graceful nails, into a slender blade.
She is beginning to understand, but now she just wants
so be rid of it all. With Thomas gone, what's left for her? She's surrounded by
enemies, her friends can't see what she sees, and she's just all-but killed the
only other of her kind she's met.
Her 'meditations' are interrupted by the arrival of
the Client's men and ultimately by the daemon spirit. Though the Detective
tries to tell them she doesn't care about their world, she is forced to fight.
She lashes out at the approaching men, her Killer
energies slashing out in a messy arc. They are staggered and dazed. The daemon
spirit shrieks as its fabric is torn a little. The Detective presses her
advantage, focusing on the spirit.
She draws her energies into a crude, thin spike and
stabs the spirit. It withers much as the other Killer did, but the effect is
fatal to the spirit. The Detective feels the unclean energy rush into her. The
spirit's rage 'infects' her, and she launches a brutal attack on the two
'possessed' men.
One manages to scramble to safety and escape, tumbling
down the steep, rocky slope. The other is beaten down by the Detective. She
grabs a rock and pounds the man's skull to bloody shards. As the spirit within
seeks to flee, the Detective grabs it with glowing claws and tears it to
shreds.
The Detective is possessed now by the energies she has
absorbed. They take time to digest, it seems, and she shrieks, twists and dances
insanely. Exhausted, she flops down. In the half light, she sees the broken man
lying on the ground.
She chuckles, then laughs, then vomits. As the
retching fades, she calms, suddenly realising what she has done. Then, she
runs.
Up on the hill, a man finishes taking photos, hefting
the large night vision camera with ease. He climbs back into the Client's car.
The Detective is at home. It's a beautiful day
outside, cold and crisp. The events of the previous day or so are a blur. She
wanders her small flat (in the re-vamped Leith area), her dressing gown wrapped
around her. Was it all real? There are consoles and games cluttering up the
area about the TV in the lounge - has she been playing too many survival horror
games? Is this Resident Evil fallout?
The phone rings. The Detective moves to answer it,
spotting the clothes scattered in the hall. Harsh reality imposes itself again.
The clothes are blood spattered and mud stained. She timidly answers the phone.
It's Lancing. He quickly tells her to get out and to meet him in the pub at
He hangs up immediately. Baffled, the Detective looks
out of her window, seeing police cars and an ARU pull up. Frantically, she
grabs some clothes, a small bag and heads out the door.
The Detective goes up, heading for the roof space using
an old Victorian ladder. In the dark, she dresses quickly, hearing the police
guys pounding up the stairs. She then heads out onto the roof and along and
down into another building. From there, she's out the back way, narrowly
missing the police.
A while later, in a pub at South Queensferry under the
shadow of the Forth Road and Rail Bridges, she meets with Lancing. He shows her
the pictures the Client's lawyers delivered to the department. They show the
Detective murdering the Client's man, then behaving very oddly.
The next conversation is difficult. Lancing knows his
old friend is being set up, but the evidence is compelling - up to and
including the corpse in the local morgue with the smashed skull. What's going
on? The Detective says that she thinks she was
drugged with something during the attack, before the photos. Lancing seems
content with this, adding that whatever they used probably mixed with the crap
the hospital gave her.
Food arrives, part of their disguise as 'normal
people'. Normal?! Lancing concedes it's probably not a good disguise.
The Detective asks if Lancing can see anything
different about her. He can't, despite the fact that she's flaming with Killer
energies. Thinking quickly, she tells Lancing that the Client is trying to
frame her because her investigations touched on a link between the kidnapper and
the Client - a long history. She needs time to prove it.
Lancing says that may be difficult, but he'll feed her
what information he can. The photographs have provoked suspicion, but the
Client is well connected and seems to have a hold on some of the top brass. The
Detective smiles grimly - she can imagine.
The Detective stands to leave. Lancing tells her she's
paying. His help only goes so far. The Detective puts her hand on his shoulder
- he's joking, right? Lancing suddenly goes glassy eyed - of course he'll pay. He
stands, walking as in a dream, a trail of Killer energy snaking from his shoulder
to the Detective's hand. She is horrified, fleeing in tears at this new twist. Back
in the pub, Lancing collapses.
So, what next? The source of her problems is the
Client. The Detective realises that she has to deal with the issue head on, so
she heads for the Client's Edinburgh home.
The house is a large, detached affair in the Fettes
area, set back from the street and surrounded by a high wall. The Detective
spends some time scoping the place out. She can easily see the daemon-possessed
men patrolling the grounds, their auras sending out questing tendrils to feel
for intruders.
Strangely, the police watching the place haven't been
allowed beyond the wall - there are two bored officers sitting in a 'jammie
piece' outside the gate.
The Detective spends some time in the shadows,
watching. She smiles grimly. The hole in
the guards' patrol system is too huge to be accidental. They know she's coming.
What other choice does she have?
The Detective decides to be brazen about it. She moves
up to the police car, her Killer energies flickering...
In the house, the Client is watching a night vision
security camera. The Detective is crouching behind the police car. After a
little while, she stands and watches as the car speeds off, sirens wailing. The
Detective turns and walks to the gate.
She pauses, looking puzzled. Then, she turns and looks directly at the
camera.
The Client asks that she be escorted to him as quickly
as possible. She need only be alive, not undamaged.
A little while later, the Detective is brought before
the Client. She's a little battered and bruised, but otherwise alive. She put
up no resistance, apparently, and her Killer energies are flickering and low. The
Client gloats - what did she think she would achieve?
The Detective tells him she's saying nothing until the
hired twats let her go. They do, but they don't go far. The Detective says that
she just wants to be left alone. She has no interest in the war between Killers
and Daemons. She wants simply to get on with her life.
The Client apologises. This isn't possible. Even if
she retired from the field, eventually some Killer would take her energies and
the power would be used against him. Better to destroy it now while the chance
presents itself.
The Detective seems beaten. Why is it this way? Where
did the Killers and Daemons come from? The Client shrugs. He doesn't know, and
he is very old - three centuries old. He tells the Detective that the Daemon
essence is sentient, and is transferable to other human hosts. Those hosts
breed, and the children are consumed when they are 'blank', their consciences
destroyed by the daemonic possession.
Killer energy, the Client continues, has no identity
of its own. It is a blunt instrument, passed weapon-like down the ages. Where it
all started, none can tell. However, the Detective holds a vast reserve of that
energy, and it is as well it be disposed of before it does anyone else harm.
Are you the only Daemons, the Detective asks? There
are others, some even close to the power he holds. The Client is smug - he is the
most powerful of his kind. The Detective laughs - that's unlikely, as if the
best of the Daemon creatures is this stupid, then the war would have been over
years ago.
The Client is puzzled. His curiosity is satisfied when
he turns to see the blue flashing lights beyond the wall - the police have
arrived. He orders his men to kill the Detective, but she has already moved. Her
energies lash out, suddenly bright and deadly. The guards are driven back. The
Client is a little stunned, but he rallies.
The police ARU advance quickly, entering the grounds
and moving toward the house. The Detective is battling the Client, their energies
seemingly equally matched. The police enter, pushing past the Client's men,
with Lancing using his warrant to smother resistance.
The Detective suddenly fails under an assault from the
guards and the Client. The old man snatches up a blade, a letter opener, and
moves on the Detective. One of his men bursts in - the police are here! The
Client is too angry to listen. He attacks,
slashing the Detective. His men fall back, as his energies lash out at them.
The ARU arrives as the Client goes for the killing
blow. Their warning cry distracts the Client, and he turns. The Detective stabs
at him with her Killer energies, enraging him again. He makes to stab her with
his blade, and two shots ring out. The old man is slammed backwards.
Lancing runs to the Detective, calling out to her,
using her name - Rachel. She is weak. Is she ok?! No, she says, watching the
Client's body. She can see the spirit lurking behind the dead eyes of the old
man. It won't emerge yet. The Detective passes out, exhausted.
In the aftermath the Detective, Rachel, is cleared. She'd
had a photographer watching her enter the house by the gate, not breaking in. The
photos showing the Detective being attacked in the park were found. Everyone
seems to accept the Detective's story that she was somehow drugged in the
attack. The court hearing will likely be a formality, a statement that the
Detective agrees with a secret smile.
Lancing apologises again for the police taking so long
to arrive - the guys in the car got it into their heads that they'd seen her
running away and had pursued their non-existent quarry. The Detective says not
to be hard on them - everyone was wound pretty tight.
Lancing is full of near-paternal concern. What next? Back
to normal? The Detective says that things are unlikely to ever be normal again.
Lancing agrees - stuff like this can really change you. The Detective,
agreeing, looks haunted.
The last panel will show the Detective on the windy
hill of Arthur's Seat looking out over a wintry
The battle will continue.
|
No comments:
Post a Comment