Jason thompson

(NOTE: The second-to-last sentence is probably a little too long and silly/unimportant and could be cut for space reasons. Alternately, “YOU’LL PLAY TO THE BITTER END!” could be a separate balloon.)
PAGE 61
Panel 1. Big panel. In the extreme foreground, Theodore angrily gestures with his arm, indicating the heaps of all the gaming props he's used in this adventure so far -- the empty snake cage, speakers, air conditioner, smell synthesizer (set on "bloodbath"), candles, flashlights, kleig lights, dice, iPod, what appears to be jumper cables, other weird-looking machines, etc.

There’s another aspect to this panel as well, making it sort of a montage. On the bottom edge of the panel, the equipment fades out into a montage of fantasy scenes -- a green, pastoral fantasy landscape with forests, a dragon, a big fortress wall, knights, orclike humanoids in armor. This is the “imagination” part of what Theodore is talking about. (NOTE: This might be a little too much to put in one panel, but I think since there’s only three panels on this page it may be doable.)


THEODORE (hurt and mad):

DON'T YOU REALIZE I'M DOING THIS ALL FOR YOU? THE HOURS DESIGNING MY GAME WORLD! 160 POUNDS OF GEAR! ALL TO GET YOU TO USE YOUR STUPID IMAGINATION!
THEODORE (second balloon):

I JUST WANT TO MAKE UP SOMETHING THAT YOU'LL CARE ABOUT!
(NOTE: At some point later in the story, when I need to reiterate the character's craziness, I'd like to have Theodore deliver a version of David Bowie's line from Labyrinth: "Fear me, love me, do what I say, and I will be your slave!")




Panel 2. Shesh and Jen. Jen doesn't say anything, but her eyes widen a bit, perhaps with surprise or a bit of respect, as she recognizes the similarity of Theodore's speech to what she herself said on page 13. Meanwhile, Shesh yells right back at the offscreen Theodore. Emphasis lines everywhere.
SHESH:

IT'S JUST AN EGO TRIP! IT DOESN'T MATTER!
Panel 3. Closeup of Shesh as he continues to yell at Theodore. Emphasis lines.
SHESH (continued from the previous panel, so we know it's not Theodore):

IT'S JUST PRETEND! NO ONE CARES ABOUT YOUR WORLD!
PAGE 62
This page is a series of small flashback panels centered around a large profile drawing of Theodore, standing, looking angrily across the page to the right, as if facing Shesh. His body is the shape at the center of the page. In one hand he holds his 20-sided die necklace, as if touching it gives him courage; the other hand is a clenched fist.

Any empty margin space on the edge of the figure could be filled in by oldschool-style graph paper dungeon maps -- ask me if you need reference.

Since this is a flashback, the area between the panels is black, not white.
Panel 1. We see young Theodore, six years old, sitting in front of a big-screen TV (there’s a DVD rack nearby) as his offscreen babysitter holds out a 20-sided die towards him, getting his attention.
BABYSITTER (OS):

HEY, THEODORE…DO YOU WANT TO PLAY A GAME?
Panel 2. Six-year-old Theodore is gaming at the kitchen table with his tall teenage male babysitter as the G.M. There’s some dice and pencils and sheets of paper on the table, and a Game Master’s screen, of course. In Theodore's imagination, a giant minotaur is attacking him, and he stabs it with his sword. Theodore excitedly mimes swinging the sword as he plays. In the top half of the panel, the imaginary Theo, which looks just like Theo but is wearing a little kid’s imaginary version of armor and a sword, duels with the mighty axe-wielding minotaur. Some stalactites and cave background are also visible; some of the hanging stalagmites/stalactites cover up the face of Theodore’s babysitter.
BABYSITTER:

YOU DEAL THE MINOTAUR A GRIEVOUS BLOW! IT ECHOES THROUGH THE DUNGEON! "HROOARRGH!"
THEODORE:

I HIT IT AGAIN! LIKE THIS!
Panel 3. The babysitter is leaving, carrying his RPG book, his face still offscreen. Young Theodore clings to his pants leg, trying to get him to stay.
THEODORE:

NO! DON'T GO! I WANNA KEEP PLAYING!
BABYSITTER (OS):

I HAVE TO GO, THEODORE…I’M JUST YOUR BABYSITTER…YOUR PARENTS DON’T WANT ME TO COME HERE ANYMORE…
Panel 4. Closeup of a 20-sided die in the babysitter’s hand, with Theodore looking deep into it, his eyes wide. The die is glowing
BABYSITTER (OS):

BUT TAKE THIS! CREATE YOUR OWN WORLD…AND GIVE IT BACK TO ME WHEN YOU BECOME A GREAT GAME MASTER!
PAGE 63
This page is a series of small flashback panels centered around a large profile drawing of Shesh, facing to the left (a bit like a mirror image of page 62). His body is the shape at the center of the page. Whereas Theodore looked bitter and hostile and defensive, though, Shesh's sullenness is more depressed, more downbeat, as if he's burdened by the weight of his sad memories, as if his cynicism is overwhelming him. They both look pissed off, but Shesh looks a little more reflective.

Any empty margin space on the edge of the figure could be filled in by MMORPG action bars and menu bars, as seen in World of Warcraft, with a lot of little spell/weapon icons forming a sort of pattern.

Since this is a flashback, the area between the panels is black, not white.
Panel 1. Within the World of Warfare, Moggrathka -- looking pretty much like Grathkamog, and like the “Moggrathka” character shown on page 1, but with no scars -- approaches a party of other player-characters. They're all high-level and are kitted up with tons of redundant pieces of cool-looking weapons, armor, jewelry and shields.
SHESH/MOGGRATHKA:

HEY, GUYS! I'M THE MIGHTY MOGGRATHKA! CAN I JOIN YOUR…
MMORPGER (A) (ignoring Moggrathka):

ANYWAY, AS I WAS SAYING, MY CHARACTER ONLY HAS 650,000,000 GOLD SO…
MMORPGER (B) (scoffing at Moggrathka):

TALKING IN CHARACTER…WHAT A N00B! GTFO!
MMORPGER (C) (scoffing at Moggrathka):

COME BACK WHEN YOU'RE LEVEL 30!
Panel 2. Moggrathka, exhausted and covered in blood (he now has some of the scars on him which Grathkamog has), approaches the player-characters again, only to find they're even higher-level than before. This time they’re all riding mounts -- dragons, chimeras, Chocobo-like bird creatures -- and wearing even awesomer armor and weapons.
SHESH/MOGGRATHKA:

HEY! I'M LEVEL 30 NOW! IT TOOK ME TWO MONTHS OF KILLING SQUIRRELS BUT…
MMORPGER (C) (laughing, scoffing):

LEVEL 30?! MY CHARACTER'S LEVEL 60!
MMORPGER (B) (finding an excuse to leave):

OH, IT LOOKS LIKE THERE'S A FREE DUNGEON OVER THERE! CATCH YOU LATER, OKAY?
Panel 3. Slightly closer panel. It’s nighttime in a forest in the World of Warfare. Moggrathka, and a friendly player character who’s just a little higher-level than Moggrathka, are sitting in front of a campfire. Moggrathka is more scarred up than ever (not more than Grathkamog, though) and he has a depressed, burnt-out look as he gazes into the fire. The other PC, who’s sort of an elf-like long-haired bishonen guy with a sympathetic but cynical expression, has listened to Moggrathka’s problems and now shares his advice. In the background, behind the other PC, his mount -- an elephant-like creature -- is sleeping.
MMORPGER (D):

…THERE’S A MILLION GUYS LIKE THAT, KID. THAT’S JUST THE WAY IT IS IN THIS WORLD. YOU DON'T THINK THEY GOT TO LEVEL 100 BY THEMSELVES, DO YOU?
Panel 4. Closeup of Moggrathka from panel 4, covered with scars, like Grathkamog. As he listens to the MMORPGer, his heart hardens.
MMORPGER (D) (OS):

THEY HIRED PEOPLE TO PLAY FOR THEM. GOLD FARMERS…POWER LEVELERS!
PAGE 64
This page is a series of small flashback panels. Since it’s a flashback, the margin between the panels is black, not white.
Panel 1. Young Theodore is playing in the sandbox in his backyard. There’s some grass and bushes around in the background and sticking over the edge of the sandbox. He’s making a little castle or dungeon out of the dirt, using a little trowel, or perhaps just arranging his action figures in the sand as if they were Mages & Monsters miniatures -- his dinosaur toys, Godzillas, G.I. Joes, knights and other improvised action figures. The 20-sided die is now on a necklace around his neck. His expression is one of frustration, but also determination. He’s beginning his experimentation with role-playing, despite lacking the right supplies.
THOUGHT BALLOON:

I’LL DO IT! I’LL MAKE MY OWN WORLD…ALL BY MYSELF! THEN EVERYONE WILL RESPECT ME!
Panel 2. A few years older, Theodore is in junior high or high school now, and he has his trademark cap, in addition to the 20-sided die. He looks a little shorter and younger than the present day, however, and he’s just wearing some T-shirt. Eagerly, he approaches some of his fellow students, with his RPG books and some papers clutched to his chest, hoping they’ll play with him. The students he’s approaching shouldn’t look like jocks or fashionable kids; they should look normal or perhaps even nerdy, since even nerds think Mages & Monsters is too nerdy for them. In the background we can see some lockers.
THEODORE:

HEY, DO YOU WANT TO PLAY MAGES & MONSTERS?
PASSING TEENAGER (A):

SORRY, THEO! WE'VE GOT TO GO STAND IN LINE FOR THE NEW HARRY POTTER!
PASSING TEENAGER (B):

YEAH, THEO! DON'T BE SUCH A NERD!
Panel 3. Theodore sits alone at a table in the empty high school cafeteria, in the late afternoon. It’s a few years later, and now he looks exactly like he does in the present day, with the same turtleneck and so forth. Judging from the leafless trees outside, the season must be winter, and the mood is bleak and lonely. A hand-drawn sign saying “GAME CLUB” is taped to the table, and a small stack of RPG books, dice and pencils lies on the table, but nobody is there except Theo. He can’t find anybody to play with. He's alone, a little slumped in his chair. His previous cheerfulness has sunk away into depression.
THEODORE (THOUGHT BALLOON):

…………
Panel 4. Closeup of Theodore’s face from the previous panel. As he sits with his head resting on his arm, he reflects sadly on his loneliness, and thought balloons drift around.
THOUGHT BALLOON:

" BY MYSELF…"
THOUGHT BALLOON:

"MY OWN WORLD…"
Panel 5. Medium panel. Shesh sits inside the Chateau d'FTW internet café MMORPGing, exhausted and worn, with circles under his eyes. Stained cups of coffee and cans of soda and energy drinks are littered across the table. He’s sitting in a sleeping bag in the chair (we can only see part of the sleeping bag, since his upper body is uncovered). In the background other MMORPG players are boasting, and Shesh can hear them. A clock on the wall reads “3 A.M.”.
MMORPGER (D):

MY CHARACTER'S LEVEL 90!
MMORPGER (E):

THAT'S NOTHING! DID YOU HEAR ABOUT THE NEW PATCH! MY CHARACTER'S LEVEL 100!
Panel 6. Extreme closeup of Shesh’s eye; the edge of his hair is perhaps visible on the top of the panel. He has deep lines under his eyes and looks completely gloomy, similar to Theodore in panel 4. As Shesh nears unconsciousness, floating dialogue balloons drift around him, leading into the darkness on the edges of the page, the great darkness swallowing up Shesh.
FLOATING DIALOGUE BALLOON:

"MY CHARACTER…"
FLOATING DIALOGUE BALLOON:

"MY CHARACTER…"
FLOATING DIALOGUE BALLOON:

"MY CHARACTER…!"


PAGE 65
Panel 1. Huge closeup of Theodore, with speedlines. He's serious.
THEODORE:

"IT'S JUST PRETEND," HUH? "NO ONE CARES," HUH?
THEODORE (second linked balloon):

IT'S NOT IN MY CHARACTER NOT TO CARE ABOUT A GAME!
Panel 2. Big closeup of Shesh. Suddenly his eyes so wide and blank as some change is triggered within him! Speedlines all around!
FX:

CHOOM
Panel 3. Mike and Callie, who are next to Shesh, are illuminated in the rays of light which suddenly shine from his body (and/or emphasis lines -- whether it's literal or figurative light isn't a good question, although it leaves a real shadow, and Mike is shielding his eyes from it). Shesh himself is offscreen in this panel, as if he's too bright to look directly at.
FX (the sound of the transformation, or the light):

GWOOOOOOO
PAGES 66-67

These pages are a spread dominated by the third panel which crosses the crease.
Panel 1. Shesh's head leans backward in his seat, his neck and chin up, his eyes closed peacefully, his mouth slightly open, as if in some kind of trance. The glowing light emanates from him.
FX (mood-setting):

GWOOO
Panel 2. The camera zooms in slightly on Shesh as his head starts to slowly come forward. His eyes open slightly, looking newly sinister…his mouth begins to open in a crooked grin…and meanwhile, the light continues to emanate…
FX (essentially the continuation of the panel 1 FX)

OOOOO
Panel 3. Big spread shot of the gaming table, sort of a worm's eye view, showing the gaming equipment on the underside of the table, the players' legs under the table, as well as things happening topside. On the left side, page 66, Shesh suddenly rises to his full height (it's a matter of posture, he doesn't magically grow or anything) and looms over the gaming table. He laughs maniacally. His whole body language and facial expressions are so different that Mike and Jen are both awed. (Callie and Bill are mostly concealed by the G.M.'s screen and the angle of the table.) On the right side, page 67, Theodore has his mouth open in surprise, while his hair conceals his eyes. Speedlines of light shoot in all directions out from the transformed Shesh -- who now may be called Dark Shesh -- and pieces of paper are caught as if in the wind of the transformation and sent flying around.
FX (essentially the continuation of the panel 1-2 FX):

OOOOOOO
DARK SHESH:

RA HA HA HA!
DARK SHESH:

RA HA HA HA! I LIVE!!!
PAGE 68
Panels 1-4. Closeups of Jen, Theodore, Bill and Mike as they all react to this shocking change in Shesh's personality. Everyone looks startled, except for Bill, who is just reading a book as usual. Mike, the last in the line, is the most terrified of all.
MIKE (THOUGHT BALLOON):

OH NO!
Panel 5. Flashback. (Indicated by blackness in the areas between the panels, again.) Long shot. Shesh’s mother drives a car at unsafe speeds through the city streets. Mike is sitting in the back seat, guiding her. (Although it’s a wide-angle shot so you can’t really see the people inside the car).
SHESH'S MOM (OS, INSIDE THE CAR):

MIKE, WHICH WAY IS IT?!
MIKE (OS, INSIDE THE CAR):

TH-THERE! THAT'S THE CAFÉ!
Panel 6. Flashback. Long shot. Exterior of Chateau d'FTW Internet Café. Slight worm's eye view. Mike and Shesh's mom have parked and are running towards the entrance of the café. An ambulance also stands outside the café, with some stretchers leaning against the outside of the car. There's also a cop car. A few people are milling about the outside of the café, looking in through the windows. An ambulance driver is standing outside the ambulance talking into his cellphone or walkie-talkie, but Mike and Shesh's mom don't even notice him, they're so preoccupied.
AMBULANCE DRIVER:

CALLING HOSPITAL…WE HAVE OVER A DOZEN CASES OF SHOCK…WE NEED MORE PERSONNEL AND MORE STRETCHERS…
SHESH'S MOM:

SHESH!
Panel 7. Flashback. Medium shot. Slight worm's eye view from within the café. Shesh's mom, with Mike close behind her, rush through the doors of the Internet café. Speedlines.
SHESH'S MOM:

SHESH! ARE YOU OKAY?
PAGE 69
Panel 1. Flashback. Full-page (or spread) long shot. In the foreground, we see the back of Shesh's mom (and perhaps Mike if there's room), paused in shock. The internet café, with its rows of cheap tables lined with terminals and chairs, is littered with the unconscious bodies of every person who was playing an online game. Some are slumped in their chairs, backwards or face-forward, while many others just lie on the floor like casualties in a battle, perhaps drooling a little, their eyes cartoony blanks. They're all nerds, wearing T-shirts for Maelstrom Entertainment (the King of RPGs analogue for Blizzard Entertainment) and so on.

They've been blown away, sent into shock, by Shesh, who has (somehow) PKed all their characters and beaten them in all the games they were playing. Among the wreckage, in the center of the room, only one person remains conscious: Shesh, in his maniacally grinning "Dark Shesh" mode, who is typing and mouse-clicking furiously away (his hands are perhaps lined with speedlines). Ignoring Mike and his mom, he's laughing triumphantly and staring into the terminal as he MMORPGs away.
DARK SHESH:

RA HA HA HA! YOU FOOLS! I SLAY YOU ALL! I, THE MIGHTY MOGGRATHKA!
HALF-UNCONSCIOUS MMORPGER (in a wavery, weak word balloon):

M-MY LEVEL 90…
HALF-UNCONSCIOUS MMORPGER #2 (also delirious):

S…STATLOSS…
PAGE 70

(NOTE: Kaitlin, you suggested that there may not be enough room on this page, and you may be right. Victor, I’m going to leave it up to you... if you think there’s not enough room for everything on this page, please cut panel 1 and just start out with panel 2 (Mike looking freaked out).)
Panel 1. End of flashback. Looking at the grin of pure insane evil on Shesh's face, Mike falls over out of his chair, or crashes against the wall of the tent in an effort to get some distance.
FX:

KRASH
Panel 2. Closeup of Mike, sweating with fear and recognition -- he's seen this before. He looks up at Shesh, who is offscreen.
MIKE (this word balloon partially bleeds over into the montage on panel 3)

TH…THE MONTHS OF THERAPY…THE COURT ORDER…THE WIRELESS BAN…ALL USELESS!
Panel 3. Montage. We see a vaguely Shesh-like figure in a straitjacket in a padded cell, a hypodermic needle being readied with a drop of liquid on the tip, prescription drugs, electroshock equipment.
Panel 4. Gaming table, medium shot. Jen turns to Shesh and tries to figure out what's going on. Shesh is still crouched in a feral pose.
JEN:

SHESH…? WHAT'S GOING ON?
DARK SHESH:

WHO IS THIS "SHESH", AERFEN?!
Panel 5. Big, multi-part panel. The panel is dominated by a closeup of Shesh's face, but overlaid next to it -- like a ghost image -- is the face of Grathkamog from the game, with his scars and cicatrices and stitched-together leather cap. They both have the exact same maniacally grinning, overconfident expression. Tons of emphasis lines zoom in on their faces! In the side area of the panel is a montage showing Grathkamog's -- or perhaps Moggrathka's -- imaginary adventures. We see a lock being picked, gold coins, Grathkamog crawling through a cobwebby underground corridor, Grathkamog hitting another medieval fantasy character on the head with his hammer and mugging them as they hold a casket full of gold, Grathkamog gleefully running from an angry mob of players dragging a bunch of dead steeds by the neck, etc. It's all his evil exploits.
DARK SHESH:

MY NAME IS GRATHKAMOG! THE ROGUE OF AZIRIM…STALKER OF THE NIGHT…BREAKER OF SKULLS!


DARK SHESH (second balloon):

I DON'T KNOW ABOUT YOU, BUT I'M GOING TO SMASH THESE FREAKS TO PIECES!
PANEL 71
Panel 1. Closeup of Theodore, who takes offense.
THEODORE:

DON'T YOU TRY TO OUT-SHOUT ME! AND DON'T BE SO ROUGH WITH THE TABL--
Panel 2. Side shot of Shesh. In a blur of speedlines, his hand scoops a six-sided die (though we can't see it clearly in this shot) off the table and flings it across the table at Theodore, as if he was Grathkamog flinging one of his throwing caltrops!
FX:

WOOSH
Panel 3. Closeup of the side of Theodore's head. The six-sided die barely misses his ear and embeds itself in one of the tent poles behind him!
FX:

THUNK!
Panel 4. Game world, or rather, the real world from Grathkamog/Dark Shesh's point of view. In the foreground, standing behind a rock, is the little-girl monster from the game (this is how Dark Shesh sees Theodore at the moment). It's turned with bewilderment to look at the spiked caltrop which is embedded in the rock wall in the extreme foreground, having narrowly missed its head. In the background, past the rock (which substitutes for the gaming table), is Grathkamog, in his full gear (this is how Dark Shesh sees himself). In the far background are the surrounding horde of monsters.
DARK SHESH/GRATHKAMOG (mockingly):

SILENCE, LITTLE GIRL! I THOUGHT YOU WERE GOING TO KILL US ALL?!
Panel 5. Big buildup shot. Speedlines/emphasis lines streak across the table from Shesh to Theodore, zooming in on Theodore, who now takes on an expression of grim "oh yeah, if that's the way you want it, let's step outside then" determination. The embedded die is also visible in the background. No FX, just tons of speedlines.
Panel 6. Big panel. Closeup of Theodore as he accepts the challenge with a shout. This is serious! There's no backing down! In the foreground he raises up a handful of polyhedral dice in a dramatic hand gesture.
THEODORE:

BRING IT ON!!!
******* (TO BE CONTINUED…) *******