Chapter: Gloaming #4

Baxter and Carter come face-to-face with Bliss…but he’s not what they were expecting!

Transcript

Previously, Carter thought he saw Tommy Jordan through the diner window, and tears after him, Baxter in tow.

PAGE SIX:

PANEL ONE: A dilapidated old house on the edge of town. TOMMY JORDAN is entering the house. CARTER and BAXTER in hot pursuit.

CARTER:
Tommy! Tommy, wait!

PANEL TWO: CARTER and BAXTER enter the house.

NARR:
Of course it figures it’d have to be a creepy old house; but at this point, who the hell cares?

PANEL THREE splash panel: The interior of the house is old, decrepit; rotted. Picture a little old lady’s house with all her tchotchkes and bird cages, only she died and the place fell into ruin. CARTER and BAXTER just take it all in.

NARR:
Aaaaand it looks like someone died here and the whole house just up and died with them. Par for the course, I guess.

Transcript

Previously, Carter and Baxter chased Tommy Jordan into a creepy old house...

PAGE SEVEN

PANEL ONE: CARTER and BAXTER shiver with the creeps as they hear childish laughter.

NARR:
That’s when we heard it, coming from the basement. Laughter.

NARR2:
The laughter of a child.

PANEL TWO: Creeped out, BAXTER and CARTER instinctively draw closer together, eyeing the space around them.

BAXTER:
That just sets my hair on end.

CARTER:
Isn’t doing me any good, either.

PANEL THREE: CARTER and BAXTER descend down to the basement. CARTER is in the lead this time.

NARR:
Down to the basement we went - because hey, after seeing one serial voodoo killer’s lair, what’s one more?

PANEL FOUR: CARTER sees the silhouette of who he thinks is Tommy Jordan in the basement gloom.

NARR:
There was a kid there all right…

PANEL FIVE: Seen from behind, we see the back of BRANDON BLISS, and we see CARTER’s horrified reaction. Behind him, in shadows, looms BAXTER who is beginning to transform.

NARR:
...but not the one we expected.

Transcript

Previously, Carter and Baxter encounter a child in the basement of the creepy house.

PAGE EIGHT: The splash page reveal of the abomination that is BRANDON BLISS, the pieced-together boy. The background of this scene should have mirrors on the wall in different shapes and sizes, and voodoo shit everywhere. BRANDON has his hands behind his back, because he has a voodoo doll of CARTER that he’s hiding.

BLISS:
Hello, Mr. Carter. It’s a pleasure to meet you.

NARR:
What I’m seeing takes a minute to fully register, and then I realize that I’m looking at all those missing kids, sewn together into one body. There’s only one word to describe it.

NARR2:
Abomination.

Transcript

PANEL ONE: CARTER is rigid, in shock. BLISS smiles brightly- a hideous look - and is perfectly cheerful and well-mannered.

CARTER:
H-hi?

BLISS:
My name is Brandon. I’m a student here at Porter’s.

PANEL TWO: BLISS’s face looks...blissful… as he talks excitedly about the school re-opening.

BLISS:
Oh, I do hope the school will be re-opening soon!

CARTER (narr):
The voice doesn’t belong to a child. It’s the voice of a cold, dead throat come back to life.

PANEL THREE: BLISS extends a hand to shake CARTER’s. CARTER stares at it.

CARTER (narr):
And then it extends a hand.

BLISS:
Pleased to meet you!

PANEL FOUR: CARTER takes the hand; looking like ants are crawling all over his skin, obviously creeped out.

CARTER (narr):
The flesh is cold, but the grip is strong. I feel as if there are ants crawling up my arm. It’s all I can do not to scream.

CARTER:
Ah, er, pleased to meet you…?

PANEL FIVE: A Chucky-like transformation as the kid smiles evilly.

BLISS:
Brandon.

BLISS:
Brandon BLISS.

Transcript

PAGE TEN

PANEL ONE: CARTER is stunned, staring at BLISS, he is just babbling.

CARTER:
BLISS?? Oh god. You actually did it. Stitched together a body like some kind of real life voodoo doll.

PANEL TWO: BLISS holds up the doll to show that it is bound in black thread.

BLISS:
Funny you should mention that, Mr. Carter…

PANEL THREE: CARTER goes rigid, like the doll.

CARTER (narr)
And suddenly I couldn’t move. Whatever magic Bliss had, it was real and it was potent.

PANEL FOUR: And now the kid looks evil. Cruel. A mocking smile.

BLISS:
Oh come on, Douglas. You must be used to being someone’s puppet by now.

PANEL FIVE: BAXTER, now fully transformed, flexing his claws like he can’t wait to get at BLISS, speaks up:

BAXTER:
End of the line, Malcolm.

PANEL SIX: BLISS freaks out, a real temper tantrum!

BLISS:
“NO! Not Malcolm! Malcolm was useless! Malcolm was flawed and-and-and WRONG. I’m Brandon. BRANDON BLISS! And I’m the PERFECT BOY!”