Chapter 3: NO SAFE DISTANCE
[FULL-PAGE OPENING PANEL]
Rain drips from the skeletal beams of a half-collapsed warehouse.
Windows are shattered, metal groans in the wind.
Inside, shadows crawl like living ink.
NARRATION (Kael):
Six hunters. Professional. Armed. Ready.
One city block. No witnesses. No mercy.
Me? I call this Tuesday.
[VERTICAL PANELS – HUNTERS ARRIVE]
— VICER leads, armored, calculating every step.
— LACE still limping, sniper rifle slung over her back.
— BONESAW twirling a cleaver, grinning.
— MERCY sprays poison into the air vents.
— NULL monitors cameras, tracking every movement.
— ASH reloads, itching for a clean kill.
VICER:
"Stick to the plan. Red Static dies tonight."
NARRATION (Kael):
Plans are cute.
[MEDIUM PANEL – KAEL POV]
Kael crouches behind crates, red helmet glistening with rain and blood.
He checks guns, then knives, then a tiny grenade taped to a wrench.
KAEL (to reader):
"Step one: be loud. Step two: make it memorable. Step three: survive."
[SMALL PANELS – SURVEILLANCE CAMERAS]
NULL's cameras sweep the warehouse.
Kael isn't there.
Kael is everywhere.
NARRATION (Kael):
They see nothing. Nothing sees me.
[ACTION PANEL – CHAOS ERUPTS]
Kael detonates a grenade.
Flames rip through metal beams.
Smoke, sparks, screams.
SFX:
KRA-KOOM!
— BONESAW leaps, swinging cleaver.
— VICER charges, unstoppable.
— MERCY tosses poison grenades.
— LACE fires from a high catwalk.
KAEL (thinking):
Yup. That's Tuesday.
[EXTREME CLOSE-UP PANEL]
Kael grins under the helmet.
Rain streaks like war paint.
Blood from previous fights drips onto his gloves.
KAEL (to reader):
"Rule one: never let them see you bleed.
Rule two: if they see it… make it theirs."
[SEQUENCE – JOHN WICK STYLE GUN-FU]
— Kael rolls behind crates, shoots VICER in the shoulder.
— VICER charges anyway.
— Kael flips over a beam, lands on BONESAW, breaking his arm.
— Fires a pistol with his left hand, taking out MERCY's ventilation shooter.
NARRATION (Kael):
Precision isn't a skill. It's survival.
[PANEL – LACE ON THE CATWALK]
She fires a sniper round.
Kael grabs a chain, swings midair, deflecting the bullet into the wall.
KAEL:
"Nice shot. Need lessons?"
[SMALL PANELS – CLOSE COMBAT]
— VICER slams Kael into a crate, cracking wood.
— Kael's head snaps up, thumb gouges VICER's eye.
— VICER stumbles, cursing, blood pouring.
KAEL (to reader):
Optional: always gouge an eye first. Increases dramatic effect.
[FULL-PAGE SPREAD – CARNAGE MODE]
Kael's movements become erratic, unpredictable.
He jumps, flips, spins—blending Deadpool-style chaos with Carnage-level ferocity.
He grabs BONESAW, swings him like a bat, shattering crates and sending sparks flying.
VICER lunges—Kael flips backward, embedding a knife into VICER's chest.
Blood sprays like fireworks.
NARRATION (Kael):
Beauty is pain. Pain is beauty. Chaos is fun.
[MID-PANEL – ASH AND NULL]
— ASH fires rapid rounds. Kael dodges each.
— NULL hacks into lights, plunging warehouse into darkness.
Kael stands in the shadows, smiling.
KAEL (to reader):
"Tip: darkness isn't your friend. It's mine."
[SUDDEN PANEL – MERCY ATTACKS]
Mercy throws a poisoned dart.
Kael catches it midair.
KAEL:
"Cute."
He slices her wrist with a knife, poisoning herself instead.
SFX:
HISSSSS
[EXTENDED FIGHT SEQUENCE – 10 PANELS]
— Kael leaps across beams, pistol blazing.
— VICER grabs him, swinging him into metal poles.
— Kael's body regenerates, dripping blood but moving faster than humanly possible.
— LACE screams as Kael swings a beam into her chest, sending her flying.
— BONESAW charges—Kael headbutts him into the ground.
NARRATION (Kael):
Pain is temporary. Regret lasts forever.
[CLOSE PANEL – KAEL STANDS ALONE]
Warehouse wrecked. Fire burns in corners.
Six hunters sent. Four down. One barely alive. One… somewhere.
Kael leans on a steel beam, guns holstered.
Helmet cracked. Blood everywhere.
KAEL (to reader):
"Rule three: always leave a mess. It's the polite thing to do."
[FINAL PANEL – FORESHADOWING]
A shadow moves above.
A figure watches Kael from the roof.
Unknown. Dangerous. Silent.
NARRATION (Kael):
And just when you think it's over…
It's never over.
[TEXT – END OF CHAPTER 3]
TO BE CONTINUED — CHAPTER 4: GHOSTS OF THE PAST