While making their way through a maze of books, Kris and Susie are separated from the rest of the Fun Gang by a mysterious figure! Even more mysterious...it's the first other human Kris has come across in the Dark World! He seems to have his own ways of dealing with their environment...
Yaaay, since this won the last poll, the meeting Gerson scene is finally here! Gotta love the coolest old man!
This is a two-parter, the second part will be up tomorrow!
Alt text for these pages is under the read more:
Page 1
Panel 1 - A closeup on a full bookcase, shrouded in shadow.
Panel 2 - The bookcase scatters into flames, cinders and sparks as Susie blasts through it with a massive breath of fire from her mouth.
Panel 3 - A wide overhead shot of the whole fun gang: Kris, Ralsei, Susie, Noelle, Berdly, and Cattington. The group walks through a massive maze of bookshelves and tall stone pillars. Kris lays on Susie’s back as she takes the lead. More charred remains of books lie in their path…Susie has been burning a route through the bookshelves.
Panel 4 - Full shot of Catti as she flicks falling embers from her fur, and glares at Susie ahead. “Watch it,” she says, monotone.
Panel 5 - A shot of Susie from behind, with Kris still resting prone on her back. Susie turns her head to talk back to Catti: “Hey, this is faster than us actually *going* through this stupid maze, isn’t it?”
Panel 6 - Full shot of Berdly in the air above the group, looking bored and annoyed. “Well, *I’d* hardly call this a proper speedrun!” he says. “We’ve been wandering this level for *hours*!”
Page 2
Panel 1 - “See? Kris’s falling asleep!” he continues, offscreen. A low side view shows Susie walking past, with Kris still lying on her back. They fail to notice something else: an armored figure runs along the top of the bookcases close by them, holding some sort of large hammer.
Panel 2 - Full shot of Noelle as she turns to look up towards Berdly. “I think your talking might’ve tired them out, Berdly…” she suggests. In the foreground, the shadowy figure scales down the side of one of the pillars, just out of sight.
Panel 3 - Closeup on Kris as they lay on Susie’s back. They look exhausted, and say, “No, that…water elemental, in the pool…such an exhausting ordeal.”
Panel 4 - Wide shot as the Fun Gang continues on through the maze. Susie and Kris walk ahead of the group, while Catti carefully steps over some more charred bookcases. The shadowy figure can be seen just peeking out from a nearby pillar.
Panel 5 - Midshot on Ralsei, as he calls forward to Kris: “Regardless, Kris, it’s important that you stay alert!”
Panel 6 - Offscreen, he continues: “This maze is just as dangerous as the pool…”
As Susie’s tail swishes past, the shadowy figure can be seen behind the pillar, wielding the hammer.
Panel 7 - Offscreen, Ralsei continues: “There’s no telling what sorts of beings are lurking around here!” Meanwhile, the shot focuses on the hammer, an enormous square monstrosity with a large spike on one end. The hammer is swung up and over–
Page 3
Panel 1 - And then is swung right into the base of the pillar. The pointed end hits its mark, and the base of the pillar breaks with a loud CRACK!
Panel 2 - Wider shot as Susie and Kris turn to see the pillar fall right between them and the rest of the party. Noelle and Ralsei step back in sudden surprise. The falling pillar hits with a massive BOOM and kicks up dust into the air.
Panel 3 - Mid shot as Susie turns, her expression surprised and angry. Kris starts to sit up on her back. Susie yells, “HEY! What the–”
Panel 4 - Partially surrounded by dust, the shadowy figure brings the hammer up over their head–
Panel 5 - And then back down on the ground with an earth-shattering BOOM! The ground cracks and splits with the impact of the hit.
Panel 6 - Full shot of Susie and Kris. Trapped by the pillar on one side, the ground cracks beneath them, and bookcases fall on all sides, Susie tries to avoid the crumbling earth, but–
Panel 7 - She falls into the gap caused by the split, hanging on tight to a piece of ground as it falls with her. Kris tries to hang on to Susie as well as they both plummet.
Page 4
Panel 1 - Mid shot as the remaining beasts, Noelle, Berdly and Catti, look on in horror. “SUSIE!” Noelle cries out, rearing up. Offscreen, Ralsei yells “KRIS!”
Panel 2 - Wider shot as Ralsei reaches the edge of the pillar and peers over. The split in the earth has collapsed in on itself, partially filled in with rubble and toppled bookshelves. Dust still spreads out from the collapse.
Panel 3 - Noelle and Catti look over the pillar at the place where their friends vanished, both concerned. Ralsei cups his hands to his mouth and calls out: “KRIS!! Stay there! We’ll make our way down to you!”
Panel 4 - In a wide shot, Susie and Kris find themselves now underground, in another level of the library maze. More bookshelves spread out before them, but the path is now very dark. Susie stumbles out from the pile of dusty debris, with Kris still barely hanging on.
Panel 5 - Susie looks up, her expression angry. “What the hell happened?!” she yells. Meanwhile, Kris finally dismounts and touches down on the ground.
Panel 6 - In the far distance of the basement level of the maze, the shadowy figure runs between bookcases, just barely visible.
Panel 7 - Full shot of Kris as they look ahead, visibly concerned. They spotted that figure. “Something has brought us down here…”
Page 5
Panel 1 - Wide shot as Susie and Kris walk further into the maze. They come into a secluded area with books on all sides of them. Two torches flicker on either side of the room, providing a bit of illumination.
Panel 2 - The two stop in the room as the figure finally appears ahead of them, standing in the foreground. Susie and Kris both stand on guard.
Panel 3 - Mid shot as we finally see the figure in the light: someone in full, heavy armor from head to toe. The armor looks old and rusted, cobbled together from various pieces. Attached to their back is a more natural looking set of scales, forming what looks like a tortoise shell or insect carapace. The figure wields the massive hammer in one hand, and keeps the other hand on their hip. “GYA HA HAA! An astute observation, young one!”
Panel 4 - Closeup on Kris as they’re momentarily taken aback by the figure’s appearance–
Panel 5 - Before they regain their sense and act. They point towards the figure, and command Susie to ATTACK. Behind them, she snarls, at the ready.
Paner 6 - Full shot as Susie stomps forward, growling. Kris stands ready just behind her. Susie opens her jaws wide, prepared to devour the armored figure standing just in front of her–
Page 6
Panel 1 - Closeup on the armored figure, who then counters by giving the MERCY command.
Panel 2 - Full shot as Susie stops mid-charge, her jaws hovering just over the figure. She looks shocked and confused, frozen right in the middle of her attack. Kris looks at her shock as well.
Panel 3 - The armored figure then gives another command, one in green that hasn’t been seen before. He pulls a hand down in a gesture suggesting that Susie sit.
Panel 4 - On the command, Susie immediately flops down into a docile, sitting position, her huge tail curled up around her side. She looks visibly confused. Kris also stares up at her, dumbfounded.
Panel 5 - Closeup on Kris as they turn back to the armored figure, baffled and concerned. “You…you can command the beasts, too?!” they ask.
Panel 6 - Mid shot of the armored figure, looking completely nonplussed by the whole situation. “‘Course I can! Can talk to ‘em, too!”
Panel 7 - The figure then swings the enormous hammer over towards Kris in a chiding manner. Kris backs away from the enormous weapon, eyes wide. In the background, Susie remains sitting politely, still confused as to what happened. “And *you’re* in a big hurry to use that ‘attack’ command on folks, aren’tcha?” the armored figure declares.
Page 7
Panel 1 - Full shot as Kris points at the figure, their face full of bewilderment. “Who…what *are* you?” they ask.
In the foreground, the figure -Gerson Boom-, responds: “What’m I? A human, like you, young one!”
Panel 2 - Full shot as Gerson idly swings his hammer to the other hand, and uses the other to tap thoughtfully on his chin. “Well…least I was? Gya ha, been here so long, I might not be so much anymore!”
Panel 3 - Closer shot as Gerson leans in towards Susie, and asks her, “Miss Dragon, what do you think?” She cautiously sniffs at him, nostrils flaring.
Panel 4 - Susie looks up, eyes wide in surprise. “Woah…I *do* smell human soul!” she says. “But uh…not sure on the rest…”
Panel 5 - Wider shot as Gerson slings the hammer over his shoulder nonchalantly. Susie continues to sit quietly, while Kris remains staring at him. “Well, that answers that!” Gerson says. “Mm, yes, what I thought, what I thought…”
Panel 6 - Closer shot on Kris, who looks anything but nonchalant. They hold their head in one hand, trying to parse this information. “Wait…you’re *human*? How then, can you…” they say, mostly to themself. “Does a demon also own your soul? Is that why you are…like this?”
Page 8
Panel 1 - Closeup on Gerson as he leans forward. “Demon? No, young one, I taught *myself* how to speak the beasts’ language and commands.”
Panel 2 - Wider shot from above as Gerson gestures to the rows and rows of enormous tomes that surround the three of them. “You think all these books around here are just to look nice? Your demon price ain’t got a monopoly on forbidden knowledge!”
Panel 3 - Closeup on Kris, who still looks a little fraught, not sure how they feel meeting another human. “I don’t understand…how are you *here*? I haven’t met any other humans here…”
Panel 4 - Closeup on Gerson as he faces towards Kris, still gripping the hammer. “That’s right, that’s right. Our kind don’t last long in this place, do we?”
Panel 5 - In a flashback panel, Gerson describes some of what happened with him. “I brought myself here! Just the right spells, incantations, bit of bad luck, and you can travel to the Dark World on your own.” In one image, a human Gerson sits at his desk in front of a roaring fire, surrounded by books and papers. He wears much of the same outfit as he does in canon, and his right eye is still squeezed shut. He writes something unknown on one of his papers. “I used to be a scholar and a writer, y’know. But well…long ago, I heard a lot of bad rumors circulating around my town. Something’ about calling demons, and sacrifices.” In another flashback image, Gerson walks through town, while a group of silhouetted humans whisper to each other in the foreground. Gerson looks at them with suspicion.
Page 9
Panel 1 - Another series of images in flashback. In the first part, Gerson falls through darkness, papers and stray flowers floating past him in his fall. In another one, a tiny human Gerson flees from a cadre of Dark World denizens: silhouetted figures that include eldritch Guei, Organikks, Balthazards, Wafers, Cuptains, and a massive, moving tower. In the third image, by the light of a small fire, Gerson works on putting his armor together. Surrounded by pieces of discarded armor and beast shells, he hammers them into shame. “Decided I needed to investigate these dark legends myself, see if something could be learned from ‘em before folks did something they really regretted! Got myself here, all right! Quickly learned that this place is both real and very dangerous to humans…beasts, demons, gods and their minions, all after a human soul! Set to work crafting this here armor to protect myself from ‘em all.”
Panel 2 - Back in the present, Gerson flexes his arm, showing off the armor’s craftsmanship. It’s old, but still works. “Think it might’ve worked a little *too* well…but, better’n the alternative! Gya ha haa!”
Panel 3 - Closeup on Kris as they look away, their expression thoughtful and upset. They didn’t have nearly so much personal choice in their coming here.
Panel 4 - Mid shot as Gerson, in the foreground, reaches a hand towards Kris. Kris stares back, with Susie looking towards them both. “Well, what about *you*, young one? How’d you end up here?” Gerson asks Kris.
I'm surprised Ramb isn't the subject of more * it's like he's in some king of... snowgrave-type humor, considering the way he ham-handedly references Secret Boss stuff
Had my usual dream/nightmare of working at Target (I have literally never worked there but my subconscious insists it); the panic of not knowing the products, their location, any of the protocol, what to do, etc.
But then suddenly the cast of the amazing digital circus showed up to work and Kinger said "hello sir or madam may I interest you in a shoe"
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