Chapter 1 Panel Outline

[B-rad]

Chapter 1 (Wide Awake and Swinging):

(1)---4 panel---
-Top Left- Hand going through a nearly empty wallet
-Mid Left- Zoomed out showing Max going through wallet
-Bot Left- Info Box: "Name: Max Dillon, Age: 18, Hair Color: Brown, Eye Color: Green, Occupation: Treasure Hunter/Student"
-Right Full- Full body Shot of Max.
(2)---4 panel---
-Top Left- Max looking distraught over lack of money. "Crap...I ended up wasting it all on repairs again..."
-Top Right- Perspective through window, shadow moves/rustle in bushes audible.
-Bottom Left- Max's attention turns to sound.
-Bottom Right- "Maaaax!" *small-text* from outside.
(3)---4 panel---
-Top Left- Max's head pokes out through window looking around.
-Top Right- Max looks down as a rustle is heard below him.
-Bottom Left- Shadowy figure with glowy eyes jumps out of bushes
-Bottom Right- Perspective shift to Max falling back into his dirty room.
(4)---2 panel---
-Top- Max looking up. "Keri!"
-Bot (Large)- Keri looking in through window with huge grin on her face. "Scared you, huh?" Info Box: "Name: Keri Kazuri, Age: 18, Hair Color: Brown, Eye Color: Brown, Occupation: Treasure Hunter/Student".
(5)---4 panel---
-Top Left- Door-knob clicks.
-Top Right- Max mugshot looking startled.
-Bot Left- Keri ducking out of sight.
-Bot Right- Max's mom standing in doorway with angry expression.
(6)---4 panel---
-Top Left- Mom bitching at Max "I told you to clean your room 4 hours ago!"
-Top Right- "Yes, you did mom..." Max replies as he starts picking up things strewn about the floor.
-Bot Left- "Dinner will be ready in 3 hours." she says, "I want this room clean before then, you hear?"
-Bot Right- "Yes mother..." he says as she walks out.
(7)---4 panel---
-Top Left- "Sca-ry..." Keri says as she raises back up from the window.
-Top Right- Max gives her a =/ face.
-Bot Right- "Need a hand with cleaning?" she asks leaning in.
-Bot Left- "Nah, we have more important things to do, right?" he says as he puts away a stack of clothes in his dresser.
(---4 Panel---
-Top Left- Max pulls his sword in it's sheath from beside dresser.
-Top Right- Max clips the strap for the scabbard.
-Bot Left- Max jumps through window.
-Bot Right- Max and Keri walk down street. Max: "Shall we get this started then?"
(9)---2 Panel---
-Top- The two arrive at the tournament hall, large building.
-Bot- Interior of the building, Max and Keri looking around.
(10)---1 Panel---
-Full- Overhead view of the room showing the arena, seats, and a fighters.
(11)---4 Panel---
-Top Left- Keri asks Max "Are you ready for this?"
-Top Right- Max replies "Absolutely, let's get signed up!"
-Bot Left- Check-in station declares "Sign-ups are concluded, and no new entries are allowed".
-Bot Right- Max and Keri with WTF faces.
(12)---3 Panel---
-Top Left- Voice from beside the two of them "Fear not, I've already signed you guys up."
-Bot Left- Info Box: "Name: Eric Vincen, Age: 18, Hair Color: Blonde, Eye Color: Green, Occupation: Treasure Hunter/Falborne Soldier"
-Right- Shout from off-screen "Eric!". Full-body of Eric leaning against wall waiting for them.
(13)---4 Panel---
-Top Left- Check-in man asks for their names.
-Top Right- The two reply with their names "Max Dillon" and "Keri Kazuri".
-Bot Left- Check-in examines the registry.
-Bot Right- "Fine, you may enter..."
(14)---4 Panel---
-Top Left- Max tells Eric "We really owe you one"
-Top Right- Keri concurs "Yeah, you really saved us there. But don't expect us to let you win because of it."
-Bot Left- On the contrary, Eric replied "Not at all, I was only hoping to have some decent competition."
-Bot Right- Voice from off-screen: "Oh yeah? I don't seem to remember you ever being able to beat me, so how's adding competition going to help?"
(15)---3 Panel---
-Left- Full body of Justin with arms crossed smirking. Offscreen shout from Max "Justin!"
-Top Right- Max stating "So you're already back?"
-Bot Right- Info Box: "Name: Justin Vincen, Age: 20, Hair Color: Black, Eye Color: Black, Occupation: Falborne Knight"
(16)---4 Panel---
-Top Left- Justin: "Yeah, I just finished up my duties in NewCrest yesterday."
-Top Right- Keri: "And I take it you're competing as well?"
-Bot Left- Justin: "You kidding? I wouldn't miss this for the world!"
-Bot Right- Max: "Well, there go our chances of winning..."
(17)---3 Panel---
-Top Left- Offscreen: "You never had any chances to begin with!"
-Bot Left- Info Box: "Name: Kim Turner, Age: 19, Hair Color: Blonde, Eye Color: Blue, Occupation: Rich Girl/Student"
-Right- Full Body of Kim holding her hand over her mouth doing her rich-girl laugh with Ken in the background looking over his shoulder at the group.
(18)---4 Panel---
-Top Left- Backshot of group. Keri: "Just ignore her and she'll go away..."
-

-Tournament held in Rufturf.
-Max, Keri, Justin, Eric, Karu, Akuin, Gravv, and Seth introduced.
-side chars: Kim Turner (rich girl who likes Max and is jealous of Keri), Ken Knowling (her boyfriend/semi-strong non-factor).
-First Match: Justin vs. Fred Sanders (non-factor) Justin wins easily/reveals his ability to read his opponent's mind.
-Second Match: Eric vs. Max. Eric and Max's fighting styles/rivalry revealed. Max wins barely by deflecting Eric's thrown blade back at him.
-Third Match: Seth vs. Karu. Seth and Karu's fighting styles revealed. Seth has advantage in the fight due to his flame magic helping him out. Karu loses focus and engages "Whitewind" for a moment and overpowers Seth to throw him from the arena. Akuin interrupts the fight a moment after the ability is activated and knocks Karu out (to avoid people from seeing it as well as stopping Karu's powers from leveling the place). Since the fight is interrupted, both fighters are diqualified along with Akuin.
-Fifth Match: Ken vs. nobody (Akuin was disqualified) It is revealed that Akuin and Karu were working for Kim to ensure her or Ken won.
-Sixth Match: Kim vs. Keri. Keri wins, but is poisoned (non-fatal) by Kim's weapon. Revealed that Kim has bribed the Referee.
-Seventh Match: Justin vs. Max. Max wins by sheer will-power and overcomes Justin's speed with a new technique he calls "Tenshozan" (since Justin doesn't know what "I'll hit him with Tenshozan" meant in Max's thoughts, he didn't know how to react).
-Eighth Match: Ken vs. nobody (since Karu/Seth both lost, there was nobody to fight in his bracket).
-Ninth Match: Keri vs. Max. Max is winded from using his new attack and Keri is poisoned, but out for revenge. With no stamina left, Max loses, leaving Keri and Ken.
-Tenth Match: Keri vs. Ken. Fight drags on. Ken has good defense and countering maneuvers, and Keri is off-balance by the poison. Ken's claw-type weapons are at an advantage over her dagger. Ken belittles her fighting ability and all of her friends. As he goes in to finish the fight, Keri leaps to her feet and parries the attack, dodges his follow-up swipe, and finishes him off with a right hook burried right into his face. The hit sends him flying over the crowd and into a wall. The match is called in Keri's favor.
-With the celebration of the victory, an earthquake suddenly begins to tear the stadium apart. All of them tired, Max, Keri, Justin, and Eric are unable to escape the collapsing building. They end up trapped for a while (it's a large building) and fall asleep. They all have a dream about a sword resembling Max's pendant which talks to them. It shows them a record of a war long-forgotten (Haku/Kon War) and warns that history will soon repeat itself. They all awake as the blast from the dream fades into a rescue-team bursting through the cieling to get them out.