CounterConspiracy Comics: Tales of the Righteous Gun

Issue #1

“Wolf”

PANEL 1

Sun breaks through thick winter snow clouds hanging low over a snowbound cabin in the middle of a scenic valley surrounded by tall mountains. A tiny plume of smoke rises from the chimney. Signs of a humble homestead poke through deep snow drifts; the outline of a well, an outhouse, and some fence post that circle a corral can be seen.

CAPTION:

Winter, 1765

PANEL 2

Inside the cabin. A meager fire burns in a small stone hearth in the center of the back wall and a small iron pot sits in a stand in front of it. One small stick lays in a firewood rack. There is a well-worn wooden stool in front of an equally used musket in the corner. The dim firelight illuminates a humble family bed; blankets on top of straw on the floor near the hearth. On it two children, a young BOY(4) and GIRL (7) hold each other crying between two dark bodies.

NARRATOR BLOCK(S):

The harvest was small and the horse was taken by thieves in the night. That alone would make winter on the frontier difficult to survive. Alas, this winter had more surprises in store, starting with the cruelest blizzard this family had ever seen!

At the onset, Father spent too long in the brutal cold hunting for food and gathering firewood. A valiant effort met with a heavy price.

Snowed in and starving, Mother rationed most of the food to the children, leaving her too weak to fight off the biting chill.

PANEL 3

GIRL looking into the almost empty stew pot in the fading firelight.

NARRATOR BLOCK:

The fire dwindling and pot almost empty, a seven year-old stares into the abyss.

PANEL 4

GIRL standing next to the pot watching her brother cry next to her motionless parents. The fire is almost gone. The light is going out.

NARRATOR BLOCK:

Bereaved, scared, tired, and hungry, she considers simply laying back down between her loving parents, closing her eyes and dreaming of better days while nature takes its course.

The light is dying. A once vibrant home teeters on the verge of becoming an icy tomb filled with the ghosts of a family that endeavored to build a better life and lost to cruel circumstance.

PANEL 5

GIRL placing the last stick into the hearth; Dirt on her cheeks still streaked by her tears, but now there is the glint of determination in her large green eyes.

NARRATOR BLOCK:

But.. What’s this? There is fire in the hearth yet!

PANEL 6

GIRL offering last bowl of stew to her brother. Tears still stream down his face, but the expression of sorrow in his face has been replaced with one of gratitude.

PANEL 7

GIRL standing in front of the fire. It’s light giving her a golden aura that shines defiantly against the cold blackness that surrounds her. Her expression shows that she has decided to endeavor to survive.

NARRATOR BLOCK:

Her baby brothers look of appreciation for her selfless deed adds a stick of timber to her inner fire, and the decision is made!

PANEL 8

GIRL watching her brother eat stew. The still forms of their parents behind him.

NARRATOR BLOCK:

She will endeavor to survive.

For herself, for her brother, and for her parents.

She will honor the effort taken to carve this home out from the land by fighting on!

PANEL 9

The front door is now open. Snow is piled high against the house. The GIRL is on her knees in a small tunnel. She is retrieving firewood from the porch. There is a pile of sticks on the floor.

NARRATOR BLOCK:

Father braved the pain of exposure to extreme cold so that they would have warmth. And, so they shall!

PANEL 10

GIRL taking small root vegetables out of a burlap sack and dropping them in the stew pot that has been filled with snow. Here brother stands on the other side watching. The fire in the hearth is larger now. The front door is still open in the background.

NARRATOR BLOCK:

Mother suffered starvation so they would have nourishment. And, so they shall!

PANEL 11

The GIRL and BOY looking towards the door in terror.

NARRATOR BLOCK:
But they are not the only creatures who suffer this dark season.

SOUND:

Grrooowwwlll!!!

PANEL 12

A very large timber wolf (WOLF) stands in the doorway on top of the snow drift brandishing its large fangs ferociously as it growls.

NARRATOR BLOCK:

And like them, it will do what it must to survive.

SOUND:

GGGRRRRRrrrrr!!!

PANEL 13

WOLF lunging, mouth wide and eyes blank and black, towards BOY as he runs towards the body of his mother.

PANEL 14

Closeup of GIRL wide eyed in sheer terror hugging the small bag of root vegetables to her chest.

NARRATOR BLOCK:

Survival on the frontier is a matter of practicality.

Nature does not suffer fools and it cares not for hopes and dreams.

PANEL 15

FATHER struggling to hold the angry WOLF under his arm. His skin gray; nose and fingers black with frostbite. Eyes alive with anger!

NARRATOR BLOCK(S):

What this?!! A son saved from the JAWS of DEATH!!

A father bares his teeth and says “Nay Death! NAY!

Nature’s fury is mighty, no doubt! But, the human spirit with its drive to overcome adversity and to protect it’s offspring at all cost is also a powerful force!

FATHER:

MUSKET!

PANEL 16

GIRL behind the musket which she has mounted on top of the stool. There is a spark on the lock mechanism and a cloud of smoke.

NARRATOR:

A divine gift. Our most admirable quality,.. and the great equalizer!

SOUND:

BANG!

PANEL 17

GIRL, BOY, FATHER, and MOTHER sit together on their floor bed in front of a roaring fire. Rays of sunlight shine through the window. FATHER feeds soup to weak, but alive MOTHER. BOY and GIRL smile as they hold their parents. WOLF hide and meat hangs from hooks attached to the mantel in front of the fire. The MUSKET sits on the floor by FATHER’S side.

NARRATOR:

We do what we must to survive.

CAPTION:

END.

Written by Will Kilpatrick

Tales of the Righteous Gun created by Will Kilpatrick

Copyright 2023 Tales of the Righteous Gun. Owned by Counterconspiracy Comics. All rights reserved. No portion or elements of this project may be reproduced or transmitted, in any form or means, 
without the express written permission of Counterconspiracy Comics LLC.