Episode 1: The Dark Shadow
October 4th, 2028
James’ Head
13 Years Ago
11 Year Old James, in a blue tux with a white dress shirt, white tie, and white dress shoes, is standing across… The Lightning God? Red tux, black dress shirt, black dress shoes.
“Hello, James,” Kid Lightning God says.
“Who are you?” Kid James asks.
“Jase,” Kid Lightning God - Or ‘Jase’ says.
“Jase?”
“Yes.”
“How… Who?”
“I’m your twin brother, James. Well, I was supposed to be.”
Richford City
Today
The man, wearing the suit with a quiver of arrows and a bow, and a hood over his head, like before, is sitting in the cabin, with a map of Parkland City on the countertop in front of him. He circles an apartment building - James’ apartment building. Suddenly, he hears a crash outside. He folds the map and puts it in his quiver. He slowly approaches the door, then the door crashes open. 5 Blackthorn Syndicate men rush into the cabin, their guns drawn.
“Put your hands above your head, Dark Shadow!” A man barks.
“Boss has been looking for you for quite some time,” a second man says.
“You guys have been doing this for 13 years,” the man - Dark Shadow - says, annoyed. “Don’t you guys know how to give up?”
“Just come with us,” a third man says. “Nobody has to get hurt, that’s entirely up to you.”
“How about I kill you instead?” The Dark Shadow asks rhetorically.
“Not this time,” the first one says.
“Why do you have to make my life so f--king difficult?” The Dark Shadow sighs.
The Dark Shadow ducks behind the couch, and pulls out a pistol from underneath it. He peaks to the side of the couch, aiming the pistol, and shoots a bullet into the barrell of one of the men’s AK-47’s. The man shoots the AK-47, and it clicks, then ruptures and sends pieces flying everywhere, killing the man and 2 surrounding men, leaving just two remaining.
The Dark Shadow puts the pistol on the floor, and draws two arrows at the same time. He stands up, aims, and fires both arrows simultaneously. The arrows strike true, killing both men. He then walks outside, gets on his motorcycle, and drives away. To Parkland City.
Parkland City
3 Hours Later
James’ Apartment
James is looking out his window, and Emma is on the couch across from him, and he sees The Dark Shadow driving through the city.
“What the hell?” James mutters under his breath.
The Dark Shadow parks right infront of James’ apartment complex. But then, 10 SUV’s with “BLACKTHORN SYNDICATE” written on the sides park around The Dark Shadow. 4 Syndicate soldiers from each SUV - ultimately 40 soldiers - come out and aim AK-47’s at The Dark Shadow.
“No f--king way,” James says to himself. “Motherf--king bullshit.”
“What is it?” Emma asks. She walks up, and sees what’s happening below.
“Call the team. Don’t tell them to intervene yet, just watch.” He opens the window, and then drops down 5 stories. He lands in a roll on the ground.
“James?” The Dark Shadow asks.
“What the hell happened?” James asks.
“This has been happening for the past 8 years, James.”
“So that’s where you went after college.”
“Yeah.”
“I thought we agreed that we were done with the Blackthorn Syndicate.”
“Yeah, I couldn’t help myself.”
“Did you have to bring 40 of them to my apartment?”
“I didn’t know there were 40. I didn’t even see 10 SUV’s.”
“We gonna do this or not?”
“I’m down if you are.”
“On my count. 3. 2. F--k it, let’s do this.”
James and The Dark Shadow run forward, and they both tackle a soldier. James punches one, elbows the one behind him, grabs him and slams him on the ground, grabs the AK-47, and shoots other soldiers behind him. Next to him, The Dark Shadow did the exact same thing. Move for move.
James smashes the butt of the AK-47 into the visor of a soldier, and then throws the AK-47 over his shoulder, sending the soldier flying into an SUV. Team Nexus arrives, and sees what’s happening.
“Is that James?” The Photon Flare asks.
“Holy shit, I think it is,” The Prism Archer says.
Within minutes, every Blackthorn Syndicate soldier is dead. James and The Dark Shadow are barely panting, and not even sweating. They walk up to each other, and dap each other up. They pull each other into a hug.
“I’ve missed you,” James whispers into The Dark Shadow’s ear. “And I’ve been texting you.”
“I don’t have a phone,” The Dark Shadow says. “The Syndicate can track me that way.”
“So how have I been texting you?”
“I didn’t destory the phone, it’s just been sitting in an abandoned hotel for the past 6 years.”
“Oh.”
“James, who the hell is that?” The Prism Archer asks.
“Right,” James says. “I’ll tell you at the base. Let’s go.”
The Base
The team, including Emma and Jon, arrive at the base. They sit in their seats, and The Dark Shadow and James stand in the center of the room.
“So, who is he?” Jon asks.
“You can take off the hood and mask,” James says to The Dark Shadow.
“Alright,” The Dark Shadow says. He pulls his hood back, and his face mask down.
“Everyone, this is Johnny Swartwood,” James says. “Or as he’s more publicly known…”
“The Dark Shadow,” Johnny says.
“The Dark Shadow?” Frank asks. “From 13-12 years ago?”
“The same,” Johnny says.
“Where’s The Navy Pulse?” Frank asks.
“Can I..?” Johnny asks James.
“Right here,” James says. “You’ve been working with him for the past 2 and a half years.”
“You’re The Navy Pulse?” Felix asks.
“I used to be,” James says. “But after…” He looks at Johnny, and back at Felix. “I quit.”
“After what?” Ray asks.
“Not important,” James says shakingly, as if saying it will break him.
“Are you okay?” Emma asks.
“I’ve been operating in Richford City for the past 8 years, which is why I haven’t been around,” Johnny says.
“What was the Red Riot?” Frank asks.
“The what?” Johnny asks.
“He doesn’t remember either,” James says. “I made him forget too.”“What was it, James?” Frank asks.
“The Red Riot was…” James hesitates. “A massacre. Made by a vigilante named The Maroon Surge.”
“Who’s that?” Emma asks.
“Me,” James says, his voice cracking. “But not… Me.”
“What do you mean?” Jon asks.
“The Lightning God has existed since I was born,” James says. “Before he was The Lightning God… He was Jase. Or, The Maroon Surge. He was supposed to be my twin brother. But while we were developing in the womb, our consciousnesses merged into one brain. My brain. He was locked, trapped in there for 11 years until he decided to break free. He attacked the Blackthorn Syndicate, and slaughtered hundreds of soldiers. And I let him. I gave him the green light. I didn’t know he was gonna- I didn’t know how dangerous he was.”
“Jesus Christ,” Frank says. “That’s a heavy burden to carry. Remembering that.”
“I tried to kill myself after it happened,” James says. “I was just 11 Years Old. Stabbed an arrow into my left abdomen. At the hospital, there was this memory wiping device. I turned into a liquid substance, and poured it into Parkland City’s water lining. Everyone drank it. Well, almost everyone. That’s why some people remember, and most don’t.”
“Damn,” Ray says. “That’s…”
“Deep,” Frank says.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” Johnny asks.
“I didn’t want you to carry the burden of some version of me being a homicidal maniac, Johnny,” James says. “In that short period of time of you knowing that some version of me in my consciousness did that, you… You almost killed me. I had to make you forget.”
“I’m sorry,” Johnny says.“It’s not your fault.”
“So, what now?” Emma asks.
“The Blackthorn Syndicate is a problem, for all of Parkland City,” Johnny says. He looks at James. “Ready to suit back up, Navy Pulse?”
“Yes,” James says.
Richford City
The Cabin
James and Johnny walk in, and Johnny twists the arrowhead sculpture on the bookshelf. The bookshelf opens.
“I haven’t been here in 13 years,” James says. “Seems smaller.”
“Because we’re bigger,” Johnny says. “Grab your suit.”
James walks in the secret bookshelf room, and takes out a case that reads “Navy Pulse L” on the exterior. He opens it, and puts on the suit. Navy blue leather jacket, black gloves, black boots with padding on the bottom, navy blue leather pants, navy blue hood and blue face mask.
He grabs the long case that was under the big case, and opens it. A navy blue mechanical bow and a quiver with arrows in it that have blue flag tips and navy blue arrowheads. He pulls his hood over his head, and pulls the face mask over his mouth and nose. He straps the quiver over his back, and puts the bow in the quiver.
“Ready,” The Navy Pulse says.
“Good,” The Dark Shadow says, pulling his face mask over his mouth and nose and pulling his hood up over his head.
They go outside, and hop on their motorcycles. The Navy Pulse’s is a metallic navy blue with black seating and handles.
Parkland City
Blackthorn Syndicate Headquarters
Vincent Blackthorn is sitting in his office, with 30 Syndicate Soldiers sitting in front of him.
“The Navy Pulse is back,” Blackthorn says to his soldiers. “He and The Dark Shadow killed 40 of our men earlier today. Do we let vigilantes do that to us?”
“No, sir!” The soldiers say back.
“Do we allow anyone to interfere with our work?!”
“No, sir!”
“Do we take back what’s ours and get vengeance?!”
“Yes, sir!”
“Do we kill those who stand in our way?”
“Yes, sir!”
“Who’s world is this?!”
“Ours, sir!”
“Say it louder!”
“OURS, SIR!”
“Yes. Yes it is.”
