_
World War I was started by a teenager with a pistol...
A Serbian peasant who chose to assassinate
Archduke Franz Ferdinand.
Set in motion the chain reaction
culminating in two world wars and today's Cold War.
Character is revealed through choice.
Consider for a moment.
Sorry, I was just...
Jesus!
Who would be the recipient of your rage:
A thief, a child molester,
a world leader?
This one decision betrays all secrets
and unveils true motive.
Ask yourself. On that dark ledge,
poised to strike with clean opportunity...
Who would you kill?
- Synced & corrected by MementMori - -- www.addic7ed.com --
_
Happiness is just the absence of pain.
These days, that's the best I can hope for.
Dad would tell me to lighten up.
"Life's not a dress rehearsal. Trust in God's plan."
I wonder what he'd think about God's plan
if he'd lived to see what happened to me
in that boys' home.
If he'd seen what I had to do to get out.
If he'd heard the screams in that fire.
_
Shit, maybe this is God's plan for me.
Hungry, homeless, and wanted by every cop in the city
for a dozen murders.
A positive mental attitude
is essential to survival out here.
These fucking people make it hard.
Lunatics, gangbangers, pushers.
You can only stay on your toes for so long
before you wake up with a screwdriver in your gut.
All I ever wanted was the mundane shit
everyone takes for granted.
Somewhere I belong. A safe place to sleep.
To know where my next meal is coming from.
I see it in their eyes.
Easier to think I've done something to deserve this.
And in my case, maybe they're right.
What you got for me today, Marcus?
Hmm.
Ain't you cute.
No, no.
You retarded, boy?
Next time you forget who's running shit around here,
I'll break your goddamn neck. Do you hear me?
Get!
Reagan cut funds to the local nuthouses,
and released hundreds of schizos on the street.
But I'm sure that money went to a better place.
A cruise missile, a tax cut
for some fat prick in a penthouse.
Hey, why not?
If you're rich, it's because you deserve it.
If you end up smoking some hippie's street roach,
well, that shit's on you.
Joint hits like a semi.
Oh, shit.
Day of the Dead.
Is that tonight?
Oh, this was a bad idea.
So let us remember the children
and the future we want for them.
Well, hello, Marcus.
Looks like that joint was laced with angel dust, son.
Bad score.
I tried to tell you, just say no.
Head full of static.
Never could handle being high in a public place.
The paranoia sets in.
Someone is definitely watching me.
Yo, you've been made.
Get on.
Police! Don't move!
Put your weapons on the ground!
Don't look like no psychopath to me.
Can't judge a book by its cover.
But you can judge one by its smell.
- He's cute. - Yeah.
Total "Hobo Fancy" cover boy material.
What you say, mad dog?
You the psycho that did the boys' home massacre?
Pretty tough barking at a dude tied to a chair.
Untie this punk-ass bitch.
All right, but my money's on Hepatitis Harry.
Forgive my students.
They forget that viciousness
serves only to make them look weak.
Billy, if you'd be so kind.
Are you satisfied with your life?
Me?
Yeah.
I eat trash and I sleep in piss.
Everything according to plan.
Speak to Master Lin with respect.
Master Lin can eat my shit.
Who the hell are you people?
What's important is that we know who you are, Marcus.
And that we know what you've done.
You're a killer.
Few value this particular proficiency, but I do.
What if I told you there's a home for people like you?
A school where you'd be surrounded by your peers.
Only what? I dress up like a Viking
so you can take tasteful pictures?
I'm offering you a chance to harness that fire inside you.
To master the deadly arts.
The deadly arts, yeah.
That, uh... that sounds great.
You know, this all seems really sane and normal,
and y'all look like a fun bunch, but, uh...
whatever this is...
Later, days.
That son of a bitch stole my wallet.
Where's the kid now? You gotta tell me.
Has anyone here seen our boy?
Every single thing I own, gone.
Nowhere left to go.
No future.
No way out.
I tried, Papa.
But there's nothing left to fight for.
All I have left are memories of sunshine.
Some perfect day, huh, bud?
Marcus?
Hey, things are better now.
You got to try and snap out of it.
You only get the one turn at this.
You either find a way to be happy
and enjoy it, or you don't.
Life isn't a dress rehearsal.
After years of turmoil, Mom and Dad were finally happy.
I tried to be as well,
but I didn't trust it.
Reagan cut funds to the mental health facilities,
released hundreds of mentally ill onto the streets,
including Barbara Salinger,
a suicidal schizophrenic.
Barbara Salinger, who made every fear
I ever had come true.
I don't believe in God, but I'm a hypocrite.
Most nights, I pray.
A track running in the background.
I pray for a way out.
Away from another institution.
Away from another monster. Away from another cage.
I pray for help.
- What are you waiting for? - Jesus Christ!
- What the hell? - Sorry.
Is this kind of a private moment?
I'd let you jump, but Lin says I got to bring you back.
Yeah, well, Lin's going to be disappointed.
Master Lin can protect you from the cops,
and once he's done with you, you'll be able
to protect yourself from anyone.
Not to be a dick, but what do you have to lose?
Nothing.
Wait!
Just hear me out, okay?
I know all that terrible shit in your head.
What do you know?
I know you don't have anyone.
I didn't, either.
You don't have to be alone.
Master Lin has a basic code of conduct.
There is one thing you cannot do.
Give up our location, and we will kill you.
Like, full-on "Conan the Barbarian" style.
Like, you will be eviscerated. Lin's family has been
eviscerating people for centuries.
- They really love it. - Lin don't flex.
Got a worldwide rep to maintain.
The rest of the rules are simple.
No disobedience, no drugs,
and no sex.
We find ways around the last one.
Well, hopefully not in here.
What is this?
Welcome to King's Dominion.
Zhou dynasty.
That sword filled the Yangtze with blood.
Our species may delude itself
under a more noble veneer,
but we share one primary goal with other animals.
Survival.
However, when in service to the greater good,
there can be nobility in killing.
It is a stark truth:
Some people deserve to die.
My great-grandfather came here
in search of the American dream.
What he discovered was a nightmare
of indentured servitude and abuse.
So he taught himself to kill;
found a purpose in revenge.
He founded this school,
dedicated his life to the self-liberation
of oppressed people.
People like you.
Primarily, I train creative problem-solvers.
Over time, our curriculum and focus has broadened,
but we must not forget my ancestor's primary goal:
To give peasants the required skill
to dethrone their corrupt masters.
And if you do as I say...
I'll give your rage a voice loud enough
to be heard around the world.
Fuck it.
Dude, what's your problem?
Punk-ass bitches is my problem.
The locals all strike the same disaffected front.
Hey, Saya, what's up?
These are posers from every corner of the globe.
Yakuza don't consort with wetbacks, dipshit.
It doesn't matter where they're from.
Kids are all the same:
Assholes.
Only difference is, in this place?
The dagger in your back is real.
_
You Mexican?
Uh...
Dad was Nicaraguan.
Mom was from Kansas.
Yeah, whatever you are,
some rep you got.
Half of the class is scared shitless.
The other half want to see if your rep's for real.
So what's your affiliation?
Oh, I don't vote.
I'm Maria. You can run with Soto Vato.
Yeah, rain check. That's, um...
that's not really my thing.
Being in a gang is mandatory for survival.
You'll be safer with your own people.
Plus, it'll make it easier for me to get to know you.
You like this pendejo?
As if.
I'm just looking for new recruits, baby.
- Man, get off her. - Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey.
Tranquilo.
The blade. Bad memories.
You like Maria, huh?
Meet my other lady.
Not here. He'll block.
Come on, let's go.
Tonight,
me and you are going on a date.
Wear something nice.
We're going to bury you in it.
Aw.
Go.
Jesus!
_
Who would be the recipient of your rage:
a thief, a child molester,
a world leader?
This one decision betrays all secrets
and unveils true motive.
Ask yourself. On that dark ledge,
poised to strike with clean opportunity.
_
Who would you kill?
Your homework tonight, half your semester grade,
will tell me who you really are.
Use your training.
Search the city for a worthy target.
Someone you think deserves to die, and kill them.
Discard the body, hide all evidence.
Bring me proof.
No way this is a coincidence.
Was it designed to fuck with me?
No problem for a killer like you.
Someone who deserves to die.
Rory.
It was an open secret around camp.
If anyone went missing, we knew who did it.
And eventually, he stopped hiding the bodies.
There was talk about going to the police,
but Rory knew one thing:
Cops don't care about dead homeless.
- _ - When the Republic of Texas
openly declared genocide,
which Indian tribe survived for another 40 years?
Well, they all got done in the end.
Sorry, Ms. DeLuca.
The fierce Comanche survived
due only to strength and cunning.
Remember, hand-wringing liberal ideals
won't keep you safe.
The world respects those who can protect themselves.
Every opponent has a weakness.
Pick a partner. Find theirs.
- No, no, I'm good. - Come on.
Dude, I know you got me in this leg shear,
but your boner's digging into my chest cavity.
I get it, soft and warm. I use lotion.
Hey, sorry about Chico.
I'll fix that.
Look, I know you're crazy or whatever,
but you shouldn't mess with him.
You shouldn't date such an asshole.
It's complicated.
Girls always go for dickheads?
Guys always go for girls they can't have.
This is...
No, no, no, don't do it.
No, no, no, no, no.
- Is someone going to help him? - Bogus move.
Should have elbow-knee escaped into a triangle.
And size doesn't matter.
It's okay, I'll show you.
Hand here and here.
Why'd you come back?
I needed a place to hide from the pigs.
I think you need a better reason.
Think of any?
_
Heart racing like I got a knife to my throat.
This is insane. Did I just join a cult?
Thanks.
Fuck, I think I just joined a cult.
Master Lin tells me that my reputation has already spread.
It'll cause me grief with the local savages.
Still, unsanctioned killing of another student
is against his rules, so I got that going for me.
In this case, the victim dies
in a spectacularly nasty fashion,
as blood seeps from every orifice.
_
Prepare your poison, students.
We will be killing
- these animals in two minutes. - Dude.
Hey, hello?
Dude, be rad. Get Viktor's attention for me.
Why?
The good of the common people.
Come on.
Hey, sorry, could you grab that for me?
Pick up your own book, soft boy.
Name one common industrial poison
ideal for making a statement.
- Viktor. - Sodium cyanide.
Victim is dead in seconds.
You want to make a statement,
strychnine leaves your victim
contorted and convulsing for hours.
Good, Petra. And why do we want it known
that this wasn't an accident?
Poison delivers a clear message.
No one is safe from you...
- Anywhere. - Outstanding.
Hey.
Maybe you and me, we study tonight?
- Are you serious? - Pale face, black hair.
Here, they say "goth."
In Soviet Union, they would call you beautiful.
Sit down, Viktor.
- I must use lavatory. - I said sit down!
Do it!
Sit!
Learn from his shame, class.
Viktor invited this attack with his arrogance.
You, always remember this.
And you. Get a mop.
_
I think Chico's got a crush on you.
Or he wants to kill you. Probably kill.
Tomorrow, this can be you. Famous!
Fuck that bully. He pushed a girl.
- What his deal, anyway? - Mm, Chico's cartel,
número uno on campus.
Like the star football kids at a normal school.
- Dicks. - Top of the legacies.
Kids from government or criminal organizations.
- As in, not like us. - Us?
My old man's an abusive, low-rank cop
dialed into the mob.
You're a bloodthirsty orphan.
We're losers, dude.
- What about them? - Preps.
Rich kids. Mostly CIA, FBI.
- Fascists. - Exactly.
Dixie mob. Confederate cousin-diddlers.
- White nationalists. - Nazis?
You can't seem to keep those rascally varmints down.
Oh, white power! Ah-ha-ha.
Dude in the Iron Maiden tee, that's Leonard.
Leads the Hessians. Lower on the totem pole,
- but he's got weed. - And what?
You got to join his D&D campaign to get any?
I'm an elfish thief named Jizzledim.
Final World Order out of Watts.
Party bummers.
- Leader is Willie. - What about her?
Oh, young man's got his eye on the unobtainable Saya.
Mmm.
Part valedictorian, part prom queen.
100% bitch.
And leads the Kuroki Syndicate, Yakuza kids.
Gnarly.
No, dude. No, no, no.
You're a Rat.
- Harsh. - As in not from a legacy.
You got the welcoming rat bones and seasonal cheese basket.
Yeah, we're at the bottom of the food chain.
No affiliation.
Come on, I want to show you something.
This is the Graveyard.
Hideaway of the kooks, subculture elitists,
and the disenfranchised substance of losers.
Those who in general don't mix well with others.
It's a simple solution, okay?
You have a John Hughes screening
in a theatre-shaped furnace, right?
And then, light her up.
You know?
You torch one crowd after the other
until the world is safe from baby boomer innocents.
I'd like to sign up for your newsletter.
Petra, Lex, meet Marcus, the new Rat.
The orphanage killer that's got to fight Chico?
Looks like a proper asshole.
Lex is head of the Civility Club.
Civility is just lying to people
about your true feelings, wanker.
Not an affliction you suffer from.
Oh, extra credit for making Suzie Sue smile.
Smile? Hard to tell through all that makeup.
How long does it take you to paint
that ghoulish, sad clown face, Petra, love?
Oh, holy mope, Batman!
Rain check on the "Black Celebration."
Last kid has this much buzz
was the son of that hippie serial killer, no?
Turtle, Tweedle, whatever his name was.
- He got what he deserved. - Yeah, it turns out
patchouli and Birkenstocks
don't protect from a mace to the noggin.
Does that scare you, asshole?
Patchouli? Absolutely.
Don't listen to Lex, all right?
You'll be fine. Just going to hang up here with us,
and these most awesome years of your life will fly by.
You can even use this place to do some good.
Change the world with a bullet, as Lin loves to say.
I plan on changing a proper big bit of it.
Heads of state, blam. Bankers, blam.
- Oil executives... - Bono, don't forget Bono.
What about it, new friend?
What barbaric ambition inspires you?
I'm going to kill the guy who ruined my life.
I'm going to assassinate Ronald Reagan.
He said he's going to kill the bloody Gipper!
Better do it before your hot date with Chico, huh?
That guy's all talk.
The last bloke who looked at Maria was Chico's cousin.
Chico jammed a barbecue fork into his back.
Left him a bloody paraplegic.
Yeah, but the rules, they prevent you from...
Chico doesn't give a shit about rules, man.
- He's a butcher. - No joke.
And ready or not, after school today,
one of you is going to die.
Valproate?
Maria, chill.
Maria!
I got to talk to you.
- Get lost. - Please.
Chico?
- You started shit with Chico... - He was choking Maria.
Maria.
Well, good luck with that, psycho.
It's all bullshit. This stupid reputation.
When I was nine, my dad and my mom,
they died right in front of me.
Court sent me to a boys' home.
The place was just a sweatshop.
They...
they tortured us, they...
They... they did a lot of bad shit.
I hurt some guards when I bailed,
but I... I didn't kill those kids.
- The newspapers, cops? - They got it all wrong,
and that's not the point.
I'm not what you think I am.
I'm not like you.
Well, if it's all bullshit, then why did you come here?
You told me to. You kissed me.
Dude, that was an assignment.
Lin would have failed me if I didn't bring you back.
You told me I didn't have to be alone.
I didn't tell you to go start shit with the cartel.
- I didn't know. - Didn't know what?
That the tatted-up vato was a legitimate killer,
and not a theatre kid?
Do you have any idea where you are?
That's why I'm asking for help.
He's going to kill you.
So what should I do?
Only thing you can.
Run.
Ay!
- Jesus, Maria. - It's nothing.
He said he'll do a lot worse to you.
So just forget it, okay?
- Son of a bitch. - Just leave it alone, Marcus.
It's bullshit, ese?
Trickle down. That shit don't trickle.
- It's stuck up there... - Hey!
Oh, but you fucking...
Good on you. Taking the initiative.
- What's up? - Come on, Chico, fuck him up.
Say Chico's the man, and you're his bitch.
- Say it! - You're just a dickless
rich kid in a prep school,
playing the role Daddy assigned.
You got something to lose. I don't.
I fought a guy who carves people up for fun.
- You're just a poser. - You really think
they'll kick me out for gutting a Rat?
Go on then. Show 'em, come on.
- Do it! - Enough.
Good.
You're learning.
Just a friendly spar with my new amigo.
Get some rest, Marcus. We'll finish this later.
Vámonos.
Fuck this place!
Why you back in that bunk-ass jacket?
Yo, I got to ace this Black Arts assignment,
and you're my new lab partner.
Why would I help you?
Homeboy, Lin ain't here,
and I ain't no bitch like Chico.
Get in the damn car.
? I met this girl, her name is Jill ?
? She loved the way I rock on the microphone ?
? When I met Jill, I tried to... ?
I get it. First day jitters.
I remember my first day.
Mesmerized by that fat ass on Ms. DeLuca.
DeLuca's my new white whale.
It was that redneck ho, Brandy,
till I broke through the Mason-Dixon line.
- Brandy's your girlfriend? - Girlfriend?
What? Hell no.
She a Nazi, Marcus.
That ain't girlfriend material.
Hell is wrong with you?
I mean, we knocked boots a few times.
But DeLuca?
Now, I'd wife that up.
Okay, you don't want to chit-chat.
Want to act a punk, that's cool.
But so we clear, you going to help me cap
this bad hombre you was telling Chico about.
- Unless it's some bullshit. - Oh, he's real.
- Rory's an animal. - Ooh, scary.
What's this fool look like?
Good thing you ain't trying to be no artist.
That's some wack-ass indie-type shit right there.
The best comics are indie.
"Flaming Carrot," "American Flagg."
Uh, "X-Men"? The Dark Phoenix?
That bitch be jacking everybody up.
Male fantasy, mainstream melodrama bullshit.
Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey.
The Dark Phoenix Saga owns all of that.
Chris Claremont and John Byrne, motherfucker.
- Say it! - Right, right.
- It's better. - Damn straight.
Here's the deal. You help me do this,
I drop you off anywhere you want to go,
and you won't ever have to see my black ass
or King's Dominion again.
Scout's honor.
Make a left.
Here we go.
This what you running back to?
Come on, be quiet.
What?
Go ahead and call me a punk. I know you dying to.
I'm not the one who brought you out here.
Fronting all this OG shit, I hate it.
The shit ain't me, man. None of this shit's me.
- I'm a pacifist, man. - You're a what?
What's this, now?
Run, maggots!
Split up!
Shit!
Where do you think you're going?
No, no, no, no! No!
Hey, you boys coming up in the city for me?
No, man. I don't want no trouble.
You not leaving. I like leaving.
- Come on, man. - Old Rory going to still your heart.
We got to get out of here.
Come on, man. Let's go.
Marcus? Marcus!
He dies over and over.
Shit!
His face disappears on an endless loop.
What did you do?
I killed someone who deserved it.
I ain't cut out for this shit.
My moms, she the OG for real.
She just... and she knows it.
She sent me to King's to make me a man.
Ready?
And she's right.
I'm just a punk.
You're not a punk. Your mom's just an asshole.
Yeah, Mom don't think that way.
And maybe you got the right idea leaving.
Nobody telling you what to do.
Nobody to respect and shit.
No, it's awful.
No one cares if I live or die.
Nowhere to sleep, nothing normal.
Shit, nothing normal at King's.
Maybe this is as close to normal
as kids like us get.
I thought you said you wanted...
Hey, the hard part's already done.
We passed.
Dude, this ain't the worst of Lin's assignments.
You'll need someone to do those for you, too.
And the truth of it is...
I got nowhere else to go.
I need a minute.
No kind god watching over us.
Life is insignificant.
A short, dull buzz. A brief flicker.
None of it means anything.
Just shit that happens.
You embarrassed Chico.
He'll never let this go.
What the hell happened to your black eye?
Makeup.
You wanted to play hero.
I just gave you an excuse.
Jesus Christ.
That's why you pretended to like me?
So I'd fight your boyfriend?
So you'd kill him. I need him gone.
- Well, sorry I let you down. - The Soto Vatos,
they're going to keep coming at you.
- Yeah, because of you. - I'm sorry.
Sorry? You're sorry?
I... I almost got killed.
I tricked you.
But I wasn't pretending.
No one's ever fought for me before.
Chico gets in fights about me, but not for me.
I... I have enough problems.
Petra cooked up some moonshine.
Everyone's getting wasted in the graveyard.
You should come.
Maybe.
Um, I mean, yeah, sure.
"Maybe, I mean, yeah, sure."
You're a real crack-up, para veño.
What do you want here, Marcus?
A reason to wake up.
Tragedy will always find you.
That won't change here.
But how you respond to it will.
Yeah, well, shitty things just happen.
What's the response to that?
My daughter, Naya, was two
when she and my wife were killed.
The people I loved most,
taken by the faulty brakes of a freight liner.
And my response?
I found the drug-addled truck driver,
the greedy owner who couldn't check the brake lines,
and the judge who called my family's murder an act of God.
They were my first kills.
But your family was still gone.
As are the men responsible.
- And it helped? - Not at first.
Even with my training, the weight of it haunted me.
Years of sleepless guilt.
Then, over time,
I accepted it was my right to exact justice.
Why should they enjoy another single day?
It's like you said.
Some people deserve to die.
Once you shed your fear
of choosing who does and who doesn't, you'll see.
Strength feels better than weakness.
Come in.
Am I done with the assignment?
Not yet.
When was the last time I felt like I belonged anywhere?
Really belonged.
Maybe this is who I am.
What else is there?
Some desk job? Suburbia?
An overweight, pill-popping wife
raising the next generation of automatons?
Why participate in that?
Is that what I really want?
Bet it isn't.
An ethical compass would be fine if everyone had one.
But it's a cold, cruel world,
and you can't survive without a family.
Even if they are liars and murderers.
And I'd be no different than a cop,
or a soldier, or a politician.
Killing is just a part of the profession.
Maybe I finally found a reason to live.
In a place surrounded by death.
- Synced & corrected by MementMori - -- www.addic7ed.com --