Altir's Fall

CAST REFERENCE ELDER — Ermite, vine-dominant body with minimal bark, deer skull face with two glowing yellow eyes, ancient and still bearing. REDWOOD — Ermite, bark-heavy mech-like bulk, no head, single glowing yellow light at center-mass chest, tense and coiled bearing. KURTZ — Cindral (tiefling), burnt-orange skin, horns, tail, lean performer's build, layered practical-but-showy travel gear, easy confident bearing. DELMONT — Cindral (tiefling), dark red skin, white hair, horns, tail, older and more weathered than Kurtz, heavy mystic-showman robes and jewelry, steady unhurried bearing. DESMOND — young Cindral (tiefling) youngling, small, standard tiefling coloring, part of Kurtz's clan. ZILLA — Half Huldra (half-elf), human side of African descent, ice-blue eyes, ivory barcode tattoo on cheek, athletic laborer build, poncho and Mass-Effect-meets-cowboy armor. KNOX — human, Terrestrial build, athletic-to-stocky broad-shouldered, grizzled face, salt-and-pepper beard, brown cowboy hat, patchwork worn military-surplus gear, twin plasma pistols holstered, bolt-thrower rail longgun slung on back. JESSIE — human, Variant build, lean and wiry, middle-aged, quick-draw plasma pistol, minimal gear. JAMESON — human, Variant build, lean and wiry but bulkier than Jessie, middle-aged, rail gun, comm headset, wrist-mounted scanner. RAVAGERS — small wiry ghoulish goblin-like aliens, hunched, too-long limbs and fingers, red mottled skin, scavenged mismatched gear. ALPHA — human/Ravager hybrid, scrawny oni-inspired build, red skin, unkempt hair, more upright than Ravagers, black barcode tattoo on cheek. GOVERNOR PRICE — human, Variant build, lean, mustache, long duster coat, warm but transactional bearing. ORACLE — ship AI, voice only, no physical form. PAGE 1 Panel 1 (large, top — establishing shot) Wide exterior shot from a wooded cliffside, looking down and out over a space-age western town: low-slung buildings with a frontier-town silhouette but tech details worked in — solar panels on rooftops, a landing pad or docked shuttle at the town's edge, dusty streets. Warm late-day light. Distant festival banners/lights visible near the town's center, around a cluster of five tall carved pillars rising above the rooftops (the Fingers). Foreground framed by dense forest — twisted trees, thick undergrowth. Panel 2 (medium, lower left) ELDER — Ermite, vine-dominant body with minimal bark, deer skull face with two glowing yellow eyes, ancient and still bearing — seen from behind/three-quarter angle, standing at the edge of the cliff, the border of his territory, looking down at the town below. Still, watchful posture. Panel 3 (medium, lower right) REDWOOD — Ermite, bark-heavy mech-like bulk, no head, single glowing yellow light at center-mass chest, tense and coiled bearing — walks up beside/behind Elder. Tense posture. REDWOOD: "The tree should have bloomed by now." PAGE 2 Panel 1 (medium-wide, top) Elder and Redwood at the cliff edge, town visible below, slightly out of focus. Redwood's eye-light brighter/more intense — agitation. REDWOOD: "First it doesn't bloom. Now it's not even trying. Something's wrong, Elder, and I don't think it's natural." Panel 2 (medium, Redwood leaning in, more confrontational) REDWOOD: "The outworlders came, and the tree started dying. That's not a coincidence." Panel 3 (close on Elder — calm, steady, contrast to Redwood) ELDER: "It's my charge to care for her. Not yours to accuse a whole town on a hunch." Panel 4 (wide/two-shot — Elder turning to head down toward town, Redwood staying, watching him go, unresolved tension) ELDER: "I'll find out what's wrong. I promise you that." (No line for Redwood — let his stillness carry the panel.) PAGE 3 Panel 1 (wide establishing shot, top) Street-level view of the festival — Altir's town square around the base of the Fingers. Crowds, string lights/glowing lanterns, market stalls. A modest fortune-teller's tent in frame — worn but colorful fabric, hand-painted symbols. Panel 2 (medium) KURTZ — Cindral (tiefling), burnt-orange skin, horns, tail, lean performer's build, layered practical-but-showy travel gear (scarves, rings, gear that moves well doing tricks in a crowd), easy confident bearing — walking toward/into the tent. Home turf. Panel 3 (interior of tent, medium-wide) DELMONT — Cindral (tiefling), dark red skin, white hair, horns, tail, older and more weathered than Kurtz, heavy mystic-showman robes and jewelry, steady unhurried bearing — mid-reading with a human woman customer, cards and trinkets on the table, soft magical glow effect around his hands (theatrical version of real Seer power). Kurtz entering in background. Panel 4 (close on Delmont, woman exiting frame, attention shifting to Kurtz) DELMONT: "We'll be gone once the festival ends." Panel 5 (medium, two-shot) DELMONT: "Do me a favor — round up the younglings before then. I don't want anyone wandering when we pack up." Panel 6 (small reaction panel — Kur