April and the Extraordinary World

1

It is the eve of

the Franco-Prussian War,

and Napoleon the Third,

emperor of France,

seeks to create

a new breed of soldier,

one that will ensure victory.

To that end,

he pays a secret visit

to a young scientist

named Gustave Franklin.

So, my dear Gustave,

is my serum ready?

Your Majesty, I must admit the results of

my research aren't what I anticipated.

The latest version of my

serum modified the organisms

in my test subjects in

quite an unexpected way.

You'll see,

it's extraordinary!

Rodrigue! Chimne!

Don't be shy, children.

Say good evening

to the Emperor.

Good evening to the Emperor!

Good evening to the Emperor!

Those animals can speak?

Yes, they're...

Invulnerable?

No...

No? What do you mean, no?

You promised me that

your ultimate serum

would create an army of invulnerable,

invincible warriors.

The war is coming

at any moment.

What have you given me?

Nothing but sideshow freaks.

Bizaine! Take out your gun

and fire at those beasts.

If they're not as invincible as we thought,

too bad for them.

As you wish, Majesty!

No! No, wait!

Boom!

Boom?

There, there.

Sleep, Prosper.

It's nothing.

Daddy is just working.

And so, Emperor Napoleon III

meets his untimely end,

leaving behind

a bereaved nation

and a son, who the very next

day is crowned Napoleon IV.

Less warlike than his father,

the young emperor signs a

peace treaty with Prussia,

thus averting war and changing

the course of history

by securing the French throne

for a long line of Napoleons.

Several years later,

the world's leading scientists

begin to mysteriously

disappear as if into thin air.

Despite the best efforts

of police across the globe,

no one can discover

why or where they've gone.

Branly. Einstein. Hertz.

Marconi. Nobel. Pasteur.

And a host of other

brilliant minds.

Without its scientists,

the world never sees

the wonders they would

have invented or discovered.

No electricity. No radio or television.

No automobiles.

Scientific progress

comes to a halt.

With no one to discover

new sources of energy,

mankind continues

to rely on coal.

And when the coal runs out,

wood burning furnaces,

until the forests of Europe

have been stripped bare.

The French Empire

casts a covetous eye

on the great forests

of North America.

But seizing them

will mean war.

And to win,

France will need scientists

to upgrade

its antiquated weaponry.

The few scientists who remain

are being tracked down

and made to work for the military,

willingly or not.

So it is, that,

60 years later,

Gustave Franklin's son,

Prosper, and his grandson, Paul,

find themselves forced into

hiding as they continue

the pursuit of

the Ultimate Serum.

The year is 1931

but the world is still

stuck in the Steam Age!

Pops.

I knew

I'd find you here.

I can't help it.

I need to come see it every day.

I know, it's the last one and it

reminds you of when you were young

and when

there were trees.

Sorry, but we have something very

important we have to finish today.

You know you're

taking a risk coming here.

Do you want them to catch you

and force you to make weapons?

I keep telling you,

I can't help it.

Hey! A coin for the song.

One coin, come on.

Please!

Attack! Attack!

Your souls will hear our call

Destroy! Destroy!

The enemy must fall

Attack! Attack!

Those brave and restless be

We'll shoot them all

Tomorrow we'll be free

Together we head full

steam toward our goal

We'll cross this ocean

for the final round

The bugles sound

the echo of the gun

Their forests are ours

and so their coal

You won't say anything

to Annette, right?

Do I ever?

Inspector,

they just went in!

The family's all there.

This is it. We can lock them up.

My dear Limousin,

it took us weeks to find them.

We can wait 10 more minutes.

Let me finish my nap, will ya?

Prosper, where on Earth

have you been?

I had to administer

the doses alone.

Firstly, it's Pops.

And second, it's none of your business.

Annette, come on, love.

Let it be.

You can argue

about it later.

It's a big day for us

today. Whew, big day.

Filtration?

Ready.

Enzymatic integration?

It's good.

Molecular hybridization?

Successful.

Injection

of mutant agent?

Commencing.

Emulsions 1 and 2

for the final mix?

Here they are!

April, this is not

the time.

So now?

Can I mix it now?

My little sparrow, the best

way you can help us

is to sit right here and

not touch anything.

Now, where were we?

Emulsions 1 and 2?

Here they are.

- Hydrostatic pressure?

- Perfect! Volume masses stable.

Stop making

such a sad face.

Come play. It'll be more fun

than this chemistry doom.

Darwin, it's thanks to that

chemistry you can talk.

And you're proud of your parents?

It was a failed experiment.

I was supposed to be

invulnerable but I'm not.

This time, unless

we've slipped up somewhere,

we have created

the Ultimate Serum.

The Ultimate Serum.

All forms of life

will be invulnerable.

Illness, old age, and death

will be things of the past.

Mere memories.

A more admirable goal than

creating invincible soldiers,

isn't it, Grandad?

We made the same

mistakes you did.

But finally, today,

we'll be successful.

Now we can proceed

with the guinea pig test.

Prosper, would you please...

Pops! Call me Pops!

This is Inspector Pizoni!

Imperial Security!

Don't try to escape.

You're surrounded.

And don't forget,

I want them alive.

You are under arrest

for breaking the law!

All scientists must be

in service to the Empire!

Open up!

The serum! We can't let

them get their hands on it.

Open up!

The escape hatch, quick!

Huh?

Come on! Quick!

Pops!

I'll stall them.

I'll meet you at the Steam Mobile!

Go! Get out of here.

Stop! Put your hands up.

Delighted.

Huh?

I got you!

Surprise.

Huh?

But... Hands up!

Hmm?

Go on,

stop the boiler.

With my hands in the air,

that might prove to be difficult.

Well then,

let me make it easier.

Huh?

The boiler!

Aim for the boiler!

Pops!

Grandpa!

Don't move.

We got 'em, don't let 'em get away!

Come back here,

you swine!

You'll pay for this!

I'll head for the station!

It's our only chance.

Annette! April!

Are you all right?

You're not hurt?

Attention, please, Platform 2.

Immediate boarding

for the 1:
47 to Berlin.

Ha! There! Arrest them!

Come on!

In the name of the Empire!

Arrest them! Arrest them!

Arrest them!

Platform 2,

Paris to Berlin is now leaving.

We'd like to

remind our third class passengers

that they are forbidden to

speak to the other passengers.

Thank you.

And have a pleasant journey.

Farewell, Paris.

And Grandpa?

Don't worry.

He's much smarter than the police,

I'm sure

he'll be all right.

Once we're in Berlin we'll

find a way to contact him.

They also have police in Berlin,

you know.

We must hide

the serum.

In the name of the Empire,

stop right there!

Come on.

You dirty swine.

Where are you hiding?

Huh?

Ah.

Whoa, ah, ah!

Annette, quick!

The life baskets!

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