AVAELLE EASTON, lost, wandered about the island. Her memory scrambled. No one seems to bother her or pay her any mind. It’s as if she doesn’t exist.

She wanders, listlessly, hungering little. She boards bus after bus and never pays fare. At some point, she finally makes it out east.

AVAELLE knocks on the door of the MARSCAPONE SUMMER HOME; a place she’s never been before, but seems familiar somehow. If she were more present in the moment, she may suspect deja vu, but today it doesn’t come to mind.

KEVIN MARSCAPONE looks out the side window, leaning forward to glean the contents of the porch.

KEVIN

SHIT. IT’S THE COPY-CAT.

VINCENT

NO.

REALLY?

KEVIN

AVAELLE EASTON. THE BLACK ‘N’ WHITE COPY.

VINCENT

THE DOCTOR’S LITTLE PET.

KEVIN

HOW DA FUCK DOES SHE KNOW WHERE I LIVE?

…

THIS ISN’T ONE OF YOUR…

VINCENT

I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT YOU’RE TALKING ABOUT.

KEVIN

LIAR.

VINCENT

[smiles mischieviously]

ANSWER THE DOOR.

KEVIN

WHY SHOULD I?

VINCENT

BECAUSE YOU HAVE SYMPATHY.

BECAUSE IT MATTERS NOT HOW SHE WAS CREATED BUT THAT SHE WAS CREATED.

KEVIN

SHE CAN’T EVEN WORK THE TALENT.

VINCENT

YOU DON’T KNOW THAT FOR SURE.

YES, IT IS CERTAINLY LIKELY THAT SHE LACKS THE ABILITY.

THE DOCTOR IS UNLIKELY TO HAVE A LOSSLESS DATA TRANSFER METHOD.

KEVIN

I’M DISGUSTED BY HIS ARROGANCE.

VINCENT

AS AM I, BUT IT IS IMPERATIVE THAT WE SHOW MERCY OUR ENEMY DENIES US.

KEVIN

IS ALL NOT “FAIR …”?

VINCENT

SHE’S ALL THAT’S LEFT OF HIS… BREEDING PROGRAM.

KEVIN

YOU’D THINK HE’D KNOWN THAT CROSSING PEAS WITH PEAS ISN’T THE METHOD TO BREED A MELON.

VINCENT

IT’S A WEAKNESS OF THOSE WHO BELIEVE THEIR CLOCK WILL NEVER TOLL.

THEY’LL TRY ANYTHING ONCE, TWICE…

THE URGENCY TO GET SOMETHING CORRECT BEFORE THE TEACHER’S BUZZER ERUPTS JUST ISN’T THERE.

KEVIN

BUT ISN’T IT TRUE THAT THERE IS A TIME FOR THE DOCTOR’S PROJECT?

VINCENT

CEDRIC’S ASSERTION OF THE ARRIVAL OF THE DAX?

I FEAR IT TOO, BUT WE HAVE NO WAY AS OF YET TO KNOW IF THAT’S PROPHECY OR PIPEDREAM.

AVAELLE continues to knock on the door.

KEVIN

THANKS A LOT, “DAD”.

NOW I HAVE TO CALL STRAUD.

VINCENT

AW COME NOW. WE DON’T NEED TO INVOLVE THE OLD MAN.

KEVIN

EASTON IS HIS. I AIN’T GETTING INVOLVED IN THAT.

VINCENT

THAT WAS AGES AGO.

AVAELLE continues to bang on the door. Heavy clouds threaten rainfall.

AVAELLE

MARSCAPONE MUZZLES AND MUTTS?

HELLO?

ARE YOU OPEN?

VINCENT

THEY ALWAYS GET THE NAME WRONG.

WHY IS THAT?

KEVIN

I THINK WE JUST HAVE TO LET HER IN.

THAT IS WHY YOU LED HER HERE, IS IT NOT?

VINCENT

SHE’S LOST AND CONFUSED. I’M BLAMING THE DOCTOR FOR THIS ONE.

PROBABLY TAMPERED WITH HER MEDICATIONS.

THE WORKING MEMORY OF HIS COPIES JUST KEEPS GETTING WORSE AND WORSE.

I’M GLAD WE GOT THE ORIGINAL.

KEVIN

AVAEL…

I WOULDN’T EXACTLY CALL HER ORIGINAL.

VINCENT

PUT ENOUGH MONKEYS IN A ROOM;

YOU’LL EVENTUALLY GET…

KEVIN

I THOUGHT WE JUST AGREED THAT’S NOT HOW IT WORKS.

VINCENT

YES, IN FACT WE DID.

BUT WHAT I SAID IS THAT YOU CAN’T SQUEEZE A MELON FROM TWO PEAS.

BUT TWO WILD PEAS, EVEN YEAR AFTER YEAR OF POOR YIELD, MAY FINALLY MUTATE IN A WAY BENEFICIENT TO MANKIND.

I SUPPOSE YOU COULD FOLLOW UP THAT UNDER THAT LOGIC, YOU COULD PRESUMABLY GET A MELON FROM A PEA.

BUT THE REALM OF NUMBERS IS RARELY SO KIND TO US.

KEVIN

MHM.

VINCENT

DON’T TELL THEM I SAID THAT, THOUGH.

THEY’RE KEEN TO HOLD A GRUDGE.

AGAIN.

AVAELLE continues to bang upon the door.

KEVIN finally answers the call.

KEVIN

MY SINCEREST OF APOLOGIES, MADAME.

THIS IS, INDEED, THE OFFICE OF…

“MARSCAPONE MUZZLES AND MUTTS”…

VINCENT

[snickers]

KEVIN

BUT WE USUALLY DON’T OPEN UP SHOP UNTIL EIGHT.

AS YOU CAN SEE…

KEVIN pulls out a leather-bound wrist-watch and shows her the time.

IT IS JUST PAST SEVEN-THIRTY.

AVAELLE is stunned, embarrassed.

AVAELLE

OH MY, I’M TERRIBLY SORRY.

YOUR BUSINESS CARD DIDN’T LIST OPERATING HOURS SO …

I ASSUMED YOU WERE OPEN TWENTY-FOUR-SEVEN.

KEVIN

“BUSINESS CARD”?

VINCENT seems to whistle, stroll about, looking toward the sky.

AVAELLE

YES, I HAVE A COPY OF IT RIGHT HERE…

She fumbles around in her sweater pocket and soon removes a card of blueish-violet, thick, sturdy.

She hands the card to KEVIN.

KEVIN

I… SEE.

He’s never seen this card before.

He returns it.

PLEASE, AVAELLE. COME INSIDE.

He lets her into the house and leads her to the sitting area where is displayed a mid-sized flatscreen television.

PLEASE FEEL FREE TO ENTERTAIN YOURSELF; THE BOOKS –

[gesturing]

ARE FOR FREE PERUSAL AS WELL.

I HAVE TO CALL MY ASSISTANT.

YOU SAID THIS IS FOR… A CAT?

Neither party object to what is a mysterious non-sequitor; AVAELLE has brought no such animal with her.

AVAELLE

YEAH. MY CAT XIB NEEDS TO BE NEUTERED.

HE’S BEEN FIGHTING A LOT AND CAUSING TROUBLE WITH THE LOCALS.

KEVIN

I SEE…

KEVIN leaves the room and steps into the kitchen.

He picks up his cellphone from the counter and repeats a few familiar keystrokes.

KEVIN

STRAUD?

YOU ‘WAKE?

STRAUD

UNFORTUNATELY.

WHAT TROUBLES YOU?

KEVIN

THE DOCTOR’S PET HAS WANDERED HER WAY TO MY HOME AND INSISTS…

SHE NEEDS TO NEUTER HER CAT.

SHE HAS… BROUGHT NO SUCH ANIMAL WITH HER.

STRAUD

SHE WANDERED FROM THE CITY ALL THE WAY TO YOUR DOMICILE?

KEVIN

SHE MUST HAVE TAKEN THE BUS.

VISUAL INSPECTION SUGGESTED NO EXCESSIVE WEAR/TEAR.

I THOUGHT YOU MIGHT WANT TO BE INVOLVED IN THE PROCEEDINGS.

STRAUD

I WOULD PREFER TO BE PRESENT, YES.

KEVIN

SHE MIGHT LISTEN BETTER TO YOU ANYWAY.

The conversation pauses for a moment.

STRAUD

SHE WANDERED FREE OF INFLUENCE?

I THOUGHT MY OLD ACQUAINTANCE WAS USING HER TO TRAIN THE TANG GIRL IN THE OLD WAYS.

BUT HE’S SO SENTIMENTAL, I AM SURPRISED HE LET HER FREE OF HIS OVERSIGHT FOR EVEN A MOMENT.

KEVIN

OUR RECORDS SHOW THAT HE IS TRYING TO INTEGRATE HIMSELF IN THE LOCAL MEDICAL COMMUNITY.

IT IS SAFE TO ASSUME HE FAKED HIS CREDENTIALS.

STRAUD

ACCESS TO MACHINERY AND FINE TOOLS, NO DOUBT.

THERE IS ONLY SO FAR A HERMIT CAN GET IN THE MODERN AGE.

KEVIN

I HOPE YOU DO NOT MEAN TO IMPLICATE YOURSELF.

STRAUD

IT’S NOT NOT TRUE.

REGARDLESS.

THE REIGN OF TERROR FOR MOST PROFESSIONALS DARES TO SUGGEST A DATE OF DISMISSAL.

BUT MEDICINE IS IN A CLASS OF ITS OWN.

THE HUMAN BODY TOO FINICKY TO ALLOW THE IDLE TINKER MUCH POWER.

TOO COSTLY, MISTAKES ARE.

AND YET THE ENTIRE SYSTEM IS PREDICATED ON MUTUAL TRUST THAT ONE WONDERS DESERVED.

BUT IT IS OF NO MATTER.

THE FACT IS THAT MY DEAR OLD FRIEND HAS LEFT HIS BACK DOOR OPEN AND HIS DEAR FELINE HAS WANDERED INTO OUR YARD.

KEVIN

MY FATHER SEEMS TO HAVE PROVIDED AT LEAST SOME GUIDANCE.

STRAUD

HE WOULD. THE REDS ARE OFTEN ON THE RECEIVING END OF HIS PITIES.

The two cease their conversation.

KEVIN pauses a little while, the ambiance suggesting that AVAELLE has turned on the television and is flipping through channels.

When he re-enters, AVAELLE is seated on the floor in front of the television.

VINCENT

PERHAPS SHE’S MISSING HER VISUAL AID.

SHE CAN SPLIT THE STREAM, YOU KNOW.

IF EVER WE HAD NEED OF NUMBERS…

[he sighs and dismisses the thought.]

IT DOES MAKE TELEVISION WATCHING SO MUCH MORE…

ENTERTAINING.

KEVIN strolls toward her.

KEVIN

AVAELLE… “EASTON”; WAS IT?

AVAELLE

YES, THAT’S IT.

AVAELLE EASTON.

KEVIN

I’VE JUST PHONED MY ASSISTANT.

HE’LL BE WITH US SHORTLY.

HE’S A GOOD MAN. I DON’T DO ANY SERIOUS PROCEDURES WITHOUT HIM.

STEADY HAND, THAT ONE.

[pause, looks toward the television.]

YOU, UH, LIKE THE NEWS?

AVAELLE

OH? UH.

AVAELLE suddenly seems embarrassed for sitting on the floor and flees her position, going toward the couch.

I DON’T KNOW. IT’S OKAY.

I JUST HATE IT WHEN THEY START TO REPEAT THE STORIES.

LIKE THERE ISN’T ENOUGH GOING ON IN THIS WIDE WORLD FOR THEM NOT TO REPEAT THEMSELVES.

JUST SEEMS UNLIKELY.

KEVIN

I AGREE WHOLEHEARTEDLY.

NOW, YOU SAID YOU NEEDED…

VETERINARY SERVICES.

AVAELLE

SURE DO.

IT’S A PROBLEM WITH MY CAT.

HE THINKS AND ACTS LIKE A MALE BUT I HAVE A SNEAKING SUSPICION THAT HE’S NOT MALE AT ALL.

OR AT LEAST NOT AS –

KEVIN

PLEASE DON’T TELL ME YOU’RE SUBSCRIBING TO THE THREE-GENDER THEORY.

AVAELLE

I… UH…

[pause; fiddles idly with hands]

KEVIN

AVAELLE. YOU KNOW AS WELL AS I DO THAT REPRODUCTION ON EARTH REQUIRES THE PRESENCE OF ONE MALE AND ONE FEMALE.

THERE IS ONLY A THIRD SEX IF YOU CONSIDER THE ABSENCE OF FUNCTIONAL GONADS TO BE A SEX ITSELF.

WE OTHERWISE REFER TO THAT STATE OF BEING AS “NEUTER”.

AVAELLE

RIGHT. “NEUTER”.

KEVIN

YOU REALLY MUST BE CAREFUL TO NOT BELIEVE EVERY ONE-OFF EPISODE OF STAR TREK.

AVAELLE

“STAR TREK”?

KEVIN

[sigh]

YES. “STAR TREK”. NOW, PLEASE, TELL ME HOW YOUR EXPERIENCE OF WATCHING TELEVISION, BE IT “STAR TREK”, OR OTHERWISE, HAS BEEN FOR YOU. SPARE NO DETAILS.

AVAELLE

WATCHING TELEVISION HAS BEEN DIFFICULT FOR ME LATELY.

IT ALWAYS FEELS LIKE THE STORIES…

KEVIN

YES?

GO ON.

She seems at a loss for words.

DO YOU SOMETIMES FEEL AS IF THERE IS AN ADDITIONAL SOUNDTRACK –

AH. PERHAPS I SHOULD BE LESS SPECIFIC…

IT IS OFTEN NOT SOUND BUT INSTEAD RAW FEELING –

SENSE-CONCEPTS

IDEA-DATA

SOMETHING THAT SPEAKS ONLY TO YOU?

AVAELLE

MY FEAR IS NOT THAT IT’S TAILORMADE FOR ME, BUT INSTEAD THAT I’M THE ONLY ONE THAT UNDERSTANDS IT.

BUT PERHAPS YOU DO TOO.

IS YOUR HAIRCOLOR NATURAL?

KEVIN

“NATURAL”?

I ADMIT, MY HAIR HAS CHANGED IN MY LIFE…

VINCENT

DON’T BEAT ABOUT THE BUSH.

SHE MEANS TO INQUIRE AS TO WHETHER YOU ARTIFICIALLY COLOR YOUR HAIR;

BY EXTENSION, THOUGH SHE CANNOT HOPE TO KNOW THE DEEPER MEANING OF WHAT SHE ASKS,

IF YOU TWO SHARE A HERITAGE, AN ANCIENT MOTHER.

SHE IS COMPLETELY IGNORANT.

KEVIN

I DO NOT COLOR MY HAIR.

AVAELLE

I’VE HAD PARANOIA THAT HAIR COLOR MAY INDICATE SOMETHING OF THE BRAIN IT IS INTENDED TO SHELTER.

KEVIN

WHAT OF BODY HAIR, THEN?

AVAELLE

THE NERVES.

THEY BRANCH THEMSELVES INSIDE EACH DIGIT.

IF NERVES TRANSMIT ELECTRICAL IMPULSE THEN IT FOLLOWS THAT THEY ARE SENSITIVE TO THOSE CERTAIN KINDS OF DATA.

KEVIN

HAIR DAMPENS THE IMPULSES FROM THE PERIPHERALS.

AVAELLE

BUT WHY IS IT COLORED? WHY IS IT NOT JUST…

KEVIN, VINCENT

“MONKIEES”.

KEVIN

“MONKIEES”?

AVAELLE

“MONKIEES”?

The conversation has no idea where to go next.

The television continues to blare.

IT ALWAYS FEELS LIKE THE STORIES ARE ABOUT ME – OR THAT I’VE SEEN THE EPISODE BEFORE WHEN IT’S CLEARLY IMPOSSIBLE.

BUT I’VE STOPPED WATCHING IT BECAUSE IT JUST BECAME UNFUN.

MY ROOMMATE WATCHES FROM TIME TO TIME BUT USUALLY SHE USES THE COMPUTER AND WATCHES FROM THERE.

I’VE HAD… DESTRUCTIVE IMPULSES.

AS YOU WOULD WITH ANYTHING YOU THINK IS TRYING TO HYPNOTIZE YOU, I WANTED TO DESTROY THEM.

BUT… SOMETHING HELD ME BACK.

KEVIN

IF YOU COULD ONLY WATCH ONE FILM…

AVAELLE

[inter.] GAY PURREE, OF COURSE.

KEVIN

ARE YOU THE HERO OR THE ANTI-HERO?

AVAELLE

THE DAMSEL?

KEVIN

YES.

[pause]

OF COURSE.

WHO IS YOUR HEALTHCARE PROVIDER?

AVAELLE

MY HEALTHCARE PROVIDER?

KEVIN

YOUR DOCTOR, AVAELLE.

WHO IS YOUR DOCTOR?

AVAELLE

I DON’T HAVE A PARTICULAR DOCTOR. I JUST GO TO THE CLINIC WHEN I FEEL BADLY.

KEVIN

DOES THE NAME “DOCTOR LENARD TRELAINE” MEAN ANYTHING TO YOU?

AVAELLE

“DOCTOR LENARD TRELAINE”. ISN’T THAT THE NAME OF THE OLD BADGER IN –

KEVIN

STAR TREK. “THE ORIGINAL SERIES”.

AVAELLE

HE WAS THE ATTENDING PHYSICIAN FOR THAT ENTIRE SHIP.

KEVIN

INDEED HE WAS.

AVAELLE

“I’M A DOCTOR, NOT A ___!”

KEVIN

YES, THAT WAS ONE OF THE JOKES THAT BECAME A MAINSTAY.

I HATE TO BE THE ONE TO INFORM YOU OF THIS, BUT…

AVAELLE…

THAT MAN WAS YOUR DOCTOR.

HE IS NOT JUST A GHOST INSIDE A TELEVISION.

I HAVE ACCESS TO A GREAT DEAL OF DATABASES AND ALL SIGNS POINT TO HIM AS YOUR PRIMARY CARE PROVIDER.

AVAELLE

HE’S …

NOT JUST A CHARACTER ON TV?

WAS THAT AN…

KEVIN

ILLUSION.

WHAT’S MORE IS THAT HE HAS LAPSED IN HIS CARE OF YOU.

THAT’S WHY YOU ARE HERE.

YOU HAVE TROUBLE CREATING AND ACCESSING TRUE MEMORY.

HE WAS GIVING YOU MEDICATION TO AMELIORATE SOME OF THAT, ALONG WITH USING THE TELEVISION TO IMPLANT FUNCTIONAL PLACES AND THINGS INTO YOUR MIND.

TO FILL THE GAPS, SO TO SPEAK.

BUT EITHER YOU CEASED YOUR MEDICATION OR HE ERRED, AVAELLE.

AND THAT’S HOW YOU ENDED UP HERE.

AVAELLE

I… I… SEE.

KEVIN

WHAT WAS YOUR LAST JOB?

AVAELLE

I HAVEN’T HAD A JOB IN A LONG TIME.

KEVIN

TRY TO REMEMBER.

AVAELLE

I’M NOT SURE I EVER HAD A REAL JOB.

I WAS TRYING TO HELP MY YOUNGER SISTER THROUGH SCHOOL.

I DID MORE OF HER HOMEWORK THAN I PROBABLY SHOULD HAVE.

SHE WAS STUDYING…

KEVIN

FINANCE?

AVAELLE

YEAH! IT WAS FINANCE.

WAS THAT JUST A LUCKY GUESS?

KEVIN

LOTS OF YOUNG PEOPLE ARE STUDYING THE COMINGS AND GOINGS OF WEALTH THESE DAYS.

I SUPPOSE IT’S PRACTICAL ENOUGH.

AVAELLE

I GUESS I SHOULD TELL THE TRUTH.

SHE ISN’T ACTUALLY MY SISTER.

I JUST LIKED TO IMAGINE THAT SHE WAS.

I DON’T REMEMBER MY PARENTS.

I THINK I SHOULD LIKE TO HAVE HAD A SISTER.

KEVIN

HOW DID YOU MEET YOUR SISTER?

AVAELLE

AN ART SHOWING.

A LOCAL HIGH SCHOOL WAS DOING A GALLERY.

KEVIN

AND YOU WENT OF YOUR OWN FREE-WILL?

AVAELLE

WELL, OF COURSE.

I HAVE LITTLE ELSE TO DO.

MY PARENTS LEFT ME A LARGE INHERITANCE BUT THERE’S JUST NOTHING I FIND WORTHY OF SPENDING MONEY ON.

PAINT. FOOD.

FOOD. PAINT.

FOOD. PAINT.

KEVIN

YOU MENTION YOUR PARENTS. DO YOU HAVE ANY –

AVAELLE

MEMORIES?

NO, I’M SURE THAT I DON’T.

IT WAS A STORY, A FEELING WITHOUT A SOURCE.

A TRUTH WITHOUT CAUSE.

LIKE… LIKE… A MORAL THAT DOESN’T NEED TO BE TAUGHT.

THAT CAUSING PAIN IN OTHERS IS WRONG.

THAT STEALING IS SELFISH.

THAT LAUGHTER IS THE BEST MEDICINE.

KEVIN

LIKE A DREAM WHERE YOU RECOGNIZE AN INDIVIDUAL BUT YOU CANNOT SEE THEIR FACE.

BUT THE DREAM IS ABLE TO ACT ON, PULL ON, YOUR MEMORY DIRECTLY, WITHOUT REQUIRING THE STIMULI WE DO IN OUR WAKING HOURS: SIGHT, SMELL, VOICE, TOUCH…

AVAELLE

THE MEMORIES I HAVE, ALL ARTIFICIAL?

KEVIN

SURELY NOT ALL OF THEM.

AND FOR BETTER OR FOR WORSE, YOU SEEM TO ALREADY BE ATTEMPTING TO RID YOURSELF OF FAULTY DATA.

YOU CAME HERE, DID YOU NOT?

AND YOU SEEM TO HAVE FORGOTTEN THE DOCTOR.

THAT, AT LEAST, MEANS SOMETHING.

HE IS MADLY IN LOVE WITH YOU.

AVAELLE

MY DOCTOR IS IN LOVE WITH ME?

KEVIN

TRULY, MADLY, DEEPLY.

THERE IS A LONG STORY THAT GOES WITH IT.

AND I SUPPOSE IT IS A BIT UNFAIR TO SAY HE’S IN LOVE WITH YOU, “YOU”, SPECIFICALLY…

AVAELLE

I DON’T…

KEVIN

HOLD ON…

AVAELLE

MY SISTER?

KEVIN

NO. DECIDEDLY NOT YOUR SISTER.

VANESSA SOUGHT YOUR MENTORSHIP AS A PAINTER?

AVAELLE

[opens mouth speechlessly]

KEVIN

[hears the Count scuttling about the gravestones]

AVAELLE

SHE DID VERY MUCH APPRECIATE ME HAVING PURCHASED HER PAINTING.

WE TALKED FOR A WHILE.

WE GOT ALONG WELL.

I DIDN’T REALIZE WHEN SHE WANTED MENTORSHIP, SHE WANTED HOUSING AS WELL.

KEVIN

HOLD YOUR THOUGHT; I BELIEVE MY ASSISTANT HAS ARRIVED.

KEVIN leaves the sitting area to attend to the front door. He exits.

Her attention returns to the television. VLADISLAUS STRAUD enters the home with KEVIN in attendance.

He speaks. Loudly.

STRAUD

AVAELLE EASTON.

AVAELLE turns toward him, a little shocked at his chosen volume.

MY NAME IS VLADISLAUS STRAUD.

WE’VE MET BEFORE.

AVAELLE

[confusion] WE HAVE?

STRAUD

IT WAS A LONG TIME AGO. NEARING TWO-HUNDRED YEARS.

AVAELLE

[titters dismissively] TWO-HUNDRED YEARS?

YOU MUST BE MISTAKEN.

STRAUD

THEN, HOW OLD ARE YOU?

YOU LOOK NOT A DAY OVER FORTY.

AVAELLE

I STOPPED COUNTING.

THIRTY-FIVE?

STRAUD

YOU MEAN YOU NEVER STARTED.

WHO IS YOUR FATHER, AVAELLE?

AVAELLE

I… I… DON’T KNOW.

STRAUD

YOU ARE HALF-RIGHT.

YOU ARE NOT BORN OF MAN AND WOMAN, AVAELLE.

YOU WERE CREATED, CLONED, COPIED.

FROM AN ANCIENT BLOODLINE.

BUT YOU’VE BEEN DENIED.

YOU ARE THE LAST OF YOUR KIND.

NO DATA STRUCTURE SUCH AS DNA MAY LAST FOREVER.

AVAELLE

A CLONE?

BUT I DIDN’T THINK THAT WAS POSSIBLE YET.

I REMEMBER HEARING ABOUT THE SHEEP…

VINCENT

“SHEEP-FOR-BRAINS”?

KEVIN

“I AM” SHEEP FOR BRAINS.

VINCENT

THAT REALLY WAS QUITE UNPLEASANT.

KEVIN

YOU’RE TELLING ME.

STRAUD

YOUR DOCTOR HAS…

POWERFUL FRIENDS.

FRIENDS ABLE TO MAKE MORE THAN JUST A TEST-TUBE EWE.

HE COMES FROM A PLACE WHERE SUCH FEATS ARE EASILY ACCOMPLISHED.

HE’S HAD TO TAKE TIME TO LEARN HOW TO WORK HIS CRAFT ON EARTH, BUT HE’S ONLY UNDER THE FEAR OF HIS PATRON’S WHIP;

HE HIMSELF FREED FROM THE THREAT OF DEATH FROM AGE OR DISEASE.

BUT YOU ARE FROM EARTH, MADE OF EARTH.

YOU ARE SPECIAL, YOUR LINE UNIQUE, MORE VALUABLE THAN YOU CAN POSSIBLY IMAGINE.

THAT IS JUST ONE REASON THAT THE DOCTOR HAS BEEN INFATUATED WITH YOUR LINE FOR HUNDREDS OF YEARS.

YOUR BODY MAY BE THIRTY-FIVE OR HOWEVER MANY YOU CLAIM, BUT YOUR SOUL-STUFF, BOUND, IMPRISONED, ALMOST, TO YOUR DNA, IS FAR OLDER THAN THAT.

YOUR MEMORY LAPSES CERTAINLY INDICATE THAT YOU ARE THE LAST OF YOUR KIND. YOUR…

KEVIN

LET’S CALL HER YOUR MOTHER.

VINCENT

GOOD CALL.

STRAUD

YOUR MOTHER DOES NOT SUFFER SUCH AN UNFAIR ILLNESS.

AVAELLE

MY… “MOTHER”?

STRAUD

I STRUGGLE TO FIND AN APPROPRIATE TERM, SO THAT IS THE CLOSEST I CAN THINK OF.

YOU NOW KNOW THAT YOU ARE A CLONE, THE LAST OF YOUR KIND.

BUT WE – MY FRIENDS AND I WHO REFUSE AFFILIATION WITH DOCTOR TRELAINE AND HIS ASSOCIATES –

ARE GUARDIANS OVER AN ELDER CLONE OF YOUR LINE.

I SUPPOSE IT IS DISINGENUOUS TO SAY SHE DOES NOT SUFFER YOUR ILLNESS –

SHE HAS HER OWN WEAKNESSES, LIKE YOURSELF.

YOU WERE MADE BY MODERN MEDICINE;

SHE OWES HER EXISTENCE TO THE DOCTOR’S EUGENICS PROGRAM, ONLY DISCOVERED BY ME…

LATE.

TWO-HUNDRED YEARS AGO.

I SAY I MET YOU THEN, AND IT’S NOT ENTIRELY UNTRUE, BUT YOU WERE BUT A TWINKLE IN YOUR MOTHER’S EYE THEN.

IT WAS WITH HER THE DOCTOR BECAME INFATUATED.

BUT I WILL STOP HERE, LEST THE HISTORY LESSON BECOME SATURATED WITH THE FINER POINTS.

KEVIN

PERHAPS YOU SHOULD CONTINUE, SIR.

UNANSWERED QUESTIONS CAN CARRY SUCH TREMENDOUS WEIGHT WITH THEM.

VINCENT

I’LL SAY.

STRAUD

YOU SPOKE EARLIER OF YOUR SISTER, VANESSA TANG.

AND I TOLD YOU OF THE DOCTOR’S CURSE; THAT HE CAN NO LONGER PERISH OF OLD AGE OR DISEASE.

THESE TWO… AS WELL AS…

[lifts hand and places it upon chest, as if to indicate himself]

“MYSELF”…

ARE WHAT THE PEOPLE OF EARTH CALL “VAMPIRES”.

EVERY VAMPIRE IS UNHAPPY IN HIS OWN WAY BUT IN PLAIN TONGUE ALL ARE ALIKE.

SURELY YOUR EDUCATION GIVEN YOU BY THE…

[looks toward the television, pausing to wince]

TELEVISION HAS TAUGHT YOU SOMETHING OF OUR KIND.

AVAELLE

THE FILM: EARLY NINETIES. BRAM STOKER’S…

STRAUD

[inter.] YES YES YES. WE’RE ALL FAMILIAR WITH IT.

AND FAMILIAR WITH HIM.

BUT WE ARE NOT LIKE HIM.

KEVIN

LET US NOT CONFUSE THE ISSUE…

STRAUD

[lamentingly] FINE.

SINCE YOU INSIST, I WILL CLARIFY.

THERE ARE SIMILARITIES BETWEEN THE MURD’YR AND OURSELVES.

I DON’T PREFER TO ENUMERATE THEM BUT IN THE INTEREST OF ACADEMIC CLARITY, YES, THERE ARE SIMILIARITIES.

ONE OF THE AWOKEN…

[sigh]

“UNDEAD”…

DOES NOT SUBSIST ON FRUITS AND CORN OF THE EARTH’S SOIL.

HE IS CURSED TO CONSUME THE BLOOD OF HUMANITY.

DRAKUL… A KILLER.

BUT IT IS NOT NECESSARY FOR OUR KIND TO KILL.

THAT IS THE GIFT.

WHERE A MAN MUST CUT CABBAGE FROM THE ROOT, DRAIN THE BLOOD OF THE FLESH OF A DEAD ANIMAL…

WE ARE… IN THE BEST POSSIBLE LIGHT: MILK-DRINKERS.

VINCENT

NOW THAT IS PUTTING A POSITIVE SPIN ON THINGS.

KEVIN

THAT PARTICULAR IMAGERY IS A BIT CONFUSED.

MILK IS PRODUCED BY A MOTHER FOR HER SPECIFIC CHILD.

BUT IT IS TRUE THAT ALL SHE EATS MUST BE CUT FROM THE EARTH TO GRANT HER SUSTINANCE TO CREATE SUCH A MEAL.

IN THAT WAY, WE ARE ALIKE.

BUT THE DRAINING OF BLOOD, ESPECIALLY WHEN IT IS NOT THEFT, BUT IS GIVEN OF ONE’S FREE-WILL, REQUIRES NO SUCH CULLING.

IT IS EVEN TRUE THT IT MAY GRANT THE GIVER TRUE-SLEEP – WHEREIN THE HUMAN, AS IF AFTER A SLOUGHING, HAS LIKENED DESANGUINATION AS AN EXFOLIATION TO DRIVE THE CREATION OF FRESH, NEW BLOOD.

TRUE-SLEEP IS A GIFT, A RESPITE, FROM THE SLEEPLESSNESS THAT PLAGUES SO MANY OF THE WOULD-BE DREAMERS.

STRAUD

SOME OF THE VAMPIRES COME FROM THE OLD WORLD, LIKE MYSELF, LIKE YOUR DOCTOR.

BUT OTHERS ARE CONVERTED.

THEY ARE BORN HUMAN BUT GIVEN THE GIFT; THE CURSE.

YOUR ANTECEDENT WAS ONE SUCH CONVERT.

IT IS NOT SO… EASY FOR THE MORTALS TO SLIP INTO.

BUT BEFORE I MAY CONTINUE, I NEED REST. YOU, TOO, NEED REST.

KEVIN?

KEVIN

[casts sleep]