Sunday, March 25, 2007

The Enemy Within III

23. INT. SALOON (NIGHT)

A rather gloomy room as the lights are dimmer than ideal. There is a pool table set for a game, several bookshelves, an empty fireplace and a bar to one side with glasses and bottles. Daniel stands beside it, carefully filling a cocktail shaker. The Doctor stands to one side, looking cautious and suspicious.

DOCTOR
Just where has Simon got to?

DANIEL
Simon?

DOCTOR
The butler!

DANIEL
Oh, Pascoe? Some niggling little task no doubt. For a gentleman’s gentleman, work is never done.

DOCTOR
I doubt that’s a sensible attitude. He looks like he could use a holiday.

DANIEL
Holiday? He gets to live in this luxury and is paid for it. What more could he need?

DOCTOR
Marie Antoinette said something similar at Versailles.

DANIEL
You were there? You must have been very young.

DOCTOR
Oh, I’ve just aged very well.

Daniel starts to shake the cocktail.

DANIEL
The usual?

DOCTOR
And what would that be?

DANIEL
You tell me.

The Doctor reaches across the pool table and reorganizes the balls in the triangle.

DOCTOR
I think it’s time we came clean.

Daniel pours the cocktail into a glass.

DANIEL
If it pleases you, Doctor.

DOCTOR
Have we met before?

DANIEL
The recognition of friends is not always easy.

DOCTOR
I’ve heard it said. But I’m positive we’ve never met before.

DANIEL
Perhaps you will meet me... earlier. Or later, depending on your point of view.

DOCTOR
That’s a very open-minded philosophy.

DANIEL
Or I simply know what that blue box is capable of.

DOCTOR
I find that hard to believe. I also find it hard to believe that if, at some point, I meet you before tonight that I wouldn’t ask you to keep quiet about the meeting. Stop futures cementing and time lines casting. Don’t you agree?

Silence.

DOCTOR
You were out in the forest tonight, weren’t you, Daniel?

DANIEL
So were you.

DOCTOR
You were the one Peri saw. The one... the one I thought I saw.

DANIEL
My dear Doctor, did you just shiver? Not frightened, I hope.

DOCTOR
Frightened? Do you know how often I’ve been spied on, stalked, followed, tailed, traced, tracked and pursued? Far too many times to be unnerved by an aristocratic fop on a midnight nature ramble.

DANIEL
Yet you do seem... unnerved.

DOCTOR
Not at all. Just... just cold.

DANIEL
A drink would warm you up. Whiskey?

DOCTOR
No thank you. I prefer to keep a clear head. So... you see a big blue box appear out of nowhere and two people emerge, dressed strangely, with no idea of their surroundings in either time or space. And you... just watch us.
Silence.

DANIEL
It wasn’t me.

DOCTOR
What wasn’t?

DANIEL
I wasn’t there. Outside. I haven’t left the house since dusk.

DOCTOR
Yet you seem to know so much.

DANIEL
It wasn’t me.

DOCTOR
You were there.

DANIEL
Not me.

DOCTOR
Then who?

Daniel stares him straight in the eye, tense in his voice.

DANIEL
Not... ME.

The Doctor nods, understanding.

DOCTOR
Not you. Your body then? Daniel, please, this is important. Daniel?

He is concentrating on cleaning a glass.

DOCTOR
Daniel? You’ve got a problem, and I think I can help.

Daniel chuckles and replaces the glass.

DANIEL
My problem. My ‘problem’. I’m in a cage with bars that will not break, Doctor. I can’t get out. All I can do is scream. And sometimes, not even that. Sometimes, all my yells and screams and sobs just... stop. Leaving the voice.

The Doctor steps closer.

DOCTOR
‘Voice’? And what voice would that be?

DANIEL
His voice.

DOCTOR
Who’s voice?

DANIEL
His. He’s inside my body now. Just under the skin. Beating and bashing and struggling to get out. Sometimes he gets out. Only for a little. I fight him off. But he fights back. I can’t stop him for long. Only a few moments left to myself.

DOCTOR
And when this... being is free, what does he do?

Daniel’s expression is wretched. He stares blankly into the distance.

DANIEL
Bad things.

DOCTOR
Like that poor fox on the hill?

DANIEL
Yes. He laughed as he did that.

The Doctor’s expression hardens.

DOCTOR
Why?

DANIEL
He wanted it to hurt. He wanted you to find it. So you’d be scared. And then he could hurt you. He wants to hurt everyone. Make us bleed. Make us die.

DOCTOR
But what is this thing? Do you know its name?

Daniel stares blankly ahead.

DOCTOR
Daniel? Daniel can you hear me?

The Doctor snaps his fingers in front of Daniel, then waves. No reaction. The Doctor speaks in an anxious whisper.

DOCTOR
Daniel?

Daniel, his expression blank, begins to open his mouth and carefully forms words. The horrible, raspy voice croaks out of the mouth. The Doctor flinches back.

THE VOICE (VO)
I am... the one God... the Father of the Almighty Maker... of Heaven and Earth...

Daniel’s eyes roll up in his head and it turns blindly to face the Doctor.

THE VOICE (VO)
... of all that is seen... and UNSEEN... and you... will... suffer...

The Doctor smiles cruelly.

DOCTOR
Oh, you’re going to have to do much better than that.

He places his hands gently on Daniel’s temples.

DOCTOR
Now... BEGONE!!

The Doctor screams the last word and Daniel convulses, his eyes and voice returning to normal. Warily he looks at the Doctor. His voice is numb.

DANIEL
He’ll come back.

DOCTOR
And I’ll be waiting for him. Now, please, tell me everything you know.

DANIEL
You can’t stop him.

DOCTOR
I can but try. After all, I quite like foxes. Now, Daniel, hurry!


24. INT. DRAWING ROOM (NIGHT)

Emily is looking out the window, troubled. Nearby are the Colonel and Tracey. Less troubled, and more interested in the heat of the fire.

EMILY
I’m sure I heard something out there.

TRACEY
Oh, don’t get your corset in a twist, Emily. We’re quite safe.

COLONEL
Yes. Even if this maniac of that Doctor’s IS around the place, he can’t get in here and, if he did...

The Colonel pulls a pistol from his pocket and is amused when everyone jumps slightly.

COLONEL
He won’t be expecting this?

Theodore glares at Maurice.

THEODORE
I thought I told you to water his whiskey.

MAURICE
I did. He didn’t drink it though. He has his own supplies.

THEODORE
I know that, you numbskull, I meant water HIS supplies.

MAURICE
Oh.

Awkwardly, Maurice crosses to the window and pretends to be concerned.

MAURICE
You know, I think I heard something out there. A sort of noise like drainpipes clogged.

COLONEL
Probably was the drainpipes, you stupid boy. Now stop trying to upset the ladies.

Maurice sulks over to Theodore, muttering bitterly.

MAURICE
Wouldn’t surprise me if there was a madman out there. It’s a horrible place here. When I get the inheritance, I’m selling this place and getting as far away from this hell hole as I can.

THEODORE
I’m sure once you’re gone the air will be sweeter and the skies brighter.

MAURICE
Yes, yes, very funny, Theo. Don’t tell me this place doesn’t bother you. You’ve missed the last three get togethers.

THEODORE
Unavoidably detained.

MAURICE
Unavoidably? I didn’t know golf tournaments were life and death nowadays.

THEODORE
What you don’t know could fill the libraries of Alexandria.

MAURICE
Ah, ah, don’t try and change the topic – you KNOW this place is sinister. Wouldn’t surprise me at all if some yokel’s gone mad and started strangling goats.

THEODORE
It was a fox, you simpleton.

He strides out. Maurice follows. Emily watches them go.

EMILY
I wonder what they’re up to.


25. INT. HALLWAY (NIGHT)

Theodore strolls down the hallway, idly looking at the paintings. Maurice nips out the doors and closes them behind him.

MAURICE
Today. It was a fox TODAY. What about tomorrow? You know what happened to the last family who lived here?

THEODORE
Probably more than you do.

MAURICE
Dead, they’re all dead, that’s what.

THEODORE
Not surprisingly. They left the grounds in 1857. Of course they’re all dead.

MAURICE
They’re dead because the man of the house went insane with flintlock pistols and killed his wife, children and all the servants. Then killed himself.

THEODORE
Maurice, this conversation is starting to make me envy that madman.

MAURICE
And when his brother took over the house, what happened? He hanged himself!

THEODORE
Yes, he hanged himself. In Bermingham. Six years after father moved in.

MAURICE
It still counts.

THEODORE
Oh, stop your noise pollution you shabby wretch.

MAURICE
If you want to talk shop in front of the others...?

Theodore places a brotherly hand on his shoulder. And squeezes. Maurice chokes back a cry, unable to speak.

THEODORE
It will be best if you keep your mouth SHUT.

Maurice tries to gasp, then nods. Theodore lets him go. The others haven’t noticed. Maurice rubs his shoulder, almost bent double with pain.

MAURICE
Careful now. You can’t do away with me. You need me!

Theodore is already leaving.

THEODORE
I wouldn't wager your life on that, Maurice.

Shaken and clearly afraid, Maurice watches him go. After a moment, he follows. We pull back to see Pascoe is hiding behind the grandfather clock (which has stopped). He has heard every word said. He turns and moves off.


26. INT. SALOON (NIGHT)

Daniel lies on the couch, pale and unwell, staring vaguely at the ceiling. The Doctor stands over him, staring into his eyes. He speaks gently.

DOCTOR
That’s it. Slide back into the place. You are Daniel Fforde-Jones. No one else. Remember.

Daniel nods, seeming to become more lucid. At that moment the doors slam open without shocking noise. The Doctor flinches and Daniel gasps, clutching his throat. It is Peri, having run all the way.

PERI
Doctor! ...This place it’s.... like a maze, all the corridors...

DOCTOR
Peri! What’s the matter?

PERI
That man... He’s the psycho!

DOCTOR
Oh, I know that!

PERI
Sorry. Just thought he might have gutted you like a fox, that’s all.

DOCTOR
Peri, don’t you have any faith in me? Now, please. Quiet.

PERI
Why? What’s happening?

DOCTOR
Daniel’s going to tell us how this nasty business started, aren’t you?

DANIEL
What did you do to me?

DOCTOR
Gave you some focus, but time is scarce. Now, tell me.

DANIEL
Happened... weeks ago. Visiting father. Went out for a walk in the woods. Then I heard this noise. Like, like a steam valve opening. But not like it. Something else. Then, I was trapped. Alone. In the dark. But there was something else there in the dark. It was laughing at me. I couldn’t breathe. It was so close.

Daniel looks at them, eyes brimming with tears.

DANIEL
It’s inside my head. My body. And it’s laughing.


27. INT. HALLWAY (NIGHT)

Pascoe moves through the shadows. He stops by the wardrobe.

DANIEL (VO)
I woke up at home. I thought it was a dream. But it was days later. They say I came home, acted... different. But they didn’t notice. They thought I was just ill. And when I woke up I wanted to tell them the truth. But he didn’t let me.

Pascoe looks down at the pool of blood spreading from the cupboard. He does not react in any way whatsoever. He crouches down, studying the expanding pool from the wardrobe doors. The blood continues to expand, as if moving towards Pascoe.

DOCTOR (VO)
Who didn’t? Who is this... controller of yours?

DANIEL (VO)
He started to change what I wanted to say. Little things at first. And soon, I couldn’t talk. It was just him. Sometimes I could, just for a while, but if I tried to tell anyone, he came back. Don’t you see?

Pascoe stares at the blood, now looking fascinated.


28. THE BEYOND

The creature is stalking down the tunnel. Its movement controlled. Like a predator.

DANIEL (VO)
I wasn’t getting control. He was letting me free. Just so he could take me back! So he can laugh at me inside my own head!


29. INT. SALOON (NIGHT)

As before.

DANIEL
Then, tonight, he stopped pretending. Took me over more than he ever had before. I couldn’t see. I couldn’t think. But I could see him. He knew you were coming. He killed that poor fox. He knew you’d find it. He was watching you.

PERI
I saw him. You.

DANIEL
He wanted you to see me. He wanted you scared.

DOCTOR
Why does he want us scared?

DANIEL
So that when he hurts you... you’ll scream more.


30. INT. UPPER LANDING (NIGHT)

Theodore is studying a painting on the upper landing. It is a painting of a Roman soldier carrying a spear. The head of the soldier is a giant skull, totally out of proportion with its tiny body. Maurice stands nearby.

MAURICE
It’s like being in a meat locker up here!

THEODORE
More pathetic whinging. It’s cold. Accept it.

MAURICE
Maybe I’ll do that when you stop shilly-shallying. Are we doing this or not?

THEODORE
I haven’t decided yet.

MAURICE
Yet? It’s why we came here! It’s supposed to be tonight!

THEODORE
That was before the Doctor and Miss Brown arrived. Random elements I haven’t planned for.

MAURICE
Oh, don’t be a nancy, Theo! They’re tailor-made scapegoats.

THEODORE
And there’s Daniel’s increasing... illness.

MAURICE
Then add him to the list of suspects. He’ll get put into an asylum like he needs.

Theodore finally takes his gaze from the painting.

THEODORE
You’d really do that to your own brother?

MAURICE
So would you. Don’t pretend you haven’t considered it.

THEODORE
I have. But I haven’t decided yet.

Theodore begins to head towards the end of the corridor as it branches away.

MAURICE
More abysmal laziness! Months we’ve waited for this, and just because the idiot brother’s started talking to the trees, you go and throw it... Are you even paying attention to me?

THEODORE
No.

MAURICE
Charming!

THEODORE
Shut up. I’m listening.

MAURICE
If not to me then to what then, pray tell!

Theodore shrugs and shakes his head.

THEODORE
I thought I heard something. Like something burning.

MAURICE
You heard it? I thought you’d smell it first.

THEODORE
I’m lucky to have any olfactory senses with the amount of perfume you insist on putting on. Are you trying to suffocate the lot of us?

MAURICE
Parisian style is beyond your comprehension, isn’t it, Theo?

THEODORE
As much as acceptable social behavior is beyond yours, Maurice.

We see Theodore and Maurice in the foreground, facing each other, and, between them at the far end of the corridor, a static figure, half-hidden in the shadows but still visible, is standing rigidly, staring straight at us.
MAURICE
An actual retort! Are you ill per chance?!

THEODORE
Seeing you is always guaranteed to make me feel sick.

Maurice turns and sees the figure.

MAURICE
Yes, well, that’s... Who...?

THEODORE
What?

Theodore follows his gaze. There is no one there.

MAURICE
Did you see that?

THEODORE
What?

MAURICE
I thought... Well, I just thought I saw someone standing down there. At the end of the corridor. Staring at us.

THEODORE
Yes, more proof alcohol dims the faculties.

MAURICE
Oh, shut up, Theodore! I’m serious! It was here. Just... watching us.

THEODORE
Trick of the light.

MAURICE
It was not!

THEODORE
Did you see it clearly?

MAURICE
Are you doubting my ocular skill?!

THEODORE
Did you?

MAURICE
Well, no...

THEODORE
There, you see.

MAURICE
It WAS a bit blurry, I admit, but it was right here!

THEODORE
Just shadows. The curtains. Look.

Theo tugs at the curtains, pulling them together making, just for a moment, a humanoid shape. The curtains fall back into position.

THEODORE
See. Just your pathetic excuse of an imagination. Faces in the fire.

MAURICE
But I’m sure... I felt it.

THEODORE
‘Felt’ it?

MAURICE
He was here!

THEODORE
He?

MAURICE
Are you going to repeat me all night?

A long pause.

THEODORE
No.

He turns and strides down the corridor and out of sight.

MAURICE
Well, where are you going?!

No reply. Maurice is left alone. He looks down the corridor, freezes, and then whirls around. Nothing. He rubs his throat.

MAURICE
I don’t need this. No one does.

He slowly backs away from the spot and keeps moving. Then suddenly he breaks into a sprint and out of sight. The gasping voice starts to laugh, louder and louder before suddenly stopping.

to be continued...

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