Deep Legend, DeYtH Banger [ebook reader computer .TXT] 📗

than later, Creedy, with the
way Almond's crackin' up.

LOUT
Bloody bugger's losing his marbles.

HARPER
Terrorist or no, if that bastard
gives me another double shift, I'll
stomp his fucking head.

Creedy raises his drink.

CREEDY
Aye. This nonsense has put a
serious strain on my drinking. I
think I was actually sober today.

LOUT
I'll drink to that.

HARPER
We need to get a real man of the
people in that director's position.
Like Creedy here.

Everyone cheers in agreement.

CREEDY
Well, it's good to know when the
shit hits the fan who your real
friends are.

They salute and drink.

INT. ALMOND HOME

Derek Almond sits hunched under a desk lamp, pumping the
cylinders of his revolver with a wire brush.

Rosemary shuffles up to him, her frumpy gown gathered around
her.

ROSEMARY
Derek --

He blows down one of the cylinders, not looking up.

DEREK
I don't want to hear it, Rosemary.

ROSEMARY
Derek, please! We can't carry on
like this.

Derek stares at the gun, rage building.

ROSEMARY
You don't talk to me. You don't
eat with me. You don't have sex --

Derek leaps up, slugging her.

Rosemary clatters to the ground in tears. Derek glowering
over her.

DEREK
I don't have to take any crap from
you! I have that fat bastard
riding me all day. I don't want to
listen to you, so shut your fat
gob!

He leans into her face.

DEREK
And me not wanting to fuck you is
obvious. Take a look at yourself.

He sits back in front of the gun, wiping it down.

DEREK
Get out of my sight. I'm cleaning
my gun.

INT. DELIA SURRIDGE'S HOME

Dr. Surridge sits somberly in the dark, street light
filtering in from the open curtains.

Her eyes fixed on the violet carson as she slowly turns it
over in her hands, fingers tracing the soft petals.

After a moment, she stands, letting it fall from her lap.

INT. FINCH'S OFFICE - THE NOSE

Finch turns as Dominic bursts in.

DOMINIC
I got it!

FINCH
A connection?

Dominic waves a printout.

DOMINIC
Larkhill Resettlement Camp.
Prothero's and Lilliman's
employment records show they both
help positions there at similar
times.

FINCH
What about codename V?

DOMINIC
Most of Larkhill's records were
destroyed for security reasons but
I did uncover an old standard
procedures and operations manual.

Dominic smiles.

DOMINIC
In special case studies, medical
research groups used roman numerals
to identify test inmates.

FINCH
Five is the letter V. Brilliant,
Dominic.

Finch slides in front of his computer.

FINCH
All we need is Larkhill's
employment records.

INT. DELIA SURRIDGE'S BEDROOM

The covers pulled protectively up around her, Delia rests in
a light, uneasy sleep.

Suddenly, an eye pops open as she awakens, catching a
familiar scent. She slowly sits up and inhales.

DELIA
Roses.

She closes her eyes.

DELIA
It's you, isn't it? You've come to
kill me.

From the shadows, V answers.

V
Yes.

Tears begin to streak her face.

DELIA
Oh thank god. Thank god.

INT. FINCH'S OFFICE - THE NOSE

Dominic hangs over Finch's shoulder as Larkhill's employment
record comes up.

Finch's mouth falls open.

FINCH
Oh my god.

Row after row of names scroll by at the end of each bio are
the words: deceased, file closed.

FINCH
Oh bloody hell.

The data banks unfurl like a mass grave.

DOMINIC
He's killed them all? It's not
possible.

Finch stops, staring at the one name whose file is not
closed --

FINCH
Oh no.

Dr. Delia Surridge.

INT. DELIA SURRIDGE'S BEDROOM

V floats on the edge of the room's shadows, a dark angel.

V
Are you afraid?

DELIA
No, no. I thought I would be, but
I'm not. I'm --

She looks at the hovering, smiling mask.

DELIA
Relieved.

She starts to cry again.

DELIA
Oh god, all these years. All this
waiting. And somehow I always knew
you'd come back.

Delia thinks back.

DELIA
When I saw you that night -- the
night you escaped, you were
standing against the flames and you
looked straight at me.

The mask almost nods.

DELIA
I knew then that one day you'd come
looking for me, that you'd find me.

Her voice drops to an almost confessional whisper.

DELIA
What -- what happened at Larkhill.
What we did -- What I did. That
terrible knowledge, it's been with
me so long. That I could do things
like that.

Delia rubs the salty tears from her eyes.

DELIA
For years, I blamed it on the
government, on the authority I
could never stand up to. But
living so long with the knowledge
of what I did has made me
understand otherwise. I alone was
accountable.

V watches her.

DELIA
There is something wrong with us.
With all of mankind. With me.
Something evil that made me enjoy
what I did. Some hideous flaw.

Her voice almost trails off.

DELIA
We deserve to be culled. We
deserve it.

INT. ALMOND BEDROOM

Light sweeps across Rosemary from the opening bedroom door as
she sobs softly in bed. Derek enters, holding a bottle of
whiskey and his clean gun.

She sits up as Derek looms over her.

ROSEMARY
Derek? What?

He lifts the gun into her bruised face. Her eyebrows cringe
as he slowly pulls the trigger.

DEREK
Bang.

Click. It is empty.

DEREK
Don't worry, Rose. I didn't load
it.

The phone rings.

DEREK
Not tonight.

He grins evilly at her and answers the bedside phone.

DEREK
Almond. What?! Where?

Derek's drunk eyes light up.

DEREK
Oh god, yes! God, thank you!

He slams the phone down, charging out of the room.

EXT. KITTY KAT KELLER

A gaggle of drunks exit the bar, laughing and singing as they
pass a small figure.

INT. KITTY KAT KELLER

Evey wanders into the bar amidst the lustful screams and cat
calls for the line of high stepping, semi-clothed girls on
stage.

She stares out into the crowd, not sure why she is here when
a man approaches her: Creedy. His sloppy smile indicates he
has had a few drinks.

CREEDY
You look lost.

She looks blankly at him.

CREEDY
Can I buy you a drink?

EVEY
No... I made a mistake.

She turns for the door.

EVEY
I have to find someone.

Creedy frowns as his radio crackles.

CREEDY
Well I didn't like the looks of you
anyway --

RADIO (V.O.)
All units, all units. Code red.
Converge in Plaistow to apprehend
codename V.

CREEDY
Bloody hell!

He screams to the Fingermen at the back.

CREEDY
It's him! We got him!

Evey watches as they storm out of the bar, then follows.

EXT. CITY STREET

The emergency lights blaring, Finch's car squeals around a
corner.

INT. DELIA SURRIDGE'S BEDROOM

V hovers ghostly at Delia's bedside.

DELIA
It's funny, I was given one of your
roses today. I wasn't sure you
were the terrorist until I saw it.

She manages a smile.

DELIA
What a strange coincidence. That I
should be given it today.

V
There are no coincidences, Delia.
Only the illusion of coincidence.

He reaches into his cloak.

V
I have another rose. This one is
for you.

He hands it to her.

DELIA
Then you are going to kill me now?

V produces an empty syringe.

V
I killed you ten minutes ago.
While you slept.

DELIA
Is there any pain?

V sits on the bed.

V
No. No pain.

DELIA
Thank you.

She stares at the mask.

DELIA
Can I -- Can I see your face again?

V slowly pulls off his hat and lifts his mask. Delia stares
into his face.

DELIA
It's beautiful...

The rose falls from her hands.

INT. HALL

V quietly shuts the door as if not to wake her and turns just
as --

Derek Almond reaches the top of the stairs.

DEREK
Don't move an inch, you bloody
bastard.

He trains his gun.

DEREK
You didn't hear me arrive, did you?
Didn't know we'd rumbled you?

He squints.

DEREK
It's all finished, chummy. All of
it. The old man told me it was my
head or yours and what do you know.
It's yours.

The smiling mask stares.

DEREK
Because you're standing over there
with your bloody stupid knives and
your fancy karate gimmicks --

Derek pulls back the hammer.

DEREK
And I've got a gun.

He smiles.

DEREK
Bang.

Click. He never loaded it.

There is an awkward moment of silence, then V moves --

Cloak opening, filling the hall like a black tidal wave that
envelopes Derek. He chokes a scream as V embraces him,
slipping a knife above his floating rib.

Derek Almond sputters as he claws at V's mask.

DEREK
Who -- Who are you?

V
Yes, look. Look and tell me what
you see.

He rips V's mask off as V thrusts the knife in deeper.

Derek's eyes widen in horror as his life pours out the knife
wound.

DEREK
Horrible! God, it's horrible!

V jerks his blade free, letting Derek slip to the ground.

EXT. DELIA SURRIDGE'S HOME

Finch's car bucks up onto the sidewalk.

Finch and Dominic tear out of the car and barrel into the
house.

INT. DELIA SURRIDGE'S HOME

At the top of the stairs, they find the dead Derek. Finch
rushes past him for the bedroom.

FINCH
Delia?

Inside, he finds her. Her eyes fixed, cold, and dead, a
single violet carson in her lap.

FINCH
Get an ambulance.

EXT. DELIA SURRIDGE'S HOME

Evey rushes around a corner to see a crime scene bathed in
siren light. She pushes up to the police barricade as the
M.E.'s load a draped body into their van.

EVEY
Oh no... V?

She tries to angle around to get a better look when a man in
a brown overcoat grabs her from behind and drags her into the
alley.

INT. DELIA SURRIDGE'S BEDROOM

From the corner of the room, Finch sits, watching as the
M.E.'s wheel out Delia's body.

Dominic squeezes past the gurney and crosses toward Finch.

DOMINIC
I'm sorry, sir. You knew the
doctor pretty well?

Finch nods.

DOMINIC
We found this on her bureau, sir.
It's Dr. Surridge's journal. It
covers her years at Larkhill. It
might contain the whole story.

Dominic searches for something more to say when Finch does
not answer.

After a moment, Finch looks at the book in Dominic's hand,
then takes it, leafing through the pages. They flip by, a
breathy sigh, rising to a cold wind.

DELIA (V.O.)
May 23rd...

INT. LARKHILL MEDICAL RESEARCH BLOCK - DAY - FLASHBACK

A younger Dr. Surridge, one by one, administers a series of
injections to her research stock.

DELIA (V.O.)
Prothero has hand picked my
subjects. Four dozen of them, none
of which will be any use to me if I
don't get to work soon.

She finishes an injection, Prothero encouraging the next
subject. We recognize her as the woman Prothero pointed at.

DELIA (V.O.)
They're so weak and pathetic I find
myself hating them.

Delia prepares the next dose, a sour look on her face.

DELIA (V.O.)
They don't fight or struggle. Just
stare at you with weak eyes.

PROTHERO
Next.

INT. LARKHILL OVENS - DAY - FLASHBACK

Two inmate orderlies are hefting sacked cadavers from a cart
into an incinerator.

DELIA (V.O.)
June 9th: Of the original four
dozen, over 75% are now deceased.
Strangely, no clear patterns have
emerged as of yet.

Another body thuds onto the pile.

DELIA (V.O.)
Batch 5 seems to have no common
discernible effect on any specific
group though the men seem slightly
more resilient than the women.

When it is full, they move to the next door until the cart is
empty.

DELIA (V.O.)
I'm hoping the survivors will
provide more answers or my time
here will have gone to waste.

Red heat suddenly glows from the oven vents as the orderly
throws a series of switches.

INT. LARKHILL MEDICAL RESEARCH BLOCK - DAY - FLASHBACK

Dr. Surridge moves down the drab aseptic hallway accompanied
by an armed guard. Roman numerals on the doors to each cell
ascend to five.

DELIA (V.O.)
June 18: And only five left now.
Two men and three women. Which
tends to contradict my entry on the
9th.

She pauses at room five.

DELIA (V.O.)
The man in room five is a
fascinating case.

She looks through the small chicken wire glass window in the
door.

DELIA (V.O.)
Physically, there doesn't seem to
be anything wrong with him. No
cellular anomalies, nothing.

In the back, just on the edge of the room's shadow, sits the
man in room five, silently staring back.

DELIA (V.O.)
Batch five, however, seems to have
brought on some kind of psychotic
breakdown. He's quite insane.

Dr. Surridge can't seem to break her stare.

DELIA (V.O.)
He has this way of looking through
you. Reverend Lilliman won't go
near him. He claims that it is the
devil in room five. I see him
cross himself whenever he passes
his door. Still, there's something
about him...

EXT. LARKHILL GARDEN - DAY - FLASHBACK

Dr. Surridge slowly moves through the Larkhill garden, an
incredible abundance of fruits, vegetables and violet carson
roses.

DELIA (V.O.)
I'm glad Prothero let room five
have a go at the gardening project.
He is quite proficient. Prothero
was reluctant to allow an inmate
access to the tool and chemical
supply at first but now the fat
toad is delighted. The crop has
almost doubled.

She traces the petals of a rose