Act 1
Starring:
Lacey Chabert as Skye Talisker, Gale Harold as Jim Pollan, Caroline Dhavernas as Grace Hatherley, Michelle Rodriguez as Kadin Van Helsing, Elijah Wood as Jeff Lindquist, Norika Fujiwara as Mia Nakata, Laura Pyper as Casey Pierce, Asia Argento as Marie, Alexis Bledel as Denise, Tessa Thompson as Chamique, Steffani Brass as Shannon Matthewson, Rachel Hurd-Wood as Lorinda Sheparton, Mandy Musgrave as Hadley Ramirez, Freema Agyeman as Siobhan Hartley, Robert Picardo as Dr. Albert Miller, Laura Prepon as Lori Carew, Cote de Pablo as Amira Aziz, Winona Ryder as Valentine Pavlov, and Gary Oldman as Mr. Jason Felix
Guest Starring:
Robin Sachs as Ethan Rayne, Jessica Beals as Miss Sanger, Marcia Cross as Autumn O’Mara, Eric Loren as the Psychovore, Robin Riker as Catherine Madison and Dame Helen Mirren as Emily Hoffman
Cut To:
Int.
PBS Studio – Charlie Rose Set – Day (On Screen)
PBS interviewer Charlie Rose leaned over the table toward his guest.
“We’re here with John Harriman, bestselling author of unauthorized biographies of Princess Diana and Tom Cruise. His latest book is about the slayer Faith Lehane and is titled Blood and Darkness. What I find simply fascinating, Mr. Harriman, is the way you were able to dig up information for this book…information that no one else has gone public with. How were you able to do that?”
John Harriman wore a perfectly tailored suit and a small pair of spectacles over his nose. He spoke in an upper-class British accent. “Well, you see, Charlie, as soon as I saw the television footage that day of the Crisis, I thought that there was a story to this girl that no one was telling. I decided right then that I would work as hard as I could to find out what was behind the façade. I have spent the year and a half since that time researching, conducting interviews, etc., and I think I was able to form a fairly accurate picture of Faith Lehane’s life.”
“When you looked behind that façade,” Charlie Rose asked, “did you expect to find what you did? Murder, arrests and so forth?”
“No, no, I didn’t,” Mr. Harriman said. “And I think what you’ll find in the book is that the lurid details you mention are only a small part of a very complex public figure. They are details, however, that I think the public has a right to know, and certainly I would question how she is able to live free now after having confessed to serial murder less than a decade ago.”
Harriman’s image froze into a smug smile.
Cut To:
Int.
Watchers Council – Conference Room – Same Time
Jim Pollan set down the remote control, Harriman’s image still paused on the video screen behind him. Faith sat at the end of the table, silent, eyes downcast. Several other Council leaders were in the room, including Buffy, Willow, Kennedy, Robin, Rowena and Jason Felix.
“I want to emphasize that above all else in this situation, we must not panic,” Jim said. “He has persuasive eye-witness accounts and circumstantial evidence, certainly, but no absolute proof.”
“What do you recommend we do, then?” Robin asked, an edge to his voice.
“Nothing, for the time being,” Jim replied. “We must be sure not to legitimize Harriman’s claims.”
“I hate to say it,” Willow piped up, “but they’re already kinda legitimate. I mean, he was on PBS! I think the two other guests on that show were Cormac McCarthy and Rudy Giuliani.”
“Unfortunately, you may be right,” Jim acknowledged. “All the data we have indicates this will be the best-selling book since the final installment of Harry Potter. However, we still must do all we can to avoid persuading additional members of the public that these allegations are true.” At this, he sat down in a chair next to the video screen.
Buffy sighed and brushed her bangs out her eyes. “The problem here is, y’know, that they are true. I remember, I was there.” She and the rest of the meeting nervously glanced at Faith, who hadn’t moved since the start of Jim’s presentation.
“I don’t think –” Robin began.
“No, she’s right,” Faith interrupted, a quiet resignation in her voice. “Everyone’s screwed. And it’s my fault. Again.”
The only sound was a rustling of paper and a scuffing of shoes. Awkward glances were exchanged all around.
“I’m not sure that’s the right way to look at it,” Felix finally said.
“Anything else?” Faith asked suddenly.
Kennedy leaned forward, leafing through her scattered, wrinkled notes. “Well, um, last night the patrols found two vampires, who were dusted…no sign of Mr. Zatopek, though.”
“Ah, yes,” Mr. Felix remarked, “the distressed woman’s missing husband.”
“It’s sad, yeah, I’m on board there,” Buffy said, “but I’m still a little fuzzy on why we’re investigating this.”
“Well, Mrs. Zatopek asked us to,” Willow said. “She cried and everything.”
“I think what Buffy’s asking,” Robin put in, “is whether there is a supernatural angle to this case. Because if not, it might be better left to the police…” Buffy nodded gratefully.
It was Willow’s turn to search through her notes, though hers seemed far better organized. “Well, she did say that, um, oh, here it is, she says that she found, quote, spooky paraphernalia in his closet, unquote. So maybe he was into something.”
“Or maybe he was secretly playing Dungeons and Dragons behind her back,” Buffy replied. “My point is, I’m not sure how high this one rates on our little DEFCON meter or whatever.”
“He’s still missing.” It was Faith who had spoken, very quietly, and all eyes turned to her. “I think maybe I should get on that.”
With that, she got up from her chair and exited the room. The sound of the door closing behind her seemed very loud.
“In other news,” Robin said, his voice not quite cutting through the tension, “the Mayor of Cleveland has contacted me to see if we know anything about the recent sharp upswing in the city’s homeless population…”
“Did you tell her the economy wasn’t our fault?” Rowena quipped. This brought wan smiles all around.
Cut To:
Int.
Watchers Council – Buffy’s Office – Later That Day
The windows in Buffy’s office had their shades drawn, sending bits of light and shadow across the walls. It was the sort of environment in which life shades a little towards the film noir. Buffy sat sullenly in her chair, doing her own best impression of Humphrey Bogart. Miss Sanger from the Oversight Committee sat in the chair across from her, still leaning forward confidentially.
“You’re making a habit of this,” Buffy sighed. “Bringing me bad news.”
“I’m only the messenger,” Sanger told her, tiny hints of smiles curling at the edge of her mouth. “Blame the Voice of Hell.”
Buffy opened a report in front of her, then closed it again, frustrated. “If you know their next target, then why don’t you know more about them? Why now? Where do they come from? Who’s on first?”
“We hear the same snippets you do,” Sanger said. “Chatter, as the experts like to call it. We just have the best pattern recognition specialists unlimited secret funding can buy. I dated one once. He knew what I’d eat for breakfast the next morning from what I ate for lunch. A little too creepy for me, actually.”
Buffy stared across at Sanger for a long moment, a single line of bright light across her face like a mask.
“Of course, you’ve had them studying our patterns, too.”
“Oh, yes,” Sanger nodded. “Of course.”
“Well, we’ll get on this,” Buffy said without moving. “Right away.”
“That’s good to hear,” Sanger got to her feet. “We’ll of course provide any support you need.” She turned to leave, then looked back over her shoulder. “Enjoy your omelet tomorrow.”
Cut To:
Ext.
Watchers Council – Grounds – Afternoon
“I just don’t see what all the fuss was about. I mean, if I want to see home movies, I can just go hang out with Andrew. At least his are funny and don’t have giant CGI Godzilla rejects…usually…Cindy?”
It had taken Shannon a moment to realize that she was running down the Council’s outdoor track alone. The little slayer Cindy had stopped a good distance back, staring out between posts of the iron fence.
Shannon went back to her partner, ending up breathing slightly hard and resting her hands on her knees. “What’s up?”
Cindy pointed through the fence at a gathering crowd. Reporters, microphones and TV cameras were all major themes. “It’s that Congresswoman.”
Shannon squinted and managed to see some red hair at a podium. She crossed her arms and huffed. “She’s gotta be here to pick on Faith. I swear, if I could just get my hands on her…”
“You’d only make things worse.” Both Shannon and Cindy looked over their shoulders to see Ethan Rayne standing behind them. “I can see the yellow journalists typing their blaring headlines as we speak. ‘Highly Misguided Teenage Slayer Entertainingly But Fruitlessly Assaults Popular Politician’.”
“It’s a little long,” Cindy commented. She and Ethan simply looked at each other, across a gulf far greater than the small distance between them.
“At any rate,” Ethan continued, “I believe the two of you are truant from your…assigned responsibilities.”
They stared at him, uncomprehending.
“You are supposed to be running laps!” Ethan explained impatiently.
The two girls sighed and took off again.
“I just feel bad for Faith,” Cindy said to Shannon. “I wonder how she’s doing?”
Cut To:
Int.
Watchers Council – Faith and Robin’s Apartment – Same Time
Faith sat on the edge of the bed, silent and motionless, her bedroom darkened. Her hair hung in her face, but she made no move to fix it. She simply stared out into the void.
Robin knocked briefly before opening the door. In one hand he held a plate with a roast beef and cheese sandwich. “Food delivery!”
Faith did not respond.
“If I’d known we needed it so badly, I would have called the anti-depressant delivery service,” he deadpanned. He walked over to the bed and handed the plate to Faith. She took it without looking up and put it on her lap. She made no move to eat the sandwich.
“That’s the furthest extent of my culinary skills, so I’m hoping it’s good enough,” Robin said as he sat down behind Faith.
Faith’s voice was soft, nearly to the point of inaudibility. “I don’t think I can do this anymore.”
Cut To:
Ext.
Outside Watchers Council – Same Time
Autumn O’Mara stood before a bank of microphones. She held a copy of Blood and Darkness in one hand. “I don’t know any better than any of you the truth contained in these pages. All I know is that what I have read deeply, deeply concerns me.”
Cut To:
Int.
Watchers Council – Faith and Robin’s Apartment – Same Time
Robin’s face grew serious. He ran a hand through the tangles of Faith’s hair. “What do you mean?”
“Any of this,” she continued. “I…I used to think that if I did enough good things…I wouldn’t make up for the things I did, that’s not gonna happen, I know that…but maybe it would stop.”
Robin lightly kissed the top of Faith’s head. “You need to know that no one here blames you, not for anything.”
Cut To:
Ext.
Outside Watchers Council – Same Time
“I was elected by the people of this city to represent them, to protect them,” O’Mara said. “I would not be doing my duty if I did not pursue a full and complete investigation into this matter.”
Cut To:
Int.
Watchers Council – Faith and Robin’s Apartment – Same Time
“I…had a sister,” Faith said, almost as if she couldn’t quite believe it. “I had a sister, and I didn’t do anything to her except hurt her.”
“I know you and Hope were different from most siblings,” Robin said. “She tried to kill you, for one thing, but you were family. That has to count for something, right?”
“No,” Faith said. “You don’t…” She sighed. “When we were kids, I…I did things to her.”
“Faith,” Robin told her, completely serious, “you can’t do this to yourself. Of the two of you, you sure as hell weren’t the one in the wrong.
“I broke her fingers,” Faith said flatly. Silence followed for a brief moment.
“Accidents happen,” Robin offered softly.
“It wasn’t an accident,” Faith said. “It was a lot of things, I guess, but it wasn’t an accident.”
Cut To:
Ext.
Outside Watchers Council – Same Time
“If Faith Lehane is dangerous,” Autumn O’Mara announced, “I believe the people have a right to know. We give these people a great deal – a tremendous amount of trust. We need to make sure they deserve that trust.”
Cut To:
Int.
Watchers Council – Faith and Robin’s Apartment – Same Time
“Hope was another one of those people that I…I stuck a knife in her back, when we shoulda been on the same side.” A single tear rolled down Faith’s cheek. “And now…she’s gone, and I can’t ever make it better. It’ll always be like that. I was – I was wrong.”
Then she buried her face in Robin’s shoulder, her arms clutched his shoulders, and sobs wracked her body. “I was wrong,” she repeated.
Cut To:
Ext.
Outside Watchers Council – Same Time
“I will be consulting with local, state and federal law enforcement authorities,” O’Mara continued. “I will not rest until I see that justice has indeed been served.” She stared directly into the bank of cameras. “This time, no one gets off clean.”
She then stepped down from the podium, ignoring the shouted questions of the throng of reporters.
Cut To:
Int.
Watchers Council – Faith and Robin’s Apartment – Same Time
Robin rubbed his hand over the back of Faith’s neck. “I want you to know, first of all, that I love you, and so does everyone else here. I also want you to know that I’m not sure I understand…what were you wrong about?”
Faith sniffed several times and raised her head, barely catching her breath. It was a while before she could talk. “This whole past week, it was all ‘oh, B9 is gonna get us, we need to get them before they get us.’ Because anybody who wants to help me must have some wacko motive, right? People can’t just be nice to you because they’re nice people. So we’re in the school, and all I can do with Hope is argue with her. Then she tasers me, and you know what I thought?”
Robin suppressed a smile. “I can guess.”
“I thought, ‘You evil bitch.’ I thought that she was sticking the knife in my back, just like I did to her. But she wasn’t, she was saving me.” Faith took a very deep breath. “The last time I saw my sister alive, that’s what I thought. You evil bitch. And it’s always gonna be like that.”
Robin didn’t say anything. He just hugged Faith, and she hugged him back.
“And now the whole Council’s in jeopardy just because someone found out the truth about me,” she said into Robin’s shoulder. “I just keep screwing things up, and before I’m done, I’m gonna take everybody down with me. Is this it? Is this why I came back?”
Robin pulled back and looked into her eyes. “Faith, I know why you came back. And that’s not why.” Then he moved forward and kissed her. She leaned into him, shutting her eyes.
They stayed like that for quite a while in the darkened room.
Cut To:
Ext.
Outside Watchers Council – Same Time
Autumn O’Mara disappeared behind the darkened, bullet-proof glass of her limo, letting the burly security guard shut the door behind her. The press thronged around her vehicle, but they couldn’t see the smile creeping over her face. It wasn’t long, however, before the grin vanished.
“Step on it!” she snapped at her driver. “I have a meeting.”
Cut To:
Ext.
Cleveland Street – Night
“It’s ridiculous, is what it is,” Lorinda said. “I can’t work with that woman.”
“She just got overstressed,” Jaye commented, making sure to keep her voice down. “We all do, sometimes.”
The two of them were walking along a good distance behind the rest of their patrol group. Lorinda looked over at Jaye and made a noise in her throat.
“Oh, right, ’cause you should talk.”
Jaye opened her mouth in offense. “This isn’t about me, it’s about Nakata.” She poked a finger in Lorinda’s direction. “And for your information, I’ve been sober six –”
“Girls!” The yell from Mia broke through the moment. They turned to see her at the mouth of a nearby alleyway, the others having gone in ahead of her. “Get in here. We found somebody.”
Cut To:
Ext.
Alleyway – Moments Later
“Oh good, a homeless guy,” Lorinda said, her voice in full-on sarcastic mode. “‘Cause we never see those on patrol. Oh, wait…I forgot why I don’t have any change.”
“Shut up,” Mia told her flatly. She knelt next to where the man was cowering, with the large sort of facial beard one gets when one hasn’t groomed in quite some time. “I’m not going to hurt you,” she said. She noticed the other girls crowding around. “Give him some air!” They backed off, but only a little.
“I’m going to ask you again,” she said evenly to the scruffy man. “Can you tell me your name?”
He looked confused. He scuttled a few inches backward, rustling his nest of discarded newspapers. “I…don’t know.”
Mia sighed and reached a hand back without looking. “Jaye?” She snapped her fingers. Jaye and Lorinda exchanged a look. Lorinda shrugged.
Mia turned around and sighed in exasperation. “The picture?”
“Oh!” Jaye exclaimed in realization. “Right.” She reached into her jacket pocket and produced a folded piece of paper, which she handed to Mia. Mia unfolded the paper to reveal a printed photo of a clean-shaven man. She looked at it for a moment, then looked at the bearded man in front of her. She squinted at the man’s terrified eyes, then looked back at the picture.
Cut To:
Int.
Watchers Council – Buffy’s Office – Same Time
“So that’s why we have to move on this,” Buffy explained to Amira, who was seated across from her in the Chairwoman’s Office. “Oversight’s throwing around the big words, and we need a win. Plus, y’know, there’s the whole thing where if Voice of Hell blows this place up –”
“I understand the ramifications, ma’am,” Amira interrupted.
“Don’t call me ma’am,” Buffy replied, a little too quickly. “Buffy is fine. Or Miss Summers. Ma’am is just so…”
“What I do not understand is why you are giving me this mission. There are no humans working with the Voice of Hell that we know about, and the objective of my unit is to –”
“Deal with humans, I know, Amira,” Buffy said. “But the thing is…you’re good. Really, really good. We’ve all seen it. This is the top of our shelf right now, and I can’t have one more thing go wrong. I just can’t deal with that, which is why I’m sending my best. Not Black Ops. You. I want you to lead the team, pick your own girls. Do you understand what I’m saying?”
Amira hadn’t quite nodded when Buffy’s phone rang.
“What now…” Buffy groaned. She reached over and picked up the receiver. “Hello?” She waited a moment. “You found him? That’s great! Wait, no, don’t tell me the bad news right now, okay? Just bring him in.”
She hung up and turned back to Amira, who looked at her wordlessly. “See! Progress.”
Cut To:
Int.
Watchers Council – Hallway – Night
A frazzled-looking woman, perhaps in her thirties, rushed down the hallway, carrying a baby in a hanging carrier. Her scarf trailed behind her. Amira was a good distance behind her, apparently having given up trying to keep up. Mia waited for her, arms crossed, at a closed door.
“Is he here?” the woman asked, out of breath. “They told me at the lobby that I –”
“He’s here,” Mia said. “He’s in there with a couple of the girls, but Mrs. Zatopek, he’s not –”
“He’s under guard?” Mrs. Zatopek asked. “Why is he under guard?”
“It’s just a precaution, ma’am. Now look, I have to tell you –”
But the door was already closing behind Mrs. Zatopek. Mia sighed and turned back to Amira, who had finally caught up. “Remind me not to get in the way of crazy married women.”
“Any in particular you need to be reminded of?” Amira asked with a sly grin. Mia rolled her eyes. “Let her go,” Amira said. “I want to talk to you. There’s an Op, from Summers herself, and I want you.”
“Dangerous thing to say to a girl like me,” Mia commented.
Amira blinked a few times. “I do not…what?”
Cut To:
Int.
Watchers Council – Holding Room – Later
Willow removed her hands from the temples of the bearded man Mia had questioned in the alley. “It’s not magic, I can tell you that much.” She turned to Mrs. Zatopek, who had been pacing behind her. The room was bare, the décor basically a table and chairs. Jaye waited behind the man’s chair. The baby slept in its carrying case on the table.
“If it was magic,” Willow continued, “I’d feel it.”
Mrs. Zatopek looked like she’d been crying a long time. Now, she just sounded tired. “So that means this is…this is something else.”
“Yes,” Willow nodded. “That happens a lot in our line of work.”
“Look,” the man began, “you all seem really nice. It’s not personal, you have to understand…I don’t remember anybody. I must have had a name…but I don’t remember it.”
“Sounds like amnesia to me,” Jaye commented.
“Just another way my life resembles a soap opera,” Willow sighed.
“I’m really sorry…” the man continued.
Mrs. Zatopek’s scream slashed through the room. “This isn’t funny anymore, Harold!” All eyes turned to her. The baby started crying. “I have been your wife for six years. You look like a caveman, but I can look into your eyes and see everything.” She leaned over the table towards Harold. “Do you remember that time the deer ran out into the road, and I swerved to avoid it, and when I called you, I was nearly hyperventilating…”
She trailed off, seeing the blank look on her husband’s face. She swiveled her head to face Willow. “How is this possible?” Her voice broke in the middle of the sentence.
Willow shook her head. “I’m sorry. I don’t know yet. We’ll have to try some other things. Mr. Zatopek…” She noticed that she had drawn no recognition from the man. “Yes, that’s your name. What’s the first thing you remember? Please, think hard.”
Harold pursed his lips. “It was a few weeks ago. I was in that alley, the one you found me in. I was…” He hesitated. “I was alone, and I could remember how to speak, how to walk, how to tie my shoes, all the basic things, but…no faces, no events, none of the things that make a person a person. I was alone, and I was…nothing.”
“That’s depressing,” Jaye noted.
“Okay, Mr. Zatopek,” Willow sighed, “here’s what we’re going to do. We’re going to get you cleaned up and keep you here under medical observation. There’re still some more tests we can do…oh, maybe some demonic venom in your bloodstream, I don’t know, but I am telling both of you that we will figure this out.”
She looked up at Jaye. “I guess the first thing to do is tell Faith, she’ll want to know. Where is she tonight, anyway?”
Jaye shrugged. “I heard she went patrolling.”
“By herself? Now?” Willow exclaimed. “I swear, one of these days I’m gonna wring her neck.”
Cut To:
Ext.
Cleveland Alley – Same Time
“Faith, is that you? Where are you? You can’t just go out unannounced like this, it just doesn’t work anymore. I’m sor –”
Faith flipped her radio off, cutting off Kennedy’s voice. She put it in her back pocket and kept walking down yet another of the city’s back alleys. Steam wafted from a vent somewhere behind her.
“I say when I patrol. Somethin’ needs to die tonight,” Faith said under her breath. “Everything will be fine if I just kill something.” She stopped, considering this. “What does that say about me? And why am I talking to myself when all that’s gonna do is –”
That was when something barreled into Faith, throwing her into a pile of wooden boxes, which splintered under her. She shook her head and took in what was standing in front of her.
It might have been seven feet tall. It had only one eye, large and staring, in the center of its face. Several tentacles extended from all sides of its head. It made a wet, ugly sound in its throat.
A small smile appeared on Faith’s lips. “You may be ugly, but you’re just what the doctor ordered.” She pushed off with her hands and kicked the monster in the face. Its noises grew higher in pitch as Faith did a complete flip in the air and landed on her feet. The grin was still on her face.
“Happy to see me?” she asked. She slammed a hard right into the creature’s face, followed by another. She pulled an ornate knife from its holster and swiped in the monster’s direction, but it managed to scramble out of the way. The sounds it made were incredibly loud and pathetic, like screams. It tried to run away, but Faith grabbed it and hauled it back towards her with her free hand.
“That’s right,” she said. “Cry for your momma.” She brought her face inches from the creature’s. “‘Cause now you’re dealin’ with Faith Lehane.” She had raised her knife, ready to strike, when suddenly the tentacles sprouting from the creature’s head shot forward and grabbed onto Faith’s face. She was so startled that she dropped the knife. It clattered against the asphalt.
“Dammit, you freakin’…” Faith managed through grit teeth. She struggled to free herself, but it didn’t work. After a moment, she seemed to weaken. Her legs gave out, and both Faith and the monster slumped slowly to the ground.
“No…” she nearly whispered. “You don’t get to…”
Everything went dark.
Fade To Black
Fade In:
Ext.
Cleveland Alley – Night
The world spiraled very slowly into existence, colors resolving themselves into shapes, and then into objects. Faith blinked once, then twice. She was surrounded by people. Girls.
“Hey!” Kennedy yelled again. “Hey!”
“I think she’s waking up,” Marie said from over Kennedy’s shoulder.
“Are you okay?” Kennedy asked. “You freaked me out. Don’t do that!”
Faith looked at her surroundings for a long moment, eyes furtive. Her gaze flitted over the faces of the girls standing in the alley.
“Yeah,” she said nervously. “Yeah, I think I’m okay.”
Kennedy reached out a hand, but Faith did not take it right away. Kennedy sighed and retracted her arm. “It’s gonna be fine, really. We just need to get you back to the Council, get you checked out.”
Slowly, Faith got to her feet on her own. She shook her head. “I-I don’t… where?”
“Headquarters,” Kennedy told her, a confused look on her face. “They’re going nuts back there. I’m not sure I can cover for you this time, though you’ll probably get forgiveness points ’cause you bumped your head or whatever.”
Faith licked her lips. “I’m really sorry. I’m trying not to be rude here, I really am, but…do I know you guys?”
Black Out
End of Act One