Also, the idea for this week's story comes from an old fear of mine. The fear of the attic. It always spooked me because, for one thing, it was the basement but on top of the house, and, for another, there always sounded like things were running around up there. Always. So I hope it spooks you a little too and that the main plot of the Vail doesn't ruin the spooks.
For those of you who need to catch up:
The Journey So Far: Andy's brother Mike has been horribly murdered, his throat curshed and his brain removed, and it is now being learned that some of Mike's colleagues, scientists of utter genius, are being murdered as well. He attempted to find the grand daughter of one of the scientists, Alina, but has had no luck. Yet in an attempt to return to normalcy, Andy went to his sister-in-law Nancy's New Years Party. It was there they were visited by a disgusting figure who struggled to keep control of his body and who spoke with the sound of a million buzzing flies. His name was Mr. Skinner and Nancy watched as he grabbed her friend, Savannah, and with his bare hands, electrocuted her to death. Nancy is now in a catatonic state, Andy is still caught up in this madness, and his only ally is a strange man with even stranger powers who Andy believes, with all his heart, killed his brother Mike. Thus, we return to the Vail.
The Vail
by Joey Pettine
Episode Eight: Songs In The Attic
(A dark room. Instantly, fluorescent overheads spring to life and light every corner of the attic, every bare floorboard and exposed rafter and blinking electronic. In the center of the attic sits a bulky, barrel shaped machine with a strange antennae atop. At it's forefront is attached a small monitor and keyboard. To the right of the machine is a tiny desk with a modified radio, which has picked up in the middle of “Innocent When You Dream” by Tom Waits, and video camera, the latter which is connected to a large, wall mounted monitor. Enter ALINA WAITTS, a young girl who seems a bit tomboyish, and STEVEN TILLHOUSE, a finely dressed man with an open padlock in his hand. Steven clicks off the radio.)
STEVEN
This don't bode well.
ALINA
What is that thing?
STEVEN
Whatever my genius brother was working on. But it isn't like him to leave the door open. Annie's never left without locking up his work. Something happened to him.
ALINA
You don't know that, you're just thinking the worst. Bad thoughts don't help bad times.
STEVEN
Of course. My brother's missing and three of his colleagues are suspiciously dead. If there was ever a time to think of the worst...
ALINA
Mayhap he ran off like I did. Hid.
STEVEN
You don't understand Annie, he's too anal. He owns three houses, one he never uses, and has a cleaning lady in them all twice a month. Top to bottom scrub. He'd never take off like that, not without getting things in order.
ALINA
You think I made plans to run off? Seeing my grandfather like that. He wasn't even human anymore. I was scared. Then you tell me Grandfather was only one corpse in a trail of bodies! Like he was nothing.
(Alina sniffles out a cry. Steven watches her, wanting to help but not comfortable enough to approach her.)
STEVEN
I'm sorry bout your grand dad. Dr. Waitts was a brilliant scientist, a talented musician, and a wonderful grand pop, I'm sure.
ALINA
You didn't even know him.
STEVEN
No. I knew my brother and what he had to say him. He was a good man. They all were.
ALINA
Dr. Vail, Dr. Mynot, dead.
STEVEN
Murdered. Not just dead.
ALINA
Oh, God, I just thought of Mynot's boyfriend.
STEVEN
He's alright. Safe at least.
ALINA
How do you know?
STEVEN
I checked. It's what I do. As thorough as my brother, just not a genius.
ALINA
You found me at the Drunken Pianist. That was pretty genius.
STEVEN
No, that was logical. Three men dead, one of em your gramps, who you lived with, and you nowhere to be found. You'd run, “lay low”, if you wanna talk like that, because there was no body. The murderer hasn't been shy about bodies so far, why hide yours. You had to be alive. From there it was all about the money. Screw DNA, screw suspects, no one can do anything without money.
STEVEN
I know people, looked at your accounts. But no money was being moved. Which meant you were getting help elsewhere. I tried your friends, no luck. But Annie'd talked a lot about meeting your grand dad at the Drunken Pianist, “as brilliant a musician as a scientist”, he always said. He was proud to be his friend. And I knew you were there. Under the table job, perfect for a pretty girl, rooms above for rent, a place to remind you of your gramps, and a place no one would look unless they really knew, really cared about your grandpa. Logical thinking. That's how I know something happened to Annie. The fifth richest man in America yet no money has moved in or out of his account in the past month. If he was out there, surviving, he'd have taken money with him. No. Something happened to him, in this room.
ALINA
What about Dr. North? Or Dr. Randolf?
STEVEN
No sign. But no bodies either. I think they're somewhere.
ALINA
You're good at this stuff, you know.
STEVEN
Just logical.
ALINA
I don't think your brother is dead, though. Annie. Why do you call him that?
STEVEN
Annie always had bad luck. The deepest misfortune was being named Ainsley by our folks which worked for him since Ainsley sounds kinda genius. But I hated it and thought it was funnier to call him Annie. It stuck. He never seemed to mind.
(Now it's Steven's turn to look sad. Alina does come over and takes his hand. Steven quickly pulls his hand and begins inspecting the camera, the logical thing.)
ALINA
What are you doing?
STEVEN
Watching the video. It'll tell us when Annie was here last and maybe some other things.
(Alina nods then begins to inspect the strange machine, deeply curious. She badly seems to want to press the button.)
ALINA
I wonder what this machine does?
(She is immediately distracted when the camera's tape begins to play on the screen. On it we see a close up of DR.TILLHOUSE setting up the camera on the tiny desk. In the background “Innocent When You Dream” is playing. The camera stops jostling then Dr. Tillhouse takes three steps back, a small remote is in his hand.)
DR. TILLHOUSE
One, two, three.
(He points the remote at the camera, it zooms out showing he is standing in front of the machine.)
DR. TILLHOUSE
Good day. The date is Friday, December 18, 2009.
ALINA
Oh my, that was last year.
STEVEN
Shh.
DR. TILLHOUSE
Dr. Ainsley Tillhouse speaking here on Project Beyond. I have completed my calculations and administered them into my machine, the Ainsley Device. All is ready for the first test which I am performing--
(He zooms the camera out so the whole of the attic can be seen.)
DR. TILLHOUSE
--in the attic of House C, 4103 Harper Street, Indiana, Pennsylvania, which I believe to be the optimum location for attaining what I have begun to call the Tillhouse Effect.
(He zooms it back in so he can be seen best. He looks at his watch.)
DR. TILLHOUSE
In theory, our universe is made up of matter which, in theory, consists of tiny vibrating strings, of which we are all made of, of which all matter, in theory, is made of. It is these tiny vibrations, our constantly moving atoms, that create contact, the atoms of our bodies bouncing off of the atoms of all other matter. Continuing the theory, men before me have postulated that if the correct frequency was found, one could alter the vibrations of matter itself and pass through the strings of this universe into another dimension.
ALINA
Impossible.
STEVEN
Not for Annie.
ALINA
I have done what men before me could not. I have created that machine, the Ainsley Device. When activated, it will play a number of musical notes, incapable of being heard by human ears, which will emit in all directions for, roughly, thirty four yards, a specific vibratory frequency. This frequency will alter the vibration of that thirty four yard diameter and induce the Tillhouse Effect, allowing us to see into the world beyond our own. Ladies and gentlemen of this world, this is one small step for a man, one that will make me a God, and usher in a new era of being.
(Dr. Tillhouse taps the keyboard a few times then glances at his watch.)
DR. TILLHOUSE
The time is approximately 7:20 PM.
(He presses the button and the screen goes instantly black, Tom Waits can still be heard singing in that black, as well as the wet, gurgling screams of Dr. Tillhouse. There is another, more horrific noise as well, one that is utterly monstrous yet still gives off the impression of intelligence. It is a devouring sound as well as a thinking sound. The camera turns to a blue screen. Steven shuts it off.)
STEVEN
That's it. We have to destroy this machine.
ALINA
That is impossible. You can't just vibrate into another dimension. It's impossible!
STEVEN
I don't think so. I believe Annie did exactly what he said he would.
MR. SKINNER
Wwich ssavez mmme the trouble of having to kill himmm.
(The voice buzzes with the sound of winged insects, yet a faint hum of electricity lies beneath. Mr. Skinner enters the attic, blocking Steve or Alina's exit. He moves toward them, shuffling disturbingly, as if he wasn't in complete control of his limbs. His shaky hand stretches toward them and his fingertip pops with a spark. Steven steps in front of Alina.)
MR. SKINNER
I came here to do awayy with yyour brother but yyou two wwill ssatizfyy. Thankz for finding the wwoman. She wwaz being troublezommme.
(There is a loud crash and Mr. Skinner turns to the exit, enter HENRY, with his shotgun, and ANDY, with his revolver.)
ANDY
DON'T YOU FUCKING MOVE!
HENRY
Let them be, Mr. Skinner.
(Andy looks nervously around, squinting at the dark corners of the attic, trying to see something.)
MR. SKINNER
Yyou again! Thiz iz none of yyour buzinezz, Leaper!
ANDY
There's something wrong with this room.
ALINA
You're a leper!
STEVEN
He said leaper, a leper is diseased.
MR. SKINNER
Yyour kind iz a dizeaze, Leaper. Mmmove on!
ANDY
Why is he calling you that?
HENRY
You are not leaving this room, Mr. Skinner. Do not make it any harder.
MR. SKINNER
Wwe both knoww I'mmm not human, Leaper. Thoze weaponz are uzelezz.
HENRY
Not if I shoot open your skull.
ANDY
What the hell is he, Henry?
HENRY
An insect.
MR. SKINNER
Wwhyyy do yyou followw himmm, Mmmizter Vail? Wwhyy do yyou bother thingz yyou should not? Falze hopez for a return to a normal life?
HENRY
Don't listen to him, Andrew. You will never be able to return to the existence you knew.
(Andy looks at Henry as if he just said something important.)
ANDY
Believe me, Henry. Mike's dead, Nancy's catatonic, and I'm losing it. There is no more normal. But I can kill you, Mr. Skinner. And I know it would make me feel good.
MR. SKINNER
Ssomeone put mmmurder in yyou, boyy. Wwaz that mmme?
(Andy twitches as if he saw something move.)
ANDY
What was that?!
MR. SKINNER
The vail haz been lifted for himmm. Did yyou mmmake himmm yyour bloodhound, Leaper?
ANDY
FUCK YOU!
HENRY
No, Insect. He is the Vail.
MR. SKINNER
YYOU LIE!
(Steven takes this chance to ambush Mr. Skinner from the back, Mr. Skinner turns and catches Steven by the neck.)
ANDY
LET HIM GO!
MR. SKINNER
Bad mmove. Mmmy grazp iz lightning.
(Sparks shoot from Mr. Skinner's hands as he shocks Steven, Andy and Henry immediately open fire. Mr. Skinner drops Steven who drops to the floor in front of the machine, alive, but coughing and smoking. Smoke wafts from Mr. Skinner's fingertips as he faces their bullets. His face contorts into what should be a smile but isn't. Henry stops firing.)
HENRY
Stop. It won't work.
ANDY
FUCK YOU!!
(Andy fires until the gun is empty. Blood oozes from Mr. Skinner's wounds.)
MR. SKINNER
Mmy kind iz immune to lead poizoning.
(Andy twitches as if he sees something again.)
ANDY
There's something in here, Henry.
HENRY
Ignore it.
ALINA
Ignore what?
(Mr. Skinner bends down and grabs Steven's wrist, he hoists Steve onto his feet and wobbles sickeningly as he holds him. Alina takes this moment to run around to Andy, clinging tightly to him.)
MR. SKINNER
Let mme pazz and I let himm live.
HENRY
Take Mrs. Tillhouse and leave, Andrew.
ANDY
Fuck no. We didn't spend two weeks tracking this guy to let him go. He killed Mike.
MR. SKINNER
Yyou don't sseemmm too sure of that.
HENRY
I have no intention of allowing him to leave, Andrew. I need you to take care of Mrs. Tilhouse.
MR. SKINNER
Don't lizten to himmm, boyy. He'z no mmmore human than I.
ANDY
Gee, what a fucking surprise.
HENRY
Leave, Andrew, there is something wrong with the reality in this attic. I do not trust it.
MR. SKINNER
Sstayy, boyy! Let mmme assure yyou. I killed yyour brother.
ANDY
What!?
HENRY
Do not listen to him.
MR. SKINNER
Yyez, boyy. Lizten. Yyou knoww I sspeak the truth. I killed yyour brother and ate himmm inzide out. I crawled into himmm, sslithered down the canal of thought, and feazted upon hiz hopez and dreamz. I greww plump and buzzzzzzzzing in hiz head. And afterwardz, I sslid into hiz wwife. She mmmoaned az I mmmoved inzide her and ssuzpected nothing. I killed yyour brother, mmy action definez yyou.
HENRY
Andrew--
ANDY
Is that true, Henry?!
HENRY
Yes but he wants y--
(Andy becomes a force, screaming like a wild animal as he rushes Mr. Skinner. Mr. Skinner, expecting this, drops Steven and grabs Andy's neck.)
MR. SKINNER
Yyou are not the Vail. Yyou are nothing.
(That's when Steven grabs the radio and smashes it over Mr. Skinner. Mr. Skinner drops Andy. Andy rushes back to his group, scared.)
STEVEN
Run.
(Steven presses the button on the machine and three of them exit quickly. The room goes dark with an eerie glow. The shadows move. Mr. Skinner angrily stands and grabs Steven, sparks flash and Steven screams. When Mr. Skinner lets go he is nothing but a twisted and charred mass. That's when something begins to whistle in the dark. Whistling “Innocent When You Dream”. Dr. Tillhouse steps out of the shadows, looking perfectly alright, but casting a sickly pallor. His eyes are intelligent but look at the world in such an alien fashion. Mr. Skinner actually seems to be shaking with fear now, the sound of bugs and electricity has died as well. There is only the whistling. Then Dr. Tillhouse stops whistling. The stage goes completely dark and Mr. Skinner begins to scream, a wet inhuman sound. The stage lights up infrequently with flashes of electricity and each time all we see is that another piece has torn from Mr. Skinner, ragged wounds flowing with blood and bile. Then the screaming stops and there is quiet dark. In that dark something starts to whistle the song again. It fades.)
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