The Vail: London Fog
by Joey Pettine
Episode Fifteen: The Ripper And The Vail
(The lights buzz to life on an old subway station office. On the floor lies RIPPER/ANDY, two minds in one body. Their right hand is gone, a machete impaled through their gut, blood all over. A double barreled shotgun lies beside them. On a table sit odd gadgets, some smashed. Horrible sounds echo from outside a doorway: gunshots, shrieking, demonic roars, and the wet, ripping sound of creatures feeding. Ripper/Andy stirs and groans, his good hand fumbling around the floor. Ripper speaks with a gruff voice, stern face. Andy has a higher voice, softer eyes.)
RIPPER
Get... the fuck... up... Get up...
ANDY
But... we're dead...
RIPPER
That's never stopped us before. Now... move it.
(His hand finds the handle of the machete.)
ANDY
I can't... There's a machete in my tummy.
RIPPER
Don't... don't be such a wuss... Get... uh... get UP!
(Ripper twists the blade, yanks it out his gut. Andy hacks blood. They groan, spit more blood, and lift themselves to their knees. They stare at the stump that is their hand.)
RIPPER
Look what you did.
ANDY
Fuck… you. How… how long were we out?
(They groan as they try to stand, wobble, then fall back on their knees.)
RIPPER
Don’t know. We got lucky. Fell asleep on the arm. Cut off the circulation. Probably saved my life.
ANDY
Our life.
RIPPER
Go sit on it, parasite.
ANDY
Can it. We have to stop the bleeding.
(Andy undoes his belt, wraps it around his arm. Ripper grips it in his mouth. Together, they pull, squeezing their arm against their chest, a tourniquet. They stand, still wobbly, but they stand.)
RIPPER
Great. Now my pants are gonna slide down.
ANDY
Did we lose weight?
RIPPER
We?
ANDY
What about our gut?
RIPPER
The bleeding's stopped. I don't think... Hang on.
(Ripper digs his fingers into the wound. They both scream.)
RIPPER
Vital organs seem alright. Spine obviously wasn't severed. We're good.
ANDY
I don't feel good.
RIPPER
Fucking Williams. What did he do?
ANDY
What he had to. To kill us.
RIPPER
He's working with Blood.
ANDY
I know. We gotta stop him.
(Ripper begins putting gadgets in his pockets.)
ANDY
What's this?
RIPPER
Our best laid plans. Things the Doc cooked up to help stop Blood. We need that gorgon head…
ANDY
It’s gone.
RIPPER
No shit, Sherlock. Probably Cordeaux. Should be easy to find.
(A scream, a VAMPIRE chases a wounded girl in. She screams for help, reaching for safety. The vampire pounces, bites into her. Andy grabs the shotgun and fires, the vampire’s shoulder explodes. It screams. Andy unloads another shot in its face. It slams onto its back, grabbing its smoking face. Andy tosses aside the gun.)
ANDY
We’re out.
RIPPER
Good.
(Ripper grabs the machete.)
RIPPER
It’s better this way.
(He steps over the girl, hacks into the mewling monster. The screams stop, Ripper looks satisfied.)
ANDY
The girl.
RIPPER
She’s dead.
(Their face is angry sorrow.)
ANDY
I THOUGHT YOU HAD YOUR GODDAMN VAMPIRES ON A LEASH!!
RIPPER
Our shit just went to Hell, Vail! No one’s on our side anymore!
ANDY
All those people. They’ll be slaughtered!
RIPPER
We have to stop Blood!
ANDY
And all those people—
RIPPER
Are going to fucking die! We can’t save everyone!
ANDY
YES, WE CAN!!! That’s what we do, you stupid fuck! We save everyone!! Otherwise we’re just killers.
RIPPERS
We’ve always been a killer, Vail. You can’t hide who you are.
ANDY
I was never that man. You were.
RIPPER
I did what had to be done!
ANDY
To help people! Righ! To help. Or… What’s the point? We might as well join Blood? We kill, but we do it to save lives.
RIPPER
Bullshit. We do it cause we like it. People just get in the way.
ANDY
Even you don’t believe that.
RIPPER
Yeah? Ask Nancy.
(With a quick flick, Andy/Ripper presses the machete blade hard into his throat.)
ANDY
What’s that supposed to mean? Answer me or I will end us both.
RIPPER
You don’t have the balls.
ANDY
Actually, I’ve got yours.
(Andy cuts him. They hiss pain.)
RIPPER
You don’t know, Vail. You weren’t there.
ANDY
Did you kill Nancy?
RIPPER
Vail, I—
ANDY
Did you?!
(Andy pushes the blade tight to his neck. Sorrowful tears drip down his cheek.)
RIPPER
It’s not your fault, Andy. We’re as bad as the things we kill.
RIPPER
I know. But we’re better than them too.
(He lowers the blade.)
ANDY
We’re gonna save those people. Then we’ll find Cordeaux, stop Blood, and save London. That’s how we make amends. Together.
RIPPER
We can’t make amends, Andy.
ANDY
We’re gonna try. You with me.
RIPPER
Fuckin’ A. Let’s do what we do best.
(They rush out the door, machete swinging. Blackout.)
