Episode 1.07 – “The Lines Between”
Some bonds survive distance. Some secrets survive years. And some doors are closed for a reason.
As the Misfits’ world stretches from Sanctuary to forgotten criminal routes and the edges of the Primal Expanse, everyone is about to discover what still lies between the lines.
Previously On…
Edie Hartwell Mason escaped Castle Dracula and returned to the North Pole, but questions remained about how completely Dracula’s influence had been broken.
After ensuring Edie was safe, Ace MacDougal left the Misfits to pursue evidence connecting Dominik Rask to the murder of his sister, Catriona, and the disappearance of Declan Quinn.
While Rhea Quinn entered the False Light Forge to watch Dominik from within, Ace and Fabian Falcone began following the old operation from the outside.
Elsewhere, Sherlock Holmes continued pulling at a separate web of intermediaries surrounding Jacques Renaud and forces moving behind NPCW.
Bigfoot returned from the Primal Expanse changed by his encounter with Grimva Icevein—and carrying knowledge that directly challenged Yeti’s claim as Alpha Beast.
Now, connections thought broken are beginning to reveal just how far they still reach.
PROLOGUE – SOMETHING REMAINS
North Pole Sanctuary – Hunter’s Enclave Secure Facility – Night
The Sanctuary is quiet.
Not peaceful.
Quiet.
There is a difference.
Deep beneath the Arctic ice, ancient stone corridors intersect with reinforced steel, modern surveillance equipment, Hunter wards, Watcher sigils and protections far older than either organization.
The facility was designed to keep monsters out.
Tonight, four people sit in a room wondering whether something was already carried inside.
A small consultation chamber lies several corridors away from Edie Hartwell Mason’s quarters.
A long table dominates the room.
Medical reports are spread across it.
Blood analysis.
Photographs.
Handwritten notes.
Pages covered in symbols older than the building surrounding them.
At one end stands ABRAHAM VAN HELSING.
His hands rest against the edge of the table.
Across from him sits MINA HARKER.
Composed.
Elegant.
Her expression carries the patience of someone who has spent far too many years watching men convince themselves they understand Dracula.
Standing beside the wall is CARMILLA NOCTURNE.
Arms crossed.
Watching.
And beside her—
DELISANDRE.
Still.
Almost unnaturally so.
Mina finishes reading one of the reports.
She sets it down.
MINA HARKER: Her blood is stabilizing.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: Slowly.
MINA HARKER: But it is stabilizing.
Carmilla says nothing.
Mina looks toward her.
MINA HARKER: You disagree.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: With the bloodwork? No.
She looks down at the reports.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: With what everyone seems determined to conclude from it? Yes.
Van Helsing remains silent.
Mina turns toward Delisandre.
MINA HARKER: And you?
Delisandre's eyes remain on the table.
DELISANDRE: Her mind is her own.
A beat.
DELISANDRE: Mostly.
Mina's expression changes.
Only slightly.
MINA HARKER: Mostly is a dangerous word.
DELISANDRE: That is why I chose it.
Silence.
Delisandre finally looks at her.
DELISANDRE: I have examined her several times. There is no obvious compulsion. No command structure. No implanted instruction I can isolate. Nothing resembling conventional mesmerism.
Mina nods.
MINA HARKER: Then there may be nothing left to find.
Carmilla immediately answers.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: There is.
Mina looks toward her.
Carmilla pushes away from the wall.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: I can feel it.
MINA HARKER: Carmilla—
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: I know what Dracula feels like.
That ends the objection.
Carmilla steps closer to the table.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: His blood was in her. His venom changed her. Her body is still carrying pieces of what he did. We knew that.
Her voice lowers.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: But this is different.
Mina studies her.
MINA HARKER: Different how?
Carmilla searches for the right word.
That alone is unusual.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: Presence.
Delisandre's eyes flick toward her.
Carmilla continues.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: Not possession. Not control. Not exactly.
She looks toward the corridor beyond the room.
Toward Edie.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: But sometimes when I am near her... I feel him.
Mina's expression remains skeptical.
MINA HARKER: Dracula marked her. That does not mean he remains connected to her.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: No.
A beat.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: But it does not mean he isn't.
Van Helsing finally speaks.
VAN HELSING: There is something else.
Mina looks at him.
Van Helsing straightens.
VAN HELSING: Natanis came to me yesterday.
Carmilla already knows where this is going.
Delisandre does not.
MINA HARKER: About Edie?
Van Helsing nods.
VAN HELSING: She found the Heart of Hope.
That draws everyone's attention.
Even Carmilla's.
MINA HARKER: Found it?
VAN HELSING: Accidentally. She was exploring the lower passages beneath the Sanctuary.
Mina gives him a look.
MINA HARKER: You allowed Dracula's former prisoner to wander unescorted through ancient supernatural corridors?
Van Helsing's expression does not change.
VAN HELSING: Edie Hartwell Mason does not respond particularly well to being treated like a prisoner.
Carmilla almost smiles.
Almost.
VAN HELSING: She encountered the barrier protecting the Heart. It activated. Then...
He pauses.
VAN HELSING: It allowed her through.
Mina leans back slightly.
That matters.
MINA HARKER: The Heart accepted her?
VAN HELSING: Apparently.
Mina thinks.
MINA HARKER: Then why are we having this conversation?
Carmilla looks toward her.
MINA HARKER: If Dracula still possessed meaningful control over her, something as old and protected as the Heart of Hope should have rejected her.
She looks toward Van Helsing.
MINA HARKER: That may be the strongest evidence you have that his influence is almost gone.
Van Helsing does not answer.
Carmilla does.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: Almost.
Mina's eyes narrow.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: There is that word again.
Mina exhales.
MINA HARKER: You are looking for certainty where none exists.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: I'm looking for Dracula.
A beat.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: Because everything about this bothers me.
Delisandre turns toward her.
Carmilla's voice remains controlled.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: The castle. The escape. Edie reaching the outer passages. Night Watcher getting inside. Ace getting her out.
She shakes her head.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: Too clean.
MINA HARKER: People were nearly killed.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: I didn't say easy for them.
Carmilla looks directly at Mina.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: I said easy for Dracula.
Silence.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: He had her. Then suddenly he didn't. No pursuit that mattered. No final attempt to reclaim her. No punishment. No retaliation. Nothing.
Mina's gaze becomes more serious.
Carmilla leans both hands against the table.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: Dracula does not simply lose things he believes belong to him.
Delisandre quietly adds—
DELISANDRE: Unless losing them serves another purpose.
That hangs in the room.
Van Helsing looks toward her.
Delisandre's expression is distant.
Analytical.
DELISANDRE: I spent enough time around people who believed manipulation was an art form. The first lesson is simple.
She looks toward Mina.
DELISANDRE: Never watch the hand releasing the prisoner. Watch where the prisoner goes afterward.
Mina does not immediately answer.
Then—
The door opens.
Everyone turns.
NATANIS enters.
Snow still clings faintly to the shoulders of his coat, though there is no snow anywhere near this level of the facility.
He closes the door behind him.
Looks around the room.
NATANIS: You started without me.
Van Helsing gestures toward the reports.
VAN HELSING: You were late.
Natanis considers this.
NATANIS: I was elsewhere.
Carmilla gives him a dry look.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: Helpful.
Natanis nods once.
NATANIS: I thought so.
Mina watches him.
MINA HARKER: Abraham says the Heart permitted Edie to enter its chamber.
NATANIS: It did.
MINA HARKER: Voluntarily?
NATANIS: The barrier did not fail. It chose not to stop her.
Mina looks toward Carmilla.
A quiet there you are.
But Natanis continues.
NATANIS: That does not mean everything was normal.
Mina turns back.
MINA HARKER: Explain.
Natanis moves toward the table.
NATANIS: She was curious. That is normal. She asked questions. Also normal. She complained about our signage.
Carmilla raises an eyebrow.
NATANIS: Very normal.
Despite herself, Mina's mouth almost curves.
Then Natanis becomes serious.
NATANIS: When she approached the Heart... something changed.
Van Helsing's attention sharpens.
This part he apparently has not heard.
VAN HELSING: Changed how?
NATANIS: She became distracted. As though listening.
DELISANDRE: To what?
NATANIS: I do not know.
Natanis looks toward Delisandre.
NATANIS: I called her name. She did not respond immediately.
Carmilla straightens.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: How long?
NATANIS: Seconds.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: Seconds are enough.
Natanis does not disagree.
MINA HARKER: Did she say she heard something?
NATANIS: No. She said she was tired.
A pause.
NATANIS: I did not believe her.
That changes the room.
Van Helsing looks down at the documents.
Mina's certainty has weakened.
Not disappeared.
But weakened.
MINA HARKER: The Heart itself could have affected her.
NATANIS: Yes.
MINA HARKER: Then we still have no proof of Dracula.
NATANIS: No.
Carmilla looks frustrated.
But Natanis continues.
NATANIS: You also have no proof that it wasn't Dracula.
Mina's eyes settle on him.
Natanis meets them without challenge.
Simply fact.
Delisandre steps forward.
DELISANDRE: There is another possibility.
Everyone looks toward her.
DELISANDRE: Perhaps we keep searching for control because control is what we expect. Commands. Compulsion. Obedience.
Her eyes shift toward Carmilla.
DELISANDRE: But Dracula may not require any of those things.
Carmilla understands immediately.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: A connection.
Delisandre nods.
DELISANDRE: A line.
Mina goes still.
DELISANDRE: Something passive. Something that does not tell Edie what to do. Something that simply...
Her voice lowers.
DELISANDRE: ...allows him to remain aware of her.
Silence.
Van Helsing slowly lifts his eyes.
VAN HELSING: Or see through her.
Nobody speaks.
Because that possibility is worse.
Carmilla turns away from the table.
Her suspicion has finally found a shape.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: That's why it was so easy.
Mina looks at her.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: He didn't lose her.
A beat.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: He let her leave.
The room becomes very still.
Natanis looks toward Van Helsing.
NATANIS: If that is true, then wherever Edie goes—
VAN HELSING: —Dracula may have a window.
Carmilla looks toward the walls around them.
At the wards.
At the sigils.
At the fortress they believed impenetrable.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: Including here.
That lands.
Van Helsing's face hardens.
Mina stands.
MINA HARKER: Stop.
Everyone looks at her.
MINA HARKER: We are building conclusions upon instincts, seconds of unusual behavior and the fact that Dracula behaved like Dracula.
She looks at Carmilla.
Then Delisandre.
Then Van Helsing.
MINA HARKER: I know what he can do. Better than most.
Her voice softens.
Not from weakness.
From memory.
MINA HARKER: I know what it is to wake with his thoughts where yours should be. To question whether an emotion belongs to you. Whether a memory is yours. Whether a choice began inside your own mind...
She pauses.
MINA HARKER: ...or his.
Carmilla's expression shifts.
The argument has become personal.
MINA HARKER: And I also know those chains can be broken.
She looks toward the corridor leading to Edie's quarters.
MINA HARKER: Edie resisted him. She escaped him. She returned to her husband. She has shown no desire to return to Dracula. No compulsion to serve him. No evidence that her decisions are not her own.
Van Helsing quietly responds.
VAN HELSING: That isn't what we're afraid of.
Mina looks at him.
VAN HELSING: We're afraid that she does not need to obey him for him to use her.
A long silence.
Mina knows where this is going now.
Her expression darkens.
MINA HARKER: No.
Carmilla looks toward her.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: Mina—
MINA HARKER: No.
She turns fully toward Van Helsing.
MINA HARKER: You want me to perform the old ritual.
Van Helsing does not deny it.
Mina stares at him.
MINA HARKER: Based on this?
Van Helsing's answer is calm.
VAN HELSING: Based on everything.
Mina shakes her head.
MINA HARKER: Abraham, that ritual hasn't been used safely in generations.
DELISANDRE: Safely?
Mina looks toward her.
MINA HARKER: No.
A beat.
MINA HARKER: Not safely.
Carmilla's eyes narrow.
Mina moves away from the table.
MINA HARKER: It was designed to break supernatural bonds at their deepest point. Not hypnotism. Not venom. Not suggestion.
She taps two fingers against her chest.
MINA HARKER: The connection between spirit and spirit.
Delisandre understands the implication first.
DELISANDRE: If there is no connection—
MINA HARKER: The ritual may create trauma searching for something that isn't there.
She looks toward Van Helsing.
MINA HARKER: Memory fragmentation. Psychological damage. Nightmares. Loss of identity. And if the bond has reached deeply enough...
Mina hesitates.
MINA HARKER: Spiritual injury.
Carmilla's confidence finally falters.
Only slightly.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: Permanent?
MINA HARKER: Possibly.
Nobody speaks.
Mina looks around the room.
MINA HARKER: You are asking me to reach inside that woman's soul and tear out something we cannot even prove exists.
Van Helsing's answer comes quietly.
VAN HELSING: Yes.
Mina stares at him.
Anger flashes now.
MINA HARKER: You say that very easily.
VAN HELSING: No.
A beat.
VAN HELSING: I say it clearly.
Van Helsing steps away from the table.
VAN HELSING: Because if we are wrong, we risk hurting Edie.
Mina's jaw tightens.
VAN HELSING: But if Carmilla is right—
He looks toward the walls.
The Sanctuary.
The North Pole beyond it.
VAN HELSING: —then Dracula may already have seen everything she has seen.
The room goes silent again.
The Heart of Hope.
Mina understands.
Van Helsing continues.
VAN HELSING: Every corridor she has walked. Every protection surrounding this facility. Every person who has spoken freely in front of her.
His eyes move to Natanis.
VAN HELSING: Perhaps even the Heart.
Natanis' expression hardens.
For him, that is enough.
NATANIS: If Dracula has seen the Heart of Hope, this is no longer only about Edie.
Mina turns sharply toward him.
MINA HARKER: It is always about Edie.
Natanis meets her gaze.
NATANIS: Yes.
A beat.
NATANIS: And it may also be about everyone the Heart protects.
That is the argument Mina did not want to hear.
Van Helsing looks at her.
VAN HELSING: I will not sacrifice Edie casually.
MINA HARKER: But you will risk her.
VAN HELSING: To make certain she is free.
Mina says nothing.
VAN HELSING: Truly free.
He takes a breath.
VAN HELSING: And to make certain Dracula cannot use an innocent woman as a door into something far larger than any of us.
Mina looks away.
Toward the reinforced observation window set into the far wall.
Through several layers of warded glass—
another corridor.
And beyond it—
the section containing Edie's quarters.
A woman who believes she is finally safe.
A woman whose husband believes she has been returned to him.
A woman who has already lost too much.
Carmilla moves beside Mina.
Her voice is quieter now.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: I want to be wrong.
Mina looks at her.
Carmilla does not look away.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: More than you know.
A beat.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: But I was in that castle. I watched him.
She glances toward Edie's corridor.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: Dracula does not give things back.
Delisandre joins them.
DELISANDRE: And if there is a line between them...
Her voice becomes almost a whisper.
DELISANDRE: ...we need to find it before he decides to pull it.
Mina closes her eyes.
For several seconds—
nothing.
Then she opens them.
Decision.
Reluctant.
But made.
MINA HARKER: I will perform the ritual.
Carmilla exhales.
Van Helsing remains still.
Mina immediately raises a hand.
MINA HARKER: Do not look relieved.
Her eyes settle on Van Helsing.
MINA HARKER: If we do this, we do it my way. No improvisation. No one enters the circle unless I permit it. No one breaks it once we begin. Not Carmilla. Not Delisandre. Not you.
Van Helsing nods.
VAN HELSING: Agreed.
Mina studies him for another moment.
Then—
MINA HARKER: What are you going to tell Edie?
A small silence.
Van Helsing already has the answer.
VAN HELSING: That we need to conduct another examination.
Mina's expression hardens.
MINA HARKER: Examination.
VAN HELSING: Another test to determine whether Dracula left any residual effects behind.
MINA HARKER: That is not what this is.
VAN HELSING: It is enough of the truth.
Carmilla watches the two of them carefully.
Mina takes a slow step toward Van Helsing.
MINA HARKER: You intend to perform an ancient severance ritual on her and tell her it is a test.
VAN HELSING: I intend to prevent fear from interfering with something already dangerous.
MINA HARKER: Fear would be a reasonable response.
VAN HELSING: Which is precisely the problem.
Mina looks almost disgusted.
MINA HARKER: Abraham—
VAN HELSING: If Edie knows exactly what we believe may be inside her, she will spend every second searching for it.
He taps one finger against the papers on the table.
VAN HELSING: Questioning every thought. Every memory. Every feeling.
His voice remains level.
VAN HELSING: If Dracula's influence is psychological as well as supernatural, that fear may give it something to work with.
Delisandre considers that.
DELISANDRE: Expectation can shape perception.
Mina turns toward her.
DELISANDRE: Tell someone there is another voice inside their mind, and eventually they may begin listening for one.
Mina understands the argument.
She does not like it any more because of that.
MINA HARKER: So we deceive her.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: We protect her from knowing something she cannot do anything about until we know whether it is real.
Mina looks toward Carmilla.
MINA HARKER: Those are very elegant words for deception.
Carmilla accepts the criticism without flinching.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: Yes.
That honesty catches Mina slightly off guard.
Van Helsing steps closer.
VAN HELSING: If there is nothing there, Edie undergoes another unpleasant examination and returns to her husband with one less reason for us to worry.
A beat.
VAN HELSING: If there is something there, we remove it.
MINA HARKER: And if the ritual harms her?
Van Helsing's face tightens.
VAN HELSING: Then I carry that responsibility.
Mina's answer comes immediately.
MINA HARKER: No.
Van Helsing looks at her.
MINA HARKER: She carries the damage.
That lands harder.
Silence.
Natanis has remained apart from the argument.
Now he speaks.
NATANIS: There is no clean choice here.
Mina turns toward him.
NATANIS: Only choices whose consequences arrive later.
Mina looks through the reinforced observation window.
Toward the corridor containing Edie's quarters.
A woman who believes she is finally safe.
A woman whose husband believes she has been returned to him.
A woman who does not know five people are deciding how much truth she is permitted to hear.
Carmilla moves beside Mina.
Her voice is quieter now.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: I want to be wrong.
Mina looks at her.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: More than you know.
A beat.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: But I was in that castle. I watched him.
She glances toward Edie's corridor.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: Dracula does not give things back.
Delisandre joins them.
DELISANDRE: And if there is a line between them...
Her voice becomes almost a whisper.
DELISANDRE: ...we need to find it before he decides to pull it.
Mina says nothing for several seconds.
Finally—
MINA HARKER: Tell her it is another test.
Van Helsing nods.
Mina immediately turns toward him.
MINA HARKER: But nothing more.
VAN HELSING: Nothing more.
MINA HARKER: No invented diagnosis. No false symptoms. No attempt to frighten her into cooperating.
VAN HELSING: Agreed.
Mina's gaze remains hard.
MINA HARKER: And if she refuses the test—
Van Helsing pauses.
That is the line.
MINA HARKER: —we stop.
A long beat.
Then—
VAN HELSING: We stop.
Mina gives a small nod.
Not satisfied.
Simply finished arguing.
MINA HARKER: Then prepare the chamber.
Behind them—
Natanis quietly looks toward the ancient symbols carved into the Sanctuary wall.
NATANIS: If Carmilla is right...
Everyone turns toward him.
Natanis' expression is grave.
NATANIS: ...God may not be the only one listening.
Silence.
Far down the corridor—
behind a locked door—
Edie Hartwell Mason sleeps.
For just a moment—
her eyes open.
She stares into the darkness.
Listening.
Then—
black.
END PROLOGUE
SCENE 1 – THE RITUAL
North Pole Sanctuary – Ritual Chamber – Later That Night
The room was built for things the Sanctuary does not entirely understand.
It is circular, windowless, and buried deep enough beneath the facility that no sound from the outside world can reach it.
At its center sits a simple stone table.
Two heavy wooden chairs stand on opposite sides.
Nothing about them appears extraordinary.
Not yet.
Ancient runes cover every wall of the chamber.
Hundreds of them.
Some are carved deeply into the stone. Others are so faint they seem little more than scratches. Lines connect one symbol to another, forming enormous patterns whose complete shape cannot be understood from any single position in the room.
At the moment—
they are dark.
Dormant.
Waiting.
One wall contains something far more modern.
A reinforced two-way observation mirror.
Nearly three inches thick.
Beyond it is a separate sealed room protected by additional wards, iron reinforcement and a second layer of mystical barriers.
VAN HELSING, CARMILLA NOCTURNE, and DELISANDRE wait there.
The precautions are deliberate.
No one knows what the ritual might do to individuals who once shared a supernatural bond with Dracula.
Particularly his former Brides.
Carmilla and Delisandre will watch.
They will not participate.
Inside the ritual chamber, MINA HARKER waits alone.
On the table before her rests an enormous ancient tome.
The book sits upright on a carved stone dais angled toward Mina's chair.
Its leather cover is black with age.
No title.
No author's name.
Only a circular symbol pressed deeply into the leather—a pattern repeated among the dormant runes covering the room.
The chamber door opens.
Carmilla enters only as far as the threshold.
Beside her is EDIE HARTWELL MASON.
Edie looks past her into the strange room.
Then at Mina.
Then at the book.
EDIE HARTWELL MASON: This is a little more elaborate than the last blood test.
Mina gives her a small smile.
MINA HARKER: Considerably.
Edie glances back at Carmilla.
EDIE HARTWELL MASON: You're not coming in?
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: No.
Edie raises an eyebrow.
EDIE HARTWELL MASON: That's reassuring.
Carmilla's expression softens.
Barely.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: I'll be right there.
She gestures toward the mirrored wall.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: Van Helsing and Delisandre too.
Edie studies the glass.
She cannot see through it.
EDIE HARTWELL MASON: So everyone gets to watch me make a fool of myself.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: If that's the worst thing that happens, I'll consider tonight successful.
Edie looks at her.
There is something about Carmilla's delivery that makes the joke land differently.
Carmilla catches herself.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: You'll be fine.
Edie nods.
Carmilla steps backward.
The heavy door begins to close.
For just a moment, Carmilla and Mina look at one another.
Nothing is said.
It doesn't need to be.
The door seals with a deep mechanical THUD.
Several locks engage automatically.
Edie turns toward Mina.
EDIE HARTWELL MASON: Definitely getting less reassuring.
Mina motions toward the chair opposite her.
MINA HARKER: Sit.
Edie does.
The ancient book now faces Mina directly.
Mina remains standing for another moment.
MINA HARKER: Before we begin, there is something you need to understand.
Edie's expression becomes more serious.
MINA HARKER: This chamber is designed to contain supernatural energy. Whatever occurs inside remains inside.
Edie looks around at the walls.
EDIE HARTWELL MASON: Protecting me?
Mina hesitates only slightly.
MINA HARKER: Protecting you.
A beat.
MINA HARKER: And everyone else.
Edie looks toward the mirror.
On the other side, Van Helsing watches without moving.
Carmilla folds her arms.
Delisandre's attention never leaves Edie.
Back inside—
Mina takes her seat opposite Edie.
MINA HARKER: This test is different from the examinations Carmilla and Delisandre have already performed.
EDIE HARTWELL MASON: Different how?
MINA HARKER: More intense.
Edie's eyes drift toward the ancient tome.
EDIE HARTWELL MASON: I gathered that from the evil-looking book.
Mina almost smiles.
MINA HARKER: It has an unfortunate sense of presentation.
That gets a small laugh from Edie.
It does not last.
MINA HARKER: Once we begin, stopping the process is difficult. There may be discomfort. Disorientation. You may see or hear things that are not physically present.
EDIE HARTWELL MASON: How much discomfort?
Mina meets her eyes.
MINA HARKER: I cannot answer that.
That honesty concerns Edie more than reassurance would have.
Mina leans forward slightly.
MINA HARKER: I need you to remain focused on me. Whatever happens, whatever you hear, whatever you think you see—you keep looking at me.
Edie studies her.
EDIE HARTWELL MASON: And this will tell you whether Dracula left anything behind?
MINA HARKER: Yes.
Technically true.
Edie breathes out slowly.
Then nods.
EDIE HARTWELL MASON: Alright.
She straightens in the chair.
EDIE HARTWELL MASON: I'm ready.
Behind the glass—
Van Helsing's jaw tightens.
Delisandre looks toward him.
Carmilla does not.
Her attention remains entirely on Edie.
Inside the chamber—
Mina lowers both hands onto the arms of her chair.
MINA HARKER: Then we begin.
Nothing happens.
For one second.
Two.
Then—
a deep metallic sound echoes beneath them.
CLACK.
Edie looks down.
Silver-white bands of energy erupt from the arms of her chair.
They coil instantly around her wrists.
EDIE HARTWELL MASON: What the—
Another pair wraps around her ankles.
She jerks instinctively.
The bindings tighten.
Not painfully.
But absolutely.
Across the table—
identical restraints snap around Mina's wrists and ankles.
Edie's breathing quickens.
EDIE HARTWELL MASON: Mina.
MINA HARKER: Look at me.
EDIE HARTWELL MASON: You didn't mention restraints.
MINA HARKER: I know.
EDIE HARTWELL MASON: That's generally the sort of thing you mention before somebody sits down.
MINA HARKER: Edie.
The firmness in Mina's voice stops her.
MINA HARKER: They're for our protection.
Edie pulls once against the restraints.
They do not move.
EDIE HARTWELL MASON: From what?
Mina looks at her.
MINA HARKER: Whatever happens next.
That does not help.
Edie's eyes widen slightly.
Then—
the first rune ignites.
A deep crimson symbol comes alive behind Edie.
Then another.
And another.
Around the chamber, hundreds of dormant carvings begin illuminating in sequence.
Crimson.
Amber.
White.
Ancient patterns race across the walls like fire moving through veins.
Edie freezes.
Behind the glass—
Delisandre involuntarily takes a step backward.
Carmilla's eyes narrow.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: I can feel that from here.
DELISANDRE: So can I.
Van Helsing looks between them.
VAN HELSING: The protections?
DELISANDRE: Holding.
A pause.
DELISANDRE: For now.
Inside—
the room begins to hum.
Low.
Almost beneath hearing.
The ancient book trembles.
Edie stares at it.
The leather cover rises by itself.
Pages begin turning.
Slowly at first.
Then faster.
Dozens.
Hundreds.
Until—
SLAM.
They stop.
The book lies open before Mina.
Words appear across the yellowed pages.
Not written in ink.
Burning through the parchment in pale blue light.
Mina looks down.
Her expression changes.
Whatever she expected—
the book has confirmed that there is something to find.
She begins to read.
The language is ancient.
Harsh.
Somewhere between prayer and accusation.
MINA HARKER: Sanguis non tenet. Nox non possidet. Vinculum occultum... revelare.
The book begins to glow.
Edie's body stiffens.
Her breath catches.
EDIE HARTWELL MASON: Ah—
Mina keeps reading.
MINA HARKER: Quod in carne latet, appareat. Quod in spiritu ligatur, nominetur.
Heat rushes through Edie's body.
She clenches her fists.
Sweat appears across her forehead.
Her breathing becomes shallow.
EDIE HARTWELL MASON: Mina...
Mina's own expression tightens.
Something is affecting her too.
She continues.
MINA HARKER: Nulla umbra sine nomine. Nulla catena sine manu. Ostende te.
Edie cries out.
Not loudly.
She is fighting it.
Trying desperately not to.
Tears begin forming in her eyes.
Behind the mirror—
Carmilla steps toward the glass.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: That's enough.
Van Helsing does not move.
VAN HELSING: No.
Carmilla turns.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: Look at her.
VAN HELSING: I am.
Inside—
Mina falters.
Her fingers curl around the arms of the chair.
Her breathing changes.
Then—
her fangs descend.
Edie sees them.
EDIE HARTWELL MASON: Mina?
Mina raises her head.
Her eyes are glowing red.
Bright.
Predatory.
The controlled woman who entered the chamber is still there—
but something older now sits much closer to the surface.
Behind the glass, Delisandre goes rigid.
DELISANDRE: The ritual is pulling on her vampirism.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: I told you this was dangerous.
VAN HELSING: Mina knew the risk.
Carmilla's eyes flash toward him.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: Mina did.
She looks back at Edie.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: Edie didn't.
Van Helsing says nothing.
Inside—
Mina reads the final words of the first passage.
Her voice has changed.
Lower.
Rougher.
A hiss beneath every syllable.
MINA HARKER: Per sanguinem cognosco. Per spiritum invenio. Per nomen voco.
The runes flare.
Edie screams.
Mina throws her head back as a wave of energy tears through her.
When she looks forward again—
there is little human appearance left in her expression.
Fangs fully extended.
Eyes blazing crimson.
Veins darkening beneath the skin around them.
Vampiric fury held together by sheer will.
Edie is trembling.
Sweating.
Crying.
But—
still Edie.
Still human.
Mina stares at her.
Then suddenly—
her entire posture changes.
She feels it.
Something.
Someone.
Her lips curl back over her fangs.
MINA HARKER: I can feel you.
The room becomes still.
Even the hum seems to disappear.
Mina leans forward as far as the restraints allow.
Her voice is almost a growl.
MINA HARKER: Vlad Dracula.
Edie looks at her in confusion.
EDIE HARTWELL MASON: Mina...?
Mina ignores her.
Her glowing eyes remain locked on Edie's.
MINA HARKER: Show yourself.
Nothing.
The runes pulse.
MINA HARKER: You are there.
Silence.
MINA HARKER: I know you are there.
Nothing.
Then Mina bares her fangs.
MINA HARKER: Show yourself...
A beat.
MINA HARKER: ...or I tear you out of her.
Behind the mirror—
Carmilla stops breathing.
Delisandre's face drains of color.
Van Helsing's eyes narrow.
Seconds pass.
They feel like minutes.
Edie's breathing slows.
Her body stops struggling.
Her expression goes blank.
MINA HARKER: Edie?
Edie's head lowers.
Then slowly rises.
Her eyes—
are completely white.
Carmilla whispers behind the glass.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: No.
Edie's lips curl into a smile.
Not hers.
When she speaks—
the voice is deeper.
Smooth.
Elegant.
Ancient.
Two voices occupying the same sound.
Edie's—
and something beneath it.
DRACULA THROUGH EDIE: Mina.
Mina goes perfectly still.
Then her expression twists into pure hatred.
MINA HARKER: There you are.
The smile on Edie's face widens.
DRACULA THROUGH EDIE: Always so dramatic.
MINA HARKER: Release her.
DRACULA THROUGH EDIE: Release?
A quiet laugh comes from Edie's throat.
It sounds completely wrong.
DRACULA THROUGH EDIE: Such an interesting word.
Mina pulls against her restraints.
MINA HARKER: She does not belong to you.
DRACULA THROUGH EDIE: You once said much the same thing about yourself.
That strikes its mark.
Mina's eyes burn brighter.
MINA HARKER: And you learned how badly you underestimated me.
DRACULA THROUGH EDIE: Did I?
A beat.
DRACULA THROUGH EDIE: You are sitting bound to a chair, transformed by rage, speaking to me through another woman's mouth.
The smile remains.
DRACULA THROUGH EDIE: I would hesitate before declaring victory.
Behind the glass—
Carmilla's hands curl into fists.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: Open the door.
VAN HELSING: No.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: Abraham—
DELISANDRE: Carmilla.
Delisandre points toward the walls.
The runes nearest the doorway have become almost white with power.
DELISANDRE: Break that seal now and we have no idea where the energy goes.
Carmilla looks helplessly back at Edie.
Inside—
Mina remains focused.
MINA HARKER: Whatever connection you placed inside her ends tonight.
DRACULA THROUGH EDIE: Does it?
MINA HARKER: Yes.
DRACULA THROUGH EDIE: And you believe that because Abraham found an old book?
Mina's expression darkens.
MINA HARKER: I believe it because I survived you.
For the first time—
Dracula's smile fades.
MINA HARKER: Release Edie willingly.
A pause.
MINA HARKER: Now.
The smile returns.
Smaller.
Colder.
DRACULA THROUGH EDIE: No.
Mina stares at him through Edie's eyes.
MINA HARKER: Then I will finish it.
Something changes.
The confidence in Edie's face flickers.
Only for an instant.
But Mina sees it.
DRACULA THROUGH EDIE: Mina—
Mina looks down at the tome.
MINA HARKER: You were warned.
She begins reading.
Fast.
Forceful.
MINA HARKER: Vinculum inventum. Vinculum nominatum. Vinculum damnatum.
The book erupts with light.
Edie's body arches violently against the restraints.
EDIE HARTWELL MASON: AAAAAHHHH!
Castle Dracula – Throne Chamber
Hundreds of miles away—
Dracula sits alone upon his throne.
Still.
Silent.
His eyes suddenly turn white.
His entire body locks.
His hands clamp down against the arms of the throne.
Stone cracks beneath his fingers.
DRACULA: Mina...
A burst of light flashes behind his eyes.
Dracula screams.
Not in anger.
In pain.
Pure—
unexpected—
pain.
North Pole Sanctuary – Ritual Chamber
Edie screams with him.
Two voices overlap.
Her own.
And Dracula's.
EDIE / DRACULA: AAAAAAHHHHH!
Every rune in the chamber ignites.
The observation room shakes.
A hairline crack appears across the outermost layer of protective glass.
Carmilla recoils.
CARMILLA NOCTURNE: Mina!
Inside—
Mina is barely recognizable.
Her eyes blaze.
Her fangs remain fully exposed.
Her face twists with rage and agony as the ritual tears through her as well.
Still—
she reads.
MINA HARKER: Non tuum sanguinem!
The runes flare brighter.
MINA HARKER: Non tuam mentem!
Edie thrashes.
MINA HARKER: Non tuam animam!
The book rises from its dais.
Floating.
Pages whipping violently in an unseen wind.
Mina roars the final words.
MINA HARKER: VINCULUM FRANGE!
Everything becomes white.
For one impossible moment—
there is no chamber.
No table.
No walls.
Only light.
A thin black shape seems to stretch outward from Edie's chest—
a shadow like a cord disappearing into infinity.
Mina sees it.
Her expression changes.
Triumph.
Horror.
Confirmation.
MINA HARKER: Found you.
The black tether snaps.
Edie screams one final time.
Then—
silence.
Her eyes return instantly to normal.
Confused.
Terrified.
Human.
She looks across the table at Mina.
EDIE HARTWELL MASON: Mina...?
Her eyes roll backward.
She collapses against the chair.
The mystical restraints disappear.
At the same instant—
every rune goes dark.
The book falls shut.
THUD.
Mina's red eyes fade.
Her fangs retract.
She manages one breath.
Then slumps forward across the table.
Behind the glass—
Van Helsing is already moving.
VAN HELSING: Open it!
The seals disengage.
Carmilla follows him toward the door.
Delisandre grabs her arm.
DELISANDRE: Wait.
Carmilla turns angrily.
DELISANDRE: We don't know if the residual energy can still affect us.
Carmilla hates it.
But knows she is right.
Van Helsing enters alone.
He goes first to Edie.
Checks her pulse.
Breathing.
VAN HELSING: Edie?
No response.
He reaches for Mina.
VAN HELSING: Mina.
Mina barely opens her eyes.
Her voice is almost inaudible.
MINA HARKER: Abraham...
Van Helsing leans closer.
VAN HELSING: I'm here.
Mina struggles to remain conscious.
MINA HARKER: It was real.
Van Helsing looks toward Edie.
Then back to Mina.
MINA HARKER: There was a line.
A weak breath.
MINA HARKER: I broke it.
Van Helsing's expression changes.
Relief.
And horror at what that confirms.
VAN HELSING: You're certain?
Mina's eyes begin to close.
MINA HARKER: It's done.
Her head drops.
Van Helsing immediately reaches for the emergency control beside the table.
VAN HELSING: Medical team! Ritual chamber! Now!
The door outside opens.
Personnel rush toward them.
Carmilla stands behind the safe-room glass.
Watching Edie.
Delisandre beside her.
Neither woman celebrates.
Because now they know.
Carmilla had been right.
Dracula had never truly let Edie go.
Castle Dracula – Throne Chamber
Silence.
Dracula remains seated upon his throne.
His head hangs forward.
One hand trembles against the cracked stone armrest.
Slowly—
he raises his head.
His eyes are no longer white.
They burn crimson.
There is rage there.
Pain.
But beneath both—
satisfaction.
Dracula settles back into his throne.
The faintest smile returns.
DRACULA: Fine...
He looks into the darkness of the empty hall.
DRACULA: Have her back.
A long pause.
His smile deepens.
DRACULA: She has already served her purpose.
The firelight flickers.
Dracula closes his eyes.
CUT TO BLACK.
SCENE 2 – THE VISIT
North Pole Sanctuary – Hidden Hunter’s Enclave Base – Later
Snow whips across the narrow road as an unmarked black utility vehicle winds through a series of concealed checkpoints cut into the frozen landscape.
There are no signs.
No visible roads on any map.
Only coded lights, reinforced gates, and watchers hidden where no ordinary traveler would ever see them.
The vehicle finally rolls to a stop outside one of the Sanctuary’s disguised surface entrances.
Inside the passenger seat sits MR. MASON.
Black coat.
Dark gloves.
Perfectly composed.
Beside him, behind the wheel, GENE WRENCHESTER kills the engine and looks toward the entrance.
Jack reaches for the door.
Then pauses.
He looks at Gene.
MR. MASON: I know, neighbour. You don't particularly enjoy being a glorified taxi driver.
Cam gives him a sideways look.
GENE WRENCHESTER: I wouldn't say particularly.
Jack almost smiles.
MR. MASON: These trips mean the world to me.
A beat.
MR. MASON: To my family.
Gene's expression softens.
Only slightly.
GENE WRENCHESTER: Then I suppose there are worse things than driving.
Jack opens the door.
MR. MASON: Careful, neighbour. That almost sounded sentimental.
Without thinking—
GENE WRENCHESTER: Don't tell Cam.
The words are out before Gene can stop them.
Silence.
His expression changes.
Just for a second.
The old reflex has found an empty place.
Jack's smile disappears.
He doesn't offer sympathy.
Doesn't try to fill the silence.
He simply gives Gene a small nod.
Gene looks through the windshield.
GENE WRENCHESTER: ...Old habit.
MR. MASON: The difficult ones usually are.
A beat.
Gene clears his throat.
GENE WRENCHESTER: Go see your wife, Jack.
Jack steps out into the cold.
The humor disappears almost immediately.
Waiting near the entrance is ABRAHAM VAN HELSING.
That alone is unusual.
Jack notices.
Van Helsing normally lets Sanctuary staff escort visitors inside.
Today—
he is waiting personally.
Jack's pace slows.
Van Helsing's expression is controlled.
Too controlled.
Jack sees that too.
His own calm fractures for just a moment.
MR. MASON: Edie.
Van Helsing steps toward him.
MR. MASON: Is she alright?
There is genuine fear beneath the words.
Not Mr. Mason's cold precision.
Jack Mason.
Van Helsing answers immediately.
VAN HELSING: Yes.
Jack studies him.
Van Helsing does not look relieved enough for that answer.
MR. MASON: That was very quick.
Van Helsing glances toward the entrance.
VAN HELSING: We need to talk.
Jack's expression hardens.
MR. MASON: Then talk.
VAN HELSING: Not here.
Jack looks toward the hidden entrance.
Then back at Van Helsing.
The calm returns.
Colder now.
MR. MASON: Lead the way.
North Pole Sanctuary – Van Helsing's Private Office
The office is small compared with the rest of the facility.
Bookshelves.
Maps.
Weapons locked behind glass.
Medical journals stacked beside texts whose languages have been dead for centuries.
Jack remains standing.
Van Helsing closes the door.
He gestures toward a chair.
Jack ignores it.
MR. MASON: Where is my wife?
Van Helsing moves behind his desk but does not sit.
VAN HELSING: Resting.
Jack says nothing.
Van Helsing continues.
VAN HELSING: We discovered that Dracula's influence over Edie was not entirely gone.
Jack's eyes sharpen.
MR. MASON: Explain.
VAN HELSING: There was a residual connection.
MR. MASON: Connection.
VAN HELSING: Mystical. Not conventional control. Not possession.
Jack's jaw tightens.
MR. MASON: Could he control her?
VAN HELSING: We do not believe so.
Jack catches the phrasing.
MR. MASON: You do not believe so.
Van Helsing holds his gaze.
VAN HELSING: What we do know is that there remained a link between them.
A long silence.
Jack's voice lowers.
MR. MASON: And you broke it.
Van Helsing nods.
VAN HELSING: Yes.
Jack studies him.
MR. MASON: How?
Van Helsing chooses his words carefully.
VAN HELSING: An ancient ritual.
Jack's expression changes.
Not anger.
Yet.
MR. MASON: You performed a ritual on my wife.
VAN HELSING: To sever Dracula's final connection to her.
MR. MASON: Did she know?
Van Helsing pauses.
Jack sees it.
MR. MASON: Abraham.
The use of his first name carries more threat than shouting ever could.
VAN HELSING: She knew we were conducting another test.
Jack becomes completely still.
MR. MASON: That wasn't my question.
Van Helsing does not retreat from it.
VAN HELSING: No. She did not know the complete nature of the ritual.
Silence.
Jack looks away.
Toward one of the shelves.
His breathing is controlled.
Too controlled.
When he turns back—
Mr. Mason has returned.
MR. MASON: Was it successful?
Van Helsing nods.
VAN HELSING: Yes.
MR. MASON: Completely?
VAN HELSING: Mina Harker performed it. She confirmed the connection was severed.
Jack absorbs that.
MR. MASON: And Edie?
VAN HELSING: The ritual was extremely taxing.
Jack's eyes narrow.
MR. MASON: How taxing?
VAN HELSING: She's exhausted. Physically and spiritually.
MR. MASON: Is she injured?
VAN HELSING: Not in any way we believe will be permanent.
Again—
the phrasing.
Jack catches every word.
MR. MASON: How long?
VAN HELSING: Before she's fully recovered?
MR. MASON: Before she can leave.
Van Helsing hesitates.
VAN HELSING: Several days at least.
Jack immediately steps toward the door.
MR. MASON: Take me to her.
VAN HELSING: Jack—
Jack stops.
Looks back.
MR. MASON: I did not ask whether I was allowed.
Van Helsing studies him for a moment.
Then nods.
VAN HELSING: You can see her.
A beat.
VAN HELSING: But she is resting. She may not wake.
MR. MASON: Take me to my wife.
North Pole Sanctuary – Private Medical Ward
The room is quiet.
Dimly lit.
Far quieter than the ritual chamber had been.
Medical monitors glow softly beside the bed.
Mystical wards have been added around the door and windows, but they are subtle now.
Protective.
Not oppressive.
EDIE HARTWELL MASON lies beneath a white blanket.
Asleep.
Pale.
Her hair lies loose around her face.
There are faint dark circles beneath her eyes.
Her breathing is steady—
but she looks drained.
Smaller somehow.
Jack stops in the doorway.
All of his controlled menace disappears.
For one instant—
he simply looks devastated.
Van Helsing remains behind him.
Jack walks slowly toward the bed.
He sits in the chair beside her.
Takes her hand.
Her fingers are warm.
That seems to matter enormously.
He rubs his thumb gently across the back of her hand.
MR. MASON: Hello, dear.
Nothing.
Jack watches her face.
MR. MASON: Your timing is terrible.
No response.
His mouth almost forms a smile.
Almost.
MR. MASON: I came all this way and you're sleeping through the visit.
Still nothing.
He squeezes her hand carefully.
MR. MASON: Edie?
Nothing.
Jack looks toward Van Helsing.
The warmth leaves his face.
MR. MASON: What did you do to her?
Van Helsing steps farther into the room.
VAN HELSING: What was necessary.
Jack's eyes harden.
Van Helsing immediately clarifies.
VAN HELSING: It was an ancient severance ritual. It was designed to locate and destroy supernatural bonds between two individuals.
Jack looks back at Edie.
VAN HELSING: Mina found Dracula's link.
A beat.
VAN HELSING: And broke it.
Jack says nothing.
VAN HELSING: Edie endured most of the strain. Mina did as well.
Jack's thumb continues moving gently across Edie's hand.
MR. MASON: Did Dracula know?
Van Helsing pauses.
VAN HELSING: Yes.
That gets Jack's attention.
MR. MASON: He was there.
VAN HELSING: Through the connection.
Jack's face becomes very still.
Van Helsing continues before Jack can interpret that silence however he chooses.
VAN HELSING: Mina confronted him.
MR. MASON: Through Edie.
VAN HELSING: Yes.
Jack looks down at his wife.
His voice becomes very quiet.
MR. MASON: He used her again.
Van Helsing does not answer.
He does not need to.
Jack bends closer to Edie.
MR. MASON: Last time.
It is barely above a whisper.
Van Helsing hears it anyway.
A few seconds pass.
Then—
MR. MASON: She comes home as soon as she wakes up.
Van Helsing's expression tightens.
VAN HELSING: Jack, she should remain here until—
Jack looks at him.
MR. MASON: No.
VAN HELSING: She has just undergone—
MR. MASON: She comes home.
Van Helsing's voice stays calm.
VAN HELSING: She may need continued monitoring.
MR. MASON: Then monitor her at home.
VAN HELSING: That isn't quite how—
MR. MASON: Abraham.
Silence.
Jack never raises his voice.
MR. MASON: Dracula took my wife.
A beat.
MR. MASON: You rescued her.
Another.
MR. MASON: Then you performed something on her that she did not fully understand.
Van Helsing accepts the accusation.
Jack looks down at Edie.
MR. MASON: I am not leaving her here one minute longer than necessary.
Van Helsing studies him.
Then finally—
VAN HELSING: Alright.
Jack looks up.
VAN HELSING: When she is awake, stable, and strong enough to travel—
He pauses.
VAN HELSING: She goes home.
Jack nods once.
MR. MASON: Good.
He settles deeper into the chair.
Still holding Edie's hand.
Van Helsing watches him.
VAN HELSING: Jack.
No response.
VAN HELSING: You cannot stay here.
Jack slowly turns his head.
MR. MASON: I believe you'll find I can sit in a chair for a remarkably long period of time.
VAN HELSING: That isn't what I mean.
MR. MASON: I know what you mean.
VAN HELSING: You need to return to the North Pole.
Jack looks back at Edie.
MR. MASON: No.
VAN HELSING: Listen to me.
Jack's eyes lift.
Van Helsing steps closer.
VAN HELSING: Dracula's connection to Edie is broken.
A beat.
VAN HELSING: Dracula is not the only danger still moving.
Jack's expression slowly changes.
VAN HELSING: If Edie is coming home in several days, then someone needs to make certain she has a safe home to return to.
Jack says nothing.
Van Helsing presses.
VAN HELSING: The North Pole needs people watching it.
MR. MASON: There are plenty of people watching the North Pole.
VAN HELSING: None of them are you.
Jack gives him a hard look.
Van Helsing does not back down.
VAN HELSING: She is protected here.
Jack glances around the room.
MR. MASON: I've heard that before.
That lands.
Van Helsing accepts it.
VAN HELSING: Fair.
A long silence.
Jack looks at Edie.
His expression softens again.
MR. MASON: She shouldn't wake up alone.
VAN HELSING: She won't.
Jack looks toward him.
VAN HELSING: Carmilla is here. Delisandre is here. Mina will be here once she has recovered.
A beat.
VAN HELSING: And I will be here.
Jack's eyes narrow.
VAN HELSING: Personally.
Another long silence.
Finally—
Jack nods.
Reluctantly.
MR. MASON: I will return to the Pole.
Van Helsing exhales quietly.
Jack raises a finger.
MR. MASON: When she wakes—
VAN HELSING: You will be told immediately.
MR. MASON: Immediately means immediately.
VAN HELSING: I understand.
Jack turns back toward Edie.
Van Helsing starts toward the door.
Then stops.
He looks back.
Jack is still holding Edie's hand.
Still sitting beside her.
He has made no move to leave.
VAN HELSING: Jack?
MR. MASON: I said I would return.
A beat.
MR. MASON: I did not say this minute.
Van Helsing almost smiles.
VAN HELSING: I'll tell Gene to wait.
He leaves.
The door closes quietly.
Jack and Edie are alone.
Jack brings her hand gently toward his face.
Presses it against his cheek.
For several moments, there is no Mr. Mason.
No wrestler.
No threat.
Only Jack.
A husband sitting beside his sleeping wife.
MR. MASON: You come back to me when you're ready, dear.
His eyes remain fixed on her.
MR. MASON: I'll take care of the rest.
Edie does not respond.
Jack holds her hand tighter.
And waits.
FADE OUT.
SCENE 3 – THE INVESTIGATION
Fabian Falcone’s Office – Undisclosed European City – Evening
Fabian Falcone’s office does not look like the workplace of a criminal.
That is probably intentional.
Dark wood.
Leather chairs.
A polished desk with almost nothing sitting upon it.
Framed maps of Europe, North Africa and the North Atlantic hang along one wall. Shipping corridors, air routes and maritime lanes are marked so discreetly that, from a distance, they could pass for decoration.
Another wall holds photographs.
Aircraft.
Cargo vessels.
Ports.
Men and women shaking hands in places where no one appears particularly interested in having their picture taken.
There are no filing cabinets.
No stacks of paper.
Nothing that suggests the amount of information Fabian Falcone actually possesses.
ACE MACDOUGAL enters without knocking.
Fabian looks up from his desk.
FABIAN FALCONE: I assume Sherlock Holmes survived the meeting.
Ace removes his coat.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Somehow.
Fabian gestures toward the chair opposite him.
FABIAN FALCONE: And you?
ACE MACDOUGAL: Jury's still out.
Ace sits.
Fabian closes the folder he had been reading.
FABIAN FALCONE: What did he say?
Ace leans back.
For once, there is very little humor in him.
ACE MACDOUGAL: He'll look into Adrianna.
Fabian's expression does not change.
But his fingers stop moving.
FABIAN FALCONE: He agreed?
ACE MACDOUGAL: Aye.
FABIAN FALCONE: Easily?
Ace thinks about that.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Too easily.
That interests Fabian.
FABIAN FALCONE: Explain.
Ace shifts forward.
ACE MACDOUGAL: I gave him the name.
A beat.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Just Adrianna.
Fabian nods.
ACE MACDOUGAL: No surname. No photograph. No confirmed nationality. Nothing except the references we found in the old routing records.
FABIAN FALCONE: And?
ACE MACDOUGAL: Holmes didn't ask me how to spell it.
Fabian's eyes sharpen.
Ace noticed.
Of course he did.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Didn't ask where I'd first seen it either.
FABIAN FALCONE: Interesting.
ACE MACDOUGAL: That's what I thought.
Fabian rises.
Walks toward a sideboard.
He pours two glasses of whisky.
Ace watches him.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Ye know her?
Fabian turns.
FABIAN FALCONE: No.
He carries one glass to Ace.
FABIAN FALCONE: I know of her.
Ace accepts the drink but does not touch it.
ACE MACDOUGAL: There's a difference?
FABIAN FALCONE: A considerable one if you value your health.
Fabian returns to his chair.
ACE MACDOUGAL: According to the records, she touched the operation.
FABIAN FALCONE: Yes.
Fabian opens a thin folder.
Inside are photocopies of old manifests, bank transfers, handwritten notations and travel records.
He places one sheet on the desk.
A single name has been circled.
ADRIANNA
Nothing else.
FABIAN FALCONE: Her name appears three times.
He taps the first notation.
FABIAN FALCONE: Once beside a payment authorization.
The second.
FABIAN FALCONE: Once beside a route change.
The third.
FABIAN FALCONE: And once beside a contact confirmation forty-eight hours before your sister died.
Ace's jaw tightens.
ACE MACDOUGAL: That's more than coincidence.
FABIAN FALCONE: Probably.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Probably?
FABIAN FALCONE: I dislike certainty without evidence.
ACE MACDOUGAL: My sister's dead, Declan vanished, and Dominik Rask was there. Forgive me if I'm runnin' a little short on academic patience.
Fabian lets the anger pass.
He does not challenge it.
FABIAN FALCONE: And that is precisely why Sherlock is useful.
Ace looks at him.
FABIAN FALCONE: You want Adrianna found.
A beat.
FABIAN FALCONE: Holmes wants to understand her.
Ace finally takes a drink.
ACE MACDOUGAL: He said he'd investigate.
FABIAN FALCONE: Nothing else?
Ace thinks.
ACE MACDOUGAL: One thing.
Fabian waits.
ACE MACDOUGAL: I asked whether the name meant something to him.
FABIAN FALCONE: And?
ACE MACDOUGAL: He said, "Enough to be worth my time."
Fabian's expression tightens almost imperceptibly.
FABIAN FALCONE: That is not nothing.
ACE MACDOUGAL: No.
A pause.
ACE MACDOUGAL: But I don't like sendin' half my investigation to a man who already knows more than he's tellin' me.
Fabian gives the faintest smile.
FABIAN FALCONE: Then you and Sherlock have something in common.
Ace glares at him.
Fabian lifts his glass.
FABIAN FALCONE: You both dislike it when other people keep secrets.
Ace points at him.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Careful.
Fabian's smile remains.
FABIAN FALCONE: Always.
He places the whisky down.
Then pulls a second folder from a locked drawer.
This one is thicker.
FABIAN FALCONE: Adrianna is Holmes's problem now.
ACE MACDOUGAL: For the moment.
FABIAN FALCONE: For the moment.
Fabian opens the folder.
Three photographs lie inside.
He places them across the desk.
Three strangers.
Three different countries.
Three different pieces of the same old operation.
Ace looks at them.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Who are they?
Fabian touches the first photograph.
A woman in her late fifties leaving a bank building.
FABIAN FALCONE: Lena Varga.
Ace studies her.
FABIAN FALCONE: Twelve years ago she worked compliance for Danube Mercantile Trust.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Sounds respectable.
FABIAN FALCONE: It was not.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Better.
Fabian slides a photocopied transfer across the desk.
Most of the account information is blacked out.
One corporate name remains visible.
MARROWGATE LOGISTICS S.A.
FABIAN FALCONE: Varga approved a series of payments through this company.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Marrowgate.
FABIAN FALCONE: A shell.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Whose?
FABIAN FALCONE: That is what I would like to know.
Ace scans the numbers.
FABIAN FALCONE: One payment ultimately funded the travel arrangements for two members of the team connected to the Quinn operation.
Ace looks up.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Dominik?
FABIAN FALCONE: One of them.
Ace's face hardens.
FABIAN FALCONE: Varga would not have known what the team was being hired to do.
ACE MACDOUGAL: But she'd know who sent the money.
FABIAN FALCONE: Perhaps.
A beat.
FABIAN FALCONE: More importantly, she may know who told her not to ask.
Ace looks again at the photograph.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Where is she?
FABIAN FALCONE: Budapest.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Retired?
FABIAN FALCONE: Officially.
Ace grunts.
ACE MACDOUGAL: I hate that word.
FABIAN FALCONE: You use it yourself.
Ace gives him a look.
Fabian moves to the second photograph.
A heavyset Polish man standing beside a warehouse.
FABIAN FALCONE: Piotr Wolski.
ACE MACDOUGAL: What's his part?
FABIAN FALCONE: Freight dispatcher. Gdańsk.
He places an old cargo manifest beside the photograph.
FABIAN FALCONE: Wolski arranged an unscheduled vehicle transfer the night before the operation.
Ace reads.
ACE MACDOUGAL: No cargo listed.
FABIAN FALCONE: There was cargo.
ACE MACDOUGAL: People.
Fabian nods.
FABIAN FALCONE: Most likely.
Ace keeps reading.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Same vehicle used afterward?
FABIAN FALCONE: Different registration.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Same chassis number.
Fabian smiles slightly.
FABIAN FALCONE: Very good.
ACE MACDOUGAL: I used to smuggle wrestlers across international borders in aircraft held together with tape. I know what a switched plate looks like.
FABIAN FALCONE: A distinguished résumé.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Ye hired me.
Fabian concedes the point with a small nod.
Ace taps the document.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Could that vehicle have moved Declan?
Fabian does not answer immediately.
That bothers Ace.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Fabian.
FABIAN FALCONE: It could have.
ACE MACDOUGAL: After Cat was killed?
FABIAN FALCONE: The timing permits it.
Ace stares at the manifest.
For several seconds, he says nothing.
When he finally does—
the anger has become quieter.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Then Wolski is first.
Fabian shakes his head.
FABIAN FALCONE: No.
Ace looks up sharply.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Why?
FABIAN FALCONE: Because Wolski is frightened.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Good.
FABIAN FALCONE: Frightened men disappear when they see large Scotsmen asking questions about twelve-year-old transport records.
Ace leans back.
ACE MACDOUGAL: So what's your suggestion?
FABIAN FALCONE: We do not ask him about Declan.
Ace waits.
FABIAN FALCONE: We ask him about a truck.
Ace slowly smiles.
ACE MACDOUGAL: And let him tell us what he's afraid the truck carried.
Fabian raises his glass slightly.
FABIAN FALCONE: Precisely.
He moves to the final photograph.
A lean North African man, perhaps in his early sixties, sitting outside a café overlooking a Mediterranean harbor.
FABIAN FALCONE: Rafiq Bensaïd.
Ace studies him.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Forger?
FABIAN FALCONE: Documents.
Passports.
Manifests.
Customs seals.
Occasionally identities.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Occasionally.
FABIAN FALCONE: He considers himself an artist.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Of course he does.
Fabian lays down copies of four old passport applications.
The names differ.
The photographs have been removed.
FABIAN FALCONE: These were produced within seventy-two hours of Catriona's murder.
Ace's amusement disappears.
ACE MACDOUGAL: For the team?
FABIAN FALCONE: I do not know.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Declan?
FABIAN FALCONE: I do not know.
Ace's frustration rises.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Ye've got a remarkable talent for saying that.
FABIAN FALCONE: It is considerably safer than pretending.
Ace looks down at the papers again.
One notation appears in the lower corner of every form.
A small handwritten symbol.
Three intersecting lines.
ACE MACDOUGAL: What's that?
Fabian's eyes settle on it.
FABIAN FALCONE: Collection mark.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Meaning?
FABIAN FALCONE: Whoever commissioned the documents did not collect them personally.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Another intermediary.
FABIAN FALCONE: Exactly.
Ace exhales.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Every time we find a person, there's another bloody person standing behind them.
FABIAN FALCONE: That is how professional networks survive.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Nobody knows the boss.
FABIAN FALCONE: Nobody needs to.
Fabian sits back.
FABIAN FALCONE: The courier knows the broker.
The broker knows the accountant.
The accountant knows an account number.
The driver knows an address.
The man holding the weapon knows only what he has been paid to do.
Ace looks at the photograph of Dominik that remains clipped inside the larger file.
Young.
Hard-eyed.
Barely twenty.
ACE MACDOUGAL: And the lad following orders thinks that makes his hands clean.
Fabian watches him.
FABIAN FALCONE: Does Rhea still believe he killed her mother?
Ace's eyes immediately lift.
ACE MACDOUGAL: She knows he was involved.
FABIAN FALCONE: That was not my question.
ACE MACDOUGAL: And ye don't need the answer.
Fabian accepts the boundary.
FABIAN FALCONE: Fair enough.
Ace looks back at the three photographs.
Varga.
Wolski.
Bensaïd.
Then at Adrianna's name.
Four paths.
None of them leading directly to the truth.
Yet.
ACE MACDOUGAL: So Holmes gets the mystery woman.
He taps Varga's photograph.
ACE MACDOUGAL: We follow the money.
Wolski.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Then the movement.
Bensaïd.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Then the papers.
Fabian nods.
FABIAN FALCONE: Three different systems.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Same job.
FABIAN FALCONE: Perhaps the same person behind them.
Ace looks at him.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Ye think one broker coordinated all three.
Fabian pauses.
This is important.
FABIAN FALCONE: I think someone did.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Name?
FABIAN FALCONE: Not yet.
Ace stares at him.
ACE MACDOUGAL: You've got a suspicion.
FABIAN FALCONE: I have several.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Convenient.
FABIAN FALCONE: Accurate.
Ace gathers the copies.
Then stops.
One old freight notation has caught his eye.
He looks at Fabian.
ACE MACDOUGAL: This route.
Fabian's expression becomes unreadable.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Glasgow to Rotterdam. Rotterdam to Gdańsk.
A beat.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Declan used this corridor.
Fabian says nothing.
Ace's eyes narrow.
ACE MACDOUGAL: How do ye know that?
Silence.
Fabian takes a slow drink.
For the first time since Ace arrived—
Fabian Falcone does not have an immediate answer.
Ace notices.
His expression changes.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Fabian.
Fabian sets the glass down.
Carefully.
FABIAN FALCONE: Because I knew some of Declan's routes.
Ace goes still.
ACE MACDOUGAL: How well?
Fabian looks at him.
FABIAN FALCONE: Well enough to recognize one when I see it.
That is not enough.
Ace knows it.
Fabian knows he knows it.
ACE MACDOUGAL: We've been workin' together for weeks.
FABIAN FALCONE: Yes.
ACE MACDOUGAL: And somehow ye forgot to mention ye knew my brother-in-law's business.
FABIAN FALCONE: I did not forget.
Ace slowly stands.
ACE MACDOUGAL: That's worse.
Fabian remains seated.
Completely calm.
FABIAN FALCONE: Probably.
Ace stares down at him.
There is anger there.
But also something more dangerous.
A new question.
ACE MACDOUGAL: How well did ye know Declan Quinn?
Fabian meets his eyes.
A long silence.
Then—
FABIAN FALCONE: That is a conversation we should have.
Ace waits.
Fabian closes the file.
FABIAN FALCONE: But not until we know which of these people is still alive enough to regret talking to us.
Ace does not appreciate the deflection.
Not remotely.
He takes the three photographs anyway.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Budapest first.
Fabian rises.
FABIAN FALCONE: I thought you preferred Wolski.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Changed my mind.
FABIAN FALCONE: Why?
Ace slips Lena Varga's photograph into his coat.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Because money remembers longer than drivers do.
Fabian smiles faintly.
FABIAN FALCONE: Now you are beginning to sound like an investigator.
Ace heads toward the door.
Stops.
Looks back.
ACE MACDOUGAL: And Fabian?
FABIAN FALCONE: Yes?
ACE MACDOUGAL: When we have that conversation about Declan—
A beat.
ACE MACDOUGAL: Don't make me drag the truth out of ye.
Fabian's smile disappears.
FABIAN FALCONE: Understood.
Ace leaves.
The door closes.
Fabian stands alone.
His eyes move toward the old route notation still lying on his desk.
Glasgow.
Rotterdam.
Gdańsk.
He touches the page with one finger.
A memory.
Then removes his hand.
Across the desk—
the single name remains circled.
ADRIANNA.
Fabian looks at it.
FABIAN FALCONE: Let's see which line breaks first.
CUT TO BLACK.
EPILOGUE – THE CLOSED WAY
North Pole – Deep Wilderness – Yolgrimm’s Cavern – Night
The storm outside is vicious.
Wind screams across the mountains, driving snow through the wilderness in blinding sheets.
Deep inside the ancient cavern, however, there is almost no sound.
Only fire.
Only stone.
Only the slow breathing of something very old.
YOLGRIMM sits beside the central fire when heavy footsteps approach from the outer passage.
He does not look up.
He already knows who is coming.
A moment later—
YETI enters.
Massive.
Frost clinging to his fur.
His expression is already sour.
YOLGRIMM: You have returned.
YETI: Don't sound so pleased.
Yolgrimm looks toward him.
YOLGRIMM: I did not.
Yeti grunts.
He approaches the fire but does not sit.
YETI: Something's wrong.
Yolgrimm says nothing.
That irritates Yeti immediately.
YETI: I can feel it.
A beat.
YETI: The old roads.
Now Yolgrimm's attention sharpens.
YETI: They've gone quiet.
Yolgrimm slowly rises.
YOLGRIMM: Come.
Yeti's eyes narrow.
YETI: I hate when you do that.
YOLGRIMM: You still follow.
Yolgrimm turns toward the rear passage.
Yeti stares after him.
Then follows.
They descend deeper into the mountain.
Past ancient carvings.
Past bones older than any settlement at the North Pole.
Past the places Yolgrimm allows few outsiders to see.
At last—
they enter the hidden chamber.
The great stone arch stands at its center.
The gateway between the Core Realm and the Primal Expanse.
Yeti stops immediately.
The portal is dead.
No green stormlight.
No black forest.
No distant howls.
Only stone.
Yeti's expression darkens.
He walks toward it.
Places one enormous hand against the arch.
Nothing responds.
YETI: Open it.
YOLGRIMM: I cannot.
Yeti slowly turns.
YETI: You're its guardian.
YOLGRIMM: Of this side.
Yeti looks back at the arch.
The carved runes have changed.
The old open patterns now fold inward.
Sealed.
YETI: Grimva.
Yolgrimm nods.
YOLGRIMM: Grimva Icevein closed the crossings.
Yeti turns sharply.
YETI: Crossings?
YOLGRIMM: Every passage from the Primal Expanse into the Core Realm that remains under her reach.
Yeti stares at him.
YETI: All of them?
YOLGRIMM: Yes.
A low growl begins in Yeti's chest.
YETI: On whose authority?
Yolgrimm's expression remains calm.
YOLGRIMM: Hers.
That is the wrong answer.
Yeti steps toward him.
YETI: She has no authority over the beast blood.
YOLGRIMM: Grimva did not claim that she did.
YETI: She just closed every road between worlds.
He points toward the dead arch.
YETI: That looks like authority to me.
YOLGRIMM: It was necessity.
YETI: According to her.
Yolgrimm says nothing.
Yeti's eyes narrow.
YETI: Why?
YOLGRIMM: To protect the Core Realm.
That stops him.
Only briefly.
YETI: From what?
YOLGRIMM: She does not know.
Yeti snarls.
YETI: Then she sealed an entire realm away from mine because she is frightened of something she cannot name?
YOLGRIMM: Grimva does not frighten easily.
Yeti knows that.
He hates that he knows it.
YETI: What happened?
Yolgrimm steps toward the portal.
YOLGRIMM: The Expanse has been changing.
YETI: Changing how?
YOLGRIMM: Herds abandoning old territories.
YOLGRIMM: Paths no longer behaving as they should.
YOLGRIMM: Blood-memory disturbed.
Yeti's brow tightens.
YOLGRIMM: Names erased from the Ancestral Stone.
That lands.
Yeti becomes still.
YETI: Erased?
YOLGRIMM: Not broken.
A beat.
YOLGRIMM: Gone.
Yeti looks toward the sealed portal.
His anger has not vanished.
But something else has joined it.
Calculation.
YETI: Bigfoot saw this.
Yolgrimm looks at him.
That is confirmation enough.
Yeti slowly turns back.
YETI: He went there.
Silence.
YETI: Didn't he?
Yolgrimm does not lie.
YOLGRIMM: Yes.
Yeti's stare hardens.
YETI: Through your gate.
YOLGRIMM: Yes.
YETI: To Grimva.
YOLGRIMM: Yes.
The growl returns.
Deeper now.
YETI: You sent him.
YOLGRIMM: I showed him the way.
Yeti takes one heavy step forward.
YETI: Don't play with words, old man.
YOLGRIMM: I do not play.
YETI: You sent my challenger into the Primal Expanse to seek counsel from Grimva Icevein.
Yolgrimm holds his ground.
YETI: Without telling me.
YOLGRIMM: I did not require your permission.
Yeti's eyes flare.
YETI: I am the Alpha.
The words shake the chamber.
YETI: Every beast who walks beneath that mantle answers to me.
Yolgrimm's expression does not change.
YOLGRIMM: That is what you believe.
Yeti moves forward so quickly that the distance between them disappears.
YETI: Careful.
Yolgrimm looks up at him.
Unmoved.
YETI: Bigfoot returned from that place different.
A beat.
YETI: More focused.
Another.
YETI: Less afraid.
His lip curls.
YETI: I wondered where that came from.
Yolgrimm says nothing.
Yeti looks toward the portal.
Pieces falling into place.
YETI: What did you tell him?
YOLGRIMM: The truth.
Yeti turns.
YETI: Which truth?
Yolgrimm pauses.
Then—
YOLGRIMM: I told him to tell Grimva that Yeti wears the Alpha mantle in corruption.
Silence.
Absolute.
The fire from the distant passage seems suddenly very far away.
Yeti stares at him.
When he speaks again—
his voice is quiet.
Dangerously quiet.
YETI: You told her that.
YOLGRIMM: Yes.
YETI: You sent one of my own beasts into another realm carrying a message that his Alpha is unworthy.
YOLGRIMM: I sent Bigfoot to learn whether he could become something better than you.
Yeti's face twists with fury.
YETI: Treason.
Yolgrimm does not flinch.
YETI: That is treason.
YOLGRIMM: To a king, perhaps.
Yeti's nostrils flare.
YOLGRIMM: An Alpha is not a king.
YETI: I decide what the Alpha is.
YOLGRIMM: And there lies the problem.
For one instant—
it looks as though Yeti may attack him.
His fists close.
His shoulders tense.
But he does not.
Because the dead portal remains beside them.
And there is a larger question.
Yeti slowly looks back toward it.
YETI: Did Grimva close these gates because of Bigfoot?
YOLGRIMM: No.
Yeti turns back.
YOLGRIMM: What is happening in the Expanse is older than his arrival.
YETI: Then what did she find?
YOLGRIMM: Something watching.
Yeti's eyes narrow.
YETI: Watching what?
YOLGRIMM: The Expanse.
YETI: A predator?
YOLGRIMM: Grimva does not believe so.
YETI: Then what?
Yolgrimm's voice lowers.
YOLGRIMM: The last thing she told Bigfoot before his return was this—
A pause.
YOLGRIMM: The Expanse is not being hunted.
Yeti waits.
YOLGRIMM: It is being measured.
That changes him.
Not dramatically.
Yeti does not recoil.
He does not gasp.
He simply becomes very still.
YETI: Measured.
YOLGRIMM: Yes.
Yeti looks at the sealed gateway.
His mind works differently now.
The rivalry with Bigfoot remains.
The insult from Yolgrimm remains.
The challenge to his authority remains.
But something larger has forced its way into the calculation.
YETI: And Grimva thinks whatever is doing the measuring could come here.
YOLGRIMM: She believes the risk is great enough that no passage should remain open.
Yeti stares at the dead runes.
YETI: So she protected the Core Realm.
YOLGRIMM: Yes.
A beat.
Yeti looks toward him.
YETI: What about the beasts she sealed inside?
Yolgrimm says nothing.
Yeti's voice grows heavier.
YETI: My beasts.
There it is.
Not compassion in the way Bigfoot would understand it.
Possession.
Responsibility.
Rule.
YETI: The clans.
The herds.
The bloodlines.
He gestures toward the portal.
YETI: She has cut them off from their Alpha.
YOLGRIMM: They survived before you.
Yeti's head snaps toward him.
YETI: That's not the point.
He steps toward the arch.
YETI: If they are under threat, I need to know how many.
YETI: Which territories.
YETI: Which clans are moving.
YETI: Which bloodlines are being lost.
Yolgrimm watches him carefully.
YETI: I cannot rule beasts I cannot reach.
There it is.
The real fear.
Not merely that the Expanse is endangered.
That an entire part of the beast world may now exist beyond his command.
YETI: Grimva has cut a kingdom in half.
YOLGRIMM: You continue to call it a kingdom.
YETI: Because it is mine.
YOLGRIMM: The Expanse has never belonged to you.
Yeti turns.
YETI: Every beast belongs beneath the Alpha mantle.
YOLGRIMM: Then perhaps the mantle is not as large as you believed.
Yeti's stare becomes murderous.
YETI: Keep talking like that and I'll find out how well old bones heal.
Yolgrimm almost smiles.
YOLGRIMM: Better than wounded pride.
Yeti growls.
But again—
he restrains himself.
Because he needs answers.
YETI: Can the portals be reopened?
YOLGRIMM: Yes.
Yeti's eyes sharpen.
YETI: How?
YOLGRIMM: Grimva can remove the seal.
YETI: And if she refuses?
Yolgrimm looks directly at him.
YOLGRIMM: Then breaking it from this side would be possible.
A beat.
YOLGRIMM: And extraordinarily foolish.
YETI: Why?
YOLGRIMM: Because she closed the gate to keep something from crossing.
Yeti looks back at the arch.
YOLGRIMM: Break the seal without understanding what stands behind it—
A pause.
YOLGRIMM: —and you may prove you are Alpha only long enough to be the first thing it reaches.
Yeti does not answer.
The words irritate him.
But he listens.
He always listens when survival is involved.
YETI: Bigfoot crossed back before the seal.
YOLGRIMM: Yes.
YETI: Did he bring anything with him?
YOLGRIMM: Not that we know.
Yeti immediately turns.
YETI: Not good enough.
YOLGRIMM: On that, we agree.
A long silence.
Yeti studies the portal.
Then—
YETI: Grimva challenged my rule by receiving him.
YOLGRIMM: She received a traveler.
YETI: She trained my challenger.
YOLGRIMM: She trained a beast who asked to learn.
YETI: And you sent him carrying an accusation against his Alpha.
Yolgrimm says nothing.
Yeti looks directly at him.
YETI: That debt between us isn't forgotten.
YOLGRIMM: I did not expect it would be.
Yeti takes a step toward the exit.
Stops.
Looks back at the sealed gateway.
His anger has shifted.
Focused.
YETI: But this comes first.
That surprises Yolgrimm.
Yeti notices.
YETI: Don't look so shocked.
He points toward the portal.
YETI: If something threatens the Primal Expanse, it threatens the beast blood.
A beat.
YETI: And if it threatens the beast blood—
His posture straightens.
The Alpha asserting himself.
YETI: —it threatens what is mine to rule.
Yolgrimm's expression becomes grave.
YETI: I want everything Bigfoot told you when he came back.
YOLGRIMM: He did not tell me everything.
Yeti's lip curls.
YETI: Then I'll ask him myself.
YOLGRIMM: Perhaps you should.
Yeti starts toward the passage.
Then stops again.
YETI: Yolgrimm.
YOLGRIMM: Yes?
Yeti looks back.
YETI: If Grimva sends word—
A beat.
YETI: You tell me.
YOLGRIMM: Why?
Yeti's face hardens.
YETI: Because whether she likes it or not—
He gestures toward the dead portal.
YETI: —those beasts still have an Alpha.
Yolgrimm considers him.
YOLGRIMM: Perhaps that is exactly what Grimva intends to discover.
Yeti's eyes narrow.
YETI: Meaning?
Yolgrimm looks toward the sealed gateway.
YOLGRIMM: Bigfoot went to the Expanse believing his greatest question was whether he could defeat you.
A long pause.
YOLGRIMM: He returned knowing there are questions larger than either of you.
Yeti stares at him.
He does not like that.
Not at all.
YETI: Nothing is larger than the Alpha.
Yolgrimm's gaze settles on the silent arch.
YOLGRIMM: Then you should hope you are right.
Yeti looks toward the portal one last time.
No light.
No sound.
No indication of what is happening beyond it.
For perhaps the first time—
the self-proclaimed ruler of all beasts is staring at a part of his domain that he cannot command.
Yeti's expression hardens.
Not fear.
Resolve.
Possessive.
Dangerous.
YETI: Open or closed...
A low growl rolls through his chest.
YETI: ...they're still mine.
He turns and disappears into the passage.
Yolgrimm remains behind.
Alone with the sealed gate.
He places one hand against the ancient stone.
Nothing responds.
His expression darkens.
YOLGRIMM: That is what I fear.
The runes remain dead.
Somewhere beyond them—
in the Primal Expanse—
there is no answer.
CUT TO BLACK.
END EPISODE 1.07 – “THE LINES BETWEEN”
No comments:
Post a Comment