4.2 – Shelter

IMMUNITIES EPISODE 4.2 – SHELTER

PRE-TITLE

SCENE – Liaison Office

LILIAH

Governor Lee!

LEE

Yes?

LILIAH

I was hoping that you were still in the building.

LEE

Only just; I am scheduled to leave for the capital immediately. What is your name?

LILIAH

Liliah Andreou. I work here.

LEE

And what is it you wish to discuss?

LILIAH

It would be most…efficient…to discuss it by linking. And most advisable to do so in private.

LEE

*pause*

Intriguing. And this can not wait until I return next week?

LILIAH

It absolutely can not.

LEE

(playfully chiding)

If this is not as urgent as you say, and it makes me late for my meeting with the Department Of Energy, I shall tell them to blame you.

LILIAH

(earnest)

I…must take that chance.

LEE

(soothing)

Calm down, Ms. Andreou, please. We have troubles enough without anticipating them. Let us find an empty office and put our heads together.

Office noise fades away.

SCENE – Carrie Kray’s Office

Door opens and closes, violently.

CARRIE

Janice!

JANICE (on intercom)

Yes, Carrie?

CARRIE

Have you been able to reach anyone at the Production Office?

JANICE

No, Carrie. I will tell you as soon as I reach them. Would you like me to leave them a detailed message?

CARRIE

No! I need to TALK to them. Back and forth. Hear their tone in their voices.

JANICE
Well, I will try. But…Carrie?

CARRIE

Oh God, is Governor Lee out there?

JANICE
Well, no. Congressman Noone is here to speak with you.

CARRIE

What, here?

JANICE

Yes, Carrie. He is RIGHT here. On the other side of my desk, just a few feet from the intercom.

CARRIE

I see. Well, definitely, send him in.

Doop opens, CALVIN NOONE enters. He is forceful, and somehow both earnest and insincere.

CARRIE

Congressman! I thought you were in Washington. Our interview-

NOONE

Was phoned, yes. I do not leave for Washington until later today. But my advisors and I decided, given that my appearance would be voice-only, to conduct it over the phone, even though I was close by. That way there would be fewer questions raised as to WHY I did not appear on camera.

CARRIE

I…well I’m not sure I understand. It’s been standard practice, since even before the Truce, for Altered persons to not make visual appearances on television. Today’s broadcast with the escapees was the first-

NOONE

Ah, the heroine broadcast, yes. We shall discuss that. But we should not depart from our current topic, until we have adequately explored it.

CARRIE
Explored…what…about it?

NOONE
Tell me, what percentage of society is prone to Alpha Wave Sickness?

CARRIE

Well, one percent of sighted people are unaltered-

NOONE

But a portion of that percent are either Primary Immunes or Alpha Immunes. And of course, as you say, many of the visually impaired are unaffected by the sickness. So, for the sake of a vanishingly small minority, we have barred the vast MAJORITY of citizens from appearing on their own airwaves. Why?

CARRIE

My understanding is that this was a compromise, between-

NOONE
It was indeed CHARACTERIZED as a compromise. One which you, I believe, proposed early on. But the acceptance of this compromise seems to have involved the dismissal, or ignorance, of many other, and perhaps superior, alternatives.

CARRIE

What alternatives?

NOONE

For instance, we could keep one percent of the channels Alpha-Wave-Free, for the sake of susceptible citizens, and the rest could feature a normal, natural, representative mix of Altered and Unaltered faces.

CARRIE

But, I’m sure you know…this procedure was formulated during the take-

*cuts herself off, takes a breath*

During the pre-Truce period, when it was vital to maximize Unaltered viewership.

NOONE

And at that time, of course, the percentage of Unaltered in our society was much higher, although, fortunately, it rapidly diminished.

CARRIE

Yes, for the good.

NOONE

For the good. I am glad that you agree. But, now that the number HAS diminished, and the priority of Unaltered viewership is not so vital, strategically: why has this rule remained in place?

CARRIE

My understanding is that Unaltered viewership is still considered a priority, because of the difficulty of effectively communicating our ideals to them any other way.

NOONE

Your UNDERSTANDING? I believe you understate your own role, Carrie. For here, too, you have been quite the advocate in favor of the policy.

CARRIE

Whenever my opinion has been sought, I’ve given the answer I felt would best promote the interests of the Unity. But I always look to my Altered supervisors for guidance.

NOONE

Always?

CARRIE

I…yes.

NOONE

Today, your producers gave you text to read, following our interview. This text directed you to urge viewers to give my ideas careful consideration.

CARRIE

(nervous: knows where this is going, but doesn’t want to give him any ammunition)

Mmm hmm.

NOONE

But you did not use those words. You urged viewers to give my ideas “careful thought”. Why was that?

CARRIE

Part of my job is to use the wording I consider most effective. To use my judgement for the good of the Unity.

NOONE

YOUR judgement, without input from anyone else?

CARRIE

I would have sought input, if there was time, but in a case like that, when I’m reporting on a developing situation, I sometimes have to make decisions on the fly.

NOONE

And YOUR decisions become the permanent record.

CARRIE

Not just mine, those of any broadcaster. Just the other day, Ted Nordham had to-

NOONE

Another ALPHA IMMUNE person, correct?

CARRIE

What? Yes, Ted and I are both-

NOONE
And by that definition, another person who cannot truly understand the General Will.

CARRIE

Well, we’ve done our best to determine-

NOONE

Leading, I would say, to a rather perverse situation in which Alpha broadcasters must strain themselves to guess at what the Unity requires, while the actual members of the Unity, the normal average citizens, are rendered invisible. In the process, coincidentally, creating an Alpha monopoly on visual mass media. Alphas are less than a twenty-thousandth of the population. Yet, until today, you were one hundred percent of the faces on television.

CARRIE

I haven’t seen that as a monopoly. I’ve seen it as a great need, which it’s the duty of Alphas to meet, because we’re the only ones loyal to the Unity who can do it. And my colleagues and I have tried to do so.

NOONE

Perhaps this great duty, as you call it, has been too much for such a small pool of talent. Leading to lapses such as that on your broadcast today.

CARRIE

(catching him out)

Oh, so now you’ve changed the subject. Should I take it that the prior topic has been adequately explored?

NOONE

HmmmMMMMMmmmm. That sounds rather feisty, coming from the woman who has just produced the most disastrous television program of our era. I would have expected you to be more meek.

CARRIE

“Meek”?!? I have always had great reverence and respect for the Altered, and for the Unity. But no one has ever suggested that I be meek.

NOONE

Perhaps they should have. Perhaps, if they had, things would be different. But there is a great deal they…the great unnamed they, have not done. For instance, how does one determine whether a given Unaltered Person is an Alpha?

CARRIE

Excuse me?

NOONE

As far as I know, the only distinctions between Alpha- and Primary-Immunes are self-reported. You SAY that you saw the Light on your first exposure, you SAY that you no longer see it, and you say that you agree with the goals of the Unity. But what you say cannot be corroborated telepathically, as it could be with a normal person.

CARRIE

Are you accusing me of faking my Alpha status??? Being an Alpha has made me an outcast, hated by literally millions of people!

NOONE

Please control the tone of your voice.

CARRIE

I-

*heavy breath*

I’m done.

NOONE

Good. I can hear you perfectly well at a civilized volume. And, your self-identification may perhaps have turned millions again you, but it has most certainly gained you the trust of hundreds of millions more. And put you in the position you hold, while many, more representative, and perhaps more qualified, people, are excluded, out of an unrealistic, naive idea of diversity that values minorities highly, and the majority not at all.

CARRIE

If I thought for one moment that my work did not serve the Unity, I would quit.

NOONE

(purring, patronizing)
Carrie! I am not saying that you are UN-qualified. I am saying that it is not for you to judge. The great silent majority of people on this planet placed a great burden of decision making on a few, you included, out of hope that this would bring peace with the Unaltered. But as Derek Holroyd’s actions have shown, that peace is worthless, because the Separates know only selfishness and violence. And as your broadcast has shown, the wrong kind of contact with the Separates creates confusions in vulnerable minds, confusions that undermine the Unity. So, it is time for the General WIll to assert itself directly. You were very useful in your day, Carrie, but it is a new day, the day of the champions of the normal, average person whose heart yearns for peace and safety and harmony. If you wish to enjoy this day, and to see the days that follow, I suggest you concentrate on making yourself useful to us…very useful indeed.

SCENE – LIAISON BASEMENT

Elevator pings, opens. Liliah and Roxane exit, and walk down the hallway.

LILIAH

Take this and follow me.

ROXANNE

A USB drive?

LILIAH

Indeed. Give it to Justin when you see him.

ROXANNE

Where do I find him?

LILIAH

My understanding is that the large door at the end of the hallway should lead to his quarters.

ROXANNE

Huh. I expected guards.

LILIAH

Normally, there ARE guards. They have been directed elsewhere.

ROXANNE

So you did get someone important to listen to you.

LILIAH

I believe…the less we speak about that subject, the better. What you do not know, you cannot reveal to others, including to Justin. Speaking of whom, please help me to tie this blindfold.

ROXANNE

Onto you?

LILIAH

Yes. I will be taking you inside, and it is important that I not link with Justin.

ROXANNE

But you’re his wife.

LILIAH

Our closeness, and our…ease of rapport, makes it all the more important that we take every precaution to keep information compartmentalized.

ROXANNE

Okay, I guess that’s on pretty well.

LILIAH

Tighten it more.

ROXANNE

Okay. There, that’s done.

LILIAH

Now place my hand on your left arm, and lead me to the door. The electronic lock should be disengaged, so merely pull the handle to the left of the doorframe to trigger the opening process.

ROXANNE

Right.

Roxanne pulls the handle, and we hear the familiar sounds of Justin’s door opening, but this time from the other side.

LILIAH

Take me inside, please.

ROXANNE

Okay, but it’s dark. How do I close the door?

LILIAH

That should happen automatically.

The door closes with a crash. The fluorescent lights flicker to life.

JUSTIN

Hello. My apologies, I was not expecting…Liliah.

LILIAH

Justin.

JUSTIN

It is…overwhelmingly fulfilling to see you again.

LILIAH

Hearing your voice pleases me greatly.

JUSTIN

Why are you here? Have the rules changed?

LILIAH

The rules have been changed only slightly, and temporarily. I am to leave immediately. I only came in order to introduce you to this young woman: Roxanne Scholl.

ROXANNE
Hi.

JUSTIN

Roxanne…She is an Unaltered. An Immune.

LILIAH

Yes. And she has an object to give you.

ROXANNE

Oh right. Here.

JUSTIN

(confused)

Thank you.

LILIAH

She claims also to know information that will help you with your mission. But I must not hear it, so I will leave her here so that you can evaluate it, and her. You must decide for yourself whether to trust her, and whether to include her presence in your reports.

JUSTIN

This is most irregular.

LILIAH

The world above is not exactly as you remember it. Things are changing. I must go now.

JUSTIN

I…I hope to see you again, soon.

LILIAH

Thank you. And I wish you the greatest possible success.

JUSTIN

Thank you.

LILIAH

Roxanne, you see the lever that matches the one that opened the door from the outside?

ROXANNE

Yeah.

LILIAH

Pull it.

Sound of door opening.

LILIAH

Now point me towards the open door.

ROXANNE

There you go.

LILIAH

Good bye, and good luck to both of you.

JUSTIN

Good bye.

Sound of door closing. Fluorescents come to life, again.

ROXANNE

I honestly can’t say if that was the most or least romantic thing I’ve ever seen.

JUSTIN

Ms. Scholl…will you please take a seat? Pardon me, but I have not had a guest in some time.

ROXANNE
Carrie Kray used to come down here, right?

JUSTIN

How do you know that?

ROXANNE

I know a lot of things. That’s why we can be helpful to each other. That’s why we can make a deal that saves everybody. Can anyone hear us down here?

JUSTIN

The entire purpose of this place is to keep what transpires here secret. The only information which comes out is the reports I write, when I discover something that should be acted upon. Surveillance would compromise this.

ROXANNE

Good.

JUSTIN

And so, Liliah said you had information relevant to my mission. Tell it to me.

ROXANNE

That’s not how making a deal works.

JUSTIN

Ah. You wish to bargain. What is it you want?

ROXANNE

Freedom for my sister and father.

JUSTIN

You are Sylvia Scholl’s daughter?

ROXANNE
Yes.

JUSTIN

Your father and sister are Altered people?

ROXANNE

(angered that everyone brings this up)

Yes.

JUSTIN

Then, from your point of view, what freedom can they have? Are we not all slaves of the alien energy, as the Resistance calls it?

ROXANNE

I’ve never heard a Luh-

…an Altered Person say something like that.

JUSTIN

I may be different from the Altered people you have met. I have changed myself so as to solve various puzzles that have eluded the Unity as a whole.

ROXANNE

But they still trust you up there, even though you’ve changed?

JUSTIN

Some of them do, though I am not sure how many have confidence in my success and accuracy. I have been consulted less and less often since the failure of Mrs. Kray’s investigation.

ROXANNE
Well, then I guess my question is whether you’d be able to un-detain my dad and sister, even if you wanted to.

JUSTIN

That depends on a great deal of information which I do not have. Perhaps the drive you gave me has the answer. Follow me to my computer.

They walk to his desk, and put the drive in the computer.

ROXANNE

This is an interesting place, but I can’t imagine living here. Liliah said you’d been down here a long time.

JUSTIN

Our reaction to discomfort and inconvenience is different from yours. I would rather be somewhere else, and get a broader variety of sensory input. But I think about why I am here, and that makes it bearable. I…

ROXANNE

What?

JUSTIN

The file on this drive…says that your sister was detained because she was suspected of being an AlphaBeta, the specific one that we are looking for.

ROXANNE

I was afraid of that.

JUSTIN

But, not only was I not consulted about this, I was not even informed. I am specifically excluded from the distribution list, even though I am supposed to be the key investigator into this matter.

ROXANNE

Why would that be?

JUSTIN

The lack of confidence we spoke of. Someone has decided that I am not a safe channel of information, so I will not be given the most sensitive data.

ROXANNE

In that case, what’s the point of you being down here?

JUSTIN

They have already given me many secrets. Even if they ceased to do so, it would be too dangerous to let me re-join the Unity until all these matters are resolved.

ROXANNE

But, all this…I hate to say it, but wouldn’t it be more efficient to kill you?

JUSTIN
We do not kill one another, even for the sake of efficiency. We value all human life. That is a difference between us.

ROXANNE

Yowch.

JUSTIN

I am sorry, but being cut off from the Unity, I am protective of the Altered qualities I still possess.

ROXANNE
Don’t worry about it. With what that guy Derek got up to, this is the wrong week for me to say humans aren’t violent. But then what about Shelly? She’s one of you. What are they doing to her?

JUSTIN

According to this, the order for her arrest came at the federal level, at the suggestion of one of our secured research groups. Presumably she will be taken to them.

ROXANNE

Those are the ones trying to break immunity?

JUSTIN

The nature of their research is secret.

ROXANNE

So you’re not going to tell me?

JUSTIN

As you said, that is not how bargaining works. You have given me no information, nor even a tangible reason to believe that you have any.

ROXANNE

If they’re one of the Immunity-breaking groups, they’ll be identified by a Greek letter followed by a number. The number can be any number equal to or less than the ordinal value of the letter. So there’s an Alpha One, then both a Beta One and a Beta Two, Gamma One, Two, and Three, Delta up to four, et cetera.

JUSTIN

(struck)

How do you know that?

ROXANNE
The same way I know that I have to keep Shelly away from them: I know things about them, and what they do. Your side may value human life, and so does mine, but when the possibility of getting rid of The Look or Immunity comes up, the value of an individual person gets thrown out the window, whether the thrower is an individual like Derek or some super-secret team of Looker scientists.

JUSTIN

So it is true, some of the information given to me has been stolen.

ROXANNE

You’re just guessing that it came from you. It’s an educated guess, but you don’t really know. But you DO know that I have stuff you want. So now, we can bargain.

JUSTIN

Your logic appears to be sound. What are your terms?

ROXANNE
I tell you what I know about the AlphaBeta. You give me whatever help you can to get my family away from the people who have them, including giving me any relevant information. And you let me go free.

JUSTIN

But if she is the AlphaBeta, how can I justify helping you set her free?

ROXANNE

To yourself?

JUSTIN

To anyone.

ROXANNE

Okay, I’ll add a bonus. You have me locked up down here. If, at the end of this, you think she’s the AlphaBeta, then you don’t let any of us go. You keep her, and turn me over to the people who are probably looking for me right now. That way, none of the information gets loose.

JUSTIN

But in that case, you would gain nothing, and, if you are as knowledgeable as you appear to be, you could do great damage to the Resistance if interrogated.

ROXANNE
I’ve got a way to make sure I don’t tell them anything.

JUSTIN

What way?

ROXANNE

That’s my business. But it’s the same thing I’ll do if you break our deal and try to force answers out of me.

JUSTIN

HmmmMMMMmmmmm. Dealing with you is not a simple matter.

ROXANNE

Never is.

JUSTIN

All right. Answer my questions, and I will answer yours. If, at the point where all relevant information has been exchanged, I believe Shelly Scholl is the AlphaBeta, then I will hand you over to the authorities. Otherwise, I will do what I can to help you secure her release, and set you free. Do you find that acceptable?

ROXANNE

Pretty much, one more thing.

JUSTIN

What?

ROXANNE

We swear on it. Give me your word.

JUSTIN

I…do not know if you are aware, but the Altered do not attach the same value to promises and oaths as you do. We simply tell the truth.

ROXANNE

Humor me. If you follow the rules of the bargain you just laid out, I will too. I swear.

JUSTIN

And…I will do the same. You have my word.

ROXANNE

Whew! Great. We have a deal. Now, I can see you’ve got something you’re just dying to ask, so let’s have it.

JUSTIN
All right…how can you be so sure that your sister is not the AlphaBeta?

ROXANNE

Simple, because I’m the AlphaBeta.

JUSTIN

*boggles for a moment, then…*

You.

ROXANNE

Yeah. Shelly’s just guilty by association. She doesn’t even know about me. So now I’m going to answer your questions, then you’re going to help free us both. GOTCHA.

SCENE – THE HOSPITAL. Occasional sounds of far off voices and machinery.

CARRIE

Hello Candace.

CANDACE

Mrs. Kray! I…am sorry, I did not expect to see you.

CARRIE

That’s perfectly natural. I understand Kelsey is in this wing of the hospital?

CANDACE

Yes.

CARRIE

And you’re here to visit her?

CANDACE

Yes, I wanted to discuss some…recent developments…with her. But her family, and Molly, are inside with her. And I did not want to complicate their visit with my own.

CARRIE

Well, that’s unfortunate, but part of me is glad that things worked out this way.

CANDACE

Because you want to talk with me privately.

CARRIE

Yes.

CANDACE

Everyone wants to talk with me privately. Everyone is very concerned for my peace of mind. I can not even join the sky link without being bombarded by well-wishers seeking to give me just a little advice.

CARRIE

Well that, I’m afraid, is the hazard of being a public person. You already were one by being a victim, then you became more of one by being a hero, and now an even bigger one by being the self-appointed voice of an entire segment of Altered society.

CANDACE

I said what I felt I had to say, in the only way the Unaltered could hear me.

CARRIE

But what you said could be misinterpreted, used against us by our enemies. The same enemies who gave Derek Holroyd the opportunity to do what he did.

CANDACE

Well, Mrs. Kray, I feel that I could have made my true meaning clearer if I had been given time to speak in full, and your station had not switched away from our program to an update on forest fires.

CARRIE

What if I could give you a second chance? To really make it clear that you are trying to strengthen the Unity, not destroy it.

CANDACE
You truly believe that that is possible, after the reaction to my first attempt?

CARRIE

I’m sure of it. Do you know Calvin Noone?

CANDACE

He is my Congressman.

CARRIE

He’s taken a personal interest in your case. The case of all of you who freed yourselves, but also you in particular. He can arrange for you to have time to speak, as long as you frame your approach in the proper way. Would you welcome that opportunity?

CANDACE

I do not think my conscience would allow me to reject it.

CARRIE

I hoped that would be your reaction. Here’s what he said to me…

SCENE – THE UNITY. Voices everywhere.

LEE

(with a very formal friendliness)

Congressman Noone.

NOONE

Governor Lee.

LEE

Did you wish to speak with me?

NOONE

I had not planned to communicate with you up here, like this. I sent an assistant to your office.

LEE

Well, I prefer direct communication, rather than intermediaries, when it comes to important matters. I find that there are fewer misunderstandings that way. And since you had already left for Washington, communicating through the sky seemed like the best way to proceed. Speaking of which, I understand that congratulations will soon be in order. It is an honor to have the new Speaker Of The House Of Representatives originate from our little corner of the country.

NOONE

Thank you, Governor. Congress has been very sensitive to the changes dictated by the recent unpleasant events, and apparently decided that I was the best-placed person to effectively carry out the General Will in these troubled times.

LEE

This does show the dynamism and responsiveness of our people. They can raise an unknown private citizen with no experience in government to Speaker, much more quickly than in the old days.

NOONE

(with controlled anger)

Yes. It makes one wonder whether it is right to keep so many people in positions of authority, merely because those were the positions they held before joining the Unity.

LEE
Well, I think we have enough problems to address without engaging in change, for the sake of change. But further adjustments will occur when and where the people decide they are needed.

NOONE

Most definitely.

LEE

So, what was it you wished to contact me about?

NOONE

It is a matter of some delicacy, so I would prefer to communicate outside of the Link. My assistant is fully briefed about it.

LEE
Then, I will speak with your assistant, of course. But let us discuss that portion of your request which you think the people should be permitted to hear, and then I will disconnect, and listen to the part you feel should be kept from them.

NOONE

(increasing simmering anger)

I do not wish to keep anything at all from the people. It is merely that some of this is not safe to discuss here, for reasons you know well.

LEE
As you say, then. What is it you want, as far as you can make it known here?

NOONE
(losing it a little)

I want your help to find Roxanne Scholl.

LEE
Ah, Roxanne, yes. I am personally acquainted with her. And I understand her sister and father were detained recently, in a most unorthodox fashion.

NOONE

Detention is an uncommon thing; every detention could be considered unorthodox.

LEE
Yes, but there are procedures. Part of our early reforms were to simplify our multi-tiered system of government, by giving Governors direct control over their territory. And yet, this detention occurred without consultation with anyone in my state.

NOONE
I was consulted.

LEE
Pardon me, I meant, with anyone in the state government. Can I assume that this action resulted from the information I gave to you, after it was given to me by Lorna Gerrold?

NOONE

It was.

LEE
I would have thought that, if that information led to a plan of action, the logical next step would be to contact me, who was most familiar with the family and the local situation.

NOONE
It was an urgent matter. You allowed the secret name to be communicated to you during a sky link, much as this one. Anyone might have overheard it, and betrayed it to the Outsider. We had to act before that could happen, to stay ahead of the curve. And we did not have time to consult with someone who had spent months with our target right under her nose, and had been equally ineffective at finding her, at stopping the recent kidnapping and torture of our young women, and at capturing their attacker.

LEE
(tightly controlled)

Interesting. And how did you proceed from there?

NOONE

We decided it was simplest to contact Shelly Scholl while she was at work, order her to surrender herself, and three co-workers to accompany her.

LEE
And how did Ronald Scholl come to be detained?

NOONE

He contacted her routinely, during her journey, and then insisted on accompanying her. This proved beneficial, for reasons I simply can not reveal at this time. But for similar reasons, it is now important that Roxanne Scholl join them as well. But she is at large in your state.

LEE
It seems paradoxical, that your very urgency, to carry out this detention, seems to have directly caused the disappearance of the person you now wish to find.

NOONE

I can assure you, I do not find anything about this to be funny.

LEE
Humor is a natural human response to the contradictions of life, even in the darkest circumstances. It is a means of coping, and learning.

NOONE

A human response, not an Altered response.

LEE

(fascinated)

Are you saying we are not human?

NOONE
How human do you think Kelsey Habcek felt when Derek Holroyd injected acid under her skin?

LEE
Holroyd’s actions WERE dehumanizing. But it seems your idea of the General Will dehumanizes us too, though without us feeling the pain.

NOONE

I am glad to hear your true opinion of my movement. Fortunately, the people disagree with you.

LEE
The people are frightened. That fear is justifiable, but it is not always the best basis for a decision.

NOONE

These abstractions waste time. The ability of you and the old governing class to endlessly say clever, reassuring things is well known. What I do not know is whether you will help our government to find Roxanne Scholl. Will you, or will you not?

LEE

Your assistant will find state police, state records, and state investigators at his disposal.

NOONE

Good.

LEE

*pause*
I take it, you consider gratitude to be another outmoded human concept?

NOONE

We are public servants. Doing the minimum our jobs require is no cause for praise.

LEE

Well. In that case, I find there is nothing more to say.

SILENCE