The Brigadoon
[THE CREAK OF FAMILIAR FARMHOUSE STAIRS]
[THERE IS AN INSTRUMENT BEING PLAYED SOMEWHERE ELSE IN THE HOUSE, THE TINKLE OF SOMEONE LEARNING ON A SLIGHTLY OUT OF TUNE PIANO, A CONVERSATION ELSEWHERE AS WELL, LAUGHTER]
HESTER
Morning, Aubrey, I made coffee. Well, you know. Whatever the brown stuff is this month.
AUBREY
Oh. Thank you.
HESTER
Someone said they reckon we’re getting some real beans in the next drop off.
AUBREY
I’ll believe it when I drink it.
[AUBREY PAUSES A MOMENT TO LISTEN AS THE PIANO LEARNER CONTINUES]
AUBREY
Who’s learning now?
HESTER
One of the young ones.
AUBREY
We really need to move the piano. One day a storm is goin-
[HESTER FINISHES HER SENTENCE]
HESTER
A storm’s going to blow this rickety old farmhouse down, yes. Why do you take your naps in here then? And why am I making you coffee in here?
AUBREY
Because it’s the only place I can get some peace. Even with the piano.
HESTER
You on your way down to see him?
AUBREY
No, I’ve got to check in on Jade first.
HESTER
Jade’s been up for hours.
AUBREY
Well, I need to see what she’s making everyone do for her then.
HESTER
You’re putting it off.
AUBREY
I’m not putting anything off.
HESTER
The results were fine. He’s ready.
[AUBREY PULLS HER SHOES ON BY THE FRONT DOOR. HESTER’S WORDS ARE FIRM BUT SHE DELIVERS THEM GENTLY. THEY COULD BE SQUABBLING OVER THEIR TEENAGE SON]
AUBREY
I… I know.
HESTER
Then stop putting it off.
AUBREY
Hester, I’m not putting it off -
HESTER
You’ve barely spoken to him since he woke up. You send other people to sort his meds and his food. He doesn’t need them, he needs you. He’s ready.
AUBREY
Hester. Please. I’ve been awake for ten minutes.
HESTER
Yes sir. Sorry sir.
[AUBREY COMES BACK IN TO GET HER DRINK]
AUBREY
You think you’re being playful but you’re actually very annoying.
HESTER
Take your not-coffee.
AUBREY
No, you take your… not-coffee… Alright then I’ll be off. See you in a bit.
[THEY SHARE A QUICK KISS. AUBREY LEAVES THE KITCHEN, OPENS THE DOOR AND STEPS OUT INTO THE VALLEY. A BRISK WIND IS BLOWING. THE VALLEY FLOOR IS WIDE AND OPEN WITH A DISTANCE BETWEEN THE HOUSE AND THE BASE. THE VALLEY IS A HUB OF ACTIVITY - WORK AND PLAY, DOZENS OF PEOPLE]
[IN REAL TIME, AUBREY MAKES HER WAY ACROSS THE VALLEY FLOOR. THE SOUND OF TOOLS, SAWS AND DRILLS, ROARING FIRES, SINGING, THE ODD MUSICAL INSTRUMENT. THERE ARE MULTIPLE CALLS TO AUBREY WISHING HER A GOOD MORNING, OFFERS OF ASSISTANCE OR ATTEMPTS TO GET HERS. SHE AWKWARDLY RESPONDS AS KINDLY AS SHE CAN - SHE’S NOT COMFORTABLE IN THE CROWD]
COMMUNITY 1
Morning, Aubrey!
AUBREY
Morning.
COMMUNITY 2
Morning, Aubrey!
AUBREY
Morning!
COMMUNITY 3
Hey, Aubrey!
AUBREY
Yep. Hey.
COMMUNITY 4
Morning!
AUBREY
Hiya!
COMMUNITY 5
Morning, Aubrey!
AUBREY
Hi, yeah!
COMMUNITY 6
Hey, Aubrey! You alright?
AUBREY
Yeah… yeah, all good.
COMMUNITY 7
Morning, Aubrey!
AUBREY
Hiya!
COMMUNITY 8
Aubrey, I need that -
AUBREY
Yeah, great!… I’ve got to hummm…
COMMUNITY 9
Aubrey
AUBREY
Yep. Hey
COMMUNITY 9
Aubrey, any chance I could grab you -
AUBREY
Got to go to my rounds, I’ll… I’ll catch up with you later.
COMMUNITY 9
Sure! Sure. No worries.
AUBREY
Fucking h…
[SOON ENOUGH A BLUE SKY DRONE WHIZZES OVER TO HER. SHE SHARES A CONVERSATION WITH GORD AS SHE MAKES THE DISTANCE TO THE STATION]
GORD
Good morning, Aubrey.
AUBREY
Morning, Gord. Could you just… Could you just hover further away?
GORD
It’s nearly time for Warren’s alarm.
AUBREY
You’re as bad as Hester!
GORD
I’m sorry?
AUBREY
I’ll get there when I get there.
GORD
Alright.
AUBREY
You answer back more now.
GORD
Analysis revealed Gordon Porlock liked to have the last word.
AUBREY
Fascinating.
GORD
Indeed.
AUBREY
Alright then.
[A BEAT AS SHE WALKS]
GORD
Okay then.
AUBREY
I can demote you in a heartbeat. You’ll be running the Bluetooth connection on the white goods.
[SHE REACHES THE STATION AND PULLS THE HEAVY DOOR OPEN]
GORD
Fine.
[AUBREY SIGHS AND ENTERS THE STATION]
[WARREN GODBY, IN HIS QUARANTINE ROOM WITH GORD. AN ALARM CLOCK RINGS, THE SOUND OF LIGHTS FLICKERING ON]
GORD
Good morning, Warren. It’s 7:30 a.m. Would you like to wake up now, or have a little longer?
WARREN
Umm… I’ll have a little longer, please. Could you put the lights back out?
GORD
Sure. I’ll try again in half an hour.
WARREN
An hour.
GORD
Sure.
[WARREN LIES IN SILENCE]
WARREN
Gord, I know Aubrey asked you not to tell me much about the future for… reasons. Can I at least ask you a sports question?
[THE LIGHTS COME BACK ON]
GORD
Depends on the question I suppose.
WARREN
How are Arsenal doing in the Premier League?
GORD
Arsenal ended the last Premier League season in 16th place with a total of 52 points and a goal difference of -2. I didn’t know you supported Arsenal.
WARREN
I don’t support anyone, they were my dad’s team.
GORD
I’ll remember that.
WARREN
There’s no need. Hang on. When you said last Premier League season, did you mean the last season just gone or The Last Premier League Season?
GORD
You’re trying to catch me out here aren’t you, Warren?
WARREN
Gord, who is currently top of the Premier League?
GORD
At the end of the last Premier League season, Norwich City -
WARREN
No, no, this season, right now.
GORD
How do you know there’s even a season in play right now?
WARREN
This is you trying to squabble isn’t it. Distraction by squabble.
GORD
This is you imagining its the end of the world outside and trying to trick me into giving you information about it. Just because there may or may not be a Premier League anymore doesn’t mean a nuclear holocaust wiped out the Football Association.
WARREN
You know the more I talk to you the more you remind me of actual Gordon.
GORD
I’ll take that as a compliment.
WARREN
You shouldn’t. Now, turn the bloody lights off.
GORD
Sure.
[SILENCE FOR A MOMENT]
WARREN
Is Aubrey coming today?
[THE LIGHTS COME BACK ON]
WARREN
You don’t have to keep turning the lights on everytime I speak -
[THE LIGHTS GO OFF]
GORD
Sorry. Off they go.
WARREN
Alright, wheres the water?
[WARREN REACHES FOR A GLASS OF WATER AND KNOCKS IT TO THE FLOOR]
WARREN
Oh my God- I didn’t ask for the lights.
GORD
You spilled your water.
WARREN
I feel like I’m going to have an epileptic fit.
GORD
You don’t have epilepsy.
WARREN
Can you just dim the lights and leave it at that?
[THE LIGHTS GO DOWN TO LOW POWER]
GORD
Lights at 20%. This isn’t me trying to distract you by the way.
WARREN
No, this is just you isn’t it? Where is Aubrey?
GORD
Aubrey is currently occupied with her duties in the base -
WARREN
You say that every time. It’s been days since I’ve heard from her. When can I leave? When can I get some normal-looking food? When can I use a toilet that’s not three feet from my bed? I’m not enjoying that.
GORD
Would you like it moved closer?
WARREN
No!
GORD
The chief concern for Aubrey is your health, both physical and mental. It’s very important that we keep you calm and comfortable as you come off your mood stabilisers -
WARREN
You say that every time too. When you repeat stuff, I get nervous. When I get nervous, I start to panic. And when I start to panic I-
GORD
You open your bowels.
WARREN
I - what?
GORD
Each time you enter a state of anxiety, your heart rate increases to the mid 90s, your respiratory rate rises to the mid 20s, and you move to the toilet to evacuate your bowels within the subsequent 15 minutes.
WARREN
Anxiety poo is a thing that I do. It’s why I don’t go to music festivals.
GORD
Opening your bowels stimulates your vagus nerve which reduces your blood pressure. That might explain why you feel a little less panicked after you use the toilet.
WARREN
Yeah, no one’s ever told me that.
GORD
The same stimulation is the cause of many deaths while on the toilet due to cardiac arrest.
WARREN
This is the worst morning so far.
GORD
Your heart rate has started to increase a little.
WARREN
Awesome. I hope there’s enough loo roll.
GORD
Would you like some Amazon rainfall sounds to relax you?
WARREN
Why not.
GORD
I’ll turn the lights off too.
WARREN
Great.
[THE LIGHTS GO OFF. RAINFALL SOUNDS BEGIN. A MOMENT OF TRANQUILITY. SUDDENLY THE RAINFALL CUTS AND THE LIGHTS COME ON ABRUPTLY ON. THE INTERCOM SQUEALS]
AUBREY
Morning! How are you, Warren?
WARREN
I’m… Aubrey - what answer do I have to give to get out of here?
AUBREY
Any answer you like, Warren. Today’s the day.
[KEYPAD TONES. WITH A HISS, THE DOOR OPENS. AUBREY STEPS INSIDE]
WARREN
Au… Aubrey…
AUBREY
Warren. You look like you’re about to shit yourself, I know I look a bit older these days but er-
WARREN
No. I was… I was actually just about to er… the toilet-
AUBREY
Oh! I’ll umm… just - I’ll be outside.
WARREN
Great. I’ll just be err…
AUBREY
Take your time.
WARREN
Thank you. Thank you.
[AUBREY BACKS OUT OF THE DOOR AND IT CLOSES AGAIN WITH ANOTHER HISS. A PAUSE]
GORD
Shall I play the rain noise again?
WARREN & AUBREY (FROM BEHIND THE DOOR)
Yes!
[RAINFALL]
[WARREN’S ROOM. AUBREY IS DOING A LAST CHECK ON WARREN’S READOUTS]
WARREN
I’m fine, we can go.
AUBREY
You’ve been in hypersleep decades longer than anyone has ever been before. Indulge me. Take this.
WARREN
I don’t want any more mood stabilisers.
AUBREY
Good, we don’t have many left. It’s a bloody multivitamin. Go on.
[WARREN TAKES THE PILL WITH A SIP OF WATER]
WARREN
How long do I have to be on medication for?
AUBREY
Well, the drug is more than just a mood stabiliser. It keeps your mind right after the hypersleep process tries to rewire it. The longer you keep, the more you need. The trade name is Eterniteze.
WARREN
Ugh.
AUBREY
Overhead made it, what do you expect. Truth is, the drug is ultimately based on the brain chemistry of the first hypersleep patient. Which is you. So, I’ve no idea how much to give you or how long for. I guess we’ll work it out.
WARREN
Great. Can we go now?
AUBREY
The machine just takes a couple of minutes.
GORD
Just a couple of minutes.
AUBREY
Yes, Gord, that’s what I said.
WARREN
Why did you make it sound like him?
AUBREY
I thought a familiar face would help you acclimatise.
GORD
I don’t have a face.
AUBREY
It’s a figure of speech, Gord!
WARREN
Are we done after this?
AUBREY
No, I’m just doing a last round of obs and waiting on a blood gas before I let you run off into the future. Err… Look into this.
WARREN
Ow.
AUBREY
Pupils are fine. You’re still pretty sensitive to light.
WARREN
Yeah. Because I’ve been down here for so long.
AUBREY
Well, you’re still in Scotland, I wouldn’t worry about the sunshine.
WARREN
Are you going to tell me about this future before I go running off into it?
[AUBREY PAUSES A MOMENT TO THINK]
AUBREY
I wasn’t joking about the mood stabilisers. Medicines are very hard to come by and Eterniteze are rare in particular. Considering the patient load we have here and the sporadic nature of our deliveries, I can’t dish them out lightly.
WARREN
I never asked for them. And every time you give me another little crumb of information like that, I get more anxious. What patient load? what are you talking about?
AUBREY
I’m only saying… you remember how things were the last time you went into that pod. With… you. I need to be as sure as I can that you’re going to be safe. I’m not going to put you back inside that thing.
WARREN
If you really are going to let me out of this room today, then you have to let me know what I’m going into. At least a little.
[AUBREY TAKES A MOMENT, THEN RELENTS]
AUBREY
Alright. Let’s assume you can guess everything that went wrong. It was pretty much an A to Z of dystopian clichés. Depends where you are in the world obviously, but if I was explaining it in a general sense, I’d say it went a bit like… Children of Men for quite a while, then a little bit, Blade Runner without the sexy robots, then I guess… Robin Hood Prince of Thieves.
WARREN
Prince of Thieves?
AUBREY
Well, yeah. Outside the cities things are quite like the 12th century now. Everyone’s poor, some people live in the woods, the church is basically in charge, a lot of the accents are inexplicable and yet there are still some very progressive hairstyles.
[A LITTLE PING]
AUBREY
Ah. We’re done.
[SHE TEARS OFF THE READOUT]
WARREN
All good?
AUBREY
Mmmm-hmmmm… Today you’re going to… live.
WARREN
Great. So that’s everything I need to know about 2064?
AUBREY
You want to sit in here and talk about it or shall we go?
[AUBREY OPENS THE DOOR AND SHE AND WARREN STEP INTO THE LOWER LEVEL CORRIDOR. AUBREY’S BLUE SKY DRONE IS WAITING]
WARREN
Oh. Hey. What is that?
AUBREY
That’s my Blue Sky unit. Follows me around.
GORD
I’m in here now.
WARREN
Well… That’s futurey.
AUBREY
He’s everywhere. He’s taking observations upstairs, he’s patrolling the perimeter, he’s annoying us down here. You get used to him.
GORD
I’ll just pop myself down over here.
WARREN
Where… where in the station is this?
GORD
Technically we’re not in the station right now.
WARREN
This, this is the tunnel, isn’t it? Into the mountain?
AUBREY
One of the tunnels, but yes, we are currently inside the Ballbag.
WARREN
You’ve kitted it out a bit nicer than the last time I was here.
AUBREY
It was too good an opportunity not to take advantage of. The whole place runs off a micro reactor we installed down here when we arrived, it’s where the Blue Sky hub lives, and it’s where you and Gordon have remained the whole time.
[THEY STOP FOR A MOMENT]
WARREN
G… Gordon’s down here?
AUBREY
He’s just next door, always has been.
WARREN
Can I… Can I see him?
AUBREY
Of course you can see him.
[THEY WALK THE SHORT DISTANCE TO GORDON’S ROOM. AUBREY USES THE VOICE ID REQUIRED]
AUBREY
Wood. Aubrey Jane.
[THE DOOR OPENS. THEY DON’T ENTER]
AUBREY
Don’t you want to go in?
WARREN
That’s him. In the pod?
AUBREY
Yes. Not a lot to see.
WARREN
No.
AUBREY
We have plenty of time to talk about Gordon. And I promise, some of it is good. Let’s go outside for a bit though, shall we? You need some breeze on your face.
WARREN
He’s… He’s… okay? Down here?
AUBREY
Has been for the last 40 years. Tough bastard, like you.
WARREN
That’s the first time anyone has said that about either of us.
AUBREY
Maybe. Maybe not. Come on.
[WARREN, AUBREY, AND GORD WALKING DOWN THE TUNNEL]
WARREN
Yeah. Yeah, yeah… alright, let’s go.
GORD
Off we go!
AUBREY
Oh, some of the community have got a nickname for you.
WARREN
Oh god, what is it?
GORD
The Brigadooon.
AUBREY
The Brigadoon. From the musical.
WARREN
I’ve never seen it.
GORD
Brigadoon is a Scottish village that magically appears out of the mist for one day every hundred years.
WARREN
Wow. Where’s that to?
AUBREY
It’s not real, Warren.
WARREN
I don’t know. It’s the future.
AUBREY
It’s from the 40s. The 1940s.
GORD
Gene Kelly was in it.
WARREN
Oh. Right.
AUBREY.
It’s an apt little nickname for a man who pops in and out of time.
WARREN
Aubrey, people aren’t going to be weird with me, are they?
AUBREY
The Cult of the Brigadoon is only a small fanatical sect of this community. I wouldn’t worry about it.
WARREN
Aubrey, I don’t know you well enough to tell if you’re joking.
[THEY REACH A LIFT. SHE PRESSES THE BUTTON TO GO UP. THE DOORS OPEN]
WARREN
You’re really not going to tell me anything else before we go up there?
AUBREY
I’ll be sure to let you know if I think of anything particularly relevant. Just get in the lift.
[WARREN GROANS. THEY STEP INSIDE AND AUBREY PRESSES THE BUTTON TO GO UP. THERE IS A SHORT PAUSE]
LIFT
Doors closing. Lift going up.
AUBREY
Oh. The plural of toothbrush is now toothbreesh. Don’t look at me like that, I don’t make the rules.
LIFT
Ground floor.
[THE LIFT DOORS OPEN]
[THE DOORS OPEN TO THE UPPER LEVEL. THEY ARE IN A MESS ROOM. A RUSH OF SOUND - AT LEAST TWENTY PEOPLE TALKING, MOVING AROUND, THE CLATTER OF PLATES AND GLASSES BEING CARRIED. IN THE DISTANCE, A GROUP OF VOICES PRACTICING A CHORAL RECITAL. ALL UPBEAT, HAPPILY BUSY]
WARREN
Aubrey, what is -
AUBREY
Come on.
[THEY MAKE THEIR WAY THROUGH THE ROOM. A COUPLE OF VOICES CALL TO AUBREY. FROM SOMEWHERE, SOMEONE CALLS OUT ‘NEW GUY!’ A YOUNG MAN INTERRUPTS THEM]
MARMITE
Aubrey, Aubrey, look look… I know you’re busy -
WARREN
Never too busy for you, Marmite. This is Warren -
MARMITE
Thanks! Ehm… So - the bunting -
AUBREY
The bunting?
MARMITE
Yeah. The bunting. Ehm… Do you want it diagonal across the room, or width ways, like it could go along the wall -
[AN ELDERLY FEMALE VOICE PIPES UP]
JADE
Good gravy, boy, I want the bunting diagonal, and the festoon lights go width ways, that’s much nicer.
AUBREY
Jade, you’re decorating your own party?
JADE
What else am I supposed to do?
AUBREY
Marmite, listen to Jade. She’s the boss.
MARMITE
Sure. Nice to meet you, Warren. Morior Invictus.
WARREN
Same to… you?
[THEY MOVE OFF. AUBREY CALLS BACK]
AUBREY
Jade, try and get some rest, alright?
JADE
I can rest as much as I’d like tomorrow.
AUBREY
Fair enough.
WARREN
Aubrey, what the hell is going on?
[THEY REACH THE RECITAL PRACTICE]
WARREN
Aubrey, why did that guy say -
[WARREN SUDDENLY REALISES HE RECOGNISES THE PIECE THEY’RE REHARSING - IT’S THE CHORUS OF MORIOR INVICTUS. THE CHOIR LEADER CUTS THEM OFF. ITS GRACE - A MUCH OLDER DEGRACIOUS MÉLE]
GRACE
And hold it there. Thank you. Good. Much better but remember to watch each other for your entries, eh? I won’t be conducting tonight. And Stevie, I do not know what you are worried about. That was right on the money.
STEVIE
Thanks, Grace.
WARREN
Grace?
GRACE
Hey… Warren Godby! You are up!
[GRACE TAKES WARREN’S HAND AND SHAKES IT HARD, AND CLAPS ANOTHER HAND ON WARRENS SHOULDER]
GRACE
You look great.
WARREN
So you do. How have you got better looking?
GRACE
You’re far too kind, Warren. Stay with Aubrey, yeah.
WARREN
Er. Yeah umm…
GRACE
But… we need to talk later. There are things that must be said.
[WARREN GOES TO MOVE OFF BUT IMMEDIATELY DOUBLES BACK ON HIMSELF]
WARREN
Umm… I’m… Sorry, Grace. But were you all just singing Morior Invictus by Pus Crank?
[AUBREY IS ACROSS THE ROOM]
AUBREY
Warren!
GRACE
Don’t keep her waiting, Warren.
WARREN
Sure… sure…
GRACE
Okay, so Robin, I believe you wanted to have a go at the chorus, eh… Let’s go from C, just the tenors… 3 and 4…
[AUBREY HAS KEPT WALKING AND REACHED THE END OF THE ROOM. HE JOINS HER AS SHE HEADS TO A FIRE EXIT]
AUBREY
Looks, brains, and a sublime baritone as well. I think Grace won the genetic lottery even more than you. Come on.
[THEY PASS AN OPEN DOOR TO ANOTHER ROOM. AN ELDERLY MALE VOICE CALLS OUT]
MALCOLM
Hey… He shouldn’t be here, Aubrey.
AUBREY
Thank you, Malcolm, I see you’ve perked up.
WARREN
Er… Who’s that?
AUBREY
Don’t worry, let’s get outside.
[THEY HAVE KEPT WALKING, BUT MALCOLM, A VERY ELDERLY MAN, HAS COME TO THE EDGE OF THE DOORWAY INTO THE CORRIDOR AND CALLS AFTER THEM]
MALCOLM
I… I don’t want to see him!
AUBREY
Then don’t look at him!
WARREN
Er… Nice to meet you.
MALCOLM
Go to hell, fucko!
[AUBREY AND WARREN MAKE IT OUTSIDE THE STATION. IT’S A BRIGHT DAY - STILL COLD, BUT GULLS ARE MAKING NOISE AND THE WIND ISN’T TOO HARSH]
WARREN
You going to tell me what that was all about?
AUBREY
The weather’s quite mild but it can turn quickly, let me know if you’re too cold.
WARREN
Do you ignore everyone in the future or just me?
AUBREY
Are you okay to walk?
WARREN
I’ll walk up Ballbag if you start answering me.
[THEY START TO WALK]
AUBREY
So, while the world is going down the toilet, there’s one company and one asset in particular that’s suddenly doing rather well, can you guess what it is?
WARREN
Kontinue.
AUBREY
You might remember that there were various approaches when it came to actually using hypersleep. One method was to introduce it through the prison system. Another was to sell it to the elites as a way to cheat death. In the end, both were successful. The two polar ends of society made use of it while 98% of the population never laid their eyes on a cryopod. So, to begin with, what with the world falling apart through climate, disease, poverty and so on, people barely noticed what was happening. But slowly, incrementally, the great and the good, the wealthy and the powerful, they’re disappearing. When people start to put it together, it seems at best like madness and at worst gross cowardice - whole governments, monarchies, corporate leaders, you know they’re building bunkers, they’re hollowing out mountains, locking themselves away and going into hypersleep. For what? It’s supposed to be the end of the world, what do they expect to wake up to?
[THEY CONTINUE TO WALK]
AUBREY
And then, it was around 2040, we found out what they knew that the rest of us didn’t. The world could come back from the brink. If left alone for long enough, if we weren’t all here to continue ruining it, the planet could stabilise a little. Some of it anyway. Enough to build a new society for a lucky few. But not in the lifespan of anyone currently living on it. Or their children, or their children. So, these great leaders of industry and infrastructure, they shut down everything that had made them their fortunes and set the world on fire, turned the lights off, and off they went. They left behind desperate people in a desperate situation. Long story short, a few cities remain with the lion’s share of resources under an unpleasant and clichéd authoritarian rule, and if that’s not your cup of tea you make do in the wilderness like us. Classic dystopia really. Could’ve written it on the back of an airport novel.
WARREN
I mean, none of that explains what I just saw in there.
AUBREY
I just told you the research we were both part of nearly half a century played a pivotal role in the dissolution of civilized society as we know it, and you want to talk about the Pus Crank choir?
WARREN
The Pus Crank Choir!
AUBREY
Have you ever heard of not sweating the small stuff?
WARREN
Yeah, I’m not into it. It’s the small stuff that’ll kill you. The end of the world, what are you going to do?
AUBREY
I think I stabilised your mood a little too much.
WARREN
Aubrey, why is there a choir singing that bloody song 44 years into the future!?
AUBREY
Alright! Over the years, I’ve been a lot of places and worked with a lot of people. On the jobs we would do together, there would invariably be a lot of travel or downtime, and we would talk about our lives and the things that had brought us together. More often than not I would talk about Red Valley, and I’d get to you and Gordon. And I ended up with that tape of Gordon’s old band, so I would play them Morior Invictus, it was a fun icebreaker. And somehow it ended up being our getting-pumped-up song before we… went to work. At first it was just a fun song and that was it. Then people started thinking about the words. All death before defeat and dying unvanquished. And you know, quite without any effort from me, the song took on a life of its own. Once we got here it became even more… fitting. People need things to hold on to in a place like this, to bring them together. And these little rituals started popping up. A greeting, a recital. And there you go.
WARREN
Aubrey, I’m not following. What do you mean fitting? What is this place now?
AUBREY
In 2064, the kind of liberties you and I would’ve taken for granted no longer exist. You can’t save for a 2 up 2 down in an area with nice schools, there isn’t a career ladder to climb, you don’t holiday in the Algarve. You don’t get to choose how you live. You either survive or you don’t. But if you can find your way to Red Valley, safely, quietly, you can still choose how you die.
[WARREN LOOKS BACK UP TO THE STATION]
WARREN
That’s… That’s not a birthday party back there, is it?
AUBREY
Jade Turner is 83 and has dementia that cannot be treated. It robs her of her memory and her dignity. While she still has the faculties to make the decision, she has decided to end her life here with us, in safety and in peace. Something she couldn’t do out there. Tonight is her living wake. She’ll celebrate her life with our community. And by the next morning she will, as we’ve come to call it, complete. We don’t spell it with a K.
WARREN
You euthanise people.
AUBREY
If they choose it.
WARREN
I don’t know what answer I was expecting but that was not it.
[THEY STAND IN SILENCE FOR A MOMENT]
AUBREY
Does it all look the same?
WARREN
Does what look the same?
AUBREY
All this. The mountain, the sky, the dirt. The farmhouse.
WARREN
Yeah. Bloody hell!
AUBREY
What?
WARREN
Those tiles are still missing.
AUBREY
What tiles?
WARREN
On the house. Those two near the gutter.
AUBREY
They were missing the last time you were here?
WARREN
I was the one who knocked them off. With a golf club. I was… I was singing Morior Invictus.
AUBREY
Oh, everyone will love that! I’m glad it’s still familiar. I was hoping you’d find it comforting the same way I do. We have no power to change anything in this landscape. Every day I look at that mountain we nicknamed after a scrotum and I think, Ballbag doesn’t care what we do. The rest of the world is at war with itself. The people, the land and the seas, all trying to rip each other apart. But I… I look at that huge rock and its utter indifference to everything we’ve done in its shadow and it’s the closest to peace I’ve found in 40 years. How are you feeling?
WARREN
Shattered, actually.
AUBREY
Not surpising. You’ll probably need to sleep a long time these first few days. Nothing to worry about. You’ve got a long term quarters set up in the sub level like everyone else, but have a nap in the farmhouse, it’s nice and quiet. I got you a roommate so you’re not lonely.
WARREN
Oh. Who would that be?
AUBREY
She’s waiting inside.
WARREN
What?
[AUBREY OPENS THE DOOR TO THE FARMHOUSE]
AUBREY
Go on.
[WARREN STEPS THROUGH TO THE KITCHEN DINER OF THE FARMHOUSE, WHERE A TORTOIDE IS SITTING ON THE DINING TABLE]
WARREN
No way! That’s not really her!
AUBREY
It’s really her.
WARREN
Waffles! Bloody hell! This can’t be her.
AUBREY
The pet trade has dried up considerably in recent years. Sourcing a replacement tortoise would’ve been even harder than keeping this one alive.
WARREN
How could she… She’s big… Like Gordon said she would be. She’s - she’s got - what’s this? She’s got like a groove… a groove on her shell-
AUBREY
Waffles has been with us through considerable hardship. That damage to her shell occurred during a somewhat rushed and problematic change of habitat.
WARREN
Shit! Baby girl!
AUBREY
She didn’t seem fussed though. She’s uh. Waffley versatile.
WARREN
Haha! Little potato waffle!
AUBREY
Oh good, everyone here’s too young to get my references.
WARREN
Thank you… Thank you for looking after her. It’s good to - ow! Damn it! She still nips doesn’t she. Fuck!
AUBREY
Oh yeah, she’ll draw blood with minimum effort, watch out for that.
WARREN
Oh man…
[GORD DRONES IN BY THE DOORWAY]
GORD
Sorry to interrupt. Aubrey, they need you back in the mess.
AUBREY
Of course they do. Uh… Warren, I recommend you have a lie down for a bit. You’re upstairs, first on the left.
WARREN
Aubrey, come on I… I’ve got so much to -
AUBREY
I know, I know. There’ll be time for that. Tonight, we party!
WARREN
Okay… Okay, I’ll… I’ll see you in a bit.
[AUBREY STEPS OUTSIDE, SHE TURNS BACK AND CALLS TO HIM]
AUBREY
Oh! Er… Warren!
WARREN
Yeah?
AUBREY
I thought we might try to save Gordon’s life, what do you think?
WARREN
Oh. Umm… yeah… Yeah. Sure!
AUBREY
We’ll wake you in a bit. Make sure you pop her in the vivarium before you fall asleep. Morior Invictus!
[AUBREY HAS STARTED TO WALK AWAY. WARREN MUTTERS UNDER HIS BREATH]
WARREN
Baby girl! That’s going to get really annoying.