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JUNDEA (V.O.):  I've lived in this city all my life.  The black water is my spirit, and the gray skies my breath.

(A SHADOW MOVES OVER HIM.  HE LOOKS UP, REACHES FOR A KNIFE IN HIS BOOT, AND STARTS TO CHASE IT, VERY SLOWLY AT FIRST.  THE SHADOW PASSES QUICKLY BY AGAIN, AND JUNDEA'S EYES WATCH IT AS IT TACKLES HIM.  A MONSTER HAS APPEARED, AND JUNDEA EASILY SLAYS IT WITH HIS KNIFE.  IT YELLS AND FALLS TO THE GROUND.  THE KNIFE IS NOT COVERED IN RED BLOOD, BUT WITH SOME SORT OF A BLUE SUBSTANCE. JUNDEA STARES AT THE MONSTER AS IT STARTS TO TAKE ON A NEW FORM, A HUMAN FIGURE.  THE BLUE ON HIS KNIFE TURNS RED, AND HE STANDS THERE WITH HIS EYES WIDE OPEN OF SHOCK.)

JUNDEA (V.O.):  I'm a man looking for a meaning, a message in a montage of decay.

ANGEL:  Hello?  Is someone there?

(JUNDEA LEAPS IN FRONT OF HER.)

JUNDEA:  Leave now.
ANGEL:  Who...
JUNDEA:  Leave.

(ANOTHER MONSTER APPEARS.  JUNDEA HAS HIS KNIFE IN HAND.)

ANGEL:  What's that?  What's going on?!
JUNDEA:  You won't be able to help me.  Just go.
ANGEL:  I won't leave if you don't tell me what's going on!
JUNDEA:  (TURNING TOWARD ANGEL WITH HIS BACK TURNED TO THE MONSTER)  I told you to--  (THE MONSTER BREATHES CLOSE TO HIM, AND JUNDEA STANDS, FROZEN IN FEAR.  THE MONSTER TAKES HIM BY HIS COAT COLLAR AND THROWS HIM ACROSS THE STREET.  IT STARTS TO APPROACH ANGEL.)
Hey, get away from her!  It's me you want!
ANGEL:  Yeah, listen to him!  I'm an important person, you know.  I could sue you for all you're worth!
JUNDEA:  It wouldn't help.  (HE RUNS AT THE MONSTER WITH THE KNIFE HELD HIGH.  HE KNOCKS IT OUT OF THE WAY BEFORE FIGHTING IT TO THE DEATH, JUST BARELY MAKING IT OUT ALIVE.  HE HAS A FEW SCARS ON HIS FACE AND NECK, SOME THAT COULD BE CONSIDERED TO BE SERIOUS. JUNDEA DOESN'T SEEM TO MIND MUCH, THOUGH.)  Ah, good.  It wasn't another one of those.  You're welcome.

(HE STARTS TO WALK AWAY.)

ANGEL:  Wait a moment, sir.
JUNDEA:  (STOPPING)  Yeah?
ANGEL:  Thank you.  You didn't give me a chance to say that a second ago.
JUNDEA:  I'd have to say you're one of the first that's ever really thanked me for doing that.
ANGEL:  Well, I'm a little lost to say the least.  Do you think you could help me find a way back to my house?
JUNDEA:  Geez, you actually live in a house this day in age?
ANGEL:  Yeah, I'm one of the proud few!  (SHE REALIZES THAT JUNDEA MUST HAVE NO HOME.)  Oh, I'm sorry.  Listen, if you want to, you're quite welcome to stay at my home for a while, at least while you heal.
JUNDEA:  Live in a house?  You kidding?  Nah.  The streets are my home.
ANGEL:  You'd rather live in poverty than in luxury?
JUNDEA:  Material possessions mean nothing.  Besides, I've got blood on my hands that I could never get rid of.
ANGEL:  How is that?
JUNDEA:  I'd rather not say.
ANGEL:  Was it a mistake?
JUNDEA:  Halfway.
ANGEL:  How so?
JUNDEA:  I hate it when all people talk about is questions.  How'd you do that?  Why'd you do that?  What was that?
ANGEL:  I'm sorry.  Just to be a little truthful here, I was about to say all that.
JUNDEA:  I figured.  Good luck finding your way home.
ANGEL:  You mean you won't help me?
JUNDEA:  Doubt I could.  What street you live on?
ANGEL:  The corner of Sixth and Northwere.
JUNDEA:  Northwere?  Man, you're really far from home.
ANGEL:  What?
JUNDEA:  Like I said, I've lived on the streets for a long time, and I know them really well.  Unless there's been another road added, which I doubt with all this chaos going on, Northwere doesn't exist in this city.
ANGEL:  That really figures.  You go out on an errand, run into a few monsters, and you get totally lost.  That really figures!
JUNDEA:  I guess you could hang around with me for a while.  Just be sure you don't expect the luxury of a house.
ANGEL:  Oh, far from it.
JUNDEA:  Good.  'Cuz frankly, I don't know a livable home that isn't occupied by bums like me already.
ANGEL:  A bum?
JUNDEA:  Yeah.  I don't care what you call me, really.
ANGEL:  Well, I'd like to call you by your name.
JUNDEA:  What do names matter?
ANGEL:  Well, I don't want to say "Hey, you!" every time I try to talk to you.
JUNDEA:  I don't see the importance in names.
ANGEL:  Well, it's kind of important to me.
JUNDEA:  I guess some people think so much of material appreciation that they think everything has to be the same between everyone else.  Have you ever seen a street walker like me before?
ANGEL:  I can't say I have.
JUNDEA:  You've been locked up in that house of yours for too long, then.
ANGEL:  Heh.  Guess so.  This was my first day outside, actually.
JUNDEA:  What, did your parents not want you to know the glory of a dismal setting?
ANGEL:  I don't get it...
JUNDEA:  Jundea.
ANGEL:  What?
JUNDEA:  Jundea.  You wanted to know my name, didn't you?
ANGEL:  Oh!  Yeah...  Well, I'm Angel.  (SHE HOLDS OUT HER HAND.)
JUNDEA:  I won't touch you.
ANGEL:  Why not?
JUNDEA:  Someone with such success in life shouldn't be able to touch someone like me.  I'm a failure who lives out on the streets.  A bum, like I said before.
ANGEL:  That doesn't mean anything.
JUNDEA:  Who says?
ANGEL:  Actually, very few people nowadays...
JUNDEA:  Exactly.  Now, I suggest that you go and try to find your home before someone sees you with me.  You'll ruin your reputation if you're seen with such a poor person.
ANGEL:  I don't care.
JUNDEA:  You will.
ANGEL:  Don't say that.
JUNDEA:  Fine.  You can stay around here for a while, I suppose.  Don't look for any special treatment, though.  I've never been lucky enough to do that for my own self.
ANGEL:  I see.  (JUNDEA SITS DOWN AND CLOSES HIS EYES.)  What are you doing?
JUNDEA:  Don't tell me the rich don't sleep.
ANGEL:  Well, I guess I'll just wander for a while.  (JUNDEA SEEMS TO BE IGNORING HER.)  All right then.  (SHE BEGINS TO WALK AWAY, THEN JUNDEA'S EYES OPEN WIDE.)  Jundea!  Help me!
JUNDEA:  I knew this would happen!  (HE SEES ANGEL FIGHTING ANOTHER MONSTER.  HE LEAPS INTO THE AIR, COMES DOWN ON THE MONSTER, AND SLICES ITS ARM OPEN.  IT FALLS, WAILING, TO THE GROUND.  BLUE BLOOD COVERS HIS KNIFE, AND IT STARTS TO TURN MORE RED...)  Angel!  Turn away!
ANGEL:  Why should I?
JUNDEA:  Just do it!
ANGEL:  No, it's not that scary.
JUNDEA:  Turn around!  (SHE IGNORES HIM AND WATCHES AS THE MONSTER TURNS INTO A HUMAN LYING DEAD IN FRONT OF THEM ON THE GROUND.  ANGEL DROPS HER KNEES TO THE GROUND IN SHOCK.)  I told you.  (SHE LOOKS UP AT HIM WITH SAD EYES.)  That happens every once in a while.  I still haven't gotten used to it.  ( JUNDEA WALKS TO A PUDDLE FILLED WITH BLACK WATER AND WASHES OFF HIS KNIFE.  HE PUTS IT BACK IN HIS BOOT, THEN LEANS AGAINST THE WALL WITH HIS EYES CLOSED AGAIN.)  Guess that's all there really is to it.
ANGEL:  What?!  How can you do that?!
JUNDEA:  It's not my choice to be doing this!
ANGEL:  I'm sorry.  I see that it's your only chance of survival, but isn't there some way that you could tell whether or not they were human before you kill them?
JUNDEA:  No.  Unfortunately, their blood doesn't turn color until they turn human.
ANGEL:  Yes...  I'm sorry I yelled at you.  (SHE SITS DOWN BESIDE HIM.)  Guess I'll be safer here just sitting by you.  (SHE LEANS ON HIS SHOULDER, AND JUNDEA GETS A HALF SCARED, HALF CONFUSED LOOK ON HIS FACE.)  What's wrong?
JUNDEA:  Why are you doing that?
ANGEL:  Oh, sorry.  (SHE LIFTS HER HEAD UP AGAIN.)  I didn't think you'd mind.
JUNDEA:  I understand.  (HE LETS HER LEAN ON HIM AGAIN, AND SHE FALLS ASLEEP.  JUNDEA'S EYES REMAIN OPEN THROUGH THE NIGHT.)

ANGEL:  What's going on?  I thought for sure it was supposed to be morning by now!
JUNDEA:  This is morning.
ANGEL:  I always thought that it was a little brighter than this.
JUNDEA:  Just how often do you get out of the house?
ANGEL:  I can't remember the last time.
JUNDEA:  In that case, I don't blame you for being surprised.  Within the past few months, it's gotten a lot worse.
ANGEL:  I saw that water you washed off your knife in was black.  How long has that been happening?
JUNDEA:  As far back as I remember.
ANGEL:  I guess it's different with house water.
JUNDEA:  That's strange.  What color is it then?
ANGEL:  It's not supposed to really have a particular color....
JUNDEA:  You rich people sure have some strange things that you take for granted.
ANGEL:  Yeah.  I never thought that it was really something I should be thankful for.

(A FIGURE COMES OUT FROM THE DARKNESS.  JUNDEA LOOKS UP SUDDENLY, TO CHECK IF HE IS DANGEROUS.)

MAN (TIGRE):  Hey, I don't like the way you're looking at me, hobo.
ANGEL:  Don't listen to him.  People like him don't know what you put up with day after day.
TIGRE:  Oh, I know perfectly well.  I used to live out on the streets, but now look at me!  I've got a nice little house just down the street.  I've made a name for myself.  And it took practically nothing to do so!
ANGEL:  Get out of here, Tigre.
JUNDEA:  You know him?
ANGEL:  Unfortunately, we used to go to the same school until it was destroyed somehow...
TIGRE:  And to think I would have dropped out the next week I was there.  What a coincidence!
ANGEL:  We all knew it was your fault, Tigre.  We just never had enough proof!
JUNDEA:  I remember you, Tigre.  All it took for me to get rid of him initially was to ignore him.
TIGRE:  And look where it's gotten you!  You're in rags, trying to live in a world that doesn't accept people like you.
JUNDEA:  Then why is the majority of the world just like me?
TIGRE:  Do you honestly think people want to live like this?
JUNDEA:  I'd live like this any day.  It'd be better to live like this now than to live like a king and lose it all in the future, not knowing how to survive on my own.
ANGEL:  Just calm down, the both of you.  It's better we just leave this as it stands.

(TIGRE SNEERS AT JUNDEA AND ANGEL , THEN WALKS AWAY.)

ANGEL:  Oh, I can't stand him!
JUNDEA:  What happened between you two exactly?
ANGEL:  Not much.  We talked for a while, then he started being so stuck-up.
JUNDEA:  There's something else there.
ANGEL:  We...  We were together for a while.  He was still living on the streets then.
JUNDEA:  I see.  Were you in your house yet?
ANGEL:  My family has always been immensely rich compared to the rest of the world.  Everyone was shocked when I told them that we were together.
JUNDEA:  And you had to break up?
ANGEL:  Yes.  I think it's so cruel how society places people these days.  Who cares about class when there's love?
JUNDEA:  So when did he start acting so snobby?
ANGEL:  Someone in his distant family started a thriving business, and he gave half of the money he earned to his family.  It was around that time that he was shoving everything in my face about breaking up, that my family would take him in now, but it didn't matter because we had already had a "bad experience".
JUNDEA:  Sorry.
ANGEL:  You know, I hate that.
JUNDEA:  Really, there is such a thing as forgiveness.  Maybe you should let that breakup drift--
ANGEL:  No, not the breakup.  Frankly, I could care less about that now.  From what I've seen, I'm better off without him.  I was talking about you saying "sorry".  You didn't do anything; why apologize?
JUNDEA:  I guess it's in all of us that have a conscience.  Humans have so much more to say sorry for, and when they apologize for something that isn't their fault, they feel a sense of alleviation.

TIGRE:  Sire!  I didn't see you there.
NOVA:  I see that perfectly well, you coward.
TIGRE:  Sorry, sir.
NOVA:  Did you find him?
TIGRE:  Yes.  I did.  He was with...  an old friend of mine.
NOVA:  Unusual for a street walker to have someone with them.
TIGRE:  No, she has a big heart.  She'd take anyone in.  (HE LOOKS AWAY UNTIL NOVA GLARES AT HIM.)  Excuse me, sir.
NOVA:  It seems as though you're hiding something.  You are in love with her, aren't you?
TIGRE:  Not any more!  (NOVA STANDS STILL.)  I mean...
NOVA:  Enough.  I want him brought to me, no matter what.  If you fail, I am sending out someone new.  And you should know by now that I only have one of my men go out at a time.  In my rules, when you fail, you fall.
TIGRE:  Yes, sir.

JUNDEA:  What?
ANGEL:  Nothing.  Just thinking about Tigre.
JUNDEA:  Really?  So you still...
ANGEL:  No!  It's just that there was something different about him.
JUNDEA:  Like what?
ANGEL:  I'm not sure...  It was almost like he was trying to cover up something.  Like he had really lost everything but wanted us to think he hadn't.
JUNDEA:  You too, huh?
ANGEL:  You thought so?  (HE NODS.)  Strange.  He's never been so nervous before.
JUNDEA:  If I had just lost everything, I'd be nervous, too.

(TIGRE COMES BACK AROUND A CORNER.)

TIGRE:  Hello again.
JUNDEA:  Oh, hey.  Came to apologize?
TIGRE:  In advance.
JUNDEA:  What?
TIGRE:  (SINCERELY)  I'm sorry for what I'm about to do.  I truly am.  Angel, I'm sorry you have to see this.  (HE LEAPS AT JUNDEA, CATCHING HIS ARM AROUND HIS THROAT.)  I have to.
JUNDEA:  (CHOKING)  Tigre!  W-what are you doing?!

(TIGRE REACHES DOWN TOWARD JUNDEA'S BOOT AND TAKES HIS KNIFE.  SLOWLY, HE REACHES BACK UP TOWARD JUNDEA'S THROAT.)

ANGEL:  Tigre!  Don't!  Please!  What did he do to you?!
TIGRE:  Don't worry.  I won't hurt him.  Jundea, I can't go through with it.  Goodbye.  (HE LETS JUNDEA GO, BUT KEEPS THE KNIFE IN HAND.)  And...  good luck.

(TIGRE RAISES THE KNIFE TOWARD HIS THROAT.  ANGEL SHOUTS OUT, BUT IN VAIN.  TIGRE FALLS.  A SHADOWY FIGURE DISAPPEARS BEHIND A CORNER.)

JUNDEA:  (GASPING)  Who's that?  Show yourself!

(THE FIGURE STEPS OUT FROM BEHIND THE CORNER AGAIN, BUT ALL THAT IS SEEN IS A CLOAKED SHADOW.  NO FACE CAN BE SEEN.)

NOVA'S VOICE:  That idiot.  He could never do anything that I told him to do right.  It's a shame, though.  He'll still serve me, even in death.
ANGEL:  How can he?
NOVA'S VOICE:  Oh, wouldn't you like to know?  Just a warning:  that was only the beginning of your troubles with me.  You'll soon find yourself in another battle, this one much more risky, especially for you, boy.
JUNDEA:  What would you want with someone like me?  I'm not worth anything.  (HIS EYES SEEM TO GLOW A LITTLE BRIGHTER. NOVA BRINGS HIS ARM UP TO COVER HIS EYES, AND JUNDEA AND ANGEL GASP.  HIS ARM HAS A STRANGE GREEN TINT TO IT.)  What's wrong with your arm?
NOVA'S VOICE:  Never you mind.  I cannot stay.  The light is far too much for me to stand here.

(THE FIGURE FADES AWAY, LEAVING NOTHING BEHIND.)

ANGEL:  Who was that?
JUNDEA:  I have no idea.  Somehow, I expect he's linked to the reason the world is the way it is today, though.
ANGEL:  Did you see his skin?  It was . . .  green . . .
JUNDEA:  That is something I don't think anyone can explain, Angel.  Seemed just a little bit too odd to me.
ANGEL:  Jundea, I know I'm probably asking too many questions here, but I've just gotta know.  What happened to your eyes a second ago?
JUNDEA:  My eyes?
ANGEL:  Yeah.  Usually, they glow a little, which is strange enough, but they got really bright when you started talking to that guy.
JUNDEA:  I didn't think they ever glowed . . .
ANGEL:  Yes, it was something I noticed about you before, I just didn't say anything.
JUNDEA:  I wonder if it's why everyone I met has looked at me so strangely.
ANGEL:  It's a possibility, but I kind of like it, as long as you don't make them brighter like you did before.
JUNDEA:  I had no idea I could do something like that . . .
ANGEL:  Maybe it's just the street lamps.  Could just be the angle you're sitting at.
JUNDEA:  (SHIELDING HIS EYES WITH HIS HANDS)  How about now?
ANGEL:  That's strange.
JUNDEA:  What?
ANGEL:  They're still glowing.
JUNDEA:  Great.  Not only am I homeless, but I'm a freak of nature.
ANGEL:  Don't say that!
JUNDEA:  It's no wonder people never hang around to tell me "thank you" when I'm like this.
ANGEL:  I think it's kind of cool.
JUNDEA:  Just because it's something you haven't seen before, am I right?  (SHE LOOKS AT THE GROUND.)  I thought so.  Let's go look for your house.
ANGEL:  Jundea, I didn't mean that...
JUNDEA:  That's enough.  I've heard enough.  I've had enough of this entire world.  And I think I've had enough of you as well, Angel.
ANGEL:  Jundea...
JUNDEA:  Don't try any of that with me.  Maybe I'll just leave you here, let you find your house on your own!
ANGEL:  Jundea!
JUNDEA:  Stop it!

(ANOTHER SHADOW COMES INTO VIEW, LINGERING OVER THEM.)

ANGEL:  Jundea, look!  Behind you!
JUNDEA:  What...  (HE SEES THE SHADOW AND TURNS, LOOKING AT A FIGURE SILHOUETTED IN THE LIGHT.)  You know him, too?
ANGEL:  No, I've never seen him before.
MAN (SHRAM):  I am the demon of war, of that which brings confrontation between friends.  My name is Shram.
ANGEL:  The demon of war?
JUNDEA:  Confrontation.....
SHRAM:  That little argument you had just now, Jundea meant it all, Angel.  You should listen to everything he said.  (HE TALKS IN JUNDEA'S VOICE.)  I've heard enough.  I've had enough of this entire world.  And I think I've had enough of you as well, Angel.  Don't try any of that with me.  Maybe I'll just leave you here, let you find your house on your own!
ANGEL:  Stop it now!
SHRAM:  (IN JUNDEA'S VOICE)  I think I've had enough of you as well, Angel.  Enough of you.  Enough of you as well, Angel.  Find your house on your own, on your own.  Maybe I'll just leave you here...
JUNDEA:  Angel, don't listen to him!
SHRAM:  (IN HIS OWN VOICE.)  Silence!
ANGEL:  Jundea, how could you...  (SHE DROPS TO HER KNEES.)  How could you...
SHRAM:  And as for you, Jundea, may I remind you...  (IN ANGEL'S VOICE)  I'm one of the proud few!  You'd rather live in poverty than in luxury?  Poverty, luxury, poverty.  That really figures.  You go out on an errand, run into a few monsters, and you get totally lost.  That really figures!  Totally lost!  I see that it's your only chance of survival, but isn't there some way that you could tell whether or not they were human before you kill them?  Kill them, Jundea.  Why kill the humans?
JUNDEA:  Angel, how could you betray me...
ANGEL:  Me, betray you?  Never!  You betrayed me long before I did!
JUNDEA:  You won't listen to a word I say!  I don't know who I hurt and who I don't!
ANGEL:  Maybe you should learn to listen to me as well!
SHRAM:  (IN JUNDEA'S VOICE)  Oh, shut your trap, Angel!
ANGEL:  Jundea!  (SHE SLAPS JUNDEA , AND HE STANDS STILL, HIS EYES CLOSED.)
SHRAM:  (IN ANGEL'S VOICE)  That's what you get, you idiot bum.  You deserve every searing pain you experience.  You've made nothing of yourself.
JUNDEA:  Nothing, huh?  How about someone who gets herself lost the first day she's out of the house?
SHRAM:  (IN JUNDEA'S VOICE)  What kind of "bum" would I be if I hung around with the likes of you?

(NOVA COMES AROUND A BUILDING CORNER, SMILING AT THE ARGUMENT BEING CAUSED BY ANOTHER OF HIS HENCHMEN, SHRAM.  AN AD-LIB ARGUMENT BETWEEN ANGEL AND JUNDEA CONTINUES.)

NOVA:  Very good, Shram.  I think that's enough of it, though.  I can take it from here.
SHRAM:  But Sire...
NOVA:  Enough, or I'll send you where Tigre's soul is suffering.
SHRAM:  As you wish, my liege.  (HE BOWS, THEN LEAPS INTO THE AIR, DISAPPEARING IN THE LOW HANGING CLOUDS.)  But I'll be back soon to finish the job.
NOVA:  Not on his life.  (HE WALKS IN BETWEEN JUNDEA AND ANGEL.)  It's nice to see you both again.
ANGEL:  Can't you see we're in the middle of something here?!
NOVA:  Yes, and that's why I'm here.  If you can convince me which one of you should be gotten rid of, I'll gladly fulfill your wishes.
ANGEL:  He won't help me find my way home!
JUNDEA:  She thinks absolutely nothing of me!
ANGEL:  And for good reason, beggar!
NOVA:  That's enough from the both of you, children.  I'll just take you both.  (BEFORE THEY CAN REACT, BOTH JUNDEA AND ANGEL COLLAPSE AND DISAPPEAR.)  It's a shame that they'll never remember this argument when they wake up.  They'll be the best of friends again.  Too bad, too bad...

(NOVA DISSOLVES INTO THE NIGHT AS WELL.)

NOVA:  You shouldn't do that.  It's a waste of your energy.
JUNDEA:  (HE SPITS AT NOVA'S FEET. NOVA SCOWLS.)  Why'd you bring us here?!
NOVA:  A simple reason, really.  With you off of the World Above, I can do whatever I wish.  (HE TURNS BEHIND HIS SHOULDER.)  Shram?  (SHRAM EMERGES FROM BEHIND A CURTAIN.)  Shram, please unlock Jundea's chains.  Be sure to hold him down tightly.  We don't want our prize to be taken away, now do we?
SHRAM:  No, sire.
JUNDEA:  Tell me your name.
NOVA:  Why do you need to know?
JUNDEA:  I've had nightmares with you in them.  Your face makes me wake up screaming every night.  I know you're the one responsible for all this carnage.  Tell me why and who you are!
NOVA:  It's my nature.  It's in the hearts of all of us to rule over everyone else.  And, as the mighty Nova, it is stronger in my cold heart to do so than anyone else here or in the World Above.
JUNDEA:  Nova...  (HE SHUDDERS AT THE NAME.)  Yes, you did start all of this.  (HIS CHAINS ARE REMOVED, BUT SHRAM HOLDS HIM BACK FROM ATTACKING NOVA.)  Nova!  You're such a coward!  You're hiding behind your little henchmen--
NOVA:  Little?  Oh, but you're the one struggling against one of them, aren't you?
JUNDEA:  Shut up!  Just let me go!
NOVA:  Silence.  Rolland!  (A VERY MALNOURISHED CHILD COMES OUT FROM BEHIND THE CURTAIN.  HE LOOKS VERY WEAK, AND HIS RIBCAGE IS SHOWING HORRIBLY.)  Bring them in.
ROLLAND:  I will.  (HE TURNS AND LIFTS THE CURTAIN BACK, LETTING IN TWO OF THE CITY ROAMING MONSTERS.)  Here they are, Master Nova.
JUNDEA:  Now you want me to fight these for sport?  You're a monster.
NOVA:  Thank you, it would be a great idea, but no.  I'd like to introduce you to two people you haven't seen in a long time...

(THE TWO BEASTS COME CLOSER TO HIM, BUT SHOW NO SIGNS OF ATTACKING.)

JUNDEA:  What are you doing?!  Is this some sort of trick, Nova?!
NOVA:  Not at all, boy.  In all honesty, these are your parents.
JUNDEA:  Say what?
NOVA:  You thought they were dead, didn't you?  Well, I must say that you're lucky you didn't kill them off a long time ago, what with your spree you go on every day, killing every one of my soldiers.
JUNDEA:  Father...  Mother...  No!  It's not them!  I know it!
NOVA:  You don't think so?  (HE STANDS AND PICKS UP A SWORD FROM BESIDE HIS FEET.)  I'll have to prove it to you.  (HE WALKS UP BEHIND THE MONSTERS, WHO ARE OBLIVIOUS TO HIS PRESENCE. NOVA RAISES THE SWORD AND SLASHES ACROSS THE MONSTERS' BACKS.  BLUE BLOOD FLOWS, THEN RED.  JUNDEA LOOKS IN HORROR AS HIS PARENTS' FACES FORM FROM THE FANGS AND FUR THAT ONCE COVERED THEIR FACES.)  They were.
JUNDEA:  Why?!  Why did you do such a thing?!
NOVA:  I could have sworn I told you.  I'm Nova.  Take the girl to the dungeon, Rolland.
JUNDEA:  (GIVING UP)  I beg of you, leave her alone...  Let her go...
NOVA:  Has the Prince of Light finally surrendered?
JUNDEA:  Just my freedom, for hers.
NOVA:  (CHUCKLING)  It's a shame, really.  I could have had so much fun with the both of you, but that is just an offer I cannot refuse.  Lorea, would you come in here for a moment?

(ANOTHER PERSON EMERGES THROUGH THE CURTAINS.  SHE IS DRESSED IN BLACK AND DARK GRAYS, A SHORT DRESS WITH A DANGLING BELT TO THE SIDE.  HER BOOTS REACH HER KNEES, AND THERE IS A SWORD IN A SHEATH ATTACHED TO THE BELT.  HER HAIR AND EYES ARE THE SAME COLOR AS JUNDEA'S, EXCEPT FOR THE FACT THAT HER EYES DON'T GLOW.  INSTEAD, THEY ARE MUCH DARKER.)

LOREA:  Yes, Lord Nova?
NOVA:  I've finally gotten him where you want him.  Go ahead and do what you wish.
LOREA:  All right.  (SHE WALKS TO JUNDEA.)  Jundea, are you ready?
JUNDEA:  What are you doing?
LOREA:  It's a simple process, really.
JUNDEA:  Process?
LOREA:  Come with me.

(SHE HOLDS HIS SHOULDER AND BOTH OF THEM DISAPPEAR.)

NOVA:  (CLEARING HIS THROAT.)  Girl, wake up.  (ANGEL DOES NOT MOVE.)  I said wake up.  (SHE IS STILL.)  All right.  You leave me no choice.  (HE RAISES HIS HAND, AND SHE VANISHES.)  Rolland, go back to sleep.  You're not needed now.
ROLLAND:  Yes, sir.

(HE GOES BACK THROUGH THE CURTAINS, AND NOVA IS LEFT ALONE.)

NOVA:  I certainly hope that sword of hers will work as planned.  I can't afford anything going wrong now.  I'm so close to it...  As long as I can harvest that last bit of light, I'll have the world at my grasp.

ANGEL:  Jundea...  Why does that name ring through my head...  Where am I?  (SHE LOOKS DOWN AND SEES JUNDEA'S KNIFE ON THE GROUND.  SHE PICKS IT UP TENDERLY.)  Jundea...

LOREA:  Are you ready?
JUNDEA:  For what, may I ask?
LOREA:  Your death, naturally.
JUNDEA:  Why would you want to kill someone like me?  Why am I so important?
LOREA:  Don't patronize me.  I know who you are.  (SHE TAKES OUT THE SWORD.  IT IS SHAPED SIMILAR TO A FLAME, WITH SEVERAL POINTED EDGES AT THE TOP.)  Does this look painful to you?
JUNDEA:  Just a little.
LOREA:  You won't feel a thing.  (SHE WALKS OVER TO HIM AND PLACES THE TALLEST POINT OF THE SWORD ON HIS CHEST, WHERE HIS HEART LIES.)  You won't really die, mind you.  Instead, your soul will belong to me.
JUNDEA:  Why would you want my soul?
LOREA:  Well...  (SHE PULLS THE SWORD AWAY.)  As far as your good friend Nova knows, which I must say is a very short distance when it comes to my work, he thinks that you'll own his soul.  No, with you working for me, I'll be able to overthrow him.  Not much to it when it comes right down to it.  You'd be surprised just what kind of things you can do that you don't know you can.  I certainly was.
JUNDEA:  I've always wondered...  Why would one want to have the world for themselves?
LOREA:  I don't know.  I suppose it's just a nature that all humans have.  We want power, that of our creator, but we cannot have it.  It's human nature to want things we can't have.  We can't have the world, so we try our best to get it.
JUNDEA:  If it's so human, then why does Nova--
LOREA:  He is human.
JUNDEA:  He's green.
LOREA:  Appearances don't make someone who they are.  After all, those beasts were your parents, Jundea.
JUNDEA:  Don't remind me...
LOREA:  I suppose I won't, as a last request before your mind is mine.
JUNDEA:  Why am I so important?
LOREA:  You're the only remaining light in our world.  In order for Nova to have total control, all light must be under his control, and under his control means either enslaved or destroyed.  If destroyed, then its soul is his forever.  Either way, you're under his power, or so he thinks.  Really, I have much more power than he thinks, most likely more than he has.  (SHE BRINGS THE SWORD TO JUNDEA'S NECK.)  But Nova doesn't have to know, does he?  (JUNDEA DOESN'T ANSWER.  SHE TAKES THE SWORD AWAY.)  No, he doesn't.

(ANGEL WALKS AROUND THE CORNER OF THE BUILDING, STARING AT THE POCKETKNIFE.  LOREA SEES HER, BUT TAKES NO MIND OF HER PRESENCE.)

JUNDEA:  Angel!  (SHE LOOKS UP, SCARED.)  Run!  You'll be hurt if you don't!
ANGEL:  Who are you?
JUNDEA:  It's me!  Don't you remember?  You met me just days ago, a hobo living out on the streets all of his life.  I killed two beasts that were attacking you.  We saw our old friend, Tigre, die at our feet.  And you can't remember that?!
ANGEL:  (ALMOST UNCONTROLLABLY, NOT KNOWING WHAT SHE'S SAYING)  Sounds like...  Jundea...
LOREA:  You know his name?
ANGEL:  Jundea...  Glowing eyes...  A wild look, untamed...  Jundea...
JUNDEA:  That's it!  You remember!
LOREA:  Why would such a rich person remember a homeless soul like you?
JUNDEA:  While my body stays homeless, my soul has housed itself within me and will never be enslaved to the likes of you or Nova.  (HIS EYES BEGIN TO GLOW)  Release me, Lorea.
LOREA:  This is where I want you, boy.  Your strength is at its peak now.  I can feel it.  (SHE REARS HER SWORD BACK AND LUNGES AT HIS HEART.  THE SWORD HITS HOME, BUT NO BLOOD APPEARS.  INSTEAD, THE SWORD IS DRAWN FROM HIS CHEST, AND HE OPENS HIS EYES.  THEY ARE NO LONGER GLOWING, BUT COMPLETELY BLACK.)  That's it.  The light is finally mine.
ANGEL:  (A FLOOD OF MEMORIES COME BACK TO HER, PRACTICALLY DRIVING HER INTO INSANITY.  SHE REELS BACK, HOLDING HER HEAD IN HER HANDS, AS IF SHE WERE IN EXCRUCIATING PAIN.)  Did I just let that happen to him?  (THE PAIN DISAPPEARS JUST AS SUDDENLY AS IT APPEARED.)  He's in danger...
LOREA:  If you want to help him, it's too late now.  Just go home.
ANGEL:  He said he would find my home alongside of me.  I refuse to think that he would go back on such a crucial promise.  (SHE WALKS IN BETWEEN LOREA AND JUNDEA, SHOWING BRAVERY NOT SEEN UNTIL NOW.  SHE FACES JUNDEA, AND SHE TOUCHES HIS FACE.)  You are the last light of the world.  Do you know that?  (HE GLARES AT HER WITH HIS DARKENED EYES, AND A NEARBY STREET LIGHT BURSTS.)  Don't let the rest of it go away.  It's all artificial, anyway.  You're the real light of the world.  (ANOTHER LIGHT FLICKERS AWAY.)  Please, Jundea, don't do this...  (HE CLOSES HIS EYES AND LOOKS AWAY FROM ANGEL.  SHE GENTLY TOUCHES HIS EYELIDS.)  Awake, awake and look at what this world is turning into because of what Lorea's done to you.

(JUNDEA LOOKS UP AT LOREA, AND HIS EYES BEGIN TO LIGHTEN AGAIN.  BUT AS HIS LIGHTEN, ANGEL'S EYES DARKEN.)

JUNDEA:  Angel, don't do this...  It's like suicide...
ANGEL:  I don't care.  The world could be a much better place if everyone had the same kindness, the same light you have.  Take this decaying world and let it live again....

(ANGEL'S EYES TURN BLACK.  SHE CLOSES THEM, THEN FALLS TO THE GROUND, AT LOREA AND JUNDEA'S FEET.)

JUNDEA:  Angel, wake up...
LOREA:  Well, this certainly didn't go quite as planned.  (JUNDEA STRUGGLES.)  Oh, stop it.  (SHE LOOKS UP AT THE BLACKENED SKY.)  Hey, Tigre!  Get over here!  (HE APPEARS OUT OF THE DARKNESS AND PASSES BY THE LAST LIT STREET LAMP ON THE ROAD.)  Take this girl to Lord Nova.  He's bound to have some use for her.
TIGRE:  Yes, Lady Lorea.  (HE PICKS ANGEL UP AND CARRIES HER OVER HIS SHOULDER.)  I will do so at once.
JUNDEA:  Put her down!  I'm warning you!  (HE STARTS TO STRUGGLE AGAIN, AND HE BREAKS LOOSE JUST IN TIME TO SEE TIGRE AND ANGEL DISAPPEAR.)  Lorea, where have they gone?!
LOREA:  Back to Nova's world.  It seems as though I'll have to finish you off with a little more difficulty than I anticipated.  Why don't you just save yourself a lot of pain and suffering?  Just surrender and it won't hurt a bit.
JUNDEA:  Maybe I will.  (HE KNEELS IN FRONT OF HER.)  Let me join her.  (LOREA GIVES HIM A STRANGE LOOK.)  Please, as my final request.  Let me be with her, if all the world is going to be in the darkness.
LOREA:  Very well.  I suppose I could arrange it.  (THE SWORD IS PLUNGED INTO HIS HEART ONCE MORE.)  In an eternity or so.  (SHE TAKES THE SWORD FROM HIM AND NOTICES THAT HIS EYES HAVE REMAINED THE SAME COLOR BLUE AS BEFORE.)  What...  (SHE LOOKS AT HER SWORD AND SEES BLOOD.)  This has never happened before...  (JUNDEA IS HURT BADLY, HE KEEPS HIS YELLS DEEP INSIDE HIM.)  That's impossible.  (SHE STABS HIM AGAIN, AND THE SWORD DISAPPEARS, EXCEPT THE HILT  THE BLOOD VANISHES AS WELL.  SHE SWINGS AWAY FROM HIM, HILT IN HAND.  JUNDEA'S EYES SHINE BRIGHTER THAN BEFORE.)  Just what are you, anyway?!
JUNDEA:  None of your world.  (LOREA STARES INTO HIS EYES, WHICH REFLECT OFF OF HERS.  SHE IS BLINDED, AND SHE DROPS THE HILT TO THE GROUND, FEELING HER EYES FOR HER LOST SIGHT.  JUNDEA PICKS UP THE HILT, AND HE LOOKS AT THE NOW GROVELING LOREA.)  Now that you've seen your evil, you'll never see anything again.  (LOREA DROPS TO THE GROUND, HER FACE PALE WHITE.)  Angel, I'll find you.  I promise.

TIGRE:  State your business here.
JUNDEA:  I captured her a little while ago.  (HE LIFTS HIS CLOAK FROM HIS SIDE, SHOWING THE CAREFULLY PLACED SWORD HILT TUCKED INTO HIS BELT.)  Remember?
TIGRE:  Proceed, Mistress Lorea.

(JUNDEA, AFTER SHUDDERING FROM BEING CALLED THAT, MAKES HIS WAY INTO ANGEL'S CELL.)

JUNDEA:  Angel?  (ANGEL IS CHAINED TO THE WALL.  HER EYES HAVE OPENED, BUT THEY ARE COMPLETELY BLACK.)  Angel, look at me.  (SHE LOOKS UP AT JUNDEA.  HE TAKES OFF HIS HOOD, LETTING HIS EYES SHINE BRIGHTLY AGAINST HERS.  SHE DOESN'T FLINCH, BUT TIGRE SENSES IT FROM OUTSIDE THE CELL.  HE INSTINCTIVELY GOES TO NOVA'S CHAMBERS.)  Is there any way you can talk to me?  Can you speak at all?
ANGEL:  Nova...
JUNDEA:  What about Nova?
ANGEL:  Nova will save me...
JUNDEA:  Why would he save you?
ANGEL:  Nova, take him away!
JUNDEA:  Angel, hush!  Someone will hear you!  (HE LOOKS OUT THE CELL DOOR AND SEES THAT TIGRE IS ALREADY GONE.)  Look, Tigre's probably out getting help right--
NOVA'S VOICE:  Correction.  He already did.