Rain of Fire
(Hyperion – Angel Investigations)
(Gunn grabs a battle ax in the lobby as Angel walks down the stairs with Lorne following him.)
Angel: No.
Lorne: Why?
Angel: No.
Lorne: Why?
Angel: I said no.
Lorne: I said why. Now, let's meet in the middle with a "why no?"
Angel: It's too soon. (walks to front desk)
Lorne: But she got her memory back. Aren't you a weensy curious if Cordy remembers anything about her little stint as a Miss Higher Power. Oh, say, maybe something about the thing-a-ma-bad that Wolfram and Hart sucked outta my noggin.
Angel: We need to give her time to adjust before we start coming at her with a million questions.
Lorne: How 'bout one? One's good.
Angel: In a couple of days when she's more herself.
(Lorne turns to Fred and Gunn who are at the weapons cabinet picking out weapons.)
Lorne: Chime in any time.
Fred: Love to.
Gunn: Really.
Fred: We got a case.
Angel: Need some backup?
Gunn: Nah. Woman out in Hancock Park's hearing spookies in her pipes. I don't know whether to bring my axe or a plunger.
(Fred and Gunn leave.)
Angel: See? Worst thing we got going on is a haunted toilet, so let's give Cordy a little space. It's not like the world's gonna end right this second.
(Natural History Museum – Attic)
(Cordelia is curled up in a blanket watching TV. Connor comes in carrying some junk food.)
Connor: Chocodiles. And some other stuff.
Cordelia: What?
Connor: (walks over to sit on the bed) Thought you might be hungry. Want something else? I could…
Cordelia: No. These are great.
Connor: Whatcha watching?
Cordelia: Some old movie. Pod People or Mutant Pod Mushrooms or something, I don't know. I can't remember. I mean, I don't remember 'cause I was a kid when I saw it, so it's a little on the foggy, but natural fog. (turns off TV) Don't worry. I'm not gonna turn into Amnesia Action Figure Cordy again. (starts unwrapping a Chocodile ice cream treat)
Connor: She wasn't so bad.
Cordelia: Yeah, a real hoot, too, with the panicking and the screaming and running around like a nut. (takes a bite of the ice cream) Mmm...I love these.
Connor: Yeah, I know.
Cordelia: Thank you.
Connor: You're welcome.
Cordelia: Not just for the snacky goodness. Thank you for...God, thanks for everything. I don't know what I would have done without you, Connor.
Connor: Panic, scream, nut.
Cordelia: Probably.
(Connor gets up and walks over to her. He kneels in front of her and touches her knee.)
Connor: You should rest.
Cordelia: I'm OK.
Connor: (tenderly brushes hair from her face) You haven't slept since you came back.
Cordelia: I know. Every time I close my eyes, I...
Connor: What?
Cordelia: See it. Something horrible moving deep down, clawing it's way up.
Connor: Just a dream.
Cordelia: I can taste the blood of all the people it's going to kill, smell the burning flesh.
Connor: It's OK. You're safe with me.
Cordelia: No one's safe. Don't you understand that? It's coming, and no one can stop it. I wanna warn Angel, but the words won't come out. Why can't I tell him? I feel it. The thing in my dreams... It's real, and it's almost here.
(Connor stands. When Cordelia looks up at him there is a Beast standing right where Connor was.)
Beast: I know.
(The Beast grabs her throat and Cordelia wakes from her vision with a gasp. Connor comes rushing into the room and goes over to her.)
Connor: What is it?
Cordelia: Oh, G—
Connor: Are you all right? Cordy!
(Cordelia breaks down in tears and leans into Connor, who puts his arm around her.)
(Hyperion – Angel Investigations)
(Lorne sits at the front desk, talking on the phone.)
Lorne: Snakes? Uh-huh. And they came out of your what? OK, OK, well did they get up there themselves, or is this part of a, you know, a thing. (laughs nervously) No, I'm not judging. (puts phone to his chest, asks Angel) Do we fight snakes?
(Angel sits on the chair in the Lobby, polishing his sword.)
Angel: Only if they're giant. Or demons. Or giant demons. (turns to face Lorne) Are they giant demon snakes?
Lorne: Well, unless this guy's 30 feet tall, I'm thinking they're of the garden variety.
Angel: (sighs) Oh. (stands) They could still be demonic. Are they making any kind of weird demony sounds?
(Client’s House)
(Fred and Gunn are standing in the hallway of a house, talking to the rich client who owns it. She's a mid-thirties pretty blonde woman.)
Woman: The noises are horrible. The thumping, the groaning—it's impossible to sleep at night.
Gunn: How long's this been going on?
Woman: Uh, a week, maybe.
Fred: Good. If it's a haunting, the longer a specter inhabits an area, the harder it is to convince them to leave.
Gunn: Yep, Casper's dealing with the big boys now. We're very persuasive.
Woman: Anything you can do about that terrible room. I'll be in the kitchen. (walks away hurriedly)
Gunn: (to Fred) You ready?
Fred: Is no an acceptable answer?
Gunn: In this business? Always.
(With his battleaxe ready, Gunn opens the door.)
(Bathroom)
(The bathroom is huge and luxuriously decorated. There's a huge spa tub at the back of the room, rich wood cabinets, and a double vanity.)
Gunn: (whistles, looks around) Man, look at this place.
Fred: A family of four could live in here.
Gunn: With room for Uncle Laruel. Man, marble countertops, whirlpool tub, bidet... (smiling) it's the kind of place I imagine us moving into one day.
Fred: (tentative) Yeah.
Gunn: Well, I'm not saying tomorrow.
Fred: I know, I…
Gunn: Just, be nice one day. 'S all.
Fred: Charles— (groaning pipes sound) OK, that's not the bidet.
Gunn: Where's it coming from? (starts looking around)
Fred: Um, everywhere. Maybe we should've brought a priest.
Gunn: (listens near the sink) Or some consecrated Drano. I think it stopped.
(The medicine cabinet above the sink breaks, revealing rats. They are everywhere. Coming through the drain, in the tub, on the floor.)
Fred: These aren't ghosts. These definitely aren't ghosts.
Gunn: Well, they're gonna be.
(Fred tries desperately to open the door, but it won’t budge.)
Fred: It won't open. (screams)
(Hallway)
(Fred and Gunn finally get the door open and go back to the hallway. Gunn's taking off his coat in case there are still rats on it. Fred checks him.)
Gunn: Get 'em off me. Get 'em off me.
Fred: You're OK. You're OK. (walking out, to woman) Um, you might want to look into an exterminator.
Gunn: Or just burnt he place down.
Fred: Either way.
(Wesley’s Apartment)
(Wesley comes into his apartment and finds Lilah waiting for him.)
Lilah: Hard day at the office?
Wesley: I've had worse.
Lilah: What happened?
Wesley: Bugs.
Lilah: Giant?
Wesley: Swarm. Why are you dressed like that?
(We now see that Lilah is sitting on his desk by the window. Her hair is in two pigtail braids with white bows on the ends. She’s wearing glasses, a short skirt, a white oxford shirt and a blue cardigan. She’s swinging her feet like a little girl, acting coy.)
Lilah: (in Southern accent) Isn't this what you like? Big brain and a tight little…
Wesley: (rolls eyes) Lilah.
Lilah: (in Southern accent) Oh, forget about that evil witch. Let's talk about me. I'm good and pure and science turns me on, and-and one day (puts hands together in prayer) if I pray hard enough and eat all my vegetables, I just might just have hips.
Wesley: (smiles) Are you finished?
Lilah: (stands, walks to him) Did it turn you on? Watching her up there in front of all those braniacs knowing she was the smartest one in the room? (crosses arms)
Wesley: Her theories deserve attention.
Lilah: Just her theories? (walks closer to him) I saw the way you looked at her. Oh, come on. Do you think I care about your little crush? Moon all you want of the Texas twig 'cause I know whose bed you'll be crawling into at the end of the day. (puts arms around his neck) Or the middle of it. (starts kissing him)
Wesley: You think you know me?
Lilah: Better than she ever will.
(They kiss passionately and move over to the couch. Wesley pulls up Lilah’s skirt and sits down on the couch with her on his lap. She unbuttons her shirt, revealing a red bra. She starts to take the glasses off, but Wesley stops her.)
Wesley: Leave them on.
(She slides them back on and they continue with their lovemaking.)
(Hyperion – Garden)
(Fred and Gunn come in through the garden on their way back from the client's house. They go up the stairs, Fred first, to the front door.)
Gunn: Nasty pink-nosed bastards. I can still feel 'em crawling on me.
Fred: I'm gonna take a long bath and scrub 'til my skin stops twitching.
Gunn: (excited) Can we have bubbles?
Fred: (turns to face him) I was kinda looking forward to a quiet soak alone.
Gunn: Oh. Yeah, OK.
Fred: It's just— the tubs not that big and... (laughs nervously) Forget it. We'll squeeze in.
Gunn: No, no, you go ahead. I'll grab one later.
Fred: (sighs) Can we not do this?
Gunn: You mean have a meaningful conversation the way that two people who love each other are supposed to?
Fred: (looks down) Fine. We'll do this.
Gunn: Fred, what do you want from me.
Fred: Nothing.
Gunn: Yeah, you've made that pretty clear.
Fred: That's not what I meant.
Gunn: You sure? We don't talk. We sleep on opposite sides of the bed. We haven't even touched each other since…
(They both look down, avoid eye contact.)
Fred: Since we murdered Professor Seidel.
Gunn: No, since I did.
Fred: For me.
Gunn: I couldn't let you carry that.
Fred: It wasn't your choice.
Gunn: Fred, it's not who you are. It isn't in your heart.
Fred: But it's in yours?
Gunn: It is now.
Fred: (starts to cry, runs back down the stairs) I'm sorry.
Gunn: Fred!
(Fred runs out of the garden. Gunn watches her go, but doesn’t follow.)
(Angel Investigations)
(Angel's inspecting the weapons in the weapons cabinet. Lorne's working the phones at the front desk. They're ringing off the hook, faster than he can answer them.)
Lorne: (on phone) No, no, that certainly doesn't sound normal for a boy his age. Look, we'll send someone out as soon as we can. Just, um—just don't poke it. (hangs up)
(Gunn walks into the lobby, and hands Angel the battle-axe.)
Angel: Hey. How'd it go?
Lorne: Where's Fred?
Gunn: Bad. Out. (phone rings) I got it.
Lorne: Bless you and all your parts. (hands Gunn the message log)
Gunn: (to phone) Angel Investigations. Uh-huh. And what is the nature of your manifestation?
Lorne: (walks over to Angel) Business is really humming, huh?
Angel: Yeah, word of mouth, I guess, got around that I'm back. You think I should keep these alphabetical, or rearrange them by how much damage they inflict?
Lorne: Damage. Nomenclature goes out the portal when, uh, hacking's afoot.
Angel: Still, good to know what you're using. I mean, what if I'm fighting a Glurgg, and I ask for a Khopesh to finish him off. What would you throw me?
Lorne: Uh, a towel. Glurggs are 90% pus. Yeah, uh, not speaking of sticky fluids, maybe we should get some help around the office. A certain somebody with a good understanding of higher dimensions. And could tell me what got hoovered out of my head. Um, name starts with a "C."
Angel: (looks up) Connor.
Lorne: No, I was leaning more towards a perky love muffin, but—Oh. (sees that Connor has walked into the lobby)
Angel: Hey.
Connor: Hey.
Angel: It's OK. The spell wore off. Thanks for not letting me hurt Cordy.
Connor: Well, I don't know, she probably would've staked you. She's pretty tough.
Angel: Yeah, she is.
Connor: She's staying with me now. You know that, right?
Angel: Yeah, that's good. She needs a place she can feel safe. Give her a chance to work things out. A couple of days, everything'll be back to the way it was.
Connor: You should talk to her.
Lorne: Oh, hallelujah.
Angel: Now's not a good time. After everything she's been through, the last thing she needs…
Connor: Dad. (Angel stops talking and looks at him.) Please?
(Natural History Museum – Attic)
(Cordelia's facing away from the door when Connor and Angel come into the room.)
Cordelia: (sighs) I'm gonna kill him.
(Angel walks over to her, but Connor hangs back.)
Angel: He's just worried about you. We all are.
Cordelia: Is that the royal we, or the populous?
Angel: I always wanted to be a prince. (sits next to her, holds her hand) I hear you gotta be born into it.
Cordelia: (smiles) How do you do that?
Angel: What?
Cordelia: Make everything feel like it's not spiraling apart. (Connor walks out of the room.)
Angel: You all right?
Cordelia: Getting there.
Angel: The way you left the hotel…
Cordelia: I know.
Angel: Did I do something, or…
Cordelia: Oh, Angel... I love you. I always will. You know that.
Angel: I don't suppose we could stop there.
Cordelia: I wish we could—more than anything—but I can't. (shifts to face him) When I got my memory back, everything came rushing in. Sunnydale, moving to Los Angeles, meeting you again. I wanted to tell you, but it was just too much.
Angel: Tell me what?
Cordelia: What I remembered when I was a higher being. I remember seeing you—your past—when you were Angelus.
Angel: I never tried to hide who I was or what I've done. You already knew.
Cordelia: Knowing's different than living it. When I was up there, I could look back and see everything you ever did as Angelus—more than see, I felt it. Not just their fear and pain. I felt you and how much you enjoyed making them suffer. I love you, Angel, (touches his face) but I can't be with you. It's just too soon. Maybe if we just give it a little time...
(Cordelia starts hyperventilating, convulsing, and her eyes turn white. Angel grabs her shoulders to steady her. She has a vision of the Beast coming up out of the earth.)
Angel: Cordy!
Cordelia: He's coming. He's coming now.
(Time Lapse)
(Cordelia's lying down on the bed. Connor's sitting beside her, and Angel's pacing back and forth in front of her.)
Angel: You still have your visions. I thought they weren't supposed to hurt anymore.
Cordelia: This wasn't normal. (sighs, Angel sits down on the bed beside her) If that word actually applies to anything that ever happens to me. The visions are usually like a lawn sprinkler. This was like Niagra.
Connor: You should let her rest.
Cordelia: No, I'm OK. (holds Connor's hand)
Angel: What else can you tell me?
Cordelia: Big, powerful, clawing its way up through the bowels of the earth to slaughter us all. Yeah, that pretty much covers it.
Angel: Did you see anything that could give us a location?
Cordelia: No, just the big beastie. (sits up in bed) It's coming, Angel, and it won't stop—not until we're all— It won't stop.
Angel: He's right. You should probably get some sleep.
Cordelia: Yeah, because impending doom—almost as good as warm milk.
Angel: (stands) Whatever's coming, I'll figure out a way to stop it.
Cordelia: It'll be too late. I can feel it. There's something—I don't know. I think I know more about this thing—or, I knew more when I was all high and mighty, but I just can't get at it.
Angel: Maybe if Lorne read you again.
Cordelia: You think he would after what happened the first time?
Angel: I could hold him down.
Cordelia: Angel, we need to know more. I need to know.
(Hyperion – Angel Investigations)
(Gunn's answering the phones at the front desk. Phones are ringing off the hook. Lorne's also on the phone at the front desk on another line.)
Gunn: (to phone) I'm sorry. I know, but we're pretty swamped right now. Well, if Snowball hasn't tried to eat your spine yet, hit her with the catnip until we get there. (hangs up)
Lorne: (to phone) No, I-I don't think that much mucus is ever a good sign. Uh-huh. Oh, please, please, again, describe it in detail. (holds phone to chest, to Gunn) Hey, uh, this isn't letting up. How 'bout, uh, rustling up some adorable reinforcements?
Gunn: I don't know where she is.
Lorne: Well, uh, that's where the rustling comes in.
Gunn: Well, if Fred wanted to be here, she would.
Lorne: (to phone) Uh, yeah, that sounds horrible. Hold please. (hangs up, to Gunn) You two OK?
Gunn: Ask her that. Maybe she'll talk to you.
Lorne: (answers phone) Angel Investigations. Hold please. (to Gunn) Hey, I don't know what's going on between cupcake and her icing, but you know how she feels about you. It doesn't take horns and a beautiful singing voice to be able to read that.
Gunn: It's just—it's been hard since that thing with her Professor.
Lorne: Well, being stuck in Pylea is pretty crappy, but being sent there on purpose by someone you trust— Hey, at least Dr. Ego got a taste of his own portal.
Gunn: Yeah. He got what he deserved, didn't he?
(There's a thud against the windowpane in the front doors. Gunn goes to investigate; he cracks the door open to see what it was. The door swings open a little wider as he reaches outside.)
Gunn: It's a sparrow. Slammed right into the glass.
Lorne: (alarmed) Close the door.
Gunn: He might not be dead.
Lorne: Close it!
(Hundreds more sparrows slam into the glass so hard that they explode, leaving blood splatters all over the doors and windows. Finally it stops.)
Gunn: I'm guessing this isn't a good sign.
Lorne: Yeah, as harbingers go—not so much.
(Wolfram & Hart – Hallway)
(Lilah, dressed normally, is talking on her cell phone.)
Lilah: (to phone) A 300% increase? In the last hour? Uh-huh. Oh, ya think? Well, don't. Just shut up. Get me an incident report cross-referenced by region, socio-economic backgrounds, and species. Oh, and get Gavin up here. Somebody's trying to muscle in on our apocalypse and that is not gonna happen while…
(Lilah’s Office)
(Lilah opened the door to her office and stops in mid-sentence when she sees Angel sitting on her desk.)
Lilah: (to phone) Lemme get back to you. (hangs up)
Angel: Close the door.
Lilah: How did you get in here? (closes door) Vampire detectors, my ass. Well, here we are, all nice and cozy. Let's talk about—hmm, gee, let me guess—Lorne. How's he doing? Still green?
Angel: I told you we were gonna have a conversation.
Lilah: Swell, but I'm having a bit of a day, so let's say we skip the usual two-step, you threaten me, I threaten you, yadda, yadda, yawn. Jump directly to the throwing you out on your thick, meaty head. 'Cause, you know what? You're not getting anything out of me this time either.
Angel: Didn't think I would, but Gavin—he was more accommodating.
Lilah: (looks behind her at Gavin, bound and gagged on the couch) Couldn't you have at least tortured him a little bit more?
Angel: Really wanted to, but he wouldn't stop talking long enough to get into it.
Lilah: I have a cure for that.
Angel: Vindict on your own time. I'm kinda on the clock here.
Lilah: What did he tell you?
Angel: You're trying to decipher what you took out of Lorne's head. Hundreds of psychics probing and prodding—Well, not quite that many now, because every time they peel back a layer, their brains end up decorating the walls.
Lilah: You should see the cleaning bill. Now that is terrifying.
Angel: Anything you got on what's coming—now'd be a good time.
Lilah: Not big on sharing.
Angel: Think I'm joking?
Lilah: Not unless you've conjured up a sense of humor to go with that soul. Look, you got it straight from the weasel's mouth. Whatever Lorne gleaned from reading Wonder Girl—it's protected. Try and unlock it—ka-blooey. Thanks for stopping by. (walks behind desk)
Angel: You're trying to hide it. I can smell it on you?
Lilah: (sits at desk) Chanel?
Angel: (stands) Fear.
Lilah: Well, you are very imposing in this light.
Angel: (walks around to stand by Lilah) You're not afraid of me, Lilah. You're afraid of what's coming. Maybe we can help each other, huh. The enemy of my enemy…
Lilah: Can kiss my ass too. You wanna play hero? Go find another sandbox.
Angel: Normally, this would be the part where I'd make a grand threat, but thanks to Gavin…
Lilah: Like he knows anything.
Angel: That's the point. This thing caught you by surprise, too. You had no idea it was coming.
Lilah: (sighs) So, what—I'm supposed to throw in with Mr. Goody 'cause the great unknown has me shaking in my pumps?
Angel: It's a win-win for you, Lilah. You help me, I stop it, Wolfram and Hart makes you employee of the month for protecting everything they set in motion for the last thousand years. You help me and I don't stop it, well, I mean the only way that's gonna happen is if this thing kills me. (sits on desk in front of her) And if that's the way it goes, you win again. So, you can keep playing it hard, or you can play it smart. It's up to you.
(Natural History Museum – Attic)
(Cordelia's pacing back and forth in the attic. Then she decides to leave when Connor cuts her off from out of nowhere.)
Cordelia: Must be genetic.
Connor: What?
Cordelia: Sneaking up on people. Your dad's an expert.
Connor: I was just making a sweep. Where ya going?
Cordelia: Been inside all day. Thought I'd take a walk, clear the cobwebs, recharge the chargeables. (beat) OK, stop with the look. I'm getting a stronger feeling.
Connor: About the vision.
Cordelia: Yeah. Flashes, images, tugging at me, pulling.
Connor: Where?
Cordelia: I don't know. Maybe where this thing's gonna jack-in-the-box.
Connor: So you were gonna go face it by yourself.
Cordelia: 'S all right. I was a higher being. (starts to walk off)
Connor: Was. (Cordelia stops) You're not anymore.
Cordelia: No, I'm not. I remember wanting to come back home, to be able to touch, to feel, (sits on bed) to be human again.
Connor: You are.
Cordelia: But I can't remember how. Am I on vacation? Did I go cosmic AWOL? Did I do something to piss off the Powers That Be and get kicked out? Why am I here?
Connor: Because you're important.
Cordelia: Oh, yeah. The world's really stopped turning without me.
Connor: Well... you're important to me.
Cordelia: Guess the sneaky's not the only thing you got from Angel. Getting pretty good with saying the right words, too.
Connor: Complete sentences. I've been working on it. (smiles bashfully)
Cordelia: Maybe you're right. Maybe I was sent back because I'm important or needed—for this, to stop whatever's about to happen. I have to find out if that's why I'm here. (stands)
Connor: And I have to go with you.
Cordelia: No, it's dangerous.
Connor: That's why I'm coming.
(Warehouse)
(Cordelia and Connor are walking beside each other amid boxes and such.)
Connor: Sure you know where you're going?
Cordelia: Exactly? No. But, for the first time since I've been back, I feel like I have a purpose, like a reason for being here. Before, all I felt was empty—like I was waiting for my life to start.
Connor: I know how that feels. Not knowing why you're here, what your place is in this world...
Cordelia: It's called being 18. If you make it past 21, things get a lot better.
Connor: (stops walking) They already have.
Cordelia: (turns to face him) You really are getting awfully good with words.
(Alley)
(Connor and Cordelia are walking beside each other.)
Connor: What is it?
Cordelia: This place. I've been here before.
Connor: In your vision?
Cordelia: No, I— (they stop walking) Oh, my God. Darla.
Connor: My mother.
Cordelia: She died here. Connor, this is where you were born.
(Suddenly the Beast bursts forth from the ground. Connor and Cordelia gaze at him in shock. The Beast is at least 7 feet tall. Connor goes at him with a sword, but the Beast just throws him across the alley into the side of a steel dumpster.)
Cordelia: Connor!
(Cordelia crouches on the ground, but the Beast grabs her by the throat and lifts her several feet into the air until she is at eye level with him. She doesn’t scream, but just stares back at him. Connor rushes to her aid, attacking the Beast again. The Beast puts Cordelia down and throws Connor across the alley.)
Cordelia: No!
(The Beast walks toward Cordelia. Shot of the Beast's enormous hoofed feet. Cordelia tries to crawl away from it backwards on her back, but she can't get away from it. Where the Beast held her neck before, the skin is red and torn. From the other side of the alley, Connor stands weakly.)
Connor: Stay away from her!
(The Beast looks at Connor, then at Cordelia and laughs. Then with a single effort, he jumps up to the top of the nearby five story tall building. When the Beast is gone, Cordelia crawls over to Connor, who appears hurt and is bleeding from the mouth.)
(Hyperion – Angel Investigations)
(Gunn's talking on the phone in the lobby. Lorne is also on the phone.)
Gunn: (to phone) If you see Fred, could you have her call me? Charles Gunn, two N's. Yes, that's my real name. Just—please, have her call me.
Lorne: (to phone) Well it might take a couple days. You're fifth on the bleeding walls list. You know what, spritz it with a little 409. We'll get back to you. (hangs up) Hey, no word yet?
Gunn: (dials phone again but it just rings, to Lorne) Nobody's seen her.
Lorne: Well, maybe she ducked and covered when our feathered friends went kamikaze.
Gunn: (hangs up) You good here? I'm gonna drive around, see if I can—I'm just gonna drive. (puts on coat)
Lorne: Let the machine work it's mechanical magic. C'mon. I'll hang my head out the window, see if I can pick up the Burkle vibe.
Gunn: You can do that?
Lorne: Um, no, but it sounds comforting, and I could use the air.
(Gunn and Lorne start toward the exit, but stop as Wesley walks in.)
Wesley: It is a bit ripe in here. I'd suggest opening a window, but…
Gunn: Fred's not here.
Wesley: Didn't ask.
Gunn: Didn't have to.
Wesley: Since you brought it up, where is she?
Gunn: Not your business.
Lorne: Hey, uh, call me kooky-pants, but maybe we could save the three rounds until after the Chuck Heston Plague-A-Thon cools off.
Wesley: You've noticed the increase in paranormal activities?
Lorne: Yeah, you stepped in some on your way in. Birds, rats, blood—the Ghostbuster lines have been ringing off the hook.
Wesley: I've been tracking similar reports. (sighs) Maybe if we pool our data…
Gunn: Go pool yourself. I'm gonna find my girlfriend.
(Gunn starts to walk away, when Angel interrupts him.)
Angel: No you're not. If we don't' stop what's coming, it won't matter where Fred is, or any of us.
(Time Lapse)
(Lorne's sitting down, looking at papers that are spread across the coffee table. The papers are completely covered in mystical symbols, and there are hundreds of these sheets of paper. Angel's pacing. Wesley is sitting on the couch next to Lorne. Gunn's sitting on the couch across from them.)
Angel: That's everything Wolfram and Hart could decipher from what they took outta Lorne.
Wesley: They just handed these over?
Angel: Lilah—she can be very giving.
(Wesley looks at him out of the corner of his eyes.)
Gunn: You trust her on this?
Angel: No, but she's got an interest in stopping the end of the world before it ruins Wolfram and Hart's end of the world, so...
Gunn: OK, what's the plan?
Angel: You're holding it. (sits next to Gunn) We figure out what all this means, then do something large and violent.
Wesley: I see you've given it considerable thought.
Lorne: (holding some papers) So all this came out of my head? No wonder it made me greener.
Angel: If Wolfram and Hart hadn't extracted it, you'd be a paler shade of dead.
Lorne: Yeah, well, remind me to send 'em a fruit basket. (sips his cocktail, phone rings) Mm. Saved by the continuous bell. (stands, walks to front desk)
Angel: You've been logging the calls?
Lorne: Every last squishy one.
Angel: (to Lorne) Grab a map, start marking the locations. See if they're concentrated in any one area. (to Wesley and Gunn) Whatever's happening, whatever Cordy's seen, the answers are in these pages. We need to figure this out.
(Time Lapse)
(Wesley, Gunn and Angel are still sitting on the couches, trying to decipher the data contained in the papers on the table in front of them.)
Gunn: We're never gonna figure this out.
Angel: We have to keep trying.
Wesley: Normally I'd agree, but this is a waste of time.
Angel: It's all we have.
Wesley: Then we must be missing something. This is gibberish. Bits and pieces of glyphs, archaic languages, symbols—all jumbled together.
Angel: Do you recognize any of them?
Wesley: Uh, heat, fallen, shrine, flesh...none of it makes any sense.
Angel: Ah, we gotta keep at it until it does.
Gunn: (stands) You know, maybe we should just take a step back. (walks around)
Angel: We don't have time. Cordy said whatever's happening is going down right now.
Wesley: Then perhaps you should have addressed this earlier. (flips through pages) We could sift through this muddle from now 'til doomsday, whether that's tomorrow or a thousand years from now…
Gunn: (standing behind Wesley now) Wait, go back. The last sheet, flip it back.
Angel: (stands, walks to look) What is it?
Wesley: I don't see anything.
Gunn: 'S cause you're looking too close.
(Gunn lines up two of the papers, showing a triangular symbol that's completed when they are lined up properly. Gunn grabs a stack of the papers from Wesley, pushes the coffee table out of the way, and starts arranging the papers on the floor, matching up the denser areas which start to form lines. Angel and Wesley join in until all the papers are on the floor.)
Gunn: OK. So what the hell is it?
(We zoom out and see that all the papers have formed a type of symbol. It looks like a square with diagonal lines connecting the opposite corners, forming an ‘X’ within the square. Wesley, Angel and Gunn stand and stare at it.)
Angel: The Eye of Fire.
Wesley: Ancient alchemical symbol for fire.
Angel: And destruction.
Gunn: You had me at fire.
Lorne: Um, boys? (holds up map) I hate to be the little demon that cried apocalypse nowish, but uh...
(Lorne gestures to the map with a marker. He's plotted the locations of the disturbances with a red dot for each call, and the dots have formed a square.)
(Diner)
(Fred's sitting alone in a booth at an all-night diner, nursing a cup of coffee. The waitress comes up to her, carrying a pot of coffee, and refills her cup.)
Waitress: I'll give you one more, and then I am cutting you off.
Fred: Oh, sorry. I can pay for the next one.
Waitress: It's not the free refills that I'm worried about. It's you vibrating into another dimension after a tenth cup.
Fred: Nobody wants that.
Waitress: Why don't you call him? You've been sitting here all day. He's probably worried sick.
Fred: I don't know what I'd say.
Waitress: I think hello'd probably do it. I've seen the way he looks at you when you two come in here. That man would do anything for you.
Fred: I know.
Waitress: So cheer up. Whatever's going on—as long as you've got love—it can't be that bad.
(The building starts to shake like there's an earthquake. Fred gets out of the booth and crouches on the floor, pulling the waitress down with her.)
Fred: Get away from the window.
(Natural History Museum – Attic)
(Cordelia's sitting on the bed next to Connor, tending to his wounds. They have a minor earthquake too.)
Connor: I gotta go. I've gotta stop it.
Cordelia: Yeah, getting yourself killed should really slow that thing down. (looks at his badly bruised side) Oh, God. I think you broke a couple of ribs.
Connor: I've never been broken, not even in Quor-Toth. I didn't think I could be.
Cordelia: You're hurt because of me. Because I thought maybe I still had some grand higher purpose, that me being here could actually... make a difference. Now I know better.
Connor: (shifts to face her) All you know is that that thing can hurt you, and if it tries again, I will find a way to kill it.
(Hyperion – Angel Investigations)
(Angel's drawing diagonal lines, connecting the corners of the square formed on the map when Lorne plotted the incidents. Angel points to where the lines cross.)
Angel: That's it.
Lorne: What?
Wesley: The focal point of the disturbances.
(The building shakes like there's an earthquake.)
Angel: Whatever's coming, that's where we'll find it.
Gunn: I know that area—the old Kimball building's down there. They did a retro on it, put a club up on the roof. The, uh, Sky Temple or something.
Lorne: Yeah, yeah, I've heard of it. Watering hole for the tragically hip. Actors, models, all the hot mamas and yamas.
Wesley: A shrine of the flesh. (looks at Angel)
Angel: So, who's thirsty? (walks to weapons cabinet)
Gunn: Let's do it. (follows Angel)
Lorne: (still sitting at the desk) Hey, I know location's everything, but, um, maybe we should hold off on the down-payment 'til we know what we're dealing with or how to stop it.
Angel: If it's alive, we kill it. If it's not, we bury it. (throws crossbow to Wesley) You in?
(Sky Temple Club – Kimball Building)
(Angel, Wesley, Gunn and Lorne walk up to the club entrance armed and ready to fight, but when they see the Beast, they stop dead in their tracks. The Beast sees them and chuckles. It's standing inside a square made from human bodies that have been laid out in formation. At the center of the square, the Beast is holding a man in the air, dangling him by the foot. The way the body hangs, it forms sort of an "X" shape.)
Lorne: Ooh, uh, I'm gonna need a bigger arrow.
(The Beast throws the man he's holding across the room before focusing his attention on Angel's gang. Angel hoists his sword and runs toward the Beast. Gunn flanks him on the right, while Wesley and Lorne are on the left with crossbows aimed. Angel swings the sword at the Beast, but it has no effect—when the sword contacts the Beast's skin, there's a pinging sound, but it doesn't cut or penetrate the skin. Angel continues to try using the sword on the Beast, but to no avail. Eventually, the Beast takes the sword away from Angel, discards it, and throws Angel across the room where he collides with a column, shattering it to pieces. Gunn hurls the battleaxe at the Beast, but the Beast catches it easily, bending the blade in half and throwing it back at Gunn. Angel recovers from his fall, stands, and wields two smaller axes. Angel swings them at the Beast's legs, arms, head—but they don't hurt him at all. Wesley and Lorne shoot arrows from their crossbows at the Beast, but the beast deflects them with his forearm, changing their trajectory such that the arrows hit Angel instead. Angel doubles over in pain as one arrow lands in his belly and the other in his upper right shoulder. The Beast looks around at them all. Wesley and Lorne are reloading the crossbows when the Beast picks up Angel's body and throws it at them, knocking them off balance. Gunn goes for the Beast with a sword, hacking mightily at its head, again to no avail. The Beast grabs Gunn by the throat and throws him across the room. Wesley reaches both hands inside his coat, pulling out two automatic handguns. He shoots them, two at a time, at the Beast's chest and head with no effect. He throws them down, and reaches for the shotgun at his side. Wesley fires at the Beast's chest, causing it to flinch a bit, but the shots don't appear to damage it. He fires again at the Beast's face, causing the Beast to fall down, landing on its knees. Wes aims the shotgun at its face at close range, but the Beast just looks up and smiles at him. The Beast grunts and pushes the shotgun away before hurling Wesley across the room. The Beast chuckles.)
Angel: Might wanna hold the gloat, chuckles. (pulls the arrow out of his shoulder) We're just getting started.
(Angel lunges for the Beast, engaging him in hand-to-hand combat. They exchange punches, when the Beast punches Angel so hard, it sends him backwards through the air in a back flip. Angel lands on his feet on an awning, in vampire face now. The Beast groans. Angel jumps down from the awning, landing in front of the Beast. They fist-fight again, but Angel manages to knock the Beast down to his knees. Angel grabs a dagger from his leg-holster and points it at the Beast's strange yellow eyes. It's eyes widen, and Angel hesitates, unable to plunge the dagger into its eyes because it's got a grip on Angel's arm now. The tables are turned as the Beast stabs Angel in the right shoulder. Angel groans in agony, blood dribbling down his mouth, as he involuntarily reverts to human face. The Beast looks knowingly at Angel.)
Beast: Do you really think she's safe with him?
(The Beast takes Angel and hurls him out into the city, well beyond the edge of the building they're on now. Gunn stands and screams.)
Gunn: No!
(Lorne looks panicked. The Beast kneels on one knee, punching the floor at the center of his human square, sending a trail of fire out along the floor in the shape of the Eye of Fire symbol. A shock wave emanates from the area, knocking everyone back a few feet. Lorne is thrown back, but lands on a glass skylight and falls into the room below. Gunn and Wesley are knocked down, but still on the rooftop. The fire is tall now, taller than the Beast. Wesley sits up in time to see the Beast leap straight up into the sky, riding the fire that he created. Wesley goes over to Gunn, who's lying unconscious on the floor. Lorne is conscious now. Wesley carries Gunn away from the fire.)
(Street)
(Angel is lying on the ground, in the street somewhere in the city. He rolls over, still in pain and bloody from the encounter with the Beast. Weakly, he reaches over to pull the implement out of his shoulder, wincing. He convulses in pain while looking at the sky.)
(Natural History Museum – Attic)
(Connor and Cordelia are standing next to each other, looking out the window at a shaft of fire that's shooting straight up into a red circular cloud in the sky right over downtown. The column of fire is sucked up into the cloud where it disappears and the clouds close. Still glowing, the clouds now rain tiny fireballs all over the city. They stare in disbelief.)
Connor: What's happening?
Cordelia: I don't know.
Connor: It's him, isn't it? It's that thing.
Cordelia: We don't know that.
Connor: I should've tried harder. I should've stopped it.
Cordelia: It was too strong. This isn't' your fault.
Connor: What if it is? What if that thing is—chose the place where I was born. Is that why it's here? Because of me?
Cordelia: (looks at him) No.
Connor: (shakes his head) I was never supposed to happen. The child of two vampires. What if…
Cordelia: Connor, it's not you.
Connor: (looks at her) You don't know that.
Cordelia: Yes, I do. In my heart. (touches his face, brushes hair away) It's not you, baby. It's not you. Not you.
(With the hand she used to brush hair from his face, Cordelia pulls Connor's face closer and kisses him tenderly and passionately.)
Connor: Why…why did you…?
Cordelia: Because I don't think it matters anymore. I know how you feel about me, Connor. When I think about what you've— (touches his face tenderly) you never had a childhood, or a family or friends or anything that's real, and if this is the end, I want you to have something that is.
(Cordelia puts his hand on her waist and they embrace and kiss each other passionately.)
(Kimball Building – Office)
(From the office in which he landed, Lorne watches through the window in horror as the fireballs rain down on the city.)
(Sky Temple Club – Kimball Building Roof)
(Wesley's holding Gunn's limp body in his arms, having carried him to a sheltered part of the club. Wesley's watching the sky.)
(Diner)
(Fred's watching the fire rain down from the sky from inside the Diner through the Levelor blinds. The waitress and other patrons are freaking out. Fred's trying to get a hold of someone on her cell phone, but she doesn't get through. She looks at her cell phone, hangs up, and continues staring out the window.)
(Wolfram & Hart – Lilah’s Office)
(From her office, Lilah watches the fire rain come down outside. She's wringing her hands nervously, then rubs her upper arms as if shivering.)
(Natural History Museum – Attic)
(Connor and Cordelia are in bed together, making love. Lying on top of Cordelia, Connor kisses her tenderly amid gentle undulations under the sheets.)
(Building Rooftop)
(Fire rain is falling down all around, and Angel's there, on the roof of a nearby building, looking into the attic, where he can see Connor and Cordelia in bed together making love.)
Season Four Guide