From: gryphon@bigwpi.WPI.EDU (Don't Let's Start)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.anime
Subject: UF: Altered Appleseed Act ][
Date: 29 Sep 92 18:49:26 GMT
Organization: Intrusion Incorporated.  Boldly going where we ought not be.
NNTP-Posting-Host: bigwpi.wpi.edu

ACT II

Scene 1.

The sun pours through the windows in Ben's apartment.  Ben
awakens slowly, finds that Deunan is still asleep, and gently
extracts himself, making his way unsteadily into the
bathroom.  There he splashes water on his face, towels it
off, and returns to the living room, intending to sit down in
the chair Briareos is currently seated in, since he hasn't
noticed that the 'borg is there yet.

Briareos: Rough night?

Ben starts violently.

Ben: You almost scared me to death--don't do that!

Briareos: Sorry.  (He looks around.)  You must've been
angsting pretty hardcore last night; what happened?  Or don't
you want to talk about it?  I can understand--

Ben: No, it's ok...part of my past coiled back and bit me, is
all.  You want something to drink?

Briareos: (getting up) I'll get it--what d'you want?

Ben: Nothing for me, thanks.

Briareos: Okay... (He heads for the kitchen, pauses as he
spots the photo where Ben threw it the night before; he picks
it up and contemplates it.)  Hmm...part of the problem?

Ben: All of it.

Deunan: (slowly awakening) Mmm...hm?  Ben?  Where--oh.
Morning.  (She sees Briareos.)  Hi, Bri...how long have you
been here?

Briareos: I was here all night.  I came over to see where you
were after I got back from the store, and saw the door kicked
in, so I came in; it was pretty obvious what happened.  I had
a funny feeling about something, so I spent the night on
guard by the door.

Deunan: Oh...sorry about your door, by the way.

Ben: It's no problem.  Thank you...thanks a lot, more than I
can ever say.  Thanks for...for being there, when I needed
someone.

Deunan has no ready reply as he gets up and goes back into
the bathroom.

Briareos: What happened to him?

Deunan: (rising and stretching) It's a long story; he's hurt,
he needed someone.  I hope you understand.

Briareos: Of course.  I've been there too often to grudge
anyone else a helping hand when they need it.  And I trust
you.  (he does his version of a grin.)  Who'd've thought,
though..."Deunan Knute, Empath."

Deunan: "Briareos Hecatonchires, Wiseass."  (she stops
smiling and glances at the bathroom door, behind which the
shower is running.)  I'm worried, Bri.  He's really hurting.

Using dissolved-in flashbacks and an undershowing, silent
view of Deunan's explanation and Briareos' reactions, we get
the idea that Briareos has been briefed without sitting
through the whole story again.

Briareos: The poor guy.  (The shower stops; momentarily the
door between the bathroom and Ben's room can be heard opening
and closing.)

Deunan: Tell me about it.  All this time we wondered why he
never made friends easily, why he never had a girlfriend, why
he was so distant sometimes; he's afraid of making friends.
Look at what happened to him last time.
Briareos: Wow.  That's rough...what's he going to do?

The door from Ben's bedroom opens and he emerges in his
black riding leathers, buckling one boot.

Deunan: What're you doing?

Ben: I'm going out to find her.  I have to settle this once
and for all.

Briareos: What?  Are you crazy?

Ben: In all likelihood.  (He recovers his glasses, cleans
them, and puts them on.)  Not that it matters.  (He pulls on
a glove.)  This will only end one of two ways.  Either she
wins, and she kills me, or something happens to change her
mind.  I won't attack her.  I'll defend myself, but I won't
kill her.  Part of me at least still loves her.

Deunan: That's suicidal!  I'm coming with you.

Ben: No.  You're not.  This isn't your fight.  I've
inadvertently involved you too much as it is, with that
stupid crying fit...I still thank you, and I still owe you,
but stay out of this.

Deunan: (rising, angry) The hell you say!  I'm your friend,
goddammit!  This is tearing you apart inside, you're not even
thinking straight!  Sit down.   Calm down.  Let us help you.
Think!

Ben: You think.  I don't have time.  Either I'll be back
tonight, or I won't be back.

He turns to go; Briareos rises as well.

Briareos: If you won't listen to Deunan, then listen to me.
You can't just go roaring off like this.  You're a
professional.  Act like one.

That gives Ben pause; he stops short for a second, squares
his shoulders--

And leaves.  Fade to black.

Scene 2.

Ben is riding downtown, pissed off and reckless, listening to
music too loudly and cutting corners too closely.  Zooming
around one corner, he almost runs down an unconcerned-looking
pedestrian who is absorbed in a small black book.

Ben: (bringing the Garland to a screeching halt) Hey!  Watch
where you're walking!

Pedestrian: (looking up and squinting a little) Gryphon?

Ben: (recognizing pedestrian with a start) Vaughn?!

Vaughn: (cheerily) Morning!  How's life?

CUT TO a restaurant; Ben and Vaughn are in a booth talking.

Ben: I thought sure you'd be dead by now; you never took
Omega-2, as I recall.

Vaughn: Yes, well; I'm not going to die until I'm good and
ready, in a time and place of my choosing, and I haven't
picked yet.  What about you?  Did you ever resolve
your...problem?

Ben: No; in fact, she's in town right now, gunning for me.
She thinks I'm some kind of great evil, I don't understand
it--she won't even tell me what I've done.  And try as I
might I can't figure it out on my own.  Anyway...I was out
trying to find her, or waiting for her to find me, when I
almost ran you down--which reminds me, what're you doing
here?  How'd you get here?

Vaughn: I walked.  Do you know how long it takes to walk here
from Androzani Minor?  I've been trying to catch up with you
for 66 years, this is the first time you've stopped someplace
long enough for me to do it.

Ben: But why have you been trying to find me?

Vaughn: There was something I wanted to ask you...I can't
remember what it was now...oh well, it'll come back if it was
important.  (he looks around.)  This place is nice; you
keeping busy?

Ben: Yeah; I blew into town seven years ago and decided to
stay, so I got a job where I can use my skills and experience
to advantage.

Vaughn: You're a cop.

Ben: ESWAT.

Vaughn: Nifty.  You know many people here?
Ben: A few; the guys from my squad, I guess, but we don't
hang much...

Vaughn: Mundanes?

Ben: Very.  The couple who live across the hall from me are
cool, though--they're ESWATs, too.  C'mon, I'll see if
they're home and introduce you--they know about where I'm
from and all.  You'll like them.

Vaughn: But what about Kei?

Ben: It's been 66 years.  She can wait.   (He gets up, pays
the check, and leaves; Vaughn shrugs and follows.)

Fade to black.

Scene 3.

Ben, Vaughn, Deunan, and Briareos are sitting around Ben's
apartment, discussing what to do.

Ben: I'm glad Vaughn happened along and threw some
posidealons at me; it was stupid of me to go rushing off like
that.  Yeah, yeah, I know, "I told you so," I know.  Oh, by
the way, this is Vaughn, he's an old friend of mine--

Vaughn: I'm not that old, I'm only a couple of years older
than I am--

Deunan: What?

(Briareos cocks his head quizzically.)

Vaughn: Than he is.  Gryph knows what I meant.

Ben: "Brian, I don't think we're big enough to fit through
this doorway."

Vaughn: Oh hush.

Deunan: Ummm...right.

Briareos: How did you get here?  That's something Ben's never
bothered to explain.

Vaughn: I don't know how he got here...I walked.

(Deunan and Briareos look at each other, then at Vaughn, then
at Ben, then at each other.)

Ben: (sighs) Never mind...I stole my VF, remember?  Oh, no,
you don't, you'd left by that point.

Vaughn: Oh yeah.

Deunan: (to Briareos) Ever feel like you woke up, got out of
bed, and stepped into a dream?  Maybe I went out and got
drunk last night after all.

Briareos: If this is what one of your dreams is like, leave
me out of them from now on, ok?

Ben: I know, it sounds weird...fuck it, it is weird...

Vaughn: Perfectly normal to me.

Everyone: Shut up, Vaughn.

Ben: Anyway, we have larger problems at the moment...I have
to get into better fighting trim, because like it or not, I'm
gonna have to fight her.  I stand by what I said before,
though--I won't kill her.  If that means I die, so be it, I
won't kill her.  I can't.

Vaughn: I can understand that.  I'm not a killer either.  You
know that.

Deunan: You'd let her kill you.

Ben: I never said that.  I just think I can avoid either
fate, dying or killing.  There has to be another way.

Briareos: Still an optimist...

Ben: Always, Bri, always.  It got me through this far.  (He
smiles.)  Before I go out and try to resolve this, though, I
have to be prepared.  I have to do some repair work and
tuning on the Garland, and load up some extra clips...maybe I
should get the PPC back working again.

Vaughn: Why not use the Griffin armor?

Ben: Too many memories...besides, it didn't help me any in
2296.  And it would take a flong time to put back together.

Briareos: I just had an awful thought...what if she's packing
something heavier than a Cyclone?

Ben: I expect she does.  So do I, but I hope to whatever
forces control this universe that I don't have to use it.
(The telephone rings.)  What the hell--?  (He answers--it's
Kei.)  Kei!

Kei: Yeah, it's me.  Listen.  I know where you live.  If you
don't want your...friends...to get hurt, meet me downtown
tomorrow afternoon and we'll settle this once and for all.
And keep your friends out of this.  They don't know what you
are, and I don't want to hurt them.  Unlike you, I give a
shit what happens to the other people around.

Ben: What?!  What are you talking about?  Just what am I
anyway?  Aren't you ever going to tell me what I've done?

Kei: The fountain.  Noon.  Show.

The screen goes blank.  Ben hangs up and goes back to his
seat slowly, flopping limply into it.

Ben: Damn damn damn damn damn fucking damn.  ANGST!

Deunan: (checking her watch) Twenty-two hours; that enough
time?

Ben: I suppose...come on, you guys can help me get ready, at
least...I want you to stay out of it, like she said.  She
doesn't want to hurt you, but if you fuck with her, my guess
is she will.  She seems to think she's serving some kind of
greater good in trying to kill me.  Acceptable losses are a
very important concept to a WWWA trouble consultant.

He gets up and goes out to the garage, pulling the tarp off
his Garland, and, opening the toolbox, sets to work with the
other three aiding him.  The entire night passes, the stereo
blaring and the work progressing, until finally, Ben feels
the machine is ready for combat.  The four of them go back
upstairs and crash just before dawn, Ben's alarm set.

Fade to black on a view of his alarm clock.

Scene 4.

It's just before noon.  Ben pulls up to the curb near the
fountain downtown on his Garland.  No one is around, which is
odd in the extreme for noontime in Olympus.  Ben is wearing
CVR-3 body armor, black with electric blue accents and his
Eight-Ball Squadron flash painted on the shoulder plate.
(It's been a long time since he wore this armor, and he
didn't see fit to repaint it.)  Strapped to his leg is some
sort of heavy pistol; full clips of ammo encircle his waist.
He puts down a foot and looks around; the place is absolutely
deserted.  It's eerie.

His ears catch the sound of a motorcycle; it's an
unmistakable noise, the sound made by a Cyclone engine
running on liquid fuel with the fusion reactor running
nonetheless (better acceleration).  Moments later the black
VR-052 screams around a corner fifty or so yards in front of
him and fires off a couple of missiles from one of the
fairing pods.  Ben revs his own machine and gets moving,
dodging the flight of missiles as he pulls the Garland's
front wheel momentarily from the pavement.

He passes the black Cyclone as the Garland's front wheel
touches down again; the Cyclone rams into a tight turn,
trying to get behind him, but he converts it and leaps to the
top of a nearby building as more missiles reach for him.  Kei
responds by transforming her mecha as well.  The incoming
missiles vape some of those incomprehensible thingies that
are on building roofs.

Vaughn: Fans, air conditioners, um...that sort of thing.
Just thought you'd like to know.

Ben jumps his Garland off the corner of the building in the
ensuing fireballishness, plummeting into a dumpster.

Ben: Fuck!

He digs himself out of the dumpster as Kei jumps her Cyclone
over the building and lands in the end of the alley, then
hefts same dumpster and throws it at her.  She blows it
cruelly away with a pair of forearm missiles, then pegs Ben's
mecha in the upper arm with the EP-37.  Red lights blossom on
his panel as he bashes through the nearest convenient wall
into a building.  Ben's status screens indicate the left arm
in yellow; it's damaged, but according to the screens it'll
still work.  He unslings his 25mm as he realizes where he
is...inside a department store...

Ben: Oh, wonderful.  What next, McDonald's?  (he smiles.)
Actually, would that be all bad?

Kei comes blasting through the wall at this point; Ben heads
for the other side of the store, moshing aside random aisles
of things and taking time out to toss a large metal basket
thing full of beach towels at the Cyclone, which, blinded,
spins into the toy aisle.  A small child looks up from busily
pestering his mother to buy him a radio-controlled Bonaparte.

Child: Mommy!  Can I get one of those too?

Mother: I don't know...it looks awfully expensive...

Kei gets to her feet and tears away towels and the like,
snarling with extreme pissedoffishness, targets the fleeing
Garland, and fires a nifty-looking burst that rakes across
one of its legs.  In its cockpit, the leg turns red on the
status screen and a large warning flashes: "BALANCE
NEGATIVE".

Ben: AAAAAARRRGGGHH!  Fuck me with a #12 piledriver and 40
square feet of curare-dipped wrought iron cemetary fencing
without lubrication!

The machine slams into the floor in a dignity-free manner,
its weapon clattering into Housewares.

Kei: Got you now...  (She closes in.)

Ben: (attempting to right his mecha without much success) Oh,
shit.  (He gets it turned over and brings its hands to its
chest as though it were praying.)

Kei: Praying won't help you now.  (She sights.)

Ben: Why, Kei, I'm surprised at you.  You know I'm not a
praying man.

The Garland's forearm missile pods pop open and he fires all
 four of the missiles.  There are large and picturesque
 explosions around the Cyclone and a large portion of the
 left side of  its chest and shoulder armor goes flying into
 Automotive.  The Garland scrambles to its feet, recovers its
 weapon, and, bashing a hole into the wall, limps out into
 the street and is struck by a small four-treaded tank.

Leona: Hey, watch it, you!

Ben: Rrrgghh...  (He blows off one of the tank's front
treads.)  Fuck off.

Leona: AAAAAAAA!  BONAPARTE!

Again the Cyclone comes leaping out of the blue, again making
its own door instead of using the perfectly good one Ben so
obligingly provided it with.  Ben flips his mecha onto its
back and attempts to get up, then realizes that the lower
part of its left leg is spinning lazily into the carport at
the restaurant down the street.

Kei: Any more neat tricks?

Ben: Not unless you count dying a horrible death...gonna tell
me why now?

Kei: You never give up, do you?

Ben: Learned it from you.

Kei has nothing more to say.  She raises her EP-37 again.
Ben's brow furrows with the effort it takes him not to close
his eyes; he is determined to watch her kill him.  Again.  As
she fires, though, they close.  And open.

Ben: ?????

Vaughn has dropped down from somewhere and taken the shot
that was meant for Ben's cockpit; his chest is smoking and
his shirt is toast.  It now appears that the state seal of
Vermont is charred cotton.

Vaughn: She is mad at you, isn't she?

Kei: Get out of the way, Vaughn.  I don't have any quarrel
with you.

Vaughn: Morning, Kei, nice to see you again...how's life?

Kei: (raises the EP-37 a bit more) Vaughn, get out of my way.

Deunan, in a Guges-D landmate, and Briareos, in full combat
armor, at this point begin dragging the incapacitated
Garland away.  Straight back, so Vaughn is always still in
Kei's line of fire.  A surprised look forms on Ben's face as
he realizes that a) he's alive, b) he stands a good chance of
staying that way, c) these three butted in when he told them
to stay out, d) Vaughn is not wearing armor, and e) he still
doesn't know what's wrong with Kei.  Kei meanwhile has noted
what's going on here and tries to put a shot past Vaughn, who
blocks it with an unprotected hand.  He notes with interest
the fact that he is not immediately thereafter on his knees
on the ground grabbing at a charred stump and screaming.

Vaughn: (looking at his hand) Interesting.  Lemme know when
you're done, Kei.

Kei attempts to jump over Vaughn and get Ben back in her line
of fire.  She is therefore quite surprised when Vaughn
matches her leap and moshes her into the store again.

Vaughn: (peering concernedly into the faceplate of  Kei's
CVR) You are ok, aren't you, Kei?

Kei gets her feet under him and kicks him off.  Across the
street.

Vaughn: (getting up) Now that wasn't very nice.  You must be
really upset.  Chill out.  Have some M's.  (He takes a brown
bag out of his pocket; it drools brownness with multicolored
streaks on his hand.)  Oops, never mind, they seem to have
melted.  (He drops the mess.)

Kei is stalking across the street; she has dropped the EP-37,
either broken or out of ammo, and is drawing her Gallant.
The faceplate of her armor is open, her nose is bleeding, and
she doesn't look at all pleased.  Vaughn by now looks, for
Vaughn, extremely upset, as he has caused her nose to bleed.
Ben, Briareos, and Deunan have made good their escape.  Kei
puts the Gallant away, drops the pulped Cyclone from her back
like so much junk (which it is at this point), pivots on her
heel, and walks away growling.  Vaughn follows.

Vaughn: If you don't mind my asking...

Kei: (whirling angrily) WHAT?!

Vaughn: Two things.  One: why are you so mad at Gryphon?

Kei: You never saw the film, did you?

Vaughn: Not...don't watch much TV...

Kei: No...it was a holodisc.  Footage from the securicam in
the hallway at the Seventh Street School.

Vaughn: Ah.  Ok...what was it?

Kei: It was him.  The real him.  The one he kept hidden from
all of us.  Even me.

Vaughn: (raises an eyebrow quizzically) So what's so bad
about that?

Kei: Here. (She tosses him a small holodisc which was around
her neck on a chain.)  It tells the story a lot better than I
can.  Trust me...when you've seen that, you'll want to kill
him yourself.

Vaughn: I sincerely doubt that...and I'm really sorry about
your nose.

Kei: My nose doesn't matter...

Vaughn: Sure it does.  It's bleeding.  I did it.  I feel bad.

Kei: At least you didn't break my heart.

She disappears into an alley.  Vaughn shrugs and wanders off
the other way, wondering where the hell Ben's apartment is
again and realizing that he never got to question 2, which he
can't remember anyway.

Fade to black.

Scene 5.

Ben is stretched out on the sofa in his apartment, a cold
cloth on his head and his hand hanging into a bowl of water.
A large glass is balanced on his chest and supported by his
other hand.  Most of him is covered by a very large blue
blanket/sleeping bag kind o'thing.  Deunan is sitting in a
chair at the end of the sofa by his head, reading a copy of
How To Kill magazine.  Briareos is sitting in another chair
at the other end of the sofa, looking out at the city.
Vaughn is nowhere to be seen.  It's dark.

Ben: Annnnnnnnnrrgggnnnnnnnnnffffffffuck...where's Vaughn?

Deunan: He's over at our apartment watching some disc...said
he'd be back in a second.  I think he's trying on some of
Bri's shirts, too.

Ben: Oh...those won't fit too badly, now will they?  Ker-
hang...  (He makes some weak gesture with his left hand, then
winces and sticks it back in the water.)

The door opens (it's still broken) and Vaughn comes in,
holding a holodisc in his hand and looking rather upset.  He
holds up the disc so it glitters in the light; Ben focuses on
it.  Stamped on the disc is "WDFWWWA40427^[XA".  He's also
wearing a tent, er, shirt, button up, tasteful striped
pattern.

Ben: Hi, Vaughn...what's that?

Vaughn: A very big shirt.  I can buy a T-shirt somewhere
tomorrow, can't I?

Ben: No, the disc.

Vaughn: You don't know?

Ben: No...should I?

Vaughn: Uh...yes...I'd say it's vaguely important.  It's
bullshit, but it's vaguely important.  (He sticks it into the
player by the HTV and hits PLAY.  Everyone is immediately
treated to a neat, gory movie starring Ben as a psychotic
murderer with an ElektroMax MkIII and a thing for small
children.  Basically, he mows a bunch of schoolchildren down
as Kei comes around a corner, then takes a potshot at her,
wounding her shoulder, before diving through the door.  A
second later he comes back through the door, looking
confused, and Kei lets him have it in the chest, laying him
out on the floor.  Even hard-boiled Deunan can't watch parts
of this.  Ben is mortified.  As it concludes he can think of
only one thing to say.)

Ben: (in a low, Carlinesque tone) Fuuuuuck meeeee...

Deunan: I think I'm going to be sick.

Briareos: Lucky for me I can't do that anymore.  God, that
was gross!

Vaughn: No, I'm--never mind.

Ben: Everyone...I swear to you that was not me.  I don't know
how it was done, but I had nothing to do with it.  The only
time I appear in that entire film is when I come back through
the door and she shoots me.  I saw the other guy, whoever it
was, run by me, and it confused the hell out of me--you saw
how confused I looked.

Vaughn: Hmmm.  I wasn't there...I believe I was checking out
some nebulae at the time...

Deunan: No wonder she wants your balls on a tray.

Ben: That's what I love about you, Deunan...your fine command
of the more refined points of our language.  (He cradles his
head in his hands.)  Oh Christ.

Vaughn: Yes.

Briareos gets up and stands at the end of the couch; he
reaches down and puts a hand on Ben's shoulder.

Briareos: I don't think that was you...

Deunan: Me either.

Vaughn: I've seen dopplegangers...

Everyone: ?!

Vaughn: Never mind...I don't think you did it either.  I'm
speaking English but not the same language again.

Ben: I still have that hat.

Deunan: No you don't...I threw it out.

Ben: WHAT?!

Briareos: She's kidding...I talked her out of it.  We washed
it.  It's over on top of the fridge.

Ben: Wow...that was some kinda fucked up disc...I guess I
know now why I was practically going to be executed at
dawn...lucky for me someone on board didn't buy that disc...

Vaughn: Who was that?

Ben: Yuri...and Mughi, of course.  Hey, anyone who gave him
that many Oreos couldn't be that evil...(He tries a grin and
fails miserably.)

Vaughn: THAT'S what I wanted to ask you!  Where's Mughi?!

Ben: Still with Yuri, the last I knew...we keep in touch...
(He pauses and looks momentarily both haunted and extremely
guilty about something.)

Vaughn: Oh.  Hmmm...have to look them up.  Haven't talked
with Mughi in a while.  Still, this doesn't help our basic
problem.

Deunan: Somehow, I don't think that woman can be reasoned
with...she's over the edge.  I've seen it before.

Briareos: You've been it before.

Deunan: Shut up!

Ben: So it's hopeless?  I won't buy that...I have to try to
find some way to refute this thing.  Some way to prove I
didn't do it.

Vaughn: Hmm...now the question is..."How?"
Ben: The other me itself would be easy enough to fake,
especially if you had access to, say BU-55c or later Boomers
and a BioSculptTM tank...it's the proving that's the problem.
Once Kei gets an idea into her head, that's it--and seeing
what she thought was me mowing down all those kids must've
put her through some severe hell.  She's not going to listen
to anything I say.  So how the hell...?

The telephone rings.  Ben looks particularly reluctant to
answer it.  After all, it's either Kei or his mother, neither
of whom he wants to talk to right now.  Vaughn reaches over
and tabs it on; as Ben feared, it's Kei, pissed off and with
tape on her nose.

Vaughn: Worcester Insane Asylum.  I see you've taken care of
your nose.

Kei: ...right...this isn't over yet.  It's never going to be
over, not until one of us is dead.  Have you watched the disc
yet?

Vaughn: Uh huh.

Kei: And?

Vaughn: Neat special effects, but the scripting was
weak...overall I give it a 5.6.  The guy who did Ben did a
good job, though.  Almost had me fooled for a second
there...until he blew off that kid's head, the one that was
hanging onto his leg.  That kinda gave it away.

Kei: (looking shocked) You mean to tell me you believe him?

Vaughn: Ayup...oh, by the way, you owe me a shirt.
Nononononono.  Let me try that again.  I don't think Ben
would do that any more than I would.  I'm amazed you were
silly enough to believe it.

Kei: I was there, Vaughn.  I saw it.  There's no way it could
be false.  I tried for the longest time to convince myself it
was faked, but there's just no way it could be...(she appears
close to tears, then slams a largish lid over that pot of
emotion and becomes cold and hard again.)  No.  There's no
way.  I'm sorry, Vaughn, but as much as I want to, there's no
way I can believe he's innocent.

Vaughn: Do you need the disc...or can I stop paying attention
to it?

Kei: Funny.  Really fucking funny.  Don't you understand how
much it hurt me to find out what he really was?  Dammit, I
loved him once!

Vaughn: No, actually, I was serious.  I'd rather not have
people watching it, 'cause it's rather disgusting.  And that
last part was pretty obvious at the time.  I've basically
given it up, but that's no reason for you to.

Kei looks puzzled and recoils a bit from the screen, struck
speechless for a moment.  Then she recovers and continues.

Kei: Never mind that now.  If you won't help me, then stand
out of my way.  I'm coming for him at midnight tonight, and
God help anything that gets in my way.  If you three don't
want to get hurt, then I'd suggest you get away from the area
by midnight.

Deunan: You bitch--glmmph--!

Briareos has wisely silenced his partner to keep her from
escalating the situation further, using a time-honored,
tried-and-true method--palming her face.  She attempts to get
free--yeah, right--and peers over his fingers to see what's
going on.

Kei: I feel sorry for you all...you've been taken in just
like I was.  Well, I'm not falling for it any longer.  I'll
be  there at midnight.  If you are too, I won't be
responsible for whatever happens to you.

Vaughn:  I still haven't chosen yet.  Nobody dies.  I seem to
be running out of friends over time.  I don't want to lose
Ben, or Briareos, or Deunan--or you...

Kei: Have it your way.  (The phone goes dead.)

Vaughn: Have it my way???  Burger King??? Nonononono.

Deunan: (twisting free of Briareos) You jerk!  Why didn't you
let me tell her off?  She needs some serious attitude
adjustment.

Ben says nothing.  He's got his face buried in his hand and
isn't really doing a lot of anything right now.  Vaughn
cracks all his knuckles, his knee, his neck, both ankles, and
his left big toe.  Briareos spreads his hands wide, shrugs,
and goes back to his place by the window, looking out at the
city.  Deunan sits back down and runs a friendly hand through
Ben's annoyingly large hair.  (It's not worth seven bucks.
Even after 300 years.)
Deunan: Don't worry...she's not going to win that easily...

Ben: No.  You aren't getting involved.  Pack up your stuff
and get out.  I don't want you getting hurt.  I'm running out
of friends fast too.

Briareos: Pack up?  Get out?  Leave you here to die?  Fuck
that.  (He begins cleaning his 20mm.)

Vaughn: I'm not especially worried.  Her weapons didn't seem
to damage me.  I didn't know I could do that.  Unless she's
carrying something heavier...

Ben gets painfully up from the sofa, stumbles into his room,
and digs something out of the closet.  When he returns,
limping, he's wearing his battered CVR-3 again.

Deunan: Are you crazy?  What do you think you're doing?

Ben: Leaving.  If you won't...I will.  When Kei gets here,
tell her I left, so neener neener neener, now she's gotta
find me again.  Thpppppt.  She won't hurt you.  She may get
pissed and blow the building out from under you, but she
won't deliberately kill you.

Deunan: Leaving?  Where will you go?

Ben: Dunno.  I haven't been to Vulcan for a while...

Briareos: Don't joke around.  We'll pull through this...we've
been in tougher spots.

Ben: Yah, right.  When?

Briareos: Um, well, um...okay, so we haven't.  We can still
handle it.  We're the best.

Vaughn: "I'm the best there is at what I do.  Trouble is,
what I do isn't very nice."

Ben: Shut up.  Stop quoting dufii.

Vaughn: Okay...anybody for a burger?

Deunan: (checking her watch) We've got time...if she comes
when she said she would...

Ben: Don't worry about that, she was a 3WA trouble
consultant.  They're always on time.

Briareos: Here's a radical idea: Why don't we just not be
here when she shows up?

Ben: Okay, wonderful idea.  Then she'll just destroy the
entire city looking for me.  Brilliant idea.  (He does an
elaborate thumbs-up.)

Vaughn: Food?

Ben: Fine, okay.  Let's go.  (He takes off the CVR again and
puts on his blue bathrobe.)  Let's go.

Vaughn: Let's leave a note.  Just in case she shows up before
we get back.

Ben: Okay, fine.  (He gets a pad and paper and writes,
 speaking as he does.)  "Dear Kei.  Went out for dinner.
 Back soon.  Cold cuts in the fridge.  Extra ammo in the
 third drawer on the left.  Have fun.  Ben & Co."  There.
 Happy?  (Vaughn nods and heads for the door.  Ben shrugs and
 sticks the Post-It to the door as they leave.)

Fade to black.
End of Act 2.