CENTRAL PARK
So I moved up from December 2 up to the 12th based on two weeks passing, stated on the show. This finale takes place just as Samuel is defeated. It seems that after days of research, Trevor found the Carnival, too and was waiting for a chance. If you recall, he promised to take Amanda, but the reader doesn't really have to remember that. All the while, he remembers something Seal told him. When doesn't matter, why is what's important. It's the frame of Trevor's thoughts and the point of the chapter. In the opening, you supposed to be left wondering if Undaunted was broken up or not. Ultimately, that's up to speculation. I'd like to think it still lives on, because it's purpose still rings strong, to protect each other more so now that the cat's out of the bag.
UTAH
Continuing with chapter 4, Undaunted holds a meeting in Utah. And this was one of the last WTF moments I had left up my sleeve. Trevor kills Seal. But wait, it's not Seal. Then I sprinkle it the usual humor, his power at work, one last mission, and one last montage. I also couldn't help put in one more jab at HSG when Trevor doesn't care who it was that kidnapped Seal. Undaunted is in the crosshairs being the top faction, after all.
THE BEGINNING
I decided that Trevor's tale wouldn't end with violence and rage, that's how his story began, with the death of his love. And so I chose to start off with Trevor doing the mundane, the normal. Getting ready, shaving, dressing. And the final scene is how I wanted to end his tale from the start. Symbolically, he leaves his gun behind as a gesture. He's committed to changing along with hopefully the world in light of what Claire did in Central Park. I wanted to keep the final shot on the gun, not Trevor, to suggest also a separation of character. The gun is the old Trevor and walking away out of frame is someone new, changed for the better, after all this time; manifesting his power, going insane, falling in love, hunting Primatech, and joining Undaunted. And it's a mark that maybe there's hope that there won't be a need for the old Trevor.
So yes, this is the last story you've read about Trevor. I've got nothing left. But maybe I'll be inspired again as the franchise chugs on. We'll see. It was a blast to get my creative energies revved up again and creating this character who has his own small role in Heroes, but like most, everyone has their own story to tell. I hope I've entertained and intrigued those that have kept up and read these stories. I want to thank HERO for consulting with me about Seal over these past months. I also want to thank Phthisis, Azuteor, Yuriko, symbiotic, Heroes360, and everyone else for the kind words.
February 12, 2010
February 11, 2010
Part Six - Influence - Part Five
DECEMBER 12, 2007
CENTRAL PARK, NEW YORK
"We were there to provide protection. Help folks get unstuck and return to a normal life. If it ain't our doing then someone else will make it so we're…Obsolete. Our purpose was to make it so the folks don't need us."
A television is switched on with Claire Bennet's face plastered on the screen. A sub-title flashes screen, "Man arrested identified as Samuel Sullivan, owner of the carnival."
[Volume Six "Brave New World"]
"Coyote Sands. Primatech. Pinehearst. Building 26. The Carnival. They meddled with the world. But in a way, I have to thank them. They made perfect strangers work together for a common cause."
Books, files, papers, and maps are scattered on the floor and furniture. Some that can be made out are a headline about a town falling into a massive sink hole. Another print out shows an aerial view of the Carnival. A Primatech logo and photo of Amanda Strazzulla is visible on a third.
[Volume 5]
"I hope it was a good situation while it lasted."
Trevor Tanaka is standing amid the papers in a room in the Sherry-Netherland hotel, overlooking Central Park. He has a five days' worth of facial hair. In the background outside the window, the Sullivan Bros. Carnival lights up the park but more so police lights and flashes of reporters now. Despite the clutter of work, the room is spacious and evokes a timeless European luxury.
Trevor - "Claire Bennet, did you just save the world? Or doom it further?"
Trevor turns off the television. He stares into the blank screen.
Trevor - "She'll be a shiny new toy to them. At first. Then we go from Astro Boy to Frankenstein in a blink of the eye."
[Volume 2 "The Line"]
DECEMBER 2, 2007
DESOLATION CANYON, UTAH
James and Trevor teleport in with the group of posthumans from last chapter; Darren Summers, Ilja Vanderslagmolen, Daniel Stehlik, Maxxine Falcone, Amber Reed, Jennifer McAllister, Morgan Harvey, Chuck Cox, Erika Stevens, and Brian Cain. James walks up to Seal, Marc, Sparkplug, and Slipshod. Sparkplug says something to him. James nods and teleports away. Seal walks up to Trevor. Trevor seems distracted. He holds up his hand. Seal shakes it.
Trevor - "Very canyon-y."
Seal - "They call it Desolation Canyon."
Trevor - "Great place to boost morale."
Seal - "I thought you'd get a kick out of it."
Trevor - "I'd have taken Tanya and Eloise out here for a vacation."
Seal - "You and vacations?"
Trevor unbuttons his trench coat.
James reappears in the background with more people. Several seconds later, Clara does, too. Everyone is now present.
Seal - "The greater a man's talents, the greater his power to lead astray. It is better that one should suffer than that many should be corrupted."
[Brave New World, Aldous Huxley]
Seal holds out Trevor's briefcase and rips out the secret compartment. The two red files tumble out. Murmurs buzz around the crowd.
Seal - "Good things can't last. We were supposed to protect each other. Now, we're doing things behind each other's backs. Sending out secret messages. Going on undercover missions. That's not us. We don't get each other killed."
Some agreement and confusion circulate among the crowd. Seal takes it in and tries to calm everyone down. Trevor stays where is and doesn't flinch. Sparkplug and Clara half-glance at Trevor.
Seal - "I think it's still worthwhile to protect each other, but in smaller groups and we can still stay in contact with each other."
"Is he disbanding the faction?"
"No way!"
"I think's it's the right thing to do."
"This is total bull-"
"I bet it's all Trevor's fault."
Seal - "No, this is all on me. I'm your leader, I should have been the one to make the hard decisions but I put too much weight on you all. I'm sorry. I let everyone down."
There is silence. Trevor walks forward. Seal looks at him.
Trevor - "You're not Seal."
"What?!"
"Is he nuts?!"
"Of course, that's him!!"
Without warning, Trevor pulls out his gun and shoots Seal in the head. Seal falls over, instantly dead.
"I knew it, he's a double agent!"
"Get him!!"
Trevor - "He's not Seal. He was a shape shifter."
"But look, it's still Seal!"
Trevor - "Shape shifters manipulate their DNA permanently. They don't just shift back to their original appearance when they die. You were all subjected to bad writing in the 90's."
"Well prove it."
Trevor - "Have you seen the final season of Highlander?"
"Get him!!"
Trevor - "Seal walks with his right shoulder slightly forward from his left and walks at a two degree slouch. He walked straight. He shaked my hand. I never shake anyone's hand. I told Seal my daughter's name would have been Elisha if she was born. He didn't correct me when I called her Eloise. Seal quotes television. He quoted literature. Seal's eyes are brown. His were blue."
The crowd calms down a little. But things are still tense.
"How're you going to find Seal?"
"Yeah, you just killed our only lead!!"
Trevor - "Among this crowd of 200 posthumans, there has to be a clairvoyant. A locator? Really? None? Look at the soles of his shoes. This dirt caked in isn't indicative of Utah. Ultisols are the dominant soils in the American South, where the Cecil series is most famous, southeastern China, southeast Asia and some other subtropical and tropical areas. Their northern limit, except fossil soils, is very sharply defined in North America by the limits of maximum glaciation during the Pleistocene because Ultisols typically take hundreds of thousands of years to form - far longer than the length of an interglacial period today."
Silence.
Trevor - "The dirt has faint smell of poultry, swine, peanuts, and cattle. Three main staples of North Carolina and Georgia, where red clay soil is found. Peanuts are strictly from Georgia."
Fake Seal's body makes a sound.
Trevor - "Excuse me."
Trevor delivers his signature second shot.
Trevor - "So…who's up for a field trip?"
UNDAUNTED - in Heroes title font - graces across the sky.
INFLUENCE - PART FIVE: FEELING- in Heroes title font - pasted on the red clay soil
DECEMBER 12, 2007
SAVANNAH, GEORGIA
Close up on Seal, presumably, with a bag over his head, tied up on a chair. He hears two people talking.
"They're coming."
Seal exhales.
HEROES theme plays as montage sequence begins. The electricity in the building begins to dimmers. Outside, Trevor is shooting. The camera is at a slower speed. Bullets rip into other posthumans. Trevor turns and throws a knife into another's head off-screen. Back in the building, lightning streams out of the light bulbs and attacks the two guards. Sparkplug appears and unmasks Seal. He quickly works to untie him. Azuteor is surrounded on all sides. He easily flips them all into the distance with his gravity repulsion. Sparkplug and Seal burst out the door. Trevor has his cellphone to his ear, kneeling at the building's base. Clara appears. Trevor clicks a device then everyone teleports away. Ten seconds later, the building explodes.
DESOLATION CANYON, UTAH
FIVE MINUTES, 29 SECONDS LATER
Seal - "Thanks. So who were those guys?"
Seal drinks bottled water. Trevor replaces his gun's clip. Fake Seal's body is a short distance away from them.
Trevor - "Who cares? It's a new enemy every week."
[HSG]
Seal - "So that was me, huh?"
Trevor - "Yep."
Seal - "How'd you know it wasn't me?"
Trevor - "I had a feeling. I'd have felt really stupid if I were wrong."
Seal chuckles.
DECEMBER 12, 2007
CENTRAL PARK, NEW YORK
Trevor is finishing shaving in the bathroom. He applies aftershave. Unknown time passes. He walks out in with a dress shirt, tie, and slacks on. Trevor stands in front of a full body mirror and finishes his tie. He looks down at his cufflinks to make sure they are straight. Trevor looks over to a night stand were a holster and his gun is waiting. He puts it on then his suit jacket hanging. He walks over to his coat hanger and puts on a black trench coat and black fedora. With the camera now pointed at his back. Trevor exhales then turns around. The camera, from his point of view, sees the room, now completely cleaned up of his research and/or clutter. Trevor bends at the knees and picks up a briefcase. He switches off the light and leaves.
DECEMBER 13, 2007
AOYAMA, JAPAN
Trevor - "This is the way it all ends, not with a bang, not with some casual incident, but in sustained reflection."
[George Santayana, on the Divine Comedy]
The camera zooms out. Trevor is talking to the headstone of his fiancée, Tanya, in the Aoyama Cemetery. He bends down and touches it. Trevor walks away, disappearing under the camera. The camera slowly, steadily, zooms in on the grave until the characters are legible. Then it stares down. Trevor's gun is resting on her headstone.
THE BEGINNING
CENTRAL PARK, NEW YORK
"We were there to provide protection. Help folks get unstuck and return to a normal life. If it ain't our doing then someone else will make it so we're…Obsolete. Our purpose was to make it so the folks don't need us."
A television is switched on with Claire Bennet's face plastered on the screen. A sub-title flashes screen, "Man arrested identified as Samuel Sullivan, owner of the carnival."
[Volume Six "Brave New World"]
"Coyote Sands. Primatech. Pinehearst. Building 26. The Carnival. They meddled with the world. But in a way, I have to thank them. They made perfect strangers work together for a common cause."
Books, files, papers, and maps are scattered on the floor and furniture. Some that can be made out are a headline about a town falling into a massive sink hole. Another print out shows an aerial view of the Carnival. A Primatech logo and photo of Amanda Strazzulla is visible on a third.
[Volume 5]
"I hope it was a good situation while it lasted."
Trevor Tanaka is standing amid the papers in a room in the Sherry-Netherland hotel, overlooking Central Park. He has a five days' worth of facial hair. In the background outside the window, the Sullivan Bros. Carnival lights up the park but more so police lights and flashes of reporters now. Despite the clutter of work, the room is spacious and evokes a timeless European luxury.
Trevor - "Claire Bennet, did you just save the world? Or doom it further?"
Trevor turns off the television. He stares into the blank screen.
Trevor - "She'll be a shiny new toy to them. At first. Then we go from Astro Boy to Frankenstein in a blink of the eye."
[Volume 2 "The Line"]
DECEMBER 2, 2007
DESOLATION CANYON, UTAH
James and Trevor teleport in with the group of posthumans from last chapter; Darren Summers, Ilja Vanderslagmolen, Daniel Stehlik, Maxxine Falcone, Amber Reed, Jennifer McAllister, Morgan Harvey, Chuck Cox, Erika Stevens, and Brian Cain. James walks up to Seal, Marc, Sparkplug, and Slipshod. Sparkplug says something to him. James nods and teleports away. Seal walks up to Trevor. Trevor seems distracted. He holds up his hand. Seal shakes it.
Trevor - "Very canyon-y."
Seal - "They call it Desolation Canyon."
Trevor - "Great place to boost morale."
Seal - "I thought you'd get a kick out of it."
Trevor - "I'd have taken Tanya and Eloise out here for a vacation."
Seal - "You and vacations?"
Trevor unbuttons his trench coat.
James reappears in the background with more people. Several seconds later, Clara does, too. Everyone is now present.
Seal - "The greater a man's talents, the greater his power to lead astray. It is better that one should suffer than that many should be corrupted."
[Brave New World, Aldous Huxley]
Seal holds out Trevor's briefcase and rips out the secret compartment. The two red files tumble out. Murmurs buzz around the crowd.
Seal - "Good things can't last. We were supposed to protect each other. Now, we're doing things behind each other's backs. Sending out secret messages. Going on undercover missions. That's not us. We don't get each other killed."
Some agreement and confusion circulate among the crowd. Seal takes it in and tries to calm everyone down. Trevor stays where is and doesn't flinch. Sparkplug and Clara half-glance at Trevor.
Seal - "I think it's still worthwhile to protect each other, but in smaller groups and we can still stay in contact with each other."
"Is he disbanding the faction?"
"No way!"
"I think's it's the right thing to do."
"This is total bull-"
"I bet it's all Trevor's fault."
Seal - "No, this is all on me. I'm your leader, I should have been the one to make the hard decisions but I put too much weight on you all. I'm sorry. I let everyone down."
There is silence. Trevor walks forward. Seal looks at him.
Trevor - "You're not Seal."
"What?!"
"Is he nuts?!"
"Of course, that's him!!"
Without warning, Trevor pulls out his gun and shoots Seal in the head. Seal falls over, instantly dead.
"I knew it, he's a double agent!"
"Get him!!"
Trevor - "He's not Seal. He was a shape shifter."
"But look, it's still Seal!"
Trevor - "Shape shifters manipulate their DNA permanently. They don't just shift back to their original appearance when they die. You were all subjected to bad writing in the 90's."
"Well prove it."
Trevor - "Have you seen the final season of Highlander?"
"Get him!!"
Trevor - "Seal walks with his right shoulder slightly forward from his left and walks at a two degree slouch. He walked straight. He shaked my hand. I never shake anyone's hand. I told Seal my daughter's name would have been Elisha if she was born. He didn't correct me when I called her Eloise. Seal quotes television. He quoted literature. Seal's eyes are brown. His were blue."
The crowd calms down a little. But things are still tense.
"How're you going to find Seal?"
"Yeah, you just killed our only lead!!"
Trevor - "Among this crowd of 200 posthumans, there has to be a clairvoyant. A locator? Really? None? Look at the soles of his shoes. This dirt caked in isn't indicative of Utah. Ultisols are the dominant soils in the American South, where the Cecil series is most famous, southeastern China, southeast Asia and some other subtropical and tropical areas. Their northern limit, except fossil soils, is very sharply defined in North America by the limits of maximum glaciation during the Pleistocene because Ultisols typically take hundreds of thousands of years to form - far longer than the length of an interglacial period today."
Silence.
Trevor - "The dirt has faint smell of poultry, swine, peanuts, and cattle. Three main staples of North Carolina and Georgia, where red clay soil is found. Peanuts are strictly from Georgia."
Fake Seal's body makes a sound.
Trevor - "Excuse me."
Trevor delivers his signature second shot.
Trevor - "So…who's up for a field trip?"
UNDAUNTED - in Heroes title font - graces across the sky.
INFLUENCE - PART FIVE: FEELING- in Heroes title font - pasted on the red clay soil
DECEMBER 12, 2007
SAVANNAH, GEORGIA
Close up on Seal, presumably, with a bag over his head, tied up on a chair. He hears two people talking.
"They're coming."
Seal exhales.
HEROES theme plays as montage sequence begins. The electricity in the building begins to dimmers. Outside, Trevor is shooting. The camera is at a slower speed. Bullets rip into other posthumans. Trevor turns and throws a knife into another's head off-screen. Back in the building, lightning streams out of the light bulbs and attacks the two guards. Sparkplug appears and unmasks Seal. He quickly works to untie him. Azuteor is surrounded on all sides. He easily flips them all into the distance with his gravity repulsion. Sparkplug and Seal burst out the door. Trevor has his cellphone to his ear, kneeling at the building's base. Clara appears. Trevor clicks a device then everyone teleports away. Ten seconds later, the building explodes.
DESOLATION CANYON, UTAH
FIVE MINUTES, 29 SECONDS LATER
Seal - "Thanks. So who were those guys?"
Seal drinks bottled water. Trevor replaces his gun's clip. Fake Seal's body is a short distance away from them.
Trevor - "Who cares? It's a new enemy every week."
[HSG]
Seal - "So that was me, huh?"
Trevor - "Yep."
Seal - "How'd you know it wasn't me?"
Trevor - "I had a feeling. I'd have felt really stupid if I were wrong."
Seal chuckles.
DECEMBER 12, 2007
CENTRAL PARK, NEW YORK
Trevor is finishing shaving in the bathroom. He applies aftershave. Unknown time passes. He walks out in with a dress shirt, tie, and slacks on. Trevor stands in front of a full body mirror and finishes his tie. He looks down at his cufflinks to make sure they are straight. Trevor looks over to a night stand were a holster and his gun is waiting. He puts it on then his suit jacket hanging. He walks over to his coat hanger and puts on a black trench coat and black fedora. With the camera now pointed at his back. Trevor exhales then turns around. The camera, from his point of view, sees the room, now completely cleaned up of his research and/or clutter. Trevor bends at the knees and picks up a briefcase. He switches off the light and leaves.
DECEMBER 13, 2007
AOYAMA, JAPAN
Trevor - "This is the way it all ends, not with a bang, not with some casual incident, but in sustained reflection."
[George Santayana, on the Divine Comedy]
The camera zooms out. Trevor is talking to the headstone of his fiancée, Tanya, in the Aoyama Cemetery. He bends down and touches it. Trevor walks away, disappearing under the camera. The camera slowly, steadily, zooms in on the grave until the characters are legible. Then it stares down. Trevor's gun is resting on her headstone.
THE BEGINNING
February 1, 2010
Commentary - Influence - Part Four
I always wanted to play with a mundane scene and follow it up with a big explosion. That's essentially the genesis of Ezekiel's day. He seems like a normal, run-of-the-mill guy but he's got issues like the rest of us. He proposes to his girlfriend, she flips out and leaves him. He's pissed. He explodes. Kills a lot of people. But...since this takes place hand in hand with the events of iStory, everyone is spared indirectly thanks to John Mulligan. Luckily, one of them is Trevor whose power kicks in and he rewrites the future.
Aside from throwing in some cameos and tasers, I wanted this story to be a critique on Trevor and contrast him with someone with a similar past. Then lay that on top of this build up of what's Seal gonna say at this meeting. James plays the on-edge person chomping at the bit to know what's going to happen, sort of filtered through the reader's point of view. And for the keen eye, some neat references; Ted Sprague, the Exploding Man, Hulk, Haitian Pills, and so on. So, Green River, eh? Better get Googling.
Aside from throwing in some cameos and tasers, I wanted this story to be a critique on Trevor and contrast him with someone with a similar past. Then lay that on top of this build up of what's Seal gonna say at this meeting. James plays the on-edge person chomping at the bit to know what's going to happen, sort of filtered through the reader's point of view. And for the keen eye, some neat references; Ted Sprague, the Exploding Man, Hulk, Haitian Pills, and so on. So, Green River, eh? Better get Googling.
Part Six - Influence - Part Four
DECEMBER 2, 2007
NEW YORK, NEW YORK
The camera frame opens on a close up of a digital alarm clock. It reads 6:59 AM. It changes to 7:00 AM. A song by Chaka Khan plays.
A man is sleeping on his stomach with a blanket half on. He is wearing a white, plain T-shirt and light blue boxers. He groans and mumbles something to himself. He maneuvers his left hand but knocks over the clock. It falls to the floor and keeps playing.
Bathroom. The man splashes water on his face. He towel dries his face, brushes his teeth, and shaves off his 5 day stubble. The shower curtain pulls over.
Nightstand. Picture frames are laying down. The man appears and checks his shave. He is dressed in black and gray with a scarf, cardigan, and slacks. He walks over and bends down and shuts off the clock (and the music). He makes his bed then pulls a pair of loafers from under the bed.
A small kitchen table. Close up on him eating a bowl of plain cereal. A glass of orange juice is nearby. The camera rotates to see what he is watching. It is a news channel replaying footage of the Nathan Petrelli flight crash. Words; Accident, Suicide, and Sabotage stream across the lower half of the television. He drinks the juice and sets it down. He stands up, puts the dishes in the sink, and rinses them.
The man walks to his door. He looks around at his apartment then locks the door.
DMV
The man stands in the renewal line. A photo flash goes off. He goes to the desk and gets his driver's license card back.
NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY
He returns several books to the front desk and pays a small fine.
The man walks up a sidewalk. He buys an apple from a corner open market, polishes it, and eats it. He throws the core away in the trash can despite abundant litter on the road. He checks his wristwatch then pulls his sleeve back down.
As he sees a crosswalk, it captures his attention and he speeds up his walking pace. He bumps past several people. He then bumps past Trevor. At the crosswalk, he holds his hand out. Two rings fall, in slow motion, the camera follows them downward. The rings clink as they hit the ground. The camera looks up at the man.
"Boom."
His eyes light red and an explosion erupts from his body.
Trevor reaches into his trench coat for his gun but it's too late. The blast reaches him and blows him backwards. The camera is pointed down on Trevor. There are cuts on his forehead, blood pooled around his ears, and a distorted ringing sound. He is shell shocked. Trevor looks around. He sees his cell phone ringing but can't hear the ring. He tries to reach for it but can't. Unknown time passes.
A paramedic arrives over him. Trevor's vision focuses on the man. It is Hesam, Peter Petrelli's partner.
Hesam - "Sir!! You've been in injured in a terrorist attack!! Tell me your name!!"
Trevor - "Can I be me?"
Hesam - "Do you know your name?! Your name!!"
Hesam is checking his vitals and unpacking his kit.
Hesam - "What do you do for a living?!"
Trevor - "I protect people."
Hesam - "You're a cop?!"
Suddenly Hesam is muted, Trevor can't hear him anymore. Someone walks behind Hesam. It is the man who blew up. His clothes are tattered. Trevor shakingly holds up his right hand in the shape of a gun and shoots. Trevor's arm drops to the ground. Trevor is dead. Hesam exhales. Then the screen pauses on Hesam's exhale. Time and the scene begin to rewind.
Trevor is back to kneeling down and holding a pinwheel. He pauses and looks around then at the pinwheel and the girl. He remembers the explosion.
Trevor - You're getting a fruit basket, John Mulligan.
Trevor blows the pinwheel and returns it to the girl. She runs back to where she came. Trevor walks on. The man comes into view. He begins to walk faster. Trevor presses his lips and makes a move.
Trevor - "Hey, Steve, is that you?! Class of '03? It's me, Todd!"
Ezekiel - "Sorry, you got the wrong guy."
Trevor - "My mistake. You look just like someone I went to high school with."
Ezekiel - "I get that a lot for some…"
Trevor leans into him and tasers him. The man faints onto Trevor. No one notices (or cares for that matter).
Trevor - "That's how to stop an exploding man."
ONE HOUR, 24 MINUTES, 37 SECONDS LATER
KAHO'OLAWE ISLAND, HAWAI'I
UNDAUNTED - in Heroes title font - graces across the panel.
INFLUENCE - PART FOUR: FAMILIAR- in Heroes title font - pasted on the ground
Ezekiel wakes up in shock. The Sun beats down on him. He looks around.
Trevor - "No, we're not in New York, anymore."
Ezekiel turns around and sees Trevor leaning against a boulder.
Ezekiel - "You. You kidnapped me!"
Trevor - "You were going to kill a lot of people. Would you rather I take this gun, hold it out like this and pull the trigger?"
Ezekiel - "Kill people? I don't know what…"
Trevor readies his gun.
Ezekiel - "You're making me angry. You wouldn't like me when I'm angry."
Trevor - "Are you going to turn green and pummel me?"
[Marvel Comics - The Hulk]
Ezekiel tries to use his power but nothing happens. Trevor shoots. No bullets loaded.
Ezekiel - "Are you crazy?!"
Trevor - "Yes."
Ezekiel - "…Terrific."
Trevor - "Crazy enough to spare your life, take you to the other side of the United States, and force feed you a special cocktail of pills. You have a power. The ability of self-detonation. I have a power, enhanced memory. You were in a high emotional state and wanted to just vent on an uncaring world."
Ezekiel - "How?"
Trevor tosses the two rings to him.
Trevor - "You killed me. But luckily, there happened to be a time manipulator with his own problems, too. He rewinded time a few minutes and luckily I remembered what happened and neutralized you before you could blow us all away."
Ezekiel - "Say I believe all this. What now?"
Trevor - "She wasn't worth it. Too immature. Doesn't know what she wants from life. Only cares about going out and losing herself in nightclubs. You deserve better. Try a brunette next time. You're also a size 12 and a half but since they're so hard to find, you force yourself to wear 12's."
Trevor tosses Ezekiel's wallet back to him. Ezekiel laughs.
Ezekiel - "Who are you?"
Trevor - "I am many things. Today, I'm your guardian angel. Are you ready to go back to your life and move forward?"
Ezekiel rests his head on his right hand and nods.
Trevor - "Good."
James Kelly comes up behind Ezekiel and tasers him. He faints again.
Trevor - "See, it is fun, isn't it?"
James - "Helping people?"
Trevor - "No, the tasering part."
James - "…"
Trevor - "Give it back."
They teleport back to New York into Ezekiel 's apartment. Trevor sits him down on a sofa.
James - "You can handle him from here, right? I have to go down to…"
Trevor - "The Lower East Side? Don't waste too much time. The meeting is at 8."
James - "Wouldn't miss it for the world."
James teleports away.
Trevor is about to leave when he sees the nightstand. He picks up one of the picture frames.
Trevor - "Like quicksilver in the hand."
[Dorothy Parker - "Love is like quicksilver in the hand. Leave the fingers open and it stays. Clutch it, and it darts away."]
Trevor puts down the frame and walks out the door. As he enters the hallway, Emma Coolidge walks past Trevor. She doesn't make eye contact at all.
Trevor - "Don't bother holding the elevator for me."
LOWER EAST SIDE, NEW YORK
Darren Summers, Ilja Vanderslagmolen, Daniel Stehlik, Maxxine Falcone, Amber Reed, Jennifer McAllister, Morgan Harvey, Chuck Cox, Erika Stevens, Brian Cain, and James Kelly are gathered in Kelly's apartment room. Trevor enters.
[HSG - New York and New Jersey-based members]
James - "Everyone made it."
Trevor - "Let's start then. You're needed elsewhere, too."
James - "Where are we going?"
Trevor - "Green River, Utah."
James presses Trevor for more.
James - "What's going to happen? Is Undaunted going active again or is Seal going to…"
The group looks on intently for Trevor's answer.
Trevor - "There is…one thing we can do. The happiest people are those who can do it to the limit of their ability. We can be completely present. We can be all here. We can…give all our attention to the opportunity before us. Let's not speculate."
[Mark Van Doren]
Trevor puts his right hand on James shoulder. The others walk toward James and place one of their hands on James as well. He closes his eyes with a smile.
James - "Let's not."
They teleport away.
TO BE CONTINUED…
NEW YORK, NEW YORK
The camera frame opens on a close up of a digital alarm clock. It reads 6:59 AM. It changes to 7:00 AM. A song by Chaka Khan plays.
A man is sleeping on his stomach with a blanket half on. He is wearing a white, plain T-shirt and light blue boxers. He groans and mumbles something to himself. He maneuvers his left hand but knocks over the clock. It falls to the floor and keeps playing.
Bathroom. The man splashes water on his face. He towel dries his face, brushes his teeth, and shaves off his 5 day stubble. The shower curtain pulls over.
Nightstand. Picture frames are laying down. The man appears and checks his shave. He is dressed in black and gray with a scarf, cardigan, and slacks. He walks over and bends down and shuts off the clock (and the music). He makes his bed then pulls a pair of loafers from under the bed.
A small kitchen table. Close up on him eating a bowl of plain cereal. A glass of orange juice is nearby. The camera rotates to see what he is watching. It is a news channel replaying footage of the Nathan Petrelli flight crash. Words; Accident, Suicide, and Sabotage stream across the lower half of the television. He drinks the juice and sets it down. He stands up, puts the dishes in the sink, and rinses them.
The man walks to his door. He looks around at his apartment then locks the door.
DMV
The man stands in the renewal line. A photo flash goes off. He goes to the desk and gets his driver's license card back.
NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY
He returns several books to the front desk and pays a small fine.
The man walks up a sidewalk. He buys an apple from a corner open market, polishes it, and eats it. He throws the core away in the trash can despite abundant litter on the road. He checks his wristwatch then pulls his sleeve back down.
As he sees a crosswalk, it captures his attention and he speeds up his walking pace. He bumps past several people. He then bumps past Trevor. At the crosswalk, he holds his hand out. Two rings fall, in slow motion, the camera follows them downward. The rings clink as they hit the ground. The camera looks up at the man.
"Boom."
His eyes light red and an explosion erupts from his body.
Trevor reaches into his trench coat for his gun but it's too late. The blast reaches him and blows him backwards. The camera is pointed down on Trevor. There are cuts on his forehead, blood pooled around his ears, and a distorted ringing sound. He is shell shocked. Trevor looks around. He sees his cell phone ringing but can't hear the ring. He tries to reach for it but can't. Unknown time passes.
A paramedic arrives over him. Trevor's vision focuses on the man. It is Hesam, Peter Petrelli's partner.
Hesam - "Sir!! You've been in injured in a terrorist attack!! Tell me your name!!"
Trevor - "Can I be me?"
Hesam - "Do you know your name?! Your name!!"
Hesam is checking his vitals and unpacking his kit.
Hesam - "What do you do for a living?!"
Trevor - "I protect people."
Hesam - "You're a cop?!"
Suddenly Hesam is muted, Trevor can't hear him anymore. Someone walks behind Hesam. It is the man who blew up. His clothes are tattered. Trevor shakingly holds up his right hand in the shape of a gun and shoots. Trevor's arm drops to the ground. Trevor is dead. Hesam exhales. Then the screen pauses on Hesam's exhale. Time and the scene begin to rewind.
Trevor is back to kneeling down and holding a pinwheel. He pauses and looks around then at the pinwheel and the girl. He remembers the explosion.
Trevor - You're getting a fruit basket, John Mulligan.
Trevor blows the pinwheel and returns it to the girl. She runs back to where she came. Trevor walks on. The man comes into view. He begins to walk faster. Trevor presses his lips and makes a move.
Trevor - "Hey, Steve, is that you?! Class of '03? It's me, Todd!"
Ezekiel - "Sorry, you got the wrong guy."
Trevor - "My mistake. You look just like someone I went to high school with."
Ezekiel - "I get that a lot for some…"
Trevor leans into him and tasers him. The man faints onto Trevor. No one notices (or cares for that matter).
Trevor - "That's how to stop an exploding man."
ONE HOUR, 24 MINUTES, 37 SECONDS LATER
KAHO'OLAWE ISLAND, HAWAI'I
UNDAUNTED - in Heroes title font - graces across the panel.
INFLUENCE - PART FOUR: FAMILIAR- in Heroes title font - pasted on the ground
Ezekiel wakes up in shock. The Sun beats down on him. He looks around.
Trevor - "No, we're not in New York, anymore."
Ezekiel turns around and sees Trevor leaning against a boulder.
Ezekiel - "You. You kidnapped me!"
Trevor - "You were going to kill a lot of people. Would you rather I take this gun, hold it out like this and pull the trigger?"
Ezekiel - "Kill people? I don't know what…"
Trevor readies his gun.
Ezekiel - "You're making me angry. You wouldn't like me when I'm angry."
Trevor - "Are you going to turn green and pummel me?"
[Marvel Comics - The Hulk]
Ezekiel tries to use his power but nothing happens. Trevor shoots. No bullets loaded.
Ezekiel - "Are you crazy?!"
Trevor - "Yes."
Ezekiel - "…Terrific."
Trevor - "Crazy enough to spare your life, take you to the other side of the United States, and force feed you a special cocktail of pills. You have a power. The ability of self-detonation. I have a power, enhanced memory. You were in a high emotional state and wanted to just vent on an uncaring world."
Ezekiel - "How?"
Trevor tosses the two rings to him.
Trevor - "You killed me. But luckily, there happened to be a time manipulator with his own problems, too. He rewinded time a few minutes and luckily I remembered what happened and neutralized you before you could blow us all away."
Ezekiel - "Say I believe all this. What now?"
Trevor - "She wasn't worth it. Too immature. Doesn't know what she wants from life. Only cares about going out and losing herself in nightclubs. You deserve better. Try a brunette next time. You're also a size 12 and a half but since they're so hard to find, you force yourself to wear 12's."
Trevor tosses Ezekiel's wallet back to him. Ezekiel laughs.
Ezekiel - "Who are you?"
Trevor - "I am many things. Today, I'm your guardian angel. Are you ready to go back to your life and move forward?"
Ezekiel rests his head on his right hand and nods.
Trevor - "Good."
James Kelly comes up behind Ezekiel and tasers him. He faints again.
Trevor - "See, it is fun, isn't it?"
James - "Helping people?"
Trevor - "No, the tasering part."
James - "…"
Trevor - "Give it back."
They teleport back to New York into Ezekiel 's apartment. Trevor sits him down on a sofa.
James - "You can handle him from here, right? I have to go down to…"
Trevor - "The Lower East Side? Don't waste too much time. The meeting is at 8."
James - "Wouldn't miss it for the world."
James teleports away.
Trevor is about to leave when he sees the nightstand. He picks up one of the picture frames.
Trevor - "Like quicksilver in the hand."
[Dorothy Parker - "Love is like quicksilver in the hand. Leave the fingers open and it stays. Clutch it, and it darts away."]
Trevor puts down the frame and walks out the door. As he enters the hallway, Emma Coolidge walks past Trevor. She doesn't make eye contact at all.
Trevor - "Don't bother holding the elevator for me."
LOWER EAST SIDE, NEW YORK
Darren Summers, Ilja Vanderslagmolen, Daniel Stehlik, Maxxine Falcone, Amber Reed, Jennifer McAllister, Morgan Harvey, Chuck Cox, Erika Stevens, Brian Cain, and James Kelly are gathered in Kelly's apartment room. Trevor enters.
[HSG - New York and New Jersey-based members]
James - "Everyone made it."
Trevor - "Let's start then. You're needed elsewhere, too."
James - "Where are we going?"
Trevor - "Green River, Utah."
James presses Trevor for more.
James - "What's going to happen? Is Undaunted going active again or is Seal going to…"
The group looks on intently for Trevor's answer.
Trevor - "There is…one thing we can do. The happiest people are those who can do it to the limit of their ability. We can be completely present. We can be all here. We can…give all our attention to the opportunity before us. Let's not speculate."
[Mark Van Doren]
Trevor puts his right hand on James shoulder. The others walk toward James and place one of their hands on James as well. He closes his eyes with a smile.
James - "Let's not."
They teleport away.
TO BE CONTINUED…
January 25, 2010
Commentary - Influence - Part Three
Had to take a week off from writing to work on something else. But it's here so don't fret. Continuing with the cerebral theme of the chapter titles, "Vision" revisits those weird dreams that Trevor had a while back. One asks the question, how can he dream of the future? Well, he's either evolving into a telepath, a victim of dream manipulator, or sometimes a dream is just a dream. I leave it to the reader to decide.
And if you haven't noticed yet, Trevor appears to have adopted a fashion sense reminiscent of Future Trevor. In a sort of Desmond Hume course-correcting time travel thingie, some things change while some still happen. Here, Trevor still dons the black but in a different context sort of like how the specials get hunted by the government no matter what, Five Years Gone future or not.
In the end, this was a tough one because I had to set up multiple plots for the future and negotiating them all without stepping on toes was a challenge. But really, the chapter became a series of character moments more than anything. While laying down the plot, I got to play around some more with people's Survival bios. So it seems that everyone has gone back to their normal lives, remind you of anything?, and Undaunted is on the back burner until Trevor convinces Seal otherwise.
But the real secret is that I wanted to write a story revolving around Fantastic Four, Shining Knight, and Watchmen quotes. But after reading back, I got the jist that Trevor was never really in danger, he was always in control or ready at a moment's notice. I decided to got the opposite direction and the end result is a cliffhanger! That so evil in hindsight. But if you want to learn more about this Exploding Man, stay tuned...
And if you haven't noticed yet, Trevor appears to have adopted a fashion sense reminiscent of Future Trevor. In a sort of Desmond Hume course-correcting time travel thingie, some things change while some still happen. Here, Trevor still dons the black but in a different context sort of like how the specials get hunted by the government no matter what, Five Years Gone future or not.
In the end, this was a tough one because I had to set up multiple plots for the future and negotiating them all without stepping on toes was a challenge. But really, the chapter became a series of character moments more than anything. While laying down the plot, I got to play around some more with people's Survival bios. So it seems that everyone has gone back to their normal lives, remind you of anything?, and Undaunted is on the back burner until Trevor convinces Seal otherwise.
But the real secret is that I wanted to write a story revolving around Fantastic Four, Shining Knight, and Watchmen quotes. But after reading back, I got the jist that Trevor was never really in danger, he was always in control or ready at a moment's notice. I decided to got the opposite direction and the end result is a cliffhanger! That so evil in hindsight. But if you want to learn more about this Exploding Man, stay tuned...
Part Six - Influence - Part Three
There is nothing but darkness…a void. Like a tidal wave, it recedes to reveal a dried out stone pathway. The camera is positioned like someone has it resting on the ground. Suddenly a pair of black shoes walk in front, past the camera. The sound of steps breaks the silence and they echo like a ticking clock, tick tock tick tock. They walk out what seems like forever until a faint figure is in the background. The person turns around towards the camera and holds his hand out to summon it. The camera zooms in a hurtling speed to the man. The camera rests on the lower half of the man's face. He presses his lips and whispers something.
"Boom."
Suddenly, the screen flashes and a fiery aura of red engulf the whole area. The man's hair and clothes rustle upward as if a wind is blowing. His eyes are red.
The scene shifts to Trevor staring at a barrel with a fire going. He is illuminated red like the dream. He is still dressed in the black outfit from the last chapter. It looks like Trevor is underground in the subway or in a poorly lit slum.
Opposite of Trevor is Frank Tanner. He is unconscious but wakes up.
Tanner - "The instructions have been delivered. Are you sure we should be doing this, Trevor? It's not our problem."
Trevor tosses more newspaper into the barrel to feed the fire. Embers flail about.
Tanner - "We don't know what's going to come of this…"
Trevor - "We can never really be prepared for that which is wholly new…to face drastic change without inner trembling, though heaven shall fall, let thy will be done."
[Eric Hoffer and Anonymous Latin Quote]
Tanner - "I don't like it. We're exposing ourselves again."
Trevor - "Everything hinges on this, Frank. The future, the factions, the co-op, Undaunted, Mulligan, The Watcher; everything. This is our purpose."
Tanner - "I hope you're right."
Trevor - "Don't dwell on that for too long."
Trevor reveals the briefcase he's been carrying around.
Trevor - "Give Seal my regards."
Tanner reaches for the briefcase. He looks up and Trevor is gone. James Kelly teleports next to Tanner.
Trevor walks down the street. A store display has a hat and a sign reading "$35 black outback-style cowboy hat." A newspaper with a headline about Nathan Petrelli flies past.
[Zach Wilson, John Mulligan]
DECEMBER 2, 2007
CENTRAL PARK, NEW YORK
UNDAUNTED - in Heroes title font - graces across the panel.
INFLUENCE - PART THREE: VISION- in Heroes title font - pasted on the grass
Trevor sits down on a park bench, bundled up in his clothes, trench coat buttoned up and hands in his pockets. He looks up at the sky and exhales. Someone walks to the bench.
Man - "Excuse me, but you mind if we split this bench?"
Trevor - "No, go ahead."
Man - "Sorry, man, you want to be alone?"
Trevor - "I am."
Trevor looks up to see Kurt Hasian. Kurt takes a seat.
Trevor - "Well?"
Kurt - "These guys are pretty hardcore. They're ready to go cloberrin' time on the Watcher. But without Mulligan around, things are getting pretty tense."
[Marvel Comics - Fantastic Four]
Trevor - "That's what you five are for."
Kurt - "Five? Don't you mean four?"
Trevor - "Kelly was involved from the start."
Kurt - "Huh. Everybody's got a secret I guess…but we've got another problem. According to Adam Soo Hoo, John switched sides and is working for the Watcher."
Trevor scoffs, probably already figuring out the two are going after the Carnival.
Kurt - "Soo Hoo sees the truth. There's no other explanation."
Trevor - "What once was truth is now pliable, untrustworthy, and slippery now."
[DC Comics - Seven Soldiers: Shining Knight #3]
Kurt - "Did you just go Shining Knight on me?!"
Trevor - "I'll be in touch."
Trevor stands up. He looks ahead, the pathway has been changed gold.
[The Wizard of Oz]
Trevor - "Really?"
Kurt - "I couldn't resist it."
Kurt looks down and clicks his shoes together three times.
The world is so full of people.
Utah - Seal is helping an elderly woman cross a street.
So crowded with these miracles that they become commonplace.
Colorado - Marc is directing an AA meeting and puts his hand on someone's shoulder, using his power to help them.
And we forget…I forget.
Boise, Idaho - Mack Johnston has pulled over to the side of the road. He looks under the hood while the driver is at the wheel. The truck suddenly comes to life and the driver cheers whole heartedly. Mack closes the hood and gives a high five to the driver.
We gaze continually at the world and it grows dull in our perceptions.
Tennessee - Azuteor is in his room buried in textbooks and folder paper. He stares up at his clock and mumbles to himself.
Yet seen from another’s vantage point, as if new, it may still take the breath away.
Paris, France - Clara Zhang is at the top of the Eiffel Tower. She smiles as if the City of Lights is putting on a show for her.
Come…dry your eyes, for you are life, rarer than a quark and unpredictable beyond the dreams of Heisenberg.
New York, New York - Trevor stands out as he walks in a fully crowded street. Across the street on the other side, Mulligan suddenly appears, having been cast out of the Carnival after a chilly reception. Trevor doesn't notice and keeps on walking.
[iStory - Purpose]
The clay in which the forces that shape all things leave their fingerprints most clearly. Dry your eyes…and let's go home.
The Garden of the Gods, months ago, every member is standing in a circle around Seal and listening intently.
[Watchmen]
SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH
James Kelly teleports with Frank Tanner. They look around and see Seal talking to an elderly woman. She walks away with a smile.
Seal - "Frank. James. Great to see the both of you. What can do I owe this pleasure?
Frank frowns and hands the briefcase to Seal. Seal has a confused look.
Tanner - "Trevor gives his regards."
There's silence.
Seal - "I see."
James - "Factions are banding together to take down a common enemy. We should reactivate Undaunted, Cielo."
[HSG - Seal's new name]
Seal - "I'll take it into consideration. It was good to see you both."
Tanner looks at James. James holds back. He half-smiles and nods. He then puts his right hand on Tanner's right shoulder and they teleport away.
Seal looks at where they stood, lost in thought. He snaps out of it and looks at the briefcase he's holding. He holds it up and opens it. The briefcase is empty. Seal is puzzled but remembers this was from Trevor. He closes it and hurries into an alley.
The screen splits in two. One with Seal, the other with Trevor.
Seal is feeling the inside of the briefcase. Trevor is still walking. He is looking out at something or maybe just zoning out.
Seal stops and tears the inside padding of the briefcase out. He smiles. Trevor crosses the street as cars and trucks honk at the pedestrians.
In silver permanent marker, the words "Save The World," with an arrow pointing down.
[HSG - The World View of Undaunted]
Seal looks down and sees something he's not quite sure of. Trevor makes to the other side. He sees a young Asian girl blowing a pinwheel with glee. Trevor smirks. Trevor looks up. Nothing. The girl is in front of him and gives him the pinwheel. Trevor takes it with care. He looks at it with amazement and blows into it. He hands it back to the girl. She walks away blowing into it. Trevor stands back up straight, amazed something like that can still happen in New York.
Seal is looking inside a red file. It is marked "The Bard." Another in the briefcase is marked "Mulligan, John." Trevor walks to the corner of the frame, a man bumps past him walking up to the crosswalk and stops for some reason. He holds his hand out. People walking past him look at him then keep on walking.
[iStory Purpose Chapter 4]
Seal is sitting on the ground. The files are back in the briefcase. He is thinking.
The man's eyes glow red and he whispers - "Boom."
The man explodes. The frame is on slow. The explosion creeps up and Trevor turns at the last minute to see it. Close up on Trevor as he lights up, then the screen flashes at regular speed covering it in white. Seal is making a call on his cell phone. An automated voice comes up.
Automation - "The number you are dialing is unavailable. Please leave a message for…Trevor, at the tone or if you like to page this person please press 2."
Seal - "Pick up, Trevor. It's time."
A phone lies on the pavement, cracked on the screen. It buzzes silently. A hand is near it, not moving.
TO BE CONTINUED…
"Boom."
Suddenly, the screen flashes and a fiery aura of red engulf the whole area. The man's hair and clothes rustle upward as if a wind is blowing. His eyes are red.
The scene shifts to Trevor staring at a barrel with a fire going. He is illuminated red like the dream. He is still dressed in the black outfit from the last chapter. It looks like Trevor is underground in the subway or in a poorly lit slum.
Opposite of Trevor is Frank Tanner. He is unconscious but wakes up.
Tanner - "The instructions have been delivered. Are you sure we should be doing this, Trevor? It's not our problem."
Trevor tosses more newspaper into the barrel to feed the fire. Embers flail about.
Tanner - "We don't know what's going to come of this…"
Trevor - "We can never really be prepared for that which is wholly new…to face drastic change without inner trembling, though heaven shall fall, let thy will be done."
[Eric Hoffer and Anonymous Latin Quote]
Tanner - "I don't like it. We're exposing ourselves again."
Trevor - "Everything hinges on this, Frank. The future, the factions, the co-op, Undaunted, Mulligan, The Watcher; everything. This is our purpose."
Tanner - "I hope you're right."
Trevor - "Don't dwell on that for too long."
Trevor reveals the briefcase he's been carrying around.
Trevor - "Give Seal my regards."
Tanner reaches for the briefcase. He looks up and Trevor is gone. James Kelly teleports next to Tanner.
Trevor walks down the street. A store display has a hat and a sign reading "$35 black outback-style cowboy hat." A newspaper with a headline about Nathan Petrelli flies past.
[Zach Wilson, John Mulligan]
DECEMBER 2, 2007
CENTRAL PARK, NEW YORK
UNDAUNTED - in Heroes title font - graces across the panel.
INFLUENCE - PART THREE: VISION- in Heroes title font - pasted on the grass
Trevor sits down on a park bench, bundled up in his clothes, trench coat buttoned up and hands in his pockets. He looks up at the sky and exhales. Someone walks to the bench.
Man - "Excuse me, but you mind if we split this bench?"
Trevor - "No, go ahead."
Man - "Sorry, man, you want to be alone?"
Trevor - "I am."
Trevor looks up to see Kurt Hasian. Kurt takes a seat.
Trevor - "Well?"
Kurt - "These guys are pretty hardcore. They're ready to go cloberrin' time on the Watcher. But without Mulligan around, things are getting pretty tense."
[Marvel Comics - Fantastic Four]
Trevor - "That's what you five are for."
Kurt - "Five? Don't you mean four?"
Trevor - "Kelly was involved from the start."
Kurt - "Huh. Everybody's got a secret I guess…but we've got another problem. According to Adam Soo Hoo, John switched sides and is working for the Watcher."
Trevor scoffs, probably already figuring out the two are going after the Carnival.
Kurt - "Soo Hoo sees the truth. There's no other explanation."
Trevor - "What once was truth is now pliable, untrustworthy, and slippery now."
[DC Comics - Seven Soldiers: Shining Knight #3]
Kurt - "Did you just go Shining Knight on me?!"
Trevor - "I'll be in touch."
Trevor stands up. He looks ahead, the pathway has been changed gold.
[The Wizard of Oz]
Trevor - "Really?"
Kurt - "I couldn't resist it."
Kurt looks down and clicks his shoes together three times.
The world is so full of people.
Utah - Seal is helping an elderly woman cross a street.
So crowded with these miracles that they become commonplace.
Colorado - Marc is directing an AA meeting and puts his hand on someone's shoulder, using his power to help them.
And we forget…I forget.
Boise, Idaho - Mack Johnston has pulled over to the side of the road. He looks under the hood while the driver is at the wheel. The truck suddenly comes to life and the driver cheers whole heartedly. Mack closes the hood and gives a high five to the driver.
We gaze continually at the world and it grows dull in our perceptions.
Tennessee - Azuteor is in his room buried in textbooks and folder paper. He stares up at his clock and mumbles to himself.
Yet seen from another’s vantage point, as if new, it may still take the breath away.
Paris, France - Clara Zhang is at the top of the Eiffel Tower. She smiles as if the City of Lights is putting on a show for her.
Come…dry your eyes, for you are life, rarer than a quark and unpredictable beyond the dreams of Heisenberg.
New York, New York - Trevor stands out as he walks in a fully crowded street. Across the street on the other side, Mulligan suddenly appears, having been cast out of the Carnival after a chilly reception. Trevor doesn't notice and keeps on walking.
[iStory - Purpose]
The clay in which the forces that shape all things leave their fingerprints most clearly. Dry your eyes…and let's go home.
The Garden of the Gods, months ago, every member is standing in a circle around Seal and listening intently.
[Watchmen]
SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH
James Kelly teleports with Frank Tanner. They look around and see Seal talking to an elderly woman. She walks away with a smile.
Seal - "Frank. James. Great to see the both of you. What can do I owe this pleasure?
Frank frowns and hands the briefcase to Seal. Seal has a confused look.
Tanner - "Trevor gives his regards."
There's silence.
Seal - "I see."
James - "Factions are banding together to take down a common enemy. We should reactivate Undaunted, Cielo."
[HSG - Seal's new name]
Seal - "I'll take it into consideration. It was good to see you both."
Tanner looks at James. James holds back. He half-smiles and nods. He then puts his right hand on Tanner's right shoulder and they teleport away.
Seal looks at where they stood, lost in thought. He snaps out of it and looks at the briefcase he's holding. He holds it up and opens it. The briefcase is empty. Seal is puzzled but remembers this was from Trevor. He closes it and hurries into an alley.
The screen splits in two. One with Seal, the other with Trevor.
Seal is feeling the inside of the briefcase. Trevor is still walking. He is looking out at something or maybe just zoning out.
Seal stops and tears the inside padding of the briefcase out. He smiles. Trevor crosses the street as cars and trucks honk at the pedestrians.
In silver permanent marker, the words "Save The World," with an arrow pointing down.
[HSG - The World View of Undaunted]
Seal looks down and sees something he's not quite sure of. Trevor makes to the other side. He sees a young Asian girl blowing a pinwheel with glee. Trevor smirks. Trevor looks up. Nothing. The girl is in front of him and gives him the pinwheel. Trevor takes it with care. He looks at it with amazement and blows into it. He hands it back to the girl. She walks away blowing into it. Trevor stands back up straight, amazed something like that can still happen in New York.
Seal is looking inside a red file. It is marked "The Bard." Another in the briefcase is marked "Mulligan, John." Trevor walks to the corner of the frame, a man bumps past him walking up to the crosswalk and stops for some reason. He holds his hand out. People walking past him look at him then keep on walking.
[iStory Purpose Chapter 4]
Seal is sitting on the ground. The files are back in the briefcase. He is thinking.
The man's eyes glow red and he whispers - "Boom."
The man explodes. The frame is on slow. The explosion creeps up and Trevor turns at the last minute to see it. Close up on Trevor as he lights up, then the screen flashes at regular speed covering it in white. Seal is making a call on his cell phone. An automated voice comes up.
Automation - "The number you are dialing is unavailable. Please leave a message for…Trevor, at the tone or if you like to page this person please press 2."
Seal - "Pick up, Trevor. It's time."
A phone lies on the pavement, cracked on the screen. It buzzes silently. A hand is near it, not moving.
TO BE CONTINUED…
January 12, 2010
Commentary - Influence - Part Two
Out of everything written so far, this chapter has been the hardest for me so far. I don't know why but writer's block creeped up on me a lot as I blocked out this one scene and I kept going back and forth on it but we'll get to it.
DINER
Always wanted to play up the master of disguise aspect of Trevor. So I came up with this gag of Trevor going undercover as a fry cook to spy on this co-op that's going after the Watcher in New York. And I threw in the urinal gag from the To Do List. The part I wasn't sure about was when Trevor was quoting Mulligan's file, I hope people remembered he hacked an agent's phone and stole a bunch of Assignment Tracker files back in 2006.
Then I went to the time consuming task of integrating a bunch of Urgent Request messages from Heroes Survival, iStory, along with the theme of specials going back to their normal lives, symbolized by Morgan Harvey and also by how Trevor seemlessly blends back into the populace like a well-dressed chameleon.
TITLE
Jamais Vu is the lesser known opposite of Deja Vu. It plays on the invisible aspect of the Watcher and Trevor's visit to Morgan to unearth something she kept to herself.
MORGAN
I wanted to reference that part in "Once Upon A Time In Texas" between Hiro, Pistol Petey, and Sylar. Trevor's answer was priceless and so was the mom's. And sort of like a callback to something I set up months ago (seems like a lifetime ago), Trevor goes by an old alias. Then I go into a personal critique of mine of the Watcher. It was fun researching and coming up with the dialogue where Trevor and Morgan take their shots at diagnosing the Watcher. Then I ended it with some Batman-ness with an unexpected answer and the old disappearing act.
ENDING
And so I sort of imagined how that recent Event Message came to be with Trevor assigning Kurt, Kupe, Thea, and Slipshod to help these people fight the Watcher. Then I ended it with my own send off for Nathan Petrelli using those news footage that's been popping up lately. In way, Nathan struggled with his own Jamais Vu until realizing he was Sylar and convincing Peter to let him die.
DINER
Always wanted to play up the master of disguise aspect of Trevor. So I came up with this gag of Trevor going undercover as a fry cook to spy on this co-op that's going after the Watcher in New York. And I threw in the urinal gag from the To Do List. The part I wasn't sure about was when Trevor was quoting Mulligan's file, I hope people remembered he hacked an agent's phone and stole a bunch of Assignment Tracker files back in 2006.
Then I went to the time consuming task of integrating a bunch of Urgent Request messages from Heroes Survival, iStory, along with the theme of specials going back to their normal lives, symbolized by Morgan Harvey and also by how Trevor seemlessly blends back into the populace like a well-dressed chameleon.
TITLE
Jamais Vu is the lesser known opposite of Deja Vu. It plays on the invisible aspect of the Watcher and Trevor's visit to Morgan to unearth something she kept to herself.
MORGAN
I wanted to reference that part in "Once Upon A Time In Texas" between Hiro, Pistol Petey, and Sylar. Trevor's answer was priceless and so was the mom's. And sort of like a callback to something I set up months ago (seems like a lifetime ago), Trevor goes by an old alias. Then I go into a personal critique of mine of the Watcher. It was fun researching and coming up with the dialogue where Trevor and Morgan take their shots at diagnosing the Watcher. Then I ended it with some Batman-ness with an unexpected answer and the old disappearing act.
ENDING
And so I sort of imagined how that recent Event Message came to be with Trevor assigning Kurt, Kupe, Thea, and Slipshod to help these people fight the Watcher. Then I ended it with my own send off for Nathan Petrelli using those news footage that's been popping up lately. In way, Nathan struggled with his own Jamais Vu until realizing he was Sylar and convincing Peter to let him die.
Part Six - Influence - Part Two
DECEMBER 2, 2007
NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK
Wide-Pan shot of a busy diner at around 9 in the morning. Two men sit down at a booth. One is more visibly nervous than the other.
Glenn Slidell - "Why are we out in the open?"
Donovan Huntsman - "We're hiding in plain sight. Besides, Building 26 is just a shredded file somewhere in Washington DC, now."
[Volume 4]
Rhonda - "What'll it be, boys?"
Huntsman - "Scrambled eggs. Overeasy. With coffee. Decaf."
Slidell - "French toast. Oh and a orange juice."
Rhonda nods and walks away.
Slidell - "But don't you ever get the feeling like you're being watched?"
Rhonda walks over to the cook's area and lays down the duo's order.
Rhonda - "Order Up!"
A hand reaches over to grab it off the rack. The camera follows the hand to its owner. It's Trevor, dressed in a white cook's outfit. He’s watching Slidell and Huntsman.
EARTH SPINNING, MUSIC, HEROES
Slidell - "What are we going to do about John. He's not around and he's not calling us back."
[iStory: Purpose and HSG Event Urgent Requests]
Huntsman - "Forget it. We still have to deal with that Watcher nutjob."
[iStory: Purpose and HSG Event Urgent Requests]
Slidell - "We could ask them for help."
Huntsman - "Good luck with that. No one's seen any of them since that stunt Keegan pulled last month. They don’t want to be found."
[The Beginning of the End]
Slidell - "Once the Watcher finds them, things will be different."
Huntsman - "Maybe. I'm going to go take a leak."
Restroom. The camera is blocked off on the back of Huntsman, the top half of his body at a urinal. It appears he is done and is about to walk away. The camera zooms onto the back of his head then zooms out. A gun is now rested on it.
Trevor - "You forgot to flush."
[Sin City - The Big Fat Kill]
Huntsman - "I don't have any money, man."
Trevor - "I'm looking for your boss. Have seen him? American, 200 pounds, light complexion, medium build, big overcoat and hat, rewinds time. "
[iStory Purpose: Too Many Options - John Mulligan's Assignment Tracker file]
Huntsman - "Mulligan? He ditched us. I have no idea where he is."
Trevor - "I'll settle for a phone number."
Huntsman - "No problem. Take my phone. His number is saved on it."
Trevor - "You're too kind."
Huntsman - "While you're here, mind if I pick your brain?"
Trevor - "Not particularly, but go ahead."
Huntsman - "Our co-op is after the Watcher, freaky guy who overquotes Shakespeare and blackmails factions in his spare time."
Trevor - "Went after at least one of our own. A Level 3 threat at most."
[Assignment Tracker topic]
Huntsman - "He can manipulate nerves; make himself invisible or give you the worst form of acupuncture. His game is to disrupt communications between us. That's the problem."
Trevor - "Get a telepath. Or a couple of techno's."
Huntsman - "We want to end him. But we don’t know how."
Trevor - "You've done some recon, obviously. Coordinate a surprise attack. Since you have no leader, use calculated guerilla tactics to catch the Watcher offguard."
[HSG Event Urgent Requests - January 2010]
Huntsman - "I like that."
Trevor - "Since there's no bad blood between us, I'll send four of Undaunted's best to help your little outfit. "
[HSG Event Urgent Request - January 2010]
Huntsman - "Really? That's grea…"
Trevor knocks him out with the butt of his gun. He drags Huntsman into a stall then flushes the urinal.
Exterior - Alleyway - Trevor is taking out the trash and walks over to a dumpster. He pulls out a bag from the dumpster and reveals a clean set of clothes. The camera wanders to the street and looks at pedestrians walking and going about their day. The camera returns to Trevor. He is dressed in a double breasted trench coat, black slim cut dress shirt, black slack pants, black dress shoes shined, a black wool fedora, aviator frame sunglasses, a holster hidden by the trench, and a briefcase. Trevor pops the collar of the trench out and walks out into Seventh Street. He disappears into the crowd. An ambulance soars by.
UNDAUNTED - in Heroes title font - graces across the panel.
INFLUENCE - PART TWO: JAMAIS VU- in Heroes title font - pasted on the ambulance
An upscale building. Trevor goes into a crowded elevator and stands in the middle. Typical elevator music plays. A six year old girl drinking a juice box looks up at Trevor.
Stephanie - "You're wearing a black hat."
[Volume 5 "Once Upon A Time In Texas" - Pistol Petey]
Trevor - "I like black."
Stephanie's mother puts one of her arms around her. The elevator dings and the door opens. Trevor steps out. He rounds the corner and enters a room. It is a waiting room. He walks up to the front desk.
Trevor - "Checking in. I have a 10:30 appointment with Dr. Harvey."
Betty - "Yes, thank you, Mr. Suzuki. I will let Dr. Harvey know right away. Please have a seat, she'll be with you in 5 minutes."
[Trevor Tanaka's Assignment Tracker file - Sam Suzuki is a previous alias]
FIVE MINUTES, THREE SECONDS LATER
Dr. Morgan Harvey walks out into the waiting room with a client. She says something inaudible and puts her hand on the man's shoulder. He suddenly smiles, nods, and leaves the room. Harvey turns to Trevor with caution.
[HSG - Morgan Harvey is a member of Undaunted]
Morgan Harvey - "This way, Mr. Suzuki."
Trevor - "Please, you know you can call me, Sam, Doctor."
Morgan - "Of course, it's just been so long, Sam."
Trevor sits down on Harvey's chair. Morgan closes the door and locks it. She sits straight and upright on the client's chair. There is silence for awhile.
Morgan - "How is everyone? I haven't kept in touch since I started practice here…"
Trevor - "Everyone is safe. In the shadows, in the light. Finding their way back home."
[Volume 5 - Pieces of Samuel Sullivan's speech in "Orientation"]
Morgan - "You're not here for clinical depression, Trevor, so tell me why you came all this way to visit me?"
Trevor - "I've been investigating this event that happened recently. And interestingly enough, it began from a chain of urgent requests that we never got around to answering. Then all of sudden, they stopped right around the time we found out they were indirectly connected to you, Morgan. Now, he's back causing a lot of trouble here in New York."
Morgan - "The Watcher."
Trevor - "Yes."
Morgan - "I told you everything. He was blackmailing me, wanted me to find out about a Gabriel Gray and to use me for my ability."
[iStory Slow Burn Chapter 8]
Trevor - "I know. I need you to tell me what it felt like."
Morgan - "What?"
Trevor - "You worked for Primatech. Went through the human resources training. Swam around in morally gray for awhile and hunted people like you and I. Yet, this one insignificant posthuman scared you. Why?"
Morgan - "He's a megalomaniac with an ineffable sense of destiny and is obsessed with taking power and destroying those who have what he never can."
Trevor - "Or he is a severely narcissistically wounded individual with major paranoid tendencies and holds onto an illusion of omnipotence. He spends his days fighting the reality of his insignificance desperately and seeks to re-establish a sense of self-esteem through grandiose fantasies and self-reinforcement."
Morgan - "A fanatic."
Trevor - "Only 2% have a lifelong prevalent condition like this. Primatech hasn't run into much of those, have they?"
Morgan - "No."
Trevor stands up, picks up his briefcase, and is about to leave the room. Morgan walks to her desk. Both have their backs turned to each other.
Morgan - "There are no more Level 5's to hold the Watcher."
[Volume 3]
Trevor - "Who said anything about letting him live?"
Morgan turns around. Trevor is gone.
Muted montage begins.
Trevor - Whose woods these are I think I know.
Trevor walking forward to the camera amidst a busy mid-day crowd of people.
Trevor - His house is in the village though.
Morgan sitting at her desk with her fist over her mouth, staring out into nothingness.
Trevor - He will not see me stopping here.
Seal kneeling down in the graveyard in the second Garden of the Gods.
[The Beginning of the End Part Three]
Trevor - To watch his woods fill up with snow.
Azuteor crashes a faction's building down to the ground.
[The Beginning of the End Part Two]
Trevor - The woods are lovely, dark, and deep.
Sparkplug turns into pure electricity and rips through Keegan's clones.
[The Beginning of the End Part One]
Trevor - But I have promises to keep.
Leona Mills stands before Trevor and Seal.
[The Beginning of the End Part One]
Trevor - And miles to go before I sleep.
Trevor stares out into the bamboo forest.
[Undaunted Chapter One]
Trevor - And miles to go before I sleep.
[Stopped By Woods On A Snowy Evening - Robert Frost]
Trevor stops at Times Square at a crowd watching the screen. News footage of Senator Nathan Petrelli's death plays with pundits in squares talking inaudibly. Everyone leaves but five, including Trevor. The camera winds around and reveals Kurt Hasian, Kupe Nukarmoi, Athena Leuce, and Samuel Whitman. Trevor is explaining something to them. They all agree. Kupe holds out his hand and a key appears. He unlocks a nearby car and the four get in and leave. Trevor stays and looks up at the screen. It now displays a large photo of Nathan Petrelli with with two lines of caption. The top reads "In Loving Memory" and the second reads "1967-2007."
[Volume 5 "Upon This Rock" to "Close To You"]
TO BE CONTINUED…
NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK
Wide-Pan shot of a busy diner at around 9 in the morning. Two men sit down at a booth. One is more visibly nervous than the other.
Glenn Slidell - "Why are we out in the open?"
Donovan Huntsman - "We're hiding in plain sight. Besides, Building 26 is just a shredded file somewhere in Washington DC, now."
[Volume 4]
Rhonda - "What'll it be, boys?"
Huntsman - "Scrambled eggs. Overeasy. With coffee. Decaf."
Slidell - "French toast. Oh and a orange juice."
Rhonda nods and walks away.
Slidell - "But don't you ever get the feeling like you're being watched?"
Rhonda walks over to the cook's area and lays down the duo's order.
Rhonda - "Order Up!"
A hand reaches over to grab it off the rack. The camera follows the hand to its owner. It's Trevor, dressed in a white cook's outfit. He’s watching Slidell and Huntsman.
EARTH SPINNING, MUSIC, HEROES
Slidell - "What are we going to do about John. He's not around and he's not calling us back."
[iStory: Purpose and HSG Event Urgent Requests]
Huntsman - "Forget it. We still have to deal with that Watcher nutjob."
[iStory: Purpose and HSG Event Urgent Requests]
Slidell - "We could ask them for help."
Huntsman - "Good luck with that. No one's seen any of them since that stunt Keegan pulled last month. They don’t want to be found."
[The Beginning of the End]
Slidell - "Once the Watcher finds them, things will be different."
Huntsman - "Maybe. I'm going to go take a leak."
Restroom. The camera is blocked off on the back of Huntsman, the top half of his body at a urinal. It appears he is done and is about to walk away. The camera zooms onto the back of his head then zooms out. A gun is now rested on it.
Trevor - "You forgot to flush."
[Sin City - The Big Fat Kill]
Huntsman - "I don't have any money, man."
Trevor - "I'm looking for your boss. Have seen him? American, 200 pounds, light complexion, medium build, big overcoat and hat, rewinds time. "
[iStory Purpose: Too Many Options - John Mulligan's Assignment Tracker file]
Huntsman - "Mulligan? He ditched us. I have no idea where he is."
Trevor - "I'll settle for a phone number."
Huntsman - "No problem. Take my phone. His number is saved on it."
Trevor - "You're too kind."
Huntsman - "While you're here, mind if I pick your brain?"
Trevor - "Not particularly, but go ahead."
Huntsman - "Our co-op is after the Watcher, freaky guy who overquotes Shakespeare and blackmails factions in his spare time."
Trevor - "Went after at least one of our own. A Level 3 threat at most."
[Assignment Tracker topic]
Huntsman - "He can manipulate nerves; make himself invisible or give you the worst form of acupuncture. His game is to disrupt communications between us. That's the problem."
Trevor - "Get a telepath. Or a couple of techno's."
Huntsman - "We want to end him. But we don’t know how."
Trevor - "You've done some recon, obviously. Coordinate a surprise attack. Since you have no leader, use calculated guerilla tactics to catch the Watcher offguard."
[HSG Event Urgent Requests - January 2010]
Huntsman - "I like that."
Trevor - "Since there's no bad blood between us, I'll send four of Undaunted's best to help your little outfit. "
[HSG Event Urgent Request - January 2010]
Huntsman - "Really? That's grea…"
Trevor knocks him out with the butt of his gun. He drags Huntsman into a stall then flushes the urinal.
Exterior - Alleyway - Trevor is taking out the trash and walks over to a dumpster. He pulls out a bag from the dumpster and reveals a clean set of clothes. The camera wanders to the street and looks at pedestrians walking and going about their day. The camera returns to Trevor. He is dressed in a double breasted trench coat, black slim cut dress shirt, black slack pants, black dress shoes shined, a black wool fedora, aviator frame sunglasses, a holster hidden by the trench, and a briefcase. Trevor pops the collar of the trench out and walks out into Seventh Street. He disappears into the crowd. An ambulance soars by.
UNDAUNTED - in Heroes title font - graces across the panel.
INFLUENCE - PART TWO: JAMAIS VU- in Heroes title font - pasted on the ambulance
An upscale building. Trevor goes into a crowded elevator and stands in the middle. Typical elevator music plays. A six year old girl drinking a juice box looks up at Trevor.
Stephanie - "You're wearing a black hat."
[Volume 5 "Once Upon A Time In Texas" - Pistol Petey]
Trevor - "I like black."
Stephanie's mother puts one of her arms around her. The elevator dings and the door opens. Trevor steps out. He rounds the corner and enters a room. It is a waiting room. He walks up to the front desk.
Trevor - "Checking in. I have a 10:30 appointment with Dr. Harvey."
Betty - "Yes, thank you, Mr. Suzuki. I will let Dr. Harvey know right away. Please have a seat, she'll be with you in 5 minutes."
[Trevor Tanaka's Assignment Tracker file - Sam Suzuki is a previous alias]
FIVE MINUTES, THREE SECONDS LATER
Dr. Morgan Harvey walks out into the waiting room with a client. She says something inaudible and puts her hand on the man's shoulder. He suddenly smiles, nods, and leaves the room. Harvey turns to Trevor with caution.
[HSG - Morgan Harvey is a member of Undaunted]
Morgan Harvey - "This way, Mr. Suzuki."
Trevor - "Please, you know you can call me, Sam, Doctor."
Morgan - "Of course, it's just been so long, Sam."
Trevor sits down on Harvey's chair. Morgan closes the door and locks it. She sits straight and upright on the client's chair. There is silence for awhile.
Morgan - "How is everyone? I haven't kept in touch since I started practice here…"
Trevor - "Everyone is safe. In the shadows, in the light. Finding their way back home."
[Volume 5 - Pieces of Samuel Sullivan's speech in "Orientation"]
Morgan - "You're not here for clinical depression, Trevor, so tell me why you came all this way to visit me?"
Trevor - "I've been investigating this event that happened recently. And interestingly enough, it began from a chain of urgent requests that we never got around to answering. Then all of sudden, they stopped right around the time we found out they were indirectly connected to you, Morgan. Now, he's back causing a lot of trouble here in New York."
Morgan - "The Watcher."
Trevor - "Yes."
Morgan - "I told you everything. He was blackmailing me, wanted me to find out about a Gabriel Gray and to use me for my ability."
[iStory Slow Burn Chapter 8]
Trevor - "I know. I need you to tell me what it felt like."
Morgan - "What?"
Trevor - "You worked for Primatech. Went through the human resources training. Swam around in morally gray for awhile and hunted people like you and I. Yet, this one insignificant posthuman scared you. Why?"
Morgan - "He's a megalomaniac with an ineffable sense of destiny and is obsessed with taking power and destroying those who have what he never can."
Trevor - "Or he is a severely narcissistically wounded individual with major paranoid tendencies and holds onto an illusion of omnipotence. He spends his days fighting the reality of his insignificance desperately and seeks to re-establish a sense of self-esteem through grandiose fantasies and self-reinforcement."
Morgan - "A fanatic."
Trevor - "Only 2% have a lifelong prevalent condition like this. Primatech hasn't run into much of those, have they?"
Morgan - "No."
Trevor stands up, picks up his briefcase, and is about to leave the room. Morgan walks to her desk. Both have their backs turned to each other.
Morgan - "There are no more Level 5's to hold the Watcher."
[Volume 3]
Trevor - "Who said anything about letting him live?"
Morgan turns around. Trevor is gone.
Muted montage begins.
Trevor - Whose woods these are I think I know.
Trevor walking forward to the camera amidst a busy mid-day crowd of people.
Trevor - His house is in the village though.
Morgan sitting at her desk with her fist over her mouth, staring out into nothingness.
Trevor - He will not see me stopping here.
Seal kneeling down in the graveyard in the second Garden of the Gods.
[The Beginning of the End Part Three]
Trevor - To watch his woods fill up with snow.
Azuteor crashes a faction's building down to the ground.
[The Beginning of the End Part Two]
Trevor - The woods are lovely, dark, and deep.
Sparkplug turns into pure electricity and rips through Keegan's clones.
[The Beginning of the End Part One]
Trevor - But I have promises to keep.
Leona Mills stands before Trevor and Seal.
[The Beginning of the End Part One]
Trevor - And miles to go before I sleep.
Trevor stares out into the bamboo forest.
[Undaunted Chapter One]
Trevor - And miles to go before I sleep.
[Stopped By Woods On A Snowy Evening - Robert Frost]
Trevor stops at Times Square at a crowd watching the screen. News footage of Senator Nathan Petrelli's death plays with pundits in squares talking inaudibly. Everyone leaves but five, including Trevor. The camera winds around and reveals Kurt Hasian, Kupe Nukarmoi, Athena Leuce, and Samuel Whitman. Trevor is explaining something to them. They all agree. Kupe holds out his hand and a key appears. He unlocks a nearby car and the four get in and leave. Trevor stays and looks up at the screen. It now displays a large photo of Nathan Petrelli with with two lines of caption. The top reads "In Loving Memory" and the second reads "1967-2007."
[Volume 5 "Upon This Rock" to "Close To You"]
TO BE CONTINUED…
January 4, 2010
Commentary - Influence - Part One
New Year, new arc. Similar as to how Volume 1-4 on the show were on big story arc, Influence is the start of a new arc for Trevor and Undaunted. As a constant fan of duality, the title Déjà vu, Trevor experiences it and how others see Undaunted compared to Primatech.
First off, I added to the Black Swan theory I quoted back in the first story I wrote. Sort of like a puzzle piece, I add one line of thought to it until it becomes something entirely different.
CLEARWATER
A bit of a red herring, I hope to have fooled someone that Trevor and Clara was together before they realized it was an undercover op commissioned from events of the last volume. If you notice the description of Trevor, it’s the same clothing from the image on his HSG page. The duo is going after the second to last member of the faction(s) that attacked Undaunted on Thanksgiving and the 29th. Konrad is the only one that knows where the last person is, and this person is the leader. So I decided there has to be some sort of code or phrase so I used a famous one from a satirist that’s better known by geeks to be used on the Watchmen.
Then to tie things up, I decided that the final locale would be Montreal, where Peter and Caitlin went to and found Adam Monroe’s place in Volume 2. And used the cool super spy shoot ‘em through an object and kill them motif and another sighting of the DNA Symbol. Then I decided to slow things down with a comedic beat and have a brief regroup at Zhang’s house.
REWIND
Playing on the current story from HSG and iStory, I wanted to explore Trevor’s past but felt the flashback technique I previously used would be too old hat. Upon reading that Mulligan was going to be important, I started spinning the mechanics of time travel. I decided Trevor would have a Groundhog Day of his own but had to think later of how. Ultimately, I throw the question of what happens to someone being teleported when a special like Mulligan uses his Temporal Rewind? They go back to a time they were thinking, hence why there was the small line about Trevor staring at the ring Clara gives back to him, it was his dead fiancee’s.
I decided then he would teleport a year or so back to that fateful day when his life was changed forever. The Company accidentally killed his fiancée and Trevor began his quest for revenge. Inspired by the Haitian’s name reveal, I casually revealed his fiancee’s. I also made sure to make some references to what we already know about that day, things you can find in Trevor’s HSG bio or AT file.
Since Trevor doesn’t quite know what’s going on, he goes through memory and doesn’t alter any events. Will be next time? We’ll see. And Trevor remembers the rewind, because he has…super memory and sort of realized what happened.
MONTREAL
We finally meet the special who was duplicated and clones were sent to the Garden of the Gods to kill everyone in Undaunted. He’s a killer, but he appears to be pretty intelligent and in the know, being pretty concerned that Undaunted would become just another Primatech. The irony is that he chose to try to wipe them out instead of just talking. Does that make him any better?
I also wanted to put in more humor and wanted to play with the logistics of a subtitle for a long time since seeing Hiro & Ando and Maya & Alejandro on the show. So it’s done through a joke. At I least I hope people get the joke…maybe if you’re Canadian it’s a sure bet.
Anyway, the death of Keegan ends the leftovers from last time and begins a new quest for Trevor and Undaunted. Where it takes them next…stay tuned.
First off, I added to the Black Swan theory I quoted back in the first story I wrote. Sort of like a puzzle piece, I add one line of thought to it until it becomes something entirely different.
CLEARWATER
A bit of a red herring, I hope to have fooled someone that Trevor and Clara was together before they realized it was an undercover op commissioned from events of the last volume. If you notice the description of Trevor, it’s the same clothing from the image on his HSG page. The duo is going after the second to last member of the faction(s) that attacked Undaunted on Thanksgiving and the 29th. Konrad is the only one that knows where the last person is, and this person is the leader. So I decided there has to be some sort of code or phrase so I used a famous one from a satirist that’s better known by geeks to be used on the Watchmen.
Then to tie things up, I decided that the final locale would be Montreal, where Peter and Caitlin went to and found Adam Monroe’s place in Volume 2. And used the cool super spy shoot ‘em through an object and kill them motif and another sighting of the DNA Symbol. Then I decided to slow things down with a comedic beat and have a brief regroup at Zhang’s house.
REWIND
Playing on the current story from HSG and iStory, I wanted to explore Trevor’s past but felt the flashback technique I previously used would be too old hat. Upon reading that Mulligan was going to be important, I started spinning the mechanics of time travel. I decided Trevor would have a Groundhog Day of his own but had to think later of how. Ultimately, I throw the question of what happens to someone being teleported when a special like Mulligan uses his Temporal Rewind? They go back to a time they were thinking, hence why there was the small line about Trevor staring at the ring Clara gives back to him, it was his dead fiancee’s.
I decided then he would teleport a year or so back to that fateful day when his life was changed forever. The Company accidentally killed his fiancée and Trevor began his quest for revenge. Inspired by the Haitian’s name reveal, I casually revealed his fiancee’s. I also made sure to make some references to what we already know about that day, things you can find in Trevor’s HSG bio or AT file.
Since Trevor doesn’t quite know what’s going on, he goes through memory and doesn’t alter any events. Will be next time? We’ll see. And Trevor remembers the rewind, because he has…super memory and sort of realized what happened.
MONTREAL
We finally meet the special who was duplicated and clones were sent to the Garden of the Gods to kill everyone in Undaunted. He’s a killer, but he appears to be pretty intelligent and in the know, being pretty concerned that Undaunted would become just another Primatech. The irony is that he chose to try to wipe them out instead of just talking. Does that make him any better?
I also wanted to put in more humor and wanted to play with the logistics of a subtitle for a long time since seeing Hiro & Ando and Maya & Alejandro on the show. So it’s done through a joke. At I least I hope people get the joke…maybe if you’re Canadian it’s a sure bet.
Anyway, the death of Keegan ends the leftovers from last time and begins a new quest for Trevor and Undaunted. Where it takes them next…stay tuned.
Part Six - Influence - Part One
Trevor - There is a surprise. True love. It has a major impact. It should last forever. After the fact, the event is rationalized by hindsight as if it had been expected. Then it is lost.
[Undaunted Part One but with a twist]
Peter Petrelli and Isaac Mendez consoling Simone Deveaux.
[Volume One "Parasite"]
DECEMBER 1, 2007
CLEARWATER, FLORIDA
The camera is zoomed out on a pristine white sands beach. A couple is lounging on it all by themselves. The woman lies on her stomach, in a bikini, flipping through a magazine. The man is buried behind a newspaper on a typical beach chair. We can see he is wearing a pork pie hat with a brightly colored madras plaid collar shirt. They are both wearing wedding rings. The camera tracks onto them and slowly zooms in. The couple is none other than Trevor Tanaka and Clara Zhang.
Clara - "I read this thing nine times already. When are we getting our drinks?"
Trevor - "18 minutes, 54 seconds. He takes that long for everyone."
[9th Wonders! - Nine - HERO]
Clara - "That's 18 minutes too long. You should have gotten an umbrella, too. The Sun is right on top of us."
Trevor - "Why? You look fine from here."
Clara - "You should use your super memory now because it's the first and last time you'll ever see me in a bikini."
Trevor frowns then huddles back into the newspaper. A waiter approaches them with two drinks on a platter. He places them in the tree stump stand between Trevor and Clara. The waiter pauses in front of Trevor.
Konrad - "Is there anything else I may get for you or your wife, Mr. Lee?"
Trevor is still hidden behind the newspaper.
Trevor - "Yes, there is something, Konrad. I hope you can help me with it."
Konrad - "Yes, of course, sir. We go above and beyond for our guests…"
Trevor - "Where’s Keegan?"
Konrad is surprised and looks around a few times.
Konrad - "… noui consilia et ueteres quaecumque monetis amici, "pone seram, cohibes." sed…"
Trevor - "quis custodiet ipsos custodies?"
[Satires of Juvenal - … I know the plan that my friends always advise me to adopt:
"Bolt her in, constrain her!" But who watches the watchers?”]
Konrad - "Corner of Boulevard Saint-Laurent and Rue Saint-Jacque. Room 126."
[Intersection from Volume 2 "The Line"]
Trevor - “Thank you.”
Konrad - "Didn't think someone from the gang would reach out so soon."
Trevor - "Me neither."
Konrad flinches. A silencer goes off. A bullet rips out from the newspaper and goes through Konrad's skull. Camera cuts away with an implied impact. Clara closes her magazine and stands up.
Clara - "Boys and their toys."
Clara reaches for her drink. Trevor stops her.
Trevor - "He could have duplicated one of them. Let's go."
[The Beginning of the End]
Clara - "Fiiiine."
They teleport away. Camera shifts to a bird's eye point of view. The Symbol forms in the white sand with Keegan’s head in the center.
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA
Clara and Trevor teleport into the mezzanine floor of the Zhang Family mansion. Trevor takes the ring off and tucks into his shirt pocket. He takes the other ring from Clara. He stares at it then quickly puts it away. Clara proceeds to go to her room. A servant appears.
Mr. Lee - "What shall I prepare for your lunch, Ms. Zhang?"
Clara is about to speak when Trevor interrupts.
Trevor - "Two peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Whole wheat. No crust."
Mr. Lee - "Very good, sir."
Mr. Lee walks away.
Clara - "What, you're digging through my trash now?"
Trevor - "Puh-lease. I go through everyone’s trash."
[Justice League Unlimited “Fearful Symmetry”]
Clara stomps out in front of him.
Clara - "Wait out here."
She closes the door on Trevor.
30 MINUTES LATER…
Trevor is still outside, holding a tray of two peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Clara opens her door with new clothes on. Trevor snaps out of it and Clara takes the sandwiches.
Clara - "Montreal?"
Trevor - "Montreal."
They are about to teleport away. The camera zooms in on Trevor. The teleportation FX makes a distorted sound. Trevor looks around confused. He is startled. Zoom out. He is at a desk in more formal clothing, with a file in his hand. Zoom out. He’s in a credit union, a hanging banner reads "2006."
SEPTEMBER 26, 2006
HONOLULU, HAWAI'I
Doug - "Trevor, did you finish your pass on the new loan request?"
Trevor - "Uhh…yeah, it's right here."
Doug - "Thanks. You okay, man? Looks like you got a bad case of déjà vu."
Trevor - "No, I'm alright. You'll see why when you read my report."
Doug - "Haha, gotcha. See ya."
Trevor - "Right."
Trevor looks at his computer for the date. He reclines back in his seat in disbelief.
Trevor gets off a bus and walks on the sidewalk. He looks up at a building and walks in. He opens an apartment door with one of his keys and walks in. He turns around to draw out the deadbolts.
Woman - "Trevor?"
Trevor turns around to see his fiancée, alive and well.
Trevor - "Tanya."
Tanya - "Trev, you look like you’ve seen a ghost."
Trevor pauses.
Trevor - "It was just a lot of new accounts, today."
Tanya - "Nothing you couldn't handle, right?"
She walks over and kisses him, then walks back into the living room. Trevor is still standing at the door.
Trevor - "Yeah."
Tanya - "What? C'mon. Are the insurance people still following you?"
Trevor - "24 times today…"
[Trevor's HSG bio/AT 2.0 file]
Tanya appears again with a piece of paper.
Tanya - "I forgot these at the market. Could you go get them for me? Please?"
Trevor shifts his eyes to the door and instinctively reaches for his gun but it isn’t there, yet. He smiles.
Trevor - "Sure. Do you have the Club Card or do I?"
Tanya - "They stopped using it in February. Are you sure you're okay, Trevor?"
She touches his forehead. Trevor hugs her.
Trevor - "I love you."
Tanya - "Love you, too…Trev. You're being weirder than weird, today."
Trevor - "It feels like I haven't been able to say it in a while, y'know?"
Tanya smiles and they kiss.
Tanya - "Make sure the eggs aren’t cracked this time."
Trevor leaves their apartment. He looks at the staircase then the elevators. He sees a janitor's closet. He breaks the lock by bashing his cell phone over it and hides in the closet. He exhales. Then all of a sudden he clutches his face with his palm and tears stream from his eyes. Then he hears voices.
Eric Thompson Jr. - "Offline for 5 minutes…must have used some cheap crap from China."
Felicia Brooks - "Let's do this, already. I freakin' hate California during fall."
Trevor is about to kick the door out when the weird teleportation FX sounds off again.
DECEMBER 1, 2007
MONTREAL, CANADA
UNDAUNTED - in Heroes title font - graces across the panel.
INFLUENCE - PART ONE: DEJA VU - in Heroes title font - pasted on the rooftops
Trevor and Clara appear on the corner of Boulevard Saint-Laurent and Rue Saint-Jacque.
Trevor - "…"
Clara - "What?"
Trevor - "Uhhh…bikini?"
Clara sighs and walks away. Trevor looks around and reaches for his gun. He wonders for a second if all that really just happened or not. They pass by a row of warehouses.
Clara - "This one is 121."
The Symbol is above the doorway.
[Adam Monroe's room - Volume 2 "The Line"]
Trevor - "Must be down this way."
Trevor turns around and misses a bone protrusion as it crashes into the door of 121. The camera turns to look to see a man that looks like the one duplicated from Thanksgiving.
Trevor - "So much for discreet. Clara, go get me some back up."
Clara - "Screw that, give me your spare!"
Trevor - "What spare?"
Clara kicks Trevor in the shin and teleports away.
Trevor - "That was uncalled for."
Trevor barely dodges another shot. Trevor shoots. Keegan blocks the bullets with a bone protrusion shaped like a 3-D snowflake. He runs. Trevor chases. A woman stares at Trevor and his gun.
Trevor - "ll est britannique!"
A subtitle appears in the middle between Trevor and the woman. It reads - He's British!
Keegan runs into a dead end. He stares at the wall as Trevor catches up to him. Gun drawn on Keegan.
Keegan - "Well. Everyone's dead if you're here."
Trevor - "I get that a lot."
Keegan turns around to face Trevor.
Keegan - "Not anymore."
Camera zooms out. Bone protrusions erupt above the wall. Then nothing. Silence. Keegan looks out then runs away. Trevor appears out of nowhere and clotheslines him. Keegan holds his throat then looks up to shoot. The bone protrusions stop midway and start cracking then shatter. Keegan screams in pain. He kneels over and grasps his arm. Azuteor and Clara walk out from an alley. The tip of Trevor's gun touches his head gently. Keegan laughs.
Trevor - "He is handy."
Keegan - "If one continues along the same lines, the initial problem will recur infinitely and will never be solved."
[Dr. Michael Ridge - The Infinite Regress]
Trevor - "We are nothing like them."
Keegan - "Are you sure? The Company started with the best of intentions: protect their own kind. What was a few grew into a dozen, then hundreds. Somewhere along the way, they became corrupted…lost sight of their purpose. They destroyed the lives of those they once swore to protect. Despite everything that happened, here I am still staring down the barrel of a Company-issue gun, held by a fellow posthuman."
Trevor - "One can justify with a circular argument, but this sacrifices its validity."
[Hans Albert]
Keegan smiles.
Keegan - "Find The Mulligan."
[HSG, iStory Purpose]
Keegan gestures to attack Trevor. Trevor fires. Keegan drops to the ground.
Azuteor - "Who's The Mulligan?"
Trevor - "A new set of dominoes to play with."
Trevor twirls his gun and holsters it. Clara places her hands on Trevor and Azuteor’s shoulders. They teleport away. Snow begins to fall.
TO BE CONTINUED…
[Undaunted Part One but with a twist]
Peter Petrelli and Isaac Mendez consoling Simone Deveaux.
[Volume One "Parasite"]
DECEMBER 1, 2007
CLEARWATER, FLORIDA
The camera is zoomed out on a pristine white sands beach. A couple is lounging on it all by themselves. The woman lies on her stomach, in a bikini, flipping through a magazine. The man is buried behind a newspaper on a typical beach chair. We can see he is wearing a pork pie hat with a brightly colored madras plaid collar shirt. They are both wearing wedding rings. The camera tracks onto them and slowly zooms in. The couple is none other than Trevor Tanaka and Clara Zhang.
Clara - "I read this thing nine times already. When are we getting our drinks?"
Trevor - "18 minutes, 54 seconds. He takes that long for everyone."
[9th Wonders! - Nine - HERO]
Clara - "That's 18 minutes too long. You should have gotten an umbrella, too. The Sun is right on top of us."
Trevor - "Why? You look fine from here."
Clara - "You should use your super memory now because it's the first and last time you'll ever see me in a bikini."
Trevor frowns then huddles back into the newspaper. A waiter approaches them with two drinks on a platter. He places them in the tree stump stand between Trevor and Clara. The waiter pauses in front of Trevor.
Konrad - "Is there anything else I may get for you or your wife, Mr. Lee?"
Trevor is still hidden behind the newspaper.
Trevor - "Yes, there is something, Konrad. I hope you can help me with it."
Konrad - "Yes, of course, sir. We go above and beyond for our guests…"
Trevor - "Where’s Keegan?"
Konrad is surprised and looks around a few times.
Konrad - "… noui consilia et ueteres quaecumque monetis amici, "pone seram, cohibes." sed…"
Trevor - "quis custodiet ipsos custodies?"
[Satires of Juvenal - … I know the plan that my friends always advise me to adopt:
"Bolt her in, constrain her!" But who watches the watchers?”]
Konrad - "Corner of Boulevard Saint-Laurent and Rue Saint-Jacque. Room 126."
[Intersection from Volume 2 "The Line"]
Trevor - “Thank you.”
Konrad - "Didn't think someone from the gang would reach out so soon."
Trevor - "Me neither."
Konrad flinches. A silencer goes off. A bullet rips out from the newspaper and goes through Konrad's skull. Camera cuts away with an implied impact. Clara closes her magazine and stands up.
Clara - "Boys and their toys."
Clara reaches for her drink. Trevor stops her.
Trevor - "He could have duplicated one of them. Let's go."
[The Beginning of the End]
Clara - "Fiiiine."
They teleport away. Camera shifts to a bird's eye point of view. The Symbol forms in the white sand with Keegan’s head in the center.
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA
Clara and Trevor teleport into the mezzanine floor of the Zhang Family mansion. Trevor takes the ring off and tucks into his shirt pocket. He takes the other ring from Clara. He stares at it then quickly puts it away. Clara proceeds to go to her room. A servant appears.
Mr. Lee - "What shall I prepare for your lunch, Ms. Zhang?"
Clara is about to speak when Trevor interrupts.
Trevor - "Two peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Whole wheat. No crust."
Mr. Lee - "Very good, sir."
Mr. Lee walks away.
Clara - "What, you're digging through my trash now?"
Trevor - "Puh-lease. I go through everyone’s trash."
[Justice League Unlimited “Fearful Symmetry”]
Clara stomps out in front of him.
Clara - "Wait out here."
She closes the door on Trevor.
30 MINUTES LATER…
Trevor is still outside, holding a tray of two peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Clara opens her door with new clothes on. Trevor snaps out of it and Clara takes the sandwiches.
Clara - "Montreal?"
Trevor - "Montreal."
They are about to teleport away. The camera zooms in on Trevor. The teleportation FX makes a distorted sound. Trevor looks around confused. He is startled. Zoom out. He is at a desk in more formal clothing, with a file in his hand. Zoom out. He’s in a credit union, a hanging banner reads "2006."
SEPTEMBER 26, 2006
HONOLULU, HAWAI'I
Doug - "Trevor, did you finish your pass on the new loan request?"
Trevor - "Uhh…yeah, it's right here."
Doug - "Thanks. You okay, man? Looks like you got a bad case of déjà vu."
Trevor - "No, I'm alright. You'll see why when you read my report."
Doug - "Haha, gotcha. See ya."
Trevor - "Right."
Trevor looks at his computer for the date. He reclines back in his seat in disbelief.
Trevor gets off a bus and walks on the sidewalk. He looks up at a building and walks in. He opens an apartment door with one of his keys and walks in. He turns around to draw out the deadbolts.
Woman - "Trevor?"
Trevor turns around to see his fiancée, alive and well.
Trevor - "Tanya."
Tanya - "Trev, you look like you’ve seen a ghost."
Trevor pauses.
Trevor - "It was just a lot of new accounts, today."
Tanya - "Nothing you couldn't handle, right?"
She walks over and kisses him, then walks back into the living room. Trevor is still standing at the door.
Trevor - "Yeah."
Tanya - "What? C'mon. Are the insurance people still following you?"
Trevor - "24 times today…"
[Trevor's HSG bio/AT 2.0 file]
Tanya appears again with a piece of paper.
Tanya - "I forgot these at the market. Could you go get them for me? Please?"
Trevor shifts his eyes to the door and instinctively reaches for his gun but it isn’t there, yet. He smiles.
Trevor - "Sure. Do you have the Club Card or do I?"
Tanya - "They stopped using it in February. Are you sure you're okay, Trevor?"
She touches his forehead. Trevor hugs her.
Trevor - "I love you."
Tanya - "Love you, too…Trev. You're being weirder than weird, today."
Trevor - "It feels like I haven't been able to say it in a while, y'know?"
Tanya smiles and they kiss.
Tanya - "Make sure the eggs aren’t cracked this time."
Trevor leaves their apartment. He looks at the staircase then the elevators. He sees a janitor's closet. He breaks the lock by bashing his cell phone over it and hides in the closet. He exhales. Then all of a sudden he clutches his face with his palm and tears stream from his eyes. Then he hears voices.
Eric Thompson Jr. - "Offline for 5 minutes…must have used some cheap crap from China."
Felicia Brooks - "Let's do this, already. I freakin' hate California during fall."
Trevor is about to kick the door out when the weird teleportation FX sounds off again.
DECEMBER 1, 2007
MONTREAL, CANADA
UNDAUNTED - in Heroes title font - graces across the panel.
INFLUENCE - PART ONE: DEJA VU - in Heroes title font - pasted on the rooftops
Trevor and Clara appear on the corner of Boulevard Saint-Laurent and Rue Saint-Jacque.
Trevor - "…"
Clara - "What?"
Trevor - "Uhhh…bikini?"
Clara sighs and walks away. Trevor looks around and reaches for his gun. He wonders for a second if all that really just happened or not. They pass by a row of warehouses.
Clara - "This one is 121."
The Symbol is above the doorway.
[Adam Monroe's room - Volume 2 "The Line"]
Trevor - "Must be down this way."
Trevor turns around and misses a bone protrusion as it crashes into the door of 121. The camera turns to look to see a man that looks like the one duplicated from Thanksgiving.
Trevor - "So much for discreet. Clara, go get me some back up."
Clara - "Screw that, give me your spare!"
Trevor - "What spare?"
Clara kicks Trevor in the shin and teleports away.
Trevor - "That was uncalled for."
Trevor barely dodges another shot. Trevor shoots. Keegan blocks the bullets with a bone protrusion shaped like a 3-D snowflake. He runs. Trevor chases. A woman stares at Trevor and his gun.
Trevor - "ll est britannique!"
A subtitle appears in the middle between Trevor and the woman. It reads - He's British!
Keegan runs into a dead end. He stares at the wall as Trevor catches up to him. Gun drawn on Keegan.
Keegan - "Well. Everyone's dead if you're here."
Trevor - "I get that a lot."
Keegan turns around to face Trevor.
Keegan - "Not anymore."
Camera zooms out. Bone protrusions erupt above the wall. Then nothing. Silence. Keegan looks out then runs away. Trevor appears out of nowhere and clotheslines him. Keegan holds his throat then looks up to shoot. The bone protrusions stop midway and start cracking then shatter. Keegan screams in pain. He kneels over and grasps his arm. Azuteor and Clara walk out from an alley. The tip of Trevor's gun touches his head gently. Keegan laughs.
Trevor - "He is handy."
Keegan - "If one continues along the same lines, the initial problem will recur infinitely and will never be solved."
[Dr. Michael Ridge - The Infinite Regress]
Trevor - "We are nothing like them."
Keegan - "Are you sure? The Company started with the best of intentions: protect their own kind. What was a few grew into a dozen, then hundreds. Somewhere along the way, they became corrupted…lost sight of their purpose. They destroyed the lives of those they once swore to protect. Despite everything that happened, here I am still staring down the barrel of a Company-issue gun, held by a fellow posthuman."
Trevor - "One can justify with a circular argument, but this sacrifices its validity."
[Hans Albert]
Keegan smiles.
Keegan - "Find The Mulligan."
[HSG, iStory Purpose]
Keegan gestures to attack Trevor. Trevor fires. Keegan drops to the ground.
Azuteor - "Who's The Mulligan?"
Trevor - "A new set of dominoes to play with."
Trevor twirls his gun and holsters it. Clara places her hands on Trevor and Azuteor’s shoulders. They teleport away. Snow begins to fall.
TO BE CONTINUED…
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