THE NEBULOUS SAGA
PART FOUR: BARD OF THE INTERSTELLAR
Dolion and Jesse arrive at Interstellar, on Holuvian, to meet Jesse’s contact. Kalopsia tells Dolion the truth about wishing-stardust. Jesse attempts to escape, leaving Dolion more desperate than ever to find the legendary treasure.
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NEXT WEEK:
Blinded by desperation, Dolion pursues Kalopsia to a nearby moon orbiting Holuvian. Their confrontation is upstaged by the arrival of a common enemy – which threatens to make all Dolion’s efforts for naught. In the heat of the moment, they realize that they are not alone on the moon…can any of them make it out alive?
--
The Nebulous Saga was written by Jane Maree, and produced by Magnus Carlssen.
Casting courtesy of Shogo Miyakita.
Part Three soundtrack courtesy of Epidemic Sound.
Sound design by H.M. Radcliff.
Cover art by Kirk DouPonce.
Part Two cast, in order of appearance:
Reginald West, as the Ancient One
Magnus Carlssen, as the Narrator
Rhys Lawton, as Captain Peter Dolion
Michael Malconian, as Jesse Keiffer
Aud Andrews, as the BARD
Tali De Assis, as Kalopsia
Shogo Miyakita, as Cookie
TRANSCRIPT:
EXT - TRADING POST "INTERSTELLAR", HOLUVIAN - NIGHT
DOLION and JESSE KEIFFER disembark from the NEBULA onto a
docking platform. The Holuvian space-port, like some Earth
air-ports features an enormous vaulted, glass-like roof,
providing a panoramic view of the planet's twin suns.
Lining the central thoroughfare of the port are dozens of
seedy-looking shops, offering any ship supply or service one
can imagine. The array of glowing digital signboards, hanging
like flags from the front of each shop, gives one the feeling
of being the bull chasing the matador.
The place is a dizzying, fever-dream experience.
At the end of the thoroughfare is a massive force-field
portal, shimmering in the reflection of starlight globes that
surround it. Like the Nebula, the port operates with no
atmosphere, but the city itself is bounded by an enormous
force-field shield, which contains the artificial atmosphere.
Thanks to the lack of atmosphere in the port, it is eerily
quiet; the only sound the men hear is the pounding of their
own hearts in their ears.
Dolion keys his radio.
CAPTAIN DOLION (CONT'D)
A bard here sells stardust?
PETER DOLION (NARRATOR)
I tug my top hat low and flip up my
collar, adjusting my oxygen mask as
I scan the dock.
Mister Kieffer drops from the rope
ladder hanging from the Nebula’s
railing.
JESSE KEIFFER
Aye.
PETER DOLION (NARRATOR)
Maskless, he’s only a little
breathless in the oxygenless
Holuvian atmosphere.
It’s risky to let a prisoner be my
guide, but Kieffer says he can get
me to the stardust guardian. If his
stardust can grant me one wish,
it’s worth any risk.
His parents supposedly used
stardust to wish him the ability to
breathe without oxygen, so he is
proof these wishes work.
I can wish my parents alive again.
JESSE KEIFFER
Ready?
PETER DOLION (NARRATOR)
Kieffer smirks, but his eyes betray
bitterness.
I nod and we step through the
subtle shimmer of the oxygen seal
into the Interstellar city.
Voices mingle with the buzz of
machinery. Sail-jets swoop
overhead. Footsteps scuff the grey
Holuvian dust. I keep my head
bowed, unsure whether the news has
been broadcast here yet.
JESSE KEIFFER
This is what the trade ring sounded
like before...
PETER DOLION (NARRATOR)
Kieffer’s voice holds barelycontained
bitterness.
Before I blew it into space dust.
But the Alliance is responsible for
the destruction, not me. Because
they made me who I am - Peter
Dolion, the notorious pirate
captain.
I pocket my mask and pinch some
pin-powder from a hidden pouch. My
compass is wired to track this
microchip powder to the other end
of the galaxy if necessary.
In case this bard refuses to
bargain. Let him try to run from me
and thwart my plans.
JESSE KEIFFER
Here.
PETER DOLION (NARRATOR)
Kieffer ducks into a pub.
The minty hint of Holuvian-style
rum stings my nostrils. I pause
within the doorway, swamped by
discordant noise. One voice leads
the rest in a rowdy shanty, and I
scan the room until I find the
source. A bard sits on the end of
the bar, lute in hand.
I start forward, but Kieffer stops
me.
JESSE KEIFFER
Not him.
CAPTAIN DOLION
(GROWLING)
What do you mean? You said --
JESSE KEIFFER
I said a bard at the Interstellar.
B.A.R.D. is an acronym. 'Beyond Any
Reasonable Doubt.' Peddlers use it
when we're not sure exactly who the
client is.
PETER DOLION (NARRATOR)
I grab his collar.
CAPTAIN DOLION
You don't know who it is?
JESSE KEIFFER
I've heard enough descriptions.
PETER DOLION (NARRATOR)
Kieffer frees himself and turns
toward a table in the corner.
A woman in traveler’s garb looks up
from her stew as we approach. Her
green eyes flick between us, and
she raises her eyebrows.
I sit across from her without
invitation. Her hand drops beneath
the table and I reach for the gun
beneath my tailcoat.
JESSE KEIFFER
I'm Jesse Keiffer.
PETER DOLION (NARRATOR)
My prisoner-turned-guide offers his
hand toward the woman. She eyes
him, then shakes his hand.
KALOPSIA
Kalopsia.
PETER DOLION (NARRATOR)
She looks at me.
KALOPSIA
What are you doing here?
PETER DOLION (NARRATOR)
From the tone, I guess she
recognizes me.
CAPTAIN DOLION
I come to barter for wishing
stardust.
KALOPSIA
No.
CAPTAIN DOLION
I'm simply being polite. If you
won’t sell me your stardust, I will
take it.
PETER DOLION (NARRATOR)
Kalopsia doesn't flinch.
KALOPSIA
I don't sell to pirates. Even ones
in top hats.
CAPTAIN DOLION
I don't think you understand --
KALOPSIA
What would you wish for?
PETER DOLION (NARRATOR)
She leans forward, gaze pinning me.
I lean forward too, trembling hands
clenched.
CAPTAIN DOLION
I'd wish my parents alive again.
PETER DOLION (NARRATOR)
She sags back and a grimace quirks
the corner of her mouth.
KALOPSIA
You cannot undo the past, Dolion.
You can only wish something new for
the future.
PETER DOLION (NARRATOR)
My heart rends. It can’t be. This
was my hope, my second chance, and
now she tells me I can’t?
FLASHBACK. Time slows to nothing. The cacophony of the
cantina dissolves.
In a brutal instant, I see my past
clearly: a boy and his desperate
parents. Part of a pirate crew
fleeing the Alliance’s hunters,
with only two choices - make our
hunters fear us, or be killed.
My parents couldn’t endure life as
fugitives. They slowed me down.
I killed them.
If I can’t change the past, I can
only continue to punish the
Alliance for making their deaths
necessary. And punish them, I will.
The room jerks back to life with a deafening roar.
PETER DOLION (NARRATOR) (CONT'D)
I thrust my finger at Kalopsia.
CAPTAIN DOLION
You'll regret making me your enemy.
PETER DOLION (NARRATOR)
While she glowers at me, I slip a
pinch of tracking powder into her
stew.
I give Kalopsia a final glare and
sweep from the room.
EXT - ENTRANCE TO THE HOLUVIAN DOCKS - NIGHT
PETER DOLION (NARRATOR) (CONT'D)
Kieffer catches up to me at the
docks as I fish for my mask in my
pocket. He steps in front of me,
barring the way.
JESSE KEIFFER
You can't kill her.
CAPTAIN DOLION
I won't if she doesn't get in my
way.
PETER DOLION (NARRATOR)
Even if she’s right, I still have
one wish for the future: death to
the Alliance.
Kieffer grabs my throat, heaving me
toward the shimmering edge of the
oxygen seal. I struggle for my gun,
but a cold tingle touches the back
of my head and I fight to stay
inside the city’s oxygen.
JESSE KEIFFER
(QUAVERING)
You killed my parents too.
PETER DOLION (NARRATOR)
Fear clutches my gut. I can see my
own hatred in Kieffer’s eyes.
JESSE KEIFFER
Killing you will just turn me into
you, but I won’t play your game
anymore.
PETER DOLION (NARRATOR)
He releases me and runs.
I stumble, gasping for breath, but
he’s already vanished into the
streets. What...just happened? He
could have killed me, but
instead...he’s gone to warn
Kalopsia.
Did he see me lace her stew? Will
he stop her from leading me
straight to the stardust? I curse
and turn back to the Nebula,
tugging my mask on.
INT - THE PIRATE SHIP NEBULA - NIGHT
DOLION bursts through the force-field of the NEBULA's deck,
tearing off his mask, and makes a beeline for the bridge.
COOKIE intercepts him at the boarding ladder.
PETER DOLION (NARRATOR) (CONT'D)
The gentle ship’s cook meets me
aboard, concern creasing his brow.
COOKIE
You get the stardust?
PETER DOLION (NARRATOR)
I withdraw my star-compass, praying
that Kieffer hasn’t ruined all. The
needle swings for a moment, then
steadies. I look up and spot a
sail-jet exiting the atmosphere.
CAPTAIN DOLION
I will.
PETER DOLION (NARRATOR)
The words grate in my sore throat,
and Kieffer’s parting words
resonate. If his vengeance would
turn him into me...what has mine
turned me into?
I shove the thoughts away, and
whisper to the past,
CAPTAIN DOLION
(WHISPERING)
This is for you.
PETER DOLION (NARRATOR)
But when I try to visualize my
parents, all I see is their
bloodied faces.
I close my eyes and curse the
Alliance, another crack forming in
my splintering heart.
CAPTAIN DOLION
I will avenge you.