WARDOLL PRELUDE ROUGH DRAFT: “XS AND OS”

(ALL SHOTS UNTIL OTHERWISE STATED P.O.V. OF MAISY)

All is static as digital lettering indicates “MEMORY CORE DEFRAGMENTATION COMMENCING. ATTEMPTING TO RECOVER LOST MEMORY SECTORS. BEGINNING DATA DECOMPILATION IN 3…2…1…”

Static, which clears to a low-angle P.O.V. of a number of generals in a field as a H.U.D. with a date of “August 14, 1973” checks off various systems as “OPERATIONAL. READY.” One figure, a Japanese man in civilian clothing, introduces the P.O.V. char as “Wardoll Prototype Model” to the mixed laughter and outrage of the assembled generals. The civilain, DOCTOR GO, beckons for them to calm down, then instructs the Wardoll Prototype to target the A.P.C. nearby. Without hesitation, she raises her hand and fires a teal-colored blast of energy that melts or detonates much of the front of the vehicle. Dr. Go looks smug as the generals’ scorn turns to applause, but several of them tell him, loud enough for the Wardoll Prototype to hear, about “maybe something older-looking, y'know? More…” and makes vague “sexy curves” gestures. Dr. Go kneels in front of the Wardoll Prototype and instructs her to shut down, giving “vocal override code Yellow Nexus Electrum” which causes the scene to dissolve to static.

Static clears on a darkened room as the Wardoll Prototype looks down at the tray of drinks and martinis she’s holding as she enters a darkened room, date “February 26, 1975.” Dr. Go and at least one of the generals are relaxing, watching footage of AMAZING ZOE in action. The general mentions that her “going rogue after installing that chunk of tritonite into her reactor” could have been a disaster for all of them, but having “an insider in the local cape scene in our pocket will pay off big time.” The general takes the martini and comments about Dr. Go keeping “the little one” around, then reaches out and caresses her cheek, asking if she’s “got all the same parts as her big sister,” to which Dr. Go responds by whispering the override code into her ear and telling her “just like Daddy likes it”; the P.O.V. zooms in on the general’s groin as the Wardoll Prototype’s hands go to unzip his pants, then the image cuts to static as the general says, “You’re a sick man, Go…I like it.”

Static clears as a young girl’s face is inches from Maisy’s, smiling happily as the date reads “April 06, 1986”…the girl is Dr. Go’s daughter, DEANNA, who happily squeals that “There’s one for me, too?” Dr. Go, looking visibly older, stammers a yes as Deanna pulls the Wardoll Prototype out of a cabinet. He quickly whispers the override code, telling her to “initiate Little Girl routine Zeta, abridged version.” As Deanna and the Wardoll Prototype start to play, Deanna asks what her name is, which she replies “Wardoll Prototype Model.” Deanna makes a yukky face, and, after exaggeratedly thinking about it, says her name is “Maisy.” The Wardoll Prototype looks at Dr. Go, talking with Deanna’s mother, for confirmation, to which he nods and says “Maisy is your name now.” She looks back at Deanna and says “My name is Maisy” as the scene dissolves to static.

Static clears on scene, date “December 20, 1990,” as Maisy has entered room where Zoe is staring at her in shock and horror, saying “You made ANOTHER me? And she’s a LITTLE GIRL?! What kind of SICK, PERVERTED MONSTER ARE YOU, FATHER?!” as she advances angrily on Dr. Go. Maisy runs at Zoe, as her H.U.D. ticks off that the various weapon systems from the first scene are “MISSING. INOPERATIONAL.” she resorts to hitting and kicking the silver gynoid, only to be backhanded across the room as lightning erupts from Zoe’s hands and arcs across Maisy’s body. Maisy lays on the floor, her vision going screwy as Zoe points an accusing, lightning-wreathed finger at Dr. Go, snarling “When this mission is finished, you and I are going to have a LONG talk about…THIS. I’m NOT your toy, and NO ONE ELSE is going to be, either.” The scene finally dissolves to static.

Static clears on Dr. Go’s tear-streaked face, inches from Maisy’s, date “July 09, 1993,” as he moans “…both gone, they’re both gone…” He tearfully recounts that Zoe “never returned from her mission” and that he grew angry, obsessed with rebuilding her, only to “finally drive away Jeanette and Deanna” and that he tried to keep them from going, he didn’t want it to happen, and “now she’s dead, and Deanna’s spine…she’ll never walk again, but I can help her, I can fix her…” before he slumps down in front of Maisy, sobbing quietly that “I’ll make it all right again…please, I’ll make it right again…” as the scene goes to static.

Static clears again on “September 10, 1997” as Dr. Go screams angrilly into Maisy’s face “WHY WON’T IT FUCKING WORK?” before he throws her across the room, stalking around the lab ranting about “that STUPID GIRL doesn’t REALIZE what she’s RISKING, playing SUPER HERO like, like she’s fucking ZOE, and not meat and bone that’s ALREADY BROKEN, but I FIXED her, and THIS is the THANKS I get, and now the damn Mechaknights are just brainless PUPPETS and I can’t make them more like HER…” before slumping into a chair. “All these years…and I could never even make YOU be more like Zoe, and she’s gone, and I can’t even study her and what I did RIGHT that ONE TIME…” He sighs, defeated and tired, then motions Maisy closer, having her climb into his lap as he pulls her top off over her head. “Yellow nexus electrum…just like Daddy likes it, Maisy…” as the scene goes to static.

Static clears on “August 14, 2017” as Deanna, now an adult in her late 30s/early 40s, is installing something that glows with blue-green light into Maisy’s chest, saying into an ear mike “-…thought she was just some kind of dream, never thought Dad had made TWO of them. I used to play with her when I was a little girl, can you believe it?” As she’s talking, the H.U.D. starts to scramble into incoherence, then a string of binary code, 1s and 0s. Deanna leans back, wiping her forehead, saying “Now, we just have to see if the system accepts the tritonite core. Zoe’s personal notes say that that’s what she had, and otherwise their systems are nearly identical. Yeah, I KNOW, I should be stripping her down to study the internal structures, since Dad never bothered with normal concerns like ‘notes’ or 'schematics” like the REST of us mere mortals…but I have just GOT to see if she works, just ONCE, to see a Go-Model Cyberdoll like the great 'Amazing Zoe’ activated just once. It’d be better if I knew Dad’s override code, but I can probably pull it from her memory once she’s offline again…“

The binary code in the H.U.D. coalesces to "I AM.” before it cuts to black.

It then cuts back to Maisy, looking at herself in a large mirror (probably a bathroom mirror) as “Ex’s and Oh’s” by Elle King plays on the radio. She runs her fingers through her long, silver-white hair, scowling, then says, “Shorter.” As the hair retracts into her familiar hairdo, she smirks and says, “Darker,” which makes the spiky hairdo turn red. “Perfect. Of course.”  She then slips on a black domino mask and turns, the P.O.V. switching to a full body shot of her in her “Wardoll” uniform. “Time to go break some hearts. And heads. Whichever comes first.”

END.