<p=1>Columbia, Wrankwood Outskirts, Federal Nomadic Prison</>Columbia, Wrankwood Outskirts, Federal Nomadic Prison
<p=2>Two months later</>Two months later
Tippi
Molly, you've lost so much weight!
Moira
I did spend two whole months in bed.
Tippi
I went looking for you once the plate stopped. When I saw medics carrying you out all covered in blood, and you weren't moving, I thought you were dead...
Moira
His singing voice is... terrifying.
Moira
But he only wanted to stop me. He didn't want to kill me.
Moira
It definitely wasn't a coincidence that he bumped into Greta at the auction, like she said. He had another motive to join the film crew.
Tippi
And what was that?
Moira
He was looking for something that exists, something that's always with us, even though we know nothing about it.
Tippi
Okay... I knew he was a mysterious dude, but now I'm even more confused.
Tippi
I'm sorry for taking so long to come see you. Mostly because they make it a real pain to file a visitation application for this place.
Moira
I know, Tippi.
Moira
But I used you and caused others to misunderstand you...
Moira
Lucian was right. I was ignoring the truth in my hands. In my final moments of madness, I didn't even... think of you...
Tippi
Listen to me, Molly.
Tippi
No matter what you went through, no matter what your goal, you hurt the people who were by our side practically twenty-four seven. You're a criminal, and I won't ever forgive you for that!
Tippi
...But that doesn't mean I can't also miss the times we would crash on the sofa to watch horror flicks, just the two of us.
Tippi
Wasn't that fun? Wasn't that, like, real?
Moira
...Yeah.
Moira
When I was stuck in bed, my wounds hurt so bad I couldn't sleep. I kept recalling everything that happened...
Moira
A whole night would pass, but only my pain was real.
Moira
Honestly, it doesn't matter how absurd a story gets, or if we're all puppets of fate or whatever. It's not like I never had a choice.
Moira
If only I'd focused more on the movies we were watching, instead of thinking about the truth I thought was real—hatred, madness, blood, and puppets.
Moira
I'm sorry, Tippi.
Tippi
If I'd met you earlier, maybe you wouldn't have even needed 'Laura'.
Tippi
The final day of your trial's in two days, right? I talked to a few lawyers, and it seems like...
Moira
......
Tippi
......
Moira
Don't let my ending bother you.
Moira
The warden's nice here. He let me stay in the prison's logistics department during these last few days, to make stuff the prisoners can use.
Moira
I'm not living like I was before, merely waiting in vain for the finale.
Tippi
Good, good.
Moira
Haha, you're almost out of visiting time, so let's talk about happier stuff.
<p=1>Columbia, central Wrankwood, 'Avant-Garde Film Festival' venue</>Columbia, central Wrankwood, 'Avant-Garde Film Festival' venue
<p=2>One day ago</>One day ago
Tippi
Wow, everyone's here already! Sorry I'm late!
Steven
......
Greta
Nervous, Steven?
Steven
A bit.
Greta
Relax.
Greta
We shot that ridiculous finale, and then it went to editing, color grading, and music production... Everyone did their best to complete production in only two months.
Melanie
I'm glad we agreed on the title change, Steven.
Steven
I should be thanking you again for your final performance inside the Catastrophe. Otherwise, deleting those three words would've been nothing but pretentious navel-gazing.
Melanie
Lady Dupont is by no means as attention-grabbing as The Death of Lady Dupont, but let Greta worry about the marketing... There is no doubt in my mind that our new title suits the story best.
Greta
Right, I'll handle it.
Greta
I'll get Lady Dupont into theaters...
Excited Reporter A
Pinch me. I'm not seeing things, am I?
Excited Reporter B
Pinch you? Just snap your shutter already! This is guaranteed to go on the front page tomorrow!
Excited Reporter B
How did the niche AGFF attract such a distinguished guest? How much did the organizers spend?
Excited Reporter A
How many years has it been since Marianne Blake showed up in Wrankwood?
Jara
......
Tippi
Grandma Jara!
Jara
It's been a while, Tip.
Jara
Judging by your outfit... let me guess what your role in this was. Script supervisor? Prop master? Stuntwoman? Or some kind of 'Furniture City Warrior'?
Tippi
Background painter, of course!
Tippi
I've been in this crew for half a year, and was even selected to join the Wrankwood studio plate restoration project last week!
Tippi
The plate our crew rented got totally wrecked by the Catastrophe, so the boss put me in charge of the design work once it's rebuilt, and I've been, like, soooo busy...
Jara
Haha, I see you've finally figured out what you want to do.
Tippi
I told you before, didn't I? I love movies, every last part of them!
Tippi
And now, I finally found out what my favorite part is!
Jara
So, you don't plan on going back?
Tippi
Hehe, think you could keep shielding me from the old man?
Jara
Tip, your grandfather may be an old friend of mine who used to be my finest partner in the industry, but that doesn't mean he'll let me tell him how to raise his grandkids.
Tippi
Just tell him this the next time you have tea with him:
Tippi
'We're all retired, aren't we, old chap? Why waste our time worrying about the little things?'
Tippi
'I know Tip didn't use any of your contacts, nor did she follow your plan to become a historical film director, but isn't she living it up in Wrankwood?'
Tippi
'Who knows, half the backdrops in town might be spray-painted by your granddaughter one day!'
Jara
Alright, I recorded all that. I'll play it for him the next time we meet.
Tippi
...Aw, Grandma Jara!
Jara
Fine, fine. But I might not have the time to see your grandpa the next time I'm in Columbia.
Tippi
Oh yeah, didn't you go all the way to Rim Billiton for some fresh air? Did you come back for Rhine Lab stuff?
Jara
That's too many questions, Tip.
Jara
Once the screening's done, I have to head over to Max D.C. to see the vice president…
Melanie
Long time no see, Marianne.
Jara
Just call me Jara.
Jara
After so many years away from the silver screen, 'Marianne' sounds like a stranger's name to me.
Melanie
Either way, I have to thank you... Jara.
Melanie
I'm sure you know that given my current reputation, I don't have much of an influence in the industry anymore.
Melanie
So without your help, the AGFF would never have allowed Lady Dupont as a late submission.
Jara
It was my pleasure.
Melanie
Though, I must say, I had no idea that Tippi was actually—
Jara
I would have helped you with or without her.
Jara
I just watched the part with the Catastrophe, and felt it'd be such a pity for the audience to miss out on the actress's performance. So I thought I'd do an old friend a favor.
Melanie
......
Jara
But even if Lady Dupont gets free marketing at AGFF, that doesn't always translate into box office numbers.
Jara
Melanie, you know better than I that if Wrankwood were a person, he would be the most forgetful and least-tolerant person there is.
Jara
...It's no guarantee that he'd accept a lover running back into his arms.
Jara
Besides, you did destroy an entire plate. Even if the film's a smash hit, you might not make enough to pay for the damages.
Melanie
At least I did it. And I have no regrets.
Melanie
But rather than mulling over all that, I'd like to... ask you a question.
Jara
Go ahead.
Melanie
When you encountered a Catastrophe while shooting The Eternally Shining Star, the camera caught you as the storm nearly missed you...
Melanie
Was it just an accident, like you said at the press conference, or...
Melanie
Did you also move toward it of your own will?
Jara
......
Jara
Is the answer to that still important to you, even now?
Melanie
......
Melanie
Hahahaha. No.
Melanie
*sigh* It sure is hard to say if I really did beat you in the end!
The splendidly dressed female lead laughs heartily before every camera in the room, though she does not even know what she is laughing at.
After a long time, she opens her arms towards her former rival, the genius she always thought she would never catch up to, the one she had always exchanged polite greetings with on camera, for a hug...
I heard about what happened behind the scenes—the murders, the Catastrophe, even the project management was a mess.
Audience Member B
So before I sat down to watch it, I thought the film couldn't possibly live up to all that. But...
Audience Member B
An absurd noble's marriage breakdown ending with a Catastrophe—the plot twists made sense, but so many of the characters were just bizarre...
Audience Member B
It's hard to say if it's good or bad, but it's a lot to chew on.
Audience Member A
Same, to be honest.
Audience Member A
Story aside, even the production was pretty controversial. Like, the cinematography is inconsistent at times...
Audience Member A
The first part was shot meticulously like a serious historical drama, but it becomes rougher and rougher towards the end, especially the Catastrophe scenes, where it's totally filmed like a documentary!
Audience Member A
It's definitely going to be polarizing. The fans will rate it highly, while the haters are going to hate it.
Audience Member B
But that's what makes it interesting, isn't it?
Audience Member B
Wrankwood's been getting more and more boring over the years, and that goes for AGFF films too...
Audience Member B
But this one? I'd buy a ticket to Lady Dupont.
Audience Member A
Let's see what the director and cast have to say during the post-screening round table.
Audience Member A
Oh yeah, I heard that unlucky-looking gal in the front worked on it too...
Hautin
Hoo boy... My luck is awful.
Hautin
After a month of applications, I finally landed a spot as their last stagehand, but then all of that happened the moment I arrived on set. I lost so much sleep after running into those corpses...
Hautin
And if it weren't for the insomnia, I wouldn't have kicked the wall with my mind all messed up, and broken my leg when I was trying to follow everyone down to safety when the Catastrophe came near...
Hautin
And if I didn't break my leg, I wouldn't have missed my bus and missed the first half of the screening...
The unlucky stagehand mutters to herself as the credits roll. She recalls her experience and cannot help but feel sorrowful about it all.
Even the images on the screen feel strange to her. The familiar faces and scenes have all been assembled in a way she cannot understand...
Just like her 'topsy-turvy' life.
Then, she spots her name at the end of the credits.
Hautin
'Stage Department: Hautin'...
No matter how the hand of fate may change, it will eventually leave a line, a truth you believe in.
It's over. Aren't you taking part in the post-screening round table?
Lucian
I'm not with them. Besides... the two of you are here.
Playwright
Hah, true enough.
Playwright
Yes, it was wonderful... Be it the film itself or otherwise.
Shalem
Lucian...
Lucian
Hm?
Shalem
Is he dead for good this time?
Shalem
Or is he still alive somehow?
Lucian
I'd have to think about that.
Lucian
But all you need to know, Shalem, is that you won't have to worry about shadows from the past invading your dreams—even when you're on Rhodes Island—ever again.
Lucian
And Playwright, you may write your scripts as you wish. About any topic, in any style.
Lucian
The Crimson Troupe is no more. You two are free.
Shalem
......
Playwright
......
Playwright
And you?
Playwright
You just said you'd have to think about his ending—which means you're stuck on that path, correct?
Playwright
'Drama never dies'... So is the one sitting beside me right now no longer 'Blood Diamond', but 'Tragodia'?
It could be a new troupe or a new proposition, new adventures and new stories. Or, a more dazzling tomorrow, a more tragic truth...
Shalem
......
Playwright
......
Playwright
Hey, Shalem. We're all buddies here... would you like to lend him a hand?
Shalem
Lucian, a-are you sure about this?
Lucian
Of course.
Lucian
Those who've lost themselves in their haste. The ascetics who've closed off their senses and their selves. The laypeople who trudge through both highs and lows. And the creatures who chew on their pain.
