Strange Angel (2018) s02e02 Episode Script

1 I might have another solution.
Why not move the Agape here? What about your father-in-law? VIRGIL: The last time anyone saw you, you nearly flew a plane into Jack Parsons.
Do you still carry that same animosity in your heart? [GRUNTING.]
Jack Parsons means nothing to me! Why don't we put all the prospects to a vote and it has to be unanimous.
Meaning Jack can exclude anyone he wants.
SUSAN: Jack's so busy with work, I'd likely be voting on his behalf.
SUSAN: Let me put it another way.
Until you're ready, you won't be able to participate.
Who gets to decide if I'm ready? GERTRUDE: I assumed Marisol was something that you just needed to get out of your system.
Even your father dated a Jewess once.
Who are you talking to? No one.
I'll fix us up some drinks.
AGENT WALLACE: Mr.
Parsons is reporting back to an occultist named Aleister Crowley.
- You're aware of that, correct? - I don't know anything about Aleister Crowley.
We need to know if he's still in touch with his pro-German contacts in the U.
S.
and if they're planning anything.
I already told you, I don't know.
And I rave and I rape, and I rip and I rend.
Everlasting world without end.
[APPLAUSE.]
[POUNDING ON DOOR.]
Isn't everybody here already? Long time no see, Jack.
ERNEST [WHISPERING.]
: "Memoria hospitis unius diei praetereuntis" "Memoria hospitis unius diei praetereuntis" I'd begun to think I'd never see you again.
You've been gone from us for over two years.
I never planned on coming back.
Then why have you? [INHALES, EXHALES DEEPLY.]
I know my true path, now.
I need you to help me take the final steps.
And what steps are those? You know.
You speak of dangerous Magic.
Before I help you move forward on your path, I need to know where you've been.
I've been everywhere and nowhere.
Sit.
I'd hit a dead end in L.
A.
, so I had to go traveling the world in search of answers.
I looked for the master in London, but the city was under siege.
I even went to the room in Cairo and sat where the angel Aiwass visited Crowley and gave him The Book of the Law.
And I heard of this paradise in Morocco [EXHALES.]
Tangier.
An entire city living under the same code as the Agape.
Where love and freedom reign.
And what happened there? That's not important.
What's important is what happened to me when I left.
In the deserts outside the city, where my destiny was laid bare.
[DOOR OPENING.]
After a long journey, Frater E.
D.
has returned with an incredible revelation.
He seeks the guidance of his Magus and shall receive it.
Not if I have anything to say about it.
He tried to take my fucking head off with a plane.
If I wanted you dead, you wouldn't still be sitting there.
This is my house.
I shouldn't have to bend to his will.
When you invited us to move in this became our home.
Frater E.
D.
requires guidance and rest.
He stays until he receives both.
"Love is the law.
" ALL: Love under will.
Love under will.
I thought you'd be on my side about this.
SUSAN: There are no "sides," Jack.
We need to trust our Magus, otherwise, what are we doing here? Ernest nearly sabotaged us once before, and that was when we didn't have anything to our name.
But now? Can you imagine? I know the pressure you're under is tremendous.
The need for all that secrecy is bound to put anyone on edge.
One could argue he's the reason we have all this.
And he could just as easily be the reason it all goes away.
[JAZZ MUSIC PLAYING OVER RADIO.]
[MUSIC BOX PLAYING.]
[MUSIC BOX CONTINUES PLAYING.]
[INDISTINCT CHATTER NEARBY.]
[GASPS.]
Does this belong to you? [EXHALES.]
Don't touch.
[CHANTING NEARBY.]
[CHANTING CONTINUES.]
[CHANTING IN SANSKRIT.]
You could join them if you want.
[CHANTING CONTINUES.]
SUSAN: I thought I'd make breakfast for everyone.
You don't have to.
I know.
I want to.
[CHANTING.]
- [OPERA MUSIC PLAYING.]
- Since you seem intent on turning this home of yours into its own little Eden, we should talk about the serpent living amongst us.
I agree.
I was surprised you let him stay so quickly.
No.
I was referring to your sister.
She's bound to see some things she shouldn't, especially with the first mass coming up.
I've set ground rules.
She won't be a problem.
But what about Frater E.
D.
? We carefully chose everyone here, trying to achieve a certain harmony Are these your misgivings, or your husband's? We have talked about this.
- It's not the same.
- It's exactly the same.
Our brother has journeyed as far as a man's faith can take him.
I need to assess the truth of his claims, and will not be limited by another's fears.
The house should still have a say in whether or not he's allowed to stay.
[CHUCKLES.]
You've made a bit of a mess.
We agreed.
So they shall.
When the time is right, we'll put it to a vote.
You feel the need to remain in control, but you need to let go.
[GASPS.]
After all I am your Magus.
It's like I'm living back with Virgil being given all these rules, constantly being told what to do.
I'm sure that's very aggravating for you.
[TRAIN WHISTLE BLOWS.]
I knew you would understand.
That's why I thought maybe you'd be willing to talk to her.
What? I've never seen that car here before.
So? What do you think? For the last time, I'm not gonna go against Susan on this.
You're her sister.
God, seems like all you do is listen to other people.
Susan your Magus.
She also seems to hang on his every word.
I know what you're trying to do.
What? Getting dolled up like that, trying to make me jealous.
It's not gonna work.
Who says I did all this for you? It's for all the new military boys.
I thought I'd make a good first impression.
You know we're at war, right? Yeah, so? So stockings are rationed.
You're gonna offend the very people you're trying to impress.
[ROOSTER CROWING.]
[BIRD CAWING.]
Hello, ma'am.
My name is Richard Onsted.
I'm a friend of Marisol.
[SPEAKING SPANISH.]
I'd like to speak with her father, please.
[DOOR CLOSES.]
[SPEAKING SPANISH.]
- You want me to sit? - Yes.
[SPEAKING SPANISH.]
Okay.
Uh, are you going to go get him, or? Yes, yes ALFRED: There is no grace.
There is no guilt.
This is the law.
Do what thou wilt.
Tell me what preceded your vision? I was standing on the edge of the abyss.
There were only two roads open to me.
I chose the more difficult.
ALFRED: And that is when the angel appeared? Three days and three nights, nothing came.
The world was silent, but my mind was as loud as ever.
ALFRED: And on the fourth? ERNEST: An angel of fire appeared to me.
Told me its name.
Filled me with its power.
And I knew peace for the first time in my life.
And then what? As quickly as it came, it disappeared.
Left me engulfed in an unquenchable rage.
I need to see it again.
I need you to help me.
- I am trying.
- Well, try harder.
I want you to go further back.
Before the working itself.
Why? - Sometimes - [GRUNTING.]
the revelations are more than just through ritual, but through the experiences leading up to it.
- [CRYING OUT.]
- Drawing blood from the sigil reactivates its power.
It's not working.
Keep focused.
Tell me what happened to you in Tangier.
Stop! I sense we are close.
I'm as far away as I've ever been.
MAN [OVER RADIO.]
: In a report from our man on the scene, Joseph Collins comes to us from Crossville internment camp near Knoxville, Tennessee.
He interviewed Colonel James Allen.
Colonel Allen describes our German and Italian POWs [PHONE RINGING.]
Psst.
This is for Mr.
Parsons.
Apparently I'm no longer authorized to go in there.
- Yes, ma'am.
- Thank you, Private.
Is Braxton here yet? Tell me when he arrives.
- How? - Use the intercom.
And what'd I tell you about those stockings? I'm sorry if I offended you.
[JAZZ MUSIC PLAYING OVER RADIO.]
[PEOPLE MURMURING.]
WOMAN: Ugh.
That's his wife's sister.
[SPEAKING SPANISH.]
Oh, that's okay.
I have a whole day of work in front of me.
We're just coming off our shift.
Richard Onsted, you were saying? Yes, I-I was saying I'm sorry for stopping by unannounced.
You sure you don't want some? No, thank you.
I wanted to speak to you in person.
You say you're a friend of Marisol's? [SPEAKING SPANISH.]
[CHUCKLES.]
: Yes, I-I thought perhaps she would've told you about me.
Well, in any case, I've come here to ask for your blessing.
My blessing? For Marisol's hand in marriage.
I imagine you may be a little wary.
[CHUCKLES.]
: I mean, a stranger comes in here Well, I can assure you, I run a small well, midsize company called Aerojet, and we've had some real success, so rest assured, I-I will be a good provider.
- Did she send you? - Marisol? No.
No, that's-that's not really how it works.
Unless it's different where you come from.
You see, I-if I had told her, that I was coming here to ask for your blessing, well, then, the-the whole surprise of the proposal would be ruined.
[SPEAKING SPANISH.]
Tell you what.
How much is my blessing worth to you? Sir? I wouldn't really feel right - paying for such a thing.
- Why not? You come into my home, bragging about running a midsize company and all that.
Sir, I love your daughter very much.
I don't have a daughter.
Marisol is dead to me.
And you will be, too, if you don't get out of my house.
[SPEAKING SPANISH.]
- [DOOR SLAMS OPEN.]
- [ALVARITA SPEAKING SPANISH.]
Hang on.
It's okay.
This clearly was a bad idea.
No, I need to ask a favor.
Could you give this to Marisol for me next time you see her? I've enlisted, and I'll be shipping out soon.
Ask her to pray for me.
NICO: Matias.
[SPEAKING SPANISH.]
ERNEST: They're letting me stay.
Don't know how long for.
Seems Jack still bears a grudge.
And what of Patty? Not a follower yet.
Thank goodness.
Susan is lost to me, but Patty could still be saved.
She's young and impressionable.
I fear for what could happen.
I know it must be difficult keeping up this lie, but you must somehow persevere.
On my urging, the D.
A.
has held off filing charges against you so long as you prove helpful to my cause.
H-How, exactly? Well, you can start by giving me the names and personal details of everyone living there.
The Church wields a great deal of power out in the world, but inside the walls of that house, its powers are limited.
I need ammunition.
What if I'm caught? Voted out of the house? Well, you owe a debt for your crimes.
Not just to me, but to society, so if you cannot fulfill the task that I have given you, then prison is the only way that debt can be paid.
You must do whatever you can to win Jack and the others over.
RICHARD: Based on the size of the missile and the resulting explosion, we've estimated the payload to be about one ton.
But this footage is at least six months old, so who knows how close they are to having a working prototype.
But now that we have this film, you could produce your own version of the V-2.
Hypothetically, we could build a long-range missile to match Von Braun's, but with just this film to go on, one major issue remains.
We can't see what's on the inside.
We have no idea what fuel they're using, the guidance system, how they're controlling the combustion.
- We'd need more time.
- No, we don't have it.
This war is gonna be won on sheer firepower.
You come up short, we come up short.
There is one thing that'd help push us along.
Name it.
A meeting with the POW who stole the footage.
A man who's been inside Von Braun's operation is bound to have seen things that would be invaluable to our team.
He's still being debriefed by Army Intelligence.
I can pass along any information With all due respect, General, for what we need, I doubt they'd even know the right questions to ask.
How's it going, Walter? Great.
Not only will this mass harness the power of the group, but we'll also harness the power of the elements.
Air, earth, fire and water.
Assuming we can get someone to fix the fountain.
Can I help you with something? What are you doing here? Who are you? What's going on? I think someone's watching me.
Who? [GLASS CLINKING.]
ERNEST: Keep staring.
You're not gonna find the answers.
That food's for the people who live here.
You still don't get it, do you? I was never gonna hurt you with that plane.
I was trying to help you wake up.
From what? "Awake from a dream, the truth is known:" "awake from waking.
" "The truth is: The Unknown.
" Who are you? Who are you? I work with Jack.
[THUNDER RUMBLES.]
[JAZZ MUSIC PLAYING OVER RADIO.]
I'll get him.
[INDISTINCT CHATTER NEARBY.]
Good morning.
Morning.
WOMAN: Look at that.
Look at that! Ready? Have you lost your mind? What are they all doing in there? What I do in the privacy of my own home is my business.
Your business? What about our business? We're gonna be late.
Come on.
Wonder who's behind this? I have an idea.
What's he saying? He speaks of another POW who killed himself by drinking rocket fuel.
Ask him if he died instantly.
Or if it was more prolonged.
Come on, it's important.
Did he foam at the mouth or vomit? What did the fuel smell like? - Was it colored or clear? - RICHARD: You don't need to antagonize the poor guy.
He nearly died getting us that film.
JACK: That's right.
And the Germans have an entire compound filled with slave labor to build their rockets.
We just have the people in this room.
Is that meant to be inspiring? JACK: We need to level the playing field.
Now, ask him.
Okay.
[MUSIC PLAYING FAINTLY.]
MARISOL: That you, Richie? Hope you worked up an appetite.
We're all hot for first ladies.
That's spare ribs and potatoes.
Got the recipe from Frank.
Don't worry, it's one he cooks at home.
Awful quiet.
Work stuff got you down? No, it's not that.
I have something for you.
Oh.
Your brother asked me to give you this.
[GASPS SOFTLY.]
He's about to ship off, and wanted you to pray for him.
Since you and he aren't talking.
[EXHALES.]
I don't understand.
How did he find you? He didn't.
I found him.
You keep a family photo in your vanity How dare you, Richard.
Sneaking around my back, checking into me? - I wasn't.
- When are you gonna start trusting me? I do.
[EXHALES.]
I went there to ask your father for his blessing.
We've been together for two years.
And I'm ready to take the next step, but it seems wrong without knowing anything about your family.
I'm sorry.
I-I had no idea your father was so angry.
You never even talk about him.
Why do you think that is? - I don't know! - If there's things about my past I do not tell you, maybe there's a reason.
But why? I love you.
I want to know everything about you.
No.
You don't.
What happened? What did you do? Why do you assume it was something I did? Look, I get it.
If I had grown up there, I would have left, too.
I know how you feel.
I highly doubt that.
You feel powerless.
Alone and abandoned.
Afraid no one loves you because you're not worth loving.
Where the hell did you come up with that? Wouldn't you like to know? SUSAN [RECORDED.]
: What we're doing here is a threat to Jack's career.
ALFRED: For all his ambitions, Frater J.
P.
is held back by fear.
Fear of loss, abandonment, failure, love.
But does his fear mean you must limit yourself? SUSAN: No, I suppose it doesn't.
But I don't think Jack can handle sharing me.
Did you know he'd been recording all this stuff? So crazy.
Collecting everyone's darkest secrets.
You're gonna want to hear this one, too.
I'll go outside and keep a lookout.
[CLICKS.]
ERNEST: Jack was the key to my liberation, just like you said.
ALFRED: How? ERNEST: By putting me in that plane, he gave me my ticket out.
I never would have been able to leave my old life.
I never would have seen my angel without him.
I've come back, so he could help me see it again.
ALFRED: What preceded your vision? ERNEST: I was standing on the edge of the abyss.
There were only two roads across.
I chose the more difficult.
And I knew peace for the first time in my life.
So? You gonna tell everyone? [SNIFFS.]
Yeah, I didn't tell you till I'd listened to them all, either.
That's why it's so silly you and Susan keep trying to exclude me.
I already know everything.
[FOUNTAINS SPRAYING.]
[SINGING QUIETLY.]
I should've known you'd be the one who'd fix it.
[GROANS.]
Just trying to be a good houseguest.
Hey, uh, what did you mean the other night when you were talking about waking up from waking? Are you awake now? Yeah.
No.
You're not.
You used to be the man who believed we could fly to the Moon.
I still believe that.
- Eventually.
- Eventually? [CHUCKLES.]
Eh.
I'm in the middle of a war right now I'm not sure I can win.
"The price of existence is eternal war.
" "Only those who fear shall fail.
" [CHUCKLES.]
[SNIFFS.]
Maybe Crowley's words aren't enough for you tonight.
Maybe you need stronger medicine.
[JANGLING IN DISTANCE.]
One for me and one for you.
Is that what I think it is? Uh-huh.
A bridge to the divine.
It'll take away your pain, your doubts, your fears.
Like water extinguishing the fire inside of you.
Is it dangerous? Since when do you care about that? Only if you take too much.
Now, you ready? Ah! You've strayed far from the path, my brother.
I've missed you.
[DOOR OPENS.]
[PLAYING OPENING TO THE RITE OF SPRING.]
[STOPS PLAYING.]
ALFRED: Hmm.
[PLAYING "FRÈRE JACQUES".]
- You're getting better.
- Am I? You need to practice more, here Like this.
[PLAYING "FRÈRE JACQUES".]
[INDISTINCT CHATTER NEARBY.]
I want there to be a house vote on Frater E.
D.
tonight.
I finished my evaluation.
He's come back even more broken than before.
[LIVELY MUSIC PLAYING.]
[SNIFFS.]
[DROPS PEN.]
[SNIFFS.]
WAITRESS: There you go, doll.
[WHISPERING.]
: You're not really here.
Beg your pardon? Last time I did drugs with Ernest, I walked on the Moon.
Now I'm seeing Aleister Crowley.
Mm.
A brilliant mind can conjure many things, but I can assure you, I am not one of them.
- Girl.
- Yes? More tea? [QUIETLY.]
: Are you following me? You're a very difficult man to find alone.
I don't understand.
I am not here in America as the Great Beast.
Shh.
I am here on behalf of king and country.
So it's true that you work for British Intelligence? Yes.
And no.
This is the dawn of a new aeon.
None of us can stand on the sidelines, especially those of us with the power to bend the world to our will.
- So, um - Here you go.
- [SNIFFLES.]
- COOK: Order up! What exactly are you doing here? I come with a warning.
My German contacts have informed me that the aeronautics industry in Los Angeles has been deeply compromised.
[QUIETLY.]
: What? Don't be a fucking dolt.
Surely you realize that our enemies will stop at nothing to win this war.
You must keep a watchful eye on all those around you.
If you sense that anyone at all is not who they seem, I want you to contact me here.
Ask for M.
Therion.
I should tell you that people in the military have asked me to pass along any information that I have about your whereabouts.
My presence here requires total secrecy, for your safety and mine.
They seemed very intent.
Well, then I suppose you should ask yourself, who do you truly serve? Your government or your master? All right.
But I can't see why the Nazis would be targeting me or my team.
We have yet to come up with something even remotely worth stealing.
Modesty doesn't become you, Frater J.
P.
With the war machine carrying out your will, you are far more powerful than you realize.
Read it.
"RAF carried out an attack" "on Peenemunde in the middle of the night," "laying to waste what Allied intelligence" "believed to be a secret Nazi weapons facility"? - This is huge.
- It's bigger than huge.
The Nazis have been pushed back, which means now it's our moment to make a giant leap forward.
That's the chemical the Nazis have been experimenting with.
How do you know? The POW said his compatriot died stinking of rotten fish.
Guess what aniline smells like.
Let's get to work.
I told you there was nothing to worry about.
Moving the Agape into my house is paying off already.
Look what I just manifested.
You think you made the bombing happen? I think we needed a level playing field, and now, as if by magic Are you really sure we should even be celebrating? If we did this to them, imagine what they might do to us.
This meeting is called to order.
PATTY: Hold on.
This is a house vote, right? And I live here.
- Patty.
- Let her.
We can't claim to be a democracy if some voices are ignored.
In fact, I think she should be allowed to participate in everything we do.
It's clearly what she wants.
And who are we to impede the will of another? Back to the matter at hand.
All those in favor of allowing Frater E.
D.
to stay? ALFRED: As Magus, I wanted to believe.
Frater E.
D.
had come back to us a true prophet.
Yet, I fear the source of his revelations are not divine, so much as chemical.
Doesn't Master Crowley defend the use of narcotics to open one's mind? Why should our brother be chastised? I'm not chastising him.
Frater E.
D.
is free to do as he wishes, as is everyone in this room.
It is simply a question of truth.
Do we wish to have a man living amongst us who could keep such a thing secret? I don't think any of us could claim to not have secrets.
WALTER: Whatever that boy's been through, he's one of us.
And he's already pitching in.
He extended a hand to me when I was lost.
Shouldn't we do the same? Welcome home.
However, there are conditions.
You came to me seeking guidance.
But how can I help if you continue to hide from who you truly are? The narcotic numbs your pain.
But you must confront it head-on.
Write down the truth of what happened to you and cure yourself of this delusion.
I don't need to be cured.
I have attained the knowledge in conversation with my holy guardian angel.
I saw it with my own fucking eyes! There can be no room for doubt.
Your mind must be pure.
It's the only thing that keeps my anger in check.
If you want to remain this is the requirement.
ALFRED: There are rituals of the elements and feasts of the times.
A feast for the Supreme Ritual, and a feast for the gods.
A feast for fire and a feast for water, a feast for life and a greater feast for death.
A feast every day in your hearts for the joy of my rapture and pleasure of uttermost delight.
A ka dua Tuf ur biu Bi a'a chefu A ku dua Tuf ur biu A ka dua Tuf ur biu Bi a'a chefu ALFRED: For all his ambitions, Frater J.
P.
is held back by fear.
Fear of loss, abandonment, failure, love.
But does his fear mean you must limit yourself? SUSAN: No, I suppose it doesn't.
But I don't think Jack can handle sharing me.
You ready to go inside? I think we've limited ourselves for long enough.
We can do it together.
ERNEST: Is this the sort of information you're looking for? For now.