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[The camera fades in on the Kreepy Kastle performance space. The stage lighting is low, since the prop at center stage provides its own illumination. It is a tall metal-framed cell, with sides of heavy tempered glass. The riveted struts framing the glass are copper-green with patina. Soft blue-white light comes from lamps seated in the cell’s mahogany base. The tank-like cell is nearly full of water: streams of silvery bubbles created by the base’s aerator race through the water to the surface. Another metal-bound piece of heavy dark wood, ostensibly the top of the cell, stands vertically to stage right of the tank. In the shadows behind the tank, two ladders stand waiting for use.] [Erica Leroux walks into shot from stage left. She is wrapped in a purple satin robe and an unadorned white mask. Her black athletic slides slap on the floor of the otherwise silent space as she proceeds to center stage.] “Greetings, Kreeps, and welcome to Kreepy Klassics, the movie show that gives you modern scares with a retro flair.” [She fixes the camera with her catlike green eyes, smiles and winks inside her gleaming mask.] “Tonight’s presentation is genuinely dangerous, so I must advise that the things you will soon see should not be attempted at home. I’ve been training for weeks, and I’m still quite nervous about it, “ Erica says as she reflexively touches her mask. “Thankfully, in this endeavor I will be aided and abetted by two wonderful women—Countess Bella and Loni Channing!” [Bella and Loni walk in from stage right. Bella struts in wearing a purple bikini with black lace trim and fluffy black mules. Her pale skin glows in the soft stage lighting. Loni enters in much more demure fashion—she is wearing a black one-piece bathing suit and water shoes. Her thick brown hair falls in loose waves over her bare shoulders. The women stop and stand to stage right of Erica.] “Hello, girls,” Erica says with a sultry smile. “Hi, Erica!” Bella and Loni reply as one, with smiles and little waves to the masked illusionist. “Are you ready to do this?” Erica asks. “Loni and I are deeply concerned for your safety, but we will do the utmost to ensure it,” Bella says, bowing slightly. “For sure! We know you’re good, but we’ll be standing by if you need help,” Loni agrees with a reassuring smile. Erica hugs each of them in turn, saying sincerely, “Thanks so much. I know you’re both here for me. Now let’s get this escape underway.” [The trio step back to the tank area, where Erica removes her robe and hands it to Loni. Erica wears a black and green wetsuit covering her to the knee. She scuffs off her slides nearby. Loni runs the robe out of shot to stage left while Bella crouches by the upended tank lid.] “The design of this lid looks awfully familiar,” Bella says with a toothy grin. “Of course, dear. I’ll be locked in those stocks and dropped into the water headfirst.” [The camera view shakes and sways momentarily, then steadies. The camera then moves in fluidly to point at Erica.] “Something different for you Kreeps watching this piece: Loni will be wearing the camera for the rest of this segment, so she’ll be your virtual eyes and ears.” [The view swings to Bella, who makes a face at the camera.] “Loni darling, you look like a cyclops with that thing on your head,” she titters. “I think it’s pretty neat!” Loni says enthusiastically. “Let’s focus, ladies. Lock me in,” Erica says impatiently. [She sits on the floor behind the tank lid, and Bella pushes open the upper half of the stocks. The upper panel swings inward to allow access, and is secured on the inside of the lid with two sliding bolts. Erica rests her ankles in the padded hollows of the lower part, and Bella gently pulls her half back into place. Loni’s hands come into view to secure the inner bolts with padlocks.] “Bella, go get the ladders set up. I’ll stay here with Erica,” Loni says. [Bella is out of shot, but the metallic clangs of equipment moving around can be heard. Loni’s hands clip guide cables onto the sides of the stocks by the hinge and lock hasp.] “Thanks, baby. Let’s get Erica up there,” Loni says. [Erica lies down flat on the floor as the guide cables pull taut. The lines then slowly pull the lid off the floor, gradually forcing the singer to roll her spine as her body is lifted from the floor by inches.] “Loni darling, hold Erica’s hand to get her rotated into position. I will ascend my ladder in my cute but impractical footwear,” Bella says with a hissing giggle. [Loni’s left hand takes Erica’s right hand as she rises. The grip makes Erica twist to face the audience.] “You’re doing a great job, dear. Make sure to give the Kreeps a nice view of the action!” Erica encourages as she slowly ascends. [Once Erica is steadied and safely above the top edge of the cell, Loni lets go of her hand.] Loni announces, “I’m going up, Bella,” and the camera view tracks her movement up the ladder. [Loni turns at the top of her ladder to frame an inverted Erica in the shot. Bella is looking across the top of the tank, her face perfectly serene.] “Remember girls—you have to trust me with this one,” Erica says emphatically. Bella nods and tells her girlfriend, “We trust you completely, darling.” Looking past Erica, she asks, “Loni darling, are you ready with your locks?” [Loni’s left hand pops into view holding a padlock. Erica takes a few steadying breaths, then goes silent. The singer takes one last deep breath and stabs the air with her forefinger. The guide cables lower the stock assembly smoothly and Erica’s head goes under the surface. Displaced water slops up over the top edges of the cell as Erica’s body continues downward. A digital counter appears in the lower right of the camera feed, marking the singer’s time underwater.] The top assembly comes to a rest, capping the frame of the cell. “No time to waste—get those locks on!” Loni exclaims as her hands move rapidly to secure a padlock at each corner of the lid on her side. Bella fastens both her locks and releases the guide cable with vampiric speed and boasts, “I’m already on my way down, darling.” [Loni finishes the job on her side and the view tracks down the ladder as she descends. The guide cables retreat into the darkness above the performance floor. Loni walks toward Bella, standing calmly in front of the cell. She turns back once she is next to her girlfriend and frames the tank in the shot. Erica is completely submerged and writhing amidst the iridescent bubbles floating up past her hanging head and body.] “Curtain!” Loni shouts, and a heavy red drape mounted on a large hoop descends on wires and reaches the floor around the tank.] 00:28 Loni stands still to keep the curtain in view, but says, “Is this for real? I mean, you were training with her for the last few weeks—did she say anything about this escape?” Bella is heard answering, “Not a word, darling. I first saw this device just before we set up the camera tonight.” Loni suggests, “Maybe we should check in on her?” [Bella zips to the curtain with supernatural speed and pulls it aside even before Loni can cross the room to get a good view. Erica is still hanging inside, but a smile can be seen crossing her masked face. A stray bubble trails from her lips. Her catlike eyes glint in the tank light.] “So far, so good. Let’s give her privacy, yes?” Bella says with a grin and lets the curtain fall shut. [Loni walks backward to keep the curtained tank in view, and stops when she reaches her viewing position with Bella.] 01:17 Loni breaks the eerie silence again, asking, “Bella, can you sense how this is going? If we did this yesterday while I was in wolf form, I know I’d be able to pick up on some stuff.” Bella replies, “Certainly, Loni darling. I can perceive things that lead me to believe all is well with our friend.” [The vampire swings into view at the lower left corner of the shot, making sure not to block the view of the tank.] “As a vampire,” she expounds proudly, “I can hear the pulse of my prey. I can see the warmth of her body. I can smell her growing fear.” [Bella’s eyes go deep red as she speaks.] “Dial it back a little, baby,” Loni advises. “Oh—of course. In this case, Erica’s heartbeat is still even and her body is warm in the heated water of the tank. Her breathing is necessarily slowed, but much like I noticed during our training sessions.” Loni says with relief, “That’s pretty positive. Thanks for the apex predator insights!” [Bella bares her fangs at the camera and slips from view, leaving only the curtained tank in shot.] 02:10 [The camera view bobbles a little as Loni fidgets nervously.] “Maybe we can take another peek,” the werewolf realtor proposes. “I was just thinking so. Erica’s heartbeat has sped up a bit,” Bella observes. [The pair make their way back to the tank and Bella pulls the curtain aside. Erica is hanging amidst the rising bubbles, straining as she sweeps the floor of the tank with her hands. Her expression is more serious this time.] “Oh my! I think she dropped her lockpick. Yeah, it’s right there!” [Loni’s finger helpfully indicates the location of the tool—its bright orange grip makes it hard to miss.] “Be patient, darling. We have to trust her capabilities. See—she got it back,” Bella states with unearthly calm. [Erica stretches to retrieve the pick and lets a few more bubbles escape her lips.] “Come. We shall wait,” Bella insists coolly as she moves away from the tank. [Loni once again walks backward to maintain her view of the tank, but her gait is less steady this time.] 03:09 [The view of the tank is now shaky, as Loni is nearly hopping nervously.] “Um, hey, Bella, you have a line on Erica’s progress?” she tries to ask nonchalantly. “She is rather agitated. Her heart is beating much faster and her lungs are straining,” Bella states evenly. “Come on! We’ve gotta check on her!” Loni yells as she yanks Bella back to the tank. [The camera jostles all the way back to the tank. Bella pulls back the curtain to reveal Erica, still inverted in her restraints, frantically sweeping the floor of the tank again. Her face is pained, and her green eyes flash with fear. More bubbles, small but more frequent, edge out of her mouth.] “What's going on now?! She dropped the pick again. No, wait—that doesn’t look right.” [Loni leans the camera closer to the glass: the orange grip of the tool is easily seen, but the flat black metal tip looks much shorter and blunter than before.] “The pick BROKE! Bella, we’ve got to stop this!” Loni shouts. [Erica pounds the glass with a fist and shakes her head, holding up four fingers with her free hand.] “No. She wants us to wait. Four minutes at most,” Bella declares. [She lets the curtain fall.] “Ugh—my nerves are shot! You better be right about this, Bella,” Loni mutters threateningly. [Bella looks squarely at Loni. Her eyes are deep red and her tongue slides suggestively over her fangs.] “Loni darling, I can’t hold it in anymore—I find all this exhilarating! Our dear Erica, in mortal peril, unable to breathe, fumbling in the dark, totally dependent on us for her continued existence? So stimulating!” Bella nearly moans as she runs her hands over her pale body. Loni retorts, “Whoa—you’ve got to concentrate, baby. Erica needs us to…” Bella stops gyrating suddenly and says, “No heartbeat.” 04:03 [Bella whips open the curtain and pulls back her right arm, readying a monstrous punch to breach the tank’s glass. She checks herself when she notices the cell’s contents.] “Look,” she whispers as she points at the vacant cell, its water containing nothing but a broken lockpick and columns of rising bubbles. “Wow!” is all Loni gets out before the main door to the performance space opens behind her. [The camera view swings around to the door, where a dripping and bedraggled Erica leans against the door jamb.] “Hello, girls,” she purrs, as alluring as ever. “Hi, Erica!” Bella and Loni squeal happily. [The camera jostles and jolts all the way into a warm first-person hug with Bella and the sopping illusionist.] “Oh, I’m so glad you’re okay!” Loni cries. “I’m glad you two trusted me to work through things my way,” Erica replies humbly. “That was wonderful, darling, Oh! Look at me now—you made me all wet!” the red-eyed Bella says with a quiet chuckle to herself. [Erica steps away from her girlfriends to center herself for the sign-off.] “Thank you, Kreeps, for watching my first escape for Kreepy Klassics. Leading off with the Houdini Water Torture Cell may have been overly ambitious, but I simply can’t abide going small,” Erica says with comic disregard. “Thanks to my wonderful partners Bella and Loni—you both mean the world to me.” [Erica blows a heartfelt kiss back at her two girlfriends.] “Visit our website to see this and all our past episodes and shorts. We’ve got links to friends of the show, insights into magic history, and a marketplace full of cool stuff. Just don’t expect us to carry lockpicks any time soon!” she adds with a laugh. “I’m Erica Leroux, and it’s time for me to make good my escape. We’ll be seeing you!” [Loni hits the fader on her camera and the feed gradually goes dark.]