Prodigy Page #3

What about your mother's blood?

That's the obvious encounter.

Was your mother afraid of blood?

Not that I'm aware of.

Was she afraid of you?

No.

But she should have been.

She believed the mundanities cf

everyday life could apply to me.

Right, wrong, good, evil.

The inventions

of an inferior breed of man.

You're above all of that?

My existence is elevated, yes.

How does your, uh, current situation

factor into that elevation?

My fate ends here,

it always has,

no matter what ideas

of salvation

you or anyone else

may have for me.

What is it you need

salvation from?

Miss Olivia.

Naughty, naughty.

Let me ask you a question,

Jimmy.

What possible reason

could they have

for strapping a nine-year-old

to a chair like this?

What is it people do when they

happen upon something different?

Something they can't comprehend?

In there,

they can't comprehend me,

and it terrifies them.

But what if they were able

to get a closer look at me?

Say at my brain chemistry?

They might be able to understand

just how different I am.

And how to control me.

That warm blanket of comfort comes

at a relatively small cost.

You aren't the first of your kind

miss Olivia has sent in here

in an ill-fated attempt

to justify my existence.

However, I am fairly certain

you will be the last.

[Door opens, closes]

Is it true?

I thought if you knew,

then you...

Is it true?

It's all right, agent price.

Dr. Fonda is a smart man.

I'm sure he can see the logic

in our decision.

You were going

to cut that girl open?

Yes.

I don't believe it.

The patient's assertions

are correct.

This mutation is something

the scientific community

and the world

can't afford to ignore.

The only way to be thorough

in such matters...

Is from the inside out.

That is worth her life?

The threat she poses far

outweighs any potential benefit.

And all of you condone this?

That's right.

You must understand none of us

are keen on euthanizing a minor.

Euthanasia is a method reserved

for animals.

Ellie's a child.

No. My grandkids are children.

That thing in there is nothing

more than a ticking time bomb.

What is she capable of

that warrants this fear?

That's classified information.

Given the circumstances, I

believe I have a right to know.

No. No, you don't.

Eleanor can do things...

That we've never seen before.

Things that have proven

dangerous.

Dangerous enough

to justify murder?

Ask her mother.

It is an extremely unfortunate situation.

No one is denying it.

Each of the analysts I brought in

came away with the same conclusion.

- Which is?

- Social detachment.

Lack of empathy.

Manipulative tendencies.

Girl is a sociopath.

Her intellect only amplifies her

already troubling behavioral patterns.

With all that intelligence,

you don't find this suspicious

that she is telling us

exactly what we need to hear

to draw that conclusion?

How much time do I have?

The execution is tomorrow.

- Jimmy?

- I need a minute.

[Door opens, closes]

Uh, this probably isn't

the best time, but, uh,

I need to leave in, like,

15 minutes, so...

I realize I should have been

upfront with you,

but I don't have time for

long-winded apologies right now.

You don't have to play

the boss with me.

We have been in that room

day in and day out for the year

trying to figure out

what to make of her.

And this is what you settled on?

It's been several months

since this...

Autopsy was proposed, and the

others' minds are made up.

But the decision

has to be unanimous.

Ellie's given me no reason

for my continues support.

I can't hold them off any more.

I agreed to change my vote

if they gave me one last chance

to get through to her.

Me.

They don't see her

for what she is anymore.

And if we don't make them see,

she dies.

I'm sorry, Jimmy, but you're

the best chance I had.

[Exhales deeply]

The guards took something

from me when I came in.

I need to get it back.

[Door beeps, buzzes]

Thought I lost you for a minute.

I'm not so easy to get rid of.

Do you know chess?

Are we resorting to such unorthodox

analytical methods already?

Chess is my favorite game.

I thought I might teach you.

[Scoffs] I doubt there's much

of anything you could teach me.

Then you know how to play.

I found the game quite boring.

Within a week, I set speed records

against a master computer.

Oh, there's your problem.

You played against a computer.

A game against a person

is much more stimulating.

And I take it your vast psychological

prowess gives you an advantage.

There's only one way

to find out.

All right,

but I'll need my hands.

Calling out the moves

is easy enough.

I'll help you

with the rank and file, and...

How do you expect your patient

to trust you

if you won't trust her?

[Exhales deeply] We both know

it's against the rules, Ellie.

Desperate times

call for desperate measures.

Oh, boy.

What does he think he is doing?

Son of a b*tch.

Boom goes the dynamite.

That's it.

I'm shutting him down.

No, you're not.

He's gonna get himself killed.

Dr. Fonda knows what he's doing.

- Actually, he doesn't.

- Ryan, ready the pulse.

Colonel, you don't have

the authority...

If this situation

becomes hostile,

I do have the authority

to override your command.

Ryan, the pulse. Now.

Sh*t just got real.

[Powering up]

Are you waiting for something?

Oh, no. [Chuckles] Sorry.

Here, let me move the board

so we ca...

Your move.

Yes, it would appear so.

I've always found the early

moves to be the most important,

and they shape the face

of the game.

If you say so.

You know,

the computer moved instantly.

- And?

- And I was led to believe

this would be

a more stimulating experience.

Uh, stimulations lies in

the analysis.

Chess is not a game of speed.

Not for some, clearly.

So why you? Now?

After all the stiffs?

Is this a reevaluation?

Perhaps I've, uh,

graduated from the, um,

bargain bin to the sales rack.

You're right.

I shouldn't risk

slowing you down.

No, I think I can multitask.

You know, agent price and I were

schoolmates at university. That's where...

You were schoolmates, huh?

Mm-hmm.

And that's why she was keeping

such close tabs on you?

What is it you're implying?

Simply put, miss Olivia is

a reasonably attractive woman

for her age.

I'm sure that at university,

she was quite a dish.

I can only imagine

the canoodling that took place.

[Chuckles]

Eyes forward, gentlemen.

Sorry to, uh, disappoint,

Eleanor,

but I don't canoodle and tell.

And what would your wife think of

this liaison with an old flame?

I don't think my wife would

think anything of it any more.

You don't realistically

expect her to return, do you?

No. That, um,

that part of my life is over.

Really?

King without his queen.

Check.

Perhaps you can answer me this.

Why is it always trinkets when someone

wants to hold on to the past?

My mother, she used to

wear this little trinket.

What was it?

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