Constantine

John Constantine:
My name is John Constantine. And I'm an exorcist. In my line of work, there are days you just need to forget. But some you never will.

Dr. Roger Huntoon:
Before you checked yourself in here three months ago, you were working as an exorcist, demonologist and master of the dark arts.

John:
It says master, does it? I should really change that to petty dabbler. I hate to put on airs.

Liv Aberdine:
No, no, nobody can survive what I saw.

John:
Excellent. If you're not confused, you're not paying attention. Now, time for your famous rack of lamb. Nobody should fight demons on an empty stomach.

Liv:
I'm trusting you with my life here. The least you can do is to share one small personal detail.

John:
My mom died giving birth to me.

Liv:
Or one big detail.

John:
My dad said it was my fault. He had a nickname for me, I heard it every night. Hey there "Killer". And after a night at the pub, which was every night, he'd punch my head and say "That's for what you did to your mother, Killer."

Manny:
What brings you back to the streets, John?

John:
A young lady, of course. I was asked to protect her by an old friend.

Manny:
Dead friend, more likely.

John:
Well, he did have to possess a body but he got my attention.

Zed Martin:
It's you. You're you.

John:
That observation always ends in the same way and it's never in my favor.

Zed:
The honeymoon suite?

John:
I always get the honeymoon suite. There's lots of extra space. There's a good energy to it.

Zed:
What is that? Loneliness. Pain. Desperation. These things motivate you. What kind of person is motivated by these things? So much guilt, John Constantine.

John:
The truth is, I work best alone.

Zed:
Me, too.

John:
I always put myself first.

Zed:
That's the only way I've survived.

John:
Everyone who puts their trust in me dies.

Zed:
Okay, you got me.

John:
I suppose it could be liberating to take a leap of faith, to shrug off the burden of proof for the promise of hope. It takes trust to turn darkness to light. And those who trust risk putting their faith in the wrong hands. For there are those who pray for you... and those who prey on you. And no matter how careful you are, sometimes you just can't tell the difference.

Chas Chandler:
You Zed? John said you might show up. Kind of hoped you wouldn't.

Zed:
I gather that, seeing how he didn't actually give me an address.

Chas:
How'd you find us?

Zed:
[shows her drawing] Not a lot of mill houses in Atlanta.

Chas:
John did say you are persistent.

John:
She's a regular psychic smorgasbord, this one. Picks up impressions from tactile stimuli. Which I'm guessing is kind of a buzzkill in the sack.

Zed:
Just one thing I never understood is why he even wants our souls.

John:
The Devil used to be an angel. That's why he's called "The First of the Fallen". You ask a holy type and they'll tell you the soul is the purest expression of God's love, the spark of creation. Every time the First takes a soul, he's exacting revenge, paying back the Almighty for casting him out.

Zed:
What are you doing?

John:
I'm breaking into the mansion.

Zed:
Isn't that illegal?

John:
Almost everything I do is, love. C'mon!

John:
That recording in your hands gives you more power than I'm comfortable with, mate.

Papa Midnite:
Name it and claim it.

John:
Come again?

Midnite:
It's the basic building block of televangelism. There are promises out there waiting for us, if we only had our courage to name them and claim them.

John:
That's exactly the kind of backward-thinking I'd expect from a cheating, drug-dealing, voodoo priest like– [gets knocked out by Midnite's henchmen]

John:
Figured we'd work on your training today.

Zed:
So, how am I doing?

John:
You're showing flashes of precognition, retrocognition, clairtangence. You're a real bitsa.

Zed:
Come again?

John:
Uh, a bitsa, you know? You've got a bit of everything in you.

Zed:
You know, I don't see a lot of people lining up to lend you a hand. Maybe you should accept his help. People can change, you know.

John:
Bullocks. We are who we are. Eventually.

Zed:
Earlier today, Gary and I, we touched, and I experienced a psychic transference.

John:
You, uh... touched?

Zed:
No. No, no, not like that. I mean, we only touched for, like a second. But the connection... it wasn't like I was just in his head, 'cause it was deeper than that. I felt his pain, and his guilt, and his addiction. And after...

John:
His withdrawal symptoms. You got all the lows and none of the highs. Rough deal, I'd say. It's probably best if you two kids keep your hands to yourself, for now, alright? I'm off to see a man about a dog. Or rather, a shaman about a bloody demon.

Zed:
He just... he just wants to help. He's so racked with guilt that he's going after the demon himself.

John:
Told you that, did he?

Zed:
Yes, he did. And he meant it, 'cause I felt it.

John:
That's not what's happening, trust me.

Zed:
Why do you always want to see the worst in people?

John:
I see the truth. Gary's hopelessly addicted to heroin. And let me give you a little tip about addicts: between thought and action comes temptation. Always.

John:
This demon requires a sacrifice. That's what I learned from the shaman. No cage, bottle or vessel can hold it. Only a body. A live, human body.

Gary Lester:
Mine.

John:
We could draw straws.

Gary:
It was your plan all along, wasn't it? [pause] That's why it's just you and me here. [pause] You sneaky bastard. My chance... to finally make my life mean something.

John:
It won't be quick. Could be days of sheer agony before you die. And there's no going back. Do you understand?

Gary:
There's no better way to go out. A mage, like John Constantine.

John:
I'm proud of you, Gaz. Truly. [kisses his forehead]

Papa Midnite:
You're like a child with your father's spell book.

John:
The only magic my old man ever did was making a pint disappear.

Jim Corrigan:
How do you live with it? The knowledge that all this could be... real? How?

John:
It marks you. For life. But it doesn't change who you are.

John:
Well, you might want to keep the car running, mate.

Chas:
What are you gonna use? The Interpol bit? Paranormal division?

John:
Nah, I thought I'd just wipe his mind.

John:
Papa Midnite. Hell of a party, mate. Sorry I came empty-handed. It's kind of hard to find a dessert that pairs with pig's blood.

John:
Yeah, well, I'm an exorcist, mate. I've spent half my life kicking demons out. Why would I want to invite one in?

Papa Midnite:
You are a magpie of magic. A thief of tradition. You steal from other people's cultures and beliefs to suit your own purposes.

John:
Oh, yeah? Well, whatever works, eh?

John:
And, uh, what makes me so special?

Manny:
Nothing that I'm aware of. St. Peter. Ignatius of Antioch. Joan of Arc. Oh, John, they were special. You're more of a... desperation move.

John:
Story of my life, mate.

John:
You know, I've never punched an angel, but you are begging for it, mate.

Manny:
I could announce my arrival with trumpets. Used to have a tight horn section back in the day.

John:
Mm, I'm sure you did.

John:
I cook a wicked breakfast. Bacon, eggs, sausage, beans, tomatoes. Perfect islands in a sea of grease.

Chas:
So, now what? We knock on the door?

John:
No, that never works.

Chas:
Why not?

John:
Oh, hello, we tracked an evil spirit to your house. It might be inside your kid. Do you mind if we take a look?

Chas:
Yeah, that won't work.

John:
No.

John:
And what of my rotten inner child? If humanity's what can save us, then overcoming the damage and weakness in my nature, it may be the part of this battle that I dread most. I don't have the answers. I only know that a darkness is rising. And unless I can stop it, the world will change forever.

John:
Didn't take you for a religious one.

Zed:
I don't know what I am... but I like to believe there's a guiding hand in it all.

John:
Guiding... judging... damning. He's a jack-of-all-trades, really. I mean, I'm not critiquing, really, but I'm pretty sure he's not very keen on me.

Zed:
How can you be so cynical?

John:
Oh, wouldn't it be lovely if I wasn't? Could've been a better man if I hadn't seen it all. Yes, angels exist. Sound the bloody trumpets. As for religion, yeah, all right, be nice to your neighbor and all that, but... the world isn't all puppy dogs and rainbows. You can't just pray evil away. Still have to fight, hard, on our own.

John:
What do you need them to tell you?

Zed:
Where my powers come from, for starters. I mean, do they come from God or somewhere else?

John:
Doesn't matter where they came from. What matters is what you do with them and what it costs you.

John:
Getting a little bit knackered here, mate. I could really use your help about now, yeah?

Zach:
I brought this on myself

John:
Look, you got a little bit of power, and you got off your trolley, yeah? It happens. All we need to do is keep them at bay until Zed makes it to the angel, so do us a bloody favor. Pull your head out of your ass and give us a hand, yeah?

Manny:
What's it like? Pain.

Imogen:
It comes in waves. You feel helpless. You can't fight it. It becomes about making it to the other side, shrinking your world down to one fine point. When that wave melts away, you feel relief. Just for a moment, till it comes back to remind you.

Manny:
So you feel pain now, but... what was it like the first moment the sun hit your skin? How good was that?

John:
I always figured that one of us would flee to Mexico, but I thought there'd be tequila involved. Or skinny-dipping.

Chas:
Did you know we were coming to a convent?

John:
It's one gory detail she left out.

Anne Marie Flynn:
Should've shagged you then, but instead I introduced you to my world.

John:
It was a world of wonders.

Anne Marie:
Which you followed into Hell.

Hugo Lopez:
I always thought God was listening.

John:
Ah, let the Almighty take His time out. We got plenty to occupy ourselves with, like figuring out which one of Eve's sisters is behind all this.

Anne Marie:
Now you're standing in for God. Make way for John Constantine.

John:
I'm telling a desperate man that that there are things we can do to get his son back other than pray.

Chas:
If you need me, scream.

Anne Marie:
That won't be a problem for me.

Zed:
You kneel here, night after night, hoping against hope that Heaven hears your words. Well, guess what, John has Heaven on speed dial. Someone up there thinks he's worth a damn, and now he's dying because of you.

Manny:
I got to admit, I never thought you'd do anything this stupid.

John:
I'm John Constantine. I do stupid in spades.

John:
You know, I probably never got the chance to say this, but, uh... I know what I put you through, and, uh... I'm sorry.

Anne Marie:
No, you're not. John Constantine doesn't do sorry. Pity it took me almost 20 years to figure that out.

Anne Marie:
This demon will try to use our weaknesses against us. If it emerges, don't listen to it. It won't be John.

Chas:
I hope I can tell the difference.

Zed:
I need to know, should I be scared? For John, I mean?

Anne Marie:
He's in a bad way. But John believes he has every situation under control, and he makes you believe. That's his magic. And his curse.

Zed:
Why do you want to help me? Why do you believe me?

John:
I survive on instinct. Mine tells me that you're all right. It doesn't hurt that you're easy on the eyes as well.

Zed:
Wish I could say the same.

John:
Oh, thanks.

John:
Chas has risked much more for me. Failing my best friend, that would ruin me. But failing you, that ruins us both.

John:
Zed, meet Felix Faust, lifetime apprentice and second fiddle to the greatest black magicians of his generation

Felix Faust:
Second fiddle indeed, Constantine. The mages played the melody but I wrote the concerto. They built their legends on my shoulders.

John:
I've heard it said that ninth-tenths of reality is perception, and in my trade, it's eleven-tenths.

John:
All those people wasting away by your hand as life passes them by. That is not the legacy you want, Felix.

Faust:
And what would you know of legacy? A boastful, smutty, infantile boy. You create magic by accident and insolence, while the truly devoted sweat and toil without reward. You never knew my magic, Constantine. You will know my pain.

John:
Well, you know me. I'm well-versed in the art of pretending to be a gentleman.

Ritchie Simpson:
Your towering respect for the law is just astounding as always, John. Oh, I see you managed to steal from a cop as well.

John:
Well, it's a campus cop, mate, big difference.

John:
If those kids actually made it into another realm, then they've opened gates that won't be easy to close. In current conditions, anyone can be pulled in through that gate. Not just the four that took part in the ritual.

Ritchie:
Yeah well it's worse than that John. Shaw had a theory, if you're killed in another dimension your body here suffers the same form of death.

John:
Looks like Alice has already slipped through the looking glass.

Ritchie:
You see what we are, John? To other people, we are what you call cancer. And we're just spreading our disease.

John:
Oh, I forgot--angels, they can't read sarcasm.

Manny:
I can read it: I just don't have patience for it.

John:
Stay here, they're likely to experiment on you in the name of science.

Chas:
Oh, like you did?

John:
That was in the name of magic. Put your pants on.

John:
I want to tell you something about me that nobody knows. I wake up every morning, and for the first five minutes of the day, I imagine that everyone I care about is dead. I lie there, and... I meditate on that. So that when it inevitably happens, then, uh... it lessens the blow.

Zed:
Then what do you do?

John:
I spark a ciggy and fry an egg.

Zed:
A tumor's causing my visions. That explains a lot doesn't it? Cold hard science.

John:
Humans always look for narrative and causality. Nothing that he just said suggests that this mass and your visions are linked in any way.

Zed:
You don't want to believe it.

John:
Now, I know it's hard. All those chemicals swirling around. Your heart aches, your head hurts, makes it hard to concentrate, doesn't it?

Manny:
Yeah, I don't know how you get anything done.

John:
A little bit of denial and a whole lot of gin.

Manny:
I envy you. Truly. You know, it's not all harps and halos for us; we have rules to follow. But you, you have your choices. You can act on your visions if you choose to. Now, that's a gift.

John:
My point is we can all shape our destiny, but none of us get to escape our fate. So when my time's up, that's it.

John:
I stare into the face of evil every bloody day. It usually manifests itself as a demon, a malevolent spirit, a bloody zombie, but now...

Manny:
John, You've encountered human evil before.

John:
I have, but this is something else entirely. We now know what happens when the rising darkness meets the evil in humanity. There's not an evil in any realm more dangerous than that.

John:
The girls were taken by a Satanist.

Zed:
Why? What does he want them for?

John:
A full moon symbolizes rebirth, but the blood moon most likely sacrifices to usher in the new cycle.

Zed:
Do you believe in fate?

Jim:
I don't know. I guess I just... think what's meant to be will be.

Zed:
I saw you dead. You asked me before if my visions always come true and I saw you dead.