Out of the Wings

La marca de fuego (1986), José María Rodríguez Méndez

The Mark of Fire : PART ONE, excerpt 1 , PART ONE, excerpt 2 , PART TWO, excerpt 1 , PART TWO, excerpt 2

The Mark of Fire, translated by Gwynneth Dowling

PART ONE, excerpt 1

Context:

Yimi discovers that his partner Pepa has injected herself with drugs.

Sample text

YIMI:: What’s going on? What have you got there?
PEPA: (Hiding her arm.): Where?
YIMI:: Bring it out.
PEPA: (Tries to run towards the bedroom, but he twists her arm until she shows him.): Let me…
YIMI: (He roughly drags her to stand under the lamp so he can see her arm.): So you’ve shot up, eh?
PEPA: (Struggling.): Shot up? Where? He says I’ve shot up!
YIMI: (Shaking her.): Bloody hell! I’m going to…!
PEPA:: No! Yimi, no! Let me go!
YIMI: (Devastated.): You’ve shot up! Come on!
PEPA:: I swear, Yimi!
YIMI:: I’m going to thrash you with the chain, just you wait! (He goes to get the chain lying on the sofa. She takes the opportunity to shut herself in the bedroom.) I don’t want to make any more of a scene – otherwise, I swear to God! Bloody hell! But you’ll get it in the morning, just you wait! I’ll beat you black and blue, on my mother’s life! The woman goes and shoots up again! (He has said all this very dramatically.)
PEPA: (From the bedroom.): You’ve woken the baby! Well done!
YIMI:: The poor thing, with a mother like you!
PEPA:: And what about you! Are you going to waste my whole night? Shhhh, child! Shhhh! (She sings a strange rock lullaby.)
YIMI: (Almost hysterical.): You shot up! Got yourself a fix! Don’t deny it, dammit!
PEPA: (Stops singing the lullaby.): For God’s sake!
YIMI:: Where…? But… how did you? (He paces furiously.) I don’t know! I just don’t know! And you’ve even done it where you can see it most! Did you have to inject yourself where the whole world can see it? Where it’ll turn into mark, for all the world to see!? Even though I’ve told you – do it above the shoulder!
PEPA: (Leaning out of the bedroom.): Until I’ve arms like yours, with that disgusting tattoo they gave you in the clink….

Copyright

The above sample taken from the translation The Mark of Fire by Gwynneth Dowling is licensed under a Creative Commons License.

PART ONE, excerpt 2

Context:

Yimi’s friend and fellow criminal Equis has turned up in the apartment. He keeps passing out. Yimi tries to explain to Equis that he and Pepa are trying to get off drugs.

Sample text

EQUIS:: Tricks? What are you saying about tricks? I’m seeing you, I’m hearing you. No? But it’s like you were over there… in the other…; He falls silent again.
YIMI:: But this is crazy! (Watching him.) The thing is… it doesn’t seem to be a trick. What could it be? (Raising his voice.) Okay, if you can hear me, Equis… And even if you can’t hear me… The thing is… you can only stay tonight. I mean, what’s left of tonight. Because the thing is… me and my lady, we’re a family now… See? And we’re doing what they call… We’re on the path to… social reinsertion, see? And we want to live in peace… (Silence. EQUIS acts like he is not listening.) And, you see, we’re going through a bit of a – well, you know how it goes… we need a little bit of a fix to get us through the last bit… And then you turn up at just the right time to get us back into… Well it’s a funny situation… Do you understand, Equis? (He does not answer.) I don’t think this guy wants to understand! (He picks up his chain.) Today I smashed an old lady’s arm to pieces because she wouldn’t give up her bag. So…; He jangles the chain threateningly. EQUIS wakes up again.
EQUIS:: What’s this you were saying about social reinsertion?

Copyright

The above sample taken from the translation The Mark of Fire by Gwynneth Dowling is licensed under a Creative Commons License.

PART TWO, excerpt 1

Context:

Equis has installed himself in Yimi’s apartment as master. He and Pepa spend their time taking drugs while Yimi is chained at their feet. For sadistic amusement, Equis injects Yimi with a poisonous substance.

Sample text

PEPA:: Listen, you’re not really going to do it, are you?
EQUIS:: Aren’t you happy now?
PEPA:: As happy as Larry.
EQUIS:: Well then, we must spread the happiness. Masters must make their servants happy. (Preparing the syringe.) Come here, doggy… Look what I’m doing… Look at the treat, the lovely little treat I’m making for my little boy…; YIMI is distrustful.
PEPA:: He doesn’t trust you… Look.
EQUIS: (He goes to YIMI and holds his forearm, the syringe ready.): Take this, for being good. For being really good… Your reward! (He injects him. YIMI sighs gratefully.) What do you say?
YIMI:: Thannnnnnk yooou.
EQUIS: (Injecting him with more.): A little more…
PEPA: (Jumps up angrily.): That’s it! Are you crazy? Are you going to waste it all on that piece of crap! And with what we paid for it, too!?
EQUIS: (Pushing her away.): Leave it! What do you know?
PEPA: (Indignant.): You’re pouring it into him!
EQUIS:: Come on, come on. What do you know? (To YIMI, who curls up in a ball.) Eh? What do you think, buddy? You feeling it yet?; YIMI starts to writhe in pain.
PEPA: (Watching him, curious.): What’s he doing?
EQUIS:: You’re about to see something great, beautiful. Come here. Let’s get comfortable and watch the show.; They sit down on the sofa.
PEPA:: But what have you given him?
EQUIS:: Be quiet and watch! And don’t let go of the chain, just in case…; YIMI seems to be in the grips of an epileptic fit.
PEPA:: Wow! What have you given him?
EQUIS:: As if I was going to give him any of our stuff. Such luxuries aren’t for the likes of him. Look, watch him. Watch him…
PEPA: (Watching YIMI writhing about.): He looks like a rabid cat! Listen, are you going to tell me what you gave him!
EQUIS:: Something really cheap. You’ll see in a moment.
PEPA: (Intrigued.): What?
EQUIS:: A little trickle of turpentine. Oh! Careful! The tiger’s getting mad!; YIMI makes to launch himself on them. But he falls on the stove and burns his arm. He lets out a howl of pain.

Copyright

The above sample taken from the translation The Mark of Fire by Gwynneth Dowling is licensed under a Creative Commons License.

PART TWO, excerpt 2

Context:

This is the end of the play. Yimi has just watched Pepa being taken away, sold as a slave. Pepa has treated him terribly, yet he still loves her. He angrily confronts Equis, insisting that he will not return to his past life as one of Equis’ minions and a slave to drugs.

Sample text

YIMI: (Wanting to stop them.): Wait! Don’t take her away!
EQUIS: (Closing the door and barring his way.): Be quiet!
YIMI: (Launching himself forward, furious.): Let me past!
EQUIS: (Strict. He pushes YIMI.): I don’t want to.
YIMI: (Threateningly, after a brief moment of tension.): Listen, I swear I’ll…!
EQUIS: (Challengingly.): You’ll what?
YIMI: (Angrily measuring his words.): … I’ll settle things with you, once and for all!
EQUIS: (Sarcastically.): Me? You’ll settle things with me? You?
YIMI: (Energetically. With bravado.): Yes, me! What about it? Do you think we’re still in the clink? That you can keep doing whatever you like with me? Well, things have changed!
EQUIS: (Sardonically.): You think things have changed?
YIMI:: Yes! At least for me! Don’t be thinking things are going to be the same – just because she’s gone. Or that you’re going to keep me here hooked on drugs! The only reason I’ve put up with all the shit you put me through was for her. And for me. You’ve got to put up with it all, to get a little shelter… someone to share it with…
EQUIS: (Smiling cynically.): Okay then! Here you are in your own home… And here I am.
YIMI: (Bitterly.): You don’t deserve me! With you here everything will go back to the way it was in the clink. As soon as you crossed that door, you turned the place into a pigsty. Into another cage you could be master of. You strip the joy out of everywhere you go.
EQUIS: (Still smiling.): Am I that bad? Have I behaved so badly to you?
YIMI: (With hatred.): All the shit you’ve put me through since you turned up here – that’s the least terrible thing you’ve done. I put up with it so I could keep living here with her… Enjoying life, or suffering it together…
EQUIS: (Smiling cruelly.): What’s the difference between the two? They’re two sides of the same coin, aren’t they, Yimi?
YIMI: (Not listening.): What I can’t forgive is the journey you started me on. A journey no one ever comes back from… When they locked me up with you and two of your cronies, I was just a scared little prick, tortured by fear and hunger. You injected me for the first time, just so you could play around with me and make me into another of your hangers-on. And that’s what I’ve been up until now. The stupidest hanger-on of the entire bunch of scumbags surrounding you.
EQUIS: (Urgently.): No! You’re much more to me than that! I need you, Yimi! And you need me! I came looking for you when I got out of the clink because I don’t want to – I can’t – live without you by my side! Me as your slave! That’s why I got rid of all your baggage. Your women are already sorted… far away from us... Let’s be free again, partner. Joined together once more!
YIMI: (Firmly.): No! I’m not going back to that hell again! Never! I’ll never go back!
EQUIS: (Smiling.): There’s no way out, Yimi. Neither of us has one. We’ll always be chained to a chariot of fire, spinning around, dragging us with it…
YIMI: (Emphatically.): I’ll stop it dead!
EQUIS: (Equally emphatic.): No one can stop it! Or erase its marks!
YIMI: (Feverishly.): I will! I swear I will!; He opens the door and leaves, shaken.
EQUIS: (Wanting to stop him, he shouts. He can hear YIMI hurrying down the stairs to the street.): Yimi! Come back, Yimi! Come back! Yimi!; EQUIS shuts the door and walks distractedly to the spot where the cassette player stands. He looks at it nostalgically. The music used during the sadomasochistic rituals can be heard in the distance.
EQUIS: (In a subdued voice.): You’ll be back! I know you’ll come back, sooner or later. No one can escape their fate… And yours is already marked… with fire.

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