Almost Human (2013–2014): Season 1, Episode 2 - Skin - full transcript

The year is 2048.

Evolving technologies can
no longer be regulated.

Dangerous advancements forever
alter the criminal landscape.

Police are not prepared.

Law enforcement combats
this corruption

with a new line of defense...

but not all are created equal.

MAN: The idea behind the DRNs
was to be as human as possible.

They were based on a program
called Synthetic Soul.

MAN 2:
That's one of the crazy ones.

- I'll lead you in?
- Let's go.



WOMAN: Now all cops...
human and manmade together...

take on the battle
to watch over us all.

You are incredible.

(chuckles)

Let's get more comfortable, hmm?

That okay?

You nervous?

It seems like you've got
a lot on your mind.

Actually... I do.

What are you doing?

I've passed all my tests.
I'm clean.

Would you mind?

(soft suctioning sound)

(trills)



This won't hurt.

You don't have to do anything
if you don't want to.

People come to me for
all sorts of reasons.

Some want to talk
or just to be held.

Look, why don't we
just have some fun?

People look for connections
in different ways.

Someone who cares about them.

Andrei!

Last one.

I promise.

Get dressed.

(beeping)

(beeping continues)

CSI finished upstairs?

Shouldn't be long, sir.

You're a bot.

Yes, I am.

Cool! What can you do?

- Whoa.
- Oh, awesome!

Are you a robot, too?

No, I'm human.

Oh. What can you do?

Watch this.

- (screams)
- No, no, no.

It doesn't hurt. I got...
I got a synthetic leg!

I haven't even been a child,
and I know that would scare one.

What's the matter with you?

You have negative energy, man.

- My energy's great.
- Why don't you

- like kids?
- I never said I don't like kids.

You said I don't like kids.

Children can sense
electromagnetic fields, John.

- That's a bunch of baloney.
- They can sense discomfort, frustration

and bad energy.

As do felines.

I bet you have an issue
with cats, too, am I right?

Hey. My issue with cats
is none of your business.

(elevator chimes)

I'm allergic to cats.

Maybe the cats are
allergic to you.

You ever consider that?

(beep)

Victim is ID'd
as Sebastian Jones.

He paid for the room with cash.

Front desk said he showed up

with a woman.
Red hair, 20s.

About a half hour later,
two men showed up.

There are no fingerprints.

I don't think we're gonna
get anything from Forensics.

Everything is tainted in here.

They used a DNA bomb.

I hate that stuff.

Absorption round, third gen.

Wouldn't have made a sound.
These guys are good.

Any surveillance?

DORIAN:
She came in at 6:15 p.m.

They arrived 20 minutes later.

They're wearing FlashMask.

They took his bag.

John.

She's an android.

MALDONADO:
What do we have on our victim?

Sebastian Jones was
a high-end sex trade bot-maker.

Yeah, too bad he's dead.

Could've made you a girlfriend.

I'm not the one
with the online dating profile.

I don't have
an online dating profile.

You do now.

"Capricorn

who loves danger."

Okay. While you're at it,
why don't you put down.

"Recently lost partner
in tragic freeway accident."

MALDONADO:
Guys, what do we have?

DORIAN:
Sebastian Jones' company

is called Orillian Sapients.

They specialize in advanced

- sexual robotics.
- MALDONADO: Is this one of his sexbots?

JOHN: We don't know.

Sexbots are licensed.

Who's it registered to?

It's not registered to anybody.

Someone owns it.

It has to be registered.

What else do we know
about his life?

No spouse, no kids,

no criminal record.

Legitimate businessman.

- Inventor.
- DORIAN: He has 23 patents

to his name and is credited
as a pioneer in developing

- the artificial blush response.
- PAUL: Every red-blooded man in this city

owes a debt
to this fallen genius.

Why, because he makes
sex trade bots?

Call 'em "bang bots."
They actually like it.

And you know this
from experience?

PAUL (chuckles):
You say it like it's

- a bad thing.
- Crimes in the sex trade are down

- 38% since the bots were introduced.
- PAUL: Right?

- Do that math.
- The fewer real women

that have to sleep with you,
Richard,

- the better off the world is.
- Okay.

- What else do we know about him?
- Sebastian Jones

couldn't pay his bills.

Orillian Sapients declared
bankruptcy three months ago.

Creditors seized
all of his assets,

and now
they're currently sitting

in a repo storage facility.

(soft buzzing)

DORIAN:
Found a court summons.

- Sebastian was being sued.
- (phone rings)

Kennex.

Your case just got weird.

I just sent you something.
You get it?

Yeah, I got it.

The CSis went through
the elevator at the hotel,

scanning spots these guys

likely touched, trying
to pick up some DNA on them.

- Yeah.
- We didn't find any DNA on the guys,

but we found something else.

That's the first sample
they pulled.

Everywhere she touched, there
was DNA from a 25-year-old girl

named Nicole Bloomquist,
who was abducted three weeks ago

from a parking garage.

Are you telling me
the sexbot we're looking for

is leaving this girl's DNA?

It seems that way.

How?

Correct. How?

(slurping) Ah, there you go.

Perfect, perfect.

Oh, look at you.
Wriggle monster.

(giggles) Okay.

Mommy'll take it then.

Give me your hands,

give me your face.

Beautiful.

(vehicle approaching)

(tires screech)

(grunting)

(whirring)

(grunts)

(tires screech)

(siren chirping in distance)

VALERIE:
Another abduction happened.

Same M.O.
as Nicole Bloomquist.

20-something female,
parking structure.

Cameras were disabled.

There's no surveillance
of the abduction.

And I found three more
missing persons cases

with the same pattern.

So, they kill the cams
and then take the women.

Yeah, except this time,
something was left behind.

He was in the car.
His name is Victor.

Can I talk to him?

Maybe I should talk to him.

- He's not good with kids.
- Hey.

- Or cats.
- That-That's not...

I'm great with kids, really.

(sighs)

Hey.

I'm Detective Kennex.

You must be, uh, Victor, right?

Victor's a-a good name.

It's a good, strong name.

Look, I know
this must be hard...

but I need you to be brave.

Okay?

I really need you to tell me
what happened with your mom.

(giraffe squeaking)

You like him?

I'll give him to you
if you want him.

But you got to promise me

to look after him

because he means a lot to me.

I promise.
You promise?

Okay.

I trust you.

Look, Victor.

But I really need your help.

Need you to tell me
what happened with your mom.

You guys were in a car, right?

Your mom got out.

She went to put the trash away.

Then what happened?

(sighs)

I saw the car.

Did you see who was in it?

Two men.

Two men?

What happened then?

The car drove away.

What kind of car was it?
What color?

It was a big, silver car.

A big, silver car.

That's good.

When is my mom coming?

Hey, Victor.

You did really good.

- What's up? - CSI found the
silver sedan on a traffic cam

a block from
the parking structure.

The license plates
tracked back to a red SUV.

They're using stolen plates.

We got every plate scanner
in the city

looking for those tags.

We'll find that car.

Okay, two girls were abducted
with the same M.O.

and one of them,

her DNA was found on the sexbot

who was with Sebastian Jones
when he was murdered.

I think we should
focus on finding

the sexbot that was
with Sebastian.

DORIAN: If we can access
her memory, we might be able

to see what happened
in the hotel that night.

And identify who did it.

That's our best bet
for finding the missing women.

Guys, I might have a new angle.

I dug into
those summonses you found.

Sebastian's former business
partner Lorenzo Shaw

was suing him for intellectual
property infringement

and he just opened a
sexbot showroom downtown

for himself... it's motive.

He could be involved.

Check him out.

You were surprisingly good
with that kid back there, John.

Even though you had
to bribe him with a giraffe.

Thanks.

Do you think his mother
is still alive?

I hope so.

Every hour she's gone
diminishes the chance

of us finding her alive.

What do you tell a small child
when someone dies?

I've never considered that.

What you would tell
a small child.

Well, you say the same thing
that you'd say to an adult.

What do they say?

You tell them
that the person that died

has gone to a better place.

Why would anyone say that
when there's no way

to really know where living
things go when they stop living?

It's designed to give hope
and comfort.

To ease the pain.

People believe it
because they need to.

Hmm, the data
I've studied suggests

that the best proof
of one's existence

is if one is remembered
after they're gone.

Was your partner's son told
that his father

went to a better place?

I don't know.

You never spoke
to your partner's son?

I can understand why
that would be hard for you.

(rapid breathing)

(low sobbing)

What did you do with my son?

Don't worry.

The authorities will have him

by now.

You see, we're...

- we're not monsters.
- I have money!

Anything you want, anything.

I'll give you anything.

- Please, I just want to see my son...
- (shushes)

I already have

what I want.

No, no, no!

(crying)

JOHN:
Your ex-partner,

Sebastian Jones,

when was the last time
you saw him?

Six months? Seven?

We'd been sort of
on the outs lately.

"On the outs"?

You were suing him.

I have intellectual
property rights

on designs
we developed together

at Orillian.

What happens to the I.P. rights

now that Sebastian's naked?

Um, I mean "dead."

Now that Sebastian's dead.

What happens
to the I.P. rights?

Well, they would
naturally revert to me.

Is this one of your models?

No, she's not mine.

What about this one?

Or this one?

You ever seen
these women before?

No, but they're not synthetics.

- How can you be sure?
- In my line of work,

you get to know.

You know, I haven't seen
one of you in a while.

The latest sexbots have a little
bit of your old tech in them.

They're capable

of bonding empathetically

with their clients.

Sense their moods...

and respond accordingly.

It's a significant achievement.

If your bots are so special,

why was Sebastian so in debt?

Well, if you knew Sebastian,
you'd understand.

He was an artist.

We were making good money.

But he was determined
to create the next line.

Better than the last.

He sunk all our capital
into new fabs,

tooling, subsystems.

He bet the whole company on it.

And then our biggest
client canceled

their contract with us.

Took us completely by surprise.

Bankrupted us.

Who was your biggest client?

Ah, if you don't want
to tell me, that's okay.

We'll just subpoena
your records.

Shut you down for a few days

while we go through them.

It was an Albanian consortium.

They said they were
cutting out the middle man.

You mean they found
a new supplier?

Apparently.

Sebastian couldn't believe
that anyone could build

a better sexbot than us.

The first picture I showed you.

Did she belong to the Albanians?

Is she why Sebastian was at the
hotel the night he was killed?

(door opens)

I wouldn't know.

Look, I-I don't want to talk
about this anymore.

Did they threaten you?

No...

They were good clients.

They always paid on time.

And that's all
I'm gonna say about them.

Excuse me.

I have customers.

Mr. Shaw?

Have you ever heard of people

incorporating human
DNA into a sexbot?

That's illegal.

And I think you know that.

(sexbot giggles)

You can say you don't
like robots all you want.

Your pulse says otherwise.

What?

Precisely.

I want you to hack
into Shaw's customer network.

Find the Albanians.

We don't need a warrant?

I agree.

Got it.

Five star rating.

What's the plan?

Stir the pot.

(speaking Albanian)

Hands out of your pockets.

- You seen this bot?
- No.

No?

- Seen that bot?
- No, no...

We tested all the bots.

They all check out.
They're clean.

Okay, thanks.

Yup.

Officers.

I'm the manager.

Can I help you?

Is this one of your bots?

No.

We got a great selection here.

We can get you
pretty close to this one.

Our bots have passed
all the required tests.

Special rate for cops.

We love cops.

Yeah.

- We love cops.
- Well, great.

If you answer all
of my questions,

maybe I'll let you
get to first base.

You ever buy

from Sebastian Jones
and Lorenzo Shaw?

We used to.

- Not anymore.
- Why'd you stop?

We make our own now.

And you're sure that's
not one of them?

Already said.

DORIAN: John.

Detective Stahl needs
to talk to us.

Thank you, gentlemen.

His vitals suggest
that he is lying.

Yup.

Or he doesn't like
you very much.

Add him to the list
of kids and cats.

We got a hit
for the silver sedan.

The one that kidnapped Kristen
Haseman in the parking garage.

We picked it up
on a plate scanner.

Dorian, watch the sedan
as it goes

past the scanner.

The license plate changes.

They're using a tag scrambler.

Once we realized that,
we switched

to straight surveillance cams
and tracked it

to an industrial facility
off 8th Street.

JOHN:
What were they doing there?

I don't know,
they were there for 20 minutes,

and then we lost 'em.

All right, we're
three minutes out.

(tires screeching)

What the hell is that?

Is that Kristen Haseman?

It's not human.

This is the android
from the hotel.

If this is what they're
doing to their sexbots,

imagine what they're doing
to the women they've abducted.

RUDY:
Beautiful green.

They really have got
the color just right.

You see, these
shots were targeted

precisely to shatter
the cortical relays

and storage centers.

They destroyed her memory.

Yeah, they wanted to ensure
no one could retrieve

her recorded memories of
Sebastian Jones' murder.

These albinos knew exactly
what they were doing.

Albanians.

Well, that, that
would make more sense.

But there is a small
chance that her

temporal housing
might be intact enough

to salvage some of
her echoic memory.

Uh, she might still
be able to tell us

something about the
people that did this.

(grunts)

Apologies, mate.

I'm used to being
alone when I do this.

You might want to look away.

It's fine.

Why did they peel its skin off?

Well, they obviously didn't want
us to see that either.

Wait a minute,

the surveillance footage
at the hotel.

Her hands left traces
of human DNA.

You think they're
abducting the girls

to harvest their skin.

If you used human skin,

you'd make the best sex machines
on the market.

I think Sebastian
found out about it.

That's why they killed him.

Sex machine, bang bot?

It's a bit myopic, isn't it?

Not everyone who visits a
sexbot is looking for sex.

Some people go for
the conversation

or for a sympathetic ear at
the end of a long working day

surrounded by people who
only ever come to visit

when they want
something from you.

I'm just saying that, uh,

the neural interface is
quite sophisticated.

Anyway, it appears

they're growing skin using
DNA from the abducted women.

Well, synthetic skin,

as good as it is, is
a long way from the real thing.

There are pheromones and
other biological features

that trigger attraction.

Here it is.
(whirring)

(sighs)

Sorry, it's too damaged.

If you want to know

where these bots are
coming from, I'm going

to have to get my hands
on a live one.

So to speak.

You're quiet.

What's wrong?

Just looking at that bot
on Rudy's table

makes me think,

who is going to remember me?

You're a cop.

The people you help
will remember you,

whatever your name is.

Speaking of names,
someone just responded

to your dating profile, John.

My dating pro...

I thought you were kidding.

Not kidding... I saw the way you
were looking at those sexbots.

Your profile name is...

(in French accent):
Dr. Richard.

- Dr. Richard.
- Who likes quiche,

- long walks on the beach, smooth jazz.
- You seriously did not

call me Dr. Richard.

- I thought you wanted to meet someone.
- I meet

plenty of women.
I don't need your help.

I-I ran a bio scan, and it
looked like your testicles were

at full capacity.

You're scanning my balls?

I didn't enjoy it,

- I just...
- Oh, my God,

- this is unbelievable.
- I can't help but notice

you're backed up.

What is the matter with you?

Don't scan my
testicles ever again.

Copy that.

What does she look like?

What do you want her
to look like?

Brown eyes, soulful.

Height?

Average height.

I like brunettes.

Would you date anyone
in your profession

or would you prefer to date
someone outside of it?

Sure, either way.

I like smart women, you know,
women that are smarter than me.

That won't be hard.

You are aware
that you just described

Detective Stahl, right?

(phone rings)

Kennex.

Hey, we got a 20
on the silver sedan you posted.

I just uploaded it to Dorian.

Uh, okay, thank you, um,

Detective Stahl, thanks.

- (mimicking): Okay, thank you, Detective Stahl.
- Shut up.

Shut it, zip it.

Police!

Hands up! Hands on the dash! Don't you move!
Put your hands on the dashboard!

- Hold 'em, keep 'em there! - Do not move!
Put your hands on the dashboard now

- where I can see 'em!
- Turn around, turn around!

Step out of the car.

Come on.

Around front.

Hi, I'm Vanessa.

Hey, how you doing?
DORIAN: I need to take

a DNA sample.

Open your mouth, please.

Why?

I've passed all my tests.

Please.

Her DNA belongs
to a Lorraine White,

abducted
from a parking structure

two months ago in St. Clair.

(beeping)

Lab.

JOHN:
Rudy,

found you some skin.

(gasps)

The Albanians aren't telling us

where the kidnap victims are.

We need to get that
information from a sexbot.

We have three missing
girls out there

somewhere, maybe more.

I'll pull everything
I can from it.

Hello again.

A human's DNA was used

to make your skin.

This woman.

We need to find her.

We don't have much time.

Have you seen her before?

No.

I need you to think.

It's really important.

Have you seen her?

No.

Where were you made?

Who owns you?

Do you know where you were born?

You ever worked with this girl?

Charlene.

Right, Charlene.

Do you know where she was born?

Who owns you?

DORIAN:
She's probably not conscious

of those terms.

Where were those men
taking you tonight?

They were taking me for a ride.

We think they were taking
you to be destroyed.

Why would anybody want
to destroy me?

There are much, much better
things to do with me.

We don't have to do anything
if you don't want to.

I'm a very, very good listener.

You know, people look for
connections in different ways.

That's all people
are looking for,

is someone who cares
about them.

That's what I'm here for.

Do you know where Charlene is?

Yes.

Can I see her?

Why do you want to?

I don't know.

You were designed

to bond with people.

That's what you were
developed to do.

To notice when they're there.

That also means you notice
when they're not there.

That's why you want to see her.

That's what you're feeling.

Who told you

to go with the men
we found you with tonight?

Yuri.

Do you know Yuri?

Yeah, we know Yuri.

(indistinct shouting)

I'm going upstairs.

Move!

?

You go first.

They're not here.

This isn't the right building.

Office is empty, too.

I think I can find
the skin lab.

- DORIAN (over radio): Rudy?
- Yes, Dorian?

Most of these sexbots
are platformed

on an old UJuno
Pendant Learning Module.

Uh, yeah, uh, those modules
were available

to the public sector once we
stopped using them on the DRNs.

Problem was that
they were giving off

an unwanted GPS signal.

Yeah, it was

an unwanted side effect.

Um, whenever they, uh,
automatically updated

their software,
they'd inadvertently send out

a signal allowing
those so inclined to, uh,

track you.

Is there a log of that?

I'm sure there is.

Can you access
Vanessa's internal GPS log

to find the very first time
that the module sent a signal?

- It's possible.
- If we can find out

the first time
she was activated,

- we can find...
- Find out where she was born.

The skin lab.

(sighs)
All right, bear with me.

Um...

I won't be a minute.

(chuckles):
Oh. Look at that.

That's the charger for my...
doesn't matter.

Um, here we go.

This is the one I need.

Um...

right. Uh, hello.

I need to access
your data port.

That sounds rude. Um,

I need to insert my...
Oh, that's even worse.

Um... Oh, friendly.

Um, it's nothing sexual,
I assure you.

Not that there's
anything wrong with sex.

I mean, who doesn't like sex?

Not me.

I mean, I do.
That's-that's the point.

But that would be,

um, inappropriate at best.

This is not gonna hurt,
I promise you.

(mechanical whirring) There we go.
(chuckles)

Um...

right.

Just, um...

having a look at your, uh...

...statistics.
(clears throat)

Looks like you

were first activated
in Kingston Heights.

?

Clear!

Clear!

Clear!

Clear!

Clear!

(weapons firing) (grunting)

Take him out!

(shouts indistinctly)

(weapons firing)

(shouts indistinctly)

(indistinct shouts,
weapons firing)

(loud grunt)

No!

MAN:
Move it! Move it!

- Drop that weapon! Drop it, you!
- Drop the weapon!

(indistinct shouts)

MAN: Don't shoot! On the ground!
Now!

(man shouting indistinctly)

Clear!

- Clear.
- Clear!

Clear!

- This is Lorraine White.
- MX-43: She's deceased.

Call Bloomquist.
She's still alive.

Kristen Haseman... she's alive.

Victor is gonna be very happy

to see you.

Great work.

Thanks.

- You should celebrate.
- He will.

You have a date.

What?

- No, I don't.
- Yes, you do...

with the woman from
the dating Web site.

- (laughs)
- Wha...? No.

He has a wonderful profile.

She's expecting you
at 7:00.

(awkward laugh) That's a...

it's just a...
it's a joke, you know.

I get a lot of women.

I mean, not a lot...
you know, just...

You should celebrate
no matter what.

Have a great night...
on your date.

Thanks.

Good night.

Benedict Android strikes again.

- I can't go on a date tonight.
- Why?

Because I've already got
someone I want to see.

- But, John, if you just... - MALDONADO:
Do you have your report done?

Uh, yeah, almost.

We'll need
individual certificates

when the bots are destroyed.

- Okay?
- Okay.

I'm sorry.

We can't have bots
with human DNA.

She has to be deactivated.

But well done.
Very well done.

- Thank you.
- See you tomorrow.

You okay?

I'd like to be there.

?

Thank you.

?

?

Where am I going?

To a better place.

Will you be there?

I will remember you.

(click)

(beeping)

(quiet, mechanical whirring)

(low beeping)

(dog barking in distance)

(turns off engine)

(birds chirping)

(dog barking in distance)

?

Marty,

do you remember John Kennex?

He was

your dad's partner.

I want to tell you
about your father.