FADE IN:
INT. CORRIDOR - POWER BASE
Power steps up to the doors that guard the entrance to a room. The doors slide open to admit him.
INT. THE ROOM
Standard quarters in the Power Base - bunk bed, desk beside it and a table in the center of the room. A lone figure sits at the desk, watching images on the mini-console that is mounted on the desk.
Power walks up to the figure at the desk, who has her (it is obvious it is a she) back to him. As he steps up closer, we can hear the sounds eminating from the console on the table.
Power glances over her shoulder - images of Dread tyranny at work - humans being digitised, chased out of their settlements, troopers marching in, herding humans into groups...
He reaches over and taps a button on the screen. The images vanish.
POWER
You shouldn’t keep playing that over and over again.
She turns around - she is Pilot, looking younger and a lot more vulnerable that when we knew her.
PILOT
(stilted)
I didn’t hear you come in Captain...
Power nods.
POWER
That’s okay...I’m glad to see the...um...clothes fit.
Pilot looks down at herself. She’s wearing Army issue trousers, with her boots worn over the cuffs so they seem less overlong and a dark blue T-shirt that looks just a little bit big on her.
POWER (CONT'D)
We haven’t...um...we’re an all man team...
PILOT
(slowly)
It doesn’t matter...
(beat)
I just needed to get out of that...uniform...
She turns away from Power.
PILOT (CONT'D)
But thank you...
(awkwardly, searching for the words)
for your kindness.
POWER
(gently)
It was the least we could do after the help you gave us that day...we could hardly leave you there to die.
(beat, slightly awkward)
We...uh...don’t usually get visitors here...I’m sorry about the lock on the door but its a necessary security precaution.
PILOT
I understand.
(beat)
You’re here to find out if I’m a spy aren't you?
POWER
Are you?
PILOT
Would you believe me if I said no?
POWER
What does the machine say I would do?
PILOT
Logic dictates that my presence here can only cause harm to you and your team...what other reason can there be for my being here other than to spy on you for Lord Dread? Especially since he has long wanted to find your secret base...
POWER
So, according to logic, I should execute you because you might be a spy.
Pilot looks down.
PILOT
Logically, execution is...the correct option.
POWER
Is that what you think I’m going to do to you? Kill you? Torture and interrogate you until you admit to being a spy?
PILOT
I...
(beat)
I don’t know..
.
(remembers Power's 'Preserve All Life' credo,looks at Power)
Would you?
POWER
(smiles slightly)
Let’s start again.
(beat)
Why did you do what you did?
PILOT
Would you believe me if I told you?
POWER
Try me.
PILOT
You are willing to take the risk that I am not lying?
POWER
It doesn’t cost me anything to listen to what you have to say.
PILOT
(intrigued)
But why? Why do you want to know? Why are you willing to take the chance? The risk?
POWER
Logic may tell me that you are a spy but my feelings...
(corrects himself)
intuition if you like...may argue otherwise. That the truth is very different from what I... logically presume it to be.
(beat)
What you did out there, saving that child and those settlers, makes me think that perhaps, for you, Dread’s propaganda has stopped providing the answers to all the questions.
PILOT
So your decision is based on more than just logic?
POWER
(nods)
Its based on what I feel from you - my gauging of your sincerity and honesty for example...and from what I saw out there that day.
PILOT
But you could be misled.
POWER
(smiling wanely)
Yes.
(beat)
But there’s an old saying...
(beat)
That to err, is to be human.
He leans in close to Pilot, resting a hand on her shoulder (but in a friendly, not romantic way)
POWER (CONT'D)
When you’re ready to talk, I’ll be here to listen to what you have to say.
Power starts towards the door.
PILOT
What if you’re wrong about me? About who I am?
Power stops short of the door before he turns around.
POWER
Even the best of us make mistakes. Sometimes, we see something which isn’t really there.
PILOT
What then?
POWER
We’ll cross that bridge when we get to it.
He leaves the room, leaving Pilot to ponder his remark.
MONTAGE OF SHOTS:
We see Pilot and Power walking the corridors of the Power Base talking intently, Pilot questioning Power constantly, absorbing the information he gives her...we see a grim faced Tank bringing Pilot a tray of food and finding her asleep over a stack of books - literature from Homer’s Illiad to Shakespeare...we see Hawk bringing her a tray of food and his suspicious response when Pilot tries to smile at him and thank him...
INT. JUMPSHIP BAY - HANGAR
Hawk is trying to fix a problem with the Jumpship and Tank is helping him. Tank holds the ladder against the side of the Jumpship while Hawk has his head under the hatch, poking about the circuits.
HAWK
Damn it - they don’t make these things like they used to...
TANK
Does that mean you can’t fix it?
HAWK
I didn’t say that! Its just going to take me a while...Stuart never designed with simplicity in
mind...
Tank grins before sobering up.
TANK
So, what do you think of her?
HAWK
(absent-mindedly)
Who?
TANK
Our new room-mate...
HAWK
She’s a Dread Youth member - there’s nothing much to think about...
TANK
Do you think she’s a spy?
Hawk pops his head out of the hatch.
HAWK
Don’t you?
TANK
So why hasn’t the roof fallen in yet?If she is a spy, Dread would be all over us by now...
HAWK
If you want my opinion, chicken licken, once a Dreadhead, always a Dreadhead...there are some things you can’t change.
Tank watches Power enter the Hangar with Pilot out of the corner of his eye.
TANK
Don’t look now then...
Hawk crans his neck around and catches a glimpse of Power walking into the Hangar with Pilot.
POWER
Problem, Hawk?
HAWK
(slightly indignant)
Nothing I can’t handle, Captain...
Pilot clearly admires the Jumpship...cranning her neck to get a better look of its sleek lines.
PILOT
May I?...
(beat)
...have a closer look?
She gestures at the Jumpship.
POWER
Be my guest.
Pilot grins enthusiastically before she quickly wipes the smile of her face, instinctively even. Slowly, she makes her way around the ship.
Hawk, horrified at what is happening, immediately comes down the ladder to talk to Power in a hushed whisper.
HAWK
Jon! Are you crazy?...
He chucks a thumb in the direction of the back of the ship, where Pilot is intently studying the ship’s afterburners.
TANK
Captain, why are we keeping her here?
Pilot walks right round the Jumpship before returning to where Power and Hawk are conferring.
Hawk frowns as she walks back to Power.
POWER
We seem to be having a slight problem with the Jumpship...would you mind taking a look?
PILOT
I...
(sensing Hawk's disagreement)
Maybe it’s not appropriate...
POWER
Hawk?
Power raises an eyebrow at Hawk, which clearly signals that he would like Hawk to let Pilot attempt the repair and to tell her what is wrong.
HAWK
(begrudgingly)
The stabilisers seem to be off-line - the controls are tilting to the left wing side...
She looks to Power for approval before stepping up to the ladder. A tentative look is shot at Tank, who stands there holding the ladder, impassive. She starts up the ladder while Hawk exchanges a very concerned looked with Power - Hawk wants to know what is going on and what Power has up his sleeve.
Perched on top of the ladder (a somewhat familiar sight) Pilot pokes her head down the hatch.
POWER
See the problem?
Pilot turns to him and nods.
PILOT
It looks like the circuit needs to be replaced...probably the result of a hit...
Hawk gives Power a ‘What are you getting at’ look.
POWER
Can you fix it?
Pilot is rather surprised by his response.
PILOT
Uh...yes, I suppose. If you had the tools and components - building the circuit shouldn’t take too long.
Not knowing what to do next, she decides to come back down onto the ground.
POWER
Tank - would you escort her back to her quarters?
Tank nods and impassively gestures for Pilot to walk ahead. Pilot throws Power a uncertain look then tentatively walks in the direction of the Hangar entrance.
Power waits until she and Tank are out of hearing’s reach before speaking to an impatient and waiting Hawk.
HAWK
What the hell was that all about Jon?
POWER (CONT'D)
I have good reasons for what I’m doing Matt.
HAWK
(indignant)
Like hell Jon! You’re letting her see all our secrets...You couldn’t be sending a more open invitation to Dread!
POWER
Is that what you think of her?
HAWK
She’s a Dread Youth member...what’s there to think?
POWER
I mean beyond that Matt...don’t look at her for the uniform she wore, but the person she is...
HAWK
You can’t do that Jon - she is what that uniform made her to be. From the day she was born, she has been conditioned to believe in nothing else but Dread’s damned machine ideology! You can’t just play ‘ getting to know you’ with her and ignore the fact that she is the enemy.
POWER
She renounced Dread’s beliefs when she saved that child.
Hawk throws up his hands in frustration.
HAWK
Listen to yourself,Jon.Dread maybe machine parts and nothing much else, but he’s not beyond using her to find us.Even if she is who she claims to be, its too dangerous.
Power leans against a concrete block that doubles up as a work surface as he faces Hawk.
POWER
But we need someone like her...someone who knows Dread inside and out...who can give us information about his plans...
HAWK
We can’t trust her. That’s the bottom line Jon.
POWER
Someone to maintain the Jumpship and fly as co-pilot.
HAWK
It doesn’t have to be her! Why a Dread Youth member,Jon?
Power paces slowly down the length of the Jumpship as he speaks.
POWER
There’s something about her Hawk...something that tells me that she’s not a spy for Dread...or whatever we think she might be. She’s not some slogan spouting kid, she’s confused...about everything around her...its like life has just begun for her, learning all over again a whole new set of rules...
He turns to look Hawk right in the eye.
POWER
Just give her a chance, Matt. That’s all I’m asking you to do.
Power implores Hawk, who refuses to meet his eye. They stand there, neither persuaded by the other as we FADE OUT...
END OF ACT TWO
ACT THREE
FADE IN:
INT. CORRIDOR - POWER BASE
Hawk is walking along the corridor, passing Pilot’s room when he hears anguished moaning coming from inside her room.
He pauses and then steps closer to the door to listen more carefully. The cries grow increasingly anguished, indicating the person to be very disturbed...
Hawk hesitates momentarily before stepping up to the small console attached to the side of the door.
HAWK
(urgently)
Voice recognition Matt Masterson - open doors!
COMPUTER
Verified - opening doors...
The double doors slide open and Hawk dashes in.
INT. PILOT'S ROOM
Pilot is lying on the bed, on top of the blue covers, in deep sleep. She’s still wearing the blue T-shirt and army trousers and boots. Her brow is sweaty and she looks like she is having a bad dream...
PILOT
(softly)
No...please....stop...I...
Seeing her obvious distress, Hawk walks over to the bed and gently shakes her awake. Her blue eyes flick open the moment he touches her shoulder and she sits bolt upright immediately with a yelp, making Hawk jump back. She looks at him with a look of fear and vulnerability.
HAWK
(instinctively calming her)
Its okay...its just a dream...
PILOT
(breathlessly)
A dream...
(nods slowly)
It was so vivid...I...
She looks down, confused. Hawk starts to back away and then turns around to leave. But before he can get to the door, Pilot calls to him.
PILOT (CONT'D)
Please...please don’t leave...
Hawk turns around to look at her, puzzled by her request.
PILOT (CONT'D)
I mean...would you...would you mind talking to me for a little while?
Hawk crosses his arms over his chest and regards her with a neutral expression.
HAWK
(reverting to business-like tone)
Okay - what would you like to talk about?
PILOT
I don’t know...anything...to
(runs her hand through her hair)
...get those images out of my mind...
She is clearly disturbed by her dream.
PILOT (CONT'D)v I...tell me about the ship...yourself...anything....
This rubs Hawk completely up the wrong way.
HAWK
Listen - you may have the Captain wrapped around your little finger, but it’s gonna take a lot more than that to convince me that you’re not the enemy. A hell of a lot more.
Pilot looks at him and bites her lip.
PILOT
...I didn’t mean to...
The doors to her room slide open again to admit Power. He is surprised to see Hawk in there.
POWER
Matt?
(noticing Pilot's distressed state)
Is something wrong?
He looks over to Pilot.
HAWK
(slowly, never taking his eyes of Pilot)
Nope.
(beat)
Nothing’s wrong. Everything’s just dandy...
He gives Pilot a long look before stepping out. Power watches him go before he walks over to the bed and sits on the end.
POWER
Everything alright?
PILOT
(nodding)
Yes...
(beat)
Just a...a bad dream.
She slides off the bed and walks over to the desk.
POWER
Want to talk about it?
She gives a short laugh.
PILOT
What good is talking about it?
She turns around to face Power.
PILOT (CONT'D)
(frustratedly)
Talking doesn’t make the nightmares go away...it doesn’t make it any easier to...to get you...
(flinging a hand at the door)
them... to trust me! To believe me! I see how they look at me...with suspicion, with disbelief...the way I look at myself in the mirror every morning!
(beat,angrily)
I don’t even understand why I’m trying...
Silence.
POWER
Do you want to...go back?
Pilot shakes her head in confusion.
PILOT
I don't know...the things I have done, in the name of a cause are unspeakable...
She looks down at her hands.
PILOT (CONT'D)
The blood of so many lives is on my hands...
(beat)
I hate who I am. I hate who I have been made into...I hate what they’ve done to this world, and to me and those like me...I hate the way I can’t...
Pause.
PILOT
(angrily)
Can’t find the words to describe what I feel inside...to be, yet not to be...human. To feel, yet not know what it was that I feel...
(looks directly at Power)
Do you know how that feels? To find that everything that you believed is nothing more than a lie?!
Power shakes his head slowly.
PILOT (CONT'D)
(anguished)
I’m so confused about everything...why I’m here, who I really am... all these...feelings I’ve never had before...
(beat)
Fear...hope....anger...hate...
(beat)
I don’t know how much more I can take...
Power says nothing, but just sits on the edge of the bed, arms crossed over his chest, listening to her.
PILOT (CONT'D)
I...
(struggling with her feelings)
I...I...
She struggles with not knowing yet knowing that the emotional frustration she has bottled up inside her needs to be let out...but the tears start to stream down her face...instinctively, she reacts to try and control them, as she has been conditioned to since a child.
Realising what has happened, Power crosses over to her and tries to comfort her, patting her on the shoulder.
POWER
Its okay...
PILOT
(confused)
Why...what’s...
But the tears keep streaming down her face, almost uncontrollably and she collapses against Power, crying into his shirt.
Initially surprised, Power, feeling slightly awkward, puts his arms loosely around her to comfort her.
POWER
Its okay...just let it all out...
He strokes her hair (but in a close friend rather than sexual way) as he cradles her. Her cries are muffled against his chest.
POWER (CONT'D)
(softly, slightly awkwardly)
Its alright to cry Jennifer...sometimes it helps to cry...and let it out...how you feel...
(beat)
Ssshhhh...its okay...
Silence except for Pilot’s muffled sobs.
PILOT
Going back...would be so much...easier...
(beat)
To just be who and what I was born to be. To wear that uniform, and live without doubt, without fear...without anger...
POWER
I wish I could tell you that it’s going to get easier...
(beat)
But being human, having feelings, is not just about experiencing joy and happiness, but pain and anguish as well...
Pilot pulls back slightly from him, her face tear streaked.
POWER (CONT'D)
Learning to trust and to be trusted isn’t easy...
(beat)
Not everybody makes it. Some of us just give up.Say its too hard, say that its not worth it.
(beat)
I can’t make that decision for you. I can’t tell you if it is worth all the agony, hurt and confusion that you’re going through now. Only you know if its a fight worth taking on.
Pilot looks up at him, her eyes still damp, but determined, encouraged by Power’s words as we CUT TO...
INT. DREAD OUTPOST - SOMEWHERE - DAY
Troopers are being hit right left and center outside the Outpost as they try to defend it against the attack - in the sky, Scout on Skybike with Hawk providing attack and cover. Tank and Power are on the ground blasting against the troopers while trying to set up charges around the building to blow it up.
Power plants a charge on the back and side, setting them at 5 minute delays before moving to a couple of barrels of fuel/flammable liquid. He plants the charge, only to find the detenator chip is missing - having fallen off during the battle.
As he debates what to do, troopers alerted to his position start closing on him. Power tries to fight them off, but with the barrels of fuel behind him, is conscious of the danger of the situation...things do not improve when several troopers decide to make him their target.
Suddenly, from off screen, several laser blasts ring out, taking out the ring of 8 troopers firing at Power. Power looks up and we see it is Pilot, powersuited, brandishing her blaster. She swaggers over to him and holds up a detanator chip from her own pack.
PILOT
(sassy)
Need a light,Captain?
He grins at her and catches the chip she tosses over to him. They haven’t got time however to kid about as a Dread tank rolls out of the outpost and starts firing in their direction.
PILOT (CONT'D)
Looks like company...
She starts blasting away defensively, keeping them away from Power while he sets the charge.
Power keys in a 3 minute delay onto the charge and activates it. Brandishing his blaster, he joins Pilot in blasting away at the Tank.
POWER
How many did you get?
PILOT
One on the back wall and on the side.
POWER
Okay, those we haven’t got much time...let’s move...
PILOT
You got it...
They start to press forward, moving away from the building.
POWER
Scout! Hawk - we need some cover here.
HAWK
Copy Captain...
Hawk and Scout combine to take out the troopers blocking Power and Pilot’s path away from the building. They meet up with Tank and start to hurry away from the building.
POWER
Let’s go! It’s gonna blow!
Two seconds later, the charges go off one by one, and Power and Pilot dive onto the ground as the force of the blast throws up rubble and trooper body parts.
Power, Tank and Pilot pick themselves off the ground and watch the outpost go up in flames, with explosions still going off from the flammables and explosives within the outpost.
POWER
Yeah!
Tank pulls up his face mask and smiles.
SCOUT (O.S.)
Coming in to get ya Captain.
POWER
Roger that Scout.
Two minutes later, Scout lands on the ground, with a programmed Skybike in tow. He raises up his visor to admire the sight of the burning outpost, with the ammunition stored in it periodically sending flames and metal parts shooting into the sky.
SCOUT
Like a party on the 4th of July Captain.
Power flashes him a smile. He turns to look at Pilot, who is standing a little way away, looking at the burning outpost.
POWER
Pilot!
She turns to look at him - her wrapround glasses in her hand.
POWER (CONT'D)
Time to go.
She walks back to Power, a serious expression on her face. Tank mounts the Skybike behind Scout while Power gets on the spare Skybike.
Pilot reaches the skybike and casts one more look at the burning building.
POWER (CONT'D)
(concerned)
You okay?
Pilot slips her glasses back on and pats to make sure her gun is securely in its holster. Then, she climbs onto the skybike behind Power.
PILOT
(assertively)
Never felt better in my life.
With a roar, the skybikes take off. In the sky, Pilot takes one more last look at the burning building - the battle which represented an exorcism of her past, and an embracing of her new life as we FLASHBACK to the present...