FINNEGAN'S SQUAD: "The Fifth Estate" - teaser/opening act
COPYRIGHT © 2004 | TITAN-RAINBOW Media Productions | ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
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FINNEGAN'S SQUAD: "The Fifth Estate"
BEGIN OPENING ACT:
EXT. ASIAN MOUNTAIN VILLAGE - EVENING
At one time the village of Kodari was a center of religion
but that time has passed. The effects of the Eco-Crisis a
century earlier linger here and this quaint mountain village
sitting as it does on a shifting border between Nepal and the
Tibet region of the People's Republic of China (West China)
seems to be in eternal winter.
SUPER: KODARI VILLAGE - HIMALAYAS DISPUTED ZONE
At the edge of town sits an ancient square stone building, it
is "RAI'S", the largest of the local eating establishments in
this, the last stop before Katmandu.
INT. RESTAURANT
The interior of "RAI'S" is dimly lit but otherwise warm. The
rough hewn bare wooden tables crowd the middle open space
flanked on one side by an incongruously modern looking bar
and on the other by the lone door and window.
Behind the bar is BIKRAM, the elderly Nepalese owner of
"RAI'S". He is assisted by AISHA, his daughter. At the
window, dressed locally but definitely not from around here
is DAWN LEGATO (female 30's).
Dawn is peering out the window impatiently while suppressing
a chill at the cold snowy night.
DAWN LEGATO
July... huh.
She turns and calls over to Bikram.
DAWN LEGATO (cont'd)
Are you sure they're coming?
BIKRAM
Yes Miss. They come every night.
For three weeks now.
DAWN LEGATO
Any idea when?
BIKRAM
Soon. Dinner hour.
Dawn moves away from the window starting toward the bar. She
pulls her wrap tighter around her suppressing another chill.
DAWN LEGATO
Does it ever warm up around here?
BIKRAM
Once Miss. Long before.
DAWN LEGATO
Before what?
BIKRAM
Before I was born.
DAWN LEGATO
Huh.
BIKRAM
Blame your ancestors Miss. Waste
not they said, waste lots they did.
Dawn looks around mulling this truism over.
DAWN LEGATO
Huh.
She turns looking across the bar and out the window again.
EXT. RESTAURANT - EVENING
A slow rumbling announces the arrival of a 5-ton sized Troop
Carrier.
The baffle plates along either side of it vibrate as the Grav
Plates push against the ground trying to keep the ungainly
vehicle from landing. These are old plates which is why a
heat shimmer is visible off what otherwise look like a series
of metal drums strung along each side.
The Troop Carrier lurches to a stop in front of the
Restaurant. It's back hatch opens and a Senior Lieutenant of
the PRC Army steps out glancing to either side before waving
the rest of the occupants out of the vehicle.
One at a time a string of Soldiers rush out of the back of
the vehicle and move as directed toward the front door of
RAI's.
INT. RESTAURANT
Dawn quickly turns, musses up her hair and pushes the shiny
metal canister she left perched on the bar counter to a more
prominent place.
She twists the top of the container which causes the first
two inches to separate from the bottom and sit with a two
centimeter wide gap between them.
She then turns and starts across the restaurant toward the
door, as it opens.
The first through the door is a PRC MAJOR. We might
recognize him from the first episode when he was still a
Senior Captain in the PRC Army.
He steps into the restaurant looking around as the Soldiers
he's escorting enter, move deep into the place and find their
seats as though this was a much practiced drill. Which it
is.
The PRC Major sees Dawn and his head tilts. Curiously he
steps forward approaching her.
PRC MAJOR
And who are you, Miss?
From behind the counter Bikram is already approaching.
BIKRAM
That is my niece, Major. Tara
Ranas. She's from Katmandu.
The PRC Major eyes Bikram warily.
PRC MAJOR
She does not look right.
BIKRAM
She isn't ...
(head down)
My brother liked Westerners.
PRC Major looks back at Dawn suspiciously. He looks over at
a thin female PRC Lieutenant (GEN JUNE) who is his second.
PRC MAJOR
Verify.
Gen June steps forward aggressively taking Dawn's wrist
firmly and twisting it sharply. By the twinkle in Gen June's
eyes you can see that she enjoys this.
Dawn looks at her with fear and hesitation as Gen June holds
a scanner up to Dawn's wrist and activates it.
An ultra-violet light bathes this spot for a second and when
a tone announces it's finished Gen June reads the display.
GEN JUNE
Identity confirmed.
The PRC Major stands there eyeing Dawn still not convinced.
He is about to step forward for a closer interrogation when
Bikram cuts him off.
BIKRAM
We have a fresh shipment of Beef
Major. The finest cuts... from
Alberta.
The PRC Major is undeterred. He steps closer to Dawn eyeing
her intently even as he responds.
PRC MAJOR
I've never been fond of that cut...
He peers deep into Dawn's eyes while only inches away.
PRC MAJOR (cont'd)
Too lean.
(quietly to Dawn)
I like a little fat on my prey.
He eyes Dawn more intently still. Bikram steps forward
daring to reach out and put his hand on the PRC Major's arm.
BIKRAM
Major please. That is my niece.
The PRC Major doesn't move. He's still perilously close to
Dawn.
PRC MAJOR
(whispering to her)
You aren't anywhere nearly as
frightened as you should be.
DAWN LEGATO
Perhaps I'm not as weak as you're
used to.
The PRC Major snaps back, a flat stern expression replacing
the leering one a moment earlier.
PRC MAJOR
Perhaps.
As the PRC Major and Gen June move to what must be their
customary table Dawn looks around.
There are two groups of Soldiers present. A select few are
obviously PRC Army soldiers, they're in uniforms with patches
and ranks to identify them but the vast majority of those
present are not.
None of their uniforms have patches or markings that would
identify them as West Chinese. Nor do they have ranks, the
stripes or pips that would identify their place in this
hierarchy.
And they barely look Asian, in fact, the faces of each one of
these Soldiers is decidedly feline, almost as if some recent
ancestor had mated with a lion or something.
The six PRC Soldiers, a mix of Officers and senior Enlisted
sit together. The PRC Major calmly sips at a freshly poured
cup of hot steaming green tea.
ALL pause as the unit on Gen Junes' belt chirps. She looks
at the PRC Major.
PRC MAJOR (cont'd)
Curiosity killed the cat, Comrade
Lieutenant.
It's a private joke between them about how she cannot ignore
an incoming call. She reaches for the unit pulling it off
it's clip and bringing it up.
Her face is impassive as she reads the display.
GEN JUNE
Perhaps, but satisfaction brought
it back, Comrade Major.
She turns the unit for the PRC Major to see. As the PRC
Major reads the display he smiles before turning back,
looking over his shoulder towards the bar. Towards Dawn.
PRC MAJOR
Interesting...
Dawn moves between the tables scoping each one of them.
Their skin is dark, almost burnt orange in color. And
they're definitely not Asian. Dawn studies them carefully
yet discretely as moves through them.
She clears past the last of them returning to the bar just as
Aisha comes from the Kitchen with the first cart of food
trays.
Dawn stands behind the counter, directly behind the
cylindrical device she activated a few moments earlier.
As we move down and closer on the unit in front of her we see
the gap between the extended bit and the main part. Inside
are a series of scanners.
SMASH CUT TO:
INT. STATION 5 - REZNAY HOLO-BAY
The exact same moment from the Restaurant is frozen here in
three pixelating and grainy dimensions.
TOPPER, an early 30's Intel Analyst, is moving slowly around
the scene walking almost entirely back along the path that
Dawn took.
He moves with no regard of where the tables are because in
reality they're not here, nor are the tables solid. This is
a true Holographic environment.
Topper kneels down, peering deeply into the face of one of
the many nondescript Soldiers waiting for their meal. Nearly
without exception they are expressionless, intent, dullened,
perhaps by fatigue, or perhaps something worse.
A hydraulic door opens and another analyst, CASEY, enters,
walking through the Hologram without regard for it.
TOPPER
You're late.
CASEY
Yeah. Sorry about that.
Topper rises and moves to another table then repeats the same
procedure.
TOPPER
Who was she, this time?
Casey stops, ready to deny the accusation, except he can't.
A slightly foppish, lopsided grin crosses his face before
bursting into a full, proud-of-himself smile.
CASEY
How did you know?
TOPPER
Every time you're late it's for the
same reason.
Topper rises looking at him.
TOPPER (cont'd)
So?
CASEY
OK, you're going to love this one.
I was in Retro's last night and met
this stunningly beautiful F-T-L
Engineer.
TOPPER
A what?
CASEY
You know, faster than light. She's
on Shindar's team.
TOPPER
She told you that?
CASEY
No. I glommed it from her
comments. Wouldn't have meant
anything to me if we weren't
already monitoring their
progress...
Casey looks around.
CASEY (cont'd)
So, what's this?
TOPPER
Dawn's last transmission.
Casey mirrors Topper, walking around, studying the scene.
CASEY
How long has it been since we last
heard from her?
TOPPER
Six hours.
CASEY
That's unusual for her, isn't it?
TOPPER
If she's got reason. But she's
never ended a transmission so...
abruptly.
Both stand there looking at the frozen scene. With each
passing moment Topper's face looks more and more concerned.
END OPENING ACT:
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COPYRIGHT © 2004 | TITAN-RAINBOW Media Productions | ALL RIGHTS RESERVED