THE THIRD DIMENSION ©

CUT TO INT. CARGO BAY - SAME TIME
MEDIUM FOUR SHOT
Shadow Lord has moved over to the wall while the trio have only separated slightly.

SHADOW LORD
No. You must destroy him.

SIBYL
Well, if that's the case, then count me out. I forfeit.

Shadow Lord turns to face only her.

SHADOW LORD
Very well. Then you die.

He reaches up and hits a button on a control panel which opens the cargo door. As the seal is broken, a suction pulls at the trio. The plane tips toward the back. All of this has no effect on Shadow Lord, though, as he fades into the darkness. Sibyl is the first to loose her footing and falls; beginning to slowly slide towards the opening door. An alarm begins to blare in another area of the plane.

YASURU
Sibyl!

CUT TO MEDIUM SHOT OF YASURU
Yasuru, who had stayed near the crates, was holding onto one to maintain his footing. He lets go of his anchor, however, to reach into his quiver and load an arrow. As he fires, he looses his footing, falling to the floor. The arrow flies wild.

CUT TO TIGHT SHOT OF SIBYL
Sibyl, scrambling to grab a hold of something, narrowly misses getting hit with the arrow.

SIBYL
Hey!

CUT TO MEDIUM TWO SHOT OF YASURU AND RANDOR
Randor has grabbed a hold of a beam on the wall, while Yasuru begins to slide. Yasuru manages to reorient himself and grabs another arrow. Taking careful aim while sliding, he fires.

CUT TO TIGHT MOVING SHOT ON ARROW
The arrow flies through the air to slice one of the cargo net bonds.

CUT TO MEDIUM SHOT OF SIBYL
With the door a quarter open, the net partially falls between it and Sibyl. With only the upper left corner loose, it is evident that it is too high for her to reach in her horizontal position.

CUT TO MEDIUM TWO SHOT
Yasuru has advanced a foot and has managed to brace his leg against a strapped-down piece of luggage.

RANDOR
We're not quite there, yet.

Letting go of the beam, Randor launches himself into the air.

PAN TO MOVING SHOT OF RANDOR
Between his leap, the suction of the depressurizing, and the angle of the plane, Randor flies across the length of the bay to grab a hold of the edge of the net. Hanging horizontally, he grabs a hold of Sibyl as she slides under him and pulls her up into the net.

CUT TO MEDIUM SHOT OF YASURU - RANDOR'S POV
With Yasuru seated on the floor, the door leading to the rest of the plane is flung open and three men in black suits storm through and almost get dragged off their feet. They quickly grab a hold of a secure bar on the back wall. AGENT #1 raises his hand to talk in the microphone in his hand.

AGENT #1
We have intruders in the cargo bay. Get him to the pod.

Through the earpiece, a very faint response is heard through static.

AGENT #4
Repeat! We did not copy!

The two other agents draw their guns with their free hands and level them at the trio.

AGENT #3
Nobody move.

CUT TO MEDIUM TWO SHOT
Still hanging by one hand on the net, Randor reaches behind him and grabs a hold of his sword.

RANDOR
You've got to be kidding.

CUT TO WIDE SHOT
As Randor begins to unsheathe his sword, the two armed agents open fire.

CUT TO TIGHT SHOT OF RANDOR
Four bullets hit Randor in the chest.

ZOOM OUT TO MEDIUM TWO SHOT
Between a stray bullet hitting, the jarring and the combined body weight of Randor and Sibyl, the lower left corner pops loose, flinging the net to the right. Sibyl, tangled in the net, goes with it while Randor loses his grip and flies backwards toward the door.

CUT TO TIGHT SHOT OF YASURU
Yasuru has a look of shock on his face.

CUT TO TIGHT SHOT OF SIBYL
Tangled tightly in the net, Sibyl catches a glimpse of what has happened.

SIBYL
No!

CUT TO MEDIUM SHOT OF RANDOR
With a surprised look on his face, Randor flies backwards, slams into the door and rolls out into thin air.

CUT TO MEDIUM SHOT OF YASURU
Still braced on the suitcase and shielded by the crate from the agents, Yasuru fires another arrow at the controls for the door.

CUT TO TIGHT SHOT OF CONTROLS
The arrow embeds itself into the control panel button to close the door.

CUT TO MEDIUM SHOT OF SIBYL
With Sibyl being the only available target, the agents begin firing on her. In defense, she casts a spell which turns the net red, transforming it into a protective cocoon. The door begins to close again.

CUT TO MEDIUM FOUR SHOT - SIBYL'S POV
With another arrow in the bow, Yasuru sits waiting with the agents visible behind him.

AGENT #1
Drop your weapon and come out with your hands up.

YASURU
Up yours.

Agent #3 starts working his way around the bay in order to get a clean shot at Yasuru.

AGENT #2
Drop it or join your friend.

YASURU
You first.

Using the suitcase for leverage, Yasuru leans forward into a standing position. With a pirouette, he spins and fires, hitting agent #2 between the eyes and pinning him to the wall. Without his brace, Yasuru flies backwards while agent #3 begins shooting.

PAN TO MOVING SHOT OF YASURU
In mid-flight, Yasuru pulls another arrow before slamming into the door, which is still a quarter of the way open. Holding both bow and arrow in one hand, Yasuru uses the other to grab a beam. Using his arm, he pinwheels into an upside-down position, bracing his legs against another beam.

ZOOM TO TIGHT SHOT
With one arm and both legs occupied, Yasuru lifts the bow and grabs the arrow and string in his teeth. Extending his arm as far from his face as possible, he opens his mouth, letting the arrow fly.

PAN TO TIGHT SHOT OF AGENT #3
The arrow sails through the air to puncture the agents wrist, forcing him to drop his gun.

CUT TO MEDIUM SHOT OF AGENT #1
With his gun pulled, the agent begins firing at Yasuru. In the process, he loses his grip on the wall and gets pulled forward.

CUT TO TIGHT SHOT OF YASURU
Bullets bounce around Yasuru.

CUT TO MOVING SHOT OF AGENT #1
Flopping down on his butt, the agent slides toward the door, emptying his clip along the way. As he slides near the cocoon, he makes a grab for it but misses. He then lifts off the ground and begins to fly toward what is left of the opening.

PAN TO MEDIUM TWO SHOT
With the agent starting past him, Yasuru lets his bow go; it catching on the opening. Yasuru then flings his leg off the door, across the opening to the ceiling of the bay. With his free hand, he grabs the agent by the arm before he flies out. The two men hang there for the next couple of seconds as the door finally closes once more. With the pressure restored, the two men and the bow collapse to the floor.

ZOOM OUT TO WIDE THREE SHOT
While the two men scramble to their feet, Sibyl's cocoon begins to dissolve again. The agent is the first one up and kicks Yasuru's bow out of reach. He then kicks Yasuru in the stomach, sending him sprawling. As the agent prepares to stomp on Yasuru's head, he's entangled by Sibyl's golden bonds and pulled off his feet.

ZOOM TO MEDIUM SHOT
Sibyl rushes over to Yasuru's side.

SIBYL
Are you OK?

YASURU
Something is really wrong here.

CUT TO INT. JOSH'S DORM - SAME TIME
MEDIUM SHOT
Josh is sitting at the desk, breathing heavily. He's holding his stomach with one hand and typing with the other.

SIBYL
What do you mean?

JOSH
I felt that.

SIBYL
What?

JOSH
When he kicked me, I felt it. Knocked the wind right outta me.

SIBYL
How can that be?

JOSH
You've got me.

A thought dawns on Josh.

Bind that other one up with some of the netting.
I have to check something.

Sliding back from the computer, Josh starts to get up, but doubles over in pain. Sibyl follows his instructions on the screen.

JOSH
Help!

Seconds later, Al and Keith rush into the room.

KEITH
What's up?

Noticing Josh in pain, the two move over to help. Josh, however, pushes them away.

JOSH
Never mind me. I need one of you guys to run over to Dave's room.
Make sure he's all right.

AL
Why?

JOSH
Just do it!

Keith shrugs to Al and leaves running.

AL
Just hang in there. Paul and Mike are almost through the program.
They think they've found a back door.

JOSH
How can that be? They've only been gone a few minutes.

Al looks at him questioningly.

AL
Dude. They've been working for over an hour.

JOSH
That can't be.

SIBYL
Yasuru?

JOSH
I have to get back to the game.

AL
Are you sure that's wise?

JOSH
No, but I don't know what will happen if I don't.
Come in and check on me in a half hour.

AL
Will do.

Josh slides back in front of the computer.

CUT TO INT. CARGO BAY - SAME TIME
MEDIUM TWO SHOT
With both agents bound and laid against the wall, Sibyl is standing in front of Yasuru.

YASURU
What's up?

SIBYL
What's going on?

YASURU
I'm not exactly sure, but I think that there's a whole lot more at stake
than winning a stupid game.

SIBYL
What about Randor?

JOSH
I sent someone to go check on him,
but I don't have a good feeling about it.

SIBYL
So what do we do now?

JOSH
Right now, I'd say we continue, but be careful. Don't take any chances.

SIBYL
This coming from you.

Yasuru smiles, then notices the tied up agents.

YASURU
Is he going to be OK?

Sibyl looks over her shoulder at the agents.

SIBYL
He should be. I cast a healing spell on him while I was tying him up.
Him, on the other hand ....

She points to the third agent.

CUT TO TIGHT SHOT OF AGENT #2
The agent is still hanging by the bolt through his head.

YASURU
Oh man.

ZOOM OUT TO MEDIUM SHOT
Yasuru and Sibyl walk over to the corpse.

SIBYL
Don't give it too much thought.
He would have done the same thing to you if he could have.

YASURU
I suppose This just isn't fair, though.
It was just supposed to be a game.

SIBYL
But it isn't. Just remember that.

Sibyl physically turns Yasuru from the body.

Let's go find out what's really going on here.

The two walk over to the door leading to the rest of the plane.

CUT TO INT. PLANE - SAME TIME
MEDIUM MOVING SHOT
The door opens very slowly as the pair check to make sure the coast is clear. When they find that they're alone, they open the door all the way and enter. They move quickly and silently through the body of the plane.

SIBYL
Have you noticed something?

YASURU
What's that?

SIBYL
A lack of people. There's no one around.

YASURU
One of the guards called back. Maybe they pulled back.

CUT TO INT. PRESS ROOM - SAME TIME
MEDIUM TWO SHOT
After passing through several rooms, they enter the mobile press room. It is here that they find a podium with the seal of the President of the United States behind it.

YASURU
He sent us to assassinate the President?

SIBYL
It appears so.

YASURU
Oh shit.

SIBYL
What now?

Yasuru points to a door behind the podium.

CUT TO INT. JOSH'S DORM - SAME TIME
MEDIUM TWO SHOT
Al drags Josh away from the computer. Al is clearly frantic.

AL
Josh!

JOSH
What?

AL
I've been knocking for five minutes.
I got worried, so I came in and found you coma-like
in front of that screen.

Josh pulls away from Al and moves back to the computer. He continues hitting keys while talking.

JOSH
I take it the half hour has passed?

AL
And then some.

The screen on the computer shows the pair in a hallway. Josh types a message to Sibyl.

JOSH
Lets hang here a second.

SIBYL
OK.

JOSH
Have we heard back from Keith yet?

AL
Not yet, but I heard some ambulances a few minutes ago.

JOSH
Not a good sign. Have Mike and Paul made any progress?

CUT TO MEDIUM SHOT OF DOOR
Mike, having heard his name, steps into the room, carrying a large cup of coffee. He clearly looks tired.

MIKE
Some. Paul has found a back door to the program and is breaking the codes,
but its slow going. He's found the subroutine that's running your program,
but its safeguarded with some stuff neither of us has ever seen before.

CUT TO WIDE SHOT

JOSH
Just be careful.

MIKE
He is. We also found out who created this thing.

JOSH
Is there any way to get in touch with him?

MIKE
Not unless you can talk with the dead.

JOSH
What's that supposed to mean?

MIKE
Apparently he was a cutting edge programmer until he was arrested
for trying to hack into some high-level government project.

JOSH
Yeah, so?

MIKE
Well, apparently he was being transported the other night
when an accident happened with the bus.

The facts start dawning on Josh.

His body was found about a mile away.
He was shot by another prisoner with a shotgun.

JOSH
The other prisoner was also found dead;
one arrow through his wrist and shoulder,
the other through his heart.

MIKE
Yeah. How did you know?

JOSH
I was there.

Josh points to the computer.

But why didn't the guard report what happened?

Paul looks sheepish.

MIKE
There weren't any survivors of the accident.

JOSH
Sure there was. We saved a bunch of them.

MIKE
Nope. The coroner's office said there was two explosions.
The second one finished everyone off.

Josh goes back to typing, as Yasuru advances down the hall again.

JOSH
See if you guys can find this bastard's weak link
so we can shut him down. I've got to help out Sibyl.
Come and drag me back out again if you learn anything new.

AL
Are you sure about this?

JOSH
No.

CUT TO INT. PLANE OFFICE - SAME TIME
WIDE SHOT
Yasuru and Sibyl enter the Presidential office. As they do, a secret service agent pulls a trap door in the floor shut.

YASURU
Want to take a wild guess as to where everybody is?

Sibyl smiles briefly, but returns to business afterward.

SIBYL
Where do we go from here?

YASURU
Down.

SIBYL
But they're expecting us.

YASURU
So we be very careful.

Yasuru walks over to the couch, which has a thin queen-size blanket strewn across it. Grabbing the blanket, Yasuru rips off two long strips and ties them together. Handing Sibyl the remains of the blanket, Yasuru then wraps one end through a small handle. Both he and Sibyl back away from the hatch and, with a firm tug, yanks open the door. A steady stream of bullets flow up out of the hole until a set of clicks are heard from the now-empty guns. Yasuru charges and jumps down the hole with bow in hand.

CUT TO INT. POD CHAMBER - SAME TIME
MEDIUM SHOT
Three agents, who have just unloaded their guns through the hole, are standing next to a ladder leading up. Two more agents are standing guard over an escape pod. The door to the pod is open with the President inside. Yasuru falls through the open hole - his feet hitting two of the agents in the face and knocking them unconscious. As Yasuru lands in a crouched position, he sweeps the third agent off his feet with the bow. As the agent hits the floor, Yasuru pins him with a knee on his neck.

PAN TO MEDIUM THREE SHOT
The agents slam the door to the pod shut and prepare to fire their guns.

CUT TO MEDIUM SHOT OF YASURU
Yasuru remains in his crouch. A single bullet ricochets over his head before the sheet - now glowing red - falls from above. When it lands in front of Yasuru it is stiff as a board and bounces the next three bullets which were headed for his head. As it lands, Yasuru braces it in front of him to keep it from falling. Sibyl then drops from above, landing behind Yasuru and the shield.

SIBYL
What was that about being careful?

YASURU
Some habits die hard.

CUT TO WIDE SHOT
After several failed shots, the agent on the left ceases fire and reaches for the escape pod control panel.

YASURU
Hold it right there.

The agent looks over briefly, then continues forward. Yasuru quickly ducks around the shield to fire off an arrow that breezes between the agent's finger and the panel.

Damn it, don't move. I don't want to hurt you.

A cloud of darkness forms between the two groups as Shadow Lord appears.

SHADOW LORD
Why not?

With a spin, Shadow Lord's coattails blow out away from his body, catching the agents across the neck and decapitating them.

It is far easier to deal with them if they're dead.

SIBYL
You monster!

SHADOW LORD (smiling)

Shadow Lord turns and reaches for the door of the pod. Yasuru stands with another arrow ready to fire and takes aim.

I do hope that you intend that for the President, Yasuru.
I don't believe you are stupid enough to attack me.

YASURU
You'd be surprised how stupid I can be.

Yasuru releases the arrow, which breezes by Shadow Lord's hip and strikes the control panel, releasing the escape pod.

YASURU
I'm tired of being the villain. I want to be the hero of the game.

SHADOW LORD
No!

As the pod ejects from the plane, Yasuru grabs a hold of the shield and Sibyl's wrist. Shadow Lord turns to face the duo.

You have just signed your own death warrant!

Without warning, Yasuru runs at Shadow Lord with the shield in front of him; using it as a battering ram. Shadow Lord easily steps aside, only to allow passage to the open hatch.

YASURU
Were you programmed for over-dramatics, or does it just come naturally
for you. Besides, you're gonna have to catch us first.

With Sibyl in tow, Yasuru dives head first through the hatch.

CUT TO EXT. AIRBORNE SHOT - SAME TIME
MEDIUM MOVING SHOT
The sun is beginning to rise over the horizon as Yasuru and Sibyl plunge from the belly of the plane.

SIBYL
What do you think you're doing?

Forcing Sibyl's falling body between his own and the shield, the duo tumbles in the air and then level out; riding the shield through the air.

YASURU
I need you to manipulate the weather and put a cushion of air under us.

SIBYL
What?

YASURU
Think of the shield as a flat parachute.
I need you to provide the wind to slow us down.

Sibyl nods as her hands begin to glow blue and she stretches them out over the sides of the shield.

CUT TO INT. JOSH'S ROOM - SAME TIME
MEDIUM SHOT
The room is slowly becoming brighter as the sun rises outside and shines through the window. Josh is startled back to the real world by his door slamming open and Kelly, Paul, Al and Keith rushing in. Keith looks ashen and ill.

AL
Are you all right?

JOSH
So far. What have you found out? How's Dave?

Keith sits down on the edge of the bed. He looks as though he's going to either throw up or cry.

KEITH
It was really bad.

JOSH
Keith, I need to know what you found.

KEITH
He .... he was plastered all over the room.
The most of him was basically a bag of bones.
I called the paramedics, but it was no use.

Keith begins to weep.

The coroner said it looked like he had fallen to his death.
But that's impossible. The cops took my statement,
but what could I tell them?

AL
This is impossible. How can this be happening?

JOSH
I don't know. What did you find out, Paul?

PAUL
Not a whole lot. There was a ton of stuff in there that
I just couldn't get into, and even more that I didn't understand.
I was able to make my way to the game itself, though.
I saw what you just pulled, and you've got to either be the bravest
or stupidest man alive.

JOSH
Or both. But who's running it?

PAUL
I don't know. As far as I can tell, no one.

KELLY
So what now?

JOSH
Now, I go back in there and try to stop this thing.

PAUL
No, man. This thing's just too powerful.

JOSH
If not me, then who? If not now, then when?

AL
Oh shit. He's getting full of himself.

JOSH
No, really. I can't just sit here and let this thing continue.

The men sit silently for several seconds.

KELLY
Well, you can't go back in there alone.

JOSH
Oh, no. I can't let anyone else risk their life.

PAUL
I'd like to know how you plan to stop us.

AL
Yeah. Let's do this.

The three of them look to Keith. He looks up to see them staring at him.

KEITH
You guys didn't see it.

AL
Maybe not, but we can't just hang Josh out to dry.

KEITH
I don't know.

JOSH
Hey guys. Let him be. I understand.

Keith physically gathers himself.

KEITH
No. They're right. If I did nothing and something happened to you ....

Josh grabs a disk and pops it into the computer. Yasuru and Sibyl are still in freefall on the screen.

JOSH
Well, if you're gonna do this, let's do it right.

Josh minimizes the screen and calls up a index of his characters.

Al, in my closet is a set of keys. Can you get them?

Al retrieves the keys while Josh downloads the characters DIAMONDBACK, CHOPPER, ACE and BRAND onto the disk.

The keys are to the computer lab.
There will be plenty of computers for everyone that way.

Josh pops the disk out and tosses it to Paul.

You guys can use these characters.
If you can sneak in the back door with them,
you should be able to become part of the scenario.

KELLY
Sounds like a plan. It's gonna take us some time though.

AL
But we can use the time flux that the game creates to our advantage.

Keith stands up.

KEITH
Let's get going if we're going.

JOSH
One more thing, Jack. See if you can put us into some new scenery.
Some place far away from the President.

PAUL
Home field advantage?

JOSH
That's the idea.

PAUL
I'll see what I can do.

The quartet starts out the door.

JOSH
And guys .... thanks.

He turns back to the screen as the door closes.

CUT TO EXT. AIRBORNE SHOT - SAME TIME
MEDIUM MOVING TWO SHOT
The sun is half-risen and moving quickly. Yasuru and Sibyl are halfway down, but are falling slower thanks to Sibyl's winds. She looks tired.

YASURU
How are you doing?

SIBYL
I should have enough to get us down,
but it's gonna use up all my weather manipulation to do it.

YASURU
I figured as much.

SIBYL
Any news on Randor?

YASURU
He's dead.

They both remain silent for several seconds. The terrain beneath them begins to transform.

SIBYL
So we're gonna try and stop him?

YASURU
Or die trying. But at least we have a nice last sunrise.

SIBYL
Leave it to you to find the one nice thing in this.

YASURU
I try.

SIBYL
Do you think we'll make it through this?

YASURU
I hope so. I'm still wanting to take you for coffee some time.

SIBYL
You are incorrigible. Now hang on and shut up. Here comes the hard part.

The duo approach the ground.

CUT TO EXT. RIVER BED - SAME TIME
MEDIUM MOVING SHOT
The duo drop from the air at an angle and skid across the bottom of the riverbed on the shield. When they finally stop, they slowly rise with moans and groans. The shield returns to its former blanket state. Yasuru helps Sibyl to her feet and, for a few seconds, holds her in his arms. Then, realizing that they are still in danger, Yasuru lets her go and pulls an arrow out of his quiver.

SIBYL
So what happens now?

YASURU
I'm not real sure. Shadow Lord can't afford to let us go,
but I also don't think he can just delete us either.
That means he'll have to come after us.

PAN TO ROTATING SHOT
The pair maneuver themselves back-to-back.

SIBYL
Where are we, anyway?

YASURU
I can't swear to it ...

Yasuru looks around and spots a group of familiar buildings in the distance.

... but I think we're near my college.

He motions with his head toward the group of buildings. At that point, a scream is heard from that direction. Yasuru and Sibyl look at each other and take off running in that direction.

CUT TO EXT. PARKING LOT - MOMENTS LATER
MEDIUM TWO SHOT
Yasuru and Sibyl burst through the shrubbery.

PAN TO WIDE SHOT
Shadow Lord, slightly bigger than before, is in the process of ripping the door off of a car. He spots the pair as they approach and turns to face them. The road leading to the campus is visible with the new sun behind it.

SHADOW LORD

YASURU
So what kept you?

SHADOW LORD
I wanted some insurance first.

Yasuru recognizes the vehicle just as Shadow Lord spins around and pulls Lori from her car. She screams again as he drags her by the arm like a rag doll.

I believe you two know each other.

Yasuru pulls back his bow to fire, but Shadow Lord lifts Lori as a shield.

Now, now. Wouldn't want to hurt the girl, would you?

YASURU
Let her go, Shadow Lord. This is between us.

CUT TO TIGHT TWO SHOT
Shadow Lord smiles evilly. Lori is in shock from fear.

SHADOW LORD
Which would be more apropos:
Snapping her neck as you watch, or saving her for a tasty dessert?

CUT TO TIGHT SHOT OF YASURU

YASURU
I vote for neither.

Yasuru lets his arrow go.

CUT TO TIGHT TWO SHOT
The arrow hits Lori in the meaty part of the shoulder, knocking her back as she loses consciousness.

CUT TO WIDE SHOT

YASURU
In case you didn't know, she dumped me.

Shadow Lord lets Lori drop and begins to laugh. Sibyl looks shocked. A dust cloud can be seen on the road in the distance.

SHADOW LORD
Now that is what I was looking for .... ruthless abandonment of life.

SIBYL
What is wrong with you!

SHADOW LORD
You know it's not to late. You can still join me.

YASURU
Forget it, asshole. In a hostage situation, remove the hostage.

SHADOW LORD
Well, in that case ....

YASURU
Oh no you don't. Sibyl, grab her.

As Shadow Lord reaches for Lori, Sibyl launches a Chain of Bonding spell, entangling Lori and dragging her out of Shadow Lord's reach.

YASURU
Get her healed up quick. This ain't over by a long shot.

As Shadow Lord starts to turn, the approaching dust cloud catches his eye. Sibyl also notices it as she pulls Lori to safety. Yasuru begins to smile.

SHADOW LORD
What are you smiling about?

YASURU
Just remembering a quote:
"To be or not to be, that is the question.
Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows
of outrageous fortune, or to take arms against a sea of troubles ...."

The cloud has grown much closer and larger.

SHADOW LORD
What does Shakespeare have to do with anything?

YASURU
First, I liked the quote. Probably the whole arrow thing.
Second, it made for great stalling material.

The dust storm gains some texture as bodies are now visible.

SIBYL
Who the hell is that?

Yasuru smiles wider.

YASURU
The Cavalry.

CUT TO MEDIUM FOUR SHOT
Four new people arrive: DIAMONDBACK - a cybernetic cowboy with a flowing duster and a unremovable hat - CHOPPER - a ashen motorcyclist with long white hair, mirrored sunglasses, a leather vest with no shirt, jeans and boots - ACE - a werewolf flying with bat wings - and BRAND - a flying human flame. Diamondback is riding on the back of Chopper's motorcycle with Brand and Ace flying on either side of them.

CUT TO WIDE SHOT
As the quartet approaches, Sibyl's hands glow green as she heals Lori's wound. Shadow Lord growls in anger.

SHADOW LORD
This is unacceptable!

YASURU
Tough shit.

As the quartet gets close, Yasuru pulls out three arrows and fires them at Shadow Lord simultaneously.

CUT TO TIGHT SHOT OF SHADOW LORD
The arrows stop a foot from Shadow Lord and hang in the air.

SHADOW LORD
You really didn't think it was going to be that easy.

With a wave of his hand, the arrows spin in the air and fly back.

CUT TO MEDIUM SHOT
The quartet arrive as Yasuru cartwheels away from one of the arrows while another clangs off Diamondback's cybernetic arm as he dismounts off the bike. The last arrow is disintegrated by Brand's heat field.

CHOPPER
So this is Shadow Lord, huh?

YASURU
Yep. Welcome to the club.

DIAMONDBACK
The back door worked like a charm.

YASURU
I don't remember building Brand as a female character, though.

BRAND
I had Paul make a few changes while we waited.
There was no way I was going to be trapped in a man's body.
I deal with enough testosterone on a daily basis without that.

CHOPPER
Well, what are we waiting for? Lets kick some ass.

Brand flies forward and fires a blast of fire into Shadow Lord's face. When the blast subsides, Shadow Lord laughs as smoke rises from his unharmed head.

SHADOW LORD
Six or six million, it doesn't matter. You will all die.

Shadow Lord grows and quickly becomes forty feet tall; equal in size to the three story dorm beside him. With a sweep of his hand, he blows Brand away from him.

ACE
Oh shit.

CHOPPER
You can say that again.

ACE
Oh shit.

YASURU
Fall back!

Brand does a loop in the air and reorients himself while the others back away.

CHOPPER
OK. Enough of this. Let's take this sucker down.

CUT TO MEDIUM MOVING SHOT OF CHOPPER
With a roar of the engine, Chopper's motorcycle pops a wheely and takes to the air. As he approaches Shadow Lord, his hand glows white, producing a glowing ball of energy. With a flick of his wrist, the ball is launched at Shadow Lord and hits him in the chest. Chopper passes under Shadow Lord's hand as the ball explodes in a blinding flash of light, but has no effect.

SHADOW LORD
Nice try. Next?

CUT TO MEDIUM SHOT OF DIAMONDBACK
Still standing near Yasuru, Diamondback pulls a six shooter from the holster on his hip, while his cybernetic arm opens and produces a blaster. Firing both at once, Diamondback shoots at Shadow Lord.

CUT TO MEDIUM SHOT OF SHADOW LORD
Bullets and laser beams bounce off Shadow Lord's body.

CUT TO MOVING MEDIUM SHOT OF ACE
Already in flight, Ace flies toward Shadow Lord's head. As he comes into range, he points his clawed fingers at Shadow Lord's eyes. The claws fire from his hands as Shadow Lord smacks Ace, throwing him through the air.

SHADOW LORD
Quit that. It tickles.

CUT TO MOVING MEDIUM SHOT OF BRAND
Extinguishing the flames on his hands, Brand swoops in and catches Ace before he can hit the ground and carries him to Yasuru.

YASURU
Is he OK?

DIAMONDBACK
Keith ... I mean Ace ... is out cold, but he still has a pulse.

SHADOW LORD
For now.

YASURU
Thank God.

CUT TO MEDIUM TWO SHOT
Sibyl, with a healed Lori unconscious behind her, releases a Chain of Binding.

CUT TO MEDIUM SHOT OF SHADOW LORD
As the bonds wrap themselves around Shadow Lord, he raises his arms and shatters the chains.

SHADOW LORD
You are all forgetting that I am the master of you all,
and soon of this entire existence.

CUT TO MEDIUM GROUP SHOT
The group re-gathers together. Sibyl quickly goes over to Ace and enacts her last healing spell.

BRAND
This isn't working.

CHOPPER
No shit, Sherlock. What the hell's going on here?

YASURU (to Diamondback)
I take it there wasn't anything in the program we could use.

DIAMONDBACK
Nothing that I found.

YASURU (to Sibyl)
What do you have left?

SIBYL
All I've got is a strength spell. how about you?

Yasuru reaches behind him and pulls out his last arrow. Ace regains consciousness.

SHADOW LORD
Come, come. Who will be the first to die?

YASURU
This guy has to have some sort of weakness.

CHOPPER
Is anyone else reminded of David and Goliath here?

Brand searches the immediate area and picks up a stone.

BRAND
Here ya go, sport.

She heaves the stone in the air.

CUT TO MEDIUM SHOT OF SHADOW LORD
Shadow Lord brushes at the stone in midair. Both he and the group are surprised when the rock is embedded in his hand.

SHADOW LORD
If you children have finished?

CUT TO MEDIUM GROUP SHOT

YASURU
Did anyone else see that?

ACE
What the hell?

CUT TO WIDE SHOT
Taking a deep breath, Shadow Lord blows a gust of wind that throws the group backward. Landing and rolling, Yasuru narrowly avoids getting squashed by a car and snags Lori's limp body out of the air. Chopper lands with his leg pinned under his motorcycle. Diamondback fires a lasso swing line from his robotic wrist to snag a tree as he flies by and lowers himself to the ground. As he lands, his lasso unties from the tree and retracts. Ace catches Sibyl in midair as both he and Brand manage to stay airborne.

SIBYL
We need to act as a team here. Yasuru, your arrow.

Yasuru flips his last arrow into the air as Ace swoops by. Sibyl catches the arrow and begins to cast her strengthening spell. Yasuru rushes over to Chopper with Lori in his arms and helps him right himself and his bike. Sibyl is set down by Ace.

YASURU
Brand, Ace, Diamondback. We need a distraction.
Hit him with everything you've got.

ACE
A lot of good that'll do.

SHADOW LORD
Come my lambs, come to the slaughter.

The three launch themselves towards Shadow Lord.

YASURU (to Chopper)
You still good to go?

CHOPPER
As far as I can tell.

YASURU
Good. Here's what I need from you.

Yasuru leans over and whispers to Chopper. As Sibyl comes over with the glowing red arrow, Chopper revs his engine.

YASURU
Set?

CHOPPER
Yep.

Lori slowly regains consciousness.

LORI
What's going on?

YASURU (to Chopper)
Take her with you too.

Yasuru hoists Lori onto the back of the motorcycle.

LORI
Josh? Is that you?

YASURU
Yeah. Now get out of here.

LORI
You shot me!

CHOPPER
He also saved your life. Now hang on.

Chopper pulls away in the opposite direction of the fight. He quickly speeds up and becomes a blur racing away. Between Sibyl's steps, Chopper disappears from sight. Sibyl hands Yasuru the arrow while sounds of the battle begin.

SIBYL
Where is he off to?

YASURU
Supply run.

CUT TO MEDIUM BATTLE SHOT
Brand is firing off a steady stream of flames into Shadow Lord's face while Ace circles around behind him and Diamondback approaches from below on the ground.

CUT TO TIGHT SHOT
Brand stops the bombardment as Ace reaches for Shadow Lord's enlarged neck, wrapping his arms around and sinking in his claws.

CUT TO MEDIUM SHOT
As Shadow Lord raises his hand to grab Ace, Diamondback fires off his lasso and snags the giant wrist.

PAN TO MOVING TIGHT SHOT
Pulling with all of his might, Diamondback runs behind Shadow Lord dragging the wrist behind his back. Doing a complete circle behind Shadow Lord, Diamondback then loops the rope around the other arm and runs back behind again, pulling the two wrists together behind the back. When the wrists make contact, Diamondback begins to loop the rope around them over and over again.

CUT TO MEDIUM SHOT
With Shadow Lord's arms tied behind his back, Ace sinks his claws in deeper and pulls back with all of his might, yanking the head back.

BRAND
Yasuru, take the shot.

Shadow Lord begins to grin again.

SHADOW LORD
Yes Yasuru. Take your shot.

CUT TO TIGHT SHOT OF YASURU
Yasuru pulls back on his bow with the red arrow ready to fire. The sound of Chopper's motorcycle can faintly be heard and the blur can be seen quickly approaching behind Yasuru.

YASURU
You'd like that, wouldn't you.
You see, I've finally figured out the rules to this game.
Through all of this, we've been your little pawns,
manipulated around the board. And when we turn against you,
you couldn't care less because everything we have -
everything we are in these forms - are your creation.
Nothing we have in our arsenal can hurt you.

CUT TO MEDIUM SHOT
Yasuru lets the back of the arrow slide up the string of the bow. The arrow slips out of the bow and falls to the ground as Chopper slides to a stop next to Yasuru.

CUT TO WIDE SHOT
Everyone is shocked as the magic arrow bounces on the ground.

CUT TO MEDIUM TWO SHOT
As Chopper comes to a complete stop, he pulls out a modern-day fiberglass arrow and hands it to Yasuru.

YASURU
But lets see what a dose of reality can do.

Taking the arrow, Yasuru loads and fires in one fluid motion with a big smile across his face.

PAN TO TIGHT SHOT OF SHADOW LORD
The arrow sinks deeply into the shocked Shadow Lord's chest.

ZOOM OUT TO MEDIUM SHOT
Shadow Lord stands still and smiles. His knees then begin to buckle as his eyes roll up into his head and falls. Ace abandons his grip and lifts off while Diamondback darts out of the way before Shadow Lord hits the ground with a thud. Upon hitting the ground, Shadow Lord begins to shrink back to his natural size.

ZOOM OUT TO WIDE SHOT
All six of the warriors rush to the fallen foe's side, each preparing to begin fighting again.

SIBYL
Everybody be careful. They always come back to life.

ZOOM TO MEDIUM SEVEN SHOT

SHADOW LORD (in pain)
Very nice shot, Archer.

YASURU
Looks like your program needs tweaking.

SHADOW LORD
Yes. I'll know better next time.

With the sextet standing over him, Shadow Lord explodes in a blinding flash of light and pixels, turning the screen white.

FADE TO INT. JOSH'S DORM - SAME TIME
TIGHT SHOT ON SCREEN
The screen is white with a blank chatroom. After a few seconds, the typed-only words are seen on the screen.

CHOPPER
What was that?

SIBYL
I'm not sure.

DIAMONDBACK
Does this mean we won?

BRAND
I think that's a safe assumption. Is everybody OK?

ACE
Other than an incredible headache, I'm fine.

DIAMONDBACK
Well, I don't know about you guys, but I'm bushed.

CHOPPER
Me too.

SIBYL
Wait a second. Where's Yasuru?

BRAND
Josh? Speak to us dude.

A couple of seconds pass. Josh's voice can be heard along with the written words.

YASURU
Anyone want to buy a computer ...

ZOOM OUT TO TIGHT SHOT OF JOSH
Josh, looking exhausted, is sitting in front of his computer typing.

JOSH
... I'm thinking of changing my major.

Josh moves the mouse to shut down the computer, then reaches over and shuts it off.

FADE OUT

FADE IN EXT. CEMETERY - ONE WEEK LATER
WIDE SHOT
A funeral concession of cars pulls into the cemetery. As the hearse pulls to stop, two men hop out and go around to open the back door. The rest of the cars in line have also stopped and Josh, Paul, Ben, Al, Keith and Mike pile out of the first. All six of them are dressed in suits and have very somber looks on their faces.

ZOOM TO MEDIUM MOVING SHOT
They walk over to the hearse and help remove the coffin inside. They escort the coffin to the grave site, which has been surrounded by friends and family. MRS. MONTGOMERY - Dave's mother - sits in the front seat crying, with Kelly attempting to provide comfort. The PASTOR steps forward as the six men move away and join the crowd.

PAN TO ROTATING SHOT
As the pastor delivers the eulogy, the crowd is panned through, including REBECCA - a attractive young woman in a wheelchair.

PASTOR
David Montgomery was considered a good friend,
as can be seen by the mass of people gathered together here today.
While his passing was mysterious, I have been told
by those closest to him that he departed bravely and full of life
with the spirit of a hero. And so, we put him to rest,
assured that he has ascended to a better place.

PAN TO MEDIUM SHOT
The view is once again on the pastor and the coffin.

PASTOR
Ashes to ashes and dust to dust.

THE CROWD
Amen.

The pastor steps to the side and motions for Mrs. Montgomery to come forward. One of the men from the hearse hands a flower to her. She steps forward, still crying, and gently places the flower on the casket. This process continues as more people step forward.

FADE TO MEDIUM SHOT - MINUTES LATER
A majority of the crowd has cleared out. The casket is now covered in flowers. Josh and his friends are standing in front of the casket.

PAUL
You OK, Josh?

JOSH
Yeah. I think I'd just like a couple of minutes.

BEN
That's cool. Come on guys. We'll meet you back at the car, Josh.

Josh nods his head in affirmation. The group walks off to the car as Josh moves over to the grave.

ZOOM TO TIGHT ONE SHOT

JOSH
Shit, Dave. I really wish I had something witty or smart to say right now,
but I don't.

Josh pulls the plexiglass arrow out of his coat.

This is the arrow that took the bastard down.
It was the only thing left from the fight;
the only evidence that this whole damn thing actually happened.

Josh lays the arrow on the coffin.

I was going to bring a copy of Randor too, but it was deleted when ....

Josh's voice begins to waver. He takes a moment to compose himself again.

There's no real reason you should be here,
and it could have been either one of us.

A voice comes from behind Josh, startling him.

REBECCA
Any of the three of us.

ZOOM OUT TO MEDIUM TWO SHOT
Josh turns to see Rebecca, who is wheelchair bound.

JOSH
Sibyl?

REBECCA
Rebecca, actually. It's good to finally meet you Yasuru.

JOSH
Call me Josh.

REBECCA
OK, Josh.

JOSH
I'm glad you came. I'm sure Dave would be too.

Rebecca rolls up next to Josh as he turns to face the grave.

REBECCA
I'm not so sure about that.

JOSH
I am.

REBECCA
Have you learned anything about why this happened?

JOSH
Not really. I've been kinda steering clear of the computer,
but Paul was looking into it some.

REBECCA
What did he learn?

JOSH
Well, the website has completely disappeared, as if it never existed.
There hasn't been any word of anything happening to the President,
but they don't want to cause a panic, I'd guess.

REBECCA
Disavowing any knowledge, and all of that good stuff.

JOSH
Yeah. The riverboat made the papers down in St. Louis,
but there wasn't any mention of what happened to cause it to sink.

REBECCA
Were the people we saved safe?

JOSH
Yeah. Apparently Shadow Lord never bothered to go after either them
or the cops.

REBECCA
Well, that's a relief.
I still can't figure out what Shadow Lord was, though.

JOSH
I don't know either.

REBECCA
Do you think he's gone for good?

Josh shrugs.

JOSH
I hope so.

The two remain quite for several seconds.

REBECCA
So how is Lori doing?

JOSH
She recovered fine, though she's still pissed about me shooting her.

REBECCA
How much of that was to save her life,
and how much was because things didn't work out between the two of you?

Josh smiles.

JOSH
I'll never tell.

REBECCA
So what happens now?

JOSH
I guess we try to get back to our lives the best that we can.

REBECCA
Easier said than done. Before, I was perfectly happy
letting the internet be my link to the outside world.
But now ....

JOSH
I know what you mean. But maybe we were relying on it a bit too much.
It made us the perfect victims.

REBECCA
Where does that leave us?

JOSH
A little bit smarter and minus a friend.

REBECCA
Do you ever get the feeling that life is a lemon?

JOSH
And you want your money back?

Rebecca smiles.

REBECCA
Yeah.

JOSH
Sorry. I don't have enough cash to give you a full refund.

REBECCA
That's OK. Do you have enough to get that cup of coffee you owe me?

JOSH
I think I can scrape enough together.

PAN TO MEDIUM MOVING SHOT
The two of them start to leave.

REBECCA
So, are you a Meatloaf fan?

JOSH
As a matter of fact, I am. But I also like hamburgers.

Rebecca smiles again and snickers.

REBECCA
Yeah, like that joke hasn't been used a million times.
Have you heard that he may be making a comeback again?

JOSH
Yeah, I heard that somewhere before.

Josh waves at the car that he arrived in to leave as they move by.

You know, Rebecca, this face-to-face thing may not be too bad.

REBECCA
Yeah, just so long as you promise not to shoot me.

FADE OUT

© Copyright 1995, 2001 - James E. Caswell