EXT. BACK LOT BEHIND SECURITY HQ – NIGHT
104Please respect copyright.PENANAfjiPqa1dF0
[Jason crouches behind a pile of rusted-out vendor bots, scanning the surroundings like he’s about to rob his own place. His eyes lock onto a large cargo crate sitting unattended near a stack of expired vending modules. He sprints over and knocks on it—hollow and big enough.]
104Please respect copyright.PENANA2ywYI8ILP7
JASON
(to himself)
“Spacious. Questionably clean. Smells like old coolant and regret. Perfect.”
104Please respect copyright.PENANALRdRzWL7Sc
[He yanks the lid open and jogs back across the street to the beat-up car where SD-A and SD-K are still crouched.]
104Please respect copyright.PENANAHAJ4OVj5Q1
JASON
“Alright, lovebirds, you’re up. Into the box.”
104Please respect copyright.PENANAImcsuyhOeL
SD-K
(flatly)
“Into the box.”
104Please respect copyright.PENANAhnTebNS30T
JASON
“Yup.”
104Please respect copyright.PENANA8k9Cz9WkxQ
SD-K
“You want two war-grade fugitives with metal murder-wings to cram into a used shipping crate… and sneak through one of the most populated housing zones in the city.”
104Please respect copyright.PENANAX2iMqT4ggv
JASON
“That’s the spirit.”
104Please respect copyright.PENANAZCL0ponivM
SD-K
(to A)
“Your friend’s an idiot.”
104Please respect copyright.PENANAI9ezUMs74H
SD-A
“He’s not my friend. He’s a contact. With a trolley.”
104Please respect copyright.PENANAFg1L4smlNj
[Cut to: the crate now sitting on a squeaky old platform trolley, wobbling with every bump. Jason grunts, pushing it slowly across the industrial backlot and down a slope toward Central City’s inner housing district.]
104Please respect copyright.PENANA3Yxh1xC0a1
104Please respect copyright.PENANAoOswHVhaOB
---
104Please respect copyright.PENANApHc4elMlMO
EXT. CENTRAL CITY – APARTMENT COMPLEX – NIGHT
104Please respect copyright.PENANA26QZk5S3Er
[A towering maze of concrete cubes, glowing signs, wires hanging like sad confetti, and the buzz of robot chatter from behind cracked windows. Bots of all shapes and factions wander the halls—some recharge, others argue over power bills.]
104Please respect copyright.PENANAMAekWihbQW
[Jason rolls the trolley in, forcing the squeaky wheels to move with all the subtlety of a malfunctioning parade float. He mutters under his breath with each creak.]
104Please respect copyright.PENANAjeqXePBAI9
JASON
“Yep. Totally normal. Just an average Security bot... pushing suspicious freight... past thirty tenants and one probably-drunk Operator bot.”
104Please respect copyright.PENANAfFQjFxAq4g
[He nods at a janitor Labor bot passing by, who eyes the crate.]
104Please respect copyright.PENANA3TobUMmr81
JANITOR BOT
“What’s in the box?”
104Please respect copyright.PENANA2pTZr0XM9A
JASON
(grinning too wide)
“My dignity. Had to ship it express.”
104Please respect copyright.PENANAOzJHakrnEW
[The janitor stares at him for a long beat before continuing down the hall, muttering.]
104Please respect copyright.PENANAHy4uHk3NiY
JANITOR BOT
“Security guys are all weird.”
104Please respect copyright.PENANACGnzYulozW
[Jason sighs in relief and turns the corner, nearly running into a couple of Operator bots deep in a debate about microprocessors and existential dread. He ducks his head, forcing a polite smile.]
104Please respect copyright.PENANAsvqzgcXeLS
OPERATOR #1
“Is that… rust I smell?”
104Please respect copyright.PENANAbsZGdhNLHW
JASON
(nodding earnestly)
“That’s just me. Natural cologne. ‘Essence of Battery Fire.’”
104Please respect copyright.PENANASt6WEvd1Or
104Please respect copyright.PENANAXRZwkAa3cz
---
104Please respect copyright.PENANAcHKzfs30gT
INT. JASON’S APARTMENT – MOMENTS LATER
104Please respect copyright.PENANAfx9Qw1hyaN
[He finally reaches the door to his concrete shoebox—wires hanging everywhere, a flickering light barely illuminating the “DO NOT REFORMAT” sign duct-taped to the wall. He unlocks it, wheels the crate inside, and shuts the door behind him with a long exhale.]
104Please respect copyright.PENANAWju2PYyGAU
JASON
“Alright, kids. Home sweet cube.”
104Please respect copyright.PENANAiroNqRCcIj
[He pries open the crate. SD-K immediately stretches and grumbles like he just lived in a vending machine.]
104Please respect copyright.PENANAiR39PdCzLH
SD-K
“This is how I die. Cramped, oily, and surrounded by rent-bots.”
104Please respect copyright.PENANAS9dWVUwCDC
SD-A
(already scanning the room)
“You live in a closet.”
104Please respect copyright.PENANAGJrZsmRy06
JASON
“Yeah, well... closets don’t come with questionable wallpaper and a neighbor who screams in binary at 2 AM.”
104Please respect copyright.PENANAqrObwdCq77
[A loud, unintelligible mechanical screech echoes from the wall next to them. Jason holds up a finger.]
104Please respect copyright.PENANAIaA65d3U3Y
JASON
“Speak of the devil.”
104Please respect copyright.PENANAAl1rClYwXR
[They all stand still for a moment. Safe. For now.]
104Please respect copyright.PENANAEl6dBHUFXW
FADE OUT.
ns216.73.216.134da2