EXT. CENTRAL CITY – MORNING BLUR
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[The massive, sprawling city is just beginning to glow with morning data pulses and dull industrial sun-lamps. Dusty air, cracked screens, flickering holograms—just another day on Iresans.]
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INT. JASON’S CUBE – KITCHEN TABLE
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[A scrap-paper note is stuck to the table with an old bolt.]
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JASON’S NOTE (scribbled in red marker):
“Behave yourselves. If anyone knocks and tries to get you to believe in Robo God, tell them to fuck off.
P.S. SD-K, don’t you dare break the ceiling with your weight!!!”
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[A piece of toast-shaped circuit board lies beside it, possibly breakfast, possibly bait.]
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EXT. STREET OUTSIDE JASON’S APARTMENT COMPLEX – MOMENTS LATER
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[Jason steps out, coat flapping slightly from the wind tunnel between buildings. He adjusts the collar with a little spin of his finger like he’s cooler than he is. The streets are full of movement—Labor bots hauling crates, spider-legged courier drones zipping between poles, a bot playing a broken guitar.]
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JASON (V.O.)
“Just another fine day. No war. No riots. No one trying to remove my core with a spoon. Yet.”
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[He taps his ID card against a street terminal, and the access ramp to the underground metro glides open.]
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INT. CENTRAL CITY MAGLEV STATION – MOMENTS LATER
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[Clean lines. Dirty air. The Maglevs are fast and efficient—when they work. A huge screen displays the next arrival, accompanied by the sound of elevator music that hasn’t been updated since 2478.]
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[Jason stands among a group of bots waiting for the train. Most keep a small distance from him. A blue-lit SECURITY symbol glows faintly on his shoulder.]
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BOT #1 (whispering to BOT #2)
“...they don’t even have empathy subroutines. Just code and kill-switches.”
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BOT #2
“I heard they’re recycled assassins. You look at them wrong and they remember your serial number forever.”
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[Jason hears it. Doesn’t flinch. He just rolls his optics and shifts his weight. His right hand briefly reshapes into a coffee dispenser. He takes a sip.]
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JASON (murmurs to himself)
“Yup. Just us empathy-less death machines and our designer lattes.”
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[A blinding WHOOSH.]
The Maglev arrives, sleek and silent. Jason boards, nodding lazily to the scanner as it checks his credentials.
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INT. MAGLEV TRAIN – CONTINUOUS
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[Inside: smooth metal benches, floating HUD ads, and that weird humming noise that makes bots itch.]
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[Jason finds a seat by the window. No one sits beside him.]
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[A childlike Maintenance bot across the aisle points a camera at him.]
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MAINTENANCE BOT KID
“Mom, look! A real Security Unit!”
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MOM BOT (pulls them away)
“Don’t stare. If it looks at you, act neutral.”
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[Jason doesn’t respond. He just slumps a little in his seat, chin resting on his fist, optics watching the endless metal of the city blur past outside.]
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JASON (V.O.)
“People fear what they don’t understand. Or what might rip their heads off. Either way.”
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[He reaches into a coat pocket. Pulls out a tiny, dented toy figure of a cartoon hero—clearly very old. Stares at it for a moment. Then shoves it back inside.]
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[The train dives underground. The glow outside vanishes, leaving only flickering interior lights and the soft thrum of propulsion.]
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INT. SECURITY BOT HQ – MORNING
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[Jason steps off the Maglev and walks into the HQ lobby. Clean. Loud. Structured chaos.]
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[A massive holographic sign reads: “DEDICATION. DUTY. DESTRUCTION.”]
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JASON (V.O.)
“Yep. Office time. Time to make the galaxy slightly less stupid.”
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[He sighs, shoulders back, expression defaulting to “don’t talk to me unless you’re on fire.” Then he walks in.]
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