EXT. ABOVE CENTRAL CITY WALL – NIGHT – CURFEW HOURS
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡadMQ9khyH5
[Dim red lights blink lazily along the outer wall of Central City. The massive security gates are locked shut, automated sentries scanning the area with unblinking eyes. A mechanical voice echoes in the cold air:]
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6ZevkqlMVn
AUTOMATED VOICE
“Curfew active. Unauthorized entries will be disassembled for your safety. Have a nice recharge.”
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡChYpalDKUc
[A moment of silence. Then—]
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFhnf8IeKQ0
JASON (deadpan)
“Wow. Nothing says ‘welcome home’ like the promise of legally-scheduled murder.”
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDlqceqs4fh
[A and K stand beside him just outside the wall, wings folded. Jason, wearing a ridiculous safety harness A made from spare cables and belt straps, looks like a kid ready for their first flying lesson—if their instructor was a murder drone.]
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKYeDfHtgOJ
SD-K (eying Jason’s setup)
“I give this five minutes before he screams and flails like a wet fan.”
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBOvotS9Rcb
SD-A (nervously tightening the straps)
“I’m 83% sure I can carry him without breaking anything important. Or dropping him. Probably.”
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSYk99ImGp2
JASON (eyebrow twitching)
“Oh good, my body’s in the hands of a possibly-reformed killer bot who measures confidence in percentages.”
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm5l2Ep2YIV
[A shrugs, wings unfolding in a metallic fan. Jason takes a deep breath.]
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTgm1GWw3gV
JASON (muttering)
“…Regretting every life choice that brought me here.”
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt3YZ09dXBc
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFqATaRyLCE
---
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKIDSGNoUPP
[They take off. Jason’s eyes snap wide open as the ground drops away. He clamps his jaw shut, refusing to scream just to prove K wrong. The city glows below like a circuit board in the dark.]
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAKIXmLRlf3
JASON (teeth clenched)
“YOU’RE NOT ALLOWED TO DROP ME!”
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7hd7ISFe90
SD-A (cheerfully)
“Technically I’m able to, but I won’t! Probably!”
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs9iiRpyvlr
[K glides next to them silently, face blank but obviously enjoying the visual of Jason dangling like a floating briefcase. They soar low over the wall, lights reflecting on their wings. No alarms. No bullets. So far, so good.]
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgzevIamRBa
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoa9AUPqvEo
---
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMDTyvPLIPs
EXT. ROOFTOP – ABANDONED MIDRISE – MOMENTS LATER
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKfkJeMVG75
[They land with a heavy thud on a cracked rooftop. Jason wobbles like he’s just survived a rollercoaster, holding his knees and swearing at gravity. A sets him down as gently as possible.]
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ9FMoQZ7In
JASON (groaning)
“Land-based travel. I miss it so much. Never leaving the ground again.”
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKE34r2JfvI
SD-K (dryly)
“Excellent. We’ll leave you behind next time.”
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmQaF1meqzx
SD-A
“Aw, come on, he did great!”
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnmwO90hymT
JASON (glares at both)
“My dignity’s still up there somewhere.”
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZuBrRdYBiB
[They all crouch beside a rusted HVAC unit, peering over the rooftop edge at the maze of alleys below. The city hums quietly now, most bots shut down or in power-saving mode. A lone vendor bot rolls past selling spark-nuggets and pre-oiled screws on sticks.]
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrnGpDxsJQZ
JASON (peeking out)
“Alright, home’s only like… eight blocks that way. We go rooftop to rooftop until we hit the residentials.”
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4ePPEuowik
SD-K
“And what if one of us slips?”
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyzESssnHXe
JASON
“You bounce. I’m sure those alloy bones of yours can handle a little concrete.”
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbGFl3BjjS3
[K glares. Jason winks. A is already mapping the route on a cracked digital display embedded in his wrist. The plan is risky—but it’s their best shot.]
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS8RuXKJI4m
SD-A
“Ready?”
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI2kZcnux01
JASON (stretching out his limbs, still grumbling)
“As I’ll ever be. Let’s commit some light trespassing.”
55Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF7SRKFB4P5
[They disappear into the shadows, leaping silently across the steel skeletons of the sleeping city, three silhouettes against the pale light of Iresans’ ringed sky.]
ns216.73.216.51da2
