TV-PG (Thematic Images)
Starboard Side
Episode 107: Echoed Voices
Written by Jared Williams
Fade through black
Ext – Space
A sustained image of
space appears on the screen. The image slowly starts to push in on the starry
spectrum. A moment of fast-approaching, humming engines precedes the blur of
the Ryuu-3. The ship flies into frame from left and continues right in a single
streak. The camera pans right to follow it as it leaves the frame.
The angle cuts to a
tighter view of the Ryuu-3, panning
around the starboard side and pushing in on the cockpit.
Cut to:
Int – Ryuu-3
Amideas and Jerry
sit in the pilot’s and copilot’s seat, respectively. Jerry seems to be
controlling the ship. Amideas is observing his movements.
Amideas
Course correction; coordinates 896 by 595.
Jerry
[Typing into the console]
896… by 5…95. Done.
Amideas
[Double checking from his own console]
Correct.
Jerry
What now?
Amideas
Rotate the ship forty-two deg…
An alarm on Jerry’s
console begins to sound. He checks it and looks over to Amideas. He’s
concerned.
Jerry
Ship’s picking up something.
[Pointing to display]
What does this mean?
Amideas
[Glancing down at the display]
Short-Range
Jerry
Do we follow it?
Amideas
Alter course to rendezvous with the signal.
Jerry begins tapping
buttons on the console. The ship responds by rotating slightly to its left
while Jerry speaks.
Jerry
You got it, big guy.
Cut to:
Ext – Space
The Ryuu-3 turns its stern to the camera and
accelerates into the distance at incredible speed.
Fade to:
Ext – Space
The Ryuu-3 slows as it flies into frame from
the left. The camera pans around to the ship’s backside as it flies past frame,
revealing on a massive GHOST SHIP. The vessel resembles a gothic castle in
design, dark and dank with an orange-yellow glow to it, representing the
torches. Massive cylindrical engines protrude from its stern to represent the
towers. The sheer mass of the ship should be enough to impress.
The Ryuu-3 comes to a halt in front of the
ship’s bow. The engines come to a loud stall.
Cut to:
Int – Ryuu 3
Amideas
Hail them.
Jerry presses
several keystrokes on the console. A hail is sent to the alien ship with a
resulting beep from the console. There is no response.
Jerry
They’re not responding. According to the
computer’s scans of the residual frequency deterioration, that distress call’s
been going out for over six years.
Amideas
How are the environmental controls?
Jerry
[Pressing several more buttons]
…Stable. Breathable oxygen; no immediate
hazards.
Amideas begins to
stand. Jerry looks over and follows suit. Amideas looks back down at the
controls.
Amideas
What are you doing?
Jerry
What? I was…
Amideas
Sit down and dock the ship.
Jerry nods and sits
down slightly embarrassed. Amideas moves over to the wall of the cockpit and
starts collecting equipment including flashlights and pocket-toolkits, one for
both him and Jerry.
Amideas
Where are the docking ports located?
Jerry
[Pressing several keys on the console]
There’s one over the port thruster and
another toward the bow.
Jerry pauses and
looks back at Amideas. He appears frozen for a moment to Jerry’s confusion.
Jerry
Amideas?
Amideas
[Shaking his head uncharacteristically]
Dock at whichever is closest to the bridge.
Jerry
[Slightly stunned]
…Right.
Cut to:
Int – Alien ship
corridor A
A large, thick, poured hatch to the alien ship slides
open, squeaking. Jerry, sighing after pushing the heavy door steps forward onto
the ship, his flashlight on. The first thing he does is look in awe at the
walls and ceiling.
The walls and
ceiling of the ship glow with the same yellow/orange finish as the exterior of
the ship. The walls themselves appear to be imposed with organic patterns
outlining a story we can not understand; an untraceable scheme of organization.
Amideas steps in
behind Jerry. He is less impressed with the interior, but still takes the time
to look around. The ship is unusually quiet.
Jerry is still
breathing hard as they make their way deeper into the ship.
Jerry
It’s hot in here.
[He looks back to Amideas]
Amideas
Can’t be helped. Can you tolerate it?
Jerry
[Sighing again] Yeah, I think so. As long as
we’ve gotta be on here, anyway.
Cut to:
Int – Ship Corridor
B
Jerry is still
leading Amideas. He’s sweating now. They reach another entryway, this one
already open. The interior is too darkened to see from their position. Beyond
the entryway the corridor continues, leading to the bulk of the ship.
Jerry
This should be it…; the bridge.
Amideas
Lead on.
Jerry nods and moves
forward. He pauses in his steps. In the background behind him can be seen two
children running up to a third in the unfocused area of the frame. As Jerry
turns to look at them, the camera focuses in unison with the children fading
away. Jerry squints, confused.
Jerry
Did you see that?
Amideas
See what?
Jerry
[Wiping the sweat from around his eyes]
…Nothing. Forget it.
Jerry steps through
the entryway onto the bridge. The camera cuts to follow him through the
entryway. As he steps through the entryway, the camera pans down to a panel
along the interior at waist level. Inside the panel is a green light. As Jerry
steps through the entryway, the green light switches off and a red light just
below it activates. Jerry and Amideas both fail to notice.
Jerry looks around
the interior of the bridge. It’s relatively small. Two pilot seats in the
front, a commander’s seat in the center and several stations along the back.
It’s darker than the rest of the ship. The orange light from the walls doesn’t
exist here.
Jerry
Looks empty… where is everybody?
Jerry looks around
briefly before turning around to face Amideas. The camera pans around him as he
turns, so that he and the camera are both facing Amideas. As they do, a hoard
of small spikes flips out from along the walls, ceiling and floor of the
entryway (roughly twenty on each surface). Amideas is standing in the entryway.
Jerry takes notice.
Jerry
Ami!
The camera cuts to
an angle tight behind Amideas, focusing on Jerry so that the robot is blurred.
The spikes extend from steel rods into him before he even has a chance to move.
Jerry’s expression goes to one of disgusted shock. The music should start to
pump adrenaline into the audience as the spikes pull away and the still-blurry
body of the robot collapses to the ground.
Jerry rushes up to
the body of the robot, kneeling down. The body is clearly unsalvageable, as he
can be heard shuffling parts around.
Jerry
No… No…
Jerry looks around
and sees the red light switch back to green. He grimaces and looks back down at
the body before nodding and standing back up.
Jerry
Jesus… what; why!?
Jerry moves for the
entryway and then pauses. He begins to shake nervously and then kneels down. He
comes back up with what appears to be most of Amideas’s forearm. Several loose
wires and torn pumps hang from it. He swipes it through the doorway, waiting
for something to happen. The light remains green. He swipes it once more, and
finding no action, steps back out into the corridor.
He turns around to
see if the trap is triggered once more. It isn’t. He kneels down to Amideas’s
remains (still out of frame) again, and then gets back up shaking unsure.
Jerry
Ah, forget it.
Jerry turns to head
back to the Ryuu-3.
Cut to:
Int – Ship Corridor
A
Jerry runs toward the dock, looking to get back to the ship. He’s looking
around at the walls, watching his back for more tricks. He seems to have
misplaced his flashlight at this point or has more important things to worry
about. He’s breathing just as heavily as he is sweating.
Jerry reaches the
large door leading back to the Ryuu. It’s sealed shut now. He reaches down to
the lock, attempting to open it but ultimately failing. He looks through the
thick glass porthole. Flames climb up the other side of the door, and he backs
off.
A shot from inside
the Ryuu-3 pointing at the hatch
shows the fire inside the ship growing rapidly. Jerry is yelling silently on
the other side of the door, pounding on it.
The angle returns to
Jerry.
Jerry
No! No! What the hell?!
The shot returns to
an interior of the Ryuu-3. The
instruments are melting, the consoles are exploding. A wall of fire from deep
within the ship extends toward the cockpit.
The angle returns to
Jerry. He looks inside the ship. The glow of the forthcoming explosion reflects
off of his face as his eyes widen. He turns away from the hatch and begins
running down the corridor, away from the hatch.
Cut to:
Ext – Ryuu-3
Flames already
escape from the orifices of the Ryuu-3. Still docked, a blast of energy bursts
from the cockpit window. The rest of the ship ignites and explodes a split
second later.
Cut to:
Int – Ship Corridor
B
Jerry dives to the
metal floor as the Ryuu-3 explodes.
The entire corridor shakes violently as he covers his head. Several pipelines
along the ceiling bust with exhaust, but the massive metal door stays intact.
The shaking begins to dissipate soon after.
Cut to:
Ext – Alien Ship
Nothing salvageable
remains where the Ryuu-3 once rested.
Only twisted, jagged hunks of metal hang from the docking hatch port. Only bits
of burning debris and sparks linger in the wake.
Cut to:
Int – Corridor A
Jerry realizes the
explosion has stopped and that he is not dead. He lifts his head and looks
around, finding the area in relatively good shape. He stands and hurries toward
the hatch.
The angle tightens
on him and the hatch as he looks out of the glass porthole. There is nothing to
be seen but space and twisted alloy. He hangs his head, and in the reflection
of the glass grimaces.
Cut to:
Int – Ship Corridor
B
Jerry walks deeper
into the ship, realizing his hope of taking the Ryuu-3 back home is useless. His clothes are soaking with sweat;
his eyes are dripping of it. He walks past the doorway to the bridge, looking
down briefly at the body of Amideas before continuing.
Cut to:
Int – Ship Corridor
C
Jerry presses on
further. He’s worried. This is unfamiliar territory for him. He decides to
question whether or not he is alone once more. He calls out to anyone; to no
one.
Jerry
Hello?
Jerry continues to move
toward the interior of the ship, slowly, looking at the walls. The glow of the
walls seems to be moving from the exterior of the ship toward the center,
almost beckoning Jerry to continue.
Jerry
If anyone’s there… I only want to talk.
Suddenly
the laugh of children is heard behind Jerry. He spins around to witness a sight
parallel to what he almost saw before. Two boys (approximately eight or nine in
age) dressed in playground clothing rush up to a third of the same age and
style. The third boy attempts to leave but is kicked in the stomach by the
second and dropped to the ground. The two boys begin to take turns whomping on
him. Jerry gets an angry look on his face and approaches them.
Jerry
Hey!
The two bullies turn
and look Jerry straight in the eye in sync with fading away. The third child is
missing as well. Jerry stops, shocked. He pauses and wipes the sweat from his
forehead.
Jerry
This heat…
Jerry looks around
the ship once more, drawing only one conclusion.
Jerry
I’m alone.
Cut to:
Int – Main Junction
Jerry is lead by the
corridor into a massive junction which, along with leading to more corridors,
seems to lead directly to the mess hall, facilities, and communications center.
His eyes widen.
Jerry
This place just keeps getting bigger.
He paces into the
open area and looks around, the camera panning around him as he does. His eyes
fall on the communications center and he approaches the large, open doorway
structure. He almost rushes right in before pausing and growing another frown.
He looks around the frame of the door for another panel, but finds nothing. He
then takes off his jacket, backs up, and tosses it through the entryway. Again,
nothing happens. He shrugs and enters the communications center.
Cut to:
Int –
The walls, save the
one through which Jerry entered, are lined with terminals and consoles, still
working. The feel of this room is much different. It seems cooler; fresher. The
orange glow of the walls is absent here, but the running consoles give off a
green/blue light inviting Jerry in. He seems less tired here.
Jerry makes his way
to the largest and most complex looking of the consoles on the far wall. It’s
wide for one thing; the monitor is clearly the largest. Complex wires and steel
conductors run along its sides into the other consoles in the room. Jerry seems
excited. He looks it over briefly, recognizing the configuration but confused
by the alien language and begins tapping buttons.
A very
two-dimensional display of the alien ship appears on the screen. A white circle
extends from it in waves. Jerry looks it over. Letters not too dissimilar from
English characters fill the rest of the display. Jerry looks it over. He
struggles to read the language, but notices enough to recognize what he’s looking
for.
Jerry
Seven years… the computer was right.
He hesitates before
pressing another button. It brings up a display of the surrounding area. It
brings up a display of the surrounding area of space, including any ships that
may be near him. There appear to be two traveling in the ship’s vicinity. Jerry
sighs with relief.
Jerry
Thank God… two ships.
Jerry taps on the
screen over the blip representing the first ship. It magnifies the blip and
brings up information on the ship. At the bottom is a flashing green word
reading something to the effect of “Communication?”
Jerry looks down at
the console. He reads over the buttons, settling on one quite parallel to the
prompt he’s been given on the screen.
Jerry
[While pressing button]
Open… communication.
The display switches
to a wide shot of the two ships attempting to communicate. The alien ship;
Jerry’s ship sits on the left side of the display while the ship he’s
attempting to contact rests on the other. The signal begins to carry across the
screen like a file transfer. Jerry rests his shoulders and exhales in
anticipation. The transfer stops abruptly about half-way through. Jerry leans
forward again.
Jerry
What? What’s the problem?
Jerry attempts to
hit the communications button again. It only manages to bring up an error
message he can’t understand. Frustrated, he slams on a button to close the
window.
Jerry
Augh, forget it! The other ship…
Jerry,
more confident in his ability to use the console, presses a button to lead him
back to the main display of the two ships. He taps the second this time,
bringing up information on it and another prompt to open communications. He
presses the communications button and waits for something to happen.
The
transfer starts again. He shuts his eyes, waiting for the connection to be
made. A beep accompanied by another error message appears. Jerry yells out
loudly and backs away from the console.
Jerry
[Shouting to the console]
Come on! Please!
He presses the
communications button on the console once more. It brings up an error message.
Jerry hangs his head in grief.
While he’s not
looking, the letters and words begin to rearrange themselves, unconceivable
that they could form this pattern. They start to create a face, a growling,
monstrous face with pits for eyes and grueling teeth. It cocks its head and
looks at Jerry, letting out a small growl.
Jerry lifts his head
slowly to look at the console’s screen. The creature on the screen snaps at
him, and he yells, falling backward onto the floor. He begins to push himself
up the console begins to take on a life of its own.
The wires and pipes
pull themselves out from the surrounding consoles and form legs, reaching in
front of the console. Jerry starts to scoot himself away from it, still trying
to get back on his feet. The face inside the monitor begins to press its
forehead forward, bulging out of the glass of the screen. It growls as its head
continues to take on three dimensions. Flesh begins to creep down his limbs.
Jerry’s on his feet
now. He begins to run out of the communications room, watching his back. The
creature shrieks and squeezes its eyes shut as a wave of dark flesh molds
itself over his head. As its glowing orange eyes open, the rest of the console
shatters, leaving only one very ferocious animal; a huge, dark, horned, almost
demonic quadruped.
Cut to:
Int – Junction
Jerry heads for the
mess hall as it’s the closest place to him. The hatch is already open. The
beast bursts out of the communications center like a bull, and shrieks. It
focuses on Jerry in the mess hall and chases after him.
Int – Mess Hall
Jerry rushes through
the mass of tables, more than one would find necessary for this ship, given its
relative size. The light in this room is much whiter. The beast bursts through
the doors and lowers its head as it charges through the first couple of square
tables, knocking them aside. Jerry looks behind him, determining the beast’s
path and darts between two tables, altering his own so that the creature can’t
charge him.
The creature shrieks
and jumps onto a table, causing it to crack. It begins to gallop over the
tables, making its way toward Jerry. It catches up to him and shrieks over him.
Jerry screams and ducks as the creature tries to bite him. He takes to under
the table and starts to crawl under. The beast jumps on top of the table he’s
under, shrieking down on him. Jerry’s excited breathing almost over powers the
shrill calls.
A single claw tears
through the top of the table. Jerry yells once more and starts to roll out from
under it. As he does the table collapses, causing the beast to lose its
balance. It shrieks and gets back up to its feet. Jerry is headed toward the
kitchen now.
The creature
recovers its balance and begins to take off after him. Jerry reaches the
kitchen.
Cut to:
Int – Kitchen
Jerry looks out of
the door he just came through briefly, waiting for the creature to follow him.
He looks over to the counter and grabs a very large knife. He starts to back up
into the food storage area of the kitchen.
The beast bursts
through the door, managing to take out chunks of the wall surrounding it. Jerry
takes cover behind the wall of the next doorway as the creature comes charging
past. As it rushes past him he slams his knife just beneath its shoulder,
holding onto it a bit longer, causing it to cut the beast very badly. He
finally lets go of it and the creature shrieks in pain, still charging forward.
It pauses and whips around, facing Jerry but too wounded to attack him.
Jerry stays pinned
up in the corner, afraid to move this close to the animal. It shrieks and
starts to lift its leg to take a step toward him, but crashes onto the floor,
shaking the entire room.
Jerry relaxes a bit,
exhaling once more. He’s still breathing considerably hard. He scoots away from
the door and starts to back up. Comfortable that the creature is dead, he turns
and starts to leave.
The creature slowly
lifts its head in the background and gets back onto its feet. Jerry spins
around, hearing the click of its claws on the floor and his eyes widen. The
creature begins to charge him head on. Jerry squeezes his eyes in anticipation.
The animal leaps at him, and dissolves out of existence only inches away from
him, as if falling into some unseen realm.
Jerry opens his eyes
again. He’s surprised to see that the creature is gone, and more than a little
concerned it might come back. That is, until, he looks into the food storage
room. Everything appears to be back in its perfect place now. The walls are
undamaged; the shelves are intact. The knife is missing as well. Jerry spins
around and looks at the door to the kitchen. It too is completely intact.
Confused, he begins to back up. Lastly, he looks at the counter where he got
the knife. It is missing.
Cut to:
Int – Mess hall
Jerry is amazed as
he walks past the perfectly arranged rows of tables, all upright and undamaged.
It’s as if nothing at all happened.
Cut to:
Int – Communications
center
Sure enough, the
console is sitting normal again. Nothing is missing; no strange faces appear in
the screen. The angle focuses on Jerry standing in the doorway to the center.
He hangs his head once more.
Cut to:
Int – Habitat
Corridor
Jerry paces down the
corridor leading to all of the crew quarters. He’s confused. This clearly isn’t
where he was hoping to end up.
He turns a corner
and peers down the hallway. At the other end is the same image of two
schoolyard boys running up to a third. The third tries to leave but is kicked
to the ground by the bullies. Jerry begins to rush toward them.
Jerry
Hey!
Jerry begins to run
faster, but the run starts to fade into slow motion, taking longer and longer.
The two boys proceed to kick the third on the ground. Jerry’s struggling to get
there faster, frustrated at how helpless his attempts are.
The two boys face
and turn Jerry. They smile deceitfully and scurry off, disappearing into the
walls. Jerry stops as he reaches the third child.
The angle fades to
Jerry’s point of view as he looks down. The third child is suddenly seen as an
adult reflection of Jerry himself, lying helpless and beaten.
The angle returns to
Jerry. He blinks in astonishment. The boy now appears to be an actual boy, but
the similarities between this boy and the adult Jerry are clear. Even Jerry
manages to notice as he kneels down to help the boy up.
Boy
Thank you…
Jerry’s not taking
this illusion at face value anymore. He’s seen enough to question it. It drives
him to ask one question.
Jerry
What are you?
The boy’s expression
falls to one of seriousness and despair, realizing that Jerry has called him
out.
Boy
You know who I am…
Jerry
But you can’t be you. This ship, it’s so…
empty. What happened here? That’s all I want to know. If you can tell me…
Boy
You already know what happened, too.
Jerry
That animal? That one that tried to get me
earlier?
In response the boy
points behind Jerry. He spins around and views the other side of the corridor,
now much different than when he ran to the boy. It leads to an open cargo room,
loaded with crates and barrels. There appear to be two aliens standing in
debate over something, it’s growing quite furious.
Jerry
What is this?
The first crewman
shoves the second behind a stack of crates. He disappears from Jerry’s view,
save his arms which stick out past the crates. The boy just stands silently
behind Jerry.
Jerry
Hey, you! Can you hear me?
Suddenly the first
crewman starts to back up against the wall, afraid. He ignores Jerry. The
second crewman’s hands are pulled behind the stack of crates. He lets out an
agonizing scream and a small trail of blood flows past the crates. The creature
which attacked Jerry shrieks out from behind the crates and starts heading for
the first. The crewman is too afraid to move.
The angle turns back
to Jerry as he looks away.
After a couple
seconds of hearing the beast chomp down on the first crewman he looks back up.
The creature looks Jerry straight in the eye, mouth stained with blood, and
growls.
Jerry blinks and the
creature is gone. He’s hardly surprised at this point. He suddenly remembers
the boy behind him.
Jerry
[Turning around]
That thing got all of you, didn’t…
The boy is gone.
Jerry looks around for him briefly before accepting what just happened. The
angle widens to reveal the corridor back in its original form, and the creature
just as gone as it was before.
Ext – Ship
Transition shot of
the Alien ship wandering aimlessly through space.
Cut to:
Int – Corridor B
Jerry tosses the
left sleeve of his shirt aside, clearly torn off as is his right sleeve, yet
ironically he carries his jacket. His sweating hasn’t stopped, he’s growing
thirstier. His hair is weighed down by his sweat. Time has passed.
Jerry stops in front
of the bridge and looks down at his old partner. The camera still refuses to
reveal Amideas’s remains. Jerry gets out his jacket, airs it out like a table
cloth, and kneels down.
Cut to:
Int – Junction
Jerry sits against
the wall closest to the door to the mess hall. Positioned fairly close to him
is his jacket, tied shut by the sleeves. Amideas’s remnants rest inside. Jerry is
extremely tired. By his standards it would be well past midnight. He looks down
at his watch. It reads “2:06 AM”. He gives out a slight laugh.
Jerry
[Beginning to lose control just a bit]
The sun never went down, I lost track of
time.
Jerry looks at his
jacket, he gets no response.
Jerry
Fine, stay quiet; it’s not like we ever
talked much before anyway.
The angle cuts to
another shot of the reticent jacket. It then returns to Jerry.
Jerry
No one wants to talk today; not you, not even
the six ships that passed within communications range today. I don’t know why,
this ship’s computer just… wouldn’t let me talk to them.
Jerry takes his
shirt off and tosses it aside. It flops on the floor like a mop. His body is
covered with sweat. He laughs a little bit at his shirt.
Jerry
I think the most conversation I had today was
with myself. My little…
[He holds his hand up about knee level; an
exaggeration]
…self.
[He smiles]
He had a lot to say, though. He told me how
the people on this ship died. They were killed by that monster; the one that
keeps toying with me. And of course he told me all of this after getting beaten
up by bullies. I had forgotten about that until now. I still have a scar on my
arm…
Jerry looks down to
the floor, considering his words.
Jerry
What is that even supposed to mean? That this
is hopeless? That I’m just going to get beaten and take it like a little kid?
[He looks up at the ceiling]
Yeah, well I already know that!
His attention goes
back to the silent remains of Amideas.
Jerry
I already know that. I’m condemned to wait on
this ship until that thing kills me or I die of heat exhaustion. Either way…
Jerry stops
mid-sentence. He starts to ignore his dead partner and talks to himself.
Jerry
Condemned… condemned on this ship. I can’t get off of this
ship. So how do I know I can’t use this
ship… to escape?
Jerry looks back at
his jacket.
Jerry
Come on, buddy.
Jerry moves to get
up and heads toward his bag.
Cut to:
Int – Kitchen
Jerry opens the
trash chute in the back of the kitchen, complete with a small porthole above
it. He unties his jacket and, out of frame, dumps Amideas’s remains into it. He
presses a switch and the chute slams shut. He looks up through the porthole and
watches as Amideas’s remains are sent flying into space, too fast to be
recognized.
Jerry
Bye, friend…
Cut to:
Int – Engineering
Jerry, shirtless but
wearing his jacket, stands in front of the massive engines of the ship, unlike
anything he would’ve seen in his own ship. It’s a huge, cylindrical turbine
full of diagonal gears and misleading pipelines. All along the bottom are
consoles positioned in a ring. Jerry is looking them over.
Jerry
[Pointing to one of the consoles]
If this one here is…
He walks around to
another console on the opposite side of the turbine.
Jerry
And this one says…
He walks around to
another console in between the first two he looked at. There is a readout of
the ship’s energy levels. They all appear to be above the line.
Jerry
Then I’ll be… I think I’m taking this bird
home.
Cut to:
Int – Corridor B
Jerry rushes through
the door into the bridge, totally ignoring the previous trap incident. Nothing
happens to him.
Cut to:
Int – Bridge
Jerry runs along the
sides of the bridge, flipping on consoles and prepping the ship for departure.
He seems excited now, less concerned with how close he came to dying before.
The bridge slowly comes to life.
Jerry heads to the
helm station at the front of the ship. He has become accustom enough to this
language to be able to estimate, more or less, the right buttons to push. This
particular console is pretty straight forward; including arrow keys and a
number pad. The helm console starts to light up and beep.
Jerry
All right, we got power…
Jerry hesitates
before pressing one final button.
Jerry
Come on, give me this one…
[He presses the button]
Cut to:
Ext – Ship
The mighty engines
of the alien ship start to combust. A wave of energy, similar to a backfire on
an old automobile, goes off. The crashing sound is deafening, followed by a low
hum and a slowly growing glow from the engines.
Cut to:
Int – Bridge
Jerry
All right! We got power!
Jerry begins looking
at the display of surrounding space, and then begins typing numbers into the
pad, just assuming it works like a three-by-three-plus-one number pad in his
own ship. He starts to smile.
Jerry
Coordinates set. Ready to go…
He finally moves
around to take a seat at the helm station. He hesitates, and, excited, presses
the button to engage…
…An error message
appears on his console.
Jerry’s expression
quickly fades from one of joy to one of despair. The audience can almost see
his stomach drop. He looks at the error message like it’s his death sentence.
Jerry
No… no, what’s the problem?
The display appears
to be highlighting one portion of the ship in red, an area just over the port
thruster. The rest is unrecognizable to him. Jerry closes the error message.
Jerry
No, no, you’ve gotta let me do this.
He types the
co-ordinates in again. He pounds the button to engage hard this time. Another
error message appears. The same area of the ship appears in red.
Jerry
No! Please! No!
Jerry tries the
procedure again, to no success. He moans and falls out of his chair. He crawls
to the center of the bridge, tears forming in his eyes. He cries upward.
Jerry
Why?! Why do you let me get so close?!
Jerry looks back
down at the floor, genuinely vengeful through his tears.
Jerry
Why do you keep toying with me? If you wanted
to kill me… if you wanted to destroy me, why haven’t you? You’ve had the
chance!
Jerry spots a piece
of Amideas’s remains he must’ve missed earlier. It’s a nice, conveniently
placed, jagged hunk of metal. He holds it up to his chest.
Jerry
Maybe I should just do it myself, huh? Get it
all over with! Would you even care?!
Jerry looks down at
the knife, considering whether or not he should take his own life. He pulls it
away from his chest, as if preparing to stab himself, and then pauses. He
starts to cry and tosses the blade aside.
Jerry
Why won’t you do it? Please… do it…
Nothing happens. He
looks up again at the helm console. The display of the ship with the one
section above the port thruster catches his eye. Next to it, another word
almost makes sense to him, an alien word resembling “excess.”
Jerry
[Revelation]
…Oh…
Cut to:
Int – Corridor A
Jerry heads toward
the hatch where the Ryuu-3 was
previously docked. He’s determined. He pauses in front of it.
He looks outside of
the porthole. The angle reverses briefly to show another shot of the twisted
debris resting in the wake of the Ryuu’s demise.
With the angle back
on Jerry, he reaches down to the large handle of the hatch. He hesitates, and
then presses down on the handle, pulling the hatch open.
Rather than being
sucked out into the vacuum of space, Jerry stands there, certain he wouldn’t be
killed. He stands there, looking out into the emptiness of space and the
wreckage of his ship. Slowly he takes a step forward. Standing on the edge of
the hatch, he takes another step forward into space; into nothing…
Into the Ryuu-3.
Cut to:
Int – Ryuu-3
Corridor
Jerry finds himself
in the comfort of the Ryuu-3 again.
He looks behind him at the hatch to the alien ship. There has been no damage;
the ship hasn’t exploded. He is simply there.
The lights; all
power on the ship seems to be offline. He paces forward toward the cockpit. As
he does, he seems amazed, yet assured he is actually on his ship.
Upon reaching the
cockpit he finds all of the power still offline, including Amideas who seems to
be resting comfortably in his chair. His eyes are black, powerless. Jerry
slowly moves around to his chair and sits down. He reaches onto the console and
begins to start the ship. Lights start to come on, the console starts beeping.
He’s still a bit awestruck by it all.
Voice
Wait…
Jerry spins around
in his chair. The first thing he sees is the creature that attacked him,
glowing with an orange aura. It morphs onto its feet, and then begins to phase
constantly. It appears to be a collection of different people, all appearing for
only a second or two before uncontrollably fading to the next. Different
species, sexes, colors; they all glow of the same orange aura the ship glowed
of. This being is comprised of many beings, but has only one, original
consciousness. The voice of this being, however, remains a constant. It seems a
light, peaceful one, yet with a sense of urgency.
Jerry
What are you?
Being
Collection…
Jerry
A collection? Of what? Of the people on this
ship?
Being
This ship? No, mine. Those ships…
Jerry’s console starts
to beep. He looks down at the radar, and then out of the view shield. Dozens of
damaged and abandoned ships start to appear before Jerry’s eyes.
The angle cuts to an
exterior of the alien ship and the Ryuu as
more ships fade into existence.
Back inside the Ryuu, Jerry looks back at the being
confused.
Jerry
They’re all… dead?
Being
They are me now.
Jerry reaches under
his console for a hidden rifle holstered against the metal.
Jerry
You killed them all?!
Being
No… I… not kill… can’t
Jerry
That’s why you didn’t kill me, isn’t it? You
can’t kill me yourself, can you? You don’t exist…
Being
Not like you… my ship… energy… need. Must get
home…
Jerry
And the dead, their energy… is your fuel…
right…
Being
I kill not! …Can’t.
Jerry
But you drove them to do it! You made them
think it was all gone, maybe that they were turning against each other or, or
like in my case they were going to die of heat exhaustion or starvation or…
Being
Like you… they die…
Jerry
[Confused as to the disregard for life]
…Why?
Being
Must get home…
Jerry takes his hand
off of the gun hidden beneath the console. He stands. The being backs off a
bit, afraid. Jerry raises his hands slightly in defense, and slowly starts
taking steps forward.
Jerry
Where’s your home? How far do you have to go?
Being
Far… more than you…
Jerry
But this isn’t the way. You can’t just take
the lives of others to go home. …I can’t let you keep doing that.
Being
…Must get home…
Jerry stops now,
only feet away from the being. Either could easily attack the other if they
wished.
Jerry
[Desperate]
I can tow your ship… the nearest GEF outpost
isn’t far, they’ll think of a way to get you home.
Being
No! No more like you…
Jerry
[Shaking his head]
It’s either that or I’ll have to blow up your
ship. I really… don’t want to do that. Not yet. People; [gesturing through the
view shield] my people need to know about you.
Being
[Hanging its head]
…Must get home.
Jerry
Then let me tow your ship in. You know it’s
the only way…
The being nods while
he hangs his head, and then looks up at Jerry with sincere eyes before fading
out of existence once more.
The angle cuts
briefly to an exterior shot of the alien ship. The orange light begins to fade,
and the engines die as if relaxing after all of this.
Jerry nods. He sits
quietly for a moment, looking out on all the abandoned ships, all of the lives
taken, and then starts the engines of the ship. He reaches over to Amideas.
Jerry
Hey, big guy.
Cut to:
Ext – Space
The Ryuu-3 moves around to the front of the
alien ship. It activates a tractor beam on it and starts to tow it away. As it
does, the graveyard of ships begins to fade away.
Fade to Black
[The End]
Starboard Side
Episode 107: Echoed Voices
Written by Jared Williams