EXT. BACK LOT BEHIND SECURITY HQ – NIGHT
123Please respect copyright.PENANA2xM9df7Pw0
[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.]
123Please respect copyright.PENANAdJXVEc4yEm
JASON
(to himself)
“Spacious. Questionably clean. Smells like old coolant and regret. Perfect.”
123Please respect copyright.PENANAeNtsE9eHqE
[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.]
123Please respect copyright.PENANAlfFDSc9d89
JASON
“Alright, lovebirds, you’re up. Into the box.”
123Please respect copyright.PENANANQVLXx6pEU
SD-K
(flatly)
“Into the box.”
123Please respect copyright.PENANAEj5vSe9eCy
JASON
“Yup.”
123Please respect copyright.PENANAd1sbPpW1nM
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.”
123Please respect copyright.PENANAqIYBO6q7O2
JASON
“That’s the spirit.”
123Please respect copyright.PENANALQj8wa3FB1
SD-K
(to A)
“Your friend’s an idiot.”
123Please respect copyright.PENANAX0uut2N6gc
SD-A
“He’s not my friend. He’s a contact. With a trolley.”
123Please respect copyright.PENANAhSMW5g3EV0
[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.]
123Please respect copyright.PENANAP48zcuUQvw
123Please respect copyright.PENANAChE74DjuL9
---
123Please respect copyright.PENANAgb4zbDTVII
EXT. CENTRAL CITY – APARTMENT COMPLEX – NIGHT
123Please respect copyright.PENANAhsqXFmZZz0
[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.]
123Please respect copyright.PENANA566utXfrTS
[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.]
123Please respect copyright.PENANAwbiKXfyWFe
JASON
“Yep. Totally normal. Just an average Security bot... pushing suspicious freight... past thirty tenants and one probably-drunk Operator bot.”
123Please respect copyright.PENANAAafMe9C2sa
[He nods at a janitor Labor bot passing by, who eyes the crate.]
123Please respect copyright.PENANAJKEu1bptFq
JANITOR BOT
“What’s in the box?”
123Please respect copyright.PENANAQsEm7WNJ7b
JASON
(grinning too wide)
“My dignity. Had to ship it express.”
123Please respect copyright.PENANA1zYThdBFb6
[The janitor stares at him for a long beat before continuing down the hall, muttering.]
123Please respect copyright.PENANAhk2tPnn7qi
JANITOR BOT
“Security guys are all weird.”
123Please respect copyright.PENANAUl0BboCL4R
[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.]
123Please respect copyright.PENANAb352gBAeW4
OPERATOR #1
“Is that… rust I smell?”
123Please respect copyright.PENANAS3TKDooazo
JASON
(nodding earnestly)
“That’s just me. Natural cologne. ‘Essence of Battery Fire.’”
123Please respect copyright.PENANAJJLVhPASUf
123Please respect copyright.PENANA9LkjxqnIk6
---
123Please respect copyright.PENANAcvRYPLuZnV
INT. JASON’S APARTMENT – MOMENTS LATER
123Please respect copyright.PENANABShoD2BvwD
[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.]
123Please respect copyright.PENANAbmrjVS0rr7
JASON
“Alright, kids. Home sweet cube.”
123Please respect copyright.PENANAXuLnGcUM0A
[He pries open the crate. SD-K immediately stretches and grumbles like he just lived in a vending machine.]
123Please respect copyright.PENANA6JMTIpeT7M
SD-K
“This is how I die. Cramped, oily, and surrounded by rent-bots.”
123Please respect copyright.PENANAcS5DrQ3o3V
SD-A
(already scanning the room)
“You live in a closet.”
123Please respect copyright.PENANAicuBcWVyTH
JASON
“Yeah, well... closets don’t come with questionable wallpaper and a neighbor who screams in binary at 2 AM.”
123Please respect copyright.PENANA9NSfUxAwSZ
[A loud, unintelligible mechanical screech echoes from the wall next to them. Jason holds up a finger.]
123Please respect copyright.PENANAj9mFjCZ2qG
JASON
“Speak of the devil.”
123Please respect copyright.PENANAZ3tPBj1HMw
[They all stand still for a moment. Safe. For now.]
123Please respect copyright.PENANAmoNStnutz5
FADE OUT.
ns216.73.216.206da2