Ree 201.2

Home | It's All About Me | Stuff | Dracula, Dude! | Goth Wars | Firefly | Costume | Music

gothwars.jpg

Page 4

INT. PICKWORTH HOME - DINING ROOM

Lance's Aunt Edna, is a cold, waspish woman; she fills a pitcher with home brew from a keg and sets it on the table. She signals to a housemaid, who goes out and brings back in a platter of roast something, garnished with loads of potatoes and veggies.

Lance sits across from his Uncle Paddy at a table laden with steaming plates of food as the housemaid carries in a platter of hot rolls.

LANCE: Ya know, I think those two rivetheads we got from the Ma'was maybe weren't legit indentures.

PADDY: Oh? And what, precisely, makes you think that?

LANCE: Uh, well, the short one was carrying a disc with a recorded message. The other one says that it's supposed to go to someone called Obi Fora Kimono, that the short one was on some type of legal business.

Paddy is disturbed by the mention of Kimono's name, but manages to hide his reaction from Lance.

LANCE: Maybe he meant Sylk. You don't have any clue what he's talking about, do you?

He looks at Paddy. Paddy shovels food into his mouth and doesn't meet the glance.

LANCE: I mean, maybe it is Sylk, huh?

Paddy's nostrils flare and he grinds his teeth. He scowls at Lance.

PADDY: That old man's just a whacko. I want you to forget about that disc, Lance. That's the end of it, hear me? Those rivetheads' indentures belong to us now, and I don't care how the Ma'was got a hold of them. Their own fault for wandering around where they shouldn't be, anyway.

LANCE: But what if that Obi Fora guy knows about the message and comes looking for it?

PADDY: He won't, I know he won't. He died around the same time as your father.

LANCE: He knew my dad?

PADDY: No, I only said he died at the same time. Forget it, it's not important. *He's* not important. The only thing you need to worry about right now is getting those rivetheads working on reprogramming those onboard computers, so the cars can be ready for the races next weekend.

LANCE: Fine.

Lance sighs and starts picking at his food.

LANCE: Anyway, I think those guys are going to work out. I was thinking....y'know, if they do....maybe we could talk about our agreement about my staying on till the fall. I want to re-apply for next term.

Paddy rolls his eyes, but doesn't look at Lance.

PADDY: You mean before the big derby in a couple of months?

LANCE: Yeah, you've got more'n enough help here, now.

PADDY: The derby is when I need you the most. Just that one more. This year we'll make enough on the purse to carry the business through, and I can hire another mechanic. *Then* you can go to college.

Lance plays with his food and avoids eye contact.

PADDY: I need you here, Lance.

LANCE: But that's the whole summer!

PADDY: Just one more big race, that's all.

Lance pushes away his plate and stands up. He's pouting.

LANCE: Oh, yeah? Well, that's what you said last year when Wiggs and Skank left.

Edna comes into the room from the kitchen, and is about to sit down at the table.

AUNT EDNA: Where do you think you're going?

LANCE Nowhere. I'm going nowhere.

Lance leaves the room in a snit. Paddy keeps eating his dinner, not looking at Edna as she sits down with a frown.

EDNA: Paddy, that boy needs to learn some manners. Why do you insist on keeping him around here?

PADDY: He'll be gone by fall, I swear.

EDNA: Fine. I know he's a good mechanic for you, and he saves us a lot on skilled labour, but I don't get why you keep making excuses to keep him here.

PADDY: It's not something you'd understand, and I wouldn't explain it to you even if you could.

EXT. TATOOME - PICKWORTH JUNKYARD

Lance wanders over to the high fence at the back of the junkyard, and watches the sunset reflecting off the skyscrapers that are miles and worlds away. He watches until twilight falls, then sneaks 'round the house and to the workshop, and goes inside.

INT. PICKWORTH JUNKYARD – WORKSHOP

Lance enters the workshop only to find the rivetheads missing. He takes a small handheld unit from his pocket and presses his thumb down, activating the transponders on the rivetheads collars. A low hum starts from a darkened corner of the shop, and with a girlish yelp, Thirteenpio jumps up from his cot.

LANCE: Were you hiding?

Thirteenpio stumbles further into the light, yawning and stretching. Aryoo isn't in the other cot, nor can Lance see him anywhere in the shop.

LANCE: Where's your buddy?

THIRTEENPIO: (looking bemused) Huh?

LANCE: Your buddy, where is he?

Thirteenpio looks around a little wildly, even kneeling on the floor and looking under various things, including the cots. He starts shaking his head and mumbling 'no, no, no, no' to himself.

LANCE: Well?

THIRTEENPIO: It's not my fault, man! Aw, don't give me the jolt or anything, okay?

LANCE: Did he say anything about going for a walk or whatever?

THIRTEENPIO: No. He just indicated that the message he was supposed to deliver was really, really, important. Like, life or death.

LANCE: Shit!

Lance races out of the shop, with Thirteenpio anxiously following.

EXT. TATOOME - PICKWORTH JUNKYARD

Lance dashes across the junkyard, and pauses at the entrance, searching desperately in both directions for the short rivethead. Thirteenpio follows breathlessly, and stands next to him panting.

THIRTEENPIO: (gasping out his words) That Aryoo has always been trouble. Trouble with a capital "T". I don't even understand the whole piercing thing. Me, I prefer tattoos.

LANCE: Well, I can't see him anywhere. Goddammit. I can't believe what a complete moron I am. F*ck!

THIRTEENPIO: Well, much as I hate to interrupt your self-loathing, but why don't we just go after him?

LANCE: It's not safe out there at night. The Strand People are out in droves as soon as it gets dark, and I don't want to run into any. Nope.

Paddy yells from the house.

PADDY: Lance! While you're out there, lock up wouldja?

LANCE: Fine! (muttering to himself) I'd better check the perimeter system while I'm at it.....gawd, if something needs to be done around here, why'm I the only one who seems to do it?

Lance locks up the gas station and gate, and does a swift check of the alarm system's control box just inside the door of the workshop, before heading back to the house.

Before going into the house, Lance takes another long look at the sparkling neon horizon of the city. Thirteenpio stops and looks with him.

LANCE: You know that idiot rivethead is going to get me in a pile of shit.

THIRTEENPIO: That's just one of his more charming qualities, man. I don't know what else to tell ya.

EXT. PICKWORTH JUNKYARD

Morning crawls over the junkyard, low-slanting sunlight glinting of chrome and glass. The quiet is disrupted when Uncle Paddy comes out of the house and starts looking for Lance.

PADDY: Lance! Where the hell are ya, boy?! *Lance!*

INT. PICKWORTH HOUSE – KITCHEN

The kitchen is overwarm and slightly steamy, as Edna and the housemaid appear to be bottling something or other, as well as preparing breakfast. Paddy comes inside, face red, his expression thunderous.

PADDY: Have you seen that boy this morning, Edna?

EDNA: Nope. He left a note on the fridge saying he had some errands to run before he started in on that muscle car again today.

PADDY: Huh. He didn't take those two new indentures with him, did he?

EDNA: Oh, how would I know, Paddy? Do you think I care?

PADDY: You *should* care, we paid for 'em. That boy had better get them back here before noon to start in on that stuff, or he's gonna have hell to pay.

EXT. TATOOME - ABANDONED INDUSTRIAL PARK - LANCE'S '68 CAMARO – DAY

The broken asphalt of the seemingly endless parking lots blurs underneath the wheels of the car, as Lance steers it in long, swooping, curves across the length and breadth of the warehouse wasteland.

INT./EXT. LANCE'S '68 CAMARO - INDUSTRIAL PARK - TRAVELLING – DAY

Lance leans over the transmission hump and jams a CD into the player. Thumping bass pours from the car's speakers.

LANCE: (shouting) How's that?

THIRTEENPIO: Great, man.

Lance and Thirteenpio both start bouncing their heads in time to the bass, with Thirteenpio double-bouncing on the four-count.

Thirteenpio starts banging his hands on the dash in counterpoint, and grins over at Lance, who grins back.

LANCE: Old Sylk Kimono lives out in this area somewhere, but that's a long way to come on foot. Maybe we missed Aryoo, huh? Uncle Paddy is going to be p*ssed.

THIRTEENPIO: Well, we could always tell him it was all my fault. Not that I think that's the best solution, y'understand.

LANCE: (looking hopefully over at Thirteenpio) Hey, there's an idea! He needs you if he's going to get those cars ready for the races next weekend. He'd probably wouldn't even cut your rations back for very long.....

THIRTEENPIO: Cut my rations! Oh, come on! I'm sure there's a better solution....there's *got* to be a better solution....aw, man.....

LANCE: Hang on, isn't that something, way up ahead there. (he points at a figure that could be a trash receptacle for all either of them can tell from this distance) Yeah, couldn't be anything else, right?

Lance steps on the gas, and the Camaro shoots forward, faster than before.

gwscriptbar.jpg

Page 5

Back

Major plot drift. I couldn't help myself.

My LiveJournal

And please check out my LJ friends - 'cause they're coooool.