EPISODE EIGHT – SOMEBODY
INT. RED SWALLOW HQ
On a set of elevator doors
is embossed a red swallow insignia. The doors open, and a tall thin man dressed
in a royal blue dress coat exits. He enters a large office on the top floor and
takes a seat at the desk. Another man, short and squat, follows him in carrying
his briefcase and trench coat.
Courtenay: What should I do
concerning the orders, Beaufort-sama?
Beaufort: I’m not sure that the
information is entirely correct. There’s no point in risking any of our own
men.
Courtenay: What are you saying?
Outside agents? Would that be safe?
Beaufort: The man I have in mind is
not the type who would kiss and tell. Not anymore, at least. You can trust me
on that.
Beaufort turns to study the
skyscraper filled view. The camera swoops down into the city.
INT. BLUE LAGOON
Valentine and Armside are at the bar, puffing on their cigarettes.
Armside:
…But it got worse from there. I somehow managed to convince her that the
debacle at the bowling alley was funny, but as I got her into the bedroom, this
horrible racket started in the next room,
Armside bangs his head down on the bar. Valentine sips his drink.
Valentine: Why’d you even take her
bowling in the first place? Dinner and a movie, simple and classic.
Armside:
Why do I even gotta have that kid in my apartment in
the first place? Can’t you take her? You have like a hundred spare rooms.
Valentine: I already have one woman
in my house and that’s hell enough, so no thank you.
Armside:
Maybe Remington’ll take her.
Vahe enters the picture.
Vahe:
Telephone for you, Valentine.
Valentine: Yeah?
Valentine takes the phone.
Valentine: Valentine here.
Elli (O.S.): I tried calling you guys
on your cells, how come I couldn’t reach you?
Valentine: Matt turned his off
because
Armside:
Yeah! Why do I have to buy it? Little sponging brat!
Elli (O.S.): And you?
Valentine: I turned mine off because
Elli: Well, get back here, soon
please, there’s work to be done.
Valentine: It’s our day off and we’ve
been drinking. Get Hagen or Cecil to take care of it.
Elli: Well, it was you who was
specifically asked for. Someone named Beaufort.
Valentine: Beaufort?
TITLE CARD: SOMEBODY
INT. RED STAR OFFICE
Valentine and Armside stumble in.
Valentine: Where’s Elli?
Hagen gives Valentine a
file, which Valentine studies.
Armside:
How do you know political nouveau riche like John Beaufort?
Valentine: He used to follow me
around.
Armside:
How come you know that and I don’t?
Valentine: Are you the only one here,
Hagen?
Valentine: We’re not in any kind of
shape so you’ll have to drive us.
Valentine: You want to come or not?
Armside:
Wait… why are we going today? Why not wait till tomorrow?
Valentine: It could be too late
tomorrow.
Armside:
Why’re you even doing it?
Valentine: I’m just repaying a favour
he did for me once. Grab your gear and we’ll go. We’ll take your Buick.
Armside:
You’ve got to be joking!
Valentine: No one may drive my car
but me.
Armside:
I can’t be bothered with this man, I need sleep, and I’m going home.
Valentine: Back to
INT. ARMSIDE’S CAR
Hagen drives, Valentine
rides shotgun and Armside sits in the back, looking
depressed.
Valentine: Head for Amihama.
Valentine looks depressed.
EXT. AMIHAMA
The trio are at an
abandoned harbour. The ground is covered by a thin sheet of snow.
Armside:
I’m sleepy.
Valentine: I thought I told you to
wait in the car?
Valentine: Whatever.
They walk along in silence.
Valentine: Have you been drinking
too?
Armside:
This isn’t just an abandoned harbour. All the land around here is owned by
private companies. They use the docks to smuggle contraband… and I guess people
too. The public aren’t exactly welcome here.
Valentine: This place is dead in
winter. But I’ll tell you something, even when it’s busy, it’s quiet.
The silence is deafening.
Valentine: Let’s split up and search
the warehouses.
Valentine: March “Magenta” Randell.
Valentine: I don’t know.
Valentine: I don’t care.
They all walk in separate
directions.
INT. WAREHOUSE
Valentine swaggers around
looking behind things. He finds an old plate on a stand with a Shinryu (Blue Dragon) design on it and picks it up to
examine. Suddenly though, he drops it, breaking it, to block an incoming punch.
He kicks back and his mysterious assailant stumbles back.
Valentine: Who are you?
Tin: You can call me Tin. Who
are you and what are you doing in my warehouse?
Valentine: I’m looking for someone,
March Randell.
Tin: I’ve never heard of him.
Who are you?
Valentine suddenly twists
around and shoots the guy behind him who was aiming for a shot.
Tin: Snowy! Noooo!
Tin rushes forward,
reaching for his pocket, but Valentine swings back round, kicking Tin against
the bracket shelves, breaking all the plates including one with an Aerosmith design. Valentine brings his gun in line with
Tin’s head.
Valentine: Where?
A small, thin guy goes
scuttling past. Valentine fires at it but misses. Tin gets back up, and grabs
Valentine’s gun arm. Valentine knees Tin in his… well, you know. Then he grips
Tin’s left arm, ties it round his back and cracks it. Valentine lets Tin fall
to the ground and gives chase to Randell.
EXT. AMIHAMA
Randell runs across the deserted harbour, Valentine gives chase but is
losing ground. Randell thinks he’s clear, but Armside steps out from behind a building and fires, hitting
Randell in the leg.
BREAK
EXT. AMIHAMA
The woman in white stares
down Valentine intently. He and Armside keep their
guns trained on her.
Armside:
Step down, ma’am.
She remains unmoving.
Suddenly Valentine dashes forward, grabs her hands and pins them behind her
back before she can respond. Armside runs around
front.
White: You’re incredibly fast for
someone who has drunk as much as you obviously have.
Valentine: You think a little alcohol
would slow me down?
White: Not at all, Valentine.
Valentine: A fan of mine?
White: Who could not know of
Marco Valentine? Successor and Master of the Jigenzan-Ittou
school of weapon skill?
Valentine spins White to
face him as though he were dancing with her.
Valentine: Hey now, how do you know
about that?
White: You asked me if I was a
fan, didn’t you? Yeah, I think you have style.
Valentine draws White back
to him.
Valentine: Cut the crap, how do you
know my father? Who told you?
White: Somebody who is really
nobody… yet.
Valentine twirls White back
away.
Valentine: I told you to stop that!
Who are you?
White: Natasha White. A member of
the Alpha Team of White Tiger.
Valentine: The syndicate? The one
which was eradicated?
White: Not exactly. I’m here for Randell.
Valentine: You’re here for Randell? I’m here for Randell!
You’re not taking my action!
White: What do you want from him?
Valentine: He’s a terrorist I was
asked to collect and deliver to appropriate authorities. And you?
White: I’m here…
Valentine stares down
White. White snaps free of Valentine’s grip.
White: I’m here to protect him
from people like you!
White kicks out and
Valentine dodges. Armside shoots twice but misses.
White punches, but Valentine counters, hard.
Valentine: I hate having to injure
women, but you’re forcing the issue here, eh?
Valentine launches a flurry
of punches which White dodges. She doesn’t realise until Valentine is done that
it was a manoeuvre to force her further away from Randell.
Valentine: Armside!
Get him and get out of here!
Armside:
Ok!
White runs forward and
kicks out at Valentine but he rugby tackles her to the ground. Armside and Hagen pick up Randell
and start to carry him away, but someone comes running round the corner, a baby
faced guy with a lean build yet powerful presence. He runs up and kicks
Armside draws his gun again, but gets punched before he can fire it.
White uses Valentine’s distraction to push him off her and she runs to the
man’s side.
Valentine: So who’re you then?
Prince: I am the Prince of the
White Tiger.
Armside:
Talk about posers…
Valentine: You’re White Tigers, eh?
Now it makes sense.
Prince: What does?
Valentine: You’ve become a secret
terrorist group, aren’t you? That’s what you want with this guy.
Prince: Terrorist is a tag given
to us by the authority we oppose. They fear us because we see through them.
They are the terrorists. We are protectors of freedom.
Valentine: Whose freedom do you think
you’re protecting by blowing up government buildings!?
Prince: It was nice meeting you,
but I must take my leave. Don’t worry; I’ll leave you some playmates.
Prince raises his arm and
slashes the air with it, and there’s an explosion. It’s much more smoke than
flame, but when the smoke clears, Prince, White and Randell
are gone. In their place are three guys dressed in colour coded pastel
uniforms.
Red: Red.
Green: Green.
Blue: Blue.
These guys are like, armed
to the teeth. Guns arms with Kalashnikovs, flamethrowers, lasers and Blue even
has a mini rocket launcher.
Blue: You people, how sad you
are. Nothing but puppets of the malevolent government will.
Green: How much money is your
conscience worth? And how does it feel being stuffed in the pocket of a scumbag
like Leslie Shadowhite?
Valentine: What? What the hell are
you talking about? We’re in no one’s pocket! I live by my own will.
Red: Do we get to blow these suckers
up yet?
Armside:
Holy shit! Run!
Armside and Hagen run. Valentine fires a couple of shots but runs
really freaking hard when Red, Green and Blue return fire. When Valentine exits
the Harbour,
Green: Until we meet again…
INT. BLUE LAGOON
Valentine, Armside and Hagen are at the bar.
Armside:
Calm down dude, you’re not being cool.
Valentine: I never thought I’d see
the day when Armside wasn’t the biggest dork in this
bar.
Armside:
Ya, good isn’t it?
The guys sit quietly and
sip their drinks.
Armside:
I guess the Defence Department will find itself pretty busy from now on. It’s
not our problem anymore though. Right?
Valentine seems lost in his
own thoughts.
Armside:
Right?
Valentine: Oh. Yeah, right.
Valentine smirks.
Valentine: That prince… There was
something… Nah.
Valentine: What?
Valentine seems stunned
into silence for a few moments, but then he bursts out laughing, and Armside joins in.
Valentine: Don’t worship me, kid. The
truth would crush you.
Armside’s head jerks up.
Armside is gone, his chair has fallen over and the door of the bar is
swinging.
Remington enters.
Remington: Hi boys.
Remington: Thanks, get me a Pepsi Maxswiney.
Remington: Nah, that’s all right, I
don’t drink alcohol. Marco, I went back to the office just now. Someone
claiming to be John Beaufort sent a fax asking you to call him.
Valentine: Thanks.
Valentine gets up and
exits.
EXT. BLUE LAGOON
Armside is smoking outside. Valentine comes out and joins him while
speaking on the phone.
Valentine: Sorry I couldn’t come
through for you. But I don’t want anything else to do with it.
Beaufort (V.O.): That’s ok. You won’t get
have to get involved again.
INT. RED SWALLOW OFFICE
Beaufort and Courtenay are
in the office as Beaufort puts down the phone.
Courtenay: What’s the news?
Beaufort: It looks like war…
END – REVEAL…
Episode 9 preview
Valentine: Another old associate
turns up, this time though the outcome is deadly. I’m not talking about bullets
and blades but the twisted dances played between a hapless alpha male and his
drama queens. Next episode, Kings and