13. Space Cure - Eric

FADE IN:

EXT. FUTURISTIC SPACE SHUTTLE-NIGHT
A spaceship soars calmly through space. Twinkling stars and colorful stellar matter seem to engulf the ship. Inside the ship a healthy looking captain is at a control panel.

Behind him, and on other decks, frail passengers seem to mope around like zombies. They look like skeletons with large patches of hair missing. Some stifle coughs; others wipe blood from their noses.

Several are looking out a starboard window, admiring the view of space. A little kid is pointing out the window. His father barely has enough strength to lift him, but finally manages to hoist him up closer to the view in the window.

HOPE and her husband are at another window.

HOPE
I wonder how much longer it’s going to take?

DENVER
Not much longer I think, honey. We’re about to pass Gohlain.
Then it’s only a matter of a few hours. I can’t wait to see Gohlain can you?

HOPE (coughing)
Yeah, I really want to see it. I hear during this part of its
revolution it looks like a beautiful, cloudy sapphire.

Denver holds her closer and kisses her on the cheek.

CAPTAIN (intercom)
In about ten minutes we will be passing the jeweled planet, Gholain.
If you look out the starboard side you can already see the…

HOPE
Do…do you think they can really cure us there?

DENVER
We’re not going to Gholain, dear. From what I understand we wouldn’t even be allowed on their planet. Even though I think they caused this. We’re going to their only moon. And there is no cure for what we have; we will only be imprinted.

HOPE (somewhat despondent)
But will we still be alive? What I mean is will we still have a consciousness.
Will I even know I exist or who you are?

DENVER
Yes, of course. Otherwise there wouldn’t be a point. And there’s always the option of getting imprinted into a robot. They say the body looks exactly like your organic body. You can even get the program to erase the memory that you’re a robot. It’d be like we never knew we were dying of the isotope sickness. Like nothing ever happened. But I imagine if we ever rediscovered we were just thought patterns walking around in robot bodies…well…I’d hate to know what that would do to your psyche.

HOPE
Yeah, that’s why I want to be a song instead. I want to be a beautiful violin piece,
or maybe something classical like a John Lennon song.

DENVER (wiping blood from his nose)
Well, I’m sure all the Lennon songs have already been taken, honey. But I’ll tell you what, if this is the end of our normal life as we know it, I don’t want to be a pretty Lennon melody. I want to be some balls to the wall grunge or punk song. Maybe one by Pearl Jelly, when they were still good.

HOPE (coughing)
Pearl Jelly? They were good?

DENVER (smiling)
That’s why I love you, Hope. Despite our dying,
you still manage to keep a sense of humor.

CAPTAIN (intercom)
Here it is ladies and gentlemen. Take a long good look out the starboard.
The beautiful jeweled planet of Gholain! Wow, it’s beautiful! (gasping in the back ground).

CAPTAIN (whispering privately to copilot)
Oh my God, we’re doomed!
They’ve just launched twenty isotope missiles at us.
We only have a few minutes.

COPILOT
We do have a chance.
If we dump the cargo we can speed out of here.
Let’s not give up!

CAPTAIN
Roger that. Get a move on then!

COPILOT (VO)
I was afraid this might happen. You can change your name, but you can’t change your nature. What a screwed up planet.

Missiles encroach on the ship as we see cargo dropping from side and bottom panels.

FADE TO BLACK.