Assignment: Earth
By Benjamin Pearce
INT. MARTIANCITY, MARS- UNDERGROUND
It is night on mars, and the entire city is underground. The only thing lighting up the city are the lights, the ceiling in the sky is dirt. People are moving on the streets, they seem to not be walking at all. Glowing belts are on people’s waists. The sidewalk moves, instead of people having to walk on the sidewalks. A smooth black car hovers down into a pit and the ground closes around the pit.
CUT TO
INT. MPD (MARS POLICE DEPARTMENT) -UNDERGROUND
A man with a black leather coat on, and three stars around his chest, is walking down a long bright hallway, this man is JESSIE KELLER. His six men are walking behind him. They walk up to the end of the hallway, there is no door. JESSIE turns around and faces the other six.
JESSIE KELLER
Please turn around, men.
A soldier turns around and aims the gun at the other five men. His coat is still a cameo like the original uniforms were.
SOLDIER
You heard him, men, turn around and face the door!
JESSIE KELLER
Thank you, Mick.
JESSIE faces the end of the hall where the door should be, he presses a cinder block in and a keyboard pops out of the lower cinder block. JESSIE presses the numbers:88543221 and then he presses ENTER.
The Keyboard goes back into the wall by itself and then the wall rises up into the ceiling. JESSIE and the other six walk into the room.
INT. FREEZER- UNDERGROUND
JESSIE and the six soldiers are walking in a room with blue lights. He walks up to tank number 11234. On the tank, written on a computer screen, in green words reads the name “Desperado, James”.
SOLDIER #1
Excuse me, Mr. Keller?
JAMES KELLER
Just call me James, Kevin.
KEVIN
Sorry, James, who is this guy, James Desperado?
JAMES KELLER
His name is Desperado James, We don’t do that last name first crap. This man is the cause of the death of President Buford Hicks in 2081. He was ordered to assassinate the president by the government for a big loss of money. Unfortunately, the Vice President, Leroy Bishop became the president, and he sentenced him to be cryogenically frozen until needed in the future for rescue missions or to clean up the streets.
KEVIN
Sir, when was he cryogenically frozen? I mean, what year was he sentenced to sleep?
JAMES KELLER
He was sentenced to sleep in 2090. He has been sleeping for 600 years, exactly 600 years, today is his anniversary, that’s why we picked him.
JAMES KELLER presses the “UNLOCK” button on the wall beside DESPERADO. The ice in the container quickly begins to turn into liquid. The oxygen mask on DESPERADO starts to cause bubbles to rise to the surface of the Tank. The tank starts to empty into the floor. When the container empties, DESPERADO JAMES falls out of the tank and starts to breathe heavily. He is in a leather suit, which is soaked.
MICK
Desperado James, you have been awakened from a cryogenically frozen capsule, you may feel muscular pain, but that is normal for a man sleeping as long as you, do not get up, stay seated on the floor until medical help arrives, your vision may be blurry, but it is temporary, it may only last two to three minutes.
DESPERADO stands up. His legs are wobbly. He still has a bit of ice hanging from his long brown hair. His beard has ice sickles handing from them to. Mick and the other five soldiers step back as JESSIE KELLER steps forward.
DESPERADO
What do you want?
JESSIE
Welcome. It’s been a while. I’ve always wanted to meet you in person. Well, I do just about once a week, but I have always wanted to talk to the person who Killed the president.
DESPERADO
Where am I? What do you want?
JESSIE
You’re at the MPA in MartianCity, Mars.
DESPERADO
Um, Excuse me, where did you say I was.
JESSIE
I said, You are on Mars. Go ahead and look out that window.
DESPERADO walks over to the window with blue lasers going across them from the outside. He looks out the window and looks down and sees people with see through neck braces on their necks. He turns and faces KELLER.
DESPERADO
What year is this?
JESSIE walks up to DESPERADO. He pulls out a little square box with a red button in the middle. He presses the button and drops the box. A hologram screen comes up and has a huge timer on it, it says:
599 YEARS364 DAYS23 HOURS59 MINUTES 57 SECONDS
The screen fades away and JESSIE walks towards DESPERADO and faces him.
DESPERADO
Six hundered years? You mean I have been in that capsule for 600 years?
JESSIE
Not Yet.
The timer on DESPERADO’S tank clicks and a beeper goes off. DESPERADO turns around and sees that it says 600 YEARS.
JESSIE (Cont’)
Welcome to the year 2690. Rise and shine, sleepy head. When the medics come in, follow them and they’ll help you regenerate, to make your muscles work better.
DESPERADO grabs JESSIE’S neck and starts to choke him. The Soldiers aim their guns at him.
JESSIE
No! Don’t Shoot him, we need him!
DESPERADO lets go of JESSIE.
DESPERADO
You need me? You need me for what?
JESSIE
You need to go to Earth, and Save Some People.
DESPERADO
I Fell Asleep on Earth, what happened to Earth that we had to move up here?
JESSIE
Earth was getting to hostile, so we took people who weren’t hostile and brought them up here to start a new life.
DESPERADO
Oh, so you want me to go down there and risk my life to save some stupid people? What were they doing down there?
JESSIE
They were an observatory team. We sent them down to Earth to see how the Earth life was going, the only thing is, their ship was shot down somewhere in WashingtonD.C. Now we can non trace them. So we want you to go down there and find the survivors.
DESPERADO
What if there are no survivors?
JESSIE
There is at least one still alive down there.
DESPERADO
What makes you say that?
JESSIE
Jesus, James, we still have communication on Earth. People on Mars can talk to people on Earth. We got a message from a man named Victor Breen.
DESPERADO
Wait, So Earth is now a Maximum security Prison?
JESSIE
Sort of, Yeah, I guess you can say that.
DESPERADO
So, It’s Kind of like Escape from L. A. or Escape From New York, huh?
JESSIE
That’s actually what we had in mind.
DESPERADO
Ok, I’ll go.
FADE OUT
THE BEGINNING CREDITS ROLL ACROSS THE SCREEN
INT. WEIGHTROOM- UNDERGROUND
DESPERADO is doing sit ups. Guards are guarding the entrance to the weight room and there is a sign above the door it says “CLOSED”
CUT TO
He is now lifting a type of weight. These weights are just a little bar, like the weights should be on them, but there is nothing on the bar except a little screen in the middle that says:
RIGHT SIDE: 120LEFT SIDE: 120AMOUNT LIFTED: 83
CUT TO
Still in the weight room, he is standing on a treadmill like machine. A guard walks up to him.
GUARD
This is a simple machine, you may remember it from the past, a simple treadmill, just with a few modifications.
Suddenly, the man vanishes, and DESPERADO turns around and notices that he is in a jungle. The treadmill starts up and he is running. He looks down at the treadmill, it is now dirt. A branch sticks out of the trees, neck level. DESPERADO ducks as the branch passes him. He looks back up and sees that he is in a city.
DESPERADO
Hey! Turn this dang thing off! Do it now!
DESPERADO comes up to a car pile up. He can not stop running, so he jumps over the cars. He looks up in the windows of the buildings, and people are shooting at him. DESPERADO looks up in the sky, then a voice comes on, it sounds like a woman’s voice.
VOICE
These bullets are not real bullets, but they will sting you if you get hit. They are rubber balls carved to look like a bullet.
They shoot at DESPERADO. He jumps out of the way and he falls off the treadmill. The screen goes away and he is in the gym again. He stands up and looks at JESSIE KELLER who is standing in front of him.
DESPERADO
Don’t Ever put me on that again, jerk.
JESSIE
But Desperado, what if you were suddenly in a war zone down in Washington D.C and had to get out of there?
DESPERADO
Well than I’m out of luck if I don’t have a gun.
JESSIE
What? Did you think We’d send you down to Earth without a gun? Ha! Speaking of guns, come on sport, we’ve got target practice.
INT. GUNROOM- MPD
JESSIE
Well, here is a gun, simple 21st century material for you. You are probably used to it. Remember those guns, Desperado?
DESPERADO
I remember everything, quit treating me like a brain damaged schizophrenic patient, alright, Keller?
JESSIE
Sorry, James. Pick up your weapon and begin.
DESPERADO picks up a gun. He aims it at the belly of a virtual man running toward him. He shoots and a blue laser comes shooting out. The man gets a hole burnt into him and he falls over and dies. Then sixteen more come running out at him.
DESPERADO
What kind of gun is this, Keller?
JESSIE
Oh yeah, I forgot, you were sentenced in 2090, these guns were made in 2093. A simple laser gun. The best part is, there is no reloading. After seventy two hours you will need to plug it in, though.
DESPERADO
Will I get one of these when I go down?
JESSIE
Yeah, sure, if you want one.
DESPERADO
Yes I do.
He shoots all six of them in the head and their head blows apart and they fall down.
INT. SHUTTLE ROOM, SURFACE OF MARS- NIGHT
JESSIE, DESPERADO, and six soldiers are walking on the surface of Mars. DESPERADO now has a leather jacket with all of his guns strapped behind him. He has some guns in his coat and the bullets are in pockets in the front of his coat. DESPERADO’S beard has been shaved and his hair has been cut to about three inches below his eyebrows.
DESPERADO
What are these neck things for?
JESSIE
They let you breathe; there is no oxygen on Mars.
DESPERADO
I guess there’s no heat either, huh?
JESSIE
This time of the year, it is negative two hundred and twenty degrees Fahrenheit. That neck brace you have on raises your body temperature two hundred and seventy three degrees. So be thankful you feel a little chill than instant death.
DEAPERADO
That’s a nice science report, but where is this shuttle; I want to meet this Victor guy and why am I wearing a bulletproof vest if everyone uses lasers to kill?
JESSIE
Calm down, hot shot, you’ll be able to go. It’ll take you about six minutes to get from Mars to Earth with this new technology that just came out, it can travel about as fast as the speed of light. The sunlight on the horizon is fifteen minutes late. The sun on Earth is about eight minutes late, and Mars is closer to earth than the Sun is to Earth, so about six minutes It’ll take you to get there. And that’s the style on earth, everyone wears bulletproof jackets.
They walk up to a dome, it has a rocket in it.
DESPERADO
I remember how to drive these things.
JESSIE
I’m sure you do, James. We saved one, the only thing we did to it was make it fast. Just get in and set the coordinates to 67:43 and you’ll be on Earth In six minutes.
DESPERADO
When I get there, I’ll call you.
JESSIE
Don’t worry, We’ll have contact with you twenty four seven. While everyone was cryogenically frozen, we put little microchips in their hearing aids so we have contact with them, all you need to do is pop your ear and we have connection to you.
DESPERADO
Sounds cheesy and retarted, when I come back, get this thing out of my neck, alright. Now what’s my time limit?
JESSIE
No time Limit, just come back with Victor and work with the MPD.
DESPERADO
How About I send Victor back to Mars and you let me stay on Earth with the boys, start my own gang, and you can open someone else’s capsule and send them to do missions.
JESSIE pulls out a gun and aims it at DESPERADO’S head.
JESSIE
If we can not trust you, you have two options. One: you can go back to sleep for the rest of your long life. Or two: get shot in the freaking head right here and now.
DESPERADO
Fine, I’ll go.
INT. INSIDE ROCKET- NIGHT
He gets into the rocket shuttle and closes the door. He presses the on button and a gridline comes up on the screen. He opens the hatch and faces JESSIE.
DESPERADO
What were the coordinates?
JESSIE
They say the memory is the first to go. Ok, old man, the coordinates are 67:43. Now get to Earth and save Victor, he’s the best man we have and we sent him down with no weapons.
DESPERADO closes the hatch and types in 67:43. The rocket turns due south and it starts to vibrate. Then it takes off at the speed of light.
INT. SPACE- NIGHT
He is in space, stars are passing him by the millisecond. He looks around, but he can barely lift his head. He turns and sees that earth is getting closer. The shuttle hits the Earth’s atmosphere. He is heading to the East coast of America. A meteor hits his ship, making him spin.
INT. EARTH- NIGHT
DESPERADO spins out of control . He is trying to buckle up, but the shuttle keeps spinning and flipping him.
JESSIE (V.O)
Desperado? Can you hear me?
DESPERADO
Yeah! I lost control! Hold on a minute!
He grabs a hold of the wheel and takes it straight. He is about 500 feet from the desert floor. He smashes right into the sand, causing a dust storm.
INT. DESERT- NIGHT
He gets out of the shuttle. He pops his ear and looks around.
DESPERADO
Jessie, I made it. Six hundred years and Washington is a desert?
JESSIE (V.O)
Our transmitter says that you are in Huston, Texas. What the heck happened, Desperado.
DESPERADO
I wanted to see the Alamo, what do you think? What else would put me off target? I hit a dang meteor.
JESSIE (V.O)
No Time for jokes, James.
DESPERADO
I thought you said I had all the time I wanted?
JESSIE(V.O)
Yeah, well a change of plans, it seems Victor has been captured by a deadly street gang in Washington. When you get to Washington, look for the deadly street gang, White Noise.
DESPERADO
Ok, Jessie, I’ve got to go.
JESSIE (V.O)
Why?
DESPERADO
Because I hear company.
DESPERADO ducks behind a huge tumbleweed. A car drives by. DESPERADO stands up and starts to walk.
INT. BOWIE, TEXAS- DAWN
DESPERADO stops in his tracks, no one is around. He pops his ear to talk to JESSIE. But a blue ray gets shot right beside him. He turns around and sees six men in a black flying car. They shoot at him again. He jumps out of the way. The laser leaves a hole in the ground about the size of a blue whale. He takes the shotgun off his back and aims at them. He pulls the trigger, but it misses the car and goes off into the distance.
The bad guys shoot at him again. He jumps again as sand and rocks go across the floor. DESPERADO stands up and aims the shotgun at them again. He shoots the car. The Car falls down and explodes.
DESPERADO
Jessie, I just got into a fight with some people in a flying car. When were flying cars invented?
JESSIE (V.O)
Way after your time, old timer. Now, where are you?
DESPERADO
You know where I am, You can track me down.
JESSIE (V.O)
Our computer is down, where are you.
DESPERADO
I passed a sign about three hours back that said “Welcome to BOWIE”
JESSIE (V.O)
Come on, Desperado. If you find a car that’s shaped like a pen and is about twenty three feet long, get in it. It’s a sound car. It travels at the speed of sound. Get in it and set the coordinates for 67:43 and take off.
DESPERADO
I’m going to ask some questions, first. Don’t go anywhere, Jessie.
JESSIE
Very funny, James.
INT. CRASH SITE- DAWN
He walks up to the crashed car. He sees that body parts are lying everywhere around the crater the car made. Suddenly, a man crawls up out of the hole and grabs DESPERADO’S leg. He kicks the burnt man back into the crater. Another man tries to crawl up out of the hole also, but DESPERADO shoots at the man, blowing his arm off.
MAN
Wait!!! Please do not shoot! Don’t shoot us!
DESPERADO reaches in and grabs the man with one arm and pulls him up. He throws him into the sand. Sand is getting into his amputated stump. The man with one arm screams. DESPERADO pills out a little metal rod that looks like a peg off a 20th century bike. He presses a button and a laser shoots up out of it and takes the shape of a knife. DESPERADO looks at it, then he steps on the amputee and shoves the knife down into his throat, decapitating him.