Once Upon a Time in Great Britain: Part 8

EXT. MCD’S- DAY- NO SOUND

People are walking into the restaurant. Behind the window teenagers eat.

FLASH- a BLINDING WHITE LIGHT appears inside, then smoke fills the room behind the glass. After a beat, teenage sized hands start to slap the glass, leaving bloody hand prints. The slapping gets harder, then-

INT. CAR- DAY

Tom jolts. He’s been dreaming, but now he’s awake: back in his original and very real nightmare.

CALLUM

Almost there lad.

Callum has driven to some random suburb of Manchester. People aren’t afraid to shop here. In fact, many of them won’t have heard the news of the bombing yet.

TOM

Where are we?

CALLUM

Close to a makeshift censor’s office. They’re working overtime, editing er, propaganda and stuff. Devant just wants me to stop them. They’re… affiliated with the British Film Censors. All you have to do-

Callum is speeding up erratically, through the busy streets, turning corners in third gear.

CALLUM (Contd.)

Is make sure I can get back to this car. Then we can go home together.

Tom’s mind is totally thrown off course. What? Did he mean for that to sound so gay?

CALLUM

I’d load that gun now, if I were you.

Callum checks Tom’s seatbelt is plugged in, then checks his own.

TOM

Wait-

SCREECH.

Callum slams the brakes on, breathing heavy. He’s nervous about something. Tom is looking at him, but Callum avoids eye contact more than ever. He takes the woman’s stocking out of his pocket and puts it over his forehead.

Callum gets out of the car, quickly. Tom follows him.

INT SENSOR'S OFFICE-DAY

A sign above the building says ADELPHI VIDEO PRODUCTION SERVICES.

As Callum yanks the door open, the very good-looking receptionist looks up nervously.

RECEPTIONIST

Hi, I can I help-

Callum pulls out a Beretta and SHOOTS HER once in the head. Her head flies back. There’s blood all over the company poster/ mission statement. He sees is reflection in the glass covering the statement, and remembers to pull the stocking down over his face.

As soon as he kills her, Tom realises he’s in more shit.

TOM

Oh, fuck off…

FLASH FRAME FLASHBACK

“STEVIE WONDER” firing at the watermelon.

INT. SENSOR'S OFFICE

The hum of talking from the room behind reception goes quiet, like the sound was cut off. Callum walks through a door inside what looks like an office: people with computers with large screens editing news videos. He starts to kill indiscriminately. SCREAMS ring out.

Tom has his back to the door and is looking toward the exit. With the first few bangs, his shoulders jump and twitch. Then, after a few seconds, he almost relaxes. He’s becoming numb to the violence. He starts to turn around, and look at what is happening.

It’s as bad as Tom could imagine. There’s blood all over the walls, over computers showing editing packages, and news features, blood on the floor and bodies lying everywhere, mostly face down.

The fire exit door is open- somebody got out alive. Chairs have been overturned, personal belongings scattered everywhere.

Callum is reaching for something under a table. He pulls out a screaming woman by her hair and shoots her in the head at point blank range. Callum is covered in blood and he’s crying, his tear stains marking the stocking. He senses Tom and points the gun at him.

Tom freezes.

Callum drops his hand and nods him outside.

Sirens can be heard already. Tom walks to the door- there’s no police in sight yet. Tom and Callum get to the car, then vehicles pour in from every side street. Security services back up the police, and they take formation clumsily. The Police haven’t had time to practice this with support.

Tom ducks below the car window, looking for his gun. This is going from bad to worse.

CALLUM

They don’t want to arrest you, Tom.

FLASH FRAMES

TOM handing the package to the GUM clinic manager…

To the McD’s Manager…

To the Job Centre manager…

Faster flash frames of explosions at all three places-

Tom whips around, rests his arm n the roof of the car and FIRES at the oncoming vehicles.

The first few hit the road- he’s never fired a gun before. He readjusts. The police convoy is spattered with Tom’s bullets as police bullets scream past him closely. It looks like news footage from Iraq- there’s smoke in the air. The sporadic cracks of gunfire overlap each other.

FLASH FRAME- FLASHBACK

The snowball fight at uni.

BACK TO PRESENT DAY

CALLUM (off)

You’re gonna have to get in the back, pal.

Tom is hit in the chest. He coughs hard. He’s hurt.

CALLUM

Shit…

Callum drags Tom into the car- again, showing amazing strength. They drive off, out of sight.

Callum starts the engine and puts his foot down. He strategically switches the gun to his left hand (the hand he’s steering with). He turns to face backward in the seat, holding the wheel with only his right hand. He points the gun at the rear windscreen. It all looks strangely rehearsed. Tom panics; curls into a ball.

Callum FIRES, SHATTERING the back windscreen. Tom GROWLS in pain as he’s covered in glass. Callum checks from one direction to the other- out the back where he’s firing, and in front, where he’s steering. Security are still firing off shots at them, there are sirens sounding behind the cars that have already arrived, and we hear the engine of Callum’s car accelerating.

TOM (hands over ears)

Just fucking move!

CALLUM (Shouting)

Put the sticks in the milk bottles.

TOM

What?

CALLUM

Put the fucking sticks in the milk bottles!

Tom does the first bottle, wincing in pain.

CALLUM

Light it!

Tom finds the lighter. Fumbling, he ignites the stick, which burns like a sparkler.

CALLUM

Throw it out of the back window-

TOM (cutting him off)

I fucking know what to do!

Tom launches the bottle out of the shattered back window, over his head. The car lights up from the fire on the road behind them. Tom can see parts of the road in the rear view mirror.

Callum swerves down a side street. One car is still tailing them, spraying bullets.

Tom lights another bottle and, taking a deep breath, throws it out behind him. The flames illuminate the scene again before the car swerves, leaving the other vehicles behind in the maze of narrow suburban streets.

CUT TO:

INT. CAR- LATER

The gunfire has stopped. All that can be heard is the low hum of the engine. There’s no police or security chasing them: Callum has evaded them all. He’s cruising down the motorway at a steady one hundred miles an hour. Tom is still sat in the back. Neither speaks. Tom eyes Callum in the rear-view mirror.

LATER-BLACK

Fumbling sounds.

FADE UP

Tom is asleep. Callum has pulled over and got in the back. He has unbuttoned Tom’s shirt and is examining the bulletproof T-shirt. He lifts it to look at where the bullet landed. There is a fair sized bruise on the chest plate. It takes a second for Tom to realise what is happening. When he does, he pushes Callum away from him and kicks out with his legs.

TOM

What the fuck are you doing?!

CALLUM

No- I just wanted-

Tom grabs his chest in pain.

CUT.