Once Upon a Time in Great Britain: Part 5

EXT. BUSY MANCHESTER STREET-MORNING

A small Chinese lady- YANYAN- discreetly approaches passing shoppers, flashing the contents of a small satchel. She constantly looks around warily, as if she shouldn’t be there. Tom approaches.

DAVE (V/O)

She’s in the same spot, seven days a week, come rain or shine. She’ll approach anyone, and she’ll sell and sell and sell. But as soon as any police show up…

Two PCSOs stroll down the street. They’ve not noticed her, but she’s noticed them. She backs away discreetly down a side street.

DAVE (V/O)

She’s gone.

She walks over to Tom.

DAVE (V/O)

She’s part of the team, but she’s your responsibility.

TOM

Okay…?

DAVE

Seriously. Anything goes wrong with her- sorry to say it but it’s your neck on the line.

Tom’s shattered, stood in the middle of the street- right outside the Job Centre, where we previously saw him enter. Tom blows his nose. His eyes are reddened from hay fever. He looks around slowly as the shoppers rush by.

She opens the satchel in front of Tom- DVD DISCS, all compact in plastic sleeves.

YANYAN

Want films? Got action, comedy, sci-fi…

She flips through a CD wallet with twenty discs inside, each covered with a badly printed image. They’re obviously pirate copies. She flips to the back of the stack.

YANYAN

Got porn…

Tom cuts her off.

TOM (a lot louder than her)

Are you Yanyan?

She freezes, and can’t take her eyes off the floor.

TOM

Yeah, I thought so. My name’s Tom. I’m gonna be helping you out from now on. You have any problems, you call me on this, okay?

Tom hands out his business card for the first time. Tom’s proud smile slips when Yanyan hands back her card- it's the same design. It’s just a card.

TOM

I’ve got something for you here.

Out of his briefcase Tom pulls another CD case like Yanyan’s, and hands it to her.

TOM

Dave said you’ve got something for me?

Yanyan looks nervously at him.

TOM

Well, come on. I can’t go back empty handed, can I?

TOM (V/O)

Where the fuck is this coming from?

YANYAN

Cross road.

Tom looks around for any reason why he should.

TOM

Why?

YANYAN

No, really. Cross road.

They cross.

TOM

Hey Yanyan. You know a guy called Devant?

YANYAN

Can't talk about that.

TOM

Come on, I'm trying to figure this out. We're on the same team. (More serious) What is this, Yanyan? Dave and Tony won't tell me anything. I'll help you if you help me.

YANYAN

You can't help me.

TOM

Okay. Business time.

Yanyan pulls a wad of tenners out of her pocket. Tom holds his hand out and grips them, but Yanyan won’t let go. Instead she looks up at Tom, then over her shoulder. Then she quickly leans forward and tries to bite Tom’s hand, still holding on to the money.

TOM

Argh! What the fuck?!

Tom checks over his shoulder. People are too busy rushing from shop to shop in droves to pay any attention. He gives Yanyan a slap and she lets go of him. Tom checks his hand.

TOM (quiet)

Crazy bitch.

Tom feels a sneeze coming on…

Sneeze.

BOOM.

A fraction of a second after he sneezes, the Job Centre over the road explodes.

The people closest to the blast are engulfed in fire. Most die quickly, but one CASH GUARD walking towards the bank next door is blown back by a section of door frame, his head protected by the helmet. He lands on a passing car in the street, still alive. The blast pushed him away from the building, but the front half of his body is scorched, clothing torn away. He might live to tell the tale.

CU- TOM

FLASH FRAME- ROYAL APARTMENTS

Tom has been thrown to the floor and has landed on Yanyan, who’s jabbering away in Mandarin trying to get him off her. He’s completely dazed. As the smoke clears and the screaming starts, he tries to stand up.

The Job Centre building is on fire and the area around it ruined. The pipes underneath it are split and human waste is spewing forth through the remains of the building and into the street.

Oversized rats, grown obese on the city's waste, scuttle out into the street over the bodies, eating them. Some rodents are the size of small cats.

Tom ditches Yanyan and struggles to his feet, tripping over a dismembered foot. He looks around- within seconds a crowd has gathered watching in horrified fascination. They are watching him- a survivor. He walks off down a side street.

Tom runs. He passes the 'Your-self” self-storage centre he’d dropped a package off at. A car has been thrown onto the entrance section of the building. The framework of the car has been ripped outwards and sections of it act like claws, hanging onto the window frames of the building. It burns, spreading into the entrance.

Tom runs down a back street. He can see the Royal Apartments. He’s almost home.

A BLACK VAN screeches to a halt in front of him. Two balaclava- wearing men, dressed in black, swing the doors open. They dive at him from either side and pin his arms to his body.

TOM

Get the fuck off me! I haven’t done anything!

They throw him in the van and jump in after him. One checks the street as he shuts the door from inside.