Armitage III Fan Fiction ❯ Bart-itage III ❯ Bartitage III ( Chapter 1 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

FADE IN: WIDE VIEW: CITY, NIGHT.
^The city looks like Springfield, only way high-tech. ^
ROAD.
^The focus is on two motorcycle wheels as it speeds. The camera pans up to show an eighteen year-old leather-clad Bart as the driver.'
CLOSE-UP: BART.
^A speeding car is reflected in his sunglasses. '
BART: That's the one.
CAR, BART'S POV.
WIDE SHOT: ROAD.
^The motorcycle speeds closer to the car. '
CAR WINDOW.
BART: NSFPD, you're under arrest.
^The car window rolls down. '
DRIVER: Yeah, right.
^The car revs off. '
BART (COCKY TONE): Oh, you think?
OVERHEAD VIEW: ROAD.
^Bart's motorcycle chases the car around the streets. '
EXT. POLICE STATION, DRIVER'S POV.
DRIVER: Oh, no.
EXT. POLICE STATION.
^The driver's car crashes into a lamppost. The motorcycle slows down. '
BART: You should've learned, man. (HOPS OFF BIKE)
^Chief Wiggum steps out of the station. '
WIGGUM: What the...?
BART (STRUTS INTO STATION): All in a night's work, Chief, and don't make me pay for that lamppost.
^A title reading "Bart-itage III" (in the style of the Armitage III logo) appears, then vanishes. '
INT. NEW SPRINGFIELD AIRPORT, NEXT AFTERNOON.
^Through one of the doors steps an eighteen year-old Asian girl, carrying two suitcases. Eddie and Bart walk up to her. '
EDDIE: Are you Usagi Kaguya?
USAGI: The new policewoman? I guess so.
EDDIE (SHAKES HER HAND): Sergeant Eddie Fischer, New Springfield Police Department. (MOTIONS TO BART) This is Bart Simpson. He'll be working with you.
USAGI (SHAKES BART'S HAND): Well, hello there.
^Bart tips down his sunglasses enough so his eyes show. '
BART: One little suggestion. No making passes; I'm an independent guy.
USAGI: Uh...okay.
INT. AIRPORT HALLWAY.
^The three are walking along. '
EDDIE: It's good that we got to you, Miss Kaguya. This new threat to Springfield really has us baffled.
CLOSE-UP: BART.
USAGI (OS): What was it again?
EDDIE (OS): Messages all over the place that say things like "Death to the Thirds."
^Bart shudders. '
PREVIOUS CUT.
EDDIE (CONT.): We heard you had a lot of experience with "Thirds" back in LA., so you were hired.
USAGI: Thirds are those robots that look like humans, not like the Seconds that work in factories. Bloodthirsty bastards.
BART (FALTERS): How do you know?
^The three stop walking. Usagi kneads the bridge of her nose. '
USAGI: When I worked in LA., a Third killed my partner on duty. Couple years before, they got to my father.
BART: I'm sure not all the Thirds are bad.
EDDIE: Have you ever seen one?
BART: Well...(LOOKS AWAY)...no.
USAGI (POINTS): Hey, you see that guy?
MAN, USAGI'S POV.
^A tall black-haired man is carrying a large suitcase on a roller. '
CLOSE-UP: SUITCASE.
^There is a red stain on the suitcase. '
GROUP.
EDDIE: That's not good.
^Bart pulls a gun from his pocket and sprints off. '
CLOSE-UP: MAN.
MAN (TO HIMSELF): A few more meters and I'll be out of here-
SOUND: RUNNING FOOTSTEPS.
MAN: Oh no. (TURNS HEAD)
MAN'S POV.
BART (AIMING GUN): Freeze! Springfield Police Department!
PREVIOUS CUT.
^The man pulls a gun from his shirt pocket, fires, and runs off, forgetting the suitcase. '
BART.
^Bart, who dodged the bullet, runs after the man, but bumps into the suitcase. '
SLOW MOTION.
^Bart and the suitcase fall on the floor, and the lid on the suitcase flips open, revealing an arm. Bart stands up in shock. '
REGULAR MOTION.
WOMAN (OS): Someone's killed Lurleen Lumpkin!
^Usagi runs over to the suitcase. '
USAGI: The country singer?
INT. SUITCASE, USAGI'S POV.
^The tightly packed body of Lurleen lies in the suitcase with red stains all over. '
CROWD.
^A little girl clings to her mother and whimpers. '
ANGLE SHOT: BART.
^Keeping his eyes on the suitcase, he slowly backs away. '
EXT. POLICE STATION.
INT. CHIEF'S OFFICE.
^Wiggum is talking with Eddie, Usagi, and a male morgue worker. '
WIGGUM (TO MORGUE WORKER): The autopsy showed what?!
WORKER: There was an intricate system of wire and metal along with organs. It was like...someone put human skin over a robot.
WIGGUM: How can that be?
USAGI: Hey Chief...you know those messages that been showing up everywhere?
WIGGUM: Yeah?
EDDIE: She means someone's already been killing these "Thirds." Possibly the man with the suitcase got to Lumpkin.
WIGGUM: You mean there really are Thirds? Good Lord! (LOOKS AROUND ROOM) Waitaminut, where's Simpson?
OUTSIDE OFFICE.
^Usagi steps outside the office to see Bart shivering by the door. '
USAGI: She was a Third.
BART (FAINT, NOT MAKING EYE CONTACT): I told you they weren't all killers.
USAGI: But that man is. And Wiggum assigned us to the case.
^Bart mouths "Oh man." ^
INT. BEDROOM, NIGHT.
^Usagi is sleeping. '
DREAM SEQUENCE: FIELD.
^She is crouching next to a man lying injured on the ground. '
USAGI: Father?...Father, wake up!
^A voice crazily laughs, and Usagi turns her head. '
USAGI'S POV.
^A black female holds a gun which has just been fired. '
PREVIOUS CUT.
^Usagi pulls a gun from her father's pocket and fires it. '
CLOSE-UP: WOMAN'S ARM.
^In slow motion, the bullet slices her arm, but no blood flows. A patch of metal is revealed. '
INT. BEDROOM.
^Usagi awakes in a cold sweat. '
USAGI: Father!...
INT. POLICE CAR, AFTERNOON.
^Usagi drives the car while Bart has his feet up on the dashboard, sipping a soda. '
USAGI: (ONE EYE ON HIM) I'm surprised you've stayed on the force. You don't seem to do anything.
BART (REMOVES SUNGLASSES): Weren't for me a couple years back, the Heavenly Hills Mall would be a pile of ashes.
USAGI: Yeah, I think I remember reading about that...But I mean you aren't doing anything about these Thirds.
BART: You were scared as I was when you saw the body. Admit it!
^Usagi just grunts. '
INT. STUDY.
^The camera's first on a bookshelf. It pans to the right to show Robert Terwilliger sitting at a desk dictating to a tape recorder. '
ROBERT: "...She glanced out over the river, mind reeling from shock at what had happened to her. This close experience with the mist of death..." (CLOSES EYES) "A phantom. If only that was something to so easily put behind her, but-."
^A door creaks open and Robert turns. '
ROBERT: Who's there?
INT. POLICE CAR.
^Gunshots are heard OS. ^
USAGI: What was that?
BART (SITS UP STRAIGHT): They came from that house on Fifth and Main! The writer's!
USAGI: How did you...never mind.
ROAD.
^The car speeds toward Fifth and Main. '
EXT. FIFTH AND MAIN HOUSE.
^The black-haired man sprints out. '
PREVIOUS CUT.
^A door opens and Bart leaps out. '
BART: You go into the house. I'm going after him!
USAGI: Bart, wait!
BRIDGE.
^The man sprints across the bridge, Bart following. '
ALLEY.
^The man finds himself stuck in a dead end. Bart enters and pins the man to the wall. '
BART: This time you're not getting away with it, man!
MAN: You think so, too?
^The man pulls out a knife and slashes Bart's arm. Bart grabs the wounded limb but still holds onto the man. '
BART (SHAKING MAN): What is it with you; killing off people just because they're different! Taking innocent lives like ours? (TOSSES MAN TO GROUND) You make me sick.
^Bart kneels to the ground clutching to his arm while the man runs off. '
INT. STUDY.
^Robert lies dead against the study wall, a bullet hole in his temple and a pentagram crudely drawn on his forehead. '
USAGI (OS): Oh, God, this is just sick.
^Her gloved hands examine around the head when she reaches the bullet hole. '
USAGI (OS): What the-?
^A bit of wire is pulled out from the hole. '
PREVIOUS CUT.
^Bart is still kneeling in the alley when Usagi runs in. '
USAGI: Where is he?
BART (PAINED): Ran off. I couldn't hold him long enough.
USAGI (KNEELS): I called the other cars over to Fifth and Main. Guess what. That writer was a Third, too.
BART: We'll be dealing with a serial killer if we don't get this man.
USAGI: (NOTICES BART'S ARM) You're hurt.
BART: (AS THEY STAND UP) It's just a scratch. I can take care of it later.
USAGI: Let me see. (REACHES FOR HIS ARM)
BART (PULLS AWAY): No.
USAGI (STERN): Bart, let me see.
CLOSE-UP: BART'S ARM.
^Bart lifts his hand to reveal his cut. A patch of metal is shown. '
USAGI'S FACE.
^Utterly shocked. '
BART'S FACE.
^Pitiful. '
WIDE SHOT: BRIDGE.
^The two are looking over the rail. '
USAGI: How long have you known you were this way?
TWO SHOT.
BART: Since I was a kid when I wondered why I never bled. My parents were both Thirds, and my sisters. I joined the police when I was fourteen, and that was the last time I saw I my family.
USAGI: Does anybody else know- about who you really are?
BART: Only the other Thirds in this city and you. (SHIFTS EYES) And I know how much you hate us.
USAGI (ON THE DEFENSIVE): I didn't know when I met you. It's not like you can tell by looking.
BART: Why is this man killing us all of a sudden? I mean- God; I mean I can talk, and move, and think, and feel- (TURNS TO USAGI IN TEARS) But I'm only a monstrous doll! If humans don't want me, why'd they create me?! (RUNS OFF)
USAGI (REACHING OUT): Wait!
DOWNTOWN, LATER.
^Usagi solemnly walks down the streets. She looks up to the left. '
SCREEN, USAGI'S POV.
^The screen plays an ad for Heavenly Hills Mall until the image fuzzes and the black-haired man comes on. Usagi gasps. '
MAN: Good afternoon, residents of New Springfield. The name is Rene D'anclaude.
PREVIOUS CUT.
^Other people are also watching the screen. '
RENE (OS): Some of you already know me as the Third killer. Did you know these human-like robots are all around us- maybe even next to you?
SCREEN.
^The screen flashes a picture of Robert. '
RENE (VO): My latest victim was one of these creatures. Robert Terwilliger, the aristocratic writer who became wealthy after prison release, and you didn't know he wasn't one of you! Good thing I got rid of him when I did.
^The screen flashes a picture of Lurleen. '
CLOSE-UP: USAGI.
RENE (OS VO): And how about Lurleen Lumpkin? She was a Third too. Not your favorite singer anymore, is she?
USAGI: Oh, God...(RUNS OFF)
ROAD.
^Usagi is sprinting like a bat out of Hell. '
RENE (OS VO): Death to the Thirds!
INT. POLICE STATION.
^Wiggum and Eddie are talking when Usagi runs in, breathless. '
USAGI: (PANTING) Chief...the man...Rene D'anclaude...
WIGGUM: Tell us about it. We just got this tape. (HOLDS UP VIDEOTAPE)
CLOSE-UP: VIDEO.
^"Videolog" is on the label. '
WIGGUM (VO): D'anclaude's been keeping track of all his victims. Watch this.
PREVIOUS CUT.
^Wiggum puts the tape in a VCR. '
SCREEN.
^The image on-screen is Lurleen backed against a wall. '
LURLEEN: Stay away from me...stay away...
CLOSE-UP: USAGI.
^Gunshots sound and Lurleen screams in agony. Usagi's face twists in pain. '
USAGI: (FAINT WHISPER) Bart...
SIDEWALK.
^Bart is sitting forlornly on the sidewalk, picking at the gravel. A shadow looms over him and he looks up shocked. '
VOICE (FEMININE): Are you Bart Simpson from the police department?
BART: Why?
SHADOW, BART'S POV.
^As the shadow sticks out her hand, the light reveals her to be the blond pony-tailed girl from Bart's classes, only older. '
GIRL: Come with me, Bart.
INT. BUILDING.
^Bart and the girl are walking along a hallway. '
BART: I never knew you were a Third.
GIRL: I prefer keeping to myself. (LAUGHS) But seriously, I found you to help you.
BART: How did you-?
GIRL (TAPS HER FOREHEAD): Our brains have the best mental abilities around. That's how you were able to figure out where D'anclaude killed the writer.
BART: I wondered about that.
GIRL (PATS THE WALL): This building here is one of the top scientific centers in the city. We'll be able to find more about the Thirds and why D'anclaude's after all of us.
BART (SIGHS): Why were we even made anyway?
GIRL: Well...
INT. POLICE STATION.
^The dead robotic body of Dr. Hibbert lies on a table. '
WIGGUM: Poor Hibbert. Everyone in New Springfield trusted him with their families.
USAGI: I guess this is D'anclaude's latest, right?
WIGGUM (SHRUGS): Far as we know. And something else- (TURNS TO USAGI) - we concluded these are legit murders.
USAGI: Say what?
WIGGUM (CALLING): Mrs. Hibbert, could you come in here?
^Mrs. Hibbert enters, hands on her pregnant stomach. '
CLOSE-UP: USAGI.
^Her mouth and eyes are wide open. '
TWO-SHOT: BART AND GIRL.
BART (EYES SHIMMERING): I- I knew I could feel emotions and that...but being capable of fathering children...it's just-
GIRL: How else could your parents have you?
BART (CLOSES EYES): Guess it makes sense.
GIRL: My father told me Thirds are here to repopulate New Springfield after that nuclear blast, but even he wasn't sure.
VOICE: Halt!
^The two look down the hall shocked. '
HALL, BART AND GIRL'S POV.
^Standing in the hall is a Second that looks like Bender. '
ROBOT (HOLDS OUT ARM): How did you get past the main door?
^Bart karate-kicks the robot unconscious. '
PREVIOUS CUT.
GIRL (AS THE ROBOT FALLS): What do you know- the ultimate machine that can kick ass and raise children.
BART: Hey, they've made all you girls too.
GIRL (SHRUGS AND WALKS DOWN HALL): Yeah, but I can't get anyone pregnant.
BART: Hmph. (FOLLOWS GIRL)
OVERHEAD SHOT: EXT. CITY HALL.
^A riot is in swing on the main steps. '
CLOSE-UP: RIOT.
^People are waving signs and shouting things like "Get rid of the robots!" and "Give us back our jobs!" Effigies of Seconds and the murdered Thirds are being burned. '
ROOFTOP.
^The girl is attaching wired clips to her arms and legs while Bart watches. '
BART: What's this supposed to do?
GIRL (TAPS COMPUTER WIRES ARE ATTACHED TO): With luck, get connections to other Thirds- if they're still alive.
^The riot is faintly heard in the background. '
BART: Man, you better get a connection fast!
^The girl flips a switch on the computer. Blue electricity glows. '
GIRL (FAINT): Come on, come on...(CLUTCHES HEAD) And then what?...No, don't fade now!
CLOSE-UP: BART.
^He's getting pretty worried. '
BART: Who are you talking with?
PREVIOUS CUT.
GIRL: I...I...
^She collapses to the ground and Bart quickly kneels down. '
BART (SHAKING GIRL): What is it? God dammit, who were you talking to?!
^A hologram is projected from the computer- one of Rene D'anclaude. Bart stands up in shock. '
BART: What the...?
INT. MAYOR'S OFFICE.
^Mayor Quimby is talking with the mayor of Shelbyville. Two security guards stand at the door. '
SHELBYVILLE MAYOR: Quimby, these political riffs can't go on like this. And with all the Thirds running about, we're in serious danger.
QUIMBY: And what exactly are you suggesting?
SHELBYVILLE MAYOR: If Shelbyville and New Springfield combine together, we can help you get back on your feet and get rid of the robots. One city, one peace bond.
^Quimby turns his head to the door. The riot can still be heard outside. '
QUIMBY: We have no other choice.
ROOFTOP.
^Bart is still looking in shock at the D'anclaude hologram. '
BART: What are you doing here?
RENE: Wouldn't you like to know, Bart Simpson?
BART (FLICKS HAND): Waitaminut, holograms don't talk.
RENE: If I can't talk, then I can't do this either?
^D'anclaude reaches for the wires and tugs them off, causing a burst in the girl's eyes. The hologram disappears. '
BART (KNEELS TO GIRL): Are you okay?
^The girl's mouth opens slightly. There is a spark. '
GIRL (FAINT): D'anclaude actually invented the Thirds to obey...his commands to take over New Springfield. But they had a mind of their own, so that's why he's...Twenty miles from here...is a lab...where the Seconds and Thirds are made. You have to get there...(SOFT GASP) So long, Bart.
^Her eyes close and she limps to the ground. '
BART: Goodbye. (SOFTLY CRIES)
EXT. CITY HALL.
^Mayor Quimby and the Shelbyville mayor step out the door to meet the angry mob. '
QUIMBY: People of New Springfield, we have come up with a solution to stop these robots. But we need your co-operation.
STREET.
^Bart blindly runs down the street in tears. '
BART: I gotta find someone...Usagi, Wiggum, another Third, anybody!
^He halts and looks up at a screen. '
SCREEN, BART'S POV.
^Though the view is fuzzy through Bart's tears, we can see Brockman reporting outside City Hall. '
BROCKMAN: This is Kent Brockman reporting live from City Hall, where Mayor Quimby and Shelbyville's Mayor Thompson have signed a new deal.
^The screen flashes an image of Quimby and Thompson. The view clears slightly. '
QUIMBY: With New Springfield and Shelbyville combining, our economy will be more stable than ever. And there will be no more robots!
^The crowd cheers. '
USAGI (OS): Bart!
PREVIOUS CUT.
^Bart turns to see Usagi. '
USAGI: Where were you? The city's turned into a panic, and now Mayor Quimby-
BART (GRIPS HER SHOULDERS): Usagi, you won't believe this. But I've found information that could stop D'anclaude.
INT. CAR.
^Bart is driving full-speed through the city, reaching for the outskirts. '
USAGI: Where are we going?
BART: A lab a few miles from here. If we're lucky...
^The radio fuzzes. '
THOMPSON (ON RADIO): ...One city, one peace bond. We shall be a unified humanity, and...
USAGI: Those mayors are crazy.
BART (MUTTERS): You're telling me.
ROADSIDE.
^We can see the silhouette of the car against the dark. It is very late at night. '
INT. CAR.
BART: It'll be too dangerous to drive this late, and the lab probably won't be open.
USAGI: You're right. I'll go sleep in the backseat.
CLOSE-UP: USAGI' HAND.
^It starts to reach for the door to open it, but Bart reaches over and gently grabs her wrist. '
PREVIOUS CUT.
BART: Usagi...you know that first day at the airport when we were introduced?
USAGI (LAUGHS): And I made the mistake of flirting with you. Boy, do I regret that.
BART: Yeah. I brushed it off, saying I preferred to be independent. But you know what?
^Usagi is curious. '
BART (CONT.): I was lying.
^Before Usagi can say anything, Bart softly kisses her. She closes her eyes. '
EXT. BUILDING, NEXT MORNING.
^The building is a dead-ringer for the Conception lab in Armitage III. Usagi and Bart walk up to the entrance. '
CLOSE-UP: DOOR.
^The door opens and a security guard appears, holding a metal sheet with a hand imprint. '
GUARD: Gotta give me your handprint before you go in. Standard rules.
^Bart looks at Usagi, gulps, and places his hand on the imprint sheet. There is a brief spark of electricity. '
GUARD: Next.
USAGI: It's okay, sir. I'm human.
^The guard nods and stands aside to let the two in. '
INT. ROOM.
^Bart and Usagi stop at the doorway and are in shock by what they see. '
ROOM, BART AND USAGI'S POV.
^Computers and other bits of machinery are abundant. Huge plastic tubes line sides of the room, and standing in some of them are half-humans, half-robots- Thirds waiting to be released. Professor Frink pops into their view. '
FRINK: Ng-hey, can I help you with anything?
PREVIOUS CUT.
USAGI: Uh...yes. We were sent here by the police department about the Thirds-
FRINK (NERVOUSLY TUGS AT SHIRT COLLAR): Come this way.
^He walks off to the left, the others following. '
INT. OUTDOOR GARDEN.
^Frink is talking with Bart and Usagi. '
FRINK:...So Rene D'anclaude and I created the first hundred Thirds. I had the idea we could them for peaceful purposes, but- (TAPS SIDE OF HEAD) D'anclaude wasn't all there, and he had other ideas.
BART: Couldn't you stop him?
FRINK: I didn't bother. The Thirds ended up with minds of their own, so Rene's ideas went Ng-hey!
USAGI: What's happening now in New Springfield must have you worried.
FRINK: Certainly! And the Thirds who work here think so too.
BART(EYES WIDE): Thirds who work here?
FRINK (ADJUSTING GLASSES): Yes. Springfield isn't the only city with an anti-robot problem. The Thirds here are sort of a peace force who are working on it. (STRAINS EYES) Well, here comes one of them now!
CLOSE-UP: BART.
^Bart turns his head to see the dim figure. The figure is revealed to be a man in a lab coat carrying a clipboard- Homer. '
BART: Dad? (EYES WELL UP)
CLOSE-UP: HOMER.
^He smiles at the sight of his son. '
CLIFF EDGE, AFTERNOON.
^Usagi and Bart stand at the edge of the cliff, along with Frink, Homer, and Thirds- some recognizable residents, some not. '
USAGI: Here they come now!
FIELD, GROUP'S POV.
^Enormous land rovers and tank-like machines proceed towards the group. '
PREVIOUS CUT.
BART: Maybe so, but we're ready for them.
^He removes his jacket to reveal membranous wings. '
BART (CONT.): Dad fashioned 'em for us. They're a little angelic for my taste, but they'll work.
^The winged Thirds swoop toward the rovers, weapons in hand. The others grab their weapons and run back down the cliff. '
SCREEN.
^The screen shows a group of winged Thirds attacking a land rover. '
STREET.
^Dozens of people stare up at the screen, hypnotized. '
CLOSE-UP: WOMAN.
^The woman nervously picks at a scab on her neck. A glint of metal is shown. '
INT. FACTORY.
^The Seconds in the factory have stopped what they're doing to watch the screen playing. A tank shoots out a flare. '
INT. MAYOR'S OFFICE.
^Quimby and Thompson nervously bite their lips as they watch the screen. '
FIELD.
^Bart swoops toward a tank and shoots his weapon at it. '
ON GROUND.
^Usagi tenses before beaming her laser at a rover. One of the Thirds swoops toward her. '
THIRD: Remember, we can't let them win.
USAGI: It's not that that's making me sick.
INT. ROVER CONTROL.
^A man inside is controlling the rover to shoot. He flicks on a small camera. '
MAN (TALKING INTO CAMERA): We've got them surrounded. I think they'll surrender any minute.
^Bart flies into view. '
BART: I heard that.
INT. MAYOR'S OFFICE.
QUIMBY (INTO RADIO RECEIVER): Who's there?
BART (OS VO): A member of the police department- and a Third.
QUIMBY (POUNDS FIST ON DESK): Damn you, Simpson, your kind can't pull anything on us!
PREVIOUS CUT.
BART: Listen. I know we can't stop Shelbyville and New Springfield from combining. Maybe it'll help both the economies. But we can stop you from destroying us!
ON GROUND.
HOMER (LOOKING UP AT ROVER): What is he doing?
INT. MAYOR'S OFFICE.
THOMPSON: But Rene D'anclaude said-
BART (OS VO): Rene D'anclaude brainwashed the city. We're not what you think. What about the singer, and the writer? They weren't monsters, they had souls. And Dr. Hibbert helped people, he didn't kill them.
THOMPSON: As long as D'anclaude is around, it's all-out-war against you.
INT. ROVER CONTROL.
QUIMBY (THROUGH RECEIVER): Shoot him down.
MAN: You bet. (PRESSES A BUTTON)
EXT. ROVER.
^A beam flares from the rover that nicks one of Bart's wings. '
ON GROUND.
USAGI: Bart!
PREVIOUS CUT.
^Bart drops his weapon and falls to the ground. '
MAN: Gotcha.
^Other winged Thirds fly up to surround the man in the rover. '
TANK.
^The tank stops and the hatch opens to reveal the driver- Rene D'anclaude. '
FIELD AREA.
^Usagi holds Bart, whose wings are totally ripped. '
USAGI: Are you okay?
^Bart lifts his head and focuses. '
BART: D'anclaude! (GETS UP AND RUNS OFF)
PREVIOUS CUT.
^In slow motion, D'anclaude reaches inside the tank and pulls out a gun. '
BART, RENE'S POV.
^(Still in slow-mo) Bart is running toward D'anclaude as bullets fly, most missing, some hitting the wings, others slicing skin on his arms and legs. '
PREVIOUS CUT.
^Bart leaps onto D'anclaude, knocking the gun out of his hand. '
FIELD AREA.
^Usagi and Homer can't help but watch. A dreamlike white fuzz forms around the edges of the scene, and a flash to: ^
EXT. LAB.
INT. ROOM.
^A bandaged Bart lies on a hospital bed, Usagi sitting beside him and holding one hand. A heart monitor is quietly beeping at a steady rhythm. A nurse enters the room. '
NURSE: How's the patient?
USAGI: He still hasn't woken up.
NURSE (CHECKING MONITOR): Be glad he's alive. That was a nasty catfight.
USAGI: At least it's over.
^A slight groan comes from Bart, and slowly his eyes open. '
BART (QUIET):...What...what is this place?
USAGI (HUGS HIM): You're all right, Bart. Everything's all right.
^She gently rubs her face against his. '
BART: What do you mean?
NURSE: She means the fight's over. The tank blew up while you were fighting and it set off a chain reaction. The Thirds are ok, though.
BART: Even...even my dad?
^The nurse hesitates before nodding. '
USAGI (STARES AT NURSE SUSPICIOUSLY): Hey...how do we know whose side you're on?
NURSE (SIGHS): Well, someone had to find out sooner or later.
^As Bart and Usagi watch, the nurse rolls up one sleeve and peels off a Band-Aid. '
CLOSE-UP: NURSE'S ARM.
^A glint of metal shows through the skin. '
HILL, NIGHT.
^Bart and Usagi sit in the hill, looking at the city lights below them. '
USAGI: Your father didn't really make it. The explosion was just too much.
BART: I know. She was being nice.
USAGI: I'm sorry.
BART: It's okay. I've been getting used to being alone. (WIPES FOREHEAD AND SIGHS) Being a cop for a long time, you'd think I'd get used to the lights and bustle of the people and who-knows-what. But nope. Along the way I discovered I needed a small space just to call my own.
USAGI: What would the other Thirds have thought?
BART: A lot them like being alone too. Feeling like you're the only one of your kind...but at least I know it's not true.
USAGI: That small space you talk about...will you ever find it?
BART: Maybe I will and maybe I won't, but I know it's out there. A space for one.
^Usagi tearfully and suddenly hugs Bart. '
USAGI (TRYING NOT TO CRY): Do you suppose you can make room for two more?
^Brief silence. '
BART: You're not kidding.
^She shakes her head and the two stand up. '
BART (CONT. AS THE TWO WALK OFF): Well, guess we'll have to think of something when that time comes.
OVERHEAD: CITY.
^People are busily walking the streets. '
CLOSE-UP: SIDEWALK.
^A crumpled picture of Lurleen Lumpkin lies on the sidewalk, people walking over it while not knowing it's there. '
FADE OUT.