SHUTTLE

(EMPTY METAL BOX AMBIANCE)

SOUND: METAL DOOR CREAK

ENLING
Well, I’ll give you this Six-five-one, even wrecked, this is a pretty spacious and cozy shuttle.

T-651
Indeed doctor, it was meant to be able to serve as a lifeboat for an extended period.

ENLING
I don’t doubt it. Too bad you all couldn’t have found a more hospitable moon.

AIDAN
If there’s another member of the crew left, where are they?

T-651
She may be injured. Doctor, let us check the compartment to the rear.

AIDAN
Are we sure there aren’t any of the creatures in here?

ENLING
You’re the one with the scanner, Aidan. Relax.
(BEAT)
Okay, let’s see what we have here.

SOUND: METAL DOOR CREAK

ENLING
Hello?

SOUND: FRYING PAN-TYPE GONG

SOUND: BODY TUMBLE

ENLING
Ai(1) You(5)!

NALINI
You won’t take me alive, Xinwei scum!

ENLING
TONG(4) si(3) wo(3) le(5)! GAO(3) shen(2)-me(5) DONG(1) xi(5) ma(5)!

NALINI
(FRANTIC)
What are you saying!? Stay back!

AIDAN
We’re staying back.

NALINI
Who are you? You don’t look Xinwei.

AIDAN
I’m not. She’s not — at least I don’t think she is. We’re here to help.

NALINI
What do you mean?

ENLING
(IN PAIN)
We’re here to rescue you.

NALINI
Rescue!? How dare you sneak up on my person? Do you realize I have been waiting for rescue for over 10 solar days? This is an outrage.

ENLING
(IN PAIN)
An outrage is a doctor needing medical treatment herself.
(MUTTERS)
Ah, TONG(4) si(3) wo(3) le(5)!

T-651
Your highness, are you all right?

NALINI
Tinker? is that you?

AIDAN
Your highness!?

ENLING
Tinker!?

T-651
These persons are serving our House. We arrived as fast as we could.

NALINI
Oh Tinker, I never thought I would see you again. I never thought…
(BREAKDOWN)
I’m so scared, I’m so scared. I, I… we crashed, and we were all right… but then the things came and I lost Babak and I lost Kiran and I tried to fight, but there were so many and I thought I was going to die alone and I, I just thought…

AIDAN
It’s okay. It’s going to be okay. We’re going to — URK!

SOUND: GEARS WHIRR

T-651
You do not have permission to touch the princess.

AIDAN
(CHOKING)
’Kay. No touch. Got it.

NALINI
Tinker! Release him.

SOUND: GEARS WHIRR

SOUND: BODY TUMBLE

AIDAN
(GASPING)
Sorry.

T-651
You must be kept safe, your highness.

ENLING
It would help if we didn’t get maimed in the process, Six-five-one… or are you Tinker?

T-651
You have permission to touch the princess, Doctor.

ENLING
Joy.

T-651
Princess, this is Doctor Shen Enling. She is from the ship we recruited to rescue you.

NALINI
Doctor, I am sorry if I have injured you. We suspected a Xinwei plot and you look, well, rather like their commandoes.

ENLING
I suppose I’ll take that as a compliment.

NALINI
(TO AIDAN)
And you, armsman. Tinker meant no harm. We thank you for your service, but…
(REGARDS AIDAN)
Why do you have no blaster?

AIDAN
I, uh, I’m not an armsman my lady — I mean, your highness. I’m just here to help.

T-651
This is Aidan Vosky, your highness. He is a mechanic from the ship we recruited.

NALINI
A mechanic!? What manner of ship is here?

T-651
It is a freighter, your highness. The best we could do on short notice.

ENLING
Don’t let Grainne or the Captain hear you say that, “Tinker.”

T-651
That is not my designation.

ENLING
I beg to differ.

NALINI
Forgive me Six-five-one.
(TO ENLING)
This robot has served me since childhood, doctor. I could not say Taquermeraphan when I was little, so… I called him Tinker.

T-651
It is a special designation, your highness.

ENLING
And am I safe in assuming that your designation should be Princess Nalini al-Zamin?

NALINI
How did you…?

ENLING
Oh, I’m no Xinwei commando your highness, but I do know the royal families of the great houses.
(TO “TINKER”)
I begin to understand all the secrecy, Tinker. I wouldn’t trust us either.

AIDAN
You’re a real princess?

NALINI
Have you met fake ones?

AIDAN
No, I just, I mean —

ENLING
(DISGUSTED)
Oh god…

NALINI
(SNAPS OUT OF MOMENT)
Well, we should go to your ship.

ENLING
That might take some doing.

SOUND: COMM BEEP

ENLING
Enling to Tyger, over.

GRAINNE
(RADIO FILTER)
Tyger here. How are you doing, Enling?

ENLING
A few bruises, but otherwise okay. We’re in the wrecked shuttle and we have a V.I.P. who’s ready to leave this moon. How are the repairs coming along?

NALINI
Repairs?

T-651
We encountered damaging storms on the way down, your highness.

GRAINNE
(RADIO FILTER)
Your highness?

REG MACORUM
(RADIO FILTER)
We should be ready to lift off shortly. How long will it take you to get back?

SOUND: SCANNER ALARM

AIDAN
Uh, maybe they better come to us.

ENLING
What is it?

AIDAN
The beasties are back.

SOUND: UNEARTHLY HOWL (DISTANT)

T-651
Were you not watching the scanner?

AIDAN
Getting choked distracts me!

ENLING
Shush! Tyger, you get that?

GRAINNE
Yes, are these the mysterious beasts?

ENLING
The very dangerous beasts, yes.

REG MACORUM
Tormar, get the engines started.
(BEAT)
Enling, can you get to the skimmer?

ENLING
We’re about to find out.

REG MACORUM
If you can’t, hang tight. We’ll be there as soon as we can. Macorum out.

ENLING
What do we have?

AIDAN
At least a dozen of those things. I don’t know how they moved so fast.

ENLING
How close?

SOUND: UNEARTHLY HOWL

AIDAN
Really close.

NALINI
They can get in here. It was only Kiran who scared them off the last time. And he paid for it with his life…

SOUND: THUMP ON HULL

T-651
At least one creature is at the back of the ship.

AIDAN
There are none near the door yet. But whatever they are, they move fast.

ENLING
Your highness, are there any other weapons?

NALINI
Kiran had the last working blaster.

ENLING
Can you tell us anything about their behavior?

NALINI
What do you mean?

T-651
We must see if we can reach the skimmer, doctor.

ENLING
Agreed.

SOUND: METAL DOOR CREAK

T-651
Your highness, stay back. Doctor, could you assist?

SOUND: GUN DRAWN FROM HOLSTER

ENLING
Right behind you.
(TO AIDAN)
Aidan, what does the scanner say?

AIDAN
That one on the hull is still there. Maybe half a dozen behind it a ways off behind us and two dozen or more up on the ridge.

ENLING
Wait a minute, where on the ridge?

AIDAN
Uh, looks like right where we left the skimmer.

NALINI
Did you leave your craft running? They’re attracted to electromagnetic fields. At least that’s what we thought.

ENLING
See, that would be an example of behavior, princess.

NALINI
You were not clear in your question!

SOUND: MASSIVE THUMP

ENLING
Oh damn.

T-651
Your highness, stay back!

AIDAN
What’s happening?

ENLING
That one on the hull just jumped in front of us.

T-651
Aidan Vosky, guard the princess.
(BEAT)
But do not touch her.

AIDAN
Enling, what does it look like?

ENLING
Oh it’s a predator all right. Like a Vendawundjan burlywog, but with bigger legs for jumping.

AIDAN
How about the teeth?

ENLING
Just as many teeth.

NALINI
What is it doing?

T-651
It appears to be observing us, your highness.

NALINI
Be carfeful. They are very cunning, Tinker.

ENLING
You could have told us that.

NALINI
I’m telling you now.

AIDAN
Is it moving?

ENLING
It looks like it’s waiting.
(TO NALINI)
They’re not blaster-resistant, are they?

NALINI
No.

ENLING
Good.

SOUND: BLASTER FIRES

SOUND: BLASTER FIRES

AIDAN
Enling two from behind are moving!

SOUND: THUMP ON HULL

SOUND: MASSIVE THUMP

T-651
Stay back doctor!

SOUND: BLADE UNSHEATHING

SOUND: UNEARTHLY HOWL (VERY CLOSE)

SOUND: SWORD SLICE THROUGH FLESH

SOUND: ANIMAL SQUEAL

SOUND: ANIMAL BODY TUMBLE

SOUND: SWORD SLICE THROUGH FLESH

SOUND: BLOOD SPURT

SOUND: ANIMAL BODY TUMBLE

AIDAN
Enling, are you okay?

ENLING
Oh yeah, I’m just going to be a little sick is all.
(TO NALINI)
You didn’t say your buddy Tinker here could transform his hands into katanas.

T-651
They are not katanas. They are… simple defense blades.

ENLING
Well, blades that can slice through wild beasts like butter are katanas in my book.

T-651
Where are the remaining animals?

AIDAN
There’s still four behind us near the shuttle and that larger group near the skimmer, but they’re not moving.

ENLING
I’ll bet they start moving if we try and make a run for it. The way those things jumped in from behind, they could be on top of any one of us before I got a shot off.

T-651
And I fear there are too many for me to effectively fight off, your highness.

NALINI
But we cannot hold them off in here.

SOUND: SPACESHIP RUMBLE OVERHEAD

SOUND: COMM BEEP

REG MACORUM
(RADIO FILTER)
Enling, Aidan, talk to me.

ENLING
We’re happy to hear from you. You’re overhead?

REG MACORUM
Yeah, but I don’t like what I see. There’s three dead beasts in front of the shuttle and a whole lot of angry live ones around it.

AIDAN
We were just judging our options.

GRAINNE
(RADIO FILTER)
Well, let’s see if we can give you a new one. Cover your ears.

ENLING
What?

GRAINNE
(RADIO FILTER)
Trust me, it’s going to be loud.

AIDAN
Uh-oh.

SOUND: TRIPOD-ESQUE FOGHORN

SOUND: CHAFF FLASHES GOING OFF

T-651
Ingenious, they are using a collision alarm and counter-measures to frighten the creatures.

SOUND: UNEARTHLY HOWL

SOUND: TRIPOD-ESQUE FOGHORN

ENLING
Just tell us when it’s over, okay?

SOUND: TRIPOD-ESQUE FOGHORN

SOUND: CHAFF FLASHES GOING OFF

SOUND: UNEARTHLY HOWL (DISTANT)

GRAINNE
(RADIO FILTER)
Okay, that seems to have driven them off. You all ready?

ENLING
Hold on, I had some loose teeth that fell out.

T-651
Your highness, do we need to get anything from the shuttle?

NALINI
No, it is secure.

REG MACORUM
(RADIO FILTER)
All right, if you can make it, I want you to get to the skimmer and fly up here. Tormar will be waiting in the cargo bay.

ENLING
You don’t want to leave the skimmer?

AIDAN
Oh no, not after all the work I put into it.

REG MACORUM
(RADIO FILTER)
Don’t think that makes up for losing the spare hull plating.

AIDAN
That wasn’t me!

GRAINNE
(RADIO FILTER)
Best hurry, they may not stay scared for long.

SOUND: METAL DOOR CREAK

ENLING
Here we go.