IT'S OKAY By D. Skiles TEASER OPEN INT. JEEP - RAIN - CLOUDED DAY A woman in business dress is driving her Cherokee to work under the cover of dark clouds. Her windshield wipers do their best to fight off a driving rainstorm. She sips occasionally from a cup of coffee as she drives. Morning talk radio plays softly in the car. RADIO ANNOUNCER Looks like it's gonna be an ugly one today, folks. Forecasters are placing the entire L.A. area under a severe thunderstorm watch for the next 12 hours. No sign of it letting up until we hit the late PM hours. As this goes on, the woman pulls up to a railroad crossing and stops. The lights are flashing and the rails are coming down. Sitting still, she glances at the radio while she takes another sip of coffee. WOMAN (muttering) Blah blah blah. Play some music already. As she finishes this, the radio turns to static. She furrows her brow at the dials and leans over about to adjust the tuning when... An ORANGE GLOW pours in through her front window. She looks up, and her eyes bug slightly as she sees... ANGLE - WOMAN'S P.O.V. It's clear, even through the rain-soaked window of the Jeep, that the orange vortex has opened up, hovering directly over the railroad tracks. We continue to watch through her eyes as Mallory, Maggie, Rembrandt, and Diana all crunch onto the ground. They look around. Maggie is the first to point in the direction of an oncoming light, off-screen to the right. They all look and react, quickly jumping off the tracks, away from the Jeep, just in time for a TRAIN to come rushing by, blocking our view from the rest of their escape. BACK TO 3RD PERSON The woman is still staring, now at the passing train. Her jaw hangs open. The hand holding her cup is shaking visibly... and it's not from the coffee. END TEASER OPENING SEQUENCE REMBRANDT What if you found a portal to a parallel universe? What if you could slide into a thousand different worlds? MAGGIE Where it's the same year... DIANA And you're the same person... MALLORY But everything else is different? REMBRANDT And what if you can't find your way home? [THEME MUSIC PLAYS] WHISPER: "Sliders" END OPENING SEQUENCE ACT I OPEN EXT. CHANDLER HOTEL -- RAIN - CLOUDED DAY The sliders are running down the street, during their best to cover themselves with jackets or just hands. The rain is lighter now than before, but still steady. They enter the hotel. INT. CHANDLER LOBBY They all stumble in, dripping from the rain. DIANA Oh, god. I thought we'd never make it. REMBRANDT Wait here, I'll go check us in. He heads away, off-screen. The others stand around, wringing themselves out. MAGGIE I don't know about you guys, but I'm looking forward to taking a nice long nap. Especially after that last world. Those things were freaky. DIANA Those 'things' were your ancestors. Homo erectus to be exact. MAGGIE Yeah, well, they were a little too friendly for me. MALLORY (glancing over) Looks like the bar's opening. MAGGIE Don't tell me you're actually going to DRINK at this hour. MALLORY Hey, like you said, it's that last world. You cope your way, I'll cope mine. He walks off-screen towards the bar. Diana just shakes her head. Rembrandt comes back up. He looks over in the direction Mallory just went. REMBRANDT Where's he off to? MAGGIE Going to get a refreshing morning swig. REMBRANDT Get outta here. Maggie shrugs. DIANA Well, hey, maybe it's not so weird. Sliding tends to make you get your days and nights mixed up. MAGGIE Which reminds me... where's my bed? REMBRANDT Oh, yeah. Sorry, no suite this time. MAGGIE (shrugging) No big deal. We could afford to save up a little. REMBRANDT Still, we got the ground floor. Room 12. (beat) Man, that brings back some memories. DIANA Of? REMBRANDT Oh, before your time... (beat) Anyway, listen, you guys go on ahead. (gesturing towards the windows) Looks like the rain's already starting to let up. I'm gonna try and run back to that chicken place we saw a block back and grab a bucket. You want anything? MAGGIE How can you eat after that last world? REMBRANDT (chuckling) Actually, I think those babboon barbecues made me hungry. Maggie and Diana both shake their heads and look at one another. DIANA Men. MAGGIE Exactly. INT. CHANDLER BAR Mallory sits down on a stool at the bar. HAL the bartender emerges from around the corner. MALLORY Hey. Beer? HAL (shakes his head) I don't know how you people do it. Domestic? MALLORY Nah, import. Let's go high on the hog. He smiles and starts to fill a glass from the tap. As he does so, in walks another man, young, in his 20s. He's dressed business-casual. This is MICHAEL SAKRO. We'll get to know him as Mike. MIKE (sitting down next to Mallory) How's it goin', Hal? HAL Fine, Mike, thanks. What's your poison? MIKE Gimmie one of those Autralian numbers. Hal puts down the beer in front of Mallory. HAL Comin' up. Mallory turns to regard the newcomer. MALLORY Didn't expect to see many other early callers. MIKE (turning to regard him) Oh, I'm a regular at this hour. (beat, he extends his hand) Mike Sakro, borderline alcoholic. MALLORY (shaking his hand) Everybody just calls me Mallory. MIKE Nice to meet you Mallory. So, what about you? What do you do? MALLORY Oh, I... travel a lot. MIKE Business trips? Beginning an exciting new life in corporate America? (sighs) Man, companies nationwide are practically consolidating into one singular entity. But, that's a rant for another time. (beat) So, what about you? You suffered through any mergers? MALLORY Uh... actually, yeah, you could say that. MIKE Really? So, what's your take? How do you feel about the trend? MALLORY Which? Hal sets down the Aussie beer in front of Mike. MIKE ("duh") The merging. MALLORY Oh... uh... it's... overwhelming at first. But you get used to it... though sometimes it seems like no else can understand what's going on on the inside. You know. Things seem more full than ever before, but empty somehow... ? (beat) Damn, forget that. That just came out completely wrong. (a laugh) Started to sound like I was going new age, there. Mike smiles a little. MIKE Why do I get the impression that you just personalized the question? Mallory sips his beer. MALLORY Mmmm... and why would you say that? MIKE I think I know a personal emptiness when I see it. I'm not a borderline alcoholic thanks to my stunning good looks and sunny disposition. MALLORY Oh? Let me guess... (off his outfit) ...typical depressive yuppie situation? He lets out a hearty laugh. MIKE Hardly! More of a hang up on the past and feeling of doom about my future. You see, I've had my own emptiness since my parents died. I was young then. Mallory perks up at this. MALLORY Your parents died early? MIKE Ah, I knew I sensed something! You, too, hmm? Mallory nods with a slight smile. MIKE Okay. So, loss of your parents and... MALLORY And? Mike smiles, despite his minor frustration. MIKE What, I need to spell this out for you? We've got problems and we've got beer. Time to kick in a little makeshift male therapy. Mallory grins but shakes his head. MALLORY Don't know about that, buddy. If I've learned something during the past year, it's that you don't go around trusting everyone you see. MIKE Aw, c'mon! I bet we've got a lot in common. Dead parents, rebellious years maybe? Stolen car joyrides? MALLORY (laughing) Actually... MIKE There, you see! (laughing) Of course, I kinda wussed out on that last one. Always returned 'em the next day. MALLORY The hell you did! MIKE (pointedly) The hell I DIDN'T. MALLORY (shaking his head, grinning) Man, I did that too. Topped off the tank, even. Mike bursts into uproarious laughter at this. MIKE (laughing and grinning back) There, you see? Practically brothers. Though you've got me beat on that one. Wish I'd thought of it. MALLORY Well, let's see what else you can best me on. Ever break into a meat locker? Mike just grins. EXT. STREET - RAIN - CLOUDED DAY Still cloudy, with the rain now more of a drizzle than anything. Rembrandt emerges from a side building, carrying a bucket of chicken. He pulls out a leg and takes a bite as he heads down the sidewalk. As he hits the corner, screaming is heard from down the way to his right. Rembrandt jerks up, looking in this direction. Dropping his leg back into the bucket, he jogs down the road in that direction, past the building on his right. As he hits the opposite corner of that building, he's also at the next intersection. Slowly, he peers around the corner to see... REMBRANDT'S P.O.V. Out in the mist, standing outside of an old, run-down house on the opposite corner, are three figures in dark jackets, their backs to us. They all are pointing guns at the front door of the house. They're all shouting in that direction, too. CLOSE ON HOUSE Now we can clearly see the three men, standing at the ready. It's evident that they're police officers. WILLIAMS and GENTRY are two them. Plus we see a familiar face in CHIEF REDFIELD. WILLIAMS (continued) ...with your hands on your head! Nothin happens. They stand still a beat. Look at each other. GENTRY We repeat! Come out... The door flies open, and all hold their guns at the ready. REDFIELD Hands on your head! Do it now! The man standing in the doorway is wearing a suit and tie with a brown trenchcoat. He holds up his hands. MAN IN DOORWAY Don't shoot, I'm FBI! He lowers one hand and reaches into his coat. ANGLE ON - WILLIAMS Who sees this and immediately fires! BACK TO LAST ANGLE As the man in the door falls over, dead. The three officers immediately get up and run over to the body. Redfield kicks open the coat. ANGLE ON - MAN'S HAND He's holding the item he was reaching into his coat for -- his FBI badge and I.D. BACK TO LAST The three officers stare at this. Williams and Gentry are in disbelief. Redfield's face remains cold. He's turning red from rage. REDFIELD Gentry... go check out the inside. Nervously, Gentry nods and hops in, leaving Redfield and Williams alone. As soon as Gentry's gone, Redfield immediately punches Williams hard in the face! Williams is knocked to the wet pavement. REDFIELD God dammit, Williams! What the hell were you thinking?! WILLIAMS I'm sorry sir... I didn't... I was... REDFIELD Do you realize how deep we're in it now?! A beat. Williams stares. Gentry re-emerges. GENTRY Nothing, sir. No sign of anybody. ANGLE ON - REMBRANDT He's still watching from around the corner. He spins back around and leans against the wall, hidden from the police. With a deep breath, he looks back down the way he came and heads off in that direction, running as quietly as he can. EXT. - OLD HOUSE Back here again, Williams is back on his feet next to Gentry. Redfield paces a little, thinking. REDFIELD We are NOT going down on this one. (beat, to Gentry) Does anyone else live nearby? GENTRY In these slums? No, sir. There's some hotels a few roads over, but that's the closest sign of life. Outside of this place. Redfield nods. REDFIELD Hotels? GENTRY The closest is the Chandler... beyond that... uh... Another moment of silence. Redfield breaks into a grin. REDFIELD The Chandler, hm? (beat) I think I know how we can get around this. (beat) Did any of you happen to read the paper this morning? Williams doesn't get it. Gentry smiles. GENTRY Yes, sir. INT. CHANDLER BAR Mike and Mallory are still here. Hal stands off to the side, wiping down glasses. Mike looks over to him. MIKE Slow day today, huh Hal? HAL You remember that when you leave my tip! MIKE I'll remember that my beer was flat! (turning back to Mallory) Anyways, where was I? Oh yeah... so anyway, come prom night... He checks his watch as he speaks. He stops abruptly. MIKE Whoa! Has it been that long? MALLORY What? How long? MIKE Three hours. MALLORY What?! MIKE (standing up) Yup, hard to believe. Well, sorry man, gotta go. I'm supposed to be setting up a convention of sorts here in the Chandler. Don't you read the paper? MALLORY Haven't really had the time. Mike pulls out his wallet and starts filing through his money. MIKE Ever flitting from place to place, huh? Mallory raises his glass to him with a smile. MALLORY Absolutely. Mike slaps down some cash on the bar and nods to Hal. MIKE Tab's on the bar, Hal. HAL Pleasure as always, Mike. MIKE (turning to Mallory) Same time tomorrow, bud? MALLORY (uncertain) Well, I dunno. Not really sure how long I'm in town. MIKE Well, if you're still here, I'll be expecting you. Seeya 'round. Mike heads out. Mallory stands up and gets out his wallet to leave his own tab. MALLORY (to Hal) Hey, Hal? HAL Yeah? MALLORY What was he talkin' about? About the convention? HAL (grinning) Wow, you really are out of it. Mallory pulls out his money and sets it down on the bar as Hal turns around and grabs a newspaper off of a shelf. HAL (handing Mallory the paper) Here, they're complimentary. Mallory looks at the front of the paper. He spies something at the bottom. His eyes go wide. ANGLE ON - PAPER On the bottom of the front page, next to a picture of Mike, sits the headline: LOCAL MAN ORGANIZES 'COMING-OUT' GALA AT CHANDLER Next to that, a bold-faced subhead: "IT'S TIME THAT THE GAY COMMUNITY STOOD UP PROUDLY TO THE OPPRESSIVE GOVERNMENT," ADMITTED HOMOSEXUAL SAKRO SAYS. BACK TO LAST ANGLE As Mallory can hardly believe it. MALLORY WHAT?! INT. CHANDLER HOTEL ROOM - RAIN - CLOUDED DAY Rembrandt stands solemnly. Maggie is sitting on a bed, Diana in a chair next at the table by the window. The TV is on, muted. Out the window, the rain is heavy once more, with lightening flashing and quiet thunder rumbling in the distance. Mallory bursts in, carrying the paper with him. MALLORY You guys are never gonna believe... He stops in his tracks upon seeing the serious looks on everyone's faces. A beat. MALLORY Who died? Maggie sighs. She can't help but smirk at the irony. MAGGIE Actually... DIANA Rembrandt witnessed a murder. Mallory looks to Rembrandt. MALLORY Who? REMBRANDT Some FBI guy, it seems. Didn't know it at the time, but now it's all over the TV. Diana un-mutes the TV. An anchorwoman sits at a desk. ANCHORWOMAN ...police still refusing to release the name of the prime suspect in the murder of Agent James Ranly. A beat, she holds up her hand to her ear. ANCHORWOMAN I'm... being told that the arrest is about to be made, and police are going to allow us to show the suspect now. Word is that it's a local celebrity of sorts. The scene on the TV cuts to a man standing out in front of... the Chandler hotel. The gang is adequately confused. MAGGIE ...the hell? The reporter on TV is covering his head with one arm under the rain, and begins to talk. REPORTER Holly, I'm standing here outside the Chandler hotel where police have just come to make the arrest in the Ranly murder case. It should be only a matter of moments before... (beat, he turns around) Yes, here they come now! The camera zooms in on the front doors of the hotel as Redfield walks out, holding a man in cuffs. Zooming in, it's clear that the suspect is... MALLORY Mike? On this, the others look to Mallory and we... FADE OUT END ACT I OPEN ACT II INT. CHANDLER HOTEL ROOM - RAIN Several minutes have passed. Mallory is sitting on the edge of the bed now, clutching the newspaper, the others around him. Rembrandt looks to the TV. REMBRANDT (pointing) Hey... I think that's one of them. The cops I was talking about. The others look up. On the TV, Chief Redfield is holding a press conference. A sea of reporters and cameras surround him inside of the Chandler lobby. REDFIELD Agent Ranly was doing a routine investigation of a potential prostitution ring being run out of 517 Muldred Road. We feel it is very probable that the avowed homosexual Sakro was, in fact, a male prostitute operating within that ring. Our investigation has led us to believe that the homosexual Sakro likely propositioned Agent Ranly within the house. When Agent Ranly, being a heterosexual, declined, the homosexual Sakro brandished a pistol at the Agent and threatened to kill him if he did not accept the offer. As Ranly attempted to flee the scene, he was then shot and brutally murdered by the psychotic homosexual Sakro. The others watch this, the mood between them dark. Mallory shakes his head. MALLORY It's bull. I was talking to him the whole time. Back on the TV, a reporter raises his hand. Redfield points to him. CONFERENCE REPORTER Does Sakro have an alibi? REDFIELD He claims that he was in the Chandler's bar during the time in question. CONFERENCE REPORTER Any witnesses to back that up? REDFIELD He claims he can be corroborated to by two witnesses... (beat) Excuse me. (beat, a slight twisted smile forms on his face) ...two MEN that he was ALONE with the entire time. Mallory is seething. MALLORY That miserable bastard. Diana mutes the TV. Maggie puts a hand on Mallory's shoulder to calm him. MAGGIE It's okay. We all believe you here. Mallory sighs and drops the paper on the bed. MALLORY (gesturing to the paper) But THIS... I can't believe he didn't tell me. Rembrandt isn't happy with this. REMBRANDT Tell you what? That he was gay? (beat) What the hell difference does that make? MALLORY What did he have to hide? REMBRANDT Would it have changed how you looked at him? Mallory pauses to think. MALLORY I don't know. Maybe. REMBRANDT Definitely. And he probably knew that. (beat) You said just a minute ago that by the time your conversation was over, you thought of him as a friend. Why should his sexual orientation change that? It doesn't change a thing about who he is. OR what you know about him. MALLORY It changes... REMBRANDT (interrupting) Not a DAMN thing. Not about him as a PERSON. (beat) Now you listen. The only thing that matters about someone is how you know them as a human being. He's a person and needs to be thought of -- and treated -- as one. (gesturing to the TV) Look at those people. They're talking about him like he's an animal. If you're his friend, even just barely, then you above all people MUST see that what's going on here is wrong. He's still a human being. If you don't realize that, then you're no better than any of them. Another beat. Rembrandt walks away a few steps. The room stays silent. REMBRANDT Looking down upon someone because they're gay is no different than looking down on someone because they're straight. Or because they're hispanic. Or Asian. (beat) Or black. There is a long silence. Mallory nods solemnly in understand. Another long beat. ANGLE ON - DOOR An envelope is slipped underneath. BACK TO LAST ANGLE Diana sees it. She gets up and goes over to the door. Picking it up, she pulls the door open slightly and peers out. DIANA They're gone. (beat, she looks at the envelope) It's for Mallory. Diana goes over to the bed and hands it to him. He tears it open and pulls out a sheet of paper topped by official letterhead. MALLORY Well. I've been summoned. (beat, he reads over it) What the... the trial's TONIGHT? The others don't act so surprised. DIANA I watched some CNN and C-SPAN while you two... (gesturing to Mallory and Rembrandt) ...were gone and Maggie was taking her nap. Some more after Rembrandt got back, to see if anyone would mention the murder. Anyway, it seems like the justice system works extremely fast on this world. Arrests, trials, and even executions can occur within a matter of a day or two. Apparently the Supreme Court here defined a "speedy trial" as... well... a lot speedier than our world did. (a long beat) I also think I know why this world is so against homosexuality. It seems that, after Bush's popularity declined heavily in '92, the Republicans decided to go with another candidate for office instead. That's how they got President Pat Buchanan and Vice-President Alan Keyes. MALLORY Oh, man. REMBRANDT Seems like kind of an odd pairing. DIANA He probably ran with Keyes to dispel all the talk of him being racist. And, though this is all just a theory, I'll also bet that Keyes is the only thing that stopped Buchanan from enacting any racist legislation. (beat, she sighs) Still, both of them are extremely conservative when it comes to homosexuality. After eliminating the 'gay marriage' issue, they started proposing all kinds of restrictions on the freedom of sexuality. Only a few actually got through, but the biggest statement came in what they DIDN'T do. (beat) Two years ago, a young gay man named Matthew Shepard was murdered in Wyoming. When a number of groups cried out in protest, asking for a governmental response... MALLORY (getting it) The government did nothing. DIANA Right. The president released no statement and avoided the issue. It became clear that he didn't care about Shepard. It wasn't long before Shepard's killer got a single life sentence -- WITH possibility of parole -- and the public realized that homosexuals were essentially fair game. You could practically hunt them for sport and only get a slap on the wrist. (beat) This world has a lot of innocent blood on its hands. Another beat. Maggie looks up to Rembrandt. MAGGIE How much time? He pulls the timer out of his jacket. REMBRANDT Over 12 hours. Looks like we've got an early A.M. slide coming. MAGGIE We could avoid the trial. Skip out and slide out in the morning. MALLORY No... The others look at him. MALLORY Rembrandt's right. I called him my friend. It's my job to own up to it. (beat) Time to open my mind a little. He smiles weakly. Rembrandt returns the smile. REMBRANDT That's my boy. I should talk to the defense, too. Tell him I witnessed the murder. They all look at each other, then back to the TV. Their faces fall as they see images of people screaming out against gays, holding up signs against them. REMBRANDT My god... what kind of hell have we landed on? ZOOM IN ON - TV And the images of the mob fade to... EXT. COURTHOUSE - RAIN - NIGHT And we open on images of a real live mob. Screaming and holding up signs just like on TV. The signs say things like: "HOMOS BURN IN HELL" "KILL ALL GAYS" "PROTECT OUR CHILDREN -- WIPE OUT HOMOSEXUALS" and other hate-filled messages. The rain is lighter once more, though lightning persists silently in the distance. Off to the side of the gay-hating crowd sits a group of about 10 quiet protestors. They hold candles in a circle and pray, say hopeful things for Sakro, etc. The mob is hurling glass bottles at them, narrowingly missing the heads of a number of the quiet protestors. Screams are heard for the mob, calling out for the quiet group to get out of here. Behind this crowd, Rembrandt, Diana, Maggie and Mallory stand, farther away from the courthouse. They look upon the scene before them with fear and anger. DIANA I've never seen such hate. REMBRANDT I have. Rembrandt is barely maintaining his composure at the sight. Maggie looks up to the courthouse. MAGGIE The sign-wielding mob. The courthouse... never thought we'd be back here again. Especially so soon. MALLORY At least we're not on trial this time. MAGGIE Can you honestly say that this is any better? REMBRANDT I'd say it's far worse. Diana nods slowly, staring in shock at the crowd before them. DIANA If this parallels our own trial... it's more of a sick mockery. They stare for another beat. Rembrandt finally works up the will to make the move. REMBRANDT Alright. Let's go. They start towards the building. CUT TO -- INT. COURTROOM - RAIN - NIGHT As the sliders enter. They pause in the doorway, taking in the familiarity of the surroundings, before continuing on down the aisle. They sit in the bench directly behind the front where Mike and the attorney for the defense currently rest. Rembrandt is the exception. He stays standing and taps the DEFENSE ATTORNEY on the shoulder. They start to talk, and, as this happens, Mike spins around in his seat to see Mallory. MIKE Hey there. You here to save me or crucify me? MALLORY Save. We're not ones to follow the flock. Or mob. Mike smiles a little. MIKE I take it this is a sign that you don't hate me for not mentioning the whole gay thing? MALLORY I'd prefer that you had... and I understand why you didn't. Not many people take it very well around here. Mike nods. MIKE Good to know you're still on my side, then. Mike turns back around. After a second, he turns to face to Mallory once more. MIKE Just for the record, I know what you're thinking. So, NO, I wasn't out to pick you up. Mallory laughs lightly. MALLORY Good to hear it. No offense, but I only play for the other team. MIKE Yeah, I could tell. (he points to his head) My inherent 'gay-dar' didn't go off. They both smile. Mike looks at Diana and Maggie. MIKE (gesturing between Diana and Maggie) Plus, I can see you've got the women all over you. MAGGIE AND DIANA (simultaneously) Hey! Mike laughs and turns back around. Mallory, sitting between Maggie and Diana, gets a punch in each arm from the both of them. MALLORY Hey, he said it! MAGGIE He's YOUR friend. They all shake their heads, unable to prevent a small smile from creeping onto each of their faces. Rembrandt sits back down. The judge, a woman not past her thirties, enters. BAILIFF All rise! The room does so. BAILIFF Court is now in session! The honorable judge Emily Torril presiding! She takes her seat. JUDGE Let's get to it. Prosecutor, call first witness. In the audience, Maggie leans over to Diana. MAGGIE (whispering) No jury... no opening arguments... I'm starting to see how they do this so fast. P. ATTORNEY Certainly. For my first witness, I'd like to call... FADE TO - Hal the bartender is sitting on the witness stand. P. ATTORNEY (continued) ...Hal. You're saying they never left the bar? HAL Not for three hours. P. ATTORNEY Did you leave? A beat. HAL Well, I went in the back to do some inventory for 10 minutes. P. ATTORNEY But you didn't leave the bar area? HAL Not since we opened. P. ATTORNEY I guess, then, that no one saw you OR them for those three hours. A beat. Hal looks nervous. HAL I guess not. P. ATTORNEY Mmm. FADE TO - Mallory fades into Hal's spot. Now it's his turn to get probed. P. ATTORNEY So, it's really just your word. And the bartender's. The audience laughs. Mallory doesn't think it's funny. MALLORY Yes. P. ATTORNEY And you were drinking during that time, were you not? MALLORY (angry) I had ONE beer. P. ATTORNEY I understand. And did you leave the bar at all during your time there? MALLORY Why would I? P. ATTORNEY Maybe to go visit the restroom... or to go check on your friends... or to murder an FBI Agent. MALLORY I see. (sarcastic) Well, no, actually that didn't happen. (beat) But let's play a little game, and pretend that you're right. (beat) What were we doing for the hours after the murder? P. ATTORNEY (harshly) I don't feel that this is the appropriate forum to discuss the private habits of you or the other male prostitutes. The audience laughs at this. Mallory goes red with anger at their reaction, and at his accusation. MALLORY You son of a BITCH! Mallory vaults over the stand, and directly onto the attorney! Knocking him to the ground, Mallory starts to punch the living daylights out of the prosecuting attorney's skull, kneeling on the attorney's chest to prevent his escape. REMBRANDT (leaping to his feet) Dammit, Mallory! There'll be another time! The bailiff races over and pulls Mallory up. Mallory is cuffed and dropped beside Mike on the bench. The prosecuting attorney rises, touching his hand to his mouth and looking at the blood on his fingers. He turns to the judge. P. ATTORNEY Uh, your honor, I think perhaps Mr. Mallory is in contempt of court? The judge smiles at this. The attorney smiles back. Rembrandt, Maggie and Diana look at each other nervously. CLOSE ON - REMBRANDT And... FADE TO - Rembrandt again, now sitting on the stand, the picture of stoicism. The defense attorney is pacing as he talks to him. D. ATTORNEY And what did you see? REMBRANDT Three men. I watched as Agent Ranly stepped out of the building and was shot by one of them. D. ATTORNEY Were any of those men the defendant? Rembrandt looks at Mike. REMBRANDT No. None of them. D. ATTORNEY Do you see any of those men in this courtroom? REMBRANDT Yes sir, I believe so. D. ATTORNEY Could you point him out? Rembrandt points to the seat where Chief Redfield sits. REMBRANDT There. Redfield. The audience murmurs. Redfield barely smirks. D. ATTORNEY No further questions. (to P. ATTORNEY) Your witness. The prosecuting atttorney stands up. Rembrandt regards him coldly. P. ATTORNEY Mr. Brown, did you say you saw three men? REMBRANDT Yes. P. ATTORNEY Well, we all know how the rain has been lately. Given the climate and your distance from the men in question, are you absolutely certain that you could tell who they were? REMBRANDT Not ABSOLUTELY certain, no. But I could tell who they weren't. P. ATTORNEY So then, it's possible that Chief Redfield was NOT among the men in question? REMBRANDT Not likely, but... possible. P. ATTORNEY I see. Isn't it possible, then, that the three men in question were, in fact... Michael, Quinn, and Hal? REMBRANDT No. It's not. P. ATTORNEY I think perhaps you're allowing your personal relationship with Mr. Mallory to influence your judgement. REMBRANDT I think perhaps you should watch your damn mouth. The crowd speaks, a wave of loud mururs. The gavel comes down and quiet returns. The judge turns to Rembrandt. JUDGE No more outbursts. Or I'll find you in contempt just like your friend. Is that understood? Rembrandt is silent for a moment. REMBRANDT Perfectly. P. ATTORNEY It's okay, your honor. (beat, he shoots Rembrandt a look) No further questions. Rembrandt's face is uncomfortable... and enraged. FADE TO - Rembrandt's expression has not changed. However, the courtroom is alive now, people talking and moving. We see that the judge is missing. No doubt considering her final verdict. From his new seat, Mallory turns around to talk to the gang. MALLORY Somehow I get the feeling that this doesn't look good. MAGGIE Are you kidding? It never did. DIANA (to Mallory) At least you stood up for something you believed in. MALLORY And a lot of good it's gotten me. He interrupted by the SLAMMING gavel as the judge has re-entered. The room has barely quieted when she starts speaking -- another sign of how fast justice moves here. JUDGE The court has reached a verdict. The defendant Michael Sakro has been found guilty as charged. A cheer goes up from the room. Not from the sliders. They look at each other, their eyes asking the obvious question -- is it our job to rescue him? JUDGE The sentence is death. He is to be executed tonight at midnight. Even more cheers. The sliders are now looking like they're starting to figure the answer to their own internal question -- probably so. JUDGE In addition, in the case of Mr. Mallory... given his... outburst coupled with the evidence weighing against him... the court feels it best that he be detained for 24 hours... pending his trial tomorrow. Mallory's face shows a complete lack of surprise. The others now know for certain the answer to what they were silently asking each other a moment ago -- yes. They share a sigh. All wear expressions of resolution mixed with grief. And the bailiff goes over to Mike and Mallory as we... FADE OUT END ACT II OPEN ACT III FADE IN EXT. CHANDLER HOTEL -- NIGHT We pan down the building. The streets are still wet, but the rain and thunder are over. INT. CHANDLER HOTEL ROOM -- NIGHT Diana is pacing. Rembrandt is sitting now, his hands folded. Maggie is nowhere to be seen. DIANA You know... just ONCE I'd like to see Mallory leave a courtroom NOT in handcuffs. REMBRANDT Given our last couple of experiences, I think it might be best to avoid courts for a while. The door opens. Maggie walks in, carrying a gym bag. Diana stops pacing, and Rembrandt stands up, both giving their full attention to Maggie. REMBRANDT Well? Any trouble finding weapons? Maggie unzips the bag, revealing a black shotgun and two sleek-looking pistols. MAGGIE On super-right-wing world? (cocking an eyebrow, sarcastic) Yeah, right. She pulls the shotgun out of the bag and tosses it to Rembrandt, who catches it in the air with both hands. She next pulls out the two pistols and spins one in one hand, holding it out to Diana, handle-first. Diana looks at it skeptically. MAGGIE Gonna need it. DIANA No, thanks. Maggie shrugs. MAGGIE Suit yourself. More for me. She holds the two pistols now, one in each hand, looking them over. Remmy looks over his own gun, shaking his head. REMBRANDT I don't like this. If there was any other way... MAGGIE There's not. REMBRANDT I know. But I'm just not crazy about sinking to the level of these damn maniacs. MAGGIE We're not going to shoot anyone. Unless we have to. Rembrandt nods. MAGGIE How long we got? Rembrandt pulls out the timer and gives it a look. REMBRANDT About two hours. Should be enough time for us to get Mallory and Mike out with more than an hour to spare... if everything goes to plan. (beat) And if we hurry. DIANA You realize, of course, that we can't just leave Mike here. (beat) He'd never survive. Maggie and Rembrandt nod to her, in unison. MAGGIE He's gonna have to slide with us. Diana and Rembrandt don't argue. The group just looks to one another. They stand still for a quick beat. Rembrandt is the first to move. REMBRANDT All right. Let's do this. They head out. EXT. PRISON - NIGHT A cab is pulling up in front of the concrete building. A fence lines it, tens of feet tall and barbed at the top. In front of this building is a group of revelers -- up to a hundred people with party hats, blow-horns, and confetti. They're drinking and having a good time. A number of them are holding large clocks up in the air and shouting the time. They're all waiting for midnight. For Mike's execution. INT. CAB - NIGHT Maggie, Rembrandt, Diana, and the young pale cab driver all look at this group. We look into the car sideways, with Rembrandt in the front right seat and Diana in the back right. Maggie is behind Diana, slightly covered by her from this angle. REMBRANDT This isn't gonna work. DIANA Well what now then? MAGGIE We'll just go around to the back entrance, or the side entrance... DIANA What makes you think there IS a back or side entrance? Maggie shrugs. MAGGIE There always is. Diana looks skeptical. Rembrandt smiles. Our angle PANS slightly sideways, and for the first time we see that Maggie is holding one of her pistols to the back of the cab driver's head. MAGGIE The back. He nods nervously and drives on, heading around the side of the building. EXT. SIDE OF PRISON - NIGHT The cab is driving by, and we see a small gate entrance here guarded by one COP. It's, of course, only able to open from his side, and heavily barbed. INT. CAB - NIGHT Maggie still has a gun to the driver's head. Alongside the gate here, she nudges him. MAGGIE Stop. Maggie grins. MAGGIE See? Side entrance. DIANA You said the back. MAGGIE Side OR back. REMBRANDT We can discuss this later. (beat, he turns to Diana) You sure you wanna do this? You can stay here, we'll wait. She nods to him. DIANA You don't know if you'll need me. Who knows what kind of technology they're holding them with? He nods back to her, and turns to the window. EXT. SIDE OF PRISON - NIGHT Rembrandt steps out of the cab, immediately leveling the shotgun at the cop. The officer, though he was focused on the new arrival, clearly didn't expect THAT to happen so quickly. He remains still, his face showing his surprise. Maggie gets out next, rising from the opposite side of the cab, immediately thrusting out her two pistols. Diana then steps out of her side as Maggie walks around the back of the car and towards the officer. With Maggie now headed to him, Rembrandt stops to lower his gun and turn around, back to the cab. Leaning into the vehicle, he pulls a $20 out of his pocket and holds it out to the driver, much to his surprise. REMBRANDT Here you go, man. The driver, slowly, nervously, reaches out and snatches it. Remmy smiles. REMBRANDT (smiling) We may be hijackers, but we try to compensate for the trouble. (beat) Now go on. He doesn't have to be told twice. As soon as Remmy stands, the kid takes off. Remmy turns back to the others and heads over to the gate, where Maggie has... negotiated her way through the gate. Rembrandt follows them through. Maggie keeps her guns at the guard's back, walking him forward, to the entrance of the building itself. MAGGIE That's it. Easy. At the wall, they all stop. COP What are you doing? MAGGIE Rescuing our friends. A beat. He stands there, baffled. Diana rolls her eyes. He doesn't recognize them from the trial? On TV? DIANA Mallory? Mike Sakro? It clicks. He nods, finally getting it. Then, he looks a little smug. He actually laughs. COP You'll never make it into the maximum security wing. Maggie looks distant. Thinking. REMBRANDT Maggie? She looks at him, then back to the guard. Then... smiles. MAGGIE (to guard) Take off your clothes. Diana and Rembrandt look at each other. They're skeptical, to say the least. DIANA Is this really vital to our mission here? MAGGIE Yup. They still aren't buying. INT. CELL Mallory is sitting in his cell, cooling his heels. He checks his watch. ANGLE ON - WATCH And it's 11:56 PM. BACK TO LAST ANGLE Mallory sighs. Looking up, he mutters to himself. MALLORY (muttering) C'mon guys... He's interrupted by footsteps coming down the hall. Mallory gets up and looks out, to see MIKE coming down the hall. He's being followed by another familiar face... GENTRY, holding a gun to Mike's back. MIKE Hey, Mallory. Looks like my time. MALLORY Mike, I... MIKE No hard feelings? Mallory smiles. MALLORY None, man. By this point, Mike and Gentry are passing Mallory by. Gentry shoots Mallory a look as they continue on down the hall. MIKE I'll put in a good word for you... Mallory watches him walk off, his face falling. He checks his watch again. ANGLE ON - WATCH 11:57... BACK TO LAST ANGLE He's clearly frustrated. MALLORY (muttering) Where ARE you?! INT. PRISON HALLWAY Where a heavy iron gate sits, another COP standing behind it. Maggie and Rembrandt come around the corner. Rembrandt is now dressed in the uniform of the earlier cop... and Maggie's got a gun to his head. The new COP behind the gate here leaps to his feet COP #2 Whoa! Hold it... MAGGIE Try anything and he dies. For a moment, they're at a standstill. MAGGIE Open it. He does so, unlocking the gate by sliding a key card through his side. Maggie steps through, pulling Rembrandt with her. She turns to look at the cop. MAGGIE Alright. How can we open the cells here? COP #2 You can't... REMBRANDT No key? The cop looks at Rembrandt curiously. Why did he ask that? Maggie lowers her gun at the cop, the charade over. MAGGIE Hmm? He glances down to his belt. She gets it and rips off a stack of key cards, all with holes punched in them so that they dangle on a key chain. MAGGIE Thanks. She knocks him in the head with the handle of the pistol for his help. He sinks to the floor. Maggie turns, looking back down the direction they came. MAGGIE Diana?! Diana jogs around the corner and through the gate, carrying the other pistol and the shotgun... though not in any way that she could actually use them. She hands the guns back to their appropriate users. And the gang heads down the hall again. INT. CELL Where Mallory is sitting again. At the sound of footsteps, he leaps up to see who it is this time. And, of course, it's Rembrandt, Maggie, and Diana. MALLORY It's about time you showed up! MAGGIE Gee, thanks! She glances up to the top of the cell's doorway. MAGGIE 4907-1... okaaaay... And she starts flipping through the stack of key cards, glancing at the numbers on each. The others look pretty anxious. MALLORY C'mon! MAGGIE I'm trying! DIANA Mallory, did they take anything? He looks over to her. MALLORY Huh? DIANA Did they take anything important from you? MALLORY Oh, no. They let us keep anything that doesn't look dangerous. (beat) Part of the 'expedient' process. MAGGIE Got it! She holds out the card and swipes it. The door slides open with ease. MALLORY Great! Let's go! He runs out and starts down the hall, followed quickly by the others. MALLORY We gotta get Mike! INT. EMPTY ROOM No windows. The door swings open, and in steps Mike, with Gentry close behind, still holding that gun. Mike looks around, his head jerking. MIKE'S P.O.V. No doors. No windows. One light in mounted in the ceiling. The floor is slightly sloped, going into a square grate in the middle of the floor that measures about two square feet. BACK TO LAST ANGLE - There's an audible click. Gentry has locked the door by running his card through the reader next to it. GENTRY Don't turn around. His words are jarring in the silence. He raises his gun to the back of Mike's head in one smooth, slow gesture. Mike realizes what is about to happen. He appears nervous... but somehow resolved. EXT. HALLWAY A gunshot is heard. Followed by muffled cheers from outside. Mallory runs even faster now, the others struggling to catch up. He rounds the corner and immediately comes face to face with Gentry, just stepping out of the empty room, holding up a card to the card reader as he's about to lock the door. He's looking up at the sound of the oncoming footsteps and sees Mallory round the corner. Mallory instantly reacts as he makes it around the corner, and slams his fist into Gentry's face at full running speed. Gentry falls down, out cold. He flings open the door and walks in. INT. EMPTY ROOM He stops in his tracks. His eyes widen. Quickly, he shuts them and jerks his head away. His voice is quiet, weak, muffled. MALLORY Oh... god... damn. The others walk in behind him. Their mouths open slightly, their eyes taking in the horror before them. REMBRANDT My god... DIANA No. Mallory starts to shake. MALLORY God... DAMN THEM!!! He spins and kicks his foot into the wall, hard, in frustration. He chokes on sobs. Maggie grabs his shoulders, gently, trying to ease him down. MAGGIE Calm... She stops. Her ears perk up as we hear the shouts of various other cops and guards as they run down the nearby hall. Maggie turns reaches out into the hall. Gentry's key card ring out of his hand as he still holds onto one, she steps back and slams the door shut. Her eyes turn and look over the wall, spotting the reader. Quickly, she runs the last card that Gentry held through the reader -- the door locks. Meanwhile, Rembrandt's eyes are still facing the opposite wall. REMBRANDT'S P.O.V. TIGHT ON - MIKE'S BACK Seeing only the back portion of Mike's body, it's clear that there's a tiny trickle of blood running alongside it. We PAN along, following the trail of blood, down the sloping floor, and into -- of course -- the square grate. BACK TO 3RD PERSON Rembrandt points at the grate. Maggie, Diana, and Mallory look and see. Remmy is the first to hunch down and try to pull up on the grate. It's rusted over -- and not budging. By now, the cops/guards have hit the door. They're banging on it, shouting various things through the wall ("IT'S LOCKED!" "BURN THROUGH!" "DO AN OVERRIDE!", etc). Maggie turns to Mallory and hands him one of her guns. MAGGIE Here. If any of them gets through... MALLORY (cold anger) Not a problem. He takes it and stands at the ready, facing the door. Maggie and Diana hunch down and start pulling up on the grate as hard as they can. Mallory adjusts his aim towards the door. The others continue to grunt and groan. Shouting is still going on on the other side of the door. Loud bangs begin to echo through the room as the police try to forcefully get through the metal door. One corner of the grate starts to lift up. Then the other sides. Soon, the whole thing is pulled out and thrown aside. MAGGIE Let's go! She jumps in first, followed by Diana. Rembrandt turns to Mallory. REMBRANDT C'mon! As Rembrandt dives in too. Mallory turns and sees them gone, and also climbs in, pulling the grate over their heads as he does so, and back into place. INT. TUNNEL It's nearly pitch black. The only light here shines down through other grates identical to the one the sliders just climbed through. These grates line the ceiling in this tunnel. The tunnel branches off occassionally at some points. The sliders have to crouch to walk through here. Their voices echo. Every step they take splashes in some kind of liquid that is invisible to us in the darkness. Moving forward, Mallory takes the rear, pointing his gun backwards. Maggie is at the point, with Diana between her and Remmy, all facing forwards. REMBRANDT (to Mallory) How's it look? MALLORY No one's following. DIANA You don't think that what we're walking in is from other... REMBRANDT (interrupting) I'm trying not to think about it. Diana nods silently. MAGGIE I think I see something ahead... REMBRANDT Where? MAGGIE Ceiling. Rembrandt turns back. REMBRANDT Dammit! (turning back around) Mallory's gone! DIANA Maybe he branched off somewhere? MAGGIE If he did, he's less likely to get caught than we are... EXT. STREET - NIGHT It's a road just behind the prison walls. A manhole cover is lifting up in the middle of the street. Maggie emerges from it, just as a cab is screeching to a halt at the sight. It manages to stop only five yards away from the manhole! Maggie isn't disturbed, but instead reacts by pointing her pistol at the car, standing perfectly still. MAGGIE Get out of the car! NOW!! ANGLE ON - TAXI Inside, the CAB DRIVER blinks. He's an older Russian man with a beard... hm. BACK TO LAST ANGLE The others step out alongside Maggie. Rembrandt helps her out by leveling his own gun alongside hers. MAGGIE (muttering) I see this fellow needs a little motivation. Rembrandt smiles. Ah, memories. Maggie shoots, blowing a hole through the "TAXI" light on the top of the cab. The driver jumps, and quickly stumbles his way out of the car. CAB DRIVER All right! All right! Maggie marches him and grabs him by the shirt, yanking him hard aside. Rembrandt follows her, shooting a quick glance at the cab driver. A hint of recognition? He climbs in first, scooting aside for Maggie to follow. She takes the driver's seat as Diana jumps into the back. INT. CAB - NIGHT DIANA What now? We can't just... She interrupted as a bullet pierces through the roof and buries itself into the seat next to her! She lets out a yelp and jumps. The others jump in their seats as well, but Maggie immediately slams the car into gear and takes off. She glances out the window, looking up. MAGGIE'S P.O.V. A tower on the outside of the prison. A searchlight followed them here, and a sniper, obviously meant to prevent escapes, is now firing on them. BACK TO 3RD PERSON. Maggie, still peeling off, rolls down her window and barely sticks out the barrel of her gun, laying down a bit of suppressive fire in the direction of the tower. EXT. STREET - NIGHT As we see the cab spin around the corner, out of sight of the sniper. INT. CAB - NIGHT Maggie pulls her gun back in and rolls up the window. REMBRANDT Great. Now they know what we're driving... MAGGIE We can dump it later. Go on foot, or maybe take another one. We'll keep them off-balance until the slide. (beat) Besides, trailing us. That should leave Mallory in the clear. He nods. DIANA What about him? REMBRANDT I've got some guesses on that. He might go back to the hotel... (beat) But I don't think so. First place they'd look. MAGGIE (glancing over) Where, then? REMBRANDT Taking care of something. Diana gets it. FADE OUT FADE IN EXT. COURTHOUSE - NIGHT We focus CLOSE on the side. Behind the bushes. Mallory is here... dousing the side of the building with the contents of a gas canister. He doesn't fling it, but rather pours it carefully along the edge of the building. He's making it last. A voice. VOICE Thought we'd find you here. He steps out from the bushes -- Rembrandt. REMBRANDT It wasn't our first guess, but at least it wasn't our last. He holds up the timer. Barely more than a minute left. REMBRANDT Almost didn't make it. Maggie and Diana step back behind the bushes with them. Rembrandt turns and hands Diana the timer. MAGGIE (not a question) What're you doing. He reaches into his coat and pulls out a lighter, holding it up along with the gas can. MALLORY Made a little stop at an all-night station on my way here. (beat) I'm sending a message. Rembrandt sighs. Sadly, he shakes his head. REMBRANDT This isn't what these people need. MALLORY They need a wake-up call. (beat) You said it yourself. We're all human. And deserve to be treated like it. (beat) And I'm going to teach them. He goes back to pouring the gas. Rembrandts nods once. REMBRANDT Yeah. Yeah, I said that. He gestures to the gas can. REMBRANDT So, you think that's human? A beat. Mallory pauses. REMBRANDT You think that THAT, what you're doing, makes you any better than those animals that crucified Mike in there? Rembrandt gestures to the building. Mallory looks up at it. His brow furrows. MALLORY It's not like I'm killing anyone. The building's empty at this hour... (beat) Besides. This is what Mike would want. Rembrandt sighs. REMBRANDT Just because you had so much in common doesn't mean that you think the same. (beat) Mike knew that the way to get the word out was peacably. You saw that, just like everyone else did. On the front page, this morning. Mallory smirks sarcastically. MALLORY Yeah, well, a lot's happened since this morning. Rembrandt smiles weakly at his friend. REMBRANDT Oh, I don't doubt it. But I want you to stop for a second, and think about something. What is this gonna mean to people when they find it? What is this world gonna think when the courthouse is burned down? MALLORY That someone on this world won't take this anymore. That someone's finally standing up to them. REMBRANDT Yeah, but who? Who do you think they're gonna blame? Everyone is silent a moment. Mallory stands still. REMBRANDT The entire gay community, that's who. You know it. I know it. You think that this is gonna help them? (beat) You're not sending a message. You're sending a challenge. And this world's gonna own up to it. Even if it means killing every gay man and woman on this Earth. Mallory sets down the gas can. He just stands now. Unsure. Diana turns and opens the vortex. The orange glow appears, swirling around by the bushes, barely hovering an inch off of the ground. Diana and Maggie give one last glance back to them. DIANA Come on. It's time to go. She walks over, into the vortex. Maggie follows her. Rembrandt walks up to Mallory. He puts a hand on his shoulder. REMBRANDT (softly) Listen, this is your call. Whatver you do, you'd better be sure. And no matter what it is... we'll be waiting for you on the other side. With that, he turns and heads into the vortex. Mallory stands there, staring at the walls of the courthouse. Sirens wail in the distance. He shuts his eyes. Takes a deep breath. And opens them again. Sadly, slowly, the lighter falls from his hand, and lands in the grass. He shakes his head sadly, turning towards the vortex. As he walks over to it, he pauses before it, and turns to look back to the courthouse. The gas-covered walls. The place where Mike's life was destroyed. The place where the animals cheered when his death sentence was announced. MALLORY (quietly) Burn in hell... all of you. He walks into the vortex. It closes just as the police drive up to the curb. FADE TO BLACK CLOSING CREDITS END