Metropolis Page #9

Tanner's eyes dig into him.

TANNER:

Try harder.

HALDEN:

Christoph had spinal cancer. His

body kept rejecting gene therapy.

He was desperate.

(insists)

It was him, it wasn't us --

TANNER:

-- I saw the program.

This freezes Halden.

TANNER:

Corporate fingerprints all over it.

HALDEN:

Of course they are.

(explains)

Christoph was stealing every piece

of code he could get his hands on.

TANNER:

And you weren't involved.

It takes all of Tanner's energy to hold back the rage.

TANNER:

Because why the hell would you be

interested in a program that allows

people to live inside your machines?

(locks eyes with him)

I mean how much profit could there

possibly be from owning the universe

and selling space in it to people

who are dying, or people who are just

God-Damned sick of this world --

HALDEN:

-- Come on, you know F.C.O. regs.

Anyone caught with their R and D

hand in the bio-digitization cookie

jar spends the rest of their life in

federal penitentiary.

(swears)

It's not worth it.

Tanner studies Halden for several long beats, then shakes

his head.

TANNER:

You're loosing your touch.

(pointed)

Used to be a hell of a lot harder to

know when you're lying.

He turns and heads for the door as --

HALDEN:

He sealed-off the system.

Tanner doesn't stop, almost near the door.

HALDEN:

The only way to eject it is from the

inside.

TANNER:

(without turning)

You've got the keys, send someone

in --

HALDEN:

-- Christoph changed the maze.

This freezes Tanner.

HALDEN:

I need someone who can run it blind.

Search lights blare through the stained glass windows,

smearing Tanner's face in color.

HALDEN:

Two million people in there, Tanner.

Tanner slowly turns around.

HALDEN:

And if the system crashes, they all

get to spend the rest of their lives

hooked-up to God-Damn coma machines.

Tanner stares at him. No choice. Halden smiles.

TANNER:

One condition.

HALDEN:

What?

TANNER:

The truth.

Halden studies Tanner. No negotiation. Halden's smile

fades.

CUT TO:

INT. NIGHT CITY - THE TERRACE - PENTHOUSE - CONTINUOUS

The penthouse apartment is completely barren except for a

beige couch.

CHRISTOPH'S VOICE (O.S.)

Enlarge to one-hundred and seventy.

The couch increases in size.

CHRISTOPH'S VOICE (O.S.)

Bump to one-hundred and eighty.

The couch gets a little bigger.

Christoph sits on the floor, studying the image of a couch

which flickers on the screen of the small rectangular

viewer he holds.

CHRISTOPH:

Off-white pleats.

The pleats appear on the couch across from him.

CUT TO:

INT. VSI CORPORATE HEADQUARTERS - A LITTLE LATER

Halden escorts Tanner down the corridor.

A small knot of GUARDS stand rigidly in front of an

office. Halden nods to them and they unlock the door,

stepping away.

INT. CHRISTOPH'S OFFICE

Halden motions Tanner into Christoph's office.

HALDEN:

Exactly as Christoph left it.

The office is perfectly clean and organized.

A dialysis machine next to the desk. Several computers.

Wall size monitor.

Tanner looks through the desk. A couple of disks. Empty

morphine vials. A hypodermic. Not much else.

The work table dominated by a scaled model of a building.

TANNER:

What is it?

HALDEN:

The Terrace. First building

Christoph ever programmed for us.

TANNER:

A hotel?

HALDEN:

It's not used for anything.

Tanner looks up at him for an explanation.

HALDEN:

Christoph was a brilliant

programmer, but very eccentric.

(beat)

He insisted it be kept vacant.

TANNER:

Why?

HALDEN:

He wouldn't say.

Tanner stares at him.

CUT TO:

INT. THE TERRACE - PENTHOUSE - CONTINUOUS

The apartment is now fully furnished in perfect Park

Avenue chic.

INT. BEDROOM - CONTINUOUS

Christoph sits in an antique chair across from the large

canopy bed, staring in rapt fascination at --

INT. VIEWER SCREEN

Various unconnected images flash by in dream-like quality:

A young freckled-face boy being tucked into bed.

A rat-hole of an apartment, broken windows, and blood

stained walls.

Two teenage boys with baseball bats beat the sh*t out of a

young girl.

A sickly looking man taking a shower.

A black dress is pulled from a store rack, a hand turning

around the tag so the price can be seen. The dress is

quickly put back --

INT. BEDROOM

Christoph looks up from the viewer, his eyes sliding to

the closet.

CUT TO:

INT. VSI BUILDING - CHRISTOPH'S OFFICE - CONTINUOUS

Halden watches as Tanner probes through Christoph's

computer files.

TANNER:

Christoph was in charge of designing

building modules.

HALDEN:

That's right.

TANNER:

Then what's with all the staffing

programs in his account?

HALDEN:

Good question.

Tanner looks up, but Halden isn't going to give him any

help on this one.

The computer screen flashing images of waiters,

waitresses, hosts, playmates, bell-boys.

Tanner staring at the pictures of digital employees

whipping across the screen, slowly realizing...

TANNER:

Modules.

He stares back up at Halden.

TANNER:

Takes you a long time to build a

staffing program from the bottom up.

Halden's not saying a damn word. Tanner looks disgusted

as he puts it together.

TANNER:

Be a hell of a lot easier to

digitize a real person, then strip

them down to a module you can use to

make as many employee programs as

you need.

HALDEN:

(long beat)

Yes, in theory, I suppose that would

work.

But Tanner isn't interested in theory, his eyes tearing

into him.

TANNER:

Who did he digitize?

HALDEN:

Listen to yourself. Digitization.

(smiles)

You know that officially that's a

pure fantasy --

TANNER:

-- Who did he digitize?!

A frozen beat, then Halden meets Tanner's stare.

HALDEN:

Christoph had complete autonomy.

(seemingly genuine)

Because I didn't want to know.

He snaps off the computer, signaling the end of the

conversation.

CUT TO:

INT. NIGHT CITY - THE TERRACE - BEDROOM - CONTINUOUS

The candle-opera has been placed on the dresser, bathing

the room in golden light.

Gena materializes on the bed. She is naked.

She looks around the room disorientated.

A long beat, then she climbs to her feet, moving

unsteadily across the hardwood floor. It is almost as if

she is drunk.

She freezes as she catches her reflection in the mirror.

She looks surprised that she is naked.

INT. WALK-IN CLOSET

The closet is full of clothes. She stares at them with a

puzzled expression, then pulls a dress off a hanger.

It is the black dress that was seen in the viewer.

CUT TO:

INT. VSI HEADQUARTERS - HALLWAY

Emma stands in front of the interface room, waiting for

Tanner and Halden as they head down the hallway toward

her.

She holds up a mini-disk for Tanner to see.

EMMA:

We're sending you in with a top-

level access card. It'll get you

into every program, including the

core.

Halden locks eyes with Tanner.

HALDEN:

Obviously, not something Christoph

should get his hands on.

Tanner nods as they head inside --

INT. INTERFACE ROOM

Emma leads them across the room to an interface seat.

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