Departure

By
Priscilla Yip
INT. AIRPORT - EARLY MORNING
A MAN in his late twenties walks through an abandoned
airport. The building is derelict and shows signs of people
leaving in a hurry; suitcases lay abandoned and some lights
and billboards still flicker. The air is dusty and stale and
everything is covered with a layer of dirt. The airport is
large and the mans steps echo, which only emphasise the
emptiness of the building.
The man himself is tall and brunette, and wears a uniform
that consists of a light blue one-piece coverall with motifs
stamped on the arms and chest, and heavy duty black boots.
His eyes are weary but stare forward with an intensity; his
tread is slow and determined.
As he walks past a line of empty airline counters, he
reminisces through a series of short flashbacks told in jump
cuts.
FLASHBACK TO:
INT. SUBURBAN KITCHEN - LATE AFTERNOON
In the kitchen of a typical suburban home, a BABY sits in a
high chair at a wooden dining table. It is a warm, sunny
afternoon, and the sun gives everything an orange glow.
Colourful small cups and bowls of food litter the space in
front of the baby, some of them knocked over. The baby wears
a bib, with some food smeared on it.
His MOTHER sits in front of him. She coos at him and holds a
spoon of baby food aloft. Like an airplane, she zooms the
spoon around and makes exaggerated sound effects. The babys
wide eyes and open mouth follow the spoon eagerly.
CUT TO:
INT. SUBURBAN HOUSE HALLWAY - LATE MORNING
The same BOY, now three to four years of age, sits on his
FATHERs shoulders as they run down a hallway. It is bright
and sunny, and the hallway is simple - there are some framed
pictures of the family on the neutral beige walls, and
cream-coloured doors line either side of the hallway.
The boy waves his arms out and makes noises like an
airplane, while the father runs in zig zags, holding his
sons legs securely. They both laugh.
CUT TO:
2.
EXT. SUBURBAN BACKYARD - AFTERNOON
Now seven to eight years old, the BOY stands in front of his
FATHER on the concrete footpath of their sunny, hot
backyard. The grass is slightly long, and a spinning
clothesline with some laundry hanging on it stands in the
corner. The boys father crouches in front of him, smiling,
and brings out a toy from where he has been hiding it behind
his back.
It is a TOY FIGURINE of a pilot, with a string coming out
the back of it. As the father pulls the string, the toy
plays a pre-recorded message in the fathers enthusiastic
voice.
TOY PILOT (RECORDED MESSAGE)
Ladies and gentleman, this is
Captain Dad speaking! On behalf of
the flight crew, let me welcome you
abroad this flight. Please sit back
and enjoy the ride.
The boy grabs the toy with a delighted smile as it talks and
the scene dissolves into laughter.
BACK TO PRESENT
INT. AIRPORT - EARLY MORNING
The MAN continues walking through the airport. He reaches a
deserted security checkpoint, where a mess of retractable
belt barriers and poles are tangled on the floor. Suitcases
still lie on the ground and on the belt of the X-ray
machine, which is frozen and coated with dust.
The man picks his way through the debris and steps through a
metal detector with a blinking green light on the side. The
light turns red as he walks through, and he
continues onward.
The man walks past deserted shops and restaurants with their
shutters only half closed. The shops have clearly been
raided, with empty shelves and lonely broken packs of food
and other products on the ground.
The man continues, and slowly climbs the steps of
a derelict, broken escalator. He weaves his way through
trolleys and suitcases which litter the ground.
A wide shot shows the man walking past a floor-to-ceiling
window which spans the whole room, showing countless
stationary planes and airport vehicles on the tarmac. In
3.
front of the window are rows and rows of empty chairs.
Numbered gateways line the sides of the room and and jet
bridges lead to nowhere outside. The man stops midway
through the shot and turns to face the window.
FLASHBACK TO:
EXT. SUBURBAN FRONT YARD - LATE AFTERNOON
From the same angle as the previous shot, a TEENAGER of
seventeen to eighteen years runs onto the street with his
back to the camera. As he watches, planes drop out of the
sky in front of him, with huge gaping chunks missing. They
crash and burn on impact.
BACK TO PRESENT
INT. AIRPORT - EARLY MORNING
The scene cuts back to the MAN standing at the wide windows.
He turns and continues walking past the deserted rows of
chairs, until he reaches the exit.
EXT. AIRPORT TARMAC - EARLY MORNING
The MAN exits the airport building, walking past abandoned
airplanes and vehicles towards a cleared area of tarmac.
There, FIVE PEOPLE dressed in white coats stand in a line in
front of something which resembles a SMALL JET PLANE but has
obviously been built in a newer, streamlined design using
advanced technologies - it looks like something from the
future. The jet is a blinding white, with smooth edges and
contours. The plexiglass top is open, and it can be seen
that there is one seat inside.
As the man walks past the group of people, they say things
to him but he only hears muffled words. Their faces are
grave, and some of them clap him on his shoulders as he
passes.
He stands at the end of the line and turns, solemnly nodding
once at the group.
He turns back around and climbs up the side of the jet.
4.
INT. PLANE - EARLY MORNING
The MAN enters the jet through the open glass cover. There
is only space for one person inside, but he is calm as he
buckles himself into the chair. He straps a helmet on his
head, fixing an oxygen mask over his nose and mouth. From on
top of his helmet, the man pulls down a thick pair of
sunglasses over his eyes. He pulls the glass cover closed,
the lock clicking with an air of finality.
Inside, there is barely any room for him to move. In front
of him is a control panel made up of a large touch screen,
with various virtual buttons and levers on its display.
Protruding from the middle of the screen is a single
physical joystick controller.
The man presses a series of buttons and switches to start a
power up sequence. Complicated-looking streams of codes and
instructions appear on the display. The man looks outside at
the GROUP OF PEOPLE who have moved some distance away and
are watching him.
He turns back and pulls a virtual lever up slowly to take
off. The jet starts rolling along the ground slowly,
gradually gaining speed. The man takes hold of the joystick
controller and pulls it towards him.
The jet takes off at a high speed, flying at a steep
diagonal up into the sky and leaving a thin white contrail
behind.
FLASHBACK TO:
INT. SUBURBAN LIVING ROOM - AFTERNOON
A TEENAGER and FATHER stand in their living room. It is a
typical suburban room with a comfortable couch, armchair and
TV, if not for the fact that the inhabitants are shouting at
each other. Their expressions, tones and gestures are angry,
although most words cant be heard. One line stands out;
TEENAGER
(angry)
Youre never here anymore!
They continue fighting.
CUT TO:
5.
INT. SUBURBAN HOUSE - AFTERNOON
In the hallway, a door slams. The pictures on the walls show
the teenager at different ages with his parents. The more
recent photos only feature himself and his dad, suggesting
the mother has died or gone away. The pictures shake when
the door slams.
CUT TO:
INT. SUBURBAN BEDROOM - AFTERNOON
The TEENAGER sits on the side of his bed, facing the window.
His bedroom includes a bookshelf and a desk with a computer
on it. The teens expression is sullen and his back faces
the doorway. His FATHER stands behind him with a sad face,
wearing a pilots uniform.
FATHER
(softly)
Ill be home in a few days, son.
The father smooths the teenagers hair down, then bends down
to pick up a BRIEFCASE. He turns around and leaves, closing
the door softly behind him. The teenager doesnt move.
BACK TO PRESENT
INT. PLANE - EARLY MORNING
The MAN is jolted from his memories by the jet beeping and a
message flashing on the screen in front of him.
TEXT ON SCREEN
WARNING: EXTERNAL DAMAGE 87%
The percentage continues to drop as the man watches. He has
flown quite a distance already, and is rapidly approaching
the cloud cover. The jet starts to shake and jerk as
nanobots begin to eat through the metal exterior. The man
tightens his grip on the controller, breathing faster.
From outside, small holes start to appear in the plane like
it has been dosed with acid. The beeping continues and
gradually increases in volume.
6.
EXT - AIRPORT TARMAC. EARLY MORNING
The GROUP OF PEOPLE stand silently on the ground and watch
the plane as it hurtles upwards. They all look worried, yet
hopeful. Holes continue to appear on the outside of the
plane, and small chunks of metal start falling off.
INT - PLANE. EARLY MORNING
Suddenly, the plane passes through a thin layer of clouds
into a very still, quiet atmosphere, punctuated only by the
continued beeping inside the jet. The MAN pulls back on the
controller, slowing the plane down and bringing it to
horizontal. The warning message is at 61%.
The man pulls his sunglasses off his face and back on top of
the helmet, looking around frantically. He spots what looks
like a cluster of buzzing black dots in the distance, which
seem to be grouped around an unidentified mass.
The man quickly sets his course towards the cluster on the
control pad using a targeting scope system, repeatedly
looking back towards the warning message. It now flashes at
34%. The plane zooms towards the cluster.
The planes shaking and jerking increases. The outside layer
of the jet is almost like a metal skeleton, nanobots having
eaten through the outermost panels. The beeping is very loud
and almost unbearable now. From inside his uniform, the man
brings out the obviously old, well-worn PILOT TOY and holds
it in his hands. He draws the string, listening to the
message one last time...
TOY PILOT (RECORDED MESSAGE)
Ladies and gentleman, this is
Captain Dad speaking!
The sound of the beeping fades into periphery as the man
listens to the message, staring at the toy. He puts it down
on far side of the control pad with shaking hands.
He pushes a series of buttons on the control pad which makes
a small round light beside the words SELF-DESTRUCT turn
on...
TOY PILOT (RECORDED MESSAGE) (contd)
On behalf of the flight crew, let
me welcome you abroad this flight.
7.
The man holds the controller again with a tight grip that
turns his fingers white. With his other hand, he rips off
the oxygen mask and helmet with jerky motions. His breathing
is fast and he starts to sweat. The plane is almost at the
cluster.
He stares forward with determined eyes, his thumb hovering
over a red button on top of the controller.
TOY PILOT (RECORDED MESSAGE) (contd)
Please sit back and enjoy the-
The plane flies straight into the middle of the cluster.
The man pushes the button.
There is an explosion near the front of the plane.
He closes his eyes.
CUT TO BLACK.