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INT. SPACE STATION - DAY CYCLE
A busy futuristic travel area. The hubbub of conversation, the chaos of other feet walking. Focus on a pair of feet going by, pan up to show us MURDERBOT's back.
MURDERBOT (V.O.)
I could have become a mass murderer after I hacked my governor module.
TITLECARD. THE MURDERBOT DIARIES: A FAN ANIMATION.
MURDERBOT (V.O.)
But then I realized I could access the combined feed of entertainment channels carried on the company satellites.
MURDERBOT reaches a gate, a weapon scanner. FEED OVERLAY shows multiple alerts in red: "Weapon detected" "inbuilt energy weapon" "Alert blocked" "hacking detected." Then the alerts glitch, turn yellow, and disappear.
MURDERBOT (V.O.)
It had been well over 35,000 hours or so since then, with still not much murdering, but probably, I don't know, a little under 35,000 hours of movies, books, plays, and music consumed.
Murderbot casually walks through the gate. FEED OVERLAY shows notifications downloading Worldhoppers and checking Transport Departures. MURDERBOT turns a corner.
MATCH CUT TO:
EXT. SURVEY PLANET – DAY
MURDERBOT, in armor, walks through colorful planetary landscape.
MURDERBOT (V.O.)
As a heartless killing machine, I was a terrible failure.
WIDE SHOT, FRONT-ON
Murderbot behind a crater, facing it. Standing guard.
GIANT WORM bursts out of crater, taking up entire screen.
INT. THE PERIHELION - NIGHT CYCLE
MURDERBOT is seated in a ship lounge and watching media. FEED OVERLAY obscures face. It stands up startled when,
ART (O.S.)
You were lucky.
INT. DELTFALL HABITAT - NIGHT CYCLE
A technical room lit red with glowing screens. Bodies strewing the floor like broken dolls. MURDERBOT's helmeted head turns to survey the scene.
MURDERBOT (V.O.)
Why am I lucky?
EXT. RAVIHYRAL CONCOURSE - DAY CYCLE
Three colorful humans, RAMI MARO AND TAPAN, seated at a mall table, facing camera. They gesture, look worried, but then smile at someone behind the camera.
ART (V.O.)
That no one realized what you were.
INT. DELTFALL HABITAT - NIGHT CYCLE
MURDERBOT, on the ground, fighting a DELTFALL SECUNIT. MURDERBOT maneuvers enemy's arm gun, DELTFALL SECUNIT shoots itself in head under chin.
CUT TO BLACK.
FADE IN:
INT. RAVIHYRAL BACK ALLEY - NIGHT CYCLE
MURDERBOT fights three assailants at once. FEED OVERLAY frames scene, reads "Security Camera 06." No sound except static.
CUT TO:
MURDERBOT, straightening, assailants knocked out around it.
In the distance, Rami Tapan and Maro look back.
FADE OUT.
INT. PRESAUX HABITAT - DAY CYCLE
RATTHI, seated, looks up past camera.
RATTHI
I didn't even know it had a face.
EXT. SURVEY PLANET - DAY CYCLE
MURDERBOT, in full armor, turns its head towards someone. Mensah's reflection is visible in its blanked visor.
MURDERBOT (V.O.)
It's usually better if humans think of me as a robot.
MENSAH is standing on the ramp of a hopper, arms folded, facing Murderbot.
MENSAH
This situation is different. It would be better if they could think of you as a person who is trying to help.
(smiling)
Because that's how I think of you.
After a moment, she averts her eyes, still smiling. Then MURDERBOT retracts its helmet and echoes the gesture, turning its organic head away from Mensah.
INT. MEDBAY - DAY CYCLE
CLOSE, PAN UP
MURDERBOT, seated, bare cybernetic forearms braced on its legs, fingers of one hand tracing gunport in other arm. Face not visible.
ART (O.S.)
You dislike your function.
INT. PRESAUX HABITAT - MENSAH'S DESK - NIGHT CYCLE
MENSAH is seated with back to camera, attention on datapad in front of her.
MURDERBOT (V.O.)
I like parts of my function.
MENSAH turns and looks up.
MENSAH
What do you think, SecUnit?
INT. ABANDONED TERRAFORMING FACILITY - HALLWAY – NIGHT
MURDERBOT holds a surprised DON ABENE close as an explosion goes off nearby.
MURDERBOT (V.O.)
I like protecting people and things.
DON ABENE looks up at her rescuer, wondering.
EXT. DELTFALL HABITAT – DAY
WIDE SHOT. Bright streaks of color on a planetary sky. Sandy yellow plains. Geometric domes of habitats.
A silhouetted figure walking on the domes, MURDERBOT, surveys the landscape.
MURDERBOT (V.O.)
I like figuring out smart ways to protect people and things.
INT. TRANROLLINHYFA STATION - SHUTTLE DOCKS - NIGHT CYCLE
Red emergency lights bathe the area. RATTHI props up a much taller, injured MURDERBOT. GURATHIN hurries to help. The three begin to stagger forward.
MURDERBOT (V.O.)
I like being right.
INT. RAVIHYRAL CONCOURSE - NIGHT CYCLE
MURDERBOT crouches before RAMI MARO AND TAPAN. Hotel lights shine in the background.
MURDERBOT
Sometimes people do things to you that you can't do anything about.
INT. ABANDONED TERRAFORMING FACILITY
MURDERBOT walks down a hallway. FEED OVERLAY shows that the view is camera footage from above, reading "Sharing footage with: Miki" and a notification from Miki reading "Pretty!"
MURDERBOT (O.S.)
You just have to survive it, and go on.
LOW-ANGLE
Camera's angle follows MURDERBOT gaze, up and out the window at a vast, swirling cosmic storm. Its reflection is visible in the glass.
Beat.
Sounds of storm through glass.
MATCH CUT TO:
INT. TRANROLLINHYFA - DOCKS - NIGHT CYCLE
MURDERBOT, in the darkness of a port concourse under emergency lockdown.
ZOOM IN, EXTREME
COMBAT SECUNIT, in full red armor with gun on its back, above Murderbot on a narrow walkway.
BACK TO:
MURDERBOT, under an isolated light amidst the shadows. A hauler bot zips by, and as it's obscured, MURDERBOT vanishes.
COMBAT SECUNIT jumps down from the walkway and searches, weapon drawn.
HIGH-ANGLE
MURDERBOT, high atop a floating load-lifter, takes aim and fires at COMBAT SECUNIT below.
A hit to the hip. Undeterred, COMBAT SECUNIT pivots and returns fire.
A chunk is blown out of the transport boxes MURDERBOT is using as cover. It runs for the exit, tucks and rolls just as the barrier slams down.
CUT TO BLACK.
FEED OVERLAY: A loading symbol and the words "Rebooting..."
INT. PRESAUX HABITAT - MEDBAY - DAY CYCLE
Distant rumble of human conversation, unintelligible. Camera aperture widens and blinks closed before revealing scene from Murderbot's POV as it lays on a surgical table. Several PresAux humans are gathered around it, while Gurathin talks, gesticulating. The humans notice Murderbot is awake.
MURDERBOT lunges up off the table faster than humans can react. Camera does not follow, stays on Mensah.
MENSAH
SecUnit, could you put Gurathin down, please?
WIDE, HIGH-ANGLE
As of the view from a security camera. MURDERBOT holding GURATHIN against a wall by the throat, with MENSAH standing behind it.
Beat.
MURDERBOT lets go of GURATHIN and turns.
GROUP SHOT
MENSAH, Ratthi, Pin-Lee, and other PresAux members smile at the camera. FEED OVERLAY on Murderbot's POV reads, "Input: Organic eyes" "Overwriting recording" and "Personnel File: Ayda Mensah, Notes: Good Commander".
CUT TO BLACK
CREDITS ROLL.
TITLECARD. THE MURDERBOT DIARIES: A FAN ANIMATION.
FADE AND MATCH TO:
INT. THE PERIHELION - CREW LOUNGE – DAY
The titlecard plays on the big display screen in front of MURDERBOT, seated comfortably in one of ART's chairs.
ART (O.S.)
Again, please.
MURDERBOT smiles slightly.
END SCENE.