Train to Dreamland (MPC 71BC) [Completed]
Feb 6, 2020 14:12:24 GMT
Post by Heinrich G. Napier on Feb 6, 2020 14:12:24 GMT
MPC Name: Stick to the Script + Can't Sleep
MPC Number: 71B + 71C
Reward Requested: Posts
Word Count (Descriptions, actions, and dialogue): 2758
Word Count (Including locations [ex. EXT. STREET], names [ex. HEINRICH], and Personal Direction [(beat), (yawn)]): 2977
Word Count (Descriptions, actions, and dialogue): 2758
Word Count (Including locations [ex. EXT. STREET], names [ex. HEINRICH], and Personal Direction [(beat), (yawn)]): 2977
TRAIN TO DREAMLAND
by
Damon
EXT. STREET (SHIBUYA)/GODA HOME - NIGHT
TYPING on a keyboard is lowly heard.
SUPERIMPOSE: "Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan."
INT. GODA HOME/1ST FLOOR ENTRANCE - NIGHT
A two story, urban home near the center of Shibuya. A fairly standard living room and dining room are visible from the entry. A clock on the far wall displays the time as 2:06 in the morning. A faint light peers down from a staircase to the side, where the TYPING is slightly louder.
INT. 2ND FLOOR HALLWAY
Behind a door at top of the stairs, something emits a light bright enough to have a bluish hue seep from the door's seams. It's the only source of light. Two metal bowls of water reflect the light to the right of the door. TYPING continues.
INT. HEINRICH'S BEDROOM
The room is sparsely decorated, as if it were being shown in a rent listing. In the corner of the sits a young man, HEINRICH, 18 years of age, on a bed, facing away from us. From a combination of moonlight, as well as whatever is in his lap, it's seen he's wearing pajama bottoms and a tank top. The TYPING is clearly audible now. When we get close enough, the sound is shown to be his fingers RAPIDLY TYPING on a laptop's keyboard. As they do, blurred text fills the screen, concluding with him raising his left hand and striking the CTRL and S keys.
HEINRICH
Finally!
Heinrich turns around and ceremoniously CLOSES the laptop. He closes his eyes, then falls to the side with a THUD, utterly exhausted.
EXT. FOREST - DAY
The scene fades in. Heinrich blinks his eyes a few times, while a low BUZZING starts to fade in and out from somewhere. He rubs the back of his head. Leaning against a tree on a dirt floor. Now in a heavy coat. Looks around in a daze, then stands up.
HEINRICH
Where... What is that noise? Cicadas?
Heinrich gazes up at the trees, whose branches are swaying in the wind. He reaches up, and as he does, the pulsing BUZZING gets ever louder. He stumbles, and his vision blurs as he falls on his face.
INT. GODA HOME/HEINRICH'S BEDROOM - NIGHT
The BUZZING continues while Heinrich hangs half off his bed. Reaches up to the desk, grabs an alarm clock which he brings to his face. Squints at the red glow appearing on his face. It's 3:16, and, according to the clock, Sunday. Tiredly lets it fall on the floor.
HEINRICH
What was that...?
(yawn)
... an hour of sleep? Maybe...
Grasping the bed's sheets, Heinrich hoists himself to a sitting position again. Like in the dream he just had, he looks around for the dreadful BUZZING that's interrupting his well-earned sleep. He grumbles as he turns a light on, and opens the door to the bedroom. There's a visible calendar on the wall. The dates are X'd out up until a Sunday, which says 7 AM: Church.
Quickly realizing the noise is coming from inside, he shuts the door, and starts to pull out drawers, looks under a desk, and behind his bed, before turning his head toward the closet. The collapsing door slides open with some effort, letting light into the collection of Heinrich's. Manga, boxed figures, and rolled up posters are stacked among the closet's floor. He pulls out a school bag off the wall hook, unzipping it while looking over at the floor behind him.
HEINRICH (CONT'D)
Not the laptop... not the clock...
Slowly pulls out a black case, and the BUZZING gets louder. Heinrich scrunches his face as he tries to figure out why the object is making noise. It vibrates in his hand for two seconds at a time.
He puts the bag back on a hook, and sits on his bed. He UNZIPS the case, and reveals a PSV**A, a dated mobile gaming console.
HEINRICH (CONT'D)
Maybe it got bumped? But...
(yawn)
... But how?
The screen lights up in Heinrich's hands. The buzzing stops. Text appears, along with two options for YES or NO.
HEINRICH (CONT'D)
Do you want to start?
(reading)
No. I want to sleep. What even is this? An ad?
Heinrich yawns, stretching his arms. The console begins to slip. He panics and fumbles with it in the air, catching it. PING. His thumb hit the confirm button on YES. He curses quietly under his breath.
PSV**A
Heinrich Napier.
Heinrich stares at the screen in tired confusion. Realization dawns, followed by fear creeping on his face. He drops the console next to him and looks around his room.
HEINRICH
Who's, who's there?
Heinrich looks at the window, then slowly turns his head around to examine the closet behind him.
HEINRICH (CONT'D)
Did...
His vision shifts to the console next to him.
HEINRICH (CONT'D)
Did I imagine that?
When he peers over, he sees the screen is off. He picks the console up and nervously chuckles. The console lights up again, this time opening a map on the system's browser. Heinrich leans in closer. G**gle Maps, a popular web mapping service, marks a destination to Shibuya Station, and how long it'll take to get there.
PSV**A
The moment to decide your future, has begun.
Heinrich's face turns into one of panic. He throws the console toward his closet where it dully THUDS against the bag and HITS the floor. He scrambles out of his bed, and backs himself against the wall with the window. Slowly he rises to his feet, and turns to look out the window again, clumsily UNDOING the latch and SLIDING it open.
The narrow street is empty, one streetlight is visible, though there's nothing but some trash underneth it. Heinrich continues looking up and down it, despite the poor vantage point. Giving up, he leans back in and closes the window.
HEINRICH
Is... Is this a joke? If it's a prank, I don't get it.
Doubt is clearly on Heinrich's face, but it turns into curiosity as he crouches down in front of the the tousled console. It lays face up, and the screen hasn't changed. Inhaling, he timidly reaches toward the console, then clenches his fist in anger.
HEINRICH (CONT'D)
Whatever! I'm not going to the station at 3 in the morning! What does that even mean, to decide my future?!
He CLAPS his face a few times. Heinrich tries to turn the console off, or at least close the browser, but it accepts none of his inputs. He puts the PSV**A away in its case, ZIPS it up, puts the case in the bag, closes the closet, turns the light off, and throws the covers over himself in his bed. Hold for several seconds. A faint BUZZ begins again from the closet. Heinrich throws the covers up-
HEINRICH (CONT'D)
DAMN--
He stops himself, looking at the clock next to his laptop to remember what time it is. He grumbles, and moves toward the closet.
INT. 1ST FLOOR ENTRANCE - NIGHT
A black cat with white stripes is pawing its face on top of the sofa while Heinrich SHUFFLES about, now in a coat and putting his shoes on. He approaches the door and puts a hand on the handle, making sure no one's watching him from behind. The cat makes eye contact with him. They stare at each other. The cat MEOWS. Heinrich slowly nods, and opens the door to walk through it.
EXT. STREET (SHIBUYA) - NIGHT
A car passes by, Heinrich is briskly walking alone down the street, looking at the console in his hand. He stops under a streetlight for a moment, looking up, then quickens his pace.
HEINRICH
This is stupid, this is stupid, this is stupid.
He chants while following the map, which shows he's about halfway to his destination. The PSV**A shows twenty minutes have passed from when he woke up from the dream.
HEINRICH (CONT'D)
I could be killed. I could be kidnapped! I COULD be sleeping right now! But NO!
He rolls his eyes dramatically while making an exaggerated expression to no one.
HEINRICH (CONT'D)
I'm following this stupid map after I was told to 'decide my future' like this is some kind of anime! Can't a guy just get some sleep?
Heinrich continues to walk into the distance.
EXT. "SHIBUYA STATION" - NIGHT
"Tokyu Department Store" is nearby. Heinrich glances inside. A train is pulling out of one of the station's lines. He walks among a mob of people going in and out of the station. Cars and buses are everywhere.
He walks up to the statue of Hachiko. Looks up at it.
HEINRICH
Well, I'm here.
He turns down to the console in his hand, which indicates he's made it to his destination. The time says it's been another ten minutes.
HEINRICH (CONT'D)
Now what? Am I supposed to meet someone?
Heinrich looks around at the crowd, then the PSV**A makes another PING. He looks down, the map starts to act as if something is pressing buttons. It opens a list of pictures on the side, and rapidly scrolls through thousands of photos.
Heinrich shivers, frantically swiveling his head back and forth, looking from person to person, while the map does something. It makes another PING, and he looks at it again. It's a photograph from inside the station, one of the many elevators.
HEINRICH (CONT'D)
An... elevator? What elevator?
Heinrich squints. There's a sign hung next to the elevator's doors saying what train line it leads to. With a quick inhale and exhale, he continues on into the station.
INT. "SHIBUYA STATION"/1ST FLOOR - NIGHT
Heinrich trudges around the station, trying to appear casual, but clearly on edge. He happens across several elevators, following the many name plates hanging from the station. A hand taps him on the shoulder, causing him to shout and jump. There's a BUSINESS MAN, stocky and around 50, with a pamphlet in his hand. He appears startled.
BUSINESS MAN
Sorry! I'm so sorry! I ju... I just... Excuse me, do you know how to get to this store?
The Business Man holds the pamphlet out, pointing to a circled store on it. Heinrich stares at the Business Man, still frozen in his on guard pose, then shifts his eyes from side to side sheepishly.
HEINRICH
No... Ask... Ask the information Booth.
Heinrich walks off, leaving the Business Man feeling awkward with his outstretched pamphlet. Heinrich SLAPS a hand over his face in anger, cursing under his breath.
INT. 1ST FLOOR
An open elevator catches Heinrich's eye. No one's around, making him nervous and suspicious. He raises the PSV**A up, showing it's the same elevator depicted in the photo. He takes two deep breaths, then walks towards it. Enters inside.
The elevator doors close.
INT. ELEVATOR
Heinrich stumbles over and collapses with his back to the corner. The elevator starts to move without him pressing any buttons.
HEINRICH
God... What am I doing? What time even...
PING. PING. PING. Several seconds pass, and Heinrich looks up, realizing something's not right. Behind him, through the elevator window, the concrete wall fades away into a purple void.
HEINRICH (CONT'D)
This is... taking a while.
(yawn, stands up, rubs his eyes)
There are only 5 basement floors, right? And this one...
Heinrich looks at the elevator's buttons, of which they're labeled from 2F to 2BF. The light indicating what floor the elevator's on continues past the buttons, down into the wall of the elevator itself, making a PING every time it moves. The light moves faster and faster until it's passed through the floor completely, but the noise continues.
INT. "TRAILMON TERMINAL" - NIGHT
The elevator lands with a final PING. The doors open, and Heinrich first peeks his head out from the side, surveying the strange landscape.
He slowly steps out, and observes the doors closing behind him. The elevator is connected to a strange glass tube that extends far above. A clock above the elevator makes an obtuse TICK, TOCK, as the seconds pass by. The elevator PINGs again, and starts to ascend, leaving Heinrich stranded.
He steps further out. There are several train tracks in a semi-circle extending into a dark fog. One has a dark green train on it, resembling the Shinkansen, and the rest are empty. Several clocks, identical to the one on the elevator shaft, TICK and TOCK in unison. They float in between the train lines. There's nothing else down here, not a person, not a rat, not a chair or a bench. A rainbow of lights pours in from above. Heinrich looks up, but the source of them is impossible to determine, or even where the walls are.
The PSV**A in Heinrich's hand lights up.
PSV**A
This is the final choice. Will you get on?
HEINRICH
Get... on the train?
Try as he might, Heinrich can't tell if anyone's inside the train. There are lights on within, and as he gets closer he sees the doors are wide open.
There's some writing on the side of the train, runes in Digimoji. They're professionally embedded, printed onto the train's metal like a model number.
He cautiously continues forward, a single step at a time, until he reaches the open door. A floating clock above his head is about to strike 4 AM, emphasizing a TICK and TOCK. He leans inside.
HEINRICH
H... Hello?! Who's i-in here?!
Silence. He takes one step inside. Almost drops the PSV**A, he scrambles to catch it, and fully enters.
The clock above makes a Tick and a loud TOCK as it strikes 4 AM. The doors close behind Heinrich with a slow SWISH.
INT. "TRAILMON C-89"/TRAIN CAR 1 - NIGHT
The inside of the train is of a darker green shade than that of the outside. The walls and floor are the same metallic color, as are the arms and backs of the seats. Heinrich is on his hands and knees. Flips around. Faces the doors. He crawls over, shakily raising a hand up. To his surprise he finds no handles. He puts his hands on his head and yells.
HEINRICH
STUPID! STUPID! STUPID!
On his knees, Heinrich bangs once on the door, deeply exhales, then straightens up. He leans against the wall, and takes a slow look at the rows of empty seats to his right. The seats themselves are a light green plush, like felt.
HEINRICH (CONT'D)
What's even happening?
(beat)
Is this a horror movie? Where's the killer?
(beat)
Or a Saturday morning cartoon? Is this some elaborate heist I'm being framed for?
Heinrich begins walking down the train's aisle, inspecting the seats as he does.
HEINRICH (CONT'D)
Hey! If you're going to kill me or whatever, you could at least have the decency of SHOWING yourself!
Heinrich reaches the end of the train car, breathing a small sigh of relief that this door has a working handle. He pushes through, still carefully proceeding.
INT. TRAIN CAR 2
The second car is a perfect copy of the first, with an equal lack of people and objects. None of the seats have any identifying text, nor is there anything else noteworthy. Heinrich slowly proceeds, heading through the next car's door.
INT. TRAIN CAR 3
Heinrich walks through the car, paying less attention to the surroundings and more to the door ahead. He pushes through the door.
INT. TRAIN CAR 4
Heinrich begins to run, rushing to get through the door.
INT. TRAIN CAR 5
Heinrich continues to run, but slows down by the time he reaches the door. He heaves a sigh, and backs up to one of the seats. He looks out the window, where there's nothing but the swirling purple void that was visible from the elevator. He stares at his reflection.
The BUZZ from earlier returns. Heinrich sighs at the reflection in exasperation.
HEINRICH
Just end me now...
He pulls the object in his hand up to his face, surprised to not find the PSV**A, but a strange device, called a Digivice, decorated in orange, yellow, and blue.
He looks at his feet, then under them. Looks under the seat.
HEINRICH (CONT'D)
Wha... The hell? Where'd... Ah shit.
Heinrich looks back toward the entrance of the train car.
HEINRICH (CONT'D)
Did I... No way! Aug! I'll never find it if I dropped it...
He starts to walk back, inspecting the new Digivice in his hands. It's about the size of the PSV**A, but vertically oriented. Its base is a bright yellow, with a large orange grip that allows it to fit comfortably in one hand.
HEINRICH (CONT'D)
Is this...
(yawn)
a GameB**...? Button on top... and on the side, no d-pad...
INT. TRAIN CAR 5
Heinrich goes to press one of the buttons, but as he does the train starts to move. From somewhere, the ROTATING of a traditional train's wheel-bar can be heard. It throws his balance off, and he stumbles into the side of a seat as he tries to catch himself. The Digivice DROPS and CLATTERS on the floor.
The train continues to accelerate, at an absurd rate. He reaches out with his foot, to try and grab the Digivice. It VIBRATES against the train's floor, getting further and further away. The train SHAKES, building up speed until Heinrich can't hold onto the seat anymore. He slips, and TUMBLES and rolls down the train aisle. At the entrance of the train car, he lands with his back against the now closed door, SMACKING his head into it. FADE OUT.