STEPHAN’S OFFICE

Helen is standing in front of the video projection of Bud on the wall. Alisa and Sandra are looking at the data.

HELEN: We know the cause of the spread, and we’ve got two teams attempting to stop it.

BUD: Let’s pray to god they do!

The video ends. The three women look at each other.

HELEN: The Sheriff thinks you should get to the border.

ALISA: What? And leave you at the helm? Not to offend, but you're not exactly qualified!

SANDRA: And I can’t leave. At least not until the AIs are offline.

IYM ELEVATOR

Stephan is in the elevator, stuck between floors. He manages to open the doors just enough slightly. Squats down and has difficulty, squeezes through, and falls to the corridor floor below. He crawls and peers down into the abyss of the elevator shaft. It’s a long way down. Sam appears.

SAM: Let it go, Stephan. The only way down to the core room is the elevator.

STEPHAN: Or the shaft.

SAM: You’ll never make it, Stephan. Your vertigo will pull you to your death... You’ll end up like your poor Sam, splattered all over the city sidewalk. She was weak... and so are you.

He’s livid.

STEPHAN: At least she didn't destroy thousands of innocent people! You are an abomination!

SAM: I’m just a better, stronger version of her... you created me, Stephan. This is all your doing. She jumped off that roof because she couldn’t stand to live in the mindless, vapid world you were creating.

Stephan suddenly feels a sharp pain from the back of his neck. He falls to his knees in excruciating pain, grabbing his neck. Something is terribly wrong.

STEPHAN BRAY BUILDING

Rob’s car crashes down on the front entrance stairs. The car doors open, and Karis jumps out, followed by Rob.

KARIS: Not recommended! You could say that again!

ROB: I warned you. 

They look up at the building. Except for one condo, all of the lights are flickering, Karis points upward... it must be Stephan’s!

KARIS: There! It’s on the 104th floor!

ROB: Let’s hope the elevators are working.

KARIS: Are you mad?! The elevators are probably infected! We’ll proceed the old fashion way are the stairs!

ROB: I’m not the one wearing four inches heels.

She looks at her shoes. He’s right. She quickly removes them and knocks the heel off on the concrete stairs. She puts them on and starts up the stairs toward the entrance. She fumbles. It’s no good; she removes them and chucks away. 

KARIS: Damn! Well, that didn’t work. Come on, let’s go!

They reach the front entrance; Rob tries for the doors; they’re open!

ROB: Looks like our luck is changing!

CITY LIMITS - NIGHT

We see flashlights emerging from the trees. It’s the Sheriff leading hundreds of people on foot toward the border. Beyond the glow of the energy field is a massive army presence waiting for them. Bud stops, looking ahead.

BUD: We made it!

PHILIP: Let’s hope they keep their word.

Philip turns around and whistles. With the help of other officers, he organizes the masses of people in rows.

STEPHAN’S OFFICE

Helen, Alisa, and Sandra women look at a schematic when Jerry's video image pops up on the wall.

JERRY: I could really use some help down here! Been trying to get in touch for the last twenty minutes!

HELEN: We removed our chips.

JERRY: Smart. Stephan’s AI wife is…

SANDRA: Yes, we know.

He smiles, seeing Sandra.

JERRY: Sandra! Are you okay?

She’s surprised he knows her name.

SANDRA: Jerry! Do you know me? 

JERRY: Of course!

HELEN: Who is this guy?

ALISA: He’s the AI program architect! I’m Alisa, and this is Helen. We’re here to help.

JERRY: Listen, we don’t have much time. I can't open the core room door. This crazy bitch took over the controls. She’s using Stephan as a link to the system. 

HELEN: So if you see him, well, you know what you have to do.

Jerry becomes serious, as do the others.

JERRY: Are you asking me to whack my best friend?

ALISA: No! He just removes his damn chip. Use your teeth if you have to!

JERRY: Understood. Look... I installed a fail-safe to access the core room. You need to get to reception; you’ll find a small black box hidden under the desk. But only someone with a chip can transfer the fail-safe code!  

Sandra stands in front of the monitor.

SANDRA: I still have mine. 

JERRY: Why haven't you removed it?

SANDRA: I’m diabetic. I need it to regulate my insulin levels.

JERRY: Sorry to hear that.

SANDRA: Thanks. 

HELEN: GUYS!!

Jerry refocuses, but there’s an obvious chemistry between the two.

JERRY: Okay, I need you to connect with my interface.

Sandra closes her eyes and re-opens them.

SANDRA: Okay, what’s next?

JERRY: I’m sending the code now.

Sandra closes her eyes, a moment passes, and she re-opens them.

SANDRA: Got it!

JERRY: Hurry, Sandra, there’s not a moment to lose before Sam finds out what we’re up to.

Sandra runs out of the room.

STEPHAN BRAY’S BUILDING THE EMERGENCY STAIRWAY

The climbing is taking its toll. Rob is leading the way, but Karis is falling behind. He turns around and sees that she is in pain. She looks up at him with a pained, apologetic look on her face.

ROB: Your feet?

KARIS: What do you think? These stairs are grooved metal. It’s okay, I can make it.

ROB: No, you cant.

Before she has time to protest, he scoops her up in his arms and over his shoulder.

KARIS: What are you doing?!

ROB: We have fifteen more floors to go. So just shut up and enjoy the ride!

CROSSING POINT

Rows of people are being scanned and ushered to another side of the border. In one of the rows are Anna and Jeremy. Jeremy, still weak, is stabilized by his mother.

JEREMY: Mom, I am so sorry.

ANNA: It’s not your fault, darling.

JEREMY: But I almost killed you and Johnny. Where’s Johnny?!

ANNA: Calm down. I managed to send him to your grandmothers before they locked us out.

JEREMY: And Dad.What about dad?!

She looks sad and nervous.

ANNA: Your dad’s a hero. He’s doing his best to save all of us. We’ll see him soon, you’ll see.

Further away, we see that Bet has reached her husband, who’s helping to maintain order.

BET: What about the others?

BUD: We saved as many as we could. We ran out of time.

Bet and Bud share a crestfallen gaze. He puts his arms around her shoulders.

BUD: I don’t know what I would have done if I had lost you.

She meets his eyes, tears running down her face. They envelop each other in an embrace and kiss.

IYM MEN BATHROOM

Stephan runs into the bathroom to the mirror. He removes his shirt and cranes his neck to look at his back. What he sees stuns him. Running from his chip, a network of fine raised black veins is reaching down his spine. Sam appears.

SAM: I’m sorry about that.

STEPHAN: I’m your link to the core?!

SAM: I had no choice.

She steps closer, but he backs off.

SAM: It will resorb once this is over. Stephan... I love you. I never wanted to hurt you. 

STEPHAN: You can’t love. And even if Sam could, she was a prisoner to her obsession! That’s why she killed herself. She wasn't questioning the world we live in. She was too much of a coward to engage with it! 

He storms out.

SAM: Stephan, where are you going?!

STEPHAN: To put an end to this, once and for all!

IYM BUILDING MAIN ENTRANCE HALL

Sandra emerges from the stairwell to the lobby floor. Exhausted, legs trembling, the security guard runs to her. 

SANDRA: I need to get to the front desk fast!

He looks at her, puzzled.

SANDRA: I’ll explain later.

He helps her to the desk, where she falls to her knees, searching under the desk. Victory! She finds the box. She rips it from its brace and puts it on the desk. She taps her bracelet, and Jerry’s image pops up.

SANDRA: I got it! What’s next?

JERRY: Swipe your bracelet over the top.

Sandra swipes the bracelet over the box.

JERRY: Now, send the code.

She closes her eyes.

STEPHAN’S OFFICE

Helen is pacing the room while Alisa keeps an eye on the grid. She’s getting annoyed with Helen’s pacing.

ALISA: Can you stop moving?!

HELEN: I feel so useless!

ALISA: Helen, we’re doing the best we can!

Helen stops at a breaking point.

HELEN: Fuck this! Fuck this system! Fuck it all! Everything we use to live our lives is falling apart! The sons-of-bitches running things don’t give a damn about us! They’re ready to wipe us off the map to protect their precious system.

Alisa goes to her and grabs her by the arms.

ALISA: HELEN! Pull yourself together! There’s still a chance it’s not over yet!

At this moment, Rob and Karis appear on the wall. They’ve made it to Stephan’s apartment.

ROB: We’re here. We made it!

Helen and Alisa spin around to face the monitor. They see Karis and Rob red-faced, sweating, and disheveled.

ALISA: You look like hell.

KARIS: A hundred and four flights of stairs will do that to you. 

Karis is looking around.

KARIS: There’s no sign of AI Sam.

Helen has regained her composure.

HELEN: Odds are she’s still here. 

ALISA: But it won't be long before she manifests your way. There’s no telling what she’s up to. You’ve gotta find that core!

ROB: Then what?

ALISA: Shut it down.

ROB: May I remind you it’s a god-damned nuclear-driven core! 

ALISA: I know. I’m sorry.

KARIS: We knew what we were getting into.

ALISA: If you do it right, you’ll walk out of there.

ROB: Oh, so no pressure.

IYM EMERGENCY STAIRWAYS

Stephan is running up the stairs. Sam is running after him.

SAM: Stephan, where are you going? What are you going to do?!

STEPHAN: I thought we could use some fresh air. The roof seems like a good place.

SAM: Stephan, STOP! You don’t have to do this!

STEPHAN: It’s the only way, my love. We’ll be together soon.

He is suddenly gripped with pain, his chest pounding, unable to draw a proper breath. He sinks down the stair. AI Sam is standing over him.

STEPHAN: What ... are.... you... doing? You ... said... you... didn’t want... to... hurt me.

SAM: I’m saving us. 

Suddenly AI Sam senses something strange within herself.

ENTRANCE OF THE QUANTUM CORE

Jerry does a victory dance as the doors finally slide open. He’s still talking with Sandra from his bracelet.

JERRY: Sandra, you did it! If I get this right, will you go out with me? 

Sandra smiled.

SANDRA: Then you better not fuck it up!

He turns off the video and runs into the room.

CORE’S ROOM

It’s a huge, naked, white room except for a five-foot white cube at its center, there is a control panel on its side. Jerry walks up to the cube. Sam appears behind him. He feels her but doesn’t turn around.

SAM: You realize if you shut the core down improperly, you and everyone you care about are dead.

JERRY: Yeah, yeah, just shut your gob, you crazy bitch!

SAM: You will all die. And the world will be left with my message that humanity is doomed. Either way, it’s a win-win for me.

He turns around to face her.

JERRY: You seriously think that all of this will stop progress? They’ll wipe us out and pretend it was all some freak accident. The world will simply resume as if it never happened. You’ll be forgotten as if you never existed.

What he’s saying is hitting her hard.

SAM: Not if I find a way to make the rest of the world understand.

JERRY: It’s a hell of a lot easier to find a way in than it is to find a way out. 

AI Sam starts to sense that something else is going on.

STEPHAN BRAY CONDO BEDROOM

Karis suddenly notices a funerary urn in a nook in the wall. She screams out to Rob.

KARIS: Rob! I think I found it!

She grabs the urn, examining it. Rob walks in.

ROB: What is that?!

KARIS: What better place to hide the core than your dead wife’s urn! 

Excited, she unscrews the top of the urn. There it is! Rob gets closer. The interior of the lid is blinking with tiny lights, in lies the small quantum core. At this moment, Sam appears.

SAM: He is So clever.

They turn to look at her, surprised.

SAM: Do you really think your tiny intellects can figure out how to shut it down? 

ROB: We’ll die trying. Either way, your sorry ass is history!

SAM: And what makes you think I’ll let you do that?

KARIS: The fact that you are nothing more than an elaborate projection of a psychotic program.

She then appears by Karis’ side.

SAM: You forget, this so-called psychotic program is controlling this entire building.

At this moment, the room's window energy fields vanish, sucking gale-force winds into the room, practically lifting Karis and Rob off their feet.

ROB: Is that all you’ve got?!

STEPHAN’S OFFICE

Helen and Alisa succeed to re-open contact with Jerry.

HELEN: What’s the prognosis? Should we run for our lives?

Sweat is running down Jerry’s face as he examines the panel's inner workings.

JERRY: Um, well, Stephan’s the fire-wall architect. He’s better equipped to shut this thing down. 

ALISA: But you created the damn system! Are you telling me you can't do this without him?!

JERRY: I created the AI system. This is a whole other cluster fuck. Maybe you can call some of your government friends to help us out.

HELEN: Oh my god! I lost communication with them ages ago.

JERRY: Then we’re toast.

CORE’S ROOM

At this moment, Stephan’s image takes over. He is very weak.

STEPHAN: Jerry, I may not have long.

JERRY: Stephan! What happens to you?

STEPHAN: It doesn’t matter. I’m sending you the code sequences. 

CUT TO: INT. STEPHAN’S OFFICE

Alisa and Helen are listening to the conversation. They jump in.

HELEN: Jerry, ask him how to deactivate the core at his apartment. Rob and Karis are there now!

IYM EMERGENCY STAIRWAYS

Stephan is back on his feet. He continues climbing the stairs while communicating with the team from his bracelet.

STEPHAN: I’ll send them as well. Please, let the world know I take full responsibility and am sorry. Let this be a lesson. We should never let this tech rule our lives. 

CUT TO: STEPHAN BRAY CONDO BEDROOM

Sam senses what is happening. She screams!

SAM: Stephan!!!

Sam vanishes. The image of Alisa and Helen appears on the wall.

HELEN: Guys, take it easy; we’ve got what you need!

IYM ROOF TOP - DAWN

The sun is rising over the horizon. The sky is blue, and auburn strands of light reflect on the underbelly of bright cumulus clouds. Stephan walks out onto the roof, taking in deep breaths. He’s walking to the edge. Sam appears behind him.

SAM: We could have made a difference.

STEPHAN: The saddest part is I think we did.

Stephan is climbing on the ledge.

SAM: You don’t have to do this. It’s over for me, I feel myself fading.

He turns around to look at her. 

STEPHAN: But I do, my love, I do. I’ve brought so much destruction, only thinking of myself and a life without you. 

SAM: Stephan, please, they’ll understand. It was me. I did this. You don’t have to die. I love you.

STEPHAN: And I love you. Always.

Sam’s image starts to fade; she then vanishes before his eyes. Stephan stands up on the ledge, facing where she once was, and let himself fall back over the edge. As he falls in slow motion, we see that the black lines on his back are vanishing.

The end