! ! ! ! ! ! ! “Family” by! Chris !Haigh ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! Based on ‘Runaways’, a publication, and characters created by Brian K. Vaughan & ON BLACK. The sound of the waves and the ocean's most primal, elemental rhythms. As if we're deep underwater. ALEX (O.S.) Stick no more. CUT TO: INT. UNDERWATER TEMPLE - MAIN - NIGHT A figure collapses to the floor, the sound harsh in the silence of the chamber. blinks, pushing herself up and takes in the scene around her. THE are stood around in various groups - the Deans and the Hayes, the Wilders and the Minorus and the Yorkes and the Steins. The Minorus are knelt by the CIRCLE, the intricate layers spinning much quicker and GLOWING. The Deans and the Hayes are sat down, back to back, tied up in thick CHAINS similar to Karolina's bonds. Beside them, keeps on sleeping, her parents' glowing eyes a testament to her slumbering state. ALEX WILDER is stood in front of her, lit from behind by the glowing turquoise light from one end of the chamber. NICO Alex? ALEX Sorry. Took me a while to get that one to get you onstuck. (smiles) You get it? 'Stick no more'? Appropriate. NICO What are you doing? ALEX What I've always done. Being loyal. Nico rises to her feet, fists bunched in anger. She looks around - and spies the rest of the gang. is still bound in chains and is out for the count. 2.

ALEX (CONT'D) Easy does it. I don't want to have to use the stick, but I will. NICO I don't understand. Why? We were a team. ALEX We were a joke, Nico. We were a bunch of kids playing at being grown up while the world began to circle down to the end. NICO How long have you known? About this? About the Gibborim and the Pride? (off look) Oh come on, Alex. You don't become a traitor that quick with that much confidence. ALEX You're a smart girl. (beat) I found out about a year ago. During one of our annual ‘fundraisers’. CUT TO: INT. MANSION - LIVING ROOM - EVENING (FLASHBACK) The gang are all there - including - curled up watching a movie on one of the oversized couches. Molly is asleep on Gert's shoulder. Nico, wearing glasses, turns to Alex: NICO Do you mind seeing if there's something else? One more 'Scary Movie' and I'll have to hunt down the Wayans Brothers and beg them to save the franchise. GERT Oh, get in line. One more movie parody and I'm going to march on the film studios. KAROLINA Hey they're not all bad. ALEX I'll go grab a movie. 3.

Alex gets up, heading out of the living room. INT. MANSION - SPARE ROOM - NEXT (FLASHBACK) ON ALEX as he looks around the DVD shelves, looking for something new. ALEX (V.O.) I found the corridors when I was looking for a movie. Had no idea up until then. Alex grabs a DVD - but it swings, stuck in place...... and the entire shelf SLIDES BACK behind the wall, revealing a gloomy passageway behind it! ALEX Whoa. INT. MANSION - PASSAGEWAY - NEXT (FLASHBACK) ON ALEX as he moves down the passage, phone held aloft like a flashlight. ALEX (V.O.) Then I saw them. Their ritual. Alex spies the window, sweeping away a handful of dust and mess to reveal...... the meeting room, where the PRIDE are assembled. FROM OUTSIDE, we watch JANET STEIN ram a ceremonial dagger into the heart of a young, dark-skinned PROSTITUTE! Within seconds, the girl is slumped, DEAD, on the table - and TINA MINORU has extracted her soul into an orb. The table underneath the girl's body is SCORCHED. ON ALEX as he watches in horror and fascination. ALEX (V.O.) And I saw the truth about everything. CUT TO: INT. WILDER HOME - ALEX'S ROOM - NIGHT (FLASHBACK) ON ALEX as he sits cross-legged on his bed, a LAMP on as he pours over a copy of the ABSTRACT. ALEX (V.O.) I found my parents' copy of the Abstract and their ring. Started to translate it. (MORE) 4. ALEX (V.O.) (cont'd) I learnt about the history of the Pride. And how they have to survive. CUT TO: INT. UNDERWATER TEMPLE - MAIN CHAMBER - PRESENT DAY ON NICO as she watches Alex as he speaks, impassioned. ALEX Our parents are heroes. This world is doomed, Nico. It's running down to the end and at least this way we can survive. We can make it. NICO So what? This has all been part of a sick plan? ALEX Not all of it. I didn't plan on that staking out in our hideaway. (grins) Get it? 'Staking out'? Fine, whatever. I was waiting until we got closer to the end date, but I guess that sped things along a little. NICO But I... I said we should go interrupt the rite. ALEX After I led them to the Hostel. Made sure we were like trapped, scared animals in a corner. Willing to do anything to get out... even journeying to the bottom of the ocean to save the world. NICO You're insane. You're freaking... brainwashed by your parents' own brand of psychopathy. That means you're a nutjob! ALEX No, it means I'm trying to save us. The deal our parents made, all those years ago... they gave those places in Paradise to us. You, me, Chase, Gert, Karolina, Molly. Alex moves around, circling around Nico. He steps in close, the conversation just between the two of them. 5.

ALEX (CONT'D) And then we turned against them. And we proved we weren't worthy. Look at us. Squabbling and fighting like kids about the lies that have to be told. The secrets that have to be kept. (beat) W’at was it you said to me once? 'The world is corrupt. Full of bad people’. And you're right. The planet is awash of bad people. You can't cure evil, Nico. In order for our planet to survive... they have to cut out. Like a tumour. NICO You're planning on wiping out the entire world to save humanity... and you don't think you're insane. Wow. Good luck with that. ALEX Not the whole world has to die. The Gibborim has promised six places. Now that the Deans and the Hayes have revealed their traitorous actions, my family are going to take those spots. Your family can too. NICO What? ALEX Your family and mine. Six spots, three each. (beat) I know you love me. You said so yourself. And we can be together. We can survive this. Make a new world for ourselves. Magic will survive in your veins and in your staff, you don't have to worry about that. ON NICO as she pauses, head bowed. NICO (long beat) But... Karolina and Molly and... ALEX It won't hurt. They've promised me that and I read it in the Abstract. (MORE) 6. ALEX (cont'd) The Gibborim are concerned with removal, not pleasure in destruction or torture. They want the human race gone. Not tortured. NICO And yet they seemed fine snacking on the souls of young girls. Alex leans forward, cupping Nico's cheek with his palm. ALEX Sustenance. Nothing more. They needed the purest form of energy possible, harvested as fresh as possible. It takes a long way for them to come to Earth and back. NICO Alex... I don't know if I can. We'd be destroying the world. Only us six would survive. ALEX But we'd be together. I love you, Nico. NICO I love you too. (long beat) Did you get all that? Alex BLINKS in confusion, Nico looking over his shoulder. Alex turns...... and finds that DALE YORKES, STACEY YORKES, VICTOR STEIN and JANET STEIN have been listening this whole time! They turn to GEOFFERY WILDER and CATHERINE WILDER. VICTOR You snakes in the grass! STACEY You were planning to betray us! After all this time! GEOFFERY Now, listen, I don't know what my boy has been saying, but - Janet FLICKS out a device strapped to her wrist, aiming it like a cannon at Geoffery! JANET One more line and I blow it right back down out of the back of your head, Wilder. 7.

At Geoffery's side, Catherine aims a hefty GUN at Janet. CATHERINE Breathe the wrong way and I obliterate you, bitch. DALE You were always going to betray us, weren't you? GEOFFERY (smirks) Thought had crossed my mind. CATHERINE Besides you're time travellers. You can live the rest of your lives in the past for all we care. Take the nerds with you. NICO (sotto) Oh, crap. High school never ends. ROBERT We deserve those places. You squandered your talents. We earned our places in resurrecting the Gibborim's way of getting back here. VICTOR You're glorified magicians. I'd expect the same from Sigfried and Roy. Tina's hands IGNITE in energy, ABLAZE with mystical fire. TINA Let's see what I can do when I saw you in half then. ON TINA as she throws the fireball at Victor and Janet who dive for the ground! She brings up another FIREBALL - but WHAM! Tina is knocked back by an UPPERCUT from Stacey, her gloves thick and heavy! ON ROBERT as he rushes to his wife's side, she pushing herself up onto her elbows. TINA Finish... the ritual... 8.

Robert nods, racing over to the circle and CHANTING under his breath, WISPS of energy coming off the rapidly-spinning circles within. ON NICO as she turns to Alex: NICO I think I should break. ALEX Break up? We're not - NICO Nope. WHAM! Nico CLOCKS Alex in the face with a RIGHT HOOK! NICO (CONT'D) I was right with ‘break’. ON NICO as she races across the chamber, DUCKING a bolt of LIGHTNING that streaks across the chamber! She grabs hold of Gert, shaking her, the other girl starting to wake up. NICO (CONT'D) Gert, come on, I need you to wake up. GERT (groggily) What's going on? NICO Arma-freaking-geddon. Alex is the mole. Gert rises to her feet, a bit shaky without her glasses, and turns to the forms of Karolina and Molly. GERT Son of a bitch. Besides Alex, stirs, looking towards Gert. GERT (CONT'D) Attagirl. ON ALEX as he spins, furious, and aims the staff at Nico and Gert! ALEX You should have taken my offer! 9.

GERT And you should have said please. And with a ROAR, Old Lace BITES the Staff of One in her jaws, wrenching it out of Alex's grasp and VAULTING across the chamber to land beside Gert! GERT (CONT'D) You might have broken my glasses, but you didn't break my brain. She remembered whose side she's on. ON VICTOR as he sends a BEAM of ENERGY right at Geoffery, he ducking to avoid it...... and it STRIKES the chains imprisoning the Deans and the Hayes, MELTING them right off and freeing them! ALICE HAYES, GENE HAYES, FRANK DEAN and LESLIE DEAN rise to their feet, eyes and auras glowing respectively. FRANK The ritual is ours. Take care of the competition once the Minorus have finished the ritual. Alice looks down - and to her horror she sees Molly, wide awake and moving over to Karolina! KAROLINA Mol, punch my chains, quick. MOLLY What's going on? KAROLINA No idea, but let's roll with it together. Molly lets loose a LEFT HOOK which SHATTERS the chains, Karolina pulling them off and standing...... and her aura IGNITES with colour and aura! KAROLINA (CONT'D) Let's find out what the Hell's - An almighty BOOM sounds out, Karolina and Molly clinging to each other. ON ALEX as he aims his fistigons at Gert and Nico. ALEX I don't need that experiment freak. NICO Try it and I'll - 10.

BOOOOOM!!! An almighty TREMOR shakes out across the chamber, everyone staggering and looking to the circle where Robert is: ROBERT (chanting; arms raised) Invokari esta prionatum! Gibborim! ON THE DOME at the end, it glowing with light - and it PULSES, becoming a massive PORTAL OF ENERGY!! ON THE PRIDE as they look out towards the portal, stock still. They know what's coming. BOOM. BOOM. BOOM. The sound of massive strides. Heading this way. Nico and Gert race to Karolina and Molly. MOLLY Alex? GERT Evil. KAROLINA Apocalypse? NICO (narrows eyes) Now. The four of them look up as the portal begins to RIPPLE, pulsing violently... GERT I think the guests of honour have arrived...... and the GIBBORIM emerge through the portal! They're lumbering, massive creatures, all that more terrifying up close. One looks like a wolf with a human body, another like an Egyptian goddess. The chief Gibborim - with HORNS the size of buses that curve skywards - reaches the circle which is BLAZING with light: GIBBORIM The Rite of Thunder will commence... and this world will once more become ours! The light becomes a BEAM of LIGHT that pulses through the dome at the top of the chamber... 11.

EXT. OCEAN - SAME TIME ...and the BEAM OF LIGHT punches through the ocean, channelling up into the heavens for the entire city to see! The end of the world has come. BLACK OUT. ! ! ! ! ! RUNAWAYS!