Chill Factor

SCENE:

EXT. JUNGLE/TEST SITE - HORN ISLAND,

SOUTH PACIFIC - 1977- DAY.

BRYNNER:

Hemmings! Sam, I thought I told you to

close up shop and be ready to move up the

island by night-...

BRYNNER:

(off) ...-fall.

HEMMINGS:

Yes, Captain Brynner, you did, but-but--

BRYNNER:

(off) (interrupting) But...

BRYNNER:

...what, Sam? Can't I go down to the

loading dock for a few hours without

coming back to find a major...

BRYNNER:

(off) ...screwup?

HEMMINGS:

Uh, with all due respect, sir, Dr. Long

told me to prep the field for detonation

at...

HEMMINGS:

...noon.

BRYNNER:

Jesus Chri-- We're on a very slippery

slope here, Sam. A covert military

operation riddled with civilian...

BRYNNER:

(off) ...scientists.

HEMMINGS:

You don't think it's that bad, do you,

sir? I mean, Long's spent the last two

years developing his defoliant. The

stuff can't even kill crabgrass yet.

BRYNNER:

Where's their protective...

BRYNNER:

(off) ...gear?

HEMMINGS:

(off) It's a hundred degrees...

HEMMINGS:

...out here, captain. Don't you think

the guys deserve a break?

BRYNNER:

They'll get a break tomorrow.

BRYNNER:

We're not gonna take chances on our last

day.

SCENE:

INT. BLOCKHOUSE/LABORATORY - DAY.

NARRATIVE TITLE:

CAUTION:

NARRATIVE TITLE:

NOTICE:

TELSTAR:

(pants) Hey...

TELSTAR:

(off) ...doc. What's up?

TELSTAR:

I thought we wrapped the tests yes-...

TELSTAR:

(face off) ...-terday. Captain Brynner

is...

TELSTAR:

...gonna shit if he finds out we haven't

closed up...

TELSTAR:

(face off) ...shop.

LONG:

I had something of an epiphany this

morning, Telstar. I eliminated the

binary shell and I grafted the cobalt ion

to the other side of the molecule. I

think it might give us a significantly

more rapid chemical ignition.

TELSTAR:

It better.

SCENE:

INT. BLOCKHOUSE/COMPUTER ROOM - DAY.

SWEENEY:

(grunts)

LONG:

Mr. Sweeney, how goes it?

SWEENEY:

Well, (clears throat) Costello's finished

with the stability profile, but Abbott is

still chewing on the load file.

LONG:

So reaction temperature is fifty degrees.

SWEENEY:

Well, your prediction was on the nose.

LONG:

How much longer for the range and power

projections?

SWEENEY:

(sighs) (raspberries) I don't know. Um,

he's working, but there's a lot of data.

Maybe...another hour?

LONG:

We don't have an hour. We're already

supposed to be shut down.

SCENE:

INT. BLOCKHOUSE/LABORATORY - DAY.

BRYNNER:

Doc-...

BRYNNER:

(off) ...-tor Long.

BRYNNER:

What the hell is all this about a

detonation today? We're scheduled...

BRYNNER:

...to be off the island tonight.

LONG:

And I changed the schedule.

LONG:

I don't work for you, Captain Brynner.

BRYNNER:

Sweeney tells me you don't have computer

confirmation?

LONG:

You know, captain, if you hadn't spent so

much of your career questioning your

superiors, you might've found yourself

with more gold leaf on your col-...

LONG:

...-lar.

BRYNNER:

This isn't some kind of pissing contest,

Long. You may be in charge here, but

those men out there are my responsi-...

BRYNNER:

...-bility.

LONG:

Look, this is a scientific experiment,

okay?

LONG:

If it works, your stock at the Pentagon

will go up along with mine. I don't

think I need to mention you could use the

help.

BRYNNER:

The NSA thinks the UN is onto your

work...

BRYNNER:

...here, and the White House is screaming

about chemical weapons, (face off) and

we're...

BRYNNER:

...sittin' here with our hands in the

goddamn cookie jar! And let me tell you

something else. I didn't join the

service to let people like you turn...

BRYNNER:

...the United States into the kind of

country we're supposed to be fighting

against.

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