"Shoot The Runner" is the forty-sixth mission of Season 3.
There is nothing like returning to an unchanged place to find the ways in which you yourself have altered.
Cast[]
Crew[]
- Writer: Naomi Alderman
- Director: Matt Wieteska
- Sound Designer: Mark Pittam
- Series Created By: Naomi Alderman
Plot[]
Almost At Abel[]
You’re approaching Abel; Moonchild expresses her desire to support you, just like Sam, and remembers how her dad used to support her before he died.
Raise The Alarm[]
Moonchild admits she has not told you everything about the ZRD, but Sam and Jody spot you before she has time to explain.
That Should Keep Them Busy[]
Janine’s hesitant to believe the intruder is you; she thinks it’s her brother, Tom. You open the gates as a distraction as you head to Maxine’s lab.
A Runner, Not A Fighter[]
You grab Maxine’s notes, which will set Abel research back by months, and Moonchild reminisces about her childhood.
Time's Running Short[]
Runner 4 intercepts you; she notes your odd appearance and asks to take you to Maxine, but Moonchild acts fast - you punch Jody and keep heading for the ZRD.
Dying Would Be Too Easy[]
Through Moonchild’s speech, you start hearing Runner 3’s voice, telling you that you deserve to die for what you’ve done.
No Need To Run[]
You hear Archie. She informs you that you’re in your room in Abel Ward after another episode, and that there are no zombies - they were just in your mind.
Transcript[]
MOONCHILD: You’re doing really well, Runner Five. I want to support you, like the branches of a great oak! You told me how Sam’s always been so supportive of you. I totally understand that. Like, my dad? He always had my back. Whenever anyone criticized me, he was the first to come to my defense.
He died, my dad, a few years ago. Really set me off the rails, but in a different kind of way. Sort of onto the rails. I learned so much from my grief. I came out a different person. Like, you know, like an incredible butterfly emerging from a cocoon, or those seeds that only germinate after a forest fire. The natural world has so much to teach us. Sometimes something has to die for something else to be born. I know you understand me. I found our chat so enriching.
Listen, I know this sounds sort of crazy, but I do love you. I do. It’s like, yeah, you were always meant to come to me. You’re the first one, Five. What I’ve really done, what I’ve always dreamed of. What I saw in my visions! You’re the first one who stayed exactly themselves, just changed their perspective. That’s all I hoped for! And you know, all that we have together – it could never have happened if you’d stayed the same. Things have to die, man. It’s the circle of life. You’re almost at Abel. Keep running.
[foliage rustles]
MOONCHILD: Just wait there for a second, Five. You’ve come through the perimeter and into Abel, but someone’s coming.
JODY MARSH: Haven’t heard anything. The Ministry aren’t saying anything.
SAM YAO: You’d think they’d know this is serious! [scoffs] “Just a runner.”
MOONCHILD: That’s wonderful, Runner Five. You can move again in a moment. I never would have thought of telling you to sneak in through the latrine block, but you’re right. It’s not well-guarded. I want you to understand why this is so important. When we talked, you said you thought I was holding something back. I know you’ll help me anyway. I know you will. I’m so – I’m just so moved by your loyalty! I now know why you’ve got those amazing gold sparks in your aura!
JODY MARSH: Hey, Sam, do you see that? Someone moving in the bushes!
MOONCHILD: Stay still, Runner Five. I don’t need to tell you that, of course. And you’ve got your escape route planned. I have been holding back from you. I haven’t told you everything about the Zombie Repelling Device, and why I need to have it. And I want to tell you everything. You’re right, that’s the only way we can help each other.
SAM YAO: You’re right, there’s someone there, I can see them! I think it’s Five. Raise the alarm!
[alarm blares]
MOONCHILD: Five, you can still make it. Behind the dormitory block. There’s no one there now. Run!
[alarm blares]
SAM YAO: I’ve lost them!
JANINE DE LUCA: Which way did the figure go, Mister Yao?
SAM YAO: Well, I thought it was there, towards the rec center.
JANINE DE LUCA: Do you think this was… You’ve thought you’ve seen Runner Five a lot. I’m afraid it’s far more likely to have been – to have been – it’s far more likely to have been my brother making another attempt on my life.
SAM YAO: We don’t know who it was. We haven’t seen anything of Tom, anything at all. And it’s just, with what happened to Comansys… I mean, they said Runner Five was there, but I searched through all the surveillance footage we salvaged, and - [sighs] There’s nothing.
JANINE DE LUCA: You’re correct, Mister Yao, but...we only have suspicions at present. My training was always not to allow suspicions free reign. That is the way to make operational errors.
SAM YAO: Your training?
JANINE DE LUCA: Classified.
MOONCHILD: Oh man! Our karma’s good today! They didn’t spot you now or then. They’re on higher alert than I expected. All that noise they’re making has attracted some zombies to their front gate, though. That could work for us. No one’s guarding the gate raising pulleys, and you’re close. If you just - raise the gates! [gates raise] That should keep them busy, Five! Time for you to get out of there. Get to Doctor Myers’ lab! It’s time. Run!
[glass shatters]
MOONCHILD: Man, you know what I like about you? Your economy. Elbow through the glass door. Single movement, like tai chi, man. That fluidity. So zen! You never do more than is needed to complete the task. [paper rips] Hey, good thinking! You’ve got clever Doctor Myers’ clever notes, and if anyone survives this, you’ll have put this research back months. And no sense making two trips for that.
My dad would have liked that. He was in the Army when he was young. He liked efficiency. It was my dad who started teaching me maths when I was two. My mom was all like, “Man, let her be a child”, and my dad was like, “Look, she loves it!”
It’s a tough thing for a kid, you know. Even then, I felt like there was a heavy black cloud over them. If I’d known about auras then, maybe it would have been easier, you know? Human beings are electrical creatures. We all emit an electrical field. Ancient spiritual traditions call it an aura. Modern science manipulates brain waves with devices like the neural net. It’s all the same thing, man. It’s all just like, different names for the same person. It doesn’t change what’s inside. All I wanted was to make my mom and dad agree with each other. Just, you know – fighting gets us nowhere. You know that. You’re a runner, not a fighter.
That’s good. Now, you’ve just got to get across Abel to pick up that Zombie Repelling Device, and we’re done here.
[door opens, zombies growl]
JANINE DE LUCA: Runners Two and Twelve, gun emplacements, now. And get those gates lowered. There are more coming in. Runner Four, guard duty, now!
JODY MARSH: I’m on it. Position three, right?
SAM YAO: Taking position six. It’s okay, just a few zoms, right? Just a few zoms.
MOONCHILD: You’ve got to get across there now, Five. Not all those zoms are under my control. You need to move. Run!
MOONCHILD: That’s it, you’re halfway there. Just hide behind that – what is that? A statue? Just crouch down there while I work out the best route for you.
JODY MARSH: Oh my God, Runner Five!
MOONCHILD: Man! That’s some bad luck. She’s not supposed to be there. You have to get away from her.
JODY MARSH: Runner Five, are you – are you okay?
MOONCHILD: She doesn’t know! That’s the thing, Five. She just can’t tell.
JODY MARSH: How’d you even get in here, Five? Are you – are you hiding? From the zoms? You look really weird, Five. Just like, spaced out. I know I haven’t seen you since – since I grabbed the ZRD from you. I’m sorry! If I could have stopped you, too, I would!
Have you broken away from the mind control, like the people on that Comansys ship before you – before they died? Did you come here because this is where you feel safe? It’s not safe here, Five. Just take my hand. Doctor Myers might be able to help you.
MOONCHILD: She’s going to try to trick you, Five. Well, you know that.
JODY MARSH: Come on! Just follow me.
MOONCHILD: She’s got something in her hand! Now!
JODY MARSH: Five! What are you doing?
[Runner Five punches JODY MARSH]
MOONCHILD: Very good! You really dealt with her. Now, from where you are, there’s just one more guard to go through to get that ZRD. Hey, it’s your friend Sam! Once you’ve dealt with him, you’ll really be free. Time’s running short. Go!
MOONCHILD: Ah man! I never would have thought of that! Doubling back, getting the zombies to chase you, and leading them into the crowd of defenders behind the barricades! This is the thing I’ve been striving for all along, you know? I mean, I don’t want to control people! That’s so like, out of harmony with nature.
Think about an apple, right? What does an apple want? It wants to spread its seeds. So, does it march up to us and mess with our minds to force us to spread the seeds? No. It works with us. It offers us something we want – nice, juicy apple. And in exchange, maybe we eat the seeds and poo them out along with a nice dollop of fertilizer! Win-win, you see?
That’s what we’re doing, you and me. Everyone wants to be at peace. Everyone wants to know they’re doing the right thing. All I’ve done is to just adjust your priorities. It’s for the best. I know you know that, too. Hey, remember those zombie cult guys? That was an experiment that failed, right? I wanted to see if I could really turn some peoples’ minds around, make them love the thing they were most afraid of. I mean, I did. But they went crazy. Almost got myself killed there. [laughs] There’s been a lot of going crazy. It’s been a real problem. Really hard to solve.
SIMON LAUCHLAN: I’ve been waiting for you.
MOONCHILD: Something about the balance of neural chemicals. It was the same with that woman who used to be a cook at Abel. What was her name? Uh, Francesca. She started hearing voices.
SIMON LAUCHLAN: Oh, you know. You deserve to die for what you’ve done.
MOONCHILD: But you’re fine, aren’t you, Five? Look at you, loping over to deal with Sam Yao. So graceful!
SIMON LAUCHLAN: The thing is, Five, dying would be too easy.
[door opens]
MOONCHILD: Ah, here we are. The ZRD is inside that cabinet. Only one person to get through.
SAM YAO: Hello, Five.
MOONCHILD: The ZRD is crucial, man! It’s more important than anyone realizes! There’s going to come a time when heavenly bodies will align, and then we’ll see our destinies!
SAM YAO: Hey, Five, I knew it was going to be you. I felt your presence. Yeah, that’d be a better joke if it was Christmas. [shouts] Five’s here. I’m okay, just need a bit of help. Five’s here.
MOONCHILD: No one’s coming, yet. I know this is going to be hard. You have your ax, Five…
SAM YAO: It’s not you, you know? Something’s happened to you. But I know you’re in there. I do! I just feel it. The thing is… Look, I’ve watched you all run so much. I don’t even need cams half the time. I’d know who was who by the sound of your steps. And I can hear it in yours now. You’re not running like yourself. You sound like one of those drones! Mechanical, each step the same. Except sometimes, just for a second, you go back to yourself, your own rhythm. I know you’re in there, Five. I know you can fight it.
[control tones ring]
MOONCHILD: It’s just like ripping off a plaster, Five. You’ll feel so much better when it’s done. Get me that ZRD, now.
SAM YAO: Five, no, please. This isn’t you. You don’t want to do this! No! Help! Someone, help!
MOONCHILD: Do it.
SAM YAO: No, no! [shouts]
[flashback lines echo]
SIMON LAUCHLAN: You were always meant to come here. I have to do this.
MOONCHILD: I want to support you, like the branches of a great oak!
JODY MARSH: It’s not safe here, Five.
SAM YAO: Just for a second, you go back to yourself.
[footsteps]
[present time]
ARCHIE JENSEN: Five, stay with me! Come on, Five, stay here! Hey, Patient Five, wake up! Remember, you’re here. You’re safe, remember? Your own room in Abel Ward. You’ve had another episode, but you’re coming around, now. Right as rain. There are no zombies. They were all just in your mind. You’re safe. No need to run. You’re safe here. So where would you even run to?
Codex[]
Artefact[]
...ginger one with the black patch is called Muggins. Or maybe Nuggins? Anyway, I think he definitely responded by turning his head when I said "Muggins" so I'm sure that must be something like his name. And it must all be pretty traumatic for them, so I think it's important to use their real names. Anyway, he only eats sardines from a can. If you put them on a plate he doesn't recognise them as sardines or something? But you have to make sure that the can isn't sharp. So bend the edge round with pliers before you give them to him. I've left pliers in the third drawer down.
The black one with the white socks on her two front feet is Livia. She only likes to be tickled behind her right ear, so...
Supplies[]
The following supplies can be found in this mission.
(List may be incomplete.)
9mm Ammo
Axe
Bandages
Baseball Bat
Batteries
Book
Bottled Water
Box of Lightbulbs
Candles
Cooking knife
DVD
Fuel Can
Lock pick
Mobile Phone
Money
Pain Meds
Paint
Pot plant
Power Cable
Radio
Sewing Kit
Shorts
Solar Charger
Sports Bra
Tinned Food
Tool Box
Toy car
Trainers
Trousers
Underwear
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