(WAR PIGS)
by
(Joe Murkijanian)
(Based on Black Sabbath Lyrics)
1/5/26
Name
Address
Phone 323-253-6402
FADE IN:
EXT. EASTERN UKRAINE – DAWN – AERIAL
A vast, frozen expanse of farmland stretches beneath the
camera.
Perfect geometry.
Rectangular fields divided by centuries-old boundaries.
Thin tree lines carve the land into measured segments.
The earth looks calm. Orderly. Almost intentional.
Snow covers everything evenly, softening edges, disguising
damage.
The camera moves slowly, deliberately, as if studying the
land rather than passing over it.
This place existed long before the war.
It will exist long after.
THE CAMERA CONTINUES ITS GLIDE.
A frozen river snakes through the fields, its surface cracked
like old glass.
Then—
The symmetry breaks.
Shell craters interrupt the snow.
Dark, uneven wounds punched into the land.
Ash stains the white surface in irregular halos.
Smoke rises in thin, fragile columns, already dispersing.
The earth absorbs the violence without protest.
No sound but wind.
The aerial drifts forward.
A village comes into view.
Or what remains of one.
Half the buildings stand.
Half have collapsed inward, roofs caved, walls split open.
A church steeple leans at an unnatural angle, its cross bent.
The camera lowers slightly.
A SCHOOLYARD.
Rusting play equipment.
A swing creaks softly, moving back and forth in the breeze.
No children.
The camera does not linger.
The aerial descends further.
A RUSSIAN MILITARY CONVOY crawls through the village.
Armored vehicles move cautiously, tires crunching broken
glass and debris.
Soldiers ride exposed on the sides.
Young faces.
Expressionless.
Eyes scanning windows, doorways, rubble.
From above, the convoy looks small against the damage.
Insects navigating a wound.
A distant explosion blooms on the horizon—muted from this
height.
The sun rises anyway.
Genres:
["War","Drama"]
Ratings
Scene
2 -
The Weight of Silence
INT. RUSSIAN CONSCRIPTION CENTER – KURSK – DAY
Harsh fluorescent lighting.
A long, narrow room filled with metal benches.
A row of BOYS, ages eighteen to twenty, sit shoulder to
shoulder.
Some whisper prayers under their breath.
Some stare at the floor.
Some stare straight ahead, trying not to think.
DMITRI SOKOLOV (19) sits among them.
Still.
Alert.
Already learning how to disappear inside himself.
A MILITARY OFFICER (40s) paces slowly in front of them.
Boot heels echo sharply against tile.
The officer stops pacing.
Turns.
Studies the boys like inventory.
MILITARY OFFICER
You are not here to think.
A few boys nod instinctively.
Most don’t understand what that really means yet.
MILITARY OFFICER (CONT'D)
Thinking is what got the West
killed.
He resumes pacing.
Dmitri doesn’t react.
His face remains neutral, but his jaw tightens almost
imperceptibly.
The officer notices.
Holds Dmitri’s gaze for a beat too long.
CUT TO:
INT. MEDICAL EXAM ROOM – MOMENTS LATER
Cold. Sterile. Chemical smell.
Shirts off.
A NURSE moves down the line administering injections.
She reaches Dmitri.
Injects him at the base of the neck.
NURSE
Stimulant. Keeps you awake.
Dmitri blinks slowly, recalibrating.
Next to him, ALEKSEI (17) leans close, whispering.
ALEKSEI
They said logistics.
Just driving.
Dmitri doesn’t respond.
His hand grips a SMALL NOTEBOOK hidden inside his jacket.
Knuckles whiten.
CUT TO:
INT. TRANSPORT TRUCK – NIGHT
Darkness. Metal walls.
The truck jolts forward, bodies swaying together with each
bump.
Breath fogs the air.
A tinny speaker crackles to life.
Propaganda music.
Heroic narration.
Words about honor and sacrifice.
No one listens.
Dmitri opens his notebook.
A poem. Handwritten. Revised repeatedly.
Personal. Private.
The truck door briefly opens.
A burning village flashes past—orange light, screaming wind.
The door slams shut.
Dmitri closes the notebook.
Tucks it deep inside his coat.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["War","Drama"]
Ratings
Scene
3 -
The Weight of Truth
EXT. KYIV – ROOFTOP – MORNING
Smoke drifts above the city skyline.
IVAN PAVLENKO (40s) adjusts his camera with practiced
precision.
Calm. Focused.
A man who has learned how to frame chaos.
IVAN
Wars don’t begin with bombs.
They begin when words stop working.
He lowers the camera.
His phone vibrates.
A file transfer completes.
Filename: DINNER_WITH_DEVILS.mp4
Ivan hesitates.
Not long—but long enough to matter.
Then opens it.
ON PHONE – INFRARED FOOTAGE
Russian officers drink around a fire.
Laughing. Toasting. Relaxed.
Behind them, on a monitor—
A civilian vehicle explodes.
The officers cheer.
Ivan’s face tightens.
He does not look away.
This is the moment something hooks into him.
If he stops watching, he’s complicit.
If he keeps watching, he changes.
Ivan keeps watching.
The ethical addiction begins.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["War","Drama","Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
4 -
Tension in Transit
INT. TRANSPORT TRUCK – NIGHT
The truck rattles harder now.
Metal walls vibrate with each pothole.
The boys sway together like cargo.
Aleksei grips a hanging strap so tight his fingers go numb.
Dmitri sits with his knees drawn up, notebook buried inside
his coat.
Across from him, a BOY with acne whispers a prayer, not to
God—
to the idea that his mother will never find out what he saw.
The speaker overhead crackles again.
SPEAKER (V.O.)
…your duty is sacred… your
sacrifice is historic…
The words bounce off blank faces.
Dmitri stares at the floor, listening to something else—
The rhythm of the truck.
The distance between stops.
The pattern of the route.
Like a mechanic listening to an engine, Dmitri listens for
failure.
He finds it.
The truck slows.
The brakes squeal.
Someone outside yells a command.
The door unlatches.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["War","Drama"]
Ratings
Scene
5 -
Silent Tension in a Ruined Village
EXT. RUINED VILLAGE – EASTERN UKRAINE – DAY
Gray daylight.
The truck door swings open.
Cold air rushes in, sharp as metal.
Dmitri steps down into snow packed with ash.
A village that looks like it has been chewed.
Broken plaster. Burned beams.
A home split in half—its living room exposed to the street
like a dollhouse.
A stray DOG limps past, ribcage visible, tail low.
Russian soldiers spill out, forming lines, checking weapons.
No excitement.
This isn’t a battle.
This is inventory.
Dmitri’s boots sink slightly into slush.
He looks down—footprints already filling with dirty water.
Something rolls into view.
A CHILD’S BALL, scuffed and faded, pushed by the wind.
It bumps gently against Dmitri’s boot.
He freezes.
Across the street, behind a splintered fence, a UKRAINIAN BOY
(9) watches.
The boy’s face is pale, expression unreadable.
Dmitri meets his eyes.
A long, unbearable beat.
The boy does not run.
Dmitri wishes he would.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["War","Drama"]
Ratings
Scene
6 -
Shattered Memories
INT. RUINED HOUSE – MOMENTS LATER
A dark interior that smells like smoke and wet fabric.
Soldiers sweep through rooms.
Furniture overturned.
Cabinets emptied.
A family’s life searched like a crime scene.
Dmitri steps carefully, avoiding shards of glass.
On the wall— a framed photo of parents, two children, a dog.
The glass is cracked but still holding.
Dmitri stares at it a beat too long.
A boot slams down—CRUNCH.
The frame breaks. The photo bends.
Dmitri flinches, barely.
Behind him—
FIELD COMMANDER ORLOV(40s) enters.
He doesn’t fill the room with noise.
He fills it with gravity.
Orlov’s eyes move like a scanner—
reading angles, exits, threats.
He notices Dmitri’s stillness.
ORLOV
You hesitate.
Dmitri snaps to attention, too fast.
DMITRI
No, sir.
Orlov steps closer, voice calm.
ORLOV
Hesitation is expensive.
Don’t spend what you don’t have.
Orlov’s gaze flicks to the broken photo.
A tiny pause.
Not sympathy.
Recognition—like he’s seen this scene in a thousand places.
Then he turns away.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["War","Drama"]
Ratings
Scene
7 -
The Choice of Conscience
EXT. BARN – LATER
A barn with one wall missing.
Wind whistles through exposed beams.
Four UKRAINIAN MEN kneel in the mud, hands bound.
A fifth man lies nearby—already dead.
No one looks at him.
The Ukrainian boy from before stands across the road,
watching.
Too close.
Too still.
One of the kneeling men—his father—keeps glancing toward the
boy.
Orlov circles the prisoners slowly.
Measured. Professional.
Not a monster.
A machine built to keep other machines running.
ORLOV
We make examples so others live.
He stops behind Dmitri.
Extends a rifle—offers it like a tool.
Dmitri takes it.
His hands tighten involuntarily.
The father looks up at Dmitri, eyes wet but steady.
UKRAINIAN FATHER
(in Russian)
My son is watching.
Dmitri’s breathing becomes loud in his ears.
The rifle feels heavier than physics.
Orlov leans in—quiet enough that only Dmitri hears.
ORLOV
Do it clean.
Don’t make it messy.
Dmitri raises the rifle.
Time slows.
The boy’s eyes do not blink.
Dmitri’s finger touches the trigger.
He thinks— not about politics, not about nations—
about the sound this will make inside his own head.
Then—
Dmitri turns the rifle—
BANG.
Orlov drops instantly, body hitting mud hard.
Silence.
Then chaos detonates.
Shouts. Weapons up. Soldiers spinning in confusion.
Dmitri stands frozen, rifle smoking.
He has crossed a line so deep it feels like a cliff.
Genres:
["War","Drama","Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
8 -
Fleeing Shadows
EXT. RUINED VILLAGE – CONTINUOUS
Dmitri runs.
Gunfire erupts behind him.
Bullets chew into walls, wood splinters exploding like small
birds.
He cuts between buildings.
A dog bolts past him, terrified.
Dmitri ducks into smoke, into rubble, into any shadow.
His lungs burn.
His heart pounds like it’s trying to leave his body.
He looks back—
A soldier’s silhouette appears through haze.
Dmitri dives through a broken window into—
INT. BASEMENT – CONTINUOUS
Dark. Cold.
Water drips somewhere.
Dmitri presses his back against the wall, holding his breath.
Above, boots slam across the floorboards.
Russian voices—angry, confused, barking orders.
Dmitri’s hand goes to his coat—touches the notebook.
He pulls it out, trembling.
The poem inside—
the last thing that feels like “before.”
Dmitri tears out the poem page.
Folds it carefully.
Slides it into his boot.
Then, shaking, he rips out the rest—
Pages flutter like wounded birds.
He pulls a lighter from his pocket.
Lights the paper.
The flame catches fast.
He watches his words burn.
Ash rises, black snow.
Dmitri doesn’t cry.
He just watches something vanish that can’t be replaced.
Above, the footsteps move on.
Dmitri exhales—long, silent.
He waits.
Then crawls out through a hole in the wall.
CUT TO:
EXT. FROZEN FARMLAND – NIGHT
Flat horizon. No cover.
Dmitri stumbles through snow under a moon that offers no
warmth.
His breath fogs.
He limps—one boot soaked.
His arm bleeds through fabric.
He stops, listening.
Nothing.
Just wind.
And the distant, occasional thump of artillery like a slow
heartbeat of the earth.
Dmitri keeps moving.
Every step is a decision to continue existing.
In the distance, headlights approach on a rural road.
Dmitri hesitates.
Then steps toward them, hands raised.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["War","Drama","Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
9 -
Isolation on the Rooftop
EXT. KYIV – ROOFTOP – NIGHT
Ivan stands in freezing wind.
The skyline flickers with intermittent power.
Distant thunder—maybe weather, maybe artillery.
Ivan watches his footage upload again and again across
different channels.
The same images reframed.
Repackaged.
Weaponized.
His phone BUZZES with messages:
YOU’RE A HERO.
YOU’RE A TRAITOR.
YOU’LL BE DEAD BY MORNING.
Ivan doesn’t respond.
He scrolls to a video call request—SOFIA.
He hesitates.
Declines.
Not because he doesn’t want her.
Because if he answers, he’ll hear her voice and become human
again.
And being human right now feels like a liability.
Ivan pockets the phone.
Turns back to the skyline.
His eyes look hungry.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["War","Drama","Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
10 -
The Weight of Truth
INT. UNDERGROUND NEWSROOM – KYIV – NIGHT
Generators hum like tired beasts.
Screens cast blue light across faces that haven’t slept.
Ivan scrubs through footage—frame by frame.
The Editor watches him, concerned.
EDITOR
You’re looping it.
Ivan doesn’t look up.
IVAN
Checking for manipulation.
The Editor steps closer.
EDITOR
Or feeding something.
Ivan stops the playback.
A long beat.
IVAN
If it’s fake, we become liars.
If it’s real, we become targets.
The Editor studies him.
EDITOR
And what do we become if we stop?
Ivan doesn’t answer.
Because the answer is worse.
Across the room, Anya scrubs blood off a table.
Her hands shake, faintly.
She notices.
Forces them still.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["War","Drama","Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
11 -
Stitches of Survival
INT. MAKESHIFT MEDICAL STATION – KYIV – NIGHT
Dim light. Headlamps. Metal trays.
Anya stitches a CHILD on a gurney.
The child’s face is too calm—shock.
Anya’s hands are steady.
Her breathing isn’t.
Inhale—sharp.
Exhale—controlled.
Blood pools faster than expected.
Anya adjusts pressure.
Doesn’t look at the child’s eyes.
If she looks, she slows.
And slowing kills.
A DOCTOR moves past her, murmuring numbers.
DOCTOR
We’re out of saline.
We’re out of morphine.
We’re out of time.
Anya keeps stitching.
Her hands do not stop.
Because if they stop, she will feel everything at once.
And she cannot afford that.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","War"]
Ratings
Scene
12 -
A Fragile Refuge
EXT. RURAL BACK ROAD – NIGHT
A CIVILIAN VAN slows beside Dmitri.
The Driver rolls down the window, terrified.
DRIVER
(in Ukrainian)
Who are you?
Dmitri’s voice is small.
DMITRI
Please.
A beat.
The door opens.
Warm air hits Dmitri’s face.
He almost collapses—not from safety—
but from what safety reminds him he used to be.
CUT TO BLACK.
INT. CIVILIAN VAN – MOVING – NIGHT
The van rattles over uneven pavement.
The DRIVER (50s) grips the steering wheel too tightly.
Dmitri sits hunched in the passenger seat, wrapped in a
borrowed coat.
His teeth chatter—not from cold, but adrenaline bleeding off.
The driver keeps glancing at him, uncertain.
DRIVER
(in Ukrainian)
You bleed like a soldier.
Dmitri nods once.
DRIVER (CONT'D)
Then you should not be here.
Dmitri stares out the window.
Dark fields slide past.
DMITRI
I won’t be for long.
The driver swallows.
Keeps driving.
CUT TO:
INT. SAFE APARTMENT – KYIV – NIGHT
A cramped apartment.
Curtains drawn. Lights low.
Dmitri sits on a kitchen chair while the DRIVER’S WIFE cleans
his wound.
Her hands are gentle but quick.
She avoids eye contact.
DRIVER’S WIFE
(in Ukrainian)
You crossed someone powerful.
Dmitri winces as antiseptic hits skin.
DMITRI
I crossed myself.
The woman pauses—then resumes.
Outside, a distant explosion thuds.
No one reacts.
Normal now.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["War","Drama","Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
13 -
Tension in the Shadows
INT. UNDERGROUND NEWSROOM – NIGHT
Ivan watches a raw clip on repeat.
Not the violence.
The space before it.
A hesitation.
A breath.
A human pause.
The Editor stands behind him.
EDITOR
If we release this uncut, they’ll
say it’s provocation.
Ivan scrubs forward.
IVAN
If we cut it, they’ll say it’s
propaganda.
The Editor rubs his face.
EDITOR
And if we wait?
Ivan looks up.
IVAN
Then someone else controls the
moment.
The Editor nods slowly.
That’s the answer they both feared.
CUT TO:
INT. MAKESHIFT MEDICAL STATION – NIGHT
Anya finishes suturing.
Her gloves are slick with blood.
She peels them off—hands trembling now that the task is done.
She flexes her fingers.
They don’t respond immediately.
A YOUNG NURSE watches her.
YOUNG NURSE
You should sit.
Anya shakes her head.
ANYA
If I sit, I won’t get back up.
The nurse doesn’t argue.
Another patient is wheeled in.
Anya turns.
The shaking stops.
Work overrides weakness.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["War","Drama","Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
14 -
A Name in the Dark
INT. RUSSIAN FIELD HQ – NIGHT
A temporary command center inside a repurposed school.
Maps taped over children’s drawings.
Commander Orlov stands before a tactical display.
An OFFICER briefs him.
OFFICER
Village incident confirmed.
Commander KIA.
A beat.
ORLOV
Name.
The officer hesitates.
OFFICER
Orlov.
The room stiffens.
Not this Orlov.
A cousin.
A namesake.
A mirror.
Commander Orlov absorbs this without visible reaction.
ORLOV
Find the conscript.
The officer nods.
ORLOV (CONT'D)
Alive if possible.
A pause.
ORLOV (CONT'D)
Dead if necessary.
The distinction matters to Orlov.
Even if no one else understands why.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["War","Drama","Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
15 -
A Call to Confrontation
INT. SAFE APARTMENT – DAWN
Dmitri wakes on the floor.
Sunlight leaks through a crack in the curtain.
For a moment, he forgets where he is.
Then memory crashes back—violent, sharp.
He sits up too fast.
Pain blooms.
The DRIVER enters quietly.
Hands Dmitri a phone.
DRIVER
Someone is asking for you.
Journalist.
Dmitri stares at the phone like it’s radioactive.
DMITRI
Tell him—
He stops.
Rethinks.
DMITRI (CONT'D)
Tell him I’m not brave.
The driver doesn’t know what that means.
He dials anyway.
CUT TO:
INT. UNDERGROUND NEWSROOM – DAY
Ivan listens—silent, intense.
Dmitri’s voice crackles through a secure line.
DMITRI (V.O.)
I didn’t plan this.
I didn’t want a message.
Ivan closes his eyes.
IVAN
Nobody ever does.
A beat.
DMITRI (V.O.)
They’ll kill me.
Ivan doesn’t deny it.
IVAN
Yes.
The honesty lands harder than reassurance.
IVAN (CONT'D)
But if they do it quietly,
you disappear.
Dmitri exhales.
DMITRI (V.O.)
And if I speak?
Ivan opens a live feed window.
IVAN
Then they have to choose how loud.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
16 -
Duty Amidst Distress
INT. MAKESHIFT MEDICAL STATION – DAY
Anya collapses briefly against a wall.
Her vision tunnels.
A ringing sound fills her ears.
She presses her forehead to the cool concrete.
Counts breaths.
One.
Two.
Three.
A scream cuts through the space.
A child.
Anya pushes off the wall immediately.
Her body obeys training, not desire.
She moves toward the sound.
Her limp is more pronounced now.
No one comments.
Everyone sees it.
No one stops her.
CUT TO:
INT. RUSSIAN DEFENSE MINISTRY – MOSCOW – DAY
A sleek, insulated office.
GENERAL RADIN (60s) studies satellite data.
An aide stands nearby, uneasy.
AIDE
Defection confirmed.
Radin doesn’t look up.
RADIN
No defection is spontaneous.
He taps the screen—zooming in on Rostov.
A city marker pulses faintly.
RADIN (CONT'D)
There is always a pressure point.
The aide shifts.
AIDE
Authorization for retrieval?
Radin hesitates—just a fraction.
RADIN
Not yet.
A shadow passes across his face.
Something remembered.
Something buried.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
17 -
Ethical Dilemmas in the Dark
EXT. KYIV ROOFTOP – NIGHT
Ivan stands alone again.
Camera mounted.
City lights flicker.
Distant anti-air fire paints brief lines across the sky.
Ivan checks his phone.
A text from an unknown number:
WE KNOW ABOUT SOFIA.
Ivan’s face remains still.
His hands do not.
They tighten around the phone.
He looks back at the camera.
At the red standby light.
A decision forms—not heroic.
Defensive.
Desperate.
Ivan switches the camera ON.
The ethical addiction tightens its grip.
CUT TO BLACK.
INT. UNDERGROUND NEWSROOM – NIGHT
The newsroom has the feeling of a bunker and a confession
booth at the same time.
Ivan stands over an editing station.
The footage timeline stretches across the screen like a
wound.
On one monitor: Dmitri’s shaky face, half-lit, speaking
quietly.
On another: civilian casualties, grainy, undeniable.
On Ivan’s phone: a still photo of Sofia outside school.
Three realities.
One choice.
The Editor approaches—tired eyes, careful voice.
EDITOR
If you cut it, they’ll call you a
propagandist.
Ivan doesn’t look up.
IVAN
If I don’t cut it, they’ll bury my
daughter.
A beat.
The Editor nods like he understands, but his silence admits
he doesn’t.
Ivan drags the playhead.
Deletes a segment.
Then stops.
Adds it back.
Deletes a different segment.
A human being rearranging morality with a mouse.
Ivan finally exports a version.
Not clean.
Not honest.
Not cowardly either.
Survival disguised as professionalism.
CUT TO:
EXT. KYIV – STREET LEVEL – NIGHT
Ivan walks fast through shadowed streets.
His hood up.
He passes storefronts with broken glass taped in X patterns.
A generator hums behind a closed pharmacy.
A young man siphons gas from a car, eyes darting for patrols.
A woman in a winter coat drags a suitcase with one wheel
missing.
Everyone is moving like they’re late for something terrible.
Ivan’s phone BUZZES again.
A message:
POST IT. NOW.
No number.
No name.
Only certainty.
Ivan looks up at a streetlight that doesn’t work.
Even the infrastructure feels like it’s holding its breath.
He keeps walking.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
18 -
Silent Struggles
INT. SAFE APARTMENT – KYIV – NIGHT
Dmitri sits at a kitchen table.
The Driver’s Wife pushes a bowl of soup toward him.
He doesn’t touch it.
The steam rises between them like a barrier.
A small radio plays softly—static and foreign voices.
The Driver stands by the window, watching the street.
Dmitri’s hands tremble slightly as he unwraps the bandage on
his arm.
He stares at the wound.
Not the pain.
The fact that it’s still his body.
Still his life.
DRIVER
(in Ukrainian)
A journalist keeps calling.
Dmitri doesn’t answer immediately.
He looks down at his boots.
At the folded poem hidden inside.
DMITRI
If I talk…
I become a story.
The Driver frowns, not understanding.
Dmitri clarifies—quiet.
DMITRI (CONT'D)
Stories don’t get buried.
People do.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","War"]
Ratings
Scene
19 -
In the Eye of the Storm
INT. MAKESHIFT MEDICAL STATION – NIGHT
Anya moves between gurneys.
Her limp is clearer now.
She compensates with her shoulders, like she’s trying to hide
the weakness by shifting it elsewhere.
A generator sputters.
Lights dim.
Monitors flicker.
Then return.
A false recovery.
A YOUNG SOLDIER screams as a medic pulls shrapnel from his
thigh.
Anya holds him down, voice calm.
ANYA
Look at me.
Breathe with me.
She counts slowly.
The soldier matches her rhythm.
Anya’s own breathing is too fast.
She forces it slower.
Her hand shakes once on the soldier’s shoulder.
She tightens her grip until the tremor disappears.
When the soldier finally quiets, he grabs her wrist.
YOUNG SOLDIER
Am I going to die?
Anya meets his eyes.
A beat too long.
ANYA
Not right now.
It’s the only promise she can ethically make.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","War"]
Ratings
Scene
20 -
Demonstration of Power
INT. RUSSIAN FIELD HQ – NIGHT
Orlov stands over a tactical table.
Aerial photos. Heat signatures. Signal maps.
The OFFICER from earlier points to a cluster of streets.
OFFICER
Kyiv cell identified. Journalist.
Orlov watches the cursor hover over a neighborhood.
Residential density high.
Civilian risk unavoidable.
He doesn’t flinch.
ORLOV
We don’t need to kill him.
The officer exhales, relieved.
Orlov continues.
ORLOV (CONT'D)
We need to teach him
That truth has a price.
The officer’s relief evaporates.
Orlov taps a different location.
An abandoned factory.
An uplink hub.
A message without words.
ORLOV (CONT'D)
Strike this.
Not for damage.
He looks up.
ORLOV (CONT'D)
For demonstration.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["War","Drama","Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
21 -
The Weight of Truth
INT. ABANDONED FACTORY – KYIV OUTSKIRTS – NIGHT
Ivan and a TECH (30s) set up an uplink rig.
Dust in the air.
Concrete floors.
Exposed rebar like broken bones.
The Tech checks the dish alignment.
Ivan watches the laptop screen fill with upload bars.
His hands are steadier now.
That scares him.
TECH
Once this goes live, it spreads
fast.
Ivan nods.
IVAN
That’s the point.
The Tech looks at Ivan—trying to place him.
TECH
You have a kid?
Ivan freezes for half a second.
IVAN
Yes.
TECH
Then you understand.
We do this so they don’t grow up
inside a lie.
Ivan swallows.
Does he understand?
Or is he using his child as an excuse?
The upload bar reaches 87%.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
22 -
Reflections in the Dark
INT. RUSSIAN DEFENSE MINISTRY – MOSCOW – NIGHT
General Radin watches incoming escalation requests.
A secure clock ticks.
An aide stands behind him with a tablet.
AIDE
Orlov requests authority to disrupt
civilian grid permanently.
Radin’s face tightens.
Not anger.
A remembered sensation.
RADIN
Rostov went dark first.
The aide hesitates.
AIDE
Sir?
Radin stands slowly.
Walks to a window overlooking Moscow.
Safe. Bright. Untouched.
He doesn’t enjoy it.
RADIN
When systems fail, people reveal
themselves.
That’s what they told me.
He turns back.
RADIN (CONT'D)
They didn’t tell me
what I would become in the dark.
A beat.
He takes the tablet.
RADIN (CONT'D)
Delay authorization.
The aide nods, uncertain.
Radin stares at the glowing screen like it’s a mirror.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
23 -
Explosion in the Abandoned Factory
INT. ABANDONED FACTORY – NIGHT
The uplink stabilizes.
Ivan exhales—relief flooding him.
He doesn’t even realize he’s smiling until it’s gone.
A faint WHINE rises in the distance.
The Tech pauses.
Listens.
TECH
That’s not—
A low rumble builds under the floor.
Ivan’s eyes widen.
IVAN
Move.
Too late.
BOOM.
The building SHUDDERS violently.
Dust explodes from ceiling cracks.
The Tech is thrown into a concrete column.
Ivan hits the floor hard.
Ringing. White noise.
The laptop screen flashes—
Then goes black.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Thriller","Drama"]
Ratings
Scene
24 -
A Moment of Loss
INT. ABANDONED FACTORY – CONTINUOUS
Smoke fills the air.
Ivan crawls toward the Tech.
His hands slide through warm blood.
The Tech tries to speak.
Only a wet gasp comes out.
Ivan presses down on the wound—pressure, pressure, pressure.
His hands shake now.
Not fear.
Recognition.
IVAN
I’m sorry.
I’m sorry.
The Tech’s eyes lock on Ivan’s.
Not accusation.
Not forgiveness.
Just a human trying to understand why this is happening.
Then the Tech’s eyes go empty.
Ivan keeps his hands in place anyway.
Like he can hold life there by force.
He can’t.
CUT TO:
EXT. ABANDONED FACTORY – NIGHT
Ivan staggers outside.
Cold air hits his lungs like punishment.
He bends over—coughing, choking on dust.
Sirens approach in the distance, weak and delayed.
He turns back toward the factory.
The building stands, but something inside it is gone.
A shadow moves above—drone or aircraft, hard to tell.
Ivan’s phone BUZZES.
A message flashes:
WE WARNED YOU.
Ivan stares at it.
Then looks up at the Kyiv skyline—flickering, wounded.
He doesn’t cry.
He doesn’t scream.
He simply understands the new equation:
He is no longer documenting the war.
He is inside it.
CUT TO BLACK.
Genres:
["Drama","Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
25 -
Shadows of War
INT. FIELD HOSPITAL – KYIV – NIGHT
Chaos without volume.
The strike has sent a new wave of casualties.
Stretchers line the corridors—improvised, mismatched.
Anya moves between them, face pale, jaw set.
She reads injuries instantly now.
Too much blood.
Too little time.
Too many choices that are actually non-choices.
A MEDIC pulls her aside.
MEDIC
We lost power again.
Backup’s unstable.
Anya nods—already adjusting.
She reroutes care, silently reprioritizing human lives like a
grim algorithm.
Her leg buckles for a fraction of a second.
She catches herself on a gurney.
No one comments.
Everyone sees.
CUT TO:
INT. SAFEHOUSE – KYIV – NIGHT
Ivan sits alone at a small table.
Hands washed. Still stained red.
The blood won’t come off completely.
He stares at his palms, flexes his fingers.
They shake.
He pulls out his phone.
Dozens of messages.
Threats. Condolences. Demands.
One unread message at the bottom.
He opens it.
A VIDEO loads slowly.
Sofia walking out of school.
Someone filming from across the street.
Ivan’s breath leaves him in pieces.
This isn’t a warning.
This is ownership.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","War"]
Ratings
Scene
26 -
Identity in Shadows
INT. PARTISAN SAFEHOUSE – UNKNOWN LOCATION – NIGHT
Dmitri sits in a dimly lit room.
Maps on the walls. Radios humming.
A PARTISAN COORDINATOR (50s) watches him carefully.
COORDINATOR
You’re poison.
Dmitri nods.
DMITRI
I know.
The Coordinator slides a laminated ID across the table.
A new name.
A new face.
COORDINATOR
You move only at night.
You don’t use phones.
You don’t write anything down.
Dmitri looks at the ID.
It feels like another death.
DMITRI
And if they find me?
The Coordinator shrugs.
COORDINATOR
Then they prove you mattered.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
27 -
Psychological Warfare
INT. RUSSIAN FIELD HQ – NIGHT
Orlov studies damage reports from the factory strike.
Civilian casualties: limited.
Signal disruption: partial.
Psychological impact: significant.
An OFFICER hesitates before speaking.
OFFICER
The journalist survived.
Orlov nods.
Expected.
ORLOV
Good.
The officer blinks.
OFFICER
Sir?
Orlov turns, eyes sharp.
ORLOV
Dead men become martyrs.
Living men learn.
He taps the screen.
ORLOV (CONT'D)
Escalate pressure.
Not violence.
The officer doesn’t ask what that means.
He already knows.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","Thriller","War"]
Ratings
Scene
28 -
A Moment of Vulnerability
INT. FIELD HOSPITAL – DAWN
Anya finishes intubating a patient.
Her hands tremble violently now.
She steps back—tries to steady herself.
The room tilts.
Sound muffles.
Her vision tunnels.
She presses her back against the wall.
Slides down into a seated position.
A DOCTOR kneels beside her.
DOCTOR
Anya—look at me.
She tries.
Fails.
Her breathing is shallow, rapid.
The doctor grips her shoulders firmly.
DOCTOR (CONT'D)
You’re hypoglycemic.
You haven’t eaten.
Anya shakes her head weakly.
ANYA
There wasn’t time.
The doctor doesn’t argue.
He hands her a glucose gel.
She squeezes it into her mouth with shaking hands.
Shame floods her face—not weakness.
Interruption.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","War"]
Ratings
Scene
29 -
Endurance Over Truth
INT. SAFEHOUSE – KYIV – MORNING
Ivan watches the edited version of his factory footage play
on a loop.
The missing moments are invisible to most viewers.
But Ivan sees them like amputations.
His phone rings.
Unknown number.
He answers.
Silence.
Then—
ORLOV (V.O.)
You see how this works now.
Ivan’s grip tightens.
IVAN
You murdered my colleague.
A pause.
ORLOV (V.O.)
No.
I educated you.
Ivan’s voice hardens.
IVAN
You will lose.
Orlov’s voice remains calm.
ORLOV (V.O.)
Wars aren’t lost by men like me.
The line goes dead.
Ivan stares at the phone.
For the first time, he understands:
This isn’t about truth anymore.
It’s about endurance.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
30 -
Silent Tensions
INT. PARTISAN SAFEHOUSE – NIGHT
Dmitri watches Ivan’s broadcast on a cracked laptop.
The signal is unstable.
Ivan’s face flickers.
Human. Tired.
Dmitri notices the subtle edits.
The hesitation that doesn’t belong.
He turns to the Coordinator.
DMITRI
They’re threatening his child.
The Coordinator nods.
COORDINATOR
Of course they are.
Dmitri’s jaw tightens.
DMITRI
Then I need to speak again.
The Coordinator stiffens.
COORDINATOR
You already did.
DMITRI
Not loudly enough.
Silence.
The Coordinator studies Dmitri like a man measuring cost.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
31 -
The Weight of Fear
INT. RUSSIAN DEFENSE MINISTRY – MOSCOW – NIGHT
General Radin listens to Orlov’s escalation request.
A secure line.
Orlov’s voice is confident. Persuasive.
ORLOV (V.O.)
Fear reduces resistance.
Resistance costs lives.
Radin closes his eyes briefly.
A flash—
Rostov burning.
Maps turning red.
RADIN
And when fear becomes policy?
A pause.
ORLOV (V.O.)
Then policy becomes effective.
Radin opens his eyes.
RADIN
Denied.
A long silence.
ORLOV (V.O.)
Understood.
The line clicks off.
Radin remains seated.
His hands shake once.
He hides them under the desk.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
32 -
A Choice of Lives
INT. FIELD HOSPITAL – NIGHT
Anya returns to work.
Still pale.
Still limping.
She approaches two patients side by side:
An ELDERLY WOMAN with internal bleeding.
A TEENAGE BOY with shrapnel near the spine.
Only one operating table free.
Anya studies both charts.
The woman watches her—aware.
ELDERLY WOMAN
Do the boy.
Anya swallows hard.
ANYA
I can’t—
The woman grips her wrist with surprising strength.
ELDERLY WOMAN
I’ve lived.
Anya nods, eyes burning.
She signals the team.
The boy is rushed away.
The woman’s hand slips from Anya’s wrist.
Anya stands there a beat too long.
Then turns back to work.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","War"]
Ratings
Scene
33 -
Silent Threats
EXT. SAFEHOUSE ROOFTOP – NIGHT
Ivan steps outside.
Cold air clears his head.
The city below is dimmer now.
Blackouts spreading.
He looks at the sky.
Searchlights trace slow arcs.
Somewhere out there, Dmitri is hiding.
Somewhere else, Sofia is being watched.
Ivan pulls out his phone.
Types a message.
Deletes it.
Types again.
IVAN (TEXT)
If you speak again,
I will not cut it.
He hits SEND.
The weight of that promise settles on him.
Ivan stares out over the city.
He doesn’t look heroic.
He looks tired.
And determined enough to be dangerous.
CUT TO BLACK.
Genres:
["Drama","Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
34 -
The Cost of Communication
INT. PARTISAN SAFEHOUSE – NIGHT
A map table under a single hanging bulb.
Dmitri stands over it with the Coordinator and two PARTISANS.
Relay towers marked in red.
Fuel depots in blue.
Hospitals circled in black.
The Coordinator taps a point with his finger.
COORDINATOR
This relay station carries half the
region’s signal.
They built it like a spine.
Dmitri studies the route.
His eyes are not brave.
They are tired.
DMITRI
If I speak from there—
COORDINATOR
—then they don’t just hunt you.
They hunt everyone around you.
A beat.
Dmitri’s gaze drifts to a hand-drawn note beside the map:
“CIVILIAN DENSITY: HIGH.”
Dmitri exhales.
DMITRI
Then we don’t blow it.
The Partisans look at him, confused.
DMITRI (CONT'D)
We borrow it.
A silent, logical horror in that idea.
CUT TO:
INT. SAFEHOUSE – KYIV – NIGHT
Ivan listens to a secure audio line.
A distorted voice—the Coordinator.
COORDINATOR (V.O.)
He wants to speak again.
Ivan closes his eyes.
IVAN
From where?
COORDINATOR (V.O.)
Relay station.
Ivan’s jaw tightens.
He knows what that means.
Not bravery.
Escalation.
Ivan’s phone vibrates—another unknown text.
WE CAN SEE YOUR BUILDING.
Ivan doesn’t answer.
He simply looks at the wall where Sofia’s drawing is taped.
His breathing changes.
A new kind of anger arrives.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
35 -
Desperate Measures
INT. FIELD HOSPITAL – NIGHT
The generator sputters.
Lights flicker.
Anya clamps an artery with one hand while holding a
flashlight with the other.
Sweat runs down her temple.
The patient’s blood pressure drops.
A DOCTOR calls numbers.
DOCTOR
We need a transfusion now!
A MEDIC shakes his head.
MEDIC
No blood. No refrigeration.
We lost the freezer again.
Anya’s throat tightens.
She holds pressure harder.
Her hands tremble.
Not fear.
Muscle failure.
Her breathing becomes shallow again—too fast.
She forces it down.
Inhale.
Exhale.
Her face remains calm.
Her body is lying.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
36 -
The Cost of Control
INT. RUSSIAN FIELD HQ – NIGHT
Orlov stands before an electronic warfare console.
A technician points at the screen.
TECHNICIAN
We can disrupt the grid in waves.
Short blackouts. Long confusion.
Orlov nods.
ORLOV
Do it.
The technician hesitates.
TECHNICIAN
Civilian hospitals—
Orlov cuts him off without raising his voice.
ORLOV
Hospitals require stability.
Stability fuels resistance.
He steps closer.
ORLOV (CONT'D)
We are not punishing civilians.
A beat.
ORLOV (CONT'D)
We are preventing the enemy from
organizing.
The technician swallows and begins the sequence.
Orlov watches the map go dark, one sector at a time.
A man convinced that fear is a form of protection.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
37 -
Chaos and Resolve
EXT. KYIV – DAY
The blackout hits.
Traffic lights die mid-cycle.
Cars collide at an intersection.
Metal shrieks. Glass scatters.
A mother drags her child out of a stalled bus.
Phones show NO SERVICE.
Panic spreads not like fire—like cold.
Ivan moves through the street with his camera.
He films people not knowing what to do.
Not heroic.
Human.
He realizes the war isn’t just on the front.
It’s in the wiring.
CUT TO:
INT. FIELD HOSPITAL – DAY
Power flickers again.
Monitors wind down.
Anya reacts instantly—manual ventilation.
She squeezes an oxygen bag rhythmically, breath by breath.
Her arms burn.
Her leg shakes violently as she kneels.
A Doctor watches, worried.
DOCTOR
You can’t keep that up.
Anya doesn’t look at him.
ANYA
Then someone else can take my
hands.
The doctor moves to help.
Anya doesn’t let go.
Not because she’s stubborn.
Because letting go means accepting someone might die on her
pause.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","War"]
Ratings
Scene
38 -
Echoes of Rostov
INT. RUSSIAN DEFENSE MINISTRY – MOSCOW – NIGHT
Radin watches the blackout map.
The aide stands behind him, quiet.
AIDE
Orlov requests permanent disruption
authority.
Radin doesn’t answer.
He taps his desk once, hard.
RADIN
Rostov went dark first.
The aide stiffens.
AIDE
Sir… that was different.
Radin turns sharply.
RADIN
Was it?
A long beat.
Radin’s voice lowers—controlled but haunted.
RADIN (CONT'D)
I followed protocol that night.
So did everyone else.
And the city burned anyway.
The aide looks down.
Radin inhales.
RADIN (CONT'D)
Denied.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
39 -
Confession in the Dark
INT. SAFEHOUSE – KYIV – NIGHT
Ivan records into a small handheld recorder.
His voice is low.
This isn’t for broadcast.
It’s for confession.
IVAN
This is Ivan Pavlenko.
He stops.
Breathes.
Restarts.
IVAN (CONT'D)
If you’re hearing this,
I edited the truth to survive.
His throat tightens.
IVAN (CONT'D)
I told myself it was temporary.
A tactical pause.
A beat.
IVAN (CONT'D)
Then I watched a colleague die
because. I underestimated them.
He stops recording.
The silence after his words is heavier than the words
themselves.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
40 -
Dusk at the Relay Station
EXT. RELAY STATION – DUSK
A massive communications tower rises against a darkening sky.
Russian troops fortify the perimeter.
Concrete barriers.
Searchlights.
A hum of electricity in the air like a living thing.
Dmitri and two Partisans observe from the ridge.
Anya arrives—limping.
Her face is pale.
She carries a medical bag and a small camera.
Dmitri watches her carefully.
DMITRI
You shouldn’t be here.
Anya shrugs.
ANYA
No one should be here.
Dmitri looks at the tower.
DMITRI
If we fail, everyone pays.
Anya nods.
ANYA
They already are.
CUT TO:
EXT. RELAY STATION RIDGE – NIGHT
Wind picks up.
Searchlights sweep slow arcs across the terrain.
Dmitri holds the camera—hands steady.
Anya watches the perimeter—jaw clenched.
She shifts her weight—pain shoots up her leg.
She hides it badly.
Dmitri clicks the camera ON.
A red light blinks.
He looks into the lens.
Not a hero.
A scared kid with a weaponized conscience.
DMITRI
My name is Dmitri Sokolov.
The wind moves through dry grass.
Somewhere far away, people’s screens begin to wake up.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
41 -
Defiance in the Dark
EXT. RELAY STATION – NIGHT
The tower looms above them—steel lattice disappearing into
low cloud.
A faint electrical HUM vibrates the air, felt more than
heard.
Searchlights sweep slowly, methodically, like predators
conserving energy.
Dmitri stands in frame.
The camera is imperfect—slightly tilted, handheld, human.
No music.
No framing.
No protection.
DMITRI
I was trained to follow orders
so I wouldn’t have to choose.
Wind tugs at his jacket.
The red LIVE light pulses steadily.
Anya watches from just off-frame, counting the sweep of
lights, the timing of patrols.
Her leg shakes despite her effort to still it.
CUT TO:
INT. GLOBAL INTERCUT – NIGHT
—A family in Berlin pauses dinner as phones buzz.
—A train in Tokyo slows as passengers glance at screens.
—A bar in Warsaw goes silent, televisions switching
automatically.
Dmitri’s face appears—pixelated, unstable.
DMITRI (V.O.)
They told us obedience keeps us
alive.
In a small apartment, SOFIA watches from her bed.
She doesn’t understand the language.
She understands fear.
CUT TO:
INT. RUSSIAN FIELD HQ – NIGHT
Orlov watches the broadcast.
Officers gather behind him.
No one speaks.
An aide leans close.
AIDE
Sir… he’s speaking to civilians.
Orlov doesn’t blink.
ORLOV
He’s speaking for himself.
A beat.
ORLOV (CONT'D)
And that gets soldiers killed.
His certainty is not loud.
That makes it dangerous.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
42 -
Tension in the Shadows
INT. SAFEHOUSE – KYIV – NIGHT
Ivan watches the raw feed.
No delay. No safety net.
Just Dmitri—exposed.
Ivan’s phone lights up.
A PHOTO loads slowly.
Sofia—outside school.
Timestamp: TODAY.
Ivan’s throat closes.
On-screen, Dmitri continues.
DMITRI (ON SCREEN)
If I disappear after this, it’s
because words scare them more than
bullets.
Ivan’s hand hovers near the power switch.
This is muscle memory now.
Cut. Protect. Survive.
His finger trembles.
CUT TO:
INT. RADIN’S SECURE OFFICE – MOSCOW – NIGHT
Radin watches the broadcast alone.
An aide rushes in, breathless.
AIDE
Presidential directive incoming.
Launch readiness requested.
Radin doesn’t turn.
RADIN
Do you know why Rostov followed me?
The aide freezes.
RADIN (CONT'D)
I signed the delay.
Then I signed the strike.
He turns slowly—eyes hollow.
RADIN (CONT'D)
I obeyed twice.
Everyone died once.
A beat.
RADIN (CONT'D)
Block the chain.
The aide hesitates.
Then nods.
CUT TO:
EXT. RELAY STATION – NIGHT
Gunfire erupts.
Anya fires back—short, controlled bursts.
Dmitri does not flinch.
DMITRI
They will say I’m lying.
A round strikes metal nearby—sparks cascade.
DMITRI (CONT'D)
If I am… why are they trying so
hard to stop me?
The tower SHUDDERS.
Signal flickers.
Holds.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
43 -
Defiance in the Dark
INT. SAFEHOUSE – KYIV – NIGHT
Ivan’s phone vibrates again.
A message appears:
TURN IT OFF OR SHE DISAPPEARS.
Ivan’s vision tunnels.
He looks at Sofia’s photo.
Then at Dmitri’s face on-screen.
Journalism ends here.
Fatherhood begins.
Ivan inhales—deep, deliberate.
His hand moves—not to the switch.
CUT TO:
EXT. RELAY STATION – NIGHT
An explosion tears through the lower structure.
Anya is thrown hard—slams into concrete.
Dmitri drops the camera—
then grabs it again.
Smoke fills frame.
Signal degrades.
DMITRI
This is the cost.
CUT TO:
INT. SAFEHOUSE – KYIV – NIGHT
Ivan leans into his microphone.
Voice shaking, but present.
IVAN
My name is Ivan Pavlenko.
A beat.
IVAN (CONT'D)
They threatened my daughter to
silence this.
He swallows.
IVAN (CONT'D)
I won’t trade her future
for their comfort.
He locks the feed.
There is no undo.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
44 -
Countdown to Chaos
INT. KREMLIN WAR ROOM – NIGHT
Screens flash—Dmitri, Ivan, chaos.
A countdown appears:
TACTICAL DEPLOYMENT – T–14:00
Putin stands motionless.
An aide whispers.
AIDE
Authorization blocked.
Putin turns.
PUTIN
By whom?
A beat.
AIDE
General Radin.
Putin nods once.
PUTIN
Arrest him.
The timer keeps running.
The question is no longer if.
It is who blinks first.
FADE TO BLACK.
EXT. RELAY STATION – NIGHT
The tower GROANS under impact.
Cables whip in the wind, snapping against steel.
Searchlights jitter now—panicked, faster.
Dmitri steadies the camera against his chest, trying to keep
the frame usable.
The LIVE light blinks like a heartbeat.
Anya crawls toward him—blood in her hair, one leg dragging.
Her face is tight with pain she refuses to acknowledge.
ANYA
(yelling over gunfire)
You’ve said enough!
Dmitri looks at her.
His eyes aren’t brave.
They’re resigned.
DMITRI
Enough is what they decide.
He turns back to the lens.
The signal warbles, then stabilizes.
CUT TO:
INT. GLOBAL INTERCUT – NIGHT
—A German bar goes silent.
—A Tokyo commuter train slows as passengers stare at screens.
—A Washington briefing room freezes mid-sentence.
Dmitri’s voice cuts through static.
DMITRI (V.O.)
If obedience kept us alive,
there would be no graves behind our
houses.
In a Moscow apartment, a young man watches with the sound
off.
He turns the volume down further anyway—
like silence can make him innocent.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
45 -
A Father's Lie
INT. SAFEHOUSE – KYIV – NIGHT
Ivan answers his ringing phone with shaking hands.
A Polish number.
SOFIA (V.O.)
Papa?
Ivan collapses into a chair.
The sound of her voice breaks something open inside him.
IVAN
I’m here.
A beat.
SOFIA (V.O.)
Why is everyone scared?
Ivan closes his eyes.
IVAN
Because telling the truth is loud.
Sofia is quiet.
Then—
SOFIA (V.O.)
Are you in trouble?
Ivan forces a steadier voice.
IVAN
Not the kind that matters.
He knows that’s a lie.
He says it anyway.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
46 -
Countdown to Chaos
INT. RADIN’S SECURE OFFICE – MOSCOW – NIGHT
FSB AGENTS enter, weapons ready.
Radin stands calmly behind his desk.
Hands open.
No resistance.
The LEAD AGENT reads from a tablet.
FSB LEAD
General Radin.
You are under arrest for
obstruction of state protocol.
Radin nods.
RADIN
I know.
He glances once more at the live feed still playing on a
monitor.
Dmitri—still speaking, still standing.
Radin’s expression shifts.
Not pride.
Grief for something that could have been different.
CUT TO:
EXT. RELAY STATION – LOWER PLATFORM – NIGHT
An explosion below.
The tower SHUDDERS violently.
Anya grabs Dmitri by the coat—drags him toward a ladder.
Her hands slip on his fabric, slick with blood.
Dmitri keeps the camera rolling.
The image tilts, falls—
lands angled at the sky.
The broadcast continues uncomposed:
Smoke. Flashing lights.
Fragments of voices.
Gunfire strobing the darkness.
Still live.
Still reaching.
CUT TO:
INT. KREMLIN WAR ROOM – NIGHT
The countdown ticks:
T–08:00
Putin stands with hands behind his
back.
Calm like a monument.
Orlov watches the unstable feed.
An aide whispers.
AIDE
If this continues, morale—
Orlov cuts him off, voice low.
ORLOV
Morale survives fear.
Doubt doesn’t.
The aide swallows.
Putin doesn’t move.
A leader listening not to facts, but to gravity.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
47 -
Desperate Choices
EXT. RELAY STATION – NIGHT
Smoke everywhere.
Anya collapses behind cover—her leg finally gives out.
Pain floods her face for a second before she masks it.
Dmitri drags her, hands slick with blood.
Russian SPECIAL FORCES move in—flashlights cutting through
haze.
Anya reaches into her medical bag.
Pulls out a syringe.
Morphine.
High dose.
She presses it into Dmitri’s palm.
Her eyes tell him what her mouth can’t say.
ANYA
If they take you alive—
Dmitri nods.
He already knows.
CUT TO:
INT. SAFEHOUSE – KYIV – NIGHT
The live feed degrades.
Pixels tear.
Audio warps.
Ivan leans closer to the screen like proximity can hold
signal.
IVAN
Stay with me—
The image freezes on Dmitri’s face.
Bloodied. Unfinished.
Then—
SIGNAL LOST.
Ivan stares.
Breath gone.
The silence after the loss is louder than the broadcast ever
was.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
48 -
A Sacrificial Promise
EXT. RELAY STATION – NIGHT
Footsteps close in.
Russian voices—commands, sharp, efficient.
Anya grips Dmitri’s sleeve.
Her hand trembles violently now, not from fear—
from shock and blood loss.
ANYA
If they take you,
they’ll make you say anything.
Dmitri looks down at the syringe.
Then at Anya.
A choice with no witnesses.
DMITRI
Promise me something.
Anya nods, already breaking.
ANYA
Anything.
DMITRI
Don’t let them make me useful.
Anya nods again.
Dmitri injects himself.
A long exhale.
His body slackens.
Anya pulls him close as flashlights flood the platform.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
49 -
Countdown to Catastrophe
INT. KREMLIN WAR ROOM – NIGHT
T–01:30
The feed is dead now.
Only static and darkness.
An aide whispers urgently.
AIDE
International escalation detected.
NATO forces on alert.
Putin considers—briefly.
Then—
The countdown STOPS.
Silence.
Putin exhales, controlled.
PUTIN
Stand down.
Orlov doesn’t move.
He understands what happened.
Not victory.
A limit.
The war does not end.
But the world does not end either.
FADE TO BLACK.
INT. GLOBAL NEWS MONTAGE – DAY
Dmitri’s frozen image loops endlessly.
Different channels. Different chyrons. Same face.
ANCHOR (V.O.)
—unverified reports suggest the
defector was eliminated—
ANALYST (V.O.)
—or extracted for interrogation—
FORMER DIPLOMAT (V.O.)
—there is no confirmation he even
existed—
The footage pauses. Rewinds. Plays again.
In some broadcasts, Dmitri’s face is blurred.
In others, his words are subtitled incorrectly.
Truth turns into a product.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","Political Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
50 -
Grief in Recovery
INT. HOSPITAL RECOVERY WARD – DAY
Anya lies on a narrow cot.
Fluorescent light hums overhead.
Her leg is wrapped in thick bandages.
A heart monitor beeps softly.
She stares at the ceiling like she expects it to answer her.
A NURSE checks her IV.
NURSE
You’re lucky.
Anya doesn’t react.
ANYA
He’s dead.
The nurse pauses, uncertain.
NURSE
We don’t know that.
Anya turns her head slightly.
ANYA
We know enough.
She closes her eyes.
The beeping continues.
Life insists.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama"]
Ratings
Scene
51 -
The Revelation
INT. UNDERGROUND NEWSROOM – NIGHT
Ivan stands before a camera.
No graphics. No dramatic lighting.
He looks thin now.
Older.
The Editor watches from the side, anxious.
Ivan holds up a small data drive.
IVAN
This contains raw files.
A beat.
IVAN (CONT'D)
Not edited. Not framed.
Not “balanced.”
He lets the word taste bitter.
IVAN (CONT'D)
If I disappear,
you’ll know why.
The Editor flinches.
Ivan doesn’t look at him.
He ends the recording.
The camera light shuts off.
Ivan exhales like he’s been holding his breath for weeks.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
52 -
Apprehension and Reflection
INT. DARK STAIRWELL – NIGHT
Ivan descends concrete steps.
The building is quiet.
Too quiet.
He reaches the bottom landing.
A door opens.
Two MEN in plain clothes stand there—calm, polite.
Not soldiers.
That’s worse.
MAN #1
Ivan Pavlenko?
Ivan nods.
MAN #2
Come with us.
Ivan doesn’t resist.
Resistance is theater.
He steps forward.
His face doesn’t show fear.
But his shoulders sag as if he’s been waiting for this.
CUT TO:
INT. RUSSIAN MILITARY PRISON – DAY
Radin sits on a bunk.
Gray walls. Gray blanket. Gray silence.
A GUARD slides a tablet through the slot.
Ivan’s last broadcast plays.
Radin watches without blinking.
A faint tremor runs through his jaw.
Not emotion.
Containment.
The guard lingers.
GUARD
You blocked protocol.
Radin looks up.
RADIN
I blocked annihilation.
The guard stares, unsure how to respond to that.
He shuts the slot.
Radin watches the screen until it goes dark.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
53 -
The Weight of Uncertainty
INT. RUSSIAN FIELD HQ – NIGHT
Orlov studies reports from the relay station.
Missing body. No confirmed kill. No proof.
His officers wait for direction.
OFFICER
We can release a statement:
Target neutralized.
Orlov considers.
Then shakes his head.
ORLOV
No.
The officer looks surprised.
OFFICER
Sir?
Orlov’s voice is flat.
ORLOV
If we claim him dead,
we make him permanent.
A beat.
ORLOV (CONT'D)
Let uncertainty rot them.
The officer nods, uneasy.
Orlov turns away.
His certainty is intact.
But it now has a hairline crack.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
54 -
Refuge and Reckoning
EXT. REFUGEE ROAD – DAY
A long line of civilians moves through mud.
Families carrying bags, pushing carts, dragging suitcases
with broken wheels.
Anya limps among them.
No uniform. No weapon.
Just a medical bag and a face that looks like it has stopped
expecting mercy.
A CHILD stumbles.
Anya catches her instinctively.
The child looks up.
CHILD
Are you a doctor?
Anya nods.
The child smiles.
Anya holds the child’s shoulders gently, steadying her.
Then lets go.
She looks away before her face betrays what she feels.
CUT TO:
INT. DETENTION FACILITY – INTERROGATION ROOM – NIGHT
Ivan sits at a metal table.
Bright light overhead.
A GOVERNMENT INTERROGATOR sits opposite him, calm.
INTERROGATOR
You released classified material.
Ivan nods.
INTERROGATOR (CONT'D)
You endangered civilians.
Ivan nods again.
INTERROGATOR (CONT'D)
Do you regret it?
Ivan takes a long breath.
He chooses his words carefully.
IVAN
I regret believing I could control
what truth does
once it leaves my hands.
The Interrogator writes something down.
INTERROGATOR
That’s not an answer.
Ivan meets his eyes.
IVAN
It’s the only honest one.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
55 -
Silent Acknowledgment
EXT. SMALL VILLAGE – UKRAINE – DAY
Rebuilding.
Hands pass bricks.
Children hammer crooked nails.
A man repairs a roof with salvaged sheet metal.
Anya stands at the edge of the village, watching.
A MAN approaches—the Ukrainian father Dmitri spared.
He holds something wrapped in cloth.
He offers it to her.
Anya unfolds it.
Inside—Dmitri’s poem page, preserved.
Anya’s breath catches.
She holds it like it might crumble into dust.
The man nods once.
No speeches.
No gratitude.
Just a shared understanding that someone tried.
CUT TO:
EXT. EASTERN UKRAINE – DAWN – AERIAL
The same farmland as the opening.
Scars remain.
New lines appear—temporary roads, tents, makeshift supply
routes.
The land remains indifferent.
Beautiful.
Unmoved.
In the center of a field, a small wooden memorial stands
alone.
No names.
Only carved words:
WE REMEMBER.
Wind moves through the grass.
The memorial does not move.
FADE TO BLACK.
Genres:
["Drama","War"]
Ratings
Scene
56 -
The Weight of Time
INT. INTERNATIONAL NEWSROOM – DAY
A different story dominates the screens now.
Markets. Elections. A celebrity scandal.
Dmitri’s image appears only in a small side window—silent,
minimized.
A PRODUCER clicks it away.
PRODUCER
We’ve covered it.
A REPORTER looks up.
REPORTER
Covered or exhausted?
The Producer doesn’t answer.
The feed rolls on.
The world does not wait for moral closure.
CUT TO:
INT. MEDICAL REHABILITATION WARD – DAY
Parallel bars.
Anya walks between them, jaw clenched.
Every step is negotiated.
Pain flares—controlled, contained.
A PHYSIOTHERAPIST watches closely.
THERAPIST
You don’t have to rush.
Anya takes another step anyway.
ANYA
People don’t wait for me to heal.
The therapist doesn’t argue.
Anya reaches the end of the bars.
Turns around.
Does it again.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama"]
Ratings
Scene
57 -
Echoes of Consequence
INT. DETENTION FACILITY – INTERVIEW ROOM – DAY
Ivan sits across from two OFFICIALS now.
A thicker file on the table.
His name on the spine.
OFFICIAL #1
Your material triggered
international review.
Ivan nods.
OFFICIAL #2
And escalation.
Ivan nods again.
OFFICIAL #1
Do you believe it was worth it?
Ivan thinks longer this time.
Not because he’s unsure.
Because certainty now feels dangerous.
IVAN
I believe silence would have been
cheaper.
A beat.
IVAN (CONT'D)
But more expensive later.
The officials exchange a glance.
They don’t disagree.
That worries Ivan.
CUT TO:
INT. RUSSIAN MILITARY PRISON – NIGHT
Radin lies awake on his bunk.
No sound except distant doors.
He closes his eyes.
For a moment, there are no maps.
No protocols.
Just Rostov—burning.
Civilians running in all directions.
He opens his eyes again.
The memory doesn’t fade.
It never does.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","Thriller"]
Ratings
Scene
58 -
Echoes of Choices
EXT. WAR CRIMES ARCHIVE – DAY
A modern building. Clean. Impersonal.
Inside, a CLERK slides a cardboard box onto a shelf.
Label:
SOKOLOV, DMITRI – STATUS UNCONFIRMED
The shelf stretches endlessly in both directions.
Thousands of boxes.
History organized so it can be ignored.
CUT TO:
INT. SMALL CLASSROOM – UKRAINE – DAY
Anya stands before a group of STUDENTS.
No podium.
No presentation.
Just a woman who looks like she’s seen too much.
A STUDENT raises a hand.
STUDENT
How do you know you chose right?
Anya considers.
ANYA
You don’t.
She lets that land.
ANYA (CONT'D)
You only know what you were willing
to carry afterward.
The students absorb that quietly.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","War"]
Ratings
Scene
59 -
Letters and Echoes
INT. IVAN’S CELL – NIGHT
Ivan writes a letter by dim light.
Careful handwriting.
Measured.
This is not journalism.
This is survival.
He folds the letter.
Slips it into an envelope marked SOFIA.
He presses it flat with his palm.
A ritual.
CUT TO:
EXT. EASTERN FRONT – DAY
Orlov walks a trench line.
Mud. Cold. Fatigue.
Soldiers avert their eyes as he passes.
Not fear.
Distance.
He stops.
Listens to distant artillery.
Still convinced.
Still operational.
But quieter now.
Certainty doesn’t echo like it used to.
CUT TO:
Genres:
["Drama","War"]
Ratings
Scene
60 -
The Patience of History
INT. INTERNATIONAL COURT – DAY
Evidence presentations conclude.
Screens show timelines, orders, consequences.
No verdict yet.
A PROSECUTOR closes a file.
PROSECUTOR
History is patient.
The JUDGE nods.
So is accountability.
Eventually.
CUT TO:
EXT. OPEN LAND – DUSK – AERIAL
The camera rises.
Fields stretch endlessly.
Smoke drifts in thin lines.
Grass bends in the wind.
From this height, borders disappear.
So do reasons.
SUPER:
THE WORLD DID NOT END.
The wind continues, in
different.
FADE TO BLACK.