MISTS OF DAGOBAH: A STAR WARS STORY

an unauthorized fan script by

Nate Waggoner
EXT./INT. CORUSCANT AND OTHER LOCATIONS - DAY

NEWSREEL MONTAGE A LA "CLONE WARS" INTROS

Stormtroopers march down the streets of Coruscant as

Palpatine and Vader look on.

NEWSREEL V/O
The Republic has fallen! Palpatine has
seized power, ended democracy in the
galaxy, and driven out the Jedi
knights.

On a mountaintop, a few mystic-looking supporters appear to

pay their respects to a smattering of humble graves.

NEWSREEL V/O
While many of the Jedi have been wiped
out...

Mugshot-like images of Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda.

NEWSREEL V/O
...others remain unaccounted for,
presumably having escaped to the
farthest, most obscure reaches of the
galaxy!

Palpatine addressing a crowd. Stormtroopers running around on

some battlefield.

NEWSREEL V/O
Rather than deescalating military
presence within the Empire's reach,
Emperor Palpatine is now seeking to
conscript non-clones as troops!

A logo: GALACTIC NEWS.

NEWSREEL V/O
That's your news update-- please
remember that a free press is
essential in maintaining galactic
enlightenment and preventing a descent
into barbarism! Support Galactic News
uncritically-- or you're one of the
bad guys. And now, your feature
presentation.
 2.

EXT. SOME PLANET - DAY

Beneath an impressive expanse of stars, a lone human

gunslinger wanders the desert.

EXT. SWAMP THEATER - DUSK

The image of the gunslinger and the surrounding desert is

being projected between two majestic horn-shaped devices,
which tower over an audience.

Five swamp troopers, sans helmets, sit in the audience, legs

and arms splayed. They munch on messy, sauce-covered
drumsticks and tentacles and swig from bottles. A few of them
idly toss pieces of food at the screen.

One trooper, VAN KOLMASH, talks to another, NED GREEBUS.

VAN
Oh, you've never seen this one? It's a
classic.

Another trooper gets inappropriately close to a Togruta woman

near him, who looks uncomfortable.

TROOPER 1
Hey, baby...

Another signals to a waiter.

TROOPER 2
Ey! Ey! Over here!

INT. TAVERN - NIGHT

Moderately dingy. Van and Ned sit drinking at the bar. A

terrified-looking female Twi'lek serves them. Her hand
shakes.

BARTENDER
Is that good?

VAN
Thanks, that's great.

He drops some credits on the bar.

BARTENDER
Oh, no, please, your money's no good
here.
 3.

Van awkwardly waves off the gesture, uncomfortable himself.

NED
Those newsreels drive me insane,
though!

VAN
The newsreels, what, at the beginning
of the thing? What are you talking
about, who cares?

NED
They're just so obviously, I don't
know, whatever you'd call it,
rebellion sympathizers.

VAN
I don't think there even is a
rebellion. It's just a bunch of
anarchist kids, probably with rich
parents.

NED
The news is all, "Palpatine killed all
the Jedi, Palpatine ended democracy,
Palpatine did this, Palpatine did
that..."

VAN
I mean, that is what happened. They
have to report what--

NED
Nobody talks about the good stuff the
Empire does! Nobody has any pride
anymore! I mean there's law and order
now-- finally!

Ned becomes distracted by something happening in the corner

of the tavern.

NED
HEY! HEY, YOU! Yeah, I see you. I know
what you're up to, you little womp
rats. Don't even try it. Settle down.
You just settle down. You're out of
control!

VAN
It's okay. It's alright. Leave 'em
alone.
 4.

NED
Look, what I'm saying is: people are
saying, "Happy Life Day" again! I
mean, isn't that worth fighting for?

VAN
You sound like my grandfather, man.

NED
Yeah, well, maybe your grandfather
knows some things.

VAN
Look, I'm not complaining about
serving, especially for 100 credits a
week. But like-- you remember that guy
Kal Harkness from basic training? He's
over on Tattooine right now. I heard
from him the other day, he said they
were like slaughtering kids and stuff.

NED
I dunno.

VAN
He said it's just insanity. And he was
weirdly kind of like bragging about
it. Like he was excited.

NED
Huh.

VAN
And another buddy of mine on
Mandalore, he said he's heard about
similar stuff going on there. Just
killing innocent people.

NED
Look, I dunno, I mean, it's war--

VAN
No it's not. The war ended. I'm just
saying, what are we getting ourselves
into?

NED
You're worrying about this too much.
We're doing the right thing. We're
soldiers!
 5.

VAN
Uh-huh.

NED
And look-- these Jedi? Come on. Ooh,
the all-powerful wizards, we were
supposed to revere them and let them
know what's good for us? Screw that,
man. Nobody tells Ned Greebus what to
do. So high and mighty with their
little magic tricks. Unbelievable that
we put up with that for so long.

VAN
I mean... I think it's a faith for
some people, you know, and people have
the right to faith...

NED
The hell are you...

VAN
I mean the Force, the Force means a
lot to some people, like it's this
life force, this big thing that
controls, or like flows through...
it's not for me, but it's, it's, I
don't know.

Ned is too busy making threatening gestures to the party at

the other end of the bar to even listen. Van looks at a
locket containing the image of a beautiful Twi'lek, ZEFFA
LAROE.

EXT. GORBON HOUSES - DUSK

Elsewhere in the marshlands, a hard rain comes down, the

water mixing with the fog in the air. Atop a hill, bolts of
electricity and plumes of steam shoot out of a large, boxy,
falling-apart building made of all black plastic and steel.

Zeffa approaches the door, balancing three big and heavy bags
with groceries poking out.

She takes out a key fob and tries to get it to open the door.
Tries it a second time, then a third time, and nothing.

She hits a button that sounds a buzzer.

Tries that several times.

 6.

The electronic lock looks smashed beyond repair. Zeffa

punches through, cutting her hand. She fiddles with some
wires until they eventually spark, the door opens, and she
pushes through it.

INT. GORBON HOUSES - HALLWAY - DUSK

A small, fuzzy child stands in the hallway.

ZEFFA
Hey, buddy, how's it goin'?

She knocks on one of the doors.

A fuzzy MOM opens the door. Behind her, at least a dozen

other fuzzy kids run around and climb on things.

MOM
Oh! So embarrassing. Get in here!

The child runs in. The mom starts to close the door.

Zeffa takes out a bag of grain.

ZEFFA
Wait! I accidentally bought two bags
today, here, take this.

MOM
Oh, I couldn't accept.

ZEFFA
No, seriously, my people eat very
little, take it, take it.

The mom takes the bag and closes the door unceremoniously.

INT. GORBON HOUSES - HALLWAY - CONTINUOUS

Zeffa keeps walking.

She trips over a detached droid leg somebody left out. Drops
one bag but catches it.

Then a vegetable starts to fall out of a different bag, but

she catches that, too.

INT. LAROE APARTMENT - DUSK

A cramped, dark apartment. Zeffa opens the door, enters, then

trips on a little stone and falls face forward, smashing the
 7.

contents of the three grocery bags entirely. Blue milk and

gruel lay all over the floor.

These same smooth little stones are arranged all over the
apartment in a circular formation, along with a bunch of lit
candles and swirling chalk drawings, in the center of which
is ZIB LAROE, who looks like Zeffa but a few years younger.
Zib meditates uninterrupted.

An elderly Twi'lek, BLANSE LAROE, comes out of a bedroom.

BLANSE
What are you doing? Look at this mess.

ZEFFA
You think I planned to make a mess? I
would be able to kriffin' walk in here
if Zib didn't have all her kriffin'
druk strewn all over the place!

BLANSE
You watch your language. You were not
raised by pirates.

ZEFFA
I'm sorry, I'm frustrated!

BLANSE
Maybe that's what you want. To be a
pirate queen. Maybe that would satisfy
you.

ZEFFA
Mom, come on.

Zib gets up and examines the mess.

ZIB
Zeffa, you're buying sardines from
Malfor-6? You know those sardine
farmers are enslaved, right?

ZEFFA
I'm sorry, you know I don't keep up
with that stuff.

ZIB
And Karloss brand beans? Are you
serious? You know just the other day
their head officer called Emperor
Palpatine a "great guy"?
 8.

ZEFFA
No more Karloss, I got it.

ZIB
It's like you don't even take this
stuff seriously. People are dying.

Zeffa looks off and says nothing.

ZIB
You've got to do better.

ZEFFA
Well what are you doing all day while
I'm at the plant? Focusing your
energies? Centering your Midi-
chlorians? "Ooh, I sense a
disturbance... something is wrong..."
Yeah, you're damn right something is
wrong!

Zeffa starts picking up the mess huffily.

She puts the remaining unbroken cans and things away in

drawers and cleans up the mess on the floor.

She starts cooking dinner. There is a blaster in one of the

drawers.

INT. LAROE APARTMENT - EVENING

The Laroes eat their gruel together in silence. A very small,

very used-looking droid putters around. Outside, the rain
keeps pounding away.

INT. LAROE APARTMENT - EVENING

Zeffa washes dishes in the sink and places them on a rack.

INT. LAROE APARTMENT - ZEFFA'S BEDROOM - NIGHT

A closet-sized room that can barely contain the bed Zeffa

lies on. Books clutter the room even further. She's decorated
her wall with pictures torn from publications depicting the
beautiful and exotic universe beyond her reach: Naboo,
Coruscant, Bespin, Bantha, Tontons, Wookiees, Dewbacks...

She lies awake for a minute, then gets up and walks out.
 9.

INT. GORBON HOUSES - PARKING GARAGE - NIGHT

Zeffa stares at a dusty, little old ship, which looks

somewhere between an A-wing and a snowspeeder.

She fiddles with the keys in her hands. She smokes a death
stick.

She stares for a second more, then heads back to the main
building.

INT. MILITARY HALL - DAY

About twenty swamp troopers, helmets off, listen as JUZZ

KORMAK addresses them. Juzz is a gigantic, white blobby
humanoid of unknown species.

JUZZ
Listen. You are here on this planet to
do one thing and one thing only. To
subjugate. We must show our strength
to the cruelest extent possible. The
people of this planet need guidance.
They need a strong entity to control
them, keep them on the honorable path.
They don't know any better. And we, in
turn, need them. What keeps us alive?
Destruction. War. Annihilation. It's
raw and it feels good. Can you feel
it, gentlemen? Deep down? It is what
you were meant to do. It is natural.
It is the only thing, the oldest
thing. If a man and another man are in
a room together and they have nothing
for which to compete, one must kill
the other. One must emerge victorious.
If you are not at the top, mercilessly
controlling other animals, then you
are no more powerful than a lowly
slithering worm, crawling through the
muck. The corpse of weakness and
compassion has rotted away. These are
the days of raw power, and you are the
ones who wield it. Now go forth and
lay waste!

Every trooper goes wild with applause except Van, who looks
horrified.
 10.

INT. GORBON HOUSES - SUPER'S OFFICE - DAY

A Mon Calamari with sad eyes, THE SUPER, opens his door to
Zeffa. Behind him is a filthy apartment stacked with meals in
containers and flowers, all of which look like they've been
out for about a week.

ZEFFA
Hey, how's it going?

THE SUPER
I mean, honestly... it just doesn't
get any easier, y'know?

Zeffa touches his shoulder and shows him kind eyes.

ZEFFA
Yeah. Yeah, I do know.

THE SUPER
It's like she's still here. She is
still here. But at the same time I
can't--

He gets choked up. She hugs him and holds the hug for a while
as he lets it out.

THE SUPER
Hey, come in.

The super sits on his couch and Zeffa sits next to him. A
long stretch goes by where nobody says anything.

ZEFFA
So the front door lock.

THE SUPER
Yeah.

ZEFFA
Have you heard anything about it from
the company?

THE SUPER
No.

ZEFFA
It's just that-- I mean, I can get it
open if I mess with it. But the other
day Mrs. Gorvan in 1E told me she got
locked inside.
 11.

THE SUPER
I haven't heard anything.

ZEFFA
Which is really scary if there's a
fire or something.

THE SUPER
Yeah.

ZEFFA
So next time you talk to them you
should mention that.

THE SUPER
Uh-huh.

Another long pause.

ZEFFA
There's also something in the laundry
room, something slithering around,
with tentacles. I think it's a Sarlac.
Like a baby Sarlac. And if there's a
baby, that means there's a mommy
Sarlac somewhere and probably more
than one baby and those can reproduce
pretty soon...

THE SUPER
They don't have Sarlacs on Dagobah.
You watch too many holofilms.

ZEFFA
Oh.

THE SUPER
That's a desert animal, their habitat
is arid, dry climates.

ZEFFA
Just whatever it is, I think it might
be really dangerous...

THE SUPER
Look, we live in a swamp. The laundry
room is subterranean and there's going
to be creatures. It's a hot
atmosphere, it's moist, there's all
kinds of vegetation, it's good for a
creature like that. Good for it to
 12.

eat, good for it to reproduce and grow

big and strong.

ZEFFA
Must be nice.

THE SUPER
Yeah, that makes one of us, huh?

They share a small, bitter laugh.

THE SUPER
Just call the exterminator and bill
the company.

ZEFFA
Okay.

EXT. DAGOBAH - MONTAGE

A surf-rock version of "Lapti Nek" plays throughout.

Swamp troopers run through the jungle. Juzz has a red, sort
of lightsaber axe he uses to chop away at vines.

Swamp troopers ride around in some kind of air transport

vehicle. Ned shoots at villagers below and laughs maniacally.
Van looks uncomfortable.

As swamp troopers run through the jungle, giant bats descend

and pick off a few of them. The others crouch and start
firing up at them.

Swamp troopers in a village pat people down and arrest them.

Another terrified-looking barkeep hands drinks to the

platoon.

Two swamp troopers get into a bar fight.

A local tribe of snail people-- human proportions but about a

foot shorter than average, mucus-y skin, natural shell armor--
attack the swamp troopers by surprise in the jungle, killing
several of them with ropes and sharp sticks.

A village erupts in flames, and Ned emerges from the fire,

maskless, doing a sort of "give it up for me" gesture with
his hands. Van looks concerned.
 13.

INT. LAROE APARTMENT - EVENING

The Laroes eat another dinner together. As Blanse monologues,

her daughters half-listen, look away or stare at their food.

BLANSE
The gruel's all wrong. Too hard-
tasting. It's not your fault, it's the
water. It's been that way for years.
Your father was the cook of the
family, though. I could never get
anything right. A wonderful man in
every way. Good at everything,
seemingly. I was always after his
approval. Women always fawned over him
and I had to stand in their way. I had
to cajole and manipulate. Now I have
no aim in life, no cause, no
objective. You think you're building
towards something and it all just
falls out from under you. And you two
are strangers to me. I find you
strange. I don't understand the things
you do or the way you interact. You're
cold and removed and maybe that's my
fault. It certainly wasn't your
father's way. He was gregarious and
charismatic. Because you are strangers
to me it means I don't trust you. You
and your mysticism, and you and your
self-righteousness and hard-
headedness. That's no way to be a
family-- consumed by your own internal
forces. I'll die soon, then you'll
see. Then you'll see. I only hope I
die soon if that would make you happy.

They continue eating in silence for a beat. Zib stands up.

ZIB
I don't have to take this from you.

BLANSE
Of course you do.

ZIB
No I don't. You're the one who's going
to be surprised when I'm gone.

ZEFFA
Yeah, where are you gonna go?
 14.

ZIB
I'm gonna become a Jedi knight.

Blanse and Zeffa both snort-laugh.

ZIB
And I'm going to be part of the
rebellion, too.

Blanse and Zeffa laugh uncontrollably.

ZIB
I know where they are and everything,
they're on Yavin-4.

ZEFFA
(laughing uproariously)
Yavin-4!

Zib storms off.

ZEFFA
Okay, have fun killing Darth Vader for
me. (to Blanse) Have you seen this
guy, Darth Vader? Unbelievable. He
does this, like--

Zeffa does a Darth Vader impression. Blanse laughs.

INT. LAROE APARTMENT - NIGHT

Zeffa and Blanse share a bottle of something. An

instrumental, synth-y version of "Jedi Rock" plays. The droid
projects the lyrics onto the wall and Zeffa and Blanse sing
the song excitedly into little plastic microphones.

INT. LAROE APARTMENT - NIGHT - LATER

Blanse has her head in Zeffa's lap and Zeffa massages her
tentacles.

BLANSE
You have to cremate me when I die.

ZEFFA
Mom, what's this all about?

BLANSE
I just don't want to be one of these
undignified corpses floating around in
the mud. This planet, nothing is
 15.

solid, nothing stays in the same

place, everything moves out from under
your feet, even your...

She almost starts dozing off.

BLANSE
...even your final resting place.

INT. GORBON HOUSES - LAUNDRY ROOM - NIGHT

A tentacle slithers around, barely visibly on the damp

industrial floor amidst the wires and sputtering devices.

INT. LAROE APARTMENT - ZIB'S BEDROOM - NIGHT

Zib meditates in her tiny closet of a bedroom, which is

ornately painted with Jedi imagery.

A little stone starts to move on its own across the floor.

EXT. TAR PITS - DAY

The platoon trudges past some tar pits, from which protrudes
a huge rib bone. Juzz grabs it and pulls it out of the pits.

JUZZ
Do you know what this is? They don't
teach you about this in school. It's a
rib bone from a Vex-rothma, a creature
brought into being by the Sith
thousands of years ago. It roamed
around, swam, Sith used it for
transportation and warfare. It was a
wonder to behold. What does Sith mean
but genius, invention, and unlimited
discovery? They want to tell you that
you can't create life. That you can't
become a better version of yourself.
That your life shouldn't be
significant. They want to tell you
that that's inappropriate. They want
to tell you how to think. That the
power belongs to them. That you can't
make your own choices. They want to
squash that life out of you. The
enemies of personal responsibility, of
brilliance, of free thought, of
perfection, are piety and compassion.
But we shall accomplish our mission,
and that makes us not only prophets
 16.

but the fulfillers of the prophecy as

well-- and thus we shall be more than
the Jedi could ever claim to be.

EXT. FOREST - NIGHT

The swamp troopers have set up camp, with cots in tents.

Lights go out. Troopers lie down.

NED
Night.

VAN
Night.

A silent moment.

Then an inhuman groan.

Some creaking and burbling.

VAN
What was that?

NED
Nothin'. It's the woods.

A rumble.

VAN
That seriously sounded like--

An enormous sinkhole occurs across the camp. Tents and cots

and equipment topple over. Troops, all in their bed clothes,
are either swallowed up instantaneously or must fight the
tide of muck. They sputter and flail. Some grab for vines and
pull their way out. Van tries to pull Ned out but Ned pulls
him back in.

The sinkhole and subsequent mudslide calm down.

JUZZ
All accounted for?

Various shouts of "here," etc.

NED
Woooo!
 17.

INT. PLANT - DAY

A steamy, grimy factory. Smelting and sparks flying in the

background. Zeffa wears a jumpsuit and safety goggles and
carries a clipboard. She talks into a communication device.

ZEFFA
No, we're gonna need way more ampules
than that. Just trust me on this one?

She hangs up. A female insectoid person, GLARA, walks by.

ZEFFA
Glara! I need you to do something for
me.

GLARA
Good, that's terrific because I have
to tell you some more theories I read
about.

ZEFFA
Okay, as long as you can focus.

Zeffa takes Glara over to a table.

ZEFFA
These files are all out of order. Can
you organize them for me, please?

GLARA
They're saying the Rebel Alliance has
gotten really powerful. Pretty soon
they're going to come marching into
our homes, forcing us to attend Jedi
re-education camp and worship Master
Yoda as a god.

ZEFFA
Where'd you hear this?

GLARA
The news doesn't report this stuff
because they're so corrupt. But it's
out there.

ZEFFA
Uh-huh.

Glara starts half-heartedly organizing.

 18.

GLARA
I mean, this kind of thing is already
happening-- look at what happened on
Alderaan!

ZEFFA
What happened on Alderaan?

GLARA
It's just totally overrun by bounty
hunters and crime syndicates,
apparently. You can't even walk down
the street at night!

ZEFFA
Really?

GLARA
Yeah, Palpatine was just talking about
it the other day.

ZEFFA
I always wanted to go to Alderaan.

Glara is distracted now and not working at all.

GLARA
And they're going to start mind-
controlling us. They'll get the droids
to implant something in us.

ZEFFA
Do you think you could have this done
in twenty minutes?

GLARA
It's why my daughter won't talk to me
anymore. Because Qui-Gon Jinn is mind
controlling her. That's right... he's
still alive.

ZEFFA
I don't know who that is.

INT. TAVERN - NIGHT

Another village, another tavern. Five swamp troopers sit

around outside playing cards. Two more, BIZ and TRISTAN, sit
in the bar. People are dancing.

An attractive female of the Zabrak species makes eyes at

 19.

Tristan.

A Sullustan BARTENDER puts on a sad, slow pop song in

Huttese, something that feels like "Wild Horses" or "Gold
Dust Woman" via Sy Snootles.

BARTENDER
Last call!

Biz slaps Tristan on the back and leaves.

The Zabrak gets up and slow-dances with Tristan.

The two stare deep into each others' eyes-- a beautiful,

instant romantic connection.

The Zabrak places a detonator on Tristan's back. The whole

bar explodes.

EXT. DAGOBAH - MONTAGE

A version of the cantina song from "A New Hope" plays, with
more instruments and tinnier sound quality.

The swamp troopers go through another village, some of them

just shooting indiscriminately.

In the forest, a giant tentacle reaches out from the ground

and devours one of the swamp troopers. Another of the
troopers gets startled and accidentally shoots a third, and
two more accidentally shoot each other in the confusion.

In a makeshift camp, one of the other troopers grabs Van's

locket, opens it and makes kissy faces at the image of Zeffa.
Then he and a third trooper play keep-away with it as Van
tries to grab it back.

Swamp troopers go through a market and smash up peasants'

wares.

Van lies awake on a cot looking worried.

A village of humans attack the platoon with sticks.

EXT. SWAMP VILLAGE - DAY

Most of the human villagers lie on the ground around the

remaining five or so troopers and Juzz. A small party of men,
women and children crouch in submissive stances before the
troopers.
 20.

JUZZ
Hold your fire!

Juzz gets closer to the group of villagers.

JUZZ
Kolmash!

Van gets closer.

JUZZ
Kolmash, how many kills have you had
this campaign?

VAN
Zero, sir.

JUZZ
Zero?!

VAN
Yes, sir.

JUZZ
Have you ever taken a life?

VAN
No, sir.

JUZZ
I want you to kill these peasants,
private.

VAN
There's women and children here, sir.

JUZZ
Excuse me?

VAN
They're unarmed, sir.

JUZZ
Take your helmet off.

He cautiously takes his helmet off. His eyes are wide and he
is hyperventilating.

JUZZ
That's right. Let 'em see you. Now
aim.
 21.

Van lifts his blaster.

JUZZ
That's no kind of face for you to be
making. Make them afraid of you,
private! Make a mean face. You know
what a mean face looks like, don't
you?

Van tries to look mean but he is also crying.

JUZZ
You're on the right track. Now smile.

Van's face is contorted into an absolutely awful, forced--

yet perhaps not entirely insincere-- maniacal smile, as he
continues to struggle for breath.

JUZZ
Now FIRE!

Van shoots in the direction of the villagers.

INT. LAROE APARTMENT - NIGHT

Zeffa is up reading.

The droid approaches her. She looks at it. It starts

projecting a hologram of a human woman's smiling face.

HOLOGRAM
This is a message from the Prosperity
Real Estate Corporation. This building
is scheduled to be demolished in order
to make way for the beautiful new
Imperial Luxury Apartment Complex.
Thank you for understanding. We wish
you success in the future, and remind
you that if you believe in yourself,
maybe one day you, too, can live here.
Please commence evacuation. Demolition
begins in: one. hour.

The message is on repeat through the rest of the scene. Zeffa

jumps up and bangs on Zib's door.

ZEFFA
Zib! Zib, wake up!

Zib opens the door.

 22.

ZIB
What?

ZEFFA
We're getting evicted! They're going
to demolish the building in an hour!

She sees the hologram.

ZIB
Oh, druk, I've read about these, they
evict people in the middle of the
night! And then they only give people,
like, an hour to get out, it's awful!

ZEFFA
Great, well I'm glad we have your
expert opinion.

Zeffa pounds on Blanse's door. Zib starts gathering things.

ZEFFA
Mom! Mom, wake up!

She lets herself in.

ZEFFA
Mom. Mom, we gotta get up.

BLANSE
What are you doing? What's wrong with
you?

ZEFFA
We have to leave the building, they're
evicting everybody.

BLANSE
No they're not! Go back to bed.

ZEFFA
No, Mom, I'm serious!

BLANSE
You had a bad dream.

ZEFFA
Zib, stay here and make sure Mom gets
up, I have to make sure everybody else
in the building knows. Some of these
people don't have droids.
 23.

ZIB
Why do you get to do that?

ZEFFA
Because everyone in the building hates
you!

ZIB
No they don't!

Blanse is sitting up by now.

ZEFFA
Yes they do, they complain to me about
the chanting and they think all your
activist stuff is going to get us in
trouble.

BLANSE
Just go!

INT. GORBON HOUSES - HALLWAY - CONTINUOUS

Zeffa sprints through the hallway. She bangs on a door.

ZEFFA
Mrs. Gorvan? It's Zeffa from 1F, Zeffa
Laroe?

A little old lady opens the door.

ZEFFA
Mrs. Gorvan, they're about to demolish
the building! Everyone has to get out!

Zeffa runs to the next door and starts pounding.

INT. LAROE APARTMENT - NIGHT

Blanse walks around the apartment very slowly, getting ready,

looking for things.

ZIB
Mom, hurry up!

BLANSE
I will go at whatever pace I choose!

ZIB
Mom, this is an emergency!
 24.

BLANSE
Stop yelling at me! Why are you
yelling at me?!

INT. GORBON HOUSES - HALLWAY - NIGHT

Zeffa runs past the doorway. The dawn is breaking and through
a window she can see further down the hill, a demolition
vehicle, a HOUSING OFFICIAL, some stormtroopers, and the
super all standing around.

ZEFFA
Son of a...

She runs up the stairs.

She pounds on another door, and this time is greeted by a

blaster.

ZEFFA
It's Zeffa from 1F! Don't shoot!

Whoever is behind the door lowers the blaster.

INT. GORBON HOUSES - FIRST FLOOR LANDING - DAWN

Sleepy apartment-dwellers of various species trudge out en

masse, carrying as much as they can.

ZEFFA
Go with everybody else. I'll find you.

BLANSE
What are you going to do?

Zeffa reveals that she has the blaster from their kitchen
drawer.

ZEFFA
I'm going to stay behind and fight.
They can't get away with this. What
they're doing is illegal.

Zib emerges from the hallway with a long, decorated wooden

rod in her hand.

ZIB
I'm going to stay and fight, too.

Zeffa cringes.
 25.

BLANSE
Stupid.

Blanse walks out the door, the droid following behind.

The fuzzy child and his parents walk out the door. The child
looks over his shoulder sadly at Zeffa.

Zeffa keeps holding the door but turns to Zib.

ZEFFA
What is that thing?

ZIB
A staff. Check it out!

Zib tosses it to Zeffa. Zeffa catches it, shutting the door.

ZEFFA
Yeah, this is pretty cool, actually.

She dances around with it and strikes poses with it for a

little while.

ZEFFA
Look, you don't have to do this.

ZIB
I know.

ZEFFA
I can handle myself.

ZIB
I don't think that's true.

A beat. Zeffa walks over to the entrance and looks out the
window.

ZEFFA
Looks like everyone's heading to the
woods. We've just got a couple
minutes. You ready?

ZIB
Yeah.

ZEFFA
Great.

Zeffa tries to open the door but she's locked inside.

 26.

She tries again, then really rattles it.

She starts pounding on the door but the sounds are pretty
muffled.

Through the window, it's clear no one can hear her-- the
crowd is well on their way to the woods and the members of
the demolishing party are either engrossed in some paperwork
or just standing around idly.

Zeffa looks at Zib.

ZEFFA
Uh-oh.

EXT. CLEARING - DAWN

The platoon-- which is just Juzz, Van, Ned and one other
trooper now-- stops at the edge of the forest on the opposite
side of where the apartment's residents headed. Ahead of them
the building and the demolition party are visible. Van has
his helmet on but he is recognizable by the locket around his
neck.

Juzz stops.

JUZZ
Gentlemen, we have reached the most
important part of our mission. In that
building lives a Force-sensitive
Twi'lek girl. It's important that she
be captured before she gains any
significant power. We'll enter from
the front entrance, it looks like
there are friendlies up ahead so that
should be no problem, and then we
neutralize anyone inside that might
get in the way.

VAN
No.

Juzz laughs.

JUZZ
What?

VAN
No, I won't let you.
 27.

NED
Buddy.

VAN
It's my sister-in-law. I mean, future
sister-in-law.

JUZZ
How strong are your convictions,
private?

Van takes out his blaster.

Juzz sighs and shoots Van down. He pauses, then shoots the
other two down as well.

Lying on the ground, Van remembers:

EXT. GORBON HOUSES - DAY

Van, in civilian clothes, no locket, stands out front

waiting.

Zeffa comes out through the front door.

ZEFFA
What's this all about, man? You know,
it's kind of scary to just have your
ex show up like this.

VAN
Don't say it like that...

ZEFFA
Well that's what you are! We broke up!

VAN
I'm sorry.

ZEFFA
Because you got too attached! I mean
I've got my own life to worry about,
and you're constantly just whining
about having no direction.

VAN
But--

ZEFFA
I support my family!
 28.

VAN
I know--

ZEFFA
I'm supposed to listen to you complain
about how you don't know what you want
to do with your life?

VAN
I just--

ZEFFA
Ugh, we've already had this
conversation, why do I have to say it
again?

VAN
Well I wanted you to know that I'm
joining up with the Imperial swamp
troopers.

ZEFFA
Are you sure that's a good idea?

VAN
They pay a hundred credits a week. And
I don't know, maybe I'll figure some
things out.

ZEFFA
Yeah.

VAN
Maybe then I could also support a
family.

ZEFFA
We went out like five times! Are you
insane?!

VAN
I don't know. I'm sorry.

ZEFFA
I truly hope this works out for you.
But do it for yourself. This is not
about winning me back.

VAN
I don't accept that.
 29.

Van walks away.

Zeffa looks disgusted and throws up her hands in

exasperation.

She turns around to try and open the door but it's stuck. She
sighs.

EXT. CLEARING - DAWN

Van's body goes limp.

Juzz walks out of the clearing and up the hill.

EXT. GORBON HOUSES - DAWN

Juzz approaches the demolition party. The housing official

approaches him while rifling through some paperwork.

HOUSING OFFICIAL
Wonderful, I didn't know they were
sending anyone else! What's that form
you fellows always ask for--?

Juzz shoots him down without batting an eye.

Then he shoots the super and the stormtroopers.

From yet another angle, a speeder bike approaches, driven by

a man in a helmet, gloves and a baggy HAZMAT-style suit.

MAN
Hey, somebody needed an exterminator?
What the--

Juzz shoots him as well.

Juzz smashes through the door.

INT. GORBON HOUSES - FIRST FLOOR LANDING - CONTINUOUS

Juzz waves his hand, causing part of the building to crack

above him, fall and impede the newly-smashed exit behind him.

He waves his other hand and Zeffa and Zib fall to the ground.

He makes the blaster fly across the room and smash into the
wall.

He causes the staff to snap in half several times.

 30.

Zeffa and Zib get up and run into the hallway as Juzz shoots
at them.

EXT. SWAMP - DAWN

A small but fancy-looking craft lands. The hatch opens.

EXT. FOREST - CONTINUOUS

Leaves crunch. Someone or something is walking through the

woods as the dawn breaks, softly grunting every now and then.

INT. TAVERN - DAWN

Same tavern as in the beginning.

The same bartender is setting up for the morning.

The door opens, dings, then closes.

The bartender turns around and doesn't see anyone. She goes
back to her tasks. She turns on a faucet.

VOICE
Hmmf. Excuse me.

The bartender turns off the faucet and looks around, but
still doesn't see anyone.

She turns the faucet back on.

VOICE
Excuse me, miss?

The bartender turns the faucet off.

BARTENDER
Hello?

VOICE
Over here.

The bartender looks around.

BARTENDER
Who's there? I can't see you.

VOICE
Oh! Hmmf. See now I do what the
problem is.
 31.

YODA levitates above the bar. The bartender shrieks and drops
the cup she was holding, breaking it.

BARTENDER
Oh my goodness, you scared me.

YODA
Apologize, I must. My intention it was
not.

Yoda settles down atop the bar. He's got a little old book in
his hand.

BARTENDER
Man! Okay. What can I get you, buddy?

YODA
Vine-coffee, please, with Bantha milk.

BARTENDER
You're kidding, right?

A beat.

YODA
Fine enough just regular would be.

BARTENDER
Right.

She starts brewing the coffee.

YODA
Excuse me.

BARTENDER
Yeah.

YODA
X-37945-21 the coordinates here be?

BARTENDER
Buddy, you're askin' the wrong
bartender about coordinates.

YODA
But... the Dagobah system this is?

BARTENDER
Yeah. What brings you here, pal?
 32.

Yoda's book is full of images of beautiful lakes, birds,

people riding around on high-tech jetski-type devices. He
thumbs through it for a second, looks out the window, looks
confused.

YODA
Came here my wife and I did some fifty
years ago. Lovely it was.

A beat.

YODA
What happened?

BARTENDER
You really don't know?

YODA
Sincerely do I ask.

BARTENDER
Well. Some thirty years ago, our
representatives were begging the rest
of the Senate for some aid. The mining
companies grew too powerful and our
government just couldn't control them.
The environmental devastation they
wreaked led to these constant
mudslides... it transformed the whole
planet. There was a mass exodus, the
tourism industry dried up... and lots
of people just died. And now it's just
very, very economically depressed, and
the remaining people who do still live
here are desperate. Because the
Republic didn't do anything.

The bartender seems to notice Yoda's lightsaber.

BARTENDER
And neither did the Jedi.

YODA
Exactly how the Jedi council worked,
that is not.

BARTENDER
Yeah, apparently.

YODA
Many responsibilities a Jedi has.
 33.

BARTENDER
Yeah, okay.

She turns around, but then notices something out the window.

BARTENDER
Hey, buddy, isn't that your ride?

Yoda's ship is haphazardly flying away.

He jumps off the bar, runs to the window and puts his hand
out.

For a second, the ship seems to respond to Yoda's Force

energy, then it blasts into hyperdrive and disappears.

YODA
Peaceful is the way of the Jedi. Calm
and meditative. An absolute inner
tranquility. Through him the Force
does flow without turmoil.

BARTENDER
That's tough, bud. This is on the
house.

She places the coffee on the bar.

YODA
Peaceful is the way of the Jedi. Calm
and meditative. An absolute inner
tranquility. Through him the Force
does flow without turmoil.

BARTENDER
Hey, you'll get past this. You're
magic or whatever!

YODA
Peaceful is the way of the Jedi calm
and meditative an absolute inner
tranquility through him...

A table flips over. A chair goes flying.

YODA
So tell me you mean to! That trapped
here am I! On this disgusting swamp
rock!
 34.

BARTENDER
Heyyy, easy...

All of the furniture in the place is flying crazily around

and smashing into each other and into walls.

YODA
Never again to see my wife and child!
Never again to use my abilities for
anything but survival! And gone the
Republic is! And gone are the Jedi!
Because a chance Qui-Gon thought we
should take on some creepy little
podracer kid!

The furniture falls.

The bartender looks terrified. Yoda looks off in no direction

in particular, total panic in his eyes.

INT. GORBON HOUSES - FIRST FLOOR LANDING - DAWN

Juzz pauses before going any further. He looks like something

just occurred to him.

He looks out the window towards the woods.

Now he looks like he's realizing something truly exciting but

also potentially terrifying.

He steels himself and starts walking towards the hallway.

INT. LAROE APARTMENT - CONTINUOUS

The sisters run inside and lock the door.

Immediately they can hear Juzz pounding on the other side.

Zeffa runs to the window, opens it, and starts to climb out.

The door is nearly off its hinges by now. Zib starts looking
through the kitchen.

ZEFFA
Come on, what are you doing?

Zib grabs a knife and starts stabbing under the door. Juzz
gasps.

Juzz knocks the door down. Zeffa jumps. Zib gets to the
window and jumps out but Juzz is this close to grabbing her.
 35.

Juzz starts shooting out the window, downward.

EXT. BACK OF BUILDING - CONTINUOUS

As laser blasts rain down around her, Zeffa manages to

unscrew a vent and get inside it. Zib follows.

INT. VENTS - CONTINUOUS

The two sisters crawl through the vents.

INT. LAROE APARTMENT - DAWN

Juzz heads out of the apartment, limping.

INT. GORBON HOUSES - FIRST FLOOR LANDING - DAWN

Juzz closes his eyes and moves his head around as if trying
to sense where to go next.

He opens a door and heads down some stairs.

INT. GORBON HOUSES - BASEMENT - DAWN

Juzz shoots holes all through the vent. In the middle, ooze
starts leaking out.

Juzz smiles and moves toward the vent.

He cracks it open and some kind of opossum-like creature

falls out.

Behind him, the sound of something metal falling on the

ground, then two pairs of feet running away. Juzz turns in
that direction.

He shoots several times, and Zeffa's and Zib's shadows show

in the light.

He tries to keep firing but the blaster just clicks.

He throws it aside and takes out his lightsaber-axe and keeps

walking down this basement corridor.

INT. GORBON HOUSES - BASEMENT - CONTINUOUS

The sisters, then Juzz, turn a corner. Another corridor

stretches out before them.

Juzz swings his axe wildly around, hitting the walls. He's
still limping.
 36.

The Laroe sisters get to a door, open it, run through and
close it.

Juzz breaks the door down.

INT. GORBON HOUSES - LAUNDRY ROOM

A room full of laundry devices that look like dusty little

white pods. The light blinks on and off.

Juzz looks around.

He starts smashing all the pods, some of which spout water

when destroyed.

He takes a second to catch his breath, then sees Zeffa

standing in front of Zib, the two of them up against the
wall.

He swipes at Zeffa with the axe and just in time Zib zaps him
with Force lightning.

The lightning rapidly drains Zib-- her features get older and
almost start to approach a decomposition-like state.

She places one hand in the water on the floor and it seems to
help generate more electricity.

Zeffa has her feet on the only dry edge of the whole place.
The machines and the water all combine together to create a
greater current coming from Zib, electrocuting her as well as
Juzz.

Eventually she is completely drained and looks very closely

to death. The lightning stops.

Juzz gets up, scarred and spent but still alive. He raises
his axe.

Zib shoots one more little spark of electricity out, enough

to make Juzz pause.

Then another, slightly stronger one.

Then a final, strong blast as behind Juzz, the tentacle

creature Zeffa described earlier comes roaring out from under
a grate, grabs Juzz, and eats him whole.

The two watch for a second.

Then Zeffa takes Zib in her arms and runs out with her.
 37.

INT. GORBON HOUSES - PARKING GARAGE

Zeffa unlocks the little old ship and opens the doors.

She puts Zib in the passenger's seat.

She drives out of the garage.

EXT. GORBON HOUSES - DAY

Zeffa stops the ship. In the background, the building is on

fire.

She takes Zib out of it.

She checks her pulse and her breathing. Nothing.

Tries again.

Then again.

She puts her head down and cries over the body.

EXT. GORBON HOUSES - DAY

Zeffa stands over a pyre.

EXT. GORBON HOUSES - DAY

Zeffa grabs some blasters off of the dead stormtroopers from

the demolition party.

She takes a bag from the body of the housing official, looks
into it, and sees that it's full of credits. She keeps it.

She hooks the exterminator's vehicle onto her own.

EXT. CLEARING - DAY

Zeffa drives the ship down to the bottom of the hill, where
the swamp troopers' bodies lie.

She takes their blasters and their ration bags.

She turns over Van's body and sees the locket. She doesn't
seem to recognize it. She looks closely at it but doesn't
open it. She scratches it with one of her fingernails, then
tosses it to the side.
 38.

ZEFFA
(muttering)
Cheap material.

She gets in the ship and drives in the opposite direction,

the way the apartment-dwellers were headed.

EXT. WOODS - DAY

Zeffa approaches the group of her former neighbors.

She gets out of the ship. Blanse rises to meet her. Zeffa
bows her head. Blanse embraces Zeffa and cries.

Zeffa unloads the ration bags. She hands the bag of credits
to Blanse.

Zeffa unhooks the exterminator's speeder.

Blanse admires a blaster. She raises it at nothing in

particular and pretends to shoot. It seems to give her a
moment of enjoyment despite herself.

ZEFFA
There's some abandoned hotels on the
other side of the lake. You can
probably fix them up. These people are
gonna keep coming. You have to keep
fighting them off. I'll be back. But I
think I have to do something else for
a while.

INT. SHIP

Zeffa accelerates. The ship speeds past vines and trees and
murky bodies of water faster and faster. She seems happy,
liberated.

The ship begins to take off.

EXT. SKY

The ship soars higher and higher.

It blinks away into hyperspace.

EXT. SPACE

Zeffa's ship flies through beautiful nebulae.

 39.

EXT. PLANET - DAY

Sparkling seas. Beaches. All manner of greenery. Birds, other

flying beings, jumping fish. The ship begins its descent.

EXT. YAVIN-4 - CONTINUOUS

At the edge of the jungle, an ugly concrete expanse, which

houses a ramshackle encampment. A diverse group of species,
all wearing jumpsuits, walk around looking busy, loading and
unloading equipment, going over maps, drawing up plans,
hauling pieces of machinery, working on fighter ships. Some
droids also skitter around.

Zeffa's ship lands.

At the front of the encampment, one of the jumpsuit-clad

people runs a piece of cloth up a flagpole while a few others
stand around admiring it. On the flag, in splotchy paint, the
symbol of the Rebel alliance.

THE END.