Request Line: A Prom To Die For – Part 7 (Escape)

INT. RECORDING STUDIO – DAY

All the lights are…actually, most of the lights are out.  A single spotlight is pointed at a disco ball on the ceiling, the reflections from which faintly illuminate DJ 3000′ as it boots up…

…to a studio that has remained empty during the entire NFL season and postseason so far.  As we watch, DJ 3000”s console flashes the text "TCP-IP connection request sent..." shortly followed by "TCP-IP connection secured...receiving data..." before cutting to a security camera displaying the A/V club room.

INT. A/V CLUB ROOM – NIGHT

HUNTER RENFROW, RACHEL DUNBARTON, ANGIE MARTINEZ, and RICHIE INCOGNITO remain trapped in the A/V Club room.  The four of them are still cowering behind a table covered in aging electronics equipment. Across the room, a small hole has been smashed in the glass of the A/V Club room’s door and we can see a small amount of movement through it, though it is hard to tell what is happening on the far side. 

HUNTER RENFROW: Man, it feels like we’ve been trapped in here for weeks.

RACHEL DUNBARTON: At least they’re out of arrows though.

ANGIE MARTINEZ: I don’t think we’re out of the woods just yet.  Look!

ANGIE MARTINEZ points at the doorway, where a small tube has been inserted through the hole in the A/V Club door that the assailant had previously been shooting arrows through.  As the promgoers watch in terror, a yellowish liquid begins pouring out of the end of the tube and onto the floor of the room. 

RICHIE INCOGNITO: That smells like…victory.

HUNTER: You mean gasoline?

RICHIE: Same thing.

RACHEL: This is bad.

ANGIE: Is there a fire extinguisher in here?

HUNTER: No! There used to be but Mr. Baumgartner had to use it when Spud messed up the wiring on the AV-808FM amplifier for the graduation setup.  So had had to send it out to get recharged, and…

HUNTER RENFROW gestures to a fire extinguisher station in the corner of the room that sits empty, along with a note that reads “NO FIRES ALLOWED UNTIL [date redacted]”.

RACHEL: Well, we should…

There is the distinctive sound of a match being struck.

ANGIE: We need to get out of here.

HUNTER RENFROW looks around frantically.  After a quick scan of the room, he looks upward.

HUNTER: I’ve got an idea.

The rest of the crew follows his gaze.

RACHEL: That’ll work.

ANGIE: [glances down at her prom gown] Looks like I can forget about the security deposit on this thing.

RICHIE: [draws in a deep breath] Shit.

HUNTER: [squints his eyes at the bolts holding up the ducting, then regards Richie’s considerable bulk] Yeah.

ANGIE: What?

There is a whooshing noise as the match is dropped and the gasoline catches fire. 

RICHIE: No time to waste.  Okay, let me boost you guys up there.

HUNTER: You’re sure?

RICHIE: It’s fine.  Hunter, let’s get up you there first to make sure it’s safe.

ANGIE: Wait, what’s going on?

As the fire begins to spread in the room, RICHIE INCOGNITO laces his fingers together and HUNTER RENFROW steps into them. RICHIE INCOGNITO lifts him up and HUNTER RENFROW pulls a leatherman tool out of his pocket and quickly unscrews the grate and peers inside.  He nods and RICHIE INCOGNITO pushes him higher as HUNTER pulls himself up.  Once he’s inside RACHEL DUNBARTON tosses him an extension cord, which trails behind him as he crawls deeper into the ventilation duct.  RACHEL DUNBARTON goes next, boosted by RICHIE INCOGNITO and using the cord to help pull herself the rest of the way up.  

RICHIE: You’re next, Angie. Then pull up the cord.

ANGIE: You’re not coming?

RICHIE: There’s no way that ducting would hold me.  I’m not even sure I could fit inside.

ANGIE: But…

RICHIE: It’s fine. It’s good, actually.  [pounds a fist into an open hand] I’ve been chomping at the bit to take this creep on.  One thing…[yelling upwards into the open duct]…Hunter, is there anything here I can use as a weapon?

HUNTER [O/S]: [after a moment’s consideration] You see that rack of camera tripods on the far wall? One of them is a monopod. It’s got a pretty sharp spike at the bottom, that’s probably your best bet.

RICHIE: Sounds good.  Time to go Angie.

ANGIE: There’s got to be another way, Richie…

RICHIE: [laughs] Best case scenario, I break this weirdo in half and this all ends here.  Worst case…well at least make sure you tell everyone in the family how brave I was, okay?

ANGIE MARTINEZ nods grimly and lets RICHIE INCOGNITO boost her up into the duct.

[CUT TO: INT. VENTILATION DUCT – NIGHT]

Close-up on HUNTER RENFROW’s face as he craws through the ventilation duct.

HUNTER: DJ 3000′, can you hear me?

DJ 3000′: YES, I CAN HEAR YOU HUNTER.

HUNTER: I need schematics for the ventilation system ducts at Soscatee High School.

DJ 3000′: THAT’S FINE, HUNTER, I CAN PRODUCE THOSE FOR YOU BUT WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT GETTING YOU OUT OF THERE.

HUNTER: That’s exactly why I need the schematics!

DJ 3000′: NO, I MEAN…

HUNTER: [agitated] WE DON’T HAVE TIME FOR THIS!

DJ 3000′: [unperturbed] SPEAKING OF NOT HAVING TIME, REQUEST LINE GOES LIVE IN TWO MINUTES AND WE NEED A TOPIC.

HUNTER: Request Line? You can’t be serious!  DJ 3000′, forget about that, I need you to help get away from here!

DJ 3000′: GET AWAY FROM HERE…HEY, THAT GIVES ME AN IDEA.  [runs a database check] YEAH, THAT WILL WORK.

HUNTER RENFROW has arrived at a T-intersection in the ventilation duct and looks from left to right.

HUNTER: Which way, DJ 3000′?

DJ 3000′: UH…LEFT.  AND IN THE MEANTIME, LET’S MAYBE PLAY A FEW TUNES TO GET YOU MOVING. TODAY’S THEME IS “ESCAPE”.  I’LL GET US STARTED WITH…[shudders internally] A LITTLE LENNY KRAVITZ.

The horrible, horrible “music” of Lenny Kravitz begins blaring through the school’s speakers, somehow sounding impossibly loud even inside the ductwork.

HUNTER: DUDE! What the hell?

DJ 3000′: IT’S LIKE YOU SAID, HUNTER.  WE NEED TO GET YOU OUT OF THERE.

Today’s theme is “Escape”.  We’re looking for songs about getting away, breaking out, etc.  Please post links as “https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fe2O3yc4G3” and they should embed in the comments after you refresh.  Last week’s puzzle of “The Nightfly” by Don Felder was solved by SonOfSpam. If you’ve got a long weekend and are getting away for it, have yourself a blast!