"24" -- Season Five

EXT, CALIFORNIA, NIGHT
Ariel shot of convertible snaking along on Pacific Ocean Highway. It drives cautiously, just under the speed limit, nothing to attract attention. Two men inside. RAOUL driving, DIMITRI in the passenger's seat.

INT - CONVERTIBLE

DIMITRI : You have the device?

RAOUL: Yes. As you can see. (taps compact metallic case on the seat) The device is here.

DIMITRI: Yes. (taps forehead, smiles) And the codes are here. But we are of one mind. The Americans must pay for their arrogance! For their lies!

He grabs the case, opens it. Punches in numbers.

DIMITRI: Now the system is armed, my friend. All it needs now is the first target, but which one? New York? Miami? Chicago? Dallas. Decisions, decisions. How many years I have waited for this!

RAOUL: Please calm down.

DIMITRI: Why? "Star Wars" is mine. A network of orbiting lasers -- the true SDI, not the spin for the stupid public! Death from above, anytime, anywhere -- that was the idea! And it was a good idea and it was my idea and they stole it from me! 16 years of my life, Raoul. 16 years. I lost my family, lost everything. For what? For nothing! "We never built it," the politicians said. "Too costly, impractical." Lies!

RAOUL: It is a great injustice. We --

DIMITRI: (not stopping) "Oh, there are no death ray satellites in space." Lies! The satellites are up there, I know. I built them! I launched the rockets! It is all in place! But the Americans buried the truth and me along with it! Still they lie to this day. "Oh, the "Star Wars" system does not exist." But the Americans have the system!

RAOUL: No, my friend. (indicating) We have the system, remember?

DIMITRI: Then let us test it. (opening metallic case) The target we have agreed upon ...

A fuel tanker approaches.

INT, TRUCK - NIGHT

A wide-eyed TRUCK DRIVER snorts a line of crystal meth on the dashboard, taking his eyes off the road. He hoovers, truck drifts over yellow line -- then hurtles into the sports car in a front-end collision. The impact slams the convertible against the railing. The truck follows, jackknifing, then exploding in a vast fire ball, instantly vaporizing convertible, DIMITRI, RAOUL, and the Star Wars control device. The whole flaming mess goes down the cliff-side.

INT, JACK BAUER'S APARTMENT - NIGHT

He's asleep in bed. The phone on the night stand doesn't ring.

The CLOCK effect comes up. 1:21 AM.

Through the rest of the season, we intercut between JACK sleeping and bored analysts at CTU with nothing to do for the next 24 hours.