Fat lady

Stop it, stop it, oh can't you see

he's had enough?

Hal grabs Paul by the shoulder, spins him around.

HAL

Why don't you shut it down?

PAUL

He's still alive! You want me to

shut down while he's still alive?

Hal is horrified at the thought. Del is jittering and

screaming, rocking from side to side, smoke pouring from his

nostrils and mouth, his tongue sizzling purple-black.

The witnesses are crowding and shoving to get out, but the

back door is locked. All they can do is cluster there.

Paul sees Percy with his head turned away. He grabs him,

forces his head around.

PAUL

You watch, you son of a bitch!

Harry steps up, the extinguisher in his hands. Waiting. Del

finally slumps over. He still vibrating, but now it's just

the effect of current flowing through his body.

PAUL

Kill it!

Van Hay kills the current. The HUMMING DIES. Brutal grabs the

extinguisher from Harry, shoves it into Percy's hands.

BRUTAL

You do it. You're running the

show, ain't you?

Percy, sick and dazed, aims the extinguisher and hoses the

smoking corpse. Hal is near the back, calming the crowd:

HAL

It's all right, folks, it's all

under control. Just a power surge

from the storm, that's all,

nothing to worry about...

PAUL

Dean, get doc's stethoscope.

Dean drops to the doctor's bag, digs through it, hands up the

stethoscope. Paul plugs them into his ears. People are

moaning and sobbing at the back of the room:

MAN

Oh my God! Is it always like this?

Why didn't somebody tell me? I

never would have come!

Paul wipes some foam away from Delacroix's chest, places the

stethoscope pad to the raw flesh. He nods to Brutal--it's

over.

CUT TO:

INT. ACCESS TUNNEL - NIGHT

Paul and the others bring the stretcher down, lay the corpse

on the gurney. Percy starts stammering excuses:

PERCY

I didn't know the sponge was

supposed to be wet--

Brutal hauls off and slugs him. A scuffle ensues as the

others grab Brutal and pull him off.

PAUL

Brutal, no!

BRUTAL

What do you mean, no? How can you

say no? You saw what he did!

PAUL

Delacroix's dead, nothing can

change that, and Percy's not worth

it!

BRUTAL

So he just gets away with it? Is

that how it works?

Hal comes lunging down the stairs, furious:

HAL

What the fuck was that? Jesus

Christ, three witnesses puked all

over the floor up there! And the

smell! I got Van Hay to open both

doors, but that smell won't come

out for five damn years, that's

what I'm betting! And that asshole

Wharton is singing about it! I can

hear him!

PAUL

(quietly)

Can he carry a tune, Hal?

This pulls the plug on the moment--Hal snorts, triggering

laughter among the men, a wild release of tension and fear.

Everybody starts feeling a bit saner again as it dies down:

HAL

Okay, boys. Okay. Now what the

hell happened?

All eyes go to Percy. Hal turns, sees Percy's bloody lip.

HAL

Percy? Something to say?

PERCY

I didn't know the sponge was

supposed to be wet.

Beat. A look of utter contempt from Hal.

HAL

How many years you spend pissing

on the toilet seat before somebody

told you to put it up?

PAUL

Percy fucked up, Hal. Pure and

simple.

HAL

Is that your official position?

PAUL

Don't you think it should be?

Hal considers it, nods.

PAUL

He'll be putting in a transfer

request to Briar Ridge tomorrow.

Moving on to bigger and better

things. Isn't that right, Percy?

Percy nods. Hal steps close, gives him a tight, icy smile.

HAL

You're a little asshole, and I

don't like you a bit.

(off Percy's look)

Have that transfer request on my

desk first thing.

Hal heads back up the stairs. Brutal shoves Percy aside and

wheels Delacroix's body down the tunnel.