"Chuck Versus the Reboot"

by Estee

ACT IV

INT. BUY MORE - DAY

Jeff and Lester sit at the Nerd Herd desk. Morgan
approaches, dressed in his Buy More uniform, looking around.
Big Mike walks by and glares at them, but keeps moving.

EMMETT (O.S.)
Well, well, well. If it isn't the
prodigal son come back home.

Morgan ignores him.

EMMETT
Did you have fun with the pigs?

JEFF
Pigs?! Where?

Jeff jumps down under the cover of the desk and starts
humming a frightened sounding "Cop" theme song.

EMMETT
Don't you people read the Bible?

LESTER
I'm Jewish, remember?

Emmett looks at him, confused. He turns to Morgan.

EMMETT
Here's your nametag, Grimes. Mess
up again and I'll send it through
the shredder with you still
attached.

Emmett cackles and walks away.

LESTER
Creepy.

Jeff peeks his head up over the counter.

JEFF
We gotta find Chuck.

MORGAN
Guys, I've been thinking. Maybe
there's a reason we can't find
Chuck. Maybe we're the ones meant
to lead the revolution.

Jeff and Lester inhale deeply and look at each other. They
are the chosen ones. Back to reality.

MORGAN (cont'd)
We're going to need some dirt on
Emmett.

LESTER
Forget about it. He's cleaner than
an edited for TV movie.

ANNA (O.S.)
Or, is he?

Morgan grins a goofy smile at Anna puts a digital camera
down on the counter. Lester and Jeff pick it up and start
clicking through the old images.

ANNA
Don't even look at me Morgan. First
you kill our plans for Hawaii then
you beg for your old job back. I
just can't believe how satisfied
you are with the status quo.

Morgan's face falls.

LESTER
Anna, you're a goddess.

JEFF
A super-hot goddess.

Anna scrunches up her nose.

LESTER
Look at this...

Lester hands Morgan the camera. Morgan clicks through a few
shots then grins wickedly.

MORGAN
Status quo: annihilated.

Anna holds back a smile. She loves this loser.

INT. UNDERGROUND LABORATORY - DAY

Chuck sleeps on a cot. Sarah leans on a wall nearby,
watching as he shifts and mumbles.

Steve enters the lab.

STEVE
Colonel Casey just got word from
the General. You guys are going to
have to head out soon. New mission.

SARAH
Should I wake him?

Steve checks his watch.

STEVE
Two more minutes on the clock.

Sarah nods, her eyes drifting back to Chuck.

STEVE (cont'd)
If he wakes up and can play that
videogame, I'll work on recovering
your file next.

SARAH
I was thinking... maybe we should
just let it go.

Steve narrows his eyes.

SARAH (cont'd)
Chuck was too attached to me.

STEVE
Attached? He's in love with you.

Sarah hangs her head.

SARAH
Maybe he was, but now he calls me
"Agent Walker," and I'm not sure
that's a bad thing.

Steve scowls.

SARAH (cont'd)
Chuck's feelings for me jeopardize
every mission.

STEVE
What about your feelings for him?
Or does this "attachment" only go
one way?

Sarah folds her arms and looks off.

STEVE (cont'd)
That's what I thought.

Sarah glances down then up at Steve.

STEVE (cont'd)
Trust me, Sarah, I know all about
personal sacrifice. Ignoring your
feelings to protect the ones you
love, but if you think this is
what's best for Chuck--

SARAH
You're the one worried about his
safety, right? This is what will
keep him safe. What's best for him.

Steve considers this.

Casey charges into the lab.

CASEY
Tell the Intersect to rise and
shine. The General wants a meeting
in five minutes. We'll link up in
the van.

Chuck slowly opens his eyes and blinks. He sits up and looks
around.

CHUCK
Did it work?

STEVE
You tell us.

Steve points to an Xbox setup with an LCD screen. Call of
Duty is on pause. Chuck picks up the controller and starts
playing. He mows through several enemy targets then hits
pause and turns back to the group.

CHUCK
We're good.

Sarah smiles uncertainly. Steve grins.

CHUCK (cont'd)
Now, let's see if we can get Agent
Walker back into my brain.

CASEY
No time.

SARAH
The General has a new mission for
us.

CHUCK
I don't want to go. What if I flash
on someone or something? What if I
learn a new style of marial arts...

Chuck stands up.

CHUCK (cont'd)
Wait a second.

Chuck strikes a Kung-Fu pose, but it looks awkward.

CHUCK (cont'd)
No. No...

He looks comically sad.

CHUCK (cont'd)
Guys, I don't know Kung-Fu.

STEVE
Not right now you don't, but Sarah,
go for him.

SARAH
Excuse me?

STEVE
Try to attack him.

Sarah shrugs and spins into a light kick. It knocks Chuck
slightly to the side then he...

FLASH. Kung-Fu, bright images, random pictures.

BACK TO SCENE

Sarah moves in for a punch, but Chuck blocks it.

CHUCK
Whoa. How... ?

STEVE
Think of it as RAM versus ROM. The
Intersect will now pull up the file
and access what is needed for the
moment, but rather than saving the
data over other important--and
nonimportant--information, it'll
clear the cache after each use.

Casey growls appreciatively.

CASEY
How efficient. Now let's go before
the general catches on that
something's wrong.

CHUCK
Wait a sec, I'm still not sure I
should go on a mission right now.
What if I forget--

STEVE
You won't. Random access only.

CHUCK
And I can come back later to get
Agent Walker's...er, "file" back?

Sarah and Steve trade a look.

STEVE
That may be a bit more complicated
than I originally thought, but...
I'm working on it.

Sarah nods appreciatively.

CASEY
Okay, now I'm making it an order.
Let's go.

Sarah and Chuck follow Casey out. Steve looks around
apprehensively. He spots his computer and sits down.

INT. BUY MORE - DAY

Morgan, Anna, Jeff and Lester stand in front of the TV wall.

LESTER
Permission to engage.

MORGAN
Permission granted.

Lester pulls out a remote and hits a button. A video slide
show (complete with cheesy music) starts to play. The
pictures are of Emmett, taken by himself on a camera in the
store. At first, they're just ordinary pictures, but then
they get weird. Emmett with his shirt off. Emmett dressed a
baby. Emmett with a fake mustache and monocle. And weirder.

Everyone in the store stops to stare. Big Mike comes running
up to enjoy the show.

BIG MIKE
Genius! I love it. I love it!

He wraps his arms around Morgan and Anna, squeezing them
close. Morgan smiles, but Anna looks annoyed.

EXT. SHIPPING YARD - DAY

A black van pulls up. Casey and Sarah, dressed in their
typical spy gear, hop out. Chuck opens the back door, but
can get just one foot on the ground before:

CASEY SARAH
Stay in the van. Stay in the van.

CHUCK
But I can take care of myself now.

SARAH
Are you sure about that?

CHUCK
Oh, that's real nice. Throw my
words back at me. You know--

CASEY
Watch the screen. If you flash on
anything, tell me. Otherwise--

CHUCK
(mocking)
Stay in the van. Got it.
(mumbled)
So much for Super-Chuck.

Chuck gets back in the van and slams the door.

EXT. SHIPPING YARD - DAY

Sarah and Casey take cover behind a large freight container.

CASEY
Okay, Bartowski, what do you see?

INT. VAN - DAY

Chuck watches the scene from Casey's perspective:

Two men stand over a small, wooden crate. Two small missiles
are laying inside. The men exchange a bag, one of their
wristwatches showing in the process.

FLASH: Watch. Clock. Picture labelled "Arms dealer." Dead
bodies missing limbs. Stefano Juarez.

BACK TO SCENE

CHUCK
Whoa, okay. I don't know the
seller, but the buyer is Stefano
Juarez. He's responsible for
several attacks in South America.
Mainly, though, he acts as a middle
man between arms dealers and
international terrorists. Oh, and
he's also known for--

On the screen, Juarez pulls out a gun and shoots the seller.

CHUCK (cont'd)
That.

Juarez reaches over and picks up his bag of money.

CHUCK (cont'd)
Uh, and sometimes he uses--

A bullet whizzes through and hits the shipping crate.

CHUCK (cont'd)
Snipers for body guards.

EXT. SHIPPING YARD - DAY

Sarah ducks out of the way of another round of sniper fire.

CASEY
Let's go.

Casey and Sarah run around to the other side of the crate,
using it for cover, but exposing themselves to Juarez who
points his gun at them and shoots.

Casey takes off after him.

CASEY (cont'd)
Cover me.

Sarah looks around at several tall spots in the yard.

SARAH
Chuck? Find the sniper rifle and
get out here.

CHUCK
(filtered)
Uh... I've never--

SARAH
Come on, Super-Chuck. We need you.

Behind her, Casey tackles Juarez and punches him. Sarah
continues to take fire from he sniper.

A shot from another direction rings out. Across the yard, a
gun falls from the roof of a large building. On top of the
building a man has his hands in the air.

Sarah looks over and sees Chuck with the rifle in his hand.
He spots her, too. He looks uncertain as he keeps the sniper
in his scope.

SARAH (cont'd)
Shoot him.

CHUCK
(freaked)
I shot the gun. We're good.

Casey drags Juarez, barely conscious, over to Sarah who
cuffs him. Casey glances over at Chuck who is still covering
the sniper.

CASEY
Hm. Still handy. Good work,
Bartowski.

This makes Chuck smile.

SARAH
Very good work.

This makes Chuck beam.

JUAREZ
Get over yourselves. There's a war
going on that you don't even know
about, that you can't begin to--

Casey cold cocks him.

INT. BUY MORE - DAY

Emmett is escorted out the store by security.

EMMETT
This is war! War, do you hear me?!

Morgan, Lester, Jeff and Anna high five. Big Mike walks up
wearing his dress shirt and tie. He beams with pride.

BIG MIKE
Kids? Daddy's home.

The rest of the Buy More crew starts applauding.

BIG MIKE (cont'd)
Thank you, thank you. Now get back
to work! And somebody better get
some doughnuts on my desk ASAP!

The enthusiasm disperses as the status quo resumes.

INT. CASEY'S APARTMENT - DAY

Casey and Sarah stand in front of the computer screen. Chuck
sits in a rolling chair, sliding backwards and forwards. The
general pops onto the screen.

BECKMAN
Good work, team. Mr. Bartowski,
this new Intersect is proving to be
increasingly useful.

Chuck nods and forces a smile. The team is silent.

BECKMAN (cont'd)
What? No recap of the "cool" things
that happened today?

Chuck raises his eyebrows, confused.

BECKMAN (cont'd)
You're usually a bit more vocal.

SARAH
He's just... tired, Ma'am.

Chuck fakes a yawn.

CHUCK
Yeah, I just need dome sleep.

BECKMAN
I hope Agent Walker's presence
hasn't been keeping you up.

Casey clears his throat. Sarah glares at him. Chuck gives
the general a lopsided smile.

CHUCK
Agent Walker's been doing her job.
Keeping me safe.

BECKMAN
Glad to hear it. Goodnight.

The general disappears.

CHUCK
So abrupt.

SARAH
Come on, Chuck. You really do need
to reboot, see if your dad's
modifications had any effect.

Chuck nods.

DISSOLVE TO

INT. CHUCK'S BEDROOM - NIGHT

In boxers and a t-shirt, Chuck wanders around his room. He
finds the picture of he and Sarah on his bedside table. He
picks it up and examines it.

A knock, then Sarah enters dressed in a way-too-big "Cowbell
Hero" shirt. Chuck smiles.

CHUCK
Is that my shirt?

SARAH
I got it out of your drawer. Is
that okay?

CHUCK
Yeah...
(he takes a long look)
It looks better on you anyway.

SARAH
It's just part of the cover.

CHUCK
Right, like you sleeping in my bed.

SARAH
We were just... trying that out.

Chuck nods.

CHUCK
How'd it go?

SARAH
Your feet are like ice cubes.

CHUCK
I can wear socks.

SARAH
And I steal the covers.

CHUCK
Covers are overrated.

She chuckles.

CHUCK (cont'd)
So... overall, a failed mission?

Sarah considers this carefully.

SARAH
Yeah.

A beat as he looks down at his shirt again.

CHUCK
So... you can take the bed and--

SARAH
That bed is all yours.

Sarah smiles mischeviously.

SARAH (cont'd)
Come here.

She grabs his hand. He looks down at their hands as Sarah
drags him out of the room.

INT. OFFICE - NIGHT

Ellie's old bedroom holds a desk and some miscellaneous
office-type furniture. Sarah leads Chuck in then lets go of
his hand.

CHUCK
I always wanted a home office.

Sarah slides a picture on the wall about three inches. A
huge pit opens in the floor then a bed, already made, rises
up, knocking aside a few boxes on the way.

CHUCK (cont'd)
Whoa. How... when... what?

SARAH
Your covers are safe tonight.

Chuck laughs. Sarah walks up to him, backing him out of the
room.

SARAH (cont'd)
I'll see you in the morning.

CHUCK
Goodnight, Agent Walker.

SARAH
Goodnight, Chuck.

He turns to leave.

SARAH (cont'd)
And, Chuck?

He turns back around.

SARAH (cont'd)
Call me Sarah.

Chuck smiles and nods.

CHUCK
Goodnight, Sarah.

He takes one last look at her then exits.

SARAH
Goodnight, Super-Chuck.

She watches the doorway, clearly sad.

FADE TO BLACK.

END OF ACT IV