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AMNESTY
INTERNATIONAL - CH.21
Atlantis has been the subject of countless
films, as has Nazi gold and oil polluting our oceans,
but never have all these elements come together under one roof
as a submarine
movie.
Aiming
for a screenplay 90-110 pages max.
VIDEO
EVIDENCE PROVES THAT TERRAMENTALS WERE FRAMED, HUMAN RIGHTS
ABUSED
The High Court of Justice on The Strand, London, a formidable bastion of British law, stood with its ancient stones echoing centuries of jurisprudence. But on this unusually crisp morning, the air within Courtroom One crackled with a different kind of
electricity. It wasn't merely a legal battle; it was a reckoning, a public inquiry of profound significance. By special dispensation of the Tribunal – a specially convened Judicial Review, operating as a deemed application by way of appeal – George Franks and John Storm stood, not merely as legal representatives, but as impassioned advocates for the Terramentals. Their unique status, acknowledged as "rather more than McKenzie friends," underscored the extraordinary nature of the proceedings.
The inquiry itself was unprecedented: three stern-faced judges presided, flanked by a tribunal clerk, but most unusually, a jury of twelve ordinary citizens sat, their expressions a mix of solemnity and bewildered curiosity. From the outset, the Tribunal had acknowledged John Storm's blameless role in the Neptune affair, accepting that he had merely acted under his general duty of care, striving to protect human life when he towed the rogue submarine into Lisbon harbour. But that was where the easy agreements ended.
"But this group of extremists," Judge 1 began, his voice a deep rumble laced with skepticism, his gaze sweeping over the silent courtroom, "stole a nuclear submarine."
"And they wilfully destroyed three vital North Sea oil rigs," Judge 2 added, sharp and incisive.
Judge 3 leaned forward, his expression severe. "Quite so. What possible extenuating circumstances, Mr. Storm, can justify such catastrophic acts?"
John Storm stood tall, his presence commanding despite the austere surroundings. His eyes, usually scanning horizons, now held the unwavering gaze of the judges. "Indeed, my Lords. They did. But the more profound question, the one we must confront, is why? Under what unbearable circumstances would peaceful protestors, individuals deeply committed to the sanctity of life and planet, be driven to the extraordinary lengths of hijacking one of His Majesty's men-of-war? Why not simply lodge an appeal through the proper channels? I hear that question echoing in this very room."
A flicker of something unreadable crossed Judge 1's eyes. "Indeed, Mr. Storm. That question weighs heavily on our collective minds. If you might enlighten the Tribunal, and more importantly, the jury."
John turned, his gaze sweeping over the twelve faces of the jury – ordinary men and women, citizens like the Terramentals, now burdened with an extraordinary decision. "Members of the jury, for that is truly why we are sitting here today. We are here not merely to pass judgment, but to try to place ourselves in the impossible shoes of
Bartram
Fox, Redan
Simdo, Max
Mohune, Zera Masken and
Zinzi
Diana. We are here to grapple with that primal trigger within us all, that pushes an ordinary soul to extreme reaction. That makes us do extraordinary, even desperate, things." He paused, letting his words sink in. "I should like to call to the stand the Right Honourable
Nicholas Johnson
MP."
Nicholas Johnson MP, impeccably dressed but visibly uncomfortable, took the stand. Under relentless questioning regarding his offshore investments in North Sea oil, his carefully constructed façade began to crumble. He gave evidence on oath that was, to put it mildly, rather less than convincing. In a roundabout, evasive manner, he eventually admitted to having investments in North Sea oil by proxy, having "gifted" sums as investments to various family members. These, he feebly claimed, did not require registration as a potential conflict of interest. The air in the courtroom thickened with unspoken judgment.
"I should now like to call to the stand Sir Rodney
Dunbar."
Sir Rodney Dunbar, a man accustomed to wielding power in the shadows of MI6, cut an equally compromised figure. Under increasingly aggressive questioning, he too reluctantly revealed his extensive investments in North Sea oil drilling operations, stocks, and shares – all, he insisted, by proxy, a transparent attempt to distance himself. The court’s collective frown deepened. The General’s casual disregard for ethical lines was palpable, only intensified when questions turned to the chilling "kill order" issued for HMS Neptune. His denials rang hollow.
"I should like to call to the stand Sergeant Gordon Scotford, Metropolitan
Police."
Sergeant Gordon
Scotford, burly and impassive, took the stand.
"Sergeant Scotford, you have repeatedly denied targeting and brutally beating the Terramentalist protestors during their peaceful demonstration. Is that still your testimony?" John Storm asked.
"As I’ve said before, I was acting under direct orders. I should not be required to answer questions that I cannot confirm or deny, as part of my operational duties," Scotford replied.
A tense silence descended. Then, the immense courtroom screens flickered to life. Footage from BBC and other news agencies, raw and unedited, filled the space. It showed Sergeant
Scotford, unmistakable in his uniform, and other officers under his direct command, methodically singling out the Terramental leaders. The camera lingered on Zera Masken’s terrified face as she was violently shoved, then on the brutal, targeted beatings, and the rough, dehumanizing way they were thrown into police vans.
The sheer, unprovoked aggression was undeniable. A collective gasp rippled through the public gallery.
Scotford, on the stand, visibly flinched, his composure cracking. John Storm quietly stood down, taking a seat beside George Franks. George rose, his gaunt frame infused with a renewed fire.
"Imagine, if you will, members of the jury, a time when lowly serfs and yeomen, peasants under the feudal system of old England, possessed no rights. They were chattels, mere property, like slaves. That was until the Magna
Carta, issued in June 1215, the very first document to enshrine the principle that even the
King and his government were not above the law. But it wasn't until the unimaginable horrors inflicted by Adolf Hitler
forced developed nations to redefine those rights under the tenets of the
Universal
Declaration, that Human Rights law truly began to develop, evolving into what we know today. But where are we, truly? Do these citizens, the Terramentals, have their full quota of civil rights in the United Kingdom?" He paused, allowing his words to echo. "I should like to call to the stand Bobby
Dallas."
Bobby Dallas, a nervous, unassuming figure, stepped forward. The moment he began to speak about the day of the protest, a profound shift occurred. His shaky hand presented a small, unassuming USB drive. The video recording, his own personal footage, was introduced as evidence. It was meticulously filmed, utterly disproving the fabricated testimonies of Sergeant Gordon Scotford and Scotland Yard’s Chief Constable Harold Holland.
The tribunal initially questioned the recording’s ownership, its late revelation, and its admissibility. The courtroom erupted in a furious legal skirmish. The CPS defendants, their faces contorted with rage, objected violently, but the Tribunal, after a heated deliberation, allowed it into the record.
The impartiality of the CPS, and indeed, the trial judges themselves (all knighted, a point not lost on the defense), was now openly called into question, their competence and independence under fierce scrutiny, violating Articles 5 and 6 of human rights law. The evidence painted a damning picture of premeditated targeting and state-sanctioned violence.
"I should now like to call to the stand Dan Hawk."
Dan Hawk, slightly awkward in a suit but radiating quiet competence, took the stand.
"Mr. Hawk, you are a technical officer aboard the Elizabeth Swann?" George Franks inquired.
"Yes, I am," Dan Hawk affirmed.
"Can you elaborate about the rescue mission, to save the crew of
HMS
Neptune? In your own words, please, Mr. Hawk."
"Yes. The Swann has an onboard AI computer called Hal. Hal intercepted messages, encrypted but ultimately traceable, that were digitally traced back to MI6, specifically to Sir Rodney Dunbar’s offices. If I may refer to the messages?" The court clerk nodded. Screens around the room flickered, displaying lines of chilling text. Then, a synthesized voice, Hal's, filled the courtroom, playing the intercepted messages. They were Sir Rodney Dunbar’s own commands, stark and unambiguous, ordering the sinking, the "kill," of HMS Neptune. His earlier testimony, his denials, crumbled into dust. The messages chillingly revealed his foreknowledge of the reactor’s shortcomings, the procurement fraud that had plagued the Astute fleet, and his callous disregard for the lives of the submarine’s crew.
"Thank you, Mr. Hawk. You may stand down."
"I should now like to call to the stand Charley Temple."
Charley Temple, sharp and self-possessed, presented her findings with devastating clarity. Her investigations into offshore accounts belonging to Sir Rodney Dunbar were laid bare. Payments to Chief Constable Harold Holland were meticulously matched with sums withdrawn from accounts operated by, among others, Nicholas Johnson MP. All, she concluded, traced back to an opaque oil cartel slush fund, a web of corruption that now lay exposed under the stark courtroom lights.
"Thank you, Miss Temple."
"I should now like to call to the stand William Liam Wallace." William Liam Wallace, a former BAE insider, approached the stand.
"Please take the Bible in your right hand and take oath."
William lifted the Bible high, his face grim. "I swear by Almighty God, that the evidence I shall give, shall be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth."
Under questioning, Mr. Wallace calmly revealed confidential logs. These logs, he testified, showed a shocking discrepancy: time booked for reactor servicing on the Astute fleet simply did not match operational service records. In a damning revelation, HMS Neptune was at sea, on active duty, when official service records stated the submarine was safely in dock, undergoing reactor core maintenance. The procurement fraud, the backhanders, the deliberately neglected service levels – all leading to the inevitable, catastrophic reactor leakage – were now undeniable.
"Thank you, Mr. Wallace. You may stand down."
George Franks sat down, a deep breath escaping him. John Storm rose again, his eyes once more sweeping over the jury, a profound quiet descending upon the courtroom.
"Members of the Jury," John began, his voice dropping, becoming deeply personal, deeply empathetic, "there are certain situations, certain combinations of events, that are simply beyond our control. Circumstances that will force an ordinary man or woman to extraordinary endeavour. Mostly, we see this in times of war: acts of heroism, of
valour. The stuff of Victoria Crosses, of legends like Rorke’s Drift in the Anglo-Zulu War of 1879. We also acknowledge medical conditions that would excuse even murder, where a person with that condition is provoked beyond endurance, and that provocation is intentional. You have seen the caselaw on that.
"What we are looking at today, what the overwhelming evidence has unequivocally shown, is this: A group of peaceful citizens, beaten, framed, and unjustly imprisoned. A system, as has been shown to you – and indeed, admitted by the State’s own silence – that offered no chance of appeal. No effective remedy in the United Kingdom at that time. Bereft of any legal recourse, no right of appeal, the only chance these would-be law-abiding protestors had was to do precisely what they did, and what they could, to prove their innocence to a world that refused to listen." He leaned forward, his voice a powerful, resonant challenge. "I ask you, members of the jury: What might you have done in those circumstances? Would you have allowed the perpetrators of these crimes against your person, against your very liberty, to go on and persecute you for the rest of your lives? Would you? Is that not, itself, a form of profound mental torture? Or would you have tried your utmost, with every fibre of your being, to unmask the violators of your fundamental civil liberties?"
The jury looked visibly emotional, some dabbing at their eyes, as if reliving the incredible beatings and the suffocating injustice of imprisonment themselves. John and George, standing side-by-side, couldn't be sure of their thoughts, but a fragile hope bloomed in their chests. In unison, their voices firm and resonant, they declared: "We rest our case."
THE VERDICT
The agonizing wait for the verdict stretched into several hours, each minute a taut, unbearable suspension of breath. Finally, the courtroom doors swung open. The jury filed back in, their faces unreadable masks of solemnity. The lead Judge, his voice calm but imbued with the weight of the moment, addressed them.
"Members of the Jury, have you reached a verdict?"
The Foreman of the Jury, a woman with kind but firm eyes, rose slowly. The courtroom became absolutely silent. You could have heard a pin drop, the air thick with anticipation. The assembled media, a tense throng of reporters, cameras, and microphones, leaned forward as one, straining for every syllable.
"Yes, my Lords. We have." She paused, taking a deliberate breath. "We find the Terramentals… NOT GUILTY of all charges."
A collective, explosive gasp ripped through the courtroom, instantly followed by a cacophony of sound. Reporters, as if released from a trance, lunged for the doors, a stampede of urgency. Microphones crashed, bodies jostled, some almost trampled by their frantic associates as they raced to break the news.
"Order! Order in the Court!" Judge 1's gavel struck repeatedly, a desperate, futile attempt to regain control. But the Court was already empty, its hallowed halls now echoing only with the lingering tremor of a monumental decision.
Outside, in the chaotic scrum of the Strand, the news erupted. Amidst the pandemonium, John Storm and George Franks, their faces etched with exhaustion but also profound relief, wasted no time. Leveraging the astonishing verdict, the pirate case precedent from the 1700s, and the irrefutable video evidence of the frame-up, they immediately began negotiations.
An amnesty for the Terramentals was secured, with conditions attached: a probationary period, and the complete expungement of their criminal records, provided the group limited their future activities to peaceful protests. The true villains, however, would not escape. The dramatic courtroom revelations left no doubt. Sir Rodney Dunbar, the chillingly corrupt General, and Chief Constable Harold Holland, the architect of the frame-up – now known to the public as "Dirty Harry" and "The Devil" – were charged with treason, their reign of terror finally at an end.
Justice, it seemed, had finally found its way, even in the murky depths of power and deceit.
John Storm and George Franks negotiate an amnesty for the Terramentals, using pirate case precedent from 1700, and video evidence to prove set up. With conditions attaching, by way of a probationary period, also expunging their criminal records, provided that the group limit their activities to peaceful protests. Dirty Harry and The Devil are charged with treason.
PROPOSED
STORY MAP BY CHAPTER (90-110 pages) - ORDER CAN BE CHANGED: DRAFT
SCREENPLAY
ACT
1.
CHAPTER
1. PROTESTS - Peaceful
North Sea oil pollution protestors are framed and imprisoned,
by a corrupt judicial system.
CHAPTER
2. PREDATOR - On release the
Terramentals
& smuggler Jorges
Dicaprio, complete a
mini-sub capable of sinking submarines.
CHAPTER
3. PHOENIX - Terramentals
locate & hijack HMS Neptune in Irish
Sea, Cumbria, using the Predator mini-sub -
knocking out the crew.
CHAPTER
4. BRITISH PETROLEUM -
Terramentals warn North Sea rig operators to stop. Claymore
rig is torpedoed, Royal
Navy respond.
CHAPTER
5. BBC WORLD SERVICE - Jill Bird
reports Terramentals rig attacks, world shocked at pollution
cover up. Charley Temple investigates.
CHAPTER
6. UNEP SOS - The
UNEP ask John Storm to survey
North Sea for oil pollution. Elizabeth Swann
detects HMS Neptune radiation leaks.
CHAPTER
7. RADIATION ALERT - John
& Dan twig radiation from
HMS Neptune possible serious reactor damage. Must warn Terramentals.
ACT 2.
CHAPTER
8. STEALTH MODE - Storm spots
Astute sub, Swann in stealth
mode, detected as John warns extremists of sub radiation leakage.
CHAPTER
9. CHANGE OF COURSE -
Terramentals change course, heading for the
Straits of Gibraltar. Not believing radiation warning.
CHAPTER
10. U-BOAT 986 - Evading Swann, HMS Neptune navigates
off transport lanes. Swann picks up magnetic signature of U-Boat
986.
CHAPTER
11. SENATE, UK & EU DEBATE -
Sub
hijacking & rig destruction, alarm bells around world. Deepwater
Horizon shivers down spines.
CHAPTER
12. REACTOR LEAK - Terramentals realise John telling truth,
as radiation rector damage detection system HMS Neptune triggers.
CHAPTER
13. RESCUE TOW - John rescues
Terramentals. MI6 order Neptune sinking. MOD knew reactor dangerous,
want evidence gone.
CHAPTER
14. LISBON PORT - Terramentals & Storm, shut
Neptune's reactor. Tow, stricken submarine to Lisbon, prevent MI6
sinking evidence.
ACT
3.
CHAPTER
15. ROV ATLANTIS - Swann returns U-Boat
stealth mode at night, to avoid tracking. Surveys site, discovers
Atlantis & Nazi gold.
CHAPTER
16. TREASURE TROVE - John reveals gold find &
threatened. US Linc Truman
support. PM, Ed
Thomas, & Sealord,
royal
support.
CHAPTER
17. BLUE SHIELD - Cleopatra
alerts Blue Shield, Newcastle
University, potential Atlantis find, suggests UNESCO
world heritage site.
CHAPTER
18. GOLDEN OFFER - Claimants
reward John U-Boat gold find. Agrees 1% cover costs 9% to Blue Shield surveys.
UNESCO
grateful.
CHAPTER
19. GREEN MOBILITY - Galvanized
to action UK hit green H2 button, John gets grants low
income families, Jill
Bird, news item.
CHAPTER
20. IMO IS GO - The International Maritime
Org green
H2 & methanol,
certification. USA in. China India stay with coal,
gas
& oil.
CHAPTER
21. AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL - John & George
amnesty, pirate
caselaw & video proof set up. Harry & Johnson charged treason.
Disillusioned
eco activists are imprisoned by the British, for peacefully
protesting in London about unrealistically low fines for oil
spills in the North
Sea, demonstrating strictly in accordance with
their Article 9 and 10 Human Rights. They are targeted by fossil
fuel industry fraudsters, who bribe police officials and
court judges to secure a conviction, with the backing of
corrupt ministers of state who have undeclared personal
investments in
oil
drilling companies: Amoco, BP, Shell, Total. That sets in
motion a train of events, where, having been framed, the ever
more determined environmentalists build a mini-sub, fast
enough and especially equipped, to sink or capture Astute,
Aukus and US Seawolf class submarines. Having captured HMS Neptune, the Terramentals
torpedo a BP owned rig, also destroying two others (Shell),
with the looming threat to target all 150 plus, operating in
the North Sea. The oil producers are temporarily forced to
shut down production, as a result of the significant media
coverage and public outrage on realization of the pollution.
The UN asks John Storm to provide a geodata survey on the
environmental damage.
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