Bete's Home
The TV hums softly.
NEWS ANCHOR (TV):"Street Dog Monsters Neutralized.""X confirmed dead. Y injured."
Images flash.
Barricades.Bloodstained streets.Hunters walking past cameras.
NEWS ANCHOR (TV):"Are pets still safe?""Government assures citizens the situation is under control."
Bete sits on the sofa.
Rigid.Unmoving.
His parents stand near the window.
Their dog lies between them.
Tail wagging.Happy.Unaware.
Bete's Mother:"…Should we be worried?"
Bete doesn't answer.
He looks at the dog.
Calm on outside , a storm brewing inside.
He doesn't know what to feel or think.
Kaal's Home
Quieter.
Dim.
Kaal's younger brother hugs their dog tightly.
Their parents speak in hushed voices.
Father:"It's dangerous."
Mother:"We should give it away.""Back to a shelter."
Kaal turns.
Eyes hard.
Kaal:"So we abandon it because other dogs turned into monsters?"
Silence.
Kaal:"That's cruel."
His mother meets his gaze.
Afraid.
Mother:"And what if it turns?""What if it kills your brother , you , us?"
Kaal doesn't respond.
Father:"We kill any ants, cockroaches, rats, bugs & insects we find at home"
He looks straight at Kaal.
Father:"If they're monsters now…""Why should dogs be different?"
Kaal : "But ...."
clenches his fist.
No answer comes.
Slowly—
His mother pulls his brother away.
The dog whines softly.
Kaal looks away.
On the Road
Night.
The car moves in silence.
Kaal sits in the backseat.
The dog rests beside him.
They reach a shelter.
Crowds everywhere.
People arguing.Dogs barking.Fear thick in the air.
Shelter Worker:"We're full."
Another shelter.
Same answer.
Another.
Closed gates.
The father exhales heavily.
Father:"If we abandon it...and it turns into a monster"
His grip tightens on the steering wheel.
Father:"And kills someone."
A pause. He looks at Kaal's swords.
Father:"This is for the greater good."
Kaal reluctantly steps out.
Sword in hand.
The dog looks up at him.
Tail wagging.
The panel cuts away.
Police Patrols
Dogs line up in rows.
Leashes tight.
An officer walks past with a trained dog.
Both tense.
Officer 1:"Shouldn't we keep them locked in?"
Officer 2:"What if they change overnight?"
No answer.
Government Research Wing
White corridors.
Sterile.Silent.
Red stamps everywhere:
AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL ONLY
Cages.
Dogs barking.
Some sedated.Some restless.
Sensors attached.
A glass chamber.
One restrained dog.
Alive.
A scientist watches data scroll.
Conference Room
Screens glow with charts and scans.
Scientist 1:"We don't know the trigger."
Scientist 2:"All confirmed mutations were either strays or abused dogs"
Images flash:
Teeth.Muscle density.Bone growth.
Scientist 2:"…This isn't random."
A pause.
Scientist 3:"There's no scientific explanation yet.""But dogs under proper care didn't mutate."
A military officer crosses his arms.
Military Officer:"Killing all dogs isn't practical."
A police official scoffs.
Police Official:"The public would riot."
A politician leans forward.
Politician 1:"People are already panicking. We'll have to take them in."
Politician 2:"There's no other choice"
Scientist 2: "We'll keep them under observation"
Next Morning — News Update
NEWS ANCHOR (TV):"New directive announced.""Citizens may submit pet dogs at police stations."
"Government assures observation and care."
City Guild — Briefing Room
A senior official addresses the hunters.
OFFICIAL:"Do not speculate, Do not spread theories."
"We had reports of hunters taking money to eliminate pet dogs."
"Your job is to eliminate threats. Not innocent animals."
"I'm repeating this again & again , we're already short-handed, don't decrease the numbers even more"
He pauses.
Some hunters nod eagerly.
Others shift uneasily.
Zodiac — Patrol Route
They walk together.
Except Kaal and Bete.
Reva's jaw is tight.
Reva:"…I can't even imagine abandoning my Baby."
Her voice sharpens.
Reva:"People who do that—They should be killed instead."
Maya hesitates.
"Kaal and Bete have gone to hand over theirs to the police too, you know"
Reva snaps.
Reva:"That doesn't make it better."
Anya keeps walking.
Anya :"Unlike you , some people choose humans over animals , especially family."
A beat.
Grim :"If I had a dog…, I'd rather kill it myself rather than keeping it at home or abandoning it outside to suffer"
"Good thing the government decided to take them in."
Silence.
Lily :"There's no guarantee other dogs won't mutate."
Vyan :"And no guarantee they will."
Tension crackles.
Tara steps in softly.
Tara :"I wonder what the scientists will find."
Fugu:"Probably things we don't want to know."
Maru walks quietly.
Disturbed.
Sain lags behind.
A gate rattles.
A dog growls softly from behind gate bars.
Sain stares.
The dog stares back.
For a moment—
He looks afraid.
He turns away quickly.
Tara notices and gazes at him.
Sain finds the eye contact awkward and quickly looks away in embarrassment.