FADE IN.
Act 1
EXT. PARK - DAY
Walking past a post, PETER takes a photo of it.
PETER (V.O.): There're two "6" numerals on it. Today is June 6. It was the D day in 1944.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I was only born 10 years later. When I was a kid, I heard terrible stories about World War II in Hong Kong.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): All the cartoons I drew were about tanks, warships and military planes, fighting between my side and the enemies.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I dictated the course of the war on paper and derived a lot of satisfaction when all my enemies were annihilated.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I often had nightmares about war. Deep down, I wanted peace. I couldn't understand why a country likes to dominate another country by the use of force.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Whenever I made a wish, I wished world peace, as if World War III might just be around the corner.
Peter exits the park.
Act 2
INT. SWIMMING POOL - DAY
Crowded. Joining them, Peter begins to swim frog style.
PETER (V.O): Oh, I can't swim properly as I don't want to kick others.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.)(Cont'd): If I was wearing a solder's gear, how could I move about in the water?
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.)(Cont'd): Then, it would be a matter of life and death. Perhaps, I could do better.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): But how could I evade flying bullets from the enemies? What's the point of dying so summarily in a battle?
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): But thousands were killed just like that on June 6, 1944.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Is war a natural continuation of international politics? Countries would resort to war to settle their differences.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): At the expenses of many lives and other resources, war determines which side has might. And might becomes right.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): But for those who are killed in action, everything ends abruptly.
FLASHBACK
INT. HARVARD KENNEDY SCHOOL - DAY (2003)
Peter (49) is chatting with a COLONEL (40s).
PETER: You fought in the Iraq War right?
COLONEL: Yes.
PETER: May I know the mindset of combatants? Do they know...
COLONEL: Oh, yes, they know they may be killed.
END FLASHBACK
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Are the young and stupid tricked by the old and bitter into killing each others by their political masters?
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): The ignorance of combatants gives them strength in battles. In the name of fighting for freedom, they enslave themselves to kill or be killed.
Emerging from the pool water, Peter takes a deep breathe.
Act 3
EXT. PARK - DAY
Waking along a jogging path, Peter checks a phone notification.
PETER (V.O.): Will the coronavirus cause a war?
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.)(Cont'd):Before the pandemic, there's already the trade war.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.)(Cont'd): The spread of the coronavirus over multiple countries has caused hardship on all fronts.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.)(Cont'd): And now, there is the "Black Lives Matter" movement here and there. The root problem was slavery and the whites' supremacy over the blacks.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.)(Cont'd): But the movement is unlikely to impact on Hong Kong. The trouble makers are in favour of the whites. They discriminate their own Chinese race.
Reflecting.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'): Although war has been outlawed, international and internal politics and conflicts remain. The use of force can't be the lasting solution for any problem.
Pondering.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'): If people fought against their beliefs with reason and patience, giving peace a chance, there won't be any war or conflict.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'): Only life in peace is good.
FADE OUT.
THE END
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