"THE CAGE”

Dark night. Most street lights shot out. Just one or two of the eerie vapor lights left on the block. A middle aged woman carries a small leather bag. She listens and watches carefully as she negotiates the darkness between the few pools of light on the street. Moving down the block, all shops are abandoned. Broken windows. Rats.

She stops under a flickering vapor light by an old door turning the latch entering a small hallway. Several feet in front of her is a long staircase soaked in darkness descending downwards. She flips a switch. Several small lights mounted to the wall flicker. The walls are torn and stained.

She stands at the top of the stairs motionless...listening.
“I know you're there Billy. You can come out now.”

From behind an old telephone booth against a wall Billy (15 years old) jumps out in front of her.
"Guess who I am? Can you guess? Bet you can't..." opening up his cape spinning around then leaping back and forth across the small entry hall next to the stairs. "Can ya guess? Bet ya can't...I'm superman! I can fly...way up there to the top of buildings," jumping up and down.

"You're not superman Billy. You're nothing," turning her head lowering...