Luke Cage - Step in the Arena (Episode 4) lyrics

[theme music playing] [men shouting in distance] [radio chatter in distance] [debris shifting] [engine revving] - [man] All the way. - [indistinct radio chatter] Break it up a little bit. There you go. Pin that area. That needs to be cut, as well. - Johnson. Yeah, I see it. I see it. - Right. [conversation continues indistinctly] - Hey. - Hey. Any survivors? Inside, your guess is as good as ours. We're lucky only the restaurant and the apartments above collapsed, and not the whole structure. This could've been a hell of a lot worse. - Who's this guy? - [firefighter] Chinese guy's the owner. Says his wife and their tenant were in the restaurant when it happened. Can you, uh give me a call if anything changes? - No problem. - What's the matter? This is Luke Cage's place. Rafe, this was outside in, - not inside out. - [Scarfe] Uh-huh. Or there'd be sh** all across the street like projectiles if the explosion had been on the inside. If that damn thing works, we get answers? If that damn thing works. I'll call the precinct, tell 'em we're on our way, have 'em cue up the footage. Hey, they got their job to do, we got our job to do. Sir. Are you sure Luke Cage is in there with her? I think so. Not really sure. [Rackham] Shut up! In here, you got no voice. You got no rights. You used to be a citizen but from the moment you reached the bottom of stupid, your dumb a**es belonged to the state of Georgia. - If you are a recidivist - Bend over. - then you know the rules. - Cough. - If, however - [coughs] this is your first visit to the Seagate theme park let me just say long as you follow the rules, you'll be fine. Rule number one. You will obey every rule I say after rule number one. Rule number two. None but the righteous shall see God. And since we ain't got no righteous people in here, God ain't gonna have to worry about your sh**ty prayers. So that means I'm his mean, sh**ty substitute. [Luke scoffs] Rule number three. Ain't no talking when I'm talking. [grunts and coughs] Don't start a fight if you can't take a punch. I'm surprised I had to tell a former law officer to follow the rules. [straining] New life. Not quite used to it yet. [Rackham] Yeah, well Come on. Good thing you have many years to adjust. And remember, how you start is how you end in places like this. No one does it alone. - All right, get 'em to their cells. - [guard] You heard him. Let's go. PRISON ESTABLISHING SHOT [breathing heavily] [yelling] [crying] I didn't do it. [men shouting in distance] Just remember who you are and you'll get through this. [breathing heavily] [softly] Carl Lucas. I am Carl Lucas. Damn it. I'm Carl Lucas. [Reva] If you don't make attempts to befriend someone, loneliness is guaranteed to eat you alive. Let's start with you, Reggie. In here, I'm Squabbles. Reggie he had a job, family, a life. You still have a family. I haven't seen my family in years. I asked them for forgiveness. It seems like they don't really care. [Reva] How have you dealt with it? I haven't seen my family since the first time I was here. Now I just take it one day at a time. [inmates agreeing indistinctly] Carl? I don't need to, want to or have to get to know anybody. That's like placing yourself in solitary without actually going to the hole. You can't trust nobody in a place like this. 'Cause you used to be a cop? [inmates murmuring] I ain't the first cop to do time. And I ain't ever sent nobody to Seagate, so I ain't got that problem. But trust in places like this sets you up for failure. [Squabbles] You know she ain't mean no harm. Reminding you of what you ain't got can be pretty damn mean. Or it can help you focus. You know, this type of loneliness in here, it can k**. Not if you stay strong. And if you believe that, you're dumb. You know, strength has its limits. Everybody eventually caves. If you're looking for a friend, keep looking, Squabbles. It can't be that hard finding one in a place like this. Yeah, it is and most of them act like you. [indistinct chatter on PA] [Shades] That the dude you mentioned? [Rackham] Yeah, that's him. They say three things get a cop locked up. Pride, power, or p**y. Yeah, well, I take pride in my power over p**y, and I ain't never seen a day in lock-up. What's he in here for? [Rackham] I've seen his jacket. With that amount of years for what they said he did [chuckling] I'm guessing he pissed someone off good. Ah, he was sent here to rot. Yo, man, time's up. [Comanche] What you wanna do? See if he bends or breaks. [grunting and straining] [Luke grunting] [all grunting] [groaning] [alarm blaring] [all grunting] [both coughing] I'm not just gonna take sh** because you're dishing it out, you hear? [guard] Hands in the air! I'm just trying to survive! [grunts] Guess I found me a gladiator. [breathing heavily] [shutter slides open] [Rackham] Well, you're a hell of a fighter, Lucas. You learn that in the military or during your police training? Hmm? How'd you like to live like a king using them fists of yours? We got some bad boys who's pretty good with their hands. And they making money in here. Good-a** money. I want you to get in on this. Believe it or not, it'll benefit both of us. And I get a little extra coin. And you [clicks tongue] if you survive get to be your own man. Untouched, extra rations, maybe a conjugal or two, hmm? It's a good offer, convict. Slavery was always a good offer to a master. [men shouting in distance] [grunting softly] Connie. - Connie! - [groans] - [Luke sighs] - [groaning] Ow. What happened? The building fell on us. [Connie] How? Something came flying at the building, and I got you out of the way. [coughing] My my leg is trapped. - [shuddering] I smell - [Luke] Gas. We're not going to have a lot of time, but we have to be careful. [panting] If this rubble shifts the wrong way or if we make the wrong move it could set off a spark and this whole place could blow. Who do you think's gonna move the rubble? You? Me? You think they can get to us? If they can't get to us, we gonna have to get to them. How? Okay, Connie. The best way I can put this is I'm kind of strong. [whispering] Holy sh**! - [grunting] - [rubble shifting] [groaning] [man speaking indistinctly on PA] Hey, you wanna play? Hey, man, I'm talking to you. Wake up! Hey, wake up! [Squabbles] Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa! You think can't nobody read that look a thousand miles out? Cop a squat before you do something stupid like catch a body. You know, the best way to stay out of the hole is to stay out of your head, especially when it's full of hate. [grunting] [sighing loudly] [inhaling deeply] Breathe some of this fresh air, young blood. Count down your days. [Squabbles] Man, you outta your mind? You mean to tell me [stuttering] this cover of Rolling Stone with Lisa Bonet, and the hair, the the nakedness, her eyes on me - On you? - On me! You mean to tell me this ain't hot? Says it right here, on the cover."The Hot Issue." Come out of the time machine, Squabs. There's a lot of new honeys out there. You don't know nothing about Beyoncé? Nicki Minaj? - Lisa Bonet's daughter? - She got a daughter? [indistinct chatter over TV] Zoë. Or like I call her, Godfather, Part Two. The sequel better than the original? [Luke] Close. Look, I was defendin' myself k**ing that dude. - But you went to his house. - It was Whatcha whatcha call it? - Preventative. - Just more excuses. That's all I've heard for the last 20 minutes. I mean, do any of you ever say to yourself, "I I have to take responsibility for what I did, the reason I'm here"? What, you mean, like, the the 12 steps? Yeah, yeah, unless you were set up. I know I was set up. - [chuckling] - [inmate] Me, too. - [inmates agreeing indistinctly] - Even if you were set up you have to see your involvement in what went down. You ever say that to yourself? You ask these men to come clean with themselves, and they don't know a thing about you. What gives you the right to listen to us, but not share anything about yourself? That's not my role. - Trust has to be earned. - True. Maybe if you tell us what you're fighting we'll be a little more open to do the same. Did you do something wrong that you need to take responsibility for? - I did. - What happened? Was it a brother, sister, or family member that you didn't focus on like you should have, while you were growing your life, earning your degree? Time's up, guys. Mr. Lucas? Two minutes. Most you've said since you've been here. I might have gone a few words past necessary. My brother, he died in jail while I was getting my masters. I knew he needed help, but at the time I felt I did all I could do, and I have [inhales] regretted feeling that way ever since. - Sorry I pressed. - You did. But don't be sorry. And don't act like you did it for the guys 'cause you did it to keep me from pressing you. Guilty. What did that question spark in you? I know what it's like to be on this side. And from where I'm at that idea seems like bullsh**. [scoffing] You innocent? Doesn't matter. DR. BURSTEIN ENTERS [sighs] You are. I'm guilty of a lot of things that people will never know about. I guess it's karma's way of reminding me that she can be a b**h. You should tell the group that. You really do care, don't you? I do. [guard] Let's go, Carl. It's not often I see a prisoner leave you speechless. [sighs] He's in prison, but [inhaling sharply] he's not a prisoner. Slo-mo, frame by frame. [man] It wasn't a gas leak. That was not a gas leak. Who the hell would use a rocket in Harlem? Who do you think? So, some of the inmates think people are being experimented on in Seagate? Yes. Jimmy Quinto said that, uh, he was gonna get his sentence reduced if he went through some experiments. - Now, was he lying? - [chuckling] Of course he was. He probably did a plea bargain [stammers] or testified. Jimmy Quinto? A snitch? - Nah. No way. - [inmate] Nah. He ain't here. Ain't nobody heard of him dying, so [Reva] I know you all think because Seagate is privately owned, there's some X-Files stuff permeating the place. There isn't. Just think about all the stories you've heard about Seagate. The ghost stories, millionaires hidden in dungeons. [chuckling] Tupac still alive on an island. So he just got out? More than likely, Jimmy just got out. Only problem is you work for Seagate. So, if it is true why would you admit it? Good point. I give you my word, Carl. There are no experiments happening here. Damn, long as I've been coming here, I ain't never heard her give her word, young blood. [Reva] You know, I appreciate this, you staying behind. Took me a while to realize that I was raised with manners. Should've done this a long time ago. Stacking chairs is easier than talking. Why can't I get you to talk? Hmm? You're not a murderer. You're not some serial k**er. You're a man who trusted the wrong people. You made a few stupid mistakes caught a bad break. Do you know how I caught that bad break? Talking to people. - Trusting them. - So why do you come here? Because you provide hope. Thank you. When you're not trying to hit somebody with that hierarchy of needs sh** Oh, you couldn't just be nice, could you? - I have a reputation to live up to. - [chuckling] Back away, Lucas. I guess I gotta go. [door closes] [Rackham chuckling] Doc Connors, huh? [chuckling] Getting caught up with her ain't the smartest thing, but, man, she's gorgeous, I'll give you that. - You looking out for me now? - Why, you want p**y? I can get you that. You ain't got to wet dream about Doc Connors. You want extra sh**? I'll get you that, too. This about me fighting for you? That's not the lane I want to play in. [chuckling] You must smell a lot of sh** having your a** on your shoulders all the time. I make you an easy offer, throw in some perks, and you just shrug 'em off. Well, it's lucky I'm a patient man. Smart enough to know you'd say no. Gave me time to build a backup plan. Squabbles, put down that shiv! [blowing whistle] You don't fight, I tear your little world apart, starting with your homie Squabbles. - [Squabbles grunting] - [guard] Get down! Get down! Stay seated! Stay seated! - [grunting] - Look at me when I'm talking to you. Rackham, stop! I don't move quick, your man's gonna get another 20 years, easy. Or life. You want this stopped, you tell me what I wanna hear. - [blowing whistle] - [guard] Stop moving! You son of a b**h. Yeah, that's "smart son of a b**h" to you. You want me? Squabbles has to be by my side every step of the way. [breathing heavily] Only way I fight. Can't believe you fell for the club in the gut again. [chuckling] [rap music playing] [Squabbles] You know, strategy's name of the game, you want to whip some serious a**. Stay on your center line. Head, chin, chest, stomach, and if you have to, get at them nuts. Stay inside your man's shoulders. You used to box? I used to live on 42nd Street back in the day. [chuckling] Uh, Five Deadly Venoms, Clan of the White Lotus, Five Fingers of d**h. You think you can fight because you watch kung fu flicks? I know I can fight because I owned that corner back when I sold dope. And any a**hole who tried to take anything from me learned up close how I became Golden Glove champ for seven years. Watched kung fu flicks when I wasn't on the corner. What was your favorite movie? Jet Li. Uh, the remake of Chinese Connection, Fist of Legend. Better than the original. You'd choose Jet over Bruce? Nah you can't oversee my training. I can have an opinion. It's like a**holes. Everyone's got one. [Comanche] You know how this goes? You win, you get whatever you want up in this joint. Booze, b**hes, extra rations, sh** like that. I don't want none of that. What kind of n***a are you? The kind that doesn't like being called a n***a. [Comanche chuckling] [blows landing] [inmate] That's it, right there. - [inmates grunting] - Yeah, break him up, break him up. What you got? [grunting] Work it. - You got him now. Lay him up. - Sending the fights out? - [grunting] - Yeah! Welcome to the Internet. [inmate] That's how you finish! Oh, yeah, he ain't gettin' up. Smart move with the hair. Nothin' to grab. I'm still mad at you for picking Jet Li over Bruce Lee. Well, take it out on these ba*tards then. [chuckles softly] [grunting] Keep him off of you. That's it, right there. Yeah, there you go. [Connie screaming] How's your leg? Uh, probably broken. How are you doing this? [inaudible] [grunts] [bones cracking] [bone crunching] [yells] [grunting] - Get better next time. [chuckles] - Yeah, yeah. [Squabbles] See something. You're changing. You're not really taking care of yourself. [Luke] Why? [Squabbles] When's the last time you showered? Or cut your hair? Just seems like you're spiraling downward. What I'm doing ain't got no questions or answers. Are you losing your way? When I figure out a way to cut all this sh** loose and get us out from under Rackham, I will. All right. Widen your stance. And stay on your line like I told you, and your chin down. [suspenseful music playing on TV] God, Carl. What happened to you? - Were you attacked? - I got into a fight or two. You haven't been to group in months. Things changed. So you reverted to your non-verbal self. Who's the white dude? The prison doctor, Dr. Burstein. Do you need to talk to me about anything? Reva, when it comes to me, there's nothing to talk about. - Squabbles - Ain't got sh** to say about me. No, he hasn't said a word about you no matter how many times I begged him to. But I could tell by his silence that you were in a very bad place. Begging? I thought I had broken through, Carl. We had broken through, but you Now you just seem broken. It's not what you think. It ain't all about me. Sometimes survival costs. [Shades speaking indistinctly] [Rackham] Aw, y'all are breaking my heart. - Hey, hey, hey! - It's okay. Remember, you push, I push back harder. Keeps order, Carl. Not smart. Made me realize there's two folks in here you care for. [chuckling] [Scarfe] Plates are blurred. Closer traffic cam got knocked out. Damn SUV pa**ed right under it. That's not enough to go after Cottonmouth. How about the bomb squad? Get 'em down to Genghis Connie's after everything's secure? [cell phone ringing] Detective Knight. [Scarfe] What? It's that firefighter. Something's happening. Okay, thanks. Go, I got this. Hey, give me hard copies of those videos, huh? Yo, Zip. [sighing] It's me, Detective Scarfe. I need to talk to Cottonmouth. I got to ask you a question and I need an honest answer. You tied to anybody in here? In a relationship? Related to anybody? I work with Dr. Burstein, but that's to do psych-evals for the patients he works with. He's not in the infirmary. What does he do other than creep around? He's a legitimate doctor. Carl, you can trust me. [breathing heavily] The guards established a fight ring and the convicts fight until they're broken. What happens to them after that, I don't know. That's why my face looks the way it does. And I may have dragged you into this bullsh** unintentionally. - Me? - Yeah. Rackham's a smart dude. He knows I like coming here. Seeing you. He's going after the people I care about. Which is why I need you to stop coming here. Leave this place and don't look back. - I'll inform the warden. - You can't tell anybody sh**, Reva. This setup ain't happened without the warden being in on it. You can't trust anybody. I have worked here for years. I have to do something. Leave. Before this place turns you to salt. Contact my lawyer. Tell him I'm ready to talk. I'll use him to get me out of this hellhole, and then I'll take Rackham down myself. - How long have you been fighting? - Long enough. - You didn't know anything about this? - God no! Whenever, wherever you find me. Carl. Why did you come tell me this? Because you give me hope. [Squabbles] If you'd have told me sooner, we probably could've done something about it, like take out Rackham. Someone would take his place. The hell you gonna do about it? Stop fighting. He not gonna let you just walk away from the fight game. I know. I got a plan, though. I'm gonna build evidence against Rackham then shut his sh** down. [Squabbles sighing] [exhaling sharply] Hey, you look a little shook, Squabbles. What was Lucas talking about? [razor whirring] What's up, Carl Lucas? Yo you've been owning those cats in the ring. It's either that or get owned. You know one thing I don't believe in? Coincidences. What you want? [Comanche] I hear you tryin' to get outta the fight game? Who told you that? Your girlfriend. [Shades] Squabbles didn't give you up easy. - He alive? - Ain't the question. You're right. Remember what happened the last time I faced off with you two? [Comanche] Last time was a test. Rackham says you don't change your mind we give you time in the infirmary to think about it. [Shades] See, I'm of the mind that we stomp your a**. And find a new dude to fight for Rackham. Especially since you trying to expose some sh** that's going on at Seagate. [chuckling] [sighing] I guess I can't trust nobody around here, can I? [grunting] [EKG beeping] [Burstein] He was attacked. He's got internal damage. He won't survive a transfer. [softly] Oh, Carl. [sighing] I trusted you. [stuttering] It wasn't me. They beat it out of Squabbles. They k**ed him. [breathing heavily] [shushing] [crying] You have to try to save him. I've never had a patient start off in this kind of shape. - He's damaged goods. - Do it for me. - His chances of survival - Do it for me. [sighs] Take the ferry home. You don't have to be here for this. Go. Yeah, you're probably gonna die. But you're already dying. What you're about to see is different from anything you've ever experienced. DR. BURSTEIN SETS UP THE MACHINE. Where's Lucas? - Albert, this isn't the time. Why're you trying to save him? Albert, quit overreacting. He probably won't survive anyway. You son of a b**h! You think you're gonna rat me out? You're gonna die tonight, Carl. Albert, please! We had a good system. I made money and you got to live. Now I need to watch you burn. - You can't do this. - Yeah, you gonna stop me? [machine whirring and hissing] [rapid beeping] [alarm blaring] [screaming] [screaming] - [machine exploding] - [gla** shattering] [Luke grunting and straining] [breathing deeply] [clattering] We're gonna get out of here. I'm gonna need you to crawl into there. When and if we get out of here, you're going to have to explain how you got this way. [Connie grunting] [rubble crumbling] [coughing] [alarm blaring] [exhales sharply] [screaming] Sweet Christmas. [screaming] - [Misty] What's going on? - [thudding] - Back up, newsboy! - [Misty] Hey, let him through. Shine your light down here. [thudding continues] Damn sure don't know what that is. - [whistle blowing] - [yells] What the hell? [whistle blowing] [Luke grunting] - [firefighter] Can you move? - I'll be damned. I can, but I'm gonna need some help. Connie's leg is broken. [Connie] I can't believe you did this. [whispering] Which is why I think you should keep what happened down here between us. [sighing] You look like a damn fool. [line ringing] [woman] Operator. How can I direct your call? I'd like to place a collect call to Dr. Reva Connors. [chuckling] [sighs] I still can't believe I punched through that wall. No one's survived Seagate's waters either. Did Burstein know that I would get these These abilities? The bath was only supposed to heal you at a faster rate. I can't do anything that'll let people know who or what I am. Hell, I don't even know how I would explain it. Reva. When we asked you about the experiments you said they weren't true. Carl, I I promise I'll explain it all. I'll tell you everything. How'd you get your hands on all my info? You haven't always been a convict. I haven't always been a psychologist. [sighs] Thank you for saving my life. Thank you for changing mine. You're gonna need a new name. Any ideas? [inhaling deeply] My father's a preacher. He used to say, one way or the other I would regret the life that I led. He used to say "The Spirit of the Lord is on me because I have been anointed to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners, and recovery of sight for the blind to release the oppressed. " What is that? Luke 4:18. He used to tell me that no one can cage a man if he truly wants to be free. So Luke Freeman? Nah. That's a bit on the nose. [both chuckling] [indistinct radio chatter] - How you doing? - [inhales deeply] I'll survive. [chuckles] That's the understatement of the year. Look, we need to, uh, talk about what happened. Not now. Excuse me, excuse me, sir! I've been hearing some pretty miraculous things about you surviving that explosion. You saved the owner's life. Why don't you just tell us your name? My name is Luke Cage. [funk music playing]