The Gorge: The Screenplay
Page 4
ACE
Don’t matter what you feel like.
As he wallows on top of her, she stares past, sees one of the creatures swooping over the river like a kingfisher—it’s gone so fast she can’t be sure of what she’s seen. She bucks and moans, trying to get free.
CLARA
Oh, my god.
ACE
(grins)
That good, huh?
CLARA
Angel. I saw an angel.
ACE
You’ll see a choir of ‘em before I’m done.
He moves on top of her and she takes it, unmoving, unblinking.
CUT TO:
EXT.FOREST ALONG RIVER. DAY.
Castle, tired, clothes damp with sweat, moves through the woods.
SKEEK—the shriek comes from upriver. He wields his Glock, moves to the bushes along the river, and looks out. He sees nothing but the churning water.
CUT TO:
EXT.RIVER. DAY.
Bowie’s raft is once again trailing—Bowie in front, Travis in the middle, C.A. in the rear. The shriek is barely audible over the rushing water but as it grows louder, Bowie looks up just in time to—
SKEEK—the winged creature swoops down and plows into C.A.’s back, sending a red splash across Travis’s and Bowie’s shoulders. Bowie spins, sees the creature latched onto C.A. The kayak spins wildly as Travis screams and tries to wriggle over the side.
Bowie tries to beat the creature loose, but its claws are sunk into C.A.’s life jacket, fangs ripping a hole in his neck.
C.A.
Get it off me!
Bowie swings the paddle, the creature ducks, but the blow smacks it square in the head. The paddle shatters. Bowie crawls into the water and jabs at the creature with the broken shaft.
The jagged tip spears the creature in the back and it emits a SKEEK of pain, then lowers its lips again to C.A.’s wound. The kayak is pulling away from Bowie.
BOWIE
(to Travis)
Brake! Hard left!
Travis panics as C.A. is bent forward by the creature’s assault. He wriggles over the side and slides into the water.
Bowie grabs the rope that loops the perimeter of the kayak. He braces and tries to hold the kayak in place, but the current’s too strong.
C.A. slumps forward and suddenly the creature’s chest explodes like a rotten watermelon. The roar of a shot echoes off the cliffs as the creature falls backwards into the river.
CUT TO:
EXT. RIVERBANK. DAY.
Castle stands on the sandy shore, in a two-fisted pistol stance, legs spread.
CASTLE
(to Bowie)
Stand clear!
CUT TO:
EXT.RIVER. DAY.
A second shot. The creature goes under, leaving a slick trail of chum. C.A.flops face first into the kayak. Bowie shoves the kayak toward shore. Travis bobs in the water, losing his footing, his life jacket keeping him afloat.
When the kayak reaches shore, Castle is there to meet it. Bowie checks C.A.’s neck for a pulse and shakes his head—nothing.
CASTLE
I hit it.
BOWIE
You’ve seen it before?
Castle waves to indicate the rocks above.
CASTLE
Something from the gorge. We can fish it out of the river and figure out what it is.
Travis reaches shore as Bowie and Castle drag C.A.’s body out of the kayak.
TRAVIS
What the hell was that?
Before anyone can answer, the surface of the river explodes with movement—the creature, leaking gray fluid from its wound, flies wobbly over the river and toward the distant trees. Castle tries to aim but the thing is gone.
BOWIE
It flew away. You blew a hole in its heart and it still fucking flew away.
CASTLE
Whatever it is, I don’t think it has a heart.
They all look at C.A. as his torn neck seeps blood.
CUT TO:
EXT.CAVE. DAY.
Samford’s eyes open. They are milky. He blinks and squints. Light leaks onto him from the mouth of the cave.
He runs a leathery hand up to the wound in his neck. He grins and his teeth are sharp—he is changing.
One of the creatures flies into the cave, dragging Jenny into darkness. Several of the creatures emerge from the shadows and come to feed. Samford licks his lips, sniffs the air, and rolls off the flat stone, heading for her body.
The creature that just attacked C.A. glides unsteadily into the cave and roosts, gargoyle-like, on a stone, leaking gray fluid from its wounds.
CUT TO:
EXT. RIVERBANK. DAY.
The crew in the second Muskrat has returned. Raintree, Dove, and Farrengalli stand over C.A.’s body along with a shaken Travis, Castle, and Bowie.
FARRENGALLI
You’re telling us this hillbilly gargoyle flew down from the sky and chomped Golden Boy’s neck?
(nods to Castle)
And Fox Mulder here drilled it a new asshole but it didn’t die?
TRAVIS
I figured a broken bone was the worst that could happen.
BOWIE
(to Castle)
You were ready for it.
CASTLE
Training.
BOWIE
Bullshit. You were on it like radar.
CASTLE
You wouldn’t have believed me. I don’t believe it myself.
The expedition team begins talking over each other, near panic. Raintree is silent, a little away from the group, scanning the sky and the ridges.
FARRENGALLI
Just what the fuck was it?
DOVE
You say it flew?
TRAVIS
Like a bat. It chomped his neck like a vampire—
FARRENGALLI
It’s daylight, man. Vampires don’t come out in the day.
BOWIE
Besides the fact that vampires aren’t real.
FARRENGALLI
(pointing to C.A.’s corpse)
Well, it sure wasn’t Count Chocula that did this.
Dove kneels by C.A.’s body and examines the wound.
BOWIE
Careful, it might be contagious.
FARRENGALLI
Great. Vampire herpes. What’s next?
CASTLE
Next is I’m taking one of your rafts.
BOWIE
No way. We can’t walk out of here, especially with whatever that was flying around out there.
CASTLE
I have a job to do.
(wields gun)
And if the badge isn’t loud enough, the gun might be.
FARRENGALLI
(to Castle)
Man, if you’re heading downstream, I’m with you.
Dove and Travis look to Bowie, who looks at Raintree. Dove digs in C.A.’s pack, pulls out a thin blue blanket, and drapes it over his corpse.
RAINTREE
I saw it upriver. I thought it was the Raven Mocker. Cherokee shapeshifter.
FARRENGALLI
Spare us the redskin voodoo shit.
CASTLE
One of them carried off my partner.
TRAVIS
One of them? You mean there’s more?
Farrengalli grabs one of the Muskrats and drags it toward the water.
FARRENGALLI
Surf’s up, shitheads. I’m outta here.
Castle draws back the Glock’s chamber with a CLACK. Farrengalli freezes.
CASTLE
That’s government property now.
TRAVIS
You can’t do that. This is America.
CASTLE
This is America.
BOWIE
Look, we all go or nobody goes.
DOVE
What about C.A.?
CASTLE
Worry about the living.
FARRENGALLI
I’m more worried about the living
dead.
CUT TO:
EXT.RIVER. DAY.
The two Muskrats work downstream. Raintree’s kayak is in the lead. Bowie’s is moving unsteadily, with the untrained Castle working a paddle. The others keep checking the skies above. Clouds are gathering.
CLOSE on Raintree’s kayak—Farrengalli in the rear, paddling with jittery eyes. Dove is in the middle, paddling sleekly. They shout over the Class 2 rapids, rough but not dangerous water.
FARRENGALLI
Whatcha think, Chief?
RAINTREE
(looks up, a raindrop hits his cheek)
I think we’re going to get wet.
FARRENGALLI
I mean about the monsters.
DOVE
I wish I’d been there with my camera.
FARRENGALLI
You’re one ballsy chick, I’ll say that for you.
DOVE
Shut up and paddle.
FARRENGALLI
You’re as bossy as that Fed back there.
DOVE
We don’t take orders from him.
In the second kayak, Castle stares dead ahead. His eyes are marbles.
FARRENGALLI
His asshole is so tight he might pop a cork. Let’s put some water between us and them creatures, whatever they are.
RAINTREE
It’s not that easy. The falls are coming up, then BabelTower.
DOVE
Bowie will get us through.
Behind them, Bowie is struggling trying to keep his crew paddling smoothly.
CUT TO:
INT.CAVE. DAY.
The Samford/goregoyle crawls across the rocky floor, wings jittering. He sniffs the air, his eyes milky. He squints against the light as he approaches the cave opening.
Behind him, his new brethren are feasting on Pete’s and Jenny’s corpses. Samford reaches the ledge and pokes his head out. He struggles to a crouching position and twitches his wings, perched like a gargoyle on the roof of a cathedral.
SAMFORD
Skeeek.
CUT TO:
EXT. RIVERBANK, FOOT OF THE WATERFALL. DAY.
Ace pulls a Ziplock baggie from the backpack. It contains three cigarettes and a lighter. Clara is getting dressed.
ACE
Shit. Only three smokes left.
CLARA
What’s it like to kill somebody?
ACE
Depends on whether they needed killing or not.
CLARA
What about the people at the abortion clinics?
Ace struggles out a smoke, lights it.
ACE
Women standin’ in line to get babies sucked out of their bellies? I did ‘em a favor. Saved ‘em from committing murder.
CLARA
What about the babies? You killed them before their mothers had a chance to.
ACE
Damn, woman. Ain’t you listened to a word I said?
CLARA
Innocent bystanders.
ACE
Nobody’s innocent.
CLARA
When you make a baby, maybe it changes you.
She hurries off into the woods. Retching sound.
ACE
Looks like a storm.
(drags cigarette)
You pukin’ again?
CUT TO:
EXT. RIVERBANK, TOP OF WATERFALL. LATE AFTERNOON.
Under a steady drizzle, the crew from the first Muskrat—Farrengalli, Raintree, Dove—gather at the edge of the forest along the misty riverbank. The Muskrat is on the shore near them. The falls rumble in the background.
Bowie guides his Muskrat toward shore. As they near shore, Castle tumbles out and wades to solid ground, checking the sky.
CASTLE
We need to push on.
BOWIE
It’s too dangerous. We’ll have to carry the kayaks down to the bottom.
FARRENGALLI
What, we wait around to get our asses munched like Golden Boy back there?
BOWIE
The river is dangerous enough the way it is. Rain turns the rapids to Class Seven.
TRAVIS
There’s no such thing as Class Seven.
BOWIE
You’ve never seen rain in the Unegama, have you?
CASTLE
We’re pushing on.
DOVE
So the choice is drowning or waiting around for monsters?
CASTLE
I’ve got a job to do.
BOWIE
So do I. Getting out of here in one piece.
(to Raintree)
What do you say, Raintree?
Raintree is crouched, silent and wary, on a large rock outcropping. Dove has her camera out and is taking photos, first of Raintree, then the top of the falls.
RAINTREE
It will be dark by the time we reach the bottom of the falls. We can make camp there.
BOWIE
Deflate the Muskrats.
FARRENGALLI
You mean we gotta sleep out here?
CASTLE
Well, you can hide in a cave, but since these things live in caves...
TRAVIS
Suddenly I’m not tired anymore.
Travis Lane
takes two hurried steps. Explosion of motion from the cloud cover, a creature slams into Lane and rips him open from behind. The skeek mixes with the soft patter of rain, then swells into a full shriek as the creature swoops back up and disappears into the crowd.
Dove snaps a photo, too late. Castle draws his Glock, also too late. The attack is so swift that only Bowie moves to help Travis.
FARRENGALLI
The fuck?
BOWIE
Travis?
Travis teeters a moment, pained confusion on his face. Bowie grabs and pulls him toward the trees, but only part of Travis moves. His left arm plops wetly to the sand as he screams.
His scream blends with the falls, the rain, and the coming SKEEEEEEEEK.
The goregoyle swoops in again and alights on Travis, trying to carry its victim off. Bowie shrugs his backpack free and slaps it uselessly against the winged creature. At the movement, it looks up and ducks its head.
BOWIE
It’s blind! It reacts to motion.
Farrengalli bolts into the forest, while Raintree and Dove rush forward to help Bowie. Raintree has the kayak’s paddle and wields it like an axe, chopping at the creature’s head, but it dodges the blow and grabs the paddle, yanking Raintree off-balance and almost into its grip.
CASTLE
(aiming Glock)
Get back!
DOVE
You might hit Travis.
CASTLE
He’s dead meat anyway.
Bowie tugs Raintree to safety but the creature’s claws tear into Raintree’s forearm. Its tongue rolls out and it dips its head to Travis’s bloody body to feed. Unlike the one that attacked C.A. McKay, this goregoyle is more deliberate and determined. Travis kicks and screams and tries to scramble away.
Castle fires. The first bullet hits Travis and shuts him up. The creature glares toward Castle, unseeing, but its face sneering in cold menace.
The second shot causes the creature’s skull to explode in gray pus. It staggers and falls, twitching in the combined soup of brains, bone, and gore. The rain falls for a hushed moment.
Bowie leaps at Castle, fists clenched.
BOWIE
You shot him, you bastard.
CASTLE
(aims at Bowie)
Mercy kill. As many as I need.
Raintree pokes at the goregoyle with a paddle. Its limbs are twitching.
RAINTREE
Look at this.
DOVE
(looking through camera)
Its fingers are moving.
CASTLE
It’s going to fly away like the other one.
BOWIE
No. It’s changing.
The goregoyle turns pink, the color of a skinn
ed pig—now it looks more humanoid, though its features are still shriveled.
DOVE
It’s human.
The wings collapse and the corpse begins to turn to gelatin. Its face folds in on itself, looking like sick cheese. Where rain hits the corpse, gray fluid spatters up.
Its legs move—Raintree and Dove jump back. Farrengalli comes out of the woods.
CASTLE
Whatever it was, it’s not human anymore.
FARRENGALLI
That’s one ugly fucker. Looks like Mick Jagger’s mummy.
BOWIE
We’ve got to get to the bottom of the falls before dark.
DOVE
What about Travis?
CASTLE
Leave him. It might slow them down if they’ve got food.