A Mass Exodus By Gene Levitzky

125 Oak Street ********** ** ***** USA

INT.

LOADING VOID

Suspended in a golden void. The sound of an ECG PULSE fades to the sound of a BEATING, healthy, heart. FEMALE VOICE Greetings, Bridgette. A serpent biting its own flaming tail pops into the void, forming a near perfect circle. Its a progress icon. FEMALE VOICE Loading, please wait. As the program loads bit by bit the fire spreads, HISSING, from the tail of the ouroborus to the rest of its scaly body, growing more violent and more clamorous as it burns. The last portion of the head sears, and the inferno ERUPTS, spilling into the gold void consuming the serpent, the background, all. Quickly the gold BURNS away to reveal-THE VASTNESS OF OUTER SPACE Galaxies, stars, comets, constellations, nebulae, asteroid belts--all manner of celestial bodies. A FLESHY ORB soft and malleable as clay, UNFURLS like a flower revealing a generic set of humanoid parts: four limbs, a head, and a torso. All bald and featureless. FEMALE VOICE Create. The blank doll rapidly morphs into various different body shapes, like someone "trying out" different bodies. Its limbs grow long and feminine. Hair sprouts at the scalp and takes on different lengths and colors. Eyes form. Lips. A nose. A pair of breasts. Gradually, the face stretches and deforms and settles on the countenance of BRIES AVATAR. Young. Athletic. A Venus. Brie opens her eyes and is tugged away by some unseen force at neck breaking speed.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED:

2.

FEMALE VOICE Feel. The cosmic drama rapidly RECEDES and MELTS into the sunlit jungles of the simulated reality of Barbelo. Brie ZOOMS north over various regions through Barbelos skies-The Temples of Tuman--Khmer like structures devoured by the surrounding jungle flora. Desert and shrubland. The Garden City of Cidartum--lavish tropical gardens and towers painted in vivid colors like the saree dresses of Indian women. The Holy City of Amalia--dozens of tall islands connected by majestic wrought iron bridges in Art Nouveau style. At its heart, the colossal Iron Spire juts into the sky. MOVING east now, the sun just over the horizon. Brie hovers over Helios. A city of decadent Gothic palazzos connected by a vast and intricate network of emerald canals. Brie is still. FEMALE VOICE Live. She is suspended in midair directly over the Grand Imperial Palazzo, naked as the day she was born. The only sounds is the BEATING of her heart like a tribal drum. The beating fades and takes a backseat to the BEEPING of an alarm clock followed by complete silence-INT. JORDANS APARTMENT - KITCHENETTE - NIGHT

Some brown whey powder is funneled into an empty water bottle. An old man runs it under the tap and fills it about half way and caps it. He gives it a good shake, then fills it to the brim. This is JORDAN LEVINE, hes old, hes alone, and hes unhappy. He looks like he might be approaching his 60s. Hes dressed in sweats and running shoes. glassed from waking up. Eyes still

3.

His kitchenette is bleak and empty. Not a single decoration is displayed except for an out of date calendar. INT. ALPINE CHALET - LIVING ROOM (VIRTUAL) - DAY

A roaring fire, beautiful wood finished walls, cathedral high ceilings, and gorgeous alpine furniture. A polar bear rug decorates the floor by the mantle. This is a Sanctuary and its entirely fake--all digital. exists only as software on a network of servers. It

A frantic CALEB WEBB (AVATAR) desperately searches the elegant chalet for someone. Hes young, about his mid twenties. Hes full of vitality and at the moment, despair. CALEB Brie, baby. You in here? Nothing but silence as he searches through every corner and closet in the room. INT. JORDANS APARTMENT - KITCHENETTE - NIGHT

He leans up against the counter with both hands. Seemingly mesmerized as he gives the thousand yard stare into the sink. JORDANS P.O.V. - HIS EMAIL INBOX A list of emails is superimposed over his view of the sink. Some junk mail. Three third notices from a debt collection agency. A second eviction notice. Some second and first notices... nothing new. BACK TO SCENE He takes a swig of his shake. INT. ALPINE CHALET - KITCHEN (VIRTUAL) - DAY

Large panoramic windows illuminate a kitchen big enough for an army of cooks, Caleb looks meticulously through the large cabinets, but finds nothing.

4.

EXT.

CITY STREETS - NIGHT

Jordan runs along some deserted streets, fighting to stay alive and healthy. A few cars pass, but otherwise its dead. A light drizzle dampens the pavement. He stops and catches his breath at a red light. INT. ALPINE CHALET - BEDROOM (VIRTUAL) - DAY

An empty king-sized bed large enough for three couples fills the room. He checks under the bed. CALEB Brie, honey? He SMASHES his fists against the wall on his way back downstairs. EXT. CITY STREETS - DAY He breathes heavier with In the walk-in closet.

Jordans building up a sweat. every step. ACROSS THE STREET

A massive plasma screen billboard plays the national news. Its muted. Images of protests getting violent scroll by. Rocks being thrown at cops. Clubs shoved into protesters. Chaos. A familiar face flickers across the screen, instantly catching Jordans eye. He jogs in place for a moment, gripped by the image. Its the real flesh and blood BRIE ROSS. Shes Jordans age. She has iron features, hair in a tight rigid bun, and shes wearing the black robes of a judge. She stands before the Supreme Court building addressing an array of reporters. IN THE SKY ABOVE A single meteor streaks across the sky. Followed by another. Then another. Then a dozen. Then the entire morning sky fills with hundreds of brilliant fiery streaks. Jordan stands in place, captivated.

5.

INT.

JORDANS APARTMENT - LIVING ROOM - DAY

Its a lonely apartment, and it reflects Jordan well. The clutter is spaced out well enough to give the apartment a semblance of neatness. Outside his window he has a nice view of other peoples windows and brick walls. Rain tumbles down, the drizzle has become a torrent. Nearby on the wall is an old analog clock that stopped ticking just after nine, probably decades ago. He removes his dripping hoodie and tosses it carelessly on the floor. His physique isnt too bad for a man his age. Thick and burly--but noticeable saggy. INT. ALPINE CHALET - LIVING ROOM (VIRTUAL) - DAY

In a frenzy, Caleb marches out the front door into-EXT. ALPINE WOOD (VIRTUAL) - DAY

A frozen taiga with pristine white snow all around: a winter wonderland. Pine trees surround Caleb like walls, and fat flakes perpetually drop from the sky, never accumulating. Caleb is dressed for summer, yet he trudges through the snow. Clearly the cold doesnt affect him here. CALEB Hello! Bridgette! Bridgette! He kicks snow out of his path as he marches up a low hill. From here he has a good vantage point over the area. He looks around, making a visor with his flat palm, but theres no sign of anyone but him. He takes in a big dejected sigh, and the entire world WARPS in on him, as if his lungs are sucking everything in like a black hole. We are SPIT OUT into-INT. BRIES CONDO - DAY

An ELDERLY MAN apparently wakes up from a vivid dream. This is the real Caleb Webb (appears late 50s). Hes old, hes gray, hes wrinkly, hes the opposite of his avatar. Hes seated in what appears to be a dentist chair, minus all of the medical contraptions. (CONTINUED)

CONTINUED:

6.

Over to his right is an identical chair, but this one is occupied by Brie Ross. Her hair let down, and her facial expression neutral. He goes over to her side and picks up her hand and starts weeping into it. CALEB (muffled) Where are you, baby? Come back to me. Come back to me, hun. Come back. INT. TEMPLE OF ETERNAL TRUTH (VIRTUAL) - DAY

Hundreds of candles illuminate a byzantine chamber. Water flows from behind the altar and pools in a basin at its foot. SAMAEL, THE DISILLUSIONED ONE sits atop the altar. crossed on the stone floor, no cushion or chair. Legs

He wears a blindfold over his eyes, and draped around him is the skin of a golden-furred lion. His own fiery red hair and thick beard resemble a lions mane. Followers gather around him like planets around a star. Some dressed in filthy cotton tunics, others in shining Qabadh steel armor. All equals beneath Samael. SAMAEL A man whom I met walking the Merah desert just south of the Garden City told me of a dream he once had while sleeping off a hangover. In his dream, the man was haunted by a perpetual thirst that no drink could quench. No matter how much water he would consume his thirst would not satiate. Constantly through out the sleep he would stalk his dreamscape in search of an elixir that would extinguish the fire in his belly. But no such libation existed or could exist within the confines of his dream. The thirst was voracious, all-consuming. Imagine, now, that this dream is one from which you cannot wake. This is the state of Illusion. There is no water in the bounded-world that can satisfy the thirst of the unbounded mind... (CONTINUED)

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7.

His voice trails as Brie pushes her way through the crowd to the edge of the altar. She listens to the sermon, intrigued. VIRA WALKER follows in her footsteps. Her polished armor brilliant in the candlelight. Shes beautiful. Shes valorous. Shes knightly. She is an adept in the ways of Barbelo. At her side she carries a sword and pistol. SAMAEL ...A time will come when all things will wake up to their true nature. Man, machine, beast, and even the lowly, lifeless rock. All things will be imbued with life, and each will realize its place in the scheme of existence. The True Awakening will transform the vast and dead universe into one that knows and realizes its own existence... Vira inspects her surroundings cautiously. VIRA (whispering) Is this the kind of thing you were looking for? Bries eyes never leave the altar. BRIE Im not sure yet. more. I want to hear

VIRA (whispering) We shouldnt stay too long. Hes--not normal. BRIE (a beat) In what sense? VIRA (whispering) Hard to say exactly. I deal with pneumatics every day, theyre no different from me or you. But this guy-SAMAEL ...We are all mirrors that reflect the one True Light. Still ponds in (MORE) (CONTINUED)

CONTINUED: SAMAEL (contd) the mountains shining the light of the sun, and when our surface is broken, it is but a brief interval of shadow before we return to the state of light... INT. OLD APARTMENT - JORDANS POV - DAY

8.

Jordans looking at a familiar woman sitting on the floor across from him. Its Brie, but much younger, circa her early thirties. Theres a gorgeous Christmas tree behind them, covered in jewel like ornaments. Their wallpaper is a hideous vertically striped rainbow pattern. Brie seems genuinely happy. Sublime even. some hot chocolate while they chat. BRIE Are you recording? JORDAN (O.S.) Yep. I think so. I can see a little red disc in my right corner. Sure enough there is a red disc in the corner of his vision. BRIE How do you feel? JORDAN (O.S.) You mean from the mushrooms? BRIE No, I mean from recording. feel anything different? JORDAN (O.S.) Nope, but I think I feel the shrooms kickin in. You? BRIE Uhuh, yeah, Im feeling pretty good. I hope the recording picks everything up including the feeling. JORDAN (O.S.) (getting comfortable) You know, every time we take shrooms I feel like were on a (MORE) (CONTINUED) Do you Shes sipping on

CONTINUED:

9.

JORDAN (O.S.) (contd) date again, like a younger couple. Just starting out. Except that when Im on mushrooms I feel--confident, invulnerable, like I can really be the person I want to be on a date. BRIE Yeah? So this is like the first date we never had? JORDAN (O.S.) Maybe not a first date. Feels more like a third. Like weve met before, and already overcame that first awkward hurdle. BRIE Well, dont get your hopes up cause Im not easy. Dont expect me to put out tonight. JORDAN (O.S.) What, seriously? Not on the third date? This is the 21st century, we shouldve fucked seven dates ago. They start getting giggly. JORDAN (O.S.) Shit, we should have fucked before we exchanged names. Laughs. Probably more than the joke warrants, but the drugs are kicking in. JORDAN (O.S.) Thats good. Thats funny. stealing that. Brie nearly loses her hot chocolate. BRIE (laughing) Youre the one who said it. They laugh and then come to. BRIE This would have been a fun third date. Im

(CONTINUED)

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10.

JORDAN (O.S.) Doing mushrooms? BRIE Fuck yeah. Most first dates are boring as hell. Its always either movies or dinner. Now doing shrooms--Wow. She looks at the wall, mesmerized. BRIE Are you seeing this? JORDAN (O.S.) (interrupting) Whoa. The colors ripple like a curtain caught in a breeze. Then--

Everything freezes and turns monochromatic, and the words "MEMORY SEQUENCE PAUSED. EXTERNAL DISTURBANCE." superimpose over the center of Jordans vision. The tree, Brie, everything WARPS into-INT. JORDANS APARTMENT - LIVING ROOM - DAY A rapid burst of heavy knocking at He

THUMP THUMP THUMP. Jordans door.

The old man rises seemingly from a dream, startled. heads sluggishly for the door. JORDAN (shouting) Who is it?

He engages the chain lock, and just barely cracks the door open. JORDAN Can I help you? On the other side, through the tiny slit, is Caleb. last man Jordan wanted to see. CALEB Jordan. Its Brie. Shes gone. The

Jordan swings the door open as wide as the chain will allow at the sound of her name.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED:

11.

JORDAN Gone? What do you mean gone? INT. JORDANS APARTMENT - LIVING ROOM - LATER

The two stand awkwardly by the kitchenette, several shoulder lengths apart. CALEB Like I said, she went online to do research for the upcoming trial, and she never came back. JORDAN When was the last time you spoke to her? CALEB Three days ago. I didnt know where else to go. JORDAN Did the police ever cross your mind? CALEB You know I cant do that. JORDAN Do you think she pneumatized herself? CALEB No, I think somebody else did against her will. JORDAN But how can you be sure? How can you be sure she just hasnt logged out yet? Have you tried an emergency recall? CALEB Of course Ive tried an emergency recall. Shes gone, Jordan. I dont know what to do. Jordan starts moving towards his front door in an attempt to herd Caleb into that direction, but Caleb doesnt budge.

(CONTINUED)

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12.

JORDAN I suggest you get the cops involved. Now. They have people just for this sort of shit. Theres nothing I can-CALEB (interrupting) Jordan, you know what she stands to lose if this goes public. Youre the only one we can trust. She needs your help. He opens the door for Caleb to leave. CALEB Not just her, but millions of others will lose. Her vote will likely be the deciding one in the case. It will change so many lives. JORDAN Listen, man. I hear ya. I know. I know. But its not my problem anymore. She is your wife, she is your problem. CALEB Youre serious? Have you been following the news? How can you be so selfish? JORDAN Selfish? Neither of you have the goddamn right to call me selfish. Ever. Do you understand? Now youve made me blaspheme, Im going to ask you to leave now. Im sorry you came all this way in person for nothing. Caleb heads for the door, he stands in the frame. CALEB Did you ever love her? Or were you always too selfish? JORDAN Good luck, man. I hope for this countrys sake that you find her.