the pale horse
TRANSCRIPT
INT. KITCHEN-DAY.
Boxes of food and cans are piled high in front of a counter,
above which sits a boarded window. A shadow moves across the
window.
The house furniture is rearranged to block the main entrance
to the house, leaving only chairs and cushions for luxury.
Two Men, JACKSON and JAMES, sit facing one another on two
rusty metal chairs.
Jackson is in his mid-20s and is covered with tattoos,
combine that with his Mohawk and he looks like an honorary
Nine Inch Nails member.
James is also in his mid-20s with no tattoos or piercings at
all. He is considerably well-dressed for the apocalypse and
always has his handy-dandy Bible in front of him.
He is busily scanning the pages, tracking passages with his
finger.
JACKSON
So, you think Mom and Dad are still
out there?
James looks up.
JAMES
Well, I think that they’re
somewhere.
JACKSON
Jesus, James, don’t start again
with this vague, condescending
bullshit.
JAMES
Don’t utter his name in vain.
(beat)
And if by "here", you mean
presently on Earth, then no I don’t
believe that they’re still "here."
JACKSON
I don’t know, man. Dad was a cold
motherfucker. Mom might be gone by
now, though. She was always too
optimistic about people. Hell, she
probably baked cookies for the ,
thinking it was a house party or
some shit like that.
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 2.
James looks pissed.
JAMES
Jackson, please. I’m trying to
read.
JACKSON
You remember that girl, Liza?
James ignores him.
JACKSON (CONT’D)
(prodding)
The one with the big ass?
(gesturing outside)
Man, I almost wish I was one of
them, so I could take a nice big
bite out of that--
JAMES
Do you even care?
JACKSON
Care about what?
JAMES
(angry)
Millions upon millions upon
millions of unsaved people have
died out there. All of them are
bound to burn in hell
(beat)
Forever.
(beat)
And you’re in here reminiscing
about some high school prom queen
that you haven’t seen in years.
JACKSON
(defensive)
And what are you doing that is
productive? You’ve been caught up
in that book of yours for weeks
now.
James holds the Bible out.
JAMES
Everything in the past, the
present, the future is all written
in this book.
(gestures outside)
(MORE)
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 3.
JAMES (cont’d)I was spared from them to serve a
purpose. That purpose is in this
book. I just have to find it.
(beat)
You should try reading it,
considering you were spared to.
An awkwardly silent beat.
Jackson gets up to leave.
JACKSON
Have fun with your Shakespeare.
INT. BEDROOM-NIGHT.
A scream rings out through the night air.
Jackson jolts upright in his bed. A second scream penetrates
the walls of the house.
JACKSON
What the fuck?
He gets up from his bed and exits.
INT. KITCHEN-NIGHT.
James stands at the boarded window, looking out towards the
street.
Jackson enters.
JACKSON
You hear that?
JAMES
Yeah. I can’t see anything from
here.
JACKSON
Is it coming from the street?
JAMES
I think so.
Jackson exits.
4.
INT. BEDROOM-NIGHT.
Jackson runs back into the bedroom and flings his closet
door open.
He rummages through a plastic bag on the floor, pulling a
box of firecrackers out.
He runs out of the bedroom.
INT. KITCHEN-NIGHT.
Jackson runs back into the kitchen holding the firecrackers
out.
JACKSON
Where’s the lighter?
James runs over to the counter and begins pulling drawers
two at a time.
JAMES
Got it.
James pulls a lighter from an otherwise empty drawer.
He hands the lighter to Jackson who hands him an wooden
baseball bat.
JACKSON
Watch my back.
EXT. HOUSE-NIGHT. MOMENTS LATER.
James opens the door, bat-in-hand. Jackson follows, stepping
out onto the porch and lighting the entire package of fire
crackers.
He tosses the flaming package across the street and sprints
off of the porch.
The screams come around the corner, revealing a blond
teenage GIRL being chased by several zombie-like creatures.
The fire crackers go off as Jackson grabs the girl, pulling
her back towards the house as the zombies become captivated
by the fireworks.
James watches from the porch with his bat ready as another
creature appears from behind the house, seeing Jackson and
the girl running back towards the porch.
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 5.
The creature growls and begins running (yes, those kind of
zombies) towards them before he is cut down from behind by
James.
James smashes the zombie’s skull with two hard swings and
watches as the zombie begins to twitch violently. James
looks almost as if he is enjoying this.
JACKSON
Come on, James, let’s go.
James turns to see find Jackson and the girl already on the
porch. He runs up the steps and into the house behind them,
closing the door as the fire crackers stop exploding.
INT. HALLWAY-NIGHT. CONTINUOUS.
All three of them pile into the house, as Jackson and James
stack the furniture back up on the door.
INT. BEDROOM-NIGHT.
Jackson hands the girl a bottle of water and a can of Vienna
sausages.
JACKSON
Here, you need to eat. Then get
some rest.
The girl takes sip from the bottle.
GIRL
Thank you.
(beat)
What’s your name?
JACKSON
Jackson.
GIRL
I’m Emily.
JACKSON
Get some rest, Emily.
Jackson leaves.
6.
INT. KITCHEN-DAY.
James is sitting in a chair reading his Bible. Jackson leans
against the counter.
JACKSON
Still looking for answers? Last
night wasn’t proof enough.
JAMES
Proof of what?
JACKSON
That you were right. We found our
purpose last night.
JAMES
And what is our purpose? Please
enlighten me.
JACKSON
We’re like Noah after the flood.
We’re the ones who are supposed to
restart humanity.
JAMES
I’m glad you paid attention in
Sunday School, but fornicating with
a fifteen-year-old is not what we
spared for.
(beat)
It took me a while, but I finally
understand what it is that I am
called to do.
JACKSON
And what is that?
JAMES
You will find out when the time is
right.
INT. BEDROOM-DAY.
Emily is still sleeping. Jackson stares at her from the
doorway.
He creeps over to the bed and brushes her hair out of her
face. He smells her hair before moving to her neck.
7.
INT. KITCHEN-DAY. LATER.
Jackson enters the kitchen. He is alone.
In the middle of the floor is a table with old newspapers
and wood from broken chairs piled onto it.
James’ Bible sits open on the center of the table.
Jackson cautiously approaches the table. He picks up the
Bible which is opened to an underlined passage
James appears in the doorway to the kitchen.
JAMES
(quoting passage [Revelation
6:8])
And I looked, and behold a pale
horse: and his name that sat on him
was Death, and Hell followed with
him. And power was given unto them
over the fourth part of the earth,
to kill with sword, and with
hunger, and with death, and with
the beasts of the earth.
JACKSON
What the fuck are you talking
about?
JAMES
I am the pale horse.
JACKSON
Seriously, dude, you’re creeping me
the fuck out.
James moves closer to Jackson. He is only a foot away from
him.
JAMES
(quoting passage [Revelation
21:8)
But the fearful, and unbelieving,
and the abominable, and murderers,
and whoremongers, and sorcerers,
and idolaters, and all liars, shall
have their part in the lake which
burneth with fire and brimstone:
which is the second death.
(beat)
I was chosen to cleanse this world
of sin and bring about the New
Earth.
(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 8.
James forcefully embraces his brother who struggles under
his grip.
JAMES (CONT’D)
(whispering into his ear)
You were spared to show me the path
that I have to follow.
(beat)
And now, brother, I have found my
purpose.
James grabs a knife from the counter behind Jackson and
plunges it it deep into Jackson’s back, severing his spinal
cord.
Jackson screams in agony.
Jackson’s legs buckle and he crashes to the floor,
paralyzed.
JACKSON
I’ll fucking kill you.
James laughs. He places his foot on Jackson’s forehead,
lining up his kill shot.
He raises the leg and gives three rapid stomps before the
sound of a cracking skull is heard.
James wipes the sweat from his forehead.
INT. BEDROOM-DAY. LATER.
Emily is asleep. James walks into the room, brandishing the
wooden baseball bat.
James’ shadow passes over her eye line and her eyelids
flicker, flirting with the idea of waking up.
He grabs her by her hair and yanks her off of the bed. She
screams in horror as he drags her across the floor to the
door.
Her hands grasp for anything that would keep from being
dragged. She finds an antique wooden dresser to grab onto
before the bat comes down on her fingers. The sound of bones
snapping rings throughout the room and her screams become
wails of pain as she is dragged from the room.
9.
INT. KITCHEN-DAY.
James drags Emily into the kitchen. He places his arms
around her neck and hoists her onto the table.
She trashes on top of the table, almost falling off. James
savagely swings the bat at her knees and the sound of more
breaking bones is heard.
Emily screams now turn into sobs as she realizes that she is
going to die.
James grabs another kitchen knife from the counter and
approaches her. He slowly places the blade on her throat.
JAMES
In the name of the Father, the Son,
and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
He viciously slashes her throat.
He grabs a small matchbook, strikes one of the matches, and
watches as the flame wavers about.
He tosses the match onto the table as the sound of flames
whooshing rapidly is heard.
He exits the kitchen with the bat in his hand.
INT. HALLWAY-DAY. CONTINUOUS.
James walks through the hallway, picking up a pre-packed
drawstring bag filled with food and water.
JAMES (V.O.)
I heard the voice of God today.
INT. LIVING ROOM-DAY.
James looks at pictures of Jackson and himself. They look
happy.
James has no remorse in his eyes.
JAMES (V.O.) (CONT’D)
He told me to cleanse the world of
all impurities and cut down the
wicked where they stand.
10.
INT. DOORWAY-DAY.
James stands before the backdoor of the house
JAMES (V.O.) (CONT’D)
The voice of God reverberates
throughout my being and I am one
with it. It follows me wherever I
go. It is with me as I pull the
sinful children from the arms of
their whorish mothers and as I take
the heads from their filthy
fathers. I am the pale horse, I am
Death incarnate. I will bring about
his perfect and holy kingdom and
send the sinners to their eternal
damnation. I will stand strong, I
will not be defeated.
James opens the door as the sound of the flames increases in
intensity. He exits the house.
FADE TO BLACK.