THE SPIRAL

Written by Walter Herrera

Based on, 'Uzumaki' By Junji Ito

Walter.h.may@gmail.com

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First, over black, we hear the sounds of a TRAIN RUMBLING. EXT. RAILWAY STATION - MIDDAY A LOCOMOTIVE, slowly, and expectantly, pulls itself out of a tunnel. It hauls commuter trains as it squeals to a stop. The side doors stutter open and a meager crowd shuffle onto the platform. CLARA MUISE, mid teens, holds a fastened polka-dot umbrella like a cane. Shes pressed against the ticket booth surveying the people who exit. She turns her head side to side, patiently awaiting someone. And with buried instinct, she turns around A SNAPSHOT. A compact 35mm camera, circa 1985. It lowers. Holding it is ANDY COLBY, similar age, tall, bookish. He reaches out and she hugs him tight. EXT. TOT LOT - LATER Cicadas sing over the distant sound of an OCEAN SURF. Andy is nestled on a kiddy swing. Clara follows suit. Her bike and umbrella are collapsed next to the swing set. As Clara sits, they begin to swing leisurely, Andy speaks softly: ANDY If I left, would you come for me? I would. How. CLARA ANDY

CLARA Id come so fast. But how. ANDY

2. CLARA Thatd be my problem. Andy knits his brow for a second. ANDY You know why I ask? CLARA Cuz you want to move away. I want to something come back the airs ANDY Run away... You know I notice every time I from the city, is that different.

CLARA (dryly) Well, conditions could hardly be more ideal. Its summer. Andy clicks his tongue. ANDY No, I mean, its stranger. And the people, theyve gotten slower than usual. He expresses with his fingers. Oddly pointing to invisible culprits. This grabs Claras attention. ANDY (CONTD) And my dad. Hes mental. Hes obsessed with something... And? CLARA

ANDY And its odd. Its just weird. To the point I wanna say sayonara. (beat) So once summers long gone, Im staying in the city. CLARA Correct me if Im wrong, but is this another one of your world revolves around me episodes? She turns away rolling her eyes, been there, done that.

3. ANDY I didnt say the world revolved around me. I explicitly meant the universe. She peeks back at him. CLARA So youre joking. He gives a half hearted chuckle. Right? CLARA (CONTD)

ANDY Keep digging Watson. CLARA No. Tell me. Andy smacks his lips and gives an apologetic nod. A moment later. Andy jumps off the swing. ANDY Bear with me, and look at this town. He points. Beyond the tot lot is a delightful little town. Sunshine sparkles off glittering rooftops, and the grass radiates. A COAST covers the entire horizon. The ocean glistens. For all intents and purposes, its perfect It sucks. ANDY (CONTD)

Andy whips around only to find Clara frowning - complete disagreement. She studies him. CLARA Has your ego grown while you were away? ANDY Yeah, what of it? CLARA Did you stay up at night watching what you shouldnt be watching?

4. ANDY

And more.

CLARA I hear your school is full of pretty girls. Oh yeah. ANDY

CLARA Bet you fondled all of them. ANDY I tried not to. CLARA You see? Our relationship is weird. I cant tell if youre joking. You know I believe everything you say, right? Andy dusts off his pants. Looking at his shoes as he does it. I know. ANDY

CLARA So shut up and enjoy the summer. City boy. As always. Settled. ANDY CLARA

She gets up, and begins to lift her bicycle off the floor. Andy follows her close, accidently kicking her umbrella. ANDY (pointing) Whyd you bring an umbrella? Clara shrugs. Absent-minded: CLARA Hurricanes gonna cause grief. Just a matter of time. Andy suspiciously watches Clara. He then stares out at the fleeting sunset... troubled by Claras words.

5. EXT. TOWN LIMITS - DUSK A bright, good natured sign: WELCOME TO CAPE GOOSEBERRY - POPULATION 1,102 We hear a radio broadcast. Poor quality, tinny. An authoritative voice kicks in: WEATHERMAN (V.O.) We can see this tropical storm, and just a moment ago, these trees back here were really, really blowing. Right now, as you can see, theyre barely moving. His words dont match what we see. The towns in perfect condition under the moonlight. The skys free from clouds. WEATHERMAN (V.O.)(CONTD) What has happened is that the wind begun to shift here. And its beginning to come out of another direction; the rain is starting to come back down again. So were obviously in the outer edges of this thing. The town is ghostly, save for the few twinkling street lights. WEATHERMAN (V.O.)(CONTD) But truth be told, theres no indication at how severe the damage in the area will be once this is all done and over. A crooked tree. Its leaves ruffle from a gentle breeze. EXT. COLBY RESIDENCE - BREAK OF DAWN A charming single floor home. LEGEND: THE OBSESSION INT. COLBY RESIDENCE - ANDYS ROOM - CONTINUOUS The attic turned bedroom is plastered with posters of vintage women and rock bands like QUEEN and the ROLLING STONES.

6. Andy walks out of the shower room sporting a dress shirt. He towels his ears. He prepares himself. House keys in pocket... analog watch on left wrist... a pair of eyeglasses. INT. COLBY RESIDENCE - LIVING ROOM - MORNING The staircase. Picture frames of a young Andy, joyful and spontaneous. Andy steps down. He can hear the TELEVISION. INT. COLBY RESIDENCE - KITCHEN - MORNING MRS. COLBY, agitated and looking sickly, watches the news by the dinner table. ON THE TELEVISION: THE WEATHERMAN we heard earlier is on. Full mop of hair and tie. He holds onto his microphone as a dense rain showers him. In the top corner, the date reads: AUGUST 23rd, 1985 - Hurricane Incoming? WEATHERMAN (O.S.) Telling it to you live from Floridas coast. Back to you. Mom. ANDY

MRS. COLBY Oh, Andy, good morning... She appears oddly distant - speaking in an eerie monotone. ANDY Shouldnt you have been gone an hour ago? Wheres pop? MRS. COLBY Hes taking care of the kiln in the cottage. I think he was up all night. Im afraid he doesnt listen to me anymore. She sighs. Andy burns for more questions, but he lets it go. Andy clasps the fridge door open. He lines the beverages. Takes one. Then approaches the dining table.

7. A CLAY PLATE lays on the table. Its gruesomely etched with tiny SCREAM-LOCKED FACES. Andy stares a moment. ANDY Whats this ugly thing? Mrs. Colby remains locked on the television where a newsman interviews a specialist about the storm. She doesnt blink. MRS. COLBY Oh that? Its one of your fathers ceramics... ANDY And our regular plates? Broken... MRS. COLBY

Theres a crooked joy in her face that Andy doesnt see. Andy eyes the kitchen counters. He sees countless, similarly deformed, clay plates and pottery. Andy nervously grinds his teeth. ANDY (changing subject) Im going to walk Clara to school. Oh? MRS. COLBY

ANDY Summer school that is. MRS. COLBY Be careful with the weather, dear. Storms coming. ANDY Ive heard. MRS. COLBY They say itll be a hurricane. ANDY Hopefully not. Andy draws near the television, sliding his hands around it.

8. ANDY (CONTD) We shouldnt worry about it. Isnt there anything else on? He switches the channel. Static. ANDY (CONTD) Is channel three all we got? Great. He switches the channel again. Nothing but noise. Annoyed, he shuts it off. ANDY (CONTD) Oh, well, Im leaving now... Mrs. Colby doesnt respond. She stares nonchalantly at the television set. Mom. ANDY (CONTD)

She doesnt respond. Andy traces her eyeline... where she stares at the BUNNY EARS on top the television. Specifically - the LOOP ANTENNA between the bunny ears. Which oddly enough was tampered and made to look like a SPIRAL. EXT. COLBY RESIDENCE - YARD - LATER One foot out the front door, Andy looks to the cottage to the kiln. Its aged poorly. MR. COLBY exits the cottage, looking like death himself. He holds an empty bucket. ANDY (approaching) Hey, Dad! Mr. Colby, as if hard of hearing, ignores Andy. Andy re-iterates. More firmly. Dad. ANDY (CONTD)

MR. COLBY (blankly) Good morning Andy. Mr. Colby readjusts his belt and fills the bucket with the hose tap. Andy speaks loudly over the splattering water.

9. ANDY Ive been meaning to ask... Uh huh. MR. COLBY

He turns to Andy, revealing BLOODSHOT EYES. Andy notices, but fails to mention them. ANDY Um. Those plates you made. Theyre interesting. Pretty odd shapes. MR. COLBY Its a new clay, I suppose the temperature wasnt right. ANDY (intrigued) Oh. What kind of clay? Mr. Colby delivers Andy a chilling smirk. MR. COLBY Thats my secret. ANDY Whatever it is, Im not sure if its practical. MR. COLBY Practical? As art, its very successful. You ever look into the eye of a vase when you spin the wheel? Ceramics is the art of the spiral. He tightens the tap. MR. COLBY (CONTD) Its fascinating. ANDY But those designs MR. COLBY Youre bothering me Andy. He swings around and heads back to the cottage. ANDY (attention seeking) Theyre vicious.

10. No response. INT. COLBYS KILN - CONTINUOUS Mr. Colby lets the door close itself. The air is musty and filled with dust. He takes careful steps over a littered COLLECTION OF SPIRALS. Rags and blankets with volute patterns, conches, wind-up springs, scotch tape, mosquito repellent incense, and even twisting vines cover the walls and pile up in the corners. THE KILN, glowing, bellowing, draws Mr. Colby. He takes a peek inside. EXT. PEDESTRIAN PATH - MORNING Dressed in a school uniform, Clara unhurriedly walks along the path. Andy rides her bike slowly. Just a foot behind her. CLARA I dont think its weird to collect spirals. I mean, there are people who collect much stranger things. Like cigarette butts. ANDY You dont know how obsessive hes become. Hes a freak. Now Im beginning to see them everywhere... Oh, boo. CLARA

ANDY Look at those whirl pools. Parallel to the path is a man made creek. Several pockets of whirlpools puncture the waters surface. CLARA Thats just the flow of the water. ANDY But look at those whirlwinds. Those dust devils. Through an alley, debris gust in a violent cyclone.

11. CLARA (not looking) I think youre reading too much into it. Its a natural shape. ANDY Well, Im not making these things up! Maybe you should come over and see how both my parents are acting funny. CLARA My parents humour me enough, thanks. She walks out of earshot. Andy swerves to dodge a low lying tree branch. He loses momentum and stops, letting his foot off the pedal. He drives his attention to the pavement. Something piques his interest. A SNAIL. The shell... A spiraling vortex. Andy thinks... then, with the butt of his foot, CRUSHES it. EXT. GOOSEBERRY HIGH SCHOOL - FRONT YARD - LATER A sparse group of teens hustle near the entrance of the school. Near the gates, Clara hangs a distance with Andy. CLARA Thanks for walking me. ANDY Nothing to it. CLARA Once Im done well go to the beach. Its oyster season. ANDY (grimaces) My favourite... Clara spontaneously yawns. Her eyes water. CLARA Wish I can sleep forever.

12. ANDY Late summer nights does that. Youll survive if you keep your head on straight. CLARA Its on good shoulders. She waves her finger in front of Andys face. Twirling it into a hypnotic spiral. She then bops him on the nose. Buh-bye. CLARA (CONTD)

She begins to run off. ANDY Hey, so is the bike mine for the rest of the day? CLARA What? No. Its one of the two things I love on this Earth. Andy deflates. CLARA (CONTD) (winking) Just for the day, Andy! As she runs off ANDY Whats the first? Myself! CLARA

INT. CLASSROOM - MORNING The room is empty, save for the distant whispers. Chatters of gossip. INT. SCHOOL HALLWAY - MORNING A sliver of sunlight strikes through the window. Chairs going into skid fill the empty air.

13. EXT. BASEBALL DIAMOND - BLEACHERS - AFTERNOON A deep blue sky with wonderfully shaped clouds. Suddenly, a SHADOW engulfs the sky. Its Hannah blocking Claras view of the clouds. HANNAH So, did you tell your mum about moving in with me and the girls. Clara, nestled between bleacher seats, sits up on one arm to get a better look at her. Hannah stands out due to her spunk defying the dress code on purpose. CLARA No, not yet. HANNAH Ugh. Clara, you know that saying, the sooner the better? It applies here. CLARA I know. Theres never a right time to bring it up, you know? I was going to tell her yesterday but it was more like verbal fight-night at the dinner table. I dont blame em, it was my fault. Clara straightens her socks as she speaks. HANNAH I know what thats like. My parents totally go house over everything I do. So was it something you did, didnt do, what? CLARA A car almost hit my little brother when I shouldve been watching. HANNAH Uh huh. Its the rascals fault, needs a leash. I cant wait to get out of here and live by myself... Together. I mean. So, pencil me in once you get the word? A commotion. Hooting. Giggles. Clara looks up. The schoolyard is modest enough and theres plenty room for the teens to congregate into their groups. But -

14. Claras drawn to a commotion of people passing by the foot of the bleachers. LILY heads a crew. Surrounded by boys and girls alike, shes pretty, and lets everyone know it. Clara notices the curls on Lilys hair. They bounce disproportionately to her walking pace. A life of their own. CLARA Well, Lilys rocking it. HANNAH Those curls... so sixties. In fact, down at the shoulder, theyre spiral shaped... Clara shakes her head at the thought. She looks to Hannah, who stretches and lets out a girly sigh. HANNAH (CONTD) Theyre so noisy. What is this, a zoo? The commotion stops dead. The crowd splits like Moses Red Sea. Lily overheard. And is displeased. Hannah bites her lip. HANNAH (CONTD) (sotto, to Clara) I think her curls act as antenna. CLARA Theyre weird. They look alive... HANNAH All the better to hug you with, my dear. Lily approaches, stepping up the bleachers. The crowd of teens hypnotically shuffle behind her. Hannah... CLARA

HANNAH yes, mdear? CLARA Dont say anything dumb. A beat. Lily, ice water in her veins, crosses her arms.

15. LILY Sorry, did I hear something? HANNAH Nothing. Just that your hair is so flashy. LILY Like it? (prideful) I barely did any treatment on it. It just naturally curled up one day. HANNAH Must have wished upon a star. LILY Yeah. And what have you done lately? I see youre still the headbanger from last semester. HANNAH (sarcastic) Youre able to tell? Truly, you are a gifted person. CLARA Hannah, step off. LILY (to Clara) Clever Clara. I see your homegirl is just a tad bit lost with reality. And her brains. HANNAH Its summer school Lily, were all dumb. As for your posse? The crowd, sluggish, look tired eyed. Theyve been ignoring the conversation. Instead, they gaze at Lilys curls. HANNAH (CONTD) I mean, are you feeding off of their energy, or what? Lily, about to blow up, when SCREAMS FROM ACROSS THE FIELD. Near the school building. The argument is moot as kids from around pace to see what happened.

16. Lily bats her hair over her shoulder and walks away, head held high. Her crowd shuffles behind. Hannah and Clara. Left alone. Sigh relief. CLARA Was that the most terrifying moment of your life, or what? EXT. SCHOOL ROOF - SAME A vast panorama of Cape Gooseberry. From up here, we can see Clara and Hannah working their way down the bleachers. BANG. The steel rooftop door swings against a gust of wind, slamming the wall. Closer to the ledge, where it lacks guardrails, we see a pair of running shoes... EXT. GOOSEBERRY HIGH SCHOOL - SIDE ENTRANCE - SAME A resounding collection of gasps from the students. Clara and Hannah push through the crowd and look at the roof to see A lanky schoolboy - LUKAS - standing dangerously at the edge. He stumbles for a second, the wind indiscriminate. CLARA Idiot is gonna kill himself! The students crowd by the schools wall. No one knows what to expect. A bead of sweat forms on Claras brow, when LUKAS Youre all contaminated!!! He stumbles again. This time hes grabbing for DEAR LIFE on the rails. CLARA Hes going to fall! She notices some students backing away from the drop zone. She looks back up just in time to see Lukas LET GO. The drop is far, and as his body flails to the ground, he doesnt make a sound - not a shout - not a scream.

17. The students however, CRY IN HORROR, covering their eyes. A soundless impact... CUT TO: EXT. CAPE GOOSEBERRY - DAY Silence. The town stretches wide. Grey in appearance. NEWSCASTER (V.O.) Today is the twenty-ninth of August, and we have updates on Hurricane Elena. As we can see here, it seemingly stalled near the coast. To our knowledge, this unpredictable change has caused a steady flow of evacuations. This pattern, I should say is quite remarkable. The actual flight path of the hurricane is spiral shaped. Simple overcast skies betray what we hear... EXT. CAPE GOOSEBERRY - RIVER - CONTINUOUS A risen water level. Water sloshes between the piers floorboards. Attached to the pier, a speedboat with an outboard engine begins to sink... inside a whirlpool. NEWSCASTER (V.O.) But more on that later. Forthcoming we shall provide information as to which towns are affected by the Hurricanes path change. EXT. CAPE GOOSEBERRY CEMETERY - CREMATORIUM - DAY The chimney puffs DARK SMOKE. A sniffling crowd of MOURNERS. Mostly students. Clara, uncomfortable in a black dress, wanders alongside Andy. Andy steers Clara under a tented shelter. Its the floral tribute area. Quiet here. Nestled on an easel: a photograph of Lukas. ANDY Clara are you alright?

18. CLARA Yeah. Im still stunned. I didnt know him personally, but still. Shes strong. ANDY If you want, I can take you home. He hugs her. Putting her head on his shoulder. A tender moment, suddenly broken by A CLAMOURING OF VOICES. The mourners point upwards to the sky. The tent inhibits their view, so Andy and Clara slowly move out the underside to see THE DARK SMOKE, as if a low laying cloud, forms into a HUGE SPIRAL IN THE SKY. It begins to drift downwards. Falling, twisting, turning into a swirl, right towards a pond within the cemeterys property. This small body of water is DRAGONFLY POND. Surrounded by gravestones and sitting at its edge is a lone ASH TREE. As the dark swirling cloud gets sucked into the pond, we hear a GUSTING WIND in prelapse EXT. LIGHTHOUSE - CONTINUOUS THE WIND violently sweeps across an open gate, through an open road, and towards A LIGHTHOUSE. Manifesting sounds of twisting metal and a low rumble gives breath to the lighthouse. By its own nature, the lamp FLASHES ON. It begins to rotate. Its lustrous... and otherworldly. EXT. CAPE GOOSEBERRY WATERFRONT - EVENING The sky, dark and dire, overlooks the lighthouse. Its mesmerizing beam of light leaves swirls of mist in the air. Fishermen, ending a hard days work, take note.

19. OLD FISHERMAN (to his companions) Whats making it? YOUNG FISHERMAN Isnt that place abandoned? OLD FISHERMAN Here it comes again. The beam of light BLINDS THEM. It casts deep shadows on the docks as it swooshes by. Numbed by the eeriness, the fishermen look at each other. EXT. MUISE RESIDENCE - EVENING The lighthouse is visible from a distance. It sits alone in the middle of a huge empty headland. The Muise residence sits snug between other modest homes. INT. MUISE RESIDENCE - DINING ROOM - EVENING At the dinner table. Levi (9), full of energy: LEVI Isnt that lighthouse cool? Clara rolls her eyes as she pulls a spoon out of her mouth, eating with zero hurry. LEVI (CONTD) Its like a giant robot spitting a death ray! He depicts his imaginary robot. Articulating an alien voice. CLARA Stop being a baby. Levi clutches his throat and teases Clara. LEVI Whos the baby? It wigs you out more than me. CLARA You shouldnt look at that light. Theres something wrong with it. MRS. MUISE. Mature, compellingly attractive.

20. MRS. MUISE I dont like it either. It makes me dizzy. Levi, promise me you wont go near that lighthouse. Aw, mom! LEVI

He looks at his father, MR. MUISE. Whos been neutral this whole time. Caught wide eyed as everyone awaits a response, he clears his throat. MR. MUISE Um. Follow your mothers, uh, advice. Satisfied with the answer, he goes back to eating. Clara gets up. The chair slides harshly bringing attention to herself. Excuse me. She walks off. MRS. MUISE Clara, doll, are you okay? Im tired. CLARA CLARA

LEVI I dont like carrots either, but I dont lie about it. Clara sneers at Levi. MR. MUISE Clara will you the plates tonight? They wont auto-magically clean themselves. Already out of the dining room Claras halfway up the stairs. MR. MUISE (CONTD) Hello - missy? CLARA (O.S.) (up the stairs) Yeah, yeah.

21. Mrs. Muise slaps his wrist and shushes him. MR. MUISE I thought discipline was in order MRS. MUISE No, dear... MR. MUISE Hmm. When do you think shell bake some more cookies? MRS. MUISE I dont know. Christmas, maybe? MR. MUISE Hmm. Long wait. She bakes cookies when shes happy. INT. CLARAS ROOM - EVENING Its hardly fashionable, but its roomy and comfortable. Clara picks up a brick phone, looking like an unwieldy portable analogue brain-fryer. She drops herself onto her bed. Dials. INT. COLBY RESIDENCE - EVENING A small rotary phone RINGS. Andy ousts himself out of his room - scales the steps downstairs - and slows down as he notices MR. COLBY just entering the house. SOAKING WET. He carries buckets of mud. The phone continues to ring. Dad. Andy. ANDY MR. COLBY

ANDY Whats this bad feng shui? Youre messing up the house. He approaches, tries for the buckets. Mr. Colby swerves them away.

22. MR. COLBY Oh no no no. This is mine. ANDY Whats in it? MR. COLBY Its my clay. ANDY Dont tell me you jumped in some river. Youre soaked. MR. COLBY I dug it out, now let me get back to work. He nudges Andy to the side and heads towards the cellar door attached under the stairs. ANDY Are you going to the kiln tonight? MR. COLBY Of course. Being an artist, not just a craftsman, I experimented by trial and error, and finally, I found the most amazing clay. Nothing else has been on my mind. ANDY But where is this clay... from? Mr. Colby doesnt look back at Andy as he responds: MR. COLBY From Dragonfly Pond. ANDY Thats in the cemetery. MR. COLBY Thats the one. Some very unique mud there. Now, let me mold my clay... He opens the CELLAR DOOR. Inside is pitch black - a light sucking vacuum. His footsteps THUD as he descends. The phone stops ringing.

23. INT. CLARAS ROOM - CONTINUOUS Clara, miffed, hangs up. INT. COLBY RESIDENCE - CELLAR - DUSK Andy remains at the top of the cellar staircase. He hears his father spinning clay. Peeking, Andy notices several clay vases. Smooth, and perfectly normal. ANDY Youre not making those warped ones anymore? MR. COLBY (working like a demon) What are you talking about? Its only after I put them in the kiln that they turn that way. A troubled pout washes over Andy. He scratches his chin. ANDY Dad, just to let you know. I wouldnt eat off a plate that was made from mud at Dragonfly Pond. MR. COLBY Not my business. ANDY Because Im sure youve heard, about the boy who jumped off the schools roof. MR. COLBY He chose to do whatever he pleased. ANDY No. Listen. While he was cremated, his ashes drifted to the pond. And? MR. COLBY

ANDY (wryly) I think that clay is made of dead people.

24. Mr. Colby stops spinning his clay vase. Looks over his shoulder. A beat MR. COLBY I think youre overreacting, Andy. He goes back to work. INT. COLBY RESIDENCE - ANDYS ROOM - DUSK Andy slams his door behind him. He marches around the place looking increasingly worried, when He hears the front door BANG SHUT. Footsteps, outside. Andy tries to look out the window over his desk. Kicking a stool over its side as he struggles over. OUTSIDE: Mr. Colby bears a cart full of clay pottery, heading towards the cottage. INT. COLBY RESIDENCE - KITCHEN - DUSK Mrs. Colby, seated, and alone with a cup of tea, sees Andy putting on his coat. Her eyes sunken more than before. ANDY Its getting late, Dad cant keep doing this every night. MRS. COLBY I agree. Hell burn the place down if he falls asleep. ANDY I dont think he sleeps anymore. Andy notices the klick-klack of s stirring spoon. His mother is oddly satisfied staring at the twirling tea in her cup. EXT. COLBYS KILN - LATER Andy approaches the cottage. A warm light pierces through the cracks under the door. Andy knocks. No response. He grabs hold of the door handle. He sucks in all the breath he can. PUSHES -

25. INT. COLBYS KILN - CONTINUOUS Andy feels the wall for a light switch. CLICK. A fiery light escapes the mouth of the kiln. MR. COLBY, is strewn in front on the floor! Andy furrows his brow, runs to his father. Dad? ANDY

He notices pottery laying around the foot of the kiln. Viciously disfigured, and etched with SPIRAL PATTERNS. A SUDDEN GOD AWFUL WAIL Andy jumps. The sound cuts right through his heart. Andy stares at the kiln - the source of the sound. He peers inside. His reaction of growing horror: A series of vases deflate and bubble, forming into multiple human like faces - SCREAMING in agony. One swells. TENTACLES rip through the bulbous body, as if growing inside out. Taken over by a life force, it LASHES OUT at Andy. Andy tucks his head and careens out of the way. He barely notices the lumps of FIERY COAL that roll out of the kiln. Bits of Mr. Colbys spiral collection CATCHES FIRE! Andy hesitates. He grabs hold of his father and sees, wrapped around his throat, a clay tentacle! Andy tears it off, turns on his heels and drags his father towards the door. The CLAY DEMON rolls out of the kiln, its tentacles trying to latch onto anything. They only ignite the cottage further. Lump in his throat, Andy takes one last peek over his shoulder at the clay abomination, which rolls into as one large disfigured face. CLAY DEMON (pained) The heat! The heat! Andy SHUTS THE DOOR -

26. EXT. COLBYS KILN - DUSK Andy places his father by a tree stump. No sooner, the entire cottage gets consumed by flames. As it roars, it becomes more difficult to decipher between the crackling wood and the terrible screams. Andy is shaken, sweats in terror. Theres no way that was real. INT. MUISE RESIDENCE - KITCHEN - MORNING Clara shovels through the cupboards. She dangles two candy bars over Levi, whos kneeled on a chairs seat. CLARA Do you want the fruity granola bar, or the chocolatey peanut buttery one. LEVI The chocolate. CLARA No, its mine. Clara snaps it away. Levi admits defeat. LEVI (under breath) Birdbrain. Blockhead. Bonehead! CLARA LEVI

Clara mock laughs - and stops. She rubs the top of Levis head, HARD. LEVI (CONTD) OW! No wonder you failed high school. Clara takes her bike helmet off the counter. CLARA The amount of don't care I'm expressing towards you is astronomical. I bet youll fail a lot in life.

27. LEVI No. Im smarter than you. This offends Clara. But of course shes playing along: CLARA Whats the problem with kids these days? They never listen to anybody. LEVI What about you? No one likes you. CLARA And youre oh so popular, with what only two friends? LEVI Youre adopted. MR. MUISE (O.S.) (muffled, in another room) Guys... Stop arguing! Clara and Levi freeze. Clara continues, barely above a hush. CLARA To hate me, is to motivate me. Plus, I have more friends than you. LEVI Whatever, youre the most boring person ever. CLARA Just because Im not obsessed with anything doesnt mean Im boring. She slides a pair of comic books off the kitchen counter. Levi reacts, and gets to his knees to pick them up. Clara is halfway out of the kitchen. LEVI Im not done with you! Clara waves a hand, shooing Levi. CLARA Doing the bike thing with Hannah. Probably hit the beach.

28. LEVI I hope hes not there. Who? Andy. CLARA LEVI

CLARA Oh, hell be there alright, hell be there with flowers. She exits. Levi, lonely, hears the front door close, just as a toilet flushes. Then. Scampering footsteps. Mr. Muise, from the hall, walks in the kitchen. Hes adjusting his belt. MR. MUISE Wheres Clara? LEVI She just left to meet her friend. MR. MUISE Oh, that dim girl? That ones a bad influence. LEVI Thats what Ive been saying! Mr. Muise motions zipping his mouth shut, he didnt say anything. He twirls himself back into hall. EXT. JUKE JOINT - EARLY NOON Its a beautiful day, and the street is mobbed with pedestrians. Clara halts her bike in front of a quaint little bistro. Heavenly jazz plays within. She hauls herself off. Waits for Hannah to catch up. She too is on a bike. Hannah, panting like a dog, parks next to Clara. They overlook a downhill street. CLARA For a hotdogger, youre hella slow.

29. HANNAH Please. I havent surfed in years. CLARA Jeez, you cant even speak with all that wheezing. Need a break? HANNAH No, Im good. CLARA (pointing to bistro) Fresh oysters and seafood is the specialty here. HANNAH Thats the whole specialty of the town. My fathers a fisherman. Clara reminisces. As if reminded: Mine too. CLARA

Further along the street, LILY exits a neighbouring bistro. HANNAH Goodness gracious. CLARA Dont start. Ive forgotten why you two even hate each other. I mean shes retired from bullying, right? Onlookers stare at Lilys curls. Mystified. HANNAH It must be nice to receive all that attention... Everyone who looks is captivated. I should watch out... not look too much. She cups the side of her face. Lily begins to walk in the girls direction. CLARA Here she comes. Hannah. Face still covered. For real? HANNAH

30. CLARA I kid you not. My God. HANNAH

CLARA Hide, Hannah. I think shes coming for blood. Lily, closer, throws eye contact at Clara whos unresponsive. She doesnt want trouble. Lily shuts her eyes, and snobbishly jerks her head away as she passes. A moment later, Hannah catches a glimpse of Lily from behind. HANNAH (under breath, to Lilys back) Tinkerbilly. Lily stops walking. Clara, without looking back, shakes her head. CLARA (sotto, to Hannah) You couldnt resist, could you? You just had to. Whyd you do it? HANNAH How did she hear that? Lily faces the girls. LILY The hell did you say? Hannah perks her head up. Courageous. HANNAH I said... Tinkerbilly. LILY And whats that supposed to mean? HANNAH Aw gee, its just slang, girl. LILY Well, Im sorry if my mannerisms are not befitting to a delinquent -

31. This briefly pains Clara. LILY (CONTD) - such as yourself. I suggest you keep your mouth shut, unless you want a fresh one. Lily holds up her knuckle bearing fist. HANNAH I dont think you get to say that and expect to get away with it. LILY You dont say. Hannah with a newfound vigor: HANNAH You don't get to say, I don't get to say you don't get to say. CLARA (eyes rolling) Hannah... LILY No? Who gives a shit, youre ugly as sin. And with that, she walks off. Her gait, determined as ever. Hannah is burned. Or stabbed. Or both. CLARA Dont worry, well add brake fluid in her lunch. She tries to give a friendly punch. Hannah pushes her aside. HANNAH (yelling, rapid fire) You want to know whats ugly as sin? Those damn curls you got! Yeah, those nasty things, bobbing up and down, floating as if they have a life of their own. They make me barf. Lily, still walking, half turns and shouts back: Bite me. LILY

32. HANNAH Get a haircut! Or Ill chop it off myself! Hannah fully takes off with her bike. Descending. CLARA Hannah, hey Too late. Shes too far downhill. Clara follows suit. Leaving Lily alone under the scrutiny of onlookers - of whom might fail to notice the slight twinge in Lilys hair. Perhaps... it is alive. EXT. CORNER STORE - CONTINUOUS Cycling downhill now. Hannah! CLARA

Hannah shoots around a corner. Clara attempts to do the same, going wide, until A MAN steps into her way - the OWNER of the corner store! STORE OWNER Whoa, there. Hold it. Clara clutches her brakes - the steep decline makes the back tire lift off the ground. She makes a full revolution - CRASHING into a power pole. The bike now laying on top of her. CLARA Ow. Ow. Ow. STORE OWNER Sorry, junior. He removes the bike off of her. She squints one eye as she looks up at him. With the store owners help, she stands, dazed. STORE OWNER (CONTD) Didnt mean to get in your way.

33. CLARA It was my fault, Im sure. STORE OWNER Was just trying to get here this little ladys attention. He points to the blind end of the corner. He leaves Clara to herself. She notices her bloodied knees. By the time she looks back up, the owner is gone. She picks up her bike. Continues to the corner, raising an eyebrow as she sees: An OLD LADY walking in a circle at a dizzying pace. Hesitant, the store owner approaches the lady. STORE OWNER (CONTD) Ma'am. Im gonna have to ask you to do that some place else. Youre making me lose customers! The old lady doesnt stop twirling around. OLD LADY Hmm? Im just walking home. But its taking longer than I remember. Clara half chuckles. So strange... she cant believe this. Clara! HANNAH

Across the street, parked, is Hannah. Clara waves at her to come close. Hannah does, rolling towards Clara. HANNAH (CONTD) Aw, Clara, sorry I ditched you. You hurt? Clara shushes her, and points to the old lady. Whos still spinning. HANNAH (CONTD) Saw that. Whatever. They stare for a moment. The store owner has trouble trying to gently grab hold of the old lady. The girls draw themselves away, and face each other. CLARA Next time, give me ample warning.

34. HANNAH Yeah, well, I felt Lilys curls were gonna strike me at any given second. A yelp from the old lady. The girls look. Its the store owner, now forcibly grabbing the woman. OLD LADY Help! Let me go! She runs faster in her circle... The store owner gives up. Boogie? Lets. CLARA HANNAH

EXT. COMMUNITY CENTRE - GATE ENTRANCE - LATE NOON A hot spot for bathing-suit bearing families. They amass around the gate entrance, as they intently watch a YOUNG MAN walking in a circle. Much like the old lady earlier. Clara and Hannah, on their bikes, slow to a crawl. The pedestrians crowd the sidewalk. The two girls, transfixed with curiosity, take a gander. They see the twirling man. Hannah then taps a pedestrian on the shoulder. HANNAH Whats happening? PEDESTRIAN Im not sure, but hes been doing it for a while. TWIRLING MAN Please, someone help me! I cant walk straight! The crowd begins to disperse. No one wants to watch a crazy person for too long. TWIRLING MAN (CONTD) Its because of the ray from the lighthouse! That swirling flash is burned in my eyes!

35. Clara hears a series of gasps off to another side. She grows her attention and sees - a YOUNG WOMAN now walking in a circle! The people recently coming off the twirling man now try to avert their direction away from the twirling woman. The young woman, tired, begins to sweat. TWIRLING WOMAN (huffing) I - I cant control myself! Everyone tries to give a cold shoulder. PEDESTRIAN (to Hannah and Clara) Must be a prank. CLARA Whats going on? Hannah shrugs. She wishes she knew. INT. MUISE RESIDENCE - CLARAS ROOM - DAY Later. Clara is perched head down on her writing desk. The days glow cuts through her blinds and onto her desk. She slides her fingers away from the crawling sunlight. Her mind is racing. So much so... she barely notices the phone RINGING. She quickly appreciates the interruption of thought. CLARA (picking up the phone) Yellow? A breath on the other end. (low) Clara. ANDY (O.S.)

CLARA Andy? Where are you? (sighs) What was supposed to be an awesome day turned out to be ANDY (O.S.) Meet me at Rocky Beach.

36. He hangs up. Clara pulls the phone away from her ear. A bit surprised. As she thinks over Andys directive, she tosses the brick phone at her bed. EXT. ROCKY BEACH - LATE NOON A SNAPSHOT. Andy takes a photo of the lighthouse, some distance away. He sits atop the sand of the beach. Slightly tattered BLANKET SHEETS cover him as if its a cape. From behind, Clara walks towards him, hugging herself from the cold. CLARA Its windy, huh? Andy barely turns his head towards her. No reply. She sits right next to him. Notices how unkempt he is. He is ragged and jarred. Clara suddenly looks disappointed and a little annoyed. She bends in to peck him on the cheek. He resists by leaning away. She subsides and looks out to the ocean. CLARA (CONTD) You know. I am the most honest when Im around you. And... She eyes Andy for a second. ANDY (quietly) Im beginning to understand. This town is contaminated. She buries her head in her knees. CLARA Not this again. A beat. ANDY And I have a plan.

37. EXT. ROCKY BEACH - LATER The sky is a flame orange and whats left of the sun fizzles out by the horizon. Andy and Clara walk along the coastline, taking careful steps on the assorted rocks and stones. Andy wraps the blanket over his head, a sort of hood with nylon ropes holding it in place. Its remaining length drags on the floor. ANDY I think whatever infected my father also infected the schoolboy who jumped. Clara is saddened by the thought of the suicide. ANDY (CONTD) I mean, a lot of people in Gooseberry have been acting strange lately. The boy was just an extreme case. Why would he risk his life just for attention? He pounds his hands together. As of hes on to something. ANDY (CONTD) Dont you see? Its about mesmerism. Spirals suck things in the eye follows the pattern to the center. Thats why people possessed by the spiral want to get the attention of others. CLARA So youre saying the boy jumped because he was possessed? ANDY Thats right. And Im sure a lot of people will soon follow. CLARA Ive noticed weird things... But what can we do? ANDY We have to get out of here. Before were contaminated. CLARA And what if youre wrong?

38. ANDY Ive seen it. Im not wrong. Well take the next train tomorrow morning. End this nightmare. Clara stops walking. She looks at him for a moment and shakes her head. Every fiber in her body disagrees with him. CLARA Well, Im not going. Youre out of your mind. Andy nods. Perhaps. ANDY

With that, we hear a crashing WAVE EXT. LIGHTHOUSE - OLD PARKING LOT - DUSK Beach water crash onto jutting rocks. A group of FIVE men carefully make their way up to the lighthouse. The ENGINEER swipes sweat off his forehead. ENGINEER Whats this about anyway? A general question thrown to the preppy looking TOWN OFFICIALS. TOWN OFFICIAL Weve been getting complaints. The lighthouse was put out of service a long time ago. SECOND OFFICIAL It shouldnt even have power. The Engineer dresses a look of concern. TOWN OFFICIAL Well go inside and see whats going on. The Town Official pulls out a ring of keys. Pulls out a silver one and unlocks the door to the lighthouse. It opens with a creak. He looks back at the men. After you. TOWN OFFICIAL (CONTD)

39. EXT. RAILWAY STATION - NIGHT Its dark out - street lights dont do justice to detail. A lone RAILWAY GUARD finishes his evening shift. Turning off his flashlight and adjusting his cap. TAP. A drop of water hits his shoulder. He holds out his hand. Forecasting the weather. A sudden downpour of rain showers him. INT. COLBY RESIDENCE - NIGHT Andy enters through the front door. We catch a glimpse of a light rain shower outside. He locks the door. Mom? Dad? ANDY

The house is quiet. He looks in the living room. The kitchen. ANDY (CONTD) (sotto) I know what to do. Grinning and out of touch, his eyes become wild. INT. MUISE RESIDENCE - CLARAS ROOM - NIGHT The rain taps against the window. It keeps Clara awake. She kicks her sheets off and begins at ground zero. She covers her legs first and then bundles herself to the neck. She closes her eyes, shifting to one side, desperately trying to ignore the noise. Soon, everything dumbs down... To silence. EXT. CAPE GOOSEBERRY - DAY The sky remains a cloudy haze. A mist clings to the trees with dew falling off leaves. The rain had only lasted through the night.

40. EXT. COLBY RESIDENCE - DAY Clara hits the door bell. She sways side to side, patiently waiting. A slow realization that no one may be home hits her. She pouts. Walks off the porch and goes to the side of the house, entering EXT. COLBYS KILN - CONTINUOUS The charred cottage is dampened by the nights rain. Clara is washed over by a sense of intrigue. To her surprise, a small branch sticks out of the ashes. Clara makes her way through the remains. Closer, its no branch at all - its a ceramic stem. With little effort, she pulls it out. Wipes off the mud. Its a twisted clay... thing. Etched with spirals and odd faces. It makes Clara uneasy. She places it back where it came; and with nothing else to do, walks away. INT. COLBY RESIDENCE - ANDYS ROOM - SAME Andy is perched against his bedroom window. Still wearing his blanket over his head and surrounded by darkness. He silently watches Clara leave. EXT. MUISE RESIDENCE - GARAGE - DAY Levi emerges from the old and dank garage. On the driveway a pair of similarly aged boys: GOGGLES and FRECKLES. Best described as living incarnations of Bert and Ernie. GOGGLES (Referring to Levis button up cotton vest) Has anybody said that you look like Mr. Rogers? FRECKLES More like Mr. Magoo. Levi wheels out Claras bicycle.

41. LEVI You guys sure you want to go to the beach? The weathers butt ugly, its gonna rain again soon. FRECKLES I love cloudy weather. LEVI I hate it. Big time. I dont want to go there. Levi closes the garage door. He notices Freckles gulping a box of Nerds candy. LEVI (CONTD) So, really, where to? I only got an hour after sunset, til I book it back home. GOGGLES How about we go to the juke joint. Its indoors, so if it rains its no biggie, and if we really need to we can go to my place close by. FRECKLES Oh no, I spilled my nerds. Candy spills all over, bouncing around. GOGGLES You spill it once more, Ill have to grab it off you with force. FRECKLES No, youre not allowed. GOGGLES I did last time, and I won. FRECKLES Im good at Kung Fu now, Ill punch your heart. GOGGLES Yeah right. Levi sits on his bike and strolls off the driveway. LEVI Lets go, you guys are slow motion! Goggles and Freckles follow suit, cursing at Levi.

42. EXT. FOOTPATH - DAY Clara and Hannah tread casually. HANNAH This hurricane business hasnt been much of a problem. Clara has a lot on her mind. CLARA Hey. Um. I got a few questions. HANNAH Cool, I dunno if I have all the answers. CLARA Have you noticed? With the town. It seems to start with the older people, and then their relatives. Just people being... strange. HANNAH I have noticed... But its not my business. People will be people. CLARA I guess Im just confused. HANNAH You are a very confusing person. CLARA That explains a lot doesnt it? HANNAH Sometimes you confuse things so much, you disintegrate the fabric of reality. CLARA Hmm, thatd make for an interesting weekend. HANNAH Well, whatever happens, youre still my homegirl. Like Milk and chocolate. They exit the footpath and onto an intersecting paved road. CLARA See you tomorrow?

43. HANNAH Bring Andy along next time. Havent seen his, like, face in a while. CLARA Ill try... Just then, Clara notices a dark spiraling vortex, spinning around the road. CLARA (CONTD) Is that... a whirlwind? HANNAH (looking) Its a mosquito column. CLARA Mosquito column? HANNAH Thats what they call them when they swarm like that. Theyre all male mosquitoes waiting to mate. Clara squints a look. Hannahs right. Just a bunch of bugs. HANNAH (CONTD) Ive seen a lot of them lately. They breed over in Dragonfly Pond. CLARA I dont know if Id call it a column. The way they spin around like that... More like a sign of the spiral. But Clara keeps quiet. A wave goodbye, and a smile, Hannah walks off. HANNAH Anyway. Im done for the day. Claras left alone - but shes not lonely. The buzzing sound grows louder as the mosquito column suddenly gets CLOSER. She takes a step back, spooked. The column eases into a stop. Mirroring her motion. She finally takes a deep breath, mustering composure, and at brisk pace, walks away.

44. INT. MUISE RESIDENCE - DAY Clara shuts the front door, flooded with relief. What a day. She takes a couple of steps into the house. She hears her parents in the dining room. INT. MUISE RESIDENCE - DINING ROOM - CONTINUOUS Claras parents sip from piping hot mugs. Mrs. Muise strikes a look at Mr. Muise. MR. MUISE (acknowledging Mrs. Muise, to Clara) Honey, have you Levi? CLARA Probably out with friends. Its not like his curfews up. This suddenly makes sense to Mr. Muise. Right. MR. MUISE

MRS. MUISE (cutting in) Well, his curfew is coming up. And he hasnt had dinner. MR. MUISE Yes, I remember a time, when young, I came home late, and my parents locked me out. CLARA Wait. That happened to me. You did that to me - thats my story! MR. MUISE (thinking) Is it? MRS. MUISE Clara. I dont want Levi out at night anymore. Clara brings her hair back to her ears. Looking blameless.

45. CLARA Well... what do you want me to do? Get him with what reason? Hell just stay at his friends. MR. MUISE For one, he took your bike. He did? Yup. CLARA MR. MUISE

She slits her eyes with disappointment. CLARA Ive told him a hundred times! I know! MR. MUISE

CLARA Fine... Ill get him. She begins to turn, when MRS. MUISE In one piece, Clara! Clara looks at her parents. If they have ever looked more pleasant together than they look now, Claras never seen it. She leaves. EXT. MUISE RESIDENCE - DAY Clara readjusts her shoe on the porch. She then hops onto the front yard. As Clara leaves her house, she completely dismisses the tall grass and weeds on her yard... And how they flourish as tiny spirals... EXT. CAPE GOOSEBERRY - ROAD - EVENING The boys walk their bikes alongside a dirt road. Freckles suddenly notices a DEAD RACCOON. FRECKLES Aw, look at that road pizza!

46. Goggles jokingly shoves Freckles, whos foot digs DEEP into the raccoon. To Freckles dismay, the boys laugh out loud. Grossed out, Freckles follows the bloody track. Sees TIRE MARKS. Not too much further along, they find a car in the ditch. A recent crash. The driver has a smoke, staring at his vehicle. LEVI You okay over there? The driver nods as the boys approach. Motions to the car. DRIVER They all went after me. The three boys stop dead in their tracks, staring wide at a BIG BLOODY MESS around the back tires: rabbits, squirrels, even a stray cat - nothing but fur and sinew. DRIVER (CONTD) Never seen anything like it. A spiral of gore. EXT. CAPE GOOSEBERRY - EVENING An old-age wooden row house sits by itself between several current homes, invading the remaining space of a small patch of land. We hear the sonance of a police siren EXT. ROW HOUSE - EVENING Several firemen, police, and an ambulance assemble near a row house... Clara meshes within a crowd of onlookers. CLARA What happened? A murder! ONLOOKER

SECOND ONLOOKER These row houses have always been in ruin. Wouldnt be surprised if they discovered a whole load of bodies!

47. ROOF OF THE ROW HOUSE: A HEADLESS CORPSE of a young girl. It is DAYS OLD. The firemen have difficulty getting to the body on the unstable roof. One fireman balances one foot on the roof, and almost sinks inside. He retreats, tries another footing, but makes a GAPING HOLE. Other men pull him back before he falls. Clara helplessly watches. Scrutinizes the body... notices it wears a SCHOOL GIRL UNIFORM. CLARA I know that girl... Its LILY. Claras face saddens. She covers her mouth as the body is finally brought down via crane and harnesses. EXT. TOT LOT - EVENING The boys sit on a bench eating scoops of chunky monkey. They take in the expanse. The town is incredibly old fashioned and charming. Inaudibly, Goggles points to the LIGHTHOUSE. The boys nod in excitement. EXT. CAPE GOOSEBERRY WATERFRONT - EVENING A troubled Clara rushes towards a pay phone affixed to the wall of an eatery. She dials... Hannah answers. Hannah! CLARA

HANNAH Whats up Clare Bear? CLARA I dont know how to put this... Something happened to Lily... and my parents are gonna freak if I dont find my brother Across the street, she sees THREE BOYS zip by on bikes. One of them is LEVI! Nevermind! Clara hangs up. CLARA (CONTD)

48. EXT. LIGHTHOUSE - GATE - LATE EVENING The sky is bathed in dark hues of orange and violet. The boys ride right past the swinging gate. EXT. ROCKY BEACH - PATH TO LIGHTHOUSE - LATE EVENING A narrow, winding road reaches towards the lighthouse. An exhausted Clara takes careful steps. Pushing forward. EXT. LIGHTHOUSE - OLD PARKING LOT - CONTINUOUS The view from below is impressive, the real majesty of the tower becomes readily apparent. A trio of bikes lay against the base. Clara sucks in a breath before reaching the door... INT. LIGHTHOUSE - CONTINUOUS Clara is greeted by exposed plaster and cast iron steps. Just as she grabs hold of the handrail - IT VIBRATES. She hears the distant laughter of the BOYS. Their commotion makes the metal frame MOAN. Levi! CLARA

INT. LIGHTHOUSE - SPIRAL STAIRCASE - LATER Claras view is limited to the curvature of the staircase. The BOYS can be heard more clearly now. She speeds her movement. An odour lingers, she sniffles and covers her mouth. The dizzying staircase forces her to place her free hand on the wall. Almost immediately, Clara jolts her hand away. Startled, she looks at what she just touched. The wall is covered in a series of VEIN-LIKE FISSURES AND SCORCH MARKS. Slowly continuing, she STUMBLES - at her feet is a group of FIVE CHARRED CORPSES. The town officials.

49. She gives a short-lived gasp. She has to get out of here, but not without her brother. A new found determination urges her onwards. INT. LIGHTHOUSE - LANTERN ROOM - LATE EVENING Dusk fast approaching, the wind howls outside, an incredibly desolate sound. As the stairs approach the top, Claras eye-level meets the floor. She sees the shuffling feet of the BOYS. But something else catches her attention: A layer of GLASS covers the entire floor as if it was LIQUEFIED once then SOLIDIFIED again. Ripples on the glass surface resemble a pond in a rainstorm. Using the handrail, she hauls herself over the last few steps. Levi! CLARA

The boys, shoulders meeting ears, turn to face her. Clara, stomping, grabs Levi by the hand. Hey LEVI

CLARA Didnt you guys see the bodies!? GOGGLES Yeah, wed of called the cops soon enough... Clara ignores him as she notices another detail: the absence of windows, for the glass had dissolved and now coats the lower part of the window frames - FUSING with the floor. Claras eyes widen. In that instant - over the horizon - the final wisp of sunlight DISAPPEARS. A mechanical SCREECH. Claras attention goes to THE LANTERN IT TURNS. The fresnel lens covering the bulb is A DISFIGURED SPIRAL. Within, an amber light brightens to life.

50. It gives rise to a DISTORTED SHRIEKING SOUND. CLARA Get out, Levi! She shoves Levi down the steps. He curses. Halfway in deciding to leave or not. She looks at the boys who stare at the lantern STUNNED It shoots a MAGNIFICENT SUN HOT LIGHT. Engulfing the BOYS Clara, blinded, barely witnesses the BOYS IGNITING. The glass beneath their feet BUBBLES and TURNS MOLTEN. The roar of the beam drowns out their SCREAMS. As the lantern pivots, its beam is redirected TOWARDS Clara. Speechless, she backs off and RUSHES into INT. LIGHTHOUSE - SPIRAL STAIRCASE - CONTINUOUS She runs her fingers over the walls as she hops two steps at a time. The corridor behind her LIGHTS UP as the light beam is sheered through the staircase. The vein-like patterns on the wall ILLUMINATE. They GLOW to reveal GANGLING SPIRALS. Clara gives a yelp as the light catches onto her arm suddenly consumed by FLAMES. She loses her bearing and drops, ROLLING over the steps head first. She loses the air to scream. Falling... spiraling... Then darkness. CUT TO BLACK. A CRACK OF THUNDER. INT. HOSPITAL - HOSPITAL ROOM - NIGHT A pair of EYES snap open. Startled awake. They belong to Clara. Her breath stutters.

51. To her surprise, she lays on a hospital bed. Lifting her head, she peers around. Her arm is BANDAGED. She caresses it. Painful She digs her head back into her pillow and eyes the plain white cork ceiling. ANOTHER THUNDER CRACK. Clara tilts her head slightly. Heavy rain spatters the window. The storm has arrived. LEGEND: THE STORM. INT. HOSPITAL - HOSPITAL ROOM - DAY Clara is bundled up in her hospital bed, vague and robotic. CLARA I got pegged in the head pretty bad. She touches her temple. A bandage binds all around. Andy sits in a small chair beside her. Still covered in his blanket, he remains jittery. Clara turns to him. CLARA (CONTD) Can I retake your offer? I want to leave this town. Andy slowly shakes his head. CLARA (CONTD) Huh? What do you mean? ANDY I realized were all going to die here. Since the storm came, were stuck here. For good. Clara doesnt find this amusing. CLARA How are we stuck?

52. ANDY The people might not notice, but theres no way to leave now. CLARA Give me an answer, Andy. ANDY Im saying... the spiral curse, has finally finished its course with the town. No roads exit, no trains are coming in, no boats can leave. Were stuck. CLARA But thats not possible. Andy gives a razor thin smile. Isnt it? ANDY

He gets off his chair. ANDY (CONTD) I brought you the pictures I took. I developed them myself. CLARA Anything unusual? ANDY What do you mean? CLARA Like, did your camera reveal spirals hidden to the naked eye? Is there a demon in the corner of your pictures? You know, Twilight Zone stuff. ANDY Of course not. He gives her a stack of about 20 pictures, neatly wrapped in a rubber band. The first picture is that of Clara. Smiling, and carefree. Clara slides the photo to the back of the stack. The second is of herself as well. Cutely posing under sunlight. Clara then flips through every picture quickly. And we see... they all contain Clara as the subject.

53. Clara looks up. Shes touched and wants to say something But Andys nowhere to be seen. EXT. HOSPITAL - DAY Its lightly raining. The day grows older and the clouds swirl in delicate patterns right above the town. INT. HOSPITAL - DAY A MOSQUITO makes its way through a crack in a window sill. Buzzing and aggressively pushing itself with its back legs. It enters the hospital. INT. HOSPITAL - HALLWAY - DAY Clara makes her way our of her room using crutches. Her leg is heavily BANDAGED. A pair of doctors speed through the hall with a stretcher trolley. They carry a YOUNG PREGNANT WOMAN covered head-totoe in mosquito bites. They pass Clara - who recognizes the woman on the stretcher. Leah?! INT. HOSPITAL - DAY A metallic tile on the wall reads: MATERNITY WARD INT. HOSPITAL - MATERNITY WARD - DAY Several women fill the hospital beds lined up in this room, stirring in pain. Clara in her crutches approaches one bed, finds LEAH (mid 20s) - the woman on the stretcher, fluttering her eyes open. Shes feverish. Mountainous mosquito bites cover her face. CLARA Leah. Are you all right? CLARA

54. LEAH Clara... cousin. I just need to rest. I throw up everything I eat. She closes her eyes just as a nurse approaches with a large HANDBAG, hauling it over the night table with a loud CLUNK. NURSE Her belongings... Clara faces the nurse, whispering: CLARA Is it strange so many pregnant women are being hospitalized? Without a reply, the nurse glares at Clara with tired eyes before leaving. This appalls Clara, who turns to Leah. CLARA (CONTD) Hope youre hanging in there. Claras attention is grabbed by the contents of the handbag... she spots a strange cloth covered rod. Leah moans in pain and Clara snaps back to attend her cousin. LEAH Oh! Its kicking. CLARA Really? Can I feel? Leah gives a gentle smile and nods. Clara touches Leahs belly; her face lights up as she feels something. CLARA (CONTD) Thats amazing. Youre going to give birth to a beautiful baby! Clara swats an eye around the around the room to see a MOSQUITO buzzing about. CLARA (CONTD) Theres another mosquito in the room. Be careful it doesnt sting you. LEAH Thank you, but Ill be fine. I dont mind mosquitoes.

55. CLARA What are you on? They made you sick! LEAH Thats right, but, I like them... I love them. Leah beams with a sick ecstasy that troubles Clara. INT. HOSPITAL - HOSPITAL ROOM - NIGHT Sheets of rain slash against the windows. Clara sits on her bed with a small rotary phone; receiver pressed to her ear. It doesnt ring. Brow raised, she spots the cord... CUT. A SHUFFLING NOISE outside her room. She freezes. The door handle suddenly RATTLES. Clara slams the receiver on the hook and hides under her covers. Whoevers behind it, lazily lets go of the handle. Clara furrows her brow. The shuffling noise fades away, soon inviting silence. INT. HOSPITAL - HALLWAY - DAY A new day. The hall is empty and quiet. A little bit creepy. A nurse opens a hospital room, peers inside... AND SCREAMS. INT. HOSPITAL - UTILITY ROOM - DAY Two patients lay sprawled dead on the cold floor. Their bodies, RIDDLED with punctures. A doctor and nurse stare at the scene from the door. NURSE What happened? DOCTOR It must have happened last night. All three died the same way. NURSE But doctor. What are those holes? Are they stab wounds?

56. DOCTOR I dont know, but it looks like their bloods been drained out. The doctor walks to the body closer to him. The patients face is locked in a scream. Eyes rolled to the back of the head. INT. HOSPITAL - HALLWAY - DAY Patients and administration alike fill the hall. Several people voice their thoughts: PATIENTS But I didnt hear a sound last night... Just those mosquitoes buzzing... What could have happened?... Were they murdered?... INT. HOSPITAL - HOSPITAL ROOM - EVENING Mosquitoes tap against Claras window. She groggily awakens from a nap just as a voice ushers in from off screen: ANDY (O.S.) Hello, Clara. Clara looks to see Andy half hidden behind her door. Clara beams with a weak smile. CLARA Would you be surprised if I tell you youre the only person whos visited? ANDY Cant blame them, roads are blocked from the storm. CLARA It cant possibly be that bad. ANDY It is. (then) I hardly go out anymore, Ive become such a recluse. But I came to tell you... you should check-out of this hospital.

57. CLARA

Why?

Andy holds a nervous distance. Speaks low: ANDY The hurricane is coming our way, and we havent received word of an evacuation. Im afraid, were cut off from the outside world. Then, to Andys surprise, a BUZZING. He violently turns around. Its a small mosquito. Damn bugs! ANDY (CONTD)

He pulls out a can of bug killer and sprays the thing right in its eyes. CLARA Andy! Not in a hospital, please! She coughs, eyes stung. She manages to see Andy pick up the dead mosquito off the floor and observe it. ANDY Clara, did you know, that female mosquitoes are the only ones who suck blood? And only when theyre carrying a batch of eggs. They suck the blood of animals so the young in their bodies will grow. CLARA And youre telling me this because? ANDY Just for when youre ready. Ill be waiting at your house. He begins to step out. CLARA The hell do you mean my house? Shes unsure if Andy heard. We then hear a thunder so deep, we almost cant hear it -

58. EXT. HOSPITAL - DUSK The rain pours as the storm darkens. The trees shed their petals, bent by the furious winds. INT. HOSPITAL - HOSPITAL ROOM - DUSK Claras face up in her bed, sleep is far off. A low buzzing sound rings around the room. CLARA (aggravated) Not in here. She sits up. Looks at her crutches, thinks whether or not use them. Leaves them. She stands, wobbling at first. The buzzing sound is clearer - coming from the hall... She limps to her rooms door. INT. HOSPITAL - HALLWAY - CONTINUOUS Clara peers out. On one end it seems endless, and dark. On the other PREGNANT WOMEN shamble around. Their gowns covered in BLOOD RED STAINS. Claras eyes widen as she also notices that each and every one of them carry a HAND DRILL - the kind where you drill holes into the side of trees. The pregnant women split into groups, opening doors on both sides of the hall. CLARA (to herself) The hell? Once the hall is clear, Clara gets out, making sure to keep quiet. She eyes the opposite direction for a moment, and she spots THE STAIRCASE. Her new goal. She quietly makes her way there, passing an open doorway.

59. INSIDE THE ROOM: to Claras horror, she sees a pregnant lady on top a doctor. The lady just finishes drilling a HOLE in his jugular, arches over and SUCKS on the fresh wound. Blood gushes EVERYWHERE, pooling around the doctor, completely covering his face. The lady angles her head towards Clara with a blood-slick sneer. Clara FREEZES, hollowed out by the shock of it. You saw! MOSQUITO LADY

The blood sucking woman then springs at Clara. Clara side steps, barely escaping her clutch, who SLAMS the floor. Clara yelps and scampers towards the staircase. Overwrought with fear she cant manage a scream. She looks back, the lady rises to her feet with frightening agility. A cock of her head reveals a sick determination. Clara reaches the staircase doors, SLAMS them behind her. INT. HOSPITAL - LOBBY - DUSK Clara bursts out and trips onto all fours. CLARA (choking) Someone... help! She gets up. Looks around. Shes shaken and looks lost, twisting around to see any signs of life. She reaches the waiting room with a reception desk laying in wait, separated by a glass window. Clara, on her toes, peers inside receptionist area INSIDE: Another crazed pregnant lady is perched on top the receptionist and drills right between the eyes. Clara sharply draws a breath. The lady turns - its LEAH. Cackling, Leah stands, advancing towards the door to the waiting room. Clara takes notice and holds the door shut. With great strength, Leah begins to pry it open. Clawing at it with all her might.

60. CLARA (CONTD) Stop it! Leah, no! Through the inch wide crack of the door. Leah cackles and in a disturbingly witchful tone: LEAH Oh, ho ho, Ill drill through your cheek and out your eye! Suddenly, at the staircase behind Clara, A DOOR SWINGS OPEN. The previous blood-sucking lady walks into the lobby. Clara shrieks, losing the door to Leah who tears it open! Clara gallops with all her might OUT the front door. EXT. HOSPITAL - DUSK The rain is brutal. A thunderless lightning strikes. Clara can hear menacing sound of a SIREN that warns of air raids and tornados. It blares from somewhere afar, and unknown. Clara breathes heavily, rain soaking her gown. She holds herself to keep away the awful cold. Without looking back at the hospital, she runs off. The thunder finally cracks. EXT. CAPE GOOSEBERRY - DUSK Complete decimation. If there was an explosion, it hit dead center. Most of the buildings lay in ruin. The violent storm is now a giant tornado cloud, forming MULTIPLE VORTICES, obliterating EVERYTHING in its path. Amidst the rainfall, the twinkling streetlights BLINK OUT. ON ROCKY BEACH: A wall of undulating foam and debris comes rolling towards the coast. MONSTROUS WAVES clash against the rocks. ON A STREET: Cars lay flipped over. Broken power lines spark like mad. Homes have been crushed. ON THE SIREN: Still blaring, calling in the apocalypse. EXT. MUISE RESIDENCE - DUSK A pile of rubble and wood now replaces the Muise Residence.

61. Tears of suppressed terror roll off Claras face. They muddle with the rain. Out of the rubble: a glow... someone is holding A KEROSENE LAMP. Revealing himself from under his blanket hood, is Andy. INT. MAKESHIFT RESIDENCE - BASEMENT - CONTINUOUS Clara could not be more relieved to have the pressure taken away. She follows Andy, working their way through a tunnel of weaving planks of wood. Under the strain of the weather outside, Andy speaks loudly: ANDY Do you know of the row houses? How they can be found on the outskirts of town? Yeah. CLARA

ANDY Ive noticed theyre the only places in town unaffected by the storm. They reach the basement. As expected, it has been destroyed the house buckling above - ankle deep water below. A series of lanterns fill every corner. LEVI, snug in an unclosed sleeping bag, sits lonesome on a chair. Levi! CLARA

Levi doesnt budge, shocked to see her, as if seeing come back from the dead. Clara runs, locks arms around him. Stays there a moment. CLARA (CONTD) (looking face to face) Wheres mom and dad? LEVI I dont know... Clara turns back at Andy. CLARA What the hell happened?

62. ANDY The hurricane hit. There were no evacuations, as I said. CLARA I didnt hear anything while inside the hospital. No one... seemed to care. Flooded by sorrow, she stands away from Levi, looking around her collapsed home. CLARA (CONTD) And the patients... I dont know whats going on. Nothing makes sense to her. Tears well up in her eyes. CLARA (CONTD) Everythings upside down. Nowhere is safe. ANDY There is actually... one safe place in town. Clara looks to him, she has no more words to say. EXT. OLD ROW HOUSE - NIGHT The row house is vernacular in design and abandoned to the elements. Its a wreck. Enter Clara, Andy, and Levi. They slosh through mud, under the lighter rainfall. A thunder booms. Fairly close. This makes the trio rush up on the deck stairs. Andy leans against the wall, and adjusts his stance as he opens the door. INT. OLD ROW HOUSE - CONTINUOUS Andy leads inside with his lantern. Quiet here, just the bleating rain. Deeper inside. Andy turns back at Clara and her brother who remain at the doorframe. Both are not convinced. ANDY (speaking modest, as you do with a new home) (MORE)

63. ANDY (CONT'D) Its a little unfurnished, but I think we can manage. INT. OLD ROW HOUSE - DAWN Its very early in the dawn. Blue light filters through the cracks on the walls and across the room. Andy with Levi, huddled in the corner. Still asleep. EXT. OLD ROW HOUSE - SAME The siren has stopped and leaves nothing but droning wind. An ethereal calm. Clara opens the door and steps out. She looks skywards - the hurricane is no more, but far ahead, a small twister is sucked into the cemetery. VOICE (SHELDON) The center of town suffered the most damage. Claire looks at the man, slightly startled. Hes also staring at the twister. He holds a bolt action rifle, enough to penetrate a buck end-to-end. He grips onto it as a sole means of protection and company. SHELDON All the houses between the ocean and the cemetery were reduced to rubble. Mine too. CLARA

He looks at Clara. Shes a bit nervous by his presence. SHELDON Sorry to hear that. CLARA Lucky for us, this building didnt suffer any damage. SHELDON The other row houses are fine too. Its strange because they were in terrible shape to begin with. (then) (MORE)

64. SHELDON (CONT'D) I occupied the connecting apartment. So that makes us neighbours. Names Sheldon. Clara hesitates, but with a weak smile: Clara... CLARA

Sheldon looks down at his gun. Back at her. SHELDON Like you, I cant be too careful. I drove in from out of town and now Im stuck here. Found this souvenir in some wreckage. I see. CLARA

SHELDON Im assuming youve had a run-in those with their screws loose. CLARA Yes, I have. I was thinking more in line with supernatural possession. SHELDON I cant disagree there. I dont think Ive seen all what this towns got to offer, but if its more of the same, then I dont like it. Sheldon pauses. The twister dissipates, completely sucked into Dragonfly Pond - now a vortex of water. SHELDON (CONTD) Something about that pond. Been absorbing the last of them twisters. So how about we get ahead in the opposite direction, yeah? Clara smirks. The guy seems alright... Levi is heard CRYING inside. INT. OLD ROW HOUSE - LATER Levi sits in the corner, in tears.

65. LEVI I dont want to live here. It gives me the creeps. I want mom. And dad! Clara, squats, holds him. Rocking him back and forth. CLARA Were okay, Levi. Were okay... Andy watches, tired-eyed. SHELDON If you three plan on checking-in at other row houses, I wouldnt recommend it. His eyes bleak, realizing his intrusion. Theres an awkward beat. Everyone stares at him, the elephant in the room with a gun. SHELDON (CONTD) Since were in the pits, I reco we find some other friendlies. Clara stands, erects herself. CLARA Then lets go. EXT. CAPE GOOSEBERRY - RUBBLE - DAY A wasteland of collapsed homes. Trees bent and broken. A steady stream of dark brown water rushes through the street. Clara holds Levis hand - right behind Sheldon and Andy. Sheldon pauses. Takes a breather. SHELDON Theres another, right there. He points to a series of row houses ahead, sorely sticking out amongst the ruins. EXT. ROW HOUSE COMPLEX - LATER Closer. SHELDON Looks like its full.

66. He waves at the rest to come in low over a ridge. They bend down, peering through the shrubs. They notice a group of survivors forming in front of the door of the longest row house. A man inside sticks his head out of a small front door window. RESIDENT Get out of here! Theres no room. SURVIVOR Please let us in! RESIDENT No! Its full, go somewhere else! SURVIVOR Theyre all full. If we stay outside well die. RESIDENT Keep on whining. SURVIVOR Bastards how could you! Youre inhuman! Clara recognizes a face amongst the people stranded outside HANNAH, her dirty face streaked with dried tears. Clara jumps up and calls out: Hannah! CLARA

Hannah turns - tired and battered as them, but delighted to see familiar persons. Clara! HANNAH

Just then, a crazed person tries to ram the door to the row house. An uproar ensues, divided on both sides of the door. Everyone is momentarily distracted. In a hidden manner, Hannah briskly walks towards Clara and her group. CLARA Hannah, my God. You okay? Clara lifts herself from the mud, hugs Hannah.

67. HANNAH Im still shaking. Its unreal. The whole town just got hit. CLARA And your family? HANNAH The twister... took them to the pond in the cemetary. She winces at the words. HANNAH (CONTD) Thats the best I can describe it. ON LEVI: Laying low with Sheldon and Andy. LEVI We should watch out. Well attract those survivors. SHELDON (lightbulb) Maybe thats a good thing. EXT. OLD ROW HOUSE - DAY The crowd of survivors file in the old row house. On the porch, Sheldon is reserved and speaks calmly to Clara. SHELDON Ive been thinking. What if we use this row house, and extend it? Theyre old, but they can take whirlwinds. If we expand them horizontally we could make enough room for ourselves. CLARA You dont plan on staying here for good, do you? We should come up with a way to escape. SHELDON Its hell either way. We can wait for someone to rescue us Andy creeps open the door behind Clara. He was probably there for a while. ANDY Clara. Your brother.

68. EXT. OLD ROW HOUSE - BACKYARD - LATER Nice and quiet. Just the three. Levi stands in front of Clara. Andy watches from the side. Keeping mum. Clara notices the discomfort in Levis face. He mutters to Clara, chagrin: LEVI Its my back... Clara kneels behind Levi, lifting his shirt. Theres a patch of reddish skin shaped like a spiral, and in the middle, a grey-green bump pops out from under the skin. CLARA What is this? ANDY Its a snail shell. Clara looks to Andy. Shes just as surprised as Levi. CLARA But why is it happening? ANDY I dont know. Because hes moving slow. We move so slow... The spiral catches us. CLARA What should we do? Its growing! ANDY Clara... I think. I think it has to do with this house. What? CLARA

LEVI (interrupting) So Im... Im infected? What are we going to do? Am I gonna die? CLARA No... well call for help. No. Well leave. (turning to Andy) Well leave Gooseberry.

69. INT. OLD ROW HOUSE - DAY Filled with survivors, upset and rattled. Enter Andy, his blanket hood is gone - revealing a white dress shirt. Perhaps the same one he wore a week ago. Blood drops have dried on his sleeve, something no one notices... He scans the interior. The people murmur amongst themselves: PEOPLE Stop pushing... Im not pushing... God, its getting crowded... Someone close the door, theres a draft. Among the crowd, Hannah pops her head out. Waves. Over here! HANNAH

Andy nods, and as he approaches passes by: TWO GENTLEMEN: GENTLEMAN These old shacks are the only buildings the whirlwinds cant destroy. GENTLEMAN #2 And we can move and talk normally without bringing the place down on our heads. AN OLD COUPLE: OLD FARMER But how many people can it hold? FARMERS WIFE If this goes on, well be packed like sardines. OLD FARMER It must be the same in the other houses. Andy finally sits cross-legged next to Hannah. ON THE DOOR: Clara enters. She has Andys blanket over Levi like a shawl. They hurriedly scuttle towards Andy and Hannah. Without sitting, Clara motions them to get up.

70. HANNAH (whining) I cant take much more of this. Everyones on edge. And Im getting warts on my feet. Clara suddenly notices Hannah is barefoot. CLARA Wherere your shoes? HANNAH They were wet so I took them off. But look. See it? She shows the underside of her foot. Theres a spiral shaped wart on her big toe. Gross. HANNAH (CONTD) I even have one on the palm of my hand. She shoves it in front of Claras face. Clara, whisks it aside. CLARA Look. I think we should head outside. Meet there now. We need to get out of this town. Just us? HANNAH

CLARA To tell the truth, Im not comfortable with anyone else. Clara looks to Andy. He simply shrugs. HANNAH I dont know Clara, its pretty safe - hey Clara and Levi dont stay to chat, and move towards the door. HANNAH (CONTD) (to Andy) Is she serious? EXT. OLD ROW HOUSE - FRONT ROAD - LATER Clara, still arms over Levi, speeds her walking pace.

71. ON THE PORCH: Hannah calls out. Andys right behind her. HANNAH But where? Clara! Hannah begins to slip on her shoes. Clara glances behind her. CLARA Come here and Ill tell you. Clara looks forward and SCREAMS - Theres a FACE. She jumps back, gasping for air. SHELDON Sorry about that! CLARA Sheldon. You... SHELDON Yeah. I was just keeping watch, you know? (notices Levi, who sweats profusely now) Where you off to? Clara stammers trying to find an answer. CLARA Just, uh, were going... to find our families. Sheldon nods with a false acceptance. SHELDON If youre planning on going at it alone... CLARA Oh, but Im not alone. As if on cue, Hannah and Andy emerge from behind. SHELDON You know, Ive tried over and over to escape... to just turn around and walk in a straight line... But nothing works. No matter which road you take, you end up back here. CLARA Im good with directions.

72. SHELDON No. Its as if a space is turned inside out. I also tried to escape by sea this morning. All the fishing boats were wrecked, but a couple of us decided to build a raft. We tried, but the sea had turned into a gigantic whirlpool swallowing the raft right before our eyes. CLARA Why do I get the feeling youre telling the truth. SHELDON Because everyone in town has seen the same oddities. Clara hangs her head low. SHELDON (CONTD) The row houses are the safest place to be. Considering what else Ive heard, we could be far worse. Clara grinds her teeth. Speaks in a narrow tone, as if to say, dont pull this shit on me. CLARA Im sorry, Sheldon. But I going to search for my family. Sheldon cant hide his stricken expression. He nods. SHELDON Then... Dont meddle around the nighttime. (beat) Take this. Its all I got. He unclips a large flashlight off his belt. Hands it to Clara. Sheldon steps aside, idly picks his nose. SHELDON (CONTD) Its not like Im your parent. Get out of here. Clara nods timidly. A thankful gesture. Sheldon remains motionless as they proceed past him and when he feels theyve left earshot, he turns back:

73. SHELDON (CONTD)

Good luck.

A distant roar foreshadows a sudden SHIFT EXT. DRAGONFLY POND - DAY The pond is a raging whirlpool, and stirring in the center is another twister, now thinned to only a tall grey column. With a gurgling drainpipe sound, the twister is suddenly and completely sucked into the pond. The air is still. EXT. STREETS - DAY Clara is hunched on the ground, knees to her chest. The others overlook her shoulder in silence, as she ruminates over a crude map of the town drawn with sticks and stones. LEVI (breaking silence) So, what are we gonna do now? HANNAH We can, like, find another row house? Levi shakes his head, Hell, no! HANNAH (CONTD) (off Levi) But... I guess they are crowded... CLARA As I said, we cant stay in town. HANNAH And everyone says its impossible. We cant go by road or by sea. CLARA I noticed some people are in pretty bad shape. Theyve gone crazy. Im dead set on leaving. And Im not looking back. And? HANNAH

74. CLARA And I think its foolish to wait for rescue. We have to put our own foot out the door. We have to leave. HANNAH So where to, boss? Clara points to a smooth stone in her drawing. CLARA The railway tunnels... EXT. RAILWAY STATION - DESTROYED - DAY They arrive, and they face a wall of horror. Tiles have been ripped off, the metal housing of the ticket booth parallels a crushed pop can, and assorted shrubbery pulled out from their roots litter the tracks. The TUNNEL is a gaping orifice at the base of the mountain. Brimming with ornate brick work. Andy inhales deeply. The air is thick. Everything is upside down. ANDY Its useless. Even if you came from the outside, you wont be able to leave this town. CLARA Why do you say that? ANDY Theres a force behind this nightmare. And its sucking us in. CLARA Then Ill go by myself. She jumps down to the tracks. Stares straight into the tunnels. She displays a tiny bit of doubt. But the others dont notice. Levi and Hannah, simultaneously: LEVI No! Ill go with you. HANNAH Ill go too.

75. Clara stares at Andy as the others jump down to Claras level. CLARA (CONTD) We havent tried Andy. We have to try. (then) Arent you curious to test your theory? See if we can leave town or not? He nods. His worries alleviating. ANDY I guess you can say Im the cat they kill. Huh? CLARA

ANDY Curiosity killed the cat? Anyway, yeah, Im curious. He gives out his hand. Clara smiles and she helps him down. INT. RAILWAY TUNNEL - LATER All they have is Andys lamp light and Claras flashlight, but the darkness is overwhelming. No one says a word as they trek through the tunnel. Hannahs expression reveals that shes about to turn and flee. She glances at Clara, breaking the silence. HANNAH Those row houses. If they didnt have electricity or plumbing, then when do you think it was built? CLARA I dont know... I heard it was before the nineteenth century. HANNAH I wonder why those houses are so safe. Some of the concrete buildings were reduced to rubble. But those rundown wooden houses are intact?

76. LEVI (chirping in) What does that mean if they were built a long time ago? Hannah shrugs. HANNAH What Im wondering, is how many of them are there anyway? CLARA Ive never counted. Theres some in the middle of town that were rented out, but the ones on the outskirts are more ruined. Andy sighs. ANDY Maybe some of the outlying houses arent full yet... We should go to them. Clara is irritated by this. She shines the flashlight at Andy, temporarily blinding him. Just as quickly, they notice a trickling noise. RUNNING WATER. They look at their feet. A dark red water gushes at their feet from behind. Foam spreads across the surface of the water. They all shoot each other raised eyebrows. LATER They now jog through the tunnels. CLARA (re: the water) Whats this? LEVI Its blood! ANDY No. Its just erosion from the mountains. From last nights rain. The water gushes more rapidly as Clara slows down. CLARA Do you hear that?

77. Everyone listens into the darkness. Nothing but the trickling sound of water, and LEVI A waterfall? Hes right. Everyone slowly edges forward. Clara tries to fixate her beam of light ahead of them. As they slowly come forward, Claras light hits a WALL THE TUNNEL is no longer straight, it twists like a tube, SPIRALLING DOWNWARDS into darkness. The trickling water outpours off the tracks and into the bottomless pit. Hannah, rallying words, says what everyones thinking: HANNAH No... way... An instant later comes a LOUD CRASH. Everyone FREEZES. Gut scared. They direct their lights from where they came. What now? CLARA

CLICK CLICK CLICK - The sound echoes through the tunnels. HANNAH Should we head back? Wait... CLARA

The sounds stop. She shines her light, but its impossible to see more than a few feet. She takes a step forward. Stops COLD Materializing out of the darkness, a glistening SPIDERWEB OF HAIR, spreads across the tunnel like the Hindu Goddess Kali. In the center of it all, and the origin of its a assembly, is the DISEMBODIED HEAD OF LILY. Eyes and mouth closed with an eerie sense of peace. Strands of hair seemingly float in front of the head. They peel the eyelids open - revealing milky white eyeballs. More strands come towards the head again. This time, they curl the lips open. Leaving a freakish grin. Clara and company. Pale. Panicky. The head clatters its teeth - CLICK CLICK CLICK.

78. It drops from its position. The hair takes form, distorting itself, taking shape into a six legged creature! Not unlike an insect, it crawls towards them! HANNAH My God, its Lily! Run! CLARA

Clara splits away with her brother, and Hannah with Andy. The thing sways between the two, trying to decide, and then turns to Hannah. HANNAH Its coming! Its coming after me! Hair lashes out at Hannah. Andy tries to grab her out of the way, but instead takes the full blunt of the force - tossing him against the wall. He drops his lamp. The hair then wraps around Hannahs legs and arms. They tighten. Hannah struggles and manages to see BLOOD seeping out of her arms. She screams. Out of nowhere, Clara KICKS the head. It flies away still holding on to Hannah, the force pulling her to her knees. Levi comes to Hannahs attention. He steps on the hair and helps Hannah unravel it. Clara takes a purposeful step back. CLARA Are you alright? HANNAH Yes, but watch! Lilys coming back up. The hair wraps itself on beams on the corridors roof, pulling the head slowly to eye level. Its a ghostly sight. CLARA I saw her body on the roof of some house... Its not Lily anymore. In a blur of multi-jointed legs, the creature scuttles on the roof towards them. It lunges, about to wrap around Clara, when -

79. ANDY STEPS IN, and swings his KEROSENE LAMP. It smashes in two as it strikes Lilys face. It puts the head on FIRE, illuminating the whole tunnel. Aghast, perhaps unsure what happened, the head stays a moment on fire, and then begins to retreat on the roof. The fire begins to DISINTEGRATE the hair. It drops to the water, putting itself out. Now that the thing looks like a burnt doll head, it barely has enough strands of hair to pull itself up. Bracing her back, Clara goes in for the killer kick. CLARA (CONTD) Leave us alone, bitch! THWACK. It falls directly into the spiral pit. From the sound of things, it travels really far before crashing. We follow it deep into the spiral tunnel, having the darkness consume us, until we pull out and reveal EXT. RAILWAY STATION - DESTROYED - AFTERNOON Were outside. The group races out of the tunnels. Out of breath, and swelling with fear. Theyre back at where they started. HANNAH (gulping for air) Its no use. Andys right, the town wont let us go. Levi collapses to all fours. Andy sits down, tired. CLARA Are you okay, Levi? LEVI My back feels funny. Clara takes off the blanket and lifts open his shirt - the snail shell has grown! HANNAH What is that!

80. CLARA I thought it was because of the house. That it mightve been something all over the floors and walls. Hannah looks at her hands and arms. HANNAH I got these warts at that old row house! I have more of them now... CLARA Im beginning to think its the whole town. Clara glances at Andy, whos still gasping for breath. HANNAH Theres got to be another way. We have to try another way. Clara tries to assess the situation. CLARA Were going. Ive got to get Levi out of here... Before he turns completely. Hell go back to normal once were outside Gooseberry and after that Ill know the way out and so Ill come back for my parents. HANNAH But how are we supposed to get out? Clara points to a set of hills. CLARA What about the hills? Not too far, lies a dirt path. HANNAH But if it were that easy, someone would have gotten out by now. CLARA Maybe theres a trail no ones tried. Andy waves his hand in front of his face.

81. ANDY (wheezing) Its no use. The spirals all around us. Clara ignores him and takes Levis hand before setting off. CLARA Cmon Levi, Im getting you out. Hannah looks to Andy, whos still out of breath. HANNAH North it is... ANDY (quieter this time) Its no use... EXT. TOWN LIMITS - DIRT ROAD - AFTERNOON Hannah takes lead. They follow a pathway through foliage and trees. LEVI Clara... my back itches. Clara pats him on the back and gives a small scratch through the blanket. CLARA Well be out of here in a few hours. Just hang on. Youll be fine. They reach a clearing, overlooking the whole town. Clara tries to focus Levis attention to it. CLARA (CONTD) Up here we can see how everythings been destroyed but the row houses. LEVI All of em are facing the cemeterys pond. CLARA Facing Dragonfly Pond? She looks. Through the grey wreckage, about a dozen row houses circle the pond. Suddenly, the SIREN BLARES.

82. HANNAH I cant stand that sound! Its... hellacious! CLARA I thought the power was gone in the whole town. ANDY (quiet) Its signaling our escape. Looking down rather than ahead, they continue. EXT. TOWN LIMITS - FOREST - DAY The siren, more distant. The mood, calm. A screen of plants cover both sides of the road. The leaves and grass have twisted and curled into spirals. ANDY The pattern is here too... CLARA The trees and grass... how long have they been like this? They continue, trying to ignore the plants, which seemingly appear to react by their presence. The plants swing around, following their direction. As if theyre watching... HANNAH Weve been walking for a while... How long does this trail go on for? ANDY Ive lost all sense of direction. CLARA Not much longer. It should lead to a paved road soon. But its taking longer than I remember. LEVI Clara, my back, were walking too fast! Clara is busy looking at spiralling tall grass. CLARA I cant look at this, its making me dizzy.

83. LEVI Clara, my back! He grabs Claras hand and tugs her. She recollects herself. CLARA Ill carry you. She gets on one knee for a piggyback. His legs extend around her waist and as she lifts him up Hannah tears a leaf off a tree, suddenly reminded of her warts, now extending all around her wrist and forearm. She grits her teeth in distaste. HANNAH Maybe it is useless. Its all around us... in us and around us. CLARA Cmon. You and Andy arent making this any easier by complaining. Youre worse than my grandma. She slightly struggles with Levi. HANNAH You know. All this stuff has got me thinking. About death and that ilk. Like, Clara, if you had to choose, how would you go out? CLARA I just want to avoid getting a heart attack. ANDY I would just want to sleep and never wake up. CLARA (to Hannah) And what about you? HANNAH If I had to choose... Id like to go out by fighting a lion. A rising barrage of coastal sounds sends us to -

84. EXT. TOWN LIMITS - SEA CLIFF - DAY They emerge from the foliage. Flanking their view is a series of jutting, vertical rocks preventing them from climbing over. ANDY A wall of rock. To their side is a cliff. It slopes upwards for a while before dropping straight down. HANNAH Look, straight up, its blue! Its the eye of the storm. A patch of blue sky, surrounded by a ring of towering thunderstorms. Andy looks to Clara, whos blinking sweat out of her eyes. ANDY Are you tired Clara? Ill take Levi off your shoulders. Thanks... CLARA

She exchanges her brother over. Levi hooks his arms around Andy and we notice how his sleeves extend, hiding his hands. The group meets the edge of the cliff, where it welcomes a view of the ocean... a lighthouse... and Cape Gooseberry. Theyve reached the exact opposite of the town, having not gone anywhere. But theyre stunned For what they see isnt the town any longer. Standing in its place are the row houses, repaired, extended, and CONNECTED. They all line up as one large SPIRAL ARM extending far from the center of town. Its COLOSSAL. HANNAH How did we get to the cliffs? We were on the other side of town! And the whole place CLARA Are those the row houses?

85. ANDY Thats all the row houses. Look how far its extended. But how? HANNAH

Clara is shaken by the enormity of the situation. Theyve somehow gone in a circle. Shes going to give up any second. CLARA How did our town turn into this? I feel like Im going mad. ANDY They built them. The survivors made the town like this. What? CLARA

HANNAH But thats crazy. We just left town. It would take more than a few days to build something like this. We were only in the mountains for... I cant even remember... I cant tell. ANDY We might have been up there a lot longer than we think. Maybe theres a spiral of time... Hannah loses her element, carefully crawls towards the edge of the cliff. HANNAH Weve gone nowhere? She peers over. Nothing but a grassland leading back to town. CLARA (quietly) Weve gone in a complete circle. (to Andy) Maybe we should go down to Gooseberry and see... She looks at Andy, who to tries to break a smile. Suddenly, his expression falls flat, eyes staring into space. Something is wrong. Andy darts his eyes over his shoulder - at Levi. Clara looks in time to see -

86. ON LEVI: TENTACLES sticking out of sockets where one would expect to find eyes! Levi is transforming under the blanket, ever changing. Slime erupts underneath, soaking Andys back. Andy lo