fade to light:
ext. flowering hill - midday
LIGHT and PASTEL COLORS fill our sight, FLOWING as the melody previous sung by the Mother is now HUMMED by a CHILD'S VOICE - possibly 5 or 7 years old.
The is a young BOY'S VOICE coming as if from FAR AWAY, faint at first and then MOVE DEFINED.
boy [o.s.]
Emmy ... Emmy ... Hey, Em! EM!
The PASTEL COLORS in our sight gradually FADE and there is a transition as if we are OPENING OUR EYES. There is a PALE BLUE SKY above us, with FLUFFY WHITE CLOUDS drifting by.
The BOY comes into our vision, LEANING OVER and LOOKING DOWN.
He is cute in a CHARMING WAY, hair a LITTLE TOO LONG and DISHEVELED, PALE BROWN. He GRINS and we can tell it is MISCHIEVOUS and will someday make him a CHARMER.
BOY
Hey, sleepy head.
Transition view to side, OMNIPRESENT now. We see the boy and a YOUNG GIRL, who is laying on the GROUND. There is a few years DIFFERENCE in their AGES that seems obvious in their appearance, but not in their actions. He is YOUNG AT HEART because she is.
The boy takes a LITTLE YELLOW FLOWER he has picked and TAPS the girl on the tip of the nose with it.
BOY
Come on, Em. I have something to show you.
He is EXCITED and she SMILES, taking his HAND and allowing herself to be PULLED UP.
cut:
int. dark room - night
The screen is so DARK we can barely make out a few ITEMS, a DRESSER, a CHAIR, TATTERED CLOTHES, ETC - all of which are DUSTY, SCRAPED, and in HORRIBLE REPAIR.
RAIN BEATS DOWN on a window just above and to the side of the DRESSER. LIGHTNING FLASHES and illuminates a GRUNGY ROOM in FLICKER, followed by the ROLLING SOUND OF THUNDER, OMINOUS.
There is a great deal of MALEVOLENCE here, we can feel it even if we cannot immediately see why.
Suddenly there is a BANG, the THUD of a BODY FALLING and an OUTCRY OF PAIN from a CHILD [YOUNG GIRL].
We see her STRUGGLING with a LARGER MAN who is CURSING and THREATENING her. He STRIKES her multiple times and she is TERRIFIED, CRYING.
She tries to SCRAMBLE AWAY but he GRABS at the skirt around her hips and DRAGS her back. She is too FRIGHTENED, too INEXPERIENCED to fight.
The man KNEELS and begins to STRUGGLE with his BELT. It is unclear as the whether he plans on merely further ABUSE or RAPE. We will let the audience decide.
The only light is from a WEAK YELLOW STREETLIGHT that we know is there but never see. The man is shown by this alone as he moves and we are able to see the girl still COWERING in front of him, but barely.
He FILLS THE VIEW when he ABRUPTLY STOPS. There is still a hand on his belt and on his face we see CONFUSION and a FROWN.
He looks down, where a SMALL SPOT of RED - which appears BLACK due to the lighting - shows on his SHIRT right over his heart. He does not move on his own, however in the next moment his BODY JERKS and we see his shirt abruptly PUSH OUT and become PIERCED by the tip of a BLADE. The stain of what we now know is BLOOD grows LARGER QUICKLY.
A SHADOW GATHERS and LOOMS behind him; we are able to make out enough to realize it is a DARK FIGURE but nothing more.
Focus on the GIRL, whose eyes are WIDE. She HESITATES and then SCRAMBLES to RUN. She does so in SILENCE, no longer screaming or crying as she STUMBLES TO HER FEET.
She takes a few steps and then, WITHOUT SLOWING, runs right toward the WALL. Her body COLLIDES WITHOUT IMPACT and CONTINUES THROUGH, DISAPPEARING.
ext. wet alleyway - night - moving
It is RAINING.
The girls STUMBLES as she appears from the WALL, glancing around briefly before continuing to RUN.
She is TERRIFIED and travels through ALLEYWAYS, never coming to a main street. She turns a few CORNERS before SKIDDING TO A HALT. Focus on her features which now shows HORROR as well.
Shift to view from behind her; in front of her we see the DARK FIGURE [ARIK]. He is looking down on her with NO EMOTION.
Dressed in UNREMARKABLE CLOTHES, his hands hang at his sides, the left holding a LARGE BLADE covered in BLOOD. He wears a LONG-SLEEVED SHIRT and the sleeves are pulled up to his elbows; along his BARED FOREARM are SPLATTERS of BLOOD.
The RAIN seems lighter for a moment and we are able to see both characters CLEARLY. SIDE-VIEW of them, standing there STARING at one another with only a foot of two BETWEEN them.
Neither says a WORD or MAKES A SOUND. We only hear the RAIN.
fade to black
