The Vail: London Fog
by Joey Pettine
Episode Two: Dead Men Walking
(Rural community. MOTHER watches her CHILD. A MAN tips his hat to a LADY. Nice place to live. Beautiful day. One catch. The residents are dead. Undead actually. Pale skin and horrible mortal wounds. Mother undoes her scarf revealing an ear to ear gash. Puss leaks from the man's eyes. He dabs it with a hanky then exits. The lady waves to him. Her sleeve sidles down revealing t-shaped wounds on her wrist. Her smile fades to a mourned expression. She exits. The child makes a face then digs in his ear, yanks out a worm. With a mischievous smile he gobbles it down. Mother moans disgust and scoldingly leads him off. STEVEN TILLHOUSE, undead in a sharp suit, and BARBARA, also undead, enter.)
BARBARA
Are you sure your friend can help?
STEVEN
I don't know, Barbara, but if anyone can it'll be Andy. He saved the world once.
BARBARA
Don't be a smart ass.
(Enter ANDY VAIL, with a travel bag, and DR. NORTH, undead.)
STEVEN
Speak of the Devil.
DR. NORTH
Let's... not.
ANDY
Look at you all shnazzy. Who died?
STEVEN
Funny. Actually I'm the mayor.
BARBARA
Proud mayor of Rotterdam, Pennsylvania's only undead community. Steven's perfect for the job, a natural leader. When our previous mayor retired we knew who should step in.
ANDY
And who is this lovely lady?
STEVEN
Andy, I'd like you to meet my wife, Barbara Tillhouse.
ANDY
Holy crap. Mayored and married in only a month. When do you sleep?
DR. NORTH
We don't.
ANDY
Congratulations. To both of you.
STEVEN
Thank you. Especially for coming on short notice. We have nowhere else to go.
ANDY
I told you. If you ever needed my help... As for him...
STEVEN
You needn't worry bout Dr. North. He's a changed man ever since he died. Does good work. Keeps utilities running, fixes things, discovered a way for undead to get erections.
BARBARA
It's really improved our relationship.
ANDY
From destroying the world to zombie Viagra. Might be some hope for you yet.
STEVEN
Andy, we don't use the “z” word around here. Why don't you come with us, we'll talk.
(They exit. DETECTIVE WILLIAMS enters. The puss eyed man greets him.)
MAN
Can I help you sir? You look a bit lost.
WILLIAMS
What the hell is this place? Some sort of malformed albino community?
(A high pitched alarm begins to blare. Andy, Steve, Dr. North, and Barbara run on.)
WILLIAMS
Vail! What the fuck is going on?!
ANDY
You actually followed me here! You son of a bitch!
(The suicidal lady reenters.)
LADY
They're coming! They're coming for you, Barbara!
(The man and lady run off. Williams draws his gun.)
WILLIAMS
Who's coming? Who are they?
STEVEN
College students!
(The alarm cuts off.)
DR. NORTH
They... cut the... electricity.
STEVEN
They're from the local college. Seen one too many zombie flicks or played one too many games. I don't know how they found us but they've been coming every weekend.
WILlLIAMS
Been causing trouble?
(Mother enters with her dead child. Black fluid leaks from the hole in his skull.)
MOTHER
THEY SHOT MY BABY! THEY SHOT MY BABY!
(A gunshot. Black goop shoots out her skull. Three students enter: one in a COWBOY hat, one with a MACHETE, one in a WALMART shirt. They're armed.)
COWBOY
Shut it, zombitch!
WALMART
Good one, Texas.
COWBOY
Clearfield, Detroit, you take the common on the left. I'll get the right.
ANDY
Over my dead body.
COWBOY
Drop him.
WILLIAMS
I wouldn't do that if I were you, son. I'm a much better shot.
WALMART
Hey! Those two got pulses.
ANDY
Damn straight. Now mosey on outta here before we unleash living hell on your asses.
COWBOY
Cool it, survivor. We came for the witch. Then we'll go.
STEVEN
Over my living body!
DR. NORTH
Which I assure you is impossible.
COWBOY
She attacked me.
BARBARA
He tried to rape me!
WALMART
You lying little cunt! Tex isn't for necrophelia.
WILLIAMS
No, he's for shootin' little children and their mothers in the street.
BARBARA
Leave us alone. We don't bother anyone.
MACHETE
You bother us. Stinking, walking piles of rot.
WALMART
When there's no more room in Hell, the dead will walk the Earth.
ANDY
This isn't a movie, you little shit. These aren't smokers or hunters. They're people.
COWBOY
People die.
ANDY
Is that what you want? They'll give you death. Rip flesh from your bones, swarm over everything you love. You'll be alive when they eat you.
COWBOY
Bring it on. Been training for a long time.
WALMART
Gotta have a zombie plan.
WILLIAMS
Are you that dense, Vail? These morons are looking for a fight.
MACHETE
We ain't afraid of death.
DR. NORTH
What about undeath? I know what waits for people like you and me beyond this... mortal coil is bad enough. But if it isn't... enough... then I will make sure you don't stay dead. Limbless, gutless, dickless or... headless. I will bring you back. Can't make a Klansman black but we can all die.
WILLIAMS
And then I'll arrest your ass.
DR. NORTH
Eternity incarcerated.
(Everyone is silent. The kids look unsure.)
COWBOY
Sleep lightly.
(They run off.)
DR. NORTH
No problem.
ANDY
Look at that, Williams. You helped.
WILLIAMS
What kinda fucked up shit are you into, Vail?
(He exits. Barbara kisses Andy.)
STEVEN
Thank you. Now, the reason I called you here. It has to do with my brother.
(Fade to black. Low lights on the students in a dorm, loading bullets into guns.)
WALMART
We're going back tonight? That's too soon. If that cop's still there we could get arrested.
MACHETE
That's the chance we take. For the good of humanity.
COWBOY
No. If the badge is still there, we kill him. And that other faggot. No one gets out alive.
WALMART
But, Gene--
COWBOY
No names!
WALMART
T-Tex. We can't kill a human.
COWBOY
Would you let a terrorist live because he's American? This is war and we're bringing it.
(A knock at the door. Cowboy exits. A weird sound is heard. He reenters.)
MACHETE
Who was it?
(Cowboy spits blood and drops dead. Behind him is a dark man in a black London Fog trench coat, a black bowler hat hides his face. He wields a blood stained kitchen knife. Machete aims to shoot but the dark man's too fast, gliding over and slashing his throat. While Machete gurgles blood, Walmart runs. The man quickly slashes the back of his legs. Walmart drops, pleading incoherently. The man slashes his throat then cleans the blade and strolls out the room. Blackout.)
No comments:
Post a Comment