starring
David Boreanaz
J. August Richards
Amy Acker
and
James Marsters
| |
| EXT. THE ALLEY NORTH OF THE HYPERION - NIGHT ESTABLISHING - RAIN IS FALLING, HARD. A horde of DEMONS of all sorts, with sharp and alien-looking weapons in hand, stream into the alley. Above them, a DRAGON swoops down, shrieking. REVERSE ANGLE ON - The other side of the alley. ANGEL, GUNN, SPIKE, and ILLYRIA charge forward to take on the minions from hell. Gunn takes aim at a demon with his ax. Spike vamps out and goes after another with his fists. Illyria sends several demons flying like bowling pins with a well-aimed kick. Angel, still fueled by Hamilton's blood, knocks his way through the crowd with elbows and a SWORD. His eyes are on the sky, on the Dragon hovering above the melee, wings flapping. We watch the battle for a moment. Spike is swinging, kicking, meeting his certain death with a grin. Illyria's face is grim, determined. Suddenly, the Dragon swoops down into the battle, its claws bared. Angel waits strategically, his sword at the ready. As he waits, we see a demon come up behind him, poised to take advantage of his inattention. CLOSE-UP - An ax comes down on the demon's head, nearly splitting it in two. PULL BACK TO REVEAL - It's GUNN. But the effort makes him falter; stumble. He's not doing well. Angel swings his sword just as the Dragon swoops down on him. The sword clips the Dragon's foot, nearly severing it. The Dragon shrieks and rises. In the rain and confusion, we see the glint of Angel's sword. It is stained with blood. The Dragon circles the alley at a low altitude, shrieking. As it opens its mouth, plumes of flame roar out. The gang continues to struggle below. It looks bad. Illyria is fighting five demons at once. Gunn has fallen to his knees, his ax more weight than weapon. Spike takes a kamikaze dive into the fray. CUT TO - The Dragon above, circling. It comes down for another run, flames shooting out. The heat singes the demons near Angel. Angel backs up instinctively. The wounded foot has disoriented the Dragon, though, and it dips too low. With a determined look, Angel charges forward and plunges his sword into the creature. It slices the Dragon's side. The Dragon shrieks again. Its great wings beat madly as it tries to rise above the battle. As its claws clear the fray, we see the creature toss its head. A SPHERICAL GLOW appears in the middle of its forehead, then grows brighter. Suddenly, a BEAM OF LIGHT cuts out from the Dragon's forehead. It hits the night air, setting it on fire. The air shimmers, pools, then BEGINS TO FOLD. A RIFT appears in the air in front of the Dragon. The rift widens, slowly and gradually, circling. It is sucking in the air around it like a whirlpool. Trash from the ground flies up into the rift. Then a demon's weapon. Before the rift is even big enough for the Dragon's passage, the beast moves forward, listing towards its wounded side, struggling. CUT TO - ANGEL. Heedless of the foes around him, he pushes through, his sword in the air. He swings it almost randomly, and clips the Dragon's wing. The Dragon howls and twists around reflexively. The beam coming from its forehead rends the air, widening the rift to encompass THE GROUND. The whirlpool grows larger. Suddenly, one of the demons on the ground is sucked into it and disappears. The Dragon starts to move forward, slowed down by its wounded wing. Angel pushes through the crowd, his sword raised. But in a flash, he is head over heels, flying towards the rift. The Dragon bats at him as he flies by. Angel disappears. The rift widens again. Another demon is sucked through it, then another. Gunn, unable to stop himself, is next. Spike sees this and runs towards his friend. Spike is next. The Dragon flaps its wings madly, disoriented, batting at the creatures sailing past it. CUT TO - Illyria, her eyes and head moving as she tracks Spike's disappearance. She pushes her foes aside and cuts through the crowd. A demon is starting to drift towards the rift. Illyria grabs onto it. The demon and Illyria disappear into the rift. Finally the rift is large enough for the Dragon. With a shriek, the Dragon moves forward. Its tail disappears into the rift, which closes up quickly behind it. EXT. DESERT - MID-DAY ESTABLISHING - AN AREA WITH RISING AND FALLING ROCKY GROUND AND VEGETATION. We see THE WHIRLPOOL again, but this time it's a few feet above THE DESERT FLOOR. On the ground is a demon from the alleyway, struggling to its feet. Suddenly, Angel flies out of the rift and falls onto the sand. He gets up on all fours, disoriented. A GLINT OF LIGHT above him catches his eye, and he looks up just in time to see a SWORD coming down at his head. Angel pushes his weight off his hands and raises his own sword to block it. Then he rolls away from his attacker, and with a one-handed swipe of his own sword, beheads the demon. PULL BACK to see Spike getting up to his feet. He squints at the sunlight, instinctively raising a leather-clad forearm to shield himself against it. POV SHOT - A red sun blazing through Spike's fingers. Spike lowers his hand and examines it, pale in the sunlight, like he did at the start of Destiny, appreciating the warm sensation on his skin - Then he whirls around and takes a punch at a demon behind him. Illyria flies out next, letting her momentum take her into a roll. PULL BACK to show the entire battle as she joins Angel and Spike in fighting the demons. All three are all too busy to notice Gunn lying on the ground nearby, staring disoriented at what is going on around him, clutching his wound. Finally, the Dragon emerges. It beats its wings madly and rises into the sky. Blood is dripping down its side and its leg and onto the sand. Flapping its wings, it tries to put some distance between itself and the gang. TIME CUT TO - The last alleyway demon falls to the ground, dead. Angel looks at it for a second, then hears a distant, high-pitched roar. He looks up to see the Dragon in the distance. (muttering) Damn it! Angel looks at Illyria, who has appeared at his side. It was the dragon. Whatever we came through, the dragon opened it. Without another word, Angel takes off after the Dragon. Illyria stops to take a sword from the hand of one of the dead demons, then leaps up after him. Spike stands up after breaking the neck of the demon he's been fighting. He looks up to see ILLYRIA AND ANGEL RUNNING AFTER THE DRAGON. Spike grins, and takes a step backwards. A puzzled look crosses his face. He turns and looks down behind himself. His heel is on the handle of Gunn's ax. The camera PANS to GUNN, LYING IN SPIKE'S SHADOW, gazing up unseeing, gasping, clutching his side. A bright stain of blood has soaked into his shirt. Spike stares down at him, momentarily paralyzed, then he turns back around quickly. REVERSE ANGLE - Angel and Illyria, in the distance. Then RETURN ANGLE on - (shouting) Angel! (beat) ANGEL! Angel and Illyria disappear over a dune. Bloody coot. WIDE SHOT - Spike, standing on the rocky ground, surrounded by dead demons, and Gunn. Spike turns back around to him. GUNN'S POV - Spike, standing over him. Hold still. Gunn's eyes flutter and open, but are unfocused. (murmuring) Where are we? SPIKE Not important. Spike rips off his coat and tosses it onto the sand. His shirt and T-shirt come off next. He rolls the T-shirt up into a ball and presses it into Gunn's bleeding side. EXT. DESERT - MID-DAY ESTABLISHING - We see the hot red sun again, and - DISSOLVE TO - Angel and Illyria, trudging through the thick sand. Angel is trying to shake the sand out of his hair and clothes. Illyria, as usual, is imperturbable. The wind is picking up. That'll make it easier to catch a scent. Maybe Gunn-- ILLYRIA Gunn is dead. ANGLE ON Angel's face as realization dawns. He continues stalking forward, his face grim. Then we need to get Spike and concentrate on finding the dragon. The dragon opened the portal. It makes sense that the dragon's the way we get back. ILLYRIA Are you really so eager to return to that alley? ANGEL I don't like skipping out in the middle of a fight. ILLRYIA We would have all been dead shortly. Illyria pauses. CLOSE-UP on Illyria as she looks into the distance, hints of grief on her carefully controlled face. CUT TO - Angel's receding back as he continues walking. But you knew that. EXT. DESERT - MID-DAY ESTABLISHING - DESERT DUNES, VEGETATION. Gunn is lying on the ground, a make-shift bandage made from Spike's shirt tied around his torso and waist. His face and clothes are stained with blood and dust. Spike hovers over him, kneeling, applying pressure to the wound. C'mon, Charley. Stay with me now. Spike's expression becomes a struggle against helplessness. He looks around, using his eyes and nose, for anything that might help them. His eyes narrow as he senses something. Hang on. PULL BACK to see Spike rise. He walks over to a desert shrub. He plucks a leaf, turns it over, holds it up to his nose, then tosses it to the ground. He continues walking, following a scent. ANGLE BEHIND Spike as he steps up to the top of a rise and comes down the other side. The ground is rocky and hard. In the distance, we see a shimmering. It could be a mirage, or it could be.... Spike leaps forward, down the hill, walking fast. He comes to another rise. A sudden crack! on the other side catches his attention. It is followed by a slow, irregular rumbling. Spike starts up the rise awkwardly. CLOSE-UP on Spike's face as he comes down the other side. He gets a wary look on his face. Spike's POV - In the distance - A RAG-TAG CAMP OF TENTS AND WAGONS. Strange, camel-like beasts of burden and HUMAN-LIKE DEMONS dressed in flowing robes are scattered around, setting up camp. Spike steps forward, then raises his arm and waves. Hey! Yo! CLOSE-UP on one DEMONIC FACE, male, mouth and nose covered by a cloth to block out the sand. REVERSE ANGLE - Spike in the distance, looking vaguely ridiculous standing there waving, dressed in only pants and shoes. CLOSE-UP on the Male Demon, who appears puzzled. We PULL BACK to see that he is holding a long spear. He leans over to a nearby companion. We hear them mumble together in an UNKNOWN DEMON TONGUE. This particular species of demon has skin of polished turquoise, like a living jewel. The features are human enough - mouth, nose, a pair of piercing gray eyes--but those features are barely visible on the surface of the Demon's face, as if they were tiny flaws on the surface of the gem. CUT BACK TO - Spike, standing at the top of a ridge. He turns and disappears back over the rise. The Two Demons start forward in the direction Spike went. Spike is back at Gunn's side. Gunn's bandage shows the tint of fresh blood. Spike reaches down and checks for a pulse on Gunn's neck. A look of grim relief comes to his face. With effort, he pulls Gunn up to sitting, then lifts him into his arms. He starts up the first rise, carrying Gunn. TIME CUT TO - Spike runs into the Demons at the top of the second rise. They see what he is carrying and start to talk to each other incomprehensibly. (matter-of-factly) You've got to help him. The Demons continue to babble rapidly at each other. Suddenly, Gunn grunts, and winces. Spike looks down at him with surprise. They... don't know what you are. What you're doing here. SPIKE You can understand them? GUNN Yeah. I... understand them. SPIKE Are they going to help you? GUNN I-- Gunn passes out. Spike looks at the Demons with an expression of desperation. EXT. DESERT - MID-AFTERNOON TWO-SHOT - Illyria in the foreground, Angel in the background; Angel stops dead in his tracks. Angel turns. He looks pissed off. Excuse me? ILLYRIA It was suicide. ANGEL (annoyed) Just because it wasn't likely we'd come out of it alive didn't make it 'suicide'. It was going to be a tough fight. We all knew that. ILLYRIA Really? Then tell me--what would you have done after we were victorious? What were your plans to assault the Wolf, Ram and Hart in their stronghold? Beat. Angel chews that over for a minute. To be honest, I wasn't thinking that far ahead. And the whole "assault Wolfram and Hart in their stronghold?" Tried that-- didn't work. ILLYRIA And to think... I debased myself by fighting at your side. I believed you had the mettle of a true king. Obviously, I was mistaken. ANGEL Give me a break. ILLYRIA If you'd trusted me as your right arm in the larger battle...if you'd enlisted me as an ally from the start, you might have destroyed the Wolf, Ram and Hart at the source. Angel walks back towards Illyria for some "in your face" time. You killed Fred. Doesn't exactly help to build trust. ILLYRIA The previous occupant of this shell is irrelevant. You had a battle to win. You should have used all resources necessary to ensure victory. ANGEL Wait, I know this one - "Because it's not about right or wrong, it's about power," blah blah blah. ILLYRIA You mock me. But you know as well as I that the principle holds. ANGEL Maybe "the principle" worked in your time, but that's not how it works here. You don't take power just so you can have power. I'm fighting for the people I love, and that backs up everything I do. Not much point in fighting otherwise. ILLYRIA Your sense of ethics has never impressed me. ANGEL I'm not surprised. You never had any. ILLYRIA (ignores him) You claim you are fighting for the welfare and freedom of your loved ones, but you have always been the greatest danger to them. ANGEL You have no idea what you're talking about. ILLYRIA How many allies have sacrificed themselves for your principles? Wesley? Charles? (waits for emphasis) Cordelia? ANGEL (stung) They made their own choices. ILLYRIA You are pathetic. After all we have been through these last few days, you still do not understand. They made their own choices, yes, but those choices were limited by forces beyond their control. They sacrificed themselves because you did not have the courage to do what must be done to secure their safety. ANGEL They died for what they believed. ILLYRIA They died for nothing. EXT. DESERT - MID-AFTERNOON The Two Demons glance at each other, then one of them jabs his finger in the direction of their camp and says something in the demon tongue. The other one nods and leaves. After a moment, the Second Demon returns and gestures them forward. Spike follows the Second Demon into the camp with Gunn in his arms. The Demon leads him through some wagons and MILLING DEMON INHABITANTS, male and female, some children, to a spot where other demons are setting up a tent. The tent flap opens, and THE HEALER sticks her head out. This is an older female, with slight ripples in her turquoise skin indicating her advanced age. She gets a look of angry concern on her face and jabbers in the demonic tongue. The First Demon arrives and answers her. With a reluctant expression, she holds open the flap of her tent and gestures Spike forward. He carries Gunn into the tent and sets him on a blanket on the ground. PAN AROUND the tent, which has drying herbs and desiccated animal carcasses hanging from wooden support beams. There are ornate metal canisters and stone jars set on a long stone table. In one corner is a wooden rack covered in hides and cloth rags. The other end of the tent is open to the outside air. A CAMPFIRE is crackling there. A metal pot is suspended over the blaze. The Healer kneels down and examines Gunn. Can you do anything for him? The Healer says nothing. She points to Gunn's wound and prompts Spike to press down on the bloody bandage on Gunn's side. Then she gets up and goes over to the stone table. She pulls down some bark from her hanging supplies, puts it in a clay mortar and starts crushing it with a stone pestle. Hey. The Healer takes the crushed bark and carries it over to the fire. She dumps it in the metal pot. Then she returns to the stone table and takes a pitcher. She pours water into a bowl, then reaches for a metal canister. She pulls out a pinch of white powder and sprinkles it into the water, then mixes it with a wooden stick. She reaches for a rag and brings it over to the table, where she soaks it under the water. She pulls it out, wrings out the excess water, and finally turns back to Gunn. Spike steps aside to allow her to remove the bandage. Gunn winces and grunts. The Healer carefully cleans the wound, examining it. Then she soaks and wrings out another rag, and lays it out on Gunn's wound. She returns to where she has the campfire crackling. She stirs what's inside it, then dips a long-necked spoon inside. She carries it over to Gunn. Gunn, eyes open, holds up a weak hand to keep it away. The Healer babbles to him in her demonic tongue. Gunn nods wearily, and lets the woman spoon-feed the mixture to him. He winces at the bitterness and heat. What is that? GUNN (deep, heaving breaths) Painkiller. SPIKE (pointing at the wet rag) And that thing? GUNN Antiseptic... I hope. SPIKE What about the wound? GUNN She's got some sort of-- (gasps) ...treatment for that. Gunn's eyelids flutter; he's about to pass out again. EXT. DESERT - MID-AFTERNOON Angel breaks away from Illyria, and tries to pick up the trail. Lecture time is over. We've got work to do. Illyria stands immobile, like a statue, refusing to even look at Angel. Now what? ILLYRIA I see no further point in maintaining the charade that we are working together. You have proven to be useless in achieving our mutual goals. ANGEL We're stranded in an alien dimension, wandering around in the middle of the desert, and now you want to declare your independence? ILLYRIA Our situation is not critical. You and I can survive indefinitely under these conditions. And, as you said before, the dragon should be able to return me to Earth. ANGEL We'd have a better shot finding it together. I don't want this to come down to a fight between us to see who gets to go home. ILLYRIA You would find another way back. Eventually. (beat) I thought you said you do not trust me. ANGEL I don't. But nobody wins if we work against each other. Besides--what if Gunn is still alive out there? Angel lets that one sink in. Illyria finally turns to face him, and her face shows - what? Anger? Fear? Hope? ANGLE ON - Angel. He tries to read her expression, but he just can't tell. I know that means something to you. I-- Angel's speech is interrupted by an fast approaching wind. Illyria and Angel listen as it builds from a soft whisper to a piercing howl. Uh oh. Sandstorm. Angel and Illyria, rooted to their respective spots, are barely visible as the whirlwind batters them--and then they both vanish completely. Seconds later, just as quickly as it started, the sandstorm vanishes as well. ANGLE ON - Illyria as she blinks the sand out of her eyes. She looks out into the desert. Angel is gone. ANGLE ON - Angel as he rubs the sand of out of his eyes. He looks out into the desert. Illyria is gone. BLACK OUT. |