Pandora, Annihilation

Parts

One

Two

Three

Four

Five

Six

Seven

Eight

Nine

Ten

INT. SMALL HOME, DAY.

BLACK

The door is kicked in.

Light floods into the tiny dusty hole.

PANDORA, in jeans and halter top, comes through the door.

She is followed by RACHEL in modern soldier's helmet carrying a machine gun.

Pandora is searching for something.

Rachel is looking for assassins or snipers.

EXT. STREET, CONT. They exit the building.

Pandora looks around.

The street is narrow and crowded.

At the end of the street is a wide avenue.

A young woman crosses at the crowded intersection, then she stops in the middle of the street.

She looks up and a look of peace comes to her face before her body is blown apart by the bomb she is carrying.

Pandemonium reigns, people run this way and that.

Pandora turns the other way.

PANDORA:

We're close. There was a bombing here two weeks ago and one in Jahna last week.

Come on.

They make there way to a quiet square, devoid of people.

Pandora looks at everything with suspicion.

She kicks over chairs, kicks in doors, etc.

Finally she settles on a tricycle sitting on top of a wooden box.

The Tricycle has blood on it.

Pandora approaches the tricycle and box very carefully.

RACHEL: (O.S.)

Uh Pandora?

PANDORA:

Shsh.

RACHEL: (O.S.)

Rachel's POV

A large shadow is growing on one wall.

It strides around the square closing with Pandora.

Finally Rachel lets loose with the machine gun.

The shadow shrinks as bullets strike off pieces.

Pandora has her sword out.

As the shadow shrinks to human size it becomes solid.

PANDORA:

Revenge!

REVENGE:

Panny, I wondered when you'd come looking for me. I certainly have done a good job with you.

PANDORA:

You think my hate comes from my desire for revenge on Zeus?

REVENGE:

No, not on Zeus. But for the deaths of your children, as you call them.

PANDORA:

You do have a point. Like the child in the street just now.

REVENGE:

Oh did you like that? I particularly liked the look to heaven and the smile, too bad no news cameras caught that, it would have sparked five more by dark. But in fairness I should ask you, how many of MY children have you killed?

PANDORA:

Between the first and the last, I don't keep count. But I think the name of the last one was Anfras?

REVENGE:

Yes, it was. And so I have a claim on you.

PANDORA:

Claim?

REVENGE:

For clemency.

PANDORA:

Clemency?

As I remember it, Anfras took my arm.

REVENGE:

You do have two, and yours regrew. As for me, I only had one favorite son and he did not regrow.

PANDORA:

Heaven forbid.

REVENGE:

Heaven? You're becoming boringly monotheistic.

PANDORA:

I meant "The Balance," but its more cumbersome to say.

REVENGE does not seem to be taking the mention of "The Balance" well.

After a brief pause for his anger to grow appropriately out of control he attacks.

Pandora leaps at him, sword coming in close but

Revenge has his own sword of red.

The two seem equally matched at first which worries Rachel as Pandora is human and Revenge is an ageless, tireless evil.

Rachel pulls her attention away from the combatants as their fight ranges around the once quiet square.

People have been drawn to the square from the now quiet street outside.

The swords of the combatants cut through everything.

Rachel becomes worried as armed soldiers follow the people into the square.

Rachel reverses her position and sees Palestinian security forces entering the square from the other side in two armored vehicles.

Not to be out done, the Israeli army sends in two tanks that crush one side of the square before coming to a stop when Pandora is thrown against the side of the tank.

Revenge's sword cuts through the armor plating the steel fender and the tractor treads.

For the time being it seems that the soldiers are prepared to watch Pandora and Revenge fight but Rachel knows she can't depend upon this and that the fight will end eventually. With the entertainment over what will the opposing sides do? To a great extent Rachel reasons, it depends on whether Pandora sends REVENGE back to the box or if Revenge leaves Pandora in pieces that Rachel will have to try to collect to fight another day. (It's unlikely if Pandora fails that Rachel will leave the square alive, but then that's the risk you take to help end the world of an eternal curse.)

Rachel is hit by a sniper, she returns fire and finds a three sided hole to observe from. Apparently the dead sniper wasn't that distracted by the sword fight. Fortunately Rachel's Teflon armor can't be distracted.

At that moment Revenge's sword, with hand attached, goes flying through the air.

Revenge stands before Pandora weaponsless and one handed.

REVENGE:

Oops!

PANDORA:

Deception!

Revenge morphs into a small girl.

DECEPTION:

I thought the great Pandora would have seen through me before now. The bomber was Israeli.

The GIRL disappears.

The Soldiers on both sides close in.

Rachel leaves her hole to go to Pandora's side.

Pandora picks up the sword, the attached hand fades but the sword remains.

PANDORA:

How did she get Revenge's sword?

RACHEL:

I think we have a more pressing problem.

Pandora looks around.

RACHEL:

Why are they mad at us?

PANDORA:

It's the madness of revenge. Deception set a nice trap for us. They don't know what to do.

Lay down covering fire.

RACHEL:

And what am I covering?

There's no way out.

PANDORA:

We're not going out. We're going through.

Pandora wields her blade again, almost too fast to see.

With it she cuts a tunnel through one of the buildings

Rachel and she emerge in a side street.

Pandora sheaths her sword down the back of her halter top.

Rachel throws on the safety and slings her machine gun in the down position as they "nonchalantly" stroll away.

{Credits and Exposition about Pandora}

INT. BEDROOM, NIGHT.

Pandora and Rachel are in bed together, naked.

Pandora is sitting up in the dark apparently thinking while Rachel sleeps beside her.

Rachel springs up in bed.

RACHEL:

What about that?

Pandora is startled.

PANDORA:

What?

RACHEL:

They say that when Jesus was born a moan went out through the Greek Islands and the old Gods of the forest disappeared.

Pandora relaxes and falls back against the pillows.

PANDORA:

Wordsworth!

RACHEL:

What about it?

PANDORA:

What about sleep?

RACHEL:

You don't sleep.

PANDORA:

I think. And I think you scared me out of a year's growth.

Rachel just stares at Pandora.

PANDORA:

Okay, what?

RACHEL:

Well, did it happen?

PANDORA:

Did what happen?

RACHEL:

Did the Greek Gods retire when Jesus was born?

PANDORA:

I'm not talking about Jesus.

RACHEL:

Why not?

PANDORA:

Because, everytime I do, it causes trouble. So I don't talk about Jesus.

RACHEL:

Don't or won't?

PANDORA:

Same thing.

I usually slip up two or three times a century. Well I'm determined to get through this century Jesus free.

RACHEL:

But the century just started.

Pandora has closed her eyes and appears to be asleep.

RACHEL:

How long has it been since you last talked about him?

PANDORA:

Forty one years. I'm on a roll.

Rachel watches her for a while.

RACHEL:

What were you thinking about?

PANDORA:

Hmm?

RACHEL:

Before I disturbed you. What were you thinking about?

PANDORA:

Umm I wasn't pleased with my technique. I was thinking about varying the rhythm between the finger on your G and the tongue on your clit.

RACHEL:

Oh!

Rachel lies down next to Pandora again and pulls up the sheet.

RACHEL:

You're going to spoil me for any other lovers.

PANDORA:

I certainly hope so.

BEAT

RACHEL:

Panny?

PANDORA:

Don't call me that?

BEAT

RACHEL:

How you coming on those improvements?

PANDORA:

Go to sleep.

BEAT

Pandora gets out of bed and leaves the bedroom.

NT. STUDY, CONT.

Pandora turns on the light and sits down at her computer.

The light doesn't touch a chair by the window.

She turns on the computer.

SATAN: (O.S.)

You keep it warm enough in here for me to feel at home.

Pandora turns to the still dark chair.

PANDORA:

Knock it off. We both know the pit of hell is ice cold.

BEAT

PANDORA:

Come into the light before I banish you.

The LIGHT covers the chair revealing a debonair man.

SATAN:

And just when I thought you were being hospitable.

PANDORA:

Central heating and air-conditioning are definitely man's greatest inventions.

SATAN:

You don't grow nostalgic for the outdoors?

PANDORA:

Had half a billion years of it. That's enough for one life time. What do you want?

SATAN:

Why can't it be a social visit?

Two old antagonists talking over old times?

PANDORA:

Because astral projection costs you too much energy for a social visit.

SATAN:

You have no idea how boring sinners can be.

PANDORA: (grunts)

Try the just.

SATAN:

That's why I'm here with you.

He stands and walks around the room. He looks into the bedroom.

SATAN:

Tsk, tsk, premarital sex.

PANDORA:

Not a sin.

SATAN:

Hm?

PANDORA:

Adultery is a sin. Sex it self is not.

SATAN:

But aren't you married?

PANDORA:

I'm also dead, and so is my husband.

SATAN:

Hm, good point.

Afraid to blaspheme it appears though?

PANDORA:

Afraid to start another witch hunt.

SATAN: (nods)

Nice piece of ass, that.

PANDORA:

I'll let her know you said so. I can't promise she'll be as honored as she should be.

Now can you get to the point?

SATAN:

You seem on edge?

PANDORA:

Well, I haven't slept in a while and the CEO of the second largest corporation in the world, a man who lives for acquisition, who's credo could be, "time is money," has dropped in on me in the middle of the night, having traveled roughly seven thousand miles at great expense and he's not getting to the point. This causes me to become anxious because he has a nasty way of shifting responsibility and collecting debts.

SATAN:

Panny ...

Pandora rolls her eyes.

SATAN:

... who else can I talk to, that will even have a chance of understanding but an old friend like you?

PANDORA:

Don't flatter yourself. I'm ten times your age and look half as bad.

SATAN:

Correction, your four times my age and look ten times better.

PANDORA:

And?

SATAN:

And ... I have a job for you.

PANDORA:

Job? Not favor?

SATAN:

Job, I can't take a chance you'll turn me down.

PANDORA:

One of your demon possessions has gone awry and won't answer your call?

SATAN:

Definitely. The falcon has lost the falconer.

PANDORA:

Isn't that the other way around? And what do you propose to pay me with?

SATAN:

Envy.

Pandora is puzzled.

SATAN:

I know where he's hiding.

Now she is more puzzled.

SATAN:

What's wrong? It's a fair trade.

PANDORA:

No it's not. I would be getting by far the better deal. Envy has to supply something like a quarter of your conquests.

SATAN:

Not really, Contributes. Contributes to more than a quarter but I'd survive.

PANDORA:

But it would cost you big. So why is this one demon run amok in a living human body so important to you?

SATAN:

Because he's got the crazy idea he can bring on the second kingdom faster by killing off all of humanity.

PANDORA:

Not realizing that the longer it takes the second kingdom to come around the longer you have to build up your forces.

SATAN:

You see, who else would understand like you? These modern types, they think I'm all about death and destruction.

Did you see those stupid millenium films?

Pandora nods, knowingly.

SATAN:

When as far as I'm concerned the longer death takes the better, more living devotees and a better chance to turn the tide.

PANDORA:

But what if I finish my quest first? You'll be out of a job.

SATAN:

Panny, you aren't going to finish your quest. You're convinced that the friction is mankind's only chance to propel him from under the rule of capricious Gods.

PANDORA:

You've been doing a lot of listening at keyholes. And what makes you think I'm patient enough to wait for mankind to solve his own problem? I've already been waiting a long time. And mankind isn't the only one of my children with a good chance to transcend this world.

Why shouldn't I let this demon kill off mankind and leave the sea mammals to their work? The Blues were pretty far along with their deep concentration before man started hunting them to extinction.

SATAN:

Because, "All Dogs go to Heaven."

Or hadn't you heard?

BLACK

PANDORA: (V.O.)

Wake up.

INT. BEDROOM, NIGHT.

The light is on and Pandora is leaning over Rachel.

RACHEL'S POV

PANDORA:

We're going to Africa.

Pandora bounces off the bed and out of the room.