EXT. MILITARY BASE - DAY Outside a massive, heavily guarded brick building. Other than its size, there is nothing architecturally special about the base. Beside the main entrance rests a huge metal tank, now just a monument to its former glory. CUT TO: INT. MILITARY BASE - HALLWAY Footsteps echo sharply as a pair of army-issued boots, polished to a brilliant shine, march towards the end of the hallway. Dim lights hanging from above reveal the boots belong to MAJOR J. TORRENCE, a chiseled middle-aged man with a uniform in meticulous order. His face is weathered and pock-marked, and the pouches beneath his squinting brown eyes have the consistency of used tea bags. From his knotty forehead to his unshaven chin, his visage is a relief map of scars. A few MPs are positioned in front of office doors, but otherwise TORRENCE is alone as he walks towards a door at the far end of the hallway. The nameplate on the door reads "GENERAL R. TURGIDSON". TORRENCE opens the door and walks inside. INT. GENERAL TURGIDSON'S OFFICE GENERAL TURGIDSON is a soldier in his autumn years, but he still looks like he could kick your ass without breaking a sweat. His crew cut matches exact military specifications, and the left breast of his pristine uniform is weighed down by medals too numerous to count. On the wall behind him is a huge map, accompanied by a variety of different satellite and recon photos. On the desk in front of the GENERAL sits a number of personnel and mission files. TURGIDSON leafs through the files while chomping on an enormous cigar. TORRENCE enters the room and stands at attention, saluting the GENERAL. TURGIDSON clearly has a great disdain with TORRENCE. TURGIDSON At ease, Major. Take a seat. TORRENCE sits in the chair across from TURGIDSON. The GENERAL takes three deep puffs of his cigar, blowing the smoke in TORRENCE's face. TURGIDSON closes the file he was reading, tapping the cover with his finger as he glares at TORRENCE. TURGIDSON I understand you've been on suspension for eight weeks while the incident at Hill 357 was deliberated. TORRENCE Yes, sir. I've been seeing a psychologist. TURGIDSON (rolling his eyes) The Hill 357 episode is the worst case of cowardice I've ever seen. After reading the duty officer's report, I felt sick. We're you trying to make me vomit, Major? TORRENCE No, sir. TURGIDSON (his anger building) Then why the fuck did you abandon your target?! TORRENCE (with hesitation) I don't want to be a killer anymore, sir. TURGIDSON (fuming) Orders aren't for you to question, they're for you to follow! TORRENCE But, dad... TURGIDSON (exploding in rage, his hands slamming down on the desk) I am your commanding officer... CUT TO: INT. MILITARY BASE - HALLWAY - CONTINUOUS The MPs turn and look at the door to GENERAL TURGIDSON's office, which is closed. They can clearly hear TURGIDSON screaming at TORRENCE. TURGIDSON ...you ignorant little shit! You will address me as "sir"! BACK TO: INT. GENERAL TURGIDSON'S OFFICE The GENERAL takes a moment to regain his composure. He swivels in his chair, rolling his cigar between his teeth. The tension in the room is palpable. TORRENCE (sheepishly) Yes, sir. TURGIDSON slowly relaxes, speaking in a much softer (but equally direct) tone. TURGIDSON Major Torrence, you've been a model soldier for this organization. You've terminated forty-seven enemy operatives in your career, which has saved countless lives. There was a time, soldier, when we thought you'd punch Lee Marvin in the face if you were ordered to. TURGIDSON takes another long drag off his cigar. TURGIDSON Now we learn you're not as reliable as we had assumed. Your pristine record of tenacity is the only thing keeping you from a court martial and a dishonorable discharge. There are a lot of senior officers here who would love to practice their golf swing on your testicles. Do you understand? TORRENCE Sir, yes, sir. TURGIDSON I've been ordered to brief you on a mission that necessitates someone of your poise, precision, and audacity. (leaning in closer to TORRENCE) Major, cats have nine lives, ball players get three strikes, but a soldier never gets a second chance. (tapping the mission folder) This is unprecedented, and I want you to respect that. In my opinion, you owe Jesus Christ one hell of a blowjob, because this is a God damn miracle. TORRENCE Yes, sir. GENERAL TURGIDSON picks the red mission folder up off his desk and opens it. TURGIDSON Understand that this mission is classified, Major, and this conversation never occurred. TORRENCE Yes, sir. TURGIDSON The Army and the Navy have been cooperating on the National Missile Defense system for three years now. What they've developed is an airborne laser capable of shooting down in-flight cruise missiles anywhere in the world as they're tracked by military satellites. Last night one of the NMD satellites lost stabilization control and crashed somewhere in Tango Delta sector. A project of this nature is clearly forbidden in our cease fire treaties, so if Charlie finds our bird in his backyard, we've just knocked up the ugliest girl in town. Are we clear? TORRENCE Yes, sir. TURGIDSON Your primary objective will be to penetrate Tango Delta sector and destroy the satellite. Don't leave a trace of it, Torrence. We were never even there. TORRENCE nods. TURGIDSON We believe the bird was spotted on their TPS 43-F radar system, but reports indicate that the two MiG 21 Fishbed fighters that were scrambled to the scene found nothing. Regardless, the clock is ticking. If you don't find our bird, Charlie will. I'm assigning you a three-man regiment, hard-core grunts with one foot in their grave. I assume you can keep them in line. TURGIDSON pulls a photograph out of the dossier and lays it on the desk in front of TORRENCE. It is a picture of PVT. R. "BUFF" BURLEY, a husky young man who likely gets miserable physical fitness reports. He almost resembles Pvt. Pyle from Full Metal Jacket. TURGIDSON Private Roy Burley knows more about explosives than the two of us combined. CUT TO: EXT. TRAINING CAMP - DAY A dozen recruits stand in line behind the chin-up bar, their PT gear drenched in sweat. At the front of the line, a fierce looking DRILL SERGEANT belts out orders and encouragement with all the compassion of a corporate lawyer. As the grunt ahead of him climbs down, BURLEY wipes the sweat off his brow, trying to hide his fear. The DRILL SERGEANT screams in his face. DRILL SERGEANT Buff! Get your worthless, chunky ass up there now, you overweight, shit-eating maggot! Move, move, move! BURLEY grabs the chin-up bar with both hands. His muscles strain and sweat beads on his forehead as he tries to pull himself up, but he cannot seem to manage a single chin-up. DRILL SERGEANT What the fuck are you waiting for, dingleberry? I bet you'd do a pull-up for a stick of butter, wouldn't you, you mushy fuck! I oughta wrap you in a bow and mail you to Richard Simmons, let him suck you thin! BURLEY's face is bright red and his arms shake from effort, but his body refuses to move. DRILL SERGEANT You obese little bitch! Don't you start crying, or I will PT you until your ass falls off! If you start acting like a pussy, then I'm going to fuck you like a pussy! BACK TO: INT. GENERAL TURGIDSON'S OFFICE The GENERAL taps on the file photo of BURLEY as TORRENCE examines it. TURGIDSON He's a lazy bastard, but he knows how to blow shit up. TURGIDSON opens the file and pulls out another photo, this time of PVT. J. SPOONER. Tall and lanky, SPOONER is the kind of man who should be sitting behind a computer screen, not carrying a machine gun. If SPOONER weren't wearing the bulky military uniform, one could almost imagine David Spade beating him up. TURGIDSON Private Jacob Spooner is the closest thing to MacGyver this organization's ever seen. CUT TO: INT. OFFICER'S LOUNGE SPOONER lies on his back, his face almost completely pressed against a complex panel of wires and diodes. He hides his anxiety well as he probes the panel, a screwdriver in one hand and a pair of wire-cutters in the other. While the wiring is unidentifiable, it closely resembles the classic design of a bomb. SPOONER furiously tweaks the panel while the voices of other soldiers are heard nearby. UNKNOWN SOLDIER 1 Come on, man, hurry up! Let's go! UNKNOWN SOLDIER 2 Three minutes. We're not going to make it. Knowing time is crucial, SPOONER starts doubling his efforts. His fingers slip between two green wires to grasp a thick red wire. SPOONER takes a nervous breath before twisting the wire. Suddenly, the television screen to which the panel was connected flashes on, switching from static to a football game. The dozen soldiers in the room cheer loudly at the sight of more sports. SPOONER stands up from behind the television and acknowledges his appreciative crowd. BACK TO: INT. GENERAL TURGIDSON'S OFFICE A smile passes over the GENERAL's face as he describes SPOONER to TORRENCE. TURGIDSON There's no problem this boy can't solve with duct tape, copper wire, and a wad of spit. TURGIDSON pulls another photo out of the file. It's a picture of PVT. P. VICMAN, a young man who looks as though he was groomed as much to be a professional wrestler as he was to be a soldier. Beyond his hulking upper body, there lurks a glint of primal blood lust in his eyes, the kind only true killers possess. TURGIDSON Then there's Private Paul Vicman. That prick's dying for some trigger time. CUT TO: INT. VICMAN'S APARTMENT - NIGHT VICMAN is dressed in civilian clothes, sitting alone on the couch in his apartment. His eyes are glued to the screen as he plays a particularly violent video game. His fingers mash the controller pad as the sound of machine gun fire and hollow, muffled screams pour out of the television's speaker. On the wall just behind VICMAN rest three massive gun racks, placed side by side. Each is fully stocked with a wide assortment of weapons, ranging from pistols and handguns to rifles and shotguns. There are easily two dozen weapons on this man's wall. VICMAN kills for pleasure. BACK TO: INT. GENERAL TURGIDSON'S OFFICE The GENERAL rolls his cigar from one corner of his mouth to the other while TORRENCE examines the photo of VICMAN. TURGIDSON He's cold and ruthless, a tough mother fucker who shits barb wire and pisses napalm. TORRENCE Sure they're pretty, but can they fight? TURGIDSON (his face tightens) Major, I question whether you even pack the gear to serve in my beloved corps. If you do an about face in the field the way you did at Hill 357, I'll castrate you with my bare hands before I crucify you. Are we clear? TORRENCE Yes, sir. There is a long silence as TORRENCE waits for the GENERAL to dismiss him. TURGIDSON Major, for the record, you stopped being my son the day you took your mother's name. It was for the best, because no son of mine would be such a yellow sissy coward. Dismissed. TORRENCE takes a moment to ponder the words of the GENERAL, his face expressing no real emotion at all, then exits the room. CUT TO: INT. MILITARY BASE - DEPLOYMENT WING Four diverse but determined soldiers all prepare to head out into the field: TORRENCE, BURLEY, SPOONER, and VICMAN stand aligned like football players moments before the game. Boots are laced, belts are tightened, equipment is secured, packs are stuffed, canteens are filled, and everything is double checked. The soldiers also prep their artillery: clips are loaded, sidearms are placed in holsters, shotguns are pumped and primed, shells are locked, knives are sharpened, rifles are shouldered. Each man's uniform seems weighed down by an exorbitant amount of guns, grenades, knives, a sash of bullets, etc. With this much weaponry, these boys look like four bad ass mother fuckers -- The Wild Bunch in camouflage. CUT TO: EXT. AIRFIELD - DAY The four soldiers walk out onto the tarmac, glowing with confidence. They walk up to a military helicopter and climb inside. The rotors sputter and whir to life, and the pilot raises it off the ground. CUT TO: I/E. HELICOPTER - LATER The soldiers are packed in the back of the helicopter as tightly as sardines. VICMAN and SPOONER sit next to one another, trying in vain to carry on a conversation. They have to yell loudly to hear themselves over the deafening sound of the rotors. BURLEY leans towards them, trying to listen in. VICMAN Alright, did you hear the one about the Scotsman with three hundred girlfriends? SPOONER Yeah, he's a shepherd, right? Ha ha. VICMAN Okay, I've got a good one. Two blondes and their hunting instructor visit a forest to hunt for deer. The instructor tells the girls to sit tight while he tries to flush a deer out into the open. A few minutes later, a deer comes running out of the brush, and both of the girls immediately fire. They run over to claim their prize and find their instructor lying in a pool of blood. They rush him to the hospital, where they wait until the doctor comes out of surgery. The one blonde asks, "is he going to be all right?" The doctor looks at them and says, "well, girls, he had a better chance before you gutted him." The rotors whir loudly, but even they cannot mask the fact that no one laughs. TORRENCE shakes his head. SPOONER That's the worst joke I've ever heard you tell. BURLEY Vicman, how can two... VICMAN Buff, shut the fuck - TORRENCE (interrupting) That's enough. We'll hit our drop point in ten minutes, so get your lines ready. I want complete silence until then, understood? The three younger soldiers nod in agreement. While obedient, these men seem unprepared to deal with TORRENCE's strict attitude. The MAJOR lifts his wrist to his face and looks at his watch. TORRENCE Time check. Synchronize for fifteen-thirty hours. VICMAN, SPOONER, and BURLEY all look down at their wrists. VICMAN and SPOONER both wear cheap, plastic digital watches. BURLEY doesn't even wear a watch, but when he notices this he tries to hide it from the other soldiers. TORRENCE doesn't look up from his wrist. TORRENCE Three, two, one, mark. VICMAN Mark. SPOONER Mark. BURLEY (sheepishly) Mark. BURLEY covers his wrist with his sleeve. CUT TO: EXT. FOREST - DAY The forest is absolutely massive. Trees of all shapes and sizes stretch outward for miles, creating an endless sea of green. There is a large mountain range off in the distance. As the enormous military helicopter hovers down over the trees, the soldiers are able to see nothing but dense foliage stretching off to the horizon. This region is as remote as they come. The helicopter slows down, hovering just above the tree line. Immediately four thick ropes are tossed out the side of the helicopter, and the four soldiers slide down them onto the ground. They move with choreographed precision, making even this dangerous task seem mundane. The forest echoes the sounds of the whirring rotors. Being this close to these massive machines, the sound is absolutely deafening. With the soldiers safely on the ground, the helicopter flies away. The men quickly scramble to defensive positions on the ground, immediately withdrawing their weapons. As the sound of the helicopter rotors fades in the distance, the soldiers examine their surroundings. Nothing but dense forest in all directions. No sound but the wind rustling through the trees. These men are now absolutely alone. The men take a few moments to gather their things. TORRENCE wastes almost no time, and immediately begins walking off into the forest, without saying a word to his men. The others follow behind him. The four soldiers creep through the dense forest, guns drawn. Enormous trees reach up into the sky, their branches like claws looming high above the men, masking their view of the sky. The grass is long and thick, and the vegetation is so great it's obvious there isn't intended to be a path here. The soldiers are now in the wild. The men seem prepared for anything. TORRENCE walks far ahead of the rest of the group. Tightly clenched between his teeth is a cigarillo, and when he squints he closely resembles Clint Eastwood's Man With No Name. BURLEY is behind him, his outfit soaked in sweat. BURLEY tries to hide his heavy breathing and overall lack of physical fitness by waving his automatic rifle around in cool poses. VICMAN and SPOONER walk side-by-side behind them. VICMAN clutches a machine gun as though nothing in the world meant more to him, despite the fact that he's got a shotgun draped over his shoulder. SPOONER holds a handgun, and it appears as though he's attempting to adjust the laser scope. BURLEY How can the two blondes be too stupid to tell the difference between a man and a deer, but they still know to send him to a hospital? VICMAN That's the joke... BURLEY How would they even know how to gut a deer? Isn't that why they took a hunting instructor with them? VICMAN Shut the fuck up, Buff. It's just a joke. I guess I'll just stick to stories about your mom. SPOONER The joke doesn't work because it makes shooting a deer comparable to shooting a man. Hunting is a skill. It takes patience, accuracy, and sharp reflexes. All it takes to kill a man is the willpower to do so. VICMAN Bullshit. Most deer hunters are uncle-fucking rednecks looking for an excuse to drink. And they can't aim for shit. Ever been in the bathroom of a redneck bar? SPOONER You're missing the point, Vicman. Shooting a deer doesn't haunt you the way killing a man will. VICMAN You're a fucking pussy. BURLEY I think Spooner's got a point. When I was stationed at O'Malley Harbour Naval Base, I knew this guy who... VICMAN Buff, shut the fuck up. When we want your opinion, we'll beat it out of you. War is killing, and killing is fun. We went through this in basic training. I thought you guys all enlisted because you were hardcores who prayed for war. SPOONER I'm here for the money. I've got student loans to pay off. BURLEY Chicks love a man in uniform, that's what clinched it for me. And they let you play with explosives, that's pretty cool. VICMAN (shaking his head) Un-fucking-believable. I knew you pansies were just here for the group showers. I'm here to make mama proud, and to shoot Charlie in the back of the head. Serve my nation proudly. There is a pause as everyone seems to ignore VICMAN. It's obvious he becomes agitated when he's not the center of attention. VICMAN You guys are a bunch of yellow fucking cowards. TORRENCE turns and flashes a dirty glance at VICMAN. TORRENCE looks mean. Seeing a response, VICMAN walks a little faster to catch up with the MAJOR. VICMAN You know what I'm talking about, right sir? You've had more trigger time than all of us. Kill 'em all, let God sort 'em out, right? Blood makes the grass grow, sir. TORRENCE makes no acknowledgement. VICMAN Sir? TORRENCE takes a thoughtful pause, savoring his cigarillo. He stops and stares VICMAN between the eyes. TORRENCE I don't give a shit who you think you are, I don't want to know you. I hate hearing cocky fucks who've never seen a day of combat talk about killing a man. Don't wave your dick at me until you've got a little less ego and a lot more experience. (takes the cigarillo out of his mouth) Fighting for peace is like fucking for virginity. Some day you're going to learn that. (puts the cigarillo between his teeth) Now get the hell out of my sight. VICMAN is taken aback by TORRENCE's words, and stops dead in his tracks. The MAJOR continues to walk ahead of the group, with little concern for who falls behind. SPOONER and BURLEY chuckle to themselves as they walk past VICMAN. VICMAN (muttering under his breath) Cut off your head and mount it on my wall. Then we'll see who has more experience. His confidence shattered, VICMAN lags behind the rest of the group as they march through the forest together. The massive trees that surround the soldiers now make the forest seem a little more claustrophobic. TORRENCE hikes about ten meters ahead of the rest of the group. CUT TO: EXT. WATERFALL - LATER VICMAN and SPOONER slowly maneuver themselves down a rocky mountain slope, struggling to reach the mouth of the river. The terrain is dangerous, with wet fallen leaves making the footing terribly slippery. The two soldiers seem oblivious to the apparent danger, as they are engaged in a heated conversation. SPOONER You just don't understand hunting. VICMAN You're a fucking idiot! You don't accomplish anything when you're hunting. If hunting is a sport, then golf is a sport. SPOONER Golf isn't a sport, it's how rich people masturbate. Why cut down a huge forest, just to build a big fake one so a bunch of fat old white men can wander around, cleaning their balls and talking about which secretary they'd most like to fuck? When you're hunting you're really in the outdoors. You're fighting nature, man. VICMAN All you're fighting is fucking boredom. Football's a real sport. Blood, sweat, and grass stains. It's like organized combat. It's cool to watch and it's fun to play. The only thing that's cool about hunting is that you get to carry a gun. Believe me, nobody appreciates that more than me. But it's fucking boring. The soldiers descend the massive slope towards the shore of the shallow river. Their destination is beneath a gorgeous waterfall, a scene too peaceful to be labeled enemy territory. The sound of the water flowing over the waterfall echoes loudly. As the two soldiers crawl towards the water, TORRENCE looks out at them from the rock he sits upon in the middle of the river. With the sun shining down on him, his face resembles a worn old catcher's mitt that's been left out in the rain. He takes a deep puff of his cigarillo and watches as the sun approaches the horizon. SPOONER clearly seems to be having more trouble than VICMAN navigating himself, and stumbles through the water as they approach TORRENCE. The grizzled veteran shakes his head as the young soldiers wade through the water towards him. SPOONER Hunting's more of a sport than football is. VICMAN Now you're just trying to piss me off. SPOONER How many million dollars does the average football player make a year? Five? Six? The worst that can happen is he sprains an ankle or pulls a muscle, right? We make about seven hundred a month and we could get shot at any time. That's why football's not a sport. VICMAN You're an opinionated fucker, you know that? A smile forms on SPOONER's face seconds before he trips in the water. He quickly catches himself, but VICMAN laughs regardless. VICMAN Hey Spooner, say "knock, knock". SPOONER Who's there? VICMAN No, you say "knock, knock". SPOONER Knock, knock. VICMAN Who's there? There is a pause. SPOONER I don't get it. VICMAN shakes his head, and notices the steely look he's getting from TORRENCE. SPOONER and VICMAN both stop talking instantly and stand at attention beside him. TORRENCE Are you girls finished flirting? The two soldiers make no response. TORRENCE Let me see that map. SPOONER pulls a military issued map out of his pocket and hands it to TORRENCE. VICMAN looks up at the barren branches of the trees, and watches them sway as the breeze slowly picks up. TORRENCE Air recon estimated that our target was within three kilometers of this point here... TORRENCE points down at the map, despite the fact that none of the other soldiers can clearly see what he's pointing at. TORRENCE ...so I figure we'll have to find a spot in the valley to rustle for the night. SPOONER What is our target, sir? TORRENCE That's classified, soldier. VICMAN Is Air recon our only source on this, sir? TORRENCE Is there a problem, Vicman? VICMAN No, sir, it's just... well, you know why everyone says the Air Force are pussies? TORRENCE Why's that, Private? VICMAN Because military personnel are trained to be honest, sir. SPOONER starts to laugh wildly as the wind grows in ferocity. The whistling through the branches starts to echo the sound of high pitched screaming. TORRENCE's face loosens for a moment, but he quickly concentrates on folding the map back up. TORRENCE We'll recover the bird by 0900 tomorrow. We can't risk going more than six clicks north; if we're too close to Charlie, we won't make it home for Christmas. VICMAN laughs at the statement, pumping his shotgun. VICMAN I think we can brush them aside, sir. We won't just shoot the bastards, we'll rip out their living guts and use them to grease the treads of our tanks. TORRENCE exhales an enormous cloud of cigar smoke. He pulls a small metallic transponder, no bigger than a GPS tracker, and hands it to VICMAN. TORRENCE Vicman, hike up the ridge until you hit the peak of the escarpment. See if you can get a position on our bird, then double-time it north up the peninsula. We'll set up base camp in the valley where the river turns west. Try and get a better lock on our target than those Air Force pussies. VICMAN Yes, sir. TORRENCE Stay frosty, soldier. Don't forget where we are. TORRENCE turns his head around and yells towards the other side of the river. TORRENCE Buff! Let's move it out! Behind a tree on the shore, BURLEY stands urinating into the bushes. He turns his head to yell back at his superior officer. BURLEY Yes, sir. VICMAN turns to SPOONER, speaking in a hushed voice. VICMAN What's the deal with Buff? SPOONER (chuckles) The boy's a little shy. Doesn't like pissing with people around. VICMAN starts to laugh. He starts walking away from the other soldiers as ordered, but when BURLEY comes running out of the bush towards them, he can't help but shout out a few jibes. VICMAN What's the matter, sissy-boy?! TORRENCE winces as VICMAN utters "sissy". VICMAN Afraid we'll all see you're half inch cock?! Ha! VICMAN is the only one laughing as he marches back into the woods. BURLEY stumbles through the water, and eventually falls face-first into it. His backpack rips open, and various electronic devices of varying size and shape go tumbling into the river. TORRENCE explodes in rage as they slowly float down the river. TORRENCE (furious) God dammit! TORRENCE runs out in front of BURLEY, who slowly lifts himself up. He is absolutely soaked. TORRENCE's eyes stretch wider and wider as he glares menacingly at BURLEY. TORRENCE (furious) You stupid, useless idiot!! BURLEY I'm sorry, sir. BURLEY tries to keep his head high, but his eyes drop to the ground in shame. TORRENCE recognizes the expression of regret on his face, and takes a momentary pause as he cracks his knuckles. Then, in an instant, TORRENCE reaches for his holster, pulls out his handgun, and fires. The hat atop BURLEY's head is sent flying backwards, and the young grunt jumps in shock. A tiny, sly grin forms on TORRENCE's face. His mood lightens as he puts his gun back into his holster. TORRENCE (softer) Don't let it happen again. The veteran soldier turns and looks at SPOONER. TORRENCE Spooner, what'd we lose? SPOONER watches as some very expensive military equipment slowly floats away. He walks around behind BURLEY, examining his backpack, quickly trying to assess what's missing. SPOONER Looks like the night vision's gone, sir. Probably a few cell batteries, too. Nothing critical, sir. TORRENCE turns back towards BURLEY, cigar smoke billowing out his nose like a dragon. BURLEY looks truly frightened, and as he rests on his knees the water reaches just beneath his chest. TORRENCE is not happy with this young grunt, but he can sympathize with him. TORRENCE On your feet, soldier. Immediately, TORRENCE begins to march to the shore and off towards their destination. SPOONER helps BURLEY to his feet. BURLEY Thanks. SPOONER says nothing, he simply cleans his glasses. BURLEY is now more than ever the black sheep of the regiment. BURLEY You ever been to a demolition derby? There is a long, awkward pause as SPOONER puts his glasses back on and stares at BURLEY. SPOONER shakes his head, and starts marching out of the water, following TORRENCE. BURLEY tags along, eager to finally have a conversation with someone. As he quickly approaches, SPOONER pulls a pair of headphones out of his pocket and puts them on his head. BURLEY They're really cool. When I was stationed at O'Malley Harbour Naval Base, I knew this guy who... At that instant, SPOONER presses PLAY on the walkman attached to his utility belt. The soothing sounds of a late fifties surf rock tune fills the air. SPOONER happily bobs his head along with the beat of the song, and watches as BURLEY continues to recount his story, despite the fact that SPOONER can obviously not hear him. CUT TO: EXT. CLIFF - DUSK VICMAN mutters to himself under his breath as he climbs towards the open edge of an impressive cliff. This spot seem to be the only one on this escarpment that isn't choked by dense foliage. This region of the forest seems especially unforgiving. A brisk wind howls through the leaves, rocking them back and forth. VICMAN claws his way through the trees and sits on the ground at the edge of the cliff. Out of his pocket he pulls the small transponder, and he turns it on. A repeating beep can be heard as a tiny red light on the top panel of the transponder begins to flash. A glowing green screen on its front panel displays three very important numbers: exact latitude and longitude coordinates for the fallen bird, and the number of kilometers between it and the transponder. The latter is now less than forty clicks. VICMAN diligently copies down the numbers exactly, then turns the transponder off. Putting the bulky machine back into his pocket, he leans himself against a small stump and closes his eyes. He takes a moment to let the silence of the wilderness surround him. He then reaches into his backpack and pulls out a copy of Rue Morgue magazine. He starts to leaf through it as he pulls a small flask out of his breast pocket. He takes a sip, then continues to read. His eyes look up from the page for a minute, and immediately something in the distance catches his eye. He tosses the magazine aside and rolls over onto his stomach. He unslings his rifle from his shoulder, and aims it straight ahead in a single, fluid motion. He puts his up to the scope. Through the crosshairs VICMAN sees two young deer softly nibbling on a bush. Two adorable, innocent creatures, they're reminiscent of little Bambi snacking with his mother. With a devilish grin, VICMAN releases the safety on his gun. He takes a deep breath as his muscles tense against the weapon. As VICMAN prepares to fire, his concentration focuses on the deer in his sight. Suddenly, a snarling, furry beast dashes in front of the deer, appearing as nothing more than a blur to VICMAN. The baby deer is instantly gone, and the mother is covered in blood. VICMAN looks up from his weapon just in time to see the remaining deer run off into the woods. Whatever that was, it's already long gone. VICMAN shakes his head. He starts to put his weapon away, then stops for a moment as the sound of a bush rustling is heard. It stops, but after a pause another is heard, this time slightly closer. Without lifting his head, VICMAN's right hand slowly inches closer to the k-bar in a sheath strapped to his leg. VICMAN's entire body stops moving as he listens intently to the forest. There is only absolute silence. Suddenly, a nearby bush shakes slightly, and in the blink of an eye VICMAN swings his body around, his arm extending fully as the k-bar is sent flying. The jagged knife soars through the air, then buries itself into the side of a tiny, adorable bunny rabbit. VICMAN walks over to the slaughtered creature. Blood oozes from its wounds, and as VICMAN approaches it, it's evident that the weapon was larger than the rabbit it killed. The soldier kneels down and picks up his knife, which is buried in the earth just as deep as it was in the bunny. Thick drops of blood slip down the edges of the knife and drip onto the ground. As VICMAN holds it up to the light of a quickly vanishing sun, the reds and oranges of the sky at dusk seem to ignite the bloody blade. VICMAN stands and wipes the blade against his pants to clean it. He puts it back in it's sheath, then stares at the incredible view he has of nature at its finest. He takes a deep breath of fresh air, and then rears his leg back and kicks the mutilated body of the rabbit off the side of the cliff. CUT TO: EXT. BASE CAMP - NIGHT A wooden log crashes down onto the burning embers of a campfire, sending sparks flying off in all directions. TORRENCE, SPOONER, and BURLEY look down at their creation. The fire is now burning nicely. The soldiers have chosen to camp in a secluded dell, surrounded by immense towering maples and thick, prickly evergreens. The light of the flames dance against the woods, making it seem almost as if parts of the bush are slowly encroaching into the base camp. In the dark of night, this serene forest appears almost as impenetrable as a prison. TORRENCE We're going to need more wood. Burley, go find as much kindling as you can. BURLEY Yes, sir. BURLEY starts to walk off into the woods. TORRENCE Spooner, you and I'll get these tents set up. TORRENCE pulls a Zippo lighter out of his pocket and re lights his cigarillo. SPOONER pulls a tent out of his backpack and lays it on the ground, while TORRENCE patiently savors every puff of his cigar. There is an awkward pause as SPOONER anticipates TORRENCE's help, but it doesn't seem to be forthcoming. TORRENCE instead stares deep into the fire. After a long pause, he speaks to SPOONER without turning his head. TORRENCE Spooner? SPOONER Yes, sir? TORRENCE I understand you're good with electronics. CUT TO: EXT. FOREST - HEAVY BRUSH - NIGHT BURLEY uses his arms to push thin branches away from his face as he wanders through the brush. Every time he moves he is accompanied by the swish of his boots moving through the leaves. Every three or four feet, BURLEY stops and bends forward, picking up some dried kindling for the fire. After accumulating a small armload, BURLEY stops for a moment to catch his breath. He slowly moves his head from side to side, taking in his surroundings. The forest is completely silent. The young soldier wipes his nose. He fails to notice what lurks in the trees behind him. A growling creature with black fur and massive claws lies in the bushes, awaiting the perfect time to strike. The creature breathes loudly and heavily, inching closer to BURLEY. BURLEY wipes his forehead with the sleeve of his jacket, then leans down and grabs for some more wood. He takes a few steps forward, then pauses with instinctive hesitation. BURLEY tries to hold his breath as he looks behind him. He sees nothing. Were BURLEY to look down at his boot, however, he would see that he had stepped in blood. It drips along the ground as BURLEY takes a few steps further into the forest. Behind him, the creature barely stirs. BURLEY stops dead in his tracks, his eyes transfixed on the ground, as he sees a small pile of wood (not unlike the pile in his arms) scattered on the ground, sprayed with blood. BURLEY leans forward and examines the pile. A low wind starts to blow through the tips of the trees. BURLEY touches the blood with his fingertips, then brings them up to his face. He puts his fingers under his nose, confirming that it is indeed blood. BURLEY slowly starts to rise. Suddenly, the stout young grunt is slammed from behind. Frightened, BURLEY lets out a tiny yell and jumps in the air. He quickly realizes, however, that it is only VICMAN, having returned to base camp. BURLEY Jesus, Vicman! You scared the shit out of me. How are you doing? VICMAN My back hurts, my teeth itch, my balls ache, and my feet stink. How about you? BURLEY I'm alright. BURLEY hands an arm load of wood to VICMAN for him to carry, who doesn't complain, being in much better shape than BURLEY. The two soldiers slowly walk back towards camp. VICMAN Hey, Buff. What's the difference between an oral thermometer and a rectal one? BURLEY You really don't know? VICMAN It's the taste. BURLEY stares dumbly at VICMAN for a moment. BURLEY Where do you get these jokes? They're awful. VICMAN emits a fake chuckle, then looks at BURLEY's uniform and shakes his head. VICMAN Pull up your pants. They're falling off. BURLEY No they're not, they're hanging on! Behind them, the creature waits, motionless. It's red eyes glow in the dark bushes. BACK TO: EXT. BASE CAMP - LATER TORRENCE and SPOONER stand beside two standard military issued tents, now fully set up. TORRENCE puffs his cigarillo, listening intently to SPOONER's words. SPOONER Well, the worst thing you can do is use the speakers built-in to the TV. If you buy a y-splitter, you can still hook your TV up to your receiver. TV sounds a lot better coming out of stereo speakers. What you really ought to do, though, is buy a subwoofer. Watch the invasion scene in Apocalypse Now and you'll see what I mean. VICMAN and BURLEY wander out of the woods and slowly walk towards the fire. VICMAN seems amazed that SPOONER and TORRENCE could be carrying on a conversation. They put down the wood beside the tents, then they both stand at attention in front of TORRENCE. TORRENCE At ease, men. Vicman, the coordinates VICMAN pulls his notepad out of his pocket and hands it to TORRENCE. VICMAN Sir. TORRENCE looks over the figures and nearly grins. TORRENCE Good work, soldier. There is a pause as TORRENCE waits for VICMAN to make some smart-ass comment. He takes the cigarillo out of his mouth when he sees that there is none coming. TORRENCE Spooner, Vicman, establish a trip wire perimeter at a forty-yard radius from base camp. Load the south side with flares, and the north with detonation charges. Understood? VICMAN AND SPOONER Yes, sir. BURLEY takes a seat beside the fire while VICMAN and SPOONER walk off into the woods. After a momentary pause, BURLEY looks over to his commanding officer. BURLEY Sir, have you ever been to a demolition derby? TORRENCE cocks an eyebrow as he looks down at BURLEY, before ignoring him completely and turning his attention back to the tents. CUT TO: EXT. FOREST - HEAVY BRUSH - LATER VICMAN and SPOONER creep through dark bushes on their hands and knees, moving towards an open passage between two groves of evergreens. They speak to each other in whispered tones. SPOONER lays the detonation charge in the ground, while VICMAN unspools a long thin metal wire from a stake in the ground. He clips the wire with a pair of wire-cutters, then attaches the wire to the detonator. VICMAN Locked. SPOONER manipulates two thick copper wires on the side of the detonator, the pushes the button marked "ARM". The two soldiers then continue further through the brush, rustling the dried leaves on the ground slightly as they move. VICMAN What did you and Major Torrence talk about? SPOONER Not much. He wanted a few tips on setting up his home theater. It always amazes me how many people have their stereo sitting in the same room as their TV and it never crosses their mind to connect the two of them. The Major's a really nice guy. Not very talkative, though. VICMAN He didn't tell you any war stories? SPOONER No. VICMAN Man, I bet he's seen a lot of shit in his time. But he sure doesn't act hardcore. SPOONER He's been in the field since we were in junior high. When you've been hip deep in shit that long, I think you've just got to bear a lot of those memories in silence. It's fucking traumatizing, Vicman. VICMAN What the hell happened to my army? Nobody wants to get their hands dirty anymore, everyone's all fucking sensitive. Find a battalion of ten soldiers with my attitude, and there's not a country in the world we can't conquer with two Sherman tanks and a case of Schlitz. SPOONER Well, I'm inclined to agree with the Major on this one. I'd much rather be at home in front of the TV. VICMAN How many people do you think he's killed? He's a Major, so he's probably been in the service for at least twenty years. SPOONER I don't know. All I know is that he doesn't know a damn thing about setting up a home theater system. VICMAN and SPOONER continue to bicker back and forth in whispers as they establish a trip-wire perimeter. CUT TO: EXT. BASE CAMP - LATER A full moon shines down on the massive forest before being completely obscured by an ominous dark cloud. Under a canopy of leaves from profuse maple tree branches, the four soldiers sit around a huge campfire beside their tents. BURLEY laughs loudly as VICMAN and SPOONER engage in another argument. TORRENCE seems barely conscious of them, his eyes squarely focused on the flames of the fire swallowing the kindling. He rolls an unlit cigarillo between his finger and thumb. VICMAN The Punisher is the toughest comic book hero ever, cause he carried a gun. That's why I never got into comic books. I have trouble believing somebody's tough if they don't carry a gun. SPOONER What about Superman? VICMAN It doesn't count if they have super powers. I'm talking about vigilante heroes. SPOONER Batman's pretty tough. He doesn't have super-powers. VICMAN Batman wears a fucking codpiece. You can't call anybody in tights "tough". SPOONER Except Andre the Giant. VICMAN Of course. VICMAN and SPOONER give goofy chuckles. BURLEY You guys ever seen the Toxic Avenger? Now there's a tough mother fucker. An awkward pause. VICMAN Nobody's cooler than the Punisher. The only power he had was that he killed people. He was like a street soldier. TORRENCE I don't know what you think a soldier is, but I've done enough killing to know it's no way to make a living. I used to think the way you do, Vicman. One day you're gonna wake up and find yourself a lonely old man, with nothing to keep you occupied except your guilty conscience. It's a hell of a thing, watching a man die. You ever actually seen anyone get shot? VICMAN In combat... no. BURLEY I have. I saw two men die after getting tagged by a few shotgun blasts. I was stationed at O'Malley Harbour Naval Base, and I knew this guy who lived on the base named Sergeant Jason French. He was a filthy, irritating little prick who lived beside our barracks. He was the highest ranking officer in the building, so he had a room all to himself. Nobody liked this fuck. The guy used to finish off a six-pack before bed, toss the empties out his window, then blame the mess on us the next day. The worst, though, was every weekend he used to go to these demolition derbies to pick up broads. You guys ever been to one of these things? It's just six shitty station-wagons painted bright purple, going back and forth running into each other. Anyway, the chicks that hang out at these things are just rancid. Girls in wife beaters and jogging pants, with brown teeth, bad skin, greasy hair, and an ass that looks like cottage cheese in a plastic bag. Hell, half the girls just show up 'cause they wanna get high off the fumes. I mean these girls were loose lips to sink dicks. French used to tell us that it was always better to go on Friday, because by Saturday night they'd already spent whatever paltry paycheck they had and couldn't afford a babysitter, so the stands would be packed with like thirty screaming babies. Every weekend he'd go over and these sluts would just cream over his uniform and he'd bring one home. Without fail, every time, the whole fucking building would wake up to the sound of him just punishing this chick. VICMAN and SPOONER snicker. BURLEY Dude, it was fucking gross and everybody hated it. So, our last week in L company, me and three other Privates waited until he took off for the derby. Then we took the hinges off the door to his room, and stole his door and the mattress off his bed. We tossed them in the head. This douchebag had it coming. Anyway, he comes back to the base at like 0300 hours with some she-male looking beast, gets to his room and just loses it. The guy starts screaming, "YOU DIRTY BASTARDS! YOU FUCKED WITH THE WRONG BULL!" He just goes apeshit! He pulls a fucking shotgun out of his closet. The chick he's with is just screaming and screaming and screaming, but he just comes barreling out of his room and down the hall. We're sitting in the lounge around the corner, and we hear him coming, but we didn't know he had a shotgun. He's running towards us at full speed, and then he turns the corner and he's right in front - Suddenly, a monstrous snarling beast tackles BURLEY from behind. As BURLEY topples forward, the creature uses it's massive fangs to pierce the skin of the soldier's leg. TORRENCE, SPOONER, and VICMAN are all splattered by a wave of BURLEY's blood, and they all let out a yell of fear as they topple backwards in shock. BURLEY wails in screams of anguish as this enormous monster rips through his flesh. None of the soldiers get a very good look at the beast, but they all clearly see it's glowing red eyes before it dashes off back into the forest. TORRENCE jumps to his feet as BURLEY starts to convulse on the ground. Small hunks of flesh and muscle cling to the bone, but there is very little connecting BURLEY's knee to the foot in his boot. Blood pours out of wounds in his neck, and also gushes from his mouth. The wounded soldier clenches his teeth as he lets out a low moan of severe pain. VICMAN also jumps to his feet. SPOONER What the fuck was that? VICMAN I don't know, but I'm gonna kill it. (pumps his shotgun) I'm in the mood for a massacre! VICMAN runs off into the woods in the same direction the beast did. EXT. FOREST - HEAVY BRUSH It is completely dark in the forest, making it very difficult to distinguish anything. Regardless, VICMAN pushes himself through the brush as hard as his legs will carry him. He narrowly avoids running into trees and tripping over rocks and tree stumps as he tries to sprint after the ravenous beast. As VICMAN drives himself to go faster, he can hear what sounds like a four-legged animal running across the woods' floor of dried leaves. With this encouragement, VICMAN starts to move at a swifter pace. Looking ahead, he can see the shape of something large and hairy bounding away from him through the brush. Bushes and branches are pushed aside as the soldier zeros in on his prey. The creature seems to be running towards a small opening between a row of giant oaks. VICMAN shows no signs of tiring, and he readies his shotgun and he closes in on the beast. The monster reaches the clearing and darts left. VICMAN's legs now moving just slightly faster than his heartbeat, he approaches the opening between the trees. VICMAN jumps between the trees and finds himself in front of a massive, flat, empty field. The grass in the field is barely knee high. VICMAN stops, panting heavily. He cranes his neck around, scouring the field with his eyes, looking for any sign of the creature. Only the faint sounds of crickets can be heard. VICMAN swings his gun from side to side, anxiously awaiting a surprise attack. The monster, it seems, has just disappeared. Disappointed, VICMAN lowers his weapon. He turns around to head back towards camp, when something in the corner of his eyes catches his attention. VICMAN spins around to see something truly bizarre at the edge of the field in the distance. It looks much like the little deer that VICMAN saw attacked earlier. The animal's mid-section appears to have been torn away, and something still oozes from the wounds. The deer has a tiny rabbit in its mouth, and is violently shaking its head back and forth. If VICMAN didn't know better, he'd think the deer was trying to eat the rabbit. Curious, VICMAN starts to move closer. Suddenly, the creature that attacked BURLEY jumps out from the bush in front of VICMAN. The hideous and hairy monster leaps at VICMAN, emitting a fierce growl in the process. In a flash, VICMAN raises his shotgun and fires. The creature's chest explodes, soaking VICMAN in gore, and it's body falls backwards onto the ground in a heap. The deer in the background dashes away. It takes a moment for VICMAN to compose himself, but his initial reaction is one of ecstacy. A giant smile forms on his face as he keeps his shotgun squarely aimed at the monster. The beast is totally motionless, and obviously dead. VICMAN walks right up beside it, putting the barrel of his gun into the jaws of the beast. It's eyes have glazed over. VICMAN Not so tough. (beat) You killed my... VICMAN is suddenly cut off as the beast emits a low, lifeless gurgle. Startled, VICMAN squeezes the trigger and blows the monster's head into a million pieces. After firing his weapon unexpectedly, VICMAN is knocked backwards. After a beat, VICMAN looks up at what remains off the creature. He chuckles to himself as he gets to his feet. He points his shotgun to the ground, letting all the blood and gore drain out of the barrel. He then slings his shotgun over his shoulder and starts to walk away. What VICMAN failed to notice was that at the edge of the field, three other snarling beasts lay crouched and waiting. Their eyes glow red. BACK TO: EXT. BASE CAMP - LATER BURLEY looks up into the night sky and howls a piercing shriek in agonizing pain. SPOONER wraps cotton and gauze around the screaming soldier's wounds, and then tries to stop the flow of blood by tying part of a military issued t-shirt around BURLEY's leg. TORRENCE holds BURLEY's head in his lap with one hand, while he uses the other to root through a small, dirty first aid kit. BURLEY (in agony) Tell my kids I'll be okay. SPOONER You don't have any kids, you fucking idiot. TORRENCE's fingers shuffle past bandages and tiny bottles of rubbing alcohol before securing a syringe and a tiny vial of morphine. TORRENCE rips the cap off the needle end and pulls back on the plunger, ensuring a full dose. SPOONER winces as TORRENCE taps the needle with his finger, knocking out the air bubbles. As BURLEY cringes in pain, TORRENCE jams the needle into the young grunt's neck and presses down on the plunger. SPOONER slams his eyes shut and turns away. Instantly, BURLEY's body relaxes. His eyelids fall, and he quickly falls into a deep sleep. TORRENCE looks over at SPOONER, and for a moment they stare at each other, at a complete loss for words. Then, as if coming out of a daze, TORRENCE rips their radio out of his backpack. He immediately starts fiddling with the dials, getting static. TORRENCE (into radio) Red leader, do you copy? We have an emergency medical situation. Nothing but static. The wind in the trees slowly picks up. Torrence turns back to SPOONER, who's as pale as a ghost. TORRENCE You alright? SPOONER (swallows the lump in his throat) Fine, sir. I just don't like needles. TORRENCE (into radio) Mayday, mayday. Red leader, this is purple haze, do you copy? SPOONER (pointing to Burley) Is he alright, sir? TORRENCE (tossing the empty needle into the fire) He'll never walk again. (into radio, adjusting more dials) We need an emergency evac, on the double. Do you copy, red leader? Again, nothing but static. The light of the radio dial fades, and TORRENCE slams his fist against it. TORRENCE (into radio) Hello? (to Spooner) What the fuck is wrong with this thing? I'm getting nothing. SPOONER That's horseshit. My cell phone would work out here, sir. TORRENCE Do you have your cell phone with you? SPOONER No, sir. TORRENCE hands the bulky metal radio over to SPOONER. TORRENCE Then don't say another word until you get this fixed. SPOONER lowers his head as he takes the radio, and begins examining it. TORRENCE looks down at BURLEY's body, watching as he breathes shallow. He's lost a lot of blood. TORRENCE What the hell was that? A coyote? SPOONER Looked like a small bear. VICMAN I think it was a rabid cougar. TORRENCE and SPOONER turn and see VICMAN coming out of the woods towards them. As he approaches the campfire, the blood soaking the front of his uniform is clearly visible. Although VICMAN has apparently wiped off his face, there is still plenty of grime and gore clinging to the edges. He seems invigorated, like he just returned from a sexual conquest. VICMAN Whatever it was, I blew it in half. (to Spooner) How's Buff doing? SPOONER Not good. Had to give him an injection. VICMAN Fuck. (wipes his bloody hand on his pant leg) I think you were right about hunting, though. TORRENCE What was it? VICMAN I don't know, sir. It was big and it was fast. Now it's dead. TORRENCE How the fuck did that thing get through the perimeter? SPOONER Probably a nocturnal animal, lives in the forest here. Thing woke up hungry. VICMAN It doesn't matter. It's a carpet now. TORRENCE Are you sure it's dead, Private? VICMAN Dead as disco, sir. TORRENCE's eye twitches, and he scowls at VICMAN. Their situation is far too dire for petty infighting. TORRENCE turns to SPOONER. TORRENCE Alright. Spooner, you take first watch. Try and get that radio fixed. SPOONER No problem, sir. After seeing that needle, I couldn't sleep if I wanted to, sir. TORRENCE Vicman, you help me carry Burley into that tent. If we can't establish radio contact in three hours, you two will have to lug him back to the pick-up point. I'll retrieve the bird myself. I promise you fellas I won't let this boy die. SPOONER and VICMAN stare blankly at TORRENCE, as if this were the first time they had ever considered BURLEY may die. Their stupor is only momentary, and VICMAN moves towards BURLEY's body. He and TORRENCE begin carrying him into a tent. SPOONER sits down on a log beside the fire, moving away from the pool of blood on the ground. He starts to examine the radio. SPOONER (muttering under his breath) I knew something bad was gonna happen as soon as that hot blonde gave me her number last week. The last time a chick gave me her number, I got drafted. DISSOLVE TO: EXT. BASE CAMP - LATER SPOONER is still in front of the fire, but he has long since moved off the log. He now lies down in front of the blaze, straining to get a good look at the tiny labels on the radio's control panel. He is obviously exhausted. In the large tent beside the fire, VICMAN and TORRENCE sleep uncomfortably. The two men have pushed themselves as far on opposite sides as possible, with their backs to one another. The divide between them is great. In the smallest tent, BURLEY lies wrapped in blankets, soaking in blood. Muscles all over his body spasm involuntarily. Not only does his body seem pained, but Burley seems genuinely terrified. His eyelids twitch. He is having a nightmare. In this nightmare, first there is only silence and darkness. Then, some flashes of light, and tiny snippets of horrifying images: blood splattering against a tree, a knife plunging through skin, a frightening claw bathed in a harsh red light. CUT TO: EXT. CEMETARY - DAY BURLEY's eyes shoot open, and he finds himself lying on the ground in front of a tombstone. He stands as a low, rumbling sound slowly fills the air. Looking around, BURLEY finds himself in the middle of a large cemetery in the country side. Confused, he wanders down the rows and rows of graves, searching for an exit. He begins walking faster as voices start to become distinctive out of the rumbling noise. The sound is that of several voices, each barely a whisper, repeating some variation of "JOIN US". BURLEY starts to move faster and faster, the terror clearly visible in his eyes. He tries turning left, then right, then running straight. However, no matter how fast he runs or where he turns, BURLEY cannot escape the fact that there is no way out of this cemetery. He is trapped. Yet, as BURLEY runs, he soon realizes it isn't so much that he's looking for a way out as it is that he's being chased. An unseen force speeds closer to BURLEY from all directions, and he desperately seeks to outrun it. Suddenly, a hand bursts up out of the ground and clings to BURLEY's leg -- the same leg now nearly severed. BURLEY lets out a deafening scream. BACK TO: EXT. BASE CAMP - LATER As the scream pierces the air, SPOONER jumps up off the ground and onto his feet. He has just been shaken awake by that hideous scream, which seemed to come from BURLEY's tent. Now, however, the base camp is completely silent. SPOONER looks over at the other tent, certain that a scream as anguished as that would wake anyone from the deepest sleep. Their tent, however, doesn't move. Regardless, SPOONER drops the radio. As it hits the ground, a number of it buttons suddenly light up. SPOONER runs over to BURLEY's tent. He unzips the door and pokes his head inside. The tent is empty, except for a huge red stain where BURLEY's body once laid. SPOONER immediately steps back from the tent, terrified. He pulls the handgun out of his holster and holds it out in front of him. His eyes dart to the ground. There he can clearly see a trail of blood leading into the forest. SPOONER follows it into the woods. EXT. FOREST - HEAVY BRUSH SPOONER's task becomes all the more difficult without the light of the campfire to guide him. He pulls a flashlight off his utility belt and turns it on. He shines the light on the ground, and follows the blood path into thicker woods. Suddenly, the trail that seemed so prominent earlier vanishes completely. SPOONER moves his light back and forth in wide motions, but cannot find any signs of BURLEY. SPOONER stops and listens. He hears nothing. Then, suddenly, he hears a bush rustle just ahead of him. SPOONER shines his light in that direction, and just catches the bush as it sways, but it could just as easily have been the wind. There's another rustle beside it, and this time SPOONER catches the shaking bush in his light. Something seems to run out of sight just as the light nears. SPOONER holds the light out in front of him directly alongside his handgun. He scans the bushes, hotly anticipating some sign of movement. Along with his heavy breathing, SPOONER can hear a distant, low growl. He starts to creep forward, deeper into the brush. After a few steps, he freezes. The lifelessness of the woods starts to play on his fears, and his hand starts to tremble. It's as if he realizes he shouldn't go any further, so he starts to slowly walk backwards. Behind him, a pair of red eyes glow in the bush. SPOONER turns, and the light from his flashlight squarely hits the red eyes. The face belongs to BURLEY, a sick grin on his face. SPOONER Buff? In an instant, BURLEY slams SPOONER's arms with a large branch. Both his handgun and his flashlight swing down so they're aiming at his feet. As his muscle spasm, SPOONER shoots himself in the foot. He lets out an agonizing scream, which echoes all through the forest. BACK TO: EXT. BASE CAMP TORRENCE and VICMAN are both awaken with a shock as they hear SPOONER's horrifying scream. BACK TO: EXT. FOREST - HEAVY BRUSH BURLEY again uses the branch to knock SPOONER backwards. The walkman on BURLEY's utility belt is knocked off his belt and crashes against the ground. Out of the small headphones, the sound of an upbeat, mellow surf rock tune can faintly be heard, providing the soundtrack for SPOONER's gory demise. BURLEY raises the branch up over his head and drives it through SPOONER's skull, silencing the scream. Blood, gore, and brain matter sprays out in all directions, soaking the ground. SPOONER's arms and legs continue to flail wildly. In place of his normal hand, BURLEY now finds he has sharp claws. He uses them to tear the flesh of SPOONER's stomach. Blood spurts out of the wound, then begins to gush as the skin is ripped aside and organs are pulled out. BURLEY starts to devour the meat from SPOONER's belly. BACK TO: EXT. BASE CAMP TORRENCE comes running out of his tent, a high-powered rifle slung over his shoulder. VICMAN stands in front of BURLEY's tent. Both soldiers are drenched in sweat, and seem primed for action. VICMAN holds a machine gun in his arms. VICMAN Buff's missing, too, sir. TORRENCE Where was that scream coming from? As soon as VICMAN raises his arm to point the way, TORRENCE immediately begins to sprint in that direction. VICMAN takes off after him. In fact, they ran off so fast that they didn't notice that the smashed radio beside the fire was beginning to squawk. It was working again. BACK TO: EXT. FOREST - HEAVY BRUSH The two soldiers rush through the forest with guns drawn. Angry and determined, they race through the dark woods as though it were an Olympic event. They spring over fallen logs and dodge hanging branches without breaking stride, pouring every ounce of effort into reaching SPOONER. They keep their weapons aimed squarely ahead of them. As they race further and further into he darkness, TORRENCE begins to take a substantial lead on VICMAN. The gap between them begins to grow, and the young grunt becomes enraged. His face tightens and his arms starts to swing as he tries to push his body to move faster. VICMAN gets in such a hurry that he ignores his footing, trips on a tree root, and lands face first next to what remains of SPOONER's disemboweled stomach. Shocked, VICMAN leaps backwards. TORRENCE watches as VICMAN gets to his feet, and then the grizzled veteran suddenly sees SPOONER's bloody, twisted, headless body. TORRENCE holds his hand up to his forehead. VICMAN mutters, stunned. TORRENCE Aw, shit. VICMAN (mumbling) That's Spooner. That was Spooner! TORRENCE lowers his head, and pulls a cigarillo out of his pocket. He places it between his teeth. VICMAN (mumbling) This can't... I killed that thing. I know I did. TORRENCE fishes through his pocket for a match while VICMAN stares dumbly at the body. There is a long silence. It is suddenly interrupted by a distant howl, likely that of a wolf. VICMAN instinctively raises his gun to the sound. TORRENCE looks off into the distance, then finds a match and lights his cigarillo. TORRENCE We're not staying. VICMAN What are you talking about? TORRENCE starts to walk away, pulling VICMAN with him. VICMAN pushes him off. TORRENCE shrugs, then starts walking away as he eyes VICMAN. TORRENCE There's something out there, and it'll be back. VICMAN (stupefied) What? Hey, man, Spooner's dead, we gotta deal with this! We can't leave a man behind, sir. TORRENCE You carry him. VICMAN takes a quick examination of SPOONER's decapitated corpse, then has to admit that TORRENCE is right. He runs up beside the MAJOR. They continue to walk away from SPOONER's body. VICMAN What about Buff? TORRENCE Buff's dead, Vicman. Buff's dead. VICMAN doesn't seem satisfied. VICMAN (confused) Sir? TORRENCE There's no discussion, Private. We're moving out. I gave you an order, and I expect you to follow it. The mission's aborted. There is a pause as VICMAN gapes at TORRENCE, dumbfounded. VICMAN With all due respect, sir, when a mission's classified, isn't it usually too important to abort? TORRENCE turns right next to VICMAN, blocking his path. He pulls the cigarillo out of his mouth. They stare each other in the eye. TORRENCE Are we gonna have a problem here? VICMAN I'm just asking you to reconsider, sir. TORRENCE I had enough trouble sleeping at night as it was, now two more men have died under my command. Now get your shit together. We're leaving. VICMAN (impatient) There's nothing out there but a mountain lion! That's no reason to run away. As the two men bicker back and forth, neither seems to notice SPOONER'S headless body lifting itself up off the ground with it's arms. Unfortunately, there isn't much left of SPOONER's mid-section. As SPOONER pulls himself towards the two soldiers, his upper torso separates from his waist. What little skin remains rips and tears, oozing blood. The spinal cord is the last thing to snap off, and it thrashes about like a tail. SPOONER's body drags itself closer and closer to the oblivious soldiers at an agonizingly slow rate. TORRENCE Just watch yourself, Private. VICMAN I already killed one. Grab a shotgun, we'll go find the other one... TORRENCE (loudly interrupting) Vicman! You had best unfuck yourself and square your ass away on the double! There is a long pause as the two soldiers stare each other eye to eye. They still don't notice SPOONER, who slowly crawls closer and closer. After a tense moment, TORRENCE leans back and starts to move away. TORRENCE (softer) Let's go. VICMAN You're a fucking coward. In an instant, the MAJOR turns around and punches VICMAN square in the jaw. This old soldier can still deliver a punishing blow. VICMAN is knocked backwards, and he falls onto his back on the grass. As he shakes his head, trying to regain his senses, blood from his mouth runs down his cheek. TORRENCE flexes the muscles in his hand as slowly walks backwards, away from VICMAN. He looks up, and his jaw drops. SPOONER's body suddenly jumps on top of VICMAN. He flails about as SPOONER tries to dig his fingers into VICMAN's arm. VICMAN yells in pain. Without hesitation, TORRENCE runs towards them and kicks SPOONER off of VICMAN. SPOONER's body is sent flying. Landing on the ground with a thump, it immediately begins crawling towards a tree and climbing it. TORRENCE pulls out his shotgun and begins blasting away, narrowly missing each time. SPOONER's headless torso can really move. It eventually scuttles up to the branches above the two soldiers. TORRENCE does his best to keep his eyes focused, but it's much too dark and the foliage is much too dense. VICMAN quickly gets to his feet, his senses stunned by what he sees. For a moment, he turns his head back to the spot where SPOONER originally laid dead. He watches as SPOONER's legs wrestle themselves up off the ground. VICMAN Look!! TORRENCE looks down and watches as SPOONER's legs regain their balance and run off into the woods. Both VICMAN and TORRENCE stand off balance for a moment, truly dumbfounded. Training never prepared them for anything like this. TORRENCE at least seems able to keep his composure, but the shock has affected VICMAN deeply. There is a sudden rustle in the branches above, and instantly TORRENCE raises his weapon above him and fires. There is a pause. TORRENCE tries to focus his eyes on shapes in the branches above. VICMAN looks at him, anxiously. VICMAN (whispering) Did you get it? TORRENCE throws his finger up, motioning for VICMAN to remain quiet. TORRENCE is certain he sees something. Definitely movement. It's not moving very fast, but it does seem to be slowly coming closer. His shotgun poised, TORRENCE moves to push a few branches away. He is suddenly struck in the face by a stream of blood and gore, oozing down from the branches above. TORRENCE backs away, wiping the blood from his face, while VICMAN tries to contain his laughter. TORRENCE Yeah, I hit it. VICMAN steps forward to help TORRENCE when suddenly, SPOONER's torso jumps down from the branches above and on to VICMAN's face. VICMAN screams in agony as he tries to rip SPOONER off his face. TORRENCE reaches for his handgun, and struggles to replace the clip. VICMAN eventually get SPOONER off his face, but the ravenous bloody torso now has both skeletal hands around the soldier's wrist. One of the claw-like fingers breaks VICMAN's skin. TORRENCE still fumbles with his weapon. VICMAN begins swinging his arm around, sending the torso flying off into the woods. It lands in a muddy puddle. SPOONER's vicious, dirty torso lifts itself out of the mud and begins crawling back towards the soldiers. Instantly TORRENCE finishes loading his gun and begins blasting away at SPOONER. VICMAN quickly grabs his shotgun and does the same. The two men unload round after round at SPOONER. The forest quickly fills with smoke as the soldiers fire more and more shots. Once out of bullets, TORRENCE picks up his shotgun and unloads. VICMAN pulls two grenades from his belt, pulls the pin, and lobs them towards SPOONER. He then pulls out his handgun and empties his clip. Finally, the two soldiers find themselves out of ammo. They pant heavily as they watch in silence, waiting for the smoke to clear. When the smoke eventually clears, they find that there is no sign of SPOONER's body at all. VICMAN aims his flashlight in the direction they were firing, and sees that the forest has been painted with SPOONER, splattered in a million bloody pieces over the trees and bushes. VICMAN tries to keep vomit from rising out of his throat. TORRENCE merely looks shocked. TORRENCE (looking at VICMAN) Holy Jesus. TORRENCE runs over to the young soldier and immediately begins examining the wound. The cut doesn't seem to be very deep, but it is encrusted with a slimy green ooze. VICMAN What the fuck? What the hell? What... What is this? What the hell is going on? What... What the fuck? Fuck! TORRENCE moves his hand towards the wound, but VICMAN cringes in pain. TORRENCE looks up at him. TORRENCE Suck it up, soldier. TORRENCE pulls a bandage out of one of the many pocket on his uniform. He wipes off the wound and wraps it with the bandage. VICMAN This is sick, man. This ain't real. TORRENCE gets to his feet. VICMAN, still lying on the ground, seems barely coherent. TORRENCE You okay? VICMAN (oblivious) Didn't even have a head. TORRENCE Private! On your feet! Now!! VICMAN looks over at TORRENCE with a look of utter confusion. He slowly brings himself to his feet. TORRENCE grabs him by the shoulders. TORRENCE Stay with me, soldier. I don't have time to babysit. Don't you burn out on me. (beat) Now, you alright? VICMAN nods his head. TORRENCE Good. Have you got any more ammo? VICMAN shakes his head. VICMAN Just what's at base camp. TORRENCE Alright. We arm ourselves to the tits and then we get the hell out of here. Understood? VICMAN (still dazed) Yeah... sir. TORRENCE Vicman... sorry about the sucker punch. (beat) Let's go. TORRENCE starts walking away, and VICMAN follows closely behind. However, as they walk past a giant tree, they fail to notice a large creature concealing itself behind it. The creature looks similar in appearance to BURLEY, but one look at this glowing, growling beast and it's obvious that what TORRENCE said was true - BURLEY is dead. This unspeakable evil merely inhabits his body. A red light glows outward from his stomach, slowing growing stronger and stronger. Squatting in the leaves, BURLEY licks blood from his claws. His lifeless eyes glow red. The two remaining soldiers now have themselves a nemesis. CUT TO: EXT. BASE CAMP - LATER TORRENCE and VICMAN come wandering out of the woods to their camp. The campfire has burned down significantly, but flames still reach for the skies. TORRENCE rubs his chin and turn to VICMAN. TORRENCE Let's take a look at that wound. VICMAN starts unwinding the bandage. Underneath, the wound doesn't seem to have gotten any better. In fact, it's gotten worst. It's bigger, it smells awful, and it's oozing green puss. It even seems to be glowing. TORRENCE looks at VICMAN's painless expression. TORRENCE That must hurt like a bitch. VICMAN No, it doesn't feel all that bad. Sort of tickles, sir. TORRENCE pulls a fresh bandage out of his pocket. He takes off the old one, then wraps the clean one around the wound. TORRENCE You gonna be able to use that? VICMAN Yes, sir. TORRENCE Good. Grab everything we've got. Without saying a word, VICMAN begins going through their supplies. He pulls out all the weapons, and disregards anything else. TORRENCE turns his attention to the smashed radio on the ground. He bends over and picks it up, examining it. It's in pretty rough shape. TORRENCE starts pounding on it with his fist in frustration. Both he and VICMAN stop at the sound of a coyote howling in the distance. Tough as these soldiers may be, they're spooked. Suddenly, the dial on the radio flashes, and it begins to squawk. TORRENCE looks relieved. TORRENCE (into radio) Come in, red leader. OPERATOR (V.O.) We copy, purple... (static) ...your position, over. TORRENCE (into radio) It's good to hear your voice. CUT TO: INT. MILITARY BASE - RADIO ROOM Behind a radar screen sits the OPERATOR, a nebbish middle aged man wearing a headset. His uniform is as well maintained as his haircut. There are dozens of monitors in front of him, each aligned with a wide array of dials, lights, switches, and buttons. Behind the OPERATOR stands GENERAL TURGIDSON, who listens to the conversation on a telephone receiver. On the other side of the room, half a dozen serious-looking military officials, anxiously watching with stern faces. Coming through the speakers, TORRENCE's voice is very garbled. TORRENCE (V.O.) The mission is in serious jeopardy. Two men K.I.A. We need to evac immediately. Over. OPERATOR (into radio) Stand by. The OPERATOR looks over at GENERAL TURGIDSON. There is a long pause as TURGIDSON eyes the expressions of all the other officers in the room. TURGIDSON (into radio) That's a negative, purple haze. You will complete your objective. Over. BACK TO: EXT. BASE CAMP VICMAN looks up from what he's doing. He can obviously overhear the conversation. TORRENCE looks at his radio in disgust. TORRENCE (into radio) Red leader, we cannot complete our objective. The area is compromised. Over. BACK TO: INT. MILITARY BASE - RADIO ROOM GENERAL TURGIDSON's face tightens and his anger builds. TURGIDSON (into radio) Your lives will be compromised if you don't obey orders, soldier. Over. TORRENCE (V.O.) Red leader, I repeat, we have two men down and the area is compromised. Over. TURGIDSON (into radio) Dammit, Torrence, you've got twelve hours to locate target, now get moving! BACK TO: EXT. BASE CAMP TORRENCE looks absolutely astounded. It's like trying to have a conversation with a wall. VICMAN moves in closer to hear more. TORRENCE (into radio) With all due respect, we need to fall back now, sir. BACK TO: INT. MILITARY BASE - RADIO ROOM A number of the shadowy military officials in the corner of the room begin whispering to each other. They do not looked pleased. TURGIDSON sees this and clenches his teeth. TURGIDSON (into radio) You talk back to me again and I'll take a fence post and beat eighteen pounds of shit out of you. Then I'll take your prostate home as a trophy. (beat) You've got your orders, Major. TORRENCE (V.O.) My men are dying, sir! TURGIDSON (into radio) You can cry when the mission's over. Out. Furious, TURGIDSON slams the phone down, startling the OPERATOR. He smashes it down twice more, just for show. TURGIDSON looks up to see all eyes in the room pointed squarely at him, mesmerized by his reaction. The shadowy officials turn to each other, and they are obviously not pleased with the situation. TURGIDSON lowers his head and starts rubbing his brow. BACK TO: EXT. BASE CAMP Equally frustrated, TORRENCE slams the radio down against the ground. He slams his boot down against it, crushing it. He starts shaking his head. VICMAN looks up from what he's doing and looks over to the MAJOR. VICMAN That's not good. TORRENCE continues to pace around and shake his head. It takes a moment to sink in, but VICMAN eventually understands the situation. VICMAN They're not coming for us? TORRENCE Exactly. VICMAN They're not coming for us. (beat) They're not coming for us? What do you mean they're not coming for us? That's what they do! Never leave a man behind, right?! TORRENCE Ah, Jesus, Vicman. Think. That's just bullshit you feed grunts to toughen them up before tossing 'em into the snake pit. VICMAN Fuck, I didn't sign up for this black-ops shit. I just wanted to kill somebody and get away with it. TORRENCE Enough, Private. VICMAN cradles his wound as his face sours. He doesn't seem nearly as tough now as he did before the mission started. VICMAN I mean, I'm not trained for this... TORRENCE (louder) Vicman! That's enough! TORRENCE walks over to VICMAN, who quickly brings his arms back down to his size. TORRENCE Alright, what have we got? VICMAN starts pointing out all the weapons he's laid out on the ground. VICMAN Not as much as we should. About a dozen clips for the nine millies, three shotguns and five boxes of shells, sixteen grenades, a few detonators, and whatever you've got on you. There's the rifle with the scope, but it's only got six shots left, sir. TORRENCE Ah, Christ. We must have brought more than that. VICMAN Buff was on inventory, sir. He said we had everything. TORRENCE That fucking idiot. (beat) Grab what you can carry. We're gonna have to find our own way out of this. TORRENCE reaches into his pocket and pulls out the coordinates to the satellite. TORRENCE I'm pretty sure our target is at the mouth of the river. VICMAN What is our target, sir? TORRENCE Does it really matter, Private? It's not worth this. Is that what you wanna hear? That's the truth, Private. VICMAN Jesus. I was just curious. TORRENCE It's a satellite, alright? Some bullshit satellite. VICMAN hangs his head in shame for a moment. TORRENCE pauses, realizing that perhaps he was being too harsh. TORRENCE I didn't want to come here, either. We all have our orders. (beat) Now get out the map and let's find a way out of here. VICMAN reaches down to get the map, when suddenly BURLEY jumps out of the bushes and clamps his jaws down on VICMAN's wrist. VICMAN screams in pain. TORRENCE pulls out his handgun and aims. VICMAN begins pounding on BURLEY's forehead in pain. TORRENCE Get back, Private! VICMAN bends backwards as TORRENCE buries a bullet in BURLEY's forehead. VICMAN screams as the muscles in the beast's jaws clench tighter. Blood gushes from the wound. TORRENCE grabs the machete off the table and charges BURLEY. Using all his strength, he brings the massive knife swinging down towards the beast, slicing BURLEY's arm off. Green ooze gushes from the wound. BURLEY releases his hold on VICMAN, as he arches back to scream in pain. His howl is a piercing screech. VICMAN topples backwards, cradling his nearly severed hand. Clenching his teeth in utter pain, he wraps his jacket around the wound. Neither soldier notices as BURLEY's arm slowly crawls away. TORRENCE takes another slice at BURLEY with the machete, this time across the gut. BURLEY's stomach is torn open, and his intestines begin to spew out onto the ground. Still, he staggers towards the soldiers. VICMAN places his wrapped, wounded hand under his opposite armpit. He pulls out his handgun with his good hand, then presses his arm down against his wounded hand. He lets out a low grunt. TORRENCE takes a final run towards BURLEY, and finally buries the machete deep in BURLEY's chest. BURLEY lets out a long, agonizing, deafening scream of anguish. He arches backwards and wails louder and louder. TORRENCE watches, frozen with fear. BURLEY topples backwards, still screaming. He wiggles and twitches on the ground as his hideous screech slowly softens. After a moment, this evil BURLEY begins to spew a variety of white, red, and green liquids, drenching its tattered uniform in a rainbow of gore. Both VICMAN and TORRENCE pause for a moment as BURLEY lets out his final gurgles. Neither soldier seems willing to take any chances. TORRENCE is the first to take a cautious step forward. VICMAN doesn't move, but keep his handgun aimed squarely at BURLEY's body. TORRENCE takes another step forward. He pauses as a yellow puss begins to ooze out of BURLEY's ear. He cautiously leans forward. VICMAN nervously takes a step forward. BURLEY suddenly jumps to his feet. His entrails tumble out of the wound in his belly as he staggers forward. With his only arm left, BURLEY reaches out for TORRENCE, who is closest. VICMAN fires off three rounds with his handgun, all of which strike BURLEY. Unfortunately, the monster lumbers forward, undaunted. In an instant, TORRENCE delivers a punishing kick square in the middle of this evil, rabid BURLEY's chest. BURLEY is sent flying backwards. TORRENCE sprints towards him. Just as BURLEY lifts his head, TORRENCE crushes down on it with the heel of his boot. The veteran soldier jumps on top of the creature knee first, pinning it to the ground. BURLEY squirms beneath him. Out of breath and in dreadful pain, VICMAN watches from a distance. TORRENCE reaches down and pulls up a handful of BURLEY's intestines. Using them as a rope, he proceeds to try and strangle BURLEY. He flails about wildly, but doesn't seem to tire in the least. He is, at least, subdued. VICMAN (out of breath) You can't... you can't kill him. TORRENCE Vicman, this isn't Buff. TORRENCE starts to pull on the intestines harder while VICMAN tries to find the strength to speak. TORRENCE, on the other hand, feels the need to argue his case. TORRENCE Something did this to him. Something bad. If we don't kill this thing then it's gonna kill us! VICMAN (in serious pain) No. I mean... these things won't die. You can't kill them, sir. After a moment to contemplate the thought, TORRENCE pulls harder on the intestines. Now, he's really upset. He starts to tie a knot in the intestine wrapped around BURLEY's neck. VICMAN Sir? TORRENCE pays no attention to the wounded soldier as grabs the intestines from the other side. Like a rope, he throws them up and around a branch hanging above. He pulls down on the intestine with all his weight, causing BURLEY to be dragged up off the ground and hanging by his neck and his gut. VICMAN cringes at the gory scene. The creature struggles, but is trapped. TORRENCE wraps the intestine around the trunk of tree and secures it. BURLEY is left hanging. TORRENCE runs over beside VICMAN. The MAJOR motions to look at VICMAN's wounds, but the young soldiers pulls away. VICMAN It feels fine. TORRENCE gives VICMAN a look of disbelief. VICMAN weakly points over at BURLEY, growling and snarling as he sways in the breeze. VICMAN Let's get out of here, first. There is a pause, and then TORRENCE nods. He starts leading the way deeper into the forest, towards the satellite. VICMAN follows, clearly in a world of hurt. BURLEY screams louder and louder, and he only tangles himself more. Lucky for him, however, is that his arm is slowly snaking it's way in the same direction as the soldiers. BACK TO: EXT. FOREST - HEAVY BRUSH - LATER The two soldiers run deeper and deeper into the forest. The brush is incredibly thick, and very little moonlight penetrates through. The darkness makes charging through such rough terrain even more treacherous. TORRENCE gallops along at a swift pace, but he pauses occasionally to let VICMAN catch up. The young soldier hobbles along at a modest pace, but he is obviously quite ill. It's difficult to determine just how long he'll last. They are closely being followed by BURLEY's arm. It slithers through the grass like a snake, pushing itself along with it's fingers. Torn muscles and chunks of gore trail out the severed end, which causes the arm to leave a bloody trail behind it. BURLEY's arm moves incredibly fast. The two soldiers run out through a clearing, towards a long slope. CUT TO: EXT. FOREST - CLEAR, GRASSY HILL The two soldiers find themselves at the top of a massive hill, overlooking the river at the bottom. For once the soldiers seem to be headed in the right direction. The hill appears soft, with no large rocks or trees in the way should they happen to fall down. From their current position, it's an absolutely gorgeous view, complete with a full moon. The cloudless sky is a massive canvas, painted with thousands of tiny stars. Unfortunately, these two soldiers can't afford to stop and gape at the sky. TORRENCE continues to charge forward, but VICMAN moves more slowly with each passing step. Blood gushes out of his wounds. Exhausted, he eventually collapses onto the ground, his face in total agony. TORRENCE stops and turns back to VICMAN. The MAJOR hesitates for a moment, considering abandoning the injured soldier. VICMAN crouches on the ground, cradling his wounded hand. The expression on his face is one of complete, utter misery. TORRENCE exhales deeply and walks over to towards VICMAN. VICMAN Alright, it's starting to hurt now. TORRENCE digs into his pocket and pulls out a small vial of pills. He spins off the lid and knocks two tiny yellow pills into his hand. TORRENCE (handing the pills to VICMAN) Here, these will make you feel better. Take two. TORRENCE glances down at VICMAN's bloody hand, wrapped in his jacket. It's sitting in a pool of warm blood, which pours out of the wounds like oil from a grounded tanker. TORRENCE takes a moment, and then knocks two more pills into his palm. He hands them to VICMAN. TORRENCE On second thought, take four. VICMAN swallows the pills, then rests his head against the ground. TORRENCE rolls his eyes, anxious to keep moving. VICMAN slowly starts to breath deeper, and the pills seem to be effective. A soothing calm slowly passes over VICMAN's face. TORRENCE crouches down beside him, examining VICMAN's wounded hand. VICMAN (pained) I can't feel my hand. TORRENCE Let me see it. VICMAN can barely move his arm. His eyes begin to flutter. TORRENCE begins to slap VICMAN on the side of the face. TORRENCE (impatient) Come on, Vicman, stay with me. VICMAN's eyes shoot open, and the MAJOR stops hitting him. VICMAN I never liked Buff, sir. TORRENCE It wasn't Buff that did this to you, Private. Now let's see that wound. VICMAN tries to lift his wounded arm up off the ground with his good hand. He props the wounded limb on his knee. The jacket which is used as a bandage is thoroughly soaked in blood. TORRENCE leans forward and slowly starts to peel the jacket off. The gooey gore makes the material stick together, and very difficult to handle delicately. He pulls off two layers, exposing skin. A sudden spurt of blood from the wounded hand splatters in TORRENCE's face. He reaches down with his hand to cover the wound. VICMAN reacts instantly, screaming in excruciating pain. BACK TO: EXT. BASE CAMP The possessed BURLEY howls and shrieks with equal vigor as he finds himself trapped against a tree, entangled in a web of his own intestines. He pushes his body backwards and forwards, desperately trying to free himself. He thrust his body so hard that his neck snaps, and his head flops over to one side. This only infuriates BURLEY more. As he struggles, one of the intestines wrapped around an overhanging branch begins to give way. BURLEY wails in agony as the intestine stretches and slowly begins to rip, causing a green slime to pour from the wounds. BURLEY screams harder and harder as the tear gets larger and larger. Finally, the intestine seems stretched as far as it will go... It snaps suddenly, and BURLEY is sent crashing to the ground. His body shoots up off the ground, and he howls. His head still hangs off to one side, but it doesn't seem to be in any danger of falling off. His intestine is still wrapped tightly around his neck. Now, BURLEY seems considerably more hairy than he had previously looked, his teeth are much bigger and sharper, and his remaining hand appears to have taken on the appearance of a claw. It's almost as if this undead soldier were slowly mutating into one of the creatures he was bitten by. BURLEY lets out a fierce growl before gathering up his intestines and starting to walk off. This creature looks tough. What he fails to notice, however, is that one of his dangling intestines is still caught on a branch in the tree. As this beast starts to wander off into the woods, he is suddenly sent flying backwards, and the entangled intestine snags on the branch. As BURLEY lands on his back, he arches his back as far as it will go and howls at the full moon. It sounds similar to a coyote howl, but is much deeper and infinitely more menacing. BACK TO: EXT. FOREST - GREEN, GRASSY HILL - LATER Both VICMAN and TORRENCE stop and look up at the sound of the howling. They pause briefly, but VICMAN looks especially terrified. TORRENCE sees this, then immediately tries to cover his own insecurities and look vigilant in front of the rookie soldier. TORRENCE turns his attention back to VICMAN's wounded hand. Although some red blood still spurts from the wounds, the bloody stump TORRENCE stares at is predominantly green, and almost seems to be glowing. What remains of VICMAN's gnarled hand limply dangles from his wrist by a pathetic bit of muscle and skin. A green puss bubbles out of the stump, fizzling loudly. TORRENCE wipes his brow. His stomach is obviously churning. VICMAN sees this reaction. VICMAN It's bad, isn't it? TORRENCE It's not good. TORRENCE takes off his jacket and pulls an extra t-shirt out of his pocket. He tightly wraps it around the soldier's wound. VICMAN grabs TORRENCE by the collar and pulls him in closer. VICMAN (almost whispering) I'm not gonna make it, sir. TORRENCE rolls his eyes. VICMAN Leave me. You're not going to make it if you don't, sir. TORRENCE shows no expression on his face as he tugs tightly on the makeshift bandage. VICMAN cringes. TORRENCE can't keep from chuckling. TORRENCE You watch too many fucking war movies, kid. TORRENCE stands back up and looks down at the rookie soldier. TORRENCE You're not allowed to die without my permission, soldier. Now get on your feet. VICMAN (in agony) I'm hurt, Torrence. I'm hurt real bad. TORRENCE We'll all be in a world of hurt if we don't reach our target. (beat) This isn't a one-man mission, Vicman, and I can't do this without you. TORRENCE leans forward and helps VICMAN stand up. TORRENCE pulls a roll of duct tape out of his pocket and begins to wrap it around the bandaged hand. VICMAN looks extremely upset. TORRENCE Cheer up, Private. You'll get a pension outta this. Suddenly, a razor-sharp claw bursts out of the stump in VICMAN's hand. The appendage looks almost insect-like, except for all the hair protruding from it. It only has three chubby digits, but there are also two small stumps that have not yet developed. VICMAN lets out a sharp scream and falls to the ground. TORRENCE watches in horror as the wounded hand oozes and pulses as this claw pushes it's way through a thick membrane and out into the open. The more this hand squirms, the louder VICMAN screams. This creature-hand begins to shake more and more violently, until it stops abruptly and VICMAN passes out. TORRENCE gapes down at the wounded soldier. TORRENCE Vicman? (louder) Vicman! Hesitant, TORRENCE kicks at VICMAN's monster-hand with his boot. It doesn't react. TORRENCE watches as the green glow seems to slowly be rising up VICMAN's arms, through his veins. TORRENCE's attention is suddenly diverted when he hears something rustling in the bushes behind him. He turns and looks, but sees nothing there. However, he doesn't wait long to find out if he's right. Now, the MAJOR is really terrified. TORRENCE bends down and picks up VICMAN, fireman-style. With the rookie soldier slumped over his shoulder like a bag of potatoes, TORRENCE begins to walk off further into the forest, in the direction of the satellite. The soldier walks proudly along the top of this hill, with his wounded brother slung over his shoulder. Were this shot captured as a photograph, it isn't difficult to conceive it becoming a postage stamp. TORRENCE looks like an indestructible soldier. That is, until BURLEY's severed arm grabs hold of the MAJOR's boot. The bloody arm tightly clenches around TORRENCE's foot, and he is sent flying forwards over the hill. Both he and VICMAN land with a thump, and are sent tumbling down the hill. Grasses and bushes continually swat the two soldiers in the face as they roll down this very long hill. TORRENCE lets out a few whines as his body collides with the ground, but VICMAN remains unconscious. VICMAN and TORRENCE tumble further and further down the hill, until they eventually reach the bottom, directly beside the river. CUT TO: EXT. FOREST - RIVER The two soldiers tumble down at an incredible speed, eventually coming to rest in the mud beside the river. The river's current must be quite strong, because the water rushes by at an incredible rate. The entire area is circled by massive trees with enormous branches that hang over the water. The trees almost seem to be stretching down towards the soldiers. TORRENCE is the first to shake himself out of his stupor. He begins to rub his back, as obviously the fall has caused him a great deal of pain. As he tries to get to his feet, he looks like a feeble bed-ridden senior trying to reach the bathroom in time. The veteran soldier looks over at VICMAN, and sees that the young grunt is still face down in the mud. In all likelihood, VICMAN is dead. TORRENCE begins to drag his body closer to VICMAN's. Neither of the MAJOR's legs seem to be working perfectly well, but at least TORRENCE can seem to hobble around. TORRENCE rolls VICMAN onto his back and begins to shake him. The rookie soldier's stomach still moves, so there is a chance he's still alive. TORRENCE Vicman? (beat) Vicman? There is no response from VICMAN. TORRENCE starts to shake his head in disbelief. Now, it appears as though he's the only one left standing. This is definitely not a position that TORRENCE wanted to find himself in. As TORRENCE looks up, something catches his eye. It almost looks as though something is coming towards them. Something relatively small, about the size of a cat. It's slithering closer and closer, but the grass is much too thick to be able to discern exactly what it is. TORRENCE focuses his eyes as the creature slowly approaches a clearing in the grass. BURLEY's bloody, severed hand comes bounding out of the grass, pushing itself with its fingers closer to the two soldiers. TORRENCE gapes in astonishment. TORRENCE You've got to be fucking kidding me. BURLEY's arm begins picking up speed, racing faster and faster towards TORRENCE. The veteran soldier needs only a split-second to ponder his fate, then he whips out his handgun and begins firing towards the arm. It doesn't stop, but it is forced to slow down considerably. It's at that point that TORRENCE slams down with his boot, pinning the arm underneath. The severed appendage squirms with incredible force as it tries to free itself. TORRENCE begins to have trouble keeping his balance atop it. This momentary weakness is enough for to give BURLEY's hand the opportunity to clasp it's fingers around his foot. The arm then begins to pull itself up TORRENCE's leg at an incredibly swift rate, knocking the veteran soldier over. Just as TORRENCE hits the ground, BURLEY's arm wraps it's fingers around the MAJOR's crotch and squeezes. TORRENCE screams in pain. Without hesitation he begins punching at his own crotch, doing everything in his power to beat away BURLEY's arm. TORRENCE jumps to his feet and spins around, sending the arm flying off. It lands next to the water with a thud. TORRENCE immediately drops to his knees and starts massaging his testicles. He wails in pain like a little girl who fell off her bike. BURLEY's arm, meanwhile, starts crawling towards VICMAN's lifeless body. TORRENCE is on the verge of tears. BURLEY's arm inches its way closer and closer to VICMAN. Coming up from behind, it seems prepared to wrap its fingers around VICMAN's leg. TORRENCE barely notices, he's too busy suffering. VICMAN's wounded arm slowly seems to be turning a very dark green, almost black. The claw-like appendage also seems to be growing bigger, moving up along VICMAN's infection. BURLEY's arm slowly grabs hold of VICMAN's leg, and then digs in its claws with full force. VICMAN jumps up with a scream. TORRENCE immediately turns to face him. He looks just in time to see VICMAN dragged into the water by BURLEY's arm. TORRENCE fights off the pain in his crotch and jumps to his feet. He runs over towards VICMAN's body and begins to try and pull him back onto the land. It's a ghoulish game of tug of war between this veteran soldier and a severed arm, with VICMAN's body used as the rope. VICMAN's screams alternate between wails of agony and mere gurgles as he is continually pulled back into the water. TORRENCE slowly starts to lose his grip, as the gore covering VICMAN's arms makes keeping hold very difficult. TORRENCE is eventually knocked backwards, and VICMAN is dragged into the river. Without hesitation, TORRENCE dives into the water after him. The depth of the water at this level is pretty substantial, but there are still plenty of jagged rocks marking to landscape to end the military careers of these soldiers quick. The water is also moving very fast, and both soldiers find themselves swept up in the current. TORRENCE pushes himself underwater towards VICMAN. From this perspective he can see that BURLEY's arm has a firm grip on VICMAN's leg, and seems to be dragging him down the river. TORRENCE uses his arms to swim faster and faster, approaching the wounded soldier as quickly as he can. BURLEY's arm seems to be aware of TORRENCE on his tail, and begins to squirm harder in an attempt to move faster. It doesn't seem to be working terribly well, as a full human body is much easier to maneuver underwater than a mere severed arm. TORRENCE kicks his feet with all his strength, until he finds himself right beside VICMAN. VICMAN tries to scream, and water starts to fill his lungs. TORRENCE grabs BURLEY's arm and pulls. The arm won't let go of its grip, and the harder TORRENCE seems to pull on it, the more VICMAN seems to squirm. Time is quickly running out. TORRENCE then immediately grabs hold of the muscles and tendons trailing out from behind BURLEY's severed arm. TORRENCE tugs on them, pulling BURLEY's fingers backwards. The arm loses it's grip on VICMAN. TORRENCE keeps his fist tightly clenched around the tendons in BURLEY's arms as he pulls himself and VICMAN up to the surface of the water. Both soldiers gag loudly, gasping for air as they reach the surface. They are both wildly knocked about as they find themselves caught in the river's rapid current. VICMAN starts coughing up water, loudly and painfully. TORRENCE seems to be struggling even harder, trying to keep his head above water, one arm wrapped around VICMAN, and the other hand tightly clenched around BURLEY's arm. A number of branches and logs reach out from the banks of the river into the water. Both soldiers suddenly smash into the side of one, stopping them from moving any further down the river. TORRENCE throws his arm up to get a better grip of the log. In the confusion, BURLEY's arm manages to free itself, and it dives back into the water. VICMAN fails to notice it, using every bit of his strength to climb on top of the log. This soldier is definitely not in good shape. TORRENCE cranes his neck from side to side, looking for any sign of BURLEY's arm. The rushing water, the howling wind, and the darkness all make this a nearly impossible task. TORRENCE starts to use the log to pull himself closer to the edge of the river. The swift current makes movement of any kind rough going. Confident that the log is secure, TORRENCE turns to VICMAN and taps his shoulder. TORRENCE motions for them to move along this log until they reach the shore. Low on strength, VICMAN nods limply. Suddenly, TORRENCE finds himself strangled from behind. BURLEY's arm has managed to come up behind the veteran soldier and wrap it's fingers around the MAJOR's neck. The arm begins to pull TORRENCE's head backwards into the water. TORRENCE tries to scream, but instead takes in a mouth full of water. He flails about, trying to shake off this beast. Every time he tries to reach for BURLEY's arm, he verges on losing his grip on the log. The more TORRENCE struggles, the harder BURLEY's arm tries to drag the veteran soldier under the water. A groggy VICMAN watches as these events unfold, but is having enough trouble just trying to remain conscious. TORRENCE is pulled underwater, beneath the log. Terrified, he makes one last, desperate attempt to save his own life. Using what little strength the MAJOR has remaining, he wraps both arms around the log and pulls his head up out of the water. He gasps for breath before wailing in pain. A few mere feet away, VICMAN watches. In a sudden burst of adrenaline, VICMAN reaches forward with his good hand and rips BURLEY's arm off the back of TORRENCE's neck. The MAJOR lets out a very loud scream as the arm takes a clump of hair and skin with it. VICMAN takes BURLEY's arm, then with all the force he can muster he slams it against the log, impaling the bloody appendage on a small branch. The squirms and shakes violently, but is obviously trapped. Both soldiers take a moment to compose themselves while BURLEY's arm struggles to free itself. TORRENCE gives VICMAN a nod of appreciation, and VICMAN responds by saluting the MAJOR. TORRENCE nearly cracks a smile. Suddenly, the log snaps in two. BURLEY's arm remains firmly stuck on the half of the log still grounded in the riverbed, while VICMAN and TORRENCE are sent flying further down the water. It almost seems as though the current has picked up, as the two soldiers quickly pick up speed. They are tossed back and forth like rag dolls in a washing machine. Still tightly clinging to the log, the soldiers are in danger of smashing against the giant, jagged rocks dotting the river. The soldiers narrowly miss one, but quickly smash head first into a small boulder directly in front of them. The log they were holding again snaps in two. VICMAN and TORRENCE are sent flying out in opposite directions. VICMAN is headed directly for a small beach, while TORRENCE is aimed directly at a clump of dead trees that have fallen to one side into the water. TORRENCE hits the trees with tremendous impact, his arms horribly scratched by the dozens of dead branches he runs into. TORRENCE curls up as best he can, avoiding injury, then crashes into the muddy riverbank. He pulls himself out of the water, and his immediately begins to cough up blood. He has a wrenching fit of hacking, then slowly brings himself to his feet. He takes a moment to catch his breath, then looks over to the other side of the river, to try and catch a glimpse of VICMAN. VICMAN washes up onto a small beach on the other side. The sand is dirty, and the giant trees along it's edge stretch so high that this environment almost resembles a prison. VICMAN rolls onto the sand stomach-first, and weakly tries to lift himself up. His entire body trembles. A green, slimy goo covers his infected arm, and hair is starting to sprout. VICMAN starts heaving loudly, and eventually begins hacking up glowing green vomit. TORRENCE cringes. It isn't a pleasant sight. VICMAN seems to be gaining strength as his hacking fit comes to an end. He slowly brings himself to his feet. He shivers, but uses every ounce of effort to stand tall. He pulls a flashlight out of his pocket, turns it on, and points it in front of him. VICMAN (shouting) Sir? TORRENCE gives a sigh of relief. Before the MAJOR can respond, VICMAN turns behind him and finds that his flashlight is pointed directly at the evil BURLEY. This monster now has giant teeth, eyes that seem to glow red, is covered in a substantial amount of fur, and has massive claw-like hands. His head, however, is still slumped on his shoulder to one side. Suddenly, the stomach-turning sound of flesh being ripped open is met with an piercing scream from VICMAN. The beam from his flashlight turns red as blood is splattered against the ground and VICMAN thrashes about wildly. Something vicious and relentless is devouring VICMAN's body. TORRENCE watches in horror as the events unfold. VICMAN lets outs a fierce, high-pitched scream. BURLEY raises his enormous claw above VICMAN's head, and buries two of his razor-sharp fingers into VICMAN's eye sockets. He wails in agony as putrid gore oozes out from his skull. BURLEY then wraps his hand around VICMAN's face and squeezes tightly. He literally rips the skin right off of VICMAN's skull. All that remains are a few hunks of muscle clinging to his blooded, still screaming skull. BURLEY starts to shovel VICMAN's guts into his mouth, savoring the taste. TORRENCE (screaming) Vicman! BURLEY looks over at the sound of TORRENCE's voice, then throws VICMAN against the ground. The monster's head flops about wildly as he moves, but he appears deadly serious as he approaches TORRENCE. Suddenly, VICMAN erupts into flames. He lets out a final, pitiful scream as his body twitches and spasms in the flames. VICMAN eventually manages to get back onto his feet, and begins to run about madly around the beach. Engulfed in flames, he eventually collapses into the water. The evil BURLEY is oblivious to all of this, and just charges forward straight towards TORRENCE. Entrails dangle out of the wound in the creature's belly and drag along the ground. A look of panic covers TORRENCE's face. He immediately turns and starts to run away from the river. The embankment is quite steep, and the MAJOR seems to be having a tremendously difficult time making his way up it. Meanwhile, BURLEY seems to have no trouble walking through the water, from one side of the river to the other. The raging currents don't seem to affect the beast, and he swiftly walks closer and closer. TORRENCE struggles to get onto level ground. He pulls with his hands and pushes with his legs, moving himself as fast as possible. BURLEY continues to move faster, now almost within an arm's reach of TORRENCE's foot. Suddenly, BURLEY is knocked backwards. One of his intestines had become entangled in the dead branches. TORRENCE uses this opportunity to climb as quickly as possible up onto level ground. He quickly finds himself back in the heavy brush of the dark forest. CUT TO: EXT. FOREST - HEAVY BRUSH TORRENCE pushes himself through the thick woods as fast as his two legs will carry him. The expression on his face is one of pure terror, as he literally runs for his life. His breathing grows harder and faster. Loose branches and leaves brush against his body as he dashes past them. He doesn't even look back to see how closely the evil BURLEY is following. TORRENCE simply runs, with more fury than he ever thought himself capable of. TORRENCE pushes himself deeper and deeper into the forest. The further he runs, the trees seem to become larger, thicker, and more numerous. Running at full speed through such terrain is clearly treacherous. BACK TO: INT. MILITARY BASE - RADIO ROOM The OPERATOR stands in front of a massive radar screen, and he stares intently at a handful of tiny green blips. GENERAL TURGIDSON stands over his shoulder, rubbing the back of his neck and sweating profusely. Whatever those blips mean, it can't be good. TURGIDSON Still no luck with the radio? OPERATOR Negative, sir. We have lost all radio contact, sir. TURGIDSON wipes the sweat off of his brow. He stretches his neck around as he loosens his tie. Doing so, he notices one of the shadowy military officials walking towards him. TURGIDSON hangs his head as this EXECUTIVE OFFICER comes closer. A tall, muscular man, he looks far too shined and polished to have ever experienced combat. He stands in front of TURGIDSON and glares at the GENERAL's face. EXECUTIVE OFFICER There's something we need to discuss, General. TURGIDSON Do you think this could wait, son? Things are pretty tense right now, I don't need somebody tugging at my balls. TURGIDSON moves to start walking away, but the EXECUTIVE OFFICER grabs his arm. He pulls the GENERAL in closer. EXECUTIVE OFFICER We have a contingency plan, General, which should have been our primary initiative. TURGIDSON starts pulling the EXECUTIVE OFFICER aside, and starts to speak in a hushed voice. Already most of the other officers in the room are giving the GENERAL weary looks. TURGIDSON's pride has been damaged, and there's nothing he hates more. This military is built on stern discipline and respect, and there can be no discipline without respect. TURGIDSON (angry) Those are my men out there in the field... EXECUTIVE OFFICER And they've all fucked up royally. That's why nepotism is frowned on by this military, General. (softer) We know Torrence was your son. TURGIDSON looks furious. His burning stare into the EXECUTIVE OFFICER's face looks painful. The vein on the top of the GENERAL's forehead begins to pulsate. The EXECUTIVE OFFICER pulls an envelope out of his pocket. The large envelope is blank, except for the words "CLASSIFIED" stamped across the front. It is firmly sealed. The EXECUTIVE OFFICER shoves the envelope into TURGIDSON's hands. EXECUTIVE OFFICER There's a very simple solution, General. It's called following orders. Understood? TURGIDSON looks down at the envelope in his hands. He looks absolutely furious. He doesn't bother to look back up at the EXECUTIVE OFFICER, as he is liable to punch him in the face. BACK TO: INT. MILITARY BASE - HALLWAY - LATER GENERAL TURGIDSON walks down the hallway towards his office. He appears to be incredibly upset that steam nearly spouts from his ears. Were anyone to cross him now, they would surely die a very swift death. TURGIDSON has rage issues, obviously. The MPs along the hallway salute the GENERAL as he passes, but TURGIDSON pays them no attention. He barges through the door to his office, very nearly shattering it. INT. GENERAL TURGIDSON'S OFFICE The GENERAL drops into his chair, and immediately begins massaging his temples. He stares at the envelope on his desk. He doesn't even need to open it to know exactly what it means. Before opening the envelope, TURGIDSON pulls the blotter off of his desk, revealing a secret compartment that slides open. It reveals a thick stainless-steel door protected by a lock. TURGIDSON then pulls a small key out of his pocket, which fits snugly into it. He opens it up to reveal a small control panel. This panel consists of a tiny sonar map, and few dials, and a keyboard. To one side are three large red buttons, each protected by a plastic casing. TURGIDSON reaches into the panel, and begins flicking one of the plastic casings back and forth. After a moment, he stops and rubs his chin. He reaches forward and picks up the envelope containing the classified information. GENERAL TURGIDSON undoes the top button of his uniform, then proceeds to open the envelope. BACK TO: EXT. FOREST - HEAVY BRUSH TORRENCE keeps running, harder and faster than he's ever pushed his tired old body before. The expression on his face is one of pure anguish, but he continues to move quicker and quicker through dangerous terrain. His muscles must obviously ache under such incredible strain. Even as TORRENCE fights to runner harder, he is still trapped. There is absolutely nowhere in this forest for him to go. He is truly, be all accounts, trapped. After running for quite some time, it is relatively safe to assume that TORRENCE is somewhat safe. Massive trees surround him, and their branches stretch out above him. The MAJOR is deep in the heart of a very dark, dense forest. He slows down, taking in his surroundings. There seems to be something tucked away in the shadows in front of him, about fifty yards away. A small, rocky outcropping, it appears to be some sort of cave. TORRENCE walks up closer to it. As he approaches, he can see that it is indeed a small cavern, the perfect size for someone to hide inside. It is well protected. At the mouth of the cave sit a number branches, each one long and sturdy. As TORRENCE runs into the cave, he picks up three of the long wooden branches, any of which would make perfect walking sticks. He takes a moment to examine them, then wanders inside, despite the total darkness. CUT TO: I/E. CAVE It is cold and damp inside the cave. Small puddles of rain water have formed on the rocky floor. There is almost no light. TORRENCE turns around to see that the cave stretches back for quite a bit, and that the MAJOR could walk much deeper inside if he were so inclined. Curious, he takes a few steps into the cave. Suddenly, something catches his eye. Just off to his left, a few yards deeper in the cave. It rests just above his head. As TORRENCE walks towards it, his suspicions are confirmed - there is indeed some light coming in from a hole in the cave wall. The MAJOR walks up to it and peers his head out of the hole. Initially, all that the MAJOR can see from this perspective are lots and lots of trees, rocks, and dense foliage. As everything sways in the breeze, however, something catches his eye. Something that almost looks like a flashing red light. TORRENCE tries to look harder, and then finally he sees it. His eyes light up suddenly. Beyond the cave, sitting high atop a rocky cliff some hundred yards away, rests the satellite TORRENCE was sent to recover. It is difficult to clearly make out from this vantage point, it is undoubtedly the satellite. A massive, hulking metal object, it seems to have been badly damaged in the fall to Earth. The metal casing has been scorched, dented, and smashed in every conceivable fashion. Some of the instrument lights along the side, however, still function, namely the flashing, bright red beacon light on the side of the machine. A smile passes over the MAJOR's face as he stares at his prize. At last it looks like his mission is nearing a close. Suddenly, however, TORRENCE hears the sound of a distant howl, closely followed by some vicious growling. TORRENCE quickly takes a seat on the cave floor. The excitement drains from his expression, quickly replaced a look of absolute panic. He may have found the satellite, but TORRENCE is still in unspeakable danger. A cold sweat rains down from the MAJOR's forehead. The soldier takes a few moments to catch his breath. It is quite obvious from his demeanor that if given the choice, he would give up this very instance. He is clearly very scared. He glances over his shoulder one last time, to reassure himself that the satellite is within his grasp. He sighs deeply, then looks back down at the cave floor. TORRENCE picks up one of the branches he found at the mouth of the cave. He examines it for a moment, then pulls his hunting knife out of his boot. He begins to scrape off the end of the branch with his knife, carving it into a sharp point. Very quickly the MAJOR finds himself with a spear in his hands. He holds it up once to check the weight. It seems as though it would be easy enough to throw. The soldier works steadily to have these spears ready for action. He lovingly works on three different sticks, ensuring each is carved to an accurate, deadly perfection. BACK TO: EXT. FOREST - HEAVY BRUSH - LATER The MAJOR cautiously walks out of the cave. He quickly surveys the entire area around him. It seems safe enough, but he's been surprised too many times to take that chance. He's careful to remain absolutely quiet, but still he hears nothing. There seems to be no movement in any of the trees that surround him. TORRENCE wields his spear in front of him as he takes a few steps forward. For the moment, it would appear as though the MAJOR is safe. There is definitely something uneasy about watching TORRENCE walk through the forest. He seems very unsure of himself. In fact, he even seems scared. This man is a trained killing machine, and he's been taught how to proceed in situations like this without fear. However, in this instance the MAJOR's hands tremble as he inches his way through the woods. TORRENCE resembles a scared teenage girl in a bad slasher movie, not a tough-as-nails soldier. The veteran soldier makes loud thuds as he plunders through the forest, his heavy army boots crushing twigs, leaves, and brush. As his feet being to grow weary, TORRENCE notices what appears to be a small ravine sloping down his side. It leads down to a sheer rock wall, far too steep to climb. A number of sturdy branches protrude from the rock. The ravine is well protected by very dense foliage, which would make it a perfect place to hide. TORRENCE slows his pace down as he approaches it. Suddenly, there is a noise behind TORRENCE. It sounds like leaves rustling, but it is accompanied by a very deep, low growl. TORRENCE doesn't stop running, but turns his head back to look for any sign that he's being followed. Sweat pours down TORRENCE's face, and as he desperately tries to catch a glimpse of his stalkers, he neglects to keep a close eye on his footing. Suddenly, TORRENCE's right boot slips on a small section of mud, causing the soldier to fall and tumble down a small slope. As he loses his balance, the three spears in his hands go flying up into the air, and crash onto to ground. The soldier moves further and further away from his weapons the more he falls. CUT TO: EXT. FOREST - SMALL RAVINE TORRENCE seems to tumble for hours. He lands in a pile of dried leaves at the base of the hill. His head hits the ground with a thump, and the wind is temporarily knocked out of him. Here at the base of the ravine, there are plenty of leaves and branches to hide the MAJOR from view. Just to be safe, TORRENCE pulls himself under a large log just off to one side. Sprawled out on the earthen floor, this soldier looks like he's in a world of hurt. TORRENCE (to himself) I can't do this. TORRENCE bites his lip as he fights through the pain. He exhales deeply, staring up at the stars. As he ponders his fate, his mind is suddenly filled with voices of self-doubt, an audio retrospective of TORRENCE's cowardly actions. SOLDIER (voice over) Torrence, you open fire on that target now, God dammit! That's an order! TURGIDSON (voice over) The Hill 357 episode is the worst case of cowardice I've ever seen. VICMAN (voice over) You're a fucking coward! SOLDIER (voice over) Major, you've been ordered by a superior officer to open fire! What the hell are you waiting for? TURGIDSON (voice over) No son of mine would be such a yellow sissy coward. SOLDIER (voice over) What, are you fucking scared? Soldier, you are a disgrace! You will be court marshaled for this! VICMAN (voice over) You're a fucking coward! TURGIDSON (voice over) ...a yellow sissy coward. Within moments, the MAJOR is reinvigorated. He rises to his feet with a determined look in his eyes, as this old soldier now has something to prove. He pulls a map and satellite coordinates out of his pocket and begins to examine them. He then pulls out a small compass, and holds it in his hand. This is one occasion when TORRENCE isn't running away from danger. The MAJOR is determined to complete this mission and destroy the satellite. TORRENCE puts everything back into his pockets. He pauses briefly to take in his surroundings. He wipes his mouth with the top of his hand, then looks up the hill. He squints so much his eyes are nearly closed, focused like a hawk. His nostrils flare as he takes in a breath of the stale, bitter air. It smells of death. The MAJOR clears his throat, then begins climbing back up the slope. Although the incline is not very steep, the terrain is awfully muddy. TORRENCE tightly grips onto the surrounding trees and branches, desperately trying to pull himself out of this hole. Finally he reaches the top, and finds himself back on level ground in the dense forest. TORRENCE also finds himself face to-face with the charred remains of VICMAN. He is now a truly hideous monster. Nothing more than a charred, still smoking skeleton, with large, gory chunks of flesh and tissue still tightly clinging to VICMAN's bones. His body makes sizzling noises every time he moves, and what little skin remains on his arms seems to bubble and boil. Crisp pieces of VICMAN's uniform have melted themselves onto his corpse. VICMAN's face is especially terrifying: little more than a mere skull, somewhat resembling Freddy Krueger, but much more scarred and decrepit. His teeth are massive, slimy fangs, clearly capable of chomping a can of dog food in two. VICMAN has no eyeballs left, just gaping sockets that glow a fierce red. VICMAN lets out a low, mischievous growl as TORRENCE looks on, shocked. VICMAN raises his bony arms and pushes the MAJOR back down into the ravine. The veteran soldier's body smashes against logs, bushes, and branches before coming to rest on the muddy floor below. He collapses on his stomach. VICMAN leaps six feet into the air. He lands on his feet in the ravine, directly beside TORRENCE. Without hesitation, the undead VICMAN grabs the MAJOR's back with two hands and with all his force flings him up against the rock wall. TORRENCE drops to his knees and begins coughing up blood. VICMAN slowly walks up to him, almost taunting the wounded MAJOR. This monster emits a low snarl that sounds very much like fiendish, demonic laughter. He bends down and grabs hold of TORRENCE by the chest, and lifts him up off the ground. VICMAN's hands begin to sizzle and smoke, and TORRENCE lets out a painful, wailing scream. VICMAN pushes against the soldier even harder, and his skeletal hands seem to be burning TORRENCE's flesh upon contact. The sound of human flesh being cooked is spine-tingling. Screaming in agony, TORRENCE reaches into his boot and pulls out a hunting knife. With little energy and even less room to maneuver, TORRENCE somehow manages to free his arm and bury the knife into what remains of VICMAN's chest. As soon as the blade pierces the skin, a bright orange slime begins to spew from the wound. Drops of the stuff pour onto the ground, landing with a hiss and instantly charring any grass or leaves that lay there. VICMAN looks down at the wound, then back up at TORRENCE. This time VICMAN is most definitely laughing, maniacally and viciously. TORRENCE continues to screech in pain, flailing his arms about wildly. His fingers brush past the branches hanging above him. He struggles to grab hold of one of them. VICMAN's jaw stretches wide open, and he starts leaning forward to bite the MAJOR. Finally TORRENCE gets his fingers around a long, thin branch directly above him. As VICMAN moves in closer, TORRENCE snaps the twig off and jams it into the creature's eye socket. It doesn't seem to cause VICMAN any pain, but TORRENCE is able to use it to push him backwards. As TORRENCE pushes harder, VICMAN is forced to release his grip on the soldier. TORRENCE exploits this moment of weakness by delivering a crushing, lightening fast kick to VICMAN's chest. The monster topples backwards, and as it crashes onto its back, it makes a sound like a full box of chalk spilling onto the floor. With VICMAN down, TORRENCE tries to run right over top of him and off into the forest. Unfortunately, VICMAN tightly grabs onto the MAJOR's foot before he can escape. TORRENCE can feel the monster's long, sharp claws digging into his skin. He is forced to grab the nearest available object, in this case a small log resting in a heap of leaves. As the monster stretches it's jaw wider and brings the soldier in closer for the kill, TORRENCE raises the log high above his head. TORRENCE brings the log crashing down against VICMAN's head. The impact immediately causes most of the front left side of this beast's skull to cave in. Immediately the wound begins gushing gore, in this case an orange, smouldering goo that resembles liquid magma. It sizzles as it bubbles over VICMAN's face. VICMAN reacts to the force of the hit, but it doesn't seem to slow him down or dissuade him. This creature still has his bony fingers clamped around the MAJOR's ankle. TORRENCE lifts the log over his head again, and this time smashes against VICMAN's arm. The blow strikes the undead monster in the elbow, knocking one of VICMAN's forearm bones out of joint. He immediately loses his grip on TORRENCE, who uses the opportunity to get a safe distance between himself and VICMAN. TORRENCE tries to run back up the slope, but he will clearly never make it in time. The footing is much too muddy and slippery, and the slope is simply too steep. VICMAN brings himself to his feet with a devilish chuckle. The monster starts to lift it's arms, motioning that it's prepared to attack. Terrified, TORRENCE starts swinging the log in his hands like a bat. He charges towards VICMAN, then at precisely the right moment swings the log and smashes into the beast. VICMAN sent flying backwards, crashing up against the rock wall. Not wasting a second, TORRENCE jumps over to a massive, overturned tree. This is the same giant log the MAJOR was resting under earlier. He gets behind it and begins to push. VICMAN starts to get back up to his feet. TORRENCE pushes harder and harder, channeling every ounce of strength in his body. Eventually, the log gives way and begins rolling straight towards VICMAN. It picks up more speed the further it rolls. VICMAN freezes as he sees the log coming straight for him. The log crashes into the rock wall, with VICMAN stuck in between. He is pinned just below the knees. The beast tries to shuffle his legs, but they are tightly jammed in there. VICMAN starts to squirm. He can't move. The monster is trapped. A wave of relief washes over TORRENCE's face. He cracks a smile as he turns back to the slope and starts to climb up it. The soldier pays no attention to VICMAN's snarling as he tries to pull himself to the top of the hill. He confidently makes his way out of the ravine and back up onto the level ground of the forest. Behind him, VICMAN continues to struggle with the log. He wrenches his body back and forth, trying to free himself. He continues to wail loudly, but it doesn't seem to be out of pain. BACK TO: EXT. FOREST - HEAVY BRUSH Once safely out of the ravine, TORRENCE begins to run off into the distance. He picks his spears up off the ground before dashing off into the woods. He hobbles slightly as he runs, obviously from having injured himself in his scrape with VICMAN. The soldier charges off into the woods as fast as his legs will carry him. BACK TO: EXT. FOREST - SMALL RAVINE VICMAN's wailing grows louder and louder as he tries to wrench he legs out from under the log. As his screeching gets worse, he begins to make sounds that no human could ever produce. VICMAN's skeletal legs slowly start to snap and crack. Slowly his left leg begins to separate at the knee. Any residue of muscle or tissue that was holding his leg together stretches and tears, causing gobs of orange gore to dribble out of the wound. VICMAN then throws his whole body forward, and starts putting all of his effort into getting his right leg to snap apart as well. He screams louder and louder, and slowly the bones in his leg start to give way. As VICMAN tries to pull himself away harder and harder, his leg starts to make a sound akin to a large tree toppling over. He tumbles forward when the leg finally snaps off, just above the knee. Without taking a moment to gather himself, VICMAN immediately begins to shuffle himself up the slope, after TORRENCE. BACK TO: EXT. FOREST - HEAVY BRUSH TORRENCE has been badly injured in the attack. He cannot run nearly as fast as he used to, as he is forced to hobble through the woods. To make matters worse, the terrain is more treacherous the further TORRENCE goes, and it is much too dark to make out where he's going. All TORRENCE can really see are the trees in front of him. Regardless, TORRENCE pushes himself as fast as he can. He is now dedicated to finishing his mission - he doesn't want to be labelled a coward anymore. He charges through the forest with a look of total vigilance, fighting through the pain that shoots through his whole body. The MAJOR starts to gasp for breath. He'll need to stop for a moment. He starts running towards the edge of cliff. Directly across from it lies TORRENCE's eventual destination - the satellite. CUT TO: EXT. EDGE OF FOREST - CLIFF The MAJOR runs towards the edge of cliff. The drop to the bottom seems to be at least fifty feet. This cliff looks out at the ocean, which stretches far out towards the horizon. The beach beneath the cliff is very rocky. At the moment, the entire area looks barren and lifeless. Directly across from TORRENCE's view rests another cliff, atop which sits the badly damaged satellite. Content that he's got a good lead on VICMAN, TORRENCE starts to slow down to catch his breath. This soldier is exhausted. TORRENCE turns his head when he hears what sounds like a low grumbling. He turns, and sees VICMAN standing some fifty feet behind him, bathed in a red glow. TORRENCE immediately twirls his entire body around, but VICMAN doesn't move. He simply stares, his gaping eye sockets glowing brightly, incapable of hiding their malevolence. VICMAN's legs have been ripped off at the knees, but he props himself up on the two stumps that remain. The front half of VICMAN's skull has caved in slightly, and glowing orange gore seeps out of the wounds. The two soldiers stand apart, gazing patiently at each other. Like a classic spaghetti western, this showdown will be a duel. TORRENCE's entire body stands taut as he slowly rubs his fingers just above the holster on his belt. He pulls aside his jacket, making the weapon more accessible. Blood still drips from VICMAN's claws as he stands completely still, his arms outstretched. TORRENCE's knife still protrudes from the evil VICMAN's chest. He pulls it out with his left hand and holds it in front of him, offensively. A foul green and black sludge drips down the blade. What little remains of VICMAN's upper lip starts to curl into a snarl, looking quite fierce. TORRENCE doesn't seem the least concerned, as his face tightens. He flexes the muscles in his hand, holding steady less than an inch from his gun. The evil VICMAN twirls the blade with his fingers. The tension mounts as they square off against each other, eagerly anticipating the other's attack. The evil VICMAN raises his arm, and TORRENCE instantly reacts. He pulls the pistol from its holster and fires. The bullet hits VICMAN square in the hand, which explodes in a burst of gore. The knife is sent flying, landing on the ground. The creature lets out a gut-wrenching scream, and TORRENCE fires again. This time, the bullet hits VICMAN's elbow, sending the latter half of his arm flying off while blood gushes from the stump. The evil VICMAN's nostrils flare up, glowing bright red, as he lets out a final scream. TORRENCE takes a brief but somber look at the soldier, now possessed by some horrible demon, then fires directly at the creature's head. The top half of VICMAN's skull is launched backwards, tumbling down the side of the cliff. Gobs of steaming, glowing orange gore spurt out of VICMAN's head. The ground is doused in this awful stuff, and as it lands it sounds like water hitting hot metal. VICMAN's body twitches as it falls to the ground, but quickly becomes lifeless. For a moment, TORRENCE doesn't move. The MAJOR wants to make absolutely sure that this creature is truly dead. He takes a step forward, then stops. He pauses a moment, then fires three more bullets into VICMAN's charred corpse. The body doesn't even flinch as the bullets bury themselves in VICMAN's chest. TORRENCE starts to slowly creep towards the corpse, which lies crumpled in a heap. The MAJOR grabs hold of one of his makeshift spears, and holds it out in front of him cautiously. TORRENCE walks right up beside VICMAN's body, which is still motionless. The MAJOR immediately presses down on VICMAN's neck with his spear, to pin the creature down in case it regains consciousness. He holds the spear tightly in place as he reaches down and picks his knife up off the ground. He places it back in it's sheath, strapped to his ankle. The MAJOR snickers loudly as he pokes at VICMAN's corpse. He pushes his spear into VICMAN's last remain eye socket, rattling it around the shattered skull, like an archeologist examining a smashed vase. It would seem as though VICMAN is now truly dead. Using his spear, TORRENCE lifts VICMAN's skeletal remains up off the ground. Dead or not, he's not going to take any chances. The MAJOR walks over to the very edge of the cliff, dangling VICMAN's corpse over the side. Suddenly, a low, deep groan bellows up out of VICMAN's chest. Whatever this malicious creature is, it's coming back to life. TORRENCE is immediately startled, and drops VICMAN's body over the cliff. The body makes a loud thud as it lands, but it falls in a clump of bushes, so TORRENCE never actually sees VICMAN's body make contact with the ground. TORRENCE uses his arm to wipe the sweat off his brow. He takes the spear in his hands and shoves it into the ground beneath his feet. He reaches into his jacket, pulls out a cigarillo, and places it between his teeth. He lights it, takes a few loving puffs, then looks over at the damaged satellite. It sits, waiting for TORRENCE to come destroy it. The MAJOR takes another puff of cigarillo, then starts walking towards it. Suddenly, TORRENCE falls flat on his face. He instantly flips over, and shudders when he sees what it is that he tripped over. Lying at his feet is a long, thin intestine. It obviously belongs to BURLEY. Without hesitation, TORRENCE jumps to his feet as his eyes follow the entrails. They lead to a very large tree. The MAJOR whips out his gun and keep aimed squarely at the tree. BURLEY then jumps out behind him. TORRENCE twirls around as the monster grabs him by the arm. The MAJOR hits BURLEY square in the jaw with the butt of his gun. The powerful blow knocks out one of the monster's fangs. Black slime gushes from the gap in BURLEY's teeth as the monster staggers backwards. It's head flops around this creature's shoulders, obviously the victim of a broken neck. TORRENCE turns and pulls the spear up out of the ground. He turns back to face BURLEY. The MAJOR holds his spear directly out in front of him, prepared for any attack. His nostrils flare. This is a battle the veteran soldier is determined to win, anxious to bravely complete his mission as ordered. With his uniform torn and smeared with gore, his muscular body covered in sweat, dirt, and blood, and his eyes blazing with ferocity, TORRENCE looks tough. BURLEY lets out a nerve-shattering shriek before leaping up into the air. He aims his legs directly forward, prepared to drive right into the MAJOR's chest. TORRENCE instantly jumps out of the way. As the monster comes crashing to the ground, TORRENCE spins around and tries to pin the beast to the floor with his spear. He misses, and BURLEY bats the MAJOR away with his forearm. TORRENCE is knocked backwards. Before the MAJOR has a chance to react, BURLEY grabs him by the throat. Even with only one arm remaining, BURLEY still seems a formidable foe. As TORRENCE is lifted up off the ground, he clings to the claw wrapped around his neck. BURLEY tilts his head in closer to take a bite. The MAJOR brings one of his hands down to the monster's gut. He feels his way around, gasping for breath. Warm drool dribbles out the corner of BURLEY's mouth. His face is almost pressed up right against the MAJOR's as this monster prepares to make a meal out of TORRENCE. The old soldier suddenly grabs hold of BURLEY's spine through the hole in his stomach. As TORRENCE literally chokes to death, he somehow manages to find the strength to give one swift pull. There is a snap, and BURLEY's entire body is sent crashing forward as the beast's body collapses on itself. TORRENCE falls onto his back, and BURLEY lands square on top of him. The two are knocked backwards, almost to the very edge of the cliff. This is a very precarious position, as falling over the side would surely mean an instant death. The MAJOR gasps for air as the monster flails about wildly. TORRENCE tries to push this beast off. BURLEY quickly arches his back as far as it will go, then rears his head backwards. It flops back at an impossible angle. He lets out a single, piercing howl, followed by a number of deep gurgles. Then, BURLEY tilts his head forward, and before TORRENCE has a second to react, the beast begins to spew a stream of thick, chunky sludge on the MAJOR's face. The green vomit this monster continues to churn up covers TORRENCE, seeping into his nose and throat. He tries to scream, struggling to free himself from BURLEY's grip. There is a sudden, blinding flash, and the sound of a gunshot. BURLEY is knocked backwards, revealing TORRENCE, still choking on the horrible slime. The MAJOR holds a gun at in his hand, as he obviously just fired into the monster's chest. TORRENCE immediately jumps to his feet and grabs his spear. He lunges it deep into BURLEY's chest. He pushes on the stick as hard as he possibly can. BURLEY roars loudly as the spear passes through his body and into the ground. The forest echoes the sounds of BURLEY's demonic, inhuman wails. TORRENCE continues to cough up the green vomit. BURLEY lies on the ground, twitching and squirming, his body pinned to the floor by the sharp staff running through his chest and into the soil beneath. The possessed soldier lets out a sharp, screeching squeal, but he won't be getting any sympathy from TORRENCE. The MAJOR wipes the green sludge off of his face in disgust. He looks down at this evil, horribly mutated version of BURLEY, and feels a strange mix of pity and repulsion. Not wanting to dwell upon his thoughts, he reaches down and picks up and handful of the monsters intestines. He finds a free end, and then walks over to a large tree by the side of the hillside. BURLEY twists about wildly, trying to free himself. He grabs onto the stick in his chest with his only good hand and slowly starts to pull it out. BURLEY seems to be having a great deal of difficulty maneuvering it. It must really be wedged in there good. The stick is completely covered in blood, and as it comes out a slimy green ooze bubbles up out of the wound. BURLEY howls loudly. TORRENCE rolls his eyes. With BURLEY pinned against the ground like this, he really doesn't pose much of a threat at all. TORRENCE takes the undead soldier's intestines and begins to wrap them around a sturdy branch on the tree. The MAJOR is careful to tie a double-knot, then tightly pulls on the entrails twice to ensure that they'll hold. Appearing secure, TORRENCE walks back over to BURLEY's body. BURLEY seems very close to having the stick in his chest completely removed. He pulls harder and harder, anxious to take care of TORRENCE once and for all. With a loud, single growl, BURLEY rips the stick out of his chest and jumps to his feet. He stands at the edge of the hill, with a sprawling nighttime vista behind him. He holds his one good hand out in front of him, waving his claws back and forth. He bares his teeth and snarls. This is exactly what TORRENCE was anticipating. He raises his leg up and delivers a lightening-fast kick to BURLEY's chest. The creature is sent flying up into the air, off the side of the cliff. He starts to tumble down the steep, rocky slope, his body hitting every conceivable obstacle along the way. BURLEY's intestines remains tied to a tree at the top of the hill, so his entrails hang over the hill like a rope. The creature howls as he falls. TORRENCE doesn't exactly smile, but there is somewhat of a grin on his face. The MAJOR is definitely pleased with himself. Just as BURLEY is about to smash into the bottom of the hill, his body is jerked back upwards. His intestines stretch taut as they finally catch on the knot around the tree. BURLEY hangs mere inches above the ground, his body flailing about. The back of BURLEY's head, which hangs at an improbable angle, is the only part of the beast's body that touches the ground. TORRENCE walks over to the edge of the cliff. It is a long way to the bottom. Luckily, BURLEY's intestine will provide a perfect rope so that TORRENCE can scale his way down the rocky slope. He takes a deep breath as he tightly grabs onto the entrails with both hands. TORRENCE takes one last look down, then starts to gently slide down BURLEY's intestine to the bottom of the cliff. EXT. EDGE OF FOREST - ROCKY BEACH BURLEY's entrails are surprisingly strong, and TORRENCE manages to make it all the way to the bottom without incident. The MAJOR lands on BURLEY's chest with a thud, causing the creature to groan loudly. TORRENCE climbs off his makeshift rope, then boots BURLEY in the face just for good measure. The possessed soldier's head flops about, and clearly there's nothing keep it attached to his body other than some muscle and skin. While the evil BURLEY thrashes about wildly, TORRENCE gets to his feet and surveys the area. He finds himself on a sandy peninsula, dotted with thick vegetation. This is as far west as the forest goes, for here is where the river meets the ocean. Tall, rocky cliffs guide the seawater into the river. In fact, the only true clearing is the small beach, where the water meets the sand. Looking forward, TORRENCE notices that the largest, rockiest cliff directly ahead of him is of particular interest. His eyes grow wider. Sitting at the very top of the cliff is the NMD satellite TORRENCE has been tracking. Much like the tired MAJOR, the satellite looks like it's been through hell. Much of the metal casing has been charred, and it has been severely smashed and beaten by the impact. Likely, the satellite tumbled for quite awhile before finally coming to rest at such an improbable spot. TORRENCE smiles and begins to slowly walk towards the satellite. At last, it looks as though this mission might actually end. Suddenly, something jumps onto TORRENCE's back. It's SPOONER's headless, legless, bullet-ridden torso. It grabs hold of TORRENCE's face with both hands and starts to squeeze. The MAJOR arches his back and starts to shake, trying to free himself from this creature. It is of no use. SPOONER's torso starts to pound on TORRENCE's head with its fist. TORRENCE lets out an anguished grunt, then tries reaching back with his arms and pulling SPOONER off. Like an irritating itch, the MAJOR finds that SPOONER's torso is just out of reach. SPOONER begins to spin TORRENCE around, and continues to beat at the MAJOR's temples with it's fist. TORRENCE eventually falls face forward. Doing everything in his power to shake off this creature, TORRENCE finds himself pinned on the ground. It's at that point that TORRENCE feels something give him a swift swat in the ass. He's powerfully kicked three times in quick succession. TORRENCE cranes his head around to see SPOONER's legs walking around by themselves, kicking him. Even though both these body parts belong to the same soldier, for TORRENCE it feels as though he's getting the snot beat out of him by two different people. While BURLEY continues to hang by his gut, his intestines begins to stretch in the middle under such heavy weight. A tear slowly begins to form, and it looks like these entrails could snap at any moment, freeing BURLEY. TORRENCE somehow manages to find the strength to roll over onto his back, crushing SPOONER's torso. He uses a free leg to boot SPOONER's legs right in crotch, which quickly brings the lower half of SPOONER to its knees. TORRENCE then grabs onto one of SPOONER's arms as he jumps to his feet. Although there's not much left of the torso, it still very, very wily, showing no signs of weakening. BURLEY's body collapses onto the ground as his entrails finally give way and snap. He lands on the rocky floor with loud thump, sending a fountain of green and red gore bursting out of the wound in his chest. He lets out a screech, then slowly starts to get to his feet. He takes a moment to adjust his spine. What remains of his intestines still hangs out of the wound in his belly and drags along the ground. With his back nearly broken, his movements are uneven, like a drunk on stilts. TORRENCE has a tight grip on SPOONER's torso, clinging it by SPOONER's arm. The MAJOR starts to twirl the torso around, much the way an English knight would handle a mace. TORRENCE continues to spin the torso about as SPOONER's legs slowly bring themselves to their feet. TORRENCE charges towards them at full tilt, then smashes SPOONER's torso into SPOONER's legs. A flawless swing, the torso connects with the legs like a golf club hitting a ball. SPOONER's legs at sent flying off into the distance, crashing into a large heap of rocks beneath the far cliff. BURLEY growls when he sees this, and starts to march towards TORRENCE. He bares his fangs, and slimy green drool oozes out of the corner of his mouth. He is still missing a tooth. The MAJOR, still swinging the torso about, sees this and grins. It's payback time. Meanwhile, over by the far cliff, something starts to crawl out of the bushes. It is the burned, battered, and badly beaten remains of VICMAN. Half of his head has been blown off, and heaps of hot lava bubble and spew out of the wound. He crawls along the rocky beach, heading straight for TORRENCE. Suddenly, BURLEY does something most unexpected. One of his dangling intestines shoots out from his stomach. With brilliant speed, these bloody guts snake along the ground towards the MAJOR's feet. TORRENCE continues to swing SPOONER's torso at his side, but a sustained look of confusion washes over his face. The intestines crawl closer and closer, eventually wrapping themselves around one of the MAJOR's boots. BURLEY pulls tightly on his own intestines, and TORRENCE is knocked onto his back. As he falls, TORRENCE loses his grip on SPOONER's arm, and the torso is sent flying into the air. It hangs in the sky for a few moments, and then comes crashing down straight into VICMAN. Both VICMAN and SPOONER's torso are knocked backwards towards the cliff wall. BURLEY bares his massive fangs, green drool pouring out of the corner of his mouth. One hand over the other he begins to pull TORRENCE in closer and closer. The end of his intestine wraps itself tighter around the MAJOR's boot as he is pulled in closer and closer. TORRENCE tries to reach for the knife in a sheath tied to his ankle. He manages to get his fingers around it, but just as he motions to pull the knife out, BURLEY gives another tug on his intestines. The MAJOR's whole body shifts forward, knocking the knife out of his hands. It bounces out of reach. TORRENCE scrambles to grab hold of something on the ground, but his fingers can't quite seem to get a grip on anything. The MAJOR is slowly dragged in towards BURLEY. Finally, TORRENCE's hand passes over something, and he grabs hold of it. It is large rock. The MAJOR flips himself over onto his back, then hurls the stone at BURLEY. It hits the monster right in the chin, causing BURLEY's head to flop backwards over his shoulder. Enraged, BURLEY lets out a tremendous roar. What the monster does next is startling. He grabs hold of his own intestines with both hands, then yanks back as hard as he can. TORRENCE is pulled backwards into the air. BURLEY twirls his own entrails above his head like a lasso, with TORRENCE tied to the end. BURLEY then sends the MAJOR flying through the air. TORRENCE crashes down into the water. A massive wave pushes his body up onto the shore. The soldier immediately begins to cough up water. TORRENCE rests on his hands and knees at the edge of the water, struggling to catch his breath. He looks back at the cliff side. The satellite rests precariously at the top of the cliff. Beneath it, TORRENCE's undead platoon begins to regroup. BURLEY leads the pack, covered in a horrid, slimy mix of blood and fur. His head is still slumped over to one side, entrails hang out of the wound in his belly, and his arm dangles limply, severed at the elbow. BURLEY's severed arm crawls along the ground at BURLEY's side. Behind him stands VICMAN, his body completely charred. With both his legs chopped off above the knees, he is forced to crawl along the ground. His body still smokes, and hunks of gory flesh ooze off his steaming body every time he moves. SPOONER's headless, bullet-ridden torso also follows the group, leaving a trail of gore behind it. What remains of the spinal cord continues to thrash about behind the torso's backside like a tail. Behind that, SPOONER's legs walk themselves in the direction of TORRENCE. Still further off, near the bushes, waits the possessed deer that VICMAN spotted earlier. It's eyes glow red and smoke pours from it's nostrils. These beasts are absolutely hideous, and they appear to have a rabid hunger in their eyes. These are creatures with a thirst for the taste of warm human flesh. Less than forty yards away from TORRENCE, this ghastly inhuman bunch stagger towards him at a slow but steady pace. VICMAN lets out a snarling howl, and BURLEY responds with a fierce growl. TORRENCE struggles for breath as he tries to bring himself to his feet. He takes a moment to give his best grimace, his hardcore never-die soldier face. He reaches onto his belt and pulls off two grenades, removing the pins in the same swift motion. He strains to lift his arm back, then catapults both grenades up over the monsters and onto the top of the cliff. Both grenades land adjacent to the satellite. TORRENCE reaches for two more grenades. The first two create a huge explosion, shattering much of the debris atop the rocky cliff. The massive satellite, and all of the solid granite rock on which it sat, come tumbling down to the ground. The creatures look up just in time to see the rocks come crashing straight towards them. VICMAN is instantly crushed by a giant boulder, and his skeleton shatters into a million pieces. SPOONER's legs are buried under huge shards of fallen rock. Dozens of rocks rain down on this possessed creatures. TORRENCE takes the other two grenades in his hands and throws them in the direction of the demon soldiers. They both explode, and massive fireballs shoot upwards into the sky. More and more rocks and boulders come tumbling down from the cliff. The evil BURLEY has his legs buried under a massive rock, and his entire corpse is flaming following the grenade blast. There is a final, massive explosion as what remains of the satellite ignites and bursts into hundreds of tiny fiery pieces. The evil BURLEY's head is sent skyrocketing out into the water. TORRENCE is knocked backwards by the blast. It was definitely an impressive sight. He hacks some of the smoke out of his lungs as he gets back onto his feet. Every inch around him has been shattered and charred. The MAJOR smiles, then pulls his pack of cigarillos out of his pocket. There's only one remaining. The MAJOR sighs, then puts the cigarillo in his mouth. He lights the smoke, then tosses the empty package onto the ground. He steps on it as he starts walking towards the explosion sight. First TORRENCE picks up his handgun and holds it in front of him. He quickly checks the clip - it's still full. He pauses with the gun aimed squarely ahead of him, waiting for any sign of life. All that he sees are smouldering remains. After a pause, he starts taking a few more steps forward. TORRENCE is certain there aren't any more undead creatures here. He's also certain that his mission has been accomplished, and the satellite has been destroyed. The MAJOR feels so proud of himself, in fact, that he begins to strut towards the smoking shards of the satellite. The smug sense of victory doesn't last long, and something quickly causes TORRENCE to stop dead in his tracks. He sees something on the ridge atop the cliff. He sees a creature on four legs, not unlike the hairy beast that first attacked BURLEY. It's roughly the size of a grizzly bear, and walks on all fours. It has massive jaws, strong enough to crush bowling balls. It sort of looks like a giant hairy, slimy cougar. TORRENCE takes a step back, then notices another beast on the cliff. Then two more. Then another two. TORRENCE looks to his left, and sees three crouched behind a smoking tree. Four more await on TORRENCE's right. Each of the creatures snarls loudly. These are fierce monsters, clearly capable of ripping a man in half with hardly any effort. TORRENCE looks shocked. He is surrounded by these monsters, and all he's got is a single handgun with less than a full clip. TORRENCE, the soldier who has been trained to kill, looks out and sees at least a dozen blood-thirsty enemies covering his every exit. These voracious beasts are pure instinct, and they know nothing other than to kill. These two foes stare at each other quietly. A few of the monsters emit low growls, but TORRENCE only sneers. Neither the soldier nor the creatures seem to want to be the first to make a move. One of the monsters to the right of TORRENCE starts to crouch down into striking position. The beast arches its back and noiselessly bares its massive fangs. Suddenly, one of the monsters crouched on top of the cliff leaps up into the air. Like a cat, it lands perfectly on its feet, directly in between the crashed satellite and the MAJOR. The beast lands with a thud, and immediately takes an defensive position. It crouches down on the ground, ready to strike. TORRENCE barely moves, not looking to provoke these monsters. He takes a slow, cautious step to the side. Still holding his gun in front of him with one hand, he clenches his fist with the other hand, cracking his knuckles. As scared as the MAJOR must be, he's trying to hide it with a tough exterior. More and more of these monsters seem to pop up at every angle. Four more creep up to the pack on TORRENCE's left, three more on his right, and five more join the group on the cliff. They snarl loudly. TORRENCE grips his gun tightly, prepared for any eventualities. Suddenly, one of the beast to the MAJOR's left lets out a snort and begins charging towards the soldier. Another monster to the right does the same. TORRENCE's eyes grow wide with fear as both of these creatures move at full speed towards him. The monsters seem to be moving at equal speeds, but TORRENCE doesn't move. It seems he has a plan. TORRENCE throws his handgun back into his holster, then throws his arms up in a defensive stance. The creatures surrounding him begin to howl as two of their kind seem mere seconds away from ripping TORRENCE to shreds. Both monsters leap up at the MAJOR, preparing to strike. It's at that exact moment that TORRENCE presses his arms together with all the fury he can muster, smashing the heads of the two creatures together. They collapse back onto the ground with a yelp. With those two creatures lying at his feet, bleeding and moaning, TORRENCE begins to slowly walk along the water. He keeps his weapon pointed squarely in front of him. The creatures look on, each one crouched and ready to strike. Another creature jumps from the top of cliff onto the beach beside TORRENCE. The MAJOR is careful not to make any sudden moves. These beasts are waiting for an excuse to attack. Slimy green drool pours out of their mouths, and their glowing red eyes are fixed squarely on the soldier. TORRENCE holds his ground. That is, until a sudden wave comes in behind him and knocks him over. One of the monsters closest to TORRENCE's right begins to charge forward. In a flash, TORRENCE raises his gun and fires. The shot hits the creature square in the face, knocking it backwards. It isn't dead, but seriously wounded. TORRENCE holds the gun up higher. He needs to let these beasts know that he means business, but won't kill them if he doesn't have to. One of the beasts on the cliff begins to howl loudly. Three of the other monsters in the pack join in the chorus. TORRENCE takes a moment to survey the scene, then rolls over and starts to bring himself to his feet. In that instant, one of the monsters comes charging up behind the MAJOR and latches on to his foot. TORRENCE throws his body around, pressing his gun squarely into the monster's face. Without hesitation he squeezes the trigger. The monster is knocked backwards, but doesn't let go of his grip on TORRENCE's foot. Two other creatures come running towards the soldier. One knocks into him from the side, while the other monster stop directly in front of him. The beast tosses it's head back, exposes it's giant sharp teeth, and then moves to take a bite out of TORRENCE's stomach. For a moment, there is only silence and a brilliant white light. That is soon accompanied by a rumbling explosion, and blasting fire outwards for miles. It quickly becomes clear that some kind of giant missile has just been detonated on the very spot where TORRENCE had stood. An enormous mushroom cloud shoots upwards and blooms in the sky. Fierce shockwaves travel through the forest, killing everything in their wake. The devastation is incredible. Even from a distance, the explosion is quite impressive. BACK TO: INT. MILITARY BASE - GENERAL TURGIDSON'S OFFICE GENERAL TURGIDSON looks tired and frustrated behind his massive wooden desk. The top button on his uniform has been undone and his tie has been loosened. He leans forward in his chair, examining printouts as they spew out of a fax machine. A complex list of statistics and figures, they are accompanied by a variety of maps and recon photos. TURGIDSON shakes his head in disbelief as he looks over the numbers on the faxes. The phone on his desk suddenly starts to ring. TURGIDSON picks it up, not taking his eye off of the incoming faxes. We cannot hear the voice on the other end of the line. TURGIDSON (into phone) Turgidson. (pause) Yes, they're just coming in now. Spectacular results, sir. Very close to optimal placement. (pause) Well, sir, we're seeing a blast radius of over a mile. By all accounts our bird should be completely destroyed, sir. (pause) No, sir, not entirely. But detonation did occur far enough away from any populated civilian area that we should be safe from retaliation. It's preferable to what could have happened, had Charlie breached the target, sir. (pause) I understand that, sir. These casualties were not only unavoidable, they were absolutely necessary, sir. This is a war that cannot be won without sacrifice, sir. (pause) There shouldn't be anything else to worry about, sir. It appears as though the problem has been obliterated. (pause) A Merry Christmas to you, too, sir. Thank you. Good-bye. TURGIDSON hangs up the phone. He seems to show absolutely no grief for having just blown his son into a thousand bits. As far as TURGIDSON is concerned, TORRENCE never succeeded as a soldier, and will likely be remembered as nothing more than a gutless coward. TURGIDSON will go on orchestrating this war from behind his desk, blissfully unaware of the horrors suffered by soldiers like his son out in the field. THE END