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The Perfect Symmetry
by Zachary Murdock (zacharybednar90@gmail.com)

Rated: R   Genre: Horror   User Review:
NOT YET
RATED

Written for fun.


This screenplay is copyrighted to its author. All rights reserved. This screenplay may not be used or reproduced without the express written permission of the author.



FADE IN:

INT. LIMO - DAY
                                                            
In the spacious backseat of a limousine, three characters
are posing.
                                                            
From left to right:
                                                            
KATHERINE, late forties to early fifties. The richest widow
in the district. Her husband worked in the real estate
business and was a most successful mogul in his day. He was
even known to be a pioneer in the medical field when he was
a young man. Katherine inherited his fortune and many say
that she now owns the entire city. Some people even refer to
her as the 'Queen Of The District'. She enjoys the power
that she wields and she is not afraid of anything.
                                                            
In the middle. BETH, late twenties to early thirties. A
highly ambitious woman with a creative eye. An energetic
person who prides herself in being constantly and actively
involved with her community. She genuinely cares about the
people around her and about the town that she has lived in
all her life. She is not only the editor of the local
newspaper but she has also been serving as the district's
chief art coordinator and events planner for the past two
and a half years. She is engaged to be married to her high
school sweetheart, and she believes that children are in her
near future.
                                                            
NATE, early thirties. Once upon a time he painted something.
Something people liked. Something that earned him
international acclaim. Something that made him a very rich
man. He painted something that made him a somebody. That was
over five years ago. He hasn't so much as picked up a
paintbrush since. He is still considered the town's greatest
authority on art. He helped put his town on the map. His
town is grateful and think of him only in the best light.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
I'll tell you what, this had
better be fucking worth it.
                                                            
                       NATE
Patience, Miss Katherine.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
Go to hell, Wonder Boy.
                                                            
                       NATE
Good art takes time.
                                                            

2.

                       KATHERINE
Yeah? Then when can we expect to
see your next masterpiece? In
another five years or so?
                                                            
                       NATE
You can't force something like
this, Katherine. I wouldn't expect
you to understand.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
You're right, Nate, I don't
understand. I don't understand why
the city has been writing Mr.
Peter Sherrick a twenty thousand
dollar check for the last eighteen
months. I don't understand why
he's been so secretive. I don't
understand how someone can be SO
ungrateful when he is being paid
so much GODDAMN money to build an
empty shack in a vacant lot.
                                                            
Blowing off some steam. She puts on her black sunglasses.
But there's more:
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
And I don't appreciate being
spoken to that way, Mr. One Hit
Wonder. You want to allude to the
idea that someone doesn't belong
in this limousine, then you're
barking up the wrong tree.
                                                            
Silence starts to consume the scene.

And then Beth chimes in.
                                                            
                       BETH
I'm excited to see it.
                                                            
                       NATE
As am I. Peter is a wonderful
artist with a great mind.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
Peter Sherrick is a turd with a
wristwatch.
                                                            
                       NATE
What does that even mean?
                                                            

3.

                       BETH
I loved what he did with the town
hall.
                                                            
                       NATE
The dome?
                                                            
                       BETH
God, that was beautiful work.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
Another half a million dollars
down the drain.
                                                            
                       NATE
Katherine? You don't like the
dome?
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
Sure I like it. It's worth almost
as much as I am.
                                                            
                       BETH
And what he did with the inside of
the old courthouse? That was
extraordinary. The precision of
his work, the complexities, it's
mind-boggling.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
Oh please.
                                                            
                       BETH
He's really given our town a brand
a life.
                                                            
                       NATE
Some people say that
architecture's a dead art. But
those people haven't seen what
I've seen. Peter's a genius and I
think we should try to launch him
on an international platform.
                                                            
                       BETH
His work is breathtaking and
pictures really don't do it
justice.
                                                            
                       NATE
Tourism would sky rocket if they
knew how amazing our buildings
looked. People would flock around
the old courthouse and they would
            (MORE)

4.

                       NATE (cont'd)
be astonished. They would revel in
the view.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
All this for a glorified interior
decorator?
                                                            
                       BETH
He is far more than an interior
decorator, Katherine, he's an
architect.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
He put together a dinky little
shack, I would hardly call that an
architectural wonder.
                                                            
                       BETH
But he really IS an architect,
Katherine. You can't just say he
isn't one because you don't like
his work.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
Last I checked, you actually have
to have an education in
architecture to be an architect,
or did I just dream that up
somewhere?
                                                            
                       NATE
You can't learn how to be an
artist.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
But you CAN learn how to be an
architect. As a matter of fact, I
do believe that is HOW one becomes
an architect in the first place.
By having a degree, or at the very
least, some sort of certificate
stating that they passed some sort
of test having something to do
with architecture.
                                                            
                       BETH
But he's an artist at heart,
Katherine.
                                                            
Katherine laughs in her face.
                                                            

5.

                       KATHERINE
Oh sweetie. Art isn't real. It's
just a word now.
                                                            
                       NATE
      (flustered and
       sarcastic)
And you surely are an authority on
the subject.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
Did I detect a trace of sarcasm in
that? Or was it scorn?
                                                            
Nate looks out the window. Trying to not get into it with
her.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
Enjoying the view, Wonder Boy?
                                                            
                       NATE
Leave me alone.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
Take a good look at all those
houses. Take a good, hard look. I
own them. All of them. I own
everything in this town. I even
own you.
                                                            
Nate glares across at her.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
That's right, Wonder Boy. You're
in my big fat pocket. And I can
throw you away at any time I want.
                                                            
                       NATE
      (heated)
You're a joke, you've always been
a joke. Everyone laughs at you.
You're a mockery of everything
this town represents. You would
have stayed a nobody had it not
been for your dead husband. After
all, if he were still alive, he
would have had the time to turn in
those divorce papers we all knew
about.
                                                            
                       BETH
Stop. Both of you. Right now.
                                                            

6.

Beth is caught in the middle, literally, she is actually
sitting between them as they bicker.
                                                            
                       NATE
Tell it to her.
                                                            
                       BETH
You're both being incredibly rude
to each other. Incredibly rude and
extremely mean.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
I beg to differ, Beth, I don't
think we're being anything of the
sort.
                                                            
Nate shakes his head in disbelief.
                                                            
                       NATE
You are unbelievable.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
What am I doing now?
                                                            
                       NATE
This driver needs to hurry up and
get us there because there's about
to be a brawl in the backseat.
                                                            
                       BETH
I shouldn't have brought the both
of you along.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
Who should you have brought then,
Sweetie?
                                                            
                       BETH
Not you two. I had no idea how
much you hated each other.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
I don't hate our dear Nate at all.
I know it may seem like it. It's
just that there is a weak link in
every trio, and every weak link
must be appropriately identified
and ostracized.
                                                            
                       BETH
I should have just gone alone.
                                                            

7.

                       NATE
No way. I've been waiting for this
for such a long time. I can't wait
to see it.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
What exactly has he been doing in
there? Do either of you know
anything about what he's working
on?
                                                            
                       BETH
He's been so secretive.
                                                            
                       NATE
That's normal for an artist like
him.
                                                            
                       BETH
But I do know it's a
reinterpretation of some sort of
Eastern thing.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
You mean, like a temple?
                                                            
                       BETH
I actually have no idea. No one
ever sees him except once a month
when he gets his groceries
delivered.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
Another write-off.
                                                            
                       NATE
He gets his groceries from
Wisner's. I used to shop there,
but then Candido's Market opened
up downtown, and they have the
absolute best soups I have ever
eaten. Homemade, completely unique
soup. If you haven't tried them
yet, it's definitely worth the
hike to the downtown district.
                                                            
                       BETH
I like Wisner's. It's been around
for so long and their avocado
spread is to die for.
                                                            

8.

                       NATE
I have been missing the avocado
spread.
                                                            
                       BETH
I got Peter addicted to it.
                                                            
                       NATE
Did you really?
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
Oh yeah. He's hooked now. I was
actually the one who showed him
where Wisner's was, before me he'd
never even heard of the place.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
How do you know it's Eastern
influenced?
                                                            
                       BETH
Tyler Dodge, he works at Wisner's.
He delivers Peter's groceries for
him. And one day, he let him see
it.
                                                            
                       NATE
He let him see it?
                                                            
                       BETH
That's what he said.
                                                            
                       NATE
Tyler Dodge?
                                                            
                       BETH
Yes, Tyler Dodge.
                                                            
                       NATE
He told you this?
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
Yes!
                                                            
                       NATE
I don't believe it.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
What did he say about it?
                                                            
                       NATE
Lies.
                                                            

9.

                       BETH
In all the years I've known Tyler,
not once have I caught him in a
lie.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
What about it was Eastern?
                                                            
                       BETH
That was the odd part. So far as I
know, nothing about the inside of
the shack was Eastern. But he did
say that Peter was talking
extremely fast, and then all of a
sudden, just started blabbering in
what sounded like Chinese and got
very excited.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
So. We've been paying him twenty
thousand dollars a month to learn
Mandarin. That's money well spent.
                                                            
                       PETER
What did he say about the piece
itself?
                                                            
                       BETH
That it was certainly unique. He
said it was a very odd experience.
He actually said that Peter
himself was acting a bit off. He
told me he just watched him, got
real close, and watched him the
entire time he was showing it to
him. He said he felt very
uncomfortable. He even asked to
change his delivery route at
Wisner's. But Peter hasn't made
another order since.
                                                            
The limo finally comes to a stop.
                                                            
                       NATE
We're here.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
Finally. This better not take
long.
                                                            
                       NATE
Why not? You got yourself a hot
date?
                                                            

10.

                       KATHERINE
Actually I do. With Benedict
Ramsey as a matter of fact.
                                                            
                       NATE
With a name like that, he better
be rich.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
He is, actually. Very rich.
                                                            
Katherine waits for the door to open for her.
                                                            
 
EXT. PETER'S SHACK - DAY
                                                            
The characters exit the limousine and stare at the destitute
and dinky little shack. A bit more spacious than the term
'shack' lets on, but it's still no cabin. It was so horribly
built that it looks like it's falling apart.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
Take a good look. That's what a
quarter of a million dollars looks
like.
                                                            
Everything about it looks downright sloppy.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
He could have at least painted it.
                                                            
                       NATE
With Peter, it's not what you see
on the outside that matters. It's
what's on the inside that counts.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
You know, normal people would say
that sort of thing about a woman.
Not a rundown shack.
                                                            
                       BETH
He's right, Katherine. We didn't
hire him to build a shack, but to
bring life to something vacant.
                                                            
Katherine grimaces at the shack.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
It looks pretty dead to me.
                                                            

11.

BETH walks up to the door and knocks on it and waits.

No answer.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
He IS expecting us, right?
                                                            
                       BETH
He should have been expecting us
three months ago.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
And why's that?
                                                            
                       BETH
Because. His deadline was up three
months ago.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
I wish you didn't tell me that.
                                                            
Nate walks up to the door and knocks again. Louder.

Still no answer.
                                                            
Katherine looks around at the lot surrounding the shack.
Empty, save the limousine.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
His car isn't here.
                                                            
                       NATE
He doesn't own a car.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
Right. Of course he doesn't.
                                                            
Nate starts to bang on the door hard.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
Easy, Wonder Boy. We don't want
you to break a nail.
                                                            
                       NATE
He isn't here.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
      (with a sigh)
Move out of my way and let me try.
                                                            
Katherine storms up to the door.
                                                            

12.

                       NATE
Now you think that you can knock
better than me?
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
No. I just think I understand the
basic principle of a door without
a lock.
                                                            
Katherine simply opens the door and walks inside.
                                                            
 
INT. PETER'S SHACK - DAY
                                                            
The inside of the shack is comprised of four plain white
walls.

That's it.

It is literally a blank canvas, blank on all four walls.

The paint he used to make them white was so cheap that it's
beginning to chip away.

Katherine is not very thrilled with what she sees.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
Un-fucking-believable.
                                                            
Katherine laughs to herself.

She does this sometimes. Laughs when she's so angry that it
pains her to speak.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
Serves us right.
                                                            
The shack is absolutely empty.

Four white walls.

That's all.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
I'll have his head for this, I
swear to God.
                                                            
Katherine turns to look back at the rest of her party.

They are both entering the shack very slowly.

And looking around in awe.
                                                            

13.

                       BETH
      (in awe)
I can't believe it.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
What?
                                                            
Nate gets up close to the walls, his nose almost touches the
chipped white paint that covers them.
                                                            
                       NATE
This is amazing.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
This is an insult.
                                                            
                       NATE
      (staring at the
       wall, in a daze)
You just don't get it, do you?
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
What's there to get? He took us
all for fools. He's probably gone,
he probably skipped town a wealthy
man.
                                                            
                       BETH
      (in a daze,,
       staring at the
       ceiling)
It's not about the money for him,
Katherine. Can't you see that now?
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
What is wrong with the two of you?
It's just white paint. White paint
on four walls in a piece of shit
shack in the middle of my city.
                                                            
                       NATE
This isn't your city anymore. It's
our's now.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
Now I know you're playing a prank
on me. This is a joke, right? Tell
me it's a joke and that the real
shack is two blocks down the road.
Please tell me this isn't actually
happening.
                                                            

14.

                       NATE
Katherine--
                                                            
Nate makes eye contact with her.

His eyes are blank. No pupils in them. No color. Whiteness.
                                                            
                       NATE
--This is the best thing that
could ever possibly happen to you.
                                                            
Nate reverts his gaze back to the wall.

And then PETER enters.
                                                            
                       PETER
So. How do you like my work?
                                                            
Peter, late thirties, is a muscular man. He looks frazzled
and wigged out, overworked and exhausted.
                                                            
                       BETH
      (without looking
       at him)
Peter. You're a genius.
                                                            
                       PETER
It's my life's work.
                                                            
Peter gazes about the room. Katherine watches him in
disgust.
                                                            
                       PETER
This is my masterpiece.
                                                            
Katherine is surrounded by crazy people.

Peter, the worst of them all, is looking around the room and
smiling like a giddy kid and looks as if he's about to cry.
                                                            
Katherine glares at him with a special kind of contempt
reserved for only a few special kind of people.

She watches him in his pathetic and silent hysteria.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
Just who the hell do you think you
are?
                                                            
                       PETER
      (without looking
       at her)
My name is Peter Sherrick. I am an
architect by trade, and an artist
            (MORE)

15.

                       PETER (cont'd)
by choice. This is my home. I live
here.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
No you don't. This isn't your
home. You don't own it.
                                                            
                       PETER
I may not own the property, Mam,
but it's mine now. I took it.
                                                            
He still hasn't made eye contact with her.

Peter, like the others, are attracted to the walls like
three clunky and awkward magnets.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
I don't know what kind of a game
you're running here, Mr. Sherrick.
But THIS shack is on MY property.
And you were paid to do a job, a
job that you didn't do.
                                                            
Katherine thanks God for her self confidence at this point.

She's thinking that maybe she's the crazy one.

But she trusts herself too much to give into the pitfalls of
self doubt.
                                                            
                       NATE
How can you say these things,
Katherine? How can you be so
blind?
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
I'm not the one who's crazy here.
I am the sane one. You're all
acting mad.
                                                            
                       PETER
Would someone make this maggot
disappear?
                                                            
                       BETH
      (to Katherine)
I'm afraid you're not wanted here,
Katherine. I would leave if I were
you.
                                                            

16.

Beth's eyes are the same as Nate's.

Empty, blank, colorless.
                                                            
Katherine accidentally touches the wall with her hand and
jerks it away as if it were a hot stove.

Then she thinks it over.

And puts her hand back on the wall and laughs.

She chuckles good and hard at Peter.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
You idiot. You imbecile. You
stupid, stupid idiot.
                                                            
She continues to laugh.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
The walls aren't even straight.
                                                            
She touches all the walls in a blur, sizing them up.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
None of them are.
                                                            
Katherine laughs in Peter's face.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
They're all crooked. Slanted.
Misshapen and uneven.
                                                            
                       PETER
Why are you here?
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
And to think that you actually
have the nerve to call yourself an
artist let alone an architect.
                                                            
                       PETER
I really think that it's in your
best interest to leave. Now.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
Your eyes...
                                                            
Katherine is looking into Peter's bright blue eyes.
                                                            

17.

                       KATHERINE
Why do their eyes look like a
horror movie but your's look just
fine?
                                                            
Katherine looks around at Nate and Beth.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
What happened to their eyes?
                                                            
                       PETER
They're using them, Katherine. For
the first time in their lives,
their eyes are finally open.
They've been chosen. It's a
beautiful thing.
                                                            
Peter reaches out to touch her face. Katherine jerks away
from him and backs against the wall.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
Don't you dare.
                                                            
                       PETER
I wasn't trying to hurt you,
Katherine. Don't be afraid of me.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
I'm not.
                                                            
                       PETER
Then why are you scared?
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
It's not because of you.
                                                            
                       PETER
Then why, Katherine?
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
Stop looking at me.
                                                            
He doesn't.

The other two join him in his stare. With their ghostly
white phantom eyes.

All three. Staring at her. Cornering her. Scaring her.
                                                            
                       PETER
Tell me, Katherine. If you're not
scared of me, what's left to be
afraid of?
                                                            

18.

                       KATHERINE
Knock it off. What's wrong with
you people?
                                                            
                       NATE
You need to go somewhere.
                                                            
                       BETH
Last chance, Katherine.
                                                            
                       PETER
You know the way out.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
I OWN this property. You don't
throw ME out.
                                                            
                       NATE
Katherine. Last chance.
                                                            
                       PETER
Don't make this harder than it has
to be.
                                                            
KATHERINE side steps, pinning herself against the wall,
around to the door.

They follow her steps with their eyes.
                                                            
She reaches the door.
                                                            
                       PETER
And Katherine?
                                                            
Peter's face remains expressionless while Nate and Beth
twist their's into twin grim smirks.
                                                            
                       PETER
Don't come back.
                                                            
He holds the stare as if to say "for your own good".
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
To hell with all of you.
                                                            
She slams the door behind her on her way out.
                                                            
 
INT. LIMO - NIGHT
                                                            
Katherine rides alone.

Staring hard out the window, biting her nails, counting

19.

everything she owns.

Trying not to think that hard about what just happened to
her.
                                                            
 
INT. NICE RESTAURANT - NIGHT
                                                            
Katherine and BENEDICT on their dinner date.

BENEDICT, mid to late fifties, is an extremely wealthy man
and lover or politics, science, and art. Though he has made
his stake in economics, his passion is in psychology. He is
often a guest lecturer on the subject at several
universities in the state.
                                                            
They sit across from each other.

Katherine is obviously still disturbed by what happened to
her earlier. She sits there, staring at her cocktail,
stabbing at the ice with her straw.
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
Katherine, is everything alright?
You seem preoccupied.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
Don't mind me, Dear. I'm just
thinking about the town's latest
artistic splurge.
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
You're referring of course to
Peter Sherrick's newest project.
'The Shack'. The amount of secrecy
that has been put into that
project is just astonishing. As
powerful as I may be, I have yet
to be given an invitation to see
it for myself.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
Its not officially completed yet.
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
Regardless. Mr. Sherrick knows who
I am and what I can do for him.
He's lucky that I don't take all
of this secrecy as an insult.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
I just don't get it.
                                                            

20.

                       BENEDICT
It's art, Kat. Art for a new
generation. It's hard enough for
them to comprehend it, let alone
two old birds like us.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
I'm going to run that boy out of
town.
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
Was his piece really that bad?
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
He acted aggressively toward me.
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
Peter Sherrick? I find that hard
to believe. Of course I'm not
calling you a liar by any means.
But I know him, he's sat in on a
few of my classes. He seemed very
bright and kind and gifted. What
do mean, he acted 'aggressively'?
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
He scared me, Benedict. He scared
me good.
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
Did he hurt you or threaten you in
any way?
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
I told him I didn't like his
piece, and he got very upset with
me.
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
Tell me about the piece. What was
it about?
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
It wasn't ABOUT anything. A room
with four walls and cheap white
paint. I swear to God, Benedict,
it just didn't make sense.
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
That was it?
                                                            

21.

                       KATHERINE
I'm telling you, that was all of
it.
                                                            
She scoffs a laugh. She does this, remember? When she's
angry.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
Four white walls. He called it his
masterpiece.
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
Very odd, strange even.
                                                            
She rolls her eyes at the whole scenario.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
You think?
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
Are you sure there wasn't anything
more to it than just four white
walls?
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
I'm absolutely sure of it.
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
Were you by yourself?
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
No. I was accompanying Beth Walsh
and Nate Tucker. It was supposed
to be a sneak peak, like a soft
opening.
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
And what did they think of it?
                                                            
Katherine finds herself at a loss for words.

She shakes her head and stares down at her drink.
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
Nate Tucker usually has a pretty
good eye for art, Katherine. If he
found something worthwhile in it,
then maybe it's worth a second
look.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
His eyes turned white.
                                                            

22.

                       BENEDICT
What was that?
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
White, Benedict. His eyes turned
white. He was drawn to the walls
like a magnet. It was like he was
possessed by something.
                                                            
Benedict's heart skips a beat here.
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
And what about Miss Walsh? Did
that same thing happen to her eyes
as well?
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
The same exact thing.
                                                            
Benedict is obviously disturbed by this. He takes a swig of
the drink in front of him and stares down intensely at the
table.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
I asked Peter why and you know
what he said to me? He said it was
because they had never used them
before and that for the first time
in their lives, they are finally
open. That they were chosen.
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
Katherine, tell me about the
walls. Did you notice anything
peculiar about them?
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
Aside form the fact that they were
blank?
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
Were they straight or were they
crooked at a tilt?
                                                            
Katherine knows he's keeping something from her.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
If I said 'yes', what exactly
would that information mean to
you?
                                                            

23.

                       BENEDICT
Nothing at all. It would only mean
that Mr. Sherrick has done a very
dangerous thing and he must be
stopped.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
What is this all about?
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
Are you familiar with something
called 'constructive perspective
theory'?
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
Never heard of it.
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
It's a relatively new concept and
essentially what it proposes is
that we are not only products of
our environment but that our sense
of reality is actually shaped by
it.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
Okay.
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
The theory itself had been dead
for quite a long time before a
group of Eastern scientists
resurrected it. They conducted
experiments, Katherine. They made
structures, buildings that one
could ideally live in. They
constructed artificial
environments that were familiar to
their test subjects. Places that
they would feel comfortable in.
And at first glance, these 'homes'
seemed normal enough. But they
weren't.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
The walls were slanted.
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
Not at first, they didn't figure
that out until later. The original
homes were actually built on a
slight slant, and I mean the
actual foundation itself was
slightly curved. A curve so slight
            (MORE)

24.

                       BENEDICT (cont'd)
you'd never realize it was there.
But it did have it's effects on
the test subjects involved. Many
of them reported having the most
terrible and realistic dreams of
their lives. Dreams that seemed to
last several lifetimes each. The
unbelievable realism of these
dreams drove some of the subjects
to depression and frequent bouts
of intense paranoia, and this
particular formula was scratched
as a result of it.
                                                            
Benedict looks down at his drink.
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
Needless to say, these results
fascinated the Eastern scientists
working on the project. So they
dug deeper. Years of trial and
error finally led to a
breakthrough.
                                                            
Benedict looks back up at Katherine.
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
A perfect symmetry.
                                                            
Pause.
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
You see, Katherine, we look this
way and think the way that we do
chiefly because of the
environmental properties in which
we stake our claim. If our planet
were even just slightly different
than what it is now, life would be
vastly different on it. We are
shaped by our planet. Shapes,
Katherine, what we see in our
mind's eye, is how we communicate
with the world around us. But most
importantly, it's how we
rationalize it.
                                                            
Pause.
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
'Perfect symmetry' is what they
called it. Four walls, obscured
just right. They found that
            (MORE)

25.

                       BENEDICT (cont'd)
certain people had a
predisposition to this perfect
symmetry, so they sought them out.
These new test subjects started to
project very bizarre behavior from
the very moment they came in
contact with the perfect symmetry.
                                                            
He waits for a moment.
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
They lost all color in their eyes.
This perfect symmetry opened up a
gateway in their mind to another
dimension. Just the right triggers
on just the right people,
Katherine. That's all it takes.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
Why isn't this a story you're
telling me proudly? Why does this
sound more like disaster than
triumph?
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
The test subjects called
themselves the chosen ones. They
lost control of themselves, they
lost their grip on reality. They
became extremely violent and
several even became a danger to
themselves. They ate chunks of
themselves, Katherine. They ate
and ate until there was nothing
left to eat. Those that remained
were all shot as a result, a last
minute attempt to put them out of
their misery. They no longer had
the ability to operate in our
world. And they no longer wanted
to.
                                                            
They sit there. In unease.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
Oh Jesus Christ...
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
You went unaffected because you do
not share this predisposition to
the symmetry. If you had, it would
have instantly triggered something
in your mind, and your eyes would
            (MORE)

26.

                       BENEDICT (cont'd)
have turned white and you would
never have been able to put the
color back in them. You would have
stayed in that new world. You
would have been chosen.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
He recreated the experiment.
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
Several have tried. But no one has
ever been able to figure out the
dimensions of the symmetry.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
Well he did. He figured it out
alright.
                                                            
Benedict leans over the table now, his demeanor anxious.
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
Katherine, you must take me to it.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
Absolutely not.
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
This must be investigated and if
it is what I think it is, then it
must be immediately stopped.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
I'm not going back there.
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
We can't allow anyone else to be
exposed to it. And we need to be
sure of what we're dealing with
here before we make any snap
decisions.
                                                            
She begins to shake her head from side to side.
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
I will not ask that you accompany
me inside. I will deal with Mr.
Sherrick myself if I have to. All
that I ask is that you remain
outside of the shack, serving as
my lifeline.
                                                            

27.

                       KATHERINE
I don't like this, Benedict. He
warned me.
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
Of what?
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
Of going back. I was explicitly
told not to.
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
I'll be there, Katherine. And know
this, those that were involved in
the original experiment turned on
themselves, not on the other
people around them.
                                                            
Katherine is scared and she really, really doesn't want to
be.
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
Show me, Katherine. So we can stop
it before it hurts more people.
                                                            
 
INT. LIMO - NIGHT
                                                            
Katherine and Benedict ride together in the back seat of a
limousine.

Benedict can tell that Katherine is feeling very uneasy and
rests his hand on her kneecap.
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
Don't worry yourself with this.
Nothing is going to happen if this
is dealt with quickly.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
What are you even going to do when
we get there?
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
I'm going to investigate the
situation. And if need be, remove
those affected from it.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
How? There are three of them and
only one of you.
                                                            

28.

                       BENEDICT
Persuasion, Katherine. How else do
you think I made my fortune?
Persuasion is the most lethal
weapon known to man. It got you to
take me here, didn't it?
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
Try telling that to those eyes.
Those cold, white eyes.
                                                            
Katherine's daze drifts out the window.

Benedict watches her closely and then looks out of his.
                                                            
 
EXT. PETER'S SHACK - NIGHT
                                                            
Benedict looks up at the shack in cautious awe.

Katherine keeps her distance.
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
It doesn't look like much.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
Then why are you so fascinated by
it?
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
I'm not. It's just...
                                                            
Benedict draws closer to the door and looks back at her.
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
There's another world in there,
Katherine. And maybe I have been
chosen to experience it.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
Don't talk like that. Not here.
Not right now.
                                                            
Benedict has reached the front door.

His hand quivers as he knocks on it three times.
                                                            
And waits.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
It's open.
                                                            

29.

He looks nervously back at her.

Then his eyes fix on the door in anticipation.

He opens it and walks inside.

The door shuts softly behind him.
                                                            
Katherine waits.
                                                            
The limo keeps it's headlights on and Katherine feels safer
with it there.
                                                            
Time passes with no sign of Benedict.
                                                            
                       PETER
      (off screen)
He's not coming back.
                                                            
Katherine looks around, trying to find Peter in the dark.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
Where are you? Come into the light
if you're out there.
                                                            
Peter staggers into the light and makes himself visible.
                                                            
                       PETER
He was chosen. He's not coming
back.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
And you weren't, were you?
                                                            
Peter looks down at his dirty boots.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
That's why your eyes look like
that. Normal, like mine. Because
none of it affected you. You're
just like me. Stuck here in our
world.
                                                            
Peter looks so sad he might cry.
                                                            
                       PETER
I spent so long on this one. I
thought I wanted to change the
world. But I only wanted to change
mine. I hate this place, my
reality.
                                                            
He points at the shack.
                                                            

30.

                       PETER
They seem so free.
                                                            
Now he gazes longingly at it.
                                                            
                       PETER
It should be me in there. I should
have been chosen. I was the one
who put all the effort into it. It
should have been me.
                                                            
He closes his eyes now to hold back his tears of
frustration.
                                                            
                       PETER
And I tried to see it so bad. I
did everything I could to see it.
But I just couldn't make out the
symmetry.
                                                            
He hangs his head low.
                                                            
                       PETER
Though I stared and I stared and I
stared and I stared. It just
wouldn't choose me. But I was the
one who constructed it. I made the
symmetry perfect. But the symmetry
didn't make me perfect. It made me
stare at it until my eyes burned.
                                                            
He looks at her with a shrug of longing.
                                                            
                       PETER
And the people who do get chosen.
They seem so happy, they seem
all-knowing. And they are. They
are all-knowing. Like Gods among
men.
                                                            
Peter reaches behind his back and pulls out a pistol.
                                                            
                       PETER
I would give anything to be there.
                                                            
Katherine slowly begins to back away to the limousine.

Peter tosses the pistol toward her, at her feet. His
intention obviously isn't to hurt her. He's actually giving
it to her.
                                                            

31.

                       PETER
      (voice is shaking)
You're gonna need that.
                                                            
Katherine looks down at the gun, then back at Peter.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
What happened to the others?
                                                            
Peter can't help but get a little hysteric. He starts to cry
loudly and stubbornly.
                                                            
                       PETER
At first it was amazing, it really
was. They were sharing with me the
most fascinating stories that I
had ever heard. Then they just
stopped. They just stopped talking
altogether. I tried to get them to
talk to me again but they just
wouldn't. They just stared at each
other as though they could
communicate telepathically without
words and I wasn't invited to
listen in.
                                                            
Peter gets back most of his composure and mostly stops
acting hysterical.
                                                            
                       PETER
And then they started to eat each
other. First, they just started
biting into their own arms, but
then they began to help each other
gnaw away at everything else. And
they just wouldn't stop eating.
                                                            
Katherine bends over and picks up the pistol.
                                                            
                       PETER
I shot them. I had no other
choice. They were screaming so
loud and laughing even louder. I
could't take it. I had to end it.
                                                            
Katherine starts walking up to the house, her face
determined and brave.
                                                            
Peter watches her as she passes him by.
                                                            
                       PETER
Don't look into his eyes when you
do it.
                                                            

32.

Katherine stops and looks back at him.
                                                            
                       PETER
You don't want to see what I've
seen.
                                                            
Katherine looks down at the ground, takes a deep breath, and
walks up to the door.

Before entering, she makes sure there are bullets in the
pistol.

There are. Two of them.
                                                            
 
INT. PETER'S SHACK - NIGHT
                                                            
Benedict is sitting in the center of the room with his legs
crossed and his back facing the door.

He is eating himself, gnawing away at his wrist, all the way
down to the bone.

In the far corner of the room is Nate's body. Chunks of
flesh are missing from his arms, legs, chest and face. A
bullet hole is firmly planted in his forehead.

In the center of the room, next to Benedict, is Beth's body.
Half of her face has been ripped off, her right arm is
mostly bone, and her intestines are slithering out of her
shirt. Her eyes are open. White and lifeless.

Katherine draws nearer to Benedict. Benedict seems not to
notice her but as soon as she aims the gun at the back of
his head, he stops.
                                                            
                       BENEDICT
Not just yet. I need more time.
                                                            
She never has to see his face, his eyes.

She looks away and closes hers.

And pulls the trigger.

And puts a bullet into the back of his head.

When she looks back, Benedict is sprawled out, dead. Face
first on the floor.

She covers her mouth and gasps, her eyes water with tears
and she backs away into the corner and breaks down.
                                                            

33.

She cries from somewhere deep inside of her.

She cries as if it's the first time she's ever done so.
                                                            
 
EXT. PETER'S SHACK - NIGHT
                                                            
Katherine walks out of the shack, passing Peter by without
saying a word.

She opens the door to the backseat of the limo and before
getting inside of it, turns back to face him.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
Tomorrow your masterpiece burns to
the ground.
                                                            
She keeps eye contact long enough to make sure he knows she
means it.

And then she gets into the limousine and it drives away.
                                                            
 
INT. LIMO - NIGHT
                                                            
Katherine rides alone.

She looks out her window.
                                                            
At everything she thought was hers.
                                                            
                       KATHERINE
      (to herself)
We all need more time. Same in
this world, as in all the rest.
                                                            


FADE OUT.


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