03
Writing
Why is it when the wind blows
I feel my soul fly
Is it
Because I'm tethered to nothing
If nothing is something
Why is it when the wind blows
I hear the cries of others
Is it
That their tears far go any sense of reality
If reality is subjective
Yet we have all been subjected
Why is it when the wind blows
I see the essence of Gaia
Nothingness
Seeping through the pores that were once mine
Nothingness
Caressing the inside of my lips keeping them shut
Nothingness
Gathering in the darkness behind my blank stare
Nothingness
Rolling in like fog to cloud any chance of my hope
Nothingness
When did we become one?
Why can't I tell where you end and I begin
Have I always been nothing
The Exchange
An excerpt. Six travelers crossing the desert hear a woman cry out, and have to decide whether it is theirs to answer.
EXT. ARROYO BELOW – CONTINUOUS
BAHE, an old man, strong even in age, stands with dignity
before the settlers. He holds a carved walking staff.
Behind him, TAZA, elderly and graceful, begins to CHANT, her
voice high and haunting, trembling with otherworldly rhythm.
In the background, DRUMBEATS begin — soft at first, like a
heartbeat rising from the earth itself.
MILITIA MAN 1
What language you mutterin', witch?
MILITIA MAN 2
Maybe she prayin'. Ain't gonna help
her now.
He raises his rifle.
BACK TO HILLTOP
– CONTINUOUS
The travelers stay low. The sound of Taza's prayers wraps
around them. The drumbeats deepen.
GALE
We don't know them. Don't mean it's
ours to fix.
CONSTANCE
They ain't animals. That man's
protectin' her.
JOE
They like us. Ain't nobody comin'
to save them but maybe us.
WILLIE
You step down there and it's over.
Ain't no guarantees we live through
it.
GALE
Ain't no point dyin' for strangers.
The chanting rises, carried by the wind. The drumbeats throb
beneath their words like a second pulse.
EVELYN
You ever thought maybe God sends
folk to be the answer to somebody
else's prayer?
They go quiet. No one speaks for a long beat.
JOE
You remember when they strung up
Henry? Nobody helped. Not one man.
WILLIE
We got outta Shreveport by the skin
of our teeth. We lose that wagon,
that mule, we stuck.
GALE
When I lost my baby, they made me
keep workin'. Same day. I ain't
forgot that.
CONSTANCE
My mama died in chains. I don't
want that to be all she gave me.
Taza's chant grows louder. The prayers are no longer a
background. They fill the space, solemn and ancestral.
EVELYN
If we walk away, it follows us.
They fall silent.
WILLIE
We ain't heroes.
GALE
We survivors.
A long pause. The chant swells, echoing like wind through
canyons. It is both beautiful and unsettling.
JOE
Maybe we both.
GALE
Then we walk. That way.
She points to the trail away from the conflict. They begin to
turn.
CONSTANCE
Wait.
They stop.
CONSTANCE (CONT'D)
I can't.
They look at her. She steps forward, alone.
CONSTANCE (CONT'D)
I'll make a noise. Pull 'em away.
You come when I run.
WILLIE
Connie.
CONSTANCE
This ain't just about us.
Willie grips her hand. She kisses his cheek.
CONSTANCE (CONT'D)
Don't forget me.
She moves toward the arroyo.
