Monkey See Monkey Do – Chapter 3
Establishing shot: Ext. of a private jet
Int. of jet. Dakota is talking to Kim and Ron.
Ron: The Simian whatsitwhosits?
Dakota Smith: (slowly) It's called the Simian Annulus. It's been the focus of my entire archeological career. Monkey Fist stole most of my research last night but he didn't get this…
Dakota Smith pulls out a tattered notebook from a small backpack.
Kim: And what is that, Dr. Smith?
Dakota Smith: Please, just call me Dakota…and this is known as a "compendium vitae". It is a summary of my critical research and I had it hidden in a secret floor panel. Everybody in this field has one of these since competition is so fierce. What Monkey Fist didn't know is that, while he DID get some very important and valuable information, his information is incomplete…and besides, I also planted some false information in there to throw anyone off the track should my research be stolen.
Kim: So what's the drama, Dakota? If Monkey Fist doesn't have all the info he needs, and maybe even false info, why the panic?
Dakota Smith: Monkey Fist…Monte Fiske is a brilliant archaeologist and historian. The fact that he has incomplete and erroneous information might slow him down, but not for long.
Kim: But how did you manage to escape from him?
Dakota Smith: He tied me up but he can't tie knots very well anymore, so I managed to wriggle free without much difficulty. It seems that, with all of Monkey Fist's … um … modifications…he is experiencing a monkey-like lack of hand dexterity.
Kim: Yeah, opposable thumbs so rock! So, where exactly are we going?
Dakota Smith: We are headed to Tamilnadu. It's located on India's southern tip, on the Bay of Bengal. It is a sacred site in Hindi mythology.
Kim: And what's so special about this place?
Dakota Smith: Here is the Cliffs Notes version…As the legend goes, the demon god-king known as Ravana was terrorizing people in the kingdom of Ayodhya. The people asked the Indian god Rama for his help. Rama commanded some of the other, lesser gods and goddesses to take the incarnated animal form of what are called "Vanaras" and help the people defeat Ravana.
Ron: Vanaras? Cooool. What's that? Like, a tiger or a panther or something?
Dakota Smith: No, Ron. Vanaras are monkeys.
Ron: MONEKYS! Oh man, we come to a country with cool tigers, lions, and elephants…and what are we dealing with? A bunch of monkeys! I hate monkeys! Well…except for Frederick, he's OK….and Chippy, when I thought it was Kim, we got along well. Other than them….I hate monkeys!
(note: Frederick is the astronaut monkey from "Monkey Ninjas In Space" and Chippy is the monkey Ron thought was actually Kim from "The Full Monkey")
KP: Ron, chill. Go ahead, Dakota.
Dakota Smith: Well, the gods-turned-monkeys helped Rama fight against Ravana. Furthermore, it was the lesser-god Pavana, the Hindu god of wind, that took the form of the Vanara called Hanuman, and became the wisest, swiftest, and strongest of all the monkeys. These days, Hanuman is worshipped as a symbol of physical strength, perseverance, and devotion.
Ron: Worship monkeys? (turning to Kim) Sick and wrong, Kim. SICK and WRONG.
Dakota Smith: There were four Vanaras in all and each of the god-monkeys all had their own temples in ancient times, but of most interest was the Pancha Changu temple in modern day Tamilnadu. The Pancha Changu temple had what was believed to be the oldest statue of Hanuman. According to legend, it was carved by Hanuman himself. Adorning his head was a headband known as the Simian Annulus. It is the Simian Annulus that Monkey Fist is after.
Kim: Other than dealing with monkeys, why does Monkey Fist want it?
Dakota Smith: Since Hanuman is known for physical strength and loyal devotion, the Simian Annulus is said to give its wearer not only the physical strength befitting a monkey-god but the unending devotion of an army of monkeys.
Ron: Monkey armies? Oh, man, this just keeps getting worser and worser…
Kim: It's "more worse", Ron.
Ron: Exactly.
Kim: No, Ron. I'm just...
Ron is looking at her with a blank stare.
Kim: Nevermind.
-
CUT TO:
Ext of the Pancha Changu temple. The temple is a pyramidic structure. There are two stone monkey "guards" on either side of the main temple entrance.
Int. of the temple. Dakota, Kim, and Ron are standing in front of an elaborate wall adorned with monkey carvings and Hindi symbols.
Kim: What do we do now, Dakota?
Ron: How about leave? (raises his hand) Anybody up for leaving? I'm up for leaving.
Rufus emerges from his pocket-home.
Rufus: (raising his hand) Yep. Mmm-hmm. Mmm-hmm.
Kim: Ron!
Ron: Monkeys, KP. Monkeys….in a temple. It's not right!
Dakota is ignoring the two.
Dakota Smith: According to these engravings, and I'm not quite sure since they seem to be from an ancient dialect known as Prakara, (slowly running his hand along the engravings as he tries to perform the translation) we have to….yes, that's it! It says, "The path which you follow to find what you seek is found by seeking the true path to follow."
Kim: Dakota? Does that ancient double-speak mean anything to you? I can beep Wade on the Kimmunicator, have him run that through some computer-modeled decoding algorithms.
Dakota Smith: (furiously flipping through his book) No. No. No, I have it right here….The true path to follow is the straight path. You know, as in the "straight and narrow" path? According to my research, this temple is a myriad of mazes, false corridors, and the like.There isn't a straight corridor in this place. All of the paths are a labyrinth of slight curves and can be very deceiving.
Kim: Then how are we supposed to follow a straight path? Do we need to break through the walls?
Dakota: Ha! Ha! No, beside wanting to avoid desecrating sacred temples, we also want to avoid having them collapse onto us and being buried alive! I have another idea (rustling through his bag)
Ron: I like it already.
Dakota Smith: I have a compass in here…somewhere….here it is. We're in the temple's eastern antechamber. We'll just make sure we take the western alternative at each opportunity – we should be fine.
Ron: Cool.
Dakota Smith: Now, we must be cautious. Stay behind me as there could be any number of traps in a place like this. (rubs his arm) Trust me, I know.
Ron: Is that how you hurt your arm?
Dakota Smith: What? (notices he was rubbing his arm) Oh, no, I didn't hurt my arm…I was just rubbing it.
Kim and Ron look at each other and shrug.
CUT TO:
Dakota, Kim, and Ron are wandering through the myriad of tunnels. There are vines and cobwebs that sometimes need to be removed from making their way through the temple's corridors. They periodically check the compass and follow the path in the direction they want.
Dakota Smith: If my map is correct, we should just about be at the main altar which has the statue of Hanuman and the Simian Annulus….just right around this bend and…!
The camera pulls back. Dakota, Kim, and Ron are back in the antechamber where they first started!
Dakota Smith: What the ? I don't understand it! How did we end up back here?
There are some rocks on the ground. He kicks them against the nearby wall.
Dakota Smith: Rrrrrghhh!
A couple of the rocks stay stuck to the wall.
Ron: Whoa! Easy there Doc. It's not the wall's fault.
Kim is looking at the wall and then looks around at the ceiling then back at the wall.
Kim: Hold on a sec, Ron. Maybe it is.
Ron: What are you talking about, KP?
Kim: It might just be the wall's fault. (Turns to Dakota) This part of Tamilnadu is known for its rich iron ore deposits. If the stones used to build this temple contain iron, then the compass we've been using will give us false readings.
Dakota Smith: That's right. In fact, it was designed that way back in the ancient times! (slaps his forehead) How could I have missed that? (to Ron and Kim) See, the Hindu path to enlightenment had to come from the inner-self. Outside references are discouraged…even forbidden.
Ron: So how do we get the path from this "inner-self" dealie? My inner-self can barely get me to school in the mornings.
Dakota Smith: That's the key. We'll have to map it out by counting our steps and periodically cross-checking our progress against –
Kim: Or we can just call Wade.
Kim flips open the Kimmunicator.
Wade: Hey Kim. How's India?
Kim: Totally spankin' but we need a little help.
Wade: Sure, what is it?
Kim: We need to go due west from our current position but the temple's made out of iron so –
Wade- you're compass doesn't work right. and you want me to give you guidance via the GPS system?
Kim: Please and thank you.
Wade: Thanks to High Intensity, Sub-Microscopic Optical Wave transmissions it should be no problem. You're facing west now. Just go ahead and I'll let you know if you're off-course.
CUT TO:
…a large altar room. Across the room is the towering statue of Hanuman. Adorning Hanuman's head is an ornate headband…the Simian Annulus!
Dakota Smith: I can't believe it. My life's work. Finally….
Ron: I'm going to go against my better judgment and say that this is way cool. What are we waiting for let's go –
As Ron starts walking Dakota grabs his arm.
Ron: Hey! What the dilly-o?
Dakota Smith: No! Be careful. See how the stones are all labeled? Any markings that are out-of-placeare probably triggers to a trap. Watch.
Dakota reaches down and picks up a large stone. He tosses it onto a nearby stone floor tile. As it hits the tile, the rock breaksand a series of darts go flying by.
Ron: Eh, I've seen worse.
Dakota Smith: Perhaps, but my best guess is that those darts are laced with what the ancients called "Kali Vakyas" – the living darkness. (Dakota speaks in a very ominous, haunting tone) It is a poison which kills the body but not the mind. Your body will cease to function but you remain awake and endure every pain and torture while parasites and rodents devour your decaying flesh.
Ron: (gulp)
Dakota Smith: (Now speaking matter-of-factly) It's also known as Ferrous Phosphide Dythalamine. It's now used as an main ingredient for high-performance racing fuel!
Ron: Cool!
Dakota Smith: Follow me closely.
Dakota, then Kim, then Ron meticulously make their way to the main altar and Hanuman statue. About halfway through, a gleaming object (shaped like a flat football) on the floor catches Ron's eye. He stops.
Ron: Oooh. Shiney.
As Ron reaches for the object, we see him break what appears to be a spider web above the object. As it breaks, the floor begins to rumble….
Ron: Uh-oh.
Kim: (turning around) Ron! No!
The section of the floor on which they are standing starts to spilt in half, quickly receding underneath either side wall. The three of them try to run forward, to an area where the floor is still stable but before they can reach it, their floor section collapses out from underneath them sending them falling and tumbling into a small cave/pit.
Dakota Smith: Ooof!
Ron: Owww!
Kim: Smooth move, Ron.
Dakota Smith: We're stuck.
Kim: No big, I'll just use my grappling –
As Kim reaches for her grappling hook the ceiling closes back over them. The room is completely enveloped in darkness.
Ron: Uh…Is there a Plan 'B'?
Kim: Hold on.
Kim activates a penlight, barely illuminating the three adventurers.
Dakota Smith: This will help.
Dakota walks over to a couple of unlit torches hanging on the wall. He pulls a match out of his packet and strikes it. With the match, he lights the two torches. He grabs them and hands one to Ron.
Dakota Smith: (sternly) Here (almost shovingthe torch into Ron's chest). Don't touch anything else, OK?
Ron: (sheepishly) OK.
Dakota takes a quick look around the room.
Dakota Smith: OK….this way.
Kim: What kind of place is this?
Dakota Smith: Well, remember how the ancient Hindis believed in balance? This is the temple of the Xarabhagha, literally the "bad man". See, above us is the good being. Below the good being is the bad being….balance.
Kim: How do we "balance" our way out of here?
Dakota Smith: This should be easier tonavigate than the main temple above us. The ancient Hindis would have built this level as a place of penance which, luckily for us, leads me to believe that all paths here would lead to the place of the achabandar, the "good monkey".
Ron: There's no such thing as a good monkey!
Kim: Ron!
-
CUT TO:
The three come to a wall that has an ornamental statue of a one-eyed Hindi demon-looking person sticking out of it. Along the sides are some ancient writings.
Dakota rests his torch in a fixture on the wall.
Kim: What does this mean?
Dakota Smith: (leafing through his notes) I'm looking….
Dakota looks back up at the painted words then back at his notes again. He turns some pages then looks back up. He puts the notes away.
Dakota Smith: It's good and it's not so good.
Kim: What's the good?
Dakota Smith: It's the gateway out of here – then end of the penance journey.
Kim: That IS good….what's the bad?
Dakota Smith: The bad is this: It says, basically, "for us to see the path of redemption" – which is the way out of here – "we will only receive the revelation if we give Xarabhagha his sight".
Kim: How do we do that?
Dakota Smith: It's a concept known as "Pooja", the offering of a material object to receive a spiritual gift. In this case the spiritual gift is access to the upper level of the temple. See where his eye is painted? That's they key – literally. This statue sits in front of a giant wall-safe and the "key" gets placed in his eye. It's known as the "Eye of Kesi".
Kim: How do we find this "eye"?
Dakota Smith: The old fashioned way, we look for it. We only have two torches, you and Ron take one and I'll take the other. We'll split up and cover twice as much ground.
Kim: What does this eye look like?
Dakota Smith: It's about yeah big (holds his thumb and forefinger apart). My research tells me that it is made of jade, so it will be green, and it will be shaped the same as the eye in that picture on the wall.
Dakota Smith: I have to warn you, though, the odds are it has been gone for centuries. In fact, the likelihood that it still even exists is -
Ron: (holding up the object that he picked-up thereby getting them into this trouble) Does it look like this?
Dakota Smith: You've gotta be kidding me!
Dakota grabs the jewel and races up the statue. He sticks the stone in the eye opening and…nothing.
But after a couple of seconds, ancient mechanical systems can be heard cycling through their machinations. It sounds like a really big and really old bank vault being opened. The statue starts to open into the wall.
Kim: That's it!
Ron: Whoa!
Dakota Smith: C'mon
The three maneuver their way behind the statue. There are stairs leading up towards an outline of light in the far wall above them. As they journey onward a few steps, they can see that the old stairway has been destroyed and there is a large gap between them and the exitway.
Kim: Now I can use this.
Kim reaches for her grappling hook and shoots it toward the doorway. It goes through and she gives it a good tug to make sure it's secure.
Dakota Smith: Let me go first, just to make sure it's safe.
Dakota shimmies his way to the doorway. At the doorway, he steps through and disappears from Kim's and Ron's view.
SFX: (off-screen) Crash! Smash!
Camera stays on Kim and Ron.
Dakota Smith: (off-screen) Oof!
Kim and Ron hear the noises. They look at each other.
Kim: (calling towards the doorway) Are you alright?
Silence.
They wait.
Kim: Dakota?
Still no answer.
The grappling linefalls limp.
Kim: Ron,the line has beencut.
Ron: What do we do now? We can'tJUMP that far!
Kim looks around and eyes the rafter beam above the doorway.
Kim: Ron, see that beam above the door?Aim your line at it.
Ron pulls out his grappling hook gun and aims. The hook shoots out, strikes the beam, and sticks.
Kim: C'mon.
They shimmy up the line and pause at the open doorway. They both peek out and look around.
Kim: (whisper) I don't see anything. I think it's clear. Let's go.
They step out the doorway and look around. From above them they hear some rustling. They turn to look up at the ledge above the doorway but nothing can be seen. But…as they turn around there is a small army of monkey ninjas surrounding them.
Kim: Monkey Fist.
Monkey fist steps out on the aforementioned ledge above Kim and Ron.
MF: (spreading his arms) Welcome to my monkey temple, Kim Possible.
-
End of Chapter 3