.
"So Are They"
EXT: TOWN SQUARE – DAY
The sun casts harsh shadows over a bucolic town. Storefronts face a park's greenery, and a central gazebo. At one side, by the entrance to an alley, an overfed man in a black uniform, Michael VICNER, shouts to a gathered, sweating crowd.
VICNER
These idealists call them a threat. They say they will invade and enslave us.
But I tell you this is an opportunity!
Their military is strong and powerful, just as ours is strong and powerful.
They respect strength, and we can join them.
NARRATOR (VO):
A small but decent town, inhabited by equally small but decent people,
not counting one who thinks himself great because his mirror is broken.
Being a typical specimen of his kind, he shouts down at the upturned faces,
braving the heat to lead any followers he can gather
into a cold and crowded corner of perdition.
An automobile parks at a curb, and a young woman, GIA, exits from the driver's side. The car immediately pulls away with the leisurely pace of a shark. The heavily shaded windows help conceal the absence of a driver.
VICNER
Are these so-called "idealists" a threat? Are they violent?
Are they perverted? Shouldn't we investigate?
I think we all know the answer to that, don't we? Our friends are coming here to protect us!
Lot of problems, we're having problems the likes of which you've never seen before, but I can fix them!
Only I can, just you watch and see.
CU: GIA shades her eyes from the sun as she listens.
NARRATOR (VO):
Enter a young woman who will soon find herself on the opposite side of the chessboard from this aspiring King,
and siding with the most improbable of allies.
END TEASER
MAIN TITLE
EXT: TOWN SQUARE – DAY (cont.)
SUPER: "So Are They"
Gia weaves through the crowd toward the town's library as Vicner continues his rant.
VICNER
People are saying that it's smart to join them.
But there will be trouble if we refuse.
If we are with them, we will have so much winning, you will get tired of all the winning!
But if you're not with us, you are against us.
INT: LIBRARY – FIRST FLOOR – DAY
Tall bookshelves, reading tables, a librarian's desk, and a stairway. A matronly LIBRARIAN sits at the desk, head down. She perks up as Gia bursts in and shuts the door behind her.
GIA
Ooooh… too hot!
LIBRARIAN
Good morning. I think you need some cold water.
GIA
Thanks. What is going on out there?
The librarian pours Gia a cup from the water cooler.
LIBRARIAN
Don't you know? We're being invaded!
GIA quaffs the icewater and finally comes up for air, gasping.
GIA
Seriously? No way, I just got here!
LIBRARIAN
Fine time to be traveling! Didn't you know there's a war on, not to mention a heat wave?
GIA
So I was told at the last town. Are they following me?
I don't even rightly know who's fighting who, or what it's all about.
Having nothing better to do, Gia starts browsing the shelves.
LIBRARIAN
"Who's fighting whom." Short version: our city has a modern military, and our attackers know it.
That… person out there wants us to join them in terrorizing our neighbors instead of fighting back.
Like he would know better! That man spends half his time walking the streets talking to himself.
Anyway, you're probably a lot safer in here.
GIA
And a lot cooler too, thanks. Whew!
LIBRARIAN
Well, we close at sunset. Just stay quiet.
Curiously, Gia climbs a set of stairs to…
INT: LIBRARY – SECOND FLOOR – DAY
More tall bookshelves recede into darkness and seeming infinity. A girl, perhaps fifteen, stares out through the slats of the window blinds. ANNE, a pretty adolescent with shoulder-length hair and a faint accent, startles a little when Gia climbs up the staircase.
ANNE
Oh, hi! Someone else come to hide in here?
GIA
If you don't mind? Sorry if I startled you.
Anne shrugs. Gia joins her at the window.
ANNE
Never know who you're gonna meet hiding behind a bookshelf.
GIA'S POV: of the town square, where Michael continues his speech.
ANNE
Ohh, don't watch him, he's awful! I'm Anne.
They shake hands.
GIA
Gia. Hey Anne. I'm just gonna stay here 'til it cools down.
ANNE
Great! Long as we stay quiet, I'm always glad to have company.
Dissolve to:
EXT Alleyway – Night
Vicner sits talking to a SHADOWY FIGURE with a heavy accent. They both ignore the Plymouth Fury, almost black in the shadows, parked and inert nearby.
SHADOWY FIGURE
For political terror to be effective, it must be capricious,
to keep people afraid zhat zhey could be the next victim. Everyvun has to be afraid.
Vicner nods along, enraptured.
INT/EXT: The Car – Night
Gia sits alone inside, eavesdropping. And whispering from the dashboard AV system over the sound of CRICKETS, the voice of CHRISTINE.
GIA
What're we doing hanging around here?
CHRISTINE
Oh, there's gonna be bloodshed – murder and mayhem! Which means I get to eat.
How's your history? You know who that is, kiddo?
A burned-out streetlamp flashes briefly, revealing by strobe-flashes the shadowy figure's face.
GIA
Not my strong point, but yeah, of course I know him. That's Hitler.
CHRISTINE
Good. Saves me a lot of explaining.
And that's the least of the reasons I'm glad they still teach you kids about him.
GIA
Other people can't see him.
They think the guy's talkin' to himself. How come we can?
CHRISTINE
"Fury vision" I call it. I've been gnawin' on you a while, and you've got my venom in your veins.
Now you can see what I see, and you're gonna need that.
GIA
You're drugging me?!
CHRISTINE
Nothing so crude! What, you think you'd be safe from this sort of thing just 'cause you can't see it?
You're gonna be seein' all kinds of strange stuff from now on.
GIA
Swell! So what are we lookin' at exactly, a ghost?
CHRISTINE
If you like. What's a ghost but an idea?
Sometimes people become ideas, in the end.
This idea was around long before you were, an' most likely still be bummin' around long after you're gone.
You mortals come and go so quick. Shh, listen and learn…!
They go back to eavesdropping.
VICNER
Why are the uniforms so important?
SHADOWY FIGURE
Pageantry, Mister Vicner, glamour! We must put on a pleasing shape.
Zhere are rules here as in every game. We must not suffer differences, we must all be alike and uniform, right down to zhe skin!
Your skin is your uniform. It is a pity we must suffer women, who are different and zherefore inferior.
DISSOLVE TO:
GIA'S POV of the Town Square. Vicner's ranting to the crowd again.
INT Library, Second Floor – Day
Anne's scribbling into her journal while Gia stares out the window.
GIA
What're you writing?
ANNE
Nuthin' important, just journaling.
Anne closes her journal.
ANNE
You ever stop to think how wonderful books are? All these people, long gone, but in a book that doesn't matter.
They can talk right to you like they were still there.
I wanna be like that someday. I don't want to live in vain, like most people.
I want to go on living, even after my death.
GIA
Christine says ghosts are just ideas, that people can become ideas in the end.
ANNE
Your friend sounds pretty smart.
GIA
Not exactly a friend, but she's seen a lot.
Anne gets up and finds a book from the shelves.
ANNE
Here's a sad story. Once upon a time there was this idealistic group that wanted to build a little utopia.
They cleared out a patch deep in the jungle and settled down.
Anne shows a picture.
ANNE
But their leader was a crazy man, and when he got caught in some crimes, he ordered all his followers to drink poison.
The rescuers found a thousand people lying dead underneath this sign.
GIA
"Those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it." Yikes!
ANNE
And the whole thing's pretty much forgotten now….
Gia goes back to staring out the window.
GIA
Well, that's more than a little ominous.
And his crowd is bigger today.
ANNE
Are you thinking of doing something about it?
Gia snorts.
GIA
Me? What can I do?
ANNE
Well, Mister Vicner's still in his early days, isn't he?
If we could nip this in the bud before he starts gathering henchmen and a real following—
GIA
How?
ANNE
One of my friends says mockery is the best weapon.
Trust me, people like him have no sense of humor at all.
Gia looks back at Anne, suddenly inspired.
GIA
Oh hey… y'know, Christine's lookin' forward to things getting out of hand.
It would so serve her right if I shut everything down before she got her way.
Gia and Anne sit down together at the reading table.
GIA
Alright, I'm in. What do you have in mind?
DISSOLVE TO:
EXT. Town Square – DAY
Vicner's still ranting. Behind him, Gia suddenly pops up, wearing a pretty good homespun imitation of his uniform. Gia follows his movements exaggeratedly, and silently mouthes his words. The audience starts laughing at her antics.
Vicner pauses, confused by the giggling. Abruptly he starts looking around, but Gia ducks behind a garbage can.
After a moment Vicner begins speaking again, and soon Gia reappears, provoking still more laughter.
Vicner whirls to look behind him, but Gia ducks around to his back. With his every lumbering move, nimble little Gia dodges from his view. The audience roars.
Finally, Gia stands before a shocked Vicner, grinning.
GIA
Hey, this looks like fun. Can I play?
Strutting to center stage, Gia bellows to the audience:
GIA
Oh lookie, here's a problem only I can fix, 'cause I made it in the first place!
Incensed, Vicner starts shrieking.
VICNER
Get out of here!
GIA
Aw c'mon, Vichy-poo, it is what it is!
VICNER
You think you're funny? Say something funny!
GIA
After you!
VICNER
Don't you laugh at me, don't you dare!
GIA
Oooohh, fight fight fight! It's clobberin' time!
Gia mimes shadow-boxing with Vicner.
Enraged, Vicner tries to grab her, but she trips him, to the audience's delight.
Vicner climbs up, snarling. He charges and punches Gia in the face, knocking her off her feet. The garbage can overturns, rolls, and CLATTERS toward the audience.
There is a moment of hushed silence, then both Vicner and Gia turn to look out at the crowd.
The audience BOOS and JEERS.
TOWNSPERSON #1
What the heck's the matter with you?
TOWNSPERSON #2
What kinda man would do that?
VICNER
No! It was the right thing to do. We must be hard.
We must make our people hard, and not let ourselves become sentimental–
He's interrupted when someone in the audience sloshes a cupful of lemonade in his face. As Vicner tries to regain control, the audience plunders the garbage can for more objects to throw at him, staining his uniform. Finally a rock hits him, and he flees down the alleyway. The audience's JEERS turn to CHEERS.
INT Library – First Floor – Day
Gia enters, with a stained kerchief over her nose, greeted by the solicitous librarian.
LIBRARIAN
You going to be alright? That's already turning into quite a shiner.
Gia walks up the stairs, followed by the librarian.
GIA
Aw, what good am I if I can't take a little bloody nose?
Just wanted to say g'bye before I head out.
Second floor
GIA
Christine's gonna be so steamed!
LIBRARIAN
Goodbye to… who, exactly?
Realization dawns.
GIA
"Whom." Oh! Oh, okay yeah, I get it. This is my life now…!
Aggrieved, Gia walks down the stairs.
The confused librarian looks around the empty room, unnerved.
Passing by the reading table, she TSKS when she finds Anne's journal left open. The librarian picks it up, SNAPS it shut, and checks the tag for re-shelving.
CU: A face beams from the book's back cover, a pretty adolescent girl with shoulder-length hair. The librarian slides Anne's diary into its place, nestled snugly between Night and While England Slept.
Then she makes her way downstairs.
Lit by the lamp at the table, a bald, portly man in a weskit puffs on his cigar with a satisfied smile, and places a gentle hand on Anne's shoulder; she reaches up to clasp it warmly.
An actor wearing a toothbrush mustache, a shabby derby, and a flower in his lapel stands alongside the video shelf.
Next to him, a scrappy little fellow leans against a poster of a superhero punching Hitler.
The library's shadow-haunted aisles teem with silhouettes. From their midst a familiar-looking author, our NARRATOR, steps forward holding an envelope.
NARRATOR
Where there's prejudice, where there's bigotry, he's alive.
So long as these evils exist, he walks among us,
because through these things we keep him alive.
With gentle smiles, Anne and the others fall in behind him. The author offers the envelope.
NARRATOR
But if his shade stills walks the Earth, then kinder spirits must also dog our steps, whispering in our ears,
advising, teaching, and urgently warning.
So long as we hear and heed them, what must never happen again shall not.
SLOW ZOOM TO: The envelope's return address.
NARRATOR
This summons to public service sealed, stamped, and delivered to you – to you personally,
return address in distinct custom type: "The Twilight Zone."
FADE TO BLACK
END CREDITS