REQUITE
Requite- to pay back according to one's preference and often not equivalently
Characters
The Jake's (Jake, Jacob, Jacoby), Rich, De'alla- God of Passing and Escort of Spirit, Aten- God of Bargains and Oathes
Int. Home
It's midday, quiet. Soft music plays in the background, and the home is slightly smokey with incense. This home is created from peace and harmony with self. The mail slides through the slot and there's a notifying knock on the door.
A young man walks up, shirtless, only a gold chain adorning his chest and wearing sweatpants (RICH). He looks about 23, dreadlocks. His demeanor is calm, relaxed as if he just rolled out of bed, his freeform dreadlocks poking outward haphazardly. He picks up the mail and begins to flip through the different envelopes as he slowly walks away from the door. He sees one with a gang of stamps on it, being returned to sender multiple times over.
Rich
How many times they gonna send this shit back.
He turns back to the door and tries to catch the mailman before he gets too far.
As soon as he unlocks the door it explodes open.
Enter The Jakes.
3 masked men bumrush the door, all brandishing pistols. JAKE pistol whips the homeowner as JACOB runs further into the home. JACOBY closes up the door and locks it.
{camera} We see a profile of the scene from a bird’s eye view.
The homeowner falls to the ground and the mail slides towards the camera. The title, REQUITE, is on the envelope which was the cause of it all.
FADE TO BLACK AS THE SOUNDS OF A ROBBERY CONTINUE
INT. Atens Abandoned Temple
{camera} Close on an older pair of hands moving beads in his hands
The older man sits there, Jake prostrated in front of him. He wears a mask adorned with gilded leaves and flowers. His body is painted in cracked yellow, forearms covered with a red tint, red handprints on his chest. The alter from earlier sits behind him.
Aten
Look me in my eyes, get your head up from this dusty floor.
Jake rises to his knees in a samurai kneel, a little afraid to.
Aten
You are but a child in this world. A child of mine with a stone in your gut. What is it that brings you 'ere?
Jake
(eyes staring forward into the dirt, searching himself for the answer)
Death is in love with me, and I'm tired of feeding her. I can feel her surrounding me and I want to... I want... Life.
Aten
If it's the life you seek then it's life you've found. But what do you give for life?
Jake
Anything
Aten
(leans in closer)
Anything is a lot of currency in my experience. Can you pay in full what I ask of you?
Jake just stares back. The unsure air around him dissipates and he stills himself, staring back into the black holes of the masked man in front of him. Aten grunts with approval and the sound cuts out save for the priest's voice.
Aten
We have a deal then… Jake. 20 is my number for you. 20. Be patient. Death cannot touch you as long as you remain in service to me. D’allah remains powerless. I am patient. You need not give anything today, but when I call for you...
(the air grows tight, the sounds of the forest cut out and all goes silent. Aten holds out a necklace in his hand.)
Answer.
The word escapes as a whisper in a myriad of voices.
Int. Jake's home
The boys' john each other Jacoby laughs while sloppily eating a bag of chips.
{camera} Open with a pan shot of photos on a mantle. There are family photos, a drawing from a young relative, and an ornately framed lithograph of a curved knife and a rabbit in the middle.
{camera} Close up on their mouths as they talk
Jake
Fool ass, fake ass, 3 dollar having ass, cheesecake pressed clown ass lah boy
Jacob
Ole stank ass, bubble gut, 2 cent with no sense ass duck ass lah boy
JAKE
You maaaaaaaadddddd. You can't get no hoes BUTTERBEAN?
JACOB
That's what your sister thought too until she found out why they call me the Superman Luva.
Jake
My sister outchea heavier than you're soft ass, Jacob. What you bout?
Jacob
That necklace can't protect you forever.
{camera} Close on the necklace around Jake's neck. Smoke rises from the Blunt in hand, drifting dreamily between the lens and his necklace.
Jake
I'm blessed, you can't touch me.
Jacob
You call it blessed, that shit's a curse. You a whole demon outchea.
Jake
I don't know what YOU been on but me? I'm aligned with my God.
Jacoby
Explain Rich den?
Jake
MAN FUCK Rich. That boy raped a lil girl a while back.
(all nod in remembrance)
Privileged cats always try to push shit until they get their shit pushed back.
Jacob
Rich might've been the person he was, but don't get all righteous on me fool. We were there for the plan and everything, you can't pull that card.
Jacoby
Yeashdont try that
Jake
Whatever man. The mission is the mission, we don't get to question that.
Jake rises as Jacob and Jacoby continue to talk, the conversation muffled as we tune into Jake walking towards a hallway. The camera follows as he walks forward, swinging around him as he enters the dark hallway. He walks towards us, eyes fixed on something unseen.
Int Totem in an Abandoned Building
Jake is walking up to this alter, beginning to prostrate himself at its feet, necklace in hand. On the alter lies a knife and rabbit, whose already been cut in half. An pine branch with a couple of pine cones still attached. A straw field hat sits on a candelabra. Sounds of the woods floods over the senses.
The totem is about half his height and seems like a relic, left here by worshippers long dead. Rediscovered by Jake. A voice booms out, vibrating the air with a raspy baritone.
Aten
Your life belongs to me... Jake. You can't rest yet...
We hear a women's laugh.
SLO MO CLOSE UP Jake turns his head, panning into the darkness behind him.
Int. Jake's living room night
{camera}
The pan leads to a back view of Jake, lit by a lamp in front of him. The cam slowly advances through the dark until Jake's head is taking up the most of frame.
CLOSE UP OF REVOLVER IN HIS HAND AND THE BULLET DANCING BETWEEN HIS FINGERS.
Jake is kneeling in his living room. He has a revolver in his hand and is sliding a single bullet between his fingers
Jake (WHISPERING v.O.)
Death is easy, life is hard. Death can be quick… It can be quick.
Jake clicks the bullet in, spits on it, spins it and claps it close.
Jake (V.O.)
Give it all up. Or keep going? 1 out of 6. 17%.... 17%.... 1 out of 6.... Quick. It'll be quick.
A cloaked black figure stands behind him, looming in above him. DE’ALLA, Death wants to take him. She speaks to him in a gravely whisper, her VOICE LAYERED WITH LUST
De'alla
Let it go Jake. Come to my arms.
Jake lifts the pistol up to the bottom of his chin. His eyes are empty. His breathing is steady. The white noise of silence growing louder in his ears he steadies his last breath. As his eyelids close the world closes in around him, the silence rings louder.
{camera} We slowly zoom in towards the barrel of the gun
*Click*
CUT BACK TO FULL BODY SHOT AT SOUND OF CLICK
Jake collapses into himself as he muscles release the tension. The cloaked black figure behind him is gone. Aten is standing behind him, a beam of orange light illuminating him from the top.
Aten (v.o)
You're mine Jake.
He checks the gun and an empty shell of the bullet falls out. He looks at it perplexed as it drops onto the floor, the clanking metal on tile echoing. He tosses the gun aside and walks off camera frustrated. We pan down to the shell.
Int. Jake's living room midday
The camera's position hasn't moved as the Jakes sit on the couch, quiet, watching TV.
TV (v.o)
A spree of home invasions has put the city on edge, the precipice being the home invasion of the Prime Constable's nephew, Richard Galespa who has been missing since the incident.
Rich's Family Crest is shown side by side with a photo of Rich, his father and his uncle.
JACOB
(sitting up)
Damn I didn't know he was plugged like that! He gonna have the city on fire.
Jacoby
Awwww shit disshitgonbebad
Jacob
Jake, did you know who this dude really was? His uncle is really wild.
Jacoby
Wild dirty.
TV (v.o)
The search for Mr. Galespa continues. Friends and family, saying he was last seen the night before the robbery.
Jake sits pensive, fingering the necklace like a rosary.
{camera} Close on Jake's hand as he slides the beads of his necklace between his fingers.
cut to
INT. Jake's room
Aten (v.o)
When I call...
The words echo through the room.
Jake's eyes pop open and he clutches the necklace. His head rises and he looks towards the door.
A figure stands there, De'alla silhouetted, drenched in shadow. We hold on to it for 10 seconds slowly panning forwards, then it steps into the room.
Back Alley
The Jakes are hanging out there, Jacob and Jacoby kicking a soccer ball back and forth, talking shit. Jake is sitting on a curbside, watching. Their car sits at the mouth of the alleyway, with broken cars and old tires lining the alley.
Jacob
Survival of the Fittest. Darwinism my brudda that's the only way to eat when shit gets heavy.
Jake
That's some northerner's shit, save that.
Jacob
If it ain't that, then what it is then, huh?
Jake
You been listening to the Thynes too much. Competition brings sparks, but cooperation keeps the fire. That survival of the fittest shit just trying to snuff out everybody else's flame.
Jacob
Finite resources my boy. If everybody can't eat, someone is gonna start taking.
Jake
The community provides though. If you look around, there's gardens for food, butchers, carpenters, brick layers, tailors, and all of them work on a trust system if you don't have it so why we talking about survival of the fittest?
Jacob
So how do you make sense of what we do? How you look at yourself with all this community talk and we out here knocking heads.
Jake
We done what we've had to do but it's who we do it to that's the key. This is bigger than us, maybe we'll see the picture later but right now, just back me man. You worried about who? Rich? Fuck Rich, and fuck his crooked ass uncle too.
Jacoby
He got a point.
Jacob
(to Jacoby) Now he wanna act like every time we do some shit it's to somebody fucked up. You know.
We see a pair of teens stepping out from the tall grass adjacent to the alleyway the Jake's are in. They are wearing masks, the crest of Rich's family loosely painted on them, shirtless carrying spears. They creep forwards like wild cats prowling.
Jacob
Rich is just one! We DO this shit. I'm just tired of Jake acting like this ain't what it is
-cut to Jake scoffing, focused on a small coin on the ground.
Jacob
So that outweighs ALL the shit we do? ALL the shit? C'mon son? ALL THE SHIT? Really? Karma is truth, and this shit swings around on a pendulum.
Jacoby
Karma is a thing. And its outchea, yea.
Jake
Y’all don’t think this shit haunt me?! (strained silence) I shouldn’t have made the deal, but we here now and when that time comes we'll figure out if one evil really outweighs-
Stick Up Kids
Say Jake!
Jake looks left as the kid pulls back, arching his back ready to release a javelin, tense as a spring. When he let's go we hear a shot.
(the amplified sound of a bow pulling back and releasing, gunshot at point of release.)
The Jake's run to the car for cover, pulling out their pistols and blind firing back in the assailant's direction but the kids disappear just as quickly as they appeared.
Jake's corpse lays there, lifeless. His eyes still open, peering out past into the next plane. We can see Jacob and Jacoby pause at seeing the corpse, then get into the car and drive off.
The camera stays right above the body as the car pulls away.
Montage of wide angle shots
Flips between shots of pedestrians in wide empty spaces, often dwarfing the subject: dwarfed by buildings, dwarfed by an opposing crowd, dwarfed by nature.
Narrator
PALUS is unlike every other place you may know, think you know, or have imagined. PALUS is a living, breathing, evolving entity of its own. Power, magic, gods, gri gri, enchantments, curses, hoodoo, juju, ley lines, the paranormal along with other extrasensory experiences that shake your perception of reality thrive within the borders of this swampland. PALUS is you. It becomes you, consumes you, and let's you back out to the world. You may leave, but PALUS doesn't let go.
PALUS is separate from the history known and taught to you.
PALUS is black.
PALUS is black.
PALUS is black.
PALUS is built from the descendants of migrants, who came to build across with those native to the lands. PALUS is etched into a corner, a foothold of culture from across the seas, 20 generations removed from its traditions and gods. PALUS isn't the spirituality you think you know. PALUS IS YOU.
GROUND ADJACENT TO SWAMPY AREA, BLUE HOUR
We END THE MONTAGE OF SCENES TO see a grassy lot, a patch bunching up. Fingers rip through and push outward feverishly.
NARRATOR
PALUS doesn't let go.
Arms scramble around trying to find a handhold.
NARRATOR
Palus doesn't forget.
Jake rips himself from the earth, sprawling out onto the grass once he's freed himself, taking labored breaths. The camera remains low, panning away as he reassesses himself.
Jake clasps the muck at his neck, pulling forth the necklace and laughing and coughing up globs of blood and dirt.
Text appears across the screen. "Death Count: 12 (strike through 12) 13"
A couple of drops of water fall onto his face as it begins to rain. The sound of rain evolves into a shower and we hear the squeaks of the knobs turning off.
Int. Jake's house
ATEN
(low grumbling voice)
You owe me, boy.
Jake stops abruptly, shocked that a voice is coming from his own home. We can see the confusion on his face as the camera pans zooms in, circling him, searching in his memory as to what he left open? What hole was exploited?
Aten
Your soul, it's a heavy one you know that?
Close Low angle upshot on Aten's face. The corners of his mouth are just barely turned upwards.
Aten
3 souls it will take to fill your place in Abwebo. 3 souls you will need to collect for me.
Jake
HOW THE FUCK YOU GOT IN MY HOUSE MAN?! You know you don't have to do it like this right?
Aten
(unfazed)
3 souls boy. Leave this on their bodies so she knows they are mine to collect.
3 small burlap bags hit the floor, the camera catching their trajectory and slide.
Aten
(with camera focused on bags)
Replace that. Collect them. 3 souls. 3 days. Or I come to collect you.
Jake reaches down to pick up the bags.
Jake
(joking) Say bruh I know you gave me this necklace but we gotta discuss boundaries or some-
His sentence is cut short when he looks up and realizes he's talking to an empty space. The priest is long gone.
The loud sound of a clock ticking grows as he grabs the last bag and walks into his room. The camera stays in the hall as the door closes.
Camera stays on focused on the door, cut to same shot of different door outside of the Public Library with a graffiti tag saying “I am Jake's complete lack of surprise”
Ext. Public library
The sliding doors of the library open
Jake walks through the door, and up to Jacob and Jacoby. They are lounging at a table, they don't look shocked to see Jake walking and talking again.
Jacob
Took a lil longer this time.
Jake
I'm the unkillable, the unfuckwittable.
Jacoby
Yea yea yea, goodtahseeyuhbrudda.
JAKE
Same same, what yall heard?
JACOB
Stick up kids off of 38th. How much it cost this time?
JAKE
(drops bags onto the table)
3. We need 3 at least.
JACOB
You ever thought about what would happen if you didn't?
JAKE
I mean, if I don't then...
He gets a vision of a fire burning, screams & Aten flashes across the screen.
I don't want to find out to be real. You don't know how cold the earth is.
JACOBY
Whereya came up dis time?
JAKE
I can't even tell. I don't remember much about coming out. I just remember the shower after.
Jacob
How much time we got?
JAKE
3 days. (lights up blunt) We gotta move. Now.
Int. Childhood Home
A slow-motion shot of the necklace skidding across a wooden floor.
Public Park
6 guys are playing 3v3 basketball at an outdoor court. The camera is stagnant as the guys run across the court back and forth. The Jake's car sits at center court, in the parking lot adjacent to it.
-cut to
Jake's Car Int
We sit with them for a few moments while they observe the guys play ball.
Jacob
That's him. There was one other but he’s not right here right now.
{camera} close up on one of the guys, the shooter.
Jake
So he thinks he can hunt with the wolves huh?
Jacoby
(yawns) Walking corpse.
Time-lapse of them sitting in the car as the day changes to dusk.
wide shot Through the back window of Jake's car.
Jacoby
But that don'tevenmake sense bruh, she didn't call?
Jacob
Bruh she didn't even follow back on twitter bruh. Shaking my damn-
The shooter daps up the other guys playing and gets into his car.
(Jake from the backseat)
So we follow him.
Ext. Streets of Palus
The Jake's cruise a car behind the target. The camera rocks from the view of center back seat as they drive through the bumpy streets. Trails of smoke float from the front seat
Int Childhood Home
A slow motion shot of wooden necklace skidding across floor
Ext. BACK ALLEY
The car the Jake's tailing pulls into an alleyway next to an old washeteria. The Jake's pull into a spot as the targets cruise in to block the entrance to the alley with their car. The shooter hops out and 4 guys walk up to him all talking amongst one another.
A cross shot from within the Jake's car watches them.
JAKE
Let's hit the block.
JACOBY pulls out 3 pistols from under the seat and passes them around. The car creeps back.
Ext. BACK Alley, culley opening
The Jake's emerge from this hole in the fence, prowling out towards the alley. The camera remains in a profile shot as it tracks their approach.
The music fades to silent as they begin to raise their pistols and the camera stops tracking them, holding still as they progress off screen.
The music picks back up after about 5 seconds, swinging left to show the alley and a slew of bodies strewn out. There's at least 8 PEOPLE laying out. Jacob and Jacoby are dragging bodies into a line. Jake is above the last guy, rising up from him with a blood stained shirt.
shooter
You… you’re dead you know? (Laughing) they’re gonna hang you.
Jake
You can't kill what's already dead.
Jake lets off one more round. He reaches down, dips his fingers in a wound and drags the blood in two lines under his left eye down to his jawline as the life leaves the shooter.
He drops a bag onto the body.
INT CHILDHOOD HOME
In slow motion shot of the necklace sliding, a ball rolls past
BACK ALLEY
Jake walks up to another body and drops a bag.
INT FIRST HOME
In slow motion shot of the necklace, another ball rolls past
Back alley
Jake crouches at the last body in the line of bodies that Jacob and Jacoby have made and place a bag on his chest.
Int Jake's Home
The necklace slides across and pushed another ball rolls past, sliding into the back of Jake's shoe. He's kneeled in the same position in front of an alter set up the same way as the alter in the warehouse from earlier.
The camera circles him, showing us him but not what is in front of him. We see all of the people from the alley standing behind him, hands bound to one another by rope.
In an over shoulder shot we see what he sees: ATEN sitting in the same chair as before, with the totem behind him. He’s rotating the 3 balls in his hand, 3x larger than the humans in front of him.
Close up on Aten's mouth as a smile crawls across his face.
Aten
You are free, Jake. Look around you and see you’re work. This is the price for your life.
JAKE
(Looking around at the faces of those he’s killed)
Aten…. I have one more request.
Cut to black
END.