Trancendence
The emotion in her confession makes her wonder if it’s true. will takes in every minute detail of her.
WILL
Your heart is in palpitations. You’re perspiring, trembling, and breathless. The way you’re correcting your balance suggests severe lightheadedness …
(A sad diagnosis)
Evelyn, you’re terrified of me.
EVELYN
I’m afraid you don’t love me anymore. That you can’t.
Will, conflicted, comes to a painful conclusion.
WILL
I don’t believe you.
Evelyn, knowing she’s failing, breathes. She steps closer to him. Touches him. Looks into his eyes … and lies.
EVELYN
Trust me, will. Please trust me.
will stares into her, struggling with love and suspicion.
EXT. DESERT RIDGE – DAY
Max and Bree see will’s struggle.
MAX
This isn’t working.
BREE
It can’t love her. Not really. That’s impossible, right?
MAX
We’re out of time. Open fire.
Stephens gets a sour look.
COLONEL STEPHENS What about Evelyn?
MAX
We need to force it to upload her. He will protect her. Open fire.
Stephens nods and signals the HOWITZER TEAMS to-
COLONEL STEPHENS Open fire!
EXT. WILL’S FACILITY – DAY
Evelyn and Will see the FLASHES of cannon fire. The sky SCREAMS with incoming artillery. She immediately sees Max’s strategy. The tragic effectiveness of it. She turns to will.
EVELYN
Please, will. There’s no time. You have to upload me.
will glances at her. Makes his decision.
WILL
No.
In a blur of motion all around them, waves of nanotechnology rise from the street and buildings. It shapes itself into protective walls around Will, Evelyn and the hybrids.
The artillery EXPLODES into the walls. Evelyn and Will take shelter behind one. He covers her, protecting her from the concussive BLASTS and the DEBRIS raining down on them.
Evelyn looks up to Will, and finds him staring into space. Concentrating on .••
EXT. THE SEA OF NANOTECHNOLOGY – DAY
NORTH OF MAX’S POSITION the nanotechnology begins to move … it spreads out over the shore … moves up the slope of the hills … and turns its current for Max’s line of artillery …
SOUTH OF MAX’S POSITION a similar phenomena happens. The nanotechnology moves to flank Max’s cannons.
EXT. DESERT RIDGE – DAY
The artillery keeps BLASTING. Max and the others, through binoculars, watch the HAMMERING of the protective walls.
MAX Fire the EMPs.
At Stephens’ signal, the HOWITZER TEAMS load MODIFIED SHELLS.
EXT. WILL’S FACILITY – DAY
BOOM. The EMF round blows into the shielding of the main processing building.
Evelyn sees will FLINCH at the impact. Like the blow HURT. The artillery CRATERS the wall.
But instead of it being immediately repaired by more nanotechnology, the protective wall fissures and CRUMBLES. Like an ice shelf falling into the sea, the entirety of a 12 yard radius around the blast area falls … CRASH.
will leads Evelyn away to the edge of the compound, away from the blasts. The PROTECTIVE WALL moves with them. Another BLAST. Nanotechnology CRASHES. Will flinches.
EVELYN It’s hurting you.
He flinches at another BOOM.
WILL
Why are they doing this? What do they hope to accomplish?
Evelyn watches him. Mute, she looks away.
WILL (CONT’D) It doesn’t matter.
will closes his eyes, focusing on .••
EXT. THE SEA OF NANOTECHNOLOGY – DAY
The nanotechnology flows out of the sea and spreads over the facility. It moves up the buildings and protective walls compromised by the EMPs.
IN AN ARIEL VIEW We see the artillery fire is overwhelming. So much nanotechnology has to be replaced that the facility looks like a giant sinkhole for the sea.
EXT. DESERT RIDGE – DAY
Colonel Stephens smiles at the damage. Max checks the hybrids, who watch the destruction from the protective walls.
MAX
Why isn’t it fighting back?
Between the BOOMS of the cannon, Max can hear faint SCREAMS. He checks his sides. His eyes go wide.
AT THE SOUTH END OF THE LINE OF HOWITZERS: nanotechnology SPIDER WEBS over the big cannon. The men run. The graphite pours up the gun, disables the FIRING PIN and dismantles the weapon with extreme precision.
There’s an enormous CRACK as the nanotechnology CRUSHES the machinery of the heavy weapon. Broken, its pieces fall.
MAX (CONT’D)
Oh •..
At more SCREAMS, Max whips to see-
THE NORTH END OF THE HOWITZERS: The furthest cannon meets a similar fate. The graphite streams closer, falls on the next big gun, and leaves it a pile of inoperable parts.
Desperate militants and soldiers lift rifles and FIRE into the mass of graphite ••. the bullets POP into it, ineffective. They nanotechnology reaches them, WRAPS around them. It SOLIDIFIES, BINDING them in some kind of STRAIGHT JACKETS.
Stephens looks to the closest team, who have stopped firing to stare, agog, at the monstrous graphite.
COLONEL STEPHENS
Fuck are you doing1? Keep firing!
The team nods, doubles their pace, and FIRES.
EXT. WILL’S FACILITY – DAY
BOOM. A round slams into the wall protecting will and Evelyn. The nanotechnology crumbles. But before more can replace it, there’s the SCREAM of another shell. Will spins to Evelyn~
WILL
Get down 1
Artillery EXPLODES into the broken wall. The blast sends them flying. Debris rains all around.
EXT. DESERT RIDGE – DAY
Max, seeing the blast, pales.
MAX
No.
EXT. WILL’S FACILITY – DAY
Evelyn comes to, covered in bits of rubble. Battered and disoriented, her only thought is for-
EVELYN
will?
She drags herself up. Will is already crawling to her. Seeing her, he freezes. Evelyn follows his focus to discover ••• SHRAPNEL, lodged in her gut. There’s a lot of blood. Evelyn loses strength. Slumps.
