“AT THE WORLD’S END”

Excerpt from a Screen Adaptation of

James DeMille’s

“A Strange Manuscript Found in a Copper Cylinder” (1888)

Written by

Robert W. Lebling
 "AT THE WORLD’S END"

FADE IN:

EXT. ANTARCTIC - SEASIDE CLIFF – DAY

All around is Antarctic ice. Our attention is drawn to a

volcanic region, an ancient lava field strewn with black rock
and pumice, noxious smoke and occasional gouts of flame.
There is no ice or snow here. The lava field ends abruptly at
the sea.

A human figure, in a heavy gray hooded cloak, approaches the

edge of the cliff, and looks down at the sea below. The
figure's face is hidden, its gender unclear. A copper
canister emerges from beneath the cloak. The figure tosses
the canister over the edge, and it tumbles, end over end,
down to the waves below.

As the figure turns slowly and walks away from the cliff
edge, a panorama of the Antarctic landscape appears and
opening credits roll.

EXT. ATLANTIC OCEAN - A SAILING YACHT - MIDDAY

It is 1850. A large two-masted yacht, the Falcon, lies

becalmed off the Canaries. The volcanic peak of Tenerife can
be seen in the distance.

The crew are scattered, some dozing, some playing cards.

Ennui permeates all. Two middle-aged English gentlemen, in
summer sporting clothes, sit in chairs on the stern deck,
sipping gin and occasionally chatting. A third man, in his
early 60s, with a voluminous gray mustache, lies in an Indian
hammock, strung between the two masts, smoking a cigar and
pretending to read a novel. A fourth gentleman, about 30,
sits near the mainmast, folding paper into boat shapes.

The man in the hammock is LORD FEATHERSTONE, owner of the

vessel. A aristocrat, he has fled the tedium of British
society to cruise the southern seas in his yacht. The paper-
(MORE)
(Cont'd)
boat folder is OTTO MELICK, young, dark-haired, clean-shaven,
a talented London essayist. The two on the stern deck are:
NOEL OXENDEN, reed-thin and balding, a Cambridge scholar and
FEATHERSTONE's closest confidant; and DR. CONGREVE, heavyset,
bespectacled, a man of wide scientific interests who is both
friend and medical attendant to FEATHERSTONE.

FEATHERSTONE cranes his neck out of the hammock and speaks to

Melick.

FEATHERSTONE
I say, Melick, you're the most
energetic fellow I ever saw!
You're the only one aboard who's
busy. What the devil are you
doing?

MELICK
(businesslike)
Paper boats, m’lord…

FEATHERSTONE
Paper boats?? Whatever for?

MELICK
I'm going to hold a regatta.
Anything to kill time.

FEATHERSTONE
(raising himself up)
A regatta! What a splendid idea!
I say, Oxenden, did you hear
that?

OXENDEN
(lazily)
What do you mean by a regatta?

MELICK
I mean a race with these paper
 boats. We can bet on them, you
know.

(MORE)
(CONT'D)

FEATHERSTONE

(sitting up and swinging his legs out of

the hammock)
Betting! Melick, you're a
genius! A regatta! And we can
bet on the best boat!

OXENDEN
But there isn't any wind!

MELICK
(solemnly, as he folds a boat)
Well, you know, that's the fun
of it. If there was a wind, we'd
be moving ourselves, and we
couldn't have a regatta. As it
is, the water is just right. You
pick your boat, and bet that
she'll reach a given point.

OXENDEN
What point?

MELICK
Anything in the water will do --
a bubble, a patch of seaweed --
or we can pitch out a piece of
wood.

FEATHERSTONE climbs out of the hammock and kneels down to

examine the boats. There are four of them, in different
colors -- red, green, yellow and white. OXENDEN and CONGREVE
join them.

Before long, the four move to the side of the yacht.

 MELICK
All right now, I'll set them in
the water, and then we can lay
our bets on them as we choose.
(MORE)
(Cont'd)
We need a finish line.

OXENDEN
(pointing west)
There's a black speck out there.

About a hundred yards out, a dark, circular object bobs in

the calm sea.

FEATHERSTONE
So there is. That'll do. I
wonder what it is....

MELICK
Oh, a bit of timber. Probably
the spar of some ship.

CONGREVE
It doesn't look like a spar.
It's only a round spot, like the
float of some net.

MELICK
Oh, it's a spar. It's one end of
it, the rest is under water.

MELICK leans over the starboard gunwale and sets the paper
boats gently in the water. The ocean is perfectly still and
there is no perceptible wind. But the boats begin moving, due
to draughts of air caused by the rise and fall of the yacht.
The green boat drifts astern, the yellow one stays under the
yacht. But the red and white boats, in tandem, drift out
slowly toward the dark spot.

FEATHERSTONE
Two to one on the red!
 MELICK
Done!

Other bets are placed, and the excitement rises. FEATHERSTONE

orders out the rowboat.

EXT. ATLANTIC OCEAN - ROWBOAT - MIDDAY

Soon the four gentlemen are rowing out towards the finish
line.

When they reach the area of the dark spot, they find the two
paper boats stuck together, saturated with water and floating
limp on the surface. They begin arguing over their bets.
FEATHERSTONE is studying the dark object.

FEATHERSTONE
What an odd-looking thing! It
doesn't look like a spar. Pull
it up, lads, let's see what it
is.

MELICK
It's not a spar.

From the bow, MELICK lunges for the object and after a few
miscues manages to lift it into the rowboat. It is a slime-
and barnacle-covered metal cylinder about 18 inches long and
eight inches wide, soldered tight and evidently containing
something.

CONGREVE
It looks like a can of preserved
meat. Perhaps something good --
like Yorkshire game pie. They
pot all sorts of things now.

OXENDEN
If it's game, it'll be rather
high by this time. Man alive!
Look at those weeds and shells.
 It must have been floating for
ages.

MELICK
Meat cans are never so large as
that.

CONGREVE
Oh, I don't know about that.
They make up pretty large
pemmicans for those arctic
expeditions...

MELICK
(scraping barnacles from the can with a pen
knife)
They never pack up pemmican in
copper cylinders.

OXENDEN
Copper! Is it copper?

A coppery glint shows where the knife cleared away shells and
slime.

FEATHERSTONE
Let's get it back to the yacht
and open it.

EXT. ATLANTIC OCEAN - SAILING YACHT - MIDDAY

The four are gathered in the stern, around the cylinder.

FEATHERSTONE tries to break open the canister with a sturdy
utility knife, but fails. MELICK hurries off and returns with
a small axe. A few blows, and the canister breaks open. He
draws out two packages wrapped tightly in felt and bound with
cord.

FEATHERSTONE, using the utility knife, cuts the cord on the

smaller of the two packages, opens it and unfolds the
contents -- three sheets of vegetable paper.
 CONGREVE
It looks like Egyptian papyrus.

FEATHERSTONE
(examining the pages)
It's a letter -- the same letter
written on all three sheets, in
English … French and German.

He reads the English version aloud. FEATHERSTONE's voice

merges with that of the letter writer.

FEATHERSTONE
"To the finder --
"Sir, I am an
Englishman, and have been
carried by a series of
incredible events to a land from
which escape is impossible as
the grave. I have written this
and committed it to the sea, in
the hope that the ocean currents
may bear it within the reach of
civilized man.
"I entreat you to
let this message be made known
to my father, Henry More,
Keswick, Cumberland, England, so
that he may learn of the fate of
his son. The manuscript
accompanying this contains an
account of my adventures, which
I should like to have forwarded
to him.
"Do this for the
sake of that mercy which you may
one day wish to have shown to
yourself.
ADAM MORE"

FEATHERSTONE looks up at his friends, then at the larger

package.

FEATHERSTONE
This is simply amazing!
MELICK opens his pen knife, and cuts the cords of the
remaining package. He holds up the manuscript and unfolds it
-- a great collection of papyrus sheets, covered with writing.

FEATHERSTONE
Read it, Melick. You've got the
most energy. When you're tired,
the rest of us will take turns.

MELICK
(shaking his head)
It'll take a month to read this!

FEATHERSTONE
All the better. This calm will
probably last that long, and we
have nothing else to do.

They pull deck chairs in a circle. MELICK clears his throat

and begins reading. As with the letter, his voice becomes
that of the author.

MELICK/MORE
My name is Adam More. I was mate
of the ship Trevelyan, under
Captain Bennett, a vessel
chartered by the British
Government to convey convicts to
Australia....

EXT. SOUTHERN INDIAN OCEAN - THE TREVELYAN - MIDDAY

The ship is anchored off the Antarctic coast. The sun is

shining brightly, with a cloud line to the north. Whales and
grampuses plow the seas. In the distance to the south is a
low coastline, and an icy promontory, rising easily a
thousand feet, whose foothills are dotted with thousands of
seals.

MORE is on deck talking with CAPTAIN BENNETT. Beside them is

AGNEW, the second mate. The captain shakes his head and walks
away.
 MORE
(narrating)
... It was mid-December 1843. We
had landed our cargo of convicts
in Hobart Town, and then set
sail for home. We headed south
and west, avoiding a scattering
of small islands, and found
ourselves about 1,500 miles from
the South Pole.
One day we spotted a
coastline, covered with fur
seals. I proposed to Agnew, the
second mate, that we go ashore,
shoot some seals and bring back
fresh meat. The captain didn't
like the idea, but he was old
and cautious, and we were young
and venturesome, so we laughed
away his scruples and set
forth...

EXT. SOUTHERN INDIAN OCEAN - A SHORELINE - AFTERNOON

AGNEW and MORE approach the shore in a longboat. They beach

on an ice sheet at the tip of the promontory, disembark and
begin trudging inland. They carry rifles.

MORE
(pointing east)
I think they're beyond that bend.

Soon they reach an ice-covered beach. Fur seals, as far as

the eye can see, bask in the afternoon sun. The animals
ignore the newcomers, who are still a hundred yards away.

AGNEW
My God! Thousands of them.
They're sitting ducks.

MORE laughs and takes the first shot. AGNEW takes aim and
fires. The seals panic and rush headlong for the safety of
the sea.
The men approach their kills.

The weather has begun to change. MORE feels a snowflake on

his cheek, and looks up at the sky. A leaden gray is
replacing the brilliant blue of earlier.

MORE
(sensing a storm)
We'd better get back to the ship.

MORE and AGNEW each seizes a dead seal by the tail flippers
and begins dragging it across the ice, back toward the
longboat.

When they reach the boat, they haul the seals in, retrieve
the grapple, and push out to sea.

EXT. SOUTHERN INDIAN OCEAN - THE LONGBOAT - LATE AFTERNOON

As they row back toward the ship, the wind picks up, and the
sea grows steadily rougher. Snow is swirling around them.
They row in silence.

The Trevelyan seems to be getting farther away as they row.

They hear a signal gun from the ship.

AGNEW
They're signaling us!

As night descends, the signal shots continue. At each report,

they turn the boat toward the sound. The wind reaches gale
force. They row for their lives.

Hours pass. The gun reports become fainter and rarer. AGNEW
drops his oar and begins bailing out the longboat, now about
a third full of water. After a while, MORE takes over
bailing, and AGNEW rows. In this way they pass the night.
Morning comes at last. The wind has eased, but the snow is so
thick they can only see a short distance. The Trevelyan is
nowhere to be seen. The signal gun has long since ceased.

They row all day, resting when exhausted. The cold is too
intense to allow rest for long. They have no thought of food.
They row to keep from perishing, sometimes dropping off to
sleep at the oars but always awakening with a start, and
rowing on, benumbed, without hope.

Another morning comes. The snow has stopped. They look around
eagerly for signs of their ship, but they see nothing but
empty ocean -- except to the east, where a dark peak rises.
They turn their prow toward the peak and row.

They reach the coast and see vast ice fields.

MORE
We're back where we started,
Agnew. The wind has driven us
backwards.

AGNEW
Damn! (He reflects for a moment
in silence.) Let's land on the
ice. We can make a fire and cook
some of that meat.

EXT. SOUTHERN INDIAN OCEAN - AN ICY COASTLINE - MORNING

When they reach the coast, they beach the longboat, and make
a fire, breaking up an empty box from the longboat for
firewood. They cut strips of meat from a seal and lay it on
the flames.

The meat is barely singed, but they are starving, and eat
ravenously. For water, they chew ice and snow.

MORE
(looking grimly at AGNEW)
I think we're done for, friend.
 AGNEW
(snorting)
You don't mean that, More.

MORE
I do. Chances are, we won't find
the ship. Any ship....

AGNEW
Look, mate, I don't know about
you, but I'm not ready to pack
it in. I've got a long life
ahead of me. I've got a wife and
kids back in Bournemouth. I'm
going to find the ship. You're
not married, are you?

MORE
No.

AGNEW
Got a sweetheart back home?

MORE
(a pause)
Not really… She's not cut out to
be a sailor's woman.

AGNEW
Ever think of settling down?
Taking a land job?

MORE
No… I'm not ready for that.

AGNEW
(smiling)
There you go! See? You've still
got some spirit in you!
Adventures yet to be lived! So
stop thinking the worst. Someone
will find us...
 MORE
(shaking his head)
You’re an incorrigible optimist,
Agnew…

They pack up the remains of the cooked meat and set to sea
again.

EXT. SOUTHERN INDIAN OCEAN - IN THE LONGBOAT - DAY

They row until they reach a strong current, which begins to

carry the longboat away.

MORE
We can't fight this current.
We'll have to let it carry us
where it will.

AGNEW
I think it's taking us north.

MORE
I'm sure we're going south.

AGNEW
There's no use rowing any more.
If it runs south, we can't
resist it. It's too strong. But
there’s a bright side. I believe
it runs north.

MORE
(narrating)
And so we passed several days,
living off our cache of seal
meat and drinking water from the
ice and snow. It got no colder.
Agnew took this for a sign we
were moving north. But he was
wrong. It got no warmer either.
EXT. SOUTHERN INDIAN OCEAN - THE LONGBOAT - NIGHT

AGNEW rouses MORE and points toward the horizon. There is a

deep red glow, a tremendous conflagration.

MORE
It's the Trevelyan! Our ship is
on fire!

AGNEW
(squinting)
No, it can't be. It's too big.
It's probably a forest burning.
That means we're near land!

They drift closer to the conflagration. It soon becomes clear

that they are witnessing the eruption of twin volcanoes.

MORE
(despairingly)
I know where we are now.

AGNEW
Where?

MORE
That ... is the Antarctic
continent.

AGNEW
(skeptically)
Ha! More likely it's some
volcanic island in the South
Sea. There's a tremendous
volcano in the Sandwich Islands,
and these are something like it.

MORE
I believe these are the very
volcanoes that Sir James Ross
discovered last year...
 AGNEW
Nonsense! We're thousands of
miles from that point.

MORE
Don't count on it. (He nods
toward the volcanoes.) At any
rate, the current is taking us
toward them.

EXT. THE COASTLINE - A CHANNEL BETWEEN THE VOLCANOES - DAWN

At sunrise, AGNEW and MORE awaken. Their longboat has drifted

into a wide channel that runs between the two volcanoes. The
shores are black and forbidding. In the distance is a
mountain range, covered with ice and snow.

AGNEW cries out and points toward one of the shorelines.

AGNEW
Look! -- do you see? People!

Human figures move on the distant beach.

AGNEW
(staring at the figures)
Shall we land?

MORE
Don't be hasty. They could be
dangerous.

AGNEW makes no reply. They watch the figures come down to the
water's edge. They resemble living mummies -- small, dark,
thin, shriveled, with long matted hair and hideous faces.
They carry long spears, and gesticulate toward the longboat.

The longboat drifts on, leaving the people behind. The

channel narrows. The sloping shores grow steeper, until about
a mile ahead, they transform to towering cliffs. The channel
runs between them, and becomes lost to view completely, as if
swallowed up by the earth.
 AGNEW
We can't go any farther. This
stream must pass under the
mountains. To go on is certain
death. We'll have to stop here.

MORE
And the natives?

AGNEW
I don't think they're dangerous.
Look how small they are!
I'm sure they're harmless.

MORE
I suppose we have no choice.

They take the oars and begin to make for shore.

EXT. THE COASTLINE - THE BEACH - DAY

The ragged band on the beach silently await the longboat. The
closer the boat comes, the more repulsive the people look.
Their bony frames are emaciated, their toes and fingers like
bird claws, their eyes dull and weak, sunken in cavernous
hollows. They make no hostile moves. They hold their spears
loosely in their hands.

MORE
(taking his gun)
I don't like the looks of them.
I'll fire off a round.

AGNEW
Why? For God's sake, man, don't
hurt any of them!

MORE fires in the air. The report echoes off the mountains.
Looking to shore, they see that the people have seated
themselves calmly on the beach, with their hands in their
laps, showing no fear or surprise.
They beach the longboat, and secure it with the grappling
iron. The people get to their feet and crowd around AGNEW and
MORE. Some bow low, others prostrate themselves. They are not
hostile. MORE remains repulsed by them, but AGNEW bows,
smiles, and shakes hands with half a dozen in succession. The
custom is strange to them, but they comply. They offer their
lances to AGNEW and MORE, but the sailors decline them.

The people gesture for AGNEW and MORE to follow them, and
they all begin walking inland.

AGNEW
(cheerfully)
My dear More, they're not a bad
lot. They mean well. They can't
help how they look! You're too
suspicious. Let's make friends
with them, and get them to help
us.

MORE
(doubtfully)
I don’t know about this....

EXT. INLAND - A VALLEY - NEAR SUNSET

After half a mile, they come to a valley. A fire, apparently

made with local coal, burns brightly before a cave entrance.
They enter the cave.

INT. INLAND - A CAVE - NEAR SUNSET

The fire outside illuminates the cave's near interior. Women

and children eye the sailors without fear or undue curiosity.
Some of the people spread birdskin cushions for AGNEW and
MORE to sit on. They offer the sailors gifts -- large,
beautiful feathers and handcrafted trinkets. AGNEW responds
energetically to their hospitality, and soon becomes the
center of attention. MORE, his suspicions unallayed,
languishes in comparative neglect.
Soon cooked food is brought from the fire on a huge platter;
the centerpiece is a large, roasted turkeylike bird. AGNEW
and MORE eat with great relish.

When the meal is done, the sailors rest, sated. AGNEW

continues to communicate fairly successfully with the locals,
using hand signals and gestures. He turns to MORE.

AGNEW
More, old fellow, these good
people give me to understand
there's another place better
than this. They want me to go
with them. Will you come?

MORE
(apprehensive)
Don't go! Please! We're close to
the boat here, and if anything
happens, we can get to it easily.

AGNEW
(laughing)
Why, you're not still
suspicious, are you, after that
dinner? Why would they have
feasted us like that if they'd
wanted to harm us? Nonsense!
Come with us!

MORE shakes his head obstinately.

AGNEW
Well, if I thought there was any
reason to worry, I'd stay with
you. But I'm sure these people
mean us nothing but kindness,
and I'm going to see this place.

MORE
You'll be back?
 AGNEW
Of course. We'll both stay the
night here.

With that, AGNEW sets off, leaving the cave with most of the
tribesmen. MORE remains behind with the women, children and
about a dozen men. These men busy themselves working on bird
skins, the women with feathers. They take no notice of MORE,
who quietly reloads one of the chambers of his rifle. He
notices that AGNEW has left his rifle behind.

A very old woman, her dark face a maze of deep wrinkles,

brings MORE a roasted fowl about the size of a woodcock. He
is puzzled by the attention, and waves her off as politely as
he can. She sets down the fowl and hobbles off.

Soon MORE looks out at the mouth of the cave, where the fire
still blazes brightly.

EXT. INLAND - MOUTH OF THE CAVE - NIGHT

Four men arrive at the fire, carrying what looks like a sick
or wounded companion. They set the tribesman down; the
stiffness of the body indicates a corpse. The old woman who
brought the roast fowl to MORE arrives beside the body,
holding a sharp knife high.

INT. INLAND - THE CAVE - NIGHT

MORE's eyes widen as he watches the old woman. His face is

stricken with horror.

MORE
(whispering to himself)
My God.... my God....

EXT. INLAND - MOUTH OF THE CAVE - NIGHT

By firelight, the old woman's wrinkled face is expressionless

as she works. The sound of a joint popping. She lifts a
detached human arm into the night air, and thrusts it into
the fire, in the same place where the sailors' dinner had
been cooked.

MORE gasps. He rises slowly, rifle in hand, and staggers out

of the cave. No one tries to stop him or follow him. He
passes the old woman and the four men, who are at work on the
corpse. At this point, some of the locals notice MORE. Men
and women approach him, gesticulating and speaking quickly in
their strange language. He warns them off angrily. They stand
nearby, watching him. He looks around for AGNEW, but the
second mate is nowhere to be seen.

MORE looks off at the horizon. The twin volcanoes blaze, and
the northern sky is red with a lurid light. Higher up, the
aurora australis, a glorious curtain across the sky,
illuminates the night with unusual brightness.

A gunshot splits the night. MORE realizes that AGNEW is in

danger. He bursts through the crowd of men and women and
heads in the direction of the gunshot. He hears a loud cry,
then another report. MORE runs on.

MORE
(shouting)
Agnew! Where are you?? Agnew!

He still cannot see AGNEW, but

is drawing closer. Suddenly he
hears AGNEW's voice.

AGNEW
(in pain and terror)
More! Run! Get back to the boat!
Save yourself!

MORE
(looking around frantically)
Where are you?

AGNEW
You can't save me! I'm lost! Run
 for your life!

MORE knows AGNEW is close, but he still cannot see him in the
darkness. A group of men are following MORE. They are
unarmed, but appear set to leap at him and restrain him. He
turns and waves them back with his rifle. They ignore his
gesture, and move closer. MORE runs on; he is faster, and the
men cannot catch him.

Suddenly, in the light of the aurora, he sees AGNEW, lying on

the ground, surrounded on three sides by a group of locals.
The handle of a large knife extends from AGNEW's mouth.
Clearly he is dead.

MORE stops. His chest heaves. There is despair in his eyes.

He looks around. The tribesmen are closing in from behind.
MORE fires his rifle into the crowd; one man falls but the
others keep coming, unfazed. MORE cuts to the left and begins
running a gazelle, heading back to the boat.

EXT. THE COAST - THE LONGBOAT - NIGHT

Close to exhaustion, MORE reaches the longboat. He turns back

toward his pursuers and discharges his pistol into their
midst. Then he hurls the grapple into the boat and pushes off
into the water. He falls into the boat as it drifts into the
channel. The tribesmen gather on the beach, and watch the
boat move into the strong current.

Rocky cliffs sweep by. The channel narrows relentlessly,

pulling the boat toward a great black mass, a mountain set
against the starlit sky. To the left is a great volcano, its
crater burning redly in the night. The channel appears to run
under the mountain. MORE gets to his knees. He peers through
the gloom, holding tight to the seat. A roar of churning
water builds steady. The mountain draws closer.

In moments, the boat is sucked under the mountain, through a

chasm in the rock. Total blackness engulfs him, and the roar
of the water drones on, deep and terrible, unchanging. The
boat seems to slow, so MORE, desperate to see anything, takes
out a match and strikes it on the gunwale. But the movement
of the air keeps the match from lighting. He picks up his
rifle and fires a shot in the air. The flash of powder lights
his surroundings for a second. He has entered a subterranean
sea. He loads his empty barrel and waits.

Soon he hears a new sound, a quick, heavy gasping, followed

by a wild splashing of waves and a spray of water. A living
creature. Something large rises up in the water before his
boat. Another gasp. MORE fires both barrels at the
approaching bulk. In the blaze from his gun, he sees a great
sea creature: its head held high on a long neck joined to an
enormous body, the beast snaps its long teeth, writhes and
then dives beneath the surface. It vanishes. MORE falls back,
stunned by what he has seen. Alive or dead, the beast is
gone. Worn down by fatigue and fear, MORE sinks to the bottom
of the boat and sleeps.

EXT. AN INLAND SEA – THE LONGBOAT - MORNING

MORE awakens to a brilliant blaze of light. He gets to his

knees and views a new world with awe. He has passed through
the subterranean channel under the mountains and into a vast
basin-shaped world, with a mammoth inland sea at its center,
surrounded by a lush green land that gives way to snow- and
ice-capped mountains on all sides. A deep blue sunlit vault
of sky covers all, meeting the high horizon at the peaks.

There is human life here. MORE sees the outlines of populous

cities and busy towns and hamlets set amid the green
vegetation at the base of the mountains. Roads wind far away
along the plain and up the mountainsides. He spots impressive
works of industry: massive structures, terraced slopes,
arched aqueducts, brooding pyramids and great walls.

At sea, ships and boats ply the blue-green waters. Some are
fishing boats, some freighters under sail, others look like
ancient square-rigged Mediterranean galleys propelled by a
hundred oars.

The crews look Levantine, many of them bearded. They wear

belted tunics and broad-brimmed hats. They squint, as if
unaccustomed to the sunlight.
MORE hails a galley, and a small rowboat is lowered. Some
sailors row to the longboat, and take MORE aboard.

MORE
(climbing into the rowboat)
Thank you! Thank you! You don't
know how glad I am to see you!

The sailors are friendly, but they don't speak MORE's

language. They row back to the galley, and MORE is lifted
aboard. The vessel is about 150 feet long; two-thirds of its
length is open and filled with seats where rowers sit. The
oarsmen are small in stature and slender, with mild, gentle
expressions on their faces. The rowers wear coarse tunics;
the officers wear tunics of fine cloth, with mantles richly
embroidered and edged in down. All wear broad-brimmed hats,
to shield their eyes from the bright sky.

An elderly man, who appears to be a CHIEF, and who wears a

richly furred cloak over his tunic, approaches MORE, studies
him briefly briefly, then beckons to him to follow him to the
cabin in the stern.

INT. INLAND SEA - GALLEY CABIN - LATE MORNING

The cabin has no windows, and it is dark inside. The CHIEF

leads MORE to a large table. Food is brought -- a platter of
roast fowls -- and MORE eats voraciously.

When he is finished, a sailor brings a water bowl and sponge

and washes MORE's face and hands.

The CHIEF then stands, removes his elegant cloak and hands it
to MORE. At first inclined to refuse, MORE accepts, wishing
not to give offense. The CHIEF drapes it around MORE’s
shoulders. The other sailors look enviously at the CHIEF.

They bring MORE various drinks in goblets. He chooses one,

and offers a toast to their health and expresses his
gratitude. Strangely, the CHIEF and sailors seem offended.
EXT. INLAND SEA - A PORT CITY - LATE MORNING

The galley docks alongside a major stone quay. The CHIEF and
MORE disembark and walk some distance along a road with stone
walls on either side. Behind the walls giant ferns spread
broad fanlike leaves. After about a hundred yards, they
arrive at a crossroads.

MORE is taken aback by the sight of three huge flightless

birds, with short stocky legs and short necks -- about the
size of oxen -- that wait at the crossroads, harnessed to
carts, with drivers. The CHIEF motions for MORE to enter one
of the carts, and he does so, taking a seat behind the
driver. The CHIEF joins him, and the bird and cart set off,
at the pace of trotting horse.

They pass through the city, set on the slope of a mountain.

On either side stand impressive buildings, some topped with
pyramids. Few people are about; those that can be seen walk
in the shadows of the walls and giant ferns, shielding their
eyes when they step into sunlight.

The cart moves up the mountain, climbing along stone

terraces. They pass an immense truncated pyramid, flat on
top, with three sides sloping and one perpendicular. A stone
staircase climbs one of the sloping faces to the expansive
area atop the structure.

Soon they reach a series of huge portals that lead into

mountain caverns. When they reach the largest, central
portal, the cart stops. The CHIEF and MORE climb out of the
cart. The CHIEF strides into the cavern, and MORE follows
behind, amazed at all he sees.

As they walk, Lord Featherstone's voice can be heard.

FEATHERSTONE
(voice over)
I don't know what to make of it.
Really! It's the oddest damned
 thing I've ever heard.

EXT. ATLANTIC OCEAN - SAILING YACHT - AFTERNOON

The copper cylinder, now dry, gleams in the afternoon sun.

FEATHERSTONE and his companions are seated on deck around
MELICK, who has been reading from the manuscript.

FEATHERSTONE
People living at the South Pole?
A warm climate?? What a bizarre
document!

MELICK
(smiling)
Well, it isn't that difficult to
figure.

CONGREVE
What do you mean?

MELICK
Why, anyone can see that it's a
hoax -- a transparent hoax. You
don't actually take it
seriously, do you?

CONGREVE
(tapping the manuscript)
Do you know what kind of
material this account is written
on?

MELICK
No, I don't.

CONGREVE
Well, I do. It's papyrus. Actual
papyrus! Nowadays you see it
only in museums! The ancient
Egyptians made paper like this.
The art has been lost for
centuries...
 OXENDEN
Remarkable!

MELICK
I still think it's fiction. More
and his south polar world remind
me of Sindbad the Sailor.

CONGREVE
I'm inclined to take More's
statements as fact.

FEATHERSTONE
Well, doctor, if that's the
case, then I suggest you take up
the reading of the manuscript.
Let's see what else Mr. More has
to say....

CONGREVE
With pleasure....
(he begins to read)
The cavern into which the chief
led me was very spacious, but
had no light except that which
entered through the portal....

INT. THE CAVERN - NIGHT

The CHIEF leads MORE deep into the cavern. People pass them
in the semi-darkness.

MORE
(continuing the narration)
Many people moved about, like
pedestrians on the streets of
our own cities. Soon we reached
a major road, lit dimly with a
few twinkling lamps. The feeble
light served these people well.
The sunlight outside had seemed
almost painful to them, but here
 in the gloom, they were at
home...

They stop at a stone doorway, covered by a heavy mat. The

CHIEF moves aside the mat, and light blazes forth from
within. The CHIEF shields his eyes and ushers MORE inside.

INT. THE CAVERNS – A LARGE GROTTO – NIGHT

The chamber is a large grotto with an arched roof, from which

hangs an enormous golden lamp. Rich hangings adorn the walls,
and many lamps decorate the chamber. There are couches,
divans, and luxurious carpets.

The CHIEF walks to another doorway, covered with a mat like

the first. He pulls back the mat, and leads MORE into another
room, smaller but just as sumptuously decorated and brightly
lit. A strikingly beautiful young WOMAN stands there; she and
MORE face each other.

She is not like the others MORE has seen here: she is taller,
lighter skinned, and her eyes have no trouble with the bright
glow of the lamps. She wears a long tunic, floor-length,
secured at the waist with a golden belt. A golden headband
encircles her dark hair.

The CHIEF, still pained by the glare of light, says a few

hasty words to the WOMAN and hurries away. She studies MORE
with what seems to be sad, even mournful, interest. She
approaches MORE and speaks to him.

WOMAN
Salonla umarahabin, yo sadi.

MORE
(with a slight bow)
I’m sorry, my lady, I don’t
understand a bloody word you’re
saying.

Somewhat hesitantly, he stretches forth his hand. She looks

at it with surprise. MORE impulsively takes her hand, and
presses it gently to his lips. She smiles and nods, then
points at his holstered gun. MORE removes the pistol and sets
it on an inlaid table. The WOMAN gestures toward a couch, and
they sit down. They study each other in mutual wonder.

Language is clearly a problem. MORE points at the WOMAN and

gestures inquisitively, trying to learn her name. She
suddenly realizes what he is doing.

WOMAN
(pointing at herself)
Almah! Almah!

MORE
Pleased to meet you, Almah.
(pointing at himself)
Adam More.

ALMAH
(smiling)
Atamor!

MORE
Close enough…

Her smile fades to sadness. She repeats his name over and
over again, with what seems like mournful foreboding.

ALMAH
Atamor … Atamor … Atamor …

MORE
(trying to bring back her smile)
Look, my dear Almah, the only
way I’m going survive here is to
learn the language. It sounds a
bit like Arabic. I know some of
that language, thanks to my
 travels. I’d like you to teach
me a few words.
(pointing at the couch)
What is this?

ALMAH
(touching the couch and smiling)
Misad!

He pulls a small, worn leather-bound notebook and a stubby

pencil from his pocket, and writes the word.

MORE
Misad…
(pointing to an endtable)
And that?

ALMAH
Tula!

And so they continue for hours, exchanging words and

meanings. Servants bring food, and they eat, continuing their
lessons.

Finally, ALMAH stands and indicates that she must leave. He

rises with her, saddened that the encounter is over.

ALMAH
(with a sincere smile)
Salonla!

MORE
(with a slight bow)
Salonla, Almah…

INT. CAVERNS – ANOTHER CHAMBER. NIGHT.

Servants take him to his own chamber. Fatigued, still
dressed, he throws himself on a soft bed of down, and sleeps.
Many hours later he awakens, refreshed. He wanders into an
adjoining room. A table is spread with a sumptuous meal.
ALMAH is not there, but servants beckon him to eat. MORE
declines, and stands waiting for ALMAH to arrive.

Soon the CHIEF enters, shading his eyes from the painful
light of the lamps.

CHIEF
(bowing low)
Salonla!

MORE
Salonla!

The CHIEF is pleased that MORE has learned a local greeting.

He touches his chest.

CHIEF
Kohen.

MORE
Kohen? You are Kohen?
(touching his own chest)
Adam More!

The CHIEF laughs and awkwardly repeats MORE’s name. But it is

clear he is in discomfort, from the bright light, and soon,
with a bow, he departs.

ALMAH soon arrives. MORE rushes toward her and takes her
hands. She smiles, free from the melancholy that had gripped
her the previous evening. They sit at the long table and
begin their breakfast.

(TO BE CONTINUED)