Abandoned Page #2

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It's time you took a turn back there.

- Oh, I was just...

- Oh, sh*t!

Can't be much longer now. Surely,

somebody's gotta hear that signal.

They will. We've been

pretty lucky up till now.

Lucky? In what way have we been lucky?

If one of us had been on deck when that

wave hit, it would've been curtains.

If we'd cut the parachute,

we would've been fine.

Hey, it was your idea to put it out

in the first place. Remember that.

What's that supposed to mean?

You knew the storm was coming.

You put us out here! You risked our lives!

(SOFT MUSIC PLAYING)

Right, Rick. Let her go!

JOHN (V.O.):
Leaving on a journey

and arriving at a destination...

is the best part of cruising.

To be honest, I dislike blue water

sailing, it bores me to tears.

The excitement of bad weather and

long night watches soon wears off.

For me, it was all about seeing the

world and taking my home with me.

There's a man who knows what he's doing.

We're flying along, mate.

She's got a great turn of speed.

Oh, yeah. She's fast,

just how I like my women.

So, who've you left behind? Do

you have someone in Australia?

More interested in who I

could be sailing towards, mate.

Hey, who's the lady in

the picture down below?

Now that is the original Rose

Noelle, Tahitian princess.

I named the boat after

her. Love of my life.

Do you still love her?

In spirit.

We're going a bit fast,

John? Don't you think?

I mean, we're not in that

much of a bloody hurry, are we?

Well, I want to get as far

as we can before nightfall.

- But why?

- Well, the weather's changing.

The weather's changing? What

do you mean? What's it doing?

Well, there's a storm coming.

We're going to catch it.

It'll be on us pretty soon. And

then we'll do some real sailing.

(OMINOUS MUSIC PLAYING)

JOHN (V.O.):
A little

knowledge is a dangerous thing.

I don't like this. I

really don't like this.

JOHN (V.O.):
Phil had limited

coastal sailing experience.

Maybe that's why he was so

anxious. His fear was contagious.

How long's this going to last?

What's the big surprise?

If you guys heard the marine forecast,

you would've known about this.

This storm's gonna blow us all

the way to Tonga in no time.

You sailed us into a storm on purpose?

Get us... come on! Get

on the radio now! F***...

Call the Coast Guard. Get us a helicopter.

Get us off. Hello? Is the Coast Guard...

Hey, hey, hey! That radio's short-range.

There's no one out here to hear you.

- Why?

- Why what?

Why is it short range?

Because I don't have a license.

Why not?

'Cause I don't believe in them,

and I don't want to waste the money.

When you're out here, you're out

here. That's the journey you're on.

F*** you, mate! We're gonna flip!

Look, we're not gonna

flip. This yacht can't flip.

I've sailed 40,000 miles in one of

these. This is just another blow.

- And when was that, 20 years ago?

- Yeah.

I built this baby with my own hands,

we've already crossed the Tasman together.

You're safe, Rick. Relax.

Oh, God.

What about a sea anchor?

You got one of those?

What for?

Well, to stop us bouncing

round while we ride it out.

Yeah.

Have you got one?

Of course, I have...

Well, then let's throw it

out, slow us down a bit.

No way, it's brand new.

It cost me a lot of money.

- For Christ's sakes.

- The wind turn and goes.

- Let's take take a vote.

- Yeah.

It's not a bloody democracy, mate.

Hey, f*** you! Where is it?

(DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING)

Okay, throw us the bag!

Okay, hold onto the bag!

- Use this rope!

- Got it!

Ready?

Now!

(MUSIC CONTINUES)

JOHN (V.O.):
If I made one

big mistake, this was it...

allowing myself to be bulldozed

by a terrified crew...

with no experience of

blue water sailing.

The noise of waves smashing against

a multihull is like gunfire.

That should do the trick.

JOHN (V.O.):
It can be terrifying

if you're not used to it.

(LOUD BANG)

What the... What the hell was that!

Chute must've fouled.

- Then we've got to free it.

- No, too dangerous.

It's pulling us side-on.

Well, you make a mistake pulling it

in, you could lose a finger or a hand.

Then we cut it loose.

No. Hey! The tiller's lashed.

All we can do is sit tight and wait it out.

We can't leave the chute like that.

I'm the skipper, Rick, remember?

[JOHN] Get some sleep. We'll sort it

in the morning when conditions improve.

COMEDIAN (ON TAPE): So we just

locked ourselves down in the scrum...

This will put a smile in your

eye and some lead in your pencil.

What's that?

Epirb. We can set it to send out distress

signals, any plane flying over, it'll pick it up.

COMEDIAN (CONT'D): He had

a double jointed arse.

Mick, me mate the master farter.

Put the art back into farting

with his custom tailored farts.

Mick, me mate the master

farter broke new ground...

in breaking wind with

his double jointed arse.

[RICK] You risked our lives! What

are you after, eh? Insurance money?

I'm not insured. I don't believe in it.

I'm insured with the Gods,

not the bottom feeders.

Hey, you're in my space, mate.

What happens if a wave flips

the boat the right side up?

Are we gonna be fine with all this water?

It can't happen, okay. It won't happen.

No, no. We've got to cut an escape hatch.

You are not cutting another

hole in this bloody boat.

Now you have some respect for her, for

me, for everything I've put in to it.

No bloody way. This is our

lives we're talking about.

If you won't do it, I will.

(SAW CUTTING)

JOHN (V.O.):
It was painful to watch,

like the violation of a loved one.

But Rick was not a

man to argue with.

Once he made his

mind up, that was it.

(OMINOUS MUSIC PLAYING)

JOHN (V.O.):
Breaking outside

didn't make them feel any better.

Seeing the magnitude of what we were up

against, their morale sank to a new low.

Any hope of a quick rescue

seemed a distant prospect.

Rick, Rick... the light.

Wait a minute. It will come back on.

That's it.

JOHN (V.O.):
Once the EPIRB

battery died we were on our own...

outside standard flight

paths and shipping lanes.

JOHN (V.O.):
Wind, current and the

gods were taking us for a ride.

The only control we

had was over ourselves.

Rick, Jim, give us a hand outside, eh.

JOHN (V.O.):
We needed to put

differences behind us and work as a team.

(SOFT MUSIC PLAYING)

(MUSIC CONTINUES)

Okay.

I got it.

All right.

Got it.

Phil, give us a bloody hand, would ya'?

I'm busy.

I don't know why you're doing that anyway?

No point. Don't bother.

We need to make ourselves more visible to

passing ships, planes, whatever. That's why.

[PHIL] What else is down there?

Oh, Jesus! Watch what you're doing!

Take it easy, mate. I didn't mean to.

Screw you, Rick. Look! Look! I'm bleeding!

Oh, get over it. Jesus,

you're a bloody moron.

You...

- And we ration all food from now on.

- Who says?

It's the smart thing to do. We don't

know how long we're going to be out here.

And we're gonna get hold of the sails.

You're gonna dive for them, tomorrow.

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