Ghost Ship Page #11

INT. ARCTIC WARRIOR - MASTER'S QUARTERS - NIGHT

A pencil point on a map follows across Saudi Arabia, coming

to the Persian Gulf and tracing the coast of the Arab Emirates

to Dubayy.

Murphy sits at his desk over the map. His pencil point follows

the Persian Gulf from Dubayy, through the straight of Hormuz

into the Gulf of Oman. Murphy marks an "X" there. A beat as

he looks on at it.

He opens a large envelope he found aboard the Chimera. He

empties it on the desk. He looks through it, docking receipts

from various ports of call, bills of lading, etc. He looks

over the passenger manifest.

INT. ARCTIC WARRIOR - MASTERS QUARTERS - DAY

Murphy wakes. He lies on his bunk, having fallen asleep last

night in his clothes, still holding the envelope and some of

the papers inside.

INT. ARCTIC WARRIOR - DECK - MOMENTS LATER - DAY

Dodge disassembles the turbine fans on deck as Greer reads

in the shade of the deck house. Dodge's hand slips and he

skins his knuckles.

DODGE:

F***er!

GREER:

Take it easy, Dodge. It's only a

piece of metal.

DODGE:

(inspecting his skinned

knuckles)

Damn mind of it's own.

GREER:

(seeing Murphy)

Morning, skipper.

Murphy has stepped out into the sunlight.

MURPHY:

Morning.

GREER:

You're up late.

MURPHY:

Guess I must've fallen back to sleep.

Where's Epps?

DODGE:

Went aboard.

MURPHY:

She take a radio?

GREER:

Yeah.

Murphy nods. A beat.

INT. CHIMERA - PUBLIC ROOM - DAY

Epps steps from a passageway into a large public room. Tables

and chairs are scattered haphazardly, light falling in from

windows along the wall where tattered curtains hang. She

walks on.

A pair of empty glasses sit on a table, an empty sherry

decanter beside them. An ashtray sits beside that. Epps stops,

reaching down. She pulls back a half-smoked cigarette,

lipstick smudging the end, yellowing and fragile from time.

And, as she stands there, we see a FIGURE, IN MURKY

SILHOUETTE, MOVE PAST THE DOORWAY IN THE BACKGROUND. In an

instant it is there and gone.

She puts down the cigarette, having sensed a presence. She

turns to the doorway across the room, but there is nothing

to be seen now.

INT. CHIMERA - PUBLIC ROOM - MOMENTS LATER - DAY

A doll's white face, eyes haunting and coldly blue, stares

into the middle distance. It lies on a love seat as Epps

steps up. She lifts it. Several other toys lie scattered

about as she studies it, when the sound of a TICKING CLOCK

CAN BE HEARD.

A beat as Epps holds there. She turns, trying to locate the

sound. From across the room, Epps stands, listening. As the

TICKING CLOCK sounds from here. She turns, putting down the

doll, holding a beat. She approaches, crossing the room,

coming finally to a stop before us and what we come to see

is an ancient grandfather clock.

All but it's minute hand has fallen off its corroded face,

but from inside it emits a weak though steady TICKING.

Epps stands there as the clock ticks, looking on, when the

TICKING CEASES. A beat as she holds there, as the clock faces

her, now silent.

INT. CHIMERA - PASSAGEWAY - LATER - DAY

Epps shines her light in the darkness as she comes to a door

where daylight falls from a small port. She looks through

it.

INT. CHIMERA - SWIMMING POOL - MOMENTS LATER - DAY

Epps stands in a white tiled room. Light falls from port

holes high in the wall. Running its length is a small swimming

pool, it's rusted fixtures and stained surface creating

bizarre patterns.

INT. CHIMERA - SWIMMING POOL - MOMENTS LATER - DAY

Epps comes to a row of changing stalls. Old clothing hangs

there, unused for fifty years. A pair of woman's shoes lie

on the floor.

INT. CHIMERA - SWIMMING POOL - LATER - DAY

Epps moves along, passing through a doorway into

INT. CHIMERA - GYMNASIUM - CONTINUOUS - DAY

Epps enters another room scattered with old exercise equipment

circa 1950, a wooden rowing machine, barbells and a medicine

ball.

She steps up to the wall, where pictures hang. The Chimera

can be seen in better days, sailing full speed on a calm

sea.

INT. CHIMERA - SUB-DECK - LATER - DAY

Epps jumps down to a lower deck. She shines her light up to

see that she is in an engine compartment, showing a massive

diesel burner. She passes through into another compartment

where the giant pistons of the ship's power plant rise up to

the ceiling.

INT. CHIMERA - SUB-DECK - PASSAGE - MOMENTS LATER - DAY

Epps moves, passing still more diesel burners, towering over

her in the cavernous space. She moves into a narrowing

passage, piping and machinery ducts winding their way into

the depths of the ship.

Finally the passage opens into yet another compartment,

apparently a cargo hold. Crates and boxes are stacked on

loading palettes.

In the corner, a rotting canvas drape covers something. Epps

comes to it. She lifts the canvas, which crumbles away to

reveal a 1951 Ferrari sportster. For the exception of a coat

of dust and a small amount of corrosion, it is perfectly

preserved.

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