This screenplay is copyrighted to its author. All rights reserved. This screenplay may not be used or reproduced without the express written permission of the author.
THE GHOSTS of CHINATOWN
by
Rus McLaughlin
rusmclaughlin@aol.com
Twitter: rusmclaughlin
Copyright (c) 2011. This screenplay may not be used or reproduced
without the express written permission of the author.
FADE IN:
INT. PSYCHIATRIC OFFICE
The room is yellowed with age, like old paper. A PSYCHIATRIST
reads an open file from behind the desk.
DANNY YUEN watches him with dark eyes, sitting in the chair
opposite. He is Chinese, mid-30's, jeans, dark maroon shirt,
dark tie. His body language says he's relaxed.
He absently fiddles with the WEDDING RING on his finger.
PSYCHIATRIST
How's it feel to be back,
Inspector?
DANNY
I'm not back yet.
PSYCHIATRIST
Well, yYu seem to think three
months' administrative leave is
enough.
DANNY
It feels like longer.
PSYCHIATRIST
It was supposed to be longer. Six
months beginning eighth December.
Prescribed full course of Zyprexa
following episode sixth December.
DANNY
I stopped taking it.
PSYCHIATRIST
You stayed with family?
DANNY
In San Diego.
PSYCHIATRIST
That's good. That a San Diego tan?
DANNY
No, I'm supposed to be this color.
PSYCHIATRIST
Why'd you stop taking the Zyprexa?
DANNY
I didn't like how it made me feel.
PSYCHIATRIST
It limited the delusional episodes.
DANNY
Those stopped.
PSYCHIATRIST
I'm glad to hear it. My thing is,
Danny, and I have to be honest
here, a smart man would know
exactly what to say if he wanted to
snow me into putting him back on
the job before he's really, truly
ready for it.
(puts folder away)
I want to talk about your wife.
(no answer)
Inspector Yuen?
DANNY
Yes.
PSYCHIATRIST
Don't be nervous, Inspector.
DANNY
Thank you, I won't.
POLICE PSYCHIATRIST
It was a car accident.
DANNY
Black ice. In Sonora.
PSYCHIATRIST
You went back to work right after
the funeral, and that's when you
started to see her...
DANNY
...everywhere.
Danny isn't looking at him. Fiddling with his ring.
DANNY
Standing in a room. On the street.
In the dress she married me in,
this beautiful silk dress, only it
was white now, because she was
dead, I guess. Jen always thought
she was plain-looking. She wasn't
plain.
(thinks)
I wasn't ready then, and I know
what I saw wasn't real. It's just,
it was hard, because there's never
been anyone else for me, and I miss
her. I miss her.
Silence.
PSYCHIATRIST
I'm sorry I never met her.
Danny nods.
A VISION IN WHITE steps in behind Danny's chair: a Chinese
woman, early thirties, bone-white skin, in a flowing
traditional Chinese wedding dress and hood. It is THE GHOST
OF JEN YUEN, Danny's wife.
Danny's face tightens, eyes front. His whole body tenses. The
Psychiatrist can't see Jen, doesn't react to her presence.
PSYCHIATRIST
You know work isn't a substitute.
DANNY
No. But I need a purpose and they
need me back on GTF.
The Psychiatrist opens the file folder jots quick notes.
PSYCHIATRIST
I agree. And I think you've had
enough of ghosts.
Jen places a ghostly hand over Danny's shoulder, reassuring.
An ice-cold chill runs through him. His face hardens,
pointedly ignoring her.
DANNY
I don't believe in ghosts.
Ignoring her with all his might.
EXT. SAN FRANCISCO - DAY
Fog shrouds the bay, sweeping over THE GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE.
Only the tops of the spires and cables peak through the mist.
The fog moves in through the city, taking over.
EXT. CHINATOWN - CONTINUOUS
Wisps of fog drift through vertical banners, hung over narrow
streets. Everything's smashed together, bright red and yellow
store signs, everything written in big Cantonese symbols.
The streets are LOUD with PEOPLE, mostly Asian, crowding the
sideways, jaywalking without warning. Cars are parked solid
on the left curb. Delivery Trucks double-park on the right.
A BMW ROADSTER blows through a red light...
...hard left onto a wider street. It slips into a No Parking
spot in front of THE SILK DRAGON, a high-class restaurant,
three stories tall.
LI SAN steps out of the car; Asian, thirties. Sleek white
suit and a snake-oil smile.
He moves at the door, where two TRIAD SOLDIERS stand guard.
LI SAN
We're not taking customers today.
Both soldiers nod. Li San goes into the Silk Dragon.
INT. SILK DRAGON RESTAURANT - CONTINUOUS
Black tile, gold wall panels, classy.
Li San glides past empty while tables. A squat whirlwind in
silk, MISS CHU (50), slides up beside him, keeping pace. Miss
Chu lies when she smiles, and she always smiles.
MISS CHU
Ah, Li San! So good to see favored
customer! You boys upstairs, ayah!
Very rude, make trouble for me.
Upstairs private, for Mr. Yi only.
LI SAN
Yi's three kinds of dead, Miss Chu.
MISS CHU
Ayah! Very terrible! Never hear
more terrible! Guess you in charge
now? Always say Li San smartest!
LI SAN
You've never guessed anything in
your fucking life, Miss Chu.
He reaches AN ELEVATOR in the back. He inserts the small key
into a lock below the call button, and the door OPENS.
MISS CHU
Maybe we talk about Miss Chu's rent
later, heya? Mr. Yi so unfair!
The elevator doors CLOSE on her smile.
INT. PRIVATE BARROOM
A 40ish Chinese man - YI - is bound and gagged to a chair
with duct tape. He's taken a bad beating, sweating hard.
It's a good sized room for private parties. A DOZEN TRIAD
THUGS hover at the fully stocked bar, leaning against black
lacquer walls, smoking near AN IRON DOOR.
The wall facing the street has A LARGE ROUND WINDOW.
Li San ENTERS from the elevator. He holds up an unfolded BILL
OF LADING in Yi's face.
LI SAN
Hey there, Yi. What's coming in on
the Taicang Hao?
A Thug whispers in Li San's ear. Li San throws the paper on
Yi's lap and goes to the Iron Door, opens it, and VANISHES
into the room beyond.
Yi stares at that door, sweating...
...Li San EMERGES, marches up to Yi and presses a nickle
plated .45 between Yi's eyes.
LI SAN
What the fuck is that?
Yi can't answer through his gag. It's unintelligible.
LI SAN (CONT'D)
Y'think I don't know what Feng is
up to? You better answer me. You
better fuckin' answer me! Now I'm
really losing my fucking patience!
Yi is HOWLING through his gag, trying like hell to spill his
guts. Li San nods, and half the Thugs draw all manner of
knives. Li San steps away as they move in on Yi.
Li San's CELLPHONE RINGS. He answers it. The MALE VOICE on
the other end is too young, too arrogant.
LI SAN
Yeah.
FENG'S PHONE VOICE
It's Feng.
LI SAN
Hey there, Ron. I was just talking
about killing you.
FENG'S PHONE VOICE
Wow, Li, you're so cool. You should
come work for me, so I can say to
people "There's a really cool guy
who kisses my ass for money."
LI SAN
(re. Iron Door)
I know how you did it, Ron.
FENG'S PHONE VOICE
Then you'll take my offer. Join the
winning team.
Li San takes a bullet out of his suit pocket, rolling it
between his fingers. It's COVERED IN ANCIENT CHINESE RUNES,
jet-black ink; a CURSED BULLET.
LI SAN
Sure. I've got a nine-millimeter
offering for the new boss of bosses
right here. Expect me to deliver it
personally.
FENG'S PHONE VOICE
Whatever. You're on my property.
LI SAN
Lin owns the Silk Dragon.
FENG'S PHONE VOICE
I mean the planet. Bye bye, Li San.
Feng DISCONNECTS.
EXT. THE SILK DRAGON - CONTINUOUS
From out of nowhere, two Chinese men stand on the street in
front of the Silk Dragon: MR. WEI and MR. LIN. Both unarmed,
frayed suits, cheap sunglasses.
Mr. Wei is bigger, solid muscle. His shades are the oversized
70's kind, giving him an insectoid look.
The Soldiers on guard duty SEE them, and don't hesitate. Both
pull German machine pistols and rip though the clips, BRRRRT!
INT. PRIVATE BARROOM
Li San, Yi, the Thugs turn at the noise...
...a Soldier SMASHES THROUGH THE WINDOW, barely more than a
red smear, and breaks a chunk of ceiling before hitting the
floor - his machine pistol's still firing. Several Thugs are
HIT by strays.
Li San steps up and looks out the window.
Mr. Wei and Mr. Lin are looking up at him from the street,
three stories down. They haven't moved.
Li San RUNS back to Yi, snaps the Rune-Covered Bullet into
his .45's chamber with a snarl and SHOOTS YI: GREEN SMOKE
TRAILS THE BULLET as it punches clean through Yi. The chair
lurches off its legs, Yi's body crashing down.
The SHELL CASING bounces on the carpet.
LI SAN
Kill everything!
He RUNS.
MR. WEI STEPS THROUGH THE BROKEN WINDOW. The air goes cold,
and the Thugs OPEN FIRE with everything they have.
A throwing knife on a chain DECAPITATES A THUG...
...yanked back; Mr. Wei catches his knife as Mr. Lin steps
through the window frame. They ignore the hundreds of bullet
hits destroying the window frame all around them.
INT. POLICE INTERROGATION ROOM
A blank, white box. A CHINESE PUNK is handcuffed to a table.
Danny's kicked back in a chair, reading a newspaper.
CHINESE PUNK
I can stay all day. I'm not saying
shit.
Danny looks up from his paper, a little surprised.
DANNY
Okay.
...goes back to his paper.
CHINESE PUNK
I want my lawyer and my phone call.
DANNY
You only get those if you're under
arrest. You're not under arrest.
CHINESE PUNK
Then I can leave.
DANNY
Go ahead.
The Punk doesn't move. CHACK! - he pulls the cuffs chaining
him to the table taunt. He can't leave.
CHINESE PUNK
Gonna undo this?
DANNY
Yes, in two hours. In one hour, I'm
walking over to the Lau Yu Hotel on
advice of my informant, who tells
me it's a drugstore with a side in
fresh-off-the-boat prostitutes.
(looks at Punk)
Don't worry about signing anything.
It's all taken care of.
It dawns on the Punk what's in store. He panics.
CHINESE PUNK
No, no-no, look, it won't help me
if I roll and...
DANNY
We're not here to help you. We're
here to make your bosses nervous.
The door OPENS; SOTOMAYOR, a large Hispanic man, late 40's,
leans in. Dark pants, white short-sleeves.
SOTOMAYOR
You back in business, Danny?
DANNY
I'm getting in the swing.
SOTOMAYOR
Got some free time?
DANNY
Sure, boss.
Danny dumps the paper and EXITS with Sotomayor. The Punk's
mouth drops - Hey! - as the door shuts.
INT. GANG TASK FORCE OFFICES
Danny grabs a gun out of his desk drawer.
It's a smallish room with six desks, all busy with paper,
files, and computers. Sotomayor points at Inspector STEVE
MOODY (43), white, beer belly, totally unsentimental.
SOTOMAYOR
Moody! Get your gun. We've got a
redball in Chinatown, Danny's
primary. Could be a first strike in
a new war, so stomp on it.
MOODY
Y'gonna handle the cameras, boss?
SOTOMAYOR
My best suit's being pressed as we
speak.
MOODY
Nice you're back, Danny. Might have
to beat the shit outta some people.
Danny smiles lightly. They EXIT: the stencil on the office
door reads GANG TASK FORCE.
EXT. SILK DRAGON - DAY
It's a circus: the whole street is taped off. SPECTATORS,
News Vans, camera lights and REPORTERS crowd the police line.
Two dozen COPS at work, red and blues lights swirling.
The BMW Roadster is still parked out front.
INT. PRIVATE BARROOM
Danny has on surgical gloves, kneeling by Yi's bound and
gagged body.
The room is a slaughterhouse. Nine gruesome corpses cut to
pieces; the remains of the Triad Thugs. One hangs from the
wall by his ribs. Bloody THROWING KNIVES are embedded hilt
deep in the walls. The bar is smashed apart.
MEDICAL EXAMINERS and TECHNICIANS work the scene, SQUOOSHING
on the blood-soaked carpet. The whole room is littered with
hundreds of shell casings.
Moody is examining the window-wall, notebook in hand. It's a
solid patchwork of bullet strikes.
MOODY
They put a lot of effort into this
side of the room, but I'll tell you
what... I don't think they hit
anybody. Any guess what came
through the window?
DANNY
That would be Andy Chan over there.
He's got glass in his skull.
Danny clicks a flashlight on and sweeps the carpet around
Yi's body with the beam. Moody makes his way over.
MOODY
It's a three story drop. Either a
bus hit him or he's fuckin' Batman.
DANNY
(re. Yi)
Does this hole look like a .45?
MOODY
Could be a .45.
DANNY
The Beamer out front belongs to a
guy named Li San.
MOODY
Friend of yours?
DANNY
Triad master. We try to kill each
other periodically. He travels with
a .45.
His flashlight beam stops on the CURSED BULLET CASING. Danny
slips a pen inside the casing and holds it up.
MOODY
What's that say?
DANNY
Ancient Chinese Secret.
(off Moody)
I don't know. It really is ancient.
MOODY
Asshole.
Danny rises, tipping the casing into a plastic evidence baggy
as he walks up to the Iron Door.
DANNY
It's not a gang war.
MOODY
Suicide, right?
DANNY
Except for Brian Yi, everybody here
is on Li San's crew. Li San shot
Yi, but they both work for Richard
Ho, the Dragon Head. Highest Triad
rank. This is a purge.
(re. Iron Door)
Ready?
MOODY
Yeah, I'm sick of this room.
Nothing in it makes any sense.
DANNY
It will.
Danny nudges the Iron Door open, stepping in.
INT. TORTURE ROOM - CONTINUOUS
Danny and Moody slowly step in. Black walls, ceiling and
floors are covered in silver and copper Chinese writing,
ranging from pinpoint to huge. It all flows to the room's
centerpiece: an Y-shaped IRON RACK, propped at an angle.
The floor under it is one big bloodstain.
MOODY
Jesus Christ.
DANNY
Somebody's definitely going to hell
for this. What're those?
Moody examines four small pieces of shriveled pink meat pined
to the wall.
MOODY
Tongues.
That gets a look out of Danny, then he's back studying the
walls and shaking his head. Crazy stuff.
INT. SILK DRAGON RESTAURANT
Cops and LAB TECHS swarm through the restaurant. Moody talks
to a Uniform, taking more notes.
Danny moves to where Miss Chu and her employees are huddled
under police supervision. Miss Chu brightens.
MISS CHU
Danny Yuen! Favored customer, away
too long! You won't make Miss Chu
go to police station? Not Miss Chu,
I see nothing. Restaurant open at
two sharp! Never late, never early!
DANNY
There's nine dead bodies and a
torture chamber upstairs. That's
got to be a health code violation.
MISS CHU
Ayah! You think I know? I work
restaurant, make customers happy.
I'm old woman.
DANNY
How old?
Miss Chu catches for a second. Her wide smile tenses.
DANNY (SUB/IN CHINESE)
[When I find Li San, my attention
turns away from the Silk Dragon.]
Miss Chu's smile wavers. A Uniform Cop LEADS HER AWAY.
Moody steps over.
MOODY
I'll get some uniforms to canvass
the neighborhood for...
DANNY
Witnesses? In Chinatown?
MOODY
...right.
DANNY
You go ahead and start interviewing
the rest of them downtown. Don't
believe anything Miss Chu says.
MOODY
And you're gonna be where?
DANNY
I'm going to walk home.
MOODY
You're kiddin' me.
DANNY
No, I live just a few blocks over.
I'll call in.
MOODY
You're fuckin' kiddin' me! We've
got a red-ball here!
Danny slings a good-sized computer satchel and EXITS. Moody
shakes his head. Unbelievable.
EXT. SILK DRAGON - CONTINUOUS
Danny steps out of the Silk Dragon, and stops...
...Jen's Ghost is standing across the street, alone, past all
the onlookers and reporters.
She stares directly at him.
Danny quickly looks away, takes the three stairs down to
street level and ducks under the Police Line. Reporters swamp
him with questions, microphones in his face. Danny replies IN
CHINESE, shrugging until the mob abandons him.
Jen's Ghost watches him drift into busy Chinatown.
EXT. CHINATOWN - DAY
It's bright and cold. Steam pours out a manhole cover. A
group of CHINESE MEN gamble with dice at picnic tables set in
a plaza, fast games. A chorus of "AWWW!" follows each round.
Danny passes through, watching everything.
A weathered ASIAN MOTHER quickly trots up the sidewalk, eyes
darting, keeping her YOUNG DAUGHTER close. An OLD MAN meets
Danny's gaze, then ducks into a store.
A SPIRIT WARD is taped to the door. It's a paper rectangle,
hung vertically, thick black Chinese writing punctuated by a
fingerprint in dried blood. Danny walks by a Knickknack Shop,
looking in the window at another Spirit Ward.
A glance across the street: nearly every shop has a Spirit
Ward hanging in plain sight.
He stops, thinks, and hops across the street.
INT. YIP'S TRADING COMPANY
A cramped, packed-to-the-gills Chinese grocery store. Glass
door. FRANK YIP (62), sweater-vest, is by the register.
A cowbell TINKLES as Danny ENTERS. He hooks a shopping
basket, wandering the store.
YIP
Danny! I didn't know you were back,
how are you doing?
DANNY
I'm getting back in the swing.
YIP
That's good. If you're still not
sleeping, you should try lemon
grass soup, it's very soothing.
DANNY
What's with all the Spirit Wards?
YIP
What about them?
DANNY
Well, everybody on the block has a
consecrated piece of paper on their
door that says "Forbid Evil" signed
in blood. Any reason?
YIP
Oh, you know... just in case.
DANNY
In case of what?
Danny sets his full shopping basket on the check-out counter.
Yip shakes his head, shrugging, weak smile.
DANNY
Rent still due on Thursdays?
(no answer)
Mind if I use your FAX?
YIP
No. I mean, go ahead.
Yip's hand shakes as he rings Danny up. Danny sees it.
DANNY
And some Lemon Grass, please.
He pulls a laptop out of his satchel and fires it up, putting
on a wireless earpiece. Speed dial on his cellphone, a quick
RING later, someone on the other end PICKS UP;
CLERK'S PHONE VOICE
Judge Wesson's office.
DANNY
Inspector Yuen, Gang Task Force.
I'm emailing over some affidavits
for warrants. Is the Judge there?
He starts rapid-fire typing on his computer.
CUT TO:
INT. YIP'S TRADING COMPANY - MOMENTS LATER
Danny leans on the counter by Yip's FAX, right hand raised.
JUDGE'S PHONE VOICE
Is your right hand raised?
DANNY
Yes.
JUDGE'S PHONE VOICE
Do you solemnly swear and affirm
the affidavit is true and accurate
to the best of your knowledge?
DANNY
I do.
The FAX RINGS. An incoming FAX slides across Danny's fingers.
He plucks it out and reads it, sipping paper-cup coffee.
JUDGE'S PHONE VOICE
Abracadabra. Nice to have you back,
Danny. We still all miss Jen around
here. Don't know if you've heard,
but the ADA that Karl hired to
replace her just doesn't cut it.
Nowhere near Jen's league...
DANNY
Thanks, thank you, your honor. I'm
sorry, I have to go.
Danny DISCONNECTS, feeding the warrants back into the FAX and
SENDING them. He calls another number on his cell.
MOODY'S PHONE VOICE
Moody, Gang Taskforce.
DANNY
How was it interviewing Miss Chu?
MOODY'S PHONE VOICE
She's a lie machine. Where are you?
DANNY
Grocery shopping. Listen, cut her
loose. I'm FAXing you a signed DNR
to tap her phones and warrants to
seize Li San's home, bank accounts,
his businesses and his boat.
MOODY'S PHONE VOICE
Okay, why are we targeting Li San?
DANNY
He's the only witness.
MOODY'S PHONE VOICE
Danny, the only way he'll I.D.
anybody for us is by gunning 'em
down in public. Hey, how long did
it take you to get the warrants?
The cowbell TINKLES.
DANNY
It wasn't a personal best. I've
gotta go.
Danny HANGS UP and looks over: THREE CHINSES TOUGHS move in
on the counter - a leader in a LEATHER COAT, some muscle in
Yoko Ono SHADES, and a snappy dresser in a fancy SILK TIE.
Frank Yip tries not to look scared.
Leather coat rips the spirit ward down.
LEATHER COAT
Rent, pops. And we told you about
hanging these. Next time, it costs.
Yip shoots a worried glance at Danny, then nods. He pulls out
a small envelope, and starts to hand it over...
DANNY
Who are you guys?
Everything stops.
Silk Tie and Shades side-step out of sight, down the aisles.
Shades comes back up the aisle behind Danny, while Silk Tie
is dead-even with him.
Danny's surrounded. Doesn't seem to worry him.
LEATHER COAT
You're not involved in this. Don't
get involved in this.
DANNY
Andrew Wei collects on this street.
I know everybody who works for Wei.
I don't know you. Get lost.
LEATHER COAT
Frank, give me the fucking rent and
YOU shut the fuck up before I carve
everyone ever mattered to you!
Danny steps forward. His eyes go cold.
DANNY
Do you honestly think you're
intimidating me?
Leather PUTS A AUTOMATIC PISTOL RIGHT IN DANNY'S FACE. Danny
doesn't blink.
A blur: Danny grabs Leather's wrist with one hand and SHOVES
THE GUN'S SLIDE BACK with the other - the chambered bullet
spins away. Leather struggles... Danny's thumb casually
reaches around to hit the clip release. The gun's clip slides
out and hits the floor, CLUNK.
The gun is empty. Danny lets Leather go.
DANNY
What else've you got?
Leather tries to pistol-whip Danny, but Danny's a step to the
left before it gets close. He breaks Leather's nose with a
solid punch to the face...
...Fancy Tie charges, Shades has a knife...
Danny sweeps a handful of groceries off the shelf, right into
Fancy Tie, stalling him...
...and blocks a swing of Shades' knife, digging an elbow into
Shades' ribs, plus three fast punches to stagger him.
Silk Tie's coming: Danny jumps down that aisle, catches the
shelves and swings forward. Both feet hit Silk Tie center
mass, LAUNCHING HIM BACK INTO THE FREEZER CASES at the back
of the store. Fancy Tie is out.
Danny's eyes are wild, cut loose...
...he turns: Danny bends back as Shades' knife flies over him
- FSSH! Danny catches Shades' arm and DISLOCATES HIS SHOULDER
with a quick jerk.
Shades SCREAMS, cut off as Danny kicks him in the gut, NAILS
him with a right cross, and punts Shades full in the head.
Shades goes down with a meaty slap.
Danny leaps over him, back to the check-out counter. Leather
Coat is up, Tai Kwon Do stance.
Danny smiles. Take a shot, kid.
Leather lashes out with some kicks, Danny blocks, child's
play. He slaps some punches aside.
And then Danny POUNDS HIM: face, gut, chest. He slams Leather
Coat into the counter and bounces him off a store shelf. The
fight's over, but DANNY KEEPS HITTING HIM, OUT OF CONTROL. He
grabs a fistful of hair and throws Leather face-first into
the glass door, PRESSING HIM THERE.
Jen's Ghost stands a few feet outside the door.
Danny presses Leather hard into the glass, glaring, snarling.
THE GLASS CRACKS, cutting across Jen's face.
Danny blinks.
His rage ebbs. He remembers the plan. Faking it:
DANNY
Think you can collect wherever you
like? You wanna die? You wanna die?
LEATHER COAT
No! No! I work for Ronald Feng!
Ronald Feng is Dragon Head!
DANNY
Ron... little Ronnie Feng? He's
nothing! He's a rodent!
YIP
It's true! I pay Ronald Feng now!
Everybody does! Danny, please!
Danny considers, then lets Leather Coat go, brushes him off.
DANNY
I had no idea. Sorry.
LEATHER COAT
...it's, uh... yeah, it's okay...
DANNY
Well, Frank?
Nodding sharply at Leather Coat. Yip double-takes, then
apologetically hands his envelope to a sore Leather Coat...
...Danny snaps the cuffs on Leather's wrist. Yip groans.
Leather turns to see Danny holding up his badge, and just
slumps. Danny finishes cuffing him, grabs his groceries and
his computer satchel, and pushes Leather towards the door.
YIP
Danny!
Danny looks back; Yip points at the two unconscious thugs
littering his store.
DANNY
I'm leaving them there as a warning
to others.
He shoves Leather Coat out the door.
INT. DANNY'S TOWNHOUSE - NIGHT
Danny ENTERS, balancing groceries, no lights. A slightly full
but tidy LIVING ROOM, furniture old and comfortable, shelves
of dusty law books. A small kitchen in back.
Jen's Ghost is there, in the shadows.
Danny stops, fists clinched tight. Not looking, willing her
away, willing self-control. He drops the groceries and storms
UP A STAIRCASE...
...INTO THE BATHROOM. He snatches a prescription bottle out
of a cabinet: ZYPREXA. He swallows two pills with tap water
cupped in his hand.
HE WANDERS BACK OUT TO HIS BEDROOM, a dark, shrouded place.
Untouched queen bed, cold TV on the dresser.
All the framed pictures lie flat or face the wall.
Danny drops into a chair by the bed, eyes going cloudy, drugs
kicking in, mind slowing down. His wedding ring slips off and
CLATTERS on the hardwood floor.
DANNY
I know what's real. I know what's
real. Please go away. Please.
Please... just stop.
Jen's Ghost watches him sadly.
INT. GANG TASKFORCE OFFICES - DAY
All six Taskforce Inspectors are present. Danny's typing a
good 80 wpm on his laptop. A SANDY-HAIRED INSPECTOR peaks at
it over his shoulder.
SANDY-HAIRED INSPECTOR
It's a warrant, and I'm starting
the clock! I'll give three to one
on everything under thirty minutes!
VETERAN INSPECTOR
Put twenty on twenty-six minutes.
Bets, odds, and money flies around the squadroom. Sotomayor
ENTERS, beeline for his office, NOT happy.
SOTOMAYOR
Yuen!
Danny looks up, then looks back at Moody's desk. Moody
catches it, but his gaze doesn't linger. Sandy Haired and the
Veteran immediately start shouting at each other.
VETERAN INSPECTOR
No bet! No bet! Sotomayor called
him in! Fuck you, bets are off!
Danny heads for Sotomayors' office, ignoring his squadmates'
shouting match.
INT. SOTOMAYOR'S OFFICE
Danny closes the door. Sotomayor glares at him.
SOTOMAYOR
No horseshit, Danny. Are you back?
DANNY
Is there room for doubt?
SOTOMAYOR
Why was my primary the first to
leave the scene of a redball? Why
was he out busting nobodies on
unrelated charges? These questions
plague me.
DANNY
Jason Ho isn't Dragon Head anymore.
SOTOMAYOR
Since when?
DANNY
The name Ron Feng mean anything?
SOTOMAYOR
Refresh me.
DANNY
He's an accountant. The one time I
ran him he couldn't even look me in
the eye. He's the new Dragon Head.
SOTOMAYOR
None of this says you're close to
an arrest.
DANNY
Li San's on the receiving end of a
purge. After the mauling he just
took, he might be open to turning
State's Evidence if we put the
offer to him while he's looking
extinction in the eye. What he
knows can cripple organized crime
in the Bay Area for years.
Sotomayor smiles.
SOTOMAYOR
I might accept this... IF you tell
the squad your next warrant is
signed in exactly twenty minutes.
DANNY
What will that get me?
SOTOMAYOR
It will get me fifty apiece from
the suckers in the crowd. I'll talk
to the Bureau, see what we can
offer Li San.
Sotomayor sits behind his desk - meeting's over - and Danny
EXITS TO THE SQUADROOM. Nobody's looking his way when he
comes out. Moody's definitely avoiding his gaze.
Danny's cellphone BUZZES; he checks it, and cruises past
Moody's desk on the way out.
DANNY
I just got a text message from a
C.I. Want to meet the new kingpin
of Chinatown?
Danny EXITS, not stopping. Moody thinks, leg twitching. He
grabs his coat and follows.
INT. CHINATOWN CAFé - DAY
A sidewalk table outside a breakfast bar. Miss Chu and MRS.
LING (58), a gossipy old woman not unlike Miss Chu herself,
are having coffee and danish.
MISS CHU
They close my restaurant! Just to
make trouble for me!
MRS. LING
Police are all goat-whores. Tell me
how Li San escape!
MISS CHU
Ayah, that's bad Joss. Horrible. I
think all Li San men were killed
right over my head!
MRS. LING
(sing-song)
Not all.
(off Miss Chu's reaction)
Li San's man came to the shop this
morning and Yan curse more bullets
for him.
Miss Chu smiles grandly - Ahhhh!
MRS. LING
Not normal bullets, either. Ceramic
and plastic. Isn't that funny!
MISS CHU
Ayah, your life is so exciting!
Miss Chu drinks her coffee, grinning.
EXT. AT&T PARK - DAY
An open-air baseball park, packed with SCREAMING FANS.
INT. LUXURY SUITE
High above the diamond, a perfect view of the stadium out the
windows. THE ELITE mingle, eating prime rib from a buffet and
talking business. Nobody watches the game.
Danny and Moody flash their badges to a pair of STEWARDS at
the door. The Stewards back off.
MOODY
Ever been up here before?
DANNY
No. You?
MOODY
Years ago. My second wife's boss
croaked. They raffled his tickets.
DANNY
Lucky.
MOODY
Yeah, no shit.
Danny spots something, nods...
...far side of the room: RONALD FENG is laughing with some
EUROTRASH over cigars. He's a thin, rabbity Chinese man in
glasses and a suit that looks more important than he does.
Mr. Wei stands at a distance, says nothing, does nothing.
Danny claps a hand on Feng's shoulder, cutting in. Mr. Wei
steps forward; Moody shows his badge.
MOODY
Heel.
Wei doesn't stop until Feng holds up a hand, ordering it. The
Eurotrash evaporate into the crowd.
DANNY
Hello, Ron. I almost didn't
recognize you in that attitude.
FENG
I've got eighteen lawyers on speed
dial. What do you want, Yuen?
DANNY
I like the new confidence, too. But
honestly, I'm gone a few months and
the kids are running the kitchen.
Ho must be screaming blue murder.
FENG
Richard Ho is an ancestor.
DANNY
Really? How'd you pull that off?
FENG
Don't know what you mean.
DANNY
Well, Ron, I'd let you balance my
checkbook, but you don't have the
chops to be Dragon Head.
FENG
I have the tools.
Danny smiles. Gotcha. Too easy.
DANNY
Wow. And to think I couldn't ever
get Ho to even admit he had a rank.
It's going to be a good year for
me. I don't know how you did it,
Ron, I'm just glad you did.
Feng seriously eyefucks Danny. Danny chuckles right in Feng's
face, then walks away. Moody follows.
MOODY
We're not staying for the game?
Danny's cellphone RINGS. He checks, answers.
DANNY
What's up, Tom?
DETECTIVE'S PHONE VOICE
Danny, we got a hit off Chu's cell.
She sold this to a Triad broker: Li
San's got ceramic bullets.
Danny stops, thinks, eyes wandering the Luxury Suite.
A big Chinese in a SPORT COAT grazes at the buffet, no class
at all. Across the room, a short, fat Chinese in a GRAY SUIT
is standing alone, out of place.
DETECTIVE'S PHONE VOICE (CONT'D)
Safe bet he's got a plastic gun to
go with 'em. We've got calls in to
the airports and bus stations...
DANNY
No, get additional units and ambos
to AT&T Park. Get 'em here fast.
MOODY
What's up?
DANNY
Li San's not rolling over. I'm
making two soldiers in the room.
They know my face, so watch it.
Moody nods. They separate, moving through the crowd.
Mr. Wei puts a hand on Feng's shoulder. Feng's eyes go wide,
spooked. His voice is a shallow hiss.
FENG
No! Get me to the car first! Now!
They beeline for the door, Mr. Wei leading. Anyone too slow
to move bounces off him as he bulldozes through.
Danny is in the Sport Coat Triad's blind spot; HE SEES LI SAN
across the room in his white suit, eyes locked on Feng and
Mr. Wei. Li San pulls a plastic gun. Danny whips his gun out,
dead bead on Li San.
DANNY
Police! Freeze, Li San!
Li San's eyes click over to Danny, a smile.
Sport Coat Triad GRABS Danny's gun.
Mr. Wei's head snaps around, sees: he grabs Feng and they
VANISH THROUGH THE WALL as Li San FIRES a Cursed Bullet at
them, green vapor trail. It BLOWS A HUGE CHUNK out of the
wall, but they're gone.
EVERYBODY PANICS at the gunshot, RUNNING.
Moody jams a STUN GUN against Gray Suit's arm - TZZSK! Gray
Suit CONVULSES and DROPS.
Danny twists loose from Sports Coat and nails him with three
fast elbows to the face, just as Li San RUNS OUT THE DOOR.
Danny bolts after him.
EXT. STADIUM PARKING LOT - CONTINUOUS
A LIMO SCREECHES out of the parking lot.
INT. LIMO
Feng and Mr. Wei are in the back seat. Feng rips off his suit
coat and pulls up his left sleeve: NINE CHINESE SYMBOLS ARE
CARVED INTO HIS ARM. Feng concentrates, flexing his arm so
hard it shakes from the strain.
Two of the symbols begin to GLOW AN UNEARTHLY GREEN.
EXT. CHINATOWN - CONTINUOUS
Mr. Lin and MR. YAO, an older man dressed much like Lin, push
out of a Chinatown office building and march to the curb.
There's A TALL SKYSCRAPER dead ahead...
...IT FALLS AWAY.
We're flying South over the city, no sound but the wind. We
reach the apex of the arc and start to fall towards AT&T
Park. The stadium CHEERS GROW...
EXT. AT&T PARK - STADIUM SEATING
Danny rushes out into the stadium, behind the final row of
chairs. He scans the rows stretching down before him...
Li San is one aisle over, running down the stairs.
Danny hops up on the back of a plastic chair and JUMPS FROM
CHAIR TO CHAIR, past surprised Fans, cutting across the whole
section, heading Li San off...
...Li San turns, sees Danny, AIMS...
...Danny LEAPS, kicking Li San's gun away and booting him
square in the chest. Li San goes ass over teakettle, rolling
to his feet at the base of the stairs. He YANKS A HOSTAGE
from the nearest seat, a 40ish father of two: choke hold, the
kind that breaks necks.
Danny walks up and presses his gun to Li San's forehead.
Stalemate. Their eyes burn into each other.
LI SAN
You want me alive.
DANNY
I'm learning to live with
disappointment.
Li San smiles, and lets his Hostage go. Danny doesn't move,
glaring at that mocking smile.
INT. LUXURY SUITE - MOMENTS LATER
Danny shoves a cuffed Li San back into the Luxury Suite, Li's
plastic gun tucked in his belt. The Suite has cleared out,
save for Moody frisking the Triads. He finds A CLEAVER.
MOODY
What is this? What're you, Iron
Chef Dickhead? Siddown!
(to Danny)
Y'know, I never find shit like this
working the Hispanic gangs.
Danny hauls Li San across the room, out of earshot.
DANNY
I'm authorized to give you a deal,
Li. Feng's three bodies away from
complete control of Chinatown. Go
State's Witness and I guarantee
none of them will be yours.
LI SAN
You have zero clue what's going on.
DANNY
I know everybody's gotten real
superstitious lately. Even you.
Danny ejects a bullet from Li San's Plastic Gun and holds it
up: it's CURSED, covered in Chinese writing.
DANNY
How'd Feng do it, Li? How's a
scared little mob accountant grow
up to be supreme of supremes?
Li San's lips curl into a smirk.
LI SAN
Do you believe in ghosts?
Danny blinks. What?
Mr. Lin and Mr. Yao ENTER. The temperature drops ten degrees.
Danny stiffens, a violent chill. Li San freezes.
Moody doesn't feel it. He moves at them, .38 in hand.
DANNY
Moody... don't...!
MOODY
Hey! HEY! Get on the ground! Get*
Mr. Lin moves a hand: MOODY SMASHES THROUGH THE FORWARD
WINDOW and sails down two stories in a hail of glass shards,
crashing onto the fans in the seats below.
Danny pops off THREE SHOTS at Lin, but nothing hits. Mr. Lin
heads straight for Danny and Li San. Danny RAPID FIRES POINT
BLANK, no effect.
LI SAN
Use my gun! My gun! HURRY!
The Triad Soldiers run, still cuffed. Mr. Yao's hand BLURS, a
throwing knife shoots across the room: GRAY SUIT'S HEAD FLIES
OFF HIS BODY in mid-step. Sport Coat jumps his body, but
Yao's aready there, intercepting him with a single punch that
reduces Sport Coat to a bloody mist.
Danny grabs the Plastic Gun out of his belt, too late. Mr.
Lin slaps it away and THROWS A PUNCH TOO FAST TO SEE at
Danny's head as an afterthought...
...and MISSES, to Lin's deep surprise. Danny's dropped and
SWEEP KICKS. It bounces off Lin's calf, no effect. Danny
spins up for a head-kick - Lin's to one side before it gets
close. A fast punch to Lin's jaw is just as casually blocked.
Li San rolls, getting his cuffed hands in front, scoops up
his plastic gun and bolt for the door.
Mr. Yao smiles, Li San reflecting in his knife...
Li San BRAKES HARD just short of escape; Yao's throwing knife
hits the door, TEARING IT OFF ITS HINGES. Li San RUNS OUT
with a smile on his face. Sucker.
A feint, and Danny CONNECTS two fast jabs to Lin's head,
pulping Lin's nose. No blood.
Danny maintains fighting stance. Mr. Lin sneers.
INT. STADIUM CONCOURSE - CONTINUOUS
Li San bursts out of a stairwell, running. He brakes hard as
MR. YAO STEPS OUT OF A WALL AHEAD OF HIM. A flick of his
wrist, and a throwing knife - CLICK - appears, in his hand.
Li San SHOOTS him: a Cursed Bullet SMASHES CLEAN THROUGH MR.
YAO'S CHEST like a sledgehammer through glass. He's hollow
inside, save for a VIOLENTLY CRACKLING GREEN GLOW. Mr. Yao
looks up in shock. A BANSHEE WAIL BUILDS.
Mr. Yao EXPLODES in a green flash. The concrete wall cracks,
barricades catch fire. It throws Li San ten feet, and he
slides another ten.
INT. LIMO - CONTINUOUS
Feng shrieks in agony, grabbing his arm; one of the Chinese
symbols SMOLDERS and TURNS BLACK, bleeding bad.
INT. LUXURY SUITE
Mr. Lin's ignoring Danny's best hits, killing hits. Lin holds
up a fist, THROWS IT....
..IT PASSES THROUGH DANNY'S BLOCK...
...Danny takes the hit full-on. It draws blood, staggers him
bad. He blocks a follow-up punch, tries to bat aside a kick;
LIN'S FOOT PASSES THROUGH THE BLOCK, but it's solid when it
CONNECTS with Danny's ribs.
Lin drives Danny back, toying with him, beating him to a
bloody pulp. Some Danny blocks, some PHASE through to their
targets. Danny gets in a useless hit and takes three, barely
staying on his feet.
Lin winds up a coup de grace...
...Danny stumbles, FALLING BACK THROUGH JEN'S GHOST. He lands
on his back. He looks up. His jaw drops.
Jen's Ghost is blocking the fatal blow.
Lin snarls, trying to budge Jen. He can't. His arms whip
around, SO FAST IT BENDS AIR: Jen's Ghost CATCHES IT, and
AGAIN, and AGAIN. It sounds like dueling thunder...
...she lashes out - WHOOM! - a headshot that takes Mr. Lin
off his feet, spinning back into the air.
Jen's feet leave the ground, white dress billowing, twirling
end over end and KICKING LIN IN THE HEAD every time she comes
around, flipping him higher and higher like a rag doll, AGAIN
and AGAIN and AGAIN, a brutal aerial ballet.
Danny scrambles to recover his gun, and reloads.
Jen's Ghost catches Lin's head and DRIVES HIM INTO THE FLOOR,
smashing it. She yanks his head up. Her eyes find Danny's.
Danny RAPID FIRES.
The bullets tear away Lin's face, leaving a pulpy mess. Jen
lets him go, and LIN WOOZILY RISES TO HIS KNEES, STILL ALIVE.
He struggles to do more, but can't. Lin opens his mouth, and
a GLOWING GREEN VAPOR ERUPTS...
...FORMING AN ANCIENT CHINESE WARRIOR in full armor.
"Lin's" body drops, an empty husk. The Warrior GRABS Jen: a
sound like RIPPLING WIND as he hurls her across the room.
Danny watches her vanish through a wall. HE DOESN'T SEE THE
WARRIOR GHOST.
DANNY
What?
Lin's Ghost strikes out like a cobra, flying STRAIGHT THROUGH
DANNY'S BODY...
...AND GETS STUCK IN HIM, half-in, half-out. Danny SCREAMS;
so does the Ghost. It drags him across the floor, struggling
to free itself.
Danny's eyes snap open, HIT BY A MEMORY:
INSERT - FLASHBACK:
INT. ANCIENT CHINESE THRONE ROOM - DAY
...we rush at A WARLORD in a long beard and resplendent
robes, facing away. He's holding a knife. He turns, and we
SLASH HIS CHEST with a sword, cutting him open with a single
upward stroke. Blood flies...
RESUME:
Danny's eyes refocus. He can SEE Lin's Ghost.
LIN SLIPS FREE, VANISHING like lightning through the wall.
The cheers outside have died to unsettled rumbles. Danny sits
panting, exhausted. Jen's Ghost stands nearby, demure as
ever. He stares at her, mouth open. HE HOLDS HER GAZE.
Jen blinks, can't believe it. Her mouth quivers into a small
smile, a tear falls down her cheek.
Danny reaches for something to say.
DANNY
Jen?
Jen's Ghost silently gasps. More tears; she can't hold back
the joy she feels.
Danny just stares at his wife's ghost.
EXT. WING CHI INVESTMENTS - DAY
A charcoal toned steel-and-glass office tower on the boarder
between Chinatown and downtown. Feng's limo pulls up and
brakes hard.
INT. WING CHI INVESTMENTS
A Caucasian receptionist, VALERIE - young, blonde/blue eyed
and gorgeous - stands up at her desk, shocked...
Feng cradles his injured arm, suit coat bundled over it and
blood soaking through. He's sweating - maybe even crying -
from the pain. Mr. Wei calmly strides along beside him.
VALERIE
Oh my God, Mr. Feng, are you all
right?
Feng doesn't answer. He pushes straight through a double set
of doors into a wide MEETING ROOM with windows looking out at
downtown skyscrapers. It's packed with TRIAD SOLDIERS hanging
out on couches, reading papers or playing video games.
They all stand and stare as Feng tears through, too scared of
Mr. Wei to offer help.
Feng and Wei vanish behind a massive executive office door at
the far end, leaving the soldiers to gossip and wonder.
INT. FENG'S OFFICE
Feng slowly peels his jacket off his arm, whimpering. Doesn't
look good: there's a black, scabbed pit in his arm, in the
middle of the clean, carved Chinese symbols.
FENG
Shit... shit! Why's there a hole in
my fucking arm, Wei? What the fuck
happened! Did Danny do something?
He drops into a big leather chair behind a big oak desk,
facing away from the window view. This looks like a hand-me
down office, too big for Feng, too important.
FENG
Answer me!
Wei stands stoically, not looking at Feng. He raises a hand.
Feng sobers. He doesn't like this, but...
FENG
Do it.
Wei instantly lays his hand on Feng's shoulder; there's a
VIBRATIONAL SHIFT that makes Feng dizzy, makes him want to
throw up. A GREEN GLOW APPEARS.
Lin's Ghost is floating in the room, snarling.
Feng brushes Wei's hand away - Lin's Ghost vanishes - and
VOMITS in the trash can.
He thinks for a moment. No choice.
INT. WING CHI MEETING ROOM - DAY
The door to Feng's office opens, and all the soldiers jump
to. Feng leans out, looking around.
FENG
Hey, Mike! Got a special job for
you. Twelfth floor, one hour!
A young soldier in the crowd - MIKE LEUNG - hesitates.
MIKE LEUNG
Sure, boss.
Feng vanishes back into his office, closing the door. Mike
Leung looks around nervously. The others move away from him.
I/E. SERVICE STAIRWELL/BACK ALLEY - DAY
Mike Leung barrels down the stairs in a blind panic...
...hammering out of a service exit; he CRASHES into FAT MR.
TONG, a beefy Chinese man in a worn suit and dark glasses,
bouncing off him and landing in a dazed heap.
Mike shakes it off, scrambles away; he runs up against MR.
HO, a sixty-year-old also in shades.
Mr. Ho grabs Mike's ankle, dragging him back to the service
exit with impossible strength. Mike flails around trying to
fight free, but Mr. Ho doesn't even notice.
MIKE LEUNG
Nooooo! Help! Somebody HELP ME!
SCREAMING HIS LUNGS RAW, clawing at the cement. Mr. Tong
opens the door, and all three go back inside the Wing Chi
Investments building.
Mike's screams die as the heavy steel door CLOSES.
INT. ANCIENT CHINESE THRONE ROOM - DAY
Golden light filters in through rice paper walls. CHANTING,
wisps of incense.
The Warlord stands in the Heavenly light, facing away, hand
outstretched. A solid stream of blood is pouring from a cut
in his palm.
His other hand: a BRIGHT, SILVER DAGGER with an ornately
carved WHITE JADE HANDLE.
Danny is creeping closer, behind a row of pillars, not making
a sound. His head is shaved, simple clothes. There are a
number of CHINESE WARRIORS around the room - dressed exactly
like Lin's Ghost - wearing red silk blindfolds.
Danny puts a shaky hand around a sword handle on his hip and
tightens his grip. He licks sweat off his lip. He has twenty
feet to cover to reach the Warlord.
A shard of light reflects off the White Jade Dagger, falling
on Danny's eyes.
Danny RUNS OUT FROM COVER...
...an arrow HITS the warrior closest to the Warlord, square
between the eyes. The Warlord's wide open...
...Danny DRAWS HIS SWORD, SLASHING a diagonal line through
the Warlord's chest. A GOUT OF BLOOD SPRAYS OUT.
CUT TO:
The Warlord's face fills the world, smiling cruelly.
INT. MEDICAL EXAMINER'S OFFICE - HALLWAY
Danny wakes. Jen is there, watching over him.
The hallway is dull green, dirty floors, blank walls. Danny
sits in a batch of hard plastic chairs bolted together. Jen
stands opposite, against the wall.
An ORDERLY wheels a gurney past, bearing a sheet-covered
cadaver. He steers into an open door, and is gone.
They are alone again.
DANNY
I think this is the last place I
ever talked to you. When I said
goodbye.
(then)
All I've wanted was more time, and
I had it, and I didn't, you were
there, all along, and I didn't...
Jen reaches out her hand, pleading him to stop. A small,
quick shake of her head. She smiles at him a little.
DANNY
You're perfect, you know that?
She shrugs: Yeah, I knew. It breaks a smile out of him.
They both turn, hearing a noise. Sotomayor leans out of the
open doorway.
SOTOMAYOR
Break's over.
DANNY
I need to take a personal day.
SOTOMAYOR
Sure. Soon as you figure out how it
is you killed a guy's been dead
three weeks, you're off the clock.
Danny's eyes flit at Jen. He rises, heading for the doorway.
INT. AUPTOPSY ROOM
Stark, steel gurneys, dull florescent light, and the dead.
A MEDICAL EXAMINER has "Lin's" body on his gurney, connected
to tubes and catheters as lifeless as "Lin" is. Danny and
Sotomayor watch over his shoulder.
Danny's attention keeps drifting past the others, ignoring
them to watch Jen's Ghost.
MEDICAL EXAMINER
Swear to God, it looks like a bomb
went off in there.
If you can tell me how a guy who's
organs are in an advanced state of
decomp can walk around until a
trigger-happy police puts eight
slugs in his face, you're a better
man than I.
SOTOMAYOR
So who is he? Danny?
DANNY
What? Lin, Eddie Lin. He owns that
restaurant where the redball went
down yesterday. Couldn't believe it
when he came at me.
Jen coldly studies "Lin." Her eyes flash up, meeting Danny's,
a grave look there.
SOTOMAYOR
Rich guy?
DANNY
Loaded.
SOTOMAYOR
Funny there's no wallet. But he
left us a love letter. In Chinese.
Danny isn't listening, his attention on Jen. Sotomayor waves
an evidence bag in front of his face; the BILL OF LADING is
inside. Danny impatiently takes it and reads it.
DANNY
It's a bill of lading for a cargo
container, coming in on a ship, the
Taicang Hao. It's due in today,
Pier 96.
Passing it back, looking up. JEN IS GONE.
SOTOMAYOR
Well, thank you, Danny, glad you
could participate. Think you can
get a warrant for it?
DANNY
...sure, boss.
SOTOMAYOR
Get it. Danny, you know I can't let
you tag along to serve it, right?
Not with what happened to Moody.
DANNY
Lin here killed Moody.
SOTOMAYOR
I know, but we don't give the
public defender anything to play
with we don't have to.
(then)
Chinese ship, right?
DANNY
Well, it's called the Taicang Hao.
SOTOMAYOR
Fuuuck. I am most definitely gonna
need a translator.
Sotomayor puts another evidence bag into Danny's chest as he
EXITS. Danny's gun is inside.
DANNY
Right.
Danny takes his gun out of the bag, looking over the Autopsy
Area - no Jen. Just the quiet dead. He EXITS.
INT. WING CHI INVESTMENTS - THE GHOST CHAMBER
Feng ENTERS.
SEVEN GHOST TRIADS are here, wearing shades that hide their
eyes and suits that haven't been cleaned or changed in weeks.
Mr. Wei is front and center. Mr. Ho and Fat Mr. Tong are
close by. Three of them, MR. KAI, MR. JIN, and MR. LAU, all
move as one, while reedy MR. MI waits in a corner. Mike Leung
is strapped to an iron cross, central.
No windows. Silver runes cover the ceiling and floor.
Feng looks around, and walks up to Mr. Wei.
FENG
Where's Knife Walking Gou? I said
get everyone here. It's been two
weeks since I've seen him.
(no answer)
I ORDER you to tell me where he is.
Mr. Wei doesn't answer. Feng lashes out, HITTING MR. WEI,
left cross, right cross, kick to the balls, stomach punch.
FENG
WHERE IS HE?
Wei hasn't budged an inch. No reaction whatsoever.
Feng turns away and marches over to the iron cross, leaning
over Mike. Mike's bare chested, stripped to the waist.
FENG
Thanks for volunteering, Mike.
How's it going? Comfortable?
MIKE LEUNG
Ron, please...
FENG
Hey, you remember the time at Jack
Kai's party? You said something
funny, and that gave ol' Jack the
idea to pour a quart of Bombay down
my throat, and then everybody shot
at me while I tried to stand still
against that brick wall. That was
tough, drunk as I was. Who can get
closest! Remember?
Feng snaps his fingers. Mr. Wei places a wickedly carved
knife in Feng's hand.
FENG
I'm blanking on what it was you
said, exactly. What was it? Do you
know? Anything? No? How about it,
Kai, you remember?
Nodding at Mr. Kai. No response.
FENG
Guess not. Guess we'll never know.
Feng nods; Mr. Wei and Mr. Tong effortlessly force Mike's
mouth open and keep his head steady, and the knife goes in.
Mike SCREAMS... his body convulses and the SCREAMS GO SHRILL
as Feng works on him, dragging the knife around his face,
carving into his chest.
Feng steps off, tossing Mike's tongue to Mr. Ho.
FENG
Hang that up. Relax, Mike. Worst
part's over.
Blood pours from Mike's mouth. His eyelids are cut away; his
eyes look bulging, unblinking. Huge, bloody gashes in his
chest form a helix of Chinese runes.
Mr. Mi holds open a thick, ancient tome for Feng to read
from. Feng starts chanting in Chinese.
A GREEN GLOW APPEARS; LIN'S GHOST hovers over Mike Leung,
hungry. Mike shakes his head, unable to back away...
...the ghost DIVES INTO MIKE LEUNG'S EYES.
Mike SCREAMS as his eyes catch fire, green fire, and melt
away in white streams pouring down his face. His body
CHANGES, painfully reshaping itself to contain something
bigger than it is; something spreads through his body, just
under his skin. The helix on his chest GLOWS.
The other Ghost Triads watch impassively. Feng grits hard as
A NEW SYMBOL BURNS ITSELF INTO HIS ARM.
Mike abruptly stops screaming. The light dies. Wei and Ho
take the restrains off Mike - now MR. LEUNG. They give him a
shirt and suit coat, and a put a pair of dark sunglasses over
his empty eye sockets.
Mr. Leung steps over to Feng, and bows.
FENG
Knock it off. Show me how Danny did
it, and then you, Motherfucker Wei,
will be giving me a straight answer
on where Gou is.
Feng tosses the knife away.
EXT. PACIFIC OCEAN - DAY
A huge cargo ship, the TAICANG HAO, cuts through the water.
Multicolored cargo containers are stacked high on its deck.
A mid-30's Chinese man sits cross-legged on top of the ship's
bridge, unmoving and unmoved, wind whipping his wild hair.
KNIFE WALKING GOU wears a frayed business suit and a RED SILK
BLINDFOLD.
The ship is on course for the Golden Gate. The sun is shining
through the bridge.
EXT. PIER 96 - CONTINUOUS
The Taicang Hao maneuvers under the huge cargo cranes, edging
into dock...
...the dock is covered in police cruisers, lights flashing.
Sotomayor watches it coming closer, flanked by Danny and a
few Gang Taskforce detectives. Behind them, a dozen uniformed
COPS. They all wait for the giant to dock.
EXT. PIER 96 - LATER
Three massive cranes are pulling cargo containers - "CANS" -
off the Taicang Hao and depositing them on waiting cargo
trucks, or stacking them on the docks.
A DOCK MANAGER with serious beer-belly and a hardhat leads
Sotomayor, Danny, and a half-dozen uniformed cops through a
maze of cargo containers stacked three and four high.
DOCK MANAGER
Whadaya want me to say? Offloading
twenty cans'a hour is goddamn good
in anybody's book. I said the one
you want's probably buried on the
goddamn bottom. Didn't I say that?
SOTOMAYOR
And I'm saying "Goddamn unbury it."
The Dock Manager pauses at a can to SCAN a barcode on its
registration sticker. He pounds the can.
DOCK MANAGER
Right were my guys said.
He turns; all the cops have drawn their guns.
SOTOMAYOR
Crack it.
DOCK MANAGER
Yeah... you bet...
He cuts the registration seal.
INT. THE CAN - CONTINUOUS
Pitch black. Light floods in as the door OPENS. Two Uniformed
Cops step in first, guns drawn, police-issue flashlights
cutting the dark.
Danny and Sotomayor follow. The Dock Manager slides his hand
along the wall and finds the light switch; dull orange light
filters down from above.
The can is filled with wood crates.
DOCK MANAGER
So is it drugs or terrorists?
DANNY
Good question.
Danny produces a crowbar and steps up to one of the big, man
sized crates. A few good pulls POPS THE FRONT OPEN. Excelsior
falls away, revealing AN ANGRY RED FACE: it's a life-sized
CHINESE WARRIOR STATUE, long black beard, royal clothing,
gold trim, holding two short, fat swords.
DANNY
Kwan Kung. God of war and wealth.
(he THUNKS it)
Hollow.
SOTOMAYOR
Well, there you go. Let's pop a few
more, maybe we'll find the god of
assholes and opium.
He takes the crowbar and moves deeper into the Can.
Danny hangs back. There's something here.
He shines a flashlight over the walls, right onto a mass of
smaller boxes hung in cargo netting. Danny steps over to the
netting and pokes a hand through, searching blind until he
finds a long, thin cardboard box. He tears it open, and
unfolds silk wrapping.
...A SHARD OF LIGHT falls across his face...
INSERT - FLASHBACK:
INT. ANCIENT CHINESE THRONE ROOM - DAY
The Warlord is in the center of the light, facing away. He
DRAGS the White Jade Dagger across his palm, and pours the
blood onto the floor.
The blade is bright silver, almost glowing.
RESUME:
Danny's holding the White Jade Dagger.
He moves the Dagger like it's the most natural thing in the
world to be spinning it one-handed, twirling it, balancing
it. Danny shakes his head, not sure how he's doing this.
DANNY
I guess dreams really do come true.
(mutters)
You're being haunted by the ghost
of your dead wife, Danny. Maybe you
should just shut up and go with it.
Grip: the Dagger STOPS, and Danny feels something else. His
attention falls on a HAT-BOX-SIZED CRATE on the other side of
the can. Danny steps over and reaches for it. His fingers
brush the wood.
An EVIL SHRIEK in his mind. Danny RECOILS.
EXT. LOADING/UNLOADING CRANE - CONTINUOUS
A workman CRANE OPERATOR is in his booth, maneuvering a cargo
container off the ship and over a waiting truck on the dock
far below. He sees something dark move outside, on his crane,
and tries for a better look.
TWO KNIFE-POINTS PIERCE THE CANOPY ROOF.
CRANE OPERATOR
Jesus Christ!
Knife Walking Gou is standing on his canopy; GOU HAS A LONG,
SHARP DAGGER CRADLED BETWEEN HIS TOES, one for each foot,
balancing on the cross-guards. He walks on them like stilts.
Gou JUMPS onto the crane, lithe like a spider, dashes along
its spine and dives down to the cables, swinging on the
rigging; HIS FOOT-DAGGERS SCISSOR THE MAIN CRANE CABLE,
slicing the cargo container free. The whole crane SHUDDERS,
the few remaining cables SNAP...
...the container DROPS LIKE A STONE...
It HITS the truck waiting below and tumbles over a few police
cruisers before careening into the container stacks.
INT. THE CAN - CONTINUOUS
Danny looks up at the noise; the whole Can VIOLENTLY LURCHES,
STRUCK FROM THE OUTSIDE, nearly pitching over. Everything
goes flying.
EXT. THE STACKS
A swath of knocked-over cargo containers mars the neat rows.
Knife Walking Gou leaps, falling at the wreckage.
INT. THE CAN
The dust settles. Danny picks himself up.
DANNY
Everybody alive?
Sotomayor and the others are recovering. The Dock Manager is
bleeding slightly. He finds his Nextel radio.
DOCK MANAGER
(into radio)
Mike Pendleton!
DOCK WORKER RADIO VOICE
Pendleton, go!
DOCK MANAGER
It's Ray, I'm in the stacks! What
the goddamn hell just happened?
DOCK WORKER RADIO VOICE
I don't know! Carl says some whacko
just cut a crane cable! You okay?
The Dock Manager looks up at Sotomayor.
SOTOMAYOR
Danny, I don't want any evidence
leaving this can.
(re. Dock Manager)
And try to keep him alive.
DANNY
If it comes to a choice?
Sotomayor snorts, leading the other cops OUT.
EXT. THE STACKS
Two cops, a LEAD and his BACK-UP, run through a aisle between
container stacks. The Lead Cop holds up a fist, stopping; he
hears a rapid KLINK-KLINK-KLINK from above.
LEAD COP
He's moving on top the cans.
He raises his gun.
Knife Walking Gou drops down between them, swinging a leg
around 180 degrees, DECAPITATING the Lead Cop and shoving the
foot-knife into his Back-Up, both dead in an instant.
EXT. ELSEWHERE IN THE STACKS - CONTINUOUS
Sotomayor is at a trot, two cops right behind.
POLICE RADIO VOICE
Officers down! I've got two dead,
they've been cut to pieces!
GUNSHOTS echo.
SOTOMAYOR
All units, converge on gunshots!
Converge on gunshots!
Sotomayor and his men break into a full run.
EXT. AISLE BETWEEN CONTAINER STACKS
A POLICE SARGENT crashes into a cargo container, dropping his
gun. He's bleeding from a few deep cuts.
Ten feet away, Gou is killing five cops. He pirouettes with
supreme grace, slicing the last officer three ways before
shoving a blade through his face.
The Sargent scoops his gun up.
Gou LEAPS, flipping high over the Sargent and spread-eagles,
bracing between two cargo containers twenty feet up. The
Sargent spins, FIRES THREE SHOTS straight up at Gou.
Gou GOES TRANSPARENT against the blue sky - the bullets pass
through. He turns solid again and LEAPS...
...landing one-footed on the Sargent's head; the knife goes
straight down, all the way in up to the hilt. The Sargent's
face goes slack, blood spills over his face. HE'S DEAD, but
Gou balances just right to keep him from falling over.
Sotomayor and his cops round the corner.
Gou TWISTS, HURLING the Sargent's corpse right into the thick
of them, knocking them all back.
INT. THE CAN
Danny studies the Hat-Box Crate, cautiously moving closer.
SOTOMAYOR'S RADIO VOICE
Danny! He got past us!
DANNY
How many are there?
SOTOMAYOR'S RADIO VOICE
I only saw one, but one's enough!
Don't warn him! Shoot first!
Danny and the Dock Manager hear the KLINK-KLINK-KLINK of
knife-points walking on the Can's roof.
DANNY
Hide.
The Dock Manager vanishes back into the depth of the Can.
Danny TURNS THE LIGHT OUT, covering himself in darkness.
EXT. THE CAN - CONTINUOUS
Gou lands on the ground, clear shot at the Can's open door.
The doorway is a black hole, impossible to see inside. Gou
walks up, a hand on the frame. He steps one dagger inside...
...Danny KICKS GOU'S KNEE FROM THE SIDE, BREAKING IT with a
sicking CRACK of bone and sinew. In a flash, he retracts and
PUNTS Gou in the gut, kicking him out of the doorway. Gou
lands on his back and flips to his feet, balancing on his
good leg. The other hangs limp at the knee.
Danny's outside the Can, gun out, dead-aim at Gou.
DANNY
SFPD, you're under arrest. Drop the
stilts.
Gou smiles...
...and ATTACKS; he covers the distance before Danny can even
blink. Danny moves, barely avoiding a foot-dagger that goes
through the Can wall like butter.
He dives away and rolls as Gou swings his broken leg around,
twisting it in ways it shouldn't go to slash at him.
Danny SHOOTS HIM. No effect.
Gou grabs his broken knee and GRINDS IT BACK INTO PLACE,
stretching it, ripping muscle to put it right, and then
charges Danny again, a sweep kick that Danny jumps; a high
slash that catches Danny on the cheek...
...Danny reaches around his back...
Gou brings a ferocious kick around...
...DANNY BLOCKS GOU'S KNIFE WITH THE WHITE JADE DAGGER. It
reverberates, absorbing the massive impact. Gou's jaw drops,
clearly focused on the Dagger.
DANNY
You look worried.
Danny SLASHES, carving a chest-level slit in Gou's suit, the
whole length of Gou's chest. Gou RETREATS and Danny presses
the attack, stabbing at him while Gou dodges, impossibly fast
and on the run.
LUNGE: Gou goes straight up and splits, catching cargo
containers on either side; he flips over Danny, slashing at
his head - Danny bats it away with the Dagger - and lands
close to the Can.
Gou FLOATS back, springboards off the ground and grabs the
Can's roof, swinging his legs inside...
...his foot-knives "GRAB" THE HAT-BOX CRATE...
He swings out again, flipping upward and out of reach before
Danny can reach him. Gou passes the Crate to his hands and
ricochets from container to container, higher and higher,
until he's dashing along the tallest stacks. He LEAPS INTO
THE AIR...
...HIGH OVER THE DOCKS and GOING HIGHER, like he's bounding
up invisible steps, heading back towards the city and gaining
altitude with each "bounce." HE'S LONG GONE.
Danny watches him go, White Jade Dagger in hand.
EXT. LOADING/UNLOADING CRANE
Jen perches high above it all, quietly watching.
INT. THE JUNK SHOP - DAY
An ELDERLY HAND slaps down a plastic block holding two rows
of armor-piercing bullets, and slides them across a glass
counter to Li San.
LI SAN
Thanks, old man.
The hand is YAN's, an spry 60ish Chinese man in a Giants cap.
His shop is typical Chinatown; crammed full of stuff, an
antiquer gone horrifically wrong. He keeps the overheads off.
All the light comes in from the big storefront windows.
Two old men sit at a smoky table in the corner, smoking and
drinking tea. BAO is gaunt and dark, QUE is doughy, sleepy.
YAN
Piss on your thanks. Try using a
few of these this time.
BAO
If we bought him a whore, he'd
spend a week trying to get her
phone number.
LI SAN
How many Gui-Lo have you killed?
BAO
Congratulations. Eight to go.
LI SAN
I got close to Ron Feng yesterday.
Tomorrow I'll get closer. Cut off
the dragon's head...
YAN
...the dragon dies, yes, normally.
This is a slightly different case.
QUE
You still think Feng is the head?
BAO
Grow a spine and kill the Gui-Lo!
Li San plucks one of the bullets out of the block. IT'S
CURSED, covered in black Chinese writing.
LI SAN
I don't mind constructive criticism
when it's honest. But c'mon... what
do you dickbags know?
Li San unslings A RIFLE BAG, unzips it, and draws a BOLT
ACTION SNIPER RIFLE. In three quick movements, he pulls the
bolt open, chambers a cursed bullet and snaps the bolt home.
He aims at Bao's head. Bao straightens.
LI SAN
Armchair quarterbacks stay off the
field because they don't have the
guts for the real deal. When you're
ready to hit the street and dare
with me... oh, who're we kidding?
Li San chuckles, putting his rifle away.
QUE
We've done everything we promised.
LI SAN
You've done shit. I take out one
ghost with all the heat you slide
me, and the other seven chop me
before I even blink.
YAN
We've given you what we have! You
don't have time to screw around on
this, Li. You have no conception of
what's going to happen if...
Yan stops in mid-sentence. He, Bao and Que all LOOK UP,
following something distant, far beyond the walls of the Junk
Shop. Bao's lip trembles.
YAN
Feel that?
QUE
It would be hard to miss.
YAN
Guess we can stop guessing. If he's
not back now, he will be before
ballgag here gets a move on.
BAO (SUBTITLE/IN CHINESE)
(at Li San)
[Worthless toadfucker!]
LI SAN
Calm down. Everything happens at
its own pace. Nothing's changed.
QUE
Everything's changed.
BAO
We need to change with it. We need
to decide on a strategy, where to
run, how best to hide...
YAN
I'm gonna go have a look.
Yan comes out from behind the counter.
BAO
...what? No! He'll find out!
YAN
Maybe.
(re. Cursed Bullets)
Too late for that crap, kiddo. A
cursed RPG wouldn't help you now.
LI SAN
Got one?
YAN
Ask Que.
Yan EXITS. Li San turns to Que and motions. "Well, DO you?"
INT. POLICE EVIDENCE LOCKER
A basement warehouse inside a police station, blocked off by
hard metal grates and doors.
EVIDENCE COLLECTION OFFICERS place eight painted globes on
the evidence shelves. A fancy carving of interlocking god
figures from Chinese lore - THE GOD SIGIL - is propped on
another shelf.
The SWORD WARRIOR STATUE is hand-trucked into the cage. Two
more statues like it are brought in; red skin, gold-trimmed
clothes, black hair. One is an immense, squat, FAT BABY with
a long spear, the other a stolid BOW HUNTER.
Danny fills out paperwork by the door. NELSON, a uniformed
cop in charge of the Locker, watches the statues go past.
NELSON
What do you call that?
DANNY
Xuan Wu, dark lord of the North.
That's La Cha, the kid warrior, and
Kwan Kung in back.
NELSON
(writing on clipboard)
"Three Chinese statues. Big." That
everything from the scene?
DANNY
Everything we found.
He glances up. Jen's Ghost is there, giving him a highly
incredulous look.
THE WHITE JADE DAGGER IS SHOVED INTO DANNY'S SHOE, handle
down, visible below the cuff of his pants. Danny adjusts his
pants leg, hiding it.
Sotomayor ENTERS. He nods at Danny to follow.
They go deep into the aisles stacked with evidence boxes,
where it's private. They keep voices low.
SOTOMAYOR
I've lost more good men in the last
twenty- four hours than I lost in
the last twenty-four years. What
the hell is going on?
DANNY
I don't know.
SOTOMAYOR
That's not God-damn good enough! It
all ties back to YOUR redball!
DANNY
I know who to bend. I just need to
know you'll back me this time.
SOTOMAYOR
You're asking me that? On this day?
DANNY
You signed the order putting me on
forced administrative leave.
Sotomayor stands over Danny, breathing long, loud and hard,
holding back the rage.
SOTOMAYOR
I have to deal with the press
whores, and then I have to call
widows and mothers. Do what you do.
Give me something I can tell them
that won't disrespect their loss.
Sotomayor DEPARTS.
Danny frowns, a bad taste in his mouth.
He moves past a few Evidence Locker aisles, turning down one
and scanning the labels of the cardboard boxes stacked on the
shelves, searching.
He selects a long box, pops the lid, and pulls out the CASING
from LI SAN'S CURSED BULLET, sealed in an evidence bag.
DANNY
Nelson, I need to check something
out of Evidence.
NELSON (O.S.)
Sure. How many statues you want?
Danny turns the bag, looking at the casing in the light.
INT. DANNY'S TOWNHOUSE - NIGHT
Danny turns a drafting table lamp on, spotlighting the Cursed
Bullet-shell. He unloads his gun - keeping the bullets - and
sets it aside, putting his reading glasses on.
He dips a thin paintbrush into a bottle of jet-black ink and
paints on a bullet from his own gun, copying the Chinese
symbols from the Cursed Bullet - that's his template. Danny
paints a bit, compares it to the original, paints more.
His wedding ring's back on his finger.
Done: Danny appraises his work, and blows on his bullet to
dry the ink. A row of his makeshift Cursed Bullets sit in a
row on his computer desk. He adds the new one.
A NOISE, the house shifts. Danny checks behind him. Nothing.
He gets up, looking into the next room.
DANNY
Jen?
No sign of her.
Jen's Ghost sits halfway up the stairs, out of his line-of
sight, smiling happily every time he says her name. She feels
him change course, coming her way.
DANNY
Jen, you there?
She stands, FLOATING UP to the second floor, GONE by the time
Danny checks the stairs.
INT. DANNY'S BEDROOM - CONTINUOUS
Jen's Ghost goes over the dresser photos. THE FRAMES ARE
RIGHTED, the pictures visible: Jen posing with Danny in their
Kung Fu gi's, both black belts; Jen making arguments in a
courtroom; Danny's police academy graduation photo.
She doesn't reflect in the frame's glass. Her fingers pass
through the photo when she tries to touch his smiling face.
FOOTSTEPS: Danny's coming upstairs. By the time he makes it,
she's GONE.
INT. DANNY'S TOWNHOUSE - DOWNSTAIRS
Jen passes her hand through Danny's cursed bullets. Their
symbols GLOW as she "touches" them. The glow fades fast.
INT. FENG'S OFFICE - NIGHT
Feng's in his too-big leather chair, Valerie the Receptionist
on his lap. He undoes her buttons one-handed while she drinks
red wine.
FENG
This isn't easy to do one-handed.
VALERIE
Oh no, no-no, don't rip...
He yanks, ripping the next button down off. Valerie yelps
slightly, then giggles, getting into it as he RIPS another.
She suddenly tenses in fear. Feng looks up: Mr. Wei is there.
FENG
Jesus Christ, what?
Mr. Wei points up.
FENG
God, I wish I could just delegate
shit to you guys.
Feng eases Valerie off his lap.
INT. DANNY'S TOWNHOUSE BEDROOM - NIGHT
Danny's in bed, asleep on his side, facing Jen's half of the
bed. Slashes of moonlight through the blinds.
He opens his eyes. JEN'S GHOST IS THERE.
She's "lying" in bed with him, on her side, her face just
inches away. Danny puts his hand in her's. If they could
touch, he would be holding Jen's hand. As-is, their hands are
in the same place, passing through each other.
Danny smiles, at peace, and drifts back off into sleep.
Jen's Ghost smiles too, watching him with unblinking eyes.
INT. WING CHI MEETING ROOM - NIGHT
Mr. Wei shows Feng in. The room is dark, empty. City lights
glow outside the windows.
Feng stops a few paces in. Looks around.
FENG
Okay, why am I here?
(no reply)
Know what? I'm sick of this no-talk
bullshit. Starting tomorrow, you
idiots are learning how to write.
In English.
(to room)
If anybody yells out "Surprise,"
they're dead.
Feng steps forward and nearly trips over the Hat-Box Crate;
it's on the floor, torn open. He KICKS it away, real short
fuse, and slaps the light switch.
Knife Walking Gou stands in the center of the room, holding
AN ANCIENT CHINESE URN in both hands with deep reverence.
It's trimmed in gold, the right size for funeral ashes.
All the Ghost Triads are here, in a rough circle around Feng.
They've surrounded him.
FENG
Well. Welcome back, Gou. Where've
you been and, oh yeah, stand
absolutely still while the others
beat the unliving shit out of you.
(re. Urn)
What's that? Is that for me?
Feng waits for Gou to hand it over. Gou doesn't move.
Mr. Wei puts a hand on Feng's shoulder. Feng instantly shoves
it off, startled.
FENG
What the hell are you doing? Don't
ever touch me!
Behind him, Mr. Ho lays a hand on Feng's back. Feng spins
around, shaking Ho off.
FENG
Hey!
They've all closed in on him.
Gou stands in place while the others gently, firmly restrain
Feng. They lock on to every part of him, and immobilize it.
FENG
Get off me! I order you to get off
me! What are you doing! Stop!
Mr. Wei and Mr. Ho takes Feng's head, tilting it back and
forcing his mouth open, blocking his nose. Knife Walking Gou
steps forward, unscrewing the Urn.
Feng's eyes are wild, trapped...
...Gou POURS ASH OUT OF THE URN, STRAIGHT DOWN FENG'S THROAT.
Feng panics and gags, trying to spit it out; they don't let
him. He starts choking... convulsing... dying. An unending
stream of gray ash pours down.
His body stops fighting. Ash backs up in Feng's mouth, as if
he's been filled up and is starting to overflow. The flow of
ash peters out, and ends; the urn is empty. The Ghost Triads
let him go, backing away and kneeling, heads bowed all the
way to the floor.
Feng hangs there, head back, arms dangling.
A RUMBLE, deep inside his body: something's in there. The ash
piled in Feng's mouth GOES DOWN in a rush. GREEN LIGHT moves
under his skin, GROWING, twisting Feng's body until the light
EXPLODES...
...the wave passes over the Ghost Triads, blowing furniture
away. A solid wood table CRASHES through the windows, gale
winds whip through the room, and die.
"Feng" opens his eyes, and they are older, crueler than
before. His bearing is more noble.
Feng's gone. This is GONG SHAN TAI.
He breathes in like it's his first taste of air in centuries.
His voice carries the weight of Ages.
GONG SHAN TAI (SUB/IN CHINESE)
[This shell is weak.]
MR. WEI (SUB/IN CHINESE)
[We beg forgiveness, Lord.]
GONG SHAN TAI (SUBTITLE)
[Do I forgive? Rise.]
The Ghost Triads stand, heads still bowed.
Shan steps towards the broken window, staring at the amazing
city below in disbelief.
GONG SHAN TAI (SUBTITLE)
[Is this the world? How does so
much change in so short a time?]
Mr. Wei speaks: his mouth moves, but the sounds don't match.
It's coming from deeper inside.
MR. WEI (SUBTITLE)
[We were betrayed, Lord. It has
been much, much longer than
planned, and we are in a new world
across the sea. But the spirits of
our home are here, and the tools
for your Ascension are here.]
Valerie APPEARS at the door, rushing in.
VALERIE
Ron! I heard...
Shan freezes her in terror with a glance. He makes a sharp
motion; Mr. Ho instantly grabs Valerie, bringing her forward
and forcing her to her knees before Shan.
He looks down at Valerie, disgusted.
GONG SHAN TAI (SUBTITLE)
[What is this thing?]
MR. WEI (SUBTITLE)
[Many people now look like this.]
VALERIE
Ron, I don't understand, what...
Mr. Wei HITS HER, silencing her.
Valerie's on the verge of tears, no idea what's going on.
Shan brushes the blonde hair dangling over her forehead,
lingering there for a moment.
GONG SHAN TAI (SUBTITLE)
[Show me this world.]
HE SHOVES HIS FINGERS INTO HER BRAIN.
No blood. No scream. Valerie's face goes sideways, like she's
getting an instant frontal lobotomy that HURTS.
Shan wiggles his fingers, searching.
GONG SHAN TAI (SUBTITLE)
[So, simple creatures like this now
control the world, and China allows
it? Wars... rebellions... fools who
lead through compromise. This new
world interests me, but there is no
strength in it.]
MR. WEI (SUBTITLE)
[They are desperate for you, Lord.]
GONG SHAN TAI (SUBTITLE)
[Yes.]
MR. WEI (SUBTITLE)
[Ying Ma is here. He has opposed us
twice already.]
GONG SHAN TAI (SUBTITLE)
[Indeed? Well, isn't Fate a whore.]
Gong Shan Tai looks out over the city, his fingers still in
Valerie's brain. HE ABSENTLY FLINGS HER LIMP BODY OUT THE
WINDOW FRAME, with all the concern and emotion of tossing a
used newspaper away.
INT. DANNY'S TOWNHOUSE - MORNING
Danny snaps his Cursed Bullets into a clip, and fits the clip
into his gun. He slathers honey onto burnt toast and chomps
it down on his way to the door, licking his fingers, picking
up the White Jade Knife as he goes.
EXT. A DIRTY ALLEY - DAY
A desperate CHINESE GANGSTER flicks out a knife. Danny raises
his hands.
DANNY
It was just a question.
The Gangster LUNGES at Danny.
Danny pounds him face-first into the cement. He digs a knee
in the Gangster's back and shoves his head into a shallow
pothole filled with brackish water.
DANNY
At the risk of repeating myself,
where's little Ronnie Feng hanging
his hat these days?
The Chinese Gangster struggles uselessly.
EXT. THE STREET OUTSIDE WING CHI INVESTMENTS - DAY
Danny cruises straight at the Wing Chi building, looking for
a fight. He glances back, reading the corners for signs of
trouble. Nada. He goes back to target.
JEN BLOCKS HIS WAY. Arms out, dress billowing. She looks
deadly serious.
Danny stops in his tracks. What the Hell?
DANNY
What's wrong?
Her eyes flash down. Danny follows...
...he sees a HUGE, GHOSTLY SERPENTINE BODY slither through
the Earth under his feet, past the concrete; it's a CHINESE
DRAGON. Danny jumps back, but it doesn't take any notice of
him, vanishing somewhere past the Wing Chi building.
Danny takes a step, following it. Jen springs forward,
blocking him again.
DANNY
Jen...
YAN (O.S.)
Listen to your girlfriend, pal.
They turn: Yan's sitting on a parked car roof. He adjusts his
Giants cap lower over his eyes, then adjusts it back with a
mocking grin, like he's playing with them.
YAN
Y'know, you seem familiar.
DANNY
You see her.
YAN
So? You saw the dragon.
DANNY
(flashing badge)
Inspector Yuen, SFPD. Get down off
that car and give me some I.D.
YAN
Oh, you don't want my I.D.
DANNY
Not really.
Danny grabs Yan's ankle and hauls him down off the car, then
pushes him up against it. He gets right into Yan's face with
a dark scowl. Yan's still grinning.
DANNY
How can you see her?
YAN
Ah, you seek wisdom, my son.
DANNY
You'd better have some to give. You
have no idea what I'm capable of.
YAN
Does she?
Jen's cold eyes claw him. She drags a hand across her neck,
instructions to Danny: "Chop him." Danny nods.
Yan's unimpressed.
YAN
Y'got nothin', kids. There's only
one thing in this world that scares
me to the soul, and your Ex here
doesn't want you getting anywhere
near it, either.
(re. Wing Chi Building)
I bet she doesn't have half a clue
what it is, but she can feel the
hunger and the malice from here. I
bet it hurts.
DANNY
So tell me about it.
Yan considers it, studying Danny's face.
YAN
Its name is Gong Shan Tai.
DANNY
Never heard of him.
YAN
'Course not. After Ying Ma killed
him, people made an effort to erase
Shan from history.
DANNY
I'm still not scared.
YAN
Well, he hasn't killed every living
thing in North America yet. But
give him a little time.
Yan nods: MR. HO pushes out of the Wing Chi building's front
doors, looking around. Standing guard.
DANNY
Don't move.
(to Jen's Ghost)
Don't let him move.
Jen's Ghost raises a hand to stop him, but can't abandon Yan.
Danny's on a collision course for Mr. Ho. He checks glass on
the sidewalk outside Wing Chi, a bloodstain but no body, the
hole on the twelfth story.
Mr. Ho notices Danny on approach.
DANNY
Richard Ho! I heard you were dead.
Aren't you a little important to be
on guard duty?
Mr. Ho appraises Danny. TWO THROWING AXES appear in his hands
from out of nowhere.
Danny fast-draws his gun, aimed right at Ho.
INT. WING CHI MEETING ROOM - CONTINUOUS
Mr. Wei, Fat Mr. Tong, Mr. Leung, and Mr. Mi all toil;
praying in front of elaborate candles, placing others in
specific patterns, painting Chinese characters on the walls.
Gong Shan Tai wanders the room, MUTTERING WORDS, smoke
pouring out of a incense ball. He stops.
GONG SHAN TAI (SUBTITLE)
[The enemy is here.]
Every Ghost Triad in the room stops what they're doing. Shan
steps over to the broken window. Way down on the street, he
sees Danny, Jen, and Yan.
MOVEMENT: the rooftop across the street. Shan focuses on it.
It's Li San, and he's aiming A STINGER MISSILE LAUNCHER right
at Gong Shan Tai's face.
GONG SHAN TAI (SUBTITLE)
[What's that?]
Li San FIRES.
EXT. THE STREET OUTSIDE - CONTINUOUS
Danny and Mr. Ho are still in stand-off...
...the missile FLIES OVERHEAD; the twelfth story of the Wing
Chi building VANISHES IN A FIREBALL...
Mr. Ho HURLS AN AXE AT DANNY, so hard and fast it's all Danny
can do to throw himself out of its path. It tears through the
length of the parked car.
Five shapes leap out of the fireball.
Another axe comes in at hyper-speed: Danny rolls as it carves
a BIG divot out of the street and bounces away.
Mr. Ho's high in the air, two more axes in hand and coming
down FAST at Danny. Danny snap-aims, and BLOWS OFF TWO BODY
SHOTS right on target. They trail green smoke, they hit, but
they don't slow Mr. Ho down.
YAN
Your handwriting's off!
Danny throws himself away before Mr. Ho can land right on
him, swinging axes that barely miss. A passing car separates
Danny from Mr. Ho for a second. CARS SWERVE. PEDESTRIANS run
for cover.
SHAN LANDS on the street, not too far away and flanked by Mr.
Wei, Fat Mr. Tong, Mr. Leung, and Mr. Mi. The Triads seem
fine, but SHAN IS DAMAGED: HIS FACE AND ARM ARE CRACKED, LIKE
A PORCELAIN DOLL that's been hit with baseball bats. Small
chips flake and fall away.
Mr. Ho freezes in place, waiting. Yan hides.
Danny looks hard at "Feng..."
...AND SEES THE WARLORD FROM HIS DREAMS, glowing green. The
Triads look like Chinese warriors in armor and blindfolds.
Danny takes aim at Shan. Shan smiles like a shark.
GONG SHAN TAI (SUBTITLE)
[I see you're still a peasant, Ying
Ma. Not very surprising.]
(sees JEN)
[Kuan Yin?]
Yan's eyes light up at "Ying Ma."
Shan runs a finger along the sleek metal of a parked car.
DANNY
Guess you're Gong Shan Tai. I'm
still not scared.
GONG SHAN TAI (SUBTITLE)
[Things change, but not people.
Tell me, Ying, if I offered you
your life... ah, but would I? No.]
He barks something: Fat Mr. Tong, Mr. Leung and Mr. Mi LEAVE
THE GROUND, RUNNING SO FAST THEY'RE BLURS...
...Mr. Ho CHARGES, an axe zeroing on Danny's head...
Jen CACHES Mr. Ho and Judo-swings him around INTO ONCOMING
TRAFFIC, holding fast as a passing SUV DECAPITATES MR. HO.
Danny SHOOTS; these Cursed Bullets work, and smash gaping
holes through Mr. Mi's body, tearing off his left arm. He
begins to HOWL, BUILDING as the green energy inside him
becomes unstable.
Mr. Leung gets in close to Danny with tiger claws - brass
knuckles with short blades. Danny draws the White Jade Dagger
and parries, shooting point-blank and MISSING.
Jen dives at Mr. Mi, grabs him off the ground, swings him
around and HURLS HIM straight at Shan...
...Mr. Mi DETONATES almost in Shan's face, breaking windows
and throwing cars around before Mr. Wei can stop it.
MR. WEI (SUBTITLE)
[Protect!]
The attacking Ghost Triads instantly leap back to surround
Shan in a defensive circle.
Shan rises, a little shaky. A huge piece of his face falls
off and breaks on the ground.
The sharp green face underneath "Feng's" skin belongs to the
Warlord, but it CRACKLES and moves in-and-out of flux, trying
to crawl away from itself. IT'S AGONY, and Shan snarls like a
wounded animal, looking down the street.
Danny reloads, ready with the White Jade Dagger. Jen's Ghost
is right with him.
GONG SHAN TAI (SUBTITLE)
[Lesson learned, Ying. No games.]
Shan speaks words in no human language. The air around him
RIPPLES and BENDS in a crackling, RAPIDLY EXPANDING SPHERE.
Civilians inside the field, taking shelter during the fight,
suddenly FALL DEAD.
The field sweeps towards Danny.
He RAPID-FIRES; the bullets explode two feet in front of
Shan. Blood pours out of Danny's nostrils, he's suddenly too
nauseous to even move. HE'S DYING.
YAN DASHES OUT, grabs Danny's hand and drags him across the
street as the field closes in... aiming for the closest shop,
BASHING THROUGH THE DOOR...
INT. THE JUNK SHOP - CONTINUOUS
...they sprawl on the floor; Yan KICKS THE DOOR SHUT, and the
LIGHT OUTSIDE CHANGES. They're somewhere else.
Both men pant heavily. Jen's Ghost stands over them.
EXT. THE STREET OUTSIDE WING CHI - CONTINUOUS
Shan instantly stops speaking and collapses from exhaustion;
the death field evaporates. Wei and Leung steady him, Fat
Tong and MR. HO'S GHOST stand guard.
The street around them is torn apart, SCREAMS and cries for
help. The Wing Chi's on fire.
Shan's face is seeping out of the holes in "Feng's" skin.
It's just a shell, and it's not containing him anymore. He
appraises cracks in "Feng's" hand.
GONG SHAN TAI (SUBTITLE)
[The Ascension. Nothing else
matters. We must be quick, before
this shell breaks around me.]
MR. WEI (SUBTITLE)
[Yes, Lord.]
The Ghost Triads help him away.
INT. THE JUNK SHOP - DAY
Danny picks himself up and wipes the blood off, heading for
the door. Round Two.
YAN
Don't bother. I got us way the hell
away from there.
Danny ignores him, opens the door...
...IT'S A DIFFERENT STREET OUTSIDE, a busy Chinatown corner
with no sign of trouble.
YAN
We lucked out. If Shan was in his
own body, at full strength, there
wouldn't have been time to run. And
don't bother heading back over.
Everybody on that street's already
dead, and you would be, too. So,
"Thanks, Yan, for saving my
worthless life."
DANNY
Thanks, Yan, for saving my
worthless life.
In a flash, Danny slaps the cuffs on Yan.
YAN
You're welcome, asshole.
DANNY
My handwriting's off, huh? Guess
that makes you the expert who
supplied those bullets to Li San.
YAN
Li supplied the bullets. I just
cursed them.
DANNY
Show me.
Danny sits Yan down, and stands over him. Yan smiles, and the
handcuffs POP OPEN. He hands them back to Danny.
DANNY
I saw what he was. He saw something
in me, too. He called me "Ying Ma."
YAN
So? He thought Casper here was the
Goddess of Mercy.
Jen's Ghost bristles. Danny leans in, tapping Yan's chest
with the White Jade Dagger.
DANNY
That's my wife.
YAN
She was your wife. What, you're
gonna settle back down together,
raise some kids? Death did you
part, asshole.
DANNY
(pressing)
In my dreams, I'm Ying Ma.
YAN
Then maybe you should kill Shan.
You did it before.
DANNY
How?
YAN
Magic.
DANNY
I don't like magic.
YAN
Oh, magic's not so bad. It's like
cooking. Get the right ingredients
in the right proportions, mix it up
at the right time, add a little
love, whammo. Chocolate cake.
(re. Jen's Ghost)
As an example, you can do a hell of
a lot with ghost blood.
Yan grins at them. Danny and Jen exchange a look.
INT. THE JUNK SHOP - LATER
Jen holds out her bare wrist. Danny hesitates, unsure, then
raises the White Jade Dagger and SLITS HER WRIST OPEN. Black
blood pours out.
Yan catches Jen's blood in a bowl covered in Chinese writing.
CUT TO:
Danny's on a stool, eyes closed. Yan dips a brush in the
blood, PAINTING CHINESE SYMBOLS ALL OVER DANNY'S FACE AND
ARMS in intricate, interlocking patterns. The symbols FADE
after a few moments, like invisible ink.
YAN
The story goes that in the age of
Gods and Demons, the weaponsmith
Ying Ma forged THE perfect knife.
The definitive article. Carved in
white jade and forged from a silver
tooth of the immortal Chung-Li
Ch'uan. He made it to cut through
spirit as well as flesh. He made it
so no enemy, even in an age of Gods
and Demons, was safe when facing
this knife. And he did this on the
order of the tyrant Gong Shan Tai.
DANNY
I gather they didn't stay on good
terms. What happened?
YAN
This is the tough part. Shan wasn't
human, but he couldn't match the
Gods, either. He commanded powers
that gave him dominion over every
living thing, and he used them to
make real his vision of a strong,
peaceful empire by butchering the
millions who refused to worship
him. He was a perfectionist who
could never make things perfect
enough. There was always going to
be someone or something that didn't
measure up to his ideal. Ying Ma
saw this, and betrayed Shan.
DANNY
"Betrayed?"
YAN
If you asked Shan.
Jen's Ghost prowls nearby, watching Yan intently.
Yan's eyes shift to the table where his "art supplies" sit.
The White Jade Dagger sits there, too.
DANNY
What about the Triads helping him?
YAN
Gui-Lo. "Ghost men." His personal
bodyguard.
DANNY
They're blind.
YAN
They don't have eyes. It's not the
same thing.
(then)
Done.
Yan puts his brushes down and walks off. Danny follows him,
holding his arms out, watching the writing FADE from view.
DANNY
Neat. What's it supposed to do?
YAN
Those are all defensive wards.
They'll help, but you're gonna need
something a little more potent.
Jen looks: the White Jade Dagger's gone from Yan's table...
DANNY
Such as?
YAN SHOVES THE DAGGER INTO DANNY'S CHEST.
Jen's Ghost FLIES AT HIM. Yan holds up a spirit ward,
stopping her in her tracks. She circles, dress rippling
violently, trying to get at him.
Danny's in agony, stabbed right through the heart. Yan shoves
him back against a wall, knocking over the shop's wares on
the way. Danny tries to draw his gun, so weak he practically
hands it to Yan, who takes it.
YAN
This'll sting a bit, but you'll
thank me later.
(chopping)
This is one tough soul you've got,
asshole. Must be a lot of gristle!
Yan gleefully CARVES THROUGH DANNY, stabbing home again and
again, digging the knife around in Danny's arms, his legs,
his chest.
Danny SCREAMS...
...Jen's Ghost circles, looking for an opening...
Yan yanks the knife out, and Danny collapses.
EXT. CHINATOWN STREET - DAY
Yan half-drags Danny out of a shop and eases his fall to the
sidewalk, still gripping the White Jade Dagger. He puts
Danny's gun on his chest.
YAN
There you go, honored customer!
Come back soon, heya?
(re. White Jade Dagger)
Thanks for this.
Without warning, JEN'S GHOST SWEEPS THROUGH YAN, grabbing the
Dagger out of his hand - she can touch it - twisting to
brandish it at him, ready to kill.
Yan jumps back into his shop, SLAMMING the door.
Danny painfully sits up and checks himself; his clothes are
ripped, he hurts like hell, but he can't find any wounds.
He finds his gun, staggers to his feet and lurches at the
shop door, shoving his way inside...
INT. FLOWER SHOP - CONTINUOUS
...he stops cold. The Junk Shop's GONE, replaced by a bright
and cheery array of flowers and A FLORIST looking at him very
oddly. Danny puts his gun away.
DANNY
Magic sucks.
His cellphone RINGS. He answers it.
LI SAN'S PHONE VOICE
Now you know.
Li San DISCONNECTS.
Jen's Ghost stands surrounded by flowers of every color,
holding the White Jade Dagger, a vision in white.
INT. THE JUNK SHOP
Bao and Que step out of the shadows to meet Yan.
YAN
Plan B.
He grins at them.
INT. POLICE SQUADROOM - NIGHT
A television is tuned to local news, barely audible over the
PHONES and SHOUTS in the squadroom. Images show teams of
first responders tending to wounded and dead at the Wing Chi
building. A dozen ambulances.
NEWS REPORTER (TV)
...hasn't confirmed whether the two
blasts were related, but experts
speculate that the street-level
device contained a biological
element. The Department of Homeland
Security has raised the alert
status in San Francisco to Red and
activated National Guard units...
The squadroom MOVES, in crisis mode. It's a big, long room
with lines of metal desks and dozens of Police, uniformed and
plain clothes, working. Phones constantly RING.
Sotomayor is in the thick of it, on a phone.
SOTOMAYOR
All leave's canceled. Every badge
in the city goes on the street.
He catches Danny ENTERING, all torn up.
SOTOMAYOR
Danny! Sweet Jesus, you okay?
DANNY
Most of me, yeah.
SOTOMAYOR
Then get most of you to work. We've
got National Guardsmen moving in
looking for terrorists, and they
don't know Van Ness from Market.
DANNY
Keep them out of Chinatown.
SOTOMAYOR
I doubt they'll be able to find it.
DANNY
John... no. Keep them out of
Chinatown. They'll just get killed.
Sotomayor stops, and meets Danny's gaze.
DANNY
Keep everybody out of Chinatown.
SOTOMAYOR
What the hell, Danny?
(closer)
You were there. You were there,
weren't you? God's sake, Danny...
tell me what we're dealing with!
Danny doesn't answer. What can he say?
DANNY
Terrorists.
SOTOMAYOR
You're lying to me.
(then)
Go home.
Danny unclips his badge and holds it out.
DANNY
Want this?
SOTOMAYOR
JUST... go home, Danny.
Danny clips his badge back on, and EXITS.
EXT. CHINATOWN - NIGHT
The streets are empty, the street lights are DARK. Only the
lanterns are lit, throwing red and gold light on the stores
and long shadows on the homes above.
Gong Shan Tai walks down the street.
The Ghost Triads make up his train; Wei and Leung follow,
Knife Walking Gou slithers on his stilts. Ho's Ghost and Fat
Tong both float ahead as scouts.
Despite his damage, Shan smiles at the world.
GONG SHAN TAI (SUBTITLE)
[I feel the universe bowing to me.]
The spirit wards in the windows CATCH FIRE as Shan passes. He
doesn't notice.
GONG SHAN TAI (SUBTITLE)
[I feel the planets align. I feel
this Earth moving around its sun, I
feel it turning through day and
night. Destiny is close. Ascension
is close.]
(to Mr. Wei)
[Things happen when they're meant
to, and where they're meant to.
Which is why I have not destroyed
you yet.]
MR. WEI (SUBTITLE)
[The Brothers will find a place.]
GONG SHAN TAI (SUBTITLE)
[I know. Destiny wouldn't forget a
detail like that. You see?]
He nods at an alley between buildings: three Ghost Triads
melt out of the shadows. They're THE BROTHERS, Mr. Kai, Mr.
Lau, and Mr. Jin, and they all move together, as one, in
total coordination.
MR. KAI (SUBTITLE)
[There is a temple here, Lord, more
than suitable for your use.]
GONG SHAN TAI (SUBTITLE)
[Of course there is.]
The Brothers bow. Shan smiles.
INT. TIEN HOU TEMPLE - NIGHT
Golden candlelight infuses the air. Incense and time. This is
an ancient, sacred place. It looks like a converted penthouse
studio loft, with a shrine occupying one end and mats on the
floor. Elegant in its stark simplicity.
Fat Mr. Tong floats out of the room, carrying an UNCONSCIOUS
PRIEST in red Buddhist over his shoulder. No sign of blood.
Gong Shan Tai grins with both faces - Feng's and the ghostly
green underneath - truly pleased. He sweeps a hand: a solid
pattern of golden symbols and geometric shapes - the FENG
SHUI MATRIX - appears on the walls, floors, and ceiling, like
shining a flashlight on hidden text only visible in the beam.
Another PRIEST watches Shan, horrified.
BUDDHIST PRIEST
Please, this is a sacred space!
GONG SHAN TAI (SUBTITLE)
[Yes, it is. It's perfect.]
(to Wei)
[Shed no blood here, but kill
everything in the building. Start
with him. His face is unlucky.]
(to Buddhist Priest)
[Pray to me, Priest, that I will
allow you into Heaven.]
Mr. Wei picks the Priest up one-handed, and EXITS.
GONG SHAN TAI (SUBTITLE)
[Now we need the proper furnishing.
Wake the Guardians. And someone
please retrieve my knife.]
He points at the far wall, pointing at...
INT. DANNY'S TOWNHOUSE - NIGHT
Danny tapes a "Forbid Evil" Spirit Ward to the window.
He grabs a beer out of the refrigerator and drops into the
living room couch. Jen's Ghost watches nearby.
DANNY
So, how was your day, honey?
Jen's Ghost frowns at him.
DANNY
Yeah, mine too. But I didn't feel
lost today.
(closer)
Even if we can't speak, even if we
can't touch, I find your presence
comforting. I don't know how we can
live together like this or how long
we have, but if you're with me,
it's enough.
Jen's Ghost is by his side. She kneels down to him, smiling
and bows her head in agreement. Danny smiles, at peace.
Her hand glides towards him; A GOLD LIGHT FLARES through
Danny's shirt, by his heart. A fist-sized CHINESE SYMBOL. It
catches them both by surprise.
Something clicks: Danny strips off his shirt and tenderly
probes the places where Yan cut him; something's in his arms
and chest, GLOWING FAINTLY UNDER HIS SKIN.
He kicks off his pants - quick shrug to Jen; she motions "Go
Ahead!" More dully glowing symbols inside his thighs.
Jen passes her hand over the glow in his arm and it FLARES,
GLOWING through Danny's skin.
They are CHI GLYPHS. Danny reads them:
DANNY
Fire, Ocean, Wind, Mountain...
(over his heart)
...Spirit.
He concentrates, and the Glyphs GLOW BRIGHTLY, then FADE as
he lets up.
DANNY
What do you think these do?
(then)
Let's try this.
Danny sits, closes his eyes, slows his breathing, and starts
to meditate. THE GLYPHS LIGHT UP.
INSERT - FLASHBACK:
INT. ANCIENT CHINESE THRONE ROOM - DAY
Golden light filters in through rice paper walls. CHANTING,
wisps of incense.
Gong Shan Tai stands in the Heavenly light, praying.
YING MA - Danny, bald and dressed in simple rags - creeps
through the surrounding pillars without a sound. Silent
signals tell his ARCHERS which shadows to hide in. He licks
sweat off his lip.
GUI-LO stand in their places around the room, in their armor
and red silk blindfolds.
An Archer slips an arrow from his quiver. It's a small sound,
but a Gui-Lo REACTS, tilting in their direction, then moving
straight at the pillar where the Archer is hiding.
The Archer tenses, shoots a frightened look at Ying Ma.
Ying Ma motions to him: Lower. Quickly, the Archer closes his
eyes, exhales. The THUD of HIS HEARTBEAT SLOWS... and STOPS.
Dead silence.
The Gui-Lo pauses. It's gone. He returns to his place in the
ceremony, and the Archer slowly breathes in again. He nods at
Ying Ma.
Shan drags the White Jade Dagger across his palm, cutting far
and deep. He stretches out his hand, and lets a long stream
of blood fall on the floor...
...it pools, and then MOVES into patterns and shapes. The
blood draws itself into lines and circles, words and symbols,
completing the design.
Ying Ma creeps closer, behind another pillar.
The walls are covered in Chinese script, the Painted Orbs and
the God Sigil are here. Ying Ma puts a shaky hand around his
sword, and tightens his grip. There's twenty feet to cover
between him and Shan. All his men are in place.
AN UNEARTHLY HUM fills the room. Shan's blood-design GLOWS
underneath him. The ORBS LIGHT UP.
Ying Ma dashes out from cover, RUNNING STRAIGHT AT SHAN.
Instantly, Gui-Lo throughout the room move to intercept him.
One sweeps in lop Ying's head off; ARROWS STRIKE HIM, killing
him first. Ying doesn't slow down, doesn't hesitate, doesn't
deviate one inch off course.
His archers FIRE from cover, killing any Gui-Lo threatening
Ying; one HITS the Gui-Lo closest to Shan, square between the
eyes, leaving Shan wide open.
Shan turns...
...Ying Ma DRAWS, SLASHING UP in one movement and chopping a
diagonal line through Shan's chest. A GOUT OF BLOOD SPRAYS...
...AND FREEZES. It hangs in the air, still half-in Shan.
Ying stares in disbelief.
Gong Shan Tai smiles cruelly.
The gout of blood LUNGES AT YING MA, viper-quick, snaking
around his neck and lifting Ying clear off the floor. It's
choking him. He sees his archers being cut down by Gui-Lo,
killed to the last man.
GONG SHAN TAI
Was this your rebellion, Ying Ma?
GUI-LO
My Lord!
Pointing: the White Jade Knife sticks in the wood floor,
right were Shan dropped it. It's CUT Shan's blood design.
Shan's face falls.
GONG SHAN TAI
No... NO!
He HURLS Ying Ma across the room into a stone pilar, nearly
breaking him in two. Ying Ma lands limp in a pool of his own
men's blood.
A pair of Gui-Lo scoop Ying Ma up, holding him fast.
GONG SHAN TAI
I was going to be a god! YOUR God!
Did you not WANT to live under my
patronage? You have disgraced
yourself and your entire family!
GUI-LO
We can prepare the ritual again, my
Lord. We can...
Shan motions; that Gui-Lo's head TWISTS 180 DEGREES. He
drops, DEAD.
GONG SHAN TAI
Can you realign the stars for me?
Will you re-create perfection for
me? The proper conditions will not
repeat for four centuries!
(to Ying Ma)
The peasant thwarted his king.
YING MA
You are not my king! You were my
conqueror and my tyrant! You will
never be a god! Never!
But Shan takes no notice, thinking.
GONG SHAN TAI
I will not be less than I should
be. I will not wait idly for the
years to pass until I claim my due.
He CLAPS HIS HANDS, a sharp sound. The Gui Lo MOVE, gathering
up the artifacts, tearing the room down, dousing the piles of
debris with oil.
Ying Ma sees one walk past, using daggers as stilts.
GONG SHAN TAI
Bao! Yan! Que! You will be our
caretakers. You know what to do.
Ying Ma strains to watch.
Swiftly, the Painted Orbs are collected in a burlap sack. The
God Sigil is wrapped in silk. Everything is given to a Gui
Lo; THE YOUNG BAO.
Tapers are thrown on the debris piles, IGNITING THEM.
Ying Ma sees three Gui-Lo, moving in perfect unison, face
each other with iron spears. As one, they all FALL ON EACH
OTHER'S SPEAR, killing themselves.
The Gui-Lo are committing suicide. All of them.
Shan steps up to a warmly glowing paper wall, and throws open
a sliding door. He steps forward to take in THE VISTA BELOW:
IT IS A WASTELAND, fires burning out of control. China has
been scorched bare, as far as the eye can see.
GONG SHAN TAI
All I've accomplished... it's not
enough.
He steps away sharply and spreads his arms. Three Gui-Lo
surround him with drawn swords.
GONG SHAN TAI
Hold nothing back. Be thorough.
(then)
NOW.
Ying Ma watches: a big Gui-Lo SHOVES HIS SWORD THROUGH SHAN'S
HEART. Another CHOPS into Shan's neck, hacking away until
he's cut the head free.
The third CUTS SHAN'S HEAD IN HALF, right down the middle.
A Gui-Lo holding Ying Ma down rises and draws his sword; it's
A YOUNG, STRONG YAN. Ying Ma is bent down, execution-style,
as Young Yan raises his sword...
...AND STRIKES...
RESUME:
INT. DANNY'S TOWNHOUSE - MORNING
Danny opens his eyes.
The Spirit Ward he taped to the window is ON FIRE. He jumps
at it and swats it out.
A dark shape moves outside. He ducks back.
INT. POLICE EVIDENCE LOCKER
Nelson is doing rounds, ticking off things on his clipboard,
walking right by the SWORD WARRIOR STATUE without a glance.
The statue's eyes follow him as he passes.
INT. DANNY'S TOWNHOUSE - CONTINUOUS
Danny motions to Jen's Ghost: hide.
He stands in the center of the room, and exhales. His Chi
Glyphs fade, muted. HIS HEARTBEAT SLOWS... and STOPS.
Silence.
Slowly, Danny turns. Fat Mr. Tong is in his home, silhouetted
in the doorway to the kitchen.
The front door's deadbolt lock FLIES out of the door, poked
out; one of Knife Walking Gou's foot-daggers sticks through
the hole. Gou ENTERS, slinking through the room. They start
to search, Gou slipping gracefully across the room, Fat Tong
knocking things over as he floats along.
Danny watches, curious. THEY CAN'T SEE HIM.
He silently steps over to Knife Walking Gou, getting in very
close. Gou turns, putting himself nose-to-nose with Danny:
nothing. Gou suddenly hops the stair railing and goes
upstairs on all fours.
INT. POLICE EVIDENCE LOCKER
Loud, ceramic-on-ceramic CLANKING, coming from deep in the
aisles. Nelson storms towards the noise.
NELSON
Does anyone have an excuse to be
back here, messing with my stuff?
He rounds the corner and stops dead in his tracks.
Two of the Chinese Statues are MOVING; the huge FAT BABY
STATUE and the BOW HUNTER STATUE, tenderly pick the Painted
Orbs off the shelves and put them into a thick bag. They
briefly look up at Nelson.
Nelson takes a step back, unaware the Sword Warrior statue is
behind him. It GRABS NELSON'S HEAD, and he SCREAMS.
The other statues keep packing as blood sprays the aisle.
INT. DANNY'S TOWNHOUSE
Fat Mr. Tong floats a little ways, and sets down close to the
drafting table. Danny joins him.
The White Jade Dagger is on the drafting table. Tong picks it
up. It catches the light.
A BLUR: Danny snatches the dagger out of Fat Mr. Tong's hand
and BURIES the blade into Tong's forehead. AN INHUMAN WAIL
breaks loose from Tong. Danny pulls the dagger out, and a jet
of escaping green smoke shoots out of the cut. It vaguely
forms a screaming Gui-Lo warrior before DISSIPATING. "Tong's"
body drops, DEAD.
KNIFE WALKING GOU FLIES OFF THE STAIRS AT HIM, blades first.
The White Jade flashes in Danny's hand, parrying Gou's attack
and SLICING Gou's arm; a wisp of green smoke escapes. Gou
launches a series of kicks and follows with a deadly punch
aimed at Danny's head.
DANNY CATCHES IT. His Chi Glyphs GLOW. Gou can't budge him.
DANNY
Well, now.
A blur that tears the air: WHOOM! Danny NAILS Gou full-on
with a punch that shakes the room. He breaks a foot-dagger
aimed at his head with swift chop, and hammers Gou's sternum
with a hit that nearly puts Gou through the wall.
Gou's pathetically down to one stilt, hands out, pleading.
DANNY
You got a sick kick out of killing
nine of my friends yesterday. How
much sympathy do you think you're
getting today?
Gou drops the act. He nods, and launches at Danny; Danny
catches him and rapidly STABS him three times, front-back
front. Green smoke escapes; a howling Gui-Lo, clawing the air
in agony. The ghost EVAPORATES, the body collapses.
Jen is there, demure as ever.
DANNY
I'll put on some clothes now. I
think I locked up some stuff Shan's
gonna want.
He grabs his pants off the couch.
INT. SQUADROOM - MORNING
End of shift, everybody's at low ebb, quieter, but still
moving with purpose. Sotomayor does rounds, approaching A
DETECTIVE at a scattered desk, mid-room, who looks like he's
about to keel over.
SOTOMAYOR
Tom, go ahead and head out. Good
work today. Be back in four hours.
DETECTIVE
Looking forward to it, boss.
The Detective HEADS OUT, leaving behind a barely-touched
piece of pizza. Sotomayor snags it without a trace of self
consciousness and takes a big ol' bite.
The station's piercing ALARM BELL suddenly goes off.
SOTOMAYOR
Oh, Good Christ! Now what the fuck!
The Guardians SMASH through the big back wall, plaster and
wood shrapnel flies everywhere. The Fat Baby statue steps out
of the dust cloud before anyone knows what's what; it BASHES
a stunned cop in the gut with the shaft of its long spear,
launching him into orbit.
Fat Baby slips his spear under a metal desk and flips it up,
sending it crashing across the length of the squadroom, then
SMACKS a second desk sitting opposite, hammering it against
the wall, smashing a pair of detectives hiding behind it.
Everyone in reach is gone. Everyone else is hiding..
The Bow Hunter steps in, arrow notched, the Artifact Bag over
one shoulder; Sword Warrior covers the rear. The big red
statues slowly advance, fighting stance. They CRACKLE, the
sound of hollow ceramic moving when it shouldn't. It's the
only noise left.
Sotomayor pops up from behind a desk and SHOOTS.
A half-dozen more Detectives and Cops lean out from cover and
RAPID-FIRE.
Bow Hunter fires: the arrow tears through three cops.
The Guardians CHARGE. A hail of bullets bite into the paint,
some punch through their thick ceramic skin. They soak up the
hits and DESTROY EVERYTHING IN THEIR PATH, firing arrows,
upending desks, and killing anyone who comes close...
...BREAKING INTO THE HALLWAY OUTSIDE. The Guardians romp and
stomp their way past more cops, tearing walls and mercilessly
hacking down the resistance they meet.
A shotgun blast CAVES IN FAT BABY'S face...
...IT KEEPS MOVING, clubbing the offender and propelling him
up through the ceiling like a cannonball. Sword Warrior stabs
through walls to kill people beyond.
All three statues are whittled away by constant gunfire, but
nothing stops them.
EXT. POLICE DEPARTMENT - CONTINUOUS
A few SWAT MEN position on the steps, aiming P-9 submachine
rifles and shotguns up at the police station's main doors.
The Guardians SMASH out of the second story wall, landing in
the middle of the SWAT guys. They've been shot up bad; Sword
Warrior's missing an arm, Fat Baby's face is gone. Bow Hunter
is barely holding together.
The SWAT guys OPEN FIRE, DESTROYING Bow Hunter.
The artifact bag drops.
Fat Baby and Sword Warrior take the SWAT guys apart, knocking
them across the street, chopping them in half. Fat Baby is
BLOWN TO PIECES in the crossfire.
Sword Warrior grabs the artifact bag, faceless, missing
pieces. It trudges down to the street, ignoring the SURGING
ENGINE getting closer. It LOOKS, TOO LATE...
...DANNY'S DRIVING...
...a Honda Hatchback SKIDS, BASHING BROADSIDE INTO THE SWORD
WARRIOR, breaking the statue in half.
Sotomayor runs out, reloading his .38.
The Sword Warrior's faceless top half tries to crawl away
with the bag. Danny's out of his car; he scoops a SWAT
shotgun off the ground - CHOOM! CHOOM! CHOOM! - blasting the
statue to bits, one piece at a time.
It THROWS THE BAG UP, a last act before Danny obliterates it
completely...
MR. LEUNG CATCHES IT, standing on the roof of a parked police
cruiser. He regards Danny, then leaps down, RUNNING AWAY at
incredible speed.
Danny jumps back into his crumpled Honda. He sees Sotomayor
standing there.
DANNY
It's not terrorists.
SOTOMAYOR
I kept the soldier-boys out of
Chinatown.
DANNY
Thanks, boss.
He FLOORS it, heading after Leung.
EXT. SAN FRANCISCO STREETS - DAY
Mr. Leung jump-runs at 40 m.p.h. carrying the Artifacts Bag,
dodging morning traffic.
Danny's Honda ROARS around cars, right on Leung's tail.
People stare as Leung ZOOMS by. The civilians in traffic all
drive like maniacs, and Danny flies past them relentlessly,
POUNDING THE HORN. Cars and pedestrians who step into his
path DIVE AWAY. He's driving dangerously go-for-broke, just
plain tearing ass through the streets, barely touching the
brake for any reason.
It's a big, busy street, and they barrel down it full-speed.
Leung jogs left, putting A TROLLY between him and Danny...
...and takes a HARD LEFT, using the bus as cover. Danny SEES,
cutting off the trolly and oncoming traffic, tires SQUEALING
as he accelerates into the turn.
Both swerve through traffic down the block.
RED LIGHT: a big, orange Muni Bus chugs into the oncoming
intersection...
...Leung flying kicks, CRASHING IN through one window and OUT
the other side, not missing a step.
The Honda SWERVES the bus, clipping a sedan on the other
side, suddenly dead even with Leung: Danny swerves at him.
Leung JUMPS IT - the Honda passes right under him - landing
on the other side.
Mr. Leung LEAPS UP between close-together cables suspended
above the street and touches down, RUNNING ALONG THE
ELECTRICAL BUS CABLES. Danny leans over the wheel, watching
him.
Leung reaches a wire hub, veering in a new direction. Danny
keeps pace, right under him.
JEN'S GHOST IS ON THE WIRES, BLOCKING THE WAY. Leung bounces
over to a parallel set of wires and back, bypassing her
completely. He drops to street level, turning down Stockton;
narrower, lined with tall, high-end stores.
Danny's right on his heals, closing in.
Ahead: the STOCKTON TUNNEL, a two-block dip under prime city
shopping. Leung pours it on...
DANNY
Oh, hell.
...and LEAPS HIGH INTO THE AIR, over the tunnel.
Danny FLOORS it, shooting through the tunnel.
Leung sails high over the street, leaping over the entire
block while people watch, amazed...
...the little hatchback pushes eighty, scraping between a
truck and the tunnel wall, reaching open sky...
Leung HITS THE GROUND RUNNING, on the far side of Stockton
Street, nearly biting it into the pavement before correcting
himself. He smiles grimly.
The HONDA HATCHBACK'S RIGHT IN FRONT OF HIM. Danny's looking
at him in the rearview. Mr. Leung tries to dodge...
...Danny taps the brakes...
Mr. Leung bounces off the Hatchback and loses his feet, an
out-of-control cannonball grinding into the asphalt, road
rashed all to hell. MUNI RIDERS waiting at a bus stop RUN as
he crashes through the kiosk and COLLIDES with the building
beyond it.
Danny slows down; MR. WEI'S KNIFE shoots down from above and
DIGS INTO THE HONDA'S ENGINE BLOCK. Its chain goes tight, and
Mr. Wei YANKS THE CAR INTO THE AIR.
Danny hangs on, the car corkscrews in space...
...and lands in a heap, upside down, demolished, scraping to
a halt a hundred yards away.
Danny kicks the door off its hinges and scrambles out, Jade
Dagger in hand, looking for Wei.
DANNY
Let's see you try that again.
Wei's chain-dagger SINKS INTO DANNY'S CALF from behind - he
cries out - and Danny's whipped high into the air. The chain
moves like it's alive in Mr. Wei's hands, flinging Danny into
a third story wall.
Leung looks up weakly, a mangled lump of meat. He seems to
choke, then LIN'S GHOST spills out of his mouth.
Mr. Wei twirls his chain, pounding Danny into a building face
again and again.
JEN'S GHOST IS THERE. She bares her teeth and grabs Wei's
head, TWISTING with all her might, trying to rip it clean
off. GRINDING BONE...
Wei knocks her hands away, and stops a vicious punch Jen
throws at his head. She hammers at him, nothing gets through.
Lin's Ghost grabs her from behind.
He has her for half a second before Jen's Ghost breaks the
hold and flings him away...
...leaving her wide open: Mr. Wei flicks his free hand at
her: another knife shoots out from Mr. Wei's cuff, trailing a
chain. IT SINKS INTO JEN'S NECK, just above the collar bone,
and SHE FEELS IT. Black blood spills out onto her pure white
dress. Pain and shock on her face.
Wei hasn't forgotten Danny. He whips the chain, sending Danny
hurling skywards. Danny CUTS the chain with the Dagger, grabs
hold and pulls hard...
...falling right at Mr. Wei...
He THROWS THE JADE DAGGER CLEAN THROUGH LIN'S GHOST; it sinks
into the concrete wall. The ghost screams, and FADES.
Danny lands on his feet, right by Wei, Chi Glyphs glowing.
DANNY
Step up, funnyman.
Fighting stance. Mr. Wei actually smiles.
Danny runs up along the building wall and surges fist-first
at Wei, catching Wei with a neck-breaking HIT.
They BLUR, coming at each other in a whirlwind of punches and
kicks SO FAST THEY BREAK THE SOUND BARRIER, brutal point
blank hits. Danny slips a punch under Wei's block, breaking
every bone in Wei's face.
Wei takes it, and POUNDS Danny right back.
Danny yanks the Jade Dagger free and stabs at Wei; Wei KICKS
it out of Danny's hand. It shoots across the street, sticking
in the overturned Honda.
Pounding BOOMS: trading hits that leave them both bloody, too
fast, too strong. Wei's chain-knife sticks out of Danny's
calf; Danny swings a lightning-fast kick...
...Wei CATCHES it, knife-point an inch from his ear...
...and ripostes two FASTER kicks into Danny's gut. He pulls
the knife out of Danny's leg, slips a leg around back and
DRIVES DANNY INTO THE GROUND. Wei STOMPS him again, AGAIN,
driving him down.
It's over.
Mr. Wei calmly flips Danny over, grabs a fist-full of hair,
holds Danny up, and draws back his knife to stab into Danny's
brain. He STRIKES...
...ALL THE CHI GLYPHS in Danny's body rush to his forehead in
an instant, piled on top of each other: WEI'S BLADE SHATTERS
against them.
Wei double-takes.
His other knife is STABBED THROUGH HIS BACK, sticking well
out of his chest, right where his heart would be. It hurts
Wei. Bad.
Jen leans out from behind him. Her frown turns hard, and she
TWISTS THE BLADE.
A spit of blood falls out of Wei's mouth. He drops his broken
knife; DANNY CATCHES IT, and shoves what's left of it through
Wei's chest, opposite side. All three, locked together. Wei
quakes with effort.
DANNY
Give up?
A burst of strength: Mr. Wei spins, throwing them off and
landing next to Artifacts Bag. It hurts to pick it up, but
Wei does it, and painfully straightens himself with supreme
pride. He regards Danny and Jen's Ghost.
Mr. Wei simply leaves the ground, FLYING AWAY.
Danny limps forward to see where Mr. Wei is going, but it's
futile. Wei's long gone. He turns to Jen's Ghost, desperate.
DANNY
He could lead us to Shan!
Jen's Ghost doesn't move, holding her wounded throat. Danny
sees what's happened to her.
DANNY
Oh God, Jen!
He moves at her. Jen holds up a hand, Stop. He does.
All he can do is stare. There's real fear in his voice.
DANNY
Don't go.
Jen smiles slightly, and puts a hand on her heart.
She doesn't look good, but Danny can't help but steal a look
in the direction Wei took.
DANNY
Jen, I know what Shan's doing. We
can't wait.
Jen considers this, and grimly nods.
INT. THE SILK DRAGON - DAY
Miss Chu slides through the restaurant with her smile turned
up full-blast, despite a largely empty restaurant. There are
two small parties in the whole room.
She steers by a huge table with only two PATRONS seated.
MISS CHU
Ah, excellent choice, very savvy
customer! You enjoy? Everything
good? Good? Good!
Miss Chu vectors off, never coming to a full stop. She
waylays a WAITER.
MISS CHU
Ayah, goat-whore terrorist! I lose
money being open like this!
(then)
Push expensive wine. Go.
Danny ENTERS. Her smile goes up a notch.
MISS CHU
Danny Yuen! Valued...you look bad.
He grabs her arm and takes her aside.
DANNY
How do I find Yan's shop.
MISS CHU
What? What I know? I never meet
"Yan." I work restaurant, make
customer happy!
DANNY
I've got a recording of you telling
Jack Chu about Li San and his brand
new ceramic bullets. I can put you
in jail right now.
MISS CHU
I, I...
DANNY
Where is Yan's shop?
MISS CHU
Ling know! Anne Ling! She tell me
about bullets, she clean Yan's shop
twice a week! She know, she...
(gossip mode)
...she schtuping Yan. So shameful
at her age.
DANNY
Get her on the phone.
Miss Chu nods rapidly.
INT. THE JUNK SHOP - DAY
Yan hurriedly collects a few trinkets from around the shop,
throwing them into a big steamer trunk that's already half
full of stuff.
The bell over the door TINKLES. Yan looks: the door's
closing, but no sign of who came through.
YAN
Okay, asshole. I don't know how,
but you're here.
The White Jade Dagger is suddenly under Yan's chin. Danny's
on the other end of it.
DANNY
What gave me away?
YAN
Write your true name in ghost blood
on something, you'll always know
where it is. Had to sign my work,
right?
DANNY
I know who you are. I remember you
killing Ying Ma.
YAN
Was it me? It's been so long, who
could remember?
DANNY
You, Bao and Que were supposed to
revive Shan.
YAN
Yeah, right around the time the
Romans got popular, but it didn't
take that long to figure out we
liked things better without Shan.
The tough part was growing our eyes
and tongues back. I'm still not
sure I taste sugar the way I'm
supposed to. Isn't that sad?
DANNY
Not really. Where's Shan?
YAN
He didn't leave a forwarding
address. And I'm HIDING from him!
LI SAN (O.S.)
He's still in Chinatown.
Li San walks out of the shadows, holding an assault rifle.
It's vaguely pointed in Danny's direction.
LI SAN
If you're talking about Ronald
Feng, I saw him walking on Grant
last night. I couldn't get close
enough to see where he ended up.
DANNY
You don't seem to mind me hurting
you friend here.
LI SAN
I'm my own boss now.
DANNY
Ah.
(to Yan)
"Boss." Three of you, way back
when... you created the Triads. Are
the others still alive?
LI SAN
Unless they got brave. They've all
got their own shop, but it's the
same shop. I just walked out of
Bao's. He's gone.
DANNY
I want to talk to them. Now.
He presses the knife into Yan's neck.
INT. THE JUNK SHOP - LATER
Danny holds the White Jade Dagger, marking it with a small
stick, quick writing strokes. He dips the stick into black
"ink" from the special blood-catching bowl.
DANNY
How bad to do they want this?
YAN
They don't need it, but it gives
them a little extra momentum.
DANNY
Tell me about Ascension.
YAN
It's about becoming perfect.
DANNY
Shan's pretty far from perfect.
YAN
We're not talking Miss Manners. He
can be a perfect prick if he wants.
(then)
To Ascend, you achieve absolute
perfection.
Not just in yourself, you've got to
get the universal Feng Shui exactly
right. Perfection in every
conceivable way.
DANNY
And that's when you become a God.
YAN
It'll probably take Shan a minute
or two to adjust, then he'll just
think us all dead. And that's the
end of everything.
Li San is half-listening, loading cursed bullets into an
assault rifle magazine. Danny turns to him.
DANNY
All we have to do is make the
ceremony less than perfect.
LI SAN
Just like life. You really buying
all this bullshit?
DANNY
I have reasons.
LI SAN
Fine, have 'em. When this is done,
the only thing that changes between
us is that I'll be Dragon Head, and
you'll be Dead Cop.
DANNY
Always admired your altruism, Li.
LI SAN
Hey, the old men can't hack it, and
Ron greased the competition. That
makes it my empire.
DANNY
Take it if you can. I'll be ready.
LI SAN
Goddamn, Danny, I'm gonna miss you.
YAN
Just remember, Ascension has its
own gravity. It gets tougher to
fuck it up as it goes. Anything you
do might just feed into it, help it
along.
DANNY
We'll take a bucket of mud.
He looks up: hard-faced Bao and sleepy-eyed Que walk out of
different shadows.
BAO
I guess this is Plan C.
YAN
Sort of. Ying Ma pointed something
out to me I thought I should share.
BAO
Holy shit. It IS him.
QUE
No hard feelings.
DANNY
Oh, yes there are. The one thing
the three of us can agree on is
Ronnie Feng didn't have the smarts
or the resources to bring back the
Gui-Lo without a lot of prompting
from someone in the know.
(points w/Jade Dagger)
So, whodunnit?
Que's eyes follow the Dagger in Danny's hand. Bao shoots an
accusing look at Que.
BAO
You traitorous whore!
QUE
We are all traitors to our Lord.
YAN
Probably doesn't matter, but was
there a reason?
QUE
Do you enjoy being so old?
YAN
Right. Kill him.
Que flicks a hand: the White Jade Dagger jumps out of Danny's
hand and into Que's. Bao lunges, and Que CUTS BAO'S THROAT
with the Dagger, KILLING HIM.
A handful of dust flies from Que's hand...
...whipping into A SMALL TORNADO, blinding everyone. The
front door bell TINKLES, and the dust settles. Que's GONE.
EXT. CHINATOWN - DAY
Danny and Li San, with his assault rifle, run out of the Junk
Shop. It's on a different street from before, and the street
is empty. No sign of Que.
DANNY
Hope I'm that fast when I'm his age
LI SAN
Yeah, no shit.
Yan's leaning out the door of his shop.
YAN
That went well. Good luck!
He vanishes back inside, closing the door. The VIEW INSIDE
THE WINDOWS CHANGES. The Junk Shop's GONE.
Danny and Li San give each other a sour look.
INT. TIEN HOU TEMPLE - DAY
The sacred runes are drawn. The Painted Orbs are in a circle.
The God Sigil is placed in the Holy Shrine. All is prepared.
Gong Shan Tai prays as sunlight filters in through a
skylight, slowly sweeping the room.
He turns. The Brothers lead Que in.
MR. KAI (SUBTITLE)
[One of the traitors, Lord.]
Que immediately falls to his knees, bowing his head low and
holding the White Jade Dagger high, an offering.
QUE (SUBTITLE)
[I beg forgiveness for my failure,
and bring you this token to prove
my fealty.]
GONG SHAN TAI (SUBTITLE)
[Should I consider this? I know
true loyalty when I see it.]
He looks to the room beyond: Mr. Wei is sprawled against a
wall there, both knives still stuck in him. He's still alive,
trying pathetically to move. Mr. Wei is dying.
Que doesn't move, still offering the Dagger.
Shan takes it, exposing his arm; it CRACKS SHARPLY, right
down the center. The "Feng Shell" is starting to give. Shan
quickly covers his arm.
He appraises the Dagger coolly, turning it. There are LITTLE
BLACK CHARACTERS on the white jade handle. He reads them:
GONG SHAN TAI (SUBTITLE)
["Property of Daniel and Jennifer
Yuen."]
Shan snarls, BURNING the writing away.
EXT. THE PAINTED ALLEY - DAY
Three cursed bullets smash Mr. Ho's Ghost to pieces.
Jen, Danny, and Li San stand at the breach of a long, tall,
thin alley off the main street. A street sign reads WAVERLY
PLACE.
Fog drifts through the five-story alley, diffusing the light.
Beautifully painted balconies dot both sides. Some hang cloth
banners with Chinese characters.
DANNY
He's up there, probably in the Tien
Hou temple.
LI SAN
Neat trick with the ghost blood.
DANNY
Yeah.
Danny gazes up into the Alley. HE SEES a host of SPIRITS AND
DEMONS swirling around inside the alley, more in the sky
above. Jen can see them, too. Li San remains oblivious.
DANNY
We'll run interference here, you go
in and make a mess of things. Don't
get clever, Li. Just smear the
paint or something.
LI SAN
You trust me that much?
DANNY
I trust you to be an asshole.
LI SAN
There you go.
Li San straightens his suit, locks and loads his assault
rifle, checks the laser sight, and HEADS OFF down Waverly,
entering the first door he comes to, gun-first.
Danny looks at Jen's Ghost.
DANNY
Ready?
Jen's Ghost, bloodied from before, simply touches her lips
and holds her fingers out to Danny, then FLIES to the far end
of the Painted Alley in a rustle of silk.
Danny steps into the alley.
DANNY (SUB/IN CHINESE)
[GONG SHAN TAI'S MOTHER WAS A WHORE
FOR VIDEO GAMES AND CHEAP WHISKEY!]
It ECHOES up through the Alley.
INT. TIEN HOU TEMPLE - CONTINUOUS
It reaches Shan's ears. He closes his eyes, and sighs in
quiet frustration.
GONG SHAN TAI (SUBTITLE)
[I'm a little busy right now. Would
anyone else care to kill him for
me?]
The three Brothers instantly DEPART.
GONG SHAN TAI (SUBTITLE)
[Leave us.]
Que nervously backs out of the room. The temple door CLOSES.
EXT. THE PAINTED ALLEY - CONTINUOUS
Danny's waiting, looking up into the fog.
DANNY
C'mon, what's a guy gotta do to
piss off an evil Chinese wizard
these days?
High above: three dark sticks are falling through the fog,
getting closer, getting bigger.
DANNY
Okay, that's more like it.
The sticks are LONG IRON SPEARS with bright red tassels near
the tips. The Brothers - Kai, Lau, Jin - are falling with
their spears.
Danny MOVES...
...nearly impaled as Kai's spear STRIKES the ground, spliting
it. He dodges the second; Lau slides down his spear and boots
Danny way down the alley.
He skids to a halt, still on his feet, and Jin's spear
impacts inches away. Danny jumps up and NAILS Jin with a
straight right, sending him skyward. His feet barely touch
the ground again before Kai and Lau jab their spears at him.
Danny TWISTS AWAY, dodging a fast, relentless, two-pronged
barrage or slapping them aside.
Jin's back, sweeping under with his spear.
Danny, Kai and Lau all jump it, and suddenly Danny's fending
off THREE spears at once.
Lau draws back to stab again, in unison with his brothers,
but it's snagged on something behind him. Lau turns...
...JEN'S GHOST HAS GRABBED HIS SPEAR, smiling at him...
...she twists his spear around and FLIPS LAU INTO THE AIR. He
plows through a balcony on the way.
The other two Brothers instinctively glance back, giving
Danny a split-second opening. He punches Kai clean off his
feet, pulverizing his jaw. Jin swings at him, but Danny's
already out of range.
Jen lets her captured spear fall, FLOATING UP. Danny catches
it and pole-vaults straight up, taking the fight vertical,
JUMPING UP TO THE PAINTED BALCONIES.
Jin throws his spear at him - Danny does the splits mid-air,
jumping over it.
The Brothers leap up after them.
INT. STAIRWELL - CONTINUOUS
Li San jumps the stairs two at a time, sweeping with his
rifle as he goes. He positions by a landing door and kicks it
open military-style - no threats - before hurrying inside.
INT. ANTECHAMBER TO THE TEMPLE
Que paces nervously. Mr. Wei convulses, dying.
Light is seeping through the doorjam leading to the temple,
and getting strong. Que stops, looking closer.
Flaws in the door's wood, in the paint, cracks... THEY'RE ALL
VANISHING. All becoming more perfect. IT'S SPREADING.
EXT. THE PAINTED ALLEY
Five stories up: Danny and the Brothers are chasing each
other, leaping across balconies, clashing as they pass.
Danny effortlessly leaps from one side to the other, landing
on a balcony railing. Behind him, Jin jumps straight up,
prying his spear out of the wall and chopping down on Danny's
perch, DEMOLISHING IT, but Danny's already gone, running
along the building face.
Lau's coming at him, head on...
...CLANG! driving his spear into the building, missing Danny
by inches; Lau's hanging on the end. Danny doesn't miss a
beat, hooking around Lau's spear, sliding down its length and
PUNTING Lau off into space.
He springboards off the end of Lau's spear...
Kai comes in on the attack. Danny bounces off his shoulder to
go higher, KICKING JIN in the head on the way.
Jin DIGS his spear into the building, stopping his fall.
Kai swings around fast, HAMMERING DANNY IN THE BACK and
sending him careening into a balcony opposite, nearly tearing
it off the wall. He barely catches hold, even as the balcony
dangles precariously.
Kai comes in to finish him off...
Danny pivots - Kai's spear rips a chunk out of his torso -
and YANKS, tearing the balcony off and HITTING KAI WITH IT.
They both fall, crashing onto the balcony two stories down.
Kai's stunned, Danny holds his badly bleeding wound, and LAU
IS DIVING AT HIM SPEAR-FIRST.
Jen's Ghost gets in the way. FAST, she cartwheels over Lau's
spear like it's a pommel horse...
...white silk flowing...
She lands kneeling on his spear, right in his face, and puts
two vicious chops into his neck before he can blink. Lau
gags, the spear goes astray - he COLLIDES with the balcony
and FALLS.
Jen catches his spear and ZOOMS DOWN AFTER HIM...
...IMPALING LAU WITH HIS OWN SPEAR as he HITS the pavement.
Danny watches Jin jump from balcony to balcony, circling,
before he comes in hard. They take it in close, trading fast,
brutal hits, before Jin gets enough distance to thrust his
spear at Danny's gut...
DANNY CATCHES IT, barely able to hold it off with both hands.
Jin leans into it.
INT. ANTECHAMBER TO THE TEMPLE - CONTINUOUS
Que leans down to Mr. Wei, who can barely move.
QUE
You would have done the same.
Li San ENTERS, braced at the door and aiming the rifle at
them. Que stumbles back in surprise. Wei can barely muster
the strength to turn.
LI SAN
Hey there, Wei.
He KICKS Wei in the head, and turns to Que.
QUE
Wait...!
LI SAN
At your age? Go with some dignity.
Li San FIRES; a short burst of cursed bullets tear Que up,
killing him instantly.
Only one door left. Li San steps up to it.
EXT. THE PAINTED ALLEY
Jin's spear is getting closer to Danny's stomach.
They both watch Kai shake off the concussion and get to his
feet - Jin smiles at Danny. Kai appraises the situation,
checks to make sure his spear tip's sharp enough, and aims it
at Danny's head. He STABS...
...DANNY CATCHES IT.
He's got both spears, hanging by a thread. They push harder,
so close. Danny sweating buckets under the strain, he can't
keep them both at bay much longer...
...Chi Glyphs FLARE through his clothes...
Danny BENDS THE SPEAR TIPS DOWN, just like bending iron bars,
and twists them out of Kai and Jin's hands. Jin takes a
BRUTAL PUNCH that sends him hurtling across the chasm, Kai
gets kicked through the balcony railing, flailing into space,
Danny right behind him...
...he swings one spear around and BURIES THE HOOK IN KAI'S
CHEST. Fierce momentum carries then to the far balcony; Danny
SMASHES KAI THROUGH THE WALL one-handed and drives him into
the floor beyond. Kai coughs out a wad of blood as the spear
tip goes all the way through.
INT. TIEN HOU TEMPLE
Li San opens the door, and calmly enters.
Golden light bathes the very air. The Feng Shui Matrix IS
MOVING - it changes around Li San's feet as he steps into it.
The Painted Orbs are GLOWING.
In the middle of it: Gong Shan Tai. His back is to Li San, he
doesn't acknowledge the intrusion.
Li San is impressed for five seconds. Then:
LI SAN
Hey, Ron. Got your special delivery
here, just like I promised. Enjoy!
He FIRES ONE BULLET...
...the "FENG SHELL" SHATTERS around the ghostly warlord Gong
Shan Tai and falls away. Shan remains as he was, unharmed,
unmoved, deep in prayer.
Li San's mouth drops. He goes full-auto and FIRES.
The stream of cursed bullets twist and swirl around Shan in a
perfect sphere, green vapor trails changing to gold. Shan
isn't doing anything; the ceremony's taken on a life of its
own. The Painted Orbs glow white-hot, the figures in the God
Sigil start to move.
Li San quickly reloads.
EXT. THE PAINTED ALLEY
Jin makes a move, Danny blocks him with his remaining spear.
Below: Jen watches this, pulls Lau's spear out of the ground
and HURLS it at Jin...
...it flies true, but Jin bends around it at the last second,
and it sinks deep into the building. Jin sneers; Danny KNOCKS
JIN'S HEAD CLEAN OFF with his own spear.
He looks down at Jen, panting.
DANNY
Well, that was easy.
Jen shrugs, nods. "'Course it was."
INT. TIEN HOU TEMPLE
Li San locks and loads, aims his rifle, pulls the trigger:
nothing happens. He yanks the bolt back again, but there's no
jam. It's simply not working.
LI SAN
Motherfucker!
He looks up, and is instantly transfixed.
Gong Shan Tai is a being of golden light, almost angelic. The
orbs are small suns. It is beautiful and beyond beautiful.
Shan seems to melt away into pure light.
EXT. THE PAINTED ALLEY
Danny and Jen snap around, looking at the temple.
DANNY
Oh, man...
He grabs Lau's spear - the only straight one left - out of
the wall and jumps over the chasm, towards the temple...
INT. TIEN HOU TEMPLE
A tear falls down Li San's cheek, terror and wonder and grief
and elation, all at once.
LI SAN
Please...!
The Feng Shui Matrix CLICKS into its final place.
All the light blends into the figure that was once Gong Shan
Tai, IMPLODING and EXPLODING at the same time IN A WAVE OF
PURE ENERGY.
Li San's flesh instantly turns to liquid, and HE EXPLODES at
the speed of sound.
EXT. THE PAINTED ALLEY
The wave catches Danny, and sends him HURTLING out of the
Painted Alley.
The building housing the temple CRUMBLES AWAY.
EXT. SAN FRANCISCO - CONTINUOUS
Danny sails across half a dozen city blocks.
He stops flailing, and twists his body until he's a head
first missile flying over his city. He starts coming up on
rooftops, coming in for a crash landing...
...he DIGS the spear into the first ROOFTOP he comes close
too, SPINNING like an Olympic gymnast and skidding safe on
the roof.
A BLINDING WHITE LIGHT blurs out the world.
DANNY
Jen!
She's there, by his side, staring at the source of the light.
Danny shields his eyes, trying to squint through his fingers
and see what's happening.
There's a new sun in Chinatown.
EXT. SPACE - THE EARTH
Earth rotates on its axis; the light is visible from high
orbit, shining on the tip of North America.
Darkness starts to swallow the planet.
EXT. THE ROOFTOP - CONTINUOUS
The light suddenly RETRACTS below the building line.
DANNY
That could've gone better.
They hear SIRENS in the distance.
EXT. CHINATOWN - CONTINUOUS
The Painted Alley is demolished; A HUGE PILE OF RUBBLE is all
that remains.
GONG SHAN TAI stands by the pile, inhaling deeply. He is now
flesh, the warlord of old, Resplendent Chinese robes, long
black beard, long que. He seems to be at peace.
A police cruiser, lights and siren blaring, screeches up. Two
cops, MAC and DAVE, jump out. Dave moves towards Shan.
OFFICER DAVE
Sir, are you all right? Stay right
there, paramedics are on the way!
OFFICER MAC
Screw that, get him in the car!
There might be another bomb!
(no reply)
Dave?
Mac turns; Dave is kneeling before Shan, holding something in
his lap. IT'S HIS OWN FACE. He looks around at his partner, a
bony, pulpy mush with sad, disbelieving eyes. That's all
that's left. He shouldn't still be alive.
Mac freezes in horror.
GONG SHAN TAI (SUBTITLE)
[Pray.]
Nine ETHERIAL HANDS slither up through the pavement around
Mac, grabbing him and dragging him down into the street. Mac
SCREAMS, uselessly trying to fight them off until he starts
drowning in the asphalt. More inhuman hands drag a whimpering
Dave down, too.
Shan gestures: MR. WEI'S LIMP BODY RISES OUT OF THE RUBBLE.
A wave, and Wei is ALIVE, solid, in Gui-Lo armor draped in
yellow silk, red silk blindfold. He speaks normally now.
GONG SHAN TAI (SUBTITLE)
[You are my general and my priest.]
MR. WEI (SUBTITLE)
[Always, Lord.]
GONG SHAN TAI (SUBTITLE)
[My temples and shrines can wait.
There are infidels here. Lead my
armies.]
MR. WEI (SUBTITLE)
[Armies, Lord?]
Shan merely smiles. Wei turns.
An ARMY OF GUI-LO - no yellow sash - stands behind him,
crowding the street. They are pale, real, smoothed skinned,
and not entirely human. They hold GIANT CURVED SWORDS
upright, each as long as a man.
Wei simply bows to Shan. Done.
Shan closes his eyes...
...and opens them: SHAN IS TWO HUNDRED FEET TALL and looking
out over the city.
GONG SHAN TAI (SUBTITLE)
[I will look up to no mortal thing]
A flat-cutting motion: THE TOPS OF ALL THE TALL SKYSCRAPERS
IN THE FINANCIAL DISTRICT ARE CHOPPED OFF, falling into the
busy downtown streets and smashing everything in their path.
Some crash into the bay, creating a huge tidal wave that
floods the Embarcadero boardwalk.
People run, screaming.
He points at Sutro Tower, on Twin Peaks; the communication
antenna breaks off its moorings and crashes down in North
Beach, a mile away.
At Shan's feet, a dozen cop cars pull up, blockading the
street against the Gui-Lo army. Dozens of cops take position.
The Gui-Lo march forward in formation, effortlessly hopping
the barricade in waves, wave after wave. The cops OPEN FIRE:
bullets have no effect, shotguns just push them around.
The Gui-Lo hack through the cops.
Armored RIOT COPS with big shields and batons move in. Gui-Lo
shatter their line, taking them on three-to-one.
EXT. SAN FRANCISCO ROOFTOP - CONTINUOUS
Yan stands with one foot on a rail, watching GOD-SHAN from a
great distance.
YAN
I really liked this place...
He sighs and lowers his head, resigned.
EXT. CHINATOWN
Danny runs and JUMPS from rooftop to rooftop, gripping Lau's
spear. He lands close to the action.
God-Shan glides away from the skirmish, unhurried, surveying
his domain and CHANGING things: the ocean turns from blue to
green. Whole pieces of the city VANISH, and CHINESE PAGODAS
replace them. Monstrous fissures OPEN, SUPERNATURAL CREATURES
SPILL OUT of the breach. The fog recedes, and lighting storms
ignite off the coast.
The sky is full of DEMONIC SPIRITS, swirling over the city
and diving in to grab victims off the street. A GIANT DRAGON
flies past, whipping through the air.
The whole pallor of San Francisco darkens, even though the
sun's shining.
God-Shan BRUSHES A BUILDING, KNOCKING IT INTO A SLIGHT LEAN.
Danny watches God-Shan pass by.
DANNY
I don't even know what to do with
that.
(sees Gui-Lo/Police)
But that I can change.
He jumps down...
...LANDING HARD on a police car dead center of the barricade,
spear whipping around: three Gui-Lo take it in the head,
spinning off into nearby buildings.
More Gui-Lo jump up to take him on, and Danny swats them all
away with blinding speed, stealing a Gui-Lo sword away. He
HURLS THE SPEAR; it TEARS A SOLID LINE THROUGH the Gui-Lo,
sending them flying and ripping up the street.
Jen's Ghost cuts a swath through the Gui-Lo before they even
reach the barricade. THEY CAN'T HEAR HER; she SHREDS them.
Behind the barricade, a bunch of cops have paired up; Riot
men with shields protect uniformed cops armed with stolen Gui
Lo swords. They're holding their own.
DANNY
Inspector Yuen out of Gang
Taskforce! All units, form up!
Eyes up: Wei is high in the air, coming down straight at him
in a big "HASSAN CHOP!" pose...
Danny dives away; Wei CHOPS THE COP CAR IN HALF
Instantly, Danny's on him, clanging their huge swords. They
trade fast swings and leaping dodges.
Wei stabs into a car door, ripping it off its hinges and
FLINGING IT into Danny. He lands flat on his back, and Wei's
on him in a heartbeat chopping down...
...Danny ROLLS, SLASHING: he catches Wei through the ribs on
the first pass, rolling up to his knees, the second pass
TAKES WEI'S HEAD CLEAN OFF.
Danny takes a moment, looks up.
Above: God-Shan turns, grinning, pointing to the distant
East; THUNDEROUS BOOMS. He's reshaping the world to his
tastes, revealing in the chaos he's personally unleashing.
Danny takes a breath.
DANNY
Gotta start somewhere.
He runs straight up the leaning building face, gaining
momentum, GOING FASTER...
...off the top, and Danny's AIRBORN, arcing through the air
on A COLLISION COURSE WITH SHAN'S GRINNING FACE, hauling his
sword back like a batter winding up...
...SSSHHHUCK! Danny HACKS a huge gash through Shan's cheek.
Shan doesn't even flinch.
Danny DIGS the tip in and runs along Shan's face, carving a
slit clean down to Shan's jaw. Danny bounces off the shoulder
and LEAPS AWAY, AIMING AT A HIGH-RISE OFFICE BUILDING...
He CRASHING THROUGH A WINDOW and rolls to his feet in a floor
length cubicle farm. The few OFFICE WORKERS left are running
for the exit.
Outside, Shan's wounds are already healed.
GONG SHAN TAI (SUBTITLE)
[Amusing.]
Shan raises a hand: A THOUSAND ARROWS SHOOT OUT OF HIS PALM.
I/E. OFFICE BUILDING
It's like machine gun fire; arrows tear through everything in
the office, a solid, never-ending burst.
Danny skids over a desk, dives behind a metal filing cabinet
and kicks it to face the incoming fire. Arrows COVER it in
seconds... thick paper files inside stop them from going
through. Danny throws all his weight into the cabinet to keep
it upright.
An Office Worker ducks behind a cubicle wall.
DANNY
Get down!
Too late: thirty arrows sink into the Office Worker's chest
and face. Computers, computer screens, chairs, desks... it's
all blown apart by the onslaught.
Black shafts stick out of everything, like tall grass.
The incoming fire veers away from Danny, and he BOLTS in the
other direction, SMASHING out a window on the opposite side.
He lands HARD on the street below, around the corner from
Shan. He looks around.
DANNY
And we're on to Plan H.
Shan CAN SEE DANNY through the office building.
He smirks, turning attention to the Police/Gui-Lo skirmish;
With help from Jen's Ghost, the cops hold their parameter by
their fingernails.
SHAN UNLEASHES A BARRAGE OF ARROWS AT THEM.
Jen's Ghost sees it coming...
...the arrows PASS HARMLESSLY THROUGH HER, but KILL Gui-Lo
and Cops around her in droves.
Danny sees what's happening.
DANNY
Sonofa...!
He runs out into the intersection and FLINGS HIS SWORD AT
SHAN. It rams home in Shan's thigh and is ABSORBED INTO HIM.
Gong Shan Tai smiles.
GONG SHAN TAI (SUBTITLE)
[I didn't forget you, Ying Ma.]
Shan FIRES MORE ARROWS, laughing. It's a fun game.
Danny RUNS, A WEAVING BLUR, and a solid patchwork of arrows
digging into the pavement behind him, up a building face
behind him, up the street...
...heading for the thick of the Gui-Lo...
HE SMASHES THROUGH THEIR RANKS, arrows felling Gui-Lo behind
him. Danny picks up two more Gui-Lo swords from the crowd and
skids to a halt, facing Shan. Ready.
Shan smiles.
Danny swings the swords to bat the arrows away, but THE
ARROWS SWERVE at the last second, spinning around his defense
like living creatures and IMPALING DANNY. Twenty, thirty,
FIFTY ARROWS HIT HIM in every limb, in his chest and belly,
in his neck and face, from every direction, all at once,
before he can react.
...Jen's Ghost silently screams...
The swords slip away and Danny DROPS, so riddled with arrows
his body can't lay flat. His body convulses, more dead than
alive, a red smear.
Danny's limp, broken body levitates off the ground...
...rising into the sky, along Shan's body, stopping at eye
level. The teeth are close, like huge tombstones. Danny can't
do anything, drowning in his own blood.
Shan appraises him.
GONG SHAN TAI (SUBTITLE)
[I was far more impressed by your
first life.]
He GNASHES his teeth: DANNY IS RIPPED APART, VANISHING IN A
RED HAZE. Nothing left.
CUT TO BLACK:
FADE IN:
EXT. SAN FRANCISCO - DAY
Danny opens his eyes. He's gently flat-spinning, drifting up
into blue sky.
Jen's Ghost is with him, holding his hands. THEY'RE TOUCHING.
The arrows in body are gone. His body's whole, healthy,
clean. He's wearing different clothes, his favorite jacket,
shirt and jeans.
DANNY IS A GHOST. Jen smiles at him.
JEN'S GHOST
I love you.
She's been waiting a long time to say that, and it all gushes
out of her. Danny grabs her up and kisses her, embracing her
tight, never wanting to let her go. They laugh out of pure
joy, touching each other because they can. They kiss again,
long and loving and forever.
THE SKY TURNS BLOOD-RED.
A titanic CACKLE fills the air. Danny and Jen break, almost
unwilling to look in Gong Shan Tai's direction.
God-Shan is smiling.
He's got a half-dozen INNOCENT PEOPLE in his hand, scrambling
to keep from falling. God-Shan is a kid torturing the ants.
GONG SHAN TAI (SUBTITLE)
[I feel the world. I'm hurting it.
But whatever survives will be
stronger and better for it. Believe
the word of God.]
He tips his hand, PITCHING THE INNOCENTS INTO HIS MOUTH with
a sickening grin; they go down SCREAMING. One bounces off God
Shan's lip and plunges to his death.
Danny and Jen are both horrified, and defiant.
JEN'S GHOST
"The end of everything."
DANNY'S GHOST
No. Complete bastards do NOT get to
become gods and rule my planet.
(to Jen)
New rule.
JEN'S GHOST
I like it.
(re. God-Shan)
He might take some convincing.
DANNY'S GHOST
We'll think of something. Just
nothing insanely stupid, okay?
JEN'S GHOST
You mean like attacking a chaos
god?
DANNY'S GHOST
Jen, I can't loose you.
JEN'S GHOST
You'll never loose me.
She puts a hand on his chest... and notices his Chi Glyphs.
They're different, brighter, clearer. The Glyphs don't shine
through his skin anymore; they are clearly visible inside his
body and clothes, like fog-lights through fog.
JEN'S GHOST
He carved them into your soul. You
might be even stronger now.
DANNY'S GHOST
No body to get in the way.
Jen nods.
DANNY'S GHOST
(re. God-Shan)
Any ideas?
JEN'S GHOST
Hit him until he dies?
DANNY'S GHOST
Sold.
They MOVE.
Air-to-air MISSILES come screaming out of the North, STRIKING
GOD-SHAN'S FACE and CHEST. Fireballs drift over his skin - he
doesn't react to them at all.
A pair of F-16 FIGHTER PLANES bank for another pass; demon
spirits swarm over them, ripping the fighters apart.
Danny's Ghost is flying on a collision course with God-Shan.
Jen's Ghost forms up beside him with two new acquisitions; a
Gui-Lo sword in each hand.
DANNY'S GHOST
Ready to thwart Devine will?
JEN'S GHOST
Only since I graduated law school.
They DIVE AT GOD-SHAN from behind.
Danny glides up to Shan's face and starts punching, WHOOM!
WHOOM! WHOOM! The impacts ripple through God-Shan's skin, but
don't seem to have much effect.
Jen strafes Shan's chest and arm, chopping open a series of
gaping wounds with both swords as she goes. They seal almost
instantly behind her.
God-Shan swats Danny's Ghost like he'd swat a mosquito.
Jen swoops in, hacking away. Four quick chops TOTALLY SEVER
GOD-SHAN'S FINGER...
...it breaks the street below, crushing parked cars...
Shan flicks his hand to backhand her away; HIS HAND PASSES
RIGHT THROUGH HER, but bats both swords out of her hands. She
VANISHES, retreating.
A brand-new finger replaces the one Shan lost.
Danny pulls a fast loop, grabbing the end of Shan's braided
que. He YANKS BACK HARD, stopping God-Shan's advance for a
brief second.
Jen watches from a distance, thinking.
JEN'S GHOST
Okay, so I can touch him and I can
pass through him. What if I do both
at once?
Shan's que COMES ALIVE, bashing Danny against God-Shan's
back, then whip-snapping Danny off like an insect. He tumbles
through the air, then recovers.
Jen APPEARS not too far away.
JEN'S GHOST
I've got an idea!
DANNY'S GHOST
Good one?
JEN'S GHOST
Probably not! Cover me!
They peel off.
DOWN ON THE STREET: Danny appears by A WOODEN TELEPHONE POLE;
he tries to grab it, and his hand pass right through.
DANNY'S GHOST
Right. Ghost.
He thinks fast; the Chi Glyphs in his arms move to his hands,
and he tries again. He grips the telephone pole, AND TEARS IT
OUT OF THE GROUND.
DANNY'S GHOST
And now we have a ball game.
(to Jen)
Jen! Go!
Danny flies at God-Shan. He slams on the brakes right under
God-Shan's chin, and THROWS THE TELEPHONE POLE STRAIGHT UP
SHAN'S NOSE.
It doesn't hurt him, but Shan instinctively reacts, thrown
off balance.
JEN DIVES THROUGH GOD-SHAN'S CHEST, through a thick, swirling
miasma inside him, and OUT THE OTHER SIDE. She spins and
shoves her arms into his back, up to the elbow.
Concentrating: her ghostly body becomes solid while still
partly in Shan's. INCREDIBLE PAIN.
SHE SCREAMS...
...SO DOES GOD-SHAN, drowning her out in unexpected,
uncustomary pain. FWHAM: Jen is blown away from him, as if
caught by an explosion in the face.
Shan turns on her, beyond anger.
GONG SHAN TAI (SUBTITLE)
[Very well, little ghost. Be a part
of God!]
Jen tries to run, and is WRENCHED BACK, falling at God-Shan.
She claws at the air, trying to break free, can't; she HITS,
like landing in thick mud up to her waist, stuck.
She's slowly sinking below God-Shan's robes.
JEN'S GHOST
Danny!
Street Level: Danny looks up from beating a Gui-Lo and taking
his sword. He drops both.
DANNY'S GHOST
Jen.
Instantly, he's high up in the air again, and sees his wife
disappearing into God-Shan. He MOVES...
...and suddenly FEELS something; he turns towards the remains
of the Painted Alley, and stretches out his hand. The "WIND"
Chi Glyph zooms to his palm, flaring.
Something stirs under the Painted Alley rubble: the WHITE
JADE DAGGER SHOOTS OUT, scattering brick and wood, on a
beeline for Danny.
He catches it, turns and THROWS IT AT JEN without hesitation.
Jen's hand is out. The Dagger IMPALES HER PALM and lodges
there - her calm expression doesn't change - her fingers
curl around it, and JEN COMPLETELY VANISHES INSIDE GOD-SHAN,
fully absorbed.
Danny's calm evaporates.
HE GOES BERSERKER, charging God-Shan with a terrifying WAR
CRY, a meteor hurtling at the moon, CHI GLYPHS BURNING LIKE
SUNS IN HIS RAGE...
...Danny HITS SHAN in the face, snapping God-Shan's head
around and STAGGERING HIM. Danny doesn't let up, LEFT, RIGHT,
UPPERCUT, SMACKING GOD-SHAN AROUND LIKE A RAG-DOLL.
He dives into God-Shan's chest, looking.
DANNY'S GHOST
JEN!
Way down, through the coiling miasma, Danny sees a vague,
overhead shape of a flowing white silk, hands clinched around
a bright silver knife...
He goes for her, and is suddenly YANKED AWAY...
...flung out of God-Shan's body. Shan growls at him, about to
apply some damage when DANNY VANISHES INTO THIN AIR.
God-Shan's eyes change color, searching. BINGO: Danny
APPEARS, SLAMMING HARD into an invisible barrier that stops a
speedy flanking move cold. He's dazed for a second.
God-Shan turns smoke in the air into twirling blades, hurling
them at Danny; he sees them, TOO LATE, dodging all but one.
It CHOPS HIS RIGHT ARM OFF AT THE SHOULDER...
...his ghostly arm floats away, and FADES OUT. The "FIRE" CHI
GLYPH VANISHES WITH IT. The other Chi Glyphs FLICKER, like a
vital circuit's been cut on a fragile electric grid.
God-Shan motions, and Danny is CAUGHT IN AN INVISIBLE VISE,
unable to move, about three inches from being crushed.
GONG SHAN TAI (SUBTITLE)
[We never understood you, Ying Ma,
even now that we understand all
things. You endure such pain to
oppose such greatness. Why?]
DANNY'S GHOST
I don't usually say this kind of
thing, but fuck you and everything
you stand for.
GONG SHAN TAI (SUBTITLE)
[Ah. So there is no reason. I
suspected it was such.]
Danny grits his teeth as God-Shan SQUEEZES...
...and stops. Something's wrong.
Shan's hand goes to his neck. He's confused. He's CHOKING.
THE BLADE of the WHITE JADE DAGGER STABS OUT OF HIS ADAM'S
APPLE; no sign of the handle or the hand wielding it. It
MOVES, cutting through Shan's flesh, all the way around
Shan's neck.
Danny breaks free and circles, growing his right arm back and
watching Shan grab at his own neck in blind panic.
DANNY
I love that woman.
Shan's wounds start sealing up.
Danny turns sharply and accelerates straight at Shan, kicking
in the afterburners, remaining Chi Glyphs ON FIRE...
...snapping into a FLYING KICK...
IMPACT: DANNY TEARS SHAN'S MASSIVE HEAD OFF; it RIPS AWAY
from the neck as Shan's eyes go wide in terror and his body
flails - A HUGE FLASH OF BLOOD - the head hits a building,
demolishing it on the way down. Raw energy spills out of the
neck-stump, filling the air with glowing embers.
Danny floats, watching Shan go down. His remaining Chi Glyphs
FLAIR one last time, and FADE COMPLETELY.
Shan's body begins to GLOW FROM THE INSIDE, GETTING STRONGER,
until the halo envelops him completely.
Danny shields his eyes, searching. Deep inside Shan's chest,
he sees the source of the light: it's A SILHOUETTE OF JEN'S
GHOST, A GOLDEN SUN.
Shan reaches critical mass: HE IMPLODES and EXPLODES ALL AT
ONCE, destroying windows for miles. His body is annihilated,
the light instantly FADES, leaving only A SMALL, LIMP FIGURE
where his chest was. She DROPS out of the sky and hits the
ground below, churning up debris. It's a naked woman, holding
the Jade Dagger.
It's JEN: SHE'S ALIVE, no longer a ghost.
Jen slowly picks herself up, realizing to her amazement that
SHE'S TOUCHING THINGS; concrete, torn metal. She tries to
cover her nakedness somewhat.
She stands, and gauges her surroundings. Everything around
her looks like a war-zone, devastated, SCREAMS and SIRENS
fill the air. Supernatural creatures roam the red skies, the
city is all torn up.
And a big group of Gui-Lo surround her, moving in.
Jen doesn't seem too worried. The Gui-Lo raise their swords,
getting close, and it does nothing to shake Jen's calm. She
stands there, waiting.
They're close enough to strike...
JEN
That's enough.
The Gui-Lo FREEZE.
She raises a hand, and THE GUI-LO SHATTER LIKE STONE STATUES,
the fragments VANISHING into thin air.
Jen's eyes narrow.
Demon spirits in the sky FADE. Fissures close, pagodas
vanish. Dragons slip back into the Earth. The sky TURNS BACK
TO BLUE. Jen nods to herself.
JEN
Better.
She looks around: Danny's Ghost stands silently nearby,
gently smiling at her.
Jen moves to embrace Danny, and PASSES THROUGH HIM.
JEN
Oh, no.
Danny nods, a little sad. He touches his heart, and holds his
hand out to her. They stare into each other, alone together
in the middle of a war zone.
It's all they can do.
FADE TO:
EXT. SAN FRANCISCO - DAYS LATER
A beautiful sky-blue day. Lots of boats out on the bay, light
traffic on the Golden Gate.
The city isn't itself, but getting back on its feet. Cleanup
is well underway. Shaky buildings are demolished, while huge
construction cranes rebuild others.
EXT. CHINATOWN BISTRO CAFE - DAY
The street's still pock-marked from the arrows, and SHOP
KEEPERS sweep mounds of broken glass up. Residents are coming
out, shopping, slowly settling to normal.
Jen sits at an outdoor table - jeans, casual blouse, jacket -
quietly sipping tea, watching Chinatown come back together.
A WAITRESS (40) comes out and refills her teacup.
JEN
Thank you.
WAITRESS
How do you do it?
JEN
(looks around fast)
Do what? Did I do something?
WAITRESS
No, I mean, I came in to work
today, but I don't know why. The
last time I was here was the other
day, when He appeared. I saw Him. I
felt Him... here.
(touches her head)
We all did. Were you here when it
happened?
JEN
I was here. I saw him.
WAITRESS
So what we are supposed to do? You
don't look like anything's changed
and it has. What's your secret? How
can you be so calm when you know?
JEN
Well, for one thing, your tea here
is very good.
Jen smiles warmly. Not the response the Waitress expected.
WAITRESS
...thank you.
JEN
Things have changed. I've changed.
And the world's a little different
now. Just a little - not much.
We're still here. You still love
your husband, he still loves you.
What else really matters?
WAITRESS
How did you...?
JEN
Ring on your finger. It looks a lot
like mine, actually.
Jen shows her own wedding ring, a simple gold band.
JEN
Y'know, you should take a long
weekend in Napa, you and your guy.
Hit the wineries, shoot the works
at a spa. Really enjoy it.
WAITRESS
That'd be nice, but...money.
JEN
You haven't seen the size of your
tip yet.
The Waitress smiles wanly, not really buying that for a
second. She goes back inside the cafe. Jen just smiles,
drinking her tea.
YAN (O.S.)
Not just gonna snap your fingers
and make it all better?
Yan ambles up and plunks himself down at Jen's table.
JEN
Thanks for coming.
YAN
I had a choice?
JEN
No.
YAN
Well, I would've come anyway. I
honestly didn't think you and your
ex could've bought a chance, but I
gotta give it to you, you pulled it
out in the end.
JEN
My what?
YAN
I meant Danny.
JEN
Learn to say "Danny."
YAN
Sure, fine. So, rub the lamp and
let the magic out, Jean Jeanie. Fix
the town up. It'll take you five
seconds. Let's go.
JEN
It won't mean anything to them if
they don't rebuild it themselves. I
won't make them feel insignificant.
YAN
Why not? Weren't you a lawyer?
JEN
Yeah, on that note, I've seen what
you're doing and I know you're re
consolidating the Triads.
(hard)
Don't.
YAN
You were just telling me about your
hands-off policy.
JEN
Doesn't apply to assholes.
YAN
Hey missy, fuck you and the ego you
rode in on. I don't kow-tow to you.
I don't kow-tow to anybody now,
thanks to you.
JEN
And I can turn your blood into
poison with a thought.
Yan sobers up, suddenly nervous.
JEN (CONT'D)
I can make your brain explode at
the speed of light, destroy you
cell by cell or change you into the
marsupial of my choice. Easy.
(then)
Lucky for you I'm not the god Shan
was. I like to think I'm a better
person than that, but I won't kick
back and watch you rebuild a
criminal empire while these people
rebuild their dreams. I promise
you...we'll be watching.
DANNY'S GHOST steps in behind Yan, frowning hard. Yan squirms
a little, trapped on both sides.
YAN
Someone'll fill that void...
JEN
No. They won't.
Jen rises to go. She passes her hand over the table, and a
thin stack of one-thousand dollar bills APPEARS: the tip.
JEN
Personally, Yan, I think you've hit
retirement age. Try making someone
else's life better. If that's too
tough, try to enjoy what you have.
Seeya.
She walks away from Yan and the Cafe...
...passing close by Danny's Ghost. They smile deeply at each
other, almost touching... but not touching.
The sights and smells of busy, busy Chinatown envelope her as
she walks down the street. FLOWERS OF EVERY COLOR BLOOM ON
THE WALLS IN HER WAKE. Potted plans spring to life, and trees
sprout a bounty of leaves.
Jen Yuen, God of Chinatown, walks down the street, melding
into the crowd.
FADE OUT:
THE END
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