*Episode
#101 - “Fallen Angels”
A wrenching jetliner disaster in the heart of the Amazon jungle puts six
strangers in a deadly predicament. They must band together if they hope to
escape – or even survive – their first of many nights in the most
hostile wilderness on earth. Synopsis
*Episode
#102 - “Nightfall”
Hope is regained when the group meets up with another crash survivor who has
the knowledge and survival experience to deliver them back to civilization,
but their hope, and their new leader, could be short lived.
Synopsis
*Episode
#103 - “Suffer the Little Children”
When a salvage team returns to the crash site, the group must avoid the
hostile Spider Tribe while struggling to reach their would-be rescuers in
time. Synopsis
*Episode
#104 - “The Fierce Ones”
Kennedy and Talbott endeavor to rescue Will, Karen, Pia and Jimmy who’ve
been taken captive by the Spider Tribe. With the help of jungle native
Falconer John the group may be reunited and further adapt to life in the
jungle.
Synopsis
*Episode
#105 - “The Chosen”
As the survivors wake from exhaustion in the beautiful village of the
Chosen, they see the jungle as Eden for the first time. Synopsis
Episode
#106 - “The End of the World”
Armed guards of the Chosen People patrol outside the survivors’ hut,
awaiting sunrise. At dawn, Kennedy, Talbott and Jimmy are to be led to the
Spider Tribe as a peace offering. Synopsis
Episode
#107: "The Lost Words"
Jimmy is sentenced to three days in a pit when the Tribune finds him
responsible for the death of a local fisherman.
Synopsis
EPISODE
#108: " Resurrection"
Andrew Talbott and Will Bauer have parallel experiences as each undergoes a
kind of death and find themselves becoming more deeply entrenched in the
Amazon jungle.
Synopsis
EPISODE
#109: "The Blood Angel"
A wounded Kennedy returns, while Talbott wonders what price they will have
to pay to get Will back.
Synopsis
Episode
#110: "War"
The Chosen Army goes to war with the Heathen to claim Will as their “Child
of Promise.”
Synopsis
Episode
#111: "Eyes in the Dark"
When
the Shaman puts a curse of revenge on Will, the Chosen Village finds itself
the prey of the elusive and deadly jaguar known as the "Eyes in the
Dark".
Synopsis
Episode
#101 - “Fallen
Angels"
Broadcast
Week of Broadcast Week of September 20, 1999
Synopsis
Mayday!
Mayday! Trans Rio Airlines Flight 767 en route to Rio. Flying through a
storm over the vast green of the Amazon jungle, the plane encounters severe
electrical problems. The crew is forced into an emergency landing that ends
in disaster. The plane skids along a mesa, breaking into pieces with debris
scattering everywhere. The tail end slides down the side of a steep cliff
and comes to rest.
Faced
with the vicious realities of the Amazon jungle – deadly wild animals,
impenetrable undergrowth - a rescue crew does it’s grisly clean up job and
leaves the crash site. No sooner does the drone of the helicopters fade into
the distance, than six remaining survivors struggle from unconsciousness to
find each other in an unthinkable situation: Dr. Alex Kennedy, a heart
surgeon, Pia Claire, a famous opera diva, Andrew Talbott, a highschool
teacher, Jimmy Stack, the winner of a game show, Will Bauer, a young boy who
was en route to meet his missionary parents in Rio, and Karen Oldham, a
flight attendant, the only surviving crew member. Dead to the outside world,
lost in the treacherous Amazon. Six people forced to rely on each other for
survival. Alone in the jungle. Or are they?
Back to Top
Episode
#102 - “Nightfall"
Broadcast Week of Broadcast Week of September 27, 1999
Synopsis
Rousing from a deep sleep, Will Bauer is groggily happy to have arrived
safely in Rio. As flight attendant Karen Oldham prepares the plane for
arrival, all seems normal. But when she opens an overhead compartment and
dozens of snakes burst into the plane cabin, the boy is startled awake. The
safe arrival was only a dream. As the boy shakes off sleep, he winces at the
pain of his still wounded arm and takes in his jungle surroundings.
Karen Oldham
attempts to assuage his fears, promising that a salvage team will come back
for the plane and save them. But Bauer is savvier than his age belies.
Having already seen the savage band of child warriors hidden in the jungle,
he knows better than to count on continued safety.
Dr. Kennedy takes
charge and sets the group to work gathering materials for a fire. Knowing
that their first night in the jungle without fire would surely be their
last, he’s driven and brash in his direction of the other survivor’s
efforts. Systematically alienating each member of the group with his
demeanor, it’s clear Kennedy cares only about the result of his efforts
– survival and then escape.
Pia and Jimmy,
joining the effort, find themselves away from the others and discover that,
in addition to sharing this jungle predicament, they’re both craving a
cigarette. Jimmy has a precious few smokes left, and doesn’t want to share
them with the difficult diva. But, as they bicker, Kennedy breaks into their
conversation, trashes their cigarette pack and puts them back to work.
Stranded in the
jungle, with only each other for support, the crash survivors prepare to
brave their first night together. Rife with nocturnal wildlife, the Amazon
jungle is no place for the uninitiated. As darkness envelops the rainforest
canopy, the cacophony of animals rousing from their diurnal slumber builds
to a deafening roar. Racing against the setting sun, Dr. Kennedy struggles
to build and maintain a fire by burning damp wood and the scant contents of
the group’s pockets.
On the path to
despair, the group’s hope is restored when they happen across Marcel,
another survivor of the crash and an experienced jungle survivalist. Calm
and cool, even after surviving the harrowing plane crash, Marcel assures the
group that all is not lost. Outlining his plan for escape from the jungle,
he matter-of-factly describes his plan for an arduous, yet realistic, trek
to civilization. Jimmy, Karen and Talbott are energized by Marcel, his plan
and his matter-of-fact “rules of jungle survival,” but Dr. Kennedy
voices his desire to stay close to the crash site to wait for the return of
the rescue and recovery crew.
This rift among the
group is eliminated and the situation takes a turn for the worse when Marcel
sets out to gather fuel for the campfire and is savagely bitten by a
bushmaster - an extraordinarily deadly snake whose venom can kill in
minutes. As the only person who can possibly save Marcel, Dr. Kennedy once
again takes charge. Unfortunately, Kennedy explains, the only way to save
Marcel’s life would be to amputate his leg. Without anesthetic or proper
surgical tools, the surgery would almost certainly kill Marcel.
Pressured by the
other survivors to attempt the ill-advised emergency surgery, Kennedy must
decide whether to go through with the excruciating and probably futile
procedure or let Marcel, seemingly their only hope for survival, drift off
to death.
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Episode #103
- “Suffer
the Little Children”
Broadcast Week of Broadcast Week of October 4, 1999
Synopsis
The wild and vast jungle is taking a psychological toll on the survivors.
Having braved their first night in the jungle, dawn brings an awe inspiring
landscape. Green as far as the eye can see. Karen Oldham slips away from the
group for a refreshing dip in a serene natural pool. But, when she’s
jarred from her rejuvenating reverie by a caiman (a large jungle crocodile),
she loses her cool. Rather than retreating to safety, she splashes and
screams at the beast, trying to scare it away. Escaping the conflict and
moving safely back to shore, she finds a life preserver from the airplane
which triggers a deep flashback of the crash. Reciting her intercom
pre-flight instruction speech as if she were on board the plane, when Jimmy
and the others find her, she appears to have lost her senses. After burying
Marcel, the short-lived jungle expert who had promised to lead them to
safety before he was killed by a snake bite, the group is left with only one
option - return to the plane wreckage and hope that a salvage team rescues
them from their doomed jungle existence.
With the group moving arduously
across the dense jungle in the direction of the crash site, Will Bauer is
the first to spot the mark of a cross, branded into the trunk of a tree.
Chillingly, the sign is identical to the one that’s still visible on the
boy’s forehead, which was there when he awoke after the crash. It’s
clear to them that the crosses are somehow connected with the local
inhabitants. As they ponder the connection, Bauer mentions that while Marcel
was dying, a man and a jaguar were stalking in the rain-soaked darkness. Not
sure whether to believe the boy, and in disbelief at their ever more complex
situation, they trudge on. Happening on their original campsite, Pia and
Jimmy feel a strange sense of homecoming, even though the place has been
trampled and thrashed by something – either human or animal.
After
gathering provisions, Kennedy prods the others to move on, trenchant in his
desire to get back to the crash site ASAP. When he’s greeted with
resistance from some of the group, Kennedy and Talbott elect to carry on to
the site alone, leaving Jimmy with the women and boy. Promising to return
soon, the two men set out to intercept the salvage team which may or may not
even be coming. Rising to the occasion, Karen Oldham shakes off her earlier
troubles and takes control of the smaller group, even while noting that her
training only leads up to getting safely out of a distressed plane, and not
into wilderness survival.
Bauer takes his spear to the water’s edge hoping
to catch a fish for dinner. Unbeknownst to him, someone is watching him just
as intently as he’s watching the fish. That someone, obviously at home in
these surroundings, stealthily loads a crossbow with an arrow. Bauer lunges
at a fish. Misses it. Hears something behind him. In an instant, the fish is
impaled on an arrow and a burly hunter (who we’ll come to know as Falconer
John of the Forgotten Tribe) - armed with a knife and crossbow, painted in
camouflage, with wild blond hair, blue eyes and the mark of the cross on his
forehead, – is at his side. The boy recognizes that this is the same
person who tended his wounds after the crash, drew the cross on his face and
who has otherwise served as an unseen guardian in the jungle. As the hunter
begins to lead Bauer deeper into the jungle, Karen’s voice, calling to
him, prompts him to bolt back to the security of the group and leave the
hunter - and the fish - where he found them.
Meanwhile, Talbott and Kennedy
continue on their trek. Stepping carefully, they know they’re on
someone’s turf when Talbott triggers, but narrowly escapes, a leg snare
trap that would’ve yanked him high into the forest canopy. Then, when
Talbott is stricken with intense pain and dips into the prescription
medicine bottle in his pocket, Kennedy takes the opportunity to pry into his
companion’s health condition. Talbott reveals to the doctor that he has
been diagnosed with terminal cancer and has six months to live. Of all the
people to walk away from a plane crash, it’s a cruel joke that his life
should have been spared.
Arriving at the crash site, Talbott and Kennedy
pillage for supplies until they’re startled by a band of Spider Tribe
hunters – the same group that slayed their co-survivor Sidney days
earlier. One of the hunters is even wearing the loud Hawaiian shirt that
Sidney had on when they attacked him. When two of the warriors enter the
plane, a skirmish ensues, and Kennedy fires a flare gun at one of them. The
men flee, but not before Talbott takes an arrow in the leg. The Spider
Tribesmen take off in pursuit of Kennedy and Talbott who have only a short
head start. Since Talbott can’t run, the two men take refuge in the
branches of a tree, where they hope to elude their pursuers.
Back at the
campsite, Karen cooks the fish that Will has recovered from the water while
Jimmy and Pia scavenge for more firewood. Taking a bad misstep, Jimmy finds
himself up a tree, literally, when a slip trap like the one Talbott avoided
leaves him hanging by one ankle. Ensconced in their arboreal refuge, Talbott
and Kennedy hear the unmistakable sound of a helicopter approaching. The
others at the campsite hear it too.
Within moments, Talbott and Kennedy can
see the chopper, but they must lay low to avoid the Spiders coming after
them. As Dr. Kennedy surmised from the start, the chopper drops a salvage
team at the jungle crash site. Maddeningly, the thick undergrowth muffles
the group’s cries for help and could prevent them from getting back to the
wrecked plane tail section in time. It remains to be seen whether Talbott
and Kennedy will escape the Spider Tribe and make it to the plane to end
this nightmare or whether they’ll miss the rescue opportunity, causing the
group to be left for dead in the heart of the world’s most hostile
wilderness.
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Episode
#104 - “The Fierce Ones”
Broadcast
Week of Broadcast Week of October 11, 1999
Synopsis
Taken into captivity by the Spider Tribe, Karen Oldham, Jimmy Stack, Pia
Clare and Will Bauer are marched at spear-tip through the jungle. Unsure
whether Dr. Kennedy and Talbott were able to reach the salvage team and
arrange a rescue, they trudge toward their uncertain fate. Cool under
pressure, Will surreptitiously leaves a trail of shreds from his orange
shirt, with hope that Kennedy will follow the trail and come to the
group’s rescue.
Reaching their destination, the survivors are frightened
to see the entrance to the Spider Tribe’s village lined with human heads
impaled on spears. Fully expecting to see the head of their fallen
co-survivor Sidney (who they thought they watched die at the hands of
warrior children at the crash site), they’re all amazed to see Sidney
alive, barely, and bound to a stake in the middle of the village.
Meanwhile,
Kennedy and Talbott have arrived at the crash site, but they’re too late.
Frustrated that they were so close to rescue, they sift through the wreaths
and mementos left in remembrance of the crash victims. A plaque, laid by
Will’s parents and including a photo of the boy’s family, is most
chilling to the men. Talbott takes the photo as a keepsake for Will.
Back at
the Spider Village, the Tribesmen poke and prod their new prisoners. When
one of the tribesmen gropes Karen, she shuns his advance, unintentionally
angering him. With tempers flaring and spears at the ready, it looks like
the survivors are in danger until Pia puts her operatic talent to use and
belts out a soaring aria that transfixes the attention of everyone within
earshot.
Kennedy and Talbott return to their campsite and find the others
missing and their signal fire burned out. Any question about where they’ve
gone is answered when Kennedy finds a broken arrow, identical to the one
that Talbott was wounded by, at the site.
At the Spider Village, the
survivors are being treated well until a warrior group marches into the
center carrying the man Kennedy shot with a flare gun at the crash site
skirmish. Things take a turn for the worse and the Spiders intend to avenge
his suffering. First, they tie Jimmy and Sidney to a pole, back to back.
Then, in a native ritual, a shaman inhales a load of mysterious powder.
Within moments, he starts to rant and chant, obviously hallucinating. Then,
they untie Jimmy and Sidney, hand Sidney a spear and escort him to the
village exit. Jimmy is jealous that Sidney is being set free – until he
notices the Warriors gathering their own bows and spears. What seems like
Sidney’s release is actually the beginning of a hunting game where he is
the prize.
Meanwhile, when Kennedy notices the trail of fabric shreds that
Will left behind, he and Talbott get on the trail of the missing members of
their group. Still nursing an arrow wound and weak from his illness, Talbott
can’t walk any further and collapses to the jungle floor. Kennedy shows
rare compassion in handling Talbott’s condition, settling down to camp
with him for the night, rather than continuing on solo.
Returning victorious
from their “hunt” of Sidney, the Spider Tribe is jubilant. One of the
tribesmen sidles up to Karen, gestures to his dead friend (who died as a
result of the skirmish with Kennedy and Talbott) mutters “an eye for an
eye” and walks away. Karen stands in stunned silence after hearing him
speak English. How could it be? Following Sidney’s demise, the group’s
latest problem is that another tribesman is wounded and deteriorating fast.
If he dies, Karen realizes, another member of the group will be hunted and
killed for revenge. This in mind, they decide to attempt an escape.
When
Kennedy and Talbott finally follow Will’s trail to the outer edge of the
Spider Village, they’re frightened to see the entry way decorated by
impaled human heads. Hearing chanting and other noise, they figure the rest
of the group is inside. As they ponder their next move, Kennedy is shot in
the neck with a dart gun. Pulling the dart from his neck, Kennedy weakens
and falls to the ground. Falconer John, the native hunter who’d cared for
Will after the crash, silently emerges from the foliage and speaks (in
English) to Talbott, who’s understandably frightened for his life. When
Kennedy shakes off the non-lethal dart poison, Falconer John takes control,
advising that the others are still alive and coaxing Kennedy and Talbott up
into a tree. John has a plan to save the others, even as they plan their own
escape from the Spider Tribe. With an unexpected sense of religious fervor
in his voice, John asks which of the group are to be “preserved for the
Almighty.” Talbott, incredulous at the question, responds that they are
all to be saved.
As the head Spider Tribesman leads Jimmy to the village
gates to begin the hunt, Falconer John springs into action. Dropping out of
the canopy, he wheels the Headman around, placing a large knife to his
throat. In the Spider’s native tongue, Falconer John demands that Jimmy be
taken back into the village. Tempers flaring and arrows flying, Falconer
John controls the situation, demanding that the survivors, especially Will,
whom he believes to be a gift from the “Almighty,” be released. In
exchange for their freedom, he even offers himself as a hostage.
As the
drama unfolds, Kennedy remains in the tree, with a crossbow, while Talbott
comes into the village, armed only with a flare gun. Firing a red flare into
the sky and then brandishing the gun menacingly, Talbott forces the warriors
to lay down their weapons and, under threat of death by flare gun, starts to
walk his group out of the village. But a hidden tribesman has a different
plan and comes out of the darkness wielding a bow and arrow. Just before he
can shoot at Talbott, Will spots the man and calls out. Talbott spins around
and fires another flare, landing a direct hit. With this, the group runs for
safer ground.
After fleeing their captors, the survivors regroup and notice
that they’re missing Will Bauer. Jimmy, Kennedy and Falconer John set out
to find him, but the Spider Tribe warriors find the boy first and recapture
him. With Will’s fate uncertain, the group cautiously follows Falconer
John back to his home, the “Village of The Chosen.” Not sure if
they’re about to step into the hands of an evil cult, the group is amazed
as they walk into the beautiful village, built at the base of an enormous
waterfall. The village is a sprawling piece of naturalistic architecture,
with catwalks high above the ground connecting the various structures. It
seems like a wonder of native ingenuity – but, more importantly, to some
of them, it seems like their new home.
Back to Top
Episode
#105 - “The Chosen”
Broadcast
Week of Broadcast Week of October 18, 1999
Synopsis
As
the survivors wake from exhaustion in the beautiful village of the Chosen,
they see the jungle as Eden for the first time. This moment of bliss is
short lived, however, when they find the village inhabitants – “The
Chosen People” - see them through a veil of suspicion and, in some cases,
hatred. The village is ruled by a tribune, chief of which is Elder Cole. His
second-in-command, Elder Balaam, looks upon the survivors with fear and
loathing. It’s clear that Balaam will prove to be a dangerous foe. When
the delicate peace accord between The Chosen and the Spider Tribe is broken,
Elder Cole and his tribune choose to err on the side of caution and, much to
the survivors’ dismay, decide to offer some combination of Kennedy, Pia,
Karen, Jimmy and Talbott to the vengeful Spider Tribe as a peace offering.
Will, of course, is still captive in the Spider village.
Back to Top
Episode
#106 - “The End of the World”
Broadcast
Week of Broadcast Week of October 25, 1999
Synopsis
As
Chosen guards patrol outside, Dr. Kennedy (C. Thomas Howell), Andrew Talbott
(Rob Stewart) and Jimmy Stack (Chris Martin) grow increasingly frantic as they
await their impending doom. At dawn, they are to be led to almost certain death
at the hands of the Spider Tribe as part of a peace agreement between the
natives and the Chosen (episode 105). The cliff face at the back of their hut is
the only possible route of escape and the three decide to chance it. Using their
feminine wiles, Pia (Fabiana Udenio) and Karen (Carol Alt) distract the guards
as the three desperate men make their way up the cliff wall, freezing every time
a wrongly placed foot sends a loose rock falling to the ground far below.
Kennedy and Talbott finally reach the top but Jimmy makes the fatal mistake of
looking down. He immediately panics and loses his balance, falling and crashing
through the thatched roof of a supply hut. The guards turn on Pia and Karen,
realizing they have been duped. The alarm is sounded and a chagrined Jimmy is
quickly captured and hauled back to the survivors' hut under guard.
Kennedy runs for his life and hides in the shadows of a fisherman's lean to near
the river. Unfortunately, he is not alone. The distinct sounds of love making
attract his attention and he peers into the darkness of the hut to see a Chosen
woman, Hekka (Deborah Pollitt) and her husband in mid-passion. For a split
second his eyes lock with hers but to his surprise, she doesn't betray him. She
doesn't need to. As Kennedy moves off he is overcome by Balaam (Joseph Scoren)
and his armed guards.
An almost reluctant Falconer John (Gabriel Hogan) comes across an exhausted
Talbott. Talbott begs him to let him escape but when Falconer reveals that Pia
or Karen would be sent to the Spider Tribe in his stead, a disgusted Talbott
goes willingly back to the village. Falconer John follows, knowing in his heart
that the Chosen are doing the Strange One's wrong, his faith severely tested.
In the Spider Village, Will (Tyler Hynes) wakens from sleep and witnesses the
fierce Masteeko (James Gonzalez) and several other young armed warriors melting
into the jungle in the dead of night. As he watches out of curiosity, he is
joined by Korakal (Pedro Salvin). The older man shakes his head, knowing where
the blind hatred of his young warriors will lead them. Will asks why he doesn't
stop them but Korakal knows that a thirst for revenge cannot be easily sated.
Will realizes slowly that the chief, Korakal is becoming more his protector than
his captor.
As dawn breaks, the echoes of Karen and Pia's frantic and pleading cries fade in
the distance as a terrified Talbott, Kennedy and Jimmy, their hands tied in
front of them, are led in a forced march away from the Chosen village and
through the morning mists of the jungle to their fate. As the army files by they
become aware of a strange clicking sound, like a cricket. Elder Balaam tenses.
The trees appear to move. A spear sings through the air and plunges into the
chest of a warrior marching next to Falconer John. And then... sudden and
complete bloody chaos. They are attacked from all sides by the young Spider
warriors led by Masteeko. In the ensuing frenzy, Talbott and the others demand
to be untied and fight bravely alongside the Chosen warriors. The attack ends
just as suddenly as it began. The warriors have exacted their vengeance and as
they slip away as swiftly as they appeared, Falconer yells that their covenant
is ended. They have broken faith! The three survivors look at each other. What
does that mean? It means that the strange ones will no longer be returned to the
heathen as a payment of peace.
Returning to the village with the wounded and the dead, Dr. Kennedy goes into
full ER mode and Balaam has it out with Falconer John, furious that the hunter
freed the survivors. He doesn't care that they fought the enemy with them. In
his opinion, the covenant is not broken, they should still be sent to their
deaths. The words are barely out of his mouth when he is hit in the side of his
throat by a deadly blow dart, a direct hit from a hidden Masteeko. Balaam grips
Falconer for support and then goes down, choking, breathing his last. Kennedy
looks down at the man who ordered his execution. Does he now save his life? His
surgeon's instincts take over and he performs a very crude tracheotomy. As the
villagers look on in amazement, Dr. Kennedy brings Elder Balaam back to life.
As a result of Kennedy's "miracle", the survivors are looked upon with
different eyes and welcomed back to the Chosen with a night of feasting. Elders
and villagers alike wonder at what they have seen. Perhaps the Strange Ones are
what they claim. Perhaps the boy truly is the Promised One. Not content to rest
on his laurels, Kennedy uses the feast as an opportunity to hoard food and
supplies and seeks out the fisherman he befriended in episode 105, to find out
more about the river and "the end of the world" Jacob spoke about.
Later that night, when the others are asleep, he wakes Jimmy and proposes a
plan. Now's their only chance. Their best hope is for the two of them to take a
boat, follow the river, reach some sort of civilization and get help. At first,
Jimmy is not convinced. He refuses to leave the others. Kennedy points out that
Talbott couldn't make it in the shape he's in and either could the women. When
he shows Jimmy his stash of food and weapons and promises to come back for the
others, Jimmy agrees to go with him.
Just as they push Jacob's boat out into the river, the fisherman pursues them,
trying to stop them. Kennedy knocks him out with a brutal punch and the man
falls, hitting his head on a rock protruding from the shore. At Jimmy's
insistence, Kennedy checks that Jacob is still breathing and then they're off,
paddling like mad down the river. What they don't see is that the blood from the
fisherman's wound has attracted a school of piranhas. His body jerks with the
savagery of their attack.
Kennedy and Jimmy hoot with exhilaration as they taste freedom for the first
time, but the moment is short lived. The horribly wounded Jacob is discovered
and the chase is on. Within minutes Jimmy and Kennedy can see their pursuers,
paddling with surprising speed, gaining on them, shouting at them to stop. Or
are they warning them? Paddling for their lives, Jimmy and Kennedy become aware
of a new sound, roaring and pounding in their ears. They turn a corner in the
river to see nothing but mist. The river narrows abruptly into rapids and
disappears underground, sucked down into the rocks of a small cave. Nothing
else. The end of the world.
Their pursuers hold back, knowing the danger but it is too late for Jimmy and
Kennedy. They hurtle at break neck speed to certain death. Jimmy jumps from the
boat just before it capsizes and scrambles to grab at anything he can to keep
from being swept away by the rapids. Kennedy is thrown out of the boat and
disappears under the raging water. He appears again. Desperately flailing his
arms, he grips an overhanging branch. It holds him for a second and then breaks
off. He finds the boat and clings to it, but he loses hold and as Jimmy watches
in horror, Kennedy, his eyes bulging in fear, is sucked down into the cave,
disappearing from sight.
Knowing there's absolutely nothing he can do, a distraught Jimmy pulls himself
up the bank, his hands cut and bleeding from the effort. He stumbles through the
jungle and comes across a group of grim faced Chosen villagers. He's relieved to
see them until one of their fists comes into direct contact with his face.
The guards throw Jimmy into their hut and Talbott, Pia and Karen react in shock
when they hear the news of Kennedy's death. Down below, the curious and the
concerned crowd around the writhing body of Jacob the fisherman, watching the
Doctor try to save him, the wails of his wife, Hekka echoing through the
village. The survivors know one thing. Once again their lives are in mortal
danger.
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Episode
#107: "The Lost Words"
Broadcast
Week of November 1, 1999
Synopsis
Talbott,
Karen and Falconer John find themselves in the pit as well when they attempt to
pass candles to Jimmy. To make matters worse, the extra people threaten to cut
short the group’s air supply and scores of scorpions run amok in the pit.
While desperately trying to dig their way out of the pit, Talbott and Karen come
across the secret burial ground of the Chosen Tribe and discover the meaning
behind the "lost words" which seem to guide so much of their culture.
Meanwhile, Will gets lessons on jungle survival from the Korakal, Headman of the
Spider Tribe. Then, when Korakal is injured in a hunting accident, Will saves
his life. As a show of gratitude for the boy’s bravery under duress, Korakal
takes a special interest in Will and begins to see him as a newfound son and
member of the tribe.
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EPISODE
#108: "Resurrection"
Broadcast
Week of November 8, 1999
Synopsis
Will
Bauer (Tyler Hynes), now more an adopted son than a captive of the Headman
(Pedro Salvin), watches in fascinated horror as one of the young men of the
Spider Tribe undergoes a manhood ritual. The Headman sees Will’s interest and
invites him to take part in the ritual himself. Will agrees, thinking it might
bring him closer to the Headman’s beautiful daughter Kinchka (Inga Breede).
The hotheaded Masteeko (James Gonzalez) and his brother Jakuki (Mauricio Rodas)
react angrily, but the Headman is firm. Will will become one of the Spider
People.
With Dr. Kennedy (C. Thomas Howell) presumed dead, the remaining survivors are
adjusting to life with the Chosen. But their first priority is to convince the
Elders to rescue Will. Andrew Talbott (Rob Stewart) is still certain that
presenting Will as the mythical Child of Promise is their best bet. And while
the Elders have their doubts, they do agree to send Falconer John (Gabriel
Hogan) to scout out the boy’s condition. Talbott is overjoyed to hear this
news, but as he returns to the others, he collapses in a dizzy spell. It seems
that his fatal leukemia has taken a sudden turn for the worse.
Meanwhile Will and Jakuki listen to the Shaman’s (Alejandro Ronceria)
explanations of the quest they are about to undergo. Will realizes the
seriousness of what he has agreed to as the Headman translates the Shaman’s
instructions. He will spend the night alone in the forest, waiting for his
spirit animal to emerge. The two boys are lead off to take the Shaman’s
mind-altering potions as night closes in.
The creepy village doctor has come to tend to Talbott. Talbott’s sure that
he’s contracted a jungle fever. The doctor’s primitive healing techniques
include leeches and bleeding. Disgusted, Pia (Fabiana Udenio) and Karen (Carol
Alt) throw him out but it’s too late. The doctor is convinced that Talbott has
something contagious and when he returns, it’s with some thugs who remove
Talbott from the hut and leave him in the forest with the lepers and outcasts.
Even Pia can see that this will mean certain death and she leaves Karen with the
unconscious Talbott while she goes to get help.
Across the jungle, Will sits alone, communing with the animals. It’s at this
moment that he first hears the growl of the jaguar. Is this his spirit animal
revealing itself? The growl is heard by another person in the jungle –
Falconer John, who is silently following Will.
Karen has reluctantly allowed Prudence (Katie Emme McIninch) to care for Talbott,
but is suspicious of Prudence’s methods. She’s not convinced that a witch is
any better than the doctor was. Especially when Prudence admits that her potion
may cure – or kill. But Talbott trusts Prudence and takes what she offers him.
By the time Elder Cole turns up,the damage is done. He, along with Karen and Pia,
watch in horror as Talbott’s eyes close for the last time. The doctor makes
the solemn pronouncement and Karen wastes no time in laying blame. Pointing a
shaking finger at Prudence, Karen accuses her of murdering Talbott.
Will is facing danger of his own when he comes face to face with an equally
freaked out Jakuki. The two rivals stare at each other through a drug induced
haze and just when Jakuki seems ready to take Will out, the jaguar strikes. But
is it a real animal or a hallucination? Jakuki doesn’t wait around to find
out. Having made the connection with his spirit animal, Will must still make it
through the night alone.
Night falls as the grieving survivors attend a hasty funeral held for Talbott.
He is placed in the catacombs next to the body of Jacob, the man Kennedy killed.
And when Talbott’s eyes fly open, that’s the first terrible sight he sees.
The second is his own body lying on the slab next to Jacob. Talbott flees the
caves in horror, not sure if he’s dead or alive. He stumbles through the
jungle, pursued by the ghost of Jacob, who urges Talbott to join him on the
other side.
Will has returned to the Spider Village but he must endure another challenge
before he can truly become a man. He and Jakuki are given doses of the powerful
ritual drug used by the Shaman and set free to struggle with the demons of his
past life. With the Headman’s words echoing in his ears, once again Will finds
himself flying through the jungle, drawn towards the sound of rushing water. In
his own quest, Talbott has also followed this sound and finds himself at the top
of a massive waterfall. But Talbott is tiring. And this time when the ghost of
Jacob appears, he’s no longer frightening. Talbott starts to listens to
Jacob’s invitations. He wades closer to the precipice, in danger of being
swept over, when Will appears. Realizing what Talbott intends to do, Will rushes
forward and urges Talbott not to give in to death. Talbott decides he does want
to live, but slips at the edge of the precipice and is swept over the waterfall.
But Will’s words have had an impact. Against all odds, Talbott manages to pull
himself back up. He lies gasping at the top of the waterfall. Will has
disappeared. But Talbott is alive!
Talbott finds himself back in the catacombs, with the body of Jacob lying beside
him. This time when he leaves, he knows he is returning to the land of the
living. And he emerges to the joyful welcome of Karen, Pia and Jimmy (Chris
Martin). Even Elder Cole (John Neville) is glad to see the stranger return. The
two men meet and take the first steps towards a friendship. But Talbott has
someone else he must speak to – the witch Prudence.
Will also returns to the Spider Village, where a captive Falconer John has
witnessed the boy’s embrace of native life. Will orders Falconer to be set
free but makes it clear that he chooses to stay with the Spider People.
Especially when Kinchka is impressed by his new manhood. Falconer John must
return empty handed, fearing that Will is lost to the Chosen forever. And this
seems likely when Will and Talbott return once again to the waterfall. Talbott
walks with Prudence, as eager to learn her secrets as she is to learn his. And
Will travels with the Headman, who now views him as a son. Both Will and Talbott
have embraced the jungle but in very different ways.
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EPISODE
#109: "The Blood Angel"
Broadcast Week of
November 15, 1999
Synopsis
The sun
rises in the Amazon. Talbott, apparently recovered from his near death
experience, ventures outside the hut for a morning shave. He is enjoying the
stillness of the early hour when he suddenly realizes that something’s
missing. The entire village is empty. The Chosen have disappeared.
Karen, Jimmy and Pia join in the search for clues as to the whereabouts of their
hosts. Pia has sharp words with Jimmy. Living in such close quarters means there
are no secrets among them, and Pia’s not pleased to hear Jimmy talking in his
sleep – about her! Karen is shocked to discover that all the food is also
missing, and later when she and Talbott search Prudence’s hut, they are
confronted by one of the scatabouts. Karen and Talbott try to get information
from him, but the old leper’s warnings of the mysterious “eyes” watching
them and of the Blood Angel mean little. The leper refuses to join them and
leaves the two to return to the village with not much more to go on. A noise
from the cathedral attracts their attention and all four survivors hurry up to
discover some playful coatimundi, jungle raccoons, busy destroying the Elder’s
belongings. When Talbott picks up the pieces of a scattered chess set, the
figure of a red angel catches his eye. Could this be the Blood Angel in the
leper’s warning?
Will Bauer, now considered a man by his adopted family, is no closer to winning
the heart of the Headman’s daughter. The Headman tries to console Will by
offering to get him a wife when the time is right. Will smiles nervously, not
sure how to take all the new responsibilities of manhood.
Remembering something he saw in the caves, Talbott coerces Jimmy into
accompanying him as he searches for clues. Jimmy waits nervously as Talbott
discovers a kind of map on the wall, full of mysterious images and words. The
Blood Angel is there and Talbott guesses that the rest might be a map showing
the way to where the Chosen have gone. He begins to copy the map and Jimmy,
creeped out by the bones, beats a hasty retreat.
Night falls and the leper secretly returns to Prudence’s hut looking for
anything worth stealing. The survivors are making a sorry meal of the few
remaining foodstuffs when a terrified scream echoes through the jungle. They
tear through the trees expecting to find the old leper. Instead they almost trip
over the body of Dr. Kennedy – more dead than alive – but alive all the
same!
Jimmy is left on guard while the others examine Kennedy in the safety of a
treehouse. He’s in rough shape – broken bones, feverish, emaciated and full
of maggots feasting on his wounds. An unconscious Kennedy is also troubled by
terrifying flashbacks of his attempt to escape with Jimmy. The others don’t
yet know of Kennedy’s encounter with an even more hostile tribe, but they do
discover the results of that encounter – a gunshot wound in Kennedy’s leg.
Taking it as a sign that he reached civilization, their rejoicing is cut short
by the arrival of an unwelcome visitor. Down below in the deserted village,
Jimmy has come face to face with a menacing jaguar.
Will is having jaguar troubles of his own. Goaded by his rival Jakuki, Will has
joined some of the young men in a dangerous night hunt. They follow the sounds
of the jaguar through the jungle. Eager to prove his manhood, Will allows
himself to be drawn away from the village. But he discovers that Jakuki and his
friends are mocking him. When Will confronts them, the young men knock him
unconscious and leave him for dead in the jungle.
From the balcony of the treehouse, the survivors shout instructions on dealing
with the jaguar to the terrified Jimmy – most importantly, don’t lead him up
here! Talbott aims the crossbow but a Pia grabs it from him in a panic and
nearly succeeds in taking Jimmy out.
Finally the jaguar is distracted by some easier prey and leaves the humans
alone. Once again, they can turn their attention to Kennedy who is still in the
grip of his feverish memories. A series of images – fierce tribesmen with
rifles, a certain death, and then a sudden rescue by a mud-coated figure – are
jumbled in his mind. When he finally comes to, Kennedy can’t even recognize
Karen. He needs more rest before he will be well enough to tell them what
happened to him.
As morning breaks, the Headman and his second in command set out from the Spider
Village to find Will. The Headman is angered by what Jakuki and his friends have
done and is sure to punish them. Talbott also decides to head out, armed with
his rough map. At the last moment, he’s joined by an unlikely companion –
Pia, who’s sure that hiking through the jungle has to be better than playing
nursemaid to Kennedy. She’s not even put off by the discovery of the grisly
remains of the leper, apparently not so lucky in his encounter with the jaguar.
The two groups meet unexpectedly in the jungle when an injured Will is once
again snatched from Talbott’s hands and taken away by the Spider People. Now
more determined than ever to get Will back, Talbott pushes on to find the
Chosen’s hiding place. But the Chosen find them first and the guards are not
happy to see either Talbott or Pia. Reluctantly the guards lead the two
strangers to Elder Cole who allows them to stay and witness the prophecy of the
Blood Angel.
Will recovers from his snakebite and shows once again that he belongs with the
Spider People. Given the opportunity to have revenge on Jakuki, Will throws it
away and instead offers Jakuki his hand in friendship. The Headman is proud of
Will, but he is troubled by signs that the Chosen may be on their way to reclaim
him. Through the jungle night, the fires of the Chosen’s strange ritual are
visible. Amidst the flames and warcries, Talbott suddenly realizes how seriously
the Chosen have taken his suggestion that Will might be the child spoken of in
their legends. At the signal from the Blood Angel, the entire tribe stands ready
to go to war with the Spider People to win Will back. And when that sign comes,
Talbott and Pia can only watch in horror as the Chosen work themselves into a
bloodthirsty frenzy of dancing and chanting. The future is now more uncertain
than ever!
Special Guest Appearance by series creator Peter Benchley as Onan the Leper
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Episode
#110: "War"
Broadcast
Week of November 22, 1999
Synopsis
While
the Chosen men march off to war, Talbott tries desperately to convince Elder
Cole to call it off. He feels responsible for this. It was his insistence that
Will could help the Chosen reclaim some of their lost words that has brought
them to this point. But Cole cannot be moved. The Almighty has spoken. The boy
must be retrieved at all cost.
Talbott decides to go with the army in the hopes of talking Falconer John out of
this bloody enterprise. Pia begs him not to go. She wants him to stay and
protect her from Elder Cole who has been hinting lately of his amorous
intentions. Talbott, naturally believes that stopping a war takes priority.
Meanwhile back in the empty Chosen Village, Jimmy and Karen are nursing Kennedy,
who is recovering from injuries sustained during his traumatic days beyond the
End of the World. They are interrupted by the arrival of Hekka, the widow of the
man Kennedy killed while trying to escape, and her young son, Adam. The
survivors are anxious to learn what happened to the rest of the Chosen. Hekka
tells them they’ve gone to war. Karen tries to press for more information but
the look of burning hatred in Hekka’s eyes tells her none will be forthcoming.
Meanwhile, back at the Chosen hiding place, Hekka’s absence is noted.
Realizing her capacity for vengeance, Elder Cole decides he must return to the
village to stop her. He awkwardly asks Pia if she will accompany him. She
reluctantly agrees. It will be their first date!
Against Jimmy’s pleas not to leave him and Kennedy alone with the crazy Hekka,
Karen heads off to intercept the Chosen Army. She finds them at the river,
camped out in preparation for their pre-dawn attack. She too tries to stop the
madness but to no avail. Falconer is convinced they can get the drop on the
Spider People and escape with the Child of Promise while incurring few
casualties.
But little do they know that Korakal, the Headman for the Spider People, has
seen in the flames of a fire, a vision of the Chosen Army marching. When the
Chosen army bursts in to the village expecting to take the Spider People by
surprise, they find the village empty. Suddenly arrows rain down from the trees
above. They’ve walked into a trap!
Before they can even determine where the arrows are coming from, a contingent of
Spider Warriors bursts in through the entrance and the battle begins in earnest.
Deep in the forest, while the sound of battle rage in the distance, Will is
applying his war paint. Korakal has forbidden him to participate in the battle
but Will feels he is a man now.
Back to the battle. The Spider warriors have pulled out of the village and are
preparing to burn the Chosen out. Will arrives just in time to see what is
happening. He runs out and tells them to stop. Stop!
Both armies face each other. The “Child of Promise” stands between them,
keeping them apart. Finally Falconer John asks what they can do to break the
impasse. “Jakura,” replies Korakal.
Back at the Chosen village, Jimmy hears a noise beneath their hut. As he checks
it out, a figure moves from the shadows. A rolling pin crashes towards Camera.
As Jimmy falls to the ground unconscious, we pull back to reveal the widow Hekka.
Hekka drops the rolling pin and pulls out a long knife and advances towards the
sleeping Kennedy.
Kennedy awakens to find Hekka standing over him. Before he can speak, Hekka
drives the knife into his back in a strong underhand thrust. Kennedy screams.
Hekka pulls out another knife to finish him off. With the first knife still
sticking out of his back, Kennedy tries to fend off the slashes from the second.
The two wrestle for control just as Pia and Elder Cole come rushing in, having
heard Kennedy’s screams. Hekka is disarmed. Kennedy collapses face first, the
knife still embedded in his back.
Back at the Spider Village, the two sides prepare for the “Jakura.” The
Jakura is a contest between two men; one from each side to decide which will be
victorious. Falconer prepares to fight for his side but Korakal insists that
Talbott be his match. After much negotiation they decide on a chest thumping.
Rocks will be drawn by each contestant from a bag filled with scorpions, and
used in turn, to pound the chest of the foe. The winner will be the man left
alive or standing.
The reluctant Talbott gets the first blow. He hits Korakal but not hard enough
to deliver a knockout. Korakal grins and gets to his feet. He then winds up and
delivers a devastating blow to Talbott’s chest. Talbott is sent sprawling. It
appears the Jakura is over. But at Falconer’s urging, Talbott rises and faces
Korakal again. Using all his strength and anger, Talbott delivers his next blow.
Korakal is sent sprawling into the dirt. Will run to his side. “He’s
dead!” Falconer assures him he’s not. He then turns to the Chosen. “The
Child of Promise will return with us!” The Chosen army breaks into cheering.
Their gloating sickens Talbott who tell them to shut up. There is nothing to
celebrate here. They can’t make Will come back with them.
For the first time, Will clues in that this battle has been about him. He is
thunderstruck. Talbott tries to explain but Will refuses to listen. He tells
Talbott he won’t go with them. The Chosen Army, after losing men in the
battle, must return home empty handed.
Back at the Chosen village, Elder Cole dispenses justice to Hekka and Kennedy.
He laments the poverty of choices left to him. How can he order the death of
Hekka without making her son an orphan? And what of Kennedy, responsible for the
death of Hekka’s husband and Adam’s father. And then suddenly he is struck
with the wisdom of Solomon. The boy shall have a father. Hekka and Kennedy will
be married! That will serve as their punishment! Kennedy’s eyes grow wide at
the thought of being married to this madwoman.
At the Spider village, the dejected Chosen army prepares to leave. Bodies are
placed on stretchers. Talbott pulls out the photo of Will and his parents that
was left at the crash site. Seeing the photo, Will remembers afresh, the outside
world they’ve left behind. He realizes that he doesn’t belong here. He tells
Talbott that he will return with him if Talbott promises him they’ll try to
escape. Talbott makes his promise.
Will tells Korakal he’s decided to go with the Chosen. Suddenly the two sides
are facing each other again with renewed aggression. Korakal tells them to stand
down. It’s over. Will is dead to him now. One by one they turn their backs, as
the tearful Will is lead away to the Chosen village.
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Episode
#111 - "Eyes In The Dark"
Broadcast
Week of January 17, 2000
Synopsis
Victorious
in their battle against the Spider natives, the Chosen warriors carry their
wounded through the jungle on their way back to the Chosen City, taking with
them Will Bauer (Tyler Hynes), the "Promised One." His decision to
leave the Spider People (Episode 110) with Talbott (Rob Stewart) and Karen
(Carol Alt) was a difficult one, but the tears have stopped now and his face is
set. As he makes his way through the jungle however, he suddenly becomes uneasy,
turning sharply, perceiving a movement in the dense bush. For a split second he
sees the leering face of the Shaman (Alejandro Ronceria) - or was it a jaguar?
Will has reason to be wary. Outside the gates of the Spider Village in the
avenue of the skulls, the Shaman works his evil magic. Raising high the Jaguar
staff that Will was given at his initiation into manhood, he puts a curse of
revenge on the boy for betraying the Spider Tribe. The growl of the jaguar
echoes in the jungle as the Shaman sets Will's spirit animal against him. In the
shadows, Kinchka (Inga Breede), the Headman's daughter watches in horror,
knowing the danger Will now faces.
Will enters the Chosen city and is immediately surrounded by curious villagers
getting a first look at their strange "Promised One", more native than
Chosen. Pia (Fabiana Udenio), Jimmy (Chris Martin) and Kennedy (C.Thomas Howell)
are overjoyed to see him, but they too can't help but stare at what Will has
become. Their happy reunion is brief however, as Will is summoned immediately by
the Elders.
Elder Cole (John Neville) welcomes Will with open arms but wastes no time
demanding the Lost Words. The boy flounders, having no idea what "Lost
Words" he is talking about and the Elders begin to suspect that he may not
be "The Child of Promise" after all. Will tries to concentrate on what
they expect from him, but once again powerful visions distract him and he looks
up to see the Shaman taunting him from the top of the waterfall. His black magic
overwhelms Will and the Elders watch, mystified as their "Promised
One" passes out in front of their eyes.
Feeling betrayed by the other survivors for putting him in this unexpected and
potentially dangerous position, Will angrily confronts Kennedy, Talbott and
Jimmy. Why did they do this to him? What are the lost words? If the promise that
he knows them is the only thing keeping them alive, they'd better start to
worry.
The Shaman's deadly curse continues to work its evil magic and Will experiences
increasingly disturbing visions and flashbacks, becoming acutely aware that
something is watching him, waiting for him, just beyond his sight. But however
imaginary Will's visions may be, a real stalker threatens the safety of the
village. A black jaguar - the vicious, "Eyes in the Dark", a beast of
mythical proportion in Chosen history returns to terrorize the community,
striking viciously, taking a Chosen fisherman as its first victim. As the doomed
man's screams of terror echo along the river bank, Mary, a small Chosen child
also goes missing, striking fear into the hearts of everyone. Has the child also
fallen prey to the "Eyes"?
Karen and Pia and the village women help the desperate mother, Rachel search but
all Pia finds is the child's doll and a shred of material from her dress. At the
same time, Talbott and a still weakened Kennedy join the hunters, pushing
through the jungle to flush out the beast. A very nervous Jimmy takes first
watch with Falconer Johnn (Gabriel Hogan), guarding a camouflaged pit filled
with deadly sharpened sticks, a small pig dangling over it as bait.
When the harness holding the little pig threatens to break and send the poor
animal to its death on the stakes below, soft hearted Jimmy goes to its aid and
inadvertently becomes the bait himself as the jaguar suddenly attacks from the
darkness. Jimmy stumbles to avoid its attack and hurtles backwards into the pit,
the jaguar beside him. The jaguar dies, pierced through by the stakes... but
Jimmy, with the luck of a true game show winner, narrowly survives to tell the
tale.
The relief that follows the slaying of the beast is tempered by Rachel's grief
when Dr. Kennedy performs an autopsy on the animal and discovers the remains of
a small hand. Her daughter Mary's?
In the meantime, Prudence (Katie Emme McIninch) the healer summons Will away
from the village and brings him to her hut where Kinchka (Inga Breede) waits in
hiding. She warns Will that the Shaman has cursed him and turned his Spirit
animal, the jaguar against him. Will reassures her that the jaguar that stalked
him and the village is dead. Kinchka is unconvinced, and in fact Will's
frightening visions do not end with the death of the beast. Even stranger, an
appearance by the evil Shaman reveals the missing Mary, by the side of the
river, unscathed.
Will returns the lost child and the Chosen village erupts into celebration.
Elder Cole claims that the boy must truly be the Promised One, a hero who has
brought the lost lamb back safely to the fold. Elder Balaam (Elder Scoren) is
not so convinced.
With Mary safely returned, Kennedy realizes that what he found inside the beast
was a monkey's paw, not a child's hand. He and Talbott face the fact that they
got the wrong animal.
As the merrymaking continues, Will becomes increasingly afraid, sensing rather
than seeing that the Shaman's evil curse is still at work. He manages to stop
Jimmy from venturing into the jungle on a romantic tryst but is powerless when a
hapless Chosen villager, off in the bushes with his girl, becomes the next
victim of the beast.
Talbott forbids Will from taking part in the hunt that ensues and refusing any
words of comfort from Karen, he sullenly listens to the far away calls of the
hunters in the jungle. The village is silent, no movement, almost as if it has
been enchanted. Then, a sound, close by... a threatening growl. Will swings to
see a great jaguar at the top of the Chosen waterfall looking down at him,
challenging him - not a black beast... but a sinister and shadowy white one.
Lured on by the growls of the beast, Will enters the Holy cave behind the
waterfall, bow and arrow in hand, determined to hunt down his foe once and for
all, whether real or imaginary. A battle of nerves ensues. Startled by bats and
the eery image of the Shaman crying like a baby mocking him, Will perseveres.
Slashing claws reveal that the beast is more real than imagined and just when it
seems Will is hopelessly trapped, the beast falls dead, felled by an arrow from
Karen's crossbow. She has killed the great white jaguar.
Only when Falconer John carries the beast from its final lair does Will realize
that the animal was the embodiment of the Shaman's evil curse... for it is no
longer white... but black, like the magic that was conjured.
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