Faith Inc. ep 8 – Unlocking the power

Episode 8

”Unlocking the power”

Rome – Jerusalem

The Gulf War. Deep behind enemy lines, Ghost and a fellow GREEN BERET lay hidden in a bombed out building. They look dusty and thirsty. A noise makes Ghost look out of the building, scanning the sky. He mutters an oath as he sees the big plane high in the sky. He motions to his colleague to bring him the radio. He immediately reports an illegal overflight. Out of nowhere two fighters appear, launching missiles. The plane erupts in a ball of fire.

Ghost sits with his hands clenched across from Henri de Lorraine. He tells him it was an Indian passenger carrier who had gotten out of course. He feels responsible for their deaths. All three hundred of them.

So, yes he has killed, both before and after that, but the guilt was one of the reasons he decided to try to atone his crimes by becoming a monk.

Lorraine and Ghost continue their intimate discussion. Lorraine skillfully steer Ghost out of his guilt-ridden blue funk and makes him understand that everything hangs on Ghost’s ability to find Jean and bring him back.     The light in Ghost’s eyes start returning and he becomes a man with a mission. He leaves de Lorraine’s Rome mansion with the small brass plaque by the door, ”Prièure du Temple”, and steps out into the pouring rain and hard storm.

Jean sits handcuffed and blindfolded in a seat in Carriera’s private airplane. Carriera shoots him a satisfied glance and continues reading his business magazine.

Back at his safehouse, Ghost starts calling old contacts trying to find Jean. He is putting his old agent network back to work.

Soforza calls de Lorraine and informs him that Carriera has left the country in his private airplane, destination unknown.

Lorraine finds his PILOT in the common room of the house and tells him they will have to leave very soon. The pilot informs him that all the airports have closed due to the severe storm. Lorraine gets worried and asks the pilot to find out the flight plan of Carriera’s plane.

Carriera’s plane arrives at an airport in a freakish downpour. Jean is lead to a waiting van by the two remaining bombers.

The pilot enters Lorraine’s room with the news that Carreria had filed a flight plan to Cyprus. The plane landed and then took off. The ground control lost contact with it and it may have gone down in the storm.

Lorraine and Ghost look at each other. Ghost says he don’t buy it. It’s a classic trick. They decide to take a chance and head for Jerusalem, the logical place to bring Jean. The pilot tells them there is no way he can fly Lorraine’s small business jet in the storm, even if the airport wasn’t closed.

Henri de Lorraine calls the CHAIRMAN of the military committee of NATO and requests a transport from the NATO base in Bari for a mission of utter importance. It’s a sign of his power when the chairman immediately approves the request.

Jean’s blindfold is removed. Blinking he stares at the bare room and then at Alain standing over him with the blindfold in his hand. Alain apologizes for the kidnapping. He feels awful about it, but he did it for his father.

Flabbergasted, Jean realises that Hernando Carriera is Alain’s father, planted in the Priory of the Temple camp years ago. Mortified by Jean’s angry and betrayed stare, Alain confesses he only did it to try to please his father who never thought him good enough or smart enough. His confession rambles on, even after Jean told him he doesn’t want to hear more.

Ghost, Madeleine and de Lorraine is driving in the awful weather from Rome to Bari in southern Italy. The strong winds throw cascades of rain towards the car, and as the temperature drops, the rain turns into sleet, making the roads lethal. Madeleine is sick and throws up repeatedly.

On the TV-news a distinguished PROFESSOR explains the freak weather. The natural low pressure of the season has been reinforced by an unusual planet constellation that exorts a gravity pull on Earth, playing havoc with the winds as well as ebb and tide. On top of this is added the unstable climate of the last decade and the result is one of the most severe storm fronts in recorded history.

Brave journalists Virgil and Lombard find themselves in a cosy country house. A distinguished looking BRITISH MAN apologizes for the enthusiasm of his colleagues, and greets them welcome to MI5.

The journalists have been kidnapped for their own protection at de Lorraine’s request as Carriera’s agents were closing in on them.

MI5 will supply them with new identities and keep them out of harm’s way. The journalists are not too happy with this solution as they want to continue their quest.

Carriera enters the room where Jean is being held and orders his son out of the room. He brings Jean a tray of food and sits down chatting with him in a suspiciously friendly way, at least for being Carriera.

He proceeds to trying to coax Jean into joining him. Together they can rule the world. Every path will lay open to Jean. Just name it and he can have it; money, power, women.

Jean turns him down flat, but Carriera doesn’t give up. Instead he starts to implore what Jean wants out of life and when Jean starts to open up, he uses it to try to talk him over.

Soforza’s double play has been discovered by wire-tapping by the relentless Terranova, and Miguel Cipriani off-handedly orders his execution while reading a biography on Pope Alexander VI (the Borgia pope). Terranova executes Soforza by giving him a lethal, but undetectable, dose of insulin.

Ghost, Madeleine and de Lorraine arrive at the NATO base in Bari. The officer in charge doesn’t want to give them a plane due to the storm, but Lorraine threatens him with the wrath of higher powers, i.e. his bosses, and he gives in.

Ghost calls his contact in the Israeli Intelligence, Mossad, and arranges a meeting.

The big, heavy cargo plane lifts destined for Jerusalem and it’s a very bumby ride as the plane is tossed like a leaf by the hard winds.

Carriera has lost his patience and starts torturing Jean. Outside the room Alain reacts to the screams as if it was him being tortured. Time and time again he is just about to enter the room, then controls himself.

Touching down at an Israeli military airstrip, Ghost, Madeleine and de Lorraine is met by MOSSAD OPERATIVES. Getting out of the downpour, the Mossad men lead them to a state of the art communication centre.

Lorraine calls Carriera’s cell phone and Ghost starts to time the conversation. Lorraine threatens Carriera by promising he will make the Flanagan folder public and then crush all his businesses if he doesn’t release Jean.

Carriera just laughs at him. He has Jean and that means he soon will have ultimate power and the ultimate weapon. Sneering, he tells de Lorraine that old men should have learned when to give up.

In the background the technicians make signs as they get a triangulation fix on Carriera’s location.

Ghost and Mossad gear up to storm Carriera and, together with Lorraine and Madeleine, they drive off.

Carriera is furious after de Lorraine’s call. Jean is hanging bloodstained from a hook in the ceiling, and Carriera starts walking around him like a madman, throwing verbal abuse at him, saying he was only lucky to get away from the car bomb and the helicopter attack.

Alain quietly remarks that they could have killed him too, and Carriera just shrugs. Sacrifices always have to be made in war, and Alain is an expendable asset. Alain blanches.

Carriera opens a small steel container. A white cloud billows as he lifts a test tube of liquid. He shakes the tube in front of Jean’s eyes, saying there is enough airborn Ebola virus in the test tube to kill the entire Middle East. And he has more. He will release it if Jean doesn’t join him.

Alain stare horrified at his father but Jean talks back, saying he would never give in to a madman. Alain starts begging with his father, who just calls him a pathetic spineless sheep.

Carefully placing the tube back into the container, Carriera pivots and pulls a gun at Alain. The moment freezes as Alain stares in disbelief at his father. Jean speaks out and for a moment he manages to distract Carriera. Alain whips out his gun and shoots his father in the chest three times.

Quickly he frees Jean, begging him for forgiveness. Jean comforts him, saying he did the right thing‚ eventually. The two bombers come rushing into the room alerted by the sounds of gunfire and Alain quickly defeats them. Echoes of gunfire can be hear further away in the building and moments later Ghost storms into the room together with two Mossad operatives. Relieved that Jean is all right he pockets his gun. The Mossad agents handcuffs Alain but Jean orders him released.

De Lorraine enters the room with Madeleine in tow. The lovers happily embrace. Lorraine breaks it up. Time is short. The Mossad rush them out to the cars parked outside and with blaring sirens they speed through the dark, storm-torn streets toward the ancient Priory of the Temple monastery on the outskirts of town.

Leaving the Mossad outside the monastery, our heroes enter the building. MONKS, dressed in a similar fashion to the monks of the Montrazés fortress, accompany them down into the deep recesses of the monastery. Jean looks more and more pained as closer they get to their destination.     ”Can you feel it too?” Madeleine whispers, looking up at him.

He nods. A slight tremor shakes the floor.

The pope, Miguel Cipriani, stands alone looking out at the glittering dome of the S:t Peter cathedral as he suddenly frown, his hand flies up to his heart and an earthquake shakes Rome as he falls to the floor.

TWO MONKS, dressed in white robes adorned with the Templar cross guard golden doors. They fling them open, sinking down in reverent bows as Jean enters the room lit by flickering candles. He walks in as if drawn by a magnet.

Inside, Jean steps up to the Ark of the Covenant. With trembling hands, he starts opening the lid.

The monks rise and close the door. They take up their guard on each side and Alain takes the place in the middle, now dressed in the same robe as them.

A bright light starts leaking from golden doorway as the doors slowly close.

THE END of Season 1

Interested in producing? Contact Annika Lidne

© Annika Lidne & Henrik Jansson 2002 – WGA reg no 857741