The Eye - Pilot

THE EYE, EPISODE 1 (PILOT) Radio Broadcast

Opening theme song plays. After a couple moments:

LILY ODEKIRK

The following is an emergency radio broadcast, brought to you by WZLY at Wellesley College. I repeat, this is an emergency radio broadcast. You are listening to: THE EYE.

Theme song fades out. The LILY ODEKIRK is adjusting the microphone.

LILY ODEKIRK (Slow, deflated)

Good evening, residents of Wellesley College. As I’m sure you are aware, Boston and MetroWest are experiencing a series of brutal winter storms, which have only increased in scope and magnitude. Governor Charlie Baker announced last week that Massachusetts is in a state of emergency. We can only assume that the entire northeast has been buried in snowfall. In Wellesley last night, the newly deposited snow brought the overall levels to the height of a two­story building. The snow is falling faster than it can be cleared, and it seems as if we are resigned to waiting until Spring for the roads to be navigable. I am temporarily living in Bates. On East side, the lower levels of each residence hall are being evacuated, as the pressure from the snow banks have begun to break through windows and doors. Students are moving

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upwards, sometimes with four to five people to a room. As many of you know, it has been weeks since the students of Wellesley College have received any official communication from the administration. There seem to be no administrators or staff members left on campus. The only faculty housing on site has been dark for the last week. We will be reaching out to them as soon as the weather allows. Many people have been injured due to collapsing roofs, falling trees, and general chaos. Although we have no definitive information yet, it can only be assumed that the snow has obstructed the highways and permanently disabled public transportation. Food delivery to the dining halls has completely stopped. For those who do not have access to the pantries in any of the main dining halls, I recommend that you use the tunnel network whenever possible, and relocate to a more central residence hall. Those of you without access to the tunnels should travel together at all times. Needless to say, Wellesley College has been shut down, indefinitely. At last contact with public services, there was an advisory to stay indoors at all times. I repeat, should you need to relocate, please, travel with a companion.

LILY ODEKIRK trails off, breathing a heavy, shaky breath.

LILY ODEKIRK (Cont.) THE EYE S1, EP1 2

The internet is down. Phone reception is out of the question. And it is unclear for how long I will be able to conduct this broadcast. I doubt that there is anyone listening right now. But if somewhere, you have your radios tuned to WZLY, please remain calm, and know that I am your friend. I am here for you. I think it’s easy for us to forget that we are not alone. Earlier this evening, I attempted to contact other radio stations in the Boston area, particularly those of BC, Harvard, and BU. I was unable to access their signal,and I am unsure whether or not my calls to them were heard. I don’t know why their radios are silent, while ours is still working. I can only assume it is an accident of geographical location, and hope that we can continue to broadcast from the station, at least for tonight. In the meanwhile, our best hope is to find a way to contact someone from outside of Wellesley, and work on building a system of communication while we remain on campus. So far, the East and West sides are completely isolated from each other. In Bates, it is rare to receive any news from friends, acquaintances… anyone who lives on the West Side. If you are listening to me now, please take advantage of the radio. I will be spending the remainder of my time in Billings. If you have any information ­ survival tips, news ­ anything relevant ­ you can enter the studio through the top floor window, at snow­level, which I will leave

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unlocked and unobstructed for as long as I can. We need to work together now, more than ever. (Beat) But I’m afraid my usual report will be cut short today, in order to accommodate an unusual but important message. Last night, at approximately 3:00 AM, a dull, green light ballooned over the western sky. It glowed steadily for a moment before blowing off, like smoke. Until now, the light has been attributed to a falling powerline. (Beat) What I’m about to tell you may be shocking. But I broke into the WZLY radio station in Billings to tell you, my listeners, the truth: that green light was not a falling powerline. It originated from something much more abnormal. For reasons that will soon be made apparent to you, I am suggesting an immediate evacuation of Tower, Severence, Claflin, Lakehouse, and Casa Cervantes. Moreover, Stone Davis may also be at risk. If you are currently located anywhere near Lake Waban please, for the love of God, move. There is something of unknown origin and intent residing in that lake. What little is known about it will now be related to you. I have with me in the studio RACHEL PAK, a close friend of mine, who was there at the site of the green cloud. Rachel,thank you for joining us.

RACHEL PAK THE EYE S1, EP1 4

You’re welcome.

LILY ODEKIRK Have you slept at all since last night?

RACHEL PAK

No. Even if it hadn’t been for what happened… (Beat) the wind is incredibly strong. I have two windows in my room, and they didn’t stop shaking. And it was so cold.

LILY ODEKIRK

Yes. The power outages have been devastating.

RACHEL PAK During the first week, I thought that maybe someone from maintenance would bring us a generator. But nobody came. I hadn’t realized that there was nobody left. I had tried insulating my windows, but I needed the blankets for myself. Last night, it got so bad that the only thing I could do was leave my room, and start pacing the hall. I saw a group of maybe 10 or 15 girls huddled together for warmth in the fireplace room. There was no fire in the fireplace, of course. There wasn’t enough dry wood to fuel it.

LILY ODEKIRK What happened then?

RACHEL PAK

Well, I guess I sort of snapped. I was just so tired of the cold, and the noise. Munger was dying. The walls were groaning around us,

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threatening to collapse. And half of the rooms were empty. Full of ghosts.

LILY ODEKIRK What did you do?

RACHEL PAK I went outside. I thought that maybe I could find someone to help us. Anyone ­ a townie, someone with a snowmobile perhaps. But I couldn’t even see the road. It was just a blanket of ice and powder. I made my way to Munger Meadow, trying to walk in the place where I thought I remembered a path. I didn’t even have to use the steps, the snow was packed so tightly. I sort of slid down what used to be the steps. That’s when I saw the light.

LILY ODEKIRK What were you thinking at that point?

RACHEL PAK I wasn’t. (Beat) I thought that I was cold. I hadn’t brought gloves with me, so my hands were in my pockets, and it took a lot of my attention just to balance while walking through the snow. But I guess when I saw the light, it didn’t register as strange. I saw it as kind of a beacon. Something hopeful. I started walking in that direction without really thinking about it.

LILY ODEKIRK And how long had you been outside at this point?

RACHEL PAK

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Maybe five minutes. I didn’t know what time it was. I was in a sort of daze. I didn’t even realize how far I had walked until I got to the Tower courtyard. I waded in snow up to my waist. And then, all of a sudden I was at the water’s edge. The lake was bigger than I remembered it. It had absorbed all the snow. And so there was only a thin layer of snow on top of the ice, maybe a foot and a half.

LILY ODEKIRK Did you see anything unusual at that point?

RACHEL PAK Nothing at first. But I remember feeling something. (Beat) It was something like warmth, but not really. Like tiny vibrations against my skin. The wind had stopped. In fact, everything was still. But I felt like the stillness had a source… I mean, it really was a stillness you could feel.

LILY ODEKIRK Was there anything else?

RACHEL PAK Yes. Humming.

LILY ODEKIRK

Humming?

RACHEL PAK Like, a really low humming noise. Almost mechanical.

There is a disturbance in the quality of the radio broadcast ­ static. After a moment, the broadcast returns. The LILY ODEKIRK is tapping the microphone. THE EYE S1, EP1 7

LILY ODEKIRK

Testing. Testing. Is everything working? I think we’re back.

RACHEL PAK What was that?

Wind can be heard howling in the background.

LILY ODEKIRK For those of you just tuning in, you’re listening to an emergency radio broadcast on 91.5 WZLY in Wellesley, Massachusetts. I’m your host, LILY ODEKIRK, here with RACHEL PAK. We’re discussing the events of the last few days, including the strange green light that appeared last night, and Rachel’s encounter with ­ well, we’re not sure what. (Beat) Is this microphone working?

RACHEL PAK I don’t know.

LILY ODEKIRK We seem to be having some technical difficulties here in the station. Please hold tight for a moment while we attempt to correct the issue.

The last part of the line is cut off with static, then the program goes silent. Then the LILY ODEKIRK comes back on.

LILY ODEKIRK The studio has gone dark. Either the power went out, or the light bulbs burst from a surge. I suspect that the back­up generator is currently running, but I don’t know for how long. Rachel, how are you doing? Rachel?

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RACHEL PAK (weakly)

Yeah?

LILY ODEKIRK Are you feeling alright?

RACHEL PAK No. I feel strange.

LILY ODEKIRK Strange?

RACHEL PAK Yes. Like my body is...on fire. I feel like my bones are hollow. And on fire.

LILY ODEKIRK OH, god.

RACHEL PAK My skin ­ what’s happening to my skin?

LILY ODEKIRK Stay calm.

RACHEL PAK Why is it doing this? I feel like my body is filling up with air. Oh god, oh god.

LILY ODEKIRK Take deep breaths, okay?

RACHEL PAK Breathing only makes it worse! I think the air is fueling it!

LILY ODEKIRK

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I don’t know what to do. Oh, god. If anyone is listening to this, please send help to the WZLY studio in the Billings basement. Rachel’s skin… is glowing, bright blue. It’s burning up around the chest ­ I don’t know what I can do ­

RACHEL PAK (struggling to speak)

I need water ­ We hear some rooting around. Things clanging, papers brushed away.

LILY ODEKIRK

The pipes are frozen! We eventually hear the LILY ODEKIRK’s hurried footsteps as she goes out into the snow. A door opens and then closes. When she comes back in, her breath is heavy from the effort. We don’t know this, but she is holding a pile of snow.

LILY ODEKIRK (Cont.) Here, have this. It’s cold. Shh, shh. You’re okay. Eat more of this. You’re okay.

RACHEL PAK I’m scared.

LILY ODEKIRK I know. You’ll be okay. Look, the color is fading now.

RACHEL PAK It’s trying to get me. I know it’s trying to get me ­

LILY ODEKIRK Nothing is trying to get you. We don’t even know if it even has a mind, yet.

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RACHEL PAK I know it does. I felt it! I felt it yesterday…

LILY ODEKIRK Shh… shh…

(After a moment) There’s no point continuing when you feel this way. Our listeners, if we have any, can wait.

RACHEL PAK We have to.

LILY ODEKIRK Not now we don’t. We’ll just go on break.

(deep breath) To our listeners, if there are any still out there, please stay tuned. We will be back in a moment.

Lily Allen’s “Smile” begins to play (3:00). It cuts off at the end.

LILY ODEKIRK Welcome back. I’m not going to make this seem easier, or simpler than it really is. We’ve been having a tough time here in the studio. I’m sitting with my friend Rachel, who was about to tell us about what she experienced near Lake Waban late last night, when she broke out into a spontaneous… glow. Rachel, how are you feeling now?

RACHEL PAK Okay.

LILY ODEKIRK Are you sure you’re okay?

RACHEL PAK THE EYE S1, EP1 11

Yeah. But I need a few more moments.

LILY ODEKIRK Of course.

(Addressing the listeners) We are going to continue on with our regular programming, and return to Rachel in a few minutes. I will take this moment to, again, urge everyone to work together to establish some sort of communication throughout campus. While Rachel and I were walking to Billings, I spotted what appeared to be a few small groups of students navigating the snow drifts. They had tied themselves together, so that no one would get lost in these low­visibility conditions. I can only assume they were out looking for friends, or food. In this weather, only the most important tasks would incite someone to go outdoors. However, with better communication, we can achieve our goal of survival without putting ourselves in physical danger. Take advantage of the radio. Take advantage of the tunnel network. If you have to go outside, please be aware of new and developing threats, in addition to that of the snow. Monday morning, I observed a group of domesticated dogs traveling in a pack,like wolves; hunting down whatever animals they could find. Their behavior was organized, and their methods were extremely efficient. Since then, they’ve passed by Bates several times. I’ve observed them from my room, their mouths foaming and bloody, and seen them

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turn on each other. At night, They come up to the windows, scratching and pawing, and when I see them out there, it almost makes me glad to be trapped inside. I would also like to repeat the administration’s last set of instructions. Students are not to create fires for warmth anywhere outside of the fireplace. Especially not with gas. Remember, in one of the earlier storms, a senior tried to start a small cook­fire in Shafer. This caused a mass evacuation in sub­zero temperatures. There is no word on where that student is now, but it is evident that the use of stoves right now contains a high risk, as pipes are breaking, leaking, and residence halls are overpopulated. If you or anyone you know has information about missing students, please come forward. I am currently compiling a list of the unaccounted for, which can be found in the WZLY studio on the back of the door.

Now I would like to return to Rachel and her story. Rachel, how are you doing?

RACHEL PAK Better.

LILY ODEKIRK Do you feel comfortable talking about what happened?

RACHEL PAK

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I feel like it’s been getting worse since yesterday. Ever since I came back from the lake, I’ve felt something stirring ­

LILY ODEKIRK (Aside)

You know, after this program airs, people will be on your side. I don’t know how many people, but there will be some. And we could find a way to get rid of it.

RACHEL PAK (Too roughly)

No! (Correcting herself)

It’s too dangerous at this point. We’d have to wait until spring. Until the ice thaws.

SIlence for a moment. LILY ODEKIRK clears her throat, lightly.

LILY ODEKIRK

Okay. (Beat) Before the break, you were talking about the feeling you experienced when you stood near the lake, just after the green light appeared. You said you had heard someone humming?

RACHEL PAK Not someone. It was more like some thing. It wasn’t a sound that a human could make, it was too low.

LILY ODEKIRK (Cont.)

Had you experienced anything like it before? Is there anything you know on campus that could have made that noise?

THE EYE S1, EP1 14

RACHEL PAK

Nothing I know of. My radiator used to hiss at night.

LILY ODEKIRK But this was different.

RACHEL PAK Yes. (Beat) After I heard the sound, nothing else seemed to matter. The snow had even stopped falling for once. And my legs itched. I felt like running, even though it was late at night, and I was exhausted. Without really thinking about it, I climbed over the boardwalk railing, and lowered myself on to the ice. I never really thought about the possibility of falling in… I figured that after all that’s happened this week, the lake was frozen solid. There was even a layer of snow on the top to cushion my landing. (Beat) Actually, I was surprised there wasn’t more snow covering it. I guess something about the water had melted it off.

LILY ODEKIRK What part of the lake was this?

RACHEL PAK The side nearest to Tower court, by where the old college pillars are. I remember because they were one of the only things the snow hadn’t completely covered.

LILY ODEKIRK What happened then?

RACHEL PAK

THE EYE S1, EP1 15

Well, as soon as I was on the lake, I felt this kind of rush. I wanted to walk towards the center, to see how far I could go. It was more than just some whim, though. I felt compelled to do it. And so I waded through the snow, slowly. It was easier than I expected, since most of the snow was powder, and it was so cold that nothing stuck to me. I didn’t stop walking until I got to the center.

LILY ODEKIRK And then?

RACHEL PAK Then ­ well, I can’t explain it. I felt as if someone was watching me, but I was so far away from land that I couldn’t tell for sure. I turned around several times, but the tree­line was so dark, and of course there was no light from any of the buildings or the road, because of the power outage. But I remember searching for a sign of someone else, and not finding it. And the sky was so dark, starless, covered in clouds. I felt like the sky was just an extension of the ground, and that the world was swallowing me up. That I was in the center of this giant mouth.

(poignant pause)

RACHEL PAK (Cont.) I know you’re going to ask me what I did next, and why. I just felt like I was trapped. I didn’t know where to go, now that I was in the center. Back? Forward? I began shuffling my feet a little, kicking the snow away.

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And that’s when I noticed a discoloration in the ice ­

RACHEL PAK breaks off from her monologue. It’s obvious that she is having trouble continuing. Short pause, before LILY ODEKIRK decides that she needs some encouragement:

LILY ODEKIRK It’s okay if you want to take a little more time.

RACHEL PAK I just feel out of breath ­

LILY ODEKIRK It’s okay, we can wait.

They wait.

RACHEL PAK Most of the ice was a dull, black­gray. You could tell that there was depth beneath it. But the ice nearest to my feet was much lighter. Closer to white. And there was less depth. I could see that there was something floating there, closer to the surface. I began kicking more ice back. I swept it little by little, just a foot or two in radius around me. And I noticed that the white coloration wasn’t everywhere, but only to my left, in the direction of the boathouse. So I focused on clearing that area instead, just trying to see what was there.

LILY ODEKIRK (Aside, to RACHEL PAK)

I know it was hard when you told me this morning, but you have to repeat your description. For everybody else.

THE EYE S1, EP1 17

RACHEL PAK I know. (Beat) What I saw was an Eye. There was no body; nothing attached to it. Just a giant eye, about ten feet in diameter, frozen underneath the ice.

LILY ODEKIRK Were there any unusual details that stood out to you?

RACHEL PAK Besides the size?

LILY ODEKIRK I’m sorry, I’m just trying to be thorough.

RACHEL PAK It was bright green. And the pupil was very large. It took up nearly all of the iris... I can picture it very clearly because it looked so normal. So horrible. Exactly like a human eye, except for the size. It was staring upwards, at nothing.

LILY ODEKIRK You use the word “staring,” as if it could see.

RACHEL PAK Yes. (Beat) At first I thought it was some sort of underwater sculpture. I walked into the center of it, to get a better look, and leaned into the ice. I thought maybe if I got close enough I would be able to tell what material it was made out of. I’d never seen an eye on it’s own like that, separate from a body, without even lids or lashes or anything. But when I got closer, I could tell that

THE EYE S1, EP1 18

it wasn’t a sculpture. There was too much detail. And while I was inspecting it ­ the pupil widened. Quickly. The ice beneath me got so black that I felt as if a hole had opened up, and I was about to fall through. And as soon as I could gather myself, I ran away as fast as I could, eventually reaching the bank of land near the library.

LILY ODEKIRK

You were sure that it moved?

RACHEL PAK Yes. And even more sure that it has a mind… but I can’t imagine what it would think with. Or how I was lead to it.

LILY ODEKIRK Don’t get offended. But I’m asking this question for all the listeners out there, who may not believe what you’re saying, or who may be tempted to put themselves in danger by going out onto the lake themselves. Do you have any proof ­ a picture, a sound recording ­ anything?

RACHEL PAK No, nothing like that.

LILY ODEKIRK

Nothing at all?

RACHEL PAK Well, I have my phone. There isn’t anything on it, but when I approached the Eye, it began vibrating in my pocket, and it wouldn’t stop. And after I ran away, I took it out, and the whole backside was covered in a

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film of gray dust. It was thick, like silt. And the screen was shattered. I couldn’t even tell where it had been hit.

LILY ODEKIRK Did you think of going back?

RACHEL PAK No.

LILY ODEKIRK Not even to get a picture?

RACHEL PAK No. (Beat) I don’t need a picture of it. It’s not an image I could forget, even if I wanted to. That dark pupil, dilating beneath the ice.

A moment of contemplative silence from the two of them.

LILY ODEKIRK

Thank you, [RACHEL PAK]. (Addressing the audience)

Obviously, this is a lot to take in. Nothing is confirmed yet, but we’re here in the studio to remind everyone to stay alert.

LILY ODEKIRK begins to break professional news­anchor character.

LILY ODEKIRK (Cont.) We can’t forget our humanity in these moments. We can’t survive, and forget to live. Somewhere on campus, a creature of unknown origin may be lurking, waiting, hiding. We must not jump to conclusions. But we must also be prepared for the worst.

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This concludes our emergency broadcast. This is Lily Odekirk, for 91.5 WZLY in Wellesley, MA. Stay warm. Stay safe. Goodnight.

Theme music plays. LILY ODEKIRK

This episode was brought to you by WZLY at Wellesley College. This broadcast is a work of the imagination. Don’t panic.

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