DOWNTOWN STREET - NIGHT A young man wearing a trucker's hat is walking away, down the street.

NARRATOR I was walking home... An old man wearing a hooded cloak emerges from the alley. NARRATOR A man appeared from the shadows... The old man grabs the young man's shoulder NARRATOR He approached me and placed his hand on my shoulder... Close up of the old man's face. He said... OLD MAN (spooky, raspy voice) Son, you have been blessed and cursed... Close up of the narrator/young adult. NARRATOR/DARREN (speaking) I should interject here and inform you that this man was not actually my father. The old man speaks. NARRATOR As he was saying... OLD MAN It's a title handed down every generation. From this day forth, you must write stories and share them with the world, lest it explode. The young adult walks out of a quick-stop eating a bag of cheese puffs. NARRATOR I kept on my way, stopping for a pack of cheese puffs. NARRATOR

The young adult is passed out on his couch, bag of cheese puffs spilled in his lap, video game controller on the floor, TV blaring. NARRATOR When I got home I played video games and watched TV until I passed out. There's a news broadcast on the television: hail containing fire is destroying the news station. NARRATOR ...I guess the plagues, crashing planes, and mass flooding should have been a telltale sign, but y'know... A bong, grinder, weed, rolling papers, and half-smoked joint are scattered on the table. NARRATOR I may have had a hit or two... A plan crashes into the top floor of an apartment building. NARRATOR I woke up in the middle of the night to the sound of crashing lumber The young adult is laying in his bed, staring at a two-by-floor impaling his chest. NARRATOR I opened my eyes to see my chest impaled by a 2x4. NARRATOR/DARREN (speaking) This doesn't look good... NARRATOR (cont'd) Just like Donnie Darko. The young adult's spirit floats up and out of the burning apartment building. I died... NARRATOR/DARREN (speaking) Aw shucks, I just payed this month's rent... NARRATOR

A light shines at the end of a dark tunnel. NARRATOR Next thing I know I'm faced by this bright light. Close up of the bright light. It saidBRIGHT LIGHT Hello Darren. Extreme close up of the bright light. NARRATOR I should mention, it seemed like a particularly holy light. Darren stands in white space. DARREN Where am I? VOICE You're dead. DARREN Jeez. What happened? VOICE The world ended. You were impaled by a 2x4. Darren speaks to the camera. DARREN (aside) Dying messes up your short term memory. Darren stands in white space. VOICE Why didn't you write the stories and share them, as you were informed? DARREN I thought the guy was joking. Darren speaks to the camera. DARREN NARRATOR

(aside) In truth, I also forgot. Darren stands in white space. He wasn't. Clearly. Darren travels through a time-tunnel. NARRATOR And with that, I was sent back in time, hours before my death. Darren wakes up on the couch, sending the bag of cheese puffs flying off his chest. The video game controller is on the ground. The TV is blaring. WOAH! Darren is sitting at a coffee shop, talking to a classy female reporter. DARREN And I've been writing sotires ever since, y'know, to keep the world from dying. REPORTER You expect me to believe that? DARREN Nope, but it's how this story starts. DARREN DARREN VOICE