Stray Pack

THE STRAY PACK

GENRE: HORROR

In a classroom where the students talk about a social day out, we get to meet the five main characters of the movie: Pearl (a loner), Amaka (Pearl’s friend), Dan (Amaka’s boyfriend), Digba (Dan’s friend) and Sam (Pearl’s crush).

Pearl and Amaka sit at a corner in the class and she repeated meet eyes with Sam who always smile not hiding his affection but Pearl always looks away sometimes irritated. Amaka tells her to give him a try as he’s a nice guy and also looks good but Pearl doesn’t believe a guy like Sam can be single. Dan walks in with Digba his friend and finds Amaka and they begin their love issh. Digba tells Sam to free that ‘dull girl wey no get vibes’ but Sam insists he doesn’t know why he likes her and he is serious about her. He walks to where Pearl is and asks her for a favour.

‘What’s that?’

‘A sit beside you in the bus tomorrow’ begged Sam

‘Oh! No problem just that I’d have Amaka beside me’

‘I’m not beside you’ cuts in Amaka who had been eavesdropping. ‘I’d be with Bae here’ referring to Dan.

‘Let’s get out of here’ Sam jokingly drags Pearl away.

‘A deal tomorrow? Both of us sitting together’

‘Sam what do you really want?’

‘A chance to start something special with you……’

‘And your girlfriend?’

‘I swear down, I’m serious. I’m as single as a widow’

‘You expect me to believe that?’

‘You just have to. If every girl keeps saying that then I’d remain single’…………….

‘Ok I’d think about it’ Pearl says.

Not decided whether I’d show the bus scenes or if I’m going to add anything or just skip to the beach scene where the whole department is having fun

The students partying are brought to an abrupt end as they needed to be in school before dark but Amaka who had been having so much fun dancing, jokingly tells Dan she wishes she could have more fun and Dan says he can make it possible. That Digba’s house isn’t far off and he could quickly arrange a car. Amaka responds that she was joking but Dan insisted it was his initial plan they tour a particular club that night. Amaka agrees but can’t be alone without the company of her friend, Pearl. It took three people- Dan, Amaka and Digba to convince Pearl to abandon the bus back to school and club with them.

Sam sits in the bus but doesn’t see Pearl beside him, he looks out of the window and sees Pearl and her friends leaving. He rushes to where they were and decides to club with them, all for the intention of been with Pearl.

Selfies, booze, club lights, videos etc. Seemed fun and worth it. Pearl beginning to take a liking to Sam. Past 12, they decided to drive back to school as there was a test that afternoon and sleeping in a hotel and travelling in the morning was a risk since they barely had time to prepare. Unfortunately, they had so much fun that they didn’t notice the fuel tank was on reserve.

After a few minutes, the car stops in a dark lonely town and just then did they realise they had ran out of fuel. Digba who was driving and knew the routes very well said he’d stop a bike soon and go buy fuel after the blame game had subsided. They waited for a long time and no bike was forthcoming. It was then that Dan suggested he and Digba trek to the petrol station and buy some before they close, leaving Sam, Amaka and Pearl in the car. None of them had any batteries on their phones anymore.

While gisting, the trio sleeps off but are awakened by a knock on the car window. It was an old man trying to tell them something and since they couldn’t hear, they wind down the glass. He tells them that it is an unsafe night in Gbomike town. The king had just died and there is an Oro (a sacrifice) going on and requires everyone indoors. He invites them to his place but they say they can’t leave since they were waiting for their friends who had gone to buy petrol. The girls were scared but Sam tries his best to calm the whole anxiety. He assures them they made the right decision since they weren’t sure of who the man was and what his intentions where, he also highlighted the fact about what happens when Dan and Digba returns and can’t find them. He tells them lay low in the car and be patient. (pa-close shot pa- medium shot pa-full shot car front view pa full shot car back view pa darkness)

‘I’m scared’ Amaka stutters

‘We’d be alright’ Sam assures.

Digba and Dan were gisting along the road, oblivious to the danger they faced that late at night in Gbomike. Digba stops to take a pee and it was why he was urinating that masquerade head jumped out of the bus and beheaded him with a single blow. Dan who just saw what happened runs back towards the car but is shot with an arrow by masquerade head on this left thigh. While he’s struggling to run, masquerade head just walks slowly. (cliché badass)

Pearl, Sam and Amaka are still in the car assuring themselves it would be alright when Dan screams fill the air. ‘Run! Run!’ The trio come out of the car and see Dan crawling towards them. On their way to pick him up, they see masquerade head coming in their direction. Out of fear they all run and even Dan calls of ‘Amaka! Baby… help me’ didn’t make his lover even look back. Eventually, Sam rushes back avoids assaults from arrows and picks up Dan on top his back. Dan eventually gets shot at his back again. The two girls eventually help them to their hideout in the bush. The masquerade head parade with his frightful smokes and noise but don’t see them.

Dan is sweating profusely and at the same time complaining of cold. Sam offers his jacket to keep him warmer but doesn’t seem like Dan will make it unless he sees a doctor. Sam suggested that he could use the bush to get to the petrol station so they can take Dan to the nearest hospital but Amaka says they just stay in their hideout till its morning then they can do anything. While arguing, an old ugly hand taps Pearl, she startles but it was the kind old hunter they met earlier. He said his house was just at the back and he had seen them rush to the bush and he could also help their dying friend. Amaka and Sam help Dan up and with Pearl, they follow the old man to his old house. They tiptoe passing a hiding masquerade head who just watches them without doing anything.

The old man tries his best and uses a lot of herbs on Dan and says he will feel better before morning. They thank the man and he tells them about the Oro. It is used to drive the spirits of a dead king that won’t let another king rule in Gbomike. The Oro usually lasts 7days and it was on the seventh day that a girl had to be sacrificed.

‘How do they find the girls?’ Pearl asked.

‘They hope to find strangers. Kill the men and take a girl’ replied the man.

‘What if there aren’t any like us? From Amaka.

‘There always is. The gods always bring someone.’

The old man tells them shortly that it’s a long night and they should rest for the night while he retires to his room. They thank him again for his kindness.

While asleep, Pearl sleeping on Sam shoulders and Amaka beside Dan, absolute quietness. Dan begins to cough blood from his sleep and struggles to call his girlfriend, Amaka, he tells her he is going to die, she struggles to wake Sam and Pearl and they themselves struggle to get up, eventually, Amaka runs into the inner room to fetch the old man, their host.

On getting there, it was dark. Scared, she calls out ‘Baba! Baba!’ but still gets no response. She sees a figure of the man lying in the bed, as she tries to wake him; he turns out to be masquerade head. Before she could even scream, she get stabbed immediately and repeatedly. Her stomach is shown to be torn opened and her inner parts chewed by a cannibal.

Dan finally dies and both Pearl and Sam weep. ‘Where is Amaka?’ Pearl finally asks.

‘Yeah. I don’t know. She went in search of baba. Let me to fetch her’ Sam says.

‘No Sam. Don’t’ She holds him back. ‘Baba!’ she calls as she reaches for a stick behind the door.

Baba comes out tying his wrapper in a bit of hurry sweating. ‘Hope no problem?’ he asks looking concerned.

‘Baba what’s wrong with you?’ Pearl asks seeing blood in his hands, wrapper and over his mouth.

‘Oh! It’s nothing. Let me just clean up’ The old man replied with a wicked laugh and makes his way again to the inner room.

‘Stop there!’ Pearl commanded holding the stick. ‘Who are you?’

‘Are you thinking what I am thinking?’ Sam whispers to Pearl.

‘Why did you risk your life to help us?’ Pearl asks.

‘It’s just the two of you left. I think the game is over’ says the old man. ‘Loro! Poka!’ He calls and two masquerade heads come out of the inner room.

‘Oh my God’ exclaims Sam as Loro and Poka comes in.

‘Why you doing this?’ cries Pearl.

‘For sport. We are hunters. What do hunters do? They hunt. They set traps for preys and use whatever means to get them, sometimes even a bait. On our watch night, we see a car packed by the roadside. I don’t know how many are in there, or how many strong men. So I approach them. Seeing they were women, I strike fear into them. Know their weak points, their strengths and we attack. Beautiful plan’ The old man smiles.

‘You still not answered my question you fool. Why did you kill my friends?’ Pearl asks.

‘For power! My team is of new recruits. Harmless preys like you are the sport. To quietly kill without the noise. To feed on human flesh and accumulate power. I saw you run into the bush, we couldn’t just attack. We kill one after the other and remember I said we need a girl for sacrifice. Couldn’t afford to have you die fighting. Hunters fight not only with brute but also with brains’

‘You don’t scare us. We’d rather die fighting than claim cheap victory’

Ok really clueless right now and tired of procrastinating but Sam manages to escape but goes back to help pearl who was about been sacrificed. He dies in the process and tells Pearl he really loved her. She replied him too and he gives up the ghost smiling.

The movie ends with Pearl’s voice: ‘What do I say happened to my friends?’