Brief

After barely escaping an unprecedented snow storm, a pair of climbing buddies must fight their way back home through a fog populated by strange creatures and relentless carnage.

What We Liked

This work stands out for its grounded, relatable characters, for its inspired creature designs and genre thrills, and for its rather unique environments, which prove profoundly immersive and transportive for the audience. Fans of works like THE MIST and A QUIET PLACE will be enticed by this work's palpable suspense, its grit, its spectacle, and its all-in creature subgenre fare.

Film: This would be a solid candidate for adaptation for film in that this work is largely efficient, packing much bang for its buck with its many creature thrills and high-stakes suspense sequences. It is also highly immersive and cinematic, dependent on the spectacle and expansive environment and gargantuan creatures, as opposed to the more traditional coverage that might be afforded by the more limited screen and serialized television format.

TV: This could be a solid candidate for adaptation for TV in that, aside from the cliffhanger and suggested demise of its lead, there seems to be endless room for expansion and sequels. In essence, the world constructed by the author is richly detailed and highly expansive. In the text, he introduces countless conceits that could prove to be of service to seasons worth of television. There is always a sense that here is more to see, experience, and learn both within and beyond the confines of this text.

Key points:
1. The characters-- Grounded, human, and relatable.
2. The creatures-- Offering spectacle and impressive designs.
3. The world building-- Expansive and inspired, offering an excellent foundation.
4. The settings-- Gritty, punishing, and immersive.
5. The homages to beloved past genre works-- Fans of THE CRAZIES and THE MIST are in for a treat.

Synopsis

Alex awakens in a makeshift prison cell. He's suffered a beating, and he grows wary of the weathered man sitting across from him. Soon, Alex begins telling the tale of how he got there-- Alex and Jackson are a pair of friends and climbing companions who are trekking off the grid on Mt. Rainier. The pair soon find themselves encumbered by an avalanche, and they are forced to dig their way out of the snow. With the pressure of the snow mounting on their buried tent, tensions start to flare, but they eventually abandon their camp and make their way out. Finding that their GPS is suspiciously out of commission, the two race against looming frostbite and toward an evacuated mountain hotel. They break in and rush to warm up their frozen extremities. Inside, time passes, as they hope to wait out the storm and snow.

They spend their time drinking and sleeping, but before long, they begin to suspect that society may have collapsed outside of the hotel given the defunct GPS and on-the-fritz radio stations. A desperate radio call freaks them out, featuring the panicked pleas of a scared man. Outside while trying to recover guns from a ranger's station, they encounter the planet's foes-- An evidently alien, behemoth flying beast followed by a swarm of smaller, winged creatures. They narrowly survive an attack. Soon, the men take in a sick, unconscious man, and they begin to fear for a contagion. They find a note telling them that people are gathering down the mountain in Longmire, and they make plans to rendezvous there by way of a snowmobile.

The men approach a small compound, but they quickly find themselves overpowered by large goons. Alex is thrown into a cell, where he meets fellow prisoner Keno, while Jackson is experimented on by a fringe doctor, who is seeking to find an antidote to the X-virus that has overtaken the world, causing humankind to go insane with violent rage before dying.

Time passes, but before long, Alex, Keno, and Jackson band together to ambush the guards and doctor and to flee into the cold, resuming a trek toward friendly faces by way of snowmobile. They are silent as they ride through the icy climate, fearful of attracting an alien threat. Keno gives more context as to the origins of the alien monsters, citing an expert from SETI, which explains the chaotic weather. The trio receives a radio transmission inviting survivors to join a larger group, so they head to the town of Puyallup. The three make due on the journey, periodically having to evade diseased people and alien predators. Keno becomes increasingly abrasive, and eventually, Alex and Jackson decide to part ways with him. In Puyallup, Alex and Jackson trek into an apparent underground military base, where they find a chronicling of the inciting events of the apocalypse-- A huge blast, an onslaught of creatures, and of the lethal disease. The documentation iterates that humans were put on the planet to warm up the atmosphere in order to make it more conducive to the alien species. Their hope for a new normal is increasingly dwindling.

Soon, a lone soldier named Brock frantically comes to them, seeking protection from the aliens and elements. With that, a new trio is formed. The group treks once again into the cold, and they eventually come to an abandoned cabin. Inside, Alex waits back while the other two head out for supplies. Alex's internal monologue becomes increasingly erratic, and it becomes clear that he is diseased when his nose starts bleeding. As his companions' return becomes imminent, a rabid fury takes over Alex. He wields a knife, prepared to attack his friends upon re-entry...

About The Author

Moe Taylor began his career as a broadcast journalist in the United States Navy, where he filmed and wrote news stories in over forty countries. While in the Navy, he also published a sci-fi novel called Take Warning. After a tenure as a producer for NBC, Taylor started a production studio with his wife called BrainDagger Films. Taylor is fascinated by the secrets of the universe and is proud to add his own voice to the sci-fi genre.