This is the source of the strange radiation that had our clocks running backward. How odd that Beckwith should choose this ghost of a world for his escape. I am transporting two shifts for patrol—Rand, Spock, myself, and six enlisted crew. We’ll find him.

As these lines are SPOKEN OVER we see Spock indicating the tracks to Kirk, and pointing in the direction they vanish; we see Kirk deploying his crew-patrol in a search-pattern as they move forward. VOICE OVER CONTINUES as we

LAP-DISSOLVE THRU:

11 LONG SHOT—THE SCENE

The patrol (now comprising nine people: we have not seen the last three materialize, but Kirk has told us about it), moving across the wide empty face of the planet as VOICE OVER CONTINUES:

KIRK’S VOICE (OVER)

But something more important has us nervous. A world with a dying sun such as this…it should be frigid, without atmosphere…

(beat)

CONTINUOUS 
LAP-DISSOLVE THRU:

12 MED. SHOT—THE TERRAIN—ON THE PATROL

CAMERA MOVES IN SLOWLY as VOICE OVER CONTINUES and: (NOTE: we should see 3 scenes overlapping.)

KIRK’S VOICE (OVER)

(after beat)

But we aren’t cold…and we can breathe.

CONTINUOUS 
SLOW LAP-DISSOLVE TO:

13 EXT. PLANET—ANOTHER ANGLE—MED CLOSE SHOT

PAST Yeoman Janice Rand IN F.G. as she turns her head sharply to look just PAST CAMERA. A console is strapped on her, just below the bosom, and dials dot the face of the machine. A HUM grows stronger from machine.

RAND

(into camera)

Captain, there’s the source of the radiation.

CAMERA PULLS BACK RAPIDLY to show Kirk, Spock and the rest just behind her, and as CAMERA FILLS we see the full landscape. Mountains on the horizon. Mountains that rise up into the sky, till they become vague and wispy. Rising straight out of the flat terrain like pilasters.

SPOCK

The tracks…straight for the mountains.

CAMERA DOLLIES BACK IN and PANS LEFT to come in CLOSER on Kirk and, past him—as if they were miniatures right over his shoulder—the mountains, with a strange glittering on one far, distant peak.

KIRK

(almost dreamily)

Mr. Spock: do you see the city up there? Do you see it, too?

SPOCK’S VOICE O.S.

It is there, Captain. It is illogical, but it is apparently real.

KIRK

(in awe)

Like a city on the edge of forever.

CAMERA HOLDS as Kirk moves away toward the horizon and the others move with him. CAMERA HOLDS on the far distant view of that gleaming city, seen in almost opaque dimness as we

DISSOLVE TO:

14 PLATEAU OF THE GUARDIANS—LATER DAY—CLOSE SHOT

ON KIRK as he climbs up the last of what is obviously a rocky defile. The stones are a peculiar silvery material, with buried shimmers of light in them. As Kirk climbs up onto the plateau, CAMERA GOES WITH HIM as the ANGLE OPENS to show us bracing rock walls and niches all around us.

15 THE PLATEAU—ESTABLISHING SHOT—KIRK’S POV