The Arroyo of Lost Souls

The COURIER, an athletic young man, hikes across the Mojave during the heat of the day. He wears desert camouflage and carries a backpack. When he sees a horse and rider in the distance, he takes a detour to avoid being seen himself. The detour, however, takes him to unfamiliar territory, and soon he is lost. He ends up at the Arroyo of Lost Souls, a dry gulch ten feet across and twice that deep. In a flashback, he remembers the long jump records he set in high school and decides to jump. But the jump goes wrong when he steps on a rattlesnake, and though he reaches the other side, he shatters his kneecap during the landing. Unable to walk, he manages to crawl until he reaches a tree. There, he discovers that he lost his water bottle and smashed his phone as well. Thirsty and sunburned, the young man is near despair when the same horse and rider he tried to avoid earlier reappear. The HORSEMAN gives the courier water and looks over his injuries. As they talk, the courier becomes suspicious of the horseman’s intentions and tries to get to his backpack and a hidden gun, but the horseman is quicker. After unloading the gun, the horseman tells the story of three teenage girls who died after snorting fentanyl-laced cocaine. The courier denies any knowledge of the drug trade, even after the horseman finds bags of cocaine in the courier's backpack. In a verbal sparring match, the courier claims someone is trying to frame him. As the courier becomes weak and disoriented from the snake venom, the horseman takes pity on him and gives him a last chance to confess. In return, the courier tries to stab the horseman with a hidden knife. After the fight, the courier sees his own body leaning against the tree and realizes he has died. The horseman reveals himself to be the archangel SAMAEL, avenger of the innocent. The film ends with Samael riding his horse and leading the courier into a blood-red sunset.