- FADE IN:
- EXT. MOON BACKSIDE - 'LM' ORBIT - NEARING FLEET (NEXT DAY)
- The Fleet sans Pickel swarms about Flagship, all gyrating, diving, dodging, practice firing …
- POV: Chasing 'LM' through … All avoiding but blasting--
- The escaping smoldering 'LM' no longer looks like original…
- POV: Afore 'LM' leaving Fleet: This side of terminator a moonbase HANGAR OPENS BRIGHT-- and disgorges a starship …
- INT. FLAGSHIP COMMAND - SKY WHIPPING-GYRATING-ABOUT
- Grand-Admiral Harry admires the total Fleet exercise …
- Cadet hands Mike a printout, nods and resumes sitting;--
- Mike reads it --concerned-- and looks outside …
- EXT. FLAGSHIP - DANCING AMID THE GYRATING SWARM
- The distant moonbase HANGAR BRIGHTNESS RECLOSES …
JEFF (VO)
- (interrupts)
- Harry, Grand-Admiral, Sir: Starship Pickel, near moonbase, reports an unidentifiable exit from an unknown cavern:-- a starship of the grand class,- Running silent!
- INT. COMMAND
- Still busy in outer space gyrations.
MIKE
- John,- Are they challenging us?!
JOHN
- (at controls)
- No, They're accelerating away …
- (looks-up, keys again)
- Passing us at a distance, now …
- (looks-up again)
- SKY-WHIPPING SUSPENDS-UNSTEADY amid the yet-busy swarm:
- A starship passes afar, slowly, for deep space …
JAIME
- (recognizes)
- Gwendolyn!
HARRY
- (excited, orders)
- Operation Diana!- Let's Go!
MIKE
- (countermands)
- Belay that!
- (unpockets his printout)
HARRY
- (sees mutiny a beat)
- Mike … What, do you mean?!-- You committed to… This team committed to, issue and execute promptly every reasonable order!?
MIKE
- This is not mutiny, Harry: Read--
- (extends it at him)
- This mission has been compromised.
HARRY
- (retrieves, scan-reads)
- … Astrophysics … three, positively identified … critical ward … Alive.
- (reads 2 beats; distrust)
- How long have you had this? Did you board with this information, Mike?!
MIKE
- (still thinking)
- No, Harry: The message came today a Demur ago. I authorized Pickel crew to rig the transponder to extract a data stream from control sequences: We have rudimentary duplex e-mail….
- (half a beat)
- You of-course want to locate Diana … but we, have no further mission commitment: They are still on Earth … Critical, But we can't return nor do anything for them --out here:-- We're stuck in empty space…!
HARRY
- Then-- who-- just passed us…?!
- (realizes, excited)
- Diana's been abducted by impostors! Space Aliens!- We're chasing space-aliens!?-- Who, knows about this, Mike?!-- Have you informed Astrophysics?!--
- (scans all: reasserts)
- Who's not, going?!
MIKE
- (quick)
- Yes, Harry: The University has been informed. Furthermore, Area 51 also knows about us,- And moreover, they agree with you: Those lunar nuke missiles were not, made on Earth!
- All mildly surprised.
MIKE
- (calms)
- Harry, I can go the chase with you:
- (checks two)
- Our core team can go… if we return: Gwen, Peter and Daniel need us here … Pickel is on Trojan-horse-mission to sneak back and retrieve them…. And, I have my ulterior motive:--
- (confides)
- I want to learn this Flagship:-- I want this Flagship for my command!
HARRY
- (accedes)
- Looks like we'll have to arrange this: I'm amenable;-- Jeff? Gary?
JEFF
- Okay by me, Harry: I'll come back, with Mike:- Same reason: I came for Gwen, not Diana,-- much as I love her too and wish you both the best.
GARY
- I'll return to Earth-space, Harry: This new fleet needs us all,-- You too but we must let you find Diana.
- Harry looks to John …
JOHN
- (advances)
- Harry, I'm optional at this point: I'll go,-- but, I've no pressing necessity to return here.
JAIME
- (appends)
- Me, too-- I'm:
- (half-reads John)
- Optional….
HARRY
- (urges)
- Then-- Let's go: Operation Diana!
MIKE
- (orders)
- Communications: Put me on fleetwide broadcast!
JEFF
- (keys)
- Hailing fleetwide …
MIKE
- Helm: Lock-in navigation telemetry with Quest-Set:- Ready Operation Diana!- Comm: Outload assignments, as-are: Grand Admiral's approval.
- PA MULTI-CHIRPS.
JEFF
- You're fleetwide, Mike. Outloading…
MIKE (+PA)
- Attention, Space-Com' Fleet crews! This is Commander Michael, CINC-SPAC: Quest-Set is ordered to Operation Diana!- The remainder of the fleet is receiving assignments under Commander David of starship U-S-S Regents, your interim Earth-Fleet Commander.
- (orders)
- Implement-- now!
JAIME
- (controls)
- Aye, Captain: Implementing: Operation, Diana!
- (00:00 - From This Moment/Shannon's Train/House Radio)
- PIVOT: Jaime: Flagship comes-about for deep-space …
- And accelerates out from the group, with 2 starships …
- INT. FLAGSHIP COMMAND - NEPTUNE SPACE - LOW LIT (NEXT DAY)
- They watch in awe: Surround-windows show Jaime's display of rapidly EXPANDING GRID-CORRIDORS emanating from the target sphere ahead in steady stellar background, lines modulating minutely as-if parametric-binary-coded …
JAIME
- (answers to her display)
- No: It's just a corridor:- I have a choice of corridors; Star Quest and Stark Easter are in two corridors;- Gwen's starship is in another.
- Strange-Neptune and its giant moon Triton approach and pass minuscule to majuscule to minuscule, 5 sec….
JOHN
- (inserts)
- Passing Neptune: Point-98 light-speed-- relative to known pulsar data,-- and still accelerating.
JEFF
- Space-Alien technology is fast and far-out, but, it's still a long way to the stars at the speed of light!
MIKE
- What's our E-T-A?
JAIME
- 1-hundred-43 hesits,-- but there's nothing there!
MIKE
- (ponders)
- Just a coordinate point in 3-space: 4-space…?- Are there no other known objects out here?- Evaporated quark stars? Micro black-holes?-- Where's Pluto-Charon?!
GARY
- Out of phase, Mike; I've never read of any thing but magnetic anomalies of the solar wind and comet hordes.
JOHN
- At least the Aliens, know where they're, going!
- COMPUTER CHIRP-CHIRP-CHIRPS: DISPLAYS BLINK YELLOW as usage increases; Ship-to-ship Navigation assistance is requested:
- ORDINATEUR SURFEIT 0.231 (increasing to 0.558)
DEMAND OPERA-DIANA 0.932 (increasing to 1.000)
DEMAND STARKEASTER 0.858 (increasing to 1.000)
DEMAND STARQUEST 0.773 (increasing to 0.964)
JOHN
- (perks)
- Mike, Our computational fraction is expanding: We've doubled to quarter of capacity…!
JEFF
- (clips)
- Mike, We're receiving an equipment-request for navigation-computation assistance to the lead ship!
MIKE
- Give it to them.
HARRY
- (prompt)
- Hold on that, Mike!- The lead ship is Gwen's starship!
MIKE
- Harry, It's a reasonable request: We've got the necessary computing power, And we're following them, not apprehending them:-- We can't allow an emergency situation to develop….
HARRY
- Reasonable-request, applies to our team only: Is it an emergency call, presently, Jeff?!
JEFF
- No emergency:- An omni-cast simple-net request: They don't know we're in the vicinity … They've canceled navigation target-lock but haven't broken away …
- (keying)
- We have equipment-requests from the others: Stark-Easter at 1-hundred-percent but no declared emergency;- Star Quest is still climbing at 92…
MIKE
- (prompt)
- Now or never, Harry: Diana may be suborned: She's still our charge … It's only the automated operating system, not a user request: There's no need to deny.
HARRY
- So go the Aliens: We cannot help their abduction: Maintain passive forward telemetry: Give assistance to Quest-set fleet only!
MIKE
- (yields, orders)
- Support Quest-fleet, Jeff!
- (opines)
- Autonomous bureaucrats never learn: They exceed themselves to judgment.
JEFF
- (keys)
- Aye: Supporting Quest-fleet-- now.
MIKE
- (worries)
- John, What are we getting-into…?
JOHN
- No direct indication, Mike: Maybe the approach proximity … course corrections … corroborations … confirmations … Our computational drain has stabilized at 56-percent: Maybe this is why we have the extra equipment level…
- SPOTTY EYESIGHT-FLASHES, 2KHz BUZZ (VH-"C"): They flinch, wince, gasp, flail, (like a thin photo-op) 2 sec….
- IN THE TARGET SPHERE: Pluton HYPER-POINT BLOOMS briefly,-- NAV POPUP: Neutrino-event BURST-ANALYSIS … Usage resumes:
- DEMAND ORDINATEUR 0.104
DEMAND OPERA-DIANA 0.659
DEMAND STARKEASTER 0.637
DEMAND STARQUEST 0.590
JEFF
- (excited)
- What, was, that?!
JOHN
- (elated at displays)
- Computation load has dropped back!- Nominal 10-percent!- Navigation telemetry assist has terminated; The lead starship has reacquired target lock-in!-- And that, was a neutrino burst event, folks: We've just experienced a local supernova! Hang around for the exploding star!
GARY
- (a beat, doubts)
- How did that all coincide?!-- Did our starship computer just predict a supernova…?!
- All mutually puzzled.
JEFF
- (a beat, surprised)
- Maybe a neighbor black-hole crushed a planet, to nuclear density:--
- (invents)
- A micro-super re-nova…
GARY
- What information did our computer have on that…?
JEFF
- (proffers)
- Something starships must monitor to avoid, maybe…?
JAIME
- (reports)
- E-T-A 97-hesits: Course is locked-in:-- No more options!
MIKE
- How near is the interstellar rogue?
JOHN
- (thinks-up)
- We can calculate by triple ratio-circulation of processor-loads …
- (hand-draws it together)
- Telemetry from Star Quest and Stark Easter: Presume identical starships as neutrino detectors … indicating their intensities … Factor-in their separations … and Gwen's to reject spurious angles and scales …
- DISPLAYS: NEUTRINO BLAST RATIOS, 15 AU AHEAD.
JOHN
- Uh-Oh-- Mike:-- The neutrino source is local to our solar system ahead!
GARY
- The famed Planet-X is a black-hole?
JEFF
- (keys)
- And we're heading straight for it: Time to duck, mites!-- Fleetwide!
- PA MULT-CHIRPS.
MIKE (+PA)
- All hands: This is the Captain!-- Our Flagship present velocity is near light-speed: We are possibly encountering a micro black-hole: Ready for time-warp dilation and redirection!- Captain: out.
- INT. FLAGSHIP COMMAND - (3 MIN. LATER)
- (00:00 - Oxygene 12/Jean Michael Jarre)
- FILLED GRIDS ALTERNATING PINK-WHITE 'zone-approach' and a hyperbolic-passing course with recalculating variances …
JOHN
- Still no detectable evidence of the lead starship: Whatever's out-there swallowed them entirely!
JAIME
- (reports)
- We're entering the primary zone: Point-99 light-speed.
MIKE
- Recheck your seatbelts,- and hold onto something: This could be a significant redirect!
- GRIDS SOLID-FILLED RED …
JAIME
- Final stretch!-- E-T-A 5-hesits …
- (a beat)
- 4 …
- (2 sec.)
- 3 …
- (2 sec.)
- 2 …
- 4 sec. later THE SKY FLIPS to head into the galaxy;-- GRID CLEARS; the SKY ASIDE ABERRATES forward …
- STARS ACCELERATE passing; They check their coordinates; Nav plots on a galactic grid as speed ramps-up to 6.7 million;
JEFF
- (worries)
- We've lost contact with Star Quest and Stark Easter!
MIKE
- Give them a few hesits, Jeff: They're a few mega-kilometers behind us … John: Where are we?
JOHN
- We're in a corridor above the solar system plane; Gwen straight-ahead.
- (reviews displays)
- Light-speed no longer exists…!
MIKE
- What's our velocity?
JAIME
- It's listed as an astro-referenced distance skip-rate, fluctuating about 7-point-4 million times light-speed; E-T-A 50-kilohesits,- late tomorrow …
JOHN
- (clips)
- We're gaining rapidly on the lead starship!- Navigation is requesting we pass them!
MIKE
- Jaime: Keep us back, for now!
- (consults)
- Harry,- this could be important: Do you want us in front of Gwen when we arrive?
HARRY
- Advise Star Quest and Stark Easter fully, first: I don't want Gwen intercepting our telemetry.
- One additional starship enters the corridor-diagram …
JEFF
- (relieved)
- Stark Easter is in, the corridor!- We're waiting on Star Quest.
- INT. COMMAND - NEAR GALAXY CORE - RED-RUNNING (NEXT DAY)
- Stars denser, more passing rapidly; EXPANDING GRID AGAIN …
HARRY
- Any time you're ready, Mike.
MIKE
- (orders)
- Helm: Prepare to pass the lead…!
JAIME
- Ready for acceleration to passing.
MIKE
- (scanning fore-and-aft)
- E-T-A…?
JAIME
- 1-hundred-70-hesits, galaxy core.
CADET
- (to Gary)
- How can we tell where we are in the galaxy? We don't have 3-D star-maps except around Earth!
GARY
- (to cadet)
- We're estimating by the telemetry readouts, we've gone 60-kilohesits, a day and a half, astro-skipping 7-million times light-speed:-- about 10-million light-days, 30-thousand light-years in the direction of the galaxy center: We must be somewhere near there … Density looks right …
MIKE
- Put me on fleetwide!
JEFF
- (keys)
- Hailing …
- PA DOUBLE-CHIRPS.
JEFF
- You're fleetwide local-set.
MIKE (+PA)
- Attention, Quest-Fleet! This is Commander Michael: Flagship is ready to pass and escort the Alien vessel: Remaining fleet shall maintain the rear; Telemetry and communications shall now silence: We'll see you all at the terminus:
- (orders)
- Implement-- now!
MIKE (NORMAL)
- Jaime: Let's take it.
JAIME
- (controls)
- Initiating acceleration sequence:-- 7-point-4-million light: E-T-A 20 …
CADET
- (to Gary)
- What's at the center?- Just a giant black-hole?
GARY
- (to fore)
- 4-million-sunfuls! Plasma streamers swirling about swept-up in magnetic fields: a billion stars everywhere, one per cubic light-year-- Just!
CADET
- (a beat)
- Olber's night-games: a para-nox.
GARY
- (breaks a smile)
- Aptly put.
JOHN
- (reports)
- Lead starship telemetry is changing modes: They're moving aside in the corridor: They know we're passing!
MIKE
- Maintain progress!
JOHN
- Slowing-- nearly stopped-- well, a hundred thousand light-speed,- and that past-tense: We've passed them!
MIKE
- Proceed to terminus! Where are Star Quest and Stark Easter?
JOHN
- (at display)
- They've slowed, well-behind Gwen.
MIKE
- Jaime: Slow to maintain our lead 50-hesits!
- AN HOUR LATER: YELLOW-ALERT is active.
- Mike, Harry, return from the glass office:
JAIME (CONCURRENTLY)
- (mid countdown)
- 9-hundred-40-thousand …
- (2 sec.)
- 4-hundred-30 …
- (2 sec.)
- 2-hundred-10 …
- (2 sec.)
- 1-hundred-5 …
- (2 sec.)
- 51-thousand …
- (2 sec.)
- 25 …
- (2 sec.)
- 12 …
MIKE
- (smiling with Harry)
- Hypervelocity rail-gun Q-bomblets and reflected-neutron proximity-detonated nuclear tunnel-fission impactors … Pentagon engineering makes science grand--! Forewarned is forearmed;-- Thanks!
- (sits)
HARRY
- (security mindset)
- Don't, mention it.
MIKE
- (a beat, submissive)
- Yes-sir.
- ALTERNATING PINK-WHITE ZONE GRID; near stars slow rapidly, amid a bright billion de-aberrated fixed-stars background;
JAIME (CONCURRENTLY)
- (continuing)
- 7-thousand …
- 3-thousand …
- (pauses)
- sub-thousand:
- 7-hundred …
- 4-hundred …
- 2-hundred …
- sub-hundred, 90 …
- 60 …
- 40 …
- 20 …
JOHN
- Harry, Mike: Destination is near.
MIKE (+PA)
- Attention, Flagship crew: We're arriving at our terminus presently.
- (orders)
- Ready for Alien contact: Red Alert!
- KLAXON sounds twice; RED-ALERT FLASHES; Jaime's station-display shows a red-centered expanding grid;
JAIME
- 3 …
- 2 …
- 1-point-6 …
- 1-point-3 …
- 1-point-1 …
- 1-point-0, light-speed …
- Holding at 1-point-0 …
- A distant multiply-ringed 3Msun gravity-black-hole with luminous pole-jets, approaches at light-speed, 20 sec….
CADET
- (exults)
- It's, beautiful: The queen, of the cosmos!
GARY
- One of trillions, of queens.
CADET
- (excited)
- Can anyone live out here?!- Imagine coming home to this, every night!
JEFF
- Better than H-D-T-V…!
- (grins)
GARY
- The stereo-3-D effect disappears as we slow down: I'll keep my H-D-T-V.
CADET
- (exults)
- The stars are the streetlamps, of the galaxy center! The rings around the hole, the freeway cloverleafs!
- Flagship slips into orbit around its equator, and thence …
- ASIDE A RING CITY splash-shimmering colors to the horizon …
- 4 Alien STARSHIPS APPROACH at a distance …
JEFF
- (urgent)
- We're being telemetry-queried!
MIKE (+PA)
- (orders)
- Battle-stations! Full-evasive!
- Jaime and John fly at their controls …
- 4 WEAPONERS bolt-up-in to operate the peripheral stations …
JEFF
- Telemetry modes changing …
JOHN
- (clips)
- Formation maneuvering to crossfire!
- They maneuver about the ring-city …
- The spreading Aliens erupt with rapid LASER STREAKS and Q-BLASTS, frequently glancing off the ring-city;
- SKY-VIEW MULTI-TRACKS blasting at 4 dodging sources …
- Battle intensity increases, 15 sec….
- EXT. COMMAND - RING-CITY RELATIVELY GYRATING-ABOUT
- Their battle-crew works furiously against blast flack …
- The battle closes-in, 10 sec….
- INT. COMMAND - WEAPONS' MULTI-SUSPENDED SKY-VIEWS
- One Alien starship deflects attention by enhanced surface image of itself receding while sideslipping obtusely …
- Tactical displays add 3 Alien specks: MISSILES--
- Flagship RETURNS TRACER-FLACK DESTROYING each missile …
MIKE
- Lead them around: Put Stark Easter behind them!
JOHN
- (keys)
- Fine-adjusting lead-spacing …
JEFF
- They're launching nukes!
MIKE
- Take us away from the ring-city!
- Jaime fingers her control-panel:--
- Flagship veers sideways across, away from the ring-city …
- 6 MORE SPECKS: Alien missiles, tracking-across …
- A KLAXON runs up-scale twice,--
[FEMALE-COMPUTER]
- (alerts over klaxon)
- AHT-TAHN-TZION-- ROTE ALERT: DEY-FAHNSE: ROTE ALERT --AHT-TAHN-TZION
- Missiles track-streaks gyrate independently …
JAIME
- Grab your spouses: Here they come!
- (keys)
- Flagship maneuvers down-around the ring-city …
- MISSILES EXPLODE SEQUENTIALLY-- TO DIAGRAMMATIC FLASHES--
- BACK-LIGHTING WINDOW SIMULATION-DIAGRAMS …
- JEFF'S TELEMETRY EMBELLISHES;--
JEFF
- Stark Easter crypt-telemetry!--
- (keys)
- Acquisition,- Right, on, cue!
- DUST-BLAST WHELMS against WINDOWS RETURNING TO NORMAL VIEW… STARK EASTER EVASIVE LASERING MAD-FURIOUSLY on the Aliens, amid A SWARM OF 12 SPRITELY GYRATING MISSILES--
JEFF
- (finishes over noise)
- Fire-control out-loaded!
- MISSILES EN MASS CROSS-STREAK TO REPROGRAMMED-TARGETS: 6 by 1-or-2-per Alien, 6 to 1-per-inter-Alien position--
- MASSIVE ALIEN-LASERING-RESPONSE FOCUSED on the 6-direct,-- 6-FIREBALLS VOLLEYING on-before all 4 Aliens …
- RAPID ALIEN-LASERING ON THE REMNANT HORDE OF PIECES …
- 12-WAY-ALIEN-ALIEN-CROSSFIRING ERUPTS ON MISSILES-BETWEEN …
- 6-FIREBALLS:-- ONE ALIEN OBLITERATED; Two scatter-skirt Stark Easter, back into the Earthward aether slipstream …
- Last Alien escapes, farther, into its own slipstream …
- They watch and wait … a long moment …
JOHN
- (to controls)
- Out-bluffed … One going out its own corridor … Two out ours for Earth … One missing in 10-megaton debris.
HARRY
- Let them go, Mike: Catch them later: Let's get Diana.
JAIME
- (keys)
- Aye!
MIKE
- Jeff: Fleet-cast a Proceed-alert!
- Flagship glides toward the ring-city …
- Stark Easter and now-distant Star Quest also approach …
- FADE IN:
- INT. COMMAND - NEAR ALONG RING CITY - RED-RUNNING
- Gliding swiftly, they inspect the battle-scarred metal-ring city somewhat broken in places; its undersides red-lit; The galaxy center stars fill the sky; the black-hole below …
- The Weaponers EXEUNT, scanning all views, hep-saluting (cf flusher-handle, windshield-wiper-finger, two-hand-stack).
- Gwen's starship is docked far ahead, untouched …
HARRY
- They took reckless aim.
MIKE
- Their equipment is inferior, or reduced to manual controls: Could be an ego-projected mindset.
CADET
- Maybe they thought they could fool us with bank-shots ricocheted off the city like multiple sources.
GARY
- Did too much damage to the city: Even if we were their dupe, they wasted shots;-- Maybe they gambled.
JOHN
- (lax-ponders)
- Statistically senile in a markovian chain-space.
JEFF
- (grins)
- Aliens with a seniority complex, John!?- Maybe their starship is wearing-out: Maybe they haven't put into repair dock in years.
JAIME
- Gwen's starship is ahead.
MIKE
- Take us in, Jaime!
JAIME
- Aye:-- Rendezvousing with Gwen's starship … Space,-Alien,-Gwen!
- (heaves)
- 'Woow': This could be momentous…!
MIKE
- Jeff: Put me on fleetwide!
JEFF
- (keys)
- Fleetwide.
- PA MULTI-CHIRPS.
MIKE (+PA)
- Well done…!- Flagship will dock by Gwen's ship; Stark Easter and Star Quest, proceed to near docks: 50-percent personnel have tentative liberty … watchful for Aliens: Man starship bridges on Stations-alert!
- INT. RING CITY - DOCKSIDE - INFINITE HALL - OMNILIT
- PEERING OUT INTO: Flagship Command docking adjacent Gwen's:
- Jaime, Harry, Gary with Cadet, Susan, EXEUNT; Mike, Tommi, John, Jeff, remain; Stark Easter passes to dock ahead …
- 35 Landing Party, and Brad, enter: ad lib battle-heroics, equipments, performances, dosages of neutron-wind, gamma …
- On-into the Hall … and spread and mill-about …
CADET
- (just-there, ethereally)
- Reminds me of dreams of floating through campus …
- (realizes timid shock)
- They've got blastmarks, inside!
- THE HALL STRETCHING TO INFINITY without curvature:- doors, doorways, cross-corridors, much-blastmarked:
GARY
- (worry-grins)
- Disgruntled Alien spacemasters!? Truant elementary space students!? Rowdy space party crashers!? Weird Alien space promenade wildings!?
HARRY
- (entering with Jaime)
- Shall we visit Gwen?!
- (walks through them)
- Space Aliens not withstanding!?
- They proceed to Gwen's-starship dock (cf Spring Returns) …
- (00:00 - Oxygene 13/Jean Michael Jarre)
- And out the gantry … into the ship command--
- INT. GWEN'S STARSHIP COMMAND - LIT (NEAR CONTINUOUS)
- ARRIVING AT THE TOP OF THE ESCALATOR …
- Jaime, to her presumed seat; Displays have lettered keypads left up, with sample guess-words, technicals, navigations …
HARRY
- Jaime: Do the honors, please!
JAIME
- (grins, enunciates)
- Gwendolyn-Rachel: Are you here?!
- [Alien-Gwen hair moves fully, cf Spring Returns]
[GWEN:VIDEO]
- (overlaps)
- If this is an emergency, depress A-C-O on your alpha-pad … Square-pads have position controls; Circle-pads have attitude controls … Your auto-interpretive emote-controls actuate in two-hundred hesits: six minutes…
- AUTO-PAUSED.
JAIME
- (keys manual "ACO")
- A … C … O.
[GWEN:VIDEO]
- You have actuated for emergency operation. If this is a nuclear missile assault, depress K-C-X. If this is for conventional weapons, depress N-P-D. If this is a positional hazard, depress X-Q-E. You may actuate additional emergency coefficients. If this is you, Harry, depress H-A-X.
- AUTO-PAUSED.
- All stunned … to Harry;--
JAIME
- (keys manual "HAX")
- H … A … X…?
[GWEN:VIDEO]
- You may actuate additional emergency coefficients … Harry, I'm sorry, we missed you, dear! I hope you are well;- We can't wait at the ring city: An Alien starship passed us in the aether slipstream … We're taking the elevator to the garden: Please, come-up and join us: This is our permanent decision:- Earth was no longer what we expected. The elevator code shall be my telephone number. Otherwise, this ship is at your disposal: It's a new one,-- same model: We left the other ship in Area-51 desert: We'd encountered nuclear missiles behind the moon and skipped straight to Earth, nearly destroying it. Best wishes, wherever you choose to go, Harry! I'd leave a longer message, but we're nearly there.
- All examine Harry:
BRAD
- For being Aliens… they sure don't think very alien…!
HARRY
- (defends)
- I know nothing about this, guys: I didn't go with them to the desert:- I'm the real Harry:- Our Harry: She must have been addressing their Alien double.
GARY
- That's certain, Harry;- And so is your future: You've got to face your double,-- as well as Diana:
- (grins)
- who's probably fallen for the guy!
CADET
- (profuses)
- So, What's Gwen's telephone number? I hope it's the same as our, Gwen's number: 'Whew' this is strange: How in the world did they find a double world?! I wonder if their Harry has taken the elevator…!
GARY
- (hand-consoles her)
- Easy:-- This is Harry's decision….
HARRY
- I've committed to retrieving Diana: Any who wish to follow, this could be a new world: I'll understand if most of you will return to Earth:- Our, Gwen, Peter, and Daniel, have survived:- They'll need your help.
JAIME
- (blurts)
- We'd better find you the elevator, Harry, And get ourselves back home!
SUSAN
- (approaches resolute)
- Harry,-- I'll go with you: This may sound silly but Daniel and I split-up when we were teens:- He couldn't let me attend his bar mitzvah: He's just my best friend ever since;- It should be interesting, to meet his Alien double … And there'll be four guys, three gals up there: If Diana rejects you for your Alien-other, I'll stay with you,-- Harry!
- (a worry-hug)
- All paused …
JAIME
- (blurts utter finality)
- Let's go…!
- And leads EXEUNT down the Escalator …
- INT. RING CITY CORRIDOR - (MOMENTARILY)
- Mike, Tommi, await at Gwen's dock … As they enter,--
MIKE
- Quest-set is secure:- No incoming Aliens within a kilohesit.
- They stroll-on passed doorways into a side-hall ad lib …
- AN INNER CORRIDOR
- Jaime stops at THE COSMIC ELEVATOR--
JAIME
- (solemn)
- This appears to be the elevator.
- (touches hand-plate)
- Gwen's phone number …
- (keys Gwen's 10 digits)
- THE DOOR SLIDES ASIDE: A small spacious circular room with cushioned bench seating around the sides; surround-windows to the outside billion bright stars; control-PANEL LIGHTS TWINKLE on the wall …
- Jaime looks-in … Enters, inspecting--
JAIME
- Best guess: this will suffice.
- Harry, Susan, Mike, follow-in:
MIKE
- (solemn)
- Harry,-- Suse,-- We'd best say our good-byes now: You've got a cosmic conquest to call your new home;- We've got to return to Earth and protect the fleet. We surely don't want to walk-out on you-two, But the Aliens pose an imminent threat and our Flagship holds a key to the solution; And we're committed to establishing this new technology for the betterment of all survivors…. After we open the galaxy to interstellar flight, -and this may take a few years,- we'll return and catch-up with you: We won't leave you unconnected up-there forever!
- (handshakes Harry, Susan)
- Harry … Susan….
JAIME
- (tears, hugs Susan)
- Bye, dear. God-be with you!
HARRY
- Go in peace, Mike: Do your duty: We'll expect you.
JAIME
- (hugs Harry)
- Bye, Harry: We'll sure miss you….
SUSAN
- Bye, Jaime, Mike,-
- (to those at the door)
- Tommi … Brad … Gary … everyone: I hope you all return and join us….
- Jaime, Mike, exeunt out;--
- Susan touches her control panel … Waves good-bye, as--
- THE DOOR SLIDES CLOSED …
- GEARS WIND inside the door-- and LOCKS CLACK.
- A silent moment.
- THE OUTSIDE PANEL LIGHT TURNS RED.
JAIME
- They're gone….
MIKE
- Let's break for the Flagship!
- And leads exeunt trotting for their starship docks …
- INT. RING CITY - DOCKSIDE - FLAGSHIP
- PEERING OUT INTO: Flagship Command: John, Jeff, await …
- Jaime, Mike, Gary, Cadet, Tommi, enter to their stations …
- Flagship tugs back away …
- And turning eastward to leave orbit--
- INT. FLAGSHIP COMMAND - RED-RUNNING (AS CONTINUOUS)
- Turning eastward, Forward, along the metal-ring-city …
MIKE
- Feels different without Harry watching over us.
JOHN
- Welcome, to Star Fleet, Grand Admiral, Michael.
- Passing Gwen's ship …
MIKE
- (smiles … orders)
- Take us out of orbit, Helm!
JAIME
- (controls)
- Aye:-- Home, we go!
- And Stark Easter …
JEFF
- Stark Easter is leaving dock now … Star Quest is staying,-- with the Grand Admiral's permission…!
- Accelerating … climbs above the battle-scarred ring-city …
MIKE
- Bless them with Best Wishes: I hope no more Aliens show-up here soon…!
JEFF
- And, Mike, Earth fleet acknowledges our advisory on the Aliens …
- Pulling away, forward very fast gliding up over;
MIKE
- We have communication with Geo-set?
- (resolves a beat)
- Diana's video!-- Their, Harry, was here all along…!
- GRID-LINES FLOW … And the ring city recedes far below;
JAIME
- (controls)
- Entering the aether slipstream…!
MIKE
- Give us maximum-performance speed!
- FINAL GRID;--
JAIME
- (controls)
- Aye: Maximum-- Speeeed…!
- The galaxy core hole, rings, pole jets, diminish behind …
MIKE
- Jeff, Can we locate the Alien vessels in the stream?
JEFF
- They are maintaining radio silence.
- IN THE AETHER-SLIPSTREAM, --galaxy center stars aberrate …
JOHN
- Mike,- Navigation shows objects far ahead 7-point-4-million light-skip: Should be them on 3-kilohesit lead: We'll have to exceed 7-point-8….
- NEAR STARS PASS, ASTRO-SKIP-RATE ramps-up for 7.8 million …
MIKE
- Push the envelope, Jaime!
JAIME
- (controls)
- Aye: And lick it and stamp it, too.
- (grins)
- DISSOLVE TO:
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Petry System Family Wision USA