- EXT. STARSHIP USS REGENTS COMMAND - MOON EAST - NEVADA DAWN
- CINCSPAC Earth-Fleet East Team starships hover poised above moon mountains, waiting in the silence of outer space:
- ACTING CINCSPAC CMDR Dave meanders attentively and watching deep space, ad lib (MOS) instructively ordering his crew of 10 Undergrads at their stations in space formals with Chief Command insignias, color-bars/trims, halo-gear …
- (00:00 - Oxygene 7/Jean Michael Jarre)
DAVE (VO)
- (answers to deep space)
- No, I think we maintain absolute radio silence: Flagship has a best advantage of surprise if we do not contact them during Alien-approach.
NAV (VO)
- Commander: We have two starships approaching extraordinarily fast!-- Point-0-0-4:-- They'll have to stop at untested retro-pulsion rate!
- (00:-- swells to full)
- INT. CINCSPAC COMMAND - (CONTINUOUS)
DAVE
- (meanders, appends calm)
- … Or skip-pass us:--
- (scans deep space)
- Watch for loose debris when they shift aside … And keep us posted …
- (to comm)
- Comm: Prepare me for fleetwide and net-closure.
COMM
- (keys)
- Fleetwide ready, And net-closure…!
DAVE
- Nav…?
NAV
- (to Display)
- Range: Exo-lunar space 6-hundred mega-meters; E-T-A 2-hundred-20-hesits … Ponder and Lust-Test are switching-off beacons. And there's a third starship at 25-hundred,--
- (wind-whistles 'whew')
- Don't they know about sub-light?!- Point-0-1-7,-- Brace yourselves: Same E-T-A: They will overtake!
HELM
- We'd better warn Earth for ultra-harsh storms!
DAVE
- Agreed. Comm: Relay advisory for Earth broadcast;--
- (emotes)
- We've just become Americans again!
- LUNAR 6 NUCLEAR-MISSILES STREAK-away for the incoming …
NAV
- (excited)
- And meteor impacts!-- Debris is confirmed and wandering for Earth-collision … Computation is busy with link-closure …
- (at missile-tracking)
- 'Hey'-- We've got company: missiles going-out for the Alien greeting: Helpful, hopefully…!
DAVE
- (training calm)
- Maintain position:-- Let them sort this out.
- Displays show crosslinked navigations,-- They await …
- INT. SAME - (7 MIN. PASS)
- Armageddon approaches …
DAVE
- (ponders irony: sublime)
- Did mankind increase local entropy positively?- Or negatively!?
NAV
- (cues: time's up)
- E-T-A 20-hesits: They are here: Two lead starships, And ten ballistics!
DAVE
- (sits, orders)
- Closure, now!
- Comm keys:--
- ALL DISPLAYS ENLIVEN … PA MULTI-CHIRPS.
COMM
- Net is closed: You're on fleetwide!
DAVE (+PA)
- Armageddon has begun: We are under imminent fire:- Team Out, Commence response: Maximum evasive: We have two confirmed Alien starships, and ten pieces of hyper-flack; Team In, Trim your pre-chase: E-T-A-moon-15.
HELM
- (keys)
- Auto-evasive is verified operating.
- 5-starship Team Out above moon backside maneuvers evasively with LONG-DISTANCE LASER-STRIKES and Q-BLASTS sparkling the nearing Alien 2 starships and 14 debris clusters …
- THE IMAGE OF ALL THINGS: SQUIRMS AND WARPS, as incoming starship aether-resonant-soliton-drives decelerate …
ENG
- Retro-pulsors pack a cosmic wallop!
- The Aliens decelerate into lunar space:--
NAV
- E-T-A 10-hesits!-- Aliens shifting moon-east our side! Wake-up angels!
DAVE (+PA)
- Team East, Ready on flyby: Commence firing: Maximium evasive, Maximum response; Moon-east is confirmed!-- Teams North, South, West, Scramble!
- NUCLEAR-WHITE FLASHES engulf the Aliens, AND, Team Out:--
- PARTIAL-WINDOW-SPOTS AUTO-DARKEN to diagrammatic … till the expanding flashes dissipate and VIEWS RETURN TO NORMAL …
NAV
- Hyper-flack revised to 14 clusters: Three passing E-T-A 5-hesits!-- Debris Impact Lunar in 3-hesits!
- Team Out and Team East 4 EVASIVELY ENGAGE LASER-VOLLEYS and Q-BLASTS with the nearing-to-pass Aliens …
- NUCLEAR-WHITE FLASHES obliterate deep-space view,-- FACING WINDOWS AUTO-DARKENING to diagrammatic simulation …
- DUST-BLAST WHELMS against windows RETURNING TO NORMAL VIEW;
- (0-:-- pensive calm)
COMM
- Team Out intact: No significant damage.
- FARSIDE-EAST 3+ BLAST-GEYSERS brilliant-white turning-red …
NAV
- Missiles hit debris;- Two Aliens passing momentarily! Four debris clusters passing for Earth!
- WHITE FLASHES ABOUT THE ALIENS …
COMM
- Ten moon-strikes confirmed; Team East is scoring minor hits …
- (0-:-- grates)
- Alien starships blur-by at a distance, 0.5 sec:--
HELM
- (points-follows)
- There!
NAV
- Alien starships still intact, and continuing to Earth!
- A WHITE FLASH engulfs the Aliens,-- the VIEW AUTO-DARKENS.
DAVE (+PA)
- Teams Inside: Aliens have arrived: Two confirmed! Close-in and pursue: Commence firing at will:-- Maximum evasive, Maximum response!
COMM
- Geo-set maintaining Comm-silence …
DAVE
- (orders)
- Commence CrypTag-stealth-insertion!
COMM
- (keys)
- CrypTag Team … Actuated!
DAVE
- Activate Geo-set, Now!-- Draw the net tight!
COMM
- (keys, reports)
- Geo-set … activating!
NAV
- Third starship at 90-mega-meters!-- E-T-A 15-hesits, Still point-0-0-8: Brace yourselves:- They're pushing the moon out of orbit…!
- SLIGHT DUST SPLATTERS against the windows …
- Team In 5 forechase the Aliens to Earth, EXCHANGING LASER-STRIKES and Q-BLASTS, EVASIVELY WHILE CLOSING …
- WHITE FLASHES engulf both: WINDOW SPOTS AUTO-DARKEN …
NAV
- (abrupt worry)
- We have a Computation weak-point!
COMM
- (amends)
- Star Tempest, is reducing crosslink bandwidth: Primary Nav-link failing data-bit-rate, Systemic integrity parameters vacillating,-- Manually overriding: Transferring telemetry-load to hot-secondary …
NAV
- (completes)
- Significant neutron damage…!
- (a half beat)
- Third starship at 30-mega-meters, shifting moon-east: E-T-A 7-hesits.
COMM
- (keys, updates)
- Star Tempest hot-secondary is fully operational, Switching-out primary.
- (a half beat)
- Hail-channel has opened!-- It's …
- (facing awed)
- Grand-Admiral Michael: Flagship!
DAVE
- Out-load net-closure telemetry!
COMM
- (resumes: keys)
- Out-loading net-closure…!
NAV
- Navigation load is re-balancing:-- Prime-net is secured!
- CONTINUAL DUST-SPLATTER INCREASES, from distant nukes …
- THE IMAGE OF ALL THINGS: SQUIRMS AND WARPS, as incoming Flagship soliton-drive just now decelerates …
- WHITE FLASH CENTERS ONE ALIEN starship: DIAGRAMMATIC,--
NAV
- Flagship passing pres-ent-ly…
- (looks-up worried)
- There's nothing left of one Alien starship…!
HELM
- Direct hit!
DAVE
- (sombers)
- Oh, Lord: Murder becomes our soil in outer space…!
- They share a silent moment …
- CUT TO:
- INT. FLAGSHIP COMMAND - PASSING MOON EAST - RED-RUNNING
- (00:00 - Oxygene 8/Jean Michael Jarre)
- BANKED DOWN IN PURSUIT: Grand-Admiral Mike's command, added undergrad Weaponers, in a calm sprint to catch the Aliens …
- HUGGING THE MOON, Earthward, 1.5 sec….
JEFF
- Prime-net closure, telemetry in-loaded,-- Secured.
- UN-BANKING UP … TO UPRIGHT …
MIKE
- (uncrosses legs, orders)
- Commence fire on the Aliens!
- OUTSIDE FLICKERING ERUPTS,
MIKE
- Allocate 20-percent computation-load to the net!
- MASSIVE LASER-VOLLEYING FORWARD into thick space-haze,--
- Aimed to a moving distant space-war-fire-ball consisting of the remaining Alien forechased by Team In and surrounded by Teams Inside, Geo-Set Earth-Fleet, 20, converging, dodging, diving, volleying Q-BLASTS, STREAKING LASER-FIRE, salted with frequent ENGULFING WHITE FLASHES-- AUTO-DARKENED …
- DUST-BLAST WHELMS WINDOWS noisily afore …
MIKE
- Couple soliton-regeneration energy to the lasers!-- Bring us to bear directly on the Aliens!
JEFF
- 20-percent allocated to prime-net.
GARY
- (follow-up keys)
- Laser cannons at 3-hundred-percent.
- 15 Geo-Fleet spaceships join the foray from Earth …
JOHN
- (follow-up keys)
- Geo-Fleet has joined-in … E-T-A Alien starships 65-hes…it…
- (pauses puzzled)
- There's only one Alien starship!
JAIME
- (quick-searches the sky)
- Where's the other, John! Behind us?
JOHN
- (keys, to display)
- An expanding sphere of rubble where Nav-com projected the Aliens….
JAIME
- Jetsam trick!?
JOHN
- (somber)
- Debris mass 10-mega-tons: No trick…
JEFF
- They overrode computation-overload to stay in battle, And gang-linked navigation with independent dither.
GARY
- (eulogizes to cadet)
- Life is rough outside your gravity playpen,- And starships fragile,-- But, Never leave home without one…!
MIKE
- (orders)
- Prepare for battlefield insertion!
- GRID FLOWS: OUTLINING EARTH, for final deceleration …
JEFF
- (surprised worry)
- Mike, The Alien starship is picking on CeeBird, --planetary spaceship class,-- Heavy barrage engagement…!
MIKE
- Insert computation-assist on CeeBird deflection!
JEFF
- (keys)
- Not possible:-- Deflection is realtime-only calculation.
MIKE
- (re-orders)
- Then,-- Computation-assist on navigation dither!
JOHN
- (keys)
- Navigation-assist commencing …
JEFF
- (reports)
- Alien barrage increasing … CeeBird hit-rate holding, but it's heavy … CeeBird is taking intense damage!
JOHN
- (re-keys frantic)
- We've lost CeeBird nav-link-assist! CeeBird navigation has ceased!
JEFF
- (excited)
- Hull buckling: Emergency operation!
MIKE
- E-T-A!?
JOHN
- 35-hesits CeeBird E-T-A …
- (half a beat)
- Starship Pickel has interposed in the line of Alien fire!
MIKE
- Jaime, Can you get a fix on them?!
JAIME
- (exasperates)
- All, good, shots, Mike!- The Alien pilot is a deft dodger!- And the nuke-dust-storm is thick-as-fog!
JEFF
- (worried quickening)
- Pickel, has overridden auto-dither-avoidance!-- Reversed,-synchronized the Alien: They're blocking fire on CeeBird and taking hits!
- MIKE'S HORRIFIC SILENCE, 2 sec….
JEFF
- (spins to look)
- Sir…!?
JOHN
- (turns, scolds)
- Mike…!
MIKE
- (HORRIFIC ORDER)
- Do it, John…!!
JOHN
- (snaps fore, keys)
- Yes, Sir!-- Assisting Pickel Nav…
MIKE
- (rapid orders)
- Jeff, Command-dump Pickel telemetry damage reports, Maintenance, PERT-logs, upgrades, versions!- Allocate 25-percent computation to failure-distribution prediction!- John, Augment Pickel rotation and skew:-- Spread their damage…!
JEFF
- (reports)
- Telemetry in-loading: Pickel laser-peen-deflection-sweep is up-double!
- Flagship arrives at the hazy fire-ball and fierce exchange between evasive starship Alien and Pickel closing gyrating laser-peening missiles double-volleying unyielding CeeBird…
JOHN
- Pickel is accelerating to ram the Alien!-- E-T-A CeeBird 8-hesits!
MIKE
- Maintain Pickel-navigation-assist…!
- (bright corollary)
- Jeff!-- Tempest-crypto gang-control the Alien starship-navigation:- Use their galaxy-core ephemerides…!
JEFF
- (keys nonchalant)
- Worth a try … Computer, says, Ready to insert co-encodes.
MIKE
- John: Gang-command the Alien backup 10-kilometers! Jaime restrain fire!
JOHN
- (keys)
- Gang-commanding Alien retreat 10-K…
- A moment for crypto-insertion to succeed … then--
- PING!-- The laser-volley stretches-out 10Km, diminishing …
MIKE
- Cease fire…!
- FLEET-VOLLEY CEASES … The Alien reluctantly follows suit …
- Last missiles destroyed, The Fleet surrounds the one Alien.
CADET
- (quiet gratitude)
- It worked!- They must have the same manufacturer…!
GARY
- (for Cadet)
- And this Flagship has the master codes, this side of the universe.
JEFF
- (mildly surprised)
- The Aliens are hailing us!
MIKE
- Put me on Fleetwide;- Prepare to accept the Alien link, Display…!
- Jeff keys … PA MULTI-CHIRPS;==
JEFF
- You're Fleetwide; Alien-link ready!
MIKE (+PA)
- Geo-Fleet is ordered to remain on guarded cease fire!- And, Ready for Alien communications link-up!
- THE ALIEN ICON SPLASH, for starship video communications:--
- Mike faces a bedraggled wearied [ALIEN COMMAND] on display: Classy handsome pure-white-haired white-face super-senior citizens wearing remote-design avant-garde black-white-gold-motif space-admiral suits with foray-party overwear …
JEFF
- (announces)
- Aliens, Onscreen!
- All look:--
- [ALIEN HELM] is Mike's grandmother-apparent,--
[ALIEN HELM]
- (exuberant)
- Little Mikey…!
- (slowly stands)
- How you've grown!-- So good of you to come play with your grandmother!
MIKE
- (surprised)
- Grand-ma-- Bertha!?
- VIDEO PAUSES, for:
CADET
- (subdued loud)
- Careful, sir: It may be directed hypnosis: like Professor Gwen's, alien-double!
GARY
- (subdued to Cadet)
- His grandma passed-away a year ago.
- VIDEO RESUMES:
[ALIEN HELM]
- We miss you so, Mikey,- your grand-dad and I: We wished you had called first!
MIKE
- (befuddled)
- I'm sorry,- We didn't know your new address!
[ALIEN HELM]
- Oh, that's alright, Mikey,-- We understand:
- (smiles)
- But you will, call us next time, sweetie!?
MIKE
- I-- we-- don't play so-- dangerous…
[ALIEN HELM]
- (conciliatory)
- Oh, Mikey, dear, it's all right: We can fix these;-- And you've learned your lesson,-- haven't you?!
MIKE
- I-- yes-- sure …
[ALIEN HELM]
- I'll visit again, real soon: We can play again with your space-toys and you can come visit me … Remember to bring your Mommy and your Daddy…. Bye-bye, darling….
- (a grandmotherly wave)
MIKE
- Bye.
- (waves childish shyly)
[ALIEN HELM]
- (proudly to her captain)
- My little grandson, Mikey!
- WHITE FLASH ENGULFS,-- AUTO-DARKENING … and dissipates …
- The Alien starship is accelerating away to escape …
- DUST-BLAST WHELMS noisily …
JOHN
- (over noise)
- Command-telemetry-override is broken: The Alien starship is accelerating to leave!
MIKE
- (regains composure)
- Let them go!-- Advise Stark Easter and Star Quest…! And Jeff: Shuttle-over the commander of Pickel: I want her face-to-face, on my deck!
- (exiting for his office)
GARY
- Mike,- They are sure to return with more Aliens!
- Mike nods yes … stopping for:--
CADET
- (defensive)
- Sir, Commander Penny is just an undergraduate, like most-all of us: She did what was needful: She's one of your best: And she's also one of Professor Harry's A-students: Maybe in his absence we're all…
MIKE
- (clips)
- I, cannot have, reckless neo-heroic loners, commanding my Geo-set Fleet starships!
CADET
- (subordinates)
- Yes, sir.
JEFF
- Mike, Pickel is returning to the moon for repairs; CeeBird is being towed-back for scrap; CeeBird crew sustained insignificant injuries:- jostled when acceleration-damping quit and lost outer-hull segments. They're transferring to Racyon … They want a new command: together.
MIKE
- (EXITS to glass office)
- Granted to CeeBird crew and debrief them … Jaime, Parallel Pickel … And Jeff, Broadcast a 'Well-done' with Commendations, and Liberty for 50-percent of personnel…!
JAIME
- (controls)
- Aye, sir!
- Flagship pulls away from the Fleet in remnant-thin haze …
JAIME
- (a beat fore)
- To moon again moon again, quiggity-quick.
GARY
- (grins big, to Jeff)
- Maybe they'll just get, de,-burred.
JEFF
- (grins to Gary)
- And get clob-bered again,-- like a, jay,-bird.
CADET
- (grins to both)
- They've already gotten, em,-bered!
GARY
- (grins to fore)
- And at that, they were ex,-'perdt!'
JAIME
- (smiles to John)
- Does, liberty, in space, mean, we turn-off gravity?
- John smiles back.
- FADE TO:
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