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5:
The Web
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by Terry Nation
(c) 1977 by the British Broadcasting Corporation.
Series created by Terry Nation. This is a complete dialogue transcript for research
purposes and is not for sale under any circumstances Format (c) 1993 by Ruth
Hanson and Micky DuPree.
Dramatis Personae
Roj Blake
Jenna Stannis
Kerr Avon
Cally
Vila Restal
Olag Gan
Zen
Saymon
Geela
Novara
Decima
The surface of an unnamed planet. A forest path
lead to a clearing. In the center of the clearing is a laboratory complex.
SAYMON: (V.O.)
They must come. They must. They must. They must come. They must. (Interior of
the laboratory complex). They must. They must. They must come. They must come.
(Another room in the same lab. A power unit is nearly exhausted) They must.
(Another room. A male figure is seated on a lounge chair). They must. They must
come to us. They must come. (The same room from another angle. A second figure,
female, is seated on another lounge chair.) They must. They must. They must
come. They must. They must. (Another room in the same complex. A shrunken
humanoid form is suspended in a life support tank.) They must come to us. They
must come. They must.
Flight deck of the Liberator. Jenna presses
intercom switch.
BLAKE: (V.O.)
Blake.
JENNA: Jenna.
Sorry to wake you, but I think you should get down here.
BLAKE: (V.O)
What's wrong?
JENNA: Our
speed is increasing.
BLAKE: (In his
cabin, lying on cot.) Can't you compensate?
JENNA: (V.O)
It's not an external influence, it's us. The primary drive is accelerating.
BLAKE: All
right. I'm on my way. (Rises)
Interior of hold three. Door opens, Cally enters. She
is armed, carrying a rectangular device and a tool pouch. She moves to access
duct, attaches the device to the panel and presses the activator. The timer
activates. She exits the hold.
Flight deck of the Liberator. Blake enters from
the passageway, buttoning his shirt.
BLAKE: Well?
JENNA: Speed
standard by three and building.
BLAKE: How
quickly?
JENNA: If it
continues like this it will be off the scale in about twelve minutes. Zen says
the automatic repair service should have it under control by then though. Seems
to be a malfunction in the PN overrides.
BLAKE: Zen,
estimated repair time.
ZEN: Eleven
point three zero two minutes.
BLAKE: Whew!
That's cutting it a bit fine. What caused the malfunction?
ZEN: The
malfunction was deliberately induced.
JENNA: (Whispered)
Deliberately induced?
An intersection of passageways aboard the
Liberator. Cally moves down the passageway. From an intersecting passage Vila
enters.
VILA: Cally.
(Waits) Cally, what do you think of the outfit.
Cally stops, pauses and turns. She advances on
Vila.
VILA: Cally?
She strikes him on the head with the tool pouch.
Flight deck of the Liberator
JENNA: Speed
standard by four and building.
BLAKE: (Depresses
intercom switch) Avon.
Teleport area. Avon is working over an equipment
console.
AVON: Yes.
BLAKE: (V.O.) I
need you on the flight deck.
AVON: I'm busy
BLAKE: (V.O.)
NOW, Avon.
Flight deck of the Liberator
BLAKE: Zen, how
are the repairs going?
ZEN: They are
proceeding on schedule.
BLAKE: What
caused the malfunction? (Pause) Well?
ZEN: Involvement
is not permitted.
BLAKE: If the
ship's blown up, lofty disinterest won't save you.
JENNA: Speed
standard by five and building.
BLAKE: Forward
detectors on maximum. Full scan. Abort course programs. Key all navigation
systems to anticipate potential collisions and neutralize.
ZEN: Confirmed.
BLAKE: (Depresses
intercom switch) Avon.
AVON: (Still in
teleport area) All right!
BLAKE: (V.O.)
If it was all right, I wouldn't need you here.
Cally enters teleport area. Watches Avon from
entry. She moves forward when he notices her presence.
AVON: Our
leader seems a bit peaked.
CALLY: What are
you doing?
AVON: A little
private research.
CALLY: (Moves
to stand next to him) Why?
AVON: All
knowledge is valuable.
CALLY: (Touches
her temple as if listening) Which are the forward detector links?
AVON: What?
(Pause) Oh, uh (Pause) Those two there. Why do you want to know that?
CALLY: I'm
interested in your work.
AVON: (Pause)
Yes. (Pause) Well, I suppose I'd better go and see what it is that Blake wants.
Avon exits. Cally moves to detector comp and
unrolls tool pouch.
Flight deck of the Liberator
AVON: What
exactly are you accusing me of?
BLAKE: I'm
asking if your researches have included the PN overrides.
AVON: I haven't
been anywhere near them. (Sits down)
JENNA: Speed
standard by six and rising.
ZEN: There is a
partial malfunction on the forward detectors.
In the teleport area, Cally continues to tamper
with the detector comp. It shorts out, burning her hand.
Flight deck of the Liberator
ZEN: Forward
detectors are now dysfunctional. Navigation computers have switched to
theoretical projections.
BLAKE: Now
we're blind as well.
JENNA: But who?
AVON: Cally.
BLAKE: What?
AVON: It's Cally.
(Rises and moves to passageway)
BLAKE: (To
Jenna as he follows Avon) Warn Gan and Vila. Blake and Avon exit.
JENNA: (Depresses
intercom switch) Gan.
Gan is reclining on a cot in his cabin
JENNA: (V.O.)
Respond please.
GAN: Yes,
Jenna. What is it.
Teleport area of the Liberator. Avon and Blake
enter and stop. Cally is facing them, weapon in hand.
CALLY: I should
regret the necessity to kill you.
BLAKE: Why are
you doing this, Cally.
SAYMON: (V.O.)
They must come.
CALLY: (Advances
on Blake and Avon) Move back to the flight deck.
AVON: Look at
the burns on her hand.
BLAKE: She must
be in agony.
CALLY: (Continues
to advance) I will kill you if you do not obey.
Flight deck of the Liberator. Blake and Avon
enter, Cally is not immediately visible behind them.
JENNA: Speed
standard by seven. Speed seems to be increasing by (breaks off when she catches
sight of Cally). So it was you.
CALLY: (Steps
forward and motions Jenna away from flight controls. Jenna hesitates) Must you
invite death?
JENNA: (Joins
Blake. Cally moves to the console and begins altering settings) Navigation
computers can't cope with a change of course. We're running blind.
CALLY: (Gan
enters stealthily from other passageway). Don't move.
BLAKE: Jenna's
right, Cally. This ship's out of control. We're as good as dead now. (Pause)
Zen, what's our speed?
ZEN: Standard
by eight point six five.
AVON: (Steps
forward) If you're trying to steal the ship, there are other ways.
JENNA: You're
not Cally, are you.
SAYMON: (V.O.)
They must come.
Cally makes a move as if to shoot Jenna. Gan yells
and grabs her hand. Cally cries out in pain and struggles with the crew, then
blacks out.
The surface of the planet.
SAYMON: (V.O.)
They must come to us. They must. They must. They must come. (Interior of the
lab.) They must come to us. They must. They must. They must come to us. They
must. They must. They must come to us. They must come.
Flight deck of the Liberator. Avon and Jenna are
at the flight controls. Blake and Gan are standing nearby. Cally is lying on
the deck. She regains consciousness and attacks Blake. Gan restrains her and
she collapses again. He holds her.
JENNA: (Moves
from controls and slaps Cally). Whoever you are, it's over.
CALLY: (V.O.
telepathically) Thank you, Jenna.
AVON: (Pulls
Cally's head around to face him) What was all that about? (She faints again)
BLAKE: (To Gan)
Better keep her sedated.
AVON: And
locked up or dumped.
JENNA: You
should never have brought her on the ship.
AVON: (To Vila
as he enters) And where have you been hiding?
VILA: All I
said was what do you think of the outfit.
ZEN: Repair
monitors report explosive device attached to primary power channel.
BLAKE: Where?
ZEN: Hold
three, access duct seven.
BLAKE: Can the
automatics neutralize it?
ZEN: No.
BLAKE: Why not?
ZEN: There is
no damage.
AVON: Computer
logic. Until the bomb explodes there is nothing for the repair system to
repair. Zen, can you reprogram the automatics?
ZEN: Preemptive
interference in crew activity is forbidden.
BLAKE: Oh,
he'll clear up after us, but he won't stop us making a mess. (Exits, running
down passageway)
AVON: (Moves to
follow him) You made this mess.
JENNA: We're
all in it, Avon.
AVON: (Over his
shoulder from the passageway) Yes, aren't we.
Interior of hold three. The device attached to the
access duct continues to tick.
On the flight deck of the Liberator
JENNA: (To Gan
as he carries Cally out) You better lock her in.
GAN: I will.
JENNA: (To
Vila) Anything on the detector scanners?
VILA: Not a
thing.
JENNA: Speed's
up to standard by ten. Drive repairs, how long?
ZEN: One point
two five minutes.
VILA: Can you
stop us then?
JENNA: If we
don't hit something first. Forward detectors?
ZEN: Repair
monitors are assessing the damage.
VILA: A bomb
was all we needed.
Blake runs down passageway and skids to a halt
before the door to hold three. He enters hold and moves to examine the device.
Avon enters behind him.
AVON: Be
careful of that thing. If the light goes out you've got about three seconds.
(Blake touches the device, the light goes out.) Look out. (He lunges at Blake
and pushes him out of the way. The bomb detonates).
Flight deck of the Liberator
ZEN: Major
disruption of primary power channel. All systems switched to auxiliary power.
All drive units are dysfunctional.
The interior of hold 3. Blake and Avon are still
on the floor.
BLAKE: Thank
you. (Pause) Why?
AVON: Automatic
reaction. I'm as surprised as you are.
BLAKE: I'm not
surprised.
Blake and Avon get up from floor. Blake exits,
Avon stays and examines damage. Surface of the planet. Then the interior of the
laboratory complex.
SAYMON: We must
make ready. We must make ready. Ready. Ready. Ready. (The two figures rise and
move into another room.) They approach, drawing closer. Closer. Closer. Closer.
Closer. We must make ready. We must make ready.
On the flight deck of the Liberator.
JENNA: It
wasn't what she was doing. It was the way she was. If you looked into her eyes
it wasn't her looking back at you.
GAN: Avon says
that's because she's an alien.
VILA: Everyone's
an alien to him.
BLAKE: He's
certainly more at home with machines.
ZEN: The
navigation computers have completed a theoretical projection of Liberator's
position.
BLAKE: And?
ZEN: This star
system is largely uncharted.
VILA: Oh,
that's marvelous. We're not sure where we are, but if they were sure they
wouldn't know where it was anyway.
ZEN: Repairs to
the primary power channel are complete. All drive units are now fully
functional.
BLAKE: Reduce
speed to standard by point five.
JENNA: Reverse
primaries. Speed now standard by point five.
BLAKE: Put up
navigation projection.
Main viewscreen shows a series of six circles.
ZEN: Circles
indicate projected planets. Positions are unconfirmed.
BLAKE: Well,
put up our estimated position. (An additional circle is added to main
viewscreen close to one of the existing circles) That's too close to something
we can't see.
JENNA: And
we're not sure is there.
BLAKE: What
about the detectors?
ZEN: Partial
malfunction is still not traced. Repair monitors are in phase two reassessment.
BLAKE: Gan, see
if there's anything you can do to help Avon. Tell him we need those detectors
now.
GAN: Right.
(Leaves flight deck)
ZEN: Hull
sensors indicate a major gravitational field within Liberator's ambit.
BLAKE: Jenna,
compensate the gravitational drift.
JENNA: Our
speed's dropping.
BLAKE: Field
drag?
JENNA: Field
strength's only three point five. It must be something else.
ZEN: Limited
range forward vision is available should you require it.
VILA: Why
couldn't you tell us that before.
BLAKE: Put up
forward vision.
Main viewscreen shows strands of white in the path
of the Liberator. Density of fibers increases.
VILA: What is
it?
JENNA: Meteorite
dust?
BLAKE: Strands
like that? Look there's more of it.
JENNA: It's
rubbing across the hull.
VILA: And it's
getting thicker.
JENNA: It's
like a spider's web.
VILA: Some
spider.
JENNA: That's
what's pulling our speed down.
BLAKE: Increase
power to compensate.
JENNA: It's
getting worse all the time.
BLAKE: If there
is a planet there we should be close enough to get signals now. Vila, go and
see how Cally is, will you.
VILA: Must I?
JENNA: It's not
catching.
VILA: It
brought my head out in lumps.
BLAKE: Get a
move on.
VILA: Right, I'm
going. (Leaves flight deck).
In the teleport area of the Liberator
AVON: (Examining
a portion of the detector equipment). Nothing wrong with that.
GAN: What are
you trying to do?
AVON: Bypass
the detector comp and use another of the systems to receive the signal.
GAN: Can it be
done?
AVON: Of
course. It's just a matter of finding the link. Some of this technology is a
little more advance to that which I'm used. I'm having to guess at some of it.
GAN: What about
the automatic repair system.
AVON: Oh, it'll
do the job. Eventually. It's very methodical. (Begins linking wires to
Liberator systems). It starts at the beginning and it works its way through.
It's slow. You should appreciate that problem. (Throws a switch. Circuit boards
short and burn.) No, that wasn't the one.
GAN: It'll take
days to repair that.
AVON: On any
ordinary computer system. But this isn't any ordinary computer system. A
malfunction of that size would have registered on the autorepair. It should cut
in about five seconds. Watch. (Pause, looking at his watch) It will be cutting
in about (Pause) now. (Autorepair restores the circuitry.)
GAN: That is
fantastic.
AVON: Yes,
isn't it. (Disconnects a wire) As a matter of fact it is. We could make a
fortune with it if it wasn't for Blake.
GAN: In what
way?
AVON: There's
always a market for technology like this.
GAN: I don't
think Blake would agree to that.
AVON: There
will come a time when he won't be making the decisions. (Avon smiles)
On the flight deck of the Liberator. Cally and
Vila enter
BLAKE: Cally!
VILA: It's all
right. She doesn't remember a thing.
CALLY: How did
I burn my hand?
BLAKE: It was
an accident. (Takes hold of her arm) Look, we're very close to a planet but we
don't know what it is. I can't find any transmission sources. Will you please
run the checks for me. (She moves to communication position. Blake follows.)
ZEN: Sensor
indicate increasing density of silica based organic material adhering to the
hull.
VILA: About
spider's webs.
BLAKE: Hmmm,
what about them?
VILA: They're
used for trapping food.
The exterior of the Liberator, moving through the
increasingly dense strands.
The flight deck of the Liberator
BLAKE: (to
Cally) Anything?
CALLY: I've
tried all recognized systems but there is nothing. No transmissions of any
kind.
BLAKE: We'll
move out. Go back the way we came.
JENNA: Without
detectors? Blind backtracking is a good way to run into pursuit ships.
BLAKE: We've no
choice. If we get clear then we can outrun them if necessary.
ZEN: Sensors
register increasing gravitational influence. Field strength now eight point
six.
BLAKE: We're
moving closer into the planet. (He moves to the navigation position) Vila, I
want a new course. Locate the center of that gravitational field. I want an
attitude that takes us directly away from it.
VILA: Right.
BLAKE: Jenna,
stand by to bring her round. (Pause) How much reserve power is there? Jenna.
(Jenna is immobile, her hand extended toward the controls, eyes unfocused.
Cally moves down to join Blake.) Jenna? What's wrong?
CALLY: What is
the matter with her?
BLAKE: I don't
know. Vila, give me a hand. We'll take her to her quarters.
SAYMON: (V.O.
speaking through Jenna) We have waited for your coming for many years. Welcome.
It pleases us that you are here.
BLAKE: Who are
you?
SAYMON: We will
meet shortly and then we shall answer all your questions. For now, it is only
important that you understand the danger of your situation.
BLAKE: Danger?
SAYMON: Your
ship is trapped. You cannot free yourselves.
BLAKE: We can
free ourselves at any time we wish. You underestimate the power of our ship.
SAYMON: On the
contrary. You overestimate it. We have examined your ship most carefully
through our daughter Cally. You would require to sustain your maximum power for
one hundred and sixty hours to break out of orbit. Your energy cells would be
exhausted in less than one hundred. Gravitational attraction would draw you
back to your present position before your cells would be recharged.
BLAKE: If we
are trapped, then by whom?
SAYMON: We do
have some influence on your safety in that it is within our power to release
you from the web. That we can and will do in return for assistance from you.
BLAKE: What do you
want from us?
SAYMON: In a
few moments we will transmit a homing signal. It will give you a precise
landing position. We will talk again when you have landed.
BLAKE: Listen.
CALLY: (Touching
her temple) It has left her. Blake, that could've been one of the Lost.
BLAKE: Well,
don't be mystical Cally. Explain.
CALLY: It is
the legend of my people. They were cast out. Unfit to share the soul of
Auronar.
A signal begins broadcasting to the Liberator.
Cally moves back to the communications position.
CALLY: Yes, it
is a beacon signal.
BLAKE: Get a
fix on it.
VILA: Are you
going down?
BLAKE: Not if I
can help it. I don't like the sound of anything I heard. Let's try to pull her
out of here.
JENNA: (Recovered,
unaware of passage of time) Ready to go about?
BLAKE: Jenna?
Are you all right now?
JENNA: Yes.
(Pause) Of course, I am.
BLAKE: Yes.
Vila is the course set?
VILA: Uh, on
the panel now.
BLAKE: Lock
onto it Jenna.
JENNA: She's
responding very slowly. Coming round. That's it. Locked onto course.
BLAKE: Right.
Give it all we've got. Full thrust.
JENNA: Coming
up. Full power.
BLAKE: Speed?
JENNA: Standard
by one half.
BLAKE: Cut in
the auxiliaries.
JENNA: That's
helped at bit. We're now up to standard by one and one half and building but
slowly.
BLAKE: Vila.
VILA: Yes.
BLAKE: It's
time to use the neutron blasters.
VILA: At last.
I've been looking forward to this.
BLAKE: Take it
easy. It might blow us all up. Se if you can blast a hole through that web.
Fire.
Vila attempts to fire. An alarm sounds.
ZEN: Neutron
flare shield has not been activated.
VILA: Which
one's that?
BLAKE: Activate
the neutron flare shield.
ZEN: Confirmed.
Blasters are cleared for firing.
Vila fires. Main viewscreen shows the blasters
clear a hole in the web. it begins to close up again immediately.
VILA: I did it.
JENNA: We're
picking up speed.
BLAKE: All
right, now keep it going.
VILA: It's
closing up.
JENNA: We're
getting drag again. We're slowing down.
BLAKE: Fire
again, Vila.
Vila fires again with similar result.
ZEN: Power
banks one and two now exhausted. Energy drain exceeds recharge capacity.
VILA: Every
time I blast a hole in it, it just knits up again.
BLAKE: How long
can we sustain this rate of power loss, Zen?
ZEN: Standard
drive plus auxiliaries can be sustained for ninety hours. Each neutronic
discharge reduces that capacity by three hours.
BLAKE: How much
distance have we covered?
ZEN: One
hundred spacials.
BLAKE: We're
not going to make it. All power off.
JENNA: All off.
CALLY: What
will you do?
BLAKE: We don't
have much choice.
JENNA: We're
drifting in again.
BLAKE: Let her
go. Cally, get an exact fix on that beacon. Tell Avon and tell him to stand by.
I'm going to have to teleport down. Vila, I want an atmosphere and gravity
check.
Surface of the planet. Decimas are wandering
through the compound.
SAYMON: There
is little time left. They will come to us, but it must be soon. There is little
time left. (Interior of the lab. Saymon suspended in his life support tank)
They will come to us, but it must be soon. It must be soon. It must be soon.
(View of Decimas, outside the lab, pounding on the windows.) Soon. Soon. Soon.
Soon. There is little time left. Soon. Soon.
In the teleport area of the Liberator
BLAKE: Set?
AVON: Ready.
CALLY: (Enters,
carrying surface gear) I must come with you.
BLAKE: No.
CALLY: But you
can trust me.
AVON: Really?
BLAKE: I know
we can. Whatever's down there can control you. It's already demonstrated that.
CALLY: I was
unprepared.
AVON: So were
we.
BLAKE: It's
better that you stay here. (Moves to stand by teleport console. To Avon) If I
call for backup get down there fast.
GAN: We'll be
ready.
BLAKE: Gan,
keep an eye on Cally. (Gan gives thumbs up sign)
AVON: What if
something should happen to you and we can't get you back?
BLAKE: Then all
you have to do is get everybody else out of this mess. (Stands within
teleportation area. Avon smiles slightly) All right put me down.
Avon teleports Blake. Cally leaves the teleport
area, followed by Gan. On the surface of the planet Blake materializes in a
wooded area. There are thick strands of a white substance clinging to the
foliage. Light colored round objects are scattered throughout. He starts toward
the clearing. From cover a Decima throws a crude spear. It strikes Blake in the
hand. He draws his weapon and moves quickly toward the laboratory complex. At
the main entrance to the laboratory an unarmed Decima approaches Blake.
BLAKE: Keep
back.
DECIMA: Help
us. Help us please.
The door opens and Novara steps out. He raises his
weapon and touches the Decima in the chest with it. The weapon discharges and
kills the Decima.
NOVARA: Come
inside. There are more of them in the compound.
Blake and Novara step inside the lab. Geela is
waiting just inside.
GEELA: You are
hurt. Come, I will treat the wound.
They move through to another room. Geela begins
cleaning the wound on Blake's hand.
BLAKE: (To
Novara) Why did you kill him, he was no threat.
NOVARA: One of
them obviously was, but don't worry it was only a Decima.
GEELA: You were
lucky. It could have been much worse. We've had groups of more than fifty of
them in this area. (Pause) Can you close your hand?
BLAKE: (Closes
hand slowly, painfully. Sharp intake of breath)
GEELA: The
tendons are not cut. (Geela extracts an organism from a container and places it
on the wound.)
BLAKE: What is
it?
GEELA: Don't be
alarmed. It's a simple enzyme culture. Tissue regeneration will take only a few
moments.
NOVARA: I'm
sorry this happened. The Decimas are becoming a problem. When we have full
power again we will reduce their numbers.
BLAKE: He was
asking for help.
GEELA: Don't
waste your sympathy. They want help to destroy us. Stupid they may be, but they
know that our power is diminished. That we are at our most vulnerable. There
only hope for a future is to wipe us out.
NOVARA: They've
made several full scale assaults on the lab. They can't do too much harm of
course. Their weapons are too primitive. But they are a threat. And they will
have to be suppressed.
GEELA: There,
you see it's dead. (Brushes away the desiccated remains of the organism)
BLAKE: (Examining
his healed hand) That is astonishing.
NOVARA: A
useful technique for small wounds.
They move into an adjoining room.
BLAKE: I've
never seen anything like it before.
NOVARA: Our
mission has specialized in tissue creation and regenerative processes.
GEELA: Among
other things.
They all sit down.
NOVARA: I am
Novara and this is my sister Geela.
BLAKE: Blake.
GEELA: We are
happy to see you. We thought your ship would land. How did you come here?
BLAKE: We have a
teleportation process.
NOVARA: Fascinating,
perhaps you would explain it to us.
BLAKE: I
thought you had already examined our ship.
NOVARA: Not all
of it.
BLAKE: You used
Cally to sabotage us and force us to come here.
GEELA: Would
you have come otherwise?
BLAKE: Perhaps.
NOVARA: In that
case, we apologize.
BLAKE: You
communicated with us through another member of my crew.
NOVARA: A
simple mental process known to the ancients. We have developed and refined it. It
is more reliable than mechanical transmissions.
BLAKE: You said
you have a way to free us from the web.
GEELA: That is
correct. We created "the web" as you call it.
BLAKE: What is
it?
NOVARA: It is a
silica based life form. A mutation not unlike fungus. Its spores germinate
rapidly and it has enormous tensile strength. It can trap and hold the most
powerful ship.
BLAKE: What's
it for?
NOVARA: It was
a line of research which got out of control.
BLAKE: Then how
do I release my ship?
GEELA: We
developed a fungicide that can be projected by a beam. It will clear a corridor
through the web. You will be able to move freely.
NOVARA: However,
that is where the problem lies. The problem is both yours and ours.
BLAKE: And so
presumably the reason why you brought us here.
They stand up.
GEELA: Let us
show you. Come.
They move to another room where a power control
unit is operating. You recognize this?
BLAKE: Power
cells?
NOVARA: Flutonic
power cells. As you can see from the registers one of them is totally
exhausted. The other almost so.
BLAKE: And you
have no means of recharging them.
GEELA: No, when
we have used what remains our life support systems will fail and we will die.
NOVARA: But
perhaps more significant from your point of view, we do not have enough power to
project the fungicide.
BLAKE: So you
want me to provide fully charged energy cells. And in return ...
GEELA: We
provide clear passage out of orbit.
BLAKE: (Examining
the unit) I don't know that we have this type of cell. I dare say we have
something that can be adapted.
NOVARA: Then
you agree?
Outside the lab, Decimas scream and pound on the
windows.
BLAKE: Dwarves?
GEELA: Decimas.
Geela and Novara move to one side of the lab.
Blake moves to the other side of the lab and looks out the door. He sees a circle
of Decimas removing their dead comrade. A few moments later, Geela and Novara
join him.
NOVARA: The
attack was a diversion so they could move their dead.
GEELA: Stupid
creatures. Taking of life seems to affect them. Almost as if they had emotions.
The Decimas begin to throw rocks at the door.
NOVARA: The
changes in them are astonishing. The earlier generations showed no indication
of aggression. (Pause) Are you going to contact your ship?
BLAKE: Blake.
Flight deck of the Liberator.
CALLY: Cally.
BLAKE: (V.O.)
Tell Avon I need two fully charged flutonic power cells.
CALLY: I will
tell him.
In the laboratory complex.
BLAKE: Call me
when he is ready to bring them down.
CALLY: (V.O.)
Understood.
Flight deck of the Liberator.
VILA: Ask him
what's happening down there.
CALLY: No, he's
gone. He didn't sound as if he was in trouble.
JENNA: He'd
have found a way of letting us know if he was.
CALLY: But the
Lost have great power.
VILA: Why would
they need these cells then? (Pause) I'll go and tell Avon. (Exits)
GAN: Flutonic
power cells.
ZEN: The
detector malfunction has been rectified. Full function on all systems is now
available.
JENNA: Run
immediate navigation check and pinpoint our position, then a maximum range
orbital scan.
ZEN: Detectors indicate
unidentified craft at extreme range.
JENNA: Put them
on the screen.
Main viewer displays graphic of five federation
pursuit ships in close formation
CALLY: There
they are.
JENNA: Pursuit
ships. Don't they ever give up.
GAN: Zen, are
they coming this way?
ZEN: If they
maintain present course and speed they will pass at a range not exceeding two
million spacials.
JENNA: Their
detectors'll pick us up at that distance. That's too close.
CALLY: Shall I
tell Blake?
JENNA: There's nothing
he can do till we're out of the web.
CALLY: But he
should be told.
JENNA: If he's
bargaining it will weaken his position.
CALLY: You're
very practical.
Decimas are exploring the area immediately outside
the laboratory. Inside, Geela is making adjustments to the console.
GEELA: Complete.
The beam is now aligned to your ship. When we have full power this control will
project a ray that will clear a route through the web. It will take three hours
to close in again.
BLAKE: Should
be enough time.
They move back into the adjoining room.
BLAKE: What was
the original purpose of the project?
NOVARA: Genetic
engineering. The main aims were to halt the aging process in humans. To find a
way to maintain continuous life.
BLAKE: Immortality.
NOVARA: And to
create a new species of animal. Creatures that would be able to perform simple
menial tasks. Animal machines that cost nothing to produce and little to
maintain.
BLAKE: (Laughs).
Experiments like that have been banned for centuries.
GEELA: Which is
why we had to establish our laboratory on an uninhabited planet.
BLAKE: Were any
of these creatures made?
NOVARA: Yes. We
engineered an efficient four function animal. Using the same basic genetic form
we then increased it to ten functions. The Decimas.
BLAKE: You made
the Decimas?
GEELA: The
prototypes. They breed naturally, but a mutant strain has become dominant. They
seem capable of thought. They exhibit primitive emotions, weaknesses we thought
we had eradicated.
NOVARA: They
will all have to be eliminated so that we can be certain the mutant strain is
destroyed.
BLAKE: They're
intelligent, living creatures. You can't just wipe them out.
GEELA: We gave
them life. We have the right to take it from them. Please don't concern yourself.
They're simply laboratory constructed animals as are we.
BLAKE: You? You
are made?
NOVARA: We were
genetically engineered, allowed to grow to maturity, then our aging processes
were stopped. We have no lives of our own. We are simply flesh and blood
creatures operated by our creators.
SAYMON: (V.O.
speaking through Geela) (Laughs) You seem confused my friend. We had intended
not to meet with you. However, you will be leaving us shortly. No harm can come
from your knowing us. Geela will bring you.
GEELA: Come
with us, please.
Blake follows Geela and Novara back through the
room and into the lounge area. His communicator chimes.
BLAKE: (Into
communicator)Blake.
AVON: (V.O.)Avon.
BLAKE: You
ready?
In the teleport area of the Liberator
AVON: One of
the flutonic power cells is fully charged. The other will be ready in precisely
two minutes.
In the laboratory.
BLAKE: Get them
down here as soon as you can.
In the teleport area of the Liberator
AVON: There's
something else. The detector banks are now fully functional. They've located
the pursuit ships and they're coming this way.
BLAKE: (V.O.)
Have everybody standing by. In the laboratory We'll move out as soon as we're
both back on board.
AVON: (V.O.)
Good.
BLAKE: (to
Geela) I'm sorry.
The three climb a few steps and enter a room Blake
has not seen before. The room is dominated by a tank containing the shrunken
body of a being suspended in fluid and hooked to a life support system.
SAYMON: You
must excuse me. I have not spoken with these lips in a long time. My name is
Saymon. That is the name by which this body was once known. I am a corporate
identity. We exist through this body.
BLAKE: We?
SAYMON: We were
from Auron. There were six of us when we set off on this project. Unfortunately
our knowledge was not far enough advanced then to eliminate death. But we did
possess the power to keep alive our thoughts and ideas. The bodies reverted but
the minds lived on.
BLAKE: Cally's
people. The Auronar.
SAYMON: Yes. We
were from the Auronar but not of them as Cally is.
BLAKE: That's
why you were able to control her.
SAYMON: That is
why we had to control her. She would not have accepted us freely.
BLAKE: You are
the only one of the six that is left?
SAYMON: Mechanical
aids sustain this body. Through it all six of us continue to live. Our combined
mental powers generate Geela and Novara to carry out all physical operation in
our experiments.
BLAKE: (Looks
at Novara and Geela) They have no life of their own.
SAYMON: None. If
our life support should fail, they would simply wither away. Thanks to you and
your energy cells that will not occur.
BLAKE: So that
all I have spoken to them about, all they have told me, that was you talking
not them.
SAYMON: Correct.
BLAKE: And did you
mean what you said? You're going to destroy the Decimas.
SAYMON: It
would have been wiser to have done so before they became so numerous. But to
discharge a lethal level of radiation required more power than we had
available.
BLAKE: But the
cells I'm providing will give you that power?
SAYMON: Of
course.
BLAKE: No. I
can't let that happen.
SAYMON: Without
that power you cannot escape the web.
BLAKE: Then we
must come to a new understanding. You won't get those cells until we do. (In
the teleport area of the Liberator) (V.O.) Avon stay on board until you hear
from me.
VILA: This is
Vila.
BLAKE: (V.O.)
Don't teleport Avon until I say so.
VILA: I just
did. (In the laboratory) (V.O.) I put him down about ten seconds ago.
BLAKE: (To
Saymon) He'll be in the compound now.
SAYMON: If the
Decimas reach him, he'll be in danger. Those power cells must be protected.
BLAKE: I don't
give a damn about your power cells. There's a friend of mine out there.
He turns and runs for the main entrance of the
complex. Geela and Novara intercept him near the exit. NOVARA: /GEELA: :
(Simultaneously) We will help.
Outside the entrance to the lab, the three survey
the compound.
BLAKE: (To
Geela) You take that side. (To Novara) You take that side. And I'll go straight
on.
The separate. Novara moves through the area
followed by Decimas. Geela moves in the opposite direction also followed by
Decimas. Blake moves toward the area where he first teleported down searching
for Avon.
AVON: (From
behind Blake) I've been looking for you. What's going on?
BLAKE: Let's
get under cover first. (They move behind some undergrowth and crouch down) Got
the cells?
AVON: (Indicating
a box in his hand) What do you think these are, field rations?
BLAKE: Listen,
these's a problem. If we let them have those, they'll use them to wipe out an
entire race of creatures, people here.
AVON: If it
concerns you, don't give them the cells.
BLAKE: No,
there's more. They've got a carrier beam which projects a fungicide which'll
clear a way through the web for us. It doesn't work without this power.
AVON: Ah well,
if it's between the creatures and us there's no argument. Even your irrational
conscience should be able to cope with that. (Pause) What do you want to do?
BLAKE: Hold off
long enough to make a deal.
AVON: You're going
to have to be quick, Blake. Those pursuit ships are coming this way.
BLAKE: I'll
hide these cells. (Conceals power cells in the undergrowth). They can have them
when they agree to our terms.
AVON: What ARE
our terms?
BLAKE: They can
use lethal radiation to kill everything out here. If they allow us to destroy
the radiation equipment at least the Decimas will have some form of chance.
AVON: Why
should they agree?
BLAKE: They
need the power. They can't survive without it.
AVON: Neither
can we.
BLAKE: I'll
bear that in mind. (Tosses empty box away.)
AVON: Don't
worry. I'll remind you.
Novara and Geela approach. Blake and Avon rise.
Avon draws his weapon.
NOVARA: Let's
get back inside quickly. Where are the cells?
BLAKE: He
didn't bring them. We'll get them when we've talked.
GEELA: You are
lying.
BLAKE: You will
get them when you agree to our terms.
NOVARA: (To
Avon) Put your weapon down. (Avon looks at Blake) Do it! (To Blake) You. Now,
the cells.
AVON: I didn't
bring them.
GEELA: (Touches
Avon's hand with her weapon. She releases his hand.) Minimum power. A full
charge would cut you in half.
NOVARA: Understand.
Your lives are totally unimportant to us.
BLAKE: All
right.
Blake retrieves the energy cells.
NOVARA: Quickly.
They all move back into the laboratory building.
GEELA: (Just
inside the main door) The cells.
Blake surrenders the cells to Geela. She hands
them to Novara. He goes through to the power unit without securing the main
door and begins installing the cells. Blake, Avon and Geela follow him.
NOVARA: (Completing
installation) I will irradiate.
BLAKE: No!
Novara.
Decimas who have been quietly entering through the
open main doorway attack Geela and Novara, but leave the members of the
Liberator crew unharmed. During the confusion, Blake moves to the power console
and activates the fungicide beam.
BLAKE: Right,
that's the beam.
Avon and Blake move to the stairs leading to
Saymon's sanctuary.
AVON: These are
what you wanted to protect.
BLAKE: They're
fighting for their lives.
AVON: Who
isn't.
They step inside the room.
Exterior of the Liberator trapped in the silica
web. A pulsing light beam strikes the web and the ship. The web begins to
dissolve.
On the flight deck of the Liberator. Jenna, Gan
and Cally are waiting.
JENNA: Look.
Main viewscreen shows the web dissolving.
GAN: He did it.
We're free.
JENNA: Not yet.
Interior of the laboratory. The Decimas continue
their attack. They are destroying equipment. Geela and Novara are dead. The
Decimas attack their remains.
AVON: (Back on
the stairs) Let's get out of here.
BLAKE: (Into
communicator) Blake. We're ready. Bring us up.
They step back into Saymon's room and teleport
field envelops them. Saymon screams. The Decimas move into the room and begin
to destroy his life support tank.
Flight deck of the Liberator
BLAKE: Navigation
computer to evasive action strategy. Key course and speed to optimum escape
probability. Basically, lose them, Zen.
ZEN: Confirmed.
AVON: One thing
they proved back there.
BLAKE: What?
AVON: Biological
machines will never replace the real thing. They're far too unpredictable.
BLAKE: At least
the Decimas stand a chance now. You can't separate living creatures. Being
alive involves them together.
AVON: I
couldn't agree with you less.
BLAKE: It's a
fact of life. Zen, when we've lost the pursuit ships, resume course for
Centero.
ZEN: Confirmed.
AVON: I'll tell
you a fact of life Blake. Change is inevitable.
BLAKE: Why else
we'd fight, Avon.
The End
Email me with your suggestions at: rita@vilaworld.net