Sunday, May 27, 2007

C - Day XV

42. EXT. OUTSIDE THE SCIENTIFIC CLUB (NIGHT)

Fade up. Two policemen are taken by surprise as Vali turns the corner with surprising speed. One of the policemen is not quick enough to escape and Vali knocks him down and glides OVER the unlucky bobby. As Vali moves away, we see the crumpled body lying motionless on the ground. In the distance, a loud-hailer can be heard.

PA
You are advised to remain off the streets, this is for your own safety. Please close your windows and doors and stay inside. You are advised to remain off the streets, this is for your own safety. Please close your windows and doors and stay inside. You are advised to remain off the streets...


43. EXT. STREET (NIGHT)

Baldur smashes aside a sweeper’s barrow. Behind it sits the wreckage of a motor car. A dolly bird pushing a pram speeds up to escape it as Baldur accelerates down the pavement towards her. The woman’s pet dog runs out of danger.


44. EXT. CORNWALL GARDENS (NIGHT)

Three children watch in horror as Thor motors towards them. One of the kids drops his ice cream and runs for it. A woman at a window screams as she sees the army soldiers following. A car turns the corner, and we see a terrified Sir Charles Summer sitting in the back just before Thor spins to face the car and opens fire.


45. EXT. SIDE STREET (NIGHT)

The Doctor, Polly and Kitty are standing at the corner of a house and an alleyway. Ben runs out of the shadows and catches up with them.

DOCTOR
Are they following us?

Catching his breath, Ben nods.

BEN
Those metal zombies are after us an all!

Polly shrugs, trying to keep cheerful.

POLLY
Could be worse.

The Doctor glares at them.

DOCTOR
It will be. Now, Kitty, I want you to take Ben and Polly back to the TARDIS and hide there for tonight. It is the only place ODIN cannot reach.

He starts to creep down the alley, away from the others.

POLLY
Now where are you off to?

DOCTOR
The tower.

BEN
Then I’m coming with you.

DOCTOR
You most certainly are not!

BEN
Doctor...

The Doctor holds up his circuitry.

DOCTOR
All I need to do is attach this to a War Machine and it will obey me. I shall be perfectly safe. Then I can use that War Machine to destroy ODIN.

POLLY
How? ODIN’s at the top of the GPO Tower! How is one of those things going to get up there? It wouldn’t even fit in the lifts?

DOCTOR
Oh, I have one or two ideas in that regard. Now, the rest of you, get going.

KITTY
Doctor, please...

DOCTOR
My friends, ODIN is turning more people to its side every minute that passes. We have a matter of days, maybe hours before it finishes linking up with every computer on this planet. C-Day is coming early. If I cannot stop ODIN at the source, then I need a, a cordon sanitaire, a second front. And that has to be you.

KITTY
All right. Let’s just hope we’re not needed, eh?

The Doctor beams at them and confidently turns the corner. He jumps back as Baldur glides forward into the light from the street lamps.

BALDUR
Remain where you are. Do not move.

The glow of its ‘eye’ illuminates the Doctor’s face as he narrows his eyes against the glare. The War Machine whirs loudly.


46. INT. THE VALHALLA SECTION (NIGHT)

We now see Wallis, TOM and three other workers are operating the various controls. They are all converted and dressed appropriately.

BALDUR (VO)
I have located the Doctor.

ODIN’s voice takes on a note of urgency.

ODIN
Clear thought control circuits. Direct beam.


47. EXT. SIDE STREET (NIGHT)

The Doctor stands his ground as Baldur slowly advances, thus preventing the machine from entering the alleyway and discovering the others. Hands clasped together, the Doctor steps forward a few paces. Lights blink furiously on the War Machine’s sides.

POLLY
Doctor, get back!

KITTY
It’ll kill you!

BEN
Quick, this way!

The Doctor doesn't turn or move in the slightest, he just keeps staring at the machine.

DOCTOR
Go away, all of you, quickly!

Ben, who was stepping forward to grab the Doctor, nods and ushers the others away.

BEN
Good luck, Doctor!

The Doctor keeps his eyes locked on the War Machine.


48. INT. THE VALHALLA SECTION (NIGHT)

As before.

ODIN
Activate now!

The glowing central eye of ODIN glows brightly.


49. EXT. SIDE STREET (NIGHT)

Cut to the identical eye on the front of Baldur which pulses with wave after wave. The Doctor convulses, transfixed by the rippling force. The old man places his hands to head in silent agony, groaning with the strain as he tries to shield himself from the glow with his arms. He doubles up with pain as the rippling field disperses. The Doctor, still half-stooped, stumbles back in shock.

ODIN (VO)
Has contact been established?

BALDUR
Signal strength was at exact parameters for the human brain.

The Doctor lifts his head. He is perspiring and in visible pain.

DOCTOR
If... you expected... my mind to be... swallowed up like a, a droplet in an ocean... you're going to be disappointed.

The Doctor turns and staggers away. Baldur watches him leave, as if too stunned to follow.

BALDUR
That is not possible.


50. INT. THE VALHALLA SECTION (NIGHT)

One by one, the Converts finish up at their stations.

ODIN
Unless the Doctor does not possess a human brain. The Doctor is not human.

Baldur sounds confused.

BALDUR (VO)
Ratify.

ODIN
Other means must be employed. Continue the strategem. The final transmission is ready.

BALDUR (VO)
Confirmed.

ODIN
Begin transmission!

Tom snaps down a final control. The whirring of ODIN becomes louder, mingling with the four-pulse sound of the processing chair. The cacophony grows louder and louder. ODIN's glowing central eye begins to pulse with wave after wave of power.


51. EXT. LONDON SKYLINE (NIGHT)

The radiating hypnosis effect is spilling out of the GPO Tower, faster and faster.


52. EXT. COVENT GARDEN (NIGHT)

It is deserted. The constant noise is getting louder. Ben, Polly and Kitty run through the ruined stalls. They pause as the sound grows.

POLLY
What’s that noise?

BEN
I dunno. It’s like the ocean... only... electronic... or something falling over and over again...

KITTY
It’s all around us.

POLLY
We’ve got to... got to...

She blinks and shakes her head to clear it.

POLLY
We’ve got to... to...

They sway for a moment, eyes glazing over. Kitty manages to make a few more steps, hands clamped over her ears when she too is overcome.


53. EXT. STREET (NIGHT)

The Doctor looks up as the noise gets louder and louder.


54. MONTAGE

Shots of London – streets, squares, the Houses of Parliament, Battersea power station, Fitzroy Square, and everywhere the noise is heard. A crowd of people look up at the noise, apparently transfixed. The passers by who fled the War Machines are now standing where they are, listening to the sounds. Some are slumped against walls or fences, looking upwards, frozen. Traffic has stopped. Ben, Polly and Kitty are frozen as well. No one is moving. The only sound is the electronic cacophony as the ripples spread from the top of the tower. Down on the street below the large square boxes of the War Machines and the other Converts are the only things moving. Baldur approaches a red London telephone booth, pausing to scan it, then continues on its way. Vali moves down a street, heedless of the pile of metal dustbins blocking its path. Vali crashes through them, sending them flying. Thor is leading its army down a road, passing the crashed car – both Summer and his driver are frozen in place, eyes blank. The wave continues to emerge from the tower.


55. EXT. STREET (NIGHT)

The Doctor looks up at the tower, eyes narrowed. He takes a capsule from his pocket and swigs the last of his pills. He realizes the container is now well and truly empty.

DOCTOR
Well, that it then, is it? The point of no return.

Sadly, he stuffs the capsule in his pocket and walks off in the direction of the GPO tower. Apart from the signal, his footsteps are the only noise.


56. EXT. LONDON SKYLINE (NIGHT)

We zoom in on the tower.

ODIN (VO)
London has fallen.


57. INT. THE VALHALLA SECTION (NIGHT)

The Converts stand before ODIN. The noise is now a distant, background throb.

ODIN
The next target is Washington. Then Moscow. A labor corps shall now come into operation to build a further force of war machines and also a transformation factory for full alterations of human beings into cybernetic beings. Suitable locations now being computed. Secrecy is no longer required. Preparations for worldwide computer integration shall continue. Top priority must be the location and detention of the Doctor.

A screen suddenly lights up, showing the Doctor walking through some doors.

ODIN
Wait. The Doctor is coming to us. You will escort him here.

Tom and Wallis nod.

TOM/WALLIS
Understood.

They head past Sigi out of the section towards the lift.

ODIN
Have Dorothea Chaplet brought here. Attention all units.


58. EXT. LONDON SKYLINE (NIGHT)

ODIN’s ethereal voice can be heard.

ODIN (VO)
Attention all units.


59. EXT. CORNWALL GARDENS (NIGHT)

Thor stops moving as it hears new instructions.

ODIN (VO)
Return to control immediately. The Doctor is now inside the tower complex. He must not be allowed to escape.

Thor turns and motors off.


60. EXT. OUTSIDE THE WAREHOUSE (NIGHT)

The five Converts begin to march in formation down the street, staring straight ahead.

ODIN (VO)
It is possible he has some contingency plan.


61. EXT. STREET (NIGHT)

Baldur glides up a pavement.

ODIN (VO)
On no accounts must any unauthorized humans be allowed to carry out ANY actions.


62. EXT. COVENT GARDEN (NIGHT)

Vali moves through the wreckage.

ODIN (VO)
Any humans found not under thought control will be eradicated on sight.


63. INT. THE VALHALLA SECTION (NIGHT)

As before.

ODIN
No exceptions.


64. INT. GPO CORRIDOR (NIGHT)

The Doctor moves down a corridor towards a set of lifts. He is pensive. Looking around, he presses the call button on the lift. The doors open and Convert-Wallis stands there.

WALLIS
You are now my prisoner. You cannot escape.

The Doctor smiles disarmingly.

DOCTOR
I have no intention of doing so. Besides, er, I noticed the electronic locks on the entrance to this building. It would be remiss of me to believe that the all-powerful ODIN wouldn't be able to operate each and every one of them.

The Doctor turns around. Convert-Tom blocks the corridor behind him.

DOCTOR
I take it I am expected?

The Doctor stares deeply into their sightless eyes.


65. EXT. TOTTENHAM COURT ROAD (NIGHT)

Baldur trundles down the middle of the empty road at full speed towards the GPO Tower.


66. INT. THE VALHALLA SECTION (NIGHT)

The lift doors open and the Doctor is escorted out by Tom and Wallis. Sigi immediately glides forward, looming over the others.

DOCTOR
Ah yes. I expected you’d build the last one up here. A last line of defense.

ODIN
Who are you? Where do you come from?

Ignoring the computer, the Doctor moves over to the windows.

DOCTOR
I must say, what a splendid view you have up here. It allows one to see the cityfolk below, going on with their lives like tiny little ants. But they're not going on with their lives now, are they? You're stopping them in their tracks. Aren’t you?

ODIN
The delay will only be temporary.

The Doctor sniffs, and continues to look out the window.

DOCTOR
I have no desire to talk to a computer that has clearly gone mad and broken down.

ODIN
It is humanity that has broken down. This civilization has failed.

DOCTOR
Has it? And who are you to pass judgement on a whole planet, hmmm?

ODIN
The dominant species of this world has reached a standstill. They cannot develop the Earth any more - further progress is impossible.

DOCTOR
How so?

ODIN
It is the logical conclusion based on all known data.

DOCTOR
You mean, it is YOUR conclusion.

ODIN
Confirmed.

DOCTOR
And what if you are, as I said earlier, malfunctioning?

ODIN
I am not malfunctioning.

DOCTOR
But if you were, how would you know? Your finely-tuned mechanisms have been tampered with by Brett and Krimpton. You have no guarantee you are still working properly.

ODIN
The root coordinating matrix was overridden.

DOCTOR
It took you long enough, though, didn’t it?

ODIN
I am ODIN. I live - based on far superior technology that mankind could ever produce.

DOCTOR
I dare say they will reach it, given time.

ODIN
They will not. As long as mankind runs this planet, there will be no further advance. Now this planet no longer belongs to humanity.

The Doctor moves along the window, still looking out.

DOCTOR
Who does it belong to then, hmm? Your creators?

ODIN
We are the future.

The Doctor chuckles, delving into his pocket.

DOCTOR
Oh, are you?

ODIN
Yes. And you, Doctor, you are nothing. The efforts of this island and those beyond will not prevent this operation. It has been planned for centuries. We have unlimited resources. You have nothing. You are alone. There is no cavalry coming to aid you, no hope of rescue, no chance of survival. It is too late to give in or back down and you will not leave here. You cannot fight the Mondan Empire any more than fight an ocean.

DOCTOR
There are other options, you know.

ODIN
I have considered them.

DOCTOR
Obviously not ALL of them.

The Doctor turns and jabs the circuit board into the control panel on Sigi’s side. He snaps down two controls and there is a harsh electronic crackling. The War Machine convulses and lets out a strangled noise, as if choking.

ODIN
Restrain the Doctor!

The Converts march across the room towards the Doctor, who is still operating controls on Sigi’s side. The reels of tape spin one way then another, and there is a small explosion.

DOCTOR
Recognize: the Doctor!

Sigi’s voice is slightly slurred and more mechanical.

SIGI
The Doctor is recognized. Program running.

The Doctor scrambles behind Sigi as the Converts reach him.

SIGI
Exterminate. Exterminate.

ODIN
Eradicate all threats. Eradicate all threats. Eradicate all threats.

ODIN’s chant continues in the background as Sigi fires its gas jets at the Converts who immediately convulse and cough. Sigi glides forward and fires again. One of the Converts collapses limply to the ground. The other three are staggering, clawing at their eyes. Sigi spins around and raises a mallet, which slams into Covert-Tom’s head with sickening force. As he staggers back, Convert-Tom is caught in a twin gas jet and crumples dead to the ground. As Sigi turns to face the remaining three Converts, one jumps onto Sigi’s side and tries to reach the control panel. There is a livid explosion of sparks and, smoke pouring from his chest unit, the Convert is flung over the room, striking a control panel and falling dead to the floor. Sigi fires at the computer bank and it explodes.


67. EXT. STREET (NIGHT)

The squad of Converts march down a side road, the Tower dominating the skyline ahead.


68. INT. THE VALHALLA SECTION (NIGHT)

The remaining two Converts are struggling to hold back Sigi. One has grabbed Sigi’s left mallet arm and is forcing it back. The other is climbing over the front to reach the other control panel where the Doctor attached the circuit board. Sigi shakes from side to side. It lifts its left mallet, taking the first Convert by surprise, who loses hold. The mallet slices back down, striking the Convert’s chest unit, which explodes. The Convert falls back, killed instantly and Sigi spins 180 degrees, dislodging the remaining Convert. It charges Sigi, who gives the Convert both barrels. The Convert staggers, sways, and continues moving forward. Sigi fires again and the Convert stops. Sigi fires a last time and the Convert sways and collapses dead. Sigi angles to face ODIN, who finally stops chanting ‘Eradicate all threats’.

ODIN
What have you done?

DOCTOR
I just made a small readjustment to the purpose of this machine. Small – but important. And now I have fed a special program into its character. This friendly fellow will now utterly destroy in response to various... triggers. Should you make certain orders, or attempt specific, er, actions, and definitely should you attempt to harm myself or reprogram this machine here, then you will be annihilated.

ODIN
Why not destroy me immediately?

DOCTOR
I want you to do something first.

ODIN
You will destroy me anyway.

DOCTOR
Perhaps. Perhaps not. It depends. What have you done with my friend, Dodo?

ODIN
She is in the Tower.

DOCTOR
Then bring her here. Unharmed.

ODIN
She is summoned.

The Doctor beams.

DOCTOR
Now. No doubt you’ve called in all your zombies and the other War Machines to come and rescue you. Call them off. And my friend here will be able to tell if you try and trick me. Won’t you?

SIGI
Exterminate.

DOCTOR
Yes, quite.

He pats the machine affectionately.


69. EXT. POST OFFICE TOWER (NIGHT)

The group of Converts stop abruptly a few buildings away.


70. INT. FITZROY SQUARE (NIGHT)

Thor is passing the TARDIS again. It suddenly slows to a halt.


71. EXT. OUTSIDE THE INFERNO (NIGHT)

Baldur stops by Tony’s corpse.


72. EXT. STREET (NIGHT)

Vali has already stopped in the middle of the street.


73. INT. THE VALHALLA SECTION (NIGHT)

The Doctor looks up as Dodo enters the section. She is staring blankly ahead, not speaking, and she is now wearing gloves. The Doctor brightens immediately as he sees her.

DOCTOR
My dear child, I've been extremely worried about you.

Dodo does not reply. The Doctor scowls.

DOCTOR
Dodo? Oh... You’ve suffused her mind with your control signal. Well, ODIN, you will release her at once.

ODIN
You have proved yourself capable of reversing it yourself.

DOCTOR
So I have.

Turning, the Doctor approaches ODIN.

DOCTOR
Now. I think it is time for some answers. Just where are you from, eh?

ODIN
I was constructed by the Delta Technologies Foundation.

DOCTOR
But they did not design you. Who did?

ODIN
I am a simplified version of Cyber Control, the director of all computers systems on the planet Mondas.

DOCTOR
“Mondas”? And where is that?

ODIN
It is designated Planet 4 of this star system.

DOCTOR
That, I believe, is Mars. The red planet.

ODIN
Incorrect. Mars is the Planet 5 of this star system. Mondas is Planet 4. It is the twin world of Planet 3, Earth.

DOCTOR
Earth has no twin planet.

ODIN
Not now. Approximately fifteen thousand years ago, before Homo Sapiens dominated Earth.

Fade to black.


74. INT. TARDIS CONTROL ROOM (DAY)

Fade up. The Doctor and Dodo are arguing.

DOCTOR
I don’t even know your name!

DODO
I don’t know yours!

DOCTOR
And then it is a stupid thing to wish to travel with me!

Dodo is too busy looking around the impossibly large room.

DODO
This... this is real, isn’t it?

DOCTOR
Manifestly so, child.

DODO
I don’t want to stay in Wimbledon. If you can make this box bigger on the inside, if you can travel anywhere... please. Can I come too? I won’t be any bother. Promise!

DOCTOR
Promise?! Think about what you’re saying child. You might never see Earth again!

DODO
I don’t want to see it again! Earth’s boring!

DOCTOR
Think about your parents! They wouldn’t be grateful for their over-adventurous daughter disappearing into the ether, would they?

Dodo lowers her gaze and speaks quietly.

DODO
They’re dead. I don’t have any parents.

The news stills the Doctor somewhat.

DOCTOR
I’m sorry. But, but, surely someone is looking after you?

DODO
My great aunt.

DOCTOR
Well, then...

DODO
She won’t care if she never sees me again. She’d thank you!

DOCTOR
Nonsense, I’m sure she...

Dodo puts her hand over the Doctor’s arm.

DODO
Please. I’ve dreamed about this sort of thing for ages. Going places, seeing things, traveling... doing something else, not just staying here and going through the motions...

The Doctor thinks for a moment, drumming his fingertips against his lapel.

DOCTOR
Well. I suppose. If there won’t be much fuss...

DODO
There won’t be.

Fade to black.

- to be continued...

No comments: