ACT ONE:
FADE IN
INT. EXCALIBUR
Gideon is watching our favourite Russian Officer on the viewscreen.
IVANOVA
Thank you
for responding to our distress call. To be honest, I wasn't
expecting any other Earth ships to be out so far.
GIDEON
We're a special case.
(beat)
How can we be of assistance?
IVANOVA
Well. . . We're in a spot of bother to level with you Captain. It's too long a story to explain over the link. Shall I come aboard and explain everything?
GIDEON
You're very forward. I like that in a woman. I'll send a shuttle over with some engineers to help you make repairs, you don't you return on it?
IVANOVA
Understood.
Ivanova out.
Ivanova disappears.
MATHESON (To Gideon)
Ivanova? Wasn't she the XO of Babylon 5?
GIDEON
I believe so. And your point being?
MATHESON (Amusingly)
Well you seem to be very popular with the command personnel of Babylon 5 these days Captain.
GIDEON (Rolling his eyes)
Quit it Lieutenant. Or you'll become very popular with scrubbing the toilets!
(beat)
Can you ready a team of our best engineers Lieutenant. And ask Captain Ivanova to meet me in the conference room upon her arrival.
INT. EXCALIBUR – CONFERENCE ROOM
Some time later. . .
Only Ivanova and Gideon are in the room, Ivanova is standing before a tactical display on the monitor.
IVANOVA (Pointing to appropriate places on the display)
You can see here and here. The race we're dealing with is split up into two distinct clans, they call themselves the Du'Marti and the Du'Curta.
(beat)
When first contact was made five years ago a nice stable cold war existed between the two. Neither wanted to ruin the status quo.
GIDEON
Nothing like the friendly threat of mutual annihilation to keep people happy.
IVANOVA
But recently
the Du'Marti have started to get sick.
GIDEON
Sick?
IVANOVA
They claim the Du'Curta infected them with some sort of plague.
GIDEON
Plague?
IVANOVA
It gets
worse. The Du'Curta obviously deny the claim. BUT claim the
Du'Marti hierarchy has a cure but isn't distributing it to it's
own people to make their cause more sympathetic to outside aid.
GIDEON
Captain, all I heard were the words PLAGUE and CURE.
(beat)
Do you think you could us permission to get a look at this "cure" ?
IVANOVA
Well I could
contact the hierarchy of the Du'Marti, but I'm not sure I'd
send a team down. I'm not sure where this plague of their's is
infectious to humans.
GIDEON
We've got precautious that can get around possible contamination Captain. I'd appreciate it if you could contact whoever you need to, to get us down to their planet.
IVANOVA
I'll get onto it after I've returned to my ship.
GIDEON
So I presume it wasn't the Du'Marti (???) that attacked your ship?
IVANOVA
Correct. Their rivals, the Du'Curta attacked us. Accusing us of aiding their enemy, supplying them with weapons etc. All we'd actually do was arrival, send out a general friendly hello and all of a sudden we're surrounded by these alien fighters.
GIDEON
They must pack quite a wallop to damage a Warlock Class Destroyer.
IVANOVA
She's not just any Warlock Class Destroyer
either.
GIDEON
How do you mean?
IVANOVA
Oh. . . Nothing Captain. Nothing. I
appreciate the help your
crew is giving mine. Any with any luck I'll be able t help you with your cause.
(beat)
With that said. I'll be returning to my ship.
Ivanova exits, leaving Gideon wondering about her reference to the possible enhancements the Warlock Class Destroyer has undergone, and her unwillingness to discuss them. WE linger on a GIDEON CLOSE UP before we CUT,
RAKELLA PRIME – WILDERNESS
CGI Galen's ship flying in low, over what looks surprisingly like a nearby desert. It lands and the hatch opens. Galen pops out.
GALEN
(Taken aback)
Oh! It's far to bright.
Galen waffs his hand over his eyes, and we can SEE they change to slightly tinted whites.
GALEN
Much better. It's been so long since I've been under natural sun I'd forgotten what it looks like.
(beat)
Right. . . Which way did Ship say this human base thing was?
Galen looks around, picks a direction and starts to walk.
Show several independent shots, from different angles, showing the passage of time during his travels. Eventually we SEE a CLOSE UP on his face, before CUTTING to behind him to SHOW the edge of the Earth Alliance base. He's at the ass entrance of the base, so make it seem a little rundown, a little uncared for: UNGUARDED.
Galen looks around him, like a comic robber about to steal candy from a baby. He does an incantation and a hole appears in the wall. He sneaks into the darkness, only to suddenly be stopped by a PPG to the back of his head.
GUARD
Hey! How did you get in here! IDENTICARD! NOW!
We CLOSE UP on GALEN and then cut,
INT. EXCALIBUR – BRIDGE
Ivanova is on the screen again.
GIDEON
Thank you Captain. I trust my repair teams are welcome aboard your vessel for a few hours whilst we check out this Du'Marti plague cure?
IVANOVA
Of course. You know Grandma's rules, spoil
'em, stuff 'em full of sweats and send 'em home.
GIDEON
Will you want me to leave a squadron of Thunderbolts here to protect the Titans incase those Du'Curta turn up again?
IVANOVA (Shaking her head)
Negative. I wouldn't want Earth's Last Best Hope for a cure to be destroyed because your starfuries are saving my butt.
(beat)
Besides, if you get destroyed, they'll probably give your job to me as punishment. And that's a responsibility I'm not ready for!
GIDEON
Understood. See you in a few hours.
Ivanova nods and the link is cut.
GIDEON (To Matheson)
Lieutenant!
MATHESON
Yes sir?
GIDEON
Ready us for a jump. Input the coordinates the Titans gave us for the Du'Marti homeworld and make best speed.
MATHESON
Understood.
INT. EXCALIBUR – MEDLAB
Chambers is going over three isolation suits with a tech when Dureena enters.
DUREENA
Getting
ready to head planetside again Doctor?
CHAMBERS (Distracted)
U-huh.
DUREENA
Would it
interest you to know my people knew of the Du'Marti and the
Du'Curta. In fact, for a time, we were their trading partners.
CHAMBERS (No longer distracted)
Really?
DUREENA
Yes. I could
of great help on your expedition. Good relations and all that.
CHAMBERS
(Looking sceptical)Has the Captain approved your mission status?
DUREENA
What Gideon
doesn't know won't hurt him.
CHAMBERS
I don't think –
DUREENA
Please. I. . . will be useful, if things get hairy down there. Your security I mean.
CHAMBERS (Starting to come around)
Are you really that concerned over my safety? Or do you have an alternate motive?
DUREENA
Yes! I mean.
. . no. I mean, Doctor. Woman to woman, surely you can just trust me
on this one. Please, I'll forever be in your debt.
CHAMBERS
I'll try. I'll put your name on the team sheet so I'm not falsifying any records, so if nobody on the bridge flags your name up you can come. Alright?
DUREENA
I owe you a
great debt!
CHAMBERS
Just be a little prompter with repaying that debt that you have with Max's gambling winnings.
DUREENA
That man is
a cheat.
CHAMBERS
Who do you know what?
DUREENA
Because I'm
a member of the thieves guild, so I always cheat. And the only way
you can beat a cheater is to be a cheater yourself!
INT. EXCALIBUR – GIDEON'S QUARTERS
The Apocalypse box is out. Gideon is looking into it's glow.
GIDEON
I heard you calling me. How do you do that? How can I hear you? And no-one else can?
APOCALYPSE BOX
You and I are the same.
GIDEON
What?
APOCALYPSE BOX
We speak with the same voice. The same mind.
GIDEON
You don't make any sense.
APOCALYPSE BOX
Galen
will need your help.
GIDEON
Galen? What's
he got to do with anything?
APOCALYPSE BOX
He is in great danger. If his life is to be preserved you must go to his aid.
GIDEON
No. No way. I've repaid my debt to Galen a hundred times over for saving my life after the Cerebeus exploded. I can't redirect the ship now we're chasing a lead for a possible cure just to find him.
(beat)
No. He's his
own man. He can look after himself.
Gideon is unsure of his own answers. He puts the Box away into it's hiding place.
GIDEON
No. I can't take the ship of course. Not now.
FADE TO BLACK:
END OF ACT ONE