ACT THREE

FADE IN:

RAKELLA PRIME – EA BASE

Galen is wandering down a misc. B5 looking corridor. EA logos are prominent, as is the colour grey.

Galen rounds a corner and sees a Earth Force officer coming toward him, his head down reading from a datanote. Galen quickly creeps up on him and uses an incantation that sends the officer to sleep.

Before Galen can move on however another officer appears behind him.

BASE OFFICER

(Drawing his PPG)

Hey! You've hurt one of our guys!

GALEN

Whoops. Was that me? You better not look down the corridor whence I came or you might get really upset at how many of you I've come across.

As the officer goes for his link Galen throws a small ball that explodes on the floor, releasing a gas that sends the Officer out cold.

GALEN

I must make quick work of my task. Or I will soon be overrun.

NAVA (A voice in Galen's head)

Galen! Is that you Galen!

GALEN

NAVA! I hear your voice! Are you in league with the Earthers! Are you sharing the secrets many of our orders have died to protect!

(beat)

Show yourself! Face me!

Galen begins to move more swiftly down the corridors now, throwing open doors as he goes.

GALEN

SHOW YOURSELF!

NAVA (IG's HEAD)

If only I could Galen. For you see, I am glum to admit I have been captured by the Humans. They hold me a few metres from where you stand now. If you wish the confrontation you were born to fight then you must free me from these corporeal shackles.

EA BASE – HOLDING CELLS

It is a series of hi-tech cells, like that of B5s. All are empty apart from the last one, which houses Nava. He is tied to a upright stable of metal. Two guards are at his cell door.

There is a noise coming from this hall's entrance. A guard draws his PPG and approaches.

Suddenly the door blows open and amidst the smoke and confusion Galen enters, cloaked hood over his head and face. Another ball of smoke sends the second guard to the floor and a final incantation flings open Nava's cell.

GALEN

If you are as powerful as you say you are. Then you shouldn't have been able to be captured by the Earthers. What of your ship? Your incantations?

NAVA

My ship is in the hands of the Humans. My powers are still not completely recovered. I had to find my ship. I returned to this place of my ship's eternal hiding unprepared for battle and tired after our previous duel. I am guilty of nothing other than coming unprepared to face this new enemy.

GALEN

I cannot break your shackles with my incantations.

NAVA

They know Galen. The Earthers know the secrets of our order.

GALEN

Your shackles. . .

Galen comes closer and examines the perfectly seamless pitch black rings around Nava's throat, feet, and hands.

NAVA

They are shadow technology! They have harnessed the power of the ancient darkness! They are not ready! Not organised, or sensible enough to be trusted with this technology. They will do many terrible things with it.

(Beat)

You've got to get me out of here Galen. My brother.

GALEN

Asking ME for help? You have fallen Nava. If only the order could see you now.

NAVA

This isn't about the order. This isn't about saving face. Or even preserving the secret our people fled to beyond the rim to protect. It is about life. Saving mine.

GALEN

HA! And why should I? I mean I came here to see you dead! To see that your wickedness would not spread to others in the stars.

NAVA

Because my dear, dear friend. I am, when fully recovered from my great journey, the most powerful and wise technomage of us all.

GALEN

A technomage is still only a technomage Nava. We have no more power over life, death and the universe than a simply man in the right place at the right time.

NAVA

That is where you are wrong. When I am at full power. I have the power over life and death.

GALEN

But –

NAVA

That's right Galen. I can return Isabel to you.

CLOSE UP on GALEN's reaction before we CUT,

EXT. TITANS

Establisher. Small blasts of fighter-on-fighter combat can be seen sparking up around the ship. A few larger alien ships can be seen in the BG.

The CAMERA moves to the right slightly to show a hyperspace point open, and the Excalibur come flying out. WE can CGI a glory shot of the Excalibur coming out guns-a-blazing here to keep the TNT boys happy. WE also SEE the Excalibur's thunderbolts scrambling, we can use existing CGI shots for that.

IVANOVA (Over comm.)

You're a sight for saw eyes Excalibur. Let's mop these guys up.

GIDEON (Over Comm.)

I was hoping not to get in any fights today Captain, but when it Rome.

We can enjoy a few more CGI dogfights, overlaid with various stereotypical anonymous fighter "chatter", "he's on your tail" etc.

INT. EXCALIBUR – BRIDGE

MATHESON

Sir. We're being hailed by the lead alien ship. Looks like they took one scan of our main gun and decided against continuing the fight.

GIDEON

Even if we can fire again or manoeuvre for over a minute after firing our main gun, the enemy doesn't know that! To quote one Earth Senator I spoke to recently: "It gives the enemy the willies".

(beat)

Inform their leader I like to do things face-to-face and invite him over to the Excalibur as soon as hostilities cease.

(beat)

And inform Captain Ivanova.

EXT. EXCALIBUR

Establisher. The guns are at rest. The Excalibur and the Titans are close by, one of the alien vessel is on the opposite side of the shot.

INT. EXCALIBUR – CONFERENCE ROOM

Gideon, Ivanova and the Du'Marti Captain are present. The Du'Marti's clothes remind me of centauri 19th century stuff, but in lower shades: oranges, browns.

ALIEN CAPTAIN

I apologize for opening fire on your vessels Captains. But our enemy is most cunning and has been known to use many faces.

IVANOVA

We've had contact with your "enemy", the Du'Marti. They say that your kind is responsible for inflicting a plague upon them that is claiming hundreds of lives a day.

ALIEN CAPTAIN (Angry at the accusation)

The Du'Marti are liars! Do you not see that?! They inflicted this plague upon themselves! To sway sympathy with outsiders!

GIDEON

That quite an extreme to go too just to get a bit of outside help.

ALIEN CAPTAIN

That's not the only reason they infected themselves. . .

IVANOVA

What? Maybe they just don't like their own people?

ALIEN CAPTAIN

The reason goes deep into our history, when our peoples split.

GIDEON

(Holds up his hand to pause the alien)

I don't need the whole story, just the vitals.

ALIEN CAPTAIN

Very well. The split in our people a millennium ago was caused over the different way we interpret our ancient scrolls. The scrolls that government how life on this plain should be conducted. The Du'Marti are much more extreme in their beliefs.

(beat)
They infected themselves to use their own people as weapons. Spies dressed as Du'Curta will infiltrate our ships, our colonies, and spread their disease.

(beat)

If you have a team down on their homeworld like you say you do. They will try to infect them also!

GIDEON

(Into Link)

Lieutenant. Set a course for the Du'Marti world. FULL BURN!

DU'MARTI HOMEWORLD

We're inside a hospital of sorts, that looks suspiciously like a redressed medlab.

Chambers is rushing patient to ailing patient. Nurse Hemming is assisting her. Dureena is hovering behind her. They are all wearing light encounter suits.

DUREENA
Doctor.

CHAMBERS

What is it Dureena. I thought you had business to conduct. I already sacrificed having a second qualified nurse down here because you have an ulterior motive to be down here.

DUREENA

And I am thankful Doctor for the favour. But it's my ulterior motive I need to speak to you about.

CHAMBERS (Coming up for air)

Yes Ms. Nafeel?

DUREENA

I am here visiting. . . let's just say an old acquaintance. And he has given me a disturbing prelude to why his leaders have really let us down here.

CHAMBERS

What do you mean?

DUREENA

He is saying that his people have been waging this war of theirs against the Du'Curta for a Millennium over how they interpret their ancient scrolls.

CHAMBERS

What does this have to do with saving lives Dureena?

DUREENA

The Du'Marti have infected themselves Doctor. They did it to use their own people as weapons against their enemies.

(beat)

They're going to try and infect us Doctor!

We BEAT on this revelation for a moment before,

Ha'Mok enters with a group of guards.

HA'MOK

Ah! The life-givers from Earth. How goes your investigation?

CHAMBERS (Cautiously)

Well – I've determined that it's nothing like the plague we're battling on Earth.

HA'MOK

Have you determined whether it's infectious to your people or not?

All the time Ha'Mok's guards are making their way closer to Chambers and Dureena.

CHAMBERS

I've got no findings either way.

The Du'Marti guards grab Chambers, Dureena and Hemming and Ha'Mok tugs Chambers encounter suit helmet straight off.

We watch them struggle for a few frames before we,

FADE TO BLACK:

END OF ACT THREE