Doctor Who - American Version - Serial

by RevolutionMan

Doctor Who - Presented as a re-imagining of the show Doctor Who for American audiences. It presumes NO connection to the continuity established by the long running British television series, but absolutely WILL borrow heavily from that awesome/amazing show. Some characters will be re-named. Some "laws" will be broken. A serial adaptation, in script form.

23. Chapter 23 - One Hard Day

INT. SANCTUARY – CALVARY CHURCH

Pieces of debris fall from the ceiling as the dragon tears a hole in the roof of the church. A large wooden support beam falls right for Ethan and Rose. They dive in opposite directions to avoid it, but when the smoke clears, Rose's left ankle is pinned under the rubble. Dazed and covered in dust, Ethan sees she's trapped and rushes over to help. He tries to lift the beam, but it won't move.

The dragon spots Ethan and dives right for the preoccupied hero. Rose sees the dragon approaching Ethan from behind. So does Jackie, from across the church.

JACKIE
Ethan!

ROSE
Dad, look out!

Ethan turns and is frozen with fright. He makes eye contact with the charging dragon. The great beast's pupils dilate, anticipating a juicy kill. Its jaws open wide to engulf its prey.

Suddenly, a sonic buzz fills the air. The noise emanates from the sonic screwdriver as the Doctor points it straight at the dragon's ear.

DOCTOR
Back! Bad dragon! That's a bad dragon!

Repulsed and disoriented by the noise, the dragon recoils, giving Ethan just enough time to free Rose from the debris.

DOCTOR
Quickly, that's not going to hold it off for very long.

Ethan runs over to Jackie and grabs the baby. They run for the exit.

Rose limps over to the Doctor and helps him, since he's still dizzy from seeing double. Everyone scatters.

EXT. SUBURBAN STREET CORNER – DAY

The dragon demolishes what's left of the church in its attempt to scramble after its quarry.

Ethan and Jackie, with baby Rose, along with Gerard and Pastor Camp, run to Ethan's parked Tempo. Ethan struggles with the keys.

ETHAN
Get in, get in!

Jackie grabs the keys from him.

JACKIE
I'm driving.

They all get in and Jackie floors it. Of course, it's a Tempo, so it rolls on down the road at unimpressive speeds.

The Doctor and Rose trail behind and see Jackie drive off.

DOCTOR
No, wait!

ROSE
Crap.

DOCTOR
The Tardis, quick. We have to follow them. You're gonna have to drive.

ROSE
No kidding, Jonny Lee Miller!

DOCTOR
Who?

Rose helps the Doctor into the Tardis, which is still disguised as the hardware store van. She shoves him head first into the passenger's side and slams the door.

ROSE
Nevermind!

She runs around to the other side, gets in, and floors it just as the dragon bulldozes through the front of the church in hot pursuit.

INT. TEMPO – ETHAN'S CAR

Jackie drives like a mad woman, taking sharp turns to try and shake the dragon. In the front seat, Ethan holds baby Rose tight. In the back seat, Gerard and Pastor Camp look out the rear window. They see Rose following in the van and the dragon flying low to the ground behind her.

GERARD
It's still following us!

PASTOR CAMP
(praying)
Heavenly Father, please forgive us our sins. Into your hands we commend our spirits.

JACKIE
What is that thing? Why is it following us?

ETHAN
I don't think it's following us. I think it's following me.

JACKIE
What?

ETHAN
It looked at me. The bloody thing looked at me and then it tried to eat me. It's like it recognized me.

GERARD
Oh, I got in the wrong car.

Jackie swerves.

INT. TARDIS HARDWARE STORE VAN

Rose tries to keep up with the van, swerving in and out of traffic, and narrowly avoiding pedestrians as they scream and scatter.

ROSE
Where the hell did my mother learn to drive like that?

The van almost tips over when the left side runs afoul of the curb.

DOCTOR
"Where did you learn to drive?" might be the more appropriate question to ask in this moment.

The Doctor tries to keep from throwing up.

ROSE
He's got cancer. That's why he was drunk. He's all shaken up about it.

DOCTOR
Well, that's wonderful!

ROSE
In what world is that wonderful?

DOCTOR
Cause you don't have to hate him now. Never a better reason to drink than impending doom, I'd say.

ROSE
Except I don't even think he's told Jackie. It wasn't in the article, and my mom never said a word about it when I was growing up. He'd rather she hate him and think he's a cheat than be honest with her.

DOCTOR
Not for nothing, but I'm starting to get the idea you're a real tough one to please.

She turns.

EXT. SUBURBAN STREETS – VARIOUS

Parked on a side street is the police van from earlier. The Tempo blows through the nearby intersection, followed closely by the Tardis van, followed by the dragon. The police van's lights and siren turn on and it races after them.

INT. TEMPO – ETHAN'S CAR

Ethan points out a certain road.

ETHAN
No, don't get on the highway.

JACKIE
I can go faster on the highway.

ETHAN
This bucket won't outrun that thing. Turn right!

JACKIE
There's nothing over that way except the... train station!

She turns right.

INT. TARDIS HARDWARE STORE VAN

Rose turns right.

DOCTOR
Maybe he just doesn't want to hurt your mother. Maybe he doesn't know how to handle the worst news of his life and he doesn't want to deal with that right now.

ROSE
Or maybe he's just being a selfish ass.

Rose's tirade is interrupted by the police van's siren. She looks in her rear view mirror and sees the van swerve under the dragon's body to get out ahead of the beast. The van is now behind the Tardis.

ROSE
It's about time! Finally, the cops show up.

The Doctor looks in the rear view mirror just as the police van speeds up and smashes into the rear of the Tardis. It's the same police officer as before, wearing a helmet and sunglasses that shield most of his face from view.

ROSE
What the hell? Why is he ramming us?

DOCTOR
That's a fantastic question.

The Doctor blinks a few times, trying his best to get a good glimpse of the officer's face.

DOCTOR
It can't be...

ROSE
Can't be what?

The Tardis lurches forward, rammed again by the police van.

EXT. PARKING LOT – SEPTA SUBWAY STATION - DAY

Pedestrians scream and cars honk their horns as Jackie crosses three lanes of traffic and barrels into the parking lot of a SEPTA subway station. She slams on the brakes to park just in front of a metal fence at the top of a steep hill.

Ethan, carrying the baby, Jackie, Gerard and Pastor Camp all exit the Tempo and run towards the stairs heading to the underground station.

The Tardis hardware store van barrels into the parking lot at the same time the police van uses the pit maneuver to spin her out. The Tardis careens into the abandoned Tempo, sending the Ford into the fence, down the grassy hill, and into a tree. The police van smashes into a row of parked cars a few yards away.

Shaken, both Rose and the Doctor climb out of the Tardis through Rose's door. Blood trickles down Rose's head. She looks around for the police van and spots it just as the police officer sits up in the front seat. He spots her and revs the engine.

ROSE
Doctor, we have to run.

The Doctor looks up.

DOCTOR
Go, go, go!

Rose and the Doctor lean on each other for support as they make a run for the station stairs. The police van tires squeal as the driver floors the gas pedal. It peels off after them.

Rose steals a glance back.

ROSE
We're not going to make it.

DOCTOR
We'll make it. We'll make it!

The police van bears down on them and is feet away from running them down when the dragon suddenly swoops in. It misses the Doctor and Rose, but slams into the van head first, sending it flying into the air and over the same hill as the Tempo.

The Doctor and Rose don't hang around to thank the dragon and quickly run downstairs into the subway station.

INT. SEPTA SUBWAY STATION

Gerard and Jackie help the Doctor and Rose when they reach the bottom of the stairs. They hobble over to a nearby bench and the Doctor and Rose sit. The station is abandoned except for them. Presumably, everyone has fled the dragon. A stopped and empty train sits on the tracks.

ROSE
Thank you.

DOCTOR
Yeah, thanks.

JACKIE
(to Rose)
You're bleeding, dear.

The Doctor sees some blood across his knuckles and smiles.

DOCTOR
It's nothing. Just a scratch.

JACKIE
Not you, ya nitwit.

Jackie unties her apron, rolls it into a ball, and uses it to wipe some of the blood from Rose's head. Rose cringes from the pain, but is also content to let her unsuspecting mother take care of her.

ROSE
Thank you.

JACKIE
Hold it here. It's your head, so it'll bleed like a sieve until you stop it.

Ethan, holding baby Rose in front of the abandoned and empty SEPTA train, talks things over in whispers with Pastor Camp, glancing over at the Doctor and Rose on occasion. He nods to Pastor Camp.

ETHAN
Jackie, take care of Rose, will ya?

Rose nods to Jackie that she'll be okay. Jackie walks over and takes the baby Rose from Ethan. He immediately charges over to the bench and grabs the Doctor by the shirt. He lifts the Doctor up and shoves him against the wall.

DOCTOR
Hrgg. No really, I'm fine.

ETHAN
What the hell is that thing? Why is after me?

DOCTOR
Haven't the foggiest.

Rose stands and grabs Ethan's arm to try and pull him off the Doctor. He's too strong and his arm doesn't budge.

ROSE
Stop!

ETHAN
(to the Doctor)
You're lying!

PASTOR CAMP
In my office, you were talking about the dragon. And then again, outside.

JACKIE
Hey, that's right. You were looking for a dragon in my husband's car.

Gerard pulls out a pad of paper and a pen. He takes notes.

ROSE
The Doctor's only trying to help.

Ethan shakes Rose off.

ETHAN
(to Rose)
And you, what's your deal? Why do I feel like I know you, but I don't know you. And when that thing attacked us in the church, why did you call me Dad? I mean, you didn't say, "Ethan, look out". You said, "Dad, look out".

ROSE
No, I didn't.

ETHAN
Yes, you did.

DOCTOR
No, she didn't.

ETHAN
Yes, she did! I heard what I heard! Now, I want to know who the hell you people are, and I want to know why that dragon is trying to kill me, and why that cop is trying to kill you two. And if I don't start getting some answers, I'll throw you back out there, and you can deal with that.

The Doctor and Rose share a glance. He shrugs, looks at Pastor Camp, then exhales.

DOCTOR
Fine, the truth is... I'm an angel.

Rose rolls her eyes.

ROSE
No, he's not, but I am your daughter.

Taken by surprise, Ethan drops the Doctor, who immediately falls on the ground next to the bench, too dazed to stand.

ETHAN
My daugther?

Rose nods.

JACKIE
Well, you've got to be kidding me. You've got a kid already? And what were you eight when you had her?

ROSE
My name isn't Rosemary. It's Rose.

ETHAN
That's not possible.

JACKIE
That's sick. You named our daughter after your bastard child?

ETHAN
I didn't. Will you hush, Jackie, for two little minutes?

Gerard grins like a lunatic.

GERARD
This is great.

ROSE
My name is Rose Evangeline Taylor. I was born to Ethan and Jackie Taylor at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, March the fourth, 1991. I came back in time in something called a Tardis. It's a time machine, belonging to this remarkable man.

She motions to the Doctor, who is busy throwing up all over the ground.

ROSE
(to Ethan)
I came back to see you.

Stunned, Ethan steps back.

GERARD
It's like Back to the Future.

JACKIE
It's like a big fat lie, is what it is. What kind of ridiculous story is that? And I supposed he's your uncle? Time machines and everything. This is Rose.

She holds out the baby.

JACKIE
Not you, you sicko.

Ethan stares at Rose. She stares right back.

ROSE
It's all my fault. I just... I had to. I needed to. I wanted...

She takes a step towards him, but he holds up his hand and takes just as many steps backwards.

ETHAN
No. You don't come near me. You just... both of you, you and your Doctor. You just stay away from me. I need to think.

He walks all the way to the other end of the station. Jackie and Pastor Camp follow him. Gerard, meanwhile, approaches Rose.

GERARD
Hi. My name is Gerard, and I write for the Philadelphia Inquirer. I just want you to know, I think your story is fascinating, and I would love to hear more about the future.

Rose wipes some tears from her eyes.

ROSE
Stuff it up your ass, Gerard.

She turns away from Gerard and help the Doctor up off the ground and back onto the bench.

DOCTOR
So, that didn't work too well, did it?

ROSE
He thinks I'm looney toons, and I don't even blame him. And don't go telling me how I wasn't supposed to reveal my identity or anything.

DOCTOR
Oh, I think we're a little beyond that at this point. All of spacetime's gone wonky, and I still haven't any idea why.

ROSE
Who was that cop? Why was he trying to kill us?

The Doctor hesitates.

DOCTOR
...I... it could have been anything. Could be some sort of physical manifestation of a temporal divergence.

ROSE
I have no idea what that means.

DOCTOR
Good, then we're on the same page. Good to spend this time together, isn't it?

Rose sighs.

EXT. BOTTOM OF THE HILL – SEPTA SUBWAY STATION – DAY

At the bottom of the hill, the police officer climbs out of the police van. With his face obscured from view, he looks up the hill at the sight of the broken fence. He starts climbing the hill.

INT. SEPTA SUBWAY STATION

The Doctor and Rose sit together on the bench.

ROSE
This is all my fault, isn't it?

DOCTOR
I should say so, yes.

ROSE
I just wanted... I just wanted to meet him so badly. Now, people are dying because of me.

DOCTOR
This isn't the end, Rose. I promise you.

Neither notices that Ethan has walked over until he's only a few steps away.

ETHAN
I want to talk to you.

Rose leans forward.

ETHAN
Not you. Him.

The Doctor nods to Rose. She gets up and walks away, but when she walks towards Jackie, she gets a dirty look from her mother. She stops between the two parties.

Ethan paces in front of the Doctor, who is looking more and more out of it as time goes by.

DOCTOR
You'll forgive me if I don't get up to shake your hand.

ETHAN
Is it true?

DOCTOR
Absolutely everything. Sucks, doesn't it?

ETHAN
And that thing, the dragon, it's out there still, isn't it?

DOCTOR
Undoubtedly.

ETHAN
Because it's trying to kill me?

DOCTOR
On the nose.

The Doctor tries using his finger to touch his nose, but like a drunk failing a sobriety test, he smacks himself in the cheek.

Ethan stops pacing, shakes his head. He sits down next to the Doctor on the bench.

ETHAN
I'm supposed to be dead.

DOCTOR
Figured that out all by yourself, did you?

ETHAN
That car this morning.

DOCTOR
The drunk driver, the dragon, the cancer... your wife. It's almost enough to make ya think the universe has it out for ya, ay mate?

ETHAN
My grandfather used to tell me, "when it's your time, it's your time".

DOCTOR
The universe cracked open when you didn't die. The dragon slipped through the hole.

ETHAN
I'm not gonna get to see my little girl grow up. I'm not gonna be there to threaten her boyfriends, or watch her school plays, or take her to college. Who's gonna take care of Jackie? She's got all these medical things with her blood, and her migraines, and she doesn't even have a job. What'll they do for money? I remember sitting in that Doctor's office, when he told me about the cancer and, you know, I didn't even think about me. I just kept thinking, who's gonna take care of them? I couldn't even tell her. It's going to crush her.

DOCTOR
It's easier to let them hate you than to go on hurting them.

ETHAN
Yeah, yeah, you get it.

DOCTOR
No, I don't. At least, I didn't. You humans are so obsessed with the ending, you miss your todays. The world is collapsing all around you, spacetime's been fractured, and the universe wants you dead, but today you got a day with your family you were never supposed to have.

ETHAN
It's been a hard day.

DOCTOR
But it's a day. It's one more day. Who cares if it's hard? It's another day. Before we came to this time, I asked your daughter why she wouldn't rather see you in your prime, meet you when life was good. I couldn't understand why she wanted to come to the day and the moment when you died, to watch you die. I couldn't understand, that's not why she came here at all. She came here to watch you live in the face of death.

Ethan thinks.

ETHAN
But I have to die.

The Doctor nods.

ETHAN
So, maybe I should just walk out there and let the dragon eat me.

DOCTOR
No. The next step in this timeline is your death. The dragon wants to eat you, because if it does that, then it's the cause of the next step. That keeps it here, in our universe, to eat anyone and everyone it wants. That's why it's targeting you.

Ethan begins to break down. Tears start streaming down his face.

ETHAN
So, what the hell am I supposed to do, then? I'm gonna die. There's nothing I can do to stop it. And every moment I'm alive, the people I love suffer and hurt. I'm a burden on the entire universe, for goodness sake. What am I supposed to do, Doctor? Tell me, please. I can't handle this. I want to do the right thing, but I don't know what to do.

DOCTOR
Your daughter broke the laws of time and space to come here and see her Dad save the world. You can't do that by running from it. You can't do that by laying down and let yourself be eaten. There's only one way you can do that.

ETHAN
(sobbing)
How?

The Doctor straightens up the best he can, musters up all his strength to say the following with conviction.

DOCTOR
Fight.

Ethan takes the Doctor's words to heart. He wipes the tears from his eyes, swallows, breathes. He sits up. He nods to the Doctor.

Rose looks on as she sees Ethan stand up. He walks towards her. As he gets closer, he reaches out and grabs her hand. He then walks her over to Jackie, Gerard, and Pastor Camp.

ETHAN
(to Jackie)
Jackie... this is Rose.

Jackie looks at Rose, who is almost in tears herself.

JACKIE
I can't believe-

ETHAN
Jackie. This is our daughter. This is Rose.

Jackie looks at Rose, then at the baby, then at Rose again. She places her hand over her own mouth.

JACKIE
Oh, my god.

Ethan, Jackie, and Rose hug.

ROSE
I love you.

From across the station, the Doctor sees the family embrace. He smiles.

DOCTOR
That's nice. Now, I really hope we don't die.

The family holds each other tight.

-To be Continued...-