(Shot of the Eureka Mauru. Harper and Beka are on their way back to Andromeda.)
Beka:Andromeda, this is the Eureka Mauru on route from drifter colony Sagas Four. Our belly's full, our E.T.A to bay is twenty minutes. (To Harper) You gotta love one stop shopping. We've got enough parts now to roam the milky way. Hello?
Harper: Huh?
Beka:Huh? Command to Harper? What's the matter with you?
Harper:Deidret, my drift rock darling. My Irish Cream. My destiny.
Beka:Your destiny, right. Never mind she doesn't speak a word of Common and you don't know any Celtic, or whatever that dead language is.
Harper:Oh yeah? Try me!(Hands her a sheet.) Er...(Speaks very bad Celtic) Love is our language.
Beka:Actually love is your sandwich but thanks for playing
Harper: Whatever, ok? We share this thing. It was a cosmic connection.
Beka:You shared a half a dozen whiskies and a zero gravity rhumba.
Harper:(Speaks in Celtic) What do you know about love?
Beka:Harper, you're hopeless. You can barely congregate Common.
Harper: Who cares about being grammatically correct? All I wanna do is - (The ship jolts)
Voice:Collision alert
Beka:Small object coming in off the starboard bow
(There's a noise.)
Harper:Airlock! Beka:Airlock.
(They go. Cut to Harper outside the airlock with a gun. He peers inside, as does Beka.They're looking at a large grey sphere thing.)
Harper:It's a giant beach ball. (He checks it.) There's someone inside!
Beka:Ok, don't just stand there, open it
Harper:What? No! You open it!(Sighs) Did I mention that I'm overdue for a raise?
Beka:Yeah yeah yeah
(He approaches the sphere, touches it and gets goo on his fingers)
Harper:Here, hold that would you? Beka:Yuk
(Harper cuts the sphere open. A body falls out.)
Beka:It's a Persiat (or Persiad, I dunno)
Harper:Gift wrapped too
(The Persiat is still alive. They help him up.)
Beka:Easy, easy. Deep breaths.
Harper: Ah, man. He's bleeding bad
Beka:Let's get him out of here
Harper: Come on, down we go
(They seat him against a wall and crouch by him.)
Beka:Keep pressure on the wound. We've gotta get him back to Andromeda. Hey, who shot you?
Persiat:Save...must save....
Harper: Hey, we doing the best we can pal. Hang in there.
(We see through the Persiat eyes. He is looking at Harpers data port on his neck. As his vision goes funny he suddenly lunges forward and attacks him. A green light comes from his mouth and into Harpers neck. Harper is in pain)
Beka:Harper!
Harper:I'm on fire! I'm on fire! I'm on fire!
Beka:No! No fire! You're okay, you're okay.
(The Persiat dies)
Harper:What happened?!
Beka:I don't know but I don't think you got the worst of it.
(Harper feels his neck and flinches at the pain.)
OPENING CREDITS
(The Andromeda. Tyr is standing over the Persiat's body. Beka enters.)
Beka:What's the verdict?
Tyr:He's dead. (***This bit is really funny, it's the way he says it!***)
Beka:Yeah, I meant what killed him.
Tyr:What didn't kill him? Stab wounds, laser and radiation burns, this appears to be some kind of residual neural toxin.
Beka:Weird. Persiat can be annoying but this is just ridiculous.
(Cut to Harper laying on the table in the medi-bay being scanned by Trance)
Trance:(To Dylan) Well, other than a major bump n the head and a minor burn around the cerebral port, he's fine.
Harper:Fine? I was practically electrocuted! I can still see little dots.
Dylan:Why do you think he attacked you?
Harper:Jealous of my of my good looks maybe? I don't know. No rhyme or reason just opened up wide, clamped down and zap, major electrical discharge. I could smell ozon (???). I fell twitchy. Maybe you better run a spectral analysis of my nervous system, check my neuro-penaphrin levels and see if I've been infected by some kind of a stimulant.
(Dylan and Trance look dumbfounded)
Dylan:Er, since when did you pick up medicine as a hobby? Rommie:(Voice) Captain, I've got an unidentified vessel approaching requesting communication.
Dylan:I'm on my way.(To Trance) Watch him. (She nods)
(Cut to command.)
MD:I'm Marshall Diaga, Senior dispatch officer with the Intergalactic Apprehension of dangerous human service.
Beka:A bounty hunter.
MD:If you like Dylan: What can I do for you Marshall?
MD: Your ship took on a fugitive. A Persiat. I have a warrant for his arrest.
Dylan: Really. What are the charges against this fugitive?
MD: Theft. Shall I transfer the warrant to you?
Beka: Transfer away. But you're wasting your tie, your fugitive's dead.
MD: Dead? Are you certain?
Dylan: Dead certain.
MD: I still would like to examine the body. I must locate some missing items. Remwicks (???) corpse may tell me where they are.
Dylan: Well, I'll look at your warrant and consider your request.
MD: Please, co-operate Captain. This service dislikes people who protect fugitives. Even dead ones.
(Time lapse, Dylan and Beka)
Beka: I hate people like Diaga. They strut around like they're the long arm of the law. Act like they own the place. People just bought him here so he'd probably do anything for the highest bidder.
Dylan: Maybe so but in this case the Marshall's warrant seems to be in order.
Beka: Don't tell me you're thinking of giving in to him?!
Dylan: Beka, if the Persiat were alive I'd conduct an expedition but I'm not going to start a fight over a corpse!
(Cut to the Persiats body)
MD: How did the thief die?
Dylan: Self electrocuted. Almost killed my engineer.
MD: Really?
Beka: Really.
MD: Have we ever met? You look familiar.
Beka: You don't
MD: Maybe round the Tyrad asteroid belt...
Beka: After a while all you bounty hunters look the same.
(Dylan notices a symbol on the Persiats finger but Diaga tries to distract him.)
MD: Thank you Captain. Your co-operation will be duly noted.
(Rommie and Dylan are looking through symbols on a screen.)
Rommie: This search would be more effective if I had some specific information to go on.
Dylan: I told you, I can't give you a time or place I just know that I've seen that symbol before. No, no, no, no, wait, wait back up. (It's the symbol from before) There, that's it.
Rommie: That's the insignia from the special collection division of the old systems university.
Dylan: Our Persiat was a librarian?
Rommie: Apparently. This symbol was only used by their senior researchers.
Dylan: So the question is, what did he have worth dying for?
(Cut to Harper sleeping restlessly. We see images of death, suffering and war - your general nightmare material. Between the flashes we close in on Harper's data port on his neck. He wakes up with a start, sweating and out of breath.)
(Cut to Rommie approaching Harper who is working on something.)
Harper: Hey! What's up Rommie, Romalon, Romolowski, Read only memory?
Rommie: A simple Rommie will suffice. Are you alright Harper, I'm detecting an elevation in your heart rate and breathing levels.
Harper: And I'm detecting a fritz in your central power relays but I can fix you, I can! I can fix anything on board. The ventilation system on deck nine could definitely use an upgrade. Woo! Could you? (He hands her some wire)
Rommie: Harper, slow down.
Harper: (Speaks fast) Sorry, I can't. I'm a little wired. No, rewired, no, cross wired, no cross eyed! I didn't get any sleep last night. Been having these rancid nightmares, visions, well, whatever you want to call them. Anyway I thought why dwell in hell? Get busy!
Rommie: What are you building?
Harper: It's a bird, it's plane, it's ah...I don't know, you tell and we'll both know. Meanwhile (Speaks in Gaelic)
Rommie: Irish Gaelic, earth based, an adaptive form. You're making seductive overtures to me in a dead language?
Harper: Hey, it's not dead the way I speak it baby! (Speaks in French)
Rommie: And now French, Harper, what's gotten in to you?
Harper: (Speaks another language)
Rommie: Persiat. Harper I had no idea you were such a cunning linguist.
Harper: (Really fast) Love speaks in all tongues baby. Wait! That's it! You know what we need? Some kind of nano doohickie that can let a person understand any language they hear, no speak any language they hear! We'll start with old Irish, from your old language archives! We'll reconfigure it to an implanted audio relay linguistic relay why not?! All I have to do is downsize and upgrade some voice activation sensors so they can correlate with the proper pronunciation of (missed it)!! Oh and but while I'm at it, no offence, but the texilation in your holo-imagery matrix? Could use a little fine-tuning. Yes! (Speaks in another language) The doctor is in! (He leaves Rommie baffled)
(Cut to Diaga's ship. He's scanning the Persiat.)
MD: They're missing. But I know where they are. (A weird blacky purple silhouette person is standing over him. He's afraid of it) They must be on that salvage ship. I'll find them, I'll find them!
(Back to Andromeda. Harper is singing [in assorted languages] ‘She'll be coming round the mountain'. He is being watched by the others on a monitor. The camera pans across everyone's faces in a line. First Rev, then Beka, then Dylan and Rommie.)
Dylan: What's he doing?
Rommie: I don't think he knows. Since last night he's started and abandoned dozens of projects and upgrades. Although I must say the ones he's performed on moi are tres´ magnifique.
Dylan: You're speaking French now?
Rommie: Oui....per Harper's request.
Beka: Harper speaking in tongues. You gotta be kidding.
Dylan: Can't say I recognise the tune.
Rommie: It's an old earth folk tune in, let's see, Ben....Persiat....Aruban....and that would be Petrubian. (She leaves)
Beka: We better go talk to him
Dylan: We better go talk to him.
(Harper is welding something. Dylan, Beka and Rev enter.)
Dylan: Good morning Mr Harper.
Harper: Morning! Morning. MornING! Two little syllables, so many different meanings.
Dylan: Yes, in this case it just means hello. I wanted to see your new project, it looks....interesting.
Harper: She's a beauty isn't she?
Beka: Breathtaking. What is it?
Harper: Er...it's an authentic recreational recreation of a er....big surprise?
Dylan: Uh-huh, and what's the status on the rest of the projects?
Harper: Projects?
Beka: Harper, this is Dylan's polite way of asking ‘what the hell's this mess'?!
Harper: Ah, it's only a mess to the uninformed eye.
Dylan: Then maybe you should enlighten us
Harper: Enlighten you? Uh, the Divine is good, don't do Flash and if you're nice to people they still probably won't be nice to you, now run along kids, daddy's working
Dylan: I'm calling a time out. (He puts his hand on Harper's shoulder and turns him around. At this point Rev comes into Harper's view and he is immediately terrified of him. He spins out of the way and grabs a pole.) Rev: Harper? Harper are you...Harper?
Harper: Get away from me!
Rev: Harper?
Harper: (Shouts) Get away from me!!!
Rev: If I have offended you in some way...
Harper: You're not gonna get me!
Rev: Harper...
Dylan: Harper, just put it down.
Rev: Dylan, it's alright, I'll leave. (He does.)
Beka: Harper, what's the matter with you? It's Rev!
Harper: (Out of breath, scared) Magog....oh sure, he acts like our friend now but one day, he'll turn, they all do , they're wild!
Dylan: (To Beka) Med-deck.
Beka: Come on.
(Cut to Marshall Diaga walking **through** a door on the Andromeda. He sees some goo on the floor and looks at it)
(Cut to a screen with a brain scan pic on it. It's colours are fluxing)
Beka: Look at those brainwave fluxuations. (Harper is lying on the table in med-deck again. Trance is there)
Trance: I've never seen anything like it.
Harper: I could say the same thing about you Trance. Why don't we do you next?
Beka: Knock it off Harper, this is about you.
Harper: Me? Nah, why me, she's much more interesting. An enigma. Wrapped up in a riddle with a tail in the middle.
Trance: It's alright, I forgive you. (To Beka) He's not been himself today.
Beka: It's like he's overloaded....that Persiat....(Harper seems to realise something here) That Persiat had the insignia of the All Systems University on his finger. Special collections division. I he was carrying some kind of data archive - (Harper abruptly sits up)
Harper: (Fast) Brilliant! A bio-electronic transfer into my data port. (Swings off the table) He must have used some kind of pulse signal. A modified sub-vocal transmitter! (He gets up and leaves) Beka: Where's he going? Harper!
(They follow him)
Harper: (Fast) I could build one! I would have to be small though, like really small, like miniature. I could build some out of Rommie's maintenance nano-robots
Beka: I'm sure you could. (To Trance) How do we get those things out of him?
Trance: I have no idea. It's all mixed up in his neural matrix.
Harper: (Stops) Woah, woah, woah, stop, halt, at ease. Last time I checked possession is still, uh, nine tenths of the law, okay? If you try to mind my mind? I'll mind my mind, mind?
Beka: Harper, you don't even now what you've got, do you?
Harper:(He starts walking again) I know I got something. Something I've never had before....(He starts walking again) Knowledge, creativity, power! I mean, before I was just - Ah!!! (He suddenly keels over on pain with his hand to his head.)
Beka: Harper! (They go to help him)
Harper: Ah, ice cream head ache. Remind me to execute some serious pressure later. Just in case I forget.
Trance: Harper you have no idea what this could do to you! (They help him up) You're already suffering from insomnia and nightmares, you could have a stroke or a cerebral haemorrhage...
Harper: Woah, woah. I have the entire Commonwealth medical archive in here. Which makes me a superior diagnostician to you, so, as the senior medical expert here I can tell you that I am not going to have a stroke! Now are we through here? I don't know Doctor Harper, are we? Yes! I think we are! Meeting adjourned (He leaves)
(Later. Harper is now working on his plane thing again. Rommie enters,)
Rommie: (Human from Rommie) So you checked yourself out of med-deck to what? Build a missile? Harper: No. But it does fly through the air & it is a major blast from Earth's past so the more liberally literal may call it a missile but no. Rom doll, what you're looking at is a Harper classic. An authentic replication of the X1. (Rommie looks blank) The glamorous Glennen? (???) The first human flight module to break the, uh, speed of sound! (Computer Rommie appears)
CR: It's an aeronautical antique.
Harper: Yeah, how artificially astute. Going back three millennia, 1947, old Earth calender to be exact. I have tech manuals Rommie, the originals! Right out of the official factory records. Er, flight tests, specs, the works!
Rommie: How are you able to access them? How did you even know they were in...there?
Harper: I don't know, I just get a vision! I get a lot of them lately
Rommie: Harper you look exhausted.
Harper: Yeah, well, the mind leads, the body follows.
CR: You're mind should lead you to bed.
Harper: Ah, bed. Now there's an idea. I know, you mean sleep. I will, I promise. As soon as I find the on off button, now if you don't mind, I'm trying to concentrate.
(Computer Rommie just shrugs at Human Rommie)
(Cut to Screen Rommie talking to Dylan.)
SR: I tried.
Dylan: If he doesn't want to rest, he doesn't want to rest.
(We see on a monitor Harper working. Diaga enters the room, Dylan sees)
Dylan: Tyr, Hanger Deck 5 now!
(We go to where Harper is. He has just noticed Diaga)
Diaga: You should have taken your friend's advice.
(Harper tries to run away but Diaga grabs him. Harper manages to get his jacket off and dives under the table but Diaga grabs his leg)
Diaga: Feeding time!
Harper: Help! Somebody!
Diaga: Stop squirming. (He grips Harpers head)
Harper: I'm going anywhere with you!
Diaga: I don't need all of you, just this!
(Harper reaches behind him and gets an electrifies rod thing. He shocks Diaga with it. Before he can advance again Tyr jumps in and knocks Diaga over. The two fight for a while until Dylan finally arrives and shoots him. They stop fighting but to their surprise he is unharmed. He just smiles and then ‘disappears' into the floor)
Tyr: He's below us!
Harper: Phase and re-shifting! Tricky, tricky, tricky...
Dylan: He'll be back
(Later. Harper is working again. Suddenly the doors behind him open and some Magog come in. We realise he is having another nightmare. The Magog attack and he tries to escape. It's like he is holding a camera. He turns and a Magog swipes at him, blurring the camera and ending the nightmare. We see Harper wake up screaming. He is curled up and in a bad way.)
(Cut to command)
Dylan: What's Harper doing?
Rommie: He's currently in his quarters. I've run a complete sensor sweep, all decks are clear, no sign of the intruder. Although I am detecting a mission residue beginning in hanger deck 14 and leading straight down to the hull.
Tyr: He passed straight through that bulk head like it wasn't even there.
Beka: And he knows about Harper.
Dylan: Whatever Harper's got it seems to be worth killing for. Any idea what it might be?
Rommie: My recent upgrades suggest Harper has access to the latest quantum and neutrino based engineering platforms.
Tyr: He wants weaponry.
Beka: Not necessarily, what about -
(The ship is attacked. Everyone falls down, there are explosions etc)
Dylan: Rommie! What the hell hit us?! (Tyr picks Rommie up)
Tyr: Running recon
Rommie: I don't know but whatever it was hurt. My hull integrity is compromised. Relays are down, so are my defences. Harper's calling from engineering.
Dylan: Harper, report!
Harper: (Shouting, on monitor) Not good! Machine cell 15 is gone
Dylan: What do you mean gone? Harper: I mean gone, vamoose, ariberes. We got a hole the size of Kansas that'll rip through this ship. Don't look now kids but I think we're up against your friendly neighbourhood P.S.P
Beka: What?
Rommie: Point Singularity Projector. A weapon that fires miniature black holes
Beka: Whoever Diaga's working for, they sure gave him some good toys
Dylan: Toys I don't wanna play with right now. Take us to Slipstream, we need to find a place to lay low for repairs.
Harper: No, no, no, no, Dylan don't, that thing didn't just take out the Machine shocker, it also went through the Slipfield generator. If we try to stream now...
Dylan: The whole ship'll some apart
(Where Harper was on the monitor. There's damage all around and a huge hole in front of him. Tyr is there)
Harper: Ok, we'll gonna need to make a circular incision around the PSP's path of impact and we're gonna need laser torches, uh, we're gonna have to replace those central support struts
Tyr: I'll see if I can tear some out of the old crew quarters
(Tyr leaves. Harper crouches down to look at something and Rev enters)
Rev: Perhaps I can be of some assistance? (Harper picks up a large metal bar and swings it at Rev.)
Harper: Come on, you, you blood sucker! (He keeps swinging the bar)
Rev: Harper! I'm not your enemy!
Harper: (Swings again) And I'm not your next meal! (And again) Murderer! (And again) Rapist!
Rev: Harper, I will not fight you!
Harper: Even better (He then does a funky little twirly thing with the bar and turns to take a huge swing at Rev, but just as he does Dylan intervenes and grabs the rod, pushing Harper back.)
Dylan: Harper, back off.
(Harper gets up and starts shouting at Rev in Magog.)
Rev: Harper you do not mean that. You do not mean that!
(Whatever he is saying is obviously offensive because Rev lunges at Harper and grabs his throat. Beka enters)
Dylan: Rev! Rev, the Way. Remember the Way... (Rev backs off and leaves)
Beka: It's ok. It's ok Harper, it's all over.
Harper: (Breathing heavily, obviously still scared) I'm good, I'm good.
(Cut to Harper. He is strapped down on a table, shouting and struggling. Trance and Beka are there)
Beka: Harper, Harper! Try to calm down!
Harper: You try to calm down when your brain is exploding with fire!
Beka: (To Trance) There must be something you can do
Trance: Beka I am all out of options. The only person who can help Harper right now is Harper
Harper: Download, I have to download, I've gotta dump this Persiat baggage into a file! File it for gods, ah! A neural chemical file...
Trance: A neural chemical file. How would I open that? Where?
Harper: Ok, I got the technique right here, uh, uh, key component is AD Gamma, uh, (Missed the next part) Are you getting any of this down?! Ah...ok....
(Later, Harper is now sedated and there is a large semicircle shaped machine at the head of the table he is on.)
Dylan: So, this will work?
Beka: He says it will.
Trance: He's ready
Dylan: (Sights) Ok, let's give it a try.
Beka: Hit it Trance.
Trance: Activating transfer.
(Trance switches on the machine which is connected to Harper's data port. It whirs up and makes a noise)
Beka: It's working. I'm reading a massive data transfer.
Trance: The machine is isolating and copying information that the Persiat downloaded into Harper so we can erase when we're done.
(Suddenly the noise gets louder and more intense, the machine seems to be overloading. Harper arches his back in pain)
Dylan: Trance, what's going on?!
Trance: It looks like the process is disrupting the patterns in Harper's cerebellum
Dylan: Well then make it stop!
Trance: I'm trying!
Beka: Come on Harper, hang on
(The machine whirs down again.)
Beka: Ok, he's stabilising
Dylan: What happened?
Beka: We only got a partial impression. Looks like a few hundred giga-bytes of information at best.
Dylan: Is he gonna be alright?
Trance: He stable
Dylan: Keep him that way. And when he wakes up, keep these things on (Gestures to the metal things holding down Harper's hands and feet) I don't want him hurting himself or going after Rev. Beka, let's see what we've got.
(They go. Next we see the same kind of images as in Harper's nightmare on a monitor.)
Beka: Welcome to Harper's nightmares.
Dylan: What would a Persiat librarian want with this?
Beka: Well, I think I know where to start looking. Harper has always hated with the Magog but he has never had a problem with Rev Bem until he received that data.
Dylan: Andromeda, search the downloads for images of Magog.
Rommie: Searching. Records located.
(The footage from Harper's Magog nightmare comes onto the screen)
Dylan: Commonwealth year 9766. This is -
Rev: (From behind them) Brandonburg Torr. 3 billion dead in less than 5 days.
Dylan: The beginning of the end for the systems Commonwealth
Rev: Which makes this an eye witness recording of one of the most important events in recent history.
Beka: But there's only one problem. It's worthless. None of these recordings is unique. Everyone knows what happened on Brandonburg. It's not like there's a vast conspiracy to cover the crimes of the Magog.
Rev: In fact...most of my people are unrepented. Thy look on Brandenburg Torr...with pride.
Beka: So, this may be what's making Harper nuts but it can't be what Diaga's looking for.
Dylan: There's something here. I can feel it.
(Cut to Harper. He is whispering something but we can't make it out. Rev enters)
Rev: Harper (Harper looks petrified. He has to look away.) I have seen your nightmares. And I understand my role in them
(Harper slowly looks over at him but looks back when he see's his face. Rev gets a pillow and approaches Harper who sits up, as best he can with the restraints to try to get away from Rev.)
Rev: Please. Please Harper, accept my apology. (He puts the pillow on the bed and backs. Harper slowly lays down again) Forgive me. Harper: It's not you Rev...it's just that....every time I look at you...all I can see is people dying. Bodies, massacre...I've got a lifetime of nightmares knocking around in my skull and I can't do anything to hold them in. All I ever wanted was to know things...how they worked, where they came from. Now I do, and all I can see, over and over and over again is people dying! What do I do Rev? How do I make it stop?
Rev: You need the thing that all your knowledge cannot provide. Wisdom.
Harper: Wisdom, right, show me the yellow brick road, Mr wizard, how do I get wisdom?
Rev: Let go Harper. Let go. Give over to the Divine (Harper is still afraid when Rev tries to get nearer.) all that you are, all that you have. Including your pain. Calm your breath. Repeat. My pain belongs to the Divine. It is like air, it is like water.
Harper: My pain belongs to the Divine. It is like air, it is like water.
Rev: Good. Again
Harper: My pain belongs to the Divine. It is like air, it is like water. It's like a freaking freight train going through my brain, are you sure this works?
Rev: Think of hunger. Thin what it must be like to go days, even weeks without food. Now imagine what it would be like to know that in the midst of that starvation, you could eat, feast, satiate your hunger. But only by killing the people that you love. That is my pain. It is with me each day. My pain belongs to the Divine. It is like air, it is like water.
Harper: My pain belongs to the Divine. It is like air, it is like water. My pain belongs to the Divine. It is like air, it is like water.
Rommie: (Voice) Hostile missile approaching off the starboard bow. Activating emergency measures.
Rev: I must go.
Harper: No, please Rev, let me help
Rev: Dylan was most adamant
Harper: Rev, right now I'm the smartest guy in the universe but that don't count for squat if I can't help my friends. Please Rev. You can trust me, I promise.
(Cut to Command.)
Tyr: Launching kinetic missiles.
(Exterior of Andromeda. Several missiles are fired but Diaga's ship just dodges them.)
Beka: Kay, now what?
Tyr: He's readying another point singularity bullet.
Rommie: Slipstream engines back online
Dylan: Evasive manoeuvres.
Beka: We're not shaking him
Harper: (Voice) Uh, hello Marshall Diaga, this is chief engineer of the starship Andromeda ascendant, Seamus Harper, do you copy?
Dylan: Harper? Where's that coming from?
Beka: Checking... He's in the Mauru.
Harper: (We now see him on a monitor.) Listen up Diaga, I think someone onboard this ship just might have some property you're looking for. So, if you want a piece of me, errand boy, pansy man, come and get me.
(Screen goes off)
Beka: What the hell is he doing?
Dylan: He's saving us
Tyr: He's committing suicide.
(Exterior shot of the Mauru being chased by Diaga. He fires at it at the Mauru takes some damage.)
(Back on Andromeda)
Dylan: Harper, you're outgunned and you can't outrun him, now turn around and come back (Harper appears on the screen again)
Harper: (Speaks another language)
Tyr: Speak Common, boy!
Harper: Diaga wants to clock me, I don't wanna be a bullseye on your butt.
Beka: (On Harper's screen) Damn it Harper, you're gonna get yourself killed and by the way that's my ship you're steering into oblivion so get your skinny ass back to the hanger deck right now!
Harper: Oh, now don't get all sentimental on me now boss. I brought this mess onboard, I'm taking it off, it's that simple! Uh, Harper out.
(The Mauru, Harper goes to the back of the ship and outs a computer console thing there. He grabs some wires and connects them to it.)
Harper: Well, alrighty then Marshall Diaga, let's see what you got. (He opens the door and swings through it) Ariba, ariba!
(He runs through the ship and jumps back into the pilot chair and puts on the straps as the ship fires up. The ship enters slipstream with a jolt)
Harper: On our menu this evening we're offering the space red royale, five parts skin (??), two olives, crushed ice, shaken, not stirred and voila!
(The Mauru stops mid-slipstream and creates a tear of some kind. All very pretty)
(Back on the Andromeda)
Beka: Uh, weirdness, incoming.
Tyr: He's warped the Mauru's slipstream portal into some sort of wall
(Back to Harper)
Harper: Woohoo! Yes! He's out of the choke-hold ladies and gentlemen. The (Missed it) is open, the library is closed!
(We see Diaga's ship manage to slip into the portal. Andromeda does not enter. Cut to inside)
Dylan: It's like some kind of knot in space, we can't get past it
Beka: Can't we blast through?
Dylan: Too risky. We've gotta find another way in.
Rommie: (Appearing on the screen) I have to get at least three light minutes away from this position before I can enter slipstream.
Dylan: Do it. Looks like we'll have to guess where Mr Harper comes out.
Tyr: I he makes it out at all. (Beka shoots him a look)
(The Mauru. Harper is looking at a screen showing his ship and Diaga's is approaching it.)
Harper: Hey! Hey! No tailgating!
(We see on the screen that Diaga has no intention of slowing down.)
Harper: Uh, brace? (There's is a bright light.)
(Back on Andromeda. They have just exited slipstream.)
Beka: Another solar system, another bust.
Tyr: Roaming the slipstream isn't getting us anywhere.
Dylan: Rommie, what's the status on Harper's wall?
Rommie: It should have dissipated by now.
Beka: He might have left us some bread crumbs.
Dylan: Let's go back. Engaging slipstream on my mark.
Trance: (Entering) Dylan? I've found something you might like to see.
Dylan: What is it?
Trance: You know that video footage on Brandonburg Torr? Well, I did an enhancement.
(The attack comes up on the monitor. Trance pauses it the weird purpley black silhouette guy from before.)
Trance: There.
Dylan: It's some kind of silhouette.
Rommie: Not according to the light readings, we should be able to see it clearly.
Beka: I can't make it out. Is it human?
Tyr: Surrounded by Magog? If it were human it'd be dead.
Dylan: Andromeda run it again, give us a closer look.
(She does. It looks like the silhouette guy is directing the Magog)
Dylan: It's like he's directing the attack.
Beka: Someone controlling the Magog.
Dylan: And the fall of Brandonburg Torr
Trance: Do you think this is what Diaga was after?
Dylan: Absolutely. I think our mystery man here, or whatever it is, wants to remain a mystery.
(The Mauru. Harper is hanging in the doorway by his arms, pretending to be unconscious. Diaga comes into shot)
Diaga: (Lifting Harpers head up) I know you're awake, you may as well open you're eyes. (He does.)
Harper: I was just resting. Been a busy day.
Diaga: Thanks to you.
(Harper tries to kick Diaga but fails miserably)
Harper: So is this the part where you explain to me your diabolical plan?
Diaga: No. his is the part where I open your skull and extract your database by force.
Harper: Wh....well, will it hurt? Diaga: (Holding up a large syringe) I hope so.
(Andromeda. They have once again just exited slipstream.)
Rommie: Welcome to 3458 Delta.
Dylan: Right back where we started.
Rev: No ice crystals...no trace of Harper at all.
Dylan: You it's funny Rev, we knew where he was when he was in med-deck
Rev: A lapse in judgement on my part.
Beka: There must be something. Harper knows enough to leave a trail.
Tyr: He may not have had time. Diaga was right behind him, for all we know Harper got caught.
Rev: Harper's barrier is gone, we could re-enter slipstream, try to trace his exact route.
Tyr: I would think too much time has past.
Dylan: We're going about this all wrong
Tyr: Meaning?
Dylan: We shouldn't be trying to find Harper. We should be trying to find Diaga. I mean, with all of his toys. There must be something there we can follow.
Tyr: The Point Singularity Projector, I imagine would exert a tremendous gravitational force
Rev: Yes, even shielded it may have some affect on the slipstream.
Rommie: Which we should be able to track. Theoretically.
Dylan: I love putting a theory into practice.
Beka: We're going after him?
Dylan: Oh, we're going after him.
(The Mauru. Diaga is about to stich the needle in Harper's data port.)
Harper: My pain belongs to the Divine. It is like air, it is like water.
Diaga: Affirmations, prayers, I prefer laser probes.
Harper: My pain belongs to the Divine- (Diaga injects him) AAAGHHHHHH!!!!!!
Diaga: There! That's the first honest thing you have said
(An alarm goes off)
Diaga: What's that? (He takes out the needle and pushes past Harper)
Voice: Collision alert, collision alert
Harper: You tell him!
(Diaga gos to the window - Andromeda is there.)
Diaga: No. No!
(Beka and Dylan enter the Mauru.)
Dylan: (To Beka)Get Harper! (She goes off)
(Diaga enters and Tyr tackles him. The have a manly fight and then Dylan points his stick gun [yes, that is the technical term] at him. He fires two shots.)
Dylan:Fun's over. Now who you working for?
Diaga: Believe me, you don't want to know. (He dematerialises through the floor.)
(Beka comes o Harpers rescue.)
Beka: I got ya.
(She shoots his hands free and he collapses into her arms.)
Harper: Have I ever told you how beautiful you are?
Beka: Don't start with me Seamus.
(Back to Dylan and Tyr. Beka enters helping Harper. The ship jolts.)
Beka: He's on the company ship.
Dylan: (On his wrist communicator)Rommie, Diaga's running. Open fire with everything you've got.
(In space. Andromeda fires at the fleeing ship.)
(Inside Diaga's ship)
Diaga: Fools. (He dematerialises again before the ship explodes.)
(On the Mauru.)
Harper: You really are pretty, you know that? (He passes out. Tyr catches him and carries him off. The others follow.)
(On Andromeda. Harper is looking much better. Trance is checking him over. Dylan and Rev enter.)
Dylan: He's gonna live?
Trance: He's gonna live.
Rev: Aw, too bad.
Harper: Ha, ha. Ow...(He realises something and looks and Trance.)
Trance: What?
Harper: (He speaks in a weird language and smiles at her. Trance doesn't know what to say.)
Dylan: Rev?
Rev: I don't believe I am familiar with that particular language. Trance? Did you understand what Harper said?
Trance: Harper's brain is holding too much information. It's dangrous for him.
Harper: (Sitting up.)I'd have to concur with madame violete. Right now ignorance would truly be bliss.
Dylan: Have you figured out how to extract the archieves?
Harper: Wel, what would you say if I had?
Dylan: I'll need a copy of the Brandonborg Torr files.
Harper: Uh, if Diaga's still out there wouldn't having that stuff make you a target? Make us all a target?
Dylan: What makes you think we're not already?
Harper: Got a point.
Dylan: As for the rest, we should store it.
Trance: Well, don't yopu think we should destroy it? So it wouldn't hurt anyone else?
Harper: Trance, as much as I'd love to, if you erase history you just erase it' lesson. I think I may have a place to store it. (Gets off the table.)A safe enough place. A big enough place.
Dylan: Define big enouigh and safe enough.
Harper: I can't actually say.
Dylan: But you'll let me know when you find it?
Harper: Yeah.
Dylan: Yeah.
(Dylan and Rev leave. Harper looks at Trances back and we zoom in on a tatoo of a cute little sun with a face on. Very strange.)
(Diaga's ship)
Diaga: There were unexpected obstacles....(Missed)I need more time! Please!
(The bitchin sillohette man envelops Diaga. He screams and disappears. Then the sillohette guy disappears.)
(Andromeda. Harper is in the room with all the inventions in. Rev is there.)
Rev: It's very beautiful. (Meaning the X1)
Harper: Yeah. Yeah, it is. There's just one question. What is it?!
Rev: You said it's an antique earth-based flight module. The, uh, X1.
Harper: Really? I don't suppose anyone was taking notes while was on a role? Jotted down any specs? Asked me for a blueprint?
Rev: (Shakes his head.)I'm afraid all that information is up there.
Harepr: Oh no, there's nothing up here. Just empty old Harper again.
Rev: Don't discount yourself Harper. You have a wonderful mind. Tremendous mechanical talents. A quick wit. And I'm beginning to detect a hint of something more important than knowledge.
Harper: Oh no, let me guess. Wisdom.
Rev: You see? Brilliant.
Harper: Well, you know what they say, (Speaks antoher language.)
Rev: Ah, yes, uh, a vast swimmer keeps no pets.
Harper: No...that's not what I said...A wise man knows his limitations.
Rev: Close enough. (He starts to leave.)
Harper: Uh, Rev? (He turns) I'm sorry for what I said. Whatever it was.
(Rev nods and leaves.)
Man, who'd of thought being a librarian would be so hard. Well, I'm just gonna have to do this the old fashioned way.
(He switches on a screen and there is a picture of the completed X1.)
END
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