Scene 4.09 - An Old Friend
EXT. Tarmac - Night.
DISSOLVE
PEDESTAL UP THROUGH GROUND
(SIMAK crosses the sporadically-lit tarmac; lit by fire from debris and molten metal. The opened safe is the only discernable image from the wreckage, save the twisted frame of the craft itself. SIMAK is near tears and eventually drops to his knees; no masked guards move a muscle to impede his display of sadness. THE BARON walks across the tarmac; he wears a belted, leather coat over a very expensive tuxedo. He takes his hands from his pockets and removes his gloves, squats, and puts an arm around SIMAK.)
SIMAK
She was my babe, Captain. She was all I ever knew.
THE BARON
Come with me, I want to show you something.
(We don't get to see the apparatus yet; big doors are opened and a platoon of clones scramble to their duty positions. We only see their reactions to being lit with blue light, gazing at the demonic wonder before them.)
SIMAK
Great Scotty!
THE BARON
I know, it's overwhelming. I had to bring her here to work on her, but we're moving her again -- transpatially.
SIMAK
What have you done to the lassie?
THE BARON
Nothing, just a few adjustments. She is asleep now. Let's keep her that way. I'm moving her back to my quantum lab. Somehow, she's our ticket out of here... I think.
(He walks to his motorcade, SIMAK follows.)
SIMAK
You're not the captain!
THE BARON
I'm the captain as much as he was; more so, I've been doing this much, much longer. I know he's dead already, I can feel it, and knowing The Eliza has perished has allowed me to make contact with the one friend I can count on to see the reason behind all this madness and work with me to get us away from this place and back aboard the real Eliza, where we belong.
SIMAK
The Eliza? She's not destroyed?
THE BARON
Yours was destroyed. (The get into a German, open-top jeep.) There's still a bigger and better ship out there waiting for us. For you.
SIMAK
What, what is this all about, sir?
THE BARON
I’ve assimilated enough parts of myself to know that your captain went mad and made a mess of the green room. He twisted time. I want to get us all back to normal. I need you on my side to make that happen.
SIMAK
Aye, I wanna make it all normal again, too, now!
THE BARON
I'm sure you do. After millions of assimilations, in the back of my mind, it seems like I haven't seen you in many eons, Smokey. Care to elaborate on that story you told me about how your grandpa piloted the first interdimensional bomber?
SIMAK
Oh, the X-19, yes, he was the only one who survived who didn't lose his head of hair; or marry three wives simultaneously; we were never sure which one begat the other...
THE BARON
Must be a family trait. You look good, Smokey.
SIMAK
What's going to happen now, sir?
THE BARON
We're a little late for the show at the Palladium, but I thought we'd catch it anyway.
SIMAK
I just came from there! Those lassies look good enough to eat.
THE BARON
I'm sure they do. I'd like to see all of you. Invite you to a party after the show; cast and crew only.
SIMAK
Aye. Sounds perfect.
THE BARON
It's at my mansion. I've been here six years, you know, waiting for you, knowing you'd all come. And for you, I've got something special waiting for you in the future.
SIMAK
The future, sir?
THE BARON
Yes, and I hope you like her, because I'm giving her to you.
SIMAK
Sir?
THE BARON
I'm old enough to know I can't live forever, and I'm not going to try. I'm giving you the helm of The Eliza, the real Eliza, the one waiting for us in the future. I can't give it to a scientist; they'd just want to run things their own way, and what would become of the concubines we all rescued if you weren't in charge to protect them?
SIMAK
Aye, I'm-a looking forward to seeing their act! Think we've missed anything crucial?
THE BARON
No, they're probably still just showing their bra-straps.
SIMAK
About The Eliza, sir-
THE BARON
Yes?
SIMAK
Can I bring the crew along, sir?
THE BARON
Of course, bring them all; bring anyone you'd like.
SIMAK
What about the other Captain Verne? My Captain Verne?
THE BARON
Yours? Sorry to tell you that he’s dead, but I know it’s true. I felt a disturbance in the buzz. Yet, there’s still a few more replicants of me out there, and I’ll get them yet. All the Verne you’ll ever need to know will be me, and the others, well, they'll all be a part of me, a latent part of me. The part of me that's never saw the wisdom in retirement; the horse-sense in finding a port, a place to settle-down. If they had their way, they'd never give-up The Eliza.
SIMAK
Aye, but re-building her here in this Stone Age-
THE BARON
Heh! She's already built and waiting for you with the keys in it. I hope you don't mind, but I've set it so that all the ship's primary functions will be under your command and will be your responsibility... once I've retired, of course.
SIMAK
Aye, once we're outta here and back to normal space.
THE BARON
And time. And you see how I've got that all worked out. Once I've become whole again, we'll all go back. We'll have solved this stupid paradox where several, unknown, anal-retentive versions of me are still trying to be Lord Of The Universe and then we can finally move on with our careers, our commendations, our promotions. And the girls.
SIMAK
Aye. Something's wrong with a captain who doesn't have a plan and gets The Eliza all blown-up. I knew me Verne had lost his head. He's just not as calm as you, sir. Not as attuned to the feelings of his crew as you are, sir. (Pause.) How long will it take us to get there, sir?
(They approach a small hill, a berm. We stop moving and watch them go over it into the darkness.)
THE BARON
About as long as it takes for you to explain to me how an X-19 really works.
SIMAK
Aye, sir, they call it the jumper because it's known to go off the time-track, but my grandaddy said that was just half the fun. Now my grandpap, he was from what they call the old country cuz he was born by a mudder and he was used to being sent up in ships that weren't worth their weight in salt, and back-then every part was still farmed-out the lowest bidder, like before, when everyone was in debt and there wasn't a dog in the kennel that knew the first-thing about quantum engineering or creating a stable, parallel world at-all...
FTB