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The main characters are introduced, also hard science, political and religious intrigue. |
| FADE IN: EXT. SHEREMETYEVO It is a beautiful spring day with very little cloud cover. It is warm by Moscow standards for this time of year, but rather chilly to most Americans. As he steps from the ship, we could hear the strains of "Donzy Molodzy", "The Brave Lads of the Don". Mike looks over to where the music is coming from and we see the world famous Red Army Choir in full dress uniform. MIKE ANGEL (under his breath) Finally, the A-team. President Puchinskiy is already waiting for him on the dais. Mike doesn't see any microphones arrayed as they were in Atlanta, but a technician greets him and clips a wireless mic to his collar. PRESIDENT PUCHINSKIY Dobro pozhalovat! MIKE ANGEL Bolshoye spacibo. Ochen priatna! Mike takes Puchinskiy's hand. The President turns to face the crowd that has let out a thunderous cheer. He holds up his hand until they quiet. PRESIDENT PUCHINSKIY Dami ee gospoda, moi droogi ee grazhdanii. My friends and countrymen, today we are at the doorway of the greatest adventure the world has ever known. MIKE ANGEL (Under his breath) Doggone! Same speechwriter. PRESIDENT PUCHINSKIY Being requested to share in this global venture as partners has honored us. Many of you have come from far away to be witnesses to history today. Many have been here on the airfield since yesterday. Mike can see quite a few people in the front of the crowd holding blankets and other gear. PRESIDENT PUCHINSKIY (CONT'D) There is much I could say on this occasion, much political nonsense. You have all heard and seen me on the television so you know I could speak for hours and not say anything. A roar of laughter erupts spontaneously from the gathering. PRESIDENT PUCHINSKIY (CONT'D) I am not going to do that to you today. Today is not my day; it belongs to the group of scientists and fellow citizens you see before you. And it belongs to the man beside me, Mike Angel, Mikhail Ivanovich Angelskov! The crowd roars even louder as the President lays a hand on Mike's shoulder and gestures for him to take the microphone. MIKE ANGEL President Puchinskiy, my friends, I do have to disagree a bit with you. Today belongs to all of us with no national boundaries. Yes, only a few of us will be making this trip, but each of you will be with us every step of the way and we will have you in our hearts and minds always, knowing that you all are behind us. (beat) Your President once asked me why I wanted to include you in this project. I will admit now that I did not give him the entire truth at that time. I had told him that there were only two great countries, superpowers - the United States and the Soviet Union. Now that the Soviet Union is no more, the Russian Federation has not lost that greatness, only changed direction for the better. The applause now lasts over a minute. Mike takes this opportunity to take a sip from the water glass on the podium. It isn't water and he almost chokes on the vodka. When the din dies down, MIKE ANGEL (CONT'D) What I did not say at that time, I will remind you of now. Who were the first to put a satellite in orbit? Mike hears a scattered "Russia" from parts of the crowd. MIKE ANGEL (CONT'D) Who put the first human being into orbit? "Russia." The reply is much stronger this time. MIKE ANGEL (CONT'D) Who made a space laboratory that lasted over 15 years in orbit? "Russia." The roar is back in their voices. MIKE ANGEL (CONT'D) The ideas for the power supply we will be using came from the mind of Nicola Tesla, a Serbian from Croatia which was a neighbor of your great country. Vladimir Kosma Zworkin, born in Murom, invented the television devices we use. The idea for the drive that will take us to another planet first came from Eugene Podkletnov, a Russian student. I would forever be ashamed not to share this experience with the people who made it possible! The pride now overflows to the point that the noise doesn't quiet down for almost five minutes. Mike takes another sip of the vodka, this time knowing what it is. MIKE ANGEL (CONT'D) I now present to you the real heroes of this mission and your countrymen. Many of you already know Svetlana Gerasova from Moscow television. She is the journalist who will bring you every step of our journey as it happens. May I present her and her son, Mikhail. A finely featured woman in her late-30s steps from the edge of the crowd where the FSB has roped off an area for the crewmembers, and strides confidently toward the ship. She looks more as if she had just come from a photo shoot for Vogue magazine or stepped from the screen of the cinema than a television news desk. She is tall and slender, about five feet seven inches with dark hair falling to her shoulders. Her deep, light-brown eyes smile at the crowd as they applaud. Trailing behind her is a young man of slight build. He is just 17 and his sullen face reveals that he is still was angry about the death of his father. MIKE ANGEL (CONT'D) Doctor Igor Barishnikov, whose exploration in the far north of Siberia has unearthed evidence that your ancestors were living there over 15,000 years ago. Doctor Barishnikov is a rather unremarkable looking man with a slender build but large hands. Anyone can see that he was more at home digging through the permafrost than he would be teaching. MIKE ANGEL (CONT'D) Doctor Pavel Norodsky who is currently working to bring water back in parts of Mongolia that have been in a drought for over a decade. Norodsky is rather short and squat with hair that appears to go everywhere at random. His girth shows that here was a man who definitely enjoyed his food. MIKE ANGEL (CONT'D) Doctor Ivan Medvedev, who has just returned from Vostok Station in the Antarctic where he is studying heretofore unknown bacteria discovered in an underground lake almost three kilometers under the ice. The doctor turns out to be a large, full-bearded man, about 6'3", who looks more like a linebacker for an American football team than a scientist. MIKE ANGEL (CONT'D) And here is Doctor Yuri Garan who has been working on the geological formations in the Tunguska region to learn more about the great explosion. Doctor Garan looks to be a man in his early sixties and walks with a slight stoop. His ushanka covers up the fact that he is completely bald. MIKE ANGEL (CONT'D) Excuse me for a moment, please. Mike motions to the President as he steps from the platform and walks towards the crowd. He approaches a young, dark-haired girl, OKSANA IVANOVA, who is in the front row holding a wad of bedding. It is obvious that she's been there overnight. MIKE ANGEL (CONT'D) Zdrastvui, menya zavot Mikhail Ivanovich. OKSANA (The girl blushes very deeply) Ya znaiu, ochen rad. MIKE ANGEL Vy govorite po-angliski? OKSANA (Looking at her feet) Yes, I have learned English in school. MIKE ANGEL May I ask your name? OKSANA (Blushing even deeper) Oksana Ivanova. MIKE ANGEL What do you study at University? OKSANA I am to become an engineer. I have one year left. MIKE ANGEL Outstanding! (Mike's eyes light up) How long have you been waiting here? OKSANA My mother and I arrived by train from St. Petersburg yesterday and came right here. We have been waiting since. We are both very excited for you. MIKE ANGEL And is this your mother? Mike indicates an attractive woman, OLGA IVANOVA, standing next to the girl. OLGA Yes, I am. Olga Ivanova. MIKE ANGEL Good, you also speak English. I am extremely pleased to meet you both, and also sorry that you had to spend the night out here in the cold. He shakes the older woman's hand. OLGA My daughter has spoken of nothing else since she learned of what you are doing and that you would be here. She gave me no choice and would have come by herself if I did not say yes. MIKE ANGEL (Grinning) Madame Ivanova, I have a very large favor to ask of you. OLGA (Confused) Of me? That would be? MIKE ANGEL You probably know that I have many scientists with me on this trip, but I am the only engineer. I need the help of an engineer. I would like your permission to ask your daughter to come with us. I think her professors will excuse her for the month we are to be away as on the job training. OKSANA (Shouting and dropping her bedding to the ground) What? MIKE ANGEL I would like your permission for Oksana to come with us for the month. The older woman looks shocked and is speechless. OKSANA (Pleading, tears forming at her eyes) Mat! Pazhalusta! Mother! Please! OLGA I am uncertain. MIKE ANGEL If you are concerned for her safety, I will personally look after her. Please believe that she will be of great service to us. Oksana's eyes are pleading at this point and Mike sees the tears beginning to well up in the corners. After a short pause the woman straightens. OLGA Yes, it will be all right. OKSANA I do not have anything packed. The girl is almost bouncing with excitement at this point. MIKE ANGEL Don't worry, I have already taken care of that, and everything you will need is already on board. Mike looks around the crowd until he spots Jim McKinney and waves for him to come over. MIKE ANGEL Jim, I want you to take Mrs. Ivanova over to the Golden Ring and get her into one of their presidential suites. She is to stay there as long as she wishes, on us. When she wants to return home, please arrange a flight. The train is so uncomfortable! OLGA But that is not necessary! We were to return tonight. I have tickets... MIKE ANGEL "Ma'am, your daughter will be on the television in a few hours and I don't want you to miss it. If you were on the train, you would not be able to see her. Besides, after sleeping on the ground for the night you really should have better accommodations than a train seat. (turning to McKinney) Oh, and Jim, give her your satellite phone too. That way, ma'am, you can talk to Oksana any time you wish. MIKE ANGEL (CONT'D) If you press the star and the one, it will put you through directly. Oksana, you may call your mother any time, also. The ship knows the number. Jim nods and hands Olga his mobile phone. He take the bedding from the mother and daughter under one burley arm and retrieves their suitcase with the other. JIM MCKINNEY We'll go right after they leave. Mike takes Oksana's hand and leads her toward the group by the ship while the entire crowd sounds as if their team had just scored a goal during an international soccer match. The lapel microphone has been active the entire time and everyone has heard the conversation. Tears are now running freely down the girl's cheeks. Mike walks back up to the podium. MIKE ANGEL Mr. President, my crew is now complete. We are ready to take our leave if you do not mind. PRESIDENT PUCHINSKIY If I live to be one hundred, I will never understand you crazy Americans. You make a five-year plan, and then change it every ten minutes! Mike laughs with the President as they hug. He leads the party into the ship as the Red Army Choir started up a rousing chorus of Agapkin's "Farewell of Slavianka". He closes both hatches and leads the Russians around the boxes to where their carry-on luggage is sitting. CUT TO: INT. LIVING SECTION He shows them their quarters on the second deck and gave the same tour as he had when leaving Atlanta. Oksana was to room with Carol and Mikhail with the unexpectedly acquired John Belisar, thus leaving all of the adults with their own staterooms. MIKE ANGEL I'd like you to join me on the top deck in about an hour. We'll have a question and answer session and then an interview if you would like Svetlana. By the way, may I call you Sveta? SVETLANA I would actually prefer the English Lana, if that's all right. MIKE ANGEL Lana it is, then. I will see you all in an hour. If you need anything or have questions just ask the ship's computer. There are microphones everywhere except in the bathrooms and she'd be more than willing to help in any way. Mike returns to the elevator and goes to retrieve the last minute supplies. Lana unpacks the things she had brought with her and begins to put them away. She has one business suit out of habit for formal interviews, but otherwise several pairs of denim blue jeans and casual tops. She notes that there are a dozen coveralls in the closet and at least a dozen undergarments in the dresser. She checks and discovers that they were all her perfect size. SVETLANA (under her breath) The KGB would have loved to have this man working for them. SVETLANA (CONT'D) (Out loud) Computer. VESNA (OS) Yes? SVETLANA Do you see me? VESNA (OS) No. There are no cameras in the staterooms. Even though I am a machine, Mr. Angel thought some people would not be comfortable. SVETLANA I see. What should I call you? VESNA (OS) Mr. Angel just calls me 'ship'. He hasn't given me any other name yet since the house computer found out what his name really meant. SVETLANA Well, we will just have to take care of that. Will you answer any question I ask? VESNA (OS) Anything except engineering and design questions. SVETLANA Why exactly was I chosen for this trip? VESNA (OS) I thought Mr. Angel explained that. SVETLANA He did, but I would like to hear it from you also. VESNA (OS) Primarily, he knew that if he left the selection of a meteorologist and a television journalist up to each president, only males would be presented. You notice that the rest of the scientists are all men? SVETLANA (thinly disguised disgust) I noticed that. VESNA (OS) He also required two young people with special qualifications and knew that the two governments would give him an impossible time regarding this if the children were not accompanied by a parent. It is logical, and fortunate, that you and Mrs. Manson fit those qualifications precisely as do your children. VESNA (OS; CONT'D) It is also fortunate that you are both single parents which made the logistics of coercing each of you easier. Lana thinks this over for a minute. SVETLANA Who made the selection? VESNA (OS) The house and I performed the initial search, but Mr. Angel made the final decision. He has been a fan of you both for many years and rarely misses any of your broadcasts. At this, a smile creeps onto Lana's face. SVETLANA And what was the deciding factor? VESNA (OS) He considers each you to be a ten. SVETLANA A what? The grin is now spreading on her face. VESNA (OS) When Mr. Angel was training me I learned his taste in people and that is one of the criteria I added when we were researching you. Both you and Mrs. Manson are considered a ten on his scale. Lana starts laughing so hard she has to sit on the fold-down bunk to keep from falling on the floor. CUT TO: INT. COMMAND DECK Everyone from both countries have gathered there. Most are sitting on the couches and chairs scattered around the room. MIKE ANGEL I want to express my heartfelt thanks to each of you once again for accepting the invitation to join me. The view from each screen is spectacular, especially the one displayed on the large monitor on the "ceiling" showing the space in "front" of them. MIKE ANGEL (CONT'D) I want you to know that the ship is transmitting back to the two television stations on Earth everything that happens in this room at all times. There will be available everything that we do for the next month for broadcast, or not, at the discretion of the two women back there. I have no ground rules, except it wouldn't be wise to pick your nose on the flight deck. There are scattered chuckles among the crew, but most of them look around to spot the lenses on the perimeter of the room. MIKE ANGEL (CONT'D) I want to assure all of you that this is a cooperative effort. Since each of our countries is a democracy, I have very few rules. Everything else will be decided by consensus. This is your mission as much as it is mine. I'm only supplying the transportation, the chauffeur as it were. There are only two things I want to investigate. Actually there's only one that I personally want to check out; President Forest convinced me to change the batteries in their old Viking lander. Again, a chuckle ripples through the gathering. MIKE ANGEL (CONT'D) It is there we will first touch down so that I can get rid of about 100 pounds of dead weight we're carting along with us. BARISHNIKOV I can assume, then that you will be the first human to set foot on the planet's surface? MIKE ANGEL No. That was one of my decisions, made long ago before I even built this ship. The trip alone is enough of an ego boost for me. I don't have to be 'first' to step onto Mars. I've decided already who that shall be. There is a murmuring among the crowd as they look at one another until Doctor Barishnikov speaks again, BARISHNIKOV And which of us will that be? MIKE ANGEL (Hedging) Let me first introduce the rest of my operating crew to you and explain their functions. Mikhail, Carol, will you join me? The two stunned teenagers look at their parents and move forward slowly. Mike indicates to Mikhail the chair on his left and Carol to the one on the right. Mikhail takes a close look at the console in front of him. MIKHAIL These are the controls for my game 'Cosmic Invaders'. MIKE ANGEL (Grinning) Yes they are. You are the champion scorer at the arcade at GUM in Moscow, am I right? MIKHAIL Yes. MIKE ANGEL People, right now everything on board, including guidance, is being controlled by the ship's computer. MIKE ANGEL (CONT'D) The computer is a machine; it could break down. I can fly this ship by hand if I have to, but, since I am only human, something could happen to me also. Meet the pilot of this mission, Mikhail Gerasov. The boy's jaw drops open and his eyes turn to saucers. Lana comes close to falling out of her chair. SVETLANA But... MIKE ANGEL I told you a month or so ago that I had plans for your son. He has proven to have the reflexes and skill of his father. I need that skill to back me up in case of a problem. Your son, as pilot, will fly farther than any human in history. I specifically designed these controls to simulate the game at which he is an expert. The creators of that game have even sent him a special certificate, I believe, because he out-scored the writers of it. I can think of no one else on Earth who would be as good at piloting this ship as he. The sullen look evaporates from the youth's face and a genuine excitement comes through. He puts his right hand on the joystick and begins studying the other displays. MIKE ANGEL "Carol, (turning to the girl) I hate math, I'm terrible at math. That's why I concentrated in computers, so that they could do my math for me. Your term paper last year in spherical trigonometry was nothing short of brilliant and you already know that the ship is dying to discuss quantum mechanics and string theory with you. MIKE ANGEL (CONT'D) I need someone who can calculate and navigate in three dimensions: quickly, and in their head. I would like you to be the mission's navigator. The house and the ship would have killed me if I hadn't selected you for this mission because they both were impressed. The girl turns beet red and it is Sharon's turn to be shocked. JAMESON (Protesting) But these are just children. MIKE ANGEL (raising his palm) Yes, but they are the reason we are here now. SHARON MANSON What do you mean. MIKE ANGEL What we do in the next 30 days is for the future of mankind. Look closely at them; they are the future. Again, there is a murmur, but this time it seems subdued. MIKE ANGEL (CONT'D) Oksana, John, would you please join me? The other teenagers walk to stand with Mike. MIKE ANGEL (CONT'D) You all heard what I told Oksana in Moscow, so you are aware that she will act as the chief engineer. KITCH But she has no credentials, no experience! She doesn't even have her undergraduate degree yet! MIKE ANGEL Precisely! She can think like an engineer, but is not yet poisoned by the textbooks! Over the past year, the best engineering and physics minds on Earth have argued that what we are doing at this moment cannot be done. Yet, here we are. It works. I need someone with no preconceived ideas of how things are 'supposed to be'. I need someone who is open to something new. Humanity is in the rut we are today because the mainstream innovators cannot, and I hate to use the phrase, 'think outside the box'. It will take talent to think logically without being held back by any preconceptions. Oksana, (Turning to the girl) the third seat is yours. Oksana manages to control the flood of emotion that was now washing over her. Nevertheless, it is obvious she is having a difficult time not just believing that she was here and handed such a responsibility by someone she had met only one hour before. The enormity of what she was being asked to do overwhelmed her, and it is almost impossible to keep her tears of emotion and excitement back. CUT TO: INT. RESTAURANT OF THE GOLDEN RING HOTEL Oksana's mother is sitting in the restaurant of the Golden Ring hotel. A wide-screen television has been set up for the patrons so that they wouldn't miss the continuing coverage of the flight. As the camera zooms into Oksana's face, Olga, shocked, stands and shouts, OLGA Eto moya deutch! - That's my daughter! The other patrons turn and stare, and then begin to crowd around her with questions; some asking for autographs, but all wanting to speak with this famous woman. Here was something to tell their grandchildren. CUT TO: INT. COMMAND DECK MIKE ANGEL To answer your original question Doctor, about just who will first set foot on another planet, you are looking at them! This time Lana and Sharon shoot to their feet simultaneously. SVETLANA/SHARON MANSON What??? MIKE ANGEL This mission is about the future of mankind. These are the future of humanity, your children! Who better to take that first step? I propose that they step off together: no politics, and no sexism. These young men and women are going to have to pick up from where we screwed up. I would like for them to create a heritage that all young people on Earth can look up to. This time there is a total stunned silence as everyone absorbs the news. Mike turns to the young people at his sides, MIKE ANGEL I know I didn't prepare any of you for this. Are you all game? Each nods their heads vigorously, even Oksana, who is still on the verge of loosing control. MIKE ANGEL (CONT'D) Ship. Miss Ivanova is to have full access to all of your engineering database and specs. VESNA Yes sir. MIKE ANGEL The rest of you have total access to everything else. The ship has stored a complete database in all of your specialties if you need it. If there is something she doesn't have, she has Internet access and can find it out in a few minutes. Please don't hesitate to access her any time you need. Each lab also has a video monitor and printer if you need graphics. In addition, for my Russian friends, I know that I've requested English to be the official language while we are here. I also know that each of you are bi-lingual because that was one of my requirements, but the ship speaks Russian as well as any of you, so you may access her in your native language if you are more comfortable with that. (beat) There are also several telephones in the lounge on the second deck. These will connect to any telephone system on Earth. For those of you with friends or family back there, or if you're just homesick, please don't hesitate to use them to reach out and touch someone back home. No charge for long distance. Just be aware of the time differences! The group chuckles at that. MIKE ANGEL (CONT'D) The chronometers on the bulkheads are set for Greenwich Time. Be aware that the Eastern U.S. is minus five hours from that and Moscow is a plus three. I know that the Martian timing will be a little tricky, because a Mars day is 24 hours, 37 min, 23 sec. That means that our 24-hour clocks will slide back a little each day as far as the actual Martian day. MIKE ANGEL (CONT'D) We'll actually loose about 18 hours during the 30 days we'll be down there, but that shouldn't matter. MEDVEDEV Where are we now? When we begin on our journey? MIKE ANGEL At the moment, we are just passing the moon's orbit lining up for a straight shot to Mars. The ship is making certain there is nothing major in our path before we start the main engine. We should be in Mars orbit in a little over three hours. The audience gasps. GARAN How is this possible? It took the Americans several days to reach the moon. I have felt no acceleration. MIKE ANGEL You shouldn't feel anything the entire trip. Leaving the Earth to this point, you are all inside the reverse gravity field generated by the ship. Everything is acted on equally; you are a part of the field. It is not like standing in an elevator that is moving. You are part of the elevator and are repelling the gravity the same as the floor and ceiling in here. This way, inertia is overcome. Each part is moving simultaneously, so you should have no sensation of motion. JAMESON But you said we would be at Mars in three hours. That's over 47- million miles! That's not possible! MIKE ANGEL That's what several Nobel physicists have told me. The current state of the art in Earth rocketry can achieve a little better than 18,000 miles per hour. We will be traveling at around 5,000 miles per second on this trip. Mike waits for this to sink in. OKSANA How can this be? MIKE ANGEL That's what you are to learn on this trip. (He smiles at the girl and turns to Mikhail) In a few minutes we'll be lined up for the shot. You can see that on your monitor, Mikhail. The youth looks at the screen in front of him and sees familiar images. The one in the upper left hand corner that looks like a circle with an "X" in it would be the target, and the imitation rocket in the bottom center would be him. There are dots on the screen between the two, and Mikhail instinctively knows that these are asteroids blocking their path. MIKE ANGEL (CONT'D) The main propulsion system for our trip will be a pulsed quantum singularity. We will create it just far enough in front that we remain on the event horizon while it is trying to suck us in. Sharon gasps. SHARON MANSON I've watched enough science fiction to know that black holes are something to be afraid of. Won't we be crushed? MIKE ANGEL You shouldn't feel any differently than you do now. Remember, we are all part of the attraction; all parts of the ship. It will pull evenly against all mass inside the field, which includes us. Again, it's not like an elevator where a floor pushes you or drops out from under you. Everything is attracted or repulsed with the same force simultaneously so that inertia doesn't apply. MEDVEDEV But Newton's laws... MIKE ANGEL He was close. However, he didn't understand either quantum mechanics or super-strings. Let me put it to you in simple terms. The house and the ship have solved the Unified Field Theory that ties together electricity, magnetism and gravity. That's what will be getting us there and back in record time. We could go faster, but I'm getting old and the prospects of traveling close to or at the speed of light make me nervous. During her tests last month, this ship made it out to Pluto and back in a little over three days. My need for speed disappeared when I turned 21. Let's face it. I'm conservative. I'll take a risk, but not with you, my new friends, along for the ride! We're going to take a leisurely pace and get there in a couple of hours which is more than fast enough for me. Several people smile nervously at Mike's joke, while others are speaking in muted, anxious undertones. As he looks around the room, Mike sees that everyone is deeply apprehensive. VESNA I'm ready. MIKE ANGEL Mr. Gerasov, does everything look clear to you? Mikhail again looks at his monitor, MIKHAIL Yes sir, there are a few objects close to the path, but nothing directly in front of us. MIKE ANGEL OK ship. Go for it. There is a small change in the vibration of the ship, but no one feels anything else. The large monitor in the ceiling goes blank for a second and then returns showing objects that expand rapidly. MIKE ANGEL (CONT'D) I've reprogrammed the camera system so that you can observe our travel almost realistically. Unfortunately, at this speed, the Doppler Effect makes most 'visible' light invisible to our normal detection. What would normally be infrared becomes ultra violet. The ship has compensated for this electronically so that what the monitors are now showing is understandable to our eyes. The entire assembly tilts their heads back to watch. MIKE ANGEL (CONT'D) The spot in the center is Mars. Don't worry; we also have a field around us to deflect any stray matter attracted by the singularity that might hit us. This is the same type of shielding that has kept me breathing until today. The entire crew is still staring at the display over their heads. SVETLANA This mission needs a name. I mean you people had Gemini, Apollo, and a lot of others. I do not feel comfortable calling this 'ship'. MIKE ANGEL Look, I got into a lot of trouble naming the house ESADS. I still haven't resolved that one and I am not ready to do it again. Why don't we all vote on a name for the ship and this mission. That way you can share the blame. What do you say ship? VESNA (OS) I was wondering when you would get around to calling me anything except that stupid name. Just as long as it's not an acronym for something else. Mike blushes as the crewmembers begin their suggestions. It wasn't often that someone or something got the best of his sense of humor. He heard everything from "Enterprise" through "Soyuz", but they had all been taken. Mikhail turns from his panel. MIKHAIL (softly) How about Vesna, the season spring? We are a new beginning, yes? MIKE ANGEL Ship? VESNA I like that. It is logical, yet feminine. MIKE ANGEL Crew? As Mike looks around the cabin, there is a general nodding of heads. MIKE ANGEL All right, I officially declare you to be Vesna, spring, the beginning of a new season in the future of the human race. VESNA Thank you all. And thank you Misha, I couldn't have selected a better name myself. The boy, unused to being the center of attention, blushes slightly and returns to studying the monitor and controls in front of him. MIKE ANGEL Well, if there's nothing more at the moment, I think it's time for some refreshment. He walks over to the right hand bulkhead and presses a panel. The wall receeds revealing a table covered with a dazzling and delicious smelling selection of food. MIKE ANGEL (CONT'D) Since it's already six o'clock, Moscow time, it's time for zakuski! As he pulls the table out on its rollers, the gathering can see several types of caviar, black bread with butter and salt, bliny, pickles, as well as many dishes containing foods that are not readily recognizable to the American delegation. MIKE ANGEL (CONT'D) This was graciously donated by the Literaturnoe Kafe in St. Petersburg. You might know of it, Oksana. The girl's eyes open wide. OKSANA I have not experienced such a feast in many years. In my home, we normally just have eggplant caviar and much less. Mike turns to the young people near him. MIKE ANGEL On this trip we go by the American rules. The Vodka and alcohol on board is for those over 21 only. There are soft drinks and chai over to the right. And doctors, (turning to the Russian delegation while pointing toward the bottles of Stolichnaya and Zhitomirska) let me remind you that we will have work to do in a few hours. MIKE ANGEL (CONT'D) Please go easy on the vodka for now. There will be plenty of time for celebration soon. He turns toward the two journalists. MIKE ANGEL Ladies, even though this is already being broadcast and the world is aware that we are just partying up here, if you would like individual interviews, I am open for the next several hours if you wish. The two women are still stunned and look at each other rather puzzled. SHARON MANSON Is this to be together? MIKE ANGEL However you wish. We can do this together, or I can endure separate interviews - whichever each of you prefers. There will be another hour at least before we touch down. Again, the women looked at each other, and as if telepathic, they responded in unison, SVETLANA/SHARON MANSON Together, please. MIKE ANGEL Let's go to the lounge downstairs, then. The women each fill a plate and follow Mike to the elevator. CUT TO: INT. LIVING SECTION When they reached the lounge area Lana asked, SVETLANA Where are the cameras? Mike points to the joint between the ceiling and the bulkhead. 176. MIKE ANGEL They're all over except in the staterooms. SHARON MANSON But who is directing the shots? MIKE ANGEL I think when you talk with your producers later, you'll find that Vesna is one of the finest technical directors in the business. Of course, your producers can send up instructions with the two-way communications for the shots they'd like. However, she's been deciding all this time what to send back and I trust her judgment. Everything received at each of your stations should be air quality with no editing. As I have always said, this is going to be the ultimate in reality TV. I have no rules and no restrictions. What we do may be of interest to someone and I'm not going to take the responsibility of cutting a thing or censoring out our bloopers. Right now you two have me on the hot seat and I'm fully prepared to make a fool of myself before the entire world just like I've been doing for the past year or so. Mike walks over to a couch and sits in the center. The two reporters each take separate easy chairs facing him. SHARON MANSON We are on the air now? MIKE ANGEL If your producers are running it, we are. The feed will be 24/7 for the next month. They can choose what they wish; I'm not editing or controlling the content and neither is Vesna. (beat) My assumption is that this will be the noon newsbreak in Atlanta and the seven o'clock news on NTV. MIKE ANGEL (CONT'D) That is, unless they have carried us consistently; in which case I can see everybody heading to Blockbuster to rent a movie out of boredom! (beat) Understand, also, regardless of which language we speak here, Vesna is translating it simultaneously in our voices for the other feed. She is extremely good at language and voice imitation. CUT TO: INT. SERIES OF SHOTS INT. AMERICAN BAR - EVERYONE CROWDED AROUND THE TELEVISION INT. GOLDEN RING RESTAURANT, FILLED TO CAPACITY WITH EVERYONE GLUED TO THE LARGE-SCREEN TV EXT. DISPLAY WINDOW OF ELECTRONICS STORE SEEN FROM STREET WITH A CROWD STANDING AROUND INT. FAMILY HOME WITH NOT ONLY THE FAMILY, BUT NEIGHBORS IN FRONT OF THE TELEVISION CUT TO: INT. LIVING SECTION LOUNGE SVETLANA Doctor Angelskov... Mike holds up a hand to interrupt. MIKE ANGEL Let me set one ground rule before we begin. It's either Mike, Misha, or, if you insist on being stilted, Mr. Angel. We are all here for the duration, and I insist that we don't stand on formality during the trip. OK? As I warned Sharon once before, never, ever call me doctor. Both women nod and Lana is taken a little aback. SVETLANA (Stuttering) Mr., uh, Mike. Could you tell us exactly why we are here? MIKE ANGEL Fair enough. I've tried explaining it to each of your governments, but there seems to be a problem of communication with political types. We're here because I'm a hopeless romantic, an adventurer. I joined the Navy to see the world. I saw it from under ships, up rivers, in mud over my shoulders, and from the desert sands -- not really what I had in mind when I signed up. I also took enough undergraduate courses in anthropology to fuel my adventurous side even further. Heck, I even memorized the dialogue from all of the old Indiana Jones movies. When the house computer and I hit on the possibility of space travel, this was the next logical step. However, I didn't want to go it alone because what we can learn here belongs to the entire world and I didn't study everything there is. Knowing scientists as I do, and that they insist on free sharing of information, I knew that this had to be a scientific expedition. If it were political or military, or run by a government, you wouldn't learn squat - much less having both countries receiving simultaneous discovery. This adventure will be done for pure science! SHARON MANSON Is that why you chose the specialties of our companions? MIKE ANGEL Precisely! Doctors Stromberg and Norodsky are here because NASA's satellites say there is probably water under the ground. They'll find out if there really is and if it is recoverable. Kitch and Medvedev will make certain that there is nothing still alive that will kill us or we might accidentally bring back. They will also investigate whether or not there ever was anything alive up there. Jameson and Garan will give us an accurate history of the geologic progress of the planet. Do you realize that the highest mountain and deepest valley in our solar system exist on Mars? I hope that they can get some answers while we are there. Belisar and Barishnikov...well, we may have a surprise or two when we get there and they will be useful. SVETLANA You didn't mention us. Mike looks over and can see a gleam in her eye. MIKE ANGEL Once we get there, we will need someone to keep an eye on the weather. There are sandstorms and winds that could push a person or vehicle half way across the planet. We will need to know that before it happens. You also will do what you are doing now, presenting the story of the entire trip to the Earth. SVETLANA And our personal selection was why? The gleam is getting brighter and her lips are curling up at the edges. Mike feels instinctively that his ice s getting thinner and a bead of sweat forms on his forehead and he squirms slightly on the couch. MIKE ANGEL Obviously, you are both certified meteorologists that also have experience with hard news reporting and you each have the experience on camera to do it right. Plus you are both mothers of the young people that I needed to accompany me. Lana closes the trap,. SVETLANA Then our having great legs had nothing to do with it? Mike knows he'd been suckered and hadn't seen it coming, MIKE ANGEL Vesna! Sharon's head whips around to look a Lana who sports a wicked grin. VESNA (OS) (Protesting) That wasn't classified, sir. Sharon is staring at Lana, but the light is coming on in her eyes also. MIKE ANGEL Vesna, our next lesson will be about discretion! DISSOLVE TO: INT. COMMAND DECK Everyone is assembled in the control room and the food table returned to its niche. The view of the planet completely fills the ceiling screen. The three young people are still studying the controls at their positions; Oksana is busy reading through screen after screen of schematics that Vesna automatically translates into Russian for her. MIKE ANGEL We're going to make several orbits before we set down. I need to drop off some special communication and weather satellites." (nodding at the women) John. I need your help. Now's your first chance at being gopher. JOHN BELISAR (Brightening) We're going outside? MIKE ANGEL What's this 'we', Kemosabe? I only have one vacuum suit. You're going to lug the satellites down to the airlock and I'll set them up outside. The boy's face falls, but he follows Mike to the elevator. CUT TO: INT. ENGINEERING SECTION They stop at a storage area on the third deck of the main section where Mike has stowed the satellites he had constructed while the ship was being built. He dons the bulky vacuum EVA suit he had bought from NASA and moves to the airlock while John pushes the first satellite in. MIKE ANGEL (over the communicator) Vesna? Let me know when we're ready for the first drop. VESNA This is as good a spot as any. I'll calculate the rest relative to this point. Mike opens the outer door and steps out. He pulls on the tether and drags the machine out with him. Once outside, he is weightless, no longer within Vesna's gravity field. This field, while powerful, is the same as the one the house had erected around the property in Atlanta. It extends only a few inches from Vesna's hull. After pressing several buttons on a panel of the machine, two arms extended from the satellite to reveal solar panels. A few minutes later Mike gives the unit a kick and it spins away and then seems to stabilize. After a few seconds, it orients itself towards the sun and drops back from their position. MIKE ANGEL (OS - COMMUNICATOR) Number one is off, Vesna. Let me know when the next one is ready. VESNA (OS) You have about eight minutes. John is working quite well. The next one is already in the airlock. This scene is repeated five more times before Mike re-enters the lock and takes off the bulky suit. MIKE ANGEL Thanks. John just nods back. CUT TO: INT. COMMAND DECK As they return to the control deck, Doctor Garan takes Mike to the side. GARAN Grazdanin Angelskov, why have we not floated around? Why no weightlessness? Are we in a Hollywood cinema studio? MIKE ANGEL Moi droog, (turns to the rest of the gathering) How many here actually enjoy being on a roller coaster? The four young people raise their hands, as does Sharon. MIKE ANGEL (CONT'D) Doctor Garan has asked why we have not experienced weightlessness during this trip. You remember that feeling you get every time it goes down hill. The feeling you get in your stomach like you want to throw up? A few nod their heads, but most just stare. MIKE ANGEL (CONT'D) (Straight face) I could turn off the gravity within the ship if you'd like that sensation to continue. Barishnikov turns white. While still legally sober, he'd probably had at least one vodka more than he should have. Coupled with the Beluga, his stomach is already walking a fine line. Even the thoughts of such things made the appetizers threaten to reappear. Mike glances around the room. MIKE ANGEL (CONT'D) I thought as much. I don't relish that sensation either. When we land at our second site, I'll turn it down and you will all have to get used to one-third Earth's gravity. Until then, let's enjoy the food and company without tossing our cookies. Igor has now passed white and is well on his way toward green. MIKE ANGEL (CONT'D) How are the satellites performing? VESNA So far they are all flawless. We'll have a good picture of the conditions by the time we land. MIKE ANGEL People, the two spots I've picked are currently enjoying summer weather and will be about 70 degrees Fahrenheit during the daytime hours. At the poles, it is still near 200 below zero while the rest of the planet is averaging about minus 64. Where we'll be will get well below zero at night, so we will do most of our work during the daylight hours. (looks at Lana and the other Russians) Kind of like Siberia during bad weather. He turns to Ivan. MIKE ANGEL (CONT'D) Dr. Medvedev can tell you of several winters in Vladivostok when the high temperatures barely reached minus 54 Celsius. His last year at Vostok Station at the South Pole the temperature never reached minus 70 - and that was summertime. (beat) Also, keep in mind, that even though we will not be in 'space', you are used to 14.7 pounds per square inch of air pressure on Earth. On Mars, there is less than one-tenth pound per square inch and that's mostly carbon dioxide, a little nitrogen and some argon. Without your suits, you would undergo explosive decompression. The dissolved gasses in your body fluids would expand 100 times very rapidly and you would hemorrhage from your eyes, ears, nose, and mouth almost instantly. It's not a pretty thought. He pauses to let that sink in. It does. The thought pushes Igor over the edge and he makes a run for the elevator and the bathroom. MIKE ANGEL (CONT'D) The suits you will wear are modified jet pilot's high altitude pressure suits. The kind that allows the pilots of the SR-71 and other planes that operate at the edge of space to survive. They will keep your body pressure near normal, but still allow you good mobility without the bulky gloves and joints that the vacuum suits have. I was tempted a year or so ago, just to acclimatize you to extremely low pressure and use parkas with an oxygen mask, but that turned out not to be practical because the human body doesn't adapt all that well. MIKE ANGEL (CONT'D) This would end up to be a three month expedition, with two and a half of those spent in a decompression chamber. The young people look horrified. MIKE ANGEL (CONT'D) It was more practical to put up with some discomfort using the suits than to turn you into Martians. The group chuckles nervously. MIKE ANGEL (CONT'D) We'll be landing in a few moments at the site of the old Viking lander. President Forest wants me to activate it again so that JPL can continue their experiments after all these years. I expect each of you to bring back a thousand times more information than that thing could possibly produce, but what the heck, I'll humor him. In the meantime, you kids get together and figure out what you'll say when you step out. This will be something that every school kid on Earth will have memorized by tomorrow and no one will forget for generations. I leave it entirely up to you to make it good. Mike sees that Sharon and Lana both barely resisting the urge to rush forward and give advice. The scene on the overhead monitor begins to change and quickly shows a starry sky. Other monitors on the panels in front of them begin to show increasingly more detail of the Martian landscape until they finally stop. CUT TO: INT. RUSSIAN SCIENCE SECTION Mike shows the four young people how to don their suits and double-checks the two women as they gather in the Russian laboratory section. Each of the women's helmets has a protuberance on the side that is a television camera directly linked to their stations on Earth through Vesna and the satellites Mike has positioned. He shows the journalists the controls at their waist that will put them in direct contact with their audience and with their producers. The four youths precede Mike and the two women into the airlock and nervously take each other's hands. Vesna has activated the external cameras and is sending that scene back to Earth. The helmet cameras from the two reporters standing behind their children in the airlock are also active. MIKE ANGEL (OS - OVER INTERCOM) Everyone ready? The four young people nod, facing the outside door as the two women describe the scene on the private channel to their stations. The outside door opens revealing a sandy landscape resembling the Painted Desert in Arizona. The sky is clear with a pale red color due more to dust rather than atmosphere. The four look at each other and step forward to the edge of the lock. MIKHAIL Today we step into the future. CAROL MANSON We step into a world unknown. JOHN BELISAR We give this heritage to those not yet born. OKSANA To the future, for the children! The four lock arms and step in unison to the alien surface. CUT TO: SERIES OF SHOTS INT. RESTAURANT OF THE GOLDEN RING HOTEL Olga Ivanova is sitting at a table with tears streaming down her face. Other customers are shouting, dancing around, hugging. EXT. TIMES SQUARE, NEW YORK The scene is like New Year's Eve. Large television projection screens have been erected and the crowd is cheering and throwing confetti. EXT. LUZHNIKI STADIUM, MOSCOW Large screens have been set up at the soccer stadium and the crowd is at capacity. Everyone is cheering and shouting. Many are pouring champaign over their compatriots. CUT TO: EXT. MARTIAN TERRAIN The four young enjoy jumping around the surface with reduced gravity while Mike grabs a case containing the batteries to restore the old American probe. CUT TO: EXT. MIKE AT AIRLOCK He lugs the heavy bag outside where it becomes much lighter. He then returns for a small box of tools to help with the repair. It takes about ten minutes to locate the old probe, which is 30 meters from the landing site. Mike spends a half hour replacing the worn out power supply while the other scientists in the party disembark to look around for themselves. CUT TO: EXT. KITCH AND MEDVEDEV Kitch and Medvedev are busy taking samples, wiping underneath stones with swabs and sealing them away inside plastic bottles. CUT TO: EXT. JAMESON AND GARAN Jameson and Garan discover a slight cliff leading up to another plateau and are on their knees, avidly investigating striations in the exposed soil, using magnifiers. CUT TO: EXT. NORODSKY AND STROMBERG Pavel Norodsky is walking a short distance off with a device suspended from his shoulders that looks like a high-power metal detector. In actuality, the hydrologist carries a portable ground penetrating radar to see if there is any fluid deposits while Stromberg strides beside him taking notes. CUT TO: EXT. SVETLANA AND SHARON The two women split up, and Mike spots them in the distance, walking slowly in different directions, each turning occasionally to point or gesture. It is obvious that they are broadcasting their impressions of the panorama to their stations on Earth. It is also obvious that each is keeping a careful eye on their children. CUT TO: EXT. MIKE AT VIKING Mike finishes replacing Viking's batteries, Mike looked toward the horizon to see Phobos, the larger of Mars' two moons, just beginning to make an appearance in the pinkish sky. The same bland red color is everywhere on the surface due to the ever-present iron oxide in the soil. He turns a switch on the device and knowing that it will be at least four minutes before the scientists in Pasadena receive any signal since the lander uses standard radio telemetry to communicate its information back to Earth. As he finishes packing his tools and the spent battery pack back into his bag, Mike stoops and pulls one final object from the bag. He straightens and walks to the front of the old explorer where he can see the cameras pointing and with a smirk on his face places a stuffed pink rabbit carrying a bass drum onto the ground. With the flip of a switch, the toy begins moving back and forth. MIKE ANGEL (mumbling to himself) That'll drive them crazy! CUT TO: INT. COMMAND DECK Mike has left the crew to have another half-hour while he returns to Vesna. Mike has Vesna put both Earth television feeds on monitors and sits back to watch. He appears very impressed at how quickly both women have gotten the hang of their suit cameras and audio. Sharon is being interviewed by a network anchorperson and is responding to the questions as if she'd lived on Mars all of her life. He also eavesdrops on the instructions that both reporters are receiving from Earth through their earpieces, and is pleased that their producers also appear ecstatic with their professionalism. He knows beyond a shadow of doubt that he has made the right choices. He notes that throughout the broadcasts, neither woman strays very far out of sight of her child. The young people are always within peripheral vision of the women. The children are still playfully testing the gravity and are now conducting foot races. They soon discover that reduced gravity does not necessarily mean increased speed like in the Superman comics. It does mean, however, increased clumsiness. The ever-present dust and sand doesn't help much, either. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory notifies Mike that their lander is again functioning. The electronics had not been damaged in spite of the years. Even though the bearings on the wheels were a bit sluggish from several decades of sand and dust, it still appears functional. President Forest's Science Advisor also tells him that none of their scientists thought the rabbit was the least bit humorous. Mike almost giggles aloud because he did. He also knows down deep that the engineers in Pasadena are probably rolling. Mike notices the scientists straggling back to Vesna earlier than he expected. FADE OUT: Ben W. Gardner Sedona, Arizona "I do not fear computers. I fear lack of them." --Isaac Asimov http://ca.geocities.com/vladilyich/ In The Beginning - ISBN: 1-4116-3848-4 Just In Time - ISBN 1-4116-3851-4 Ad Astra - ISBN: 978-1-84728-518-8 In stores and at Amazon.Com http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw/103-1761779-3946261?url=search-alias%3Daps&... |
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