BLAKE'S 7

22. "Countdown"
by Terry Nation
directed by Vere Lorrimer

(c) 1979 by the British Broadcasting Corporation.  Series created by
Terry Nation.  This is a partial dialogue transcript for research
purposes and is not for sale under any circumstances.  Format (c) 1993
by Susan Clerc and Micky DuPree.

Dramatis Personae:

Roj Blake --  		Gareth Thomas
Jenna Stannis --  	Sally Knyvette
Kerr Avon--  		Paul Darrow
Cally -- 		Jan Chappell
Vila Restal -- 		Michael Keating
Del Grant -- 		Tom Chadbon
Provine -- 		Paul Shelley
Cauder -- 		James Kerry
Ralli -- 		Lindy Alexander
Selson -- 		Robert Arnold
Tronos -- 		Geoffrey Snell
Vetnor -- 		Sidney Kean
Arrian -- 		Nigel Gregory

Walk-ons:

Derek Suthern       	Peter Caton
Tony Snell              Robert Smythe
Ray Knight              Len Gilbey
Ernie Goodyear         	Peter Roy
Toby Byrne

NOTE: _________________ indicates an indecipherable word or phrase.


[Albian. Federation guards in black and rebels in green 
uniforms fight at a building entrance amid explosions, 
gun fire, and smoke]

[Federation control room, Albian. Tronos sits at a console 
to the left of the main door. Selson and Provine stand at 
another console to the right until Selson crosses the room 
to look into the corridor]
TRONOS: 	Selson.
SELSON: 	Sir.
TRONOS: 	[Points to the screen on his console] That's 
		the third staircase, isn't it?
SELSON: 	Yes, sir [The console screen displays a metal 
		staircase] They're getting closer every minute, 
		sir.
TRONOS: 	I can see that. 
[Selson crosses to Provine at the other console]
PROVINE: 	Where are they now?
SELSON: 	They're just about [Points to a spot on a grid] 
		here, sir.

[Federation guards running in a corridor, pursued by rebels. 
Explosions, gun fire, smoke, debris, hand to hand combat. One 
guard manages to reach an intercom on the wall]

[Control room. The communicator chimes. Tronos and Selson pick 
up communicators]
TRONOS: 	[Into communicator] Control. Mm. Right. [Gives 
		Selson a data card which he takes over to 
		Provine]
SELSON: 	The Albians have broken though into the outer 
		gallery, sir. The field commander reports that 
		despite severe losses, our men are putting up 
		a courageous defense.
PROVINE:  	Yes, spare me the propaganda, Selson. Can he 
		hold them?
SELSON: 	He's concentrating what's left of his force to 
		make a stand at level three, sir.
PROVINE: 	If they beat him at level three, there's little 
		margin left.
SELSON: 	He'll hold them, sir.
PROVINE:  	I'd like a little more reassurance than your 
		blind patriotism, Selson. Put the status report 
		on the computer and run a probability program.
SELSON: 	Sir.

[More guards and rebels fighting in corridors amid explosions 
and debris]

[Provine in the corridor outside control room. He hears 
explosions, dirt falls from the ceiling, he returns to control 
room]
PROVINE: 	[Enters] They're dropping bombs down the air 
		shafts now.
SELSON:  	Computer analysis indicates a ninety-three 
		percent probability that the Albians will 
		overwhelm our defenses and take control
          	of the entire complex.
PROVINE:  	On the evidence of that projection, we have 
		no alternative. We must activate.
SELSON:  	Sir?!
PROVINE:  	Tronos, lock the door.
TRONOS:  	Sir?
PROVINE:  	Lock the door!
SELSON:  	Is there nothing else we can do, sir? It means 
		the death of millions. [He brings a box to 
		Provine at the console]
PROVINE:  	The Albians have always known the penalty for 
		insurrection. Now they must pay the cost. [He 
		has inserted two tubes into the console]
SELSON:  	But sir, there's still a seven percent 
		possibility we can contain the situation. 
		Couldn't we wait a little longer, sir? 
PROVINE:  	No! Now, then, Tronos, you know what to do.
TRONOS: 	I give you four minutes to reach the launch 
		area, then I activate. I then follow without 
		delay.
PROVINE: 	Right. We'll see you at the ship. Four minutes.
[Provine and Selson exit through a door in the wall, opposite 
the door to the corridor, into an escape tunnel]

[Selson and Provine in the escape tunnel]

[Guards and rebels in a corridor]

[Tronos in the control room. Dirt falls from the ceiling]

[Guards in a corridor pursued by rebels]

[Selson and Provine in the escape tunnel. Explosion]
PROVINE: 	Selson!
[Selson is down, apparently pinned by falling rock]
SELSON: 	It's no good, sir. There's no way through; 
		it's blocked. You must try and get back, 
		sir -- you must try and get back and stop...
		ahhh...[Dies]

[Rebels in the corridor outside the control room, beating 
on the door]

[Scene cuts between the control room and corridor. Tronos 
mouths a countdown as he looks at his watch. He crosses the 
room. In the corridor, a rebel throws a grenade. In the 
control room, the door bursts open, Tronos dives for his gun, 
spins, and is shot]

GRANT:  	____________ 
[Grant, Cauder, and Ralli enter and move around the room. 
Tronos crawls up the console and reaches for a button]
CAUDER: 	Del, stop him!
[Tronos activates the device and collapses, presumably dead]
GRANT:  	It's started.
[The device ticks and displays a digital countdown -- 999, 
998, 997]
CAUDER:  	I always thought they were bluffing. I never 
		thought that when it actually came to it 
		they'd REALLY activate!
GRANT:  	You'd better believe it, Cauder.  Believe it 
		and do something fast. [Countdown 994, 993] 
		That thing is ticking away the lives of 
		everybody on this planet. I'd say we have 
		less than an hour.
CAUDER: 	Ralli, get Vetnor up here -- I want to know 
		exactly what we're up against. And then put 
		out a general call for anybody who can give 
		help.
RALLI: 		Right away.
GRANT: 		[Takes Ralli by the hand] And when you've done 
		that, get this place cleaned up, get a casualty 
		report, and get some Federation prisoners for 
		questioning.
RALLI: 		And while I'm doing all that, what are you 
		going to do?
GRANT: 		[Patting her hand] Worry, that's what I'm going 
		to do -- worry.
RALLI: 		You've got good cause [Exits]
GRANT:  	Sorry, Cauder. I won you a battle, but I lost 
		you a war.
CAUDER: 	Let's get communications started.

[Exterior of Liberator]

[Teleport section. Avon enters. Blake and Vila are standing 
together, Jenna passes by in background]
AVON: 		I've got the read-out you wanted on Albian.
BLAKE: 		Good.
AVON:  		Nothing very special. Temperate climate in the 
		equatorial zone, but both polar regions are 
		uninhabitable. Temperatures remaining close to
          	absolute zero.
VILA:  		Sounds bracing.
BLAKE:  	Population?
AVON:  		Approximately six million. It was colonized 
		in the last century of the Old Calendar. At 
		first they resisted political affiliation, but 
		then they joined the Federation, and they
          	have remained unswervingly loyal.
VILA: 		Then they're not likely to welcome us with open 
		arms.
BLAKE:  	I hope we're not going to be there long enough 
		to sample their hospitality. This is a fast hit 
		and run.
AVON:  		What are we after?
BLAKE:  	A Federation officer called Provine. His service 
		record shows he's served with Central Control. I 
		hope he might be able to tell us quite a lot 
		about where they've moved it to.
CALLY: 		[Enters and puts data card on console. Jenna, 
		seated at console, picks it up] There's something 
		coming in from Albian.
BLAKE: 		What is it?
CALLY: 		Well, it's a very weak signal but as far as I 
		can make out there's been some fighting. The main 
		text is just a general call for technical 
		assistance and it's repeated over and over again.
JENNA: 		Could be some sort of uprising.
BLAKE: 		[To Jenna] Get a locator fix on the signal.
CALLY: 		It's already pinpointed.
BLAKE: 		Well done. Alright, Avon, get kitted up. You 
		too, Vila.
VILA:  		Good, terrific -- I'm really looking forward 
		to this. Danger, excitement, sudden death -- 
		I can't wait.
BLAKE:  	What's the matter with you, don't you ever 
		give up?
JENNA: 		That's it, Blake -- navigation plot completed. 
		We're locked into stationary orbit within 
		teleport range of planet Albian.
BLAKE: 		[To Vila] Get your gear.

[Exterior of Liberator in orbit]

[Control room]
VETNOR: 	[Straightens up from inspecting the device] 
		I don't know, just don't know. Some of the 
		circuitry's fairly basic, that I understand
		...the rest --
CAUDER: 	Oh, come on, Vetnor, there must be something 
		you can do! This is life and death, it must 
		be stopped!
VETNOR: 	There is one thing...might just work. Might, 
		I can't be sure. If I'm wrong --
GRANT: 		We won't be here to worry, will we?
CAUDER: 	Could it detonate?
VETNOR: 	I don't know, there's always that risk.
GRANT:  	Everything we've done so far has been risk. 
		We're getting very close to nothing to lose. 
		We've got to chance it.
CAUDER: 	[To Vetnor] What is it you want to do?
VETNOR: 	There's a main rotonoid link. If I cut 
		through its primary impulse vein, it might 
		break the circuit. Then again --
CAUDER: 	It might not. We'll chance it.
[Vetnor reaches into the console and drops a tool, Grant and 
Cauder exchange looks. Vetnor pulls out some wires and cuts 
them. There is small explosion and the ticking that marks the 
countdown stops]
CAUDER: 	We've stopped it!
[Countdown holds at 722...then starts ticking 721, 720]
GRANT: 		It hiccoughed, that's all.
VETNOR: 	Sorry. I don't know what else to try.
CAUDER: 	That's alright, Vetnor -- you did what you 
		could. We'll think of something else.
[Ralli enters]
GRANT:  	We've just taken another step towards 
		oblivion.
CAUDER: 	What do you want, Ralli?
RALLI: 		We've got some prisoners. You said you 
		wanted to question.
CAUDER: 	Yes, I do! Is Space Major Provine amongst 
		them?
RALLI: 		Well if he is he hasn't been identified yet. 
		I've got men checking the prisoners' 
		identity papers.
[Provine is listening to them from the escape tunnel]
GRANT: 		[O.O.V.] What about the dead -- are you 
		checking them, too?
RALLI: 		[O.O.V.] Yes, of course.
CAUDER: 	[O.O.V.] Well, I hope for all our sakes' he 
		has survived. If he has, we have to find him 
		-- he's the only one who knows the complete 
		system.
GRANT:  	[O.O.V.] How will we know him if we find him?
CAUDER:  	[O.O.V.] By his identity papers and his 
		uniform. As far as I know, none of our people 
		have seen him.
GRANT: 		Come on, let's get the questioning started.
CAUDER: 	Ralli, you go through those files. Find the 
		plans for that thing. 
[Grant and Cauder leave]
RALLI: 		Alright, Vetnor.
VETNOR: 	I'm sorry I couldn't do the job. It needs 
		tools I haven't got.
RALLI: 		Well, you'd better go and help look for 
		prisoners.
VETNOR: 	Right. [Leaves]

[In the tunnel, Provine hides his identity card under a rock]

[Exterior shot of Liberator in orbit]

[Teleport section. Blake hands over a plastic sheet to Jenna 
and Cally, who sit at the console]
BLAKE:  	Can you correlate the locator fix to this.
[Jenna moves some levers and a light dot moves on the grid]
JENNA: 		How about this?
BLAKE: 		But that puts it right in the middle of the 
		Federation defense complex.
CALLY: 		Well, we can put you one half co-ordinate 
		point to the fix. That will put you down in 
		the outer limits of the complex.
BLAKE: 		That'll do. Let's go. Come on, Vila.
VOILA: 		You're quite sure you need me?
BLAKE: 		Certain.
AVON:  		Doesn't it make you feel good to be wanted?
VILA:  		I've been a wanted man all my life. What I 
		need now is to be unwanted.
BLAKE: 		Come on. Put us down, Jenna.
JENNA: 		Good luck.
[They teleport]

[In the complex grounds. Federation corpses are lying about]
AVON:  		It must have been quite a fight. These men 
		are from the Federation Space Assault Force. 
		They're crack troops.
BLAKE: 		It's quiet enough now. The battle seems to 
		be over.
VILA: 		Just one thing we don't know: who won?
AVON: 		Let's find out. [He starts to move off]
BLAKE: 		Not that way. Let's look at some of the other 
		levels first.
VILA:		 Why?
BLAKE: 		I'd rather not meet anyone until we get the 
		geography of this place sorted out. Men fresh 
		from a battle tend to be a little trigger happy. 
[There are sounds of guns firing in the background. He moves off]
VILA: 		Trigger happy?
AVON:  		It would be stupid to be shot up by our own 
		allies. [Follows Blake]
VILA: 		Not only stupid, painful.

[Blake, Avon, and Vila in a corridor. Blake tries a door]
BLAKE: 		It's locked.
VILA: 		Allow me. [He opens it] You see -- the old 
		magic's still there.
AVON: 		[To Blake] The old ego, too.
[They enter the room and Avon turns on the lights]
VILA: 		It's a rocket launch pad!
BLAKE: 		[To Avon] What do you make of it?
AVON: 		I'm not sure.
BLAKE: 		[Follows Avon to side of rocket] Vila, take 
		a look around.
AVON: 		[Apparently reading from far side of rocket] 
		This is the specification. It's fast but 
		short-range. It has a life-support capability 
		of about a hundred space hours.
BLAKE: 		But the nearest habitable planet to Albian is 
		over five hundred space hours away.
AVON: 		Then it would probably have to rendez-vous 
		with a mother ship.
BLAKE: 		Or come back to Albian. I don't see the point 
		in having a rocket like that here.
AVON: 		Just in case of emergencies, perhaps.
BLAKE: 		Come on, let's go. There's nothing else for 
		us here.
VILA: 		Blake, look!
BLAKE: 		What is it?
VILA: 		There's a sliding section in the roof -- 
		they're launch doors 
[He opens and closes them using a control panel on the far wall]
BLAKE:  	Why don't you do that again, maybe they didn't 
		hear you.
[Blake and Avon leave]
VILA: 		Wait for me!

[Control room. Ralli is checking the files. Provine opens the 
escape tunnel door and watches her, then emerges from the 
tunnel, knocks her out, puts her into the tunnel, and closes 
the door. Countdown 587, 586, 585. Provine checks it and leaves 
the control room]

[Blake, Avon, and Vila walking in a corridor, weapons drawn]
CAUDER: 	Stand where you are! Lower your guns.
BLAKE: 		[He continues to be noticeably on guard] Easy 
		now, we're not Federation.
CAUDER: 	Don't move. Now who are you?
BLAKE: 		I'm Blake. This is Avon and Vila.
CAUDER: 	Blake? [He lowers his gun] You mean the Blake 
		who's been giving the Federation so much 
		trouble?
BLAKE: 		We've certainly been trying and from what we 
		see here, you've been doing the same thing.
CAUDER: 	How did you get here?
BLAKE: 		Our ship has teleport capability. We came down 
		from the rocket level.
CAUDER: 	Rockets? Where?
BLAKE: 		Two levels up.
CAUDER: 	[To Arrian and another who have been standing 
		O.O.V.] You two: find that rocket and stay 
		with it. If Provine's alive it'll be his escape 
		route [They leave and Blake finally relaxes] 
		My name's Cauder. I'm glad to see you, Blake, 
		all three of you. We have a desperate problem.
BLAKE: 		Can we help?
CAUDER: 	If you can't, every living being on this planet 
		will be dead within hours. Come with me. 
		[Blake and Avon follow him]
VILA: 		Oh dear.

[Provine hides in a corridor as Arrian and the other rebel 
pass by]

[Control room. Avon has been looking at the device]
AVON:  		This is a solium radiation device.
BLAKE:  	Solium?
CAUDER:  	You know about it?
AVON:  		Enough to know that it's deadly. Once in 
		fission it creates intense radiation. It 
		destroys living tissue instantly.
CAUDER: 	That's right, and the Federation made us 
		understand exactly its effects, left us 
		in no doubt if we mounted any major 
		rebellion they wouldn't hesitate to use it.
VILA: 		But to blow up the whole planet, destroy 
		everything's that's here -- that's stupid.
AVON: 		But they don't blow it up, that's the point. 
		Solium itself produces a very small explosion 
		and the radiation fall-out decays rapidly. 
		They could wipe out a whole population and 
		still leave the buildings and the installations 
		intact. In less than a day there is no trace of 
		any radiation.
BLAKE:  	See what you can do with it. Typical Federation 
		policy: things are more important than people. 
[He and Cauder sit at a table]
CAUDER:  	The Federation was bleeding us dry. They levied 
		impossible demands on our economy, gave us no 
		voice in our own government. We were little 
		better than slaves on our own planet.
BLAKE:  	It's a familiar pattern. Go on.
CAUDER:  	So we decided to cede from the Federation. 
		Oh, we tried to do it legally, went through 
		all the normal diplomatic patterns, through 
		all the interplanetary laws, but none of it 
		did any good. They declared a state of emergency 
		and placed Albian under martial law.
BLAKE:  	But policing a planet of this size must tie 
		down a fairly considerable Federation force.
CAUDER:  	No. They had less than a hundred troops here.
BLAKE:  	What?
CAUDER:  	They had an easier way to ensure our loyalty. 
		Simple and terrifying. They installed THAT. 
		[Gestures. Shot of Avon working on the device]
BLAKE:  	Yes, must've been like living with a gun 
		against your heads.
CAUDER:  	That's right. And that is why we were finally 
		driven to act. We knew the enormity of the 
		risk but we had to take it. Somehow, I thought 
		when it came to it, they wouldn't detonate,
          	I thought they were bluffing. I was wrong. Now 
		unless we can deactivate that, millions will 
		pay for my mistake.
AVON:  		I can dismantle the solium device, but first 
		of all I have to find it. This isn't it.
CAUDER: 	What?
AVON:  		It is a subetheric transmitter that activates 
		remotely. The bomb itself could be anything 
		up to ten thousand miles from here, hidden 
		anywhere on the planet.
[Countdown 503, 502, 501, 500]

[Rebel in the rocket silo. Hears noise in hall and goes to 
investigate. Provine kills him O.O.V., then enters the room 
and unsuccessfully tries to open the launch doors]
ARRIAN: 	You're not going anywhere -- Major Provine. 
		The launch doors won't open; I've smashed 
		the relays. Don't move! Just throw your gun 
		down, carefully. There [Gestures to middle 
		of floor] where I can see it. [Provine complies] 
		Good. Now, we're going back to the control 
		room and you're going to deactivate this device.
PROVINE: 	I can't do that.
ARRIAN: 	I think we can find ways of convincing you.
PROVINE: 	I didn't say I wouldn't, I said I can't. Once 
		the device is activated it can't be stopped. 
ARRIAN: 	I don't believe that.
PROVINE: 	But it's true. It's out of our control now. 
		Neither I nor anybody else can do anything about 
		it. Now. You listen to me. You can give yourself 
		a chance. You don't have to die here with the 
		rest of them. 
ARRIAN: 	What do you mean?
PROVINE: 	Help me repair the relay. It's a Stadler link, 
		isn't it? Well, there must be a spare in the 
		technical stores, mustn't there?
ARRIAN: 	Maybe.
PROVINE: 	Help me find it and we can get the launch doors 
		open. Once we get this ship into orbit, we'll 
		be safe. We can stay out in space until the 
		radiation decays and then return in perfect 
		safety.
ARRIAN: 	Return to what?
PROVINE: 	This planet is important to the Federation. 
		They'll bring in settlers, repopulate it. You 
		could play an important part in that. You could 
		have power, position. Help me now and you won't 
		find the Federation ungrateful.
ARRIAN: 	And my family, my friends?
PROVINE: 	I'm afraid there's nothing you can do to help 
		them now. Be sensible; to stay here and die with 
		them achieves nothing. 
ARRIAN: 	You think I could live, knowing I'd helped a man 
		who'd murdered an entire world? No, Provine, 
		you're not going anywhere. You're going to stay 
		here and die with the rest of us. Now move.
PROVINE: 	No, wait.
ARRIAN: 	Now move!
PROVINE: 	You're a fool. [He moves to the door and reaches 
		for the panel, hesitates]
ARRIAN:  	The door.
[Provine touches the lowest portion of the panel and the rocket 
exhausts flare. He retrieves his gun and kills the Arrian after 
a brief struggle. Provine then begins to leave, goes back for 
the damaged relay circuit, begins to leave again, looks from his 
uniform to Arrian's, then begins undressing them both]

[Control room]
BLAKE: 		If there is any information on the location 
		of the device --
CAUDER: 	But there must be!
BLAKE: 		Then the obvious place is the safe. Vila, can 
		you crack it?
VILA: 		It's a tough one, but I've got the combination.
CAUDER: 	You have?
VILA:  		Yes, but the buttons are sensitized to respond 
		only to certain fingerprints. I've got to 
		bypass all that before I can go to work on the 
		combination mechanisms. [Goes back to safe]
BLAKE:  	If anyone can crack it, he can. Breaking into 
		a Federation stronghold must've taken some
          	doing. How many men did you have?
CAUDER:  	About a hundred and fifty. They came from 
		resistance groups all over the planet.
BLAKE:  	But you planned the organization.
CAUDER:  	Initially, but it didn't take me long to 
		realize I'd need a professional dealer. 
BLAKE:  	You mean you hired a mercenary?
CAUDER:  	Yes. He organized the revolution on the planet 
		Arcos, others before that. He has a very good 
		record. 
BLAKE: 		Hmph.
CAUDER: 	I made contact. He agreed to help, but demanded 
		a very substantial sum. 
AVON:  		Mercenaries generally do.
CAUDER:  	No, I think the price was to satisfy his ego, 
		to prove he's the best in his field.
BLAKE:  	He's certainly very good at his job to get 
		your men in here. Where is he?
CAUDER:  	He should be back. I'll fetch him.
BLAKE:  	Oh, what's his name?
CAUDER: 	[On his way out] Grant. Del Grant. 
[O.O.V., Avon? drops something]
BLAKE:  	What's the matter?
AVON:  		Nothing. It's not important. I was a little 
		surprised, that's all.
BLAKE:  	Why? Do you know him?
AVON:  		I once knew somebody called Del Grant, but 
		it was a long time ago. I doubt that this is 
		the same man.
BLAKE:  	You don't seem very eager to find out. Why?
AVON:  		There are matters that remain to be settled 
		between us.
BLAKE:  	Like what?
AVON:  		I told you: it's not important.
BLAKE:  	If it is not important, then why did his name 
		have such a strong effect upon you?
AVON:  		Because the Del Grant that I knew said that 
		if we ever met again, he would kill me.
VILA: 		I've done it! I think I've done it. [He joins 
		them, a box in his hand] I've isolated the 
		identification sensors. It's straight 
		combination now. Watch this -- it should open 
		like a dream [He does something with the box 
		and the safe explodes]
BLAKE: 		[Coughs] More like a nightmare. [He and Vila 
		pull data cards from the safe] They're all in 
		code [Avon takes one]
VILA: 		So are these.
AVON: 		Give me a little time, I can decode it.
BLAKE: 		Time is what we don't have. [Into bracelet] 
		Liberator, this is Blake, do you read me?
CALLY: 		[V.O., on bracelet] We hear you.
BLAKE: 		Stand by to teleport, Vila's coming up. [To 
		Vila] I want all that stuff run through Orac, 
		I want the cipher broken, and a full read-out.
VILA: 		Right.
BLAKE: 		Ready?
VILA: 		Yes.
BLAKE: 		[Into bracelet] Take him up. [Vila teleports]

[Teleport section. Vila materializes]
CALLY: 		What's happening down there?
VILA: 		I'll tell you later, no time now.
JENNA: 		Well, what's all the rush?
VILA:  		There's a bomb timed to detonate in under 
		half an hour. We don't even know where it is. 
		Give me a linkup with Orac.

[Control room]
AVON:  		We have now used up more than half the time 
		we have available.
BLAKE: 		Hm.
CAUDER: 	[Enters with Grant] Blake, this is Grant.
GRANT: 		Good to meet you. [They shake hands]
BLAKE: 		And you. We've been hearing about your strikes 
		against the Federation.
GRANT: 		You've been hitting them pretty hard, too. You 
		keep it up, you'll put us out of business.
BLAKE: 		[Laughs] That I wouldn't mind.
GRANT: 		If it meant breaking the Federation, nor would 
		I. [Sees Avon]
AVON: 		Hello, Del. It's been a long time.
GRANT: 		I heard you were dead.
AVON: 		I heard the same about you. Wishful thinking 
		perhaps.
GRANT: 		I'm glad the stories were wrong. I felt cheated. 
		We have some things to settle.
BLAKE: 		You two can talk about the old days some other 
		time. Right now we have a problem that's just a 
		little more pressing.
CAUDER: 	What's the countdown?
BLAKE:  	Four two five.
CAUDER: 	It's getting closer.
BLAKE: 		Vila's using Liberator's computers to try and 
		decipher the code. It could just give us the 
		location.
AVON: 		I have found the circuit plans [Holds up plans. 
		Grant joins him]
GRANT: 		Yes, that's the detonator. A nasty one, tricky 
		to disarm.
AVON: 		You would have to take out the secondary circuit 
		first, go in under here [Points to plans]
GRANT: 		Hmm. Might work. Still, not easy.
[The tunnel door opens and Ralli falls into the room]
BLAKE: 		Cauder!
CAUDER: 	Ralli!  [They gather around her] Ralli, what 
		happened?
RALLI: 		Oh. I don't know. Someone came up behind me and 
		just hit me.
BLAKE: 		[To Grant] That's an escape tunnel. Come on. 
		[They leave]
CAUDER: 	You'll be all right, Ralli.

[In the tunnel, Blake and Grant find Selson's body]
BLAKE: 		He's not long dead.
GRANT:  	Get his papers. Where do you think this leads?
BLAKE: 		Probably comes out by the rocket silo.
GRANT: 		Hmm. Must've been trying to get to the rocket 
		when the roof caved in.
[Blake has retrieved Selson's papers and handed them to Grant]
BLAKE:  	Who is he?
GRANT:  	Selson, sergeant, security forces.
BLAKE: 		Hmm. Have you searched all the Federation dead 
		and wounded?
GRANT: 		Most of them.
BLAKE: 		Any senior officers?
GRANT: 		No.
BLAKE: 		He's got to be here somewhere.
GRANT: 		Who has?
BLAKE: 		I came down to question a man called Provine, 
		a Space Major. I think that he can help us 
		with the whereabouts of Federation's Central 
		Control.
GRANT: 		There's no Space Major amongst the prisoners.
BLAKE:  	Let me try this on you. The complex is under 
		attack, your men have already penetrated the 
		outer defenses. Provine decides to evacuate, 
		he activates the device, starts down the escape
          	tunnel towards the rocket silo. An explosion 
		brings down the roof, and kills this one.
GRANT:  	Maybe the other one, too.  He could be buried 
		further in.
BLAKE:  	No, somebody survived. He waited his chance, 
		went back to the room. When the girl came in 
		and was alone --
GRANT:  	He moved out and hit her. It makes sense.
BLAKE:  	THAT was Provine.
GRANT: 		If you're right, he could be still wandering 
		around here somewhere.
BLAKE: 		Yes, come on.

[Corridor. A rebel and Provine, now in rebel uniform, pass 
each other]

[Control room]
RALLI: 		I tell you I saw nothing. The only thing I 
		remember is a man in uniform. I just got a 
		glimpse as I blacked out.
BLAKE: 		He's got to be found.
CAUDER: 	I'll organize a search party.
BLAKE: 		[To Ralli] Come on, you need some rest.
AVON:  		That last day, when it was all over, did 
		they hurt her? [Blake passes by with Ralli 
		in background]
GRANT:  	They kept her under interrogation for nearly 
		a week. They tried everything but she never 
		broke. If she had spoken, told them what 
		they wanted to know, she'd be alive now.
AVON:  		She should have told them. [Unseen by Avon 
		and Grant, Blake listens and watches them 
		from a distance]
GRANT:  	She held on because she believed in you. She 
		didn't know that you'd run out and leave her 
		to face it alone.
AVON:  		That was not the way it was.
GRANT:  	I know exactly how it was. She died under 
		Federation torture. But it was you who 
		killed her.
[Blake's bracelet chimes and Avon and Grant turn toward him. 
Blake speaks into his bracelet while looking at the two of them]
BLAKE: 		Blake. Go ahead, Jenna.

[Teleport section]
JENNA: 		[Into console]	That's it, we got it, Blake, 
		the exact position of the installation. I'm 
		sending Vila down now.
CALLY: 		[Into console]	Blake, co-ordinates are one 
		eleven seven nine, intersect four forty-one.
JENNA: 		Stand by, Vila.

[Vila teleports and materializes in corridor, enters control 
room]
BLAKE: 		Coordinate one eleven seven nine, intersect 
		four four one.
CAUDER: 	Are you sure?
BLAKE:  	Orac doesn't make mistakes.
CAUDER: 	Then we're finished.
AVON: 		What do you mean?
CAUDER:  	Well, look at that. [Indicates a small screen 
		which displays a tundra] It's the polar cap, 
		right in the center of the ice zone.
BLAKE:  	Then we'll have to get to it.
CAUDER:  	But it's four thousand miles away. It can't 
		be done.
AVON: 		It can if we use the teleport.
BLAKE: 		We can teleport right down to the location.
AVON: 		We'll need special equipment, thermal 
		clothing.
BLAKE:  	We'll do it. [Starts to call the ship]
AVON:  		Wait. Disarming a device is not your field. 
		You finish what we came here for: find Provine.
GRANT:  	[To Avon] I'll come with you.
AVON:  		No.
GRANT:  	I can help.
BLAKE:  	Look, I don't know exactly what it is between 
		you, but there's enough danger without letting 
		personal grudges interfere.
GRANT:  	That's something we can settle in our own time. 
		Cauder, what matters now is that I can give 
		this man backup. I've worked with timing 
		devices. I know the mechanisms.
BLAKE:  	All right, it's your decision, Avon. Do you 
		want him?
AVON:  		Give him a bracelet.
BLAKE:  	Vila. [To Avon] Just one thing: if that 
		countdown goes below fifty and the device 
		is still primed you will be teleported out. 
		Vila and I will do the same.
AVON:  		Understood.
BLAKE:  	[Into bracelet] Jenna, Cally, prepare 
		thermal equipment. Stand by to teleport, 
		Avon's coming up. [To Grant] One more thing: 
		if anything happens to Avon, I will come 
		looking for you. [Grant puts on bracelet and 
		stands by Avon] Ready?
AVON: 		[Into bracelet] Jenna, take us out of here.

[Teleport section. Avon and Grant materialize]
JENNA: 		Is everything all right?
AVON: 		Not exactly. I'll tell you about it some other 
		time. This is Del Grant, this is Jenna. [Cally 
		enters with suits] Cally, get me those 
		co-ordinates. [To Grant] Put on one of those, 
		you're going to need it. Jenna, I need some 
		high-temperature lances. [She leaves]

[Escape tunnel]
CAUDER: 	Any luck?
BLAKE: 		He's alive. I know it. He's here somewhere.
CAUDER: 	If he is, my men will find him.
BLAKE: 		It's a very large area to search. 
CAUDER: 	Yes. What would he do? Where would he go?

[Provine in a corridor]
VETNOR: 	Where are you going, soldier?
PROVINE: 	Circuit maintenance, sir.
VETNOR: 	Has this area been checked?
PROVINE: 	I've been right through it, sir. Nothing.
VETNOR: 	All right, come with me, we're searching 
		the next level.
PROVINE: 	Right, sir.

[Teleport section. Avon and Grant are suited up]
AVON: 		You adjust the temperature with this 
		[Points to knob on suit] You all set?
GRANT: 		Well, uh... [Looks at gun. Avon gives him 
		one]

[Shot of polar region]

[Avon and Grant materialize in polar installation]
AVON: 		All right?
GRANT: 		Yeah.
AVON: 		Look for the lights.
GRANT: 		Here they are. [Switches on lights]
AVON: 		Good. [Indicates grates in the wall] Heaters.
GRANT: 		I see them. [Moves to switches on other wall]
AVON: 		That's better. Now all we have to do is find 
		the device.
GRANT: 		Right.
[They search]
GRANT: 		There's nothing here.
AVON: 		Well, keep looking.  [More searching] Grant.
GRANT: 		Yeah?
AVON: 		There's a relay cable here. I'm going to 
		follow it. [Grant joins him by the wall] The 
		cable goes down under here so it must be under 
		this section. [He lifts a panel and touches 
		the surface] Solid ice. Get the axe. [Grant 
		hands him the axe and he chips at the ice] 
		It's no good -- we're not going to get into 
		this way.
GRANT: 		If we stand here talking, we certainly won't.
AVON: 		Get a space heater started. I'll put a lance 
		into it.
GRANT: 		There's mercury in that detonator. You burn 
		your way in, you could trigger it.
AVON: 		I know, but we don't have time to wait for it 
		to thaw. Get started.

[Control room]
BLAKE: 		The rocket. That's the key to it.
CAUDER: 	Yes. I have men posted at the silo.
BLAKE: 		He may try and get in some other way. Through 
		the launch doors, perhaps. I think I'll take 
		a look.
CAUDER: 	Well, you better take somebody with you. There 
		might be Federation guards on the loose. Ralli, 
		find somebody. 
RALLI: 		Right.
BLAKE: 		[Into bracelet] Blake. Any news from Avon?
JENNA: 		[V.O.] They're down safely, that's all we've 
		heard.
BLAKE: 		[Into bracelet] Call me if they come through 
		with anything.
JENNA: 		[V.O] Confirmed.
RALLI: 		Whenever you're ready.
BLAKE: 		Thank you. Cauder, if there's still no news 
		from Avon when that countdown goes below 
		fifty, I'm pulling out.
CAUDER: 	I understand. To stay with us would be a 
		stupid gesture.
BLAKE: 		I can take some of you off with me. 
CAUDER: 	No, not for me. I'll stay here till the end. 
		Ralli can go if she likes.
RALLI: 		No, I'll stay.
BLAKE: 		All right, think about it. There's still time. 
[Leaves, taps the rebel guard on the shoulder to go with him]

[Polar installation. Avon and Grant are wearing visors. Avon 
is apparently inserting the lance into the ice -- lights and 
smoke]
GRANT: 		Careful, you'll trigger it. [Avon looks at him 
		and Grant moves off. Avon goes back to work]
AVON: 		Done it. Get that table under the light. [Grant 
		does, and also pulls some dangling chains out 
		of the way. There's a rumbling noise] What's 
		happening?
GRANT: 		[Looks at the ceiling] The main roof beam's 
		cracked...resting on the ice. If it melts any 
		more, it'll cave in.
AVON: 		Give me a hand. 
[They lift the device onto the table. Countdown 202, 201, 200]
GRANT: 		Well, while it's ticking we're all right.
AVON: 		We're going to have to take out the relays 
		to get at the activator. Get the cutters. 
		[Avon reaches into the device. Grant fetches 
		cutters from tool box. Water is dripping freely 
		from the roof. Grant gives Avon the cutters] 
		Which one is it first? Left, right, or center? 
GRANT:  	Center first.
AVON:  		Cutters. [Grant passes him the cutters. Avon cuts 
		the center wire] Which next?
GRANT:  	Right next. No, no, wait! I'm opposite you now. 
		Left is the next in sequence. Your left.
AVON:  		You don't get another guess.
GRANT:  	Left. [Avon cuts the left wire] Next bit's 
		straightforward. Do you want me to do it?
AVON:  		Go ahead.
GRANT: 		Hadn't we better turn the heaters off?
AVON: 		It depends which you prefer: being crushed or 
		frozen to death?

[Control room]
RALLI: 		These are some more Federation personnel files. 
		Any use to you?
VILA: 		Yes, I'll check them. No. No. No. [He looks at 
		the cards and places them on the table. The last 
		one shows a picture of Provine]
RALLI: 		That's Provine! That's his service record. [She 
		picks up the card] That's the man I got to go 
		with Blake!
VILA: 		Which way did they go?
RALLI: 		The rocket silo.
[Vila runs to door, then back]
VILA: 		I've forgotten how to get there!
RALLI: 		The junctions of corridor eleven A, fifty-one B.
VILA: 		Eleven A, fifty-one B [Runs out]

[Vila stops in a corridor]
VILA: Five A, eleven one B...

[Blake and Provine walking in a corridor]

[Polar installation. Avon and Grant are working on the device]
GRANT: 		It's getting cold again.
AVON: 		You turned the heaters off. [Lifts top from 
		device. Grant pulls out a cannister] Don't let 
		it tilt, keep it level.
GRANT: 		I must be getting old.
AVON: 		Waste any more time and you won't get any older. 
		Give me the extractor. Now. 
GRANT:  	[Hands him the extractor] There's one thing I 
		never understood. Why did you leave her alone?
AVON:  		I had arranged to buy some exit visas, but I 
		had to go right across the city to collect 
		them. It was safer for Anna to stay out of 
		sight. Separator.
GRANT:  	[Hands him the separator] What happened then?
AVON:  		There were patrols out everywhere looking for 
		us. I was late at the rendezvous. And then the 
		man from whom I was buying the visas increased 
		the price. He wanted ten times what we had
          	agreed. He said he could get even more if he 
		turned me in and collected the Federation reward.
GRANT:  	You should have killed him.
AVON:  		I did. Link clamp.
GRANT:  	[Hands him the link clamp] So you got the visas. 
		Why didn't you go back for her?
AVON:  		Killing the dealer wasn't quite so 
		straightforward. He was expecting something and 
		fired first. I started back but I was losing a 
		lot of blood. Somewhere along the way I passed 
		out. I was lucky. Some people found me and got 
		me under cover.
GRANT:  	You could have got a message to her, told her 
		to get out.
AVON:  		I was unconscious for more than thirty hours. I 
		need to hold this flap back. Get your hand in 
		here. [Grant complies. He and Avon are standing 
		chest to chest] That's good. You can get at the 
		main now.
GRANT:  	You used the visa and got out of the city. You 
		left her there.
AVON:  		That's right. But that was a week later. Anna 
		was already dead.
GRANT:  	You're lying. You left the city the same day, 
		before the Federation found Anna. You could have 
		got her out.
AVON:  		No. She came looking for me, the patrols found 
		her. It was only after we got word that she was 
		dead that I left.
GRANT:  	You expect me to believe that?
AVON:  		Not particularly. But it happens to be the truth. 
		If there had ever been a time when I could have 
		given my own life to save her, I would have done 
		it. The only grain of consolation that I have is 
		that Anna knew that.
GRANT:  	She died because of you, that's all that matters. 
		There's nothing changed between us.
AVON:  		I didn't really expect that it would be. That's 
		the primary isolated. My fingers are cramping.
[Countdown 150, 149,148, 147, 146]
GRANT: 		Did you see the read-out?
AVON: 		I did.
GRANT: 		We're running it fine. There's a long way to go. 
		[Looks over at Avon] I said "there's a long way 
		to go."
AVON: 		I heard.

[Vila running back and forth in a corridor]

[Blake and Provine turn a corner into another corridor and 
spot the rebel Provine killed earlier]
BLAKE: 		That's one of the men Cauder sent to guard 
		the rocket silo. Now where is the other one? 
[Enters silo with Provine behind him. Blake sees Arrian's 
body behind the rocket and bends down to check it. When he 
straightens up, Provine shoots at him and he dodges behind 
the rocket. Provine runs into the corridor looking for Blake, 
then re-enters the room. Blake grabs him at the doorway, they 
struggle]

[Vila outside the rocket silo. A gun fires inside the room 
and Provine backs out, collapsing against the far wall]
VILA: 		Blake! [Blake comes out of the room] That's 
		Provine. We found his picture on his service 
		record.
BLAKE: 		He's dying. [Grabs Provine's shirt front] 
		Provine! Provine! The computer complex, Control, 
		where have the Federation moved it to?
PROVINE: 	Go to hell.
BLAKE: 		You may still have a chance if I can get you 
		to our surgical unit. Now where is Control, 
		Provine?
PROVINE: 	Star One. It's called Star One now. Docholli. 
		Cybersurgeon. Only Docholli knows.
BLAKE: 		Where is Docholli? Where is Docholli?! [Provine 
		dies] See you in hell. [Blake and Vila leave]

[Polar installation]
GRANT: 		[Lifts a component of the device -- three tubes 
		standing upright in a round base] Sixty-three. 
		Can we do it?
AVON: 		It's still possible.
GRANT: 		Blake said he'd pull us out at fifty. We won't 
		do it in that time.
AVON: 		Are you willing to chance it?
GRANT: 		That's what these people are paying me for.
AVON: 		Then give me your bracelet [Grant complies and 
		Avon removes his own] Now he can't pull us out, 
		can he? [Pitches bracelets aside] Right.
GRANT: 		This isn't familiar to me.
AVON: 		It's a new mark, but the principle is the same. 
		There are three detonators, each activated by a 
		plunger. If we enlarge these holes and then 
		insert a rod, we can arrest the downward travel 
		of each plunger.
GRANT: 		A laser lance would be faster.
AVON: 		It's too risky on this kind of material [Debris, 
		ice, water fall from ceiling. Avon drills two 
		holes in one of the tubes] I'm through. Give 
		me a rod. [Grant does]
GRANT: 		Will it be strong enough to hold it?
AVON: 		It'll do [Inserts rod] All right, release the 
		trigger. 
GRANT: 		Ready?
AVON: 		Let it go. [The plunger drops and stops at the 
		rod. Avon smiles]
GRANT: 		One down, two to go.

[Control room. Blake and Vila enter. Scene cuts between control 
room and teleport section]
CAUDER: 	Blake!
BLAKE: 		What's the countdown?
CAUDER:  	Fifty-three.
BLAKE:  	[Into bracelet] Liberator, this is Blake. Do 
		you read me?
JENNA:  	[V.O., over bracelet] We hear you.
BLAKE:  	Any news from Avon?
JENNA:  	There's been no word at all.
BLAKE:  	[V.O., over console] All right. Teleport them 
		up. We just dropped under the safety margin I 
		gave him.
JENNA:  	We can't.
BLAKE:  	[V.O., over console] What do you mean?
JENNA:  	We can't make teleport contact.
BLAKE:  	They must have taken their bracelets off. 
		[Into bracelet] All right, remain on standby. 
		We'll stay down here a little longer.

[Polar installation. Water is falling like rain from the ceiling. 
Grant shelters under a plank. Avon inserts another rod in another 
tube, then joins Grant]
AVON:  		Two down, only one to go.
GRANT:  	What's the countdown?
AVON:  		Forty-one. I've left it for you. Look out! 
		[Some of the ceiling collapses. One of them 
		grabs the detonator. Grant is trapped by a 
		beam] Grant!

[Control room]
VILA:  		Thirty-nine, thirty-eight, thirty-seven... 
		Blake.
CAUDER:  	Blake, go! Leave us.
VILA:  		Blake! [He lifts his wrist to call the ship, 
		but Blake stops him]

[Polar installation. Avon ties a chain to the beam and starts 
to lift it off Grant]
AVON: 		You all right?
GRANT: 		It's no use, Avon. You don't have the time.
AVON: 		[Stops hauling on chain] Hell, it's jammed.
GRANT: 		Face it, Avon; we've lost the game. Find your 
		bracelet and tell them to teleport you out.
AVON: 		We're not done yet. I think I can still get 
		at it. I'm going to have to crawl in over you.
GRANT:  	I've told you you haven't got time, get out! 

[Teleport section. Cally is tapping her fingers on the console]
JENNA:  	Cally, stop that, will you, please?
CALLY:  	I'm sorry.

[Polar installation]
GRANT: 		What's the countdown?
AVON:  		Twenty-five.
GRANT:  	It's no use, Avon. It was a good try. Get out. 
		You haven't got time. Nobody's going to blame 
		you. [Avon drills holes] If the positions were
          	reversed, if it were you under this beam, I might 
		have left you, the way things are between us. Why 
		are you helping me? [More drilling] There's one 
		thing we've forgotten. 
AVON: 		What?
GRANT: 		The last of the rods. I was holding it when the 
		roof collapsed.
[Countdown 12, 11. Avon spies the rod. Countdown 7, 6. Avon inserts 
the rod. Countdown 4, 3, 2, 1. The last plunger drops onto the rod]
GRANT:  	You did it.
AVON:  		[Laughs] Yes, I did, didn't I?
GRANT:  	Why did you help me?
AVON:  		Perhaps because Anna was your sister.

[Exterior shot of Liberator]

[Teleport section]
GRANT: 		Goodbye, Jenna.
JENNA: 		Goodbye.
GRANT: 		Goodbye Cally, goodbye Vila. And thank you.
VILA: 		Any time.
GRANT: 		I'll remember that.
VILA: 		Oh, will you?
BLAKE: 		All right, Jenna, take us on manual. Get us 
		out of here.
JENNA: 		Right. [She, Cally, and Vila leave]
BLAKE:  	Avon. [To Grant] You're welcome to come with 
		us if you want to.
GRANT:  	Thanks, but no. They still need me down on 
		Albian. Besides, I've got a pretty hefty fee 
		to collect.
BLAKE:  	You've earned it. Ready?
GRANT:  	Yeah. [Looks at Avon. Offers his hand. Avon looks 
		at it a second, then shakes hands, and gives a 
		slight nod]
BLAKE: 		Good luck. [Teleports Grant]

[Exterior shot of Liberator leaving orbit]

[Teleport section]
BLAKE:  	Are you going to tell me about Anna?
AVON:  		You wouldn't understand.
BLAKE:  	Wouldn't I?
AVON:  		I doubt it. [Turns and leaves]
[Blake smiles]