TRIUMVIRATE SE Chapter Ten
By The Host
EXT. THE UNDERGROUND CITY
Transports and shuttles move between the buildings of the
spectacular underground city.
EXT. UNDERGROUND CITY – PLEASURE GARDENS
The Pleasure Gardens are breathtaking. Set as they are
within the harshly-lit cavernous dome, they provide a
verdant contrast to the rock and concrete surrounding. Lush
vegetation crawls across the walkways between planters.
Fountains and statues and benches dot the pleasant space.
Hundreds of CITIZENS and OFF-DUTY SOLDIERS congregate in the
space. Within the throng walk Jack Davies and Admiral
Dawson. Every moment or two Dawson is interrupted by an
admirer saluting or saying ‘Hello’ or ‘How do you do?’
Davies looks around in wonder.
DAVIES
This place is quite spectacular.
DAWSON
Do you think so? I’ve always found
it slightly clausterphobic.
DAVIES
The Starbase – that was
clausterphobic.
DAWSON
(Beat)
Why did you join the military?
DAVIES
I don’t know. . . Nothing else to
do, I suppose.
DAWSON
(Chuckling)
A very good answer.
DAVIES
What about you?
DAWSON
I used to have faith in the United
Star Systems.
DAVIES
Not anymore, I take it.
DAWSON
I have faith in my men, faith in
myself. Not in the USS. This
nation was once great, led – truly
led – by great men, powerful men.
Men one would be proud to follow
once more into the breach. Now our
President is a shrinking violet,
our government a Corporate Punch
and Judy show, our destiny in the
hands of cowardly bureaucrats like
the CEO. It’s men like you, Jack,
idealistic and brave, that must
lead this nation again.
DAVIES
And men like yourself, sir.
DAWSON
(Smiling)
I’m assigning you to Flight Wing
Eleven, the so-called Black Aces.
They’re good, Jack, very good.
You’ll thrive.
DAVIES
Thank you, sir. And what about
the. . .
He indicates the vial still in his breast pocket. Dawson
halts and turns to him.
DAWSON
Hold on to it tightly. Hide it.
Keep it safe. In time you may give
it to me for safer keeping, and I
will see to its replication and
distribution. Grant it to me only
when you are ready, when you trust
that I will use it justly. I urge
you not to tarry too long with
your doubts – but until you feel
it’s safe to pass it on you shall
keep it.
Davies nods.
DAWSON (CONT’D)
Come, let’s think of lighter
matters. How about lunch?
Davies smiles and the two walk on again.
INT. STARBASE ONE ONE FOUR - COPLEY’S OFFICE - DIM
Admiral Copley dominates his desk. Across from him sits
Robert Johnson, looking altogether uncomfortable.
COPLEY
So Davies told you no more than
you already told us?
JOHNSON
No, sir, he didn’t.
Copley leans back in his chair, nodding.
COPLEY
Very well then. Robert, I must
thank you again for coming here
and chatting with me tonight. I
hope you understand that this is a
very serious matter – your
friend’s leaving us when he did
was an act of defiance and
insubordination. With that in mind
your request for reassignment to
Dawson’s Fleet has been declined.
Robert remains poker faced.
COPLEY (CONT'D)
I’m sorry, boy, but you know
better than that. Dawson’s on the
verge of open rebellion right now.
But I was saying, Jack’s departure
is serious in and of itself, but
we also have reason to believe
that he might have stolen
something very valuable from us
before he left. He—
JOHNSON
What did he steal?
Copley is momentarily caught off guard.
COPLEY
Information ... It’s classified.
But we’re treating this with
utmost seriousness and secrecy, so
I’d ask you not to talk to anybody
about it, and I also hoped you’d
agree to a battery of tests.
Verifications. It’s not that I
don’t believe you, Robert, because
really I do, but for something as
serious as this it’s standard
procedure. And you know it’s got
to be followed. Protocol’s a
bitch.
Copley chuckles. Robert nods his assent.
JOHNSON
I’ll do whatever’s necessary, sir.
COPLEY
All right, Robert. We’ll be
calling you. But it’s not ‘sir’.
Copley smiles and stands, shakes Johnson’s hand.
COPLEY (CONT'D)
Good night.
JOHNSON
Good-bye.
Johnson leaves. Copley sits heavily at his desk and
withdraws a fresh bottle of vodka and two glasses. The CEO
emerges from the murky shadows.
THE CEO
Do you think he’s telling the
truth?
Copley holds one of the glasses to the CEO, waving it in the
air with an expectant look on his face.
THE CEO
I don’t drink.
Copley replaces the glass and pours himself vodka while he
speaks.
COPLEY
That’s a shame. But in my not-so-
expert opinion, no, Johnson wasn’t
telling us everything. Doesn’t
matter, though; the verification
tests will tell us whatever he
won’t.
The CEO sits in the seat Johnson had previously occupied.
THE CEO
You know, you really shouldn’t
drink. You drink quite a bit,
don’t you?
COPLEY
Sobriety, Papa, is a curse I’ve
done without for a very long time.
(He guffaws as he takes his
first drink)
But what’s our little friend the
President going to do about Dawson
and Davies?
The CEO sighs.
THE CEO
He’s a bureaucrat, Admiral. He’s
doing nothing but he’s given us –
The Corporation, I mean – carte
blanche to do what it will. He’s
frustratingly short-sighted, but
he’s smarter than we first
thought.
Copley chortles.
COPLEY
That’s dangerous. ‘A little
knowledge. . .’
The CEO nods; Copley takes another drink.
COPLEY (CONT'D)
Government just slows everything
down. We’d be better off without
it, I say.
THE CEO
Maybe.
COPLEY
I meant ‘we’ in the you and me
sense, not ‘we’ in general.
THE CEO
Maybe.
Copley downs the rest of his drink.
AUTOR'S COMMENTARY:
I had intended to include a number of scenes in which Dawson
and Davies talked, to reveal backstory and to establish
their bonds of friendship and respect. I ended up condensing
that, however, into a single scene – and then, upon editing
this screenplay for the Special Edition, scrapping that
scene and writing a much shorter one. Not as much of the
backstory is revealed, but then it doesn’t have to be – I’ll
save that for Second Triumvirate. I think that the scene
adequately develops their relationship as it now stands, and
moreover it establishes Dawson’s belief in strong leadership
and authority, which will be a central theme to this story.
It’s also a fair bit shorter and less talky. At this point
we have a fair bit of exposition to get through and there’s
no time to dawdle.
The next scene checks back in with Johnson in a repeat of
the earlier scene with Copley and Davies; it’s another carry-
over from Gemini’s Redemption. The scene between Copley and
CEO is new, however, and one of my favorites in the
screenplay. I think it goes far to develop the characters of
these two men, and is perhaps the most important single
scene in the development of the CEO. He’s an ascetic, moral,
and not quite as ruthless as Copley.
Both of these scenes bring out the theme of faith, which is
a new element in this version of the story, and a theme that
was finessed in my recent editing of the story. It exists on
many levels. There’s faith in religion (the CEO, by the way,
is the Pope – the word ‘Pope’ being derived from the word
‘Papa’ or ‘Father’, used to describe Papal authority), faith
in capitalism (notice how religion and consumerism are
linked in the CEO), faith in government, faith in oneself,
faith in one’s friends. The story, ultimately, is concerned
with who puts their faith in what: Copley and Dawson in
themselves; Johnson in his nation; Davies in his Admiral;
the President in old-fashioned morality; the CEO in God.
Some of that faith is misplaced; some of it not. The ending
of the story reveals who has made the right choices (choice,
perhaps, being the other major theme), but I’m getting a bit
ahead of myself. . .
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4/11/2003 10:09:32 PM
(Updated: 4/12/2003 5:41:33 PM)
(Updated: 4/12/2003 5:50:50 PM)
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