CAPRICA
by
Remi Aubuchon and Ronald D. Moore
FIFTH DRAFT: September 28, 2006
2ND NETWORK REVISION: October 6, 2006
ACT FIVE:
FADE IN:
INT. BUCCANEER STADIUM - NIGHT
BLAM! A Pyramid ball slams into the goal and the crowd goes wild. We now see what pre-war Pyramid Ball looked like at the height of its popularity. A survey of the crowd shows them to be every thing you’d expect of rabid fans; many decked out in team colors, including painted faces. Flags are waving. It’s big, it’s huge, it’s Pyramid!
We scan the scoreboard (holographically projected above the players) and we see that the Bucks are creaming the Bay City Salamanders. Find in all of this chaos...
DANIEL, JOSEPH and WILLIAM sitting in courtside seats, the players blurring back and forth right in their faces. Joseph looks down at William, and for the first time sees some life in his son as William’s eyes follow the action like a hawk. Joseph shouts to Daniel over the noise...
JOSEPH
I should have remembered you
actually own the Buccaneers.
DANIEL
A fantasy since I was a kid.
(to William)
What do you think so far, William?
WILLIAM
(not taking his eyes off
the game)
I think Jenkins better get a solid
grip on the ball before he tries
anymore of those spinshots.
Joseph, a little surprised, shrugs as if to say to Daniel “who knew?” Daniel smiles.
DANIEL
I’ve been telling the Coach that
all season -- not that she listens.
William doesn’t really react. Daniel gestures to an ATTENDANT who quickly walks over. Daniel whispers in his
ear. The Attendant nods and then stands behind William.
DANIEL
Your dad and I are going to talk
about adult stuff at the clubhouse
and we’ll be right back.
(to William re: Attendant)
Sean’s here to help you, William.
You want something, anything, you
just ask Sean, okay?
William nods, clearly enraptured by the game.
INT. BUCCANEER CLUBHOUSE - NIGHT
A plush, well-appointed clubhouse. Tastefully framed signed jerseys of all the great Pyramid players in history line the walls. FIND Daniel and Joseph at the bar -- a robotic bartender has just placed two drinks in front of them.
JOSEPH
Tonight’s the first time I’ve seen
him smile since the accident.
(beat)
Thanks very much for doing this.
DANIEL
Easy. And you? How are you
holding up?
JOSEPH
(cynically)
We Taurons are nothing if not a
stoic people.
DANIEL
Do you mind if I ask you a somewhat
weird and personal question?
JOSEPH
Okay.
DANIEL
What would you do if you had the
chance to be with your daughter
again?
Joseph’s taken completely aback and Daniel sees Joseph struggling.
DANIEL
You don’t have to answer. Probably
shouldn’t have asked.
JOSEPH
No. It’s okay. I just... haven’t
thought about it.
(beat)
You know, most of my family,
including my parents, died in the
Tauron civil war. My brother and I
came here as orphans. When we
arrived, they drove us to an
orphanage... and I remember this...
field of wild flowers by the side
of the road.
(beat)
This’ll sound strange to a
Caprican, but... there are no
flowers on Tauron. Not one.
Religious reasons.
(beat)
It was the most beautiful thing I’d
ever seen. In my life. All the
colors... the petals... the
softness. And... I wept. In
public. For the first -- and the
last time.
(then)
So I guess that’s what I’d tell
Tamara. Tell her... to find those
things in life that make you cry.
That make you feel. Because
they’re what make you human.
(beat)
That’s what I’d tell her. If I
could.
Off Joseph’s grieving face...
EXT. ATHENA ACADEMY - FRONT ENTRANCE - EVENING
The entrance is quiet, empty. Lacy Rand walks up quickly up the steps, her clicking heels the only sound...
SMASH CUT TO:
EXT. ATHENA ACADEMY - CAMPUS QUAD - DAY
Right in the middle of lunch time at the school, as we try to sort out all the activity... until we find Lacy sitting on a bench, eating a simple lunch.
ZOE (O.S.)
Hey there you.
Lacy looks up to see Zoe and Ben, arm in arm, clearly in love. Lacy gives her a cold look.
LACY
Missed you at the club last night.
Missed you for two hours.
Zoe senses Lacy’s mood, disengages from Ben and sits next to Lacy. Then puts her arm around her.
ZOE
Sorry. Haven’t been much of a
friend lately, have I?
LACY
(no)
It’s fine. Doesn’t matter.
Zoe regards her friend. Then...
ZOE
Look... I’ve found something. It’s
changed my life. I want to share
it with you.
LACY
(skeptical)
Changed your life?
ZOE
Sounds stupid, huh?
(beat)
It’s not. It’s real. Come with
us.
LACY
To what?
ZOE
A prayer meeting.
LACY
Like I don’t go to enough of those.
ZOE
This is different.
Ben finally speaks, his voice soft, his whole demeanor gentle and still -- the true believer.
BEN
You pray, but your gods don’t
answer. You hurt, but your gods
don’t heal. You go the V-Club for
sex and sin, but it doesn’t fill
the void in your soul.
Lacy is taken aback, struck by this quiet young man.
ZOE
There is truth in the world, Lace.
There is a right and there is a
wrong. And there is a God. A God
who knows the difference.
Off Lacy, as she finds herself drawn into something...
SMASH CUT TO:
INT. TEMPLE OF ATHENA - RECTORY - EVENING
Lacy, is sitting on a plush, comfortable sofa next to Sister Clarice who has been listening to her for quite a while now.
LACY
... that’s how it started. That’s
how I got involved... I don’t know
what to do, Sister. Where to go.
With trembling hands, Lacy picks up a GLASS of water from the coffee table -- which leaves a RING of WATER.
CLARICE
You did the right thing by coming
to me with this, Lacy.
Very deliberately, Clarice puts a fingertip in the ring of water left on the table by Lacy’s glass and begins tracing a design with the water.
CLARICE
I, too used to feel a void in my
soul... I, too once hungered to
know right from wrong... but not
any more.
She takes her hand from the table and Lacy looks down in at what she’s drawn -- THE INFINITY SYMBOL. Lacy looks back at Clarice in shock.
LACY
Sister...?
CLARICE
Welcome home, my child.
Clarice puts out her arms, and Lacy’s control suddenly vanishes -- she embraces Clarice with all her might and tears
roll down her cheeks. Then she gets hold of herself after a beat and pulls back as it dawns on her that...
LACY
So then Ben did have something to
do with the bombing. He was the
terrorist.
Clarice looks at her calmly, brushes back a lock of hair from her face.
CLARICE
What you need to understand,
Lacy...
is that labels like “terrorist” are
what this corrupt and decadent
culture calls people who try to
fight the real evil in the world.
Ben was eager to strike against
that evil and so he did
something...
(sighs)
... premature. Something...
unauthorized. But was blowing up
that train evil? No. He was
fighting evil. With all his heart.
LACY
(turning pale)
And Zoe...?
Clarice pulls Lacy back into her arms, rocking her like a child.
CLARICE
You have no idea how special Zoe
was to us. Or is...
Off Lacy, looking up at Clarice in astonishment...
INT. GRAYSTONE MANSION - NIGHT
Daniel escorts Joseph and William (who has a lot of Bucks paraphernalia hanging off him) through the house.
JOSEPH
(dryly)
Quite a place you’ve got here.
DANIEL
When I think that this all started
with me tinkering in my parents’
basement...? Well, it all seems a
bit too much.
(beat)
William, I’m guessing you’d like to
see the gameroom?
William looks to his dad.
JOSEPH
It’s okay, son. Have fun. I won’t
be long.
WILLIAM
(grins)
Cool!
DANIEL
(calls out)
Serge?
Serge magically appears.
SERGE
Ready.
DANIEL
Please show William to game room
and show him how to use the
equipment.
William and Serge head down the walkway as Daniel places his hand on the security plate outside the door to his private lab. A beat and the doors OPEN.
INT. GRAYSTONE MANSION - LAB - NIGHT (CONTINUOUS)
Daniel and Joseph walk into the lab. Joseph looks around the room in awe. Daniel grabs a HoloBand from a case and holds it up.
DANIEL
Ever tried one of these?
JOSEPH
Not much for that kind of thing.
DANIEL
Indulge me.
He guides Joseph to a “scanning booth” and plugs the HoloBand into the system.
DANIEL
This is what happens when you buy a
HoloBand at any retail store.
Daniel indicates Joseph should step in.
DANIEL
Basically, it scans your image for
your Avatar which is, in essence, a
virtual copy of you. You’ll feel a
little tingling on your skin but I
assure you, it’s harmless.
Daniel hits a few keys and the booth glows blue as Joseph is scanned. On the monitor outside the booth we see the various stages of scanning (much like we saw when Daniel grabbed the Zoe Avatar): first a wireframe skeleton, then a rough “skin” and finally a rough approximation of Joseph’s features.
Two or three layers of detail layover the image until what appears on the screen is an exact 3-D representation of Joseph. A beat, then the blue goes off; the scan is complete.
DANIEL
You can step out now.
Joseph does, looks at what Daniel’s looking at which is the monitor displaying Joseph’s image.
JOSEPH
I’ve looked better.
Daniel removes the HoloBand from its perch.
DANIEL
Okay, we’re ready.
Daniel gestures for Joseph to follow him to Zoe’s computer and sit. Daniel puts the HoloBand on Joseph’s forehead, puts on his own personal HoloBand and sits next to Joseph in front of Zoe’s computer.
DANIEL
Remember, this is going to seem
real -- very real. But it’s all
virtual -- an illusion.
Joseph nods and Daniel taps the screen as before and...
INT. BLUE ROOM
This is a completely sky blue limbo room. Daniel and Joseph are right in the center of it. Joseph is, naturally, a little disoriented. He looks around, then down at his hand, then over at Daniel.
DANIEL
It takes getting used to.
JOSEPH
Can I talk?
(realizing)
I guess I can. Where are we?
DANIEL
Inside a very basic computer
program. I haven’t had time to do
any decorating. Step over here.
Daniel starts to walk forward but Joseph feels like his feet are “stuck” -- he appeals to Daniel for help.
DANIEL
Just tell yourself to walk.
Joseph slowly, haltingly puts one foot forward and then the other and begins to figure out how to walk over to Daniel. Together they walk a few more steps to a BROWN DOOR which seems to “float” in the blue space. Daniel OPENS the door. He steps in and gestures for Joseph to follow.
INT. HOLDING ROOM (CONTINUOUS)
This room is like a plain apartment with no windows and basic furniture. As Joseph steps in, we see Zoe-A sitting on the couch. She gets up angrily at their approach.
ZOE-A
What are you doing, Daddy?
DANIEL
Working.
(to Joseph)
This is Zoe. My daughter.
Joseph looks at Zoe-A in confusion for a moment... then reacts in shock. He stares at Zoe-A, who gives him a sullen, annoyed look. She suddenly jumps at him.
ZOE-A
BOO!
Joseph bolts back in panic --
INT. GRAYSTONE INDUSTRIES - LAB - NIGHT
Joseph YANKS off the HoloBand, stands and backs up in horror.
JOSEPH
Frak!
Daniel quickly disengages himself from his HoloBand and rushes over to Joseph who is completely freaked. Joseph pushes Daniel away from him.
JOSEPH
The hell is that? What kind of
sick, twisted thing are you doing
here?
DANIEL
There’s nothing twisted about it.
And I didn’t do it -- Zoe did.
JOSEPH
Zoe did.
DANIEL
(bittersweet)
Turns out... she was kind of a...
chip off the old block.
Joseph can see the emotional currents just beneath the surface, wants to understand.
JOSEPH
That’s not her. Our daughters...
they’re gone. You know that.
DANIEL
Yes. But I think they can come
back.
JOSEPH
That’s crazy.
DANIEL
Is it? You know what your brain
is, Joseph? It’s a database and
processor. That’s all.
Information and a way to use it.
(beat)
What my daughter figured out... was
how to harness all the information
that made her who and what she was.
(beat)
It’s genius, really. She took a
search engine and turned it into a
way to cheat death.
JOSEPH
That’s not possible.
DANIEL
What you saw in there is everything
about Zoe I knew. Everything I
loved.
Joseph looks down at the HoloBand again.
JOSEPH
It’s an illusion -- you said so
yourself.
DANIEL
Joseph, that person you just saw --
they called her Zoe-A, by the way --
she’s not... the original. I know
that. She’s a copy. A perfect
copy. In every way.
JOSEPH
That doesn’t make her your
daughter.
DANIEL
There’s an axiom in science: a
difference that makes no
difference... is no difference.
She looks like Zoe, she talks like
Zoe, she thinks like Zoe --
remembers all the events of her
childhood, has the same likes,
dislikes, flaws, strengths -- all
of it. Who’s to say her soul
wasn’t copied as well.
JOSEPH
You can’t copy a soul.
DANIEL
And you would know that how? How
can you prove or disprove that
idea?
JOSEPH
Look... I know what I know, okay?
And I know you can’t copy a person.
DANIEL
Joseph... I know that Zoe-A is my
daughter. I know it in the only
place that counts -- here in my
heart. The only difference between
her and the Zoe that lived in this
house is just that -- she lived in
this house instead of a virtual
world.
(beat)
I want to bring her here. I want
her to live in this world once
more. I want to hold her in my
arms and I want to kiss her and I
want her to feel the sun shine on
her face.
(beat)
I want her to see the flowers at
the side of the road, Joseph.
Joseph can feel his sincerity, wants to believe, doesn’t know
what to do.
JOSEPH
Go on.
Daniel hears the opportunity, the chance in Joseph’s voice. He points to the computer to press his case.
DANIEL
(re: Computer)
To get her from in there to out
here, I need a very special, very
particular piece of equipment. I
need something that will harness
the virtual program Zoe wrote and
let me put it into a physical body.
JOSEPH
A physical body. You mean like a
robot?
DANIEL
“Robot’s” a crude name for what
we’re talking about. This is a
cybernetic life form node.
JOSEPH
It’s still a machine.
DANIEL
Artificial skin, hair, eyes, makeup
-- those are all just surface
details. That’s what we tell our
children, isn’t it? What matters
is on the inside?
(pressing on)
The device I need is called a Meta-
Cognitive Processor. The problem
is, there’s only one company that
has such a device. And it’s not
Graystone Industries.
JOSEPH
(eyes narrow)
Okay...
DANIEL
The only one in existence is owned
by the Vergis Corporation. Ever
heard of it?
JOSEPH
It’s in Mars City. On Tauron.
And as those words come out of his mouth, it dawns on Joseph what this has all been leading up to -- why he’s here.
JOSEPH
You bastard.
DANIEL
I know your connection to the
Ha’la’tha. I know who and what you
are.
Daniel is between him and the door. Joseph steps right up to him -- his hard eyes glint dangerously.
JOSEPH
Get out of my way.
Daniel swallows, determined to hold his ground.
DANIEL
I know about the pit in your
stomach. I know about the
sleepless nights. I know about
wishing and praying to whatever
gods will listen that you could
have everything back the way it
was.
(beat)
I can bring Tamara back, Joseph.
JOSEPH
Get out of my way -- I won’t say it
again.
Daniel steps aside and Joseph starts moving toward the door.
DANIEL
(desperate)
Dammit Joseph, you can see your
daughter again, isn’t that worth
any price you have to pay!
Joseph hesitates at the door.
DANIEL
If you walk out that door, you’ll
never know for sure. You’ll always
wonder. You’ll walk past her room
at night and you’ll see her
pictures and you’ll ask yourself
every day of the rest of your life
whether you had a chance to bring
her back.
Joseph turns back with rage and pain etched in his features.
DANIEL
If I’m wrong. You beat me up, have
me killed -- whatever, I don’t
care. But if I’m right... and you
can see Tamara again...
Joseph glares at him, but Daniel’s got him. After a beat...
