CAPRICA
by
Remi Aubuchon and Ronald D. Moore
FIFTH DRAFT: September 28, 2006
2ND NETWORK REVISION: October 6, 2006
ACT EIGHT:
FADE IN:
INT. JOSEPH ADAMS’ OFFICE - DAY
Joseph has buried himself in paperwork. Sam enters the room, a dark cloud over him. Joseph notices him from the corner of his eye but doesn’t turn his attention away from his paperwork.
JOSEPH
I’m due in court in fifteen
minutes, Sam.
SAM
It won’t take long.
Joseph looks up.
JOSEPH
Okay...
SAM
I have some news.
JOSEPH
Obviously not good news.
SAM
It’s about the bombing.
JOSEPH
Sam, I don’t--
SAM
You must hear this. You know who
Daniel Graystone is?
JOSEPH
(giving away nothing)
I’ve heard of him.
SAM
(choking on it)
It was his daughter, Yoseef.
For Joseph, it’s as if the room starts spinning.
JOSEPH
What are you saying?
SAM
His frakking daughter was one of
the terrorists who murdered Tamara
and Shannon.
JOSEPH
You’re sure about this?
SAM
The Gautrau has a source in the
Defense Department. She sent some
kind of “last message” before she
died.
(turning red)
I promised you that who ever did
this would die. I don’t care how
powerful the bastard is, I’ll find
a way to--
JOSEPH
(turning steely)
Not yet, Sam. I promise you we’ll
take care of this. But we’ll wait
for the right time.
Off Sam, looking into his brother’s eyes and what he sees scares him...
INT. HOLDING ROOM
Daniel is in the virtual room sitting on the couch with Zoe- A.
ZOE-A
You really think this is gonna
work?
DANIEL
It’ll work. Remember, this is what
I do.
ZOE-A
Yeah. This is what you do.
She gets up off the couch and walks away for a few steps.
DANIEL
What is it?
ZOE-A
There’s a part of me that...
doesn’t want this to work.
DANIEL
Why?
ZOE-A
I don’t want to be on Caprica.
DANIEL
It’s your home.
ZOE-A
No it’s not. It’s never been my
home -- and it stopped being home
for... the other Zoe a long time
ago.
DANIEL
I don’t know what that’s supposed
to--
ZOE-A
Daddy, why do you think your
daughter was on a Lev train instead
of being in school?
Daniel looks uncomfortable, hasn’t wanted to think about that.
ZOE-A
Think she was just cutting school?
Going shopping? She was leaving
Caprica. And she wasn’t coming
back.
DANIEL
You don’t know what she was doing.
You can’t know -- you weren’t
there.
ZOE-A
I know where she was going. She
told me. She had a plan. She was
going to Gemenon. You know why?
Because she found God -- the real
God.
Daniel’s up and on his feet.
DANIEL
Stop it.
ZOE-A
The children of Caprica are lost,
Daddy. We’re all lost if we don’t
turn to the light.
DANIEL
We’ll talk about this later.
ZOE-A
When are you going to realize that
“later” is too late. When did you
ever listen, ever want to listen?
You and Mom, you just knew
everything. And your arrogance was
killing your daughter.
That’s why you lost her... not
because of some bomb.
Daniel looks at her for a long beat then raises his hands to his head --
INT. DANIEL’S PRIVATE LAB - NIGHT (CONTINUOUS)
Where Daniel is taking the HoloBand off. He waits a beat, then moves to the U-87 ROBOT seen earlier. THE MCP is sitting in the robot’s HEAD -- essentially, its “brain.”
As he begins to ACTIVATE the power systems of the robot...
INT. DANIEL’S PRIVATE LAB - NIGHT
Daniel is working at the computers. The ROBOT begins to POWER UP, its systems coming to life. Data is rolling across the monitor screens. In a scene right out of Frankenstein, the lab is filled with flashing lights, beeping consoles...
... Daniel watches the robot... and IT BEGINS TO MOVE! Tears of joy stream to his eyes, as the ROBOT TURNS to look at him.
Then suddenly, it all collapses. ALARMS sound, the data streams stop and the monitors all start to display the same
message:
SYSTEM ERROR. DATA CRASH. IRRECOVERABLE ERROR.
DANIEL
No-no-no-no-
The ROBOT COLLAPSES backward, and falls inert to the floor. Daniel rushes to the monitors, tries to rework the controls, but to no avail. Desperate, he picks up the HoloBand --
INT. HOLDING ROOM
Daniel is here, but no Zoe-A. He looks around wildly.
DANIEL
Zoe! ZOE!!!!
But no one answers. She’s gone. He stands there alone, suddenly very much aware that his daughter is truly dead.
INT. JOSEPH ADAMS’ APARTMENT - WILLIAM’S BEDROOM - NIGHT
Joseph sits with William in his bedroom.
JOSEPH
We're going to make a new beginning
starting tonight, you and me.
Our family will survive this, we're
going to put our lives back
together. Your mother is gone and
Tamara is gone. They’re not coming
back
Suddenly, without warning, tears begin to stream down William’s cheeks. Joseph takes his son in his arms and they hold each other tight as Joseph struggles with his own emotions.
JOSEPH
I want you to know who you are,
William. We come from a long,
proud line of Tauron peasants who
knew how to work the land and still
stand proud. You’re named after
your grandfather, did I ever tell
you that?
WILLIAM
No.
JOSEPH
He was killed in the Tauron
uprising fighting for what he
believed was the right of all the
Children of Kobol -- to live free.
It’s a good name William and you
should wear it proudly. And our
last name isn't Adams - I changed
it when I arrived on Caprica.
(beat)
Our family name is... ADAMA and
it’s a good, honorable Tauron name.
Tears begin streaming down his cheeks as he holds his son. We then notice RUTH in the doorway, taking in the scene.
EXT. GRAYSTONE INDUSTRIES - DAY
Establishing.
INT. GRAYSTONE INDUSTRIES - TESTING ARENA
The U-87 ROBOT (last seen firing paint balls at the observation window) is down on the test floor, its weapon at the ready. The room has now been set up with a variety of OBSTACLES.
ANGLE - OBSERVATION ROOM
Looking down on the arena, are Daniel, Cyrus, a WOMAN with jet-black hair and glasses, and a TRIO of CAPRICAN MILITARY OFFICERS. Daniel looks noticeably older since we last saw him, a sense that he’s aged years in only a few days.
ON THE TESTING FLOOR
SIX small Serge-like ROBOTS ENTER the arena from six different doors and begin to FIRE PAINTBALLS at the U-87. The reaction is swift and startling -- the U-87 whirls around and avoids all the paintballs, while at the same time it takes aim and FIRES back.
Each of the smaller robots tries to hide behind the obstacles, but each one is hit with a paintball as the U-87 ducks and dives with fluid movements too fast and supple to be human. In a matter of seconds, the demonstration is over. The U-87 has hit each and every attack robot with a precisely aimed paintball, while never once taking a hit. The U-87 brings itself back to attention, and looks up toward the Observation Window as if awaiting instructions.
ANGLE - OBSERVATION ROOM
The military officers are clearly impressed, and start to talk quietly among themselves. The woman -- SECRETARY OF DEFENSE JOAN LEYTE (50s) -- turns to Daniel.
LEYTE
Dr. Graystone... you may just have
won yourself a contract.
Cyrus is ready to cheer, but restrains himself. Daniel barely reacts, his eyes weary and a bit haunted.
DANIEL
Thank you, Madam Secretary.
She looks back down toward the testing floor, where TECHNICIANS are OPENING the head casing of the U-87, revealing the MCP now nestled inside.
LEYTE
That’s your Meta-Cognitive
Processor?
DANIEL
Yes.
LEYTE
You know Vergis Corporation has
made certain... accusations.
CYRUS
Sour grapes. If they really
thought they had a case, they’d
have us in court by now.
LEYTE
Pity that the Official Secrets Act
prevents them from doing just that.
(beat)
But no matter. We had no intention
of taking this contract off-world
anyway. It’s been my experience
that you can never trust a Tauron.
Deceit is in their DNA.
Daniel nods absently and follows Leyte and the others as they leave the observation area.
LEYTE
(going away)
What’d you call it -- ?
DANIEL
A cybernetic life-form node. A
“Cylon,” Madam Secretary.
LEYTE
Hmm. Cylon. Interesting.
Secretary Leyte and her entourage leave. On Daniel, as he stares down at his creation...
DISSOLVE TO:
INT. GRAYSTONE ESTATE - KITCHEN - NIGHT
Daniel sits alone drinking a glass of milk when Amanda comes in.
AMANDA
What’s wrong?
He looks up at her for a long moment.
DANIEL
(everything)
Nothing.
AMANDA
I miss her too.
She puts her arms around him and they hold each other.
INT. THE V-CLUB - OUTSIDE VIP ROOM
Lacy stands outside the familiar door with the Infinity Symbol, then pushes OPEN the door and goes inside --
INT. VIP ROOM (CONTINUOUS)
Lacy looks around the empty room, disappointed, but not really surprised.
LACY
I knew she wouldn’t be here.
REVEAL Sister Clarice coming in the door right behind her. Clarice is wearing her own version of the little black dress in lieu of her vestments. Clarice takes the news with equanimity.
CLARICE
It was worth a try.
(beat)
I want to see more of this place.
LACY
There’s some... pretty rough stuff
out there.
CLARICE
My child, I grew up in a slum on
Sagitarron. Believe me, there’s
nothing in the twelve worlds that
can shock me.
Lacy shrugs and leads her out the door.
INT. GRAYSTONE INDUSTRIES - LAB - NIGHT
The place is deserted. The equipment, idle for the night. The U-87 lays on the workbench, immobile. But only for a second or so. It suddenly MOVES, then STANDS, scans the room, sees a mirror. The U-87 walks over to a mirror and stares at itself. A beat, then it places its hand on the mirror.
Suddenly aware of what it is.
INT. THE V-CLUB - BAR
Lacy and Clarice moving through the crowd of teens, some of whom digitally SHADE their faces at the sight of Clarice. Lacy suddenly reacts to something.
CLARICE
What?
LACY
My phone’s ringing.
CLARICE
It’s all right. Go on. I think
I’ve seen enough. We’ll talk
tomorrow.
Lacy reaches up to her temples and then she DISAPPEARS. The moment she’s gone, a FIGURE approaches Clarice from out of the darkened crowd.
BOY’S VOICE
Sister...?
Clarice turns and her face lights up with the joy of recognition.
CLARICE
I was praying I’d find you here.
She holds out her arms and the avatar of BEN STARK steps out of the shadows and embraces Clarice.
BEN-A
All praise to The One.
And just as we’re trying to assimilate that revelation...
INT. LACY’S BEDROOM - NIGHT
Lacy is hunting for her still-ringing phone in the jumble of her bedroom.
LACY
Coming! I’m coming! Hang on...
She finally finds the phone and answers it.
LACY
Yeah? Hello?
VOICE
(on phone; very filtered)
Lacy.
LACY
Who is this?
VOICE
It’s me. Zoe.
Lacy’s eyes go wide.
INT. GRAYSTONE INDUSTRIES - LAB - NIGHT
The Robot Zoe, holding a phone near its face.
ZOE-R
I’m... here. And I think... I’m
going to need your help.
The Robot Zoe turns and looks out the window, staring down at the city below as we...
