Andromeda (2000–2005): Season 2, Episode 18 - The Fair Unknown - full transcript

TYR: No trace of anything,

nothing alive, anyway,

Kalderans, humans...

Nothing.

Just tell Rommie to look out
for anything cold, slimy,

and hostile towards
all known forms of life.

Rommie, what's your status?
Are you inside the ship yet?

ANDROMEDA: I'm entering
by manual override.

There isn't enough power
to drive the door.

Just as well,
or you'd set off their
internal defense systems.

If it was a trap, the Kalderans
would have sprung it by now.



One would hope.

ANDROMEDA: Okay, Harper,
I'm inside and looking
for the power coupling.

Got it.
All set on this end.

Let there... be... light.

These hands
have been touched by God.

Not to mention
a few other things.

DYLAN: Rommie...

What the hell happened
over there?

ANDROMEDA: Small-arms fire.

Explosive decompression.

What didn't happen?

Who would be stupid enough
to raid a Kalderan ship?

Kalderans are vicious,
brutal, no sense of humor.

TYR: Stupid, all right.



They left the evidence
in plain sight

instead of dropping it
into the nearest star.

Which brings me
to my next question,

actually,
more of a proposition.

No.
Dylan, we need supplies.

It's not salvage
with dead aboard.

My avatar has run
a systems diagnostic

of the Kalderan ship.

It reveals evidence
of forced entry
and internal damage

consistent with
a running firefight.

In addition,

the vessel is missing
one slip-pod.

It jettisoned just prior
to comprehensive
systems failure.

So there may be survivors.

Rommie, download
the mission log.

It might give us a clue
to what happened.

[DIGITAL BEEPS]
ANDROMEDA: Retrieving
mission logs.

It was recorded in Kalderan.

I'll provide
a real-time translation.

[GROANS]

ANDROMEDA:
The mission has been
of limited success,

as the much-hated blood-enemy
refuses to take part.

"The much-hated blood-enemy?"

Stop. Andromeda,

replay the last two seconds
at quarter speed,

top right quadrant,
center and zoom.

SEAMUS: Let me guess.

That would be
the much-hated blood-enemy?

No, that would be a Vedran.

BEKA: A Vedran?

Gone from the universe
since the fall
of the commonwealth?

No one's ever seen
a live Vedran.

No one but me.

NARRATOR:
He is the last guardian
of a fallen civilization,

A hero from another time.

Faced with a universe
in chaos,

Dylan Hunt recruits
an unlikely crew

and sets out
to reunite the galaxies.

On the starship Andromeda,
hope lives again.

[THEME MUSIC PLAYING]

I still can't believe we're
looking for an actual Vedran.

It's been hundreds of years.

Three hundred and two
to be precise,

ever since Tarn-Vedra
was cut off from
the slipstream.

Hah. Tarn-Vedra,

the seat
of the systems commonwealth,

the source of moral authority
for the High Guard,

and my home.

Do you think the Kalderans
found a way to slip
to Tarn-Vedra?

Unlikely.

Even if they found a way in,
I doubt they could
find their way back out.

The Vedrans
are a formidable people.

According to the logs,
the Kalderan ship was
returning from Ral Parthia.

Ah, Ral Parthia.

I've been around the moons
of Nibia and through
perdition's flame,

but I've never
heard of the place.

Ral Parthia was
a planetary nature reserve.

It was open to visitors from
all over the commonwealth.

Some Vedrans,
they loved it even more

than Tarn-Vedra itself.

Maybe a colony
of Vedrans was trapped
there after the fall

with the warders.
Warders?

They were like caretakers,
rangers.

Most were human.

They're the ones
who maintained the planet.

Rommie, if the Kalderans

stumbled across Ral Parthia

and captured a Vedran...

Well, Vedran or not,
it took a slip-pod.

Maybe it went back
to Ral Parthia.

Oh. Maybe we should
go there and find out.

What about
the Kalderan ship?

If someone comes across it,
they'll know just
as much as we do.

That's a good point.

Well, that should
keep the Kalderans'
next of kin wondering.

For which I am sorry,

but if that was a Vedran,

it's my duty
as a High Guard officer

to find her and protect her.

It didn't look like
she needed much help
from anyone.

That's not an assumption
I'm willing to make.

If the Vedrans
are still out there,

we need to know.

We, huh?

ANDROMEDA: We're ready
to transit to slipstream.

Wait. Do you mind?
The slip to Ral Parthia

was always one of my favorites.

It's all yours.
After you.

All right...

And here we go.

Welcome to the Ral system.

I'm picking up
several Kalderan ships

dispersed throughout
the Ral system.

Cruisers, tenders,

even ore processors.

Beka.

How long until they pick up
the slipstream event
and come looking?

The nearest ship is a cruiser
at 1.8 light minutes out.

Ral Avar's a gas giant,
two minutes out.

Take us in perpendicular
to the elliptic

and dash into orbit
when we've closed
in 30 seconds.

That'll keep us out of sight.

Rommie, get trance.
You're both with me.

Another field trip on the Maru?

[SIGHS]
We've got CR codes
from the Kalderan ship.

With any luck, they'll think
we're on a supply run.

I've got
the missing slip-pod,

but there's a Kalderan outpost
about a 100 kilometers away.

Tell them we're dropping
defoliants and plasma cutters.

Defoliants and plasma
cutters it is.

Bastards.
Strip-mining the planet
and reducing it to ash.

Probably just to spite
the Vedrans.

Why would they do that?

Destroying Ral Parthia
is their way

of erasing Tarn-Vedra forever.

ANDROMEDA:
We're cleared to land,

but there's some kind
of operation underway.

We're to drop our shipment
and leave.

We will,

just as soon as we get
what we came for.

The slip-pod
from the Kalderan ship.

It's been here awhile.

The ground's cold.

The Kalderan sensors
aren't as good as ours.

Their operation may be
a search for this pod.

Or a search and destroy.

Something you want to tell me?

Nothing you don't already know.

Rommie, does that look like...
Dylan, wait.

ANDROMEDA:
They've got force lances.

So do we.

Fall back.
Defensive fire only.

[HORSE NEIGHS]

[LASER GUN SHOT]

Do you think they're warders?

It's hard to say.
The uniform's changed
since I was here.

Of course, it has been
over 300 years.

[HORSE NEIGHS]

All right,
time to force a surrender.

How do we do that?
By drawing a line
in the sand.

[HORSE NEIGHS]

[HORSE NEIGHING]

[GASPS]

[PANTS]

Hey!
Weapons down!

DYLAN: Stay where you are.

Captain Dylan Hunt
of the High Guard.

We're on the same side.

High Guard?

She didn't mention anything
about a High Guard.

No, I don't imagine
that she did.

Andromeda?

The Kalderans,
six ships headed this way.

They may have detected
our wake in the atmosphere.

Take us deeper.
Adjust A.G. Fields

to compensate for the pressure.

Being crushed under the weight

of Ral Avar's atmosphere
is the least of our worries.

We've fought Kalderans before.
They're tough, not invincible.

It's not the Kalderans
that have me concerned,

it's our Captain Hunt...

and his friends, the Vedrans.
Ah, those guys.

News flash, they're on our side.
Are they?

Or would they simply
expect us to be on their side?

You're splitting hairs.
Not at all.

Dylan is attempting to exert
his will on the universe.

He doesn't need

quasi-mythical creatures
to justify his position.

They're not mythical anymore.

If anything,
the Vedran presence
will weaken him.

They'll make him look
like a pawn,

and before we realize it,
he'll be one,

and we along with him.

So you don't trust
the Vedran agenda,

even though
they're the good guys?

I don't trust any agenda
veiled in secrecy,

Vedran or otherwise.

Count on you to find
the cloud around
the silver lining.

It's called faith, Tyr.
Have some.

Dylan, Kalderans.

[LASER GUN SHOT]

Take cover! Come on.
Move it!

So what do you say, truce?

The Kalderans
are trying to kill us, too.

Truce.

Rommie!
I'm on it.

ANDROMEDA:
Kalderan depth charges
are entering the atmosphere.

SEAMUS: Aren't we
supposed to be hiding?

We are, proactively.

SEAMUS: Oh, and what does
that mean, exactly?

It means we're being pragmatic

and refusing to respond
to their obvious probes.

Shut up, and we'll tell you
when to worry.

SEAMUS: Okay, just checking.

[EXPLOSION]

DYLAN: Move!

Trance, make sure she's okay.

She took a pretty hard fall.
[GASPS]

[MAN SHOUTING]

I'm fine. My team...
Sit still.

The sooner I give you
a clean bill of health,

the sooner we can both
get out there and fight.

MAN: This way!

[DYLAN COMMANDING HORSE]
Come on.
[HORSE NEIGHING]

MAN: Move!

Dylan, Kalderan
reinforcements are inbound.

I'm trapped.

DYLAN: Oh, no, you're not.

Oh, nice.

Does that hurt?
That's fine.

More Kalderans. I've got to...

By the empress.

Whoa, whoa, whoa.

Rommie, is that a...
Yes,

and she's
teleporting somehow.

Oh, my God, a Vedran.

Come on.

Whoa, whoa.

That's Vedran blood,
her blood.

She saved us.

ANDROMEDA: Dylan,
I can't tell you exactly

how the Vedran managed
her teleportation trick,

but I am picking up residual
zero-Point energy emanations.

DYLAN: Dimensional travel.

So she's tesseracting.

Obviously, Tarn-Vedra
has made significant progress

in the last 300 years.
Obviously.

Rommie, do you think
that's how they

cut themselves off
from slipstream,
a massive tesseract?

Tarn-Vedra hiding
in a shadow universe?

It's not impossible.

We'll worry about that later.

Right now,
that Vedran is wounded

and alone in hostile territory.

We need to find her.

MAIA: Hey.

What happened
to the Kalderan ship?

It was destroyed.

Don't worry.
No one else will come.

[CHUCKLES]

Thanks.

Maia, the Vedran is hurt.

Now, we can help her,
but only if you take us.

Okay.

I'm taking them to the caves.
Summon reinforcements,

and keep the Kalderans
at bay.

[MAN OVER MICROPHONE]
Roger.
It's this way.

DYLAN: How long has
the Vedran been here?

MAIA: Since the fall.

TRANCE GEMINI: The fall
of the commonwealth?

Since autumn,
nine months ago.

DYLAN: So she came
from Tarn-Vedra?

She never said.
I never got to know
any of the others.

There's more than one?

Let me show you something.

They were caught
in an ambush,

killed in battle
with the Kalderans.

DYLAN: Buried in
the traditional circle.

Female in the center,

the males surrounding her

as a symbolic guard force
as she passes to the afterlife.

Only there's no grave
in the center.

Maia, who is she?

MAIA: Her name is Uxulta.

When her herd was killed,

she had no choice
but to come to us for help

to protect her.
Just protect her?

That's all.

She gave us force lances.

She showed us
how to use them.

We were on patrol

when the Kalderans
found her

and raided
our settlement.

She tried to stop them,

but there were
too many of them, even for her.

So the Kalderans
waited for their chance
and they took it.

Smart.
No sooner does she
return from that,

but she's wounded
in another battle
with the Kalderans.

I've failed her twice.

You didn't fail.

The job's just not finished.

We'll find her, Maia,
and we'll help her.

The Kalderans
are on the move.
I can hear them.

Half a klick away
and closing fast.

How can you hear that?

Oh, I'm an android.
I'm full of surprises.

Rommie, stay here.

Check the first wave
and wait for my signal.

DYLAN: Let's go.

MAIA: After the fall,
most of the tourists

managed to get off-world,

but some of them stayed,

along with the warders.

So you're descendants
of the original warder service?

Like my mother
and hers before that.

You don't sound
very happy about that.

When I was young,
I wanted other things.

The work we were doing here
seemed pointless to me,

but my family
felt otherwise,

and my options
were obviously few.

Somehow, it's fitting
that the Vedrans

would decide to emerge
on my watch.

Hah. What's fitting

is that they showed up

after the Kalderans arrived.

We've been fighting
for two years.

We'd almost lost
before the Vedrans came.

Now, for the first time,
we've got hope again.

They just made your hope
more realistic.

No, it's more than that.

It's difficult to explain.

Uh, you don't have to.

I grew up on Tarn-Vedra.

Yeah, I was surrounded
by Vedrans all the time,

and I was in awe of them.

The archives say
that the Vedrans

made gifted
High Guard officers.

They were more than gifted.

They were superior beings.

Superior?

DYLAN:
They made us believe

that we could be
better than we were.

They made us feel
invincible.

It's strange, though.

The Vedrans seem
to have reemerged,

but they didn't contact you,

you found out by accident.

They must have
had their reasons.

They always did before.
Of course.

More blood.

We're on the right trail.

[DIGITAL BEEPING]

The Kalderans seem
to be pulling back.

BEKA: They've lost us.

I'm picking up
two dozen inbound missiles.

parabolic spread.
Targeting us?

No, but the energy release
from their passage

through the atmosphere
will be sufficient

to heat localized pockets
of free hydrogen

to over
100 million degrees Celsius,

enough to induce
a nuclear fusion reaction
in the atmosphere.

And turn Ral Avar
into a small sun.

Oh, we'll definitely
feel that in the morning.

Andromeda, take us out,
maximum speed.

Belay that.
Impact in
three minutes forty seconds.

If we remain here,
we'll be caught

in the exploding planet's
shock wave, yes?
Exactly.

Andromeda,
hold for my command.

She has to be here.

Maybe she's further inside,
toward the...

Toward what?

There's a laboratory
of some kind.

She forbade us to enter it.
I don't know what it's for.

Then it's time to find out.

ANDROMEDA: Dylan,
we've got company.
Copy.

Fall back to the Maru
and prep for evac.
Dylan out.

The bad guys are closing in.

Maia, you find that Vedran.

Trance and I will take up
defensive positions. Go.

Ten seconds until contact
with the shock wave.

Seven, six,

five, four...

Andromeda, all ahead full.

...two, one.
Ride that wave.

[ALARM BLARING]

Riding the reaction's edge.
Where their sensors
can't see us.

You could have told me.
What, and ruin the surprise?

You're picking up some very
unamusing habits from Dylan,

you do know that?
[LAUGHS]

However, if they
can't see us run,

they can't see us
kill them, either.

Andromeda,
you heard the man.

Bring us about
and prepare to unload
a full missile strike

right up the Kalderans'
scaly tailpipes.

You know what the Vedrans
are doing here, don't you?

You know if we find Tarn-Vedra.

I don't know any more
than you do.

But you've seen the future.

I've seen a future.

[SIGHS]
Trance, I need to know

if I'm doing the right thing
pursuing this Vedran.

After all,
if she had wanted my help,

I have to believe
she'd ask for it.

We're not just talking about
this mission, are we?

And you're not
just trying to pursue

a wounded Vedran,
you're on a quest...

to find a place
that you thought remained

only in your mind. Home.

But that's the thing
about quests,

they're not always
about the destination.

That's right.

In the big picture,
it's always about the journey,

but close up,
right here, right now,

these Vedrans need our help.
So it doesn't matter

if they've asked
for our help or not.

No, it doesn't.

Dylan, a lot changes
in 300 years.

There may not be a place
for the Vedrans,
not anymore.

Then I'll make one.

Trance! Look out.

Dylan!
Maia, stay back!

MAIA: She's alive.
Huh?

She gave me this.

Run!

[EXCLAIMING IN PAIN]

Help us.

It's all right.

Captain Dylan Hunt,
the Andromeda ascendant.

We're here to help.

Rommie, we've got her.

Give us an exit
30 meters from my position.

On my way.

Dylan, something's happening.

There's been an explosion

in the outer system
of Ral Avar.

Rommie, you're breaking up.

Raise the Andromeda
if you can, but hurry.

I need you here.

[DIGITAL BEEPS]

I am so glad we put
real weapons on the Maru.

Dylan, stand by.

Fire in the hole.
Fire in the hole!

Argosy special
operations service?

Una salus victus, ma'am.

There's our ride.

We sure stirred up
the hornets' nest this time.

True, but now there are
fewer hornets.

Beka, the Maru is hailing us.

On screen.

What are you doing up there?

I could see your low profile
from the planet.

So who made the star?

[CLEARS THROAT]
They started it.

So did you find your Vedran?

She's wounded.
Stand by to bring us aboard.

DYLAN: Beka, how long until
we make it to slipstream?

We're ten minutes
from a good slip point,

and there's a lot
of Kalderans out there,

but what the hell,

I'll have us
out of here in five.

I like that number better.
Dylan out.

You'll be fine.
Trance will take care of you.

Rommie, you're with me.

Almost home.

ANDROMEDA: Dylan?

Uxulta's in worse shape
than we initially thought.

Her equipment's
been shattered,

and she's badly wounded.

We've slowed the bleeding,
but we haven't been
able to stop it.

Why not?
The Kalderan weapons

had a biological component.

The effects are abhorrent,

especially for Vedrans.

On my way.

Dylan...

We might not be able
to save her.

I know some people who can.

Are you asking me
for the route to Tarn-Vedra?

I'm asking you to help me
save your life,

and I know we can do that
on Tarn-Vedra.

[EXPLOSION]

ANDROMEDA:
For those of you
playing at home,

that was a new attack
from our old friends,
the Kalderans.

Fortunately, we're
at slipstream distance,

but I need a destination.

My pilot needs a destination.

Did you think
you'd pressure me?

You really are
Argosy Special Operations.

I'm waiting.

Then make it Ral Parthia.

[CHUCKLES]
That would be suicide.
It's my life,

and I'm giving it
to save Ral Parthia.

Yeah, but you can't do it alone.
No.

I also need a nova bomb.

What?

[EXPLOSION]
ANDROMEDA: Dylan...

Stand by.

Why do you need a nova bomb?

The Kalderans
destroyed our ship.

I need the voltairium
from the nova bomb
to power my equipment.

And I need to know
what kind of equipment.

You aren't cleared to know.

Well, then,
I'll go see for myself.

There's a self-destruct unit.

It's foolproof and it's nuclear.

So you're willing to blow up
an entire planet?

As I indicated,

that's need-to-know only,
Captain.

You know,
I put my ship and my crew

on the line to save your life.

In my book, that qualifies
as need-to-know.

And I'm grateful, Captain,

but my mission is classified.

Then to hell with you.

Captain Hunt.

UXULTA: I'm giving you
a direct order.

Priority Omega, 3-1-6 Omega.

Code?
Code seven, break seven.

Identity,

Uxulta,

vice-Admiral,
commander-In-chief
of argosy special operations.

Now, you will comply, captain,

or I will assume command
of this ship

and toss you in the brig.

Are we clear?

A nova bomb, Rommie.

How can I do that
in good conscience,

even if she is
who she claims to be?

A lot of things can change
in 300 years, even Tarn-Vedra.

Well, their technology
has certainly changed,

but her
command authority hasn't.

I have the right to refuse
a suspect order.

What's suspect about the order?

She's an Admiral,
she wants a nova bomb,

and you have one.

It is not that simple.

This isn't about the nova bomb,

and it isn't about
Uxulta's legitimacy.

This is about you.

Excuse me?

The Vedrans came back
and they didn't inform you.

Now they want something
from you and they won't
tell you why.

They're leaving you
out of the loop,

and you think
you deserve better.

You're angry, you're hurt,

and that's okay,

because you're human.

However,
you are still high guard.

These orders are legal,
and you must obey.

Would you?

I don't have a choice.

That's the problem, Rommie,

I do.

And I have a responsibility.

Give me more,

or we're not going
anywhere near Ral Parthia.

I told you...
You've told me nothing

about your intentions,
about your mission.

My command code is...
From a government

that's been gone
for over 300 years.

My career, my training,

they demand
that I follow your orders,

but everything else that I am,

my experience, my instincts,

are screaming at me to refuse

until you give me a reason
why I shouldn't.

And you will forgive me, ma'am,

if I have
fallen out of the practice

of quietly accepting the idea

that there are some things
that I don't need to know.

Clear this deck, Captain.

You heard her. Go.

[DIGITAL BEEPING]

Three Kalderan attack
ships aft, opening fire.

Return fire.

We're all clear.
Slipstream in two minutes.

How's your military history,
Captain?

I don't see what that has to...

I asked you
a very simple question.

Excellent.

Do you remember Admiral Munro?

Munro was the one
of the first humans

promoted to Admiral
in the High Guard.

Acting on orders from
the Chief of Argosy Operations,

he led four battle groups

into a clearly suicidal
engagement

with a fleet
of Pyrian torchships.

They all died that day,

but we won the battle.

And why was that?

Munro was one
hell of an Admiral.

Yes, and he trusted

his Vedran superiors,
though it cost him his own life

and the lives of thousands
under his command.

Trust me, Captain.

I'm not asking you
or your crew to march
into a hopeless battle.

I'm asking you to let me die.

to complete my mission.

Admiral...
It's a sacrifice

I've been called upon to make.

I promise you, Captain Hunt,

there is far more at stake here

than a fleet
of advancing Pyrians,

or the pained desire
of one lost son

to cling fast
to a piece of home.

Yeah.

Sinti, here we come.

DYLAN: Beka, bring us about.

Get us in range
of Ral Parthia,

and prepare to deploy
a lancer drop-pod.

I want a full load
of defensive missiles,
all tubes.

We'll have to cover her
all the way down.

Thank you, Captain.

Don't thank me.

I might change my mind.

The Admiral needs your help.

Harper, meet me
in the magazine.

SEAMUS: Right, boss.

Relax. It can't go critical.

Look, betting my life savings
on a game of yesheedono

is a chance
I'm willing to take,
except against Trance.

However,
accidentally setting off
a nova bomb...

And therefore disrupting
the gravitational forces

that hold together
stars and planets, isn't.

Boss...
I know.

Okay.

But what if she...
She won't.

Okay.

You're sure?
Yep.

Okay.

Just like that?
Yeah.

I trust you.
Thanks.

Hello, hot backwoods babe.

[DIGITAL BEEPS]

You get all the fun.

Dylan, I wanted to thank you

for everything
that you've done.

You might want to wait on that.

I already have, too long.

That's goodbye.

So you're going with her?
Yes.

UXULTA: No.

I'm sorry, Maia,

but there isn't room
aboard the drop-pod.

MAIA: But you need help.

I won't fail you again.

You've never failed me.

You led Captain Hunt to me,

and now you're
helping me to save

more than you can
possibly imagine.

But Ral Parthia is my home.

And it will live in your heart,

even as you discover
a new universe.

You'll see she finds a home?

I will.
Thank you, Captain.

I really would
appreciate that.

I'm sorry you and I
didn't have more time
together, Dylan Hunt.

Under the circumstances,
I think that's just as well.

I'll tell you something else.

I don't think
you need to know,

but you should know,

you deserve to know.

Tarn-Vedra is quite aware
of you and your efforts

to restore
the commonwealth.

We're proud of you, captain,
very proud,

and we want very much
for you to carry on.

DYLAN:
Status on the drop-pod?

She's through
the outer atmosphere

and coming in range
of the Kalderan
terminal-Defense batteries.

Tyr, suppressing fire.
Make sure she gets down safely.

BEKA: Then she's really gone?

I never even got a chance
to meet her in person.

Yes, the Admiral
is a remarkable being.

Yeah, no kidding.
She's a Vedran.

She's flesh and blood
just like the rest of us.

The drop-pod is down.

Beka, increase
orbit z plus 30.

Dylan, I'm receiving
a transmission
from the surface.

It's the Admiral.
That was fast.

She did demonstrate an ability
to tesseract over short range,

but her equipment
was destroyed.

Put her on screen.

Captain, my final order...

Run.

Running like hell, aye.

We're almost
at slipstream range.

I'm detecting
a massive tachyon burst

emanating from Ral Parthia.
Beka, now.

[ALARM BEEPING]

The slipstream
is disintegrating.

Okay, not good. Not good.

Beka?
Hey, I didn't turn
Ral Avar into a sun,

and I sure as hell
didn't do this,

whatever this is.

[ALARM BEEPING]

[ALARM STOPS]

Okay, that definitely
makes my list

of top ten things
that aren't fun.

BEKA: We could try
jumping from Typhon.

There has got to be a way
to get back to Ral Parthia.

ANDROMEDA: You've tried
six other routes.

It's safe to say
that Ral Parthia

has been cut off
from the slipstream.
Impossible,

unless you destroy
the entire system,

sun, planets...

Everything.

DYLAN: Or make them disappear.

Just like Tarn-Vedra.

MAIA: Dylan,
you wanted to see me.

Yes, please. Come in.

I just wanted to make sure
that you were comfortable.

This ship is amazing.

It's the most amazing thing
I've ever seen,

next to Uxulta, of course.
Of course.

You'll have to excuse me,
but you don't seem to be

too worried about Ral Parthia.

Maybe I should be,
but somehow...

I know it's safe.

Uxulta loved Ral Parthia,

and she's a Vedran.

They always do what's right.

Don't you believe that?

I want to.

I have to.

[THEME MUSIC PLAYING]