Relic Hunter (1999–2002): Season 2, Episode 22 - Deadline - full transcript

[THEME MUSIC PLAYING]

[CLINKING SOUND IN THE DISTANCE]

TEMPLAR: Well?

Yes.

The sign,
it's here.

[MAN SCREAMING IN THE DISTANCE]

[TAPPING]

[MAN SCREAMING IN THE DISTANCE]

MAN: Can you tell me
which room is Britney spears'?

I'm sorry, sir.

I can't give you
that information.



But, if you'll tell me
your...
[PHONE RINGING]

Just a second.

Yes?

CONCIERGE: Yes.

Yes.

Yes, tomorrow morning.

Goodnight.

Now, if you'll tell me
your...

Sir?

Sir?

[DOOR LOCK CLICKING]

Allan.

I remember those lips.

Ah, no, no, no, no.



No, no.

No light.

You're being followed?

By people
who will stop at nothing.

Oh, a relic's involved.

The Tau cross.

Oldest Christian cross,

Missing since the crusades?

Which I've got
less than 12 hours to find.

Or, I'm dead.

SYDNEY: So, let me
get this straight.

You're diagnosed with the virus.

Yeah, not just any virus.

A Necron virus.

And then some guy calls you,
offering the antidote

in exchange for a relic?

There's nothing they can do.

What do you mean?

They identified the bug.

It's the second case
they have seen in the last day.

But, the doctors
have no antidote.

Then how did
the blackmailer get one?

I don't know.

Mr. Chabot.

Make him go away.

This better be good, Anton.

We'll go to the police.
No, no, no, no.
No police.

Allan...
There's no time
to go to the police, Sydney.

I've got
less than 12 hours to live.

Twelve?

The doctors
calculated it exactly.

But, that's not enough time.

I'm sorry it's not
a slower-growing virus.

You don't look ill.

I spiked a fever.
That's how I found out
I was sick.

It's not contagious,
I have no symptoms, and...

the doctors say
I won't feel a thing until...

If you say no, I understand.

The relic may place your life
in danger.

Like we've never
been there before.

[SIGHS]

The Tau cross
has to be delivered
to a predetermined location

by noon tomorrow.

Noon.

Is there anything else
you left out?

If the blackmailer reneges,

promise me you won't
live to enjoy the cross.

She was about to untie my shoes
with her tongue.

The anti-virus.

Good.

I followed Allan Conroy
from the hospital.

He went to the police?

No, he ran to Sydney Fox.

The relic hunter.

Straight to her hotel.

You're sure?

Smart boy.

Dramatically increases
his chances for a longer life,

and mine of getting
the cross in time.

Should I tell your father?

No.

Tell him nothing.

[DOOR CLOSES]

Syd, I really don't think
it's such a good idea

us helping him
instead of going
to the police.

We have 12 hours.

Well, now I'm certain,
the man could
keel over and die.

If we don't help him.

Is the virus contagious?

I hope not. We uh...

You... Oh.

You don't feel the least bit...

He's a vector, a carrier
who's not contagious.

Why don't I find that
comforting? Oh!

Syd?

Didn't you hear your
phone, Claudia?
Mm-mmm.

I was having the best dream.

We were hunting
for a relic at Versace...

Well, get dressed,
meet me in my room.

Now?
We're leaving
in 15 minutes.

Are we going to Versace?

SYDNEY: Nigel.

The Tau cross was fashioned
for the prophet Ezekiel
around 600 BC.

It was later adopted
by the first Christians.

After the Ark of the Covenant,

It's believed to be one of,
if not the most powerful
old testament relic.

It's believed that
the Ark's power struck down
enemies of God, and...

the Tau cross raised
them to heaven,
even the souls of the damned.

It was found
by a Templar knight,

Geoffrey de Boulogne,
who brought it to France
just after the first crusade.

As I recall,
the knights were
ambushed en route.

Fearing such a treachery,

Geoffrey and his loyal knights
had taken precautions
and hidden the cross.

They were interrogated,
but, none revealed
where it was hidden.

Making our job
a piece of cake,
wouldn't you say, Syd?

The location was lost.

Until a researcher at the Louvre

discovered a Templar rosary.

The Louvre let you borrow this?

Sort of.

Templar legend states
that the rosary contains
a coded message

which will lead
directly to the cross.

When did you borrow this?

Few days ago.

And then
you're suddenly diagnosed
with the Necron virus.

The ornamentation.

Middle eastern origin.
Sidranese?

I haven't been
able to place them.

Sidra, a port city
on the Mediterranean
during the crusader period.

Tenth century?

Eleventh.

There's nothing
written or, encoded
on the beads themselves.

Were the knights
interrogated in the middle east?

No, here in France,
on their return.

NIGEL: Sidranese
rosaries were...

well, far more elaborate
during the crusader period.

There's something missing
from the end of this one, uh,

a cross, or, a religious icon.

Do you know
exactly where
the knights were interrogated?

No, I don't,
but, the answer
is here in Paris.

It's lying somewhere
among the records

kept at the Templar
grand library.

[LIFE SUPPORT SYSTEM BEEPING]

I can see them

waiting to greet me
in hell.

Don't let them take me away.

I won't, papa.

Do you have it?

Not yet.

The priest is here.

These hands
drip with the blood
of every life taken

by a Chabot chemical weapon.

There is too much
for an army of priests
to wash away.

You only made
what governments bought.

And...

built a fortune
on the pain of others.

I need the Tau cross.

I must have it

in my hand

to get to heaven.

Sydney Fox,

the relic hunter,

will put it
in your hands herself.

Sydney Fox?

How did you ever...

I didn't.

Fate intervened.

You once said you
would give anything

to the person
who brought you
the Tau cross.

Does that still stand?

Yes.

Syd.

Claudia, say hello
to Allan.

Hi.

Where are we going?
Not to a hospital,

which is where
we should be going,
but, nobody listens to me.

Nigel, I really can't
appreciate your problem
right now.

Can't you tell I'm in crisis?

Crisis?
What?

Crisis.
What just
happened up there?

Where?
Upstairs.

Did I say or, do to Sydney
something in my sleep
that I may regret?

Something that may
make her doubt my commitment
to ancient studies,

re-think bringing me
back to Paris,

my favorite shopping stop
in the whole world?

No.

Well...

I'm sure you'll be able
to redeem yourself somehow.

How? Anything.

I'll think of something.

ALLAN: Aha.

Of course.

The knights were interrogated
at the royal prison of Neuilly.

Many Templar knights
died at the hands
of their interrogators, but...

I didn't realize
that Geoffrey of Boulogne
was one.

Neuilly is not far.

What's the matter?

Well, Neuilly prison
is in ruins.

Over the years,
the foundations
have just decayed.

I tried to explore it myself
recently, and...

nearly ended up trapped.

We'll manage.

Don't worry, I'm sure
we'll be able to manage
everything just fine.

Uh, actually, Claudia,
I was thinking that you could be
our point person here.

But, I'm ready for anything,
I mean, totally committed.

Research may be the only way
we get to this cross.

I need you to become an expert,

beginning with Neuilly prison.

Okay.

Well, then I'll re-schedule
all your lectures
between chapters.

How's our time?

Less than eight hours left.

I'll bring the car around.

Here's how to access
the other research material
you may need.

And be careful.

Why?

Well, if word of this
leaks out,

every relic hunter in France
will be after the cross.

Rivals may show up here.

Rivals. You said
something about a second report
of the virus?

Yes, so the doctors
mentioned. Why?

Claudia, keep
that cellphone close.

What could happen, right?

Cheery spot.
ALLAN: Oh,

the cold this time of year
goes right to your bones.
[SNEEZES]

Gesun...

Dungeons are still
partly intact.

Everything above is unstable.

How did you get in?

An old doorway
that's not completely collapsed.
Although...

only managed
to get a few feet down

before the stones
started to cave in on me.

Dungeons extend
below this entire area.

[RUMBLING FROM UNDERGROUND]

What... What was that?

Underground cave-in?

Probably.

All we did
was walk over it.

Last time I was here,
I barely made it out alive.

So you said.

Slightest movement

causes shifting.

You all right, Nigel?

Fine.

Other than the fact that...

slightest breeze
will bring this whole place
down.

I think I can still find
the entrance to the dungeon

if it hasn't caved in.

What good will it do
if none of us
come out of there alive?

Well, one alone
might survive.

Two, well...

Two would be madness.

Three would probably be...
Suicide.

Shouldn't one of us
wait up here?

It might be wise, yeah.

In case the others
need assistance.

Any suggestions?

I think we have our volunteer.

Call me if you find
anything promising.

Like steel reinforcing
and a hard hat.

[STONES ROLLING DOWN]

Just like old times, eh, Sydney?

I wish you'd start taking
this dying thing
a little more seriously.

And what would that
leave you to do?

You know, as I recall,
the last time we saw...
Yeah, we were hanging

by our fingernails.
Yeah,

inches from being
hacked to pieces.

By those Ruwandi
whose idol you...

You liberated.

Maybe I did.
While nearly getting
us both killed.

Here we go again.

[STONES RUMBLING]

This place is as dingy
as that bar in Nepal.

That's the night we met.

I was...
Stealing a relic
out of my bag.

As I recall,
you placed me
in a hammer-lock.

Which was one of the reasons
why I first
fell in love with you.

[RUMBLING]

Uh-oh.

Oh.

We always were good together.

I know.

But, Nepal was a long time ago.

The passage narrows up ahead.

These must be
the prisoners' cells.

Ah. I didn't get this far
last time.

The names of the prisoners.

Scratched the dates
into the rocks.

Everyone has a need
to be remembered.

There's hundreds.

[RUMBLING]

Sydney, come here.

This name.

It's the secret Templar name
of Geoffrey of Boulogne.

The Templar
who brought the Tau cross
back from the first crusade.

"Hiram"?

It's an old testament name
given to a Templar on their
initiation into the order,

so they can be recognized
only by other Templars.

What's there inside?

A Tau cross.

But, unfortunately,
not the Tau cross.

That would be too easy.

The rosary.

The missing piece.

"I tego arcana dei."

"I conceal secrets of God."

[RUMBLING]

Let's go!

Daylight!

Easy up, now.

Nice and slow.

Put the gun down
before you hurt yourself.

I didn't hear him arrive.

I'll have the Tau cross, Allan.

You know this guy?

Van Gelden,

bottom-feeding pond scum
with feet.

Calls himself a relic hunter.

The Tau cross, or, he's dead.

We don't have it.

Don't lie to me.

It wasn't down there.

I don't have time
for this, Allan.

The bug is eating me up.

Starts with a fever.

Docs say
there's no antidote.

That's right.

Chabot punched my
ticket too.

He's got us both
on a deadline.

Chabot, as in
the pharmaceutical company?

You didn't know?

The son of the founder.

I think I protested outside
a Chabot pharma-plant
When I was in college.

GELDEN: Chabot's antidote
came out of their

Chemical weapon
research program.

Chabot, the son,

hired me
to get him the Tau cross,

and then infected me
with the virus
when it took too long.

But, what does he want
with the cross?

The father is dying.

He wants the Tau cross
to get into heaven.

This is crazy.

If we know who
the blackmailer is

why don't we go
to the police?

To find out
there's only one dose
of the antidote?

I work alone.

I was hoping for the Tau cross,

But, I'll settle
for the rosary beads, Allan.

I know you have them.

Go to hell.

I've got nothing to lose.

"I tego arcana dei,"
of course.

You know
the significance of this?

You do?

I will soon enough.

[GROANS]

Why did you go do that, Allan?

Oh yeah, you're already dead.

I'm all right.

Shouldn't we go after him?

We need to find a place
to tend to this shoulder.

And you need to
decode that phrase.

I know you can hear me.

Hold on, papa.

Hold on.

We've got to go after
Van Gelden.

Hang on.

Ow.

Oh!

Guardian angel.

Sydney,

if I don't make it...

Shh.

[CELLPHONE RINGING]

Yeah.
NIGEL: Claudia.

Nigel. How's Syd?

Fine, but, Allan's been wounded
by a rival relic hunter
who ambushed us.

So, whatever
you do there,
be careful.

Oh my gosh.
Is he all right?

Well, Sydney's tending to him,

but, he'd be a lot better
if you can find
the following phrase

amongst those Templar texts.
Ready?

Well, I've been reading
all the books on the Templars
and the cross in here,

just like Sydney asked me to,
so shoot. Sorry.

"I tego arcana dei."

"I tego

arcana

dei."

"I conceal the secrets of God."

That was impressive.

Tell Syd.

Well, the phrase is the key.

We need to know
if it's in the research.

Good luck.

[DOOR OPENS]

Any word?

Nothing.

I can find them.

And find the cross?

Before he dies, I need
my father's signature on these
estate transfer documents,

or every penny goes to charity.

His will leaves me
nothing, Anton.

An allowance.

Tell me what to do.

If I bring the cross,
I know he'll sign.

He's promised me that,
and I'll hold him to it.

But, there's no other way.

I don't care who lives
or who dies.

I need someone
to bring me that cross.

How's the patient?

Allan, you said
when we first talked

that the rosary contained
a coded message
that would lead to the cross.

That's what the legends say.

Yes, Templar codes
used during the crusades

were as famous
as the enigma codes
of the second world war.

And as unbreakable.

Well, I tried re-arranging
the words to make a new meaning.
But, no luck.

[CELLPHONE RINGING]

Hello?
CLAUDIA: Hi, it's me.

Claudia.

Sydney, I couldn't find
the phrase
Nigel asked me look up.

She couldn't find the phrase.

I did find
a painting of you, though.
What?

Some of the Templar
knights were women.

One of them
in this painting is you.

Well, not "you," you.

And the other
is a dead ringer for Allan.

So I did a tarot card reading.

I dealt the cards
one at a time,
just like I always do.

And the same cards
came up for each of you.

You guys share a destiny.

I mean,
the same cards came up,
but, in a different order.

So the meaning is different,
but, the cards are the same.

Do you know
what the odds of this are?

I mean, talk about
a powerful connection.

So, is Allan there now?

Are the sparks, like,
flying everywhere?

I'm hanging up now, Claudia.

What was that about?

She didn't tell you
a past life theory, did she?

Yes, and it gave me an idea.

Now, you said
when you re-arranged
the words,

all you got
was gibberish, right?

Afraid so.

What if you used
all the letters
from the entire phrase,

re-arranged them into new words.

A new phrase.

Like Claudia's tarot cards,
one deck, same cards,

different order.

Assuming the letters
are part of an extended anagram,

you re-organize
the letters of the text

to reveal a secret meaning.

"et in arcadia ego."

And "In arcadia I."

Hid the cross.

That's why Van Gelden
reacted the way he did.

He knew it was a coded message.

"Arcadia."

Uh, there's a Greek
mythological island
by that name.

Sir Philip Sydney
wrote about a place
called Arcadia in his poems.

Arcadia.

Arcadia... I'm almost certain
there's a castle near Chartres.

A... A Templar of property
known as Arcadia.

But, I don't remember
any research connecting
it to the Tau cross there.

We can have Claudia
re-check en route.

Three hours.

There's Van Gelden's car.

He's inside.

He could be lying
in wait for us
just beyond this gate.

Could be.

[CELLPHONE RINGING]

Claudia.
I couldn't find much
in the research.

The castle was Templar property
up until the order was dissolved
by the French king in...

1305.

It's been maintained
by the state ever since.

And it's... I'm reading
from a guide here.

"known for its
Gothic architecture,

and the many Templar knights
buried within its walls."

But, I wouldn't bother
going in.

Why?

It's closed on Mondays.
That's today.

It's closed Mondays.
Thank you, Claudia.

How much time we have?

One hour, thirty-nine minutes.

Less one hour travel
back to Paris leaves...

Thirty-nine minutes.

Once we're inside,

we should spread out,
check everything.

Keep an eye out
for Van Gelden.

SYDNEY: "Brave Knights
of the cross."

Do you believe any of that, Syd?

Fate, Destiny,

two souls as one?

I believe that...

this painting's not concealing
a hidden wall safe.

Geoffrey of Boulogne
went down fighting.

I wonder
whatever happened to her.

Let's just make sure
what happened to him
doesn't happen to you.

[GRUNTS]

Van Gelden.

God.

We've got to get you
to a hospital.

No. Stay back.

In a few hours, it'll be one.

He's right,
you should get to a hospital.

No. No hospital.

But, look at you.
You need help.

I need the Tau cross.

And you can help me
by finding it.

And if you don't, I'll kill you.

Nigel!
NIGEL: Van Gelden. No!

He couldn't have survived.

Look.
I'd really rather not.

No, over there.

The Tau cross.

Mr. Chabot.

Your father...

It couldn't be helped, Nigel,
you saved our lives.

The cross.

NIGEL: There's a mechanism
of some kind in the center
of the cross.

It moves like the dial
on a combination lock.

And each of the rings moves.

There are letters on each ring.

Allan, take a look at this.

Allan?

He was right here.

The car.

Allan!

He has Van Gelden's gun.

[CELLPHONE RINGING]

Yeah.
Claudia, Sydney.

Hey, Syd. What's up?
Allan's gone back to Paris.

Great.
Not great.

Not great.
I need you to go
to Chabot's house.

Why?
Because that's where
Allan's headed.

I need you to stop him
from going until we get there.

Okay. I'm on my way.

Stay calm. Don't provoke him.

Right.
Just stall.

Tell him we're on our way.

We can use Van Gelden's car.
It's still here.

We could.

But, my gut tells me

that that cross we found
is the key.

We're close to finding the Tau.

Okay.

Now, it looks like...

each ring
has the same 14 letters.

The same letters

as the phrase
on the rosary cross.

That marker looks like
an ordinal point.

Like it's some sort of
Templar combination lock.

A combination
made up of the letters
in the phrase,

"I tego arcana dei."

Let's try keying in
the first letter of each word.

Making an acrostic.

The Sunday times crossword
always has a few of them.

An acrostic,

a word made up of
the first letter
of each word in a phrase,

not unlike an anagram.

First an I,

Then a T...

A...

D.

NIGEL: It's a key hole?

The rosary cross.

Sorry, Van Gelden.

[RUMBLING]

It's coming from below.

We're going
down there.

Down there?
Yeah.

NIGEL: Would you say
this is the most powerful relic
we've ever encountered?

It's a good
possibility.

So the cross's power
could be dangerous.

Legend says, as long
as you don't touch it,
you're fine.

We don't really
know, do we?

No.

Then how do we
find out?
Trial and error?

[RUMBLING CONTINUES]

The Tau cross.

I don't know
what I was expecting,

but, I didn't think any
relic could be so...

That light.

Beautiful, isn't it?

I just want to...

reach out and...

touch it.

Nigel, don't.

What just happened?

I don't know,
but, we'll figure out
back in Paris.

Allan.

It's Claudia.

Sydney sent you?
She's on her way
with the cross.

Nice try.
No, they found it.

Her and Nigel
are on their way.
I just talked to them.

Look, I can't
let you go in there.

No!

Are you nuts?

Just a girl on a mission.

Why don't we take this inside?

I'd really rather not.

[CELLPHONE RINGING]

NIGEL: There's no answer
on Claudia's cell phone.

Well, that's Allan's car.

That's Claudia's cell.

[GUNSHOTS]

Hold this.

Come on.

Sydney.

This maniac
came in here shooting,

demanding an antidote
for some virus.

SYDNEY: Claudia.

I'm all right.

He's alive, just.

You can drop the act, Chabot.

Sydney Fox.

Forget the introductions.
What you want
is in the box.

You're too late.

Come again?

I wanted the Tau cross
for my father.

He died just before you arrived.

He's refusing
to give me the antidote.

You're a day late
and a dollar short,
Sydney Fox.

The deal was 12 hours.

Deals don't matter anymore.

In fact, nothing does.

And if I'm screwed,
then so are you.

Well...

at least let me
show you the cross.

Beautiful, isn't it?

Yes.

[SCREAMING]

Allan!

To your health.

The ironic thing
is that by not getting
his father's signature

on the estate papers
before he died,

he forfeited the entire company
and a sizable inheritance.

Live by the cross,
die by the cross.

Well, what's gonna happen
to the fortune now?

The father
stipulated a scholarship

modeled on the Nobel prize
to be set up with it

to fund crucially important
research projects.

Well, what about
the cross?

Representatives of museums,

as well as the Vatican,
will be calling for it.

Not long until we know that.

I think we should...

[BOTH] Sleep on it.

Well, shouldn't we at least have
Claudia call a few of them back?

Oh.

Oh, oh, you
mean sleep...

on it.

It's only been
a thousand years.

Well, you know...

[THEME MUSIC PLAYING]