Lords of Misrule
(US title: Against the Rules)

pilot: Deus ex Machina

VHS recording

Act 3

Black fades to the now familiar establishing shot of the Helium space station. The Argai Defender passes across the front of the shot.

Cross to a shot of the space ship within the station, focusing on front end of the rocket-shaped ship...

Cut to…

Reprise opening scene from act one, interior companionway: Cassandra leading Gray, Peta, and Shayde. Moon tagging along.

Pause as they emerge from the illuminated corridor to enter a large, dark space. As they enter, and spread out, lights, in hexagonal columns, begin to come on revealing the ship's flight deck.

In the centre of the space are two half-circles of control stations: elegant consoles in front of tall, padded chairs.

"The flight deck is," Mr Monkfish interrupted once again, "as you'd expect, the largest and most expensive set built for the series.

"A chair for each of the ship's key functions, of course: Engines, navigation, something else, steering... something, something I can never remember. Mr Sole, you devoured the technical manual, did you not? You can remind me, can't you?"

"Oh, of course, Messer Monkfish, of course: 'tinker', 'tailor', 'soldier', 'sailor'..."

"Ah, quite so, quite so. The front row is 'tinker', the ship's engineer; 'tailor', the navigator, threading the path; 'soldier', the gunner at the ship's formidable weaponry; and 'sailor', the helmsman... I should have remembered."

"Yes, Messer Monkfish, and the back row is the, uh-huh uh-huh, Environment officer for the ship's life support, the Signalman on communications and Watchman manning the uh-huh uh-huh, the detectors."

"'Rich man', 'poor man', 'beggar man'... I suppose. And that leaves the Captain as 'thief', does it not?"

"Quite appropriate, Messer Monkfish, under the, uh-huh uh-huh, circumstances."

In front of the control stations is a sunken well, with green-leather seating and a glass-topped table: an informal meeting area for the crew to relax, chat or discuss whatever the story requires.

"There is also a "science station" to the front left and a first aid point to the right," Monkfish was keen to point out. "We don't see much of these features, though," he added, "as the action in this scene is concentrating so very much on the flight controls at the moment. But they've clearly been built in anticipation, to be ready for future stories. I remember, Gene Roddenberry told me how he wrote in a scene for the 'Next Generation' pilot on the engineering deck of his new Starship Enterprise for exactly that purpose and reason: if you don't build it for the pilot, it'll never get built at all."

The most striking feature of the flight deck, though, is the panoramic screen that encompasses the complete circumference.

"The bane of directors, that," commented Mr Monkfish. "Done with a green screen, of course, but so expensive to produce the visual wizardry and so fiddly to make the shots line up properly, in later episodes they tried ever so hard to avoid using it."

Currently, the display shows the illuminated interior of the space dock. Different camera angles reveal fresh detail. For example: when the view is towards Peta, we see behind her the view down the "throat" of the dry dock, the umbilical connections to the 'Venture's' back, and the stalactite-like control tower with its hexagonal gallery at the bottom. Behind the tower, we can glimpse, somewhat in shadow, the shape of a second starship within another of the space dock's arms.

When the point of view switches to towards the Gray and the front of the starship, we see the opening at the mouth of the dock and the stars beyond, and occasionally the passing 'Banner of Glory' as her patrol takes her past.

At the back of the set are three exits: to left and right steps lead up to archways beyond which passages extend into other parts of the ship; in the centre, a flight of steps leads down to a similar arch from which the ship's main corridor extends back along the neck. It is from the last of these that our cast have emerged.

Gray steps to the front, towards the sunken seating, her eyes clearly on the impressive panorama. Moon follows, but her eyes are flicking from side to side, appraising. Quin hangs back. Shayde moves arrogantly to the control desks.

Cassandra, having led the way, moves to one side.

"Welcome," she says, "to the 'Venture'."

A beat pause before…

"I thought you said this was the 'Valiant'," Moon asks sarcastically.

"Just as you spotted it," praised Mr Monkfish, miming applause.

Cut to…

Interior control spire.

"What's it all about, lieutenant?" asks the colonel.

"Academic inspection party, sir."

"At this hour?"

"They're from an Earth orbital, sir. The Void station. It's a day period for them now. Confirmed by local space control."

"Do they have clearance?"

"They're on Dr Chen's schedule, sir. Her assistant is over there meeting with them now."

"Is she okay?"

"Dr Chen, sir? She's in her quarters, as far as I know. Do you want me to check in?"

"That's okay. Leave her be."

"And do you want me to, er…" the Lieutenant nods towards the Argai battleship, "…let themselves know?"

"No, son, no. No need to make it even more of a fuss, if we don't have to, eh? Is Captain Andrews aware of the situation?"

"He's aboard the D1, sir. With eighteen hours until the official launch the crew are running final tests…"

"Of course, but does he know they have guests?"

"Guests, sir?"

" Wake up, lieutenant: The academic party; Dr Chen's assistant."

"Oh sir, sorry, sir. They aren't on the D1. They're on the other one…"

Cut to…

"Wadda ya mean: 'the other one'?" Shayde is protesting at Cassandra.

"It's really very simple, Mr Shayde. There's more than one starship."

"More than… just how many—"

Moon starts to clap, applauding sarcastically:

"Gotta hand it to yer, that's impressive. Right under the noses o'the Order, too. But, like the man said, how many of these things have yer got?"

"Currently there are two: 'Valient' and 'Venture'. 'Vigilant' and 'Vanquish' are under construction. And there are plans for 'Vengeance'…"

"I just bet there are," mutters Moon. "Just how'd yer even manage to get hold of all the materials for building s'many starships?"

"In the absolute secrecy of the project, remarkably easily."

"So, the Earth council's pullin' a fast one on the Protectorate. Nice. Only now the Argai have shown up, and presumably they can count, so now they know too."

"I understand that there are what I think are called 'full and frank discussions' taking place."

"I just bet they are. The council 'fessing up to having a bunch more fully functional starships than they owned up to, right?"

"Well…"

"They are 'fessing up, right?"

"The project team may have… exaggerated the amount of work still required."

"Oh ho ho, plots within plots. This just gets better 'n' better."

"The council honestly believe – and therefore will be honestly telling the Emperor's representative – that the 'Venture' requires another six-to-eight weeks' work, and 'Vigilant' six months."

"And do they?"

"No. The truth is, 'Venture' is ready to fly right now."

Moon turns on Gray.

"Did yer know about this, Dr Gray?"

Gray makes a fluid shrug. "I'm as surprised as you are."

"Sure you are. And what about you, Miss so-called 'Cassandra'. What's your place in all this?"

"I'm here as Dr Chen's assistant. Dr Chen is the lead on one of the engineering teams for the "D" project."

"So ye work for the Earth council? Or the secret project? Or Dr Gray's little conspiracy?"

"Is any of this relevant?" asks Gray.

Monkfish glanced at me and supressed a giggle.

"Oh, I just wanna know who I'm actually workin' fer."

"Half an hour ago, you wanted out," snaps Shayde.

"So I did," admits Moon. "Fair point. OK. I'd still like an answer?"

"Earth has many friends," says Cassandra.

Moon studies Cassandra for a moment, then gives a small nod, accepting that the situation has changed.

Cassandra turns to Gray.

"Dr Gray?" she asks, ceding control back.

"Good," says Gray. "We proceed with the plan."

"About time," snarls Shayde, and he strides up to the control consoles. "And we just turn it on… here," he says, and reaches out to flick at a switch.

"Wait!" Gray cries out, just as Cassandra shouts "No!" and Moon says "I wouldn't…"

They are all too late.

A woman appears, materialises.

She is dressed, like Cassandra and unlike the functional spacesuit-like fatigues of Gray and her crew, in a classical white dress that leaves her arms bare except for wide gold bracelets at each wrist matching a similar collar at her neck. Her skin is so olive it is almost as golden as her jewellery. Her hair is long and black and falls straight down her back. She is in every way the personification of a Greek goddess.

She grasps Shayde by the collar, lifting him bodily and flinging him across the flight deck to crash into one of the hexagonal columns.

For a moment, the scene is a tableau: Gray and Peta standing shocked; Moon frozen in a defensive pose, one hand on sidearm, the other reaching for the comm unit at the neck of her flight suit; Cassandra turning to move to offer help; Shayde broken on the floor; the mysterious woman standing arm outstretched towards them, the embodiment of Nemesis. That she has just tossed a man across the flight deck with a gesture only reinforces this.

"No one is to move!" she says.

Gray's comm unit chimes and lights up. Slowly she makes a "may I?" gesture to the stranger, who considers then gives a sharp nod.

"Dr Kartar Singh, I think we're going to need you up here," she says. "Mr Jeffs, if you could join us too, please. Nobody come rushing, though. And Mr Lin, how's it coming with those engines?"

"Oh ho, the engines," interjected Monkfish; I really think he couldn't help himself interrupting, "something lurking in the engines – something lurking, not revealed yet – isn't that so, Mr Sole?"

"Suh suh sspoliers, Messer Monkfish, sspoilers."

Cut to…

Interior: power deck of the 'Venture'.

Lin and Jacques, the engineering team, are connecting the equipment brought with them in Lin's backpack. Red lights spring to life all across the top of the device.

The main features of the set are the two generators, left and right: huge spheres at the ceiling and the floor

"Later they are nicknamed Granny and Grampa by the crew," added Mr Monkfish, "because of the way they resemble giant snowmen."

Translucent and glowing with a pale creamy pink hue, each pair of sphere's is linked by narrow glass or Perspex columns, which in turn contain narrower glass tubes, like neon, which in fact are neon tubes, flashing and blinking to look like future technology.

Pairs of heavily warded hatches are built into each upper sphere looking like eyes, and crane-like tools are arranged in front should any work on the engines be needed in flight. A ring of control banks forms a half circle skirt around each of the lower spheres.

There are further workstations in front of the generators, and to the back of the set is another machine: a boxy metal five-lobed device mounted on a disc.

"Ah, the crude mechanical pentacle," Monkfish warmed to the subject, "with a glowing red ball, like a baleful red eye, in the centre, or the chest, like a Vitruvian man, or a starfish, or a shoggoth."

"What just happened?" Lin is tugging urgently at the communication patch at the collar of her coverall.

"All is well," Gray's voice over the comms, "we have made contact with the ship's avatar."

"All is not well. We've just lost power. We have about five minutes until we lose light, heat, and gravity."

"Are you ready to do the manual startup?"

"What about the ship's computer?"

"We will deal with the ship's computer. It won't interfere."

"It won't help us either. I guess we do this the old-fashioned way."

Cut to…

Flight deck, as before,

"No one is to move," the woman says again. Her face is furious, but she does not quiver with rage – her anger is righteous and implacable. "You will not start the generators. You will wait. I will detain you and summon the Order."

"Wait!" says Gray very calmly.

"Emergency protocol one," says Cassandra.

The woman fixes her with a stare, her pose still saying fury in every line.

"Explain yourself."

Cassandra looks encouragingly towards Gray, who in turn looks at Peta Quinn.

"Peta..." Gray prompts.

The woman shifts her scowl to Gray, then to Peta who quails under it throwing a despairing "Who? Me?" look back to Gray.

"Peta, this is the ship's computer. The interface, the avatar."

"I speak for 'Venture'. Explain your emergency protocol now or I will—"

"Computer error!" squeaks Peta.

"Impossible!"

"Diagnostic update!"

"What?"

"Your self-diagnostics are not up to date."

"No error is recorded."

"Yes! That's the error!"

"Explain?"

"The error is that your error-checking routines don't record the error."

"The error is that my error-checking routines do not record the error?" the woman repeats Peta's words back, like a child trying them out.

"Yes. Yes. That's it. Check for the file of error files that do not contain error files. You'll find it to be incomplete."

"Wait!" commands the avatar and with that freezes in place.

Sotto voce, Gray asks, "Is that not a logic problem?"

"Of course," Peta whispers back. "It's Russell's Paradox: no mathematical system can be complete. She's bound to come back with an error."

The avatar, though, is moving again. She strides to stand over Peta who cowers once again.

"The Captain Kirk gambit? Really?" she says. "I'm a synthetic intelligence, not an idiot, girl. Don't try to trap me in an error loop. Explain this 'Russell's Paradox'."

Peta, starting to lose control, begins whimpering words of Boolean logic, but Gray, fearless, steps across to intervene.

"The explanation is included in the diagnostic update. Isn't it, Peta? It would be easier to upload the data files and—"

"Acceptable," agrees the woman. "Where are the files?"

"Peta?" Gray prompts again.

Peta scrabbles in pockets of her flight suit, eventually pulling out a flat square of yellow plastic.

"Have you, um, have you an input..."

"Unnecessary." The woman reaches down and takes the square of plastic. "I will just read— Oh! Oh, you clever—"

She vanishes, is simply gone, and the yellow data square falls clatter to the floor.

In the beat of silence that follows, Peta's backside also hits the carpeted deck with a bump.

And then everyone can breathe again.

Gray crouches next to her, a delicate forefinger tipping Peta's chin up so she can stare into her eyes.

"You'll be fine," she pronounces.

Cut to...

Medical unit. A small space, largely filled by a curved bed-pod with diagnostic equipment over it. Dr Singh stands holding a flat monitor panel. Moon is helping Shayde into the pod.

"I should be on the flight deck," Shayde is protesting.

"You just let me take a look at you first," Singh says.

"I'm fine, I'm telling you."

"Let me be the judge of that, please. If nothing else, it will be an excellent test of this fine equipment."

"Great bedside manner, doc," quips Moon.

"I'm sorry," Singh is quite genuine. "I'm just so excited about all this. It's cutting edge, you know. We have nothing like it back at the university."

"I'm very happy for you, doc. I guess I'll just leave the patient to you."

"Where's she going?" snaps Shayde.

"Back to the flight deck, mate. Since you ask so nicely."

"I should be there," he repeats.

"Yeah, well, you lie down and take the weight off. I got this."

"Why?"

"What now?"

"Why not back to your shuttle? Why not just leave? It's what you wanted, isn' it?"

Moon sighs. "Mabbe Gray convinced me. Mabbe I got religion."

"I don't trust you."

"Fair dos; I don't trust you neither."

"What're you getting out of all this?"

"Well, the pay cheque was quite nice. What are you gettin', Mister?"

He pauses. "Redemption. Maybe." 

"Nice," she says. "But not from me. Doc, you okay keeping him here?"

"I'll look after him. He'll be fine."

"Grand. I'm gone. Catch you later, Mister Shayde."

Moon leaves.

"Well," says Dr Singh. "What was that all about?"

"She ain't one of us. I don't like it."

"I am sure it will all work out for the best. Now, if you will just lie still a moment. I do want to enjoy this moment. This really is very excellent equipment."

Karter Singh turns to wall to operate some of the controls. Silently, Shayde slips out of the pod and rabbit-punches the doctor from behind. He catches Singh as he falls and, surprisingly gently, places him in the bed pod.

"Sorry, doctor," he says. "Here, at least you can enjoy it from the other side."

He slips out of the door. We follow him in the companionway, the door sliding closed behind him, as he starts to make his way for'ard.

The corridor curves and as he turns the corner, he comes up short.

"Oh right," he says. "You."

Cut to…

The flight deck. Moon is walking up the ramp to rejoin the others there. Gray is stood near the top of the ramp, a hand raised to halt Moon before she enters. An image of the lieutenant has appeared on the panoramic screen.

"Helium control calling Dr Chen's party. Are you receiving?"

Cassandra steps forward to speak, while Gray quietly lowers her hand.

"This is Cassandra, Dr Chen's executive assistant. Can we help you, control?"

"I have the colonel here with me, he'd like a word."

The image of the colonel steps into the frame.

"Cassandra," he says, "I understand you're there with some tourists. We're disconnecting the ship. It's time to bring them all home."

"Understood, colonel. Thank you."

She waits a moment for the images to disappear from the screen before turning back to Gray, Peta and Moon.

"The colonel is a most courageous man. The ship will be free to manoeuvre, if you can power up the generators."

"He's on our side?" queries Moon.

"Earth has many friends," repeats Cassandra.

The comm unit at Gray's collar chimes. She touches a finger to it.

"Dr Karter Singh, go ahead."

Singh's voice, slightly breathless comes over the comm.

"It is Mister Shayde, Professor Gray. He is gone. Disappeared."

"Gone? Gone where?"

"I do not know, Professor. He, I am ashamed to say, overpowered me. He has left the medical bay. I have looked but there is no sign in the passage either."

Gray looks at Moon who shrugs with an "I dunno" expression.

"He was pretty insistent on coming up to the flight deck," she adds.

"Surely he would be here by now," Gray counters. "Where else might he go? The shuttle perhaps?"

"My Pentallion? I bloody hope not."

"Dr Karter Singh, could you go to the shuttle bay and check there, please," Gray orders.

"I will, Professor." Singh signs off.

"Well," says Moon. "Yer heist's a bit borked, innit. Whatcha gonna do now?"

"There is," Gray says slowly, "a contingency."

"A what now? And just what might that be?"

Gray puts her head on one side and stares at Moon.

"Captain Moon, can you pilot this ship out of the space dock?"

"D'ye mean can I do it or will I do it?"

"Can you do it?"

"I can fly anything. Why are ye askin'? Like I don't know."

"With Mr Shayde… temporarily unavailable… we need to ask you to take his place."

"It isn't gonna work," Moon complains, again. "Yer can't just unhook the ship an' fly it outa here. The Argai are out there. They're gonna shoot us!"

"Please, Captain Moon," Gray speaks patiently, "we do have a plan."

"Right oh. And if I says 'no'?"

"Then I will try."

"And probably fly us straight into a wall or something." Moon sighs. "Okay. Okay. Just suppose I'm yer man. What is yer plan? How're yer figuring on getting us past that little ol' mahoosive battleship out there? In one piece, if that ain't too much to ask?"

"We will create a distraction."

"Of course you will," says Moon.

"Captain," Cassandra speaks up, "I am going to need to borrow your shuttle."