ACT III - Recovery

The Blake's 7 Super Test

ACT III - Recovery

( Dawn in the Forest on Gauda Prime. Avon, Dayna, Soolin and Vila have left the shack where they spent the night and are walking along a track towards the flyer left by the bounty hunters )

Vila: Why did they land it so far away?

Soolin: Presumably they thought the noise would alert someone.

Avon: In your case, they could have put it down on the roof without any trouble.

Orac: Avon, the other flyer has just lifted off.

Dayna: The other flyer? What other flyer, Avon?

Avon: Our guide. Come on, we don't want to lose him.

( Tarrant and Blake are aboard Blake's flyer, which is in flight )

Tarrant: So how far is this base of yours?

Blake: We'll be there soon enough.

Tarrant: We'd be there a lot sooner if your computer stuck to direct line of flight. Is the constant change of direction for my benefit?

Blake: No.

( The Forest clearing where the bounty hunters' flyer is. Avon and the others climb in. )

Orac: The other flyer appears to be manoeuvring to conceal its true course.

Vila: Because of us?

Avon: Not unless the pilot is clairvoyant.

Dayna: Well, why, then?

Orac: From the programming of the inboard computer, it is standard procedure.

Avon: Just keep monitoring.

( Avon operates the controls and the flyer takes off. )

( Blakes Flyer. )

Tarrant: A random program.

Blake: It's an old smuggler's trick.

Tarrant: Did you learn it from an old smuggler?

Blake: No, from a young one, actually. Her name was Jenna.

Tarrant: What happened to her?

Blake: She tried to run the blockade once too often. Happens to all of them eventually.

Tarrant: You made the capture?

Blake: Nobody made the capture. She hit the self-destruct. And when it blew, she took half a squadron of gunships with her. Brace yourself.

( The flyer turns downwards. )

( Other flyer. )

Vila: How does it feel to be home?

Soolin: I wouldn't know.

Orac: The target flyer has entered an underground silo.

Avon: Can you pinpoint it? Exactly?

Orac: I can do better than that.

Dayna: Can't you always?

Orac: My capacities are frequently under-utilised, it's true.

Avon: Just tell us what you're offering, Orac.

Orac: When we reach the appropriate co-ordinates, I can simulate the necessary signals to open the silo and allow this flyer to enter.

Dayna: Oh, sounds good.

Vila: No it isn't. Sooner or later we're going to drop into one of these holes in the ground and never come out.

Avon: Sooner or later, everyone does that, Vila.

( Avon operates the controls and the flyer starts down. )

Avon: You may have a point though.

( Forest clearing not far from the base. Avon lands the flyer and gets out. Vila hands him Orac and Avon moves into the trees to hide it. )

Avon: Orac.

Orac: What is it now?

Avon: Monitor our situation. Open the silo when I tell you. Monitor any approaches to the base and let me know.

Orac: Of course. I presume you have some idea of how you will recover me before leaving this planet.

Avon: If the people in there are friendly there will be no problem. If they're not... well I don't think we'll be leaving anyway.

( Avon finishes covering Orac with foliage before returning to the flyer. He gets back inside and it takes off again. )

( Deva's office. Blake, Deva and Tarrant are present. The intercom beeps. )

Deva: ( Into comm. ) Yes?

Klyn: ( V.O. ) There's a flyer just put down in the silo. It had all the right signals, but it isn't one of ours.

Blake: Let them through.

Deva: ( Into comm. ) Let them through.

( Above the base. The flyer descends and lands in the silo. Avon, Soolin, Vila and Dayna climb out. )

Avon: ( Into bracelet. ) Orac, can you hear me?

Orac: ( V.O. ) Yes Avon.

Avon: ( Into bracelet. ) Anything to report?

Orac: ( V.O. ) There is some increased activity around the edge of the base. Cause has not yet been determined. I may need to contact you at any moment. In the door compartment of the flyer is an ear piece communicator.

Avon: ( Into bracelet. ) Keep monitoring, Orac.

( Avon closes comm channel and reaches back into the flyer. He removes a tiny device from the door. He is about to fit it into his ear when a guard carrying a laser rifle enters. )

Guard: You there. What are you doing?

Avon: We are representatives of the Federation. We are here to evaluate the progress of this planet's return to the rule of law.

Guard: Until your identity is confirmed you will remain here.

Avon: I'm afraid we are on too tight a schedule. Soolin.

( The guard is covering Avon and Vila. Soolin and Dayna have been slowly separating from the others in opposite directions. Now Soolin draws her gun and shoots the guard before he can stop her. )

Avon: Good shot. Vila, get me his gun.

( Avon finishes inserting the device in his ear. He opens his jacket and slips his Scorpio gun into an inside pocket. )

Vila: What are you doing?

Avon: Taking out some insurance.

( Avon holds out his hand and Vila passes him the laser rifle. They all walk towards the exit. )

( Tracking gallery. Tarrant is fighting a technician. An alarm sounds. Avon, Soolin, Dayna and Vila enter. Soolin shoots Tarrant's assailant. The crew all gather around him. )

Avon: I'm glad you made it.

Tarrant: So am I. Avon, I think he's here.

Klyn: ( Into comm. ) Security personnel to main tracking gallery. Security personnel to main tracking...

( Avon shoots Klyn with the plasma rifle. Blake and Arlen enter. Avon swings his rifle to cover Blake and Arlen. Arlen has a gun. Blake is unarmed. )

Tarrant: Is it him?

Vila: It's him.

Tarrant: He sold us, Avon. All of us. Even you. ( Avon lowers the gun and approaches Blake. )

Orac: ( V.O. at same time as Tarrant's previous line and only Avon can hear what Orac is saying. ) Avon, Federation troopers are entering the base. I am monitoring a homing beacon from your location. You have been betrayed.

( Avon's expression changes slightly. He lowers the gun and walks a few steps towards Blake. )

Avon: Is it true?

Blake: Avon, it's me, Blake. ( starts to move forward )

Avon: Stand still! ( Blake stops ) Have you betrayed us? Have you betrayed me?!

Blake: Tarrant doesn't understand!

Avon: Neither do I, Blake!

Blake: I set all this up!

Avon: Yes!

Blake: ( Starts forward again ) Avon, I was waiting for YOU.

( Avon brings the gun around and fires. Blake is visibly hit. Avon fires again. Blake continues his approach, and Avon fires a third time. Blake stops, but is still standing. Avon swings the gun up to point at Blake's face. As his knees begin to buckle, Blake grabs Avon's arms. )

Blake: Avon... ( He collapses; Avon lets him go. Blake falls at Avon's feet. )

Deva: ( Rushing in. ) Blake! They've found us! The base is under-... ( Stops cold at the sight of Blake. ) Arlen, what happened?

Arlen: HE happened.

( Arlen shoots Deva who is thrown back into a wall. )

Arlen: Be so kind as to drop your guns, all of you.

( Three Scorpio guns hit the floor in short order. Avon is still staring at Blake's lifeless body and takes no notice whatsoever. An explosion is heard in the distance. )

Arlen: You and this nest of rebels are now prisoners of the Federation. Your friend Blake said he couldn't tell anymore who was Federation and who wasn't. He was right. He couldn't.

Tarrant: ( Smiles. ) You're a Federation agent?

Arlen: I'm a Federation officer.

Vila: Oh, now, look, I've never been against the Federation. ( Crosses over to Arlen, surreptitiously making sure he blocks her view of Dayna. ) I mean, I've only ever been along for the ride. I'm not even armed. You can't kill me. I'm completely harmless and armless.

( Dayna goes for a gun. Arlen shoots her. Dayna falls back into Tarrant's arms. He lays her down. Vila whacks Arlen who falls unconscious. Vila picks up her gun. )

Vila: Sorry.

( More shots and explosions nearby. A shot rings out and Vila falls. A Federation trooper stands in the door behind him. Soolin shoots the trooper, but is shot herself when another trooper bursts in through another entrance. She falls, still clutching her gun. Tarrant blasts the trooper. )

( The Forest. )

Orac: Contact initiated. Uploading teleport co-ordinates.

( Silo. Tarrant runs toward Avon. )

Tarrant: Avon!

( More troopers enter. Tarrant is gunned down. )

( The Forest. )

Orac: Remote guidance link directing to optimum teleport position.

( Silo. Avon at last looks up from Blake's corpse as additional troopers enter the room. )

Orac: ( V.O. ) Avon, I have a possible escape route. You must delay the enemy an estimated fifteen seconds further.

( Avon watches as the troopers form a rough circle around him. He looks back down at Blake and then stands over him. He looks up. The alarm stops. Avon slowly raises his weapon. )

Orac: ( V.O. ) Teleport locked on.

( Avon smiles crazily. )

( Liberator Flight Deck. Farin, Hailee, Kyben and Stella are battling with the controls. )

Zen: The bio-energy store of the teleport system has been engaged.

( Kyben and Stella look at each other, pull out their guns, and rush from the Flight Deck. )

( Blake's HQ. Avon opens fire, hitting the nearest trooper, just as a white outline surrounds him and he vanishes. Several troopers open fire, hitting other troopers. The other Scorpio crewmen also disappear, except Tarrant who isn't wearing a teleport bracelet. )

( Avon materialises with the prostrate forms of his crewmates in the Liberator teleport bay. Kyben and Stella are here, guns aimed at Avon. Farin and Hailee enter. Hailee also aims her gun at him. )

Stella: Who are you?

( Avon turns and aims his gun at her, then lowers it. )

Kyben: They're hurt, whoever they are. ( Lowers gun. )

Avon: Wh-where... who are you...? Tr-tr-trait-...traitor. Betrayed me!

( Avon drops his gun. He looks at his crewmates forlornly, then sinks to his knees. )

Avon: Be-... -trayed.

( Kyben holsters his gun. )

Kyben: Help me get them to the medical unit.

( Stella, Farin and Hailee lift Dayna, Vila and Soolin and carry them toward the exit. Kyben tugs at Avon's sleeve. )

Kyben: Give us a hand whoever you are.

( Avon looks up at Kyben, aghast. )

Avon: T-T-Trav-...?

Kyben: I'll have to find a relaxant for you. C'mon get up.

Avon: Trav-...

( The others have shuffled out of the room, while Kyben is still hauling on Avon's arm. Avon's look of horror is twisting into rage. )

Kyben: Get up!

Avon: Trav-... Trav-...

( A sudden burst of fury from Avon. He springs up and hammers his fist full into Kyben's jaw. )

Avon: TRAVIS!!!

( Kyben tumbles to the floor with a howl of pain and shock. Avon follows up by swinging his fist into Kybens cheek. )

Avon: You'll chase us no more, Travis.

( Avon repeatedly rains blows onto Kyben. )

Kyben: Ungh... nuh-no... stop! Aaarrgghh!

( Avon pulls Kyben's hair, snapping his head back, then drives his face into the floor. Avon suddenly stops and looks at him closely. )

Avon: ( Panting. ) Wait. You're... not Travis...

( Kyben is barely conscious and unable to reply. )

Avon: But... muh-must be. The face... eye-patch... always trying to... kill us. No, can't be... already killed him on Star One. Yes, killed him... killed him... killed him...I killed him...

( Avon suddenly freezes. An apparition of Blake's face appears before his eyes. )

Avon: What's...?

Blake's Voice: Why did you kill me?

Avon: Blake?

Blake's Voice: Why?

( Avon closes his eyes tightly, shakes his head, but the image remains in front of his eyes. )

Blake's voice: Why, Avon? Why?

Avon: No. No. NOOOOO!!

( Kyben's fist swings up into Avon's face, knocking him cold. Kyben staggers woozily to the intercom, blood trickling down his face. He flicks the intercom switch. )

Kyben: ( Into comm. ) Hailee, Farin... Come back... need help...

( Kyben collapses. )

( Medical Unit. Vila, Dayna and Soolin lie on rehab couches. Farin and Stella are trying to connect them to life-support machines. )

Hailee: Look, wait for Kyben, he'll know how to treat them properly.

Farin: He's taking too long. They're already critical...

( The intercom sounds. )

Zen: ( V.O. ) Attention. Liberator is now back under authorised control. Sensors detect Federation pursuit craft are entering the Gauda Prime system at Time Distort 10. Battle computers estimate seven minutes to intercept this position.

Stella: Federation? But the Law Declaration can't have been made yet.

Farin: Damn!

( Farin and Hailee head for the door. Stella points to Vila, Dayna and Soolin. )

Stella: What about them? They can't wait for treatment.

Farin: They'll have to wait! We've got to get the ship moving.

( Farin and Hailee leave. Stella hesitates, then follows. Kyben's voice sounds on the intercom. )

Kyben: ( V.O. ) Hailee, Farin... Come back... need help...

( Hailee, Farin and Stella run along the starboard corridor to the Flight Deck, by-passing the telport section. Avon and Kyben still lie there, unconscious. Hailee, Farin and Stella arrive on the Flight Deck and take the controls. )

Zen: Sensors confirm the presence of six Federation pursuit craft on a course heading for the planet Gauda Prime.

Farin: Hailee, stand by the manual controls. Zen, take us away from the Federation ships, Speed Time Distort 12.

Zen: Confirmed.

( The ship jolts as it starts moving. )

Zen: Speed building to Time Distort 12. Liberator is leaving orbit of the planet Gauda Prime.

Farin: Program the strategy computers to calculate the optimum escape trajectory.

Zen: Confirmed.

Farin: Hailee, remain on standby to take over.

Hailee: I don't know how to control this thing!

Farin: ( Angrily. ) You're the pro pilot on this ship. Try learning quickly. Stella, send a warning to Blake that the Feds may be heading his way.

Stella: I'm trying, but we're still not getting an answer to the IFF call-sign.

Farin: Strange. Blake set a rota to watch for our arrival. Someone should have answered by now.

( Farin hits the intercom. )

Farin: Kyben, have you got to the Medi Unit yet?

( No answer. )

Farin: Kyben, we need help on the Flight Deck.

( Still no answer. )

Zen: Federation pursuit ships have altered course to intercept. Strategy computers are altering evasion course accordingly.

( The Liberator pulls away from the surface of Gauda Prime. The distant shapes of the pusuit ships turn toward it. Farin hits the intercom again. )

Farin: Kyben! Where the hell are you? Answer me!

Stella: ( Suddenly concerned. ) Zen, where's Kyben?

Zen: Inboard sensors detect human life in the Medical Unit and the teleport section.

Farin: He's still in the teleport section? What the hell's he doing?

( Stella heads for the teleport section. )

Stella: I'll find him.

Farin: Zen, progress report?

Zen: Liberator is now fourteen thousand spacials from the planet Gauda Prime. Battle computers estimate successful evasion of Federation pursuit ships at a ninety four per cent probability.

( Farin and Hailee sigh with relief. )

Farin: We've made it. Zen, maintain optimum evasion strategy.

Zen: Confirmed.

Farin: We'll have to work out how to return without tangling with those ships but for now...

Hailee: What kind of suicide freak do you think I am, teethy? You can play tag with the Feds all you want, but soon as were out of range of those pursuit ships, I'm out of here. I can't believe I agreed to this stupid deal in the first place.

( Hailee walks out before Farin can argue. )

( Teleport section. Stella runs in and sees Avon and Kyben sprawled on the floor. )

Stella: Oh my God, what happened?

( Stella kneels next to Kyben and gently pats him on the cheek. )

Stella: Oh wow, you took a beating.

( Kyben's eye flickers open just as Hailee walks in. )

Hailee: I hope I'm not interrupting.

Kyben: Oooohh...

Hailee: What happened?

( Kyben sits up, indicating Avon. )

Kyben He can punch.

Stella: Why'd he attack you?

Hailee: With a face like Kyben's? It's all I can do not to throw darts at him.

( Plasma bolts skim past the Liberator as it flees the system.)

( Gauda Prime Tracking Gallery. Arlen is nursing a bruised jaw, while the Troop Leader is giving his report. )

Troop Leader: ...nowhere on the planet as far as we can tell. My guess is they must have used a teleport to get off-world.

Arlen: Their ship was in ruins. I heard Blake describe what was left of it. They can't have used the teleport.

Troop Leader: Maybe they have a secondary one.

Arlen: And where would that be, Section Leader?

Troop Leader: That unidentified craft our pursuit ships are chasing would be a fair bet.

Arlen: Oh yes? In which case, considering the speeds it seems to be travelling at, we'll never catch them. ( Sighs. ) Still at least we have one of them.

( Arlen smiles and looks up toward the ceiling. There, Tarrant's motionless body is chained to the angle between ceiling and wall. )

Arlen: The treacherous Captain Del Tarrant. A fine trophy for any hunters wall.

( Servalan suddenly enters the room, followed by two mutoids. )

Servalan: ( Tutting. ) But a pity his blood's making such a mess on the floor.

( Arlen leaps to her feet with a start. The Troop Leader salutes sharply. )

Arlen: Uh... Commissioner Sleer. I wasn't informed that you were expected here.

Servalan: I wasn't.

( Servalan casts her outer robe aside and drapes herself in the seat Arlen has vacated. )

Servalan: It is my duty to go wherever Federation Security will be best served. Now, I assume the rebel infestation on this planet has been eradicated?

Arlen: Yes Commissioner. The whole silo is secure.

Servalan: Good. ( Looks at Tarrant. ) Very decorative. And as for the one you made in the other chamber, the one of Blake... why, the bones, the blood, the entrails. You have a remarkable instinct for post-modernism. Almost animalistic.

( Arlen shifts her eyes, uncertain if this is rebuke or congratulation. )

Arlen: Er, thank you, Commissioner.

Servalan: But my love of art is a secondary issue. Where is Avon?

Arlen: Ahm...

Servalan: Well?

Arlen: He escaped.

( Servalan remains calm but her eyes are visibly blazing. )

Servalan: Dear dear. And how did that happen?

Arlen: Their ship was destroyed... but they still managed to teleport after we captured them.

Servalan: After you captured them? Don't tell me you forget to remove their teleport bracelets. Surely not...

Arlen: Their ship was ruined, they were all here. I didn't realise it was still possible for them to teleport.

Servalan: Orac could have activated it. And just because their ship crashed, that doesn't mean the teleport wouldn't work. You should have realised that at once.

Arlen: But, Commissioner...

Servalan: The President chose you personally, Arlen. Your failure amounts to a capital crime.

Arlen: I almost succeeded.

Servalan: Almost a success is still a failure, Arlen. And there is no way in the Galaxy we can catch them. You see, I know where they teleported to - I saw it when my ship entered this system. I don't know how it got there but if it's the ship I think it is, there's nothing in our entire fleet that's fast enough to catch it.

( Liberator Medical Unit. Kyben is dabbing a wet cloth against the injuries on his face while monitoring the life-signs of Vila, Dayna and Soolin. Stella is here, staring at Vila intently. Hailee and Farin watch stonily. )

Farin: Well?

Kyben: I'm afraid the two ladies are just about finished. ( Indicates Soolin. ) She'll live as long as she's on this life support system, but without proper medicines I can't revive her. ( Indicates Dayna sadly. ) This one has... well, there's nothing I can do. She needs advanced therapy immediately, and I haven't got the resources here.

Farin: How long's she got?

Kyben: On life support... I don't know. An hour, maybe a bit more.

( Stella points at Vila. )

Stella: ( Urgently. ) What about him?

Kyben: He should be okay.

Stella: ( Brightly. ) Really?

Kyben: He'll have a nasty burn on his shoulder for a few days, but other than that he'll be fine. Should wake up soon enough.

Farin: Good. I want some answers.

( Kyben shoots Farin a look of contempt. )

Kyben: I'm so glad you care.

Farin: Listen Doctor, something's wrong on Gauda Prime, or haven't you noticed? The Feds have arrived, we haven't been able to contact Blake, and these people appear on the ship out of nowhere having clearly been in some kind of firefight. Something's happened and I want them to tell me what's going on.

Kyben: I want to keep them alive. I think that's more important.

Farin: As long as they tell me what I want to know first, I don't care either way. We have to know what's happened.

Kyben: ( Sarcastically. ) Thank you for putting me right.

( Stella is still staring at Vila. )

Kyben: What's wrong?

Stella: I was worried about him.

Hailee: Him? Why? Love at first sight?

Stella: No you don't understand. This is Vila Restal. They must be the Scorpio crew.

Farin: You serious?

( Stella doesnt take her eyes off Vila. )

Stella: Oh yes.

Hailee: Sure, how would you know?

Stella: Weren't you listening earlier? My name's Stella Restal.

( Hailee looks confused. )

Stella: Vila's my uncle.

( Vila suddenly moans softly, and sits up with a start. )

Vila: Wh-What? Hey! I'm still alive! Oh my God I don't believe it. I'm alive, I'm alive! Thank you Gods, I'm ALIVE!!

( Vila throws his arms in the air, then snatches them down and grabs his shoulder. )

Vila: Ow! That smarts...

Stella: Vila?

Vila: Stella? Stella, is that you?

Stella: Yes. Where does it hurt?

Vila: Oh it's unbearable, I... ( Stops and looks around. ) Where are we?

Farin: We're aboard the Liberator. You've just...

Vila: Liberator?! But it exploded... ( Looks broken. ) Oh no, I am dead after all aren't I? I've died and gone to Robo-Heaven. Damn, damn...

Stella: No you're alive.

Vila: Im not.

Stella: You are.

Vila: I'm not.

Stella: You are. Trust me, Vila, you're alive.

( Hailee shoots Vila a scornful look. )

Hailee: He's also a wet from the sound of it. Stop crying and get your head together. You and your friend have some explaining to do.

( A few more plasma bolts skim past the Liberator which is now comfortably out-distancing the pursuit ships. )

( Servalan is still seated in the Tracking Gallery on Gauda Prime. She gets to her feet, smiling evilly. )

Servalan: Actually, the "President" probably wouldn't have ordered the death penalty.

( Servalan walks over to where Arlen and the Troop Leader are lying on the floor, clearly dead. )

Servalan: But then, no agent who meets with his approval will ever meet with mine.

( Servalan kicks Arlen's body, then signals to the two mutoids who stride over to her. )

Help yourselves.

( The two mutoids pounce on the dead bodies and prepare to feed... )

( Darkness for a few seconds. Then a patch of light. Avon is dimly visible, looking tired and confused. Then another light. Blake's apparition re-appears. )

Blake's Voice: Why did you kill me?

Avon: Blake...

Blake's Voice: Why?

Avon: No. Not again... not this again.

Blake's Voice: Why did you do it, Avon?

Avon: Why him? Why does it have to be Blake haunting me? Why not Gan? Why not Cally?

Blake's Voice: Would you prefer Cally? Would it change what you've done?

( Suddenly Blake's face distorts and warps... and becomes the face of Cally. )

Avon: No...no!

Cally's Voice: I loved you, Avon. And you knew that, didn't you? You knew it all along. But now I'm dead thanks to you. Why didn't you listen when we told you not to go to Terminal? Why did you endanger us like that? Why did you endanger... me... like that, Avon?

Avon: No, Cally! I didn't kill you. I had to go therel. We had to find Blake. I'd realised we wouldn't survive without him...

Cally's Voice: You lie! You were greedy, Avon. You thought Blake had found great treasures and you wanted them for yourself.

Avon: ( Desperation. ) NO!

( The apparition warps and fades again. Blake reappears. )

Blake's Voice: Why did you kill... us, Avon?

Avon: ( Anger. ) You betrayed me, Blake!

Blake's Voice: But I didn't betray you, did I? It was that Federation agent who betrayed me. She betrayed all of us. I was building the foundations of a new tomorrow, Avon. I was building a legacy, my legacy of freedom. You would have been one of its first beneficiaries. Now it may be gone for good.

Avon: But...

Blake's Voice: Why, Avon? Why did you destroy what I was creating?

( The apparition begins to fade. )

Blake's Voice: You've always done it, Avon. Why do you always let your cynicism destroy what little hope we have?

( The image disappears, leaving Avon in near-darkness. )

Avon: Wait! Wait! It's not over yet. I swear, it's not over yet.

( There is a loud throbbing sound. A blurred patch of light suddenly appears before his eyes. It grows, stretches and resolves itself into the face of Farin. The throb gradually sharpens into intelligible words. Avon and Farin are in the Medical Unit of the Liberator, along with Kyben, Vila and Stella. Soolin and Dayna are still on the life-support systems, motionless. Dayna's face and body are covered by a sheet. Vila's arm is in a regeneration cast. )

Farin: Avon. Avon. Can you hear me?

( Avon nods wearily. )

Farin: Good. I have some questions...

Vila: Oh for crying out loud, Farin, you're worse than Avon.

Kyben: Give him a chance to wake up first, Farin. Avon. My name's Kyben. According to Vila you must have confused me with a Federation Officer because of my eye-patch. Kindly don't do it again.

( Avon sits up sharply, apparently ignoring him. )

Avon: Where are the others?

Kyben: Lie back down, you'll pass out if you don't.

Stella: I'm sorry, your friend Dayna died a little while ago.

( Avon lies down, dizzily. )

Avon: Pity. What about Soolin? Tarrant?

Kyben: Soolin's in a coma...

Farin: And with the medical supplies on this ship, that makes her as good as dead too.

Vila: Tarrant didn't teleport with us. He wasn't wearing his bracelet, I guess.

Avon: Teleport?

( Avon sits up again, a little more slowly this time. )

Avon: Wait, where are we?

Farin: Somehow you've been teleported to Blake's ship... the Liberator.

Avon: What? That's...

Farin: We'll explain everything later.

( Farin leans closer, a menacing look on his face. )

Farin: After you've explained to us what's happened on Gauda Prime.

Avon: ( Angrily. ) The Federation happened. Now where did you find this ship?

( Federation pursuit ships have finally been out-run by Liberator. Aboard pursuit one, the crew look resigned. )

Space Commander: Damn it, I've never seen anything fly that fast.

Pilot 1: They'll be off our scanners in fifteen seconds.

( The Space Commander slumps in his seat, beaten. )

Space Commander: Call off the chase, we'll never catch them now.

( Gauda Prime Tracking Gallery. Large crews of Federation troops and technicians have begun dismantling the silo. Servalan oversees the operation. )

Servalan: How many?

( One of the mutoids looks up from his work. )

Mutoid 1: Commissioner?

Servalan: How many times? How many times will I have him under my thumb, only for him to wriggle away again?

Mutoid 1: I do not understand the question, Commissioner.

Servalan: ( Glowers. ) Oh shut up. Keep working.

Mutoid 1: Yes, Commissioner.

( The mutoid returns to its task. )

Servalan: I'll break you yet, Avon. Sooner or later, I'll...

( Another mutoid approaches. )

Mutoid 2: Commissioner Sleer?

Servalan: What now?

Mutoid 2 : We have received a priority signal from Space Command Headquarters.

Servalan: Oh?

Mutoid 2: The President has ordered a full report on the operation. From Agent Arlen.

Servalan: Has he indeed? Well he'll be disappointed won't he?

Mutoid 2: Yes, Commissioner. What are your orders?

Servalan: ( Grins. ) Send a message to Space Command, priority code Alpha-four-niner. Direct to the President. Inform him that - regrettably - Agent Arlen was terminated in fighting with the rebels. In all, twenty eight rebels were killed during the operation, including Roj Blake and Del Tarrant. ( Anger seeps in at the edges of her eyes. ) However, Kerr Avon is still at large.

( Liberator Flight Deck. All survivors bar Soolin are present. Farin looks furious, Stella is crestfallen. Hailee grimly stands at the helm, trying to look less bothered than she really is. Kyben is shocked. All apart from Hailee and Stella are seated in the pit. )

Farin: Dead?! How?

Avon: I told you. The Federation found the silo. There was a fight. Blake was killed during the firing.

( Vila shapes to speak but Avon silences him with a look that could boil lead. )

Avon: It was all one huge trap. The Federation were waiting for us. We were all in one place, where they wanted us, so they could kill us all together.

( Avon holds up his hand, thumb and forefinger barely apart. )

Avon: They were that close.

( Kyben pulls out the datafile and drops it on the table. )

Kyben: That's it then. Without Blake, all this info is meaningless.

Farin: Even with Liberator, we needed Blake as the figurehead. There won't be any uprising in the Inner Worlds without Blake to lead them!

Vila: ( Staring at Avon. ) A lethal blow... whoever killed him.

Farin: ( Suspicious. ) What does that mean?

Vila: ( Mumbles. ) Nothing.

Stella: Didn't anyone survive? What about Deva?

Avon: Dead.

Stella: Klyn?

Avon: Dead.

Stella: Nammo?

( Avon leaps to his feet, angered. He is clearly not happy talking about this. )

Avon: They're all dead! ( More calmly. ) At least, as far as we can tell...

Zen: Attention. Federation craft have broken off pursuit. Liberator is now clear to begin new heading. Please select speed and course.

Farin: Well at least there's some good news. Let's get out of here and...

Avon: NO! We have to go back.

Farin: ( Almost screams ) Are you mad?

Avon: We can't leave without...

Farin: If you want to try and find Tarrant, sorry, it's too risky. ( Grins. )You shouldn't have lost him in the first place!

( Farin looks around at the others to see if they share his "joke". None of them pay him any attention. )

Avon: Forget Tarrant! He's probably dead anyway.

Hailee: Well why the hell else should we go back there? I've done enough on this job to double my fee already. Why should I stick my neck out any further?

Avon: Orac is still on the planet.

Kyben: ( Exasperated. ) Who's Orac?

Avon: A mind of brilliance and power unequalled by anyone else I have ever met... present company very much included. Orac is the most sophisticated computer ever built and I am not going to leave without it.

Stella: Why should we agree? It'd be crazy to go back to GP. Crazy.

Avon: Two reasons. One, this is my ship. While you are aboard it, you follow my orders...

Farin: Is that so? Well let me tell you...

Avon: ...Two, the Federation have been trying to get their hands on Orac for years. If we don't recover it, they will. And if they do, there'll be no place in the Galaxy safe enough for any of us to hide.

( Space Command HQ. The President sits on the balcony overlooking an interrogation chamber. Two Federation torturers are working over a female prisoner whose cries of agony echo loudly. Colonel Mablar is visible on a small screen in front of the President. )

President: I apologise if this is interfering on your territory, Colonel. I've still to receive word from Gauda Prime about the outcome of the operation. Security in the Outer Worlds is not all I'd like it to be.

Mablar: Hardly a problem for me, Mr President. Sleer is all I'm concerned with. Interrogation of rebel prisoners is unlikely to interfere with that. Even if this rebel's capture is linked with Sleer's work in some way, it's not going to get in my way.

President: My thanks for your understanding. This whole procedure is likely to prove unnecessary of course. Assuming the information she leaked to Kyben is in some way linked with the rebels in the Outer Worlds, it will shortly become practically valueless. Once Blake and his allies are dead.

Mablar: That thought had occurred to me, sir. In truth, I doubt Kyben can be much of a danger anyway. He may have been high up in the Terran Administration, but we shouldn't forget that status and power are not the same thing.

President: A good point, Colonel. Still, best not take any chances. I still intend to find out exactly what the information was and where Kyben has taken it.

Mablar: Presumably to Blake.

President: ( Chuckles. ) In which case Kyben will be dead with the rest of them. Good. Keep me posted, Colonel. Information is a priceless asset.

( The President reaches forward and deactivates the communicator, switching the screen off. )

President: Wouldn't you agree, Veron?

( Zoom in to see it is Veron being tortured by the two "interrogators". Her temples are being bombarded with continuous electric shocks, and she is writhing in agony. )

President: You're paying quite a price to keep your information a secret. Do you think it's worth it?

( Liberator Flight Deck. Everyone except Hailee is present at the controls. Vila, Kyben and Stella are all armed. A brief view outside the ship shows Liberator heading back to Gauda Prime with the Daedalus following behind it. )

Hailee: ( V.O. ) I can't believe you persuaded me to do this.

Farin: I can't believe he persuaded anyone to do this.

Avon: You know, Farin, yours is the one type of personality I despise more than Blake's. The "If-it's-not-my-idea-it's-a-stupid-idea" personality.

Farin: This is a stupid idea.

Avon: Hearing that from you is the best encouragement I've had all day.

( Farin is about to retort but Avon cuts in quickly. )

Avon: Let me restate this, all of you. You may have salvaged this ship but it's still mine.

Farin: It's Blake's ship.

Avon: That was his opinion. The opinion of a dead man doesn't count for much. This is my ship. As long as you are aboard it, you do as I say. Clear?

Kyben: ( Sighing. ) Are we crashing this jaws-of-death party or not?

Stella: I'm in.

Vila: I'm out.

Farin: I'm out.

Avon: As there are no objections from anyone worth listening to...

( Again Farin is about to argue, this time Kyben cuts them both off. )

Kyben: We haven't got time for this. If we're gonna try his plan, lets move.

Vila: ( Forlorn. ) You mean we are gonna try it? Oh dear...

Hailee: ( V.O. ) I'm in position.

Avon: About time. Ready everyone?

( Nods all round. )

Avon: It begins.

( The Liberator rapidly approaches Gauda Prime, with Daedalus following closely behind. On the Flight Deck of Liberator, everyone remains at battle stations. )

Vila: They must've spotted us by now.

Avon: Liberator, yes.

Vila: Then let's go.

Avon: It won't work if we leave before they launch the pursuit ships.

Farin: It won't work, period.

Avon: Nor, apparently, will telling you to shut up. On both tasks I will persevere.

Farin: Look, we saved your life back there. Now you expect us to risk ours for some motorised door-wedge...?

Avon: Actually it was the "motorised door-wedge" that saved us. Orac is the only device in the Galaxy capable of remote teleport activation. One of the many reasons it's so valuable. If you want one of those tedious moral arguments, let's suggest that I owe Orac for saving my neck.

Farin: I want an intelligent argument...

Avon: Yes, it's always good to try new things.

( Stella seems ridiculously over-amused by this put-down. )

Stella: New things! Heh, that's good. I like that.

( The others all give Stella a withering look. )

Stella: What?

Zen: Information. Federation pursuit ships have been detected leaving the atmosphere of Gauda Prime. Battle computers indicate they are moving to engage this position. Estimated time to intercept: One minute thirty five seconds.

Vila: Okay, Avon they've launched. Can we leave now?

Credits

ABOUT THE EPISODE

Servalan appears a lot sooner in this version as she plays a game of "Let's-See-Which-President-Can-Stab-The-Other-In-The-Back-First" with her successor. I've included Colonel Mablar from Neil Blissett's version, but again he's going to be rather different in this. There are clues all over the place as to what he's playing at, but as a broad hint, he is well-aware of who Commisioner Sleer really is, even though he keeps neglecting to inform the President. Now why would that be?

READER'S REMARKS

Neil Blissett:

This episode follows my version up to the point that they teleport. The extra scenes are almost word for word.

Well, I did change one or two lines, but for the most part the new scenes were top notch as written, so I thought, "Why change them?"

Mutoids feeding on the dead? This never happens in the original series. The only time something similar happens is in Duel where the mutoid is dying and needs Jenna's blood to survive. On that occasion the mutoid was desperate enough to try taking Jenna's blood in the middle of a fight.

As a matter of fact, it did happen in the original episodes - in Project Avalon, Soolin's "twin sister" murders a subteron and then calls in a pack of her fellow mutoids for a slap-up feed. (NOTE: There is some dispute whether this actually is what happened, but it seems very clear to me that "Soolin the First" was pulling out her hypodermic - or was she just pleased to see him?)

Alternatively, check out The perennial Mark of Kane. One of Travis' mutoids (the former wife of Maryatt) survives the destruction of Travis' ship at Goth and ends up as Kane's lackey. She regularly feeds off Kane's victims. Unofficial though Kaldor City's material is, it's good enough for me.

In the end, this argument comes down to a matter of logic. Would Servalan make a special effort for the sake of a bunch of half-breeds? Why waste expensive blood serum on them when she's got fresh corpses lying idle? Normally she might feed the mutoids properly, but not when she doesn't have to. It's not like she'd receive any complaints, as pickiness isn't in a mutoid's programming.

Jane Walton:

I think it was right to leave Tarrant behind because he had no bracelet instead of glossing over it. The originals were products of the 70's. There were no videos and no UK Gold back then. The writers could afford to make mistakes and take liberties which they just wouldn't get away with these days. Kids nowadays expect amazing special effects not spaceships on strings! (That's not a pop at B7 by the way. I find the strings and the polystyrene rocks are a part of it's home-made charm. I can love it and still laugh at it!)

Agreed. Mind you, I'm not sure I'd laugh or just cringe if the forthcoming Telemovie, which Paul Darrow confidently predicts will go on release any century now, uses models on wires...

As for the old "Tarrant-didn't-have-a-bracelet" niggle in the Original Project, well, that's all been resolved thanks to a sneaky bit of retcon. Quite clever, even if I say so myself (I was the one who thought it up, he boasted shamelessly). Bottom line, whether the mistake's there or not, it's old news so let's move on.

Feeding the dead to the mutoids is logical whether there is evidence that it's been done before or not shouldn't matter. The Federation are not squeamish about using people so why not make use of the dead, they won't complain!

Yes. No offence to Neil, but I thought he did get a little over-excited about that point. Even if it didn't happen before - and like I said above, it did - it doesn't actually contradict anything, and it fits into the precedents smoothly. The only motivation for a mutoid is a need for blood, and as they don't recognise niceties, I can't for the life of me see why they'd fuss whether the blood came from a dead body or a living one.

I accept and agree that Blake would haunt Avon but I'm not so sure that Cally would. I feel that even though technically it was his fault that she was on Terminal in the first place, it was a trap laid by Servalan and that Avon would blame her for Cally's death. Yes she loved him and yes he knew but that in itself is not enough to inspire such guilt in Avon. Guilt yes but not enough to prey on his mind to that degree. She did, after all, make her own choices to stay and fight with the crew all that time.

It was his shock we were experiencing in Avon's dreams, not his guilt. As you say, he does blame Servalan for Cally's demise and rightly so. Indeed, that's why the relationship between Avon and Servalan is so much less playful in the Fourth season than it had been in the Third. Avon doesn't really blame himself for Cally's death, but he does know that he shouldn't have killed Blake, and in his shell-shocked state his sub-concious is equating Blake with the others in the crew. As he is racked by the guilt of knowing that Blake had not betrayed him after all, he is going through one of those rare phases when he's not thinking straight and is letting his guilt make judgements for him. However his attitude to that changes as soon as he wakes up.

Overall, the dream is really just my way of hinting about how far I felt the stress was getting to him at the end of the last season of Blake's 7 - Avon at that stage is a rather different man to the one we saw in the first three seasons. I also think that, though he'd never admit it, he probably misses Cally quite a lot, and if he won't let himself express it as love, his mind is trying to express it as a form of guilt, which is sometimes harder to suppress.

However, there is a little more triggering it than just that. What it is, you'll have to wait and see.

Why would the Feds use electric shocks on Veron when they had far more sophisticated equipment when Avalon was interrogated in Project Avalon?

Partly because the President's a sadist, partly because controlling the human mind is a murky business. Some forms of interrogation work well on some people but not on others. Some people are immune to hypnotism, but have a low pain threshold. Some others are physically resilient but have little mental strength.

You don't get to see it, but they did use the more invasive methods originally. However Veron was able to resist them, so they decided to resort to a mixture of torture and mental manipulation. It was this that finally broke her (and killed her).

Surely technology has moved onwards not backwards by now!

In fact, I'm not sure it has. Normally it would have, but we mustn't forget the enormity of the Intergalactic War. We can't say for certain just how much was destroyed during the battles, but indications are it was an awful lot. Certainly with the Federation collapsing to about a quarter its previous size, and no Central Control available anymore, resources must have become very limited, and much of the knowledge and technology that the Federation had developed was probably lost too.

I don't think that Avon would say he owed Orac for saving his life. Orac is just a machine to him and Avon is never overly sentimental at the best of times. He usually makes a point of referring to Orac as an 'it' to stress that he is not a persona but an object.

Consider the circumstances. He's trying to convince a stubborn oaf to co-operate. Therefore he might SAY he owed Orac his life, he just wouldn't mean it. He could tell he wasn't going to sway Farin with practical arguments for going back and recovering Orac, so he decided to try a moral one (one he didn't actually believe himself), to see if Farin was one of those feeble conscience-y types of people. Of course he wasn't, so in the end Avon decided to just ignore Farin. This is a far more workable idea, indeed it's the only thing that works with Farin at all. Let me re-stress - Avon does not think that he owes Orac his life. He sees Orac as an immensely-powerful tool that has been flawed with an irritating personality (he's probably right), and that tool was simply doing its job. He wanted to get it back, and he realised that it would be best if he persuaded the rest of the crew to co-operate. He didn't want Farin or Hailee to suddenly fly the ship away while everyone else was away looking for Orac.

Brian McLennan:

Peculiarly, the best stuff in this is not redrafted from Neil Blissett's version, but the brand new material. Especially good is Avon's evasiveness about the death of Blake - in the original version, I thought it was unlikely that he'd be so quick to admit to Nij what he'd done.

However, it's too short an episode again!

It is. As stated on the Liberated page, the second and third episodes of the "Gauda Prime saga" may be compacted into one.

I'm also not completely convinced by the way Avon behaves when he is teleported. His attack on Kyben seems too wild. He never got so freaked out by Travis in the past.

He didn't, but think about everything that has happened to him in the last few days, indeed in the last few moments. For the first time, probably in his life, he'd lost any last vestige of hope, and he'd resigned himself to death - why else did he fire on his enemies when he was completely surrounded by them? The fact that he survived therefore put him into total shock. Now imagine being in total shock after spending years wrapped up in a growing persecution complex, then imagine coming face-to-face with someone who resembles a mortal enemy (and remember that Travis may have hated Blake most of all, but he was still Avon's foe as well - on Exbar he even shot Avon in the shoulder). At this point, even Avon couldn't help losing it for a moment. Kyben did him a favour knocking him out.

My replies are in ORANGE ITALICS

Season One Scripts