Transcript: 9x04 Before the Flood
I know! Crazy, right?
RECAP of “Under the Lake”
INT. TARDIS
The DOCTOR walks around the console room, telling a story.
DOCTOR:
So there's this man. He has a time machine. Up and down history he goes, zip zip zip zip zip, getting into scrapes. (goes up the steps and flips through albums) Another thing he has is a passion for the works of Ludwig van Beethoven. And one day he thinks, "What's the point of having a time machine if you don't get to meet your heroes?" (walks around the top level) So off he goes to 18th-century Germany. But he can't find Beethoven anywhere. No-one's heard of him, not even his family have any idea who the time traveller is talking about. (puts down album cover and picks up bust) Beethoven literally doesn't exist. (goes down stairs) This didn't happen, by the way. I've met Beethoven. Nice chap. Very intense. Loved an arm-wrestle. No, this is called "The Bootstrap Paradox". Google it. (goes down to lower level) The time traveller panics, he can't bear the thought of a world without the music of Beethoven. (puts down bust) Luckily he'd brought all his Beethoven sheet music for Ludwig to sign. So he copies out all the concertos and the symphonies and he gets them published. He becomes Beethoven. And history continues with barely a feather ruffled. (picks up guitar and turns on amp) But my question is this. "Who put those notes and phrases together?" Who really composed Beethoven's 5th? (plays opening of Beethoven’s Fifth on the guitar)
**********************************************************************
Peter Capaldi
Jenna Coleman
DOCTOR WHO
“Before the Flood”
By
Toby Whithouse
PRODUCER
Peter Bennett
DIRECTOR
Daniel O’Hara
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EXT. VILLAGE, DAY
The DOCTOR and O’DONNELL are standing outside an abandoned train station. As it was a training site for the military, the signs are in Russian.
DOCTOR:
Where's Bennett? We need to get going.
O’DONNELL:
Oh, he's still throwing up. "One small step for man, one giant... Bleaurgh."
DOCTOR:
Time travel does that sometimes.
O’DONNELL:
Somehow I doubt that Rose or Martha or Amy lost their breakfast on their first trip.
DOCTOR:
You seem to know an awful lot about me.
O’DONNELL:
I used to be in military intelligence. I was demoted for dangling a colleague out of a window.
DOCTOR:
In anger?
O’DONNELL:
Is there another way to dangle someone out of a window? What year are we in?
DOCTOR:
(licks his finger and hold it up) 1980.
O’DONNELL:
So, pre-Harold Saxon. Pre-the Minister of War. Pre-the moon exploding and a big bat coming out.
DOCTOR:
The Minister of War?
O’DONNELL:
Yeah.
DOCTOR:
Never mind. I expect I'll find out soon enough.
BENNETT:
Sorry about that. Had a prawn sandwich. Might have been off.
The DOCTOR smiles knowingly.
DOCTOR:
Don't worry. Shall we go?
The DOCTOR starts off but O’DONNELL rests a hand on BENNETT as she lifts a foot.
O’DONNELL:
Just one sec, I've just got something in my boot...
The DOCTOR goes ahead and O’DONNELL turns to BENNETT and fangirls, jumping up and down.
O’DONNELL:
It's bigger on the inside, it's bigger on the inside, how can it be bigger on the inside, Bennett? (regains composure) OK, let's roll.
They follow the DOCTOR.
EXT. VILLAGE, DAY
They walk along the pavement and we see them through a window where a mannequin has been placed. They continue past fake shop fronts and posters of Stalin.
BENNETT:
Why have we gone to Russia?
DOCTOR:
We haven't. We're still in Scotland. This is the town before it flooded. The TARDIS has brought us to when the spaceship first touched down. But here and now, it's the height of the Cold War. The military were being trained for offensives on Soviet soil.
They find the spaceship and the back is open. They walk towards it.
INT. SHIP
The stasis pod is there and there is a wrapped body on top of the other.
O’DONNELL:
Oh, is that the pilot? My God, look at size of it.
DOCTOR:
No, that's the body.
BENNETT lifts the cover of the hatch containing the power cells.
O’DONNELL:
What do you mean, "the body"?
DOCTOR:
This isn't just any spaceship. It's a hearse.
BENNETT:
The suspended-animation chamber is still here, and the power cells for the engine.
O’DONNELL:
And there are no markings on the wall.
DOCTOR:
Yet.
EXT. VILLAGE, DAY
A figure runs up to the ship, waving.
FIGURE:
Greetings!
O’DONNELL:
It's him, the ghost from the Drum.
FIGURE:
(in DOCTOR’S face) Remarkable. (in front of BENNETT) And humans, too. Albar Prentis, Funeral Director. (passes out cards)
BENNETT:
You're from Tivoli, aren't you?
PRENTIS:
The most invaded planet in the galaxy! Our capital city has a sign saying, "If you occupied us, you'd be home by now."
DOCTOR:
(throws card away) Yes, I've had dealings with your lot before. I can't say I'm a fan.
PRENTIS:
No, we do tend to antagonise. (laughs)
O’DONNELL hears a sound and looks away briefly.
DOCTOR:
What are you doing here?
PRENTIS:
Ah, yes. Of course. (runs up the stairs to the ramp) This is the Fisher King. He and his armies invaded Tivoli and enslaved us for ten glorious years! Until we were liberated by the Arcateenians. But, thank the Gods, soon we'd irritated them so much, they enslaved us, too! (laughs)
BENNETT:
My first proper alien. And he's an idiot.
PRENTIS:
And now in accordance with Arcateenian custom, I've come to bury him on a barren, savage outpost.
O’DONNELL:
You mean the town?
DOCTOR:
He means the planet.
PRENTIS:
(goes to the DOCTOR ) Although, at the risk of starting a bidding war, you could enslave me. In the ship I have directions to my planet and a selection of items you can oppress me with.
DOCTOR:
Listen. We've come from the future. You're about to send some sort of signal. How do you do it? Is it a special pen?
PRENTIS:
What are you talking about?
DOCTOR:
The technology you use, the thing that wrenches the soul out of the body and makes it repeat your coordinates for eternity. Give it to me now, I'm going to take the batteries out.
PRENTIS:
We don't have anything like that. (laughs) Even this belongs to the glorious Arcateenians.
DOCTOR:
So who sends the message?
PRENTIS sniffs the DOCTOR.
DOCTOR:
Back to the TARDIS. I need to talk to Clara.
INT. BASE, MESS
CASS is staring out the window at the DOCTOR’S ghost. LUNN walks over to CLARA who is sitting apart.
LUNN:
You've been here before, in situations like this before.
CLARA:
Yeah, not exactly like...But, yeah, once or twice.
LUNN:
(squats) So you've had to deal with people who are scared. What do you say to them? I'm asking what I should say to you.
CLARA:
That it will be all right. That the Doctor will save us.
LUNN:
And when you say it, do you believe it?
CLARA:
Yeah. Yeah, I do.
LUNN:
And now?
CASS slaps the back of her chair to get their attention. She signs once they walk over.
LUNN:
Cass thinks the Doctor is saying something different to the others. He's saying "Moran. Pritchard. Apprentice"? No, "Prentis. O'Donnell. Clara. Doctor. Bennett. Cass." It's a list of all our names and when he finishes, he just goes back to the beginning again, over and over. That's it.
CLARA:
Who's Prentis? (phone rings) It's the Doctor.
LUNN:
He's alive?
CLARA:
For the moment.
LUNN signs to CASS that the DOCTOR is alive.
CLARA:
Doctor? Doctor, are you all right?
DOCTOR: (over speaker)
Yeah, fine. So listen, the spaceship, it's a hearse.
CONTINUED, INTERCUT WITH -
- CUT TO:
INT. TARDIS
The DOCTOR has CLARA onscreen at the TARDIS console.
DOCTOR:
Clara, what's wrong?
CLARA:
Another ghost has appeared.
DOCTOR:
What? Who? Has someone died?
CLARA:
Doctor, it's you.
The DOCTOR says nothing, stunned by CLARA’S revelation.
CLARA:
Are you OK?
DOCTOR:
Yeah. Well, currently.
CLARA:
What does it mean?
DOCTOR:
It means I die.
CLARA:
No -- not necessarily. We can change the sequence of events so…
DOCTOR:
This isn't a potential future. This is the future now. It's already happened. The proof is right there in front of you. (turns away from the screen and puts his hands on the rail) I have to die.
CLARA:
No. You can change things.
DOCTOR:
I can't. Even the tiniest change, the ramifications could be catastrophic. It could spread carnage and chaos across the universe like ripples on a pond. (turns around) Ah, well, I've had a good innings. (aside to O’DONNELL) This regeneration is a bit of a clerical error anyway. (into phone) I've got to go sometime.
CLARA:
NOT WITH ME! Die with whoever comes after me. You do not leave ME.
DOCTOR:
Clara, I need to talk to you, just on your own.
The DOCTOR switches over to the old handset and CLARA takes the call of speaker.
DOCTOR:
Listen to me. We all have to face death eventually. Be it ours or someone else's.
CLARA:
I'm not ready yet. I don't want to think about that, not yet.
DOCTOR:
I can't change what's already happened. There are rules.
CLARA:
So break them. And anyway, you owe me. You made yourself essential to me. You gave me something else to... to be. And you can't do that and then die. It's not fair.
DOCTOR:
Clara. (lowers his head to rest on his hand on the console)
CLARA:
No. Doctor, I don't care about your rules or your bloody survivor's guilt. If you love me in any way, you'll come back. Doctor, are you...?
DOCTOR:
I can't save Moran or Pritchard.
CLARA:
No... but like you said, if you can find out why this is happening, maybe you can stop them killing anybody else, you can save us. And you can stop it happening to you.
DOCTOR:
I'll do what I can, but the future has already happened. We've just met the Undertaker and he's still alive.
INT. SHIP
PRENTIS walks to the ship, scribbling notes in a little book. He gasps when he enters the ship. The body is gone but the wrappings are still there! He sniffs and then sees the symbols on the wall. We see them reflected in his eye. A large shadow covers the opening of the ship.
EXT. SHIP, DAY
We hear a loud roar.
INT. TARDIS
The DOCTOR switches back to the screen.
DOCTOR:
So. Ghost me. You've got a better view than me. How do I look? Any signs of trauma, any scars? Any clues as to how I die?
BENNETT and O’DONNELL return him from where they were sitting to give him privacy.
CONTINUED, INTERCUT WITH -
- CUT TO:
INT. BASE, MESS
CLARA:
No, nothing. You're the same as all the other ghosts with the weird black eyes and... (walks up to the window) No. No, wait. Your coat. It's torn. The right shoulder.
CLARA holds the phone so the camera will show the DOCTOR the ghost.
DOCTOR:
I assume I'm just saying the same thing as the others.
CLARA:
(walks away from window) No, you're saying a list of names. Our names, mainly. "Moran, Pritchard, 'Prentis', O'Donnell, Clara, Doctor, Bennett, Cass." Who's Prentis?
DOCTOR:
The mole-faced chap.
GHOST DOCTOR enters the room and CLARA drops the phone.
DOCTOR:
What's the matter, Clara, what's happening?
CLARA:
You've moved inside. You're inside here now.
DOCTOR:
What am I doing?
CLARA:
Nothing, you're... you're just standing there.
DOCTOR:
I'm not trying to kill you? Why am I not trying to kill you?
Ghost DOCTOR moves.
CLARA:
No, wait, you're moving, going toward the control panel.
We see that he has opened the Faraday cage.
CLARA:
Oh, no. He's opened the Faraday Cage. He's let the other ghosts out.
DOCTOR:
I need to talk to me now.
CLARA:
Didn't you hear me? You opened the Faraday Cage. The other ghosts are outside. Shouldn't we be hiding?
DOCTOR:
In a minute. I need to talk to the ghost me.
CLARA walks over and props her phone so the DOCTOR can see the ghost.
CLARA:
OK, Doctor, you're on.
DOCTOR:
Doctor. Such an honour. I've always been a huge admirer. This is really a delight. Finally, someone worth talking to. So firstly, why are you here?
Ghost DOCTOR looks at the DOCTOR when he hears his voice but turns away when he’s done.
DOCTOR:
Clara, Clara, what's happening?
CLARA:
(takes the phone back) Erm... Er... you've just stopped. Oh, no, wait, you've started again.
CASS:
*His message has changed, he's saying something different. He's saying...*
CLARA:
What?!
DOCTOR:
What?!
LUNN:
What?!
CASS:
*He's saying... "The chamber will open tonight."*
DOCTOR:
Clara, now the ghosts are out, go to the Faraday Cage. They won't be able to get you in there. Oh, there's a problem.
CASS, LUNN and CLARA slowly back out of the room.
CLARA:
Problem? What problem? Because everything else is going so smoothly...
DOCTOR:
The phone signal won't get through. What you'll have to do, Clara, put the phone outside, and you can watch it through the little round porthole, and when you see it ringing, if it's safe to do so, go out and answer it.
CLARA:
OK. How long are you going to...?
DOCTOR:
Clara, listen to me. Don't let that phone out of your sight. I need to be able to reach you, I need to know everything my ghost does. Do you understand? I'll come back for you. I swear.
CLARA, CASS and LUNN run for the Faraday cage and the DOCTOR loses the connection. The DOCTOR bows his head before regrouping.
DOCTOR:
Come on. Oh, wait a minute. Not you, O'Donnell.
O’DONNELL:
Why not?
DOCTOR:
Someone needs to stay here and mind the shop. What if Clara calls?
O’DONNELL:
(scoffs) The last bloke that said something like that to me got dangled out of a window.
BENNETT:
Maybe the Doctor's right, maybe it's best if you stay here.
O’DONNELL:
Never going to happen. Seriously, have you two met me?
O’DONNELL strides out and the two men look at each other. BENNETT follows O’DONNELL.
EXT. SHIP, DAY
They see PRENTIS lying on the wrappings and hurry over.
DOCTOR:
Prentis. Prentis!
INT. SHIP
The DOCTOR checks for a pulse.
O’DONNELL:
Guess that dead body wasn't so dead after all.
BENNETT:
And now we've got the writing.
DOCTOR:
The Fisher King did it himself. The future is still coming.
EXT. SHIP, DAY
They hurry down the steps and see drag marks in the ground.
DOCTOR:
He's taken the suspended-animation chamber to the church.
They hear a loud roar.
O’DONNELL:
What was that?
DOCTOR:
We need to get back to the TARDIS. Now.
EXT. VILLAGE, DAY
They run through the village and hear another roar coming from in front of them. The DOCTOR leads them through a passageway.
INT. BUILDING, DAY
They continue to run.
DOCTOR:
It's cut us off.
O’DONNELL:
Let's split up. Go on, Bennett.
O’DONNELL ducks into a side passage and hides in an old room. The DOCTOR and BENNETT hide in another. BENNETT wedges a chair under the door handle. They hear heavy breathing and footsteps. Something large passes by the window of the room where the DOCTOR and BENNETT are hiding. Its shadow passes O’DONNELL. She sighs and steps out of hiding. The shadow returns and O’DONNELL turns around as we hear a low roar. BENNETT pulls the chair from the door.
DOCTOR:
No, Bennett! Wait!
BENNETT runs out of the door and finds O’DONNELL lying on the floor, moaning. He kneels beside her and takes her hand. He lifts up her head.
BENNETT:
Why did you come? You shouldn't have come. You never listen, it drives me mad.
O’DONNELL:
(strained) To keep an eye on you, idiot. So, don't die.
BENNETT:
(softly) No.
O’DONNELL dies and the DOCTOR walks in.
BENNETT:
Who's next on the list? (sets down O’DONNELL’S body and takes off glasses) That list your ghost was saying, (stands) that's the order in which people are going to die, isn't it? I mean, I've only just figured it out. But you knew all along, didn't you? Moran, Pritchard, Prentis, O'Donnell.
DOCTOR:
I thought perhaps, because her ghost wasn't there in the future, like Prentis's was, I thought maybe, maybe it wouldn't happen, maybe she stood a chance.
BENNETT:
(gets in the DOCTOR’S face) Yeah, but you didn't try very hard to stop her, though, did you? It was almost like you wanted to test your theory. So who's next?
DOCTOR:
Clara.
BENNETT:
Yeah. Yeah. Except now you're going to do something about it, aren't you? Because it's getting closer to you. You're going to change history to save yourself but not to save O'Donnell. You wouldn't save her.
DOCTOR:
This isn't about saving me. I'm a dead man walking. I'm changing history to save Clara.
BENNETT just walks away. After a moment, the DOCTOR follows.
INT. BASE, FARADAY CAGE
CLARA’S phone is propped on the wall opposite the door of the cage. She is watching it through the window. O’DONNELL’S ghost suddenly appears and CLARA falls back from the door.
CLARA:
O'Donnell's dead.
O’DONNELL turns her head and sees the phone. She then walks towards it.
CLARA:
Oh, no. No, no, no, no, don't you dare... don't you dare...
O’DONNELL takes the phone and walks away down the corridor.
INT. TARDIS
DOCTOR:
Big day for you. Time travel -- twice!
The DOCTOR starts the TARDIS.
BENNETT:
Whoa, really? When are we going to?
The DOCTOR walks up a set of stairs.
DOCTOR:
Off the map! Out of the rule book. What if I don't die, what if I refuse? I'm going to go back to the base and I'm going to save Clara because that's what I do, and I don't see anyone here who's going to stop me.
The Cloister Bell begins to toll.
EXT. VILLAGE, DAY
The TARDIS materializes in front of a building with “512” painted on it. The DOCTOR and BENNETT step out. BENNETT closes the door behind him.
DOCTOR:
Why are we still here?
The DOCTOR walks forward but stops when he sees the himself getting out of the TARDIS on the platform.
DOCTOR:
No, no, no, no, no, no.
BENNETT:
What?
DOCTOR:
We've moved half an hour backwards. I'm locked in my own time-stream. The TARDIS won't let me leave.
BENNETT:
What do we do?
DOCTOR:
Now we have to keep out of sight, until time catches up.
The DOCTOR and BENNETT go the other way. We hear the earlier conversation between the DOCTOR and O’DONNELL. The DOCTOR and BENNETT walk through the village. They see PRENTIS taking readings with a sextant.
BENNETT:
Prentis. He's alive. (starts walking towards him)
DOCTOR:
(hurries after him) No, he's just not dead yet. And we don't tell him.
BENNETT:
Yeah, but he's right there, we can just...
The DOCTOR pushes BENNETT back against a wall.
DOCTOR:
However that sentence ends, no, we can't. Save him and you'll want to save O'Donnell. You can't cheat time, I've just tried. You can't just go back and cut off tragedy at the root. Because you find yourself talking to someone you just saw dead on a slab. Because then you really do see ghosts. We don't tell him. Understand? Not a word. We don't have that right.
The DOCTOR and BENNETT hide behind some metal barrels labelled toxic waste and watch the conversation they had when they met PRENTIS. BENNETT looks fondly at O’DONNELL. He stands, ready to run and warn her but the DOCTOR tackles him and there’s the sound of a gunshot. O’DONNELL looks in their direction.
INT. BASE, FARADAY CAGE
CLARA is resting her head on the side of the cage. CASS and LUNN are sitting on the floor.
CLARA:
The dark. The sword. The forsaken. The temple. (walks to the center of the cage and faces CASS and LUNN) When we found out what the ghosts were saying, we weren't surprised because the words, they were already inside us. But you, (points at LUNN) you were, weren't you? You didn't know what the words were going to be.
LUNN:
No, I didn't. How did you know?
CLARA:
Who was the one person who didn't see the writing in the spaceship?
LUNN:
Me. Cass wouldn't let me go inside.
CLARA:
That's why the ghosts didn't hurt you when they had the chance. The message isn't inside you.
LUNN:
Yes, I suppose that makes sense. (stands)
CLARA:
So you can get the phone back.
LUNN:
What?!
CASS stands and signs for LUNN to let her know what’s happening.
LUNN:
She's saying I should go and get the phone back.
CASS:
*No.*
CLARA:
Listen, listen. I need... We, we need to be able to contact the Doctor and you are the only one who can do this.
LUNN:
OK.
CLARA walks to the window and CASS takes LUNN by the lapels and signs angrily.
LUNN:
No, she's right. Neither of you can get it back.
CLARA turns back in time to see CASS point at her as she signs.
CLARA:
What? What is it? What did she say?
LUNN:
It doesn't matter.
CLARA:
Please.
LUNN:
She said to ask you whether travelling with the Doctor changed you, or were you always happy to put other people's lives at risk.
CLARA:
He taught me to do what has to be done. (turns back to the door) You should get going. (opens door)
EXT. VILLAGE, DAY
The DOCTOR and BENNETT watch as their previous selves leave and PRENTIS enters the ship. They stand and the DOCTOR realizes his jacket is torn at the right sleeve. Just like his ghost.
DOCTOR:
I need more time, it's too soon. I haven't saved her yet. Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock, tick tock, tick tock. I've got no choice now, I have to face the Fisher King. You, back to the TARDIS.
They leave.
INT. BASE, CORRIDOR
LUNN steps into the corridor and CLARA and CASS stand in the doorway. After a brief pause, LUNN walks down the corridor the ghost took.
CLARA:
Look, he'll be fine, I promise.
CASS signs emphatically and walks back into the room.
CLARA:
OK. Didn't need anyone to translate that.
CLARA goes back into the cage and closes the door behind her. LUNN continues down the dimly lit corridor.
EXT. VILLAGE, DAY
The DOCTOR walks up outside the church.
DOCTOR:
Now I'm ready.
The DOCTOR walks into the church.
INT. BASEMENT
The building is only a church on the outside. Inside, it’s more of a warehouse. The DOCTOR goes down a metal staircase to a storage area of some sort with bare metal girders. The suspension chamber is there - open.
DOCTOR:
I've come from the future. I've seen the chaos you cause, the bloodshed.
FISHER KING: (o.c.)
Tell me what you have seen.
DOCTOR:
Ghosts.
FISHER KING: (o.c.)
Ghosts?
DOCTOR:
Souls wrenched from the dead. Repeating directions to here, to this spot, over and over.
FISHER KING: (o.c.)
How many ghosts do I create? How many?
DOCTOR:
Four that I know of. Maybe five by now. Probably more since I left.
FISHER KING: (o.c.)
My ghosts will make more ghosts. Enough to bring an armada. Enough to wake me from my sleep.
INT. BASE, HANGAR
A red light lights up on the chamber and it beeps.
INT. BASE, CORRIDOR
LUNN continues walking the corridors but pauses when he sees the ghosts. They look up and hiss when they see him. He stops and closes his eyes as they approach and surround him. They all seem to sniff him. They step back and he opens his eyes. He continues on. And they regroup after he passes.
INT. BASEMENT
We hear stomping.
DOCTOR:
What will happen when your people arrive?
FISHER KING: (o.c.)
We will drain the oceans and put the humans in chains.
DOCTOR:
This world is protected by me.
FISHER KING: (o.c.)
Yes. One man, lost in time.
INT. BASE, MESS
LUNN cautiously enters the mess and sees CLARA’S phone sitting on a table. He quickly grabs it and runs to the door.
COMPUTER:
'Door emergency security lock.'
The door slides closed and locks. The ghosts walk past.
INT. BASEMENT
We see part of a large figure walking up behind the DOCTOR.
FISHER KING:
The seed of their destruction is already sown. They will die. The message will be sent. My people will come, and you will do nothing to stop it, Time Lord.
The DOCTOR turns around as the FISHER KING is finally revealed. About three metres tall, with mandibles and spiky plate armour, and holding a large hand weapon.
INT. BASE, FARADAY CAGE
CLARA sits on the floor as CASS paces. Resolved, she goes to open the door. CLARA gets up to stop her.
CLARA:
Hey, no, no, no, no. Cass! Wait, what are you doing? Look, Lunn, he is going to be fine, I promise. We have to stay here. I know that look. I DO that look. OK, fine. But we stick together.
CASS opens the door and the leave the cage, CLARA closing the door behind them.
INT. BASEMENT
FISHER KING:
Time Lords. Cowardly, vain curators who suddenly remembered they had teeth and became the most warlike race in the galaxy. But you, you!
The FISHER KING advances as he speaks and the DOCTOR backs up until he hits the chamber.
FISHER KING:
You are curious. You have seen the words, too. I can hear them tick inside you. But you are still locked in your history. Still slavishly protecting time. Willing to die rather than change a word of the future.
INT. BASE, CORRIDOR
CLARA and CASS walk carefully through the corridors. CLARA calls for LUNN.
CLARA:
Lunn. Lunn. Lunn. (realizes she’s alone) Oh, Cass. (retraces steps) Cass. Cass. Idiot. I'm an idiot. (goes down another corridor)
CASS is walking down yet another corridor. As she passes a dark junction, we see MORAN emerge from the shadows with an axe. He follows. CASS turns to look behind her but nothing is there. She continues and we hear a metallic scraping as MORAN appears behind her dragging the axe.
INT. BASEMENT
FISHER KING:
You will be a strong beacon. How many ghosts can I make of you?
The FISHER KING backs away and the DOCTOR straightens and walks forward.
DOCTOR:
You know, you've got a lot in common with the Tivoleans. You'll both do anything to survive. They'll surrender to anyone. You will hijack other people's souls and turn them into electromagnetic projections.
The FISHER KING stops and turns to face the DOCTOR.
DOCTOR:
That will to endure. That refusal to ever cease. It's extraordinary. And it makes a fella think, because you know what, (walks around the FISHER KING) if all I have to do to survive is tweak the future a bit, what's stopping me? Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, the ripple effect. Maybe it will mean that the universe will be ruled by cats or something, in the future. But the way I see it, even a ghastly future is better than no future at all. You robbed those people of their deaths. Made them nothing more than a message in a bottle. You violated something more important than time. You bent the rules of life and death. So I am putting things straight. Here, now, this is where your story ends.
The FISHER KING growls.
INT. BASE, HANGAR
The chamber beeps again the lid rattles.
INT. BASE, CORRIDOR
CASS continues to walk down the corridor and MORAN comes up behind her. Even though he is still dragging the axe, she, of course, hears nothing. CASS stops, pretending to tie her bootlace but presses her hand to the floor and feels the vibrations of the axe. MORAN swings the axe but CASS ducks and runs right through him. He disappears and the axe falls to the floor. CASS passes CLARA as she runs.
CLARA:
Oh, there you...
CASS grabs her hand and they continue running.
INT. BASEMENT
FISHER KING:
There is nothing you can do. (holds up weapon)
DOCTOR:
I've already done it. The words have gone. I got rid of them. The future I saw, none of that will happen now. The message will never contaminate my friends, no-one will die, no-one is coming to save you. That's the thing about knowing you're going to die. You've got nothing left to lose.
The FISHER KING growls and shoves the DOCTOR away and walks off.
INT. BASE, MESS
CLARA and CASS arrive at the mess, opening the doors.
LUNN:
No, no, you've got to get out of here. The ghosts locked me in. It's a trap.
The ghosts come out of the walls and move to surround them.
CLARA:
Come on! Faraday Cage now! (runs out)
CASS grabs LUNN’S hand and they run out after her.
EXT. VILLAGE, DAY
The FISHER KING exits the church and walks to the ship and inside.
INT. SHIP
The FISHER KING looks at the wall and sees the symbols are still there.
FISHER KING:
The Time Lord... lied.
One of the power cells is missing from its hatch.
EXT. VILLAGE, DAY
It’s outside beeping. The sound quickens. The FISHER KING walks away from the ship. The power cell explodes near the dam and cracks form as part of the dam crumbles.
INT. TARDIS
A hologram of the DOCTOR appears by the console. BENNETT looks up from his seat on the stairs.
HOLOGRAM:
This is security protocol 712. The echelon circuit has been activated. Please stow any hand luggage and prepare for departure.
The HOLOGRAM flickers out and the TARDIS starts up.
INT. BASE, CORRIDOR
CLARA, CASS and LUNN run for the Faraday Cage. The ghosts seem to herd them to the hangar.
INT. BASE, HANGAR
They back away from the entrance towards the suspension chamber.
CLARA:
Back, get back.
They bump into the chamber and it starts to activate. Four ghosts enter.
EXT. VILLAGE, DAY
The dam cracks grow wider and water pours through. The FISHER KING growls and simply stands there as the flood waters get closer. He then roars, arms outstretched as the water overtakes him.
INT. BASE, HANGAR
The chamber opens and CLARA, CASS and LUNN take a step back. The DOCTOR sits up, wearing his sonic specs. He whips them off.
DOCTOR:
Don't kiss me. Morning breath.
CLARA:
Doctor?
DOCTOR:
Follow me.
The DOCTOR runs from the hangar and the others follow.
INT. BASE, CONTROL ROOM
The DOCTOR slips the end of an earpiece from his specs into a slot on the console. The roar of the FISHER KING echoes through the base.
CLARA:
What's that noise?
DOCTOR:
It's the call of the Fisher King. The call of their master.
In the hangar, the ghosts turn around and leave.
CLARA:
Where are they going?
They move to look at the screens showing the base. The ghosts walk into the Faraday cage where the DOCTOR’S ghost is emitting the roar. The DOCTOR remotely closes and locks the door. The DOCTOR’S ghost flickers out of existence.
A little later CLARA is sitting wearing the DOCTOR’S shades.
CLARA:
So what was it? Your ghost.
DOCTOR:
A hologram. Like the one we made of you to lure the ghosts into the Faraday Cage. With a soupcon of artificial intelligence, and a few pre-recorded phrases thrown in.
CLARA reaches to take the glasses off but the DOCTOR slaps her hands away. He takes them off himself.
DOCTOR:
Uh... All beamed from the sonic glasses.
CLARA gets up and switches places with CASS. The DOCTOR puts the glasses on her.
DOCTOR:
As soon as you brought me and the chamber on board, it connected with the base's Wi-Fi and Bob's your uncle, you've got a ghost Doctor.
CLARA:
Why did they only come out at night?
DOCTOR:
They're electromagnetic projections that were out of phase with the base's day mode. Right. (takes the glasses off CASS) That's it. I've erased the memory of the writing. Though you might find you've lost a couple of other memories too. People you went to school with, previous addresses or how to drink liquids. That's you two done. Where's Bennett?
INT. BASE, CORRIDOR
BENNETT stands outside the Faraday Cage watching the ghosts, watching O’DONNELL. The others are standing behind him.
BENNETT:
What will happen to them?
DOCTOR:
UNIT will cut out the Faraday Cage with them inside and take it away. Then the space-hearse will be destroyed, so the writing doesn't infect anyone else.
BENNETT:
What do I do now?
DOCTOR:
I don't understand.
CLARA:
I do. (stands beside BENNETT) You keep going. You have to. Take it from me, there is a whole world out there, a galaxy, a life. What would O'Donnell have wanted?
DOCTOR:
I need to erase that message from your mind, but it's fine, I'll do it later. (starts to walk away)
BENNETT:
(turns around) Lunn. Will you translate something to Cass for me?
LUNN:
Of course.
BENNETT:
Tell her you're in love with her and that you always have been.
LUNN:
What?
BENNETT:
Tell her there is no point wasting time because things happen and then it's too late. Tell her I wish someone had given me that advice.
CASS questions LUNN and he tells her what BENNETT said. CASS looks puzzled and turns to BENNETT. LUNN is embarrassed.
LUNN:
Oh, God. I was just passing on what he said. Please don't feel...
CASS grabs LUNN by the collar of his shirt, pulls him close and kisses him deeply. It’s then her turn to be embarrassed.
INT. TARDIS
CLARA enters the TARDIS ahead of the DOCTOR.
CLARA:
What will UNIT do with the ghosts?
DOCTOR:
Drag the cage into space, away from the Earth's magnetic field. With nothing to sustain them, the ghosts will eventually fade away.
CLARA:
Here's what I don't understand. You did change the future. You stopped the Fisher King from returning.
DOCTOR:
The Fisher King had been dead for 150 years before we even got here. But once I went back I became part of events. But here's the thing. The messages my ghost gave weren't for you, they were for me. That list. Everyone after you was random, but you being the next name, that's what made me confront the Fisher King.
CLARA:
And saying the chamber will open?
DOCTOR:
That was me telling me to get inside and when to set it for.
CLARA:
Smart.
DOCTOR:
(smiles) Except that's not why I said them.
CLARA:
How do you mean?
DOCTOR:
I programmed my ghost to say them because that's what my ghost had said. And the only reason I created my ghost-hologram in the first place was because I saw it here. I was reverse engineering the narrative.
CLARA:
OK, that's still pretty smart.
DOCTOR:
You do not understand. When did I first have those ideas, Clara?
CLARA:
Well, it must have been... Wow.
DOCTOR:
Exactly. Who composed Beethoven's 5th?
RECAP of “Under the Lake”
INT. TARDIS
The DOCTOR walks around the console room, telling a story.
DOCTOR:
So there's this man. He has a time machine. Up and down history he goes, zip zip zip zip zip, getting into scrapes. (goes up the steps and flips through albums) Another thing he has is a passion for the works of Ludwig van Beethoven. And one day he thinks, "What's the point of having a time machine if you don't get to meet your heroes?" (walks around the top level) So off he goes to 18th-century Germany. But he can't find Beethoven anywhere. No-one's heard of him, not even his family have any idea who the time traveller is talking about. (puts down album cover and picks up bust) Beethoven literally doesn't exist. (goes down stairs) This didn't happen, by the way. I've met Beethoven. Nice chap. Very intense. Loved an arm-wrestle. No, this is called "The Bootstrap Paradox". Google it. (goes down to lower level) The time traveller panics, he can't bear the thought of a world without the music of Beethoven. (puts down bust) Luckily he'd brought all his Beethoven sheet music for Ludwig to sign. So he copies out all the concertos and the symphonies and he gets them published. He becomes Beethoven. And history continues with barely a feather ruffled. (picks up guitar and turns on amp) But my question is this. "Who put those notes and phrases together?" Who really composed Beethoven's 5th? (plays opening of Beethoven’s Fifth on the guitar)
**********************************************************************
Peter Capaldi
Jenna Coleman
DOCTOR WHO
“Before the Flood”
By
Toby Whithouse
PRODUCER
Peter Bennett
DIRECTOR
Daniel O’Hara
**********************************************************************
EXT. VILLAGE, DAY
The DOCTOR and O’DONNELL are standing outside an abandoned train station. As it was a training site for the military, the signs are in Russian.
DOCTOR:
Where's Bennett? We need to get going.
O’DONNELL:
Oh, he's still throwing up. "One small step for man, one giant... Bleaurgh."
DOCTOR:
Time travel does that sometimes.
O’DONNELL:
Somehow I doubt that Rose or Martha or Amy lost their breakfast on their first trip.
DOCTOR:
You seem to know an awful lot about me.
O’DONNELL:
I used to be in military intelligence. I was demoted for dangling a colleague out of a window.
DOCTOR:
In anger?
O’DONNELL:
Is there another way to dangle someone out of a window? What year are we in?
DOCTOR:
(licks his finger and hold it up) 1980.
O’DONNELL:
So, pre-Harold Saxon. Pre-the Minister of War. Pre-the moon exploding and a big bat coming out.
DOCTOR:
The Minister of War?
O’DONNELL:
Yeah.
DOCTOR:
Never mind. I expect I'll find out soon enough.
BENNETT:
Sorry about that. Had a prawn sandwich. Might have been off.
The DOCTOR smiles knowingly.
DOCTOR:
Don't worry. Shall we go?
The DOCTOR starts off but O’DONNELL rests a hand on BENNETT as she lifts a foot.
O’DONNELL:
Just one sec, I've just got something in my boot...
The DOCTOR goes ahead and O’DONNELL turns to BENNETT and fangirls, jumping up and down.
O’DONNELL:
It's bigger on the inside, it's bigger on the inside, how can it be bigger on the inside, Bennett? (regains composure) OK, let's roll.
They follow the DOCTOR.
EXT. VILLAGE, DAY
They walk along the pavement and we see them through a window where a mannequin has been placed. They continue past fake shop fronts and posters of Stalin.
BENNETT:
Why have we gone to Russia?
DOCTOR:
We haven't. We're still in Scotland. This is the town before it flooded. The TARDIS has brought us to when the spaceship first touched down. But here and now, it's the height of the Cold War. The military were being trained for offensives on Soviet soil.
They find the spaceship and the back is open. They walk towards it.
INT. SHIP
The stasis pod is there and there is a wrapped body on top of the other.
O’DONNELL:
Oh, is that the pilot? My God, look at size of it.
DOCTOR:
No, that's the body.
BENNETT lifts the cover of the hatch containing the power cells.
O’DONNELL:
What do you mean, "the body"?
DOCTOR:
This isn't just any spaceship. It's a hearse.
BENNETT:
The suspended-animation chamber is still here, and the power cells for the engine.
O’DONNELL:
And there are no markings on the wall.
DOCTOR:
Yet.
EXT. VILLAGE, DAY
A figure runs up to the ship, waving.
FIGURE:
Greetings!
O’DONNELL:
It's him, the ghost from the Drum.
FIGURE:
(in DOCTOR’S face) Remarkable. (in front of BENNETT) And humans, too. Albar Prentis, Funeral Director. (passes out cards)
BENNETT:
You're from Tivoli, aren't you?
PRENTIS:
The most invaded planet in the galaxy! Our capital city has a sign saying, "If you occupied us, you'd be home by now."
DOCTOR:
(throws card away) Yes, I've had dealings with your lot before. I can't say I'm a fan.
PRENTIS:
No, we do tend to antagonise. (laughs)
O’DONNELL hears a sound and looks away briefly.
DOCTOR:
What are you doing here?
PRENTIS:
Ah, yes. Of course. (runs up the stairs to the ramp) This is the Fisher King. He and his armies invaded Tivoli and enslaved us for ten glorious years! Until we were liberated by the Arcateenians. But, thank the Gods, soon we'd irritated them so much, they enslaved us, too! (laughs)
BENNETT:
My first proper alien. And he's an idiot.
PRENTIS:
And now in accordance with Arcateenian custom, I've come to bury him on a barren, savage outpost.
O’DONNELL:
You mean the town?
DOCTOR:
He means the planet.
PRENTIS:
(goes to the DOCTOR ) Although, at the risk of starting a bidding war, you could enslave me. In the ship I have directions to my planet and a selection of items you can oppress me with.
DOCTOR:
Listen. We've come from the future. You're about to send some sort of signal. How do you do it? Is it a special pen?
PRENTIS:
What are you talking about?
DOCTOR:
The technology you use, the thing that wrenches the soul out of the body and makes it repeat your coordinates for eternity. Give it to me now, I'm going to take the batteries out.
PRENTIS:
We don't have anything like that. (laughs) Even this belongs to the glorious Arcateenians.
DOCTOR:
So who sends the message?
PRENTIS sniffs the DOCTOR.
DOCTOR:
Back to the TARDIS. I need to talk to Clara.
INT. BASE, MESS
CASS is staring out the window at the DOCTOR’S ghost. LUNN walks over to CLARA who is sitting apart.
LUNN:
You've been here before, in situations like this before.
CLARA:
Yeah, not exactly like...But, yeah, once or twice.
LUNN:
(squats) So you've had to deal with people who are scared. What do you say to them? I'm asking what I should say to you.
CLARA:
That it will be all right. That the Doctor will save us.
LUNN:
And when you say it, do you believe it?
CLARA:
Yeah. Yeah, I do.
LUNN:
And now?
CASS slaps the back of her chair to get their attention. She signs once they walk over.
LUNN:
Cass thinks the Doctor is saying something different to the others. He's saying "Moran. Pritchard. Apprentice"? No, "Prentis. O'Donnell. Clara. Doctor. Bennett. Cass." It's a list of all our names and when he finishes, he just goes back to the beginning again, over and over. That's it.
CLARA:
Who's Prentis? (phone rings) It's the Doctor.
LUNN:
He's alive?
CLARA:
For the moment.
LUNN signs to CASS that the DOCTOR is alive.
CLARA:
Doctor? Doctor, are you all right?
DOCTOR: (over speaker)
Yeah, fine. So listen, the spaceship, it's a hearse.
CONTINUED, INTERCUT WITH -
- CUT TO:
INT. TARDIS
The DOCTOR has CLARA onscreen at the TARDIS console.
DOCTOR:
Clara, what's wrong?
CLARA:
Another ghost has appeared.
DOCTOR:
What? Who? Has someone died?
CLARA:
Doctor, it's you.
The DOCTOR says nothing, stunned by CLARA’S revelation.
CLARA:
Are you OK?
DOCTOR:
Yeah. Well, currently.
CLARA:
What does it mean?
DOCTOR:
It means I die.
CLARA:
No -- not necessarily. We can change the sequence of events so…
DOCTOR:
This isn't a potential future. This is the future now. It's already happened. The proof is right there in front of you. (turns away from the screen and puts his hands on the rail) I have to die.
CLARA:
No. You can change things.
DOCTOR:
I can't. Even the tiniest change, the ramifications could be catastrophic. It could spread carnage and chaos across the universe like ripples on a pond. (turns around) Ah, well, I've had a good innings. (aside to O’DONNELL) This regeneration is a bit of a clerical error anyway. (into phone) I've got to go sometime.
CLARA:
NOT WITH ME! Die with whoever comes after me. You do not leave ME.
DOCTOR:
Clara, I need to talk to you, just on your own.
The DOCTOR switches over to the old handset and CLARA takes the call of speaker.
DOCTOR:
Listen to me. We all have to face death eventually. Be it ours or someone else's.
CLARA:
I'm not ready yet. I don't want to think about that, not yet.
DOCTOR:
I can't change what's already happened. There are rules.
CLARA:
So break them. And anyway, you owe me. You made yourself essential to me. You gave me something else to... to be. And you can't do that and then die. It's not fair.
DOCTOR:
Clara. (lowers his head to rest on his hand on the console)
CLARA:
No. Doctor, I don't care about your rules or your bloody survivor's guilt. If you love me in any way, you'll come back. Doctor, are you...?
DOCTOR:
I can't save Moran or Pritchard.
CLARA:
No... but like you said, if you can find out why this is happening, maybe you can stop them killing anybody else, you can save us. And you can stop it happening to you.
DOCTOR:
I'll do what I can, but the future has already happened. We've just met the Undertaker and he's still alive.
INT. SHIP
PRENTIS walks to the ship, scribbling notes in a little book. He gasps when he enters the ship. The body is gone but the wrappings are still there! He sniffs and then sees the symbols on the wall. We see them reflected in his eye. A large shadow covers the opening of the ship.
EXT. SHIP, DAY
We hear a loud roar.
INT. TARDIS
The DOCTOR switches back to the screen.
DOCTOR:
So. Ghost me. You've got a better view than me. How do I look? Any signs of trauma, any scars? Any clues as to how I die?
BENNETT and O’DONNELL return him from where they were sitting to give him privacy.
CONTINUED, INTERCUT WITH -
- CUT TO:
INT. BASE, MESS
CLARA:
No, nothing. You're the same as all the other ghosts with the weird black eyes and... (walks up to the window) No. No, wait. Your coat. It's torn. The right shoulder.
CLARA holds the phone so the camera will show the DOCTOR the ghost.
DOCTOR:
I assume I'm just saying the same thing as the others.
CLARA:
(walks away from window) No, you're saying a list of names. Our names, mainly. "Moran, Pritchard, 'Prentis', O'Donnell, Clara, Doctor, Bennett, Cass." Who's Prentis?
DOCTOR:
The mole-faced chap.
GHOST DOCTOR enters the room and CLARA drops the phone.
DOCTOR:
What's the matter, Clara, what's happening?
CLARA:
You've moved inside. You're inside here now.
DOCTOR:
What am I doing?
CLARA:
Nothing, you're... you're just standing there.
DOCTOR:
I'm not trying to kill you? Why am I not trying to kill you?
Ghost DOCTOR moves.
CLARA:
No, wait, you're moving, going toward the control panel.
We see that he has opened the Faraday cage.
CLARA:
Oh, no. He's opened the Faraday Cage. He's let the other ghosts out.
DOCTOR:
I need to talk to me now.
CLARA:
Didn't you hear me? You opened the Faraday Cage. The other ghosts are outside. Shouldn't we be hiding?
DOCTOR:
In a minute. I need to talk to the ghost me.
CLARA walks over and props her phone so the DOCTOR can see the ghost.
CLARA:
OK, Doctor, you're on.
DOCTOR:
Doctor. Such an honour. I've always been a huge admirer. This is really a delight. Finally, someone worth talking to. So firstly, why are you here?
Ghost DOCTOR looks at the DOCTOR when he hears his voice but turns away when he’s done.
DOCTOR:
Clara, Clara, what's happening?
CLARA:
(takes the phone back) Erm... Er... you've just stopped. Oh, no, wait, you've started again.
CASS:
*His message has changed, he's saying something different. He's saying...*
CLARA:
What?!
DOCTOR:
What?!
LUNN:
What?!
CASS:
*He's saying... "The chamber will open tonight."*
DOCTOR:
Clara, now the ghosts are out, go to the Faraday Cage. They won't be able to get you in there. Oh, there's a problem.
CASS, LUNN and CLARA slowly back out of the room.
CLARA:
Problem? What problem? Because everything else is going so smoothly...
DOCTOR:
The phone signal won't get through. What you'll have to do, Clara, put the phone outside, and you can watch it through the little round porthole, and when you see it ringing, if it's safe to do so, go out and answer it.
CLARA:
OK. How long are you going to...?
DOCTOR:
Clara, listen to me. Don't let that phone out of your sight. I need to be able to reach you, I need to know everything my ghost does. Do you understand? I'll come back for you. I swear.
CLARA, CASS and LUNN run for the Faraday cage and the DOCTOR loses the connection. The DOCTOR bows his head before regrouping.
DOCTOR:
Come on. Oh, wait a minute. Not you, O'Donnell.
O’DONNELL:
Why not?
DOCTOR:
Someone needs to stay here and mind the shop. What if Clara calls?
O’DONNELL:
(scoffs) The last bloke that said something like that to me got dangled out of a window.
BENNETT:
Maybe the Doctor's right, maybe it's best if you stay here.
O’DONNELL:
Never going to happen. Seriously, have you two met me?
O’DONNELL strides out and the two men look at each other. BENNETT follows O’DONNELL.
EXT. SHIP, DAY
They see PRENTIS lying on the wrappings and hurry over.
DOCTOR:
Prentis. Prentis!
INT. SHIP
The DOCTOR checks for a pulse.
O’DONNELL:
Guess that dead body wasn't so dead after all.
BENNETT:
And now we've got the writing.
DOCTOR:
The Fisher King did it himself. The future is still coming.
EXT. SHIP, DAY
They hurry down the steps and see drag marks in the ground.
DOCTOR:
He's taken the suspended-animation chamber to the church.
They hear a loud roar.
O’DONNELL:
What was that?
DOCTOR:
We need to get back to the TARDIS. Now.
EXT. VILLAGE, DAY
They run through the village and hear another roar coming from in front of them. The DOCTOR leads them through a passageway.
INT. BUILDING, DAY
They continue to run.
DOCTOR:
It's cut us off.
O’DONNELL:
Let's split up. Go on, Bennett.
O’DONNELL ducks into a side passage and hides in an old room. The DOCTOR and BENNETT hide in another. BENNETT wedges a chair under the door handle. They hear heavy breathing and footsteps. Something large passes by the window of the room where the DOCTOR and BENNETT are hiding. Its shadow passes O’DONNELL. She sighs and steps out of hiding. The shadow returns and O’DONNELL turns around as we hear a low roar. BENNETT pulls the chair from the door.
DOCTOR:
No, Bennett! Wait!
BENNETT runs out of the door and finds O’DONNELL lying on the floor, moaning. He kneels beside her and takes her hand. He lifts up her head.
BENNETT:
Why did you come? You shouldn't have come. You never listen, it drives me mad.
O’DONNELL:
(strained) To keep an eye on you, idiot. So, don't die.
BENNETT:
(softly) No.
O’DONNELL dies and the DOCTOR walks in.
BENNETT:
Who's next on the list? (sets down O’DONNELL’S body and takes off glasses) That list your ghost was saying, (stands) that's the order in which people are going to die, isn't it? I mean, I've only just figured it out. But you knew all along, didn't you? Moran, Pritchard, Prentis, O'Donnell.
DOCTOR:
I thought perhaps, because her ghost wasn't there in the future, like Prentis's was, I thought maybe, maybe it wouldn't happen, maybe she stood a chance.
BENNETT:
(gets in the DOCTOR’S face) Yeah, but you didn't try very hard to stop her, though, did you? It was almost like you wanted to test your theory. So who's next?
DOCTOR:
Clara.
BENNETT:
Yeah. Yeah. Except now you're going to do something about it, aren't you? Because it's getting closer to you. You're going to change history to save yourself but not to save O'Donnell. You wouldn't save her.
DOCTOR:
This isn't about saving me. I'm a dead man walking. I'm changing history to save Clara.
BENNETT just walks away. After a moment, the DOCTOR follows.
INT. BASE, FARADAY CAGE
CLARA’S phone is propped on the wall opposite the door of the cage. She is watching it through the window. O’DONNELL’S ghost suddenly appears and CLARA falls back from the door.
CLARA:
O'Donnell's dead.
O’DONNELL turns her head and sees the phone. She then walks towards it.
CLARA:
Oh, no. No, no, no, no, don't you dare... don't you dare...
O’DONNELL takes the phone and walks away down the corridor.
INT. TARDIS
DOCTOR:
Big day for you. Time travel -- twice!
The DOCTOR starts the TARDIS.
BENNETT:
Whoa, really? When are we going to?
The DOCTOR walks up a set of stairs.
DOCTOR:
Off the map! Out of the rule book. What if I don't die, what if I refuse? I'm going to go back to the base and I'm going to save Clara because that's what I do, and I don't see anyone here who's going to stop me.
The Cloister Bell begins to toll.
EXT. VILLAGE, DAY
The TARDIS materializes in front of a building with “512” painted on it. The DOCTOR and BENNETT step out. BENNETT closes the door behind him.
DOCTOR:
Why are we still here?
The DOCTOR walks forward but stops when he sees the himself getting out of the TARDIS on the platform.
DOCTOR:
No, no, no, no, no, no.
BENNETT:
What?
DOCTOR:
We've moved half an hour backwards. I'm locked in my own time-stream. The TARDIS won't let me leave.
BENNETT:
What do we do?
DOCTOR:
Now we have to keep out of sight, until time catches up.
The DOCTOR and BENNETT go the other way. We hear the earlier conversation between the DOCTOR and O’DONNELL. The DOCTOR and BENNETT walk through the village. They see PRENTIS taking readings with a sextant.
BENNETT:
Prentis. He's alive. (starts walking towards him)
DOCTOR:
(hurries after him) No, he's just not dead yet. And we don't tell him.
BENNETT:
Yeah, but he's right there, we can just...
The DOCTOR pushes BENNETT back against a wall.
DOCTOR:
However that sentence ends, no, we can't. Save him and you'll want to save O'Donnell. You can't cheat time, I've just tried. You can't just go back and cut off tragedy at the root. Because you find yourself talking to someone you just saw dead on a slab. Because then you really do see ghosts. We don't tell him. Understand? Not a word. We don't have that right.
The DOCTOR and BENNETT hide behind some metal barrels labelled toxic waste and watch the conversation they had when they met PRENTIS. BENNETT looks fondly at O’DONNELL. He stands, ready to run and warn her but the DOCTOR tackles him and there’s the sound of a gunshot. O’DONNELL looks in their direction.
INT. BASE, FARADAY CAGE
CLARA is resting her head on the side of the cage. CASS and LUNN are sitting on the floor.
CLARA:
The dark. The sword. The forsaken. The temple. (walks to the center of the cage and faces CASS and LUNN) When we found out what the ghosts were saying, we weren't surprised because the words, they were already inside us. But you, (points at LUNN) you were, weren't you? You didn't know what the words were going to be.
LUNN:
No, I didn't. How did you know?
CLARA:
Who was the one person who didn't see the writing in the spaceship?
LUNN:
Me. Cass wouldn't let me go inside.
CLARA:
That's why the ghosts didn't hurt you when they had the chance. The message isn't inside you.
LUNN:
Yes, I suppose that makes sense. (stands)
CLARA:
So you can get the phone back.
LUNN:
What?!
CASS stands and signs for LUNN to let her know what’s happening.
LUNN:
She's saying I should go and get the phone back.
CASS:
*No.*
CLARA:
Listen, listen. I need... We, we need to be able to contact the Doctor and you are the only one who can do this.
LUNN:
OK.
CLARA walks to the window and CASS takes LUNN by the lapels and signs angrily.
LUNN:
No, she's right. Neither of you can get it back.
CLARA turns back in time to see CASS point at her as she signs.
CLARA:
What? What is it? What did she say?
LUNN:
It doesn't matter.
CLARA:
Please.
LUNN:
She said to ask you whether travelling with the Doctor changed you, or were you always happy to put other people's lives at risk.
CLARA:
He taught me to do what has to be done. (turns back to the door) You should get going. (opens door)
EXT. VILLAGE, DAY
The DOCTOR and BENNETT watch as their previous selves leave and PRENTIS enters the ship. They stand and the DOCTOR realizes his jacket is torn at the right sleeve. Just like his ghost.
DOCTOR:
I need more time, it's too soon. I haven't saved her yet. Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock, tick tock, tick tock. I've got no choice now, I have to face the Fisher King. You, back to the TARDIS.
They leave.
INT. BASE, CORRIDOR
LUNN steps into the corridor and CLARA and CASS stand in the doorway. After a brief pause, LUNN walks down the corridor the ghost took.
CLARA:
Look, he'll be fine, I promise.
CASS signs emphatically and walks back into the room.
CLARA:
OK. Didn't need anyone to translate that.
CLARA goes back into the cage and closes the door behind her. LUNN continues down the dimly lit corridor.
EXT. VILLAGE, DAY
The DOCTOR walks up outside the church.
DOCTOR:
Now I'm ready.
The DOCTOR walks into the church.
INT. BASEMENT
The building is only a church on the outside. Inside, it’s more of a warehouse. The DOCTOR goes down a metal staircase to a storage area of some sort with bare metal girders. The suspension chamber is there - open.
DOCTOR:
I've come from the future. I've seen the chaos you cause, the bloodshed.
FISHER KING: (o.c.)
Tell me what you have seen.
DOCTOR:
Ghosts.
FISHER KING: (o.c.)
Ghosts?
DOCTOR:
Souls wrenched from the dead. Repeating directions to here, to this spot, over and over.
FISHER KING: (o.c.)
How many ghosts do I create? How many?
DOCTOR:
Four that I know of. Maybe five by now. Probably more since I left.
FISHER KING: (o.c.)
My ghosts will make more ghosts. Enough to bring an armada. Enough to wake me from my sleep.
INT. BASE, HANGAR
A red light lights up on the chamber and it beeps.
INT. BASE, CORRIDOR
LUNN continues walking the corridors but pauses when he sees the ghosts. They look up and hiss when they see him. He stops and closes his eyes as they approach and surround him. They all seem to sniff him. They step back and he opens his eyes. He continues on. And they regroup after he passes.
INT. BASEMENT
We hear stomping.
DOCTOR:
What will happen when your people arrive?
FISHER KING: (o.c.)
We will drain the oceans and put the humans in chains.
DOCTOR:
This world is protected by me.
FISHER KING: (o.c.)
Yes. One man, lost in time.
INT. BASE, MESS
LUNN cautiously enters the mess and sees CLARA’S phone sitting on a table. He quickly grabs it and runs to the door.
COMPUTER:
'Door emergency security lock.'
The door slides closed and locks. The ghosts walk past.
INT. BASEMENT
We see part of a large figure walking up behind the DOCTOR.
FISHER KING:
The seed of their destruction is already sown. They will die. The message will be sent. My people will come, and you will do nothing to stop it, Time Lord.
The DOCTOR turns around as the FISHER KING is finally revealed. About three metres tall, with mandibles and spiky plate armour, and holding a large hand weapon.
INT. BASE, FARADAY CAGE
CLARA sits on the floor as CASS paces. Resolved, she goes to open the door. CLARA gets up to stop her.
CLARA:
Hey, no, no, no, no. Cass! Wait, what are you doing? Look, Lunn, he is going to be fine, I promise. We have to stay here. I know that look. I DO that look. OK, fine. But we stick together.
CASS opens the door and the leave the cage, CLARA closing the door behind them.
INT. BASEMENT
FISHER KING:
Time Lords. Cowardly, vain curators who suddenly remembered they had teeth and became the most warlike race in the galaxy. But you, you!
The FISHER KING advances as he speaks and the DOCTOR backs up until he hits the chamber.
FISHER KING:
You are curious. You have seen the words, too. I can hear them tick inside you. But you are still locked in your history. Still slavishly protecting time. Willing to die rather than change a word of the future.
INT. BASE, CORRIDOR
CLARA and CASS walk carefully through the corridors. CLARA calls for LUNN.
CLARA:
Lunn. Lunn. Lunn. (realizes she’s alone) Oh, Cass. (retraces steps) Cass. Cass. Idiot. I'm an idiot. (goes down another corridor)
CASS is walking down yet another corridor. As she passes a dark junction, we see MORAN emerge from the shadows with an axe. He follows. CASS turns to look behind her but nothing is there. She continues and we hear a metallic scraping as MORAN appears behind her dragging the axe.
INT. BASEMENT
FISHER KING:
You will be a strong beacon. How many ghosts can I make of you?
The FISHER KING backs away and the DOCTOR straightens and walks forward.
DOCTOR:
You know, you've got a lot in common with the Tivoleans. You'll both do anything to survive. They'll surrender to anyone. You will hijack other people's souls and turn them into electromagnetic projections.
The FISHER KING stops and turns to face the DOCTOR.
DOCTOR:
That will to endure. That refusal to ever cease. It's extraordinary. And it makes a fella think, because you know what, (walks around the FISHER KING) if all I have to do to survive is tweak the future a bit, what's stopping me? Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, the ripple effect. Maybe it will mean that the universe will be ruled by cats or something, in the future. But the way I see it, even a ghastly future is better than no future at all. You robbed those people of their deaths. Made them nothing more than a message in a bottle. You violated something more important than time. You bent the rules of life and death. So I am putting things straight. Here, now, this is where your story ends.
The FISHER KING growls.
INT. BASE, HANGAR
The chamber beeps again the lid rattles.
INT. BASE, CORRIDOR
CASS continues to walk down the corridor and MORAN comes up behind her. Even though he is still dragging the axe, she, of course, hears nothing. CASS stops, pretending to tie her bootlace but presses her hand to the floor and feels the vibrations of the axe. MORAN swings the axe but CASS ducks and runs right through him. He disappears and the axe falls to the floor. CASS passes CLARA as she runs.
CLARA:
Oh, there you...
CASS grabs her hand and they continue running.
INT. BASEMENT
FISHER KING:
There is nothing you can do. (holds up weapon)
DOCTOR:
I've already done it. The words have gone. I got rid of them. The future I saw, none of that will happen now. The message will never contaminate my friends, no-one will die, no-one is coming to save you. That's the thing about knowing you're going to die. You've got nothing left to lose.
The FISHER KING growls and shoves the DOCTOR away and walks off.
INT. BASE, MESS
CLARA and CASS arrive at the mess, opening the doors.
LUNN:
No, no, you've got to get out of here. The ghosts locked me in. It's a trap.
The ghosts come out of the walls and move to surround them.
CLARA:
Come on! Faraday Cage now! (runs out)
CASS grabs LUNN’S hand and they run out after her.
EXT. VILLAGE, DAY
The FISHER KING exits the church and walks to the ship and inside.
INT. SHIP
The FISHER KING looks at the wall and sees the symbols are still there.
FISHER KING:
The Time Lord... lied.
One of the power cells is missing from its hatch.
EXT. VILLAGE, DAY
It’s outside beeping. The sound quickens. The FISHER KING walks away from the ship. The power cell explodes near the dam and cracks form as part of the dam crumbles.
INT. TARDIS
A hologram of the DOCTOR appears by the console. BENNETT looks up from his seat on the stairs.
HOLOGRAM:
This is security protocol 712. The echelon circuit has been activated. Please stow any hand luggage and prepare for departure.
The HOLOGRAM flickers out and the TARDIS starts up.
INT. BASE, CORRIDOR
CLARA, CASS and LUNN run for the Faraday Cage. The ghosts seem to herd them to the hangar.
INT. BASE, HANGAR
They back away from the entrance towards the suspension chamber.
CLARA:
Back, get back.
They bump into the chamber and it starts to activate. Four ghosts enter.
EXT. VILLAGE, DAY
The dam cracks grow wider and water pours through. The FISHER KING growls and simply stands there as the flood waters get closer. He then roars, arms outstretched as the water overtakes him.
INT. BASE, HANGAR
The chamber opens and CLARA, CASS and LUNN take a step back. The DOCTOR sits up, wearing his sonic specs. He whips them off.
DOCTOR:
Don't kiss me. Morning breath.
CLARA:
Doctor?
DOCTOR:
Follow me.
The DOCTOR runs from the hangar and the others follow.
INT. BASE, CONTROL ROOM
The DOCTOR slips the end of an earpiece from his specs into a slot on the console. The roar of the FISHER KING echoes through the base.
CLARA:
What's that noise?
DOCTOR:
It's the call of the Fisher King. The call of their master.
In the hangar, the ghosts turn around and leave.
CLARA:
Where are they going?
They move to look at the screens showing the base. The ghosts walk into the Faraday cage where the DOCTOR’S ghost is emitting the roar. The DOCTOR remotely closes and locks the door. The DOCTOR’S ghost flickers out of existence.
A little later CLARA is sitting wearing the DOCTOR’S shades.
CLARA:
So what was it? Your ghost.
DOCTOR:
A hologram. Like the one we made of you to lure the ghosts into the Faraday Cage. With a soupcon of artificial intelligence, and a few pre-recorded phrases thrown in.
CLARA reaches to take the glasses off but the DOCTOR slaps her hands away. He takes them off himself.
DOCTOR:
Uh... All beamed from the sonic glasses.
CLARA gets up and switches places with CASS. The DOCTOR puts the glasses on her.
DOCTOR:
As soon as you brought me and the chamber on board, it connected with the base's Wi-Fi and Bob's your uncle, you've got a ghost Doctor.
CLARA:
Why did they only come out at night?
DOCTOR:
They're electromagnetic projections that were out of phase with the base's day mode. Right. (takes the glasses off CASS) That's it. I've erased the memory of the writing. Though you might find you've lost a couple of other memories too. People you went to school with, previous addresses or how to drink liquids. That's you two done. Where's Bennett?
INT. BASE, CORRIDOR
BENNETT stands outside the Faraday Cage watching the ghosts, watching O’DONNELL. The others are standing behind him.
BENNETT:
What will happen to them?
DOCTOR:
UNIT will cut out the Faraday Cage with them inside and take it away. Then the space-hearse will be destroyed, so the writing doesn't infect anyone else.
BENNETT:
What do I do now?
DOCTOR:
I don't understand.
CLARA:
I do. (stands beside BENNETT) You keep going. You have to. Take it from me, there is a whole world out there, a galaxy, a life. What would O'Donnell have wanted?
DOCTOR:
I need to erase that message from your mind, but it's fine, I'll do it later. (starts to walk away)
BENNETT:
(turns around) Lunn. Will you translate something to Cass for me?
LUNN:
Of course.
BENNETT:
Tell her you're in love with her and that you always have been.
LUNN:
What?
BENNETT:
Tell her there is no point wasting time because things happen and then it's too late. Tell her I wish someone had given me that advice.
CASS questions LUNN and he tells her what BENNETT said. CASS looks puzzled and turns to BENNETT. LUNN is embarrassed.
LUNN:
Oh, God. I was just passing on what he said. Please don't feel...
CASS grabs LUNN by the collar of his shirt, pulls him close and kisses him deeply. It’s then her turn to be embarrassed.
INT. TARDIS
CLARA enters the TARDIS ahead of the DOCTOR.
CLARA:
What will UNIT do with the ghosts?
DOCTOR:
Drag the cage into space, away from the Earth's magnetic field. With nothing to sustain them, the ghosts will eventually fade away.
CLARA:
Here's what I don't understand. You did change the future. You stopped the Fisher King from returning.
DOCTOR:
The Fisher King had been dead for 150 years before we even got here. But once I went back I became part of events. But here's the thing. The messages my ghost gave weren't for you, they were for me. That list. Everyone after you was random, but you being the next name, that's what made me confront the Fisher King.
CLARA:
And saying the chamber will open?
DOCTOR:
That was me telling me to get inside and when to set it for.
CLARA:
Smart.
DOCTOR:
(smiles) Except that's not why I said them.
CLARA:
How do you mean?
DOCTOR:
I programmed my ghost to say them because that's what my ghost had said. And the only reason I created my ghost-hologram in the first place was because I saw it here. I was reverse engineering the narrative.
CLARA:
OK, that's still pretty smart.
DOCTOR:
You do not understand. When did I first have those ideas, Clara?
CLARA:
Well, it must have been... Wow.
DOCTOR:
Exactly. Who composed Beethoven's 5th?