Grendlers in the Myst

An Earth 2 Episode Summary
by Ariadne[June 8, 1995]

CONTENTS:

• Teaser
• Act I
• Act II
• Act III
• Act IV

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Screenplay by: Heather MacGillvray and Linda Mathious
Directed by: Janet Davidson

The Teaser

Danziger, Alonzo, Morgan, Baines and Walman are running through the snow. Alonzo shouts keep on track! Morgan had no idea Grendlers could move this fast. Baines doesn't think they can lose him in this much snow. Morgan says they've lost them before and tracked them too many times to come away empty handed again. They are chasing a Grendler.

In narration, Danziger says it's Day 72 on this planet. They've been bunkered down through this cold weather for only 20 days, and it's already starting to seem unbearable. They are still unsure how long these winters last. Scouting parties for lower terrain have been limited by a lack of cold weather clothing and supplies, which is where the Grendlers come in.

Morgan warns the guys not to get too close - he'll pick them up and never take them to the stash.

In narration, Danziger says that they track them on and off for days, hoping to find a stash of supplies or clothing. They'd often see them in the distance hauling great bundles of found items, some easily recognizable from their lost cargo pods. Some have speculated that Grendlers are gatherer-traders by nature, but they'd yet to make any real contact with them; not that they'd have much to trade anyway.

Danziger warns them the Grendler is going to turn around and kiss them in a minute. Alonzo says that considering they've been doing all the work, they deserve a kiss; he then falls into a hole. He and Morgan seem to have have found a Grendler's stash; it certainly smells like one to Morgan, but it smells warm to Alonzo. They throw stuff up to the other guys.

The Grendler stands by a tree. It turns around, and it's actually a person wearing a copper mask.

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Act I

Night. Danziger, in narration, says the haul of winter clothing was a godsend. Whatever tinges of guilt they had for taking it had slipped away as night fell to subzero temperatures again; besides, as one of the kids pointed out, none of these things fit the Grendlers anyhow. None of the clothing ID'ed as Eden Project, nor was it typical of penal colonists; they did their best not to think about it. For some that was easy; for others just the stillness of these cold snowy days gave birth to all sorts of buried doubts.

Danziger brings Baines, who is on guard duty, a cup of coffee.

Yale tells Danziger they must continue to scout for a pass to lower elevations; he's been studying the orbital passes of the planet and fear they might be in for a leap winter, which would last twice as long as a normal winter. Danziger asks how long a normal winter lasts.

They enter the dome. Morgan complains that he can't sleep; he's been having dreams of his mother incessantly calling him. Yale says Adair had upsetting dreams about her mother last night. Julia comes in; she's been dreaming of someone kind of like her mother. Yale asks her if Alonzo has reported any Terrian activity; she doesn't think he's had a dream in weeks. Morgan asks what it means; are they all having Oedipal guilt complexes? Adair enters and says her dreams were of someone who only felt like her mother, begging her to listen; she couldn't hear what she was trying to say. Danziger says this is all the more reason to find a pass out of there.

True bursts in, saying she talked to her mother in a dream. Danziger goes to her and whispers that they'll talk about it later. Everyone else looks uncomfortable.

Day. The guys are out scouting again. Walman and Alonzo report their location to base camp where Morgan locks onto them and tries to get them on visual. A woman's transmission comes in instead. The woman, Dell Curry, says tells someone she wants him to know that no matter what happens, she will never stop trying to reach him. Morgan recognizes her as the woman from his dreams. Alonzo and Danziger see it on gear as well. Yale tells them to head back to base camp.

At camp, Morgan and Yale replay the tape of the transmission to Julia, Bess and Adair. Yale identifies it as a lasercast signal; it bridges their gear band whenever they are in its path. The signal may be affecting their dreams because the planet's metaphysical plane is so responsive. Morgan says it's weird that in his dreams she had become his mother. Julia says the mind sometimes takes unfamiliar images and alters them to familiar ones. True, who has been listening in, says the woman is not an unfamiliar image to her; she knows who she is. Julia says they're not trying to dismiss what she's dreaming about, but True leaves.

The guys call back to camp that they have found a fortified wooden shelter. Yale warns them it's best to stay clear. Alonzo thinks that even if they are penal colonists, they might know a way out of these mountains. Morgan says that they might also be out of their minds. Adair tells them to pull back; it's too dangerous. Danziger says they've decided to make contact anyway.

Alonzo says one guy is less threatening and asks the others to cover him. Danziger warns him to be careful while he's busy looking non-threatening. As Alonzo moves in, Julia asks if there's a point to this other than getting themselves killed. Yale tries to contact them on gear, but they have it powered down.

Dell Curry calls for Whalen. Morgan tries to pinpoint her location. She says Whalen must put aside the fire in his heart; killing her is not the answer, not after everything they've been through trying to survive here. At base camp, Morgan says her point of origin is scrambled, but the transmission is targeted to the place where the guys are.

The person in the copper mask comes up behind Alonzo and fires a lazer-powered cross bow; it sets a tree near him on fire. The rest of the guys didn't see the shooter and decide to leave.

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Act II

Night, in the dome. Morgan says it's difficult to sit a guy down for a talk after he tries to incinerate you; maybe they had no business getting involved. Julia asks him if they should just sit there while this guy tries to hunt Dell down, while they watch her die in their dreams. Bess doesn't think they should abandon her. Danziger reminds them they don't know the first thing about these people. Walman says they have no idea how many are in that camp. Yale hasn't found Dell Curry or Whalen in his searches of station telecasts. Alonzo says they must have been dumped by the stations, which means they were political prisoners or extremely dangerous. Yale suggests that Whalen thought the guys were penal colonists preparing to raid his camp. Adair thinks they should continue to try to reach Dell; none of them seem to be of a mind to turn their backs on this just yet. Morgan says they better be willing to risk their lives.

Bess goes to True outside by the fire, and they cuddle under a blanket. True knows Dell isn't her mother, but she still has dreams about her. Bess suggests her dreams are more about her real mother than Dell; she should talk to her father. True says he doesn't like to talk about her, so they don't.

They hear a growl. Magus, on guard duty, calls for a perimeter check, and everyone comes outside. It's a Grendler; he's angry - possibly mad about the stuff they stole. Alonzo tries to appease him by throwing him a coat, but the Grendler isn't interested. He wants a pouch True got from the stash, and she gives it to him. Dell calls again, and they all go inside. The Grendler covers its ears in response to the transmission.

Julia and Adair enter VR to watch Dell more closely. Dell says if he could hear this, she knows he'd understand that his father's not well, that it's her he wants; he's just caught in the middle. Julia says Dell is malnourished and suffering from exhaustion and dehydration. Dell says she knows it's difficult but he's 10 years old, and these are the tests of manhood; she wants him to know she's been trying very hard to reach him, but she's running out of time. She's made progress communicating with the beasts they thought so frightening; they smell, but they're smart. She gave a particular one a message for him.

They lose her signal. Bess thinks the Grendler in camp was the one Dell referred to. Adair is concerned because a child is involved. Danziger suggests using Zero to scan for movement in the morning. Yale reminds them that because the transmission is coded, she doesn't want her location known. Morgan suggests tracking her position by fooling the transrover's sensors into thinking it's a distress call; at worst, it would narrow her position.

Danziger is working in the transrover. Bess joins him and asks about True, then about True's mother. Danziger says what he chooses to tell True about her mother is his business; no one is more aware of what True's going through than him.

Later, Bess discusses the conversation with Morgan while he works. He says biostats are highly confidential, but public station records could be accessed through Yale.

Yale tells Bess and Adair what is in the records. True's mother's name is Eleanor Moore. She and Danziger were coworkers on an exotech crew on the stations and never married. She was nearly fatally hurt in a accident while making hull leakage repairs. He was retained for questioning, but must have been cleared. Elle Moore, however, seems to have disappeared.

Dell calls again. She says she wants him to remember that she loves him; his father's not well.

Walman, Baines, Julia, Alonzo and Danziger are checking Whalen's shelter; Baines has Zero's head in his backpack. They enter the booby-trapped shelter; no one is home. Over gear, Yale tells them he located Whalen and Dell Curry in the records; they had many aliases and were leaders of those renegade environmental research bands making unauthorized trips into the red zones down on Earth 20 years ago. They were probably shipped here with 6 - 10 others. Danziger says it looks like a group lived in the shelter at one time, but it's impossible to tell how many live there now. He finds a map with markings of Dell's possible locations. Alonzo finds a room with human skeletons in it, and they fear all the more for Dell's life.

They hear a gunshot outside. Zero detects movement of a biped; they follow. They find blood in the snow, and Julia suggests it's Dell's. They continue to track the movement until Zero reports the biped is stationary. They are uneasy; Danziger calls for Dell. They hear animal-like moans and carefully move forward until they see it is the Grendler from camp yesterday, laying in the snow, injured and groaning.

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Act III

Danziger, Baines and Walman track the shooter, while Julia and Alonzo kneel near the injured Grendler. She wants to try to stop the bleeding. Danziger asks if she wants to get that close to it. She asks to a wounded animal? Looking at Alonzo, she says she has enough trouble working on wounded humans. As Danziger and crew head back to Whalen's camp, Alonzo and Julia move in to check the Grendler. She gives it a pain-block, then moves its rags to look at the wound; she sees the name Dell Curry on one of the rags. The Grendler runs off. They decide to follow it, hoping it will lead them to Dell.

In the dome, Morgan says not one of the coordinates from the map Danziger found makes any sense; they are based on God-knows-what, but are close to the locations they have pinpointed. Bess suggests Whalen is more sensitive to the strange, fragmented dreams. Yale says they haven't had a transmission from Dell in a while; he may have found her.

Alonzo and Julia are having trouble keeping up with the Grendler.

At Whalen's camp, they see someone, possibly Whalen, standing in the doorway. Danziger decides to move in. Over gear, Adair tells him not to be risky; they can get more people there in an hour. He tells her they must act now to get information about where he stashed the kid. He and Baines move in, but find that what they saw was a strawman.

Yale tells the group at base camp the news they lost Whalen. Morgan is losing Alonzo and Julia's signal over gear. He decides to use the transrover's system to track them. He gets in touch with Julia, and she gives them their coordinates. He warns them to be careful because they've lost Whalen. He then tries to call to Danziger with the news about Dell's location. He turns and sees the man in the copper mask pointing the crossbow at him.

Danziger tells Adair he lost contact with Morgan. She, Yale, Bess and the kids check the transrover and find his gear. Adair and Yale decide to follow the two sets of tracks they find; because Morgan knows Dell's coordinates, he can lead Whalen directly to her.

Morgan tells the man that if this is some sort of family dispute, he's not one to get involved with other people's business. They know about the boy, and while it's no small matter to them, he might be able to call off the dogs, so to speak, if he could just give them some assurance he's alright. The man says it's all she lacks; the longer he's kept from her, the more she dies. She shall never have him! She is the personification of evil; he is endlessly hunted by her beasts. Like the clockwork of the moons, she comes to him in his dreams, showing him that her death will be his death. The mask is his only shield from her relentless voice. Morgan again asks about the boy. The man says over the interminable winters, he's done the unthinkable to survive. He will rip the knowledge from Morgan's soul to find Dell. Morgan says ripping is excessive and shows him the location.

True tells Adair and Yale and Danziger, Walman and Baines that Morgan has stopped moving; they are at his site. They find Morgan hanging from his feet, high in a tree. He insists they follow Whalen; the man's a maniac; he'll eat them all for lunch. Baines stays to cut him down.

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Act IV

They meet Alonzo and Julia in front of a cave and enter.

Dell comes on again. She tells Whalen she knows he's out there; she can feel his rage. The group splits up looking for Dell; they can hear her voice. At base camp on visual they see Whalen enter the chamber Dell is in. They face cross bows at each other. Devon arrives in the chamber first and throws herself on Whalen. She falls right through him; he and Dell are holograms. As the rest of the group arrives, they watch the end of Dell's story. She tells Whalen he had infected their son's life with his hate and fear. He says she will never have their son, not after she tore him down in front of the others, betraying his leadership and genius. He silenced them and their belief that she was right. And the boy knows the truth about her; he is no longer hers. They kill each other.

Yale asks how these holograms are possible, and finds a device. Alonzo, confused, says the guy in the woods that shot at them was real. Adair says it's because it all happened 20 years ago, didn't it, Whalen? The man in the copper mask is there - he removes it and kneels by his mother's hologram. This is the mother whose voice he built the mask to fend off, a voice he thought was that of a demon woman from the hills. Yale says the transmitter has been broadcasting VR messages every 60 days for over 20 years. Julia says the dreamplane in the area must have learned the message and penetrated their dreams. Adair says it was enough to drive the man mad. Yale turns off the hologram as the man reaches out to touch his mother's image.

The group stands watching as the Grendler gives the man a pouch. In narration, Danziger says it seems that Grendlers never forget a promise made, even if it means risking their very lives for close to 20 years to make good. True's pouch in the found winter clothing held a message sealed in its lining, the final words from a mother to her son. Dell's truth had finally been heard. Her transmitter, rigged to continuously broadcast her story by recharging itself, was as relentless as the Grendler. She never could have imagined how many lives it touched along the way.

Yale tells Bess and Adair that it's really quite a tragedy; Danziger and Elle had been outspace without drone support for a simple seal check on an exterior portal door. Station authorities panicked when they found out there was no drone and accidentally jammed Elle's air supply. She'd been registered neuro-dead ever since. Danziger had no idea she was three months pregnant. He inherited True, along with Elle's neuro-support payments. Bess asks why he keeps all that from True. Adair suggests fear and pain; he lost one person he loved, maybe he doesn't want to lose another.

In narration, Danziger says he remembers when the station meds recommended a stim program. Stored personality traits are reintroduced into a patient's brain. He had seen some of their successes. It wouldn't have been anything close to Elle, not her eyes, not her light. He had asked her twice to marry him; she had always laughed and thought it old-fashioned. But she liked that he tried, though. He always thought when True was the right age, he'd introduce her to her mother.

Danziger takes True away from camp and inserts something into her gear. She enters VR.

In narration, Danziger says he'd arranged enough credits to keep her on life support until then; that way, if True wanted to, she could opt for the stim program And maybe that would be enough for a girl who had every ounce of spirit in her mother's eyes.

True sees a bald woman, lying in a bed, with tubes and wires coming out of her. She says, Dad, she's beautiful.

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