========================== ALIAS 4X11 - THE ROAD HOME ==========================
P[A]RIS
Sydney, in an alias of an (ugly) prosthetic nose and a curly red wig, enters a restaurant.
Host: Bon soir, Madame (Good evening, Ms.)
Syd: Marie Gerard
Host: La table est prête (the table is ready)
Sydney follows the host, and walks pass Vaughn, sitting at the bar. Sydney is seated.
Syd: Un martini. Séche. Quatre olives.
Vaughn: She's in position. No sign of Connelly.
Cut to Dixon in van.
Dixon: He'll reveal himself.
Host (placing Martini on table): Madame.
Syd: Merci.
Syd takes the four olives out of the glass and puts them on the table.
Vaughn: She just made the announcement.
A man walks up to the table
Connelly: Il est trop tard pour une femme être ici tout seul. (it's too late for a woman to be here all alone)
Syd: Non plus dangereux ici que Bangladesh. (No more dangerous here than Bangladesh)
Connelly nods and sits down.
Connelly: I thought you might not come.
Syd: You underestimate me already.
Connelly: Well, I almost didn't come
Syd: Why is that? Crisis of conscience?
Connelly: I thought I might find a buyer willing to pay more.
Syd: I am not here for small talk, Monsieur Connelly. Are you selling, or no?
Connelly: I presume. . . you brought the down payment.
Sydney smiles slightly. A man enters the dining room. Vaughn notices him, watches him sit down.
Vaughn: We may have a possible third party. Sending you a visual Outrigger.
Vaughn snaps a pic of the man with a camera phone.
Dixon: Got it, searching for a match.
Dixon's computer runs a facial recognition scan. Cut back to Syd and Connelly
Connelly: So, what are your plans for your...new purchase.
Syd: Monsieur Connelly, where..is..the chip?
Connelly pulls of the bottom of a wine bottle, revealing the chip.
Connelly: This is my way out.
Cut to Vaughn
Vaughn: Anything, Outrigger?
Dixon: Come on...No matchs Shotgun.
Cut back to Syd and Connelly
Connelly: With this sale, I can buy a new life. A House on the Mediterranean. Maybe, get a dog -
Shots are fired, Connally is shot in the back of the head.
Vaughn: We're under fire!
The man fires, Sydney and Vaughn jump to the ground. The man runs by the table and takes the chip. The man runs into the kitchen, but Vaughn shoots him in the shoulder, making him fall down. Syd and Vaughn enter the kitchen, and the man grabs a knife.
Vaughn (pointing gun at him): lachez le couteau! (drop the knife!)
Syd (pulling gun on him): Freeze!
Dixon enters the kitchen, gun on the man also.
Man: He won't get me! My family! I'm not going to be made into (something). (sobbing) I won't have it! My wife! My kids!
Now, he has the knife up against his neck.
Syd: Put down the knife!
The man slits his own throat, causing Syd to look away in disgust.
APO
Sloane and Jack are in Sloane's office.
Sloane: Marshall ran an analysis on the chip recovered in PAris. The download confirms that a biometric targetting device is in fact being developed at a secure location in Austria.
Jack: Attached to a weapons system, this device would facilitate the targetting of an individual based only on a DNA sample or a biometric scan.
Syd: A next-gen sniper.
Sloane: Precisely. That's why I want you a plane to Salsburg by nightfall. Standard retrieval operation.
Syd: But...the man who killed himself?
Sloane: He was sent there to intercept the sale. When the assassin realized that the mission was a failure, he killed himself to protect his family from his employer. (After a pause) Sasha Korchev (Sloane says this, looking at Jack)
Jack looks flustered and disturbed by this.
Syd: I don't know that name.
Jack: Korchev is a monster. He's run arms to rebel forces in Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Angola, and holds a very tight leash over his men. Amongst Korchev's tactics is leveraging the live's of their families.
Syd: And it's Korchev's network that's developing the device.
Sloane: Yes, that's correct. But now that we have confirmation that Korchev is alive, I'm tasking Dixon to locate his whereabouts and report to CIA Proper. They'll send a tactical team to secure his arrest.
Jack: I have a liaison at the Angolan Chancory in D.C. . Put Dixon on something else.
Sloane: You want to take this over?
Jack: For the sake of expedience.
Syd: What am I missing?
Sloane: OK JAck, it's yours. (After a pause, to Sydney) Good luck in Salsburg.
Cut to Briefing room, Weiss and Vaughn are talking
Weiss: I'm telling you, this is a mistake. You gotta bring the team in on this one.
Vaughn: No way, not until I find out more.
Weiss: Alright, let's just ASSUME that your father did write those journals.
Vaughn: I know my father's handwriting. Things were referenced, things he couldn't know about. I know it sounds crazy but -
Weiss: The Soxs winning the Series is crazy. What you're talking about doing here is insane.
Vaughn: The Nurse who led me to those journals, she disappeared. she was a plant.
Weiss: So someone's trying to manipulate you.
Vaughn: What if my father is still alive? What if it's his way of trying to contact me?
Weiss: Ok. Ok, but why now? Why let you and your mother believe that he's been dead for 25 years?
Vaughn: I don't know, that's what I'm gonna find out.
Vaughn walks away.
Weiss: Hey
Weiss hands him a piece of paper. Vaughn opens it, and it has the address for a Paul Murdock in San Diego.
Vaughn: What's this? Who's Frank Murdock?
Weiss: The codename that you asked me to check in the journals. He's ex-Special Forces. Changed his name several times, finally settled on Frank Murdock. He runs a furniture repair shop outside San Diego.
Vaughn: You didn't tell anyone else about this, did you?
Weiss (Annoyed): Dude.
Vaughn: Nadia?
Weiss (Almost angered): Hey
Vaughn: Thanks
Cut to Sloane entering Jack's office.
Sloane (amused): The Angolan Chancory in D.C....Hmm, don't you think that's a bit thin, JAck?
Jack: You should've brought this to me first.
Sloane: The details of Sasha Korchev's mission are classified. As far is anyone is concerned, the assigment is only to tag the location.
Jack: The CIA wants him assassinated.
Sloane: Which is why I felt it unfair to burden you with this. Dixon has the necessary experience.
Jack: With Dixon, it would have to be a distance hit. I'll be able to get close to Korchev.
Sloane: Oh, I'm aware of that. And frankly, that concerns me.
Jack: I'll be fine. (beat) Korchev should've been eliminated years ago. When I had the chance.
MADA[G]ASCAR
Jack enters a little cottage on the beach.
Man: Ah, look at you. Back from the dead.
Jack: Hello, Jimmy. You look awful.
Jimmy: I keep telling my self, green vegetables. Gotta eat more of them.
He pours himself and Jack a drink
Jimmy: BUt, you know how that is. (after they drink) So, um, Jack, do you come bearing gifts?
Jack: Only the best.
Jack pulls out a portable DVD player and a CD Case.
Jack (tapping the CD Case): This. . . This was hard to find.
Jimmy's rubbing his hands together in excitement. Jack puts the DVD in and plays it. Screams emit from the player, female screams, accompanied by a low, guttural one. Jimmy's hands are moving in a strange way.
Jimmy: Is this...? I thought it was just a rumor!
Jack closes the player. Jimmy has a weird, twitchy reaction.
Jimmy: Jack! What do you want?
Jack: Information.
Jimmy: Anything!
Jack: The protocol for contacting Sasha Korchev.
Jimmy's smile disappears now.
Jimmy: Um, come on JAck. You know I can't!
Jack puts the DVD player back into his bag.
Jack: I'm disappointed Jimmy. I thought you were a true conniesuer
Jack begins to walk away.
Jimmy: Seriously, man, that's just not right! Jack! If Korchev finds out it was me...my life might not be worth much! But whatever, still! Ok!
Jack turns around.
Jimmy: I'll, I'll lay it out for you.
Cut to black.
Opening Credits
Syd and Marshall watching a video of Marshall’s son
MARSHALL: One small step for Mitchell Flinkman, one giant leap for man kind
SYD: Look at those legs, oh he’s incredible, he’s delicious
MARSHALL: He he, I’ve taken many a chop with a little salt n pepper. He’s the best, makes it all worth it, oh Sorry, speaking of which Salisbury, now according to the memory chip Korcheff is storing the targeting system in a sub-basement of a disco tech that he owns called The Club Felice, which officially begs the questions what is it with these guys and night clubs?
SYD: cracks a smile
Scene enters at night club shows Sydney in plain clothes then flash back to APO
MARSHALL: Korchef's regional security chief is a Jeremiah Goster, from Goster’s Institute of security protocol of based on access cards you will need a level 3 clearance to enter the belly of the building since the access card hardware is annoyingly difficult to duplicate you will need to steal one from one of the night club employees.
Scene back to the night club eyeing all the employees with access cards and where they are on their persons
View changes to a bar back as he’s addressing a customer in Austrian, Syd approaches bar back
SYD: Con eak un stellin ona dia (Austrian words phonetically spelled) Syd sounding like an amateur at the language
BAR BACK: Laughs - not bad, definitely in the ball park
SYD: O my God, thank you for being an American. I don’t think I can bear mangling the language in front of one more local
BAR BACK: Don’t feel bad, these people like to be offended, it’s their comfort zone
SYD: Let me guess…Upstate New York…
BAR BACK: Yeah, Yeah Rochester... How did you know that?
SYD: I went to Buffalo State, Undergrad
BAR BACK: Come on, GO Bangles SYD: Don’t even say that it makes me wanna cry, my god, I miss it so much…I mean this time of year me and my girlfriends should be grabbing 2 beef on wrekin and a six pack you know. (Drops something) ops look at me… for the nosebleeds. There’s nothing like Roast Beef and pilsner in 30 degree weather, you know what I mean
BAR BACK: Yeah, yeah I do know…
Voice from the bar yelling out Sam …..Something in Austrian
BAR BACK: Oh that’s me
SYD: Sam
BAR BACK: Yeah, sorry I can’t offer you a drink…Bar back…
SYD: waves at him going back to the bar smiling
Back to APO …
MARSHALL: The good thing, slash, bad thing about living in Austria, smoking is not prohibited. Err-go you have just developed a smoking habit (offers Syd a Cigarette)
SYD: No Thanks
MARSHALL: Good answer, just checking. It is actually a mag strip encoder. Just slide it through here like so and it will analyze the access control algorithms, extrapolate the clearances and then reprogram the card to give you full access.
SAM: Hey SYD: Sam, hey
SAM: Eh, Do you need a light?
SYD: No, thank you, I was just looking
SAM: Didn’t mean to scare you
SYD: oh, stop, found it
SAM: um, so listen, I never do this, really, but um I've been here for six months and I don’t really know anybody, at least not anybody who knows anything about Beef on wrek. So, (laughs) that smile and those dimples are pretty much the greatest thing I’ve ever seen, so, I think
SYD: I have a boyfriend
SAM: Right, no, right, of course
SYD: Thank you
SAM: Guess you gotta try huh
SYD: Where’s the bathroom?
SAM: It’s just (pointing stumbling on his words)
SYD: (Sneaks down to the basement of the club) Merlin, Merlin
MARSHALL: (putting on ear piece) Ok, I got ya Phoenix
SYD: Heading in
Show the control room of the club
Something said in Austrian about the door being opened. Security man responds in English
CLUB SECURITY MAN: No one is supposed to be down there. Run a sweep on section Delta. Pull up all the employee access records. Let’s find out who is down there.
SYD: (looking at papers and stuff on a computer desk in a dark lab looking room)
MARSHALL: What do you see?
SYD: The work station is cleared. Wait a minute (walks to another part of the room sees a bin on a desk) Status report, Operation Hawkeye, dated today,
MARSHALL: Open it up
SYD: (blank orange paper) nothing (puts the paper under a light and sees hidden writing) the reports embedded. (Goes to a copier machine and makes a copy) Transport protocol enacted, delivery on schedule, they moved the targeting device. Scheduled to leave the country at 0600 hours
MARSHALL: OK, checking airfields and shipping yards.
SYD: Installation complete, status field ready. My God, it’s already weaponized.
(Someone opens the door of the room)
MARSHALL: Syd? Syd are you ok?
SYD: (Grabs the man coming in) Operation Hawkeye, where is it being shipped out of? Tell me!
CLUB GUARD: No!
Back in the security control room of the Club on the computer screen a picture of the employee Sam
CLUB SECURITY MAN: Sam Houser, breach initiated by Sam Houser. Club level employee, all units locate and detain him!
SYD: (over hears order on the radio that the guard has on him) It wasn’t a yes or no question. The name of the shipping yard.
CLUB GUARD: The Delong Precia shipping.
SYD: (elbows him in the face and walks out)
MARSHALL: Syd are you okay?
CLUB SECURITY MAN: Moving in, let’s get him...
The guards walk by Sydney hiding behind a door and then she makes her way back up to the club floor.
SYD: I’m ok
MARSHALL: whoa, be careful ok
SYD: What do you have?
MARSHALL: Houser, Samuel, David living for a ½ year in Austria on a student visa. Odd jobs, owes money on some over due movie rentals but other than that, he’s, he’s just a guy.
On the club floor Syd looks for Sam and goes up to him
SYD: Hey, let’s get out of here
SAM: uhh but you said you had a boyfriend, I thought
SYD: A girl can change her mind right?
SAM: Um I don’t get off for like another hour but you can wait for me at the bar or
SYD: (plants a kiss on him) If you don’t leave with me right now you will regret it
SAM: right, well uh we can slip right out the back door
SYD: you took the words right outta my mouth
They both go out the back of the club
CLUB SECURITY MAN: Go check over there
BACK TO APO
NADIA: Delong Precia shipping is 30 miles outside of Salisburg
SYD: Have an in country contact.
SLOANE: Use him have him supply you for the mission. We need to secure the weapon before it leaves port.
SAM: Hey, if we cross over to Philton I know a great wine bar
SYD: I’m sorry I’m on the phone with my sister
SAM: Where’s the phone?
SYD: We have another situation, a civilian, Korchef’s team tagged him as my accomplice, and I can’t leave him
SLOANE: Pass him off to your contact; we’ll have him reestablished stateside by the weekend
SAM: That cell is insane, the guy at the store told me mine was the smallest I knew he was jobbing me.
SYD: Sam
SAM: Yeah
SYD: There’s something I have to tell you
SAM: You’re having second thoughts
SYD: It’s not about that
SAM: If this is about your boyfriend, let me just say
SYD: Forget about the boyfriend
SAM: Well then maybe we can just go back to my place and talk it nice to have a normal conversation, if you don’t mind a mess
SYD: Sam…. you can never go back to your place.
SAM: What?
SYD: Listen to me. Your bosses at the club are bad men. I was there tonight to stop them from doing a bad thing
SAM: Wait a minute
SYD: I needed your access card and I took it and now they think we work together.
SAM: Work together? What about Beef on … Who the hell are you?
SYD: I need you to trust me right now
SAM: Oh is that what you need? Ok that’s good cuz I gotta get back to work so I can get away from
SYD: WAIT…if you go back there, they will kill you
SAM: You’re serious
SYD: But if you stick with me I promise I will protect you. We have ways of handling situations
SAM: Whose we?
SYD: I can’t tell you that
SAM: You already lied to me once so how do I know you’re not one of the bad guys?
SYD: If I was one of the bad guys you’d already be dead.
SAN DIEGO
Scene goes off to a carpenter shop where a guys hands a man in a wheelchair a piece of woodwork
MAN IN WHEELCHAIR: Thanks Joe
Vaughn walks in to the shop and approaches the man in the wheelchair.
VAUGHN: Hi uh I’m looking for someone Frank Murdock have you heard of him?
MURDOCK: Nope never heard of him
VAUGHN: Well the shop is registered to his name.
MURDOCK: (Snickers) What are you a cop?
VAUGHN: No it’s a personal matter regarding my father. Tell you what; whenever you get your memory back tell him Michael Vaughn is looking for him. (Hands Murdock a piece of paper) Here’s my number, thanks for your help.
MURDOCK: You really Bill Vaughn’s kid?
VAUGHN: Yeah.
MURDOCK: (Shows Vaughn a picture) There’s your dad. In the middle. That’s me on the right. Everyone else is dead.
VAUGHN: What do you think he’s still alive?
MURDOCK: Well I hope not.
VAUGHN: When was the last time you saw him?
MURDOCK: The Falkland Conflict. We were supposed to lead a team of locals to secure a British position. Our men were ambushed, and Bill didn’t even flinch. While I broke command and charged in to defend our men, next thing I know my legs went numb. He shot me in the back. I don’t remember hitting the ground but I remember lying there looking up at him completely paralyzed and he just stared down at me and lit a cigarette, ha and walked away. That’s the last I ever saw of him.
VAUGHN: I can’t believe that’s true.
MURDOCK: Yeah, well if he’s still alive, I’ll give you one piece of advice; don’t turn your back on him.
END OF SCENE
SYDNEY: (In a phone booth looking at an ad then picking up the phone while Sam is in the background.)
SAM: Who you calling?
SYD: (Turns and smiles at him coyly)
SAM: Oh yeah, that’s right, my bad
CONTACT ON THE PHONE: Good Evening
SYD: Phoenix inquiring about a midnight snack.
CONTACT ON THE PHONE: And how many will we be serving?
SYD: Two, One will have the special, One will be ordering off the menu
CONTACT ON THE PHONE: When will you be joining us?
SYD: As soon as possible
CONTACT ON THE PHONE: I’ll make sure the table is ready.
SYD: Thank you. (Hangs up and turns to Sam)
SAM: Let me guess…that wasn’t a real restaurant.
(Flash to CONTACT PERSON ON THE PHONE on the phone calling the CLUB SECURITY MAN
CONTACT PERSON ON THE PHONE: I’ll have them delivered to you shortly
CLUB SECURITY MAN: I assure you Mr. Tuabber; Sasha Korcheff will be made aware of your allegiance
MR TAUBBER: That’s all I ask.
ANGOLA
JACK: (Approaches a group of armed Mercenaries at a picnic table) In Angolan sub titled in English I’m looking for the Rug Merchant (The Mercenaries get up and start to pat and search Jack, take money from his wallet) His shop is sixty kilometers up the Bantu River.
MERSONARY MEN: (Hit Jack in the back of the knees and bag his head with a sack, speaking in Angolan, throw Jack in the back of a pick up truck)
Switch back to SYD and SAM
SAM: When are they coming?
SYD: They should be here soon, Sam
SAM: I’m not stupid. Ok, I understand what happens in the witness protection program. I get shipped off to some boring suburb; they pick a name right out of the Episcopalian registry. I don’t get to see my family anymore. You think my mother is gonna be able to handle that?
SYD: When I know everything is safe I’ll let her know your okay.
SAM: You know what the real pisser about this whole thing is? Is that I came here to pump some thunder into my veins, try to find some inspiration, take a shot at writing something. Didn’t happen. Just drink a lot of beer.
SYD: Here we go. (A man gets out of a jeep and approaches them)
MR TAUBER: Agent Bristow, so good to see you again. (Kisses her on both cheeks) Is this the cargo?
SYD: This is Sam, yep
MR TAUBER: We’ll have him whitewashed in an hour. Come, please. No worries, the supplies are in the vehicle.
SYD: You have a weapon for me?
MR TAUBER: Of course my dear, let’s get out of the cold first hum
(They walk over to the Jeep and SYD notices someone trying to hide in the back seat. SYD grabs MR TAUBER and shoots the man in the back seat. Then she fights with MR TAUBER and smashes him using the door of the jeep. SAM watches in amazement)
SYD: We need to get out of here. We’re not safe.
SAM: I’m not going anywhere with you.
SYD: Sam! Take my hand we have to go.
SAM: Look at what you did to him.
SYD: We just got blindsided and we dealt with it. But that doesn’t mean we give up. It doesn’t change who we are. I’m on your side. I’m not gonna lie to you Sam, I’m not gonna have the supplies I was counting on, I can’t promise you how this thing is gonna turn out.
SAM: What you mean you don’t have back up SYD: I’m it. I need you to think. Do you know any back ways to the Delong Precia Shipyards?
SAM: Yeah, I mean you can take the Metro, why?
SYD: The people who are after us have a weapon they shouldn’t have and I want to take it from them.
SAM: Let’s go to the Metro. Hey hold on, you do understand that I don’t have any skills. Not in a physical sense.
SYD: It’s okay. I got you. Come on Come on (they run towards the Jeep)
Scene change to Sasha walking down stairs with guards. Jeep pulls up with Jack hooded in the back.
MERCENARY MAN: This is your stop.
SASHA: Remove his hood. Untie his hands. Did this man carry identification?
MERCENARY MAN: Yes he did.
SASHA: And do you know who he is? (Says something in Angolan)
MERCENARY MAN: Sir, I…I didn’t
Sasha pulls a gun out and shoots the man in the knee.
SASHA: You strike this man and you strike me in the heart, understand? Jack, my dear friend.
JACK: Hello Sasha
SASHA: I apologize for that scene outside; I’ve always remembered what you taught me. Treat your men like children. Give them rope to become their own men, if they make mistakes, hang them with it.
JACK: I’d say my lessons have served you well.
SASHA: I’d ask how you managed to find me but I know you too well.
JACK: You can rest assured you’re well insulated.
SASHA: I do what is necessary to stay alive. After all I don’t have you or the CIA to watch my back anymore. I must say I was shocked at how abruptly our association ended. One day we are working together, arming a rebellion, the next you’re gone.
JACK: My mandate changed.
SASHA: Yet here you are. Why are you here Jack?
JACK: I’m entering the private sector. Now that I’m out from under their watchful eye I was hoping we could talk business?
SASHA: It would be my honor to work with you. (His cell phone rings) Excuse me. (Answers phone) Yes.
CLUB SECURITY MAN: The delivery of the package is proceeding on schedule
SASHA: Keep me posted. (Hangs up and turns back to Jack)
SASHA: Jack, I want to show you my Zoo
JACK: (laughs) It was a dusty ride
SASHA: Of course, forgive me. I have an 18 year old single malt to remedy that. Heh
JACK: Excellent (both walk into Sasha’s home)
SASHA: Jack, I’d like to you to meet my wife, Lamni.
LAMNI: The Jack?
SASHA: The One.
LAMNI: Well then, the pleasure is all mine. I hope you will be staying awhile; I’d like to get to know the man my husband talks about.
JACK: That’s very kind but I'm not sure how long I can stay.
LAMNI: Well, dinner at least? I’ll see that the staff prepares something wonderful. Truly it’s so good to finally meet you.
JACK: You too.
SASHA: I need to steal Sasha from you for just a moment.
JACK: Certainly
SASHA: Make yourself comfortable in my office. First door on your left.
SASHA and LAMNI walk away and JACK enters SASHA’s office
JACK: Looks around the office and picks up a photo on the desk of 2 military men (maybe Bill Vaughn?) He puts the photo down and pulls out a retractable wire which he then starts wrapping around his fingers while looking at himself in a wall mirror.
Scene changes to the CLUB SECURITY MAN and an associate walking on a dock or pier pushing a utility cart into a building. View changes to SYD and SAM creeping by a white van outside the building.
SAM: Can you tell what it is?
SYD: UAV Assault Chopper
SAM: It’s kinda small.
SYD: They customized it
SAM: What?
SYD: It’s a biometric targeting system. It’s in the chopper. Once that thing locks on to its target there’s no hiding
SAM: So that thing kills people?
SYD: Can you drive this thing? (Nodding towards the white van)
SAM: Yeah
SYD: Remember when you said you wanted to pump some thunder into your veins, well your about to get your chance. Ill get the weapon. You drive the Van into the warehouse. Pick me up in 3 minutes.
SAM get into the van SYD goes into the warehouse and hits the guy over the head with a crow bar. SAM puts key into the ignition.
SAM: You can do this. Stay cool.
SYD is in front of the weapon and it targets her as the enemy. The van comes screeching into the warehouse and the CLUB SECURITY GUY tried to get out of an office but it’s locked.
SAM: (to SYD) Get In!
SYD: Here take this.
CLUB SECURITY GUY has a laptop that states the helicopter is SYSTEM ACTIVE ATTACK. The mini helicopter starts up in front of SYD and she begins to run while the mini helicopter shoots at her.
SYD: Get down, stay in there. (Syd takes off running for her life from the mini helicopter throughout the warehouse.)
SAM is in the van and the CLUB SECURITY MAN comes to the van with his gun pointed. SAM slips out before the man gets there. The CLUB SECURITY MAN stops searching the inside of the van and walks around it. SAM comes around from the back of the van gun in hand. He comes from behind the CLUB SECURITY MAN and starts shooting, missing the man entirely, the CLUB SECURITY MAN shoots back and hits SAM in the upper arm. SYD jumps out from behind some boxes and starts to fight. The Mini helicopter comes around the corner and SYD takes CLUB SECURITY MAN and blocks herself with him and the mini helicopter shoots the CLUB SECURITY MAN and SYD tricks the mini helicopter into thinking she was eliminated. SYD pushes the CLUB SECURITY MAN off of her and goes over to SAM who is lying on the floor.
SAM: I missed.
SYD: I noticed.
SAM: That guy was my boss. He shot me. (Laughs nervously) It doesn’t hurt.
SYD: It will soon.
SAM: Oh oh (in pain) we did it huh? We saved the world.
SYD: Something like that (Syd pulling him up off the floor)
Scene changes back to SASHA’s house. SASHA walks into his office
JACK: She’s lovely, your wife.
SASHA: Indeed, we just found out, she’s pregnant.
JACK: Congratulations
SASHA: I’ll be honest with you. When I first saw the heartbeat, I was scared. I thought what kind of father will I be? Seeing you here, I’m reminded of the tools you’ve given me, the tools for being a man. (holds up glass to JACK to salute, they drink)
JACK: I gave you the tools; you chose how to use them.
SASHA: There was a time Jack when we were both working for a higher purpose but our goals were not the same, that became clear when you and your agency abandoned me. I realized on that day how naive I‘d been. I had no option but to pick myself up, stay on course. Because that is the man you taught me to be. I know that there are some in your government that see my business as a form of betrayal.
JACK: (While strangling SASHA with the wire) You betrayed me.
JACK leaves SASHA dead in the office and exits the office.
JACK: Mr. Korcheff asks not to be disturbed. He will be out shortly. I need a car; I need to go to town.
Back to LA
WEISS: Hey
VAUGHN: Hey
WEISS: When did you get back?
VAUGHN: About an hour ago.
WEISS: Did you find Murdock?
VAUGHN: Na, I couldn’t track him down.
NADIA: Ready? We should go. We’re going to the movies do you wanna come?
VAUGHN: Oh, no thanks, not tonight.
NADIA: Is it important, we don’t have to go.
VAUGHN: You guys go. I’ll see you tomorrow.
WEISS: Alright
NADIA: Good night
VAUGHN: Goodnight (sighs after they leave)
Scene changes to bleachers with SAM and SYD:
SYD: I spoke to my people, they spoke to people. It’s safe for you to go back home.
SAM: Think I’m done here. (Laughs) I think its time for me to move on. It must kill ya. You get to do all these crazy things, see these amazing places, gotta keep it to yourself
SYD: You know what it’s not so bad. It gives people like us something in common.
SAM: People like us huh (cheesy smiling) (SYD gets up to walk away)
SAM: Hey, Ill see you around the globe
SYD: Goodbye, SAM
BACK TO APO
SYD: Hey Dad. I heard you located Korcheff.
JACK: Yes, I did.
SYD: Sloane said he was taken in a standoff. Were you there?
JACK: I saw it play out.
SYD: Heading home?
JACK: Yeah, I’m gonna grab some dinner first.
SYD: okay, night.
JACK: Good night.
SYD: Dad, I’m kinda hungry myself, If you wouldn’t mind the company
JACK: What about your report?
SYD: It’ll keep
They smile and walk out of APO.
================================
==========================
ALIAS 4X12 - THE ORPHANE
==========================
SAN MARCOS ORPHANAGE
Scene begins with a flashback of the orphanage San Marcos (Buenos Aires, 1992). It is the middle of the night and a man is creeping thru the dark room. He approaches a young girl, clasps his hand over the mouth of the girl and shushes her. All of a sudden a flashlight shines and a little girl yells:
YOUNG GIRL: (Most dialogs in this episode are in Spanish) Let her go!
MAN: Get back in your bed!
YOUNG GIRL: Let her go!
The young girl with the flashlight runs to hit the man, he grabs her. Throws her onto her bed and slaps her around, she runs out of the room. He yells at the girl:
MAN: You ever come back, I’ll kill you.
A woman enters the room. Sonya Braga as Head of the Orphanage.
WOMAN: What’s going on?
She turns on the lights to see a man holding his eye.
WOMAN: To my office now! NOW! Where is Nadia? What happened to Nadia? The girls all look at each other and then one walks up and says:
CHILD: She left. Nadia saved me and she left.
LOS ANGELES
Scene starts with Nadia running down a road with a white fence. She brings in the mail to her and Syd’s apartment
NADIA: Hi
SYD: Hey, (pause for a few seconds approaches her opening her mail) what’s going on?
NADIA: Nothing.
SYD: When something is bothering me I go running. You’ve gone twice in less than 12 hours.
NADIA: (phone rings) Hello, Hey Vaughn, yeah sure, she’s right here. (Hands the phone to Syd.)
SYD: Thanks (takes the phone, Nadia walks away) Hey, sure when do you wanna meet?
VAUGHN: (flipping thru a notebook) it’s definitely my father’s handwriting.
SYD: But these entries
VAUGHN: I know
SYD: I don’t understand?
VAUGHN: They’re dated after his death. Now you know about as much as I do. You know, either he didn’t die when the CIA says he did, which they may or may not know the truth about; or someone wants me to think he is still alive.
SYD: You have nothing else but this?
VAUGHN: I tracked down a guy Murdock, he’s mentioned in there, he claims that he went on a mission with my father in 1982. He says my dad shot him in the back and left him for dead. He called my father a traitor. I don’t know what to believe.
SYD: (Putting her hand on his shoulder) What do we do?
VAUGHN: Well there are names of classified missions in there. Now to get the details, I need access to all operational achieves. Now, I could put a request into Langley
SYD: But if someone is orchestrating this from the inside, you don’t want your name on an official request. I can do that.
VAUGHN: Sure you don’t mind?
SYD: Vaughn. If your fathers alive we’ll find him. And if he’s not we will find the person who is doing this.
Scene back to APO
SLOANE: The Bella Russian Institute of Science has developed an ex-Geon optical component it’s called Amplifying Glass.
MARSHALL: Now what is amazing about this is, well if my math is correct, and it is. What they developed could boost a laser pulse by a factor of 10,000 maybe even higher. Meaning you could take a simple aluminum galler arsenide laser and…eh let me... oh, you know how a cd player has a laser that will allow you to…well you take that laser, you amplify it by this lense, you can shoot down a plane from the sky. Or you can take a tank and slice it in half or you can even have an SUV...
WEISS: Right, we got it
JACK: We’ve been tracking Intel which indicates that the Jakarta Faction wants the lense and they’ve employed this man to acquire it for them.
SLOANE: His name is Cesar Martinez, he’s an Argentine resident. Nadia looks visibly disturbed by seeing this picture and info.
Scene changes to a flashback of Nadia as a teenager walking into a store with a bag. The flashback in all in Spanish.
YOUNG NADIA: Hello, Coffee with milk, please
OWNER OF STORE: Five pesos
Young Nadia looks into her bag and Young Cesar Martinez walks into the store, opens a bag of chips in front of the store owner.
OWNER OF STORE: You’re gonna pay for those, no?
YOUNG CESAR: (Throwing the bag of chips at the man) You wanna bet. (He runs out of the store with the owner chasing him)
Young Nadia jumps the counter, opens the register and takes the money, puts it in her bag and hops back over the counter. The man comes back in and sees her trying to gather her bag.
OWNER OF STORE: What are you doing?
YOUNG NADIA: (pulling out a gun) Get back. Down. Now. On the floor. (Then she sprays him with the water gun laughing, turns and runs out of the store)
Flashes back to APO meeting to Nadia looking uncomfortable
SLOANE: A few days ago I tasked Nadia with working up a profile of him
NADIA: Martinez is freelance, no loyalties. Excessive force, that’s his M.O. He willed his reputation with the execution of a former Argentine Intelligence Officer, Roberto Fox.
DIXON: Any idea when Martinez is planning to make his move?
SLOANE: Signal intercepts indicate that he is developing a team. It should be three days a week at the most.
JACK: The Institute of Science is dedicating a new Wing to its research facility tomorrow night.
SLOANE: So our mission is to obtain the amplifying glass before Martinez does. Sydney your on point, Agents Vaughn, Weiss, and Santos will be there for support. This is a snatch and grab situation. Are there any questions?
Everyone stays quiet.
Flashback to Young Nadia running down the street around a corner starts to yell.
YOUNG NADIA: Cesar, Cesar
Cesar jumps out and grabs Yong Nadia and playfully backs her up against a wall and kisses her cheek.
CESAR: Worried about me?
YOUNG NADIA: Look. Look (while rustling thru her bag.)
POLICE OFFICER: Garbage!
Young Nadia takes her bag and starts to swing it at the officer, the officer backslaps Cesar to the ground then starts to beat Young Nadia up with his club – she’s yelling
Flashes back to APO where Nadia looks disturbed and gets up from the table.
SYD: Hey (Looks at her like she’s hiding something)
NADIA: I knew him, Roberto, the man who had Martinez killed.
SYD: If this mission is too difficult and too personal for you. Talk to your father and ask him to task someone else.
NADIA: It’s my job I can make it work.
OPENING CREDITS
Scene is in APO showing Vaughn looking thru his father’s notebook highlighting information.
MARSHALL: Hey, Mitchell learned a new word.
VAUGHN: What was the word?
MARSHALL: Oosh not, its Mitchell’s baby speak for beta particle. Anyway, here Sydney wanted me to give you these. Access code for the operational achieves. She wanted me to give them to you to give to her.
VAUGHN: Thanks.
MARSHALL: Ok (just stands there with a smile on his face)
VAUGHN: Anything else?
MARSHALL: What's a, what’s going on (pointing at the paper he just gave to Vaughn)
VAUGHN: Nothing
MARSHALL: (nods his head in disbelief) you’re lying to me right? Come on Come on, I’m smarter than you think.
VAUGHN: Ill tell you later.
MARSHALL: You don’t trust me do you?
VAUGHN: Marshall,
MARSHALL: No my fault, eh, probably get that just like high school, jr high, elementary
VAUGHN: Marshall, We should have lunch sometime.
MARSHALL: Really? Yeah, aw man, anytime, absolutely. I’m there. Did, today?
VAUGHN: No.
MARSHALL: No. that’s cool. I got a lot of stuff to do in the a … Thanks.
VAUGHN: You got it.
MARSHALL: Ya Ill see ya, Lunch (Walks out raising his arm) Saying what’s up buddy to someone walking in the office)
MINSK
Scene shows a crowded party.
SYD: Outrigger, How are we doing?
DIXON: (Takes a picture of a couple) 10 seconds Phoenix. The architect just arrived. (Uses a thermal camera and looks in the architects jacket) He has PDA is in his jacket.
MARSHALL: Ok great, Phoenix, you’ll have to get right up next to him, cozy like.
SYD: (Grabs champagne off a tray)
MARSHALL: The architect is a security freak, always carries copies of his project files on him. Blueprints, schedules even sketches, so it should show us which lab the glass is in.
JACK: What is she using to clone his PDA?
MARSHALL: It’s in her purse. It’s a low frequency wi-fi scans and clones. The thing is its working radius is only a couple of feet. She needs to get right up…oh, here it comes. Great. Syd, oh I’m sorry, Phoenix, it's what I was afraid of, it’s encrypted. The PDA is protected with handwriting recognition software, so time to turn on the charm.
SYD: (walks over to the architect) This building is even more elegant that the library you designed in Amsterdam.
ARCHETECT: Thank you
SYD: This is embarrassing… but if you don’t mind, may I have your autograph?
ARCHETECT: How can I resist?
MARSHALL: It’s the look, the feel, the bend of paper but actually it’s a microscopic layer of non conductive polymer, and it’s sandwiched...
JACK: Marshall, not the time.
MARSHALL: Vaughn asked me to lunch. (Tilts his head at Jack like “how about that”)(Continues to work on the signature encryption) Ok, signature, plus a password, plus a little Finkman secret sauce. And, Nice. Bow before me and weep encryption gods.
ARCHETECT: Perhaps you’d like a private tour.
SYD: That’ll be fun. Just you, me and your wife.
MARSHALL: ok blueprints and security protocols for the research facility. Got the location of the glass.
JACK: Evergreen, we are going to need that access key. You’re a go.
NADIA: Anyone have visual on the scientist.
WEISS: He’s holding fort due east.
Nadia walks up to the scientist and spills champagne all over him.
NADIA: What did I do? Please let me… (Puts the card in her purse walking away from the man) That was easy.
Scene flashes back to a jail cell and Young Nadia is in the corner crying. Roberto comes to her aid in the cell yelling out to the guards.
ROBERTO: Call a doctor. Now.
(Nadia tries to gather herself from crying)
ROBERTO: What is your name?
(Young Nadia refuses to speak)
ROBERTO: May name is Roberto Fox. Ever heard of me? (Young Nadia shakes her head no) No? Of course not. You are famous. Did you know that? We don’t have your name. Just your resume. Shoplifting, burglary, breaking and entering, assault….. –there are over 130 crimes here. And the only thing that links them all together is this. (points to fingerprints in her file) (Nadia looks over and stays quite) 130. What an incredible amount. And your what? Seventeen? Eighteen? You left fingerprints at all those places, but you weren’t in the system. You didn’t exist. Until now. Some people think your luck finally ran out. But I don’t believe anyone could succeed that long on just luck. No, No, No, It takes talent. I don’t know if anyone’s ever said this to you but… you’re special. Yes. That’s why I’m here. I believe we can take that talent and use it to help you. To help your country. I work for the government. I’m here to offer you a life you could never imagine. (She looks at him in curiosity)
Flash back to the party Weiss walking.
SYD: Ok Merlin, Showtime.
MARSHALL: The lab it’s on the fifteenth floor, east corridor.
NADIA: (Sees Martinez and goes into a flashback of her as Yong Nadia) I thought I’d never see you again.
CARETAKER (Sonja Braga) Nadia, why didn’t you call me sooner?
YOUNG NADIA: After what happened. I’d thought you’d be furious.
CARETAKER: Furious? I looked for you everywhere.
YOUNG NADIA: I’m so sorry I ran away.
CARETAKER: I’m the one who’s sorry. I should have protected you. It was my duty to protect you.
YOUNG NADIA: A man came to see me. From the government. He offered me a job. A way out of here.
CARETAKER: That’s wonderful… this isn’t where you’re meant to be. I believe people come into our lives for a reason. If this man’s offering you a chance for a fresh start… good. (They smile at each other and it flashes back to the party... Nadia looking in shock)
NADIA: Martinez is here. Cesar Martinez is in the building. Anyone see his backup?
DIXON: Sit tight Evergreen, this may be recon on his part.
NADIA: If this was recon we wouldn’t know he was here. He’s making his play.
SYD: How do you know?
NADIA: Trust me. We need to grab him.
WEISS: Phoenix is almost inside.
NADIA: You don’t understand.
(Syd gets into the lab at the same time at the party machine guns fire in the air.)
DIXON: Phoenix abort six hustlers on the loose with force
SYD: I can make it.
(Scene shows militant men screaming at people to get down get on the ground and not move. Martinez walks out of the crowd with gun in hand and proceeds to the lab. Syd is in the lab trying to break into the safe with the crystal. Gun fires at the lab door from the outside and Martinez with two men barge into the lab and Syd is standing there with the crystal in her hand. He walks towards her and she walks toward him. He pulls his weapon and points it to her face and sticks his hand out. She drops the crystal into his hand.)
MARTINEZ: Who do you work for?
SYD: You forgot to say the magic word.
MARTINEZ: (nods his head and then pistol whips Syd in the head)
SYD: Now your gonna have to say pretty please.
MARTINEZ: Last chance. Who do you work for?
NADIA: (comes from behind Martinez) She works with me.
MARTINEZ: (Looks at Syd and Nadia several times) Nadia?
NADIA: Put the guns down, Cesar. So we can talk.
MARTINEZ: (Walks over to Nadia and whispers something in her ear) Tie them up.
(While Nadia is getting her hands tied behind her back Syd is looking at her wicked with betrayal in her eyes)
BACK TO APO
SYD: He had his men secure us in the lab. By the time we escaped – he was gone.
SLOANE: When I asked you to do research on Cesar Martinez, why didn’t you inform me the two of you knew each other.
NADIA: He was not supposed to be there. I didn’t know we’d make contact.
SLAONE: You knowingly withheld Intel that would have altered options during the operation. I’ve suspended agents from field duty for less than that, Nadia.
SYD: Her knowing Martinez was the only thing that saved my life.
MARTINEZ: This story Nadia, what is it?
NADIA: We met when I was young. After the orphanage, I was on my own and Cesar was one of the boys I ran around with. We got in trouble with the police. We went our separate ways.
SLOANE: Why do I feel there’s more?
NADIA: If you want me to sit at a desk after this, fine. But it is personal now. Please let me get the glass back from Cesar. I know how to contact him, I can do it.
SYD: She had a relationship with him, she can use him. You of all people should appreciate that.
SLOANE: Reach out to Martinez; he’s acquiring this for someone else. Find out if we can buy it for ourselves. Sydney, you and Weiss will be back up on this. Let me be clear Nadia. I expect full disclosure from you.
Nadia nods and the scene flashes back to a training room in Argentina. Roberto teaching a class.
ROBERTO: From hydrogen to electric to the simple devices you’re constructing, the principles of bomb making are the same. In the words of Albert Einstein –
MALE STUDENT – Don’t blow yourself up.
ROBERTO: (Laughs) “Everything should be made as simple as possible …but not one bit simpler.” (A beep goes off at the Male Students work station) Sorry, Diego. You’re dead. (Walks over to Nadia’s works station) The lead should’ve been coupled with the auxiliary.
YOUNG NADIA: That’s the most obvious choice.
ROBERTO: You’ve cut yourself off from the power source.
YOUNG NADIA: If I connect the two. I’d trigger the ignition. Had I done what you are suggesting … I’d be in heaven playing a harp with Diego. (Smiles at Diego. Suddenly Cesar Martinez walks thru the door. Young Nadia smiles and he smiles back when they see each other)
ROBERTO: Mr. Martinez, please take a seat so I can bring you up to date.
Back in APO Nadia opens her lap top. Syd approaches her.
SYD: Withholding information from Sloane I can accept, I don’t care much really, but from me. You and I are in the field together. I need to know there is a level of trust.
NADIA: What do you want to know?
SYD: What did Martinez whisper to you?
NADIA: I told you. He said call me. Sydney that’s it.
SYD: You’re telling me there’s nothing else?
NADIA: For the last time, I’m sorry I didn’t tell you about Cesar. But there’s nothing else you need to know. (Sydney looks at Nadia hard, they look at each other then Syd walks away.)
Flashback to training martial arts with long sticks in pairs in a large lot. Cesar and Young Nadia are sparring.
MARTINEZ: I’m stronger than you.
YOUNG NADIA: I’m faster.
MARTINEZ: I’m bigger
YOUNG NADIA: I’m smarter.
MARTINEZ: I’m prettier. ( he knocks her down on the ground) Give me a kiss … and I’ll let you go.
ROBERTO: What the hell are you doing? Huh? What was that? (Grabbing Martinez by the top with force.)
MARTINEZ: Doing what you said. Beating my opponent.
ROBERTO: In this line of work, you can’t afford to split your focus. You have to be professional. It will save your life. Understand?
MARTINEZ: Yes. (Roberto lets go of his shirt and backs off)
Flashes back to APO.
Vaughn and Sydney are at his laptop
SYD: How’s it going?
VAUGHN: Well, I cross-checked my fathers list against the CIA Achieves and there are still missions that I can’t verify even existed. Am I insane to think that this old journal is gonna help me find my father? (Syd grabs a small notebook from Vaughn’s desk)
SYD: These the ones you cant find?
VAUGHN: Yeah
SYD: Hand me the pen. What if these aren’t operation names?
VAUGHN: What are you doing?
SYD: Substitution psypher
VAUGHN: Ok, how’d you see that?
SYD: My father used to encrypt my crossword puzzles when I was a kid. The least of my childhood dysfunctions. (Vaughn smiles at her talent) Try that.
VAUGHN: When’s your plane leave?
SYD: Half an hour, I wish I could stay.
VAUGHN: Well, I’ll take it from here. (Syd gets up and kisses Vaughn, pats him on the shoulder and leaves)
BUENOS AIRES
Nadia is in an open seating area reading a magazine. Weiss and Sydney are hiding out watching her back as she sits in an open market type area.
MARTINEZ: Nadia? (Nadia turns around to see Martinez behind her)Hola.
NADIA: Hola, I wasn’t sure you still read El Diario
MARTINEZ: I check all of our old protocols. NADIA: Really? MARTINEZ: I do? Everyday. Just in case. NADIA: In case of what?
MARTINEZ: in case your ever in trouble. And you are in trouble, aren’t you? NADIA: Because of you.
MARTINEZ: Ah, you can’t blame me … for Belarus. NADIA: My team had the glass. You stole it from me, Cesar.
MARTINEZ: You did your job, I did mine. Maybe next time it will go your way. NADIA: there’s not going to be a next time. Not with these people. Do you understand?
MARTINEZ: Nadia, no one knows you as well as I do. What we’ve been through. You’re afraid. You need help. Let me help you.
NADIA: You really want to help?
MARTINEZ: Of course.
NADIA: I have to deliver the amplifying glass to my employers before tomorrow night. If not … I have to do it.
MARTINEZ: Then the amplifying glass is yours. NADIA: Just like that?
MARTINEZ: Just like that. I’m sure I can make my buyer understand. You’ll have to pay for it of course. NADIA: Of course. Sure. MARTINEZ: I’ll take you where it is. Once I know we’re alone. NADIA: I don’t understand.
MARTINEZ: Let me guess. You have a tracking device in your purse? We learned the same tricks. You didn’t come here without backup. SYD: Evergreen, you can not proceed without coms...
NADIA: But the purse, Cesar? Please. That’s for beginners. (She takes the hair clip out of her hair and gives it to Martinez)
SYD: Evergreen abort this mission now!
MARTINEZ: (Laughs) Nadia. The amplifying glass is locked up in my office. It’s this way. (He stands up and smashes the barrette under his boot. Nadia gets up and follows him)
SYD: What the hell is she doing? (Syd and Weiss get out of a van. Nadia looks back to see if they see her)
TO BLACK
Vaughn is sitting at his desk. He figures types in a password and checks his list and says out loud.
VAUGHN: Portugal
CUT SCENE BACK TO BUENOS AIRES WITH NADIA AND MARTINEZ
MARTINEZ: Do you ever wonder what it would have been like? If things had been … different. (They continue walking thru the plaza and Weiss and Syd following behind.)
NADIA: What?
MARTINEZ: It’s funny. All those years that we stole things together, drove us apart. Now –
WEISS: Alright I’ll go this way (splits off from Syd)
SYD: ok NADIA: I’ll never be able to thank you enough for what you are doing. But I can’t stay here. I can’t.
MARTINEZ: Look at you, still minding Roberto’s rules.
NADIA: It’s always served me well, not mixing business with pleasure. (They get to an area where a lot of worker are moving stuff around and slip thru to another area and the gate closes behind them.)
MARTINEZ: This way. (They get into a van that is parked outside)
Syd is looking all around and get to the area where the door closed behind them. It looks like it has been that way all day because there are pallets full of stuff in front of the door. She turns back sees Weiss.
WEISS: Syd, Anything? (Syd shakes her head no) Ah come on.
Scene shows the van Nadia and Martinez got in speeding down a main road.
MARTINEZ: Almost there. You ever think about him? About Roberto? NADIA: Everyday. If it weren’t for him. I don’t know who I’d be.
Scene changes to a flashback of Nadia entering a room in a black dress about to go on a mission. Approaches Roberto in his office. She is smiling at Roberto and he smiles back adoringly and walks up to her.
ROBERTO: Diego’s expecting you in three hours.
YOUNG NADIA: (nods her head) First floor. Service corridor. If Diego has the disk, the lamp will have a knot in it.
ROBERTO: You’ll have at most a thirty second window to make the delivery. It’s imperative you’re not spotted together.
YOUNG NADIA: We won’t take any risks, I promise. Anything else?
ROBERTO: (motions to Young Nadia to wait and goes over to his desk and grabs a necklace.) A graduation present. (Nadia turns so he will put it on.)
YOUNG NADIA: How does it look?
ROBERTO: Beautiful. (He leans forward and kisses her, and then they embrace. Scene changes to the mission she was scheduled to go to)
NADIA: (Walking into a lounge and checks to see if the lamp has a knot in it and it does. She continues to walk passes two men who look like bodyguards. She stands still and looks in their direction. One of the men notices her. She walks away briskly and the man looks at the other man and get up from the bar. She runs into a back room, the men following her. One man goes into the door she went into and can’t find her. She is hiding and comes out when he leaves. She gets to the place where she is supposed to me Diego and the door is locked, she knocks)
YONG NADIA: Diego? (She knocks again and no answer she then breaks in the door. She sees Diego shot in the chest propped up against the wall on the floor.) Oh my god.
DIEGO: The disk.
YOUNG NADIA: Did they get it? DIEGO: They didn’t find it. (He hands her the disk)
YOUNG NADIA: I need to call Roberto.
DIEGO: No! What Roberto had me steal... they’re intelligence documents. YOUNG NADIA: You’re not making sense. We’re intelligence.
DIEGO: No. That’s what … he wants us to believe.
YOUNG NADIA: That can’t be.
DIEGO: Nadia, Roberto is corrupt.
YOUNG NADIA: That’s not true.
DIEGO: He plays both sides. He’ a criminal.
YOUNG NADIA: It’s not possible.
DEIGO: He used us. The disk –
YOUNG NADIA: It can’t be true. Diego, please. Diego, Diego, Diego (crying)
CUT TO BLACK
Flashes back to Nadia with Martinez walking into a building.
NADIA: You still come here?
MARTINEZ: I never left. I bought it after Roberto was killed. It was very cheap. (They walk into the place where why were taught to be agents.) My best memories are here. Training, learning – with you. And of course, Roberto. This is where my life began.
NADIA: It’s sad isn’t it? That it’s outlived its usefulness. Can we get what we came for?
MARTINEZ: Sure.
SYD: We lost them here at Plaza del Camino.
WEISS: Yeah, Martinez said he was taking her to his office to make the exchange. Its gotta be close. SLOANE: Since learning of Nadia’s history with Martinez, I did some digging. Martinez owns several pieces of property including Roberto Fox’s training facility.
MARTINEZ: You remember Roberto’s office don’t you?
NADIA: Of course.
MARTINEZ: You said Roberto made you who you are today. I feel the same. With one difference. It’s his death that made me.
NADIA: Killing a high level agent certainly gave you a reputation.
MARTINEZ: One dead body and my name meant something. I was suddenly someone to be feared. The thing is… I didn’t kill him. Roberto had so many enemies. He could have been killed by anyone. I always wondered... If it was you. Your work. The look on your face, Nadia. Confirms it.
Flashes back to Nadia returning from the mission she was on for the disk with Diego. She approaches Roberto in his office.
ROBERTO: What happened?
NADIA: Diego’s dead. I just read the disk. (Throwing it at him) How could you do this?
ROBERTO: Nadia
NADIA: (Puts her head down and upon looking up shoots Roberto 5 times back into his desk chair.) (Flashes back to the present with Martinez) Everything he told us was a lie, Cesar. He said we were working for the good of our country.
MARTINEZ: Do you remember what our lives were like before him? We were sleeping on the streets.
NADIA: Roberto was an assassin. A criminal. He made us traitors. Don’t you understand?
MARTINEZ: Who gives a damn? It’s not important. If it weren’t for him… we’d be rotting in that prison or dead. He saved us. And you killed him.
NADIA: And I’d do it again.
(Martinez points the gun to Nadia’s forehead and shoots. She is able to hit it away from her face. They struggle and she starts throwing things. The fight until Martinez gets Nadia on the ground and starts choking her. The van that Syd and Weiss were in drives up to the Training Facility. Meanwhile Nadia gets Martinez off of her and takes his gun and has him staring down the barrel of the gun. Syd and Weiss finally get into the building.)
WEISS: Nadia. Nadia, alright?
NADIA: I’m fine. There’s a safe inside, the amplifying glass should be there.
WEISS: Alright. (Takes Martinez into custody)
Nadia looking at Syd sadly, both come together for a hug. Nadia almost in tears.
LISBON
Vaughn walks into a garden patio type setting. Approaches a house with a red door, looks around before knocking. Nadia’s caretaker answers the door.
CARETAKER: The Mail? No. (Scene changes to Vaughn and the Caretaker sitting at the garden patio) The first and only time I met your father he was covered in blood with a baby in his arms.
VAUGHN: Nadia.
CARETAKER: He brought her to the orphanage in Buenos Aires. He said she was in danger. He’d been shot in the shoulder. I knew not to ask too many questions. You father, he stayed a few days, until he was well enough to travel. One morning I woke up and he was gone.
VAUGHN: I don’t understand. If he knew you in Buenos Aires, why would he encode this address in Lisbon in his journal?
CARETAKER: I don’t know? Oh, you thought he might be here. I am sorry. I wish I knew more.
VAUGHN: Can you remember anything, something he said maybe a detail?
CARETAKER: Nightingale.
VAUGHN: Nightingale?
CARETAKER: He was on the phone and something in his voice, it was important to him. May I ask you a question?
VAUGHN: Sure.
CARETAKER: Nadia, How is she?
VAUGHN: She’s good.
(The Caretaker fakes a smile and then puts her head down and looks up at Vaughn)
FADE TO BLACK. =========================
========================== ALIAS 4X13 - TUESDAY ==========================
HA[V]ANA
Hot Salsa dancers with only the bottom part of their bodies shown on screen, and at the long shot a very prominent yellow-dressed woman shakes her bottom. The shot moves up and we see it is SYDNEY, with a ridiculous wig that looks like a cat got on top of her head.
She turns towards the screen and does a few moves, before the camera pans away to the other dancers again. Camera moves to the people at their tables, and they're chatting and looking at the dancers.
Camera focuses towards a particular table. Camera then moves towards the dancers again. A random dancer moves towards another random man to ask to dance, then we see SYDNEY moving towards a man at said table. She puts her leg up on his chair (Camera provides a rather nice shot of her leg) and holds her hand towards him, and he takes it, but not before taking a glance at his companions at his table.
SYDNEY smiles and they move towards the dance floor. They danced for a while. Camera pans to his companions, who are watching pretty amused.
PHANTOM: (subtitles) You dance like an angel. SYDNEY: (subtitles) Yet my feet touch the ground.
Camera now pans over to the table again, then back to the dancing pair.
PHANTOM: I betray him; I spend the rest of my life on the run. SYDNEY: We can help you with that. PHANTOM: You brought the payment?
She moves her hand down his face, a diamond bracelet clearly evident.
SYDNEY: I hope you like diamonds.
They continue dancing and the camera pans ominously at the man sitting at the table.
PHANTOM: They are planning an attack. Large-scaled, civilian target. SYDNEY: Where? PHANTOM: I'm not sure, but it's on the hard drive. Everything you need. Your man is in Los Angeles?
Scene cuts to DIXON walking down a hallway.
SYDNEY: (Voiceover) He's ready. PHANTOM: (Voiceover) Have him proceed to locker 471.
DIXON: I'm on the move.
Scene cuts back to dance floor.
PHANTOM: The locker combination is 8-0-2-37.
Scene cuts to DIXON opening the locker, then back to the dance floor. Camera pans over to the table again.
PHANTOM: Has he found it?
Cuts to DIXON, who puts the harddrive into his briefcase.
DIXON: I have it. The package.
Back to SYDNEY on the dance floor.
SYDNEY: He’s got it.
She twirls PHANTOM around, and slips the bracelet into his hand, then pretends to continue dancing again.
SYDNEY: On the next turn, spin me and cut into the nearest dancer. PHANTOM: Pleasure dancing with you.
He kisses her hand, then spins SYDNEY as instructed, adjusts his tie and cuts into the next dancer. The camera pans ominously over at the man at the table.
Scene then cuts to MARSHALL rushing at home.
MARSHALL: Honey have you seen my shoe? I really need to go. (Mitchell is crying in the background. We then see CARRIE carrying Mitchell at the medicine cabinet) CARRIE: No, you don’t! MARSHALL: Yes, I do!
He trips over some of Mitchell’s toys, and Mitchell cries harder. CARRIE coos at him. MARSHALL finally found his shoe in some box at some obscure corner.
MARSHALL: I found it! Who put it in the box? CARRIE: (as Mitchell cries louder) Hey Marshall? MARSHALL: Okay, I’m out of here. CARRIE: He’s warm. MARSHALL: Well, you know, he’s just got out of the bathroom – CARRIE: No, it’s not the bath; he’s feverish! MARSHALL: (Stumbling over his words) ** [I couldn’t catch what he was saying] CARRIE: No, just feel him. MARSHALL: He’s just a little warm.. CARRIE: Won’t you hold him? Just hold him- MARSHALL: (while CARRIE is talking, he’s been talking) I can’t take him right now… CARRIE! CARRIE! (She walks away, then his phone rings) Hold on, hold on, just a second. (CARRIE gets something from a drawer) Hello?
Scene cuts to SLOANE at APO.
SLOANE: Where are you. MARSHALL: (on the phone) Hi Mr Herderington, (to CARRIE) It’s Mr Herderington! (CARRIE shakes her head) SLOANE: DIXON on work with the hard drive, you were supposed to be at work an hour ago. Where are you? MARSHALL: Well, you know, we had a bit of a, domestic crisis here – SLOANE: I’m not interested. (cuts to MARSHALL nodding his head, then back again) Get in here.
Cuts to MARSHALL.
MARSHALL: Okay, I’d be right in, thank you, Mr Boss Man.
CARRIE walks out with a horrified expression on her face.
CARRIE: You can’t go back in! MARSHALL: I have to, the server crashed, okay? CARRIE: He needs to go to the doctor’s! MARSHALL: Well, then you take him. (Camera pans to CARRIE’s disappointed and disapproving expression, then MARSHALL switches MITCHELL from his left to his right) Carrie. I’m sorry. I need your help right now. I have to get to work, okay? (He hands Mitchell over to her and looks guilty as Mitchell cries even louder)
Cuts to night, in Havana, where it’s raining. SYDNEY walks out with her cell phone at her ear.
SYDNEY: My contact here indicates that Third Faction is planning a large-scaled (cuts to VAUGHN walking in a room at APO) civilian attack. VAUGHN: We’d have the hard drive decrypted by the time you touch down. Just don’t spend too much time sightseeing in Cuba.
Cuts back to SYDNEY in Havana
SYDNEY: Don’t worry, I’m ready to get out of here. You have any idea (Cuts back to VAUGHN) how hard it is to maintain cover while dancing the salsa in three-inch heels? VAUGHN: Yes, actually, I do, but let’s keep that between us.
Cuts back again to SYDNEY
SYDNEY: (Sniggering) You’re doing the next intel swap, I don’t care what the {**} perimeters are. VAUGHN: Oh, nothing will make me happier. I love dancing. SYDNEY: (Laughs) You hate to dance!
Cuts to VAUGHN.
VAUGHN: (A grin plastered on his face) How did you know? SYDNEY: I’ve never seen you dance. VAUGHN: Well, I’m a mysterious man. A lot of things you don’t know about me. SYDNEY: You’ve never once (cuts back to her) taken me dancing. VAUGHN: (Cuts to him) Okay. Let’s go dancing. SYDNEY: Really? VAUGHN: Yeah, sure! (Scene cuts back to SYDNEY) SYDNEY: (Laughing again) But you hate dancing! VAUGHN: And yet, I’m taking you. Like I said, I’m very mysterious. You see your driver? SYDNEY: Yeah.
She approaches the car, and the scene cuts to VAUGHN.
VAUGHN: Have a safe trip.
Scene cuts back to SYDNEY, who closes the door. Closeup on her face reveals an enormous grin, and the car pulls away.
~
Dixon walks into APO carrying a briefcase, he passes it off to a random guy who then walks with Dixon to a computer. The guy opens the case and hooks up the hard drive that was inside to the computer.
~
Sydney’s car is being followed. She sees headlights in the rearview mirror and turns around to see, when she turns back there is red dot aimed on the back of the driver’s head.
SYDNEY: Get down!
Shots are fired from the tailing car and the driver is hit. We now see that there are two cars, Sydney pulls at the door handle but it’s locked and then one of the cars hits Sydney’s side of the car and she falls back from beside the window. The second car smashes into the back of the car and she is knocked unconscious. Both her car and another car are stopped. Two men get out and pull Sydney from the car stuffing her into theirs.
~
Inside APO, we see Dixon talking to a man at a desk while the other man, in the next room, is still working away at the computer. There are a bunch of 0's and 1's on the screen along with ‘CAUTION!!!!! UNAUTHORIZED CONTENT!!!!! PROCEED WITH CAUTION’ The computer blows up and Dixon runs into the room which is now filling with smoke. He waves it away as he goes to the guy.
DIXON: I need a med tech!
The office is filling with more smoke and there is an automated voice warning of a pathogen alert. The monitors in APO now display BIOHAZARD signs. Sloane and Jack look up startled by the alarm which is still being sounded as Dixon yells... *something I can’t make out*
DIXON: I need some help here!
Doors close as they go into lockdown and Sloane and Jack get up to see what’s going on. Vaughn runs in with a case in his hands with Nadia running alongside.
The guy who was at the computer isn’t doing too good now. His cheek looks like it has blisters on it and he is gasping for air. Dixon puts an oxygen mask on him and grabs his wrist to feel his pulse. Vaughn opens the case and hands the contents to a nearby agent.
VAUGHN: Jeff, hand these out; make sure everyone gets one. JEFF: You got it.
Dixon now sees blisters on his own hands and is beginning to cough. Vaughn is handing out medication from his case.
VAUGHN: Here, it’s *something else I can’t make out (most likely the name of the medication)*
Dixon collapses, gasps for air, and Weiss runs over.
WEISS: Vaughn. VAUGHN: Don’t touch him! Don’t touch him!
WEISS: Hey, *Holson,* come on.
VAUGHN: Here, inject *yourselves.*
Dixon seems to be seizing and Nadia, wearing gloves, injects one of the syringes into his leg. Weiss follows suit into his own and then Nadia injects herself with her own syringe.
Vaughn comes over and crouches beside Dixon’s head.
VAUGHN: Clear his airway. Dixon, it’s alright. It’s okay.
Weiss supports Dixon’s head with one hand and rests his other on Dixon’s chest by his neck to feel for his pulse.
VAUGHN: It should start taking affect. WEISS: It’s working. VAUGHN: Relax. Breathe.
~
We see two men dragging Sydney, in the dark, and dropping her to the ground. It sounds like one of them says 'get up' and then she pushes herself to her knees. Another man falls beside her, also on his knees. Both have bindings around their wrists. Car headlights shine in their eyes, Sydney is out of breath and the man beside her looks at their captor.
(Subtitles on.)
In German: ULRICH: You betrayed me for jewelry? MAN: Ulrich, please listen to me–
Ulrich says something and we don’t get any subtitles.
MAN: You’ve made a mistake. Give me another chance.
(Subtitles off.)
Ulrich pulls out a gun and shoots the man in the forehead and he hits the ground. Sydney, who had been looking back and forth as each of the men spoke, now looks a little uneasy although she doesn’t let it show to Ulrich. He walks closer to her and she makes eye contact with him.
ULRICH: He was under the impression this was a negotiation. He was mistaken. Now, I don’t particularly care who you are and who you work with, but I’m sure your conspirators will have their hands full with the hard drive we sent you.
He gestures towards the dead man with his gun in hand.
ULICH: *Wrong business for them. I need them to see what I do to my enemies, I need them to see what I do to you.* SYDNEY: So would it help with your demonstration if I started crying and pleading for my life? ULRICH: You obviously don’t understand your situation. He was my friend, you’re not. I have something much worse planned for you.
Sydney stares at him and we go to the...
(ALIAS theme)
Jack walks through APO with papers in hand over to where Sloane is on the phone.
SLOANE: Yes, Director, we’ll keep you informed on the hour. Right.
He hangs up and turns to Jack.
SLOANE: What’s our status? JACK: Vents have been sealed, air filters are working, electricity has been shifted to back up generator. SLOANE: Our cover prevents local emergency responses from intervening. We’ll have to wait for hazardous material team to give the green light. Until then proceed with quarantine protocol. When will the ICU be ready? JACK: Minutes. The hard drive Dixon brought in exploded after it was connected to APO’s network. It’s possible our computer system has also been compromised. SLOANE: Right, then we’ll run an emergency diagnostic. Where’s Marshall?
~
Marshall pulls into the parking garage and is quickly gathering his things as he gets out of the car. His phone rings. Marshall answers by pressing on the earpiece he’s wearing.
MARSHALL: Flinkman. SLOANE: Lockdown protocol 4 Alpha Charlie, confirm?
Marshall hurries to drop his things back into the car and get to his laptop.
SLOANE: Confirm!
Marshall sets the laptop on the car and gets to work.
MARSHALL: Yeah, sorry. 4 Bravo *Inkblot* confirm. Firewall networks are secure. We haven’t been hacked... Is this a drill? SLOANE: Unfortunately not. A nerve agent has been released inside APO. We have neutralized the threat but our exposure is still a biohazard outside the office. Until we get cleared, noone comes in or out of here. MARSHAL: Okay, okay I got it. Um, is there anything uh– what can I do? What can I do? SLOANE: Nothing. Stay on the line, we’ll tell you what we need. MARSHALL: Okay.
Weiss and Nadia walk into the office, Sloane, Vaughn, and Jack are each standing beside a chair at the table.
WEISS: What the hell happened? SLOANE: We’ve been double-crossed. NADIA: What about Sydney? VAUGHN: She last checked in before *not sure where he says* JACK: Have we confirmed the flight?
Vaughn walks around the table and dials Sydney’s cell.
The screen is black and we hear her phone ringing. After a few rings she gasps and is out of breath when she answers. The blue light from the phone allows us to see a wound on the right side of her forehead.
SYNDEY: Hello? Hel–
She looks at the screen... one missed call. Creaking noises start and she tries to look around her a bit, as the creaking continues Sydney begins to realize where she is and her breaths become deeper and more frequent. She continues to look around her with the help of the light from her phone. She gasps when she finds the body of the man who was shot by Ulrich laying beside her. We then see a shot of a dark cemetery and now we know where she is. A phone rings. Sloane answers and it’s on speaker.
SLOANE: Sydney, is that you? SYDNEY: Don’t hook up the hard drive. VAUGHN: We know, where are you? SYDNEY: I’m not sure. They.... dragged me to a cemetery and knocked me out, and I woke up in a... coffin.
Nadia, Vaughn, and Jack all look at each other worriedly.
Marshall, still out in the parking garage, looks just as worried.
MARSHALL: Syd, are you uh... have you been buried? SYDNEY: (whispers) Yes. JACK: Stay calm. We’re going to find you. WEISS: What about your contact? SYDNEY: They shot him, he’s– he’s in the coffin with me.
Marshall looks horrified as he listens in.
NADIA: We have CIA friendly support in Cuba. SYDNEY: No we don’t, we’re black ops. We’re on our own. But, you guys have to come get me. VAUGHN: Sydney, the hard drive has been rigged. Ir released some sort of a toxin in here, we’re in lockdown. SYDNEY: Lockdown? For how long? SLOANE: We estimate about 36 hours. SYDNEY: Then, what are our other options?
Everyone looks sad and concerned, knowing Sydney’s buried alive and they’re all helpless.
MARSHALL: Um, ex– excuse me. Listen, I know you told me you’d let me know if you need anything but... I could do it. I could go to Cuba. SYDNEY: Wait a minute, Marshall? You’re– you’re not in lockdown with the rest of the team? MARSHLL: No, Syd, listen... Mitchell this morning, well– it’s a long story. How many bars do you have on your cell phone? SYDNEY: Four. MARSHALL: Four. Okay, good. That’s excellent. Every cell phone has a distinct radio frequency that’s traceable. If we can get a locator– JACK: But there’s no way to get the op-tech to you. MARSHALL: Well, I could rig one in-country, okay. I mean, the only thing is, Syd, you’d have to stay off the phone while I’m traveling, ya know, just to conserve the battery. SLOANE: Done. We go with this. Marshall, there’ll be a passport and a visa for you at the airport. MARSHALL: Passport and visa, passport and– okay– okay I’m going. He grabs his laptop and gets into the car. JACK: Marshall. Sydney has a limited supply of oxygen in that coffin, we have no margin for error, understood? MARSHALL: Yeah. I understand, I can do this.
Marshall drives off.
SLOANE: Sydney, I want– SYDNEY: No, I get it. I– I’m hanging up now.
Sydney hangs up, takes a deep breath, and begins to cry and the coffin creaks some more.
The camera moves up from her legs to her face and you see she’s shaking, wrists still bound and her cell phone between her hands. She’s trying to compose herself and stifle her cries but gives in and begins to panic. She frantically bites and pulls at the roping on her hands as her cries intensify.
~
We pan past Dixon who is laying, asleep, in a hospital bed, both hands are wrapped in gauze bandages past his wrists.
SLOANE: Reports confirm that ten containers of ** were stolen a week ago from a warehouse in Morocco. They hit us with a drop, less than a gram according to lab analysis. Third Faction has enough toxin to infect an entire city. I want their target. Cross-check all DIA and Echelon watch lists. Consult with all of our contacts, petroleum major ports, you know the protocol.
Nadia, who has seemed somewhat emotional and distracted for most of the scene, leans over to Vaughn and whispers.
NADIA: How long has she been in the ground?
SLOANE: Look at me! Marshall is on his way. We’ll get Sydney out, make no mistake. Third Faction wants us on our heals. They think they can bomb our operation, they think they can bury our agents alive, and they think that will stop us. Well, they’re wrong, we have a job to do. Get to work.
HAVANA
Music plays in the background and Marshall is at the counter in a store, constructing his locator with various parts, including a cell phone. There’s a chicken eating on the counter as well and a man working behind it. An elderly woman is sitting in a chair nearby.
MARSHALL: Uh. Uh, uh... d-do you have a screwdriver? A flathead screwdriver, por favor?
(Subtitles on all but Marshall)
In Spanish: MAN: Stop making hand gestures at me. Also, my store is not a workbench for you to play with.
Marshall looks confused
MARSHALL: That can’t be regular Spanish, that’s way too fast. Uh, slow down, por favor. MAN: You’re scaring away my customers. MARSHALL: You know what, never– WOMAN: Let the boy work. I like watching him. (to Marshall) I like watching you.
(Subtitles off)
He continues screwing something onto his gadget, he smiles and nods.
MARSHALL: Hola. Como esta. Alright, she’s really starting to freak me out a little bit, k. Okay, uh, do you have, um uh uh... a radio? Ya know, *shouts something in Spanish* MAN: Ah, radio. MARSHALL: (In Spanish dialect.) Radio, radio, radio.
The man seems to lighten up a bit and walks out to get the radio, talking in Spanish as he exits the room. Marshall looks to the woman and smiles.
MARSHALL: It’s the same in... Spanish...
He holds up his contraption.
MARSHALL: Bueno.
The chicken is pecking at the food on the counter.
MARSHALL: These your chickens?
The man brings out the radio and puts it on the counter, saying something else in Spanish to Marshall.
MARSHALL: Bueno.
~
Sydney runs her hands along the inside of the coffin above her face, which is still creaking. She looks around with her phone agin and holds it close to the guy while she searches his pockets. After lying still a minute or two she calls Vaughn.
VAUGHN: Syd, slow down. (He puts her on speaker.) Say that again. SYDNEY: We can ID him. VAUGHN: Who? SYDNEY: Phantom, my contact. I can send you a picture. You can check it against airport surveillance, inbound flights to Cuba. He wasn’t alone. Get visuals of the other members of Third Faction and... track that against where they’ve been and where they’re– where they’re going.
The more she talks, the slower her delivery rate becomes.
JACK: Send the photo.
She takes a picture of him with the phone.
VAUGHN: Okay, Syd. We got it, we’re indexing it now. SYDNEY: Vaughn? VAUGHN: Yeah. I’m here, can you hear me? SYDNEY: I know what he looks like.
Vaughn looks to Weiss who looks to Jack.
VAUGHN: Syd, we got the picture, we’re working on it. SYDNEY: We can check it against airport surveillance. VAUGHN: Syd, you already said that. SYDNEY: And he wasn’t alone. We can find where he’s been, where he’s going...
She sounds very groggy now and Vaughn and Jack exchange glances. Then Jack walks out.
~
Marshall is in a cab tinkering with the locator he made when his phone rings.
MARSHALL: Yeah? JACK: Marshall, what’s your status? MARSHALL: Well, it’s really hot here and everyone keeps calling me chongo. JACK: (snaps impatiently) Marshall, where are you? MARSHALL: We’re close. Really close. I’ve got her signal locked in.
Jack is standing outside the board room now and looks inside before cautiously speaking again.
JACK: We don’t have much time. MARSHALL: I understand. Hold on. Okay. Okay, uh, senior? Turn here. Turn here, sir. Senior? AQUI! AQUI! SENOR! AQUI! AQUI! A LA DERECHA!
The driver turns sharply to the right.
MARSHALL: I took a little Spanish in college.
Vaughn sits back down and looks from Weiss to Nadia and sighs as he rubs his forehead before taking Sydney's call off hold and bringing her back to speaker.
VAUGHN: Syd. Marshall is on his way. We’ll be dancing before you know it.
She looks as if she’s about to pass out at any moment.
SYDNEY: Yet my feet touch the ground. VAUGHN: What was that? Sydney? SYDNEY: Vaughn?
There’s interference on the line and her phone beeps twice, alerting her of the weak signal.
SYDNEY: My phone is dying... Vaughn?
MARSHALL: Okay. *He speaks to the driver in spanish.* Alright, Mr. Bristow. I’m here. I’m here at the cemetery. Hold on.
VAUGHN: Syd. Marshall’s there. Hang on.
Marshall is out of the cab and it drives off.
MARSHALL: I just– I just need to... find out... which grave she’s in.
He goes off running to search for the right one
VAUGHN: Syd? Sydney?!
Her phone flashes ‘low battery’ and she lays quietly.
MARSHALL: Okay. Okay. No! No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no.
His signal on the locator begins to die and he’s banging on it trying to make it work.
SYDNEY: Vaughn? Vaughn?!
She’s scared now and the screen on her phone says ‘goodbye’ and it shuts off. The coffin goes dark and she whimpers.
SYDNEY: (squeaks) Vaughn.
MARSHALL: ...four...five...six...seven... Seven. There are seven fresh graves here. VAUGHN: Marshall, you don’t have time to dig them all up. Is there any way to narrow it down? MARSHALL: Wait a minute. Wait a minute, wait a minute. Vaughn, can you task a satellite over my position?
Vaughn goes to a computer and sits down. VAUGHN: Okay, I’m here. What do I do? MARSHALL: Well... tasking a satellite through the NRO would take forever, so go to the *config* access menu.
He sees something and runs over to grab it. It’s a shovel.
MARSHALL: Now, my phone is GPS so you should be able to route the coordinates through the system. VAUGHN: Got it. MARSHALL: Okay. Now type KH11/INT/THERM/CONFIG.SYS VAUGHN: Hang on, I don’t see a prompt. MARSHALL: Well... there is no prompt. The prompt is implied. VAUGHN: What, I’m supposed to just type it in? MARSHALL: Yes, god. Vaughn, this isn’t that hard. VAUGHN: Yeah well, I’ve never done this before. MARSHALL: Well, I do it for you people all the time. Now come on. VAUGHN: Okay. I have a visual. MARSHALL: Okay. Great, great, great. The commands I gave you should change the view to thermal. VAUGHN: Okay. Wait, I see her. Uh, eight rows north from where you are, three graves west. MARSHALL: North, west. Okay, I’m on it. VAUGHN: Marshall, stop. Turn around. Your other north.
He turns and run to the grave Vaughn directed him to.
VAUGHN: That’s it. It’s right in front of you. MARSHALL: I got it. I got it.
Marshall drops his phone and begins digging down into the dirt with his shovel. Vaughn and Jack watch from the monitors and Nadia comes in to see too. Finally Marshall hits the top of the wooden coffin.
MARSHALL: Syd? Syd? Syd, can you hear me? I’m coming!
He clears the dirt away enough so that he can pull off the lid. When he opens it he sees the dead guy and Sydney laying unconscious beside him.
MARSHALL: Oh my god. No. No.
He climbs inside and lifts Sydney out of the grave and onto the ground.
MARSHALL: Syd? Syd? Syd? Syd?
He rolls her over onto her back and taps the side of her face, trying to wake her.
MARSHALL: Syd? Syd? Syd?
He puts his ear to her mouth so see if she’s breathing. Nothing.
MARSHALL: Oh my god. Okay.
He gives her mouth to mouth and does some chest compressions.
MARSHALL: Come on. Come on.
The three, now accompanied by Weiss and Sloane, sit in silence at APO watching the screens. Marshall is doing more compressions and listens for breaths again.
MARSHALL: (with each compression...) Come on. Come on. Come on. Come on.
Sydney finally lets out a weak cough and then she begins to cough more intensely and gasp to get air into her lungs again.
MARSHALL: (whispers) Oh my god. Syd?
VAUGHN: That’s her. She’s moving.
They onlookers are relieved.
MARSHALL: Syd? You okay?
He strokes her head gently and she looks up at him and smiles timidly, still out of breath.
SYDNEY: Marshall. MARSHALL: Yeah.
As she gains her strength and rolls onto her stomach, propped on her elbows... Marshall is exhausted and rolls onto his back. He’s smiling and she watches him for a minute.
SYDNEY: Thanks. MARSHALL: You’re welcome.
~
SLOANE: We have an ID on the Phantom. Alex *Rucker* high tech specialist. He was recruited to the Third Faction by this man... Ulrich *Catore*.
Sydney and Marshall are in the back of a car. Sloane puts Ulrich’s picture on the screen at APO and Syndey and Marshall see it via some sort of gadget off-camera.
SYDNEY: That’s him. SLOANE: Phantom says that another chemical attack is imminent. The assumption is that Ulrich has the intel we need to stop it on his computer. Sydney, Marshall, APO is in lockdown for at least another 24 hours, your mission is not over. Sydney closes her eyes, taking it in, and nods.
JACK: This picture was taken 10 hours ago in a Berlin airport. Ulrich operates out of a nightclub there. Infiltrate the club.
Sydney looks over at Marshall who is listening intently.
JACK: Find Ulrich’s hard drive and upload it’s contents to us. SYDNEY: Ulrich knows me. There’s no way I can get close to him.
She looks to Marshall, speaking in his direction.
SYDNEY: But we could send someone else. MARSHALL: I’ve never been to Berlin.
He smiles nervously as we go to...
BE?LIN Night time in Berlin and Sydney is going over the mission and the gadgets with Marshall in a van. The camera alternates between each of them.
SYDNEY: Make eye contact with everyone, particularly Ulrich’s bodyguards. MARSHALL: Why? SYDNEY: Well, you have to convince them you’re not scared. MARSHALL: Right. Yeah, I think you’re supposed to do that in prison too... I heard. SYDNEY: The flash drive inside will automatically begin transfer when you’re within range of his computer, but you have to get kind of close. MARSHALL: How close? SYDNEY: Two... three feet. MARSHALL: Syd, this guy, he buried you alive. SYDNEY: Yeah, but he cheated. He hit me with a car first.
Marshall smiles and nods a whispered ‘yeah.’
SYDNEY: Ordinary cell phone, right? MARSHALL: Right.
She demonstrates how it works.
SYDNEY: Snap off the back. You’ve got your barrel, your trigger, magazine... the magazine holds two bullets– MARSHALL: I know. SYDNEY: Be careful when you load it– MARSHALL: Syd, I know. I built that, remember? I mean, I built all this stuff. SYDNEY: It’s different in the field.
He nods understandingly.
MARSHALL: I know. SYDNEY: So, be careful when you load it because this is very sensitive up here.
Marshall’s cell phone interrupts while Sydney is speaking.
MARSHALL: Hold on one sec.
He searches his pockets for his phone and looks to see who it is.
MARSHALL: It’s Carrie.
He answers.
MARSHALL: Hey, honey, hi. What time is it?
He switches the phone to the other ear and checks his watch and then switches ears again. MARSHALL: Ohhh. Sorry. What’s he doing, is he okay? We didn’t– I mean, I didn’t realize– Aww, poor Mitchell. Alri– you know what, put him on. Yeah, put him on. Well– did you try that thing where you– okay yeah, put him on. Hey. Hey, booboo, hi. Daddy loves you.
Marshall clears his throat and sings to Mitchell while Sydney smiles at her observation.
MARSHALL: Hush... hush... hush little Mitchell, don’t you cry. Daddy’s here to teach you about Lanthanides.
He sneaks a peak at Sydney who is smiling in amusement.
MARSHALL: Cerium is first, yes it leads the way. Hexagonal structure and it’s iron gray. Praseodymium is next and it looks like brass– What? No. I can’t make it home right now, I’m sor– Tonight, I promise. By tonight, that’s the best I can do. I’m sorry. Yes. Yes, Carrie, it’s a crisis. Carrie, I– He realizes that she has hung up on him and he stares at his phone sadly. Sydney watches sympathetically.
MARSHALL: I told her I’d be home tonight. SYDNEY: You will. MARSHALL: (whispers) Okay. SYDNEY: (quietly) Here.
She hands him the cell phone.
MARSHALL: Right. Wish me luck.
He prepares himself and gets up and slides open the door. He steps out and turns back to Sydney who nods to him with an assuring smile and he nods as well before sliding the door closed.
At the nightclub, Marshall walks around cautiously while communicating to Sydney who is still in the van.
MARSHALL: Okay, I’m in. Now what do I do? SYDNEY: What do you see? MARSHALL: Well, a lot of people who are into spanking apparently.
A random woman grabs his face and kisses him.
MARSHALL: Oh my god, I think I just got hepatitis. SYDNEY: What? MARSHALL: This woman who looks like *Marlena Detrich* she just kissed me.
He wipes his mouth.
MARSHALL: I don’t think she’s *I can’t make out this part* though. SYDNEY: What are you talking about? MARSHALL: Nothing... Okay, I see a back office. There’s a bouncer standing guard and apparently a lot of men with guns. SYDNEY: You can do this, just remember what we talked about. Eye contact. Now, walk up to them and repeat exactly what I tell you.
He grabs a drink and nods to the person with the tray.
MARSHALL: Thank you.
He downs the drink in one shot.
MARSHALL: Okay.
He approaches one of Ulrich’s bodyguards.
MARSHALL: I’m uh.. (clears throat) here to see Urich. GUARD: Ulrich not seeing anyone. SYDNEY: Tell him Alex wasn’t the only one betraying him. MARSHALL: Tell him Alex wasn’t the only one betraying him.
The guard talks to Ulrich on a walkie talkie and then motions to Marshall.
GUARD: This way.
They enter an office and Marshall is patted down. The guard hands him back his cell phone and cigarette case with the flash drive inside.
MARSHALL: Thank you.
The man says something to Ulrich in another language and leaves. Ulrich hangs up the phone he was on and Marshall approaches.
MARSHALL: Mr. *C* Thank you for taking the time... ULRICH: Stop. I don’t know who you are and you’re distracting me at a critical juncture. So, I hope you have something interesting to tell me.. Mr? SYDNEY: Okay, this guy’s a blow hard. MARSHALL: Bristow. Jack Bristow. SYDNEY: (slightly startled) That’s– that’s good. MARSHALL: And if I’m wasting your time by being polite, well I’m happy to walk out of here. SYDNEY: Wait, don’t go overboard. MARSHALL: Just don’t call me when the Third Faction goes down in flames. SYDNEY: Don’t mention Third Faction!
Marshall sits down across the desk from Ulrich.
ULRICH: You said you had information about my men, now what is it. SYDNEY: Marshall, I’m not getting a reading from the flash drive. Get the case closer to Ulrich’s computer.
He takes out the cigarette case from his jacket and takes one out and places it in his lips.
MARSHALL: Cigarette? ULRICH: No thanks.
Marshall lights the cigarette and tosses the case onto the desk by Ulrich’s laptop. He inhales and coughs quietly.
MARSHALL: I have some... conversations on tape. SYDNEY: Perfect. Now just keep that going for two minutes. Tell him he’s mentioned on the tapes. MARSHALL: You’re mentioned on those tapes.
Marshall is now more comfortable with his smoking and is puffing away during conversation.
ULRICH: My men would never go to the government. SYDNEY: No, but they would sell you out to the *Slobidan* Wolves. MARSHALL: No, but they would sell you out to the *Slobidan* Wolf. SYDNEY: Wolves. MARSHALL: Wolves. ULRICH: So who... who’s doing this? SYDNEY: Dietrich Gustof, his third in command. MARSHALL: Dietrich Gustof, your third in command. ULRICH: I’m confused by something. You say you have these recordings, and Dietrich... well he only speaks German. MARSHALL: So? ULRICH: Doesn’t that mean... *speaks a few sentences in German* SYDNEY: Okay, he just insulted you. Now say, *tells him what to say in German* MARSHALL: I work for myself. And as for these tapes, it’s none of your business how I got them. And my German, (subtitled) I know enough to deal with trash like you. SYDNEY: Now laugh like it’s all a big joke.
So he does.
VAUGHN: Uh, Syd, we’ve got a problem. SYDNEY: What is it? VAUGHN: The hard drive is connected to network firewall. Everything you’re sending us is encrypted. But hold on, I’m checking all the computer shipments to your location. If we can figure out the system, we might be able to bypass it. ULRICH: Alright, Mr. Bristow, bring me that tape and we’ll cut a deal. SYDNEY: Marshall, we’ve hit a glitch. Stall. VAUGHN: Okay, Syd. We’ve isolated the firewall, it’s located in the basement of the club. SYDNEY: I’m on my way. VAUGHN: No, no, no, wait, wait. The firewall is biometrically linked to Ulrich. We have to get him down there to disable it. SYDNEY: Marshall, change of plans. The hard drive is encrypted, we need Ulrich in the basement to shut down a network firewall. MARSHALL: I’m afraid we can’t do that... just yet. ULRICH: Why, is there some sort of problem? SYDNEY: Marshall, you have a gun, use it. Get him to the elevator, I’ll meet you in the basement.
Marshall reaches into his jacket and gets out the cell phone and fiddles with it under the desk where Ulrich can’t see him.
MARSHALL: You know what they say, never discuss money on your first meeting. I sort of need to settle on a fee first. ULRICH: We’ll negotiate that after I see what you have. MARSHALL: I’m afraid I can’t do that. Kind of a policy I have, cash up front. Not really a policy per say more of a been burned by too many fly by night terrorists to trust them sort of thing. Ya know... one day they say ‘we’ll pay you in gold’ and the next they say ‘did we say gold, we meant goat–‘
His cell phone gun goes off, shooting Ulrich in the chest. Marshall jumps to his feet.
SYDNEY: Marshall, you okay? MARSHALL: Oh my god. S-S-Syd, I–I think I just killed Ulrich.
Sydney is in the van looking very serious. And Marshall is buzzing around the office very worked up now.
MARSHALL: Syd, Syd, Syd. I need your help now. SYDNEY: Hang in there, I’m on my way. JACK: What type of biometric scanner are they dealing with? VAUGHN: Retinal. JACK: Marshall, can you hear me? MARSHALL: Hey, Mr. Bristow. Listen, I’m really sorry, it was an accident. I didn’t mean to shoot– JACK: Marshall, we are going through with this mission. Look around, do you see any sort of cutting tool? A knife of some sort, or... MARSHALL: No. JACK: Look on the desk is there a letter opener?
Marshall rummages through a drawer and finds one.
MARSHALL: Yeah, got it. Why? JACK: You have to cut out Ulrich’s eyes. MARSHALL: Oh my god.
He looks shocked and shakes his head slowly.
JACK: The biometric scanner in the basement operates off Ulrich’s retinas. MARSHALL: No. No, I-I-I– JACK: You don’t have time to get his body into the basement. MARSHALL: Mr. Bristow. No, I can’t do that. I’m sorry. JACK: (firmly) Yes you can... I’ll talk you through it. MARSHALL: (whispers) Okay.
Marshall spins Ulrich’s chair around to face him.
MARSHALL: Alright.
Sydney is walking through the nightclub now and approaches a guard. He puts his hand on her shoulder to stop her and she smiles sweetly before twisting his arm and knocking him out. Then she proceeds on her way, fighting more men and obtaining a gun.
Marshall, letter opener in hand, stands in front of Urich.
MARSHALL: I’m– I’m ready. JACK: You have to go under the eye and sever the optic nerve. Brace the head, the bundle is denser than you think it’s going to be. MARSHALL: Okay. He– here we go.
We see the back of Ulrich’s head as Marshall grunts and digs the weapon into his eyes, liquid like noisescan be heard.
MARSHALL: Oh god. It’s oozing. It’s oozing everywhere, sir. JACK: That means you’ve ruptured the macula, the eye is useless. Abandon it. Approach the second one gently, like a soft-boiled egg. You’re going to need a digging instrument to assist with this.
Marshall pulls something else from the drawer.
MARSHALL: I’ve got a spork. JACK: What’s a spork?
Jack and Vaughn just look at each other as Marshall explains.
MARSHALL: It’s like a half-spoon... half-fork, will that do? JACK: That will work.
Marshall unwraps the plastic utensil.
MARSHALL: (breathing heavily) Okay. Okay. Okay.
He throws the wrapper to the floor and grabs Ulrich’s head and begins to dig again.
MARSHALL: Alright... soft-boiled egg.
He grunts some more and is totally repulsed as the eye comes out, cradled on the spork. He carefully puts the spork on the desk and empties a case of the glasses inside and puts the eyeball inside and closes is.
MARSHALL: Done.
There’s a know at the door and a man asks something in German. The door opens and Marshall is ready with a weapon. He hits the man on the head from behind and he fals to the ground. Sydney gets there just in time.
SYDNEY: Come on.
Elevator doors open and they step out, Sydney has her gun poised. They work their way around the basement to get to the biometric scanner. Marshall hands Sydney the case with the eye.
MARSHALL: Here, you do it. I can’t look at it anymore.
Sydney takes the case, opens it, and takes out the eye. She holds it up to the scanner and two men with guns come out of the elevator. The scanner is done and they run off. Sydney sees the men and takes one out the other shoots back and Marshall is working away at a computer.
SYDNEY: (shouting) How much time do you need?! MARSHALL: 15 seconds!
The guy shoots at Sydney and she fires off a few more shots.
VAUGHN: Marshall. It’s working.
There’s more shooting until Sydney runs out of ammo.
SYDNEY: I’m out! MARSHALL: Syd!
Marshall tosses her the cell phone and she gets a shot off into the guy’s stomach and he collapses to the ground.
MARSHALL: Got it!
Sydney tosses the cell phone gun back to Marshall and makes her way back through the basement, collecting the gun from the most recently shot man, and makes sure the coast is clear.
VAUGHN: Okay. We’ve got a location on the bomb. Hong Kong. I’m alerting the local CIA offices now.
Marshall walks slowly towards Sydney.
JACK: Sydney? Are you and Marshall alright?
Satisfied that they are safe, she tucks her gun in the back waist of her pants and goes to Marshall.
SYDNEY: We’re fine.
Back in LA...
SLOANE: The Ministry of Security confirmed the seizure of a *couldn’t tell what it was called* bomb in downtown Hong Kong, they’ve expressed their gratitude to Langley. Third Faction’s operation extended far beyond our original estimate. The hard drive that Marshall downloaded contained hundreds of names of contacts throughout Europe and Asia, which we will have to confirm.
All the team at APO takes notes.
SLOANE: Start with all arms related activity, don’t limit your parameters to chemical
Dixon walks in, hands bandaged. All eyes are on him.
DIXON: So, where are we?
Dixon sits down and Sloane begins to fill him in.
SLOANE: Third Faction had few political affiliations. Their primary interest was maximizing profit of the terrorist activities.
The camera pulls back and the volume decreases as the scene fades out.
~
We see a rain soaked street and a then pan up to a car pulling up to a house. Sydney and Marshall sit in the car a few minutes to chat before he gets out. Carrie is seen in the window holding Mitchell. Marshall turns his head towards Sydney, he’s smiling sadly.
MARSHAL: These are not the clothes I left the house in; what do I tell Carrie? SYDNEY: Maybe you had spare clothes at the office.
He shakes his head as he looks out the window at the house.
MARSHALL: I hate lying to her, Syd. Syd, I hate lying to Carrie. SYDNEY: I know. MARSHALL: It’s part of the job though, right? SYDNEY: Well, you could tell her the truth. That you had to cut out a man’s eyes to save the world. MARSHALL: Yeah, I could tell her that. Probably be best just to keep that between us. And I didn’t save the world... exactly. Just Hong Kong. SYDNEY: You saved me. MARSHALL: Yeah... All in a day’s work.
Sydney looks at him for a second, then smiles, which he returns and unlatches his seatbelt.
MARSHALL: Anyway. You want to come in, get some dinner with us? SYDNEY: (laughs) Yeah. And how would we explain that I drove you home? MARSHALL: I don’t know, we can think of something. I mean– we’re quick on our feet. We’re spies. SYDNEY: Thank you. But... I need to go away to the train station. There’s someone I need to see. MARSHALL: Yeah. I know the feeling.
He goes to open the door to get out but turns around once more.
MARSHALL: See you tomorrow. SYDNEY: Okay.
He gets out of the car underneath an umbrella.
MARSHALL: Bye.
He closes the door and goes into the house. Carrie greets him at the door, Mitchell on hip and Sydney drives away.
~
Sydney sits on a train station bench waiting for her someone. Her head is turned to the right and doesn’t ee him approach, she turns her head to see a smiling Vaughn with his hand held out to her. She warmly returns the smile and takes his hand and rises from her spot on the bench. He twirls her gently under his arm and they hold each other and dance slowly in the train station. Vaughn rests his face against hers and she laces her arms around his neck, a wide grin on her face. They sweetly gaze into the other’s eyes and Sydney’s happiness never fades. As the rest in each other’s embrace, they romantically dance us to the end of the show.
ALIAS ==========================
========================== ALIAS 4X14 - NIGHTINGALE ==========================
Opens with stock footage of Washington, DC at night. Pan to a wall (presumably at Langley) with five pointed stars engraved in it with the heading: "In honor of those members of the Central Intelligence Agency who gave their lives in the service of their country"
As the camera pans down, we see what appears to be a workman who is just finishing engraving or cleaning one of the stars. From the side, we see Vaughn, dressed in a black suit, approach the wall, watching the workman's progress. As he watches, we hear a voice that we assume is a memory playing inside of Vaughn's head:
VOICE: On behalf of the Central Intelligence Agency, a grateful nation thanks you for your father's sacrifice. This star on the wall is in some ways too small a gesture.
The workman finishes, picks up his work bag and walks away as Vaughn walks over to stand in front of the star the workman was working on, as if perhaps it's the one that belongs to his father. The voice in his memory continues to speak as he stares at the star.
VOICE: Bill Vaughn dedicated his life in service and commitment for his country. His death in the line of duty is a tragedy for his loving wife and his young son.
At this point, Vaughn leans closer to the wall, as if he notices something amiss with his father's star. He reaches forward and touches inside the crevice created by the carving, and his finger comes away covered in black grime. He looks over his shoulder to ensure he is alone and not watched, then he reaches into a back pocket and pulls out a large pocket knife. He opens it and starts trying to scrape the black gunk out of the star's carving. As he sees more gunk come out of the hole, Vaughn starts to dig and stab at the hole. Plaster starts coming away from the wall as Vaughn's movements become stronger, almost frenzied. The star has been completely mutilated as Vaughn digs a larger and larger hole in the wall behind it. Franticly, the camera cuts between the hole getting larger and Vaughn digging and yanking at the wall until the whole is large enough for his entire face. He stops to look inside the hole...and an arm pops out of the hole and starts to strangle him.
Smash cut to Vaughn sitting upright in bed, breathing heavily as he wakes from an obvious nightmare. After a moment, he lays back in bed again. We see Sydney still asleep beside him. He looks at her for a moment, but doesn't wake her. Then he stares off at the ceiling, trying to get a grip on his rattled emotions.
Cut to YAKUTIA NUCLEAR POWER PLANT, SIBERIA (daytime stock footage of power plant). Cut to the interior, where an unconscious man is being dragged up a set of metal stairs by two other men. The man is dragged into a room and dropped on the floor, watched by two other men outside the chamber, which has a plexiglass window facing the room. The unconscious man is shot in the neck with a drug and the man dressed in a lab coat like a coctor motions for the two men to leave the room.
DOCTOR (in Russian): Go, get out of the chamber.
The men leave and the door to the room shuts tight behind them.
DOCTOR (in Russian over intercom): Bring the reactor online.
Cut to a person in a radiation suit, who pulls a nuclear fuel rod out of its holder and places it in the reactor chamber. Cut back to the doctor, who pushes a button on the console in front of him. A recorded message in a female voice says in Russian:
VOICE: Thirty seconds.
The camera pans to a computer screen in the console that says "Nightingale" as part of its title. Cut to man in room, now beginning to awaken. The doctor and the 2nd man watch as the man begins to stir and stand up. The man is dressed as if possibly in a prisoner's uniform.
MAN (in Russian): What is this? What is this?
Cut to the console as we see it charging up. The doctor pushes another button. Behind the man in the room, some kind of nuclear coil is exposed.
VOICE (in Russian): Twenty seconds.
The man goes over to look at the coil and his fear and confusion are palpable.
MAN (in Russian): What...
The doctor and the 2nd man watch and then the doctor pushes another button. The room is now illuminated in red and the secondary coil begins to glow. (It also emits sounds that remind me of the Rambaldi device from "Firebomb")
MAN (in Russian): Somebody...Can you hear me? What is this?
The doctor and 2nd man watch in silence.
The man continues to babble as the voice counts down,
VOICE (in Russian): Three. Two. One.
There is a series of very bright lights that emit from the coil and the man screams in pain (again, reminiscent of the "Firebomb" device). As we watch, the man's face almost writhes beneath his skin, transforming his appearance grotesquely. He has become a monster of his former self and blood is dripping from his ears, then his mouth as his fist makes squishing sounds as he pounds against the glass.
DOCTOR (in Russian to 2nd man): I think you understand the power of Nightingale.
The 2nd man cannot quite watch as the man inside the room continues to mutate into something almost unrecognizable as a human, groaning and pounding against the glass until he slides downward, dead.
DOCTOR (in Russian to 2nd man): Your investment should prove to be quite lucrative.
Cut to stock footage of beachfront near Syd's place. Cut to Vaughn, dressed in work shirt, sitting at the breakfast bar reading the newspaper. Syd walks up to him from inside the kitchen area and pours him a cup of coffee.
SYDNEY: Did you see the front page?
Vaughn reaches over and plops it down in front of Sydney.
VAUGHN: Yeah...here you go. SYDNEY: Thank you.
Sydney pours herself a cup of coffee and opens up the paper to read, standing on the inside of the breakfast bar.
VAUGHN (not looking up from his newspaper): (sigh) So, Laughton called me back from CIA Archives...
Sydney looks up in surprise.
SYDNEY: About Nightingale? VAUGHN: Yeah. SYDNEY: When? VAUGHN: Yesterday morning. SYDNEY: Why didn't you tell me? VAUGHN: I was going to...he, uh...didn't find anything.
Sydney's face registers the disappointment in Vaughn's voice. Encouragingly, she replies,
SYDNEY: We'll keep looking.
Vaughn half smiles and looks back to his newspaper for a moment, then abruptly gets up instead.
VAUGHN: I should get dressed.
Sydney watches Vaughn thoughtfully for a moment before following him into the bedroom. Cut to Vaughn, who is looking through what is obviously his own drawer in Sydney's dresser.
SYDNEY: There could be a hundred reasons your father didn't register "Nightingale" with the CIA... VAUGHN: Yeah, I know... (turns toward Sydney) Uh, listen...have you seen my jacket anywhere?
Sydney looks for Vaughn's jacket.
SYDNEY: I mean, it's a setback, but...there are people we can talk to... VAUGHN (turning away from the dresser. He seems flustered, a bit out of sorts): No. No, there aren't.
Sydney hands Vaughn his jacket. He immediately starts looking around again.
VAUGHN: Keys...Where the hell are my keys...? SYDNEY (fetching his keys from the bedside table): We could bring it to APO...They might be able to help us track...
Cut to Vaughn, putting his jacket on and straightening the collar.
VAUGHN (cutting Sydney off): We're not bringing this to APO. The last thing I want is Sloane knowing I was investigating my father's death and him using that against me. SYDNEY (tossing Vaughn his keys): We don't know your father's dead. VAUGHN: Yeah...at this point I do. SYDNEY: After all the progress you've made, how can you just...? VAUGHN (cutting Sydney off): "How can I just..." what!? What have I got? Some...journals in his handwriting that shouldn't even exist? And a word? One word. Nightingale. What the hell does that even mean? Some random woman mentioned it to me... I would have been better off asking for the goose that layed golden eggs. SYDNEY (quietly firm): It wasn't some "random woman"...She was the woman who raised Nadia.
Vaughn looks away and pinches his nose in frustration.
SYDNEY: I wanna get to the bottom of this as badly as you do. We always thought my mother killed your father...but what if we were wrong? What if there was some other plan?
Vaughn, looking a bit calmer now, gives Sydney just a ghost of a smile.
Cut to the APO sign, then cut to Jack, sitting in front of a laptop in his office inside APO. He looks up as there is a knock and Sydney enters.
SYDNEY: Do you have a minute? JACK: Certainly.
Sydney walks in and stands in front of the desk.
SYDNEY: I need to ask a favor. I was wondering if I could use your Level 6 clearance to look at some files. JACK (puzzled, a bit wary): In reference to what? SYDNEY: They're not for me...it's...They're for Vaughn, actually. JACK: I see.
Sydney sits down in a chair in front of Jack's desk.
SYDNEY: A month ago...Vaughn found a journal that belonged to his father. The entries ended in 1982. Mom killed Bill Vaughn in '79, but we authenticated the handwriting... JACK: That proves nothing. Counterfitters are experts at graphoanalysis. SYDNEY: I know, but it doesn't explain "Nightingale". JACK (looks confused): What's...Nightingale? SYDNEY: We don't know. Vaughn followed a lead in the journal that took him to a woman in Lisbon who knew all about Vaughn's dad...that he rescued Nadia when she was a baby. She said that shortly after that, he left looking for Nightingale. I mean, it could be a codename; it could be an operation...
Jack looks down, troubled.
SYDNEY: I know I'm asking for a lot...
Jack looks up at Sydney.
SYDNEY: ...but I understand what Vaughn's going through... JACK: You also know how dangerous that search can be. SYDNEY: Yeah, I do.
Jack looks down and types into his computer, enabling his level 6 clearance. He stands up to make room for her in front of the computer. She stands also.
SYDNEY (in almost a whisper): Thank you. JACK: I appreciate you...trusting me with this. Seems like we haven't really talked since...
SYDNEY (cutting in): ...Mom died. JACK: Feel free to come to me...anytime.
Sydney turns and watches Jack as he walks toward the door to his office. In the doorway, he stops and looks at her before leaving. Sydney sits down at Jack's desk and types in the word "Nightingale" in the search box.
Cut to Vaughn and Dixon dressed in protective boxing equipment as they spar in what appears to be a gym area built into APO. As Dixon sees Sydney coming, he puts up his hands to signal they stop. To Vaughn, he says, pointing behind him to Sydney (who is holding a file folder),
DIXON: Looks like you have an audience... SYDNEY (smiling): Not bad.
Cut to Vaughn opening a file. Inside, we see a picture of the doctor from the Nightingale experiment from the beginning of the episode.
SYDNEY: Nightingale is the brainchild of a Josef Vlatczko, Russian emigre we recruited into DARPA. He vanished 25 years ago after running tests on human subjects. VAUGHN: Nice guy. SYDNEY: When he left, he took all the records of Nightingale with him. That's why you couldn't find anything; DARPA had to cover up the security breach. VAUGHN: So, if we find Latczko, we might find something about my Dad.
Sydney reaches over and flips to another portion of the folder. There is the photo of the 2nd man that watched the Nightingale experiment from the beginning of the show.
SYDNEY: Hans Deitrich, German money launderer. Last year, he started branching out into higher risk investments, mainly new weapon systems. He funneled over a million Euros into an encrypted bank account labeled Nachtigall...Nightingale.
Vaughn looks up at Sydney.
SYDNEY: Deitrich's office is in Munich. He runs a beer hall on the ground floor. IF we can get to his records, we might be able to find a lead...something on Latczko...who knows?
Vaughn smiles softly at Sydney, obviously impressed.
VAUGHN: Syd, how'd you get all this? SYDNEY: (pauses nervously) My dad. VAUGHN (surprised, not happy): What? SYDNEY: He has clearance...we... VAUGHN (cutting Sydney off): Did you tell him everything? SYDNEY: I had to.
Vaughn looks away unhappily.
Cut to Sloane sitting at his desk in his office. He looks up as his door slides open. It's Jack.
SLOANE: How much do they know? JACK: Uncertain. Apparently there were journals we couldn't account for. SLOANE: Hmm...Well, I should shut them down. JACK: We could turn this to our advantage; let Sydney and Vaughn obtain intelligence for us... SLOANE: I see...And you have no problem with that? JACK: Of course I do. But given our current obstacles...they might provide a lead we couldn't get on our own. SLOANE: All right, Jack; give them a long leash. But just so we're clear...we cannot afford to be compromised...not even by your daughter. JACK: It won't come to that.
Jack and Sloane stare at each other tensely for a moment before Jack turns and leaves, Sloane staring after him.
CUT TO BLACK
Now is the time in Alias when we dance!
Open to someone reading a magazine at Sydney's breakfast bar. The camera pans up to show us it's Weiss as we see Vaughn emerge from Sydney's bedroom with both hands full of luggage. As he walks by Weiss, he deadpans,
VAUGHN: No, I'm fine, thanks. Don't help. WEISS: Aww, boo hoo. I'm gonna go up north and drink wine for two days while my friends stay here and work. VAUGHN: It's called 'accumulated vacation', man. You use it or lose it.
Vaughn puts the bags down on the steps leading up to the front door. Sydney and Nadia enter from Sydney's bedroom.
SYDNEY (to Nadia): So, you'll water the plants, right? NADIA: I've got it. SYDNEY: And you'll send out the...? NADIA: Sydney, go. Have a good time. WEISS: You know what? We could actually drive up and meet you guys...
Vaughn puts an affectionate arm around Sydney's shoulder and makes the "I don't know..." face at Weiss.
VAUGHN: Um... SYDNEY (rescuing him): We're busy. VAUGHN: Yeah. WEISS: You gotta eat...one meal. VAUGHN (slighly suggestively as he pulls Sydney into a closer embrace): That's what room service is for... NADIA: Don't mind him. Have fun. WEISS: I mean...we're crazy...this weekend anyway...we've got plans...you know, we're doing the...um...there's that, uh...
Sydney looks back at Weiss with an amused smile.
NADIA: Yeah.
M(U)NICH
Cut to daytime stock photo of Munich. Cut to a number of establishing scenes inside the beer hall, including waitresses dressed in blonde wigs and traditional German dresses. Traditional beer hall oompa music is playing. Camera pans across the crowded room to stop on a table in the back of the hall. We focus on the man in the photo, who is drinking beer.
VAUGHN (off screen): That's Deitrich.
Cut to Sydney and Vaughn at a table in the front of the beer hall. Vaughn is facing toward the back and Sydney is looking at Deitrich in her make up mirror while pretending to apply lipstick.
SYDNEY: He's with his bodyguards. The man on the right is Deitrich's second in command, Kron Gulav. This is gonna be fun...(puts makeup away) No toys from Marshall...Cell phones instead of comms... VAUGHN (half disbelief): Yeah, now all we have to do is get Deitrich alone...convince him to show us his files on Nightingale...
Cut to Deitrich as one of the waitresses reaches across his table to remove his glass. He grabs her hand and kisses it before letting her get away. Cut back to Sydney, who watched that scene in her mirror.
SYDNEY: I can get him alone.
Vaughn smiles.
Cut to Sydney walking into a back room in the beer hall. It appears to be a dressing room of some kind with rows of lockers. Sydney walks down the row, trying to open one of the lockers.
WOMAN (off screen, in German): Can I help you?
Sydney slowly turns. It's one of the waitresses.
SYDNEY (in German): Where are the uniforms? I start today, I was told there'd be spares here.
The woman walks up to Sydney.
WOMAN (in German): Are you Klaus' cousin? SYDNEY: Ya.
The woman slaps Sydney across the face.
WOMAN (angrily, in German): I think there's something you need to say to me.
Sydney, with a hand held to her face, looks up at the woman. Cut to the beer hall as a waitress hands Deitrich a check. Vaughn dials his cell phone. Cut to the woman, knocked out on the floor, still in her dress but her wig is gone.
SYDNEY (answering phone off screen): Yeah. VAUGHN: They're getting the check. They're almost out the door. SYDNEY (braiding her wig, dressed in another dress): Okay, okay, I'm almost there.
Vaughn hangs up as he watches Deitrich sign the slip and hand it to a waitress. Vaughn turns to see Sydney walk by with a beer stein on a tray, headed toward Deitrich. Sydney, giving Deitrich the eye, places the beer down in front of him.
DEITRICH (in German): We've already paid. SYDNEY (in German): Compliments of a friend. DEITRICH (in German): Who? SYDNEY (in German): Me.
They stare at each other for a moment, then, with a ghost of a smile, Deitrich holds out his hand to her. She puts her hand in his.
DEITRICH (in German): What is your name? SYDNEY: Olga. (pause) (in German): Come with me.
Deitrich gets up and starts to walk off with Sydney. Cut to Vaughn, whose phone is ringing. Confused, he looks at it and then answers it.
VAUGHN: Yeah?
Cut to Eric, back at Syd's place.
WEISS: Hey man, I got a quick question... VAUGHN (watching Sydney walking away with Deitrich): Eric, this is a really bad time... WEISS: Where are you? Is that a party? VAUGHN (watching Sydney tensely): Look, I'm gonna have to call you back. WEISS (teasing): Romantic getaway's goin' that good, huh? VAUGHN (as Sydney walks by with Deitrich): Braids, fishnets...it's pretty spectacular. WEISS: Somebody's gettin' lucky tonight...(amused) Byyyyeeeee!
Vaughn hangs up. Sydney and Deitrich enter his private office. Sydney is still carrying her tray under her arm. Deitrich walks up to her and says suggestively,
DEITRICH (in German): So, what God smiled at me and sent you my way?
Sydney smiles as if flattered.
SYDNEY (in German): Mr. Deitrich...Surely you do this with all the girls. DEITRICH (in German): It's been known to happen.
He leans toward Sydney as if to kiss her. Sydney grabs him by the lapels of his jacket and launches him over the top of his desk to land in his chair behind it. She slides her leg across the desk to lodge the heel of her shoe into his throat.
SYDNEY: Where do you keep your financial records? DEITRICH: What? SYDNEY: Your business files; where do you keep them? DEITRICH (struggling to breathe against the pressure of Sydney's foot): God...they're on my computer! SYDNEY (sliding her foot higher, so that the heel is right over Deitrich's jugular.): Show me or I'll break your neck. DEITRICH: I will!
He reaches over and types one-handed a password on his computer.
DEITRICH: Please...don't hurt me...
Sydney kicks him in the side of the head, knocking him out. She finds the "Nightingale" file, goes to open it...but it requires another password. Cut to Deitrich's 2nd in command, who is beginning to look antsy that his boss has been gone so long. Vaughn speed dials' Sydney's number.
VAUGHN: The guys down here are getting pretty antsy... How's it going? SYDNEY: Give me 30 seconds...
GULAV (in German): Let's go get Deitrich.
Vaughn gets up and moves to intercept. Stepping in front of them, he says with a thick Italian accent,
VAUGHN: Hier Gulav...Ignacio Maldini, Europol liaison, Organized Crime unit.
Gulav sighs impatiently.
VAUGHN: We've recieved complaints...
GULAV: Take it up with our lawyers...
Starts to walk by Vaughn. Vaughn puts a staying hand on his shoulder.
VAUGHN: We have. And unless you want my entire office down here tomorrow, you'll listen to me.
Cut to Sydney, removing the exterior hard drive and getting up from behind Deitrich's desk. A man walks in, surprising her.
MAN (in German): What are you doing here? SYDNEY (in German): I'm Klaus' cousin. He asked me to come back here. MAN ( in German): I'm Klaus.
Sydney reacts for a split second, then smashes Klaus in the face with the hard drive and then again against the side of his head, knocking him out. She takes off out of Deitrich's office in a run.
Cut to Vaughn, still tying up Deitrich's men.
VAUGHN:...Low wages, no overtime, rampant sexual harassment... GULAV: (scoffing) What!? Sexual harassment?
At that moment, Sydney bursts out of the back area to slide down the length of the main bar. Vaughn uses the distraction to punch Gulav in the face. Sydney turns herself mid slide and kicks Gulav in the face, knocking him out, then grabs a beer stein and crashes it on the 2nd bodyguard's head, knocking him out, too. Vaughn takes out a 3rd guard. Vaughn pulls open the front door and holds it open for Sydney. She turns to the watching crowd and says,
SYDNEY: Auf wiedersen.
The crowd in the bar cheers.
LOS AN(G)ELES
Nighttime establishing shot of LA skyline. Cut to Sydney and Vaughn in her bedroom, trying to hack into Deitrich's hard drive.
VAUGHN: Okay, try it now.
Sydney types in Deitrich's main password, and is able to pull up at file heading that says "Nachtigall", but the rest is encrypted.
SYDNEY: It's there. It's encrypted. It's gonna take a while... VAUGHN: Yeah. Well, as long as it's in there.
Vaughn's phone rings.
VAUGHN: Hello? VOICE (unknown male voice): Say it's Weiss. VAUGHN (confused): What? VOICE: Tell your girlfriend that it's Weiss...if you wanna know about your father.
Vaughn pauses for a second and then mouths "It's Weiss" at Sydney. Sydney nods and goes back to working with the hard drive. Vaughn turns on the end of the bed so his back is to her.
VOICE: You got lucky in Munich, but Nightingale won't answer your questions. Only I can. Sherwood Library, UCLA Campus. Get there in an hour. The library will be closed, but the side door will be open. VAUGHN (covering): Uh...yeah, you know what? I'll see if I can. VOICE: What I have is for you alone. If you tell your girlfriend, she'll be dead by the time you come back. (hangs up) VAUGHN (covering): All right...I'll talk to you later. (hangs up)
SYDNEY: What's going on? VAUGHN: Uh, nothing. He just, uh, wanted to grab a burger. SYDNEY: Well, you should go. I'll work on this. Besides, if Weiss gets suspicious... VAUGHN: Yeah. Yeah, okay.
He gets up, grabs his coat.
VAUGHN: You want anything? SYDNEY (not looking up from her work): No, thanks. I'll grab something later. VAUGHN: I won't be long.
Vaughn walks over and kisses Sydney on the forehead. SYDNEY: Take your time. VAUGHN: Bye.
Vaughn starts to walk out.
SYDNEY: Tell Weiss I said hi.
VAUGHN: I will.
He stops in the doorway of the room, ostensibly to put on his coat, but really he's watching Sydney, nervous about what he's about to do. He walks away.
Cut to exterior of the library. Cut to Vaughn, inside the library and walking down the stacks. His cell phone rings.
VAUGHN: Yeah. VOICE: Through The Looking Glass. The illustrated edition.
Looking annoyed, Vaughn hangs up his phone and heads through the entrance to the children's part of the library. (An interesting detail is as he's walking down the aisle where the book is, behind him is a sculpture of the Cheshire cat from the movie version of Alice in Wonderland.) Vaughn finds the book and pulls it off the shelf. He opens it up to find a space in the middle cut out of the pages. Inside is a syringe with a blue ribbon rolled around it. Unrolling it, we see it reads, "Inject Me".
VAUGHN (in disbelief): You've gotta be kidding me.
Cut to Vaughn as he drops the book into a trashcan, preparing to leave. His phone rings again. Annoyed, he answers it.
VAUGHN: Listen, if you think I'm gonna inject myself, you're out of your mind. VOICE: If I wanted you dead, I could kill you right now. You wanna know about your father? I'll give you two minutes to do the right thing.
Vaughn hangs up the phone and looks around and then looks back at the trash can where he threw the book away. Cut to Vaughn entering a darkened reading area in the children's library. He sits down, places the book next to him. He wipes his mouth nervously, then opens the book to again reveal the syringe. He looks at it, then rubs his face furiously with his hands, as if warring within himself what he wants to do. He looks over at the syringe again...puts his head in his hands again...then grabs the syringe, rips off the ribbon and the cover and injects the substance into his arm.
CUT TO BLACK
Open to establishing night shot of LA.
JACK (voiceover): I traced Sydney and Vaughn's movement. They went to Munich.
Cut to Sloane's reaction.
SLOANE: What did they find? JACK: Undetermined at this point. SLOANE: Jack, the plan was to let Sydney and Vaughn open doors we couldn't go through and to pull them back if they got too far. I don't see much here in the way of containment. JACK: We have an option. I can go to Sydney, engender her trust, convince her to bring the case to APO. SLOANE: Hmm. No. She's too intuitive. Considering your relationship, she'll see right through you...through us. JACK: No, she won't. I know exactly how to approach her.
Cut to Sydney, sitting cross legged on her bed, still working on breaking into the Nightingale file. Her telephone rings. She answers.
SYDNEY: Hello? JACK: It's me. SYDNEY (surprised): Dad. Hi. JACK: I uh, realize this is short notice, but...I was wondering if you would join me at Micelli's this evening? SYDNEY (stunned): Um... JACK: Is it...bad timing? SYDNEY: Uh, no...I JACK (trying to sound nonchalant): Hey...I was just...hoping you'd be free for dinner. SYDNEY: (pauses) I'll meet you there in 30 minutes. JACK: See you there.
Sydney looks at the phone and then hangs up. She goes back to her work with the computer. She unlocks the file and information, schematics, etc. pop up on the screen.
Cut to a close up of two limp hands. The camera trails up the person's seated body. It's Vaughn. He appears unconscious and his face is covered in sweat. He begins to come to, breathing heavily. It appears that he tries to move, but finds that he can't. (Note: This appears to be the same neurotoxin the Covenant doctor used on Sydney when they forced her to watch her funeral) Cut to a shadowy figure in the doorway of the darkened room.
VOICE: Mr. Vaughn...
Cut back to Vaughn, who is still trying to move, but other than moving his eyes and a bit of a grimace on his face, nothing else is moving. The man steps forward. It's a black man in his 30's...someone we've never seen before.
MAN: Welcome back. (appears amused by Vaughn's struggle). Don't worry; it's temporary.
He walks over and sits down next to Vaughn on the bench seat.
MAN: The paralysis should wear off in about...(checks his watch) four minutes 20 seconds. Might sting a little...you know, the re-entry. VAUGHN (barely above a whisper): Who are you? MAN: A man that could tell you about your father. But first...what I want. That intel you stole from Deitrich will lead you to Nightingale. What I'm interested in is the transforming coil inside of Nightingale. VAUGHN (struggling to speak): Are you out of your mind? MAN (snorts): I'm not the one that injected myself with an unknown substance. (pause) So, now that we've established your desperation...it's a matter of how far you're willing to go. VAUGHN: Why should I believe anything you say? MAN: Philip Burke. (leans closer to Vaughn) B. U. R. K. E. VAUGHN: Who's that?
The man stands up.
MAN: You look him up. And when you're done, you contact me. (holds up a business card, then tucks it under Vaughn's arm.) One time only. Make it count.
The man pats Vaughn on the side of the arm and then walks out. Cut back to Vaughn's hands. His fingers are starting to move. Cut to watching Vaughn's feet as he stumbles out into the main part of the library. Obviously, the neurotoxin is still wearing off.
Cut to a nighttime establishing shot of LA. Cut to Jack, standing as Sydney approaches the table.
JACK: Thanks for coming.
Sydney clears her throat and then sits down at the table.
JACK: I took the liberty of ordering a bottle of Pignot Noir. SYDNEY (pleasantly surprised as he pours her a glass): Okay. JACK (smiling softly): You look...very nice. SYDNEY: Thank you. JACK: So...(lifting his glass) SYDNEY (lifting her glass also): Yes...
(Note: It doesn't appear that either one actually takes a drink here)
JACK: Everything...okay? SYDNEY: It's fine. JACK (putting down his glass): How's your investigation going? Vaughn's father... SYDNEY (puts down her glass): It's complicated, actually. JACK: You found something. SYDNEY: The intel on the hard drive makes it seem like...Nightingale is an active project. JACK: Active? SYDNEY: Vlatczko is running it out of an abandoned nuclear reactor in Siberia. He's jury-rigged enough power to drive what he needs. JACK: For what purpose? SYDNEY: I'm not sure exactly, but the experiments are molecular, they're...altering human DNA. There was a list of over a dozen human test subjects. All of them died. There's mention of the genetic markers AD9, but I don't know what it all means. JACK (takes a drink from his glass): Sydney, you have to bring this to APO. SYDNEY: Not until I talk to Vaughn. JACK: Vaughn doesn't know that people may be dying because of it. I gave you level 6 clearance because I trusted you. I'm asking you to trust me now. Bring this to APO. If you really want to find answers, use the resources that APO can provide.
Sydney looks away in thought. She looks torn.
JACK: You have to discuss this with Vaughn first; I respect that. But the longer you keep this off-book, the worse this will look for both of you. The only way to proceed is honestly...above-board. Promise me you'll tell Vaughn that. SYDNEY (nodding): I promise.
Jack nods.
Cut to Jack sitting in Sloane's office.
SLOANE: She told you this? JACK: Yes. SLOANE (seems impressed): Hmm. For 20 years, Josef Vlatczko's been off the grid. Now we find him through Sydney, of all people. (pauses, smiling, then sits down next to Jack). Well, I have to hand it to you, Jack...I never thought that you'd be capable of exploiting your own daughter. I certainly couldn't do that. (switching topics) I could have a strike team on the ground in Siberina in 72 hours. JACK (his voice belying his annoyance): That's a foolish course of action. SLOANE: Vlatczko's our strongest lead to Yelena Derevko. With this intel, we need to act quickly. JACK: Sydney cannot know that I've betrayed her confidence. We wait for her to bring this in. SLOANE: And if she doesn't? JACK: She will. I asked her to. When she does, we'll draw up an ops plan requiring me to go along on the mission. Once there, I'll interrogate Vlatczko without Sydney or Vaughn knowing. SLOANE: If our assumption is correct, Vlatczko's communicating with Yelena. Once you've completed the interrogation, he needs to be eliminated. JACK: It's a little extreme, don't you think? SLOANE: No, I consider it a necessary precaution. He could alert Yelena to our agenda. Or even worse...he could talk to Sydney...which would be a disaster, unless, of course, you want to destroy everything we've worked for.
Off Jack's troubled look, we
CUT TO BLACK
Pan sideways to Vaughn seated in front of his computer at APO. He types the name BURKE, PHILLIP into the search engine. The engine searches and then pulls up a file with photo that says: Phillip Burke, Status: Killed in Action, Date: 10/21/79, Report: Phillip Burke killed in Laos. CIA Agent: 00231545.
VAUGHN (reading aloud to himself): Phillip Burke, killed in Laos...10/21/79.
This information sinks in, and then Vaughn begins typing furiously. Cut to a printed report with Phillip Burke's photo attached.
VAUGHN (voice over): They're identical. His name's Phillip Burke.
Cut to Vaughn, standing beside Sydney, sitting on a couch in her living room looking through the report.
VAUGHN: CIA Black Ops agent killed in Laos the exact same date my father was killed. The autopsy report showed that Burke was shot with a Makarov pistol, the exact same make and model your mother used to kill my father. And there's more.
Vaughn pulls out a small envelope and removes a set of dental X-rays and hands them to Sydney.
VAUGHN: Dental records. The ones on the left are Burke's, the set on the right are my father's.
Sydney studies them and realizes they're the same.
SYDNEY: Oh, my God... VAUGHN: I mean, we've always thought your mother killed my father...but what if she killed Phillip Burke instead?
Sydney thinks about it for a second, then asks,
SYDNEY: How would the CIA...how would anyone... VAUGHN (cutting her off): Maybe the CIA didn't know and someone wanted the world to think Bill Vaughn died and replaced him with Phillip Burke.
Sydney thinks for another moment, then asks,
SYDNEY: Vaughn, where did you get this information? VAUGHN: That phone call from before. It wasn't Weiss. I went to see a guy named Roberts. I made a deal with him because he said he had information about my father.
Sydney lets that sink in, then stands abruptly, upset.
SYDNEY: I can't believe you didn't tell me. VAUGHN: Syd, he said he'd only talk if I came alone. SYDNEY: I don't care; what you did was crazy! VAUGHN: Yeah, and it paid off! This guy knows more and he'll tell me. SYDNEY: In return for what? (crosses her arms across her chest) VAUGHN: He wants me to give him Nightingale. Some...transformer coil. SYDNEY (upset): We don't even know what Nightingale is yet and you want to just hand it over!? VAUGHN: We're just gonna shut down the testing, we're not handing over the entire program...just a part of it. Syd, we do missions like this all the time! SYDNEY: Not on our own; not rogue.
Vaughn looks away. After a moment, Sydney continues,
SYDNEY: My father wants us to bring this in to APO.
Vaughn turns to look at her, and his annoyance is clear in his voice,
VAUGHN (not a question): You talked to him again.
Sydney nods once in semi-defiance.
VAUGHN: Yeah, well your father and Sloane will never let me keep technology like this for myself. And besides, I don't trust them. I don't trust anybody...except you. SYDNEY: Then what do you suggest? VAUGHN: We come clean at APO like your father wants. We drop a mission that will get us Nightingale...then we run a countermission. SYDNEY: Like the old days. VAUGHN: Our stated goal is to retrieve the coil... SYDNEY: ...but instead, we keep it for ourselves. VAUGHN: The only problem is, there's no way we can make a duplicate. We won't have time to make a fake one... SYDNEY: ...so we have a Plan B.
Vaughn nods.
Cut to daytime view of LA via helicopter.
SLOANE (voiceover): We need to retrieve the coil and shut down Nightingale.
Cut to briefing room of APO. Sloane, Jack, Marshall, Vaughn, and Sydney are present.
SLOANE: Assuming you got to the facility undetected, what then? SYDNEY: Once inside, Vaughn and I will split up. I'll recover the coil while Vaughn takes care of security. VAUGHN: Now, each door in the facility is keycode operated, but Vlatczko operates out of the security station here, so I'll subdue him, I'll override all the locking mechanisms. That should get Sydney into the control room where the coil's held. JACK: What configuration did you say the reactor was running? VAUGHN: RBMK. JACK: Then you'll need two people to retrieve the coil: One to ensure the reactor stays in standby mode while the other enters the test chamber to grab the coil. MARSHALL: Yeah...that's right! SLOANE: That means you're missing one man to override security. JACK: Then...I'll join the team. As third man, I'll access the security system while you and Vaughn recover the coil. Once the mission is complete, we can bring Vlatczko back for questioning. SYDNEY: If we need a third man, Dixon is more than capable... SLOANE: Actually, Jack's experience will serve you well...unless there's something about this mission that you haven't told me.
Sloane looks from Vaughn to Sydney, who both stone-cold bluff him.
VAUGHN: No, sounds good.
CUT TO BLACK
SIBE( R ) IA
Outside the power plant, Sydney, Vaughn and Jack approach a grate covering the exit to a ventilation shaft. Vaughn unscrews the bolts with an electric drill and removes the cover.
SYDNEY: Home plate, we're in. MARSHALL: Copy 5x5; Phoenix standing by.
Sloane stands watching and listening over Marshall's shoulder.
Cut to Syd, Vaughn, and Jack entering the access and walking through the ventilation tunnel. They come around a corner and take out two guards with tranq guns. They go around another corner and take out another guard just coming up the stairs.
JACK: Going ahead to the security room. SYDNEY: We'll meet you back here with the coil.
Jack continues down the corridor; Syd and Vaughn climb some stairs leading to the control room. Cut to Jack turning a corner. He looks up and nonchalantly fires his tranq gun. As he walks by the camera, we see the body of the person he tranqued fall to the floor from above him. Cut back to Syd and Vaughn taking out guards on their way to the control room. Just as Syd and Vaughn are detected on the security cameras, Jack enters the security room, tranquing the guard and coming up to Vlatczko.
JACK: The more you cooperate, the less pain you'll endure. Sit down. Sit down!
Vlatczko complies. Jack hits buttons on a console in front of him.
JACK: Shutting down security. SLOANE: Jack, are you with Dr. Vlatczo? JACK: Yes, he's been subdued. (switches comms on) Shotgun, Phoenix...unlocking the door to the control room now. VAUGHN: Copy; almost there.
Cut to Syd and Vaughn bursting into the control room and tranquing two scientists.
VAUGHN: Okay, Marshall...We're at the control panels. MARSHALL: Is the reactor online? SYDNEY: Negative. I can see the transformer inside now. MARSHALL: Right. Open up the containment shield. That's where the coil is. SYDNEY: Copy.
Vaughn hits a button and the shield over the coil lowers.
MARSHALL: Now, release the lock to the test chamber.
Vaughn hits another button and the chamber door slides open.
SYDNEY: We've got the chamber opened. I'm going in.
Sydney enters the chamber.
SYDNEY: Dismantling the pressure shield now.
Sydney starts cutting a hole in the top of the device to remove the coil.
SYDNEY: This will take a couple minutes.
Cut to Jack and Dr. Vlatczko.
JACK: I need information, and I need it very quickly. VLATCZKO: I don't know what you're talking about.
Jack whacks him across the face.
JACK: I know about Nightingale. VLATCZKO: If you know about Nightingale, what else can I possibly tell you? JACK: The location of Yelena Derevko. VLATCZKO: Yelena? JACK (menacing): Tell me where she is. VLATCZKO: I don't know.
Jack hits him across the face again.
Cut to Sydney, who almost has a complete hole through the pressure shield.
SYDNEY: Ready to remove the coil.
Sydney lifts off the piece she cut out.
Cut to Jack and Vlatczko.
JACK: Where is Yelena? VLATCZKO: I told you, I don't know! JACK: You worked for her. You've been in contact. You couldn't have set this up without her help. VLATCZKO: It was years ago. JACK: I don't have time for this.
Jack shoots Vlatczko in the thigh.
Cut back to Vaughn, monitoring from the control room, when a guard comes in, firing a machine gun at him. He ducks to the side and jumps behind the control panel, which is hailed with bullets and starts to spark. Behind him, the door to the test chamber starts to slide shut. Sydney hears it and runs for it, but not in time; she's locked in. Vaughn takes out the guard, but the damage is done. The control panel is fried. The reactor starts to come online.
RECORDED VOICE (in Russian): Sixty seconds.
Sydney tries to pull the door open, but it won't budge.
SYDNEY: Vaughn! VAUGHN: Syd, the controls are fried. SYDNEY: Can you get me out of here?
Cut to Jack and Vlatczko. Jack still has his gun pointed at him.
JACK: Tell me where she is! VLATCZKO: I don't know!
VAUGHN: Home base. The reactor's coming online, it's coming online now! MARSHALL: Vaughn, bypass the nuclear fusion switch. It's on the panel under the main controls. VAUGHN (to Sydney): I have to run a bypass!
Vaughn gets under the panel and runs the bypass.
RECORDED VOICE (in Russian): Thirty seconds.
The reactor coil begins to light up in preparation for activation. Sydney pulls at the door and looks helplessly through the glass at Vaughn, and
CUT TO BLACK
Back to Sydney still in the chamber trying to pull the door open, then cut to Marshall.
MARSHALL: Okay, is there an ethernet port next to the motherboard? VAUGHN: Yeah. MARSHALL: Okay, plug it in there. (typing furiously on his keyboard) That should give me access to...(his computer connects to the one at the plant) Okay, nice. That's it. (to Sloane) I'm on the server. Vaughn, use the blue and yellow wire together to open the door. He wires it and then says to Sydney,
VAUGHN: Okay, Syd...try the door now. SYDNEY: Still locked! Vaughn! VAUGHN: Marshall, I can't bypass the door. Sydney's in the room with the reactor.
Cut to Jack listening to this on his comms. Cut back to Vaughn.
VAUGHN: Is there another way to shut down the core!? MARSHALL: Only if you remove the fuel rods.
Cut to Jack. His face shows he's obviously torn. Then, he shoots and kills Vlatczko and bolts out of the room and down the corridor.
JACK: Marshall, I'm headed toward the core. MARSHALL: No! No! No! Do not do that! Exposure to that amount of radiation can kill you, okay? I can slow down the countdown and buy enough time to corrupt the reactor or mainframe. Just give me some time. RECORDED VOICE (in Russian): Twenty seconds.
Vaughn spies the machine gun the now dead guard was using and picks it up.
VAUGHN: Take cover!
Vaughn shoots at the glass between him and her, but it's bulletproof. Cut to Jack, running up to the room where the fuel rods are. He tries to enter via the keypad, but it doesn't work.
MARSHALL: No, Mr. Bristow... I see what you're doing. Don't go in there. I've almost got it; I can keep the reactor from coming online...I can! SYDNEY (to Vaughn): It's um...getting a little warm in here... VAUGHN: Hang on! I'm working on it!
Jack takes apart the keypad to try to hotwire it.
RECORDED VOICE (in Russian): Ten seconds. VAUGHN: Marshall, come on! MARSHALL: Okay, almost there, almost there, almost there...got it, the countdown's slowing down.
Jack has gotten the panel off and is trying to short the wires. The countdown continues (slower) and we bounce back from Vaughn's worried face to Jack trying to break into the fuel rod room. Cut to Marshall on his computer.
MARSHALL (typing furiously): Work some magic! Work some magic! Work some magic! Work some magic! Work some magic!
Countdown goes from three to two. Cut from Vaughn's stricken face to Sydney still trying in vain to open the door. Cut to Jack, who has just gotten the access light for the door to go green. Cut back to Vaughn, staring in horror at the coil and then in anguish at Sydney. Sydney braces herself against activation. As the countown gets past two, everything stops. The light on the coil goes out and the regular lights come back up.
VAUGHN: Marshall, what happened? MARSHALL (reading from his computer screen): Total system shutdown due to core corruption...I did it.
Cut to Vaughn's relieved look at Sydney that Sydney returns.
MARSHALL (joyous): We did it! We...
Marshall launches himself into a very surprised Slaone's arms to hug him in glee.
SLOANE (pulling Marshall off of him): All right, Marshall...Marshall...just free Sydney, would you? MARSHALL: Right! Sorry...um, system's in reset; that should be a problem (types a few keys), and...free at last.
Cut to Vaughn running toward Sydney in the hallway. Sydney is carrying the coil.
VAUGHN: Sydney! (He grasps Sydney by both shoulders as if steadying her) You okay? SYDNEY: Yeah, I'm fine. (She hands Vaughn the coil.) Plan B.
Vaughn shakes his head in almost disgust.
VAUGHN: Ah, I hate this.
Sydney takes a deep breath and steels herself.
SYDNEY: Vaughn...are you sure?
Vaughn's face softens and Sydney looks at him almost as if to say, "What?" He reaches forward and pulls her to him, kissing her passionately. As he pulls away, he tells her softly,
VAUGHN: I love you.
Sydney smiles a bit and answers in a soft, almost a playful tone,
SYDNEY: Yeah? (pause) Still?
Vaughn smiles and nods slightly, then steels himself and then punches Sydney really hard across the face. Sydney drops to the floor with a grunt. Vaughn grimaces after making contact as if it hurt him to hit her. She gets back up; her lip is bleeding and she's breathing hard in reaction to the pain. She gives him a little glance almost as if to say, "Nice punch."
SYDNEY: Remember what you promised... VAUGHN (strained, as if he hates to see Sydney in pain): I'll let you know when I get there. SYDNEY (gingerly touching the side of her face): 'Kay.
Sydney turns and watches as Vaughn runs off with the coil. Cut to Jack running up the stairs toward Sydney.
JACK: Sydney!
Sydney runs straight into her father's arms.
SYDNEY: I couldn't stop him...
Sydney pulls out of Jack's embrace to look him in the face.
SYDNEY: It was Vaughn... he took the coil.
Sydney protects the tender side of her face with her hand for effect.
SYDNEY: I couldn't stop him, Dad.
He pulls her back into his arms. His face says he clearly doesn't believe her story.
Cut to daytime shot of LA skyline. Cut to Jack and Sloane in Sloane's office.
SLOANE: Well, I don't understand this. Vaughn assaulted Sydney and stole the coil? JACK: Yes. SLOANE: And you believe her? JACK (shaking his head no): Vaughn wouldn't go against us without reason. From his father's journals to this...rash action... Someone must be feeding him information...a third party we're not aware of. SLOANE: Yeah, well obviously this complicates our situation. JACK (annoyed): Yes, I imagine this must be quite upsetting to you, Arvin. My not anticipating Sydney and Vaughn's deceit might be greater than your own... SLOANE (lets that go): Have you thought about how we're going to deal with this...
Jack doesn't answer. He appears a bit dazed.
SLOANE: Jack? JACK (as if waking from a daydream): Hmmm? SLOANE: Are you all right? JACK: Fine. Just tired.
Sloane's face clearly says he's not buying that.
JACK: I'll work up some options on retrieving Vaughn and the coil.
He stands up and leaves Sloane's office. Sloane watches him leave, and appears to be concerned over Jack's strange behavior.
Cut and then pan to Sydney sitting at her dining table, reading the newspaper, eating a sandwich and drinking some milk. She hears a ringing and looks over toward the breakfast bar, where her cell phone sits. She picks it up and her display says she has a new message. She presses on the screen and reveals an email from Vaughn. It says, "I'm okay. Wish me luck..." Sydney smiles softly and then looks worried. Cut to Jack, walking swiftly through APO toward the exit. Marshall chases after him.
MARSHALL: Uh, Mr. Bristow...Mr. Bristow!
Jack does not slow down at all, but Marshall finally catches up to him.
MARSHALL: Hi. Listen, I uh, ran the diagnostics on the core reactor shutdown... You remember the...Marshall saves the day, and uh... JACK (cutting him off): Marshall, this is not the time. MARSHALL: Yeah, but I re-ran security protocols and I checked them and rechecked them twice, believe me, because I couldn't quite understand... JACK (cutting him off again, impatient): Marshall, what is it!?
They've reached the hallway leading out into the subway.
MARSHALL: I didn't shut down that reactor at all! JACK: That's impossible. MARSHALL: No it isn't! The printouts! Listen, it is physically impossible for me to shut down that reactor from a remote location. I mean, given it's particular status, they would have to be shut down manually, but that's impossible, too, because that would mean that someone...that...that's... (realizing the truth and is horrified)
He looks up at Jack with such awe and horror.
MARSHALL: I mean, you... The only way it could happen is if...(choked up) you went into the reactor yourself.
Jack's face is stoic as usual, but it's clear he's not denying it. Gravely, he says,
JACK: It was my daughter's life.
Marshall's face is just a picture of grief and utter sadness. The elevator arrives and Jack gets on it, with Marshall just staring after him. Just before the doors shut in front of him, Jack says,
JACK: Between. Us.
Marshall nods, and the doors close.
CUT TO BLACK
========================
ALIAS 4X15 - PANDORA
Opens on Dixon and crew shooting at masked bandits. In a tunnel. Around vehicles. Roadblocks. Guns continue shooting.
Dixon: (To masked bandits) Drop your weapons! (Guns shooting) (To crew) I need suppression!
Continue shooting. Masked bandits run away. Dixon follows suit. Down a stairwell and through some doors and down a hallway they run. Masked bandit #1 trips and screams. #2 doubles back to help, but Dixon comes around the bend and shoots #1. #2 shoots Dixon. #1 is dead. #2 walks up slowly to Dixon and takes off his mask. Vaughn stares at Dixon.
Los Angeles: 48 hours earlier
Sloane’s office.
Sydney (walks in): You wanted to see me?
Sloane: Has Vaughn contacted you yet?
Sydney: I’d have mentioned it, don’t you think?
Sloane: Sydney, we pulled Vaughn’s phone records, and they indicate that he sent you an sm message, (looks down) to your cell. I would like to give you the benefit of the doubt and assume it got lost in transmission. (sits) And that you never received it.
Sydney: If you’re looking to catch me in a lie, yes, I got the message. When Vaughn took off, as I’ve already told you, I tried to stop him. He hit me. He contacted me to tell me he was sorry. Which I didn’t consider professionally relevant. As far as where he is or what he’s doing, I still have no idea. (shakes her head)
Sloane: He disappeared with a dangerous piece of technology. I have no choice but to notify Langley.
Sydney (angry now): Vaughn isn’t a traitor. He would never do what he’s doing without a reason.
Sloane: Vaughn went rogue on a sanctioned mission. Out of consideration for you, I’ll give him 48 hours to either return or contact me with an explanation. In the meantime, we will withhold his status from the rest of APO. Should this matter come to light, I don’t want anyone else complicit in this deception.
Sydney (calmer now): Thank you. (She turns to leave)
Sloane: Sydney? (she turns back) If Vaughn should contact you. . .
Sydney: You’ll know
Paris
Vaughn outside at a table. Waitor offers more water. Vaughn declines. People pass. Vaughn gets up to leave.
Roberts (From behind): Going somewhere?
Vaughn (turns around): You’re late.
Roberts: Hardly. I’ve been watching you for an hour.
Vaughn: Yeah, am I your type?
Roberts: Had to make sure you came alone, followed instructions. Beignet? (offers him one)
Vaughn: (again declines by looking at him in disgust) Can we just get this done?
Roberts: Look around. (looks around himself) It’s Paris in the springtime.
Vaughn: I’m only interested in answers.
Roberts: In exchange, you were supposed to bring me something today.
Vaughn: Your big prize is in a safe place.
Roberts: That’s not the deal.
Vaughn: It is now. (turns and walks away)
Roberts: Don’t forget, I know how desperate you are. (V turns back) No way you’re willing to walk away.
Vaughn: Oh, I suppose that depends on how badly you want it. Cuz personally, what the hell am I gonna do with a with a transforming coil.
Roberts: Talking personally? I don’t have a use for it either.
Vaughn: Well, then you can tell your employer exactly what I’m telling you. You’ll get the coil when you tell me everything you know about my father. (pause. They stare at each other)
Syd’s apartment
Sydney, wearing rubber gloves is cleaning the sink. Sound of a door opening. N and W in background.
Nadia: A volcano?
Weiss: Yeah, yeah. It’s all of Yellowstone. It’s like a funnel.
Sydney checks her cell phone. No Messages. Enter W and N. Carrying groceries. Both of them. Put groceries on counter and start putting them away. While Sydney continues to clean the sink.
Nadia: Hey
Weiss: And the thing is that on average, it blows every 600,000 years.
Nadia: Well, then I don’t think we have to worry about it.
Weiss: No, no it hasn’t blown for 630,000 years. We’re due sister. (Pulls something out of grocery bag) What is this? Fancy chocolate?
Nadia: That’s not for you.
Weiss: No its. I like fancy chocolate.
Nadia: Where is the freezer bag? I left it in the car.
Weiss: I’ll get it.
Nadia: Nonononono, you chill. (She’s outside. Her cell phone rings. She answers.)
Nadia: Hello
Woman: You have a collect call from prisoner 41958 from the Quantico Women’s Detention center. Do you accept the charges?
Nadia: Yes, I do.
Katya: Nadia?
Nadia: Hello Katya.
Katya: I was worried about you.
Nadia: I’m sorry. I couldn’t get away yesterday, but I’m planning to visit tomorrow.
Katya: That’s wonderful.
Nadia: I have a little gift for you.
Katya: Forgive me for calling. It’s just that our visits. It makes this place bearable.
Nadia: I’ll be there tomorrow.
Back inside with Weiss and Sydney. Weiss contuse putting away groceries. Sydney scrubs really hard at the sink.
Weiss: Uh, you heard from Vaughn?
Sydney: Hmm-uh. Not yet.
Weiss: It’s got to be tough on him, right? Going to visit your uncle and all you can do is watch him die, nothing you can do about it?
Sydney: Yeah.
Weiss: My mom used to do stuff like that.
Sydney: Like what?
Weiss: Scrub the sink when she was worried about stuff that was out of her control.
Sydney: I like a clean sink.
Weiss: Mm-hm. But you would tell me if there was something that I needed to be concerned about?
Sydney: Of course. (Finishes cleaning the sink)
Back to Vaughn and Roberts probably still in Paris. Probably sitting at the same table as earlier.
Roberts: (On cell phone) Yeah, It’s me. No deal. He says he has the coil but he wants answers first. (hands cell phone to V) He wants to talk to you.
Vaughn (takes cell phone): Hello?
Distorted Voice: You violated our agreement.
Vaughn: You listen to me. I’m sick and tired of these games. Here’s how we’re gonna do things.
DV: You’re angry. Good. You can channel that into your next assignment.
Vaughn: No. No more assignments. You got what you asked for.
DV: You didn’t abide by the terms of our deal. The price has just gone up. Disobey again, and it will continue to do so.
Vaughn: No that’s it. I’m done.
DV: Check beneath the table.
Vaughn: What?
DV: Beneath the table there’s an evelope. Open it.
Vaughn fingers the underside of the table and pulls out an envelope. Inside are pictures of Bill Vaughn. Roberts Watches him the entire time.
DV: If you still wish to back out, feel free to do so.
Vaughn: He’s alive.
DV: your father is very much alive. The question, Mr. Vaughn, is how far are you willing to go to find him. (hangs up)
At the prison. Nadia walks up to Katya’s cell. Katya is singing.
Nadia: (referring to Katya’s song) That was lovely.
Katya: It’s a folk song our father used to sing, about a Russian Robin Hood. It was one of your mother’s favorites. So good to see you again, sweetheart. (rubs Nadia’s cheek)
APO
Marshall’s just walking. And into Jack’s office. Jack is sitting at his desk.
Jack: (Into phone) No it shouldn’t be a problem.
Marshall: Sorry, I just- (points at the papers in his hands)
Jack: (Into phone) Well, considering the hearings, I’m sure the DDO has his hands full. Of course give my regards. (hangs up)
Marshall: (places papers in front of Jack) Sorry, um, requisition forms. The secure server to Langley went down. I did what I could but I’ll need all new servers and a VS-2 module, so. . .Great, if you could also sign here. Uh, by the way, since the, you know, incident, have you had a chance to see a doctor? Cuz the radiation levels in that chamber were near lethal, so. . .
Jack: (signs papers) I’m fine Marshall. Is there anything else?
Marshall: No thank you. (gathers the papers and leaves)
Follow Marshall to his office-lab. He takes out the papers. Flashes blue light on them. Causes Jack fingerprints to show up bright pink. Methinks maybe the oil coming off his skin??? Marshall puts on rubber gloves and takes out a jar of liquid and a test tube. Labels the test tube Patient 17 .
Back at prison. Naidia and Katya.
Katya (pulling the chocolate out of the wrapper): Our family didn’t have much just the necessities. But your mother had no intention of denying herself. After school she would go to the St. Basil Cathedral, where all the tourists were, so careless with their money. So easy to pickpocket.
Nadia (smiles): How old was she?
Katya: Young. Still in grade school. She used the money to buy us candy until our father discovered what she had been doing. Yelena and I were terrified, but not your mother. She stood there finishing the candy, smiling. (puts a piece of chocolate in her mouth) We were waiting for her to get hit, but instead our father laughed looking at this little rebel in front of him. Your mother can be quite stubborn, much like your sister. (pauses) How is Sydney?
Nadia: Katya, I’ve told you-
Katya: I know, I know, she’s off limits. (takes a bite of chocolate) Thank you.
Nadia: Of course. My mother, Irina. Did she ever talk about me?
Katya: It’s happening sooner than I expected.
Nadia: What’s happening?
Katya: (rolls up her sleeve to show red rash to Nadia) I’m deathly allergic to chocolate. In 15 seconds, my breathing will become difficult.
Nadia: Katya
Katya: and I will lose consciousness. Tell Sydney, this how far I am willing to go to see her.
Nadia: Guard! I need help now!
Katya: Tell Sydney! (faints)
Vaughn and Roberts outside a warehouse. Dark. Vaughn’s leaning against a car.
Roberts: (walks up to Vaughn) I know what you’re thinking. You’ll find them on your own, right?
Vaughn: What are we doing here?
Roberts: Waiting. I hired a team of independent contractors to help us with the job.
Vaughn: Which is what?
Roberts: Assume that’s not important.
Vaughn: Assume it is to me.
Roberts: All you need to know is it’s an instruction manual of sorts. Now that coil you got for us-apparently it wasn’t being used properly.
Vaughn: That’s terrific. Like I said, I don’t care about the coil.
Roberts: I’m just like you man, the less I know, the less guilt I feel.
Vaughn: Yeah, we’re a lot alike.
Roberts: Where do you think he was during the funeral? I mean, when you were mourning by his grave with your mom. You know, it’s usually a girlfriend. At least, that’s why my old man took off. But I tell you what, my mom-can’t say I really blame him.
Car pulls up.
Roberts: Coming?
Inside warehouse. Gregor and Jan are working at a table.
Gregor: Waste of time. 45 caliber. It’s not like you need to make it more dangerous.
Jan: Maybe not, but it makes me feel better.
Enter Vaughn and Roberts.
Sabina: (walks up) You said an hour.
Roberts: Yeah well, we had to take a detour. This is Mike.
Sabina: (looks Vaughn up and down) So is he any good or is he just eye candy?
Vaughn stares at her.
Roberts: Like I said, he’s the man with the technical skills to get what we need done. That’s Sabina, This is Gregor, and that’s Jan over there.
Gregor (At a counter, pouring himself a drink): Mikey. Pour you a pint.
Vaughn: I don’t usually drink til the job’s finished.
Gregor: You drink with me, or you cut bullets with Jan. Your choice.
Vaughn: Yeah, well, how about I do neither and you tell me why the hell we’re here.
Roberts: Okay, so this is a 2-pronged plan. (Rolls out a map) Now tomorrow at midnight, an armored transport will be leaving Darmstadt carrying a very valuable item. We will be stealing that item. But to do it, we’re gonna need a cold laser. Prototype has not even hit the streets yet. It’s in a secure R&D wing in aprivate hospital in Bordeaux. Heavily guarded.
Vaughn: Civilians?
Roberts: Yeah. You got a problem with that?
Vaughn: No.
APO
Jack walks into Sloane’s office.
Jack: I got your message. What is it?
Sloane: Dixon has been taken out of the field of rotation.
Jack: I know. I authorized it.
Sloane: Yes, I see your signature all over the release forms. Do you really think we can afford to be down one agent when Vaughn’s whereabouts are still unknown?
Jack: We didn’t have a choice. The director the DSR contacted me directly. And since for the moment we’re keeping Vaughn’s status confidential, I thought it best to comply with his request.
Sloane: I see. What exactly is the nature of Dixon’s assignment.
Jack: I’m afraid that’s confidential as well.
Sloane: From you or from me? Come on Jack, you don’t have to be a genius, to know what this is about. Rambaldi. Now while I accept that these matters are above my purview, Dixon is a member of my task force, and it’s my responsibility to know what actions and risks he’s taking on.
Jack: It’s a routine transport. (pause) Darmstadt. And I assure you the risks are minimal.
Cut to Sydney walking. Dixon walks up.
Dixon: Syd, Clippers tickets. Third row, center, I can’t go. Langley’s tasked me for a special assignment.
Sydney: You’re kidding. Well, I would love to, but I’m swamped.
Dixon: And I was going to go with my son, so I tell him I can’t go and he says it’s actually good because he has a date. He’s 12.
Sydney: Why doesn’t he take her to the game.
Dixon: Apparently, she’d rather go to movie.
Sydney: I’m sure you’ve taught him well.
Dixon: Dinner when I get back?
Sydney: Yeah sure. (she sits at a desk)
Nadia walks up.
Nadia: We need to talk.
Hallway outside APO entrance. Sydney and Nadia, both standing.
Sydney: How long have you been seeing her?
Nadia: It was our third visit.
Sydney: This is exactly why I warned you about her.
Nadia: Katya’s the only person who has ever been willing to answer my questions about Irina.
Sydney: Irina Derevko was manipulative and cruel.
Nadia: She was also our mother.
Sydney: Which makes it harder to accept-I know, but trust me-
Nadia: I know her crimes. I also know how once she helped you and the CIA.
Sydney: Until she betrayed us. She always did.
Nadia: There’s more to her than what’s in her file. Katya told me stories.
Sydney: And you believed her?
Nadia: Some of it, yes.
Sydney: Then you’re deluding yourself Nadia. (Nadia’s face gets pouty) I’m sorry. I’ve been through this before. Katya is doing the same thing to you that Irina did to me. Telling me what I wanted to hear, appealing to what I wanted more than anything else in the world-a mother. A family. It was all a manipulation. Do you want to know the truth about our mother? Our mother put a hit on my life. Our mother tried to have me killed.
Nadia: Why didn’t you tell me?
Sydney: There was never a reason to.
Nadia: Oh my G-d, Syd. If I knew, I-
Sydney: Where is she, Katya?
Nadia: She’s in the hospital. They’re keeping her for observation.
Bodeaux
In a hospital. Vaughn enters with Sabine wailing. She has a cut on her head. They are both dressed up fancy.
Speaking French?
Doctor: What happened?
Vaughn: I don’t know. The car just came out of nowhere. Ran right into us.
They lay Sabine down on a table.
Doctor: Dr. Gerard I need your help.
Wheeling Sabine to another room.
Sabina: It’s bad. It’s bad, isn’t it.
Doctor: (to Vaughn); Sir, she’s in good hands, but you’re going to have to wait outside.
Doctor #2 fingers the cut on Sabina’s forehead, and it peels off. The doctor looks confused. Sabina continues to wail. Sabina swings her arm around and knocks him out. Vaughn does the same to his doctor. S and V take the doctors’ clothes and ID.
Sabina: I always hated going to the doctor. Let’s go get the laser.
They walk down the hallway in nurse and doctor uniforms. They pass by people. Use ID cards to enter a door. Go down some steps. Through another door. Into a room. Possibly a cold-storage lab??? The light glows red.
Vaughn: There it is. Some light.
Sabina: How long will this take? (Pulls out some tools from underneath her skirt. Including a flashlight which she shines at the laser)
Vaughn: Hold still. We can’t risk destroying the emitter. Wire cutters. (Sabina hands him a pair of wire cutters)
Sabina: Can’t we just unplug it or something?
Vaughn: Sure, if you don’t mind blowing it up, and killing both of us in the process. Argon canister. It’s under pressure. (continues working)
Sabina: So you’re CIA.
Vaughn: Is that what Roberts told you?
Sabina: He said you were in a period of transition.
Vaughn: I guess you could say that.
Sabina: I went through the training program. Camp Perry. CIA was looking for female agents with Russian language skills. They rejected me.
Vaughn: Yeah, but you’re probably better off.
Sabina: That’s what I figured. More profit. And more fun, too.
Vaughn: This should do it. (refering to the laser)
Sabina: Let me help. (she tries to kiss V)
Vaughn: (pulls back abruptly) I’m good, thanks.
They take the laser. A guard comes in to see Vaughn and Sabina kissing. Once they “realize” the guard is there, they stop. Speak French.
Vaughn: (to the guard) How dare you. Get out of here.
Guard: I’m sorry sir.
Vaughn: Please leave.
Guard: I just need to check your identifications.
Vaughn goes to show him his ID, but fights him instead. Vaughn turns his back. Guard pulls out gun to shoot Vaughn. Sabina pulls out gun and Shoots the guard.
Sabina: Let’s go. (V stares at the dead guard) We need to leave now!
Back in warehouse. Vaughn and Sabina sitting on a bed. Sabina is bandaging Vaughn’s cut on his arm.
Sabina: I’ve seen worse. You could use a few stitches I suppose.
Vaughn: That won’t be necessary.
Sabina: Fine. Let it scar. Who knows, it might toughen you up a bit. I saw the look on your face when I killed that guard. I saved your life.
Vaughn: Thanks.
Sabina (smiles): Don’t tell me you’re torn up inside. I thought you agency boys were tougher than that.
Vaughn: (looks at her) It was him or me. I’m okay with that.
Sabina: You could have fooled me. You haven’t stopped brooding since we left the hospital.
Vaughn: Yeah well maybe it’s because I don’t like being here with you.
Sabina: You know what I think? This is exactly where you want to be. (she kisses his neck)
Vaughn throws her down on the bed, roughly.
Vaughn: Consider this the second time you’ve been rejected by the CIA.
Katya’s hospital room. Sydney walks in. Katya sits up in a hospital bed with some tubes sticking out of her.
Sydney: Understand this. Talk to my sister again, I will make sure you regret it.
Katya: The protective sister, how charming. And how satisfying it must be for you to know you have it all figured out. I would think you of all people should know the world is never black or white.
Sydney: The last time I saw you, Aunt Katya, you tried to put a bullet in my head. Given the opportunity, I wouldn’t mind seeing you suffer. Consider this visit a warning. Leave Nadia alone. (she goes to leave)
Katya: I had no intention of killing you, nor did your mother.
Sydney: (she turns back) What do you know about that?
Katya (smug): I know you believe your mother put out a contract on your life. Surely you must have asked yourself why she would want you eliminated. And I’m willing to bet you haven’t come up with a satisfying answer. Your mother loved you. And to look at you now and see how quickly you’ve abandoned her-if she only knew she would be ashamed.
Sydney: I’m not having this conversation.
Katya: Before dying, Irina tried to contact me. She believed someone was setting her up, wanting it to appear that she was trying to have you killed. I need you to get me that message. Bring it to me. It’s the least you could do for her.
APO
Marshall’s office-lab. Sloane walks up. Marshall’s working on something.
Sloane: Marshall.
Marshall: (stands up) Mr. Sloane. Hey. Sorry. You know the classics. (referring to what he’s working on) Never go out of style.
Sloane: A test tube was sent to forensics for analysis. Did you authorize that?
Marshall: Yes. Yes I did, uuuuh. Is that a problem, ooooor-
Sloane: There’s no problem. Just a curiosity. It’s indicated that the blood sample was one of Dr. Vlachko’s test subjects. I thought we already analyzed those. Am I missing something, Marshall?
Marshall: Uh, y’know what? I haven’t been getting a lot of sleep lately. Mitchell’s got an ear infection (points to his own ear) and I probably just forgot to send it in. (points to Sloane) Sorry. Sorry about that. (turns around and starts working on something) Did the results come back?
Sloane: It’s nothing we didn’t already know. The subject was suffering from a large scale genetic mutation. However, Marshall, I want you to know, (Marshall looks at him) There are protocols in this office. I’m sure your failure to notify me of this submission is also do to your lack of sleep, yes?
Marshall: Yes, it probably was. I’m very tired, and I’m not. . . (Sloane leaves)
Inside warehouse. Vaughn, Roberts, Sabine, Gregor, Jan sit around a table looking at plans.
Gregor: Why complicate our life? We could get on and off without the transport even knowing they were hit.
Roberts: That item we want is extremely delicate. I mean, we can’t risk the transfer in a moving vehicle.
Gregor: I thought you said we were stealing an instruction manual?
Roberts: We are. A very old one. Written by an inventor in the fifteenth century. You breathe on it wrong and it will crumble.
Jan: Seems like a lot of trouble for an old book.
Roberts: It’s valuable to my employer, so then it’s valuable to us. Okay, it’s gonna be a 2-car caravan. (points to drawings on a dry-erase board) The lead car’s going to be the armored transport. It’ll be leaving the depot at midnight tonight traveling along this route.
Vaughn: We’re hitting a CIA convoy.
Roberts: That’s right.
Vaughn: So this is why you needed me.
Walking outside. Vaughn and Roberts.
Vaughn: From the moment you contacted me, you knew you’d need the bypass, Even if I had given you the coil-
Roberts: We’d have never told you where your father is. That’s right. Guess that makes us bad people, huh? Nothing’s changed though, you still want answers.
Vaughn: You son of a b****.
Roberts: You know, by the way, you should be thanking me. You should be grateful.
Vaughn: Thanking you for what?
Roberts: For tracking your father down. Let me tell you something. That wasn’t know small feat. Your father’s been hiding for the past-
Vaughn: You’re asking me to betray my agency.
Roberts: Well. l I fell really bad about that, you know what? I’ll say an extra hail Mary tonight before I go to bed.
Vaughn: If I do this, I can’t go back.
Roberts: (laughs) That has a certain poetry to it, doesn’t it? Like father, like son. Me? I came this far, I’d have crossed the finish line. But like I say, I’m a bad guy. Oh, guess what? Your dad is too. I mean, he’s not being held prisoner. And for 25 years, he allowed his wife and his kid to think that he’s been dead? That’s a bad guy. You think on that. I’ll be inside. (goes inside)
APO
Nadia walking up to Sloane sitting at his desk in his office.
Nadia: I need to speak with you.
Sloane: Of course, what is it?
Nadia: I wanted to tell you before you were notified through official channels. I’ve been visiting Katya Derevco.
Sloane: Your aunt? (Nadia nods) And I assume it’s not on official business.
Nadia: No. It was personal. I thought Katya might be able to fill in the blanks about my mother. Tell me who she was.
Sloane: I see. Well. . .thank you for telling me. Nadia? What did she tell you? Nothing I didn’t already know. That she was a criminal. A murderer.
Sloane: (gets up) Sweetheart, no one is a single thing. Look, I understood Irina. We were both cut from the same cloth. Both committed to our work. And I suppose because of that, we both did some things that are unforgivable. But, Nadia, Irina is also capable of having a great capacity for love. I saw the way she looked at Sydney. The way she held that child in her arms. And I am absolutely sure she felt the same way about you. She searched for you Nadia. She may not be here to answer your questions, but the one thing I know to be true- your mother loved you.
Nadia: I’d like to believe that.
Sloane: Then do. (hugs Nadia)
Repair shop. Clocks ticking. Sydney opens the door. Bell dings.
Clerk (Friendly looking, gray-haired old guy): (to customer) Have a wonderful day.
Customer leaves. Sydney walks up to the counter.
Sydney: Hi. I’m here to pick up a repair.
Clerk: Of course. You have the service ticket?
Sydney: Nope, just the number. 112402.
Clerk: Give me just a moment. (goes to get box and places it on the counter, opens box and pulls out a beautiful wooden music box) Quite lovely, isn’t it. Open it.
Sydney opens it and a song starts to play.
Sydney: How much do I owe you?
Clerk: Nothing. It’s already been paid for. Have a lovely day.
Sydney: Thank you. (Starts to leave when her cell phone rings. To phone) Hello. (pause) Hello?
Shows Vaughn listening to his cell phone. He doesn’t speak.
Sydney: Vaughn? Vaughn, say something.
Vaughn hangs up.
Warehouse, I guess, where Roberts and his team have been. Roberts is sitting at a desk. Vaughn walks up to him.
Vaughn: We’re gonna do this my way. You want to pull this off, I’m taking charge.
Roberts: Sure thing.
Vaughn: That truck will be heavily guarded, loaded with state of the art surveillance. I want RF jammers on every team member.
Shows elevator. Guys walk off it carrying a briefcase. Vaughn’ voice over.
Vaughn (VO): Now an item this important, the CIA’s gonna use their best agents. Even the smallest mistake will compromise our mission.
Shows guy carrying briefcase walking up to Dixon and crew.
Vaughn (VO): We can use the cold laser to open the safe, but without the proper code, the safe’s backup system will engage.
Show’s Dixon taking the briefcase.
Shows Roberts and Vaughn preparing for the mission.
Vaughn: Once we’re inside, I’ll bypass the safe’s backup system while Sabina sets up the cold laser. We’ll have no more than 3 minutes.
Shows convoy back doors opening. Dixon gets inside. Opens safe. Opens briefcase. Takes out Rambaldi manuscript. Places it in the safe. Closes safe. Closes briefcase. Leaves Guard in there. Dixon leaves. Doors close.
Shows Vaughn and Roberts’s team.
Vaughn: One last thing, because there’ll be no shooting on this job. CIA protocol. They will not fire unless fired upon first. If anyone has a problem with what I just said, speak up now. We understood?
Sydney’s apartment. Se’s messing with the music box. The music is playing. Red lights start flashing in box. Nadia walks in.
Nadia: You have a minute?
Sydney: Of course. (Quickly close the music box)
Nadia: I wanted to apologize about going to Katya. I should have told you.
Sydney: You don’t have to apologize.
Nadia: When I found out Arvin Sloane was my father, I was horrified. My entire life, I wanted to meet my parents, and the truth was so . . . ugly. But he’s changed. There’s good in him. I guess I was hoping the same thing was true for our mother.
Sydney: I’m sorry.
Nadia: Me too.
Doorbell rings.
Nadia: That’s Eric. We’re going out for lunch. You want to come?
Sydney: No thanks. I’m just gonna hang out here.
Nadia: Okay.
Sydney: Have fun.
They smile at each other. Nadia leaves.
Sydney goes back to working with the music box. Opens it. Red lights flashing. Red lights turn out to be numbers. She writes down the numbers.
APO
Shows notebook. Number is 001-87456829. Shows Sydney typing at computer, at her desk. Opens some files. Shows different bank accounts. Shows name . . . A. Sloane. Sydney gets a desperate look on her face.
Darmstadt
Street. Convoy drives with escort. Stops at red light. Roberts drives up beside, listening to loud music. Shows Vaughn and Sabina underneath Roberts car.
Vaughn: Here we go.
Shows V and S slide from underneath Roberts’s car to underneath the convoy. V uses blowtorch on underside of the convoy to make a hole. Guard sees smoke. Gets suspicious. Goes to inspect. The hole hits him and he goes unconscious. V and S enter the convoy through the hole. Vehicles start moving again. V and S get to work cutting wires and connecting others.
Vaughn: We’ve secured the hole.
Roberts (on comms): Copy. Strike team, they’re clueless. No idea you’re hitching a ride. 110 seconds till X-fer.
Vaughn: (to Sabine) Now we’ll see how good you really are.
Sabine: Oh, I’m good.
Roberts: You’ve got 95 seconds.
Vaughn How you doing?
Sabina: Ready.
Sabina turns on cold laser and uses it to cut a hole in the safe.
Vaughn: Almost there.
Convoy and escort enter the tunnel from the beginning of the episode.
Roberts: All right. Here we go.
V and S cover their heads as the safe falls apart.
Sabina: Nice timing.
Roberts: Strike team, repot. What’s going on? What the hell is going on?
Shows V take manuscript out of safe.
Sabina: Package secured.
Shows vehicles in tunnel. Escort a bit further down than convoy. Smaller vehicle to the right of the convoy cuts in front of the convoy and brakes.
Roberts: Strike team. Get ready for impact.
Shows V and S. Show convoy driver. Shows Dixon in escort.
Dixon: Turn back. (Readys a gun. Escort vehicle turns around and drives back to convoy.)
Vaughn: (to Sabina. Still in convoy) Let’s go.
V and S exit convoy. Dixon gets out of escort vehicle.
Dixon: Drop your weapons!
Masked bandit starts shooting.
Vaughn (yells): NO!
Masked bandit continues shooting.
Dixon: (to crew) I need suppressive fire now!
Dixon and crew shoot the masked bandit shooters, most likely Jan and Gregor. V and S run off.
Dixon: (To masked bandits) Drop your weapons! (Guns shooting) (To crew) I need suppression!
V and S run away. Dixon follows suit. Down a stairwell and through some doors and down a hallway they run. S falls and screams. V doubles back to help, but Dixon comes around the bend and shoots S when she starts shooting at him. V shoots Dixon. S is dead. V walks up slowly to Dixon and takes off his mask. Vaughn stares at Dixon.
Dixon’s radio: Dixon report. Do you copy? Two hostages escaped into the tunnel. Hostages in the tunnel. Do you copy?
Warehouse.
Roberts: Got to hand it to you man. You a closer. Let’s see em. Where’s the manuscript?
Vaughn punches Roberts. And holds him by the collar.
Vaughn: He’s dead all along. Hasn’t’ he?
Roberts: What?
Vaughn: My father would never have done this.
Roberts: Man, Have you lost your mind?
Vaughn: My father’s dead, you son of a b****. And you used that. The truth! I want to hear you say it! He’s been dead all along!
Roberts: Man, you’ve seen the pictures.
Vaughn: Yeah, I’ve seen a lot of things.
Roberts: All right, you want me to say it? Fine. He’s been-(Vaughn punches him again)
Vaughn: The truth! Tell me the truth!
Roberts: Woah. (Vaughn starts to swing at him again) Okay, okay. He’s dead man. Okay, he’s dead.
Vaughn: What else?
Roberts: What?
Vaughn: The rest of it. How’d he die?
Roberts: Man, you know the rest.
Vaughn: Say it!
Roberts: Irina Derevko killed him. The pictures, the witnesses, the journals-everything was fake. Everything.
Vaughn: Who else? Who set me up? Who do you work for?
Roberts: Please. You know-
Vaughn bangs him up a bit.
Vaughn: Who do you work for? Tell me.
Roberts: Sloane. I work for Sloane. (faints)
Katya’s prison cell.
Katya: You found the message.
Sydney: Bank records. Payments to the assassin who tried to kill me.
Katya: The records exonerate Irina.
Sydney: Yes.
Katya: Sydney, whoever did this, for your mother, my sister, we have to make it right. We have- You already know who it was.
Sydney: My mother traced the bank payments to their source. She discovered who it was.
Katya: That case- Oh if I would have gotten the message in time. . .
Sydney: She would still be alive.
Katya: Who is it?
Sydney: Before I tell you, you must promise me Nadia can never know.
APO
Jack’s office. Marshall walks in. Jack is sitting at his desk.
Marshall (just being Marshall): Your’re probably gonna want to kill me when I tell you this, but I ran some tests. (lifts folder in his hands)
Jack: What kind of tests?
Marshall: You may be very sick, Mr Bristow. Now, you’ll need additional bloodwork to be sure-
Jack: I thought I made myself clear, Marshall. This is not something I care to discuss.
Marshall: I understand. Just hear me out. You have a mutation.
Jack: Marshall, I’ve heard enough.
Marshall (urgently): Dammit, you may not care what happens to you, but what happens to you affects other people. Sydney, for example. Have you thought about that? You need to see a doctor, now!
Sloane (from behind): Is everything all right here?
Jack: We were just finishing up.
Marshall: Yeah, just finishing up. (takes one last look at Jack and leaves)
Sloane: Jack. . .Is there something we need to discuss?
Sydney’s apartment. Doorbell rings. Sydney answers. It’s Vaughn.
Vaughn: Hi
Sydney: Hi
They hug. She gives him a kiss on the cheek.
Vaughn: He’s dead, Syd, my father. He’s been dead all along. I think. You know, I’ve- I’ve lived with his death for so long, I would have done anything just to see him again. But then I realized that my father, he would have never left my mom and me, not for anything. The man I knew could never have walked away from the people he loved.
Sydney: How did you know?
Vaughn: Cuz I couldn’t either. (they smile at each other) It was Sloane. I should have seen it all along. I swear to G-d, Syd, I am gonna kill that son of a b****.
Sydney: Come inside. There’s something I have to tell you.
APO
Sloane’s sitting at his desk in his office.
Sloane: Jack.
Jack: I just spoke with Sydney, Vaughn’s returned.
Sloane: Where was he?
Jack: I’ll be debriefing him tomorrow. He retrieved the coil. It’s on his way to the DSR facility for analysis.
Sloane: Good.
Jack: One more thing. Dixon ran into some interference abroad. He’s okay. He had his vest on. But you were right to be concerned.
Sloane: What about the DSR transport?
Jack: The artifact has been secured.
Sloane: Okay.
Jack: Unless there’s something else, I’m headed out.
Sloane: No, have a good evening, Jack.
Jack: You too. (he walks out)
Santiago
Office somewhere. Man hangs up phone and starts walking angrily.
Man: Mr. Sloane? I’m sorry to report, Mr Sloane, we didn’t recover the manuscript. And Roberts hasn’t reported in.
Arvin Clone: (sitting in his desk) I see. Nothing changes. Everything proceeds as planned.
ALIAS =====================
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