"Departure I"
ACT ONE
TITLE: THE LONG NIGHT
BLACK
CAPTION
Departure
FADE IN EXT. PAST BATTLEFIELD-NIGHT
Plasma bombs drop from the sky on a dusty battlefield littered with trenches and dead.
MAJOR TIMOTHY WOLFE, a quiet looking man in his late twenties, and his team of MACOS move silently across the battlefield. They’re dressed commando style, all black, no helmets, black face paint.
They haven’t slept in days and they look like they haven’t eaten in even longer.
CAPTION
One of the MACOS, BARKER, starts to wheeze and falls to the ground in pain.
A SERGENT grabs BARKER around the waist and pulls him to his feet.
BARKER
I’m…I can’t…
SARGE
Easy, I got you. (To Wolfe) Sir, we need to stop I don’t think Barker’s going to make it.
WOLFE
He’ll be fine; it’s just a few feet further.
SARGE
Sir-
WOLFE (angry)
He’ll be fine! The rendezvous is on the other side of the hill.
The SERGENT bites his tongue, and then goes back to keeping BARKER from fainting.
WOLFE watches, trying to hide his fear.
WOLFE (to himself)
He’ll be fine.
They scramble up over the hill just as a light begins to descend from the sky. It’s a ship. The team reacts with relief and they crawl hand over hand to get to the top, all their military training and discipline go out the window, they just want to get home. The ship gets closer and closer.
CU on WOLFE almost to the top of the hill, grinning.
It flies right over their heads, revealing a Dominion symbol on the underside. As soon as they see the symbol the entire team instantly drops to their stomachs.
WOLFE is crushed. Disappointment doesn’t even begin to cover it. He looks over the hill where the rendezvous is supposed to be.
In the valley below, thousands of Jem’Hadar march in perfect unison. Along side each column of soldiers are Vorta commanders in uniform, carrying their Ketracel White dispensers over their heads like some sort of ceremonial standard.
One of the Vorta is more flamboyantly dressed then the others and flanked by two massive Jem’Hadar bodyguards. He holds up a golden Ketracel dispenser, clearly he’s the GENERAL.
VORTA GENERAL (yelling)
Blessed are the Founders…
ENTIRE ARMY (in unison)
…may we die in their name!
VORTA GENERAL (yelling)
What is the name of your army?
ENTIRE ARMY (in unison)
Dominion! Dominion! Dominion! Dominion (repeated over and over in perfect harmony)
The rest of WOLFE’S unit looks at him, waiting for their next order. But he’s frozen up.
SARGE grabs his arm and tries to snap him out of it.
SARGE (worried)
What do we do now sir? Sir? (shakes harder) SIR!
CU on WOLFE still staring at the marching legion. Slow zoom towards his eyes.
FADE TO
CU on a different pair of eyes. The view zooms out to reveal a “Black British” man in his late thirties, early forties. Blood is dripping down the side of his head and past his dark
Control consoles explode in a shower of sparks and a few of the wall panels start to shake loose. The bridge crew is scrambling to get everything back on line.
CAPTION
Second
FROST snaps out of it and points at a nearby MEDIC
FROST
You! Over here, now! The Captain’s hurt. (turns to Tactical) Status report.
TACTICAL
We’re at ten percent power; we’ve lost shields and weapons. Warp is gone and impulse is only-
FROST
Bloody-(calms himself) How did they do that?
TACTICAL
It’s some kind of new weapon, sir. They only grazed us though; the rest of the fleet is a lot worse off.
FROST
Can you get me weapons?
TACTICAL
We don’t have the power to spare.
FROST runs over to the Tactical console and starts pointing at the screen.
FROST
Reroute life support from this conduit to this one and then reverse the plasma flow. We’ll get enough power for one shot at that big ship over there.
He points to a large Breen warship floating on the view screen.
FROST
That’s an old style Breen Cruiser, their underside shields are rubbish. Aim for their main impulse generator.
The TACTICAL OFFICER starts doing as he’s told while FROST turns his attention to the rest of the Bridge.
FROST (barking orders)
I need a damage report from Engineering and then I need damage crews to start looking for a possible hull breach in the main structure. Breen or not, you don’t cut power to a ship without a hull-
The MEDIC closes the Captain’s dead eyes and crosses the man’s arms over his chest.
CU on FROST as he watches the MEDIC.
FROST (angry)
Where are my weapons?
TACTICAL
Coming on line now, sir.
FROST
Fire!
A torpedo flies from the lower left corner of the view screen and hits the big cruiser’s underside. A few small explosions blossom into a serious hull breach and the ship veers away from them, severely damaged.
The bridge crew cheers and FROST smiles in spite of himself.
As the enemy ship pulls out of the engagement, hundreds of Dominion fighters and frigates fly in behind it. They scream through space towards the Wallace and the bridge crew can only watch in horror.
Slow zoom into FROST’S eyes.
FROST
All hands, abandon ship.
FADE TO INT. PAST STARFLEET HEADQUARTERS-DAY
Another set of eyes, this time feminine and bored.
COMMANDER SARA LYONS is sitting at her desk at Starfleet Headquarters, the same place she’s been her entire career. She’s typing up something on a Data pad while a holo news anchor drones on in the background.
CAPTION
Victory Day,
ANCHOR VOICE
The President once again commended the actions of Captain Sisko as the Treaty of Bajor was officially presented to the Federation Senate where it was ratified by a unanimous vote, finally bringing an end to the Dominion Wars-
SARA reaches down with one hand and shuts off the holonews.
CUT TO BLACK
FADE IN TO EXT. ROMULAN COLONY-DAY
A small colony on a desert planet with strange blue colored sun in the sky. Adobe-like buildings line dirt streets and unused farm equipment lies deserted.
The loud whirr of green energy swirls into a humanoid shape in the center of the colony streets. As the energy solidifies, it reveals five ROMULAN SOLDIERS and a ROMULAN COMMANDER.
They spread out over the colony, searching buildings and houses.
The COMMANDER watches his men from the street.
ROMULAN COMMANDER
Search the Governor’s office first and find his log. I want to know what happened here.
He turns as he hears a soft cry from behind him.
The COMMANDER turns, pointing his disrupter in the direction of the sound.
ROMULAN COMMANDER
Show yourself.
A figure stumbles hesitantly from the alley, but stops just before reaching the street.
ROMULAN COMMANDER (less forceful)
If you are a law abiding citizen of the Romulan Empire, you have nothing to fear. Now come out.
It’s an OLD ROMULAN WOMAN with her hands tucked under her armpits and her arms clutched close to her chest. She’s gibbering and crying, shell shocked.
The COMMANDER holsters his side arm and approaches the OLD WOMAN. He helps her sit on to a small overturned barrel, and then kneels beside her.
ROMULAN COMMANDER
It is alright, elder one, you are safe now. Tell me what has happened here.
The OLD WOMAN shakes her head, starts rocking back and forth.
ROMULAN COMMANDER
Please, you must tell me.
One of the ROMULAN SOLDIERS runs up behind his COMMANDER, on the edge of panic.
ROMULAN SOLDIER
Sir, there is something you must see.
ROMULAN COMMANDER (dismissive)
In a moment.
ROMULAN SOLDIER
Sir, please-
ROMULAN COMMANDER (angry)
Not now!
OLD ROMULAN WOMAN (quiet)
He…took their….
ROMULAN COMMANDER
What did he take?
OLD ROMULAN WOMAN (louder)
He took their….
ROMULAN COMMANDER
Who was it? What did they take?
ROMULAN SOLDIER (shouting)
Sir!
The COMMANDER whirls around, ready to chew out the SOLDIER for interrupting him but stops when he sees the SOLDIER is pointing at something. On the hill over looking the village, some one has nailed the skin of some sort of animal to a wooden post.
CU on the post. It’s not an animal, it’s a male Romulan. Two eyeless holes in the skin stare back at the village. No bones, no blood, just skin.
The COMMANDER and the SOLDIER stare at it in quiet shock but the OLD WOMAN starts to scream, louder and louder, and then stops abruptly. Both men turn to see the OLD WOMAN smiling at them, a crazed insane smile.
OLD ROMULAN WOMAN
He…took…their…bones!
She holds up her hands to the COMMANDER, revealing a pair of rubbery, bleeding appendages. Someone surgically removed all of the bones in the OLD WOMAN’S hands leaving them dead and useless.
She cackles hysterically.
OLD ROMULAN WOMAN
HE TOOK THEIR BONES!
Cut to an over head view slowly pulling out into a wide angled glimpse of the entire colony. Just outside of the village are hundreds of other Romulan bodies just like the one on the hill.
OLD ROMULAN WOMAN (laughing)
Bones, bones, (louder) BONES!
The image freezes, then digitizes. It’s become a picture.
Continue to ACT TWO...