Pioneer One (2010) s01e03 Episode Script

Previously on Pioneer One.
This man has been to Mars? For now they're calling him Yuri.
I'm to be your liaison with the Canadian government.
The base in Calgary is being placed under a strict quarantine.
I shouldn't be here.
This kid just isn't possible.
They have to stop treating him like he's a normal human being.
He's going to need a lot more care than I can deliver.
What did I do? What's the matter? Nothing Nothing, can we just lay here for a minute? Yeah, sure.
What are you thinking? Nothing.
What about you? My job.
That's what you're thinking about? Yeah.
Sorry, is that bad? What about it? I'm afraid I'm going to get stuck there.
I really like working with kids, but I don't know.
Never mind.
- No what.
What were you going to say? - Nothing.
- You're a liar, you were about to say - No.
You were about to say you don't know what you want.
Shut up! It's Maybe.
- I don't like this game.
- Stop playing it then.
I don't know.
I guess there's not a huge demand for someone in child development with a not-quite-degree in Russian lit.
- Really? - It might be the hospital.
Yeah, sorry, I have to take this.
Hello? They say you're doing better.
Do you even understand English? When I was a kid, I didn't do a lot of talking either.
I had a stuttering problem.
A bad one.
I kept quiet a lot of the time, because when I spoke people wouldn't take me seriously.
It went away when I got older, thank god, and now you can't shut me up! I can't imagine what your life has been like what you've seen.
I've dreamt about your home And look at you laying here.
I have to go now.
I hope I wasn't bothering you.
How long were you standing there? Not long.
Looks like I'm not the only one having trouble sleeping.
Sleep I don't think I'll be doing much of that any time soon.
Yeah.
He said anything yet? Not a word.
Yeah, well, I don't blame him.
I probably wouldn't have much to say either.
He must be terrified.
And he has every reason to be.
Why do you say that? He may have survived one of the most hellish environments imaginable, but you know what must be even worse? Other people.
Pioneer One - 1x03 Are you sure it's a good idea to keep bringing in new people like this? This is still supposed to be a secret, right? It won't remain a secret forever.
You got a better idea how to handle this, now's the time.
You're the boss of this operation.
Let me ask you.
Say I wanted to get off the base for a couple hours.
A little difficult with the quarantine.
There's got to be some way.
You've got all those supply trucks coming in and out.
You realize this is your own quarantine you're trying to break, right? Bend.
Not break.
The most important thing is we keep the kid safe.
I'm not sick with anything, are you? I don't suppose you care to tell me where you're going? Not really, no.
We're supposed to be working together.
If something's going on, I'm the guy you tell.
You're right.
I'll tell you something when there's something to tell.
Ms.
Campbell? This definitely isn't the children's ward.
He's been in shock since they brought him in.
Can he talk? There's nothing physically inhibiting speech far as we can tell.
I told them you know Russian.
I know a little, but I'm not sure I know enough to I wouldn't have suggested they bring you in if I didn't think you could handle it.
Frankly, there's no one who's really qualified to handle this.
Is that supposed to make me feel better? You'll be fine.
We just need someone to stay with him.
Talk to him.
You can do that fine.
They told you where he came from? Yeah.
You don't seem phased by it.
When two guys come to your door in the middle of the night wearing sunglasses you believe whatever they tell you.
That's another reason I suggested you.
Because I'm a pushover? Because you don't judge.
Doctor? Doctor Walzer? Sorry, yes, come in! I was getting lost in it.
It helps me concentrate.
I was once part of a conference on SETI, the search for extra-terrestrial intelligence we were discussing what our response would be if we actually ever received an extra-terrestrial signal.
More than one person suggested music.
Our capacity for beauty through music represented the best that humanity has to offer.
My music career ended when I quit the trumpet in 7th grade and the world was a better place for it.
Let me ask you, doctor You ever been married? Once.
I have a dog now.
Less messy.
You? Me? No.
What happened if you don't mind me asking? This isn't going into some kind of a report on me, is it? No, no report.
Nothing much to tell, really.
Same old story.
She got the house, I got the dog.
Laika.
After the first dog the Soviets sent into space.
Everyone remembers Sputnik, but hardly anyone remembers Sputnik 2.
They sent the first dog in orbit and made another historic space first.
Also the first death.
They figured out a way to get her up there but they didn't figure out a way to get her back down.
She died in orbit.
True story.
I'll be in the mess hall.
Have you seen this? Google Mars? The whole planet, right here.
Looking for a needle in a haystack? More like a grain of sand on a beach.
If we're going back there, we're gonna have to narrow down the most likely landing sites.
Going back? Yeah That what this is all for, right? There's no reason not to now.
- Now there's a reason to go.
- What reason would that be? The parents.
They might still be alive.
Assuming we can take all of this at face value have you stopped to consider why they would risk sending their only child back to Earth? Yeah, I have.
Why wouldn't they go with him? Maybe they couldn't go with him.
Maybe they were running out of resources and it came down to one of two options: either survive for as long as they could, and eventually die or risk everything to send someone back.
My name is Jane.
Or Jay.
Here we are.
You know, I had a feeling you might not be too talkative.
I actually do this with the kids sometimes.
Not that you're a kid really, but It's to draw.
Maybe you'll be inspired later.
Did your parents ever tell you stories growing up? Like bedtime stories? Once upon a time in a faraway land there was a king.
A tzar and he had the most magnificent garden And in the garden there was an apple tree that grew the most delicious juicy golden apples anybody had ever tasted.
But every night a firebird would swoop down from the sky and steal a few of the golden apples.
Well, this made the tzar very angry and he ordered his two oldest sons to capture the firebird and bring it back to him, promising half his kingdom to whichever one did.
The king's youngest son, Ivan, begged to go with them.
Please, dad, I know I can capture the firebird, and I'll make you so proud of me.
Ivan was the youngest and the weakest of his sons but against his better judgment So he offered to help him find the firebird.
I hate to have to do it, but that's it for now.
It's a good ending too.
If you want to hear the rest, you gonna have to draw something on that piece of paper over there I'll be back in a little bit, okay? An ageless design.
Crafted by some of the most modern technology in the field.
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The Pioneer One t-shirt.
Support the show by getting it and other fine merchandise at pioneerone.
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I was looking for the mess hall.
They said it was down here.
Yep, you found it.
Not much to look at.
- Is there any coffee? - I think in the carafe over there.
I don't know how hot it is though.
Thanks.
I heard they were gonna turn this whole base into a mall before we got here.
I kinda wish they had.
I could really go for a smoothie right about now.
That would be nice.
Do you mind if I chill out here for a while? No I just came down here to read a little bit.
But I'm pretty sure I've been staring at the same page for like twenty minutes.
Anything interesting? I'm doing research on the history of the Soviet Space Program.
Sounds like a blast.
Is that a rocket joke? Uh, sure? So, what is your name again? I'm Jane Campbell.
Adlai DiLeo.
Adlai? A bit of an unusual name, right? Well I'm just a plain Jane.
Adlai Steven DiLeo.
My parents named me after Adlai Stevenson a guy who ran for president three times and lost.
Three times.
That's - cool - Yeah.
Kids at school especially thought so.
You're the nurse they brought in? That's me.
How is our little cosmonaut? He is quiet and more than a little freaked out.
Sounds about right.
How'd you get caught up in this? I work with kids with terminal cancer at a children's hospital.
I used to intern for Doctor Bertram and I guess he thought I could help.
To be honest I'm completely overwhelmed.
I've never been involved in anything like this before.
Well none of us have.
In case you hadn't noticed we're not exactly the A-Team here.
More like a pass/fail team.
I don't mean this in a bad way, but you don't strike me as the Homeland Security type.
No offense, you just No, you're not the only one.
I guess I just like the idea of helping to protect people.
Worrying about all the big stuff so that people can just get on with their lives.
- I know this sound stupid and cheesy, but - No, it doesn't actually.
No, I totally understand.
- You do? - Yeah.
Did you draw this? Well, I don't know what it is.
Can you tell me? We'll hang it on the fridge down in the mess.
So, I guess a deal's a deal.
Anyway Ivan returned to the kingdom and he told his father what had happened.
The tzar was furious! He threw the two older brothers in prison for the rest of their lives.
And Ivan and the princess were married.
They inherited the kingdom.
Including the apple tree.
And they lived happily ever after.
Or something.
I guess there are a lot of holes in that story.
Compound fracture of the ulna, multiple fractures at his wrist Good news is we don't need surgery.
How'd this happen? Jane says that he just bumped his arm against the bed railing and started screaming, that's all.
The idea of having someone watch him is to make sure things like this don't happen.
- She's the best you got? - Given the circumstances? Hell, yes.
She can handle it.
Then explain to me how the kid broke his arm lying in bed.
Osteoporosis.
This isn't a 90-year-old woman we're dealing with here.
Astronauts experience severe loss in bone density after extended periods at zero gravity mimicking the symptoms of osteoporosis.
Plausible.
Unless he is a 90-year-old woman, it's the only plausible explanation.
How's Jane? She's a little spooked.
A word or two from you might be helpful.
She couldn't have known that anything like this could happen.
Actually, yes, she could have if we would get on the same page and start believing that Yuri is actually from Mars like all the evidence say he is.
Okay, I'm gonna need you to start preparing a brief of everything we know so far.
Pros and cons.
One other thing? Before he broke his arm Jane got him to scribble this.
- What is it? - I'm a doctor, not a cryptographer.
Anyone? Okay, let's lay all our cards out.
Where are we at? I've been doing all the research I can on the history of the Soviet space program.
I haven't found anything that even hints at a manned mission to Mars.
And as near as I can tell, the capsule that Yuri arrived in was never designed for anything like that Irrelevant.
The observatory images show the capsule coming from deep space.
The Soviets have always used tried and proven hardware to get results.
- Sputnik 2.
- Exactly.
NASA spent billions on a space pen and the Russians just used a pencil.
- Media? - Quieter since the press conference but they're still trying to poke holes in the story.
And the protesters outside have started attracting cameras.
- What protesters? - There's a small group gathered outside the North entrance into the base.
When were you gonna tell me? We have them secured beyond the perimeter.
Nothing to worry about.
What are they protesting? Some signs are protesting nuclear proliferation for some reason, take your best guess on that one.
Others are angry about American involvement in Canadian affairs, but cable news is mainly focusing in the UFO crazies.
They think we have Roswell part two in here.
Okay, let's keep it at that.
It's 21:00.
Yeah, okay.
Everyone keep doing what you're doing.
I'd like access to see the capsule.
Find agent Larson.
Tell her I cleared it.
South entrance.
How you doing? Alright.
- You know, it wasn't your fault.
- I know.
Good.
But listen.
Thing is I really don't think I'm the person you want for this.
There must be a million people more qualified to handle something like this.
Sure, maybe, but circumstances being what they are you're the one that's here right now.
That's going to have to do, if you're up for it.
I really need a yes or a no.
Yes.
You're sure? Are you? We'll follow the supply truck on the way out.
- We? - Yeah, you're driving.
If it's all the same I'd prefer to go alone.
I don't care if you're going grocery shopping.
My base, my rules, my country.
Fine.
I don't have time to argue.
That's a change.
I hope you like motown - Doctor, what do you need? - I was looking for Taylor, is he around? No, he's out, what do you need? - May I? - Please.
Thank you for getting me clearance to see the capsule.
You're welcome.
Think I found something interesting.
- That's - The same pattern as the drawing that Yuri made.
Good eye, doctor.
Do you know what it means? The one on the right is Yuri's drawing.
The one on the left is how Mars appears in the night sky over a thirty night period during Martian Opposition.
That's when Mars and the Earth come the closest together.
It seems to move backward in the night sky because at this point the Earth is overtaking Mars in its orbit.
If this is how Mars appears in the night sky on Earth Then this is how the Earth would appear from the surface of Mars during the same period.
Interesting, but what does it mean? If we can get the declination angle from the horizon and maybe even a rough time period we can tell between what latitudes they were on the planet.
Nice work, doctor.
A little more evidence for the 'pro' column.
- It's more than that.
- What do you mean? It means we can go back and find them.
We didn't drive almost three hours for coffee.
Wait here.
Hey.
Hi.
Never seen that tie before.
So? Tom, do you wanna tell me why you had me drive all the way up here? You been watching the news? Yeah, what's going on? Something came down, we're working up here with the Canadians.
It's cold I'm tired The reason I wanted you to meet me up here, the thing I couldn't say over the phone is that I wanted to ask you to marry me.
What is going on up here? You wouldn't believe me if I told you.
Yuri? You can understand me, can't you? I'm so sorry about your arm.
Everything feels so small, all of a sudden.
I don't know how else to explain it.
I feel so alone.
You must feel alone too.
But I'm here.
And you're here.
Maybe we can help each other.
What do you think about that? Жар-птица.
Next time on Pioneer One.
- We got a problem.
- I am not a fool.
Do not talk to me like one.
Suppose this guy actually did come back from Mars.
How do we cover ourselves? There must be some way to take advantage of the relationship you have with him.
- Think he's been angling for this all alone? - No, I don't think I'm that cynical I'm exactly that cynical.