The Swarm (2023) s01e05 Episode Script

1
I want to know, what happened.
These things mark us.
Change the way we see the world.
There are no known sources
of bioluminescence
capable of creating
a sustained glow like the one we saw.
In all the years
I've been investigating pathogens
this is the most deadly ever discovered.
You should put out a warning
against having any contact
whatsoever with any water.
You saw what they did!
Everything is dead!
You really think
I'd let something like that happen?
What about that sound?
- Ever hear anything like that before?
- No.
I'm wondering
if anyone else picked up on it.
This is now a restricted area.
Miss you.
- So it is Vibrio vulnificus?
- Yes.
I've spoken to labs
in South Africa, Brazil and Japan.
They're going to sequence the DNA
of the crabs which came ashore there.
Once I get the results,
I'll compare it to the DNA
in the crabs
that were sent from Morocco.
What did they say?
The shell color and absence of eyes
suggest they live under the surface,
near thermal vents.
Except vent crabs
cannot survive on land,
which is why they think
it must be some kind of mutation.
Or it's an entirely new species.
And from the reports we've been seeing,
they seem to be spreading much faster.
And killing people much quicker
than the infected lobsters.
"And they will know that I am the Lord
when I stretch out my hand."
Exodus.
The plagues of Egypt.
Bravo.
Lobsters, crabs, jellyfish.
A little different from the frogs
and locusts and flies in the Bible.
Thankfully, no water turning to blood.
Yet.
I'm impressed,
the nuns did get through to you.
No, they didn't.
I lost whatever faith I had
by the time I graduated.
But I remember the stories.
The ones about the Wrath of God
in particular.
Noah.
Sodom and Gomorrah.
The plagues.
The thing about plagues
whether you believe they're sent by God
or not, is that they make you think.
Did we bring them down on ourselves?
Something to cause them?
Even if you leave God out of it,
I think it's a question worth asking.
Charlie. Thanks for the message.
Thirty.
How did that happen?
Wish you were here to soften the blow.
We could relive
some of last year's madness.
Maybe not.
Considering.
Maybe not.
Considering.
Considering.
Damn it!
Anyway,
hope the reason you're not answering
is because you're with
that hot guy from the boat.
Miss you.
Miss you.
Miss you.
Miss you.
Miss you.
Miss you.
Miss you.
Thank you for your call.
I'm no longer working
at Hovedstad Energy.
Please feel free to direct all inquiries
to Erika Skaugen
at skaugen@hovedstadenergy.com.
- You'll show her?
- Yes.
- When?
- When I find the right moment.
Rahim, it's important.
So is keeping my head
attached to my shoulders.
I have to go.
- And this was where?
- The Nankai Trough.
900 kilometers off the coast of Japan,
just south of Honshu.
It's one of the areas
Mifune found the worms.
Yes, it is.
Thankfully, the slide was small,
it barely registered
on the seismographs.
Sorry.
Kind of you to join us.
To eat into the seabed that deeply,
that quickly,
the rate of reproduction
of the worms and bacteria
must have accelerated
at an unimaginable pace.
Any area where they have been found
could be at risk.
All the worms found to date
were found on continental slopes?
As far as we know, yes.
So, all near coastal areas
with high population density.
If any one of these collapsed,
the effect to the area
would be devastating.
- What's your point?
- My point is that
The worms,
they just happened to be found
where they would do the most harm.
Well,
I think that has more to do
with where we're looking
rather than anything more sinister.
Professor Lehmann.
There's something I need to show you.
- I told her.
- And?
She wants to speak to you.
- Hey, do you want me to leave?
- It's okay, just
Charlie, this is Dr. Johanson.
He's on secondment
from Trondheim University.
- Hi.
- Hi.
Rahim mentioned that you have something
you would like to share with us.
We do, yes.
And he declined
to elaborate on it without you.
It'll be better to show you.
I was looking into the night the Juno
and the other ships went down.
If you would take a look at this.
Let me bring it up on the monitor.
Jess left me a message.
There was a strange light and bursts
of sound before the Juno went down.
Wish you were here to soften the blow.
We could relive
some of last year's madness.
Maybe not. Considering.
I tried to amplify these bursts
by rescaling pitch and formants.
Anyway,
hope the reason you're not answering
is because
you're with that hot guy from the boat.
Miss you.
And now if you take a look
at the footage
the ROV picked up of the Juno
after it sank
hot guy from the boat.
I checked the wavelength of the light
and the frequency of the sound:
they're identical.
Charlie, we discussed this.
It's probably some sort of spike.
Some sort of glitch
from an interrupted comms signal.
Professor Lehmann, please.
There's something else.
Just hear me out.
Go ahead.
A few hours before the Juno
and the other two ships sank,
I discovered there was a spike
in water temperature.
- This is from the MetOp satellite?
- Yes.
The spike in water temperature
tails off a couple of hours later.
I think the sudden rise
in water temperature
could have thawed
the hydrates on the seafloor,
releasing methane and causing
a blowout, just like the Thorvaldson.
Charlie, the blowout on the Thorvaldson
was caused by a release of methane
from a section of the seabed
destabilized by an infestation
of Sirsoe methanicola.
I know that,
but just take a look at this.
These are the waters
around the Shetlands.
Underneath the blue mark
there's a hydrothermal vent.
Charlie. I don't understand.
- The vent's supposed to be dormant
- It's not "supposed to be."
It is dormant.
- We don't know that.
- We do.
I think it's become active.
And the hydrothermal vent
near the mass of methane hydrates
I found floating to the surface might
be active as well, and I could prove it.
If I can borrow the DeepwaterAUV,
I can get a camera down there just
Charlie.
Enough.
Even if the vent were active,
the hot water it expelled would cool
before it got anywhere near the surface.
And there is no force on Earth,
either man-made or natural,
that could redirect that much water
all the way from the vent to the Juno.
Secure the station and get back here.
All I want to do is take a look.
Two ships, one which almost went down
due to a sudden release of methane.
The other which did, at the same time
there was a sudden rise in temperature.
- There has to be some connection.
- I won't tell you again.
She'll calm down.
Was that your professor?
Yes.
Do you always talk to her like that?
No.
You don't even know
what we were talking about.
You're right, I don't.
So I don't think you're in any position
to criticize the way I talk to her.
I don't need to know that
to know you crossed the line.
- Sometimes it's good to listen
- I listen.
You don't listen.
You fire off your own ideas,
one after the other, like gunshots.
- All anyone can do is run for cover.
- You don't get it.
Everything has to be
by the book with her,
the way she did it,
the way her professors did it.
I get it, there's a right way
and a wrong way to do things.
But I won't reject a different way
of thinking because she doesn't like it.
Charlie, think.
You might be the smartest person
in the room,
and most of the time you probably are.
But that doesn't mean
the other people aren't smart too.
- I don't mean it to sound like that.
- I know you don't.
I know.
And I'm sorry
if I've ever made you feel like that.
Made me feel stupid?
Never. Far too smart for that.
I'm gonna head out.
Why?
You've a lot to do,
you've got to pack all this stuff up.
I'll come back with lona,
help you with the last few things.
Maybe one last Maclnally
for the road, eh?
Thanks.
That wasn't like you.
- No, it wasn't.
- No.
I'm the one
who sent them out there, Sigur.
All those bright young men and women.
Katherina.
It wasn't your fault.
Nobody could have predicted
what was gonna happen.
- It was an accident.
- I know, Sigur. I know.
But I still can't help
questioning myself
wonder
If I had delayed their trip,
if I had sent them working
somewhere else
Charlie, Rahim,
I understand what they are doing,
they need to do something
with their grief.
So do you.
I know.
So
Tell me about Wagner.
- Charlie?
- Yeah.
She's like a foal kicking at its stall.
You studied with her mother.
Here at the IMB. Ingrid Haugen.
- She's Ingrid's daughter?
- Yeah.
Yeah. Yeah, so that's where
she gets it from.
But
I wouldn't be so quick
to dismiss what she said.
Why are you still up?
Not because I'm waiting up for you,
if that's why you're asking.
I wasn't,
but thanks for letting me know.
You sound tired.
I always sound tired.
Well, you know what,
I've been correcting papers.
And this might come
as a shock to you, but apparently
Tokyo is in Vietnam.
- What?
- Yeah, and Lima is in Canada.
And if you want to know
the capital of Uganda
That's Egypt.
Was this a test?
Yeah, third grade, geography.
I think they need a new teacher.
Yeah, that,
and I probably need a new job.
By the way, I reserved our court
for us on Saturday, at ten.
And I was thinking
that maybe we could
grab lunch or a few drinks after.
Sounds good.
You okay?
Can we talk later?
I've got to finish up.
Yeah, sure. What time will you be home?
An hour, maybe two.
Okay, okay.
Well,
if you're gonna be like that, fine.
Just so you know,
I will wait up for you, okay?
Like
Really.
I'll wait up for you.
- Okay.
- Bye.
Bye.
The International Council
for the Protection of the Ocean
has called for an urgent meeting
in Geneva, Switzerland.
Hundreds of experts and delegates
are expected to join the proceedings
with the five current member states
leading the summit.
The ICPO is meeting in Geneva.
Yes, they are.
Yeah. Can you get me
a meeting with them?
Can I ask why?
The infestation of worms,
jellyfish, yeah?
The infected lobsters and crabs.
I just don't believe
that they can be occurring
entirely independent from one another,
there must be some connection.
It's interesting that you say this.
Through Mr. Mifune's business interests,
we came across a cetologist in Canada.
He's found a new species of mussel,
which is reproducing
at an unprecedented rate,
causing havoc with shipping.
Can I speak to him?
Of course. I'll send him a note
and tell him to expect your call.
I have to go to Trondheim
for a meeting at the University,
but I can try him on the way back.
And if you could try
to set something up with the ICPO.
Of course.
I'm traveling to Osaka, but I will
speak to them as soon as I return.
Thank you. And safe travels, Riku.
Thank you, Sigur.
I shouldn't have to find out
from Dr. Coletti.
When?
When were you going to tell me?
When it was too late for me
to do anything to help?
Of course I'm coming. Of course.
I'll be there by the end of the week.
I love you, too.
You okay?
It was my mother.
She has to have an operation.
I'm sorry.
She'll be fine.
That's good.
She never tells me what's going on.
Doesn't want to bother me.
But what bothers me
is not being able to help.
You're going back?
Yes.
For how long?
Depends how things go.
You'll let me know
if you find anything out?
If I can do anything to help
while I'm away, let me know.
I will.
Okay.
- I'll see you before I go.
- Okay.
- Hello.
- Leon Anawak?
Yes.
Hi, my name is Dr. Sigur Johanson.
I got your details from Riku Sato.
Did he mention that I might call?
Yes, he did.
Can you talk for a moment?
I could always call back.
No, it's fine. Now's good.
See, I don't know
what Riku told you, but
we've discovered a new Sirsoe
methanicola in the North Atlantic,
whose behavior and morphology
are both atypical.
Riku said that you discovered
a new species of mussels
whose behavior was unusual.
Not just mussels.
Whales.
Whales?
We found an organic substance in the
mussels and the brainstem of a whale.
We ran a test and found 100 common
molecular compounds between them.
In a mammal and a bivalve.
I know.
I can't explain either. You expect
some overlap, but nothing like this.
And you think
that the substance is causing
the changes in behavior
in both the mussels and the whale?
We ran the test twice.
I can't explain it.
I know it makes no sense, but
Nothing does right now.
I can send you what we have,
so you can take a look.
Yeah, yeah, thank you.
I just
can't help feeling that we're
in uncharted territory here.
Feels strange, doesn't it?
You in Europe, me in Canada.
Somehow we're speaking
about the same thing.
Completely different ways.
Yeah, it does.
I forgot how lovely it is here.
Everything in its place.
I didn't think you'd come.
You said it was important.
I
tried calling you at the office.
You resigned.
I did.
They said
it would be different this time.
I believed them.
But people don't change,
no matter how much you want them to.
I was wrong not to trust you.
I was to think that you would
lie to me.
I could tell you why, I could try
to explain myself, it doesn't
Doesn't make it less wrong.
I'm sorry.
Tina, I am so sorry.
- Let me get you something to drink.
- I can't stay.
I'm going away, Sigur.
Where?
I haven't decided yet.
For how long?
I don't know.
You're going by yourself?
Yeah.
I need some time.
Will you let me know when you get back?
Yeah, of course.
- Sigur.
- I was afraid
- No. Sigur, please.
- No, no. Listen.
I'm not gonna ask you to stay.
I'm not gonna do that, I promise.
I need you to know
I can't imagine a life without you.
And
I don't want to.
Goodbye, Sigur.
I read the notes Leon Anawak sent
with the files.
He hasn't been able to find
any known source of bioluminescence
capable of creating a sustained glow
like the one that we're seeing.
What about the sound?
He's trying to find out
if anyone's picked it up before.
But I checked.
It's almost identical to the sound
we picked up when the Juno sank.
Charlie thinks it's connected
to the sudden rise in water temperature,
which caused the Juno to sink.
- From the hydrothermal vent.
- Yes.
Yeah.
The supply helicopter's making a run
to the Shetlands today,
so we could send the Deepwater AUV,
get a camera down on the seabed,
see if the vent's active.
Yeah, but there's a
There's a helipad at the airfield
in Værnes, in Trondheim.
Do you think I could hitch a ride?
I want to speak to Charlie.
Fine.
Hey.
Dr. Johanson.
Charlie Wagner.
Yeah, we come bearing gifts.
- The Deepwater.
- Yeah, where do you want it?
- By the shed will be fine.
- Alright.
- Hello.
- Hi.
So, gentlemen, then we start
with the most important thing: beer.
This is a surprise.
I tried to call you.
Is there somewhere we can talk?
Sure.
I just need to finish something
in the kitchen.
Can you wait?
Shouldn't be more than 20 minutes.
Okay.
Have you spoken to him?
To Leon Anawak? Yeah, I have.
Does he have any idea what it is?
None.
None. He discovered it by accident,
just like you.
He's checking to see if anyone picked up
the sound anywhere else in the ocean.
And you need to check,
find out what's going on as well.
So you can keep the Deepwater
as long as you need it.
I promised Katherina I'd have
her helicopter back before night, so
Thank you for coming.
And for helping me get to the truth.
I don't know if Katherina told you,
but I knew your mother.
You did?
Yeah.
Yeah, she was a couple years
ahead of me at the IMB.
A remarkable woman, brilliant.
Bold.
Unafraid.
Alright. So I better get going.
I'll come with you.
Pick up, pick up.
Once you get the footage
from the Deepwater, you contact me.
- I will.
- Take care, Charlie.
You too.
Fuck. Come on, Charlie.
Professor Lehmann. Professor Lehmann!
Katherina, I just
There's been a slide.
You need to get to high ground. Now!
- There's a tsunami forming.
- Wait, wait, wait.
Sigur, the tsunami is coming your way.
Yeah. Hey, hey. Open. Open.
Open the door!
Charlie!
Hey!
Hey!
Charlie!
Kare! Kare!
Kare!
I have to warn them! Let go!
Listen to me!
No! Leave me! Let me go!
We can't go. We can't
Stop! Hey! Please!
There's nothing we can do.
Alright? I'm sorry.
I'm sorry. We leave now or we die!
Hi, this is Sigur Johanson.
Please leave your name and number and
I'll get back to you as soon as I can.
Okay? Come on.
Sigur, it's me.
I just wanted you to know
I can't imagine
a life without you either.
Go!