Salvation (2017) s01e12 Episode Script
The Wormwood Prophecy
1 Previously on Salvation Atlas is a weapons program.
TANZ: Except the weapon was an asteroid.
President Mackenzie prepared an address to the nation.
I'm gonna find out what she never got to say.
If Atlas was the story of the year, Samson's the story of the century.
TANZ: The gravity tractor, it'll be one of the greatest triumphs in scientific history.
The savior of mankind.
Now we can celebrate.
LIAM: Your gravity tractor doesn't respond to commands.
Well, the question is, is this a glitch or a hack? I think whatever circles your son's been trafficking in, he's brought Zoe into the fold.
Do you have any idea who the hell you're dealing with? My father.
HARRIS: I'm not here to lecture you, I'm here to warn you.
- (beeping) - They're coming for you.
What I'm about to tell you all will cause some concern.
I can assure you that HARRIS: Get the medic.
Turn those cameras off, now! Harris, open your eyes, you've been played.
BENNETT: I, Monroe Bennett, do solemnly swear that I will faithfully execute the office, so help me God.
HARRIS: Grace, something's rotten at the highest levels.
So what are you gonna do? Whatever I have to.
Whatever it takes.
(computer buzzing) Whoa, take a look at this.
What the hell is that? (cell phone vibrating) JILLIAN: Liam, what are you doing? I got a ping.
JILLIAN: A ping? What does it mean? I don't know yet.
I need to find Darius now.
Tess, you're certain, Faraday One was the last of our sat-array systems to have contact with the gravity tractor? TESS: Yes, Darius.
Okay.
(blows air through cheeks) Replay the sequence.
There must be a way to regain control of the gravity tractor.
Think, Darius, think.
- A firewall to breach, some way in.
- I'm sorry, Darius.
We've exhausted all options at this time.
Tess, bring up the 160.
Current status.
Candidates for the Salvation, loading.
Narrow the field to my personal selects.
Loading.
(footfalls approaching) LIAM: Darius, you need to see this.
(typing) (door opens) (door closes) (floorboards creak) (door opens) Mom! (gasps) Oh, my God, Zoe.
Zoe.
Oh, I was so worried.
Where have you been? RASMUSSEN: It is with great regret and sorrow I must inform you all that President Mackenzie had a hemorrhagic stroke, which unfortunately proved fatal.
As her personal physician for the last decade, it is with great sadness that I must confirm her passing.
(reporters clamoring) That I must confirm her passing.
(reporters clamoring) (cell phone vibrates) LIAM: Right, that's Samson.
ETA to Earth impact less than 129 days, but look at this.
This speck right here.
It collided with Samson 47 minutes ago.
Space debris hits our asteroid.
Wh-What are the odds? .
0001 percent.
- I probably left out a few zeros.
- So, what happened? That's just it, nothing.
No, no, based on composition, rotation speed, and point of impact, it should have done something.
I know.
I know, which means Our basic suppositions about Samson have been faulty.
I'll be back.
Where are you going at 4:00 a.
m.
? This may be the answer to everything.
Dylan protected me, kept me out of what he was doing.
But he stayed loyal to his cause.
He said some things were worth dying for.
That was the last time we spoke.
He didn't make it, sir.
(exhales) Thank you.
Thank you for letting me know how he was at the very end.
(whispering): Harris, there's more.
(sniffles) RE/SYST they're planning something.
Dylan said that? No.
But I overheard him and Naomi talking to someone.
They were really deferential like it was their boss.
They called him Nero.
(knock at door) Are you expecting someone else at 4:30 in the morning? Zoe, go upstairs now.
Grace.
Don't tell me to put the gun down, Harris, or to give it to you.
This is my house and no one's coming in ever again unless I say so.
Okay.
I don't think you'll be needing that.
Sorry, I tried calling.
Uh (exhales) I hope I'm not interrupting.
- HARRIS: No.
- No.
Ironically, I was gonna ask you to talk to him.
Saves me the extra step.
I have new information.
It can't wait.
Initially, we thought Samson was made of silicates, porous rock, but the collision this evening suggests it has an iron core.
It's much denser than what we thought.
Significance to the lay people? Space debris twice the size and mass of the gravity tractor hit Samson head-on.
The debris vaporized on impact.
The asteroid didn't even blink.
GRACE: So, the government's plan to smash the asteroid into pieces with a gravity tractor won't do a damn thing.
Except destroy the gravity tractor, the one and only thing that can save us.
Harris, you need to get me a meeting with the president now.
I can't do that, Darius.
Fine, then give me back control of the GT, which you so ungraciously hijacked, no hard feelings well, maybe a little and I can go back to the business of saving the world instead of destroying it.
- It wasn't me who hijacked it.
- Damn it, Harris.
- Haven't we played enough games? - Darius, this is no game.
This is a coup, orchestrated at the highest levels, which I am trying to stop.
You think President Mackenzie was murdered? HARRIS: Darius, the only way to regain control of the gravity tractor is to regain control of the country.
How-how-how do you propose we do that? By any means necessary.
Are you in? Well, let's take these bastards down.
Now, while I appreciate Mr.
Tanz's conjecture, Dr.
Strauss in Interplanetary Defense thinks that the iron core theory is speculative at best.
And Tanz's remedy is to conveniently restore the gravity tractor to his control.
And divert the asteroid, saving everyone.
Isn't that what we want? Harris, we all know Chelyabinsk was a necessity.
Yes, we knocked out Russia's space warfare R & D facility.
Jointly funded by the Chinese.
CLAIRE: They were only months away from having next-gen satellite jammers and high-powered microwave guns, designed to take out our defense systems.
If we hadn't made that bold move, Russia and China would have already destroyed our entire infrastructure.
The future of democracy depends on whoever wins the space race, and right now, finally, we can ensure that victory.
With Samson knocking out our enemies.
We are either the duck or the hunter.
It's either us or them.
Can I assume that we're all in agreement here? - Stay the course.
- Yes, sir.
But we all know Darius Tanz won't stop until he gets what he wants.
Can we be certain the gravity tractor signal is secure? Dr.
Strauss is managing things from a high security, off-site location.
Which is where, exactly? BENNETT: You defend the country.
He'll defend the planet.
Strauss's terminal.
Tell Darius it's got direct links to U.
S.
battleships and destroyers off the East Coast.
It's the only place he could be controlling the GT from.
You're gonna need to restore my A4 clearance.
Grace.
This requires a mass hack of the Pentagon.
Your fingerprints can't be anywhere near it.
No, yours can't.
(sighs) I said whatever it takes, Harris.
I meant it.
- Liam.
- I'm working on it, sorry.
Yes, wha uh (sighing): What time is it? Time to stop drooling.
I need you to take care of something for me.
Where are we with the 160? Uh Jillian's curating all the data.
She had 147 cleared candidates.
She's almost ready.
This envelope contains additional names.
My personal selections.
I want them put through all the genetic testing and psych profile analysis.
Today.
Claire.
A moment of your time? I've been thinking about you, since the other night.
When can I see you again? How about tonight? I'd like that, Mr.
Secretary.
(inhales, exhales) Bennett's approach may seem extreme, but he's the only one with the strength to get us through this.
This is about survival.
We have to do whatever it takes.
And I will.
Sorry, I got to run out.
Where are you off to? Doctor's appointment.
(door closes) At first I thought this was a simple substitution code, like a Caesar cipher or a rail cipher.
But? Looks more like a book cipher.
Each number would correspond to a word in a book.
For example, if I'm right, nine, eight, two would correspond to page nine, line eight, second word.
So in order to break the code, I need to know which book.
Which is why it's important to know who wrote the code, and what books they'd have access to.
So who wrote it? Todd, you work for the NSA.
You're the last person I'm sharing secrets with.
(door opens) Mr.
Secretary? Dr.
Rasmussen.
I went to your office.
They told me you were taking some time off.
The president's death has taken a toll on me to say the least.
To be expected.
You were her longtime physician, from before she was president.
Yes.
You reported the official cause of death was hemorrhagic stroke, but she was buried without an autopsy.
President McKenzie's maternal family were observant Jews.
Jewish law forbids anything that desecrates a corpse.
Did you notice signs of impairment prior to the stroke? We ran blood panels, did a cerebral angiogram.
Nothing unusual turned up, we chalked it up to fatigue, but she wouldn't slow down.
And where are those blood samples now? I gave them everything I had, Mr.
Secretary.
Gave to whom? President Bennett's secret service.
They took it all, along with my files.
Well, there's no record of those tests, or blood samples, anywhere.
Well, that's a matter you'll have to take up with President Bennett.
Now, if you don't mind, I was just on my way to pick up my son from soccer practice.
Is it possible President's Mackenzie's health - could've been compromised? - I said what you all wanted me to say.
So please leave me and my family alone.
Dr.
Rasmussen, - if you know something - I know nothing.
Now, if you'll excuse me, I really can't be late for my son.
(engine starts) JILLIAN (over video): What skills would you contribute on a mission to Mars? As a botanist who's dealt with drought in the Sub-Saharan desert, I feel my skills As a trauma surgeon uniquely prepare me to deal with anything and everything That's required to teach children the history of our planet.
So we don't repeat the mistakes we've made here.
Hey.
How goes it? I'm just trying to fill those last 13 slots.
Darius wants to see the group as a whole.
I'm not gonna lie, it's been hard.
Well, this might help fill out those last few seats.
Darius's personal selects.
He says he wants you and me to vet them immediately.
Jillian.
(beeps) What is that? An NFC implantation device of my own creation.
Sorry, I don't speak tech.
(laughs softly) Near-field communication.
Think of it like a sponge.
If it comes within 30 centimeters of another device, I can hack into it, and soak up some very pertinent information.
So this is how you'll infiltrate the Pentagon servers.
How you will.
With no fingerprints.
(exhales) I'm glad your daughter's okay.
Me, too.
Except she still wants to go to Kenya.
Don't you think it's time to tell her? Yeah.
I just don't know how.
Love makes things complicated.
It does.
You're gonna feel a slight - Ow - pinch.
Sorry, I just implanted a chip under your skin.
Like the one you gave me so I could find Salvation? Similar but upgraded.
So I'm supposed to hack into their mainframe with my hand.
Sometimes necessity is the mother of deception.
Just get to the terminal Harris identified and Tess will do the rest.
Speaking of Tess.
How did all that go? It went.
(elevator doors open) Hey.
What'd the doctor say? No autopsy.
And Bennett's secret service agents confiscated everything.
Not a trace of evidence to prove she was poisoned.
President Mackenzie took it all to the grave.
So there's evidence; we just need to dig it up.
Zachary Taylor, 12th president.
His remains were exhumed a hundred years after he died to determine whether he'd been poisoned.
So it's not like you're breaking new ground here.
Pun intended.
You're proposing we dig up the dead body of the president of the United States? You said whatever it takes.
We're going to need a team.
(Grace sighs) I know a guy.
So, you're digging up the president and hacking the Pentagon.
Just wanted to make sure we're all on the same page.
Ooh.
The good stuff.
Ah.
The best.
All right.
So you're gonna need a team that knows how to get in and get out of a casket, fast.
That I can help you with.
In terms of access, Arlington Cemetery, you're the secretary of defense, I think you have that covered.
How soon? Tonight.
Rush job.
Got it.
I know some talented guys who, uh, owe me a few favors.
The sort who understand discretion.
HARRIS: Good.
You don't want to know what all this is about? Too much information can be dangerous.
If you tell me you need me, Gracie, that's all I need to know.
Thanks, Dad.
I'll be in touch.
So that's your dad.
What exactly did he do for the CIA? I'm guessing everything.
WOMAN (over P.
A.
): Attention, all personnel JILLIAN: You know, I never really thought about it.
Whether or not I wanted to go.
I guess I've just been in denial.
Yeah, me, too.
I just can't imagine getting on the Ark without my dad.
Or - What? - No What if only one of us can go? What are you talking about? I have no idea who my biological parents are.
I might be carrying some genetic disease that I don't even know about that would disqualify me.
Well, whatever happens, we're in this together.
If it comes down to it, we either both go or both stay.
All for one.
And one for all.
Moby-Dick, not a match.
Damn it.
Any luck with Mackenzie's speech? No.
I'm working on it.
Man, for all you know, it could be a copy of Goodnight Moon - she kept in the Lincoln Bedroom.
- No.
Her speechwriter told me she was locked away in the Oval Office for hours writing.
- It's got to be one of these books.
- I just don't get it.
Why does the president encode her own speech? To keep whatever's on this page secret.
Until she was ready to reveal it.
(inhales, exhales) Listen to this: "Little known is that the president keeps "Lincoln's copy of the King James Bible in a desk drawer in the Oval Office.
" Who's got a copy of the Bible? The King James Bible.
(elevator bell chimes) (whispering): Darius, are you with me? TANZ: Thanks to those contact lenses, every step of the way.
I'm with you.
GRACE: What about the eye scan? Those contacts shouldn't interfere.
Shouldn't or won't? Shouldn't.
Hopefully.
Terrific.
(beeps, door opens) (sighs) TANZ: Ye of little faith.
There.
Strauss's workstation.
Grace, you need to distract Dexter.
He'll be able to see our connection on his monitor.
Dexter? Secretary Edwards asked me to put together an updated situation report.
There was some minor activity with Samson this morning, but it ended up being insignificant.
I'm still gonna need the data for my report.
Can you print that out, please? - Sure.
- Thank you.
It's working, Grace.
You're a master spinmeister.
At ease, soldier.
What's your current status? Standard security rotation, Mr.
Secretary, sir.
Graveyard shift till 0600.
- You have new orders.
- Sir? The MP will see you and your men get to your new post immediately.
You're all relieved.
Sir, yes, sir.
Gentlemen, we've got 60 minutes, no more.
(whispering): Darius, how much time? TANZ: Two minutes.
Here's everything.
Now, if you don't mind (alarm buzzing) Grace, what's happening? Russian subs on the move.
China, too.
TECH: The president's on his way.
- Grace, get out of there now.
- Not until we get what we need.
Don't be stupid.
Bennett's too dangerous to play around with.
How much to go? - We have it all.
- I don't believe you.
Damn, it, Grace, get out of there now.
TECH: The President of the United States.
There's no time for protocol.
As you were.
General Higgins and I need a full report on all enemy positioning.
As well as our allies in the Pacific and Baltic regions.
We can't afford to get this wrong.
Ms.
Barrows.
I thought your A4 security clearance was revoked.
The secretary reinstated it after our success with Russia.
- (beeps) - Grace, 100%.
We've got what we need.
BENNETT: Ms.
Barrows.
Mr.
President.
I'm gonna need you to organize a press conference right away.
We have to make a statement.
I'll get right on it, sir.
BENNETT: Claire, get our NATO friends on the phone immediately.
And, Harris Where's Harris Edwards? Where the hell is my secretary of defense?! Grace, get out of there now.
(indistinct chatter) Wormwood.
Wormwood.
What the hell is Wormwood? "Revelation 8: 10-11.
"And the third angel sounded, "and there fell a great star from the heaven.
"Burning as it were a lamp.
And the name of the star is called Wormwood.
" "It is with great sadness that I must reveal to you "a secret known only to a few up until now.
"Wormwood will collide with Earth in 137 days, with the potential to wipe out all life.
" (coughing, retching) (machine rumbling) How long do you need to obtain a tissue sample? Once the casket's open, two minutes tops.
Mr.
Secretary, I know she's only been gone a few days, but it can be disturbing.
More than you know.
Well, that is disturbing.
If the body's not here, then where the hell is it? Where isn't as important as the how and the why.
Who stands to gain from stealing a dead president's body? Someone trying to hide how she died.
One thing's for certain whoever pulled this off must have had the help of her secret service.
- Something I should know? - HARRIS: Not yet.
I know the former head of Mackenzie's detail.
Someone we can trust? I thought so.
Harris, remember, they have eyes everywhere.
(phone vibrates) Thank you all for gathering on such short notice, but events are unfolding rapidly.
(reporters clamoring) Rather than answer the same questions twice, I give you the President of the United States.
(camera shutters clicking) (all clamoring) I'll take your questions after I've made a statement.
Now, since this is only the second week of my presidency, our adversaries might be tempted to think that this is a good time to test this nation.
If they believe that we are in disarray or weak, let me be absolutely clear that they are sorely mistaken.
- (cell phone vibrates) - Now, our goal has always been peace, but our patience with the Russian regime is over.
Threats and provocations will be met with the strongest possible response.
The policy of the United States has always been and will continue to be (phone vibrates) I'll take your questions.
(reporters clamoring) (car door opens) (sighs) I'm not sure what you think you know.
I know everything, Grace.
(scoffs) I know about the asteroid.
We're facing an extinction-level event.
I cannot confirm that story.
My God, Grace, you can't just sit on this.
I can't just sit on this.
People need to know.
They have a right to know.
Think through the consequences of publishing this story, Amanda.
There would be global panic, a complete breakdown of law and order.
- Is that what you want? - What I want is the truth.
As a public servant, you owe me that.
Or did you forget you worked for the public, Press Secretary Barrows? Look off the record, there are plans.
Either we'll solve this problem and get on with our lives in a few months, or we won't.
But now is not the time to unleash this secret on the world.
The geopolitics are extremely volatile.
You have a moral responsibility beyond career.
This is not about career.
This is about the end of the world.
Amanda look at me.
Once you get over the shock, and you will, you'll realize this story will cause more harm than good right now.
President Mackenzie didn't think so.
She was about to tell the world the truth before she died.
How do you know that? Because I have her speech.
(sighs) I urge you to do the sane thing.
Once this genie is out of the bottle, the entire world order goes upside down.
Please, think about that before you hit "send.
" Amanda, I was wrong about you.
You're a damn good reporter.
I'm afraid the cat's out of the bag with our reporter friend.
You want us to deliver another message? CLAIRE (over phone): Take the necessary action.
And this time, go the way of our friend Carnahan.
MAN: Understood.
(winces) Sorry.
They're moving submarines, Darius.
(sighs) The Russians must have spotted our GT when that debris made noise last night in space.
They know what we're doing, so they're lining up allies.
Amanda Neel's got the story.
It's only a matter of time before she releases it.
(sighs) I got to go home.
I have to tell Zoe.
I just hope it's not too late for her to forgive me.
It's never too late to be honest with the people you love.
You go first.
No.
- No, no, no, we-we do this together.
- (sighs) (sighs) (both chuckle) (both sigh) (Jillian moans softly) (both sigh) (exhales sharply) All right.
What about the others? Liam, what's the matter? (phone chimes) (inhales sharply) Zoe, I've kept too many secrets from you.
And I can't do it anymore.
I need to tell you what's happening so you can make decisions for yourself.
An asteroid was due to hit the Earth (continues speaking indistinctly) Grant.
- Harris, what the hell? - Real slow.
Sidearm, where I can see it.
Have you gone crazy? Put that Beretta down.
I need to know, where exactly is the body of President Mackenzie? Because she seems to have walked away from her casket.
From your reaction, it's clear you're not surprised.
You were lead on her detail.
So either you're derelict in your duty and knowing you, that's not likely or you know exactly what went down.
So, where's the president's body? I can't.
- (gun cocks) - Can't or won't? Harris, I need to know what you know.
Mackenzie died of something other than natural causes.
And you must have aided and abetted.
You got it all wrong, man.
I loved that woman.
Then help me expose whoever did this to her.
You want to see the body? Put that gun away and I'll take you there.
TANZ: Tess, sift through every outgoing signal recorded on this chip.
Find the one that matches our original EmDrive frequency and let me know where that signal - is being transmitted from.
- TESS: Searching now.
So, did you run the tests I asked you to for the 160? Yeah, yeah, yeah.
And? Darius, the gravity tractor is being controlled by the USS Pike, an aircraft carrier currently located 200 miles off the Florida c-coast.
(distorted): N-not error.
- Tanz.
Tess.
Treehouse.
- Tess? - MALE VOICE: Administration.
- TESS: Data.
(distorted): Protocol.
Ark.
Sal-Salvation.
Whoa, is Tess having a stroke? Tess, force quit all current processes.
- Tess, emergency reboot.
- (Tess stutters) Authorization code: Echo, bravo, one, one.
- Tess? - TESS (distorted): Error, admin What is this place? It's a nuclear fallout shelter.
Government built dozens of them around D.
C.
in the '60s.
All defunded decades ago and forgotten about, but otherwise completely intact.
(heart monitor beeping steadily) (weakly): Welcome, Mr.
Secretary.
I'm sorry, Mr.
Secretary.
I didn't know who I could trust.
Madame President, it's good to see you alive.
Barely.
The stroke.
Was induced.
By poison.
RASMUSSEN: Mercury.
Someone added it to her asthma inhaler.
The more she used it, the more she needed it.
That's what was causing my memory lapses.
She's still not out of the woods.
I'll say.
We're administering chelation therapy to remove the toxins from her blood stream.
We call ourselves "the loyalists.
" MACKENZIE: Thank you for saving my life.
We diverted her at the hospital.
The family declined autopsy on religious grounds, and then you did a closed-casket funeral to cover the tracks.
We have to tell the world she's alive and depose this illegitimate regime.
And if she was well enough to address the nation, Bennett and his people will do anything to stop her.
They're not just gonna walk away from this.
If we don't reinstall her in the next 24 hours, there may not be a world to get her back to.
You have to find out who did this.
Then prove it.
CLAIRE: Madame President, do you need to? No, no, no.
Trust me.
I will.
(electrical buzzing, sparking) I'm completely locked out.
Has this ever happened before? No.
Programs fail all the time.
Tess hasn't failed, she's being attacked.
There's always a way in, but this time I opened the gates.
This is RE/SYST.
It can't be anyone else.
When they helped us create that blackout in Russia, they must've slipped in a ghost key.
Which means they've been in our system since we launched the gravity tractor, monitoring our every move.
(sighs) Waiting for an opportunity to attack.
Oh, Darius, they must - they must know - Everything.
Once shut down, there's no telling the damage that will be done.
She might never recover.
But right now this is the only move we have.
I'm sorry, Daddy, I had to tell her.
And you.
And Zoe's sure this is what she wants? Yeah.
What about you, Gracie? What do you want? You never mentioned you were in love.
No, Harris and I we're over.
That's not who I'm talking about.
(footfalls approaching) Glad that I could see my granddaughter off.
- Her first trip to Africa.
Mm.
- (chuckles) Please let me take you to the airport.
No, it's too much.
Grandpa's taking me.
- I'll grab your stuff.
- Thanks.
(softly): Hey.
- Sure about this? - (door closes) Maybe it seems pointless to try and bring a little love and compassion into this world if it's all about to end It's not pointless.
It's the most important thing.
You go do some good, okay? So will I.
I love you, Mom.
(crying): To the moon.
(laughs, sniffles) To the moon.
And back.
(door closes) (sighs deeply) (typing) - ED: Hey.
- (gasps) Geez, don't scare me like that.
Sorry.
I'm heading out for the night and I'm just checking.
You or your NSA friend ever figure out how to decode Mackenzie's speech? Uh (alarm blaring) Crap.
All right, people, quickly move towards the stairs.
Come on.
- Uh, I'll-I'll be right there.
- Amanda.
We have a false alarm every other week.
Let me back this up just in case.
(alarm continues blaring) (gasps) Are you security guard? Yeah.
Amanda? What the hell is? (grunts)
TANZ: Except the weapon was an asteroid.
President Mackenzie prepared an address to the nation.
I'm gonna find out what she never got to say.
If Atlas was the story of the year, Samson's the story of the century.
TANZ: The gravity tractor, it'll be one of the greatest triumphs in scientific history.
The savior of mankind.
Now we can celebrate.
LIAM: Your gravity tractor doesn't respond to commands.
Well, the question is, is this a glitch or a hack? I think whatever circles your son's been trafficking in, he's brought Zoe into the fold.
Do you have any idea who the hell you're dealing with? My father.
HARRIS: I'm not here to lecture you, I'm here to warn you.
- (beeping) - They're coming for you.
What I'm about to tell you all will cause some concern.
I can assure you that HARRIS: Get the medic.
Turn those cameras off, now! Harris, open your eyes, you've been played.
BENNETT: I, Monroe Bennett, do solemnly swear that I will faithfully execute the office, so help me God.
HARRIS: Grace, something's rotten at the highest levels.
So what are you gonna do? Whatever I have to.
Whatever it takes.
(computer buzzing) Whoa, take a look at this.
What the hell is that? (cell phone vibrating) JILLIAN: Liam, what are you doing? I got a ping.
JILLIAN: A ping? What does it mean? I don't know yet.
I need to find Darius now.
Tess, you're certain, Faraday One was the last of our sat-array systems to have contact with the gravity tractor? TESS: Yes, Darius.
Okay.
(blows air through cheeks) Replay the sequence.
There must be a way to regain control of the gravity tractor.
Think, Darius, think.
- A firewall to breach, some way in.
- I'm sorry, Darius.
We've exhausted all options at this time.
Tess, bring up the 160.
Current status.
Candidates for the Salvation, loading.
Narrow the field to my personal selects.
Loading.
(footfalls approaching) LIAM: Darius, you need to see this.
(typing) (door opens) (door closes) (floorboards creak) (door opens) Mom! (gasps) Oh, my God, Zoe.
Zoe.
Oh, I was so worried.
Where have you been? RASMUSSEN: It is with great regret and sorrow I must inform you all that President Mackenzie had a hemorrhagic stroke, which unfortunately proved fatal.
As her personal physician for the last decade, it is with great sadness that I must confirm her passing.
(reporters clamoring) That I must confirm her passing.
(reporters clamoring) (cell phone vibrates) LIAM: Right, that's Samson.
ETA to Earth impact less than 129 days, but look at this.
This speck right here.
It collided with Samson 47 minutes ago.
Space debris hits our asteroid.
Wh-What are the odds? .
0001 percent.
- I probably left out a few zeros.
- So, what happened? That's just it, nothing.
No, no, based on composition, rotation speed, and point of impact, it should have done something.
I know.
I know, which means Our basic suppositions about Samson have been faulty.
I'll be back.
Where are you going at 4:00 a.
m.
? This may be the answer to everything.
Dylan protected me, kept me out of what he was doing.
But he stayed loyal to his cause.
He said some things were worth dying for.
That was the last time we spoke.
He didn't make it, sir.
(exhales) Thank you.
Thank you for letting me know how he was at the very end.
(whispering): Harris, there's more.
(sniffles) RE/SYST they're planning something.
Dylan said that? No.
But I overheard him and Naomi talking to someone.
They were really deferential like it was their boss.
They called him Nero.
(knock at door) Are you expecting someone else at 4:30 in the morning? Zoe, go upstairs now.
Grace.
Don't tell me to put the gun down, Harris, or to give it to you.
This is my house and no one's coming in ever again unless I say so.
Okay.
I don't think you'll be needing that.
Sorry, I tried calling.
Uh (exhales) I hope I'm not interrupting.
- HARRIS: No.
- No.
Ironically, I was gonna ask you to talk to him.
Saves me the extra step.
I have new information.
It can't wait.
Initially, we thought Samson was made of silicates, porous rock, but the collision this evening suggests it has an iron core.
It's much denser than what we thought.
Significance to the lay people? Space debris twice the size and mass of the gravity tractor hit Samson head-on.
The debris vaporized on impact.
The asteroid didn't even blink.
GRACE: So, the government's plan to smash the asteroid into pieces with a gravity tractor won't do a damn thing.
Except destroy the gravity tractor, the one and only thing that can save us.
Harris, you need to get me a meeting with the president now.
I can't do that, Darius.
Fine, then give me back control of the GT, which you so ungraciously hijacked, no hard feelings well, maybe a little and I can go back to the business of saving the world instead of destroying it.
- It wasn't me who hijacked it.
- Damn it, Harris.
- Haven't we played enough games? - Darius, this is no game.
This is a coup, orchestrated at the highest levels, which I am trying to stop.
You think President Mackenzie was murdered? HARRIS: Darius, the only way to regain control of the gravity tractor is to regain control of the country.
How-how-how do you propose we do that? By any means necessary.
Are you in? Well, let's take these bastards down.
Now, while I appreciate Mr.
Tanz's conjecture, Dr.
Strauss in Interplanetary Defense thinks that the iron core theory is speculative at best.
And Tanz's remedy is to conveniently restore the gravity tractor to his control.
And divert the asteroid, saving everyone.
Isn't that what we want? Harris, we all know Chelyabinsk was a necessity.
Yes, we knocked out Russia's space warfare R & D facility.
Jointly funded by the Chinese.
CLAIRE: They were only months away from having next-gen satellite jammers and high-powered microwave guns, designed to take out our defense systems.
If we hadn't made that bold move, Russia and China would have already destroyed our entire infrastructure.
The future of democracy depends on whoever wins the space race, and right now, finally, we can ensure that victory.
With Samson knocking out our enemies.
We are either the duck or the hunter.
It's either us or them.
Can I assume that we're all in agreement here? - Stay the course.
- Yes, sir.
But we all know Darius Tanz won't stop until he gets what he wants.
Can we be certain the gravity tractor signal is secure? Dr.
Strauss is managing things from a high security, off-site location.
Which is where, exactly? BENNETT: You defend the country.
He'll defend the planet.
Strauss's terminal.
Tell Darius it's got direct links to U.
S.
battleships and destroyers off the East Coast.
It's the only place he could be controlling the GT from.
You're gonna need to restore my A4 clearance.
Grace.
This requires a mass hack of the Pentagon.
Your fingerprints can't be anywhere near it.
No, yours can't.
(sighs) I said whatever it takes, Harris.
I meant it.
- Liam.
- I'm working on it, sorry.
Yes, wha uh (sighing): What time is it? Time to stop drooling.
I need you to take care of something for me.
Where are we with the 160? Uh Jillian's curating all the data.
She had 147 cleared candidates.
She's almost ready.
This envelope contains additional names.
My personal selections.
I want them put through all the genetic testing and psych profile analysis.
Today.
Claire.
A moment of your time? I've been thinking about you, since the other night.
When can I see you again? How about tonight? I'd like that, Mr.
Secretary.
(inhales, exhales) Bennett's approach may seem extreme, but he's the only one with the strength to get us through this.
This is about survival.
We have to do whatever it takes.
And I will.
Sorry, I got to run out.
Where are you off to? Doctor's appointment.
(door closes) At first I thought this was a simple substitution code, like a Caesar cipher or a rail cipher.
But? Looks more like a book cipher.
Each number would correspond to a word in a book.
For example, if I'm right, nine, eight, two would correspond to page nine, line eight, second word.
So in order to break the code, I need to know which book.
Which is why it's important to know who wrote the code, and what books they'd have access to.
So who wrote it? Todd, you work for the NSA.
You're the last person I'm sharing secrets with.
(door opens) Mr.
Secretary? Dr.
Rasmussen.
I went to your office.
They told me you were taking some time off.
The president's death has taken a toll on me to say the least.
To be expected.
You were her longtime physician, from before she was president.
Yes.
You reported the official cause of death was hemorrhagic stroke, but she was buried without an autopsy.
President McKenzie's maternal family were observant Jews.
Jewish law forbids anything that desecrates a corpse.
Did you notice signs of impairment prior to the stroke? We ran blood panels, did a cerebral angiogram.
Nothing unusual turned up, we chalked it up to fatigue, but she wouldn't slow down.
And where are those blood samples now? I gave them everything I had, Mr.
Secretary.
Gave to whom? President Bennett's secret service.
They took it all, along with my files.
Well, there's no record of those tests, or blood samples, anywhere.
Well, that's a matter you'll have to take up with President Bennett.
Now, if you don't mind, I was just on my way to pick up my son from soccer practice.
Is it possible President's Mackenzie's health - could've been compromised? - I said what you all wanted me to say.
So please leave me and my family alone.
Dr.
Rasmussen, - if you know something - I know nothing.
Now, if you'll excuse me, I really can't be late for my son.
(engine starts) JILLIAN (over video): What skills would you contribute on a mission to Mars? As a botanist who's dealt with drought in the Sub-Saharan desert, I feel my skills As a trauma surgeon uniquely prepare me to deal with anything and everything That's required to teach children the history of our planet.
So we don't repeat the mistakes we've made here.
Hey.
How goes it? I'm just trying to fill those last 13 slots.
Darius wants to see the group as a whole.
I'm not gonna lie, it's been hard.
Well, this might help fill out those last few seats.
Darius's personal selects.
He says he wants you and me to vet them immediately.
Jillian.
(beeps) What is that? An NFC implantation device of my own creation.
Sorry, I don't speak tech.
(laughs softly) Near-field communication.
Think of it like a sponge.
If it comes within 30 centimeters of another device, I can hack into it, and soak up some very pertinent information.
So this is how you'll infiltrate the Pentagon servers.
How you will.
With no fingerprints.
(exhales) I'm glad your daughter's okay.
Me, too.
Except she still wants to go to Kenya.
Don't you think it's time to tell her? Yeah.
I just don't know how.
Love makes things complicated.
It does.
You're gonna feel a slight - Ow - pinch.
Sorry, I just implanted a chip under your skin.
Like the one you gave me so I could find Salvation? Similar but upgraded.
So I'm supposed to hack into their mainframe with my hand.
Sometimes necessity is the mother of deception.
Just get to the terminal Harris identified and Tess will do the rest.
Speaking of Tess.
How did all that go? It went.
(elevator doors open) Hey.
What'd the doctor say? No autopsy.
And Bennett's secret service agents confiscated everything.
Not a trace of evidence to prove she was poisoned.
President Mackenzie took it all to the grave.
So there's evidence; we just need to dig it up.
Zachary Taylor, 12th president.
His remains were exhumed a hundred years after he died to determine whether he'd been poisoned.
So it's not like you're breaking new ground here.
Pun intended.
You're proposing we dig up the dead body of the president of the United States? You said whatever it takes.
We're going to need a team.
(Grace sighs) I know a guy.
So, you're digging up the president and hacking the Pentagon.
Just wanted to make sure we're all on the same page.
Ooh.
The good stuff.
Ah.
The best.
All right.
So you're gonna need a team that knows how to get in and get out of a casket, fast.
That I can help you with.
In terms of access, Arlington Cemetery, you're the secretary of defense, I think you have that covered.
How soon? Tonight.
Rush job.
Got it.
I know some talented guys who, uh, owe me a few favors.
The sort who understand discretion.
HARRIS: Good.
You don't want to know what all this is about? Too much information can be dangerous.
If you tell me you need me, Gracie, that's all I need to know.
Thanks, Dad.
I'll be in touch.
So that's your dad.
What exactly did he do for the CIA? I'm guessing everything.
WOMAN (over P.
A.
): Attention, all personnel JILLIAN: You know, I never really thought about it.
Whether or not I wanted to go.
I guess I've just been in denial.
Yeah, me, too.
I just can't imagine getting on the Ark without my dad.
Or - What? - No What if only one of us can go? What are you talking about? I have no idea who my biological parents are.
I might be carrying some genetic disease that I don't even know about that would disqualify me.
Well, whatever happens, we're in this together.
If it comes down to it, we either both go or both stay.
All for one.
And one for all.
Moby-Dick, not a match.
Damn it.
Any luck with Mackenzie's speech? No.
I'm working on it.
Man, for all you know, it could be a copy of Goodnight Moon - she kept in the Lincoln Bedroom.
- No.
Her speechwriter told me she was locked away in the Oval Office for hours writing.
- It's got to be one of these books.
- I just don't get it.
Why does the president encode her own speech? To keep whatever's on this page secret.
Until she was ready to reveal it.
(inhales, exhales) Listen to this: "Little known is that the president keeps "Lincoln's copy of the King James Bible in a desk drawer in the Oval Office.
" Who's got a copy of the Bible? The King James Bible.
(elevator bell chimes) (whispering): Darius, are you with me? TANZ: Thanks to those contact lenses, every step of the way.
I'm with you.
GRACE: What about the eye scan? Those contacts shouldn't interfere.
Shouldn't or won't? Shouldn't.
Hopefully.
Terrific.
(beeps, door opens) (sighs) TANZ: Ye of little faith.
There.
Strauss's workstation.
Grace, you need to distract Dexter.
He'll be able to see our connection on his monitor.
Dexter? Secretary Edwards asked me to put together an updated situation report.
There was some minor activity with Samson this morning, but it ended up being insignificant.
I'm still gonna need the data for my report.
Can you print that out, please? - Sure.
- Thank you.
It's working, Grace.
You're a master spinmeister.
At ease, soldier.
What's your current status? Standard security rotation, Mr.
Secretary, sir.
Graveyard shift till 0600.
- You have new orders.
- Sir? The MP will see you and your men get to your new post immediately.
You're all relieved.
Sir, yes, sir.
Gentlemen, we've got 60 minutes, no more.
(whispering): Darius, how much time? TANZ: Two minutes.
Here's everything.
Now, if you don't mind (alarm buzzing) Grace, what's happening? Russian subs on the move.
China, too.
TECH: The president's on his way.
- Grace, get out of there now.
- Not until we get what we need.
Don't be stupid.
Bennett's too dangerous to play around with.
How much to go? - We have it all.
- I don't believe you.
Damn, it, Grace, get out of there now.
TECH: The President of the United States.
There's no time for protocol.
As you were.
General Higgins and I need a full report on all enemy positioning.
As well as our allies in the Pacific and Baltic regions.
We can't afford to get this wrong.
Ms.
Barrows.
I thought your A4 security clearance was revoked.
The secretary reinstated it after our success with Russia.
- (beeps) - Grace, 100%.
We've got what we need.
BENNETT: Ms.
Barrows.
Mr.
President.
I'm gonna need you to organize a press conference right away.
We have to make a statement.
I'll get right on it, sir.
BENNETT: Claire, get our NATO friends on the phone immediately.
And, Harris Where's Harris Edwards? Where the hell is my secretary of defense?! Grace, get out of there now.
(indistinct chatter) Wormwood.
Wormwood.
What the hell is Wormwood? "Revelation 8: 10-11.
"And the third angel sounded, "and there fell a great star from the heaven.
"Burning as it were a lamp.
And the name of the star is called Wormwood.
" "It is with great sadness that I must reveal to you "a secret known only to a few up until now.
"Wormwood will collide with Earth in 137 days, with the potential to wipe out all life.
" (coughing, retching) (machine rumbling) How long do you need to obtain a tissue sample? Once the casket's open, two minutes tops.
Mr.
Secretary, I know she's only been gone a few days, but it can be disturbing.
More than you know.
Well, that is disturbing.
If the body's not here, then where the hell is it? Where isn't as important as the how and the why.
Who stands to gain from stealing a dead president's body? Someone trying to hide how she died.
One thing's for certain whoever pulled this off must have had the help of her secret service.
- Something I should know? - HARRIS: Not yet.
I know the former head of Mackenzie's detail.
Someone we can trust? I thought so.
Harris, remember, they have eyes everywhere.
(phone vibrates) Thank you all for gathering on such short notice, but events are unfolding rapidly.
(reporters clamoring) Rather than answer the same questions twice, I give you the President of the United States.
(camera shutters clicking) (all clamoring) I'll take your questions after I've made a statement.
Now, since this is only the second week of my presidency, our adversaries might be tempted to think that this is a good time to test this nation.
If they believe that we are in disarray or weak, let me be absolutely clear that they are sorely mistaken.
- (cell phone vibrates) - Now, our goal has always been peace, but our patience with the Russian regime is over.
Threats and provocations will be met with the strongest possible response.
The policy of the United States has always been and will continue to be (phone vibrates) I'll take your questions.
(reporters clamoring) (car door opens) (sighs) I'm not sure what you think you know.
I know everything, Grace.
(scoffs) I know about the asteroid.
We're facing an extinction-level event.
I cannot confirm that story.
My God, Grace, you can't just sit on this.
I can't just sit on this.
People need to know.
They have a right to know.
Think through the consequences of publishing this story, Amanda.
There would be global panic, a complete breakdown of law and order.
- Is that what you want? - What I want is the truth.
As a public servant, you owe me that.
Or did you forget you worked for the public, Press Secretary Barrows? Look off the record, there are plans.
Either we'll solve this problem and get on with our lives in a few months, or we won't.
But now is not the time to unleash this secret on the world.
The geopolitics are extremely volatile.
You have a moral responsibility beyond career.
This is not about career.
This is about the end of the world.
Amanda look at me.
Once you get over the shock, and you will, you'll realize this story will cause more harm than good right now.
President Mackenzie didn't think so.
She was about to tell the world the truth before she died.
How do you know that? Because I have her speech.
(sighs) I urge you to do the sane thing.
Once this genie is out of the bottle, the entire world order goes upside down.
Please, think about that before you hit "send.
" Amanda, I was wrong about you.
You're a damn good reporter.
I'm afraid the cat's out of the bag with our reporter friend.
You want us to deliver another message? CLAIRE (over phone): Take the necessary action.
And this time, go the way of our friend Carnahan.
MAN: Understood.
(winces) Sorry.
They're moving submarines, Darius.
(sighs) The Russians must have spotted our GT when that debris made noise last night in space.
They know what we're doing, so they're lining up allies.
Amanda Neel's got the story.
It's only a matter of time before she releases it.
(sighs) I got to go home.
I have to tell Zoe.
I just hope it's not too late for her to forgive me.
It's never too late to be honest with the people you love.
You go first.
No.
- No, no, no, we-we do this together.
- (sighs) (sighs) (both chuckle) (both sigh) (Jillian moans softly) (both sigh) (exhales sharply) All right.
What about the others? Liam, what's the matter? (phone chimes) (inhales sharply) Zoe, I've kept too many secrets from you.
And I can't do it anymore.
I need to tell you what's happening so you can make decisions for yourself.
An asteroid was due to hit the Earth (continues speaking indistinctly) Grant.
- Harris, what the hell? - Real slow.
Sidearm, where I can see it.
Have you gone crazy? Put that Beretta down.
I need to know, where exactly is the body of President Mackenzie? Because she seems to have walked away from her casket.
From your reaction, it's clear you're not surprised.
You were lead on her detail.
So either you're derelict in your duty and knowing you, that's not likely or you know exactly what went down.
So, where's the president's body? I can't.
- (gun cocks) - Can't or won't? Harris, I need to know what you know.
Mackenzie died of something other than natural causes.
And you must have aided and abetted.
You got it all wrong, man.
I loved that woman.
Then help me expose whoever did this to her.
You want to see the body? Put that gun away and I'll take you there.
TANZ: Tess, sift through every outgoing signal recorded on this chip.
Find the one that matches our original EmDrive frequency and let me know where that signal - is being transmitted from.
- TESS: Searching now.
So, did you run the tests I asked you to for the 160? Yeah, yeah, yeah.
And? Darius, the gravity tractor is being controlled by the USS Pike, an aircraft carrier currently located 200 miles off the Florida c-coast.
(distorted): N-not error.
- Tanz.
Tess.
Treehouse.
- Tess? - MALE VOICE: Administration.
- TESS: Data.
(distorted): Protocol.
Ark.
Sal-Salvation.
Whoa, is Tess having a stroke? Tess, force quit all current processes.
- Tess, emergency reboot.
- (Tess stutters) Authorization code: Echo, bravo, one, one.
- Tess? - TESS (distorted): Error, admin What is this place? It's a nuclear fallout shelter.
Government built dozens of them around D.
C.
in the '60s.
All defunded decades ago and forgotten about, but otherwise completely intact.
(heart monitor beeping steadily) (weakly): Welcome, Mr.
Secretary.
I'm sorry, Mr.
Secretary.
I didn't know who I could trust.
Madame President, it's good to see you alive.
Barely.
The stroke.
Was induced.
By poison.
RASMUSSEN: Mercury.
Someone added it to her asthma inhaler.
The more she used it, the more she needed it.
That's what was causing my memory lapses.
She's still not out of the woods.
I'll say.
We're administering chelation therapy to remove the toxins from her blood stream.
We call ourselves "the loyalists.
" MACKENZIE: Thank you for saving my life.
We diverted her at the hospital.
The family declined autopsy on religious grounds, and then you did a closed-casket funeral to cover the tracks.
We have to tell the world she's alive and depose this illegitimate regime.
And if she was well enough to address the nation, Bennett and his people will do anything to stop her.
They're not just gonna walk away from this.
If we don't reinstall her in the next 24 hours, there may not be a world to get her back to.
You have to find out who did this.
Then prove it.
CLAIRE: Madame President, do you need to? No, no, no.
Trust me.
I will.
(electrical buzzing, sparking) I'm completely locked out.
Has this ever happened before? No.
Programs fail all the time.
Tess hasn't failed, she's being attacked.
There's always a way in, but this time I opened the gates.
This is RE/SYST.
It can't be anyone else.
When they helped us create that blackout in Russia, they must've slipped in a ghost key.
Which means they've been in our system since we launched the gravity tractor, monitoring our every move.
(sighs) Waiting for an opportunity to attack.
Oh, Darius, they must - they must know - Everything.
Once shut down, there's no telling the damage that will be done.
She might never recover.
But right now this is the only move we have.
I'm sorry, Daddy, I had to tell her.
And you.
And Zoe's sure this is what she wants? Yeah.
What about you, Gracie? What do you want? You never mentioned you were in love.
No, Harris and I we're over.
That's not who I'm talking about.
(footfalls approaching) Glad that I could see my granddaughter off.
- Her first trip to Africa.
Mm.
- (chuckles) Please let me take you to the airport.
No, it's too much.
Grandpa's taking me.
- I'll grab your stuff.
- Thanks.
(softly): Hey.
- Sure about this? - (door closes) Maybe it seems pointless to try and bring a little love and compassion into this world if it's all about to end It's not pointless.
It's the most important thing.
You go do some good, okay? So will I.
I love you, Mom.
(crying): To the moon.
(laughs, sniffles) To the moon.
And back.
(door closes) (sighs deeply) (typing) - ED: Hey.
- (gasps) Geez, don't scare me like that.
Sorry.
I'm heading out for the night and I'm just checking.
You or your NSA friend ever figure out how to decode Mackenzie's speech? Uh (alarm blaring) Crap.
All right, people, quickly move towards the stairs.
Come on.
- Uh, I'll-I'll be right there.
- Amanda.
We have a false alarm every other week.
Let me back this up just in case.
(alarm continues blaring) (gasps) Are you security guard? Yeah.
Amanda? What the hell is? (grunts)