STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE "... Nor the Battle to the Strong" (fka "Portrait of a Life") #040510-502 Story by Brice Parker Teleplay by Rene Echevarria Directed by Kim Friedman THE WRITING CREDITS MAY NOT BE FINAL AND SHOULD NOT BE USED FOR PUBLICITY OR ADVERTISING PURPOSES WITHOUT FIRST CHECKING WITH THE TELEVISION LEGAL DEPARTMENT. Copyright 1996 Paramount Pictures Corporation. All Rights Reserved. This script is not for publication or reproduction. No one is authorized to dispose of same. If lost or destroyed, please notify the Script Department. Return to Script Department FINAL DRAFT PARAMOUNT PICTURES CORPORATION August 6, 1996 STAR TREK: DS9 - "... Nor the Battle... - 08/06/96 - CAST STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE "... Nor the Battle to the Strong" CAST BASHIR BOLIAN DAX BURKE JAKE ENSIGN KIRA GUARD O'BRIEN KALANDRA ODO KIRBY QUARK NURSE SISKO WORF Non-Speaking Non-Speaking N.D. SUPERNUMERARIES STAR TREK: DS9 - "... Nor the Battle... " - 8/07/96 - SETS STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE "... Nor the Battle to the Strong" SETS INTERIORS EXTERIORS DEEP SPACE NINE SPACE OPS DEEP SPACE NINE SISKO'S QUARTERS AJILON PRIME RUNABOUT CAVERN DEFIANT INTENSIVE CARE MAIN WARD MORGUE AREA PLANET STAFF BUNK ROOM A DITCH TRIAGE AREA CAVE ENTRANCE TUNNEL PLANET'S SURFACE RUNABOUT DEFIANT QUARTERS DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the Battle... " 8/07/96 - PRONUNCIATION STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE "... Nor the Battle" PRONUNCIATION GUIDE AJILON AZH-zha-lawn CARTALIAN car-TALE-ee-un DISULFIDE die-SULL-fide FARRAGUT FAIR-uh-gut GANALDA guh-NULL-dah INOPROVALINE EYE-no-pro-vuh-leen KALANDRA kuh-LAN-drah PAJAL puh-ZHAL PRION PRY-on RAKTAJINO ROCK-ta-GEE-no TANANDA tuh-NAN-dah DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - TEASER 1. STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE "... Nor the Battle to the Strong" TEASER FADE IN: 1 EXT. SPACE - A RUNABOUT (STOCK OPTICAL) traveling at warp. 2 INT. RUNABOUT BASHIR is in the pilot's chair, absently guiding the craft; JAKE sits nearby. Since the last time we saw him, Jake has taken to wearing CLOTHES he considers more adult. This might involve more muted colors, and maybe a layered look that includes a vest. BASHIR -- I knew my paper would be controversial, but I had no idea it was going to turn the entire conference upside-down. Believe me, Jake, panel discussions are usually a lot more civilized than that. JAKE I don't know... they seemed polite enough to me. BASHIR That was just a veneer. (secretly pleased) My paper stepped on quite a few toes. It's heresy to even consider the possibility that prion replication could be inhibited by quantum resonance effects. Bashir glances over at Jake... BASHIR Aren't you going to take notes? The truth is, Jake is less than enthusiastic about Bashir's story and doesn't see much point in taking notes. JAKE Good idea... DEEP SPACE NINE: "Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - TEASER 1A. 2 CONTINUED: Jake pulls out a small PADD and STYLUS... BASHIR According to the so called "experts," it's all a matter of amino acid re-sequencing and disulfide shuffling -- quantum dynamics has nothing to do with it. Jake jots something down, and we HEAR his thoughts as he writes. JAKE (V.O.) I have absolutely no idea what he's talking about. BASHIR But how can that be? After all, peptide bonds can be reconfigured on a quantum level. During the following, Jake will stand and move away. A beat later, Bashir will move to his side, determined to keep his attention. DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... - REV. 08/21/96 - TEASER 2. CONTINUED: (2) (NOTE: it's not necessary to allot enough time for Jake to physically write everything indicated in the script. We can assume his notes are shorthand versions of his thoughts.) The following dialog OVERLAPS, though Bashir's words drop into the background so we can hear Jake clearly as he writes. JAKE (V. 0. ) BASHIR If I don't find a way Now get this: a few to get out of doing months ago I was this article, my first running a neural scan writing assignment is and noticed some going to be my last anomalous protein (grasping) readings. I thought Maybe I should just there must be some write to the editors mistake, so I ran an at the Journal and amino acid sequence to tell them they should be sure. But there it find someone else to was again, the prion do the profile of mutation rate had Doctor Bashir. spiked. I couldn't believe it. It meant the anomalous proteins had to have a strong quantum resonance. Jake's interrupted when Bashir asks -- BASHIR Do you follow so far? JAKE Sort of... BASHIR Good. Because they're the key -- the protein anomalies. JAKE (V. 0.) (scribbling) Who cares about anomalies! As he writes, Jake occasionally nods at Bashir as if he's listening intently: DEEP SPACE NINE: "Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - TEASER 2A. 2 CONTINUED: (3) JAKE (V.O.) BASHIR People want stories (continuing) about things they can They indicate a relate to: life and correlative increase death, good and evil. in prion replication. (grasping again) And that can only mean An outbreak of one of two things -- Cartalian fever would either the peptide be perfect - the bonds are unstable, brave doctor battles or some other factor the deadly virus. is causing the mutations. DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - TEASER 3. 2 CONTINUED: (4) JAKE (V.O.)(Cont'd) BASHIR (Cont'd) (realizing what Rather than start the he's saying) laborious process of Listen to me, I'm running quantum scans actually hoping for on each peptide bond a plague... I decided to -- An urgent BEEP from the com-system interrupts both men. Bashir reaches and works the controls. BASHIR (off console) It's a distress call from the Federation colony on Ajilon Prime. (reading on) They're under attack -- the Klingons have landed troops. Jake and Bashir share a grim look -- JAKE So much for the cease-fire. BASHIR (off console) The main hospital's been damaged... they're short on doctors, running low on supplies... Bashir lets out a frustrated breath... JAKE What are we waiting for? Let's go. BASHIR (hesitating) It's risky. The hospital's only fifty kilometers from the front lines. JAKE You put yourself into dangerous situations all the time. BASHIR Maybe, but that's not the same as putting you into one. DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - TEASER 4. 2 CONTINUED: (5) JAKE Don't worry about me. BASHIR (wry) You're too young to die. JAKE I'm eighteen. Jake realizes how this must've sounded. JAKE You know what I mean. (pressing on) I've been on the station when it was under attack plenty of times. I can handle myself. I'm a Sisko. Jake senses Bashir wants to say yes, keeps at him. JAKE Lives are at stake. Those people need you. Bashir considers for a beat, then reaches and works the controls. BASHIR I hope I don't regret this... Jake suppresses a smiles as he realizes he's going to get his story after all. BASHIR I can only imagine what your father's going to say... JAKE He'll understand. BASHIR I'll get you out of there as soon as reinforcements arrive. DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - TEASER 5. 2 CONTINUED: (6) A beat, then Bashir smiles slyly. BASHIR I wouldn't want you to miss the deadline on your story. (kidding) Did they want a picture of me? Jake smiles... BASHIR Anyway, about those quantum scans I was telling you about -- Jake clears the PADD's screen. JAKE (V.O.) BASHIR (as he writes) (continuing in "Surgery Under Fire." background) Instead of scanning He smiles, looks down at the each peptide bond, PADD. it occurred to me that I could scan JAKE (V.O.) for irregularities in Now we're talking... the... Off this moment we... 3 thru OMITTED 4 FADE OUT. END OF TEASER DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT ONE 6. ACT ONE FADE IN: (NOTE: Episode credits fall over opening scenes) 5 EXT. SPACE - DEEP SPACE NINE (STOCK/OPTICAL) Establishing. 6 INT. OPS We open on an improbable sight: DAX, WORF, O'BRIEN and ODO are standing in a circle around KIRA, who's just taken a glass MUG off a TRAY proffered by QUARK. ODO (re: the drink) What is it? QUARK (pleased with himself) The chief asked me to come up with a decaffeinated raktajino for Kira. I'm thinking of marketing it. All watch as Kira takes a sip from the mug... WORF Well... ? KIRA (grimacing) Ugh... it's awful. O'Brien seems to take this personally. O'BRIEN Give it a chance. Kira shakes her head -- no way. O'BRIEN Let me taste. He grabs the mug from her, takes a big swig. He puts up a valiant struggle to keep from spitting up. Finally... O'BRIEN (gagging) Quark. DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT ONE 6 CONTINUED: QUARK I did the best I could. The removal of caffeine from beverages has plagued bartenders and restauranteurs for centuries; you can't expect me to solve it overnight. O'Brien slams the mug onto Quark's tray. O'BRIEN (to Quark) I'm not paying for this. ODO So much for "Quark"-tajino... O'BRIEN I wanted to get her off caffeine, not poison her. KIRA You make me sound like some sort of addict. DAX She only has maybe two raktajinos a day. O'BRIEN I just don't want my son to be born with a caffeine habit, that's all. DAX You're being ridiculous. (to Kira) Why does pregnancy always make men hysterical? O'BRIEN (to Dax) Excuse me, this isn't the first baby I've had. KIRA Excuse me, Keiko carried Molly. DAX It's not up to you to tell Kira what she can and can't do. WORF She is carrying his child, he should have some say. The battle lines are forming across the proverbial gender divide... DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT ONE 8. 6 CONTINUED: (2) QUARK (agreeing) As the lessee, he does have certain rights. (off Kira's blank look) Back home, pregnancy is considered a rental. KIRA/DAX (outraged) Rental? Before it can get more heated, SISKO ENTERS from his office -- the conversation is cut short when everyone sees the look of concern on his face. ODO Something wrong, Captain? SISKO I just talked to Doctor Bashir. He's on his way to Ajilon Prime to answer a request for medical assistance. KIRA (realizing) Jake's with him... Everyone reacts, suddenly understanding Sisko's concern. SISKO (nods) According to the latest reports, Klingon ground troops have already captured two settlements in the northern hemisphere. WORF Half the colonists are still trapped on the planet -- there are no ships in the area to evacuate them. O'BRIEN (frustrated) We're three days away, at best. SISKO The Farragut will be there the day after tomorrow. Bashir said he and Jake would leave as soon as relief teams are in place. DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT ONE 9. 6 CONTINUED: (3) Dax tries to reassure Sisko that it's going to be all right. DAX In that case they'll be home by Thursday. (smiling) Doesn't leave you much time to snoop through Jake's things. Sisko musters a smile, tries to push the worry from his mind. Off this moment... 7 EXT. SPACE - AJILON PRIME (STOCK/OPTICAL) The Runabout entering orbit of the planet. 7A INT. RUNABOUT Bashir is piloting the craft, Jake is ENTERING from the back with CARRYING CASES containing medical equipment. JAKE Ready to beam down? BASHIR We can't leave the runabout in orbit, not with the Klingons around. Besides, the colonists moved what was left of their medical equipment underground when the hospital was destroyed. The rock-face contains magnesite... there's no way to transport through it. JAKE (studying the monitor) Guess we'll have to find a place to set down. BASHIR (off console) Looks like there's a clearing about a kilometer from the main settlement. A beat as Bashir works the controls... he's sensed that Jake is almost eager about what's to come, decides to warn him. BASHIR Jake... things could get a little rough down there. They've got a lot of wounded. DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT ONE 9A. 7A CONTINUED: JAKE I'll be all right. Bashir studies Jake's face, decides to believe him... 8 INT. CAVERN - TRIAGE AREA This is the entrance to the makeshift hospital that's been set up underground. It's a sort of natural hallway with SUPPORT STRUCTURES and power CONDUITS lining the rockface. Harried looking medical personnel move among the wounded, performing triage. It's chaos -- bloodied bodies are being rushed in on stretchers, doctors are barking orders to nurses and orderlies, wounded people are crying out for help... This is a Federation colony comprised mostly of humans, with a sprinkling of Federation aliens. The wounded are a mix of Starfleet officers and civilian colonists, including a few children. The medical team is non-Starfleet -- they wear scrubs over their civilian clothes. Four of them have speaking parts: KIRBY, an orderly, is a human male not much older than Jake. KALANDRA, the head doctor, is a human woman of about forty. The BOLIAN, an orderly, is male, about thirty. The NURSE is human, a female in her late twenties. 8A CLOSE - A STRETCHER as its brought in through the main entrance by the Bolian and his partner. BOLIAN We've got more wounded coming in... another hopper just landed. 8B PAN UP TO JAKE as he reacts to the wounded patient -- NURSE (in background) I need that plasma! DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT ONE 10. 8C MOVE TO REVEAL Bashir standing next to Jake, the triage area in the background. Kalandra sees him from across the room - she's standing next to one of the palettes, examining a patient. KALANDRA Are you Bashir? Bashir nods, crosses toward her -- Jake follows, wanting to stay close to him. BASHIR We got your distress call. KALANDRA Resource said you were on your way. Kirby pushes past Jake and Bashir with a medical device in his hand -- KIRBY (on the move) Watch it -- And moves to join the Nurse at a nearby palette, hands her the device. KIRBY This is the last IP -- NURSE (using the device) His pulse is thready, he must be bleeding somewhere. The patient starts to CONVULSE. KIRBY We're losing him! NURSE (to Kalandra) Doctor -- 8D ON KALANDRA AND BASHIR as she moves to join the Nurse. KALANDRA (to Bashir) Jump right in, standard triage. DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT ONE 10A. 8D CONTINUED: Kalandra pushes past Jake to get to the convulsing patient KALANDRA (to Nurse) Give him fifteen mils inoprovaline. 8E ON BASHIR examining a wounded patient on the palette in front of him. JAKE (to Bashir) What should I do? BASHIR (focused on his work) Just try to stay out of the way. Jake moves off -- we go with him, stretchers flying past -- in the background, Kalandra calls to some orderlies across the room. KALANDRA Get this man into surgery! 9 ON JAKE taking in his surroundings... reacting to the chaos around him... He sees a child in a corner, being comforted by her mother. The Bolian Orderly and his partner jostle past him, carrying a badly wounded person on a stretcher between them. BOLIAN (to partner) The artery's severed -- 10 JAKE'S POV as he looks down at the injured victim... BOLIAN (O.S.) His BP's bottomed out. DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT ONE 11. 11 ON JAKE as he nearly gags, presses the back of his hand to his mouth... In the background, the Nurse is giving instructions to two orderlies about the patient they're about to cart off. NURSE Oh-Two, three liters, run full saline. Jake steps back and his foot slips on something. He looks down to see he's standing in -- 12 A PUDDLE OF BLOOD He sees that it's coming from a young man slumped against the wall, unconscious. Jake kneels, sees that the wounded man looks ashen, his breathing is shallow, strained. JAKE Somebody! This man needs help! Kalandra turns at the sound of his voice, sees who Jake is referring to. A panicked-looking Starfleet ENSIGN limps into the triage area, his foot a bloodied mess... ENSIGN Help me! Somebody help me! Bashir rushes to his side. ENSIGN I've been hit... BASHIR Let me have a look. DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT ONE 11A. 12 CONTINUED: ENSIGN Took a disruptor blast, real close -- The Bolian rushes past -- BOLIAN (on the move) Where's that blood plasma! The Bolian takes us to -- 12A KALANDRA kneeling and talking to Jake about the wounded, bleeding man. KALANDRA There's nothing we can do. He's too far gone. The look on her face says it all -- she doesn't like letting a man die, but she has no choice... there are too many other wounded to tend to. Kalandra moves away. Jake swallows, tries to make sense of this seemingly cold decision. He looks at the dying man's face for a long beat... then moves OFF... 12B BASHIR has helped the Ensign to a seat, is removing his boot. BASHIR It doesn't look that bad -- DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT ONE 12. 12B CONTINUED: Jake enters in the background, starts to watch... ENSIGN (through the pain) I was stepping over a Klingon, thought he was dead. Caught me right in the foot. As Bashir examines his foot, the Ensign turns to Jake, fear in his eyes. ENSIGN You people better get out of here while you still can... the Klingons -- there's no stopping them... BASHIR (baffled) This is a phaser burn. ENSIGN What are you talking about? The Ensign's strident tone gives him away -- he shot himself. But as a doctor, it's not Bashir's place to judge. BASHIR (giving a hypo injection) ust sit tight and we'll get to you as soon as we can. Bashir moves off, and the young Ensign turns to Jake, his eyes pleading -- ENSIGN I took, my phaser... and I... It's not a phaser burn... It was a Klingon... Jake doesn't know what to say or do... The young man breaks down, chokes back a sob... ENSIGN (continuing) You weren't there... you don't know what it was like... DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT ONE 12B CONTINUED: (2) ENSIGN The Klingons had us pinned down... we were done for, we all knew it. Hendriks and Pajal got scared and ran -- they ran. Then Sully got hit in the leg and the medics pulled him off the line -- all I could think was I wish I was him... So I... He looks down at his mangled foot, loses it... ENSIGN I took my phaser... and I... Oh, God... what'd I do to myself... what'd I do... ? Jake doesn't know what to feel about the Ensign's anguished admission, he's torn between sympathy and revulsion... The Bolian and his partner come in with a patient on a stretcher, approach the wall Jake's squatting near... BOLIAN Better find somewhere else to sit... JAKE (moving off) No problem... As they start to unload their patient, Jake moves toward the entrance, tucks himself away in a quiet area. 13 ON JAKE as he pulls his PADD and stylus out. We can see that his hand shakes a little as he tries to write, everything he's seen has gotten to him. His thoughts come out jumbled, confused. JAKE (V.O.) (as he writes) Triage... the sorting of the wounded... forces decisions that -- He stops, tries to get control of himself. JAKE (V.O.) (putting pen to paper again) Decisions that test what it means to be a doctor. DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT ONE 14. 13 CONTINUED: Suddenly Kirby's voice from off-screen interrupts Jake... KIRBY (O.S.) Hey, you! Jake turns to see Kirby trying to get a wounded man onto a stretcher. KIRBY Give me a hand. (off Jake's hesitation) Come on! An uncertain Jake moves to help... as he bends down to pick up the stretcher, the wounded man grabs his collar with a bloodied hand, looks at Jake with imploring eyes... a moment, then he collapses back in pain... off Jake's face as he looks down at his now BLOODIED shirt... FADE OUT. END OF ACT ONE DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT TWO 15. ACT TWO FADE IN: 14 INT. CAVERN - MAIN WARD There are about TWENTY COTS in the room, many of them already occupied with convalescing patients. Some of the cots have MEDICAL EQUIPMENT standing near them, some have IV RACKS holding thermos-like bottles. Nurses and Orderlies move around the room, administering HYPOS, adjusting BANDAGES, checking LIFE- SUPPORT EQUIPMENT, etc. Three tunnels lead into and out of the main ward -- an ENTRANCE from triage, a back EXIT, and a tunnel leading to another, unseen ward. This last tunnel has a cot or two inside it, and we see Orderlies with stretchers entering and exiting through it. As in the triage area, support beams and power conduits can be seen in the rockface. Jake and Kirby ENTER with their patient on a stretcher between them -- KIRBY This way -- Kirby starts to lead Jake between the cots toward an empty bed. Jake has to struggle to keep up as they wind through the tight spaces between cots. He knocks into an IV RACK standing near a patient's bed, almost tips it over. KIRBY Watch it! Jake steadies the rack with his foot, keeps it from falling. KIRBY (meaning it) Nice move... They reach an empty bed near the rock wall, and as they prepare to move the unconscious patient, Kirby speaks to him -- KIRBY (wry) Here you are, sir, a nice private room with a view. (to Jake) On three... one, two, three -- DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 8/21/96 - ACT TWO 15A. 14 CONTINUED: They lift the patient onto the cot, set him down. Kirby looks up at Jake, smiles. KIRBY You can count -- you're hired. Let's get you dressed. As Jake follows him away... DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT TWO 16. 15 INT. CAVERN - TRIAGE AREA CLOSE ON a stretcher as it flies past, taking us to -- 15A THE NURSE crouched near an unconscious patient. She sees Kirby and Jake, now in scrubs, ENTER in b.g. NURSE Over here -- They head toward the patient she indicated. The Nurse moves off, passing Bashir and Kalandra who're at another patient's side. BASHIR I want to try an aortal graft. KALANDRA All right, there's an extra surgical table in the back. Another Nurse moves past, taking us to -- 15B JAKE AND KIRBY as they prepare to get the patient on their stretcher... Jake sees his pale skin and realizes -- JAKE (recoiling) He's dead... KIRBY (nods grimly) Come on... let's get him out of here... Jake swallows back his reaction, crouches to help Kirby move the patient... DISSOLVE TO: A SERIES OF SILENT SCENES 16 INT. CAVERN - MORGUE AREA as Jake and Kirby ENTER with the dead man... Jake reacts to something off-screen... DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT TWO 16A. 17 REVEAL At least a DOZEN DEAD BODIES laid out on low tables in body bags. An ORDERLY attaches an ID bracelet to a dead person's ankle, then seals the bag. Off Jake's face... DISSOLVE TO: DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT TWO 17. 18 INT. CAVERN - MAIN WARD as Jake and Kirby rush between the beds with an empty stretcher, heading back toward triage. Jake has gotten a little better at this, doesn't have to work so hard to keep up. By now, his SCRUBS have gotten BLOODIED from all the patients he's handled. DISSOLVE TO: 19 INT. CAVERN - INTENSIVE CARE A small alcove with three or four beds and lots of medical equipment. Jake and Kirby move a patient off their stretcher and onto a bed. 19A INT. CAVERN - A TUNNEL as Jake and Kirby hurry down it, a patient on the stretcher between them. CUT TO: 20 INT. CAVERN - TRIAGE AREA as Jake and Kirby RUSH IN with an empty stretcher, ready to pick up another patient... They stop in their tracks when they realize there are no more patients... they've all been taken where they belong. Bashir, the Bolian and the Nurse are sitting on the ground, their backs against the wall, exhausted. This is a team that's been working together under tough conditions for a long time, and they've developed a kind of gallows humor. NURSE Party's over... KIRBY (feigning disappointment) So soon? DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT TWO 18. 20 CONTINUED: BOLIAN (deadpan) And we were just starting to have fun... BASHIR (wry) Since you two aren't busy, would you mind carrying me to the nearest replicator so I can get something to eat? Off Jake's relief as he realizes he can finally get some rest... 20A EXT. SPACE - DEEP SPACE NINE (OPTICAL) Re-establishing. 20B INT. CAPTAIN'S OFFICE Odo limps in as a curious Sisko watches from behind his desk. ODO You wanted to see me, Captain? SISKO I heard you took a little trip to the Infirmary. ODO I'll be fine. He settles into a seat across from Sisko. ODO The only permanent damage was to my pride. SISKO What happened? Odo sighs, held rather not go into the details, but he knows that he has to answer. ODO Quark asked me to keep an eye on two Yridians he thought were cheating at dabo. Turned out he was right. (MORE) DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT TWO 18A. 20B CONTINUED: ODO (Cont'd) I could see from the second level that one of them was using a miniature gravimetric scanner to predict where the ball would land on the wheel, then signaling the information to his partner. SISKO Ingenious. Go on. ODO I started down the stairs to make the arrest and one of them saw me. When they bolted, I... pursued. But in the rush I got a little carried away and I... SISKO You jumped off the stairs. ODO I was planning to change form in mid-air and become a Tarkalean condor. SISKO That would've been impressive. ODO I thought so. Sisko studies Odo for a beat. SISKO It's an understandable mistake. You were a changeling a lot longer than you've been a solid. ODO Solid... I wonder why my people use that term -- humanoid bodies are so fragile. This simple observation strikes a chord with Sisko. SISKO Yes, they are. And it's a dangerous universe out there. ODO You're worried about Jake. Sisko doesn't deny it. ODO I'm sure Doctor Bashir is looking out for him. DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT TWO 18B. 20B CONTINUED: (2) Sisko nods, looks out the window... SISKO Seems just yesterday he was five years old... clinging to me because held scraped his knee and I was the only one in the world who could make it better. Sisko smiles at the memory... SISKO I remember getting up sometimes in the middle of the night and slipping into his room just to make sure he was all right... I'd sit there and watch him sleep... and think to myself that no matter what, I'd never let anything bad happen to this child. Sisko shakes his head in wonder... SISKO Now he's a sector away, in the middle of a war zone, and there's nothing I can do to protect him. Odo does his best to be helpful... ODO Try not to worry, Captain. It's not going to do you or Jake any good. SISKO Can't help it, comes with the territory. ODO But Jake is eighteen years old. (surely not) Does your father still worry about you? SISKO All the time. Odo takes this in... ODO I never realized how stressful it is to be a parent. I have to say, I don't think it's for me. DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT TWO 18C. 20B CONTINUED: (3) SISKO That's your choice. (smiles) But you don't know what you're missing. A CHIME at the door. SISKO Yes. The door OPENS and Dax steps in, looking concerned. DAX We just got word -- the Klingons destroyed the Farragut near the Lembatta cluster. ODO What about Ajilon Prime, without reinforcements -- Sisko interrupts, already on the move -- SISKO Dax, you're with me. We'll leave as soon as the Defiant's ready. Off Odo's face as they leave... 21 INT. CAVERN - STAFF BUNK ROOM These are all-purpose accommodations for the medical personnel. There are TABLES and CHAIRS in the center of the room, BUNK BEDS against the walls, and a free- standing REPLICATOR in a corner. Kirby, the Bolian and the Nurse are sitting at one of the tables, SUPERNUMERARIES sit at a second table and Jake, still in his blood-splattered scrubs, is seated at a third, resting his head in his hands. Bashir approaches with two trays of food, sets one down in front of Jake. BASHIR Here you go... JAKE Thanks. BASHIR So how're you holding up? DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT TWO 18D. 21 CONTINUED: JAKE Okay. BASHIR You handled yourself well today. I'm impressed. Embarrassed and not at all sure Bashir's right, Jake picks up his fork, changes the subject. JAKE I'm starved. DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT TWO 19. 21 CONTINUED: (2) BASHIR (picking up knife and fork) Think I'll start with a lateral incision across the thigh joint... Jake looks down at the food in front of him, drops his fork, his face blanching. Bashir realizes Jake's about to get sick, takes him by the arm, and rushes him toward the door... we DROP OFF -- 22 ON KIRBY AND THE OTHERS as they listen to the off-screen SOUND of Jake puking his guts out. Being medical professionals, they're not overly disgusted and continue eating... NURSE His first day? KIRBY Yeah. BOLIAN Pass the salt. 23 INT. CAVERN - TUNNELS - LATER as Bashir and Jake ENTER from the tunnel that leads to the surface. Jake, still in his scrubs, seems better now, his stomach is fine. BASHIR How do you feel? JAKE Fresh air did me good... Jake is thoughtful as they start down the empty tunnel... JAKE You remember that ensign, the one who shot himself? BASHIR (nods) How could I forget something like that? JAKE What's going to happen to him? BASHIR He'll probably be court martialed. DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT TWO 20. 23 CONTINUED: Jake considers for a beat... JAKE He said that some of the people in his squad got scared and ran. BASHIR It happens. JAKE But they're Starfleet -- they've passed psych-tests, spent hundreds of hours in battle simulations. BASHIR Simulations can't prepare you for the real thing. Nothing can. Jake is thoughtful for a beat... JAKE Some people say you don't know what you're really made of until you've been in battle... BASHIR (throwing an arm around Jake's shoulder) Believe me, Jake, there are plenty of situations in life that test a person's character -- thankfully, most of them don't involve death and destruction... As they continue around a bend in the tunnel and out of frame... 24 INT. CAVERN - STAFF BUNK ROOM as Jake and Bashir ENTER, Kirby approaches them. The Bolian and the Nurse have finished eating by now and gone elsewhere. KIRBY Doctor Kalandra's looking for you. Something about that aortal graft you did. BASHIR Thanks. (to Jake) See you later. DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT TWO 20A. 24A INT. RECOVERY WARD A small chamber similar to Intensive Care, with two or three beds and some medical equipment in it. When Bashir ENTERS, Kalandra is scanning the patient from scene 15A, the one he wanted to do an aortal graft on. BASHIR How is he? (or she) Kalandra looks up from the unconscious patient. KALANDRA The graft's holding -- blood throughput is almost a hundred percent. (meaning it) Nice job. BASHIR Thanks. (returning the compliment) You've got a good team here. My O.R. Nurse was sharp as they come. KALANDRA (smiling) We do the best we can, considering the circumstances. She indicates the rockface around them to emphasize her point. But she didn't call Bashir just to pay him a compliment, she wants to ask him something. KALANDRA So are things going any better for us? Last I heard Starfleet had pulled out of the Arcanis sector. BASHIR The fleet's regrouping to launch a counterattack. KALANDRA Do you have any idea what ships are involved? We don't get much news down here, the Klingons have been jamming subspace traffic. BASHIR I think the Rutledge and the Tecumseh are heading things up. DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT TWO 20B. KALANDRA The Tecumseh... (off Bashir's look) My husband's the science officer. Bashir knows the concern she must be feeling. BASHIR (reassuring) Captain Raymond's one of the best there is... he saw the Tecumseh through the Cardassian wars -- I don't think he's planning to lose her now. Kalandra tries to take comfort in this, manages a hopeful smile... KALANDRA No, I don't suppose he is. The Nurse sticks her head into the room. NURSE Doctor, we've prepped that spinal trauma, they're ready for you in surgery. KALANDRA I'll be right there. The Nurse moves off. BASHIR (to Kalandra) They're keeping you busy. KALANDRA It helps keep my mind off things. A look of understanding between them, then she turns and EXITS. Off Bashir's face... 24B INT. CAVERN - STAFF BUNK ROOM where Kirby is sitting with Jake as he eats. KIRBY Good to see you've got your appetite back. DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT TWO 21. 24B CONTINUED: JAKE I've got a pretty strong stomach... (apologetic) ... most of the time. KIRBY (shrugging it off) Don't worry about it. Same thing happened to me my first day. Kirby remembers something -- KIRBY Know what I heard? (off Jake's look) That ship Starfleet sent, the Farragut? The Klingons intercepted it. JAKE Starfleet'll send another one, won't they? KIRBY It won't get here for days. In the meantime we're looking at a ground war, which is just what the Klingons want. According to a lieutenant I talked to, they've got so many transport scramblers on-line we can't beam troops anywhere. JAKE What about using hoppers? KIRBY He said the Klingons have been shooting them out of the sky left and right. Unless something changes, he figures the Klingons'll capture the settlement the day after tomorrow. Kirby doesn't come off overtly frightened by this. In fact, by telling Jake what he knows, he's venting some of his own anxiety and comes off a bit breathless, almost excited by it all. KIRBY Did you see all the bat'leth wounds today? (MORE) DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT TWO 21A. 24B CONTINUED: (2) KIRBY (Cont'd) (off Jake's nod When Klingons get mad, they forget about their disruptors, go hand-to- hand. (a beat) If you ask me, they're looking to get even for what happened on Ganalda Four. JAKE What happened? KIRBY They had to retreat -- Klingons hate that. DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT TWO 22. 24B CONTINUED: (3) Jake swallows back his mounting anxiety, tries to act casual.' JAKE At least we don't have to worry about them in here. KIRBY (working the Replicator) Don't be so sure. Medical personnel are fair game as far as Klingons are concerned. They'll even kill wounded, right in their beds -- they think they're giving them an honorable death, or something. Now that Kirby's managed to transfer all his anxiety to Jake, he's ready to chat... he works the replicator panel... pulls a MUG from the slot. KIRBY So... how'd you wind up here? Jake is so troubled by all he's heard he finds it hard to focus on an answer... JAKE I, uh... I'm writing an article about Doctor Bashir. KIRBY You're a journalist? Their continuing conversation drops into the background and we hear Jake's V.O. -- JAKE (V.O.) JAKE I wonder if Kirby Not exactly. knew that the whole time we were talking, KIRBY all I could think What does that mean? about was how close the Klingons were. JAKE I write stories mostly, you know, fiction. As Jake's V.O. continues we... DISSOLVE TO: DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT TWO 25 INT. CAVERN - STAFF BUNK ROOM - LATER The LIGHTS are dim, everyone is asleep except Jake, who's reclined on one of the bunks, writing. (NOTE: He's no longer in scrubs. The blood that was on his civilian shirt has been cleaned off.) The camera PUSHES slowly toward him as he writes... JAKE (V.O.) (continuing) -- He didn't seem that worried, no one else seems to be losing sleep over it, so why's it the only thing I can think about? I've been on the station when it was under attack plenty of times... but somehow the danger never seemed as real as it does here. We can hear in Jake's voice that he's genuinely rattled by this and doesn't understand why. JAKE (V.O.) Maybe it's because I spent all day seeing firsthand what the Klingons are capable of... or maybe it's because for the first time in my life, my father's not here to protect me. Suddenly we hear the SOUND of a distant but massive EXPLOSION -- Jake is startled and some of the others jolt awake. NURSE What was that? The power fails and the LIGHTS go out. A beat later, AMBER EMERGENCY LIGHTS flicker on, accompanied by a warning ALARM. BOLIAN (grim) The Klingons -- they must've taken out the reactor... Everyone springs out of bed and starts for the door... Jake follows, his dread about what this all portends mounting... 26 INT. CAVERN - MAIN WARD as Jake ENTERS behind the others. Bashir is already there with some of the other medical personnel, moving between patients. DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT TWO 23A. 26 CONTINUED: Emergency LIGHTS provide the only illumination, all life-support equipment is off-line, silent. Bashir is with a patient hooked to a now useless life- support machine -- he gasps, goes into a seizure... BASHIR He's fibrillating! DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... "- REV. 08/21/96 - ACT TWO 24. 26 CONTINUED: (2) Bashir grabs a HYPO, gives an injection, then uses a cardio-stimulator to begin CPR. In the background, the Bolian shouts from another patient's bed -- BOLIAN Kidney failure, she's going into renal shock -- BASHIR If we don't get power back soon we'll lose half the ward. Kalandra ENTERS, looking grim... KALANDRA I just talked to Resource. It's going to be at least three hours before we have power again. Everyone reacts to this impossible news JAKE There must be some portable generators we could use. KALANDRA They're using them to keep the shields up around the settlement. A terrible moment as they realize there's nothing they can do... BASHIR (as it hits him) The runabout... there's a portable generator on the runabout. KALANDRA (leaping at this) Where is it? BASHIR About a kilometer south of here. (to Jake) I'll need help carrying it. Jake is so swept up in the moment he doesn't hesitate to nod that he'll do it... KALANDRA You won't be able to beam through the shields, you'll have to take the east tunnel. DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT TWO 25. 26 CONTINUED: (3) KIRBY It lets out beyond the perimeter. I'll show you. As Jake and Bashir follow Kirby toward the back exit... 27 EXT. PLANET - CAVE ENTRANCE - DAY (LOCATION) As Jake and Bashir emerge and start off... 27A EXT. PLANETIS SURFACE - DAY (LOCATION) As Jake and Bashir, trotting at a brisk pace, come onto the edge of an open expanse of land, a ridge cresting in the distance. BASHIR We set down just beyond that bridge. JAKE (agreeing) Looks familiar... They continue on until suddenly a series of EXPLOSIONS rip into the ground all around them. Bashir immediately dives to the floor, pulling Jake with him... BASHIR Get down! 28 ON JAKE AND BASHIR hunkered down on the ground as debris from the continuing EXPLOSIONS rains down on them. detonating ahead of them, behind them, and to both sides. BASHIR Stay close... keep your head low. Jake is so terrified he can barely nod... a beat, then Bashir, his head low, starts for a large rock up ahead. Jake follows close behind... DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT TWO 25A. 29 NEW ANGLE - THE ROCK as Jake moves in next to Bashir, panting from fear and exertion... BASHIR (re: explosions) No matter what happens, one of us has got to get that generator. Bashir sets off, head low, for the next rock, maybe twenty yards away. DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the.. " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT TWO 26. 29 CONTINUED: Jake starts after him, but his foot catches the edge of the crater as he sets off and he trips to the ground. By the time he stands, Bashir has already reached the next rock. Bashir looks back, waves him on. BASHIR Come on! As Jake starts toward him an EXPLOSION rips into the ground between them... when the swirl of smoke and debris clears a bit, he can see Bashir urgently him forward. 30 NEW ANGLE - ON BASHIR as an EXPLOSION detonates near Jake, obscuring Bashir's view of him... BASHIR Jake! 31 NEW ANGLE - ON JAKE Another EXPLOSION, dangerously close, makes him stagger back... the area ahead of him is being hit by a volley of EXPLOSIONS, forcing him back... the area behind him is relatively unscathed. He hesitates, then runs back the way he came... 32 ON JAKE his pace intensifying with each step... he's lost it, can think of nothing but getting away from the deafening explosions and the danger they represent... off this moment we... FADE OUT. END OF ACT TWO DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT THREE 27. ACT THREE FADE IN: 33 EXT. PLANET'S SURFACE - DAY (LOCATION) as Jake continues his panicked escape... he pushes through brambles and low-hanging branches, panicked and out of breath, totally oblivious to his surroundings. 34 CLOSE - JAKE'S FOOT as it catches on a rock... 35 ON JAKE as he crashes to the ground... it takes a moment for him to realize that he's landed atop the body of -- 36 A DEAD KLINGON Horrified, Jake pushes himself away, staggers to his feet, gets his bearings... 37 NEW ANGLE as Jake sees TWO DEAD STARFLEET OFFICERS sprawled on the ground nearby, their limbs contorted at unnatural angles, as if their bodies had been tossed there... 38 ON JAKE as he backs away, trying to get away from the bodies... he scales a crest in the ground, only to find that he's come upon an even more horrific scene... 39 NEW ANGLE The landscape is scattered with dead -- they're mostly Starfleet, with a smattering of Klingons. Jake's effort to escape has only brought him to this scene of carnage, and it seems to him there's no way out of the nightmare... He can only do the one thing his brain keeps telling him -- keep moving... DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT THREE 28. 40 ON JAKE as his pace intensifies... he has to get out of here, it's all he can think about. He scrambles up a hill in front of him, panting and out of breath, he reaches the top, only to realize too late that the drop on the other side is steeper than he thinks... his momentum carries him forward, and he goes tumbling down the hill into -- 41 EXT. A DITCH as Jake skids down it and suddenly collides with another body that we barely see... there's a glint of steel, then a RIFLE BUTT swings into view and connects with Jake's head... the impact of the blow sends Jake sprawling into the dirt -- he lies there, stunned and out of breath... 42 NEW ANGLE For the first time we see Jake's assailant, a badly wounded Starfleet Lieutenant, his uniform soaked with blood -- he's BURKE, a seasoned combat veteran of about forty. He's lying on his side, the phaser rifle nearby, a terrible wound in his abdomen completely debilitating him -- hitting Jake with the rifle has left him lying helpless, unable to move... For a moment, all either of them can do is lie there in the dirt and stare at the other man. We see them realize that the other is not the enemy, and they both lie there, fighting for breath. The shelling in the distance has stopped. BURKE (through the pain) Medkit... Jake doesn't respond, still too disoriented, still stunned by the blow to his head... BURKE Over there... He does his best to point toward a MEDKIT lying on the ground a few yards away. When Jake doesn't react, he orders him through clenched teeth -- BURKE Now. DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT THREE 29. 42 CONTINUED: Something in his voice makes Jake respond, he forces himself up to his knees, shakes his head to clear it, then moves to where the medkit lies on the ground... BURKE Hypo... Jake rummages for it, crawls to Burke with it. BURKE Sit me up. Jake takes him by the shoulder, starts to lift him, but a sharp gasp of pain escapes Burke's lips, making Jake stop. He lets go, his hands now bloodied. BURKE Do it. I'm not going to die with my face in the dirt. Jake takes hold, and ignoring Burke's stifled groans of pain, helps get him into a sitting position, his back against the ditch wall. Burke struggles to catch breath, contain the pain. BURKE (getting a grip on himself) Okay... He takes the hypo from Jake, twists a dial, and injects himself. A moment, then the painkiller begins to take effect. His features soften a bit, but it's not enough, he's still in a great deal of pain. BURKE How's your head? JAKE (touching his temple) Hurts. BURKE You're lucky I didn't kill you - thought you were a Klingon. Have you seen any? JAKE What? BURKE (impatient) Klingons -- are there any patrols around? DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT THREE 30. 42 CONTINUED: (2) Jake shakes his head. BURKE What about Starfleet? JAKE No one. BURKE Just you and me then. (beat) What the hell are you doing out here? Why'd you leave the settlement? Jake hesitates, realizing he can't tell the truth... JAKE I was outside when the shelling started. I guess I got lost trying to find cover. BURKE Lucky me. I could use the company. He reaches to his side, pulls out a small WATERPACK, offers it to Jake. BURKE Here... water. JAKE (wanting it) What about you? BURKE Go ahead. Jake takes the bag, squeezes it into his mouth, gulping it eagerly. JAKE Thanks. BURKE (wry) It probably would've leaked out of me anyway... Jake's eyes falls to the terrible wound in Burke's side, and he can't hide his reaction. Burke sees the truth in his eye, and he knows -- he's not going to make it. He grabs Jake by the arm, pulls him close -- DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT THREE 31. 42 CONTINUED: (3) BURKE Don't let me fall over. I want to go out looking up at the sky, not the ground, all right? JAKE Don't worry. With that assurance, he pushes Jake away. He lets his head fall back, considers for a beat. Suddenly -- BURKE (with concern) You didn't see a crashed hopper around here, did you? JAKE No. BURKE (smiles) They made it. JAKE Who? BURKE My platoon. The Klingons had us pinned down. We couldn't beam out because they had a transport scrambler running... so we called for a hopper. As soon as it set down, the Klingons came at us. Our C.O. ordered me and Brice to lay down cover so the squad could get up the ramp. (shaking his head as he remembers) By the time Brice got in, the Klingons were practically on top of us. The hopper was taking such a pounding, I didn't think it would make it off the ground. JAKE (putting it together) You stayed behind on purpose, so they could get away. Jake is stunned by this act of simple courage, so starkly opposed to his own act of cowardice... but Burke's mind is on his present predicament. He winces as a shaft of pain shoots into him... BURKE The hypo... where is it? DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT THREE 12. 42 CONTINUED: (4) Jake reaches for it, realizes there's nothing left in it. JAKE It's empty... Burke shakes his head at the grim irony. BURKE Figures... JAKE (impulsively) I'm going to get you out of here. Jake stands, needing to do something, to take action and help this man, as if in doing so, he will somehow redeem himself. JAKE (looking around) I'll make a stretcher... BURKE (not buying into it) With what? Jake looks around, sees there's nothing. JAKE Then I'll carry you. Burke can't help but smile at Jake's well-meaning but impossible desire. BURKE Kid, you try picking me up, and my guts'll wind up all over your shoes. Jake is starting to get frantic as he realizes just how impotent he is... JAKE But I've got to do something, I've got to try. BURKE Forget it. Jake is so bent on convincing himself that redemption is possible that he doesn't consider what he's admitting. DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT THREE 33. 42 CONTINUED: (5) JAKE (desperate) But I have to. That way this'll all make sense. I ran for a reason -- so I could find you and bring you back and save your life. BURKE Ran -- ? JAKE From the explosions -- we had to get to the runabout, for the generator, but then the shelling started and I couldn't see Doctor Bashir and the explosions kept getting closer and I had to get out of there so I ran, I ran and I kept running until I found you. BURKE The doctor -- you left him. Jake looks, at him, unsure what to say to this. JAKE It was a mistake. BURKE That's what you call it. JAKE I didn't mean for it to happen. BURKE And now you think that bringing me back is going to make everything all right. Jake looks at him, the whole scenario he's constructed in his mind falling apart... Burke shakes his head and smiles ruefully... a laugh starts to escape his lips, but it catches, becomes a cough... BURKE Sorry, kid. (coughing harder) Life doesn't work that way. His coughing becomes ragged, painful. Burke struggles to catch his breath, but he can't, his lungs are filling with fluid -- He looks at Jake, confusion and panic in his eyes... he's realizing he's dying... his coughs become tortured gasps for breath... DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT THREE 34. 43 ON JAKE as he watches in horror... the terrible sounds of Burke's losing struggle for life finally stop... 44 NEW ANGLE to include Burke, his lifeless eyes staring up into the sky... Jake backs away... finally, he tears his eyes off Burke's still form, crawls out of the ditch, and runs off... off this moment we... FADE OUT. END OF ACT THREE DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT FOUR 35. ACT FOUR FADE IN: A45 EXT. SPACE - THE DEFIANT (OPTICAL) traveling at warp. AA45 INT. DEFIANT - ENGINE ROOM where Dax is calling into the Jefferies Tube entrance in the wall. SUPERNUMERARIES at other consoles as needed. DAX Benjamin -- SISKO (O.S.) Be right out... A moment, then Sisko starts to slide out, a HAND TOOL between his teeth. DAX What've you been doing in there for three hours? SISKO Oh, I was just tweaking the pattern buffers in the replicator systems. Dax sees immediately that Sisko is just giving himself busy work. DAX (wry) Great, I always thought the coffee could be a little hotter. Sisko knows she's on to him. SISKO Just trying to keep busy. DAX Is it helping? SISKO Not really. Dax looks at him with sympathy, she knows what he's going through. DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT FOUR 35A. AA45 CONTINUED: DAX I wish there was something I could do, some way I could promise you that everything is going to be okay. SISKO But you can't. No one can. DAX I know what it's like to worry about a child. Raifi put Tobin through hell -- and when Neema was six, she came down with Regulan fever. Audrid spent two weeks in the hospital with her, never left her side. It was hundreds of years ago, and I still remember how helpless I felt. I read her all seventeen volumes of Caster's Down the River Light, even though I knew she couldn't hear me. It made me feel like I was doing something, that we were still connected. It wasn't until much later that I realized I was doing it as much for me as for her. SISKO To keep busy. SISKO So how did it turn out, with Neema? DAX She pulled through. SISKO I was hoping you were going to say that. If that story had an unhappy ending, I never would've forgiven you. DAX Of course, by the time she was twenty-one, Neema wouldn't even speak to me. SISKO For how long? DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT FOUR 35B. AA45 CONTINUED: (2) DAX About eight years. SISKO Do me a favor, tell me about it some other time. Right now, all I care about is seeing Jake again. DAX You will -- tomorrow, when we get to Ajilon Prime. Sisko does his best to take reassurance in this, but the truth is she's worried about Jake too. DAX You know, Ben... coffee can never be too hot. Are you sure you got the Replicator buffers synchronized? SISKO (catching on) You want to check for yourself? DAX I think I will. Can I borrow your decoupler? SISKO Get your own. I'm going to go check the sonic shower relays. DAX Good idea. And as they exchange a supportive smile, we... CUT TO: AAA45 EXT. SPACE - AJILON PRIME (OPTICAL) Re-establishing. INT. CAVERN - MAIN WARD Though the lights are DIM, the medical equipment is back on-line and the patients are sleeping quietly. Kirby has the night shift... he's moving between the beds, checking on patients. Jake ENTERS, and when Kirby looks up from what he's doing and sees him, he couldn't be more surprised. DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT FOUR 35C. 45 CONTINUED: KIRBY Jake! For once, words fail him. KIRBY We thought you were... this is great. He takes Jake by the shoulder, smiles, shakes his head in relief. He sees the wound on his forehead -- KIRBY What happened? JAKE I got knocked out when we were trying to get to the runabout. Did Doctor Bashir make it back all right? Jake has no idea what the answer will be, so when Kirby nods, his relief is palpable. Kirby inclines his head in the direction of the intensive care ward. KIRBY He's in IC for the night, plasma burns on his arm and shoulder. I don't know how he managed it, but he carried the generator back here by himself. Jake looks toward the tunnel that leads to IC -- his relief that Bashir's alive is giving way to a mounting sense of anxiety over what Bashir might think of him for running away. Kirby looks Jake up and down, shakes his head as if he still can't believe he's really here. DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT FOUR 36. 45 CONTINUED: (2) KIRBY We went looking for you when the shelling stopped. There was hardly anything left of the runabout... the whole place was nothing but bomb craters and smoke. We pretty much gave up hope. Jake is so distracted by his thoughts of Bashir that he finds himself tossing off a lie, almost distractedly. JAKE I must've wandered off in the wrong direction when I came to. KIRBY You're lucky you didn't get picked up by the Klingons. Word is, they're massing to attack the compound. Kirby sees that Jake is looking toward IC -- KIRBY You want to see him? Jake isn't ready to face him yet... JAKE I should probably let him rest. KIRBY He's awake, I was just in there. Kirby sees Jake's hesitation. KIRBY Go ahead, he'll be glad to see you're okay. Jake can't see a way out of it, nods... and moves off... 46 INT. CAVERN - INTENSIVE CARE Bashir is one of three patients in the unit. He's the only one awake, staring up at the ceiling in the dim light, lost in thought. His arm and shoulder are BANDAGED. DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT FOUR 37. 46 CONTINUED: When Jake appears in the entrance, Bashir can't believe what he's seeing at first and it takes a moment for him to react -- BASHIR Jake... ? Bashir's been blaming himself for Jake's death, and the sight of him is such a relief it brings tears to his eyes. BASHIR Thank God... He covers his face with his hand, doesn't know whether to laugh or cry... when he finally looks up, his expression is strangely pained. BASHIR I thought you'd been killed. Once the shelling stopped and I couldn't find you, I assumed the worst. His eyes are pleading, he needs Jake to understand. Jake finds himself in the odd predicament of having to comfort Bashir. Somehow, the more he has to do it, the worse it makes him feel. BASHIR I'm sorry. JAKE It's all right. BASHIR No, it's not. I never should've brought you here in the first place. (angry with himself) Now we're stuck here, the Klingons are massing to attack -- what was I thinking! JAKE Forget it, okay! What's done is done. Jake and Bashir are both a little startled by his vehemence. DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT FOUR 38. 46 CONTINUED: (2) After a beat, Bashir smiles, nods his agreement, and we hear Jake in V.O. JAKE (V.O.) I couldn't stand hearing him apologize to me like that... not after what I'd done... Kirby appears in the door... KIRBY All right, you two, visiting hours re over. (re: Jake's wound) Let me have a look at that. JAKE (V.O.) I keep turning it over in my head... Jake's V.O. carries into 47 INT. CAVERN - STAFF BUNK ROOM - NIGHT Jake, his head wound now gone, is at one of the tables, writing on his PADD in the DIM LIGHT. Sleeping figures can be seen occupying most of the bunks. JAKE (V.O.) (continuing) The shelling, losing sight of Bashir, running... and I keep trying to make sense of it all, to justify what I did. But when it comes down to it, there's only one explanation. I'm a coward. Jake's words, the rhythm of his writing, become angrier. JAKE (V.O.) Part of me wishes Bashir had seen me run away and told everyone the truth. They deserve to know what I am... they should know they can't count on me... that if the Klingons attack, I'll run and hide just like I did before... Off Jake as he lets his head fall into his hands... DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT FOUR 38A. 47A INT. CAVERN - MAIN WARD The place is busy with activity as Nurses and Orderlies move around, tending to patients. Jake wanders in, looking listless. The Nurse moves past with a TRAY of FOOD in her hand, notices him. NURSE (rushed) Jake, take this to the patient in G-four, would you? Jake shrugs a yes. JAKE Sure. He takes the tray from her and she hurries off. 47B NEW ANGLE as Jake approaches the patient, who's in a bed in the corner, facing away from him. JAKE Here you go... As Jake comes around he sees the patient's face and realizes it's the Ensign who shot himself in the foot. Jake wasn't expecting to see him and he's a bit taken off guard. JAKE One of the nurses asked me to bring you this. The Ensign barely acknowledges him, continues staring at the wall. Jake sets the tray down, turns and starts to move off. ENSIGN (still facing the wall) Maybe I'll get a job as a cutter -- could be interesting work. Jake stops, unsure if the Ensign was talking to him. JAKE What's a cutter? ENSIGN You know, on a mining team. They're the guys who split the asteroids up with phasers so the excavators can get at what's inside. DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT FOUR 38B. 47B CONTINUED: The Ensign turns away from the wall to face him. ENSIGN You've got to have good aim... and no matter what else you can say about me, you can't say I don't have good aim. Jake looks at him, unsure what to say to this odd announcement. ENSIGN If I hadn't hit my foot just right, I would've taken my whole leg off. Jake doesn't know what to make of the Ensign's ironic perspective. The Ensign smiles ruefully, continues. ENSIGN It's funny... one minute your life's moving along just the way you always figured it would, the next... you do something that changes everything, that makes you realize you're not who you thought you were. He turns to Jake. ENSIGN At the Academy, I did really well in the battle simulations - never had any problems -- but when you're out there, live shells detonating all around you, it's a whole different thing. JAKE (more to himself) All you can think about is getting away from the explosions... The Ensign looks at him, and Jake realizes his thought escaped his lips. ENSIGN Yeah. That's pretty much it. The Ensign studies Jake for a moment. DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT FOUR 38C. 47B CONTINUED: (2) ENSIGN You know something... you're first person I've talked to since I got here who hasn't made me feel like I'm taking up valuable bed space. Jake feels the urge to talk to him, to tell him that he understands why he did what he did -- but he can't bring himself to do it. ENSIGN The way everyone looks at me... I can't stand it. After the court martial, I'm going to sign up for the next mining expedition to the Gamma Quadrant. JAKE Maybe there won't be a court martial. ENSIGN You're right, none of us may get out of here alive. Jake is too intent on what he wants to say to be derailed by this; he needs to hold out hope for the Ensign's redemption, thereby making his own redemption at least a possibility. JAKE No, I mean -- Starfleet could decide to send you to counseling instead. ENSIGN I won't go. Jake looks at him, surprised. ENSIGN I don't deserve to be in Starfleet. Therapy won't change what I did. Nothing can. The Ensign turns away, makes a gesture toward his head... ENSIGN (quiet) I just wish I'd aimed that phaser a little higher... DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT FOUR 38D. 47B CONTINUED: (3) He falls to staring at the wall again, his features far away. After a long moment, Jake realizes he's forgotten all about him, turns and moves away... off the image of the Ensign, alone... 48 OMITTED DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT FOUR 39. 49 INT. CAVERN - STAFF BUNK ROOM - DAY Jake is now lying on a bunk, his face turned toward the wall. The Bolian is eating at one of the tables. A few SUPERNUMERARIES as needed. Kirby and the Nurse ENTER in mid-conversation. NURSE I saw the report on Doctor Kalandra's desk. According to Resource, it's only a matter of time before the Klingons reach the compound. Jake can't help but overhear this, and it makes his throat go dry. Kirby is rattled by the news too, but rather than show it, he vents his anxiety with a little gallows humor. KIRBY I guess that means I have to decide. NURSE Decide what? KIRBY Whether I'd rather get hacked to bits, or blasted by a disruptor. NURSE (playing along) Disruptor, no doubt about it -- every molecule in your body vaporized in a flash. No time to feel pain. The Bolian looks up from his food. BOLIAN Don't be so sure about that. Some people think it's like being boiled alive. This is all hitting Jake the wrong way -- far from being amused, it's only stoking his anxiety. He gets up, crosses to the replicator. KIRBY Decapitation has its virtues. A clean blow with a nice, sharp bat'leth. DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT FOUR 40. 49 CONTINUED: BOLIAN (disagreeing again) Your brain doesn't die for five, ten seconds at least... Bashir, no longer in bandages, ENTERS, starts toward the replicator. BOLIAN (continuing) In theory, your headless corpse could be the last thing you see. NURSE You're so negative. BOLIAN I'm just telling you what I've heard. The three of them are clearly enjoying themselves and making themselves feel better, but Jake is about to lose it. He crosses away from the replicator with a mug of tea, and as he passes, Kirby tries to pull him into the game. KIRBY What do you think, Jake? JAKE I think it's not funny. KIRBY (smiling) Of course not. (reaching toward Jake to mime the action) There's nothing funny about having your throat slit by -- Jake shoves Kirby away, hard. JAKE Cut it out! Everyone is taken aback by his sudden anger -- JAKE You all think this is some big joke. It's not. People are dying! KIRBY I was just kidding. DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT FOUR 41. 49 CONTINUED: (2) JAKE It's all so stupid. This whole stupid war is such a waste. In ten years, no one's going to remember what anyone did here. BASHIR Jake -- JAKE Maybe you saved a hopper full of people, maybe you shot yourself in the foot -- no one's going to remember. Jake slams his mug down on a table, hard. BASHIR Jake. Bashir's tone brings Jake rant to a stop -- BASHIR Come on. Let's take a walk. Bashir heads for the door... after a beat, a chastened Jake follows... 50 INT. CAVERN - A TUNNEL as Bashir turns to face Jake. JAKE I'm sorry. Jake tries to contain the tears he feels welling up inside him... BASHIR Look, I know you're scared -- we all are. JAKE (jumbled) No... yes, it's not that -- I... He can't come out with it, shakes his head, looks away. BASHIR What, Jake -- what is it? Jake feels the urge to confess pressing at him... but he can't, it's too humiliating, and he squelches it. DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT FOUR 42-43. 50 CONTINUED: JAKE I just didn't think what they were saying was funny... BASHIR (no dice) Come on. That's not what set you off. Something's eating at you, I can see it. JAKE I don't know what you're talking about. BASHIR Ever since you came back you've been walking around here looking miserable. JAKE Leave me alone. BASHIR Jake -- JAKE Leave me alone! BASHIR All right. If that's what you want. But you know where to find me if you want to talk... And with that, Bashir moves off, EXITS. Jake waits for him to leave, then leans back against the tunnel wall. He slides down to a sitting position, tries to back the sobs welling up inside him. But it's impossible, and when they come, they come full force -- his body is wracked with them... hold on this image for a few beats, then... FADE OUT. END OF ACT FOUR DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT FIVE 44. ACT FIVE FADE IN: A53 INT. CAVERN - A TUNNEL - LATER (FORMERLY SC. 51) Jake is curled up on the floor, fast asleep. Hold on his peaceful features for a long beat, until... AA53 AN EXPLOSION (FORMERLY SC. 52) rocks the area, jolting Jake awake. A beat, then another EXPLOSION confirms it -- the settlement is under attack! Jake staggers to his feet, moves off... 53 INT. CAVERN - STAFF BUNK ROOM where Kalandra is trying to give instructions to her worried staff as Jake ENTERS -- Bashir, Kirby, the Nurse, the Bolian, and some N.D. medical personnel are there. The room SHUDDERS from another EXPLOSION, dust rains down and the LIGHTS start to FLICKER on and off -- 54 ON JAKE as he struggles to fight back the onset of panic -- KIRBY NURSE Are they inside What's going on? the compound? KALANDRA BOLIAN Everyone listen. What are we going to do? KALANDRA (when they fall silent) We're evacuating. Worried murmurs from the group... another explosion rattles the room... KALANDRA We're going to take the patients out the north tunnel to the surface. A hopper is going to take us down the peninsula to the base at Tananda Bay. DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT FIVE 44A. 54 CONTINUED: KIRBY That tunnel is almost two kilometers long... we've got over seventy patients to move -- you know how long that's going to take? Murmurs of agreement from the group -- 55 ON JAKE listening to this with mounting anxiety... DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT FIVE 45. 55 CONTINUED: KALANDRA'S VOICE (O.S.) Resource is sending a security detail to defend the hospital and give us enough time to evacuate. 56 RESUME SCENE KALANDRA (rallying her people) We can do this. Another EXPLOSION shakes the room -- Bashir weighs in to help Kalandra. BASHIR We have to stay calm. Focus on your job. Those people in there need us. KALANDRA Let's move. Galvanized by her words, the group breaks up, heads out... Jake makes to follow, but once the last of them is out the door he drops back, leans against the wall, struggles to steady his uneven breathing... an explosion triggers another cascade of dust. Jake stands there in the FLICKERING LIGHTS, unable to move, paralyzed with dread... INT. CAVERN - MAIN WARD The evacuation in progress. Nurses and orderlies are getting patients onto stretchers and taking them out a BACK EXIT. Their urgent shouts, the FLICKERING LIGHTS, the EXPLOSIONS -- it all adds up to a scene of utter Pandemonium. 58 TWO STARFLEET GUARDS armed with phaser RIFLES have taken up position near the entrance -- one is male, one female. 59 KALANDRA is standing near the back exit, motioning to some patients able to walk on their own. DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT FIVE 46. 59 CONTINUED: KALANDRA This way... keep moving. 60 THE BOLIAN shouts to a passing Orderly to come help him get a patient on a stretcher. BOLIAN Give me a hand -- 61 BASHIR AND KIRBY ENTER from the back exit with an empty stretcher just as an EXPLOSION shatters the air. Kirby looks over at the two guards, dismayed that so few have been sent to protect the hospital. KIRBY Is that it -- two guards? BASHIR The rest must be out defending the perimeter. The male guard, after conferring with his colleague, moves into the tunnel. KIRBY Great, one's leaving. 62 THE NURSE is holding the hands of two convalescing children, helping them shuffle toward the back... NURSE We're going someplace safe, all right? 63 INT. CAVERN - STAFF BUNK ROOM as Jake hides under one of the tables, lost in his fear. An EXPLOSION rocks the room, shaking a GIRDER loose from the ceiling. It smashes the table next to Jake's and crushes it instantly... This snaps him out of it -- he realizes it's not safe here, scurries for the door... DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT FIVE 46A. 64 INT. CAVERN - A TUNNEL as Jake moves down the dark passageway, lit only by the eerily FLICKERING LIGHTS. The explosions have stopped, it's strangely quiet. Jake rounds a bend and runs smack into the male Guard, who's rushing back toward the main ward -- DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT FIVE 47. 64 CONTINUED: MALE GUARD They're coming! He shoves Jake down the corridor. MALE GUARD Move. The Guard looks back the way he came, his phaser rifle at ready. We hear the ominous sound of heavy FOOTSTEPS coming down the corridor toward them... 65 NEW ANGLE - JAKE as he starts down the tunnel, in the background, we can see the main ward. The last three patients are being carried out the back exit on stretchers. Two of them are being carried by N.D. medical personnel, the third by Kirby and the Bolian. The female guard is standing at the back exit, waving them on. FEMALE GUARD Come on, let's go! 66 INT. CAVERN - TUNNEL/MAIN WARD (OPTICAL) as Jake nears the mouth of the tunnel Kirby looks up and sees him -- KIRBY Anyone left back there? JAKE (on the move) No -- Suddenly the Guard gets SHOT in the back by a disruptor BLAST -- as he falls forward, his phaser rifle flies from his grasp and clatters to the floor in the center of the ward. Jake turns to look over his shoulder -- 67 thru OMITTED 68 69 NEW ANGLE to reveal TWO KLINGONS running down the tunnel after Jake, disruptors in their hands -- DEEP SPACE NINE: "Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT FIVE 47A. 69A INT. CAVERN - MAIN WARD (OPTICAL) From the back exit, the Female Guard takes aim at the oncoming Klingons -- FEMALE GUARD (to Jake) Get down! Jake dives behind some medical equipment for cover and the Female Guard opens FIRE at the Klingons behind him, the BLASTS whizzing just over Jake's head. 69B THE KLINGONS (OPTICAL) as they take cover behind the pillar of rock in the tunnel entrance... phaser HITS exploding all around them -- 69C ON JAKE staying low, caught in the crossfire -- 69D ON THE KLINGONS (OPTICAL) as one opens FIRE on the Female Guard, the other on Jake -- 70 ON JAKE (OPTICAL) as disruptor BLASTS explode all around him -- he's forced to scurry behind a nearby bed for cover, right near where the dead Guard's weapon fell... 70A ON THE FEMALE GUARD (OPTICAL) takes a hit, staggers back onto the floor, dead... DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT FIVE 48. 71 ON THE KLINGONS (OPTICAL) as they both concentrate on hitting Jake... 72 ON JAKE (OPTICAL) as the shots hit around him, coming perilously closer and closer. A strangled cry of fear and panic tears from his throat -- he snatches the dead man's weapon and starts SHOOTING wildly... crouched behind the bed for cover, he holds it over his head and aims blindly toward the Klingons. 73 ON THE KLINGONS (OPTICAL) as Jake's wild SHOTS hit all around them... 74 NEW ANGLE (OPTICAL) From where the Klingons are, all they can see is weapon held up behind a piece of equipment across the room, FIRING blindly... 75 ON JAKE still firing the weapon above his head, afraid to let go... 76 ON THE KLINGONS (OPTICAL) as one of Jake's SHOTS hits the cavern ceiling above them, splintering off chunks of rock and sending them cascading down, forcing the Klingons back into the passageway to avoid being crushed... 77 ON JAKE He's so panicked he doesn't realize how wild his shots are going... the off-screen AVALANCHE kicks up a CLOUD of DUST and DEBRIS that comes toward Jake and -- BLACKS OUT THE SCREEN. FADE IN: 78 INT. CAVERN - MAIN WARD - JAKES POV as he tries to focus on the faces looking down on him - his father's and Bashir's. DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT FIVE 49. 79 NEW ANGLE as Sisko and Bashir kneel over Jake, lying strewn in the rubble. BASHIR Jake, looks who's here -- JAKE (focusing) Dad? As much as Sisko would like to gather Jake up in his arms, he doesn't -- SISKO Don't move, let Doctor Bashir check for injuries. Bashir starts to scan him with his tricorder. JAKE What happened? BASHIR I came back when I realized you weren't on the hopper. SISKO (reassuring him) The cease-fire has been reinstated. The Klingons are pulling out. It's over. BASHIR (with irony) Admittedly, the timing could have been a little better, but... Bashir shuts his tricorder, looks at Jake as if he still can't quite believe what he did... BASHIR (to Sisko) He seems to be all right. They start to help Jake up. SISKO Sealing the entrance way was a risky thing to do. You almost brought the whole ceiling down on yourself. DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT FIVE 49A. 79 CONTINUED: BASHIR Still, we never would've gotten all the patients out if he hadn't done it. (smiles, to Jake) You're a hero. DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT FIVE 50. 79 CONTINUED: (2) As Sisko helps Jake stand, we begin to hear Jake in V.O. JAKE (V.O.) More than anything, I wanted to believe what he was saying... 80 EXT. SPACE - THE DEFIANT (OPTICAL) as it travels at warp... JAKE (V.O.) (continuing) But the truth is, I was just as scared in that hospital as I'd been when we went for the generator... 81 INT. DEFIANT - QUARTERS Bashir is alone, Jake has given him his PADD to read. JAKE (V.O.) (continuing So scared, that all I could think about was doing whatever it took to stay alive... 82 EXT. SPACE - DEEP SPACE NINE (OPTICAL) Re-establishing. JAKE (V.O) (continuing) Once that meant running away, and once it meant picking up a phaser... 83 INT. SISKO'S QUARTERS where Sisko is reading what Jake has written as his son looks on... DEEP SPACE NINE: "... Nor the... " - REV. 08/21/96 - ACT FIVE 51. 83 CONTINUED: JAKE (V.O.) (continuing) The battle of Ajilon Prime will probably be remembered as a pointless skirmish, but I'll always remember it as something more -- as the place I learned that the line between courage and cowardice is a lot thinner than most people believe... Sisko finishes, looks up at his son... a moment as they regard each other... JAKE (quiet) So what do you think... ? SISKO Anyone who's been in battle would recognize himself in this... but most of us wouldn't care to admit it. He studies Jake's features, wants him to understand. SISKO It takes courage to look inside yourself... and even more courage to write about it for other people to see. Jake takes in his father's words, and maybe even takes some comfort in them... Sisko can see Jake is still raw from the whole experience, that he needs to be comforted... he pulls him into his arms, holds him close. SISKO I'm proud of you, son... As Sisko holds Jake tight, we... FADE OUT. END OF ACT FIVE THE END