05x02 - The Beast Below

[bunniefuu]

EXT. SPACE

A spaceship that looks like a city flies through the stars, a Union Flag painted on its side. Some of the buildings have lit letters on them designating counties.

INT. SCHOOLROOM

Young boys and girls are in line while one young boy remains at his desk. They are being praised by their as yet unseen teacher.

COMPUTERISED MALE VOICE: Well done, Mabel. Well done, Alfie. Good girl, Tabitha. (one of the girls faces the boy and jerks her head) Very well done, Ranjit. Good girl, Chloe. (the boy picks up his book and gets in line) Well done, Ben. Well done, Mandy. (We see the ‘teacher' is actually a figure inside a booth. MANDY hurries off) 'Bad boy, Timmy. (the head spins to reveal a frowning face) Zero.

INT. CORRIDOR

MANDY is waiting outside.

MANDY:
You got a zero, didn't you?

TIMMY:
Yeah. So?

MANDY:
You'll have to walk home, then.

TIMMY:
Walk to London? That's 20 decks!

MANDY:
You can't ride a Vator with a zero. You know what happens. You'll get sent below. (steps into lift)

TIMMY tries to get on the lift but the operator, a hooded man wearing an old-fashioned clock key on a chain, glares down at him and he backs away.

MANDY:
I'll wait for you.

The lift doors close. There is another book in the hall and its head swivels to show a frown as well. The second lift opens and TIMMY steps inside. There is a smaller version of the booth set into the wall of the lift.

XOMPUTERISED MALE VOICE
Welcome to Vator Verse, sponsored by McLintock's Candy Burgers.

TIMMY:
L-London, please.

There is a small computer screen on the wall behind TIMMY. On it, a young girl recites a verse.

GIRL:
A horse and a man, above, below One has a plan, but both must go. Mile after mile, above, beneath One has a smile, and one has teeth. (the figure swivels to TIMMY, showing its frown) Though the man above might say hello Expect no love from the beast below.

The lift begins to plummet

TIMMY:
(pounds on microphone screen) Help! Help me!

The lift stops at 000 and the floor slides open to reveal a bright red light. TIMMY screams. The figure's head swivels again to reveal a third face, grimacing in anger.

---

Matt Smith
Karen Gillan

DOCTOR WHO
"The Beast Below"
by Steven Moffatt

Producer
Peter Bennett

Director
Andrew Gunn

---

EXT. SPACE

AMY, still in her nightgown and robe, is floating outside the open door of the TARDIS as the DOCTOR holds her ankle.

AMY: (V.O.) My name is Amy Pond. When I was seven, I had an imaginary friend. Last night was the night before my wedding...

DOCTOR:
Come on, Pond. (pulls her back inside)

AMY: (V.O.) ..and my imaginary friend came back.

DOCTOR: NOW do you believe me?

AMY: OK, your box is a spaceship. It's really, really a spaceship. We are in space! Whoo! What are we breathing?

DOCTOR: I've extended the air shell - we're fine. (sees something below them and squats) Now, that's interesting. (they are flying over the spaceship) 29th Century. Solar flares roast the earth, (walks to console)

INT TARDIS

DOCTOR: and the entire human race packs its bags (works controls) and moves out till the weather improves. Whole nations...

AMY: Doctor?

DOCTOR: ..migrating to the stars.

AMY: Doctor?

DOCTOR: Isn't that amazing?

AMY: Doctor!

The DOCTOR looks up from the console to see AMY isn't there.

EXT. SPACE

AMY is outside clinging to the roof of the TARDIS.

DOCTOR: (in doorway) Well, come on. I've found us a spaceship.

INT TARDIS

The DOCTOR has pulled up the spaceship on the TARDIS monitor.

DOCTOR: This is the United Kingdom of Britain and Northern Ireland - all of it, bolted together and floating in the sky. Starship UK. It's Britain, but metal. That's not just a ship - that's an idea. That's a whole country, living and laughing and...shopping. (AMY chuckles) Searching the stars for a new home.

AMY: Can we go out and see?

DOCTOR: Course we can but first, there's a thing.

AMY: A thing?

DOCTOR: An important thing. In fact, thing one – (looks through magnifying glass) we are observers only. That's the one rule I've always stuck to in my travels. I never get involved in the affairs of other peoples or planets. Ooh! That's interesting.

The screen now shows MANDY sitting alone, crying.

AMY: So we're like a wildlife documentary, yeah? Cos if they see a wounded little cub or something, they can't just save it - they've got to keep filming and let it die. (watches MANDY) That's got to be hard. I don't think I could do that. Don't you find that
hard - being all, like, detached and cold? (The DOCTOR appears on screen with MANDY. She runs away) Doctor?

The DOCTOR looks into the camera and waves for AMY to join him. With a smile, she runs out of the TARDIS.

INT. LONDON MARKET

TANNOY: Welcome to London Market. You are being monitored.

AMY looks about and sees an arched glass ceiling through which she can see the stars. The market is a series of stalls and booths very similar to a contemporary marketplace.

AMY: (looks around in wonder) I'm in the future. Like hundreds...of years in the future. I've been dead for centuries.

DOCTOR: Oh, lovely. You're a cheery one. (takes her by the arm and walk) Never mind dead, look at this place. Isn't it wrong?

AMY: What's wrong?

DOCTOR: Use your eyes, notice everything. What's wrong with this picture?

AMY: Is it...the bicycles? (points to rickshaw) Bit unusual on a spaceship, bicycles.

DOCTOR: Says the girl in the nightie.

AMY: Oh, my God! I'm in my nightie.

DOCTOR: Now, come on, look around you. Actually look.

TANNOY: London Market is a crime-free zone.

DOCTOR: Life on a giant starship, back to basics. Bicycles, washing lines, wind-up street lamps. But look closer. Secrets and shadows, lives led in fear. Society bent out of shape, on the brink of collapse. A police state. Excuse me.

The DOCTOR runs over to a table and takes a glass of water from one of the people sitting there. He sets it gently on the floor and looks at it intently. He sets it back on the
table.

DOCTOR: Sorry. Checking all the water in this area. There's an escaped fish. (taps the side of his nose and rejoins AMY) Where was I?

AMY: Why did you just do that with the water?

DOCTOR: Don't know. I think a lot. It's hard to keep track. Now, police state - do you see it yet?

AMY: Where?

DOCTOR: (snaps and points) There.

MANDY is sitting alone on a bench crying. Everyone walks past, ignoring her. The Doctor and AMY head towards her. A man in a hood and amulet watches.

INT. OFFICE

A phone rings and is answered by a person watching the DOCTOR and AMY on a monitor. It is a grey-haired man with wire-rimmed glasses.

GREY-HAIRED MAN: Are you sure?

INT. LONDON MARKET

HOODED MAN: (in red phone booth) Saw it myself.

INT. OFFICE

HOODED MAN: (V.O.) Are you going to tell her?

GREY-HAIRED MAN: We're under orders to tell her.

INT. LONDON MARKET

GREY-HAIRED MAN: (V.O.) Well done. Keep tabs on him.

The HOODED MAN hangs up the phone.

INT. OFFICE

The GREY-HAIRED MAN dials the phone.

INT. OPULENT ROOM

In a palatial room, a woman sits alone, a red cloak laid out around her. A simple white mask is on the floor at her side. She answers the phone.

GREY-HAIRED MAN: (V.O.) Sorry to interrupt. There's been a sighting. London block, Oxford Street. A man.

WOMAN: Did he do the thing?

GREY-HAIRED MAN: (V.O.) Apparently.

WOMAN: I'll have a look on the monitors.

The WOMAN picks ups the mask, stands, and walks past a number of water glasses as well as a crystal chandelier.

INT. LONDON MARKET

The DOCTOR and AMY are sitting on a bench facing MANDY.

AMY: One little girl crying. So?

DOCTOR: Crying silently. I mean, children cry cos they want attention, cos they're hurt or afraid. When they cry silently, it's cos they just can't stop. Any parent knows that.

AMY: Are you a parent?

DOCTOR: (is startled at the question but doesn't answer) Hundreds of parents walking past this spot and not one of them's asking her what's wrong, which means...they already know, and it's something they don't talk about. Secrets. They're not helping her, so it's something they're afraid of. Shadows - whatever they're afraid of - it's nowhere to be seen, which means it's everywhere. Police state.

MANDY gets up as the lift bell rings and the figure in the nearby booth turns to watch her.

AMY: Where'd she go?

DOCTOR: Deck 207, Apple Sesame block, Dwelling 54A. You're looking for Mandy Tanner. Oh, (reaches into pocket) this fell out of her pocket when I accidentally bumped into her. (hands AMY the ID wallet) Took me four goes. Ask her about those things - the smiling fellows in the booths. They're everywhere.

AMY: But they're just things.

DOCTOR: They're clean. Everything else here is battered and filthy - look at this place. But no-one's laid a finger on those booths. Not a footprint within two feet of them. Ask Mandy, "Why are people scared of the things in the booths?"

AMY: No. Hang on - what do I do? (whispers) I don't know what I'm doing here and I'm not even dressed!

DOCTOR: It's this or Leadworth. What do you think? Let's see. What will Amy Pond choose? Ha-ha, gotcha! (checks watch) Meet me back here in half an hour.

AMY: What are you going to do?

DOCTOR: What I always do. Stay out of trouble. (stands) Badly. (leaps over bench and walks away)

AMY: (gets up and faces him) So is this how it works, Doctor? You never interfere in the affairs of other peoples or planets, unless there's children crying?

DOCTOR: Yes.

Resigned to her task, AMY turns back and tried to figure out which way to go.

DEAN STREET

AMY stops to get her bearings near another booth. She finds the way she wants to go and heads down the street.

MANDY:
You're following me. Saw you watching me at the marketplace.

AMY: You dropped this.

MANDY:
Yeah, when your friend kept bumping into me.

There's an area of the street surrounded by barriers.

AMY: What's that?

MANDY:
There's a hole. We have to go back.

AMY: A what? A hole?

We see the hole is right in front of a shop called "Magpie
Electricals"

MANDY:
Are you stupid? There's a hole in the road. We can't go that way. (AMY heads for the gate) There's a travel pipe down by the airlocks, if you've got stamps. What are you doing?

AMY: Oh, don't mind me. Never could resist a "keep out" sign. What's through there? What's so scary about a hole? Something under the road? (sits on the ground and examines the lock)

MANDY:
(looks to the booth) Nobody knows. We're not supposed to talk about it.

AMY: (turns around) About what?

MANDY:
Below.

AMY: And because you're not supposed to, you don't? Watch and learn. (uses hairpin to pick the lock)

MANDY:
You sound Scottish.

AMY: I am Scottish. What's wrong with that? Scotland's got to be here somewhere.

MANDY:
No. They wanted their own ship.

AMY: Hmm. Good for them. Nothing changes.

MANDY:
So...how did you get here?

The figure in the booth spins to show its angry face.

AMY: Oh, just passing through, you know, with a guy.

MANDY:
Your boyfriend?

AMY: (in realization) Oh.

MANDY:
What?

AMY: Nothing. It's just...I'm getting married. Funny how things slip your mind.

MANDY:
Married?

AMY: Yeah, shut up, married. Really, actually married. Almost definitely.

MANDY:
When?

AMY: Well, it's kind of weird. A long time ago, tomorrow morning. I wonder what I did. (the lock opens) Hey, hey, result! Coming?

MANDY:
No!

AMY: Suit yourself.

As AMY prepares to go inside the tent covering the hole, MANDY sees the figure in the booth spins to show its third face.

MANDY:
Stop! You mustn't do that!

INT. TENT

The inside is dark but for red emergency lights flashing. AMY finds a torch and turns it on. In the beam she sees a creature—or part of a creature—reaching out through the hole. It sways slowly.

AMY: Oh, my God. That's weird. That's...

The creature strikes with what seems to be either a beak or a stinger. AMY shouts and scoots out of the tent backwards.

DEAN STREET

AMY stops to see she is surrounded by more hooded men. One sprays gas from his ring and she falls unconscious.

MAINTENANCE CORRIDOR

The DOCTOR climbs down a ladder and places his hands on the wall before leaning in to listen.

DOCTOR: Can't be.

The DOCTOR uses the sonic screwdriver to get a reading. He then sees a glass of water on the floor. He lies down and stares at it.

WOMAN: (whispers) The impossible truth in a glass of water. (It is the WOMAN from earlier, wearing her mask) Not many people see it. (he stands) But you do, don't
you, Doctor?

DOCTOR: You know me?

WOMAN: (whispers) Keep your voice down. They're everywhere. Tell me what you see in the glass.

DOCTOR: Who says I see anything?

WOMAN: (whispers) Don't waste time. At the marketplace, you placed a glass of water on the floor, looked at it, then came straight here to the engine room. Why?

DOCTOR: No engine vibration on deck. Ship this size, engine this big, you'd feel it. The water would move. So...I thought I'd take a look. (opens power box on the wall) It doesn't make sense. These power couplings, they're not connected. Look. Look - they're dummies, see? (crosses hall and taps the wall) And behind this wall, nothing. It's hollow. If I didn't know better, I'd say there was...

WOMAN: (whispers) No engine at all.

DOCTOR: But it's working. This ship is travelling though space. I saw it.

WOMAN: (whispers) The impossible truth, Doctor. We're travelling among the stars in a spaceship that could never fly.

DOCTOR: How?

WOMAN: (whispers) I don't know. There's a darkness at the heart of this nation. It threatens every one of us. Help us, Doctor. You're our only hope. Your friend is safe. (hands him a device) This will take you to her. Now go, quickly! (begins to walk away)

DOCTOR: Who are you? How do I find you again?

WOMAN: (turns to face him and whispers) I am Liz 10. And I will find you.

There is a crashing sound and the DOCTOR looks around. When he turns back, she is gone.

VOTING CUBICLE

AMY wakes up in a chair and the first thing she sees is the Smiler in the booth. There are four monitors in front of her in the style or retro televisions.

COMPUERIZED VOICE: 'Welcome to voting cubicle 330C. Please leave this installation as you would wish to find it. (she stands and looks around) The United Kingdom recognises the right to know of all its citizens. (there are 3 large buttons in front of her: "Protest", "Record" and "Forget") A presentation concerning the history of Starship UK will begin shortly. Your identity is being verified on our electoral roll. (sits down) 'Name - Amelia Jessica
Pond. 'Age - 1,306.'

AMY: (Gasps) Shut up! (giggles)

COMPUERIZED VOICE: Marital status... (AMY straightens, serious) Unknown.

AMY flops back into the chair. On the four screens, a video starts, showing an older man as a presenter.

PRESENTER: You are here because you want to know the truth about this starship, and I am talking to you because you're entitled to know. When this presentation has finished, you will have a choice. You may either protest...or forget. If you choose to protest, understand this. If just 1% of the population of this ship do likewise, the programme will be discontinued, with consequences for you all. If you choose to accept the situation - and we hope that you will - then press the "forget" button. All the information I am about to give you will be erased from your memory. You will continue to enjoy the safety and amenities of Starship UK, unburdened by the knowledge of what has been done to save you. Here, then, is the truth about Starship UK, and the price that has been paid for the safety of the British people. May God have mercy on our souls.

Images flash across the screens, reflected in AMY'S eyes. She reacts and hits "Forget". As she wipes her tears, a video message starts on the screen. It is from herself.

TV AMY: This isn't a trick. You've got to find the Doctor and get him back to the TARDIS. Don't let him investigate. Stop him. Do whatever you have to. Just please, please get the Doctor off this ship!

The door to the room opens and we see MANDY waiting for her. As the message replays, the DOCTOR hops into the doorway.

DOCTOR: Amy? (AMY turns message off) What have you done?

Moments later, he's on the chair using the sonic screwdriver on the lamp above.

DOCTOR: Yeah, your basic memory wipe job. Must have erased about 20 minutes. (jumps to the floor)

AMY: But why would I choose to forget?

MANDY:
Cos everyone does. Everyone chooses the "forget" button.

DOCTOR: Did you?

MANDY:
I'm not eligible to vote yet. I'm 12. Any time after you're 16, you're allowed to the see the film and make your choice. And then, once every five years...

DOCTOR: And once every five years, everyone chooses to forget what they've learned. Democracy in action. (heads back to the monitors)

MANDY:
How do you not know about this? Are you Scottish too?

DOCTOR: Oh, I'm way worse than Scottish. I can't even see the movie. Won't play for me.

AMY: It played for me.

DOCTOR: The difference being the computer doesn't accept me as human.

AMY: Why not? (the DOCTOR looks at her) You look human. (she joins him)

DOCTOR: No, you look Time Lord. We came first.

AMY: So there are other Time Lords, yeah?

DOCTOR: No. There were, but there aren't... Just me now. Long story. There was a bad day. Bad stuff happened, and you know what? I'd love to forget it all, every last bit of it, but I don't. Not ever. Cos this is what I do - every time, every day, every second. This. Hold tight. We're bringing down the government.

The DOCTOR pounds the "Protest" button. The door slams shut, leaving MANDY outside. The Smiler in the booth turns to show his very angry face. The DOCTOR pulls AMY into the corner of the room as the floor slides open

DOCTOR: Say, "Wheee!"

AMY: Aaargh!

They fall down the chute.

HALLWAY OUTSIDE VOTING CUBICLE

The lit sign outside switches from "Occupied" to "Empy". A figure comes up behind MANDY, startling her.

WOMAN: (chuckles) It's all right, love. (removes mask) It's only me.

REFUSE PILE

The DOCTOR and AMY fall out of the chute with a scream. The DOCTOR stands and uses the sonic screwdriver.

DOCTOR: High-speed air cannon. Lousy way to travel.

AMY: Where are we?

DOCTOR: 600 feet down, 20 miles laterally - puts us at the heart of the ship. I'd say... Lancashire. What's this, then - a cave? Can't be a cave. Looks like a cave.

AMY: (stands) It's a rubbish dump, and it's minging! (throws a piece of rubbish)

DOCTOR: Yes, but only food refuse. (sniffs) Organic, coming through feeder tubes from all over the ship.

AMY: (gets down on hands and knees) The floor's all squidgy, like a water bed.

DOCTOR: But feeding what, though?

AMY: It's sort of rubbery, feel it. Wet and slimy.

The DOCTOR hears a distant moaning and stands. He realizes where they are.

DOCTOR: Er... It's not a floor, it's a... (puts screwdriver away) So...

AMY: (stands) It's a what?

DOCTOR: The next word is kind of the scary word. Take a moment. Get yourself in a calm place. (takes her hands) Go "omm".

AMY: Omm.

DOCTOR: It's a tongue.

AMY: A tongue?

DOCTOR: (excited) A tongue. A great big tongue.

AMY: (stunned) This is a mouth? This whole place is a mouth? We're in a mouth?!

DOCTOR: Yes, yes, yes, but on the plus side, roomy.

AMY: How do we get out?

DOCTOR: (takes out screwdriver) How big is this beastie? It's gorgeous! Blimey! if this is just the mouth, I'd love to see the stomach. (hears grunting) Though not right now.

AMY: Doctor, how do we get out?

DOCTOR: OK, it's being fed through surgically implanted feeder tubes, so the normal entrance is... (sees the sharp teeth of a closed mouth) closed for business.

AMY: We can try, though. (heads forward)

DOCTOR: No! Stop, don't move! (mouth heaves in agitation) Too late. It's started.

AMY: What has?

DOCTOR: Swallow reflex.

They slip and fall back into the refuse. The DOCTOR uses the screwdriver on the mouth walls.

AMY: What are you doing?

DOCTOR: I'm vibrating the chemo-receptors.

AMY: Chemo-what?

DOCTOR: The eject button.

AMY: How does a mouth have an eject button?

DOCTOR: Think about it!

They hear the creature growl, and, on their knees, look to see a wave of bile coming towards them.

DOCTOR: Right, then. (straightens tie) This isn't going to be big on dignity. Geronimo!

AMY yells and there is a great grunting and splashing.

OVERSPILL PIPE

They find themselves out of the mouth and back in the ship.

DOCTOR: (examines the door) There's nothing broken, there's no sign of concussion and yes, you are covered in sick.

AMY: Where are we?

DOCTOR: Overspill pipe, at a guess.

AMY: (stands) Oh, God, it stinks.

DOCTOR: That's not the pipe.

AMY: Oh. (smells herself) Whoo! Can we get out?

DOCTOR: One door, one door switch, one condition. (moves to show the button on the door) We forget everything we saw. Look familiar? That's the carrot. (the lights come on to reveal two Smilers) Ooh, here's the stick. There's a creature living in the heart of this ship. What's it doing there? (the faces spin to show mad) No, that's not going to work on me, so come on. Big old beast below decks, and everyone who protests gets shoved down its throat. That how it works? (the faces spin again to show anger) Oh, stop it. I'm not leaving and I'm not forgetting and what are you fellows going to do about it? Stick out your tongues?

The booths open and the two Smilers stand and walk towards AMY and the DOCTOR who back away.

AMY: Doctor?

The WOMAN appears behind them and sh**t the Smilers. She twirls her p*stol before placing it back in its holster.

DOCTOR: Look who it is. You look a lot better without your mask.

LIZ 10: You must be Amy. Liz. Liz 10.

AMY: Hi.

LIZ 10: (shakes hand) Eurgh! (wipes hand on cloak) Lovely hair, Amy. Shame about the sick. (heads for door) You know Mandy, yeah? (puts her arm around MANDY'S shoulder) She's very brave.

DOCTOR: How did you find us?

LIZ 10: Stuck my gizmo on you. (throws device at him) Been listening in. Nice moves on the hurl escape. So, what's the big fella doing here?

DOCTOR: You're over 16, you've voted. Whatever this is, you've chosen to forget about it.

LIZ 10: No. Never forgot, never voted. Not technically a British subject.

DOCTOR: Then who and what are you, and how do you know me?

LIZ 10: You're a bit hard to miss, love. Mysterious stranger, MO consistent with higher alien intelligence, hair of an idiot... (the DOCTOR points like he's about the argue then runs his hand through his soaked hair instead) I've been brought up on the stories. My
whole family was.

DOCTOR: Your family?

One of the Smilers begins to move.

LIZ 10: They're repairing. Doesn't take them long. Let's move. (they leave the overspill)

LOWER CORRIDORS

LIZ 10 explains as they walk.

LIZ 10: The Doctor. Old drinking buddy of Henry XII. Tea and scones with Liz II. Vicky was a bit on the fence about you, weren't she? Knighted and exiled you on the same day. And so much for the Virgin Queen, you bad, bad boy!

DOCTOR: Liz 10?

A Smiler rises from a booth in the corridor.

LIZ 10: Liz 10, yeah. Elizabeth X. And down! (turns and fires both pistols at the Smilers. Both fall) I'm the bloody Queen, mate. Basically, I rule.

LIZ 10 takes them to another corridor. It is the base of a vator shaft.

LIZ 10: There's a high-speed Vator through there. (The DOCTOR looks into a caged area where there are two of the things AMY saw earlier.) Oh, yeah. There's these things. Any ideas?

AMY: Doctor, I saw one of these up top. There was a hole in the road, like it had burst through, like a root.

DOCTOR: Exactly like a root. It's all one creature - the same one we were inside - reaching out. It must be growing through the mechanisms of the entire ship.

LIZ 10: What? Like an infestation?

DOCTOR: Someone's helping it. Feeding it.

LIZ 10: Feeding my subjects to it. Come on. We've got to keep moving. (storms off in anger and MANDY follows)

AMY: Doctor?

DOCTOR: Oh, Amy. (looks sympathetically at creatures as they bang against the bars) We should never have come here.

AMY remembers her video message.

INT. OFFICE

The GREY-HAIRED MAN is watching the DOCTOR, LIZ 10, AMY and MANDY on his monitor. He speaks into a microphone.

GREY-HAIRED MAN: Winder division one. Ten has penetrated to the lower levels. Initiate the protocol.

INT. OPULENT ROOM (LIZ 10'S BEDROOM)

The DOCTOR walks carefully through the maze of glasses on the floor of LIZ 10'S room.

GREY-HAIRED MAN: (V.O.) God save the Queen

DOCTOR: Why all the glasses?

LIZ 10: (on her bed) To remind me every single day that my government is up to something, and it's my duty to find out what.

DOCTOR: (picks up mask) A queen going undercover to investigate her own kingdom?

LIZ 10: Secrets are being kept from me. I don't have a choice. Ten years I've been at this - my entire reign - and you've achieved more in one afternoon.

DOCTOR: (paces) How old were you when you came to the throne?

LIZ 10: 40. Why?

AMY: (putting her hair up) What, you're 50 now? No way!

AMY and MANDY sit on the chaise at the foot of the bed.

LIZ 10: Yeah, they slowed my body clock. Keeps me looking like the stamps.

DOCTOR: (sits on the bed, still holding the mask) And you always wear this in public?

LIZ 10: Undercover's not easy when you're me. The autographs, the bunting.

DOCTOR: Air-balanced porcelain. Stays on by itself, cos it's perfectly sculpted to your face.

LIZ 10: Yeah. So what?

DOCTOR: Oh, Liz. So everything.

The door opens and four hooded men enter. One is the same from the marketplace.

LIZ 10: (outraged) What are you doing? How dare you come in here?

HOODED MAN: Ma'am, you have expressed interest in the interior workings of Starship UK. You will come with us now.

LIZ 10: Why would I do that?

The HOODED MAN'S head spins to show the face of an angry Smiler.

LIZ 10: How can they be Smilers?

DOCTOR: Half Smiler, half human.

LIZ 10: (to its face) Whatever you creatures are, I am still your queen. On whose authority is this done?

SMILER: The highest authority, Ma'am.

LIZ 10: I AM the highest authority.

SMILER: Yes, ma'am. You must go now, Ma'am.

LIZ 10: Where?

SMILER: The Tower, Ma'am.

INT. MEDIVAL ROOM: The group is escorted to a large stone room containing high-tech machines. There is a grating through which AMY can see more of the creatures.

AMY: Doctor, where are we?

DOCTOR: The lowest point of Starship UK. (spins, arms out) The dungeon.

GREY-HAIRED MAN: Ma'am.

LIZ 10: Hawthorne! So this is where you hid yourself away. I think you've got some explaining to do.

DOCTOR: (to HAWTHORNE) There's children down here. What's all that about?

HAWTHORNE:
Protesters and citizens of limited value are fed to the beast. For some reason, it won't eat the children. You're the first adults it's spared. You're very lucky.

DOCTOR: Yeah, look at us. t*rture chamber of the Tower of London. Lucky, lucky, lucky. Except it's not a t*rture chamber, is it? (examines equipment) Well, except it is. Except it isn't. Depends on your angle.

The DOCTOR joins LIZ 10 by an open "well" with a railing around it. Inside seems to be something alive.

LIZ 10: What's that?

DOCTOR: Well, like I say, depends on the angle. It's either the exposed pain centre of big fella's brain, being tortured relentlessly...

LIZ 10: Or?

DOCTOR: Or it's the gas pedal, the accelerator - Starship UK's go-faster button.

LIZ 10: I don't understand.

DOCTOR: Don't you? Try, go on. The spaceship that could never fly, no vibration on deck. This creature - this poor, trapped, terrified creature. It's not infesting you, it's not invading - it's what you have instead of an engine. And this place down here is where you hurt it, where you t*rture it, day after day, just to keep it moving. (An intermittent electrical beam sh**t down into the creature's exposed brain.) Tell you what. (moves to another well and lifts the grate) Normally, it's above the range of human hearing. (one of the extensions of the creature breaks free) This is the sound none of you wanted to hear. (uses the screwdriver and the others hear the creature's call)

LIZ 10: Stop it. (to HAWTHORNE) Who did this?

HAWTHORNE: We act on instructions from the highest authority.

LIZ 10: I am the highest authority. The creature will be released, now. I said now! (no one moves) Is anyone listening to me?

DOCTOR: (still holding LIZ 10's mask) Liz. Your mask.

LIZ 10: What about my mask?

DOCTOR: (tosses mask to LIZ 10) Look at it. It's old. At least 200 years old, I'd say.

LIZ 10: Yeah, it's an antique, so?

DOCTOR: Yeah, an antique made by craftsmen over 200 years ago and perfectly sculpted to your face. They slowed your body clock, all right, but you're not 50. Nearer 300. And it's been a long old reign.

LIZ 10: Nah, it's ten years. I've been on this throne ten years.

DOCTOR: Ten years. And the same ten years over and over again, (takes her by the hand) always leading you... (shows her the voting area) here. (the buttons read "forget" and "abdicate")

LIZ 10: (turns to Hawthorne) What have you done?

HAWTHORNE: Only what you have ordered. We work for you, Ma'am. The Winders, the Smilers, all of us. (turns on the screen)

LIZ 10: (recording)
If you are watching this...If I am watching this, then I have found my way to the Tower Of London. (the real LIZ 10 sits) The creature you are looking at is called a Star Whale. Once, there were millions of them. They lived in the depths of space and, according to legend, guided the early space travelers through the asteroid belts. This one, as far as we are aware, is the last of its kind. 'And what we have done to it 'breaks my heart. (The DOCTOR, HAWTHORNE, AMY and MANDY watch in silence) The Earth was burning. Our sun had turned on us, and every other nation had fled to the skies. Our children screamed as the skies grew hotter. And then it came, like a miracle. The last of the star whales. We trapped it, we built our ship around it, and we rode on its back to safety. If you wish our voyage to continue, then you must press the "forget" button. (LIZ 10 looks at the button) Be again the heart of this nation, untainted. If not, press the other button. (looks at "abdicate") Your reign will end, the Star Whale will be released, and our ship will disintegrate. I hope I keep the strength to make the right decision.

AMY: I voted for this? (to DOCTOR) Why would I do that?

DOCTOR: Because you knew if we stayed here, I'd be faced with an impossible choice. Humanity or the alien. You took it upon yourself to save me from that. And that was wrong. You don't ever decide what I need to know.

AMY: I don't even remember doing it.

DOCTOR: You did it. That's what counts.

AMY: I'm... I'm sorry.

DOCTOR: Oh, I don't care. When I'm done here, you're going home. (walks away)

AMY: Why? Because I made a mistake? One mistake? I don't even remember doing it. Doctor!

DOCTOR: (examining instrument panels) Yeah. I know. You're only human.

LIZ 10: What are you doing?

DOCTOR: The worst thing I'll ever do. I'm going to pass a massive electrical charge through the Star Whale's brain. Should knock out all its higher functions, leave it a vegetable. The ship will still fly, but the whale won't feel it.

AMY: That'll be like k*lling it.

DOCTOR: Look, three options. One: I let the Star Whale continue in unendurable agony for hundreds more years. Two: I k*ll everyone on this ship. Three: I m*rder a beautiful, innocent creature as painlessly as I can. And then I find a new name, cos I won't be the Doctor any more.

LIZ 10: There must be something we can do, some other way.

DOCTOR: Nobody talk to me. Nobody human has anything to say to me today!

AMY and MANDY sit against the wall and watch helplessly as the DOCTOR works. Three children enter the room. One is TIMMY.

MANDY:
Timmy! (goes to him) You made it, you're OK! (TIMMY says nothing) It's me - Mandy.

They've stopped in front of one of the "feelers" and MANDY has her back to it. The feeler reaches towards MANDY and AMY starts to move forward. Instead of hurting her, it gently taps MANDY on the back and lets her pet it. In a montage, AMY begins to understand

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

DOCTOR: C'mon, use your eyes. Notice everything. Notice everything.

She remembers seeing MANDY crying as she hears parts of LIZ 10's explanation.

LIZ 10: Our children screamed. It came, like a miracle.

HAWTHORNE: It won't eat the children.

LIZ 10: Children screamed. Then it came. It's the last of its kind.

She remembers the DOCTOR with MANDY, the feelers in the vator shaft, the glasses of water.

DOCTOR: Just me now.

LIZ 10: The last of its kind.

AMY: Is this how it works, Doctor? Never interfere with other peoples or planets...

LIZ 10: Children screamed.

She remembers meeting the DOCTOR as a child.

AMY: ...unless it's children crying.

LIZ 10: The last of its kind.

DOCTOR: Just me now.

AMY: Unless there's children crying.

DOCTOR: Yes.

HAWTHORNE: It won't eat the children.

She remembers the children playing when they arrived.

LIZ 10: Then it came. Like a miracle. The last of the Star Whales.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

AMY sees both MANDY and TIMMY petting the feeler.

AMY: Doctor, stop. (goes to the DOCTOR) Whatever you're doing, stop it now! (goes to LIZ 10) Sorry, Your Majesty, going to need a hand. (leads her to the buttons)

DOCTOR: Amy, no! No! (rushes over)

AMY forces LIZ 10's hand down on the "abdicate" button. The whale bellows and the whole ship shakes, causing havoc on every level.

DOCTOR: Amy, what have you done?

AMY: Nothing at all. Am I right?

HAWTHORNE: We've INCREASED speed.

AMY: Yeah, well, you've stopped torturing the pilot. Gotta help. (smiles)

LIZ 10: It's still here? I don't understand.

AMY: The Star Whale didn't come like a miracle all those years ago. It volunteered. You didn't have to trap it or t*rture it - that was all just you. It came because it couldn't stand to watch your children cry. What if you were really old, and really kind and alone? Your whole race dead, no future. What couldn't you do then? If you were that old, and that kind, and the very last of your kind... (turns to look at the DOCTOR) you couldn't just stand there and watch children cry.

OBSERVATION DECK

The DOCTOR is standing alone looking out onto the starship. AMY joins him

AMY: From Her Majesty. (holds out the mask) She says there will be no more secrets on Starship UK.

DOCTOR: Amy, you could have k*lled everyone on this ship.

AMY: You could have k*lled a Star Whale.

DOCTOR: (faces her) And you saved it. I know, I know.

AMY: Amazing, though, don't you think? The Star Whale. All that pain and misery... and loneliness. (looks sideways at the DOCTOR) And it just made it kind.

DOCTOR: But you couldn't have known how it would react.

AMY: YOU couldn't. But I've seen it before. Very old and very kind, and the very, very last. Sound a bit familiar? (they hug) Hey.

DOCTOR: What?

AMY: Gotcha.

DOCTOR: Ha! Gotcha.

INT. LONDON MARKET

The DOCTOR and AMY head back to the TARDIS

AMY: Shouldn't we say goodbye? Won't they wonder where we went?

DOCTOR: For the rest of their lives. Oh, the songs they'll write! Never mind them. Big day tomorrow.

AMY: Sorry, what?

DOCTOR: It's always a big day tomorrow. We've got a time machine. I skip the little ones. (unlocks the TARDIS)

AMY: You know what I said about getting back for tomorrow morning... Have you ever run away from something because you were scared, or not ready, or just... Just because you could?

DOCTOR: Once...a long time ago.

AMY: What happened?

DOCTOR: Hello!

A phone begins to ring.

AMY: Right. Doctor, there's something I haven't told you. No. Hang on, is that a phone ringing?

They enter the TARDIS.

INT TARDIS

AMY: People phone you?

DOCTOR: Well, it's a phone box. Would you mind? (prepares to dematerialize)

AMY: (answers phone on the console) Hello? Sorry, who? No, seriously. Who? (muffles the phone against her shoulder) Says he's Prime Minister. First the Queen, now the Prime Minister. Get about, don't you?

DOCTOR: Which Prime Minister? (motions for AMY to pull a lever)

AMY: (pulls lever before speaking into the phone) Er, which Prime Minister? (to DOCTOR) The British one.

DOCTOR: Which British one?

AMY: (on phone) Which British one? (her eyes widen and she passes the phone to the DOCTOR) Winston Churchill for you.

DOCTOR: Oh! Hello, dear. What's up?

WINSTON CHURCHILL'S OFFICE

CHURCHILL:
Tricky situation, Doctor. Potentially very dangerous. (a shadow on the wall reveals a Dalek) I think I'm going to need you.

DOCTOR: (V.O.) Don't worry about a thing, Prime Minister.

INT TARDIS

DOCTOR: We're on our way.

INT. LONDON MARKET

The TARDIS dematerializes.

EXT. SPACE

AMY: (V.O.) In bed above, we're deep asleep
While greater love lies further deep
This dream must end
This world must know
We all depend on the beast below.

The view of Starship UK changes to reveal the space whale below, swimming on through the stars.