Metamorphosis/Transcript

Will Zimmerman is uncharacteristically absent from the morning team meeting. And his reason for not attending has him literally climbing the walls.
== Cold open ==
=== Teaser sequence ===
INT. - OLD CITY SANCTUARY - UPPER LEVEL - RESIDENTIAL AREA - WILL'S BEDROOM - DAY - 9:04 AM
KATE:Will, wake up! Come on, let's go! You're late for the staff meeting!
WILL:Oh, son of a bitch!
KATE:What's going on in there? You okay?
WILL:Yeah, yeah, I'm just... Just overslept! Tell Magnus I'll be right there.
KATE:Okay.
----
INT. - OLD CITY SANCTUARY - UPPER LEVEL - RESIDENTIAL AREA - WILL'S BEDROOM - DAY
MAGNUS:...several cases of laminitis amongst the Borzels, caused by overfeeding.
KATE:- I can't help it. - They're cute!
MAGNUS:- That may be the... - Will! Nice of you to finally join us.
WILL:Yeah, sorry, I, uh, slept through my alarm.
HENRY:Dude, what's with your face?
WILL:What do you mean?
HENRY:Well, did you sleep on a tennis racket or something?
MAGNUS:- Wait, stop! Don't... - Don't touch it.
----
INT. - OLD CITY SANCTUARY - LOWER LEVEL - ISOLATION ROOM
WILL:What is it?
MAGNUS:The placoid structure is similar, but the enamel is completely different. Henry, pass me a syringe.
WILL:Magnus, can you just, please...
MAGNUS:I need to take some blood.
WILL:That's all very fine and good, but can you fill me in here? I mean... You're acting like I walked out of a Salvador Dalí painting or something.
MAGNUS:You've got something on your face. Now... it could be nothing, but I need to run some tests to find out.
WILL:Well, can I at least see it?
HENRY:Doc?
Yeah.
WILL:What the hell's happening to me?
== Title sequence ==
== Act I ==
Will!
I wouldn't do that
if I were you.
Now you tell me.
Hey, uh, what about
your helmet?
Turns out
you're not contagious.
Well, isn't that
a slice of good news?
How about the fact
that I seem to be
turning into
some sort of lizard?
The blood and DNA tests
came back inconclusive.
A search of your quarters
revealed nothing.
I'm still waiting
for the results
of the full-body scans.
So, in other words,
you have no idea.
When did you
first notice the symptoms?
I didn't.
I first found out about it
when you guys so kindly
pointed it out to me
this morning.
Anything else
out of the ordinary?
Any headaches, any fatigue?
Yeah, a bit of both,
I guess.
I'm thinking, though, that
Tylenol and a power nap
aren't gonna cut it for this.
Have you done anything
unusual this past week?
You mean aside from
everyday normal activity here?
Hm, right.
The important thing,
not to panic.
We'll know more
when the results
of your scans come back.
And what about
the meantime?
And what about
the meantime?
Ah, in the meantime,
you can work...
on these reports
that you owe me.
What?
...left this trail
of gooey...
Hey!
- Hey!
- Well, there he is.
So, Magnus finally
let you out?
Yeah.
I think she, uh,
just put me up there
to get caught up
on some work.
Cool.
What?
Am I interrupting something?
- No.
- No! Not at all.
We're just, um,
talking about, uh...
Baseball!
- Baseball.
- Baseball.
You guys were talking
about baseball?
- Uh-huh.
- Mm-hm.
Yeah, uh...
Jays are looking good
this year.
Uh-huh.
Yeah,
strong middle relief.
Get some production
out of the back end
of the order,
they might do well.
Aw, come on,
give me a break, guys.
Cubbies, Rays, Red Sox,
and I know for a fact
that you guys would
rather watch cricket
than a Jays game,
so what is going on?
It's true.
Really, were you
talking about me, or what?
Uh-huh.
Yeah. Sorry, dude, we...
We didn't know
how comfortable you'd be, and...
Why?
Look, I-I'm the same person,
I just have a few more scales,
that's all.
Just treat me like
you'd normally treat me,
all right?
Okay.
How does it feel?
Doesn't really feel
like anything.
I mean, I can't even
really tell it's there.
Magnus know what it is yet?
No, she's doing tests.
Okay,
this might be an uncomfortable
question, but...
No, no, look,
you can ask me
anything you want, I promise.
Um...
any way you can save us
15% or more
on car insurance?
Geico? That's funny.
You should see your face.
Glad you're having
a good time.
Wow... it must be bad
if you're eating down here.
It's hardly
a reliable indicator.
Actually, I've made
some progress.
Ah. What are those?
Spores.
From some sort of
plant-animal hybrid creature.
Huh... Are they
what's causing this?
They appear to be
altering your DNA
one cell at a time.
Into what?
Well, that I don't know.
The resulting
chromosomal structure
is still evolving,
and so far it doesn't
match anything
in the Sanctuary database.
Okay, so how long
do I have?
- Don't worry.
- It's still early stages.
I'm working on
an anti-viral flush
that should kill the spores.
After that, your body
will likely rid itself
of the mutated cells
naturally.
Hmm. Right...
FADE OUT
FADE IN
No...
It couldn't work like that,
could it?
Oh, yeah...
Will? Do you want
some breakf...
Oh!
Oh, my God.
Interesting.
I used a different word
while scraping scrambled eggs
off the floor,
something with four letters.
I already apologized,
and you need to learn
how to knock.
I did!
You need to not hang out
on the ceiling.
This is going to help you
find out what's
causing this, right?
Actually, this rather
confuses the issue.
I'd originally thought
these spores
were from an offshoot
of the Frilled Coral Rat,
but their habitat
is entirely aquatic.
These...
These are clearly meant
for climbing.
And scaring
the crap out of people.
So we're back to square one?
Well, not exactly.
With this new variable,
I don't need to waste my time
testing the theories
I was working with.
Yeah, that's kind of
what square one means.
Here, this is
a mild antimetabolite.
Let's see what effect it has.
There we go. Right.
I'm going back to my lab.
Try to relax,
and let me know
if there's any changes
in your physiology.
Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa...
You see that, right there?
What?
That look.
You're going all
Marcus Welby on me,
and I know you only do that
when you're really
worried about something.
Don't be silly.
I'm running some tests.
I'll come back
and check on you later.
Dude...
Are we not knocking
anymore, or what?
I heard about
your special ability.
I have a job for you.
What kind of a job?
You're going
to love it. Come with me.
- Yeah, sure.
- I'm going crazy in here.
- Exhibit A...
- Baccarat crystal chandelier
given to Magnus in 1938
by the Marquess of Linlithgow.
Exhibit B...
I think I see
where this is going.
Magnus has been hassling me
for months
to change the bulbs
in that chandelier,
but I am telling you, dude,
there is not a ladder
on the market
that is tall enough
to get up there,
and all the flying residents
wanted cash, so...
I'm your lizard.
Yes! You're a lifesaver.
Check this out.
Dude, this is amazing!
You're like Spider-Man,
but without the tights,
thankfully.
This may come in handy.
Ow...
Hey, what's wrong?
I don't know,
it's just
really bright or something.
Will! Will!
Hey! You okay?
Help!
I need help here!
FADE OUT
CUT IN
All right, all right.
Take it easy.
Yeah, so much for
the Spider-Man routine.
Count yourself lucky.
Your hardened bone structure
and the scaling on your body
protected you from
a more serious injury.
What were you doing
up there, anyway?
He was changing a light bulb
on that chandelier.
It's on a winch!
There's a control panel
under the staircase.
Yeah, I probably
should have known that.
What the hell?
You've developed
a sensitivity to UV rays.
Yeah, you think?
This is a good thing.
Yeah, I know, Magnus,
it's another symptom.
When are we going to
find out what it is?
Actually, I have a theory.
First, we need to
take precautions
to protect you from
direct sunlight.
I really
appreciate this, guys.
Aw, hey, man,
it's the least we can do.
Yeah, sunshine's
overrated anyway.
Ah, there.
You're good from here
to your room,
all the way to your office,
including the elevator.
Just remember
to press "down."
Right...
There you are.
I've been looking
everywhere for you.
All you had to do
was follow
the trail of black fabric.
What is it?
I finally figured out
why the DNA of this creature
you're turning into
isn't in
any of our databases.
It's not from Earth.
You mean, like...
like...aliens?
Your experience with
the sunlight gave me the idea,
so I scanned through the records
that Tesla was able to glean
from the holographic map,
and I found a perfect match.
Don't tell me.
I'm afraid so.
I appears that the creature
that infected you
is from Hollow Earth.
WHITE OUT
== Act II ==
FADE IN
EXT - ESTABLISHING SHOT - OLD CITY - SANCTUARY - DAY
I wanted to show you this
before I talked to Will.
It's called a Cillobar,
a predatory plant-animal hybrid.
Boy, that is one ugly weed.
Comparatively rare,
even by underworld standards.
It reproduces
by infecting its victims
with its spores.
You did not
run across any Cillobar.
We didn't have to.
According to the data,
the creature blooms
at the end of its life,
spreading hundreds of spores
over a wide area.
Now, most aren't viable,
but the ones that are
can survive outside a host
but the ones that are
can survive outside a host
for up to six months.
So Will just picked one up
along the trail to the city?
We must have
crossed through
its habitat at some point,
perhaps while we were
running through
the Basilisk field.
Okay, what about us?
Your scans came back clean.
- You?
- As did mine.
Remind me never to
go camping in Hollow Earth.
What can we do about it now?
Well, unfortunately,
there's very little
information in the file
about how to treat
a suspected contamination,
but now that we have an idea
where this is headed,
we have options.
Such as?
Henry... I'd like you
to get in touch with Ranna.
Okay...
Um, wait, as in Praxis,
Hollow Earth Ranna?
She'll put us in touch
with my father.
Now, if anyone can provide us
with information
on a treatment,
he can.
Okay, but is this
a good idea?
I mean, Ranna was pretty firm
on the whole "Don't call us,
we'll call you" dynamic.
I don't care.
She can yell at us all she wants
when we reach her.
Quick sidebar.
Um, how exactly
am I reaching her?
You said you'd been
working on something
since we got back.
Well, yeah...
Speed it up.
Speed it... Hmm.
You know, most people
choose
to rest when they're sick.
Yeah, not me.
I, uh, just thought
I'd catch up
on some filing here.
And how's that going for you?
Not well.
My eyes hurt, and, uh,
there's also this...
Oh...
When did that happen?
A couple hours ago.
What did Magnus
have to say about it?
It doesn't matter.
I'm still turning
into that thing, so...
Did you want something?
No, it can wait.
No, but really,
what is it?
Um...
Abby called.
I told her
you weren't feeling well,
but she...
she asked to see you.
Yeah, I don't know.
Know what?
Don't worry about it.
I'll take care of it.
Thanks.
- H.
- Hey.
How's it going?
Oh, yeah, good.
You don't have
to lie, man.
Now I know how Marconi felt.
Can't get
the signal there?
Getting it there
is not an issue.
Just have to create a modified
ultra-low-frequency wave,
hijack a little time
on the U.S. Navy's
Seafarer transmitter,
and then boom.
However...
What's the problem?
The city's the problem.
If you'll recall,
it's surrounded by
massive lodestone deposits
which effectively
make it impossible
for an EM transmission
to go in either direction,
so in order to
punch through that,
I have to find
a high frequency wave,
somewhere in the region
of 150 to 200 exahertz.
So, low to get there,
high to get in.
- Yup. Oh, man.
- Forehead, meet brick wall.
Henry!
Yeah?
I need you
to gear up the van.
We've just had a report
of a Terrakopolus on the loose
in Trench Park.
Okay, I'm on it.
Listen, dude,
I'm going to jump back on this
when we're done, okay?
It's gonna take some time
for the data to compile anyway,
so, uh, just hang in there.
Yeah, I know,
I can't go.
Don't worry about it.
I'll, uh, hold down
the fort here.
Thanks, Will.
Come in.
Hey...
It's not easy, huh?
Being left out of the action.
No, it sure does suck.
Come on. Come on,
I want to show you something.
After you.
Wow.
What is this place?
What is all this stuff?
Whiskey.
Found the remnants
of an old still
about 40 years ago.
Been refining it ever since.
...so Magnus comes in
and shuts the window,
and he's stuck out there naked
for two hours!
I had to climb up
and knock on his window.
What were you thinking?
I've never been
so happy to have fur.
What about you?
Sons of bitches, you...
Oh, I think
he's had enough.
You guys really know
how to kick it back here.
I tell you, this is...
This is great.
Oh, this is just
one of the many ways
we spend our time.
Speaking of which,
they'll probably be back soon.
Right. Wait for it.
Wait for what?
The song and dance.
Yeah.
Song and dance?
Every time you guys
come back from an op,
all you can do
is talk about it.
What? No...
- Yes!
- Yes.
It's not really
that bad, is it?
You go on and on
about how spectacular
the latest takedown was.
In minute detail.
...so we chase it
down an alley, right,
we got this thing
cornered, okay...
And it starts to freak out
because it's got
nowhere else to go, right?
And then all of a sudden...
It splits into two!
Right there in front of us.
I was going
to tell them that!
Yeah, but you can
tell them the other thing.
Okay, so all of a sudden,
we're fighting this thing
on two ends, right,
because there's me
on one side,
there's Hank on the other...
Yeah, and it's ugly,
I mean, it's so...
FADE OUT
FADE IN
EXT - ESTABLISHING SHOT - OLD CITY - SANCTUARY - DAY
Hey.
Oh! God...
I'm never gonna
get used to that.
Hank said
you didn't eat dinner.
Yeah. Wasn't hungry.
Still, you should eat.
Okay, Mom.
I'm just sayin'.
What's wrong,
you're not hungry?
Yeah, just... my hands.
I can't control my grip.
Okay, um...
Here.
No, no, no, no.
- No, relax.
- Just... just eat.
Just eat.
Don't make me make
the choo-choo sound.
Thank you.
Okay, I came up
with an algorithm
to modulate the transmission
between the upper and lower ends
of the EM spectrum.
The tricky part was encoding
a binary message
that could just...
- Okay, all right.
- What do we do?
You just type
your message into here.
Um, I've taken the liberty
of composing one already,
if that's okay?
Yeah, good.
Okay, so, uh,
well, we just hit "send."
And now...
And now we wait.
Once they get the message,
they're going to
have to decode it,
they're going to
have to decode it,
get it into Ranna's hands,
then find a way
to transmit it back,
providing they get
our message at all,
or choose to reply.
Well, I don't think Ranna
would ignore
a direct request like this.
Well, either way,
it's going to take
a little bit of time.
All right.
What the..? This is them.
They're writing back.
Can you translate?
Yeah.
"No cure
for Cillobar infection.
High risk
for further exposure.
Terminate subject
immediately?"
Write them back, tell them
it's Will who's infected.
"Subject is Will.
Please advise."
Did we lose them?
No. Getting a lot of
interference, though.
Ah, here we go.
"Forbidden communication
under Senate authority..."
"Kill subject immediately."
WHITE OUT
== Act III ==
FADE IN
84 chromosomes and counting.
He's transforming faster
than I can catalog
the changes.
His sensory neurons
are starting to mutate.
God knows what's going on
in the rest of his brain.
Treatment?
I've tried a combination
of chemotherapy, radiation,
angiogenesis inhibitors,
and ultrasound,
and nothing... nothing makes
a damn bit of difference!
You have to keep trying.
I know, I'm sorry.
How about
the latest round of tests?
12 failures.
Only one showed
a minor reduction
in the mitosis
of the affected cells.
Promising.
It's hardly enough
to slow down the disease,
let alone stop it,
not to mention
reversing its effects.
It's something.
- You're right.
- You're right.
Prep a syringe.
That's more like it.
How you feeling?
I'm fine.
I-I've got something else
I'd like you to try.
Okay.
I'm not going to lie to you.
This is a bit of a long shot,
but this particular treatment
did show some promise
in the most recent
set of tests that I did.
Well, then,
let's hope this is the one.
Let's hope.
I'll check back with you
in about an hour.
Magnus...
Do you think you could, uh...
dial this number for me?
Please?
Of course.
Thank you
for everything.
Hey, I'm checking messages
when I'm back
in cell range,
so leave me one.
It's Will. Uh...
I know you probably won't
get this for a while, but...
I've been thinking about you
a lot lately, and...
next time you're in port,
I need you to call
that number that I left for you.
Ask for Helen Magnus.
It's important.
Bye, Dad.
Hello?
Hey!
Wait!
Hey...
Wait.
Stop!
- Will?
- Will, what's wrong?
Help! Help, someone!
It's okay, it's okay.
You're all right.
Will... You've lost
the ability to speak.
Your vocal cords
must have fused
during the transformation.
We'll figure out
what all this means
in the morning, all right?
In the meantime,
I'm going to give you something
to help you sleep.
Hey.
- Shh...
- No habla, remember?
Hold up, I have an idea.
Um... Okay, I'll ask you
some questions,
and you just point
to "YES" or "NO."
Okay?
Just...
Just give it a chance.
Are you hungry?
What do you need water,
do you need-do you need food?
Will! Will, no!
Will, we're just
trying to help you!
No!
Will!
Down! Stay down!
Relax!
This is for
your own safety, Will.
I hope you can understand that.
It's going to be okay, dude.
We're going to figure this out.
You just hang in there.
WHITE OUT
== Act IV ==
FADE IN
EXT - ESTABLISHING SHOT - OLD CITY - SANCTUARY - NIGHT
Hey, what are you doing?
Just filing a few things.
I wanted it to look nice
in case...
You want some help?
Yeah.
Pfft.
You know I haven't lost anyone
since my father died?
I mean,
guys I used to run with,
but nobody... nobody close.
Will's not dead.
I don't really know
how to deal with this.
You just do.
Magnus?
I just... had a thought.
S-Something
I wanted to check out.
Now, it turned out
to be a dead end,
but it gave me another idea...
Magnus...
- Don't. All right?
- I know what I'm doing.
You haven't slept in days.
What's your point?
You're in denial.
Why? Because I'm not huddled
in a corner somewhere
wailing aw...
I need to work.
You know this.
Will is gone.
Leave me alone.
Stop putting on a show.
How dare...
What did you just say?
We are all of us in pain.
No, no, no. No, you just said,
"Stop putting on a show."
Yes.
Of course.
Of course she would do
something like that.
Come on.
Henry!
Can you pull up
that message that Ranna sent?
Okay.
Uh...
Is that the whole thing?
Yeah. Why?
There's an underscore here
at the end of
the first sentence.
Why would she do that?
I don't know.
Maybe she's a bad typist.
She typed it in cuneiform.
Clearly this was intentional.
I think she's trying
to tell us something.
"Forbidden
communication under."
You don't think...
Wasn't there
some interference
when the message came through?
Yeah, but I screened it
for binary data.
We got everything she wrote.
What if the interference
is the message?
Like a sound file?
I don't know.
Anything she sent
would have been scanned
by their outgoing data filters.
I think the Senate
would have caught that.
Play it for me.
It's just gonna
sound like static, so...
Slow it down.
Morse code.
You've got
to be kidding me.
Ranna would have known
that the data filters
wouldn't be looking
for something so primitive.
- Henry...
- I'm on it.
Yup.
"Gooban?"
That's what it said.
Are you sure?
Yeah, I checked it twice.
- I don't believe it.
- It's in here.
This is the data Tesla collected
from the holographic map.
What does it mean?
Well, apparently
he was a botanist of some note
over 600 years ago.
He resurrected
an extinct species of mushroom
that now bears his name.
Gooban.
What does this
have to do with Will?
Oh, my God.
It might actually work,
I-if we hurry.
Find Kate and get Will.
Sedate him and
bring him to my lab.
You're with me.
What can I do?
I need an untainted
sample of Will's DNA.
Dr. Gooban's technique
was to use the spores
of a living species
to stimulate cell growth
in an extinct one.
You think we can do
the same thing?
The Cillobar spores
are essentially
a delivery mechanism
for the creature's DNA.
Once introduced, they initiate
a rapid reproductive cycle
which is impossible
to control, but...
if I can inject Will's DNA
into the spores...
We may be able to use them
to reverse the process.
It's a long shot,
I grant you,
and even then,
we still don't know if any
of Will's original chromosomes
exist in the creature.
All I need is one cell.
Hey, buddy,
it's time to wake up.
Hank...
What the...
Oh, man, how the hell
did he get through that?
Hank?
Oh, crap.
It's working.
The cells are starting
to revert back
to their original state.
Where the hell
are Henry and Kate?
Perimeter sensors!
What happened?
Sorry, he caught us
by surprise.
Up you get.
Where is he now?
Gone.
WHITE OUT
== Act V ==
FADE IN
EXT - ESTABLISHING SHOT - OLD CITY - SKYLINE - NIGHT - WATER TOWER
All right,
so as you can see,
we have
our two sightings here.
Support teams are in position,
10-block radius.
Good.
We have a chance of
containing him, at least.
What about the treatment?
Four doses each,
mixed with a powerful sedative.
How sure are you
about this stuff?
Well, we've never
tested it, so...
you all have to be prepared
if it doesn't work.
What do you mean?
She means we may need
to use lethal force.
What?
We can't risk
further contamination.
We've no idea of the life cycle
of this creature.
If it reaches maturity,
it could release
its spores at any time.
All of us need to be willing
to do whatever's necessary.
If not, you can
recuse yourself now,
no questions asked.
We're good.
Henry?
Yeah.
Spread out
and stay in radio contact.
He can't have gone far.
Will?
Will, it's Magnus.
I know you're near by.
Stay back!
Stop.
I will shoot.
Is he out?
We have to get him
back to the Sanctuary
right away.
SCENE FADE INTO NEXT
EXT - ESTABLISHING SHOT - OLD CITY - SANCTUARY - DAY
There you are.
How do you feel?
My, um, my throat hurts.
It's only been a few days.
It'll take a while before
your recovery is complete.
On the positive side,
this will do wonders for
your Bruce Willis impression.
- Jokes...
- That's a good sign.
Can I, um...
You gave us all
quite a scare.
Easily took 10 years
off my life.
Yeah, well,
I think you can afford it.
Magnus...
You don't have
to say anything.
I do.
Thank you.
You don't know
what it was like.
Being trapped inside here,
watching all of you
slip away from me...
I don't ever want that
to happen again.
It won't, I promise you.
Except...
you know that whole
climbing the wall thing?
That was really cool.
You think maybe we could...
No.
Really?
W-what about, um, uh,
the super strength?
How about that?
No.
Hey, how about
a-a claw?
A claw on my left hand!
Magnus! Magnus!
== End credits ==
/Credits
Category:Season_3/Transcripts