Script VO

FORGOTTEN LIVES

Erry day is Gwensday, woohoo

( Ce script VO a été retranscrit par Metonia dans son livejournal, merci à elle)

Torchwood theme. 

GWEN: The twenty-first century is when everything changes. And you’ve got to be ready.

 

Mobile rings. Vaguely domestic sounds in the background (kitchen, etc.).

 

GWEN: (picks it up) Hello?

 

MAN: (a bit faint and whiny-sounding) Hello…

 

GWEN: … Who is this?

 

MAN: (Welsh)

 

GWEN: Sorry, my Welsh isn’t too –

 

MAN, INTERRUPTING: (Welsh)

 

GWEN: How did you get this number?

 

MAN: Jack! Jack Ha-Harkness.

 

GWEN: Wha?

 

MAN: Jack!

 

GWEN: What, Jack, wh – What are you saying –

 

The man continues saying Jack’s name, while a deeper male voice talks over him, sounding as though he’s trying to get the phone away from the man.

 

MAN: Help, Jack! (hangs up)

 

GWEN: Hello? He– Rhys, Rhys!

 

RHYS: What’s happening? You alright, love?

 

GWEN: No, ah yeah – No, it’s Jack, it’s Jack!

 

RHYS: Jack Harkness! Was that him?

 

GWEN: No, but he needs us, Rhys, he needs our help.

 

RHYS: (sighs) Bloody Torchwood!

 

Torchwood theme.

 

New scene. A car whizzes by. What sounds like a woman speaking Welsh on a bad-quality radio.

 

GWEN: (turning it off) No – sorry, that’s it. That’s all you get up here.

 

RHYS: Not even Radio 2! What a country.

 

GWEN: (scolding) Rhys.

 

RHYS: Joking. I like North Wales!

 

GWEN: (chuckles)

 

RHYS: When I was a boy, I drove all the routes around here with my uncle. It’s what first inspired me to get into haulage.

 

GWEN: Inspired?

 

RHYS: Yes, inspired.

 

GWEN: (dorky laugh)

 

RHYS: You’re not the only one in this car with a vocation.

 

GWEN: (serious) … Do you miss it?

 

RHYS: We agreed. Keep our heads down, stay off the radar. We’re too well-known in the industry!

 

GWEN: But – you miss it.

 

RHYS: (sighs) You really think that message came from Jack? After all this time –

 

GWEN, INTERRUPTING: I know you think we’re wasting our time –

 

RHYS, INTERRUPTING: No, I hope we’re wasting our time!

 

GWEN: Look, if Jack’s in trouble, Rhys –

 

RHYS: Jack is trouble, Gwen! That’s the point of Jack. Whenever the world stops ending, he just –

 

GWEN: Fucks off, I know.

 

RHYS: No sign of him in five years! So if he’s back –

 

GWEN, INTERRUPTING: The world’s probably ending! (laughs) Again!

 

RHYS: You don’t have to look so happy about it.

 

GWEN: Say, we do need to deal(?) with that massive pile of laundry. And the duvet needs washing.

 

RHYS: What’s with the duvet(?) –

 

GWEN, INTERRUPTING: King-size. And your turn to change it.

 

RHYS: Come on, you alien invasion.

 

GWEN: There. There’s the turning.

 

The car slows down and stops.

 

RHYS: The Bryn Offa Nursing Home. Dementia and Mental Health, with Nursing Care. Just like it said on the website.

 

GWEN: Well, it would do. It’s probably a cover.

 

RHYS: What?

 

GWEN: Alien experiments. UNIT detention. Lock-up for the inconveniently temporally-displaced. Look, there. The people who live on the streets, they know stuff. Ianto always used to keep a few rough sleepers on the payroll as (?)mance.

 

RHYS: So maybe she’d been paid to keep quiet.

 

GWEN: So we pay her more. (sound of her shoes on gravel) Hi! Can I have a word?

 

WOMAN: No. No, i-it’s time.

 

GWEN: Time? Time f-for what, you okay?

 

WOMAN: Tea time. I want my tea.

 

GWEN: Why is she going in?

 

RHYS: Maybe she works there.

 

GWEN: No, she looks way too young.

 

RHYS: Gwen.

 

GWEN: What?

 

RHYS: Company.

 

GWEN: (tsks) Calm down, it’s just a man. Can I help you, sir?

 

MAN: Bet you can, Gwen Cooper. Come here! (kisses Gwen)

 

GWEN: Whoa, I think you should know that I’m married!

 

RHYS: Hey listen, pal, I don’t care how dodgy you are, you touch my wife again –

 

MAN: And Rhys Williams too, am I glad to see you! (kisses Rhys)

 

GWEN: Okay, Casanova, who are you?

 

MAN: Oh. Please tell me you’re joking, it’s me! Jack!

 

GWEN: (disbelieving) Jack!

 

RHYS: Jack? But you’re – old! Really old!

 

(JACK): I lost count around the late 2000s. But have you ever considered a career as a diplomat?

 

GWEN: Are you okay?

 

(JACK): No. No, I’m dying. That’s why you have to get me outta here. Where’s the SUV?

 

GWEN: We don’t have – We don’t have one anymore.

 

RHYS: Jack would know that.

 

(JACK): I did know that. It’s – it’s this body. Frontal lobes are shot along with the heart and lungs and everything else. I can’t hold it together much longer, but we need to go. Now. Gwen Cooper, I order you –

 

MAN: Mr. Griffith. Out of bed again?

 

(JACK): Ah, stand back. Get your hands off me, we’re armed! Gwen, you brought the weapons?

 

GWEN: Wha – I –

 

MAN: Alright, Mr. Griffith, let’s just calm down now, shall we? You want another heart attack? Nurse Bevan has brought your (?)

 

BEVAN: There we go, lovely.

 

(JACK): No. I don’t need them.

 

MAN: Let’s get you inside, and stop bothering these nice people.

 

(JACK): (strained as Bevan takes him away) Let me go! I need to leave now! Gwen! Rhys!

 

MAN: Hi, I’m Gary. Uh, who are you?

 

Skip ahead a bit, inside the home.

 

GARY: No. You’re – Gwen, and Rhys. No really, Gwen and Rhys?

 

RHYS: Why. What’s he said about us?

 

GARY: Oh, I couldn’t possibly comment. It’s just – In the last few weeks, he suddenly started asking for you. It happens, sometimes, with dementia. They start reliving old memories, almost like going back in time. I don’t suppose you know a ‘Tosh’, do you? Or a ‘Ianto’?

 

GWEN: Uh… Yeah, they uh – they’re no longer with us.

 

GARY: I see. Shame. Ianto sounded a bit lovely. But of course, I should have expected it. It’s just – well, I thought you’d all be a lot older. I mean, he is 93, and – How do you know him, again?

 

GWEN: He’s my uncle.

 

RHYS: (grunts)

 

GWEN: Yeah, he – he is my great-uncle. We’re very close – well, we were, once.

 

GARY: It happens. Dementia changes people. They can fall out with loved ones. In the early stages, you know, before anyone realises what’s happened. I see it all the time.

 

WOMAN: (walks by moaning in Welsh)

 

GARY: It’s all right, Elunedd. Let’s get you a nice cup of tea, now.

 

ELUNEDD: (whimpers)

 

GARY: I said, people changed. Elunedd’s lost all her English. Now she only speaks Welsh. The language of childhood, see. None of her family siarad Cymraeg, so… (sighs) It’s a cruel disease. But you know that. Don’t need me going on. But you look on the bright side, haven’t you.

 

Piano in the background.

 

GARY: (short laugh) Listen to that. She may not speak English, but she can still remember the piece she learned for the (?)Eisteddfod of 1936. Beautiful, Lun. New drugs are really helping her a lot.

 

GWEN: Ah, new drugs. Would these be experimental miracle pills?

 

RHYS: Possibly of mysterious origin?

 

GWEN: Thank you, Rhys.

 

RHYS: Welcome.

 

GARY: Do I look like a drug dealer to you? Don’t answer that. No, seriously, our doctors won’t prescribe anything that’s not fully tested and approved. We keep detailed records –

 

GWEN, INTERRUPTING: Can I see them?

 

GARY: Sorry, they’re confidential, obviously.

 

GWEN: I know, data protection nightmare, right? Oh, well, if it’s okay with you, I’ll just pop up and see my uncle.

 

GARY: Uh, not today, I’m afraid. The doctor’s very worried about him.

 

GWEN: I’m very worried about him. I need to see if he’s okay.

 

GARY: He survived five heart attacks. Unless you want to bring on number six, you better come back another time.

 

RHYS: (ingratiating) Please, Gary, mate. Just a couple of minutes. We’ll be really quiet. You’ll hardly know we’re there.

 

GARY: … Well. Seeing as you’ve come all the way from Cardiff –

 

GWEN, INTERRUPTING: Yes.

 

GARY: I’ll just go and check with Dr. (Kerry?). (gets up and walks away) Hey Matty(?), is the doctor still with Mr. Griffith?

 

GWEN: …Wow, look at you, charmer.

 

RHYS: Still got it.

 

They laugh quietly.

 

ELUNEDD: (walks over and talks to Gwen and Rhys)

 

GWEN: Elunedd? Is that your name?

 

ELUNEDD: (Welsh)

 

GWEN: You’re the one who called us? Aren’t you? Rhys, how’s your Welsh these days?

 

RHYS: I can ask where’s the toilet.

 

Gwen sighs as her mobile rings.

 

GWEN: Don’t start. (answers the phone) Hello? Mum?

 

ANWEN: Mummy!

 

GWEN: (sweetly) Ohh, hiya, darling, hiya! Did Nana say you could use the phone?

 

ANWEN: I miss you and Daddy.

 

GWEN: Well, it’s been less than a day, and you’ve only just got home from school!

 

ANWEN: When are you coming home?

 

GWEN: Very soon, darling. Yeah, just got to finish this boring work thing.

 

RHYS: (urgently) Gwen!

 

GWEN: Oh shit. Sugar! Sugar.

 

Gwen and Rhys get up and hurry outside.

 

ANWEN: What’s wrong?

 

GWEN: (distracted) Uh, a naughty man’s trying to steal Mummy’s car, but we’ll stop him. Be good for Nana, no sweets until after you’ve done your teeth. Bye bye, darling, bye, love you! (hangs up)

 

Outside, the car is rolling away. It’s raining.

 

RHYS: Stop! Stop the car!

 

(JACK): Rhys! Rhys Williams! Get out of the way or I swear I’ll run you down!

 

RHYS: Look, old man. I don’t know how you managed to hotwire my car, but you are not safe to drive!

 

GWEN: (opens the car door, very unamused) All right, whoever you are, get out.

 

(JACK): Gwen! Listen to me. We have to stop the Evolved experiment. They tricked me! It’s not just the old people. It could destroy the whole human race!

 

GWEN: Okay, okay, right, then look, look. We’ll – we’ll look into it, but you are not well, okay? You should be in bed.

 

(JACK): (kills the engine) Ah, now there’s an offer I can’t refuse. Will Rhys be joining us?

 

GWEN: Well, if you’re not Jack, you’ve definitely met him.

 

(JACK): Gwen, Gwen. Ignore the body. I know I look like hell. But it’s me. It’s Jack. And we need to save the world!

 

GWEN: If you’re Jack, why didn’t you call me yourself?

 

(JACK): They wouldn’t let me use the phone! Elunedd helped me out.

 

GWEN, INTERRUPTING: And how long have you been here?

 

(JACK): I don’t know. Weeks, months…

 

GWEN: (upset) Well so why didn’t you call before?

 

(JACK): I – I thought I could handle it –

 

GWEN, INTERRUPTING: (angry) We’re a team, Jack. Okay, we saved the world together. Why didn’t you –

 

(JACK): Look at me! I’ve got wrinkles! Liver spots!

 

GWEN: Ugh.

 

(JACK): And you should see the hernia scars – Well, you shouldn’t –

 

GWEN, INTERRUPTING: Whoa whoa whoa. So y-you didn’t call because you’re too vain?

 

(JACK): I didn’t want you to see me like this.

 

GWEN: Didn’t stop you trying to cop a quick snog when you got here.

 

(JACK): Oh, you’re irresistible, Gwen Cooper!

 

GWEN: And so is Rhys, apparently.

 

(JACK): Like I said. It’s been weeks –

 

GWEN: Get out.

 

(JACK): Please, Gwen.

 

GWEN: I’m driving. Rhys, it’s Jack in an old man’s body. Get in!

 

RHYS: (sighs)

 

GARY: (running up) Wait! What are you doing?

 

GWEN: Jack, get a shift on.

 

(JACK): All right.

 

They drive away.

 

GARY: (?), the gates. He’s a sick man! You can’t just take him! Stop this car!

 

RHYS: He’s not gonna move!

 

GWEN: Hoh, he’ll move.

 

The car tires squeal.

 

GARY: (Welsh?) (sounding farther away) I’m calling the police, you madwoman!

 

RHYS: She is the police! (?)

 

(JACK): They’ve shut the gates!

 

GWEN: Okay, through the fence, it is. Now, brace yourselves.

 

RHYS: What?

 

GWEN: Here we go!

 

They drive through the fence, shouting.

 

RHYS: …Oh-ho, can I open my eyes yet?

 

GWEN: Yes, Rhys, we’re fine, hardly dented. Uh, much. You okay, Jack?

 

(JACK): Still dying. Not dead!

 

RHYS: (tightly) So… Jack. Where’ve you been?

 

(JACK): A lot of places. It’s been a while.

 

GWEN: (angry) Five years. Five.

 

(JACK): And you can still destroy me with a syllable.

 

RHYS: Well, just to lighten the mood, what’s about to destroy the Earth this time?

 

(JACK): Nothing. The Earth’s fine.

 

RHYS: Seriously?

 

(JACK): Yeah. But the people. All the people are in horrible danger.

 

RHYS: There you go.

 

GWEN: You said we have to stop the Evolved experiment.

 

(JACK): Yes. They’re coming tonight.

 

RHYS: This Evolved thing. Is it alien? Nod for yes. Oh, surprise surprise.

 

GWEN: Okay, Jack, what do we need to do?

 

(JACK): Well, keep me alive. Body worn out.

 

RHYS: Okay, we’ll get you to a hospital.

 

(JACK): No, can’t – can’t help. Need alien tech.

 

RHYS: Well, where are we supposed to get that?

 

(JACK): Torchwood.

 

RHYS: Torchwood’s gone, mate. Remember?

 

(JACK): Torchwood everywhere.

 

GWEN: Yeah, he’s right, there’s hidden stores, secret caches all over the place.

 

RHYS: Well, I thought we tapped all them while we were on the run.

 

GWEN: Only the ones we knew about. Jack, are you saying there’s a Torchwood stash somewhere around here?

 

(JACK): Yes, hidden entrance, in a slag heap.

 

RHYS: (sputtering) We’re in North Wales! There are slag heaps everywhere!

 

(JACK): Just keep driving. I’ll direct.

 

RHYS: He doesn’t look good, Gwen. Maybe a hospital –

 

(JACK), INTERRUPTING: No! No hospital. I need – biostabiliser. Try!

 

GWEN: It’s okay, Jack. Look, we’re gonna find it. Okay, we’ll find it; w-we’ll get you there. It’s gonna be fine.

 

Scene change. At the nursing home.

 

GARY: He’s a very ill man. They won’t get far. Call the hospitals, and tell them to look out for a –

 

WOMAN: What about the police?

 

GARY: Not yet! He’s a resident, not a prisoner. He’s free to leave if he wants to.

 

WOMAN: But shouldn’t –

 

GARY, INTERRUPTING: No! If this gets in the papers, we’re finished. Let’s just get him back where he belongs, okay?

 

Scene change. It’s raining.

 

GWEN: (hushed) Jack. Jack, wake up. Rhys is back.

 

(JACK): (unwell) Rhys.

 

GWEN: Did you find it?

 

RHYS: No.

 

GWEN: (frustrated) Bollocks.

 

RHYS: (sighs) I’ve been up and down, round and round in the pouring rain, and you know what I found? Mud, and stones. No secret base, no alien tech.

 

(JACK): Heart.

 

GWEN: Yeah, I know, Jack, I know. Did you check the northeast side? He said there’s a heart-shaped rock –

 

RHYS, INTERRUPTING: Yeah, I know what he said. And there is no white, heart-shaped rock, on the northeast side, or the southeast side, or the bloody north by northwest side!

 

GWEN: Right. Well, maybe I should, I should’ve just done it in the first place, like I –

 

RHYS, INTERRUPTING: Go on, you’re welcome, go on! But I’m telling you, I’ve been over every inch of that thing. That, my love, is just a normal, boring slag heap. And this man is seriously ill, and needs medical attention.

 

GWEN: Jack, are you sure we’re in the right place?

 

(JACK): White heart.

 

GWEN: We haven’t found it, Jack. Think, think! Is there anywhere else!

 

RHYS: (under his breath) He looks terrible, Gwen, you’ve got to get him to a doctor –

 

GWEN: (similar volume) He said not to.

 

RHYS: He’s dying!

 

GWEN: He’s Jack, he can’t die.

 

RHYS: Love, even if he is Jack, that body’s worn out. He said so! We can’t help him, not out here!

 

GWEN: Alright. (sighs) Jack, listen to me. We can’t find the stash and you’re really poorly, so we’re gonna take you to a hospital, okay?

 

(JACK): No. I remember.

 

GWEN: What do you remember?

 

(JACK): Hot buns.

 

RHYS: What’d he say?

 

GWEN: I think he said ‘hot buns’.

 

RHYS: (‘okay then’) Hot buns.

 

GWEN: (angry) Jack! Jack, look at me!

 

RHYS: He’s not breathing, Gwen.

 

GWEN: I know, I know. Jack, Jack, stay with me. Look, I’m gonna try, I’m gonna try CPR.

 

RHYS: (suddenly aggravated) I-I’ll do it, you just keep talking to him. Go on. (starts CPR)

 

GWEN: (increasingly anxious) Okay, Jack, listen to me. Okay, you’re not dying, are you, Jack? It’s a trick. Well, you’ve finally got that snog you always wanted off Rhys, so, so you can stop messing about now, right? Right? You can come back to us! You know, uh, you know how it’s done, you just gasp and y-you sit up like you always do! We always know w-what you – Oh, come on, Jack, we, we know where you’re going – Just come back, oh god, please, come back!

 

Sad music. Still raining outside.

 

GWEN: (quietly) He can’t be dead. Jack can’t be dead.

 

RHYS: I know, love. But that man, Mr. Griffith –

 

GWEN, INTERRUPTING: Rhys, I’ve seen him die, so many times. He’s never looked so, so… He’s never looked like that.

 

RHYS: That last thing he said.

 

GWEN: Mm.

 

RHYS: Hot – buns.

 

GWEN: Yeah. Always thinking about sex. Even when he was a – No, that man was not Jack. No, h-he couldn’t have been.

 

RHYS: (earnest) Well, whoever he was, if he was around these parts in the eighties, he’d know all about hot buns.

 

GWEN: Ugh.

 

RHYS: The best (?) buns in North Wales.

 

GWEN: (sighs)

 

RHYS: Me and Uncle Mike would drive an extra hour just to get our hands on one of their bacon baps(?).

 

GWEN: (sighs again)

 

RHYS: He always bought a couple of um. You know, um. (clears his throat) But they never got any (?) with it. Mike and the lads (?) that. Oh, their chips and curry were to die for. …Sorry.

 

GWEN: What are you saying, Rhys? What, h-he used his last breath to ask for a bap?

 

RHYS: I’m saying, hot buns was always (?) in the same (?) –

 

GWEN: Yes?

 

RHYS: (triumphant) – which was right by a slag heap!

 

GWEN: Ye – Rhys Williams, I could kiss you.

 

RHYS: (laughs) Turns out today’s my lucky day after all!

 

GWEN: Later. (starts up the car) Maybe we can still save Jack.

 

They drive off. Scene change. Footsteps on the ground.

 

RHYS: You said it looks like a heart? Or more like an arse?

 

GWEN: Close enough. Give me the torch.

 

Mechanical noises start.

 

GWEN: Yes. There we go. See?

 

RHYS: Wh-what’s that? Where’s the stone gone?

 

GWEN: Oh, the stone was just a biometrically-coded portal.

 

RHYS: A what now?

 

GWEN: A door that can only be opened by a registered Torchwood operative.

 

RHYS: (laughs)

 

GWEN: Oh yes, yes yes yes yes yes! Open sesame!

 

RHYS: What?

 

GWEN: Sorry. Sort of – crap thing Jack would say.

 

More mechanical groaning noises. Like rubble falling/moving.

 

GWEN: Here we go.

 

RHYS: Bloody hell.

 

GWEN: (sounds like she’s smiling) Rhys Williams. Welcome to Torchwood Wrexham.

 

RHYS: Torchwood Wrexham?

 

GWEN: Well, Torchwood Wrexham bypass. Close enough. Right. (clears her throat) Let’s go get Jack.

 

Scene change. In a cave, with dripping sounds.

 

GWEN: Okay, this one. This has gotta be the biostabiliser, I’ve seen Owen use them (?).

 

RHYS: I’m saying nothing. Go on. Start up, then.

 

GWEN: Right. Does this look like an on-switch to you?

 

RHYS: I thought they trained you up for stuff like this!

 

GWEN: (expansive) There’s an infinite universe, out there, Rhys. An infinite number of species, all with different bodies, different minds, different ways of thinking and communicating.

 

RHYS: So you never developed a standard procedure for dealing with alien tech, huh?

 

GWEN: Uh, hello, yes, we did, actually. Push every button and hope for the best. Wish me luck. (fiddles with the device) Come on, Jack.

 

RHYS: How will we know when it’s working –

 

(JACK?): (quiet gasp)

 

GWEN: That’s him.

 

(JACK?): (in a different, meeker voice) W-what happened? Who’re you? Where – where am I?

 

GWEN: It’s okay, Jack. It’s just us, Gwen and Rhys.

 

RHYS: We brought you back from the dead, you lucky boy.

 

(JACK?): Am I a boy, now? No, I’m a man. I’m an old man! (whimpers)

 

RHYS: That’s not Jack, is it.

 

GWEN: Oh, my god. Who have we brought back.

 

Scene change. Footsteps in the rain.

 

WHOEVER’S IN GRIFFITH’S BODY: Where are we going? Where are you taking me?

 

GWEN: It’s all right, love. We’re here to help you. Now, let’s start with your name, okay? Who are you?

 

GRIFFITH: I d-don’t know.

 

GWEN: Just take your time. Breathe. I know this is very upsetting, but I promise you’re safe. Nobody’s going to hurt you.

 

GRIFFITH: But they did last time. Injections, I screamed! They held me down!

 

GWEN: Last time? Where were you, last time?

 

GRIFFITH: That home! That home for mentals! Old mentals! And I was one of them!

 

GWEN: You were an old person?

 

GRIFFITH: (getting upset) I was an old woman, and, and now I’m an old man, but it’s not real is it? It’s in my head. I’m wrong in the brain, just like Mam said!

 

GWEN: No, you’re not. I just need you to think, and be brave, and tell me your name.

 

GRIFFITH: Ceri.

 

GWEN: Ceri. Good, okay. Ceri. And how old are you, Ceri?

 

(CERI): I – don’t know!

 

GWEN: (stern, but kind) Yes, you do. And I’m not going to judge you, or accuse you of lying. Just tell me how old you think you are.

 

(CERI): Fifteen.

 

GWEN: Okay, thank you. Now listen to me, Ceri. You’re not mentally ill. All of this really is happening.

 

(CERI): But how?

 

GWEN: Because somebody’s doing dangerous experiments on people. Giving them bad drugs.

 

RHYS: Alien drugs.

 

(CERI): Aliens?

 

GWEN: (angry, at the same time as Ceri) Rhys! We don’t know that for sure. But I won’t lie to you, it’s a possibility. Anyway, here’s the good news, we can stop this! And you can help us.

 

(CERI): How?

 

GWEN: Well, to start with, you can tell us exactly what happened. How did all this start?

 

(CERI): I – I don’t know.

 

GWEN: Come on, yes. You – yes, you do. You do.

 

(CERI): (flounders for a moment) I’m begging my usual part, by that home, and this old woman, she comes up to me and I know she’s got no cash, ‘cause she’s one of them, the mentals! And they never has! So I, I looks away, and then…

 

GWEN: Yes, go on.

 

(CERI): This – shadow comes over me. And it’s like I’m in the shadow. I am the shadow. I need to (?) so bad, but I can’t. I – I think I crashed out. Then I’m in the home, and I’m her. And the old man. But it can’t be right, it makes no sense! They, they’re going to lock me up!

 

RHYS: No, they won’t. We won’t let them.

 

GWEN: No. No, but – we do need you to do just one thing for us.

 

Scene change. In the car.

 

(CERI): (fearful) I’m not going back there. Don’t make me go back there!

 

GWEN: It’s not for long, not even one night.

 

(CERI): No!

 

GWEN: Ceri, if you do this, we can stop what’s happening, find a way to reverse it, make you a young girl again. Wouldn’t you like that?

 

(CERI): I just don’t want to go in there.

 

GWEN: (aggressive) So, what? You want to stay an old man for the rest of your days? Or do you want to get your life back?

 

(CERI): …Life.

 

GWEN: (in a low voice) Okay then. So. Here’s the plan. You make your way into the grounds. Wander about a bit. Look confused. Let them find you. Remember, you’re a tired old man. Can’t remember where you’ve been, anything they ask, you don’t understand. You go to your room and have a nap. Then, in the middle of the night, let’s say –

 

RHYS: Two a.m.?

 

GWEN: – Two a.m., you go downstairs, you make sure nobody’s about, and you open the back door.

 

(CERI): They keep the doors locked. And the windows.

 

GWEN: Which is why I’m giving you this. (brandishes something)

 

(CERI): What is it?

 

GWEN: Doesn’t matter. All you need to know is, point it at the lock, and click.

 

RHYS: Text us to let us know that it’s done.

 

(CERI): (handling the device) What’s that?

 

RHYS: It’s a phone. Just a normal phone.

 

(CERI): Okay, so. Point –

 

GWEN: Yep.

 

(CERI): – Click –

 

GWEN: Yep.

 

(CERI): – Text?

 

GWEN: Yep.

 

(CERI): What (?)?

 

GWEN: Whatever you like. You can walk out the door, or stay. Your choice. But don’t go too far, because once we’ve found out what’s going on, we’ll find a way to put things right.

 

(CERI): How? W-who are you anyway?

 

GWEN: We’re Tor- I’m Gwen Cooper and this is Rhys Williams.

 

RHYS: Hi.

 

GWEN: We’ve seen this sort of thing before. And worse, much, much worse. And I promise you, Ceri – we’re going to sort this out.

 

Scene change. Wildlife noises at night. Still raining.

 

GWEN: (whispering) Two-oh-seven? Come on, Ceri.

 

RHYS: (whispering) Do you think he’ll do it? I mean, she?

 

GWEN: (sighs)

 

RHYS: Confusing, this stuff.

 

GWEN: Oh, you get used to it.

 

RHYS: Didn’t take you long.

 

GWEN: What do you mean?

 

RHYS: Torchwood Gwen’s back, isn’t she. Taking charge, saving the world.

 

GWEN: What else am I supposed to do, he’s letting those people in there, get on torturing (?) people.

 

RHYS: Everybody else has. The rest of the world’s let them to it.

 

GWEN: (raising her voice) Then maybe the rest of the world is the problem, not me!

 

RHYS: …You know. You haven’t mentioned Anwen since we brought the old man up.

 

GWEN: Anwen is fine. Our daughter is perfectly safe. And I – am working.

 

RHYS: You do realise nobody’s paying us for this.

 

GWEN: Us.

 

RHYS: Wha…

 

GWEN: (amused) You said ‘us’.

 

RHYS: (nonplussed) Well, yeah. We’re working together.

 

GWEN: And, you said working. You in Torchwood now?

 

RHYS: Well I’m not letting you go in there alone.

 

Gwen gets a text.

 

GWEN: Ah, good girl.

 

RHYS: Ceri?

 

GWEN: Yeah, she’s done it. Come on!

 

They go up to the door, and Gwen tries opening it.

 

RHYS: Quietly!

 

GWEN: It’s still locked. Maybe she meant the other door.

 

The door opens, and Gary is there.

 

GARY: (neutrally) Hello, Gwen, Rhys?

 

GWEN: You told him.

 

(CERI): I don’t have a (?) with me, not my phone(?), he found the phone!

 

GARY: Don’t run away. I’ve got the night staff covering the grounds.

 

GWEN: We’re not going anywhere. I’m not leaving these poor people with you for a moment longer.

 

GARY: Please, don’t make a scene, my residents will get upset.

 

GWEN: Yeah, and what are you gonna do? Call the police?

 

GARY: I know you’re very upset –

 

GWEN, INTERRUPTING: Oh, I’m not upset. I’m angry. There’s a difference.

 

RHYS: Actually, maybe we should call the police. Let them know what’s going on here.

 

GARY: I really don’t want to get the police involved.

 

RHYS: Thought you wouldn’t!

 

GARY: Let’s – not let this situation get out of control. How can I help anyone? Look, why don’t you just – come inside for a chat, eh?

 

GWEN: Alright.

 

They go inside and shut the door. Someone is walking.

 

GARY: Nurse Bevan, would you do some teas and coffees? How do you take it?

 

GWEN: (curtly) I don’t want tea.

 

GARY: Well I do. I’m parched. And I think you need to calm down.

 

RHYS: Pff, ooh, Gary, you’re a braver man than me.

 

GWEN: I say he’s stupider.

 

GARY: Sorry. Listen, Gwen. I’ve been doing this job for a long time. I’ve seen it all. It’s not the first time this has happened. Believe me, I understand.

 

GWEN: I don’t think you do.

 

GARY: I know you’re not criminals. You just made a mistake.

 

GWEN: No, it wasn’t a mistake. He asked us to take him away; he begged us.

 

GARY: Yes. It happens, quite a lot.

 

RHYS: I’m not surprised.

 

GARY: Look, it’s easy for you to stand there and judge.

 

RHYS: Yes it bloody is!

 

GARY: (sighs) We get a lot of bad press in this job. We’re only trying to help people. The truth is, losing someone – not their body, but their mind – piece by piece, is absolute torture. When the person you loved is gone. But they’re still there. You want to help them, but you can’t. Nobody can. So. It’s easier to blame us. And I’ve seen it all. It’s not just people with dementia who lose it, who do stupid things, like running away. It’s their friends and families.

 

GWEN: But Jack didn’t have dementia, did he.

 

GARY: Jack. Is that what you call him, Mr. Griffith?

 

GWEN: It’s his name.

 

GARY: Okay. Well. You have to understand sometimes, when our residents see someone from the past, they get upset. And Mr. Griffith – Jack – hasn’t had any visitors for as long as I’ve been here. So when he saw you, he got agitated. Maybe spun you a bit of a yarn, said we were doing all sorts, am I right?

 

GWEN: Ah, he said you were conducting experiments on your residents.

 

Footsteps start again.

 

GARY: There you go. So that’s the side of it you’ll see. The paranoia. The fear. But what you don’t see is that he’s mostly been happy here. Oh, tea!

 

BEVAN: There you go.

 

GARY: Thank you. You sure you won’t have a cup. Gwen, Rhys? Oh, go on, you must be gasping!

 

RHYS: You’re joking, mate. We’re not touching anything in this place.

 

GARY: We passed every inspection with flying colours! Certificates are all on display.

 

GWEN: Food hygiene rating: Five out of five. Well done. How many stars did they give your alien drugs?

 

GARY: (incredulous) You what?

 

ELUNEDD: (walks over, creaking in Welsh again)

 

(CERI): I tried to stop her from following me(?).

 

GWEN: Shh shh shh, it’s all right, it’s all right, you’re safe now, nothing’s gonna happen.

 

GARY: Lun? You get out of bed, love? Come on. Let’s ask the nurse for something to help you sleep.

 

(CERI): No!

 

GWEN: You leave her. You won’t give her anything, it’s over. We’re shutting this place down.

 

GARY: What’s going on? Not from the council, are you?

 

RHYS: No. We’re from your worst nightmare.

 

GWEN: Bit dramatic.

 

RHYS: (quietly, sheepish) Sorry. Well go on, then. Get the gun out.

 

GARY: Gun?

 

(CERI): You never said you had a gun –

 

GWEN: Ah, well that’s real with the moment. You don’t say “Get the gun out” before you get the gun out. (gets the gun out, a futuristic-sounding one)

 

GARY: Oh!

 

GWEN: And hands in the air, by the way.

 

GARY: What is that thing?

 

GWEN: This is a Mulefanian(?) disintegrator.

 

ELUNEDD: (Welsh)

 

(CERI): Looks like a pink hairdryer.

 

GWEN: Yeah, it does. It looks exactly like a pink hairdryer. And let me tell you why – It’s pink, because in the Mulefane(?) system, pink is the traditional colour of fighting. And the bulky shape is to accommodate the three mini-black holes which power it. And incidentally, that’s also why this weapon was banned by the Shadow Proclamation throughout the universe.

 

RHYS: (impressed) You know a lot about it.

 

GWEN: It was the one item in the cache they managed to label properly. Probably because if you don’t know what you’re doing, it can vaporise a planet. (authoritative) I said, hands in the air.

 

GARY: Okay, okay.

 

GWEN: (fires the gun, causing a bunch of noise and what sounds like piano keys being randomly hit)

 

ELUNEDD: (scared noises) Piano!

 

(CERI): How did you do that?

 

GARY: (nervously) What did you do? Where’s the piano?

 

GWEN: Right there. Just reduced to its constituent molecules. So, unless you want the same to happen to you, I suggest you work on not pissing me off so much. What do you reckon?

 

GARY: I-I will, I swear. Whatever you want.

 

GWEN: All right, here’s what we’re gonna do. We’ll gonna round up all your staff, put then in one room, and lock the door. (over Gary’s stutters) And don’t tell me you don’t have any rooms that lock on the outside, because I won’t believe you, Gary. Do you understand?

 

GARY: Yes.

 

GWEN: Good. We’re getting somewhere, right. Let’s lock up your staff with tea and biscuits and (?). And then, we’re gonna take a look around. Find out what’s really going on here.

 

Scene change. Still in the home.

 

RHYS: Right. That’s all of them.

 

GWEN: (calm and menacing) Good. I want everyone out of the way. So. Gary. Tell me all about those new drugs.

 

GARY: I’m not a doctor!

 

GWEN: I know you’re not. You’re just a very silly man who’s got no idea what forces he’s been messing with. I’ve met your sort before, Gary. It’s okay, we can save these old people and maybe even save you. But you have to be honest with me.

 

GARY: (starting to babble) I am. I don’t know what’s in the drugs. They try out new things all the time – I’ll let you check the medical records if you –

 

GWEN: Don’t knock me about, Gary. I’m looking for one very special drug. It’s an alien drug. Side effects may include swapping minds.

 

GARY: I’m not saying I couldn’t do without this kind of language, but – you’re mental! Stark raving bonkers!

 

GWEN: What did I say about pissing me off? (fires the gun again)

 

GARY: …The telly! That was new, that was! We had a special grant for that!

 

GWEN: That was the final warning shot. The next target is you.

 

GARY: I can’t – I don’t know anything! Rhys, please!

 

RHYS: Can’t help you, mate. Unless you start helping my wife.

 

GARY: A-anything, j-just tell me what you want!

 

GWEN: (hotly) I want Jack back.

 

GARY: I don’t know who he is!

 

GWEN: Wrong answer!

 

GARY: Please!

 

(CERI): What’s going on, then? You’re not going to kill him?

 

GARY: No!

 

GWEN: I don’t like killing, Gary. It never gets easier, not for me. But I will pull this trigger if I have to, and I think you know that. So, for the very last time – What have you done to Jack?

 

GARY: (sobbing) Nothing! I don’t know, please, I don’t know anything. I promise, I’d tell you if I did!

 

RHYS: Gwen, you’re – you’re really not gonna do this, are you –

 

GWEN, INTERRUPTING: (vehemently) Gary, I will find Jack, with or without you, which is it to be?

 

GARY: I wish I could help you –

 

GWEN: All right then.

 

RHYS: (panicked) Gwen, no, no –

 

GARY: Please!

 

A brief squeezing sound and then silence.

 

(JACK): Gwen. Lower your weapon. He doesn’t know anything.

 

GWEN: Jack?

 

(JACK): Guess I got here just in time.

 

GWEN: Jack, is that really you?

 

(JACK): Oh yeah, Gwen Cooper.

 

GWEN: (relieved) Oh, thank god. (turns off the gun, or whatever)

 

GARY: Does that mean I can go?

 

(JACK): No. We’re locking this place down. Nobody leaves, nobody gets in. And no phone calls. They can pick up on the mental energy.

 

GARY: Who can?

 

(JACK): Go check on your residents. Calm ‘em down, reassure them. Do what it takes, but do not let anyone leave. For their own good. Rhys, help him.

 

RHYS: Let me guess. Gwen, with me.

 

(JACK): Gwen, with me.

 

RHYS: Hm.

 

(JACK): We need to secure the perimeter. Remember, you guys – nobody goes anywhere. I cannot emphasise this enough! If you try to leave, you’ll bring about the end of the world.

 

Scene change. Rain. Footsteps.

 

GWEN: Sounds like a storm.

 

(JACK): Atmospheric disturbance, not a good sign. We haven’t got long – They’re coming.

 

GWEN: Who’s coming? Aliens?

 

(JACK): Yep. But the freak weather conditions might help us out. Keep our guys inside and keep other people away from this place. Shame you had to total that fence.

 

GWEN: I was breaking you out.

 

(JACK): Still. There’s other ways to discourage visitors. Give me the gun.

 

GWEN: It’s heavy. Are you sure you can manage it?

 

(JACK): Hey, I’m fine. (takes the gun and fiddles with it) Good work with the biostabiliser.

 

GWEN: Hm.

 

(JACK): When this guy finally gets his body back, he’ll probably live to 150. And you made a good choice with the M(?)GP6. One of my all-time favorite weapons, very versatile. Okay, calibrating boundaries, and you might wanna step this way a bit. Force field active – Don’t touch it! – The M(?)GP6 is an awesome bit of kit; useful for attack and defense. It can generate an impenetrable barrier around a limited area.

 

GWEN: So if anyone tries to get in here?

 

(JACK): They’ll be dust. Same as if anyone tries to get out.

 

GWEN: People could get hurt, Jack.

 

(JACK): We have to take that chance. We have to stop them at all costs.

 

GWEN: Who? (frustrated) What are we fighting, Jack?

 

(JACK): They choose to call themselves the Evolved. And that’s pretty much all you need to know about them for now. Superior, judgmental, and psychopathic.

 

GWEN: Oh, why don’t we ever meet nice aliens?

 

(JACK): These are the nice ones. Or so they think. That’s why we’re screwed as all hell if we let them win. Let’s get inside.

 

GWEN: Oh, but you love standing in the rain. You think it’s dramatic.

 

(JACK): Not when you’ve got rheumatoid arthritis; come on.

 

GWEN: What’s going on, Jack? Where are you – I mean, the real you.

 

(JACK): You mean my body? The last time I looked, I was stuck out in (?) Four.

 

GWEN: And where’s that?

 

(JACK): Omega Centauri. About twelve parsecs from the central black hole.

 

GWEN: Yeah, alright, I don’t need a map. What were you doing there?

 

(JACK): Investigating the Committee. I had to. After the Miracle, I realised they were getting too close. That time they nearly succeeded in destroying Earth’s civilisation. I had to stop them from trying again.

 

GWEN: But theTthree Families caused the Miracle, not the Committee.

 

(JACK): You think they came up with the idea all on their own? No… Somebody pushed them. And the Committee never gives up. Once they target a world, they always take over in the end.

 

GWEN: So, hold on. The Committee stole your body.

 

(JACK): No. The Evolved did. And they’re coming for all of us. They’re coming for Earth.

 

ELUNEDD: (in the distance) Mummy! Mummy!

 

GWEN: Listen, what’s that?

 

(JACK): It’s Elunedd. She gets confused and distressed, and… Well, I owe her one. Come on, let’s go find her.

 

Scene change. Indoors, thunder outside.

 

ELUNEDD: Mummy! Mummy!

 

(JACK): Too old.

 

GWEN: Can I help you?

 

(JACK): Gwen, careful –

 

GWEN, INTERRUPTING: Hey, there, are you okay?

 

ELUNEDD: Mummy…

 

GWEN: Shh shh, it’s okay. Elunedd, right?

 

ELUNEDD: (sobbing) I was looking for you! And I couldn’t find you!

 

GWEN: Come on, let’s get up to your room.

 

(JACK): Gwen.

 

ELUNEDD: What’s happening? Why am I so old? Why are we here?

 

GWEN: It’s all right.

 

ELUNEDD: It’s not all right. I’m frightened. Make it stop!

 

GWEN: I wish I could.

 

(JACK): Gwen! She’s speaking English!

 

GWEN: Yes! I know!

 

(JACK): The Evolved steal bodies and minds and that’s not Elunedd!

 

GWEN: Who is she, then?

 

ELUNEDD: You know who I am!

 

GWEN: No.

 

(JACK): What’s your name?

 

ELUNEDD: I don’t talk to strangers!

 

GWEN: It’s okay, he’s not a stranger. You can tell us your name.

 

ELUNEDD: You know my name. It’s Anwen.

 

Scene change.

 

GWEN: (in a low voice) Come on. Come on, pick up, pick up.

 

(JACK): I told you not to –

 

GWEN, INTERRUPTING: Shut up, Jack. If you’re right, it’s already too late. Mum? Oh, thank god, yeah. Um, yes, I do know what time it is. I just need you to check on Anwen? Yes. Now. Well, wake her up.

 

(ANWEN): Mummy, I’m not on the phone.

 

GWEN: Is she there, can I speak to her?

 

(ANWEN): I’m here! Mummy…

 

GWEN: Anwen. Anwen, sweetheart, baby – (shushes Anwen in person) Anwen. English, just talk to me in English, please, speak English… Mum? No, it’s okay, she’s just, uh, probably been learning it at school. No, not the doctor, not in the middle of the night. Just put her back to bed, she’ll probably be herself by morning. Sorry, yes! I-I’m really sorry for waking you up and making you panic. It’s fine. Speak tomorrow, okay, love you, bye-bye. (hangs up) Anwen.

 

(ANWEN): Mummy?

 

GWEN: Baby. (murmurs soothingly to her) What has happened to my daughter, Jack?

 

(JACK): (quietly) It’s the Evolved. Already, I thought we had more time.

 

GWEN: (low and simmering) Why would they take Anwen?

 

(JACK): Because they can.

 

GWEN: No.

 

(JACK): To test their power, and warn you off.

 

GWEN: Oh, this is not how you warn me off, if they wanna fight. If they want a fight, they’ve got one.

 

(ANWEN): Mummy. I want to go home.

 

GWEN: Shh shh.

 

(ANWEN): Where’s Daddy?

 

GWEN: Oh, god, Rhys. (suddenly shouting as she gets up and runs) Rhys, oh, Rhys! Rhys!

 

A door swings open noisily.

 

RHYS: Gwen! What’s happening?

 

GWEN: They’ve taken Anwen.

 

RHYS: What? How?

 

(ANWEN): I’m not taken. I’m here.

 

RHYS: No. She’s not.

 

GWEN: She is, she is that. Anwen.

 

RHYS: Oh.

 

(ANWEN): Daddy. I don’t like the storm, Daddy.

 

RHYS: No. Keep away from me. You’re sick. All of you!

 

(ANWEN): But Daddy, I want a, a hug.

 

GWEN: Rhys, please, trust me. You’ve seen what’s going on. I know this is horrible, but it’s real and it’s happening.

 

(JACK): I’m sorry, Rhys. It’s true.

 

RHYS: (angry) You. Back in our lives one day, and already it’s gone to shit!

 

GWEN: Oh, Rhys, not in front of our – (pleading) How could you do this, Jack, haven’t we suffered enough for you?

 

(JACK): (as Anwen cries quietly) I needed you. I was desperate.

 

RHYS: Anwen. Oh, Anwen.

 

(ANWEN): Daddy. I love you.

 

RHYS: I love you too.

 

(ANWEN): Good. (brightening up suddenly) Can I play on your phone?

 

RHYS: Not now.

 

(JACK): Actually, that’s a good idea. It’ll distract her.

 

GWEN: From what?

 

(JACK): Trust me. Just give her the phone.

 

RHYS: …Right. Here you go, love.

 

(ANWEN): Yeah! (giggles as she starts playing a game)

 

RHYS: (sighs) Jesus.

 

GWEN: Okay, Jack. How do we put this right, how do we get her back?

 

(JACK): I don’t know.

 

GWEN: No, no no no no no. I don’t believe you. We can beat this things, whatever they are.

 

(JACK): And that’s why I brought you here.

 

RHYS: And put our daughter in danger.

 

(JACK): No! Never. I never thought – I didn’t think they could do this. Not so soon. They like to think they’re so benevolent, then they do stuff like this. Always beware the ones who think they’re the good guys.

 

RHYS: Jack, you better give me an answer. What’s really going on here?

 

(JACK): Listen to the storm, Rhys.

 

RHYS: It stopped. So?

 

(JACK): It means we’ve run out of time.

 

A noise starts up.

 

GWEN: What’s that light? Outside the sky’s all lit up.

 

RHYS: It’s a UFO, is it?

 

(ANWEN): (distressed again)

 

RHYS: It’s okay. Shh, shh shh.

 

More UFO noises and a dull thud.

 

GWEN: You said they were the good guys.

 

(JACK): I said they think they are.

 

GWEN: Who are they, Jack? What do they want with my family?

 

(JACK): Okay, this is what you need to know about the Evolved.

 

Scene change.

 

(JACK): The Evolved are the only civilisation who have managed to resist the Committee of Erebus. When planet after planet in the region was falling, the Evolved worlds were never touched. I had to find out why. So, after the Miracle, I traveled to (?) Four. I told them about Earth, and begged them to help me save it. We agreed to a controlled experiment.

 

GWEN: You agreed to this.

 

(JACK): I didn’t realise what it would involve!

 

RHYS: So these Evolved. They’re the ones doing all this mind-swapping, right?

 

(JACK): Right.

 

RHYS: But why?

 

(JACK): It’s the basis of their society. Every so often, they all switch minds.

 

RHYS: You mean like, one day you could be rooting a planet(?), the next day, cleaning the box(?)?

 

(JACK): They call it their gift. The theory is, you treat everyone well because you could be them tomorrow.

 

GWEN: Oh, that’s crazy.

 

RHYS: (makes a considering noise)

 

(ANWEN): Oh Mummy, can we go now?

 

GWEN: I hope so, sweetheart. So. This is the result of your experiment. I hope you’re happy.

 

(JACK): It wasn’t meant to – They wanted to see if the Earth was suitable for their gift. Just a few test subjects.

 

GWEN: Test subjects? You mean people.

 

(JACK): We needed people who wouldn’t cause alarm if they started behaving strangely. Their behavior was expected to be erratic.

 

RHYS: People who didn’t matter.

 

(JACK): It was only a few residents! That’s all it could be. The connection over such a vast distance, really limited; dial-up modem rather than broadband. So they could only connect with vulnerable, damaged minds. People too weak to resist the takeover. But they’ve been growing stronger. Sucking in more people. Any suitable minds which came into contact with the house. The homeless teenager.

 

GWEN: Ceri. And Anwen. Our innocent little girl, is that what you mean by ‘vulnerable’?

 

(JACK): I tried to stop them! As soon as I realised they were planning on connecting to the Earth in force.

 

RHYS: They what?

 

(JACK): I tried to call off the experiment. But they wouldn’t listen. They tricked me into finding a new planet for their civilization. They wouldn’t let it go. And they wouldn’t let me go. When they realised they couldn’t kill me, they trapped me in this body.

 

GWEN: Good. I hope you went through hell, Jack Harkness.

 

A growing low sound.

 

(JACK): I have. Believe me. And there’s one more thing you should know about the Evolved.

 

RHYS: (dreamy and haughty, with a slight echo to his voice) We are here.

 

GWEN: (increasingly panicked) Oh, no, no no no no no no. Not Rhys, you can’t take him. Give him back. Give me back my husband, and give me back my daughter!

 

(EVOLVED): Hm, the connection is building. Soon, we can bring our gift to all of this world.

 

GWEN: Oh, please!

 

(EVOLVED): If you care for your offspring, you will accept our gift. Imagine a world where nobody is left behind. Do you not say you can judge society by how it treats its weakest members?

 

GWEN: Not me, I say this. Get out, and you leave this planet alone!

 

(EVOLVED): This planet has such potential! There is so much good in your nature, and yet so much anger. So much pain, hate, conflict, fear – we could stop it all! We offer you peace, happiness.

 

(ANWEN): Daddy, stop doing that silly voice. I don’t like it.

 

GWEN: Yes, stop it right now. (powers up the disintegrator) You give me back my husband, or I will –

 

(EVOLVED): (chuckles) What, what will you do if I refuse?

 

(ANWEN): Mummy, remember the rule, we don’t point guns at people, even toy guns!

 

GWEN: (quietly) I know.

 

(ANWEN): You were pointing the gun at Daddy!

 

GWEN: That’s not Daddy, sweetheart.

 

(ANWEN): You’re being silly.

 

(EVOLVED): (as Gwen puts the disintegrator away) Yes, yes she is, Anwen. So. What is it to be. Will you accept the gift of the Evolved?

 

A door swings open.

 

GWEN: No. Maybe it works for you, but our people are different.

 

(EVOLVED): We are not asking you.

 

GARY: What is going here? What…

 

(EVOLVED): You. The carer. Would you like to make your world a better place?

 

GARY: I like to think I do my bit. I (?) last year. (?) that triathlon, never cheated once, cross my heart. Charity, isn’t it?

 

(EVOLVED): Yes. It is.

 

GARY: And there’s my job. I’d do anything for my residents. All of them. My life!

 

(EVOLVED): But your kindness is not reciprocated. It is not even appreciated. Is it worth it?

 

GARY: (tetchy) Listen. I have been hit, spat at, accused of stealing, mistaken for that long-lost uncle they never liked. But I have also seen the most wonderful moments of kindness and human connection. Shining through when everything else is gone. Even language. Even memory. I’ve seen the very worst of people. But I’ve also seen such goodness, such pure, unconditional love. So yes, it’s worth it.

 

(EVOLVED): Thank you.

 

GARY: What?

 

(EVOLVED): You’ve said enough. We are convinced that what you say is true. Or at least, that you believe it to be true.

 

A ringing noise.

 

GARY: Ha. Alright, then. Tidy.

 

(JACK): Good old Gary.

 

GWEN: What’s happening, has Gary saved the world?

 

(JACK): I wish. Come with me.

 

They walk somewhere and open a door going outside, stepping into the mud.

 

(JACK): There aren’t enough Garys in this world, or any world. Look out there at the night sky. At Swansea, over there.

 

GWEN: Think that’s Ll(?).

 

(JACK): Oh, it doesn’t matter. Look up, over there. That’s Omega Centauri. Millions of stars. Trillions of sentient beings, not many Garys.

 

(EVOLVED): Take down your force field, Captain Harkness.

 

(JACK): Not a chance. You’re not getting any further than this nursing home.

 

GWEN: Really, we can hold them here?

 

(JACK): Oh, yes. Told you that, Gwen, was a versatile bit of kit.

 

(EVOLVED): You tricked us!

 

(JACK): Well, you tricked me. Your transmission beam is pinioned here. You can’t spread your gift out to the human race. Thanks to you, Gwen Cooper, it ends here.

 

GWEN: Did you hear that? Go. You can’t take this planet.

 

(EVOLVED): Maybe not. But we can still expand our civilisation. (walks away)

 

GWEN: What? What do you mean – Come back! (runs after them) What do you mean, ‘expand your civilisation?’

 

(EVOLVED): We are benefactors, not invaders. We do not waste our technology on the worthless. Selfless societies are very rare. But selfless individuals do exist. And we have learned where to find them. We study the most vulnerable groups, and look for those who devote themselves to protecting the weakest. Gary.

 

GARY: Me? W-what?

 

(EVOLVED): You are the only person we have encountered who is truly worthy of our gift.

 

GWEN: Whoa, wait, you can’t do this.

 

(EVOLVED): What makes you think you can stop us?

 

GWEN: Jack. No, stop this!

 

(EVOLVED): Gary.

 

GARY: Yes?

 

(EVOLVED): Gary, prepare to receive the gift of the Evolved.

 

GARY: I’m sorry?

 

(EVOLVED): Your body will be transported. You will begin your new life in the fellowship of the Evolved.

 

GARY: (worried) No, really. You all right?

 

(EVOLVED): Come, Gary. Time to begin your new life.

 

GARY: What? I’m sorry. I don’t understand. I like my old life, (?) and… Nooo!

 

Gary is abducted. Or something. While screaming.

 

GWEN: Gary? Gary!

 

(JACK): And that’s what you get for being nice.

 

GWEN: Jack, you let them take him! You had no right to do that!

 

(EVOLVED): Some do not appreciate the gift of the Evolved. Not at first. They learn. As your offspring shall.

 

GWEN: No, not Anwen.

 

(EVOLVED), INTERRUPTING: Her mind is already held in our neuro network.

 

GWEN: No, no no no, please, take me, please –

 

(EVOLVED), INTERRUPTING: We do not want you. Like your society, you have not evolved past the primitive faiths. Your minds are merely random masses of pulsating emotions, directed at a few simple targets. Your parents, your mating partners, your offspring.

 

GWEN: Anwen, please.

 

(EVOLVED): But she… she is young. Young enough to learn a better way.

 

(JACK): No, she’s not. She’ll be no good to you. Children in this society need their parents. You don’t want young. You want old. Really old.

 

(EVOLVED): We already have you.

 

(JACK): Yes. But I’ve got a pretty special kind of mind. Thousands of years of traveling in time will do that. So far, you’ve just sampled my mind. But I’ll give you the whole lot, freely. If you let go of everybody else.

 

(EVOLVED): You think you deserve to join the Evolved?

 

(JACK): I’m no Gary. But I’m all about the greater good these days. Look into my mind. Check out some of the stuff I’ve done. I think like you guys.

 

The ringing noise again.

 

(EVOLVED): (intrigued) Boastful human. You compare yourself to the Evolved.

 

(JACK): That’s not a boast. It’s a confession.

 

(EVOLVED): It is so. You could be of use to us.

 

(JACK): Well, you know what to do. But give back Rhys and Anwen. In fact, all the minds you swapped. Put them back where you found them. Do we have a deal?

 

(EVOLVED): …Deal.

 

GWEN: (despairing) Jack, no, you can’t.

 

(JACK): Hey, don’t worry. I’ll be back. Someday.

 

GWEN: What’s it like, Jack? In their world?

 

(JACK): It’s torture. But hey – that’s what you get for being nice.

 

Jack is… uploaded, or whatever, like Gary.

 

GWEN: (quietly) Bye, Jack… Again.

 

Scene change. Apparently inside, it’s raining outside.

 

ELUNEDD: (Welsh)

 

GWEN: (on the phone) It’s okay. It’s okay, just a bad dream. It’s all over now. Mummy and Daddy will be home soon, okay? Go back to bed. Love you. (hangs up) Elunedd?

 

ELUNEDD: (Welsh)

 

RHYS: (groans)

 

GWEN: (whispery) You’re back.

 

RHYS: Gwen? Oh, I feel terrible! Don’t tell me I let Banana Boat mix the drinks again.

 

GWEN: (starts to laugh out of relief) Oh my god.

 

GRIFFITH: What the bloody hell’s going on in here? Where’s (?)?

 

GWEN: God, he’s gone.

 

GRIFFITH: Well. Get him back here now. I want a cup of tea.

 

GWEN: Nice to meet you at last, Mr. Griffith.

 

Scene change. On the road again.

 

RHYS: You think Jack will, ah –

 

GWEN: Oh, he’ll turn up again.

 

RHYS: And Gary?

 

GWEN: (introspective) Poor old guy. And Ceri. And all of them. Maybe the Evolved are right. Maybe I am selfish. Maybe we all are.

 

RHYS: Or maybe the Evolved are just a bunch of sanctimonious twats.

 

GWEN: (snickers)

 

RHYS: I should know, ‘cause I’ve been one!

 

GWEN: I love you, Rhys.

 

RHYS: I love you too. So. What do we do now? How do we explain all –

 

GWEN, INTERRUPTING: I’ve made a few phone calls. Called in a few favors. Still can.

 

RHYS: Right. I thought that part of our lives was over.

 

GWEN: Me too. Anwen comes first. She always comes first, but –

 

RHYS: Yeah.

 

GWEN: Yep.

 

RHYS: Thing is. We can’t protect Anwen, unless we protect the world.

 

GWEN: No, Rhys, we can’t go back to that. We made so many mistakes.

 

RHYS: Right, so you messed up a bit.

 

GWEN: A lot.

 

RHYS: But you’ve also saved the world a lot.

 

GWEN: So you wouldn’t mind…

 

RHYS: If we started Torchwood again.

 

GWEN: (snorts) Crazy idea. I mean. I mean we’re parents now, and –

 

RHYS: And we’ve got something to fight for. Next time aliens try to take over the Earth, I wanna be ready.

 

THE END