The Lost World (1999) s03e11 Episode Script

Ice Age

Campfire, a nice hot meal under a starry sky, all in the company of two fine gentleman.
What more could a woman want? Hot bath, soft bed preferably in the south of France, But at the moment the tree house would do.
Marguerite, if I remember correctly, this expedition to find Malone was as much your idea as anybody else's.
Yes, but as both of you pointed out, lost men don't leave notes.
Malone's gone off on some crazy adventure.
He'll be back when he's ready.
What about Veronica? Should we abandon the search for her as well? She's been gone for over a month now.
Vanished without a trace or so it seems.
We'll find Veronica and Malone, we just have to keep on looking.
But enough for one day, huh? I mean tonight, let's just relax and enjoy the meal and be thankful that at least the three of us are still together.
Quite right, Roxton! I'm going to go up the hill and have a look.
When I get back we can sit around a roaring fire and howl against the great unknown.
Now don't you go off without me! How long do you think he'll be? What do you have in mind? Oh, I don't know.
Oh, a game of cards perhaps.
Or spin the bottle.
Shouldn't you light the fire? I'm trying No sign of them.
Veronica? Is that you, Malone? Not unless you've put on an extra two hundred pounds.
Damn dinosaurs let's hope it's a raptor.
T.
Rex! I thought they only hunted during the day! I'm going to have to amend my notes.
Careful, it's hot.
Roxton, Marguerite! T-Rex! - That's not funny, George.
- It's right behind me! Fight it with fire! Mother of science! That is one big meteorite.
Largest of any I've ever seen.
Astonishing! Journeying through space for thousands of years, and finally crashing to earth here on the plateau.
And not a moment too soon.
At the dawn of the last century A band of explorers searched for a prehistoric world Driven by ambition Secret desires A thirst for adventure And seeking the ultimate story They are befriended by an untamed beauty Stranded in a strange and savage land Each day is a desperate search for a way out of the Lost World Look lively you two! Roxton, Marguerite! We're already awake, George.
Time to get moving.
Boy oh boy, it's a little brisk this morning! A brisk walk will get your circulation going.
- What time is it? - Six o'clock! - Oh! - Oh, come on, Marguerite.
We have a meteorite to explore.
First thing in the morning, you said! I meant closer to lunchtime.
What we have here is an opportunity to explore one of the great mysteries of the universe.
I don't know about you but I didn't sleep a wink.
I'm not going anywhere without a cup of coffee.
You drank it all last night.
It's freezing! Yes, I don't recall it being this cold on the plateau before.
It's possibly something to do with that meteorite bringing about a temporary change in the atmospheric conditions.
- Are you ready? - Yeah.
What do you reckon, Roxton? Two or three-hour trek? Oh I said about three.
Maybe I'll go back to the tree house and let you two - enthusiasts have your fun.
- You go right ahead.
I'm sure that T-Rex we saw last night is miles away by now.
The T-Rex would be a fool to tangle with Marguerite before she's had her morning coffee.
You've got yourself a good point there, George.
Is it my imagination, or is it getting colder? It's been so long since any of us have experienced cold, that our senses are confused.
We just perceive it being colder than it actually is.
Try thinking warm! - That's very scientific.
- Do you hear that? No! - I don't hear anything.
- Exactly, no no birds, no monkeys nothing at all.
- All flown south for the winter perhaps! - Monkeys don't fly, Marguerite! I was making a joke, George! Sulphur spring, by the look of it.
Care for that hot bath? Just how you like it, hot and swampy.
After you.
No doubt teeming with all sorts of life.
Although it doesn't smell like sulphur.
Ow! It's a very, very hot spring.
Must be coming from deep underground.
Did I mention how much I dislike the cold? If you were a gentleman, you'd offer me your shirt and vest.
If I did that, you'd want my trousers too! And who knows where that might lead! Come on you two! It can't be that much further! Oh, it's fantastic! Look what we have here! What? All this shivering for this? It must be just a fragment of the meteorite.
As you know, meteors break up and burn when they enter the earth's atmosphere.
They rarely make it to ground.
You learn something new every day.
This frost around the edge is most curious! - I can hardly contain my excitement.
- So I've noticed.
If you don't stop being so damn cheerful I'm going to come over there and hit you! Just trying to stop my teeth from chattering.
It's freezing cold! Well by jingo! It's as cold as an ice block! Well, most meteorites are cold to the touch when they first reach the earth.
Their fiery flight through the earth's atmosphere is never long enough to completely warm them up to the absolute cold of outer space.
But this is I mean, it's just a fragment.
Ah, well, the mysteries of the universe are exhilaratingly complex, aren't they? I can't wait to get back to the lab and analyse this! Great.
Does that mean we can head back to the treehouse now? I think that the wonders of the universe are attracting a crowd.
Not that T-Rex again.
Maybe more than one.
What have we? Whoa, I think you frightened it to death.
Violent indigestion, it seems.
- Old age maybe? - Skin colour isn't dark enough.
Hasn't reached its prime.
No wounds, no battle scars.
This beastie died of some kind of illness.
Ice crystal.
I believe its demise has something to do with its proximity to this icy chunk off the meteorite.
And the sudden lowering of temperature.
What? You mean cold weather is killing all the dinosaurs? That's the best news I've heard all day! It seems the closer we're getting to the crash site, the lower the temperature is.
Oh that meteorite must be huge! Which means it's going to get very chilly indeed.
I've already got a chill.
Which represents a strong case for sharing body warmth.
- Wouldn't you agree? - Yeah you and Challenger make a lovely couple.
Definitely getting colder.
You say that like it's a cause for celebration! There it is.
Oh, it's astonishing! It's a veritable icebox! He's insane! Completely stark raving mad.
True enough.
But I said I'd follow him to hell and back.
Even if it freezes over? Oh, No! This is a most spectacular display! If we really must explore it.
Can't we at least go back to the treehouse for some warmer clothes? It seems a shame to get so close and not even take a peek inside.
Marguerite's right, George, no point in freezing to death, even in the name of science.
I suppose you are right.
I could do with some equipment to conduct a thorough investigation.
Sorry to say I won't be returning with you.
What secrets of the universe have you brought to earth? Come on, George! Before you turn into a pillar of ice.
This is the most extraordinary meteorite I've ever seen.
There's usually iron, nickel or carbon, made of some kind of rock, but this This is quite unique.
The inner core must be solid ice.
the inner solid ice the inner core solid ice the inner core solid ice the inner coresolid ice So cold The inner core must be solid ice.
For Pete's sake, George! Let's just go! - He can catch up with us.
- Yeah! What the hell? - Now what? - Challenger, over here quickly! I will return.
Still alive, but only just.
- She's freezing! - What would you expect? What is it? Goodness gracious me! Where did she come from? Who knows! We should get her back to the treehouse.
Her body temperature is incredibly low, She's going to die unless we start warming her up immediately.
She isn't the only one.
- Do you got her? - Yeah! Good gracious, I will return Zi-Zo we must find our queen.
Zi-Zo Zi-Zo What is it? Zi-Zo was here but not alone.
Warm bloods three of them, two drones and a female.
Zi-Zo is weak.
Her life force is low.
We must find her! Without a queen our colony will die! Where do you think she came from? We have never seen anyone like her before on the plateau, Given that we found her so close to the crater, I suspect maybe she had been trapped inside.
Don't be ridiculous, George, She would have been frozen solid! Perhaps she was.
You know, I've heard some pretty wild theories, George, but that one's a little farfetched, even coming from you.
Is it? Imagine a world, not dissimilar to our own, in distant space.
Some catastrophic event obliterates its sun and sends its planet out of orbit.
In a few short hours, every living creature freezes.
What would you do? - Pray for salvation.
- And if that didn't work? You would try to find someplace to hide, somewhere away from the bitter winds and the plunging temperatures.
- Underground, you mean.
- Exactly! Then as the planet careens wildly about in outer space, the extreme temperature causes it to explode, sending fragments like meteors in all directions and one of those pieces landed right here.
Bringing our frozen guest with it.
A little implausible, perhaps, but not impossible.
Two warm bloods made fire here not long ago.
Their trail leads that way.
- Zi zo is still with them.
- They cannot be far ahead, the cold will slow them down.
Where is Roxton? He's gone to chop some more firewood.
We're going to need it.
There's nothing like physical activity to keep the blood circulating.
You know, I think you're actually enjoying this! Enjoying Not really.
Fascinated absolutely! I've been taking readings of the temperature.
It's dropping two degrees every hour.
- What? - If this trend continues, in six hours the mercury will be below freezing.
Well it can't stay like this, can it? Could get even worse! Snow, ice storms, blizzards! Rivers and creeks could freeze up.
It's hard to know what to expect until we can determine exactly what is causing it.
Oh, which means another trip to that bloody meteorite.
If it is a meteorite, After I've analyzed this sample, we'll be better able to understand what we're dealing with.
Yes, I'm afraid we will have to have a closer look at the inside of that crater.
We don't all have to go, do we? I mean, shouldn't one of us stay here? In case Malone or Veronica finds their way home? They'd be crazy to come back to this weather.
If they've found their way off this plateau and left us here I will kill them.
This could continue, Marguerite.
The cold could wipe out the dinosaurs, and any other form of life that won't quickly adapt which, in this tropical environment, unfortunately, means most of them, and probably within a few days.
Are you saying we're headed into some sort of ice age? I hope I'm wrong, but given the fact that we're over ten miles from the crater, and that meteorite or whatever it is crashed into the earth over eighteen hours ago, that cold front is moving very quickly.
There must be some way we can stop it! Oh, I certainly hope so! If we can't, what are our chances of survival? The human species is very adaptable, Marguerite.
What are our chances, George? We're ill prepared, Marginally better than those raptors we found in the jungle.
Maybe maybe she can help us.
She's getting worse.
I need to get to work on the sample, and try to unlock its secrets.
The sooner the better.
I'll help Roxton with the firewood.
I never thought I'd freeze to death in the jungles of South America.
Listen! Some type of heat passes through these strands protection against invaders.
These warm bloods are very dangerous, Our queen is in that tower.
We must find a way around this weapon.
That must be their female.
The solution to our problem.
Twenty-eight degrees Fahrenheit, That's four degrees below freezing! Can't be colder here than anywhere else.
It can't be so.
Unless this is drawing heat out of the atmosphere around it, thus lowering the ambient temperature.
And where does the heat go? It can't just vanish it must go somewhere! If this was storing the heat, then it would be warm or even hot.
Ah! Cold as ice! It should be hot! It must be hot! Unless it's nowhere near reached its capacity for storing heat.
Then what is that capacity? If I put this into the water, it should freeze the water in a few seconds.
Good God, that's incredible! The water's boiling! Boiling water! It's just like that Pool we saw in the jungle! You're getting pretty handy with that thing.
- Just trying to keep warm.
- And are you? I could think of better ways.
Marguerite! Are you flirting with me? Must be the thought of possible extinction brings out the worst in me.
- Or the best.
- Ha ha.
I don't know why I'm smiling, by tomorrow we could be solid chunks of ice.
Your smile could melt a polar ice cap.
Oh! Now who's flirting! How are here you, young woman? A scientific miracle, that's what you are.
Yet, how is it possible you could be frozen, and yet survive? And why aren't you getting better? Because you're a creature of the coldthat's why! You're not human at all! You don't need to be kept warm! It's cold you need.
The colder the better.
You know, if you think this is cold, You should try the Himalayas.
Sometimes the temperature drops below minus thirty, and that's not including a bitter wind.
You know, I heard of one expedition leader that lost his nose to frostbite.
- Did you ever seen a man without his nose? - Ugh! Not a pretty sight, Still, he did save on handkerchiefs.
You're making that up.
I'm just trying to cheer you up.
Oh, by telling dreadful stories? What is going to happen to us? We'll get through this.
We always do.
- But I'm so cold.
- Come here.
And I'll warm you up.
What is it? I'm not sure.
You come on out! Identify yourself! Who are you? What is it you want? We mean you no harm, - We came here last night.
- What? On that meteorite? It is our nest, and this is our new home.
You have taken our queen.
Roxton! Marguerite! Run! No! Roxton! - No.
- Bring her.
Get your icy mitts off me! RoxTON!! Roxton? Marguerite? Roxton? Marguerite? Roxton! What happened? Where's Marguerite? They must have taken her.
Good Lord! Just like the girl! It's blood is blue! - That girl is their queen.
- Queen? That's right.
They said that meteorite is their nest, and this plateau is their new home.
But I don't remember handing out invitations, do you? Were there any females with them? Not that I recall.
All I remember is a dozen or so frozen goons.
And dead ones at that, once I catch them.
Let's go.
No, Roxton! Wait! Don't you see? Queen, a nest they're like insects! There could be thousands of them.
- The more the merrier.
- No, listen to me! Roxton! We have their queen, They're not going to harm Marguerite until they get their queen back.
If they wanted to kill Marguerite they would have done it right here.
I suggest we find out from our guest - exactly what we're up against.
- No! You go back to the treehouse.
I'm going to that meteorite.
That would be foolish, John! There are only two of us and we need to stick together.
Keeping her warm only made her condition worse.
These creatures thrive on temperatures that would kill you and me.
- It's bloody freezing in here.
- Well, where is she? Hey! What the hell are you doing? - Are you all right? - I think so.
quite good actually.
I am Zi-Zo, queen of the Virga.
We know who you are.
- Why did you kiss me? - Kiss? I took your language.
Release me and I promise you will die quickly? Is that right? Because that's exactly the same fate I had in mind for you.
Easy, Roxton.
Your weapons are useless against us.
Tell that to your dead friends back in the jungle.
You cannot stop the ice.
Soon there will be millions of us.
Great.
A plague of frozen locusts.
Our female companion has been taken by your people.
What do they want with her? - No - Quickly bond her around - No! - What for? Keeping her warm will sedate her.
Don't you see! The drones are going to replace me.
What the hell is she talking about? An army of drones and one reproductive female.
Without her, the fabric of their society falls apart, and the whole colony will die! What are you saying! They've taken Marguerite to become their new queen? Would you mind throwing open a window? It's kind of warm in here.
Our colony will die without a female.
What? One woman for all you men? That is all we need.
Well, it's great for her.
Not so good for you.
Where do you stand in the queue exactly? To serve my queen in the war against all warm bloods.
Let me go and I'll show you just how cold-blooded a girl can be.
We have chosen well.
Chosen? What are you talking about? We have lost our queen.
We must make a new one.
You.
Me? How? It is not difficult.
I don't want to be your queen! - I'll freeze to death in here.
- No! this ice chamber will become your palace, these drones your servants.
You will reproduce our kind and we will colonise this planet.
I have always believed that I should be in a palace with legions of loyal followers, but I'm sorry to say, I cannot accept your offer! I'm not like you, you see.
I need warmth, sunshine, fire! When you become our queen, you will shun the heat as we do.
You will revel in the exquisite cold, and you will glory in the deaths of all those whose blood runs warm.
Bring her! Two more minutes, Challenger and I'm going after Marguerite.
Don't be ridiculous! You know, you fiddling around with batteries and wires while Marguerite is freezing to death is what I call ridiculous Thus far I've learned that this substance produces intense cold by drawing heat from the atmosphere, and that heat is instantly released in water.
That may be so, but the clock is ticking, George! If we can determine the exact nature of this substance, we may be able to find a chemical to neutralise it.
I'm going to test its electrical conductivity.
That should add another piece to the puzzle.
I wish you luck.
See you at the crater.
Not much of a conductor, It's not a conductor at all it's a resistor! It impedes the flow of electricity! It's storing the energy as heat.
- Eureka! - What happened? The electrical current altered the molecular structure, causing a chain reaction.
It blew up! If we can do that in the crater, we can destroy the whole thing This is our incubation chamber.
When you become our queen, you will make millions of eggs to fill these cells.
Not in this lifetime! You will freeze to death or you will drink this, The blood of our people will make you one of us.
Laying eggs is not the royal treatment I had in mind.
You will change your mind, as your veins turn to ice, and your limbs go numb.
You will welcome anything that saves you.
I'll freeze to death a hundred times before I become one of you! - Stop! - No! No! - Remove her insulation.
- No! No! No! There is no escape my queen.
Are you all set? Oh yes.
Steel spikes to act as electrodes, some wire, and of course, the portable generator to supply the electric charge.
It's simple really, as most effective solutions are.
Yeah, when they work.
I brought along extra firepower, just in case.
Well it can't hurt.
You cannot beat us, great armies have tried and failed and you.
you are but two! We're three actually, you haven't met Marguerite.
Yes, the woman who will replace me if we do not hurry.
Great balls of ice! This was a very, very hot spring and now it's frozen over! We're quickly running out of time, Roxton Quicker than you think, soon all the rivers will be frozen over, and the trees will split from the weight to ice.
All the animals will lie frozen in their lairs.
Soon no living creature will survive.
Only us.
Come on, that's enough out of you! She'd love Chicago.
They must all be inside.
Are they so confident they believe they don't need guards? With an army of drones in their nest, in an atmosphere that kills their enemies, nurtures them and makes them stronger? Wouldn't you be confident? A new age of ice.
You are honored to behold.
Well, I promise you, you'll never live to be a part of it.
Still you resist your fate.
How much longer can you hold out? Your live force is draining out of you.
Zi-Zo! Zi-Zo has returned in the company of the warm bloods.
We are saved! This warm blood is not worth the honor.
We will trade her for our rightful queen.
Dress her and bring her to the central chamber.
If I'm not out with Marguerite in ten minutes, you blow this icebox to smithereens.
- You have a weapon? - We have a few.
How do you like fire? I'll wait for you and Marguerite to come out.
No, George, you were right before.
We have to save the world if nothing else.
You and I have been here before, John.
Yeah.
Maybe one too many times.
Remember.
Ten minutes and don't you wait.
Keep moving.
This better bloody work.
How much further before we find these royal slaves of yours? I will tell you nothing.
Why am I not surprised? Still not cold enough to freeze the hands of time.
You could have ruled this world.
Instead, you'll pay the price.
Marguerite! Roxton? You let her go and you can have this frigid matriarch of yours back.
- Go.
- Go.
You could never lead my people! One man is better than a million frozen eunuchs.
Your temperature is as cold as ice.
Kill them! They must not escape.
I'll say we warm things a little.
Back it up slowly Marguerite.
That is! Keep them away with the heat! Come on, you two! Don't leave don't leave me here alone.
Marguerite! We have to get to the entrance.
They have a weapon that could kill us all.
We've got to get out of here, Challenger's set the whole place to explode.
Does he always have to blow everything up? Fast! Forgive me, Roxton.
I'm so sorry, Marguerite.
Does it have to come to this? Does it have to come to this? - Roxton! - Marguerite, take the gun.
I'll keep them at bay! It's clear behind us! I can save the world.
But what good is the world without friends? Hey! Entomic monstrosity! Unhand that woman! Challenger! Marguerite, move, not, get the queen! This is no time to up to live to your throne.
Let me go! Marguerite! That's no way to treat royalty.
- It is if she's a royal pain! - Let's go! What are you doing here? Well, I thought you might need a hand.
Can blow in any second! Run! Run! Excellent work, George.
I wish there'd be another way, I hate destroying things.
I guess peaceful coexistence wasn't on their agenda, It was them or us.
I guess you're right.
I want to go home.
I really need a hot bath - and a roaring fire.
- I think that can be arranged.
as long as you chop the wood.
There's an old Chinese proverb that says: 'woman who chops firewood, gets warmed twice.
' Well, I agree.
The weather is fine.
Boy, old boy it's hot out there! - Don't complain.
- Who's complaining? Did you get that herb I asked for? Right here.
Smells good! We heard that T-Rex roaring.
Never thought I'd be glad to hear that sound again.
Speak for yourself! You know, Marguerite, I've been working on a theory.
Imagine that so-called meteorite was a giant cold virus, spinning around in space.
There could be any number of them out there and we just happened to catch one.
Gesundheit.
- How are you feeling? - Icky.
We have some of Summerlee's chicken soup.
- It'll get you on your feet again.
- Would you like to be spoon fed? No, I'm not that helpless.
No sign of Veronica or Malone.
Wherever they are, I'm sure they're grateful for the change in the weather.
I wish they were here to get us out of here.
They could be on their way right now, with help.
Oh, isn't that a pleasant thought All of us back together again at home.
- Bless you.
- Sorry.
*
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