Chapter 21

1

WIDE FLASHBACK — Breakroom. Ryland faces three astronauts on couch. Door locked behind him.

WIDERYLAND / YÁO / DUBOIS / ILYUKHINAAWKWARDFLASHBACK

"We can do this in private," I said. "I can meet with you one at a time." — "No need," said Yáo.

2

MEDIUM FLASHBACK — Yáo stern (centre), DuBois rigid (left), Ilyukhina slouched with beer (right).

MEDIUMYÁO / DUBOIS / ILYUKHINATHE CREWFLASHBACK

"No need for individual meetings. There's no room on this mission for secrets."

3

MEDIUM FLASHBACK — Ryland shifts in chair, pen ready. "Who wants to go first?"

MEDIUMRYLANDDISCOMFORTFLASHBACK

"I'm not a people person and I don't know how to approach delicate matters."

4

TWO-SHOT FLASHBACK — "How would you like to die?" DuBois raises hand perfectly calmly.

TWO-SHOTRYLAND / DUBOISTHE QUESTIONFLASHBACK

"So…how would you like to die?" Yeah. Awkward topic. But one that had to be covered.

5

INSERT FLASHBACK — DuBois's document: bullet points, charts, references. "Nitrogen asphyxiation."

INSERTDUBOISMETICULOUSFLASHBACK

"I would like to die by nitrogen asphyxiation. All my research shows it is among the least painful ways to die."

6

TWO-SHOT FLASHBACK — Ryland asks Ilyukhina. She sets beer down deliberately. One word: "Heroin."

TWO-SHOTRYLAND / ILYUKHINAPLOT TWISTFLASHBACK

"Heroin." She shrugged. "I have been good girl all my life. No drugs. Limited sex."

7

INSERT FLASHBACK — Ryland writing Ilyukhina's phased heroin dose schedule.

INSERTRYLAND / ILYUKHINASURREAL BUREAUCRACYFLASHBACK

"Have doctors work out best dose schedule. Correct amount to maximize pleasantness. Then lethal dose."

8

TWO-SHOT FLASHBACK — Yáo: "A Type-92 handgun. I will be last to die. Backup for the others."

TWO-SHOTYÁO / RYLANDQUIET RESOLVEFLASHBACK

"I will be the last to die. If anything goes wrong with either of your methods, I will be on-hand."

9

MEDIUM FLASHBACK — Ryland already standing: "This has been very awkward, thanks."

MEDIUMRYLANDESCAPEFLASHBACK

"Yeah," I said, already standing. "This has been very awkward, thanks. I'm going to go be somewhere else now."

10

MEDIUM — PRESENT. Ryland writhing in bunk. Burns on left arm. Painkillers useless.

MEDIUMRYLANDBURNING PAIN

"The burns on my arm hurt more than ever. The painkillers barely do anything." Thinks of Ilyukhina's heroin.

11

MEDIUM — Tap. Tap. Rocky tapping on the airlock wall from his section.

MEDIUMRYLAND / ROCKYTAP TAP

"Tap. Tap. I look at the source of the noise. It's Rocky tapping on the airlock wall."

12

TWO-SHOT — Ryland scrambles to airlock wall. "Rocky, buddy! Are you okay?!" Rocky: "Sick…"

TWO-SHOTRYLAND / ROCKYALIVE

"Rocky! Buddy! Are you okay?!" — "Sick…" he mumbles. Faint and exhausted, but alive.

13

TWO-SHOT — Rocky: "How I return here?" Ryland: "I moved you." Rocky taps floor, annoyed.

TWO-SHOTROCKY / RYLANDANNOYANCE

"How I return here, question?" — "I moved you." He taps the ground with a claw, annoyed.

14

TWO-SHOT — Rocky points to Ryland's arm. "Skin not smooth. Damage?" He sees through bandages with sonar.

TWO-SHOTROCKY / RYLANDCONCERN

"Skin on arm is not smooth. Damage, question?" He can see right through the bandages with his sonar.

15

TWO-SHOT — Rocky: "You damage self to save me. Thank." Ryland: "You did the same. Is your radiator okay?"

TWO-SHOTROCKY / RYLANDGRATITUDE

"You damage self to save me. Thank." — "You did the same thing. Is your radiator organ okay?"

16

TWO-SHOT — Rocky: "It healing." Points to soot coating the wall and floor. "This come from inside me?"

TWO-SHOTROCKY / RYLANDRECOVERY

"It healing." He points to the soot all along the wall and floor. "This come from inside me, question?"

17

MEDIUM — Ryland proud, pointing to steel box. "I made a device to blow air at your vents."

MEDIUMRYLANDPRIDE

"I made a device to blow air at you. I aimed at your radiator vents and all that nasty stuff came out."

18

TWO-SHOT — Rocky: "Black substance is not soot. My body make this. Cover damage while body repairs."

TWO-SHOTROCKY / RYLANDREVELATION

"Black substance is not soot. My body make this. It cover damage while body repairs."

19

CLOSE — Ryland's face falls. "Oh…oh no…" He blew Rocky's scabs off. Thought he was helping.

CLOSERYLANDHORROR

"Oh…Oh no…" I didn't blow soot out of his radiator. I blew the scabs off his wounds!

20

TWO-SHOT — Rocky: "Is okay. If you did earlier I die. But I heal enough. Thank thank thank."

TWO-SHOTROCKY / RYLANDFORGIVENESS

"No say sorry. You save me when you put me here. Thank thank thank." He tries to stand, collapses.

21

MEDIUM FLASHBACK — Baikonur, 9 days before launch. Ryland in portable unit, Hail Mary in orbit above.

MEDIUMRYLANDPRE-LAUNCHFLASHBACK

"The Hail Mary was going to launch in nine days." — Ryland pacing his bare portable unit.

22

MEDIUM FLASHBACK — Ryland at desk, signing off on problem reports. Slurry Pump Fourteen anomaly.

MEDIUMRYLANDADMINISTRATIONFLASHBACK

"How did I end up an administrator? I missed my kids." — Routine problem-solving, pre-launch.

23

MEDIUM FLASHBACK — EXPLOSION. Window shatters. Shockwave throws Ryland from chair. Sirens.

MEDIUMRYLANDEXPLOSIONFLASHBACK

"The window shattered as a deafening explosion shook the room." Then: silence. Then: sirens.

24

TWO-SHOT FLASHBACK — Stratt appears in bathrobe and boots, flashlight bobbing. "Grace?! Are you okay?!"

TWO-SHOTRYLAND / STRATTAFTERMATHFLASHBACK

"Grace?! Are you okay?!" — "Yeah! What the heck was that?!" Stratt already on her walkie-talkie.

25

MEDIUM FLASHBACK — Stratt shows phone photos. Research buildings = crater. Metal bead condensate on ground.

MEDIUMSTRATT / RYLANDDESTRUCTIONFLASHBACK

"The research buildings are a crater. And there's still no sign of DuBois or Shapiro."

26

INSERT FLASHBACK — Bunker analysis: metal condensate = vaporised metal = Astrophage heat. But how?

INSERTRYLAND / DIMITRIDEDUCTIONFLASHBACK

"There's only one thing in those labs that could create enough heat to vaporize metal: Astrophage."

27

TWO-SHOT FLASHBACK — Ryland weeps: "They're dead…oh God…" Stratt slaps him. "Cry later! Mission first!"

TWO-SHOTRYLAND / STRATTGRIEF & RESOLVEFLASHBACK

"Cry later! Mission first! You still have that list of coma-resistant candidates? We need a new science specialist."

28

MEDIUM — PRESENT. Ryland refocuses in bunk: "This is no longer a suicide mission. Save the world. Go home."

MEDIUMRYLANDRESOLVE

"This is no longer a suicide mission. If I play my cards right, I save the world and go home."

29

TWO-SHOT — Ryland offers zero-g. Rocky: "No. Gravity help heal." Settles into resting pose.

TWO-SHOTRYLAND / ROCKYHEALING

"Would you be more comfortable in zero g?" — "No. Gravity help heal." He adjusts his legs like a bed.

30

TWO-SHOT — Rocky: "Sample container safe?" Ryland: "Yes. Made Adrian environment in sealed container."

TWO-SHOTROCKY / RYLANDSAMPLE CHECK

"Sample container is safe, question?" — "Yes. It's in the lab now. I made an Adrian environment."

31

TWO-SHOT — Rocky tilts: "You seal sample and can no access?" Ryland: "Yes." Rocky: "Usually not stupid. Why stupid?"

TWO-SHOTROCKY / RYLANDCOMEDY

"Usually you not stupid. Why stupid, question?" — "Humans are stupid when we need sleep and medicine."

32

TWO-SHOT — Ryland introduces "sarcasm." Rocky chimes it in Eridian. "Adjust orbit while stupid. Good plan."

TWO-SHOTRYLAND / ROCKYLANGUAGE LESSON

"New word: 'sarcasm.' You say opposite of true meaning to make point." Rocky chimes the word.

33

MEDIUM — Ryland wakes after proper sleep. New bandages (robot arms). "Million times better. Burns: million times worse."

MEDIUMRYLANDRECOVERY

"I wake up feeling a million times better, but my burns feel a million times worse." New bandages.

34

TWO-SHOT — Rocky at workbench tinkering. "You are awake?" Rocky: still healing but working.

TWO-SHOTRYLAND / ROCKYSLOW RECOVERY

"You are awake, question?" — "Yeah." — "Much more heal needed. But some heal complete. Cannot move much."

35

TWO-SHOT — Rocky holds up new device. "I go to lab. Made device to collect sample — no let your air in."

TWO-SHOTROCKY / RYLANDINVENTION

"Put vacuum chamber in this. Close this. This make Adrian air inside." Rocky's xenonite sampling box.

36

INSERT DIAGRAM — Rocky's sample access box: Eridian air environment; rods gather sample without mixing atmospheres.

INSERTROCKYENGINEERING

"Control these from outside. Gather sample. Seal device. Open my device. Have sample. Do human science."

37

TWO-SHOT — Ryland in bunk: "Computer: coffee!" Robot arms deliver cup. Rocky tinkering in lab tunnel above.

TWO-SHOTRYLAND / ROCKYMORNING RECOVERY

"Computer: coffee!" After a minute, the arms hand me a cup of java. — Rocky still tinkering above.

38

TWO-SHOT — Ryland sipping coffee: "How come you and I hear the same sounds?" Rocky keeps tinkering.

TWO-SHOTRYLAND / ROCKYCURIOSITY

"How come you and I hear the same sounds?" — "Useful trait. Both evolve. Not surprising."

39

INSERT — Rocky scrapes workbench. "You hear this? Sound of predator. Sound of object touching = universal."

INSERTROCKYEUREKA MOMENT

"That is sound of predator approaching you. Sound of object touching object very important. Evolve to hear."

40

TWO-SHOT — Rocky sets device down entirely. "Better question: why we think same speed?" Undivided attention.

TWO-SHOTROCKY / RYLANDDEEPER QUESTION

"Better question," he says. "Why we think same speed, question?" He sets the device down entirely.

41

INSERT — Intelligence theory: math/memory aren't thinking. Both species are minimum viable intelligence.

INSERTRYLANDTHEORY

"We're as smart as evolution made us. The minimum intelligence needed to dominate our planets."

42

INSERT DIAGRAM — Gravity theory: g → animal speed → intelligence needed. Earth/Erid gravities similar ∴ same IQ.

INSERTRYLANDTHEORY

"Gravity determines how fast animals run. Animal intelligence must be faster than gravity. Earth ≈ Erid."

43

TWO-SHOT — Rocky pushes back: "Erid have double Earth gravity." Ryland: "Astronomically, they're close!"

TWO-SHOTROCKY / RYLANDDEBATE

"Erid have double Earth gravity. You and I same intelligence." — "Astronomically close. 0.01g creature = dumb."

44

TWO-SHOT — Rocky: "Another similarity: both willing to die for our people. Why? Evolution hate death."

TWO-SHOTROCKY / RYLANDSELF-SACRIFICE

"Another similarity: You and me both willing to die for our people. Why, question? Evolution hate death."

45

TWO-SHOT — "Not all Eridians." / "Not all humans either." Beat. "You and me are good people." "Yeah."

TWO-SHOTROCKY / RYLANDWARMTH

"You and me are good people," Rocky says. — "Yeah." I smile. "I suppose we are."

46

CLOSE — Three days later. Rocky's xenonite box in action. Vacuum chamber inside, kept at −51°C.

CLOSERYLAND / ROCKYTHREE DAYS LATER

"Gathering sample now…" The clear xenonite box keeps inside temperature at −51°C. Rocky watches from tunnel.

47

OVERHEAD — Ryland working box claws. "Look at me. I'm an Eridian now." Rocky: "Yes. Very Eridian. Hurry."

OVERHEADRYLAND / ROCKYCOMEDY

"I open and close the claws in the box a few times. 'Look at me. I'm an Eridian now.'"

48

CLOSE — Ryland uses cotton swab on glass slide inside box. Adrian life smeared on slide. Seals it all up.

CLOSERYLANDSAMPLE PREP

"I grab the cotton swab and bring it to a waiting glass slide. I rub it across the slide, leaving a smear."

49

CLOSE — Ryland presses face to microscope eyepiece. Slide on station. "Okay, Adrian, what do you have for me?"

CLOSERYLAND / ROCKYFIRST LOOK

"Okay, Adrian, what do you have for me?" I put my face to the eyepieces.

50

WIDE POV MICROSCOPE — Jet-black Astrophage plus hundreds of microbes. Every one an alien race.

WIDE POVRYLANDALIEN LIFE

"The most obvious thing is the Astrophage. Jet-black. And I see microbes everywhere. Different kinds."

51

OVERHEAD — Ryland hunched over microscope. Rocky skitters in tunnel. "—whoa!" only seconds pass.

OVERHEADRYLAND / ROCKYSUDDEN

"This could take time. Need to see interaction between—whoa!" It only took seconds before Astrophage fell under attack.

52

WIDE POV MICROSCOPE — Amorphous blob (Taumoeba) lurches toward Astrophage. Encircling from both sides.

WIDE POVRYLANDPREDATOR FOUND

"The monster lurches toward the clump of Astrophage. An amorphous blob, like an amoeba."

53

POV MICROSCOPE — Astrophage wriggle, try to escape. Chemical excretion disabling them. Too late.

POV MICROSCOPERYLANDTRAPPED

"The Astrophage wriggle. They know something is wrong. They try to escape but it's too late."

54

POV MICROSCOPE — Astrophage go cell-like. Organelles and membranes visible. Lost ability to absorb. Dead.

POV MICROSCOPERYLANDDEAD

"The Astrophage become cell-like. No longer featureless black. They have lost their ability to absorb. They're dead."

55

OVERHEAD — Ryland bolts upright from microscope: "GOT IT! I found the predator! It ate Astrophage!"

OVERHEADRYLAND / ROCKYEUREKA

"Got it!" I say. "I found the predator! It ate Astrophage right in front of me!"

56

TWO-SHOT — Rocky: "Found! Isolate! Happy happy happy!" Ryland: "Yes, I'll isolate it!"

TWO-SHOTROCKY / RYLANDCELEBRATION

"Found!" Rocky cheers. "Isolate." — "Yes, I'll isolate it!" — "Happy happy happy!"

57

TWO-SHOT — Rocky: "You find. You name." Ryland with nano-pipette: "Taumoeba, I guess."

TWO-SHOTROCKY / RYLANDNAMING

"Earth culture. You find. You name." — "Taumoeba, I guess." It's an amoeba from Tau Ceti.

58

WIDE TYPOGRAPHIC — "TAUMOEBA" — The savior of Earth and Erid. Hopefully.

WIDERYLANDNAMING MOMENT

Taumoeba. The savior of Earth and Erid. Hopefully.

59

MEDIUM — Time skip. "I'm a rancher. 50 million head of Taumoeba." Rocky built breeder tank. They breed fast.

MEDIUMRYLAND / ROCKYRANCHER

"I should have a bolo tie. Maybe a cowboy hat. Because I'm a rancher now. 50 million head of Taumoeba."

60

INSERT — Taumoeba biology: temperature resilient, breeds explosively, survives near-vacuum.

INSERTRYLANDBIOLOGY

"Taumoeba is very resilient to temperature variations. They can live in near-vacuum. Boy, do they breed!"

61

INSERT — Goat/Mars thought experiment: can Taumoeba survive on Venus or Threeworld?

INSERTRYLANDEXPERIMENT LOGIC

"If you take a goat and put it on Mars, it dies. Goats didn't evolve to live on Mars. What about Taumoeba?"

62

INSERT DIAGRAM — Venus upper atmosphere profile. Breeding zone: 70km, 0.02atm, −100°C. CO2 dominant.

INSERTRYLANDVENUS

"Venus's atmosphere is 0.02 atmospheres at around 70km mark, temperature −100°C. Taumoeba test set."

63

INSERT DIAGRAM — Threeworld: tiny moon-like planet. 84%CO2, 4%SO2 (must make). 0.02atm at −82°C.

INSERTRYLANDTHREEWORLD

"Threeworld: only about the size of Earth's moon. 84% CO2, 8% N2, 4% SO2. A surface pressure < 1% Earth's."

64

TWO-SHOT — Rocky from tunnel: "No have oxygen, question?" Ryland sighs. Rocky edgy since catching fire.

TWO-SHOTROCKY / RYLANDOXYGEN ANXIETY

"No have oxygen, question?" — "No oxygen." — "Oxygen dangerous." — "I breathe oxygen. It's okay."

65

OVERHEAD — Rocky leans down AGAIN: "Again confirm: No oxygen?" Ryland jerks head up to glare. Comedy beat.

OVERHEADROCKY / RYLANDCOMEDY

"Again confirm: No oxygen, question?" — "It's just carbon dioxide and nitrogen! Don't ask me again!"

66

TWO-SHOT — Ryland glares up at Rocky. Rocky: "Yes. No ask again. Sorry." Can't blame him.

TWO-SHOTROCKY / RYLANDAPOLOGY

"Yes. No ask again. Sorry." — Can't blame him, I guess. Being on fire sucks.

67

INSERT DIAGRAM — Venus and Threeworld: where Astrophage breeds out of control. The real targets.

INSERTRYLANDTHE TARGETS

"The planets we care about right now are Venus and Threeworld. That's where Astrophage breeds out of control."

68

MEDIUM — Astrophage film attracted to plate by IR light, seeded with Taumoeba. Opacity = progress indicator.

MEDIUMRYLANDEXPERIMENT SETUP

"A thin coat of Astrophage on a glass plate. Seeded with Taumoeba. As they eat, the slide becomes transparent."

69

OVERHEAD — Two vacuum chambers on worktable. Ryland filling Venus chamber first. Rocky watches from tunnel above.

OVERHEADRYLAND / ROCKYSETUP

"Okay…the chamber has Venus's upper atmosphere duplicated. As good as I can, anyway." Now Threeworld.

70

INSERT — Improvised SO2 synthesis: sulfuric acid + copper tubing catalyst = sulfur dioxide for Threeworld sim.

INSERTRYLANDPROBLEM SOLVING

"No sulfur dioxide gas aboard. But sulfuric acid in solution ✓. Copper tubing from broken cooling coil ✓."

71

TWO-SHOT — "We have hope." Both chambers running. Rocky and Ryland cautiously optimistic. One hour wait.

TWO-SHOTROCKY / RYLANDHOPE

"We have hope," says Rocky. — "Yes, we have hope. Taumoeba are very sturdy. Maybe Venus and Threeworld work."

72

TWO-SHOT — Rocky: "All is good!" Ryland: "Yeah. For once, everything's going great." Famous last words.

TWO-SHOTROCKY / RYLANDFAMOUS LAST WORDS

"Yes. Things are good. All is good!" — "Yeah. For once, everything's going great." Famous last words.

73

INSERT — Quiet irony: DuBois's nitrogen tank, packed for his death, now fuels the Taumoeba experiment.

INSERTDUBOISMEMORIAL

"And nitrogen? Thanks to DuBois and his preferred method of death, there's a whole bunch aboard."

74

MEDIUM — Ryland wry: "Hardest part of working with aliens: constantly having to come up with names."

MEDIUMRYLANDWRYNESS

"The hardest part about working with aliens and saving humanity from extinction: constantly having to name things."

75

TWO-SHOT — Both chambers running. Rocky in tunnel. Ryland below. Tense stillness. One hour wait.

TWO-SHOTRYLAND / ROCKYWAITING

"We'll wait an hour and check results." — The two chambers sit on the worktable, quietly running.

76

TWO-SHOT — Rocky: "All is good!" Ryland grins back. Two survivors, cautious but genuinely hopeful.

TWO-SHOTROCKY / RYLANDOPTIMISM

"All is good!" — "Yeah. For once, everything's going great." A rare moment of real peace.

77

STILL BEAT — Both chambers running quietly. Two survivors, each on their side. Peace.

WIDEROCKY / RYLANDSTILLNESS

A still beat. Rocky and Ryland, each on their side. The chambers running. Everything as good as it's been.

78

WIDE — TOTAL DARKNESS. The lights go out. Chapter 21 ends.

WIDERYLAND / ROCKYBLACKOUT

"Then the lights go out." — The five most devastating words of Chapter 21.

79

TYPOGRAPHIC — "THEN THE LIGHTS GO OUT." Red. Cold. The final words of Chapter 21.

TYPOGRAPHICCLIFFHANGER

Everything was going great. And then — five words. Chapter 21 ends.

80

WIDE DARK — Rocky and Ryland as dim silhouettes. Two small figures in the sudden dark.

WIDE DARKROCKY / RYLANDDARKNESS

Darkness. Two alien friends. Two small creatures against the void.

81

CLOSE — The two experiment chambers in total darkness. Barely visible. Still running.

CLOSEPERSISTENCE

Somewhere in the dark, the two chambers are still running. Taumoeba still eating Astrophage.

82

INSERT — Quiet memorial. DuBois and Shapiro — gone before launch. DuBois's nitrogen still serves.

INSERTDUBOIS / SHAPIROMEMORIALFLASHBACK

DuBois's nitrogen — meant for his death — now fuels the experiment that might save two worlds.

83

INSERT — Chapter summary: everything accomplished. Then five words end it all.

INSERTCHAPTER SUMMARY

All of this achieved. And then — lights out. Chapter 21 ends on a knife edge.

84

WIDE FINAL — Both sides of xenonite wall in darkness. Ryland. Rocky. Two experiment chambers below. Chapter 21 ends.

WIDE FINALROCKY / RYLANDCHAPTER END

Two survivors. One discovery that could save two worlds. And now: darkness.

Project Hail Mary — Fan Storyboard