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The Black Hole (2006)
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ANNOUNCEMENT [OVER SPEAKER]: Sequence will initiate in five minutes. All personnel, clear north metal area. How we looking, Shannon? Oh, we're good to go. Kent still down there? I'm here. All right, let's see what God has in store for us tonight. What happened? The sensors indicate some kind of an explosion. I've got it too. Section 117, northeast quadrant. There's a radiation leak. Anything else? I'm seeing some sort of anomalous energy signature at the point of impact. You're sure we shouldn't be calling Spencer about this? No. Not until I know what we're dealing with. The concern is dully noted. You should be nearing 116. Stop the car. Feel it? Uhuh. The air, it's gusting. What? Shannon, are you getting this? SHANNON MUIR: Trying. Hauser, what is that? I can't hear you. You're breaking up. SHANNON MUIR: Careful, we don't know what-- What did she say? Hauser, I'm losing you. Kent, I need that beam. I think I saw something. Copy that. Kent! Kent!-- Oh my God! Hauser, I'm loosing you. Kent, William, I'm loosing your signal. Oh! Ah! My God! I can't! Go! Go! Go! Come on! Come on! No! No! No! Kent, what are you doing? You're going the wrong way. PILOT 1: . Niner-One reported visual. REPORTER 1: I don't know if you've been feeling them at home, but we certainly have here at the studio. A series of small earthquakes that has been shaking the ground beneath our very feet for the past few hours. So far nothing to cause too much alarm, but enough to leave local scientists scratching their heads trying to-- REPORTER 2: Ellen, in a few moments we could be going to the Geological Services Department at the University of St. Louis, where, hopefully, somebody can offer us a better explanation than anything that we have to offer you now. Eric, pick up the phone. MAN 2: [OVER SPEAKER] 219 at 5219. We're down to reach the perimeter. Agent 12, we need you to update your location. REPORTER 1: You know, nothing high. We're talking like a 3.2, a 3.1. --just above a 4.0 on the Richter scale. What's causing some concern isn't so much-- OK, OK. I'm coming. Oh, this better be important. Dr. Eric Bryce. Yes. If you'll please come with me, sir. Come with you, where? There's been an accident at the lab. I could use a fresh pot of coffee, you guys. How are were looking, Sergeant? Current readings put us at just under three hours before this thing is going to have its way with the outer wall. And length. We're looking at a 10 minute evacuation window. Max. What's taking Hendricks so long? General, they're here. Lieutenant. I'm sorry. Dr. Bryce, General Ryker. I'm in command here. Where is Hauser? He's dead. Follow me. How is this possible? I was hoping you could tell me. Now, you worked closely with Dr. Hauser up until about six months ago, is that correct? Yes, we worked together for 14 years. And you're familiar with his research? Yes, but our work was only theoretical. We were years from doing anything like this. A consortium out of China started showing results and-- We didn't want to fall further behind, so we decided to accelerate the schedule. Without consulting me first? You were no longer a part of the team, Eric. We had no obligation to consult you about anything. All right, we don't have time for this. When did that start happening? At 2:01 AM. The Navy detected an abnormal electromagnetic pulse. The GPS was linked to the lab here. We came on site, locked down the facility. We don't have much time. We're looking at a countdown of less than three hours, and God knows what's going to happen then. Theoretical has become a reality, Doctor. Are you willing to try and help me or not? Yes. The president, a few of his top advisors, and the director of Homeland Security have been made aware of what we are dealing with here. The president has also authorized me to explore all possible containment options, including nuclear action. Who suggested nuclear action? It's the strongest response listed in our contingency plans. General, a black hole is not an ordinary object that you can drop a bomb on and destroy. It's called a black hole because its gravitational force is so strong that not even light can escape. I'm not completely unprepared, right, Shannon? I explained all this to you. The bomb blast's energy will be absorbed by the hole, increasing its size. More than likely, it will kick it like a soccer ball. And we won't know where it's going to end up. Maybe the middle of St. Louis, killing thousands of people. It might crack in two or three or five, each with its own destructive growth potential. Dropping the bomb is only an option. That's why I had you called in here, so you could start giving me better options. I suggest you get started. - OK. Well, I'm going to need to see Hauser's files, all his data over the last six months. Whatever you need. Yeah, I'm going to need her to help. We had concerns you would become unstable since the divorce, that your ability to evaluate risk properly had become compromised because of the trouble back home. What were you thinking? Staff was consulted and we voted. The jury agreed with Hauser and we moved on. Well, the least you could have done was call me. I wanted to. I voted to keep you in the loop. I was overruled. All right, OK, so that's it. So you take a vote, and then you continue with research that will threaten the planet. I think they might be a little more than friends. Last night we were just running tests, the same tests that we'd run over 10 times before without incident. They were not the same. Something was different. I'm sorry that I didn't call you before this morning, but you just haven't been the same since you lost custody of Kay-- Kayley. Kayley. Oh, no. Ryker jammed the signal. What's wrong? We have move back to her parent's house. Kayley is not five miles from here. Use the fax. It runs on a different system. Kayley, come on. We're going to be late. Hello? Hello, Beth? Eric. Beth, listen. Look, I thought I told you we needed some space. Listen to me, something's gone wrong with the research. You have to leave town immediately. What? You're drinking again. No. Yes. But-- Beth, our daughter is in danger. Look, you know these calls don't work. Kayley, come on. Kayley's got a tennis lesson that starts in five minutes. I got to go. Beth-- Oh, come on. Aren't you going to get that? Let it ring. What did she say? She going to leave? No. Why not? Because she doesn't believe what I say anymore. Did you find anything? I'm running a disk check to see if there's anything different here than what's posted on the server. OK. I'm going to go through last night's results backwards. We missed something. Come on. Show yourself to me. Well, Commander, we all find God in the foxhole, right? Yes, sir. Are those numbers still accurate? Yes, sir. Hold on, everybody. Hold on. What's happening, Sergeant? I don't know. We've got size indicators pushing up through the roof. 15% in the last 30 seconds. We're losing time rapidly. What do you think, Doc? Let me look at this. The growth rate seems to be plateauing, still elevated, but it stopped accelerating. Up 26% in less than a minute. You sure? Secondary indicators confirm. Well, the growth rate should be determined by the hole's environment, the density of its surroundings. Well, some way or another, Doctor, this hole's growing faster than it was before. How is this possible? Look, if it spikes again, you let me know. I'm seeing a serious voltage drop in the main power line feeding this facility. Which line? B7. B7, B7. My God, that's close to this room. Yes. But it can't be accessed directly. It has to be accessed through this tunnel here. Yeah, but if we lose that line, we could lose all of the monitoring equipment. Corporal Hendricks, yeah, I got a problem on line, power line-- B7. --B7. Check it out. Take Private James with you. I need that line stable again A-S-A-P. HENDRICKS: On my way. You all right? Yeah. Just never been done in something like this. Anything? This data doesn't make sense. You're right, you were performing the same series of tests, same conditions, same parameters. I told you. Yes, but-- but there is some variable, something that we're missing. Why don't you pull up the environmental readings from the tunnel immediately following the accident. There-- there must be some clue somewhere. That's strange. Must be the plate in your head. Or the magnet in my crotch. Hey, you hear that? This way. General, the hole's growth rate is pulling back. Thank you, Lieutenant. And power seems to be coming back on that line. You were right. It wasn't just the hole that was registering, they were increased radiation levels also in section 116, 115, 114. Almost like something was moving away from the hole. GENERAL RYKER: Dr. Bryce, Shannon. What is it? Been another change in the hole's growth. Oh, it's going up again? No, it slowed down. And the change seems to be tied to some sort of power fluctuation we're seeing on the main line for the facility. Power fluctuation? Yeah, I sent a team to investigate. What's wrong? I think those radiation readings aren't from the hole, but from something that came out of the hole. That's impossible, Eric. Based on what we think we know. Smell that? What the? Looks like something tore into that thing. This is Hendricks. Can you read me? Get out of there. In the utility tunnel, down the set of stairs. Here. General, you have to get them out now. Hendricks, if you can hear me, you've got to get out of there now. Can you hear me? Get out of there A-S-A-P. We've got growth again. What in God's name was that thing? I think we found our catalyst. I read you. Dr. Shannon, come with me. We've got a problem outside. Sergeant, stay on the monitor. I want two units in the air right now tracking this thing. I'm going to need to follow on the ground. What about the situation right here, Doctor? Whatever that thing is, somehow it came out of a black hole. Well, how does that help it? Well, every time the thing takes in energy, the hole grows. The two are connected. But they're separated. Well, we've seen particles connected over long distances on the quantum level. Have you ever seen anything on this scale, Doctor? General, look, I think that the solution to the hole is there. I need to monitor it. Get me a car. I'll get some equipment. If our position is compromised we're going to relocate to a new command center west of downtown. Use this to stay in contact with me. Channel three. What do you got there, Shannon? It's a micro-magnetic wave analyzer. It'll help us determine the entities property. All right. The signal is scrambled, so you can talk freely. Yes, General. You might want to worry less about security and more about evacuating the city. I will when the time's right, Doctor. Sergeant Bennett, how are we looking on the power? REPORTER 3: Leading the news now at the top of the hour, yet another quake shaking the greater St. Louis area. This most recent-- Who are you calling? Kayley. They probably already left. - I hope so. - Eric, there. REPORTER 4: [OVER RADIO] Yes, I do. We're just now getting word that scientists have identified a single epicenter for all the moving quakes-- It's feeding off the power lines. It's following the current upstream. If we're going to get anything meaningful from these readings, we've got to get closer. Hold on. OK. REPORTER 5: The news has been shaking and the experts don't know why. Seismologist at the Geological-- --Services Department at the University of St. Louis are still not sure what's causing these temblors, but one thing is certain-- I'll be in my room, mom. Why don't you get started on that homework? REPORTER 5: --are pinpointing the epicenter of the quakes here in the Midwestern Quantum Research Laboratory, known here locally as the NQRL. So far-- How are we doing, people? We're losing time. Are we back online yet? We're up. Someone could find me a cup of coffee. I'll be eternally grateful. REPORTER 6: We're going now live-- Ryker, are you seeing this? You're telling us that you're tracking some sort of an electrical phenomenon in the area close to the-- I'm here, Doctor. I've got a ringside seat. --video feed to you guys now, but basically what we have from here is some kind of concentrated electrical forms, like the shiny ball of electricity that seems to be following the power lines. REPORTER 7: How long have you been following this thing, Russ? RUSS MARTIN: Just over 10 minutes now. And I first picked it up from about two miles out, so that should give you an idea of-- I'm General Ryker, Director Hayes-- - Here's your coffee, sir. - Bless you, soldier. Oh my-- Oh, whoa. What is that? So now you're telling me we're dealing with a black hole and a monster? Yes, sir. I know it sounds crazy, but Dr. Bryce is convinced that the two are somehow connected. That this thing might be the key to closing the hole. And you think he's right? At this point, I think it's wise to take his advice. We don't have any other choice. I mean, we're dealing with things outside our base of knowledge, outside my base of knowledge anyway. HAYES: And your situation there? GENERAL RYKER: We're a little over an hour until that hole cracks the accelerator wall. Given that fact and the appearance of the creature, I think the times come to start thinking evacuation, sir. Immediately. I'll handle the media. You stay focused there. Yes, sir. I understand. Dr. Bryce, are you there? Are you there? I'm here. GENERAL RYKER: Have you located our creature? Yeah. GENERAL RYKER: Now, your streets are about to get a little more crowded. Homeland Security has just issued an official evacuation warning. Good. How much time do we have? We've got just under 40 minutes until breach. ERIC BRYCE: Start packing up all your nonessential equipment. If this thing finds its way to a high voltage power source, I think your clock is going to evaporate in seconds. I'm going to have to pull the helicopters in, so you're on your own out there. ERIC BRYCE: That's fine. Sergeant Bennett, before you leave, make sure you upload all the data of the systems there. On it now. REPORTER 8: Immediate evacuation of St. Louis and all surrounding areas. I repeat, the immediate and full evacuation of St. Louis and all surrounding areas. No further details at this point, other than one inside source saying that the evacuation is not directly related to a terrorist threat. Am I getting this right, Ben? I got to get in here. You don't look so good. Why don't you take care of it? REPORTER 9: But those who have, have said that this is all probably having something to do with the series of earthquakes-- Hey, now, listen, when those copters come in, I want men down there ready to load. REPORTER 8: Said the president and his aides remain tight-lipped at this point. What I can tell you is that the evacuation procedures are currently being-- - Kayley. REPORTER 8: --by the Department of Homeland Security. - Kayley. - Get your things quickly. We need to go. - Come on, mom. I already did tennis. What's the big deal, anyway? REPORTER 8: Hearing our numbers ranging between 2,000 and 3,000, which I know may sound high, but actually it's not enough to control-- MAN 4: Attention to all citizens. Evacuate immediately. What's going on? I don't know, but we need to go. REPORTER 9: Officials have just ordered the complete evacua-- Here. Call your father. Seriously? Seriously. It says that all circuits are busy. Keep trying. Speculation still running rampant, but one thing is clear, movement out of the city has all but ground to a halt. All highways and major surface streets are now gridlocked with few stretches breaking five miles an hour. Government officials are trying to reroute traffic, but those attempts, so far, meeting with little success. This thing is blazing white hot. You can almost see the radiation trails. It's almost like it's more energy than it is matter. Ryker, you there? GENERAL RYKER: Yes. How much longer until you finish that uplink? I need more time, sir. How much? I don't know. Just a few minutes. OK, listen, let me know as soon as it's done. I want to check some of those numbers against the power recorders. All set? Mhm. OK. ERIC BRYCE: Oh my God. SHANNON MUIR: If that things electrical intake really is connected to the hole's growth. ERIC BRYCE: Ryker. Ryker. GENERAL RYKER: What is it? ERIC BRYCE: You've got to evacuate. Ryker, get out of there now. You're breaking up on me. ERIC BRYCE: Listen, thing's about to tap main grid. Did you get that? No, sir. You're breaking up on me. Try it again. Get out of there now! Doctor. Doctor. Wait, there's somebody there! Ryker, get out of there now! The entity's about to tap into the main grid. You've got to get out of there now! Hold on, everybody. Code flame spiking at 10%, 20%, 50%. Listen up, everybody. We are evacuating now. Leave remaining equipment behind. That is an order. Doctor, I am moving the command center to the Soldiers Memorial Museum. We'll get there as soon as we can. Power down as soon as you finish here. Yes, sir. OK, we have to figure out some way to get that thing off the transformer. We have to buy Ryker enough time to evacuate. But how? It's reacting to the siren. It also reacted to the alarm at the lab. Maybe it hears sounds or feels the vibrations. I think you're right, but why? Well, space is a vacuum. It's pretty much silent. Maybe it's from some far reach of the universe that's not used to these kind of frequencies. I've got an idea. - OK. That's it. Upload's complete. Where's Tolland? I haven't seen him in a while. He didn't look so good. No, no, no. Sergeant, out of here. I'll take of this. Go on. Tolland. MAN 5: All personnel must evacuate-- BENNETT: Tolland. Tolland. MAN 5: All personnel must evacuate immediately. All personnel must evacuate immediately. All personnel must evacuate immediately. Not your typical experiment. You ready? Definitely got his attention. Get down! You OK? Yeah. That'll give Ryker time to get out of the lab. Here you go. Stay still. Now what? I'll call the general. I think I know how to get rid of the hole. General Ryker. General Ryker. Come in. General Ryker. Anyone. Whatever it did to the truck, I think it did to this signal boost. How about checking the entity? I'm not worried about that now. Look. Let's go back upstairs to our chopper pilot reporter, Russ Martin. Russ, what do you see? I am over the East St. Louis power substation, where this thing is on the move again. It's leaving by way of a major trunkline that leads out of the facility. And from what I can tell, it appears to be heading towards the Central Street power station, which is the main-- Move it, man. Come on. Faster. Hustle, man. Hustle. Sergeant Bennett, what's taking you so long? I can't find him. I can't find Tolland. Tolland. MAN 6: Bravo team, get the truck loaded now. Get out of there immediately, Sergeant. We got to go, man. The ground's beginning to give. BENNETT: Give me two more minutes. Negative. That's an order, Sergeant. If I'm not back in five, lift off. Yes, sir. BENNETT: Tolland! What are you doing? I'm going to smash that window. We're taking the truck. Wait, whoa, whoa. Hold on. Simple works. Eric. Tolland! To-- Oh my God. Are you OK? Oh, I'm fine. - We have to get out of here. - OK. Come on. We have to get out of the building. Let's go. We're ready. This way. Come on. Come on. Let's go. We've got to get out of here. Now! Sergeant! Sergeant! Sergeant Bennett! Sergeant Bennett! We're now going back live to Russ Martin in the helicopter, where all morning long he's been tracking that electrical entity. That's right, Bat. We are just inside the grounds now at the main power substation, and it seems to be-- no, it's heading for the main transformer. Russ, are you all right? RUSS MARTIN: OK. We have got sparks 20, 30 feet high here. I don't know what this looks like on your screens, but I tell you, from up here-- Move it. Go, Lieutenant. Go. That must have been it. The hole must have cracked the outer wall. We have to reach Ryker. All circuits are busy. Try again. Look, with the nuclear option still in play, I don't want to be out of contact with him for too long. RUSS MARTIN: The black energy passing has literally tortured the grounds of NQRL. REPORTER 9: Russ, are you saying that the NQRL is gone? RUSS MARTIN: From what I can see, unless it's underneath this thing. Wait, hold on a second. OK, this thing appears to be growing, and-- what am I looking at? It's pulling things in from the right and left. REPORTER 9: Pulling things in? Russ, that doesn't make sense. Yeah, that's right. If I didn't know better, I would say, what I'm looking at appears to be some kind of black hole. What's happened to the doctor and Shannon. We lost contact with them a few miles away from our substation. There was a large explosion. Could you see if they were all right? There was no way to tell, sir. MAN 7: All right, ladies, let's move. Everybody has their orders. I don't want to see anybody standing around. Sir, Ryker. Major Samson. I'll take you to command. Did you manage to download all the data out of that facility yet? - Yes, sir. But the analysis has been put on hold. By who? It's about time you joined us, General. For a second there I thought maybe you'd been sucked in, become part of our problem. Nice to see you off your horse for a change, General. Yeah, I think I can only let the second string carry the game for so long. Another update. It's now been confirmed. Sources at both the Pentagon and the Department of Homeland Security are now officially describing this dark mass we're seeing just outside the downtown area of St. Louis as a black hole. REPORTER 10: Now, the best way to describe a black hole, it's a gravitational field so strong that even light can't escape it's grip. REPORTER 11: Just straight to the point, since it emergence less than half an hour ago, the hole has consumed everything in its path. It's uprooting trees, it's destroying buildings, it's even been tearing apart several major highway overpasses. REPORTER 10: This is the reason for the mass evacuation here in the St. Louis area. And as crazy as this is, given the earlier events, this is what someone was worried about. REPORTER 11: So now, where does this leave us? I mean, is there any way to even stop this thing? OK, thanks. Bye. Ryker's on his way to the new command center now. And General Tate? He's already there. Good. I want a new direction. This thing's already dangerously out of control. REPORTER 12: Some sources putting those numbers as high as 5,000 with an expectation that they could double, if not triple, in the next few hours if something isn't done to stop the hole's advance. Details still spilling in, but the general picture that's been developing here is that some sort of as yet undisclosed experiment-- Any luck? No. Nothing seems to work. All right. Just stay calm, Honey. We're going to be OK. There's a lot of gas stations in this town, we're going to find another one. I give up. There's no getting through. How much further to that memorial? About 2, 2 and 1/2 miles out. General. KAYLEY: No, it's me, dad. Kayley, how are you? I'm fine. Where's your mother? She's here. Eric. Thank God. Where are you? We're just a few miles from the house. We're right near this thing. Eric, we're almost out of gas, and I don't know what to do. I'll come and get you. Tell me where you are exactly. We're in the corner of State and 59th street. OK. Stay there. I'm coming for you. All right, I'm going to pull over. ERIC BRYCE: It's on the way. MAN 8: [OVER TELEPHONE] So you've maintained visual contact with the creature through the news copters, but completely lost contact with the scientists? GENERAL TATE: That is affirmative, sir. No one's heard from Dr. Bryce or his associate, Ms. Muir, since evaluating the facility. I think it's safe to assume they're dead. MAN 8: Ryker. My only recommendation is to wait a few minutes to see if they somehow make contact. Doctor Bryce is convinced that the creature might hold the key to stopping the hole's advance. MAN 8: 10 more minutes, and we have to start thinking action. We're going to be fine, Honey. Come on, Eric. Why are you so mad at dad? You know, we just don't get along. You'll understand when you're older. - Dad says the same thing. Dad! Hey, how are you? I'm all right. OK. Let's hurry, get into the van. You didn't tell me Shannon was coming. Let's go. We're in a hurry. REPORTER 13: From the onlooker's perspective, it may seem a bit chaotic, but we're transporting people, we're getting help to them, and we're getting people treated. REPORTER 14: [OVER RADIO] So you're saying there's a good chance these people will make it out of here alive? REPORTER 13: We're doing all we can. In a situation like this, that's the best you can ask for. Three minutes. REPORTER 15: I am standing here overlooking the 5570 interchange where you can see the number of cars we're talking about. An entire city's worth of vehicles crammed under six major highways leading out of the St. Louis area. There is no way to handle this kind of volume. Ever since the call for evacuation earlier this morning, the highways have been at a near-- Anyone? No. Dad, I'll keep trying. Eric, what's going on? What's going to happen if you don't get in touch with them? The president's going to authorize a nuclear strike on the black hole. Nuclear? It's all right, Honey. Don't worry. It's not going to happen. WOMAN 1: Ah, yeah, can you hear me? Hello? REPORTER 16: Cindy, can you tell me where you are, what you're seeing? WOMAN 1: I'm at a dead standstill here on the 40 West, trying to get out of the city-- OK, I'm going to get out here. What do we do now? I have important information for General Ryker. Sir, get back, or I'll be forced to shoot you. Then shoot me. Sir, we have critical information. Get back! Everybody, move back! MAN 9: This is an evacuation red zone. You might want to be sure to stay with me here on this one. It appears as though the eastern edge of the black hole is closing in on the stadium. Where exactly are you, Russ? RUSS MARTIN: Well, I'm just south of the stadium, but you can see the hole advancing. I have never witnessed destruction on this scale before. The amount of debris already in the short time is immense. It's probably not clear from where you guys are, but from up here, real close-- You could just about see-- supports this-- starting to-- hold on, here it comes. It's ripping. It's starting to tear apart. This is truly unbelievable. I don't know if you're getting this, but, if I didn't know better, I would say I was watching Lego Bots being sucked up by a giant-- the whole thing is gone. Guys, the power of this black hole is absolutely frightening. And I've got to be honest with you, I am starting to wonder how anyone is seriously planning on stopping this thing. GENERAL TATE: Time's up. Sir, we still have not received word from Dr. Bryce. And I think we have no option but to start making immediate preparations for a full nuclear strike on, both, the hole and the power entity. ERIC BRYCE: Wait. You can't do that. I have an option. I like your timing, Doctor. General, this is Dr. Bryce and his colleague, Shannon Muir. We've been working with General Ryker since early this morning. HAYES: Dr. Bryce, just in time. Everyone here is aware of your involvement today. But frankly, we can't delay any further. Now, I need to understand what it is you're proposing and how you plan on getting it done, or my decision's made. Now, you have three minutes. All right. I checked the rate of increase of the hole's growth against the power authorities record of outages and surges, and the two match perfectly. It is my belief that the entity and the hole are connected. And that if we can get the two of them together, the reaction will send both of them to another part of the universe. You know, this sounds awfully convenient to me. That's-- General, let's say that this is a plane of the universe. Here we are, point A. And let's say we have some distant planet, or galaxy, point B. Now, we've always been taught that the shortest distance between two points is a straight line, like this. But Einstein believed that the power of gravity is so great that it can bend light, space, even time. So the shortest distance between two points is no longer this, but is in fact, this. With point A literally touching point B, creating a temporary tear in the fabric of space, so that something that's very far away can show up on our doorstep in an instant. Now, somehow, this entity is using black holes to travel back and forth across the universe, maybe even back and forth across time. So it made contact with this black hole and just chose to come here. No, not exactly. It needs a weakness in the space time fabric that allows the entity to punch through. Now, as a result of Dr. Hauser's experiment, it found that weakness in the here and now. Oh, this is just a bunch of egghead mumbo jumbo. If we don't take practical steps against this thing, it's going to eat the whole eastern half of Missouri. General, hear him out. Look, even if I bought into this proposition that somehow popping this entity back into the hole will destroy the both of them, how do you suggest we actually control the creature's movements? I mean, how do we get it back into the hole, when everything suggests it's moving away from it? It is not moving away from anything it. It is moving toward increased voltage sources. Now, if we can redirect all of the energy and electricity in this area to a single substation, I think we can isolate the entity. And then? Well, it responds to sound. We can manipulate its behavior by using certain frequencies. General, what about we bring in special forces and equip them with concussion grenades? Now, a shipping container equipped with large magnetic coils could trap the entity in its field for the short period of time needed to airlift it back to the black hole. Tate, can you handle this? Well, we still don't know if it will work. We can do it, sir. Divert the power and move a team into place. This is your shot, Dr. Bryce. Thank you. General. Well, nowhere yet from Washington on a plan to stop the destruction. Meanwhile, the black hole is advancing at a steady pace. What? I'm sorry. Yeah, OK. We're going to go here to Russ Martin. Russ. What a dramatic display. This black hole is not letting up. It is basically following a path from the stadium to the Gateway Arch. Unbelievable. The old courthouse building is about to become history. Those were just panels from the observation deck. Oh, man. It's pulling apart. The Gateway Arch is being pulled apart. Look at the rain of debris. The St. Louis Arch is falling apart. I don't believe my eyes. The St. Louis Gateway Arch has just fallen. Are you all right? - I'm all right. What are they going to do, Shannon? He's inside. It's OK. He's figured out a way to stop this thing. - There's food and water inside. Come on, let's get away from all this. MAN 10: Bravo team, what's your status? Coordinates for the target. MAN 11: ETA is good. This is Heavy 52. MAN 11: Copy that. I have visual on the power plant. Heavy 290. Over. MAN 13: LC is safe and secure. MAN 14: 18,000s or 18,000. We are at the staging area. Good luck boys. Be careful. All right. Gear up. Locked and loaded. MAN 15: This is 49. I've got you at 3 o'clock. Drop zone is about 100 meters straight in. Over. 49, we're coming down now. MAN 15: Roger that, 52. You're at 15 meters. 12 meters. 10 meters. 5 meters. Touchdown. Disconnect now. All right, this is it. Ropes. Both sides, go! Go go go go go! Move! MAN 16: Go go go. Don't be shy. Grab a grenade. Ready. Copy that. Secure the perimeter. Are we going to be able to touch our communication with the entity ZM interference? Cameras and mics and multiple feeds. Any data loss on one, to be placed on another. Steadiest connection we have. What about the sonics blasting through the line? Well, the computer automatically removes the blasting frequency. That allows us to maintain contact. All systems up and ready. OK, command, you can divert power now. Copy. Divert all power. MAN 17: All the power, sir? You heard me. All power. And pray that this thing falls for our little trap. Uhuh. We will. Don't do one. Just turn them all off. Turn them all off. Yeah, OK. Uhuh. Yeah. We're doing it, sir. MAN 18: Power is off. I repeat power is off. OK, guys, we're looking live. Standby. Target is moving. Repeat. Target is moving towards the abduction point. Looks like it's taking the bait. Take your positions. 202 on the lead. 101 is fallback. You ready for this? Locked and loaded. Target is closing. Building speed. ETA. PILOT 2: I'd say less than five. I feel like I'm in a stupid video game. Everybody stay quiet. PILOT 2: Delta, ready yourself. Target is closing. 100 meters to engagement. Copy. 100 meters to engagement. Come in. We have visual. Preparing to engage. Copy. Hold your position. Everybody stay quiet. Our presence may have been detected. Command, do you read? I repeat. Our presence may have been detected. Spread out. Get ready to circle back. Round one, go. Round two, go. Round three, go. We have two men down. Hold your ground. Round five. Fall back! GENERAL RYKER: No. Hold your ground. MAN 19: Target is no longer responding. Request permission for extraction. Negative. Stand your ground. Stand your ground. My God. I want all key personnel evacuated immediately. General Tate, get ready to go nuclear on this thing. - Nuclear is a mistake, General. - Get him out of here! I'm telling you, do not go nuclear! Take him outside! Take him now! Ryker, you explain to him! You had your chance! Give up! You're going to get two of them. You're going to get three. There's no chance anything you do will have an effect! Let him go. Stand back. Look, General, you can't let them do this. You're heard him, Doctor. You had your chance. Now, make sure you all get to safety. Safety? Safety where? The bombs are not going to solve the problem. The hole will continue to grow and grow and grow, taking in the entire city, then the country, and then the entire planet will collapse in on itself. Tate and Hayes have a plan. It's a worthless plan. I'm sorry Doctor. General. General. What if we didn't have to trap the entity? What if we only had to lure it back into the hole? I'm listening. What if we rig one of those generator trucks with enough electricity to attract the entity, right? Then we just drive the truck to the black hole with the entity until past the gravitational point of no return. Those trucks generate 1,000 amps max. That thing is sitting over there in that substation like a bear in a tub of honey. Why is it going to leave the substation to chase something with 1/100 its power? It wouldn't. Not if we turn off all the power to the substation and all the power to the surrounding area. It'll make that truck look like the brightest star in the sky. And if it doesn't work, what's the difference? Who's going to drive? I will. No, we will. Lieutenant. I want you to help Dr. Bryce here. He'll explain what needs to be done. This is between you and me and whoever you need to help. Understood? - Yes, sir. Go. Lieutenant, thank you very much. I want this generator truck packed with as much power as we can. This just in. We have now been informed that the government's first plan of action for dealing with the hole has proved a total failure. Will the president now consider the nuclear weapons option? Well, you know, it's interesting because it's not currently known how many people are still remaining in the area. MAN 20: Please keep moving moving. Do not block the intersection. All vehicles are subject to military evacuation orders. You are in an evacuation red zone. Please keep moving. Yes, sir. That is affirmative. We'll have full military evac in less than 20 minutes. Keep me updated. I need to contact the president. Tell him he needs to work on his address to the nation. We're still waiting for an update, but we do have word from the Department of Homeland Security that they are close to issuing a report to the White House. We can only guess-- Where you've been? Just wanted to make sure that Dr. Bryce knew the least we could do is get his family to safety before dropping the bomb. We're only doing what has to be done. I know that, sir, but that doesn't make it right. How are we looking from an evacuation standpoint out there? Everything's squared away, sir. Whenever you're ready to leave. How are we doing? We're almost done. Got to move fast. The president is getting ready to address the nation. Anyone who wants to get out of here has to go now. - Inside. I'll finish up here. You go. Hey. Eric, what's going on? They're saying on the radio that the president's going to go ahead with the nuclear strike. - He is. My God. Listen, the general has arranged for the two of you to get on an army helicopter. Hey, but what about you? I'm going to stick around. There's one more thing I'm going to try. We're running out of time. OK, you guys hurry on. Everything's going to be OK. Don't you worry. OK. But take care of her. You get your people squared away? Dr. Bryce's wife and daughter are on their way to the copters. What about Bryce? He and Shannon are wrapping up the last of the equipment. For what? I didn't take the time to ask? Well, take the time to call them and tell them they had better DD Most Ricky Tick, because we're on the clock now, and it's not stopping for anybody, especially not a couple of airdales who've already cost us more time than we can afford. - Yes, sir. If you'll excuse me. Ryker. Is there something going on around here that I don't know about? I don't see how that's possible, sir. You're in charge. Turn it on now. Now, if that doesn't look like a meal to that energy-eating piece of crap, I don't know what will. That's excellent. GENERAL RYKER: Lieutenant. One second, General. I bet when you woke up this morning you didn't think you'd be driving a truck into a black hole, especially with me. No, I thought I'd wake up, have a few more drinks, pass out back on the couch. Eric. But I'm driving. Eric. Unlock the door! What are you doing? What are you doing, Eric? Come on! Can't let you do this, Eric! Will you step off-- Ma'am. I can't let you do this. Eric! Eric! You can't! No, Eric! Damn it. Sorry, ma'am. Orders. - Lieutenant. - Sir. Wait for me at the copter. Yes, sir. Shannon, there was no need for both of you to get on that truck. Come on now, the copter's waiting. Yeah, they can leave without me. Shannon. - Look. - Shannon. No. If he's driving, the least I can do is help him figure out when that truck is going to hit the point of no return, so he can jump when he needs to. You can do that from the helicopter. No, I can't. The computers with the modeling software are here. We break them down, set them back up, it's going to be too late. You'll die if he doesn't make it. Which is why I have faith that he will. I understand. Go. What's happened to our scientists? They're staying behind. What? Why? They're trying one last time to stop this thing before you drop your bomb. And why wasn't I informed? Because you wouldn't have allowed it. Well, just so as you understand, when it comes time to drop the bomb, this isn't going to affect my decision. We're ready with your address Mr. President. Let's hear it. My fellow Americans, it is with great sorrow that I come to you tonight to explain the chain of events which forced this government to unleash a nuclear weapon on its own citizens and to mourn-- The thousands of people lost in the tragedy. The sacrifice of the citizens of St. Louis was not in vain as-- Dr. Bryce, if you can read me, where are you? I'm about three miles from the substation, General. You need to hurry. The White House is going to authorize a strike in a few minutes. I know. Is Shannon there with you? GENERAL RYKER: No. Is she on a different helicopter? She refused to come. What? Get her on the line right now. I'm here. As countless Americans and likely the entire planet were safe from utter annihilation. So such sacrifice should always be looked on with great respect. Good. There were many in St. Louis who tried hard to help evacuate as many as they could in the hours leading up to the strike. And it is without question that some of them, our bravest, lost their lives tonight in such noble endeavors. They are our greatest unsung heroes. Excellent, Mr. President. What are you doing, Shannon? Why didn't you get on one of the helicopters? And let you have all the fun? Listen to me. Tate may drop the bomb before I manage to get the entity back in the hole. You need to get out of there now. I'm not going anywhere, not until I make sure you're not in that truck when it crosses the point of no return. I love you, Eric. I'm-- I'm not leaving. We're doing this together. All right, lovebirds. Don't forget I'm in on this too. I'm not going to let you two showoffs take all the credit. OK, General. Then get ready to lose us some power. I'm here. Copy. These are the times to come together. No one in this nation or this world can walk away from today's event unaffected because they remind us of just how fragile our existence can be. So I ask you to join me to reach out to your neighbors, your families in a way that you may have thought of in the past. But never actually done. Exactly. Work through differences, forgive past mistakes. And hold each other close in support. Out of such destruction, proving that together, we can always rise above. Thank you for your time. And God bless America. Excellent, Mr. President. Thank you. Thank you. Send the bombers up. Yeah. It's a go. GENERAL TATE: Yes, Mr. Secretary. Confirming we have a go. All right, people, we have approval. The launch is go. The launch is go. Initiate watch. Initiate watch. Mission is go. MAN 22: Roger, team leader. ERIC BRYCE: Ryker. Copy. I'm set. Just so you know, bombers are in the air. Try and delay them if you can. Negative. Not possible. You're going to have to beat them to it. Copy. We're taking the power down. Doctor, I doubt if I can get you back online again. I'll be pulling for you. MAN 24: Turning off power now. Come on! It's taking the bait. You're a heck of a soldier, Doctor. Was that Bryce? Yes. Still working on his plan? Well, at least you have to give the man credit for his determination. You're at three miles. ERIC BRYCE: This thing's faster than we thought. Well, we are now finally hearing news from the White House that the president has scheduled a press conference one half hour from now. Downtown St. Louis has been destroyed. What people remain here are panicked. Perhaps all we have left, is prayer. Are you sure we made the right decision? I'm not sure how many choices we had, sir. How far out am I? You have less than two miles until you hit the outer limit. Is the entity with you? Of course it is. I have have no visual on secondary target. Repeat. No visual on secondary target. What? PILOT 3: Repeat. No visual on secondary target. Standby. Got a visual on secondary target. Heading towards primary. The secondary has somehow attached itself to a vehicle of some kind. A truck. And they're heading towards primary. Did you have anything to do with this? You've gotten so used to those stars, you've forgotten you're a soldier. I could have you court martialed for going around behind my back. You're right, General. If I had to do it all over again, I'd still go around you. Sky Fox One, this is Blue Leader. Initiate target acquisition. Sector Sierra, Echo, Tango, Zulu, Lima, Five. PILOT 3: Setting target. SHANNON MUIR: Eric, you're close to the point of no return. OK, I see it. Tell me when I'm a mile out. What? Tell me when I'm one mile out. You're coming up on it now. Five, four, three. - OK. SHANNON MUIR: Two, one. Now! PILOT 3: I have secondary target on unidentified vehicle. Closing on target one. Do you want me to engage? Think of the ramifications of this. There is no guarantee the bombing is going to kill this creature. It seems to me it's worth the chance. If you kill this thing, and Dr. Bryce is right, we're destroying the only chance of stopping that hole. Give him another minute. For all our sakes. PILOT 3: Do you want me to engage? Repeat. Do you want me to engage? - That is negative. Unengage with Sky Fox One. Hold visual on target. I say again, hold visual on target. Holding visual. I repeat. Holding visual. Sir. Give them another minute. It looks like your horse gets his chance. It's not just my horse, General. The whole world's riding on this one. SHANNON MUIR: Eric, you're getting too close. You've got to jump, now! Eric! Eric! No! No! No, no, no! Eric, can you hear me? Eric. Eric! PILOT 3: Sky Fox going cold. Weapons off. Sky Fox heading back to base. All right! Well done, sir. Excellent job. Eric, can you hear me? Well, somebody's got himself some new beachfront property. Do you want me to do another pass? You'll be running out of fuel. Don't worry. We'll find him. I lost him. Where is that faith you told me you had? Don't loose it. I've got a lot of confidence in him. He's a fighter. Wait. What's that there? Make another pass on the right. Dad! Hey! Oh, you look great! Oh, you all right? Yeah. Let's go see Shannon. Hi, Shannon. Hi! Good job, General. Thank you, Doctor. You have one heck of a father here, young lady. We did it. Oh, we did it. All right. |
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