Gridlock

[Car 10 hot 5] (A slightly static image of a woman is on the monitor next to a logo of the Statue of Liberty.) SALLY [on monitor]: Salutations! This is Sally Calypso with the traffic news at ten fifteen. We've got reports of a multiple stackpile at junction five zero nine, with a spate of carjackings reported on New Fifth Avenue. So you take care now, and drive safely. (The car shakes. The occupants are dressed in American Gothic clothes.) MA: They're going to get in. There's no stopping them. PA: The police are on their way, I promise. I've sounded the alarm. Repeat. This is car one zero hot five. We have a problem. Require urgent assistance. COMPUTER: Thank you for your call. You have been placed on hold. MA: It's all your fault. You lied to the computer. You said there were three of us. You told them three. PA: Repeat. Urgent assistance. Car one zero hot five. This is an emergency! Help us! Oh my God, I'm begging you, please, help us! (Big bang. Sparks fly. Smoke starts to fill the car. Our last view of the screaming occupants is a hand sliding down the monitor.) SALLY [on monitor]: The weather is at 36 degrees, and it's blue skies all the way home. This is Sally Calypso, signing off. Missing you already.

[Tardis]

DOCTOR: Just one trip. That's what I said. One trip in the Tardis, and then home. Although I suppose we could stretch the definition. Take one trip into past, one trip into future. How do you fancy that? MARTHA: No complaints from me. DOCTOR: How about a different planet? MARTHA: Can we go to yours? DOCTOR: Ah, there's plenty of other places. MARTHA: Come on, though. I mean, planet of the Time Lords. That's got to be worth a look. What's it like? DOCTOR: Well, it's beautiful, yeah. MARTHA: Is it like, you know, outer space cities, all spires and stuff? DOCTOR: I suppose it is. MARTHA: Great big temples and cathedrals! DOCTOR: Yeah. MARTHA: Lots of planets in the sky? DOCTOR: The sky's a burnt orange, with the Citadel enclosed in a mighty glass dome, shining under the twin suns. Beyond that, the mountains go on forever. Slopes of deep red grass, capped with snow. MARTHA: Can we go there? DOCTOR: Nah. Where's the fun for me? I don't want to go home. Instead, this is much better. Year five billion and fifty-three, planet New Earth. Second hope of mankind. Fifty thousand light years from your old world, and we're slap bang in the middle of New New York. Although, technically it's the fifteenth New York from the original, so it's New New New New New New New New New New New New New New York. One of the most dazzling cities ever built.

[Pharmacy Town]

(The Tardis is blocking a narrow alleway. They walk out into rain.) MARTHA: Oh, that's nice. Time Lord version of dazzling. DOCTOR: Nah, bit of rain never hurt anyone. Come on, let's get under cover!

[Senate]

(A large Face in a tank thinks at his kneeling cat attendant.) BOE: He has arrived. HAME: What should I do? BOE: Find him before it's too late. (Novice Hame gets up and checks her machine gun. It lights up green.)

[Pharmacy Town]

(A plywood ghetto.) MARTHA: Well, it looks like the same old Earth to me, on a Wednesday afternoon. DOCTOR: Hold on, hold on. Let's have a look. (The Doctor uses his sonic screwdriver to get a monitor working.) SALLY [on monitor]: And the driving should be clear and easy, with fifteen extra lanes open for the New New Jersey expressway. (A picture of a high-tec Manhattan and flying cars.) DOCTOR: Oh, that's more like it. That's the view we had last time. This must be the lower levels, down in the base of the tower. Some sort of under-city. MARTHA: You've brought me to the slums? DOCTOR: Much more interesting. It's all cocktails and glitter up there. This is the real city. MARTHA: You'd enjoy anything. DOCTOR: That's me. Ah, the rain's stopping. Better and better. MARTHA: When you say last time, was that you and Rose? DOCTOR: Er, yeah. Yeah, it was, yeah. MARTHA: You're taking me to the same planets that you took her? DOCTOR: What's wrong with that? MARTHA: Nothing. Just ever heard the word rebound? (A man opens the front of his stall.) PHARMACIST 1: Oh! You should have said. How long you been there? Happy. You want Happy. (More hatches open. The next two are women.) PHARMACIST 2: Customers. Customers! We've got customers! PHARMACIST 3: We're in business. Mother, open up the Mellow, and the Read. PHARMACIST 1: Happy, Happy, lovely happy Happy! PHARMACIST 2: Anger. Buy some Anger! PHARMACIST 3: Get some Mellow. Makes you feel all bendy and soft all day long. PHARMACIST 1: Don't go to them. They'll rip you off. Do you want some happy? DOCTOR: No, thanks. MARTHA: Are they selling drugs? DOCTOR: I think they're selling moods. MARTHA: Same thing, isn't it? (More people start to enter the area, listless and dressed in rags.) PHARMACIST 3: Over here, sweetheart! That's it, come on, I'll get you first! PHARMACIST 1: Oi! Oi, you! Over here! Over here! Buy some Happy! PHARMACIST 3: Come over here, yeah. And what can I get you, my love? WOMAN: I want to buy Forget. PHARMACIST 3: I've got Forget, my darling. What strength? How much do you want forgetting? WOMAN: It's my mother and father. They went on the motorway. PHARMACIST 3: Oh, that's a swine. Try this. Forget Forty three. That's two credits. DOCTOR: Sorry, but hold on a minute. What happened to your parents? WOMAN: They drove off. DOCTOR: Yeah, but they might drive back. WOMAN: Everyone goes to the motorway in the end. I've lost them. DOCTOR: But they can't have gone far. You could find them. No. No, no, don't. (The woman sticks the Forget 43 tab to her neck.) WOMAN: I'm sorry, what were you saying? DOCTOR: Your parents. Your mother and father. They're on the motorway. WOMAN: Are they? That's nice. I'm sorry, I won't keep you. (The young woman leaves.) MARTHA: So that's the human race five billion years in the future. Off their heads on chemicals. (A man grabs Martha from behind, and a woman points a gun at the Doctor. The stalls all close their hatches.) MILO: I'm sorry, I'm really, really sorry. We just need three, that's all. DOCTOR: No, let her go! I'm warning you, let her go! Whatever you want, I can help. Both of us, we can help. But first you've got to let her go. CHEEN: I'm sorry. I'm really sorry. Sorry. (Milo drags Martha through a green door, and Cheen locks it behind them. They run along a passageway while the Doctor tries to get it open.)

[Back street]

(A car that looks like a truncated tram is parked here.) MARTHA: The Doctor is so going to kill you, and never mind him, I'm going to kill you myself! Let go of me! MILO: Give her some Sleep. MARTHA: Don't you dare! Don't put that stuff in me, don't! Get off me! CHEEN: It's just Sleep Fourteen. No, baby, don't fight it. MARTHA: I'm telling you, don't! (Martha falls asleep.) CHEEN: That's it. Come on. That's it. MILO: Get on board.

[Milo's car]

MILO: Engaging anti-gravs. Hold on. (Milo releases the handbrake and the car takes off.)

[Back street]

DOCTOR: Martha!

[Milo's car]

CHEEN: She's all right. She's breathing, pulse is fine, and no harm done. She looks rich. She must have got lost. MILO: Yeah, well, she's worth her weight in gold to us. This is car four six five diamond six. We have three passengers, repeat three. Request access to the fast lane. COMPUTER:: Access granted. MILO: Oh, yes.

[Pharmacy Town]

(The Doctor hammers on the closed hatch.) PHARMACIST 3: Thought you'd come back. Do you want some happy Happy? DOCTOR: Those people, who were they? Where did they take her? PHARMACIST 1: They've taken her to the motorway. PHARMACIST 3: Looked like carjackers to me. PHARMACIST 2: I'd give up now, darling. You won't see her again. PHARMACIST 1: Used to be thriving, this place. You couldn't move. But they all go to the motorway in the end. DOCTOR: He kept on saying three, we need three. What did he mean, three? PHARMACIST 3: It's the car-sharing policy, to save fuel. You get special access if you're carrying three adults. DOCTOR: This motorway. How do I get there? PHARMACIST 3: Straight down the alley, keep going to the end. You canna miss it. Tell you what. How about some happy Happy? Then you'll be smiling, my love. DOCTOR: Word of advice, all of you. Cash up, close down and pack your bags. PHARMACIST 3: Why's that, then? DOCTOR: Because as soon as I've found her, alive and well. And I will find her alive and well. Then I'm coming back, and this street is closing tonight!

[Milo's car]

MILO: Now you just settle back. It's all going to be worth it. (Martha wakes and takes the tab from her neck.) CHEEN: Yeah. The view from the windows. You can see all the way out to the flatlands. Clear blue sky. They say the air smells like apple grass. Can you imagine? MILO: The houses are made of wood. There are jobs going in the foundries. Everyone says so. (Martha points Cheen's gun at them.) MARTHA: Take me back. Whoever you are, just take me back to my friend. That's all I want. I won't cause any trouble. Just take me back. CHEEN: I'm sorry. That's not a real gun. MARTHA: Yeah, well, you would say that. CHEEN: Where do you get a gun from, these days? I wouldn't even know how to fire. MARTHA: No, nor me. Okay. (Martha puts the gun down.) CHEEN: What's your name? MARTHA: Martha. Martha Jones. CHEEN: Well, I'm Cheen, and this is Milo. And I swear we're sorry. We're really, really sorry. We just needed access to the fast line, but I promise, as soon as we arrive, we'll drop you off and you can go back and find your friend. MARTHA: Seriously? CHEEN: I swear! Look. Honesty patch. MARTHA: All the same, it's still kidnapping! Where are we, anyway? MILO: We're on the motorway. MARTHA: What's that, then? Fog? CHEEN: That's the exhaust fumes. MILO: We're going out to Brooklyn. Everyone says the air's so much cleaner, and we couldn't stay in Pharmacy Town, because CHEEN: Well, because of me. I'm pregnant. We only discovered it last week. Scan says it's going to be a boy. MARTHA: Right. What do I do now, congratulate my kidnappers? CHEEN: Oh, we're not kidnappers. Not really. MARTHA: Nope? You're idiots. You're having a baby, and you're wearing that? (Martha pulls the Honesty patch from Cheen's neck.) MARTHA: Not anymore. MILO: This'll be as fast as we can. We'll take the motorway to the Brooklyn flyover, and then after that it's going to take awhile, because then there's no fast lane, just ordinary roads, but at least it's direct. CHEEN: It's only ten miles. MARTHA: How long is it going to take? CHEEN: About six years. MARTHA: What? CHEEN: Be just in time for him to start school. MARTHA: No, sorry, hold on. Six years? Ten miles in six years? How come?

[Lay by]

(The Doctor unlocks a metal door and steps out onto a small balcony, coughing in the exhaust fumes. The stationary traffic is stacked in all directions, including up and down. The car nearest the balcony opens its door and a figure in WW2 flying jacket and helmet, goggles and a white scarf across its face looks out. It has an Irish accent.) BRANNIGAN: Hey! You daft little street strut. What are you doing standing there? Either get out or get in. Come on!

[Brannigan's car]

(The Doctor gets in and gasps for breath.) BRANNIGAN: Did you ever see the like? (A dark haired woman puts an oxygen mask on the Doctor.) VALERIE: Here you go. BRANNIGAN: Just standing there, breathing it in. (Brannigan removes the scarf and goggles.) BRANNIGAN: There's this story, says back in the old days, on Junction forty seven, this woman stood in the exhaust fumes for a solid twenty minutes. By the time they found her, her head had swollen to fifty feet. VALERIE: Oh, you're making it up. BRANNIGAN: A fifty foot head! Just think of it. Imagine picking that nose. VALERIE: Oh, stop it. That's disgusting. BRANNIGAN: What, did you never pick your nose? VALERIE: Bran, we're moving. BRANNIGAN: Right. I'm there. I'm on it. (With a cloud of white smoke from the exhaust pipe, all the cars move forward a short distance.) BRANNIGAN: Twenty yards. We're having a good day. And who might you be, sir? Very well-dressed for a hitchhiker. DOCTOR: Thanks. Sorry, I'm the Doctor. BRANNIGAN: Medical man! My name's Thomas Kincade Brannigan, and this is the bane of my life, the lovely Valerie. VALERIE: Nice to meet you. BRANNIGAN: And that's the rest of the family behind you. (The Doctor draws back a curtain to reveal a litter of kittens in a basket.) DOCTOR: Ah, that's nice. Hello. How old are they? VALERIE: Just two months. BRANNIGAN: Poor little souls. They've never known the ground beneath their paws. Children of the motorway. DOCTOR: What, they were born in here? VALERIE: We couldn't stop. We heard there were jobs going, out in the laundries on Fire Island. Thought we'd take a chance. DOCTOR: What, you've been driving for two months? BRANNIGAN: Do I look like a teenager? We've been driving for twelve years now. DOCTOR: I'm sorry? BRANNIGAN: Yeah! Started out as newlyweds. Feels like yesterday. VALERIE: Feels like twelve years to me. BRANNIGAN: Ah, sweetheart, but you're still love me. DOCTOR: Twelve years? How far did you come? Where did you start? BRANNIGAN: Battery Park. It's five miles back. DOCTOR: You travelled five miles in twelve years? BRANNIGAN: I think he's a bit slow. VALERIE: Where are you from? DOCTOR: Never mind that. I've got to get out. My friend's in one of these cars. She was taken hostage. I should get back to the Tardis. BRANNIGAN: You're too late for that. We've passed the lay-by. You're a passenger now, Sonny Jim. DOCTOR: When's the next lay-by? BRANNIGAN: Oh, six months?

[Milo's car]

(They are dropping down through the rows of cars.) MARTHA: How many cars are out there? CHEEN: I don't think anyone knows. Here we go. Hungry? MARTHA: Oh, thanks. But how far down is it to this fast lane? MILO: Oh, it's right at the bottom, underneath the traffic jam. But not many people can afford three passengers, so it's empty down there. Rumour has it you can reach up to thirty miles per hour. MARTHA: Wow. That's, like, crazy. But how are you supposed to live inside this thing? It's tiny. CHEEN: Oh, we stocked up. Got self-replicating fuel, muscle stimulants for exercise, and there's a chemical toilet at the back. And all waste products are recycled as food. MARTHA: Okay. (Martha dumps her large dry biscuit.) MILO: Oh, another gap. This is brilliant. COMPUTER:: Car sign in. MILO: Car Four Six Five Diamond Six, on descent to fast lane, thank you very much. COMPUTER: Please drive safely.

[Brannigan's car]

(The Doctor hacks into the communications system.) DOCTOR: I need to talk to the police. COMPUTER: Thank you for your call. You have been placed on hold. DOCTOR: But you're the police. COMPUTER: Thank you for your call. You have been placed on hold. DOCTOR: Is there anyone else? I once met the Duke of Manhattan. Is there any way of getting through to him? BRANNIGAN: Oh now, ain't you lordly? DOCTOR: I've got to find my friend. VALERIE: You can't make outside calls. The motorway's completely enclosed. DOCTOR: What about the other cars? BRANNIGAN: Oh, we've got contact with them, yeah. Well, some of them, anyway. They've got to be on your friends list. Now, let's see. Who's nearby? Ah, the Cassini sisters! (The screen shows a picture of two older women and a number, 3-1-7-a-1) BRANNIGAN: Still your hearts, my handsome girls. It's Brannigan here.

[Cassini car]

ALICE: Get off the line, Brannigan. You're a pest and a menace.

[Brannigan's car]

BRANNIGAN: Oh, come on, now, sisters. Is that any way to talk to an old friend? ALICE [OC]: You know full well

[Cassini car]

ALICE: We're not sisters. We're married.

[Brannigan's car]

BRANNIGAN: Ooo, stop that modern talk. I'm an old-fashioned cat. Now, I've got a hitchhiker here, calls himself the Doctor. DOCTOR: Hello. Sorry. I'm looking for someone called Martha Jones. She's been carjacked.

[Cassini car]

DOCTOR [OC]: She's inside one of these vehicles, but I don't know which one. (May puts down her knitting and picks up a large book.) MAY: Wait a minute. Could I ask, what entrance

[Brannigan's car]

MAY: Did they use? DOCTOR: Where were we? BRANNIGAN: Pharmacy Town. DOCTOR: Pharmacy Town

[Cassini car]

DOCTOR [OC]: About twenty minutes ago. MAY: Let's have a look. ALICE: Just my luck

[Brannigan's car]

ALICE [OC]: To marry a car-spotter. MAY: In the last half hour, fifty three new cars

[Cassini car]

MAY: Joined from the Pharmacy Town junction.

[Brannigan's car]

DOCTOR: Anything more specific?

[Cassini car]

MAY: All in good time.

[Brannigan's car]

MAY [OC]: Was she car-jacked by two people? DOCTOR: Yes, she was, yeah.

[Cassini car]

MAY: There we are. Just one of those cars was destined for the fast lane. That means they had three on board. And car number is four six five diamond six.

[Brannigan's car]

DOCTOR: That's it! So how do we find them?

[Cassini car]

MAY: Ah. Now there I'm afraid I can't help.

[Brannigan's car]

DOCTOR: Call them on this thing. We've got their number. Diamond six. BRANNIGAN: But not if they're designated fast lane. It's a different class.

[Cassini car]

MAY: You could try the police.

[Brannigan's car]

DOCTOR: They put me on hold.

[Cassini car]

ALICE: You'll have to keep trying. There's no one else.

[Brannigan's car]

DOCTOR: Thank you.

[Milo's car]

(They are still heading downwards.) MILO: See? Another ten layers to go. We're scorching. (A distant growling sound.) MARTHA: What's that? It's coming from underneath. CHEEN: It's that noise, doesn't it? It's like Kate said. The stories, they're true. MARTHA: What stories? MILO: It's the sound of the air vents. That's all. The exhaust fumes travel down, so at the base of the tunnel they've got air vents. CHEEN: No, but the stories are much better. They say people go missing on the motorway. Some cars just vanish, never to be seen again, because there's something living down there in the smoke. Something huge and hungry. And if you get lost on the road, it's waiting for you. (Distant roar.) MILO: But like I said. Air vents. Going down to the next layer. MARTHA: Except look out there. Does it look like the air vents are working? CHEEN: No. MARTHA: So what's that, then? MILO: Nah. Kid stuff. Car four six five diamond six, on descent.

[Brannigan's car]

DOCTOR: We've got to go to the fast lane. Take me down. BRANNIGAN: Not a million years. DOCTOR: You've got three passengers. BRANNIGAN: I'm still not going. DOCTOR: She's alone and she's lost. She doesn't belong on this planet, and it's all my fault. I'm asking you, Brannigan, take me down. VALERIE: That's a no. And that's final. I'm not risking the children down there. DOCTOR: Why not? What's the risk? What happens down there? VALERIE: We're not discussing it. The conversation is closed. DOCTOR: So we keep on driving. BRANNIGAN: Yes, we do. DOCTOR: For how long? BRANNIGAN: Till the journey's end. (The Doctor grabs the radio handset.) DOCTOR: Mrs Cassini, this is the Doctor.

[Cassini car]

DOCTOR [OC]: Tell me, how long have you been driving on the motorway? ALICE: Oh, we were amongst the first. It's been twenty three years now. DOCTOR [OC]: And in all that

[Brannigan's car]

DOCTOR: Time, have you ever seen a police car?

[Cassini car]

MAY: I'm not sure.

[Brannigan's car]

DOCTOR: Look at your notes. Any police?

[Cassini car]

MAY: Not as such. DOCTOR [OC]: Or an ambulance?

[Brannigan's car]

DOCTOR: Rescue service? Anything official. Ever. MAY [OC]: I can't

[Cassini car]

MAY: Keep a note of everything.

[Brannigan's car]

DOCTOR: What if there's no one out there? (Brannigan snatches the mike back.) BRANNIGAN: Stop it. The Cassinis were doing you a favour. DOCTOR: Someone's got to ask, because you might not talk about it, but it's there in your eyes. What if the traffic jam never stops? BRANNIGAN: There's a whole city above us. The mighty city state of New New York. They wouldn't just leave us. DOCTOR: In that case, where are they, hmm? What if there's no help coming, not ever? What if there's nothing? Just the motorway, with the cars going round and round and round and round, never stopping. Forever. VALERIE: Shut up! Just shut up! SALLY [on monitor]: This is Sally Calypso, and it's that time again. The sun is blazing high in the sky over the New Atlantic, the perfect setting for the daily contemplation. BRANNIGAN: You think you know us so well, Doctor. But we're not abandoned. Not while we have each other. SALLY: This is for all of you out there on the roads. We're so sorry. Drive safe. CHOIR: (singing) On a hill, far away, stood an old, rugged cross, the emblem of suffering and shame. And I love that old cross, where the dearest and best for a world of lost sinners was slain. So I'll cherish the old rugged cross, till my trophies at last I lay down. I will cling to the old rugged cross, and exchange it some day for a crown. (Everyone on the motorway joins in, including Martha, but excluding the Doctor.)

[Milo's car]

COMPUTER: Fast lane access. Please drive safely. MILO: We made it. The fast lane. (They head down and along the empty fast lane, level 50.)

[Brannigan's car]

DOCTOR: If you won't take me, I'll go down on my own. BRANNIGAN: What do you think you're doing? DOCTOR: Finding my own way. I usually do. (The Doctor sonics open a trapdoor in the floor of the car.) COMPUTER: Capsule open. (A car stops directly beneath them.) DOCTOR: Here we go. (He throws his coat to Valerie.) DOCTOR: Look after this. I love that coat. Janis Joplin gave me that coat. VALERIE: But you can't jump. DOCTOR: If it's any consolation, Valerie, right now, I'm having kittens. BRANNIGAN: This Martha. She must mean an awful lot to you. DOCTOR: Hardly know her. I was too busy showing off. And I lied to her. Couldn't help it, just lied. Bye then. (The Doctor drops onto the roof of the car below.) VALERIE: He's completely insane! BRANNIGAN: That, and a bit magnificent!

[Whitey's car]

(The Doctor sonics open the roof hatch and drops in on a man with very pale skin, wearing a white suit.) COMPUTER: Capsule open. WHITEY: Who the hell are you? DOCTOR: Sorry, Motorway Foot Patrol. I'm doing a survey. How are you enjoying your motorway? WHITEY: Well, not very much. Junction Five's been closed for three years. DOCTOR: Thank you. Your comments have been noted. Have a nice day! (He opens the floor hatch and hangs there until the next car stops underneath him.)

[Asian girl's car]

COMPUTER: Capsule open. (This one has two young Asian women in it. He passes straight through.) COMPUTER: Capsule open. DOCTOR: Thank you for your cooperation. Your comments have been noted. Do you mind if I borrow this? (He picks up a small blue headscarf and uses it as a mask.) DOCTOR: Not my colour, but thank you very much.

[Nudist's car]

COMPUTER: Capsule open. DOCTOR: Ooo! Don't mind me.

[Red man's car]

COMPUTER: Capsule open. (And so on.)

[Milo's car]

CHEEN: Try again. (Milo taps Exit 1 on the monitor.) COMPUTER: Brooklyn turnoff one, closed. CHEEN: Try the next one. COMPUTER: Brooklyn turnoff two, closed. CHEEN: What do we do? MILO: We'll keep going round. We'll do the whole loop, and by the time we come back round, they'll be open. (Growl, shudder.) MARTHA: You're still calling that air vents? MILO: What else could it be? CHEEN: What the hell is that? MILO: It's just the hydraulics. MARTHA: It sounds like it's alive. MILO: It's all exhaust fumes out there. Nothing could breathe in that. JAVIT [OC]: Calling Car four six five diamond six. Repeat, calling Car four six five diamond six. MILO: This is Car four six five diamond six. Who's that? Where are you?

[Javit's car]

(Javit looks like a black poodle. She has two pale girls with her.) JAVIT: I'm in the fast lane, about fifty yards behind.

[Milo's car]

JAVIT [OC]: Can you get back up? Can you get off the fast lane? MILO: We only have permission to go down. We need

[Javit's car]

(Something is hitting the car.) MILO [OC]: The Brooklyn Flyover. JAVIT: It's closed. Go back up.

[Milo's car]

MILO: We can't. We'll just go round.

[Javit's car]

JAVIT: Don't you understand? They're closed. They're always closed.

[Milo's car]

JAVIT [OC]: We're stuck down here, and there's something else out there in the fog.

[Javit's car]

JAVIT: Can't you hear it? (Big roar.)

[Milo's car]

MILO: That's the air vents. JAVIT [OC]: Jehovah, what are you?

[Javit's car]

JAVIT: Some stupid kid? Get out of here! (Big thump, the car tilts sideways.)

[Milo's car]

MILO: What was that?

[Javit's car]

JAVIT: I can't move!

[Milo's car]

JAVIT [OC]: They've got us! MILO: But what's happening? MARTHA: What's got you? What is it?

[Javit's car]

JAVIT: Hang on. It's here. Just drive, you idiots! Get out of here!

[Milo's car]

MILO: Can you hear me? Hello? MARTHA: Just drive! Do what she said. Get us out of here! MILO: But where? MARTHA: Just straight ahead. And fast! CHEEN: What is it? What's out there? What is it?

[City gent's car]

(Bowler hat and pinstripe suit.) COMPUTER: Capsule open. (The Doctor drops in.) GENT: Excuse me, is that legal? DOCTOR: Sorry, Motorway Foot Patrol. Whatever. Have you got any water? GENT: Certainly. Never let it be said I've lost my manners. (He gives the Doctor a tiny cone of water.) DOCTOR: Is this the last layer? GENT: We're right at the bottom. Nothing below us but the fast lane. DOCTOR: Can we drive down? GENT:: There's only two of us. You need three to go down. DOCTOR: Couldn't we just cheat? GENT: Well, I'd love to, but it's an automated system. The wheel would lock. DOCTOR: Then excuse me. (The Doctor starts to open the floor hatch.) GENT: You can't jump. It's a thousand feet down. DOCTOR: No, I just want to look. (Growl!) DOCTOR: What's that noise? GENT: I try not to think about it. DOCTOR: What are those lights? What's down there? I just need to see. (The Doctor sonics the car computer.) DOCTOR: There must be some sort of ventilation. If I could just transmit a pulse through this thing, maybe I could trip the system, give us a bit of a breeze.

[Brannigan's car]

(Someone is cutting through the roof hatch.) BRANNIGAN: Just what we need. Pirates! VALERIE: I'm calling the police! (Hame hangs upside down through the hatch.) HAME: The Doctor. Where is he?

[City gent's car]

(The Doctor is connecting wires.) DOCTOR: That's it! Might shift the fumes a bit, give us a good look. GENT: What are those shapes? DOCTOR: They're alive. (Giant claws snap up at them.) GENT: What the hell are they? DOCTOR: Macra.

[Milo's car]

(Something hits it.) CHEEN: Go faster! MILO: I'm at top speed! (The car is weaving through the grabbing claws.) COMPUTER: No access above. MILO: But this is an emergency! POLICE: Thank you for your call. You have been placed on hold. MARTHA: Turn everything off. MILO: You've got to be joking. MARTHA: But listen, it's all fog out there, so how can they see us? Maybe it's the engines, the sound, or the heat, or the light. I don't know. Turn everything off. They might not be able to find us. MILO: What if you're wrong? MARTHA: It can't be worse than this! Just do it! (The car goes dark, and outside goes quiet.) CHEEN: They've stopped. MILO: Yeah, but they're still out there. CHEEN: How did you think of that? MARTHA: I saw it on a film. They used to do it in submarines. The trouble is, I can't remember what they did next. MILO: Well, you'd better think of something, because we've lost the aircon. If we don't switch the engines back on, we won't be able to breathe. MARTHA: How long have we got? MILO: Eight minutes, maximum.

[City gent's car]

DOCTOR: The Macra used to be the scourge of this galaxy. Gas. They fed off gas, the filthier the better. They built up a small empire using humans as slaves and mining gas for food. GENT: They don't exactly look like empire builders to me. DOCTOR: Well, that was billions of years ago. Billions. They must have devolved down the years. Now they're just beasts. But they're still hungry and my friend's down there. (A clang on the roof.) GENT: Oh, it's like New Times Square in here, for goodness's sake! (Hame drops in.) DOCTOR: I've invented a sport. HAME: Doctor, you're a hard man to find. GENT: No guns. I'm not having guns. HAME: I only brought this in case of pirates. Doctor, you've got to come with me. DOCTOR: Do I know you? HAME: You haven't aged at all. Time has been less kind to me. DOCTOR: Novice Hame! No, hold on, get off. Last time we met, you were breeding humans for experimentation. HAME: I've sought forgiveness, Doctor, for so many years, under his guidance. And if you come with me, I might finally be able to redeem myself. DOCTOR: I'm not going anywhere. You've got Macra living underneath this city. Macra! And if my friend's still alive, she's stuck down there. HAME: You've got to come with me right now. DOCTOR: No, no, no, you're coming with me. We've got three passengers now. HAME: I'm sorry, Doctor. But the situation is even worse than you can imagine. (Hame grabs the Doctor's wrist.) HAME: Transport. DOCTOR: Don't you dare! Don't you dare! (They beam away. The City gent is left alone.)

[Senate]

(Hame and the Doctor pick themselves up from the rubbish-strewn floor.) DOCTOR: Oh! Rough teleport. Ow. You can go straight back down and teleport people out, starting with Martha. HAME: I only had the power for one trip. DOCTOR: Then get some more! Where are we? HAME: High above, in the over-city. DOCTOR: Good. Because you can tell the Senate of New New York I'd like a word. They have got thousands of people trapped on the motorway. Millions! HAME: But you're inside the Senate, right now. May the goddess Santori bless them. (Hame uses her teleport bracelet to turn on the lights. The senate is populated by skeletons.) HAME: They died, Doctor. The city died. DOCTOR: How long's it been like this? HAME: Twenty four years. DOCTOR: All of them? Everyone? What happened? HAME: A new chemical. A new mood. They called it Bliss. Everyone tried it. They couldn't stop. A virus mutated inside the compound and became airborne. Everything perished. Even the virus, in the end. It killed the world in seven minutes flat. There was just enough time to close down the walkways and the flyovers, sealing off the under-city. Those people on the motorway aren't lost, Doctor. They were saved. DOCTOR: So the whole thing down there is running on automatic. HAME: There's not enough power to get them out. We did all we could to stop the system from choking. DOCTOR: Who's we? How did you survive? HAME: He protected me. And he has waited for you, these long years. BOE [OC]: Doctor. DOCTOR: The Face of Boe! BOE: I knew you would come. HAME: Back in the old days, I was made his nurse as penance for my sin. DOCTOR: Old friend, what happened to you? BOE: Failing. HAME: He protected me from the virus by shrouding me in his smoke. But with no one to maintain it, the City's power died. The under-city would have fallen into the sea. DOCTOR: So he saved them. HAME: The Face of Boe wired himself into the mainframe. He's giving his life force just to keep things running. DOCTOR: But there are planets out there. You could have called for help. HAME: The last act of the Senate was to declare New Earth unsafe. The automatic quarantine lasts for one hundred years. DOCTOR: So the two of you stayed here, on your own for all these years. HAME: We had no choice. DOCTOR: Yes, you did. BOE: Save them, Doctor. Save them.

[Milo's car]

CHEEN: How much air's left? MILO: Two minutes. MARTHA: There's always the Doctor. That friend of mine. He might think of something. MILO: Martha, no one's coming. CHEEN: He looked kind of nice. MARTHA: He's a bit more than that. CHEEN: Are you and him MARTHA: Sometimes I think he likes me, but sometimes I just think he needs someone with him. CHEEN: I never even asked. Where's home? MARTHA: It's a long way away. I didn't really think. I just followed the Doctor, and they don't even know where I am. My mum and dad. If I died here, they'd never know. MILO: So, er, who is he, then, this Doctor? MARTHA: I don't know. Well, not really. There's so much he never says. CHEEN: But that means that the only hope right now is a complete stranger. Well, that's no use. MARTHA: It is, though, because you haven't seen the things he can do. Honestly, just trust me, both of you. You've got your faith, you've got your songs and your hymns, and I've got the Doctor. MILO: Right. (Milo turns the car back on.) COMPUTER: Systems back online. MILO: Good luck. MARTHA: And you. (They fly off again through the snatching claws.)

[Senate]

(The Doctor has got a computer working.) DOCTOR: Car four six five diamond six. It still registers! That's Martha. I knew she was good. Novice Hame, hold that in place. Think, think, think, think. Take the residual energy, invert it, feed it through the electricity grid. HAME: There isn't enough power. DOCTOR: Oh, you've got power. You've got me. I'm brilliant with computers, just you watch. Hame, every switch on that bank up to maximum. I can't power up the city, but all the city needs is people. HAME: So what are you going to do? DOCTOR: This! (He throws a big switch and the lights go out.) DOCTOR: No, no, no, no, no, no, no. (Milo's car is grabbed by a claw. Another one knocks it free again.) DOCTOR: The transformers are blocked. The signal can't get through. BOE: Doctor. DOCTOR: Yeah, hold on, not now. BOE: I give you my last (Breath. The power comes back to the computer.) DOCTOR: Hame, look after him. Don't you go dying on me, you big old face. You've got to see this. The open road. Ha!

[Brannigan's car]

(Clanging sounds.) BRANNIGAN: What in Jehovah was that? VALERIE: It's coming from above! BRANNIGAN: What is it? What's happening?!

[Cassini's car]

ALICE: Hold on, May.

[Brannigan's car]

(Brannigan looks out through the roof hatch.) BRANNIGAN: By all the cats in the kingdom! (The roof over the motorway starts to open.) VALERIE: What is it? (Daylight streams in.) VALERIE: What is it? (The travellers all start to laugh.)

[City gent's car]

GENT: Yes!

[Brannigan's car]

VALERIE: It's the sun! Oh, Brannigan. Children, it's the sunlight. DOCTOR [on monitor]: Sorry, no Sally Calypso. She was just a hologram. My name's the Doctor. BRANNIGAN: He's a magician. DOCTOR [on monitor]: And this is an order. Everyone drive up. Right now. BRANNIGAN: Is he serious? DOCTOR [on monitor]: I've opened the roof of the motorway. Come on. Throttle those engines. Drive up. All of you. The whole under-city. Drive up, drive up, drive up! Fast! BRANNIGAN: Here we go. DOCTOR [on monitor]: We've got to clear that fast lane. Drive up and get out of the way.

[Milo's car]

DOCTOR [on monitor]: Oi! Car four six five diamond six. Martha! Drive up! MARTHA: That's the Doctor! MILO: We can't go up! We'll hit the layer! MARTHA: Just do as he says! Go up! DOCTOR [on monitor]: You've got access above. Now go! (Milo steers the car up out of the reach of the Macra.) CHEEN: It's daylight. Oh my God, that's the sky. The real sky. MARTHA: He did it! I told you, he did it!

[Brannigan's car]

BRANNIGAN: Did I tell you, Doctor? You're not bad, sir. You're not bad at all! Oh, yee-hah!

[Senate]

(Hame is tending to the Face of Boe.) DOCTOR: You keep driving, Brannigan. All the way up. Because it's here, just waiting for you. The city of New New York, and it's yours. And don't forget I want that coat back. BRANNIGAN [OC]: I reckon that's a fair bar gain, sir. DOCTOR: And Car four six five diamond six, I've sent you a flight path. Come to the Senate. MARTHA [OC]: On my way. DOCTOR: It's been quite a while since I saw you, Martha Jones. HAME: Doctor! (A big crack is spreading across Boe's tank. A little later, Martha runs in and sees all the skeletons.) MARTHA: Doctor? DOCTOR: Over here. MARTHA: Doctor! What happened out there? (The Face of Boe is out of his tank.) MARTHA: What's that? DOCTOR: It's the Face of Boe. It's all right. Come and say hello. And this is Hame. She's a cat. Don't worry. He's the one that saved you, not me. HAME: My lord gave his life to save the city, and now he's dying. DOCTOR: No, don't say that. Not old Boe. Plenty of life left. BOE: It's good to breathe the air once more. MARTHA: Who is he? DOCTOR: I don't even know. Legend says the Face of Boe has lived for billions of years. Isn't that right? And you're not about to give up now. BOE: Everything has its time. You know that, old friend, better than most. HAME: The legend says more. DOCTOR: Don't. There's no need for that. HAME: It says that the Face of Boe will speak his final secret to a traveller. DOCTOR: Yeah, but not yet. Who needs secrets, eh? BOE: I have seen so much. Perhaps too much. I am the last of my kind, as you are the last of yours, Doctor. DOCTOR: That's why we have to survive. Both of us. Don't go. BOE: I must. But know this, Time Lord. You are not alone. (Boe breathes out for one last time, and closes his eyes. Hame weeps.)

[Pharmacy Town]

DOCTOR: All closed down. MARTHA: Happy? DOCTOR: Happy happy. New New York can start again. And they've got Novice Hame. Just what every city needs. Cats in charge. Come on, time we were off. MARTHA: But what did he mean, the Face of Boe? You're not alone. DOCTOR: I don't know. MARTHA: You've got me. Is that what he meant? DOCTOR: I don't think so. Sorry. MARTHA: Then what? DOCTOR: Doesn't matter. Back to the Tardis, off we go. (Martha straightens up a chair and sits down, arms and legs crossed.) DOCTOR: All right, are you staying? MARTHA: Till you talk to me properly, yes. He said last of your kind. What does that mean? DOCTOR: It really doesn't matter. MARTHA: You don't talk. You never say. Why not? CHOIR: (singing) Fast falls the eventide. MARTHA: It's the city. CHOIR: The darkness deepens MARTHA: They're singing. CHOIR: Lord, with me abide. When other helpers fail DOCTOR: I lied to you, because I liked it. I could pretend. Just for a bit, I could imagine they were still alive, underneath a burnt orange sky. I'm not just a Time Lord. I'm the last of the Time Lords. The Face of Boe was wrong. There's no one else. MARTHA: What happened? CHOIR: Swift to its close ebbs out life's little day. DOCTOR: There was a war. A Time War. The last Great Time War. My people fought a race called the Daleks, for the sake of all creation. And they lost. They lost. Everyone lost. They're all gone now. My family, my friends, even that sky. Oh, you should have seen it, that old planet. The second sun would rise in the south, and the mountains would shine. The leaves on the trees were silver, and when they caught the light every morning, it looked like a forest on fire. When the autumn came, the breeze would blow through the branches like a song. CHOIR: The darkness deepens. Lord, with me abide.