Previously On "Defying Gravity"...
Five other focused signals have communicated with the Beta object over the years.
The Gamma object is on Venus.
And I'm gonna hazard to guess that it's gonna be our job to pick these things up.
That is the primary goal of the "Antares" mission.
The crews physiology's changing.
Lining up like points on a grid!
We could be looking at serious medical problems
down the line.
What's gonna happen when they pick up Gamma?
We have to tell them.
Is that your hallucination?
If the objects are keen on our guilt or shame,
then you have to pursue it.
You're just questioning my faith
because you have none of your own.
Paula, we are not finished here.
Yes we are.
There's a huge amount of public funding
in this project...
I think... the public has a right to be informed,
don't you?
- She's in a coma. - Oh, God.
Keep this to yourself. This never happened.
I may not have killed her, but she probably
never walk again, but nothing ever happened,
did it, Mike?
You're back on the Floor starting tomorrow.
"Defying Gravity" Season 1. Episode 12. "Venus" Translation: dima360 [notabenoid.com]
I think that's the first time we've
slept together without screwing.
Probably.
It was nice, Donner. Thank you.
I needed it.
I should probably get up now.
Yes. Today is the day.
Yeah.
- Today's the day. - Yeah, today's the day.
- Go ahead, you first. - Oh, no, please,
you look like you have the need.
Did Nadia give you a sendoff?
- Beg your pardon? - Did Nadia give you
a sendoff? One last "hurrah" before you
incinerate on an alien planet.
I don't know what you're talking about.
Oh. Well, you should know that a nearly
naked hallucination just ran from your bay
- into Nadia's. - It's not what you think.
Doesn't matter, Donner. Really.
Today, it doesn't matter.
There are a handful of days in everyone's lives
that they can point to and say,
"That day changed me".
"That day helped make me who I am".
They usually happen on big event days:
The day you married,
have your first kid.
The day you land on Venus.
But they can also happen on regular days.
In unlikely moments, with events that
may seem like nothing at the time.
Or they're so huge
that they literally take your breath away.
5 Years Earlier.
So, are we just going to lie here, or,
are you going to screw me again?
God, woman, feels like it's gonna fall off now.
Then don't waste my time teasing.
- What's the big rush? - You know damn well
what the rush is.
You're gonna make the cut.
Of course I'm gonna make the cut.
I wanna know if I'm ranked first.
- Who is on the cusp? - Spence, Dereux and Barnes.
We can add one more.
Costs five million dollars to train a candidate.
"One more" isn't in the budget.
You want Wassenfelder, you have to deal.
I was 28th last time. 8 places below the line.
You've been doing great. They won't axe you.
Yeah, says the woman who last time was ranked 12th.
Might as well call my Mother. Start packing.
There's that open teaching job at the university.
Would you stop talking like that?
Okay, they know how much this means to you.
Yeah. You know how much this means to all of us.
They probably look at me as damaged goods.
Yeah, or someone who really sacrificed.
That's not the way it works.
You know it. I know it.
Only thing holding me together
- is the eagle. - Eagle?
Yeah, this morning first thing I saw
when I woke up, was an eagle.
It's a good omen.
Well, than that's different. You're a shoe-in.
Yeah.
- Hey. - Hey.
You missed Form 24.
I don't think there's anything for me to do.
Anything that they trust me with.
Kind of how I feel. Generally.
It is brutal.
Yeah.
So you know what they did?
They put us both on your classroom in space thing.
I'm like your new camera man.
Do you believe in miracles, Steven?
I believe that amazing stuff goes on
in the universe every single day.
But that they all have an explanation.
Miracles are reality with parts missing.
- So they're lies? - No, they're incomplete.
It's like we smooth over the missing stuff
with what we want to believe.
It's just that Mintz wants me to examine
every moment of my miracle with Hector.
So? Who's to say
that examining every moment is gonna
make it any less of a miracle?
The most religious people I know
are physicists.
The explanation is what makes them
believe in a higher power.
This could be the most important day of
all of our careers.
Not only do we have a huge task at hand,
but we have to manage and control every bit
of information that leaves this building.
Then why all the press?
Because this is history. It's essential that the
public and press witness the landing.
Many of you will be called on for interview,
I remind you, keep the subject on Venus.
Obviously, we don't want anyone to see the Gamma object.
So with that in mind, we've been working
on a "50/50" plan.
50% live feed, 50% prerecorded.
The video is from a training in Arizona.
And, they got some movie effect people
to make it look like Venus.
Basically, what it's gonna be is Zoe leaving the lander...
walking around, picking up some rocks
and getting back in.
I knew the Moon landing was a hoax.
It's like a bad conspiracy movie.
This isn't why I signed up.
It' difficult for all of us to take this in.
You don't seem to have a problem.
It's because I'm Hindu. I see this as our destiny.
But, imagine the general public
with this information, it would be a disaster.
You can't want that.
What I want doesn't matter. We don't have a choice.
I'm kind of worried about Zoe.
We just don't know what these things are.
We don't know what they do, what they want.
No, we don't. And it's a bitch.
And it's scary, and it's unfair,
but we do the best we can.
You're not up here.
Believe me, it's scary down here too.
I don't doubt that.
I've lost you, I can't loose Zoe too.
You have not lost me.
- Well, for the next six years... - For the next six years,
I will be as close to you as this damn
comm will allow me to be.
And I need you as much as you need me,
so do not ever say that you've lost me.
I really should get going.
Kinda got a big day ahead of us.
Yeah.
Thought I might find you here.
"Woman alights on the breast of Venus".
"Beauty that burns bright and hot",
"and has never felt the touch of man".
Poetic.
- And slightly Sappho-erotic. - Better than "one small step".
Or Walker's, "The red planet conquered".
- Men. - Men.
Rollie's acting weird. Needy.
Donner slept with Nadia last night.
You win.
And I'm oddly untroubled by it.
Warrior's last screw. Oh, or not. Uh, no.
Um, not meant that way. That... didn't come out right.
Truly, I would die if I lost you.
You're not gonna lose me.
It's as if I'm wearing a suit of armor today.
Nothing can touch me. Not Venus, not Donner.
Not Beta.
Think I'm gonna be able to see this new one?
There's only one way to find out.
For the last three months you have been poked,
prodded and tested in a thousand ways.
Now 20 of you will move on.
10 of you will accept our sincere thanks and go home tomorrow.
For those who make the cut, congratulations.
Finish your day and enjoy your weekend,
because on Monday it all gets a lot tougher.
For those of you who don't, know that you
were exceptional just to be considered.
I'll be happy to write personal recommendations
for any of you.
You leave with my deepest respect
and gratitude.
First again.
Congratulations! You deserve it! No, you deserve it!
- Zoe... - Has gotta go.
I'm so sorry.
Venus is a terrible place for human beings.
Its surface pressure is 93 times that of Earth,
and temperature on a nice day is 460 C.
In fact, it's been only in the last ten years
that technology has advanced to a point
where a human landing is possible.
And even with those advances, time on the planet is limited
to 20 minutes, after which everything will simply break down.
- El planeta Venus es... - Get any rest last night?
- One of us did, yes. - Why you gotta go there?
It's gonna be hot on the surface, I need you
- both to push fluids. - That's amazing,
that is exactly what Donner was doing last night.
Hey.
Thermal cooling system.
You know what really bothers me about you, Nadia?
You have no consideration for anyone but yourself.
- Thermal cooling system. - I mean...
what were you thinking last night sleeping with Donner?
Did it ever occur to you that maybe that wouldn't be
the best thing for Zoe to wake up to?
And it might be a good idea for her to keep
her mind on other things?
- You know, we didn't screw. - What?
We slept together but we didn't screw.
You're telling me that you and Donner spent
the night in each other's arms, and nothing happened?
Yes.
Sometimes it feels good just to be held.
How much do you know about what happened?
Most of it. No one else on the Floor knows anything.
The girl I hit. You know her name?
Rollie. As impossible as this might seem to you,
- you have to let it go. - I feel like a coward.
But what we're doing here is beyond that guilt.
It's beyond our personal lives.
It's beyond our friends and family.
Do you understand it's beyond everything?
And if Zoe doesn't make it, what does that mean?
It'll probably mean my marriage is over.
I've played the trust card one too many times.
It'll probably mean the mission is over as well.
And I have a feeling, somehow, that the faith
of mankind is mixed up in all of this.
As you two were both in the astronaut program,
would you like to be taking that walk on Venus today?
I didn't join the program to sit behind a desk.
We would very much like, both, to be on Venus today.
It's an extraordinarily hostile place to take
a walk, isn't it? I mean, is this
a place that we could settle?
We can't last for more than 20 minutes on the surface,
- the clouds are sulphuric acid. - Or mine?
Well, that's impractical, and the surface elements are
very similar to Earth so, there would be no point.
So may I ask the obvious question, then?
Why are we spending all of this money
and risking two human lives?
Because it's an amazing achievement.
To plant a flag? Oh, come on, you two
have personally made terrific sacrifices for this mission,
that can't be your answer.
Arnel?
Well, we have a landing to make.
Ladies and gentlemen, if I could I'd like to ask you to move
to the press room now, please.
They both look good, Ev. Strange, though.
Zoe's heart rate is close to 60.
- Strong and calm. - Yeah.
Yeah, maybe a little too strong and calm.
You know something I don't?
Doctor?
There's some weird physiological changes
happening to you guys that I'm not supposed
to talk about. I'm gonna send you what I have
- in a personal file. - Roger that.
In the meantime?
They're good to go.
Zoe.
This day will pass. You may always regret it,
but you need to remember it as the day you had the
strength to move on.
And that is all I got. That's all the shrink wisdom I have.
- Good luck. - Thanks.
Yeah, it was one of "those" days for me.
And I've got this scar and it's kind of like a road marker.
A point to move away from.
To rise above.
Okay, people. Everybody on the track in two minutes.
- I'll see you. - Yeah, thank you.
Gotta get going. Scram. I'll see you tomorrow.
See you tomorrow.
You get to keep that.
Oh, bucket. You should definitely keep your bucket.
You probably don't think you want it,
- but you'll wish you had it later. - Yeah.
It's pretty impressive you just let it get away
- from you. - Yeah.
You should probably go.
You know, for what it's worth, I think you're making a big mistake.
- Don't tell me that. - Well, that's the truth.
Yeah. Well...
It's not gonna be the same around here without you.
- All right. - All right.
- Just... take care. - Okay.
- Donner? - Yeah?
What are you doing tonight?
- Nothing special. - "Major Tom's"?
Yeah. Nadia wants to celebrate everything.
Nice. Of course.
Well, if you get bored or something.
I'm not an astronaut anymore.
To Zoe!
Her destiny is elsewhere, but she will always be
- in our thoughts. - To Zoe, who
was, is and will always be out of your league.
- Thanks, Wass. - To Number One!
May you always ride on top of the pole.
On top of the pole!
- He's being lewd, Nadia. - Who cares? I'm number one.
- Alright! - More! More!
Okay, okay, we gonna need another round of the same, okay? It's on me.
- I'm gonna need some help tomorrow with Zoe. Donner, Ted, you in? - Yeah.
- Do you know anybody with a truck? - I got a truck.
- That thing? Does it still run? - Of course it still runs.
You know, you're a misogynist and a hopeless jerk.
- Did you know that? - Hopeless jerk, maybe.
You have no right to tell a woman she can't
experience the pain and suffering of
having a relationship with a screwed up man.
- Seriously screwed up man. - With scars on his back.
- Who drinks to forget. - I'll take my chances.
"Caveat emptor" is all I'm saying.
And I'll never say you didn't warn me.
You realize this can only lead to trouble?
Bring it on.
If you don't wanna be here, don't be here.
You're no fun tonight, Donner.
I'll see you tomorrow.
I keep putting on fresh makeup but I can't seem to stop crying.
- I wish it weren't Donner. - It was always Donner.
Zoe and Donner.
What the hell do these things want from us?
I don't know, but they are changing you physically,
- to do it. - Extension to what happened
- to Ajay and Rollie? - Only at a genetic level.
And it's happening to all of us?
Including Eve.
How could they keep this from us? From me?
I'm sorry. Not my choice. And they will hang me
if they find out I told you.
Understood.
We should check the crews genomes every week,
you'll be more secure doing it up there
- as part of the routine. - Yeah.
You realize this can only lead to trouble.
Bring it on.
- What are you looking at? - The eagle.
Yeah. It's a good omen.
It was there yesterday too.
Doesn't mean it's bad. Maybe it's just trying
to tell you about a new opportunity.
Maybe it wants you to stay.
You really think I'd cut it?
As an astronauts girl? As support?
I didn't say "support".
Watching you guys go to work every day?
Resenting every single mission because I couldn't be there too.
Hanging out at "Major Tom's", listening to all your stories?
I want my life to be my life.
My successes. My failures.
My choices.
I can't live around my dream without being a part of it.
Goodbye, Maddux Donner.
We are T minus 1 hour to entry burn.
Roger that.
Suit is fully pressurized. All systems nominal.
I'm being positioned in the stand.
You're in.
So, did you figure out what you're gonna say?
Yeah, I'm thinking, "I just peed in my pants".
- Memorable. - Always go with the truth.
Hey. I'll be back in a couple of hours.
Bring me back one I can see?
I took it off the flight deck.
I figured you need it more down here.
Thanks, Paula.
God bless you. I wish I was going with you.
- You good? - Right where I wanna be.
- You? - Hell, yeah.
Alright guys, lets burn some fuel.
"Crossbow", you are go to start lander separation.
Cut her loose.
- Internal power distribution? - Power's nominal.
- A.P.U.'s are nominal. - Propulsion systems?
Propellant is pressurized. All systems showing green.
Guidance set to entry and landing?
G.S.E. set tertiary.
Okay, last load.
Do all geologists carry their rocks along with them?
And pick-axes, and surprisingly heavy shovels?
We are pack rats. Yes. Although I was planning
on staying a little longer. I'm sorry.
- What time is the train? - Six. She wants to get there early.
It's not even noon yet. Maybe we could grab lunch or
- just a cool drink. - She wants to get out, Ajay.
Right. Of course.
I guess Donner and Ted are a no-show.
Yeah, Ted's not picking up his phone. Shocker.
And, Donner couldn't stay. Sorry.
It's okay. I don't mind.
So you gonna tell me how it went?
Nah.
You didn't tell him anything, did you?
That's be the last thing I do.
This one will be the real images. And this will be
the cover recordings of Zoe picking up rocks.
- Now all you have to do - Is lie.
You do understand why we need to do this?
Until we find out what they are,
the world isn't ready for the truth.
So we smooth it over a little.
That's right.
Sure. I can do that for ten minutes.
Do you mind if we say a prayer first?
I'm not religious but I'm a praying fool
on the tarmac.
Zoe and Donner, you good with a prayer?
- Go for it, Paula. - I'll take any help we can get.
Lord, please protect our friends and colleagues,
Zoe and Donner, on this difficult task
If we're facing evil, protect us.
If we're facing You, protect us.
All we are seeking is the truth,
and in your name we serve. Amen.
- Amen. - Amen. - Amen.
Amen.
- Donner? - I said "Amen".
- How's the look outside? - Looks really kinda awesome.
It's giving me butterflies.
Seeing any eagles out there?
Yeah. Yeah, right above the clouds. Great big one.
- Big old wingspan. - Nice.
This is one of "those" days.
Yes, it is.
Wanna leave some of that bag for me?
I thought you and Jen would help Zoe move.
I thought you had that covered.
No, she kicked me out.
- What, last night? - This morning.
So why you hitting that bag like that?
I always hit this bag.
No you don't. Not like that.
- You asked him to leave? - Yeah.
And he left. Man, you give a man an out and he will run.
No, I... I wanted him to run.
Well, Maddux Donner, Mr. "I've Had A Vasectomy",
tragic American hero, is nothing but trouble for you.
I'd be miserable with him, not being in the program,
what would I do here?
So why did you sleep with him?
Because, I... wanted to say "good-bye".
Hell of a way to say "good-bye".
Yeah, but I did it. I said "good-bye",
as soon as I saw that eagle, I knew.
- The eagle? - This morning again.
I'm lying there in his arms, and there is the eagle,
right outside the window, telling me to take flight,
and move on.
You're not doing this because of a bird, are you?
No, I'm not. It's a sign.
This is a turning point. Like Mintz said.
There is "before eagle", and there is "after eagle".
And I am now, you know, "post-eagle".
Okay, your rocks are all packed.
Thank you.
So it looks like we have about five hours.
Yeah, and you're not spending them alone.
Excuse me, where did you have those done?
"Crossbow", you are clear for entry burn.
"Antares", you have the comm.
We are T minus 1 minute to entry burn.
- Roger that. - Copy. "Antares",
give me burn initiation sequence on my mark.
Initiation sequence ready.
- And... mark. - 9, 6, 0, 2, 0...
9, 6, 0, 2, 0, 3, 0.
40 seconds to burn.
- You ready? - Yeah.
40 seconds. Standing by.
Venus' atmosphere is extremely dense.
This makes entry all the more critical,
and communication with the ship impossible.
For the next eight minutes, "Crossbow" will be out of touch.
It is as close as we humanly can come
to a descent into hell.
- Twenty seconds. - Roger that. Twenty.
Altitude scale at five.
Donner? If anything happens, I...
- Ten seconds, nine... - We're gonna grease this, Zoe.
8...
7...
6...
5...
4...
3...
2...
1.
Here we go.
Gods speed, "Crossbow". See you on the other side.
Seven minute mark.
- Seven minutes. - Should be soon.
Shield separation in one minute.
Zoe, what's your status?
All nominal.
"Antares", this is "Crossbow".
"Antares", come in.
"Antares", this is "Crossbow". Do you read?
This is "Antares", "Crossbow".
Glad you made it through.
You and me both. That was shake and bake all the way.
Smells like chicken dinner from here.
Any shield damage?
Negative, we got all systems in the green.
And shield separation in 3, 2, 1.
Shield is free.
Fido, do we have a position on them?
Coming in now.
Flight, they've been blown out of the cone.
- How far? - Two degrees south.
Donner, we have you two degrees off
- ideal flight path. - Copy that.
Yeah, affirmative, uhm...
We're getting a push from some wind.
I'm gonna try correct manually.
Paula, give me a fuel rate countdown.
Roger that.
What happens if they miss?
Zoe can't walk more than 100 meters
and make it back alive. So if we miss,
we're collecting some rocks and aborting.
Donner, you're gonna get me close, right?
Yeah, shouldn't see this much wind
down on the surface. This bus is going
right to your front door.
- Arnel? - Sweet, huh?
You should see the box they had me in.
Think they give the best apartments to the girls?
This is gonna be my marker.
The day I moved on.
This one.
That's a big tat. I can downsize it.
This size is okay.
- Where? - Back of my left shoulder.
You wanna book an appointment? We should do this
in a couple sessions.
We do it today. All at once.
Donner, you're still two degrees off flight path.
Yeah, it's all I can do to keep that.
We're burning through some fuel down here.
100 meters. Descending at seven per second.
Donner, fuel's at 5%. 40 sec to auto-abort.
70 meters. Down at 7, drifting at 5.
They're five degrees out.
Come on.
Oh, come on, this wind gotta to die soon.
Sixty meters. Down at 7, drift at 5.
20 seconds to touchdown.
- Flight, he's going to miss. - Donner, you have got to get it close!
He's almost at auto-abort.
He can't burn any more fuel.
Donner, don't fight it. Just bring it down.
Twenty meters. Down at 5, zero, ten seconds.
- Auto-abort initiated. - No, we're almost down.
Canceling abort. I'm setting her down.
Down at 2. 5, 4, 3, 2, 1.
Contact. And we're down.
Excellent, Donner.
"Antares", "Crossbow" has landed.
- Venus base is secure. - Copy that, Venus base.
How far from the object?
How close are we, Donner?
- From the object we are... - 286 meters.
286 meters. That' too far.
We can't get it from here.
Uh, Mission Control, we copy.
286 meters from the object.
So much for destiny.
I guess it just doesn't want us to pick it up.
Maybe it's better this way.
So that's it?
There was a crosswind, you know.
You can only fight that so much in a dense atmosphere.
You never know how you're gonna react
to those life changing moments.
There was a guy in Stockton, California,
who won 50 million in the lottery
and then drove himself off a cliff.
Some people react badly no matter what the news.
What do they want us to do?
Control, what do you want us to do?
Others let it roll off their backs
- and move on. - We got 20 minutes
to get off that planet.
Let's pick up some rocks, put on
a show for the folks back home,
and then get the hell out.
And figure out our next step once
we get them back on the ship.
Let's put on a good face, people.
Zoe is now emerging from the lander.
She's being lowered by the same stand
that supported her during the descent.
I am descending to Venus.
Hull is nominal.
The atmosphere is incredibly thick.
There is lightning to the right.
She's down.
Mark the day with a footprint.
A step forward in the path of man.
That was really nice, Zoe.
How's the suit?
All nominal.
I'm stepping away from the ship.
The fact is that good or bad, those days,
that change our lives don't go away.
You put a marker in the road,
and you move on.
And hope that the next life changing moment
- will go your way. - Excuse me,
somebody said they saw you talking
to a blonde woman with a couple of friends.
Pressure is making the suit creak.
It's amazing.
Are you getting that, Donner?
Yeah, video is coming in crystal clear.
No. That.
The baby.
Baby?
I'm sorry, Zoe, can you repeat that last?
- Oh, Zoe. - Did she just say "baby"?
It's her hallucination, it's talking to her.
She's changing direction.
I don't hear anything. Turn around and
come back to the lander, Zoe.
She's going towards it. Towards Gamma.
Zoe, come in, copy?
Come on back.
- Zoe! - I can get it.
I can get it, Donner.
She might be able to make it to the object,
She'll never make it back.