INT. ROVER - ARES 4 MAV SITE - DAY
Sol 538
Mark and Darcie stared at the camera with a look that said, 'Oh Jesus, these JPL guys are gonna get me killed.'
Mark said in a distraught tone, "Mackenzie and I know what they're doing. Mackenzie and I know what they're doing. They keep repeating "accelerate faster than any man in the history of space travel" like this is a good thing, like this'll distract us from how insane their plan is. Oh really? Darcie and I get to be the fastest man and woman in the history of space travel? You're launching us into space in a convertible. No no, it's worse, because we don't have any controls. You're launching us into space in a tin can. And, by the way, physicists don't even use words like "fast" when describing acceleration, so they're only doing it in hopes she and I won't raise any objections because we like the way "fastest man and woman in the history of space travel" sounds. Well, you know what?" He thought about it and glanced to Darcie who nodded. "Wedolikeit. Wedolikethewayit sounds. Okay, fine. Let's do this."
Waterloo by ABBA began to play.
EXT. MAV - DAY
Mark and Darcie stood at the base of the MAV. They both held a large wrench in their hands, almost like a weapon.
Mark and Darcie stared up at the MAV with a gleam in their eyes.
"My my at Waterloo Napoleon did surrender..."
INT. MAV - DAY
Mark and Darcie tore the acceleration chairs out of the cockpit.
EXT. MAV - DAY
One after another, the acceleration chairs hit the dirt in a pile.
INT. MAV - DAY
Mark and Darcie tore out the control panels. They were having fun.
EXT. MAV - DAY
The controls hit the dirt. The pile was growing.
INT. HERMES FLIGHT DECK - SPACE
Martinez ran through a flight simulation at his station. It wasn't going well. "Collision with Terrain" blinked in angry red letters on his screen.
"And... you killed them," Johanssen said.
Lewis shrugged. "Try it again."
Martinez rebooted the simulator.
INT. MAV COCKPIT - DAY
Mark and Darcie waited in the airlock with a mess of stripped equipment.
EXT. MAV - DAY
The outside of the MAV looked like the set of Sanford and Son. Mark and Darcie wrenched one of the MAV's hull panels free.
EXT. MAV - DAY
The nose airlock broke free, and tumbled down.
EXT. MAV - DUSK
Mark and Darcie were sitting on a hill slope, surveying their handiwork.
The MAV had been transformed. The whole front had been torn off and Hab canvas covered it. Equipment littered the area all around. They'd created a junkyard on Mars.
"Finally facing my Waterloo..."
Mark and Darcie sat, exhausted. Darcie closed her eyes and let out a deep sigh.
EXT. HERMES - SPACE
The Hermes halted rotation as it approached Mars.
Sol 560
Lewis began, "Here's the plan..."
INT. HERMES REC ROOM - SPACE
The whole crew was present for the state of the union.
Lewis continued. "Martinez will fly the MAV. Johanssen will sysop the ascent. Beck and Vogel, I want you in Airlock 2 with the outer door open before the MAV even launches. Once we reach intercept, it'll be Beck's job to get his wife and Watney."
"They might be in bad shape," Beck warned. "The stripped down MAV will get up to 12 g's during the launch. They could be knocked unconscious and may have internal bleeding." Even the very thought of something like internal bleeding happening to Darcie pained him.
"Well, then it's a good thing you're our
doctor. What's the intercept plan?"
"We finished attaching the tethers into
one long line. It's 214 meters long. I'll have the MMU, so moving around should be easy."
"How fast a relative velocity can you
handle?"
"Once I get to Mark and Darcie? I can grab the MAV at 5 meters per second. 10 is like jumping onto a moving train. Any more than that and I might miss."
"We've got some leeway. The launch will be 52 minutes before the intercept and it takes 12 minutes. As soon as Mark and Darcie's engine cuts out we'll know our intercept point and velocity."
"Good. And 214 meters isn't a hard limit, per se."
"Yes. It is."
"I take off the tether, I could get way
out to-"
"Not an option. Vogel, you're Beck's
backup. All goes well, you're pulling them back aboard with the tether. If things go wrong, you're going out after them."
"Ja," Vogel agreed.
"All right. Let's go get our boy and girl."
INT. POP-UP TENT - DAY
Mark and Darcie sat inside the makeshift pressurized tent. They tore open their last remaining ration pack: "Goodbye, Mars".
They ate in silence.
Sol 561
EXT. NASA - NIGHT
It was a mob scene at NASA. Networks from all across the globe had sent teams to cover the event. Campers, crews, and chaos all around as everyone fought for real estate in the biggest story of the century.
EXT. TIMES SQUARE - NIGHT
New-Years-Eve-Level crowds gathered in Times Square. On the Jumbotron, news reports announced the "Watney and Beck Rescue."
INT. MISSION CONTROL - NIGHT
Teddy, Vincent and Annie watched from an observation area.
"If something goes wrong, what can Mission Control do?" Annie asked.
"Not a damned thing," Vincent replied, noticing her look. "It's all happening twelve light-minutes away. That means it takes twenty-four minutes for them to get the answer to any question they ask. The whole launch is twelve minutes long. They're on their own."
"Not that we have a choice, but... are we sure we want to be broadcasting this to the world? I mean, if something goes wrong-"
Vincent cut her off. "Yes." His tone was resolute. "We want to be broadcasting this."
Mitch took his position Johanssen's voice rang out over comms. "Fuel Pressure green."
EXT. STREETS - BEIJING - DAY
Crowds watched the screens in Beijing as Johanssen's voice rang out over comms. "Engine alignment perfect..."
EXT. ST. PETERSBERG - DAY
The cold wasn't keeping the crowds from watching the screens in the Palace Square.
"Communications five by five..."
INT. HERMES - FLIGHT DECK - SPACE
Lewis nodded. She'd been waiting for this moment for some time. She keyed the console and said, "About two minutes, Watney, Beck. How you two doing down there?"
INT. MAV - COCKPIT - DAY
Mark and Darcie tried to keep their emotions under control as they waited in the cockpit. "It's good to hear your voice, Commander."
Darcie's breath hitched and shook and Mark continued. "We're eager to get up to you."
His voice broke. "Thank you for coming back for me and Darcie."
Darcie said in a shaky voice, "Yeah, thanks. Hey Chris, if you can hear me, I'm gonna need the biggest hug in the whole freaking world."
Beck spoke and said, "I'll be waiting, Darce."
Darcie began sobbing as she said, "Chris, I've missed your voice."
"Me too. Hang in there, baby. I'll see you soon."
INT. HERMES FLIGHT DECK - SPACE
"We're on the case," Lewis said. "Remember, you'll both be pulling some pretty heavy G's. It's okay to pass out. You're in Martinez' hands."
"Go," Johanssen instructed.
"Tell that asshole no barrel-rolls," Mark stated.
"Copy that, MAV," Lewis replied. "CAPCOM..."
Johanssen was at her station.
Lewis continued. "Remote Command..."
Martinez was grinning in anticipation. "Go."
"Recovery..."
INT. HERMES - AIRLOCK 2 - SPACE
Beck floated in the open airlock. Beneath him, the Red Planet blazed in all its brilliance. "Go."
Lewis said over comms, "Secondary recovery..."
Vogel was clamped to the floor behind Beck. "Go."
INT. HERMES - FLIGHT DECK - SPACE
"Pilots..."
INT. MAV - COCKPIT - DAY
Mark and Darcie, in their EVA suits, strapped into their acceleration seats, said, "Go."
EXT. VARIOUS - DAY/NIGHT
ALL AROUND THE WORLD
The crowds erupted in cheer as they heard Mark and Darcie's voices.