Category: 24

If you’ve seen the “24 – Two Days Later” postings that I’ve written over the last 24 weeks, and you’d like to see some of the episodes you missed, you can read them on the 24 – Two Days Later page.

24 – Two Days Later – Hour 24

The following takes place between 6 pm and 7 pm

6:00 pm – Chloe, Bill and Jack watch as Morris reaches towards the ground… but the pieces of the remote aren’t there. They look up, and see that they’re standing at the bottom of a hill on a road which leads up to a spooky looking mansion. A wrought-iron gate bars the way up the road, and a tall stone wall surrounds the estate. It starts to rain.

Bill says, “You all saw that, didn’t you? Before that bright flash of light? That hairy brown elephant thing, and the giant yellow bird…? Please someone, tell me you saw that.”

Jack reassures Bill, “We all saw it.”

6:02 pm – Morris turns to Chloe and says, “So, you’re telling me that you picked up a remote control in that control room and for the last twenty-whatever hours we’ve been running around, and you could have used it to get us back? And you BROKE it? Perfect! Just perfect!” He starts walking down the road.

Chloe yells after him, “Yeah? Like you’re Mr. Perfect! See if I get married to you now!” She realizes what she let slip, and slaps her hand over her mouth.

Bill says, “Wait… What?! What did you just say?”

Chloe tries to remain calm, “What? Nothing. I didn’t say anything.”

Morris says, “Oh, you might as well tell them everything. You’re starting to show anyway.”

Chloe takes off one of her shoes and throws it at Morris, “Just shut up, Morris!”

Jack turns around. “WHAT? You’re pregnant? You’re kidding! Why didn’t you say anything?”

Chloe says, “We were going to tell you. Back at the restaurant before all this chasing around started. I’m pregnant and Morris is the father. We’ve already decided that Morris is going to stay at home with the baby, and I’m going to continue working.”

Morris says, “We’ve decided no such thing! I’m going to…”

6:05 pm – Jack interrupts, “This isn’t the time to argue about this. You two can work it out when we get back home. Right now we have to concentrate on getting into that mansion.” He walks to the stone wall. “Morris, Bill, get over here. I’m going to need a boost to see if I can get over this wall.”

Commercial

6:11 pm – Bill and Morris having been trying to help boost Jack over their shoulders, but Jack can’t reach the top. Chloe tells them, “Quick! Get down! There’s a car coming!” They dive for cover, as a green van with pink flowers on it pulls up to the gates of the mansion. There’s a blonde young man driving, with a red-haired girl in the passenger seat.

As they get out of the van, they’re followed by a short brown-haired girl with glasses and a lanky, scruffy-looking young man. A Great Dane follows them out of the van, bounding forward to catch up.

The blonde young man says, “Well, all the clues lead here. How are we going to get inside, Velma?”

The girl with glasses walks up to the gate and answers, “Fred, the gate is locked. There’s no way in.”

The red-haired girl says, “Maybe Shaggy and Scooby can help!”

The lanky teenager says, “Daphne, You want us to g-g-g-go to that mansion? No way! There are g-g-g-ghosts up there!” The dog barks. The teenager continues, “See? Scooby Doo says so too!”

6:12 pm – Jack jumps up from where he’s hiding and says, “Stop right there!” Shaggy and Scooby quickly run into the van, and slam the side door shut. They peer out of the passenger’s side door.

Velma exclaims, “Jinkies! Who are you?”

Chloe whispers to Morris, “What’s a ‘Jinkies’?”

6:13 pm – Jack says, “My name is Jack Bauer. I’ve been chasing a group of terrorists for the last day, and we think they’re held up inside that mansion.” He beckons for Bill, Chloe and Morris to come out of hiding, which they do.

Fred says, “Listen, Mr. Bauer. I don’t know about any terrorists, but we cornered this ghost fair and square, and we’re going to get the reward.”

Jack says, “We don’t want any reward. We just want to catch the people we’ve been chasing. Just who do you think is inside that mansion?”

Velma says, “We’ve been chasing the ghost of the star of stage and screen Drexel Watershoot. It’s been haunting theaters downtown, and all signs lead here.”

Shaggy comes out of the van holding a wooden sign that reads, “Ghosts this way”. Shaggy says, “Like this one right here. Right, Scoob?” The dog barks. Shaggy says, “See? Scooby thinks so too!”

Bill says, “…But that dog just barked. It didn’t say anything…”

Shaggy says, “Sure he did! He just said the ‘Right’. You didn’t hear that?”

Daphne mumbles to Bill, “Just humor him…”

6:16 pm – Fred sees Jack moving towards the van and yells, “Hey, get away from that van!”

Jack stops at the van and yells, “We can stand around here and talk in the rain, or we can do something about this!” He gets into the van and starts it using the keys Fred left in the ignition. The tires on the van squeal and it speeds towards the gate. Everyone scatters. The van crashes through the gate, sending it flying off its hinges.

He slams on the breaks and the van skids out sideways. Jack yells something, but no one can hear him. Chloe makes a “roll down your window” motion with her hand. Jack rolls down the window and yells, “Everyone into the van!” Fred opens the back door to the van and everyone gets in.

Jack races the van up towards the front of the mansion. As they approach, they see large metal poles starting to rise up towards the sky. Velma asks, “What are those metal poles?”

Chloe says, “They look like giant lightening rods.”

Morris points and says, “Look! There’s a platform! What’s all that stuff on it? It looks like some kind of Rube Goldberg contraption!”

Bill says, “Hey, wait a minute! It looks like it’s made up of parts from all the places we’ve been!”

Chloe says, “And Someone’s up there!”

6:20 pm – Fred tells Jack, “You better slow down!” Jack ignores him. “I said, you better slow down!” Jack ignores him again. They’re headed straight for the front doors of the mansion. Fred pleads, “Would you slow down for a Scooby Snack?”

Jack yells, “Everyone down!” Jack presses the pedal to the floor and drives the van straight through the double front doors of the mansion, down the hallway, and through a plate glass window leading towards a courtyard. He slams on the breaks and skids to a stop inches from the side of a swimming pool.

6:22 pm – Everyone seems pretty shaken up, except Jack. He yells, “Everyone out of the van!” Jack gets out of the van and starts running towards the structure holding the platform and lightning rods.

6:24 pm – It begins to rain harder as Jack makes his way up the stairs. Lightning is crackling all around. He gets to the first landing on the stairs, and a shot rings out, barely missing him. Jack turns and goes back down a few steps. He hears a metallic voice say, “You’re too late, Jack! The plans have been set into motion!” Jack leans out to take a look, and a gunshot grazes his shoulder. He pulls back. The wooden scaffolding allows him to see shapes above him, but not very clearly.

The storm intensifies as Jack fumbles the utility belt he’s wearing, searching for something he can use. Jack pulls out some Gummi Bats and Bat wafers from one of the compartments, and throws them to the ground. He pulls off the utility belt, and opens the compartment that had been at his back. He pulls out a pair of boomerangs which are shaped like bats. He says, “Batterangs!” to himself.

6:27 pm – Bill yells out, “Jack! He’s at the controls on the third story! He’s raising the platform!” Jack looks up through the scaffolding and sees a metallic slab being raised higher into the air. He makes another attempt to go around the corner and up the stairs, but is again repelled by gunfire.

6:28 pm – Jack looks at the inside the structure, and makes his decision. He puts the Batterangs in his mouth and starts to climb. As he climbs, the lightning is crashing all around the structure. He reaches the second level, and starts to climb towards the back of the structure to where the figure is standing at the controls.

He slips on one of the wet beams. The Batterangs slip from his mouth, and he reaches out to grab them with one hand. He’s able to grab onto one of them, but the sharp edges bury into his flesh, which starts to bleed. The other Batterang falls to the ground.

Jack hooks his elbow on a beam and uses his hand to pull the Batterang out of his other hand. He wipes the bloody Batterang and his bloody hand on his pant leg, puts the Batterang back in his mouth, and continues to climb.

Commercial

6:35 pm – The masked figure on the platform pulls a lever, and the metal platform stops. The figure presses a button. Lightning crashes into both of the lightning rods, causing them to glow. The man yells, “This is going to be your end, Jack Bauer!” Jack continues to climb, nearly beneath where the masked man is standing. The man presses a button, and bolts of electricity shoot from the lighting rods onto the platform. Everyone hears an ear-piercing scream.

Jack starts to climb onto the third platform right behind where the figure is standing. The figure pulls a lever, which starts to lower the metal slab. Jack makes his move. He throws the Batterang at the man’s neck but it bounces off with a clanking sound. The figure turns around, and flicks his neck which makes a ‘ping’ noise. “Metal collar, Jack!”

The figure holds up a gun, and points it at him. The metal slab is nearly back down. The man says, “You couldn’t just be lost in one of those worlds, could you Jack?” He pulls the trigger: CLICK! Nothing happens.

6:39 pm – Jack jumps up and hits the man, knocking him backwards towards the railing. Jack tries to force the gun out of his hand, but he won’t let go. The man starts to laugh.

Jack turns his head when he hears noise of something coming up the stairs. [What’s the noise?] Scooby Doo comes running towards them. He tries to stop, but can’t and slides into them, knocking them through the wooden railing and over the side. Scooby turns and races back down the stairs.

Chloe screams as she sees a dark object fly off the platform and speed towards the ground. There’s a large splash in the swimming pool. Everyone rushes to the edge of the pool, and sees that there’s only one person floating in the pool and they appear lifeless. Morris says, “Up there! It’s Jack!” Jack hangs onto a piece of wood that’s jutting out from the platform. Morris yells, “Bill, Chloe, come on!” They run up the stairs.

6:42 pm – Jack grabs onto the third platform deck with his free hand. He gets his footing, and pulls himself up, rolling over onto his back, and breathing heavily. He hears footsteps, and rolls over.

It’s still raining hard, but Jack recognizes the man standing before him. “Tony? Tony, is that you?”

Tony stands there in front of Jack, wires hanging from his neck and arms.

Jack can’t believe it. He says, “How… ? You were dead! How is this possible?”

Tony looks down at Jack, “Michelle! They killed Michelle! It’s the government’s fault. They should have protected us! They’re going to pay for this!” He runs towards Jack, jumping over him. He does a swan dive off the platform, flipping in once in mid-air and lands in the swimming pool below.

6:46 pm – Bill, Chloe and Morris make it to the top of the platform. Jack says, “Tony! I saw Tony! He’s alive! He just dove off the platform!” He starts to get to his feet.

Chloe says, “What are you talking about Jack?”

Bill looks over the edge and says, “Look, down there!” Morris and Chloe go over to the edge, and look down. Fred and Shaggy have gotten the masked figure out of the pool, and are holding him as he struggles. Tony has already gotten out of the pool, and Scooby Doo is chasing after him, into the woods.

Commercial

6:51 pm – Jack, Chloe, Morris and Bill make their way back down off of the structure, and run to where Fred and Shaggy are holding the man. Scooby comes back out of the woods, and barks. Shaggy says, “Like, Scooby says that guy escaped!” Daphne gives Scooby Doo a Scooby snack, and then throws one to Shaggy too, who catches it in his mouth.

Chloe asks, “What the heck are in those things?”

Daphne says, “Don’t ask.”

6:52 pm – Velma says, “We waited to unmask him until you got here.” She grabs the hood of the man and says, “The ghost who we’ve been chasing after is Drexel Watershoot, who’s still alive!” She pulls off the hood.

Chloe, Morris, Bill and Jack simultaneously say, “Audrey!”

Velma says, “Hey! You’re not Drexel Watershoot, you’re not even a man!”

Chloe says, “Well, there’s some question about that…”

Audrey says, “I disguised my voice, and I had you all fooled! I would have gotten away too, if it wasn’t for these meddling kids! Well, it’s too late now! I brought Tony back, and he’s bent on revenge. CTU is as good as gone! My only regret that I didn’t kill you myself.”

Jack kneels down next to her as she continues to struggle with Fred and Shaggy. “Why, Audrey? Why did you do all of those things?”

Audrey can barely contain her contempt for Jack. “You want to know why? China, Jack. All that time in China. All those hours of torture in front of the television. Do you know how hard it is to play along with Wheel of Fortune in Chinese? And all that time, you didn’t even try and save me.”

Jack says, “Save you? I was in prison too! How could I have saved you?”

Audrey yells, “YOU SHOULD HAVE KNOWN! You’re the great Jack Bauer! You’re supposed to be best agent CTU has ever produced!” She smirks, “I devised this plan while I was in that prison. You’ll never stop Tony.”

6:54 pm – She gets an arm free from Shaggy and tries to reach something on her wrist. Jack grabs her hand before she can reach it, and pulls it back for Shaggy to hold. Jack grabs the device off her wrist. Chloe steps forward and says, “That must be how she was transporting herself around.”

Morris says, “I bet we can use that to get home!”

Chloe says, “I think you’re right. We’ll have to all hold on to each other.”

Audrey says, “You’d like that wouldn’t you?”

Chloe says, “No, what I’d really like is THIS!” She punches Audrey in the face so hard it knocks Audrey out cold.

Jack starts to say something but Chloe stops him. “She had that coming, Jack. Now let’s go home.”

Jack says, “Fred, Shaggy, we’ll take over. Bill, grab Audrey’s other arm.”

Fred says, “Hey! Wait! What about our ghost?”

Jack says, “That’s still a mystery you have to solve!”

6:55 pm – They all grab hold of each other, and Chloe hold the device in one hand. She says, “Hang on! This could get bumpy!” She presses the button.

There’s a flash of light.

They’re standing in a stairwell outside of the Cheers bar. Jack sees Sam inside and knocks on the door. Sam says, “Sorry, we’re closed!”

There’s a flash of light.

They’re in the middle of giant group hug in a newsroom. People all around them are crying, and they are shuffling towards a box of tissues.

There’s a flash of light.

For a split second, they see that they’re in an Italian restaurant with music playing when suddenly everything goes black.

There’s a flash of light.

It’s still dark. They hear a man’s voice, “I had the strangest dream…” The light goes on. They’re all in bed between a couple who had been asleep.

6:56 pm – There’s a flash of light.

They’re standing in the middle of the warehouse control room. Nadia yells, “Jack!” She rushes forward and puts her arms around him. “We didn’t think we’d see you again!” She gives Chloe a big hug, and people all rush to greet them.

Fenster walks up to Chloe and says, “We thought we lost you!”

Chloe sets down the device and says, “Just promise me to call someone next time we’re in trouble?”

6:57 pm – Bill says, “Nadia, take Audrey Raines into custody. Call CTU headquarters, and tell them to put out an APB out on Tony Almeida. You better set up a perimeter too.”

Nadia hesitates.

Jack asks, “What’s wrong?”

Nadia says, “I got a call from the White House a few minutes before you got back. They’re closing down CTU. They expect to have the whole place shut down within a year.”

Chloe says, “They can’t do that!”

Bill says, “They can, and they will.”

Jack says, “They’ll always need people like us.” He turns to the group and says, “We can worry about this tomorrow. I’m going home to relax. I’m going to go have a cold beer and do something I haven’t done in years. I’m going to sit down and do nothing but watch television. I wonder what’s on?”

Chloe, Morris, Bill and Jack leave the warehouse.

6:59 pm – Fenster looks at the device Chloe left behind, and says, “I wonder what this does?”

There’s a bright flash.

7:00 pm – Time’s up!

Thanks to humorist Dave Barry and his assistant Judi Smith for letting me post these episodes on Dave’s Blog over the last 24 weeks. It was a lot of fun!

I’d like to thank my wife Mary who made a lot of suggestions, and my friend John who looked over all these episodes when I first got done with them and helped correct mistakes. Fortunately he didn’t suffer much brain damage from seeing the episodes in their raw, uncut form.

Thanks for reading!