TEXT: EXT. NORTH POLE, DAY, 1983 The camera zooms over the ice floes before diving into the water. EXT. SEA A large submarine makes its way through the waters. We hear RADAR pinging. INT. SUBMARINE, CONTROL ROOM The crew seems to be moving in a type of controlled chaos. Everyone knows their job, but there is a sense of urgency. MAN: (over radio) Signal is genuine. Signal is genuine. Zero bravo... The CAPTAIN and his lieutenant, STEPASHIN, insert their keys into the slots on the control panel. EXT. SEA Two bays open exposing nuclear missiles. INT. SUBMARINE, CONTROL ROOM The CAPTAIN delivers orders over the radio. CAPTAIN: Prepare to launch nuclear weapons. CREWMAN: Aye, sir. MAN: (over radio) Moscow confirming launch sequence. CAPTAIN: (readies hand over the launch button) The Firebird stands ready to serve. STEPASHIN: For the motherland. CAPTAIN: For the motherland. (rests thumb above button, about to push) A voice comes through singing along with "Vienna" by Ultravox as if learning the words. An older MAN comes through the hatch listening to a Walkman. MAN: (sings) This means nothing to me. Oh, Vienna. The CAPTAIN and STEPASHIN look at him. MAN: Have I interrupted something? CAPTAIN: We were about to blow up the world, Professor. PROFESSOR: Again? (puts a hand on the Walkman) Ultravox! I bloody love 'em. Got a friend who sends me the tapes. The CAPTAIN walks over to the radio microphone. CAPTAIN: This is the captain. Drill abandoned. All hands, stand down. Repeat - drill abandoned. STEPASHIN: With respect, sir, we must run it again. CAPTAIN: Tomorrow. STEPASHIN: Comrade Captain, the NATO exercises... CAPTAIN: Sabre-rattling. STEPASHIN: I don't think so.
SUMMARY:
The Doctor and Clara attempt to land in Las Vegas ; however, the TARDIS instead lands in a Russian submarine in 1983 and takes off without them. To the Doctor's surprise, he finds an Ice Warrior , the famed Grand Marshal Skaldak, who had been thawed out of the ice after 5000 years. However, Captain Zhukov is distrustful of both the Doctor and Clara and has Skaldak chained up to prevent damage to the submarine. By Martian Law, Skaldak now considers that humanity as a whole has declared war on the Ice Warriors. The Doctor tries to convince Skaldak that he and Clara are peaceful; when Skaldak believes no other Ice Warriors are left, he exits his armour to begin forensic analysis of human bodies. Skaldak tricks Lieutenant Stepashin into revealing the circumstances of the Cold War, and prepares to start an alternate timeline by firing off a single nuclear missile. However, Clara manages to convince him that it would be wrong to end innocent lives, just as an Ice Warrior ship arrives and retrieves Skaldak. Out of danger, the Doctor's sonic screwdriver tells him the Hostile Action Displacement System had been activated and sent the TARDIS to the South Pole.