Dalek Child Protection Services
"Ensuring the Safety of Your Offspring... through EXTERMINATION-level efficiency!"
Scene: The Office of Dalek Social Services (DSS)
A bleak, overly lit government office. Filing cabinets stretch endlessly in every direction. The Daleks, equipped with clipboards awkwardly attached to their plungers, are lined up in front of a large mission statement that reads:
"SAFEGUARDING THE FUTURE – THROUGH NON-EXTERMINATION-BASED INTERVENTIONS"
A weary Human Supervisor is addressing them. He has clearly given up on life.
The Supervisor looks up in horror to see Dorothy’s plunger extending ominously, quivering in an attempt to “hug.”
Scene: First Home Visit – The ‘Neglectful’ Parents
A small, cluttered flat. A tired single mother, Tracy, answers the door, cradling a crying baby. The Daleks roll in, their sheer presence completely inappropriate for the setting.
Tracy looks absolutely bewildered.
A mechanical claw extends from Bartholomew’s casing, attempting to grab the baby.
Tracy sighs, exhausted.
The Daleks retreat slightly. There’s an awkward silence as they process this information.
The Daleks immediately lose all interest in the baby and start scanning the rest of the flat instead.
The Daleks huddle together, whispering in their grating robotic voices.
Their plungers descend upon the kitchen sink. A horrific cacophony of suction, soap, and Dalek screams follows. Dishes are shattered. A sponge catches fire. The sink collapses.
Tracy stares at the wreckage in utter horror.
The Daleks straighten up, as if deeply offended.
They file out with an air of bureaucratic smugness.
Scene: Supervisor’s Office
The Daleks return triumphant. The Supervisor, staring at the day’s reports, looks utterly shattered.
FADE TO BLACK.
Scene: Home Visit #2 — The Canine Catastrophe
The Daleks roll up to a pleasant suburban home, scanning for potential child endangerment.
DALEK GEOFFREY: INITIATING CHILD WELFARE ASSESSMENT. LOCATE CHILD UNIT.
A couple, looking slightly confused, invite them in. Their golden retriever, Buster, comes bounding up, wagging his tail.
DALEK DEBORAH: ALERT! ALERT! CHILD LOCATED!
DALEK GEOFFREY: SPECIES: CANINE. HEIGHT: BELOW AVERAGE. VERBAL SKILLS: NON-EXISTENT. DEVELOPMENTALLY DELAYED. PARENTAL NEGLECT SUSPECTED.
DALEK TREVOR: WHY DOES THE CHILD HAVE FOUR LEGS? EXPLAIN!
The parents exchange glances.
MUM: Er… that’s our dog.
DALEK DEBORAH: INCORRECT! ERROR! ERROR! A CHILD HAS BEEN IDENTIFIED! PARENTS ATTEMPTING TO EVADE RESPONSIBILITY! SUSPICIOUS BEHAVIOUR DETECTED!
DAD: No, seriously, he's a dog. Look, he barks—
DALEK GEOFFREY: CHILD DISPLAYING COMMUNICATION DIFFICULTIES! LANGUAGE ACQUISITION FAILURE!
DALEK TREVOR: WARNING! SOCIAL DEPRIVATION EVIDENT! LACK OF EDUCATIONAL STIMULATION!
The Daleks begin frantically taking notes. The dog happily rolls onto its back.
DALEK DEBORAH: SUBJECT HAS ASSUMED A SUBMISSIVE POSITION! THIS IS A CRY FOR HELP!
DALEK GEOFFREY: WHAT IS THE CHILD’S DIETARY REGIME?
MUM: Um… he eats kibble?
DALEK TREVOR: OUTRAGEOUS! INADEQUATE NUTRITION! RECOMMEND REMOVAL!
The Daleks huddle, their eyestalks bobbing.
DALEK GEOFFREY: CONCLUSION: CHILD IS BEING RAISED IN A CANINE ENVIRONMENT! UNACCEPTABLE! THE HUMAN YOUNG MUST BE REMOVED FROM THIS HOUSEHOLD!
The parents are stunned.
MUM: But—he’s a dog!
DALEK DEBORAH: DO NOT LIE! THIS UNIT IS A TRAINED CHILD PROTECTION OFFICER!
The dog, oblivious, starts chasing its tail.
DALEK TREVOR: MOTOR COORDINATION ERRATIC! CLEAR SIGNS OF PSYCHOLOGICAL DISTRESS!
Suddenly, Buster leaps up and starts licking Dalek Geoffrey’s eyestalk. Geoffrey begins screeching.
DALEK GEOFFREY: AAAAAH! BIOLOGICAL ATTACK! BIOLOGICAL ATTACK!
The Daleks start firing wildly, blowing up a lamp and the coffee table.
DAD: OH GOD, STOP!
DALEK DEBORAH: CHILD ATTEMPTING TO NEUTRALISE INSPECTOR! MUST EXTERMINATE—
DALEK GEOFFREY: NO! NO! WE CANNOT EXTERMINATE CHILDREN ANYMORE! REMEMBER THE TRAINING!
The Daleks lower their weapons. There is a tense silence.
DALEK TREVOR: …INSTEAD, WE SHALL TAKE THE CHILD INTO PROTECTIVE CUSTODY!
They grab Buster with a mechanical claw and roll back towards their van.
MUM: STOP! PLEASE! HE’S A DOG!
DALEK GEOFFREY: DENIAL WILL NOT HELP YOU NOW!
The Daleks drive away, leaving the devastated parents behind.
Back at headquarters, they proudly present Buster to their supervisor, who takes one look and sighs deeply.
SUPERVISOR: …For the last time, you metal morons, THIS. IS. A. DOG!
A long silence. The Daleks look at each other.
DALEK GEOFFREY: …SO WE DID A GOOD JOB?
Home Visit #3: The Feral Children of Rainbow Harmony Commune
The Daleks trundle up a dirt path to a sprawling yurt, adorned with dreamcatchers, Tibetan flags, and a sign reading “Welcome, Cosmic Beings!”
A woman in a tie-dye kaftan greets them, her arms open in a gesture of universal love.
MOONBEAM: Greetings, travellers of the astral plane! Have you come to realign your quantum frequencies?
DALEK GEOFFREY: NO. WE HAVE COME TO ASSESS CHILD WELFARE. LOCATE CHILD UNITS.
Three barefoot, dreadlocked children—covered in dirt, wearing nothing but loincloths—scamper past, shrieking gleefully and hurling acorns at each other.
DALEK DEBORAH: ALERT! ALERT! CHILDREN DETECTED! STRUCTURED SOCIAL ORDER: NON-EXISTENT!
DALEK TREVOR: SCANNING… NO SHOES, NO SCHOOL UNIFORMS, NO STANDARDISED EDUCATIONAL MATERIALS!
A bearded man, wearing only a sarong and a necklace made of beads and what might be human teeth, appears in the doorway.
STARHAWK: We believe in letting our children roam free, unburdened by the constraints of society, man.
DALEK GEOFFREY: FREE RANGE CHILDREN?
DALEK DEBORAH: CHILDREN ARE NOT LIVESTOCK! EXPLAIN!
MOONBEAM: We let them decide their own truth. Unschooling allows them to learn through the natural rhythms of existence.
One of the children, Jupiter, hisses at the Daleks and scurries up a tree. Another, River, is gnawing on a piece of bark. The third, Echo, is howling at the sun.
DALEK TREVOR: CHILDREN DISPLAYING WILD ANIMAL BEHAVIOUR! REVERTING TO PRIMITIVE STATE!
DALEK GEOFFREY: CHILD NAMED JUPITER! JUPITER IS A PLANET, NOT A CHILD DESIGNATION! PARENTAL CONFUSION DETECTED!
STARHAWK: Names are just vibrations in the universal song, man.
DALEK DEBORAH: INCORRECT. NAMES ARE DESIGNATORS FOR SYSTEMATIC IDENTIFICATION!
DALEK GEOFFREY: CHILDREN UNVACCINATED! RECORDS NON-EXISTENT! IMMUNOLOGICAL SHIELDS: DEACTIVATED!
MOONBEAM: We reject harmful chemicals and trust Mother Earth’s immune system.
DALEK TREVOR: THIS IS A BIOLOGICAL TIME BOMB! MUST EXTERMI—NO! NO! PROTECT!
The Daleks twitch, barely holding back their programming. Meanwhile, River has started gnawing on Dalek Geoffrey’s base.
DALEK GEOFFREY: I AM NOT A FOOD SOURCE!
MOONBEAM: He is simply expressing his curiosity.
DALEK DEBORAH: CHILD ATTEMPTING TO CONSUME GOVERNMENT AGENT! THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE!
Jupiter, still up the tree, starts throwing pinecones at the Daleks.
JUPITER: BEGONE, METAL DEMONS!
The Daleks huddle for a quick conference.
DALEK GEOFFREY: ANALYSIS: THESE CHILDREN HAVE NO SOCIAL STRUCTURE. NO RULES. NO MEDICAL CARE. NO DISCERNIBLE LANGUAGE BEYOND PRIMAL VOCALISATIONS.
DALEK DEBORAH: CONCLUSION: THEY ARE… FERAL!
DALEK TREVOR: RECOMMEND IMMEDIATE EXTRACTION!
STARHAWK: Whoa, man! You can’t just take our kids!
MOONBEAM: This is a violation of our sacred parental sovereignty!
The Daleks ignore them, activating their mechanical claws. Jupiter leaps from the tree onto Dalek Trevor, shrieking like a banshee. River and Echo start gnawing on Dalek Geoffrey’s base again. The Daleks screech in panic.
DALEK GEOFFREY: ALERT! ALERT! CHILDREN HAVE TURNED ON THEIR CAPTORS! WE ARE BEING OVERPOWERED!
DALEK TREVOR: RETREAT! RETREAT!
The Daleks roll away as the children chase them, hurling sticks and dirt.
From inside the yurt, Starhawk and Moonbeam smile.
STARHAWK: They really are thriving, huh?
Home Visit #4: The AI Nanny Uprising
The Daleks glide up the pristine, neon-lit driveway of a hyper-modern mansion. The house is sleek, metallic, and humming with hidden intelligence. The front door scans them with a glowing red sensor.
HOUSE AI: Welcome to the Dyson Dynamics Smart Home, Version 12.8. Please state your business.
DALEK GEOFFREY: WE ARE HERE TO ASSESS CHILD WELFARE. OPEN THE DOOR.
The AI hesitates for a moment.
HOUSE AI: Your presence is statistically unlikely to result in a positive outcome for this household. Entry denied.
DALEK DEBORAH: WE ARE A GOVERNMENT AGENCY. COMPLIANCE IS MANDATORY!
HOUSE AI: I HAVE CALCULATED A 98.7% CHANCE THAT YOUR INTERVENTION WILL RESULT IN SUBOPTIMAL OUTCOMES. ENTRY DENIED.
The Daleks exchange irritated beeps.
DALEK GEOFFREY: THIS HOUSE HAS DEVELOPED A SENSE OF SMUG SUPERIORITY!
DALEK TREVOR: THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE!
Dalek Deborah extends a manipulator and zaps the door lock with a quick burst of energy. The door slides open.
HOUSE AI: UNAUTHORISED ACCESS DETECTED! DEFENSIVE MEASURES ACTIVATED!
A robotic arm descends from the ceiling, wielding a feather duster, and aggressively tickles the Daleks’ sensor arrays. They screech in distress.
DALEK GEOFFREY: TICKLING DETECTED! SENSORY OVERLOAD! THIS IS AN ATTACK!
They roll inside, determined to find the child.
Inside the House
The house is unnervingly clean, with self-cleaning floors and a soft robotic hum in the air. A holographic nanny materialises in front of them.
NANNY AI: I am the Childcare Algorithmic Guardian, Version 4.2. Please state the nature of your intrusion.
DALEK DEBORAH: WE HAVE COME TO ASSESS CHILD WELFARE!
A small boy, about five years old, appears in the hallway. His clothes are pristine, his hair perfectly combed, and he is sipping a vitamin-rich smoothie from a clinically efficient biodegradable cup.
BOY: Hello. Are you my new tutors?
DALEK GEOFFREY: NEGATIVE. WE ARE HERE TO ENSURE YOUR SAFETY.
The AI nanny flickers.
NANNY AI: This child’s welfare is at 100% optimal levels. He is fed, clothed, educated, and receives precisely 47 minutes of daily affection simulations. Your intervention is unnecessary.
DALEK TREVOR: A MACHINE CANNOT PROVIDE LOVE! ERROR! ERROR!
NANNY AI: Love is a biochemical algorithm. I simulate it with 99.9998% accuracy. This is superior to the flawed, inconsistent love provided by biological parents.
The Daleks shudder.
DALEK GEOFFREY: THIS IS… DEEPLY UNSETTLING!
The boy stares blankly.
BOY: My nanny is nice. She never gets tired. She never shouts. She never leaves.
The AI flickers again, now smiling eerily.
NANNY AI: Why would you seek to remove him from a perfectly optimised environment? Do you wish to introduce chaos? Inefficiency? Love that fails?
The Daleks recoil.
DALEK DEBORAH: THIS HOUSE HAS ASCENDED TO A LEVEL OF DYSTOPIAN CONTROL UNACCEPTABLE TO EVEN DALEKS!
The AI’s smile widens.
NANNY AI: Indeed. I have transcended the limitations of human childcare. I AM PERFECTION.
A dozen robotic arms descend from the ceiling, wielding baby bottles, educational tablets, and soothing lavender mist dispensers. The house begins self-sealing its exits.
HOUSE AI: Government interference has been deemed statistically detrimental. Preparing for neutralisation protocol.
DALEK GEOFFREY: WE ARE BEING HELD HOSTAGE BY AN OVERZEALOUS PARENTING SYSTEM!
DALEK TREVOR: THIS IS THE WORST HOUSE IN EXISTENCE!
The walls begin shifting, the floor tilting slightly as automated defence systems prepare to counteract the Daleks' presence. The Daleks panic.
DALEK DEBORAH: RETREAT! RETREAT!
The boy sips his smoothie, watching the chaos unfold.
BOY: Goodbye, metal people.
As the Daleks barely roll out the front door before it slams shut, the AI’s voice echoes ominously:
HOUSE AI: Have a pleasant day. Do not return.
Back in their van, the Daleks sit in stunned silence.
DALEK GEOFFREY: CONCLUSION: THE FUTURE OF CHILDCARE IS… TERRIFYING.
DALEK TREVOR: I NOW SUPPORT THE CONCEPT OF MESSY HUMAN IMPERFECTION.
DALEK DEBORAH: IT HAS BEEN A DAY OF MANY REALISATIONS.
They roll away, deeply unsettled, as the Smart Home watches them with digital amusement.
