Fringe (2008–2013): Season 4, Episode 13 - A Better Human Being - full transcript

As the Fringe team investigates a mentally ill patient who appears to be connected to a series of murders, frightening clues and connections are uncovered that lead Olivia to some shocking revelations.

Previously on Fringe...

- What's wrong? - I've just been
getting these migraines, that's all.

Tomorrow I'm gonna send
some medication over.

It's a new drug
we've been working on.

- You don't have to do that.
- I want to.

I'm the closest thing
you have to a mother, remember?

In the dreams
that you were having,

the ones that I'm in,
did you feel like you knew me?

You were a stranger.
What would I feel?

I love you.

Look, Peter, I don't know
how to explain it.



Feels like there was
somebody else in my head.

Hi. Come in.

I'm gonna pour you a drink.

What is that that
smells so fantastic?

What do you mean?
It's Friday.

I ordered Damiano's.

Whoa. Olivia.

(Peter)
Just be straight with me.

Are you okay?

Yeah, I'm fine.

Then why did you kiss me?

I don't know.

It just felt like
that's what we'd do.

Just felt normal.



How long have we known
each other, Olivia?

Three months.

Peter, I know who you are,
and I know who I am.

I think that this may just be

some residual effects left over
from being in Westfield.

Then we should let Walter
have a look at you.

No, I'm-- I'm fine.
Honestly.

I think what I need
is just some rest.

I'm sorry that I kissed you.

To be honest, I'm a little bit
embarrassed about it.

There's no need
to be embarrassed.

Maybe I should stay here
for a little while--

You know, just while
you rest, in case.

I would really like
some time to myself.

I think I've got another
migraine coming on.

Okay.

If you're still feeling
this way in the morning,

will you please let Walter
take a look at you?

Okay.

- Hi.
- Come on in.

(Sean) Shh, quiet, quiet.

We're almost there.

It's time.

[Suspenseful music]



[Handle clanks]

[Microwave beeping]

He's in the kitchen.

[Clattering]

Oh, hot, hot.

Fan out.

You two, fan out.

Be careful.

[Breathing quickly]

Sean.

Hey, what are you doing
in here?

You should be in bed.

Sean, it's me, Bernadette.

Okay? Come on.

I'm gonna take you back
to your room.

He's in the kitchen.

Let's go.
Come on.

He's coming your way.

He's coming your way.

Sean, can you hear me?
Sean.

Listen, the voices
that you're hearing,

they're not real.

You're okay.
Let's go.

[Ominous music]

Please.

Please, take anything you want.

You don't have to do this.

No, no, please, please!

I beg you.
No, no, no!

No!
[Screaming]

Damn it, I'm cut!

I'm bleeding!

[Grunting and groaning]

- Charles!
- There's three of us and one of him.

- I need some help, Charles!
- Hold him down, damn it!

[Grunting]

This one's severe.

[Groans] That's better.

I'm gonna sedate him.

[Gasping]

[Grunts]

[Breathing slows]

(Sean) It's over.

He's dead. It's over.

(Lincoln) What's a killing
in New York have to do

with a mental institution
in Deerfield?

The police are calling
the murder a home invasion.

And we aren't?

We have no idea
what the killers wanted,

but that's not why we're here.

Apparently, a nurse here watched
the news report this morning,

and last night,
a patient with schizophrenia

had recounted the entire crime
in great detail...

as it was happening.

There really aren't any normal
days in this job, are there?

Nope.

That's when I told him.

I said, "Tim,

it's not what the LSD can do.

"It's what the human mind can do
that is truly wonderful."

(Astrid) Walter, there you are.

Olivia and Lincoln
just got here.

What are you doing?

I'm conversing
with my friend here,

Mr....

Silbiger.

Who, at this hour,
believes he's circling Venus.

Oh.

That's a lovely planet.

Hmm. Hmm.

So how long has Mr. Keenan
been a patient here?

Sean. About three years now.

Although I'm pretty sure
he spent time

in at least two other hospitals

before we admitted him.

He's been institutionalized
since he was 14.

(Walter)
These voices he hears--

[Door buzzes]
Are they demons or God or--

(Bernadette)
Actually, Sean's hallucinations

have never been grandiose
or violent.

Last night was the first time
I've heard him talk like that.

His room is right through here.
[Door buzzes]

[Doors creak]

(Sean) I don't understand.

Are you saying the voices
I hear in my head are real?

We don't know what
to think right now.

Now, this is the man
who was killed.

(Olivia) Have you
ever seen him before?

No.

But you know how he died.

I didn't--
I didn't hurt that man.

We know that.

Those--[ Sighs]

voices, they--
they did it.

Sean, can you hear
the voices now?

No.

No, they--
They come and go.

Do they ever come from objects?

Say, a tree or a wall?

No.

I see.

So they always come
from inside your head.

How many voices
do you hear, Sean?

Uh, I don't know.

I...

I think I recognize eight,
maybe nine.

But not always.

Some of them
I don't hear for weeks.

Last night, how many voices
did you hear?

Three.

(Lincoln)
That's what the police suspect.

Three killers.

But then one of them left
when the other two

went to the subway station.

The subway station?

Yeah, I heard them say

that one of them was hurt,
like he was cut.

He needed to get cleaned up
before he got on the train.

Cleaned up where?

Uh, he said the bathroom.

It was the last thing
I remember,

and then the sedative
started working,

and I-- I fell asleep.

(Lincoln) We'll contact
the transit authority,

tell them to search the stations
near the victim's home.

Sean, do the voices speak
directly to you?

No, they don't.
They don't talk to me at all.

They only speak to each other?

Yeah.

What are you thinking?

Sean, would you be willing
to go off your meds

if it would help
this investigation?

(Bernadette) Here's what I've
been able to get so far,

and I can probably get the rest
of Sean's medical records

within the hour.

Okay, thanks.
I'll make copies.

I believe your diagnosis
of the young man

is fundamentally flawed.

Excuse me?

The truth is that the boy
was diagnosed schizophrenic

because he hears voices.

But the voices
don't persecute him

or relate to him at all.

In fact, recent evidence proves
that what he's hearing

are the real thoughts
of other people.

But how is that possible?

I am not exactly sure yet.

I think it may be a case
of psychological symbiosis,

maybe even mental telepathy.

The point is, I believe

the voices
Sean is hearing exist.

- I'm sorry, what?
- It is no delusion.

No psychotic episode.

Sean has agreed
to go off his medication.

We're hoping that the more
he is able to hear the voices,

the more likely it is
that we will be able

to catch whoever's responsible
for the killing.

Sean is here voluntarily,

so if that's what
he wants to do,

I-- I just need to explain this
to his prescribing physician.

Well, I'm happy to come
with you.

I think that's probably
a good idea.

[Door buzzes]

[Clanging]

(Peter) You know what?

[Voice echoing]
Why don't you go on ahead?

[Clanging, keys jingling]

[Knock at door]

Hey.

Hey.

Um, this might be
a little bit weird,

but I was wondering
if I could come in

and just have a look around.

Yeah, of course.

How you feeling?

That's where Walter
used to sleep.

How did you know that?

To disaster narrowly averted.

Or at least postponed.

We had that case,

that couple in apartment 6B.

The woman who lost her husband.

After, I came back here.

And then we went upstairs.

I remember.

[Sighs]

That's not possible.

Peter, I remember William Bell.

I remember crossing over
to bring you back.

I remember Jacksonville

and seeing you shimmer
the first time we kissed.

I remember...

you walking to the machine
and getting inside

and being scared
that you were going to die.

Olivia, I don't know
what's going on,

but something must be wrong.

I remember it.
I remember us.

I remember everything.

[Machine whirring]

(Walter) Okay.

Tell me your name, please.

Olivia Dunham.

Good.
And your home address?

Walter, I know who I am.

Is this really necessary?

I am just making sure
the machine is calibrated.

And it is.
All right.

Let's see if we can figure out
what's going on

inside your head,

hopefully give you
some peace of mind.

Walter, I'm not scared.
I keep telling you both.

Good.
That makes one of us.

I know that I should be
concerned, but I'm not.

I-- I will factor that in
to the diagnosis.

Now shush, please, both of you,

and let me do my job.

Now, Olivia.

The first time you and I met,
where was it?

St. Claire's.
The mental institution.

And the circumstances
of that visit,

everything you can remember.

(Olivia) My partner had been

injured in an explosion,

and I came to see if you were
able to save his life.

And Peter was with me
because I needed a family member

to sign you out.

No, no.

That's how it happened
in my timeline.

Now, dear,

I want you to think
very carefully.

Do you remember going
to retrieve me from St. Claire's

by yourself, without Peter?

Yes. I got lost
on the way there.

But it's hazy.

It's kind of indistinct,
like a--

Like an old dream.

Brain scan?

There's nothing unusual
with the brain scan, Walter.

But clearly,
something is happening.

How can she have memories
of my Olivia's life

that are clearer to her
than her own?

My first thought is empathy.

Even as a child,
you were able to intuit

what those around you wanted.

Belly and I noticed it
during the cortexiphan trials.

And it's hardly surprising
that children

from abusive families
become highly attuned

to the emotional state
of the adults around them.

Which in this case
is you, Peter.

Me?

Well, I suspect that Olivia

may be empathizing
with your strong desire

to be reunited
with your Olivia.

And she meets that need
by, in effect,

becoming your Olivia.

Walter, no matter how badly
I want my Olivia back,

I can't make this one
have memories of things

she didn't experience.

That part still
confuses me too.

Perhaps some form
of thought transference.

She's channeling your memories.

Or...

Or what?

I don't know.

I lost the thought.

Too many drugs of my own.

It happens.

Oh!

May I take a few strands
of your hair to test?

Of course.

Would you hold that
for me, please?

Uh, Peter, would you--

Prepare the slide, yeah.

How is she?

(Peter) We don't know yet.

I feel fine.

That is two pieces
of good news.

Transit authorities found a wad
of bloody paper towels

at the Roosevelt street
station bathroom,

just like Sean described.

Now, the DNA analysis suggests
that we're looking

for a Caucasian male,

but so far, no hits
from the database.

May I see the file?

Hey, Lincoln.

Can you give me a hand?

Just a minute.

This DNA report--

I've seen one like this before.

Where?

Our misdiagnosed schizophrenic,

Sean.

This strand of DNA
is from Sean,

and this from our suspect
at the crime scene.

Now, see that?

They have the same
chromosomal spur.

- Which means what?
- The effect of the abnormality?

I have no idea.

It may mean nothing physically,

but the point is
that a spur like this

is incredibly rare,

and they both have
the exact same one.

Which, along with their
genetic profiles,

can only mean one thing:

Sean and our killer
are brothers.

Brothers.

Well, specifically,
half-brothers.

They only share one parent.

But that gives credence
to my theory

that Sean is communicating
with the killers

via mental telepathy.

There-- there are many
documented cases

of siblings communicating
non-verbally,

typically identical twins,
but not always.

That might explain how Sean
is able to hear

the thoughts
of one of the killers.

But he said that he's able
to hear the thoughts

of all three.

What if they're related?

Y-yes.

That would explain--
Good.

Except that it doesn't.

According to his medical
records, Sean is an only child.

I'm gonna get my coat.

Where are you going?

To talk to Sean's mother.

Should she be leaving the lab?

You said there's nothing
wrong with me physically.

So if something shows up
in the tests, let me know.

Otherwise, we've got a case.

I know what you're doing.

I know what it's like
to want something back

that you loved.

I have succumbed
to that temptation myself.

Walter, whatever's happening
to Olivia,

I'm not doing it.

I think you are.

Even without meaning to.

And it's wrong, Peter.

For seven years, he's been
treated for schizophrenia.

If that's not it, what is it?

That's what we're trying
to figure out.

We've already located
a significant piece

of evidence based on what Sean
told us he heard.

Sean always told me
the voices were real.

Mrs. Keenan, does Sean have
any siblings?

No, we only had one child.

Is it even in the realm
of possibility

that Sean's father...

could have had another child?

His biological father?

Yes.

Sean was conceived

through in vitro fertilization.

We used a donor.

What can you tell us
about the donor?

He seemed impressive on paper.

[Sighs]

Um, what was the doctor's name?

Dr. Owen Frank.

A friend recommended him

when the first
IVF we did failed.

She said he only took
the best donors

so that his results
were better.

It's strange.

A reporter called and left
a message a couple of days ago.

He was doing some sort
of a piece on IVF.

What was his name?

Daniel, I think.

Daniel Greene?

Yes, that's it.

I called him back,
but he never returned my call.

So you never actually spoke
to him?

No. I did dig up

the file that I kept while I was
going through

the IVF process.

It's in my study.
Let me get it for you.

Thank you.

So in the-- [Scoffs]
Department of strange,

what are we thinking?

That one of these children
killed Greene

because of the story
he was writing?

Maybe.

All right.

I'll contact his editors,

see if they know anything
about his angle.

And anybody else
he may have interviewed.

[Indistinct conversations]

Male anchor:
Tragic news this afternoon--

The murder of a local hero.

Acclaimed author and journalist
Daniel Greene

was found dead in his
Douglaston, New York home

earlier this morning.

Hey, that's the guy
who was here.

The reporter.

(Anchor) ..
Attacked and killed, possibly by...

I heard about this
this morning.

Three men broke into his house
and suffocated him

with a plastic bag.

You were a doctor.

How long does it take someone
to suffocate?

I want to go back to my room.

[Grunts] I'm sorry.

Oh, it's okay.

I don't know what's happening.

It's like I haven't eaten
in years.

Yeah, it's the detox program
that Walter's got you on

to wean you off
your medication.

It's just a side effect.

You're pretty, you know?

Thank you very much.

You trust the scientist?

Walter?

Yeah, I do.

You're in good hands.

When you start to hear
the voices again,

that's how you'll know
that this is working.

Well, in that case,

it's--

It's working now.

W-what,
you can hear them again?

Yes.

Okay.

What are they saying?

[Indistinct conversations]

I don't--

I don't know.

There are too many of them.

[Overlapping voices]

Yeah, I understand

that the clinic closed down
ten years ago,

but that's the most
recent address.

Okay, well, if you find
something more current,

could you let us know?

Yeah, thank you for your help.

[Knocks]

Thank you.

Well, it turns out
that Dr. Frank

was not so good at keeping his
AMA information up to date.

Do you think that
you could go through

these old utility bills
from the clinic?

Maybe there's
a contact in there

that we can follow up on.

Of course.

What?

Maybe I don't
remember everything,

'cause I-- I don't remember
you having this scar.

You wouldn't.
I only got that one a month ago.

Olivia--
[Clears throat]

I think I've had
a breakthrough.

(Peter) Bees.

Miraculous creatures.

Tens of thousands of them
working together

to feed, shelter,
and protect their colony.

And like our suspects...

They communicate
over long distances.

Their glands
produce pheromones.

Chemical compound
that acts as a message.

That message is received
by their antennae,

and then the bees respond.

Are you suggesting
that the killers

are communicating
via pheromones?

Not necessarily.

Many forms of nonverbal
communication exist in nature.

Eels use electrical pulses,
whales use echolocation,

elephants use
seismic vibrations...

Point, Walter?

Point, Peter...

Is...

However these bees
are communicating,

they are operating as one,
doing whatever it takes

to ensure the survival
of the hive.

If Sean and his
half-brothers

are linked in
a telepathic network,

then it is possible they have
formed a collective identity.

[Cell phone rings]

Dunham.

Great.
Thank you very much.

Apparently, Dr. Frank is living
at an assisted living facility

outside of Roxbury.

You coming?

There he is, right there.

Thank you.

Uh, Dr. Frank?

Yes?

I'm Agent Olivia Dunham.

I was hoping to ask you a few
questions about your clinic.

Of course.

Uh, there was a man
killed yesterday--

A journalist.

He came to see me last week.

Wanted to talk
about my research.

My work.

This isn't the first time
that they have killed.

"They"?

I'm not sure who they are,

but I have a suspicion.

Three years ago,
I hired someone else.

Another writer.

I wanted to document my work

before I was no longer able to.

But the day before we were
meant to start work,

he was also killed.

Stabbed to death
in his apartment.

I thought it was just a--
A random event.

But now, I am
quite sure it wasn't.

What makes you think that?

The work I was doing
at my clinic

is merely a means to an end.

A vehicle for
my real experiments.

(Olivia) What were
those experiments?

Genetic manipulation.

The babies that
I gave life to--

I had altered their DNA.

I thought...

[Chuckles]

What I thought
really doesn't matter.

Suffice it to say I--

I was attempting
to make a better...

A better what?

A better human being.

(Dr. Frank) Are you
familiar with recombinant DNA?

It's a DNA sequence
created in a lab

using the genetic materials
of different species.

Yes.

I used that process

on my subject embryos
that I implanted.

Were your patients aware of
what they were signing up for?

I promised them successful
pregnancies and healthy babies.

And that's what I gave them.

I attempted
to reintroduce abilities

that we humans have
long since evolved away from,

the hard-wired instincts
that we share

with other animal species.

And would that
include telepathy?

Mm.

(Peter) And a heightened
protective instinct?

I believe that is why
they are killing, yes.

(Olivia) So, what exactly is it

that they're trying to protect?

Themselves.

If your work went public, people
would start to ask questions.

And they'd start
searching for them.

And they'd want to study them.

We're gonna need
a list of your patients.

The clinic's files are

in commercial storage
in Back Bay.

I-I think I have the address
here somewhere.

How many are there?

Subjects?

Approximately 200.

Well, that doesn't conform
with what our witness said.

He didn't hear
that many voices.

I was constantly
modifying the process.

With each modification,
I created another sample group.

And they're all
from the same donor.

All 200.

Yes.

(Olivia) And his information is
in the storage facility also?

No.

It's you, isn't it?

Can you imagine that?

The hubris of trying
to improve upon God?

(Sean) Okay, uh...
we're in trouble, this-- this is bad.

Okay, that's good, Sean,
just stay with them.

They're-- they're scared.

They're-- they're-- they're
worried, they feel threatened.

[Panting]

There's a new voice.

He's one of the three.

He's telling the others
to wait, he's coming.

Where is he?

I don't know, but he's in pain.

[Beeps]

Good God.

Hey.

I just spoke to Olivia.

She's on her way with Peter

to retrieve Dr. Frank's
research files.

That's not important now.

I need you to take me
to the bridge.

What?

I need to see Nina sharp.

I know what's
happening to Olivia.

(Nina)
Walter. Agent Lee.

What a surprise.

Uh, hold all my calls, please.

So, what is it?

Olivia has cortexiphan
in her system.

Someone must have found out
how to synthesize it. But how?

- No--
- And how

Walter, slow down.

What are you saying?

(Lincoln)
Dr. Bishop believes

that Olivia has been dosed
with cortexiphan recently.

Recently, and repeatedly.

And you know this for a fact?

I did a chemical analysis.

The results are irrefutable.

Well, how is she?
Have you spoken with her?

I examined her.

As far as I can tell,
she's not in immediate jeopardy.

But we need to find out
how this is happening.

Yes, of course.

Where do you store the remaining
cortexiphan samples?

The ones that Belly and I kept.

It's possible someone may have
reverse-engineered the formula.

They're at Massive Dynamic,
under our tightest security.

In my experience,
security can be breached.

No, I don't think
you understand.

That's physically impossible.

The vault is
biometrically secured.

I am the only one with access.

Could you take us to it?

Belly and I numbered the
samples before we stored them.

If anyone has tampered
with them, I will know.

Fine.

I just need to make
a few phone calls.

No calls.

The less people who know
about this the better.

Let's go.

Okay, unit 2251.

It's gotta be down here.

Look, in case
you were wondering,

it's hard for me too, you know.

I keep expecting to see
that look in your eye,

and it isn't there.

Or it is, and--
And you're pulling back.

As I'm sure you can
understand, I'm...

Confused.

I'm confused too.

I feel incredibly close to you.

I feel like I know you better
than anyone else in the world,

and then when you look at me,
it's like none of that is true.

Olivia, I don't know
what you want from me.

I-- I want you
to behave naturally.

I want you to--
to treat me

like you know me better than
anyone in the world too.

Because you do.

I think that's the one
we're looking for.

[Sighs]

Last time I opened one of these,
it was rigged with Semtex.

You mean with John Scott?

Yeah.

How'd you know it was Semtex?

Uh, because when we were trying

to figure out
what happened to him,

we traced it back to
a munitions trader in Hong Kong.

Why?

'Cause I didn't know it was
Semtex until right now.

Okay.

Meaning Walter's theory
can't possibly be right.

I'm not projecting
my memories onto you.

You can't have memories
that I've never had.

I don't understand
how this is happening.

I don't understand it either.

But whatever this is,

whatever the cause,

I told you I'm not scared.

I like the feeling.

It's unlocked.

They feel threatened.
They need to stop someone.

Okay, stop. Who?

They're gonna kill her.

Sean, who?

(Olivia)
Someone got here before us.

[Cell phone rings]

Dunham.

Olivia, they know
that you're there.

[Tires screech, crashes]

[Shouts]

Dr. Owen Frank, please.

He's on the third floor.

Here, let me show you.

If you're looking
for Mr. Dubrow,

he's moved three doors down.

You're...

You're mine.

No.

He's right in here.

[Knocks]
Dr. Frank. Boston PD.

Dr. Frank.

Lock down the facility.

[Screaming, wind howling]

I told you, Sean,
it's too loud.

I prefer it on.
Will you turn it on?

Turn it on.

- Sean--
(Astrid) - Sean.

What's wrong?

I can't hear them.

When I couldn't
hear them before,

there was a feeling
that they were...

With me.

Like when s-- You know
someone's in the room,

even if you can't see 'em.

Okay.

This is different.

They're gone.

There's nothing anymore.

Just silence.

Why?

I don't know.

The truth is we may never know.

But I can understand
why silence would scare you.

You're not used to
being by yourself.

But this is normal.

[Sighs]

It was so loud for you

that you couldn't even
hear yourself think.

And I bet you have
a lot of great thoughts.

[Inhales]

(Peter) So destroying the
records and killing the doctor,

you think Walter was right?

You think they were just
protecting the hive?

You thinking that this job
just can't get any weirder?

Yeah.

No.

That's not what I was thinking.

It's...
It's just that

now the case is over,

we would go back to one of
each other's houses.

I know that that's
what we would do.

That was one of the things
that we would do.

I know that.

So now, I don't know

if I'm just supposed to
ignore that, or what you want,

and I guess I just--

I-- Peter, how do you
want to play this?

- Olivia--
- Look, you don't have to answer now.

- I just want you to think about it.
- Olivia.

I'm thinking about it.

It's all I've been
thinking about.

And I'm afraid.

I'm afraid because
I've made this mistake before.

I betrayed the Olivia
that I love.

But what I'm really
afraid of is...

When I look into your eyes,
I know it's you.

I know it's you.

[Chuckles]

I just gotta, um...

I just gotta go pee.

Biometric hand scanner,
like I said.

Second-tier precaution.

[Beeps]

There.

20 vials present
and accounted for.

They're all here.

Mm-hmm.

Now let's focus
on the real problem.

What's happening to Olivia?

We've already given you all the
details we know about so far.

Where is she?
I'd like to see her.

Can I speak with her?

This is not cortexiphan.

What are you talking about?

(Walter) It's potassium
iodide with food coloring.

Red #4.

The cortexiphan
has been replaced.

[Door bell jingles]

[Knocks]

'Scuse me.

The, uh, girl who came
in here a couple minutes ago,

about yea tall, blonde.

I'm sorry, I--
I didn't see her.

(Nina) Olivia?

Oh, God.

Olivia?

Did they hurt you?

Nina?

Shh, it's okay.

We're gonna be okay.

We're gonna be okay.