The X-Files (1993–…): Season 1, Episode 4 - Conduit - full transcript

The kids.

Mom! Mom!

- Mom!
- Kevin.

Mom! Mom!

Mom!

Mom! Mom!

Mom! Ruby's gone!

Ruby?

Ruby?

Ruby!

Ruby!



Ruby!

Agent Mulder's latest 302

requesting assignment
and travel expenses

for the both of you.

Sioux City, Iowa.

That's the first
I've heard of it.

It came up through channels

from Mulder's ASAC
to the District G-14

and onto my desk.

I don't understand.

In essence, Mulder is
petitioning the bureau

to assign a case number

to a tabloid headline.

He must have
more evidence than...



Not according to his 302,
he doesn't.

I admit, that is strange...

even for Mulder.

Perhaps it has something
to do with this.

Take a look.

An X File?

Has he shared
any of this with you?

There's no need to protect him.

He's the agent of record.

He initiated the file himself.

She was his sister.

She disappeared 21 years ago.

He was 12 and she was eight.

He claims that he was in
the room when it happened.

He recalls a bright light
outside the window

and, uh... and a presence
in the room.

In your opinion,

has Agent Mulder's
personal agenda

clouded
his professional judgment?

In my opinion, no.

But you can see how
it might appear that way.

As you know,

Agent Mulder's preoccupation
with fringe matters

has been a big source
of friction in the bureau.

This is another case in point.

I'm going to disallow the 302.

With respect, sir,

at least let me talk with him

and make a recommendation.

It just doesn't seem...

substantial enough
to warrant an investigation.

Okay, Scully, so we disagree.

It's not the first time,
and it won't be the last.

Well, at least if we had
a legitimate source, we could...

This is the essence of science.

You ask an impertinent question

and you're on your way
to a pertinent answer.

What makes this case
any more credible

than the 100-year-old mother
with the lizard baby?

Because the lizard baby

wasn't born anywhere near
Lake Okobogee.

Oko-what?

Bogee.

Okobogee.

Is that supposed
to mean something to me?

If you know anything
about trout fishing

or UFO hot spots.

Define hot spot.

Four sightings

in 1967, August,

including one by a National
Weather Service plane.

This is a light-blasted,
digitally enhanced enlargement.

The pilot took that photograph?

Try a Girl Scout
with an Instamatic.

Four of the nine girls
in the troop

claim to have seen something...

five if you include
the den mother.

The Air Force said it
was a weather balloon

caught in a wind shear,

but there wasn't
a weather balloon

launched that day
within 700 miles.

Now, read me the names of
those Girl Scouts from 1967.

Lisa Terrel, Bonnie Winston,

Doreen McCallister,
Darlene Morr...

It's the same Darlene Morris.

Ms. Darlene Morris?

I'm Agent Scully,
and this is Agent Fox Mulder.

We talked with you
on the phone last night.

Please, come in.

Well, I knew that if I screamed
loud and long enough

that someone would listen,

but I never expected the FBI.

Uh, this is Kevin.

Kevin, say hi.

Would you like some coffee?

Mmm.

Some days, I can't even...

get myself up out of bed

and... Kevin has been acting
so strange.

I don't know what to do anymore.

I just want her back again.

Ms. Morris,

during the divorce,
was there a custody battle?

Charles had nothing
to do with this.

How can you be so sure?

Because I know what happened.

It's just like it was before.

Summer of 1967?

The Girl Scout troop?

How did you know about that?

Your name's on record

at the Center for UFO Studies
in Evanston, Illinois.

Really?

Yeah, a pilot

for the National Weather Service

made a similar sighting over
the same area on the same day.

They took her,
didn't they, Mr. Mulder?

You said that, um, Kevin
was there the night it happened?

He didn't see anything.

He was asleep.

Do you think I might talk
to him anyway?

Mmm.

Thanks.

You know...

I've told the story
so many times now...

oh, to the newspapers
and the police...

and every time I tell it,

people get this look
in their eye

just like the look

that you've got right now.

Hey, buddy.

You mind if I sit down?

Thanks.

Your mom tells me
you've been having nightmares.

I guess so.

You want to tell me about them?

No.

All right.

What are you doing?

You making something?

Can I take a look at it?

Thanks.

It's coming from there.

The TV?

I don't know what it is: maybe
a binary sequence of some kind.

Could be anything,
could be nothing.

I know you're busy.

Look, um, I know a friend

who knows a friend
who knows a friend

who can get you a ticket
to a Redskins game.

You got it. All right.

You know where to find me?

Thanks, Danny.

So, as I was telling
your partner,

we found no evidence of kidnap.

No phone call, no ransom note

and since we didn't
turn up a body...

You assume she ran away.

Well, it wouldn't be

the first time Ruby Morris
ran away from home.

How do you explain
what her mother saw?

Well, I think that Darlene
has a very active imagination.

I've been listening
to those stories

since the first grade.

So, basically,
you ignored her statement.

I included it in my report.

But you didn't bother
to check it out.

We went out to the campsite.

We didn't find anything.

Let me tell you something.

Darlene's little girl
was no prom queen.

I can't count
the number of times

I pulled her out of parked cars

or found her puking her guts out
by the side of the road.

It was just
a matter of time before...

Before what?

Before something bad
happened to her.

And if Darlene needs
to make up crazy stories

to get past that, fine,

but don't tell me
to treat it as the truth.

I'm not going to waste my time.

I just think it's a good idea

not to antagonize
local law enforcement.

Who? Me?

I'm Mr. Congeniality.

You never know... we
might need his help

one of these days.

I'll send him a Bundt cake.

You're looking for Ruby, right?

That's right.

Who are you?

Doesn't matter.

Are you a friend of Ruby's?

Ruby didn't have friends.

She just had people
she liked to hang with.

And she liked
to hang out with you?

I guess we had some times.

Like the night she disappeared?

It was Greg.

She was supposed
to see him that night.

Who's Greg?

Her boyfriend, Greg Randall.

They were supposed to meet
up at the lake.

They had stuff to talk about.

What kind of stuff?

Greg got Ruby pregnant.

I don't know, whatever,
she got herself pregnant.

Do you know what they
were planning to do about it?

They were going to leave town.

At least,
that's what Ruby told me.

You know Greg from school?

Greg? School?

I don't think so.

All he ever did since we met him

was pour beer
at the Pennsylvania pub.

Excuse me.

Do you know where
we could find Greg Randall?

Who's asking?

What kind of trouble's
he got himself into now?

Actually, we were hoping
you could tell us.

Greg called in sick
about three weeks ago, man.

I haven't seen
or heard from him since.

Any ideas where
he might have gone?

No, but if you find him,
you tell him he's fired.

This is the hotel
we'll be staying at

if you hear of anything.

Hey, that's a nice tattoo.

What is that?

What's it look like?

A flying saucer.

You don't really believe
in that stuff, do you?

I take it you don't?

No, I think it's all
just a bunch of crazy people

howling at the moon.

So, you haven't been out
to Lake Okobogee, have you?

No, I haven't. Why?

You should ride with us
sometime.

You might see some things
that will change your mind.

Get a killer sunburn
in the middle of the night.

Where's Mulder?

Where did you get the document?

If you explain to me what
you're talking about,

maybe I can help you out.

This is a document?

Just looks like a bunch
of ones and zeroes to me.

Tell me where you got it.

Tell me what it is.

Keep playing games, Mulder,

I'll haul your ass
up in front of the D-6.

You can explain to them

what you're doing
obstructing justice.

It's your call, Holtzman.

Unless they tell me otherwise,

I'm not accountable to anybody
outside my subcommittee.

I don't care if it's the NSA
or the Vatican police.

It's a defense
satellite transmission.

You're kidding.

Just a fragment, but
highly classified.

We need to know
where it came from.

Well, sure, I'll let you know
as soon as I find out.

That's it, Mulder.

You just bought
yourself a one-way

back to Washington.

We got it.

Great.

What?

You shouldn't have told them.

They have no jurisdiction.

Mulder, they're NSA.

They think the boy

may be a threat to
national security.

Come on.
How can an eight-year-old boy

who can barely multiply

be a threat
to national security?

People call me paranoid.

Well, how did Kevin obtain
top-secret information?

I mean, where do you think
he got it from?

Watch your step, ma'am.

It's okay, baby.

Don't worry.

It will be okay.

Come with me, son.

Mom!

Get in the car, please, ma'am.

It will be all right, baby.

Watch your head, please.

You guys do
really delicate work.

Let's get this to cryptography.

Let's go.

Think we got what we needed.

Thank you.

What is it?

I'm not sure.

We scanned all 77 pages

through the mainframe
in Washington.

And none of the information
is actionable?

Other than
the satellite transmission,

nothing can be construed
in any way

as a national security risk.

As far as I know, the boy's
being released this afternoon.

So it was just a random set
of ones and zeroes?

On the contrary, there was
nothing random about it.

I don't understand.

All information
can be rendered digitally

in a series of ones and zeroes.

When we downloaded the data,
we found an amazing range of...

Well, see for yourself.

Da Vinci's Universal Man.

A DNA double helix.

There's lots more.

That's from
the Brandenburg concertos.

But they're just fragments.

A few notes here,
a few notes there,

some lines from the Koran,
a Shakespearean sonnet...

Almost like someone
switching channels, huh?

Mrs. Morris...

I have nothing to say to you.

Mrs. Morris, please,
give me a minute to explain.

Would you please just wait
right over there for Mama?

I'll be right there.

I thought you were both supposed
to be here to help us.

This has been
a terrible mistake,

and I assure you
that the government

will pay for all
repairs and damages.

I don't want your money.

I want my daughter back,

and I want you
to leave us alone.

But your son has seen something.

You stay away from me,
and you stay away from my child.

Come on, honey.

It's okay.
Let's go now.

I thought we were
headed back into town.

Where are we going?

The boy's the key, Scully.

I know it.

The key to what?

Finding Ruby.

Just think about
it for a minute.

This is a boy

who is receiving all kinds
of digitized data

from a television screen.

Agent Atsumi said it was
a statistical aberration.

No.

Okay, I admit it's not much
of an explanation, but...

I think that Kevin
is a conduit of some kind.

A conduit.

A link or a connection
to whoever...

or whatever took
Ruby that night.

But how?

If there was an abduction,

it's likely that Kevin
was touched in some way.

Mulder, I know
what you're thinking.

I know why
this is so important to you.

I know.

But there is no evidence
indicating an abduction.

That's why we're going
to Lake Okobogee.

According to the police photos,

Ruby and Kevin were
sleeping right here.

Just a stone's throw
from the forest wall.

Meaning what?

Meaning anybody

could have come out of
the forest to grab her.

Have you noticed the tree line?

Evidence of extreme heat.

Or an electrical storm.

Besides which, there's nothing

to connect it to the night

of Ruby's disappearance.

That's true.

Do you think a lightning strike

could have caused this?

Do you have any idea
at what temperature

sand solidifies into glass?

2,500 degrees Fahrenheit.

Something was out
here, Scully...

something hot enough to
turn sand into glass,

to singe those trees

and to blister the
roof of that camper.

Mulder...

look.

What is it?

It's a grave.

Shallow, by the smell of it.

Mulder, what are you doing?

Mulder, you are disturbing
a crime scene.

Stop!

What if it's her?

I need to know.

You okay, Mulder?

I'm fine.

Looks like a male Caucasian.

Sir.

Victim's name was Greg Randall.

Ruby's boyfriend.

Ruby had a lot of boyfriends.

Before you put that away,
can I take a look at it?

Go right ahead.

Look at that.

That's her... the girl
from the library.

Who?

We didn't get her name,

but she claimed Greg and
Ruby had run off together.

Well, Doc Fowler's
a buddy of mine.

Delivered both my kids.

I can find out
who had that appointment.

Have a seat, Tessa.

We know that you lied to us
the other day.

We know that you
had the appointment

with Dr. Fowler
on August 7.

We know that you're the one
that's pregnant, not Ruby.

You don't know nothing, do you?

We can prove it, Tessa,

and we can prove that
Greg was the father.

So what if he was the father?

This is very serious.

Do you understand
how serious this is?

Now, you've waived the
right to an attorney.

So if you lie to us here today,

you could be charged
with perjury.

He promised me we'd be in L.A.
by Christmas.

He had a friend there.

And I'd never seen the ocean.

You said that he and Ruby
were seeing each other.

You said that they were planning

to meet at the lake.

Is that true?

Look, I was nowhere near
the lake that night, okay?

Sure you were, Tessa.

You knew they were meeting,

so you sat there
and you waited for them.

You were angry
and you were jealous.

- I wasn't.
- You sat there,

and you waited,
and when they showed,

you killed him first.
Isn't that how it went?

- No.
- You snuck up from behind him,

and you shot him in the back.

Bam!

And then you killed Ruby.

Bam!

What was she doing
right before she died, Tessa?

Was she pleading for her life?

Was she running away?

I didn't kill her!

Where's she buried, Tessa?

I don't know!

You don't know
where you buried her, Tessa?

- I didn't kill her!
- You didn't?

She wasn't even there
that night!

Well, how would you
know that, Tessa,

if you weren't there yourself?

Mulder, you're not seeing
the whole picture here.

Which is?

Which is that,
in all likelihood, Ruby is dead.

Is that your conclusion
or the conclusion

of the Sioux City
Sheriff's Department?

They're searching
the national park,

and a rescue dive team
is coming in from Des Moines

to drag the lake.

They're wasting their time.

Do you really think Tessa Sears
is telling the truth?

Why not?

What if Ruby never did
show up that night?

She lied to us in the library.

She lied to us
about her pregnancy.

What makes you think

she wouldn't lie to us
about killing Ruby?

Because something
was out there in those woods.

We have a suspect in custody.

We have a confession
to one murder,

and we have a statement

which speaks to the intent
to commit another.

It's over, Mulder.

It's time to go home

and turn this over
to local law enforcement.

I can't do that.

Mulder, where are you going?

To talk to the boy.

Darlene won't even
let you in the door.

Well, I've got to see him.

They don't want to have
anything to do with us.

Mulder, stop.

Stop running after your sister.

This won't bring her back.

Come with me,
or don't come with me,

but until they find a body,
I'm not giving up on that girl.

Hello?

Mrs. Morris?

Kevin?

Mulder?

What does it mean?

I don't know.

I'm going to check upstairs.

Oh, my God.

What is it?

Just come up here.

Look.

It's her.

It's Ruby.

This is a long shot, Mulder.

They could be anywhere.

You know, when I was a kid,

I had this ritual.

I'd close my eyes
before I walked into my room

because I thought that,
one day, when I opened them,

my sister would be there

just lying in bed, like
nothing ever happened.

You know, I'm still
walking into that room...

every day of my life.

Scully!

Darlene!

Look. There's
a trail ahead.

Are you okay?

It's here.
I saw it.

Where's Kevin?

I couldn't keep up with him.

Go ahead.

Kevin!

Are you okay?

She's back.

Kevin, I'm sorry, but I don't...

She's here. I know it.

Kevin, I don't think she is.

I know how much you
wanted it to be her.

- I did, too.
- Mulder!

Come on.

Scully!

Ruby!

She's unconscious, but
she's still alive.

I'll get help.

Nurse says she's been
awake for almost an hour.

Any ideas what caused the coma?

Uh, there's no sign
of head trauma.

No narcotic traces, or
electrolyte abnormalities

except her white blood cell
count was sky-high.

By any chance, was there
an attendant reduction

in the lymphocyte population

or release of glucocorticoids?

Um...

actually, both.

How did you know that?

They're symptoms
of prolonged weightlessness.

Shuttle astronauts have reported
similar imbalances.

Hi.

Hi, Ruby.

Who are you?

We're with the FBI.

I'm Special Agent Dana Scully,
and this is Fox Mulder.

My mom said you might
be coming by.

How are you feeling?

Fine, I guess.

Where were you, Ruby?

Can you tell us?

It's okay, Ruby.

He knows.

I'm not supposed to tell.

They told me not to say.

Who told you?

Ruby, who told you?

Sweetheart,

you don't have to say anything.

You're right.

We should wait till
Ruby gets a little stronger.

Can we speak outside
for a moment?

I think that it's best

that we put
all of this behind us.

I mean, hasn't Ruby
been through enough already?

I know how disoriented
she must seem right now,

but in a couple weeks, maybe
even a few days, we could...

I don't want her
talking to you or anyone.

She should be encouraged
to tell her story,

not to keep it inside.

It's important that you let her.

Important to who?

I have my daughter back.

I don't want any more trouble.

Besides, she can hardly
remember anything.

She will remember one day,

one way or another,
even if it's only in dreams.

And when she does, she's going
to want to talk about it.

She's going to need
to talk about it.

Like I did?

Listen to me.

All of my life,
I have been ridiculed

for speaking my mind.

But it was the truth, Darlene.

The truth has caused me
nothing but heartache.

I don't want
the same thing for her.

It doesn't have to be
that way for Ruby.

As far as I'm concerned,
she spent the last month

on the back
of a Harley-Davidson.

Is that what you're going
to tell Kevin?

I'm sorry.

But your eyes are open?

Yeah, they're open,

but it's like nothing's
happening.

Try turning your head.

I can't.

Why not?

I don't know.

I can't move.

So I don't.

I just lie there in bed.

Can you see your sister?

No.

But I can hear her.

What is she saying?

She's calling out my name

over and over again.

She's crying out for help,

but I can't help her.

I can't move.

Are you scared?

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

Do you know why?

Because of the voice.

The voice?

The voice in my head.

What's it telling you?

Not to be afraid.

It's telling me that no harm
will come to her

and that, one day,
she'll return.

Do you believe the voice?

I want to believe.