The X-Files (1993–…): Season 11, Episode 5 - Ghouli - full transcript

Hello?

Who is that?

Are you Ghouli?

No, you are.

No... I'm not. I swear.

That's what Ghouli would say.

You're trying to trick me.

Look. I can prove it.

Just stay where you are.
I'll come find you.

Not if I find you first.

Most people believe
there are two states



of consciousness:

Sleep and wakefulness.

But there is a third state...

hypnagogia... characterized
by dreamlike visions

and strange sensory perceptions.

It was in this borderland

that I found myself frozen

on a stranger's bed.

What the hell is going on?

It sounds like sleep paralysis.

REM atonia. Did you hear a hissing,

or a, or a buzzing?

Did you feel an electric current

running through your body?



No, it was different, Mulder.

I mean, after thethe initial
jolt of fear,

II felt compelled to follow
the dark figure.

Dark figures are usually
meant to be avoided.

Where was it leading you?

There.

That's the same boat.

That's an open Xfile, Scully.

Chimera.

"Dreams are today's answers
to tomorrow's questions."

That's a quote from Edgar Cayce.

He was called the "sleeping prophet."

Like you, he received visions
in a hypnogogic state.

And he believed those visions
were messages sent.

He also believed in
the lost city of Atlantis.

Another reason to love the guy.

You've been receiving visions
through seizure.

Maybe this is an evolution of the form.

No, but you're onto something,
Scully. I'm sure of it.

We're being followed.

Since the airport.

- Hi. Detective Costa.
- Agent Scully.

- Agent Mulder.
- Pleasure.

So, the victims and the perpetrators

were two female high school seniors.

Different schools.

No past criminal history.

They were good students.

We talked to their
respective families

and checked their social media.

No indications that the girls
knew each other

before the attack.

The crime scene photos
indicate that the wounds

were made with a sharp bladed instrument.

We found two knives at the scene.

They, they cut each other up
pretty bad.

What's the condition of the girls now?

Both lost a lot of blood.

The one, Brianna Stapleton,

was, like, a millimeter away

from having her carotid artery
severed in the fight.

Now, both girls are unconscious
in the hospital,

but doctors are confident
they'll pull through.

Who reported the attack?

An anonymous 911 call.

Didn't leave a name, but,

the voice was male,
and he sounded panicked.

Forensics has a complete workup
on the scene

with pictures and measurements,

but, this was left
otherwise untouched.

There's no blood
leading to or from the spot

where they were discovered.

Seems like once they started,
they were gonna finish.

Mulder, the way these girls

attacked each other indicates

and extreme emotional response.

It suggests to me that
they did know each other.

But if they didn't know each other,

that same response could be an indication

of extreme fear,
like a lizard brain thing.

But either way, this meeting

was certainly not a coincidence.

All right. Okay, thanks.

Hey, guys.

There was one other thing.

The EMT said that he heard something

when he was treating the victims.

He said that the girls asked him
if he found Ghouli.

Is that Ghouli with an "H"?

It's typical.

Teeth, mucous.

Ghouli probably feeds
on human flesh. Yawn.

Well, the site's only been active

for the last couple of months.

Mostly fan fiction.

Yeah, this is my problem with
modernday monsters, Scully.

There's no chance
for emotional investment.

You know, like Frankenstein
and the Wolfman.

Not only did they inspire
bowelclenching fear,

but there was pathos.

You know, Frankenstein...
he was afraid of fire

and he just wanted a friend. You know?

There's a lot of money to be
made in scaring people.

Maybe the girls were manipulated
to attack each other

in order to goose traffic.

Most of the stories
are written by an @Rever.

The girls
have regained consciousness.

We can talk to them at the hospital now.

Bob. Double shot cappuccino,

- extra foam.
- Yes, thank you.

- No worries, buddy.
- Bob?

Like I wanted to explain "Fox"
for the millionth time?

Ghouli's real.

I saw it. It was closer
than you are to me.

I was scared.

- I had to defend myself.
- The thing

was an inch from my face.

So close I could smell its breath.

It had rows of sharp teeth,

and this goo was dripping from its mouth.

Well, what did it smell like? Its breath.

Like cinnamon.

And how did you find this Ghouli?

I fell into this hole,
into its lair, I guess.

I heard something jump down,

and when I turned around,
it was screaming.

What about Brianna Stapleton?

I didn't see anybody else.

She was on the floor,
next to you, also injured.

I don't know any Sarah.

Okay? All I saw was Ghouli.

So, how did you know to go to the ferry?

You're gonna think I'm crazy.

I had a dream.

But it wasn't a dream.

It felt real, like I was really
living it.

And at first it was scary,
because I couldn't move.

Like I was in bed,
but it wasn't my own bed.

Someone was next to me,
but I couldn't see him.

It was just a dark figure.

And I jumped out of bed and...

chased him.

It wasn't even my own house.

I would run through the hallways

and try to get to
the living room to get outside,

and I would just end
up back inside again.

Like a maze.

Where no matter which door you open,

you end up in the same place.

Was there something inside the
house you were supposed to see?

A souvenir.

Yeah. You shake it and it snows.

What was inside your snow globe?

The ferry.

Everybody knew where it was.

Kids would get stoned on it
in the summer.

Not me.

Have you ever experienced

- a dream like that before?
- Kind of.

My boyfriend and I did this
fun house thing at the fair.

You have a boyfriend?

I'ml'm not supposed to.

My parents don't approve.

They're really lame, but...

he's cool.

What's his name?

Jackson Van De Kamp.

Jackson... Van De Kamp.

The sleep paralysis. The labyrinth.

The snow globe. You share the same story.

And the girls, apparently,
the same boyfriend...

Jackson Van De Kamp.

- Scully...
- I know.

Mulder, it has to be a coincidence.

No, it's not. You were sent here.

We are meant to be here.

We got to find out where this kid lives.

I feel like I'm gonna fall off a cliff.

Mulder.

This is the house in my visions.

Door's open.

Scully.

All right, so you...

you said you heard three shots?

Murdersuicide. Jackson Van De Kamp...

he killed his parents.

Then when he heard you and Agent
Scully break into the house,

he realized he was gonna
get caught, and killed himself.

That's a rather convenient explanation.

Well, the kid had two girlfriends

who tried to kill each other
just the other night.

I mean, there's something dirty
in the water already.

The back door was wide open
when we got here.

Hell, maybe he left it open.

I don't think
you worry about those details

when you're looking
to commit murdersuicide.

I mean, you were here, Agent Mulder.

There was nobody else in the
house when he killed himself.

So, look, I appreciate
your expertise, but I think

you're trying to find answers to
questions nobody else is asking.

I appreciate your input.

Scully?

Scully?

Scully?

This is his room.

I recognize it from my dream.

You're right, Mulder.

Whoever he is, he wanted me to be here.

Look.

Birthday, Halloween,

vacation, baseball.

It's a whole life.

It's full, and it's still cold.

Odd choice to crack open a can of soda

before you decide to kill your parents.

Yes.

Memoirs
of a Wolf in Sheep's Clothing.

At least he had his priorities straight.

He was troubled,
maybe even schizophrenic.

He was seeing a psychiatrist.

Clozapine... that's an antipsychotic,

and Diazepam is to treat seizures.

They were prescribed two months ago,

and they're still full,
so he was off his medication.

I have grave doubts about what appears

to have happened here, Scully.

- Malcolm X.
- "The future

belongs to those
who prepare for it today."

Was that his hero?

We don't know that
that body is William, Scully.

Malcolm Little took the last name "X"

because he wouldn't take the slave name

given to his ancestral family.

Was Jackson's identity so adrift
that he couldn't see himself

as being a part of a family?

Is that why he killed
his parents and then himself?

Why would he call you here
just to see him die?

I need to get proof
of his identity, Mulder.

I need answers.

I'll get you one.

Who the hell are you with,
and why are you following me?

Take it easy. Nobody's following you.

We're just curious onlookers.

Yeah. We saw the police cars.
Something bad happened here.

What agency are you with?

Judging by your crappy rental
car, I'm guessing the DoD.

You make a lot of assumptions.

I'm also gonna assume it's no coincidence

you're here on the night
the Van De Kamps are killed.

Wow. Three bodies.

- What a tragedy.
- Yeah.

Keep cracking wise.

You have no idea my state of mind.

I don't know if you are

who I think you might be.

But if you are William...

this is what I'd say.

I'm sorry.

I'm so sorry

that I didn't get a chance to know you.

Or you get a chance to know me,
or your father.

I gave you up for adoption,

not because I didn't want you,

or because you were any less loved.

I was trying to keep you safe.

I hope you know that.

And maybe...

maybe I should have had
the courage to stand by you.

But I thought I was being strong,

because it was the hardest thing
I've ever done.

I mean...

to let go.

And to know that...

I was gonna miss your whole life.

But it turns out
that this is the hardest thing.

To see the outcome.

And how I failed you.

I... need you to know

that I never forgot you.

And I thought,

I felt that...

even recently,
that we were gonna somehow...

be reunited.

I wish I could have
been there to ease your pain.

My God, this is so inadequate.

I'm just so sorry.

I'm so sorry.

Have you been there the whole time?

No, but I heard enough.

You have nothing to apologize for.

This is torture, Mulder.

I need to get the results.

Okay. We can use the lab here
and get a DNA comparison.

- Okay.
- They'll be back in two hours.

Yeah.

Respiratory therapist to the ICU.

Any available respiratory
therapist to the ICU, stat.

William.

Is this a message for me?

Or am I sending a message to you?

Agent Scully.

I'm Dr. Harris, the coroner.

Where did you put the body?

There's no sign anyone was ever in here.

Scully, can I have a word?

It's okay, Mulder.

- It's not good news.
- I know.

It's William.

- His body's missing.
- There's no way

anyone could have taken a body
out of here.

Are there any windows anywhere?

No sign of damage on the outside.

That window's always locked.

Well, then it must have been
opened from the inside.

Scully.

Can I talk to you?

Yeah.

I know what you're thinking.

And I want him to be alive
every bit as much as you do.

And in my heart,
I never thought that we'd...

have to face this moment, but...

here we are.

Hope is not a fact.

And I'm always the first to
jump to extreme possibilities,

but this is not as simple as that.

Mulder, I had another vision.

And I saw this.

Did you take that from his room?

I don't know why I did.

I just needed to hold on
to something tangible.

All right.

I'll check the video surveillance.

But this doesn't change anything.

Not yet.

He wants us to find him, Mulder.

I know it.

I'm sorry.

I'm sorry.

Itit cracked.

The... stuff leaked out.

No, it'sit's my fault. I'm sorry.

It's okay. You were distracted.

You like... windmills?

I like this one.

Who are you?

Don't give up on the bigger picture.

Nothing on the surveillance cameras

How many 17yearolds
with two girlfriends

have a search history that clean?

Maybe he wiped his history.

I got this from the dark web.

It retrieves the browser history
from the hard drive.

If we can find the right computer.

He's hiding it here somewhere.

Our investigation
is about to get hijacked.

Got it.

Teenage girls have secrets, too.

Look at that.

And a back door to some files of the DoD.

Agents Mulder and Scully!

We are commanding you
to cease all activity

and exit the property immediately!

The FBI has jurisdiction over
this investigation. I suggest

you leave the premises
until I can get an order

from a countermanding authority.

Straight from the DOJ.

Now scram.

Step away from the desk.

Everything in this house is now under

the jurisdiction of the DoD.

Never a good idea to keep
an open beverage by electronics.

Mulder, how is it possible
the only updates I've received

about what you're doing
come through complaints

by other agencies in the government?

- Let me guess, DoD.
- And the DOJ.

They filed a memo documenting obstruction

and tampering with evidence.

Nothing will come of those complaints,

because the DOD is intimately involved

in a conspiracy they themselves
are trying to cover up.

Does it have anything to do
with a missing dead body,

a Jackson Van De Kamp?

I'll tell you more when I know more.

Mulder, I think
you need to come back here

so we can discuss your activities.

No, actually,
you're gonna need to come here.

I'm not going to Norfolk, Mulder.

- Bob?
- Skinner,

you're breaking up. I can,

- I can barely hear you.
- Bob?

Mulder...

Double cappuccino, extra foam?

Bob. Yeah, yeah.

Mulder, I can hear you perfectly.

I'm gonna have to call you back

when I get a better connection,
all right?

Hello? Hello?

Mulder?

Mulder is close.

I suspect he'll be interested
in Project Crossroads.

We'll be able to find
what we've been looking for.

Mulder, you wanted to meet out here.

It's cold and it smells.

This is where it all started.

When two young girls
were attacked by a monster

only they could see.

You're wrong.

This is the end of the road.

It started decades ago, when
they decided to combine alien

and human DNA to create hybrids.

Listen to me. I came out here to warn you

and Scully... drop this investigation.

I'm listening.

After the crash at Roswell,

our government's interest
in alien technology

exploded in all directions.

And finally, in the '70s,

our science caught up to our ambition.

A eugenics program was initiated
by a Dr. Masao Matsumoto

using components of
alien technology, hybrid DNA.

Project Crossroads. I read the report.

It was ultimately deemed
a failure because

they couldn't predict what
attributes the test subjects

would get from the hybrid DNA.

That's correct.

The project was defunded 15 years ago.

Dr. Matsumoto burned all the
files pertaining to the subjects

to save their lives,
and then... he disappeared.

The DoD has tried to
track them down ever since.

That's why they were following us.

We found one of their own for them.

Jackson Van De Kamp.

Now do you understand?

Jackson Van De Kamp was our son, Skinner.

He was named William
before he was adopted.

I checked his DNA against Scully's.

My God, I am so sorry.
Mulder, I Di... I...

Thank you...

for your warning.

It just came too late.

I find it hard to believe

that Jackson would harm anyone,
much less his parents.

He loved them very much.

And we never discussed
any suicidal ideation.

Youryour claims don't describe
the patient I know.

You prescribed medication for seizures.

Jackson had symptoms that coincided

with extreme electrical activity
in the brain.

But can you tell me,
did he have... visions?

What he saw was...

specific and detailed.

That's all I'm willing to say,
Agent Scully,

unless you come back with a court order.

His visions were apocalyptic.

A pandemic was spreading across America.

Hospitals were overwhelmed.

People were panicking.

A vaccine was needed.

One that had to be created
with a combination

of human and alien DNA.

And Jackson himself was the key.

It ends with a UFO hovering

over the 14th Street Bridge.

That's what he saw, Dr. Scholz.

HHow is it possible you know?

So, you think a shared vision means

that it's more likely to come true?

What if I didn't get
a glimpse of the future?

What if I was just a receptacle
for his message to me?

Just like my dream to come here.

Hey, Bob.

It's an alternate reality... Fox
doesn't exist in coffee shops.

No.

It's a false reality, Scully.

Just like everything we've seen so far.

I've been going over
the forensics of the case.

The police think that
Jackson killed his parents,

then himself,

but the spatter pattern
tells me different.

It tells me there were two shooters.

Her body was moved after she was shot

to make it look like
there was one shooter.

Scully, I believe that,
through the Smoking Man,

you were an unwitting participant

in a eugenics program
called Project Crossroads.

It was spearheaded
by Dr. Masao Matsumoto.

He disappeared two years
after William was born.

I believe our son was
one of his test subjects.

Let's go.

Jackson knew he was being hunted,

so he hid the only way he knew how.

He created an alternate reality
playing dead.

So he made us hear the shot...

and see the hole in his head.

Yes, and those two girls

thought they saw a monster.

And so, Mulder?

Where is he now?

Jackson.

My God, they told me you were dead.

Not yet.

Babe.

These look sick.

That's horrible.

- I'm so sorry.
- Where have you been?

- I've been hiding.
- What?

There's these people,
they're after me. I...

Look, I just... I just came to apologize.

I didn't mean for any of this to happen.

I didn't think
that anyone would get hurt.

I thought it'd be funny.
I thought it'd be, like,

a prank, you know,
like, you'd see the Ghouli

and you just run away. I...

- Are you Ghouli?
- No.

There's no such thing as Ghouli.

I made up everything

- on the Web site.
- No.

Jackson, that...

that thing attacked me.

And the other girl.

You attacked each other.

You saw what I projected into your head.

All right, it's, like...

thisthis power.

I was learning to control it, okay?

I... I just couldn't stop it in time.

I... There was so much blood.

It was all just a blur.

- That's really messed up.
- It is.

All right? Itit started
when I would have my seizures.

I'd...

I'd see things.

Terrifying things, like...

like UFOs.

And it would hurt like hell, and...

But when I was in pain,

I could, I could, I could,
I could share it, kind of.

Like, mentally.

With who?

This woman... II don't know, she's...

maybe my birth mother. I...

Look, I came back because

everyone around me is in danger.

My parents are dead, Bri.

But I wanted

to say goodbye, okay?

Okay.

No.

They found me.

Take it easy, agents.

You guys can relax.

You can relax. It's under control.

You have Jackson Van De Kamp in custody?

Well, not yet.

And personally, I don't
understand how a dead guy

can be up on his feet, but yeah.

He's in there and exits are covered.

How do you know he's inside?

I got a text from Sarah Turner.

That's him.

Detective, I'd like to ask you
to keep your officers outside

so that we can be the first to go in.

Agents from the Department
of Defense are already inside.

Excuse me.

Geez, Sarah.

You were kissing her.

So I wanted to hurt you. I...

So... And I texted them.

I'm so sorry.

I think that I should be the one
saying sorry. I...

AAre you gonna be in trouble?

I think that they want to kill me.

It's my fault.

This is... this is all my fault.

No, no, no, look.

I'm gonna be all right, okay?

He's coming your way.

Evacuate the floor!

Subject is headed your way.

Hey! Don't move!

Come on!

Put your weapon down!

Stay out of my way.

I know you're here, boy.

Stop!

They shot each other.

Well, who were they

shooting at?

He's here.

Jackson!

It's safe. It's over.

Jackson, we just want to talk to you.

Make sure you're okay.

Anything?

No. He's disappeared.

Do we need gas?

I could use a bathroom.

- Were you following me?
- Hey.

Didn't I see you at the hospital?

It must be kismet.

But I doubt we'll be seeing
each other again.

I'm driving across country.

AAnywhere in particular?

No, I just want to see the world.

Things are about to change.

Hey.

- Are you Dr. Masao Matsumoto?
- A doctor?

No. I never finished high school.

You seem like a nice person.

I wish I could know you better.

Well, safe travels.

If you don't stand for something...

you'll fall for anything.

Who's that?

Just a friendly old guy.

But he seems so familiar.

The Pick Up Artist.

What are you talking about?

That book in Jackson's room.

I think he's the author.

What'd he say?

He gave me a piece of advice. He said...

he said, "If you don't
stand for something",

you'll fall for anything."

That's a Malcolm X quote, Scully.

Scully.

We need to see your surveillance video.

Now.

Right there.

Are you Dr. Masao Matsumoto?

A doctor? No, I...

I never finished high school.

You seem like a nice person.

I wish I could know you better.

Safe travels.