Crampton Ligotti
Crampton Ligotti
Crampton Ligotti
C R A M P T O N
by
copyright 1998
FADE IN:
CUT TO:
INT. ELEVATOR
AGENT FOX MULDER and AGENT DANA SCULLY enter the elevator
on another floor. They are in the middle of a
conversation. Judging by the look on Scully’s face, she’s
wishing it was over already.
MULDER
So, seriously, you never saw Star
Wars?
SCULLY
Nope.
MULDER
Never?
SCULLY
What did I just say?
MULDER
How could you not see Star Wars?
SCULLY
MULDER
Jeez, Scully, it’s only like the most
popular movie ever.
SCULLY
No, that’s Titanic--which you never
saw.
MULDER
Yeah, well, I know how it ends.
CUT TO:
BLOND MAN
(in a dead voice)
Larry Johnson?
AGENT JOHNSON
(looking up)
Yes?
AGENT JOHNSON
How did you get in here?
AGENT
What the hell?
CUT TO:
MULDER
(to the nearest agents)
What’s going on?
AGENT
You don’t want to know.
ANOTHER AGENT
It was Johnson.
MULDER
Larry Johnson?
SCULLY (O.S.)
Did you know him, Mulder?
SCULLY (O.S.)
Mulder?
CREDITS
MULDER
Well, the Bureau’s collective
underwear is really up in a bunch on
this one. The word from Skinner is
that the Director wants hourly reports
until this thing is cleaned up. You
should see it, it’s like a Fed
convention around here. They’ve
already come up with the “official”
story.
SCULLY
(reading)
“Assassin guns down FBI agent.
Terrorism not ruled out.” What
terrorism?
MULDER
My sentiments exactly.
SCULLY
Actually, at this point it’s probably
as good an explanation as anything
else.
MULDER
I take that to mean the autopsy has
proved less than illuminating.
SCULLY
Agent Lawrence Johnson died at two-
nineteen p.m. yesterday of a massive
heart attack.
MULDER
Heart attack? Well, that explains it.
SCULLY
Explains what, exactly?
MULDER
How this could kill him.
SCULLY
But weren’t there gunshots?
MULDER
The agents on the scene seem to be
having trouble remembering little
details like that. What’s more, the
security cameras on that floor
apparently began malfunctioning about
the time the, uh, terrorist entered
the building. Started picking up
television signals.
SCULLY
All of them?
Mulder shrugs.
SCULLY
I’m not sure yet, but I think Larry
Johnson saw the gun and believed he
had been shot, and the shock killed
him. He was, for lack of a better
expression, tricked to death. It’s not
exactly common, but it has happened
before.
She lifts the sheet off Johnson to show Mulder the body.
SCULLY
And then there’s this...
MULDER
Ah. That.
SCULLY
Mulder, when we got to the scene of
the shooting, or whatever it was, you
clearly recognized Larry Johnson. Do
you have some idea what this is all
about?
MULDER
Meet me back in my office.
MULDER
About seven years ago, Johnson and his
partner, Ricky Smith, were following a
fraud case--late-night infomercials
for a psychic hotline.
BLOND MAN
(on the video)
What lottery numbers will make you
rich? How can you make that someone
special notice you? What is your
purpose in life? When will you die?
The Mystery Line has the answers to
all your questions.
BLOND MAN
(on the video)
Call now, if you really want to know.
MULDER
I was with Violent Crimes at the time.
Johnson and Smith called us in when
they visited the homes of some of the
Mystery Line’s clients.
MULDER
Eleven people, mostly in the Midwest,
were found like this. No apparent
cause of death. Television on.
Phone off the hook--still connected to
the Mystery Line. And check this out.
MULDER
Look familiar?
SCULLY
Larry Johnson. So, what was the deal
with the Mystery Line?
MULDER
Johnson and Smith never made any
headway. The phone number was traced
back to an answering machine in an
abandoned warehouse in Arizona. None
of the victims were actually charged
for the hotline’s services, so there
MULDER
There. That’s Ricky Smith.
MULDER
He had a reputation as an arrogant
s.o.b., but he was actually a hell of
an agent. Tenacious.
SCULLY
So where is Ricky Smith now?
MULDER
Nobody knows. We were taken off the
case when it was clear it was going
nowhere. I heard Smith and Johnson had
some kind of blow-up. Smith resigned
not long after, and nobody has heard
from him since.
MULDER
The man who shot Larry Johnson? This
was found in his pocket.
SCULLY
Illusions of Empire Magic Shop.
Mulder, there isn’t anything else on
this.
MULDER
Check out the back.
SCULLY
MULDER
Well, it’s all we’ve got to work with
right now. Skinner wants this wrapped
up a-sap--an FBI agent getting gunned
down at his desk doesn’t look too good
on recruiting day.
MULDER
(mumbling through clenched
teeth)
Hi there, kids! Hi there, kids!
SHOPKEEP
How can I help you folks today?
MULDER
(flashing his i.d.)
We’d like to ask you about a purchase
that was made here.
SHOPKEEP
Sure, Officer ...
(he squints at Mulder)’s
i.d.)
... Muldoon.
MULDER
Mulder.
SHOPKEEP
You’re kidding, right? There ain’t
nothing on this. Don’t look like they
bought anything.
SCULLY
All the same...
SHOPKEEP
Well, I guess I could check the back.
I keep copies of my receipts for
taxes. Don’t want to get in trouble
with the Feds, right?
MULDER
Pretty cool, eh?
SCULLY
Yep, pretty cool.
SHOPKEEP
This must be your lucky day. I found
your receipt. I’d say it’s about four
years old.
SHOPKEEP
Looks like they bought a gag gun. You
know, the kind where you pull the
trigger and a little flag pops out,
“Bang!”
SCULLY
SHOPKEEP
Did you try this?
SHOPKEEP
Invisible ink. Hokey as it gets.
SCULLY
That doesn’t make sense. Forensics
tested the paper for chemicals. They
would have found traces of the ink.
SHOPKEEP
That’s why they call it magic, toots.
SHOPKEEP
Yellow house, huh?
MULDER
What? Does this mean something to you?
SHOPKEEP
It’s probably nothing, but there’s
this saying among magicians. Not all
of them, just certain magicians. The
ones that are a little kooky, if you
know what I mean.
SCULLY
What kind of saying?
SHOPKEEP
“I never want to live in a yellow
house.”
MULDER
What does it mean?
SHOPKEEP
Mulder and Scully take back the receipt and head for the
exit. At the door, Mulder is practically knocked over by
a CLOWN, its face made up into a smile of torturous
proportions. The clown mimes brushing itself off before
heading into the shop. Mulder is visibly shaken.
SCULLY
You’re not one of those people who’s
scared of clowns, are you?
MULDER
I am now.
CUT TO:
INT. CAR
MULDER
I don’t know about you, Scully, but
I’ve got a funny feeling. Like I’ve
been down this road before.
SCULLY
Well, numerous forms of déjà vu-type
experiences have been documented. Some
are related to states of epilepsy or
psychopathology. One of the more
common varieties is paramnesia--a
split-second disordering of the short-
term memory. Sort of a mental hiccup.
Another form--
MULDER
(interrupting)
I don’t think it’s déjàvu, Scully.
It’s more like ... like something I
already know rather than something
I’ve already experienced. It’s very
hard to put into words.
MULDER
It’s a house.
SCULLY
It’s a yellow house.
MULDER
Our yellow house?
SCULLY
It’s hard to tell from this, but it
could be.
SCULLY
(squinting to make out the
house)
Mulder, shouldn’t we be getting
closer?
MULDER
(also squinting)
Aren’t we?
Despite the fact that they are doing ten over the speed
limit, they don’t seem to have closed the gap at all.
SCULLY
I don’t think so.
MULDER
(catching his breath)
That was interesting.
MULDER
Ah, one of those neighborhoods.
MULDER
Hello?
SCULLY
Yummy.
SCULLY
FBI! Drop it!
BEARDED MAN
Ah, Agent Mulder.
MULDER
(shocked)
Ricky Smith?
MULDER
What happened to you?
RICKY SMITH
RICKY SMITH
What brings you out here, to the
middle of nowhere?
SCULLY
It’s Larry Johnson. He’s dead.
RICKY SMITH
(with a wry smile)
Lucky bastard.
FADE OUT
END OF ACT ONE
ACT TWO
FADE IN:
SCULLY
Are you sure there’s nothing you can
tell us that might help us out?
Something about the Mystery Line case,
maybe?
RICKY SMITH
I’m sorry, Agent Scully. It was a long
time ago.
SCULLY
Had you spoken with Johnson recently?
RICKY SMITH
My relationship with the Bureau ended
six years ago.
MULDER
I heard that it ended on something of
a sour note. Some kind of falling-out
between you and Johnson?
RICKY SMITH
We just had trouble seeing things the
same way. We’d been partners for a
long time. It happens. You’ll see.
MULDER
RICKY SMITH
I like it out here, in the heartland.
Once you live here you never want to
live anywhere else. It’s real.
MULDER
Compared to what?
From the way they look at the filthy house, the tins of
potted meat, it’s obvious Mulder and Scully aren’t buying
it. Ricky sees it, too. In an attempt to change the
subject, he opens a drawer and pulls out a pack of
playing cards.
RICKY SMITH
Do you like card tricks, Agent Scully?
I don’t care for them myself, but some
people do seem to enjoy such things.
Magic. Illusion. Smarmy little creeps
in tuxedoes. All that nonesense.
RICKY SMITH
Please take a card, Agent Mulder.
MULDER
No Eight of Spades.
RICKY SMITH
It’s in your partner’s hand.
SCULLY
(to Mulder)
You put the card in my pocket.
MULDER
I did not. I know better than to reach
into a woman’s pockets, Scully. It
must have been there before.
RICKY SMITH
In magic, like in everything else, the
logical explanation is almost always
the right one. Almost.
RICKY SMITH
This came through my mail slot a few
hours ago.
SCULLY
“She is holding the Eight of Spades.”
MULDER
Any idea who sent it?
RICKY SMITH
That’s a question I’m afraid I can’t
answer.
SCULLY
Can’t? Or won’t?
RICKY SMITH
Bit of both, I suppose.
MULDER
You could say this came through our
mail slot too. It was found on the,
uh, man who killed Agent Johnson.
RICKY SMITH
(reading the receipt)
“If you really want to know.” Now,
where have I heard that before?
RICKY SMITH
222 Main Street is a fix-it shop run
by a guy named Fred something. It’s
closed most of the time, like just
about everything in that crummy little
town. But you might get lucky.
Personally, I think you should forget
the whole thing and head back to
Cincinnati before it gets too late.
MULDER
(a little frustrated)
Ricky, we’re not on a social call
here. An FBI agent is dead, killed
right in the middle of the J. Edgar
friggin Hoover Building, and the
Director has taken it a little
personally. Once upon a time you might
have been able to label this thing
RICKY SMITH
I’ll tell you what: go check out your
address. If you really want to stick
around Crampton, you’re welcome to
stay here.
RICKY SMITH
Or, if you want, there’s a cheap
little motel in town. You go there,
have a look around. If you still want
to talk to me, we can talk tomorrow.
It’s not like I’m going anywhere.
MULDER
(pulling out a notebook and
pen)
What’s your phone number?
RICKY SMITH
Don’t have a phone number. Don’t have
a phone.
SCULLY
You don’t have a telephone?
RICKY SMITH
Nope.
MULDER
I want you to take this, then.
Scully’s cell phone number is star-
six. Call us if you remember anything
you think we ought to know.
TOURIST WOMAN
(in a British accent)
Excuse me, could we take your picture?
SCULLY
I’m sorry?
TOURIST WOMAN
My husband and I are on a photographic
excursion, and we’d like to take a
picture of you and your husband. It
would go so well with the others.
MULDER
Why, certainly!
SCULLY
(shrugging Mulder)’s arm off)
We’re not married.
MANAGER
Good afternoon. Have you stayed with
us before?
SCULLY
Mulder, I think I’ve seen enough magic
tricks for one day.
MULDER
Look at this, Scully.
MANAGER
If there’s anything you need, please
don’t hesitate to ask me. I’m always
at the disposal of my guests.
SCULLY
That was Skinner. They’re not having
any luck on their end.
On top of that, the terrorist cover
story seems to have backfired: an
official at the Syrian embassy in
Washington was assassinated about two
hours ago, and the Syrians are calling
it an “act of retribution” on the part
of the United States.
MULDER
Retribution for what? Oh, no--
Johnson’s murder?
SCULLY
Exactly. And since it’s too late to
retract the terrorist story, they’re
just going to have to ride it out.
MULDER
Washington must be a real madhouse.
For the first time today, I’m glad
we’re in Crampton.
SCULLY
Speaking of which, what’s the story
with the Fix-It Shop?
MULDER
(checking his watch)
We’ve got about a half hour before
Fred’s due back. Let’s have a look at
the hall where this magic show is
supposed to be held.
SCULLY
Don’t tell me you’ve never seen a
Masonic Hall before.
MULDER
You know, Scully, there are thousands
of these things in cities all over the
world, but the origins of Freemasonry
itself are all but unknown.
In the prehistoric period they were
one of the first secret societies--
possibly the first cult. Some scholars
trace the beginnings of the Freemasons
to the Egyptian god Thoth, the god of
wisdom and learning who’s thought of
as a source of the earliest writings
that attempt to illuminate the
mysteries of existence. Thoth is also
considered by some to be the first
sorcerer or magician, and by others--
SCULLY
(interrupting at the word
“magician”)
Hold it. Are you trying to tell me
that this is some kind of conspiracy
involving the Freemasons?
MULDER
Jeez, Scully, when you say it like
that, you make it sound ... kinda
stupid.
MULDER
Looks like a flashlight job.
SCULLY
Great.
SCULLY
I don’t know about you, but I don’t
think there’s going to be a magic show
here tomorrow.
MULDER
That’s okay--I really hate matinees,
anyway.
MULDER
Scully, I think I’m having déjàvu all
over again. Scully?
SCULLY
I think I’m having it, too. Not déjàvu
exactly. It’s like you said: not
something you’ve already done, but
something you already know.
MULDER
(pointing the flashlight)
Is that an office back there?
SCULLY
Mulder, does this look familiar at
all?
MULDER
The Mystery Line commercial.
SCULLY
Uh, Mulder?
SCULLY
When we get back to the motel, I’m
going to take a long shower.
MULDER
Looks like Fred’s back.
Across the street, the Fix-It and Supply Shop’s sign has
been turned around to read “OPEN FOR BUSINESS.” Inside, a
figure can be seen working. Mulder begins crossing the
street. Scully stands there, pulling long, dusty knots of
cobweb out of her hair.
MULDER
Coming?
SCULLY
Sure. Why not.
SCULLY
Excuse me?
SCULLY
Excuse me, I’m Agent Scully. This is
Agent Mulder. We’re with the FBI.
FRED
(concentrating on his gizmo)
I heard about you.
MULDER
Sir, we’re here on an investigation.
MULDER
FRED
(reading slowly)
“Illusions ... of ... Empire.” Magic
shop? I’ve never been too interested
in magic.
FRED
Why, that ain’t even my handwriting.
Sorry, can’t help you.
MULDER
Sir, I understand you’re probably a
very busy man, but this is kind of a
serious matter.
FRED
Listen, agent whoever you are. I don’t
belong to any militia and I ain’t
never done anything illegal, least not
that I know of. I’m just trying to run
a business here. I take whatever jobs
come my way--mostly piecework.
FRED
I usually don’t know what the whole
machine looks like, and to tell you
the truth I don’t much care. Now,
however serious it might seem, this
business that brought you here ...
well, offhand I’d say someone is
having some fun at your expense.
Mulder looks to his partner for some help, but the look
on Scully’s face says she’s thinking the same thing as
Fred.
FRED
Excuse me, but I have a real customer.
MULDER
We’d like to ask you a couple more
questions.
FRED
No. No, sir, I’m closing up for the
night. I’m going to have to ask you to
leave.
MULDER
I’m sure it will just take a few
minutes of your time.
FRED
I’ll tell you what. It’s past my
dinner time. If you really want to
talk that bad, we can talk over at the
diner.
FRED
I got to go out the back to turn the
lights out. I’ll meet you out front
and we can walk there together.
SCULLY
Wonderful.
MULDER
(in a tired voice)
Okay, Scully, so what do we have so
far?
SCULLY
(also tired)
So far? Nothing I’d care to bring back
to Skinner. Unless you want to haul
Ricky Smith to Washington to do card
tricks for the director. It’s as
though none of this has anything to do
with Agent Johnson’s murder anymore.
It’s all changed. I feel like we’re on
some kind of weird scavenger hunt.
SCULLY
It’s almost like all this is just an
excuse to ... to ... something. I
don’t know, maybe--
COUNTERGIRL
(appearing suddenly and
interrupting Scully)
Good evening, folks! Would you like to
try the meatloaf tonight?
MULDER
Uh ... yeah, sure. And a Coke, please.
COUNTERGIRL
And for you, ma’am?
SCULLY
Just some coffee for me, thanks.
MULDER
Can I ask you something? How do you--
COUNTERGIRL
Oh, tourists, mostly.
SCULLY
Tourists?
COUNTERGIRL
Oh, sure. We get lots of people like
you passing through here.
MULDER
You know, on second thought...
SCULLY
Scully.
RICKY SMITH
(on Mulder)’s cell phone in
the yellow house)
Where have you been? I’ve been ringing
you for an hour! Are you two still in
Crampton?
SCULLY
Yes.
RICKY SMITH
Get out. Get out while you still can.
SCULLY
What do you--
SCULLY
Mulder, that was Ricky. I think
something’s wrong.
MULDER
Let’s go.
FADE OUT
END OF ACT TWO
ACT THREE
FADE IN:
RICKY SMITH
This came through my mail slot about
an hour ago. Have you seen this?
SCULLY
Yes. They’re pretty much all over
town.
RICKY SMITH
This is bad. This is very bad. You
definitely don’t want to be around if--
when--this thing happens.
MULDER
We checked out the Masonic Hall. I
don’t see any spectacular displays
happening in that place. Not tomorrow,
not next week, probably not ever.
RICKY SMITH
Agent Mulder, I’m guessing you’ve been
in Crampton long enough to know that
what you see has very little to do
with what you get. And you don’t want
to be there when they give it to you.
SCULLY
The Mystery Line. So you did continue
the investigation on your own.
RICKY SMITH
(nodding)
I couldn’t let it go. Cases like that
were my special interest. Being able
to point my finger and say, with all
the authority of the Justice
Department behind me, “Look, this is
all a fake, none of this is real, it’s
all a con.” Those opportunities
somehow justified all my work, maybe
MULDER
What do you mean, “brought”?
RICKY SMITH
The same way they used Larry’s murder
to bring you to Crampton. One thing
just sort of leads to another. A map,
a murder, a phone call, a message in a
fortune cookie. They’ve got all the
gimmicks. They’re very good at getting
you to do what they want. As I drove
toward the town I knew that I’d been
here before. I knew it. Here, or
someplace very much like it. There’s
more than one Crampton in the world,
that I’m sure of. Anyway, I snooped
around for while, like you did. And
then I went to that old ruin of a
hall. But I wasn’t alone there. I
didn’t exactly see anyone or anything,
but I could feel something lurking
around me, running away when I wasn’t
looking. Leading me, it seemed, from
room to room. I came across a tiny
office with a desk and a phone. The
phone was disconnected, I could see
that. I don’t know what made me pick
up the receiver and put it to my ear.
RICKY SMITH
When I did I heard ... something. A
voice. Or maybe more than one voice.
Telling me things that didn’t make any
sense, not in any literal way. But it
scared me. And in those days nothing
scared me. I slammed down the receiver
fast. I should have gotten out of
there right then, and I probably still
could have. But I let it lead me on
further and further into this darkness
that seemed to be massing around me.
Finally I was standing on the stage of
the hall, right where the curtain
MULDER
What was it? What did you know?
RICKY SMITH
It’s very hard to put into words. I
think you, of all people, should be
able to understand that, Agent Mulder.
But what I felt, looking into that
blackness behind the curtain ... it
seemed that I could hear the
blackness, that I could touch it.
RICKY SMITH
I understood that there was something
at work at the heart of things--no,
not something at work, but something
at play. Something that was playing,
putting on a show--a flimsy,
pointless, hokey stageshow. And I
realized then that the only thing that
kept the show going was this mindless,
relentless urge...
SCULLY
Urge for what?
RICKY SMITH
For more play. Just to play and play
and play. Pure play for the hell of
it. Pure magic. And pure illusion. I
don’t have any names to give you. I
wish I did. That always makes it
easier to take.
I could say it’s the Bavarian
Illuminati or the Council on Foreign
Relations or the Prince of Darkness,
but I’d be kidding myself, picking a
name out of a hat for the sake of
having something to call them. From
our point of view their power is
unthinkable, literally. Our brains
just aren’t wired to handle it. That’s
MULDER
So what is the truth, Ricky?
RICKY SMITH
The truth is, there is no truth.
Everything is mutable. Provisional.
They can change the entire landscape
of things--make things happen that
couldn’t possibly happen. Or even undo
something that’s already happened. Not
just here, in Crampton, but anywhere,
everywhere they can find an audience.
Build a stage. Put on the act. We
don’t get to see the big picture--and
sometimes it’s very big indeed.
Worldwide repurcussions. That sorth of
thing. But in the end it all gets
swept under the table--we blame on
some nut in a shack, or terrorists.
RICKY SMITH
With so much power, though, there’s
really nothing for them to do except
play. Push a button, pull a string,
just to see what moves on the other
end. That’s what the truth is, Agent
Mulder. Once I knew that, once I knew
their secret ... well, here I am. And
I’m not going anywhere. When you know
how it’s all done, when you know the
secret--it’s all over.
RICKY SMITH
I really hope for your sake that they
don’t let you in on it. I really mean
that. They’re always looking for
superior playmates, and you two would
seem to fit the bill. But if you don’t
get out of Crampton before this magic
show...
SCULLY
Well, what about you? You’re welcome
to come with us when we go.
RICKY SMITH
(with a humorless smile)
There’s nowhere to go, not for me, at
RICKY SMITH
--my ticket’s already paid for.
RICKY SMITH
(forcing an animated tone)
Hey, it’s getting late. If you two are
going to make Cincinnati tonight,
you’d better hit the road now.
INT. CAR
MULDER
Well, Scully, what do you think of
that?
SCULLY
I think I’m ready to upgrade my
diagnosis from delusional to full-
blown paranoia.
MULDER
I’m not sure I agree, Scully. Sure,
Ricky’s story is out there, but the
basic idea that things aren’t what
they seem is pretty much the rationale
followed by all serious investigators--
be they scientists, philosophers, even
FBI agents. The only thing that
distinguishes Ricky’s perspective is
his conviction that there’s some sort
of design or intent behind the facts
as we know them. But it’s all the same
thing--it’s just a matter of scale.
MULDER
Look, all we know, all we can ever
know, is based on what we can see,
what we can touch, right? But it’s not
SCULLY
Mulder, is this little speech going
somewhere?
MULDER
What if you could know things as they
really are? Not just as they’re
processed by our senses and assembled
in our brains, but as the world really
looks?
I think Ricky Smith, when he came to
this town, got a look at things as
they really are. And I don’t think he
liked what he saw.
SCULLY
Then why doesn’t he just leave? You
don’t really believe he likes it there
in that house, do you?
MULDER
I don’t think he has a choice. The
filth. The potted meat. I think
something’s been keeping him there.
Feeding him. Keeping him alive. Why, I
don’t know.
CUT TO:
CUT TO:
SCULLY
Hello?
There are vague NOISES on the other end of the line, but
no reply.
SCULLY
Hello?
CUT TO:
VOICEOVER
(on the television)
Do you really want to know the truth
about Bigfoot? The Lost City of
Atlantis? Flying saucers? “The Lure of
the Unknown” has the answers.
BLOND MAN
BLOND MAN
Do you really want to know?
BLOND MAN
Do you really want to know?
BLOND MAN
--really want to know?
Click.
BLOND MAN
--want to know?
Click.
BLOND MAN
--to know?
Click.
BLOND MAN
--know?
Click.
BLOND MAN
--know?
CUT TO:
MULDER
SCULLY
Come on in.
SCULLY
I’ll warn you, the TV doesn’t work.
MULDER
No problem.
CUT TO:
INT. ELEVATOR
CUT TO:
CUT TO:
INT. ELEVATOR
CUT TO:
CUT TO:
INT. ELEVATOR
CUT TO:
MULDER
Hello?
(no reply)
Hello?
VOICE ON PHONE
Hello? Hello?
VOICE ON PHONE
Three o’clock. Showtime.
VOICE ON PHONE
You don’t want to miss it.
FADE OUT
END OF ACT THREE
ACT FOUR
FADE IN:
SCULLY
His machine? Mulder, he didn’t even
have a phone--how could you get a
machine?
MULDER
Any luck with the manager?
SCULLY
He wasn’t there.
MULDER
So much for always being at the
disposal of his guests.
SCULLY
I found this, though.
MULDER
Scully, I had this dream--
SCULLY
(interrupting)
Did it have an elevator in it?
EMCEE (O.S.)
And now, ladies and gentlemen, the
moment you’ve all been waiting for,
the centerpiece of our display: The
Metamorphosis!
MULDER
Jesus, Scully, I think that’s Ricky!
Mulder and Scully try to move toward the stage but cannot
seem to get any closer--for every person they nudge
aside, two seem to move to block their path. They draw
their sidearms.
SCULLY
FBI!
MULDER
Federal agents! Get out of the way!
The curtains draw closed and the house lights go dim just
as the agents finally reach the stage. Their guns still
drawn, they part the curtain slightly.
SCULLY
Ricky said that he thought he could
have turned back here. That he still
had a choice.
MULDER
I’m not sure we do.
CUT TO:
MULDER
(to the nearest agents)
What’s going on?
AGENT
You don’t want to know.
ANOTHER AGENT
It was Johnson.
MULDER
Larry Johnson?
AGENT
I think he had a breakdown or
something. Just started screaming.
I’ve never heard anybody scream like
SCULLY (O.S.)
Did you know him, Mulder?
SCULLY (O.S.)
Mulder?
MULDER
I worked a case with him and his
partner. It was a long time ago.
MULDER
So, seriously, you never saw The
Manchurian Candidate?
SCULLY
(following)
Nope.
MULDER
Never?
SCULLY
What did I just say?
MULDER
Jeez, Scully, it’s only like the best
conspiracy movie of all time.
SCULLY
I thought that was JFK--which you
never saw.
MULDER
Yeah, but I know how it ends.
FADE TO BLACK.
THE END