[Motor Shuts Off]
[Dog Barking]
Happy...
stop that.
Hap.
What's with her all of a sudden?
Don't you look at my letters.
For gosh sakes.
Read 'em and weep, my dear.
Seven letters: 50 bonus points.
[Ferocious Barking]
[Whimpering]
[Whimpering Stops]
Darren...?
Get in the basement.
What are you going to do?
Just do what I say.
I got a gun.
Stop!
[Voices Whispering]
[Garbled Radio Transmission]
[Ceiling Fan Squeaking]
[Ceiling Fan Stops Squeaking]
[Doggett] Hey!
Sorry. I didn't mean to scare you.
[Squeaking Starts Again]
They told me I'd find you inside.
Yeah, I was out back...
talking to the detective in charge.
You're the expert here, Monica.
Everyone's waiting to hear what you have to say on this.
What do we know?
Darren and Evelyn Mountjoy, married 32 years...
three kids, five grandkids.
Not an enemy in the world.
That's their dog out front.
Neck's broken.
From the footprints in the mud...
best guess is, we're looking for two perps.
Nothing stolen from the house.
Nothing at all to suggest motive.
It all fits the profile, right?
This thing is staged...
to look like some kind of satanic ritual.
Placing victims in a murder- suicide posture is ritualistic...
and this word is undoubtedly satanic.
"Daemonicus."
It means Satan in Latin.
Or "daemoniacus": Demon possession.
And it's worth 50 extra points.
That's why they were posed like this...
so we'd think that these folks were possessed, right?
That would be the textbook explanation.
I'll let them know.
This may be something else.
Which is what?
Hey, you say anything you want about satanic ritual...
but don't tell me you think the devil did this...
'cause we got prints on the lawn out there.
This case ain't even close to being an X-File.
Something strange happened in here...
just before you came in.
I can't explain it.
[Gasps]
What?
Dr. Dana Scully.
I have just been assigned to the Academy...
as a forensic investigator.
For the past eight years...
I was part of a unit known as the X-Files.
[Chuckling]
Some of you may have heard of it.
Ever slay a vampire?
Sorry to disappoint you...
but this is a course in forensic pathology.
Hard science.
An X-File is a case...
that has been deemed unsolvable by the bureau.
Because such a case cannot be solved...
it may beg other explanations.
A vampire, perhaps.
Science, however, tells us that evil comes not from monsters...
but from men.
It offers us the methodology to catch these men.
And only after we have exhausted these methods...
should we leave science behind...
to consider more extreme possibilities.
What did you find?
I asked Agent Scully for her expertise on this.
Looks like we can rule out the Exorcist after all.
And why is that?
There's adhesive residue...
on Mrs. Mountjoy's wrists and face.
Can you see that?
She was taped and bound...
and then shot at a range of ten to 12 feet...
with her husband's handgun.
The husband shot her.
He was tricked into it.
That's what we were thinking.
Some kind of sick game.
Well, there's also evidence of...
fingerprint bruising along his collarbone.
They held him down.
Shot him in his chair.
Again, we're looking for two guys.
The snakes appear to be purely symbolic.
They're a nonvenomous species collected locally.
They were sewn postmortem into the body cavity...
with household thread...
by someone who appears to have surgical skill.
You've made a lot of headway.
But there's something else.
There's something that you're not saying.
When I was alone in that house this morning...
I had the strong feeling I was in the presence of evil.
Look, Monica...
the only reason we were called in on this thing...
is you've investigated...
hundreds of these kinds of cases.
And not once did I find anything...
to support evidence of genuine satanic activity.
I'm saying.
I've never felt this before.
[Cell Phone Rings]
Excuse me.
John Doggett.
Agent Scully, have you ever sensed what I'm talking about?
I've felt things that I couldn't understand.
Things I was afraid to admit even to myself.
And what did you do?
I learned not to ignore it.
To trust my instincts.
[Doggett] Yeah, thanks.
What is it?
Mental hospital, a hundred miles from here.
They think one of their patients did this.
[Dr. Sampson] We're pretty shaken up.
We're still trying to determine how he could've escaped.
[Doggett] Why do you think this escaped patient Kenneth Richman...
was involved in these murders?
Dr. Richman was committed here...
because he killed three patients.
He had sewn strychnine tablets...
into their stomach lining in surgery.
When I heard about the snakes...
The police believe two men...
committed this crime, Dr. Sampson.
Two men?
Do you have any idea who the second man might be?
No, he didn't exactly keep pen pals.
Did Dr. Richman display any knowledge of satanic lore...
or speak of demonic possession?
No. He was perfectly cogent.
He didn't suffer from those kinds of delusions.
I'm not really asking about delusions.
When you last spoke to him...
did he seem himself?
Seem himself?
I mean, did he display a personality other than his own...
speak in tongues...
or in a language he didn't know?
You're asking me if he was possessed?
This is the 21 st century, Ms. Reyes.
We stopped looking a long time ago...
for demons to explain mental illness.
I'm not really talking about mental illness.
[Guard] Dr. Sampson?
Excuse me a moment.
You know, Monica, a room here just came open.
You heard what she said.
Dr. Richman didn't know anything about satanic ritual.
And that proves he was possessed?
You explain to me how else he commits a crime...
that's a perfect example of it.
Let's try the obvious: It was his accomplice.
[Sampson] Agents?
I, uh, think the man you're looking for...
might be Paul Gerlach.
Is he a patient here?
No. He's a guard.
He's been with us 12 years...
and no one can find him.
Who would be the last person who saw them together?
Mr. Kobold, my name is John Doggett.
This is Monica Reyes.
We're with the FBI.
The patient in the cell next to yours escaped last night.
Did you see or hear anything?
You shared the same guard, Mr. Kobold.
Do you know anything about their relationship...
why he would've helped him to escape?
You mean, did the guard force the patient to escape...
or did the patient force the guard...
or are they both of one mind...
like a snake... eating its own tail?
You know something about this, Mr. Kobold?
If you do, we need your help...
to stop them before they hurt more people.
You're too late for that.
If you're afraid to help us, Mr. Kobold...
we can protect you.
No harm will come to you.
Do you believe in the power of the devil, Mr. Doggett?
I believe that the devil's a story...
made up to scare people.
Then, how can you possibly protect me?
Consider the source, Monica.
[Birds Calling And Insects Buzzing]
[Multiple Voices Whispering]
[Whispering Continuing]
He's been calling for Agent Doggett for the past hour.
He's extremely agitated.
Has he said why?
He keeps saying, "Prince of the Apostles"...
over and over again.
I don't know what it means.
I've had to restrain him for his own safety...
and I thought it best not to sedate him till you speak to him.
Mr. Kobold, it's John Doggett.
He's speaking to me...
whispering in my ear.
What's he saying to you, Mr. Kobold?
[Moans]
He's... killed again.
Who?
[Kobold] I don't know...
...but I can show you.
You can't know what it feels like...
being free of that cage...
to see the sky above me.
All right, where is he, Mr. Kobold?
There.
I can take you.
That's far enough.
Take him back to his cage now.
Agent Reyes.
You think he's making it up?
Uh, yeah.
That was a pretty convincing show back there.
He's playacting, Monica.
Just 'cause he's good at it, doesn't make it true.
Why do it?
Maybe he wants some fresh air.
Maybe he gets off sending the FBI on snipe hunts.
I don't think that's it.
[Rope Creaking]
That's the security guard... Paul Gerlach.
[Scully] It appears he was shot in the chest.
His body was staged postmortem, just like the others.
Someone likes to play games.
[Reyes] Or not.
"Prince of the Apostles"... Kobold kept repeating it in his cell.
St. Peter.
He was said to have been crucified upside-down.
A symbol later adopted by the Satanists...
to mark the power of the Antichrist.
Which you take as proof the devil possessed the surgeon...
and somehow put him in contact with Kobold.
It's part of the literature.
He could be a medium, a willing host for Satan...
communicating with Kobold.
[Doggett] Well, that's convenient.
He brought up the devil and the snakes.
No one told him the details of the crime and yet he knew.
That's 'cause he planned it.
I pulled his file.
This guy's a master manipulator.
He was a history professor at the University of Miami...
committed for grinding up six coeds...
that he tricked into his basement.
He used their flesh... as fertilizer in his garden.
If Kobold's part of this, then why is he still behind bars?
Why not escape when he had the chance?
I don't know yet.
You believe this guy, Agent Scully?
I haven't formed an opinion about it yet, actually.
That's great...
just great.
Where are you going, Monica?
This man Kobold can help us, John.
I'm going to prove it to you.
[Door Opens]
[Door Shuts]
[Thunder Rolling]
Professor.
You found the body.
Yes.
Professor Kobold, we need your help...
to find him before anyone else gets hurt.
I can't.
You can't or you won't?
I can't...
in here.
He whispers to me in a thousand voices...
but they're so hard to hear.
What can we do... to help you hear?
I need a larger room...
one with space...
...and windows...
to see the sky.
You're not going along with this, are you...
giving this guy what he wants?
That was my general idea, yeah.
You're making a mistake.
Look, even if you're right, even if this man is faking it...
he can help us.
I'm not willing to turn my back on that.
Are you?
[Car Alarm Chirps]
[Engine Starts]
This is Officer Custer.
He's going to keep an eye on you.
I'm familiar with Officer Custer.
I'll be right outside the door if you need anything, Professor.
Agent Reyes believes me...
but you don't, Mr. Doggett.
Doesn't matter what I believe.
I'm wondering...
...why a skeptic such as yourself...
would accept assignment...
to an obscure unit of the FBI devoted exclusively...
to the investigating of paranormal phenomena.
You been checking up on me, Professor?
Ordinarily...
men don't pursue occupations against their own inclination...
unless there's some strong countervailing reason...
seeking the love or approval of a woman, perhaps.
Agent Reyes may have affection for you...
but you for her?
Of course, it could be someone else...
or something else...
some... dark secret from your past...
That's enough.
...an unsolved tragedy for which you feel responsible...
in some morbid way you haven't even admitted to yourself.
Perhaps you feel that chasing ghosts...
will answer the questions which damn you.
I don't have time for this.
Tell me if he says anything.
[Multiple Voices Whispering]
Agent Doggett.
[Whispering Continuing]
Agent Reyes.
Get Agent Reyes.
[Whispering Continuing]
[Multiple Voices Whispering]
[Door Closes]
[Mumbling, Moaning]
He's saying something.
[Straining] Medicus.
"Medicus."
Physician.
[Sirens Wailing]
[Indistinct Radio Chatter]
[Crashes]
Dr. Sampson!
John.
Dr. Sampson?
The syringes contain droperidol.
That's the same anti-psychotic medication...
that she was giving to Dr. Richman.
He's not the one calling the shots.
You still think that it was Kobold?
This is not about demons.
It's not about demonic possession.
It's about men.
Agent Doggett, have you considered...
that something else might be going on here?
I heard you say it, Agent Scully.
I heard you tell a classroom full of FBI cadets.
Most evil in the world comes from men.
But I also said that when science fails...
we have to consider extreme possibilities.
I know what you're feeling.
I know your frustration.
But you can't let it cloud your objectivity.
Agent Reyes is thinking...
just what this guy Kobold wants her to think...
and now you are, too.
[Whispering Voices]
Professor, you done with this meal?
I brought you something, Professor.
Something to read.
It's a monograph you wrote six years ago.
You know the one I'm talking about, Professor?
About the influence of Satan in Renaissance thinking.
So, you've found your proof...
circumstantial though it may be.
You planned this whole thing.
I want to know why.
I've been thinking a lot about you, Agent Doggett.
You're not answering my question, Professor.
About why someone so ill-suited...
would draw this duty.
Clearly, you have feelings for her.
You ordered Dr. Richman...
to kill these people, didn't you?
But you can't compete with the long-lost Agent Mulder.
His easy good looks...
his Oxford education...
This is about you, Professor!
Mulder has what you can't have...
but you stumble forward, the flat-footed cop...
thinking he can put handcuffs on a demon.
Answer the question!
You want her...
but she feels sorry for you.
They both do.
Guard!
Guard, we need a medic!
Guard!
We need a medic! Guard!
She's coming.
As far as I can tell, physically he's fine.
Of course he is.
What brought this on?
The guy's an expert in Satanic history.
I confronted him on it.
Which proves what?
Come on, Monica.
You wanted to know who could stage a textbook example.
This guy wrote the damn book.
I can't explain...
those voices we heard in his room, or this.
It's a trick.
What if it's ectoplasm?
Ectoplasm?
You've heard of it, Agent Scully?
Agent Mulder used to refer to it as "psychic plasma"...
a residual byproduct of telepathic communication.
In theory, it would have...
inorganic properties...
that couldn't be explained otherwise.
So what are we talking now, the Ghostbusters?
If I'm right, an analysis...
of this sample could prove...
whether he's telling the truth or faking it.
You can throw that crap away...
'cause I can tell you right now, this guy's a liar.
He's playing a game.
Well, then, let's just see how well he plays that game.
Why, so you can get suckered in even more?
Listen to you two!
Agent Doggett...
Listen, I'm telling you...
this guy threw this stuff up for our benefit.
He knew exactly what you'd say.
He knew exactly what I'd say.
He even knew that the two of you...
would be so blinded by this hocus-pocus...
that you wouldn't see what's in front of your faces!
Agent Reyes is just trying to get to the truth, okay?
What are you doing?
Maybe this is a hoax.
Maybe you're right.
But now you're saying...
we should turn away from evidence?
That's not like you, John.
I don't understand why.
I already told you why.
[Thunder]
[Whistling]
[Whispering Voices]
[Thunder Crashes]
[Voices Continue]
[Cell Phone Ringing]
Scully.
Agent Scully, I tried to reach you at Quantico.
I'm on my way back to DC. What is it?
Kobold... he told the guard...
he knows where we can find Dr. Richman to end this thing.
Where?
That's just it... it sounds like a joke.
Another game.
It's a place called Happy Landing.
Scully?
On the state road 710, near Annandale.
What are you talking about?
There's an old marina there.
I pass it on my way home.
In fact, I'm almost there right now.
State road 710, near Annandale.
All right, we're going to meet you there.
[Creaking]
[Creaking Continues]
[Sirens Wailing]
Where is she?
I don't know...
but I know who does.
Where is she, Professor?
Game's over, Mr. Doggett.
Tell me where she is right now, you son of a bitch...
or I swear I'll kill you where you sit.
John...
You've lost.
Where is she?!
[Gunshot]
Agent Scully?!
Agent Doggett, over here.
I don't understand.
He held me at gunpoint until you arrived...
and then he shot himself.
It doesn't make sense.
Yes, it does.
The game's over.
Joseph Kobold!
Stop there!
I am armed!
I will shoot!
"Uncertainty."
No matter how thorough the investigation...
some doubts inevitably remain.
Just as juries seek to convict beyond a reasonable doubt...
the forensic investigator will seek conclusions...
supported by a preponderance of evidence.
Rarely will you encounter a case where all of the variables...
all of the open questions are fully answered.
[Bell Rings]
I'll see you Monday.
Have you filed your report on this case yet?
I was going to do it on my way home.
We'd rather you didn't.
We haven't accounted for Kobold's actions.
Not all of them.
But Agent Reyes told me that Kobold accessed information...
about all of us over the Internet.
About Mulder, too.
Well, that explains how he knew...
we'd respond to the first killings...
why he staged them to look like satanic ritual...
to make sure that we would.
He wanted us on the case.
We know that.
He bent everyone to think and do...
whatever he wanted.
But we know all this already.
It was a game.
Every move was played out perfectly...
except the last one.
Not unless that was part of the game, too.
What, to get shot in the back?
No. Kobold's body still hasn't been found.
Kobold's dead.
Agent Doggett shot him. We all saw that.
[Doggett] Did we?
Think back to Agent Reyes's question.
Why didn't Kobold escape with the others...
when he had the chance?
Why? Because he wanted to escape...
without anyone knowing that he'd escaped...
so that by the time it was discovered...
he'd be too far away for anyone to find him.
Satan.
[Doggett] Daemonicus... the beginning and end of our case.
A snake eating its own tail.
We lost. Kobold told me so.
He wanted us to see...
how brilliantly he played the game.
How thoroughly we lost.
The first victims, Darren and Evelyn Mountjoy.
Chosen from the phone book.
For what reason?
No reason, other than their names.
And the third victim?
The doctor, Monique Sampson.
And the last...
the man whose body is at the bottom of that river.
It's not Kobold.
[Doggett] The guard we assigned him...
the guard he knew he'd have once we transferred him.
Custer.
Checkmate.
Something still bothering you, Agent Reyes?
You don't believe his explanation?
It all makes sense to me as far as it goes...
but there's something else.
Something he's afraid to explain.
You mean that you felt the presence of evil?
No.
I mean that he felt it, too.
[Whispering Voices]
[Child] I made this.