Mutant X Transcripts: Ep 207 "Crossroads of the Soul"
Mutant X Episode Transcripts
Mutant X Episode #207 Transcript: " Crossroads of the Soul"
[Opening Scene: On a lonely country road under a full moon, Brennan's on his way back to Sanctuary, driving a vintage Camaro with the radio blaring. He calls Jesse over his comlink.]
Brennan: I got a wicked deal. A ‘78 Camaro, 45 thousand original miles. The guy wanted 15 G’s; I got him down to 13 five.
Jesse (pulling up the schematics on his computer): Hm. 350 LT1 engine.
Brennan: Yeah, baby, the real deal. The book says there’s only a thousand of 'em in existence, and this is one of them. Even came with its own dancing hula girl on the dash.
Shalimar (joining Jesse): Yeah, Brennan, as happy as we are you’ve managed to save a hunk of metal from the scrap heap, the rest of us just spent the last 12 hours down at the docks trying to track down a shipment of stolen medical supplies.
Brennan: Hm. Guess that means you didn’t find it.
Shalimar: Don’t even start.
Brennan: All right, guys, you know what? This storm is coming in pretty hard, and my connection’s going bad anyway. So I’ll call you when I get closer to town. [He cuts the connection.]
Shalimar (getting up): Connection’s going? Please. And he used to be a con man? [As static comes over the radio, Brennan zaps the console to amplify the sound, but the engine gives out in the middle of the road. Slamming the door in disgust, he gets out to look under the hood.]
Brennan: Guess it wasn't such a good deal after all. [A MAC truck bears down on him, and he uses his electropropulsion to jet into the air just as the truck smashes into the Camaro. A large bolt of lightning illuminates a grid floating in the air, into which Brennan disappears.]
Opening Credits. "Crossroads of the Soul"
[Brennan opens his eyes to find himself in a candle-lit bedroom. A young blonde woman leans over him, dabbing his forehead with a cloth.]
Miranda: Shhh. It's okay.
Brennan (groggily): Where am I?
Miranda: Shhh. Don't talk. I'll make it all better. [He falls asleep again.]
[Back at Sanctuary, Jesse, Shalimar, and Emma search computer schematics of the city for the stolen medical supplies.]
Jesse: You know, if these guys are planning on shipping the stolen medical equipment out of the port, they've gotta be hiding it someplace.
Shalimar: Yeah. Like in one of, oh, maybe a thousand run-down warehouses that we'll never have time to search?
Emma: Someone on the street must know. It’s an undercover job.
Shalimar: No, it’s a Brennan job, and he’s out screwing around with his hotrod.
Jesse: Let me see if I can get an ETA. [He tries Brennan's comlink.] Brennan? Brennan, do you copy?
Emma: I hope he’s okay. I mean, he said that there was a storm coming, and who knows what kind of condition that car was in.
Shalimar (rolling her eyes): Okay. Can we talk some more likely scenerios for a second? White trash Camaro, Brennan, maybe a small town waitress with a taste for both of the above? If you ask me, he’s probably just shacked up in a no-tell motel, using his “I think we have some electricity between us” line.
Emma: No. No, if something held him up, then he would have contacted us.
Jesse: Well, I'll keep a trace running. If his comlink's picking up anything at all, we should be able to find him.
[Brennan awakens the next morning and sees Miranda sitting at the foot of the bed.]
Brennan: There was an...an accident. This truck was heading towards my car.
Miranda (smiling): Shhh. It's okay. It doesn't matter.
Brennan: Thanks for taking care of me like this.
Miranda: My name is Miranda.
Brennan: Brennan Mulwray. [He starts to get out of bed, then realizes he's naked.] Did you...put my clothes somewhere?
Miranda: They were ruined in the storm. But, uh, I have others for you.
Brennan: Thanks. [He takes the clothes; she hands him a pocket knife.]
Miranda: And...uh...I found this in your pocket.
Brennan (hesitating): Um....
Miranda: Oh! Yeah. [She leaves him to dress in private.]
[Jesse and Adam are going over Sanctuary's phone records.]
Jesse: There. Brennan last checked in at 9:18. [He pulls up a map.] He was...here. 30 miles outside of Edgarstown. If he had car troubles or had to get in from the storm, I figure that's where he would have wound up.
Adam: Yeah, well, the storm wouldn't explain why his comlink didn't work.
Jesse: I say we go find him.
Adam: Why don't you grab Emma, grab Shalimar, get on the road. I think you'll want to retrace his route all the way down into Edgarstown.
[In the farmhouse, Brennan tries in vain to contact the team over his comlink.]
Brennan: Adam. Adam? Hey, Jess, can anyone hear me? [He goes outside to join Miranda.] Well, I don't know if your dad's style quite works for me, but here it is.
Miranda (patting his shirt): I think you look great. Now I just need to figure out who you are and how come I've never seen you around before.
Brennan: Yeah, well, I told you. I'm not from around here.
Miranda (laughing): I know what you said. But you're wrong.
Brennan: Look, uh, Miranda, there's people that are gonna be worried about me, so is there a phone around here somewhere?
Miranda: A phone...um...I think there's one at Brady's store. Wanna go? Let's go. [Brennan follows her into an old-fashioned town, populated with horse-drawn carriages.]
Brennan: Where are all the cars at?
Miranda (frowning): Cars?
Brennan: Yeah, you know, four wheels, vroom, vroom? [At her confused look, he gives up. They meet a group of people in front of Brady's store.]
Townsman: Hi, Miranda.
Miranda: Hey, everybody!
Townsman#2: Hey, Miranda!
Miranda: This is...um...Ben Gilbert. Gerald's son.
Townsman: Ben! Nice to meet you.
Townsman #2: Gerald's son.
Brennan (going along with the lie): Hey, how are you doing? [He whispers to her.] Ben Gilbert?
Miranda: I'll tell you later. Let's go get some iced tea.
Brennan: Yeah, you know what? Order me one. I'm gonna make the call. I'll be right back. [One of the local toughs, Lucian, blocks his way.] How're you doing?
Josh Marcus: Lucian. Let that boy through. [Brennan walks up to Josh, who points in Miranda's direction.] Hey. Look, I don't mind telling you, that girl there, she's spoken for.
Brennan: Anyone tell her that?
Josh: I'm telling you. She's mine.
Brennan: Yeah, I don't have time for this. Don't start something you can't finish.
Josh (pushing him back): Woah.
Sheriff Xander Delassandro (suddenly appearing beside them): How's everybody today?
Josh (releasing Brennan): We're good, Xander. Real good.
Xander: That's how it should be. I understand there's a construction project over at Annie's you're supposed to be at, Josh.
Josh: Yeah. [to Brennan.] We'll talk again. Let's go. [He and Lucian leave. When Brennan scratches his head, Xander notices a tattoo under his arm.]
Xander: So. You're...Ben Gilbert?
Brennan: Uh...yeah.
Xander: Are you going back to the farm, or are you planning to stay?
Brennan: You know, I haven't decided yet. Town's real friendly, though. [Xander doesn't move.] Uh...anything else?
Xander: Not right now. Have a good day.
Brennan: You too. [Xander waves and walks away. Brennan rings the operator on the telephone box.]
Operator: Operator, can I help you?
Brennan: Uh...yeah, Operator, I'd like to make a long-distance collect call. Uh...754-245--
Operator: I'm sorry, that exchange does not exist.
Brennan: What are you talking about? I call it every day.
Operator: That exchange does not exist, sir. Please check your number and call again. [Brennan hangs up and joins Miranda at a table, shaking his head.]
Brennan: Town is seriously whacked.
Miranda (smiling happily): I knew you’d come around.
Brennan (rolling his eyes): Yeah.
[As Jesse drives Emma, and Shalimar towards Edgarstown, Brennan and Miranda tour the town.]
Miranda: That was nice.
Brennan: Okay, so tell what this Ben Gilbert thing is about now.
Miranda: Gerald Gilbert and his boys live on the edge of town. They haven't been around for years.
Brennan: Okay, so why didn't you just tell them who I really am?
Miranda: I couldn't! I wouldn't want them to think that you were crazy.
Brennan: I'm outta here.
Miranda (holding his arm): Listen. I know that you think that you're not from here, but there's nowhere else. People can't go beyond the wall.
Brennan: What wall?
Miranda: On 8th Street. It's the end of the world. [Looking around, Brennan sees 6th and 5th Streets and starts running. Miranda chases him.] Wait! Stop! Ben! [He reaches 8th Street, only to run headlong into an invisible force-field. He tries to create a tesla coil, but nothing happens.]
Brennan: Powers aren't working!
Miranda: What are you doing?
Brennan: We've gotta get out of here.
Miranda: Why? We're happy here. Brennan, no! [He runs full speed into the force-field, only to be thrown backwards. Miranda kneels by his side.] Now you know? Now you believe me? There's only New Hope. There's only you and me. [She kisses his cheek.] Together.
***Commercial Break***
[Brennan examines the barrier.]
Miranda: Come away from it. There's nothing on the other side. Brennan, it's the end.
Brennan: No, it's not! It's a force-field or...I don't know. [He looks around the field.] There's gotta be some kind of projection from the inside, 'cause you can't see anything out. No cars or planes, nothing. Tell you what, if I had my powers, I would just blast a hole through, you'd see for yourself.
Miranda: Powers? What do you mean?
Brennan: This barrier is not natural, okay? Somebody put it here to keep this town inside.
Miranda: Don't say that! It has always been here. You have to believe!
Brennan (shouting): Why do I have to believe? Huh? I have a life out there! I have friends that I wanna get back to! I'm getting out of this town! [He starts walking away; Miranda starts to cry.]
Miranda: Wait!
Brennan: (coming back): Miranda, I wasn't yelling at you. I'm frustrated, okay? [Lucian and Josh come up, just as take Miranda's face in his hands.] I didn't mean to make you cry. Come on.
Miranda (hugging him): I just really need you to believe. I don't want you to disappear.
Brennan: Look at me. [He kisses her.] I'm not going anywhere. Not for now, anyway.
Lucian: Josh, we're supposed to be at the construction project.
Josh: Well, we got something to do first, come on. Gonna pay a little house call to Ben Gilbert's father. [They mount two horses and ride off.]
[Emma and Shalimar leave Edgarstown's antiques store to join Jesse on the street.]
Emma: Well, I don't know where else to check. I mean, we've asked at the coffee shop, the motel.
Jesse: Well, it's a straight shot on route 17 from Edgarstown to us, he'd have to come through here, and he'd have to have stopped.
Shalimar: Well he didn't just disappear. [She spots the Edgarstown Trucking & Junkyard.] Maybe he stopped for parts.
Emma: All right. You check it out. We’ll head to the police station. I mean, somebody's got to have seen him. [She and Jesse get into the car.]
Shalimar (plaintively): Don’t leave me here.
[Josh and Lucian find Gerald Gilbert on his farm.]
Josh (dismounting): Need to talk to you, old man.
Gerald: You're a Marcus, aren't you? You have that look.
Lucian: You’re looking at the future head of town council.
Gerald: That so? [Lucian nods proudly.] I had a feeling this town was heading in the wrong direction. I guess there’s proof.
Josh (grabbing his arm): Hey, hey! You sound like a man who's forgotten how to believe. That could be dangerous.
Gerald: I believe the ideals your grandfather founded this place on. All that's left now are the words.
Josh: And you'd do well to listen to those words, old man. And keep your son out of town and away from Miranda, you understand me?
Gerald: What are you talking about? My sons haven't been in town in years.
Josh (pointing to a man chopping wood): Is that Ben?
Gerald: Yes. Why? What do you want with us?
Josh (smiling at Lucian): Oh, we'll be back to discuss that with you, Mr. Gilbert. You can count on that. Let's go. Let's go. [He and Lucian ride away.]
[Shalimar's questioning the Edgarston Garage owner about Brennan's car.]
Shalimar: Uh, look, have there been any accidents reported in the last 24 hours involving a Camaro?
Owner: Not...not a one.
Shalimar: Well, our friend's disappeared somewhere between here and 30 miles west on route 17. You know anything about that?
Owner: Look, I got work to do. I'm alone here. I'm sorry, I can't help you. [She backs away into the store.]
[Brennan and Miranda walk back to her house, holding hands.]
Miranda: We’re all the same here. You’re no different.
Brennan (examining his hands): Yeah, maybe here. So what's it like being like everyone else, anyway?
Miranda: It's nice. There's time for lying in the sun, for walking, for being with friends, especially the ones that you love.
Brennan (holding her): Hm. Well, I gotta tell you, New Hope is becoming more appealing by the minute.
Miranda: I knew you'd love it, "Ben." What would you do without me? [Peering out from her bedroom window, Lucian sees them approaching and hurries out the front door before they see him.]
Brennan: Well, if I didn’t have my life out there, I could see settling down in a place like this.
Miranda: Do you mean it?
Brennan: Yeah, it definitely has its charms.
Miranda (sitting on his lap): Well, then I’ll let you in on a little secret. I half believe you are what you say you are, an outsider. But since they don’t exist, then that means I’m in love with an angel. [They kiss.]
[Shalimar, Emma, and Jesse search the junkyard for Brennan's car.]
Shalimar: I wish we at least had a license plate to trace. He didn't leave us much to go on. [Finally uncovering Brennan's destroyed Camaro, Jesse points to the dashboard hula girl.]
Jesse: This is it.
Shalimar: Oh my God.
Jesse (spotting the dented MAC truck nearby): Looks like this truck didn't do too well either. [He pulls the permit from the truck's front seat.] Nice. Edgarstown Trucking and Junkyard. The truck is theirs.
[Brennan and Miranda sit on her frontyard bench, drinking lemonade.]
Brennan: You know, I was thinking, I think I could actually get used to staying here. [They kiss. Josh, Lucian and another tough approach them.]
Josh: Hey! Miranda!
Miranda: Josh.
Josh: What are you doing?!
Brennan: What's your problem?
Josh: You are.
Brennan: Well, if you've got something to say, then why don't you say it?
Josh: You know, there are some things that don't add up about you, "Ben." I'm gonna figure you out. And when I do, Miranda, and everyone else in this community is gonna understand what you're trying to do to us.
Brennan (standing): I'm not trying to do anything to this community. Now, as for Miranda, I'm starting to lose patience with having to tell you that she decides who she's with.
Josh: Maybe you didn't hear me-- [Brennan shoves Josh, then kicks his two friends to the ground. Josh comes after him with a shovel, but Brennan wrests it away from him and knocks him over the fence.]
Miranda: Ben! Josh! Stop it!
Josh (getting up): This is not over! [The toughs leave, and Miranda touches Brennan's bruised shoulder.]
Miranda: You're hurt.
Brennan: It's nothing, don't worry about it.
Miranda: Here, come inside. [She leads him into her bedroom and rubs ointment on his shoulder.] You were brave out there, fighting for me.
Brennan: Well, you're worth fighting for.
Miranda: How does it feel?
Brennan: Like brand new. [He kisses her, pulling her down onto the bed.]
****Commercial Break****
[Brennan and Miranda lie in each other's arms.]
Miranda: See, I told you New Hope would grow on you.
Brennan: Yeah, but I'd still like to take you to my world, so you can see what you're missing.
Miranda: Not missing anything. What's so great about your world, anyway?
Brennan: Everything. Thai food and dance clubs, oceans, cars... [He chuckles at her confused frown.] You should see the look on your face.
Miranda: Well, I still think you'd be happier here with me.
Brennan (kissing her head): Well, since I don't have a choice... [There's a knock at the front door, so Miranda dons a robe to answer it.]
Xander: Hey.
Miranda: Xander? What are you doing here?
Xander: I've come to see your friend.
Miranda: There isn't any trouble, is there?
Xander (coming in): No, no, there's no trouble. I just wanna talk to him, is all. Can we have a minute?
Brennan (coming downstairs): Well, I'm kind of busy, but...uh...yeah. [Miranda waits in the doorway.]
Xander: It's about the world outside the wall. I know.
Brennan: You're part of this whole thing, so why should I trust you?
Xander: Well, if I'd wanted to hurt you, I wouldn't have come alone. I've got something to show you. Come with me, please?
Brennan: All right. Look, Miranda, I'm gonna be back in a minute. I'm gonna go with Xander, okay? [He follows Xander out of the house.]
[At the Edgarstown Garage, the owner's yelling at one of her mechanics when Shalimar, Jesse, and Emma return to confront her.]
The Owner: No, you're not getting a break until you're finished!
Shalimar: Hey! We found our friend's car.
Jesse (holding up the paper): Found that in the truck that hit him.
The Owner: I don't know what you're talking about.
Emma (blocking her path): You're lying.
The Owner: It was my husband's truck. It happened over by where Lewiston used to be. That whole area spooks me.
Shalimar: Yeah? Why is that?
The Owner: It's just a story that folks tell, but I know there's truth to it. Well, it used to be an abandoned mining town.
Emma: Yeah, well, I don't remember seeing any town there.
The Owner: Exactly! One day, the whole place just disappeared.
Shalimar: Just like Brennan. You know, you'd better be telling us the truth. 'Cause if our friend doesn't show up soon, I'm coming back for you and your husband.
[Xander leads Brennan into a barn loft.]
Xander: Yeah, I found these a few years back. That's when I knew that everything the elders told us was a lie. [He shows Brennan a handful of postcards of France, Italy, and African tribesmen.] See? Here are these pictures. All different places and people with strange costumes in them. See, when I saw those marks on your arm, that's when I knew you were from out there, that these places were real. I've dreamt about these places for years. Maybe it's crazy, but I even dreamed that I could go out there myself.
Brennan: Tell you what, Xander. If you can get me out of this town, you can. There's a whole world out there for you to explore.
Xander (hiding the pictures again): The council finds out about you, you might disappear.
Brennan: Yeah, you know what? Miranda talked about people disappearing.
Xander: I sometimes have to take people to council when they've lost their way. You know, didn't believe, or even worse, spoke out against the town code? Now, council claims they've disappeared, but I know better. They told them the way out of town was through the basement. But there's no way out. They just walked into the basement of the town hall and never came out.
Brennan: What do you mean?
Xander: Well, I don't know what's down there, but I got a look one time. It's...it's all metal and lights and glass.
Brennan: Well, that's gotta be the force-field generator. You know what? We gotta find a way outta here. There's gotta be a way to stop that force-field.
Xander: Well, there are other people we can trust, people who think like me. One of them might be able to help. You wait here, I'll be back. [He hurries out of the barn, only to run into Josh and Lucian.]
Josh: Wonder if I might have a word with you, Xander. [He points to the barn.] That is, of course, unless you're on official business.
Xander: What is it?
Josh: You're supposed to be a peacekeeper. You're supposed to uphold town council's will.
Xander: I do.
Josh: You're helping the outsider.
Xander: Everything they told us was a lie, Josh. We can get outside the wall. He's gonna help us. I'll get the others. [He starts forward, but Josh stabs him in the stomach with Brennan's pocket knife, killing him.]
[Shalimar calls Adam at Sanctuary, who researches the story.]
Shalimar: We need answers, Adam.
Adam: Well, I found some, but right now they don't make a lot of sense.
Jesse: Try us.
Adam: Well, Alfred Marcus was a walking contradiction. He was a scientist, but he hated modern society. Now his dream was to create a self-sufficient community that was free of the negative influences of the outside world.
Emma: You can’t just decide to not be influenced.
Adam: Well, no, wait, maybe you can. You see, one of the projects he was working on was a kind of an electric bubble. It was an impenetrable forcefield that he could place over an entire town.
Shalimar: Oh, I don’t like the sounds of this.
Emma: So this town that Alfred Marcus had his eye on was what? 30 miles west of Edgarstown?
Adam: Exactly. Lewiston.
Jesse: That's right around where Brennan disappeared. [They hop back into the car.]
Shalimar: We're on it, Adam.
[Miranda's hanging laundry behind her house when Josh walks up.]
Josh: Xander's dead.
Miranda: What are you talking about?
Josh: Ben Gilbert killed Xander. He murdered him with his knife. I saw the whole thing with my own eyes.
Miranda: No.
Josh: Xander was gonna turn him in to town council.
Miranda: He wouldn't have done that.
Josh: I told you, I saw it. You don't even know anything about him, do you? [Miranda backs away in shock, shaking.] Okay. Hey, Miranda, listen. Hey. Now, they're gonna want to talk to you, okay? Because you were with him. But I can protect you, all right? You just have to do the right thing. Okay? Okay.
[Jesse drives down the road, stopping thirty miles west of Edgarstown.]
Emma: This is right around where the Lewiston town limits would be.
Jesse: Cruise around, see what we can find.
[Miranda hesitantly enters the barn alone.]
Miranda: Brennan? Brennan? Brennan?
Brennan (in the hayloft): Yeah! Yeah, I'm up here.
Miranda: The whole town's looking for you. It's not safe here. [Chomping on a straw, he jumps down to join her.]
Brennan: Where are we going?
Miranda (leading him outside): Don't worry, just come with me.
Brennan: What?
Miranda: Come with me. [Brennan halts when he sees Lucian, Josh and his gang.]
Brennan: Miranda, come here.
Miranda (pulling away): You shouldn't have killed Xander, Brennan. He wouldn't have hurt you.
Brennan: What? I didn't kill anybody.
Josh: Take him. [Brennan's overpowered when Lucian strikes him with a baseball bat.] You've made yourself a big mistake, "Ben." Pick him up, let's go. [Brennan calls out to Miranda, but she walks away.]
Brennan: Miranda! Miranda! [Josh strikes him in the stomach again, silencing him.]
***Commercial Break***
[As the entire town watches from the courthouse pews, the new sheriff escorts the handcuffed Brennan before the town council.]
Councilwoman: Let's proceed. Ben Gilbert, you are charged with a crime never before seen in New Hope. The murder of another person, our beloved Xander Delassandro.
Brennan: Xander was trying to help me, so why would I want to kill him?
Councilman (holding up the murder weapon): This is your knife, is it not?
Brennan: Yes. [Murmers from the crowd make him realize what he's admitted to.] Woah, wait, no, no. Someone took that from me! Someone's trying to set me up! [Miranda avoids his eyes.]
Councilwoman: Gerald! [Gerald enters, followed by Lucian.] Thank you for coming down.
Gerald: Yeah.
Councilwoman: So, we'll make this quick. Do you recognize this man?
Gerald (pointing a trembling finger at Brennan): Yeah, that's my son, Ben. [Miranda's jaw drops.]
Brennan: What?! That's not the truth! That's not true! Listen to me, that is not true, okay? I have never seen this man before in my life!
Councilwoman: Enough! We'll reconvene in five minutes.
Brennan: Listen to me! Tell them the truth! [The new sheriff shoves him back into his chair. Lucian takes Gerald outside.]
Lucian: You did the right thing, Gerald.
Gerald: Just leave my family alone!
Lucian: Woah, hey. Remember, old man, our day is coming. [He returns to the courthouse.]
[Jesse, Shalimar, and Emma are still searching the field by the road.]
Jesse: If you ask me, that lady at the junkyard is holding out on us.
Emma: No, she wasn't. Trust me.
Jesse: Well, he couldn't just have disappeared into thin air, could he?
Shalimar (spying the force-field with her feral vision): Maybe the air's not so thin after all. [She rushes headlong into the barrier, which repels her. Emma helps her up.]
Emma: What the hell was that?
Shalimar: I'd say that's Adam's bubble.
[Adam calls the team as he prepares the Double Helix.]
Adam: The satellite imagery that I'm picking up over the area is distorted by a powerful energy field.
Emma: We know. Shalimar just hit the glass ceiling trying to find a way in.
Shalimar: So I guess somewhere in there is Alfred Marcus's little slice of heaven.
Emma: Brennan must have found a way in.
Jesse: Well, then we've gotta find a way to get him out.
Adam: You guys stay right there. I think I might have just figured out a way to crack through the shield. I'm on my way.
Jesse: Roger that, Adam. We'll wait for you here.
[The council meets with Josh behind the courthouse.]
Councilman: We can't abandon everything because of one outsider. We must ensure harmony. We’re doing the right thing.
Councilwoman: Perhaps. But how many times do we have to kill the truth before it stays dead? [They return to pronounce the verdict.] Ben Gilbert, because you refuse to accept responsibility and remorse for the murder of Xander Delassandro, and chose to hide behind lies and fantasy, blaspheming the foundations of New Hope, we have no choice but to find you guilty. Therefore, on this day, you will be put to death in town square in front of the assembled citizens. [Brennan looks back, but Miranda's chair is empty. The guards pull him back when he lunges at Josh.]
[Adam lands the Double Helix in the field outside the barrier. Inside New Hope, Brennan's arms and legs are tied to two horses.]
Brennan: You can't do this! I didn't kill Xander! You have to listen to me!
Josh: You're about to take your last breath, Mr. Gilbert. Make it a good showing.
Brennan: My name's not Ben Gilbert. It's not Ben Gilbert, it's Brennan Mulwray.
Josh: In a few minutes, it won't matter what the hell your name is.
Brennan: I didn't do it! You've gotta listen to me, I didn't do it!
Councilwoman (motioning to the horseman): Let's get this over with.
Brennna: My name's not Ben Gilbert. I didn't do it!
[Jesse pilots The Helix while Shalimar and Emma assemble a blue device in the floor.]
Shlimar: Hey Adam, almost ready with the payload.
Adam (calibrating controls): Good. Now the night that Brennan disappeared, I found out that there was a lightning storm that may have destabilized the dome long enough for him to slip through.
Shalimar: Well, we can't exactly wait for another storm.
Adam: Yeah, exactly. Which is why we're gonna give Mother Nature a little helping hand by seeding the area with this supercharged silver iodide. If there's any electricity in here, that stuff is gonna make it sizzle.
Emma: We're on target whenever you're ready.
Adam: Let's begin the seeding. [Silver dust is released from the Helix, sparking lightning in the surrounding clouds.]
[Brennan lies on the ground, each of his four limbs tied to a different horse.]
Brennan: You can kill me, but that's not gonna stop the truth and you know it! All those people that you think disappeared were murdered by the town council because they can't handle the truth! [Miranda finds Lucian in the crowd.]
Lucian: You did a good thing, turning him in, Miranda. You're one of us.
Miranda: We all did what we had to do. You did the hard part, right? Killing Xander?
Lucian (startled): I didn't kill anybody!
Miranda: Josh said that you did.
Lucian: Well, he's lying! It was him. He said Xander deserved it.
Josh: Whip the horses! Do it! [Brennan screams as the four horses start off in different directions.]
Brennan: Miranda!
Miranda: This stops now! [She runs towards Josh, who grabs her.] You killed Xander! Let him go, he's innocent! Let him go! [Everyone freezes when a gunshot sounds behind the crowd. Gerald Gilbert strides in with his rifle.]
Josh: What are you doing?
Gerald: Ending this here and now.
Josh: Look--
Gerald (pointing his rifle at Josh): Let him down.
Josh: Put him down. Put him down! [The men release the horses, and Miranda unties his restraints.]
Brennan: Quick, get me out of this.
Gerald: The outsider is not my son! He's the one telling the truth. This place has become a prison. [He shakes his head at the council members.] I don’t know what you’ve become. [Brennan, who punches Josh in the face, then takes Miranda's arm. He pats Gerald's shoulder.]
Brennan: Thanks. [He and Miranda escape together. Lucian knocks Gerald unconscious with a stick, and Josh takes his rifle.]
Josh: Let's go. Let's go! [He and his friends chase after Miranda and Brennan.]
***Commercial Break***
[Brennan and Miranda run into the town hall and bar the door.]
Brennan: You took a big chance, helping me back there.
Miranda: I did what was right.
Brennan: Yeah, well, most people would have helped themselves.
Miranda: You would have done the same for me, I know it. [Brennan goes to the basement door.] Brennan, we can't!
Brennan: There's nowhere else to go, okay? We need to try and stop this thing.
Josh (banging on the door): Miranda? Miranda, open the door! You're gonna die in there!
Brennan: Come on, Miranda! [They discover a huge glowing rod in the basement.]
Miranda: What is it?
Brennan: It's what's creating your wall.
[Up in the Helix, the team waits for the silver iodide to work.]
Emma: You know, I grew up in Seattle. I can’t believe I’m actually praying for rain.
Adam: The rain's just a byproduct. What we need is a good old-fashioned lightning storm.
Emma: Thunder.
Shlaimar: And our lightning.
Adam (getting up): All right, it's time. Let's fire this old bird up. [Lightning strikes the Helix.]
Emma: It's working.
Jesse: Bring it on.
Adam: All right. Everybody do me a favor, don’t touch the hull. Right now, we’re packing about a billion volts.
Jesse (smirking): A billion, huh?
[Brennan and Miranda slowly approach the force-field generator.]
Brennan: Come on, we need to stop it. [Miranda starts forward.] Wait, no, wait. [He tosses a broom at the generator. It explodes into oblivion.] Of course, it would have its own protection.
Miranda (crying): That's what happened to my father and the others, wasn't it? [Josh and his friends burst in.]
Josh: Right there, right there, don't move! Or I'll shoot her where she stands. Come here! [The sheriff grabs Brennan and Josh takes Miranda.] Well, let's go. We're keeping everybody waiting for the show.
[Adam monitors their progress on his computer.]
Shalimar: Adam, we have to be powered up by now.
Jesse: We're gonna start losing the storm, Adam.
Adam: All right, we're ready. Firing and now!
[Josh and his friends drag Brennan and Miranda out of the town hall.]
Brennan: It won't work, Josh! Everybody knows now. You can't make that go away.
Josh: I don't have to make it go away. I just have to make you go away.
[Jesse fires electricity at the bubble surrounding New Hope, opening a small hole in the force-field.]
Emma: It's working! I can see the town.
Adam: No, that's not good enough! We have to take out the field generator or it's gonna power up again and trap us inside.
Jesse: What do you want me to do?
Adam: Right, just keep it focused on the center of the field, that's where the generator has to be.
Jesse: Okay.
Adam: Ready, and firing now!
[The townspeople watch Josh aim the rifle at Brennan and Miranda.]
Josh: I'm gonna miss you, Miranda. [The crowd gasps as a bright arc of electricity pierces the blue sky and levels the town hall, collapsing the force-field. A semi rolls by on the highway where the wall used to be, and Miranda looks up at the Helix hovering in the sky.]
Miranda: Oh my God. You were right.
Josh: This can't be! [He aims his rifle again, but Brennan zaps him with a tesla coil.]
Brennan: Not this time, Josh.
Shalimar: Brennan! [The team runs towards Brennan, but stop when confronted by the stares of the frightened townspeople. Brennan turns to Miranda.]
Brennan: Well? You ready?
Miranda: Brennan, I can't. I'm not ready.
Brennan: Well, I guess I understand. I mean, your world just widened a million times over, right?
Miranda (smiling): Stay with me.
Brennan: I wish I could, but you know I can't. I have a life. You know I have things that I have to do.
Miranda (pouting): I know.
Brennan: Well, when you're...uh...when you're ready to see more of the world, give me a call, huh?
Miranda: I will.
Brennan: Okay. [They kiss. The team watches the townspeople's awe at the highway activity.]
Emma: It’s like going from a fishbowl to the Atlantic.
Adam: I kind of envy them. Now they get a chance to experience a fresh new world.
Shalimar: I don’t know. I’ve been in that world my whole life. I don’t know how fresh it is. [Adam laughs.]
Brennan (letting Miranda go): See you soon.
Miranda (walking away): Okay.
Shalimar: You okay?
Brennan: Yeah. Yeah, small town living's just not for me.
Shalimar: Didn’t look like it from where I was standing.
Brennan: Yeah, well it has its moments. Let's get outta here. I'm not very good with goodbyes. [The team heads back to the Helix, Adam taking one last look at the crowd.]
Adam: Like Shakespeare said: "O brave new world."
Closing Credits.
Mutant X Episode #207 Transcript: " Crossroads of the Soul"
[Opening Scene: On a lonely country road under a full moon, Brennan's on his way back to Sanctuary, driving a vintage Camaro with the radio blaring. He calls Jesse over his comlink.]
Brennan: I got a wicked deal. A ‘78 Camaro, 45 thousand original miles. The guy wanted 15 G’s; I got him down to 13 five.
Jesse (pulling up the schematics on his computer): Hm. 350 LT1 engine.
Brennan: Yeah, baby, the real deal. The book says there’s only a thousand of 'em in existence, and this is one of them. Even came with its own dancing hula girl on the dash.
Shalimar (joining Jesse): Yeah, Brennan, as happy as we are you’ve managed to save a hunk of metal from the scrap heap, the rest of us just spent the last 12 hours down at the docks trying to track down a shipment of stolen medical supplies.
Brennan: Hm. Guess that means you didn’t find it.
Shalimar: Don’t even start.
Brennan: All right, guys, you know what? This storm is coming in pretty hard, and my connection’s going bad anyway. So I’ll call you when I get closer to town. [He cuts the connection.]
Shalimar (getting up): Connection’s going? Please. And he used to be a con man? [As static comes over the radio, Brennan zaps the console to amplify the sound, but the engine gives out in the middle of the road. Slamming the door in disgust, he gets out to look under the hood.]
Brennan: Guess it wasn't such a good deal after all. [A MAC truck bears down on him, and he uses his electropropulsion to jet into the air just as the truck smashes into the Camaro. A large bolt of lightning illuminates a grid floating in the air, into which Brennan disappears.]
Opening Credits. "Crossroads of the Soul"
[Brennan opens his eyes to find himself in a candle-lit bedroom. A young blonde woman leans over him, dabbing his forehead with a cloth.]
Miranda: Shhh. It's okay.
Brennan (groggily): Where am I?
Miranda: Shhh. Don't talk. I'll make it all better. [He falls asleep again.]
[Back at Sanctuary, Jesse, Shalimar, and Emma search computer schematics of the city for the stolen medical supplies.]
Jesse: You know, if these guys are planning on shipping the stolen medical equipment out of the port, they've gotta be hiding it someplace.
Shalimar: Yeah. Like in one of, oh, maybe a thousand run-down warehouses that we'll never have time to search?
Emma: Someone on the street must know. It’s an undercover job.
Shalimar: No, it’s a Brennan job, and he’s out screwing around with his hotrod.
Jesse: Let me see if I can get an ETA. [He tries Brennan's comlink.] Brennan? Brennan, do you copy?
Emma: I hope he’s okay. I mean, he said that there was a storm coming, and who knows what kind of condition that car was in.
Shalimar (rolling her eyes): Okay. Can we talk some more likely scenerios for a second? White trash Camaro, Brennan, maybe a small town waitress with a taste for both of the above? If you ask me, he’s probably just shacked up in a no-tell motel, using his “I think we have some electricity between us” line.
Emma: No. No, if something held him up, then he would have contacted us.
Jesse: Well, I'll keep a trace running. If his comlink's picking up anything at all, we should be able to find him.
[Brennan awakens the next morning and sees Miranda sitting at the foot of the bed.]
Brennan: There was an...an accident. This truck was heading towards my car.
Miranda (smiling): Shhh. It's okay. It doesn't matter.
Brennan: Thanks for taking care of me like this.
Miranda: My name is Miranda.
Brennan: Brennan Mulwray. [He starts to get out of bed, then realizes he's naked.] Did you...put my clothes somewhere?
Miranda: They were ruined in the storm. But, uh, I have others for you.
Brennan: Thanks. [He takes the clothes; she hands him a pocket knife.]
Miranda: And...uh...I found this in your pocket.
Brennan (hesitating): Um....
Miranda: Oh! Yeah. [She leaves him to dress in private.]
[Jesse and Adam are going over Sanctuary's phone records.]
Jesse: There. Brennan last checked in at 9:18. [He pulls up a map.] He was...here. 30 miles outside of Edgarstown. If he had car troubles or had to get in from the storm, I figure that's where he would have wound up.
Adam: Yeah, well, the storm wouldn't explain why his comlink didn't work.
Jesse: I say we go find him.
Adam: Why don't you grab Emma, grab Shalimar, get on the road. I think you'll want to retrace his route all the way down into Edgarstown.
[In the farmhouse, Brennan tries in vain to contact the team over his comlink.]
Brennan: Adam. Adam? Hey, Jess, can anyone hear me? [He goes outside to join Miranda.] Well, I don't know if your dad's style quite works for me, but here it is.
Miranda (patting his shirt): I think you look great. Now I just need to figure out who you are and how come I've never seen you around before.
Brennan: Yeah, well, I told you. I'm not from around here.
Miranda (laughing): I know what you said. But you're wrong.
Brennan: Look, uh, Miranda, there's people that are gonna be worried about me, so is there a phone around here somewhere?
Miranda: A phone...um...I think there's one at Brady's store. Wanna go? Let's go. [Brennan follows her into an old-fashioned town, populated with horse-drawn carriages.]
Brennan: Where are all the cars at?
Miranda (frowning): Cars?
Brennan: Yeah, you know, four wheels, vroom, vroom? [At her confused look, he gives up. They meet a group of people in front of Brady's store.]
Townsman: Hi, Miranda.
Miranda: Hey, everybody!
Townsman#2: Hey, Miranda!
Miranda: This is...um...Ben Gilbert. Gerald's son.
Townsman: Ben! Nice to meet you.
Townsman #2: Gerald's son.
Brennan (going along with the lie): Hey, how are you doing? [He whispers to her.] Ben Gilbert?
Miranda: I'll tell you later. Let's go get some iced tea.
Brennan: Yeah, you know what? Order me one. I'm gonna make the call. I'll be right back. [One of the local toughs, Lucian, blocks his way.] How're you doing?
Josh Marcus: Lucian. Let that boy through. [Brennan walks up to Josh, who points in Miranda's direction.] Hey. Look, I don't mind telling you, that girl there, she's spoken for.
Brennan: Anyone tell her that?
Josh: I'm telling you. She's mine.
Brennan: Yeah, I don't have time for this. Don't start something you can't finish.
Josh (pushing him back): Woah.
Sheriff Xander Delassandro (suddenly appearing beside them): How's everybody today?
Josh (releasing Brennan): We're good, Xander. Real good.
Xander: That's how it should be. I understand there's a construction project over at Annie's you're supposed to be at, Josh.
Josh: Yeah. [to Brennan.] We'll talk again. Let's go. [He and Lucian leave. When Brennan scratches his head, Xander notices a tattoo under his arm.]
Xander: So. You're...Ben Gilbert?
Brennan: Uh...yeah.
Xander: Are you going back to the farm, or are you planning to stay?
Brennan: You know, I haven't decided yet. Town's real friendly, though. [Xander doesn't move.] Uh...anything else?
Xander: Not right now. Have a good day.
Brennan: You too. [Xander waves and walks away. Brennan rings the operator on the telephone box.]
Operator: Operator, can I help you?
Brennan: Uh...yeah, Operator, I'd like to make a long-distance collect call. Uh...754-245--
Operator: I'm sorry, that exchange does not exist.
Brennan: What are you talking about? I call it every day.
Operator: That exchange does not exist, sir. Please check your number and call again. [Brennan hangs up and joins Miranda at a table, shaking his head.]
Brennan: Town is seriously whacked.
Miranda (smiling happily): I knew you’d come around.
Brennan (rolling his eyes): Yeah.
[As Jesse drives Emma, and Shalimar towards Edgarstown, Brennan and Miranda tour the town.]
Miranda: That was nice.
Brennan: Okay, so tell what this Ben Gilbert thing is about now.
Miranda: Gerald Gilbert and his boys live on the edge of town. They haven't been around for years.
Brennan: Okay, so why didn't you just tell them who I really am?
Miranda: I couldn't! I wouldn't want them to think that you were crazy.
Brennan: I'm outta here.
Miranda (holding his arm): Listen. I know that you think that you're not from here, but there's nowhere else. People can't go beyond the wall.
Brennan: What wall?
Miranda: On 8th Street. It's the end of the world. [Looking around, Brennan sees 6th and 5th Streets and starts running. Miranda chases him.] Wait! Stop! Ben! [He reaches 8th Street, only to run headlong into an invisible force-field. He tries to create a tesla coil, but nothing happens.]
Brennan: Powers aren't working!
Miranda: What are you doing?
Brennan: We've gotta get out of here.
Miranda: Why? We're happy here. Brennan, no! [He runs full speed into the force-field, only to be thrown backwards. Miranda kneels by his side.] Now you know? Now you believe me? There's only New Hope. There's only you and me. [She kisses his cheek.] Together.
***Commercial Break***
[Brennan examines the barrier.]
Miranda: Come away from it. There's nothing on the other side. Brennan, it's the end.
Brennan: No, it's not! It's a force-field or...I don't know. [He looks around the field.] There's gotta be some kind of projection from the inside, 'cause you can't see anything out. No cars or planes, nothing. Tell you what, if I had my powers, I would just blast a hole through, you'd see for yourself.
Miranda: Powers? What do you mean?
Brennan: This barrier is not natural, okay? Somebody put it here to keep this town inside.
Miranda: Don't say that! It has always been here. You have to believe!
Brennan (shouting): Why do I have to believe? Huh? I have a life out there! I have friends that I wanna get back to! I'm getting out of this town! [He starts walking away; Miranda starts to cry.]
Miranda: Wait!
Brennan: (coming back): Miranda, I wasn't yelling at you. I'm frustrated, okay? [Lucian and Josh come up, just as take Miranda's face in his hands.] I didn't mean to make you cry. Come on.
Miranda (hugging him): I just really need you to believe. I don't want you to disappear.
Brennan: Look at me. [He kisses her.] I'm not going anywhere. Not for now, anyway.
Lucian: Josh, we're supposed to be at the construction project.
Josh: Well, we got something to do first, come on. Gonna pay a little house call to Ben Gilbert's father. [They mount two horses and ride off.]
[Emma and Shalimar leave Edgarstown's antiques store to join Jesse on the street.]
Emma: Well, I don't know where else to check. I mean, we've asked at the coffee shop, the motel.
Jesse: Well, it's a straight shot on route 17 from Edgarstown to us, he'd have to come through here, and he'd have to have stopped.
Shalimar: Well he didn't just disappear. [She spots the Edgarstown Trucking & Junkyard.] Maybe he stopped for parts.
Emma: All right. You check it out. We’ll head to the police station. I mean, somebody's got to have seen him. [She and Jesse get into the car.]
Shalimar (plaintively): Don’t leave me here.
[Josh and Lucian find Gerald Gilbert on his farm.]
Josh (dismounting): Need to talk to you, old man.
Gerald: You're a Marcus, aren't you? You have that look.
Lucian: You’re looking at the future head of town council.
Gerald: That so? [Lucian nods proudly.] I had a feeling this town was heading in the wrong direction. I guess there’s proof.
Josh (grabbing his arm): Hey, hey! You sound like a man who's forgotten how to believe. That could be dangerous.
Gerald: I believe the ideals your grandfather founded this place on. All that's left now are the words.
Josh: And you'd do well to listen to those words, old man. And keep your son out of town and away from Miranda, you understand me?
Gerald: What are you talking about? My sons haven't been in town in years.
Josh (pointing to a man chopping wood): Is that Ben?
Gerald: Yes. Why? What do you want with us?
Josh (smiling at Lucian): Oh, we'll be back to discuss that with you, Mr. Gilbert. You can count on that. Let's go. Let's go. [He and Lucian ride away.]
[Shalimar's questioning the Edgarston Garage owner about Brennan's car.]
Shalimar: Uh, look, have there been any accidents reported in the last 24 hours involving a Camaro?
Owner: Not...not a one.
Shalimar: Well, our friend's disappeared somewhere between here and 30 miles west on route 17. You know anything about that?
Owner: Look, I got work to do. I'm alone here. I'm sorry, I can't help you. [She backs away into the store.]
[Brennan and Miranda walk back to her house, holding hands.]
Miranda: We’re all the same here. You’re no different.
Brennan (examining his hands): Yeah, maybe here. So what's it like being like everyone else, anyway?
Miranda: It's nice. There's time for lying in the sun, for walking, for being with friends, especially the ones that you love.
Brennan (holding her): Hm. Well, I gotta tell you, New Hope is becoming more appealing by the minute.
Miranda: I knew you'd love it, "Ben." What would you do without me? [Peering out from her bedroom window, Lucian sees them approaching and hurries out the front door before they see him.]
Brennan: Well, if I didn’t have my life out there, I could see settling down in a place like this.
Miranda: Do you mean it?
Brennan: Yeah, it definitely has its charms.
Miranda (sitting on his lap): Well, then I’ll let you in on a little secret. I half believe you are what you say you are, an outsider. But since they don’t exist, then that means I’m in love with an angel. [They kiss.]
[Shalimar, Emma, and Jesse search the junkyard for Brennan's car.]
Shalimar: I wish we at least had a license plate to trace. He didn't leave us much to go on. [Finally uncovering Brennan's destroyed Camaro, Jesse points to the dashboard hula girl.]
Jesse: This is it.
Shalimar: Oh my God.
Jesse (spotting the dented MAC truck nearby): Looks like this truck didn't do too well either. [He pulls the permit from the truck's front seat.] Nice. Edgarstown Trucking and Junkyard. The truck is theirs.
[Brennan and Miranda sit on her frontyard bench, drinking lemonade.]
Brennan: You know, I was thinking, I think I could actually get used to staying here. [They kiss. Josh, Lucian and another tough approach them.]
Josh: Hey! Miranda!
Miranda: Josh.
Josh: What are you doing?!
Brennan: What's your problem?
Josh: You are.
Brennan: Well, if you've got something to say, then why don't you say it?
Josh: You know, there are some things that don't add up about you, "Ben." I'm gonna figure you out. And when I do, Miranda, and everyone else in this community is gonna understand what you're trying to do to us.
Brennan (standing): I'm not trying to do anything to this community. Now, as for Miranda, I'm starting to lose patience with having to tell you that she decides who she's with.
Josh: Maybe you didn't hear me-- [Brennan shoves Josh, then kicks his two friends to the ground. Josh comes after him with a shovel, but Brennan wrests it away from him and knocks him over the fence.]
Miranda: Ben! Josh! Stop it!
Josh (getting up): This is not over! [The toughs leave, and Miranda touches Brennan's bruised shoulder.]
Miranda: You're hurt.
Brennan: It's nothing, don't worry about it.
Miranda: Here, come inside. [She leads him into her bedroom and rubs ointment on his shoulder.] You were brave out there, fighting for me.
Brennan: Well, you're worth fighting for.
Miranda: How does it feel?
Brennan: Like brand new. [He kisses her, pulling her down onto the bed.]
****Commercial Break****
[Brennan and Miranda lie in each other's arms.]
Miranda: See, I told you New Hope would grow on you.
Brennan: Yeah, but I'd still like to take you to my world, so you can see what you're missing.
Miranda: Not missing anything. What's so great about your world, anyway?
Brennan: Everything. Thai food and dance clubs, oceans, cars... [He chuckles at her confused frown.] You should see the look on your face.
Miranda: Well, I still think you'd be happier here with me.
Brennan (kissing her head): Well, since I don't have a choice... [There's a knock at the front door, so Miranda dons a robe to answer it.]
Xander: Hey.
Miranda: Xander? What are you doing here?
Xander: I've come to see your friend.
Miranda: There isn't any trouble, is there?
Xander (coming in): No, no, there's no trouble. I just wanna talk to him, is all. Can we have a minute?
Brennan (coming downstairs): Well, I'm kind of busy, but...uh...yeah. [Miranda waits in the doorway.]
Xander: It's about the world outside the wall. I know.
Brennan: You're part of this whole thing, so why should I trust you?
Xander: Well, if I'd wanted to hurt you, I wouldn't have come alone. I've got something to show you. Come with me, please?
Brennan: All right. Look, Miranda, I'm gonna be back in a minute. I'm gonna go with Xander, okay? [He follows Xander out of the house.]
[At the Edgarstown Garage, the owner's yelling at one of her mechanics when Shalimar, Jesse, and Emma return to confront her.]
The Owner: No, you're not getting a break until you're finished!
Shalimar: Hey! We found our friend's car.
Jesse (holding up the paper): Found that in the truck that hit him.
The Owner: I don't know what you're talking about.
Emma (blocking her path): You're lying.
The Owner: It was my husband's truck. It happened over by where Lewiston used to be. That whole area spooks me.
Shalimar: Yeah? Why is that?
The Owner: It's just a story that folks tell, but I know there's truth to it. Well, it used to be an abandoned mining town.
Emma: Yeah, well, I don't remember seeing any town there.
The Owner: Exactly! One day, the whole place just disappeared.
Shalimar: Just like Brennan. You know, you'd better be telling us the truth. 'Cause if our friend doesn't show up soon, I'm coming back for you and your husband.
[Xander leads Brennan into a barn loft.]
Xander: Yeah, I found these a few years back. That's when I knew that everything the elders told us was a lie. [He shows Brennan a handful of postcards of France, Italy, and African tribesmen.] See? Here are these pictures. All different places and people with strange costumes in them. See, when I saw those marks on your arm, that's when I knew you were from out there, that these places were real. I've dreamt about these places for years. Maybe it's crazy, but I even dreamed that I could go out there myself.
Brennan: Tell you what, Xander. If you can get me out of this town, you can. There's a whole world out there for you to explore.
Xander (hiding the pictures again): The council finds out about you, you might disappear.
Brennan: Yeah, you know what? Miranda talked about people disappearing.
Xander: I sometimes have to take people to council when they've lost their way. You know, didn't believe, or even worse, spoke out against the town code? Now, council claims they've disappeared, but I know better. They told them the way out of town was through the basement. But there's no way out. They just walked into the basement of the town hall and never came out.
Brennan: What do you mean?
Xander: Well, I don't know what's down there, but I got a look one time. It's...it's all metal and lights and glass.
Brennan: Well, that's gotta be the force-field generator. You know what? We gotta find a way outta here. There's gotta be a way to stop that force-field.
Xander: Well, there are other people we can trust, people who think like me. One of them might be able to help. You wait here, I'll be back. [He hurries out of the barn, only to run into Josh and Lucian.]
Josh: Wonder if I might have a word with you, Xander. [He points to the barn.] That is, of course, unless you're on official business.
Xander: What is it?
Josh: You're supposed to be a peacekeeper. You're supposed to uphold town council's will.
Xander: I do.
Josh: You're helping the outsider.
Xander: Everything they told us was a lie, Josh. We can get outside the wall. He's gonna help us. I'll get the others. [He starts forward, but Josh stabs him in the stomach with Brennan's pocket knife, killing him.]
[Shalimar calls Adam at Sanctuary, who researches the story.]
Shalimar: We need answers, Adam.
Adam: Well, I found some, but right now they don't make a lot of sense.
Jesse: Try us.
Adam: Well, Alfred Marcus was a walking contradiction. He was a scientist, but he hated modern society. Now his dream was to create a self-sufficient community that was free of the negative influences of the outside world.
Emma: You can’t just decide to not be influenced.
Adam: Well, no, wait, maybe you can. You see, one of the projects he was working on was a kind of an electric bubble. It was an impenetrable forcefield that he could place over an entire town.
Shalimar: Oh, I don’t like the sounds of this.
Emma: So this town that Alfred Marcus had his eye on was what? 30 miles west of Edgarstown?
Adam: Exactly. Lewiston.
Jesse: That's right around where Brennan disappeared. [They hop back into the car.]
Shalimar: We're on it, Adam.
[Miranda's hanging laundry behind her house when Josh walks up.]
Josh: Xander's dead.
Miranda: What are you talking about?
Josh: Ben Gilbert killed Xander. He murdered him with his knife. I saw the whole thing with my own eyes.
Miranda: No.
Josh: Xander was gonna turn him in to town council.
Miranda: He wouldn't have done that.
Josh: I told you, I saw it. You don't even know anything about him, do you? [Miranda backs away in shock, shaking.] Okay. Hey, Miranda, listen. Hey. Now, they're gonna want to talk to you, okay? Because you were with him. But I can protect you, all right? You just have to do the right thing. Okay? Okay.
[Jesse drives down the road, stopping thirty miles west of Edgarstown.]
Emma: This is right around where the Lewiston town limits would be.
Jesse: Cruise around, see what we can find.
[Miranda hesitantly enters the barn alone.]
Miranda: Brennan? Brennan? Brennan?
Brennan (in the hayloft): Yeah! Yeah, I'm up here.
Miranda: The whole town's looking for you. It's not safe here. [Chomping on a straw, he jumps down to join her.]
Brennan: Where are we going?
Miranda (leading him outside): Don't worry, just come with me.
Brennan: What?
Miranda: Come with me. [Brennan halts when he sees Lucian, Josh and his gang.]
Brennan: Miranda, come here.
Miranda (pulling away): You shouldn't have killed Xander, Brennan. He wouldn't have hurt you.
Brennan: What? I didn't kill anybody.
Josh: Take him. [Brennan's overpowered when Lucian strikes him with a baseball bat.] You've made yourself a big mistake, "Ben." Pick him up, let's go. [Brennan calls out to Miranda, but she walks away.]
Brennan: Miranda! Miranda! [Josh strikes him in the stomach again, silencing him.]
***Commercial Break***
[As the entire town watches from the courthouse pews, the new sheriff escorts the handcuffed Brennan before the town council.]
Councilwoman: Let's proceed. Ben Gilbert, you are charged with a crime never before seen in New Hope. The murder of another person, our beloved Xander Delassandro.
Brennan: Xander was trying to help me, so why would I want to kill him?
Councilman (holding up the murder weapon): This is your knife, is it not?
Brennan: Yes. [Murmers from the crowd make him realize what he's admitted to.] Woah, wait, no, no. Someone took that from me! Someone's trying to set me up! [Miranda avoids his eyes.]
Councilwoman: Gerald! [Gerald enters, followed by Lucian.] Thank you for coming down.
Gerald: Yeah.
Councilwoman: So, we'll make this quick. Do you recognize this man?
Gerald (pointing a trembling finger at Brennan): Yeah, that's my son, Ben. [Miranda's jaw drops.]
Brennan: What?! That's not the truth! That's not true! Listen to me, that is not true, okay? I have never seen this man before in my life!
Councilwoman: Enough! We'll reconvene in five minutes.
Brennan: Listen to me! Tell them the truth! [The new sheriff shoves him back into his chair. Lucian takes Gerald outside.]
Lucian: You did the right thing, Gerald.
Gerald: Just leave my family alone!
Lucian: Woah, hey. Remember, old man, our day is coming. [He returns to the courthouse.]
[Jesse, Shalimar, and Emma are still searching the field by the road.]
Jesse: If you ask me, that lady at the junkyard is holding out on us.
Emma: No, she wasn't. Trust me.
Jesse: Well, he couldn't just have disappeared into thin air, could he?
Shalimar (spying the force-field with her feral vision): Maybe the air's not so thin after all. [She rushes headlong into the barrier, which repels her. Emma helps her up.]
Emma: What the hell was that?
Shalimar: I'd say that's Adam's bubble.
[Adam calls the team as he prepares the Double Helix.]
Adam: The satellite imagery that I'm picking up over the area is distorted by a powerful energy field.
Emma: We know. Shalimar just hit the glass ceiling trying to find a way in.
Shalimar: So I guess somewhere in there is Alfred Marcus's little slice of heaven.
Emma: Brennan must have found a way in.
Jesse: Well, then we've gotta find a way to get him out.
Adam: You guys stay right there. I think I might have just figured out a way to crack through the shield. I'm on my way.
Jesse: Roger that, Adam. We'll wait for you here.
[The council meets with Josh behind the courthouse.]
Councilman: We can't abandon everything because of one outsider. We must ensure harmony. We’re doing the right thing.
Councilwoman: Perhaps. But how many times do we have to kill the truth before it stays dead? [They return to pronounce the verdict.] Ben Gilbert, because you refuse to accept responsibility and remorse for the murder of Xander Delassandro, and chose to hide behind lies and fantasy, blaspheming the foundations of New Hope, we have no choice but to find you guilty. Therefore, on this day, you will be put to death in town square in front of the assembled citizens. [Brennan looks back, but Miranda's chair is empty. The guards pull him back when he lunges at Josh.]
[Adam lands the Double Helix in the field outside the barrier. Inside New Hope, Brennan's arms and legs are tied to two horses.]
Brennan: You can't do this! I didn't kill Xander! You have to listen to me!
Josh: You're about to take your last breath, Mr. Gilbert. Make it a good showing.
Brennan: My name's not Ben Gilbert. It's not Ben Gilbert, it's Brennan Mulwray.
Josh: In a few minutes, it won't matter what the hell your name is.
Brennan: I didn't do it! You've gotta listen to me, I didn't do it!
Councilwoman (motioning to the horseman): Let's get this over with.
Brennna: My name's not Ben Gilbert. I didn't do it!
[Jesse pilots The Helix while Shalimar and Emma assemble a blue device in the floor.]
Shlimar: Hey Adam, almost ready with the payload.
Adam (calibrating controls): Good. Now the night that Brennan disappeared, I found out that there was a lightning storm that may have destabilized the dome long enough for him to slip through.
Shalimar: Well, we can't exactly wait for another storm.
Adam: Yeah, exactly. Which is why we're gonna give Mother Nature a little helping hand by seeding the area with this supercharged silver iodide. If there's any electricity in here, that stuff is gonna make it sizzle.
Emma: We're on target whenever you're ready.
Adam: Let's begin the seeding. [Silver dust is released from the Helix, sparking lightning in the surrounding clouds.]
[Brennan lies on the ground, each of his four limbs tied to a different horse.]
Brennan: You can kill me, but that's not gonna stop the truth and you know it! All those people that you think disappeared were murdered by the town council because they can't handle the truth! [Miranda finds Lucian in the crowd.]
Lucian: You did a good thing, turning him in, Miranda. You're one of us.
Miranda: We all did what we had to do. You did the hard part, right? Killing Xander?
Lucian (startled): I didn't kill anybody!
Miranda: Josh said that you did.
Lucian: Well, he's lying! It was him. He said Xander deserved it.
Josh: Whip the horses! Do it! [Brennan screams as the four horses start off in different directions.]
Brennan: Miranda!
Miranda: This stops now! [She runs towards Josh, who grabs her.] You killed Xander! Let him go, he's innocent! Let him go! [Everyone freezes when a gunshot sounds behind the crowd. Gerald Gilbert strides in with his rifle.]
Josh: What are you doing?
Gerald: Ending this here and now.
Josh: Look--
Gerald (pointing his rifle at Josh): Let him down.
Josh: Put him down. Put him down! [The men release the horses, and Miranda unties his restraints.]
Brennan: Quick, get me out of this.
Gerald: The outsider is not my son! He's the one telling the truth. This place has become a prison. [He shakes his head at the council members.] I don’t know what you’ve become. [Brennan, who punches Josh in the face, then takes Miranda's arm. He pats Gerald's shoulder.]
Brennan: Thanks. [He and Miranda escape together. Lucian knocks Gerald unconscious with a stick, and Josh takes his rifle.]
Josh: Let's go. Let's go! [He and his friends chase after Miranda and Brennan.]
***Commercial Break***
[Brennan and Miranda run into the town hall and bar the door.]
Brennan: You took a big chance, helping me back there.
Miranda: I did what was right.
Brennan: Yeah, well, most people would have helped themselves.
Miranda: You would have done the same for me, I know it. [Brennan goes to the basement door.] Brennan, we can't!
Brennan: There's nowhere else to go, okay? We need to try and stop this thing.
Josh (banging on the door): Miranda? Miranda, open the door! You're gonna die in there!
Brennan: Come on, Miranda! [They discover a huge glowing rod in the basement.]
Miranda: What is it?
Brennan: It's what's creating your wall.
[Up in the Helix, the team waits for the silver iodide to work.]
Emma: You know, I grew up in Seattle. I can’t believe I’m actually praying for rain.
Adam: The rain's just a byproduct. What we need is a good old-fashioned lightning storm.
Emma: Thunder.
Shlaimar: And our lightning.
Adam (getting up): All right, it's time. Let's fire this old bird up. [Lightning strikes the Helix.]
Emma: It's working.
Jesse: Bring it on.
Adam: All right. Everybody do me a favor, don’t touch the hull. Right now, we’re packing about a billion volts.
Jesse (smirking): A billion, huh?
[Brennan and Miranda slowly approach the force-field generator.]
Brennan: Come on, we need to stop it. [Miranda starts forward.] Wait, no, wait. [He tosses a broom at the generator. It explodes into oblivion.] Of course, it would have its own protection.
Miranda (crying): That's what happened to my father and the others, wasn't it? [Josh and his friends burst in.]
Josh: Right there, right there, don't move! Or I'll shoot her where she stands. Come here! [The sheriff grabs Brennan and Josh takes Miranda.] Well, let's go. We're keeping everybody waiting for the show.
[Adam monitors their progress on his computer.]
Shalimar: Adam, we have to be powered up by now.
Jesse: We're gonna start losing the storm, Adam.
Adam: All right, we're ready. Firing and now!
[Josh and his friends drag Brennan and Miranda out of the town hall.]
Brennan: It won't work, Josh! Everybody knows now. You can't make that go away.
Josh: I don't have to make it go away. I just have to make you go away.
[Jesse fires electricity at the bubble surrounding New Hope, opening a small hole in the force-field.]
Emma: It's working! I can see the town.
Adam: No, that's not good enough! We have to take out the field generator or it's gonna power up again and trap us inside.
Jesse: What do you want me to do?
Adam: Right, just keep it focused on the center of the field, that's where the generator has to be.
Jesse: Okay.
Adam: Ready, and firing now!
[The townspeople watch Josh aim the rifle at Brennan and Miranda.]
Josh: I'm gonna miss you, Miranda. [The crowd gasps as a bright arc of electricity pierces the blue sky and levels the town hall, collapsing the force-field. A semi rolls by on the highway where the wall used to be, and Miranda looks up at the Helix hovering in the sky.]
Miranda: Oh my God. You were right.
Josh: This can't be! [He aims his rifle again, but Brennan zaps him with a tesla coil.]
Brennan: Not this time, Josh.
Shalimar: Brennan! [The team runs towards Brennan, but stop when confronted by the stares of the frightened townspeople. Brennan turns to Miranda.]
Brennan: Well? You ready?
Miranda: Brennan, I can't. I'm not ready.
Brennan: Well, I guess I understand. I mean, your world just widened a million times over, right?
Miranda (smiling): Stay with me.
Brennan: I wish I could, but you know I can't. I have a life. You know I have things that I have to do.
Miranda (pouting): I know.
Brennan: Well, when you're...uh...when you're ready to see more of the world, give me a call, huh?
Miranda: I will.
Brennan: Okay. [They kiss. The team watches the townspeople's awe at the highway activity.]
Emma: It’s like going from a fishbowl to the Atlantic.
Adam: I kind of envy them. Now they get a chance to experience a fresh new world.
Shalimar: I don’t know. I’ve been in that world my whole life. I don’t know how fresh it is. [Adam laughs.]
Brennan (letting Miranda go): See you soon.
Miranda (walking away): Okay.
Shalimar: You okay?
Brennan: Yeah. Yeah, small town living's just not for me.
Shalimar: Didn’t look like it from where I was standing.
Brennan: Yeah, well it has its moments. Let's get outta here. I'm not very good with goodbyes. [The team heads back to the Helix, Adam taking one last look at the crowd.]
Adam: Like Shakespeare said: "O brave new world."
Closing Credits.