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More Season 9 Spoilers

Provenance (Part 1 of 2)

Episode: 9X10
Airdate: 03/03/02
Written by: Chris Carter and Frank Spotnitz
Directed by: Kim Manners
Starring: Gillian Anderson as Dana Scully, Robert Patrick as John Doggett, Annabeth Gish as Monica Reyes, and Mitch Pileggi as Walter Skinner


IMAGES FROM "PROVENANCE" (80!)

TEASER
U.S. - CANADIAN BORDER
BURKE COUNTY, NORTH DAKOTA
Two agents are surveilling the U.S. - Canadian border when they see a man on a motorcycle. He speeds away from him so they start to chase him.

When they think that the biker has nowhere to go, he speeds up and crashes in a ditch. The motorcycle blows up and catches on fire.

The camera pans to show the driver's bag lying on the ground, its contents spilled. It contains some rubbings from an alien craft.

ACT ONE
Scully has been called into Skinner's office. He, Kersh, and Follmer are there. Kersh holds up a plastic bag. In it are the burnt pieces of rubbings from the craft.

Kersh and Follmer ask her if she knows what it is. They aren't very forthcoming with information, so neither is she. Follmer tells her that Skinner led them to believe that she would be able to tell them what it is.

Skinner just stands expressionless.

Scully asks him why they are asking her, and Follmer tells her that it is because she once worked on the X-Files. She asks him then why they aren't asking someone who is working on the X-Files now. He just tells her it is because they are asking her.

Scully asks where they got it, and finally Kersh gives somewhat of an answer. He tells her that it was found in an illegal border crossing in North Dakota from Canada. Scully asks who illegally crossed the border, and Follmer tells her that they are asking the questions.

Kersh then tells her that what Follmer means to say is that her cooperation is important to the investigation. She tells him that she would be happy to cooperate; she just wishes that she knew who or what they're investigating.

Scully goes into the X-Files office and starts questioning Doggett and Reyes. She asks them if they were called, and if Follmer was down there going through the X-Files. She wasn't, and they have no idea what she is talking about.

Scully pulls out a past X-File with pictures of the rubbings and tells them that they are rubbings from the surface structure of a craft in Africa. She was called in Skinner's office and questioned by the senior staff. They showed her an exact copy of the rubbings, but said that it was found from a guy running the North Dakota border from Canada, or so they said. Reyes asks her what she told them, and Scully responds that she didn't tell them anything. Reyes then asks what she is telling them, and she says that they are powerful. Doggett questions that they are just markings. Scully tells him that they aren't just markings, but that it's writing-words-powerful words, and if they have them and are keeping the investigation of them secret, then they have a sense of their power as well.

U.S. - CANADIAN BORDER
BURKE COUNTY, NORTH DAKOTA
Doggett arrives at the scene unofficially. When he asks to see the agent in charge they send him to Follmer. Follmer tells him that he didn't call him into the investigation. Seeing all the agents around, Doggett tells him that it looks like he's the only agent out of D.C. that he didn't call.

Doggett asks him why he is there. He tells him about the man running the border, and that he was chased by suits, and it ended there.

Doggett asks him if he knows anything about him or about what he was doing. Follmer just tells him that they are still looking to find that out. Doggett asks him if he was carrying anything interesting. Follmer questions what he thinks he was carrying, and he just says that he doesn't know. Maybe something interesting-from an X-File. He tells Doggett that if that is what he is looking for, he came down there for nothing.

Doggett asks him about the Calvary. They are there looking for a dead man. He guesses that the man is dead, and Follmer says that no one could have survived a crash and then fire like that.

Doggett asks him if they have a body. He tells him that they will. Doggett thinks it is funny, because, as he says to Follmer, a dead man disappeared, which happens everyday-on the X-Files. Follmer tells him that it has nothing to do with the X-Files, and that if he sticks his nose in the case, that he promises him that he will live to regret it.

Unknown to them, a burnt hand rises up from the ground. The hand pushes leaves from its body. It is the man from the crash. He is covered in burns. He slowly pulls an artifact-a piece of the craft-from his pocket and squeezes it, and the burns disappear from his hand.

Scully arrives at Reyes's apartment. She has laid out Scully's rubbings of the craft. She tells Scully that she did not tell them that she knew what the writing said. Scully tells her that it was only through the help of an interpreter. Reyes says that Scully wrote in her report that the writing was of text from the Bible, the Koran, and religions around the world. It has about science too-like the periodic table. And that in her report she says that it is millions of years old. She tells Reyes that that is based on fossils that encrusted on the surface of the ship.

Reyes tells her that she knows that she has become more open minded about things, but asks her if she knows what she's saying. If it's true, then the symbols aren't just words, but the word of God-on the surface of an alien spacecraft. Scully tells her that it means that everything-all mankind believes in is in question. Reyes questions that she believes this. Scully tells her that she didn't at first-she refused to, but now she thinks that there are answers there-about her son. She tells Reyes that she knows how it sounds, but she has no one else to say it to. She thinks that she was meant to find it and that somehow it was meant for her. Reyes asks her then why the FBI would keep it from them and what they want with it. Scully tells her that those are questions that she cannot answer.

Doggett goes to Skinners office and yells at him for not answering his calls. Skinner tells him that he didn't get a chance to, but Doggett lets him know that he read the call logs, which show that he returned all of his calls except those from he and Reyes. Doggett tells him that he owes him an answer, and if he doesn't owe it to him, he owes it to Scully-about the X-File case the FBI has-the one they are working so hard to keep them from investigating.

Skinner asks him if he is ready for his answer-it's not an X-File. Doggett questions that that's why they have forty agents combing the border for a dead man that isn't dead. He just tells him that he doesn't know what he is talking about.

Doggett tells him that he was out there. Skinner just tells him that it was without authorization. He tells Skinner that none of them why he is keeping things from them. He tells him it is because he knows things that he doesn't, and it's for his own good.

Skinner walks away as Doggett eyes the door to Skinner's office.

ALBERTA PROVINCE
CANADA
Under the cover of a tent-like structure, men are digging and sifting the ground.

Doggett steals the rubbings from Skinner's desk, as well as the file on the case.

The scene changes to show more digging. The camera pans to show what they are uncovering-an alien spacecraft.

ACT TWO
Reyes lets Doggett into her apartment. He shows her the writings, along with the X-File. It contains a picture of the motorcyclist, Robert Comer-an FBI agent. He was working undercover.

JESSUP, MARYLAND
10:20 PM
Comer comes up to a truck and gets in. He starts to hotwire it when the driver comes up and shoves him out of the truck. The two fight until Comer knocks the man out. He leaves in the truck.

The camera pans to show the map in his hands. It zooms in on Georgetown.

Doggett calls Scully to come to Reyes's.

Scully is going to leave William with Maggie. Her mother tells her that no matter what she should love William-God gave her a miracle, a child that was not supposed to be. Maybe it's not to be questioned, but should taken on faith. Scully tells her that she needs answers-she needs to know if it's really God that she has to thank.

Scully arrives at Reyes apartment. She asks her they got the new rubbings and Doggett tells her that he took them, along with the file on the man that was carrying them. He explains that Comer was an FBI agent working undercover, infiltrating a religious group-some kind of whacked-out UFO cult. A case that they were never told about.

Scully asks where the cult is. He tells her that it was in North Dakota, but that at some point they up and disappeared into Canada. Comer went with them and the government lost contact with him. Scully asks him what the FBI thinks he was doing. Doggett tells her that the FBI thinks that he went over to the dark side-became whacked out himself.

He tells her that that is the secret, that and the fact that they can't find him. Scully tells him that that morning she was questioned not about an agent, but about the rubbings. There is more to it.

Reyes agrees with Scully, but tells her that it may be something that the FBI is not aware of. She asks Scully how they could be without access to her files.

Reyes tells her that she has studied the new rubbings-they don't match the set from Africa. They must have found a second spacecraft.

Maggie walks down the street to Scully's apartment, pushing William in his stroller. Comer watches her from the window.

She enters Scully's apartment with William. Comer is behind the door and jumps out at her.

Scully comes home to find her mother hurt and on the floor. Margaret yells to Scully that he is trying to kill William.

Scully enters William's room with her gun drawn. Scully fights with Comer, but he knocks her gun to the floor and out of the room. He wins the fight and knocks her out of the room, and locks the door. Scully screams that she will kill him if he touches William.

Maggie picks up Scully's gun and gives it to her. Scully shoots open the door and finds Comer standing above William's crib with a pillow, ready to smother him. She shoots him three times and he falls.

William starts to cry from the shots as the camera closes in on Scully's face.

ACT THREE
Doggett and Reyes rush to Scully's apartment. Margaret is sitting on the couch. Scully walks into the room holding William. She asks Reyes to take William and her mother to safety.

Doggett hears a moan realizes that the man is still there. Scully takes him into the bedroom. Comer is lying on the floor bleeding. Doggett tells her to help him, but she tells him that he tried to kill her baby and she won't help him until he tells her why. She's not going to turn him over to the FBI and let them cover their tracks on this one.

Doggett tells her that he is calling the paramedics. Scully tries to stop him.

She shakes Comer asking him why, and he whispers, "Your son has to die." Scully asks him why and who told him that, but he passes out.

The paramedics come and take Comer away on a stretcher.

Doggett asks her if Comer had a weapon. She tells her that it was a pillow. Doggett tells her that whatever brought him there, he hopes to God that they figure it out.

Doggett leaves.

When everyone is gone, Scully goes back into the bedroom. She sees Comer's jacket on the floor. She finds the artifact in his pocket.

CALGARY
ALBERTA PROVINCE, CANADA
A woman picks up a newspaper. On the cover is a picture of Comer. The headline says, "Missing FBI Agent Shot in Washington."

The woman goes back to where they are digging and shows the paper to the one man. He tells her that everything has changed now and that there is only one thing to do.

FBI HEADQUARTERS
WASHINGTON, D.C.
Scully and Doggett have been called into Skinner's office. Kersh says that a man was shot in Scully's apartment. Scully tells them that he tried to kill her baby. Kersh doesn't question this; he just tells her that there will be an investigation. She asks if it will be another secret investigation of if she will be given advance warning that her family is in danger.

Follmer tells her that it will help them to help her if she tells him anything that Comer tried to communicate to her.

Doggett tells her that he wouldn't tell them anything until they explain why all the hush-hush and doublespeak.

Kersh tells them that Comer was undercover-which they already found out through unethical means. He was to infiltrate a religious cult, run by former military officer that's dangerous and believes in dangerous ideas about aliens. Scully asks him why they didn't tell them and why it wasn't an X-File.

Skinner finally admits that he asked someone else to be put on the case because he was afraid that after all of what she had been through, that it might break her. Scully questions this.

Kersh tells her that Agent Comer was sent to infiltrate the cult based on a theory of threats. Scully asks whom the threats were to, guessing William or herself.

Follmer finishes what Kersh was saying. He tells her that they were threats on Mulder's life.

Scully, getting upset, questions that if that is what it was about why they pulled her in there and showed her the rubbings.

Follmer tells her that before losing all contact with the undercover agent, he sent them a communication, which they've been trying to confirm. The communication was that Mulder is already dead.

Scully's eyes start to fill with tears. She leaves the room.

Reyes arrives at Scully's apartment to give her William. She takes William and just kisses him, almost crying. Reyes can see that she is upset and asks what happened. After a few moments of silence, Scully tells her that it's about Mulder.

As Scully starts to tell her, a drawer starts rattling. Scully puts William in his crib and goes over to the drawer where she put the artifact. When she opens it, the artifact flies through the air and into William's room, straight for his crib, breaking the wooden bars on the side.

Scully and Reyes rush in the room to find the artifact spinning slowly over William's head. He stares at it, obviously making it spin.

ACT FOUR
Doggett arrives and is met by Reyes. She wants to tell him what is going on before he goes inside. Doggett says that she said that it had to do with William and a piece of the metal that the markings were taken from. She tells him that it is a piece of a ship in Canada. He tells her that she is just guessing that there is any such thing. She tells him that the artifact flew through the air at the baby-she saw it. He tells her just to tell him that the baby is okay. She tells him that she doesn't think that he understands. The baby has some connection to the piece of metal.

DOGGETT: You saying this kid's an alien or something?
REYES: You can believe or not, but the man who tried to kill Scully's baby believed it. So must this cult he got involved with, who are more than willing to kill for their belief.

Scully walks out of her apartment with William. Doggett asks where they are going and she tells him that she will tell them on the way.

As Doggett goes to get in the car, he sees a woman, the woman from the excavation site, watching them. He tells Reyes to drive and that he will follow their car.

As Scully drives off, he walks over to the woman's car. He pulls out his badge and gun. She stares at him and then pushes the gas. He shoots at her, but she hits him before he can move, and he flies over the front of the car and onto the ground. The woman keeps driving.

In the car, Reyes asks:

REYES: Who are we meeting?
SCULLY: The only ones left we can trust.

Scully and Reyes pull up in an alley. They get out to meet the Lone Gunmen. Frohike takes William's car seat from the car.

As Byers holds the baby (away from Langly!) Scully kisses him goodbye. She tells them she needs to know that they are taking him to a safe place and are taking every precaution.

Scully tells them that she thinks that her phones might have been tapped, and if they are, they can trace them. They thought about that. Langly gives her a bag with six cell phones with scrambled signals and tells her to use each one once and then throw it away.

Scully kisses William again.

FROHIKE: Whatever you do, don't worry.

Scully is on the verge of tears, but she knows that William is safest with them.

Scully and Reyes drive back to Scully's apartment.

When they pull up there are police there. Skinner stands there as Doggett is put into the ambulance. Reyes runs up almost in tears asking if it's Doggett.

Scully must go back to the Lone Gunmen-they and William are in danger.

Byers watches William as the Lone Gunmen start to pull out of the alley. They are cut off by the woman who was following Scully and Reyes earlier.

The woman shoots at them and it causes them to hit a pole. Frohike hits his head on the windshield.

The woman opens the door. Byers is holding William. She points her gun at Byers's face.

TO BE CONTINUED...

IMAGES FROM "PROVENANCE"(80!)


Overall Rating : 9.5
*Shippy Rating: 3
*Note: OK a new note. Ratings will be completely different now because of the absence of Mulder, and therefore most likely of most of the shippiness. The ratings for this season are not equally comparable to that of previous seasons, so they will more or less be rated on their own scale, with me (trying to) disregard the fact that DD is not in it as a component in the rating. Shippiness still (if any) will ALWAYS be based on MULDER and SCULLY (unless I decide to do MR/JD or something later). The shippy scale is still based on the Redux II scale (1-10, as Redux II being a 10 [now with Triangle being an 11, All Things being an 11.5, and Millennium being a 12, and Requiem a 12.5 all above the scale])*


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