The X-Files

- Dr Cabrera! - Where is he?

- Trauma. - Who transferred him from ICU?

I did. During prep for therapeutic plasmapheresis he went into shock.

- Vitals? - Not good.

Pulse is 40, blood pressure 80 over 50. His GCS is six.

Get on the phone to the FBI. There's an Agent Scully that should be notified.

- The FBI? - This man is an FBI agent.

- What's wrong with him? - What's wrong is he's going to die.

Can you hear me?

Mr Skinner?

I'm not understanding. Can you speak up?

- What did he say? - A name.

He's coding on us.

Clear.

Dr Cabrera, clear!

Dr Cabrera?!

Let him go.

Every minute of every day, we choose:

who we are, who we forgive,

who we defend and protect.

To choose a side or to walk the line.

To play the middle.

To straddle the fence between what is and what should be.

This was the course I chose.

Trying to find the delicate balance of interests that can never exist,

choosing by not choosing, defending a centre which cannot hold.

So death chose for me.

Go easy on him, Slugger. I need him to lock up for me tonight, OK?

Don't telegraph that left, Dre. Stevie Wonder would see that one 00min'!

You're fightin' the FBI now, Dre. Fight smart.

Go!

Hey, Slugger?

You OK?

Slugger, can you hear me?

Talk to me. You all right?

Mr Skinner?

Mr Skinner? Hi.

You gonna stick with us now?

- Do you remember what happened? - I was boxing. I must've gotten tagged.

Yes, you did. At least you didn't get your ear bit off. That's something, right?

Doctor Plant'll be with you in a minute.

Yeah, Skinner.

Hello?

Walter Skinner.

Who is this?

Have you heard the news?

It's... in... you.

What is this?

You... have 24 hours... to go.

What is this? What do you want?

You are...

already dead.

Mr Skinner. I didn't expect to see you up and around. You must be feeling better.

Can you take a seat on the table for me, please?

I'm Dr Plant. I was here with you before.

- You probably don't remember. - No.

The good news is your dilation's back to normal.

Plus, you still have both your ears.

I heard that one.

I'm gonna release you. But I suggest that you rethink the boxing.

You're not 20 any more.

There's nothing wrong with me?

You got your bell rung.

Other than that, I think you're fine.

You might want to ice that bruise.

What bruise?

Right here.

- How the hell did I get that? - Must've taken a hard one to the ribs.

But there's nothing broken. No internal bleeding. Like I said, you'll live.

Thanks.

What is it, Agent Mulder?

I just, uh... I thought I'd poke my head in and say "hey".

Hey.

- Are you sleepin' one off? - No, I was just havin' trouble seeing.

- It's nothing. I just didn't think I should drive. - You gonna be all right, sir?

He's gonna tell you he's all right.

- There's nothing wrong with me. - Not that I could tell if there was.

- Why are the lights out? - He's havin' trouble with his eyes.

He's also got a nasty bruise on his ribcage.

- What'd you do? - It's nothing.

Says who?

Says the doctor who released me from the hospital.

Ow!

That was the second opinion. The first was unsolicited.

A phone call at the hospital. A scrambled voice telling him he had 24 hours to live.

That was somebody yanking my chain. I got a clean bill of health.

In the last 48 hours, did you eat or drink anything that tasted metallic or odd?

You think that I'm poisoned?

- Did the doctor take your blood? - Yes, and it checked out.

- Poisoning could've been overlooked. - If so, why call and tell me at the hospital?

To scare you. See what you'd do, who you'd turn to.

Oh.

- This is about you. - Or about the X-Files.

You are so paranoid, Mulder. You're not even on the X-Files any more.

No, but you are. You still supervise them.

What happened today? Anything out of the ordinary?

I'm not gonna play this game.

It could've been anything. It could've been the slightest touch or a handshake.

- This morning, you woke up... - I woke up.

- Alone? - Yes. Alone.

- How'd you get to the office? - The same way that I always do. I drove.

- Then what? - Nothing. I had meetings, I went to the gym,

- to the hospital and now I'm here. - Just slow down.

One step at a time. How'd you get from the parking garage to your office?

- The elevator. - And then what?

I walked up the hallway. I passed the same dozen people that I pass every morning.

I went to my office.

I said good morning to my secretary.

And she said good morning to me.

I made calls, I did paperwork, then I was here for the rest of the day.

Think. There's gotta be something.

In the hallway, there was a man.

He stopped me. He wanted to know the time.

Did he touch you?

He grabbed me. On my right wrist.

It wouldn't necessarily leave a mark. Some poisons are absorbed through the skin.

What time was it?

There you are.

That's him. Right there.

Wait a second, back up.

It can't be.

That's Kenneth Orgel. Advisor to a Senate subcommittee on Ethics in New Technology.

- He's a scientist? - A physicist.

Very well-known, as far as physicists go.

He signed in here as a visitor to the office of Assistant Director Walter Skinner.

- Why would he be coming to see you? - I'd like to ask him that myself.

If he poisoned you, you should be off your feet and under a doctor's care.

I'm gonna put a gun to his head, find out why and ask him how he's gonna make me well.

- What hospital was he in? - St Katherine's.

" Yes? " DI" Orgep

- Kenneth Orgel? - Yes.

Do you know who I am?

No.

My name's Walter Skinner. I'm an assistant director at the FBI.

Dr Orgel, you visited the FBI this morning. You came to see Mr Skinner.

No. You must be mistaken.

Sorry. You'll have to come back another time.

- Go around back. - What?

Please, you're bothering me.

Federal Agent!

Go!

Drop the gun.

Drop it!

So's your mom.

- (man speaks in Arabic) - Give it a rest!

- Let him go, Agent Mulder. - What?

He's got diplomatic papers. It's our mistake. You can go.

Just let him go.

Get inside. The p0lice'll be here any moment and I don't have time to answer questions.

He's Alexander Lazreg.

L-a-z-r-e-g. He's a cultural attache with the Tunisian Mission here in DC.

- See what else you can find out. - You need to get to the hospital.

No, I'm tryin' to stay out of one.

- (doctor) The boxer. FBI. - You released him earlier this evening.

- Is he not all right? - That's why I'm here.

- He may have been poisoned. - You're kidding. By whom?

I don't know. In fact, I'm not even sure what I'm looking for.

You're lucky. He's on a government HMO.

- No one's even handled his samples yet. - Is this them in here?

I'm not supposed to let you have those. Not without a written release from the patient.

We may not have time.

He may not have time either.

- He had no symptoms of poisoning. - Are you sure these haven't been processed?

I'm not sure, but I doubt they've even been touched.

- I'm not so sure you should be doin' that. - This a crime scene. What should I do?

I'm just concerned for Dr Orgel's personal property. And preservation of evidence.

I'd be a lot more concerned for the preservation of Dr Orgel.

Hello, Senator.

It's carbon.

Pure carbon. How in the world would that get into his bloodstream?

- And how is it working as a poison? - By all rights, it shouldn't be.

Look at them, just rattling around in solution.

It's just bizarre.

- Did you see that? - Did you just touch something?

No, I didn't.

They just multiplied. Look!

They just did it again!

Zooming in.

What the hell are they?

Wait here, please.

I don't have to tell you how late it is, do I, Agent Mulder?

But I suspect that wasn't a consideration of yours.

Actually, time is my only consideration, Senator.

This was taken only three days ago.

It's of you and Dr Kenneth Orgel holding a Senate resolution.

SR819, I think it's called. What is that?

A funding bill. What is this all about?

A friend of mine is going to die because of SR819.

I don't know how, I don't even know why.

- But I bet you do. - What are you talking about?

I don't even really know yet. All I have is a Tunisian diplomat,

this Dr Kenneth Orgel, this health bill, SR819,

all leading to a plot to kill an assistant director of the FBI. Does that make sense?

The bill you refer to will provide money and supplies to the World Health Organization,

medical technology to Third World countries.

I have aided you in the past with information, Fox, and advice,

which right now is to leave here at once,

and never again suggest to anyone my involvement in any such dark intrigue.